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Be Sober and Watch Unto Prayer, December 5
The end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch
unto prayer.
1 Peter 4:7
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The admonition to the Israel of today is, “The end of all things is at
hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer.” “Young men likewise
exhort to be sober minded. In all things shewing thyself a pattern of
good works: in doctrine shewing uncorruptness, gravity, sincerity, sound
speech, that cannot be condemned; that he that is of the contrary part may
be ashamed, having no evil thing to say of you. Exhort servants to be
obedient unto their own masters, and to please them well in all things; not
answering again; not purloining, but shewing all good fidelity; that they
may adorn the doctrine of God our Saviour in all things.” Resist the enemy;
do not be seduced by his flattering inducements and presentations. It is
the work of the human agent to be strong, not in his own finite strength,
but in the strength of the Lord, in the power of His might....
Christ has said, “Without me ye can do nothing.” The resolutions
you may make in your own finite strength, will be only as ropes of sand;
but if you pray in sincerity, surrendering yourself, soul, body, and spirit,
unto God, you put on the whole armor of God, and open the soul to the
righteousness of Christ; and this alone,—Christ’s imputed righteousness,—
makes you able to stand against the wiles of the devil. The work of every
soul is to resist the enemy in the power and might of the Lord Jesus Christ,
and the promise is that the devil shall flee from us. But let all realize
that they are in peril, and there is no assurance of safety except as they
comply with the conditions of the text. The Lord says, “Draw nigh to God.”
How?—By secret, earnest examination of your own heart; by childlike,
heart-felt, humble dependence upon God, making known your weakness
to Jesus; and by confessing your sins. Thus you may draw nigh to God,
and He will draw nigh to you
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The Youth’s Instructor, February 8, 1894
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