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A Moment of Respite, December 10
Ye that love the Lord, hate evil: he preserveth the souls of his saints;
he delivereth them out of the hand of the wicked.
Psalm 97:10
.
The Lord is soon to come. Wickedness and rebellion, violence and
crime, are filling the world. The cries of the suffering and the oppressed
rise to Him for justice. In the place of being softened by the patience and
forbearance of God, the wicked are growing stronger in stubborn rebellion.
The time in which we live is one of marked depravity. Religious restraint
is thrown off, and men reject the law of God.... A more than common
contempt is placed upon this holy law.
A moment of respite has been graciously given us of God. Every
power lent us of Heaven is to be used in doing the work assigned us by the
Lord for those who are perishing in ignorance. The warning message is
to be sounded in all parts of the world. There must be no delay. The truth
must be proclaimed in the dark places of the earth. Obstacles must be met
and surmounted. A great work is to be done, and this work is entrusted to
those who know the truth for this time.
Now is the time to lay hold of the arm of our strength. The prayer of
David should be the prayer of pastors and laymen: “It is time for thee,
Lord, to work: for they have made void thy law” (
Psalm 119:126
). Let
the servants of God weep between the porch and the altar, crying, “Spare
thy people, O Lord, and give not thine heritage to reproach” (
Joel 2:17
).
God has always wrought in behalf of His truth. The designs of wicked
men, the enemies of the church, are subject to His power and His over-
ruling providence. He can move upon the hearts of statesmen; the wrath
of the haters of His truth and His people can be turned aside, even as the
waters of a river could be turned, if thus He ordered it. Prayer moves the
arm of Omnipotence. He who marshals the stars in order in the heavens,
whose word controls the waves of the great deep—the same infinite Cre-
ator will work in behalf of His people, if they will call upon Him in faith.
He will restrain all the forces of darkness until the warning is given to the
world and all who will heed it are prepared for His coming.
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