Daily Devotional

[EastCoastRemnant]

Members Of God’s Household​

Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the
saints, and of the household of God; and are built upon the foundation of the apostles
and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone. Ephesians 2:19, 20.​

The Lord Jesus is making experiments on human hearts through the exhibition of His
mercy and abundant grace. He is effecting transformations so amazing that Satan ... stands
viewing them as a fortress impregnable to his sophistries and delusions. They are to him an
incomprehensible mystery. The angels of God ... look on with astonishment and joy, that fallen
men, once children of wrath, are through the training of Christ developing characters after the
divine similitude, to be sons and daughters of God, to act an important part in the occupations
and pleasures of heaven.​

The Lord has provided His church with capabilities and blessings, that they may present to
the world an image of His own sufficiency, and that His church may be complete in Him, a
continual representation of another, even the eternal world, of laws that are higher than earthly laws. His church is to be a temple built after the divine similitude....​

To His church, Christ has given ample facilities, that He may receive a large revenue of glory
from His redeemed, purchased possession. The church, being endowed with the righteousness
of Christ, is His depository, in which the wealth of His mercy, His love, His grace, is to appear
in full and final display. The declaration in His intercessory prayer, that the Father’s love is as
great toward us as toward Himself, the only-begotten Son, and that we shall be with Him where
He is, forever one with Christ and the Father, is a marvel to the heavenly host, and it is their
great joy. The gift of His Holy Spirit, rich, full, and abundant, is to be to His church as an
encompassing wall of fire, which the powers of hell shall not prevail against. In their untainted
purity and spotless perfection, Christ looks upon His people as the reward of all His suffering,
His humiliation, and His love, and the supplement of His glory—Christ, the great center from​

which radiates all glory.

 

[EastCoastRemnant]

Remember Your High Calling​

Wherefore I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things,
though ye know them, and be established in the present truth. 2 Peter 1:12.​

No matter how long we may have been traveling in the way of life eternal we need often
to recount the mercies of our heavenly Father toward us and gather hope and courage from the
promises of His Word....Peter realized the value of constant vigilance in the Christian life, and
he felt impelled by the Holy Spirit to urge upon the believers the importance of exercising great
carefulness in the daily life....​

"Always in remembrance." Oh, if only we were to keep before our minds those things that
pertain to our eternal welfare, we should not engage in any foolishness or idle speaking! Our
lifework is before us. It is for us to give diligence to make our calling and election sure, by
giving heed to the plain instruction contained in God’s Holy Word....​

There are many wrong things which we allow to pass by unnoticed, when by our godly
conversation we might set an example of rightdoing that would be a standing rebuke to the
evildoers. We cannot afford by our example to seem to sanction wrongdoing. There is a heaven
to win and a hell to shun. In large churches of believers... there is special danger of lowering
the standard. Where many are gathered together some are more liable to grow careless and
indifferent than they would be if isolated and made to stand alone. But even under adverse
circumstances we may watch unto prayer and set an example in godly conversation that will be
a powerful testimony for the right.... We cannot afford to speak words that would discourage our
fellow pilgrims in the Christian pathway. Christ has given His life in order that we might live with Him in glory.​

Throughout eternity He will bear in His hands the prints of the cruel nails by which He was
transfixed to the cross of Calvary....​

We are now fitting up for the future, eternal life; and soon, if faithful, we shall see the gates
of the city of our God swing back on their glittering hinges that the nations who have kept the
truth may enter in to their eternal inheritance.​

 

[EastCoastRemnant]

Our Mission To TheWorld

As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world. John
17:18.

Will separation from the world, in obedience to the divine command, unfit us for the work
the Lord has left us? Will it hinder us from doing good to those around us? No; the firmer hold
we have on heaven, the greater will be our power of usefulness. We should study the Pattern, that
the spirit which dwelt in Christ may dwell in us. The Saviour was not found among the exalted
and honorable of the world. He did not spend His time among those who were seeking their ease
and pleasure. He worked to help those who needed help, to save the lost and perishing, to lift up
the bowed down, to break the yoke of oppression from those in bondage, to heal the afflicted, and
to speak words of sympathy and consolation to the distressed and sorrowing. We are required to
follow this example. The more we partake of the spirit of Christ, the more we shall seek to do
for our fellow men. We shall bless the needy and comfort the distressed....

Probation is about to close.... Soon the last prayer for sinners will have been offered, the last
tear shed, the last warning given, the last entreaty made, and the sweet voice of mercy will be
heard no more. This is why Satan is making such mighty efforts to secure men and women in
his snare.... The enemy is playing the game of life for every soul. He is working to remove from
us everything of a spiritual nature, and in the place of the precious graces of Christ to crowd our
hearts with the evil traits of the carnal nature—hatred, evil surmising, jealousy, love of the world,
love of self, love of pleasure, and the pride of life. We need to be fortified against the incoming
foe, ... for unless we are watchful and prayerful these evils will enter the heart and crowd out all
that is good.

How great is the responsibility placed upon the disciple of Christ. How imperative the duty
to reflect the light of heaven upon a world enshrouded in darkness. The deeper the surrounding
gloom, the brighter should shine out the light of Christian faith and Christian example.

 

[EastCoastRemnant]

The Most Powerful Argument​

I, even I, am the Lord; and beside me there is no saviour.... Therefore ye are my
witnesses, saith the Lord, that I am God. Isaiah 43:11, 12.​

Of His true followers the Lord says, “This people have I formed for myself; they shall shew
forth my praise” (verse 21). They are My witnesses, My chosen representatives, in an apostate
world....​

God calls for our cooperation. His requirements are just and reasonable.... When we take the
name of Christ we pledge ourselves to represent Him. In order for us to be true to our pledge,
Christ must be formed within, the hope of glory. The daily life must become more and more like
the Christ life. We must be Christians in deed and in truth. Christ will have nothing to do with
pretense. He will welcome to the heavenly courts those only whose Christianity is genuine. The
lives of professed Christians who do not live the life of Christ are a mockery to religion.​

God does not ask us to purchase His favor by any costly sacrifice. He asks only for the service
of a humble, contrite heart, which has gladly and thankfully accepted His free gift. The one who
receives Christ as his personal Saviour has in his possession the salvation provided by Christ.
And he is never to forget that as he has freely received, so he is freely to impart.
Do you realize your value in the sight of God? He says, Ye are laborers together with Me.​

Are you letting your light shine in clear rays to a fallen world? Are you seeking to exercise every
faculty and every power which God has given you? You may not be a minister, but you can be a
witness. You may not be an eloquent speaker, but you can be eloquent in living Christ, you can
be eloquent in letting your light shine before men.​

A true, lovable Christian is the most powerful argument that can be advanced in favor of
Bible truth. Such a man is Christ’s representative. His life is the most convincing evidence that
can be borne to the power of divine grace. When God’s people bring the righteousness of Christ​

into the daily life, sinners will be converted and victories over the enemy will be gained.

 

[EastCoastRemnant]

Our Obligations To The Poor

For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was
a stranger, and ye took me in: naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I
was in prison, and ye came unto me. Matthew 25:35, 36.

While the world needs sympathy, while it needs the prayers and assistance of God’s people,
while it needs to see Christ in the lives of His followers, the people of God are equally in need
of opportunities that draw out their sympathies, give efficiency to their prayers, and develop in
them a character like that of the divine pattern.

It is to provide these opportunities that God has placed among us the poor, the unfortunate,
the sick, and the suffering. They are Christ’s legacy to His church, and they are to be cared for
as He would care for them. In this way God takes away the dross and purifies the gold, giving us
that culture of heart and character which we need.

The Lord could carry forward His work without our cooperation. He is not dependent on
us for our money, our time, or our labor. But the church is very precious in His sight. It is the
case which contains His jewels, the fold which encloses His flock, and He longs to see it without
spot or blemish or any such things. He yearns after it with unspeakable love. This is why He
has given us opportunities to work for Him, and He accepts our labors as tokens of our love and
loyalty.

In placing among us the poor and the suffering, the Lord is testing us to reveal to us what
is in our hearts.... The culture of the mind and heart is more easily accomplished when we
feel such tender sympathy for others that we bestow our benefits and privileges to relieve their
necessities....

Good works cost us a sacrifice, but it is in this very sacrifice that they provide discipline.
These obligations bring us into conflict with natural feelings and propensities, and in fulfilling
them we gain victory after victory over the objectionable traits of our characters.

The world will be convinced not so much by what the pulpit teaches as by what the church
lives. The preacher announces the theory of the gospel, but the practical piety of the church
demonstrates its power.

 

[EastCoastRemnant]

A Work Of Preparation

Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will
perform it until the day of Jesus Christ. Philippians 1:6.

There is an earnest work of preparation to be done by Seventh-day Adventists if they would
stand firm in the trying experiences just before them. If they remain true to God in the confusion
and temptation of the last days, they must seek the Lord in humility of heart for wisdom to resist
the deceptions of the enemy....

Ever are we to keep in mind the solemn thought of the Lord’s soon return, and in view of
this to recognize the individual work to be done. Through the aid of the Holy Spirit we are to
resist natural inclinations and tendencies to wrong, and weed out of the life every un-Christlike
element. Thus we shall prepare our hearts for the reception of God’s blessing, which will impart
to us grace and bring us into harmony with the faith of Jesus. For this work of preparation
great advantages have been granted to this people in light bestowed, in messages of warning and
instruction, sent through the agency of the Spirit of God.

Because of the increasing power of Satan’s temptations, the times in which we live are full
of peril for the children of God, and we need to learn constantly of the Great Teacher, that we
may take every step in surety and righteousness. Wonderful scenes are opening before us, and
at this time a living testimony is to be borne in the lives of God’s professing people, so that the
world may see that in this age when evil reigns on every side, there is yet a people who are laying
aside their will and are seeking to do God’s will—a people in whose hearts and lives the law of
God is written. There are strong temptations before us, sharp tests. The commandment-keeping
people of God are to prepare for this time of trial by obtaining a deeper experience in the things
of God and a practical knowledge of the righteousness of Christ.... Not to unbelievers only, but
to church members the words are spoken, “Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon
him while he is near” (Isaiah 55:6)....

Let your daily lives witness to the faith you profess.

 

[EastCoastRemnant]

If Christ Should Come Today

Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all
these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man. Luke 21:36.

Christ bids us watch, that we may be accounted worthy to escape the things that are coming
on the earth. It is of the greatest importance that we heed this warning. The enemy of all
righteousness is on our track, seeking to lead us to forget God.

We should be filled with joy at the thought of Christ’s soon appearing. To those that love His
appearing He will come without sin unto salvation. But if our minds are filled with thoughts of
earthly things, we cannot look forward with joy to His appearing.
“If I knew that Christ were coming in a few years,” one says, “I should live very differently.”
But if we believe that He is coming at all, we should live just as faithfully as if we knew that He
would appear in a few years. We cannot see the end from the beginning, but Christ has provided
sufficient help for every day in the year.

All we have to do with is this one day. Today we must be faithful to our trust. Today we must
love God with all the heart and our neighbor as ourselves. Today we must resist the temptations
of the enemy, and through the grace of Christ gain the victory. Thus we shall watch and wait for
Christ’s coming. Each day we should live as if we knew that this would be our last day on this
earth. If we knew that Christ would come tomorrow, would we not crowd into today all the kind
words, all the unselfish deeds, that we could? We should be patient and gentle, and intensely in
earnest, doing all in our power to win souls to Christ....
I urge you to turn your thoughts from worldly things and center them on the things of eternity.

Christ has placed everlasting life within your reach, and He has promised to give you help in
every time of need.... We should never rest satisfied with present attainments. If we put mind
and heart into the work of reaching God’s ideal for us, if we go to Christ, the mighty helper, for
aid, He will give us the very assistance that we need. He will bestow on us the very power that
will enable us to be victorious in the struggle against evil.

 

[EastCoastRemnant]

By The Tree Of Life

And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the
seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every
kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation. Revelation 5:9.

Do we expect to get to heaven at last and join the heavenly choir? Just as we go into the
grave we will come up, as far as the character is concerned....Now is the time for washing and
ironing....

John saw the throne of God and around that throne a company, and he inquired, Who are
these? The answer came, “These are they which ... have washed their robes, and made them
white in the blood of the Lamb” (Revelation 7:14). Christ leads them to the fountains of living
waters, and there is the tree of life and there is the precious Saviour. Here is presented to us a
life that measures with the life of God. There is no pain, sorrow, sickness, or death there. All is
peace and harmony and love....

Now is the time to receive grace and strength and power to combine with our human efforts
that we can form characters for everlasting life. When we do this we will find that the angels of
God will minister unto us, and we shall be heirs of God and joint heirs with Jesus Christ. And
when the last trump shall sound, and the dead shall be called from their prison house and changed
in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, the crowns of immortal glory shall be placed upon the
heads of the overcomers. The pearly gates will swing back for the nations that have kept the truth
and they will enter in. The conflict is ended.

“Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation
of the world” (Matthew 25:34). Do we want this benediction? I do, and I believe you do. May
God help you that you may fight the battles of this life and gain a victory day by day and at last
be among the number that shall cast their crowns at Jesus’ feet and touch the golden harps and
fill all heaven with sweetest music. I want you to love my Jesus....Do not reject my Saviour, for
He has paid an infinite price for you. I see in Jesus matchless charms, and I want you to see these
charms.

 

[EastCoastRemnant]

One Expensive Mistake

God hath made man upright; but they have sought out many inventions. Ecclesiastes
7:29.

The book of Genesis gives quite a definite account of social and individual life, and yet we
have no record of an infant’s being born blind, deaf, crippled, deformed, or imbecile. There is
not an instance upon record of a natural death in infancy, childhood, or early manhood. There
is no account of men and women dying of disease. Obituary notices in the book of Genesis run
thus: “And all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years: and he died.”“And
all the days of Seth were nine hundred and twelve years: and he died.” ...

God endowed man with so great vital force that he has withstood the accumulation of disease
brought upon the race in consequence of perverted habits, and has continued for six thousand
years. This fact of itself is enough to evidence to us the strength and electrical energy that God
gave to man at his creation.... If Adam, at his creation, had not been endowed with twenty times
as much vital force as men now have, the race, with their present habits of living in violation of
natural law, would have become extinct....

God did not create the race in its present feeble condition. This state of things is not the work
of Providence, but the work of man; it has been brought about by wrong habits and abuses, by
violating the laws that God has made to govern man’s existence.
God created man for His own glory, that after test and trial the human family might become
one with the heavenly family, if they would show themselves obedient to His every word.

To Eve it seemed a small thing to disobey God by tasting the fruit of the forbidden tree, and to
tempt her husband also to transgress; but their sin opened the floodgates of woe upon the world.
Who can know, in the moment of temptation, the terrible consequences that will result from one
wrong step?

 

[EastCoastRemnant]

Adam Home Again!​

For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in
his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming. 1
Corinthians 15:22, 23.​

Amid the reeling of the earth, the flash of lightning, and the roar of thunder, the voice of the
Son of God calls forth the sleeping saints.... The dead shall hear that voice, and they that hear
shall live. And the whole earth shall ring with the tread of the exceeding great army of every
nation, kindred, tongue, and people....

All come forth from their graves the same in stature as when they entered the tomb. Adam,
who stands among the risen throng, is of lofty height and majestic form, in stature but little below
the Son of God. He presents a marked contrast to the people of later generations; in this one
respect is shown the great degeneracy of the race. But all arise with the freshness and vigor of eternal youth....

All blemishes and deformities are left in the grave. Restored to the tree of life in the long-lost
Eden, the redeemed will "grow up" to the full stature of the race in its primeval glory....

As the ransomed ones are welcomed to the City of God, there rings out upon the air an
exultant cry of adoration. The two Adams are about to meet. The Son of God is standing with
outstretched arms to receive the father of our race—the being whom He created, who sinned
against his Maker, and for whose sin the marks of the crucifixion are borne upon the Saviour’s
form. As Adam discerns the prints of the cruel nails, he does not fall upon the bosom of his Lord,
but in humiliation casts himself at His feet, crying: "Worthy, worthy is the Lamb that was slain!"
Tenderly the Saviour lifts him up and bids him look once more upon the Eden home from which
he has so long been exiled....

This reunion is witnessed by the angels who wept at the fall of Adam and rejoiced when
Jesus, after His resurrection, ascended to heaven, having opened the grave for all who should
believe on His name. Now they behold the work of redemption accomplished, and they unite
their voices in the song of praise.​

 

[Joe67]

Rom 4:16-18
16 Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all,

17(As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations,) before him whom he believed, even God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were.

18 Who against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations; according to that which was spoken, So shall thy seed be.
KJV

 

[EastCoastRemnant]

An Open Door​

By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because
God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased
God. Hebrews 11:5.​

When we learn to walk by faith and not by feeling, we shall have help from God just when
we need it, and His peace will come into our hearts. It was this simple life of obedience and
trust that Enoch lived. If we learn this lesson of simple trust, ours may be the testimony that he
received, that he pleased God.​

In every phase of your character building you are to please God. This you may do; for Enoch
pleased Him though living in a degenerate age. And there are Enochs in this our day.
For three hundred years Enoch had been seeking purity of heart, that he might be in harmony
with heaven. For three centuries he had walked with God. Day by day he had longed for a closer
union; nearer and nearer had grown the communion, until God took him to Himself. He had
stood at the threshold of the eternal world, only a step between him and the land of the blest;
and now the portals opened, the walk with God, so long pursued on earth, continued,
and he passed through the gates of the holy city,—the first from among men to enter there.​

With the word of God in his hands, every human being, wherever his lot in life may be cast,
may have such companionship as he shall choose. In its pages he may hold converse with the
noblest and best of the human race, and may listen to the voice of the Eternal as He speaks with
men.... He may dwell in this world in the atmosphere of heaven, imparting to earth’s sorrowing
and tempted ones thoughts of hope and longings for holiness; ... like him of old who walked with
God, drawing nearer and nearer the threshold of the eternal world, until the portals shall open,
and he shall enter there. He will find himself no stranger. The voices that will greet him are the
voices of the holy ones, who, unseen, were on earth his companions—voices that here he learned
to distinguish and to love. He who through the word of God has lived in fellowship with heaven,​

will find himself at home in heaven’s companionship

 

[EastCoastRemnant]

Safe Inside

And the Lord said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark; for thee have
I seen righteous before me in this generation. Genesis 7:1.

Noah had faithfully followed the instructions which he had received from God. The ark was
finished in every part as the Lord had directed, and was stored with food for man and beast. And
now the servant of God made his last solemn appeal to the people. With an agony of desire that
words cannot express, he entreated them to seek a refuge while it might be found. Again they
rejected his words, and raised their voices in jest and scoffing. Suddenly a silence fell upon the
mocking throng. Beasts of every description, the fiercest as well as the most gentle, were seen
coming from mountain and forest and quietly making their way toward the ark. A noise as of a
rushing wind was heard, and lo, birds were flocking from all directions, their numbers darkening
the heavens, and in perfect order they passed to the ark. Animals obeyed the command of God,
while men were disobedient.

When they saw the beasts come from the forests to the door of the ark, and Noah take them in,
they had so long resisted, so long denied the message that God had given them, that ... conscience
had become unimpressible.

Mercy had ceased its pleadings for the guilty race. The beasts of the field and the birds of the
air had entered the place of refuge. Noah and his household were within the ark, “and the Lord
shut him in.” ... The massive door, which it was impossible for those within to close, was slowly
swung to its place by unseen hands. Noah was shut in, and the rejecters of God’s mercy were
shut out. The seal of Heaven was on that door; God had shut it, and God alone could open it.
So when Christ shall cease His intercession for guilty men, before His coming in the clouds of
heaven, the door of mercy will be shut. Then divine grace will no longer restrain the wicked,
and Satan will have full control of those who have rejected mercy. They will endeavor to destroy
God’s people; but as Noah was shut into theark, so the righteous will be shielded by divine power.

 

[EastCoastRemnant]

A Home God Can Bless​

For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and
they shall keep the way of the Lord, to do justice and judgment. Genesis 18:19.​

In God’s sight, a man is just what he is in his family. The life of Abraham, the friend of God,
was signalized by a strict regard for the word of the Lord. He cultivated home religion. The fear
of God pervaded his household. He was the priest of his home. He looked upon his family as
a sacred trust. His household numbered more than a thousand souls, and he directed them all,
parents and children, to the divine Sovereign. He suffered no parental oppression on the one
hand or filial disobedience on the other. By the combined influence of love and justice, he ruled
his household in the fear of God, and the Lord bore witness to his faithfulness.​

He “will command ... his household.” There would be no sinful neglect to restrain the evil
propensities of his children, no weak, unwise, indulgent favoritism, no yielding of his conviction
of duty to the claims of mistaken affection. Abraham would not only give right instruction, but
he would maintain the authority of just and righteous laws.​

How few there are in our day who follow this example. On the part of too many parents there
is a blind and selfish sentimentalism, which is manifested in leaving children with their unformed
judgment and undisciplined passions, to the control of their own will. This is the worst cruelty
to the youth and a great wrong to the world. Parental indulgence causes disorder in families and
in society. It confirms in the young the desire to follow inclination, instead of submitting to the
divine requirements.​

Parents and children alike belong to God to be ruled by Him. By affection and authority
combined, Abraham ruled his house. God’s word has given us rules for our guidance. These
rules form the standard from which we cannot swerve if we would keep the way of the Lord.
God’s will must be paramount. The question for us to ask is not: What have others done?
What will my relatives think? or, What will they say of me if I pursue this course?
but, What has God said? Neither parent nor child can truly prosper in any course
excepting in the way of the Lord.​

 

[EastCoastRemnant]

How Can I Do It?​

How then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God? Genesis 39:9.​

It is always a critical period in a young man’s life when he is separated from home influences
and wise counsels and enters upon new scenes and trying tests. But if he does not of his own
accord place himself in these positions of danger and remove himself from parental restraint; if,
without will or choice of his own, he is placed in dangerous positions and relies upon God for
strength—cherishing the love of God in his heart—he will be kept from yielding to temptation
by the power of God who placed him in that trying position. God will protect him from being
corrupted by the fierce temptation. God was with Joseph in his new home. He was in the path of
duty, suffering wrong but not doing wrong. He therefore had the love and protection of God for
he carried his religious principle into everything he undertook.

Joseph’s faith and integrity were to be tested by fiery trials. His master’s wife endeavored
to entice the young man to transgress the law of God. Heretofore he had remained untainted
by the corruption teeming in that heathen land; but this temptation, so sudden, so strong,
so seductive—how should it be met? Joseph knew well what would be the consequence of
resistance. On the one hand were concealment, favor, and rewards; on the other, disgrace,
imprisonment, perhaps death. His whole future life depended upon the decision of the moment.
Would principle triumph? Would Joseph still be true to God? With inexpressible anxiety, angels
looked upon the scene.

Joseph’s answer reveals the power of religious principle. He would not betray the confidence
of his master on earth, and, whatever the consequences, he would be true to his Master in heaven.
Under the inspecting eye of God and holy angels many take liberties of which they would not be
guilty in the presence of their fellow men, but Joseph’s first thought was of God. "How can I do
this great wickedness, and sin against God?" he said.
If we were to cherish an habitual impression that God sees and hears all that we do and say
and keeps a faithful record of our words and actions, and that we must meet it all, we would fear
to sin.​

 

[EastCoastRemnant]

Power Guaranteed​

As a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed. Genesis 32:28.​

Had not Jacob previously repented of his sin in obtaining the birthright by fraud, God could
not have heard his prayer and mercifully preserved his life. So in the time of trouble, if the people
of God had unconfessed sins to appear before them while tortured with fear and anguish, they
would be overwhelmed; despair would cut off their faith, and they could not have confidence to
plead with God for deliverance. But while they have a deep sense of their unworthiness, they
will have no concealed wrongs to reveal. Their sins will have been blotted out by the atoning
blood of Christ, and they cannot bring them to remembrance....​

All who endeavor to excuse or conceal their sins, and permit them to remain upon the books
of heaven, unconfessed and unforgiven, will be overcome by Satan. The more exalted their
profession, and the more honorable the position which they hold, the more grievous is their
course in the sight of God, and the more certain the triumph of the great adversary.​

Yet Jacob’s history is an assurance that God will not cast off those who have been betrayed
into sin, but who have returned unto Him with true repentance. It was by self-surrender and
confiding faith that Jacob gained what he had failed to gain by conflict in his own strength. God
thus taught His servant that divine power and grace alone could give him the blessing he craved.
Thus it will be with those who live in the last days. As dangers surround them, and despair seizes
upon the soul, they must depend solely upon the merits of the atonement.... None will ever perish
while they do this....​

Jacob prevailed because he was persevering and determined.... It is now that we are to learn
this lesson of prevailing prayer, of unyielding faith. The greatest victories to the church of Christ
or to the individual Christian are not those that are gained by talent or education, by wealth or the
favor of men. They are those victories that are gained in the audience chamber with God, when​

earnest, agonizing faith lays hold upon the mighty arm of power.

 

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Seeing The Invisible

By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing
him who is invisible. Hebrews 11:27.

Moses had a deep sense of the personal presence of God. He was not only looking down
through the ages for Christ to be made manifest in the flesh, but he saw Christ in a special
manner accompanying the children of Israel in all their travels. God was real to him, ever present
in his thoughts. When misunderstood, when called upon to face danger and to bear insult for
Christ’s sake, he endured without retaliation. Moses believed in God as one whom he needed
and who would help him because of his need. God was to him a present help.

Much of the faith which we see is merely nominal; the real, trusting, persevering faith is
rare. Moses realized in his own experience the promise that God will be a rewarder to those who
diligently seek Him. He had respect unto the recompense of the reward. Here is another point
in regard to faith which we wish to study; God will reward the man of faith and obedience. If
this faith is brought into the life experience, it will enable everyone who fears and loves God
to endure trials. Moses was full of confidence in God because he had appropriating faith. He
needed help, and he prayed for it, grasped it by faith, and wove into his experience the belief that
God cared for him. He believed that God ruled his life in particular. He saw and acknowledged
God in every detail of his life and felt that he was under the eye of the All-seeing One, who
weighs motives, who tries the heart. He looked to God and trusted in Him for strength to carry
him uncorrupted through every form of temptation.... The presence of God was sufficient to carry
him through the most trying situations in which a man could be placed.

Moses did not merely think of God; he saw Him. God was the constant vision before him;
he never lost sight of His face. He saw Jesus as his Saviour, and he believed that the Saviour’s
merits would be imputed to him. This faith was to Moses no guesswork; it was a reality. This is
the kind of faith we need, faith that will endure the test. Oh, how often we yield to temptation
because we do not keep our eye upon Jesus!

 

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Cloud And Fire

He spread a cloud for a covering; and fire to give light in the night. Psalm 105:39.

“And the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of cloud, to lead them the way; and by
night in a pillar of fire, to give them light.” ... The standard of their invisible Leader was ever
with them. By day the cloud directed their journeyings or spread as a canopy above the host. It
served as a protection from the burning heat, and by its coolness and moisture afforded grateful
refreshment in the parched, thirsty desert. By night it became a pillar of fire, illuminating their
encampment and constantly assuring them of the divine presence.​

In one of the most beautiful and comforting passages of Isaiah’s prophecy, reference is made
to the pillar of cloud and of fire to represent God’s care for His people in the great final struggle
with the powers of evil: “The Lord will create upon every dwelling place of Mount Zion, and
upon her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day, and the shining of a flaming fire by night: for
above all the glory shall be a covering. And there shall be a tabernacle for a shadow in the
daytime from the heat, and for a place of refuge, and for a covert from storm and from rain”
(Isaiah 4:5, 6, margin).​

In the time of trial before us God’s pledge of security will be placed upon those who have
kept the word of His patience. Christ will say to His faithful ones: “Come, my people, enter thou
into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself as it were for a little moment until
the indignation be overpast” (Isaiah 26:20). The Lion of Judah, so terrible to the rejectors of His
grace, will be the Lamb of God to the obedient and faithful. The pillar of cloud which speaks
wrath and terror to the transgressor of God’s law is light and mercy and deliverance to those who
have kept His commandments. The arm strong to smite the rebellious will be strong to deliver
the loyal. Every faithful one will surely be gathered. “He shall send his angels with a great sound
of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven​

to the other” (Matthew 24:31).

 

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WhyWait?

Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it. Numbers 13:30.

It was Caleb’s faith in God that gave him courage; that ... enabled him to stand boldly and
unflinchingly in defense of the right. From the same exalted source, the mighty General of the
armies of heaven, every true soldier of the cross of Christ must receive strength and courage to
overcome obstacles that often seem insurmountable.... Those who would do their duty must be
ever ready to speak the words that God gives them, and not the words of doubt, discouragement,
and despair....

While the doubting ones talk of impossibilities, while they tremble at the thought of high
walls and strong giants, let the faithful Calebs, who have “another spirit,” come to the front. The
truth of God, which bringeth salvation, will go forth to the people if ministers and professed
believers will not hedge up its way, as did the unfaithful spies...

Human agencies are to be employed in this work. Zeal and energy must be intensified; talents
that are rusting from inaction must be pressed into service. The voice that would say, “Wait; do
not allow yourself to have burdens imposed upon you,” is the voice of the cowardly spies. We
want Calebs now who will press to the front—chieftains in Israel who with courageous words will
make a strong report in favor of immediate action. When the selfish, ease-loving, panic-stricken
people, fearing tall giants and inaccessible walls, clamor for retreat, let the voice of the Calebs be
heard, even though the cowardly ones stand with stones in their hands, ready to beat them down
for their faithful testimony.

It is when the unbelieving cast contempt upon the Word of God that the faithful Calebs are
called for. It is then that they will stand firm at the post of duty, without parade, and without
swerving because of reproach. The unbelieving spies stood ready to destroy Caleb. He saw the
stones in the hands of those who had brought a false report, but this did not deter him; he had a
message, and he would bear it. The same spirit will be manifested today by those who are true
to God.

 

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The Only Way To Win

This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein
day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein; for
then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success. Joshua
1:8.

If men will walk in the path that God has marked out for them, they will have a counselor
whose wisdom is far above any human wisdom. Joshua was a wise general because God was his
guide. The first sword that Joshua used was the sword of the Spirit, the Word of God....

It was because the strongest influences were to be brought to bear against his principles of
righteousness that the Lord in mercy charged him not to turn to the right hand or to the left. He
was to follow a course of strictest integrity.... If there had been no peril before Joshua, God would
not over and over again have charged him to be of good courage. But amid all his cares, Joshua
had his God to guide Him.

There is no greater deception than for man to suppose that in any difficulty he can find a
better guide than God, a wiser counselor in any emergency, a stronger defense under any circumstance....

The Lord has a great work to be done in our world. To every man He has given His work for
man to do. But man is not to make man his guide, lest he be led astray; this is always unsafe.
While Bible religion embodies the principles of activity in service, at the same time there is the
necessity of asking for wisdom daily from the Source of all wisdom. What was Joshua’s victory?
Thou shalt meditate upon the Word of God day and night. The word of the Lord came to Joshua
just before he passed over Jordan.... This was the secret of Joshua’s victory. He made God his
Guide.

Those holding the positions of counselors should be unselfish men, men of faith, men of
prayer, men that will not dare to rely upon their own human wisdom, but will seek earnestly for
light and intelligence as to what is the best manner of conducting their business. Joshua, the
commander of Israel, searched the books diligently in which Moses had faithfully chronicled the
directions given by God,—His requirements, reproofs, and restrictions,—lest he should move
unadvisedly.