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Spiritual Food for Growth and Strength, April 16
And we also thank God continually because, when you received the word of
God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as
it actually is, the word of God, which is at work in you who believe.
1
Thessalonians 2:13
, NIV.
The Bible contains all that is needful for the saving of the soul, and at the same
time it is adapted to strengthen and discipline the mind.... It will be found far more
effective than any other book in guiding wisely in the affairs of this life, as well as
in aiding the soul to climb the ladder that reaches to heaven. The Bible gives the
true seeker an advanced mental drill; he comes from the contemplation of divine
things with his faculties enriched. Self is humbled, while God and His truth are
exalted. It is because men are unacquainted with the truths of the Bible that there is
so much lifting up of man, and so little honor given to God.
In searching the pages of God’s Word, we move through scenes majestic and
eternal. We behold Jesus, the Son of God, coming to our world, and engaging in the
mysterious conflict that discomfited the power of darkness. How wonderful, how
almost incredible, it is that the infinite God would consent to the humiliation of His
only-begotten Son! ...
God’s Word is the spiritual food by which the Christian must grow strong in
spirit and in intellect, that he may do battle for truth and righteousness. The Bible
teaches that every besetting sin must be put away, that the warfare against evil must
be waged until every wrong is overcome. The human agent must place himself as a
willing student in the school of Christ. As he accepts the grace freely offered him,
the presence of the Saviour in the thoughts and in the heart will give him decision of
purpose to lay aside every weight, that the heart may be filled with all the fullness
of God.
The simplicity of true godliness must be brought into the education of our young
people, if they are to know how to escape the corruption that is in the world. They
must be taught that the true followers of Christ will serve God not only when it
is in accordance with their inclinations, but also when it involves self-denial and
cross-bearing. Besetting sins must be battled with and overcome. Objectionable
traits of character, whether hereditary or cultivated, must be compared with the great
rule of righteousness, and then conquered in the strength of Christ. Day by day, hour
by hour, a vigorous work of self-denial and of sanctification must go on within; then
the works will bear witness that Jesus is abiding in the heart by faith. Sanctification
does not close the avenues of the soul to knowledge, but expands the mind, and
inspires it to search for truth as for hidden treasure (
Counsels to Parents, Teachers,
and Students, 448, 449
).
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