This is a public domain book, published in 1892.
The raw etext was provided by the Trustees of
Ellen G. White Publications, 12501 Old Columbia Pike,
Silver Springs, Maryland 20904.
May 6, 1994.
contact: seewei@orion.cc.andrews.edu (See-Wei Toh)
This text is in the public domain, posted to wiretap MAY 1994.
Few books attain a distribution reckoned in millions or exert so great an influence in the uplifting of humanity as has Steps to Christ. In countless editions, this little volume has been printed in more than seventy languages, bringing inspiration to hundreds of thousands of men and women throughout the world, even those who dwell in the remote corners of the earth. From the appearance of the first edition in 1892, the publishers have been called upon to add printing to printing to meet the immediate and sustained demand from the reading public.
The author of this work, Ellen G. White (1827–1915), was a religious speaker and writer, well known on three continents. Born near Portland, Maine, she spent her early life in the New England States, and then her travels and labors led her to the rapidly expanding central and western areas of the United States. The years 1885 to 1887 she devoted to work in the leading countries of Europe, where she often addressed large audiences, and continued her writing. Subsequently she spent nine active years in Australia and New Zealand. From her pen have come forty-five volumes, large and small, in the fields of theology, education, health, and the home, and practical Christianity, several with a distribution exceeding the million-copy mark. Of these, Steps to Christ is the most popular and widely read.
The title of the book tells its mission. It points the
This edition marks a forward step in standardizing the paging of the book in forthcoming English-language printings. With no change in the text, but with a format, spelling, and capitalization in keeping with the times, this little compendium of devotion will continue on its mission, but now in such form, regardless of the size of the type or page, as to conform to the new Index to the writings of Ellen G. White.
Jacob of old, when oppressed with the fear that his sin had cut him off from God, lay down to rest, and “he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven.” The connection between earth and heaven was thus revealed to him, and words of comfort and hope were spoken to the wanderer by Him who stood at the top of the shadowy stairs. That the heavenly vision may be repeated to many as they read this story of the way of life, is the sincere wish of the publishers, and—
The Trustees of the
Ellen G. White Publications
Nature and revelation alike testify of God’s love. Our Father in heaven is the source of life, of wisdom, and of joy. Look at the wonderful and beautiful things of nature. Think of their marvelous adaptation to the needs and happiness, not only of man, but of all living creatures. The sunshine and the rain, that gladden and refresh the earth, the hills and seas and plains, all speak to us of the Creator’s love. It is God who supplies the daily needs of all His creatures. In the beautiful words of the psalmist—
“The eyes of all wait upon Thee;
And Thou givest them their meat in due season.
Thou openest Thine hand,
And satisfiest the desire of every living thing.”
Psalm 145:15, 16 .
God made man perfectly holy and happy; and the fair earth, as it came from
the Creator’s hand, bore no blight of decay or shadow of the curse. It is
transgression of God’s law—the law of love—that has brought woe and death.
Yet even amid the suffering that results from sin, God’s love is revealed.
It is written that God cursed the ground for man’s sake.
“God is love” is written upon every opening bud, upon every spire of springing grass. The lovely birds making the air vocal with their happy songs, the delicately tinted flowers in their perfection perfuming the air, the lofty trees of the forest with their rich foliage of living green —all testify to the tender, fatherly care of our God and to His desire to make His children happy.
The word of God reveals His character. He Himself has declared His infinite
love and pity. When Moses prayed, “Show me Thy glory,” the Lord answered, “I
will make all My goodness pass before thee.”
God has bound our hearts to Him by unnumbered tokens in heaven and in earth.
Through the things of nature, and the deepest and tenderest earthly ties
that human hearts can know, He has sought to reveal Himself to us. Yet these
but imperfectly represent His love. Though all these evidences have been
given, the enemy of good blinded the minds of men, so that they looked upon
God with fear; they thought of
The Son of God came from heaven to make manifest the Father. “No man hath
seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the
Father, He hath declared Him.”
In describing His earthly mission, Jesus said, The Lord “hath anointed Me to
preach the gospel to the poor; He hath sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to
preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to
set at liberty them that are bruised.”
Jesus did not suppress one word of truth, but He uttered it always in love. He exercised the greatest tact and thoughtful, kind attention in His intercourse with the people. He was never rude, never needlessly spoke a severe word, never gave needless pain to a sensitive soul. He did not censure human weakness. He spoke the truth, but always in love. He denounced hypocrisy, unbelief, and iniquity; but tears were in His voice as He uttered His scathing rebukes. He wept over Jerusalem, the city He loved, which refused to receive Him, the way, the truth, and the life. They had rejected Him, the Saviour, but He regarded them with pitying tenderness. His life was one of self-denial and thoughtful care for others. Every soul was precious in His eyes. While He ever bore Himself with divine dignity, He bowed with the tenderest regard to every member of the family of God. In all men He saw fallen souls whom it was His mission to save.
Such is the character of Christ as revealed in His life. This is the
character of God. It is from the Father’s heart that the streams of divine
compassion, manifest in Christ, flow out to the children of men. Jesus, the
tender, pitying Saviour, was God “manifest in the flesh.”
It was to redeem us that Jesus lived and suffered and died. He became “a Man
of Sorrows,” that we might be made partakers of everlasting joy. God
permitted His beloved Son, full of grace and truth, to come from a world of
indescribable glory, to a world marred and blighted with sin, darkened with
the shadow of death and the curse. He permitted Him to leave the bosom of
His love, the adoration of the angels, to suffer shame, insult, humiliation,
hatred, and death. “The chastisement of our peace was upon Him; and with His
stripes we are healed.”
But this great sacrifice was not made in order to create in the Father’s
heart a love for man, not to make Him willing to save. No, no! “God so loved
the world, that He gave His only-begotten Son.”
Jesus said, “Therefore doth My Father love Me, because I lay down My life,
that I might take it again.”
None but the Son of God could accomplish our redemption; for only He who was in the bosom of the Father could declare Him. Only He who knew the height and depth of the love of God could make it manifest. Nothing less than the infinite sacrifice made by Christ in behalf of fallen man could express the Father’s love to lost humanity.
“God so loved the world, that He gave His only-begotten Son.” He gave Him
not only to live among men, to bear their sins, and die their sacrifice. He
gave Him to the fallen race. Christ was to identify Himself with the
interests and needs of humanity. He who was one with God has linked Himself
with the children of men by ties that are never to be broken. Jesus is “not
ashamed to call them brethren” (
The price paid for our redemption, the infinite sacrifice of our heavenly
Father in giving His Son to die for us, should give us exalted conceptions
of what we may become through Christ. As the inspired apostle John beheld
the height, the depth, the breadth of the Father’s love toward the perishing
race, he was filled with adoration and reverence; and, failing to find
suitable language in which to express the greatness and tenderness of this
love, he called upon the world to behold it. “Behold, what manner of love
the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God.”
Such love is without a parallel. Children of the heavenly King! Precious promise! Theme for the most profound meditation! The matchless love of God for a world that did not love Him! The thought has a subduing power upon the soul and brings the mind into captivity to the will of God. The more we study the divine character in the light of the cross, the more we see mercy, tenderness, and forgiveness blended with equity and justice, and the more clearly we discern innumerable evidences of a love that is infinite and a tender pity surpassing a mother’s yearning sympathy for her wayward child.
Man was originally endowed with noble powers and a well-balanced mind. He was perfect in his being, and in harmony with God. His thoughts were pure, his aims holy. But through disobedience, his powers were perverted, and selfishness took the place of love. His nature became so weakened through transgression that it was impossible for him, in his own strength, to resist the power of evil. He was made captive by Satan, and would have remained so forever had not God specially interposed. It was the tempter’s purpose to thwart the divine plan in man’s creation, and fill the earth with woe and desolation. And he would point to all this evil as the result of God’s work in creating man.
In his sinless state, man held joyful communion with Him “in whom are hid
all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.”
It is impossible for us, of ourselves, to escape from the pit of sin in
which we are sunken. Our hearts are evil, and we cannot change them. “Who
can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? not one.” “The carnal mind is
enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed
can be.”
The Saviour said, “Except a man be born from above,” unless he shall receive
a new heart, new desires, purposes, and motives, leading to a new life, “he
cannot see the kingdom of God.”
It is not enough to perceive the loving-kindness of God, to see the
benevolence, the fatherly tenderness, of His character. It is not enough to
discern the wisdom and justice of His law, to see that it is founded upon
the eternal principle of love. Paul the apostle saw all this when he
exclaimed, “I consent unto the law that it is good.” “The law is holy, and
the commandment holy, and just, and good.” But he added, in the bitterness
of his soul-anguish and despair, “I am carnal, sold under sin.”
Many are the figures by which the Spirit of God has sought to illustrate
this truth, and make it plain to souls that long to be freed from the burden
of guilt. When, after his sin in deceiving Esau, Jacob fled from his
father’s home, he was weighed down with a sense
This is the same figure to which Christ referred in His conversation with
Nathanael, when He said, “Ye shall see heaven open, and the angels of God
ascending and descending upon the Son of man.”
But in vain are men’s dreams of progress, in vain all efforts for the
uplifting of humanity, if they neglect the one Source of hope and help for
the fallen race. “Every good gift and every perfect gift” (
The heart of God yearns over His earthly children with a love stronger than death. In giving up His Son, He has poured out to us all heaven in one gift. The Saviour’s life and death and intercession, the ministry of angels, the pleading of the Spirit, the Father working above and through all, the unceasing interest of heavenly beings,—all are enlisted in behalf of man’s redemption.
Oh, let us contemplate the amazing sacrifice that has been made for us! Let us try to appreciate the labor and energy that Heaven is expending to reclaim the lost, and bring them back to the Father’s house. Motives stronger, and agencies more powerful, could never be brought into operation; the exceeding rewards for right-doing, the enjoyment of heaven, the society of the angels, the communion and love of God and His Son, the elevation and extension of all our powers throughout eternal ages—are these not mighty incentives and encouragements to urge us to give the heart’s loving service to our Creator and Redeemer?
And, on the other hand, the judgments of God pronounced against sin, the
inevitable retribution, the
Shall we not regard the mercy of God? What more could He do? Let us place ourselves in right relation to Him who has loved us with amazing love. Let us avail ourselves of the means provided for us that we may be transformed into His likeness, and be restored to fellowship with the ministering angels, to harmony and communion with the Father and the Son.
How shall a man be just with God? How shall the sinner be made righteous? It
is only through Christ that we can be brought into harmony with God, with
holiness; but how are we to come to Christ? Many are asking the same
question as did the multitude on the Day of Pentecost, when, convicted of
sin, they cried out, “What shall we do?” The first word of Peter’s answer
was, “Repent.”
Repentance includes sorrow for sin and a turning away from it. We shall not renounce sin unless we see its sinfulness; until we turn away from it in heart, there will be no real change in the life.
There are many who fail to understand the true nature of repentance.
Multitudes sorrow that they have sinned and even make an outward reformation
because they fear that their wrongdoing will bring suffering upon
themselves. But this is not repentance in the Bible sense. They lament the
suffering rather than the sin. Such was the grief of Esau when he saw that
the birthright was lost to him forever. Balaam, terrified by the angel
standing in his pathway with drawn sword, acknowledged his guilt lest he
should lose his life; but there was no genuine repentance for sin, no
conversion of purpose, no abhorrence of evil. Judas Iscariot, after
betraying his
The confession was forced from his guilty soul by an awful sense of condemnation and a fearful looking for of judgment. The consequences that were to result to him filled him with terror, but there was no deep, heartbreaking grief in his soul, that he had betrayed the spotless Son of God and denied the Holy One of Israel. Pharaoh, when suffering under the judgments of God, acknowledged his sin in order to escape further punishment, but returned to his defiance of Heaven as soon as the plagues were stayed. These all lamented the results of sin, but did not sorrow for the sin itself.
But when the heart yields to the influence of the Spirit of God, the
conscience will be quickened, and the sinner will discern something of the
depth and sacredness of God’s holy law, the foundation of His government in
heaven and on earth. The “Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into
the world,” illumines the secret chambers of the soul, and the hidden things
of darkness are made manifest.
The prayer of David after his fall, illustrates the nature of true sorrow
for sin. His repentance was sincere and deep. There was no effort to
palliate
“Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.
Blessed is the man unto whom the Lord imputeth not iniquity,
And in whose spirit there is no guile.”
Psalm 32:1, 2 .“Have mercy upon me, O God, according to Thy loving-kindness:
According unto the multitude of Thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions. . . .
For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me. . . .
Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. . ..
Create in me a clean heart, O God;
And renew a right spirit within me.
Cast me not away from Thy presence;
And take not Thy Holy Spirit from me.
Restore unto me the joy of Thy salvation;
And uphold me with Thy free spirit. . ..
Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, Thou God of my salvation:
And my tongue shall sing aloud of Thy righteousness.”
Psalm 51:1–14 .
A repentance such as this, is beyond the reach of our own power to accomplish; it is obtained only from Christ, who ascended up on high and has given gifts unto men.
Just here is a point on which many may err, and hence they fail of receiving the help that Christ desires to give them. They think that they cannot come to Christ unless they first repent, and that repentance prepares for the forgiveness of their sins. It is true that repentance does precede the forgiveness of sins; for it is only the broken and contrite heart that will feel the need of a Saviour. But must the sinner wait till he has repented before he can come to Jesus? Is repentance to be made an obstacle between the sinner and the Saviour?
The Bible does not teach that the sinner must repent before he can heed the
invitation of Christ, “Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy-laden,
and I will give you rest.”
Christ is the source of every right impulse. He is the only one that can implant in the heart enmity against sin. Every desire for truth and purity, every conviction of our own sinfulness, is an evidence that His Spirit is moving upon our hearts.
Jesus has said, “I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto
Me.”
It is true that men sometimes become ashamed of their sinful ways, and give up some of their evil habits, before they are conscious that they are being drawn to Christ. But whenever they make an effort to reform, from a sincere desire to do right, it is the power of Christ that is drawing them. An influence of which they are unconscious works upon the soul, and the conscience is quickened, and the outward life is amended. And as Christ draws them to look upon His cross, to behold Him whom their sins have pierced, the commandment comes home to the conscience. The wickedness of their life, the deep-seated sin of the soul, is revealed to them. They begin to comprehend something of the righteousness of Christ, and exclaim, “What is sin, that it should require such a sacrifice for the redemption of its victim? Was all this love, all this suffering, all this humiliation, demanded, that we might not perish, but have everlasting life?”
The sinner may resist this love, may refuse to be drawn to Christ; but if he does not resist he will be drawn to Jesus; a knowledge of the plan of salvation will lead him to the foot of the cross in repentance for his sins, which have caused the sufferings of God’s dear Son.
The same divine mind that is working upon the things of nature is speaking
to the hearts of men and creating an inexpressible craving for something
they have not. The things of the world cannot satisfy their longing. The
Spirit of God is pleading with them to seek for those things that alone can
give peace and rest—the grace of Christ, the joy of holiness. Through
influences seen and unseen, our Saviour is constantly at work to attract the
minds of men from the unsatisfying pleasures of sin to the infinite
blessings that may be theirs in Him. To all these souls, who are vainly
seeking to drink from the broken cisterns of this world, the divine message
is addressed, “Let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him
take the water of life freely.”
You who in heart long for something better than this world can give, recognize this longing as the voice of God to your soul. Ask Him to give you repentance, to reveal Christ to you in His infinite love, in His perfect purity. In the Saviour’s life the principles of God’s law—love to God and man—were perfectly exemplified. Benevolence, unselfish love, was the life of His soul. It is as we behold Him, as the light from our Saviour falls upon us, that we see the sinfulness of our own hearts.
We may have flattered ourselves, as did Nicodemus, that our life has been
upright, that our moral character is correct, and think that we need not
humble the heart before God, like the common sinner: but when the light from
Christ shines into our souls, we shall see how impure we are; we shall
discern the selfishness of motive, the enmity against God, that
One ray of the glory of God, one gleam of the purity of Christ, penetrating the soul, makes every spot of defilement painfully distinct, and lays bare the deformity and defects of the human character. It makes apparent the unhallowed desires, the infidelity of the heart, the impurity of the lips. The sinner’s acts of disloyalty in making void the law of God, are exposed to his sight, and his spirit is stricken and afflicted under the searching influence of the Spirit of God. He loathes himself as he views the pure, spotless character of Christ.
When the prophet Daniel beheld the glory surrounding the heavenly messenger
that was sent unto him, he was overwhelmed with a sense of his own weakness
and imperfection. Describing the effect of the wonderful scene, he says,
“There remained no strength in me: for my comeliness was turned in me into
corruption, and I retained no strength.”
Paul says that as “touching the righteousness which is in the law”—as far
as outward acts were concerned —he was “blameless” (
God does not regard all sins as of equal magnitude; there are degrees of guilt in His estimation, as well as in that of man; but however trifling this or that wrong act may seem in the eyes of men, no sin is small in the sight of God. Man’s judgment is partial, imperfect; but God estimates all things as they really are. The drunkard is despised and is told that his sin will exclude him from heaven; while pride, selfishness, and covetousness too often go unrebuked. But these are sins that are especially offensive to God; for they are contrary to the benevolence of His character, to that unselfish love which is the very atmosphere of the unfallen universe. He who falls into some of the grosser sins may feel a sense of his shame and poverty and his need of the grace of Christ; but pride feels no need, and so it closes the heart against Christ and the infinite blessings He came to give.
The poor publican who prayed, “God be merciful to me a sinner” (
If you see your sinfulness, do not wait to make yourself better. How many
there are who think they are not good enough to come to Christ. Do you
expect to become better through your own efforts? “Can the Ethiopian change
his skin, or the leopard his spots? then may ye also do good, that are
accustomed to do evil.”
But let none deceive themselves with the thought that God, in His great love
and mercy, will yet save even the rejecters of His grace. The exceeding
sinfulness of sin can be estimated only in the light of the cross. When men
urge that God is too good to cast off the sinner, let them look to Calvary.
It was because there was no other way in which man could be saved, because
without this sacrifice it was impossible for the human race to escape from
the defiling power of sin, and be restored to communion with holy
beings,—impossible for them again to become partakers
The impenitent sometimes excuse themselves by saying of professed Christians, “I am as good as they are. They are no more self-denying, sober, or circumspect in their conduct than I am. They love pleasure and self-indulgence as well as I do.” Thus they make the faults of others an excuse for their own neglect of duty. But the sins and defects of others do not excuse anyone, for the Lord has not given us an erring human pattern. The spotless Son of God has been given as our example, and those who complain of the wrong course of professed Christians are the ones who should show better lives and nobler examples. If they have so high a conception of what a Christian should be, is not their own sin so much the greater? They know what is right, and yet refuse to do it.
Beware of procrastination. Do not put off the work of forsaking your sins
and seeking purity of heart through Jesus. Here is where thousands upon
thousands have erred to their eternal loss. I will not here dwell upon the
shortness and uncertainty of life; but there is a terrible danger—a danger
not sufficiently understood—in delaying to yield to the pleading voice of
God’s Holy Spirit, in choosing to live in sin; for such this delay really
is. Sin, however
Adam and Eve persuaded themselves that in so small a matter as eating of the forbidden fruit there could not result such terrible consequences as God had declared. But this small matter was the transgression of God’s immutable and holy law, and it separated man from God and opened the floodgates of death and untold woe upon our world. Age after age there has gone up from our earth a continual cry of mourning, and the whole creation groaneth and travaileth together in pain as a consequence of man’s disobedience. Heaven itself has felt the effects of his rebellion against God. Calvary stands as a memorial of the amazing sacrifice required to atone for the transgression of the divine law. Let us not regard sin as a trivial thing.
Every act of transgression, every neglect or rejection of the grace of Christ, is reacting upon yourself; it is hardening the heart, depraving the will, benumbing the understanding, and not only making you less inclined to yield, but less capable of yielding, to the tender pleading of God’s Holy Spirit.
Many are quieting a troubled conscience with the thought that they can
change a course of evil when they choose; that they can trifle with the
invitations of mercy, and yet be again and again impressed. They think that
after doing despite to the Spirit of grace, after casting their influence on
the side of Satan, in a moment of terrible extremity they can change their
course. But this is not so easily done. The experience,
Even one wrong trait of character, one sinful desire, persistently
cherished, will eventually neutralize all the power of the gospel. Every
sinful indulgence strengthens the soul’s aversion to God. The man who
manifests an infidel hardihood, or a stolid indifference to divine truth, is
but reaping the harvest of that which he has himself sown. In all the Bible
there is not a more fearful warning against trifling with evil than the
words of the wise man that the sinner “shall be holden with the cords of his
sins.”
Christ is ready to set us free from sin, but He does not force the will; and
if by persistent transgression the will itself is wholly bent on evil, and
we do not desire to be set free, if we will not accept His grace, what more
can He do? We have destroyed ourselves by our determined rejection of His
love. “Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of
salvation.” “Today if ye will hear His voice, harden not your hearts.”
“Man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the
heart”—the human heart, with its conflicting emotions of joy and sorrow;
the wandering, wayward heart, which is the abode of so much impurity and
deceit.
Many accept an intellectual religion, a form of godliness, when the heart is
not cleansed. Let it be your prayer, “Create in me a clean heart, O God; and
renew a right spirit within me.”
Study God’s word prayerfully. That word presents before you, in the law of
God and the life of Christ, the great principles of holiness, without which
“no man shall see the Lord.”
As you see the enormity of sin, as you see yourself as you really are, do
not give up to despair. It was sinners that Christ came to save. We have not
to reconcile God to us, but—O wondrous love!—God in Christ is “reconciling
the world unto Himself.”
When Satan comes to tell you that you are a
“He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and
forsaketh them shall have mercy.”
The conditions of obtaining mercy of God are simple and just and reasonable. The Lord does not require us to do some grievous thing in order that we may have the forgiveness of sin. We need not make long and wearisome pilgrimages, or perform painful penances, to commend our souls to the God of heaven or to expiate our transgression; but he that confesseth and forsaketh his sin shall have mercy.
The apostle says, “Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for
another, that ye may be healed.”
Those who have not humbled their souls before God in acknowledging their
guilt, have not yet
True confession is always of a specific character, and acknowledges particular sins. They may be of such a nature as to be brought before God only; they may be wrongs that should be confessed to individuals who have suffered injury through them; or they may be of a public character, and should then be as publicly confessed. But all confession should be definite and to the point, acknowledging the very sins of which you are guilty.
In the days of Samuel the Israelites wandered from God. They were suffering
the consequences of
Confession will not be acceptable to God without sincere repentance and
reformation. There must be decided changes in the life; everything offensive
to God must be put away. This will be the result of genuine sorrow for sin.
The work that we have to do on our part is plainly set before us: “Wash you,
make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before Mine eyes;
cease to do evil; learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed,
judge the fatherless, plead for the widow.”
When sin has deadened the moral perceptions, the wrongdoer does not discern the defects of his character nor realize the enormity of the evil he has committed; and unless he yields to the convicting power of the Holy Spirit he remains in partial blindness to his sin. His confessions are not sincere and in earnest. To every acknowledgment of his guilt he adds an apology in excuse of his course, declaring that if it had not been for certain circumstances he would not have done this or that for which he is reproved.
After Adam and Eve had eaten of the forbidden fruit, they were filled with a
sense of shame and terror. At first their only thought was how to excuse
their sin and escape the dreaded sentence of death. When the Lord inquired
concerning their sin, Adam replied, laying the guilt partly upon God and
partly upon his companion: “The woman whom Thou gavest to be with me, she
gave me of the tree, and I did eat.” The woman put the blame upon the
serpent, saying, “The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.”
The examples in God’s word of genuine repentance and humiliation reveal a
spirit of confession in which there is no excuse for sin or attempt at
self-justification. Paul did not seek to shield himself; he paints his sin
in its darkest hue, not attempting to lessen his guilt. He says, “Many of
the saints did I shut up in prison, having received authority from the chief
priests; and when they were put to death, I gave my voice against them. And
I punished them oft in every synagogue, and compelled them to blaspheme; and
being exceedingly mad against them, I persecuted them even unto strange
cities.”
The humble and broken heart, subdued by genuine repentance, will appreciate
something of the love of God and the cost of Calvary; and as a son confesses
to a loving father, so will the truly penitent bring all his sins before
God. And it is written, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to
forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
God’s promise is, “Ye shall seek Me, and find Me, when ye shall search for
Me with all your heart.”
The whole heart must be yielded to God, or the change can never be wrought
in us by which we are to be restored to His likeness. By nature we are
alienated from God. The Holy Spirit describes our condition in such words as
these: “Dead in trespasses and sins;” “the whole head is sick, and the whole
heart faint;” “no soundness in it.” We are held fast in the snare of Satan,
“taken captive by him at his will.”
The warfare against self is the greatest battle that was ever fought. The yielding of self, surrendering all to the will of God, requires a struggle; but the soul must submit to God before it can be renewed in holiness.
The government of God is not, as Satan would make it appear, founded upon a
blind submission, an unreasoning control. It appeals to the intellect and
the conscience. “Come now, and let us reason together” is the Creator’s
invitation to the beings He has made.
In giving ourselves to God, we must necessarily give up all that would
separate us from Him. Hence the Saviour says, “Whosoever he be of you that
forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be My disciple.”
There are those who profess to serve God, while they rely upon their own
efforts to obey His law, to form a right character, and secure salvation.
Their hearts are not moved by any deep sense of the love of Christ, but they
seek to perform the duties of the Christian life as that which God requires
of them in order to gain heaven. Such religion is worth nothing. When Christ
dwells in the heart, the soul will
Do you feel that it is too great a sacrifice to yield all to Christ? Ask yourself the question, “What has Christ given for me?” The Son of God gave all—life and love and suffering—for our redemption. And can it be that we, the unworthy objects of so great love, will withhold our hearts from Him? Every moment of our lives we have been partakers of the blessings of His grace, and for this very reason we cannot fully realize the depths of ignorance and misery from which we have been saved. Can we look upon Him whom our sins have pierced, and yet be willing to do despite to all His love and sacrifice? In view of the infinite humiliation of the Lord of glory, shall we murmur because we can enter into life only through conflict and self-abasement?
The inquiry of many a proud heart is, “Why need I go in penitence and
humiliation before I can have the assurance of my acceptance with God?” I
point you to Christ. He was sinless, and, more than this, He was the Prince
of heaven; but in man’s
But what do we give up, when we give all? A sin-polluted heart, for Jesus to purify, to cleanse by His own blood, and to save by His matchless love. And yet men think it hard to give up all! I am ashamed to hear it spoken of, ashamed to write it.
God does not require us to give up anything that it is for our best interest to retain. In all that He does, He has the well-being of His children in view. Would that all who have not chosen Christ might realize that He has something vastly better to offer them than they are seeking for themselves. Man is doing the greatest injury and injustice to his own soul when he thinks and acts contrary to the will of God. No real joy can be found in the path forbidden by Him who knows what is best and who plans for the good of His creatures. The path of transgression is the path of misery and destruction.
It is a mistake to entertain the thought that God is pleased to see His
children suffer. All heaven is interested in the happiness of man. Our
heavenly Father does not close the avenues of joy to any of His creatures.
The divine requirements call upon us to shun those indulgences that would
bring suffering and disappointment, that would close to us the door of
happiness and heaven. The world’s Redeemer accepts men as they are, with all
their wants, imperfections, and weaknesses; and He will not only cleanse
from sin and grant redemption through His blood, but
Many are inquiring, “How am I to make the surrender of myself to God?” You desire to give yourself to Him, but you are weak in moral power, in slavery to doubt, and controlled by the habits of your life of sin. Your promises and resolutions are like ropes of sand. You cannot control your thoughts, your impulses, your affections. The knowledge of your broken promises and forfeited pledges weakens your confidence in your own sincerity, and causes you to feel that God cannot accept you; but you need not despair. What you need to understand is the true force of the will. This is the governing power in the nature of man, the power of decision, or of choice. Everything depends on the right action of the will. The power of choice God has given to men; it is theirs to exercise. You cannot change your heart, you cannot of yourself give to God its affections; but you can choose to serve Him. You can give Him your will; He will then work in you to will and to do according to His good pleasure. Thus your whole nature will be brought under the control of the Spirit of Christ; your affections will be centered upon Him, your thoughts will be in harmony with Him.
Desires for goodness and holiness are right as
Through the right exercise of the will, an entire change may be made in your life. By yielding up your will to Christ, you ally yourself with the power that is above all principalities and powers. You will have strength from above to hold you steadfast, and thus through constant surrender to God you will be enabled to live the new life, even the life of faith.
As your conscience has been quickened by the Holy Spirit, you have seen something of the evil of sin, of its power, its guilt, its woe; and you look upon it with abhorrence. You feel that sin has separated you from God, that you are in bondage to the power of evil. The more you struggle to escape, the more you realize your helplessness. Your motives are impure; your heart is unclean. You see that your life has been filled with selfishness and sin. You long to be forgiven, to be cleansed, to be set free. Harmony with God, likeness to Him—what can you do to obtain it?
It is peace that you need—Heaven’s forgiveness and peace and love in the
soul. Money cannot buy it, intellect cannot procure it, wisdom cannot attain
to it; you can never hope, by your own efforts, to secure it. But God offers
it to you as a gift, “without money and without price.”
You have confessed your sins, and in heart put them away. You have resolved
to give yourself to God. Now go to Him, and ask that He will wash away your
sins and give you a new heart. Then
From the simple Bible account of how Jesus healed the sick, we may learn something about how to believe in Him for the forgiveness of sins. Let us turn to the story of the paralytic at Bethesda. The poor sufferer was helpless; he had not used his limbs for thirty-eight years. Yet Jesus bade him, “Rise, take up thy bed, and walk.” The sick man might have said, “Lord, if Thou wilt make me whole, I will obey Thy word.” But, no, he believed Christ’s word, believed that he was made whole, and he made the effort at once; he willed to walk, and he did walk. He acted on the word of Christ, and God gave the power. He was made whole.
In like manner you are a sinner. You cannot atone for your past sins; you cannot change your heart and make yourself holy. But God promises to do all this for you through Christ. You believe that promise. You confess your sins and give yourself to God. You will to serve Him. Just as surely as you do this, God will fulfill His word to you. If you believe the promise,—believe that you are forgiven and cleansed,—God supplies the fact; you are made whole, just as Christ gave the paralytic power to walk when the man believed that he was healed. It is so if you believe it.
Do not wait to feel that you are made whole, but say, “I believe it; it is so, not because I feel it, but because God has promised.”
Jesus says, “What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye
receive them, and ye shall have them.”
Henceforth you are not your own; you are bought with a price. “Ye were not
redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold;... but with the
precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and
Now that you have given yourself to Jesus, do not draw back, do not take
yourself away from Him, but day by day say, “I am Christ’s; I have given
myself to Him;” and ask Him to give you His Spirit and keep you by His
grace. As it is by giving yourself to God, and believing Him, that you
become His child, so you are to live in Him. The apostle says, “As ye have
therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in Him.”
Some seem to feel that they must be on probation, and must prove to the Lord that they are reformed, before they can claim His blessing. But they may claim the blessing of God even now. They must have His grace, the Spirit of Christ, to help their infirmities, or they cannot resist evil. Jesus loves to have us come to Him just as we are, sinful, helpless, dependent. We may come with all our weakness, our folly, our sinfulness, and fall at His feet in penitence. It is His glory to encircle us in the arms of His love and to bind up our wounds, to cleanse us from all impurity.
Here is where thousands fail; they do not believe that Jesus pardons them
personally, individually. They do not take God at His word. It is the
privilege of all who comply with the conditions to know for themselves that
pardon is freely extended for every sin. Put away the suspicion that God’s
promises are not meant for you. They are for every
God does not deal with us as finite men deal with one another. His thoughts
are thoughts of mercy, love, and tenderest compassion. He says, “Let the
wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him
return unto the Lord, and He will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for
He will abundantly pardon.” “I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy
transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins.”
“I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord God:
wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye.”
But even this parable, tender and touching as it is, comes short of
expressing the infinite compassion of the heavenly Father. The Lord declares
by His prophet, “I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with
loving-kindness have I drawn thee.”
With the rich promises of the Bible before you, can you give place to doubt?
Can you believe that when the poor sinner longs to return, longs to forsake
his sins, the Lord sternly withholds him from coming to His feet in
repentance? Away with such thoughts! Nothing can hurt your own soul more
than to entertain such a conception of our heavenly Father. He hates sin,
but He loves the sinner, and He gave Himself in the person of Christ, that
all who would might be saved and have eternal blessedness in the kingdom of
glory. What stronger or more tender language could have been employed than
He has chosen in which to express His love toward us? He declares, “Can a
woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the
son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee.”
Look up, you that are doubting and trembling;
As you read the promises, remember they are the expression of unutterable
love and pity. The great heart of Infinite Love is drawn toward the sinner
with boundless compassion. “We have redemption through His blood, the
forgiveness of sins.”
“If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away;
behold, all things are become new.”
A person may not be able to tell the exact time or place, or trace all the
chain of circumstances in the process of conversion; but this does not prove
him to be unconverted. Christ said to Nicodemus, “The wind bloweth where it
listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it
cometh, and whither it goeth: so is everyone that is born of the Spirit.”
It is true that there may be an outward correctness of deportment without the renewing power of Christ. The love of influence and the desire for the esteem of others may produce a well-ordered life. Self-respect may lead us to avoid the appearance of evil. A selfish heart may perform generous actions. By what means, then, shall we determine whose side we are on?
Who has the heart? With whom are our thoughts? Of whom do we love to converse? Who has our warmest affections and our best energies? If we are Christ’s, our thoughts are with Him, and our sweetest thoughts are of Him. All we have and are is consecrated to Him. We long to bear His image, breathe His spirit, do His will, and please Him in all things.
Those who become new creatures in Christ Jesus will bring forth the fruits
of the Spirit, “love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness,
faith, meekness, temperance.”
There is no evidence of genuine repentance unless it works reformation. If he restore the pledge, give again that he had robbed, confess his sins, and love God and his fellow men, the sinner may be sure that he has passed from death unto life.
When, as erring, sinful beings, we come to Christ and become partakers of His pardoning grace, love springs up in the heart. Every burden is light, for the yoke that Christ imposes is easy. Duty becomes a delight, and sacrifice a pleasure. The path that before seemed shrouded in darkness, becomes bright with beams from the Sun of Righteousness.
The loveliness of the character of Christ will be seen in His followers. It
was His delight to do the will of God. Love to God, zeal for His glory, was
the controlling power in our Saviour’s life. Love beautified and ennobled
all His actions. Love is of God. The unconsecrated heart cannot originate or
produce it. It is found only in the heart where Jesus reigns. “We love,
because He first loved us.”
There are two errors against which the children of God—particularly those
who have just come to trust in His grace—especially need to guard. The
first, already dwelt upon, is that of looking to their
The opposite and no less dangerous error is that belief in Christ releases men from keeping the law of God; that since by faith alone we become partakers of the grace of Christ, our works have nothing to do with our redemption.
But notice here that obedience is not a mere outward compliance, but the
service of love. The law of God is an expression of His very nature; it is
an embodiment of the great principle of love, and hence is the foundation of
His government in heaven and earth. If our hearts are renewed in the
likeness of God, if the divine love is implanted in the soul, will not the
law of God be carried out in the life? When the principle of love is
implanted in the heart, when man is renewed after the image of Him that
created him, the new-covenant promise is fulfilled, “I will put My laws into
their hearts, and in their minds will I write them.”
We do not earn salvation by our obedience; for salvation is the free gift of
God, to be received by faith. But obedience is the fruit of faith. “Ye know
that He was manifested to take away our sins; and in Him is no sin.
Whosoever abideth in Him sinneth not: whosoever sinneth hath not seen Him,
neither known Him.”
That so-called faith in Christ which professes to release men from the
obligation of obedience to God, is not faith, but presumption. “By grace are
ye saved through faith.” But “faith, if it hath not works, is dead.”
The condition of eternal life is now just what it always has been,—just what it was in Paradise before the fall of our first parents,—perfect obedience to the law of God, perfect righteousness. If eternal life were granted on any condition short of this, then the happiness of the whole universe would be imperiled. The way would be open for sin, with all its train of woe and misery, to be immortalized.
It was possible for Adam, before the fall, to form a righteous character by obedience to God’s law. But he failed to do this, and because of his sin our natures are fallen and we cannot make ourselves righteous. Since we are sinful, unholy, we cannot perfectly obey the holy law. We have no righteousness of our own with which to meet the claims of the law of God. But Christ has made a way of escape for us. He lived on earth amid trials and temptations such as we have to meet. He lived a sinless life. He died for us, and now He offers to take our sins and give us His righteousness. If you give yourself to Him, and accept Him as your Saviour, then, sinful as your life may have been, for His sake you are accounted righteous. Christ’s character stands in place of your character, and you are accepted before God just as if you had not sinned.
More than this, Christ changes the heart. He abides in your heart by faith.
You are to maintain this connection with Christ by faith and the continual
surrender of your will to Him; and so long as you do this, He will work in
you to will and to do
So we have nothing in ourselves of which to boast. We have no ground for self-exaltation. Our only ground of hope is in the righteousness of Christ imputed to us, and in that wrought by His Spirit working in and through us.
When we speak of faith, there is a distinction that should be borne in mind.
There is a kind of belief that is wholly distinct from faith. The existence
and power of God, the truth of His word, are facts that even Satan and his
hosts cannot at heart deny. The Bible says that “the devils also believe,
and tremble;” but this is not faith.
There are those who have known the pardoning love of Christ and who really
desire to be children of God, yet they realize that their character is
imperfect, their life faulty, and they are ready to doubt whether their
hearts have been renewed by the Holy Spirit. To such I would say, Do not
draw back in despair. We shall often have to bow down and weep at the feet
of Jesus because of our shortcomings and mistakes, but we are not to be
discouraged. Even if we are overcome by the enemy, we are not cast off, not
forsaken and rejected of God. No; Christ is at the right hand of God, who
also maketh intercession for us. Said the beloved John, “These things write
I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with
the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.”
The closer you come to Jesus, the more faulty you will appear in your own
eyes; for your vision will be clearer, and your imperfections will be seen
in broad and distinct contrast to His perfect nature. This is evidence that
Satan’s delusions have lost their
No deep-seated love for Jesus can dwell in the heart that does not realize its own sinfulness. The soul that is transformed by the grace of Christ will admire His divine character; but if we do not see our own moral deformity, it is unmistakable evidence that we have not had a view of the beauty and excellence of Christ.
The less we see to esteem in ourselves, the more we shall see to esteem in the infinite purity and loveliness of our Saviour. A view of our sinfulness drives us to Him who can pardon; and when the soul, realizing its helplessness, reaches out after Christ, He will reveal Himself in power. The more our sense of need drives us to Him and to the word of God, the more exalted views we shall have of His character, and the more fully we shall reflect His image.
The change of heart by which we become children of God is in the Bible
spoken of as birth. Again, it is compared to the germination of the good
seed sown by the husbandman. In like manner those who are just converted to
Christ are, “as new-born babes,” to “grow up” to the stature of men and
women in Christ Jesus.
Not all the wisdom and skill of man can produce life in the smallest object
in nature. It is only through the life which God Himself has imparted, that
either plant or animal can live. So it is only through the life from God
that spiritual life is begotten in the hearts of men. Unless a man is “born
from above,” he cannot become a partaker of the life which Christ came to
give.
As with life, so it is with growth. It is God who brings the bud to bloom
and the flower to fruit. It is by His power that the seed develops, “first
the blade, then the ear, after that the full corn in the ear.”
In the matchless gift of His Son, God has encircled the whole world with an atmosphere of grace as real as the air which circulates around the globe. All who choose to breathe this life-giving atmosphere will live and grow up to the stature of men and women in Christ Jesus.
As the flower turns to the sun, that the bright beams may aid in perfecting its beauty and symmetry, so should we turn to the Sun of Righteousness, that heaven’s light may shine upon us, that our character may be developed into the likeness of Christ.
Jesus teaches the same thing when He says, “Abide in Me, and I in you. As
the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more
can ye, except ye abide in Me. . .. Without Me ye
Many have an idea that they must do some part of the work alone. They have
trusted in Christ for the forgiveness of sin, but now they seek by their own
efforts to live aright. But every such effort must fail. Jesus says,
“Without Me ye can do nothing.” Our growth in grace, our joy, our
usefulness,—all depend upon our union with Christ. It is by communion with
Him, daily, hourly,—by abiding in Him, —that we are to grow in grace. He
is not only the Author, but the Finisher of our faith. It is Christ first
and last and always. He is to be with us, not only at the beginning and the
end of our course, but at every step of the way. David says, “I have set the
Lord always before me: because He is at my right hand, I shall not be
moved.”
Do you ask, “How am I to abide in Christ?” In the same way as you received
Him at first. “As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk
ye in Him.” “The just shall live by faith.”
Consecrate yourself to God in the morning; make this your very first work. Let your prayer be, “Take me, O Lord, as wholly Thine. I lay all my plans at Thy feet. Use me today in Thy service. Abide with me, and let all my work be wrought in Thee.” This is a daily matter. Each morning consecrate yourself to God for that day. Surrender all your plans to Him, to be carried out or given up as His providence shall indicate. Thus day by day you may be giving your life into the hands of God, and thus your life will be molded more and more after the life of Christ.
A life in Christ is a life of restfulness. There may be no ecstasy of
feeling, but there should be an abiding, peaceful trust. Your hope is not in
yourself; it is in Christ. Your weakness is united to His strength, your
ignorance to His wisdom, your frailty to His enduring might. So you are not
to look to yourself, not to let the mind dwell upon self, but look to
Christ. Let the mind dwell upon His love, upon the beauty, the perfection,
of His character. Christ in His self-denial, Christ in His humiliation,
Christ in
Jesus says, “Abide in Me.” These words convey the idea of rest, stability,
confidence. Again He invites,”Come unto Me, . . .and I will give you rest.”
When the mind dwells upon self, it is turned away from Christ, the source of
strength and life. Hence it is Satan’s constant effort to keep the attention
diverted from the Saviour and thus prevent the union and communion of the
soul with Christ. The pleasures of the world, life’s cares and perplexities
and sorrows, the faults of others, or your own faults and imperfections—to
any or all of these he will seek to divert the mind. Do not be misled by his
devices. Many who are really conscientious, and who desire to live for God,
he too often leads to dwell upon their own faults and weaknesses, and thus
by separating them from Christ he hopes to
When Christ took human nature upon Him, He bound humanity to Himself by a
tie of love that can never be broken by any power save the choice of man
himself. Satan will constantly present allurements to induce us to break
this tie—to choose to separate ourselves from Christ. Here is where we need
to watch, to strive, to pray, that nothing may entice us to choose another
master; for we are always free to do this. But let us keep our eyes fixed
upon Christ, and He will preserve us. Looking unto Jesus, we are safe.
Nothing can pluck us out of His hand. In constantly beholding Him, we “are
changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of
the Lord.”
It was thus that the early disciples gained their likeness to the dear
Saviour. When those disciples heard the words of Jesus, they felt their need
of Him. They sought, they found, they followed Him. They
Even John, the beloved disciple, the one who most fully reflected the likeness of the Saviour, did not naturally possess that loveliness of character. He was not only self-assertive and ambitious for honor, but impetuous, and resentful under injuries. But as the character of the Divine One was manifested to him, he saw his own deficiency and was humbled by the knowledge. The strength and patience, the power and tenderness, the majesty and meekness, that he beheld in the daily life of the Son of God, filled his soul with admiration and love. Day by day his heart was drawn out toward Christ, until he lost sight of self in love for his Master. His resentful, ambitious temper was yielded to the molding power of Christ. The regenerating influence of the Holy Spirit renewed his heart. The power of the love of Christ wrought a transformation of character. This is the sure result of union with Jesus. When Christ abides in the heart, the whole nature is transformed. Christ’s Spirit, His love, softens the heart, subdues the soul, and raises the thoughts and desires toward God and heaven.
When Christ ascended to heaven, the sense of His presence was still with His
followers. It was a
As they met together after the ascension they were eager to present their
requests to the Father in the name of Jesus. In solemn awe they bowed in
prayer, repeating the assurance, “Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in My
name, He will give it you. Hitherto have ye asked nothing in My name: ask,
and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.”
All that Christ was to the disciples, He desires to be to His children
today; for in that last prayer, with the little band of disciples gathered
about Him, He said, “Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which
shall believe on Me through their word.”
Jesus prayed for us, and He asked that we might be one with Him, even as He
is one with the Father. What a union is this! The Saviour has said of
Himself, “The Son can do nothing of Himself;” “the Father that dwelleth in
Me, He doeth the works.”
God is the source of life and light and joy to the universe. Like rays of light from the sun, like the streams of water bursting from a living spring, blessings flow out from Him to all His creatures. And wherever the life of God is in the hearts of men, it will flow out to others in love and blessing.
Our Saviour’s joy was in the uplifting and redemption of fallen men. For this He counted not His life dear unto Himself, but endured the cross, despising the shame. So angels are ever engaged in working for the happiness of others. This is their joy. That which selfish hearts would regard as humiliating service, ministering to those who are wretched and in every way inferior in character and rank, is the work of sinless angels. The spirit of Christ’s self-sacrificing love is the spirit that pervades heaven and is the very essence of its bliss. This is the spirit that Christ’s followers will possess, the work that they will do.
When the love of Christ is enshrined in the heart, like sweet fragrance it cannot be hidden. Its holy influence will be felt by all with whom we come in contact. The spirit of Christ in the heart is like a spring in the desert, flowing to refresh all and making those who are ready to perish, eager to drink of the water of life.
Love to Jesus will be manifested in a desire to work as He worked for the
blessing and uplifting of
The Saviour’s life on earth was not a life of ease and devotion to Himself,
but He toiled with persistent, earnest, untiring effort for the salvation of
lost mankind. From the manger to Calvary He followed the path of self-denial
and sought not to be released from arduous tasks, painful travels and
exhausting care and labor. He said, “The Son of man came not to be
ministered unto, but to minister, and to give His life a ransom for many.”
So those who are the partakers of the grace of Christ will be ready to make
any sacrifice, that others for whom He died may share the heavenly gift.
They will do all they can to make the world better for their stay in it.
This spirit is the sure outgrowth of a soul truly converted. No sooner does
one come to Christ than there is born in his heart a desire to make known to
others what a precious friend he has found in Jesus; the saving and
sanctifying truth cannot be shut up in his heart. If we are clothed with the
righteousness of Christ and are filled with the joy of His indwelling
Spirit, we shall not be able to hold our peace. If we have tasted and seen
that the Lord is good we shall have something to tell. Like Philip when he
found the Saviour, we shall invite others into His presence. We shall seek
to present to them
And the effort to bless others will react in blessings upon ourselves. This was the purpose of God in giving us a part to act in the plan of redemption. He has granted men the privilege of becoming partakers of the divine nature and, in their turn, of diffusing blessings to their fellow men. This is the highest honor, the greatest joy, that it is possible for God to bestow upon men. Those who thus become participants in labors of love are brought nearest to their Creator.
God might have committed the message of the gospel, and all the work of loving ministry, to the heavenly angels. He might have employed other means for accomplishing His purpose. But in His infinite love He chose to make us co-workers with Himself, with Christ and the angels, that we might share the blessing, the joy, the spiritual uplifting, which results from this unselfish ministry.
We are brought into sympathy with Christ through the fellowship of His
sufferings. Every act of self-sacrifice for the good of others strengthens
the spirit of beneficence in the giver’s heart, allying him more closely to
the Redeemer of the world, who “was rich, yet for your sakes . . .became
poor, that ye through His poverty might be rich.”
If you will go to work as Christ designs that His disciples shall, and win souls for Him, you will feel the need of a deeper experience and a greater knowledge in divine things, and will hunger and thirst after righteousness. You will plead with God, and your faith will be strengthened, and your soul will drink deeper drafts at the well of salvation. Encountering opposition and trials will drive you to the Bible and prayer. You will grow in grace and the knowledge of Christ, and will develop a rich experience.
The spirit of unselfish labor for others gives depth, stability, and Christlike loveliness to the character, and brings peace and happiness to its possessor. The aspirations are elevated. There is no room for sloth or selfishness. Those who thus exercise the Christian graces will grow and will become strong to work for God. They will have clear spiritual perceptions, a steady, growing faith, and an increased power in prayer. The Spirit of God, moving upon their spirit, calls forth the sacred harmonies of the soul in answer to the divine touch. Those who thus devote themselves to unselfish effort for the good of others are most surely working out their own salvation.
The only way to grow in grace is to be disinterestedly doing the very work
which Christ has enjoined upon us—to engage, to the extent of our ability,
in helping and blessing those who need the help we can give them. Strength
comes by exercise; activity is the very condition of life. Those who
endeavor to maintain Christian life by passively accepting the blessings
that come through the means of grace, and
The church of Christ is God’s appointed agency for the salvation of men. Its mission is to carry the gospel to the world. And the obligation rests upon all Christians. Everyone, to the extent of his talent and opportunity, is to fulfill the Saviour’s commission. The love of Christ, revealed to us, makes us debtors to all who know Him not. God has given us light, not for ourselves alone, but to shed upon them.
If the followers of Christ were awake to duty, there would be thousands where there is one today proclaiming the gospel in heathen lands. And all who could not personally engage in the work, would yet sustain it with their means, their sympathy, and their prayers. And there would be far more earnest labor for souls in Christian countries.
We need not go to heathen lands, or even leave the narrow circle of the home, if it is there that our duty lies, in order to work for Christ. We can do this in the home circle, in the church, among those with whom we associate, and with whom we do business.
The greater part of our Saviour’s life on earth was spent in patient toil in
the carpenter’s shop at Nazareth. Ministering angels attended the Lord of
The apostle says, “Let every man, wherein he is called, therein abide with
God.”
Many have excused themselves from rendering their gifts to the service of Christ because others were possessed of superior endowments and advantages. The opinion has prevailed that only those who are especially talented are required to consecrate their abilities to the service of God. It has come to be understood by many that talents are given to only a certain favored class to the exclusion of others who of course are not called upon to share in the toils or the rewards. But it is not so represented in the parable. When the master of the house called his servants, he gave to every man his work.
With a loving spirit we may perform life’s
You are not to wait for great occasions or to expect extraordinary abilities before you go to work for God. You need not have a thought of what the world will think of you. If your daily life is a testimony to the purity and sincerity of your faith, and others are convinced that you desire to benefit them, your efforts will not be wholly lost.
The humblest and poorest of the disciples of Jesus can be a blessing to others. They may not realize that they are doing any special good, but by their unconscious influence they may start waves of blessing that will widen and deepen, and the blessed results they may never know until the day of final reward. They do not feel or know that they are doing anything great. They are not required to weary themselves with anxiety about success. They have only to go forward quietly, doing faithfully the work that God’s providence assigns, and their life will not be in vain. Their own souls will be growing more and more into the likeness of Christ; they are workers together with God in this life and are thus fitting for the higher work and the unshadowed joy of the life to come.
Many are the ways in which God is seeking to make Himself known to us and bring us into communion with Him. Nature speaks to our senses without ceasing. The open heart will be impressed with the love and glory of God as revealed through the works of His hands. The listening ear can hear and understand the communications of God through the things of nature. The green fields, the lofty trees, the buds and flowers, the passing cloud, the falling rain, the babbling brook, the glories of the heavens, speak to our hearts, and invite us to become acquainted with Him who made them all.
Our Saviour bound up His precious lessons with the things of nature. The trees, the birds, the flowers of the valleys, the hills, the lakes, and the beautiful heavens, as well as the incidents and surroundings of daily life, were all linked with the words of truth, that His lessons might thus be often recalled to mind, even amid the busy cares of man’s life of toil.
God would have His children appreciate His works and delight in the simple, quiet beauty with which He has adorned our earthly home. He is a lover of the beautiful, and above all that is outwardly attractive He loves beauty of character; He would have us cultivate purity and simplicity, the quiet graces of the flowers.
If we will but listen, God’s created works will teach us precious lessons of
obedience and trust.
If we would but fully believe this, all undue anxieties would be dismissed. Our lives would not be so filled with disappointment as now; for everything, whether great or small, would be left in the hands of God, who is not perplexed by the multiplicity of cares, or overwhelmed by their weight. We should then enjoy a rest of soul to which many have long been strangers.
As your senses delight in the attractive loveliness of the earth, think of
the world that is to come, that shall never know the blight of sin and
death; where the face of nature will no more wear the shadow of the curse.
Let your imagination picture the home of the saved, and remember that it
will be more glorious than your brightest imagination can portray. In the
varied gifts of God in nature we see but the faintest
The poet and the naturalist have many things to say about nature, but it is the Christian who enjoys the beauty of the earth with the highest appreciation, because he recognizes his Father’s handiwork and perceives His love in flower and shrub and tree. No one can fully appreciate the significance of hill and vale, river and sea, who does not look upon them as an expression of God’s love to man.
God speaks to us through His providential workings and through the influence
of His Spirit upon the heart. In our circumstances and surroundings, in the
changes daily taking place around us, we may find precious lessons if our
hearts are but open to discern them. The psalmist, tracing the work of God’s
providence, says, “The earth is full of the goodness of the Lord.” “Whoso is
wise, and will observe these things, even they shall understand the
loving-kindness of the Lord.”
God speaks to us in His word. Here we have in clearer lines the revelation
of His character, of His dealings with men, and the great work of
redemption. Here is open before us the history of patriarchs and prophets
and other holy men of old. They were men “subject to like passions as we
are.”
Jesus said of the Old Testament Scriptures,—and how much more is it true of
the New,—”They are they which testify of Me,” the Redeemer, Him in whom our
hopes of eternal life are centered.
Fill the whole heart with the words of God. They are the living water,
quenching your burning thirst. They are the living bread from heaven. Jesus
declares, “Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink His blood,
ye have no life in you.” And He explains Himself by saying, “The words that
I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.”
The theme of redemption is one that the angels desire to look into; it will
be the science and the song of the redeemed throughout the ceaseless ages of
As we meditate upon the perfections of the Saviour, we shall desire to be wholly transformed and renewed in the image of His purity. There will be a hungering and thirsting of soul to become like Him whom we adore. The more our thoughts are upon Christ, the more we shall speak of Him to others and represent Him to the world.
The Bible was not written for the scholar alone; on the contrary, it was designed for the common people. The great truths necessary for salvation are made as clear as noonday; and none will mistake and lose their way except those who follow their own judgment instead of the plainly revealed will of God.
We should not take the testimony of any man as to what the Scriptures teach,
but should study the words of God for ourselves. If we allow others to do
our thinking, we shall have crippled energies and
There is nothing more calculated to strengthen the intellect than the study of the Scriptures. No other book is so potent to elevate the thoughts, to give vigor to the faculties, as the broad, ennobling truths of the Bible. If God’s word were studied as it should be, men would have a breadth of mind, a nobility of character, and a stability of purpose rarely seen in these times.
But there is but little benefit derived from a hasty reading of the Scriptures. One may read the whole Bible through and yet fail to see its beauty or comprehend its deep and hidden meaning. One passage studied until its significance is clear to the mind and its relation to the plan of salvation is evident, is of more value than the perusal of many chapters with no definite purpose in view and no positive instruction gained. Keep your Bible with you. As you have opportunity, read it; fix the texts in your memory. Even while you are walking the streets you may read a passage and meditate upon it, thus fixing it in the mind.
We cannot obtain wisdom without earnest attention and prayerful study. Some
portions of Scripture are indeed too plain to be misunderstood, but there
are others whose meaning does not lie on the surface to be seen at a glance.
Scripture must be
Never should the Bible be studied without prayer. Before opening its pages
we should ask for the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit, and it will be
given. When Nathanael came to Jesus, the Saviour exclaimed, “Behold an
Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile!” Nathanael said, “Whence knowest Thou
me?” Jesus answered, “Before that Philip called thee, when thou wast under
the fig tree, I saw thee.”
The Holy Spirit exalts and glorifies the Saviour. It is His office to
present Christ, the purity of His righteousness, and the great salvation
that we have through Him. Jesus says, “He shall receive of Mine, and shall
show it unto you.”
Through nature and revelation, through His providence, and by the influence of His Spirit, God speaks to us. But these are not enough; we need also to pour out our hearts to Him. In order to have spiritual life and energy, we must have actual intercourse with our heavenly Father. Our minds may be drawn out toward Him; we may meditate upon His works, His mercies, His blessings; but this is not, in the fullest sense, communing with Him. In order to commune with God, we must have something to say to Him concerning our actual life.
Prayer is the opening of the heart to God as to a friend. Not that it is necessary in order to make known to God what we are, but in order to enable us to receive Him. Prayer does not bring God down to us, but brings us up to Him.
When Jesus was upon the earth, He taught His disciples how to pray. He directed them to present their daily needs before God, and to cast all their care upon Him. And the assurance He gave them that their petitions should be heard, is assurance also to us.
Jesus Himself, while He dwelt among men, was often in prayer. Our Saviour
identified Himself with our needs and weakness, in that He became a
suppliant, a petitioner, seeking from His Father fresh supplies of strength,
that He might come forth braced for duty and trial. He is our example in all
things. He is a brother in our infirmities, “in all points tempted like as
we are;” but as the sinless one His
Our heavenly Father waits to bestow upon us the fullness of His blessing. It is our privilege to drink largely at the fountain of boundless love. What a wonder it is that we pray so little! God is ready and willing to hear the sincere prayer of the humblest of His children, and yet there is much manifest reluctance on our part to make known our wants to God. What can the angels of heaven think of poor helpless human beings, who are subject to temptation, when God’s heart of infinite love yearns toward them, ready to give them more than they can ask or think, and yet they pray so little and have so little faith? The angels love to bow before God; they love to be near Him. They regard communion with God as their highest joy; and yet the children of earth, who need so much the help that God only can give, seem satisfied to walk without the light of His Spirit, the companionship of His presence.
The darkness of the evil one encloses those who neglect to pray. The
whispered temptations of the enemy entice them to sin; and it is all because
they do not make use of the privileges that God has given them in the divine
appointment of prayer. Why should the sons and daughters of God be reluctant
to pray, when prayer is the key in the hand of faith to unlock heaven’s
storehouse, where are treasured
There are certain conditions upon which we may expect that God will hear and
answer our prayers. One of the first of these is that we feel our need of
help from Him. He has promised, “I will pour water upon him that is thirsty,
and floods upon the dry ground.”
Our great need is itself an argument and pleads most eloquently in our
behalf. But the Lord is to be sought unto to do these things for us. He
says, “Ask, and it shall be given you.” And “He that spared not His own Son,
but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give
us all things?”
If we regard iniquity in our hearts, if we cling to any known sin, the Lord will not hear us; but the prayer of the penitent, contrite soul is always accepted. When all known wrongs are righted, we may believe that God will answer our petitions. Our own merit will never commend us to the favor of God; it is the worthiness of Jesus that will save us, His blood that will cleanse us; yet we have a work to do in complying with the conditions of acceptance.
Another element of prevailing prayer is faith. “He that cometh to God must
believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek
Him.”
The assurance is broad and unlimited, and He is faithful who has promised. When we do not receive the very things we asked for, at the time we ask, we are still to believe that the Lord hears and that He will answer our prayers. We are so erring and short-sighted that we sometimes ask for things that would not be a blessing to us, and our heavenly Father in love answers our prayers by giving us that which will be for our highest good—that which we ourselves would desire if with vision divinely enlightened we could see all things as they really are. When our prayers seem not to be answered, we are to cling to the promise; for the time of answering will surely come, and we shall receive the blessing we need most. But to claim that prayer will always be answered in the very way and for the particular thing that we desire, is presumption. God is too wise to err, and too good to withhold any good thing from them that walk uprightly. Then do not fear to trust Him, even though you do not see the immediate answer to your prayers. Rely upon His sure promise, “Ask, and it shall be given you.”
If we take counsel with our doubts and fears, or try to solve everything
that we cannot see clearly, before we have faith, perplexities will only
increase
When we come to ask mercy and blessing from God we should have a spirit of
love and forgiveness in our own hearts. How can we pray, “Forgive us our
debts, as we forgive our debtors,” and yet indulge an unforgiving spirit?
Perseverance in prayer has been made a condition of receiving. We must pray
always if we would grow in faith and experience. We are to be “instant in
prayer,” to “continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving.”
Unceasing prayer is the unbroken union of the soul with God, so that life from God flows into our life; and from our life, purity and holiness flow back to God.
There is necessity for diligence in prayer; let nothing hinder you. Make every effort to keep open the communion between Jesus and your own soul. Seek every opportunity to go where prayer is wont to be made. Those who are really seeking for communion with God will be seen in the prayer meeting, faithful to do their duty and earnest and anxious to reap all the benefits they can gain. They will improve every opportunity of placing themselves where they can receive the rays of light from heaven.
We should pray in the family circle, and above all we must not neglect secret prayer, for this is the life of the soul. It is impossible for the soul to flourish while prayer is neglected. Family or public prayer alone is not sufficient. In solitude let the soul be laid open to the inspecting eye of God. Secret prayer is to be heard only by the prayer-hearing God. No curious ear is to receive the burden of such petitions. In secret prayer the soul is free from surrounding influences, free from excitement. Calmly, yet fervently, will it reach out after God. Sweet and abiding will be the influence emanating from Him who seeth in secret, whose ear is open to hear the prayer arising from the heart. By calm, simple faith the soul holds communion with God and gathers to itself rays of divine light to strengthen and sustain it in the conflict with Satan. God is our tower of strength.
Pray in your closet, and as you go about your daily labor let your heart be
often uplifted to God.
There is no time or place in which it is inappropriate to offer up a petition to God. There is nothing that can prevent us from lifting up our hearts in the spirit of earnest prayer. In the crowds of the street, in the midst of a business engagement, we may send up a petition to God and plead for divine guidance, as did Nehemiah when he made his request before King Artaxerxes. A closet of communion may be found wherever we are. We should have the door of the heart open continually and our invitation going up that Jesus may come and abide as a heavenly guest in the soul.
Although there may be a tainted, corrupted atmosphere around us, we need not breathe its miasma, but may live in the pure air of heaven. We may close every door to impure imaginings and unholy thoughts by lifting the soul into the presence of God through sincere prayer. Those whose hearts are open to receive the support and blessing of God will walk in a holier atmosphere than that of earth and will have constant communion with heaven.
We need to have more distinct views of Jesus and a fuller comprehension of the value of eternal realities. The beauty of holiness is to fill the hearts of God’s children; and that this may be accomplished, we should seek for divine disclosures of heavenly things.
Let the soul be drawn out and upward, that God may grant us a breath of the
heavenly atmosphere. We may keep so near to God that in every unexpected
Keep your wants, your joys, your sorrows, your cares, and your fears before
God. You cannot burden Him; you cannot weary Him. He who numbers the hairs
of your head is not indifferent to the wants of His children. “The Lord is
very pitiful, and of tender mercy.”
Jesus said, “Ye shall ask in My name: and I say not unto you, that I will
pray the Father for you: for the Father Himself loveth you.” “I have chosen
you: . . .that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in My name, He may
give it you.” J
God does not mean that any of us should become hermits or monks and retire from the world in order to devote ourselves to acts of worship. The life must be like Christ’s life—between the mountain and the multitude. He who does nothing but pray will soon cease to pray, or his prayers will become a formal routine. When men take themselves out of social life, away from the sphere of Christian duty and cross bearing; when they cease to work earnestly for the Master, who worked earnestly for them, they lose the subject matter of prayer and have no incentive to devotion. Their prayers become personal and selfish. They cannot pray in regard to the wants of humanity or the upbuilding of Christ’s kingdom, pleading for strength wherewith to work.
We sustain a loss when we neglect the privilege of associating together to strengthen and encourage one another in the service of God. The truths of His word lose their vividness and importance in our minds. Our hearts cease to be enlightened and aroused by their sanctifying influence, and we decline in spirituality. In our association as Christians we lose much by lack of sympathy with one another. He who shuts himself up to himself is not filling the position that God designed he should. The proper cultivation of the social elements in our nature brings us into sympathy with others and is a means of development and strength to us in the service of God.
If Christians would associate together, speaking to each other of the love
of God and of the precious
If we would but think of God as often as we have evidence of His care for us
we should keep Him ever in our thoughts and should delight to talk of Him
and to praise Him. We talk of temporal things because we have an interest in
them. We talk of our friends because we love them; our joys and our sorrows
are bound up with them. Yet we have infinitely greater reason to love God
than to love our earthly friends; it should be the most natural thing in the
world to make Him first in all our thoughts, to talk of His goodness and
tell of His power. The rich gifts He has bestowed upon us were not intended
to absorb our thoughts and love so much that we should have nothing to give
to God; they are constantly to remind us of Him and to bind us in bonds of
love and gratitude to our heavenly Benefactor. We dwell too near the
lowlands of earth. Let us raise our eyes to the open door of the sanctuary
above, where the light of the glory of God shines in the face of Christ, who
“is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by Him.”
We need to praise God more “for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to
the children of men.”
Anciently the Lord bade Israel, when they met together for His service, “Ye
shall eat before the Lord your God, and ye shall rejoice in all that ye put
your hand unto, ye and your households, wherein the Lord thy God hath
blessed thee.”
Our God is a tender, merciful Father. His service should not be looked upon as a heart-saddening, distressing exercise. It should be a pleasure to worship the Lord and to take part in His work. God would not have His children, for whom so great salvation has been provided, act as if He were a hard, exacting taskmaster. He is their best friend; and when they worship Him, He expects to be with them, to bless and comfort them, filling their hearts with joy and love. The Lord desires His children to take comfort in His service and to find more pleasure than hardship in His work. He desires that those who come to worship Him shall carry away with them precious thoughts of His care and love, that they may be cheered in all the employments of daily life, that they may have grace to deal honestly and faithfully in all things.
We must gather about the cross. Christ and Him
The soul may ascend nearer heaven on the wings of praise. God is worshiped
with song and music in the courts above, and as we express our gratitude we
are approximating to the worship of the heavenly hosts. “Whoso offereth
praise glorifieth” God.
Many, especially those who are young in the Christian life, are at times troubled with the suggestions of skepticism. There are in the Bible many things which they cannot explain, or even understand, and Satan employs these to shake their faith in the Scriptures as a revelation from God. They ask, “How shall I know the right way? If the Bible is indeed the word of God, how can I be freed from these doubts and perplexities?”
God never asks us to believe, without giving sufficient evidence upon which to base our faith. His existence, His character, the truthfulness of His word, are all established by testimony that appeals to our reason; and this testimony is abundant. Yet God has never removed the possibility of doubt. Our faith must rest upon evidence, not demonstration. Those who wish to doubt will have opportunity; while those who really desire to know the truth will find plenty of evidence on which to rest their faith.
It is impossible for finite minds fully to comprehend the character or the
works of the Infinite One. To the keenest intellect, the most highly
educated mind, that holy Being must ever remain clothed in mystery. “Canst
thou by searching find out God? canst thou find out the Almighty unto
perfection? It is as high as heaven; what canst thou do? deeper than hell;
what canst thou know?”
The apostle Paul exclaims, “O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and
knowledge of God! how unsearchable are His judgments, and His ways past
finding out!”
The word of God, like the character of its divine Author, presents mysteries
that can never be fully comprehended by finite beings. The entrance of sin
into the world, the incarnation of Christ, regeneration, the resurrection,
and many other subjects presented in the Bible, are mysteries too deep for
the human mind to explain, or even fully to comprehend. But we have no
reason to doubt God’s word because we cannot understand the mysteries of His
providence. In the natural world we are constantly surrounded with mysteries
that we cannot fathom. The very humblest forms of life present a problem
that the wisest of philosophers is powerless to explain. Everywhere are
wonders beyond our ken. Should we then be surprised to find that in the
spiritual world also there are mysteries that we cannot fathom? The
difficulty lies solely in the weakness and narrowness of the human mind. God
has given us in the Scriptures sufficient evidence of their divine
character, and we are not to
The apostle Peter says that there are in Scripture “things hard to be
understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest . . .unto
their own destruction.”
The Bible unfolds truth with a simplicity and a perfect adaptation to the
needs and longings of the human heart, that has astonished and charmed the
most highly cultivated minds, while it enables the humblest and uncultured
to discern the way of salvation. And yet these simply stated truths lay hold
upon subjects so elevated, so far-reaching, so infinitely beyond the power
of human comprehension, that we can accept them only because God has
declared them. Thus the plan of redemption is laid open to us, so that every
soul may see the steps he is to take in repentance toward God and faith
toward our Lord Jesus Christ, in order to be saved in God’s appointed way;
yet beneath these truths, so easily understood, lie mysteries that are the
hiding of His glory—mysteries that overpower the mind in its research, yet
inspire the sincere seeker for truth with reverence and faith. The more
To acknowledge that we cannot fully comprehend the great truths of the Bible is only to admit that the finite mind is inadequate to grasp the infinite; that man, with his limited, human knowledge, cannot understand the purposes of Omniscience.
Because they cannot fathom all its mysteries, the skeptic and the infidel
reject God’s word; and not all who profess to believe the Bible are free
from danger on this point. The apostle says, “Take heed, brethren, lest
there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the
living God.”
If it were possible for created beings to attain to a full understanding of
God and His works, then, having reached this point, there would be for them
no further discovery of truth, no growth in knowledge, no further
development of mind or heart. God would no longer be supreme; and man,
having reached the limit of knowledge and attainment, would cease to
advance. Let us thank God that it is not so. God is infinite; in Him are
“all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.”
God intends that even in this life the truths of His word shall be ever
unfolding to His people. There is only one way in which this knowledge can
be obtained. We can attain to an understanding of God’s word only through
the illumination of that Spirit by which the word was given. “The things of
God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God;” “for the Spirit searcheth all
things, yea, the deep things of God.”
God desires man to exercise his reasoning powers; and the study of the Bible
will strengthen and elevate the mind as no other study can. Yet we are to
beware
There are many things apparently difficult or obscure, which God will make
plain and simple to those who thus seek an understanding of them. But
without the guidance of the Holy Spirit we shall be continually liable to
wrest the Scriptures or to misinterpret them. There is much reading of the
Bible that is without profit and in many cases a positive injury. When the
word of God is opened without reverence and without prayer; when the
thoughts and affections are not fixed upon God, or in harmony with His will,
the mind is clouded with doubts; and in the very study of the Bible,
skepticism strengthens. The enemy takes control of the thoughts, and he
suggests interpretations that are not correct. Whenever men are not in word
and deed seeking to be in harmony with God, then, however learned they may
be, they are liable to err in their understanding of Scripture, and it is
not safe to trust to their explanations. Those who look to the Scriptures to
find discrepancies, have not spiritual
Disguise it as they may, the real cause of doubt and skepticism, in most cases, is the love of sin. The teachings and restrictions of God’s word are not welcome to the proud, sin-loving heart, and those who are unwilling to obey its requirements are ready to doubt its authority. In order to arrive at truth, we must have a sincere desire to know the truth and a willingness of heart to obey it. And all who come in this spirit to the study of the Bible will find abundant evidence that it is God’s word, and they may gain an understanding of its truths that will make them wise unto salvation.
Christ has said, “If any man willeth to do His will, he shall know of the
teaching.”
There is an evidence that is open to all,—the most highly educated, and the
most illiterate,—the evidence of experience. God invites us to prove for
ourselves the reality of His word, the truth of His promises. He bids us
“taste and see that the Lord is good.”
The apostle Paul says that God “hath delivered us from the power of
darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of His dear Son.”
Peter exhorts his brethren to “grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our
Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.”
By faith we may look to the hereafter and grasp the pledge of God for a
growth of intellect, the
The children of God are called to be representatives of Christ, showing
forth the goodness and mercy of the Lord. As Jesus has revealed to us the
true character of the Father, so we are to reveal Christ to a world that
does not know His tender, pitying love. “As Thou hast sent Me into the
world,” said Jesus, “even so have I also sent them into the world.” “I in
them, and Thou in Me; . . . that the world may know that Thou hast sent Me.”
Christians are set as light bearers on the way to heaven. They are to reflect to the world the light shining upon them from Christ. Their life and character should be such that through them others will get a right conception of Christ and of His service.
If we do represent Christ, we shall make His service appear attractive, as it really is. Christians who gather up gloom and sadness to their souls, and murmur and complain, are giving to others a false representation of God and the Christian life. They give the impression that God is not pleased to have His children happy, and in this they bear false witness against our heavenly Father.
Satan is exultant when he can lead the children of God into unbelief and despondency. He delights to see us mistrusting God, doubting His willingness and power to save us. He loves to have us feel that the Lord will do us harm by His providences. It is the work of Satan to represent the Lord as lacking in compassion and pity. He misstates the truth in regard to Him. He fills the imagination with false ideas concerning God; and instead of dwelling upon the truth in regard to our heavenly Father, we too often fix our minds upon the misrepresentations of Satan and dishonor God by distrusting Him and murmuring against Him. Satan ever seeks to make the religious life one of gloom. He desires it to appear toilsome and difficult; and when the Christian presents in his own life this view of religion, he is, through his unbelief, seconding the falsehood of Satan.
Many, walking along the path of life, dwell upon their mistakes and failures
and disappointments, and their hearts are filled with grief and
discouragement. While I was in Europe, a sister who had been doing this, and
who was in deep distress, wrote to me, asking for some word of
encouragement. The night after I had read her letter I dreamed that I was in
a garden, and one who seemed to be the owner of
Have there not been some bright spots in your experience? Have you not had some precious seasons when your heart throbbed with joy in response to the Spirit of God? When you look back into the chapters of your life experience do you not find some pleasant pages? Are not God’s promises, like the fragrant flowers, growing beside your path on every hand? Will you not let their beauty and sweetness fill your heart with joy?
The briers and thorns will only wound and grieve you; and if you gather only these things, and present them to others, are you not, besides slighting the goodness of God yourself, preventing those around you from walking in the path of life?
It is not wise to gather together all the unpleasant recollections of a past life,—its iniquities and disappointments,—to talk over them and mourn over them until we are overwhelmed with discouragement. A discouraged soul is filled with darkness, shutting out the light of God from his own soul and casting a shadow upon the pathway of others.
Thank God for the bright pictures which He has presented to us. Let us group together the blessed assurances of His love, that we may look upon them continually: The Son of God leaving His Father’s throne, clothing His divinity with humanity, that He might rescue man from the power of Satan; His triumph in our behalf, opening heaven to men, revealing to human vision the presence chamber where the Deity unveils His glory; the fallen race uplifted from the pit of ruin into which sin had plunged it, and brought again into connection with the infinite God, and having endured the divine test through faith in our Redeemer, clothed in the righteousness of Christ, and exalted to His throne—these are the pictures which God would have us contemplate.
When we seem to doubt God’s love and distrust His promises we dishonor Him
and grieve His Holy Spirit. How would a mother feel if her children were
constantly complaining of her, just as though she did not mean them well,
when her whole life’s effort had been to forward their interests and to give
them comfort? Suppose they should doubt her love; it would break her heart.
How would any parent feel to be thus treated by his children? And how can
our heavenly Father regard us when we distrust His love, which has led Him
to give His only-begotten Son that we might have life? The apostle writes,
“He that spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall
He not with Him also freely give us all things?”
All this is harming your own soul; for every word of doubt you utter is inviting Satan’s temptations; it is strengthening in you the tendency to doubt, and it is grieving from you the ministering angels. When Satan tempts you, breathe not a word of doubt or darkness. If you choose to open the door to his suggestions, your mind will be filled with distrust and rebellious questioning. If you talk out your feelings, every doubt you express not only reacts upon yourself, but it is a seed that will germinate and bear fruit in the life of others, and it may be impossible to counteract the influence of your words. You yourself may be able to recover from the season of temptation and from the snare of Satan, but others who have been swayed by your influence may not be able to escape from the unbelief you have suggested. How important that we speak only those things that will give spiritual strength and life!
Angels are listening to hear what kind of report you are bearing to the world about your heavenly Master. Let your conversation be of Him who liveth to make intercession for you before the Father. When you take the hand of a friend, let praise to God be on your lips and in your heart. This will attract his thoughts to Jesus.
All have trials; griefs hard to bear, temptations hard to resist. Do not
tell your troubles to your fellow mortals, but carry everything to God in
prayer. Make it a rule never to utter one word of doubt or discouragement.
You can do much to brighten the
There is many a brave soul sorely pressed by temptation, almost ready to
faint in the conflict with self and with the powers of evil. Do not
discourage such a one in his hard struggle. Cheer him with brave, hopeful
words that shall urge him on his way. Thus the light of Christ may shine
from you. “None of us liveth to himself.”
There are many who have an erroneous idea of the life and character of Christ. They think that He was devoid of warmth and sunniness, that He was stern, severe, and joyless. In many cases the whole religious experience is colored by these gloomy views.
It is often said that Jesus wept, but that He was never known to smile. Our Saviour was indeed a Man of Sorrows, and acquainted with grief, for He opened His heart to all the woes of men. But though His life was self-denying and shadowed with pain and care, His spirit was not crushed. His countenance did not wear an expression of grief and repining, but ever one of peaceful serenity. His heart was a wellspring of life, and wherever He went He carried rest and peace, joy and gladness.
Our Saviour was deeply serious and intensely in earnest, but never gloomy or
morose. The life of those who imitate Him will be full of earnest purpose;
they will have a deep sense of personal responsibility. Levity will be
repressed; there will be no
If we keep uppermost in our minds the unkind and unjust acts of others we shall find it impossible to love them as Christ has loved us; but if our thoughts dwell upon the wondrous love and pity of Christ for us, the same spirit will flow out to others. We should love and respect one another, notwithstanding the faults and imperfections that we cannot help seeing. Humility and self-distrust should be cultivated, and a patient tenderness with the faults of others. This will kill out all narrowing selfishness and make us large-hearted and generous.
The psalmist says, “Trust in the Lord, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in
the land, and verily thou shalt be fed.”
Some are always fearing, and borrowing trouble. Every day they are
surrounded with the tokens of God’s love; every day they are enjoying the
bounties of His providence; but they overlook these present
Do we well to be thus unbelieving? Why should we be ungrateful and distrustful? Jesus is our friend; all heaven is interested in our welfare. We should not allow the perplexities and worries of everyday life to fret the mind and cloud the brow. If we do we shall always have something to vex and annoy. We should not indulge a solicitude that only frets and wears us, but does not help us to bear trials.
You may be perplexed in business; your prospects may grow darker and darker, and you may be threatened with loss; but do not become discouraged; cast your care upon God, and remain calm and cheerful. Pray for wisdom to manage your affairs with discretion, and thus prevent loss and disaster. Do all you can on your part to bring about favorable results. Jesus has promised His aid, but not apart from our effort. When, relying upon our Helper, you have done all you can, accept the result cheerfully.
It is not the will of God that His people should be weighed down with care.
But our Lord does not deceive us. He does not say to us, “Do not fear; there
are no dangers in your path.” He knows there are trials and dangers, and He
deals with us plainly. He does not propose to take His people out of a world
of sin and evil, but He points them to a never-failing
In His Sermon on the Mount, Christ taught His disciples precious lessons in
regard to the necessity of trusting in God. These lessons were designed to
encourage the children of God through all ages, and they have come down to
our time full of instruction and comfort. The Saviour pointed His followers
to the birds of the air as they warbled their carols of praise, unencumbered
with thoughts of care, for “they sow not, neither do they reap.” And yet the
great Father provides for their needs. The Saviour asks, “Are ye not much
better than they?”
Christ pointed His disciples to the flowers of the
The Lord would have all His sons and daughters happy, peaceful, and
obedient. Jesus says, “My peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth,
give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”
“These things have I spoken unto you, that My joy might remain in you, and
that your joy might be full.”
Happiness that is sought from selfish motives, outside of the path of duty,
is ill-balanced, fitful, and transitory; it passes away, and the soul is
filled with loneliness and sorrow; but there is joy and satisfaction in the
service of God; the Christian is not left to walk in uncertain paths; he is
not left to vain regrets and disappointments. If we do not have the
But even here Christians may have the joy of communion with Christ; they may
have the light of His love, the perpetual comfort of His presence. Every
step in life may bring us closer to Jesus, may give us a deeper experience
of His love, and may bring us one step nearer to the blessed home of peace.
Then let us not cast away our confidence, but have firm assurance, firmer
than ever before. “Hitherto hath the Lord helped us,” and He will help us to
the end.
We cannot but look forward to new perplexities in the coming conflict, but
we may look on what is past as well as on what is to come, and say,
“Hitherto hath the Lord helped us.” “As thy days, so shall thy strength be.”
And by and by the gates of heaven will be thrown open to admit God’s
children, and from the lips of the King of glory the benediction will fall
on their
Then the redeemed will be welcomed to the home that Jesus is preparing for them. There their companions will not be the vile of earth, liars, idolaters, the impure, and unbelieving; but they will associate with those who have overcome Satan and through divine grace have formed perfect characters. Every sinful tendency, every imperfection, that afflicts them here has been removed by the blood of Christ, and the excellence and brightness of His glory, far exceeding the brightness of the sun, is imparted to them. And the moral beauty, the perfection of His character, shines through them, in worth far exceeding this outward splendor. They are without fault before the great white throne, sharing the dignity and the privileges of the angels.
In view of the glorious inheritance that may be his, “what shall a man give
in exchange for his soul?”
Genesis
Exodus
Deuteronomy
1 Samuel
Job
Psalms
16:8 32:1-2 33:5 34:8 34:18 37:3 37:7 40:8 50:23 51:1-14 51:10 72:6 84:11 97:2 107:8 107:43 119:97 139:23-24 145:15-16 147:3
Proverbs
Isaiah
1:5-6 1:16-17 1:18 1:18 30:15 44:3 44:22 49:15 51:3 53:5 53:12 55:1 55:7 60:19 61:3
Jeremiah
Ezekiel
Daniel
Hosea
Jonah
Micah
Matthew
6:12 6:26 6:28 6:30 7:7 9:6 10:20 11:27 11:28 11:28 11:29 16:26 20:28 25:34 27:4 27:46 28:20
Mark
Luke
4:18 7:43 12:27 14:33 15:18-20 18:13
John
1:3 1:4 1:9 1:18 1:29 1:29 1:47-48 1:51 3:3 3:3 3:7 3:8 3:16 3:33 5:19 5:39 6:33 6:53 6:63 7:17 10:17 12:32 14:6 14:8-9 14:10 14:17 14:27 15:4-5 15:10 15:11 15:16 16:7 16:13-14 16:14 16:23-24 16:24 16:26-27 16:27 16:33 17:15 17:18 17:20 17:23 20:31
Acts
2:37-38 3:19 4:12 4:13 5:31 26:10-11
Romans
7:9 7:12 7:14 7:16 7:24 8:1 8:1 8:7 8:32 8:32 8:34 11:33 12:12 14:7
1 Corinthians
2:9 2:10 2:10 2:11 2:14 7:24 13:12
2 Corinthians
3:2 3:3 3:18 5:17 5:19 5:19 6:2 7:11 8:9
Galatians
Ephesians
Philippians
Colossians
1 Timothy
2 Timothy
Hebrews
2:11 3:7-8 3:12 4:15 7:25 10:16 10:38 11:6 12:14
James
1:17 2:17 2:19 5:11 5:16 5:17 5:17
1 Peter
2 Peter
1 John
1:9 2:1 2:3-6 2:4 3:1 3:5-6 3:7 4:19 5:3
Jude
Revelation
5 6 10 11 12 13 14 15 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126