That such a fundamental, all-embracing truth as imputed righteousness-justification by faith should be lost sight of by many professing godliness and entrusted with Heaven's final message to a dying world, seems incredible; but such, we are plainly told, is a fact. "doctrine of justification by faith has been lost sight of by many who have professed to believe the third angel's message."-The Review and Herald, August 13, 1889.
"There is not one in one hundred who understands for himself the Bible truth on this subject [justification by faith] that is so necessary to our present and eternal welfare.?- The Review and Herald, September 3, 1889.

For the last twenty years a subtle, unconsecrated influence has been leading men to look to men, to bind up with men, to neglect their heavenly Companion. Many have turned away from Christ. They have failed to appreciate the One who declares, ?Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world.? Let us do all in our power to redeem the past.?-The Review and Herald, February 18, 1904.The Review and Herald, February 18, 1904.

Twenty years back from 1904 would just take in the sweep of the message of Righteousness by Faith in 1888, with the preparatory messages which immediately preceded it. What do you say, fellow workers? Shall we not do all in our power to redeem the past? It may be that in returning from the feast we have left Jesus behind, and it becomes necessary for us to seek Him sorrowing, as did Joseph and Mary on their journey homeward from Jerusalem. We are told that- ?The reason why our preachers accomplish so little is that they do not walk with God. He is a day?s journey from most of them.?-Testimonies for the Church 1:434.
It is an individual matter. Let us pause and consider: Is the Saviour a living, abiding presence in my life? or is He a day's journey distant, and are my life and work the result of the memory of His presence? The searching warning sent through the Spirit of prophecy regarding the large number of Seventh-day Adventists who had lost sight of the ?doctrine of justification by faith,? was written in 1889. What change time has made in the proportion of our people who did not at that time hold to or understand this precious truth, none will attempt to say; but we do know that every believer in the third angel?s message at this time should have a clear conception of the doctrine of justification by faith and a well-grounded experience in the great transaction.

All the preaching in the world will not make men feel deeply the need of the perishing souls around them. Nothing will so arouse in men and women a self-sacrificing zeal as to send them forth into new fields to work for those in darkness. Prepare workers to go out into the highways and hedges. Do not call men and women to the great center, encouraging them to leave churches that need their aid. Men must learn to bear responsibilities. Not one in a hundred among us is doing anything beyond engaging in common, worldly enterprises. We are not half awake to the worth of the souls for whom

HOW IS THE THIRD ANGEL'S MESSAGE JUSTIFICATION BY FAITH IN VERITY??

by A.G.Daniells

Justification by faith, it is affirmed, is "the third angel's message in verity." The words "in verity" mean, in fact, in reality, in very truth. That means that the message of justification by faith and the third angel's message are the same in purpose, in scope, and in results. {1941 AGD, COR 64.5}

Justification by faith is God's way of saving sinners; His way of convicting sinners of their guilt, their condemnation, and their utterly undone lost condition. It is way of cancelling their guilt and delivering them from the condemnation of His divine law, and giving them a new and right standingbefore Him and His holy law. Justification by faith is God's way of changing weak, sinful, defeated men and women into strong, righteous, victorious Christians. {1941 AGD, COR 65.1}


Now if it be true that justification by faith is "the third angel's message in verity,"-in fact, in reality,-it must be that the genuine understanding and appropriation of the third angel's message is designed to do for and in those who receive it, the full work of justification by faith. That this is its purpose, is evident from the following considerations: {1941 AGD, COR 65.2}

1. The great threefold message of Revelation 14, which we designate by the term "the third angel's message," is declared to be "the everlasting gospel." Rev. 14:6. {1941 AGD, COR 65.3}

2. The message makes the solemn announcement that the "hour of His judgment is come." {1941 AGD, COR 65.4}

3. It admonishes all who are to meet God at His great tribunal, to be judged by His righteous law, to "fear God, and give glory to Him,"-and to "worship Him that made heaven, and earth." Verse 7. {1941 AGD, COR 65.5}

4. The result, or fruitage, of this message of warning and admonition is the development of a people of whom it is declared: "Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the
commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus." Verse 12. {1941 AGD, COR 65.6}

In all this we have the facts of justification by faith. The message is the gospel of salvation from sin, condemnation, and death. The judgment brings men and women face to face with the law of righteousness, by which they are to be tried. Because of their guilt and condemnation, they are warned to fear and worship God. This involves conviction of guilt, repentance, confession, and renunciation. This is the ground of forgiveness, cleansing, and justification.

Those who enter into this experience have had wrought into their characters the sweet, beautiful grace of patience, in an age of all-pervading irritability and fiery temper, which is destroying the peace, happiness, and safety of the human race. What is that but justification by faith? The word declares that, "being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." Rom. 5: 1. {1941 AGD, COR 66.1}

But more still, these believers "keep the commandments of God." They have experienced the marvelous change from hating and transgressing the law of God, to loving and keeping its righteous precepts. Their standing before the law has been changed. Their guilt has been canceled; their condemnation has been removed, and the death sentence has been annulled. Having accepted Christ as Saviour, they have received His righteousness and His life. {1941 AGD, COR 66.2}

This wondrous transformation can be wrought only by the grace and power of God, and it is wrought for those only who lay hold of Christ as their substitute, their surety, their Redeemer. Therefore, it is said that they "keep the faith of Jesus." This reveals the secret of their rich, deep experience. They laid hold of the faith of Jesus,-that faith by which He triumphed over the powers of darkness. {1941 AGD, COR 66.3}

"When the sinner believes that Christ is his personal Saviour, then, according to His unfailing promises, God pardons his sin, and justifies him freely. The repentant soul realizes that his justification comes because Christ, as his substitute and surety, has died for him, as his atonement and righteousness."-Review and Herald, Nov. 4, 1890. {1941 AGD, COR 67.1}

As already pointed out, we find in the experiences of those who triumph in the third angel's message all the facts of justification by faith. For this reason, it is quite true that justification by faith is "the third angel's message in verity." {1941 AGD, COR 67.2}

And here it may be well to call attention to the fact that both justification by faith and the third angel's message are the gospel of Christ in verity. This is made apparent by a statement from the apostle Paul, who declares that the "gospel of Christ ... is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth. . . . For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith." Rom. 1: 16, 17. {1941 AGD, COR 67.3}

COR = Christ Our Righteousness, a book written by A.G.Daniells in 1941

The Lord is disappointed when His people place a low estimate [668]
upon themselves. He desires His chosen heritage to value themselves
according to the price He has placed upon them. God wanted them,
else He would not have sent His Son on such an expensive errand
to redeem them. He has a use for them, and He is well pleased
when they make the very highest demands upon Him, that they may
glorify His name. They may expect large things if they have faith in
His promises.
But to pray in Christ?s name means much. It means that we are
to accept His character, manifest His spirit, and work His works.
The Saviour?s promise is given on condition. ?If ye love Me,? He
says, ?keep My commandments.? He saves men, not in sin, but from
sin; and those who love Him will show their love by obedience.

All true obedience comes from the heart. It was heart work with
Christ. And if we consent, He will so identify Himself with our
thoughts and aims, so blend our hearts and minds into conformity to
His will, that when obeying Him we shall be but carrying out our
own impulses. The will, refined and sanctified, will find its highest
delight in doing His service. When we know God as it is our privilege
to know Him, our life will be a life of continual obedience. Through
an appreciation of the character of Christ, through communion with
God, sin will become hateful to us.
As Christ lived the law in humanity, so we may do if we will
take hold of the Strong for strength. But we are not to place the
responsibility of our duty upon others, and wait for them to tell us
what to do. We cannot depend for counsel upon humanity. The Lord
will teach us our duty just as willingly as He will teach somebody
else. If we come to Him in faith, He will speak His mysteries to us
personally. Our hearts will often burn within us as One draws nigh
to commune with us as He did with Enoch. Those who decide to
do nothing in any line that will displease God, will know, after pre-
senting their case before Him, just what course to pursue. And they
will receive not only wisdom, but strength. Power for obedience, for
service, will be imparted to them, as Christ has promised. Whatever
was given to Christ?the ?all things? to supply the need of fallen
men?was given to Him as the head and representative of humanity.
And ?whatsoever we ask, we receive of Him, because we keep His
commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in His sight.?
1 John 3:22.

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 far as they go; but
if you stop here, they will avail nothing. Many will be lost while
hoping and desiring to be Christians. They do not come to the point
of yielding the will to God. They do not now choose to be Christians.

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?? Job 11:7, 8.

1Co_10:13? There hath no temptation taken you but such as man can bear: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation make also the way of escape, that ye may be able to endure it.

Eze 36:25? And I will sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you.?
Eze 36:26? A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.?
Eze 36:27? And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.?

Jer 31:31? Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:?
Jer 31:32? not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD.?
Jer 31:33? But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the LORD; I will put my law in their inward parts, and in their heart will I write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people:?
Jer 31:34? and they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin will I remember no more.?

Hab 2:4? Behold, his soul is puffed up, it is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith.?

Joh 17:1? These things spake Jesus; and lifting up his eyes to heaven, he said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that the Son may glorify thee:?
Joh 17:2? even as thou gavest him authority over all flesh, that whatsoever thou hast given him, to them he should give eternal life.?
Joh 17:3? And this is life eternal, that they should know thee the only true God, and him whom thou didst send, even Jesus Christ.?

The Christian life is a battle and a march. But the victory to
be gained is not won by human power. The field of conflict is the
domain of the heart. The battle which we have to fight?the greatest
battle that was ever fought by man?is the surrender of self to the
will of God, the yielding of the heart to the sovereignty of love. The
old nature, born of blood and of the will of the flesh, cannot inherit
the kingdom of God. The hereditary tendencies, the former habits,
must be given up.
He who determines to enter the spiritual kingdom will find that [142]
all the powers and passions of an unregenerate nature, backed by
the forces of the kingdom of darkness, are arrayed against him.
Selfishness and pride will make a stand against anything that would
show them to be sinful. We cannot, of ourselves, conquer the evil
desires and habits that strive for the mastery. We cannot overcome
the mighty foe who holds us in his thrall. God alone can give us
the victory. He desires us to have the mastery over ourselves, our
own will and ways. But He cannot work in us without our consent
and co-operation. The divine Spirit works through the faculties and
powers given to man. Our energies are required to co-operate with
God.
The victory is not won without much earnest prayer, without
the humbling of self at every step. Our will is not to be forced
into co-operation with divine agencies, but it must be voluntarily
submitted. Were it possible to force upon you with a hundredfold
greater intensity the influence of the Spirit of God, it would not
make you a Christian, a fit subject for heaven. The stronghold of
Satan would not be broken. The will must be placed on the side of
God?s will. You are not able, of yourself, to bring your purposes
and desires and inclinations into submission to the will of God; but
if you are ?willing to be made willing,? God will accomplish the
work for you, even ?casting down imaginations, and every high thing
that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into
captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.? 2 Corinthians
10:5. Then you will ?work out your own salvation with fear and
trembling. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do
of His good pleasure.? Philippians 2:12, 13.
Thoughts from the Mount of Blessing pp 141 - 143.

There are many in the broad way who are
not fully satisfied with the path in which they walk. They long to
break from the slavery of sin, and in their own strength they seek
to make a stand against their sinful practices. They look toward
the narrow way and the strait gate; but selfish pleasure, love of the
world, pride, unsanctified ambition, place a barrier between them
and the Saviour. To renounce their own will, their chosen objects of
affection or pursuit, requires a sacrifice at which they hesitate and
falter and turn back. Many ?will seek to enter in, and shall not be
able.? Luke 13:24. They desire the good, they make some effort to
obtain it; but they do not choose it; they have not a settled purpose
to secure it at the cost of all things.
The only hope for us if we would overcome is to unite our will to
God?s will and work in co-operation with Him, hour by hour and day
by day. We cannot retain self and yet enter the kingdom of God. If we

ever attain unto holiness, it will be through the renunciation of self
and the reception of the mind of Christ. Pride and self-sufficiency
must be crucified. Are we willing to pay the price required of us?
Are we willing to have our will brought into perfect conformity to
the will of God? Until we are willing, the transforming grace of God
cannot be manifest upon us.
The warfare which we are to wage is the ?good fight of faith.? ?I [144]
also labor,? said the apostle Paul, ?striving according to His working,
which worketh in me mightily.? Colossians 1:29. Thoughts from the
Mount of Blessing pp 143, 144

Exo 31:12? And the LORD said to Moses,?
Exo 31:13? ?You are to speak to the people of Israel and say, ?Above all you shall keep my Sabbaths, for this is a sign between me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I, the LORD, sanctify you.?
Exo 31:14? You shall keep the Sabbath, because it is holy for you. Everyone who profanes it shall be put to death. Whoever does any work on it, that soul shall be cut off from among his people.?

Eze 20:12? Moreover, I gave them my Sabbaths, as a sign between me and them, that they might know that I am the LORD who sanctifies them.?

Deu_30:6? And the LORD your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your offspring, so that you will love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live.

Col 2:11? In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ,?
Col 2:12? having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead.?
Col 2:13? And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses,

Rev 3:14? ?And to the angel of the church in Laodicea write: ?The words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of God's creation.?
Rev 3:15? ??I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot!?
Rev 3:16? So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth.?
Rev 3:17? For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked.?
Rev 3:18? I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see.?
Rev 3:19? Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent.?
Rev 3:20? Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.?
Rev 3:21? The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne.?

?Whereunto shall we liken the kingdom of God? or with what
comparison shall we compare it?? In earthly governments there was
nothing that could serve for a similitude. No civil society could
afford Him a symbol. ?It is like a grain of mustard seed,? He said,
?which, when it is sown upon the earth, though it be less than all the
seeds that are upon the earth, yet when it is sown, groweth up, and
becometh greater than all the herbs, and putteth out great branches;
so that the birds of the heaven can lodge under the shadow thereof.?
(R.V.).
The germ in the seed grows by the unfolding of the life-principle
which God has implanted. Its development depends upon no human
power. So it is with the kingdom of Christ. It is a new creation.
Its principles of development are the opposite of those that rule the
kingdoms of this world. Earthly governments prevail by physical
force; they maintain their dominion by war; but the founder of the
new kingdom is the Prince of Peace. The Holy Spirit represents
worldly kingdoms under the symbol of fierce beasts of prey; but
Christ is ?the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.?
John 1:29. In His plan of government there is no employment of
brute force to compel the conscience. The Jews looked for the
kingdom of God to be established in the same way as the kingdoms
of the world. To promote righteousness they resorted to external
measures. They devised methods and plans. But Christ implants a
principle. By implanting truth and righteousness, He counterworks
error and sin.
As Jesus spoke this parable, the mustard plant could be seen
far and near, lifting itself above the grass and grain, and waving
its branches lightly in the air. Birds flitted from twig to twig, and
sang amid the leafy foliage. Yet the seed from which sprang this
giant plant was among the least of all seeds. At first it sent up a
tender shoot, but it was of strong vitality, and grew and flourished
until it reached its present great size. So the kingdom of Christ in its
beginning seemed humble and insignificant. Compared with earthly
kingdoms it appeared to be the least of all. By the rulers of this world
Christ?s claim to be a king was ridiculed. Yet in the mighty truths
committed to His followers the kingdom of the gospel possessed
a divine life. And how rapid was its growth, how widespread its
influence! When Christ spoke this parable, there were only a few
Galilean peasants to represent the new kingdom. Their poverty, the
fewness of their numbers, were urged over and over again as a reason
why men should not connect themselves with these simple-minded
fishermen who followed Jesus. But the mustard seed was to grow
and spread forth its branches throughout the world. When the earthly
kingdoms whose glory then filled the hearts of men should perish,
the kingdom of Christ would remain, a mighty and far-reaching
power.
So the work of grace in the heart is small in its beginning. A
word is spoken, a ray of light is shed into the soul, an influence is
exerted that is the beginning of the new life; and who can measure
its results?

God regards us as His children. He has redeemed us out of the
careless world and has chosen us to become members of the royal
family, sons and daughters of the heavenly King. He invites us to
trust in Him with a trust deeper and stronger than that of a child in
his earthly father. Parents love their children, but the love of God
is larger, broader, deeper, than human love can possibly be. It is
immeasurable. Then if earthly parents know how to give good gifts
to their children, how much more shall our Father in heaven give the
Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?
Christ?s lessons in regard to prayer should be carefully consid-
ered. There is a divine science in prayer, and His illustration brings
to view principles that all need to understand. He shows what is
the true spirit of prayer, He teaches the necessity of perseverance in
presenting our requests to God, and assures us of His willingness to
hear and answer prayer.
Our prayers are not to be a selfish asking, merely for our own
benefit. We are to ask that we may give. The principle of Christ?s
life must be the principle of our lives. ?For their sakes,? He said,
speaking of His disciples, ?I sanctify Myself, that they also might be
sanctified.? John 17:19. The same devotion, the same self-sacrifice,
the same subjection to the claims of the word of God, that were
manifest in Christ, must be seen in His servants. Our mission to
the world is not to serve or please ourselves; we are to glorify God
by co-operating with Him to save sinners. We are to ask blessings
from God that we may communicate to others. The capacity for
receiving is preserved only by imparting. We cannot continue to
receive heavenly treasure without communicating to those around
us.

Joh 17:1? When Jesus had spoken these words, he lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, ?Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you,?
Joh 17:2? since you have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him.?
Joh 17:3? And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.?
Joh 17:4? I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do.?
Joh 17:5? And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed.?
Joh 17:6? ?I have manifested your name to the people whom you gave me out of the world. Yours they were, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word.?
Joh 17:7? Now they know that everything that you have given me is from you.?
Joh 17:8? For I have given them the words that you gave me, and they have received them and have come to know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me.?
Joh 17:9? I am praying for them. I am not praying for the world but for those whom you have given me, for they are yours.?
Joh 17:10? All mine are yours, and yours are mine, and I am glorified in them.?
Joh 17:11? And I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one.?
Joh 17:12? While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me. I have guarded them, and not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled.?
Joh 17:13? But now I am coming to you, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves.?
Joh 17:14? I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.?
Joh 17:15? I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one.?
Joh 17:16? They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.?
Joh 17:17? Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.?
Joh 17:18? As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world.?
Joh 17:19? And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth.?
Joh 17:20? ?I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word,?
Joh 17:21? that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.?
Joh 17:22? The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one,?
Joh 17:23? I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me.?
Joh 17:24? Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world.?
Joh 17:25? O righteous Father, even though the world does not know you, I know you, and these know that you have sent me.?
Joh 17:26? I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.??

"Laborers in the cause of truth should present the righteousness of Christ,
not as a new light, but as precious light that has for a time been lost sight of by the
people. We are to accept Christ as our personal Saviour, and He imputes unto us
the righteousness of God in Christ."--Review and Herald, March 20, 1894.

"Do not allow your minds to be diverted from the all-important theme of the
righteousness of Christ by the study of theories. Do not imagine that the perform-
ance of ceremonies, the observance of outward forms, will make you an heir of
heaven. We want to keep the mind steadfastly to the point for which we are work-
ing; for it is now the day of the Lord's preparation, and we should yield our hearts
to God, that they may be softened and subdued by the Holy Spirit."--Review and
Herald, April 5, 1892.

"The great center of attraction, Jesus Christ, must not be left out of the third
angel's message. By many who have been engaged in the work for this time, Christ
has been made secondary, and theories and arguments have had the first place."--
Review and Herald, March 20, 1894.

"The mystery of the incarnation of Christ, the account of His sufferings, His
crucifixion, His resurrection, and His ascension, open all humanity the marvelous
love of God. This imparts a power to the truth."--Review and Herald, June 18,
1895.

"The small churches have been presented to me as so destitute of spiritual
food that they are ready to die, and God says to you, 'Be watchful, and strengthen
the things which remain, that are ready to die; for I have not found thy works per-
fect before God."--Review and Herald, March 4, 1890.

"This I do know, that our churches are dying for the want of teaching on the
subject of righteousness by faith in Christ, and on kindred truths."--"Gospel Work-
ers," page 301.

"The theme that attracts the heart of the sinner is Christ and Him crucified.
On the cross of Calvary, Jesus stands revealed to the world in unparalleled love.
Present Him thus to the hungering multitudes, and the light of His love will win
men from darkness to light, from transgression to obedience and true holiness. Be-
holding Jesus upon the cross of Calvary arouses the conscience to the heinous
character of sin as nothing else can do."--Review and Herald, Nov. 22, 1892.

"Christ crucified--talk it, pray it, sing it, and it will break and win hearts. Set,
formal phrases, the presentation of merely argumentative subjects, is productive of
little good. The melting love of God in the workers will be recognized by those for
whom they labor. Souls are thirsting for the water of life. Do not allow them to go
from you empty. Reveal the love of Christ to them. Lead them to Jesus, and He
will give them the bread of life and the water of salvation."--Review and Herald,
June 2, 1903.

Jesus was tempted in all points like as we are, that He might know how to succor those who should be tempted. His life is our example. He shows by His willing obedience that man may keep the law of God and that transgression of the law, not obedience to it, brings him into bondage. The Saviour was full of compassion and love; He never spurned the truly penitent, however great their guilt; but He severely denounced hypocrisy of every sort. He is acquainted with the sins of men, He knows all their acts and reads their secret motives; yet He does not turn away from them in their iniquity. He pleads and reasons with the sinner, and in one sense?that of having Himself borne the weakness of humanity?He puts Himself on a level with him. ?Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.?4T 294.1

Man, who has defaced the image of God in his soul by a corrupt life, cannot, by mere human effort, effect a radical change in himself. He must accept the provisions of the gospel; he must be reconciled to God through obedience to His law and faith in Jesus Christ. His life from thenceforth must be governed by a new principle. Through repentance, faith, and good works he may perfect a righteous character, and claim, through the merits of Christ, the privileges of the sons of God. The principles of divine truth, received and cherished in the heart, will carry us to a height of moral excellence that we had not deemed it possible for us to reach. ?And it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is. And every man that hath this hope in Him purifieth himself, even as He is pure.?4T 294.2

Here is a work for man to do. He must face the mirror, God's law, discern the defects in his moral character, and put away his sins, washing his robe of character in the blood of the Lamb. Envy, pride, malice, deceit, strife, and crime will be cleansed from the heart that is a recipient of the love of Christ and that cherishes the hope of being made like Him when we shall see Him as He is. The religion of Christ refines and dignifies its possessor, whatever his associations or station in life may be. Men who become enlightened Christians rise above the level of their former character into greater mental and moral strength. Those fallen and degraded by sin and crime may, through the merits of the Saviour, be exalted to a position but little lower than that of the angels.4T 294.3

But the influence of a gospel hope will not lead the sinner to look upon the salvation of Christ as a matter of free grace, while he continues to live in transgression of the law of God. When the light of truth dawns upon his mind and he fully understands the requirements of God and realizes the extent of his transgressions, he will reform his ways, become loyal to God through the strength obtained from his Saviour, and lead a new and purer life.4T 295

?His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.? Isaiah 9:6.Ed 73.1

In the Teacher sent from God, heaven gave to men its best and greatest. He who had stood in the councils of the Most High, who had dwelt in the innermost sanctuary of the Eternal, was the One chosen to reveal in person to humanity the knowledge of God.Ed 73.2

Through Christ had been communicated every ray of divine light that had ever reached our fallen world. It was He who had spoken through everyone that throughout the ages had declared God's word to man. Of Him all the excellences manifest in the earth's greatest and noblest souls were reflections. The purity and beneficence of Joseph, the faith and meekness and long-suffering of Moses, the steadfastness of Elisha, the noble integrity and firmness of Daniel, the ardor and self-sacrifice of Paul, the mental and spiritual power manifest in all these men, and in all others who had ever dwelt on the earth, were but gleams from the shining of His glory. In Him was found the perfect ideal.Ed 73.3

To reveal this ideal as the only true standard for attainment; to show what every human being might become; what, through the indwelling of humanity by divinity, all who received Him would become?for this, Christ came to the world. He came to show how men are to be trained as befits the sons of God; how on earth they are to practice the principles and to live the life of heaven.Ed 73.4

God's greatest gift was bestowed to meet man's greatest need. The Light appeared when the world's darkness was deepest. Through false teaching the minds of men had long been turned away from God. In the prevailing systems of education, human philosophy had taken the place of divine revelation. Instead of the heaven-given standard of truth, men had accepted a standard of their own devising. From the Light of life they had turned aside to walk in the sparks of the fire which they had kindled.Ed 74.1

The proud heart strives to earn salvation; but both our title to
heaven and our fitness for it are found in the righteousness of Christ.
The Lord can do nothing toward the recovery of man until, convinced
of his own weakness, and stripped of all self-sufficiency, he yields
himself to the control of God. Then he can receive the gift that God
is waiting to bestow. From the soul that feels his need, nothing is
withheld. He has unrestricted access to Him in whom all fullness
dwells. ?For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity,
whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him
also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the
humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.? Isaiah 57:15.
?Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.? By
these words Christ does not teach that mourning in itself has power
to remove the guilt of sin. He gives no sanction to pretense or to
voluntary humility. The mourning of which He speaks does not
consist in melancholy and lamentation. While we sorrow on account
of sin, we are to rejoice in the precious privilege of being children
of God.
We often sorrow because our evil deeds bring unpleasant conse-
quences to ourselves; but this is not repentance. Real sorrow for sin
is the result of the working of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit reveals the
ingratitude of the heart that has slighted and grieved the Saviour, and
brings us in contrition to the foot of the cross. By every sin Jesus is
wounded afresh; and as we look upon Him whom we have pierced,
we mourn for the sins that have brought anguish upon Him. Such
mourning will lead to the renunciation of sin.
The worldling may pronounce this sorrow a weakness; but it is
the strength which binds the penitent to the Infinite One with links
that cannot be broken. It shows that the angels of God are bringing
back to the soul the graces that were lost through hardness of heart
and transgression. The tears of the penitent are only the raindrops
that precede the sunshine of holiness. This sorrow heralds a joy
which will be a living fountain in the soul. ?Only acknowledge thine
iniquity, that thou hast transgressed against the Lord thy God;? ?and
I will not cause Mine anger to fall upon you: for I am merciful, saith
the Lord.? Jeremiah 3:13, 12. ?Unto them that mourn in Zion,? He
has appointed to give ?beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning,
the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness.? Isaiah 61:3.
And for those also who mourn in trial and sorrow there is com-
fort. The bitterness of grief and humiliation is better than the indul-
gences of sin. Through affliction God reveals to us the plague spots
in our characters, that by His grace we may overcome our faults.
Unknown chapters in regard to ourselves are opened to us, and the
test comes, whether we will accept the reproof and the counsel of
God. When brought into trial, we are not to fret and complain. We
should not rebel, or worry ourselves out of the hand of Christ. We
are to humble the soul before God. The ways of the Lord are obscure
to him who desires to see things in a light pleasing to himself. They
appear dark and joyless to our human nature. But God?s ways are
ways of mercy and the end is salvation. Elijah knew not what he was
doing when in the desert he said that he had had enough of life, and
prayed that he might die. The Lord in His mercy did not take him at
his word. There was yet a great work for Elijah to do; and when his
work was done, he was not to perish in discouragement and solitude
in the wilderness. Not for him the descent into the dust of death,
but the ascent in glory, with the convoy of celestial chariots, to the
throne on high.

?Blessed are the meek.? The difficulties we have to encounter
may be very much lessened by that meekness which hides itself
in Christ. If we possess the humility of our Master, we shall rise
above the slights, the rebuffs, the annoyances, to which we are daily
exposed, and they will cease to cast a gloom over the spirit. The
highest evidence of nobility in a Christian is self-control. He who
under abuse or cruelty fails to maintain a calm and trustful spirit robs
God of His right to reveal in him His own perfection of character.
Lowliness of heart is the strength that gives victory to the followers
of Christ; it is the token of their connection with the courts above.
?Though the Lord be high, yet hath He respect unto the lowly.?
Psalm 138:6. Those who reveal the meek and lowly spirit of Christ

are tenderly regarded by God. They may be looked upon with scorn
by the world, but they are of great value in His sight. Not only the
wise, the great, the beneficent, will gain a passport to the heavenly
courts; not only the busy worker, full of zeal and restless activity. No;
the poor in spirit, who crave the presence of an abiding Christ, the
humble in heart, whose highest ambition is to do God?s will,?these
will gain an abundant entrance. They will be among that number
who have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of
the Lamb. ?Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve
Him day and night in His temple: and He that sitteth on the throne
shall dwell among them.? Revelation 7:15.

?Those who would follow
Christ must be grounded upon the principles of truth. They need to
understand what the Bible teaches in regard to faith, and sanctifica-
tion through the truth. They must be so established in this knowledge
that they cannot be moved to take false positions on the doctrine
of holiness, but will be able to illustrate in their lives the practical
workings of this heaven-given principle. The people of God must be
able to distinguish between the genuine and the spurious.
There are those who profess holiness, who declare that they are
wholly the Lord?s, who claim a right to the promises of God, while
they do not render obedience to His commandments....
It is true that there are many who have never had the light of
present truth, who, through the grace given them of Christ, are
keeping the law as far as they understand it. Those who are thus
living up to the best light they have, are not of the class whom the
apostle John condemns. His words apply to those who boast of
believing in Jesus, who claim holiness, while they lightly regard
the requirements of the law of God. While they talk of the love of
Jesus, their love is not deep enough to lead to obedience. The fruit
they bear, shows the character of the tree. It proves that their faith is
not genuine. Yet this class, though entitled to nothing, though they
have no right to the promises of God, boldly claim all His blessings.
While they give nothing, they claim everything. They close their
ears to the truth, refuse to listen to the plain ?Thus saith the Lord,?
but by professing holiness they deceive many, leading souls away
by their pretentious faith that has no foundation.

There is but one power that can break the hold of evil from the
hearts of men, and that is the power of God in Jesus Christ. Only
through the blood of the Crucified One is there cleansing from sin.
His grace alone can enable us to resist and subdue the tendencies of
our fallen nature. This power the spiritualistic theories concerning
God make of no effect. If God is an essence pervading all nature,
then He dwells in all men; and in order to attain holiness, man has
only to develop the power that is within him.
These theories, followed to their logical conclusion, sweep away
the whole Christian economy. They do away with the necessity
for the atonement, and make man his own savior. These theories
regarding God make His Word of no effect, and those who accept
them are in great danger of being led finally to look upon the whole
Bible as a fiction. They may regard virtue as better than vice; but
God being removed from His position of sovereignty, they place their
dependence upon human power, which, without God, is worthless.
The unaided human will has no real power to resist and overcome
evil. The defenses of the soul are broken down. Man has no barrier
against sin. When once the restraints of God?s Word and His Spirit
are rejected, we know not to what depths one may sink.

Many young men are sent forth to labor who do not understand
the plan of salvation and what true conversion is; in fact, they need
to be converted. We need to be enlightened on this point, and the
ministers need to be educated to dwell more particularly upon the
subjects which explain true conversion. All who are baptized are to
give evidence that they have been converted. There is not a point that
needs to be dwelt upon more earnestly, repeated more frequently, or
established more firmly in the minds of all than the impossibility of
fallen man meriting anything by his own best good works. Salvation
is through faith in Jesus Christ alone.
When this question is investigated we are pained to the heart to
see how trivial are the remarks of those who ought to understand the
mystery of godliness. They speak so unguardedly of the true ideas
of our brethren who profess to believe the truth and teach the truth.
They come far short of the real facts as they have been laid open
before me. The enemy has so entangled their minds in the mist and
fog of earthliness and it seems so ingrained into their understanding
that it has become a part of their faith and character. It is only a new
conversion that can change them and cause them to give up these
false ideas?for this is just what they are shown to me to be. They
cling to them as a drowning man clings to a life preserver, to keep
them from sinking and making shipwreck of faith.

Discussions may be entered into by mortals strenuously advocat-
ing creature merit, and each man striving for the supremacy, but they
simply do not know that all the time, in principle and character, they
are misrepresenting the truth as it is in Jesus. They are in a fog of be-
wilderment. They need the divine love of God which is represented
by gold tried in the fire; they need the white raiment of Christ?s
pure character; and they need the heavenly eyesalve that they might
discern with astonishment the utter worthlessness of creature merit
to earn the wages of eternal life. There may be a fervor of labor
and an intense affection, high and noble achievement of intellect,
a breadth of understanding, and the humblest self-abasement, laid
at the feet of our Redeemer; but there is not one jot more than the
grace and talent first given of God. There must be nothing less given
[24] than duty prescribes, and there cannot be one jot more given than
they have first received; and all must be laid upon the fire of Christ?s
righteousness to cleanse it from its earthly odor before it rises in a
cloud of fragrant incense to the great Jehovah and is accepted as a
sweet savor.
I ask, How can I present this matter as it is? The Lord Jesus
imparts all the powers, all the grace, all the penitence, all the inclina-
tion, all the pardon of sins, in presenting His righteousness for man
Ellen White Clarifies the Issues
17
to grasp by living faith?which is also the gift of God. If you would
gather together everything that is good and holy and noble and lovely
in man and then present the subject to the angels of God as acting
a part in the salvation of the human soul or in merit, the proposi-
tion would be rejected as treason. Standing in the presence of their
Creator and looking upon the unsurpassed glory which enshrouds
His person, they are looking upon the Lamb of God given from the
foundation of the world to a life of humiliation, to be rejected of
sinful men, to be despised, to be crucified. Who can measure the
infinity of the sacrifice!

When men learn they cannot earn righteousness by their own
merit of works, and they look with firm and entire reliance upon
[26] Jesus Christ as their only hope, there will not be so much of self and
so little of Jesus. Souls and bodies are defiled and polluted by sin,
the heart is estranged from God, yet many are struggling in their own
finite strength to win salvation by good works. Jesus, they think,
will do some of the saving; they must do the rest. They need to see
by faith the righteousness of Christ as their only hope for time and
for eternity.

?Ye are God?s husbandry? (1 Corinthians 3:9). The heart is to
be worked, subdued, plowed, harrowed, seeded, to bring forth its
harvest to God in good works. ?Ye are God?s building.? You cannot
build yourself. There is a Power outside of yourself that must do the
building of the church, putting brick upon brick, always cooperating
with the faculties and powers given of God to man. The Redeemer
must find a home in His building. God works and man works. There
needs to be a continual taking in of the gifts of God, in order that
there may be as free a giving out of these gifts. It is a continual
receiving and then restoring. The Lord has provided that the soul
shall receive nourishment from Him, to be given out again in the
working out of His purposes. In order that there be an outflowing,
there must be an income of divinity to humanity. ?I will dwell in
them, and walk in them? (2 Corinthians 6:16).
The soul temple is to be sacred, holy, pure, and undefiled. There
must be a copartnership in which all the power is of God and all the [27]
glory belongs to God. The responsibility rests with us. We must
receive in thoughts and in feelings, to give in expression. The law
of the human and the divine action makes the receiver a laborer
together with God. It brings man where he can, united with divinity,
work the works of God. Humanity touches humanity. Divine power
and the human agency combined will be a complete success, for
Christ?s righteousness accomplishes everything.

?Ye are God?s husbandry? (1 Corinthians 3:9). The heart is to
be worked, subdued, plowed, harrowed, seeded, to bring forth its
harvest to God in good works. ?Ye are God?s building.? You cannot
build yourself. There is a Power outside of yourself that must do the
building of the church, putting brick upon brick, always cooperating
with the faculties and powers given of God to man. The Redeemer
must find a home in His building. God works and man works. There
needs to be a continual taking in of the gifts of God, in order that
there may be as free a giving out of these gifts. It is a continual
receiving and then restoring. The Lord has provided that the soul
shall receive nourishment from Him, to be given out again in the
working out of His purposes. In order that there be an outflowing,
there must be an income of divinity to humanity. ?I will dwell in
them, and walk in them? (2 Corinthians 6:16).

The reason so many fail to be successful laborers is that they act
as though God depended on them, and they are to suggest to God
what He chooses to do with them, in the place of their depending
on God. They lay aside the supernatural power and fail to do the
supernatural work. They are all the time depending on their own and
their brethren?s human powers. They are narrow in themselves and
are always judging after their finite human comprehension. They
need uplifting, for they have no power from on high. God gives us
bodies, strength of brain, time and opportunity in which to work.
It is required that all be put to the tax. With humanity and divinity
combined you can accomplish a work as enduring as eternity. When
men think the Lord has made a mistake in their individual cases, and
they appoint their own work, they will meet with disappointment.
?By grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves:
it is the gift of God? (Ephesians 2:8). Here is truth that will unfold
the subject to your mind if you do not close it to the rays of light.
Eternal life is an infinite gift. This places it outside the possibility of
our earning it, because it is infinite. It must necessarily be a gift. As
a gift it must be received by faith, and gratitude and praise be offered
to God. Solid faith will not lead anyone away into fanaticism or into
acting the slothful servant. It is the bewitching power of Satan that
leads men to look to themselves in the place of looking to Jesus. The
[28] righteousness of Christ must go before us if the glory of the Lord
becomes our rereward. If we do God?s will, we may accept large
blessings as God?s free gift, but not because of any merit in us; this
is of no value. Do the work of Christ, and you will honor God and
come off more than conquerors through Him that has loved us and
given His life for us, that we should have life and salvation in Jesus
Christ.

We look to self, as though we had power to save ourselves; but
Jesus died for us because we are helpless to do this. In Him is our
hope, our justification, our righteousness. We should not despond
and fear that we have no Saviour or that He has no thoughts of mercy
toward us. At this very time He is carrying on His work in our
behalf, inviting us to come to Him in our helplessness and be saved.
We dishonor Him by our unbelief. It is astonishing how we treat
our very best Friend, how little confidence we repose in Him who is
able to save to the uttermost and who has given us every evidence of
His great love.
My brethren, are you expecting that your merit will recommend
you to the favor of God, thinking that you must be free from sin
before you trust His power to save? If this is the struggle going on in
your mind, I fear you will gain no strength and will finally become
discouraged.

In the wilderness, when the Lord permitted poisonous serpents
to sting the rebellious Israelites, Moses was directed to lift up a
brazen serpent and bid all the wounded look to it and live. But many
saw no help in this Heaven-appointed remedy. The dead and dying
were all around them, and they knew without divine help their fate
was certain; but they would lament their wounds, their pains, their
sure death, until their strength was gone, and their eyes were glazed,
when they might have had instant healing.
?As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness,? even so
was ?the Son of man ...lifted up: that whosoever believeth in Him
should not perish, but have eternal life? (John 3:14, 15). If you are
conscious of your sins, do not devote all your powers to mourning
over them, but look and live. Jesus is our only Saviour; and although
millions who need to be healed will reject His offered mercy, not
one who trusts in His merits will be left to perish. While we realize
our helpless condition without Christ, we must not be discouraged;
we must rely upon a crucified and risen Saviour. Poor, sin-sick,
discouraged soul, look and live. Jesus has pledged His word; He
will save all who come unto Him.
Come to Jesus, and receive rest and peace. You may have the
blessing even now. Satan suggests that you are helpless and cannot
bless yourself. It is true; you are helpless. But lift up Jesus before
him: ?I have a risen Saviour. In Him I trust, and He will never suffer
me to be confounded. In His name I triumph. He is my righteousness
and my crown of rejoicing.? Let no one here feel that his case is
hopeless, for it is not. You may see that you are sinful and undone,
but it is just on this account that you need a Saviour. If you have sins
to confess, lose no time. These moments are golden. ?If we confess
our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse
us from all unrighteousness? (1 John 1:9). Those who hunger and
thirst after righteousness will be filled, for Jesus has promised it.
Precious Saviour! His arms are open to receive us, and His great
heart of love is waiting to bless us.

Come to Jesus, and receive rest and peace. You may have the
blessing even now. Satan suggests that you are helpless and cannot
bless yourself. It is true; you are helpless. But lift up Jesus before
him: ?I have a risen Saviour. In Him I trust, and He will never suffer
me to be confounded. In His name I triumph. He is my righteousness
and my crown of rejoicing.? Let no one here feel that his case is
hopeless, for it is not. You may see that you are sinful and undone,
but it is just on this account that you need a Saviour. If you have sins
to confess, lose no time. These moments are golden. ?If we confess
our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse
us from all unrighteousness? (1 John 1:9). Those who hunger and
thirst after righteousness will be filled, for Jesus has promised it.
Precious Saviour! His arms are open to receive us, and His great
heart of love is waiting to bless us.
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 these dear souls may claim the blessing even
now. They must have His grace, the Spirit of Christ, to help their
infirmities, or they cannot form a Christian character. Jesus loves to
have us come to Him, just as we are?sinful, helpless, dependent.

Some who come to God by repentance and confession, and even
believe that their sins are forgiven, still fail of claiming, as they
should, the promises of God. They do not see that Jesus is an ever-
present Saviour; and they are not ready to commit the keeping of
their souls to Him, relying upon Him to perfect the work of grace
begun in their hearts. While they think they are committing them-
selves to God, there is a great deal of self-dependence. There are
conscientious souls that trust partly to God and partly to themselves.
They do not look to God, to be kept by His power, but depend upon
watchfulness against temptation and the performance of certain du-
ties for acceptance with Him. There are no victories in this kind of
faith. Such persons toil to no purpose; their souls are in continual
bondage, and they find no rest until their burdens are laid at the feet
of Jesus.

There is need of constant watchfulness and of earnest, loving
devotion, but these will come naturally when the soul is kept by the
power of God through faith. We can do nothing, absolutely nothing,
to commend ourselves to divine favor. We must not trust at all to
ourselves or to our good works; but when as erring, sinful beings we
come to Christ, we may find rest in His love. God will accept every
one that comes to Him trusting wholly in the merits of a crucified
Saviour. Love springs up in the heart. There may be no ecstasy of
feeling, but there is an abiding, peaceful trust. Every burden is light;
for the yoke which 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.
This is walking in the light as Christ is in the light.

If ever there was a time when we needed faith and spiritual
enlightenment, it is now. Those who are watching unto prayer and
are searching the Scriptures daily with an earnest desire to know and
do the will of God will not be led astray by any of the deceptions of
Satan. They alone will discern the pretext which cunning men adopt
to beguile and ensnare. So much time and attention are bestowed
upon the world, upon dress and eating and drinking, that no time is
left for prayer and the study of the Scriptures.
We want the truth on every point, and we must search for it
as for hid treasures. Dishes of fables are presented to us on every
hand, and men choose to believe error rather than truth, because the
acceptance of the truth involves a cross. Self must be denied; self
must be crucified. Therefore Satan presents to them an easier way
by making void the law of God. When God lets man have his own
way, it is the darkest hour of his life. For a willful, disobedient child
to be left to have his own way, to follow the bent of his own mind
and gather the dark clouds of God?s judgment about him, is a terrible
thing.

We are to do all that we can do on our part to fight the good fight
of faith. We are to wrestle, to labor, to strive, to agonize to enter in
at the strait gate. We are to set the Lord ever before us. With clean
hands, with pure hearts, we are to seek to honor God in all our ways.
Help has been provided for us in Him who is mighty to save. The
spirit of truth and light will quicken and renew us by its mysterious
workings; for all our spiritual improvement comes from God, not
from ourselves. The true worker will have divine power to aid him,
but the idler will not be sustained by the Spirit of God.
In one way we are thrown upon our own energies; we are to
strive earnestly to be zealous and to repent, to cleanse our hands
and purify our hearts from every defilement; we are to reach the
highest standard, believing that God will help us in our efforts. We
must seek if we would find, and seek in faith; we must knock, that
the door may be opened unto us. The Bible teaches that everything
regarding our salvation depends upon our own course of action. If
we perish, the responsibility will rest wholly upon ourselves. If
provision has been made, and if we accept God?s terms, we may lay
hold on eternal life. We must come to Christ in faith, we must be
diligent to make our calling and election sure.

We are just so. We do not realize the thousand dangers that
our heavenly Father has kept us from. We do not realize the great
blessing that He has bestowed upon us in giving us food and raiment,
in preserving our lives by sending the guardian angels to watch over
us. Every day we should be thankful for this. We ought to have
gratitude stirring in our hearts and come to God with a gratitude
offering every day. We ought to gather around the family altar every
day and praise Him for His watchcare over us. The children of Israel
had lost sight that God was protecting them from the venomous
beasts. But when He withdrew His hand their sting was upon them.
What then? Why, Christ Himself told Moses to set up a pole and
make a brazen serpent and put it upon that pole and to raise it in the
sight of the Israelites, that everyone who looked upon it might live.
They had no great work to do. They were to look because God said
it should be.
Now, suppose that they had stopped to reason it out and said,
?Why, it cannot be that by looking at that brazen serpent we will be
healed! There is no life in it!? But the look of faith did heal them
just as God had told them it would. Those who looked lived. Those
who stopped to argue and explain it, died.
What are we to do? Look and live. ?And as Moses lifted up the
serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up?
(John 3:14). The reason? That those who behold Him ?should not
perish, but have everlasting life? (John 3:16).

Now you may cling to your righteousness, and you may think
that you have tried to do about right, and that, after all, you will be
saved in doing this. You cannot see that Christ does it all. ?I must
repent first,? some say. ?I must go so far on my own without Christ,
and then Christ meets me and accepts me.?
You cannot have a thought without Christ. You cannot have an
inclination to come to Him unless He sets in motion influences and
impresses His Spirit upon the human mind. And if there is a man
on the face of the earth who has any inclination toward God, it is
because of the many influences that are set to work to bear upon his
mind and heart. Those influences call for the allegiance to God and
an appreciation of the great work that God has done for him.
Then don?t let us ever say that we can repent of ourselves, and
then Christ will pardon. No, indeed. It is the favor of God that
pardons. It is the favor of God that leads us by His power to repen-
tance. Therefore, it is all of Jesus Christ, everything of Him, and
you want to just give back glory to God. Why don?t you respond
more when you meet together in your meetings? Why don?t you
have the quickening influence of the Spirit of God when the love of
Jesus and His salvation are presented to you? It is because you do
not see that Christ is first and last and best, and the Alpha and the
Omega, the beginning and the end, the very Author and Finisher of
our faith. You don?t realize this, and therefore you remain in your
sins. Why is this? It is because Satan is here wrestling and battling
for the souls of men. He casts his hellish shadow right athwart our
pathway, and all that you can see is the enemy and his power.
Look away from his power to the One that is mighty to save
to the utmost. Why doesn?t your faith plow through the shadow to
where Christ is? He has led captivity captive and given gifts unto
men. He will teach you that Satan claims every soul that does not
join with Him as his property.

Brethren and sisters in the faith, does the question arise in your
hearts, ?Am I my brother?s keeper?? If you claim to be children
of God, you are your brother?s keeper. The Lord holds the church
responsible for the souls of those whom they might be the means of
saving.?Historical Sketches, 291.
The Saviour has given His precious life in order to establish a
church capable of ministering to the suffering, the sorrowful, and
the tempted. A company of believers may be poor, uneducated, and
unknown; yet in Christ they may do a work in the home, in the
community, and even in the ?regions beyond,? whose results shall
be as far-reaching as eternity.?The Ministry of Healing, 106.
Enfeebled and defective as it may appear, the church is the one
object upon which God bestows in a special sense His supreme
regard. It is the theater of His grace, in which He delights to reveal [14]
His power to transform hearts.?The Acts of the Apostles, 12.