Basic HTML Version
All Heaven in Watching, April 23
Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are
they which testify of me.
John 5:39
.
This is an age of unrest, and the youth drink deeply of its spirit. Would that they
could be made to realize the importance and the peril of the position they occupy!
Would that parents and Sabbath school teachers could be led to see their duty to
guide them wisely! Never before have there been so many important interests at
stake. Never were such momentous issues before any generation as await the one
now coming upon the stage of action. Never were the youth of any age or country
so earnestly observed by the angels of God as are the youth today. All heaven
is watching with intense interest for every indication of the characters they are
forming—whether, when brought to the test, they will stand firmly for God and the
right, or be swayed by worldly influences.
God has a great work to be done in a short time. He has committed to the youth
talents of intellect, time, and means, and He holds them responsible for the use
they make of these good gifts. He calls upon them to come to the front, to resist
the corrupting, bewitching influences of this fast age, and to become qualified to
labor in His cause. They cannot become fitted for usefulness without putting heart
and energy into the work of preparation. Christian principles must be developed by
being cherished and brought into active exercise. Self-control must be gained by
earnest effort aided by the grace of God....
When the young choose the service of Christ, and prove that through divine
aid they have the moral principle to govern self, they are a power for good, and an
influence goes out from them that leads others to glorify God....
It is a divine law that blessings come at some cost to the receiver. Those who
would become wise in the sciences must study; and those who would become wise
in regard to Bible truth, that they may impart that knowledge to others, must be
diligent students of God’s Holy Word. There is no other way; they must search
the Scriptures diligently, interestedly, prayerfully. Precious words of promise and
encouragement, of warning, reproof, and instruction, are there found. They will
learn of Christ’s love, the value of His blood, and the wonderful privileges afforded
by His grace....
The Bible should ever be the Christian’s textbook; of all books it should be made
the most attractive to the young. If they drink deep of its spirit, they will be prepared
to withstand the wiles of Satan, and to resist the temptations of this infidel age. By
its simple beauty of language, its elevated sentiment, its unerring truthfulness, its
tenderness and pathos, the word of God is well calculated to impress the mind and
impart rich lessons (
Youth’s Instructor, May 7, 1884
).
[128]
122