The next time you meet someone that thinks they know
when Christ is coming back, calmly remind them that
“…of that day and hour no one knows, not even the
angels of Heaven, but my Father only.” (Matthew
24:31). We don’t know when Christ is coming back,
but we do know one thing—it’ll be glorious for us
Christians! I could elaborate, but why bother, when
we’ve got this excellent hymn by H. L. Turner:
1. It may be at morn, when the day is awaking,
When sunlight thru dar...(+)
The next time you meet someone that thinks they know
when Christ is coming back, calmly remind them that
“…of that day and hour no one knows, not even the
angels of Heaven, but my Father only.” (Matthew
24:31). We don’t know when Christ is coming back,
but we do know one thing—it’ll be glorious for us
Christians! I could elaborate, but why bother, when
we’ve got this excellent hymn by H. L. Turner:
1. It may be at morn, when the day is awaking,
When sunlight thru darkness and shadow is breaking,
That Jesus will come in the fullness of glory
To receive from the world His own.
2. It may be at midday, it may be at twilight,
It may be, perchance, that the blackness of
midnight
Will burst into light in the blaze of His glory,
When Jesus receives His own.
3. While hosts cry Hosanna, from Heaven descending,
With glorified saints and the angels attending,
With grace on His brow, like a halo of glory,
Will Jesus receive His own.
4. O joy! O delight! should we go without dying,
No sickness, no sadness, no dread and no crying,
Caught up thru the clouds with our Lord into glory,
When Jesus receives His own.
Chorus: O Lord Jesus, how long, how long
Ere we shout the glad song—
Christ returneth! Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Amen,
Hallelujah! Amen!
This sheet music is part of the collection of crosby3145 :
The name James McGranahan
is not quite as well known as
that of other famous American
hymnwriters, but his hymns are
among the most famous in
Christian history. You’ve
probably heard such classics
as “I Know Whom I Have
Believed,” “Christ
Receiveth Sinful Men,” and
“The Banner of the Cross.”
McGranahan wrote the tunes to
all these, and many more.
This prolific hymnwriter was
quite literally born on the
Fourth of July, 1840, in
Pennsylvania. He took voice
lessons growing up and was
gifted with an amazing tenor
voice—good enough that his
voice teachers encouraged him
to pursue an operatic career.
McGranahan was still undecided
about his calling until the
age of 36, when he received a
letter from his friend Philip
P. Bliss (also a famous
hymnwriter from Pennsylvania).
Bliss compared McGranahan’s
many years of training to a
scythe being sharpened and
encouraged him to “Stop
whetting the scythe and strike
into the grain to reap for the
Master!” In other words,
use your gifts and pursue an
evangelistic career.
McGranahan heeded the call
and went on to perform in
gospel campaigns throughout
America, as well as Great
Britain and Ireland. Like Ira
Sankey, the gospel singer
could also compose, and
McGranahan produced many
songs. He supplied tunes to
the words of other famous
hymnwriters, like Bliss
(McGranahan wrote the music to
“I Will Sing of My
Redeemer,” which Bliss never
got around to completing
because of his untimely death
in a train accident).
However, he also wrote the
words to a few of his songs,
such as “Verily, Verily”
and “Go Ye into All the
World.” He died in Ohio in
1907, leaving behind a legacy
of timeless classic hymns.
It wouldn’t be right to
write a biography of
McGranahan, however, without
also writing one on Major
Daniel W. Whittle. McGranahan
wrote the music to most of
Whittle’s best-known hymns,
and he served with Whittle on
the latter’s evangelistic
campaigns. Matter of fact, he
replaced Bliss as Whittle’s
songleader following Bliss’s
train accident. The men met
at the scene of the wreck, and
Whittle thought right away,
“Here before me stands the
man that Mr. Bliss has chosen
to be his successor.”
Daniel W. Whittle was born in
1840 in Chicopee Falls,
Massachusetts, and named for
the famous senator from that
state, Daniel Webster. He
moved to Illinois and joined
the 72nd Illinois Infantry
when the Civil War broke out.
Whittle had many adventures
while in the war—he was
wounded in the Battle of
Vicksburg, and he marched with
Sherman and his men through
Georgia, working his way to
the rank of Major by the time
the war was over. After his
discharge, he settled down in
Elgin, Illinois, to work for a
clock company, only to be
persuaded by his friend D.L.
Moody to go into evangelism.
This he did.
Whittle’s first well-known
songleader was Philip Bliss,
who was inspired by a story
Whittle told to write his hymn
“Hold the Fort, for I Am
Coming.” After Bliss’s
death, Whittle teamed up with
McGranahan, who supplied the
music for many of Whittle’s
wonderful words. Perhaps
their most famous hymn, “I
Know Whom I Have Believed”
has 2 Timothy 1:12 quoted
directly in the chorus, and
it’s hard for anyone
familiar with this song to not
feel an urge to sing (or at
least speak in rhythm) when
they read those words now!
Whittle eventually returned to
Massachusetts, dying in
Northfield in 1901, but not
without a life well spent!
(Note: For the title hymn to
this collection (I Know Whom I
Have Believed), see It Is Well
with My Soul and Nine Other
Hymns for Solo Piano.) Sheet music list : › Christ Liveth in Me › Christ Receiveth Sinful Men › Christ Returneth! › Go Ye into All the World › Hallelujah for the Cross! / Man of Sorrows › I Will Sing of My Redeemer › I'll Stand By Until the Morning › The Banner of the Cross › Verily, Verily