Chapter 28—Love the Constraining Power
There is altogether too little sympathy brought into our labor for
souls. There is not that beseeching, wooing, drawing power that God
requires us to exert that souls may be reconciled to Him. If we teach
the truth as it is in Jesus, religion will not be regarded as a drudgery, but
as a delight. Let the teachers bring sunshine, gratitude, and hearts full
of tenderness and Christlike compassion, into their work, and leaven
the hearts of their scholars with the spirit of unselfish love; for this is
the spirit that pervades heaven. Shall not the workers in the Sabbath-
school divest themselves of all pride and self-love, and heartily and
sincerely become doers of the word? “Put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ,
and make no provision for the flesh to fulfil the lust thereof.” Genuine
faith confides in Christ, and renders implicit submission, consenting to
follow Him wheresoever He goeth. When this is fulfilled, as a result of
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well-directed efforts, many souls will be brought as precious sheaves
to the Master.
Parents and teachers should seek to impress the minds of the chil-
dren from their earliest years with the importance of salvation. They
should teach the children that God is their heavenly Father, that His
love is expressed to them in the gift of His only-begotten Son, and that
the Saviour of the world manifested His love toward them in coming
to our world to die that we might live. If these lessons are presented
in love and tenderness, they will leave a lasting impression upon the
minds and hearts of the youth. As images and objects are reflected
from the face of the mirror, when revealed by the sunlight, so these
themes will be mirrored in the mind when illumined by the love of
Christ.
Influence in the Home
The home should be made a school of instruction, rather than a
place of monotonous drudgery. The evenings should be cherished as
precious seasons, to be devoted to the instruction of the children in
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