Experiences in Australia

Ellen G. White

Copyright © 2017, Ellen G. White Estate, Inc.

Table of Contents

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Introductory Note

Experiences in Australia, November 12, 1891 - December 29, 1892

Testimony to the Workers in the Echo Publishing House,
Dec. 29, 1891, North Fitzroy, Melbourne, Vic.:—

Experiences in Australia, 1893

Experiences in Australia, 1894

Experiences in Australia, 1895-1899

Letter to Brother and Sister McCullagh, while they were Laboring in Ormondville:—

The following are Testimonies given to Brother and Sister Shannan and Brother Lawrence at this time:—

(74) Testimony to Brethren Shannan

(90) Testimony to Brother Lawrence: —

(130) Letter regarding the apostasy of Elder McCullagh: —

(136) Letter to the Adelaide Church: —

(143) Letter to S. McCullagh: —

Letter to Brother and Sister Muckersey:—

(178) Letter regarding the apostasy of Elder McCullagh: —

(185) The following are Testimonies given to Brother and Sister Shannan and Brother Lawrence at this time: —

(210) Letter to S. McCullagh after his confession of repentance:—

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About the Author

Ellen G. White (1827-1915) is considered the most widely translated American author, her works having been published in more than 160 languages. She wrote more than 100,000 pages on a wide variety of spiritual and practical topics. Guided by the Holy Spirit, she exalted Jesus and pointed to the Scriptures as the basis of one’s faith.

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Introductory Note

It was Ellen White’s intention to publish a volume telling the story of her pioneering work in Australia, drawing from her diaries, sermons, letters, and counsels. By the time of her death, a large amount of material had been gathered and typed, but not completed. That material is presented here, divided chronologically into four sections: 1891-1892, 1893, 1894, 1895-1899. The pagination in the text given within parentheses, such as (285), is the pagination found in the White Estate’s copy; however, it is often irregular, with some pages missing, due to the incomplete nature of the working manuscript. Text between &lt; &gt; symbols represents handwritten notations by Ellen White on the typescript.

The Ellen G. White Estate, Inc.
July 2015 [2]

Experiences in Australia, November 12, 1891 - December 29, 1892

[3]

On the Way to Australia

On Nov. 12, about two P.M., we went on board the steamship “Alameda” at San Francisco, Cal., for our long voyage across the Pacific Ocean. About twenty-five of our friends came to meet us at the boat, and say Goodbye. Soon the last parting words were spoken, and at four o’clock our good ship left the dock, and steamed out of Golden Gate against a strong head wind. The restless sea rocked and tossed us about, quite to the distress of the passengers, most of whom soon retired to their state rooms. For a time we felt inclined to lie quietly in our berths. After the first day, however, we had very pleasant, smooth sailing. The captain said he could hardly remember having so pleasant a voyage.

Our vessel, though comparatively small, and not so elegant as many of the Atlantic boats, was thoroughly comfortable, convenient, and safe. The officers were kind and gentlemanly. (2) We had about eighty cabin passengers, and forty in the steerage. Among the former were about eight ministers, several of whom were returning from the great Methodist Conference in Washington. Religious services were held in the social hall, twice each Sunday, and occasionally on deck for the steerage passengers.

One week from the time we left California, we reached the Sandwich Islands. The scene presented to us from the steamer as we approached Honolulu, was very beautiful; the mountains rising at a little distance from the water’s edge, and clothed with the rich green of the tropics, and the city in its setting of palms and other tropical trees, appeared especially attractive to us after gazing for seven days on the boundless expanse of waters.

We were met at the wharf by friends living in the city. Men, women and children greeted us so heartily that we could not but feel at home among them. We were glad to welcome these dear friends, and especially glad to meet again Elder Starr and his wife, who had been laboring among the people, and speaking in the churches by invitation, with good effect.

(3) After a short visit in the family of one of our brethren, we were taken to ride about the city and a few miles beyond the suburbs. The business part of the town is very indifferent but the residences are fine, with broad verandahs, and surrounded by green lawns, which are beautified by all kinds of tropical trees and flowers. On our way we saw beautiful avenues of royal palms, vines, and trees, shrubs and hedges brilliant with flowers; cocoa-nut palms, laden with the brown, heavy looking fruit; bread fruit and mango trees; fields of pineapples, and patches of taro, the staple food of the natives, with many other strange plants and trees which I cannot even name.

For six miles back of the town the road gradually ascends a mountain valley to the “pali, ” or precipice, an interesting point, both for its historical association, and from the fine landscape view which is obtained from it. Standing on the rocky edge of the precipice, we look down 1200 feet, while on either side the bare, rocky summits tower to a height of 3000 feet. Below us lies a rich, green plain, dotted with rice and sugar plantations, and hills around which the brown road winds in and out. Beyond all is the broad blue sea, the white surf breaking (4) along the shore. [4]

It was near the head of this valley, in about the eighteenth century that the last native chief of the island made a stand with his forces against Kamehameha I., who was trying to bring all the islands under one government. The chief’s forces were defeated, and fleeing up the valley many of them were driven over the precipice, and dashed to pieces on the rocks at its base. It is said that the bones of these unfortunate warriors are still to be found scattered on the plain.

We took our lunch on a pleasant, grassy spot overlooking the valley, and returned to the city, feeling that the day’s excursion would ever be remembered with pleasure.

Then a few hours were spent at the home of a merchant in the city, whose wife has attended our meetings with much interest, and whose little daughter spent some months at our college at Healdsburgh, Cal. The wife was among the friends who had met us at the boat, and I had called on her for a few moments in the morning on our way to the “pali.” I then bowed in prayer with them, at her request, placing my hands on the heads of the little ones, and invoking God’s blessing on the mother and the (5) children.

Our steamer was not to leave Honolulu till past midnight, and at the earnest desire of our friends, I consented to speak in the evening. The hall of the Young Men’s Christian Association was secured for the purpose. Only a few hours’ notice of the meeting could be given, yet a goodly number were assembled, among them many who were actively engaged in temperance and Christian work. I spoke from 1 John 3:1 — 3, dwelling upon the great love of God to man, expressed in the gift of Jesus that we might become children of God. The Spirit of the Lord was present with us. At the close of the meeting we were gratified to make the acquaintance of some of the leading men of the Young Men’s Christian Association. Many spoke gratefully of the help that Elder Starr had rendered them. They expressed their regret that we could not remain longer, and gave us an earnest invitation to stay and labor a few months with them on our return to America. We too regretted that we must leave so soon.

We were grateful for the opportunity of becoming acquainted with the brethren and sisters in Honolulu. [5]

(6) At Samoa and Auckland

On Friday, November 2, we reached the Samoan Islands, after a pleasant voyage of seven days from Honolulu. We had expected extremely hot weather in passing the tropics, but in this we were happily disappointed. Only a few days were uncomfortably warm. On Tuesday, Nov. 24, when we crossed the equator, the air was so cool that we found our wraps needful as we sat on deck.

Our steamer cast anchor off Apia, which is situated on the island of Upolo, and is the principal town of the Samoan Group. The harbor or Bay of Apia is a beautiful expanse of water, shut in by coral reefs, over which the water is constantly breaking. The island is clothed in the richest and most luxurious verdure. . The mountains rise almost from the water’s edge; the cocoa palms grow all along the shore and up the mountain sides, which are clothed in green to the very summits. The town of Apia consists of two rows of small white buildings on either side of a narrow street which winds along the shore.

Through an opening in the reef that encloses the harbor vessels pass in and out; another reef lying nearer the shore, (7) prevents them from reaching the dock, but passengers are taken in shore in boats. Before us is a reminder of the terrible storms that sometimes visit this lovely spot. On the reef between us and the shore lies the hull of a German vessel, which was wrecked in the hurricane of March 1889, when seven men of war and fifteen merchant vessels were either wholly destroyed or stranded on the shore.

Before our steamer comes to anchor, a novel sight greets our eyes; boats and canoes filled with natives crowd to the ship’s side, and soon we are surrounded with them in every direction. The natives are physically well developed, and are said to have the finest physique of any of the South Sea Peoples. They are of a light color brown color. Most of them are destitute of clothing, except for a mat or cloth about the loins; many are elaborately tattooed. Some wear broad-brimmed straw hats, some, turbans, while many of them have their hair dressed with lime, giving them the appearance of wearing a cap. The canoes are laden with articles for sale,—pineapples, bananas, oranges of a bright green color, but of excellent flavor, mangoes, limes, cocoanuts, and other tropical fruits, shells and coral, mats (8) and cloth, together with baskets and fans very neatly woven from the native grasses.

Most of our party went ashore, and had an opportunity of seeing the natives in their homes. The huts are made by spreading over a wooden framework a covering of palm leaves and native grasses. For the floor the ground is covered with gravel or pounded coral, on which is spread a coarse matting. Mats form the beds at night, and the table and seats by day; large leaves and cocoanut shells serve as dishes.

Our party was greeted cordially by the natives, who brought them flowers and seemed anxious to show their feelings of kindness. At Apia, they welcome the visits of Americans, seeming to feel that our country has proved a friend to them.

At one o’clock the anchor was lifted, and soon our boat was again on its way over the broad Pacific. [6]

On Nov. 26, the day before we reached Samoa, was my birthday. Another year of my life had passed into eternity, and my record for a new year was begun. As I contemplate the past year, I am filled with gratitude to God for his preserving care and loving-kindness. At times I have been afflicted in (9) body and depressed in spirits, but the Lord has been my Redeemer, my Restorer. Many have been the rich blessings imparted to me.

In the times of my greatest need I have been enabled to hold fast my confidence in my Heavenly Father. The bright beams of the Sun of Righteousness have been shining into my heart and mind, and the powers of darkness have been restrained; for Jesus our Saviour lives to make intercession for us. He is able to save soul, body and spirit, and to make us vessels unto honor, meet for the Master’s use. We are living in a perilous time, when all our powers must be consecrated to God, to do his will, and keep his way, irrespective of circumstances. We are to follow Christ in his humiliation, his self-denial, his suffering. His command is, “Be ye holy; for I am holy.” My heart is hungering and thirsting after righteousness. Through faith in Christ I am made partaker in his heavenly benefits. The exalted privileges, the great grace, revealed through Christ are for all who will obey the words of God. There are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises, that by these we may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. I receive and (10) enjoy these promises, full of divine mercy and truth. It is given me to know for myself that the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses from all unrighteousness.

We owe everything to Jesus, and renewedly I consecrate myself to his service, to work for him in a strange land, to lift him up before the people, to proclaim his matchless love. My prayer ascends day and night that the presence of Jesus may go before us. While lying in my stateroom the language of my heart has been, “My Redeemer, I beseech thee to engage for me in every conflict. I know in whom I have believed, and thy grace alone is my trust.” It is my prayer that I may through the coming year be a co-worker with Jesus in saving my own soul, which he has bought with his precious blood, and that every day I may learn his meekness and lowliness of heart, that he may use the frail, unworthy agent to bring souls out of darkness into light.

I look unto Jesus: for his holy life is a faithful example. I must be daily moulded as the clay in the hands of the potter. I must educate my soul, that my confidence in God may be unlimited. Jesus said, “I can of mine own self do nothing.” How much more is this true of us?

(11) The hope that I can be true or useful is in the atonement made for me. O that this sixty-fifth year of my life may be one of progress and perfection in the work which the Master has given me to do. I want clearer perception of truth daily that I may act in harmony with its holy principles. I have no happiness apart from doing the will of Christ and proclaiming to others his grace and truth.

Between Samoa and Auckland we crossed the day line, and for the first time in our lives we had a [week] of six days. Tuesday, Dec., 1 was dropped from our reckoning, and we passed from Monday to Wednesday.

At daylight of Dec. 3 the coast of New Zealand was in sight, and [7] soon after noon our boat reached the wharf at Auckland. Here is a beautiful harbor, and the town, on the hills above, presents a fine appearance. We had hoped to meet Elder Gates of the “Pitcairn” here, but in this we were disappointed. He had come here a month before, expecting to meet us on the arrival of the “Monawai.” As we did not come, he decided to make a trip to Norfolk Island, and return before our arrival. For some (12) reason he failed to meet us.

As our boat touched the wharf, a number of our brethren stepped on board, and introduced themselves to us; we had a glad meeting. On landing we rode to the house of Edward Hare. Here we found a pleasant home, and were refreshed with delicious strawberries, oranges, bananas, and more substantial viands. Then we had a very enjoyable ride into the country. The fresh sweet air, filled with the fragrance of wild roses, brier, and new-mown hay, reminded us of our northern summer; the green hedges separating the fields, make one think of England, while there is much in the landscape to resemble California. The vegetation and general appearance of the country is that of the temperate zones rather than the tropics.

In the evening we met with the church at their house of worship, and I spoke to them in regard to the necessity of receiving Christ as their personal Saviour. When we thus accept him, the beauty of truth will be revealed in us; for in our words and in our life it will be presented as it is in Jesus. There will be no strife to see who shall be greatest, but we shall individually seek to represent Christ, and thus let our (13) light shine to the world. If the words of Jesus dwell in us, we shall represent his love in kindness, in humility, in goodness, coming in close union with the people of God, and working as missionaries of Jesus wherever we have opportunity. Instead of seeking to glorify ourselves, we shall exalt the name that is above every name, Jesus, the center of all attraction.

All who believe the truth should remember that they are to bear the credentials of Christ to the world, in their firm unity, their Christian courtesy, and love to one another. Wherever we may be every follower of Jesus can give to the world a practical illustration of the purity and the power of the truth. We should ever bear in mind that the world should criticize in the conduct of our temporal affairs. Do we work as Christians? That which we may speak in the church is not of half as much consequence as the influence we exert in our daily business life. We are constantly making either favorable or unfavorable impressions of the truth. We should manifest kindness, forbearance, and generosity, not to our brethren merely, but to all who do not love the truth.

(14) No man can have a sound healthful experience, unless he practices the instruction Christ has given through the apostle Peter: “Giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, and to virtue knowledge; and to knowledge, temperance; and to temperance, patience; and to patience, godliness, and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and the brotherly kindness, charity. For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

To be converted daily is to renew the soul’s life by receiving vital power from Christ, as the branch receives nourishment from the vine. The growth of every Christian is from within, not from without. [8] It is only as the Spirit of Christ dwells in the heart by faith that we can grow in grace and in the knowledge of Christ. Only through the grace daily drawn from Jesus can the heart be kept. There can be no safety in extolling self; we must hide self in Jesus. Christ abiding within is the life of the soul. And we are to receive Christ through his word. It is the truth that sanctifies the soul. We should study the Scriptures even upon our knees, with earnestness and sincerity. The love of Jesus in the heart will (15) create a love for the searching of the word.

The work of every child of God is to impart the knowledge of Christ to those who have it not. We must plant the seeds of truth wherever we can. The words of eternal life, sown in many hearts, will bring forth fruit in righteousness. The heavenly intelligences are waiting for God’s human agencies to consecrate themselves fully to him, that he may use them as channels of light. We need to realize our responsibility to cooperate with the heavenly agencies. We belong to God; he has purchased us with the blood of his only begotten Son; we are to represent to the world what Christ is to us. [9]

In Australia

We entered Sydney Harbor at seven o’clock on the morning of December 8. The sea rolled heavily during the night, and it was difficult to keep safely in our berths; but all our party were able to be on deck when we entered the harbor, which is one of the most beautiful in the world. Before we reached the landing, we could see our friends on shore, and could distinguish Brother and Sister Daniells, the only ones present whom we knew. (16) Soon a hearty and tender welcome was accorded us. After a wholesome and well prepared breakfast at Brother Daniells, our party, with the canvassers, Bible workers, and a few friends, united in a precious season of worship.

We remained in Sydney one week, and had an opportunity to see something of this large and beautiful city. I spoke to the people twice, at the commencement of the Sabbath and on Sabbath morning. The Lord gave me a special freedom, and the people rejoiced in the message of truth, which, as they testified, filled their hearts with joy and peace and the love of God. Brother Starr spoke on Sunday evening with good acceptance.

On reaching Melbourne, [Wed.] Dec. 16, we found our friends at the station waiting for us, some whom we knew, and some whom we did not know, and we were heartily welcomed by all. Horses and carriages were waiting, and conveyed us two or three miles to the Echo Office. In Federal Hall, in the office building, we found a large company assembled to welcome us to Australia, and to unite with us in thanksgiving to God for his preserving and tender care during the long passage across the water. Elder Starr, W.C. White and myself each addressed a few words to those whom we were meeting now for the first time in a new country; (17) and as we united in a season of prayer, the Lord blessed us together. After the benediction, we were introduced to many of the brethren and sisters.

On Sabbath, Dec. 19, I spoke in Federal Hall. I had freedom and my soul was blessed as I spoke the words of life to an attentive audience. There was a social meeting in the afternoon, when many precious testimonies were borne. My heart was made glad in the Lord, and I could not but exclaim, “What hath God wrought?” as I looked upon this large company who had accepted the Bible just as it reads, and heard them speak of their faith. Humility in obedience to God is a hard lesson for fallen humanity to learn. There is something in the human, unsanctified heart that rises up in opposition to inspired truth, when it requires separation from former associations and customs in taking a position on the Sabbath which the Lord has blessed and sanctified as his memorial of creation. May the light of those who have had the courage and sincerity and simplicity of faith, shine forth in good works, that more may be added to the faith, of such as shall be saved.

On [Fri, 25] Christmas day our hall was full. Many had come in from Sydney, Adelaide, and Ballarat, and the smaller churches. (18) The Lord gave me much of his Spirit as I spoke of the first advent of Christ, when angels heralded his birth to the watching shepherds and sang their glad songs above the hills of Bethlehem.

We could see in the people here the intelligence, heartiness, and simplicity that characterize the lovers of the truth in America. Many expressed gratitude to God that he had sent his servants to Australia. [10]

Going to Australia
1891 — 1892

When the work, newly started in Australia, was in need of help, our brethren in America desired me to visit this field. They urged that as one whom the Lord was specially teaching I could help the work here as others could not. I felt no inclination to go, and had no light that it was my duty. The journey was a dread to me. I desired to remain at home and complete my work on the Life of Christ and other writings. But as the matter was introduced, and the responsible men of the conference expressed their conviction that I in company with others should visit this field, I decided to act in accordance with their light. I feared that my own unwillingness to go was the reason why I had no more evidence on the point.

I made the long journey and &lt;attended&gt; the conference held in Melbourne. I bore a decided testimony. The Lord gave me tongue and utterance to reprove, to entreat, and to present principles of the greatest importance to the people and to the work. The burden was heavy upon me, and just before the (20) conference closed I was stricken with a severe illness. For eleven months I suffered from malarial fever and inflammatory rheumatism.

During this period I experienced the most terrible suffering of my whole life. I was unable to lift my feet from the floor without suffering great pain. My right arm, from the elbow down, was the only part of my body that was free from pain. My hips and my spine were in constant pain. I could not lie on my cot for more than two hours at a time, though I had rubber cushions under me. I would drag myself to a similar bed to change my position. Thus the nights passed.

But to all this there was a cheerful side. My Saviour seemed to be close beside me. I felt His sacred presence in my heart, and I was thankful. These months of suffering were the happiest months of my life, because of the companionship of my Saviour. He was my hope and crown of rejoicing. I am so thankful that I had this experience, because I am better acquainted with my precious Lord and Saviour. His love filled my heart. All through my sickness, His love, His tender (21) compassion, was my comfort, &lt;my continual consolation.&gt;

Physicians said I would never be able to walk again, and I had fears that my life was to be a perpetual conflict with suffering. But I would not give up, and the constant effort that I made, because of my faith that I could still be the Lord’s messenger to the people, accomplished a great change in my health. Some of the meetings that I attended at this time were from four to twelve miles from home. On some of these occasions I was enabled to speak for a &lt;full&gt; hour at a time. The fact that I could speak in public in spite of my crippled condition, was an encouragement to my brethren and sisters.

During those eleven months of suffering I continued my work of writing. My right arm from the elbow down was whole, so that I could use my pen, and I wrote twenty-five hundred pages of letter paper for publication &lt;during this period&gt;.

When I was first convinced that I must give up my cherished plan to visit the churches of Australia and New Zealand, I questioned seriously [11] whether it was ever my duty to leave Australia, and come to this far-off country. Many sleepless hours of the night I spent in going over our experience since we (22) left America for &lt;Australia&gt;. It was a time of continual anxiety, suffering and burden bearing. I felt at first that I could not bear this inactivity: I think I fretted in spirit over it; and at times darkness gathered about me. This unreconciliation was at the beginning of my suffering and helplessness; but it was not long before I saw that the affliction was a part of God’s plan. I carefully reviewed the history of the past few years, and the work the Lord had given me to do. Not once had he failed me. Often He manifested Himself in a marked manner; and I saw nothing in the past of which to complain. I realized that like threads of gold, precious things had run through all &lt;this severe&gt; experience.

Then I prayed &lt;earnestly&gt; and realized &lt;continually&gt; sweet comfort in the promises of God: “Draw nigh to God, and He will draw nigh to you.” “When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord shall lift up a standard &lt;for you&gt; against &lt;the enemy&gt;.” These promises were fulfilled to me. &lt;I know&gt; Jesus came sacredly near, and I found His grace all-sufficient. My soul stayed upon God. I could say from a full heard, “I know in whom I have believed.” God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are (23) able, but will with the temptation make a way of escape, that ye may be able to bear it.” Through Christ I came off more than conqueror.

My time of physical suffering was made a blessing to me. Although not raised up in answer to prayer, I found a compassionate Saviour, who loved me, and revealed Himself to me. The comfort and blessing I received in answer to prayer helped me to bear my great suffering. I decided that the Lord had determined something concerning me which I could not understand, and I was content to trust all with Him. I kept saying, God knows what is best; &lt;May Saviour&gt; sees that which in my humanity I do not see. “Whom He did foreknow He also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.” I will not fret and murmur; I will not give up in discouragement. I will leave myself in the hand of God. He will not forsake me while I put my trust in Him. He will transform me into His image, and accomplish His will in me.

When we comply with the Written Word then we are to walk by faith. We dishonor God when we fail to trust Him after He (24) has given such wonderful evidence of His &lt;compassionate&gt; love in the gift of His Son. We are to keep looking to Jesus, offering up our prayers in faith taking hold of His strength. If we would give more expression to our faith, rejoice more in the blessings that we know we have, we would daily have greater &lt;cheerfulness and&gt; strength.

Feeling and faith are as distinct from each other as the east is from the west. Faith is not dependent on feeling. Daily we should dedicate ourselves to God, and believe that &lt;Christ understands and&gt; accepts the sacrifice, without examining ourselves to see if we have that degree of feeling that we think should correspond with our faith. Have we not the assurance that our heavenly Father is more willing to give the Holy Spirit &lt;to them that ask Him in faith&gt; than parents are to give good gifts to their children? We should go forward as if to every prayer that we send to the throne of God we heard the response from the One whose promises never fail. Even when depressed by sadness, it is our privilege [12] to make melody in our hearts to God. When we do this the mists and clouds will be rolled back and we will pass from the shadow and darkness into the clear sunshine of His presence.

(25) If we educated our souls to have more faith, more love, greater patience, a more perfect trust in our heavenly Father, we would have more peace and happiness as we pass through the conflicts of this life. The Lord is not pleased to have us fret and worry ourselves out of the arms of Jesus. He is the &lt;only&gt; source of every grace, the fulfillment of every promise, the realization of every blessing. “They that follow me, “He says, “shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.” Our pilgrimage would indeed be lonely were it not for Jesus. “I will not leave you comfortless,” He says to us. Let us cherish His words, believe His promises, repeat them by day and meditate upon them in the night season, and be happy.

&lt;It has been a great blessing to know that my Saviour was close beside me in day periods and in the night; and the assurance was given me of His presence. W.C. White was called away from Melbourne to New Zealand accompanying Elder Daniells. But there were council meetings appointed in my rooms in my hired house, and I was made as comfortable as possible. Elder Tenney was one of the ministers who oft visited me; and many ministers and laborers called upon me and we had praying seasons. I could not kneel but the Lord did always manifest himself unto me in my severe sufferings. I had precious seasons of prayer and the abundant grace of Christ was my strength and joy. I enjoyed communion with my precious Saviour during my wakeful hours of the night.&gt; [13]

Testimony to the Workers in the Echo Publishing House,
Dec. 29, 1891, North Fitzroy, Melbourne, Vic.:—

[14]

Regarding the Publishing Work.

(26) After this I attended two committee meetings, and presented the true condition of things in the Echo Office. This institution had been gathering up branches of work which it was not able to carry, and this was hampering, entangling, and impeding its forces. Too many lines of work were carried on, which were merely dead weights. Seemingly a labored effort was being made to keep up appearances for the sake of appearance. The publication of the Echo was being made at continual loss. Jobs were secured at altogether too low a price, and loss was the result. Funds were being sunk in nearly all lines that were being carried forward. There was not sufficient business ability in the office or wise generalship to bind up the work in a way that would save expense.

I was shown that this was not the way to do business. It (27) is not the will of our heavenly Father that His work should be so conducted as to be in continual embarrassment. The office should not be eaten up by its own expenses. Work that could not be done without this cost should be abandoned. If a remedy was to be found for the condition of things in the office, its business must be searched to the very bottom. The intellect must work as it had not yet done to find out by close investigation the cause of the debts incurred.

I &lt;was instructed&gt; that a decided change was needed in the management of the publishing house. True soul-conversion was needed, a deeper and wider interest in &lt;sympathy and love for&gt;one another and the work of the institution. Words of reproof had &lt;oft&gt; been uttered on the impulse of the moment, without any definite aim. &lt;Many words&gt; had been said that were vague, with the result that no one in particular was helped or enlightened. Some of the workers were not willing to help and instruct their fellow-workmen. Those who were inexperienced did not wish their ignorance to be known. . They made many mistakes at a cost of much time and material, because they were too proud or too self-willed to seek instruction. This ignorance could have been avoided if those at the work had shown kindness (28) and love toward each other. The workers in the Echo office had very little insight into the right methods of obtaining success. They were working at cross purposes with each other. The office was sick, throughout all its departments &lt;for this cause.&gt;

The trouble was not difficult to define. Instead of regarding themselves as a part of the whole, threads which must be drawn into the fabric to make the pattern perfect, the workers had stood apart in independence &lt;to be first&gt;. There could be no vitality, no decided progress, until the workers followed Christian principle. They needed to be soundly converted to the truth. &lt;Then the truth would sanctify the soul.&gt; Devotion to God, conscientious, prayerful work &lt;done&gt; for the Master, would bring unity. With Christ abiding in the heart, they would try to bring Christian consecration into all their duties, great and small. &lt;This is essential for the soul’s healthfulness&gt;. And in the act of working heartily as unto the Lord, raising the thoughts above the ordinary level of business life, they would be blessed &lt;every day&gt;.

The Lord’s work has many branches. The ways in which He condescends to use the human agent are numerous. As God’s steward each man and woman has a work to perform, and each is given capabilities which [15] qualify him for his work. If those in (29) responsible positions in the office put aside all selfishness, all envy, if they faithfully weigh the probabilities and possibilities of the work, they will see that those who are employed in the office who could be a better work outside of the office, be placed where they can use their ability to the best purpose. Each worker should be on his guard, determined to bind about the edges of his department, realizing that it is his duty to give brain, bone, and muscle to the work, that it may be made a success. If, however the workers, the workers have &lt;little&gt; consideration for the income and outgo, how can the work be executed without friction? How can the workers keep in a cheerful, Christ like frame of mind? The question should be asked, what work shall the office do, and yet stand on a paying basis? &lt;This is to be your determined effort—self denial. Christ’s lesson to all [is], “If any man will be my disciple, let him [take up his cross] and deny himself and follow me.”&gt;

Those who teach the truth to others should realize the importance of learning from Christ, just as the little child learns from its teacher. Otherwise, what good will he accomplish; what will his labors result in? Those who realize their inefficiency, who feel that they do not know half what they should know, will not be satisfied with any low standard. Those (30) connected with our publishing houses, where the truth of God is being handled, should feel that they are on holy ground. They need to feel daily the converting power of God. For years the voice of God has been speaking to them. Angels of God co-operate with the worker who is consecrated, and who works with pure and holy motives, seeking ever to do the will of God. &lt;Prayer to the soul will be its strength. Apply the promises of Christ to your soul. Believe the Word which is the fruit of the tree of life. It is an invigorating tonic. It is as if he was in the companionship of the meek and lowly Jesus.&gt;

Every association leaves an impression upon the character. The letters that are written sow either seeds of tares or wheat. Our thoughts, our words, the spirit on which we perform our daily duties, all act their part in the formation of character. The workers in our institutions are either devoted servants of Christ, or they are under the leadership of the enemy. They are abiding in the true vine, partaking of the divine nature, or they are imbibing the spirit of pride and self-indulgence. Imperceptibly worldly influences affect the mind and form the character. If the mind does not appreciate high and holy influences, it must be appropriating to itself those that are low and debasing. If there is not a growth in piety and grace, there is a growth in worldliness and sin.
[Pages 31-49 missing] [16]

Adelaide

(50) I am now in the city of Adelaide. W.C. White left Melbourne for this city, May 29; for Brother Curtis was urgent that he should consult with him in regard to the closing up of his work in this city. I followed later when a convenient location had been secured for Sister Tay, May Walling and myself, where we could spend two months of the severest winter weather.

Our Melbourne brethren became so concerned about my health that they were going to move us to Adelaide before W.C.W. returned from New Zealand. They almost made me feel that I must go. But I felt that I must not get anxious or worn out in planning for this move. The Lord had opened the way for us to locate in Melbourne and however I might suffer, I must be patient, and wait the unfolding of God’s plans, knowing that in His time He would make known where He would have us be.

I think that unless we are constantly looking to the Lord for instruction, we are in danger of getting impatient as did Saul, when Samuel did not come at the expected time. Saul began to fret about the delay, and decided to move independently of (51) Samuel. He rushed into the performance of a work that God had not given him to do. We have need to wait on the Lord, and learn what he wants of us. It will not amount to anything to make duties for ourselves, and to be full of our own schemes and plans.

Adelaide is a beautiful city. In many respects it resembles Copenhagen, though on a smaller and less elaborate scale. Most of the houses are detached. The streets are broad and macadamized with stone. These stones are almost white, and this is very trying to the eyes in the sunshine. Many of the houses are built with a view to keeping out the heat and sunshine as far as possible. These have a second brick wall, built about six or eight feet from the house wall, with archways in front of the doors and windows. Some of these buildings are two and three storeys high. The houses are built of brick and stone. In many of them fine taste and art is displayed in the arrangement of the different colors of brick, making them very rich in appearance.

Wherever we go are pleasant parks. Much pains are taken to cultivate flowers. I have never in any country seen a city where the pleasure and health of the people is planned (52) for as in Adelaide.

We are living two miles from the business part of Adelaide. In front of us are many acres of vacant land; and a block to the right of us is the asylum with its extensive and beautiful grounds enclosed by a high wall. We have a furnished cottage of six rooms, the weekly rent of which is one pound five shillings. The church has kindly hired us a horse and phaeton.

We have had storms and clouds most of the time since we have been here, and we long for the sunshine. The residents say that at this time of the year it is generally quite hot, and the grass begins to look grey. Now everything is in its glory. As we ride to and from the city, and pass the homes of the people we see the orange trees covered with blossoms, the fragrance of which fills the air. Park lands extend around the city, and are to be found in different parts of the city. Yesterday [17] we drove into a most beautiful park. In it was cultivated the pine, fir and maple trees besides a variety of shrubs and other trees. The orange trees were there also, sending forth their fragrance nigh and afar off.

My great burden is how are the people of North Adelaide and East Adelaide and the different suburbs to be reached with (53) the truth. The church membership is about one hundred and fifty, which is more than one half of the membership in Melbourne. There are many excellent people here who believe and practice the truth; but they have no minister and no workers.

Elder Curtis used to live here and preach to the people, but he was not a shepherd of the flock. He would tell the poor sheep that he would rather be horse-whipped than visit. He neglected personal labor; therefore pastoral work was not done in the church and its borders. The deacons and elders of the church have acted wisely and worked judiciously to keep the church in order; and we find the people in a much better condition than we had expected. We are happily disappointed. But when I look over the years, and think of what might have been done, if the man entrusted with the flock had been a faithful steward of God, watching for souls as one that must give an account, my heart is made sad. Had the preacher done the work of a pastor, a much larger number would now be rejoicing in the truth.

I am pained at heart when I see those who claim to be Christians carry so little burden for souls. O what can I say (54) to those who are idle and careless and indifferent in regard to the work of the Master. Jesus has bought us with His own blood. Whatever may be our ability or calling, God has committed to us our individual responsibility, and to every man He has given his work. This work cannot be transferred to another. Individual effort is to be made to seek and save the lost. As he is God’s workman, he is required to become more and more efficient, by practice, better qualified to work the works of God, educated and trained in the science of spiritual husbandry.

There should be wise workmen in every church, workmen who seek God that they may learn the best methods of labor for the tempted and tried and erring, so as not to lose one. It is verily a plan of Satan for our churches to be so inefficient and helpless, depending upon the minister to do the work which they should do, and which they must do if ever they hear from the lips of Christ the words, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things; I will make thee ruler over many things; enter thou into the joy of the Lord.”

(55) My health is recovering. I have been strengthened by the Lord to speak to the people five times. I was able to speak the first Sabbath after reaching Melbourne and I felt more natural than I have at any time since I was first afflicted. The Lord blessed me as I spoke from the first four verses of John 14. I spoke again on Sunday on the same subject. On this day there was a fair congregation, and I had much freedom in speaking. One man who is studying for the ministry was present, and he said he enjoyed the meeting much. “Why,” said he, “how could I help but enjoy such preaching as that.” Another man, a great critic, living in the same house with one of our sisters, said that he was going to the meeting to take notes, and would pick Mrs. White all to pieces. After the meeting this sister told me that he sat through the meeting with his eyes fastened upon me, and did not use his pencil once. [18]

An excellent social meeting followed my discourse. Then I spoke a few words in regard to the human voice,—the rich gift of God to us—, and begged them not to belittle God’s gift, but to speak clearly and distinctly as God meant they should when he blessed them with tongues and with utterance. “Ye are my witnesses,” saith the Lord. Communicate to others the treasures of grace and truth you have received. Elder Daniells declared this the best social meeting he had attended in the (56) colonies.

The following Sunday I spoke again to a good congregation. The power of God was manifested in our midst; many hearts were deeply moved, and tears were shed. I knew this was not because of any power that was in me; but that the Lord Himself was in the assembly. It was the Holy Spirit’s power upon human hearts, and I praise the Lord for His mercy, His compassion to the children of men. When speaking to others of the love and compassion of God, my own soul is comforted and refreshed. When I see the glow of intelligence upon countenances, my own soul glows with love to God.

I was not well on that day; infirmities more severe than usual had pressed upon me Sabbath and Sunday. After I had spoken an hour and twenty minutes, Elder Daniells asked if I would speak in their missionary meeting at five p.m. that day. I felt so strengthened that I said I would. We rode home two miles to dinner. While at home a severe illness came upon me. I was cramped and suffered much pain. It seemed as if I had been poisoned, and this was really the case. On the journey from Melbourne to Adelaide, I had a sleeper; but in the compartment next to mine there was smoking going on. The poisonous odor (57) could not be excluded from my compartment, as the entrance door was made of lattice work, and the transom of wire… I endured it until my heart’s action was much increased, and I felt as though tight bands were drawn around my head; then we spoke to the guard. He told the smokers that they were breaking rules, and pointed to the framed notices hanging in the car; but as soon as the guard’s back was turned, the men smoked as vigorously as before. A second time they were spoken to, but with no better results. Then May pled with them, telling them of my condition; but even this did no good. So I had to submit; though the air was heavy with the poisonous odor. That night I could not sleep; a burning fever came upon me. My head throbbed with pain, and my temples and eyes pained me.

I have no doubt but that the tobacco caused me all that suffering that I endured on that trying Sunday afternoon. I thought I could not attend the second meeting that day. But after further reflection I decided to go rather than disappoint the people. We found a goodly number present. I spoke for fifty minutes on what it meant to be a child of God, showing that it meant to be a true missionary in every sense of the word. (58) As I spoke the blessing of the Lord rested upon me, and all present seemed to be blessed. They drank in every word, as if thirsting for light and knowledge. I was glad that I did not disappoint them.

As soon as my duty was done I left, and May drove home to our cottage. That night she gave me treatment, and wrapping me in blankets put me to bed, where I sweat freely. Since that I have been much better. [19]

First Visit to Ballarat.

(59) We left Adelaide, Nov. 28, 1892 for Ballarat. We had a very pleasant journey, arriving at Ballarat the next morning at six o’clock. Brother James was waiting for us at the station with horse and phaeton, and we rode one mile out of town to his home, where we were made very welcome. His house was surrounded with fruit trees and many beautiful flowers. We had been invited to this place several times, and Brother and Sister James were very disappointed when my illness came upon me and I could not visit them. They were overjoyed that I was with them now to remain two weeks. Sister James and I drove out when the weather would permit; but we had several rainy days, and such days I had to remain indoors. My rheumatic pains forewarned (60) me of every cold change in the weather.

On Wednesday, Nov. 30, I drove out to visit Brother Innis, who was sick. The evening before he had been attending a prayer meeting, at the close of which he was asked to pray, and was immediately taken with bleeding of the lungs. He was taken home, and when I visited him was lying in a very critical state. This was the third attack he had had. The physician who attended him thought he would rally. His mother was deeply concerned for him. I prayed with him, and he seemed to be comforted. Before my visit, Brother Ennis had expressed the wish that he might attend me in driving, and take me wherever I wished to go. But here he lay, weak and helpless, and unable to speak a loud word.

From his bedside I passed into the next room where his sister, who had been an invalid for seven months, was in bed. I visited, and prayed with her. This was indeed an afflicted family. The mother of the invalids had her hands full, and she looked pale and careworn. She needed our sympathies and prayers. This family with a number of their relatives were steadfast Sabbath-keepers and were the strength of the Ballarat church. (61) Of them it could truly be said, “Not slothful in business, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord.”

On Friday Elder Daniells came from Melbourne, accompanied by W.C.White whom I had not seen for ten weeks. On this day I was asked to speak for a short time to the neighbors of Sister James, which I did; and the Lord blessed me, and gave me freedom. It is as great a tax to stand before a few as before many. When speaking even to a few, the value of the soul urges itself upon me so that I feel an intense interest. I opened the meeting with prayer, and at the request of Brother James closed with prayer. My discourse was followed by a social meeting, in which many excellent testimonies were borne. At the close, I was very weary, and returned to my temporary home, glad to rest. But I was not sorry that I had spoken to the few, for the Lord gave me tongue and utterance. It may be that seeds were sown which will spring up and bear fruit after a time.

Sabbath, Dec.3
(62) Although I did not have a good sleep during the night, my peace was like a river. Day by day the love of Jesus grows in my heart, and my heart flows out in grateful thanksgiving. The preciousness of divine truth presents itself with such clearness and force to my mind that I long to express it to all whom I can reach, to comfort and encourage with the consolation wherewith I myself am comforted. I feel [20] no depression of spirits. Precious views and ideas present themselves to me, and my heart is all aglow, &lt;although I am apparently crippled&gt;, and I feel an ardor of soul that seems longing to express itself. In reading Scriptures, light shines upon them making every sentence new and important. I know in my daily experience that the Holy Spirit is present as I read his word, planting the truth in the heart that it may be expressed to others in my life and character. The Spirit of God takes the truth from the sacred page, and stamps it on the soul. What holy joy, what hope and consolation, can be ours to impart to others.

I attended the Sabbath afternoon meeting, and there were more than I expected present to hear the Word. I spoke from (63) John 14:15-24. The Lord gave me words to speak to the people, to present before them the precious assurances that Christ has given to all who know and do His commandments. Jesus asks an evidence of their love for Him. “If ye love Me, keep My commandments,” He says. If it were not possible for us to keep His commandments, why does He speak to us words of this kind? The following verses open to us a treasure of knowledge: “And I will pray the Father, and (although I be absent from you) He will give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you forever; even the Spirit of Truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth Him not, neither knoweth Him: but ye know Him; for He dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless; I will come to you.”

Is not this promise sure? Can any words from the lips of God’s only begotten Son make it more positive and decided? How plainly the matter is expressed. He did come to His disciples after His humiliation and death. “Then the eleven went away into Galilee, into a mountain where Jesus had appointed them. And when they saw Him, they worshipped Him; but some doubted. And (64) Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore and teach, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost; teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.”

“Yet a little while, and the world seeth Me no more; but ye see Me; because I live, ye shall live also . . . . He that hath My commandments and keepeth them, he it is that loveth Me; and he that loveth Me shall be loved of My Father, and I will love him and will manifest Myself to him.” Here it is plainly stated that those who have God’s commandments, that is, have had them presented to them showing the perpetuity of the law of God, and, having them, obey them, give evidence that they love Jesus.

On Sunday afternoon I addressed a large audience in a larger and more expensive hall, that in which we held our Sabbath meeting. The Lord gave me much of His Holy Spirit, and those not of our faith seemed to be fed with pure provender. (65) The Lord strengthened me to do my duty in the love and fear of God, and the congregation seemed to enjoy the meeting.

On the following Sabbath the Lord again gave me words for the people. My heart was very tender as I saw in the congregation, Brother Ennis, who a week before had had a hemorrhage of the lungs. Although his face was pale, it was full of light and happiness. He thoroughly enjoyed the meeting and was comforted. His sister also was present with an aged [21] aunt. I was so glad of the opportunity to encourage these feeble ones, and to feed them with food from the oracles of God. They were strengthened and blessed. Although when the hymn was sung after the opening prayer, I could scarcely stand because of physical &lt;lameness&gt;, I soon forgot myself and my infirmities in the interest I felt in feeding these poor hungry souls. How I longed to see some, not of our faith, who were present, walking in the light of truth that was shining upon their pathway. The previous Sunday Dr. Porter had asserted that the Old Testament Scriptures were done away with the law of God. I made special remarks up on 1 Peter 1:10, 11, showing the importance of the Old Testament Scriptures. &lt;This whole chapter is to be our study and our encouragement.&gt;

(66) Dec. 11. The rain stormed down all night, and I said at the breakfast table, “I do not think it safe for me to go out in this storm.” The answer came quickly from Brother James, “Why, you have an appointment, and the bills are scattered everywhere. I am sorry we have not an enclosed carriage; nevertheless you must go; for we cannot think of disappointing the people. And I have no idea it will clear away. I think we are on for a week of such weather.” This was not a very flattering prospect for me; but the Lord favored us, and at 9 a.m. the rain ceased and the clouds rolled away, and I was able at three to ride to the meeting.

At this time I had the opportunity of speaking to a large company of the best people in Ballarat. As I took my glasses from my pocket, I found that one of the gold arms was broken. This made it impossible for me to read. I took my text from John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” I had perfect freedom. Those not of our faith listened with intense interest. Many hearts were touched, and tears were in many eyes. As I ceased (67) speaking, Brother Hoskins started the Doxology, and the whole congregation rose and with clear voice sang the praise of God. The expression of the heart poured forth in thanksgiving to God, how musical it was. I never listened to the voice of song more fitted to the occasion, or that came forth from human lips with more earnestness and power. I knew that many had seen the light of truth as they never had before.

At the close of the meeting an aged Christian grasped my hand and said, “I thank you for speaking those words today. Their beauty and value lay in their simplicity. We could understand every word. The Lord has spoken to His people today; the crib was put low so the sheep of His pasture could feed and be strengthened and blessed. The words you have spoken have softened my heart, and the love of God burns in my soul.” I shall never forget this feast.”

I was very weary, but I returned to my home at Brother James’ with my heart filled with gratitude that I had had the privilege of presenting the truth in clear lines to the people.

And now the packing must be done; for we must arise at (68) four in the morning to get our breakfast and get to the station.

I awoke before three o’clock, and did not dare to sleep then, knowing that no one else in the house could be trusted to get up in time. The morning was cloudy and windy, and threatened rain. The packing [22] completed, we took our early breakfast, and reached the station in season. At 8:30 we were at Melbourne where we found Brother Wilson waiting to take us to George’s Terrace, St. Kilda, where we were heartily welcomed. We were pleased to see our friends at the school, which was to be our home for six weeks. We rejoiced to learn that the school work had passed off pleasantly and successfully.

After the conference we planned to leave Melbourne for New Zealand. [23]

(69) The first year of the Melbourne Bible School closed December 13, 1892. Our brethren and sisters were invited to be present, and the morning from 9-12:30 was devoted to reports from teachers and students, and remarks from Elder Daniells, W.C. White and myself. An excellent spirit prevailed. The students bore good testimonies regarding the school.

In the evening after these exercises, Brother Faulkhead came to see me. This brother held an important position in the Echo Office. He was connected with the Freemasons. I told him that I had a message for him from the Lord, which I wished him and his wife to hear. He seemed anxious to know what it was, and said, “Cannot you give it to me now?” As he seemed very kind and tender in his feelings toward me, I rose from my bed, and taking the writing, &lt;of many pages,&gt; I read to him for three hours as (70) straight and direct a testimony as I have ever borne anyone. . It was like a sharp-two-edged sword, cutting every way. The Spirit of the Lord co-operated with the feeble human instrument. The message was against Freemasonery, and the influence this society has upon all who belong to it. The low religious standard of those who are connected with secret societies was presented in clear lines.

When I had finished reading, Brother Faulkhead said, “I am so glad that you did not send me that testimony; for then it would not have helped me; but by reading it to me yourself, you have done me a world of good.” Brother Faulkhead then told me that he belonged to five lodges, having the sole financial management of three. With the lodge’s entertainments, the suppers, or feasts, and the business transactions to deal with, you can judge how much thought and tact and skill he could put into the work of God.

There was in the testimony much that was general, and appropriate to other workers in the office, but Brother Faulkhead said, “It all applies to me. I receive every word of it. It (71) means me; it means me.” &lt;Sometimes he shook like an aspen leaf and wept freely. Once, yes twice, he looked steadily and intensely at me and his face was as pale as the dead.&gt;

I made an appointment to meet him and his wife on Thursday evening.

Brother Faulkhead then went home, having to walk seven miles. Afterward he repeated the circumstance to the other workers in the office, telling them that Sister White had given him a special testimony, which he received, and should carry out to the letter. He said, “I did so want to meet some of the brethren last night. My heart was full, and I wanted to tell others how happy I was. A tons weight seemed to have dropped from me. The Lord has noticed me, even me, &lt;to deliver me.”&gt;

His fellow workers said that after this Brother Faulkhead appeared like another man. Two or three days before I had talked with him, he had made the remark in defiant independence that he would not be taught his duty by Starr or White or any other man. He belonged to the Freemasons, and should not give them up. But he was now another man. “Sister White,” he said, gave me the sign known only to the highest order of Freemasons. I knew she did not know it; but she gave it twice. This convinced (72) me that the testimony was from God.” I cannot tell what he meant by this, only I know that as I said something about Freemasonary, and the impossibility of a man being a Freemason and a [24] Christian, I made a certain movement which my attending angel made to me. &lt;And involuntarily I made the same motions. That was the time I observed he turned pale and then put his face in his hands and wept unrestrainedly. I felt that night I must give the message I had written out. My nurse who was becoming very anxious came in the room and begged me not to expose myself to serious injury by this continuous strain. I said, May Walling, I cannot be interrupted; I must be left alone with Brother Faulkhead. The angels of God are round about me and I shall not die but live to give glory to God.&gt; [25]

Should Christians be Members of Secret Societies?

(73) “Be not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? and what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? and what agreement hath the temple of God with idols; for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean; and I will receive you, and will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.”

(74) The Lord’s injunction, “Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers,” refers not only to the marriage of Christians with the ungodly, but to all alliances in which the parties are brought into intimate association, and in which there is need of harmony of spirit and action. The Lord gave special directions to Israel to keep themselves distinct from idolaters. They were not to intermarry with the heathen, nor to form any confederacy with them: “Take heed to thyself, lest thou make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, whither thou goest, lest it be a snare in the midst of thee; but ye shall destroy their altars, break their images, and cut down their groves; for thou shalt worship no other gods; for the Lord, whose name is Jehovah, is a jealous God.”

“For thou art an holy people unto the Lord thy God: the Lord thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto himself, above all people upon the face of the earth. The Lord did not set His love upon thee, because ye were more in number than any people: but because the Lord loved you, and because He would keep the oath which He sware unto thy Fathers. . . . Know therefore that the Lord thy God, He is God, the faithful (75) God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love Him and keep His commandments to a thousand generations.”

Again the Lord declares through the prophet Isaiah: “associate yourselves, O ye people, and ye shall be broken in pieces; and give ear, all ye of far countries: gird yourselves, and ye shall be broken in pieces. Take counsel together, and it shall come to nought; speak the word, and it shall not stand: for God is with us. For the Lord spake thus to me with a strong hand, and instructed me that I should not walk in the way of this people, saying, Say ye not, A confederacy; neither fear ye their fear, nor be afraid. Sanctify the Lord of hosts Himself, and let Him be your fear; and let Him be your dread.”

There are those who question whether it is right for Christians to be connected with Freemasons or other secret societies. Let all such consider the Scriptures just quoted. If we are Christians at all, we must be Christians everywhere, and must consider and heed the counsel given to make us Christians according to the standard of God’s word.

The people of God on earth are the human agents who are (76) to co-operate with the divine agencies of man. To the souls who have joined [26] themselves to Him, Christ says, “You are one with me, laborers together with God.” God is the great and unperceived Actor; man is the humble and seen agent, and it is only in co-operation with the heavenly agencies that he can do anything good. It is only as the mind is enlightened by the divine agency that men can discern the divine agency. And hence Satan is constantly seeking to divert minds from the divine to the human that man may not co-operate with heaven. He directs the attention to human inventions, leading men to trust in man, to make flesh their arm, so that their faith does not take hold upon God. “The light of the body is the eye; if, therefore, the eye be single, the whole body shall be full of light; but if thine eye be evil, thine whole body shall be full of darkness. If, therefore, the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness.” And when your light becomes darkness, how shall you be a light to the world?

The work of our personal salvation also depends upon our co-operation with divine agencies. God has imparted to us moral (77) powers and religious susceptibilities. He has given His Son as a propitiation for our sins, that we might be reconciled to God. Jesus lived a life of self-denial and sacrifice, that we might follow His example. He has given the Holy Spirit to be in Christ’s stead in every place where help is needed. He employs the heavenly intelligences to bring divine power to combine with our human efforts. But we are to co-operate with the divine-saving agencies. We must accept the gift of God; we must repent and believe in Christ. We must watch; we must pray; we must obey the requirements of God. We must practice self-denial and self-sacrifice for Christ’s sake. . We must grow up into Christ by constant connection with Him. Whatever turns our minds away from God to trust in man, or conforms to a human standard, will prevent us from co-operating with God in the work of our own salvation.

This is why the Lord forbade His people to form an alliance with the heathen, “lest it be a snare in the midst of thee.” He said, “They will turn away thy son from following me.” And the principle applies to the association of the Christian with the ungodly.

When we accepted Christ as our Redeemer, we accepted the condition of becoming laborers together with God. We made a covenant to be wholly for the Lord; as faithful stewards of the grace of Christ, to labor for the up-building of His kingdom in (78) the world. Every follower of Christ stands pledged to dedicate all his powers of mind and soul and body to Him who has paid the ransom money for our souls. . We engaged to be soldiers, to enter into active service, to endure trials, shame, reproach, to fight the good fight of faith, following the Captain of our salvation.

In your connection with worldly societies, are you keeping your covenant with God? Do these associations tend to direct your mind or the minds of others to God? Or are they diverting the interests and attention from Him? Do they strengthen your connection with divine agencies, or do they turn your mind to the human in the place of the divine?

Are you serving, honoring, and magnifying God, or are you dishonoring Him, and sinning against Him? Are you gathering with Christ? Or are you scattering abroad? All the thoughts and plans and earnest interest devoted to these organizations have been purchased with the [27] precious blood of Christ; but are you doing service for Him when uniting yourselves with atheists and infidels, men who profane the name of God, tipplers, drunkards, (79) tobacco devotees?

While there may be in these societies much that appears to be good, there is, mingled with this, much that makes the good of no effect, and renders these associations detrimental to the interests of the soul. We have another life than that which is sustained by temporal food. “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.” “Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of God, and drink His blood, Jesus said, “ye have no life in you. Whoso eateth My flesh, and drinketh My blood, hath eternal life.” Our bodies are built up from what we eat and drink. And as in the natural, so in the spiritual economy; it is that which our minds dwell upon that sustains the spiritual nature. Our Saviour said, “It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing; the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.” Spiritual life must be sustained by communion with Christ through His Word. The mind must dwell upon it; the heart must be filled with it. The Word of God laid up in the heart and sacredly cherished and obeyed through the power of the grace of Christ, can make man right and keep him right; but every (80) `human influence, every earthly invention, is powerless to give strength and wisdom to man. It cannot restrain passion or correct deformity of character. Unless the truth of God controls the heart, the conscience will be warped. But in these worldly societies the mind is turned away from the word of God. Men are not led to make it the study and the guide of life.

I ask you who take pleasure in these associations, who love the gatherings for the indulgence of wit and merriment and feasting, Do you take Jesus with you? Are you seeking to save the souls of your companions? Is that the object of your association with them? Do they see and feel that in you there is a living embodiment of the spirit of Christ? Is it manifest that you are witnesses for Christ, that you belong to a peculiar people, zealous of good works? Is it manifest that your life is governed by the divine precept, “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength; and thy neighbor as thyself”? To speak to the hearts and consciences of those who are ready to perish is beyond the power of one who does not himself surrender all for Christ. But where does your fluency and warmth of speech show (81) that your interest is centered?

In these societies what are the favorite subjects of conversation? What are the themes that excite interest and give pleasure? Are they not the gratification of the senses,—eating and drinking, and pleasure-seeking? The presence of Christ is unknown in these gatherings. No reference is made to Him. His companionship is not desired. When and where is God honored by such associations? Wherein is the soul in the least benefited? If you are not influencing your companions for good, are they not influencing you for evil? Will it do to lay aside the lamp of life, God’s word, and mingle freely with this class of associates, and come to their level? Do you think you can find something to satisfy the hunger of the soul apart from the truth and the favor of God? Shall those who profess to believe the truth for this time be at home in such scenes, when God is not in all their thoughts? [28]

In the same room where these societies have had their gatherings, the congregations have met to worship God. Can you during the sacred hour of divine service forget the scenes of merriment (82) and feasting and indulgence in the wine cup? All this God writes in His book as intemperance. How does it blend with eternal realities? Do you forget that at all these pleasure gatherings there is a Witness present, as at the feast of Belshazzar? Could the curtain that separates us from the invisible world, be rolled back, you would behold the Saviour grieved to see men absorbed in the pleasures of the table, in hilarity and witticism, that put Christ, the center of the world’s hope, out of their thoughts.

Those who cannot discern between him that serveth God and him that serveth Him not may be charmed with these societies that have no connection with God; but no earnest Christian can prosper in such an atmosphere. The vital air of heaven is not there. His soul is barren, and he feels as destitute of the refreshing of the Holy Spirit as were the hills of Gilboa of dew and rain.

At times the follower of Christ may, by circumstances, be compelled to witness scenes of unholy pleasure, but it is with a sorrowful heart. The language is not the language of Canaan, and the child of God will never choose such associations. When he is necessarily brought into society that he does not choose, (83) let him lean upon God, and the Lord will preserve him. But he is not to sacrifice his principles in any case, whatever the temptation.

Christ will never lead His followers to take upon themselves vows that will unite them with men who have no connection with God, who are not under the controlling influence of His Holy Spirit. The only correct standard of character is the holy law of God, and it is impossible for those who make that law the rule of life to unite in confidence and cordial brother-hood with those who turn the truth of God into a lie, and regard the authority of God as a thing of naught.

Between the worldly man and the one who is faithfully serving God, there is a great gulf fixed. Upon the most momentous subjects,—God, and truth, and eternity,—their thoughts and feelings and sympathies are not in harmony. One class is ripening as wheat for the garner of God, the other as tares for the fires of destruction. How can there be unity of action or purpose between them? “Know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God; whosoever, therefore, will be the friend of the world is the enemy of God.” “No man can serve two masters.” (84) “Ye cannot serve God and mammon.”

We are to beware of indulging a spirit of bigotry and intolerance. We are not to stand aside from others in a spirit that seems to say, “Come not near me; I am holier than thou.” Do not shut yourselves away from your fellow men, but seek to impart to them the precious truth that has blessed your own heart. Let it be manifest that yours is the religion of love. “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.”

But if we are Christians, having the spirit of Him who died to save men from their sins, we shall love the souls of our fellow men too well to countenance their sinful pleasures by our presence or our influence. We cannot sanction their course by associating with them, partaking in [29] their feasts and their councils where God does not preside. Such a course, so far from befitting them, would only cause them to doubt the reality of our religion. We would be false lights, by our example leading souls to ruin.

I lately read of a noble ship that was ploughing its way across the sea, when at midnight, with a terrible crash, it (85) struck upon a rock. The passengers were awakened only to see with horror their hopeless condition, and with the ship they sank to rise no more. The man at the helm had mistaken the beacon light, and hundreds of souls were at a moment’s warning 1 launched into eternity. If we present a phase of character that misrepresents Christ, we present a false light, and souls will surely be misled by our example.

And Christians who connect themselves with worldly associations are injuring themselves as well as misleading others. Those who fear God cannot choose the ungodly for companions and be themselves unharmed. In these societies they are brought under the influence of worldly principles and customs, and through the power of association and habit the mind becomes more and more conformed to the worldling’s standard. Their love for God grows cold, and they have no desire for communion with Him. They become spiritually blind. They can see no particular difference between the transgressor of God’s law and those who fear God and keep His commandments. They call evil good and good evil. The brightness of eternal realities fade away. The truth may be presented to them in ever so forcible a manner, but (86) they do not hunger for the Bread of Life, or thirst for the waters of salvation. They are drinking at broken cisterns that can hold no water. O, it is an easy thing, by association with the world, to catch its spirit, to be molded by its views of things, so that we do not discern the preciousness of Jesus and the truth. And just to the degree that the spirit of the world dwells in the heart, it will control the life.

When men are not under the control of the word and the Spirit of God, they are captives of Satan, and we know not to what lengths they may lead them into sin. The patriarch Jacob, inspired by the Holy Spirit, beheld those who take pleasure in wickedness. He saw what would be the result of associating with them, and he exclaimed, “O, my soul, come thou not into their secret; into their assembly, mine honor, be not thou united.” He lifts up the danger signal, to warn every soul against such associations. The apostle Paul echoes the warning, “Have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness.” “Be not deceived; evil communications corrupt good manners.”

The soul is deceived when it turns to worldly policy and human inventions. Can man find a better guide than the Lord (87) Jesus? a better counselor in doubt and trial? a better defense in danger? To set aside the worship of God for human wisdom is a soul-destroying delusion. If you would see what man will do when he rejects the influence of the grace of God, look to that scene in the judgment hall, when the infuriated mob headed by Jewish priests and elders, clamored for the life of the Son of God. See the divine Sufferer standing by the side of Barabbas, and Pilate asking which he should release unto them. The hoarse cry swelled by hundreds of passionate, Satan inspired voices is heard, “Away with this man, and release unto us Barabbas!” And when Pilate asked what was to be done with Jesus, they cried, “Crucify Him! Crucify Him! We need no king but Caesar.” Human nature then is human [30] nature now, when the divine remedy that would have saved and exalted human nature is despised. The same spirit still lives in the hearts of men, and we cannot trust to their guidance and maintain our loyalty to Christ.

These societies that are not controlled by the love and fear of God will not be found true and upright toward men. Many of their transactions are contrary to justice and equity. He (88) who is of too pure eyes to behold evil will not, cannot be a party to many things that take place in these associations. Your own conscience will bear witness to the truth of what I say. The talent and skill and inventive power with which God has endowed men are in these associations too often perverted to instruments of cruelty, or iniquity, or selfishness in practicing fraud upon their fellow men. Of course all this is denied by the members of these bodies. But God looks beneath the pleasure and attractive appearance, to the secret, underlying motives and the real working of the association. While some of them claim to make the Word of God, in a certain sense, the basis of their organization, they depart far from the principles of righteousness. The vows imposed by some of these orders require the taking of human life when the secrets of the order are divulged. Members are also pledged under certain circumstances, to clear the guilty from deserved punishment. Toward those who work against the order, they are required to pursue a course that is not at all in harmony with the law of God.

We cannot swerve from the truth; we cannot depart from right principles, without forsaking Him who is our strength, our (89) Righteousness, and our sanctification. We would be firmly rooted in the conviction that whatever in any sense turns us aside from truth and justice in our associations and partnership with men, cannot benefit us, and greatly dishonors God. Every species of sin and conniving at sin is abhorrent to Him. Fraud runs all through these secret associations, and none can be bound up with them and be a free man before God and heaven. The moral nature is dragged down to that which God pronounces unjust, which is contrary to His will and His commandments. One who professes to love God may in these associations be placed in positions which may be called honorable, but in the eyes of God, he is tarnishing his honor as a Christian, and separating farther and farther from the principles of righteousness and true holiness. He is perverting his powers that have been purchased by the blood of Jesus. He is selling his soul for nought. In the revelation of his righteousness judgments, God will break up all these associations; and when the judgment shall sit, and the books he opened, there will be revealed the unchristlikeness of the whole confederacy. Those who choose to unite with these secret (90) societies are paying homage to idols as senseless and as powerless to bless and save the soul as the gods of the Hindoo.

These societies may offer some advantages which from a human point of view appear like great blessings; but not so when judged by the Lord’s measurement. Behind their apparent advantages are concealed Satanic agencies. The larger the income drawn into the treasury, the more and deeper is the evil. The ungodly gain which has enriched these societies, when traced out in all its bearings, is seen to be a curse. The words which Eliphas spoke to Job are true in respect to these associations: “I have seen the foolish taking root, but suddenly I cursed his habitation.” They are Satan’s traps, his nets to entangle the soul. [31]

Very many things are sanctioned and upheld by the world which are an offence to the Holy One of Israel. It was seemingly a small thing for Eve to depart from God’s specified restrictions, and do the thing he told her not to do, and for Adam to follow her example; but that very thing was planned by the arch-deceiver to destroy the souls of men by leading them to follow their own imaginations rather than the revealed will of God. So in these associations principles are held that bring men under (91) the deceptive power of Satan, leading away from safe paths into rebellion against God and disregard of His holy standard of righteousness. “Watch and pray. Lest ye enter into temptation,” is the oft repeated injunction of our Saviour. Watch, watch with diligence and care, lest Satan succeed in ensnaring the souls of those for whom Christ has paid the ransom price of His own blood.

God calls upon you who would be His children to act as under the divine eye, to adopt the holy standard of righteousness. His justice and His truth are the principles that should be established in every soul. He who preserves his integrity toward God, will be upright toward man. No man who truly loves God will for the bribe of gold or silver, or honor, or any other earthly advantage, expose his soul to &lt;the tempter’s power. Christ asks every soul&gt;, “What shall it profit a man, if he gain the whole world, and lose his own soul, or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” Christians must sever every tie that binds them to these secret orders that are not under the control of God. They cannot be loyal to these organizations and loyal to God. Either the connection with these bodies must be severed, or you will assimilate (92) more closely to them, and as the result, will come to unite more fully with them. You will sever the ties that bind you to those who love and fear God. The Christian will abandon those things that are a hindrance to his spirituality, be the sacrifice ever so great. Better lose money, possessions, and life itself than to imperil the vital interests of the soul.

You who have commented yourselves with these secret societies, are trusting in a staff that will be broken to pieces. You do not trust in the Lord God of Israel, diligently searching to know His will, and to follow His way. When you invest money in these organizations, you do so in hope of making provision for the future. You have given them time and thought and labor and money, while the cause of Christ has been neglected &lt;as an inferior interest.&gt; Every dollar paid into these organizations is as truly turned away from the cause of God as if sunk in the ocean. But was not this capital entrusted you of God to use in His service, for the salvation of your fellow-men. By investing it where we cannot honor God or benefit men, you are repeating the sin of the slothful servant.

(93) The Lord has entrusted to the unfaithful servant not a large capital, buy only one talent. That one talent the man did not invest for the interest of God; he hid it in the earth, complaining that the Lord was a hard master, reaping where he had not sown, gathering where He had not strawed. The selfishness he manifested, and the complaints he made, as though God would require of him that which he had no right to claim, showed that he did not know God, nor Jesus Christ, whom He had sent. Everything he possessed was the Lord’s own property, and was entrusted to him to use for God. When he says, “I was afraid, and went and hid Thy talent in the earth,” he acknowledged that the talent was from God. And what saith the Lord?—“Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knowest that I reaped where I sowed not, and gathered where I had not strawed.” [32] Here He repeats the servant’s words, not acknowledging their truth, but showing what, even according to His own account, &lt;what&gt; the servant should have done. The Lord virtually says, You made no effort to trade upon My entrusted capital, and to gain an increase to promote My glory in the earth. “Thou oughtest to have put My money to the exchangers, and then at My coming I should have received My own with usury. (94) Take, therefore, the talent from him, and give it to him which hath ten talents. For unto everyone that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance; but from him that hath not (traded with his Lord’s goods) shall be taken away even that which he hath. And take ye the unprofitable servant, and cast him into outer darkness.” To every soul to whom the light of truth is come is this light given.

We should never forget that God has placed us on trial in this world to determine our fitness for the future life. None can enter heaven whose characters are marred by the foul blot of selfishness. Therefore, God tests us here by committing to us temporal blessings, possessions, that our use of these may show whether we can be entrusted with eternal riches. It is only as the self-sacrificing life of Christ is reflected in our life that we can be in harmony with heaven, and be fitted to enter there.

The great study and ambition of the world is to obtain material, temporal advantages, to the neglect of spiritual good. Thus it is with some members of the church. When at last they (95) shall be called to render their accounts to God, they will not only be ashamed but astonished that they did not discern the true riches, and have not laid up a treasure in the heavens. They have bestowed their gifts upon the enemies of the truth, expecting the time to come in this life when they would receive the returns what they had invested. They could entrust their means to secret societies, but when the cause of God was in need of the means He had committed to His human agents, they felt no interest, they did not consider the gift that the Lord had made to them. They were blinded by the god of this world. They said, “I have nothing to give to this enterprise; for I shall receive no returns. In paying to the lodge, I am providing for the future; and besides this, I must bear my share of expense for the entertainments that gratify my taste. I cannot give up these enjoyments. Why does the church look to me to help meet these constantly recurring demands? “Lord, I knew that Thou wert an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed; and I was afraid, and went and hid Thy talents in the earth,” expecting that sometime I would be benefited by it.” This is the way that the world reasons.

(96) The Saviour bids us, “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven where moth and rust do not corrupt, and where thieves do not break through and steal; for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” Many are &lt;now&gt; laying up their treasures in these secret societies, and can we not see that their heart also is there. However powerful may be the evidences of truth, little by little it loses its brightness, loses its force; heaven fades from the mind; the eternal weight of glory, the gift of God for a life of obedience, appears a matter unworthy of notice in comparison with the supposed benefits to be realized in laying up earthly treasure. Souls are starving for the Bread and Water of Life, but what is that to him whose heart is set upon this world. Many a man is saying [33] by his action if not in words, I cannot let go my interest in these earthly treasures, to secure that which is eternal. The life to come is too remote for me to count upon. I chose the earthly good, and I will run the risk of the future. God is good and merciful. (97) Slothful servant! Just as surely as you continue your course, your portion is appointed with hypocrites and unbelievers. Fascinations of the club room, the suppers, the world-loving associates has led, as did Belshazzar’s feast, to forgetfulness of God and to the dishonoring of His name.

There is a blindness upon human minds that is willful. Jesus said, “This people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed, lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.” The work of God for the salvation of men is the one work of supreme importance to be carried forward in our world; but many do not see this, because their interests are more with the ranks of the enemy than with the loyal soldiers of Christ. They do not perceive the &lt;continual&gt; necessity for the co-operation of the human with the divine agency. &lt;Every soul is on trial&gt;. The Lord has bidden us, “Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God that worketh in you, to will and to do of His good pleasure.” This is the plan which God has revealed to us to guide us in all the plans and purposes of life. But (98) while men pray, “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven,” many reject the very means by which God would establish His kingdom. When they are willing to count all things loss that they may win Christ, their eyes will be open to see things as they really are. Then they will turn away from the earthly attractions to the heavenly. Then they will see the true nature of the selfish, worldly enjoyments that they now value so highly, and these things that they now hold so dearly will be given up &lt;and are misleading&gt;.

All heaven is looking upon you who claim to believe the most solemn truth ever committed to mortals. Angels are waiting with longing desire to co-operate with you in working for the salvation of souls. Will you refuse this heavenly alliance in order to maintain your connection with society where God is not honored, where His commandments are trampled on? How would the truth ever have been brought to your country, &lt;Australia&gt;, if others had felt as little interest in its advancement as some of you manifest? The cause of God demands our help, that it may be established upon a proper basis, and that the truth may be carried into new fields, to those who are ready to perish. Can you who claim (99) to be sons of God refuse to aid in the work? Will you, in order to receive &lt;a supposed&gt; earthly return, withhold your means from the treasury of God, and let His work be shamefully neglected? It is grievous to consider what might have been accomplished in the saving of souls if the heart and service of all who profess to believe the truth had been given undividedly to God. The work in Australia has been negligently done. If self had been hidden in Christ, sinners might, by wise ingenious methods, have been won to the truth, and today be in co-operation with God.

Now, before the time comes when you must render up an account to God, I urge you to give heed to His word, “Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven,” not in secret societies. Consider that there is only one proprietor of the universe, and that every man, with his time, his intellect, his resources, belongs to the One who has paid the ransom [34] for the soul. God has a righteous claim to constant service and supreme affections. God’s will, not your pleasure, is to be your criterion. And though you should accumulate a fortune less rapidly, you are laying up a treasure in heaven. Who of the church, present in Melbourne, is resolved to maintain his spirituality? Who will develop an experience (100) that reveals a Christian fervor, &lt;and excel in&gt; persevering energy? Who like Jesus, “will not fail nor be discouraged,” not in grasping means for the service of self, but in laboring together with God?

All who are striving for the crown of everlasting life will be tempted as was their Master before them. He was proffered the kingdoms of the world If He would pay homage to Satan. Had Christ yielded to this temptation, the world would have passed forever under the sway of the wicked one. But, thank God, His divinity shone through humanity. He did what every human being may do in the name and strength of Jesus. He said, “Get thee hence, Satan; for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve.” If this, &lt;as in the past&gt; is the way you meet temptation, Satan will leave you as he left Christ. &lt;The conflict is oft severe&gt; and angels will minister to you as they ministered to &lt;Christ&gt;.

To those who have thought and talked of the advantages to be gained by worldly association, the Lord declares through the prophet Malachai, “Your words have been stout against me, saith the Lord. Yet ye say, What have we spoken so much against thee? Ye have said, it is vain to serve God; and what profit is it that we have kept His ordinances, and that we have walked mournfully (101) before the Lord of hosts? And now we call the proud happy; yea, they that work wickedness are set up; they that tempt God are even delivered. These are the thoughts of many, if the words are not spoken. “Then they that feared the Lord spake often one to another; and the Lord hearkened and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before Him for them that feared the Lord and that thought upon His name. And they shall be mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them as a man spareth his own son that serveth him. Then shall ye return and discern between the righteous and the wicked; for, behold, the days come that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, and all that do wickedly shall be as stubble; and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of Hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.” These are the people that in the world were judged to be greatly favored; but there comes a time when the children of God are distinguished as those who are favored of God because they have honored Him.

“Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God; there, the world knoweth us not, because it knew Him not. Beloved, now are we the (102) sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be; but we know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is. And every man that hath this hope in Him, purifieth himself even as He is pure.”

While temporal honor and riches and power are the great objects of ambition with the men of the world, the Lord points out to us something more worthy of our highest aspirations: “Thus saith the Lord, let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might; let not the rich man glory in his riches, but let him that glorieth, glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth Me, that I am the Lord which exercise loving-kindness, judgment and righteousness in [35] the earth; for in these things I delight, saith the Lord. Behold, the days come, saith the Lord that I will punish all them that are circumcised &lt;with the uncircumcised&gt;.

“Wherefore also is contained in these Scriptures, Behold I lay in Zion a Chief Corner Stone, elect, precious, but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner, and a stone of (103) stumbling, and a rock of offense, even to them that stumble at the word, being disobedient, whereunto also they were appointed. But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should show forth the praise of Him that hath called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.”

“Wherefore, gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; as obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance; but as He which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation and godliness; because it is written, Be ye holy, for I am holy. And if ye call on the Father who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man’s work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear; forasmuch as ye know, that ye are not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.” [36]

Experiences in Australia, 1893

[37]

The Second Australian Conference

(295) The week of prayer for 1893 was held during the holiday season and at its close our second Australian Conference assembled. During the meetings of the week of prayer the Lord was present with us, and gave us much freedom in speaking to the people.

We tried to hold our meetings in a tent; but the location was not favorable; the open drains were offensive; the cars were near, and the noise and smoke from the engines disturbed us. Besides, the tent was too small for our members, so we had to give up that plan. Then we hired a hall, somewhat smaller but better ventilated than the one usually occupied by the church on the Sabbath. Here the Conference assembled.

(296) An appointment was made for me to speak Sabbath afternoon, January 7. As I rode the five miles to the meeting, I was in a state of such exhaustion that I feared it was impossible for me to speak. I prayed all the way. When I stood upon the platform, such an assurance was given me by the Lord that He had sent His angel to sustain me that I could not doubt. These words seemed to be spoken to me, “Be strong in God; yea, be strong.” I never spoke with greater ease and freedom from infirmity. The hearers said my voice was clear and musical, and the congregation could not but know that the Spirit and power of God was upon me.

I spoke for an hour upon the parable of the talents, dwelling with considerable definiteness on the slothful servant, who hid his one talent in the earth, and at the day of reckoning presented it to his Lord with a bitter complaint, accusing God of being a hard master.

After the discourse we had a social meeting, in which many heartfelt testimonies were borne. Brother Faulkhead’s wife, who was a teacher in the public schools, spoke decidedly (297) and with deep feeling. She said she had been tempted all the week, but she would stand firm and decided, holding fast to God. Immediately Brother Faulkhead rose, his heart broken and subdued. Like his wife, he said he had been sorely tempted all through the week. He had communicated to the Masons his purpose to leave them entirely, and had received letters from them presenting the strongest reasons why he should not take this step. They pronounced it folly for him to think of leaving them, and made an earnest plea for him to reconsider his decision; but he said, “Brethren I will not give up the conflict. I did not expect it would be so severe. I thought I could sever my connection easily; but I find it takes a greater struggle to break the bonds than I had anticipated. But the Lord has greatly honored me in speaking to me through Sister White. He has presented my case to her, and called me by name, and I will heed the instruction from the Lord.” His voice was so full of tears that he could hardly articulate plainly. “O, he said, “The Lord has engraven my name on the palms of His hands.”

This brother was deciding his own destiny. Poor soul, he had not obtained an advanced experience in the things of (298) eternal interest. Had he taken hold of the truth with his whole heart, through earnest prayer and meditation letting it make a deep and still deeper impression on mind and character, he might now be strong in God. There are few who have a [38] knowledge of practical Christianity, and fewer still who sink the shaft deep in the mind of truth to recover the buried treasures, that they may diffuse light amid the moral darkness of error and superstition that surrounds them. The cases of those who have been linking themselves with the world is perilous. But Jesus lives. He sees them on the very edge of the precipice, and He alone, by His mercy and His attractive loveliness, can draw them into the path of safety. O that Brother Faulkhead may indeed flee to Christ.

On Sunday January 8, I was not able to attend the service, but Elder Starr and his wife reported an excellent morning meeting. The hall was well filled, and the presence of the Lord was manifested in the congregation. Brother Faulkhead said that on Sabbath he obtained a great victory. He went home happy. He was determined to continue to strive for the mastery, and obtain an experience in the things of God. He spoke with much earnestness (299) and fervor. My heart praised God for this victory over the powers of darkness. Who can estimate the value of the human soul? For years this brother had professedly believed the truth, but he had not appreciated the truth. It had not been brought into the inner sanctuary of the soul, and his religious life had been dwarfed and crippled. He ceased to grow in grace and the knowledge of Christ, and the years, freighted with blessings from heaven, had not enriched his soul, or given him a deep experience in the things of God. He said that he felt highly honored that the Lord had taken his name upon his lips. O that he may continue to thus sacredly regard the admonitions of God.

Brother Prismall, another for whom I had had special labor was receiving help in these meetings. His only hope was to cease looking at the faults of others, and to look wholly to Jesus. The Saviour is perfect; not a stain rests upon His character. He is the “chiefest among ten thousand,” and the One “altogether lovely.” Our work, as finite, human agents, is between God and our souls. It is very poor policy to dwell upon the wrongs and (300) defects of others. By beholding the faults and mistakes of our brethren, we become changed into the same image. “But we all with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory (from character to character), even as by the Spirit of the Lord.” Then let our thoughts dwell upon Christ, let our conversation be holy. By talking of Jesus, and beholding Him by the eye of faith, we shall be changed into the same image.

On Monday, January 9, I was undecided whether to attend the meeting or to rest at home; but I wanted so much to go that I ventured out. I was glad that I went; the Lord strengthened me to speak for a short time, and gave me words for the people. I had prayed in the night season for His grace, and that He would give us the spirit of intercession. “Ask of the Lord rain in the time of the latter rain; so the Lord shall make bright clouds, and give them showers of rain, to every one grass in the field.” Every one who receives the showers from heaven will bring forth fruit in rich abundance. “And they of Ephraim shall be like a mighty man, and their hearts shall rejoice as through wine; yea, their children shall see it and be glad; (301) their hearts shall rejoice in the Lord.”

Both while waking and sleeping I have been deeply impressed by the Holy Spirit that the Lord will manifest his mercy and goodness and power to his people in this country. O, how much we need the grace of God! Unless the Lord shall undertake for us, we shall never be able to [39] succeed. Hope, faith, and love are attributes that must be cultivated in the church. Faith is weak, hope is feeble, love is almost dead. A great change must be wrought in the church before its members shall love one another as Christ loves. The love of Jesus is without a parallel. Yet He has told us to love one another as He has loved us. It is the great lack of the love of Christ in the heart that brings us coldness toward one another, and keeps the church in such darkness. [40]

On Tuesday, January 10, I attended the nine o’clock meeting. After a season of prayer and some appropriate remarks by Elder Starr, I spoke upon faith, hope, and love. The Lord blessed me in speaking of the love that should exist between our brethren, and the care and tenderness that must be exercised in dealing with those that are out of the way. As an illustration (302) of this, I spoke of the Lord’s dealing with Brother Faulkhead in regard to his connection with secret societies. I had had a message for Brother Faulkhead, which I did not give him for twelve months; for the Lord whom I served said, “Not yet; not yet.” Brother Faulkhead was in a perilous condition like a man about to lose his balance and fall over a precipice. I knew what nice work it was to deal with human minds, and was thankful when the time came when it was safe for me to present to him his danger. The Lord of heaven would have us fear to judge one another; as finite, erring beings we should be suspicious of ourselves; we should fear lest we offend God in bruising the souls of His children. They are the purchase of the Son of God, bought by His own precious blood, and are not to be accused or oppressed by word or act; for the Lord will stand in their defence.

On Wednesday I was drawn out to speak of the principles upon which we should deal with minds and direct them in the right way. Many in the world have their affections on things that may be good in themselves, but their minds are satisfied (303) with these things, and they do not seek the greater and higher good that Christ desires to give them. Now we must not seek to rudely deprive them of that they hold dear, but reveal to them the beauty and preciousness of truth, lead them to behold Christ and His loveliness; then they will turn aside from everything that will draw the affections away from Him. This is the principle upon which parents should work in the training of their children. By your manner of dealing with the little ones you can by the grace of Christ mold their characters for everlasting life, or by a wrong course of action you can give them the impress of a Satanic character. Never act from impulse in governing children. Let authority and affection be blended. Cultivate and cherish all that is lovely, and lead them to desire the higher good by revealing Christ to them. While you deny them those things that would be an injury to them, let them see that you love them, and want to make them happy. The more unlovely they are the greater pains you should take to reveal your love for them. When the child has confidence that you want to make him happy, love will break every barrier down. This is the principle of the Saviour’s dealing with man; it is the principle that must be brought into the church.

(304) Jesus came into the world to “bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound.” “The Sun of Righteousness shall arise with healing in His wings.” The world is full of men and women who are carrying a heavy burden of sorrow, suffering and sin. God sends his children to reveal to them Him who will take away the burden and give them rest. It is the mission of Christ’s followers to help, to bless, and to heal.

On the afternoon of Thursday, January 12, I attended the afternoon meeting, which was devoted to the interests of the publishing work. I gave a short relation of our early experiences in publishing the reasons of our faith in Rocky Hill, Conn, and in Auburn and Rochester, N.Y., with an account of the removal of the work to Battle Creek, Mich. and of the difficulties we met and the poverty that bound us about. I then spoke particularly of the work in Australia, that there was much to be done. [41] The cause was yet in its infancy, and we had come over the broad waters of the Pacific to help our brethren in obtaining a better knowledge of how to work according to the Lord’s plans, so as to secure the best results. I told them that the work (305) was not to be taken out of their hands, but that we were eagerly trying to secure their co-operation. As the Lord’s human agents co-operating with the divine, we must all exercise our God-given ability to push the work. We must not draw apart from one another; there must be unity in devising plans, and a determination to work to these plans. This would require much grace from Christ; we must move in the wisdom of God, and not fail nor be discouraged. If the Echo Office was to mean no more to our people than any secular publishing house; if it was to be conducted on the same principles as other business institutions, then it was not wise to invest so much means in establishing the office. It would have been less expensive to hire our printing done by outside parties.

On Friday morning I spoke on the subject of tithing. This subject had not been presented to the churches as it should have been, and the neglect, together with financial depression, had caused a marked falling off in the tithes the past year. At this Conference the subject was carefully canvassed in meeting after meeting.

(306) Those who go forth as ministers have a solemn responsibility devolving upon them that is strangely neglected. All through this country the church is sadly in need of instruction concerning their duties and obligations to God, especially in regard to paying an honest tithe. These ministers would feel sadly aggrieved if they were not promptly paid for their labor; but will they consider that there must be meat in the treasure house of God with which to sustain the laborer. If they fail to do their whole duty in educating the people to be faithful in paying to God His own, there cannot be means in the treasury to carry forward the Lord’s work.

The overseer of the flock of God should faithfully discharge his duty. If he takes the position that because this is not pleasant to him he will leave it for someone else to do, he is not a faithful worker. Let him read in Malachi the words of the Lord charging the people with robbery toward God in withholding the tithes. The mighty God declares, “Ye are cursed with a curse.” When the one who ministers in word and doctrine sees the people pursuing a course that will bring this curse upon them, how can he neglect his duty to give them warning (307) and instruction? How can he fail to educate and train the people never to commit robbery against God which will surely place them under His censure and curse? Every church member should be taught to be faithful in paying an honest tithe. This is God’s own plan for supplying the treasury with means. Read to the church the words of Malachi, the curse that God has pronounced upon all who rob Him in tithes and offerings, and the blessings pronounced upon all who render to the Lord His own. The Lord challenges them, “Bring ye all the tithes,” not one-fourth, or one half, but “all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in my house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of Hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it. And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the Lord of hosts. And all nations shall call you blessed; for ye shall be a delightsome land, saith the Lord of hosts.” [42]

To those who say, I cannot see this matter,” what can we (308) say in regard to the case? There is nothing in all the word of God more direct and explicit than these words of Malachai. The selfishness of the human heart alone explains why men cannot see; and because selfishness is always striving for the mastery, the workers in the vineyard of the Lord are required to be faithful in giving labor to the church, and personal labor to individuals who are neglecting their duty on this point, and through this neglect are bringing themselves under the curse of God. Special labor should be given to this matter by all who have any line of work to do in connection with the church.

Sabbath, Jan. 14, was a day of great interest to us. In the morning I spoke from Isaiah 58. The Lord gave me strength and grace to deliver His message to the people. As a social meeting had been appointed, I did not intend to speak again in the afternoon, but as the testimonies were borne, I felt urged to present the case of some who seemed altogether too blind to comprehend their true condition. The Lord constrained me to speak in regard to the dangers of those who are so completely absorbed in dwelling on the failings and mistakes of others that they themselves were falling into greater evils, and sinning against God.

(309) I told Brother Prismall that he would surely lose the reason that God had given him if he did not cease this work of accusing, and employ his powers to a better purpose than talking of the faults and errors of others. Christ had declared himself to be the Bread of Life that cometh down from heaven. John 6:51, 53-57, 63. Our bodies are built up from what we eat, and the character of our spiritual experience depends upon what our minds feed upon. By continually dwelling upon the faults and mistakes of others, many become religious dyspeptics. The Lord has bidden us, “Be careful for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and mind through Christ Jesus. Finally brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report, if there be any virtue and if there be any praise, think on these things.” But those who are so busy in dissecting the words and acts of others to discern all that is objectionable, fail to discover the good and pleasant things. They do not eat of the proper kind of things to give spiritual (310) vitality and healthful growth.

Many are bearing a yoke that Christ has never asked them to wear; it is galling to the neck, and it brings no rest to the soul. I said, Dear brother, the Lord has not placed the sins of the people upon you. You are not the sin bearer. Jesus, the world’s Redeemer, was able to tread the winepress alone. He bore our sins in His own body on the tree, and there is not an angel in heaven who is able to bear the sins of one soul. No human being can bear the guilt of his own sins; then how inconsistent for any to think that God has laid upon him the sins of his fellow-man. If it were so indeed, his life would be crushed out.

Do not feel that you are under the necessity of talking of the faults and errors of others. God has given his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. Christ has invited us, “Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” O what a promise this is! “I will give [43] you rest. Take My yoke upon you.... and ye shall find rest unto your souls; for My yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” Let these words fill us with comfort and hope and peace. While you are (311) worrying over the sins of others, Jesus says, Take your eyes away from these things, and behold the Lamb of God, that taketh away the sin of the world. You are not to be crushed under the load. Jesus is the Great Physician; He can cure the maladies of the soul. There is a balm in Gilead; there is a Physician there.

The infinite wisdom of God has employed human agencies to co-operate with Him in His work for the salvation of men. He has a variety of agencies with different gifts, and all are to co-operate harmoniously, each filling his own special, God given sphere of action. We are to work for the salvation of our fellowmen, not by judging them, but by showing forth what the Lord has done for us in the transformation of character. Your faith, your sympathy, your forbearance, your love, your gentleness, your temperance in all things, will be as a light in a dark place. The spotless example of a poor and illiterate man God has often used as successfully to promote the great designs of the gospel as the labors of the minister who is lauded as talented and eloquent. The Lord’s power is revealed in the humble, devoted worker, who loves his religion, rather than in the educated man who does not rely so fully upon God.

(312) Brother Prismall arose in the congregation and said he accepted every word that Sister White had said; for it meant him, and it was all true. O, that God would work on the hearts of these men who have been as bodies of darkness, because they have not been walking in the light as Christ is in the light.

Many good testimonies were borne. The delegates from the Parramatta church who had been raised up under the labors of Brn. Hare and Steed, acknowledged themselves as greatly blessed. They said that these meetings have been as a school to them.

One brother, a noble looking man, a delegate from Tasmania, came to me, and said, “I am glad I heard you speak to-day on tithing. I did not know that it was so important a matter. I dare not neglect it any longer. He is now figuring on the amount of his tithe for the last twenty years and says he shall pay it all as fast as he is able; for he cannot have robbery of God registered in the books of heaven to meet him in the judgment.

Another, a sister belonging to the Melbourne church brought in Eleven pounds back tithe, which she had not understood that it (313) devolved on her to pay. As they received the light, many made confession in regard to their indebtedness to God, and expressed their determination to meet this debt, and no longer rob Him. I proposed that they place in the treasury their note promising to pay the full amount of an honest tithe as soon as they could obtain the money to do so. Many heads bowed assent, and I am confident that next year we shall not have as now, an empty treasury.

This conference was by far the best that had been held in this country. It was far better than the meeting last year. All listened to me respectfully a year ago; but this year my message meant far more to them. I have been writing out testimonies for individuals, and these, with the writing for the American mail kept my pen in constant use from four o’clock in the morning till dark at night. I felt worn, but I thanked [44] the Lord for His mercy, His goodness, and His love manifested to His people and to me. I had not a doubt concerning my duty in coming here, not a doubt that my sickness was permitted by God to fulfill His own purpose. I am not my own, I am (314) bought with a price; I am the Lord’s to do His will. I dare not do my own planning, independent of the Spirit of God. I want the Lord to work in my behalf. I want Him to give me the message to bear to His people; then He will strengthen me to do the work, as he did at this meeting.

Experiences in Sydney en Route for New Zealand.

(315) We left Melbourne Thursday, January 26, for Sydney, and arrived safely the next day. On Sabbath I spoke to a number of our people, and on Sunday evening in the Town Hall. Tuesday and Thursday evenings I spoke again to the church; and the Lord gave me a decided &lt;clear Bible&gt; testimony in regard to the perpetuity of the law of God and the Sabbath of the fourth commandment. I dwelt upon the fact that this was God’s memorial of His great work of creation.

The truth cut its way to the hearts of some. One man who had been a missionary, I think to India, had been opposing our work, visiting from house to house, and misstating the truth. He came to Brother Steed the next morning and said, “Mrs. White has put matters in an altogether different light than I have ever heard or thought of before. I have never heard your faith laid out in such clear lines. It looks as if God were (316) in it; and if it is as she says, “I &lt;have been&gt; trying to tear down that &lt;which&gt; God is building up. I do not want to be found fighting against God. I will search into this matter.” His face was pale, and he seemed troubled in mind. A time was appointed for Brother Steed to give him a Bible reading. “O,” said Brother Steed, “if his influence &lt;of opposition&gt; against the truth in this place could only be &lt;overcome&gt;, a great barrier would be taken out of our way of getting the truth before many souls who are interested, &lt;in cities, and towns, and villages, and in households.&gt;

We were requested to visit a Mr. Martin who was &lt;somewhat&gt; interested in the truth, whose wife was very bitter towards the truth. She would not come out to hear the message; neither would she receive any of the believers at her house. We visited this man, and he and his daughter treated us very courteously; but his wife did not make her appearance. On Thursday evening Mr. Martin and his wife and their minister’s wife were present to hear me speak. Mr. Martin afterwards told Brother Steed that his wife had not one word of objection to raise at the words spoken, which was a marvel to him. The minister’s wife [45] said, “Mrs. White’s words are very straight; she has gone deeper than any of us in religious experience. &lt;We must study the Word to see if these things be so.&gt;

(317) I wrote a long message to Brother Hare and his wife. I then sent for them to come to Brother Hughes’ home where I was stopping, and I read to them what I had written. Brother Hare at first looked &lt;troubled&gt; over the matter, and said that he might as well give up preaching. I said to him, “That is what I expected you to say, for it is your way to take reproof in just this spirit. &lt;Your past experience has been presented to me.&gt; You think you are humble, but if you were so in truth, you would not act as you are doing. The Lord reads your heart. He is acquainted with our dangers. He loves you, and He wants to save you. It is because you do not understand your errors, and the defects in your character, that He sends you warnings and encouragements. You should receive these as blessing the most to be appreciated of anything he sends you.

I have done my duty in setting before you your true situation. The case of Elder E.P. Daniells you are acquainted with. You are following in the same path in your ministerial experience. You are in constant fear and trembling lest you shall not have a good congregation, and you employ, as Elder Daniells did, methods to attract that are entirely contrary to the manner of Christ’s teaching. Brother Hare, study the lessons that (318) Christ gave to His disciples, and let their simplicity &lt;be copied.&gt; Seek to have the mind of Christ, and you will teach as He taught.

The clearness and simplicity of Christ’s teachings were in such marked contrast to the teachings of the rabbis that the common people heard Him gladly. Priests and rulers believed on Him, but they dared not acknowledge Him lest they should be turned out of the synagogues. But after His crucifixion and resurrection, and the descent of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost, those who had not dared to acknowledge Christ while He was among them, came out boldly and confessed their faith in Him.

The Jews thought that after the death of Christ the disciples would be discouraged and hopeless, but lo, they found them on this day preaching the gospel with fervor and power. Christ was in them as a well of water springing up unto everlasting life. The streams of blessing flowing from them could not be stayed. The testimony of the faithful witness rang out clear and distinct; the trumpet gave a certain sound. Those who had been the accusers of Christ found themselves accused (319) under the testimony of the Holy Spirit of God. “Ye denied the Holy One and the Just,” Peter declared, “and desired a murderer to be granted unto you, and killed the Prince of Life, whom God hath raised from the dead, whereof we are witnesses.... Repent ye therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; and He shall send Jesus who before was preached unto you, whom the heavens shall receive until the time of restitution of all things which God hath spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began.”

This testimony was an astonishment to the priests, the captain of the temple, and the Sadducees. They were grieved that they taught the people, and preached through Christ the resurrection from the dead. And [46] they laid hands on them and put them in hold until the next day; for it was now eventide. Howbeit, many of them which heard believed, and the number of the men was about five thousand.

I showed Brother and Sister Hare that when the Holy Spirit rested on the messenger, he would not feel compelled to invent methods of a theatrical character to please the perverted (320) taste of the people.

I greatly feared that Brother Hare would not receive the message in the right spirit; but when he came to the meeting in the evening, he seemed changed. As he was helping me into the carriage after the meeting, he said, “I hope you will be faithful with my folks, &lt;give them the Word,“&gt; and smiled. I think he felt that I had been faithful with him.

On Feb, 4 we were out riding before going to the station to meet W.C. White, whom we were expecting. Brother Reekie had hired a livery horse and wagon for the occasion. I noticed that the horses head was held very high, and I said to Brother Reekie “Is this horse safe?” “Perfectly,” he answered. I looked at Sister Starr and said, to her, “I cannot sympathize with you in your fear to ride behind a spirited horse.”

It was only a few minutes before the horse began to kick. Brother Reekie turned him into a side street out of the press of carriages. He continued to kick until his heels went crashing through the dash board.

Sister Starr’s lips were white, and I was thoroughly (321) frightened. I said to her and Emily &lt;Campbell&gt;, “Get out, get out as quickly as you can.” Brother Starr jumped over the wheel and ran to the horse’s head, but it was only by a great effort that he could catch the bridle and hold him by the bit. Thud, thud, went the steel clad heels into the carriage. Sister Starr and Emily were nearest the door. They did not stop to open it; we all climbed over and reached the ground without so much as a bruise, very thankful to be out of the fracas. My spring seat was placed on a rock by the wayside, and we rested here for half an hour while the horse and waggonette were taken back to the stable, and the owners reprimanded for hitching &lt;up to the wagon,&gt; a horse that was too long for the shafts. Another horse and carriage was provided, and we were picked up and taken to the station.

The brethren were searching for a suitable place to pitch the tent. They desired to erect it within a few miles of Parramatta, where they could keep up the interest in Parramatta and also reach another community about ten miles from there. Mr. Martin took Brother Steed in his carriage to help in the search, and they succeeded in finding a suitable place. The people all about that part were saying, Come to our neighborhood, (322) and we will insure you a good attendance at your meetings. I was so glad to see this community stirred and anxious to hear more about these strange truths that had been brought to their ears. We planned, when our work was done in New Zealand, to return to this place and make our home in Parramatta. The climate here was much better than in Melbourne, and instead of feeling that by moving from Melbourne I was leaving interests that were needing my help, I would be going directly into the harvest field, where sheaves were waiting to be gathered. I had a testimony for the people. If the Lord would be with us, some souls would be brought to a knowledge of the truth. [47]

A meeting was appointed for nine o’clock of the morning that we left Sydney for New Zealand. Before the meeting I was depressed, and wished that the appointment had not been made. But the Lord gave me special help. Ideas &lt;came&gt; to me &lt;when speaking&gt; that had not before been in my thoughts. &lt;I was instructed as well as instructing others.&gt; I spoke from the words of Christ in Matt 13:12-17, and dwelt especially on the last verse: “Verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see these things which ye hear, and have not (323) heard them.” I showed &lt;them&gt; that those now living on the earth are favored above all people in the possession of precious advanced light. I felt the importance of my subject, and I know that I had the Holy Spirit’s help in bringing things to my remembrance &lt;in an impressive manner.”&gt; I praised the Lord that He gave power to the weak, and that to me who had not strength, he increased strength.

I have seasons of temptation, when infirmities press &lt;so heavily&gt; upon me and at such times I ask myself, “Am I really in the way of my duty? Is it not time I retired from active labor? Then when I stand before the people after such a battle with the enemy, the Holy Spirit comes to me as a divine helper. I have the assurance that my work is not to close yet. My mind is clear, and I am able &lt;in words&gt; to make truth forcible, because the Lord is my helper. &lt;These discourses are taken down in shorthand.&gt; Let us be of good courage in the Lord, lift up Jesus at all times, grasp his might by faith; for He is our strength and our efficiency. “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, &lt;praise&gt; His holy name.”

Labors in New Zealand.

(324) At the close of the Australian conference we spent a week with the church in Parramatta, N.S.W., and on Feb. 4, 1893, we embarked from Sydney for Auckland, New Zealand. Our ship, the “Rotomahana, 2” was a beautiful steamer; and one of the fastest in these waters. I had a convenient and pleasant stateroom on the upper deck, and endured this long-dreaded journey much better than I had dared to hope. There was no rough weather, and on Wednesday morning, Feb. 8 we were in Auckland. Elder Israel met us at the wharf, and we were soon in a comfortably furnished cottage, which the Auckland church had placed at our disposal.

For twelve days we labored earnestly for the Auckland church. Evening meetings were held as often as the brethren could attend, and each Sabbath and Sunday was fully occupied. Twice I spoke in the theater to attentive audiences. Elder Starr labored untiringly for the church, and several of the evening meetings (325) were called early in the evening, and divided into two meetings. I would speak for half an hour, and then Elder Starr would follow with a discourse or Bible lesson.

Altogether I spoke eight times in Auckland.

Auckland is a beautiful city, and Seventh-day Adventists have a good church building there, a pleasant, plain, neat chapel. There was once a strong church here, but many of the young men went into the canvassing field, and others moved away, so that now there are comparatively few to occupy our commodious meeting-house.

It pained my heart to see the empty seats, and the testimony I had [48] to bear was close and cutting. Some confessions were made at this time, but the work done was not thorough; and my testimony did not change. It presented to them their wicked course of action, which had separated them from Christ. The leading elements in the church had not been such as God could use. They had dishonored the sacred truth by quarreling and disputing as to which should be the greatest. They had been too well satisfied to walk in the sparks of their own kindling. (326) They had not felt their entire dependence upon God, nor realized that unless He built the house, the builders labor but in vain. This drawing apart had brought disgrace upon the truth and Christianity. Outsiders had no desire to come to the meeting they said, to hear the members of the church quarrel. We could only hang our heads at the unChristlike work that had been carried on in this city.

Christ says, “Without me ye can do nothing.” I urged the question: what do you individually think of Christ? By your own course of life, at home, in the church, and in your business transactions in the world, you will individually reveal what are your ideas of Christ. If you are looking away from self, if you are hiding in Jesus, and constantly humbling the heart before God, then Christ can work for the church in Auckland. But if you retain your present ideas of what constitutes Christian character, the truth is not truth to you. It cannot possibly do you any good. Instead, you will drag the truth into the mire and dirt, and bring reproach upon the cause of God.

(327) We believe that there are many families in America, having a knowledge of the truth, who would be blessed of God if they would settle in such places as Auckland, and while sustaining themselves by their own labors, work to hold up the standard of truth in these cities and villages where there are thousands who know not the shortness of time. “Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness.” O that men would be more earnest to communicate to others the light and grace they have so freely received. [49]

Instruction to the Auckland Church

Sermon given Sabbath,
February 11, 1893

(328) “Cry aloud, spare not; lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew the people their transgressions, and the house of Jacob their sins. Yet they seek me daily, and delight to know my ways; as a nation that did righteousness, and forsook not the ordinance of their God; they ask of me the ordinance of justice; they take delight in approaching to God. Wherefore have we fasted, say they, and thou seest not? Wherefore have we afflicted our soul, and thou takest no knowledge? Behold in the days of your fast ye find pleasure, and exact all your labors. Behold ye fast for strife and debate, and to smite with the fist of wickedness; ye shall not fast as ye do this day, to make your voice to be heard on high.”

(329) This Scripture shows a condition of blindness in the church, and explains why prayers are unanswered. But a remedy is offered,—a remedy for the maladies of the body and the sicknesses of the soul, and one which this church needs to appreciate: &lt;and all our churches who have the blessed light of truth.&gt;

“Is it such a fast that I have chosen,” the Lord asks, “a day for a man to afflict his soul? Is it to bow down his head as a bulrush, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? Wilt thou call this a fast, and an acceptable day to the Lord? Is it not this the fast that I have chosen, a day for a man to afflict his soul, to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke? Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house, when thou seest the naked that thou cover him, and that thou hide not thy face from thine own flesh.”

When you observe this kind of fast, ye are promised, “Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily; and thy righteousness shall go before thee; and the glory of the Lord shall be thy rereward.” (330) The righteousness of Christ become “thy righteousness.” Because you do the works of Christ, “the glory of the Lord shall be thy reward.”

“Then shalt thou call, and the Lord will answer; thou shalt cry, and He shall say, Here I am. If thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke, the putting forth of the finger, and speaking vanity, and if thou draw out the soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then [50] shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noonday. And the Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought and make fat thy bones; and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water whose waters fail not.”

To the woman of Samaria, whose life was not in accordance with the word of god, these same waters that “fail not,” were brought. “If thou knewest the gift of God,” Jesus said to her, “and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink: thou wouldst have asked Him, and He would have given thee living water.” The woman said unto Him, Sir thou hast nothing to draw with and the well is deep; from whence then hast thou that living water?”

(331) The woman did not see anything in Jesus to be desired. “Art thou greater than our father Jacob,” she asked, “which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children and his cattle? Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again; but whosoever shall drink of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst, but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water, springing up into everlasting life. The woman saith unto him, Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not; neither come hither to draw.”

“Whose waters fail not,” “springing up into everlasting life.” Can you not see that the water which Jesus offered to the woman at the well is the same that Isaiah speaks of. If this well of water is in us, springing up into everlasting life, our associates will know it. All with whom we come in contact will be refreshed by them; for it is impossible to have Christ in the heart and not reveal his presence to others. “There will be no lifting up of the finger, no esteeming ourselves better than others. Neither shall we clothe ourselves with sackcloth, and act before the world as if we had no hope. If (332) Christ is formed within the hope of glory, he will not be a hidden thing, like the precious ointment that is sealed in the bottle and never broken.

“If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth at the right hand of God. Set your affections on things above, and not on things on the earth; for ye are dead; and your life is hid with Christ in God. “When Christ who is your life shall appear, then shall ye also appear with Him in glory. Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry; for which things sake the wrath of God cometh upon the children of disobedience. In the which ye also walked sometime, when ye lived in them; but now ye also put off all these, anger, wrath, malic, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth. Lie not on to another, seeing ye have put off the old man with his deeds.”

When this is your experience, you will not cling to one known sin, though it be as dear to you as your right arm; you will die to it. You will not longer talk of yourselves, and (333) what you have done. Abiding in Christ, you reveal to a sinful world &lt;[in] your experience&gt; what Christ can do for men. [51]

My brethren and sisters, have you considered the harm your criticisms have done to yourselves to and to the church in this place. Unsanctified words should never be spoken in the house that you have dedicated to God, and where you invite the presence of holy angels. You have not right to treat one another with disrespect. When you come to the worship of God, talk of his love, talk of his power. At times you have tried to lead one another with a short bridle. This will never answer. Do not seek to oppress one another. You are to love one another as Christ has loved you. God has not put the measuring line in your hands, to measure and judge the characters of one another. The man who gives way to anger is as much intoxicated as the one who allows his reason to be stolen by the intoxicating drug. Learn the eloquence of true silence. Christ respects the purchase of the blood of Christ. Educate yourselves day by day to come up higher and &lt;still&gt; higher, &lt;in religious experience&gt; and live nearer and &lt;still&gt; nearer to God. We need to clear away the rubbish &lt;of evil surmising&gt; from the King’s highway, and make a way that the King may walk in our midst. Some branches have (334) have never knitted to the vine. They died, and had to be taken away. Others have united to the true vine fibre by fibre, until they partake of the parent stock, and these flourish.

There is work for you to do right here in our world right here in our world. The standard of truth is to be lifted. It is your privilege and duty to search the Scriptures &lt;and bring forth things new and old&gt;. The Lord is coming, and you have little time in which to get that &lt;living&gt; water that is springing up into everlasting life. Sins must be put away. You know little of the sorrow that exists about you, of the heart aches, the home troubles. There are hearts sick and sorrowing that you may comfort. The vacant seats in this church should be filled, and would be filled if the light which is in you had not become darkness. Souls would come here and acknowledge the truth. In your social meetings you should let it be understood that God is here; that heavenly agencies are working upon human minds. Do not indulge in harsh and uncourteous words. Make room for Jesus that he may be enthroned in the heart, and shine through the human tenement. Then what will be the results? “The glory of the Lord shall be thy rereward.”

(335) “Put on therefore as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering, forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any; even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.” If you are the elect of God, do not make God ashamed of you. Represent Him truly to the world. &lt;If ye then be risen&gt; you are new men in Christ Jesus. “Bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, forbearing one another and forgiving one another,—these are the graces that you need. If you humble yourselves, God will exalt you. Here is a remedy that will heal the dissentions that have grieved God and the heavenly angels: “Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, of any man have a quarrel against any’ even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.” Had Christ shown no forbearance for us, we would long ere this have been destroyed. When this church is converted, the world will take knowledge &lt;of you&gt; that you have been with Jesus.

We carry &lt;the&gt; divine credentials—&lt;in works in character&gt; “that God has sent his Son into the world. “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life.” [52]

(336) Suppose that instead of using [the] passionate words &lt;you speak&gt; you begin to use kind words. You can accomplish no good while strife and confusion exist among you as brethren and sisters. Talk of the country to which you are going. You are pilgrims and strangers here. You live in hired houses. Show to the world that you are rich in faith, and heirs according to the promise. Talk of heaven and heavenly things. Love that which is eternal. Put away your self-esteem. Learn lessons at the foot of the cross. Put on Christ, His loveliness, his holiness. Dwelling within you, He will reform your nature, and make you new men and women in Christ Jesus. He will put a new song in your lips, even praise to our God. God help us to sing in joyful notes.

The nature of the atmosphere surrounding your soul will be either earthly or heavenly. Resolve that you will breathe a heavenly atmosphere. Talk of the preciousness of the truth, or the love and power of God, and be a channel of blessing to others. “Above all these things, put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness; and let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which ye are called in one body, and be ye (337) thankful. Let the peace of God dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. God does not bid you go to any human being for this strength and comfort and knowledge. “Come unto me.” He says, “all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart, and ye shall find rest unto your souls; for my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Our way is marked out so plainly. God wants us to go forward and upward to reach the highest standard. Many of us will be called to stand before legislators, &lt;before earthly&gt; kings, and nobles, and we want to come before them with intelligence; for we shall be to them a savor of life unto life or of death unto death. What is this people going to do? “They that be of thee shall build the old waste places; thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called the &lt;repairers&rt; of the breach and restorers of the paths to dwell in. You the people in this church, may be the restorers of paths to dwell in and when the gates of the city of God are thrown open, you (338) may have the right to enter &lt;in through these beautiful gates into the city&gt;.

Christ in his teachings spoke of a class who would at that time seek to enter into the kingdom of God, and should not be able. “Not everyone that saith unto me, Lord, Lord.” He said, “shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father, which is in heaven &lt;here upon the earth&gt;. Many will say unto me in that day Lord, Lord have we not prophesied in thy name, and in Thy name have cast out devils, and in thy name done many wonderful works. And then I will profess unto them, I never knew you; depart from me ye that work iniquity.” The investigative judgment is now going on. My brethren and sisters, Repent now of your sins, &lt;without delay&gt; and let them go before you to judgment. We should &lt;now&gt; weep between the porch and the later, crying Spare thy people &lt;Lord&gt;. Call upon the Lord. Let the wicked forsake His way and the unrighteous man his thoughts, and let him return unto me, and I will have mercy, and to our God for He will abundantly pardon.” May the blessing of God rest upon, that you may see light in His Light, and rejoice in His love. [53]

Labors... in New Zealand. II.

[Bible Echo, May 15, 1893]
[RH May 30, 1893]
Kaeo.

(339) On Monday Feb. 20, we sailed for Kaeo, on the steamer Clansman. The steamer was rather small, but the captain and stewards did everything in their power for our comfort. There was no safety in my going into the cabin below; for it was close, and the berths in the stateroom were narrow and very hard. A large easy chair had been purchased for me in Auckland, and I sat on the deck in my chair as long as I could; but sitting long in one position is a painful experience for me and I became very nervous and restless. I could not be well sheltered from the strong wind. The captain said he would clear the smoking room for me as soon as possible; but there was a large party on board going to a regatta at Russel, and it would be difficult to clear the room before ten o’clock. At last it was decided to make up my bed on the deck in the most sheltered place that could be found. (340) So my spring cot was placed in a sheltered place and blankets tied up to break the wind. I was thankful for a place where I could rest.

Through the night we were favored with a calm sea and but little wind, and I rested, though feverish and overwearied by the perplexity and confusion of preparation for the journey, and still more wearied by the brass band that was playing on the boat.

We expected to reach Russel at 7 a.m. but the fog settled down upon us while we were still among the islands of the bay. So the engines were stopped, and the anchor cast, and for more than an hour we waited for the fog to rise. After the fog cleared away we had a beautiful sunny day. It took but a few minutes to reach the pier, where most of our fellow passengers left the boat. Russel is a quiet little place, consisting of a row of stores facing the beach, back of which are a few dozen comfortable residences, and quite a number of old weather-beaten houses with open doors and windows out, which are occupied by families of Maoris.

Soon our steamer moved up the bay to Opua, where several hours were spent in loading coal. The Bay of Islands is very (341) beautiful, and we enjoyed moving over its smooth waters amid verdant islands and massive rocks. We left the bay at two o’clock in the afternoon, and reached Whangaroa at seven o’clock. Here we were met by Brethren Metcalfe and Joseph Hare, who had come down from Kaeo, three miles distant, in their large skiff, to take us back with them as soon as the tide should turn. They welcomed us heartily, and at once transferred our luggage to their boat. At eight we took our places in the skiff, and were off for Kaeo.

The trip from Whangaroa up the bay and creek to Kaeo was an interesting one. The water of the bay was as smooth as an island lake. The night was perfect. The air was mild, and the new moon shone out sufficiently to give us an outline of the mountain scenery on either side. Steady rowing by the two strong men, who had often made this trip, brought us to Joseph Hare’s landing in about two hours. Brother Joseph’s comfortable home is but a few steps from the landing. We were heartily welcomed by Sister Hare, and soon went to reset; for I was excessively weary. Elder Starr and wife went up the valley about four miles with Brother Metcalfe to his home.

(342) On Wednesday morning Brother Joseph Hare Sr., came down and took us to his hospitable home, at the upper end of the valley, close to where Brother and Sister Starr were stopping. To us Kaeo Valley seemed very picturesque and beautiful. Some places reminded us of Knight’s Canon, between Healdsburgh and St. Helena, Cal., Much of the vegetation [54] was tropical. Great fern trees were growing in the gullies, a species of the palm tree called “necow2” was plentiful along the foot of the hills, and towering above these were large bare trunks, bearing many thrifty bunches of a large air plant. Along the road were immense bunches of sweet briar, and large patches of blackberry bushes loaded with ripening fruit.

Father Hare had a pleasant comfortable home. The house, situated on high ground, was surrounded by fruitful orchards. A swift running stream brought abundance of pure mountain water close to the house, back of which lays the pasture lands and the forest clad mountains.

We had planned to remain in Kaeo two weeks, but providential circumstances lengthened our stay to three full weeks. Wednesday was spent in writing our American letters, which were (343) taken to the steamer early Thursday morning. Early on Thursday the rain began to fall, and in the afternoon the little creek had swollen to a roaring torrent, bringing down driftwood and logs. Later on we learned that there was a serious flood in the lower part of the valley. The water rose higher than it had for twenty years. Many houses were flooded and deserted, fruit trees and crops were destroyed, horses and sheep were drowned, and hundreds of huge logs which for years had been lying in small creeks in the mountain, waiting for a freshet to bring them down, were floated over fields and orchards and left in all manner of curious places. After the flood was over, the weather was beautiful.

On Sabbath afternoon I spoke to the people in the little meeting house. In the congregation before me I saw those whom I had been shown were not right with God; they needed to be born again, or they would never enter the kingdom of heaven. They had not cherished the love and tender sympathy of Christ, but were hard and denunciatory and over-bearing. They did not know by experience what constitutes true religion. The transforming grace of Christ must work upon the human affections, (344) sanctifying the entire man. Paul said to Timothy, “Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his, and, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from all iniquity. But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but of wood and of earth; and some to honor and some to dishonor. If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a Bessel of honor, sanctified and meet for the Mater’s use, and prepared unto every good work.

Every one who is faithful in the service of Christ will carry his own soul a burden for the souls of others. None can ignore their responsibility or refuse to co-operate with the heavenly intelligences, and not be brought under condemnation as slothful servants. In our association with the unconverted, we are to be disinterested, devoted workers to bring souls to Christ. Souls are perishing out of Christ. What means this careless unconcern? The Lord has given to every man his work, — talents to improve, tact and ability to multiply, which under wise management should be used to secure souls to enlist under the banner of Christ. These converted souls in turn, are to (345) communicate to others what they have learned of Christ. He requires that those who represent Him shall grow to the full stature of men and women in Christ Jesus, that they may be qualified as laborers together with God, and through the earnest cultivation of Christian graces, wins souls to Him.

The Lord has not withdrawn His Holy Spirit from those who have not accepted the truth. The manner in which the truth has been presented to many not of our faith, has made it an undesirable thing to them. By an unChristlike representation of the truth, truth has been made of no effect. Those who believe the truth are to be a savor of life unto life. [55] Their influence is to be pure and fragrant and undefiled by selfishness. To be accepted in the Beloved—what a privilege this is. The work of grace completed, God declares, “ye are complete in Him.”

On Sunday, February 26 I awoke early, lit my candle, and after a season of prayer, wrote out testimonies for this church. I knew that these would not be received by some; I knew that some would say that I had the same spirit that I reproved in them. But I did my duty, and left the result with God. I had never before met (346) people of intelligence so blind to their spiritual state before God. They could not distinguish between the message the Lord sent to them and the tirade and criticism which they themselves served to those whose ways did not please them. O how Satan triumphs when such attributes are developed in those who profess to have a high moral standing before God.

While speaking, I felt constrained by the love of Christ to invite all who had taken a decided stand for Christ to come forward for prayers. At first it seemed hard for anyone to move; but finally the grown-up children of our brethren and sisters began to come forward, and then as the invitation was expanded to those who were members of the church, but who did not (347) enjoy a living assurance of accepted with God, many of the church members came forward. These were joined by some who had long hesitated about obeying the truth, and by others who were attending their first meeting among our people. Words of counsel were then spoken, and after a season of prayer, nearly all who were seeking the Lord for the first time bore testimony. The spirit and power of God was in our midst, and all went from the meeting rejoicing and praising God for what He had wrought.

[On Sunday we again had good audiences in the Wesleyan Chapel. The people seemed anxious to hear the word of God,] and Elder Starr had many invitations to visit and hold Bible Readings. We were satisfied that there was a work to be done in Kaeo both for the church and for the community in and near the valley. Souls were inquiring, What is truth? Those who had light had a work to do for their fellow-men.

How earnest we should be in imparting light and truth to others, how patient and persevering. We need to have tender hearts, softened and subdued by the love of God. We must not work in our own spirit, bringing in our own natural and hereditary (348) traits of character; for in doing this we shall drive souls from the truth. We must lay aside our likes and dislikes. We must overcome all harshness and sharpness. We must be as wise as serpents and as harmless as doves; yet always ready to put ourselves in the forefront of the battle if God calls us there.

Because of a change in the time of sailing of the steamer from Auckland to Napier, we were prevented from going at the time appointed, and so had another week to labor in Kaeo. The young people needed instruction, but it was difficult to get them together. There were some in Kaeo whom God had been calling to fit themselves for labor in his vineyard; and we rejoiced that several were preparing to go to the Bible school. On Wednesday, March 15, we bade adieu to our friends in Kaeo, and were taken down the harbor, where we held one meeting, and the next morning took the steamer for Auckland. [56]

The Duty of Parents to Their Children.

Sermon given at Kaeo, N.Z.
Sunday March 5, 1893

(349) “Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king’s meat, nor with the wine which he drank: therefore he requested of the prince of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself. Now God had brought Daniel into favor and tender love with the prince of the eunuchs. And the prince of the eunuchs said unto Daniel, I fear my lord the king, who hath appointed your meat and your drink: for why should he see your faces worse liking than the children which are of your sort? then shall ye make me endanger my head to the king. Then said Daniel to Melzar, whom the prince of the eunuchs had set over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, Prove thy servants, (350) I beseech thee, ten days; and let them give us pulse to eat, and water to drink. Then let our countenances be looked upon before thee, and the countenances of the children who eat the portion of the king’s meat: and as thou seest deal with thy servants. So he consented to them in this matter, and proved them ten days.”

The ten days’ test proved to the prince of the eunuchs that the simple died was better for these captives than the king’s meat. “At the end of ten days their countenances appeared fairer and fatter in flesh than all the children which did eat of the portion of the king’s meat. Thus Melzar took away the portion of their meat, and the wine that they should drink, and gave them pulse.”

The habits of eating and drinking have much to do with the intellect. When Daniel was placed in the king’s court, he did not reason as many youth in this age of the world, that he would not have success if he did not do as the other youth of Babylon. This vain philosophy is the reasoning of many minds. Daniel “purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the king’s meat, nor with the wine which he drank.” (351) And the record states: “As for these four children, the Lord gave them knowledge and skill in all learning and wisdom; and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams. Now at the end of the days that the king said he should bring them in, then the prince of the eunuchs brought them in before Nebuchadnezzar. And the king communed with them; and among them all was found none like Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah: therefore stood they before the king. And in all matters of wisdom and understanding, that the king enquired of them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and astrologers that were in all his realm.”

Daniel revealed in his life in Babylon the benefits of an early education in habits of self-control. Again and again in the word of God the importance of self-discipline is taught, and the terrible results accruing from self indulgence illustrated. John the Baptist, the forerunner of Christ, was taught this lesson in his youth. His parents were instructed by the angel, He “shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother’s womb. And (352) many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord their God. And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hears of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

The greater portion of John’s life was spent in the wilderness, that he might not be influenced by beholding the lax piety of the priests and rabbis, or by learning their maxims and traditions, through which [57] right principles were perverted and belittled. It was John’s choice to forego the enjoyments and luxuries of city life for the stern discipline of the wilderness. Here his surroundings were favorable to habits of simplicity and self-denial. Uninterrupted by the clamor of the world, he could here study the lessons of nature, of revelation, and of providence. The words of the angel to Zacharias had been often repeated to John by his God-fearing parents. From his childhood his mission was kept before him, and he accepted the holy trust. To him the solitude of the desert was a welcome escape from the society in which suspicion, unbelief and impurity had become (353) well nigh all pervading. He distrusted his own power to withstand temptation, and shrank from constant contact with sin, lest he should lose the sense of its exceeding sinfulness.

The experience of Nadab and Abihu afford an example of self-indulgence and its results. The work of Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron was to kindle the sacred fire in the tabernacle; in the sacred service the common fire was not to be used. It was a law in Israel that those in sacred office should not touch wine nor strong drink, that they might do justice to the widow and the fatherless. But these men, disobeying the law, partook of the strong drink. “And Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took either of them his censer, and put fire therein, and put incense thereon, and offered strange fire before the Lord, which he commanded them not. And there went out fire from the Lord, and devoured them, and they died before the Lord.

And Moses said unto Aaron, This is that the Lord spake, saying, I will be sanctified in them that come nigh men before all the people I will be glorified. And Aaron held his peace.”

“And the Lord spake unto Aaron saying, Do not drink wine (354) nor strong drink, thou, nor thy sons with thee, when ye go into the tabernacle of the congregation, lest ye die; it shall be a statute forever throughout your generations; and that ye may put a difference between holy and unholy, and between unclean and clean; and that ye may teach the children of Israel all the statutes which the Lord hath spoken unto them by the hand of Moses.”

Parents have no right to bring children into the world to allow them to grow up without culture and Christian training. The work of coeducation in correct principles and habits should begin with the babe in its mother’s arms. Religious instructions should be given the children from their earliest years. Sing to them the songs of Bethlehem. Through song teach them the lessons of Christ and his love. Fathers and mothers should feel that they are responsible for the characters of their children. They are to teach them the lessons of self-control, that they are here to be governed, not to govern. With loving interest they should teach them day by day what it means to be children of God, and to yield the will in obedience to Him. Teach them (355) that obedience to God involves obedience to their parents.

Mothers and fathers, you are living in danger if you neglect your children. Every day there are lessons to be learned in the school of Christ. You must know that Christ is your Helper and Friend. Christ is more willing to give the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him than parents are to give good gifts to their children, If you ask, he will give you your request. Hang upon the merits of a crucified and risen Saviour. The world is filled with corruption. Teach your children the precepts of God when they go out, and when they come in, and God will bless you in doing so. Take each child and place him where the bright rays from the Sun of Righteousness shall shine into His soul. Do not let the rising generation be given over to the enemy. There are too many now living in disobedience to God’s commandments. Teach them line upon line, and precept upon [58] precept. Tell them when sinners entice them to answer, No.

Parents, what are you doing to improve the minds of your children? How many of you load your book shelves with trashy novels? This kind of reading is unfitting you and them for future usefulness. It is weakening the brain powers. Satan has (356) the control of those who give themselves to novel reading, and many do not know it. God commands you to make the most of your talents,—every talent.

It takes more than four walls to make a happy home. You are to remember that home is to be a sample of heaven, There must be no strife. Parents, never irritate your child. When fretting begins, the children can read it in the expression of gloom on your countenance. There should not be one word spoken to irritate the fine sensibilities of your children. Their character is worth more than gold. Everything connected with the home should be fragrant. You want their characters to be refined; for you are to fit them for the Society of heaven. You need to learn at the cross of Christ. You are not to seek to reach the world’s standard, but you are to place your hand in the hand of Christ. It is gentleness and peace that we want in our homes. “The wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy And the fruit of righteousness is sown in them that make peace.”

(357) Children are quick to follow the example of their parents. They will even try to imitate the tone of voice. What kind of example have you given your children? Has it been an example of self control and self discipline, or of worldliness and self-indulgence? Have you set them the example of tobacco and liquor using? This evil introduced into the system creates warfare and strife. There is no natural appetite for tobacco in the human system. It is either inherited and cultivated. This is shown by its effects on the system by the first attempt to smoke. Suppose we should impose this on you as one of God’s ordinances; you would say that you wanted no such ordinance. With many tobacco is their God; and when their tobacco is taken away, they cannot even pray a sincere prayer.

The same is true of some who use liquor. God does not serve with man’s sins. His law in ancient times declared that the judges should not take wine or strong drink. Today judges as well as others do not heed the warning. The commandments of men are taught for the commandments of God, and the consciences of men are forced. Look at the liquor stores everywhere. Men sell to their fellow men that which steals the reason. Satan (358) has the controlling power, and agony and distress are the result. The law-making powers give license to the sale of intoxicating drinks. How does the universe of heaven look upon these things? Do you think that men who do such things will not be weighted in the balances, and found wanting. There is such a thing in this age as legal killing. No drunkard can enter the portals of glory. The Saviour of the world gave His life to show the immutability of the law of God, and He will judge men by that law. If men paid respect to the ten commandments of God, there would not be the distress and misery we see in our land today.

In many homes the articles placed on the tables for food create this very thirst for intoxicating liquor. Parents, what are the youth before me going to be. We know not how many sit in legislative halls and councils. Educate and train them that they may have clear brains. Appetite has a controlling power upon men.

Our first parents fell through intemperate appetite. Adam and Eve were permitted to eat all of the trees of the garden save one. Of that tree the Lord said, “In the say that ye eat of it, ye shall surely die.” Satan came to Eve in (359) Eden and told her that the Lord was [59] restricting her knowledge. “Ye shall not surely die,” he said. Eve was beguiled by the serpent to believe that the Lord would not do as he had said He would do “And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.”

“And the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves aprons. And they heard the voice of the Lord god walking in the garden in the cool of the day; and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God amongst the trees of the garden. And the Lord God called unto Adam and said unto him, Where art thou? And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself. And He said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat. And the Lord God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast do (360) done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.”

Then was preached the first gospel sermon in the words, spoken to the serpent by the Lord, “I will put enmity between thee and the woman, between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.”

“God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” The law of God had been transgressed. It could not be changed to meet man in his fallen condition. Christ alone could rescue man from the power of the enemy. So He, the maker of the law, came to the world in the image of God, and died that we might have eternal life.

Christ was led by the Spirit into the wilderness. For forty days and nights he fasted, and then he was tempted as no human being has ever been tempted. “You need not hunger here,” Satan said, “If thou be the Son of God, command these stones that they be made bread.” Jesus answered him saying, “It is written, man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.” Finding himself (361) baffled, Satan came to Christ on another point. Taking Him to the holy city, he set Him on a pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down from hence; for it is written He shall give his angels charge concerning thee; lest thou dash ty foot against a stone.” But Christ would not throw himself down, for Satan had put Him there. He never asked God to work a miracle in His own behalf. Jesus said to Satan, “It is written, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.”

Then Satan’s last masterly effort was made. “Again the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and showeth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them, and saith unto Him, All these things will I give thee, and the glory of them; for that is delivered unto me, and to whomsoever I will I give it. If thou wilt therefore worship me, all shall be thine.” “And Jesus answered and said unto him, Get thee behind thee Satan; for it is written Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve.” Then Satan fled from the presence of Christ; for divinity flashed through humanity.

(362) The second Adam passed alone over the ground where the first Adam fell, redeeming his failure, and making it possible for every man and woman to overcome through Christ. “I have trodden the wine press alone,” He said, “And of the people there was none with me.”

When the tempter left the Son of God, angels came and ministered [60] unto Him. Satan saw the angels of God coming upon the field. So the angels of God have the charge over us; and as God gave power to Christ, He will give it to us. He has ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands of angels, waiting to fulfill his commandments; “and are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister unto them that shall be heirs of salvation.” Neither son nor daughter of Adam need go into iniquity. When Christ bowed in prayer on the banks of the Jordan, and a dove in appearance like burnished gold alighted upon the Son of God, a voice from heaven was heard saying, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” What does this prayer mean to you? It means that you are accepted in the Beloved.

(363) When the Jews heard Christ deliver his sermon on the mount, they thought that He was going to pass by the law; but on their astonished ears fell the words, “Think not that I am come to destroy the law or the prophets; I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.” Christ fulfilled every specification of the law. “It becometh us,” He said on another occasion, “to fulfil all righteousness.” To abolish the law would have been to immortalize sin. There was nothing in the law that needed changing. In all his teachings Christ showed that the law takes hold of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

We speak to you of Christ. Ask Isaiah who He is, and he will tell you: “Unto us a child is born; unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon His shoulder; and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace; of the increase and government of his kingdom there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon the kingdom, to order it and to establish it with justice and judgment from henceforth.”

The time aulined by the figure of prophecy has nearly run out. We see its fulfilment in the condition of our world (364) to-day,—The terrible crimes printed in our newspapers, the fraud and debauchery and robbery. Church members use their religion as a cloak for their evil deeds.

Parents, you may well ask to-day, What shall we do? We say, lead your children to Christ. Look to God, and learn your lessons of Him. What hope have we for the race in its present condition. “As the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be; for as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, ark and the flood came, and took the all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.” “What shall a man be profited, if he gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul.”

The mystic ladder that Jacob saw represents Jesus Christ. Its base rested on the earth; its topmost round reached the throne of infinity. Angels of God were ascending and descending upon it. It is our privilege to be partakers of the divine nature. We are not to fold our hands and wait in idle expectancy God calls each one to stand at the post of duty. We need to (365) follow the example of Daniel, who never wavered one line from principle. He was an active statesman, but he always found time to wait upon God. Would that we had more Daniels. [Pages 366-376 missing] [61]

Words of Warning Regarding Phrenology.

Sermon, camp-meeting
Napier, N.Z. March 28, ‘93

(377) “Associate yourselves, O ye people, and ye shall be broken in pieces; and give ear, all ye of far countries; gird yourselves, and ye shall be broken in pieces. Take counsel together, and it shall come to nought; speak the word, and it shall not stand; for God is with us.”

“For the Lord spake thus to me with a strong hand, and instructed me that I should not walk in the way of this people, saying, Say ye not, A confederacy, to all them to whom this people shall say, A confederacy; neither fear ye their fear, nor be afraid. Sanctify the Lord of hosts himself, and let Him be (378) your fear, and let Him be your dread. And He shall be for a sanctuary; but for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offence to both the houses of Israel, for a gin and for a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem. And many among them shall stumble, and fall, and be broken, and be snared, and be taken. Bind up the testimony, seal the law among my disciples. And I will wait upon the Lord, that hideth His face from the house of Jacob, and I will look for Him. Behold, I and the children whom the Lord hath given me are for signs and for wonders in Israel from the Lord of hosts, which dwelleth in Mount Zion.

“And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto them which have familiar spirits, and unto wizards, that peep and that mutter; should not a people seek unto their God? for the living to the dead? To the law and to the testimony, if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.”

I have borne many burdens since coming to this country. When our people in America asked me to come to Australia, I thought it too much of an undertaking to travel so far in my feebleness To comfort me they said, “Sister White, you will (379) have no such burdens to bear as you have borne here. You will not have unbelief and opposition to meet. Everyone will believe your testimony. Yet I have met a firmness and determination in resisting the Spirit of God not surpassed in any other country.

How I labored for the Australian Conference one year ago; for I longed to see the Spirit of God move on the brethren and sisters there. There were dishonest practices to be put away. The leaders stood in the way of the work; there was not harmony among the workers. Things were practiced that were contrary to the Spirit of God. Some were working along lines that had no connection with the ministry of Jesus Christ. The work of the shepherd is to seek for the sheep; but instead of this the sheep were looking for the shepherd. Some of the ministers were studying along the lines of phrenology. Others took up the subject of the organism of man. When these things were presented to me as God regarded them, how terrible they appeared! After hard labor for souls in these meetings, I would reel on my way home. I was obliged to flee to save my life. For eleven months I suffered from a severe attack of fever and rheumatism. But (380) God revealed himself to me because I was in the line of duty. We afterwards went to Adelaide, and I have been able to bear my testimony ever since.

I have felt very deeply for this cause of God in New Zealand. There are souls here who are hungering for the word of life. The canvassers need to be instructed. In every line of the work a laxness and looseness is apparent. I have felt terribly over these matters.

Brother Hare, I ask you, Who covered up McAlpin’s course of action? That is one thing that accounts for the empty seats that we saw in the Auckland church. God is in earnest with us. We must work in his lines, and unless we learn them, the delusions of the last days will come [62] upon this people.

Read in the record of Joshua of Achan’s theft of the Babylonish garment and the wedge of gold. Achan took the property appointed to destruction, and hid it in his tent. The children of Israel knew nothing of the theft; but the sin of that one man caused all Israel to be defeated before the enemy.

(381) “And Joshua rent his clothes and fell to the earth upon his face before the ark of the Lord until the eventide, he and the elders of Israel, and put dust upon their heads. And Joshua said, Alas, O Lord God, wherefore hast thou at all brought this people over Jordan, to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us? would to God we had been content, and dwelt on the other side of Jordan! O Lord, what shall I say, when Israel turneth their backs upon their enemies? For the Canaanites and all the inhabitants of the land shall hear of it, and shall environ us round, and cut off our name from the earth: and what wilt thou do unto thy great name?”

“And the Lord said unto Joshua; wherefore liest thou thus upon thy face? Up, sanctify the people, and say, Sanctify yourselves against tomorrow: for thus saith the Lord God of Israel. Three is an accursed thing in the midst of thee O Israel: thou canst not stand before thine enemies, until ye take away the accursed thing from among you.”

Something more than prayer was required. They were to cleanse the camp of Israel. Achan had taken that which was appointed to destruction, and the Spirit of the Lord searched (382) him out; “In the morning,” God commanded, “ye shall be brought according to your tribes; and it shall be that the tribe which the Lord taketh shall come according to the families thereof; and the family which the Lord taketh shall come by households; and the household which the Lord taketh shall come man by man. And it shall be that he that is taken with the accursed thing shall be burned with fire, he and all that he hath; because he hath transgressed the covenant of the Lord, and because he hath wrought folly in Israel.

“So Joshua arose early in the morning, and brought Israel by their tribes; and the tribe of Judah was taken; and he brought the tribe of Judah, and He took the family of the Zarhites; and he brought the family of the Zarhites man by man; and Zabdi was taken; and he brought his household man by man; and Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi was taken. And Joshua said unto Achan, My son, give, I pray thee glory to the Lord God of Israel, and make confession unto Him, and tell me now what thou hast done; hide it not from me. And Achan answered Joshua and said, Indeed I have sinned against the Lord God of Israel, and thus and thus have I done. When I saw among the spoils a goodly (383) Babylonish garment, and two hundred shekels of silver, and wedge of gold of fifty shekels weight, then I coveted them, and I took them; and behold, they are hid in the earth in the midst of my tent, and the silver under it.

“So Joshua sent messengers and they ran and went to the tent and, behold, it was hid in his tent, and the silver under it. And they took them out of the midst of the tent, and brought them to Joshua, and unto all the children of Israel, and laid them out before the Lord. And Joshua, and all of Israel with him, took Achan the son of Zerah, and the silver, and the garment, and the wedge of gold, and his sons, and his daughters, and his oxen and his asses, and his sheep, and his tent, and all that he had: and they brought them unto the valley of Achor. And Joshua said, Why hast thou troubled us? the Lord shall trouble thee this day. And all Israel stoned him with stones, and burned them with fire, after that they had stoned them with stones.”

I tell you, my brethren and sisters, we had better examine our [63] cases before we undertake to examine the case of anybody else. Everything like the fraud of that man must be taken away. God knew about that Babylonish garment. The spirit of God searches (384) out the hidden things. God gives his people sufficient warnings and admonitions, and sometimes to bring them to their senses he sends affliction and suffering. It behooves us to act upon every ray of light that we receive.

When Nathan presented in a parable the terrible sin of David, David said, “As the Lord liveth, the man that hath done this shall surely die.” Then Nathan said, “Thou art the man.” If David had been living close to God, he would have seen the application. We need to ask ourselves, Have I been working in God’s lines. Have I been working as a laborer together with God? We should be rooted and grounded in the truth.

A certain minister in California, while working in the ministry, was tampering with phrenology as a means of making money. He falsified in many instances, and souls were discouraged by his course of action. This man even went so far as to say to some married couples that they were unfitted for each other. God never gave this minister such a commission as that. I said to him, “I rebuke your spirit in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth.” This man thought he could do (385) wonderful things. He made another young man think he could do the same; but he has not done that wonderful thing yet, He went home to live upon the earnings of his poor mother. The wife of this minister said, My husband is capable of standing in the highest positions;” It is astonishing the influence he had over human minds. But he did not walk in the light, and today he is selling brushes to earn a livelihood.

I said to a brother in America, “God wants you to preach his truth.” He answered, “I never can do it, Sister White. Look at my head. I have no faith. I am just as full of infidelity as I can be.” I told him that God had shown me that he should go and preach the message. He did go; and after he had labored for some time, he said to me, “Sister White, the hollow in my head is all filled up.” This brother had been cultivating faith, and working in God’s lines. You may say it was due to phrenology; it was due to the transforming power of God.

I have no faith in phrenology; for it certainly cannot be said of those who have practiced these things, “Thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the Lord shall be thy rereward.” Many do not know what the glory of the Lord is. (386) A power from beneath has been acting upon their minds, and as a result such a state of criticizing has come in that even the Bible is not taken as a standard. Bible truth is not hid from anyone, unless it be hid to them that are lost, because they will not take the plain statement of the word of God. Satan and evil angels counsel to do away with God’s sign. They said, “We will seek to compel the conscience; and then we shall see the mark of the beast and his image. God has said, “Thou shalt keep the Sabbath of the Lord thy God.” Some say that it makes no difference which day we keep. The word of God is made of no account by such. We want to show in our lives that it does make a decided difference. Christ is soon to come. We must preach the Third Angel’s message. The study of God’s word will transform the character.

The Lord’s power is revealed in the humble devoted worker who lives his religion rather than in the educated man who does not rely fully upon God. The example of a poor and illiterate man God has often used as successfully to promote the great designs (387) of the gospel, as the labors of the minister who is lauded and talented as eloquent. In the early days of the first angel’s message, a poor, foolish man was [64] impressed with the truth. He went to a learned elder and repeated the words, “Elder G., Behold the Bridegroom cometh, go ye out to meet Him.” Instead of trying to give proof for the second coming of the Lord—he was unable to give any reasons—he kept repeating the words, “Behold the Bridegroom cometh, go ye out to meet Him.” The Spirit of the Lord went with the words, and Elder G. fell on his knees before the Lord, and confessed his pride of heart. God worked through this poor man in foolishness to bring the man of learning to his knees before God.

“Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this world? Hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? For that after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumbling-block, and (388) unto the Greeks foolishness. But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men. For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble are called; but God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are despised, hath God chosen; yea, and things which are not to bring to nought things that are; that no flesh should glory in his presence. But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption: that, according as it is written, He that glorieth let Him glory in the Lord.”

The apostle Paul had met people on their own ground—oratory with oratory, philosophy with philosophy. Now he says, “And I brethren, when I came unto you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God; for I determined not to know anything among you, save (389) Jesus Christ and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness and in fear, and in much trembling. And my speech and my wisdom was not with enticing words of man’s wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power; that your faith should not stand in the wisdom of man, but in the power of God. Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect; yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought; but we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory; which none of the princes of this world knew, for had they known it they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.”

Christ came to bring back through the mighty power of the cross of Calvary that which was lost “As it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him. But God hath revealed them unto us by His Spirit; for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea the deep things of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. Which things we also speak, not in the (390) words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. For who hath the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.

You need to understand the working of the Spirit of God, “that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him; the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of His calling, and what the riches of the glory of the inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power to us-ward that [65] believe, according to the working of his mighty power, which He wrought in Christ , when he raised him from the dead, and set him at His own right hand in the heavenly places.

What we want to know is not what kind of heads, but what kind of hearts have we. The devil had a splendid head; but he had an envious, rebellious heart, for which there was no excuse. We want to see what Christ is and what God is. We have the most wonderful truth that was ever committed to men, and yet many (391) allow themselves to feast on a dish of fables rather than the word of god. We should not lay hold of these things with the tips of our fingers; we should seek to be rooted and grounded in the truth, - the truth that has been hidden by man’s inventions.

We want to know what you are going to do about this matter. We want God to walk through our camp. There should be the shout of the King in the camp. Seek the Lord, and search the Scriptures as you have never done before. Do not drop one discouraging word. Look to One who can save you to the uttermost. You may have the character of the Father who love you as He loves his Son. As you look at these words, cannot you put sin and iniquity away? We ask you to wash in the fountain open for Judah. Humble yourselves. Put away levity. Bring solid timbers into your character. Let the searching Spirt of God go through the congregation, cutting away the fleshy tables of the heart. Limit not the Holy One of Israel. Christ will walk through our encampment, writing &lt;with&gt; His spirit on our hearts. Then behold God’s people changed, not by phrenology, but from character to character, even as by the Spirit of the Lord. [66]

The Need of a Faithful Use of Our Talents.

Talk given at Napier Camp meeting, Friday, 9:3 a.m.
April 7, 1893

“Not slothful in Business, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord.”

There is great danger of our not realizing the sacredness of the work of the cause of God and of mingling self and self-interests with our service. We have to give to the world the most important truth ever committed to mortals. If we do not show in our lives that the truth is of importance to us, if we do not allow it to have a decided influence upon our own characters, we make it of no effect. We make the truth a lie. In giving evidence that the truth has no power over our lives, we deny Christ and make it a lie.

(392) This spirit characterized some of the workers occupying various positions in the office in Australia. Some felt that they dared not correct the evil that existed, lest these workers should drop out of the work. We should never fear for the work in this way. Christ said on one occasion when children paid him the homage that the leaders in Israel refused to give him, “If these should hold their peace, the very stones would cry out.” God is not dependent upon any man. When in responsible positions are unconsecrated, and do not correctly represent the truth, the work of God is marred in their hands; they work against the cause of God, rather than for it. It is better that such men should not put their hands to the work at all; for they not only place upon it the mark of imperfection and discouragement, but they spoil the field for better workmen.

“Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.” For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.”

(394) No man can work with true integrity without the armor on. When you have on the whole armor, success will attend your efforts. It is of the greatest consequence that every man’s work shall testify of the grace of Christ upon the human heart. Perseverance, earnestness, self-denial and self-sacrifice, must be brought into it. There must be a copying of the pattern, Christ Jesus. The thing that is worth doing at all is worth doing well. Do not let a particle of unfaithfulness come into any part of your work; for you are the human agents to carry the truth; and human souls are dependent on your faithfulness to duty. Give yourselves to Christ. The worker who is renewed by the Spirit of Christ will bear the divine credentials.

In this country a true value is not placed on the talents of time and money. People seem to have no idea of the need of diligently treasuring the moments, no sense of the value of time. The many holidays that you have, have been represented to me as demoralizing in their influence. Many feel that they must have just so much time for pleasure and amusements. A reckless waste of time means prevails. Not everyone has been “diligent in business, fervent in spirit, serving of the Lord.”

(395) This negligence can be overcome through the grace of Christ. To you as to the men in the parable who seemed to have nothing to do, the Master says, “Why stand ye all the day idle.” The work of God will elevate you, if you wish to be elevated.

I have entered my sixty-sixth year, but I am generally writing at 4 [67] or 4:30 in the morning. I feel that every subject in the word of God is of vast importance, and when I realize that certain ones need help I dare leave nothing undone on my part to give them help, and urge them to be faithful. This past year besides traveling and speaking to the people, I have written 2500 pages. I treasure the truths of God’s word as gold, and I must communicate these truths to others, as they have been communicated to me.

“Oh” you may say, “my work is not so important as yours.” Every man’s work is important. God expects you to be as particular in your lines of duty as I am in mine. You are just as surely doing the work of God in engaging in physical labor, if this is necessary, as in opening the Scriptures to others. “He that is faithful in that which is least, is faithful also in much.” It should be of the highest satisfaction (396) to us to know that even the little things are noticed by God. Take some of the small pins out of a large machine, and watch the result. I know of an instance where a workman failed to put into a saw upon which he was working only one little pin. When the machine was set in operation, the saw flew hither and thither, and as a result one man was deprived of a limb. We are working in sight of heavenly angels and a holy God, and only by doing our work well will we meet the approval of heaven. Work negligently done, the angels record as unfaithful work.

The slipshod worker may expect dearth wherever he goes, and the sooner such a one is dismissed from the work, the better will it be for him and for the cause; for by his actions he educates others to think that inefficient work will be accepted. If there are those engaged in our offices or in any department of the work, who have no desire to improve, dismiss them, and employ those who are willing to do their best. No man should enter the work with the idea of carrying out his own will and way.

Many think that they must indulge in this pleasure and that They accustom themselves to live up to the last edge of (397) their means. God wants men and women to do better in this respect. If you economize your time, and are industrious, you can, even if poor, save a little. When I was only twelve years old I knew what it was to economize. With my sister I learned a trade, and although we could earn only a shilling a day, we were able to save a little means for the cause of God. We saved a little at a time until we had six pounds. Then when the message of the Lord’s soon coming came to us, with a call for men and means, we felt it a privilege to hand over the six pounds to father, telling him to invest it in tracts and publications to send the message to those who were in darkness.

God wants us to do our best. It is a sin against our own selves when we educate ourselves to be satisfied with something to east and something to wear. Parents need to be educated to industry, and to work with an eye single to the glory of God. If you have not good judgment in the use of time and money, advise with someone who knows how to economize. I earned my own clothes from the time I was twelve years old. We used to hand our money to mother, and say, “Buy, so that after we have paid for our clothing we may have something to give for (398) missionary work. And she would do so, and thus encourage in us a missionary spirit. It is the duty of all who touch the work of God to learn economy in the use of time and money. Those who indulge in idleness attach little importance to the most glorious truths ever committed to mortals—truths that the angels desire to look into.

Young men and women, you have no time to lose. Seek earnestly to bring solid timbers into your character building. You are expected to use that one talent. To the one who refused to use his talent the Lord said, “Take the talent from him, and cast ye the profitable servant into outer [68] darkness.” We beseech you for Christ’s sake to be faithful. Seek to redeem the time. Consecrate yourselves every day to the service of God, and you will find that you do not need so many holidays to spend in idleness, or so much money for the gratification of self.

Do not cease to pray; the Lord will hear the prayer of the contrite heart. Repeat the promise, “Ask and it shall be given unto you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. When you make an entire surrender to God, he (399) will give you most precious thoughts, and angels of God will cooperate with you. The spirit of God will give you words to say, that will touch hearts, and souls will be reached. Satan has a desire to save them. “Come unto me,” He says, “all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart, and ye shall find rest unto your souls; for my yoke is easy and my burden is light. This is a blessed invitation—to lay our perplexities at the feet of Jesus and to rest in His love. Heaven is watching those who are seeking to improve, and to become refined after Christ’s likeness. When the human instrument submits to Christ, the Holy Spirit will do everything for him.

How shall we learn to overcome, and grow in grace?—By meeting obstacles. It is by wielding the heavy sledge that the blacksmith’s muscles become powerful. So you need to exercise yourselves spiritually in order to have spiritual sinew and muscle. The more you test your mental and spiritual powers, the stronger those powers will become. Every fresh spiritual exercise will give solidity to the character. When difficulties (400) confronted Christ He did not become discouraged. It was said of Him, “He will not fail nor become discouraged.” He says to you, “He that followeth me shall not walk in darkness.” “Walk in the light while ye have the light.”

If we make the best use of our talents, the Spirit of God will continually lead us to greater efficiency. To the man who had faithfully traded with his ten talents, the Lord said, “Well, thou good servant; because thou has been faithful in a very little, have thou authority over ten cities.” The one talented man was expected to do his best also. Had he traded with his Lord’s goods, the Lord would have multiplied the one talent.

“To every man his work, according to his several ability,” the record states. God has the measure of our ability, and knows just what work to lay upon us. Of the one who is found faithful the command is given, Entrust him with greater responsibility. If he proves faithful to that trust the word is given again, Trust him with still more. Thus through the grace of God he grows to the full stature of a man in Christ Jesus.

How much might be said to the young people. How many ways (401) they might improve in lines of economy and self-denial. We do not know how much God has before us. We should be willing to put our whole heart into the work. We cannot expect the heavenly agencies to cooperate with our efforts unless we place ourselves in line. It will be worth everything to us to hear the words, “Well done,” said to us at last. And to those only who have well done will the well done be spoken. [69]

“If Ye love Me, Keep My Commandments”

Discourse, given at Petone, N.Z.
Sabbath, April 22, 1893.

(402) “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than thee shall he do; because I go unto My Father. And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask anything in My name, I will do it.”

“If ye love me keep my commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you forever; even the Spirits of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him; but ye know him, for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. (403) I will not leave you comfortless; I will come to you. Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more; but ye see me; because I live, ye shall live also. At that day ye shall know that I am in the Father, and ye in me, and I in you. He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me; and he that loveth me shall be loved of My Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him. Judas saith unto him not Iscariot, Lord, how is it that thou wilt manifest thyself unto us, and not unto the world? Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep My words: and My Father will love him, and We will come unto him, and make our abode with him.”

A test is given to the followers of Christ. “If a man love me, he will keep my words . . . He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings: and the word which ye hear is not Mine, but the Father’s which sent Me.”

Christ was about to finish the work of sacrifice in behalf of man, to carry out to completion of the plan devised in the heavenly courts. “That the world may know that I love the Father,” He said, “and as the Father gave me commandment, even so I do.” The Son of God left his royal crown and kingly (404) robe, and clothed His divinity with humanity, that humanity might have a life that measured with the life of God. He lived a life of poverty that man might enjoy the mansions prepared for him in heaven. “In my Father’s house are many mansions,” the Saviour said; “if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself, that where I am there ye may be also.”

Why did not Jesus come in bright array, clothed with the panoply of heave? The Son of God laid aside his glory, and took humanity, that He might be one with the human family. He was in all things made like unto His brethren. In his human life He was hungry and thirsty and weary. He shared the lot of man, and yet he was the blameless Son of God. He was a stranger and so-journer on the earth,—in the world, but not of the world; tempted and tried as men and women are tempted and tried today, yet living a life free from sin. Christ wanted men and women to know that He knew how to succor the tempted, that he saw and understood the distress and suffering and sorrows of mankind.

(405) In His human life the Saviour met and resisted the strongest temptations that could come to men and women. In the wilderness of temptation He met the wily foe face to face. After He had fasted forty days, Satan came to Him and said, “Command that these stones be made bread.” The Saviour met him with the words, “it is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.”

Then Satan took Jesus to Jerusalem, and “set him on a pinnacle of the temple, and said unto Him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself [70] down from hence; for it is written, He shall give His angels charge over Thee, to keep thee; and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest any time thou sash Thy foot against a stone.” Christ replied, “It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.”

It would have been presumption for Christ to cast Himself down at the bidding of Satan, and in refusing to yield to this sin, Christ has taught that we must not put ourselves on the ground of the enemy. We must not go to any pinnacle and throw ourselves down. We are here as probationers, and we must never act as though there were no devil to lead us into sin. (406) The temptations that come to us we cannot even give place on the mind without imperiling our souls. We need to know always that our feet are in safe paths.

Those who choose to associate with the disobedient and worldly minded need to heed the injunction, “Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord; and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, and will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty. Should it not be encouragement enough that we may have a living connection with the God of heaven.

When we go where sin is, we place ourselves where the angels of God cannot preserve us from evil influence. It is our privilege to know that Christ is constantly by our side. We are to put our trust in Him, and say, “He is able to save unto the uttermost all that come unto God by Him, seeing He ever liveth to make intercession for them.”

“Then the devil taking Him up into an high mountain showed unto Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said unto Him, All this power will I give thee, and the glory of them; for that is delivered unto me, and to whomsoever (407) I will I give it. If thou there wilt worship me, all shall be thine. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Get thee behind me, Satan, for it is written; Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.”

“And when the devil had ended his temptation, he departed from Him.”

Just so for each temptation, we may present to the tempter the word of God, “It is written.” We are not to hang our souls on the strength of any human being. Our duty is to live by every word that proceedeth from the mouth of God. Continually we should be gaining rich experiences in the Christian life. We cannot neglect this great salvation, only at loss to our own soul.

Every step from the manger to Calvary was marked with suffering and sacrifice. Thank you that it was easy for the Lord of Glory to be taken by the mob in the garden of Gethsemane, to die the just for the unjust? Hear his pale, quivering lips repeat the words, “O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.” (408) Christ knew the offensive character of sin. He knew that the wrath of God for the sins of a whole world was upon Him. The mysterious cup trembled in His hand; the destiny of a lost world hung in the balance. Three times was the prayer offered. Then the Son of God accepted the sacrifice in becoming the substitute for man. The Saviour might have summoned legions of angels to his side. But no; he must tread the wine press alone. The sitting of the horrors of darkness was there, but the Son of God came off victorious.

You, too, in temptation can overcome in the name of Jesus, and gain, not a fading laurel of earth, but an everlasting crown.

What indignities and temptations the Son of God endured. He was hurried by the mob from the garden of Gethsemane, and forced from one [71] tribunal to another. See Him as Pilate brings forth Barabbas, the robber and murderer and places him beside the Saviour. Christ is suffering agony and distress of mind, but He bears the image and superscription of the Divine. the question is asked, “Whom will ye that I release unto ye, Barabbas, or Jesus which is called (409) Christ. The hoarse cry is raised, Release unto us Barabbas.” It was the chief of the people, the people who claimed to know God who cried for the release of Barabbas. “What then,” said Pilate, “Shall I do with Jesus?” They answered, “Let Him be crucified.”

I want you to go over that scene in your minds. What dependence can be placed in human nature that is not under the control of the Spirit of God? The world knows not Christ today. The line of demarcation is plain between those who keep the commandments of God and those who keep them not. We cannot serve the world and please God. “Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.”

Satan uses those who serve him to tempt others. We must not be tempted by their enchantments. We need to search the Scriptures for ourselves, that we may know where we stand. Do we want to be on the side with those who cry, Release unto us Barabbas, and crucify Christ? Is there one here who has been drawn away by the enchantments of the world. If there is such a one, you need a Saviour. You want to be fashioned (410) after the similitude of the Lord Jesus, and not after the similitude of the world whose cry is, Away with Jesus, and release unto us Barabbas.

We need to acknowledge the Saviour before men. The peace of Christ is of great value to us. Are we ashamed of Him to whom if we come, we may have life in the kingdom of God? We need to be consecrated to the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.

Put the thoughts of God out of the world, and how much of true religion would we find. How much of pure, unalloyed service would men give. Christ was bruised for our iniquities. We cannot afford to refuse the power of the grace of God; for if we do not belong to Christ, we are classed in the Word with the unbeliever and the murderer. We pity them if there are such here. You do not want to be of that company who are ashamed of their Lord.

The apostle Paul inquired, “Who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth.” Christ would have us open the (411) chambers of the mind that the bright light of truth may shine in illumining the soul temple.

I feel an intense interest for your souls’ salvation. I left my home in America that I might speak the words of life to the people in these colonies. I want you to lose sight of everything but the great Center. We want you to bind yourselves to Jesus Christ by the chain of living faith. You know not how soon your life’s record may close. Have you made your peace with God? Does Jesus abide in your heart by living faith? “Behold, I stand at the door and knock,” He says; “if any man hear My voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and sup with him, and he with Me.” Do not keep the door locked any longer. It is your privilege to know that God acknowledges you among the faithful. Do you not want to hear the words spoken to you, “Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful in a few things; I will make you ruler over many things; enter thou into the Joy of Thy Lord.”

“As thou hast given Him power over all flesh, that He should given eternal life to as many as thou hast given. And this is lifer eternal, that they might know Thee, the only true (412) God, and Jesus Christ whom [72] Thou hast sent.” A knowledge that Christ is the Redeemer of the world will not save any soul; we must lay hold of Him by living faith. We are to know God, and Jesus Christ whom He has sent. And we cannot truly know Him without loving him.

Do you ask how much He loves you? I point you to Calvary. There you may behold the sufferings that Christ endured for you. “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” When God gave Jesus He gave all heaven. He would make the sacrifice so full, that He could do no more. If we truly love Jesus, we shall become heirs of God. The Father will love us as He loves His Son. We become members of the royal family, children of the heavenly Kings

Many seem to be sad because of their religion. We should not go about begging pardon of the world because we are Christians. I beg pardon of Christ only; He has made every provision that we may have a Christian character. “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be; (413) but we know that when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is. Christ said, Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than His lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you.” It was Christ’s highest joy to obey his father, and keep His law as the apple of His eye. Let the word of God have this effect upon our characters. I pray that the Lord God of heaven will let the light of his Holy Spirit shine upon you, and when the judgment shall sit and the books shall be opened, you will not ashamed of you record. I pray that in that day it may appear that your have not placed stumbling-blocks in the way of others, but that you have tried to clear the King’s highway. Let us exalt Jesus. Let us give Him our heart’s best and holiest service. And in return for this He says, “I will confess you before my Father, and before His angels.” [73]

Labors in New Zealand.
Palmerston.

(413a) After the close of the camp-meeting in Napier, we decided to visit Wellington, and also spend a few days at Palmerston to labor for a little company of Sabbath keepers there who were pleading for help.

Palmerston is about five hours’ ride from Napier. For two or three hours after leaving Napier, we passed over rich farming country, dotted with small towns. In a few of these some labor had been bestowed, and there were a few families of Sabbath-keepers. Further on the country was newer. It was quite level and heavily timbered, and the large fertile pastures, full of stumps and half-burned logs, reminded us of the newer portions of Michigan, Canada, and New York State.

Palmerston is a prosperous town of 6000 inhabitants. It is a railroad center, and the principal town is in a large and fertile district. Four years before our visit, a series of meetings was held here by Elder Robert Hare; but the population had doubled in that time, and another continuous and persevering (413b) effort was called for. During our short visit very little could be done to encourage and counsel the small company of believers.

Up to this time I had given three months of labor to New Zealand, traveling 2500 miles by sea and land. Through this time the Lord had strengthened me for labor. Although infirmities were still my companions by night and day, the Lord gave grace to bear them. Sometimes when I felt unable to fill my appointments, I would say, In faith I will place myself in position, and stand upon my feet; and when I have done this, strength was given me to rise above my infirmities, and to bear the message the Lord had given me for the people.

During this time I gained in health and strength, for which I render thanksgiving and praise to God. “Blessed be the Lord because he hath heard the voice of my supplications. The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him, and I am helped; therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth, and with my song will I praise him. The Lord is their strength, and he is the saving health of his anointed.” “I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul shall maker her boast in the Lord; the humble shall hear thereof and be glad. O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together. I sought the Lord, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.” [74]

Palmerston, North.

(414) After the close of the camp-meeting in Napier, we decided to visit Wellington N.Z., and also to spend a few days at Palmerston, to labor for a little company of Sabbath-keepers there who were pleading for help.

I had now given three months of labor to New Zealand, traveling 2500 miles by sea and land. Through this time the Lord had strengthened me for labor. Although infirmities were still my companions by night and day, the Lord gave grace to bear them. Sometimes when I felt unable to fill my appointments, I would say, In faith I will place myself before the people; and when I did this, strength was given me to rise above my infirmities, and to bear the message the Lord had given me for the people.

(415) During this time I gained in health and strength, for which I render praise and thanksgiving to God. “Blessed be the Lord which hath heard the voice of my supplications. The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him, and I am helped; therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth, and with my song will I praise him. The Lord is my strength, and he is the saving health of his anointed.” I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul shall make her boast in the Lord; the humble shall hear thereof and be glad. O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together. I sought the Lord, and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.”

Palmerston is about five hours ride by train from Napier. For two or three hours after leaving Napier, we passed over rich farming country, dotted with small towns. Upon a few of these towns some labor had been bestowed, and there were a few families of Sabbath-keepers. Further on the country was newer. It was quite level, and heavily timbered, and the large fertile pastures, full of stumps and half-burned logs, reminded us of the newer portions of Michigan, Canada, and New York State. (416) Palmerston North is a prosperous town of 6000 inhabitants. It is a railroad center, and the principal town in a large and fertile district. Four years before our visit, a series of meetings was held here by Brother Hare; but the population had doubled since that time; and another continuous and persevering effort was called for. During our short visit very little could be done except to encourage and counsel the small company of believers.

Our laborers must learn at the foot of the cross the lessons to be communicated to the people. Thus will they bring sheaves to Jesus Christ. In the first chapter of Corinthians, Paul has given us instruction which every true believer needs to study. “We preach Christ crucified,” he said, “unto the Jews a stumbling block, and unto the Greeks foolishness; but unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than me.”

This is a lesson of special consequence to every (vineyard) worker in the vineyard of the Lord. No solid results will (417) follow the work of men who preach to please the ears of the people, while the truth is not held forth in a manner to bring them to the cross of Jesus Christ. The messenger of God must present eternal truths plainly and keep clearly before the people their peril if the neglect these truths. Self must be kept out of sight, and Jesus must ever be lifted up and exalted.

“Not many wise men after the flesh, not many might, not many noble are called; for God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to [75] confound the things which are mighty. And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen yea and things which are not to bring to nought things which are: that no flesh should glory in his presence. But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom and righteousness and sanctification and redemption: that, according as it is written. He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.”

“And I, brethren,” Paul continues, “when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know anything (418) among you, save Jesus Christ and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling.” The apostle feared lest he should stand in the wisdom of men, and not in the power of God, and thus his labor prove to be a work that yielded no harvest.

“My speech and my wisdom,” he says, “was not with enticing words of man’s wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power: that your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God. Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect; yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought: but we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world to our glory; which none of the princes of this world knew, for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. But as it is written Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things that God hath prepared for them that love him.”

Now Paul proceeds to explain this wisdom that the world has not seen nor heard nor known. “God hath revealed them unto us by His Spirit; for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea the (419) deep things of God. For what man knoweth the spirit of man, save the spirit of man which is in him; even so the things of the Spirit of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. Now we have received not the spirit of man, but the Spirit which is of God; that we might know the things which are freely given to us of God. Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom speaketh, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. But He that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man. For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have mind of Christ.”

Every one engaging in the work should have these words framed and hung in memories hall: “We are laborers together with God.” Then there would not be so many failures in the efforts made to win souls to Jesus Christ. The people cannot be reached and their hearts broken, except by God’s divine power. “Ye are God’s husbandry; ye are God’s building. According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise master builder I have (420) laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let ever man take heed how he buildeth thereupon. For other foundation can no man lay than is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; every man’s work shall be made manifest; for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire, and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is. If any man’s work abide which he shall build thereupon; he shall receive a reward. If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss; but he himself shall be saved; yet so as be fire.” [76]

Those who seek wisdom in the study of the world’s authors, are not drinking from the pure fountain flowing from the throne of God. “Will a man leave the snow of Lebanon which cometh from the rock of the field? Or shall the cold flowing waters that from another place be forsaken? Because my people have forgotten me, they have burned incense to vanity, and they have caused them to stumble from their ways in the ancient paths, to walk in paths, in a way not cast up.” Let them men who are engaged in the solemn work of bearing the (421) last message to the world, heed the exhortation of Paul “Preach the Word,” —not the science of phrenology or the productions of human speculations. Listen to his solemn charge to Timothy: “I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom; preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers having itching ears; and they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.”

These words are also addressed to the messengers in these last days who carry God’s message to the people. “Watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry” “Now therefore, my son, be strong in the grace which is in Christ Jesus; and the things which thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also. Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.” (422) Especial heed should be given to the words of the apostle; “Of these things put them in remembrance, charging them before the Lord that they strive not about words to no profit, but to the subverting of the hearers.” The ministers of the gospel is never exhorted to strive to be a smart preacher, a popular speaker; but he is commanded, “Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. But shun profane and vain babblings; for they will increase unto more ungodliness.” Will every messenger of God give heed to these words. Were laborers together with God, and if those who accept the responsibility of holding forth the word of life to others do not daily yoke up with Christ, and lift his burdens and learn of him day by day, it would be better for them to seek other employment.

We can reach the people only through God. If the human agent is cooperating with divine intelligences, an efficiency and power will attend his labors what will bring souls to a knowledge of the truth. We are to sow beside all waters, to seize every opportunity which presents itself to cast in the seeds of truth. Let every laborer, in whatever branch (423) of the work he may be engaged remember that he must wear the armor of Christ and marshal under his banner if he would meet the enemy wisely. Jesus is our captain and leader, and we are to obey his orders. [77]

Wellington.

(424) We had a pleasant journey from Palmerston to Wellington, the capital of New Zealand. I passed the winter of 1893 in this city; and although its climate was not promising, the city being subject to constant storm and high winds, my health steadily improved. Wellington is surrounded by mountains, and many of the homes are built on the sides of the hills and mountains.

The city abounds in churches; and I have never seen a place where prejudice was stronger or opposition so perseveringly and determinedly carried on. I was reminded of the prejudice of the priests and Pharisees in the days of Christ.

At Wellington a branch of the International Tract and Missionary Society had been established; but there was no house (425) of worship. We were dependent upon halls, and the people did not attend meetings in these halls. Then we tried to hold meetings in Elder Israel’s house. We did everything possible to get the people out. We circulated notices, leaflets, tracts, workers went from house to house, sowing the seed upon the ground that had hitherto proved unfruitful. To the utmost of our ability we labored to create an interest in this place, and at no small outlay of means; and yet the prejudice seemed like a granite walk. A few times we had a moderately large congregation; but the people seemed afraid of us. We worked on, however, trying to do our part as faithful messengers; for we had a message to bear of the utmost importance. Though our efforts showed no manifest results, I remembered that of Christ it was said, “He will not fail nor be discouraged.” We need the mind of Christ to enable to us to work in his lines.

Ministers told their congregations that there was danger in going to hear us. “These people,” they said, “have no special interest in Wellington. Few will believe in their doctrines. They have no one to represent them here. If they make you believe in their doctrines, where will you go to (426) worship? They have no place of worship. They are only adventurers. They come to a place and preach their Satanic doctrines, misleading the minds of the people; and then they go away. Where will you be if you are deceived by these doctrines?”

In the past the ministers had fought the truth like tigers. Two of them opposed Elder Daniells with Satanic energy, through the press and from the pulpit. These men were now dead, but their influence still lived. We had evidence that some of the people had been strongly convicted. Now they feared that the peace of their hearts and the quietude of their minds would again be disturbed, and they would not come out to hear.

A sister coming from Napier to Wellington found herself in the same car with a minister from Ormondville, where Eld. Brother McCullagh was working. He was in conversation with a minister from Wellington, and they were comparing notes in regard to our work. One said that McCullagh was doing much harm in Ormondville, but he thought that he had settled the business with him. The minister from wellington said that a Mr. Starr and a Mrs. White were at work in Wellington trying to fasten the same heresies on the people here. He said that he had warned his congregation (427) against going to hear us. “Well,” said the minister from Ormondville, “I heard they had no success in Wellington “No,” was the reply; “but we find that the minds of the people are unsettled. They have managed to make the people uneasy, and they are plying us with questions hard to answer.”

May 4, ‘93. A few nights ago my mind was much troubled in contemplating what we could do to get the truth before the people of [78] these large cities. We were sure if they would only hear the message, their prejudice would be removed, and they would receive the truth. We prayed over the matter and I felt assured that the Lord would make a place for these messages of warning to come to the people. One night I seemed to be in a meeting where these matters were being talked over. A grave and dignified man said, “You are praying for the Lord to raise up men and women of talent to give themselves to the work. You have talent in your midst which needs to be recognized. I call your attention to the talent of music which you have among you, and which should be cultivated. The human voice is one of God’s talents, and it should be employed to his glory The enemy of righteousness give an important place to this talent; he misapplies it so that it serves (428) his purpose instead of blessing souls. Carrie Gribble has the talent of song. Rightly used, it will attract the people to hear the message of truth.”

In spite of the prejudice and discouragement connected with our effort in Wellington, there was many things to encourage. Here and there we saw evidence that the leaven of truth was working upon some hearts. Sister Tuxford and I were walking out one day, when an aged man, venerable in appearance, came to meet us. Grasping my hand, he said, “How glad I am to see you. My son saw you from his grocery store on the corner, and said, “There is Mrs. White coming down the hill. I did not wait a minute, but ran out to meet you. I heard you speak several times in Auckland, and I thank the Lord your words went right up to my heart.” Presently the son came up. He also was interested in the truth. I had a pleasant interview with the father, and the son asked for an interview also. I gave the father “Steps to Christ” and “Patriarchs and Prophets” to take with him to Auckland. His family was bitterly opposed to him. He wrote afterward that his wife and daughter were reading the (429) books given him by me, and that they were greatly changed in spirit.

The night before I left the city, as I was leaving the house, a man met me at the door and said he wished to have some conversation with me regarding the truth. He had received the tract, “Elect of God,” written by me, and had sent it to his father, a minister in England. He was anxious to talk with me, but this was not possible, as I was to leave early in the morning for Hastings. Several who attended the meetings regularly were business men. They believed the truth, but were halting, undecided to obey. If we could have a house of worship, we think without doubt a church could be raised up. But without one thing to give character to the work in this city, how are the people to be warned. The ministers are active, and Satan’s seat seems to be in this place. It is too important a place to be yielded without a strong effort. I believe that the truth will yet be vindicated and sustained in Wellington. [79]

(430) During my stay in Wellington I decided to have my teeth extracted. These teeth had troubled me at Napier, and I had then decided to have them out immediately after the conference there; but I was requested to visit Hastings, Palmerston and Wellington, and improve the time in speaking and laboring while I could have Brother Starr with me, and so agreed to their proposition. Now it seemed that the way was prepared for me to have these teeth out, and I wrote to Sister Caro asking her to come as soon as she could well disengage herself from her work at home.

Sister Caro arrived at the Depository July 4, after a ten hours journey on the cars. In the morning she asked me if I was sorry to see her. I said, “I am very glad to see Sister Caro, but I am not so pleased to see her as a dentist.” About ten o’clock I was in the chair, and in a short time I had lost eight of my teeth. Not a groan escaped my lips, not a muscle quivered throughout the operation. I had prayed about this matter, and believing that the Lord meant just what he said (431) when he promised, “Ask, and ye shall receive, seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you,” I relied on the Word that is sure and never-failing.

“Whatsoever ye ask the Father in my name,” Christ said, “that the Father may be glorified in the son. If ye shall ask anything in my name I will do it.” These were precious words of assurance. Certainly if I ever needed to trust in God, it was at this time. I took nothing to stupefy me, nor anything to deaden the gums, knowing that the reaction I would suffer should I do this would be more severe on me than the pain I would endure if they were left in their natural state.

After the operation I saw that my dentist was completely unnerved. Her hands shook like an aspen leaf. She looked as if she were going to faint. The patient was glad to wait on the dentist. I had her sit on my easy chair, and tried to make her as comfortable as I could.

Sister Caro is not a nervous woman; But the thought of causing pain to a sister whom she loved so wrought on her feelings that it made her sick. It was a great relief to both of us when the operation was over.

(432) During the conference at Napier we had stayed at the home of Dr. and Sister Caro, who entertained us right royally. They did all in their power to make us comfortable and happy. They had a large and commodious house. Sister Caro is a superior dentist, and is of high repute in these parts. She earns a great deal of money by her work; but nothing is expended on luxuries. Nor does she hoard her means, she puts it into bags that wax not old. Much of her money is spent in educating young men to become laborers for the Master. At that time she was supporting young men in the Bible School in Melbourne, besides educating her three sons, two at Battle Creek and one in England. Sister Caro not only carries her diploma for dentistry, but she has a ministerial license, and bears many burdens in the church. When no minister is present she speaks to the church. The Lord blesses this noble unselfish woman. [80]

Labors in New Zealand.
Wellington.
Dec. 1, 1893

(432a) We had a pleasant journey from Palmerston to Wellington, the capital of New Zealand. I passed the winter of 1893 in this city; and although its climate was not promising, the city being subject to constant storms and high winds, my health steadily improved. Wellington is a city of many churches; and I have never seen a place where prejudice was stronger, or opposition so perseveringly and determinedly carried on.

At Wellington a branch of the International Tract and Missionary Society had been established; but there was no house of worship. We were dependent upon halls, and the people wound not attend our meetings in these halls. Then we tried to hold meetings in Elder Israel’s house. We did everything possible to get the people out. We circulated notices, leaflets, and tracts. The workers went from house to house, sowing the seed upon ground that had hitherto proved unfruitful. To the utmost of our ability we labored to create an interest in this place, and (432b) at no small outlay of means; and yet the prejudice seemed like a granite wall. A few times we had a moderately large congregation; but the people seemed afraid of us.

Ministers told their congregations that there was danger in going to hear us. These people,” they said “have no special interest in Wellington. No one will believe in their doctrines. They have no one to represent them here. If they make you believe in their doctrines, where will you go to worship? They have no place of worship. They are only adventurers. They come to a place and preach their devilish doctrines, misleading minds of the people, and then go away. Where will you be if you are deceived by these strange doctrines?”

In the past the ministers had fought the truth like tigers. Two of them opposed Elder Daniells with Satanic energy, through the columns of the paper and from the pulpit. These men were now dead, but their influence lived. We had evidence that some of the people had been strongly convicted. Now they feared that the peace of their hearts and the quietude of their minds would again be disturbed, and they would not come out to hear. (432c) A sister, coming from Napier to Wellington, found herself on the same car with a minister from Ormondville, where Bro. McCullagh was working. He was in conversation with a minister from Wellington, and they were comparing notes regarding our work. One said that McCullagh was doing much harm in Ormondville, but that he thought that he had thoroughly settled the business with him. The minister from Wellington said that a Mrs. Starr and a Mrs. White were at work in Wellington, trying to fasten the same heresies on the people there. He said that he had warned his congregation against going to hear us. “Well, said the minister from Ormondville, “I heard they had no success in Wellington.” The reply was “No; but we find the minds of the people are unsettled. They have managed to make the people uneasy, and they are plying us with questions hard to answer.”

Sister Tuxford and I were walking out one day, when an aged man, venerable in appearance, came toward me with an expression of joy on his countenance. Grasping my hand, he said, How glad I am to see you. My son just saw you from his grocery store on the corner, and said, ‘There is Mrs. White coming down (432d) the hill.’ I did not wait a minute, but ran out to meet you. I heard you speak several times in Auckland, and I thank the Lord your words went right to my heart.”

Presently the son came up. He was also interested in the truth. I had a pleasant interview with the father, and the son requested an interview with me also. I gave the father “Steps to Christ” and [81] “Patriarchs and Prophets” to take with him to Auckland. His family were bitterly opposed to him. They are Wesleyans. He wrote after his return that his wife and daughter were reading the books given to him by me, and they were greatly changed in spirit.

Several who attended the meetings regularly are business me. They believe the truth, but are halting, undecided to obey. If we could have a house of worship, we think without doubt a church could be raised up. But without one thing to give character to the work in this city, how are the people to be warned. The ministers are active, Satan’s seat seems to be in this place. It is too important a place to (432e) be yielded without a strong effort. I believe that the truth will be vindicated and sustained in Wellington. Appeal for Wellington.

“Ye shall receive power after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you; and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost parts of the earth.”

This commission given to Christ’s disciples includes his followers today. God has a people in this place, who can only be reached by a steady, persevering effort. We are to witness for the truth to this people who have determined that here the banner of truth shall not be lifted.

It is not God’s plan, although the gold and silver are his own, to send His angels from heaven to build churches in any town or city. He has made man his almoner, His steward of trust to do this work. “The field is the world.” God requires that you give some chance that the seeds of truth may be sown in places where the soil has never been broken; and the seed sown in these places will be watered by the God of heaven. (432f) The leaven of truth must be first hidden in the meal before it can leaven the lump. Once get the truth planted in these new fields, and increase and progress will follow.

I am reminded of a family of children. One child is more prepossessing than the others, and that one is favored. Gifts and considerations are made for this one without stint, and the others are left to get along as best they can. I think this is a good representation of things in America compared with this country.

God knows we have done what we could, though crippled in every way, our hands tied for lack of workers and means. I rejoiced when I heard that the Holy Spirit had been poured out upon our people in America, and I have been anxiously waiting in new developments in America, such as were seen after the Holy Spirit descended on the day of Pentecost. I thought similar fruits would be borne, that the missionary spirit would burn in the hears of all upon whom the Spirit of God was manifestly moving.

If men and women have received increased light, what are they doing with it? What are they doing to warn those who (432g) and untiring vigilance you might set forth Jesus Christ and Him crucified, that you might send forth the note of warning that Christ is coming the second time with power and great glory.

How did the Holy Spirit work upon your hearts? Was it not by stimulating you to the exercise of the talents God has given you? Have not your energies been quickened in the blessings God has bestowed upon you? Has not the truth been more deeply impressed upon your soul? And are you ministering to Christ in a more decided manner since this manifest revelation of His Spirit. Let every man woman and youth employ his talents to set forth the truth for this time, making personal efforts, going into the cities where the truth has never been, and lifting the standard. [82]

________ do not know that the Lord is soon coming? Where, I ask, is the burden for souls that are perishing out of Christ? Who will go forth without the camp, bearing the reproach? Who will leave pleasant homes and dear ties of relationship, and carry the precious light of truth to far off lands? Every day and every moment comes with terrible significance to those who have been entrusted with light and truth; for men and women in every clime are deciding their eternal destinies for weal or woe.

God has made amazing sacrifices for man. He has put forth might energies that man might be reclaimed from transgression and sin to loyalty and obedience. Yet he does nothing without the cooperation of human agencies. Every endowment of grace and power and efficiency has been liberally provided that divine and human agencies may combine. Yet what more has been done by the people of Battle Creek in carrying the light of truth to regions where the standard has not yet been lifted? Did the Lord open you the windows of heaven and pour you out a blessing at the last Conference? What use have you made of the gift of God, given that you might with patience and hope.

(432h) During my stay in Wellington I decided to have my teeth extracted. These teeth had troubled me at Napier, and I had then decided to have them out immediately after the conference there; but I was requested to visit Hastings, Palmerston and Wellington, and improve the time in speaking and laboring while I could have Brother Starr with me, and so agreed to their proposition. Now it seemed that the way was prepared for me to have these teeth out, and I wrote to Sister Caro asking her to come as soon as she could well disengage herself from her work at home.

Sister Caro arrived at the Depository July 4, after a ten hours journey on the cars. In the morning she asked me if I was sorry to see her. I said, “I am very glad to see Sister Caro, but I am not so pleased to see her as a dentist.” About ten o’clock I was in the chair, and in a short time I had lost eight of my teeth. Not a groan escaped my lips, not a muscle quivered throughout the operation. I had prayed about this matter, and believing that the Lord meant just what he said (432i) when he promised, “Ask, and ye shall receive, seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you,” I relied on the Word that is sure and never-failing.

“Whatsoever ye ask the Father in my name,” Christ said, “that the Father may be glorified in the son. If ye shall ask anything in my name I will do it.” These were precious words of assurance. Certainly if I ever needed to trust in God, it was at this time. I took nothing to stupefy me, nor anything to deaden the gums, knowing that the reaction I would suffer should I do this would be more severe on me than the pain I would endure if they were left in their natural state.

After the operation I saw that my dentist was completely unnerved. Her hands shook like an aspen leaf. She looked as if she were going to faint. The patient was glad to wait on the dentist. I had her sit on my easy chair, and tried to make her as comfortable as I could.

Sister Caro is not a nervous woman; But the thought of causing pain to a sister whom she loved so wrought on her feelings that it made her sick. It was a great relief to both of us when the operation was over.

(432j) During the conference at Napier we had stayed at the home of Dr. and Sister Caro, who entertained us right royally. They did all in their power to make us comfortable and happy. They had a large and commodious house. Sister Caro is a superior dentist, and is of high repute in these parts. She earns a great deal of money by her work; but nothing is expended on luxuries. Nor does she hoard her means, she puts it into bags that wax not old. Much of her money is spent in educating [83] young men to become laborers for the Master. At that time she was supporting young men in the Bible School in Melbourne, besides educating her three sons, two at Battle Creek and one in England. Sister Caro not only carries her diploma for dentistry, but she has a ministerial license, and bears many burdens in the church. When no minister is present she speaks to the church. The Lord blesses this noble unselfish woman. [84]

Hastings.

(433) During the months of August and September my labors were divided between the cities of Hastings and Napier. We lived at Hastings with Brother and sister Wilson, and worked in that city during the week. On Friday we would drive to Napier, a distance of fourteen miles, where we would be entertained at the home of Dr. Caro. Here I would speak on Sabbath forenoon, and Sunday evening, and on Monday we would return to Hastings.

We had a three days’ council in Hastings, when Elders Israel and McCullagh, Bro. Simpson, and W.C.W. were present. According to the arrangements made at that time, we would soon have been on our way to hold meetings in Auckland; but a telegram came from Elder Olsen stating that he would be in New Zealand on the 23rd of November. This delayed us in New Zealand two months longer. It was decided to hold the camp-meeting in the vicinity of Wellington. W.C.W. immediately visited Auckland to lay the matter before the brethren there and they also agreed that the camp should be held near Wellington.
[Page 434 missing] [85]

(435) Ellen White,
Banks Terrance,
Wellington.

When former rain came, devout men all nations there. Isaiah sixty-six, eighteen, nineteen. Chicago fair dedicated May fourteen. Greatest number of devout men present. Their sacred year began April sixteen. First month closes May sixteen, last. Joel two: twenty-three. People asleep. For the Love of Jesus, Joel one: fourteen. Zephaniah two, one to three. Answer good or bad quick.

Caldwell,
Sydney.

[In answer to this telegram and letters that followed, letters were sent to Brother Caldwell and Bro. Stanton. Review articles were prepared. These are reprinted in TM. 32-62.—W. C. White] [86]

(436) The people of Wellington were full of prejudice. The circulation of M. Canright’s falsehoods created more prejudice. These pamphlets and telegram dispatches From Brother Caldwell were of a character to confirm their suspicions; for everything of this character gives the impression that we were working undercover. These things were closing the doors against us, and hedging the way so that the truth could not advance. These men who engaged in the Loud Cry movement thought they were doing God service; but they were working on the enemy’s side, not on God’s side.

Those who published the Loud Cry tract quoted largely from my writings, and put their own construction upon the. They claimed to have a special message from God to pronounce the Seventh-day Adventist church, Babylon, proclaim her fall, and call out from her the people of God. They tried to make the Testimonies substantiate their theory. These publications were misleading to minds, and increased the prejudice of many that we could not get access to to present the message of God—a warning to the world of a very different character, than that presented in these pamphlets.

(437) The history of the children of Israel urged itself upon my mind, so that I could not sleep. Many of their experiences were presented vividly to me. My spirit was stirred within me, and I dared not keep silent. I arose at half past two o’clock and wrote out twenty-three pages between 3 and 12:30. I felt a burden for the people of God, not on account of this one production but because of many such matters which come before the people and which are claimed to be the messages of God. A little leaven of false doctrine, under the inspiration of Satanic agencies, may work much harm to those who are not rooted and grounded and unmovable in the present truth. No one can be safe in these days unless he is riveted to the eternal Rock. We have every reason to be grateful to God and to put our trust in him. The Lord knoweth them that are his. He died to save a lost world, and he is gathering out from it an army who will serve under his banner. And he will present to himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle, or anything such thing.

Both these men, brethren Stanton and Caldwell, were at the general Conference. Could they not discern there the revelations of the Spirit of God? Could they not see that God was (438) opening the window of heaven and pouring out a blessing. Testimonies had been given, correcting and counselling the church, and many had made a practical application of the message to the Laodicean church, confessing their sins, and repenting in contrition of soul. They were hearing the voice of Jesus speaking to them; “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock; if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.”

Brethren Stanton and Caldwell had the same work of repentance and confession to do, thus clearing away the rubbish from the door of their own hearts and making a place for the heavenly Guest. Had they placed themselves in the channel of light, they would have seen that the Lord was graciously manifesting himself to his people, and that the Sun of Righteousness had arisen upon them. The council of Christ to the Laodicean church was being acted upon. Those who felt their poverty were buying gold (faith and love), white raiment (the righteousness of Christ) and eye salve (true spiritual discernment). (439) Why did not these brethren place themselves in the channel of light? They were poverty-stricken, and knew it not. They were not working in Christ’s lines, were not softened and subdued by the Holy Spirit, and were so blinded that they could not see the strong rays of light that were coming from the throne of God to His people. They heard not the voice of the true [87] Shepherd; they were listening to the voice of a stranger.

When I consider the infirmities of these misled brethren, I feel deep sorrow of the heart that they did not please with God, “Bless me, O God; bless me. Now I see my error. Thou art communicating to thy people the richest truths ever committed to mortals. This people are not Babylon; for thou hast given them righteousness and peace and joy.” O why did they not open the door of their hearts to Jesus, why not remove right there all that obstructed the bright beams of the Sun of Righteousness shining upon them, and from them to the world. While God’s blessing was penetrating everywhere, while his presence was consecrating and sanctifying souls unto himself, why did they not place their souls in the in the channel of light? (440) How could they come from that meeting, where the power of God was revealed in so marked a manner, and then to proclaim that the loud cry to Babylon was a cry to the Commandment Keeping people to come out from the Seventh-day Adventist church. It was because Satan had cast his hellish shadow athwart their pathway to obstruct every ray of light.

These men were doing the same work as Satan is represented as doing in Zechariah 3. Joshua, representing the sinner, stood before the angel. Satan declared Joshua’s sins to be so great that he should not be restrained from destroying him. He “Clothed him with filthy garments.” The words of Christ to Satan are applicable to these brethren, and to all who do a similar work. “The Lord rebuke thee, Satan; the Lord that hath chosen Jerusalem rebuke thee: is not this a brand plucked out of the fire? Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and stood before the angel. And he answered and spake to those that stood by and said, Take away the filthy garments from him. And unto him he said, Behold, I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee, and I will clothe thee with a change of raiment.

And I said, Let them set a fair mitre upon his head. So (441) they set a fair mitre upon his head, and clothed him with garments. And the angels of the Lord stood by. And the angel of the Lord proclaimed unto Joshua, saying, Thus saith the Lord of hosts; if thou wilt walk in my ways, and if thou wilt keep my charge, then thou shalt also judge mine house, and shalt also keep my courts, and I will give thee places to walk among these that stand by.”

The work of Satan is to cover the repentant, believing people of God with defiling garments. And is not this work which our brethren Stanton and Caldwell have been doing. If they had been commissioned of God to do this work, they would not need to appropriate the writings of Sister White, without consulting with her. If they had such great confidence in the work with the Lord has given me to do, why did they not advise with me? and see if this wonderful message was in accordance with the instruction given me. Why did they not have wisdom to go the right way to work. But theirs was a spurious message. It was not as the bright shining of a candle lighted at the divine altar. When the Lord gives his people light, it is light. Not darkness and error, leading directly away from the true light (442) which God has sent to strengthen and bless and give hope to his people. These brethren had no right to place God’s messages given through me in the framework of their errors, and make it appear to all who should read their productions, that it was the voice of God, giving the Loud Cry, calling his commandment keeping people Babylon and bidding his people come out of her. The Lord has given me no such message to give, but one of an altogether different character. My work is to seek to save lost, perishing souls, and teach them as did who said, “I kept back nothing that was profitable unto you, but have shewed you, and have taught you publicly, and from house to house, testifying both to [88] the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. I take you to record this day that I am pure from the blood of all men. For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God. Take heed therefore unto ourselves, and to all the counsel of God. Take heed therefore unto ourselves, and to all the flock over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood. For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.” (443) Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things to draw away disciples after them. Therefore watch and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears.”

In all ages of the history of the church, men have arisen who thought they had a special work to do for the Lord, and who showed no respect for those whom the Lord had been using. These men have made wrong applications of Scriptures, wresting them to sustain their own ideas. Whatever may be the claims of those who draw away from the church to proclaim theories of their own invention, they are serving Satan in diverting souls from the truth for this time. Beware of those who have a burden to denounce the church of God. The chosen ones who are standing to breast the storm of opposition from the world, and are uplifting the down-trodden commandments of God, exalting them as holy and honorable, are the light of the world. How dare any man pass judgment on such a church, calling it Babylon, a harlot, a den of thieves, a cage of every unclean and hateful bird, the habitation of devils! How dare they accuse such a church of making the nations drunk with the wine of her (444) fornication, and of confederating with the kings and great men of the earth, who wax rich through the abundance of her delicacies. Of Babylon the world declares, “Her sins have reached to heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.” Is it such a message as this that we are to bear to Seventh-day Adventists? I tell you, No. God has given no man such message. These men should humble their hearts before God, and in true contrition repent that they have even for a time stood by the side of the accuser of the brethren.

It seems almost impossible that any who have had a genuine experience in the faith should suggest such erroneous applications of Scripture. Even supposing this message “Come out of her, my people,” to be the one everyone much hear at this time, where shall we go? Where shall we find purity, goodness, and holiness? Where shall we be secure? Where is the fold where no wolves will enter? I tell you, my brethren, the Lord has an organized body through whom He will work. There may be in it more than a score of Judases; there may be a rash Peter who will in trial deny his Lord. There may be a John with a zeal that would destroy men’s lives to revenge an insult to Christ and the truth. But it is still his church. (445) The great teacher seeks to give lessons of instruction to correct these existing evils. He is pointing out the dangers. He is giving to them the Laodicean message, showing them that all pride, all selfishness, all self-exaltation, all unbelief and prejudice, leads to resistance of the truth and turns away from the true light, and is therefore dangerous.

God desires that every soul shall seek to answer the prayer of Christ, “Keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are. . . I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from evil. Sanctify them through the truth; thy word is truth.” The door of the heart must be opened to the Holy Spirit; for this is the sanctifier, and the truth is the medium. There must be an acceptance of the truth as it is in [89] Jesus. This is the only genuine sanctification. “Thy word is truth.”

The prayer of Christ is not for those only who were then his disciples, but for all who shall believe on him through the words of his disciples, even to the end of the world. Jesus was just about to yield up his life to bring life and immortality (446) to light. Amid his sufferings and daily rejection, Christ looks down the line two thousand years to His church in the last days, The Lord has had a church from that day, through all the changing scenes of time to the present day. The prayer of Christ sets before us a model church. They are to be in unity with each other and with God. When believers are united to Christ the living Vine, they are one with Christ, filled with sympathy and tenderness and love. Let every soul echo that prayer, in mind, in petition, in exhortation, that they may be one as Christ is one with the Father, and work to this end. Instead of turning the weapons of warfare upon those within our own ranks, let them be turned against the enemies of God and the truth.

Men and women are constantly arising who draw apart from the organized body of God’s commandment-keeping people. When such souls begin to weigh the church and begin to pronounce judgment against it, you may know that they are on the wrong track. God has given to every man his work. There are opportunities to help those who are ready to die, to inspire the church with zeal, but none are given the privilege of tearing (447) the church to pieces. If the heart is full of zeal for a deepest sanctification, we bid you work in that line in all humility and devotion. The church needs freshness, it needs the inspiration of men who breathe the atmosphere of heaven.

If good and humble men will take up their duty just where it is, to help those who are ready to die, they will be a great blessing to the church. There are unconverted men in the church. You who are longing to show your zeal for the Lord, seek these poor souls, and work for them with patience and perseverance to win them to Jesus. “Ye are laborers together with God,” not to tear down and destroy, but to restore. “Make straight paths for our feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way.” There is an abundance of work to be done in home missions if we will exercise our talents. By practice, men become skillful in worldly business. God’s people need to become skillful in the art of blessing souls. This will require prayer, and earnest, persevering efforts, and a willingness to work in a humble way.

If the money that has been needlessly expended in doing a work that God has not sent men to do—in helping Satan to cast (448) reproach upon the kingdom of Christ, in clothing his church with filthy garments, and urging them into false positions by a wrong use of the corrections and reproofs that God has given to point out sin—if this money had been spent in ways that are simple and safe for the progress and upbuilding of Christ’s kingdom in the world, what a great work would have been accomplished.

“Now if any man build upon this foundation, gold, silver, precious stones, wood hay, stubble; every man’s work shall be made manifest; for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is.” I would caution all believers to learn to maintain a godly jealousy over themselves, lest Satan steal the heart away from God, and unconsciously you slip into the service of Satan, before you realize that you have changed leaders. We are to be wide awake now, to work for the erring among us as laborers together with God. We are furnished with spiritual weapons mighty to the pulling down of the fortress of the enemy. We are not to urge the hurling of these thunderbolts against the church of Christ; for Satan is doing [90] this. Those who claim (449) to be the remnant people of God had better not be found helping him in his work of accusing and condemning. Seek to restore, not to tear down and destroy. [91]

The Remnant Church Not Babylon.

(450) I have been made very sad in reading the pamphlet issued by Brother Stanton and those associated with him in the work he has been doing. Without my consent, they have made selections from the Testimonies, and have inserted them in the pamphlet they have published, to make it appear that my writings sustain and approve the position they advocate. In doing this they have done that which is not justice or righteousness. Through taking unwarrantable liberties, they have presented to the people theories that are of a character to deceive and destroy. In times past many others have done this same thing, and they made it appear that the testimonies sustained a position that was untenable and false.

(451) I have had light to the effect that the position taken by Brother Stanton and his sympathizers is not true, but is one of the “lo heres” and “lo theres” that will characterize the days in which we are living. As a sample of the way in which Brother Stanton has compiled this pamphlet, I will give the following instance: I wrote a private letter to one of our ministers, and in kindness, thinking that it might be a help to Brother Stanton this brother sent a copy of it to him, but instead of regarding it as a matter for his personal help, he prints portions of it in the pamphlet, as an unpublished testimony, to sustain the position he had taken. Is this honorable? There was nothing in the Testimony to sustain the position Brother Stanton holds; but he misapplied it, as many do the Scriptures, to the inquiry of his own soul and the souls of others. God will judge those who take unwarrantable liberties, and make use of dishonorable means in order to give character and influence to what they regard as truth. In the use of a private letter sent to another, Brother Stanton has abused the kindly efforts of the one who tried to help him. The parties publishing the pamphlet on the “Loud Cry”, and the fall of all the churches, give evidence that the Holy Spirit of God is not working with them. “By their (452) fruits ye shall know them.”

Those who receive the pamphlets advocating these false positions, will receive the impression that I sustain these positions, and am united with these workers in proclaiming what they term the “New light”. I know that their message is mingled with truth, but the truth is misapplied and wrested by its connection with error. I would say to the brother who sent to these men a copy of the letter I had written him, that I have not one thought of censuring you, and no one should cast the least blame upon you concerning the matter. If I should misjudge and censure you, when your motives and intentions were good, I should incur the displeasure of god. If the brother whom you desired to help has taken liberties, and betrayed your confidence, do not blame yourself, and grieve over the results of his unfaithfulness.

There are matters in the Testimonies that are written, not for the world at large, but for the believing children of God, and it is not appropriate to make instruction, warning, reproof, and counsel of this character public to the world. The world’s Redeemer, the Sent of God, the greatest Teacher the (453) world ever knew, presented some matter of instruction, not to the world, but to his disciples alone. While he had communication designed for the multitudes that thronged his steps, he also had some special light and instruction to impart to his followers, which he did not impart to the great congregation, as it would neither be understood nor appreciated by them. He sent his disciples forth to preach, and when they returned from their first missionary labor, and had various experiences to related concerning their success in preaching the [92] gospel of the kingdom of God, he said to them, “Come ye yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest a while.” In a place of seclusion, Jesus imparted to his followers such instruction, counsel, cautions and corrections as he saw were needed in their manner of work; but the instruction he then gave was not to be thrown broadcast to the promiscuous company; for his words were designed for the disciples only.

On several occasions when the Lord had wrought works of healing, he charged those whom he had blessed to tell his deed to no one. They ought to have heeded his injunctions, and realized that Christ had not lightly required silence on their part, but had a reason for his command, and they should (454) in no wise have disregarded his expressed desire. It ought to have been sufficient for them to know that he desired them to keep their own counsel, and had good reasons for his urgent request. The Lord knew that in healing the sick, in restoring the sight to the blind, and in cleansing the leper, He was endangering His own life; for if the priests and rulers would not receive the evidences He gave them of His divine mission, they would misconstrue, falsify, and make false charges against Him. It is true that He did not many miracles openly, yet in some instances He requested that those whom He had blessed should tell no one what He had done for them. When prejudice was aroused, envy and jealousy cherished, and His way hedged up, He left the cities and went in search of those who would listen to and appreciate the truth he came to impart.

The Lord Jesus thought it necessary to make many things clear to His disciples, which he did not open to the multitudes. He plainly revealed to them the reason for the hatred manifested to Him by the scribes, Pharisees, and priests, and told them of His suffering, betrayal and death; but to the world He did not make these matters so plain. He had warnings to give to His (455) followers, and he unfolded to them the sorrowful developments that would take place, and what they were to expect. He gave to His followers precious instruction that even they did not comprehend until after His death, resurrection, and ascension. When the Holy Spirit was poured out upon them, all things were brought to their remembrance, whatsoever He had said unto them.

It was a betrayal of sacred trust to take that which Jesus designed should be kept secret, and publish it to others, bringing upon the cause of truth reproach and injury. The Lord has given to His people appropriate messages of warning, reproof, counsel, and instruction, but it is not appropriate to take these messages out of their connection, and place them where they will seem to give force to messages of error. In the pamphlet published by Brother Stanton and his associates, he accuses the church of God of being Babylon, and would urge a separation from the church. This is a work that neither is honorable nor righteous. In compiling this work, they have used my name and writings for the support of that which I disapprove and denounce as error. The people to whom this pamphlet will come and will (456) charge the responsibility of this false position upon me. I have no hesitancy in saying that those who are urging on this work are greatly deceived.

For years I have borne my testimony to the effect that when anyone arises claiming to have great light, and yet advocate the tearing down of that which the Lord through His human agents is building up, they are greatly deceived, and are not working along the lines where Christ is working. Those who assert that the Seventh-day Adventist churches constitute Babylon, or any part of Babylon, might better stay at home. Let them stop to consider what is the message to be borne at this time. In the place of working with divine agencies to prepare a people to stand in the day of the Lord, they have taken their stand with him who is an accuser of the brethren, who accuses them before God day and night. Satanic agencies have been moved from beneath, and they have inspired men [93] to unite in a confederacy of evil, that they may perplex, harass, and cause the people of God great distress. The whole world is to be stirred with enmity against Seventh-day Adventists, because they will not yield homage to the papacy, by honoring Sunday, the institution of that anti-Christian power. It is the work of (457) Satan to cause them to be blotted from the earth, in order that his supremacy of the world may not be disputed.

The scene of Satan’s accusation was presented before the prophet. He says, “He showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to resist him.” Jesus is our great high Priest in heaven. And what is He doing?—He is making intercession and atonement for His people who believe in him. Through His imputed righteousness, they are accepted of God, as those who are manifesting to the world that they acknowledge allegiance to God, keeping all His commandments. Satan is full of malignant hatred against them, and manifests toward them the same spirit that he manifested toward Jesus Christ when He was upon earth. When Jesus was before Pilate, the Roman ruler sought to release Him, and desired that the people should release Jesus from the ordeal through which He was about to pass. He presented before the clamoring multitude the Son of God and the criminal Barabbas, and inquired, “Whom will ye that I release unto you? Barrabas, or Jesus which is called Christ?” “They said, Barrabas. Pilate saith unto them, What shall I do then with Jesus which is called Christ? They (458) say unto him, Let Him be crucified.”

The world was stirred by the enmity of Satan, and when asked to choose between the Son of God and the criminal Barabbas, they chose a robber and murderer rather than Jesus. The ignorant multitudes were led, by the deceptive reasoning’s of those in high positions, to reject the Son of God, and choose a robber and murderer in his stead. Let us all remember that we are still in a world where Jesus, the Son of God, was rejected and crucified, where the guilt of despising Christ and preferring a robber instead of the spotless Son of God, still rests. Unless we individually repent toward God because of the transgression of His law, and exercise faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ, we shall lie under the full condemnation that the action of choosing Christ instead of Barabbas merited. The whole world stands charged today with the deliberate rejection and murder of the Son of God. The word bears record that Jews and Gentiles,—kings, governors, ministers, priests, people,—all classes and sects who reveal the same spirit of envy, hatred prejudice and unbelief manifested by those who put to death the Son of God,—would act the same part were the opportunity (459) granted, as did the Jews and people of the time of Christ. They would be partakers of the same spirit that demanded the death of the Son of God.

In the scene representing the work of Christ for us, and the determined accusation of Satan against us, Joshua stands as the high priest, and makes request in behalf of God’s commandment — keeping people. At the same time, Satan represents the people of God as great sinners, and presents before God the lists of sins he has tempted them to commit through their lifetime, and urges that because of these transgressions they be given into his hands to destroy. He urges that they should not be protested by ministering angels from the confederacy of evil. He is full of anger because he cannot bind the people of God in bundles with the world, to render to him complete (obedience) allegiance. Kings, and rulers, and governors have placed upon themselves the brand of anti-Christ, and are represented as the dragon who goes to make war with the saints,—with those who keep the commandments of God, and have the faith of Jesus. In their enmity against the people of God, they show [94] themselves also guilty of the choice of Barabbas instead of Christ.

(460) God has a controversy with the world. When the judgment shall sit, and the books shall be opened, he has an awful account to settle, which would now make the world fear and tremble were men not blinded and bewitched by Satanic delusions and deceptions God will call the world to account for the death of His only begotten Son, whom to all intents and purposes the world has crucified afresh, and put to open shame in the persecution of His people. The world has rejected Christ in the person of His saints, has refused His messages in the refusal of the messages of His prophets, apostles, and messengers. They have rejected those who have been co-laborers with Christ, and for this they will have to render an account.

Satan stands at the head of all the accusers of the brethren; but when he presents the sins of the people of God, what does the Lord answer? He says, “The Lord rebuke (not Joshua who is a prepresented of the tried and tempted people of God, but) thee, O Satan; even the Lord that hath chosen Jerusalem rebuke thee; is this a brand plucked out of the fire? Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and stood before the angel.” Satan had represented the chosen and loyal people of God as being full of defilement and sin. He could depict the (461) very sin of which they had been guilty. Had he not set the whole confederacy of evil at work, to lead them, through his seductive arts, to lead them into these very evil sins. But they had repented, they had accepted the righteousness of Christ. They were therefore standing before God clothed with the garments of Christ’s righteousness, and “he answered and spake unto those that stood before Him, saying, Take away the filthy garments from him. And unto him he said, I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee, and I will clothe thee with a change of raiment.” Every sin of which they had been guilty was forgiven, and they stood before God as chosen and true, as innocent, as perfect, as though they had never sinned.

“And I said, Let them set a fair mitre upon his head. So they (the angels of God) set a fair mitre upon his head, and clothed him with garments. And the angel of the Lord stood by. And the angel of the Lord protested unto Joshua saying, Thus saith the Lord of hosts; if thou wilt walk in my ways, and if thou wilt keep my charge, then thou shalt also judge my house, and shalt also keep my courts, and I will give thee places to walk among these that stand by” I wish that all who claim (462) to believe present truth would think seriously of the wonderful things presented in this chapter. However weak and compassed with infirmity the people of God may be, those who turn from disloyalty to God in this wicked and perverse generation, and come back to their alliance, standing to vindicate the holy law of God, making up the breach made by the man of sin under the direction of Satan, will be accounted the children of God, and through the righteousness of Christ will stand perfect before God. Truth will not always lie in the dust to be trampled under foot of men. It will be magnified and made honorable; it will yet arise and shine forth in its natural luster, and will stand fast forever.

God has a people in which all heaven is interested, and they are the one object that is dear to the heart of God. Let everyone who reads these words give them thorough consideration; for in the name of Jesus I would press them home on every soul. When anyone arises, either among us or outside of us, who is burdened with a message which declares that the people of God are numbered with Babylon, and claims that the Loud Cry is a call to come out of her, you may know that he is not bearing (463) the message of truth. Receive him not, nor bid him God speed; for God has not spoken by him, neither given a message to him, but he ran before he was [95] sent. The message contained in the pamphlet called the “Loud Cry” is a deception. Such messages will come, and it will be claimed for them that they are sent by god, but the claim will be false; for they are not filled with light, but with darkness. There will be messages of accusation against the people of God, similar to the work done by Satan in accusing God’s people, and these messages will be sounding at the very time when God is saying to His people, “Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people; but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and His glory shall be seen upon thee.”

It will be found that those who bear a false message will not have a high sense of honor and integrity. They will deceive the people, and will mix up with the error the Testimonies of Sister White, and use her name to give influence to their work. They make such selections from the Testimonies as they think they can twist to support their positions, and place them (464) in a setting of falsehood, so that their error may have weight, and be accepted by the people. They misinterpret and misapply that which God has given to the church to warn, counsel, reproof, comfort, and encourage those who shall make up the remnant people of God. Those who receive the testimonies as the message of God will be helped and blessed thereby; but those who take them in parts, simply to support some theory or idea of their own, to vindicate themselves in a course of error, will not be blessed and benefitted by what they teach. To claim that the Seventh-day Adventist church is Babylon, is to make the same claim as does Satan, who is an accuser of the brethren, who accuses them before God night and day. My this misuse of the Testimonies souls are placed in perplexity, because they cannot understand the relation of the Testimonies to such a position as is taken by those in error; for God intended that the Testimonies should always have a setting in the framework of truth.

Those who advocate error will say, The Lord saith, “when the Lord hath not spoken. They testify to falsehood and not to truth. If those who have been proclaiming the message that the church is Babylon had used the money spent in publishing and (465) circulating this error, in building up instead of tearing down, they would have made it evident that they were with the people who God is leading. There is a great work to be done in the world, a great work to be done in the world, a great work to be done in foreign lands. Schools should be established where the youth, children, and those of more mature age may be educated as rapidly as possible to enter the missionary field. There is need not only of ministers for foreign fields, but of wise, judicious laborers of all kinds. The Macedonian cry is sounding from all parts of the world, “Come over and help us.” With all the responsibility upon us to go and preach the gospel to every creature, there is great need of men and means, and Satan is at work in every conceivable way to tie up means and to hinder men from engaging in the very work that they should be doing. The money that should be used in the good work of building houses of worship, of establishing schools for the education of laborers for the missionary fields, or freeing young men and women so that they may go forth and labor patiently, intelligently, and with all perseverance that they may be agents through whom people may be prepared to stand in the great day of God is diverted from a channel of usefulness and blessing into (466) a channel of evil and cursing. The great day of God is upon us, and hasteth greatly, and there is a great work to be done, and it must be done speedily. But we find amid the work to be done there are those among us professing to believe present truth who know not how to expend the means entrusted to them, and because of a lack of meekness and lowliness of [96] heart, they do not see how great is the work to be done. All those who learn of Jesus will be laborers together with God. But those who go forth to proclaim error, expending their time and money is a vain work, lay upon the workers in new fields increased burdens; for instead of devoting their time to advocating truth, they are obliged to counteract the work of those who are proclaiming falsehood, and claiming that they have a message from heaven. if those who had done this kind of work had felt the necessity of answering the prayer of Christ which that he offered to His Father just before His crucifixion—that the disciples might be one as He was one with the Father,—they would not be wasting the means entrusted to them and so greatly needed to advance the truth. They would not be wasting time and precious ability in disseminating error, and thus necessitate the devoting of the laborer’s time (467) to counteracting and quenching its influence. A work of this character is inspired not from above, but from beneath.

“Who is among you that feareth the Lord, that obeyeth the voice of His servant, that walketh in darkness, and hath no light, let him trust in the name of the Lord, and stay upon his God. Behold all ye that kindle a fire, that compass yourselves about with sparks; walk in the light of your fire, and in the sparks that ye have kindled. This shall ye have of mine hand: ye shall lie down in sorrow.” The message that has been borne by those who have proclaimed church to be Babylon, has made the impression that God has no church upon the earth.

Has God no living church? He has a church, but it is the church militant, not the church triumphant. We are sorry that there are defective members, that there are tares among the wheat. Jesus said, “The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field, but while men slept his enemies came, and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. . . . So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst thou not sow good seed in thy field? From whence then hath it tares? He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. (468) The servants said unto him, Wilt thou therefore that we go and gather them up? But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest; and at the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them; but gather the wheat into my barn.”

In this parable we see why the tares were not to be plucked up; —it was lest the root wheat should be rooted up with the tares. Human opinion and judgment would often err. Rather than have a mistake made, and one single blade of wheat be rooted up, the Master says, “Let both grow together until the harvest.” Then the angels will gather out the tares, which will be appointed to destruction. Although in our churches that claim to believe advanced truth, there are those who are faulty and erring, as tares among the wheat, God is long-suffering and patient. He reproves and warns the erring; but he does not destroy those who are long in learning the lessons he would teach them; he does not uproot the tares from the wheat. Tares and wheat are to grow together until the harvest; when the wheat comes to its full growth and development, and because of its (469) character when ripened, it will be fully distinguished from the wheat tares. The church of Christ on earth is imperfect; but God does not destroy His church because of its imperfection. There have been and will continue to be those who are filled with zeal hot according to knowledge, who would purify the church, and uproot the tares from the midst of the wheat. But Christ has given special light as to how to deal with those who are erring, and with those who are unconverted in the church. There is to be no spasmodic, hasty action taken by church members in cutting [97] off those they may think defective in character. Tares will appear among the wheat; but it would do more harm to weed out the tares, unless in God’s appointed way, than to leave them alone. While the Lord brings into the church those who are truly converted, Satan at the same time brings persons who are not converted into its fellowship. While Christ is sowing the good seed, Satan is sowing the tares. There are two opposing influences continually exerted on the members of the church. One influence is working for the purification of the church, and the other for the corrupting of the people of God.

(470) Jesus knew that Judas was defective in character, but notwithstanding this, we accepted him as one of the disciples, and gave him the same opportunities and privileges that He gave to the others whom had chosen. Judas was left without excuse in the evil course he afterward pursued. Judas might have become a doer of the word as was eventually Peter and James and John and the other disciples. Jesus gave precious lessons of instruction so that those associated with him might be converted, and have no need to cling to the defects that marred their characters.

Some people seem to think that on entering the church they will have their expectations fulfilled, and will meet only with those who are pure and perfect. They are zealous in their faith, and when they see faults in church members, they say, “We left the world in order to have no association with evil characters, but the evil is here also;” and they ask as did the parable, “From whence then hath it tares?” But we need not be thus disappointed; for the Lord has not warranted us in coming to the conclusion that the church is perfect; and all our zeal will not be successful in making the church militant as pure as the church triumphant. The Lord forbids (471) us to proceed in any violent way against those whom we think erring, and we are not to deal out excommunications and denunciations to those whom we deem faulty.

Finite man is likely to misjudge character, but God does not leave the work of judgment to those who are not fitted for it. We are not to say who constitutes the wheat and who the tares. The time of harvest will determine the character of the two classes specified under the figure of the wheat and the tares. The work of separation is given to the angels of God, and not committed to any man. False doctrine is one of the Satanic influences that work in the church and brings into it those who are unconverted in heart. Men do not obey the words of Jesus Christ and seek for unity in faith, spirit, and doctrine. They do not labor for the unity of spirit for which Christ prayed which would make the testimony of Christ’s disciples effective in convincing the world that God had sent his Son into the world, “that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” If the unity for which Christ prayed existed among the people of God, they would bear living testimony, would send forth a bright light to shine amid the (472) moral darkness of the world.

Instead of the unity that should exist among believers, there is disunion; for Satan is permitted to come in and through his specious delusions and deceptions he is leading those who are not learning of Christ meekness and lowliness of heart, to take a different line from the church, and break up, if possible, the unity of the church. Men arise speaking perverse things to draw away disciples after themselves. They claim that God has given them great light; but they do not act under its influence. Do they pursue the course that the two disciples pursued on their way to Emma’s? When they had received light, they returned and found those whom God had led and was still leading, and told how they had seen Jesus and had talked with Him. Have the men who claim to have light [98] concerning the church pursued this course. Have they gone to those who are chosen of God to bear a living testimony, and given evidence that this light would better qualify them to prepare a people to stand in the great day of God? Have they sought the counsel of those who have been and still are bearing the message of truth, and giving to the world the last message of warning? (473) Have they counselled with those who have a deep experience in the things of God? Why were these men so full of zeal for the cause not present at the General Conference held at Battle Creek as were the devout men of Jerusalem at the time of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. At the great heart of the work, men opened their treasures of light, and while the Lord was pouring out His Spirit upon the people, did these men receive of the heavenly anointing? While the deep moving’s of the spirit of God were made manifest among the people, and souls were being converted and hard hearts broken, there were those who were listening to the suggestions of Satan and were inspired with a power from beneath to go forth and proclaim that the very people receiving of the Holy Spirit, who are to receive the latter rain and the glory that is to fill the whole earth, were Babylon. Did the Lord give these messengers their message?—No; for it was not a message of truth.

Although there are evils existing in the church, and will be till the end of the world, the church in these last days is to be the light of the world that is polluted and demoralized by sin. The church, enfeebled and defective, needs to be reproved, warned, and counselled, is the only object upon the earth upon (474) which Christ bestows his supreme regard. The world is a workshop in which, through the cooperation of divine and human agencies, Jesus is making experiments by his divine grace upon human hearts. Angels are amazed as they behold the transformation of character brought about in those who yield themselves to God, and they express their joy in songs of rapturous songs of praise to God and to the Lamb. They see those who are by nature the children of wrath, converted, and becoming laborers together with God in drawing souls to Christ. They see those who were in darkness becoming lights to shine amid the moral darkness of this crooked and perverse generation. They see them become prepared by a Christlike experience to suffer with their Lord, and afterward to be partakers with Him in His glory in heaven above.

God has a church on the earth who are uplifting the downtrodden law, and presenting to the world the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world. The church is the depository of the wealth of the riches of the grace of Christ, and through the church eventually will be made manifest the final and full display of the love of God to the world that is to be lightened with its glory. The prayer of Christ that His church might be one (475) as He is one with the Father, will be finally answered. The rick dowry of the Holy Spirit will be given, and through its constant supply to the people of God, they will become witnesses to the world of the power of God unto salvation.

There is but one church in the world at the present time that is standing in the breach, and making up the hedge, building up the waste places; and for any man to call the attention of the world and other churches to this church, denouncing her as Babylon, is to do a work in harmony with him who is the accuser of the brethren. Is it possible that men will arise from among us, who speak perverse things, and give voice to the very sentiments that Satan would have disseminated in the world in regard to those who keep the commandments of God, and have the faith of Jesus. Is it not work enough to satisfy your zeal in presenting the truth to those who are in the darkness of error. As those who have been made stewards of means and ability, you have been misapplying your Lord’s goods in disseminating error. The world is filled with hatred for those who are proclaiming the binding claims of the law of God, and the church [99] that is loyal to God must engage in no ordinary conflict. (476) “We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” Those who have any realization of what this warfare means, will not turn their weapons against the church militant, but with all their powers will wrestle with the people of God against the confederacy of evil.

Those who start up to proclaim a message on their own individual responsibility, who, while claiming to be taught and led of God, still make it their special work to tear down that which for years God has been building up, are not doing the will of God. Be it known that these men are on the side of the great deceiver. Believe them not. They are allaying themselves with the enemies of God and the truth. They will deride the order of the ministry as a system of priest craft. From such turn away; have no fellowship with their message, however much they may quote the testimonies and seek to entrench themselves behind them. Receive them not; for God has not given them this work to do. The result of such work will be unbelief in the testimonies, and as far as possible they will make of none (477) effect the work that I have for years been doing. Almost my whole life time has been devoted to this work, but my burdens have often been made heavier by the arising of man who went forth to proclaim a message that God had not given them. This class of evil workers have selected portions of the testimonies, and have placed them in the framework of error, in order by this setting to give influence to their false Testimony. When it is made evident that their message is error, then the testimonies brought into the companionship of error, share the same condemnation; and people of the world, who do not know that the testimonies quote are extracts from private letters, used without my consent, present these matters as evidence that my work is not of God or of truth, but falsehood. Those who thus bring the work of God into disrepute will have to answer before God for the work they are doing.

God has a church, and she has a divinely appointed ministry “And he gave some apostles, some prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; for the perfecting of the saints for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of (478) the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; that we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; but speaking the truth in love, they grow up into Him in all things, which is the head, even Christ.”

The Lord has his appointed agencies, and a church that has lived through persecution, conflict and darkness. Jesus loved the church, and gave Himself for it, and He will replenish, ennoble, refine, and elevate it, so that it shall stand fast amid the corrupting influences of the world. Men appointed of God have been chosen to watch with jealous care, with vigilant perseverance, that the church may not be overthrown by the evil devices of Satan, but that she shall stand in the world to promote the glory of God among men. There will ever be fierce conflict between the church and the world. Mind will come into contact with mind, principle with principle, truth with error. But in the crisis soon to culminate, which has already begun, the men of experience have to do their God-appointed work, and (479) watch for souls, as they that must give an account.

Those who are carrying this message of error, denouncing the church as Babylon, are neglecting their God-appointed work, are in opposition to [100] organization, are in opposition to the plain command of God in Malachai in regard to bringing all the tithes into the treasury of God’s house, and imagine they have a work to do in warning those whom God has chosen to forward his message of truth. These workers are not bringing greater efficiency into the cause and kingdom of God, but are engaged in a work similar to that in which the enemy of all righteousness is engaged. Let these men who are rising up against the ways and means ordained of God to forward his work in these days of peril, divest themselves of all unscriptural views concerning the nature office and power of God’s appointed agencies. Let all understand the words that I now write. Those who are laborers together with God are but his instruments, and they in themselves possess no grace or holiness. It is only when they are cooperating with heavenly intelligences that they are successful. They are but the earthen vessels, the depositories in which God places the treasure of His truth. Paul may plant, and Apollos (480) water, but it is God alone that gives the increase.

God speaks through his appointed agencies, and let no man, or confederacy of me, insult the Spirit of God by refusing to hear the message of God’s word from the lips of His chosen messengers. By refusing to hear the message of God, men close themselves in a chamber of darkness. They shut their own souls away from vast blessings, and rob Christ of the glory that should come to Him, by showing disrespect to his appointed agencies.

God is not the author of confusion, but of peace. But Satan is a vigilant, unsleeping foe, ever at work upon human minds seeking a soil in which he can sow his tares. If he finds any whom he can press into his service, he will suggest ideas and false theories, and make them zealous in advocating error. The truth not only converts, but works the purification of its receiver. Jesus has warned us to beware of false teachers. From the beginning of our work men have arisen from time to time, advocating theories that were new and startling. But if those who claim to believe the truth would go to those who have had experience, would go to the word of God in a teachable, humble spirit, and examine their theories in the light of truth, and (481) with the aid of the brethren (482) faith. Instead of teaching truth, they let their imagination dwell upon that which is new and strange, and throw themselves out of harmony with those whom God is using to bring the people up on the platform of truth. They cast aside all that has been said in regard to unity of sentiment and feeling, and trample upon the prayer of Christ as though the unity for which He prayed is unessential, that there is no necessity for his followers to be one, as he is one with the Father. They go off on a tangent, and Jehu-like, call on their brethren to follow their example of zeal for the Lord. If their zeal led them to work in the same lines that their brethren who have borne the heat and burden of the day have been working; if they were as persevering in overcoming obstacles as their brethren have been, they might well be imitated, and God would accept them. But men are to be condemned who start out with a proclamation of wonderful light, and yet draw away from the agents whom God is leading. This was the way in which Korah, Dathan, and Abiram did, and their action is recorded as a warning to all others. We are not to do as these have done,—accuse and condemn those upon whom God has laid the burden of the work.

(483) Those who have proclaimed the Seventh-day Adventist church to be Babylon, have used the Testimonies to give their position a seeming support; but why did they not present that which for years has been the burden of my message—the unity of the church? Why did they not quote the words of the angel, “Press together; press together; press together.” [101] Why did they not repeat the admonition and state the principle, that “In union there in strength, in division there is weakness?” It is such messages as these men have borne, that divide the church and put us to shame before the enemies of the truth; and in such messages is plainly revealed the spacious working of the great deceiver, who would hinder the church from attaining unto perfection in unity. These teachers follow the sparks of their own kindling, move according to their own independent judgment, and cumber the truth with false notions and theories. They refuse the counsel of their brethren, and press on in their own way, until they become just what Satan would desire to have them,—unbalanced in mind.

I warn my brethren to guard against the working of Satan in every form. The great adversary of God and man is exulting today (484) that he has succeeded in deceiving souls and in diverting their means and ability into harmful channels. Their money might have been used to advance present truth, but instead of this has been spent in presenting notions that have no foundation in truth.

In 1845 a man by the name of Curtis did a similar work in the state of Massachusetts. He presented false doctrines, and wove into his theories sentences and selections from the testimonies, and published his theories in the “Day Star” and in sheet form. For years these productions bore their baleful fruit and brought reproach upon the Testimonies, that, as a whole, in no way supported his work. My husband wrote to him and asked him what he meant by presenting the testimonies interwoven with his own words, in support of that which we were opposed to, and requested him to correct the impression that his work had given. He flatly refused to do so, saying that his theories were truth, and that the visions ought to have corroborated his views, and that they virtually did support them, but that I had forgotten to write out the matters that made his theories plain.

(485) Ever since the beginning of the work, one after another has risen up to do this kind of work, and I have had to go to the trouble and incur the expense of contradicting these falsehoods. They have published their theories, and have deceived many souls, but may God guard the sheep of his pasture.

I urge those who claim to believe the truth to walk in unity with their brethren. Do not seek to give the world occasion to say that we are extremists, that we are disunited, that one teaches one thing, and one another. Avoid dissension. Let everyone be on guard, and be careful to be found standing in the gap to make up the breach, in place of standing in the wall, seeking to make a breach. Let all be careful not to make an outcry against the only people who are fulfilling the description given of the remnant people, who keep the commandments of God and have the faith of Jesus, who are fulfilling the description given of the remnant people, who keep the commandments of God and have the faith of Jesus, who keep commandments of God and have the faith of Jesus, who are exalting the standard of righteousness in the last days. God has a distinct people, a church on earth, second to none, but superior to all in their facilities to teach the truth, to vindicate the law of God. God has divinely appointed agencies—men whom he is leading, who have borne the heat and burden of the day, who are cooperating (486) with heavenly instrumentalities in advancing the kingdom of Christ in our world. Let all unite with these chosen agents, and be found at last among those who have the patience of the saints, who keep the commandments of God, and have the faith of Jesus. [102]

The following is the letter sent to Brother Stanton: —

Napier, New Zealand, March 23, 1893
Dear Brother Stanton, —

I addressed a few lines to you. I am not in harmony with the position you have taken; for I have been shown that just such positions will be taken by those who are in error. Paul has given us warning to this effect: “Now the spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter time some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of devils.”

I learn that you are taking the position that the Seventh-day Adventist church is Babylon, and that all who would be saved must come out of her. You are not the only man whom the enemy has deceived in this matter. For the last forty years, one man after another has arisen claiming that the Lord has sent him with the same message; but let me tell you, as I have told you that this message you are proclaiming is a Satanic delusion designed to create confusion among the churches.

(488) My brother, you are certainly off the track. The first message was to go to Babylon (the churches), proclaiming her downfall, and calling the people to come out to her. This message was to be proclaimed a second time. “And after these things I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great power; and the earth was lightened with his glory. And he cried mightily with a strong voice saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and the cag of every unclean and hateful bird. For all nations have drunk of the wine of her wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth have waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies. And I heard another voice from heaven saying, “Come out of her my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and ye receive not of her plagues. For her sins have reached to heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.” If you are teaching that the Seventh-day Adventist church is Babylon, you are wrong. God has not given you any such message to bear. Satan will use every mind to which he can gain access, inspiring men to originate (489) false theories and go off on some tangent that will create excitement and thus divert souls from the true issues for this time. Some may be deceived by your message, because they are full of curiosity and a desire for some new thing.

I feel sad that you should be deceived in any way by the suggestions of the enemy; for I know the theory you are advocating is not the truth. In advancing the theories you do, you will do great injury to yourself and others. Do not seek to misinterpret and pervert the Testimonies to substantiate any such message of error. Many have passed over this ground, and have done great harm. As others have stated up to proclaim this message again and again, I have been shown that it is not the truth.

I understand that you are also teaching that we should not pay tithe. My brother, take off your shoes from off your feet; for the place whereon you stand is holy ground. The Lord has spoken in regard to tithe paying, saying, “Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house; and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of Hosts, if I will not pour you out a blessing that there shall not be (490) room enough to receive it.” But while he pronounces a blessing upon those who bring in their tithes, he pronounces a curse upon those who withheld them. Very recently I have had direct light from the Lord upon this question, and I was shown that Seventh-day Adventists are robbing God in tithes and offerings. I saw that Malachai stated the case as it really is today. How dare any man even think in his heart to withhold tithes and offerings from the Lord. Where my brother, you have [103] stepped out of the path, get your feet back again into the strait path. We are nearing the end of time, and if you, or any other man, is seduced by the enemy to set the time for Christ’s coming, you will do the same evil work that wrought the ruin of the souls who did it in the past. If you are wearing the yoke of Christ, if you are lifting the burden, you will see that there is plenty to do in the lines in which God’s faithful workers are laboring—in preaching Christ and him crucified. But any who shall start up to proclaim the day, the hour, or the year of Christ second coming, has taken upon himself a yoke, and a work that the Lord has never given him.

God has a church upon the earth, made up of his chosen, (491) commandment-keeping people. He is leading not to stray offshoots, not one here and there, but a people. The truth is a sanctifying power, but the church militant is not the church triumphant. There are tares among the wheat. “Wilt thou then that we gather them up,” was the question asked by the servants. But the Master answered, “Nay; lest, while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them.” The gospel net drew not only good but bad fish as well; and the Lord knows them that are His.

It is our individual duty to walk humbly with God. We are not to seek every strange, new message. We are not to think that the chosen ones of God, who are trying to walk in the light, are Babylon. The fallen denominational churches are Babylon, Babylon has been fostering poisonous doctrines, the wine of error. This wine of error is made up of false doctrines, such as the natural immortality of the soul, the external torment of the widened, the denial of the existence of Christ prior to his birth in Bethlehem, and the exaltation of the first day of the week above God’s holy Sabbath. These and kindred errors are presented to the world by the churches, and thus the Scriptures are fulfilled which says of them, “For all nations have drunk (492) of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.” It is a wrath created by false doctrines, and when kings and rulers drink the wine of the wrath of her fornication, they are stirred with anger against those who will not come into harmony with their heresies which exalt a false Sabbath, and trample underfoot God’s memorial.

Fallen angels from heaven form confederation with evil men. In this age antichrist will appear as the true Christ, and then the law of God will be made void by the nations of our world. Rebellion against God’s holy law will be fully ripe. But the true leader of all this rebellion is Satan clothed as an angel of light. Men will be deceived and exalt him to the place of God. But Omnipotence will interpose, and to the apostate churches that unite in the exaltation of Satan, the sentence will go forth, “Therefore her plagues shall come in one day, death and mourning and famine, and she shall be utterly burned with fire; for strong is the Lord who judgeth her.” [104]

Ormondville.

(493) In September I visited Ormondville, where Brother McCullagh had been laboring, and where several good souls had embraced the truth.

When I arrived I learned that an appointment was out for me to speak that night. The little hall was filled, and I spoke to the people with great plainness, explaining to them the reasons of our faith and our name Seventh-day Adventists. I dwelt particularly on the Sabbath of the fourth commandment, and coupled with this the promise of Christ in the first three verses of John 14: “Let not your heart be troubled; ye believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto myself; that where I am there ye may be also.”

After the meeting closed we made our way to our hired rooms in the house of Mr. Grant, —pleasant convenient rooms.

On Friday, Sept. 8, W.C. white arrived, and in the afternoon we drove out five miles to Norsewood, where Brother Anderson had (494) been laboring, and where two families were keeping the Sabbath. Others were convinced of the truth, but had not yet decided to obey. We called on one Norwegian family, the father of which was a cripple from rheumatism. I sympathized with him greatly. We left an appointment that I would speak in Norsewood on Monday evening. As it was now nearing the Sabbath we returned home.

On Sabbath I spoke in a house of worship well filled with believers and unbelievers, taking for my text Isa. 58. I again presented the Sabbath, showing its importance, and that it was not to be thought a matter of little moment whether it be regarded or rejected. I read to them from the 31st chapter of Exodus where it is plainly stated that the Sabbath is a sign between God and his people throughout their generations forever. “Thou art an holy people unto the Lord thy God; the Lord thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto himself, above all the people that are upon the face of the earth. The Lord did not set his love upon you nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye were the fewest of all people; but because the Lord loved you, and because He would keep the oath which he had sworn unto our fathers, hath the Lord brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you out of the house of bondsmen, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. Know therefore that the Lord thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations. Thou shalt therefore keep the commandments, and the statutes, and the judgments, which I command thee this day, to do them. Wherefore it shall come to pass, if ye hearken to these judgments, and keep them, and do them that the Lord thy God shall keep (495) unto thee the covenant and the mercy which he swore unto they fathers.”

John beheld the remnant people of God looking into the sanctuary above. They were represented to him as reverently looking into the ark, in which were the tables of stone containing the ten commandments graven with the finger of God, and he exclaimed, “Here are they that keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.

(496) A social meeting followed, in which many bore testimony. Satan has worked hard in this place to keep souls from obeying the truth. We pray that he may be disappointed, and that truth would triumph over error. Many precious souls were convinced of the truth, but the determined opposition of the ministers was preventing many from accepting the light.

On Monday evening I spoke in the Rechabites Hall. This was a much [105] larger place than the chapel we had used for our other services; but the seats were well filled, and many were obliged to stand. I spoke with much freedom on the subject of temperance. The people listened with deep interest, and this was the case in every meeting. Brother Codling, who came with W.C. White from Palmerston was greatly strengthened. We took me by the hand and said, “Sister White, your son did a good thing when he stopped off at Palmerston, and urged me to come to these meetings. They have been a great blessing to me.”

Monday proved to be a very rainy day, and I could not fill my appointment at Norsewood. W.C. White rode out the five miles to this place and spoke to the people, so that they would not be entirely disappointed. Fifty-five persons were out, some of whom had walked three miles in the rain to attend the meeting. On his return, when about a mile from home his carriage wheel set. They happened to be quite close to the home of Brother Amazon, who had loaned us his buggy. Bro. McCullagh’s sulky was there, so the horse was transferred to this, and they continued their journey. They reached home about midnight.

(497) Early on Tuesday morning we prepared to return to Hastings which we reached after a four hours’ ride in a slow jerky train. On the Sunday that we were absent, Brother Wilson had baptized eight souls. The following evening I spoke for a short time to a company assembled in Brother Wilson’s parlor in regard to the blessings promised to all who keep the commandments of God. Two precious souls had taken their stand for the truth since I had come to Hastings. One of these, an intelligent, discrete woman was laboring wisely for her husband. He had never made it was the only preaching he had ever heard that had had any effect upon his mind. On this evening Sister’s Dunn and Blackwell had come a long distance in the rain and dark. They said they could not consent to losing one opportunity of hearing Sister White. I prayed that the Lord might give me pure and holy words, the bread of life for these hungry souls.

Late in the afternoon of the following day, a young Maori sixteen years of age called on us. He was the first one to become interested in the truth at the school, and came to Brother Everson to learn all he could teach him about the Sabbath and kindred truths. He embraced the truth and was baptized. A schoolmate of his also came out firmly for the truth, and has gone to America to study to become a medical missionary. Still another has a desire to go to a school where these truths are taught, and his parents have given him the promise that he shall go next year. They probably think he will lose interest in the truth by that time.

On Sabbath Sept. 16. I spoke to a nice little company in (498) the Oddfellows Hall, used often as a chapel by our people. The power of the Spirit of God was upon me as I spoke in regard to the wickedness of the world and the inhabitants thereof and showed that the reason for this was that parents for generations back had not kept the law of God. I warned our brethren and sisters that they would meet persecutions and severe trials for the truth’s sake; but that they must not yield one iota of their faith. God is proving us as a people, and angels of god are commissioned to watch over those who suffer for the truth’s sake. We need to fear more the wrath of God than the wrath of the enemy of our faith. It is far better to lose the friendship of the world than to lose the favor of God by disobedience to his commandments. The acceptance of the gospel of Jesus Christ bestows a power inherent and independent, that will not yield to any circumstances.

The voice of God in His word calls to every man, woman, and child as it called to Abraham, to keep the way of the Lord. God is supreme. His will is to become our will. The light affliction that we may be called [106] upon to endure for Christ’s sake will add to the exceeding and eternal weight of glory. His hand may lead through the deepest waters, but Jesus has gone before. The road may be rough and hard, but Jesus has trodden that way before us. His feet have beaten down the difficulties for the feet of His true followers. As His children bow in submission to God’s will, and take up the cross, inspiring faith will come to them, and God will give strength to endure trials and to obey Him in every trial.

While I was speaking a man with a cigarette in his mouth and a little child in his arms pushed his way through the gate (499) and entered the hall. Putting the child on the floor, he sent it to seek its mother, one of our sisters. The mother took the child on her lap, and her husband, catching her eye, motioned her to leave the meeting. She did not move. After a time he tried again to gain her eye, but she did not look his way. I spoke some words to this sister, bidding her to look to Jesus, to love God and have faith and confidence in him. If she put her trust in God, the divine presence would surely be with her in every difficulty.

* * * * *

We had a three days’ counsel in Hastings, when Elders Israel, McCullagh, Brother Simpson and W.C. White were present. According to the arrangements made at that time, we would soon have been on our way to hold meetings in Auckland, and from there have proceeded to Melbourne by way of Sydney. But a telegram from Auckland, stating that the Pitcairn would be there in a few days, and another telegram a few days later to the effect that Elder Olsen would be in N.Z. Nov. 23 to attend camp-meeting, (500) we decided to remain. W.C.W. left at once for Auckland. It had been promised that the camp-meeting should be held in that place, but now it was decided that it be held it in Wellington, as the more central place. W.C. White must meet the Pitcairn when it should arrive; for there was trouble among the crew, and it was necessary to make some changes in the seamen.

We were soon engaged in the work of another camp-meeting, which held us in New Zealand two months longer. A baby camp-meeting it was, but it meant much to the people of this colony. We could not secure a church, and the people would not come to meetings held in the halls. This meeting seemed to be the only way to reach the people and get the truth before them. We prayed that God would help his people in this another effort to break down the existing prejudice. [107]

[Pages 501-505 missing]

Temperance.

Sermon, Gisborne,
October, 1893

(506) “As it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man. They did eat, they drank, they married wives; they were given in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, and the flood came, and destroyed them all. Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded; but the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all. Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed.”

(507) The temperance question is of tremendous importance to each one of us. It is a far-reaching question. I have spoken upon this subject twenty-one times in succession, and still have only touched it. This afternoon I will deal with just a few phases of the subject. There is no sin in eating and drinking to sustain physical life; this it is right to do; but when men lose eternity out of their reckoning, and carry these necessary things to excess, they sin. We know that intemperance exists in our world. On every side we see iniquity and crime. Is it not time that we begin to study the question for ourselves? We have souls to save or to lose. The tempter is on every side. For every “Thou shalt” of God, he has ready a “Thou shalt not.” Men listen to the voice of the tempter, and instead of the blessings that he promises for obedience to him, men reap misery and woe.

God created our first parents and placed them in the garden of Eden. They had all that their wants required. Nothing was lacking to make them happy. God placed only one restriction upon them. Of the fruit of the tree which was in (508) the midst of the garden, He said, “Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.” If they would not regard this restriction, they would forfeit their life.

Adam and Eve, with everything that their wants required, listened to the tempter and disobeyed God. When God came to inquire of Adam, he laid the blame upon Eve. Eve, in turn cast the blame upon the serpent. To the serpent God said, “I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between they seed and her seed; thou shalt bruise His heel, and he shall bruise thy head.” In this enmity which the God of heaven puts against the serpent, the enemy cannot touch the mind, unless man consents. No enmity was placed between those who serve the God of heaven and the hosts of darkness. This first gospel sermon was a star of hope to illumine the dark and dismal future. O, Satan heard it, that man fallen by sin might be recovered, that the pair in Eden with their posterity should not be left to hopeless ruin.

(509) When Christ came into our world as a babe in Bethlehem, the angels sang, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill to men. To the watching shepherds the angel said, Fear not; for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Saviour which is Christ the Lord.”

Satan with all his synagogue determined that Christ should not carry out the councils of heaven.

After Jesus was baptized he bowed on the banks of the Jordan, and prayed. Never before had heaven listened to such a prayer as came from his divine lips. That prayer cleaved right through the darkness and entered where God is. The glory of God in the form of a dove of burnished gold, rested upon him, and from the infinite glory was heard the words, [108] “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” To each of us this means that heaven is opened for us. The human race is encircled by the human arm of Christ, while with His divine arm He grasps the throne of the Infinite One. The gates are ajar. The glory is imparted to the Son of God is for all who believe in His name. (510) Our petitions will be heard in heaven and answered, as surely as God answered the petition of His Son, our Substitute and Surety.

Christ entered the wilderness with the Spirit of God upon Him, to be tempted of the devil. “And Jesus, being full of the Holy Ghost returned from Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, being tempted forty days of the devil. And in those days He did eat nothing; and when they were ended, He afterward hungered. And the devil said unto him, “If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread. And Jesus answered Him saying, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.”

Satan came to the Son of God as an angel of light, and tempted Him on the point of appetite. Christ was hungry, and in need of food. Why did He not work this miracle?—It was not in God’s plan. Christ was to work no miracle on His own account. He was passing that his wants required. Fierce hunger was upon Christ, and what he wanted was food. But Christ resisted the temptation with the words, It is written.”

(511) Satan, foiled in this temptation, “taketh Him into the holy city, and sitteth Him on a pinnacle of the temple, and saith unto Him, if thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down; for it is written He shall give his angels charge concerning thee; and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.” Why did Satan leave out that part of the scripture which says, “in all ways”? While Christ was in the ways of God, no harm could come to him.

This temptation of Satan was a challenge. “If thou be the Son of God, he said. What would have been gained if Christ had done as Satan asked? Nothing to Christ; everything to Satan. But at the end of the trial, Jesus could say, of Satan, “He found nothing in me.” Again he met the tempter with the words, “It is written.”

Finding that he could not defeat Christ on the ground of appetite or presumption, the devil “taketh him into an exceeding high mountain, and showeth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them, and saith unto Him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship (512) me.” Then divinity flashed through humanity. “Get thee hence,” Satan, He said, “for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.” Satan left the field a conquered foe. Christ had passed over the ground where Adam fell, and was victorious.

The battle ended, Christ fell fainting on the field. There was no human bosom on which to pillow his head, no human hand to press his brow. “Then angels came and ministered unto Him.” Just such help we may claim in temptation.

In this experience we see the importance of overcoming temptation to indulge appetite. Christ overcame, and we may obtain victory as He did, Christ saw that it was impossible for man to overcome in his own behalf; therefore He came to bring moral power to man. What has Christ not done for the human family. He has elevated man in the scale of moral worth. We may become conquerors through our sufficiency. In Christ there is hope for the most hopeless. “Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? Then may ye also do good, that are accustomed to do evil.” Come now and let us reason together, (513) saith the Lord; [109] though your skins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” Christ came to represent the Father, to bring eternal life, to break every band of sin. When God gave his Son, he gave all heaven. He could give no more.

“The spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound.” Christ was the only one who had power to do this work. In Him was paid the great price for souls sunk in sin. In taking human nature Christ showing that he placed a high value on every soul. “What,” He says through the apostle Paul, “know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own. For ye are bought with a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in our spirit, which are God’s.” This is the value God places on man, and He says again, “I will make a man more precious than fine gold; even a man than the golden wedge of Ophir.” But (514) God will do nothing without the cooperation of the human agent.

“Nadab and Abihu took either of them his censer, and put fire therein, and put incense thereon, and offered strange fire before the Lord. And there went out fire from the Lord and devoured them, and they died before the Lord. Then Moses said unto Aaron, This is that the Lord spake, saying, I will be sanctified in them that come nigh unto me, and before all the people I will be glorified, And Aaron held his peace. And the Lord spake unto Aaron saying, Do not drink wine nor strong drink, thou, nor thy sons with thee, when ye go into the tabernacle of the congregation, lest ye die; it shall be a statute forever throughout your generations, and that ye may put a difference between holy and unholy, and between unclean and clean.” Nadab’s and Abihu’s minds were beclouded because of intemperance, and instead of taking the fire that God had commanded, they took common fire, in this they went directly contrary to God’s requirements, and God destroyed them. If they had kept themselves free from wine they would have distinguished between the sacred and the common.

(515) We read of steamboat disasters and railroad accidents, and in many, many cases the cause can be traced to intemperance; some mind has been beclouded by intoxicating drink and lost the sense of responsibility resting upon it. Many, many lives were lost because one person got drunk. These lives will be charged to the man who put the bottle to his neighbor’s lips.

In olden times when a man had a vicious animal he paid for all the evil it wrought. In Ex. 21:23 we read, “If an ox gore a man or a woman that they die; but the owner of the ox shall be quit. But if the ox were wont to push with the horn in times past, and it hath been testified to his owner, and he hath not kept him in, but that he have killed a man or a woman, the ox shall be stoned, and his owner shall also be put to death.” The principle of the law which the God of heaven gave to regulate what to do with vicious animals we wish to apply to those who brew and sell the deadly poison of alcohol. I ask you who have reasoning powers to think on these things. The man who is intoxicated is robbed of his reason. Satan comes in and takes (516) possession of him and imbues him with his spirit; and his first desire is to hurt or kill some of his loved ones. What has the drunkard gained? Nothing but a madman’s brain. And men will allow this thing to go on that makes men lower than the beasts. The laws are such that temptation to drink are continually before them. That liquor sells will have to answer for all the sins of the [110] drunkard, and the drunkard will also have to give account for his deeds. The curse of God is upon the one who puts the bottle to his neighbor’s lips.

No drunkard’s name will be written in the books of heaven. God calls upon those who are tempted to resist temptation like a man, in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth to lay hold upon divine power. Christ will work in behalf of everyone. There only hope is to lay their souls upon a crucified and risen Saviour. God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

The tobacco habit, which has no foundation in nature, is undermining the constitutions of many. I know of some of these tobacco devotees who were cursed with this vile habit. My husband (517) and I founded a health institute in America. The testimony of those nurses who treated tobacco patients was alarming. They told of the effluvia on the treatment sheets and in the baths. Yet these victims of habit were brought to stand on solid Rock. Many who said that they could never overcome the habit were brought safely out.

Men who sit in legislative councils should not drink wine r strong drink. They need unclouded brains, that they may have sharp, clear reasoning powers. The destiny of human life is in their power, on their decision depends the death penalty or other mods of punishment. And yet we have known of a drunken carousal in the courts of justice. Had these men a clear brain and an eye single to the glory of God? Nature is defaced in man whom Christ came to elevate. Taste not, touch not, should be your motto. You should be temperate in eating; but liquor, let it alone, touch it not; there can be no temperance in its use.

Parents, you need to arouse to your God-given duty. Teach your children obedience. Many have lost respect for father and mother. They will have just as much respect for God as they have for their earthly parents. Teach your children daily the lessons (518) of self-control and temperance. Give them their first lessons when they are babies in your arms. Angels will be around you as you do this. When those weary mothers in the time of Christ knew not what to do with their children, they thought they would bring them to Jesus. As one mother started saying, I want Jesus to bless my children, one and another joined her until, when they reached Jesus there was quite a little company to receive his blessing. Jesus saw those mothers when they first left their homes. As they came to the place where He was, He heard the sound of their coming. And as they presented their little ones to Him, He said, “Suffer the little ones to come unto me, and forbid them not; for of such is the kingdom of heaven.

Parents, take hold of the power of God. The gates are ajar. You need to make your homes like that of Abraham. He commanded his household after him, teaching his children to obey the commandments of God. These are the lessons, mothers, that you are patiently to teach to your little ones. There is One who knows all about the troubles that the little hands give. Every day, mothers, fulfil your duties in His fear, and the word “conquerors through Jesus Christ” will be written opposite your (519) names. Make your home so attractive that your sons will not want to go to the saloon. Put back the draperies, and let the sunlight, heaven’s doctor in. Take them out among the works of nature. Point them to the flowers and trees; teach them that God made every spire of grass, every beautiful tint in the flower. Tell them that here is an expression of God’s love for them, that these beautiful things of nature is God’s voice telling them that he loves his children. Let peace and quiet reign in your home. Do not threaten your children with the wrath of God if they [111] do wrong; but lead them by your prayers to Christ.

You may say, We are in the minority. Is not God a majority? If we are on the side of the God who made the heavens and the earth, are we not in the majority? Angels that excel in strength are on our side. Human passions are destroying human beings. Our youth are being tempted, their minds are being taken up with gambling and horse racing. May God help us to arouse. Your children are God’s property; they are making character today. Young men, young women, you are determining today your lot in the future. Let Christ come in. He will keep you in temptation.

(520) Mothers, you cannot afford to spend time in studying the fashions of the day. Away with the fashions of this degenerate age, in following them you are abusing the bodies which God has given you. What does it mean, young women, - this girding of the waist which does not allow your lungs to expand naturally? Your future posterity will testify against you if you follow this custom. How could I speak as I have spoken had I girded myself as some of you are doing. Mothers should place a proper value on all such customs. The habits and propensities of the mother are transmitted to the child. Many a mother who indulges in habits to gratify appetite is taking underpinning from her own home.

When the wife of Manoah was about to bear a son, the Lord instructed her that she must be strictly temperate in her habits. “And the angels of the Lord appeared to the woman, and said unto her, Behold, thou art barren, and barest not; but thou shalt conceive and bear a son. Now therefore beware I pray thee, and drink not wine nor strong drink, and eat not any unclean thing.”

(521) The angel who appeared to Zacharias and Elizabeth said, Thy prayer is heard, and thy wife Elizabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John. And thou shalt have joy and gladness; and many shall rejoice at his birth; for he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink, and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost.”

We want heaven at the loss of all things, and Jesus Christ means that we shall have it if we will cooperate with Him. Satan is playing the game of life for every soul; but we may have a record as clear as Daniel’s if we wish. We want to stand clear and pure from the degradations of this world. “He that overcometh the same shall be clothed in white raiment, and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father and before His angels.” Christ overcame in our behalf; we may overcame in His name. As the redeemed enter in through the gates into the city, Christ welcomes all. With harps of gold in their hands, and wearing robes woven in the loom of heaven with not one thread of humanity in them, they sing the praises of Jesus Christ. [112]

Appeal to Attend the Wellington Camp.

(522) Dear brethren and Sisters in New Zealand,—

I have an appeal to make to our churches to attend the coming camp-meeting opened Nov. 23 in Wellington. You cannot afford to lose this opportunity. We know that this meeting will be an important era in the work in New Zealand. Particular efforts should be made to get to this meeting a representation of those who believe the truth, for the reason that we are so few in numbers, and the enemies of the truth are many. We want to present as good a front as possible. Let not your business detain you. You individually need the benefits of this meeting, and God calls you to number one in the ranks of truth.

I fear quite a number will say, it is expensive to travel, and I had better save the money to use in advancing the cause and work of God where it is so much needed. No, no; God calls you to take your place in the rank and file, strengthen the work all you possibly can by your personal presence. Let (523) no one say, I attended the camp-meeting in Napier, and that will suffice. I will remain, and let someone else go. We want you and the somebody else as well. Let no stay-away argument be used. We know that the believers are scattered; but we want you to make no excuses.

The Lord wants you to come to the meeting and bring your families, except the little ones, who would only tie your hands. Put forth extra exertions. Better, far better let the business suffer than to neglect the opportunity to hear the message God has for you at this time. You need all the light you can obtain.

You are acquainted with the truth in a measure, but you ought to become &lt;much&gt; better acquainted with the reasons of your faith. Come with your Bibles in your hand, for you ought to have a better knowledge of the &lt;Word of God and its&gt; sanctifying influence of the truth upon heart and character. You cannot afford to lose one such privilege as you are now favored with. You must not now disappoint us. It is important that everyone come up to the help of the Lord, to the help of the Lord against the mighty.

(524) We see that the forces of the enemy are strengthening. The ministers in every place are making earnest efforts to oppose the truth, and more so in Wellington than in any place I ever visited. Everything is said to represent Seventh-day Adventists as few in number and &lt;are&gt; inferior people without influence. Should we not on this occasion represent the believing rank and file to the best of our ability. Will not our brethren come up to the feast of tabernacles? How zealously should each one guard the way that leads to the city of God. &lt;Wake up! Wake up and let your influence in testimony speak to hearts.&gt;

If we treat the work as an indifferent matter, and the army of the Lord is not on the ground to represent the cause and work in New Zealand, God will not be pleased with our neglect. Will you plead excuses at such a time? &lt;Bring all the strength that you have in and through Christ Jesus who gave his life for us.&gt;

One of the reasons why we are holding the meeting in Wellington is because we have put forth much effort in that city with little result. The ministers have stood directly in our way by holding their congregations from coming out to hear us. Now we want to get the truth before the people of Wellington, and we want to make the very best impression possible. Our camp-meeting should create an interest and call the attention (525) of the people to the truth. Let everyone come praying and making God their trust. &lt;The Word is the bread of life for the people.&gt;

The cities of New Zealand must be warned. Should we succeed in [113] breaking down the prejudice which the ministers have created among the people of Wellington, we have a key to unlock Christchurch, Dunedin, Auckland, and other places. The Lord calls you to put on the armor of righteousness, and come to this the second camp-meeting held in New Zealand. Come, brethren and sisters, even if you have to make a sacrifice to do so. The Lord will bless you in your efforts. God holds you personally responsible for the advancement and honor of his cause in this colony. God’s plan was that his ancient people should assemble for worship not less than three times each year. He has not signified it to be our duty to do this so often, but he calls you now; he wants you to come up to the help of the Lord, to the help of the Lord against the mighty &lt;powers of Satan&gt;.

The Lord has need of you. He does not do His work without the cooperation of the human agent. The truth, God’s downtrodden law, is to be uplifted. Christ and his righteousness is to be presented to souls that are perishing. The spiritual blindness upon the people today is greater even than when Christ was (526) upon the earth. The help of every man and woman is needed. Let us now rally around the standard, and angels who minister unto those who shall be heirs of salvation will minister unto you. Make every effort to get your friends to come, not in your place, but to accompany you, to stand on God’s side, under God’s command. At the very best, our numbers will not be large; but if they church members will come to the Wellington camp-meeting, with a mind and will to work to the best of their ability, God will do the rest.

We can see the schemes and workings of the enemies of our faith. Let the prayer go forth from unfeigned lips, “Hear, O God; for we are despised.” Think upon me my God, for good. “Now therefore, O God, strengthen my hands.”

We must use every power with which God has endowed us to make this meeting a success, and adapted to the needs of these who shall come to the meeting. The work of the Lord is above every temporal interest, and the Lord’s cause must not be misrepresented by these who claim to believe the truth. Watching, waiting, working, is our position. Where none need be faint-hearted. We will meet unbelief and accusers in Wellington; but we fear them not if the Lord God of hosts is with us.

(527) Every soul needs now to awake out of sleep, to put on the whole armor. There is need of personal religion and family piety, and then there will be a clear understanding of the part each one is to act in the grand and important work of building up the cause of God in our world, vindicating the downtrodden law, and uplifting the Saviour as “The Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.”

We need the Holy Spirit of God that our work may be consistent with our faith. O what a work, what a sacred work is before us. Parents need a divine enlightenment, a divine touch, that they may understand their work in the home life in order to send forth from the home sanctuary Christian children, morally trained and educated to their light shine forth to the world.

We need to understand in regard to the work to be carried forward in New Zealand. There needs to be subdivisions of labor combined with harmony of aim and execution of the work which is to be set in operation. Each one is to concentrate his energies on that portion of the wall he is required to build, that no labor may be lost, that there be no jostling of the workers, no crossing one another’s path on the part of the workers, yet (528) each worker rejoicing in the success of his fellow-worker. They &lt;are none to seek to be greatest. We are, if we believe, Christ’s little children.&gt; We are to realize that they are cooperating to the advancement of the cause of truth under the generalship of Jesus [114] Christ. “For we are laborers together with God; ye are God’s husbandry; ye are God’s building.” Each is to strengthen the hands of the other.

It is fully time that our brethren and sisters made an advance move. We will meet every form of Opposition. Ever possible hindrance will be placed in the way of the work; it is not evidence that the opposers and enemies of the truth want; they have fierce hatred for the truth itself, for they cannot controvert it. There are organized and sleepless adversaries from without who are determined to stop the work of God; but let us move forward with well concentrated effort amid these discouragements. We must reach the people &lt;where they are&gt;. The reproach cast upon God’s people must be counteracted, and it will be.

I again urge you for the truth’s sake, for Christ’s sake to come to this meeting &lt;to pray in faith, to believe&gt;. Elder Olsen will be there, and other helpers from America, and we want a heavenly sitting together with Christ Jesus. Come, and a rich reward in blessing will be yours.

(528) I leave these lines with you, and beg of you to respond. We want to see the salvation of God. There must be a waking up among the believers. Each may be so imbued with the Spirit of God that he will be a Nehemiah, possessing holy energy and faith and hope, strengthening the hands of his fellow-workers and depending wholly upon the great and mighty Worker.

&lt;There needs the completing of this, a continuation, if we can obtain the diary where the writings are given.&gt; [115]

Gisborne.

(529) Before the Wellington Camp we visited Gisborne, and spent several weeks in labor there. The prejudice against Seventh-day Adventists was very strong in this place. Brother and Sister Wilson were with us, and we decided to work in a new line in order to reach the people. After some counsel together, we planned to hold our meetings in the open air. We secured grounds close to and connected with the post office. There was timber on the ground, and a nice stand and extensive platform was erected. Seats without backs were arranged to accommodate a large number, and in addition to accommodate a large number, and in addition to these we brought a dozen comfortable ones from the church. We issued handbills and advertised in the papers, as well as sending a handbill with each paper.

At the first meeting we had favorable weather, and the congregation was an excellent one. Quite a crowd stood on the outskirts of the enclosed paddock. It was surprised to them [page missing] (529b) to ears that would hear.

Some of the hearers were very enthusiastic over the matter and declared this by far the best gospel temperance sermon that they had ever heard.

We pronounced this meeting a success, and decided that we would have a similar meeting the next Sunday afternoon. The following week, although the sky was cloudy, and threatened rain, we had more listeners than before. There was present a large number of young men, who listened with deep interest. I continued the subject of temperance.

This was a special time for the presentation of this subject. There had been a two day’s horse race and a cattle show. This show had been talked of for weeks, and had drawn a great many people to the place. We had feared that this excitement would prevent us from having a good hearing. It proved an opportunity for me to speak to many whom I would not otherwise have had the chance to speak.

One young boy wept like a child as I read an article of how a youth of seventeen was enticed into a liquor saloon, and (529c) drank his first glass of liquor. It did what it will always do, maddened the brain of the lad. After taking the drink, the youth remembered nothing further of what transpired. A quarrel took place in the saloon, and afterwards in the lads hand was found a knife that had taken the life of a human being. He was charged with murder, and was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment. It was a touching article, and brought tears to the eyes of many, both young and old. I made this an occasion to point the hearers to the Lamb of God, that taketh away the sin of the world.

The results of this work we could not see; but I prayed that the seeds sown might be watered by the Heavenly Father, who alone could give the increase. One thing we learned, that we could gather the people in the open air. There were some who would attend the meetings if held in the theater, while many would not enter such a place on Sunday. But large numbers, not the rabble, but intelligent, noble looking people, would attend an open air meeting, and we might speak as plainly as we chose.

Quite a number of the Salvation Army were present on (529d) these occasions. They can learn that meetings can be held in the open air without the drum, without the jumping and the gesticulations that create a laugh and rob the service of God if its solemnity. Our meetings were very orderly, and we know that much prejudice was swept away. A different impression than had hitherto prevailed was left on minds in regards to Seventh-day Adventists.

The contributions we received at these meetings more than paid for the expense of the land, and the advertising. [116]

An Appeal for the Australian Field.

Dear Brethren and Sisters in America, —

(530) I have now been in this missionary field nearly two years. For eleven months of this time, because of sickness, I was unable to labor in public. At times, with much inconvenience and suffering, I spoke in the church in Melbourne; although I could not labor in a public manner during these months of suffering, I was enabled to write 2400 pages of letter paper on themes that were essential to the progress of the work. Christ was preciously near to me during the time of my affliction, and the truth was presented to me in clear light, and the promises were viewed by me in their preciousness and fullness. I felt constrained by the Spirit of God to write even during my affliction and suffering. But I am now rejoiced to say that the Lord has been mercifully working (531) for my restoration, and although not entirely relieved, I am in a much better condition of health, and have been strengthened to stand before the people, and bear to them my message, and in this work I have been marvelously sustained.

We have carried a heavy burden for these Australian fields and although our allotted time to stay here has almost expired, we see much unfinished work before us. We have sent in our appeal for men and means to carry on the work in this far-off missionary territory, and we are thankful to our heavenly Father for that which has been done in response. We are glad that Brother and Sister Wilson have been added to the number of missionary laborers by the General Conference. But we would be more rejoiced if our responsible men would not see so many ways to invest means in ways that is within the immediate vision, and would extend their view, and see the necessity of providing facilities to start the work in new fields. There are many, many, important cities that have not been entered; many, many places where the banner of truth has not been unfurled. We still plead for laborers for these colonies. We still plead for financial help to place the standard of truth in these new fields.

(532) Some of our responsible men seem to take in only the needs of the field on which their vision rests, and addition upon addition is made to well-established institutions, in which a large amount of means has already been invested, and where already a great amount of strength is centered. Yet to these very institutions large donations are appropriated to build them up still further, while other fields, such as this one, where there are no strength and facilities, are left in deplorable weakness devoid of those things necessary to break up the soil for the introduction of the seeds of truth.

Brethren in America, I am praying to the Lord day and night that he will extend your vision, in order that you may see things that are afar off. How can the Lord approve of your absorbing so much means in increasing facilities whereby to advance the work in America, which foreign fields are destitute of means whereby to begin the work in parts where no beginning has been made? Knowing as we do, how well equipped are our publishing institutions for publishing, for education, and for treating the sick, and what a firm basis the truth has in that field, we wonder that you should think it proper to expend more (533) means there, when these foreign fields are slacking in that with which you are so well furnished. Here are places all about us that have never been entered, and cannot be worked unless we shall have houses of worship, even though of the humblest character. We cannot call out the people to hear the truth in tents, as in America; for in many places, as in Wellington, New Zealand, the wind would strip them to ribbons. We have not a place in these large cities where we can call out the people to hear the word of God. We cannot unfurl the banner of truth, for we have no standing place. [117] I am looking to the Lord for light; and I shall make appeals again and again, like the importunate widow, until you shall be compelled to hear and attend to the call. I address the churches, and plead with them to do the very work that God would have them. I have been thinking very seriously of going to America in person to make appeals from church to church; for I am deeply moved over the destitute condition of these Australian fields.

In this country the denominational ministers tell the most unblushing falsehoods to their congregations in reference to our (534) work and our people. Whatever false report has been started, is circulated by those who oppose the truth, and is repeated from church to church and from community to community. The circulators of these falsehoods take no pains to find out whether or not they are true, for many of those who repeat the reports, though not the framers of them, still love the false reports and love to give them wide circulation. They do not, like honest, just men, come to those who are accused, and seek to find what is the truth concerning what they have heard concerning their faith; but without inquiry they spread false statements in order to prejudice the people against those who present the truth. For instance, an effort was made to obtain the use of a hall at a village four miles from Hastings, where some of our workers proposed to present the gospel to the people; they did not succeed in obtaining a hall, because a school teacher there opposed the truth, and declared to the people that Seventh-day Adventists did not believe in the divinity of Christ. This man may not have known what our faith is on this point, but he was not left in ignorance. He was informed that there is not a people on earth who hold more firmly to Christ’s pre-existence than do (535) Seventh-day Adventists. But the answer was given that they did not want that the doctrines of Seventh-day Adventists should be promulgated in that community. So the door was closed.

The prejudice that exists in the smaller cities and towns of Australia and New Zealand is very bitter, and we have to put forth the same effort here to overcome prejudice as in America where our people are not known. The message and the messengers are not so well known in these fields as in America, so the prejudice is of longer duration; and until the people who are teaching the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus, are better known by personal acquaintance, these fields will be hard to work. It is difficult to break down these barriers and obtain an opportunity to introduce the leaven of truth and proclaim the last message of mercy and warning to the people. As in Christ’s day, the ministers will not investigate the Scriptures, and candidly compare the doctrines presented with their Bibles, but rather seize upon some lying report, some scandal from far off or from near at hand, and present a false statement to their congregations as an evidence that they should close their ears to the “strange doctrines” of the Seventh-day Adventists. Through (536) these lying reports the people whose minds have been stirred up by the truth are quieted down, and as they have not the moral courage to investigate the Scriptures for themselves, or to ferret out the falsehood, they turn from the man who have the message of God. We are obliged to go over the very same ground in these fields that we had to go over in the beginning of the work in America. The history of the work, as recorded in the Acts of The Apostles, when they journeyed from place to place, and had to meet the opposition of opposers of the truth, is reenacted in the work of the message for this time.

Prejudice in these fields is so strong that we do not see how the message of truth is to go to the cities and towns in these colonies unless we shall be furnished with facilities with which to work. In the history of the first gospel workers, we read that after the day of [118] Pentecost, they set forth in earnest to fulfil the commission given them by Christ, “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to very creature;” I was rejoiced to hear of the outpouring of the Spirit of God in Michigan, and especially at Battle Creek. I rejoiced with heart and soul and voice; for I knew that something would be done to (537) stir the souls of those who have had the shining of continual rays of light upon them, and who have not hitherto made a response in proportion to the light they have had. The Holy Spirit works in the heart of its receiver, and makes its possessor an agent for its designs. Those who are imbued with the Holy Spirit become channels of light to the world, and those who have had the Spirit of God will make a decided response to the appeals which the Lord is sending.

I ask my brethren and sisters in America, Are you, under the influence of the Holy Spirit, working the works of God? Are you becoming witnesses as did the early disciples to the power of Him who sanctifies you, and enables you to consecrate yourselves to the very work that God would have you do? Have families aroused from their idle inactivity, and have they removed from Battle Creek into surrounding towns and villages to advocate and live out before the people the message of the truth? The admonition to each one is, Work “while it is day; the night cometh, when no man can work.” Who has opened his ears to the Macedonian cry that is coming from every direction, “Come over and help us.” Who have had their hearts stirred by the needs of the people and have decided to leave country and kindred and come (538) to this far-off field in response to the urgent appeals that have been sent you? Who have been stirred to give their substance to the cause, to devote their means to the advancement of the present truth in this field?

We have been sent here by the General Conference, and we are here on the ground. But we have not been provided with facilities to do the work, although urgent calls have been made for facilities, and the needs of the field have been repeatedly presented before our brethren. The trouble is that our brethren do not comprehend the appeal that has been made. But something must be done, they think, to give additional strength to, and to multiply facilities in, America, where there is a great abundance of facilities; while the fields that have no strength, which need money and workers, are left almost entirely in their destitution, and the call for means and men is scarcely heeded. Workers now, and money now, would be of more value than double the financial assistance in two years from this time. I call upon those whom God has made stewards of his means to send us financial help, and let those who are willing to go out as did (539) Abraham, leaving country and kindred, come as missionaries to this field, not looking to the conferences to pay your expenses, or to support you, but looking to God for grace to diffuse the light he has given you.

Wake up, brethren and sisters, wake up; sleep no longer. “Why stand ye here all the day idle?” Jesus calls you, saying, “Go work today in my vineyard.” Jesus calls you, saying, “Go work today in my vineyard.” Whoever has received the Holy Spirit, will make it manifest; for all his powers will be employed in the most active service. All who actually receive Christ by faith, work. They feel the burden of souls. God now calls upon everyone who has a knowledge of the truth, who is a depositary of sacred truth, to rise and impart the light of heaven to others. Those who have been illuminated by the Holy Spirit, will show its office work upon life and character. They will be mediums through which the Holy Spirit will communicate light and knowledge to others. The wonderful truth revealed to us in these last days is to be revealed to others. “The end of all things is at hand.” The Lord has been speaking [119] to you in America, and may the Lord forbid that at the time of great illumination, darkness should come upon you because you fail to walk (540) in the light that has been given. Darkness responding to your light will surely come upon you, if you do not now awake from your slumbers and shake off your useless musings and selfish indulgences, and trade diligently with your Lord’s goods. Move out from your pleasant homes. Develop the talents God has given you, and tell to others what the Holy Spirit has communicated to you. God requires you to work in proportion to the light He has given you.

Angels of God are waiting, desiring with intense desire that those who claim to believe the truth shall become agents through which, by cooperation with them, they shall be able to communicate light to the world. All heaven is interested in the work that is going on in the world, and the angels desire that the men shall become channels by which divine grace may flow to those who are famishing for the waters of life. In new and fresh aspects the truth is to be presented by the living agencies to those who are in the darkness of error, who are dead in trespasses and sins. God created all things by Christ Jesus, that now unto principalities and powers in heavenly places might be made known by the church the manifold wisdom of God.

(541) Wake up, brethren and sisters, before you sleep the sleep of death. God has shown you that he is willing to do great things for you. The salvation of the human soul is the one object of the most intense interest to the heavenly host. The value of the soul is indefinitely above silver and gold; and why is it that you who have a knowledge of it do not impart it to others. It is the highest duty of every Christian to let the light God has given shine forth in steady rays. Have you been converted from error to truth? Have you, through faith in Jesus Christ been made partakers of His love? Then go to work to save souls that are ready to perish. Personal effort must be put forth, if men who are lost are to be convinced that they are in need of a Saviour. The work of saving souls is not confined to the work of the delegated ministers. To every man God has given his work. Every soul that has been enlightened has a work to do, a mission to perform. Everyone is to trade diligently with the talents entrusted to his care. Converted himself, the Christian is to present to others the truth as it is in Christ Jesus, and win souls to Jesus.

(542) The Lord has blessed many of you of late. What reason did you assign for this enlightenment? Did you think that God had blessed you that you might simply sit down and be happy? While others were left to perish for the want of the knowledge and experience that you have obtained through the mercy and forbearance of God? Were you willing and content that you had received so rich a blessing? The Holy Spirit was imparted to you in order that you might become agents by which God could communicated that blessing to others. Every true believer is a light who will shine amid the moral darkness of the world. “Neither do men light a candle, and put it on a candlestick; that it may give light to all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see you good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” “Ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people, that ye should show forth the praises of Him that hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.” “Ye are the salt of the earth; but if the salt have lost its savor, wherewith shall it be salted; It is henceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden underfoot of men.” The religion (543) that does not reveal itself in good works, in true righteousness and goodness, in saving the souls of poor sinners, is of no value in the estimation of God, and it will not [120] save the souls of those who possess it.

Soldiers of Christ are now wanted to push the battle to the front. Marshall under the blood-stained banner of Prince Emmanuel, wear his armor, and press the battle to the gates. The gospel of the kingdom of Christ must go into new countries, and enter new provinces, we are laborers with God. Brethren and sisters, why hover about the churches. Study the parable of the lost sheep, and go forth as true shepherds seeking the lost one who is in the wilderness of sin. Rescue the perishing.

Christians will have the mind of Christ and be coworkers with him. To everyone work has been allotted, and no one can be a substitute for another. Each one has a mission of wonderful importance, which he cannot neglect or ignore, as the fulfilment of it involves the weal of some soul, and the neglect of it the woe of some soul for whom Christ died. God has appointed his children to give light to others, and if they fail to do it, and souls are left in the darkness of error because of their failure to do that which they might have done, had they (544) been vitalized by the Holy Spirit, they will be accountable to God. We have been called out of darkness into His marvelous light, in order that we may show forth the praises of Christ.

In the Australasian field we not only need ministers, but faithful workers who will do their God-given work in the way He has appointed it should be done. Who of those who have been so greatly blessed in the outpouring of the Spirit of God, have fallen again into slumber? Arouse, before it is eternally too late. By your slothfulness you are not only imperiling your own souls, but you are endangering the cause of God, since He has given to every man his work. The converting power of God must daily come upon all the churches, that they may stand in the faith of Christ, rooted and grounded in the faith, holding forth the word of life. Do not wait until someone shall lift you up and take all the burden. Let every soul in the church consecrate himself to God, and lay all that he has on the altar, going forth by faith into the highways and byways of the world, an in a humble Christlike way do what he can, as he has opportunity to sow the seeds of truth. Sow beside all waters, presenting the truth as it is in Jesus. By a godly example, by (545) earnest expostulations and entreaties, compel the lost to come in to be prepared for the marriage supper of the Lamb. To neglect the work of saving souls is a great sin; for it is neglecting to save souls for whom Christ died.

It is evident that the love of Christ does not warm our own hearts, if we have nothing to say to others of its power, if we do nothing to kindle in the hearts of others the love of God. If Christ abides in the soul, it will not be possible to be indolent and indifferent. The salvation of sinners demands that every Christian shall act his part, and put forth a certain measure of positive power. “Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet; and show my people their transgressions and the house of Jacob their sins.” The word must be spoken in season and out of season to those who are beguiled by Satan, and led to do evil things. Satan is working through his agents, and shall the soldiers of Christ exert no influence to save souls that are walking in the broad road to death? The voice of invitation and entreaty is to sound, crying, “Behold, the Lamb of God that taketh away the sins of the world!” Let no one wait for the sinner to come up to him, asking for counsel and (546) advice. Go forth into the wilderness to seek and to save that which is lost. The most special self-denial is to be practiced. The most earnest effort is to be made to save those who are ready to perish. Imbued with the spirit of Christ, the true workers will not fail nor be discouraged.

Wake up, brethren and sisters in our churches, and watch unto [121] prayer. Educate the youth in such a way that they shall understand that it is not possible that they can live a Christian life, and to increase in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, and yet not be actively engaged in trading upon the talents that God has given,—diffusing to others the knowledge of the truth. Individually we are to put to use our knowledge (547) of the truth in instructing the ignorant, in enlightening those who are in darkness. We are to seek wisdom of God in all things, and then improve every opportunity that is possible, to make the path of duty plain to others. When each one does the duty that lies nearest him, how sinful will appear the thought of devoting God-given powers to the pursuit of amusements. O what sin and guilt we are living in when not using every jot of influence we possess to advance the kingdom of Christ in this world. Souls are perishing, and few have any concern about it; but those who are indolent in serving the Master, though they may be even employed in the work, will, through neglect of prayer and watching, will neglect all other duties, and will lose at last all interest in religious things, and be themselves ready to die, except they repent, and return unto the Lord. Why not meet the expectations of the heavenly intelligences, and “work out your own salvation with fear and trembling”? “For it is God that worketh in you, to will and to do of his good pleasure. Do all things without murmurings and disputings: that ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in (548) the world; holding forth the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, neither labored in vain.” [122]

The New Zealand Camp-Meeting

(Camp-1) Thursday morning, March 16, we boarded the steamer “Clansman” at Whangaroa, to return to Auckland, and from thence to proceed to Napier, where the Conference and camp-meeting were to be held. As on our trip from Auckland, the weather was almost perfect, and the sea was not rough. The captain and stewardess told us of the fearful storm they had a week before, and expressed their pleasure that we were not with them then, according to our intention. We too were very thankful that our plans had been interfered with, and that providentially we had been prevented from going home at the time of the heavy storm.

At first when the news came to us that the time of the sailing of the boat on which we had expected to go from Auckland to Napier, would delay us a week, we felt much disappointed; for we were anxious to be on the ground, and to do all that we could to help and encourage our brethren to prepare for the first Seventh-day Adventist camp-meeting ever held in the southern hemisphere. But now we could see that the change was of double advantage to us, as it had given us another week to work in Kaeo, and had brought us to a time of beautiful weather for our trip. Again my bed was made up on my own spring cot, on the steamer’s deck, where the air was pure and plentiful, and I was saved from the torture of stifling rooms and hard beds, which are the usual thing on the smaller ships along this coast.

(Camp-2) We reached Auckland Friday morning, and were soon transferred to the large steamer which was to take us to Napier. Here our party of eight from Kaeo, was joined by ten from Auckland and vicinity, who were going to the conference. The ship was well filled with passengers, and it was going to be difficult to secure for me a well-ventilated room. There were no deck cabins on this ship, and I dreaded the night; but by the kindness of the chief steward, we were allowed after 10 p.m. to make up my bed in the ladies’ boudoir, a beautiful airy room on the upper deck. Thus I was again saved the suffering consequent on occupying a small stifling room.

Sabbath afternoon, our ship cast anchor near Gisborne, and waited for the small boat to come for the passengers and freight. In Gisborne thousands of pounds have been spent in vain, to build piers out into the deep water, so that large ships can come to the docks; but as fast as the pier is built, the sea washes in the sand, so that nothing has been gained. Soon the little steamer came out, rolling and tossing in the heavy waves, and Brn. Starr, Edward, Wesley, and Samuel Hare, and W.C. White went ashore to visit the little church assembled for meeting. As a result of the labors of Elder Robert Hare, A.G. Daniells and others, a small church had been raised up here, and a commodious meeting-house purchased. This church, like others in this conference, was pleading for ministerial help. O, that we had a hundred laborers where there is one. Everywhere (Camp-3) there are fields suffering for help. When our brethren found the church, the Sabbath-school was in session, and they had opportunity briefly to present some of the many evidences that we are in a time when we should look up and rejoice, because the coming of the Lord draweth nigh. They also labored to encourage all who could, to come to the camp-meeting.

About eight o’clock the little steamer came back. She was tossed about by the waves, and if often looked as if the waves would go over the deck where most of the passengers were seated; but she came safely alongside, and the passengers were brought safely on board, without using the huge basket which was on the deck, ready for use when it is too rough to use the plank. When the sea is so rough that the plank cannot be used, the passengers are placed, two at a time, in this large basket, and [123] hoisted up by the machinery that is used to load and unload the freight of the ship.

From Gisborne, it is a short run to Napier. The sea was not rough, and we woke, Sunday morning, anchored close to Napier. Here, also, an extensive breakwater is being constructed, but for some time yet large ships must anchor in the bay, and all passengers and freight must be transferred by a smaller steamer. At the landing we were met by Elders Israel, McCullagh, and Wilson and Mrs. Dr. Caro, who took us at once to her (Camp-4) hospitable home, there we met Dr. Caro, who gave us a hearty welcome, and at the earnest invitation of him and his wife, we shared their kind hospitality all through our stay at Napier. Here I had a large, airy room, with a fireplace, and every sunny day I was encouraged to ride out with a horse and buggy, lent to us by thoughtful friends. We found Napier to be a beautiful place, the resident portion of the town being built on a series of high hills, overlooking the sea.

Sunday evening I spoke on my favorite theme, “The Love of God” to an attentive audience in the Theater Royal. Tuesday evening Elder McCullagh gave the first discourse in the large tent on the campground. Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday our brethren were very busy fitting up the camp. Weeks before letters had been sent to the churches, asking all who would come to the meeting, to report, and the responses were so few that it did not seem necessary to get many tents, or to lay out a large camp. The necessity of having a dining tent had been discussed, and we were so doubtful about its patronage, and so certain that it could only be conducted at a loss, that it was decided to have those who could not cook for themselves patronize a restaurant in the town nearby.

As the boats and trains brought in the delegations from the different churches, there were about twice as many as had been expected, and it was evident that the plans must be enlarged. A reception tent was (Camp-5) proposed, and a dining tent was much needed. To have a large number of our people obliged to go up town for their meals, would break into our programme, waste precious time, and bring in a haphazard state of things that should be avoided. It was presented to the committee although a restaurant on the campground would not pay expenses, it ought to be established, for its educating influence. We felt that there were lessons of the highest value as to unity of action, regularity, and the best methods of conducting camp-meetings, that would be lost if our people were not supplied upon the ground with wholesome food, prepared upon hygienic principles.

We felt that this first camp-meeting must be as far as possible a sample of what every other camp-meeting held in the future ought to be. Over and over again I said to the people, “See, saith he, that thou make all things according to the pattern showed thee in the mount.” As a people we have lost much neglecting order and method. Although it takes time and careful, thoughtful labor, and often seems to make our work cost more, in the end we can see that it was a paying business to do everything in the most perfect manner. Jesus said to his disciples, “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.” The principles found in the instruction given to the children of Israel are to be given to all who are connected with religious services (Camp-6) in these last days. All the specifications and arrangements of detail we cannot copy; but we can understand that the order, the perfection of arrangement, particularly specified by Christ, who was enshrouded in the cloudy pillar, are patterns of the perfection and order that are to be carried into all our plans and arrangements for religious service. In these last days we are to give no lessons in connection with our worship that will lead minds to think that the God of [124] heaven is pleased with disorderly arrangements, careless work, and untidy surroundings. God is as well pleased with cleanliness, order, and energy now as when he gave directions to nearly a million of people encamped in the wilderness. Those who follow Jesus will give a right example in all things.

Well, the camp was enlarged, more tents were procured, a reception tent was fitted up, not extravagantly, but plainly and tastefully, and was presided over by Sister Starr. The most serious difficulty about having a dining tent, was the matter of getting someone to manage it, and persons to do the work. But we learned that Sister Wilson had superintended the dining tent in two camp-meetings in America, and she readily consented to take the oversight of this one. Three or four other sisters were engaged to assist in the work, and soon furniture and supplies were procured, and the dining tent ready for service. About a dozen were expected to patronize it, but soon there were about thirty boarders. The (Camp-7) food provided was plain, substantial, and plentiful. It was prepared on hygienic principles. Meat was scarcely seen on the tables, and was asked for only by a few, although we doubt not that more than half of those present had not for years been for half so long a time without eating of flesh.

The weather was beautiful while the camp was in preparation, and during the first days of the meeting. On the first Sabbath it began to rain, and continued for a week. It did not rain all the time, but was showery, with occasionally a heavy downpour. Notwithstanding, the people of the Napier church came out well to the meetings, and those on the ground kept up good heart and courage, and made but little complaint about their damp surroundings. Many members of the Napier church came out well to the meetings, and those on the ground kept up good heart and courage, and made but little complaint about their damp surroundings. Many members of the Napier Church had employment which deprived them of the day meetings, but they were very regular in attending the evening and morning meetings. Most of the time I was able to attend the early morning meetings, and I felt that I was deprived of the privilege when unable to be present. All seemed to enjoy these early social meetings. One family, who were always present, came a mile and half from their mountain residence, the mother and daughters sometimes running part of the way, rather than be late to the meeting. Many testified that this was the best meeting that they ever attended. Every day we were encouraged to see hope, courage, and faith growing in the hearts (Camp-8) of the people, as they received light from the Scriptures.

After the meetings had been two or three days in progress, one who had been a member of the church, but who had left it about two years before, because of his opposition to the testimonies, arose and said that he desired to take his stand again with the church. It was the written testimonies of Sister White which had led him to leave the church, and now it was her testimony, her preaching at this meeting that brought him back to the church. He wished to be baptized again, and to be received as a brother by his former brethren and sisters. Many hearts rejoiced greatly that this brother was restored to the church. Some said that this alone was worth all that the meeting had cost.

On the first Sabbath afternoon, I spoke about thirty minutes, and then invited those to come forward for prayers who had never given their hearts to Christ. The invitation was also extended to those who professed to be followers of Christ, who had not the evidence of his acceptance, and those who professed to believe the truth, but had not carried out its holy principles in their lives. These were the very ones who most needed to seek the Lord, that they might find Jesus a present help, every ready to supply his grace, that they may overcome every defect in character. [125]

We rejoiced to see the response that was made to this call. (Camp-9) Many seats had to be cleared, and were quickly refilled by those coming forward. The tent was not a perfect place for such a meeting. The rain was falling heavily, and the tent leaked in many places. But this seemed of little consequence. The interest in eternal matters was too deep to be affected by the surroundings. A sense of fearful consequences affected the surroundings. A sense of fearful consequences affected the congregation. The Spirit of God was moving the people to a consciousness that the time had come spoken of in the first of Isaiah; “Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil; learn to do well.” Many hearts were impressed that we are hastening to the judgment, when every case will be decided for eternity.

Elder Starr gave precious instruction and exhortation, urging that each one should bring heart and mind to Jesus. Then we had a season of prayer, and the blessing of God rested in rich measure on the congregation. After the prayers, it was proposed that those who had come forward should go to another tent, where time would be given for them to speak, and to seek such help and instruction as each should need; but again the rain came down so heavily that no one wished to leave the tent, and the meeting was continued till sundown. Many confessions were made of neglected duties, of impatience, and neglect of parental government. Many confessed their worldliness and love of dress; and some bore (Camp-10) testimony who were giving their hearts to Christ for the first time.

Sunday was a busy and joyful day at the camp. In the morning Elder Starr continued the Bible studies, and in the afternoon I spoke to a tent full of attentive listeners. In the evening six were baptized. On Monday the business meetings occupied most of the time. Elder McCullagh preached in the evening, and in the course of his sermon, spoke of the evil effects of the study of, and placing dependence in, the science of phrenology. He showed that its tendency is to lead men to undervalue the power and the grace of God, and to place too high an estimate upon their own judgment. Some who had devoted much time to the study of phrenology, and placed much dependence upon it, were offended, and spoke freely against what had been said.

In the early meeting of Tuesday, this matter was referred to, and some who had been rescued from the snares of Spiritualism, related their experiences. We were surprised that so many had barely escaped the subtle delusions of Spiritualism. Quite a number spoke of their interest in phrenology, and their desire to know wherein its study was dangerous. After breakfast, the regular program for the forenoon was suspended, and I presented to the people some of their dangers, as they had been shown to me before coming to this country. I pointed out some of the evils resulting from the study of “science, falsely so-called” and related the sad experience of some American ministers who had followed (Camp-11) it, for influence or for gain. Before the meeting closed, some who had been most ardent students of phrenology, arose and said they would accept what had been presented regarding it, as the truth, and act accordingly.

A day or two later one of the canvassers brought to Elder Starr a pamphlet containing the sermon of an influential Wesleyan minister, delivered at a recent conference held in Dunedin, in which he defended the “higher criticism” of the Bible, and made light of the opinion that it was a divine book, and that all portions of it were inspired. This led to more lessons on the subject, and a sermon on “Higher Criticism” that was well attended by the people of Napier. We were surprised to see the extent to which our own people were affected by this infidelity, and were satisfied that in this alone there was abundant explanation for the lack of success that has of late attended the canvassing work. We see more and [126] more clearly, that in all our labors the Bible must be exalted, and that our people must come to know the wisdom and the power that are in the word of God. To the close of the meeting, and in all our labors since, this subject has been made prominent.

On the last Sunday of the meeting, it was arranged that I should speak in the afternoon, and Elder Starr in the evening at Hastings, a prosperous town about twelve miles west of Napier. A tent meeting had (Camp-12) recently been held in this place, and there are a few who obey the message, and others who are on the point of decision. Our meeting was in a large hall, and although the audience was not large, those present seemed much interested. We had a most comfortable conveyance, and the ride was enjoyable. Near Hastings, we passed a Maori village, where preparations were being made for a national council. In one enclosure there was a church and several wharreys—large houses in which they entertain a large number of guests,—also long tents in which hundreds were to be served with food; in other fields near by were long rows of little tents, for the occupancy of those coming from abroad. The Maoris seem to be an intelligent people, and true missionary work is much needed among some of their tribes. Where are the young men who will devote their lives to work among this people? [127]

Experiences in Australia, 1894

[128]

(1) The First Australian Camp.
(And Interesting Experiences Connected Therewith)

Tents were first pitched on the ground on the 26th of December, and from that time the number steadily increased until it reached one hundred and eight, and between four and five hundred people were encamped on the ground. Our first meetings were workers’ meetings, which lasted for several days. Our Conference began Friday, Dec. 29. We had an excellent meeting in the smaller tent. The large pavilion had not yet been pitched, because it was holiday time, and nothing could be obtained on a holiday, however urgent the want. Those who came to the workers’ meeting received most precious things from the word of God. The truth from the treasure house of God is of far greater value to those who receive it in the heart than the most precious things that earth can afford. It is as much higher than the things of earth, as the heavens are higher than the earth.

On January 2 the large tent was well pitched and prepared for the meeting. I spoke to the people, and was surprised to see so large a number of believers on the ground. The large (2) tent was well filled, and we questioned if we should have room for the outsiders.

This was the first camp-meeting that Melbourne had seen, and it was a marvel of wonders to the people. Far and near the sound went out concerning this city of tents, and a most wonderful interest was awakened. Every afternoon and evening the tent was filled to its utmost capacity, not with a cheap order of society, but with people of intelligence, physicians of note, ministers, and business men. We saw that, with the blessing of God, this camp-meeting would do more to bring our work before the people than years of labor could possibly do.

In attendance at the meeting were those who had kept the Sabbath for as long as four years, and this was their first opportunity of testifying to the truth in the congregation of God’s people. Many were there who had been scattered in the highways and byways, and whom the Lord had moved upon to come up to this holy convocation. Now for the first time they were hearing the living preacher. Our papers and publications had been the messengers of God to them, and had sown the seeds of gospel truth in their hearts. In social meeting they told how they (3) were first led to see the light. To some the Sabbath truth had been revealed through reading “Great Controversy”; others had embraced the truth through reading “Thoughts on Daniel and the Revelation”; many had been much blessed by reading “Steps to Christ”. How great was the delight of these souls as they feasted on the rich banquet that heaven had prepared for them at the camp-meeting. I saw countenances lighted up, plainly impressed with the divine image. Many voices expressed the gratitude of joyful hearts as men and women contemplated the precious truths of the third angel’s message. They were led to understand more fully what is comprehended in this message, how all self must be renounced, all dependence upon self given up, and how Christ must be received in the heart as a complete Saviour. They were led to believe that they were born of God, and entitled to the privilege of sonship with Christ.

They were features in this meetings that testified clearly that the Spirit of God was working for the cause of truth in this place. The camp was in a good locality; the surroundings were favorable; there was a large number in attendance. But that which gave us greatest joy was the outside interest. (4) Thousands visited the encampment and expressed their delight and astonishment at the order of the ground, and the nicety of arrangements in the clean white tents. No stubborn opposition seemed to be awakened as men and women listened to the truth for the first time. The power of God was among us. Brighton was stirred from one end to the [129] other. An interest was awakened in Melbourne also and the surrounding suburbs greater than anything we had witnessed since the movement of 1844. The truth was new and strange, yet it took hold upon the people; for we preached the word of God, and the Lord sent it home to the hearts of the hearers.

Many visitors came from long distances, and, as it was in the 1843 and 1844 movement, they would bring their lunch and remain through the day. A number of the citizens of the place declared that if they were not living close by they would hire tents and camp with us on the ground. They valued the privilege of hearing the word of God so clearly explained; they said the Bible seemed to be full of new and precious things, and was like a new book to them. We heard from many such expressions as these; “This is more than we hoped for.” “We are surprised every day with the new and precious things that are opened to us (5) from the Word of God.” “our faith is confirmed; our hope brightened, our belief in the testimony of the Scriptures made strong.”

A request was made that I should speak one evening during the week; for many wished to hear me who could not come out on Sunday or Saturday afternoon because of other engagements. An appointment was made to meet their wishes. Many of the people had read “Great Controversy”, and this had awakened an interest to see and hear the woman who had written it.

Sabbath, January 20, passed with its burden of record into eternity. And what a Sabbath! From the early morning meeting till the close in the evening, every hour was marked with the special blessing of God. It was such a day of the manifest presence of God as will never be forgotten. The Word of God was presented in the demonstration of the Spirit and in power. Outsiders came in the morning, and remained until the last meeting in the evening.

The meetings began at six a.m., and with short intermissions continued until evening. There was a social meeting in the morning at six o’clock, meeting at eight in the district tents (6) at 9:30 Sabbath school in the large tent. At eleven p.m. Elder Corliss preached, and the spirit and power of God attended the word. Many came forward for prayers, and the Lord wrought upon human minds in the manifest moving’s of the Holy Spirit. There was melting of heart before God, and the interest was so great that the meeting could not close till 2 p.m.

I spoke at 3:30, the meeting being delayed because of the protracted service that had preceded it. As W.C. White came to escort me to the tent he said, “Mother the forenoon meeting was held from 11 a.m. till 2 p.m. I think you had better speak but a short time this afternoon. The wind is blowing a gale, and the dust storm is very disagreeable, and there will probably be only a few outsiders. When we entered the tent, we found it full of people, fully one half of whom were outsiders. It is not common at any of our camp-meetings to have a large number of outsiders at the tent on Sabbath afternoon; but this afternoon provided an exception. So large was the attendance, that our people were invited to give up their seats and stand, which they cheerfully did. The crowd continued to come, until many were standing, both of believers and unbelievers, as a wall about (7) the tent.

The Lord gave me his Holy Spirit, and I bore testimony to the people. All listened with the deepest interest. Tears were in many eyes as I dwelt on the greatness of the gift of God in sending Jesus to our world to save perishing sinners. Many came to speak to me after the service, to tell how they were comforted and refreshed. Deep conviction was upon many minds.

The next service was a solemn ordination, when Brother Hickox was set apart to the ministry. Brother Corliss prayed in the spirit and power [130] of God. Elder Olsen gave the charge. Everything was of the most elevated, solemn character, calculated to make a deep impression.

The following Sunday there was a large company out, and in the afternoon and evening the people crowded about the tents in large numbers. I spoke in the afternoon on the subject of Temperance. Several influential ministers were out to hear. One said he would preach from his pulpit in the evening. He there took up the leading points of our faith, and stated them quite accurately. He told the people that we as a denomination understood the Scriptures quite literally, but that he understood them in a spiritual sense. He gave our people the highest recommendation. (8) Later in the day I was visited by the president and secretary of the W.C. T.U. The president was a strict vegetarian, not having tasted of meat for four years. Both were ladies of intelligence. They manifested deep interest in all they saw and heard. They made request that I should speak in the hall in which they hold their meetings, and they also asked Bro. Starr to write for their temperance paper. The president expressed an earnest desire that we should harmonize in the temperance work. “Be assured,” we said, “we shall enter every door open to us, that we may let our light shine to others.” I gave to each of them a copy of “Christian Temperance” and to one I gave “Great Controversy” and to the other “Patriarchs and Prophets”.

The weather was all that we could desire for some time; then a wind and sandstorm came upon us, and it was necessary to place sentinels at every post of the tent to guard it. Three family tents and two larger tents were blown down; but these circumstances did not disturb us, since the Lord was encamped upon the ground. The prince of darkness might use his power to annoy and perplex us, but he could not overthrow us.

The congregational church at Brighton was wonderfully stirred over the truth taught at the campground. About twenty-five (9) young men, by their own request, held meetings in one of our tents for the study of the Sabbath question and other points of our faith. Some of these were university students, who were fitting themselves to become lawyers and statesmen. They had invited Elder McCullagh to a meeting where a young man was to speak in reference to the Sabbath question. Elder M. went, and heard many things that were excellent, while others were misstatements. In the providence of God an appointment was made for these young men to visit Elder M. at the encampment to state their views in regard to the validity of Sunday observances; then Elder M. was to state his views. The young men were to have liberty to ask questions; but the opportunity was to be given for one question to be answered before another was put.

Brother M. was requested to lead out in the conference. He did so by presenting an illustration showing the relation which the law, sin and the gospel sustain to one another. Placing three books on the table to represent these three, he said; “We will suppose that the law is done away; we will remove the law (removing that book which stood for the law). Sin is the transgression of the law. When there is no law, there (10) is no transgression, no sin. We will remove sin. (taking away the book which stood for sin) Where there is no law, and hence no sin, there is no need of the gospel (removing the last book). What have we left? Brother M. then spoke decidedly upon the immutability of the law of God, and its sacred claims upon every member of the human family. The meeting lasted till past 11 p.m.

The young men then invited Elder M. to come to the congregational church, where they would have other young men present, and continue the consideration of these subjects. The congregational minister was away at the time, and Bro. M. told them it would not be right to go to the church in the absence of their minister; it would look as if he were taking [131] advantage of their pastor’s absence. “But,” Bro. M. said, “you are perfectly welcome to come to the campground, and here you shall have all the liberty you desire.” They consented to come, and bring their friends. They told Elder M. that they had come in the first place with a strong array of Scriptures, prepared to prove the abolition of the law; but that when he showed the relation existing between the law and sin and the gospel, they could not produce the arguments they had to present. (11) At this time the minister of the Congregational church was away on his vacation. When he was informed that the members of his church were being drawn away, he hurried back, and attended the special meeting with the young members of his flock. He presented the same arguments that others use against the truth and the Sabbath in particular; but his arguments were so weak and untenable, that his own people were ashamed of them as well of the spirit he manifested. Other meetings were appointed in a private house, where the young men still pursued the investigation started.

Some from the Congregational Church took their position for the truth, and this greatly offended the minister. In the last meeting, when he saw his own weakness, he said that he had a confession to make; he had let pleasure come before his duty; and instead of preparing for the occasion he had taken a pleasure excursion in a yacht on the bay. This statement left a bad impression on the minds of the young men; for they felt really in earnest to investigate these important subjects, and they said they thought the example given them by their minister was not as it should have been. One of these young men confessed the truth.

(12) Among those who attended the meetings was an excellent family who lived close by the ground. Mr. Hill was the superintendent of the Wesleyan Sunday School in Brighton, and had occupied this position for twenty-eight years. He had stood at the head of a large drapery establishment as one of its partners for nearly thirty years. This family was now making its decision. They saw the truth, and were now called on to decide whether they would obey it or not. They were interested to learn everything; they acknowledged that the churches were in a backslidden state, and that the presentation of the truth had opened the Bible to them as a new book. This family formed a pleasant acquaintance with Brother and Sister Starr, and invited them to their home to eat with them, and talk with them about the Scriptures.

Many others were interested in the truths taught, and a number decided for the truth. We were rejoiced to hear one after another saying, “I am keeping my first Sabbath.” At the first Sabbath of the Conference meeting, three commenced the observance of the Sabbath, and the following week five more took their position for the truth. The people who had taken hold soon began to talk of building a meeting house.

When one sister took her stand upon the truth, her husband (13) said, “You can give up the seventh day Sabbath, or leave my home.” They were Wesleyans. She left home. Later her daughter, a girl of sixteen, took her stand for the Sabbath, and the father told her to leave also. When the mother heard of this, she went home for her daughter. The husband said to her, “Well, have you decided to give up the Sabbath, and come back and live with me?” She replied, “No, I have come back for my daughter, whom you have turned out of doors.”

“But what are you going to do?” he questioned.

“I am going to support myself and my daughter; she may help me where she can.”

He then begged on his knees that his wife would give up these terrible doctrines. She had been a very timid woman, but the truth made her strong. “No,” she said; “I shall never give up the Sabbath as long [132] as I live. I shall obey God.”

“Well,” he said, “if you will come back, you and my daughter may keep the Sabbath; but promise that you will not go to the meetings.”

She would make no such promise. “I will be a faithful wife to you in everything,” she said; “but should I listen to your proposals, and disobey God, I would not be a faithful child (14) to him, and therefore I could not be a faithful wife to you, nor a faithful mother to my children.”

“Well,” he said, “I am in great distress of mind. Will you go to our minister, and talk with him? At first she refused, saying that she knew her duty, and need not go to the minister to learn it. But as he continued to entreat her, she finally consented.

It was ten o’clock that night. They aroused the minister, and the man laid the whole matter before him—how he had turned his wife out of doors because she had kept the Sabbath. “Now,” said he, “did I do right in this, in saying to my daughter that if she kept the Sabbath she should not stay in my house? I want you to tell me, did I do right in treating my wife thus?”

The minister answered, “You did perfectly right under the circumstances.”

The man responded with much vehemence, “No, I did not do right. I abused my wife, and was unkind and abusive to my child. I see now how shameful was my course in treating a woman, the mother of my children in so heartless a manner.” He then asked the forgiveness of his wife, and said she should come back to his home; no restrictions would be placed upon her; she should (15) be at liberty to do as she thought right. He felt greatly troubled over the course he had taken. So the wife was reinstated in her home, more respected and loved than before this fiery opposition broke upon her.

Several came out in the earlier stage of the meeting. Among these were two brothers who were connected with a large music store. I will tell you a little more definitely about these A. brothers and their wives. Brother Somerville was the first to interest these men in the truth. He asked the help of Brother Starr in giving them Bible readings, and through these influences they were led to come upon the campground. They were delighted with the cotton city, and decided to have a tent for their families, and thus be able to receive the benefit of the meetings. The wives could be on the ground whenever they chose, but the husbands could attend meetings only when their business permitted. But they did this, placing themselves in the channel of light where the heavenly current could flow to their souls.

They were converted and baptized. From that time they closed their music store on the Sabbath. The father was much troubled over their course; for they not only refused to do business (16) themselves, but would not allow him to open the store for business on the Sabbath. “The store must be opened on Saturday,” the father said. “No,” was the answer; “not while our names stand on the sign can we open the music store on the Sabbath.” This was a very trying experience for them; but through the help of the Lord the matter was adjusted, and the brothers went on with their business without leaving the truth, though they had to suffer the opposition from mother and father and relatives.

The wives of these men did not take their stand at the times of the Brighton camp. They were so mixed up with the world that it was hard to make impressions that would divorce them from worldly idolatry. About four months later, at a meeting held in the hall at North Fitzroy, these [133] sisters were converted and took their position with God’s people.

For several days before this meeting I knew that I was expected to speak in the church on Sabbath; but I had a severe cold, and was quite hoarse. I felt inclined to excuse myself from this appointment, but as it was my only opportunity, I said, (17) “I will place myself before the people, and I believe the Lord will answer my earnest prayers, and remove the hoarseness so I can present my message to the people,” I presented to my Heavenly Father the promise “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. For everyone that asketh, receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. . . . If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?” Again, Christ says, “Whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.”

The word of God is sure. I had asked, and I believed that I would be able to speak to the people. I selected a portion of Scripture, but when I rose to speak it was taken from my mind, and I felt impressed to speak from the first chapter of second Peter. The Lord gave me special freedom in presenting the value of the grace of God. How much is his grace to be appreciated? The apostle Paul says, “Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord according as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue; whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises; that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.”

I was enabled by the aid of the Holy Spirit to speak with clearness and power. At the close of the discourse, I felt impressed by the (18) Spirit of God to extend an invitation for all those to come forward who desired to give themselves fully to the Lord. Those who felt the need of the prayers of the servants of God were invited to make it manifest. About thirty came forward. Among these were the wives of Brethren A., who for the first time made manifest their desire to come near to God. My heart was filled with unspeakable gratitude because of the movement made by these two women. I could then see why I was so earnestly moved to make this invitation. At first I had hesitated, wondering if it were best to do so when my son and I were the only ones whom I could see who would give us any help on that occasion. But as though someone had spoken to me, the thought passed through my mind, “Cannot you trust the Lord?” I said, “I will, Lord.” Although my son was much surprised that I should make such a call on this occasion, he was equal to the emergency. I never heard him speak with greater power or deeper feeling than at that time. He called upon Brn. Faulkhead and Salisbury to come forward, and we knelt in prayer. My son took the lead, and the Lord surely indicted the petition; for he seemed to pray as though in the presence of God. Brn. Faulkhead and Salisbury also presented fervent petitions and then the Lord gave me a voice to pray.

I remembered the sisters A. who, for the first time, were taking a public stand for the truth. The Holy Spirit was in the meeting, and many were stirred by its deep movings.

(19) At the close of the meeting, many pressed their way to the platform, and taking me by the hand, requested me with tears in their eyes to pray for them. I answered heartily, “I will”. The sisters A. were introduced, and I found that their hearts were very tender. [134]

(20) The mother of one of the sisters who has not taken her position on the truth, had been a most bitter opposer, and had threatened that if her daughter did become a Sabbath-keeper, she would not allow her to enter her home; for the mother would look upon her as a disgrace to the family. Mrs. A. had often made the statement that she would never join the Seventh-day Adventists. She had been brought up in the Presbyterian Church, and had been educated to think that it was very improper for women to speak in meeting, and that for a woman to preach was altogether beyond the bounds of propriety. She enjoyed hearing Elder Daniells and Corliss, and thought them very clever speakers, but she would not listen to a woman’s preaching. Her husband prayed that God would so arrange matters that she would be converted under the minister of Sister White. When I made the appeal, and urged those to come forward who felt their need of drawing nearer to God, to the surprise of all, these sisters came forward. The sister who had lost her little one, said that she was determined that she would not move forward, but the spirit of the Lord so forcibly impressed her mind that she dared not refuse. When the brethren A. saw their wives going forward, they said they felt like leaping and praising God. They could hardly believe their own eyes. These men have proved (21) God’s promised true; for in asking they have received; and their faith has been greatly increased in him who has made every promise sure in Christ Jesus.

My faith was also rewarded, and although difficulty was brought upon me by the prevailing epidemic, the Lord sustained me, and lifted upon me as the health of his countenance. I felt so grateful to my heavenly Father for his loving kindness in bringing these two precious souls to unite with their husbands in obeying the truth. They have counted the cost before they have entered upon the Christian warfare. For some time these sisters have been attending the Sabbath-school. They brought the little children with them that they might receive the benefit of the instruction in the smaller classes; while they themselves have felt that they have gained much instruction in studying the lessons of the senior division. They were much nearer belief in the truth, much nearer the kingdom of heaven, than they themselves had thought.

This Sabbath day was a precious day. Was there not joy in heaven over those two souls who had received Christ? John says, “as many as received him to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name; which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. (22) And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father), full of grace and truth. . . . And of his fullness have all we received, and grace for grace.”

This precious experience was one of the result of the Brighton camp-meeting. The influence of the meeting was far-reaching. The people have not yet forgotten it.

Before the camp closed, a petition was sent in for a minister to labor in Brighton and explain the scriptures to the people. One gentleman came forward and offered an enclosed lot for the tent, free of charge. Others begged for meetings to be held in their localities. Williamstown was stirred. Some from Hawthorn had embraced the truth, and calls for preachers came from both these places. The temperance workers asked that instruction in healthful cooking might be given in their hall. Sister Starr went to act as teacher. The hall was provided with good facilities, so that after the lecture a practical illustration could be given of the best methods of healthful cookery. Sister Starr told them that she was not qualified to teach. “Well,” they said, “tell us what you know.” [135] (23) After the camp-meeting, a tent was pitched at North Brighton, and Elders Corliss and Hare worked unitedly, and with success. In his visiting in this place, Elder Corliss came across a man and his wife who had kept the Sabbath for ten years. They had not attended any of the meetings on the campground, did not even know that there had been a camp-meeting.

In Middle Brighton, one family named Malcolm accepted the truth. There were five members in this family, the aged mother, two daughters, a son, and his wife. One daughter had been a missionary in China. She is an intelligent, fine-looking woman, and an interesting speaker. Later she attended the Bible School, eagerly feasting on the truth, and qualifying herself for future work.

In their labors after the camp, Elders Corliss and Hare experienced some opposition from the congregational minister in Brighton. Several members of his church had embraced the truth during the camp, and this had hurt him. He came to the tent one evening, accompanied by a large number of his church members. This minister was the founder of the Council of the Churches in this country, and a man of wide influence. He asked the privilege of speaking after Elder Corliss had spoken (24) but was told that this could not be permitted, for it would do no good, and would only create confusion. He insisted, and said, “Will you put the matter to the vote?” This was a scheme on his part; for he had brought along his church members in order to carry the day. Elder Corliss replied, “No; I cannot give this meeting away.” Before the whole congregation he said, “I will give this minister the tent, free of expense, any night in the week except Sunday night, to speak the whole evening on this subject; but I cannot permit him to divert the minds of this congregation from important things. I wish them to hear, and to investigate the Scriptures for themselves, that they may see if this is not the truth that I present to them.”

To the minister he said, “I will give you five minutes to decide upon the evening you will appoint to speak in this tent.” The man turned very pale, but answered not a word. The five minutes went by in dead silence. Then Elder Corliss went on with his discourse, showing the fallacy of the minister’s position on this question which Elder Corliss had, stated in print, in his hand.

After the meeting closed the minister announced that he would on Wednesday evening in his own church answer the discourse. (25) Brethren Hare and Colcord were present to hear this review. It was a repetition of the same object that Canright has put forth in his books. The minister had Canright’s book. But the congregation was not at all satisfied. Now his own people were so thoroughly stirred up that the minister felt compelled to do something; for his reputation was at stake. He sent a challenge to Elder Corliss to meet him in discussion.

Elder Corliss felt much troubled over this matter; but there seemed to be no way of evading the question; for the enemies of the truth would triumph if the matter were not taken up. Elder Corliss therefore agreed to accept the challenge if the minister would consent to continue the discussion for six evenings. One night, Elder Corliss felt, would not be sufficient to do justice to the subject. He hoped his proposition would be rejected, for the interest in his tent work was great, and he did not wish to drop it at this juncture. Meanwhile, while the matter was pending, Elder Corliss resolved to go on with his work, pressing into his discourses all the important matter possible, and carrying the interest as far as he could before the discussion should begin.

We thought the minister would not accept the conditions; (26) for his aim in his opposition so far had been to confuse the mind of the [136] hearers of truth. He had no weapons furnished him in the Bible with which to war against the truth; and he must supply his necessity from the armory of the prince of darkness. These he could use in one evening, and claim that he had defeated the supporters of the law of God and the Sabbath. But when he had to keep to the point for six evenings, the weakness of his arguments would become apparent to the people. [137]

(27) “As an outgrowth of the Brighton camp-meeting, several churches were raised up. I visited the church in Williamstown, and rejoiced to see that many had moral courage to manifest their loyalty to the commandments of God in spite of the continual opposition and contempt that have been heaped upon them and upon God’s holy law. They had sought earnestly after truth, and the feelings of the earnest seeker after truth are expressed in the words of the psalmist, where he says, ‘It is time, Lord, for thee to work; for they have made void thy law. Therefore I love thy commandments above gold; yea, above fine gold. Therefore I esteem all thy precepts concerning all things to be right, and I hate every false way. Thy testimonies are wonderful; therefore doth my soul keep them. The entrance of thy words (28) giveth light; it giveth understanding unto them simple.’ A church was raised up in Hawthorne, and another in Brighton. About sixty belonged to these two churches. A large number of new members have been added to the Parham church and to the church in North Fitzroy. A number of members have also moved away; but persons are continually coming in who heard the truth at the Brighton camp-meeting. The Lord is drawing, and some are responding to his drawing. It would be a mistake to take the camp-meeting to Ballarat. Let the meeting be held where the people are, that they may not only attend, but sustain it. Let it be held where persons who have had their minds exercised may have the benefit of hearing again the reasons for our faith &lt;and be converted&gt;. The truth may be presented also to a class who have never before heard it. Were the tents pitched in a new locality, a new class of hearers would be reached.

Some will say that these camp-meetings are very expensive, and that the Conference cannot afford to support another such meeting; but when we look at the three churches that have been organized, and prospering in the faith, can we hesitate in answering the question, Will it pay? Shall we not raise our voices in decided affirmation, It will pay?” [138]

L.B. 3, P. 375.
CAMP-MEETING LETTER.

(549) While in the Colonies I tried to encourage the people to work to the point of building plain houses for worship, and have talked much upon the need of economy, in order to advance the work in this field. In America the habits and customs of the people are far more indulgent and expensive than in this country. The hard times which were lightly felt in America, made a serious impression in Australia. But notwithstanding the hard times, we felt it was essential to have a camp-meeting in Melbourne before we could leave the country. We felt that, as far as it was consistent with our circumstances, we must make all things in the camp-meeting after the divine similitude, that it might leave the right impression upon the people as to what constitutes a camp-meeting after God’s order, and also it might give character to our work. We know this was all right; but all such advanced movements involve expense. Tents had to be made, and every arrangement planned with the strictest economy. (We planned closely, and studied economy in every part, feeling that each one was connected with all, and the whole assembly to God.) Some of us who know, had a true realization of the fact that we were devising and planning under the supervision of heavenly intelligences. Angels were viewing the care taken by the workers, the neat, tasty appearances of the tents, and the orderly arrangement of the grounds. They saw the effort made to rightly represent us as a people.

In this first camp-meeting in Australia we felt that we must have everything arranged in a manner that could be approved (550) of God; for were we not a spectacle unto the world, who knew us not, and to angels and to men? We were regarded as a peculiar people by the world. In the sight of God we were regarded as a peculiar people in a different sense. “For thou art an holy people into the Lord thy God: the Lord thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto Himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth. The Lord did not set His love upon you, nor choose you, because you were more in number than any people; for ye were the fewest of all people: but because the Lord loved you, and because He would keep the oath which He had sworn unto your fathers, hath the Lord brought you out with a might hand, and redeemed you out of the house of bond men, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. Know therefore that the Lord thy God, He is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love Him and keep His commandments for a thousand generations; and repayeth them that hate Him to their face, to destroy them: He will not be slack to him that hateth Him, He will repay him to his face. Thou shalt therefore keep the commandments, and the statutes, and the judgments, which I command thee this day, to do them.” “But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should show forth the praises of Him that hath called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.”

We knew that all the heaven was interested in our preparation for the camp-meeting, and the Lord had promised to be our counselor, if we would be guided by Him in all things. “I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye.” We felt that the eye of God was upon all (551) our arrangements, and in the order of our camp we sought to show forth “the praises of Him who hath called us out of darkness into His marvelous light.” The result upon the people was more than we had dared to expect. The encampment made the impression upon those who visited it that the truth we advocated was of great importance, and that the missionary spirit is the true spirit of the gospel. Men of influence made the remark that none but Americans [139] could plan such a camp-meeting, and bring the arrangements to such perfection in every line. Thus we did honor to our country, but above all we honored God in doing His will, and in making so favorable impression upon the people.

Our people encamped on the ground, sought to make the visitors as welcome as possible, and thus testify to them that they were seeking to follow Christ. It is the privilege of every one to have a drawing influence, through the endowment of the Holy Spirit. The atmosphere surrounding the soul of the Christian should be full of pleasantness, courtesy, and kindness, and thus represent the Spirit of Christ. These qualities of character are to be perseveringly cherished, and employed in the work of God, giving character to that work in representing Christ to the world. Human influence deriving tis efficacy from heaven is ordained of God, as an instrumentality by which the transforming, sanctifying power of the truth may be demonstrated.

The Lord is dishonored with anything that is done in connection with His service, in a lax, loose, slipshod manner. In everything concerning the camp-meeting we desired to show that the influence of the truth was an uplifting influence, and that it fashioned the heart, the manners, and the taste of the human (552) agent after the divine similitude. This we sought to do as far as it lay in our power. We had a decided purpose not to merge our ways and conform our habits and practices to the mold of the habits and practices of the Colonials. God would not be pleased to have us do this, to catch up their sentiments, their manner of speech, and method of pronunciation. Christ is our model, and we are to change our reason, our affections, our speech, our habits according to His divine example, rather than to seek to follow the customs, practices, and habits of any nation. We are to receive our mold from Christ. He is to see Himself in the character of his followers. We are to copy His Spirit, to have our lives hid with Christ in God.

In every true believer the character of Christ is to be reproduced. The Spirit of Christ is to be made manifest through human efforts. As those who have been transformed by the truth come into contact with others who have had a false education, and have received perverted ideas, they are to represent Christ in order that the deficiencies of those that have had but little experience may disappear, and the mold of Christ may be seen upon them. The followers of Christ are to represent His tenderness, His courtesy, and His love towards others. His solicitude for human souls is to be reproduced in those who believe in Him. They are to lift Christ up in order that He may draw all unto Him. The world must have a representation of Christ in His believers.

It is not in the power of those who have named the name of Jesus to give Him more than is His own. He has brought every human agent with an infinite price, and we are His property for both time and eternity. He owns every moment of our time, and our (553) gifts of reason and of talent belong to Him. Every soul converted to the truth, not only takes the name of Christian, but is under the responsibility of putting on Christ in spirit, in word, in conduct. This invests him with the same kind of influence as had the human agent who, through the power of the Holy Spirit, led him into the light of truth. Then all likeness of Christ appears in his character, and he is a laborer together with God, and draws souls by the divine power of the grace that has been imparted to him.

Christ took humanity upon Him. He was our substitute and surety. He said, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of Himself but what He seeth the Father do: for what things so ever He doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise.” “For the Father loveth the Son, and showeth Him all things that Himself doeth; and He will show Him greater [140] works than these, that ye may marvel. For as the Father raiseth up the dead, and quickeneth them; even so the Son quickeneth whom He will.” [141]

Address to Bible Workers and Ministers.
Brighton Campground, Sunday, 10 a.m.
January 28, 1894.

(581) “And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in the white robes? and whence came they? And I aid unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said unto me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lam. Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve Him day and night in His temple; and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them. They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto fountains of living waters: and God shall wipe all tears from their eyes.” (582) Christ is opening before us the treasure of the truths of the Bible, and we do not appreciate them. Their meaning seems holden from our understanding. We should be far in advance of our present spiritual condition if we had steadily followed the light as it has come to us. Satan has placed every hindrance in our way to keep us in earthliness and commonness, that we should not grasp the eternal. “This is life eternal,” Christ declares, “that they might know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent.”

The light and truth given us by God is compared to a price less treasure hid in a field. We are to buy the field, and work every part of it. The more we behold the promises of God, the brighter they will appear to us. The more we practice the principles of God’s word, the clearer will be our understanding of them.

Our faith, and our position in the world as commandment keepers is based on the Bible. Never should the Testimonies be brought in to take a high place than the Bible. It is not essential to go back to the early history of the message for evidence to maintain the importance of the Testimonies. (583) If the Holy Spirit is not controlling the Testimonies now, if divine credentials do not attend them now, then it is time my work ceased. What we need to see is the testimony of the Spirit of God working upon human minds, the presence of the Holy Spirit revealed in us individually. Our brethren should feel the importance of praying more, of loving more. The love that is expressed for the brethren speaks with a voice that nothing can silence. Because He loved the world, God sent His Son into the world.

“Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil for the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, “The Lord rebuke thee.” As representatives of Christ, be careful that you do not rail. The Holy Spirit is to be life and voice for us. Our tongue should be as the pen of a ready writer, because the Holy Spirit speaks through the agent. When you use that twit and fling, you reveal self, and that is not needed. Those who advocate the truth can afford to be fair and pleasant in their dealings with one another. We need not bring so much that is human into our work. It is not for you to use the Holy Spirit of God; the Holy Spirit is to use you.

(584) We have a testing message for the world, and we should present the truth as it is in Jesus. Our life is to be hid with Christ in God; then we will not reveal self in our work. The preciousness of the truth will be revealed as it is, so far reaching, so deep, so broad, that self is lost sight of. It is not flowery discourses that we want, not a great floor of wood that mean nothing. We need to preach so that the people can lay hold of big ideas, and dig out the precious ore hidden in the mine of truth. It is not our education that will accomplish this [142] work; the Holy Spirit must come into the hearts of the workers. The Bible is its own interpreter.

We have the arguments of truth the handle, and we shall have ridicule and opposition to meet; but we cannot afford to put on the armor or ridicule and sarcasm while proclaiming the truth. We need to put on the whole armor of God, and be clad with the Spirit. His righteousness must go before us, and his glory be our rereward. When you work in this way, the universe of heaven will engage with the people of God in a way that will astonish you. Just as soon as you reveal the meekness and lowliness of Christ, Christ and heavenly angels (585) will cooperate with the human agent. A Paul may plant, and Apollos water, but God giveth the increase. Among those who ridicule the truth, some will see the foolishness of their course, and will turn to the Lord.

You have the most solemn truth to present to the world. Your faith is to be tried that its preciousness may be seen, and that you may learn to look to Jesus, the author and finisher of your faith. Let the work of God begin in your homes, and in the church, and we shall see of the salvation of God as we have never seen it, or dreamed of it. If we are one in Christ Jesus, the world will surely know it, and recognize your love as not of this world. You will not need to tell them that you have the spirit of God. If it is in the heart it will be manifest in the life. [143]

Sermon, Brighton Tent, Sabbath
February 10, 1894. 11 a.m.
Isaiah 58

(586) “Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their transgressions, and the house of Jacob their sins. Yet they seek me daily, and delight to know my ways as a nation that did righteousness, and forsook not the ordinance of their God: they ask of me the ordinance of their God: they ask of me the ordinances of justice; they take delight in approaching to God.”

A people is here represented as seeking the Lord in obedience to his will, but in reality they have forsaken God. “They ask of Me the ordinance of justice.” This was the condition in which Christ found the Jewish nation. The priests and Pharisees looked at their outward forms and ceremonies, their form of worship, and thought that these would certainly commend them to Christ. Christ showed them that they did not have the spirit of meekness and lowliness. “Behold,” He said, “ye fast for strife and debate, and to smite with the first of wickedness: ye shall not fast as ye do this day (587) to make your voice to be heard on high.” There is a voice that God bids shall be heard on high; it is the voice that gives the trumpet a certain sound. “Is it such a fast that I have chosen, a day for a man to afflict his soul? Is it to bow down his head as a bulrush, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under his? Wilt thou call this a fast and an acceptable day to the Lord?”

This is not the kind of fast that the Lord takes pleasure in. “Is not this the fast that I have chosen, to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free; and that ye break every yoke.”

Why, you say, I have been taught that we are not saved by our good works. No; you are not; but you cannot be saved without good works. You cannot depend on your good works for salvation; you must have a living dependence upon God. When there is a living connection with God, when Christ is abiding in the heart by living faith, the human agent does the works of Christ, he speaks the words of Christ, and reveals a character like the character of Christ.

(588) When our life and character is hid with Christ in God, we cannot afford to let impulse or passion control our words or actions. We must keep the Saviour’s example ever before us. We must do as we believe Jesus would have done under similar circumstances. If trials come, we are not to manifest a rebellious spirit. When we are oppressed, and burdens placed upon us which we think others should bear, we are not to let self rule. In such experiences we are to learn to take the burdens to the right one. “Come unto me,” Christ says, “all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” “Learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart.” Whatever of conflict or trial we are called to pass through, if we accept this truth of heavenly origin, meekness, and lowliness of heart will be revealed in all our actions.

We need to clearly understand the work that is before us. It is a work of mercy and love. We are to work in Christ’s lines, and just as Christ worked. In the parable of the nobleman who before going on his journey gave to every man his work saying, Occupy till I come, Christ and his followers are represented. To everyone his work, and this work is Christ’s (589) work. The human agent is to cooperate with the divine. He is not to feel that all he has to do is to attend to his individual self. He has a broader field than this. “Occupy till I come.” Be laborers together with God. We need to understand clearly what it means to be [144] laborers together with God. We cannot do this merely with our intellect or education. We must be imbued with the Spirit of Christ.

We cannot buy the grace of Christ with money; we cannot obtain it by eloquence or by the power of our intellect. It is a gift received by us from heaven. We are to occupy according to the knowledge we have, sensing our responsibility, and letting our light shine to those around us; and in doing this we work the works of God.

“Is not this the fast that I have chosen, to loose the bands of wickedness, and to let the oppressed go free; and that ye break every yoke. When we present to others the perfection there is in the law of God, we are presenting that which will loose the bands of wickedness, and free those who are oppressed by the enemy. (590) Our enemy is he who rebelled against the law of God in heaven, and who fell because of his disloyalty When we work in his lines we are fastening our fellow men in the shackles of oppression. In obedience to Christ we are free; for he came to make us free. “His servants ye are whom ye obey.”

“To let the oppressed go free.” What can we say to the oppressed? We can show them that obedience to the requirements of Christ means freedom, liberty, salvation. “And that ye break every yoke.”

God requires our faithful service. Nothing must be allowed to come between Him and our souls; for we are of infinite value to Him. We cannot trust our salvation to man. We must search the Scriptures for ourselves, and know what they teach.

“Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked that thou cover him, and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh.” We cannot do this work if we live selfish extravagant lives, using every dollar we possess to make (591) a place for ourselves in this world. We are to honor God by showing that we esteem the purchase of his blood. We are to show that we value humanity from God’s standpoint. The Son of God died to redeem the human race, to give the freedom which can come through Him alone.

Christ was the representative of the Father. Let us consider the character of his work, and what the Spirit of God led Him to do. He declared of himself in the synagogue at Nazareth, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the broken hearted; to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind; to set at liberty them that are bruised.” When Christ came to the earth he found the truth hidden by error that surrounded it and present to men in such a way as to show the loveliness of its character. Error may be hoary with age, but this does not make it truth. The Jews held their customs received through traditions of the fathers, from age to age and generation to generation. Christ said to them, (592) “Ye are blind.” “Ye are ignorant both of scriptures and of the power of God. They were teaching for truth the traditions of men. Christ came, he said, to give “recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that were bruised.”

You can see that the work of Christ is the same work that Isaiah declares to be the work of his professed people. God has given you the glorious light of truth. He has chosen you to be his peculiar people, a royal people, a holy nation. What are you doing to show forth the power of Him that hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. When God lets his light shine upon you, do not let your mouth be stopped by tradition. Speak the truth as it is in Christ Jesus. Let the Spirit of God speak. Do not mingle self and selfish ideas and opinions with your work. Present the truth as it is in Christ Jesus, and let the truth make [145] its own impression.

There is a little church in Denver where no one who has to work for a living is allowed to worship. Everyone of the working class is excluded. And therefore Christ is excluded for he was a worker, toiling at the carpenter’s bench as (593) and example to us. On one occasion a noble family took their seamstress to this church, and the other members where greatly offended, and remonstrated with them that they should bring one worker in. These souls are hiding themselves from their own flesh. The Saviour of mankind took his position with the poor. He preached the gospel to the poor in such simple language that they could understand him.

“A certain man,” said Christ, “Made a great supper, and bade many; and sent his servant at supper time to say to them that were bidden, Come; for all things are now ready. And they all with one consent began to make excuse. The first said unto him, I have bought a piece of ground, and I must needs go and see it; I pray thee have me excused. And another said, I have brought five yoke of oxen, and I go to prove them; I pray thee have me excused. And another said, I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come. So the servant came, and shewed the lord these things. Then the master of the house being angry, said to his servant, Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in hither the poor, and the maimed and the halt and the blind. And the servant said, Lord it is (594) done as thou hast commanded, and yet there is room. And the Lord said unto his servant, Go out into the highways and hedges and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled.”

We are to let the bright rays of light shine upon all classes in clear steady lines, that they may see and follow the words of Jesus. “I, if I be lifted up,” Christ said, “will draw all men unto me.” This is the work we are to do, to draw. Shall we go to the highest? Yes, to the highest powers on earth and tell them that we have a truth that will satisfy every soul. This is a truth so broad and deep that it will satisfy every want that man can feel. Present to the higher classes the precious truth. There are many palaces who long for something they cannot find. The truth will satisfy these souls. Paul had converts in Caesar’s household. He did not tell them to come out from their luxurious homes, but to honor God in the place where he had stationed them.

“Hide not thyself from thine own flesh.” Go to work right where you are. Among every class of people there is work to do. Life up your eyes and look; the fields are ready for (595) the harvest. Men are interposing themselves between Christ and the people. They are working in the lines of the enemy instead of in the light and power of truth. God wants to see in the human agent the power that says, Come, for all things are now ready. He wants to see his people giving their fellow-men food. They are hungry. They do not want froth and fables; they want the word of the living God. “Except ye eat my flesh and drink my blood,” Christ said, “ye have no life in you.” When his disciples heard these words they were offended; for they did not discern spiritual things. Christ said, “The words that I speak unto you, they are spirit and they are life.” To eat the flesh and drink the blood of the Son of God is to be doers of the word. We have a work to do in going to the people who have souls to save or lose and teach them the terms of salvation. “Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.”

The prophet tells us what our experience will be if we work in Christ’s lines, refusing to become self-centered, and spending our time in brooding over our own troubles and afflictions. If we will take time to consider that there are others besides ourself in the world, “thy [146] light,” he says, “shall (596) break forth as the morning, and thy health shall spring forth speedily. This health is a spiritual as well as a physical health. “Thine health shall spring forth speedily; and thy righteousness shall go before thee; and the glory of the Lord shall be thy rereward.” Our sin is taken away, and the righteousness of is imputed to us. Jesus Christ becomes our righteousness; and the glory of the Lord is our rereward. If the righteousness of Christ goes before us in the path we travel, and his glory follows in our wake, we are surely a blessed people. We stand out distinguished by light and love and power, and the world sees that here is a people who will work according to the law of God.

“Then shalt thou call, and the Lord will answer: thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am. If thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke, the putting forth of the finger, and speaking vanity; and if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noonday: and the Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in (597) drought, and make fat thy bones; and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not.”

The Lord responds to our call and says, What shall I do for you? He will give us the very thing that our souls hunger for. Christ says, If ye do these things, I will answer. I am with you, right at your side. What is the reason that men are in obscurity. The light is shining, and Christ says, Then shall light shine in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noonday. And the Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, whose waters fail not. Those who trust in Jesus, and drink of the water that He gives, it shall be in them a well of water springing up into everlasting life.”

“And they that be of thee shall build the old waste places; thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations. And thou shalt be called The repairer of the breach, the restorer of paths to dwell in.”

What is the matter? Do we see any waste places down here (598) in 1894? “If thou turn away thy foot from the Sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honorable; and shalt honor Him, not doing thine own ways nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words: then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth; and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy Father, for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.”

We need to understand what the breach here mentioned means. Let us look at the fourth commandment. We have assembled here today to acknowledge that the Lord created the heavens and the earth in six days, and that on the seventh day he rested, that he sanctified and blessed the seventh day and set it apart for man to observe as a day of rest and worship. In observing this day, we honor God’s memorial which calls to mind the only true and living God. God gave the seventh day Sabbath to man as a memorial of his work of creation. Satan the enemy of God, has instituted Sunday observance, and God calls him the man of sin, because he has thus perpetuated transgression. The (599) breach that has been made in the law of God has been a breach for many years. Shall it always be a breach?

“Why do you always talk about the Sabbath?” so me ask. Why do you not talk about Christ?” Suppose a fence enclosing a valuable field of yours should be broken down in one part. Which part of that fence would receive the most of your attention? Would it be the part that was secure? No; the breach would be that which would occupy your time and thought [147] until the enclosure was secure again. It is so with the law of God. The Sabbath of the law of God is the breach in the wall. It has been broken down. “The foundation of many generations” is the seventh day Sabbath. “This is the sigh,” God says, “between me and thee throughout your generations.” The world has taken the liberty of putting in the place of the seventh day Sabbath a day that God has not sanctified and blessed, and it worships God on that day as though it had not departed from His ordinances. The Protestant world has taken this delusion, cradled and nourished it. But God does not accept this spurious Sabbath, and shall we accept it? “Six days shalt thou labor,” He says, “and do all thy work; but the seventh day is the (600) Sabbath of the Lord thy God.” Then let us work to repair the breach; let us raise up the foundation of many generations, that we may be called the repairers of the breach, the restorers of paths to dwell in.

We each need to become intelligent in faith and doctrine, that we may be able to give to every man that asketh us a reason of the hope that is in us. Let us seek God, that we may find Him. He wants us to seek Him. May He help us to come to the place where we will uplift the Sabbath that has been trampled under the feet of men. Let us pray that our eyes may be anointed with eye salve, that we may see. “If thou turn away thy foot from the Sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day, and wilt call the Sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honorable; and shalt honor him, not doing thine own ways nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words: then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy Father; for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.” Let us hide under the promise, and find our refuge in Christ. He will establish us in truth and righteousness, and the glory of the Lord will be our rereward. [148]

The Immutability of God’s Law.
Sermon, Williamstown, Sunday
February 11, 1894, 4 p.m.

(601) “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

Had we no other assurance than this in all the word of God, of God’s love for man, we would have sufficient to condemn every soul who had not a personal faith in Christ. The Son of God did not die for a favored few, but for all the world. God gave His Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. That whosoever includes you and it includes me.

Adam and Eve, and through them all their posterity, became sinners, by transgressions of the commands of God. The fruit of the tree of knowledge, of which they were forbidden to eat, was not dangerous in itself; the danger lay in the disobedience (602) of God’s command. Eve listened to the words of the tempter, contradicting the words of God, Ye shall surely die.” “Ye shall not surely die,” he said; “for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof ye shall be as gods knowing good and evil.” And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat. . . . And the Lord God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this thou art cursed. . . . And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head; and thou shalt bruise His heel.”

God did not give his Son that he might do away with the law that Adam and Eve had transgressed. Had God been able to change one precept of his law to meet man in his fallen state, Christ need not have come to earth to die. But Christ did not die to give man liberty to serve other gods. He did not come to abolish the law, but to magnify it, and make it honorable. “Think not,” He said, “that I am come to destroy the law or the prophets; I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.” (603) If it had been possible for God to change his law, Christ need not have yielded up his position as Commander in the heavenly courts to accept a life of poverty and a death of shame. But for our sakes, to give man another chance, and bring him back to loyalty to God, “he became poor, that we through his poverty might be rich.” By his death Christ made a perfect sacrifice for sin. No angel in heaven could have done this work. He who was one with the Father, full of grace and truth must meet the penalty of the broken law. Christ came to remove the excuse that man thought he had to deride the character of God. He came to teach men to believe in Him, to repent of transgression, and to accept the righteousness of Christ. In Christ we are to see a perfect representation of the Father.

When the children of Israel went down into Egypt, they lost to a degree their knowledge of the true God. Moses, the servant of God, was sent to bring them out of the land of bondage. “Let my son go,” God commanded, “that he may serve me.” God led His people to Sinai and there proclaimed to them the law that they had forgotten. There he presented to them the whole Jewish economy, and pointed to Christ as its founder. In the (604) sacrifices they were to offer daily, was typified with great Antitype. The Son of God was to come to earth, and give His life for the sins of the race. When type should meet antitype in the death of Christ, there would no longer be any need for their sacrificial offerings; for the great offering had been made to save every transgressor of the law, who would accept Christ as his Saviour, and return to his loyalty to God. [149]

When Christ came to earth, He found transgression everywhere; traditions of men were taught for the commandments of God. Truth was mixed with error, until truth for the commandments of God. Truth was mixed with error, until truth was brought down to the very dust. Christ sought to tear away the error that covered the commandments of God, and to teach the truth in its purity. In His sermon on the mount, He presented the law to the people, in a way that they had never viewed it before. He showed how far reaching were its principles, and how they are to be carried into every transaction of the life.

It is the privilege of everyone to understand what sin is. John defines it as transgression of the law. “Whosoever committeth sin,” he says, “transgresseth also the law; for sin in the transgression of the law.” And in another place we read, (605) “Where there is no law, there is no transgression.”

We are living down a long way on this side of the crucifixion of Christ. Has God no law today to govern the angelic host in heaven and the inhabitants of the earth? It is because men today refuse to recognize the claims of the law of God, that earth has fallen into the depths of sin in which it lies. When we declare that the law of God has been done away, we declare God’s work as Creator and Ruler to be imperfect—that he made a law so defective, so inadequate to meet the needs of man, that he had to abolish it. The Victim of Calvary testifies to the fact that God could not abolish or change His law; but it tells mankind, that “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” Our obedience to God’s commandments will decide our eternal destiny; for if we are obedient children on earth, we shall be obedient children in heaven. God cannot take to heaven those who do not respect His law here; for such souls have not respect for the laws that govern heaven.

(606) When the lawyer asked Christ the question, “Haste, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” Christ said to him, “What is written in the law? how readest thou?” The priests and rulers had sent the lawyer to Christ, hoping in his answer to hear something by which they might condemn Him. They had framed the question that the lawyer asked. To Christ’s question the lawyer made reply, “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbor as thyself.” “Thou hast answered right,” Christ said; “this do, and thou shalt live.”

This is the question we should ask ourselves. Do I love God with all my heart and mind and soul and strength, and my neighbor as myself? On these two principles—supreme love for God, and unselfish love for man—hang all the law and the prophets. The first four commandments define our duty to God and demand supreme love for our Maker; the last six reveal our duty to God and demand supreme love for our maker; the last six reveal our duty to our fellow men.

Can you wonder that Satan seeks to make void the law of God. That law will be the standard of character in the judgment (607) when the books shall be opened, and every man is judged out of the things written therein. The names of those who have kept his law are engraven, Christ says, On the palms of His hands. The marks of the crucifixion have graven them there. They are hidden property—God’s by creation and by redemption.

“Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us,” the disciple John exclaim, “that we should be called the sons of God. Therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew Him not. And every [150] man that hath this hope in him, purifieth himself, even as He is pure.” The hope that John here speaks of leads man to purify himself, even as Christ is pure, is not a superficial thing, but a living working element in the soul. It requires that Christ be enthroned in the heart. Day by day we are to behold the loveliness of the character to charter, until the work of purification is accomplished in us.

When we listen to and believe the representations and assertions of Satan, we behold another character than that of Christ. We put another in the place of God. God is the One (608) whom we are to believe. We are to live by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. The enemy told the first man a lie, and he believed it. We are to purify our souls by obeying the truth; we are to educate ourselves in a certain faith, — the faith that works by love and purifies the soul from every idol in enthroned there.

It is of great consequence to those who are striving for the crown of immortal life to know that they have the power, and not merely the form of godliness. We cannot afford to believe an error simply because it has been handed down from generation to generation to our time. What we need is truth, and we need it at every point. Listening to the words of Christ, we will get truth. He is the Way, the Truth and the Life.

God gave man the Sabbath as a memorial of his work of creation. He who made the lofty trees and gave to the tiny flower its beauty of tint and form, blessed the Sabbath day and gave it to Adam and his posterity as a day of rest. If man had always obeyed the fourth commandment, there never would have been an infidel in our world. The fourth is the only precept of the Decalogue that declares God to be the (609) Maker of the world.

Some of you may say, My father was a Christian, and he did not keep the seventh day. Your father lives up to the light he received. He did not know that the seventh day was the Sabbath of the Lord. Had he lived in this age, and received the light of present truth, had he seen himself a transgressor of the law of God in his disregard of the seventh day as the Sabbath, he would, if he walked in every ray of light received, have inquired, is this the way of the Lord, and would have walked in the light. Every soul in every age is accountable for the light that shines in his age. The light comes to every soul to test character and prove our loyalty. If light comes to you, and you see that all the years of your life you have been breaking the Sabbath of the fourth commandment, determine that you will do so no longer. It is those who obey who receive the blessing of God. He will bless you in your children, in your lands, in everything you put your hand to. “Blessed are they,” he says, “that do His commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, that they may enter in through the gates into the city.”

(610) Do not think that Satan will let you gain all this without a struggle. He is determined to be master if he can. He fell from heaven because of this very determination. He wanted to be equal with Christ. He is working on human minds today just as subtly, just as determinedly as he worked with Adam and Eve in Eden. Men and women are gathering beneath his banner and he is encircling them with his power. Those who discern the changeless character of the law of God, and respect its claims, will place themselves on Christ’s side.

God will not force any man to keep his law. Every soul is elected to be saved who will walk in the light that shines upon his pathway. Parents need to awake from their lethargy, and see that it is time to put on the beautiful robe of Christ’s righteousness. “Buy of Me,” He says, “gold tried in the fire, and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed.” Adam and Eve after they had transgressed, “saw that they were [151] naked.” The garment that had covered them, and represented the righteousness of Christ, departed when they sinned. The righteousness of Christ cannot cover the soul polluted with sin. We have all been transgressors of the law of God. Our eternal interests (611) are involved in the question of obedience, and that is why I say to you, Cherish every ray of light. On your knees ask God to impress your heart by His Holy Spirit, that you may not turn away from His law.

We read that many of the priests in Christ’s day believed on Jesus, but their faith stopped right there. They did not confess Him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue. Are there any here who are saying in their hearts, If I had lived in the time of Christ, I would not have joined my voice with those who cried, Crucify Him, crucify Him. Then prove that you would not have done this by following the light you receive today. You are not responsible for the action of those with hoarse voice cried Release unto us Barabbas, and to the question of Pilate, What then shall I do with Jesus which is called Christ, replied, “Let Him be crucified.” But you are responsible for your individual rejection of acceptance of light today. It was Satan who in Christ’s day led men to reject light, and grieve the Spirit of God. It is the same power that strives with souls today. We do not want to place ourselves under the banner of the prince of darkness, but under the blood-stained (612) banner of Prince Emmanuel.

If we place ourselves under obedience to Christ, God will teach us truths from His word that we have never seen before. It will take all eternity to understand some truths that have been crowded from the mind by false teachers who by their tradition have made the word of God of no effect. I point you to the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. You cannot bear your own sin. Christ says he will bear it for you, if you will take hold of the merits of a crucified and risen Saviour. He suffered that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. Believe in Him as the One on whom the sins of the world are laid. Shall it be said that Christ has died for you in vain? or will you give to the world a representation of the character of God in an example of rectitude because of your obedience to the commandments of God. May the Lord help you to be loyal servants of His.

“I saw a new heavens and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down (613) from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven, saying, The tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be His people; and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes, and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying; neither shall there be any more pain; for the former things have passed away.”

We are heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ to riches that are imperishable. Christ said to his followers, I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself, that where I am there ye may be also.” We shall be with Christ until the city of God comes to earth, and we take possession of our future home. We shall build houses and inhabit them, we shall plant vineyards, and eat the fruit of them. Do you not want a place in the earth made new? I want to be there. I want to see the King in his beauty. I want to see the One who died a victim on Calvary for my sin. When He comes in power and great glory, the admired of all them that believe, I do not want to be found under the bondage of sin.

(614) You will be among the happiest people on the earth when you [152] have the assurance within that you are not in conflict with the law of God. You need to be doers of the word that when test and trial comes, you house may stand because it is founded upon the Rock. The house that is built on the sand will be swept away. May God help you to keep all his commandments, and that when He comes to receive His people, you may hear him say to you, “Blessed are they that do His commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and enter in through the gates into the city.” [153]

“This is Life Eternal, That they Might Know Thee.”
Sermon, Parham, Sunday, 4 p.m.
Feb. 18, 1894

(615) “As Thou hast given Him power over all flesh, that He might give eternal life to as many as thou shalt give Him. And this is life eternal, that they might know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent.”

We have presented before us the greatest knowledge, and the most essential for every individual. Men may put forth all their efforts, may expend money, go to the highest institutions of learning to obtain an education, but if they do not feel the necessity of obtaining a knowledge of God and of Jesus Christ whom He has sent, the knowledge they may obtain will avail them nothing; for it cannot give them eternal life.

Men and women will make any sacrifice to prolong their life. Many travel extensively, from east to west, to (616) Europe and other countries in search of health. In one place I saw a man in great suffering and distress. A large tumor growing on the back of his neck, and it had increased in size until his head rested on his breast. He was a professing Christian, but he said, Give me something to prolong my life. Even such suffering he manifested a tenacious hold on life. We talked with him about the future life which measures with the life of God, — a life without sorrow and sin, without bereavement or infirmity or affliction and into which no fear of death could come.

At the best our life time here is short. We know not how soon the time will come to any one of us when we must give up the world and all its interests. The question we should ask ourselves is, Have I become acquainted with God, the law giver, and with Jesus Christ whom he sent into the world to represent Him?

“This is life eternal that they might know Thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom He has sent.” When I consider the conditions of eternal life, I wonder that the world is not filled (617) with the glory of God. I wonder why men and women are not making their aim and object to know God and Jesus Christ, why instruction has not come from parents to children that they might be trained and disciplined and educated to love and fear God. The first lessons that parents should teach their children should be lessons about the love of God and Christ; for unless the children and youth gain this knowledge, they will never know what eternal life is. Parents who by their conduct and conversation reveal that the world and its interests absorb their thoughts are guilty of wicked neglect before God. The mind and intellect is a gift from God and it is to be educated and trained and disciplined.

Parents, teach your children from their babyhood the lessons the God and Christ. When the precious words of life are familiar to their minds, the truth will become the treasure of the heart, and the transforming grace of God will mold the character. You are not to teach your children to know God as a stern judge, as a terrible being of whom they must be afraid. Teach them that He is a God of love Weave His love into your own (618) character, seek to bring it into the characters of your children. Practice true Christlike courtesy in our own lives it will appear in the lives of your children. Keep ever be them that they are living in the presence of a holy God.

Heavenly angels are watching the battle that is going between the Prince of life and the power of darkness. Christ in His life taught us how to meet the enemy in this conflict. He left the royal courts and laid aside his glory, and clothing his divinity with humanity became a man among the sons of men. He walked the streets of earth as a representative [154] of the love of God, giving an example that all human beings may study, and revealing a character that all may copy. He did not like to please himself, but he lived to point men to God. He came to live the law of God, because Satan was bringing his power to bear upon men telling them that it was impossible to keep the law. It is true that it is impossible for man of himself to keep the law of God. But Christ teaches the sinner to lay hold by faith of the sin-pardoning Saviour and receive the righteousness of Christ. He presents to the Father his own righteousness for the transgressions of men, and the virtue of his character (619) is accepted in the sinner’s behalf.

When Satan is dethroned, and his place supplied by the grace and righteousness of Christ, Jesus is enthroned in the heart. And Christ says, “If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.” “Verily, verily I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do, because I go unto My Father. . . . He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth Me; and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself unto Him. . . . If a man love me, he will keep My words; and My Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.”

Christ came to the world to bring moral power to fallen man, that he might in keeping the commandments of God become a partaker of the divine nature, having escaped the corruptions that are in the world through lust. It is the privilege of every one of us to lay hold of the hope set before us. We are persons of hope. God has done everything for us in giving his (620) only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. “He that believeth in me,” Christ says, “the works that I do, shall he do also.”

The Pharisees seeing the disciples rubbing the ears of corn in their hands as they went through the fields on the Sabbath charged them with breaking the Sabbath. Could they have fastened the charge of Sabbath breaking on Christ, they would not have to get false witnesses to testify against him. But none could truthfully call Christ a Sabbath-breaker. He was the maker of the Sabbath. From the pillar of cloud, and from Mt. Sinai he proclaimed the law to his people. To the caviling Jews He said, Ye know not what this means, I will have mercy and not sacrifice, or ye would not have condemned the guiltless. Ye are ignorant of the Scriptures and of the power of God.

“He that believeth in me, the works that I do shall he do also, and greater works than these shall he do, because I go unto My Father; and whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.” Why is it that we are so weak and helpless. Why do professing Christians mingle with the world till they lose sight of eternal life? (621) why are there so many families destitute of the Spirit of God, with so little of the love and life and likeness of Christ? It is because men and women do not know God. If they knew God, they would see him by faith in Jesus Christ. They would see the matchless charms in the Son of God, that they would desire to behold him, and beholding him would be changed into the same image.

Three and a half years of public ministry was all that the world could bear of the Son of God. Then they crucified Him. The heavenly vine was taken and transplanted on the other side of the wall. But the heavenly boughs hang over this side of the wall. Christ is still with us in his representative, the Holy Spirit. Through this medium communication is kept up between heaven and earth, between God and man. And we must be careful not to destroy this communication, lest we be overcome. [155]

Christ overcame the world that we might overcome. Our work is to seek God with all our hearts that we may find Him. Do not be afraid of being found on your knees acknowledging God as your Father and your dependence upon Him. Let it be (622) known that you are acquainted with His power, that you want vital connection with the God of heaven. Let it be seen that you are turning your eyes toward heaven. So long as Moses kept his hands toward heaven, Israel prevailed over her enemies; but just as soon as they began to droop, the enemy gained the victory. When Moses’s strength failed and he could no longer hold up his hands, Aaron and Hur stood one on each side of him and held up his hands till the going down of the sun. By this attitude Moses signified to Israel that he was laying hold of the strength of God for them, and that they must look to the same sources for help. Christ was their helper. They must look to him for victory.

We are living in a world that is unfavorable to right and truth. Those who desire to serve God must put all their hearts into his service. “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.” God has placed a benediction upon those who keep his commandments. “I will bless you in fields,” he says, “in your flocks and herds, and vineyards, and in all that ye put your hands unto.” Shall we stand as the peculiar people of (623) God or shall we trample his law under our feet and say it is not binding. God’s law has not been abolished. Why should God abolish a perfect thing. Could the law have been abolished, Christ need not have died to save man from death. In the law of God every specification reveals the character of God. Christ came to fulfil the law. “Think not?” were the words that fell on the startled ears of his listeners, “that I am come to destroy the law or the prophets; I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.” “Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one title shall in no wise pass from the law until all be fulfilled.” We are to search and study the Scriptures and learn if we are obeying the law of God and meeting the requirements of God’s standard of righteousness.

Parents, tell your children that you have disregarded the law of God, and that you are sorry. Tell them that you feel as King Josiah did. He was sorry to think that the law had been lost, and that God’s people had been careless and heedless in regard to it. They brought the law before the king and the people assembled together, and as one stood up to read (624) it, the people wept and mourned that they had not kept it. You can rejoice that you have the law. Bring your offerings God and offer praise to Him. When the light regarding the law God comes to us, and we can see that we have been transgressing we can say, “Now I understand how it is that we have been in darkness and uncertainty. I will keep God’s law and live. The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul. We need to use our intelligence to a purpose, and rejoice that we have found out where we have been disloyal. You would not have your record go up to heaven as a transgressor of the Law. Rejoice that you have found out how defective you are, and resolve that you will overcome sin and be a victor. “To him that overcometh,” Christ says, “Will I grant to sit with me on my throne; even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in His throne.” We need to learn the obedience of Christ and receive the spirit of God. We need to practice his virtues, and be doers of the word.

The law has no power to save man. It is through Christ’s perfect obedience to the law, through the righteousness and merits (625) and virtue of His character that we receive salvation. It is only through Christ that we can keep the commandments of God. But while the law cannot [156] save any man, it is the standard of character and to represent the character of Christ, we just live the law that guided his life. Do not teach that there is no law to govern heavenly and human intelligences. Those who teach such a theory as this stand on Satan’s side, and you cannot afford to be there. I beseech you to seek the Lord with all your heart that you may find him precious to your soul Jesus died that you might have salvation, that you might daily grow in a knowledge of God, and of Jesus Christ whom he has sent.

We must claim his sufficiency. When Satan says to you, “You are a sinner, and never can make yourself any better, tell him that you know you are a sinner, and that because you are a sinner you need a Saviour. Lay hold of the merits of Christ to save you from all transgression, and be washed in the fountain that has been opened to cleanse from all defilement of sin.

When we behold the perfection of Christ’s character, then we see the defects in our own characters. When we flee to Christ (626) and lay hold of his merits, he will be our help and salvation. He will wash us from all uncleanness. No stain will remain the character where Christ is enthroned in the heart. Christ does not war against God. “I and My Father are one.” He says. He was the express image of his Father, and as Christ represented the character of His father, we are to express to the world the character of Christ.

There is matchless loveliness in Jesus Christ. I love him because he first love me. We need his purity, and he will save to the uttermost all who come unto God by Him. As you see what Christ has suffered for you, are you will to be a partaker of his sufferings. If you will, He promises that you shall be partaker in his glory. If you will cooperate with him, he will cooperate with you to bring lost sheep back to the fold. There are souls perishing out of Christ. Paul declared, “I have taught them from house to house, repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. God grant that we may seek the perishing and bring them back to God. We want to see sinners converted; we want to see transgression swept from the earth.

(627) It is our privilege to learn to represent Christ to the world. “Learn of me Christ Says. “Take my yoke upon you.” If we will love and serve him, we shall have most precious victories. He will open to us the gates of the city of God, and bid us come in, welcoming us with heavenly benediction, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant, enter thou into the joy of thy Lord.” The joy of the Lord is the joy of seeing souls saved. In doing this work we shall be partakers in the sufferings of Christ, laborers together with God. And shall we not be partakers of the glory which he gives to every faithful child of God?

May God help us to know what we ought to do. We need to experience the deep movings of the Spirit of God in our hearts. We need to walk in the light as God is in the light; then we shall never be in darkness. Songs of praise and rejoicing will be heard as tell the story of the love of God for man, who gave His Son to die on Calvary that we should not perish in our sins.

Let us cease from evil, and follow on to know the Lord. O the light and love and preciousness that there is in Christ. (628) He will encircle us in the arms of his mercy, he will love us freely. Let us take the righteousness that Christ offers us, his robe woven in the loom of heaven. Let us put it on right here. The world needs the life of Christ, it needs an example of what man can become through the grace of Christ. O that we might manifest God to a fallen world. God grant that this may be our lot. Jesus loves us with a love that is infinite. He does not want that one of us should perish; but that everyone should have the life that [157] measures with the life of God. God grant that we may secure that blessed inheritance. [158]

Sermon, North Brighton Town Hall,
Sunday, 3 p.m. February 25, 1894.

(629) “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ; by whom also we have access by faith unto this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; and patience experience; and experience hope; and hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy chest which is given unto us. For when we were without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die, yet per adventure for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from through Him. For, if when we (630) were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.”

I want to present before you this afternoon the happiness, the advantages and the possibilities to be found in Jesus. We do not comprehend as we might the wonderful gift of the Son of God. We read over the Scriptures, as I have read this to you today, and often we do not appreciate what they mean to us.

When we were lost, Christ died to recover us. When we were sinners against God, and there was no hope for us, Christ consented to take our transgression on His soul. There was no virtue, no righteousness in us, that God should accept our efforts to keep the law. The provision was made before the foundation of the world that if transgression should enter, Christ would become our Substitute and Surety. The moment man fell in consequence of sin, that moment Christ was willing to take its consequences upon His soul. From that moment the sin of the world was laid upon Him. When God gave His Son he gave all heaven, that Satan could not say He could have done more than He had done for the human race. O I am so thankful (631) that God has placed such precious treasure within our reach. Those who have the offering made in their behalf have the presence of Christ with them at every step of their earthly journey. “Lo,” Christ says, “I am with you always even unto the end of the world.”

“Death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam’s transgression, who is the figure of Him that was to come. But if through the offence of one, many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift of grace, which is by one man Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many.”

It is impossible for man to be justified by the law; for the law has no power to pardon the transgressor. When there was no hope, Christ appeared in behalf of the human race. God bestowed all heaven in one gift, and left man without excuse for continuing in transgression.

“In due time Christ died for the ungodly.” Through the preceding ages he had been working out the plan of salvation in His home above. He was as much the Saviour of Abraham and other patriarchs and prophets as He is ours. There was no hope (632) for them any more than for us, except in Christ. Thus Christ was the foundation of the whole Jewish economy. He was the “Lamb of God, that taketh away the sin of the world.”

Abraham accepted Christ, and embraced the promise. Moses saw him, and endured the seeing of Him who is invisible. Noah the prophet of righteousness was perfected in his day. And Enoch walked with God. They had advantages in their day of knowing Christ. But we have a crucified and risen Saviour. Over the rent sepulcher of Joseph, the Saviour [159] exclaimed, “I am the resurrection and the life.” Christ has broken the fetters of the tomb, and made it possible for every believer in Him to do the same, and to come up in the morning of the resurrection because of their hope in Christ.

Christ was the prince of life, the only begotten of the Father. Yet for our sakes he became a man of sorrow and acquainted with grief. Ask Isaiah who he is and he will tell you “Unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. Of the increase and government of (633) his kingdom there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and justice henceforth and forever.”

The reason why so few accept salvation is that men do not love the truth. They are not willing to search the Scriptures, that they may become wise in the things of God. We read that many in Christ’s day believed in Him, but did not confess Him, lest they should be turned out of the synagogues; “for they loved the praise of men rather than the praise of God.” This is the reason why today men are not brought to repentance, why they do not accept the infinite sacrifice that heaven has made and grasp the only provision by which the sinner can obtain salvation. We may present the attractions of the gospel, the eternal weight of glory, the life that measures with the life of God, with its eternity of blessing; but their spiritual eyesight is blinded by the pride and vanities of the world, their minds held by its maxims and traditions, and they cannot see the glory that is in store for the overcomer. They cannot accept by faith God’s overtures for mercy in the gift of his Son.

(634) Christ came to reveal the true and perfect character of the law. The psalmist had declared it “perfect, converting the soul.” Christ came to reveal the character of God, and he showed that the unchangeable character of God is revealed in His law. “Verily I say unto you,” He said, “not one jot or one tittle shall pass from the law, until all be fulfilled.” Satan had tried to make man believe that it was impossible to keep the law. Christ in his life showed how false this teaching was. He saw how Satan had had his way on the earth. Man-made maxims were taught for the commandments of God. From Generation to generation the rubbish had accumulated until the law of God was hidden by the traditions of misrepresentations of men. Christ tore away the error that enveloped the truth, that the law might stand out upon its eternal basis of virtue and purity.

The Pharisees told the people that Christ was seeking to lessen the importance of the law of God, to make it of no effect. Christ replied to their words, by saying, “Think not that I am come to destroy the law or the prophets; I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill.” The Saviour was sitting at (635) the time in the open air. Pointing to earth and sky he said, “Verily I say unto you, Until Heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall not pass from the law until all be fulfilled.”

The apostle Paul declared, “God forbid that I should glory save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.” This will be the experience of all who, appreciating the matchless charms of Jesus take their stand under His banner. Those who once were friends will turn from them saying, You have left us, and chosen a religion in which we have no interest.” The things they once loved, they will no longer love. But “being justified by [160] faith,” they “have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ; by whom also we have access by one faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.” There is an attraction here for the believer that unbelievers do not understand; for their spiritual understanding is blinded. They do not lay hold of the hope set before them.

It is nothing to be ashamed of that we stand under the banner (636) of Prince Emmanuel. We need not feel that we must apologize to the world for being Christians. It should not bring the flush of shame to our cheek t own that we are members of the royal family, children of the heavenly King. The world is ranging itself under the black banner of the prince of darkness. They declare that they are not on God’s side. This is a terrible declaration to make when God has made so great a sacrifice in their behalf. “Come out from among them saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will be a Father unto you; and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.”

Can we comprehend the meaning of this promise. Sinners who caused the humiliation and shame and death of the Son of God may be lifted up from their condition of degradation and woe to be the sons and daughters of God, to be given a place with Him in His throne. “Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us,” John exclaims, “that we should be called the sons of God.” “Therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew Him not.”

“In the beginning was the word, and the Word was with God, (637) and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him, and without him was not anything made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.”

We want to understand what this light is. For more than fifty years I have known it. When gleans of God’s glory first came to me, Those who were with me thought that I was dead. They watched over me, weeping and praying. But this season was heaven to me; it was life. I saw the world spread out before me, covered with darkness as with the pall of death. I could see no light anywhere. Then I discerned a little glimmer of light, then another and another. These lights increased in number, grew brighter, and multiplied, till all the world was lighted by them.

When my breath came again to my body, I could not hear anything, and everything was dark. The light and glory that my eyes had rested upon eclipsed the light of the earthly sun. I remained in this condition for many hours. Then gradually I began to recognize those about me. “Where am I?” I asked. (638) “You are right here in my house,” answered one; “do you not remember?” Then it all came back to me. “Have I come back to earth again?” I asked. “Is this to be my home.” O the burden that came upon my soul.

Then grace was given to me, and since that time nothing has been able to deprive me of the glory I beheld in Jesus Christ. As far as human eyes may see Him, I have beheld Him. God has taken me away from this earth to behold His glory: and the views I have had have made me strong, so that no earthly power could lead me to put my trust in any other being. He will never leave me nor forsake me. I love Jesus. I see in Him matchless charms. I want to be like him, and glorify His name on the earth.

In the parable of the supper, the invitation was given, Come for all things are now ready. But one pled the excuse, “I have bought five yoke of oxen; and I go to prove them; I pray thee have me excused.” [161] Another said, “I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.” The Master said, “None of those that were bidden shall taste of my supper.”

(639) Not only to the Jewish nation, but to every nation under heaven the invitation is given, “Come for all things are now ready. But as with the Jews, so men today with one voice make excuse. They cannot come. They do not believe. They will not taste of the love of God. Their senses are dulled by worldliness and pride and intemperance, and they have no will to consider the question, “How is it with my soul?” “What must I do to be saved?” A study of the word of God will answer this question for every soul. The Scriptures speak with no uncertain sound. In it God’s standard of character is not torn down and trampled in the dust. “This is life eternal, that they might know Thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent.” What excuse will men render in the judgment for having rejected Christ? They can render no excuse.

John was not the true light; but he was sent to prepare the way for the light. O the precious light there is in Jesus. I say it in the morning, in the night, and every hour of the day. God forbid that by the character I present to the world I should make Him ashamed of me.

(640) “That was the true Light, which lighteth ever man that cometh into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made by Him, and the world knew Him not. He came unto His own, and His own received Him not.”

“But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name; which were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God, And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us (and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father), full of grace and truth.”

Those who hear and receive the word of God will often find the acceptance of it a cross; but the cross must be lifted. You cannot trample it under your feet. “Whosoever will come after me,” Christ says, “let Him deny himself, and take up his cross and follow me.” If you make up your mind that you cannot always follow the example of Christ, that you must go to the theater and other places of amusement where God is not, you will find yourself terribly disappointed.

What we need today is the truth. Many who stand in the desk give their own words and assurances for the words and assurances of God. What we need is the word of God as it is in (641) the Scriptures, the truth as it is in Jesus. Each should learn to look to Christ for strength and glory and power. I am grateful to my heavenly Father that it is the privilege of each one to read the Scriptures for himself, and to understand what they say. We need a new and rich experience in Christ. We need not hang our souls on any human being, but on Him. We may be complete in Christ, “by whom also we have access in the grace wherein we stand.”

O, says one, I wish I knew certainly that God was my Father. On my way to this country I received a letter from one saying, “O tell me if you can what I must do in order to know that I have Christ.” What could I tell this soul? Tell me, you who have tasted of the world to come, you who know what it is to have the spirit of supplication, and to lift up hands and heart in faith to God. Such souls want to live on emotion; but feeling is as changeable as the wind. They need to go to the Father with His pledged word, saying, You promised, Lord, that if I asked I should receive. You have said that you are more willing to give than we are to receive. I believe your word.” (642) I cannot show such souls any new [162] way. Christ is the way, the Truth and the Life. He has given His life that men and women might be saved. He wills not that any man should perish, but that all should come to him and be saved. He does not want us to live day by day under oppression to sin. The reason why more are not attracted to Jesus is because his professed followers misrepresent Him. We are slothful servants, and do not reap the blessings we might have in our Christian experience.

Just as long as the devil lives, we will have our doubts and trials. He is working out his devices night and day. When Jesus “began to show unto His disciples how He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes.” Peter did not want to hear any such story. He thought that God would place Christ on a temporal throne, and that he would be the earthly ruler of Israel. Forgetting himself, he “took him, and began to rebuke Him, saying, Be it far from the Lord; thus shall not be unto thee. And he turned and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me Satan; thou art an offence unto Me; for thou savorest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men.”

(643) Where was Satan?—He was right between Christ and Peter, filling Peter with doubts and unbelief. “Get thee behind Me, Satan,” Christ said; “stand back.” Then to Peter He said, “Satan hath desired to have thee; that thy faith fail not. Christ foresaw that Peter would deny him in the judgment hall. He saw also his repentance when the erring disciple fled to the garden of Gethsemane, and wept there in an agony of grief. Peter was converted them, and could safely be told to feed the sheep and the lambs. After this experience, Peter could go to the most tempted and tried; for he knew how to help them.

“And not only so, but we glory in tribulation also, knowing that tribulation worketh patience; and patience experience; and experience hope; and hope maketh not ashamed, because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts.”

We rejoice in hope, not in feeling. We know that tribulation works experience, and experience hope. When we are tried, or do not feel just as we would like, we are not to become impatient, speaking harsh and unkind words. We cannot afford to do this. The trying of our faith is to work patience in us. (644) We are fighting the battle in view of heavenly intelligences, and we grieve the heart of God when we deny him in any way. We have the promise of the Holy Spirit, and we are to glory in tribulation, and find our joy in Christ. God commandeth His love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

“Herein is your Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples. As the Father hath loved Me, so have I loved you; continue ye in my love. If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love, even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in His love.”

With such a promise should you be sorrowful? Should you walk in the path cast up for the ransomed of the Lord to walk in and water it with your tears. “These things have I spoken unto you, that your joy might be full.” We are to walk in the light as Christ is in the light.

You may ask, Do you always have this light in a marked manner?—No; I do not always; but when Satan seeks to cast his shadow across my pathway, I do not look at it and talk about it, (645) and of what a hard time I have. I cleave right through the shadow, and lay hold of Christ by faith. By beholding Christ we are changed into the same image from glory to glory. Talk faith. Every doubt you express is a seed sown that will take root in some heart. Faith is the substance of things hoped for; the evidence of things not seen.” How much we would increase our faith if we [163] would make the word of God our counsellor. When we go to man for wisdom, and make flesh our arm, we reveal that we do not have faith in God.

Christ has purchased you, redeemed you. Satan has no claim on your services. You are to be free in Christ because you believe in Him. When Satan comes to you, and says, It is no use for you to pray; you are a sinner, tell him that that is the reason why you have need to pray. You need a Saviour because you are a sinner. If you should wait until you make yourself better before you come to Christ, you would never come at all. Christ came not to call the righteous but sinners to repentance. It is your privilege to accept the sacrifice that has been made for you at an infinite cost. Commit the keeping of your soul to him as to a faithful Redeemer. We will keep (646) that which you have committed to Him against that day.

Consider, my friends, is it not time for you to think of what God has done for you. Praise Him that angels guard you from dangers on the right hand and on the left. We has given you food and raiment; praise him for these tokens of his goodness. If you cannot think of anything in your life to thank him for praise him that He is merciful. There is one thing for which you can never cease to thank Him, He “so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” O praise the lord in your hearts, and teach your tongues to praise Him. Seek the gifts of God. Take his precious words, and hang them in Memory’s Hall; think of them; talk of them; praise God for them; and Satan will not interpose his shadow between your soul and God. Do not allow your minds to become absorbed with worldly things, so that you have no time to pray and educate your children, no time to make your home a symbol of the family in heaven. We must begin now to consecrate ourselves to God.

We each may have the rich experience of knowing God and (647) Jesus Christ whom he has sent. O, let it be seen in the world that God has given you tongue and utterance, by praising Him with heart and soul and voice. You are not to groan and complain. You are to be learners in the school of Christ of his meekness and lowliness. You are to bear his yoke. He says that it is easy, and His burden light. If you have found it so, you will know how to catch the strains of the heavenly music. Make melody to God in your hearts; and when the call comes, Child, come up higher; when you enter the city of God through the gates that will swing back on their glittering hinges for you, you will know just where to take up the immortal song. You will hear the music of heaven, and know that the warfare is accomplished. You will hear the voice of the Master, “Thou hast been faithful over a few things; I will make thee ruler over many things; enter thou into the joy of thy lord.” You will take your golden harp and fill all heaven with your songs, “Worthy, worthy is the Lamb that was slain.”

Have faith and patience and hope, and a rich experience will be yours. You will be a light in the world, and men seeing your good works, will glorify your Father which is in (648) heaven. I want to see you among the throng in the kingdom of God. I want to see your faces illuminated with the glory of God and reflecting the image of Jesus. All your sorrows will then be ended. There will be no more trouble or sin, but joy, eternal joy through the endless ages. [164]

“If Thine Eye Be Single, Thy Whole Body Shall be Full of Light.”

Sermon, Williamstown, Vic.
March 18, 1894.

(649) “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through and steal: For where your treasure is there will your heart be also.” “The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be singe, thy whole body shall be full of light. But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness! No man can serve two masters: (650) for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other; ye cannot serve God and mammon.”

Christ here seeks to reveal to us truths that are of the highest value, that we may not be deceived by the falsehoods of Satan, and be led into paths of disobedience and transgression. He wants us to consider His words, to open the chambers of the mind, and receive the truths that He is bringing before us. To have the eye single means to have nothing interposing between the soul and Christ. The salvation of the soul should be the first consideration of every son and daughter of Adam. We cannot afford to have a double eye, one for the world, and one for Christ. “Ye cannot serve God and mammon.” The will, the intellect, the whole being must be subservient to Jesus Christ. When we place ourselves in this relation to Him, all we possess will have His blessing upon it.

“Therefore I say unto you,” Christ continued, “Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life (651) more than meat, and the body than raiment?”

We know not how long this life we have today will last, how soon the arrow of death will be aimed at our vitals, and our last record pass into eternity. Then it will be too late to correct mistakes. There will be no change of character with the resurrection from the dead; whatever change is made, must be made in this life. If we believe in Christ as a personal Saviour, and accept His sacrifice in our behalf, if our life is hid with Christ in God, we may go down into the grave, but we shall not remain there. When the Life-giver comes, and the trumpet sounds, and the dead in Christ arise, we shall come forth to a glorious immortality. We read something of the life we shall them receive in Paul’s epistle to the Romans: “Who will render to every man according to His deeds, to them who by patience continuance in well doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, eternal life.” It is of this life the Saviour speaks when he says, “Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?” Glory and honor and immortality, eternal life, are offered us—a life that runs parallel (652) with the life of Jehovah. Should we not begin to make preparation for that life? Should we not examine ourselves, and see if our hope is well grounded in Jesus, and that he is the center of our life and affections? This life, eternal life is more than meat, this glorious body more than raiment.

Do you fear that if you take your stand for the truth of the Bible, that you will lose your worldly position? Some of you say, “I cannot take my position to keep the Sabbath and serve the Lord; for if I do this, my worldly prospects will be spoiled.” Then let them be spoiled. Far better had you lose your worldly position than lose Jesus, far better [165] we partakers of the sufferings of Christ than gather to yourself the riches of this life. You cannot carry these with you into the future life. But if you have Jesus, you have everything; He is all you need to stand the test of the day of God.

“Which of you by taking thought, can add one cubit unto his stature. And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin; and yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory, was not arrayed like one of these.”

(653) Solomon is considered the wisest king that ever swayed the scepter. He was called a man after God’s own heart. Let us follow for a time the course of this king who, at the dedication of the temple prayed that the worshipers might not be divided in heart, but be true to the service of God. His is a sad history of failure. This king who prayed for wisdom to rule his kingdom well, became a despot and tyrant. In order to meet the wants that his extravagance demanded, he laid a heavy yoke upon His people. In gathering the riches that were to compose the temple, Solomon brought gold from Ophir, and silver and precious woods from Tyre. Everything that would enrich his kingdom as well as the temple was brought into it. Every rare plant and shrub helped to beautify his kingdom. Young men clad in garments that glittered with silver and gold ministered to his wants. And yet Solomon was not a happy man. Disappointment, unhappiness and discontent resulted from the course he followed.

Do you ask why Solomon took such a course after receiving from God such a rich endowment? It was because he did that which God forbade him to do. “Thou shalt not marry with (654) the heathen nations,” God declared. God knew that these heathen influences would turn the hearts of the king from the service of God. But the king married into heathen nations, and had many wives, who turned the heart of the king from the worship of the true God to serve idols. Right down in the days of Christ could be seen the evidence of the king’s corruption. On a hill across from the Mount of Olives, there could be seen through the olive groves and forest trees the remains of the idols Solomon had worshipped. These had been broken down by faithful king, but the remains were still there, and their presence gave to that mountain the name of the Mount of Offence.

Solomon should have been an example and a counsellor to his people. He should have refused to take the first step when God said, “Thou shalt not.” The responsibility of a nation was upon him, the responsibility of the chosen nation of God. In his experience we can see how little dependence can be placed on the wisest earthly king who goes contrary to the injunctions of God. We are to see that it is not safe to turn away from the sayings of Christ to follow the leading of any human mind or will. We need in every detail of life to understand what (655) the will of the Lord is. To every minister, to every responsible man, to every humble worker, God will give light, if man will keep his eye single to the glory of God.

“Wherefore if God so clothe the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is cast into the oven, shall He not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?”

Consider the care that God has given to the grass of the field. He has clothed the earth, not in a somber drab or brown, but with a carpet of living green. Consider the flowers that he has clothed with such beauty of tint and color. The artist seeks to copy nature, but how readily we discern that his work is only an imitation of the true. God wants us to learn a lesson from the works of His hands; He wants us to [166] study the beauties of the natural world, to educate our children to study them, that they and we may see in them an expression of the love of God for us! Here is a voice speaking to parents, bidding you keep ever before you the One who made the heavens and the earth. This is the God you are to present to our children Point them to the flowers, telling them that God made them, and that after six days of labor he rested on the seventh, and that (656) gave the Sabbath to man as a memorial of His creative work. Yet instead of talking of the praise of God who made these things we talk of the things that human hands have made; we study the adornment of our homes and our bodies. The means God has given us to glorify Him, we spend in self-indulgence. The honor and glory and applause of the world should be worth nothing to us in comparison with the love of God that is awaiting us. O, if the curtain could be rolled back, and we could get but a glimpse of the glory that is in reserve for those who serve God with a single eye. If our life is hid with Christ in God, Christ who is our life shall appear, ten shall we also appear with Him in glory. We cannot afford to sin; for its wages are death. When the follower of Christ receives into his heart the love flowing from the heart of God, he turns to serve God, and keep his commandments.

“Take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or what shall we drink? or Wherewithal shall we be clothed?” These temporal matters need not cause you anxious thought. God has given you everything that is lovely and of worth in this world. “Will he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith.” (657) Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness, and all these thing shall be added unto you.” “Your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. Christ does not say, “God knoweth” but “Your heavenly Father knoweth what ye have need of these things,” placing God in the relation of a tender, thoughtful parent. He who has not withheld the gift of His precious Son, will he not with Him freely give you all things?” God has pledged his word; let us believe him. It is time that we began to cultivate the faith that is presented to us by precept and example in the precious lessons of the word of God. If we will let Him, the Lord will teach us lessons of trust.

Fathers and mothers, are you repeating the words of Christ to your children? or do you give anxious thought to what you shall eat and drink and wear? “Take no thought for the morrow; for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.”

God estimated man at such a value, that He gave to the world His only begotten Son. He gave Him, knowing that he would receive from the world insult and derision and mocker, (658) Christ’s followers must not expect to escape trials and difficulties. Christ said to his disciples, warning them of the treatment they would receive at the hands of men, “If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my sayings, they will keep yours also. If they have called the Master of the house Beelzebub, how much more will they call them of His household.” “He that will come after me, let deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.”

Brethren and friends, are you lifting the cross, or are you trying to step over it? Are you willing to be a partaker with Christ in His sufferings? When the judgment shall set, and the books shall be opened, and the human family is set, some on Christ’s right hand, and the others on His left, Christ will say to those who have lifted the cross in self-denial, “Come ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: for I was an hungered, and ye gave [167] Me meat: I was thirsty and ye gave Me drink: I was a stranger and ye took me in: naked and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison and ye came unto me.” (659) Then shall the righteous answer Him saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungered, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink? when saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in, or naked and clothed thee? or when saw we thee sick or in prison, and came unto thee? And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these, My brethren, ye have done it unto Me.” They were so imbued with the Spirit of God, so filled with His love, that unconsciously they worked as Christ worked. The love of God received by them from Christ was daily springing up unto everlasting life.

To those on His left hand Christ declares, “Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and His angels: for I was an hungered, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not. Then shall they answer him saying, Lord when saw we thee an hungered, or athirst, or a stranger, or sick or in prison, and did not minister unto Thee? Then shall He answer them saying, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the (660) least of these, My brethren, ye did it not to me.” These have not hid their lives in that of their Master. Their minds have been filled with a desire for earthly gain. “What shall we eat? what shall we drink? wherewithal shall we be clothed? has been the absorbing study of their lives.

The reason why men do not understand the designs of God, I that their eye is not single, and therefore their whole body is full of darkness. Why with their Bibles before them, do they observe as sacred the first day of the week, when God has declared, The seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God.”

Do you say, It is not convenient for me to make this change? Are you going to set your family a wrong example because of your convenience? For the sake of convenience are you willing to perpetuate the disobedience that resulted in the fall of man? It was not convenient for Jesus to hang on the cross, to endure the long fast in the wilderness of temptation; but he did this that the human race might be elevated and ennobled and obtain the crown of everlasting life. It was not convenient, but it was expedient. In the face of the great sacrifice made in your behalf can you afford to study your convenience? What (661) have you sacrificed for Jesus? what have you done for the Man of Calvary? O that you would teach Him in your families, and represent Him as He represented the Father.

God has given us a message. He wants to see if we will be obedient children in the kingdom of Heaven. He has made every provision that through His strength we may overcome and sit down with Him in His throne. “Blessed are they that do His commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and enter in through the gates into the city.” Are you standing on the side of Christ or on the side of the enemy of righteousness? Are you disdaining the word of God or are you building up the foundations of many generations that in the heavenly courts you may be called “the repairer of the breach, the restorer of paths to dwell in?” “The Sabbath,” God declares, “shall be a sign between me and you throughout your generations.” God will help you to stand if you will take your position for the truth because it is truth, because it is rights. I invite you to come over on the Lord’s side, and rivet your souls to the eternal Rock. [168]

(662) Do you think I feel ashamed because of the persecution and falsehood I have had to meet because of my obedience to the commandments of God. NO; I know in whom I have believed, I come to you with no idle tale, but with the sure word of prophecy, whereunto ye do well that ye take heed as unto a light that shineth in a dark place. The earth is covered with the darkness of sin as with a pall; but soon Christ is coming, and then sin is to have an end. The dross will be consumed by the fires of heaven. Do you not want to enter the gates of the eternal city. When the pearly gates are thrown open, do you not want to hear the Saviour’s words of welcome. Do you not want to have placed on your brow the immortal crown of glory, and be clothed in the robe woven in the loom of heaven, white as no fuller on earth could white it. I want to see the King in his beauty, and behold His matchless charms. I want to see the King in his beauty, and behold His matchless charms. I want to sing the song of Moses and the Lamb. I must be there, and I want you to be there. I want to see you cast your glittering crowns at the Saviour’s feet, and fill heaven with his praises. I beg of you to lay up your treasure in heaven, to rid yourselves of everything that will confuse your minds, that you may be able to distinguish between the sacred and the common, and place the Sabbath of the Lord in its right position. God help us to have an eye single to His glory, and not be found at last transgressors of His law. [169] Visit to Kellyville

(663) April 9, 1894. Last Friday W.C. White came from Melbourne. On Sabbath we drove to Kellyville, to meet with the church in that place. This company were newly come to the faith. They had built themselves a small house of worship, neat and nice, which was paid for except for a few pounds. They were very happy as they assembled there to worship God. The great financial depression in Australia made it difficult to raise means for building churches, but the brethren at Kellyville were full of determination and zeal to have a house of worship of their own. They were a very earnest little company.

I had much freedom in speaking to them. W.C. White spoke for a short time, and a social meeting followed. Several took part and earnest sincere testimonies were borne. In the afternoon W.C. White attended the church at Parramatta, where the ordinances of the Lord’s house were celebrated.

On Sunday afternoon I spoke in the tent at Seven Hills where Brother Hickox had labored alone since the camp-meeting.

(664) Again the Lord gave me freedom in speaking to the people. They were intelligent, and listened with deep interest. A Brother Martin came with his wife, driving twelve miles to the meeting. She was a bitter opposer of the truth, but we had hopes that she would yet take her stand with her husband and daughter. The daughter, a girl of about eighteen years of age, first took her stand, saying, Father I must keep the Sabbath.” He said to her, “Daughter, if you feel this to be your duty, do so, and I will support you in the step you take,” Next the father took his position firmly for the truth. He called together his family of grown-up sons and daughters and told them that he had decided that the seventh day was the Sabbath enjoined upon the human family to keep; he said he would be glad if they and their mother would unite with him in honoring the Sabbath day, but if they did not do this they must understand that no work must be done on his premises on the Sabbath. This man had two large orchards. He said that his horses must not work, neither must his children. “Now” said he, “You know that my word is law, and I shall expect you to refrain from labor on the Sabbath day.”

(665) We were much interested in the company assembled at Seven Hills. We prayed that a number more might be converted to the truth here. Brother Hickox preached on Sabbath and Sundays, and in the evenings during the week. He had awakened quite a good interest, and several had taken their position for the truth. Near the preaching tent, Brother Hickox had erected a small tent which he had made with his own hands, and in which he lived alone. In this tent he had his library and typewriter, and house-keeping arrangements. The tents were pitched in the open fields among the trees. Brother Hickox would leave his tent open, and go away visiting and giving Bible readings, and strange to say, nothing in his tent was ever disturbed, though he had a valuable library.

One day I went in search of a cow that I wished to purchase. I had been told of one, gentle and fresh, owned by a Mr. Thompson of Seven Hills. Elder Starr and Brother Stephen Belden accompanied me. We visited Brother Hickox’ tent, hoping to find him. He was not there. His tent was open and all his property exposed to anyone who might be disposed to steal. (666) We waited for some time, supposing that he would come in; but as he did not appear, we drove to the neighbors, Mr. Thompson, where we expected to see the cow. We found Brother Hickox there visiting.

We found Mr. and Mrs. Thompson intelligent people, and favorable to the truth. Mr. Thompson was a carpenter, and had a large family. Mrs. Thompson said, “This preaching is wonderfully different from anything we [170] have ever heard before. The Bible is becoming a new book to me. We seem to be quite slow to understand, but we believe we must keep the Sabbath. It is a very important step, and we want to understand it thoroughly. But if it is the truth, what can we do but obey it.” I told her I would send her “Steps to Christ” She said, “Please send us writings that are simple, and easy to understand. We are so ignorant in regard to these new interpretations of the Scriptures. I am perplexed with the cares of a large family. We have good health, and I have much to be thankful for; but I have a hasty temper, and become impatient when I think my children are doing wrong. Will you pray for me especially, and understand that I am trying to learn my duty.” We had a most (667) precious season of prayer with the family, and we knew that angels of God were in our midst.

I have thought many times since of the request of Sister Thompson: “I want that precious faith that is so necessary. Send me something simple, that my mind may grasp it; then I can take hold of this faith to believe in Jesus as a present help in every time of need.” This is the want of every soul, — something that the needy longing soul can grasp, something easy to be understood; and yet the reason that many do not lay hold of the truth is because it is so easy. They think they must do some great thing, that God expects them to go through some wonderful process in order to be converted; and when we present the truth as it is, in its beautiful simplicity, they stand amazed, “Is that all?” they inquire. Simply to take God at His word seems such a simple thing that they hardly dare accept it. We need to make the way of life just as clear to souls as it is in Jesus, that all may see the truth and the life.

We returned to Granville about dark. The following day W.C. White and others went on a tour in search of land. They (668) found several fine sites, but we feared the price would be too high for us.

On Monday Brother and Sister Lawrence and their daughter from Michigan arrived. They came to our home by special invitation to remain until it should be decided where it would be best for them to settle. We were glad to welcome them to this country. They had come in response to the call for our American brethren and sisters to come to this country as self-supporting missionaries. We prayed that God would give wisdom in placing them in the right position. Brother and Sister Lawrence were accompanied from Melbourne by Carrie Gribble, who was to become the wife of Brother Hickox. On Tuesday morning our large dining room was prepared for the wedding ceremony. Brother Hickox made request that I should offer prayer after the marriage ceremony by Elder Starr. The Lord gave me special freedom. My heart was softened and subdued by the Spirit of the Lord. On this occasion there was no light jests and foolish talking. Everything was of a solemn and sacred character, and deeply impressive. The Lord sanctified this marriage, and these two united their interests to work in this mission field to seek and save the lost. [171]

Sermon, given at the S.D.A.chapel, Parramatta,
Sunday 3 p.m.
May 13, 1894

(669) “Now these are the commandments, the statutes, and the judgments, which the Lord your God commanded to teach you, that ye might do them in the land whither ye go to possess it; that thou mightiest fear the Lord thy God, to keep all his statutes and his commandments, which I command thee, thou, and thy son, and thy son’s son, all the days of thy life; and that thy days may be prolonged. Hear, therefore, O Israel, and observe to do it, that it may be well with thee, and that ye may increase mightily, as the Lord God of thy fathers hath promised thee, in the land that floweth with milk and honey.”

In keeping the commandments of God, and teaching them to our children, we may claim this promise of God; for the promise is made to all who follow in the path of obedience. Heavenly intelligences are waiting to cooperate with us. “Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister to them which (670) shall be heirs of salvation.”

“That thou mightiest fear the Lord thy God, to keep all his statutes and commandments, which I command thee, thou, and thy son, and thy son’s son, all the days of thy life; and that thy days may be prolonged.” If we are not standing in this position before God, God cannot let his blessing and protecting care and guardianship be over us. Satan is seeking his possession. He pleads that the whole race is his because they have transgressed the commands of God. “Let me bring my power to bear upon them” he says. If we are living in disobedience it is important that we consider our situation. “Hear therefore, O Israel, and observe to do it; that it may be well with thee, and that ye may increase mightily, as the Lord God of thy fathers hath promised thee, in the land that floweth with milk and honey. Hear, O Israel; the Lord our God is one Lord; thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.”

The invisible Leader of Israel from the pillar of cloud gave direction unto Israel: “Thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and thou shalt talk of them when thou sittest (671) in thine house; and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates. And it shall be when the Lord thy God shall have brought thee into the land which he swore unto thy Fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give thee great and goodly cities, which thou buildest not, and houses full of good things which thou fillest not, and wells digged, which thou diggedst not, vineyards and olive trees, which thou plantedst not; when thou shall have eaten and be full; then beware lest thou forget the Lord, which brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage.”

Fathers and mothers, we want you to hear with an understanding heart. We ask you, Are you carrying out the requirements of God. Do you feel the necessity of surrendering the hearts’ affections to God. The words of God are of the highest value; we cannot afford to be negligent. If parents feel the sacredness of truth, they will seek to educate their children in right principles, as Abraham commanded his household after him. (672) Great Consequences are to be met. To the disobedient, no promises, no blessings are held out, but the threatenings of the Lord. God cannot take them to his kingdom, to the city of God, or there would be a second rebellion. [172]

We need to take heed to the instruction God has given us. Parents should know that it is a sacred thing to carry out these principles in the household. The father who expects to bring up his child in the right way cannot afford to play the lad. He must have the growing dignity that Christ gives to man. God so appreciate the human soul that he “gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” The Son of God came into the world to practice self-denial, and to work for the uplifting of the human race. Do you ask how much God values man? I point you to Calvary, where His Son suffered the most ignominious death that he might rescue you. His love is without a parallel; no comparison can be made to it. He who was one with the Father suffered and died for us that he might take men and women from a state of sin into favor with God,—man with Christ, and Christ with God. Our life is to be hid with Christ (673) that when He who is our life shall appear, we also may appear with Him in glory. Yet God will not force us to serve Him. In giving Jesus, he has done all that it is possible for Him to do. He asks us to search the Scriptures. He puts his Holy Spirit upon us and says, “I am at thy right hand to uphold thee.”

In well-ordered, well-disciplined families, God gives an example to the world. You want a well-ordered household. The children are God’s property, his heritage, brought with His blood. It is no light matter to know how to deal with the Lord’s heritage with such wisdom that at last you may bring to them to the Lord and say, Here, Lord are the children you committed to my charge. God will inquire in the judgment, “What have you done with my possessions? You want to train your children, not only for this life, but for the future immortal life as well.

God said of Abraham, “I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him.” Just as soon as Abraham pitched his tent, he erected his altar where he offered his morning and evening sacrifices to God. Today God wants to offer your morning and evening petitions to him. Are (674) you weak in moral power? You may become a partaker of the divine nature, and escape the corruptions that are in the world through lust. You may learn to do justice in everything, and teach your children to do the same. Children should pray for the guardianship of the angels through the night. Teach them that it is a sin to be idle, that God has not given them their hands to hang helpless at their sides. Work, watch, pray; the night cometh when no men can work. You know not how soon the time will come when your hands will be folded on your breast. Every day you are to accomplish a progressive work in sanctification. Today you are to sow the fruits of the Spirit of Christ. His goings forth are prepared as the morning. As you follow on to know the Lord, you will understand more and more the light that is reserved for you. Abraham’s altar was a living testimony wherever he went; even the roving Canaanites recognized it.

Shall we not honor the Maker of the heavens and the earth by obeying the fourth commandment. Shall we not “remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.” From the beginning of the week we should prepare our lessons for the Sabbath school. When my children were small, we had a large family of adopted children. (675) As the Sabbath approached, before the setting of the sun, we would have all our work put away. The children would hail the Sabbath as a joy. “Now” they would say, “father and mother will give us some of their time.” We would take them for a walk, taking with us our Bibles and other religious reading to read them and explain the scriptures. We did not lie in bed Sabbath morning because it was the Sabbath. We would have all our preparations made the day before, so that we could go to church without hurry or worry. We wanted our [173] children to have the privileges and blessings of God’s sanctified rest day.

“Behold, ye fast for strife and debate,” God says, “and to smite with the fist of wickedness; ye shall not fast as ye do this day, to make your voice to be heard on high. Is it such a fast that I have chosen, A day for a man to afflict his soul? is it to bow down his head as a bulrush, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? wilt thou call this a fast and an acceptable day to the Lord? Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke? Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the (676) poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked that thou cover him. and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh?”

Shall we not set ourselves to the work that is to be done. We must love our neighbors as ourselves, working on the right hand and on the left for those who are in need. We are to help our brother who is falling into decay. Just as soon as we see the necessities of those around us, we should take hold and help. “Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily; and thy righteousness shall go before thee; and the glory of the Lord shall be thy rereward. Then shalt thou call, and the Lord shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am. If thou take away from the midst of the yoke, the putting forth of the finger, and speaking vanity; and if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noonday.

Do you want it thus. Do you want that the cloud of reproach shall be rolled away. Then lay up your treasure in heaven, that when the Lord shall appear you may have the eternal (677) weight of glory. “And the Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones; and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and a well of water, whose waters fail not.” How many I have heard talk of the dearth of their souls. They did not seem to feel a burden for the souls for whom Christ died.

Who was it that tore down the fourth commandment from its place, and covered it up so that men should forget it. Shall we take the spurious and trample on the divine? Every tree and shrub and flower that God has made testifies to the fact that he made the world in six days and rested on the seventh. “They that be of thee shall build the whole wast places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of path to dwell in.”

When one is arrested for working on the first day of the week according to the commandment, do you hear him say I will not keep the Sabbath anymore? No he is glad that he can bring the truth before the people, even in this way. He bears in mind the promise, “If thou take away thy (678) foot from the Sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day, and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honorable, and shalt honor him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words, then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord, and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy Father, for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.

When Paul and Silas were thrown into prison, and their feet put into the stocks, the universe of heaven knew all about it. In the night the jailers heard these men singing praises to God. Then the army of heaven approached, and at their tread the earth began to quake, and the prison doors were thrown open. The jailers knew that those who had kept [174] the prison when Peter escaped had been put to death, and they came in fear and trembling to Paul and Silas. He acknowledged the power of God and asked forgiveness for his cruelty. “What shall I do to be saved?” he asked. Right there the jailer gave himself to God.

The God who wrought for Paul and Silas lives today. If the prison is to be our home, we can sing within prison walls. We will not be called to endure more than the King of (679) glory bore in our behalf. May God help us to establish the fear of God in our homes. May he help us to make straight paths for our fest. May he help us to help one another, and the Lord of hosts will be with us. [175]

“See that Ye Abound in this Grace Also.”

(680) One Sabbath in company with my son I rode eight miles in our carriage to Seven Hills to meet with the church that was to assemble in the afternoon. Since coming to Sydney, Brother Hickox had been laboring in this place, and we tried to help him in his work. Brethren Starr, McCullagh, W.C. White and the writer had labored in turn, and we had reason to rejoice in the Lord, because twenty had taken their position for the truth. This has caused joy among the angels in the presence of the Father and in the presence of Christ.

On this occasion I spoke from the eighth and ninth chapters of Second Corinthians. Paul, writing to his brethren at Corinth, sought to kindle their zeal, and to stir them up to make contribution for the poor saints at Jerusalem. He presented the example of the church in Macedonia to inspire them to (681) benevolent action. He said: “Moreover, brethren, we do you to wit of the grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia; how that in a great trial of affliction, the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded unto the riches of their liberality. For to their power, yea, and beyond their power they were willing of themselves; praying us with much entreaty that we would receive the gift, and take unto us the fellowship of the ministering of the saints. And this they did, not as we hoped, but first gave their own selves to the Lord, and unto us by the will of God.”

The grace of Christ imparted to us individually will give us a knowledge as to how we shall accept of Christ as a personal Saviour, and how we shall imitate his example. He can mold and fashion the character by imparting his divine attributes, and then each one of us can adorn the doctrine of Christ our Saviour. Whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, lovely and of good report, will be revealed as the precious fruits of the Christian tree. The religion of Jesus Christ must be revealed in a winsome character, bright as a light that shineth in a dark place.

(682) Of the church in Macedonia we read that “in the great trial of affliction, the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abound unto the riches of their liberality.” Then shall any of us who profess to be Christians think that we shall be excused in doing nothing for the truth because we are poor? We regard the precious light of truth as an inexpressible, inexhaustible treasure. We are to exert an influence in proportion to our entrusted talents, be we rich or poor, high or low, ignorant or learned. We are servants of Jesus Christ, and the Lord expects us to do our best.

I said to the brethren in Seven Hills: You will soon be without a place in which to assemble to worship God. Shall we arise and build? The Lord wants you to be liberal. The members of the Macedonian churches were in deep poverty, yet they urged the apostles to receive their free will offerings, and were willing to go beyond their power to help the saints in Jerusalem who were in greater need than themselves. We have in this record a lesson for our instruction. Those who take their position on the side of Christ are to let their light shine forth in good works, and not to act selfishly; but each church is to consider (683) the wants of her sister churches. “Therefore, as ye abound in everything, in faith, and utterance, and knowledge, and in all diligence, and in your love to us, see that ye abound in this grace also.” We desire you to abound in the grace of liberality, making your gifts to assist those who have newly come to the faith, and in doing this work your joy will be abundant, according to the measure of your liberality. We call upon the children of [176] God to come up to the help of the Lord, to the help of the Lord against the mighty. Who is the might—It is Satan, the prince of this world; for the world has chosen him as its ruler.

There is also a lesson in this chapter for those who are working in the cause of God. Paul says, “We desire Titus, that as he had begun, so he would also finish in you this same grace also;” that is, make you abound in this grace also, the grace of liberality. A responsibility rests upon the ministers of Christ to educate the churches to be liberal. Even the poor are to have a part in presenting their offerings to God. They are to be sharers of the grace of Christ in denying self to help those whose need is more pressing than their own. Why should (684) the poor saints be denied the blessing of giving to help those who are still poorer than themselves? The work of educating the people along these lines has been neglected, and the churches have failed to give for the necessity of poorer churches, and thus the blessing has been withheld until they have a realizing sense of their neglect. “For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for our sakes he became poor, that we through his poverty might be rich. And herein I give my advice; for this is expedient for you, who have begun before, not only to do, but also to be forward a year ago. Now therefore perform the doing of it; that as there was a readiness to will, so also there may be a performance also that which ye have. For if there be first a willing mind, it is accepted according to that a name hath, and not according to that he hath not. For I mean not that other men should be eased, and ye burdened, but by an equality, that now at this time your abundance may be a supply for their want, that their abundance also may be a supply for their want, that their abundance also may be a supply for your want; that there may be equality; as it is written, He that had gathered much had little over; and he that had (685) gathered little had no lack.”

Thank God that he has put it in the heart of His servants to feel a deep interest for your welfare, causing them to present to you the precious truth. Some of you have hesitated, and have been slow in acting upon the convictions of your conscience; but one after another you have given your own selves to the Lord, and to us by the will of God. What does this mean? It means that you are to stand shoulder to shoulder with those who have earnestly worked for your salvation, and according to the light and knowledge you have received, to unite with them in communicating in the spirit and love of Jesus the truth to those who have not had the opportunities and privileges that you have had.

There are some here who are questioning whether they shall be obedient to the light they have received, or whether they will make a compromise with conscience. Character is being determined by the manner in which the truth is being treated. The voice of Christ is heard saying, “Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.” Whom do you love best, Jesus, or the enemy of (686) Christ? On which side are you to stand? You will do the bidding of him whom you love. God wants everyone to come unto Him. Christ says, “Follow Me.”

Brother Hickox and W.C. White made appropriate remarks. Brother McCullagh spoke for a short time right to the point, and it was decided that a meeting house should be built at Seven Hills, and that everyone should do his best. Bro. McCullagh said He would give two pounds ten shillings ($12.50), and Brother Starr had authorized him to say that he would give two pounds ten shillings. This would make twenty-five dollars. W.C. White had thought it impossible to give more than one pound, but would venture to give two if the church would buy two lots instead of [177] one. Then the brethren from Seven Hills from their poverty spoke one after another, pledging one pound apiece. One brother who had resided in Seven Hills but who had moved to Parramatta, pledged five pounds. I purposed to pledged five pounds to the enterprise, but when I considered the poverty abounding among those who had recently embraced the truth, I doubled by donation, making it ten pounds. Then when I saw that it would be impossible to build a church with the (687) meagre sum that had been raised, I decided to give twenty pounds ($100). The talents of means is the Lord’s entrusted talent, and as His faithful steward, I must apply it where the need is greatest.

We had a most precious meeting. Jesus was in the midst of us. The sun of Righteousness was shining upon us. I was constrained by the Spirit of the Lord to speak words of hope and courage to those who had consented to believe the truth and obey it. They would soon be left without a minister, and it was necessary for each one to do his utmost in order that a church might be erected in which they could meet together to worship God. Each one must take upon himself the responsibility of educating and training himself to act a part in the meetings. They must be faithful witnesses for Jesus Christ, and thus become a working church. Christ prayed for his followers, “I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them through Thy truth: The word is truth.” Here in this wicked world our light is to shine forth in good works. Christ charged his (688) disciples with this responsibility. He said, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.”

When the precious meeting closed, it was nearly dark. We seated ourselves in our carriage, and as our faithful horse traveled home with us, we rejoiced in the peace of Christ. [178]

(683) On Sabbath, July 28, Brother Corliss was appointed to go to Seven Hills to meet with the little church in that place. Brother Hickox had left this place to join Brother Starr in Queensland in the beginning of the work there. For a week I had been feeling quite ill from exhaustion and heart-affection and as I felt sure that the more I was in the open air the better it would be for me, I decided to make the journey with Brother Corliss.

The meetings was held in a private house, and as the room was well filled, I did not venture to remain indoors, but sat in my carriage until Brother Corliss had finished his labors. He gave a Bible reading which interested the little flock.

When Brother Corliss had concluded his reading, I went into the house, and spoke for a short time. The Lord strengthened and blessed me as I presented the all-sufficiency of our Saviour, his readiness and willingness to bless those who seek (690) him with all the heart. I sought to impress the necessity of constant vigilance, watchfulness, and unceasing prayer.

We need to watch the signs of the times; for unless we are constantly on guard, the enemy will steal a march upon us. The heart is to be a dwelling-place for Jesus; but we are to keep the heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.” We have been taken as rough stones from the quarry of the world, and placed in the workshop of God. The one who has genuine faith in Christ as his personal Saviour will find the truth accomplish a definite work for him. His faith will be a working faith,—the faith that work by love and purifies the soul. Those who receive the truth by faith will bear testimony to the quality of the faith they have. They will continually make improvement, looking unto Jesus, as the author and finisher of our faith.

The work of Christ in the heart does not destroy man’s powers. Christ directs, strengthens, ennobles and sanctifies the faculties of the soul. It is through personal acquaintance with him that we become qualified to represent his character to the world. John says, “as many as received him, to them gave he (691) power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name.” “And of his fullness have all we received, and grace for grace.”

Christ is to be represented in the home circle. Fathers and mothers bear a weighty responsibility; for they will be held accountable for the lessons they give their children. They are to speak kindly to them, be patient with them, to watch unto prayer, praying the Lord to mold and fashion the hearts of their children. And while asking God to do this work for them, fathers and mothers must act their part, presenting to their offspring a living representation of the divine pattern. Parents, God will not accept haphazard work at your hands. Your children are God’s heritage, and heavenly angels are watching to see that both parents and children become co-laborers with God in building a character after the divine model. “Blessed is He whom his lord when he cometh shall find watching.”

As I spoke the melting Spirit of the Lord was in the midst of us. We then had a social meeting. This was a new exercise to those who had newly come to the faith; but Elder Corliss called upon one after another to be witnesses for the Lord Jesus, (692) until all but one of the believers had born testimony.

There are some excellent lessons in the book of Malachai for those who profess to be followers of Jesus. Two classes of followers are represented by the prophet. Of one class it is said, “Your words have been stout against me, saith the Lord. Yet ye say, What have we spoken so [179] much against thee? Ye have said, “It is a vain thing to serve God: and what profit is it that we have kept his ordinances, and that we have walked mournfully before the Lord of hosts?” These words are spoken by those who should have better represented the truth, who ought to have been an example to those newly come to the faith. They continue: “And now we call the proud happy; yea, they that work wickedness are set up; yea, they that tempt God are even delivered.

Malachai turns away from this dark picture which Satan presents through these professed followers of Christ; for it is a libel on the paternal character of God.

The Lord presents another picture for the contemplation of every believer. “Then they that feared the Lord spake often one to another; and the Lord hearkened and heard it; and a book of remembrance was written for them that feared the Lord, and that (693) feared the Lord, and that thought upon his name.” What a hope-inspiring picture this is. The Lord is representing as bending down and listening to the testimonies born by his witnesses! What inspiration it should be to us to know that the heavenly universe is listening with pleasure to the words that are spoken to exalt the name of God in the earth. They may not be words of oratory, but they are not words of doubt and unbelief and complaint. God and the angels listen with delight to the words of appreciation of the great Gift that has been made to the world in the only begotten Son of God. Every word of praise for the blessing of the truth that has dispelled the darkness of error, every word that acknowledges the merciful kindness of our heavenly Father, is written in the book of his remembrance. Testimonies of this kind “show forth the praises of Him that hath called us out of darkness into his marvelous light.” Of such witnesses the Lord says, “They shall be mine. . . . in that day when I make up my Jewels; and I will spare them as a man spareth his own son that serveth him.”

The fact that the Lord is represented as hearkening to the words spoken by his witnesses, tells us that Jesus is in the (694) midst of us. He says, “Where two or three are gathered together in my name; there am I in the midst of them.” One person is not to do all the witnessing; every soul who loves God is to testify to the preciousness of his grace and truth. Those who receive the light of truth are to have lesson upon lesson to educate them not to keep silent, but to speak often to one another. They are to keep in mind the Sabbath meeting, when those who love and fear God and who think upon His name can have opportunity to express their thoughts. Let not the little companies think they can have no meeting when they cannot have no meeting when they cannot have a minister. When there is no minister to speak, let each one witness to the truth, and be faithful in speaking to one another of the love of God. The time is precious. Believers assembled for the worship of God are in the audience chamber of God. They are to witness for God and the Lord Jesus Christ who gave his life for the world. The little company is to serve God by offering him spiritual worship.

Let each one seek to become an intelligent Christian, bearing his responsibility, and acting his part to make the meeting interesting and profitable. Those who speak of the (695) goodness of God, who talk of the plan of salvation, who relate their personal experiences, who speak often to one another, are serving God in his own ordained way, and are honoring their Redeemer. Such he says shall be honored by him, even as a father honors a son who is faithful. We should appreciate the value of the social meeting. It is a mistake to suppose that we cannot have an enjoyable meeting unless entertained by a preacher. Where dependence on the minister exists, the people fail to obtain that vigorous religious [180] experience that they so much need wherever their lot may be cast. If the minister does all the witnessing, those newly come to the faith become dwarfed and sickly for lack of opportunity to use their spiritual muscle. They have need to learn how to testify, how to pray, how to sing to the glory of God. Failing to do this, they have a one-sided experience.

The children of God are to grow up to the full stature of men and women in Christ Jesus. They are to be faithful in their service to God. They are to learn the trade of being spiritual worshippers. It is only but practice that we learn to speak and pray to the edification of those who listen. Let us remember that angels are in the assembly of the saints. (696) Christ is in the midst to impress the mind with spiritual truths. The humblest believer, who may regard his talents as of little value, will find that by exercise of his powers his talents will increase, and using the mites, he may gain pounds by trading with his abilities for the glory of God. The physical, mental, and moral power will grow as they are used in the service of God.

I looked upon the little company who were newly come to the faith. My interests were identified with the interests of these precious souls. What possibilities are before every such little company, what deep and grave importance heaven attaches to them. Christ has paid the ransom for them with his own blood, and he is in their midst when they meet to worship him. The Majesty of heaven identifies his interests with those of the believers, however humble their circumstances. Whenever they meet it is appropriate that they speak to one another giving utterance to the gratitude and love that results from thinking upon the name of the Lord. Thus God is glorified as he hearkens and hears, and the testimony meeting will be regarded as the most precious of (697) all meetings; for the words spoken are recorded in the book of remembrance.

The world is not to hold the highest place in our esteem. The Lord calls the attention of his people to the world above, which has been lost from view, and brings it again within the range of our vision. The presents before us the privileges of being taught by the greatest teacher the world has ever known. God desires that we shall so train the intellect and the affections that we shall be able to render Him pure and holy service. We are to seek for precious jewels of truth as for hidden treasure; we are to get light that we may give light to others. Those who do this will think upon the name of the Lord. They will study the character of God and become acquainted with the Redeemer. “This is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent.” Let the character of God become the theme of our thought. The Lord would have his people think upon his name, and impart the knowledge they receive to those about them.

Every moment of life is to be weeded from vanity and to be spent in sowing seed that will bear eternal fruit. Our (698) entrusted talents are to be used, and increased by use if we would bring glory to God. Thus in the social meeting, let no one fail to improve his opportunity to testify to the praise of the Lord; for failing to take up this duty, he fails to gain the experience that the Lord would have him obtain. The Lord is hearkening; the angels are recording in the books of remembrance every word spoken to vindicate the character of Christ of those who testify of the love of God, He says, “They shall be mine in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them as a man spareth his own son that serveth him.”

After the meeting closed I spoke to the sister who did not testify, asking her why she had remained silent. “Oh,” she said, “I could not speak.” “It cannot be possible,” I said, “that you have nothing to say. In all your necessities you have a Helper. Put your trust in [181] Jesus.” I tried to speak encouragement to her. She said, “I do not trust him. Jesus is precious to me. He does help me. His goodness is great to me, and his grace strengthens me.” The tears were raining down her face.

“My sister,” I said, “you have borne a most precious (699) testimony; why were you not the Lord’s witness in the meeting??

She said, “I will speak next time.” After these words between us, I felt that her heart was linked to my heart by the golden chain of love. We had one common Saviour, one was the object of our souls’ affection.

In these small gatherings the Lord will use his human agents if they will surrender all to him, and the soul will gain spiritual strength. The gospel is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth. The Holy Spirit will take the passions of the heart and bring them into subjection to Jesus Christ. Our meetings should take more the form of training classes where new converts will be taught to do service in the house of God. Every effort made by believers to glorify God, every comforting thought expressed, strengthens the soul of the speaker, and results in the benefit of those who listen. [182]

(700) On Sabbath July 28, W.C. White and myself drove to Kellyville to speak to the church there by special request. One who was not of our faith, but who was interested, had said he would attend the meeting if one of our ministers would speak. We were the only ones who could respond to the request.

As we rode slowly up the hills, everything our eyes rested upon was peaceful and pleasant. In every direction in which we looked the scenery was lovely. The orange and mandarin orchards displaying their golden fruit, and we remarked that the world is still beautiful, although it has been marred by the wickedness of men.

We were glad to see in the assembly, the family of Brother Radly from Castle Hill, who had come ten miles to the meeting. We had a very precious meeting; for the promise of the Lord was fulfilled “where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst.” When Jesus meets with His people his blessing rests upon those who assemble for the purpose of worshipping God. We need to cultivate and cherish a spirit of true worship, a spirit of devotion on the Lord’s day. We should assemble together believing that we shall receive comfort and hope, light and peace from Jesus Christ.

I spoke from the fifth chapter of Matthew, and W.C. White followed with a short discourse. Then we had a social meeting, when a number of testimonies were borne. We know that the Lord comforted those who were witnesses for Christ. The preaching service should generally be short, so that opportunity may be given to those who love God to express their gratitude and (701) adoration. Prayer and praise offered to God by His believing children, honors and glorifies His name. The believers may be few in number, but they have been taken from the quarry of the world by the cleaver of truth, and have been brought into God’s workshop to be hewed and squared by ax and chisel, fitted by test and trial for a place in God’s heavenly temple. Even in the rough they are precious in the sight of God. The axe and the hammer and the chisel of trial are in the hands of One who is skillful, and are used not to destroy, not to bring to nothingness, but to work out the perfection of every soul, that as precious stones transformed and polished, the children of God may find their place in the temple of God.

I would that every soul who sees the evidences of truth, would accept Jesus Christ as his personal Saviour. Those who thus accept Christ are looked upon by God, not as they are in Adam, but as they are in Christ Jesus, as the sons and daughters of God. The Lord will no more cast of the humblest, lowliest believer in Jesus, than He will demolish His throne. We are accepted in the Beloved. We are members of the (702) royal family, children of the heavenly King, heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ.

The church of God upon the earth is one with the church of God above. Believers on the earth, and those who have never fallen in heaven, are one church. Every heavenly intelligence is interested in the assemblies of the saints, who on earth meet to worship God in spirit and truth, and in the beauty of holiness. In the inner courts of heaven they listen to the testimonies of the witnesses for Christ in the outer court on earth, and the praise and thanksgiving that comes from the church below is taken up in the heavenly anthem, and praise and rejoicing resounds through the heavenly court because Christ has not died in vain for the fallen sons of Adam. While angels drink from the fountain head, the saints on earth drink of the pure streams flowing from the throne of God, making glad the city of God. O that we could all realize the nearness of heaven to earth! When the earthborn children know it not, [183] they have the angels of light as their companions; for heavenly messengers are sent forth to minister to them that shall be heirs of salvation. A silent witness guards every (703) soul that lives, seeking to win and draw to Jesus. The angels never leave the tempted one a prey to the enemy who would destroy the souls of men if permitted to do so. As long as there is hope, until they resist the Holy Spirit to their eternal ruin, men are guarded by heavenly intelligences. Let us all bear in mind that in every assembly of the saints below, are the angels of God, listening to the praise, the thanksgiving the supplication that is offered by the people of God in testimonies, songs and prayers. Let us remember that our praises are supplemented by the choirs of the angelic host above.

As we journeyed homeward my mind was called out in contemplation of these precious themes, and I was filled with an intense longing to pass along some of these precious thoughts to my brethren and sisters. O that with pen and voice, I could represent the privileges of the children of God as they really exist. O that we who are pilgrims and strangers in this foreign country, seeking a better, even a heavenly, might comprehend Christ, the Way, the Truth, and the Life! He says, “No man cometh unto the Father, but by Me.” The path He has marked (704) out is so plain and distinct, that the veriest sinner, loaded with guilt, need not miss his way. Not one trembling seeker need to fail of finding the true path, and of walking in pure and holy light; for Jesus leads the way. The path is so narrow, so holy, that sin cannot be tolerated therein, yet access to the path has been made for all, and not one desponding, doubting, trembling soul, needs to say, “God cares nought for me.” Every soul is precious in His sight; “for God so loved the world,” even in its blackness and disobedience, even with the heavy shadow of sin and Satan upon it, “that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” When Satan was triumphing as the prince of the world, claiming the world as his kingdom, when we were all marred and corrupted with sin, God sent his messenger from heaven, even His only begotten Son, to proclaim to all the inhabitants of the world, I have found a ransom; I have made a way of escape for the perishing. I have your emancipation papers prepared for you, sealed by the Lord of heaven and earth. You may have freedom upon the condition of faith in Him who is able to save unto the uttermost (705) all who come unto God by him. A ransom has been provided at infinite cost, and it is not because there is any flaw in the title which has been purchased for you that you do not accept it. It is not because the mercy, the grace, the love of the Father and the son is not ample, and has not been freely bestowed, that you do not rejoice in pardoning love, but it is because of your unbelief, because of your choice of the world that you are not comforted by the grace of God. It is your love of disobedience, your pleasure in sin, your enjoyment of rebellion that has blunted your perceptions until you fail to discern the things that make for your peace. If you are lost, it will be because you will not come unto Christ that you may have life. God waits to bestow the blessing of forgiveness, of pardon for iniquity, of the gift of righteousness upon all who will believe in His love, and accept His salvation. Christ is ready to say to the repenting sinner, “Take away the filthy garments from him. . . . Behold, I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee, and I will clothe thee with change of raiment; and I said, “Let them set a fair mitre upon His head. So they set a fair mitre upon His head, and clothed him with (706) garments.” “Thus saith the Lord of hosts, If thou wilt walk in my ways, and wilt keep my charge, then thou shalt also judge mine house, and shalt also keep my courts; and I will give thee places to [184] walk among these that stand by.” Christ is the connecting link between God and man. The blood of Jesus Christ is the eloquent plea that speaks in behalf of Sinners. The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses from all sin.” [185]

We Shall Reap as We Sow.

(707) In company with my son I rode to Sydney a distance of twelve miles. We could have taken the cars at the station in Granville, but by driving in our carriage we could escape the confusion that is ever to be found at railway stations; we also had the advantage of riding straight to the meeting houses, without the inconvenience of changing from the trains to the tram, to be left at some distance from the place of meeting. We had a very peaceful ride, and a very favorable opportunity of conversing together. This was a rare treat; for both of us were so occupied that we had little opportunity for social interchange of thought.

We found a good representation of our people at the hall, and I felt constrained by the Spirit of God to speak very plainly to the church. I spoke from the words, —

“He that soweth sparingly, shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.”

(708) The manner in which the sowing is the be done is presented in the following words: “Every man, according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly nor of necessity; for God loveth a cheerful giver.” No selfish man is a Christian. Jesus says, “If any many will come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross, and follow me.” Genuine self-denial will be practiced by everyone who follows Christ.

Judas undertook to follow Christ, and at the same time to carry out his selfish, covetous plans. He had the same privileges as had the other disciples. He had the same privileges of hearing the lessons of Christ, which plainly presented practical godliness; but he was not always pleased with the plain truth. It cut him, and instead of taking up personal labor with Judas Iscariot, he found fault with the words and works of Christ, and criticized his plain teachings. Instead of being transformed in character, he was cultivating self love- self-esteem, and was becoming more and more greedy for gain. His love for Christ was not increasing; for he had not that faith which works by love and purifies the soul. Pure religion and undefiled is a religion that is of and experimental character, and brings (709) practical results.

Every member of the church of Christ will be tested and proved. To each one sacred responsibilities are committed; for each one is to be connected with Christ, and to labor earnestly and cheerfully as a free moral agent, becoming more and more intelligent in working as a laborer “together with God.” By practice he must learn how to pray, putting his whole soul into his petitions. By self-denial he must learn how to present gifts and offerings to God. He must not consume in selfish indulgence everything he gains, and present nothing to God in acknowledgement of the fact that he is constantly the recipient of Heaven’s gifts. The Christian will be constantly imparting that which is bestowed upon him. True religion is imitation of Christ. Not one of Christ’s true followers will practice self-indulgence in any way when the cause of God is languishing because of the poverty of the people. God means that someone shall supply that which is wanting for the needs of the poorer brethren, and for the necessities of his cause. The kingdom of heaven must be the first consideration. To follow Christ means continually to study his life of self-denial and from high motives (710) to practice His good works. To follow means to render obedience. We are under service to God, and we must obey his commands. No soldier is counted a follower of his commander unless he obeys his general’s [186] orders. The Master says, Learn of Me. Keep your eye on the model, for Christ gave his life that he might become the teacher of men. Keep yourselves from idols. He desires that everyone that believes in Him should learn how to live His life and practice His virtues.

Jesus loved righteousness and hated iniquity. What is righteousness?—It is the satisfaction that Christ gave the divine law in our behalf. He bore the test on every point on which the sinner must bear it. He was tempted in all points as we are tempted, and through all the temptations that it was possible for the synagogue of Satan to bring upon Him, he did not yield in the least degree to the power of the enemy.

Righteousness means being good and doing good. As children of God are we developing a character that is Christlike? Are we individually working daily at the vocation of being a Christian? and through the rich impartation of the gift of the Holy Spirit, are we making straight paths for our feet, lest (711) the lame be turned out of the way? The lame are those who are not firmly established in the truth, who are spiritually halting, having defects of character, and needing the help of a correct example. If we make crooked paths, others make our errors an excuse for deviating from the path of righteousness. It is not enough to believe sound doctrine; we must put it into practice. A religion built on selfishness is worthless. It is a deplorable, sleazy fabric.

The apostle plainly declares what is the duty of the individual members of the church. He says, “Let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity; for God loveth a cheerful giver.” The promise of God is that “he which soweth sparingly, shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully, shall reap also bountifully.” The Lord will not forget your labors of love. In this country, times are very hard, and money is very scarce. Some will learn lessons of economy at this time, who never knew what economy was before. Yet we should not forget the service of God, and that he owns us and that He owns the world. Though we are all poor, and unable to do large things, the Lord calls upon every soul to practice self-denial (712) in this time of scarcity, but be able to give, not grudgingly, nor of necessity, but with cheerful gratitude for God’s unspeakable gift. We are to engage in this work seriously, remembering that now is the time to lay up treasure in heaven, and to send it on beforehand. We shall have to do this through strict self-denial; but every man, woman, and youth who claims to be the property of Christ, has a work to do in building up the kingdom of God. Now is the sowing time, the reaping time is in the future. And God is able to make all grace abound toward you. If you do your best, if you impart to others that which you have, God will see your labor of love, and will see the measure of every act of self-denial for His name’s sake. You will be tested and proved, and it may be seen how deep is your love for Christ and your neighbor, and these tests will come closer and closer upon us. Churches must be erected. Wherever there is a little flock, it must be fed with meat in due season. The last message of mercy is to be given to the world, even to the uttermost part of the earth. Those who have physical strength must employ that strength in the service of God. Those who can obtain work are to work faithfully, and to (713) improve the opportunities they see to help those who cannot obtain labor. God is able to make his grace abound toward you, giving you a heart of tenderness and love for the souls of those for whom Christ has paid the ransom of his life. “That ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may about to every good work: (as it is written. He hath dispersed abroad; he hath given to the poor; his righteousness remaineth forever. Now he that ministereth seed to the sower both minister bread for your food, and multiply your seed sown, and increase the fruits of your righteousness;) [187] being enriched in everything to all bountifulness, which causeth through us thanksgiving to God.”

Let every believer in the truth for this time, awake to duty. Instead of studying how to gratify yourselves and follow your inclinations, study how you may imitate Christ in self-denial, and thus be able to help and to save the purchase of His blood. Relieve the wants of the needy, and work to help the weak and the poorer sister churches. The Lord has made us his almoners. He places in our hands His gifts, in order that we shall divide with those who are needy, and it is this practical giving that will be to us a sure panacea for all selfishness. (714) By thus expressing love to those who need help, you will cause the hearts of the needy to give thanksgiving to God, because he has bestowed the grace of benevolence upon the brethren. It is by the exercise of this practical love that the churches draw nearer together in Christian unity. Through the love of the brethren, the love of God is increased, because he has not forgotten those who were in distress. “The ministration of this service not only supplieth the want of the saints, but is abundant also by many thanksgivings to God.” The faith of the brethren in God is increased, and they are led to commit their soul and bodies unto God as to a faithful Creator. “While by the experiment of this ministration, they glorify God for your professed subjection to the Gospel of Christ, and for your liberal distribution unto them, and unto all men.”

Giving for the necessity of the saints and for the advancement of the kingdom of God, is preaching practical sermons which testify that those who give have not received the grace of God in vain. A living example of an unselfish character, which is after the example of Christ, has great power upon men. Those who do not live for self, will not use up every dollar meeting their supposed wants, and supplying their conveniences, (715) but will bear in mind that they are Christ’s followers, and that there are others who are in need of food and clothing. Those who live to gratify appetite and selfish desire, will lose the favor of God, and will lose the heavenly reward. They testify to the world that they have not genuine faith, and when they seek to impart to others a knowledge of present truth, the world will regard their words as a sounding brass and a tinkling cymbal. Let everyone show his faith by his work. “Faith without works is dead,” “being alone.” “Wherefore show ye to them, and before the churches, the proof of your love, and of our boasting in your behalf.”

After the service we had a most precious social meeting. W.C. White spoke, presenting some precious thoughts, and melting testimonies were borne. The meeting was blessed of God, and we knew that Jesus was in the midst, and by His Holy Spirit was moving upon hearts. We were soon in our carriage again, and returning to Granville. [188]

Dedicatory Sermon.

Prospect Church, N.S.W.
Sept. 16, 1894

(716) “And the Jews’ Passover was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem, and found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the changers of money sitting: and when He had made a scourge of small cords, He drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep and the oxen: and poured out the changers’ money, and overthrew the tables; and said unto them that sold doves, Take these things hence; make not my Father’s house a house of merchandise.”

This was the first cleansing of the temple. Just prior to His crucifixion, the Saviour cleansed the temple a second time, and at that time, he said, “My house shall be called a house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves.” As Christ stood looking upon the scene, his appearance attracted the attention of the multitude. Suddenly every voice was (717) hushed, every eye was fastened upon Christ. Once their attention was attracted to Him, they could not take their eyes from His face; there was something in His countenance that awed and terrified them. Who was He, this humble Galilean? Some knew Him as the son of a Nazarene carpenter, who had worked at the trade with His father. But as they gazed upon Him now, they felt as if arraigned before the judgment bar. The priests were clad in their rich temple robes, for display, and to mark them as priests of God. The garments of Christ were worn and travel-stained. He bore the appearance of a youthful Galilean; but as He took up the scourge of small cords, and stood on the temple steps and said, “Take these things hence,” none could resist the authority with which He spoke. The people looked upon him spell bound; for divinity flashed through humanity. Such dignity, such authority was revealed in his person that they were convinced that he was clothed with power from heaven.

Why was it that Christ’s indignation was so aroused as he looked upon this scene in the temple? In the courts converted into a place of merchandise, He saw the dishonor of (718) God and the oppression of His people. He heard the lowing of the cattle, the bleating of the sheep, the altercations between buyers and sellers. He saw even the priests and rulers engaged in traffic. Oxen and sheep and doves were being sold to those who wished to offer to God a sacrifice for their sins. There were many poor among the multitude, and they had been taught that in order to have their sins forgiven they must have an offering and a sacrifice to present to God. Christ saw the poor and distressed and afflicted in trouble and dismay because they had not enough to purchase even a dove for an offering; because of the exorbitant prices put upon them. They knew they were sinners, and needed an offering, but how could they obtain one. It seemed to them that there was no hope to have their sins pardoned.

When Christ expelled those who sold doves, he said, “Take these things hence. He had not driven out the doves as he had the sheep and oxen. Why? Because these were the only offering of the poor. He knew their necessities. As the sellers were driven from the temple, the suffering and afflicted were left in the courts. Their only hope had been that they might come (719) present their offering at the temple that God would bless them in their homes, in their children and in their fields and crops.

At the words of Christ the priests and rulers and money-changers fled, terrified and awed. Their merchandise was robbery of the people; [189] they had made the house of God a den of thieves. These men beheld in Christ a messenger of vengeance, and they fled from the temple as though a band of robbers were on their track. The priests and rulers also fled. In their flight they met others on their way to the temple, and they told them how a man having authority had driven out the sheep and oxen and had expelled them from the temple, and they told them to go back.

Christ looked after the fleeing multitude with a heart of the tenderest pity. His heart was filled with grief that the temple service had been polluted, and that His character and mission had been misinterpreted. In His pitying love, He longed to save them from their errors. He longed to save the priests and rulers who, while claiming to be the guardians of the people, had oppressed them and turned aside the needy from their right.

Christ’s prophetic eye took in the future, not only the (720) years but the ages. He saw Jerusalem given up to avarice. He saw priests and rulers and men in high position turn away the needy from their right, and even forbid that the gospel be preached to the poor. He saw the time when the protecting power of God would no longer be exercised for the rebellious city. He saw the angel of mercy fold her wings, and take her departure. He heard the tramp of the Roman armies, and saw the downfall of Jerusalem.

He looked even beyond this and saw the inhabitants of the world just before His second coming, and declared that the condition of the world at that time would be similar to that at the time of the flood. “As it was in the days of Noe,” He said, “so shall it be in the days of the coming of the Son of man.” For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, and knew not until the flood came and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.” What was it that caused the destruction of the world in the time of the flood? It was the sins of the people; “the thoughts and imaginations of their heart was only evil continually.” They trampled upon the commands (721) of God, as did the Jews after them; and for this they suffered God’s retributive judgments. “Even so shall it be when the Son of man cometh.”

Recovering from their dismay, the flying priests stopped, and asked one another, “Why did we flee thus from the presence of that one man?” They did not know that this was the representative of the Father, that in Christ divinity was clothed in humanity. “We will return and challenge Him,” they said, “and ask him by what authority he has presumed to expel us from the temple.”

As they approached the temple, they heard acclamations of joy and songs of praises. When they entered the courts what a scene met their eyes. Christ was ministering to the poor, the suffering, the afflicted. . These people had heard of Jesus, of his compassion and love; how he healed the sick, opened the eyes of the blind, and made the lame to walk; and because they could find relief from their affliction and sin in no other source, one cry for pity went up from their lips. One after another they told to Jesus of their affliction; and Jesus bent over each as a mother bends over (722) her suffering child, giving to the suffering ones tender comfort, and bidding the sick and afflicted receive health and strength. When the priests and rulers reached the temple, men were glorifying God for the wonderful works he had done among them; mothers were bidding their children praise their Deliverer, and give thanks to Him who had brought comfort and relief, health and peace.

In this very work Christ was giving evidence of His divine mission; He was doing the very work that it had been foretold the Messiah would [190] do. In the synagogue at Nazareth he had opened the book of Isaiah, and read there the description of His mission. “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because He hath anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent Me to heal the broken-hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised.” The priests and rulers should have known that He was the anointed of the Lord; for they claimed to be the expositors of the prophecies.

The Jewish people were taught to have great respect for the prophets, and the power displayed by Christ at this time convinced (723) may who had not closed their hearts against the light that Jesus was the sent of God. The Holy Spirit also wrought to present the prophecy of Isaiah to the minds of those who witnessed his wonderful work in the temple. “He is the Messiah” some said. But those who desired riches, and determined to have them no matter how, stifled the voice of conscience, and closed the door of their hearts against Him. They money changers were displeased with His action. “What business,” they questioned, “had He to interrupt their work? The stalls were their own; they had paid a sufficient sum for them to the temple authorities, that they might sell the sacrificial offerings to the people. Their hearts were full of avarice and selfishness. They had oppressed the poor, and the widow and fatherless, refusing to give them an offering at the small sum they could pay. When the poor had presented their distress to them, they had turned away as unfeelingly as though the poor had no souls to save. They had pointed the finger of scorn at them, charging them with sin, and declaring that their suffering and poverty was curse from God on account of transgression. Men who could deal thus with the afflicted were not above planning (724) the murder of the Son of God. And this they had done. On the way to the temple they had said they would kill the Saviour, and be rid of the troubler.

“What sign showest thou that thou doest these things?” they asked. Had Christ not given them a sign? Had Christ not given them a sign? Had he not flashed heaven’s light into the soul of these men? He had given them heaven’s evidence of his mission; but he “did not commit himself unto them, because He knew all men; for He knew what was in man.” He had to watch them continually, for they were ever on His track, seeking for something by which they might accuse Him. “Destroy this temple,” Jesus said, “and in three days I will raise it up again.” Then said the Jews “Forty and six years was this temple in building, and wilt thou rear it in three days.” They were speaking of the temple at Jerusalem, but “He spake of the temple of His body. When therefore He was risen from the dead, His disciples remembered that He had said this unto them; and they believed the Scriptures, and the word which Jesus had said.” But the Jews did not believe on Him. They hated Him; for he had interfered with their gain-getting, and they knew He read their hearts like an open (725) book.

Coming down to our own day, we would ask the question, How do the inhabitants of the world now treat the house of God? Have they not filled the churches with sacrilegious things? They have failed to learn the lesson of Christ, and have made His Father’s house, instead of a house of prayer, a den of thieves. . Today every voice should be proclaiming, “Behold, the Lamb of God, that taketh away the sin of the world.” In the highways and byways the people of God should be proclaiming the message of truth. Some will hear and be converted. Others will not heed the message.

In the time of Christ there were many priests and rulers who [191] believed on Him, but they would not acknowledge lest they should be turned out of the synagogues. They feared that they would not be popular, that they would be disgraced, if they followed in the footsteps of Christ. We thank God that there are a few today who will take their position on the commandments of God, even though it place them on the unpopular side.

We are glad that we have been able to unite our mites and (726) erect this house for the worship of God. Let us praise him for this with heart and soul and voice. You have taken hold of the truth for the truth’s sake, and have decided to obey the word of God. You have decided to keep the seventh day according to the commandment: It requires moral courage to take a position to keep the commandments of God. An opposer of the truth once said that it was only weak-minded people, foolish, ignorant persons, who would turn away from the churches to keep the seventh day as the Sabbath. But a minister who had embraced the truth replied, “If you think it takes weak minded persons to take this step, just try it.” It takes moral courage, firmness, decision, perseverance, and very much prayer to step out on the unpopular side.

We hope that this house will be a house of prayer, and that those who enter it may realize that they are coming to meet with God. Christ has said, “Where two or three are met together in my name, there am I in their midst.” We do not expect to be able always to furnish you with a minister; you must have root in yourselves. You must learn to draw yourselves from the fountain of life.

(727) You have not dared to trample underfoot the commandments of God, and you have stepped out on an unpopular truth, let the result be what it may. Will the Saviour leave you to struggle alone? No, never. He does not tell you that you will have no trials to endure, no sacrifices to make. Your master was a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. “Ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, how that though He was rich, yet for our sakes He became poor, that we through His poverty might be rich.” Poverty is coming upon this world, and that there will be such a time of trouble as was not since there was a nation. There will be wars and rumors of wars, and the faces of men will gather paleness. You may have to suffer distress. You may go hungry sometimes; but God will not forsake you in your sufferings. He will test your faith. We thank God that in your poverty and in your trials you can call God your Father.

We are not to live to please ourselves. We are here to manifest Christ to the world, to represent Him and His power to mankind. We have been hewn as rough stones from the quarry of the world. He will not leave us with our rough edges—to practice (728) close dealings and reveal selfishness in our lives. He brings us into His workshop to be hewed and squared, polished and finished, for the heavenly building: for we are to be framed into a holy temple in the Lord. When the truth is received, the rough character changes, and worldliness, selfishness, pride, are worked out of the heart, we are not to remain so. Was Christ ignorant? He was the greatest Teacher the world ever saw. Why did he not chose as his representatives the scribes and Pharisees? It was because He could not trust them. He said of them, “In vain ye do worship Me, teaching for doctrine the commandments of men.” He chose the unlearned fisherman to be his disciples, in order that they might learn of Him and become wise unto salvation. Why is it that the Lord does not choose the wise and popular today, and work through the churches of the world. It is because they follow the same course as did the scribes and Pharisees. This teacher says to you, “Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy lade, and I will give you rest; take my yoke upon you, and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart, and we shall find rest unto your (729) [192] souls; for My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

We hope that this house shall be a place where the honor of God will dwell. Let those who come for worship here surrender themselves to God with all their affections and desires. Satan will try to work upon human hearts to cause dissension among brethren, and to weaken faith. We need faith. Faith and works go together; and faith is made perfect by works. We want the faith that works by love, and purifies the soul. If our hearts are aglow with love for the Saviour, we shall do the works of God. The dissension will not enter; for you will be one with Christ as He is one with the Father. Your passions will be put away; you will be cleansed by the working of the Holy Spirit, and Christ will abide in the heart. Through Him you will be able to do all things. Standing under the broad shield of Omnipotence, you will not feel that you are in the minority. God is a majority.

Wherever we shall go, we shall remember those who worship here, and we shall pray that others may unite with you. We must bear in mind that God has set us as a light amid the moral (730) darkness of the world. We are not to misinterpret the character of God; we are not to be fretful, to blame, and criticize and censure. The office of the Holy Spirit is to work the man; we are not to work the Holy Spirit. We are to let the Holy Spirit fashion the character after the similitude of Christ.

Christ said, “I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in His love.” Christ is testing today to see if we will be obedient to the law of God as He was. God wants a loyal people. Rebellion originated in heaven; but it is not to be found there again. If we are willing to inquire what is the way of the Lord, to do justice and judgment, to seek mercy, and walk humbly with God, we shall hear Him say, “Child, come up higher.” He hath builded for us a city, and he will gather the strangers and pilgrims into it. He is not ashamed to call us brethren.

Do not expect that the world will love you if you go contrary to its customs and maxims. Do expect to be treated better than your Master. In His prayer for His disciples Christ declared, “These things I speak in the world, that they might have their joy fulfilled in themselves. I have (731) given them thy word, and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them through thy truth; thy word is truth.”

“Neither pray I for these alone,” the Saviour continued; “but for them also which shall believe on me through their word.” You have received the truth. You must not hide it. Let it be known to others; let your light shine that others may be saved and sanctified through it. The words of those who believe are to be as seed sown in the hearts of others that will spring up and bear fruit unto eternal life.

Christ prays for the unity of His people, “that they all may be one, as Thou Father, art in Me, and I in thee; that the world may believe that Thou hast sent Me.” In this unity divine credentials are presented to the world that the world too may believe in Jesus. “And the glory—[the character]—which thou gavest Me, I have given them, that they may be one, even as we are one.” Christ within is the glory of God, the hope big with immortality and life. “I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; that the world may know that (733) I will come again, and receive you unto Myself, that where I am, there ye may be also.”

Praise God, brethren, with heart and soul and voice. Even amid trials, you may be the happiest people on the face of the earth, because your life is hid with Christ in God. And when He shall appear, you also will appear with Him in glory. We are not living for the applause of the [193] world; we are living for the future immortal inheritance. We are heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ to an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away. When sorrow takes hold of your soul, when you are persecuted and afflicted, lift up your head; for your redemption draweth nigh, when you are to have a life that measure with the life of God. When you are met with sneers and ridicule, rejoice that your names are written in heaven, and that you have an abundant entrance into the kingdom of God, where you will see the King in his beauty, and dwell with him throughout the ceaseless ages of eternity.

You are not to seek to meet the world’s standard, but to be a commandment-keeper, to become a member of the royal family, children of the heavenly King. Climb the ladder heavenward. (734) Christ is the ladder. Its base rests on the earth; its topmost round reaches to heaven. God is above the ladder, and His glory shine on every round. You must climb by clinging to Christ, and finally you will reach His everlasting kingdom. I pray you, in the name of Jesus Christ, to put on every piece of the armor of God, and fight manfully the battles of the Lord. “We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.” [194]

“Preach the Gospel to Every Creature.”

Sermon, October 9, 1893

(783) Christ said to His disciples, “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized, shall be saved; and he that believeth not shall be damned.”

The field is the world, and we know better what this saying comprehends, than did the apostles who receive the commission from the lips of Christ. The whole world is a vast missionary field. We who have been long in the faith should be encouraged by the knowledge that fields which were once difficult of access are now easily entered. Every church in our land should seek for a revival of the missionary spirit, for a steady growth in zeal and activity. We should pray that the indifference that has called men and women to be withheld from the work shall be banished, and that Christ may abide in the soul. For our sakes He became poor, that we through His poverty might be made rich.

(784) The office work of the Holy Spirit is to convince of sin, and I know that it is sin for any of us to be indifferent now. As we look around on the different fields that have been entered, we are led to inquire, “What hath God wrought?” What could he have done for His vineyard that He has not done? God has made provision of his rich grace, his divine power, for the performance of the work, and nothing is wanting on His part. The lack is on the part of the human agency, who refuses to cooperate with divine intelligences. Through the plan God has devised nothing can be done for the salvation of man without the cooperation of the human agent. Sinners who have been blessed with light and evidence, who have learned that through the grace supplied to them they can meet the conditions upon which salvation is promised, and yet who refuse to make the attempt, have only themselves to blame for their destruction. Of such it may be said, “Christ has died for them in vain.” But who is to blame for the loss of the souls who know not God, who have no opportunity of hearing of the reasons of our faith? What obligations rest upon the church for a world perishing without the gospel. Unless there is more decided self-denial (785) on the part of those who claim to believe the truth, unless there is more faithfulness in bringing tithes and offerings into the treasury, unless broader plans are laid than have yet been carried into execution, we shall not fulfil the gospel commission to go into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

The preaching of the gospel is God’s appointed way for the conversion of the souls of men. Men must hear in order to be saved. They cannot hear without a preacher, and the preacher must be sent. This makes it necessary to have funds in the treasury to provide means for the missionary to reach the destitute field. In the light of this fact how can those who profess to follow Christ rob God of His own entrusted talents in tithes and offerings? Is this not refusing bread to a starving soul? To withhold the means that God has claimed as His own, and by which he would make provision for the salvation of souls, will surely bring the curse of God upon those who follow such a course. Souls are denied to privilege of hearing the truth because men refuse to carry out the measures which God has laid down for the recovery of the lost.

(786) Money will not be furnished for the carrying out of the work of the gospel in some mysterious way, and though mysterious agencies. God will not shower money from the windows of heaven to do his appointed work, to spread the truth in the world and save souls unto eternal life. He has made his people stewards of His means to be used for His means to be used for His glory in blessing humanity. He says, “Bring ye all the [195] tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in My house; and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of Hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.” While God will not pour out gold and silver from the windows of heaven, he will give that which is of infinitely greater value. “I will pour out my Spirit upon you,” He says. The Holy Spirit of God will bless those who are faithful in the discharge of their duty. The Lord continues, “And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruit of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the Lord of hosts. And all nations shall call you blessed; for ye shall be a delightsome land, saith the Lord of hosts.”

(787) A large number of us have been blessed with great opportunities; we have been educated in the truth; and many should be employed in communicating to others that which has been communicated to them, and in so their knowledge would increase. It is not the ministers alone who need to let their light shine forth to the world; both young and old should be light bearers. To every man God has entrusted talents that should be improved by communicating to others the light that has been communicated to him. This work the Lord estimates as of the highest value. The Lord has provided our churches with wonderful advantages in order that they may be the light of the world; and yet many are idle in the Master’s vineyard. Souls are perishing out of Christ, and every one is called to the practice of self-denial, to put forth earnest efforts for the salvation of the world. We must reach the people not by high-flown, flowery descriptions, but by preaching Jesus Christ and him crucified as the only means by which man may enter heaven. The lessons Christ thought essential to give to the world are the lessons which are now most important for men to understand in order that they may secure eternal life. (788) The people must hear the truth for this time, and especially must the children and youth hear it, line upon line and precept upon precept. They must know the conditions upon which their salvation is promised, or they will be lost. Let the shaft be sunk deep into the mine of truth, the word of God, and let the precious ore be discovered. There is need of more carefully, more thoroughly, exploring God’s word. To the earnest seeker for truth it will yield untold treasures of inestimable value, that will meet the necessities of every human soul.

In the name of Jesus Christ, I would appeal to the church that has been made the depositary of deep and precious truths. God has given treasures to the church not to be hoarded, not to be buried in the earth, but to be imparted to others, that others may be enriched as well as ourselves. How shall we work? Let laymen and ministers follow the example of Christ. Let them meet the people where they are. I would entreat you to labor in word and doctrine. Do not get above the simplicity of the work. Do not soar away above the heads of the common people, so that they cannot follow you, and if they did follow, (789) would not be benefited and blessed. Teach the simple lessons of Christ. Tell the touching story of his life of self-denial and sacrifice. Tell of his humiliation and death. Tell of his resurrection and ascension, of his intercession for them in the courts of God. Tell that that God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” [196]

Ashefield Camp.
Oct. 22, 1894

(789a) The Australasia camp-meeting of Seventh-day Adventists was held this year in a pleasant grove at Ashefield, one of the most beautiful and healthful suburbs of Sydney. The weather was fine throughout the camp-meeting, and we thoroughly enjoyed our sojourn in the tents. These were arranged in regular village-like order, with streets named after the Reformers, in the manner of our American camps, and called forth much interested and favorable comment from the thousands of strangers who visited us from the city and its vicinity.

This manner of gathering was entirely novel to the people, and they expressed great surprise that tents could be made so comfortable and look so pretty. Some of the campers brought their cook stoves, and had their tents so arranged that the passing by one could see the neatly and bountifully set tables, the white beds, and attractive sitting-rooms.

Those who tented in the ground were certainly comfortable in their tents, and visitors were not neglected. Provision was made for the entertainment of those who came upon the ground, and many expressed their appreciation of the reception tent, and the dining tent, at which they could be served with palatable meals. The culinary arrangements were under supervision of Brother and Sister Semmons, lately arrived here from the Sanitarium. The tables were very neat, covered with white oilcloth, and set with china, crockery, and glass ware. The cleanliness, order, and taste of the arrangements, added relish to the good meals served.

(789b) The book tent displayed the usual assortment of our publications, and attracted much attention.

Although there were not so many encamped on the ground as in Melbourne, yet the attendance from outside was fully as large as at the camp-meeting in Brighton. The large pavilion was rarely commodious enough to accommodate the people who thronged to the services. All were assured of welcome by a large sign over the gate, on which was printed the words, “Whosoever will let him, come.” On Sabbath and Sunday, the grounds were thronged with interested spectators. The people listened with rapt attention to discourses on the coming of Christ, Spiritualism, Theosophy, The Third Angel’s Message, The Love of God, Temperance, Practical Godliness, and themes especially related to our time. The principal speakers were Pastors Corliss, Daniells, Cole, Colcord, Hare, Baker, and Mrs. E.G. White.

An attractive feature of the camp was the children’s meetings. The lessons were conducted by Brother Teasdale, and Sisters Goodey and Bolton. The morning studies were devoted to the characters in the Old Testament, and in the afternoon the life of Christ was the theme for consideration. These lessons were illustrated by the blackboard, maps, and object lessons. The children were taught songs in harmony with the lessons, which they seemed thoroughly to enjoy, and the forenoon and the afternoon meetings, they were taken out to the woods near by, and given lessons from nature. It was a pretty sight to see the children quietly marching to and from the woods.

There was a large attendance of children from outside who (789c) came regularly to the meetings, and many parents expressed their pleasure that their children were so thoroughly interested and profited by the meetings.

The first meeting of the camp proper was held October 19, 1894. I was present at the morning meeting, and united in prayer, and bore my testimony to the people. The Lord let his blessing rest upon me.

The following morning I again attended the morning meeting and my soul was drawn out in humble, earnest prayer to my Heavenly Father, that [197] he would impart his grace to our ministers and people. There was an absence of love for God and for each other among the people. We did not realize that sweet communion and fellowship that we should have had. A rebellion against God’s holy authority and control was manifested, and humility had departed from the church.

I knew that the Lord would not reveal his power in the midst of us unless there was a decided change in the sentiments and feelings of our ministering brethren. How could the Lord bless his people when those who preached the word were disregarding the principles of his law, which teaches us to love God supremely and our neighbor as ourselves. The exhibition of selfishness and distrust was destroying confidence. There was strife for (789d) the supremacy, and this was an offence to God, and a source of weakness to the churches.

I went into this morning meeting under a great burden, and bore a decided testimony to the ministers. I told them that it was not possible for God to put his signature upon the work unless his workers had a more tender regard for one another. I pointed out to them their need of humility, and kindness and love. The Lord helped me to make these matters plain. After breakfast I met again with the ministers in the reception tent. As I presented the need of change in the feelings and attitude came into the meeting, and earnest confessions were made. Brother clasped the hand of brother and asked forgiveness. The blessing of the Lord rested in rich measure on those who humbled their hearts, and confessed their coldness and want of love. The Lord surely hearkened and hear the words spoken, and a book of remembrance was written before them for them that feared the Lord and that thought upon his name. We had a precious season of prayer, and our ministers’ meeting closed with a decided victory. After this work of confession had been done, a purer and holier atmosphere came into our meeting.

(789e) We made most vigilant efforts to get families to this camp-meeting, and keep them there. Of one family I bought a cow, that they might have bread for their large family, parents and children of which numbered ten; and at the camp we either paid for their meals at the dining tent, or brought them to our own table.

Another family that we were anxious to have attend the meetings was in deep distress at the time. When Brother Belden went to move them to the ground, they had nothing in the house but a little bread and sugar, left over from what had been sent them a few days before. The man from whom Bro. McCann had been working came in to the house, and Bro. M. asked his employer if he could not pay him then. The man looked up in surprise, and said, “I cannot pay you any money; the work you gave done goes to pay your rent.” Bro. M. said, “I have not a penny to buy bread, or to pay for the bread I have eaten.”

Brother Belden handed him $2.50 and told him to pay his baker.

The last Sabbath before the camp, we found this family (789f) sorely tempted. They were not at church, and some members of our family visited them, and learned that they were about to be turned out of doors. Part of the family had moved away to another place a few miles distant, hoping to get employment in a meat canning factory there; and in that case they must work on the Sabbath. The father said that he could go hungry and that he would not break the Sabbath for his sake; “but,” he said, “I cannot see my children starve.”

We went to the campground, called several of our people together, and laid the matter before them, and prayed about it. We decided to bring them to the campground, and provide for them there. I also purchased good material for garments for them that they might be respectably clothed.

The situation was laid before a friend of Eld. McCullagh’s who was [198] favorable to the truth, and he gave encouragement that he would buy the Mortgage on Brother McCann’s home, and place the family back. This would give Brother M. time to sell his property, and if possible save a little for the benefit his family.

The families we helped to the meeting were not a cheap class of people. These people were industrious if they could (789g) only get work. Another brother was Elder of the church in Prospect, and another a good business man, who had met with reverses. We could not see these go hungry or destitute or leave them to become discouraged. They were bought with the precious blood of Jesus, and were of value in the sight of God.

During the camp-meeting, the working of God’s Spirit was manifested in the case of one, the wife of a Brother Martin who had lately become a Sabbath-keeper, and who had bitterly opposed her husband. Brother Martin persuaded his wife to allow one of the children to come upon the ground. We took the child into our tent, and cared for her. In this way we hoped to reach the mother, and our hopes were not in vain. On the last Sunday Mrs. Martin came with her husband to the ground, and was persuaded to remain. After hearing one of the discourses, she was overwhelmed with deep conviction, and cried aloud in soul agony. She entreated Sister Davis to pray for her. After a severe struggle, she found peace and rest in Christ by entirely surrendering herself to his will. Christ revealed himself to this sister in a marked manner, and it is a miracle of his Mercy that the lost sheep has been found. She (789h) sincerely repented of her stubborn resistance against the truth and of her opposition to her husband. The lost sheep was found, and brought back to the old rejoicing. There is more joy in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, than over ninety and nine just persons who feel that they need no repentance.

The last public service, on Sunday evening, was one long to be remembered. The night was a beautiful one. The walls of the large tent were raised, and extra seats were placed around the outside; yet a large crowd was left standing. Elder Corliss preached upon the glorious appearing of our Lord, and it was just the discourse for the occasion. The Spirit and power of God were manifested through the human agent. At times the whole congregation was held as if spellbound. Truly many had an opportunity of hearing things strange to them. Yet these were old truths, but placed before the hearers with a freshness and power the hearers had never known before. “The old commandment is the word which ye have heard from the beginning.”

Monday morning we held our parting meeting. It was a precious season. My heart was so thankful for the blessed results of this meeting. The seed sown will spring up and bear fruit (789i) that will be as far-reaching as eternity.

Revival services were held during the last two Sabbaths of the camp, and while many adults went forward for prayer, the number of children far exceeded these. There were over fifty children who gave evidence of earnestness and sincerity in seeking Christ. The interest the people manifested was very gratifying, and many requested that the meetings should not close with the close of the camp-meeting.

The tent was therefore pitched a little later in a pleasant location nearer the center of the town, and Brn. Corliss and McCullagh, with a corps of workers, labored with great earnestness and perseverance. In this work the brethren had to meet much opposition from the ministers of the various churches in Ashefield. Several preached strongly against us. One, a trained debater, challenged Elder Corliss to discuss the Sabbath question, and the challenge was accepted.

Three times during this debate the Lord opened before me the manner in which this discussion should be conducted. There are many who feel it [199] their privilege to be sharp and severe in dealing with an opponent who states falsehood as (789j) if it were truth. This debater, like Goliath, was proud and boastful, and defied the armies of Israel; But the truth, like the small pebbles that David used, brought about his defeat, and made his weakness apparent. Through the guidance of the Holy Spirit, Elder Corliss carried the controversy through without giving his congregation occasion to say that he once lost his temper. For six nights he met the opponent of the truth, and the Lord stood by his servant. His brethren stood by him also, and special prayer was offered every night before entering the meeting, that the Lord would give victory to the truth. The discussion was carried through with dignity, and the impression left upon the minds of the people caused many to favor the truth.

Hearing that some were to unite with our body by baptism, the Baptists of their own accord offered our ministers the use of the baptistery in their church. They wished to have a discourse on baptism preached to their church members. The favor was accepted, and sixteen believers went forward in baptism. After the meeting the Baptists told our brethren that they might (789k) have the use of the baptistery on certain days of the week at any time they asked for it. But when they asked three weeks later, the Baptists refused, saying we could not use it any more. The deacon of the church said he was in harmony with all the remarks made by Sister White, that the thoughts presented were new and very instructive. He said he was not in favor of refusing us the baptistery; but others urged it, and he felt it necessary to be in harmony with them.

In the end, we were very glad of this refusal, for had it not come, we could not have found the beautiful lake, at which the next baptism was administered. It was worthwhile making a special effort to find such a suitable place. When we reached the lakeside, more than two hundred persons were gathered there. After several hymns were sung, prayer was offered by Brother Hare. Then I spoke for about forty minutes, from the words, “If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth at the right hand of God.” Elder McCullagh administered the ordinance. Nineteen precious souls were baptized.

That scene at the lakeside was an advertisement for the (789l) truth, and had its influence. Only twelve had expected to go forward in baptism at this time; but several who had been halting between two opinions now made their decision to keep the Sabbath. In this case the words of the Scriptures were clearly demonstrated; “Ye can do nothing against the truth, but for the truth. A feeling of sympathy was created, and an interest awakened, that would not have been had the meeting been held in the Baptist Church.

All this was preparing the way for the work in Sydney. We decided that the tent should next be pitched in one of the best localities of Summer Hill. The plan was to labor in that place one or two months, and then move to another suburb, and finally into Sydney itself. [200]

Instruction Given to Ministers and Workers.
Campground, Ashefield, N.S.W.
3 a.m. October 30, 1894

(771) Last night in my sleeping hours I seemed to be in a meeting with my brethren, and we were listening to One who spoke with authority. He said: —

“Many souls will attend this meeting who are honestly ignorant of the truths that will be presented here. They will become interested; conscience will tell them that what they hear is the truth; because Christ is drawing them. The greatest care is needed in dealing with these souls. Be always on your guard. Do not at the outset press before the people those features of our faith likely to raise objections in the mind, lest you close the ears of those to whom these truths come as a new revelation. If truth is presented in so large a measure that the hearers cannot receive it, they will go away, and return no more. More (772) than this they will misrepresent the truth, and in their explanation of what they have heard, they will confuse other minds.

“There must be no combative or controversial spirit revealed in the advocacy of truth. Present such truths as the people can grasp and appreciate. Though these may appear strange and startling to them, many will recognize without that new light is being shed upon the word of God.

“The Saviour is to be your example in all things. Those who will study the manner of Christ’s teaching, and educate themselves to follow His way, presenting the truth in its simplicity, will attract and hold large numbers in the time, as Christ held the people in His day. There is great need of personal effort. Encourage those who are troubled to speak of their difficulties. The love of Christ abiding in the heart will be expressed in words that will benefit the hearers, and win souls to Him. The truth will have a compelling power when you urge it upon the people because you love them; for the Holy Spirit will convict of the truth. Arm yourselves with humility; pray that angels of God may come close to your side to impress minds. There is a winning, compelling power in the gospel of Jesus (773) Christ. The truth as it is in Jesus will subdue the most powerful opponents, and bring them into captivity to Jesus Christ. If they will submit to Him, Christ will take men who possess the strongest spirit of opposition, and connect themselves with himself and His work.”

After these things were spoken, I heard men conversing together in a discouraging way. Poverty, in their minds, was the greatest obstacle to the advancement of the work. All declared the field a hard one to be worked with little means, and so few workers. Then the Teacher said: “Poverty is not the most disheartening feature in this work. The greatest difficulty lies in the workers themselves. Unless imbued with the Spirit of God, you will be inclined to allow your natural temperament to shape the work, and you will leave Jesus out of the conflict. You have neglected to cherish love for one another, and this has resulted in weakening your hands and hearts. Criticism is the school in which many of you have been educating yourselves. There needs to be a decided conversion on this point. Who among you are feeling (774) a burden to come into perfect unity. Who will deny self and sacrifice your own ideas and preferences, that you may be in harmony with your brethren? It is the lack of the Holy Spirit that makes the professed followers of Christ so decided and unyielding, so determined to please self.

“Rebuke not an elder (a man older than yourself), but entreat him as a father; and the younger men as brethren; the elder women as mothers; the younger as sisters, with all purity Honor widows that are widows [201] indeed.” “Now the end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned.” “Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth.”

“The greatest obstruction to your work is your disregard of the tenderness of Christ is dealing with one another. Self seeks the supremacy. Self loves to vaunt itself; and those who reveal this spirit so unlike Christ’s do not discern what manner (775) of Spirit controls them. While professing to be Christians, they do not speak and act like Christians. They express their own will rather than the will of God, yet they are very desirous to have their will regarded as the will of God. Satan is urging his attributes into your very midst; he is seeking to destroy your love for you and your confidence in each other. The lack of confidence between the brethren in the ministry and the other workers is easily read in the rules and regulations concerning the details of the work. When men will be courteous to their fellow-men, and show confidence in them, they will come much nearer possessing the mind of Christ. In His gift to the world the Lord has revealed the estimate he places upon man. “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

Some are ever seeking to reshape the characters of others to suit their own ideas and measures. God has not given them this work to do. A spirit of selfishness will ever lead men to cherish a high estimate of self. When men lose their first love, they begin immediately to criticize one another. This (776) spirit will constantly strive for the mastery to the close of time. Satan is working to foster it, in order that the brethren in their ignorance may devour one another; for in this way he can dishearten and discourage them, and cause some to leave their post of duty. This is not the work of the Holy Spirit; a power from beneath is working in the chambers of the mind and in the soul temple to place his attributes where the attributes of Christ should be. God is greatly dishonored, and the Spirit of God is grieved when His professing people allow their lives to be controlled by such a spirit.

He who paid the price for man’s redemption reads with unerring accuracy all the hidden workings of the human mind, and knows how to deal with every soul. In dealing with men, He reveals the same principles that are manifest in the natural world. The beneficent operations of nature are not accomplished by abrupt and startling interpositions; men are not permitted to take her work into their own hands. God works through the calm, regular operations of his appointed laws. So it is in spiritual things. Satan is constantly seeking to produce effects by rude and violent thrusts; but Jesus finds access to (777) minds by the pathway of their most familiar associations. He disturbs as little as possible their accustomed train of thought. He honors man with His confidence, and thus placed him on his honor. He introduces old truths in a new and precious light.

Jesus assumed humanity that He might meet humanity, and bring them under the transforming power of truth. He gained access to the heart by securing its sympathy and confidence. The truth came from His lips beautiful in its simplicity, yet clothed with dignity and power. What a teacher our Lord Jesus Christ was! How tenderly did he treat every honest inquirer after truth, that he might gain admission to the sympathies and find a home in the heart. Jesus points the highest mind as well as the humblest to the lily in the freshness of the dew of morning, saying, [202] “Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin, and yet I say unto you, That Solomon in all His glory was not arrayed like one of these.” And He impresses the lesson: “If God so clothe the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is cast into the oven, shall He not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith.” (778) Men make the work of advancing the truth tenfold harder than it would be, by seeking to take God’s work out of His hands into theirs. They undertake the job of tinkering up the defective characters of others, and only succeed in making the defects worse than before. The time thus spent is all the time making the work more complicated; for the Chief Worker is left out of the question in the care of his heritage. Men would do better to leave God to do his own work; for He does not regard human natural as capable of reshaping character.

My brethren, we are far from being what the Lord would have us be the attributes of the enemy of God and man too often find expression in our spirit and attitude toward our brethren. We hurt one another, because we are not partakers of the divine nature. We work against our own souls’ interests in obtaining perfection of character; we bring trouble to ourselves, make our work hard and toilsome, because we regard our own spirit and defects of character as precious virtues, to be clung to and fostered. We need to be imbued with the Spirit of Christ. If we will take hold of His strength, and make peace with Him, we will be in a fair way to make peace with our fellow-laborers. The (779) less of the meekness and lowliness of Christ the human agent has in his spirit and character, the more of perfection he sees in his own methods, and the more of imperfection in the methods of others. Our only safety lies in watching unto prayer, in counselling together, believing that God will teach our brethren as well as ourselves; for there is no respect of persons with God. God will work with us when we are faithful students, and doers of His word.

When there is on the part of the laborers manifest disregard of the command of Christ to love one another as He has loved us, how can we expect our brethren to heed the commandments of finite men, and the specifications regulating their labor. The wisdom that prescribes for us must be supernatural, or it will prove a physician that cannot heal. We need to lay down our self-importance, and seek God with all the heart. Instead of toiling to prepare rules and regulations, we had better be praying, submitting our will and our ways to Christ. He is not pleased when we make hard the things that He has made easy. “Take my yoke upon you,” He says, and learn of Me; for I am meek (780) and lowly in heart; and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” The Lord Jesus loves his heritage; and if men would not think it their special prerogative to prescribe rules for their fellow-laborers, but would bring Christ’s rules into their lives and copy his teachings, each would be an example, and not a judge.

Christ’s favorite theme of discourse was the paternal character and abundant love of God. The curse of our churches today is that men do not adopt Christ’s methods of labor, or present in their simplicity the truths He taught. They think they can improve in the rules given in the gospel, hoping this to reform the churches and laborers. This evil needs to be corrected. The brethren who feel free to criticize and talk of the supposed defects of others manifest that they are wise in their own conceits. God cannot give them His special blessing; for they would exalt themselves, and hurt the precious cause of truth. When the world was destitute of the knowledge of God, Jesus came to impart the inestimable blessing of a knowledge of the character of our heavenly Father. When [203] about to close His work on earth he declared, “I have manifested thy name to the men whom thou gavest me out of the world.” (781) This gift he committed to His disciples, to be communicated by them to the world.

All the wisdom that men possess is a gift from God, and He will impart to every man a full measure, if he will ask in faith. Solomon sought wisdom from God, and it was given him in large measure. But how did the universe of heaven look upon him when he perverted the sacred trust. He leagued himself with idolatrous nations. Thus he who at the dedication of the temple had prayed, “Let your hearts be undividedly given to the Lord,” himself separated his heart from God. He imperiled his soul’s interest by the formation of friendships with the Lord’s enemies. Solomon’s heathen wives turned away his heart from God. His fine sensibilities were blunted, his heart hardened; for he lost his sympathy for man and his love for God. His conscience was seared, and his rule became tyranny.

Solomon prepared the way for his own ruin when he sought for wise men from other nations to build the temple. God had been the educator of his people, and he designed that they should (782) stand in his wisdom, and be second to none. While they had clean hands, a pure heart and sanctified noble purpose, the Lord would communicate to them His grace. But Solomon looked to man instead of God, and he found his supposed strength to be weakness. The solver of Tarshish and the gold of Ophir were obtained by Solomon at a terrible expense, even the betrayal of sacred trusts He brought to Jerusalem the leaven of evil influences which were perpetuated in polygamy and idolatry. Although Solomon afterward repented, his repentance could not abolish the idolatrous practices which he had brought into the nation.

The Lord gives instruction to his workmen, and he has left on record the promise, “If any man lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally and upbraideth not, and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering; for he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea, driven with the wind and tossed; for let not that man think that he shall receive anything of the Lord.” When God’s people turn from the source of all wisdom, to follow the wisdom of man, they are putting their trust in a broken reed, and the wisdom they receive is that which cometh from beneath, not that which cometh from above. [204]

Appeal to the Youth.

Morning Talk, Campground,
Ashefield, Nov. 3, ‘94

(790) It is necessary for every one of us to come into sacred dearness to God. Our meetings are drawing to a close; these precious opportunities will soon be in the past, and day by day our record—the record of our course of action and our standing before God—is going up the heaven. We need, every one of us, to know what there is in us of sin. We do not ask you to fasten your minds upon yourselves, and look to your feelings; but we implore you for Christ’s sake, and for your soul’s sake, to closely examine yourselves that you may see yourselves as you are, and understand what you must do in order to meet the requirements of God.

From the light that God has given me, there is iniquity in our midst, and God cannot bless our youth. Many of you who (791) hear my words this morning are practicing sin, and you know that you are doing so. How can you expect to enjoy the liberty of the children of God while you do this? The Son of God has given his life for you; he has paid the price of His own blood that you may have eternal life. What are you doing for yourselves? Are not many of you living a false life? God wants all the strength and youth you have. He wants you to keep that brain in a health condition. He desires that every practice of yours shall tend to preserve your health and vitality, so that you can give to God that which he has purchased with His own blood.

We are living in a very solemn period of this earth’s history. The Lord is coming; the end of all things is at hand. Parents, if you have neglected prayer in your family, and failed to seek God for His grace, you need now to call your children about you, tell them you have neglected a God-given responsibility, and ask them to forgive you. If you have been harsh and overbearing in your family, seek the forgiveness of God, and the forgiveness of your children. The children who know what is right, and are practicing iniquity, need to confess their sins (792) to God. Is not today a day when we should seek God earnestly? I ask the youth to come to Jesus just as you are, sinful and polluted with the fall, give yourselves to God, and let Him take away your sins. You cannot be a child of God, and practice sin. You cannot unite with Christ, and continue to do the things you know to be wrong.

Our understanding needs to be keener and sharper than it has been. Parents and children need to reach a higher standard. We have been contented to be altogether too cheap and common; and yet we claim to be Christians, sons and daughters of God. Christian, what is the definition of the word? It means to be Christlike. God calls upon us to reach a higher standard. Are there not those here whose conscience tells them that we have the truth, but who have not surrendered their heart to God. “Ye are not your own; for ye are bought with a price, even the precious blood of the Son of God. Bought with a price! Have you been robbing God all the years of your life? Some have nominally professed to have the faith of their parents; but are you converted children? Have you earnestly sought the Lord until you found Him?

(793) When I was about eleven years old, my health was such that I would go to bed at night fearful that I should not live till the morning. The physician said I was liable to bleed at the lungs at any time, and then my life would go out. Night after night I would plead with God in fear. When my twin sister would be sleeping, I would be kneeling on the floor in prayer. O, how I pleaded with God to save my soul. How I tried [205] to get something like faith. I did not have an intelligent knowledge of faith as we now have. God seemed so wonderful and great, so high and lifted up. The train of His glory filled the temple of my mind, and I could not see his graciousness, his compassion, His tenderness, His goodness and love. I could only discern an angry God. I did not know God then; I did not know Christ. Then the Lord revealed Himself to me. Never, never shall I forget that experience. I can never lose the impression I then received of the value of a Saviour. Language is inadequate when I attempt to tell it. Then I ventured to offer to God the prayer of faith, and light came to me that seemed to fill my whole being. I seemed to be another person. Sin then seemed to a terrible thing. The things I once had hated, I now loved; (794) and that which I had lived, I now hated.

Here is a child. The parents in their mistaken love for it indulge their child, and gratify all its desires. In a little while Satan has a hold on the child. Instead of showing love and reverence for its parents, and rendering the obedience to their wishes, it reveals the attributes of Satan. It is unhappy and miserable, thinking that everything the parents require of it is meant for a denial of good, a warfare, and a hurt. It is just so with the child of God who does not surrender heart and soul to God to do his will at any cost. A thing is not God’s will because you want to do it. You are to do God’s will because Christ abides within. If you love God, you will surrender heart and mind and soul to do his will, you will grasp his promises by living faith, and will come to Him in full assurance. Then you can reveal Christ to others.

There is a greater work to be done on this campground for our youth. We want to see the deep movings of the Spirit of God on minds and characters. There is too much surface work, too much teaching the truth with the ends of the fingers, as it were, and it is not brought into the soul temple. (795) When truth is in the heart it cleanses the soul temple. There are some here, as there are everywhere in our world, who are indulging some favorite habit which is hurting mind and soul and body. There are youth here who are permitting themselves to be bound to Satan’s chariot car. Is there not power in God, dear friends, to break loose? Is there not power to place you wholly on the Lord’s side. Were you going to wait until the seal of death is placed upon you before you awake to your situation.

Suppose you had been on that steamer, the Wiarapa, that has just gone down with its fright of human life. Had you been there struggling in the waters of the great deep, what thought you would have had of your past life! Would you have felt prepared to go down into the grave. Just as you go down into the grave, so you will come up. There will be no change of character in the resurrection. Those who go down into the grave stained and polluted with sin will rise in the same likeness. One of the souls who went down in this steamer, was my stewardess on my voyage to New Zealand. My heart was drawn out to this woman, and I pleaded with her to accept the Saviour. “How (796) can I make a profession of religion” she asked, “while I remain in this employment? I have three children, and this is the only way in which I can support them. Look at the society I am thrown into on this boat, look at the drinking, the card-playing, the swearing. Tell me how I can serve God, and remain here.”

“You can love and serve God,” I replied, “even in these surroundings. If you are obliged to be here, God can give you grace to raise the standard here.”

In the list of those who went down with the Wiarapa, I saw this woman’s name. Did she lose eternal life? Is there no trace of her name in the Lamb’s book of life? Thank God, dear friends, that you were not on that boat. In such a case, few, I fear would have been prepared to [206] meet death.

Parents, what characters are your forming for your children? What hold have you on God to keep the fort in your own home? We can point you to the foundation of life; we can tell you of the Strength of Israel, and what He can do for you; but what good will it do you to hear unless you take hold of Him in faith, and let your faith be mingled with loving obedience? (797) “Behold,” the prophet declares, “ye fast for strife and debate, and to smite with the fist of wickedness.” What do your fasts amount to, to spread sackcloth and ashes under you, while you neglect the duties that God has set plainly before you. Should strong temptation come to your children, and they should let go their hold of the truth, sin will lie at your door.

We want to see the converting power of God in our midst. We want the angels of God to walk up and down in this encampment and solemnize the minds of parents and youth and children. The blessing is all ready to fall upon us in showers of grace, if we will prepare the way for it. It is the Sabbath of the Lord. Let us humble our hearts before God this day. Let us arise, and go to the Father. Let us seek the sheep that are wandering, and those who are keeping on the outskirts of the fold. God help us to go deeper in our religious experience than we have at this meeting. God has rich blessings for us, and we have only a little time in which to get them. And yet, in one moment you can place yourselves where, by surrendering wholly (798) your way and will and ideas, the precious influence of the Spirit of God will flow into your hearts.

O the noble characters that might be formed by those here before me. How my heart yearns for you. Since early morning I have been pleading with God that He would walk upon this ground, and make it a consecrated place. There are souls to be saved in this encampment. Can they go away unaffected by the preaching of the Word that they have heard on these rounds. They can never go away as they came. God has a controversy with every soul, and to those to whom he has sent the message of light, he says is saying, Will you receive the warning, accept the message, and humble your hearts before God. This does not mean to clothe yourselves in sackcloth, and abstain from food. It means to fast from our passions, to have a contrite heart before God. The tobacco devotee, who has here heard the precious truth of God, will you let it alone. There is no example in the life of Christ for such a practice. Will you cut out of your life the thing that is making it weak and worthless?

Brethren and sisters, God is on this campground. He (799) observing our outward works; he is looking into the inner sanctuary of the soul. The character of every soul here this morning is being faithfully daguerreotyped in the books of heaven. This is a holy convocation we are having to God. Are you going to seek God as you have never sought him before? Are you going to put away your pride, your trifling, your lightness, your vanity, your foolishness. You will not always feel happy as you strive for perfection of character. You will have to cut away many things from your life that are as dear to you as your right hand and your right eye. But better, far better be deprived of these things which you deem essential to your earthly happiness than to lose eternal life. We need to keep ourselves in the love of God, and walk closely with God—the closer, the happier we shall be.

Young Christians, you who claim to be followers of Christ, you can have a powerful influence for good upon your associates. Before you took your position as a Christian you may have attended places of amusement where you came in connection with those who enjoy only their own folly and cheapness and levity. How did association with these things affect your character (800) cannot now enter into these amusements and associations and obtain and retain solidity of character. “Come out [207] from among them, and be ye separate,” saith God, “and touch not.” You are not knowingly to place yourselves where the temptations of the enemy can affect your soul. We pray, “lead us not into temptation,” when it is often our own perfected ideas that lead us there. You may think a certain amusement innocent. You love music; you want to get new ideas, more experience, a wider knowledge; and you think it not wrong to attend this concert, and that place of consort. It is by such things that Satan is laying snares for your feet. It was thus he created in Adam and Eve a desire for a knowledge that God never intended that they should have. Never place yourself in the company of unbelievers unless it I to do them good. But with this motive in your heart you can go to them, your heart filled with love for their souls, and the angels of God will be with you.

Young people, you have not accepted Christ as your Saviour, are you thirsting for something attractive and satisfying, and do you go into the company of unbelieving to find it. O, the invitation is given to you, If any thirst, let (801) unto me and drink.” “He that drinketh of the water that I shall give him, shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water, springing up into everlasting life.” Will you come to Him? His arms are open to receive you. I do not mean, Will you simply say, I want to be a Christian.” I mean, Will you come to the foot of the cross, and accept the Saviour who gave His life for you? He knows all about your temptations and trials, the infidel theories that Satan would implant in your minds. He can help you to overcome all these. Will you not make the decision here? Will you not change the leaders? Shall we not hear the youth who now stand under the black banner of the prince of darkness, say, I choose Christ today. I cut loose from the powers of darkness. When God sees that you are seeking to sever the chain, he will cut it by His power. God help you to decide this question here.

We want to see the children enjoying the love and service of God. We want to hear their happy voices telling what Christ has done for them. . Yet we do not want them to have merely a profession. They need an inward work of grace in them. (802) Make this day, I beseech of you, such a day as you have never before experienced, —a day when you sins shall be confessed and forsaked through Christ. He will give you His help if you will come to Him. Sinful and polluted though you may, be he will take you, and will wash you clean. The question is asked by the prophet, “Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots?” He cannot do this. “Neither can ye which are do good which are accustomed to do evil. The sinner cannot change his own heart; but God and Christ can take away the stained and spotted character.

And now I would say to you, Get ready. Now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation. Seek the Lord while He may be found; call upon him while he is near. “Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts, and let him turn unto the Lord, and he will have mercy, and to Our God, for he will abundantly pardon. My ways are not your ways, saith the Lord; neither are my thoughts your thought. . . .

As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are may ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.” You have (803) been sinners against me all your lives; you have robbed me of the service that is My due; yet I will abundantly pardon. Brethren and Sisters, youth, and children, can you resist the invitation? God grant that you may turn, and accept it while you may. [208]

“Add to Your Faith Virtue.”

Sermon, Sabbath, No. 3, ‘94
Campground, Ashefield.

(804) “Simon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of Christ God and our Saviour Jesus Christ: grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord, according as His divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him that hath called us to glory and virtue: whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises; that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

(805) And besides this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; and to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; and to godliness brotherly-kindness; and to brotherly-kindness charity. For if these things be in you and abound, they make you that ye shall be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But he that lacketh these things, is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins. Wherefore the rather brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure; for if ye do these things ye shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.”

I am thankful that we have these great and abundant promises; but every one of these promises is given us on condition. If we neglect to follow the conditions, we must not expect God to let his rich grace and abundant power come to us. The reason why God wants us to be so particular in following the directions is that this is the only right road, the only way to peace and happiness. God wants us to be His sons and daughters. During (806) the hours of probation left to us he wants us to be gaining these graces, according as His divine power hath given unto us all things. Through the knowledge of Him who hath called us to glory and virtue, nothing is withheld from us that pertains to life and godliness. We have the precious promise that we shall be partakers of the divine nature.

In Christ everything that pertains to godliness and the salvation of the human soul is placed within our reach. There is no excuse why one of us should falter and fail in the world of overcoming. Christ came to earth to open the way whereby man could be united to God and have the strength that comes from God in the work of overcoming. To open this way Christ had to take upon himself humanity; for if he had not laid aside his glory, we could not have endured his presence. Daniel, the man whom God calls greatly beloved, could not endure the presence of angels. Daniel prayed to the Lord, and in answer to his prayer, an angel was sent to open before him the great events of the future. As soon as Daniel caught sight of the glory, he fell helpless to the earth. The angel touched him to give him strength. Again (807)Daniel looked at the angels, and his strength left him. A second time the angel strengthened him to hear his words, but he could not impart the instruction he came to give until he took the form of a man.

Christ received baptism at the hands of John, and then on the banks of the Jordan he bowed in prayer. That prayer, cleaving its way through the hellish shadow of Satan reached the Father in heaven. In response, the heavens were opened, and the glory of God in the form of a dove of burnished gold rested upon the Son of God, while the voice of the Father [209] was heard saying, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” This prayer opened heaven to every son and daughter of Adam. That voice from heaven to every son and daughter of Adam. That voice from heaven says to them, “You are accepted in the beloved; your faith shall be respected; your prayers shall enter in through the gates ajar, and your Advocate who pleads for you before the Father, will present your petitions. While Christ is pleading in heaven for us, the Holy Spirit pleads within, and the petition ascends to God with power.

Had we not better pray more? Is it not important that we (808) send our petitions to God so that Christ can mingle with these petitions the fragrant incense of his own righteousness. Heaven is open to us. You may have the strength given to you that will enable you to lay hold of divine power.

“I am fallen,” you say. “I pray, but the Lord does not seem to hear.” How do you know that the Lord does not hear? Is your knowledge of the matter greater than the promise of the infinite of God, who says, “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.” You can rely upon the promise, or you can remain in such unbelief, that if God should bless you however much, you would not recognize the blessing as coming from Him. Would it not be best for you to take God at his word? The promises of God are rich and full and broad as the universe. You are to come to God and present these promises, saying, “Thou hast promised, Lord. Thou hast told me if I asked, I should receive. I take thee at thy word.

Another says, “I cannot carry my little interests to God.” To whom then will you carry them? What God have you besides the Lord to whom you can tell your heart difficulties and you (809) little trials. These small trials lead to greater ones; then what will you do with these? Take everything to God, the small as well as the great; lay them before Him, and tell him what you feel. If you have heart burnings against one for whom Christ has died, cut that out of your life, and ask God that He will supply the grace that is essential in order to be victors. Then precious victory, full and abundant, will be yours.

Peter declares that grace is given to us through the knowledge of God and Jesus Christ. How can you know God unless there is open communion between yourself and Him. Satan and all his synagogue of evil angels have engaged to cast their shadow between your soul and God that not one ray of light may come to you. If your prayers seem to be unanswered, do not hastily decide that God has not heard you. It may be that Satan is seeking to could your mind and heart with the darkness that covers the earth and the people. You cannot afford to leave the fountain of living waters, the cool streams of Lebanon, to drink of the turbid waters of the valley.

It makes my heart ache when I read the letters that come to me across the Pacific—the pitiful appeals of poor souls: “The Lord does not hear my prayer,” I am afraid the Lord has forsaken me.” These souls have an adviser right beside them, but they (810) do not recognize Him. “I am at your right hand,” Christ says, “to help you.”

You need not study to have eloquence in your prayers, or to frame them in beautiful language. You can come with a broken heart and a contrite spirit. “If ye being evil know how to give good gifts unto your children, shall not your Father which is in heaven give the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him.” Is not this promise of God good for anything to you? God wants us to show that we trust Him. He wants us to believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him.” When you seek Me with the whole heart, He says, you shall find me. Cannot you [210]

believe it? Oh, if I did not believe it, I would not be in Australia today. I walked out on the promise of God, and though I was in a great feebleness, He gave me strength to cross the broad waters. There is no respect of persons with God. God regards his humble servants wherever they are. They are the purchase of the Son of God, bought with an infinite price. It is His delight to bring them so near to Him that they will recognize their leader, and listen to His orders. The captain of our salvation will make known to us everything that (811) that it is essential for us to know.

At one place where we were laboring in America, we made an effort for the youth in the college. As the result of the effort proud young men and women were converted to God. One evening I missed the youth from the meetings, and inquired for them. Soon a whole class of them came in and took their seats. Afterwards in their testimony they told how they had confessed their wrongs that they had done to one another. One said, “I wanted to come to this meeting knowing that I had taken up the last stumbling block from my own feet and the feet of others.” The glory of God came into that meeting. It did not come to just a few; like a tidal wave it seemed to sweep through the whole congregation. There were no wild demonstrations; for the praise of God does not lead to that. God appeals to the senses and reason of men and women. The Spirit of God has an influence upon the heart that shows itself in the countenance, and the shining of the face reveals Jesus within. It was a miracle of God’s mercy that transformed the characters of the students in that school, and sent them out later as missionaries. Two of the teachers who were in that meeting are now missionaries (812) in Tahiti.

You who are listening to my words today may think that in your religious experience you do not feel as you would like to feel. In that very meeting there was one who thought he had received the love of God has he had never received it before. The next morning he came to the meetings, and rose to testify. I knew in a moment that something was the matter, for the light had gone out of his countenance. Said he, “Somehow, I don’t feel as I did last night. I don’t feel a nearness to God. I have lost the blessing.”

“Where did you lose it, Brother Robinson,” I asked.
“I cannot tell.”

“You slept through the night, and God guarded you. Why do you not realize his blessing this morning?” “I will tell you what is the matter. You have not educated yourself to believe in God whatever your feelings may be. Feeling is not to be your God. You must not offer your sacrifices on the altar of feeling. Feeling and faith are as distinct from each other as earth is from heaven, and as far removed as the east is from the west. “Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence (813) of things not seen. Faith walks the narrow plank, and walk till it comes to the end, and then steps off on to nothing, as it were. Faith is a mighty upholder. When you cannot see how to take another step, plead to God with your whole heart. Do not consult your feelings. Feeling has nothing to do with it. I believe that God is my God, and that His promises will be verified to me. I do not consider my feelings in the matter. I know my duty from the expressed will of God, and it is for me to do that will, and do it intelligently. At the times when I have felt unable to speak to the people, then have been the times when God has helped me. Sometimes I go out to meet my appointments feeling so weak, and it seems I could not utter a word; but as I stand before the people God uses the frail instrument. The blessing of God never fails me. I take no credit to myself; it is a power from above that gives me the message.”

God does not tell you, dear friends that if you believe in Him you [211] will have no trials and difficulties. On the contrary, He says, If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; of they have kept my sayings, they will keep yours also. He further speaks of a time when “He that killeth you, will think (814) that he doeth God service.” He shows you the plan of battle, and tells you what you may expect to meet. “We struggle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” Nor does he leave you in your own strength to fight the battles of life. Put on the whole armor of God,” he says, “that ye may be able to stand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.” You are to fight as in the sight of the universe of heaven. More than human beings compose the army of God; angels that excel in strength are warriors in it. The captain of the Lord’s host, he is there. These powers will gain the victory for you, if you will place yourself by their side. The power of God will come to everyone who will endure hardness as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. We could not in our own strength meet the evil angels and overcome them. It is by divine power that we obtain.

The work of Christ was to resist temptation in man’s behalf. How much victory could we obtain in this life had not Christ overcome for us in the wilderness of temptation. Here the (815) enemy met with the three greatest temptation with which man is beset. Christ knew what it was to be hungry. His long fast of nearly six weeks left the Saviour in a condition of weakness. Then the enemy came to Him, “If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.” Would Christ overcome, or would he be overcome? The salvation of the human race hinged upon his defeat or victory.

“If thou be the Son of God.” Had not Christ himself framed the plan whereby he was to bear, with humanity upon him, this very temptation. He was not to work a miracle to save himself suffering, but was to stand the test on every point that would be brought upon the human family. And so Christ said to Satan, “It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.” Had Adam depended upon the word of God instead of the words of a stranger, he would not have transgressed the law of Jehovah. Temptation will come to every one of us as it came to Christ; but though sore pressed, we may overcome, because Christ overcame. Christ has brought moral power within the reach of everyone. The only way that Christ could overcome was be (816) by presenting the word of God. “It is written,” He said, and the enemy had no power over him. When Satan comes to us, we may present the same weapon. “To him that overcometh,” God says, “Will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and set down with my Father in His throne.”

We are living in probationary time. Now there is mercy for all—for him who has the crimson stain, and the scarlet sin. “Though your sins be as scarlet,” he says, “I will make them like snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” We must lay hold of the promises of God, not with a casual faith, but as a personal blessing given by a personal Saviour. We are to surrender ourselves to Him, to have the mold and fashion of God put upon us, that we may be like him in character. God cannot have in heaven any who do not represent his character; therefore we must represent him here. The law of Jehovah is the transcript of his character. Just as soon will his throne and his glory be abolished as His law; for that is His character. It reveals to man the only standard that will measure character in the last great day. Satan seeks to occupy our [212] minds so that we shall not become acquainted with what is coming upon the (817) earth, that we shall not realize that we are living in the great day of God’s preparation. We need to arouse ourselves, and see what characters we are forming. There will be no second preparation for anyone. Soon the angel of mercy will fold her golden wings and step down from the throne; then mercy will be forever gone.

When God gave us Christ, he gave all heaven; he would not have it said of Him that he could do more than he had done. Christ died in order to link man with the infinite God, to connect earth again with heaven, from which it had been separated by sin, by making it loyal to the commandments of God. With his human arm he encircled the race; with his divine arm he grasped the throne of the universe. Jesus hated sin, but he loved the sinner—how much he has shown in the cross of Calvary. He came to reshape the deformed character of man; if was a very crooked character. In Him we are placed on vantage ground with God, where we can be partakers of the divine nature, and overcome in our own account. By taking hold of divine power as Christ took hold of it, we may escape the corruption that is in the world through lust.

(818) Many who profess the religion of Christ do not live it. What is the profession of such good for? They might as well trace their names in the sand, and expect them to remain. The religion of Christ, taken into the heart and life, will make us better men and women. It will transform our youth. It is not enough for you to sit in your parlor to entertain and be entertained. There is earnest work for every one of us. There are our children to train and educate by precept and example. You are our children to train and educate by precept and example. You are not to educate them, as we are taught from the pulpits today, that the laws of God are not binding. God does not place a people on the earth without a standard of righteousness. Nor will he take man to heaven in his disobedience and transgression. There is a world to save. Our children are to be taught how to help prevent the wickedness that is existing in our world. We want eternal life; and we must get it in Christ’s way. We want eternal life; and we must get it in Christ’s way. We need to keep the way of the Lord as Abraham kept it. He taught his children and his household to do justice and judgment. When we do this, God can cooperate with us. God help us to elevate the standard in our homes, lest the standard of Satan be established there. You want a family for God, a household for God. (819) You want to take them with you to the gates of the city, and say, “Here am I, Lord, and the children which thou hast given me.” They may be grown to manhood and womanhood, but they are your children still. Your training, your patience, your prayers, your watchfulness, has been blessed of God till they stand with you as overcomers. And this does not include those only who are your children by birth. Every soul that has been brought to a knowledge of the truth by you, and has been born again, stand before the Lord, as your children. “They that be wise, shall shine as the brightness of the firmament, and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars forever and ever.”

“Ye are laborers together with God, ye are God’s husbandry; ye are God’s building.” It is God who is building character. The Spirit of God, the mighty cleaver of truth, has cut you out of the quarry of the world. How you are to be hewn and squared and fitted for the heavenly building. Each one will find a place in the workshop of God to be squared and polished, and fitted for his place. Everyone will be a living stone in that temple, emitting light. While such a work is going on for us, we will not mingle with the pleasures and worldliness of the (820) world. We will not be found in the dance hall, at the horse race, or taking part in lotteries. We will not be found anywhere where the name of God is [213] forgotten.

“Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God and of Jess our Lord.” As you work on the plan of addition, grace is given you for grace. You work in Christ’s lines to gather knowledge of Jesus Christ and the Father. As you bring one grace into our soul, the way is prepared for an additional grace. Thus one by one you gain the graces of the Spirit, until you have them all. There is no caste with God; whatever our color or nationality, however weak or rich or poor we may be, one God is our Father, and we can come to him and ask him for the things that we need. And according as his divine power hath given unto us all things, he will grant our petitions. We have no strength of ourselves to take one step toward God unless His grace is working upon our hearts and drawing us to Him. But as soon as we take the first step toward His mercy, He advances toward us with His pardon and grace. He takes away the sins of the world, and imparts to us His righteousness.

(821) “And besides this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge.” Faith is of value only as it works by love and purifies the soul. Every faculty and power should be cultivated to know God and Jesus Christ whom He has sent; for we need a personal knowledge of God. We may think we understand something of the truth; but the revelation of truth is beyond anything that our finite minds can understand. We do not walk fast enough. We take too many back steps.—a step heavenward, and then a step back into the world and its gratifications. Therefore the light that would come to us in glorious rays is held back; we are not prepared to receive it. “If we follow on to know the Lord, we shall know his goings forth are prepared as the morning.” You know how the morning light first breaks upon us dimly, then increases gradually until the king of the day marches forth in the heavens in all his glory and beauty. It is thus, if we follow on to know the Lord, we shall know his goings forth are prepared as the morning. We will learn more and more of God and heaven, become better acquainted with the precious truth, and receive the richest blessings that God can bestow. The divine nature of which we have partaken (822) as we follow on to know the Lord, works out the corruption that is in our nature; we hold Christ and talk of him, and are changed into the same image.

God grant that those who are within the hearing of my voice today will begin to climb the ladder round by round. The base is resting upon the earth; the topmost round reaches to heaven; God stands above it, and the glory of God in its brightest rays is shed upon every round. The ladder is Christ Jesus who is bridging the gulf that separates earth from heaven. Hold fast to Christ; never let go your hold. Look constantly heavenward as you climb. When you finally step off the last round you will find that “an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.” [214]

“As I Have Loved You.”

Talk given at Ashefield camp, Sabbath morning,
November 10, 1894

(823) I had risen one night to write to one very dear to me, and the Spirit and power of God came upon me as I wrote. I realized that God has a deep interest in every one of his children. He is very near to those who are struggling to maintain their faith and confidence in God. The church militant is not the church triumphant. Each one of us is bound by the most solemn obligations of responsibility and accountability to live up to the light that is shining from the cross of Calvary.

God wants us to stand as brave soldiers of Jesus Christ. We are so apt to learn upon others; and in the future our great danger will be in trusting in man and not in God. God wants us to show to those about us that there is power in God to hold us. He will cut away the tendrils that twine about the rubbish of earth and around human beings who can be no help to us, and leave us to entwine only about Him. Fastened to God, they (824) can never be cut away. In times of perplexity we have looked to men whom we have supposed possessed wisdom. The Lord invites us to take all our difficulties and our interests large and small, to Him. He wants us to have the strength which comes directly from Him, and He is ready to impart it to us, is we will believe.

It is not because there is no God in Israel that we go to the God of Akron to inquire. The cross of Christ speaks to us of a living Saviour, an advocate. Whatever their profession, we are to look to no human agent for inspiration. When we are in trouble we need go to not go to finite beings like ourselves. Satan loves to have us do this; for then other minds ponder on our dark experiences, and wonder what they mean. There is no grace in the dismal story you are telling to your brethren and sisters. Go to them with the story of Christ and his grace and righteousness, and tell them how precious He is to you. When you have given the grace of God as far as you can to others you will receive more grace.

The Lord wants us to hide in Jesus Christ. If our life is hid with Christ in God, we shall have power with God. (825) “If any man lack wisdom,” he says, “Let him ask of God.” He is not directed to go to those who are disloyal to God, and try to get light from them. “If any man lack wisdom, let his ask of God which giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.”

We should always stand in an attitude of love and respect and tenderness toward our brethren and sisters; for we do not know their temptations. I have been shown that for years God could not let his richest blessings come upon his people because of their unbelief, their fault-finding, their evil thinking and evil speaking. From the light I have received, I know there is not that respect and courtesy and tenderness that should exist among those who profess belief in the most solemn message ever given to our world. We should watch one another; but not to criticize them, or to make them offenders for a word, not to find something in their labors to suspect and distrust. Some have educated themselves in this school. They have all their lives been receiving an education in these objectionable lines, until a state of suspicion and distrust has become chronic with them. They have no confidence in their brethren, and their course of (826) action is such that their brethren can have no confidence in them. Confidence is a mutual thing. You show honor and respect to a brother, and his spirit leaps forth to show honor [215] and respect to you. It is a heaven born principle. God wants this principle to abide in our hearts and be cherished there.

Love is a tender plant, that must be cherished and cultivated. The roots of bitterness must be plucked up from around it, in order for it to thrive. Then it will bring under its influence all the powers of heart and mind and soul. We shall love God supremely, and our neighbor as ourselves. This commandment is kept by but one in a thousand. We profess to be commandment-keepers, but in showing so little love for our brethren, by our suspicion and distrust, we break the commandments of God nearly every day of our lives. The Lord wants us to “love as brethren; be pitiful, be courteous” and the richest blessings of God will come to us.

To the angel of the church at Ephesus John was commanded to write, “These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in His hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks. I know thy works, and thy labor, and thy patience, and (827) how thou canst not bear them which are evil; and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not; and hast found them liars; and hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name’s sake hast labored and hast not fainted.” With such a commendation as this, we might think there is nothing wrong with this people, that they are perfect. “Nevertheless,” he continues, “I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast lost thy first love. Remember then from whence thou hast fallen, and repent, and do their first works, or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.”

God wants us to wake up on these points. Christ has revealed himself to us in the richness of his goodness and mercy and compassion. In decided lines he has represented the character of God as he proclaimed it to Moses on Mt. Sinai: “The Lord the Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty.” The very love that Christ revealed as the character of God was to be imparted to the children of God, and (828) revealed in their lives, and in this way the children of God were to be a constant revelation of God to the world. “Remember then from whence thou hast fallen,” God says, “and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, expect thou repent.”

Can you not understand the measure of light and grace and power and glory that God is waiting to pour upon his people, if they will love him supremely and their neighbor as themselves. The first four precepts of the Decalogue reveal man’s duty to God, the last six cover the duty of man to his fellow man; and all are comprehended in the words of Christ. Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy souls, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbor as thyself.” God wants to circulate through our ranks a love that we have scarcely dreamed of yet. We must have that love, or our candlestick will be removed, and our light quenched.

The candlesticks represent the churches. Christ is walking among the candlesticks, seeking to imbue his people with this love. All have work to do through God, and this is to love one another. Let us read what the word says about this love; (829) for we need to know a great deal more about it than we now know “A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another: as I have loved you, that ye also love another.” How much? “As I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one for [216] another.”

God designed that we should experience this love every day of our lives. Let us not hide it. Let us not bottle it up, and after some of us are dead, break the bottle, and let some of the fragrance out. It is while our brethren and sisters are living, that we need to bring all the brightness and tenderness and sweetness and grace of Christ into our lives, that their lives may be blessed. “By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples.” They will know that communication is open between God and the soul of the human agent.

It behooves those who deal with human minds, who become messengers to give the word of the Lord to the people, to pray for tact and ingenuity to know how to deal with human minds. This is the nicest work that was ever committed to mortal man and as he stands as the messengers, angels will stand by his (830) Satan rejoices when he can make those in responsible positions swerve from the right. He makes a point of their error to lead others into unbelief. “Here is your representative man,” he says, “the one you trust. You can see how far he believes in God, and follows the example of Christ.”

God has power for us. Since I have been present at this meeting, God has revealed to me in the night season what great power he will manifest in our labors if we will obey his commands. But we do not obey them. We have not loved God supremely, and our neighbor as ourselves. God wants every one of us to turn over a new leaf, and if we will do it, he will enable us to strengthen one another. No sharp or cutting word must be spoken. Everything of such a nature must be battened down as it were by the Holy Spirit of God, the grace of Christ. The true believer will carry wherever he goes the fragrance of Christ. This may be unexplainable to unbelievers; but they cannot fail to it is there.

If on the other hand, you educate yourselves to dissect the character of this brother and that sister, and see only their faults and mistakes, you are nothing less than cannibals. You (831) are feeding on the characteristics that you think so detestable. When some servant of God is sent with a message to the people, many feel at liberty to reject the message because of some word of unbelief that has been spoken. They feel too independent to receive the words that they should accept in a spirit of tenderness and love. Then when a discourse is given, they say, “There, why did he say that?” “Why did he do thus?” and instead of gathering the precious light that God sent in that discourse, you pick up some trivial word of mannerism for criticism, and thus destroy all the impression of good you might have received. When you follow such a course, angels of God turn away from you in sorrow. They would have made that word precious to you.

When the Samaritans refused to receive Christ, and John, anxious to avenge the insult offered to his Master, said, “Wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven to consume them?” Jesus answered, “Ye know not what spirit ye are of.” The son of man is not come to destroy men’s life but to save them.” Every soul who believes in God is precious to the heart of Christ. A wrong done to me of these in words or action or deportment, (832) God charges as done to him. He identifies himself with suffering humanity. If we will unite our heart with the heart of Christ we shall have the spirit of Christ. Every branch in the Vine may become fruitful by drawing sap and nourishment. But if you go into cannibalism, seeking to tear in pieces and devour character, you will be destroyed in the same way.

The counsel of God and the inspiration of the Spirit is not recognized and followed by those who profess to believe; and for this reason God cannot give the full measure of his grace. It would do us no [217] good; for we would not recognize God as the source of it. We would exalt ourselves, and think we were the ones to be honored for the possession of the grace. God does not wish us to feel this way. We are all branches of the Vine; we partake of its nourishment; we are to reveal the same life that is in the vine. Wherever we go we are to speak to his glory and tell of his power, and daily be growing up into Christ our living head. By beholding we shall be changed into the same image.

Here is a little cluster of people, the few who believe the truth in our world. Shall we with these form a hollow (833) square turn the weapons of our warfare upon those who are vessels of God to bear the truth and his message? God forbid. Let us turn our weapons against our might foe. We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.”

To those who rightly represent him the Saviour says, “My joy shall remain in you, and your joy shall be full. Then he further says, “Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples. As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you, continue ye in my love. These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and your joy should be full.” Think of it. Our joy will be full. And why should it not be? We stand here as representatives of God, entrusted with a message; upon us is laid the responsibility of giving to the world light that is to shine amid its moral darkness. Let no soul intercept that light. Stand out of the way, and let God’s light shine to the world. “This is my commandment that ye love one another, as I have loved you. Greater love hath no man than this that a man lay down his life for his friends. Ye are my friends, (834) if ye do whatsoever I command you.”

God help us to be Bible readers and Bible doers. When we come into the light, and get out of our hearts all feelings of distrust and jealousy, of evil surmising and evil speaking, their place will be taken by the love of Christ, a love that will never die, but will be as far-reaching as eternity. If any of you have educated yourselves in the school of jealousy and evil-surmising and fault-finding, come now into Christ’s school. “Come,” He says, “Learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart. My yoke is easy, and my burden is light. The meekness and lowliness of Christ make His yoke easy.

Brethren and sisters, let us work together. Wherever you are, it will take a tremendous effort to present the truth; you will have the force of darkness to meet, and to meet them successfully there must be perfect union in word and deed. We must strengthen and build up one another in the most holy faith. Let us love as God loves. When we do this, blessing will flow into our souls that we have never before experienced. We have never felt inclined to act as Christians, to love our brethren as God loves us. He gave his life for them. When we (835) love God truly, we shall love the purchase of his blood.

God wants us to have strength; Satan desires that we shall be weak and powerless, and so he tries to upbraid the cords by which God has bound us together. And the silver chain that has bound us to one another and to God has become like a rope of sand. God wants us to have that love that loves with Jesus. There is no distrust in that love. We cannot estimate it; it surpasses our knowledge.

God help us to work for the eternal world. I want the spirit of Christ in my heart every moment. Since I have seen how much heaven has for us, I have seen the danger of going to any outside power. We must reach up, and ask God for wisdom, and trust in him. God will give us wisdom if we will ask for it. God help us that we may be fitted for the [218] heavenly family. [219]

Experiences in Australia, 1895-1899

[220]

Lt 20, 1895
Granville, New South Wales, Australia
September 13, 1895
Elder [J. O.]Corliss:

We have not an High Priest that cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmity, but one who was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. His sympathy and tender compassion is not lost in His Godhead. He condescended to take human nature that He might be a surety, a substitute for man, in order to redeem him from sin and the power of Satan. His humanity is not lost in His divinity. On earth He manifested His deep sympathy with human woe, He poured out His tender regard for humanity in precious currents of sympathy, of the most wonderful heaven-born love. This was not restricted to those whom He recognized as His believing friends and disciples. He drew to His side those who knew Him not, as in the case of healing the man born blind. The man knew not who had performed the gracious work upon him, until Jesus revealed Himself to him as the Son of God, and received worship from him.

Jesus says, “I know my sheep.” Let us consider this statement. We are known by God before we receive Him. “I know my sheep.” How do souls become Christ’s sheep? By choosing to receive him. But Christ had first chosen them. He knew every one who would respond to His drawing, and He knew every one who would be inclined to receive Him, but who, through popular influences, would turn from Him. John says to all, “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” Those who heard the voice and did behold Jesus as the Lamb of God, believed in Him and became His property from their own choice. But they were not the first to see, for God chose them, and their choosing of Christ is in response to His drawing.

The love of Jesus was expressed to us before we loved Him. His grace touched the hearts that contemplated the love of God. We become the property of Christ because God gave His only begotten Son to humiliation and shame and reproach for our sake, to bear our sins, to suffer in our stead. The whole human family are made over to Christ. “As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him. And this is life eternal, that they might know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou has sent.” [221] All may obtain this education if they will. Jesus says, “I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word, . . . And all mine are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them.” What a statement is this! “I am glorified in them.” This can be true of any soul only as he in sincerity becomes not merely a hearer but a doer of the Word of Christ. In Matthew these are likened to a wise man, “which built his house upon a rock: and the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.”

Jesus says, “Behold, I and the children whom thou hast given me.” To Jesus the whole human family is entrusted, as the flocks of sheep are entrusted to a shepherd. These sheep and lambs are to be tended with pastoral care. They will be guarded by the faithful Chief Shepherd, under the care of faithful under shepherd, and if they will obey the voice of the Chief Shepherd, they will not be left to be devoured by wolves. We are Christ’s by creation, and by the giving of His life for the sheep.

“Ye are not your own; for ye are bought with a price.” And what a price! Not with gold or silver, but with the precious blood of Christ. “Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as gold and silver, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you, who by him do believe in God, that raised him from the dead, and gave him glory, that your faith and hope might be in God.

We must through faith accept the truth as it is in Jesus. The Bible election is plainly stated in the Word of God. “If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love.” “If ye love me, keep my commandments.” “He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoso keepeth his words, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him.” “And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the spirit which he hath given us.” (See Revelation 22:12 21.)

Jesus says, “My sheep know my voice, and they follow me.” The shepherd of Israel does not drive His flock, but He leads them. His attitude is wholly one of invitation. “My sheep know my voice.” If we are indeed sons and daughters of God, we not only hear, but recognize, the voice above all others; we appreciate the words of Christ, we distinguish the truth as it is in Jesus from all error, and the truth refreshes the soul and fills it with gladness. The truth received into the heart transforms the character. Christ is the Truth and the Life, and all who follow Him practice the truth. We obey the Word.

When questioners came to Christ He referred them to the Scriptures, saying, “Have ye not read?” To the lawyer He said, “What is written in the law? how readest thou?” He could have answered every question from His own infinite wisdom, but He met objections and queries as the human agent must meet them, from the written Word. He wants every advocate of truth to follow His example in this respect. Never meet railings and falsehoods and bitter accusings with the words of man’s wisdom. The [222] Lord’s workers are never to make charges, never to make thrusts at opponents, but have the mind well stored with Scripture, and be able to draw the sword of truth, a “Thus saith the Lord.” (See Matt. 12:34 37.) [223] Follow the plain Bible teachings if you would follow Jesus. Souls cost too much to be imperiled by following the words of men. We cannot safely accept any man’s decision in matters that involve eternal interests unless he can open the Scriptures and present his authority as from Him who is the Truth. Obey the words of Christ by searching the Scriptures, and through diligent study have the Word of God stored in your memory, so that in any emergency you can say earnestly, solemnly, “It is written.” Jesus says, “Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst, but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.” And He declared to the multitude at the Feast of Tabernacles, “He that believeth on me, as the Scripture hath said, Out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.” As the Word of God is received into the heart, it transforms character and life. Then the influence that flows from the believer is the influence of the Word of God, a positive life-giving power.

The devils rejoice when schemes of wickedness appear to be crowned with success. The Lord would have every advocate of truth pass by all the words and actions of our enemy as if unnoticed. The words may be such as would cut to the very soul and arouse the worst passions of the human heart, but we are to be as those who hear not. God’s servants should not be betrayed into using Satan’s methods. They are to fix their eyes upon the loveliness of Jesus. Common sense, sanctified, will meet the enemy only on Christ’s ground. He who stands with Christ is with the majority, for Christ is always a majority. He has the whole angelic host under His generalship, and can command the armies of heaven.

Are we followers of Christ? Have we taken upon us His yoke? Are we lifting His burdens? Do we possess His meekness and lowliness, and is His likeness becoming more and more distinct in our characters? If we are followers of Christ, He, the Great Shepherd of the sheep, hath said, “I give unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.” This promise is made upon conditions that we follow not a stranger, but that we know and understand the voice of Christ. This is the only election brought to view in God’s Word. The beautiful illustration in Revelation 7 is a pastoral symbol.

The question was asked of John as he beheld the grand scenes of his vision, “What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they? John replied, “Sir, thou knowest.” And the Holy One said, “These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them. They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.” [224]

Lt 21, 1895
Granville, New South Wales, Australia
September 13, 1895
[J. O. Corliss:]

There must certainly be a change in our ministers. In heart and character there must be more of Christ and less of self. We are to be representatives of our Lord. Those who have had great light and precious opportunities are accountable to God, who has given to every man his work. They are never to betray the sacred trust, but are to be indeed the light of the world.

“Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” Here is language that expresses His mind toward a corrupt and idolatrous people: “How shall I give thee up, Ephraim? how shall I deliver thee, Israel? how shall I make thee as Admah? how shall I set thee as Zeboim? Mine heart is turned in me, my repentings are kindled together.” Must He give up the people for whom such a provision had been made, even His only begotten Son, the express image of Himself? God permitted His Son to be delivered up for our offenses. He Himself assumes toward the Sin Bearer the character of a judge, divesting Himself of the endearing qualities of a father.

Herein His love commends itself in the most marvelous manner to the rebellious race. What a sight for angels to behold! What a hope for man, “that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” The just suffered for the unjust; He bore our sins in His own body on the tree. “He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?”

As witnesses chosen of God, do we value Christ’s purchased possession? Are we ready to make any and every sacrifice within our power, to place ourselves under Christ’s yoke, to co-operate with Him, [and] to be laborers together with God. All who are bearing the test of God, obeying His commandments, love the perishing human race as Christ loved them. They follow the example of Christ in most earnest, self-sacrificing labor, to seek out in the highways and hedges the high and the low, the rich and the poor, and to bear to all the message that they are the objects of Christ’s special love and guardian care.

So great is the natural blindness and ignorance of men in regard to God and to the Saviour that every one who loves Jesus may find work to do. Not one who has true love for Christ will remain indifferent and indolent. There is a marked difference between the character and life of those who are obedient to all the commandments of God, and of those who are disobedient. Many who profess to be commandment keepers are commandment breakers. [225] Parents have not restrained the selfishness of their children. Self-indulgence has been the object of pursuit. Through self-serving, multitudes are bound in servitude to Satan. They are the slaves of their own impulses and passions, which are under the control of the wicked one. In calling them to His service, God offers them freedom. Obedience to God is liberty from the thralldom of sin, deliverance from human passion and impulse.

But we have to meet and contend with men who employ all their power in opposing and slandering those who are loyal to God. Their wit and their God-given reason are devoted to making it appear that obedience to the commandments of God is an irksome service. But those who advocate the claims of the law of God testify, “Great peace have they that love thy law, and nothing shall offend them.” “The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul.” The Lord presents truth in contrast with error, and presents also the sure result of accepting truth, the experience that always follows willing obedience. It is peace and rest.

The work before the servants of God is to present Jesus. The work for the ministers of Christ is to hang their helpless souls upon His merit. Men who turn away from the path of obedience and make transgression of the law of God a virtue are under the inspiration of the arch-deceiver. They are blinded by his power. They need to have before them a representation of what the truth can do in enabling men to preserve a Christlike temper when provoked and tempted to become impetuous and impatient. The enemies of the truth want to provoke those who teach the binding claims of the law of God. If there is retaliation on our part, Satan’s hosts triumph. He has found a weak place in the armor. By their mean course of action, in bitterest opposition, these agents of Satan tempt the advocates of truth to say and do things that will not be commendable.

Christlike meekness, fine perceptions, nobility of soul, are to be cherished and practiced by the believers in truth. The spirit of truth and righteousness is to control our deportment, our words, and our pens. “The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them because they are spiritually discerned.” If the minister when before his congregation, sees a disbelieving smile upon the faces of opponents, let him be as one who sees not. If any should be so impolite as to laugh and sneer, let not the minister, by voice [or] attitude, reflect the same spirit. Show that you handle no such weapons. The pen so often traces words that are sharp, and by repeating the statements of the advocates of error, our brethren sometimes give currency to the error. This is a mistake. Let your pen trace advanced truth.

The Holy Spirit does not work with men who love to be sharp and critical. The spirit has been cherished in meeting debaters, and some have formed the habit of squaring for a combat. They repeat the errors that their opponents have presented, and endeavored to refute them. God is dishonored in this. Keep back the sharp thrusts; do not learn in Satan’s school his methods of warfare. The enemy is best discomfited when no notice is taken of the errors, when truth is advanced which will make these errors of none effect. The Holy Spirit does not inspire the words of censure and condemnation. A time of trouble is before us, such as never was since the beginning of nations, and every honest soul who has not had the light of truth will then take a stand for Christ. Those who believe the truth are to be newly converted to the Master’s use every [226] day. Then they will be vessels unto honor. [227] Do not repeat the words of your opponents, or enter into controversy with them. You meet not merely the man, but Satan and his angels. Christ did not bring against Satan a railing accusation concerning the body of Moses. If the world’s Redeemer, who understood the crooked, deceptive arts of Satan, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but in holiness and humility said, “The Lord rebuke thee, O Satan,” is it not wise for His servants to follow His example? Will finite human beings take a course that Christ shunned because it would afford Satan occasion to pervert, misrepresent, and falsify the truth?

In this period of the world’s history we have altogether too great a work to begin a new kind of warfare, aside from Christ’s methods, in meeting the supernatural power of satanic agencies. We must put aside personalities, however we may be tempted to take advantage of words or actions. In patience we must possess our souls. Brethren, make it manifest that you are wholly on the Lord’s side. Let the truth of God’s Holy Word reveal transgression and sin and manifest the sanctifying power of truth upon human hearts. A haughty spirit must not come in to mar the work of God’s ministers. We have reason for gratitude to God every moment that we have the privilege of connecting with God. Success in preaching Christ, our crucified and risen Saviour, who ascended to heaven as our Advocate, is the proof of our calling, the practical argument to weaken error.

There is need of contrition of soul every day, and the Lord declares the great advantage of every one who will humble his heart and hide in Jesus. “Thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.” “To this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word.” “The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart, and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.” “This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles.” “The angel of the Lord encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them.”

Let those who hate the law of the Lord rave and pour out their anathemas against such as have moral courage to receive and live the truth. Let them manifest the mob spirit, but take no notice of them. The Lord is our strength. It is safe for us not to build up self, but to let the Lord work His will in and by and through us. Let us preserve a contrite, humble spirit, which the Lord will revive.

Self-esteem and self-flattery will be sure to stir up in the heart resentment against any who venture to question one’s course of action. Everything like counsel or advice is resented with indignation as a design to bruise and wound. This spirit cherished by those who preach the truth will lead to numerous evils. None will venture to tell you when you err, because the faithful one would be regarded as an enemy, seeking to hurt your influence. Thus the kindness and faithfulness that should exist between brethren in the faith is killed because of the jealous interpretation put upon the God-fearing cautions given. Undue stress is laid upon words, imagination exaggerates the matter and creates alienation. In matters where eternal interest are involved, we are to be subject one to another, ready to take advise and counsel. [228] We must not suffer wrong upon a brother. Self-sufficiency must be overcome, for we are all alike dependent upon God. Love of all applause must be seen as a snare. There is always danger of making grave blunders through conceit of our own wisdom and qualifications. Let these qualifications reveal their true value, and they will be appreciated, because Christ will be revealed in word and action.

I am urged by the Spirit of God to counsel my brethren to unite with one another in labor. Love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous, be true as steel to one another, but crush that feeling of superiority over your brother ministers which leads one to feel that he cannot link up with others in labor, because they do not in his line. God would have no one submerge his individuality in another man.

No one man should feel that he must do the whole work. However well-experienced or well-qualified he may be, there is need of other talent to unite with his. It is a mistake to think that one man’s train of thought will accomplish the work for all hearts in a religious effort. Men of different minds are needed, men whose hearts are tenderly led out to win souls. It is a delusion to think that one man can take all the labor and do the work alone. God has not made this the rule. Different methods of labor are really essential in sowing the seeds of truth and gathering in the harvest. It is often the case that men of the humblest ability will reach hearts that have been sealed against another man’s labors who may have presented the truth with supposed greater ability. Much praying is essential. The soul’s drawing nigh to God in communion, God’s drawing nigh to the soul that is seeking him, can alone do the work that is needed.

There needs to be greater devotion of heart and life in the service of God. More love and unity is needed, more blending of the talents which the providence of God has provided. Much is lost in religious effort when one minister thinks himself capable of managing the meetings, of holding everything in his own hands, when he makes very little effort to share the work and responsibilities with his brethren. The Lord has His own instrumentalities through which to work for the saving of souls; and among these instrumentalities there should be free, hearty unity of action.

If ministers will link up together, hiding self in Christ Jesus and go forward unitedly, not feeling that one man must do almost all the thinking, God will let His Holy Spirit sustain them in their labor. Let their hearts be connected together in free, open companionship; let them esteem each other as brethren; and God will put His seal upon their apostleship by giving them success in winning souls to Christ. [229]

Lt 18, 1895
Granville, N.S.W., Australia
September 13, 1895
Elder J. O. Corliss
Stanmore, Sydney, Australia
Dear Brother:

The Lord has not forsaken you, but you have not committed the keeping of your soul to God and waited patiently for Him. You have taken upon yourself burdens that should have been shared with your brother ministers. God has not required you to do this. Your human strength cannot endure so great a strain. The Lord has sent you counsel and warnings which, had you heeded them, would have saved you from your worn condition.

The Lord is not unjust to forget your labors of love, but you have mingled with your offerings strange fire, which God has forbidden you and every one of His workers to use. God is dishonored, the truth is brought into disrepute, the work of God is misjudged and reproached, because you have acted in your own unsanctified way, and not in God’s way. The honor of God, the salvation of souls, requires that you deny self, and restrain the uprising [of] passion; but in your unholy zeal you break both tables of the law. You have furnished arguments against the truth in unadvised speech and actions.

Your work is in Christ’s stead, to beseech men to be reconciled to God. You stand as His messenger, as a steward of the mysteries of God; and when your spirit does not reveal a calm, holy trust in God, stop just where you are, lest you speak unadvisedly.

Never in a single instance let your impetuous spirit triumph. Wherever you may go, in any place, in any country, self must die daily, and Christ must live and be revealed in you, else you dishonor God and the truth. Wherever you may go, you are under God’s jurisdiction; in all places and under all circumstances your liberty is to be exercised in strict accordance to the law of God.

All the stewards of God have a divine commission to preach Christ and Him crucified. You are not to speak from human impulse, but from the Spirit of Christ working in you to do God’s will and His pleasure. Amid the cloud of witnesses you are to be as one who has a message, weighty and important, to impart to sinners in the name of the Lord. God Himself marks the work of His servants. He gives no man authority to stir up the evil spirits that are waiting for an opportunity to accuse the people of God. We are not to give men an excuse for depreciating the truth. [230] The Lord God is exact and infallible in His comprehension. He understands the working of the human mind, the active principles of the human agents He has formed, just how they will be moved upon by the objects that come before them, and in what manner they will act under every temptation that can try them and in every circumstance in which they are placed. “The ways of man are before the Lord, and he pondereth all his goings.” “The eyes of the Lord are in every place.” “He looketh to the ends of the earth, and seeth under the whole heavens.” “The Lord searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts.” He knows the things that come into our minds, every one of them. “Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight; but all things are naked and open unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do.”

The messenger of God looked at a writing in your hand, and spoke these words, “You will not care to immortalize these things, for they are not true.” God pities the poor, self-deceived souls who are trampling upon His truth. Let the wheat and the tares grow together until the harvest. Pity and deplore the blindness of the minds that are under the dominion of Satan, but restrain your own wrath and passion, and do not pass your judgment upon them. Leave in God’s hands the despisers of His truth. The right and liberty of passing judgment upon others is not given you. It was not given to Moses to pronounce judgment against rebellious Israel. The glaring weakness of His agents, as displayed by Moses, will bring its reward.

Those who reject and despise the truth of God are inspired from beneath. The Lord does not call His people to go into their assemblies, for the evil angels are present to excite unhappy feelings, to stir up the passions of human nature, to take advantage of the rising of self; and evil angels triumph. You have reviled the revilers, and have given occasion for those who are controlled by Satan to point to you as unsanctified and unholy.

Let no untruth go forth traced by your pen. The harm you have done to your own soul, and the dishonor to God, should go no farther. God’s workmen must continue to bear the blame of being troublers of Israel, but they are not at liberty to make such assertions true. Go not into the assembly of scoffers, sit not in the seat of the scorners, keep away from the gatherings of those who will make your presence an occasion to speak to you humiliating things, and will pour contempt upon your faith. Have no controversy with these men. You have not to do with the men only, but with Satan and his synagogue. When compelled to meet them, remember the Saviour’s words, “I send you forth as lambs among wolves.” The Lord must be your dependence; He will clothe you with a divine panoply, and His Holy Spirit will influence your mind and heart so that your voice shall not catch the notes of the baying of the wolves.

We are never to forget that we are representatives of Christ. We are to use no carnal weapons when unbelieving and deluded souls come among us. We are not even to insinuate anything against those who shall come into our assemblies. Not an unkind or discourteous word, defensive or offensive, should escape our lips or be traced by our pen. When reviled, we are not to revile again. “This is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.” [231] Your words are not always wise. When you allow your own spirit to have sway, you lose the Spirit of God, and then it is that the strange fire is offered. Your imagination is deceptive, you arrive at false conclusions, and things appear to you in a perverted light. Your imagination is wrought upon by satanic agencies. Be careful not to trace a word of your suppositions, to be immortalized.

True faith and repose in God are always accompanied by the illuminations of the Holy Spirit, whose temple we are. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Christ, it is His representative. Here is the divine agency that carries conviction to hearts. When the power of His spirit is revealed through the servants of God, we behold divinity flashing through humanity. When accompanied by the Holy Spirit, the presentation of truth as it is in Jesus will be of more value than all the honor or glory of the world.

Let the unction from the Holy One pervade your whole being, and you will bear the impress of Christ. This is an armor that is proof against all the arrows of Satan. The safety of the messengers of truth is found in their possession of the meekness and lowliness of Christ. Jesus said, “In this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you; but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven.” The price of our high calling should be kept continually before us. As we look unto Jesus, self will sink into insignificance.

Let the messengers of God live the truth, and then—and then only—will they be epistles of Christ, known and read of all men. What kind of epistles did you, by your attitude and words, open before the revilers of truth? You gave the enemies advantage which they will claim as justifying all the falsehoods they have told. Your strange fire will dishonor your Maker. Your imaginary pictures were the presentation made to a tempted mind. Your forebodings were not correct. You must not exaggerate the enemy’s power. By providential experience you are to learn your own weakness, and not trust to yourself for one moment. Christ is our sufficiency. God would not have you exalt deceptive human judgment and human passion, which flashes forth from a highly wrought up spirit.

The providence of God places man in unexpected positions to reveal his own weakness, to make it manifest that his power is in God alone. At the time when a soul is bearing weighty responsibilities, God tests the human agent. If his faith is not wholly centered in God, the little strength he himself possesses becomes exhausted, and impatience and railing reveal the fact that he needs to set his feet upon the solid rock. Every soul engaged in the Lord’s work, who becomes spiritually proud, flattering himself that he has made great proficiency above his brethren, will be left to learn the truth of the case. All boasting is laid in the dust.

The lesson we have to learn is, that which John the Baptist had learned, “He must increase, but I must decrease.” Such discipline is painful to human nature, “nevertheless afterwards it yieldeth the peaceable fruits of righteousness.” “Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savor, wherewith shall it be salted? It is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.” It is the dragon that is wroth; it is the spirit of Satan that is revealed in anger and accusing. Not a semblance of the dragon’s spirit must be seen in the life or the character of Christ’s servants. The testimony you bear is to be a testimony to the truth as it is in Jesus. [232] God’s servants, who have had great light and blessing from Him, are not to be like a blast of hail, to beat down and destroy. The salt that is to save from corruption is the confession of the truth, the revelation of the love of Christ. The magnifying of the law of Jehovah is not accomplished by breaking its principles. God cannot manifest His power to exalt the human agent; it is truth that is to bear away the victory. And Christ’s ambassadors must learn the lesson that sharp speeches and word thrusts bring no victory.

God would have His messengers, when they know the spirit of their opponents, keep on their own ground, and not go out of the way to learn what their opponents say of the truth. Satan inspires them when you come into their presence. Never say or do anything that would keep them away from your assemblies. Keep to your legitimate work. “The secret of the Lord is with them that fear him, and he will show them his covenant.” “The Lord sitteth upon the floods, yea, the Lord sitteth king forever. The Lord will give strength unto his people: the Lord will bless his people with peace.” “No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn.” “This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord.” “If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come and make our abode with him.”

The Lord has declared that He will never leave thee nor forsake thee. When He revealed His character to Moses, He “passed by before him, and proclaimed, The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth. Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty.” “His eyes behold, his eyelids try the children of men.” “The Lord is a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed.” “I the Lord search the hearts, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings.”

The Lord has given simple, plain warnings to those who flatter themselves that He is not exact to punish the wrongdoers who live in daily transgression of His law. But His Word is sure and steadfast. “God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.” “He hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness.” “We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that every one may receive the things done in his body according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.” [233]

The Avondale Church Building.

(220) The building of a church in Avondale brought another test of faith and loyalty. For two years we had held our meetings in a loft above the sawmill, in which the school furniture was stored. In winter this was a cold, uncomfortable place, and in summer the heat of the sun beating down on the iron roof made the air very oppressive. There was nothing about the place to suggest the thought of sacredness, and we greatly needed another place where we could meet for the worship of God. I am sad when I think that I should have consented to meet in such a place for worship, that I neglected until the last the work that should have been done first. In the future in every place where I shall labor, I will make the spiritual necessities rather than the temporal of the first importance. The dearth of means was my excuse; but I should have walked by faith. I did not honor God as I should have done had I moved out in faith (221) notwithstanding seeming impossibilities. The Lord proves us, He tests us to see if we will make Him our trust. When he sees that we trust Him implicitly, He works in our behalf, and we see the salvation of God.

When the second school building was completed, we held our meetings in a room in the upper story. This was a great improvement, though the room could not be ventilated without opening windows, and exposing someone to the risk of taking cold, and the chairs and desks were so arranged that the people could not kneel in worship. It was only enclosed, unceiled, and unplastered. We were not long allowed to occupy this room. The attendance at the school increased so that this room was needed to furnish accommodation for the students. We saw that we must now move out and build a meeting house in Avondale.

On Sabbath, August 18, 1897, Elders Daniells and Baker came to Cooranbong to counsel in regard to the building of our church, and the erection of the main school building. On Sabbath Elder Daniells gave an excellent address; the meeting room was filled with interested listeners. When the matter was laid before the brethren, they almost unanimously decided to (222) follow the counsel of the Lord.

We had a council to consider what should be done. The way seemed hedged with difficulties. One hundred pounds was all we had in hand. Some said: “Enclose a small building, and when money shall come in, enlarge; for we cannot possibly complete at this time such a house as we desire.” Others said, “Wait until we have money with which to build a commodious house.” This we thought to do.

I was requested to visit the spot which the brethren said had been chosen for the church building. It stood in the midst of uncleared bush, and a large amount of labor would be required to prepare it for building. It was low land, and nearer the swamp than I would have chosen. This, the brethren said was the piece of land that Brn. Rousseau and W.C. White had selected. I asked them to look at another spot. This was a beautiful part of the land, forming a gentle rise, at a little distance from the main road. I distinctly remembered seeming this place when we visited the estate in 1894, with ideas of purchasing it. At that time we W.C.W. and myself had selected this as a most desirable site for the church building. It was not (223) thickly timbered; only a few large trees would need to be taken out, and the land would be ready for the building. As we looked over this piece of land now, all were impressed that this was the place on which to erect our meeting house.

We thought that we need not move hastily; we could wait until W.C. White returned from America, which would be in two or three months. I [234] returned to “Sunnyside,” and retired to rest early.

That night I was aroused at an early hour. Matters were brought before me in the night season. I was bidden to give to the people the words of the prophet Haggai: “Thus speaketh the Lord of Hosts, saying, This people say the time is not come, the time that the Lord’s house should be built. Then came the word of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Is it time for you, O ye, to dwell in your ceiled houses, and this house lie waste? Now therefore, thus saith the Lord of Hosts; Consider your ways. . . . Go up to the mountain, and bring wood, and build the house; and I will take pleasure in it, and I will be glorified, saith the Lord.”

(224) The question was asked: “Have you shown proper respect for the Master? Have you shown the eloquence of true politeness toward God? Shall His house be left as the last consideration? He is the One from whom all your blessings flow. Every good thing you have comes from God. Has not the Lord given light to his people on this subject? Have you not had a testimony to bear on this point? Why has this matter been left till the last, which should have been the very first work done on the school grounds? Those who occupy the room in the school building should have a place in which to meet and worship God. You cannot worship God correctly where you are. You cannot bow before him in a right attitude. Build a house for God without delay.”

The work would have been further advanced if, in the place of occupying the room above the mill, we had shown our respect for God, and our appreciation of his holiness, by building a house of worship. When Abraham was sojourning in his own country, the Lord told him that he must leave his kindred, and go into a strange land. Wherever Abraham pitched his tent, his first work was to build an altar to God, where he could worship God with those who accompanied him as pilgrims and (225) strangers. The Lord would have wrought for us if we had shown our faith by our works, if we had considered the greatness and glory of our God, and our obligations to Him. This would have testified to the character of our work as nothing else could have done.

Again I was instructed that our place of worship should be easy of access, and that the best portion of the land should be selected for it. These words were spoken: “Bring to God no mean offering. Secure the most favorable site. Let all bring ability and tact into the work; for this house is to stand as a symbol of the respect due to God by his people, a mark of the politeness we should ever show to the Lord of heaven.”

We then decided that we would take hold of the work, and walk out by faith to make a beginning. The very next night there came from South Africa a draft for two hundred pounds. This was a gift from Brother and Sister Lindsay, of Cape Town, to help us in building the meeting house. Our faith had been tested, we had decided to begin the work, and now the Lord put into our hands this large gift with which to begin. This manifest blessing, coming after we had decided that we must build (226) filled our hearts with deepest gratitude to God, and to his servants whose hearts he had moved to do this. When I opened the letter and saw the draft, I realized the truth of the words; “If there be first a willing mind, it is accepted according to that a man hath, and not according to that he hath not. For I mean not that other men be eased, and ye burdened; but by an equality, that now at this time your abundance may be a supply for their want, that their abundance may be a supply for your want; that there may be equality. As it is written, He that had gathered much had nothing over; and he that gathered little had no lack.”

With this encouragement the work was began in earnest. The school [235] board gave the land and one hundred pounds. Two hundred pounds was received from the Union Conference, and the members of the church gave what they could. Friends outside of the church helped. Three were among us at this time skilled carpenters who could take hold of the work. These builders gave a part of their time, which was as good as money. Still others pledged labor, so that twelve or fourteen men began work on the frame of the building. The workers were cheerful and happy, and the angels (227) of God were with them. When difficulties arose, Elder Haskell, who was superintending the work, would call the workmen together and they would pray earnestly for God’s blessing upon themselves and the work. The Lord heard prayer, and the house was completed in seven weeks. Just before the close of the school term it was dedicated to God. Thus the work was completed, and we had this beautiful house, capable of seating four hundred people. We thank the Lord for this house in which to worship him. He understands all the straits through which we were brought.

To Brother and Sister Lindsay, we say now, as we said when the draft arrived: We thank you for helping us in the beginning by the gift of one thousand pounds for the purchase of our school land, and we thank you for again coming to our assistance. And we give honor and praise to Him who has committed to you this treasure, and that He put it into your hearts to respond to the necessities of His work in this place. And to our brethren and sisters in Cooranbong, who sacrificed and labored for the building of this house, we say, “And God is (228) able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work: as it is written, He hath dispersed abroad; he hath given to the poor: his righteousness remaineth forever.”

“He that hath my commandments and keepeth them,” said Jesus “he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him and will manifest myself unto him” Here faith and works are combined. The one who loves, obeys; the love of the heart shapes the conduct. When the Lord speaks to us, saying, “Go forward,” it is not for us to stand and talk of difficulties, but promptly to obey, knowing that God understands the nature of every difficulty. If those in his service will stop talking unbelief, and magnifying difficulties, and will move forward in humble obedience, God in his providence will cooperate with the efforts of finite man, and thus testify to the world of his omnipotence.

Thus God will encourage his faithful stewards, who are ready to put all their energies and God-given endowments to the very best use. As all learn the lesson of faithfully rendering (229) to God what is His due, He, through His providences, will enable some to bring princely offerings, as Sister Wessels and her children have done, laying upon the altar of God their offerings of Christian liberality. He will enable others to present smaller offerings: and the small offerings and the large are acceptable to Him, if given with an eye single to His glory. “Now he that ministereth seed to the sower, both minister bread for your food, and multiply your seed sown, and increase the fruits of your righteousness; being enriched in everything to all bountifulness, which causeth through us thanksgiving to God. For the ministration of this service not only supplieth the wants of the saints, but is abundant also by man thanksgivings to God.” [236]

The Stanmore Camp-Meeting

(230) Before the opening of the camp-meeting in Stanmore, instruction was given me in regard to the plans to be followed in preparing for this meeting. Elder Baker, who was laboring at that time in Sydney, received word to prepare the campground, and see that the coming meeting be well-advertised. Word was also given that Brn. Palmer and Michaels instruct canvassers and students to scatter our publications, and sell our papers throughout Sydney and its suburbs before the erection of the tents. The notice of the meeting was to be widespread.

Brother Baker consulted with the brethren in Cooranbong about the work. The night he tarried at the school, light came to me in regard to this matter. I was shown that this method of advertising our meeting would not be best. My mind was directed to the plans adopted when armies prepare for the battle. A wise general is careful to conceal his plans from the enemy, lest the enemy, learning his designs, work to counteract them. Again, I was led to consider the experience of the spies sent to search out the land. They were to go secretly, lest the forces of opposition should strengthen themselves against them for warfare, and make it much harder for them to go up and possess the land. (231) I saw that at this time it was best for us to be reticent, to keep our plans for the meeting to ourselves, to work silently and rapidly when the tents were being put up, and let the city of tents surprised the people. I saw that by advertising the meetings we would prepare the way for the ministers of the churches to arm themselves with their weapons of warfare, and by their falsehoods in their publications make the people bitter opponents of the truth. Our best method in this case was to come on the people as a surprise, and let them have an opportunity to hear for themselves before ministers of all denominations should rally their forces to misinterpret the work.

This instruction I gave to the brethren. “Wait,” I said; “when the time or camp-meeting comes, pitch the tents rapidly, and then give notice of the meetings. Whatever may have been your former practice, it is not necessary to repeat it again and again. God would have new and untried methods followed. Break in upon the people. Surprise them. Do not go to large expense to publish to Sydney what your purpose is. Let men stand still, while the strength of God advances. It is not best to make a display of what we are going to do; for just as soon as our intentions are made known, our enemies will be (232) roused to oppose us. Ministers will be called into the field to resist the message of truth. Warnings from the pulpit will be given to the congregation throughout Sydney.

Great wisdom should be used that no unadvised move be made, and satanic agencies stirred up to oppose, before the people shall have a chance to know what they are opposing. If the camp-meeting can be made to break in upon the community unexpectedly, the opposing element will not be aroused to hold the people in error and darkness. The warning must be given; let us give as little chance as possible for Satan to work. In many cases large advertising and distribution of publications hedges up the way instead of preparing it.

“After the meeting closes, let every effort possible be put forth. The means used before the camp would not be one third as successful as the same expense and labor put forth after the influence of the meeting has been felt. When the seeds of truth have been sown in the hearts of the people by the labors of the camp-meeting, then those who remain to follow up the work will, through the Spirit’s influence, be enabled to ripen off the work and gather in a harvest. At this time let the money and labor required for the work proposed to be done before the (233) [237] camp-meeting, be brought in. Let the tent remain. Let visiting be done from house to house. Distribute papers and tracts, treating upon the important subjects of truth that have been presented during the meeting.

“We are to study the field carefully, and not think that we are to follow the same methods in every place. If we move wisely, without boasting, without challenging the enemy, but advancing one line of truth after another, crowding in the most important and soul-testing, the Lord will take care of the results.”

“This plan was followed, and we felt deeply grateful to our Heavenly Father for his counsel and direction as we saw the results of the meeting. It was a meeting of deep interest from the commencement to the close. Crowds of people came out to hear the truth. The tent was filled every night. The people were held spellbound as they heard the word of God presented in Christlike simplicity and fervor, and in the demonstration of the Spirit and power of God. Those who were interested began at once to invite the ministering brethren to their homes. The ministers of other churches were away on their vacation, and this gave our workers an excellent opportunity to make the best (234) impression upon the people without fear of misrepresentation. When the ministers returned they found plenty to do; for the very best workers in their churches were taking their position for the truth.

Thursday evening, October 15, was appointed for the first meeting of the camp. Small notices announcing the meeting had been disturbed the day by diligent workers, and when time for meeting arrived, we were pleased to see the people flocking to the ground, and quietly taking their seats in the large tent. This continued until the tent could hold no more; and still they came, until a wall of people stood around the outside of the tent. All listened with interest to Elder Daniells, who spoke with clearness and power.

Thus our meeting opened well. Most of the Avondale students were present, twenty of whom had been baptized before the school term closed. And to the very last there was no falling off in the numbers who attended. On Sundays in order that the crowds might be seated, the children were called into a forty foot tent to a meeting of their own under the charge of good teachers. Then our own people were invited to give the outside (235) people room.

We had excellent ministerial help in Elders Farnsworth, Robinson, Daniells, Hare, W.C. White, Starr, Wilson, and Brethren Hughes, Colcord and Crothers. The people had an opportunity to hear for themselves before the ministers could get their congregations together and warn them not to come and hear. I could see more clearly after the camp was in progress why light was given in regard to the advertising of our meetings.

More than fifty persons took their position for the truth as the result of the camp-meeting and the labor that followed it. One who accepted the truth had held the position of postmaster in Stanmore for eighteen years.

Another, a lady, the wife of a solicitor began keeping the Sabbath. One of her neighbors, a member of the High Church, wished her to meet Cardinal Moran at her house, and she consented to do so. When he came in, the lady of the house fell on her knees before him, and kissed first one hand and then the other. This both astonished and disgusted Mrs. Gorick. She was then introduced to him. He entered into conversation with her, giving her a lengthy talk on the church and her delegated power and authority. Cardinal Moran also said it was a condescension on the part of a Roman prelate to receive one of their faith into private audience.

Mrs. Gorick told him that Jesus Christ whom he claimed to represent welcomed all classes with His presence.

He told her that he was surprised that she was carried away with [238] the transient display of the S.D. Adventists.

She informed him that everything conducted with the service was simplicity itself and that she was of the opinion that it was the Catholic Church, not the Adventist which dealt in display of sacerdotal robes and liveried bell boys and processions and great services of song.

His secretary then remarked that the tents on the campground reminded him of washrooms, which come up in a night and are soon gone, and were in contrast with the age and solidity of the buildings, the cathedrals and schools and monasteries of the Catholic Church. She replied that there was real nourishment in a nice fresh washroom and that she preferred it to the old poisonous toadstools of tradition.

The Cardinal laughed at this witty reply and remarked, “Never mind Mrs. G. We may yet see you a member of the true Church.” She replied “I think you will, for I returned to join the Adventists. Then followed about the land, (236) Cardinal Moran then spoke of a very desirable piece of land they were anxious to purchase, telling her that Mr. Gorick, he thought, could procure this land for them without letting the owners know for what purpose it was to be used. He asked if they could help him. She told him that they were deciding to unite with the Seventh-day Adventists, and they were about to help them in building a church in Stanmore. She had accepted the seventh-day Sabbath, she said, which was the Sabbath of the Bible.

Cardinal Moran told her that all Protestants should keep the seventh day, that they had no reason for keeping Sunday as a holy day. The Roman Catholics, he said, had a right to keep Sunday; but Protestants had nothing to base their faith upon in the observance of that day. She told him that they had been considering this matter very thoroughly, and had come to the true church. They had a very earnest talk, but this sister is more firm and decided than before this interview. She could see plainly that the authorities of the Catholic church set themselves above God, assuming the place of God, and speaking with the authority of God.

(237) In one of the meeting, when I spoke on the use of tobacco, two brothers sat before me who had lived intemperate lives. One had been kept on a farm to keep him away from the temptation to drink. The other brother, the elder, had given up drink; but both were using tobacco. The elder brother, a lawyer, said to the younger, “Let us give up our tobacco; it is an evil.” Both pledged themselves to do this; but unless they should make Christ their strength, I had little hope that they would succeed. The power of perverted appetite makes men slaves. They do not realize the strength of their bonds until they attempt to break them.

Later this man told Brother Haskell that he had given up his tobacco, but that it was a hard struggle. He had suffered with severe pains for some time. The injurious stimulus removed, it took mature some time to rally after her powers had been abused and enfeebled for so long. It was the effort on the part of nature that caused these disturbances.

Both these brothers were struggling for freedom. The lawyer had been under conviction for some time. His health had been greatly injured by his former habits of intemperance, and (238) now like a drowning man, he was trying to get hold of something that would save him. They took treatment at the Health Home, where the workers sought to instill the truth as they labored for the health of the patients. If these poor souls could understand that Christ is their only safety, they will see that they are not compelled to sin, that their own consent must first be gained by the great deceiver. They would see by faith that Christ is the only one who can protect them from the enemy.

Many who held good worldly positions were convicted of the truth; but the cross seemed heavy to them. The question would come to them, I [239] shall lose my situation, and how shall I support my family? Several of these were in the Government employ, and they knew not what they would have to meet as soon as they should make known their intention to observe the seventh day as the Sabbath. Some were afraid to come out and say to the authorities, I will keep the Sabbath. Two, however, took their stand.

The case of one of these, Brother Sharp, was of special interest. One year before, Brother Sharp had been convicted of the truth, and believed that he ought to keep the Sabbath. But his employer would not give him the Sabbath, and he had worked (239) on, conscious that he was dishonoring God. Again conviction came to him, and he determined to embrace the truth, whatever might be the result.

This man had been employed by his firm for fourteen years. He occupied a responsible position, and had never at any time been admonished for any unfaithfulness. He was receiving three pounds ten shillings a week, ($17.50) and had a wife and a family of three or four children to keep. Many of his friends and relatives were watching his case, to see how he would come out. At last he notified his employer that he could not work anymore on the Sabbath, but that he would put in all his time by working extra hours. His employer was much annoyed that the Sabbath question was creating such a stir, and he determined that he would be very rigid, and give no quarter. He told this brother that he would retain him one month, and if he did not change his faith, he must go at that time.

At the end of the month the test came. “Obey the fourth commandment, and you will lose your place.”

“Are you not Satisfied with the way my work is done?” Brother Sharp asked his employer. He replied that he was entirely satisfied, but that he would not allow him to keep the Sabbath. (240) He then asked Brother Sharp if he would not resign.

“No,” said Bro. Sharp, “I could not do that. Why should I resign my situation, as though I were conscious of wrong doing? It is a matter of conscience with me, and if you dismiss me, this is the only reason I can give.”

Brother Sharp was dismissed, and for one week he was greatly tried. He could get no work. His employer would not give him a recommendation. Then I wrote to W.C. White, who was then in Melbourne, telling him that Brother Sharp would be an excellent man to have in the Health Home. I urged that the situation be given him. The lack of means was the only question. Finally a good place was provided for him in Melbourne at two pounds ten shillings per week.

But the Lord was working in this matter. Before this work could reach the brother, the proprietor of another firm in the same business in Sydney sent word that he desired to have an interview with Brother Sharp. It appeared that the head clerk of this man was away on a vacation, and in his absence, the proprietor himself had done his work. He found that while he did this work himself, he brought in fifteen pounds a month more, and this alarmed him. He saw that his workman had been robbing him. Hearing of the discharge of Bro. Sharp, he went to the man who had employed him. “Had he been dishonest?” He was told that he had not. “Did he do his work well?” “Yes,” his former employer answered; “he was the most trustworthy hand I had, and his place is now only temporarily occupied.” “Why, then, did you let such an honest, faithful worker leave your establishment?” The answer was, “He said that he had conscientious scruples in regard to the seventh-day Sabbath. He said he would make up his time by putting in extra time during the week; but I want no Sabbath-keeping influence about my premises.”

“You have made a mistake,” the merchant replied. The man who will [240] risk losing a good situation rather than give up the truth, is the very man I want.” He left the store, determined to secure Brother Sharp’s services if he could find him. He did find him, and offered him the same wages that he had formerly received. He gave him a room for his work larger better than he had had, and said, “You shall have the Sabbath without question, and I require no bonus time put in.”

(241) Brother Sharp went home rejoicing, and he and his wife were baptized a few Sabbaths later. They were a very thankful couple. This experience was a great blessing to Sister Sharp. She said, “When the Lord opened the way so abundantly for my husband, I felt the reproof come to me,” O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?”

Another couple attended all the meetings in the tent, and they knew as they heard the word explained, that they were hearing truth. The Holy Spirit impressed their hearts, and the Bible became to them a treasure house of knowledge. The husband was in the employ of the Government Printing office, and was receiving good wages. Brother Stuckey trembling at the thought of losing his situation, hung back for weeks before becoming baptized. He had not moral courage to make the venture; but in the end he felt so wrought upon that he was baptized. Then after he had settled his duty with God, he went to his employer and told him that he could not conscientiously work on the Sabbath. Without one remonstrance his employer gave him the day.

(242) As the time appointed for the close of the meetings came, the interest seemed to be at the highest, and the question was asked, Shall the meetings be continued one week longer? The outsiders voted decidedly for it, with upraised hands. Although it was decided not to prolong the camp-meeting, as some had to go on to Melbourne to prepare or the meeting to be held there in two weeks, a number of the ministers remained over till the next week to follow up the interest. At that time the large tent had to be sent on to the Melbourne camp-meeting.

Brn. Haskell, Starr, and Wilson remained to establish a mission in Stanmore, and follow up the work. The forty-foot tent was spliced in the center and much enlarged, and in this tent the meetings were continued Sabbaths and Sundays and each night in the week with the exception of Monday on the same ground where our city of tents had stood. Brother and Sister Haskell stood at the head of the mission family, which numbered twelve. Two classes were held every day, that the workers might receive instruction from the Bible, and learn how to teach the truth to others.

(243) The workers visited from house to house, laboring personally with the people. So many calls were made, that the three married couples had to separate, husband going to one place and wife to another, to hold readings with those who were interested. At one time they gave up their Saturday evening meetings in order to have more time to visit interested families, but by request these were continued again. Later, several families would assemble in one home, and Bible readings be given them there.

Calls were made by the sick, and the young ladies at the mission visited these, and did what they could to relieve their sufferings. This gave opportunity for reaching still others.

It was wonderful how many aged people the workers found who needed little labor to lead them into the truth. “Why,” they would say with tears in their eyes, “This I what we have been praying for. We knew that the Scriptures had much to say upon subjects that the clergymen could not or would not explain to us.”

As the work continued the interest widened and deepened. The working forces, walking softly before God, praying and (244) watching unto prayer, had the cooperation of heavenly angels. Through them [241] and by his Holy Spirit Christ worked upon human hearts. Heavenly intelligences are waiting ever for channels through which they can communicate the light of truth and help in the work to be done in human hearts. [242]

Opening of the Work in Queensland.

In June, 1894 Elder and Mrs. G.B. Starr moved to Queensland to open the work in that colony. It had been arranged for Bro. and Sr. Starr to be with Mrs. White at Granville, N.S.W. Mrs. Starr was then acting as matron of Mrs. White’s house, and Elder Starr had all arrangements made to go to Queensland alone. But Sr. White would not consent to this, stating that a missionary to a new field needed his companion by his side, and that his health would depend upon having proper food and care. They first stopped at Sandgate, where resided a Sister Halsey, a faithful Adventist sister. The first sermon on present truth was preached in her home by Elder Starr.

From this place they went north to Rockhampton, where was an unorganized company of about a dozen people keeping the Sabbath. They had received the truth from Daniel and the Revelation and other publications. Some were from the Salvation Army, others from the Church of England, and some from the world.

This company was organized into a Sabbath School and Tract Society and encouraged to assist in the work by paying their tithe, which they did. Mrs. Starr was made the first treasurer of the Queensland Mission. A site was secured and a tent erected and a successful series of meetings were held by Elder Starr assisted by Eld. and Mrs. Hickox who joined the mission forces at this time. At the close of the summer, a church of sixty members was organized. A commodious temperance hall on the found floor was rented for 65 a week for a place of meetings when the tent was taken down. This church has grown to over 70 members. This company desired to build a church, and a lot was purchased and paid for. But as funds are not available for the erection of a church, the people were advised to continue in the hall and assist financially by tithes and offerings in the raising up of other companies of believers. The laborers feared that a debt would absorb the offerings of the people toward aggressive work, and so advised against its being incurred.

These laborers moved on to Toowoomba, 2000 feet above sea level, where another tent effort was conducted during the extreme heat of the summer, January to April. Here a church of between thirty and forty more bought out and organized. A German company of eight observe the Sabbath at Dalton with Eld. M. Bernard as leader. The next season the tent was pitched at Ipswich, where, owning to the great prejudice and the pharisaical character of the people, only twelve embraced the truth. Eld. and Sis. Hickox were transferred at this time to South Australia, and Elder Teasdale joined Eld. Shotz in labor. The work was then transferred to Clayfield, a suburb of Brisbane and Eld. and Mrs. Jesse Pallent joined the workers. Believers were added here continuously, through public and private labor. Among these the family Mrs. Hughes, their sons and a daughter, and Bro. Joseph Miles, wife and children. The children of this family have all become workers in the cause. John Mills, and Lee Masters of the Queensland Conference and Joseph Mills, principal of Avondale College, two sisters are workers in the Tract Society Office.

Rockhampton — Bro. Wauztick became an earnest worker among the Germans in the colonies, and after and a missionary to Sumatra.

From Clayfield, Eld. and Mrs. Starr were called to Adelaide, South Australia, and other workers were sent to Queensland. A conference was organized in 1899 with one hundred and fifty members, and a tithe of £480 - $2,400 a year, or $27.50 per member, the highest tithe paid [243] anywhere in the world at that time, and no debt upon the mission.

Book sales for the year 1897 amounted to £2.101.653d, or $10,500. [244]

The Queensland Camp-Meeting.

(248) Our first Queensland camp-meeting was held in Brisbane, Oct. 14-24, 1898. For some weeks before this meeting my health was not good, and my work in writing very urgent. I decided that I would not go. The night I came to this decision I was shown in a dream several companies. Some of the people in these companies were in prayer; some were trying to read their Bibles, but they could not understand them. Perplexed in mind, and sorrowful in heart, they cried, “Who can explain the Scriptures to us? We are starving for the word of the Lord. We are in darkness. Will you not give us light?” Others with outstretched arms were crying, “Come over and help us.”

As I considered these companies, one who has often instructed me, said to me, “Say ye not, there are four months, and then cometh harvest? Behold I say unto you, Lift up your eyes and (249) look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest. And he that reapeth receiveth wages, gathered fruit unto eternal life; that both he that soweth and he that reapeth may rejoice together.”

I would fain have believed that these companies represented the places within thirty miles of Cooranbong,— Newcastle, Maitland, and several other localities nearer than this; for the standard of truth had not been lifted in these places. But again the scene was presented before me. The same voice said, “God has precious ones in all the churches of all the towns from Cooranbong to Queensland, who are ignorant of the truth for this time. They are as sheep having no shepherd. The shepherds feed themselves, but they feed not the flock. I have a people here. Seek for them. Open my word to them line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little. Lift the standard in new territories. The fields are white unto the harvest. The Husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit (250) of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until He receive the early and latter rain. The Holy Spirit will accompany the presentation of the truth.”

Then said I, “I will go to the camp-meeting; for the Lord has taught me my duty. I dare not withhold myself.”

We left home on the evening of October 12, and after one hour’s ride to Newcastle, changed to the express train to Brisbane. We travelled in a sleeper. Although much wearied, I felt very peaceful and quiet in the Lord; and I prayed most earnestly that the Lord would impress upon those attending the (251) camp-meeting the fact that it would not be what they could do that would make the meeting a success; but that their part in its success would depend upon their entire dependence upon God.

I awoke early the next morning, along while before day. Looking out of the window, I saw two white clouds. After a time I fell asleep again, and in my dreams these words were spoken to me: “Look at these clouds. It was just such clouds as these that enshrouded the heavenly host who proclaimed to the shepherds the birth of the world’s Redeemer. “I awoke and looked out of the car window again, and there were the two large white clouds, as white as snow. They were distinct, separate clouds, one would approach and touch the other, and for a moment they would blend together; then they would separate, and remain as distinct as before. They did not disappear, but continued in sight throughout the forenoon. At twelve o’clock we changed cars, and I did not see the clouds anymore.

During the day I was deeply impressed with the thought that angels of God, enshrouded in these clouds, were going before us, that we might rejoice in their guardianship, and in the assurance (252) that we should [245] see of the salvation of God in the meeting to be held in Brisbane.

After the meeting, when we had seen the wonderful interest manifested by the people, I was more than ever sure that heavenly angels were enshrouded in these clouds,- angels that were sent from the courts above to move on the hearts of the people, and to restrain those distracting influences which sometimes find access to our campgrounds, by which minds are diverted from the consideration of the vital truths that are daily presented. At this meeting thousands heard the gospel invitation, and listened to truths that they had never heard before. During the whole meeting there was no boisterous opposition or loud contention from those whose hearts were opposed to the law of God. Nor throughout the city was there any public opposition. This is an unusual experience; and we believe that angels of God were present to press back the powers of darkness, that unbelief should not prevail.

When we arrived at Brisbane, we were met at the station by Brethren Daniells, Haskell, Wilson, and Palmer, and were taken in a cab to a comfortable house close to the campground. The next day was Friday, and all were busy completing the (253) preparations for the camp, and getting ready for the Sabbath.

The camp-meeting was held in Wooloongabba, one of the southern suburbs of the city, about three miles from the general post office. The camp was composed of thirty-three tents, and was situated on high sloping ground, just far enough from the main thoroughfare to be free from the noise of passing carts and trams. Great economy had been exercised in fitting up the camp, yet everything was neat and orderly, and the entire ground presented an inviting appearance. At night the large tent and the grounds were brilliantly lighted with electricity, and this added much to the pleasure of those attending the evening meetings. The daily papers gave friendly and intelligent reports of the meetings. The electric tram cars carried large calico signs, calling attention to the camp-meeting. This, which we had looked forward to as a very small meeting, proved to be one of the most profitable and interesting meetings held in Australia.

Our camp-meeting opened on Friday night, and at this first meeting the large tent was well filled. From the one hundred and seventy-five Sabbath-keepers in that large colony, over one hundred were at the meeting. Several had come from Townsville, (254) which is one thousand miles to the north, and there were a dozen or more from Rockhampton, which is half as far. The conference had engaged to pay the fare of a number of these, who would otherwise be unable to come. There were a few present who had attended one of our camp-meetings in the southern colonies; but to most of those present this was their first opportunity to attend a general meeting of our people. These people were greatly blessed, and their hungry interest to catch every word encouraged the speakers, and drew from them their richest treasures of knowledge and experience.

Sabbath morning there was a good attendance at the Sabbath School. At the forenoon service Elder Haskell spoke from the words, “We would see Jesus.” Like the Greeks who had made this request, the people were deeply interested, and the discourse made a good impression.

In the afternoon I spoke on the call to the supper recorded in Matthew 22. I made special reference to the man who came in without a wedding garment, and sought to arouse all to understand what would be the result if any were found without the wedding garment, the white linen, the robe of Christ’s (255) righteousness, provided for all by the King for all who are bidden to the supper. At an infinite coast to heaven, provision has been made that all may receive grace and sanctification of the Spirit, and be numbered with the blood-washed throng. The wedding garment must be put on in this life. In this life we are to be clothed [246] with the righteousness of Christ.

In the night season I was instructed that in this meeting we must each look to the Lord, and not to one another saying, “What shall this man do?” Each one must seek the Lord earnestly to know for himself what he is to do in the service of God. It takes all kinds of timber fitly to frame the building of which Christ is the chief cornerstone. We are to build together, not separately. We are to work unitedly. Every stick of timber is to find its place, that a united framework may be made,- a habitation of God through the Spirit. Our brethren and sisters are to understand that they each have a part in the work, and that their work is essential according to their ability. “We are laborers together with God.” We must give to every man his place; for if any part of the work is neglected, a complete habitation for God is not built.

(256) About one hundred were present at the early morning meeting on Sunday. We realized that the Spirit of the Lord was present as we made intercession for ministers and people, and especially for those who were in feeble health. I spoke briefly showing the necessity of each one seeking the Lord for himself. When our hearts are sanctified by the truth, they will be in unity with the heart of Christ. Say, the apostle, “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.” Are self-seeking and self-exaltation pressing their way into your soul? Contemplate the life of Jesus your Saviour. Think how he humbled himself. He was Commander in the heavenly courts, but he laid aside his crown, his kingly robe, and clothed his divinity with humanity, that humanity might touch humanity and that divinity might lay hold upon divinity. For the sake of fallen man he humbled himself.

Let none strive to be first, for if we do this, the spirit of self will work until there is no room for the Spirit of Christ. Let none climb up on the judgment seat, for God has placed none of us there. Let no one indulge in evil surmising. Let us all draw nigh to God, and wear (357) His yoke who humbled Himself that we might be uplifted. Let us educate the tongue to speak right words, —words that will encourage and strengthen our fellow man. Let us talk of goodness and mercy and the love of God. Put away all unbelieving words, all that is cheap or common. Then the angels of God will be with us and the peace of God will fill the soul. “Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you.” “Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” Then “when the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard against him.”

In the testimony meeting that followed we felt the subduing influence of the Spirit of God. Many were weeping. There were those present who had been standing in their own light. Some had been quick to discover the evil and to talk of the evil in their brethren; but the good they had seen in the lives of their brethren they had not commended. Thus they had grieved the heart of Christ, and placed their own souls in jeopardy.

During the meeting the wants of the cause were presented by Brethren Haskell, Daniells, Semmens, and W.C. White. All about us where fields white to the harvest, and we felt an intense desire that these fields should be entered and that the standard (258) of truth should be raised in every city and village. As we studied the vastness of the field, and the urgency of entering new fields immediately, we saw that hundreds of workers were needed where now there were but two or three, and that we must lose no time in building up those institutions where workers could be educated and trained. As the needs of the School, the Sanitarium, and the Health Food Worker were placed before them, our Queensland brethren and sisters took hold to do their best to help, and [247] before the camp-meeting closed those present had pledged $725 to the work.

As the meeting progressed, we had several days of hot winds. All Friday night the wind blew so strongly, and the large tent was let down. All the next day the wind continued and we could not raise our tent. Nevertheless we held our meetings. In the forenoon Brother Jesse Pallant was ordained to the work of the ministry. In the afternoon the dining tent was prepared for meeting, and I spoke to about sixty persons assembled there. After I had spoken I called forward those who wished to give themselves to the Lord in solemn covenant. Fourteen responded, and we had a season of prayer with them. [248]

After the Camp-Meeting.

(259) The last days of the camp-meeting were full of interest. From all parts of Brisbane the people came daily, and the attendance at the evening meetings steadily increased, frequently men and women came long distances, saying that they had just learned about the meetings. During the second Sunday, the grounds were thronged. Some had been at the meeting the first Sunday, and came again, bringing friends; many we recognized as those who had come to the meeting for the first time. According to appointment, our meeting was to close the following day, but it was evident that the work of the meeting was not finished. It was too busy a time for consultation; for every worker on the ground was busy, visiting, entertaining the interested and the curious, distributing reading matter and holding short Bible readings with those who questioned about the doctrines taught at the meeting. Those who bore the burden of the meeting felt that an earnest effort must be made to follow up the interest and many prayers ascended that God would direct in planning and executing the work.

In the night light came to me. It was represented to me that the cloud still rested over the (260) tabernacle. The cloud had not yet lifted, and the tents must not yet be taken down. This was our time to seek the Lord earnestly for wisdom and strength, and to labor with all our powers to give the warning message to the people. The people were under conviction, and this camp-meeting remained a necessity. I was not able to speak at the early meeting, but sent word that according to light given to me there ought to be nothing done unnecessarily to give the people the impression that the meeting had closed.

Arrangements had already been made to keep the large tent standing for a week or two; but it was the plan of our people to take down the family tents as fast as possible, and let all go to their homes except the regularly appointed Bible workers. But now other plans were rapidly formed. A Bible study for workers was appointed to be held each morning; and our people were invited to remain on the grounds, and aid in the work of the following week. As many tents were left standing as possible and the families that remained to help keep up the public interest and enjoy the Bible studies were furnished the use of tents without charge. A score or more remained on the grounds for another week, and many others would have done so had they known beforehand of the opportunity.

(261) For a few days after it was decided to continue the camp-meeting, it was quite a struggle for the workers to keep up heart, because of the distraction which attended the departure of friends, and the resettling preparatory for the summer’s work. At the Monday evening meeting, the congregation had voted a hearty request that the meetings continue, and each night through the week the large tent was well filled. The morning Bible classes, which were attended by about twelve workers, of varied experience and gifts, employed in following up the interests of the meeting; and as we say the extent of the field to be worked, we wished there were many more. [249]

Instruction Regarding Labor.

(262) At the beginning of the Sabbath my heart went out in prayer to God that he would give wisdom to these workers, and in the visions of the night many words of instruction and encouragement were spoken to us. Ministers and workers were in a meeting where Bible lessons were being given. We said, we have the great teacher with us today; and we listened with interest to his words. He said; “There is a great worker before you in this place. You will need to present truth in its simplicity. Bring the people to the waters of life. Speak to them things which most concern their present and eternal good. Do not present subject that will arouse controversy,—things that it will require a person of experience by your side to defend. . . In all that you say, know that you have something that is worthy of the time you take to say it, and the time of the hearers to hear. Speak of those things which are essential, those things which will instruct, bringing light with every word.

“Learn to meet the people where they are. Let not your study of the Scriptures be of a cheap or casual order. Let not your instruction be of a character to perplex the mind. Do not cause the people to worry over the things that you may see, (263) but which they do not see, unless these are of vital consequence to the saving of the soul. Do not present the Scriptures in a way to exalt self, and encourage vain-glory in the one who opens the Word to others. The work for this time is to train workers to deal with subjects in a plain, serious, and solemn manner. Three must be no time uselessly employed in this great work. We must not miss the mark. Time is too short for us to undertake to reveal all that might be opened up to view. Eternity will be required that we may know all the length, and breadth, and depth and height of the Scriptures. There are certain souls to whom certain truths are of more importance than others truths. Skill is needed in your education in Scriptural lines.

“To the apostle John on the isle of Patmos were revealed the things that the Lord desired him to give to the people. Study these revelations. Here are themes worthy of our contemplation, large and comprehensive lessons, which all the angelic hosts are now seeking to communicate. Behold the life and character of Christ and study his mediatorial work. Here are infinite wisdom, infinite love, infinite justice, infinite mercy. Here are heights and lengths, breadths and depths, for our consideration. Numberless pens have been employed in presenting (264) to the world the life, the character, and the mediatorial work of Christ; yet every mind through whom the Holy Spirit has worked has presented these themes in a light that is fresh and new, according to the mind and spirit of the human agent.

“The truth, if received into the heart, is capable of constant development and expansion. It will increase in brightness as we behold it; and as we aspire to grasp it, its height and breadth will ever increase. Thus it will elevate us to the standard of perfection, and fit us for our work by giving us faith in God. We want the truth as it is in Jesus; for we desire to make the people understand what Christ is to them, and what the responsibilities are that we are called upon to accept in him. As His representatives and witnesses, we need to come to a full understanding of the saving truths attained by an experimental knowledge.

Teach the great, practical truths that must be stamped upon the soul. Teach the saving power of Jesus, in whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins.” All should be made to comprehend the power of the truth to those who receive it. “In him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead (265) bodily.” Men need to understand that the [250] Deity suffered under the agonies of Calvary. The Majesty of heaven was made to suffer at the hands of wicked men,—religious zealots, who claimed to be the most enlightened people on the face of the earth. Men claiming to be the children of Abraham worked out the purpose of Satan on the innocent Son of the Infinite God. While Christ was bearing the heavy guilt incurred by man’s transgression of the law of God, while in the act of bearing our sins, or carrying our sorrows, he was mocked and reviled by the very men appointed to teach the law, and lead the people to love and obey God.

“It was at the cross that mercy and truth met together, that righteousness and peace kissed each other. Let students and workers study this again and again, that they, setting forth the Lord crucified among us, may make it a fresh subject to the people. Teach that the life of Christ reveals an infinitely perfect character. Teach that as many received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.” Tell it over and over again, that we may become the sons of God, members of the royal family, children of the (266) heavenly King. Let it be known that all who accept Jesus Christ and hold the beginning of their confidence firm unto the end, will be heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation, ready to be revealed at the last time.”

The experiences of this meeting, with what has been presented to be at various times, regarding the holding of camp-meetings in large cities, lead me to advise that a large number of camp-meetings be held each year, even though some of them are small; for these meetings are a powerful means of arresting the attention of the masses. By camp-meetings held in the cities, thousands will hear the invitation to the feast, “Come, for all things are now ready.”

After arousing an interest it is not wise to cut the meeting short, pull down the tents, and leave the people to think that the meeting is over. It is just then that the greatest good may be accomplished by faithful and earnest work. The meetings must be so managed that the public interest shall be maintained.

(267) Sometimes a large number of speakers attend a camp-meeting for a few days, and just when the interest of the people is fully aroused, nearly all hurry away to another meeting, leaving two or three speakers behind to struggle against the depressing influence of the tearing down and removal of the family tents. How much better it would be if the meetings were continued for a longer time; if persons would come from each church prepared to stay a month or longer, helping in the meetings, and learning how to labor acceptably. Then they could carry a valuable experience to their churches when they returned home. How much better if some of the same speakers that aroused the interest of the people during the largest attendance at the meeting, would remain to follow up the work by a thoroughly organized protracted effort. To conduct meetings in this way would require that several be in progress at the same time, and this would not permit a few men to attend all the meetings. But we must remember that the work is to be accomplished “not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of Hosts.”

After a meeting it may sometimes be difficult to hold the principal speakers for several weeks, to develop the interest (268) awakened. It may be expensive to retain the ground, and to keep a sufficient number of the family tents standing to maintain the appearance of a camp-meeting. It may be at a sacrifice that several families remain on the ground to assist the ministers and Bible workers in visiting and Bible study with [251] those who come to the meetings, and in visiting the people at their homes, telling of the blessings received at the meetings, and inviting them to come. No doubt it will be difficult to secure a sufficient number of workers to carry forward the work successfully. But the result will justify the effort. It is by such earnest and energetic efforts as these that some of our camp-meetings have been instrumental in raising up strong working churches. And it is by just such earnest work that the third angel’s message must be carried to the people of our cities. [252]

The Newcastle Camp-Meeting.

When we reached he camp-meeting season for 1898, it was a serious question in the minds of the leading men of the New South Wales Conference whether we could hold a camp-meeting this year in the conference. The meeting held in Stanmore the year before had been a marked success. From it the truth had sounded forth to the people of Sydney; and, through the attendance of visitors from the country, a knowledge of Sabbath and Advent message had been carried to scores of towns and villages throughout the colony. But the expense of this meeting had left our little conference in debt, and it was feared that we would have to forego a cam-meeting this year, for the lack of funds.

Finally it was proposed that we hold the meeting in Newcastle. As there had never been a camp-meeting in Newcastle, there would be no unfavorable comparisons if this were a small one. Being only twenty-five miles from Cooranbong, it was thought that the brethren of the Avondale church could assist much in fitting up the grounds and in furnishing supplies that would help to carry the meeting through without great expense. It was also thought that the time had fully come to present the truth to the eighty thousand people of Newcastle and its surrounding towns; and we knew that the best possible way of doing this would be to hold a camp-meeting, following it with tent-meetings, accompanied by visiting, Bible work, the selling of our religious and health books, by Christian Help work, and the establishment of a medical mission.

Repeatedly light had come to me, encouraging us to put forth greater efforts in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, and indicating that the time had come for us to enter Newcastle. Several small companies were presented to me, and with them two larger companies were presented to me, and with them two larger companies that were stretching out their hands imploringly, saying, “Come over and help us. We are starving for the bread of life.” In the two larger companies, some were praying; some were weeping. A voice said, “They are as sheep without a shepherd. I will feed my flock. I will give them the living bread from heaven.” During the camp-meetings held in Brisbane and Newcastle, I recognized in the congregations assembled the two larger companies that I had seen calling for help.

We had feared that this would be a small, thinly attended meeting, but our people came out well. From a membership of four hundred in the conference, there were over two hundred at the camp-meeting. And in the outside attendance we were pleasantly surprised. At the first evening meeting there were a thousand persons present. Contrary to our fears the holiday season proved the best season to secure a large attendance of the most earnest, serious people. I have never attended meeting where a deeper, more abiding interest was manifested.

During the first Sabbath of the meeting, we felt that the heavenly angels were in the camp. The outside elements seemed working against us. A severe tempest of wind and rain arose, but no one seemed discouraged. The heavenly streams of the love of God flowed into our hearts, and the countenances of some revealed the Holy Spirit’s work. Several not of our faith took part in thanksgiving and praise to God. When the rain came down in torrents, we poured out our thanksgiving in songs and praise. Many testified that it was the best Sabbath meeting they had ever enjoyed.

An Impressive Dream.

During the night of the first Sabbath of the meeting, I seemed to be in meeting, presenting the necessity of our receiving the Spirit. This [253] was the burden of my labor, that we should open our hearts to the Holy Spirit. On one occasion Christ told his disciples, “I have many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now.” Their limited comprehension put a restraint on him. He could not open to them the truths he longed to unfold; for while their hearts were closed to them, his unfolding of these truths would be labor lost. They must receive the Spirit before they could fully understand Christ’s lessons. “The Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost,” Christ said, “whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.”

In my dream a sentinel stood at the door of an important building and asked everyone who came for entrance the question, “Have ye received the Holy Ghost?” A measuring line was in his hand, and only very, very few were admitted into the building. “Your size as a human being is nothing,” he said. “But if you have reached the full stature of a man in Christ Jesus, according to the knowledge you have had, you will receive an appointment to sit with Christ at the marriage supper of the Lamb; and through the eternal ages you will never cease to learn of the blessings granted in the banquet prepared for you.

You may be tall and well-proportioned in self, but you cannot enter here. None can enter who are grown-up children, carrying with them disposition, the habits, and the characteristics which pertain to children. If you have nurtured suspicions, criticism, temper, self-dignity, you cannot be admitted; for you would spoil the feast. All who go in through this door have on the wedding garment, woven in the loom of heaven. Those who educate themselves to pick flaws in the characters of others, reveal deformities that make families unhappy, that turns soul from the truth to choose fables. Your leave of distrust, your want of confidence, your power of accusing, closes the door against you. Within this door nothing can enter that could possibly mar the happiness of the dwellers by marring their perfect trust in one another. You cannot join the happy family in the heavenly courts; for I have wiped all tears from their eyes. You cannot see the King in his beauty if you are not yourself a representative of his character.

When you give up your own will, your own wisdom, and learn of Christ, you will find admittance into the kingdom of God. He requires entire, unreserved surrender. Give up your life for him to order, mold and fashion. Take upon your neck his yoke. Submit to be led and taught by him. Learn that unless you become as a little child you can never enter the kingdom of heaven.

Abiding in Christ is choosing only the disposition of Christ, so that his interests are identified with yours. Abide in him, to be and to do only what he wills. These are the conditions of discipleship and unless they are complied with, you can never find rest. Rest is in Christ; it cannot be something apart from him.

The moment his yoke is adjusted to your neck, that moment it is found easy; then the heaviest spiritual labor can be performed, the heaviest burdens borne; because the Lord gives the strength and the power, and he gives gladness in doing the work. Learn of me, he says, for I am meek and lowly in heart. He desires that your conception of spiritual things shall be purified from the dross of selfishness, the defilement of a crooked, coarse, unsympathetic nature. You must have an inward, higher experience. You must obtain a growth in grace by abiding in Christ. When you are converted, you will not be a hindrance, but will strengthen your brethren.”

As these words were spoken, I saw some turn sadly away and mingle with the scoffers. Others, with tears, all broken in heart, made [254] confession to those whom they had bruised and wounded. They did not think of maintaining their own dignity, but asked at every step, “What must I do to be saved?” The answer was, “Repent, and be converted, that your sins may go beforehand to judgment and be blotted out.” Words were spoken which rebuked spiritual pride. This God will not tolerate. It is inconsistent with his word and with our profession of faith. “Seek the Lord, all ye who are ministers of his. Seek him while he may be found, call upon him while he is near. “Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, or he will abundantly pardon.”

As I presented these principles to the people in the Sabbath meeting, all seemed to feel that the Lord had spoken through the feeble instrument. We called upon those who wished to consecrate themselves to the Lord, and several responded. After these had borne their testimony, the rain came down in torrents. It seemed as if the windows of heaven were opened. I made this a symbol of what the Lord will do for his people in letting the latter rain of his rich blessing in truth and righteousness fall on them. We devoted some time to singing “The Evergreen Shore,” “Is My Name Written There?” “When the Mists Have Rolled Away,” and similar songs. As soon as the storm abated, we had a season of prayer, and Elder Daniells and Robinson prayed in the Spirit, as I had never heard them pray before. [255]

The Newcastle Camp-Meeting.

There were no business meetings held in the Newcastle camp-meeting; and the people were free to devote their whole time to the spiritual interests of the meeting. The annual session of the conference had been held in the winter, just after the week of prayer; and the matter of raising funds for the school, the sanitarium, and the health food factory had been presented to all the churches a few weeks before. This gave to ministers and to people time to study the word, time to meditate, and opportunity to converse with those who visited the camp. It also left free to organize strong companies of workers to go out during the camp-meeting into Newcastle and its various suburbs to distribute literature, and to invite people to the meetings. But this means hundreds of persons were secured as regular attendants during the last half of the meeting, who might otherwise have thought little about it.

The responsibilities of the meeting were wisely disturbed among many workers, so none were borne down by a crushing load. Brn. Daniells, Colcord, Tenney, and Starr spoke to the large audiences in the evenings. I usually attended the morning meetings, and spoke in the afternoon four times a week. Brn. Tenney and Lacey conducted daily meetings with the young people. The Bible studies on practical lessons given at these meetings were greatly appreciated; and before the camp-meeting closed, many of our young people took advanced steps in consecration. Bible studies were conducted in the large tent each day by Brn. Starr, Tenney, and Robinson.

Lectures on health topics were given almost every day at five o’clock in the afternoon by Dr. Caro and Brn. Semmens and Reekie. These lectures awakened a great interest, and led to the organization of a large health club. (This work, if properly followed, should result in the establishment of a well-organized medical mission in Newcastle. But where can we look for the workers to conduct it, without weakening our work in Sydney? Our Sanitarium in Sydney ought to be put on such a footing that it could establish branches in other cities; and we pray earnestly that it may receive the support which the character of its work demands.)

Children’s meetings were organized and led by Sister S.E. Peck, assisted by efficient Sabbath-School workers. A large number of children attended daily, but they were so quiet and orderly that by many their presence in the camp was hardly noticed. They seemed enthusiastic in their enjoyment of the meetings, and they exerted a strong influence for the encouragement of their parents to attend. I will give a brief outline of the work done, as written out by one who had a part in it. The Children’s Work.

In the work done with and for the children at this meeting, an effort was made not only to help them, but to instruct and aid those who had been working, and others who wished a preparation for work, with the children in our Sabbath-schools.

With this in view, the first Sabbath the children were organized into departments and classes, and the teachers began their work. Each day the teachers met for counsel and instruction. A part of the time of these meetings was devoted to the consideration of such subjects as—

What makes a successful teacher?
How to secure well-learned lessons. Value and danger of Object-Lessons.
Need of Order, and how to secure it.
Use of the Blackboard.
Music.

The rest of the time was given to a careful study of the lessons to be given to the children. The subjects of the lessons given were [256] as follows:—

“Make Straight Paths for your Feet.”
Parable of the Houses on the Rock and on the Sand.
Parable of the Good Samaritan.
Parable of the Prodigal Son.
Parable of the Sower.

Sabbath Dec. 31, 1898

The Sabbath School Lesson.
Song Service.
A Happy New Year, and How to Make It.
The Evil of Small Sins.
Parable of the Tares.
Parable of the Lost Sheep.
God’s Record Books, and the Book of Life.
The New Jerusalem.
The Sabbath School Lesson.
The Candle Sermon: “Ye are the Light of the World.”

A Lesson from Flowers and Fruit.

The motto for the first week was “This Week for Jesus;” at the beginning of the second week it was changed to, “This Year for Jesus.”

At the beginning of the work, there were six children in the primary department and fifteen in the kindergarten. As soon of the children in the surrounding neighborhood learned of the meetings being held for them, they began to attend, and each day found from twenty to thirty new ones added to our classes. The average daily attendance from the outside was between eighty and one hundred, and most of the children were very regular. The same spirit of attention, earnestness and order which characterized the services among the elder ones, marked the children’s meetings. Both in the class work and in the general review exercises the work was so arranged that the children had a part in doing as well as listening, and in this way they soon felt at home, and their eagerness to bear some part in the work testified to their interest.

Each lesson opened with a general exercise, which was followed by the class studies; and at the close all reassembled for a brief review and song. In the opening exercises after the song and prayer, the motto, and all the memory verses previously learned were recited, either in concert or individually, or both. A short appropriate reading or recitation was given by one of the children who had previously volunteered to prepare it. The “Scripture Alphabet” was learned and recited by the children, each choosing his own letter and verse. The selection and learning of the verses were done at home, and these responsibilities placed upon the children proved an additional incentive for them to be present for the following day, and to be regular in attendance.

The ready responses to the review exercises testified that the interest in the class work had been marked, and that many valuable truths had found their way into the hearts and minds of the children. As the children returned to their homes, the parents were surprised and pleased to hear them repeat the whole lesson. Many parents expressed in various ways their appreciation of the work that had been done for the children, and regretted that we must leave so soon.

Several teachers from Sunday-schools attended the meetings, and expressed themselves as greatly pleased and benefitted by the work done. One gentleman, a Sunday-school superintendent, came on the grounds at the first of the meeting, as he afterward said, discouraged with his own work, and with a feeling of opposition to ours. He attended the children’s and teacher’s meetings regularly, and said that he gradually [257] felt all his opposition leaving him, and found himself in hearty sympathy with our work. Before he had attended three lessons, he said he would like to become one of us; for he could feel a power which he did not know among his own people.

Parents sometimes came with their children, and seemed as much interested as the little ones. Others, though not in harmony with their views, took the trouble neatly to dress their children, and allowed them to come. Some parents remarked that they did not know what we did with their children, but one thing was certain—the children would come, and they could not keep them at home. Some of the children came long distances, and we have reason to believe that much of the seed sown fell into good ground. Closing Work of the Meeting.

On the second Sabbath the revival work was continued. After the morning service an appeal was made to the unconverted and those who desired to renew their connection with God. A large number responded. Then the congregation separated, those who were seeking a new experience being invited to another tent for counsel and prayer, while the rest of the congregation remained to engage in prayer for them. The effort was greatly blessed. To many it did indeed seem to mark the beginning of a new life.

On the evening after the third Sabbath, Dr. Caro spoke to nearly 3000 persons on the subject “The Man and the Habit.” The lecture was illustrated by limelight views showing the terrible power of the habit as shown in the downward course of the drunkard, from the innocent child to the sin-hardened criminal. Solemn and instructive was this object lesson. The effects of the tobacco curse, the liquor curse, the opium curse, were vividly portrayed. Then a powerful appeal was made for the shielding of the youth from evil associations, and for the offer of a helping hand for the tempted and the fallen. At the close several hymns—“God be with You till we Meet Again” and others—were shown on the screen, and sung by the whole audience, with an earnest and feeling that made my heart glad.

I never before attended a camp-meeting where it seemed so much as if the stately tread of the host of heaven was among us. Newcastle, with all its suburbs is deeply moved, and the interest extends to other towns and cities. Several ministers and workers remained here, and meetings continued in the large tent. We prayed for an abundant harvest from the seed that had been sown. [258]

The Higher Education.

Sermon by Mrs. E.G.W. July 10, 1899 (Union Conf.)

(269) I desire that we shall know the very path we are to travel, the very grace we are to receive, in order that we may obtain our life insurance policy in the kingdom of God. “Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and of Jesus our Lord, according as His divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him that hath called us to glory and virtue: whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises, that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, and to virtue knowledge; and to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; and to (270) godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness charity; for if these things be in you and about, they make you that ye shall be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.”

How many there are who forget. They forget that they were baptized, to rise out of the water to live in the likeness of Christ’s resurrection.

“Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure; for if ye do these things ye shall never fall.” Every one of us can make our election sure, or we can make it a failure. “If ye do these things ye shall never fall.” If we live on the plan of addition, God will work for us on the plan of multiplication.”

The one who appreciates the word of eternal life will be a most diligent worker. He is to work out his own salvation with fear and trembling. Why the fear? you say. Why the trembling? Lest he shall in some way make crooked paths for his feet. He is to place himself in such a position that he can keep his eyes (271) fixed on Jesus. He is to behold Him and His character. Those who do this live on the plan of addition, not on the plan of subtraction.

“Add to your faith.” You have faith in Jesus Christ as your Saviour. All should have faith in Him as a Saviour. We are to work in accordance with that faith. We show our faith by working, by keeping our eyes fixed on the mark of the prize of our high calling in Christ Jesus.

He who beholds Jesus, realizing what He is to us, and what we are to Him, will be diligent. He will live on the plan of addition, adding to his faith virtue, and to his virtue knowledge, to knowledge temperance, and to temperance patience, and to patience godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness charity. This is a process of growth. He who cooperates with Christ will not be found tomorrow where he is today. Every day he will follow on to know the Lord, that he may know that his going forth is prepared as the morning. Of those who live in this way it will be written at last, “Ye are complete in Him.”

(272) We are to work not merely for our own souls, but for the souls of all with whom we are connected. Parents are to keep before them the point to which they should work—the perfection of the characters of their children. They are to strive earnestly to perfect the characters of their children because the future immortal life will show the character of the work they have done. Those parents who educate their children aright, weeding out every unruly trait, are fitting them to become [259] missionaries for Christ no truth, in righteousness, in holiness. He who in his childhood does service for God, adding to his faith virtue, and to his virtue knowledge, to knowledge temperance, to temperance patience, to patience godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness charity, is fitting himself to hear the words, “Child come up higher; enter the higher school.” Do you think we shall not learn anything there? We have not the slightest idea of what will them be opened before us. With Christ we shall walk before the living waters. He will open before us the beauty and glory of nature. He will show us what He is to us, and what we are to Him. There are lessons that we do not know now that we shall know hereafter. (273) The child who lives the life of Christ, studies the character of Christ, the child who is prayed with and prayed for, will be prepared to enter the higher grade.

Can we suppose that parents who have neglected or indulged their children, letting them, because it was easier, follow their own way, stand on the same footing as parents who have followed the will and way of God? Churches have been troubled by the defective characters and the defective characters of their children. What have they been bringing to the foundation? Only wood, hay, and stubble. They may be saved, and their children may be saved, because they have at last awakened to their defects; but will they be regarded in the same light as those whose lives have been devoted to the service of God? As one star differs from another star in gory, so will it be with the saints in light.

It means everything to us to work out our own salvation with fear and trembling. God works in us, to will and to do of His good pleasure. Our reward in heaven above depends on our daily walk and conversation here below. We can be Christians here. And to be a Christian, it is not necessary that we live in depression, (274) mourning because we cannot have our own way. If we are Christians indeed, Christ is formed within, the hope of glory. This brings a light into the chambers of the mind and the soul temple which nothing can put out. We need religion in the soul. We need to carry out the principles of true godliness.

True education embraces not merely a training of the intellect, but is a symmetrical development of all the powers—physical, mental, and moral. It is the inculcation of those ideas which will impress the mind and heart with the knowledge of God the Creator and with Jesus Christ the Redeemer. It should ever be kept before the students in our schools that higher education is an experimental knowledge of the plan of salvation, and that that knowledge is secured by earnestly and diligently searching the Scriptures. Such an education will renew the mind and transform the character, restoring the image of God in the soul. This is the education which will strengthen and fortify the mind against the deceptive whisperings of the adversary of souls, and help us to understand the voice of God. . . It will fit the learner to become a coworker with Jesus Christ, dispelling (275) the moral darkness, and bringing light and knowledge into the world. It is the simplicity of godliness—our passport from the preparatory school of earth to the higher school above.

Higher education is found in the words spoken by our Lord and Saviour, the great Teacher sent by God. Having stood in the councils of God, the elements of truth from the least to the greatest were always familiar to His mind. All the treasures of heaven were included in the gospel, and were given to Him to bestow upon the fallen face, that every soul might have the help he needed to break the chain that bound him a slave to sin, and to become free in Christ Jesus. He spoke with the power and authority of a divine oracle, and with a knowledge that He was unfolding truth of the highest magnitude—even the words of eternal life.

God’s appointments and grants in our behalf are without limit. The [260] throne of grace is itself the highest attraction, because occupied by One who permits us to call Him Father. But the Lord Jehovah did not deem the principle of salvation complete while invested only with His own love. By His own appointment He has placed as His altar an advocate clothed with His nature. As our Intercessor His work is to introduce us to God as (276) His sons and daughters. Christ intercedes in behalf of those who receive Him. To them He gives power by virtue of His own merits, to become members of the royal family—children of the heavenly King. And the Father demonstrates His infinite love for Christ, who paid our ransom by His blood, by receiving and welcoming Christ’s friends as His friends. He is satisfied with the atonement made. He is glorified by the incarnation, the life, death, and meditation of His Son.

This is the science of salvation, the science of true godliness, the true science of all education which the students can take with them to the higher grade—the courts above. That which heaven deems important in all education is that kind of knowledge which has been revealed from eternity and which enters into the purposes of God, expressing His mind and revealing His glory. To obtain this education is the study of the angels of God and of all the heavenly intelligences. The themes which should absorb our attention in this life, and which will demand study throughout the eternal ages, are so momentous that they not only supersede the discoveries of man, but engross the undivided attention of the only begotten Son of God.

(277) This education can be obtained only from a study of God’s word. It will ennoble and expand the intellect, and strengthen the spiritual powers. It will enlarge the narrow confines of human scholarship, and present before the mind a far deeper knowledge to be obtained through a vital connection with God. It will bring every student who is a doer of the Word into a broader field of thought, and will secure to him a wealth of learning that is imperishable. Without this knowledge it is certain that man will lose eternal life: but, possessing it, he will be fitted to become a companion of the saints in light.

Centuries ago, when enshrouded in the pillar of cloud, Christ, through Moses, instructed the children of Israel how they were to teach their children, Moses received, direct from God, the lessons he was to give to the people. “And these words which I command thee this day shall be in thine heart, and thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children and thou shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou livest down and when thou risest up. . . . Keep therefore, and do them, for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which (278) shall hear all these statutes and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.

. . . And the Lord said unto Moses, Write thou these words, for after the tenor of these words have I made a covenant with thee and with Israel. . . . And He wrote upon the tables the words of the covenant.” In giving this remarkable instruction to Moses, God taught that His chosen people should be the repository of truth for the whole world. There can be no higher education than this; none more pure or none more precious for all mankind.

If our youth obtain that knowledge they will be able to gain all the rest that is essential, but if not, all the knowledge they may acquire from the world will not place them in the ranks of the Lord. They may gather all the knowledge that books can give and yet be ignorant of the first principles of that righteousness which could give them a character approved of God.

Christ is the greatest teacher, the greatest Benefactor, upon whom [261] the world will ever look. He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. He is the Light of the world, ascending the firmament of truth and shining in clear distinct rays. Should He (279) withdraw His beams the world would be enshrouded in eternal darkness. He contemplated the situation of the world. He saw that eternal interests were involved in the choice man should make,— an immortal crown for the overcomer, unhappiness and eternal ruin for those who should neglect the higher education—the science of salvation. He rejoiced in the anticipation of doing for His followers more than they could ask or think. He came to our world to mould character and give eternal power. His mission to earth was to shed abroad the bright beams of true education, that our pursuits and aims in this life might not be misapplied or lost; for we may carry with us all the treasure of knowledge which gives us a fitness for the life that measures with the life of God.

All who learn the science of salvation must be submissive students in the school of Christ, that the soul temple may be the abiding place of the Most High. If we would learn of Christ we must be emptied of every proud possession, that He may imprint His image on the soul. It was because of a close connection with the living God that Daniel received true education and knowledge, and understanding and wisdom. By abiding in Christ, (280) by doing His will, by simple faith in His word, even the unlearned may have this knowledge. To these humble, trusting ones, the Lord Jesus reveals that all knowledge not perverted by the wisdom and sayings of men leads heavenward.

The teachings of Christ were of an entirely practical nature. By the use of parables He brought the eternal future to view. Some were afraid of His searching truths; others who listened to His teachings came to Him privately and sought an explanation. This was the desire that Christ wished to arouse, that He might give them more definite instruction. None will come in vain to Christ to inquire for a clearer knowledge of truth, for He has declared, “If any will to do the will of God, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself.” Those who are yielding themselves to God are receiving a training in Christ’s school to do all the justice possible to His divinity. Those who study His word, with hearts open to receive the impressions of His Holy Spirit, will not complain that they cannot see clearly the meaning of His word. He will unfold to them the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, and these mysteries will be understood by the heart that longs to know the (281) truth. A heavenly light will shine into the soul temple, and will be revealed to others as the bright shining of a lamp on a dark path. . . When the mind is not clear, it is the privilege of al to go to the great Teacher and ask Him who uttered those mysterious truths to enlighten the understanding. In Christ’s name our petitions ascend to the Father. He intercedes in our behalf, and the Father opens all the treasure of His wisdom and grace for our appropriation, to enjoy and to communicate to others.

The message of deliverance is granted to all. We are to wear Christ’s yoke and bear His burden. What is redemption? It is the process by which the soul is trained for heaven, and it requires something higher, something more divine than the mere knowledge of books. This training means a knowledge of Christ; it means emancipation of ideas, from habits and practices that have been gained in the school of the Prince of Darkness. The soul must be delivered from habits and practices that are opposed to loyalty to God. In this life we are to learn submission to the divine will, or we shall not be able to enter into the kingdom of heaven. True religion enables a man to (282) overcome stubbornness, pride, selfishness, worldly ambition, questioning and [262] unbelief. There is grace in Christ to enable us to rise above the alluring fascinating temptations of Satan, and lead us to the cross of Calvary, that we may become active,- devoted, loyal workers for the cause of truth.

The truths contained in the Scriptures are grand, elevating, ennobling, and uplifting. If the lost image of God is restored during probationary time, these truths must be cherished. They are graced with such simplicity that they could not have originated in any human mind. A Sower from a higher world went forth to sow the seeds of truth. This higher education alone is able to prepare students for the highest life—the highest grade in the highest school, where, with Christ and God as teachers, we shall through the ceaseless ages of eternity learn how best to magnify and glorify God’s name. [263]

The Avondale Health Retreat.

Talk Given by Mrs. E.G. White, July 20, 1899.

(283) I want to say that I am very thankful that the movement to erect a health retreat here has been made. My heart has been deeply pained as I have seen parents who did not know what to do when their children were sick.

This institution is to be a place where instruction will be given in right principles of health reform, so that those who receive help in it will go forth with an understanding of how to take care of themselves, and thus prevent sickness, and also how to treat sickness if it should come upon them. They should be taught by example how to take care of themselves in regard to diet. Men and women need an intelligent knowledge of how to care for the sick wherever they are, and how to give rest from suffering.

In the night season I was looking at a building. “What is this?” I asked. “The building in which you shall take care of the sick and suffering.” “But,” I said, “I did not know (284) that we had such a building.” “No,” was the answer; “but you must have it.” This building presented was very nearly like the building now being erected here &lt;in Cooranbong&gt;.

The building is so placed that it will get all the sunshine possible, not only in the sleeping rooms, but in the rooms where the patients sit. The sun is God’s doctor, which brings health and strength, purifying and giving color to the blood, and we must have it. It was objected that the building would be askew with the road. “Askew let it be,” I said; “that building must be where it will get the sunshine, in whatever position it is.” The building is just right as it now is. It will get the sunshine, and I am well pleased with it.

When in the night season the building was standing before me, I said, “We have no money; how can we put up such a building?” I was asked, “Where are you going to put your wearied, worried, worn-out ministers? Are you going to let them go wherever they can find a place?” I said, “We are going to take care of them.” The answer was, “You need a building fully as large as this in which to take care of them, and you need another building in which the very sick can be accommodated.”

(285) This is the work that must be done, and we must move carefully, so that we shall not incur a heavy debt.

I never have seen such carelessness in regard to the health, as I have seen in this community. We need to educate, educate, educate. If human beings are worth all that has been paid for them, should they not be uplifted? For us the Majesty of heaven, the King of Glory, laid aside His royal robe and kingly crown, and clothed His divinity with humanity. This He did that humanity might touch humanity, and divinity lay hold of divinity; and thus the help that sick and suffering need be brought to them. As we follow Christ in doing this work, we shall awaken an interest in the God we love and serve. We shall find that this is the successful way to save soul and body. Medical missionary work is the entering wedge to the work of saving souls.

You will remember the poor paralytic who has brought to Christ. This man had heard that the Saviour was healing the sick, but he did not know how to get to Him. His friends decided to take him to Christ, but when they reached the house where He was teaching, there was so great a crowd that they could (286) not get even to the door. Christ saw them bringing that man to Him. He saw them leaving their home, and His heart [264] went with them at every step.

As the sick man’s friends stood around the house where Christ was speaking, unable to get in, Someone suggested that they take off part of the roof, and let him down at Christ’s feet. The priests had told this man that his sins were the cause of his sickness, and they could give him no hope that there was any way that he could be saved from sin. With this burden of sin upon him, the poor paralytic was let down before Christ. The Saviour knew just where to commence His work for the sufferer. He knew that he was longing for help, and He said, “Son, thy sins be forgiven thee.” Hope sprang up in the man’s heart. But the wrath of the priests was roused, and they said, “Who can forgive sins but God alone?”

“When Jesus perceived their thoughts, He answering said unto them, What reason ye in your hearts! Whether it is easier to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Rise up and walk? But that ye may know that the Son of Man hath power on earth to forgive sins (He saith unto the sick of the palsy), I say unto (287) thee, Arise, and take up thy couch, and go unto thine house. And immediately he rose up before them, and took up that whereon he lay, and departed to his own hose, glorifying God. And they were all amazed, and they glorified God, and were filled with fear, saying, We have seen strange things today.”

I am glad we have a health retreat here. It is not ready for use yet, but it soon will be. We are going to move out by faith. We have already moved out by faith by putting this building on the ground. God knows all about it. I would ask you all, instead of investing your means in something you can do without, help us in furnishing our health retreat. We desire that everyone shall become interested in this institution, where an education is to be given in the science of healing. Every student in the school is to understand that he is to be economical in everything, in dress, in time, that he may have something to divide with the suffering poor. If those to whom the Lord has entrusted means use their money to glorify themselves instead of helping suffering humanity, they dishonor their Maker. God has entrusted men with His goods, His capital, and they are to use this capital aright, for it is the Lord’s (288) money.

This institution is to be a blessing to the afflicted and suffering. There are souls to be saved. Christ left His home in glory in order to do this work. He came as a man. Unless He had come thus, He could not have reached the suffering ones. Satan held the field, and he was doing all he could to keep men and women in affliction.

Christ is touched with the feeling of our infirmities. Why was He poor? Why did he not come to our world with outward display, with splendor and power? Because He wanted to bring to every human being the test that all must bear. Humanity must be touched with the sufferings of humanity, that men and women might learn how to show tenderness, kindness, and pity, and thus a Christlikeness of character be developed in humanity. In this way they were to be fitted to be missionaries. This is the work that is to be done everywhere.

God declares that in the last days there will be only two parties, one on the right hand and one on the left. To those on the left hand He says, “I was an hungered, and ye gave Me no meat; I was thirsty, and ye gave Me no drink; I was a stranger, (289) and ye took Me not in; naked, and ye clothed Me not; sick, and in prison, and ye visited Me not.” They have no part with Him; for they know nothing about Him. They could not enjoy life in His kingdom, and He says to them, “Depart from Me.”

They are surprised. They did not think that they had done anything particularly wrong. “Lord, when saw we Thee an hungered?” they ask; “or [265] athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto Thee?” Christ answers, “Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of these least of these, ye did it not to Me.”

To those on the right hand Christ says, “Come, ye blessed of my Father; inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was an hungered, and ye gave Me meat; I was thirsty, and ye gave Me drink; I was a stranger, and ye took Me in; naked, and ye clothed Me; I was sick, and ye visited Me; I was in prison, and ye came unto Me.”

These also are surprised. They did not think they had done anything worthy of commendation. “Lord, when saw we Thee an hungered, and fed thee?” they ask; or thirsty, and gave Thee (290) drink? When saw we Thee a stranger, and took Thee in? or naked, and clothed Thee? or when saw we Thee sick or in prison and came unto Thee?” Then the King shall answer and say unto them, “Verily, I say unto you, inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these, My brethren, ye have done it unto Me.”

They have been coworkers with Christ. They believed and lived the words, “Ye are not your own; for ye are bought with a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.” This responsibility rests upon each one of us. The students in this school are to daily strive to form characters for the future, immortal life. God is testing us, to see whether we will prove worthy to enter in through the gates into the city.

Why are we here? It seems strange to everybody what we should be located in the woods. We do not want our students to be near the city. We know that even though we bring them into the country we cannot escape from all evil. We have a public house here, and not long ago a man left this public-house drunk. As he was crossing a bridge, he fell from his horse and was killed. Thus through intemperance Satan worked to destroy. (291) But in the country the youth are less exposed to temptation. They are away from the sights and sounds of the city. We desire to take the students away from the foul atmosphere of the city. It is true that Satan is here, but we are trying to do all we can to place the students in the very best circumstances, in order that they may fasten their eyes on Christ. In the country they are away from the temptations of horse racing and cricket matches. Once in Sydney I saw a great multitude in one of the streets. Hundreds, I might say thousands, were gathered together. “What is the matter?” I asked. “It is because of the cricket match,” Was the answer. And while men were playing the game of cricket, Satan was playing the game of life for their souls. We decided to locate our school where the students would not see cricket matches and horse races. We are just where God wants us to be, and, many conversions have taken place in this school.

The work of education must begin in the home. &lt;We are working and praying and believing that many more may be converted.&gt; It must be carried on in the school room. Parents and teachers must unite in doing all they can in order to place the youth on vantage ground. Children have hereditary tendencies to wrong, which must be overcome. (292) Christ came to restore the moral image of God in man, and if parents and teachers will do all in their power, with prayer, working to bring their children into a right position, God will bless them.

Missionary work is to be done on this ground; for this is missionary soil. Efforts are to be made to save body and soul. In order that the soul may be saved, attention must be given in sympathy to the sufferings of the body. This morning I was reading the nineteenth psalm and the psalms following, and I thought, What beautiful lessons these [266] psalms teach. “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament showeth His handiwork.” What is the matter with us? We have lost sight of God. The world has lost the knowledge of God. Our work is to bring this knowledge within the reach of all we possibly can. Our message is, “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.”

In the word of God is found the education of God. This Word tells what Christ will do in behalf of everyone who will cooperate with Him. This book should be our lesson book, for it contains the higher education. Christ prayed, “And this is (293) life eternal, that they might know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent.” Do we not all wish to learn how to gain eternal life? It is gained by knowing God and Jesus Christ. We are to make our teaching in regard to this as plain and clear as possible, and then students will fall in love with it.

The history of Joseph and Daniel contain lessons which all should learn. How full their lives are of patience, of noble sanctified independence. What better instruction could be given to the youth than this. How was it with Daniel. God gave him knowledge and understanding in all visions and dreams. He strengthened Daniel’s mind, increasing his power and ability; and the record states, “As for these four children, God gave them knowledge and skill in all learning and wisdom; and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams. And in all matters of wisdom and understanding, that the king inquired of them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and astrologers that were in his realm.”

Let us place ourselves where we may gain the very best knowledge in regard to our accountability to God and to the souls (294) for whom we must give an account. As we &lt;labor for&gt; these souls to reach a higher standard, God will help us.

Dare to be a Daniel,
Dare to stand alone;
Dare to have a purpose firm,
Dare to make it known.”

This is what the youth should be taught to do. We need to catch the inspiration of God’s spirit, and then work with all the power. He has given us to cooperate with Him in restoring the moral image of God in man. When we have done this, we shall feel indeed that we have not lived in vain. [267]

Letter to Brother and Sister McCullagh, while they were Laboring in Ormondville:—

September 1893 [268]

Hastings, New Zealand
September 7, 1893

Dear Brother and Sister McCullagh:

It is with sadness that I learn of your affliction. I sympathize with you in your daughter’s illness, and we all pray for you. But, my brother and sister, there is a work that must be done for yourselves, as well as for your child, and I have hope that this work will be done. But let me tell you that unless you are willing to learn, you will not, cannot, obtain that Christian experience which it is so essential for every one of us to have.

I have been much pained as I have thought of your family; my heart aches every time I think of you. Sister McCullagh, you have not that Christian experience which is obtained by walking daily in the footsteps of Jesus. All your life you have followed your own will and way, and you have not strength of character that comes only by perseveringly acting from principle. You have right impulses, and can speak those words that are right, but often you lose your hold of Christ, because you are not led and guided by the Spirit of God. Your Christian experience is fitful, for your own impulses have been brought into your religious life, and the atmosphere that surrounds your soul is more earthly than heavenly.

You have a controlling influence over your husband, and if your heart were a treasure house filled with the Word of God, if your mind were a channel through which God could work, you could be a great blessing to him. But this is not so, neither has it been. You have not obtained those qualifications which it is essential that the wife of a chosen servant of God should have; and therefore you are unable to give spiritual help and wise counsel to your husband. By your words you have planted suspicion in his mind. You have suggested thoughts to him in reference to his brethren in the faith which he never would have [had], had you not suggested them to him. Thus seeds have been planted which were ready to spring into life at any favorable opportunity.

My sister, the transforming grace of Christ must be brought into your heart and mind. When the influence of this grace is seen in your life, you will no longer be a hindrance and a cause of temptation to your husband by bringing to his notice things which others have said and done, and which you think reflect upon his work in the ministry. Your pettish complaints of your brethren and sisters, the suggestions you make concerning them, are not of that character which encourages the Holy Spirit &lt;to preside with you.&gt; They do not stimulate the mind to right actions, but have a depressing influence upon it, and tend to pull it downward. [269]

At times brother McCullagh thinks that he will no longer entertain the wrong views he has received, but your words are as poison to his mind. The enemy continues to present your views of different matters, and Brother McCullagh decides, It is as my wife says. In turn, he thinks and talks evil of others; and by so doing eats fruit which has been plucked from the tree of knowledge forbidden by God.

The wife of one of our ministers kept her husband, who was a very sensitive-minded man, tortured by suggestions similar to those you have uttered. Upon the words and actions of others she cast untruthful suspicions, and presented her views in such a strong light that her husband thought that she possessed superior insight into character. The Lord gave me a message for this brother and sister, but neither of them received it. He thought that he was right in his belief that his wife possessed superior discernment, and he believed that her suggestions were perfectly true.

Any effort made to enlighten him, or to remove the wrong impressions he had received, were looked upon as a design to deceive him. And the unruly tongue of his wife was constantly at work. Any endeavor to save him from a breakdown was interpreted by her as a desire to put someone else in his place. His brethren worked with all their power to save him, but their plans were construed as deep-laid schemes set on foot to hurt his influence. Thus the work of God was counteracted by home influence.

I saw that God would take this matter into His hands, for nothing but the judgment of God could save the man or remove the blindness brought upon others by the wrong impressions given. All unexpectedly, Sister _____ was paralyzed. Her tongue was forever silenced; she was unable to speak more than a word or two. Today she is a helpless invalid, obliged to be lifted from place to place. She lives, but is as one dead, save that she is a burden and a care to those around her. Her mind, once active in creating distrust, is as the mind of a child. Thus a talent, which if rightly employed would have done good to the church and to the world, was laid in ruins. Both husband and wife are almost useless in the work of the Lord.

I write you these things to show you what one person may do when under the enemy’s training. We needed Bro. _____’s experience in the cause and work of God, and if he had allowed the Holy Spirit to influence him, he would have been a powerful instrument in God’s hand. But Satan triumphed, and his wife remains as a monument of God’s displeasure.

The spiritual and mental powers of Brother _____ should have been strong and vigorous. But they were not, for a cancer was eating away his spiritual life. When advice was given him by his brethren, advice which ought to have helped him, his suspicions were at once aroused; the leaven of distrust began to work. Suspecting that a design was on foot to damage his influence and to supplant him, he rejected counsel which should have been gratefully received. Those trying to help him were looked upon with distrust that has not a vestige of truth for foundation. The plans made to preserve him for the work and cause of God were criticized and looked upon as contrivances to keep him down. [270]

Neither he nor his wife accepted the principles of health reform, chiefly because of her insinuations and misinterpretations. Fully armed to resist light, he took open issue with Dr. Kellogg on the health question, turning to ridicule the reform diet. And both he and his wife used food which could not but bring disease to them.

It was decided that at a certain camp meeting, cheese should not be sold to those on the ground; but on coming to the ground, Dr. Kellogg found to his surprise that a large quantity of cheese had been purchased for sale at the grocery.

He and some others objected to this, but those in charge of the grocery said that the cheese had been bought with the consent of Brother _____, and that they could not afford to lose the money invested in it. Upon this, Dr. Kellogg asked the price of the cheese, and bought the whole of it from them. He had traced the matter from cause to effect, and knew that some foods generally thought to be wholesome, were very injurious.

But imagine the surprise of those who had studied the question of healthful living, to find their brethren working counter to right principles. Thus it was till the time of the General Conference at Minneapolis. We stood on the field of battle for nearly three years, but at that time decided changes took place among our people, and through the grace of God, we gained decided victories.

While in California, we went over the same ground with Elder E. P. Daniels. He was a powerful speaker, and to all appearances had a wonderful control over his congregations. His wife possessed unusual ability and influence, and both were in the employ of the conference, for her influence was fully equal to his. But their course of action was not in harmony with the principles of truth. At times Elder Daniels took his position strongly on the subject of health reform. But he was of a very nervous temperament, and when once he lost his hold of the right principles, he broke down every barrier and by his practice went contrary to that which he had strongly advocated in his teaching. His wife might have helped him much on this point, but she did not.

Reproofs and warnings were sent to both of them, and he always received them. His wife received them too, apparently, but still she continued to set her table as she chose, irrespective of principle. Their children grew up around them and they saw that their parents’ practice of truth was not in accordance with their profession. The mother furnished the table with food which gratified the appetite but which did not properly sustain life. The father was very liberal, too much so in some things, but he did not seem to realize that he must be governed by principle.

This indulgence and mismanagement led to sad results. For a time the father tried to maintain correct discipline, but the mother counteracted his work by acting contrary to his expressed requirements. Her children were indulged with the excuse that their father was too strict, too particular, and they were charged that he must know nothing about it. Thus the children were educated to deceive, in order that discipline might be prevented.

Today this family has no connection with the truth. Because of mismanagement, father, mother, and children are lost to the cause of God. With them, the reaping meant the sowing. [271]

Lt 69, 1896
“Sunnyside,” Cooranbong, Australia
July 11, 1896
To Brother McCullagh:

The foregoing [Lt 40, 1893] was written in Hastings. I intended to give it to you while at Ormondville, but did not do so, because I gave a discourse there in which I took up very plainly the principles stated in this letter. You both heard my words, spoken under the power of the Holy Spirit, and Sister McCullagh told me that she received this message as given to herself, for she needed it. She said that she had never seen the case presented in that light before, and that she would make a decided change in her course of action in regard to her child. But this work has been strangely neglected.

It is my first duty to present Bible principles. Then, unless there is a decided, conscientious reform made by those whose cases have been presented before me, I must appeal to them personally. I have often spoken in the presence of you both on these important subjects, but have never felt that the time had come for me to address you personally; for I could not be sure that you would understand the warning, and work diligently to reform, and I feared that you would both make a wrong use of the matter sent you.

All through my acquaintance with her, I have had a tender, heartfelt solicitude for Sister McCullagh. I have felt anxious to help her out of the rut in which she has been traveling, but this I have not been able to do. She has misrepresented and misinterpreted my words, and for her own sake, I cannot keep silent. I feel that the time has come for me to speak. When I heard of Brother McCullagh’s recent illness, I felt that I had a special work to do for Sister McCullagh, that I must open things before her. But I did not wish to bring any additional burden upon Brother McCullagh, for I knew that he could not bear it. He sees some errors in his wife’s methods, but he does not see that he is in danger himself because of her influence over him.

I shall come right to the point, for what I have to say must be said. Neither of you have walked in the light which has been given in regard to health reform. Sister McCullagh, you have evidenced that you were not susceptible to truth by disregarding these principles. You have not put yourself in the channel of light by placing yourself on the right side of the question, but by your course of action, you have tempted your husband to digress. His influence has not been sufficient to correct your wrong habits, but your influence has led him to disregard the principles of healthful living. It was your duty to walk in the light given you on this subject, but you have neglected to do so, and an improper, unhealthful preparation of food has been the result. [272]

The principles of health reform should be brought into the life of every Christian. Men and women who disregard these principles cannot offer to God a pure, vigorous devotion, for a dyspeptic stomach or a torpid liver make the religious life an uncertainty. Eating the flesh of dead animals has an injurious effect upon spirituality. When meat is made the staple article of food, the higher faculties are overborne by the lower passions. There things are an offense to God and are the cause of a decline in spiritual life. Keep out of the stomach everything that will disturb the digestive organs; discard all food that affords no nourishment for the system. I hope Sister McCullagh will feel her responsibility in this matter, and will do all she can to help her husband prolong his life by learning how to cook.

In no way, as a wife or a mother, could you have been more useful, my sister, than by preparing the food to be eaten in a healthful manner. But before your husband had time to learn what constituted health reform, you cast reproach upon its principles. By painstaking efforts you might have gained an education which would enable you to cook wholesome, nourishing food in a palatable manner, for health reform does not mean a poverty-stricken diet. But the articles of food which Brother McCullagh has been obliged to eat if he subsisted at all have been improperly prepared. You have put temptation in his way, and to this he owes a diseased and inflamed stomach which is always hankering for something which will remove the debility caused by indigestion.

The health is in no way improved by the use of those things which stimulate for a time, but afterwards cause a reaction which leaves the system lower than before. Tea and coffee whip up the flagging energies for the time being, but when their immediate influence has gone, a depression is the result. These beverages have no nourishment whatever in themselves. The milk and sugar it contains constitutes all the nourishment afforded by a cup of tea or coffee. Often tea that has been damaged is preserved by coloring it with that which contains poison, and in this way it is offered for sale. Can Sister McCullagh think that while she takes her case in her own hands, and continues to eat and drink as she pleases, putting temptation in her husband’s way by offering him tea as a refreshing beverage, that God will work a miracle to counteract the evil effects of this course of action?

After drinking a cup of tea, which she may call weak, Sister McCullagh feels stimulated, and in this frame of mind she says that which is unwise. Her conversation is not pure, for only those lips are without guile, only those words pure, that fulfill the requirements of the Lord, and He has told us to speak evil of no man. The voice and the tongue are designed by God to be a blessing to man, but when these precious, heaven-sent instruments are put to a wrong use, they do much harm.

For the Sabbath we should not prepare a more liberal supply or a greater variety of food. Instead of this, the food provided for that day should be more simple, and less should be eaten, in order that the head may be clear and the mind vigorous to comprehend spiritual things. Highly seasoned dishes hinder the entrance of truth, and overeating befogs the mind. The most precious words may be heard and not appreciated because the mind is confused and embarrassed by an improper diet. By overeating on the Sabbath, God’s people have done more to dishonor Him than they think. [273]

The true follower of God is temperate in all things. The principles of temperance are far-reaching, and there is danger that those who have received great light on this subject will fail to appreciate this light. God requires that his people living in these last days, overcome every hurtful practice, presenting their bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto him, that they may win a seat at his right hand. It is our duty to take ourselves in hand, and strive to bring our minds, our wills, and our tastes into conformity with the requirements of our Creator. The grace of God alone can enable us to do this; by its power our lives may be brought into harmony with right principles. We shall reap that which we sow, and only those who bring themselves into subjection to the will of God are truly wise.

Whatever we do in the line of eating and drinking should be done with the special purpose of nourishing the body, that we may serve God to His name’s glory. The whole body is the property of God, and we must give strict attention to our physical well-being, for the religious life is closely related to physical habits and practices. All we have and are belongs to God; all is His property, and should be used in His service. You must learn this lesson, my sister, before you can merit a place among the undefiled.

You have cherished wrong sentiments in your heart; you have thought, May I not do what I please with myself? Is not my body my own property? No; “ye are not your own.” You have been bought with a price, and you have obligations which you owe to God, to your family, and to those with whom you associate. Your course of action influences others, and for this reason your habits and practices must be carefully guarded. God claims your time; for it belongs to him. He demands that the words you speak shall honor and glorify him. He requires that your influence tell on the side of right.

The great Master-Artist alone is the rightful owner of the works of His hands. By creation and by redemption we are His. The very dust out of which we were formed is His production; and “hath not the potter power over the clay?” Rightfully, He claims our entire service. “What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost, which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price; therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.”

O the great tenderness and mercy of God! I would, my sister, that you had a deeper sense of your accountability to Him. If you do not reach a higher standard in the Christian life, you will do much harm as the wife of a minister of God. Naturally you are inclined to criticize, accuse, and pick at flaws. How much harm you have done in this respect, you cannot know; you have influenced your husband in such a way that he has taken wrong views of persons and their work, and has been disqualified for doing the work of the Lord as acceptably as he might have done. By precept and example you have planted seeds of bitterness which have sprung up and borne fruit after their own kind.

You cannot be too careful of what you say, for the words you utter show what power is controlling your mind and heart. If Christ rules in your heart, your words will reveal the purity, beauty, and fragrance of a character molded and fashioned by His will. But since his fall Satan has been an accuser of the brethren, and you must be on guard, lest you reveal the same spirit. [274]

The Lord demands that our words be of the very best quality; that our tongues be truthful at all times. Any vestige of prevarication is an offense to Him. Every word we speak needs the most careful consideration, lest it mislead those who are weak in the faith. From the light which God has given me, I know that by your unadvised words you have left wrong impressions on the minds of some in Sydney and suburbs, and much time will be needed to counteract the effects of these impressions. What you have thus expressed in words has not been true, but has been the result of your own imagination. No longer rely on a spurious spirituality. Consecrate yourself daily to God, and then you will believe the truth, and conscientiously talk and practice it.

Sister McCullagh, your management in the home is not good. The education you might have obtained in your youth you did not, which has been a great loss to you. I was led into your inner life from a child, and shown your past experience. In your childhood you were unwilling to receive a training in useful lines. You resisted the attempts made to teach you to study, sew, or do domestic work. Impatient of discipline and restraint, you resorted to any subterfuge that would free you from application. You misled your mother by statements that were not true, and thus gained your own way. The education that would have enabled you to stand at the head of a family you did not obtain, because you disliked to apply yourself to useful duties and avoided them all you could. Solid timbers were not brought into your character-building.

The spirit you revealed when a child was brought into your girlhood experience, and has been woven into your married life. The exertion disagreeable to you then is disagreeable to you now; and this has been a drawback to your spiritual advancement. The want of the education you should have obtained, has been keenly felt by yourself, your husband, and your child. You could have improved very much, by redeeming the past, had Bible truths been received into your heart and mind, and revealed in your daily practice; but this has not been the case; and your home duties have been hard for you.

It is all-important that a mother patiently instruct her child, that she may grow up with systematic habits and a knowledge of how to perform the daily duties which will always have to be done. The example set by the mother in this respect is powerful; be it right or wrong, it will be followed by the child. Had you submitted to discipline in your youth, had you obtained an education in economy and dispatch, you would find it much easier to train your daughter. She must be given the right kind of an education if you desire her to grow up into usefulness. Do not forget to give her a training in domestic work. Instruct her in the different lines of this work, in order that she may be a help to you and to those around her. It will be necessary to set apart some time for recreation; and this recreation should also be of that character which will educate her for usefulness. [275]

Your child has a nervous temperament, and her diet should be carefully guarded. She should not be allowed to choose that food which will gratify the taste without affording proper nourishment. Children are easily persuaded to indulge, and they should never be urged to eat a variety of food. Everything placed before them should tend to strengthen brain, bone, and muscle. Your daughter’s appetite must be regulated, for she has not been educated to eat only at the regular times. Hearty suppers should not be given her, then she will have an appetite for breakfast. Never let her go from home to school without her breakfast. Do not venture to give full scope to your inclinations in this matter. Place yourself entirely under the control of God, and He will help you to bring all your desires into harmony with His requirements.

My sister, you have a work to do which is not pleasant and agreeable if you would regain your lost influence over your child. You have not advanced with the developments of her mind. Be careful lest the mistakes of your childhood be repeated in her training. You have not always been truthful before her. Untrue statements have been made in her hearing, and being sharp and quick, she has seen this, and has followed in a similar course. You have prevaricated to her, and she has little respect for you or for your discernment.

You little know how many falsehoods your child has uttered, while looking directly in your face. To others you have said, “Christabel never told me a lie.” But this statement was a falsehood, and those who heard it know it to be so. At different times others have told you the truth concerning your child. But you looked in her face, saying, “Christabel never told me a falsehood. I will take her words before the statements of those who have told me different.”

My sister, can you be surprised that your daughter has little confidence in her mother’s word? You have educated her to be untruthful; and the Lord is grieved to see one of His little ones led in the wrong path by her mother. You child is not your own; you cannot do with her as you like, for she is the property of the Lord. Exercise a steady, persevering control over her; teach her that she belongs to God. With such a training, she will grow up to be a blessing to those around her. But clear, sharp discernment will be necessary, in order that you may repress her inclination to rule you both, to have her own will and way, and to do as she pleases.

Remember that in your child you have a pupil whose influence is far-reaching. And the influence she exerts upon those around her will either be elevating, purifying, and ennobling, or like a poisonous malaria.

Sister McCullagh, you need to be converted. Your religious experience must be of an entirely different character from what it has been in the past. It is time for you to gird up the loins of your mind and strive earnestly and sensibly, by the grace of God, to lead your child heavenward. Press forward against the powers of darkness. Carry forward your home government faithfully and conscientiously. Speak always in a calm, earnest voice, in which no trace of passion is expressed. Passion is not necessary to secure prompt obedience. A fitful government—at one time holding the lines firmly, and at another allowing that which has been condemned—is ruination to a child.

You have taken little interest in the light given in reference to the training of children; but it is not right for you to thus demerit your [276] responsibilities. You cannot be too careful how you train your child; for the instruction you give will influence her whole life. If in after years she gives her heart to the Lord, her religious experience will bear the mould of her home training. If this training has been defective, her spiritual life will be likewise marred and imperfect. [277]

My sister, you have a duty to perform toward your daughter. Her character must be molded and fashioned for the kingdom of God, and in this work you need the grace of Jesus Christ. A Christian mother will ever be wide awake to discern the dangers that surround her children. She will keep her own soul in a pure, holy atmosphere; she will regulate her temper and principles by the Word of God, and will faithfully do her duty, living above the petty temptations which will always assail her. Look well to the education you are giving your child, lest Satan take her out of your hands, and use her as an instrument with which to do his work. Maintain a faithful guard over her as one who rightly estimates the temptations which she must encounter.

You must awake if your child is spared to you. When you are really transformed in character, as you must be, you will see things in an entirely different light. Your mind will be purified, elevated, and cheered by a sense of the solemn, sacred responsibilities resting upon you; and you will earnestly strive to guide the footsteps of your daughter in the heavenly way.

Brother McCullagh, you have labored far beyond your strength. You treat yourself as though you were a horse, recklessly imperiling the life which God has given you by straining yourself to the utmost. You work till you are all tired out, and then you pity yourself, and reach out for sympathy. Brooding over this has done you no good. God does not require you to work till you have no strength to think rationally. You have injured your vital organs by using your voice improperly, by pitching it in too high a key. Less preaching and more Bible lessons would do much to preserve your health.

You have placed too high an estimate on your labors. Remember that your labors are of value with God only as you work the works of God. You have at times thought that no one could help the people but yourself, but for some time you have been sowing other than pure wheat. Seed has been sown which will bring forth tares. Suspicions have been aroused which have no true foundation. Your words and actions need to be closely guarded. Take more time to study the Word of God, that you may have food for the people that will nourish their souls.

When I am assured that the truth has been brought into your lives, my brother and sister, I shall take courage, and believe that God will work in your behalf by giving both of you mental, moral, and spiritual efficiency. Sister McCullagh will then have a greater desire for her own family to be true, and pure, and holy, and conscientious in all its practice. She will not shun the cross of temperance. She will cease sowing the seeds of doubt and distrust, and will work in harmony with the truth of God for this time.

For Christ’s sake, my brother and sister, heed the words which I have written, for it has cost me a great effort to write them. You have your destiny in your own hands; by your actions you can make or mar it. I tremble for you both, for you are subject to misconceptions. Never give others the impression that you think your brethren do not appreciate you. All such impressions are as the seeds of tares. Be careful never to drop the tiniest seed of doubt or distrust, for this will bring upon you the displeasure of God. [278]

In simple, humble faith cast your care upon Jesus, and you will have rest and peace. Abide under the shadow of the cross of the crucified Redeemer.

Banish ingratitude, for, if cherished, it will kill the love of God in your heart. Rest in the assurance that you are in the hands of God. He will take care of you. Can you not trust your life, your character, your all, in the hands of the faithful, loving Jehovah? It is His desire that you should both perfect a Christian character, and by yielding yourself into His keeping, you may be “complete in Him.” [279]

The following are Testimonies given to Brother and Sister Shannan and Brother Lawrence at this time:—

[280]

“Sunnyside,” Cooranbong, N.S. Wales, Dec. 26, ‘96
Brother and Sister Shannan: —

(43) Wherein did you practice the word of God when you made your home with Brother Prismall? Poor man, he has turned his face from Christ. The Lord has sent him reproofs, warning him not to pursue the course he has followed. His only hope is to come off the devil’s ground, and cease to be an accuser of the brethren. He thinks he has something to question and find fault within everything, and in every man’s teaching. In his eyes, no one is perfect. But he could give no greater evidence of his own perfection of character.

Read carefully the third chapter of James, and criticize yourself severely. “Do ye think that the Scripture saith in vain, The spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth to envy. But He giveth more grace. Wherefore He saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw nigh to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw nigh to God, and He will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded. Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He shall lift you up. Speak not evil one of another, (44) brethren. He that speaketh evil of his brother, and judgeth his brother, speaketh evil of the law, and judgeth the law: but if thou judge the law, thou art not a doer of the law, but a judge. There is one lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy: who art thou that judgest another?”

“Of these things put them in remembrance, charging them before the Lord that they strive about words to no profit, but to the subverting of the headers. Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” But shun profane and vain babblings for they will increase unto more ungodliness.” “wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; as obedient children not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance; but as He which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.”

Brother Prismall was given the privilege of building for time and for eternity on the right foundation, the one sure foundation. Had he built upon this foundation, laying stone upon stone in its proper place, the structure would have risen every day, growing in symmetry and beauty, until the purpose of God was fully accomplished, and the top stone brought forth with shoutings of grace, “We are laborers together with God; ye are God’s husbandry; ye are God’s building.” Thus it is said of all who build on Christ Jesus. Let those who have been given the opportunity and privilege of being living stones in the spiritual house, depart from all evil, and let them reveal to the (45) world the perfection of character which they expect others to reveal. Let them show that they are living stones, emitting light to all with whom they come in contact.

God has invited Brother Prismall to look upon Christ’s perfection of character, and by beholding become changed into His divine similitude, as all will who are built upon Him. Being built upon Christ means actual, personal contact with the Lord Jesus. This makes the human agent a living stone, and imparts to it a lustre which has the power of emitting light and attracting others to the great center. “Ye also, as lively (living) [281] stone, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood.”

The Lord pointed out the perils in the life of Brother Prismall, and his defective character. But Brother and Sister Shannan poured out to him their grievances, and stated falsely that matters were going all wrong on the school ground. They said that those at work there, were doing everything wrong, and that they (Brother and Sister Shannan) had no confidence in them. Thus, because Brother and Sister Shannan did not practice the word of God, the seeds of bitterness were planted. “Wherefore lift up the hands that hang down,” the word of God enjoins, “and the feeble knees; and make straight paths for your feet; lest that which is lame be turned out of the way; but let it rather be healed. Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord: looking diligently, lest any fail from the grace of God, lest any root of bitterness bringing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled.”

Brother Shanna, in Brother Prismall you saw a man who had not accepted the light, who had not heeded the warnings given. (46) As a faithful agent, he was working out the will of the enemy. He has not a vital connection with God, and he has refused everything that in his estimation was not perfect. By his actions he has showed that were he in the place of God, he would have blotted from the universe all men as imperfect as himself, all men defective in doing that work for which they were appointed,—to love God supremely and their neighbor as themselves.

A lawyer came to Christ, saying, “What shall I do to inherit eternal life?” The scribes and Pharisees were listening as spies and criticizers, seeking to catch some words by which they might accuse Him whose appointed work was to bring life and immortality to light. This lawyer had been put forward by the scribes and Pharisees to tempt Christ to speak words that they could use against Him. Christ, who reads every heart as an open book, knew the thoughts lurking there. He gave the lawyer the privilege of answering his own question. “What is written in the law? how readest thou?” he said. The scribes and Pharisees who were seeking to entrap Christ, were great sticklers for the law, although they did not keep it, either in spirit of letter. The lawyer answering said, “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbor as thyself.” Christ replied, “Thou hast answered right; this do, and thou shalt live.”

The lawyer, willing to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” Jesus then related an incident that had recently taken place. A certain man, going from Jerusalem to Jericho, had fallen among thieves, who stripped him of his (47) raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.” A priest passing by saw this man in distressing need of a friend, but he did not desire the trouble of caring for him. A Levite also came and looked on him, but the care of the sick man was too much trouble for him to undertake, and he “passed by on the other side.” But a Samaritan found the wounded man, and had compassion on him. He did not pass by and leave him in his helpless misery; he did the work which the others were unwilling to undertake. The Samaritans were excommunicated by the Jews, and were made a byword; yet one of this class did the work which the priest and Levite refused to do.

The lawyer had asked, “Who is my neighbor?” and Jesus made the lawyer again answer his own question. “Which of these three was his neighbor unto him which fell among the thieves?” he asked. “He that shewed mercy on him,” the lawyer replied. By his answer layer condemned [282] not only the course of the scribes and Pharisees, but his own practice. He would not say, “The Samaritan,” but, “He that shewed mercy on him.” “Go thou,” said Christ, “and do likewise.”

O what principles are here laid down. What matchless teaching is given, what lessons are immortalized. These words have opened rivers in the wilderness and streams in the desert; they have laid the foundation for hospitals and sanitariums. This teaching defines the true spirit that magnifies the law and fulfills it by perfect obedience. It shows that the law of God is a law of love.

The selfish priest and Levite represent a class who disobey the law of God, who do not love God supremely, or their neighbor as themselves. Of this class the prophet declared, “The (48) diseased have ye not strengthened, neither have ye healed that which was sick, neither have ye bound up that which was broken, neither have be brought again that which was driven away, neither have ye sought again that which was lost; but with force and cruelty have ye ruled them.” This answers to the work that some in their blindness and cruelty have been doing.

The lesson that the Lord would have his people learn is that they must do the work appointed them of God; they must keep his commandments. The Lord gave Brother Shannan opportunity to do the work appointed him, to overcome his hereditary and cultivated tendencies to wrong; but he exalted himself as superior to his brethren and sisters. He demeritted others who were doing the work, not always, it may be, perfectly, but whose aim and desire it was to do service for God. Brother Shannan could have done the work appointed him as an intelligent Christian gentleman. He could have put himself on an equality with his brethren, counselling with them, exercising his God-given wisdom and ability, and speaking wise words, in season and out of season, to those who needed them. But Brother Shannan did not do this work. He allowed jealousy and suspicious thoughts to come in; and in this he showed that he did not love God supremely and therefore could not love his neighbor as himself.

No human being on the school ground in Cooranbong is faultless and incapable of making mistakes; no one is unerring in judgment. For this reason each one need to talk less of the mistakes of others, and to pray a great deal more. Any who come here to live, or to engage in the work essential to be done, who will be so unkind and so unchristian as to allow their self-esteem (49) and self-sufficiency to lead them to criticize their brethren and their work, might better go away. Had you occupied the position of these men whom you criticized so severely, you would not have done the work any more perfectly. It is much easier to tear the work of others to pieces than to show that had you occupied their place you would have done better work or even as good. The men working on the school ground have had to move under straightened circumstances. They have been almost destitute of means. They have tried to save money. Had they had means, they could have taken advantage of circumstances and saved something. Then they would have had more to show than they now have. But it is impossible for critics to tell justly what might have been done, and how much better it would have been had certain things been left undone.

Aftersight will sometimes reveal the mistakes of foresight. This has frequently been the case in the experience of those considered to be men of wise judgment. But the aftersight has the advantage of an experience which the foresight cannot have; and who shall be censured? Who shall tear to pieces another man’s work? Since the workmen have finished the building on my place, I have not allowed myself to complain to this one and another one, notwithstanding my aftersight has given me an experience which I would not repeat should I have another building put [283] up. Old as I am, I have learned lessons that I will not have to learn again. Do you think, Brother Shannan that no criticism could be made of the work appointed you to do? Do you think all your management was without a flaw? But shall we spend our time and strength trying to hunt up every little thing that we think might be improved, and expatiate upon them? No, were I to do this, I would not improve the matter, and I (50) would hurt my own soul.

Brother Shannan, you have done a work in Cooranbong, and Melbourne, which, when your eyes shall be anointed with the heavenly eye salve, you will wish you had not done. You have felt at liberty to carry to Melbourne salted down grievances, your evil thinking, and evil speaking; and because you have not been favored as you thought you should be, you have criticized your brethren unmercifully, and in a most unchristian, unbrotherly manner. Read Hebrews 12:12-15.

You have been counterworking the work of God. I am sorry that while on this ground you were not the right kind of brother and neighbor. The same unkind work of criticizing and accusing that you set in operation in Hobart, and which the Lord revealed to me had done great injury to the work there, has been repeated here. You have made sharp criticisms and overbearing denunciations, so that the lame have been turned out of the way, and souls that can never be recovered have been driven on to the enemy’s battle ground. I had so hoped that the rich opportunities of light and knowledge which were granted you here in Cooranbong, would have helped you to do the work appointed you of God.

The condition of some souls in Melbourne at the present time is lamentable. There are scavengers in the church, who gather up little things, talking of them, and feeding on them. The leaven of criticism has been introduced by you, and unrighteous denunciations have been pronounced against God’s people, because you were not favored as you thought you ought to be. Your representations have been received by prejudiced minds. What a work will have to be done to correct this work of unrighteousness, (51) to destroy the leaven of evil which you have put into the minds and hearts of others. In doing this work, you have hurt yourself, and you have hurt poor, weak, spiritually crippled souls.

The Lord did not inspire you to do the work which you did in Melbourne. You worked directly contrary to the word of God. You counteracted the work the Lord has given me to do—to set things in order. The influence of your misrepresentations of men and things in Cooranbong has been positively working in an opposite direction to the work which we have been called upon to do. Why did you do this? Because your natural feelings obtained the supremacy, irrespective of a plain “Thus saith the Lord.” O how sorry I am for you, and for Jesus Christ, who has purchased at an infinite cost the human agents he has appointed to do the work in Cooranbong. How sorry I am for those into whose minds you have introduced the leaven of evil. This leaven has worked, absorbing to itself the sentiments upheld by you, and these sentiments have been passed on to others.

No man, high or low, experienced or inexperienced, can steadily maintain before his fellow men, a pure, forceful life unless his life is hid with Christ in God. The fruit borne by the tree testifies to the character of the tree. The greater the activity among men, the closer should be the communion of the heart with God. When men fall into sin, it is commonly because of unsuspected weakness. When they stand in humility, in constant distrust of self, and make God their trust, grace and strength is given them by God.

Brother and Sister Shannan, the Lord is grieved with you. You could have done good missionary work in Melbourne had you gone from Cooranbong with the right spirit. But your words of (52) evil, your expressions of [284] distrust, your sweeping assertions against Cooranbong, were unjust and false. How much hard labor will be required to counteract the evil you have done. Should other criticize your course, and talk over and magnify your actions, they would have fully as much justice on their side as you have had on yours when you have accused them. God alone reads the intents and purposes of the heart.

In locating the school buildings in Cooranbong, we have moved under the leading of God. Had those who have come here more earnest love for Jesus, they would have come here more earnest love for Jesus, they would have shown love for one another, that the world might have had the infallible evidence that God had sent His Son into the world. “By this shall all men known that ye are my disciples,” Christ said, “if ye have love one for another.” Until Christ’s representatives are imbued with the spirit of the Great Teacher, there will be an abundance of that inner, secret skepticism, which shuts the human heart against truth and against God. This is the leaven hidden in the meal, which permeates the whole mass.

My brother, your inconsistent course in Cooranbong and Melbourne, which has counteracted the work that has been done with painful, self-sacrificing effort, will bear its testimony in the judgment. God will never honor the church with complete success until its members shall come into conformity to His will.

Brother Prismall has virtually said, I am prevented from being a Christian by seeing so many faults in the church members. My standard of Christian character is very high, but I cannot see anyone who reaches it. My brother, who has given you the right to measure the characters of your fellow men. Judgment has been given only to Christ. He has lived humanity, and (53) He alone can understand human weakness and human striving to attain to Christian perfection. We must admit that there are counterfeit Christians in every church. But the tares and the wheat must grow together until the harvest.

“The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field: but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. But when the blade was sprung up and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. So the servants of the householder came unto him and said, ‘Sir, didst thou not sow good seed in thy field? From whence then hath it tares?’ He said unto them, ‘An enemy hath done this.’ The servants said unto him, ‘Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up.’ But he said, ‘Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest; and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, ‘Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them; but gather the wheat into my barn.’”

“His disciples came unto him saying, ‘Declare unto us the parable of the tares of the field.’ He answered, and said unto them, ‘He that soweth the good seed is the Son of Man: the field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom, and the tares are the children of the wicked one; the enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels. As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so shall it be in the end of the world. The Son of man shall send forth His angels and they shall gather out of His kingdom all things that do offend, and them which do iniquity; and shall cast them into a furnace (54) of fire; there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. Then shall the righteous shin forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.” [285]

Here we see that the church militant is not the church triumphant. The church today is composed of wheat and tares. Not all who claim to be sons and daughters of God are this in truth. But the work is not given to any finite being. Read carefully Rom. 2:1-11.

The Lord has presented the spiritual condition of certain individuals before me. He has presented general principles that all the church might be benefitted. But to some he has come personally, seeking to bring them into vital connection with Himself. He has given them reproofs and warnings, mercifully presenting before them their defects of character, telling them what they must do and what they must be in order to be saved. Some have taken heed. They have made every effort to obey, and the Lord has blessed and honored them. But the spirit of criticism has been the meat and drink of others. The defective members of the church have been their themes of conversation. It has become habitual for them to see evil and talk of evil.

It is a lamentable fact that there are tares, counterfeit Christians in the church. But because of this, will you look at them, and feed on their defective characters? If you do, you too will be ranked among the tares. Christ is the only perfect pattern of Christianity. Let us hear what He says, “I am the bread of life; he that cometh to Me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.” “I am that (55) living Bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live forever; and the bread which I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.” “Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink His blood, ye have no life you. Whoso eateth My flesh and drinketh My blood, hath eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For My flesh is meat indeed, and My blood is drink indeed.” The same principles are expressed in John 15. The explanation of this is given. “It is the Spirit that quickeneth, the flesh profiteth nothing; the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.”

It is the privilege of all to feed on Christ. They need not feed on the real or supposed faults of their brethren. If they do, they will have a false Christian experience themselves, because they will be contentious, and will not obey the truth, but will obey righteousness. Jesus Christ is to be your theme of conversation. He is the sin-bearer. The Lord has not made Brother or Sister Shannan, or Brother Muckersey, or Brother Smith, or Brother Prismall, or any of the brothers or sisters in the North Fitzroy church, sin-bearers. Christ, the Sin- bearer must take away their sins, or they will perish miserably.

Christ never ordained that man should look to man, and make the defective characters of man a cause of stumbling or an excuse for imperfection. God commands every soul to repent of his own sins, confess his own sins, and be contrite of heart because of his own imperfections of character. Christianity is a divine system of religion. The Bible is the code of conduct for everyone.

(56) No one can come to God through any other man. God commands men to repent of their sins, and come to Him just as they are, all covered with sin and pollution. They are to receive His crucified, only begotten Son into their hearts, and be one with Him as He is one with the Father. It is the privilege of everyone who is weary and heavy laden to come to Christ. “Take My yoke upon you,” He says, “and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart; and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light.”

When Brother Prismall shall fall upon the rock Christ Jesus, then the Lord can restore the moral image of God in him. But, my brother, you have an unsubdued heart. You have practically said, I will not perform my [286] duty to God and to my fellow men until the tares are rooted out of the church. Because of counterfeit professors, you refuse allegiance to God and to His commandments. But will another man’s disloyalty to God help your soul, if you refuse to be loyal. The defects of professed Christians are no excuse for you to sin, and they will be no protection to you. O how foolish are men’s subterfuges to screen themselves.

Christ’s invitation is made to you personally. You must take Him as your personal Saviour, or you are lost, eternally lost. God has claims upon you, and these claims are made without consideration of any other person’s perfections or imperfections. Brother Prismall, you have a soul to save, or a soul to lose, just as though you were the only person in existence. The question of the salvation of your soul is a matter between you and your God. Turn away from the short-comings of your brethren and sisters. You have an individual case pending in the courts of heaven. Have (57) you secured the Advocate to plead for you?

The arch Adversary is cheating your soul out of peace and hope and faith and joy in Jesus Christ. If you lose heaven, it will be because you have been determined to have your own way at all hazards. If you would look at yourself with one half the keenness that you look at the motives and actions of others, you would be filled with terror, and you would cry out, “What must I do to be saved?” Cast your helpless soul on Christ, and become, as it were, a little child. When tempted to criticize, seal your lips. Utter not a word until you ask God to strengthen you and help you by His grace. O it is such a terrible thing to use the voice and tongue wrongly. These talents were given us by God to be used only to His glory.

On your family you need to cultivate patience. Put yourself under the control of God; submit your will to the will of God, and then you will live to do God’s service. Commence now. Fall upon the rock, and be broken. Let Jesus put his signature upon you. Then you will rejoice in the Lord always. “Let your moderation be known unto all men; the Lord is at hand. Be careful for nothing, but in everything with prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.” Tell all your troubles to the One who best knows how to help you. Rest your case in His hands, and believe that He hears your simple, heartfelt prayers. “And the peace of God which passeth all understand shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” You need this peace; for you are very easily disturbed. You are educating yourself in this direction. But the peace of God, which comes through entire service to Him, will give you strength of nerve and brain. You will no longer be as you (58) have been represented to me,— taking no genuine comfort in yourself, and giving no comfort to those around you.

“Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. These things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard and seen in me, do; and the God of peace shall be in you.” Take heed to these words.

I do not want you to put this aside. I will again send you the communication which I sent you more than one year ago, and will ask if you received it. I dreamed that I asked you if you had received this letter, and you were very positive that you had not. This leads me to send it to you again, hoping that you will receive it.

I have been commissioned to write to you since it has been shown me that you and Brother Shanna have united in the work of acute criticism, which you have been doing for a long time; yes, during the whole of your [287] lifetime. My brother, the humanity shown in the life of Christ must be shown in your life. Yield up your will to God, and He will deliver from you the thralldom of sin. He will arouse the spiritual nature, which you have neglected to keep alive. He will quicken your conscience, and bring you under the control of Christ. Living by faith and hope in Christ will satisfy the demands of a genuine humanity. Human nature can only be perfected by education, and this education can be obtained in the school of Christ. He is the greatest Teacher the world has ever known.

You have lost time, you have lost moral power, because (58) the food you have given your mind has been the criticism of others. Be more concerned about your own personal relation to the kingdom of God than about expressing your disgust at other persons. Many are just as disgusted with you as you are with those you criticize, accuse, and condemn. Have you not served the enemy long enough in this line? Christ calls to you, “Follow Me, and you shall not walk in darkness.”

Christ not only uttered precepts, but He illuminated these precepts by His life. He has been, in humanity, that which He enjoins every individual to be. This they can and will be if they join themselves to Christ. We are not to demand that we be ministered unto, but we are to minister. See what you can do to make others happy. Lighten the sorrows, and relieve the distress of others. Let not your eager watchful eye be ever looking for something to charge against others. Our love toward men is to be like the Lord’s. You can carry the needs and sorrows of men in your mind. When you have the mind of Christ, you will not feed upon the garbage of their fruits and mistakes, but you will seek to help them. God would awaken in you a desire to think of others without despising their ways and manners. You are very far from perfect; but does God despise you? No; he is grieved with your course of action, yet He invites you as a sinner to come to Him, and let Him take away your sins, your harshness, your exaggerated expressions, your accusing power.

Satan has used you for a long time as his agent in this line, and will you not now step close to the bleeding side of Jesus? I tell that you have no time to lose. Christ sets before you a perfect example. Will you consider this? Will you behold this? Will you talk of the perfection of Jesus Christ? On (60) our behalf He surrendered case, supremacy, honor, riches. For our sakes He became poor, that we through His poverty might be made rich. He submitted to suffering, stepping down still lower even after He had accepted humanity; He bore insult, mocker, and the most cruel death to save you and me. “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus.” Use your voice for the rest of life to talk of the matchless depths of a Saviour’s love. Let not one word of evil speaking be expressed toward your brethren. God has not given you this work to do. You may feel all the disgust you please at the way you have used your tongue in the past; for you have dishonored God and the truth. Give expression to the love you have for the perfect character of Christ. All His teachings are invested with a beauty that charms the mind. His words breathe the inspiration of truth, and are weighted with eternal wisdom. Talk of the perfection of Christ, until you become inspired with His loveliness of character. To see Christ is to see the Father.

The more you dwell upon Christ, and the less you exalt self, the more you will see to love and admire in Christ. He took our infirmities, and carried our sickness. He was the Majesty of heaven, the high and exalted One; but He came to earth in human disguise. He never shrank from actual contact with man, nor required others to do the work from which His taste revolted. He never made the ignorance of human beings the subject of conversation. He went about doing good. His life was spent in purposes of holiness. His refinement never shut Him away from the lowly [288] and the ignorant. He was not the One to tear to pieces and destroy; but he sought to restore the moral image of God in man by lessons and practice.

(61) This is your work. Do, I beseech of you, change square about. In view of the love of Christ for humanity, take up the cross, deny self, live the life of a Christian. Then you will strive for a pure and holy heaven. Let it be your highest aim to become Christlike. When anyone comes to you with their burden of criticism, refuse to take up a reproach against your neighbor. Tell them that your eyes take up a reproach against your neighbor. Tell them that your eyes are fixed upon the author and finisher of your faith. If you love pure and perfect things, seek for them where they can be found. Manifest refinement in the words, in spirit, and in character. Love all men as brethren. Christ’s character formed within you to aim for sanctified humanity.

Our education is incomplete whatever ideas we may have of grace and refinement, unless we are learning to be complete in Christ. God has not given us any sinful human being as our model. He has given us His only begotten Son as our sample of character. And when we have the perfect patter to follow, if we do not represent Christ, we do our heavenly Father great dishonor. By devoting out thoughts and out tongues to the defects of professed Christians, we manifest the attributes of Satan.

Christ has specified what kind of fruit will always grow on Christian tree. “Beware of false prophets, which comes to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. (They surmise evil; they tear character in pieces) Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns? or figs of thistles? Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit, but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit; neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is (62) hewn down, and cast into the fire. Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.”

What kind of fruit is brought forth from the mind and heart that takes the supposed evil deeds of his neighbors for the subject of his medication and conversation. Evil speaking is condemned by the Lord Jesus. To unsettle the confidence of brother in brother is a most contemptible work, and should not be tolerated in those who claim to be Christians any more than taking the Lord’s name in vain; for every word of accusing is as the sin of swearing. “If any man among you seem to religious, and bridle not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man’s religion is vain. Pure religion before God and the Father is this, to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.” “Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers. And grieve not the holy Spirit of God whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamor, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malic. And be ye kind one to another, tender hearted, forgiving one another; even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.”

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, meekness, faith, temperance; against such there is no law. They that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh, with the affection and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another.” “Be not deceived; God is not mocked; for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to the (63) flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. Let us not be weary [289] in well-doing; for in due season we shall reap if we faint not. As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them that are of the household of faith.

Here is a specification traced by the pen of inspiration of the character which every follower of Christ will reveal. It denotes not simply a character which centers and terminates in itself, ourselves, but a loving, unselfish, generous regard for others. There are those who live, and breathe, and act for self. Such will never perfect a character after the divine similitude. Grace and refinement after Christ’s order will never be revealed in the character as long as self is considered the supreme object. Humanity after the divine pattern will renew the spirit which renders us human in all our life practice. The man that studies Jesus, and aims to reach his faultless character, will not ignore his relationship to humanity; for humanity in the full acceptation of the term, will regard all men as brethren, with similar God-given abilities, aspirations, capacities, and in similar need of help. Minister to one another; for happiness brought into the lives of others brings happiness to every soul who does this loving, unselfish work.

In humanity is the opposite of this. Man may have grand notions and wonderful ideas. He may have knowledge, but without love to his fellow man, he is a sounding brass, and a tinkling cymbal. Any harshness, injustice, or cruelty manifested in spirit or in words, any commands or injunctions, savoring of an overbearing and dictatorial spirit, is sinful; it is man’s inhumanity. All who are imbued with the spirit of Christ will (64) build on Christ, the only true foundation of righteous humanity will communicate with humanity, having a true sense of human brotherhood, a true love for man. God has paid an infinite price for man, in that while he was dead in trespasses and sins, He gave his life a ransom for his redemption, without distinction of rank, relationship, race, or knowledge. And as man shows respect for his fellow man, he shows his respect for the One who placed such a high estimate on man.

The Lord God made man capable, giving him all the qualifications, that through the merits of Jesus Christ he could obtain victories, which would exalt him as a child of God, to win the immortal crown that fadeth not away. Any man who shall demerit his fellow man, and place himself as a hindrance to his winning the immortal crown, will receive according to his work. The outward appearance may be forbidding; but if with one hand he reaches forth to grasp his fellow brother’s hand, while by faith he lays hold of the hand of Christ, what may he not accomplish?

The one who sees the value of Christ’s character is to reveal that character. Husband and wife each have a personality, as far as the salvation of their souls is concerned. The individuality of the husband cannot be submerged in that of the wife or of the individuality of the wife in the husband. Each individual life is God’s personal property, and while they do their utmost to help one another heavenward, not one principles in the teachings of Christ is to be ignored. We are Christ’s purchased possession, to do his work on the earth.

Christ was the greatest Teacher the world has ever known. Was there ever a man that could find any defects, in speech, (65) or in character in Him? And if not, it is safe to practice that humanity which you know to be perfect. Then you will sympathize with the One who desires to make you a partaker of the divine nature, to clothe you with His power. No man is to be permitted to interpose between Christ and our souls.

The spell of a stronger and a perfect mind will be over us if we have a living connection with the source of all-enduring strength. And gratitude must needs be expressed for these continued mercies. In our divine life we shall be brought into captivity to Jesus Christ. We no [290] longer live the common life of selfishness, for Christ lives in us. His character is reproduced in our nature. Then the bitter, poisonous plant of selfishness will be uprooted. Tender feelings, full of sympathy for the erring, takes possession of the man or woman who has fallen on the Rock and been broken. It becomes a delight to do all his commandments. The tree must be made good in order that the fruit may be good.

Man is of more value in the sight of heaven than he realizes. A sense of his responsibility as a possessor of humanity after the perfection of the similitude of Christ in human nature will make man understand as he has not before done, the truth of the words, “Ye are not your own; for ye are bought with a price; therefore glorify God (not yourself) in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.” “I will make a man (if he will use the talents entrusted to him by God) more precious than fine gold; even a man than the golden wedge of Ophir.”

Here, my brother, you can see your accountability and responsibility. You cannot be a Christian and despise one of those with whom Christ associated. Your fellow man may be (66) weak in knowledge, he may be sinful; but with association with Christ, even though poor and degraded, he may be uplifted. Christ was divinity in human form. He assumed humanity that He might uplift man. Did He not love man in that He gave Himself to ransom him? Then shall man speak of his fellow man with scorn? Shall he lift up his soul unto vanity?

You could have been a real blessing, my brother, in the church, if you had placed yourself under the control of God. The cross of Calvary reveals Christ’s redeeming work, and this has invested humanity with great possibilities, even eternal life in the kingdom of God. The infinite sacrifice made for you and me should call us to our duty. The incarnation of Christ, His death, and His resurrection, are subjects upon which you should converse. They will close your lips, so that you will not help Satan in his work, as an accuser of the brethren. The Lord’s estimate of man, shown by the price He has paid for him, warns everyone off the accuser’s ground. Christ was not ashamed to assume our nature, and to submit to its liabilities. Then let each appreciate himself. I call upon you in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth to come out from the world and be separate. Now is the time for you to make your calling and election sure. May the Lord bless you, and incline your heart to honor Him by true service, is my prayer. [291]

Remarks made by Sister White at a Counsel Meeting

Held Jan. 17, 1897.

(67) The meeting I had with Brother Lawrence on Friday was very encouraging to me. I felt that the Lord had been working. I saw that an opening had been made. If Brother Lawrence would consent to have his avaricious spirit killed, if he would commence to work as God would have him, God would work with him, and use him. Brother Lawrence said that he wished this work to go deep; he wanted everything that was hindering him to be taken out of the way. This is the position that everyone of us should take. We should desire that everything hindering our spiritual advancement be removed.

I have heard something in regard to the sale of a horse by the Board to Brother Lawrence. The facts in reference to it were laid before me. I thought that we had better have this matter understood, so that it could be put right; for Brother Hare must give an account of this horse and his disposition of it. I must say I am very much astonished at the way this matter has been managed. I do not think Brother Hare can render a very good account. I want the matter presented so we can understand it.

(68) A statement made by Brother Hare in regard to the sale of the horse was then read, after which Sister White said,

“This matter should be straightened out. We want Brother Lawrence to go free. In his blindness, Brother Lawrence has looked only to himself, studied himself, figured for himself. There ought to be a change in this respect. I am glad Brother Lawrence has paid Brother McCann; it was right and just to do this. I am glad that he has turned the cow over to the school; under the circumstances it seems the right thing to do. Now we want to understand about the horse trade; for from the light I have received it has been next to an impossibility for Brother Lawrence to purchase anything unless it was cut down to the lowest figure, while, if he wished to sell anything, he wanted the highest price that he could get. He has educated himself in these lines; but they are not right lines.

The principles Brother Lawrence has followed are wrong from the very beginning, and it is going to be as hard as death for him to change his practice of accepting articles at the lowest price and selling them again at the highest figure. But unless it is given up, this practice will draw up from his spiritual life every particle of sap and nourishment. And if he ever recovers, it will be only by the help of God.

No matter what the transaction was, it was right for Brother Lawrence to refuse to accept the terms, when he saw that he was taking too much from the school. No matter who made the arrangements, Brother White or Brother Hare, if Brother Lawrence’s vision had been clear, he would have seen that they were cheating themselves. Suppose I enter into a business transaction with Brother Hare. I do not clearly understand the matter, but (69) after it is explained to me, I accept his terms. Afterwards Brother Hare sees that I am being wronged by this transaction. It is his place to come and explain the matter to me, that I may not cheat myself. Brother Lawrence knows very little of the true missionary spirit, although he came here that his influence might help upbuild the cause and work of God. His course has been a terrible disappointment. If he had been a faithful steward, when matters were being arranged for the sale of the horse, he would have gone to his brethren and said, You are cheating yourselves, and robbing the cause of God. I do not want you to do this. Had he done this, he would have raised himself in the estimation of God, who has said, “I will make a man more precious than gold; even a man than the golden wedge of Ophir.” [292]

From the pillar of cloud the Saviour instructed Moses in the principles that should guide his people. We must study these principles; for they apply to us just as surely as they applied to the children of Israel. We are called the Israel of God, and we should follow closely the teaching of Christ in regard to our conduct toward one another; for we shall one day have to meet face to face the One who laid down these principles. By giving his life for the world Christ shows that he places a high value upon human beings; when we deal with our fellow men we must bear in mind that we are dealing with Christ’s property.

W.C. White seemed to think that we should do all we could to keep Brother Lawrence at Avondale; because, if he went away dissatisfied, his influence would hurt the work. This matter was opened before me. I saw the past, the present, and the future as plainly as if it had been written in a book. I know that (70) all has been done that should be done to keep Brother Lawrence here, and keep him satisfied. I know that God does not approve of it. You are encouraging him in selfishness, which God despises. Not until Brother Lawrence is willing to crucify his avaricious spirit, not until he refuses to accept the temptations of Satan, and drops his covetousness as he would drop a serpent that was stinging him to death, can God work through him or his course be pleasing to the Lord.”

It has been opened plainly before me that Brother Lawrence thinks his labors of more value than they are. He places too high an estimate on his labors; for he cannot accomplish the work that he supposes. A younger man could come and do as much and harder work for less wages. When a man gets beyond the prime of life he cannot do the work he could do when he was younger, and therefore it is not right for such a man to demand such high wages. Because brother Lawrence could not have what he supposed was his right, he sat for weeks and weeks on the enemy’s idle stool, tempting the devil to tempt him, by filling his mind with conjectures and doubts, and counting as an offence those things that were no offence at all. Brother Shanna would never have taken the position he has unless others had set the example of idleness.

Brother Lawrence said he wants this work to go deep, and, as one of God’s children, I felt that this matter must be taken hold of. He must see his transaction as it really is. Not for the value of the horse; no; no; but for the value of his own soul; for the value of correct principles; for the value of the right that must be seen and understood. I have tried to present before our people how we should deal with one another; and if ever God helped me, He helped me when I spoke to the students in the Hotel, and tried to present Christian principles. “Ye are laborers together with God.” If we profess to be laborers together with God, and yet do not deal with strict rectitude towards one another, the Lord does not acknowledge us as His children.

Brother Lawrence, I love your soul, and I want you to be saved. I desire to see the qualities that have been buried beneath the rubbish, brought to the surface. I hope this may be done. Your soul is too precious to be trifled with. You cannot afford to sell it for a mess of pottage. I speak not because of this particular transaction, but because of the principles that involves. Heaven is worth something to us, and if it is worth anything, it is worth everything. Christ died for your soul, Brother Lawrence. He has purchased it at an infinite cost—the blood of the Son of God—and God would have you center your life in Jesus. I know it is a case of life or death with you. The money involved in the sale of the horse is not straw in comparison with the eternal result. We shall sow what we reap. The reaping time is coming; we want to be prepared for it. [293]

“And Jesus entered, and passed through Jericho. And, behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus, who was chief among the publicans, and he was rich. And he sought to see Jesus who he was, and could not because of the press, because he was little of stature. And he ran before, and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see Him; for He was to pass that way. And when Jesus came to the place, He looked up and saw him, and said unto him, Zacchaeus, make haste, and come down; for today I must abide at thy house...

(72) … And Zacchaeus stood, and said unto the Lord, Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor; and if I have taken anything from any man by false accusation, I restore him fourfold.”

I desire that Brother Lawrence shall know what the blessing of the Lord is. I hope that when he sees anything that is hindering his Christian advancement, he will take it out of the way. Let us be Christians in every sense of the word, and the blessing of the Lord will rest upon us. I would give more for the blessing of God than for this house full of gold. In every transaction with our fellow-men, we should ask ourselves the question, “Am I doing as I would be done by? Would I feel that my action was right were I in my neighbor’s place.” The enemy strives to lead us to indulge our natural temperaments, but we are to conquer in the name of Christ. Our souls must be clean in the sight of God. It is only by standing on the Lord’s side that we can do the Lord’s work. If we are not on his side, we must be aiding the enemy. It is only as we have the mind of Christ that we can reveal Christ.

The great point that we should keep always before our mind is that those who are in connection with this work must manifest a spirit of sacrifice. If we come here, desiring to receive all we can for ourselves, we might better stay away. It is not the right spirit to manifest; it will eat away all the missionary spirit. It is God’s design that the school shall be established here, and he desires us to cooperate with Him by working unselfishly for His cause. Those who are here to grasp everything they can get, even though the interests of the school suffer, should go away. God cannot use them. He calls for workers who are willing to deny themselves, who will take up (73) their cross daily and follow Him. “We are laborers together with God; ye are God’s husbandry; ye are God’s building.” God longs to see us manifest the spirit of sacrifice, wearing Christ’s yoke, and working as He worked. [294]

(74) Testimony to Brethren Shannan

[295]

Lt 110, 1897
“Sunnyside,” Cooranbong, New South Wales, Australia
February 5, 1897
Brother Shannon:

At eleven o’clock, p.m. Friday night, I am aroused to write out things which I dare not withhold. Sleep has passed from my eyes, and slumber from my eyelids.

The Lord gave Abraham a lesson terrible in its significance. This lesson has been immortalized on the pages of sacred history, that from age to age all may learn that the Lord who gave, can also take away; that all is His.

In a vision of the night, in his home in Beer-sheba, when he was one hundred and twenty years old, Abraham received the startling command, “Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah, and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.” His son, his only son, the son of promise, to be sacrificed. There was no more sleep for Abraham that night. The voice had spoken only to him and had been heard only by him. God had promised him that his name was to be perpetuated in Isaac, but here was a severe trial of his faith.

Abraham had clung to the promise of a son from his own wife Sarah, and God had fulfilled His promise. But now God says, “Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest.” He left Ishmael out of the question, saying, “Thine only son Isaac.” Had Abraham been a selfish, coldhearted man, absorbed in ambitious projects, without a tender and affectionate attachment for his son, he would not have felt this terrible summons so deeply, but he loved his son tenderly.

How could Abraham reason upon the former word of God? God had already told him that through Isaac his seed should be as the sand of the sea for multitude. As he stepped out into the night, he seemed to hear the divine voice that called him out of Chaldea fifty years before, and said to him, “Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars if thou be able to number them. So shall thy seed be.” Can it be the same voice that commands him to slay his son? He remembered the promise, “I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth, so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered.” Is it not the voice of a stranger that commands him to offer his son as a sacrifice? Can God contradict Himself? Shall he cut off the only hope of the fulfillment of the promise? Must he become childless? [296]

But Abraham does not reason; he obeys. His only hope is that the God who can do all things will raise his son from the dead. The knife was raised, but it did not fall. God spoke, “It is enough.” The faith of the father and the submission of the son was fully tested. “Now I know that thou fearest God, seeing that thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me.”

Abraham’s test was the most severe that could ever come to a human being. Had he then turned from God, he would never have been registered as the father of the faithful. Had he deviated from God’s command, the world would have lost this rich example of faith in God and victory over unbelief.

This lesson is given to shine down through the ages, that man may learn that nothing is too precious to give to God. Confidence in the divine Word will lead to a doing of that Word. It is when we look upon every entrusted gift as the Lord’s, to be used in His service in all ways and at all times, that we secure the heavenly benediction. Give back to God your entrusted possession and you will have more entrusted to you as a faithful steward, and will be able to answer when God calls. Keep your possessions to yourself and you will receive no reward in this life, and will lose the life which is to come.

God tries the faith of His people today to test their characters. Those connected in any way with the school, which had long been delayed for want of means, who are willing to deny self and make sacrifices for God in times of emergency, are the ones whom God will honor with a partnership in His work. Those who are not willing to work for small wages, &lt;under financial necessity,&gt; in order to carry out the purposes which God has devised, will be tested and tried, that their course may appear to human eyes as it stands before the eyes of One who has a full knowledge of the heart and all its inward workings.

The Lord speaks of some who will not open or shut the doors of God’s house for naught. My brother, you have developed a selfishness that has worked in various ways to the increase of itself. It has been strengthened by exercise, until the whole man has come under the jurisdiction of Satan, as was Judas. Judas had the privilege of being connected with Christ as one of His disciples. But his spirit did not agree with the principles Christ kept continually before them, and in the place of heeding these teachings, he worked against them.

My brother, when work at the school was offered you for four shillings a day, and this was all your labor, for eight hours a day, was worth under the circumstances, and you refused it, were you in the service of men whose personal interest was being benefited? You were situated where you could have helped the work that God has signified should be done to establish a school. It was not men whom you insulted by your refusal to labor; it was God. This was the test of the depth and breadth of your heart interest in the school which is to do the very work which God has pointed out must be done. [297]

Brother Shannon has been weighed in the balance and found wanting. Said the divine Instructor, His heart was not right with God. His own interest came first. He would serve the Lord if in so doing he could reap all the benefit he desired. Brother Lawrence has also been tested. God put him in trial before the whole universe of heaven, and he was pronounced wanting. Men have had a much more favorable opinion of Brother Lawrence than the Lord has &lt;given him,&gt; for He has watched the principles that underlay the springs of action. Brethren Shannon and Lawrence have not discerned any difference between the sacred and the common. They have treated the Lord’s work as though it possessed no more sacredness than a common business enterprise.

This work &lt;on this ground&gt; is to be a character-detector, trying the spirit of men, proving who will be trustworthy, the Lord’s faithful Calebs. Those who, in times of trial and pressure from want of means, will do their very best for God for the truth’s sake, showing that they have the fear of God before them, are the men God will choose as men to be depended on. They may have need of experience in many lines, but if they will not become offended and sit on Satan’s stool of idleness, submitting their minds, their hearts, and their physical powers to the enemy, if they will do their duty because they recognize that there are duties to be done, the Lord will increase their wisdom and understanding by giving them knowledge as He did Daniel, thus enabling them to be representative men. But God cannot use the men who respect only the value of men, who do not see that they should be willing to render service to God.

All these &lt;general&gt; principles have been placed before Brethren Shannon and Lawrence, that they might see their force and necessity; but notwithstanding the light that the Lord has been pleased to give them, they have indulged their covetousness. They refused to come into working order. The spirit they cherished was an offense to God. He was working every moment in their behalf to keep them alive, and yet they refused to work for Him without stipulated wages; and He would not accept their service. They had their choice. While the school grounds, God’s property, were in want of faithful workers who would show what could be done on the land, because Brother Lawrence could not get the sum he desired for his labor, he refused, like a rebellious child, to use his hands or his &lt;mind.&gt; With the necessities of the case before him, he remained in idleness as far as doing good was concerned. What did he care? The treasury was almost empty, but what did that signify to him?

The Lord has recorded every thought and every feeling, and He has placed His estimate upon these men. By Him they are reckoned as unfaithful stewards. They have been weighed in the balance and found wanting. Brother Lawrence has been weaving the web of selfishness, every thread of which is deciding his future destiny for eternity. When he desired to purchase land, because he could not trade in the same way as he has done all his life, he refused to pay the sum which he himself &lt;with his brethren&gt; had stipulated. He would have taken any amount as a gift, irrespective of the fact that the other side would be robbed; and then he would have complained that the stewardship of others was faulty.

Unless Brother Lawrence is converted, and his character transformed, he will be &lt;no help&gt; to the cause of God wherever he goes, &lt;but a stumbling block.&gt; His life is a long series of transgressions of the law of Jehovah. He could be a blessing to no church. He has not used his mind as a storehouse in which to place the inestimable treasures found in the [298] Scriptures. He has not been learning in the school of Christ, although he has had every opportunity to hear the truth, to receive the truth, and to partake of the richest banquet that can be offered to human beings. [299]

Had he eaten of the Word of God, his spiritual experience would have been after the likeness of Christ, but he had drunk so deeply of worldly speculation in little things, with which Christ and the truth have no agreement, that he has formed an appetite for buying and selling and getting gain without bringing truth and righteousness into his business transactions. The spirit is the same in the deal, whether the transactions be large or small. He longs for the advantage to be gained by him, exactly as did Judas; and in many respects his case is worse than that of Judas, in proportion to the increased light that has come to the church since the ascension of Christ and the impartation of the Holy Spirit.

God has given us great light and great opportunities. Brother Lawrence could have accepted the truth and taken it into the inner sanctuary of the soul, but his taste has not been cultivated in this line. He has formed a habit of seeking to obtain everything below its real value, and then selling it so that he will gain. He has been working in this line so long that his whole mind, soul, and spirit is leavened. If this spirit &lt;continues to&gt; be cherished, it will place him in the ranks of those who educate and train their powers in this line. Principle is sacrificed for an oft-practiced worldly policy, but the adept in such work is really despised by the world.

Unfair dealing has been carried on upon the locality selected for this school. The virtue of the characters of some has been tainted and stained, and their influence has led many astray. God will not tolerate this work. If the one who has been working so perseveringly against his own eternal interests could see that God has no use for those who, like Nadab and Abihu, use common fire in place of the sacred, he would be alarmed. All the time that Brother Lawrence spent in idleness, he might have given to God. He might have given &lt;back&gt; to &lt;God&gt; his capabilities and the time he values so highly, and trusted to God to properly estimate it. A day lost passes into a mournful record in the books of heaven. A day spent in unselfish service for God is better than a thousand spent in self-serving.

If Brother Lawrence had qualifications &lt;as he considers himself to have&gt; which he could see that his brethren did not possess, what was he here for unless it was to impart his knowledge faithfully, kindly, and interestedly? My brother, all the ability that you possess is God’s property. He could take away your reason and leave you as a beast of the field, as He did Nebuchadnezzar. God has borne long with your robbery of Him, but you have been so much engaged in an illegitimate business, that He will not favor you in any way after your day of test and trial is over.

When you give God your heart, you will no more be blind in regard to right and wrong, as in the transaction of robbing a poor man of the money that was his just due. You will look with disgust upon the perverted principles that you have practiced for years. Your trade in regard to the horse and the cow speaks loudly, in unmistakable language &lt;as to the kind of help you would be.&gt;

You know not the time of your visitation. You know not what is due to your God. These transactions, which compose the texture of your character, make that character an offense to God. All such business is bad enough when done in the world; but God has a controversy with you, for you have robbed God. You would have robbed Him by bargaining for [300] land at less than your own figures estimated it to be worth. Your sense of propriety is so far perverted that you traffic with property that has been purchased by money given for the service of God. &lt;Will a man rob God?&gt; [301]

Had you commenced a work in your own heart, had you dedicated to God all your lent capabilities, you would have realized that all you have and are belongs to Him, and you would not have placed the sacred things on a basis with common things. You would long ago have fixed your supreme affections on Him who is too wise to err, who is altogether lovely, and the chiefest among ten thousand.

If you are not on this ground to advance and build up the work in all lines where it is possible, what are you here for? You have taken from and lessened the facilities which will be essential to carry forward the work in this locality. If you took from the school the value of one shilling or one pound, this should make you afraid; but you have done more than this. God reckons up the time you spent in idleness, nursing a rebellious spirit. Did you think that when you could have helped, and would not, you were doing service to God?

You ought to see these things in such a light that you would abhor yourself for your narrow selfishness. You are blind, and by precept and example you have been communicating principles that will make others as blind as yourself. God looks at the motives which prompt to action. In His providence He has allowed matters to come to the light that will be reproved, and that most sharply. Wherein have you unselfishly benefited the school? You have withheld that which would have helped forward the work. You have looked on, sitting on the devil’s idle stool, seeing things which you thought you could improve; but you did not attempt to do this. &lt;In whose service were you?&gt; You might have helped in many ways if you had given heart, soul, strength, capabilities, all to God. When you do this, Christ will be yours, heaven will be yours, eternal life will be yours, all things, through Christ, will be yours.

Did you come to this place to speculate with God, to see if you could not rob Him here as you have done throughout your life? You have placed yourself, not as a true, loyal brother, but as a faultfinder, waiting an opportunity to take from God, in jots and tittles, and in larger things.

“The children of thy people still are talking against thee by the walls and in the doors of the houses, and speak one to another, every one to his brother, saying, Come, I pray you, and hear what is the word that cometh forth from the Lord. And they come unto thee as the people cometh, and they sit before thee as my people, and they hear thy words. But they will not do them; for with their mouth they show much love, but their heart goeth after their covetousness. And, lo, thou art unto them as a very lovely song of one that hath a very pleasant voice, and can play well on an instrument; for they hear the words, but they do them not.”

“Wherefore the Lord saith, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honor me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men: therefore, behold, I will proceed to do a marvelous work among this people, even a marvelous work and a wonder: for the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid. Woe unto them that seek deep to hide their counsel from the Lord, and their works are in the dark, and they say, Who seeth us? and who knoweth us? [302]

“Surely your turning of things upside down shall be esteemed as the potter’s clay: for shall the work say of him that made it, He made me not? or shall the thing framed say of him that framed it, He had no understanding? . . . And in that day shall the deaf hear the words of the book, and the eyes of the blind shall see out of obscurity, and out of darkness. The meek also shall increase their joy in the Lord, and the poor among men shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel. For the terrible one is brought to nought, and the scorner is consumed, and all that watch for iniquity are cut off: that make a man an offender for a word, and lay a snare for him that reproveth in the gate, and turn aside the just thing for a thing of nought.”

All who fear God will accustom themselves to look closely at their principles in the light of the Word of God, and to regard with awful respect the commands of God. Their souls should be pervaded by a deep, abiding sense of the importance, sanctity, and authority of heavenly principles. They should maintain the most intimate connection with God, the pure, sacred spring from whence their strength and light is derived. Then brother will stand by the side of brother, and each will lift every jot he can possibly sustain. Those who do this will have help from God, and will be among those who will share in the triumphs of the truth.

The Lord asks you again, “What doest thou here?” You have repeatedly stated that you were a man of your word, but you deny this by your actions. You have professed to believe in Jesus Christ, to be obedient to His requirements. Why do you not keep your word with God? Any man that is not true to God is not true to his neighbor in business deal. You flatter yourself that you are a man true to your word, but God declares this to be false. When you see a man with whom you desire to trade, you advantage yourself to his disadvantage, when the word of truth spoken by you would put him on his guard &lt;that he would not cheat himself&gt; and cause you to lose your chance. By carrying these matters through as you do, you act falsehoods. This you have done in your trading here.

In order to favor you and retain you here, hoping that you could be a help, and that your influence would be a blessing, transactions in trade have been consummated that never would have been had you behaved as a noble Christian gentleman. But you have acted the part of a schemer. God has marked your actions from first to last. He has taken your measurement as if you were conducting a trade with Him, and thus it stands in the books of heaven.

All these things make you an unsafe man. The only hope for your soul is a transformation of character. When you have a new heart, you will live in an atmosphere very different from that in which you have lived since you came here. When tempted to scheme in business you will strangle the first purpose Satan would form in your mind, so that it will not breathe the breath of life. You can reform; it will be a daily, hourly struggle; but if you come into conscious, loving communion with God, the principles of truth and righteousness and mercy will be more and more clearly discerned. You will then keep the last six commandments, which you have so often transgressed. You will not study how you can obtain an advantage of your neighbor, but you will aid others by your &lt;supposed&gt; perceptive faculties and by your sympathy. You will give tangible proof of your love by co-operating with Christ in helping your fellow men whom you must meet in the judgment. You will price your time as God’s time, to be used in His service, and you will earnestly strive to help others. [303]

With strenuous efforts and the continual grace of God you may overcome your practice of untruthful and dishonest trading. If you yield yourself to God, the deep and holy principles of His law will become part of your character. You will then love to minister to others. You will love to stimulate others to serve God.

God has given you talents to use to His name’s glory, not for your own advantage. God despises your course of action; it is hateful in His sight. In your dealing with the school, God has permitted you to reveal your selfishness, that His reproof might come to you. Will you receive it? Do not longer flatter yourself that your word is so wonderfully sacred, because for years you have been piling falsehood upon falsehood in your deal with your fellow men. Your every offer of low sums for an article that you know to be worth more than you offer is a deception. &lt;You would, when once in your possession, extol it [as] of much greater value.&gt; A change in these things will elevate your whole being. If you will make a business of this work, if you will honor God with all your heart, and love your neighbor as yourself, God will bless you. This is the whole duty of man.

The perils of the last days are upon us. Let no one think that he has acquired a valuable acquisition when he has learned the tricks common with buyers and sellers. No man can pride himself on his truthfulness, for unless he has overcome, he does not know that truthfulness is. No one can know the strength of his truthfulness and honesty until he has passed the fiery ordeal of the temptation to acquire means in questionable ways. Men may, at one period of their lives, shudder at the thought of any species of dishonesty as seen in the practice of others, but if they do not cultivate strict integrity in every transaction, they will soon learn to sell their birthright for a mess of pottage. [304]

(90) Testimony to Brother Lawrence: —

[305]

“Sunnyside,” Cooranbong, N.S.W., Feb. 11, ‘97

(91) I was in an assembly this night, and the Spirit of the Lord wrought upon me. There seemed to be a strange atmosphere in the room, hot fragrant and uplifting, but depressing. I was conversing with Brother and Sister Lawrence, and I said to them, “Have you not something to say? Cannot you relieve the situation? But no move was made. Then One came into the meeting, who turned to Brother Lawrence and said,

“You are not clear before God. Through your entire life you have been as a man who has tried to do God service. You are impregnated with selfishness, and have not a practical knowledge of what it means to accept the truth in all its bearings. What has been your sowing? What has been your influence upon those in connection with you? What have you done as a laborer together with God to advance His kingdom? Your main endeavor has been to figure for yourself, to buy and sell and get gain. You have been having an opportunity for test and trial; but your experience has been of a character that falls far short of the measure of God. Your selfish traits and character are brought into all your daily life practice. Your life and talents are a trust from God; but you have lived for self, (92) and worked for self.

You should have made it your business, Brother Lawrence, to understand what you are sowing; for every day your influence is bearing its record to God. In just such actions as the purchasing of your cow, you reveal on whose side you stand. You bought the cow from the school, and paid three pounds for it. You found it a good cow, and one that would be of real value to the school. Had you wanted to help the school, when you were ready to sell the cow, you would have given them the benefit of the good bargain you made in buying the cow from them? Would you not have been willing to return it to them for the price you paid for it? But instead of doing this, you asked four pounds ten shillings for the cow from outside parties, and would not sell it to the school for four pounds. What would another have done who considered that if there were any advantage to be gained, even so much as one dollar, or one penny, it justly belonged to the school? You should have felt that all these transactions in a very real sense touch the very foundation of a consecrated Christian life. If it were possible that your influence extended no farther than yourself, such acts result in evil, for they confirm your already strong habits of selfishness. But you cannot do wrong without influencing others. Your influence with those connected with the school will not be of the right character.

If you gain an influence, you will be tempted to take credit to yourself as possessing superior traits of character. But your sharp practice is written in heaven as dishonesty. You have not employed your talent of influence and money in such a way as to reap a reward in the kingdom of heaven as the result of trading to the best advantage. You have shown selfishness here (93) as in your practice all through your life. In regard to the cow, the right course would have been for you to say to your brethren, “I find this a choice cow. I have an interest in the prosperity of the school, as I see it struggling hard for an existence to carry forward the work that God would have done. I would not take one penny of advantage of the school. I return the cow to you for what I offered for it, as a valuable article that you will need when the school is started. It is worth more than I paid for it, but you can have it for the same price. And if you cannot pay the money, I will donate much for the benefit of the school; for I recognize it as the work of God.” This would be no more than others are doing.

This is a test point. But you are so wrapped up in your own self, [306] that unless changed by a thorough transformation of character, you will not in the future pursue any different course than you have pursued in the past. The Lord looks deep into the secret motives. Unless there is a change in your, wherever you may be you will work to advantage yourself. You take much pride in the idea of the talents you possess. But what are they? You have wrapped them in a napkin; very little ever gets into circulation.

What if all who came in connection with this missionary enterprise conducted themselves as you have done in this matter? How much would the work of God be advanced? You have talent, which you expend in business lines and in a variety of ways if it suits your tastes and inclinations; and you are paid for it all that you ask. But what consecration have you made to God in using your entrusted energies to exert an influence in behalf of the school and for the cause of God.

(94) You did take the lead in the work at first in mingling amusement with labor, which suited your taste well, but which spoiled some of the youth for out and out labor. There was much talking done; you related your adventures to amuse; but did you take a deep and earnest interest to lead the youth to Jesus as you had opportunity? Did you consider “Ye are laborers together with God” to build up the work of Christ? While engaged in business matters, where was your interest and energy in spiritual things? Did you interest others by word and example to be “not slothful in business, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord?”

The truth is, You do not bring religion into your business life, and that is why you do not sense the reality of spiritual things. You lose your God-given opportunities of making your influence felt in spiritual lines. You say you supposed you had little influence, but truly you consider that your character is of great value. Have you in that cow trade had a holy determination to overcome your avaricious spirit, and in this instance set an example of disinterested benevolence, that in your practice you might have an influence for Christ?

Again, when the school funds were so low, you wanted six shillings per day for your wages. Had you adjusted yourself to circumstances, you would have accepted one dollar per day, and been glad to get it. What use were you making of your talents, of the golden opportunity of using your time as a donation to the Lord? During this time of idleness, you were sitting in the stool of temptation, when you might have been exerting an (95) influence for good in visiting those who were in need of just the help you ought to have been prepared to give them. You should have taken your Bible and visited, and opened the Scriptures to other. You could have prepared a comfortable place for your wife to live in. But instead of doing this, you were pitying and sympathizing with yourself because you were not employed to work at your own price, because there was no money to pay you the wages you thought you ought to have, had you said, “I have only myself and wife to keep; I can live on one dollar a day, and I will take that. There is work that needs to be done, and I will do it, even if I get nothing for my time,” you would have been introducing the right kind of leaven.

It is the persons who will manifest just such a spirit as this, and who will do just such actions, and who will do just such actions, who are needed on the school ground to abide here as laborers together with God. These will be reliable men, who will help when help is needed.

But such acts as these you are not in the habit of doing. God now calls you to act a different part from that you have been acting, if you would advance in spiritual life. In the past your plans and study have been for self; they have not been of the right character; they have not had a fragrant odor. Your distressing economy is not commended in heaven. By the outgrowth of the root of selfishness you have made the life of [307] your wife oppressive. You have been hiding your Lord’s money rather than using it to bless yourself, your family, and those around you. You have yet to learn that the talent that has been entrusted to you is to be put out to the exchangers, that it may grow by circulation, and open before the user new fields of usefulness. You are spiritually dead. You have been (96) shutting yourself up to yourself, priding yourself upon your possession of talents of ability and money, while doing nothing whatever with that money and that influence. You are as deceived a man as any man can as to your true position before God.

Weeks ago I was awakened with a message from God for you. I was shown that your parsimonious practice was withering up your life from the roots. You are self-complacent. You can talk, but do not practice. God does not accept your service. In the establishment of a school here in Cooranbong, you have had an opportunity to reveal the love you have for the missionary work. Do you realize that all you have is of God, and that your natural endowments of character may be a blessing or a curse?

The Lord allows the circumstances by which we are surrounded to exist in order to determine what our influence shall be. They are deciding our character for eternity. God reads the motives that prompt every action. He knows the heart, and that the extent of the usefulness of each in the upbuilding of His cause will be as they reveal unselfish interest in His service. He wants each one of His children to fill out the great plan that He has given them in His life, and He supplies the strength of character that their surrounding circumstances may require. He brings every soul in close contact with himself.

God has placed you in circumstances of life where from hour to hour you may develop the character of Christ. You have a talent of influence which is to be used not in a general way alone. Day by day, each business transaction is passing beyond your reach, beyond recall, God presents to all large and small opportunities of exerting an influence for good in the various changing circumstances in which we are placed. He works to bring (97) about these opportunities, which are constantly coming and going, to show who are whole-hearted and devoted to His service. But you have brought great blindness upon yourself by your habits of life. Your senses have become perverted. You do not discern that the Word of God condemns your life practices. Christ asks you, “Who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth?” A bewitching power has allured you. You are deluded as to the principles that should govern the Christian life. And there is nothing that can break this spell save the power of God.

Just as they body needs vitalizing air at all times, so the soul needs a vital connection with God. Christ declared, “Verily, verily I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink His blood, ye have no life in you. Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He that eateth my flesh and drinketh My blood, dwelleth in Me, and I in him. As the living Father hath sent Me, and I live by the Father; so he that eateth Me, even he shall live by Me.” “It is the Spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing; the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit and they are life.” The truth which the Spirit teaches in the word of God should be mingled with all we do; it should control all our actions. The Holy Spirit is a witness of all our transactions; it should be a guide in all business relations.

Whatever your profession may be, Brother Lawrence, you are not a Christ. You have lost the oil of grace out of your heart. The principles that you have manifested in trade with your brethren are all before us, [308] and they decide the question. (98) You have dismissed the word of God from your counsel; you have consented to forego the use of reason in the highest of all interests that can affect humanity. You have laid your soul a sacrifice upon the altar of mammon. Instead of seeking first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, you have forwarded your own selfish interests. You have deliberately set aside one of the simplest, plainest, and most positive injunctions contained in the word of God. You have practiced fraud. Jesus asks you the question, “What is a man profited, if he gain the whole world, and lose his own soul, or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?”

You do not keep the commandments of God; your love of gain makes it impossible for you trade fairly on Christian principles. Cupidity is one of your chief characteristics. You have sought to obtain all the advantages you possibly could in buying, and you have repeated the same in selling. You would take double what you give for an article if you could get it. The bewitching power of Satan has held you fast, that you might be anything but a Christian in your life practice.

You are a speculator. No man who will deal as you have done will be the one to advance the work and sustain right principles. The Lord is dishonored by such, Self is made a center. We are here for the purpose of educating on strict Bible principles, and we want men who will tell the truth even when it will work against their own interest to do so. Whatever deal men may have with you, they must be on their guard, else you will advantage yourself at their loss. Apparently you have no scruples of conscience in the matter, because you have educated yourself in this life of business deal. But God reads it all, and He will not favor you in this kind of work.

(99) Let any man bring before his conscience the details of any bargain of which he has been proud at the time, and for which he has called himself a sharp detector of goods or stock. let him consider his action as if in view of the whole universe of heaven, whether there has not been deceit or falsehood in it. Has he not shown a frankness in regard to some defects, thus creating confidence in him as an unusually honest man who would scorn to take advantage of anyone? Has he not pretended that it was a matter of indifference to him, and by his “I do not care” attitude has he not obtained an article on better terms? Has he not kept back from the man with whom he was dealing facts which if he knew would make him alter his terms? All these things are generally practiced in worldly policy, and if reproof were given for these things, the reprove would be looked upon as an intruder. But this deception in buying, this over reaching in trade, is written in the books of heaven as untruthfulness.

I feel only deep sorrow for you Brother Lawrence. He knows not what peace and rest in Jesus means. His eager, selfish spirit is depriving him of an experience which would ensure Christian growth.

Our children and youth need by word, by pen, by voice, and by practice, to have a strict Bible example set before them. By acts of deception much harm may be done. The man who follows such a course of action may feel a sense of satisfaction at the advantage he has gained; he may think that it reflects credit on himself. But he has overreached in trade; he has allowed his neighbor to cheat himself. When his sharp discrimination might (100) have been used to the advantage of his neighbor, he has used it to advantage himself. The man who thus watches to make large profits for himself is frequently a selfish, avaricious man.

There are many ways in which to profit oneself at the expense of another; but “It is written” should be our motto. Keep close to the word [309] of God. In bartering, and buying and selling there wanteth not sin. The truth received into the heart and carried out in the life is our only safety. God’s abiding presence is of more value than all the scheming devices in trade. God is a God of truth. His work, from beginning to end, is a setting forth of the eternal principles of truth. Truth and holiness have been almost blotted from the world, His truth has been changed into a lie. But God would have us study His character, live his law.

I have been compelled to speak very decidedly, and you may feel that I urge your peril on you in strong colors. But this is not the case You need, oh so much you need to be convicted and converted. You need to cut away from your life your supreme selfishness, else the Lord’s spirit will be grieved away entirely, and you will charge upon others the cause of your disaffection. Your only hope is to fall upon the Rock Christ Jesus, and be broken. Self is to die, and you are to be born again. All through your life you have not obeyed the requirements of God; selfish habits have been interwoven with all your practices. You have not seen in a clear light that Jesus Christ hath “evidently been set forth crucified among you.” Belief in the crucifixion of Christ set forth by the messengers who bear the truth, has not (101) become an object of faith. If it had, you would have purchased an altogether different course of action.

“O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ has been so evidently set forth crucified among you?” Every part of this text is applicable to us who have had light and still greater light. The apostle speaks as though it were singular that we should disobey the truth, and ascribes it to sorcery or fascination that holds the human agent in deception, that he is not really willing to see.

The sacred principles of truth have been so clearly kept before you that it could not be truthfully said that Christ has been crucified among us. The apostle asks then, “Who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obeyed the truth?” As the Lord’s servant, I beseech you to cease studying self. Look earnestly at the life and practice of the Lamb of God. If His unselfish life is studied and obeyed, there will be an entire transformation of the whole man.

I write to you hoping and praying that this light given to you of God will make an entire change in your spirit and life. The God who watches over the sparrows, that not one falleth to the ground without His notice, also says that the hairs of your head are all numbered. You may suppose that the little things of life that neighbor practices with neighbor may be done without the guidance of the word. But Christ himself could not resist temptation but by that word. “It is written” was his weapon for every attack. You will have to study that word before you can know what is written. You have yet to prove that you have put (102) on the armor of light, and that you are a soldier of Jesus Christ.

“And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; wherein in time past ye walked according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath even as others. But God, who is rich in mercy, for His great love wherewith He loved us, even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ (by grace ye are saved); and hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus; that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness to us through Christ Jesus.” Can this Scripture be applied to you? Here is the same formation [310] of character is presented to us as was presented to Nicodemus in the words, “Ye must be born again.”

You are utterly destitute of spiritual life. You have followed the maxims of men. You have gone in the footsteps of the transgressors of God’s laws. You have not loved your God supremely, or your neighbor as yourself. But when you are indeed infused with the Holy Spirit, you who are now dead will He quicken and renewed, “He will deliver you from your bondage to self. He will save and ennoble you. Your thoughts will widen and will be of an altogether different character than what they have been for years. Thus the great transformation into the divine image will be wrought in you.

(103) Do not imagine that you are walking in the footsteps of the self-denying Redeemer, that all you have to do is to keep on just as you are, and your salvation is secure. Because you commenced some time in your life to run the Christian course, it is not safe for you to suppose that you are following on the know the Lord. Are you sure that you will persevere unto the end, and obtain a crown of life? Only by enshrining the truth in your heart and doing the will of Christ will you secure the rich reward of the “Well done, good and faithful servant; enter thou into the joy of thy Lord.” [311]

The Apostasy of Brethren McCullagh and Hawkins.

(104) Following close upon the disaffection of Brethren Shannan and Hawkins came the apostasy of Brethren McCullagh and Hawkins.

In the summer of 1896 a severe sickness, which almost cost Elder McCullagh his life, caused him to move to Adelaide, to seek the benefits of a milder climate. At the close of the Adelaide camp-meeting that summer, he with Elder Hawkins, a Wesleyan minister, who had recently been converted to the truth, was left to bind off the work of the camp-meeting. For a time Brother Wilson and his wife labored with them. When they returned to Tasmania, these two men were left to work together.

The first news of the apostasy reached Melbourne in the form of the resignation of these two brethren, which they sent to Elder Daniells, saying that they could no longer conscientiously be connected with Seventh-day Adventists.

Elder Daniells telegraphed the word to us, and we at once (105) made arrangements for Brother G.B. Starr and his wife to go to Adelaide, and for Brother Pallant to carry on the work in Queensland in Brother Starr’s absence.

Brethren Daniells and Colcord went immediately to Adelaide, where they found a determined rebellion. When they arrived, Brn. McCullagh and Hawkins refused to converse with them. They had given out an appointment for a meeting on Sunday evening, and asked Brother Daniells to speak in the tent that same evening. This he refused to do, going instead to hear them. They had repeatedly said that they would have nothing to say against Seventh-day Adventists.

It was found that these men, while under the pay of the Conference, had been working in a most subtle manner, until the whole church was being carried away by their deceptions. Their entrancing theory was, The Holy Spirit, Sanctification, Nothing but Christ. Doctrines, they taught, were of no value. They had presented these deceptive theories, working as the great Apostate worked in heaven in the first rebellion. Indeed their work seemed a repetition, on a small scale, (106) of the working of the first great rebel.

In all my experience I have never met with such deep laid plottings, as was revealed in this apostasy. These men gave no intimation of their purpose until they had everything prepared to make the break, and carry the whole church with the. Without intimating to me one word of any difficulty, or giving me opportunity to speak for myself, they had visited from house to house and told the most wicked falsehoods about me and my work. It was not merely the apostasy of these two brethren that we had to regret; it was their power to hurt the church, and to make a lie appear to be truth. “I know; for I have been with them,” these accusers say. “I know the ins and outs of the matter,” and many thought they spoke the truth. Nearly the entire church was captivated by their presentations.

Elder Haskell was summoned to Adelaide. It was thought that as he had ordained both Elder McCullagh and Elder Hawkins, he might possibly be able to save these poor deluded men. He stood there amid the difficulties arising from the apostasy, and met the workings of Satan through human agencies.

(107) After earnest labor for the church, nearly all those who were deceived were able to say, “The Lord hath redeemed us from the snare of the fowler, and we are escaped.” They saw their error in listening to the words of these men, and again took their position for the truth.

I felt deeply over the sudden apostasy of Brother McCullagh. I [312] cannot say the apostasy of Brother Hawkins; for he was greatly deceived by one who was himself deceived by Satan. The raid that was made against me was mostly of Brother McCullagh’s devising. He began the work of disaffection by criticism. For two years he had been finding fault with every minister in the work, and had been serving the enemy of God by uniting with him in the work of accusing the brethren. The first step in this direction is a dangerous one for any human being to take.

Here is where these brethren fell; and this is where many will fall. To complain of our brethren in the ministry, to be suspicious of the gifts the Lord has set in the church, to seek for spot or stain in the action of our fellow-workers, is to follow in the enemy’s steps. He who chooses to obtain this class (108) of education will find Satan standing ready to help in a masterly manner. Then, having criticized all that to him appears out of joint, he will commence to weave webs of falsehood, abusing the confidence that has been reposed in him, and seeking to destroy the reputation of those who have ever been his truest friends. This was the class of work done in Adelaide.

We should work earnestly to close the door against those who in this way are serving under Satan’s banner; for they are doing their best to counterwork the prayer of Christ: “Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word, that they all may be one: as Thou, Father, art in Me, and I in Thee, that they also may be one in US that the world may believe that Thou hast sent Me. And the glory which Thou gavest Me I have given them, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that Thou hast sent Me, and hast loved them as thou hast loved Me.” To his disciples Christ said, “A new commandment give I unto you, that ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are My disciples, (109) if ye have love for one another.”

Our work is to stop surmising evil of our brethren. We should seek to press together, and thus fulfill the longing of Christ to see his chosen people love one another as he loves them. “Lord, who shall abide in Thy tabernacle?” the psalmist asks, “Who shall dwell in Thy holy hill? He that walketh upright,” is the response, “and worketh righteousness, and speaketh the truth in his heart. He that backbiteth not with his tongue, nor doeth evil to his neighbor. In whose eyes a vile person is condemned, and he honoreth them that fear the Lord. He that sweareth to his own hurt, and changeth not. He that putteth not out his money to usury, nor taketh reward against the innocent. He that doeth these things shall never be moved.”

“These are the things that ye shall do: Speak ye every man the truth to his neighbor; execute the judgment of truth and peace in your gates, and let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against your neighbor, and love no false oath; for all these are things that I hate, saith the Lord.”

“These things I command you, that ye love one another. If (110) the world hate you, ye know that it hated Me before it hated you. If ye were of the world, the world would love its own; but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.” We read of the false witness borne of Christ, and we know that every child of rebellion will do this evil work. If they spoke against Christ, who was without spot or stain, they will surely speak against his followers. What reproach they head upon Christ. Shall we complain when we are made partakers of His reproach? “Remember the word that I spake unto you,” Christ said, “The servant is not greater than His Lord. If they have persecuted Me, they will also persecute you; if [313]

they have kept my sayings, they will keep yours also.”

Those who draw away from us, and remain not in the truth, will fabricate reasons why they did not remain steadfast. They will do as Satan did,—cast the reproach upon the someone else. God himself will be accused of unfairness. But should not the professed followers of Christ be afraid to treat their brethren and sisters as the Jewish nation treated the world’s Redeemer?

* * * * *

(111) Up to the time of his apostasy, my association with Brother McCullagh had been most pleasant. When we first came to Cooranbong for the purpose of viewing the land preparatory to its purchase, Brother McCullagh came with us. He was quite sick at the time, suffering from inflammation of the throat, stomach and lungs. The morning after the decision was made to purchase the land, we had a season of prayer for Brother McCullagh. The Spirit of the Lord laid the weight of his case upon me, and indicted prayer in his behalf. As we pressed our petitions for his recovery to the throne of God, the room seemed full of the presence of God, the room seemed full of the presence of God, and then and there our brother was healed. He had brought his spring cot to Cooranbong, designing to remain a couple of weeks at the least; but the next day he felt that his stomach and throat were healed, and he went back to Sydney to continue his work. Apparently an excellent work was done for our brother. We regarded this blessing which was given us, and especially to Brother McCullagh, as an evidence that our decision to purchase the land was according to the will of God.

(112) Brother McCullagh continued in earnest labor for a long time, until his sickness in the summer of ‘96. In this illness I visited him, and spoke to him in reference to his health, showing that there was a great necessity of his having the proper kind of food. I told him that if he were neglectful in this, the Lord would not work a miracle to counteract the effects of wrong habits of eating and drinking. These were the first words I had spoken to him of a serious character in regard to his diet.

I had spoken to Brother McCullagh in regard to his being careful of his diet because I knew that his stomach was irritated. I had sat at their table a very few times, but I never made a raid against them because I could not approve of the diet prepared for Brother McCullagh and his child. I have had great light from the Lord upon the subject of health reform. I did not seek this light; I did not study to obtain it, it was given me by the Lord to give to others. I present these matters before the people dwelling upon general principles, and sometimes if questions are asked me at the table, I answer according to the truth. But I have never made a raid upon anyone in regard to (113) anyone in regard to that which is upon the table. I would not consider such a course at all courteous. I am a vegetarian. I refuse to eat the flesh of dead animals, when I know that it is filled with disease of every kind. I have made no secret in testifying in reference to the health reform essential for Christians. I have never made this question a test; but I have given to all the instruction the Lord has given me, and I shall continue to do this. I shall continue to warn others of the dangers of meat-eating, giving facts which have come under my observation, and showing the dangers of meat-eaters.

In April 1896, meetings for Bible instruction were held in Cooranbong, and I urged Elder McCullagh and his wife to come to them. I told him that we would take care of him and his wife, but that circumstances were such we could not accommodate Christabel. W.C. White’s children and Edith Ward, whom I had taken as a member of my family, were enough children to be together. I told Brother McCullagh [314] that if they could find a place for Christabel among Sabbath-keeping friends, we would do everything in our power to care for him and his wife. But they came late, and secured a place with Brother Sherwin’s family. (114) This was quite a distance away, and they were often absent from meetings.

I was very desirous that Brother McCullagh should have all the benefit possible from these meetings; for matters had been presented before me so clearly that I knew he was in danger. I knew that his mind was under strong temptation. He talked these temptations to his wife, and together they were causing in the churches of Sydney a state of things that would produce a harvest that would not be pleasant to garner. Sister McCullagh’s missionary visits and Brother McCullagh’s influence tended to counteract the work for the accomplishment of which much money and labor had been expended.

It was in mercy to them, and to Brother McCullagh in particular, that we wished him to attend the meetings in Cooranbong, and receive all the blessing possible; for at that time he was really anchored nowhere, but was on the point of cutting himself loose from us as a people. Not one word was spoken to me by either Brother or Sister —— in regard to McCullagh’s feeling of disaffection, which had existed before he left (115) Sydney. On one occasion during this meeting, Brother McCullagh was especially blessed of God. He confessed that he had been blessed, and that he saw things in a different light than ever before, and his countenance reflected the light shining upon him. We all hoped that during this meeting he had received a blessing, and was strengthened to resist temptation.

I ever showed the most tender sympathy for Brother and Sister McCullagh; for I knew that Christ was touched with the feelings of their infirmities. At one time when I had decided testimony for them, I did not present it, but tried to follow the example of Christ in presenting general principles.

When I was at Hastings, New Zealand, Brother and Sister McCullagh sent me a letter, saying that their daughter was at the point of death, and asking our prayers in their behalf. We did pray for the whole family, for all had been passing through a siege of diphtheria. That night the true situation of the family was laid open before me. I wrote out many pages in regard to the mismanagement of their child. The light given me was plain and decided. I did not send this testimony at that time. I wrote Brother and Sister McCullagh a short letter, in which I entreated them for Christ’s sake and their own sake to seek the Lord, to confess to him their wrong course they had pursued toward their child. I then pleaded with God in their behalf. My soul was wrought up in an agony as I thought the child was dying, and that even that little child had deceived and falsified. (I begged the parents to seek God for themselves and for their child.) I knew that it would be better for her to die now than to live to become what she surely would unless the parents took the matter decidedly in hand, and in the name of the Lord did the work which every parent should do.

(116) It was some time after this that I visited Ormondville, and in the little hall which they had hired for their meetings, I bore my testimony. The Spirit of the Lord was upon me. I did not name their child in my public testimony, but laid down principles of the duty of parents to their children, and the relation of children to parents, showing the great responsibility of parents. After the meeting Sister McCullagh came to me. She said, “The Lord gave you those words to speak; for they meant me. I never had the subject of the responsibility of parents in the education and training of their children presented to me in this light. I [315] shall feel ever grateful to you for this counsel.”

As I talked with Sister McCullagh, I really thought she would do as she said. And as I had laid the matter out in a general way before the people, I thought that perhaps it would not be necessary for me to send the personal testimony I had written. But I spoke again and again upon the duty developing on parents to work unitedly in the duty of training their children for the future immortal life.

(117) While at Hastings, New Zealand, I wrote many pages to them, but I did not give it to them, hoping that the plain testimony I had borne to all would obviate the necessity of speaking to them personally. When I saw that other children were in danger because of their child, I spoke a word of warning to the parents of these children, telling them to keep their children under their own eyes.

But the time came when all restriction was removed from me. I had written Brother and Sister McCullagh quite a lengthy testimony, a message from the Lord that Sister McCullagh’s influence was not helpful to the members of the church in and about Sydney, that in visiting the families, she was plainly sowing seed which would imperil the church. Her influence was not strengthening and upbuilding, but was of a character to create suspicion and suggest ideas that created disaffection and disunion; and we knew that this work had been done. It did not please the Lord that the family should remain as it was; for the influence of both mother and daughter was displeasing to him. “Report, and we will report it?” they said by their actions. This mischievous gossiping was sowing seeds of evil. Knowing (118) all this, I gave them the warning. I did not parade their defects before a church or a people; but I wrote to them. I thought that if we could correct the evil without making trouble, we would do so; but the church must not be injured by such conversation, such complaining, such jealous surmisings. I sent them the light given me by the Lord; but in the place of reforming, they tried to destroy my influence. O what a work has been done.

(I spoke to them in regard to the education and training of Christabel; for I knew that did not manage the child in a way that accorded with the word of God. The words I spoke were not harsh, but were the truth, which they needed. This was before they came to Cooranbong.)

Brother McCullagh had often said that Sister White was his best friend, and a great help to him. I had ever befriended him. He had often been entertained at my house, and eaten at my table. Our association together had been most pleasant. And now, without any change in my attitude toward him, without any warning, without uttering one word to me of what he considered me to be guilty, he handled my name in a public meeting, pouring (119) out upon me all the venom he could well represent in words. He had no provocation to do this. What spirit could have taken possession of him but the spirit that inspired Lucifer and Judas? The fury of the spirit that led to this unchristian step, to break up the friendship that had existed, the Christian unity that Christ prayed might exist among his followers, speaks for itself in language that cannot be misinterpreted. I was not present to answer the charges made against me. Had I been, I should have demanded a hearing just as soon as it could have been arranged. It was my due.

Shall we call this step the moving of the Spirit of God? We see not one sign of Christlikeness in this way of treating matters. There is a moral as well as a mental mania; when this takes control, humanity seems to drop out of the being. Another power takes possession and controls. In the case of Brother McCullagh, mental self-delusion was strongly combined with an infatuated moral perversion. He was as deluded as those of whom Christ said, “They shall put you out of the synagogue; yea, the time [316] cometh that whosoever killeth you will think he doeth God service.”

(120) Christ warned Peter that he would deny Him, but in his self-confidence Peter said, “No, Lord, I never will.” He thought himself perfectly secure, and protested against being misjudged, denying the necessity of any warning. He declared that though all should be offended in Christ, yet he never would. Christ had before said to Peter, “Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat: but I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not. And when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.” And when Peter denied Christ, declaring that he knew not the Man, Jesus turned and looked upon him. Had he spoken, he would have said, I pardon your transgression.” Satan has not power even to sift without permission from God, and Christ was watching the terrible sifting of him for whom he had prayed. The fall of Peter was the development of the natural elements of his character. Under testing trial these revealed themselves. When Peter saw this, his repentance was sincere, and strength came where there had been weakness.

The greatest tirade may be made against me, but it will not change in the least my mission and my work. The Lord gave me the message when I was only sixteen years old, and I have (121) engaged in public labor ever since. The message the Lord has given me to bear has been in a straight line from light to light, upward and onward from truth to advanced truth. Because I was faithful in the discharge of my duty; because I bore a decided testimony against the existing wrongs, and the influence that would be exerted by Brother and Sister McCullagh unless there was a change in their religious experience, their hearts were turned from me. God is pleased with holiness of heart, and displeased with sin. Holiness may be much talked of and exalted, but if it is not taught and practiced in the home life, it is of no value to those who think they have great light on sanctification and holiness. As for the claims that these brethren make, that their conscience and the Holy Ghost have led them to take the position they have against me and against the truth, the Lord has given them no such commission. They cannot do anything against the truth, but for the truth. The Lord is a God of truth. He never leads a man to walk in crooked paths, directly contrary to the principles of truth and righteousness.

Those who think that the change in the sentiments of one or two will cause the whole body of Sabbath-keepers to turn (122) aside and follow a new torchlight that has never been kindled from the divine altar, will find themselves disappointed. They will lie down in sorrow. “Pride, arrogancy, and a proud mouth do I hate, saith the Lord.” The action of these two brethren appear to God in a peculiarly sinful light. If Sabbath-keeping Adventists are all wrong, what evidence shall we expect to receive in the correction of supposed existing wrongs. Will the revealing of the dragon spirit have a convincing power? Will the betrayal of sacred trust give evidence of the teaching of the Holy Spirit?

To witness the gradual corruption of a child is most painful to my heart, because that child is a member of God’s human family. Can parents see their children becoming vicious and unclean in thought and practice without feeling deep sorrow? How is it then when the Lord’s children turn from the light and the leading of His Spirit, and with their own hands tear down the pure and holy things in which they have delighted, and which they have reverenced, and have been building up for years. Does not God feel the rebellion of his children? And when, as a moral judge he is called to pass sentence against them, as unruly (123) and dangerous subjects, does it not grieve his heart of love? “As I live,” saith the Lord, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way, and live.” [317]

O better, far better would it have been for Brother McCullagh to have died in peace while he was anchored in Jesus. What confidence can he have in his future line of faith any more than in the past.

* * * * *

We have had to pass through this experience again and again. This apostasy brought trial to us, and largely increased my burdens and writing. But we must expect to meet these trials and disappointments. The apostle Paul warned his disciples, “Take heed therefore unto yourselves and to the flock of God, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the flock of God, which He hath purchased with His own blood. For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them.”

(124) Paul wrote also to Timothy: “As I besought you to abide still at Ephesus, when I went unto Macedonia, that thou mightest charge some that they teach no other doctrine, neither give heed to fables nor endless genealogies, which minister questions, rather than godly edifying, which is in faith; so do. Now the end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned; from which some having swerved, have turned aside unto vain jangling; desiring to be teachers of the law; understanding neither what they say, nor whereof they affirm. . . . Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honor and glory forever and ever. This charge I commit unto thee son Timothy, according to the prophecies which went before on thee, that thou by them mightest war a good warfare; holding faith and a good conscience which some having put away, concerning faith have made a shipwreck.”

If these men who went out from us had, as faithful stewards, searched deep into the word of God, and heeded Paul’s words in the sixth chapter of Ephesians, they would now be standing (125) firmly in the faith. Paul enjoins us: “Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness.” These men did not yield to Bible truth. They thought to wrap themselves up in a spurious sanctification which would accord with any false theories which men might choose to accept. They added not to their faith, but rather detracted from it. “A good man out of the treasure of his heart, bringeth forth good things; but an evil man, out of the evil treasure of his heart, bringeth forth evil things.” There is no middle ground to occupy. The heart is either given to God to be purified, and sanctified and refined, or it is the sport of Satan’s temptations.

“That servant which knew his lord’s will, and prepared not himself, shall be beaten with many stripes. But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall much be required; and to whom men have committed much, of him will they ask the more.” The number of talents, the proportion of light, which each has received, will determine the returns which the Lord will require. He will ask for principle (126) and interest. Those who have known the truth, who have been blessed with the influence of the Holy Spirit, who have appreciated the truth, but who have turned from it, will not be treated simply as impenitent sinners. Their guilt is aggravated because of their knowledge of the truth. They have misrepresented the words and actions of the faithful servants of God, who have sought to lead the straying feet into paths of holiness. They have put an evil construction on the actions of those who have labored for the erring. If such continue to corrupt their way before the Lord, the whole world will rise in judgment against them. In the [318] judgment, Brother McCullagh, and those who have pursued a similar course, unless they have had the example before them of these cities, warning them not to follow the same course.

The experience of Israel, in the rebellion of Korah, Dathan and Abiram, was repeated in the apostasy of Brethren McCullagh and Hawkins. These men worked upon the minds of certain of the children of Israel, and through their deceptive (127) reasoning two hundred and fifty princes of the assembly, men of renown, gathered themselves together against Moses and Aaron, and said to them, “Ye take too much upon you, seeing that all the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the Lord is among them; wherefore then do ye lift yourselves up above the congregation of the Lord.”

These things were written for our learning, upon whom the ends of the world are come. The circumstances of the apostasy in Adelaide so nearly resembled the outbreak in the camp of Israel, that we can see it is of the same piece. Brethren McCullagh and Hawkins worked in the same lines, and the evil leaven spread among many who were displeased with something in their experience with us as a people, and who they were prepared to be influenced by the leaven of sinful murmuring, as were the children of Israel. The one who led these men always stands ready to take the disaffected ones today and start a rebellion. Ever watching for an opportunity, he works upon the mind with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish.

Satan is the father of lies, and the accuser of the brethren. (128) God’s people must be on their guard. None of us can occupy middle ground. We are either decided believers in the truth the subjects of faith, and holding the truth in righteousness, or we are the most guilty, the most inexcusable of those who profess godliness, and deserving of the wrath of the Lamb. O that those who can so readily enter by and forbidden paths, who contradict and cast away their former experience, could see what awaits those who deny the Holy Spirit’s leading, and are willing to be led by the agencies of evil. The judgment will present a scene the like of which the universe has never beheld. To what a pass will they come who have made light of the work of the Holy Spirit, and called its workings a delusion. The sentence of death will be passed upon all who, having light and evidence, like the Jews have refused to come to the Light, that their deeds should be reproved. [319]

(130) Letter regarding the apostasy of Elder McCullagh: —

[320]

“Sunnyside,” Cooranbong, N.S.W. March 30, ‘97
Dear Brethren, —

(131) My heart feels very sad that Brethren McCullagh and Hawkins have taken the position they have. From the light which the Lord has been pleased to give me, I knew that unless Brother McCullagh could be enlightened regarding the influence of his wife in the home and in the church, unless she were converted heart and soul, the enemy would work through her to deceive her husband. Here is where his past usefulness has been marred, and where his future work will also be marred. I have spared them, and been as tender with them as possible, hoping and praying that Sister McCullagh would be a transformed woman, that she would receive the warning given her of the Lord, and be a helpmeet to her husband. But she is not this; for she has not brought herself into right relation with God. She is his ill-adviser.

I knew that Brother and Sister McCullagh would be strongly tempted in this direction. I knew that a crisis would come, and that they would either see the defects of their home management, or else Satan would blind their perceptions, so that the sin of Eli would become their sin.

These things must be kept before the people, whether men…

(132) You may inquire, “What effect does this have upon you?” Sorrow only, sorrow of soul, but peace and perfect rest and trust in Jesus. To vindicate myself, my position, or my mission I would not utter ten words. I would not seek to give evidence of my work. “By their fruits ye shall know them.” These things must be kept before the people, and I have not to study what will be the consequence to me of giving the messages and warnings. I have put myself in the hands of God. If he permit the enemy to do to me as he did to the Saviour, shall I complain?

The child Christabel needed altogether different management than she had for the formation of a pure, modest Christian character. Sorrow is before Brother and Sister McCullagh in reaping the harvest sown. When the health of Brother McCullagh was so precarious in his last illness, I dare not keep silent. I had spoken upon general principles, plainly and decidedly, in accordance with the word of God, in regard to the responsibilities resting upon parents, the home missionary work to be done, the treatment children should receive in their education and training. The atmosphere surrounding the soul of their daughter is malarious, and is communicated to all the children with whom she associates. In order to save other children from being led into evil practices, I had a duty to do, and I did this as gently and carefully as I knew how. I shall continue to do the same, in order that children shall not be educated by the knowledge and ways and habits of this child. Here is where the present difficulty of Brother McCullagh and his wife lies. This is no sudden movement. The enemy has been at work for a long time.

(133) I sincerely wish that all children were educated to possess the precious virtues possessed by Joseph. His life declares what children and youth of Jesus is an example of what all children may be under proper training and the blessing of God. The inspired writings of Moses, who was moved by the Holy Spirit to make reference to Joseph’s excellent conduct, gives the glory to God. Joseph had the guardianship of God after he was separated from his father, and Joseph looked to the Lord, God made him a representative character. The origin of the lustre which his character reflected was God. The righteousness which he displayed and possessed, was Christ. In Christ are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, as a stream that is hidden is its fountain. Joseph drew his spiritual nourishment from God, and the seed shown in good soil sprang up and bore much fruit. The tenderness and virtue of Joseph’s character [321] were constantly unfolding, displaying a mind like that of Christ.

The Lord would have all children mark the character of Joseph, and be like him. Yet the life of Joseph was not free from trial and grievous affliction. He wore not only the badge of a slave, but the inscription of a felon. Robbed of his liberty, his name and his reputation, he was yet strengthened to preserve his integrity. The Lord’s eye was upon Joseph, watching his course of action as critically as he watched the wicked course of action as critically as he watched the wicked course of the sons of Eli. Each was rewarded according to his deeds.

Christ’s followers are not to despond, although for the faithful discharge of their duty they may incur the unbelief, (134) displeasure and disaffection of those whom they have called themselves friends. Our Redeemer was never appreciated by the people whom he was trying to save and bless. He was abased by the very ones He pitied and tried to save. He stood at the bar of an unjust judge. He was condemned by the charges of poor deluded men who were following their own way, while supposing themselves to be exalted by the false charges they brought against the Redeemer. Misinterpreted and falsified, he was numbered among the malefactors; and in his dying agonies was triumphed over by those he came to save, “Come down from the cross,” they cried, “and we will believe on thee. He saved others himself he cannot save.”

In the great crisis just before us, the followers of Christ will understand what dependence can be placed on men who have turned from the warnings and entreaties of the Spirit of God, to follow their own imaginings. It behooves every soul to stand on the Rock, to build for time and for eternity.

This apostasy is no more than I expected. I attempted to write out some precious things for these brethren, but the word came, “Write not; for they will misinterpret and misapply whatever word you may send them. With his specious temptations Satan is weaving a net about their feet.”

The seed which Brother McCullagh has sown will produce a harvest which he will not care to garner. The influence of his wife is not a pure, uncorrupting influence. He has had this atmosphere surrounding his soul until he is one with it; and if he fails of eternal life, the blood of his soul will be upon her garments. She has not a living connection with God; she is (135) not led and taught of God. She can speak very good things; she can make fair speeches; but she does not understand what a Christian experience is. I fear she will never know what her great need is. She must be born again. She needs, O so much that transformation of character that will make her realize spiritual things. My heart is drawn out in sincere pity and love for the family. I would do anything in my power to save them.

We have never made meat-eating a test of fellowship, never: but when the Lord presents before us the evil of eating the flesh of dead animals that are corrupted with disease,—scrofula, cancer, tumors and these pulmonary diseases,-it behooves everyone who knows these things to speak decidedly against subsisting on such a diet. When, as in the case of Brother Collins, who makes meat his principle article of diet, the sure result is presented in its effect upon the man, who is full of animal passions and lustful practices, then I shall speak. When, as in the case of Brother McCullagh, the result of a meat diet is seen in enfeebled health, I shall bear my testimony. But he is unfortunate; for his wife is constantly leading him away from health principles, which are so essential for him and for every member of his family. It is not merely meat-eating, but the food that is daily prepared for the table is not the best for his health and life. [322]

(136) Letter to the Adelaide Church: —

[323]

“Sunnyside,” Cooranbong, N.S.W. April 5, 1897.
Dear Brethren and Sisters in Adelaide, —

(137) It is your privilege and duty to stand firmly in the faith. I wish you now to see that which I never meant to make public. It will explain to you the reason of this wonderful apostasy. Brother Haskell, I believe, has the matter of clear lines, written to Brother McCullagh after he had received a special blessing at the Cooranbong Bible Institute. Brother McCullagh thanked me for reading this to him; and you can see plainly that if Satan had not power over his mind, he would not, dared not do again the very things he was reproved for doing in Sydney. As he has poured out his tirade against me publicly, when I was not present to answer for myself, I think it just and right that his accusations be presented in writing or before others, that we may be able to answer them point by point, and thus disappoint the enemy in his determined efforts to accuse. See Rev. 12:10-12.

(138) This accusing spirit will continue to the close of time; but let none suppose that the Holy Spirit prompts men to work out Satan’s attributes. They are working under another leader. We have seen this acted over and over again in our experience.

Adam was tempted in Eden. He yielded to a small temptation. He fell from his integrity, and the flood-gates of woe were opened upon our world. Christ resisted a series of most power temptations. In his human nature he passed over the ground where Adam fell, and redeemed Adam’s disgraceful failure. He stood the test in man’s behalf. And “as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name.” The question we need to ask ourselves is, Who are following the example of the first Adam? Who are standing firm to resist temptation?

“Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against the spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand, therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; and your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the (139) Spirit, which is the word of God. Praying with all prayer and supplication of the spirit, and watching thereto with all perseverance and supplication of the saints.”

Brethren, give no place to the devil. Do all that you can to break the deception that is upon Brother McCullagh. O that he could see how unwilling he has been to council with his brethren, or to be corrected in any way. His case is extremely perilous, because in his home there is a channel through which the enemy works. I greatly desire that Brother and Sister McCullagh shall be saved, but unless Sister McCullagh shall see herself what manner of spirit she is of, she will ever be a hindrance to her husband. The Lord loves Brother McCullagh because his soul is precious; but He will never excuse sin. If Brother McCullagh will accept the working of the Holy Spirit, the Lord will pardon him, and He will take away his natural and inherited tendencies to wrong. But although it is true that the Lord will work with him if he will repent and be converted, and will give him His spirit which will enable him to overcome and receive the overcomer’s reward, He will not compel obedience from [324] any soul.

Do not, I beseech of you, Brother and Sister McCullagh, link yourselves up with Satan. Bind up your souls with God. I will do all in my power to help you, and the Lord has unlimited power for you. If you will come into right relationship with Him, he will make you light bearers to others. But what a terrible mistake you are making in changing leaders. What confidence can others have in you if you thus tear down what you have advocated as truth. What dependence will be placed on your assertions that you have now the truth, when you will not allow the Spirit of God to work with you. Our God is not Yea and Nay, but (140) Yea and Amen in Christ Jesus. O turn ye, turn ye, for why will ye die?

I sent you a message of warning which you did not heed, but resisted. You have tried to unsettle the faith of Brother Hawkins, and of the entire church, and by speaking evil from house to house you have become accusers of your brethren. In the place of heeding the admonitions given, you have resented them, and have been at enmity with me. But your enmity has not been against be, but against the Lord, who gave me the message to give you, both for your present and eternal good. I love your souls. I want you to be undeceived. I want your blind eyes to be opened. I want you to buy the white raiment of Jesus Christ, the gold tried in the fire, that you may be rich. I plead with you, my brother, my sister, to do diligent work in repulsing the enemy. Resist him, through Jesus Christ. Would you be as Canright? The Lord is pitying you, and would save you from such a fate. The Lord will accept you as his servant, to help in saving souls, if you will learn obedience by the things you have suffered. Hold still, watch and pray, and die to self. “Let him take hold of my strength, and make peace with me, and he shall make peace with Me.”

I am so sorry for Brother Hawkins and his wife. Must he be bound up in your deceptions and deceived imaginations? O consider that his blood will upon your garments. I pray that you both may come to a better mind.

* * * * *

We are told in the word of God that men will arise as these have done, who will seek to impair confidence in the faith once delivered to the saints. “Of your own selves shall men arise, (141) speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them.” I tell you in the name of the Lord that you will be of this party, just as surely as Canright and others have been, unless you receive the warnings and entreaties of the Spirit of God, and fall on the Rock and are broken. Though you and many others apostatize, your turning from the light will not make truth error. The truth is still the truth. Not one of the principles of our faith has been moved nor will be moved.

All that has been said, thought or done against me, I freely forgive; for it was not against me but against the Lord. I will do all in my power to confirm and strengthen the faith of my tempted brethren and sisters. A sinful disposition has led them astray; but Christ knows our every weakness; he will pardon our transgressions and sins, if we will put them away from the heart and mind, and lay them upon the Sin-bearer. “Light is sown for the righteous, and truth for the upright in heart.” “Thus saith the high and holy One, that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is holy: I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a humble and contrite spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.” “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.”

My brethren, do all in your power to save brethren McCullagh and Hawkins. You may read this letter to them. Tell these brethren that the [325] Lord has a complaint against them which is not imaginary or trivial. Tell them that they have wounded Him who died to save them, and unless they shall break the snare and confess their sins, and seek forgiveness of God, they will feel his displeasure. If they refuse to hear you, if they refuse to (142) consider, then write out a careful statement of the facts, just as they are. There must be no exaltation of the men who will not be open and frank, and who will not consider all sides of the question. You will have to make clear statements; but we hope and pray that you will not be compelled to do this. O that the love of God may melt the hearts of these men, that they may see how they have grieved the heart of Christ. Our God is a God of infinite tenderness, of sympathy and inexpressible love, and in Jesus is revealed his heart of love. May the Lord give these brethren the repentance that needeth not to be repented of. [326]

(143) Letter to S. McCullagh: —

[327]

Lt 98a, 1897
“Sunnyside,” Cooranbong, New South Wales, Australia
April 8, 1897
Brother McCullagh:

What can I do for you? Can I do anything to relieve your mind? Can I make any explanation of the matters that trouble you? A man that throws away his religious experience without obtaining a reality must indeed be under a deception, and this I know you to be under. Esau sold his birthright for a mess of pottage. He was foolish; for he could not buy it back again, though he sought it carefully and with tears. I do hope that this is not your case. It is a serious matter to sell the soul for any price.

I have not slept since twelve o’clock this night. It is now two o’clock a.m. I am praying for you, and I believe that God will hear prayer. Jesus our Redeemer prayed for Peter that his faith fail not. Peter denied his Lord thrice. He declared, “I know not the man,” and tried to emphasize his denial by cursing and swearing. What have you been done to the Lord’s delegated messenger? Think it all over and consider. What reason have you had for taking the position you have against me? What I have said or done in thought, word, or deed lies open before God, and I am not ashamed to meet it in the judgment.

You have no reason now, any more than you had years ago, to turn away from the Christian unity which should exist between those who know the truth. Do you not know that you are fighting against the pricks? I have given you no occasion in my words, my deportment, or in anything whatever, to act as you have done. Who then has turned you from the faith once delivered to the saints? If you thought me in error, did you at the same time conclude me to be a hypocrite? Is this why you made no effort to sit down by my side, and for my soul’s sake show me my dangerous error? I do not speak now in reference to myself personally, but in reference to the mission, the work God has given me to do in His name. And I pray for the grace of Christ that I may be a faithful steward of His grace.

Will you, my dear brother, write out every point in my case that troubles you. I will try to answer you candidly, and if it is possible, relieve your mind. But have you not spoken words of me that you know are not just and true? You do not, you cannot, believe the statements you have made against me, when you stop to consider them. They are not true. I have laid the truth plainly before you, as the Lord has presented it to me. Am I therefore become your enemy because I tell you the truth? [328]

I plead before God most earnestly, “Save him, for thy mercy’s sake, save him. Let him not become an apostate from the faith. Restore him, and pardon his transgression.” I cannot let you go. I remember Peter, and I do not consider your case hopeless.

I enquire, Who hath bewitched you, that you should not believe the truth? You have made reports in reference to me being rich. How did you know I was? For about ten years I have been working on borrowed property. Should I sell all that I have in my possession, I would not have sufficient to pay my outstanding debts.

Where have I invested this money? You well know where. I have been the bank from which to draw to carry forward the work in this country. Coming to this country has put me to a loss of five thousand dollars worth of property. But this does not worry me, because I put my trust in the Lord. The Lord knows all about this loan. It came through no mismanagement of mine; it was the result of living in this country. My business in America has to be carried on without me being there to see to it.

I have borrowed money to do the work which must be done. Not one shilling of the donations sent me, from the least sum to larger amounts, has been used for myself. Our good Sister Wessels made me a present of a silk dress, and made me promise I would not sell it. But I thought that had she placed in my hands the amount the dress was worth, it would have been used in the cause of God.

I see debts on our meetinghouses and it hurts my soul. I cannot but feel distress over the matter. I have invested money in the Parramatta church, in the Prospect church, in the Napier church, in the Ormondville church, in the Gisborne church, and in the education of students. I have sent persons to America that they might be fitted to return and do work in this country. If this is the way to become rich, I think it would be well for others to try it.

All the royalty on my foreign books sold in America is sacredly dedicated to God for the education of students, that they may be fitted for the ministry. Thousands of dollars have been thus expended. Is this the way to accumulate money? The old story that Canright and others have circulated, that I was worth thirty thousand dollars, is all fiction. It has increased to thirty thousand pounds, by report, since I came to Australia.

I do not know where it is. I am using up my means, just as fast as it comes in, to carry forward the work in this country. If I had thirty thousand pounds, I would not have sent to Africa for the loan of one thousand pounds on which I am paying interest. If I could, I would get a loan of another thousand pounds, so that we might be able to put up the main school building.

I have not thirty thousand pounds. I only wish I had a million dollars. I would do as I did in Sydney. I would put men in the field to labor, defraying their expenses from my own funds. We need one hundred men where we now have one in the field. But the treasury is nearly empty, and I have not money to spare for the publication of books and for the many calls that demand means. [329]

I am making a true statement to you. Why did you venture to make statements concerning this matter when you did not know the facts in the case? I have not a surplus of means. I wish I had. I am praying for it to my heavenly Father. I believe that His stewards have means, if they would invest them in His work. When Elder Haskell came from Africa, Brother Wessels sent me fifty pounds. Other friends sent donations. This I have invested in different lines of the cause.

I believe the truth with all my heart. I have not a shadow of doubt. I know what I have seen and what is being fulfilled. I have not only seen, but read the Scriptures, and I have read them with a glad, prayerful heart, for they have explained many things which the Lord has been pleased to reveal to me. I can never express my gratitude for the treasures found in the Word of God, which have enabled me to understand that which I have been shown by God. I know by experience that the entrance of God’s Word giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple. I see marvelous light in the Word of God. It shines into my mind, and my soul temple kindles with its beams, which I try to flash in their radiant spiritual beauty upon the path way of others.

In regard to the building of my cottage, I had not the slightest idea that it would cost so much to build a plain, unadorned building. I could not be here. I left the work in the hands of Brother Shannon when I went to the camp meetings in Armadale and Hobart. Had we been on the ground, we might have lessened the expense considerably. But it costs twice as much to build a house here as it does in America.

I now ask you again, What have I done that has changed your attitude toward me? I have always spoken freely to you of my financial situation. I keep nothing secret. That you should feel it your privilege to make the assertions that you have made is not the inspiration of the Spirit of God. His Spirit is truth, all truth; it never falsifies, never betrays sacred trusts.

I have ever borne a straightforward testimony, because I feel the deepest interest in souls. I want you to be saved. I know that if you had heeded the testimonies of warning and encouragement sent you, you would not be where you are today. But with these testimonies before you, you have gone on and on, doing the very things that you were warned not to do.

I feel a deep longing that you should break the spell that is upon you and return to the Lord with your whole heart. He will receive you. I have a very high sense of the value of the human soul. O if we could all know, as did our Lord Jesus Christ, the preciousness of the souls he came to our world and died to redeem! Why then should any one be careless of his soul? That soul has the privilege of gaining immortality, for immortality is God’s free gift to all who receive and believe in Christ. O, if we could only see how God regards our souls, we would not treat our eternal interests in such a careless, indifferent manner.

The Lord Jesus, who made an infinite sacrifice to save His people from their sins, knows all about the higher life to which He is trying to raise them. He is the only one who can understandingly say, “What shall it profit a man if he shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul?” To Him let us commit our souls as unto a faithful Creator, who is able to save to the uttermost all who come unto Him. Souls, my brother, are precious. [330]

By looking constantly to Jesus, from morn till eve, with the eye of faith, we shall be strengthened. God will make the most precious revelations to His hungering, thirsting people. They will find that Christ is a personal Saviour. They feed upon His Word; for it is spirit and life. This Word kills the natural, earthly nature, and a new life in Christ Jesus is created. The Holy Spirit comes as a Comforter to them. Love takes the place of hatred, and the heart receives the mold of the divine similitude. The image of Christ is reproduced in the human agent, and by the transforming efficacy of the grace of Christ he becomes a new creature. “As many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name, which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.” This is the new birth.

“And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. . . . And of his fulness have all we received, and grace for grace.” The yearning after entire conformity to the will of God, after His holiness and peace, opens the eyes of the understanding to see the doctrines of the Word. Thus God’s children are strengthened and established; they are “steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord.”

The Lord is soon to appear in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory, to take those who have received Him to the mansions He has gone to prepare for them. We are anxiously awaiting His coming. We need to keep the armor on. We need to be all that the name Christian signifies. We need to live in habitual communion with God our Saviour, abiding in Him.

Christ has given us no assurance that to attain perfection of character is an easy matter. It is a conflict, a battle, a march, day after day. All who reach the standard must learn the lesson that it is through much tribulation that we enter the kingdom of heaven. If we sit with Christ on His throne, we must be partakers with Him of His suffering. Individually we will experience that which was spoken of Christ, “It became him . . . in bringing many souls unto glory to make the captain of their salvation perfect through suffering.”

“Though he were a son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered.” Shall we then be timid and cowardly because of the trials we meet as we advance? Shall we not meet them without repining and complaints? “Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also.” “In this world ye shall have tribulation;” but the Lord Jesus will give us all that we ask and believe that He will bestow.

The Lord would not have His servants unjustly charged by their fellow laborers with the guilt of many sins. Those who do this do much harm by creating a sentiment which will cut off the influence of those against whom they speak. False impressions will be made. Every effort should be made to present the facts as they exist. It is essential for the one who has borne false witness to see that he [has] been guilty of a great wrong in causing dissension in the church and in creating false sympathy, thus leading others into the same error and endangering their souls. [331]

The great apostle to the Gentiles was testified against falsely. At Philippi, unsustained by law and justice, he showed his enemies that they had treated him and his brethren shamefully. “They have beaten us openly and uncondemned, being Romans; and now do they thrust us out privily? Nay verily, but let them come themselves and fetch us. And yet this same man writes, “This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief.”

This is the attitude every man should take toward God. He has no plea to make, no legal right or legal claim to urge, in the presence of God, regarding the gifts of God as something due to himself.

When man assails his fellow men, and presents in a ridiculous light those whom God has appointed to do work for Him, we would not be doing justice to the accusers, or to those who are misled by their accusations, should we keep silent, leaving the people to think that their brethren and sisters, in whom they have had confidence, are no longer worthy of their love and fellowship. This work, arising in our very midst, and resembling the work of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, is an offense to God, and should be met. And on every point the accusers should be called upon to bring their proof. Every charge should be carefully investigated; it should not be left in any uncertain way. The people should not be left to think that it may be or it may not be. The accusers should do all in their power to lift every sign of reproach that cannot be substantiated.

This should be done in the case of every church. And when there is a servant of God whom He has appointed to do a certain work, and who for half a century has been an accepted worker, laboring for the people of our faith and before God’s workers, as one whom the Lord has appointed; when for some reason one of the brethren falls under temptation, and because of the messages of warning given him becomes offended, as did the disciples of Christ, and walks no more with Christ; when he begins to work against the truth and make his disaffection public, declaring things untrue which are true, these things must be met. The people must not be left to believe a lie. They must be undeceived. The filthy garments with which the servant of God has been clothed must be removed.

If those who have done this work take shelter in the statement that they are led by the Holy Spirit, it is as Satan clothing himself with the heavenly garments of purity, while still working out his own attributes.

I feel deeply over the spirit which is being manifest, because it works like evil leaven. Those who are led by it do not first go to the one they witness against and lay every charge before them. They do not give them an opportunity to clear themselves. But Christ declares, “I say unto you, that whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment; and whosoever shall say unto his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council; but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire. Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee, leave there the gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.”

Every effort should be made to clear the guiltless from evil surmisings, evil-speaking, and false accusations. Every true child of God should be willing to view the case of his brother or sister correctly, and look at all the facts as they are, for the Lord would have unity jealously [332] preserved. Christ prayed that His disciples might be one with Him, as He was one with the Father. [333]

When any man or woman listens to a charge against a brother or sister, this sin is defined as backbiting. “Lord, who shall abide in thy tabernacle, who shall dwell in thy holy hill? He that walketh uprightly, and worketh righteousness, and speaketh the truth in his heart. He that backbiteth not with his tongue, nor doeth evil with his neighbor, nor taketh up a reproach against his neighbor, in whose eyes a vile person is condemned; but he honored them that fear the Lord. He that sweareth to his own hurt, and changeth not. He that putteth not out his money to usury, nor taketh a reward against the innocent. He that doeth these things shall never be moved.”

Here, not only is one who bears the false witness condemned, but also the one who listens to the report. When charges are borne against God’s servants, they are borne against Christ in the person of his saints. Those who hear and accept these reports, who act as though the reports were true, create dissatisfaction. They are traitors, because they did not bring the charge to the one against whom it was made. By thus tattling about things, men evidence that they know little of Christ. They show that the food upon which their minds feed is scandal.

The Lord gave me my appointment in my youth. It was a mystery to me. After a severe struggle, I accepted the work, and in my experience I have proved that the Lord had unmistakable, far-reaching, wonderful plans in it all. Out of my weakness I was made strong. Many a time in the ever-recurring necessities, I was made strong in his strength. I was helpless, and ready to die, but he renewed me, and lifted me up, and I abide unto this time.

Nothing has been made more distinct and plain than that the Lord has chosen me to do His work, His great work. I was taken from among the young, in the deepest affliction, and the conflict and experience has been growing from year to year until I no more doubt that this frail thread of humanity has helped to compose the web that God is weaving in the loom of heaven.

I have learned to trust in God and not to expect any one but Him to understand the work He has given me to do. Others, with the knowledge of the way God has led me, may be unappreciative and unsympathetic; they may have no more idea of the work given me than a child. I have had experience after experience with my supposed- to-be unchangeable friends, whom I have found to be as trustworthy as a reed shaken by the wind, unable to read and understand my life struggle. They have given themselves up to evil surmisings, to watching for evil, to duplicity and falsehood.

I have met with this ignorance of spiritual things until I have learned to say with Paul, “None of these things move me.” They may say, “She hath a devil,” or “She doeth these things by the power of the devil.” They may say anything their hearts lead them to say. I know myself of the hardships, the disappointments, the anguish of spirit, that I have been compelled to know, when I have realized that I am alone. I stand in God, with heart and mind open to the heaven-revealed truth. [334]

I stand against men of low degree and against men of high degree, conscious that the truth revealed to me nearly fifty three years ago was from God. No human being has been able to wrest it from me. At times I have had to face nearly the whole church in defense and vindication of the heaven-sent light. Yet God has upheld me, and these many years an unchangeable testimony has been borne. Looking over more than half a century of experience, I can say with confidence, “O God, thou hast taught me from my youth up. Hitherto have I declared thy wondrous works, and will declare them.” The puny arm of man has been powerless to hinder.

Though my heart is pained when I see how little the work given me by God is comprehended, yet I am neither discouraged nor disposed to yield up the work God has given me. I know that God has laid this work upon me. Any course that my brethren may take will not alter my mission or my work. Again and again I have been obliged to stand against those why cry, “Lo, here is Christ,” and “Lo, there is Christ. Lo, this is new truth.” The crusade against the work of God has been firm and determined, yet those engaged in it have not accomplished their purpose.

Had I not known that God was my teacher and my stronghold, I must have been discouraged when so many started up, and cut themselves loose from the work God had given them to do, bringing in new theories, new impressions, and new principles. But the word has come, Heed them not; go straightforward. I am thy Teacher; I am at thy right hand, and will uphold thee. I know that the Lord will help me work my vein of gold and silver, and bring out my precious ore after many think that no more is to be had.

With every departure of our institutions from straight lines, with every new departure from right principles, strange methods and principles are brought in. But abuses come with them, and follow one after another in endless succession.

Those who will keep the way of the Lord to do justice and judgment, will see an abundance of work to do in every field. But souls can be saved only by those who have themselves drank deeply of the water of life. As their work increases in importance, and souls are won from the world, they are not to look upon this as an evidence that there is less to do. It should reveal a new portion of God’s moral vineyard to be worked.

When men after enjoying the truth and accepting the messages sent from God yield to temptation in a crisis, and become offended, when they turn their thoughts in other channels and advocate that which is entirely opposite to their work in the third angel’s message, they show that unless they are thoroughly converted, they will follow in the footsteps of Canright.

God is calling for volunteers, for men who will not turn away from the truth they have strenuously advocated for years to advocate erroneous doctrines. Because some have not been diligent students, because they do not understand the true reasons of the genuine faith, there will be no less power or fewer laborers. Others will take the places in the ranks made vacant, who will be receptive and who will appreciate the sacred character of truth. [335]

At the eleventh hour, when the work grows harder and the people are more hardened, there will be a variety of talent brought in. These workers will prove faithful and receive their penny. Sacrificing men will step into the places made vacant by those who would not be fitted for a place in the heavenly temple. These resources will continue to come in. The Lord will provide openings and facilities. He will call upon the youth to fill up the places made vacant by deaths and apostasies. He will give young men and women, as well as those who are older, the co-operation of the heavenly intelligences. They will have converted characters, converted minds, converted hands, converted feet, and converted tongues. Their lips will be touched with a living coal from the divine altar. If they will learn the lesson of walking humbly before God, if they will not seek to invent new plans, but will do that which the Lord has appointed them to do, they will be enabled to carry God’s plan onward and upward without narrowing it.

The school is being opened, that young men and women may have opportunity to become better acquainted with the reasons of the truth. Many of these reasons have past into history, but they must also be presented as living truth, which must be exalted and magnified till the close of time.

All who join the ranks of Sabbathkeepers should become diligent Bible students, that they may know the pillars and ground work of the truth. They should study prophetic history, which has brought us down point by point to where we are at the present time. This is God’s plan for our school. Young men should attend who desire to become educated for any line of work, who have capabilities and see the necessity of learning more and still more where we stand today in prophetic history, uniting link after link in the prophetic chain, even from Genesis to Revelation. Christ is the Alpha, the first link, and the Omega, the last link, of the gospel chain, which is welded in Revelation. These young men will not have fixed habits of wrong, or defects in disposition and character that will make them inflexible.

With what care should every one come to the study of the Scriptures! With what a determination to know all that it is possible for him to know of the reasons of every point of the faith; especially the Sanctuary question, and the first, second, and third angels’ messages, should he study.

Men who have become established in the truth will not be soon moved away from it to plunge into an abyss of uncertainty. The Lord would have all those who take their position on the truth know that they do know where their feet stand, whether it is on slipping sand or the unmovable rock. How attentive should they be to every sermon, to every Bible study. How carefully should they listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit that leads into all truth. Those who proclaim the truth to others should open their hearts to receive every principle that the truth embraces, and then they should bring these principles into their practical life. Doing this, they eat the flesh and drink the blood of the Son of God. The Holy Spirit witnesses to the message coming to the people coming from the messenger who is holding forth the Word of life. How attentive should they be to suggestions and thoughts, to the divine impressions that the Spirit of God writes in the memory and stamps upon the soul.

Everyone who lives for God should pray most earnestly and take heed how they hear. God will speak to them with the still, small voice. He will not shout in their ears, but will speak to the soul. In the name of the [336] Lord we must call and prepare the young for the battle. They must understand God’s plan for work in every stage of their upward march. They need to know for themselves the reasons of our faith, and make it their experience. David cannot put on Saul’s armor; it is too large for him. But every piece of God’s prepared armor must come from heaven’s armory. The youth must obtain their teaching through their work. The divine Word must be eaten and brought into the current that circulates through mind, heart, and soul. [337]

Let the youth obtain a knowledge of the Bible in our schools. Then let them work on that which they are persuaded is the truth. Those who come to our schools will also be taught that God will hold them responsible for their reason, and the way they use it; for their time, and how they spend it; for their speech, and how they employ it. These are God’s precious talents.

The youth should keep advancing in knowledge during the school term. Then they should make use of the knowledge they have obtained, for the benefit of others. They are to pray to God constantly, when they are by themselves; and at the family altar and when they walk in the streets, they are to uplift their hearts to God, praying to be kept from temptation. God will give such youth more than natural judgment and intuition. If they will give themselves to him, he will give them skill and adaptability. They will have mistakes to correct and victories to gain, and gradually they will grow into stronger, wiser men and women in Christ Jesus.

Success will come when the youth are educated in this way. It will not come from natural ability, but from the molding of the heart by Christ. By beholding Christ, they become changed from glory to glory, from character to character. Righteousness and truth are in the inward parts, work outward in the expressions, and from the tenor of the character. Students must constantly be taught from the word of God.

All are to work for unity and harmony of purpose. Everything that is done in connection with the work of God must be divinely done. Truth is something that must be passed on to others. There are souls to be saved, souls who must have the truth for this time from the word of God, to prepare them for that which is opening before us.

Satan is moving with intensity from beneath, and is bringing all his forces to bear to unsettle those who have once been established in the truth. These are the very ones who by yielding up the truth which they have once advocated, can do the greatest harm to the cause of God. Quite a large number will enter this path, because the truth they once believed had not been brought into their life-practice. But those who depart from the faith and refuse to give the last message of warning to the world will walk in paths in which the Lord does not lead. Satan goes before them, clothed as an angel of light. They will follow on in false paths until they shall discern what is comprehended in the wrath of the Lamb.

“Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, saith the Lord of hosts. . . . And I answered again, and said unto him, What be these two olive branches which through the two golden pipes empty the golden oil out of themselves. And he answered me, and said, Knowest thou not what these be. And I said, No, my lord. Then said, he, These are the two anointed ones, which stand by the Lord of the whole earth.” [338]

This oil the wise virgins had in their vessels with their lamps. This oil is the Holy Spirit, which the foolish virgins did not have. Character is not transferable. When as in the case of the foolish virgins, they find their lamps going or gone out, faith and love and knowledge of God and the truth have left them, as water leaves a leaky vessel. We may have this holy oil; we must have it. It must be emptied from the holy olive trees, the two anointed ones, that are commissioned to empty the oil from themselves, and communicate it to the churches. But those who choose to follow the impulses of their own natural temperament, will find themselves without the holy oil. [339]

Letter to Brother and Sister Muckersey:—

[340]

Lt 32, 1899
February 14, 1899 My Brother and Sister [Muckersey] in Jesus Christ:

I have answered your letter, but did not send you what I wrote, because I knew that for some time you had been under temptation, and that anything I might say would be liable to be misconstrued, and would not have the influence upon your mind that would relieve your feelings. Nothing I can say will be of value to you as long as you have not an understanding of the work the Lord has given me to do.

Your letter certainly left a very sad impression upon my mind. Should I speak the truth, and say to you, I am guiltless of the imputations that your letter conveys as faultfinding and censorious, and stop there, then you would, I fear, continue to misunderstand the work given me by God when I was but a youth, which I have sought in truth and in the fear of God to do with fidelity, His grace upholding me. I speak with assurance. I have not forfeited my right to say, You simply do not understand the sentiments of your own mind. The gradual progress that has been at work to place you where you now stand in relation to the cause of God will eventually, if you continue to hold the position you now do, carry your sympathy away from those who are by God’s appointment doing His work for this last time. I am more sorry for you than I can express.

We are all to see the necessity of walking humbly with God, of walking in the light as it shines upon our pathway. When we study and practice the lessons of Christ, increased light will shine upon us, and we will understand that souls are in the peril that led Christ to say, “When the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?”

If I understand the matter correctly, you place me in the position of one who is faultfinding and accusing. This is not the correct interpretation of the work the Lord has laid upon me. Should I neglect this work, I should be unfaithful to my appointment. In every period of the work there have been those who have followed the counsel of the enemy. They have done all they possibly could do to deceive God’s people and lead them into error and suppositions of their own creating. But the Lord has presented these cases before me, and I have had a message of warning from the Lord to give to the several churches in regard to the snare that was being laid. I was bidden to warn them that Satan was working to lead them through human agencies into false paths. [341]

But when you lay upon me the imputation that I am speaking evil of my brethren and sisters, I promptly and decidedly deny the charge. I have had opened before me the thing which my brethren do not understand, and I have given them cautions and warnings, telling them that a decided reform must take place in the churches. There has been manifested an indifferent, careless, proud, revengeful spirit. This spirit cannot dwell in a converted, sanctified soul. The Spirit of Christ in the heart always prompts the human agent to speak and act as Christ spoke and acted. Christ’s followers are bound to make Him manifest in the life; then there will be a visible spiritual church.

Through the Hebrew captives the Lord was made known to the heathen in Babylon. This idolatrous nation was given a knowledge of the kingdom the Lord was to establish, and through His power maintain against all the power and craft of Satan. Daniel and his fellow companions, Ezra, Nehemiah, and many others, were witnesses for God in their captivity. The Lord scattered them among the kingdoms of the earth that their light might shine brightly amid the black darkness of heathenism and idolatry. To Daniel God revealed the light of His purposes, which had been hidden for many generations. He chose that Daniel should see in vision the light of His truth, and reflect this light on the proud kingdom of Babylon. On the despot king was permitted to flash light from the throne of God. Nebuchadnezzar was shown that the God of heaven was Ruler over all the monarchs and kings of earth. His name was to go forth as the God over all gods. God desired Nebuchadnezzar to understand that the rulers of earthly kingdoms had a Ruler in the heavens. God’s faithfulness in rescuing the three captives from the flames and vindicating their course of action showed His wonderful power.

Great light shone forth from Daniel and his companions. Glorious things were spoken of Zion, the city of the Lord. Thus the Lord designs that spiritual light shall shine from His faithful watchmen in these last days. If the saints in the Old Testament bore such a decided testimony of loyalty, how should God’s people today, having the accumulated light of centuries, shine forth, when the prophecies of the Old Testament shed their veiled glory into the future. Type met antitype in the life and death of Jesus Christ. The veil was rent in twain when the long-predicted death of the Son of God took place. He arose from the dead and proclaimed over the rent sepulcher of Joseph, “I am the resurrection and the life.” He ascended to heaven, escorted by the angelic throng. He led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men.

Every specification of the Old Testament prophesied was fulfilled in the New Testament. There could be no uncertainty in regard to Christ being the Son of God. Then are we not bound to shine forth more brightly? The promise of the Holy Spirit was fulfilled on the Day of Pentecost. Five thousand were converted in one day. For long ages after this, apostasies were constantly occurring. Disloyalty to God was manifested. But still God had faithful witnesses to whom He committed the truth, and who preserved the Word of God. The manuscripts of the Hebrew and Greek Scriptures have been preserved through the ages by a miracle of God. [342]

The Lord is God. It was His design that the church should ever advance in purity and light and knowledge, from light to light, from glory to glory. John makes the statement that he saw the glory of Christ, the glory of the Redeemer. And the voice of prophecy declared that such would be the character of Christ’s kingdom. To Daniel was given a vision of fierce beasts, representing the powers of the earth. But the ensign of the Messiah’s kingdom is a lamb. While earthy kingdoms rule by the ascendancy of physical power, Christ is to banish every carnal weapon, every instrument of coercion. His kingdom was to be established to uplift and ennoble fallen humanity.

“Whereunto,” saith He that is the first and the last, “shall I liken the kingdom of God, and with what comparison shall I compare it?” He could not employ any of the kingdoms of the world as a similitude. In society He found nothing that would resemble it. He looked for a comparison, but could not find it. He would have a new creation. He would make His church a beautiful temple for the Lord. “Where two or three are gathered in my name,” He declares, “there am I in the midst of them.” His church is the court of holy life, filled with varied gifts and endowed with the Holy Spirit, bringing in piety, compassion, zeal, and love in their order.

Appropriate duties are assigned by heaven to the church, and the members are to find their happiness in the happiness of those whom they bless and influence aright. The poor are to have the gospel preached unto them. The teachers are to be humble men. If they have an experimental knowledge of Christ, they will never place “Right Reverend” or even a simple “Reverend” before their names. This is a title which belongs to no living man.

The great Teacher from heaven visited our world. Jesus Christ is His name. He is the Lord our Righteousness. He was visited by the prince of darkness; He was tempted in all points like as we are; He reached to the very depths of human woe; and all who carry their sorrows to Him, as to one who can be touched with the feeling of their infirmities, will receive the oil and wine of consolation. They will know from experience that Christ is their personal Saviour, One who comforteth those who are cast down, who bindeth up the broken-hearted. This experience grows as they in turn impart that which they have received. Christ is formed within, the hope of glory. He is made unto them wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption. They can say, I know in whom I have believed.

Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Faith results in spiritual knowledge. By faith we are encouraged to grasp still more, for we behold God in the promise, and are armed with stability. The true Christian knows in whom he has believed. He has the evidence of things unseen, and a knowledge that is reassuring, overpowering, follows this. This may not be believed by some skeptics, but it is to the receiver no speculation, no mere theory. The gospel offers to him a remedy for the moral disorders which sin has made. He does not merely read the Bible, but experiences the Bible. He has not merely heard of the righteousness of Christ by faith, but he has opened the windows of his soul to the Sun of Righteousness.

Skeptics may stand back, and argue the impossibility of the remedy he has taken, but their words are nothing to him against experience. It is a matter of knowledge with him. The believing man, even though he be [343] unlearned, has a knowledge that cannot be wrested from him. The one who trusts his Saviour implicitly finds the gates of heaven ajar and flooded with glory from the throne of God. [344]

The great Physician is present to heal every malady. “We are saved by hope.” When Jesus took human nature, and became in fashion as a man, He possessed all the human organism. His necessities were the necessities of a man. He had bodily wants to be supplied, bodily weariness to be relieved. By prayer to the Father He was braced for duty and for trial.

“We are saved by hope; but hope that is seen is not hope; for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it. Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities; for we know not what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us, with groanings which cannot be uttered. For he that searcheth the heart knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he asketh intercession for the wants according to the will of God.

“And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. . . . What shall we then say to these things? if God be for us, who can be against us? He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? . . . I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus.”

I read to you all the writing I sent to Elder McCullagh. To write reproofs and warnings has been my duty and my appointed work for more than half a century. Men have been used by the enemy to work to deceive souls just as Elder McCullagh and Elder Hawkins have worked; but the Lord has wrought for His own name’s glory, and has disappointed the enemy. This has been our experience hundreds of times.

Through evil and through good report I have gone about my work. People can say no more of me than they have said of Christ, He casteth out devils through the prince of the devils. God has been my support, my front guard and my rereward. He has fulfilled His Word to me. When utterly unable physically to stand before the people, the Lord has before thousands of people, healed me instantly, and thus given them an evidence that the work and message given me was from above. Hundreds have been enabled to listen to the word of the Lord through the weak instrument. Have I exalted myself? Have I taken any glory to myself? I have never felt the least disposition to do this.

I have realized that I was one of the very weakest vessels the Lord could use, and for this reason God has been my only dependence. He is my strength. I look to Him, I trust in Him. I wait for Him to give me my discharge from the work. But until that time comes, I shall go forward in His name, bearing the message, not only of encouragement, but of reproof, of warning, opening to individual minds their dangers, revealing to them the will of God. This work I shall continue to do as long as the Lord shall bid me. [345]

I have had the tenderest sympathy for Elder McCullagh and his wife. When I was in New Zealand warnings were given me in reference to them and their child. The Lord made known to me that there was necessity for a change in the education and training of their child, else she would cause them sorrow and heartache. I bore this testimony in Ormondville, New Zealand. The Spirit of the Lord was upon me. I wrote to them decidedly on this point. I did not name their child in my public testimony, but laid down principles upon the duty of parents to their children, and the relation of children to parents, showing the great responsibility of parents.

Christabel McCullagh’s mother came to me after the meeting. I was then making my home at their house. She said, “The Lord gave me these words to speak; for they meant me. I never had the subject of the responsibility of parents in the education and training of their children presented to me in this light.” She said, “I shall ever feel grateful to you for this counsel.” I told her I had written the matter out when living in Brother Wilson’s family at Hastings, New Zealand.

When I was at Hastings, Brother and Sister McCullagh sent me a letter, saying that their daughter was at the point of death, and asking our prayers in their behalf. We did pray for the whole family, for all had been passing through a siege of diphtheria. That night the true situation of the family was laid open before me. I arose at one o’clock a.m., and wrote many pages in regard to the mismanagement of their child. The light given me was plain and decided. I could not send the large amount written until it was copied, and I wrote Brother and Sister McCullagh a short letter, in which I entreated them, for Christ’s sake and their own, to seek the Lord, to confess to Him the wrong course they had pursued toward their child, and the attributes of character she had developed as the sure result.

I then pleaded with God in their behalf. My soul was wrought up to an agony as I thought the child was dying, and that even that little child had deceived and falsified. I begged of the parents to seek God for themselves and for their child. I knew that it would be better for her to die than to live and become what she surely would unless they took the matter decidedly in hand, and in the name of the Lord did the work that every parent should do.

It was sometime after this that I visited Ormondville and bore my testimony, as I have stated, in the little hall which they had hired for their meetings. As I talked with Sister McCullagh, I really thought she would do as she said she would, and as I had laid the matter in a general way before the people, I thought that perhaps this was enough, and I let the matter rest. But I spoke again and again upon the duty devolving upon parents to work unitedly in the duty of training their children for the future immortal life.

Once again I was in Ormondville. They had built a little church, and had determined that it should be dedicated free from debt. They had all the money they needed but five or six pounds. I paid this sum. Elder McCullagh insisted that I should give the dedicatory discourse. This I did, and the Spirit of the Lord was among us. Elder McCullagh had much to say in regard to the Lord’s special power being upon me, enabling me to speak the very words that were needed. After this he and his family moved to Parramatta, New South Wales. Our union was still unbroken. When the Ashfield camp meeting was held, I was not aware that anything [346] was troubling him except some things in connection with Brethren Daniells and Rousseau. I would not sustain the brethren in some of their opinions. Then the Lord gave me words for Elder McCullagh. His manner of speaking was trying his throat. He spoke in a sharp, high key, and much too rapidly. This was injuring his vocal organs, and trying his lungs. I told him that the Lord would have our ministers do all they possibly could to improve the gift of speech. They were to guard the voice as faithful sentinels, and treat the vital organs with care, for the Lord would not work a miracle to remove the difficulties which are the result of not working in harmony with nature’s laws. Brother McCullagh thanked me for the cautions given him, and acknowledged that he talked too rapidly, and pitched his voice too high, which irritated the throat.

Again I had a few words of testimony for him. I was shown that he might receive much light if he would attend the Bible lessons given by Elder Corliss, for Elder Corliss had searched the Scriptures, and knew how to explain God’s Word. If Elder McCullagh would attend these lessons, he would be better qualified to present the Word to those who were ignorant of the foundations of our faith. This was the tenor of the letter. After this some things were opened before me in regard to both Brother McCullagh and his wife who, in visiting among the churches, were leaving a wrong impression upon minds. They were drawing sympathy to themselves. Brother McCullagh’s health was failing, and it was thought that he would be better in a milder climate. Adelaide was proposed, but he and his wife objected to Adelaide. He said he would be much pleased to make a short visit in Adelaide.

Some things were opened before me in regard to the family connections, and I told Brother McCullagh that I could not recommend his going to Adelaide on a short visit only, because the finances were low, and for him and his wife and daughter to go so far for only a short visit would entail unnecessary expense.

I told Brother McCullagh that it was not the best thing for his wife and child to be traveling about with him, and that if they liked to come to Cooranbong, I would see that they had a good house of four rooms, and that they had hens and chickens. The climate here is all that could be wished, and there is plenty of missionary work to be done in and about Cooranbong. Their daughter could be placed in the school here.

Brother McCullagh had expressed the wish that this should be as I said. I told him he would not need to be confined here. His wife and child could have a home, and he could come and live just as long as he chose, and go when he chose to labor among the churches. He seemed pleased with the idea. I told him that the reason why I presented the matter before him now was because I knew that it would not be best for his wife and child or himself to live in Adelaide, because of his family connections. This would not be any encouragement to them spiritually, and I knew that they would be a hindrance. He said he understood that, and that he was going to live in the country with a man who had invited him to come to his house.

My brother and sister in the Lord, I ask you not to judge the work the Lord has appointed me to do. I feel sorry, very sorry, that I am in perplexity as to what I should write you, because you see matters in a perverted light. I wanted to help you, but the very work I am assured the Lord gave me to do, you have misjudged. [347]

I spoke last Sabbath upon the second chapter of Colossians. “I would that ye knew what great conflict I have for you and for those of Laodicea, and for as many as have not seen my face in the flesh; that their hearts might be comforted, being knit together in love, and unto all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the acknowledgement of the mystery of God, and of the Father, and of Christ; in whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. And this I say, lest any man should beguile you with enticing words.” This is a danger that requires to be guarded against.

“For though I be absent in the flesh, yet am I with you in the spirit, joying and beholding your order, and the steadfastness of your faith in Christ. As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: rooted and built up in him, and established in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving. Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit; after the tradition of men, . . . and not after Christ. For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power.”

I speak to you, my brother, the words written in this chapter. I have had the same testimony to bear in many places. It is necessary for both to guard against being beguiled by those who know not of what they speak. Be on guard. Believe not every spirit, for their words may not be after the mind of Christ, words which will influence you in a wrong direction. You may lose much by demeriting the words the Lord sends you. There are many kinds of influences so at work on human hearts. And you may think that your own judgment is without a flaw, and that those not agreeing with your ideas and opinions are in the wrong. But be careful. “Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.” This verse presents to you your danger.

Notwithstanding that your letter almost discouraged me from making any attempt to help your understanding, I must tell you that you have been losing the love and knowledge of the truth; and for this I feel very sorry. I thought I would write to you immediately, and did so. After passing two sleepless nights, I tried to remember anything that I had said to your injury. I could not recollect one statement. If I said that I was afraid that you were deceived in your interpretation of the truth on all points, I do not now call it to mind. I may have said this in reference to Brother John Bell, and mentioned the necessity of pressing together, and everyone seeking for unity. If I did this, it was to encourage our brethren not to draw apart one from the other, but to draw together. [348]

(178) Letter regarding the apostasy of Elder McCullagh: —

[349]

“Sunnyside,” Cooranbong, N.S.W. April 22, 1897.
To the church in Adelaide.
Dear Brethren and Sisters, —

(179) I am drawn out to address you. I am in great travail of soul for our people; for we are living amid the perils of the last days.

A superficial faith results in a superficial experience. There is a repentance that needs to be repented of all genuine experience in religious doctrines will bear the impress of Jehovah. All should see the necessity of understanding the truth for themselves individually. It has been revealed to me that there is among our people a great lack of knowledge in regard to the rise and progress of the third angel’s message. There is great need to search the books of Daniel and Revelation, that we may know what is written.

I have been shown that many would go out from us giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of devils. The Lord desires that those who claim to believe the truth shall have an intelligent knowledge of what is truth. False prophets will arise, and will deceive many. Everything will be shaken that can be shaken. Then does it not behoove every one of us to understand the reasons of our faith? In place of having so many sermons, there should be more close searching of the word of God text by text, and searching for strong evidence that to sustain the fundamental doctrines that have brought us where we now are, upon the platform of eternal truth.

(180) My soul is made very sad to see how quickly those who have had light and truth will accept the deceptions of Satan, and be charged with a spurious holiness. When men turn away from the waymarks the Lord has established that we may understand where we stand in the history of the world, they are going they know not whither. I wish another camp-meeting could be held in Adelaide, that the slime and filth which Satan has poured forth upon the servants of God might be washed away. I would not object to attending such a meeting. The way has been prepared for the message which God has given me, and the church in Adelaide should see and understand the truth to be lived and advocated for this time.

I question whether genuine rebellion is ever curable. Study in “Patriarchs and Prophets” the rebellion of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram. This rebellion included more than two men. It was led by two hundred and fifty princes of the congregation, men of renown. This experience of God’s ancient people, with all its objectionable features, was faithfully chronicled in the Scriptures, — “written” Paul declares, “for our admonition upon whom the ends of the world are come.” If men and women who have a knowledge of the truth so far separate from their Leader, that they will take the leader of apostasy, and name him Christ our Righteousness, it is because they have not sunk the shaft deep into the mines of truth. They are not able to distinguish the precious ore from the base material.

Read the cautions so abundantly given in the Word of God regarding the false prophets who were to come in with their heresies, and if possible deceive the very elect. With these warnings before them, why is it that the church does not distinguish the (181) false from the true, &lt;when they have a knowledge that there are false theories to answer and be of so deceiving a character they would, if possible, deceive the very elect&gt;? A church thus misled needs to humble itself before God, and sincerely repent for being so easily led astray. They could not distinguish the voice of true shepherd from that of a stranger.

The Adelaide church needs to review this chapter in its experience. For more than half a century God has been giving his people light through [350] the testimonies of his Spirit. Yet with all this light, two men and their wives, declaring Mrs. White a fraud and a deceiver, deceive a whole church of believers. “By their fruits ye shall know them.”

The Lord has permitted this rebellion to develop in order to show how easily his people will be misled when they depend upon the words of men instead of searching the Scriptures for themselves, as did the noble Bereans, to see if these things were so. It has been permitted that the members of the Adelaide church may be helped to plant their feet on the Rock of Ages, instead of on shifting sand. Should the fair words of men, one of whom has had no real experience with us as a people, be so readily accepted? How can our people, with their Bibles in their hands accept that which, if they would only consider, they must know is error and falsehood. The Lord has permitted this thing to be that warning may be given, &lt;that&gt; just such things will take place again. Rebellion and apostasy are in the very air we breathe, and we shall be affected by it unless by faith we hang our helpless souls upon Christ. If men are so easily misled, how will they stand when Satan shall personate Christ, and work miracles. Who will be unmoved by his misrepresentations? What will hold God’s people from giving their allegiance to false Christ’s? The doctrine of our faith must be plainly understood. (182) The men accepted to teach the truth must be anchored; then their vessel will hold against the storm and tempest. As we near the end of time deceptions will increase, and we are to call rebellion by its right name. We are to stand with the whole armor on.

My brethren, you are not meeting only, but principalities and powers. We wrestle not against flesh and blood. Let Ephesians 4:10-13 be read carefully and impressively before the church. We have to meet the same Satanic agencies that went to make war with the saints. “The dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.”

I write this because many in the Adelaide church are represented to me as seeing men as trees walking. They must have a deeper experience before they can discern the snares spread to take them in the net of the deceiver. There must be no halfway work done now. The Lord calls for staunch, decided, whole-souled men and women to stand in the gap and build up the hedge. “And they of thee shall build the whole old waste places, and raise up the foundations of many generations, and thou shalt be called, The repairers of the breach, the restorer of paths to dwell in. If thou turn away thy foot from the Sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day, and shalt honor him, not doing thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words, then shalt thou ride upon the high places of the earth, and I will feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father, for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.

(183) I do not believe that any evidence presented to these men will have any effect upon them. In Brother McCullagh’s case no further evidence could be given as the sincerity of my mission and the work the Lord has given his servant to do. He has had the light. Those who can thus ignore all the evidence God has given should tremble for the safety of their &lt;own&gt; souls; for unless they repent, their candlestick will be removed out of its place they repent, their candlestick will be removed out of its place. The Lord has been insulted. The standard of truth, of the first, second, and third angel’s messages has been allowed to trail in the dust. These men who have apostatized have left the faithful people of God and fraternized with a class represented by Barabbas. “By their fruits ye shall know them.”

My Brethren Daniells, Colcord, and Starr, there is a decided [351] testimony to be borne by all our ministers in all our churches. God has permitted this apostasy to take place in order to show how little dependence can be placed on man. We are always to look to God. His word is not yea and nay, but Yea and Amen. All our labors to bring souls to a knowledge of the truth in such a way that it works a decided reformation in the heart and life. The work must proceed from inward to outward, transforming the character of all who receive the truth. We are not to throw our arms about the men who are Satan’s masterpieces for working out his will, &lt;Satan’s theories,&gt; as were the opposers on the campground at Adelaide. If the watchmen are left the mislead people in this way, God will hold some souls responsible for a lack of keen discernment. Truth is to be proclaimed in warnings that will make hearts tremble in contrition before God. A sharp, clean-cut testimony must be borne. (184) I hope that efforts will be made to encourage as many as possible to come to this first term of school, where the Bible will be made the most important line of study. God help you all to go forth with the sword of the Spirit, which cuts both ways, is my prayer. “Be ye wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.” Make no compromise with those who have apostatized, but treat them kindly, giving no occasion for your good to be evil spoken of. &lt;Dwell on the sure word, which word is the explainer of the word.&gt; [352]

(185) The following are Testimonies given to Brother and Sister Shannan and Brother Lawrence at this time: —

[353]

“Sunnyside,” Cooranbong, N.S. Wales, Dec. 26, ‘98.
Brother and Sister Shannan: —

(186) Wherein did you practice the word of God when you made your home with Brother Prismall? Poor man, he has turned his face from Christ. The Lord has sent him reproofs, warning him not to pursue the course he has followed. His only hope is to come off the devil’s ground, and cease to be an accuser of the brethren. He thinks he has something to question and find fault within everything, and in every man’s teaching. In his eyes, no one is perfect. But he could give no greater evidence of his own imperfection of character.

Read carefully the third chapter of James, and criticize yourself severely. “Do ye think that the Scripture saith in vain, The spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth to envy. But He giveth more grace. Wherefore He saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw nigh to God, and He will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded. Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He shall lift you up. Speak not evil one of another, (187) brethren. He that speaketh evil of his brother, and judgeth his brother, speaketh evil of the law, and judgeth the law: but if thou judge the law, thou art not a doer of the law, but a judge. There is one lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy: who art thou that judgest another?”

“Of these things put them in remembrance, charging them before the Lord that they strive about words to not profit, but to the subverting of the hearers. Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” But shun profane and vain babbling: for they will increase unto more ungodliness.” “Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; as obedient children not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: but as He which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.”

Brother Prismall was given the privilege of building for time and for eternity on the right foundation, the one sure foundation. Had he built upon this foundation, laying stone upon stone in its proper place, the structure would have risen every day, growing in symmetry and beauty, until the purpose of God was fully accomplished, and the top stone brought forth with shoutings of grace, “We are laborers together with God; ye are God’s husbandry; ye are God’s building.” Thus it is said of all who build on Christ Jesus. Let those who have been given the opportunity and privilege of being living stones in the spiritual house, depart from all evil, and let them reveal to the (188) world the perfection of character which they expect others to reveal. Let them show that they are living stones, emitting light to all with whom they come in contact.

God has invited Brother Prismall to look upon Christ’s perfection of character, and by beholding become changed into His divine similitude, as all will who are built upon Him. Being built upon Christ means actual, personal contact with the Lord Jesus. This makes the human agent a living stone, and imparts to it a lustre which has the power of emitting light and attracting others to the great center. “Ye also, as lively (living) stone, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood.” [354]

The Lord pointed out the perils in the life of Brother Prismall, and his defective character. But Brother and Sister Shannan poured out to him their grievances, and stated falsely that matters were going all wrong on the school ground. They said that those at work there, were doing everything wrong, and that they (Brother and Sister Shannan) had no confidence in them. Thus, because Brother and Sister Shannan did not practice the word of God, the seeds of bitterness were planted. “Wherefore lift up the hands that hang down,” the word of God enjoins, “and the feeble knees; and make straight paths for your feet; lest that which is lame be turned out of the way; but let it rather be healed. Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord: looking diligently, lest any fail from the grace of God, lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby may be defiled.”

Brother Shannan, in Brother Prismall you saw a man who had not accepted the light, who had not heeded the warnings given. (189) As a faithful agent, he was working out the will of the enemy. He has not a vital connection with God, and he has refused everything that in his estimation was not perfect. By his actions he has showed that were he in the place of God, he would have blotted from the universe all men as imperfect as himself, all men defective in doing that work for which they were appointed,—to love God supremely and their neighbor as themselves.

A lawyer came to Christ, saying, “What shall I do to inherit eternal life?” The scribes and Pharisees were listening as spies and criticizers, seeking to catch some words by which they might accuse Him whose appointed work was to bring life and immortality to light. This lawyer had been put forward by the scribes and Pharisees to tempt Christ to speak words that they could use against Him. Christ who reads every heart as an open book, knew the thoughts lurking there. He gave the lawyer privilege of answering his own question. “What is written in the law? how readest thou?” he said. The scribes and Pharisees who were seeking to entrap Christ, were great sticklers for the law, although they did not keep it, either in spirit or letter. The lawyer answering said, “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbor as thyself.” Christ replied, “Thou hast answered right; this do, and thou shalt live.”

The lawyer, willing to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” Jesus then related an incident that had recently taken place. A certain man, going from Jerusalem to Jericho, had fallen among thieves, who stripped him of his (190) raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.” A priest passing by saw this man in distressing need of a friend, but he did not desire the trouble of caring for him. A Levite also came and looked on him, but the care of the sick man was too much trouble for him to undertake, and he “passed by on the other side.” But a Samaritan found the wounded man, and had compassion on him. He did not pass by and leave him in his helpless misery; he did the work which others were unwilling to undertake. The Samaritans were excommunicated by the Jews, and were made a byword; yet one of this class did the work which the priest and Levite refused to do.

The lawyer had asked, “Who is my neighbor?” and Jesus made the lawyer again answer his own question. “Which of these three was neighbor unto him which fell among the thieves?” he asked. “He that shewed mercy on him,” the lawyer replied. By his answer the lawyer condemned not only the course of the scribes and Pharisees, but his own practice. He would [355] not say, “The Samaritan,” but, “He that shewed mercy on him.” “Go thou,” said Christ, “and do likewise.”

O what principles are here laid down. What matchless teaching is given, what lessons are immortalized. These words have opened rivers in the wilderness and streams in the desert; they have laid the foundation for hospitals and sanitariums. This teaching defines the true spirit that magnifies the law and fulfills it by perfect obedience. It shows that the law of God is a law of love.

The selfish priest and Levite represent a class who disobey the law of God, who do not love God supremely, or their neighbor as themselves. Of this class the prophet declared, “The (191) diseased have ye not strengthened, neither have ye healed that which was sick, neither have ye bound up that which was broken, neither have you brought again that which was driven away, neither have ye sought again that which was lost; but with force and cruelty have ye ruled them.” This answers to the work that some in their blindness and cruelty have been doing.”

The lesson that the Lord would have his people learn is that they must do the work appointed them of God; they must keep his commandments. The Lord gave Brother Shannan opportunity to do the work appointed him, to overcome his hereditary and cultivated tendencies to wrong; but he exalted himself as superior to his brethren and sisters. He demeritted others who were doing the work, not always, it may be, perfectly, but whose aim and desire it was to do service for God. Brother Shannan could have done the work appointed him as an intelligent Christian gentleman. He could have shown himself interested in the Lord’s work; he could have put himself on an equality with his brethren, counseling with them, exercising his God-given wisdom and ability, and speaking wise words, in season and out of season, to those who needed them. But Brother Shannan did not do this work. He allowed jealousy and suspicious thoughts to come in; and in this he showed that he did not love God supremely and therefore could not love his neighbor as himself.

No human being on the school ground in Cooranbong is faultless and incapable of making mistakes; no one is unerring in judgment. For this reason each one needs to talk less of the mistakes of others, and to pray a great deal more. Any who come here to live, or to engage in the work essential to be done, who will be so unkind and so unchristian as to allow their self-esteem (192) and self-sufficiency to lead them to criticize their brethren and their work, might better go away. Had you occupied the position of these men whom your criticized so severely, you would not have done the work any more perfectly. It is much easier to tear the work of others to pieces than to show that had you occupied their place you would have done better work, or even as good. The men working on the school ground have had to move under straightened circumstances. They have been almost destitute of means, They have tried to save money. Had they had means, they could have taken advantage of circumstances and saved something. Then they would have had more to show than they now have. But it is impossible for critics to tell justly what might have been done, and how much better it would have been had certain things been left undone.

Aftersight will sometimes reveal the mistakes of foresight. This has frequently been the case in the experience of those considered to be men of wise judgment. But the aftersight has the advantage of an experience which the foresight cannot have; and who shall be censured? Who shall tear to pieces another man’s work? Since the workmen have finished the building on my place, I have not allowed myself to complain to this one and another one, notwithstanding my aftersight has given me an experience which I would not repeat should I have another building put [356] up. Old as I am, I have learned lessons that I will not have to learn again. Do you think, Brother Shannan that no criticism could be made of the work appointed you to do? Do you think all your management was without a flaw? But shall we spend our time and strength trying to hunt up every little thing that we think might be improved, and expatiate upon them? No, were I to do this, I would not improve the matter, and I (193) would hurt my own soul.

Brother Shannan, you have done a work in Cooranbong, and Melbourne, which, when you eyes shall be anointed with the heavenly eye salve, you will wish you had not done. You have felt at liberty to carry to Melbourne salted down grievances, your evil thinking, and evil speaking; and because you have not been favored as you thought you should be, you have criticized your brethren unmercifully, and in a most unchristian, unbrotherly manner. Read Hebrews 12:12-15.

You have been counterworking the work of God. I am sorry that while on this ground you were not the right kind of brother and neighbor. The same unkind work of criticizing and accusing that you set in operation in Hobart, and which the Lord revealed to me had done great injury to the work there, has been repeated here. You have made sharp criticisms and overbearing denunciations, so that the lame have been turned out of the way, and souls that can never be recovered have been driven on to the enemy’s battle ground. I had so hoped that the rich opportunities of light and knowledge which were granted you here in Cooranbong, would have helped you to do the work appointed you of God.

The condition of some souls in Melbourne at the present time is lamentable. There are scavengers in the church, who gather up little things, talking of them, and feeding on them. The leaven of criticism has been introduced by you, and unrighteous denunciations have been pronounced against God’s people, because you were not favored as you thought you ought to be. Your representations have been received by prejudiced minds. What a work will have to be done to correct this work of unrighteousness, (194) to destroy to leaven off evil which you have put into the minds and hearts of others. In doing this work, you have hurt yourself, and you have hurt poor, weak, spiritually crippled souls.

The Lord did not inspire you to do the work which you did in Melbourne. You worked directly contrary to the word of God. You counteracted the work the Lord has given me to do—to set things in order. The influence of your misrepresentations of men and things in Cooranbong has been positively working in an opposite direction to the work which we have been called upon to do. The influence of your misrepresentations of men and things in Cooranbong has been positively working in an opposite direction to the work which we have been called upon to do. Why did you do this? Because your natural feelings obtained the supremacy, irrespective of a plain “Thus saith the Lord.” O how sorry I am for you, and for Jesus Christ, who has purchased at an infinite cost the human agents he has appointed to do the work in Cooranbong. How sorry I am for those into whose minds you have introduced the leaven of evil. This leaven has worked, absorbing to itself the sentiments upheld by you, and these sentiments have been passed on to others.

No man, high or low, experienced or inexperienced, can steadily maintain before his fellow men, a pure, forceful life unless his life is hid with Christ in God. The fruit borne by the tree testifies to the character of the tree. The greater the activity among men, the closer should be the communion of the heart with God. When men fall into sin, it is commonly because of unsuspected weakness. When they stand in humility, in constant distrust of self, and make God their trust, grace and strength is given them by God. [357]

Brother and Sister Shannan, the Lord is grieved with you. You could have done good missionary work in Melbourne had you gone from Cooranbong with the right spirit. But your words of (195) evil, your expressions of distrust, your sweeping assertions against Cooranbong, were unjust and false. How much hard labor will be required to counteract the evil you have done. Should others criticize your course, and talk over and magnify your actions, they would have fully as much justice on their side as you have had on yours when you have accused them. God alone reads the intents and purposes of the heart.

In locating the school buildings in Cooranbong, we have moved under the leading of God. Had those who have come here more earnest love for Jesus, they would have shown love for one another, that the world might have had infallible evidence that God had sent His Son into the world. “By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples,” Christ said, “if ye have love one for another.” Until Christ’s representatives are imbued with the spirit of the Great Teacher, there will be an abundance of that inner, secret skepticism, which shuts the human heart against truth and against God. This is the leaven hidden in the meal, which permeates the whole mass.

My brother, your inconsistent course in Cooranbong and Melbourne, which has counteracted the work that has been done with painful, self-sacrificing effort, will bear its testimony in the judgment. God will never honor the church with complete success until its members shall come into conformity to His will.

Brother Prismall has virtually said, I am prevented from being a Christian by seeing so many faults in the church. My standard of Christian character is very high, but I cannot see anyone who reaches it. My brother, who has given you the right to measure the characters of your fellow men. Judgment has been given only to Christ. He has lived humanity, and (196) He alone can understand human weakness and human striving to attain to Christian perfection. We must admit that there are counterfeit Christians in every church. But the tares and the wheat must grow together until the harvest.

“The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field: but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tears among the wheat, and went his way. But when the blade was sprung up and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. So the servants of the householder came unto him and said Sir, didst thou not sow good seed in thy field? From whence then hath it tares? He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up. But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest; and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them; but gather the wheat into my barn.”

“His disciples came unto him saying, Declare unto us the parable of the tares of the field. He answered, and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed are the children of the kingdom, and the tares are the children of the wicked one; the enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels. As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so shall it be in the end of the world. The son of man shall send forth His angels and they shall gather out of His kingdom all things that do offend, and them which do iniquity; and shall cast them into a furnace (197) of fire; there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.” [358]

Here we see that the church militant is not the church triumphant. The church today is composed of wheat and tares. Not all who claim to be sons and daughters of God are this in truth. But the work of judgment has not been committed into our hands. This work is not given to any finite being. Read carefully Rom. 2:1-11.

The Lord has presented the spiritual condition of certain individuals before me. He has presented general principles that all the church might be benefitted. But to some he has come personally, seeking to bring them into vital connection with Himself. He has given them reproofs and warnings, mercifully presenting before them their defects of character, telling them what they must do and what they must be in order to be saved. Some have taken heed. They have made every effort to obey, and the Lord has blessed and honored them. But the spirit of criticism has been the meat and drink of others. The defective members of the church have been their themes of conversation. It has become habitual for them to see evil and talk of evil.

It is a lamentable fact that there are tares, counterfeit Christians in the church. But because of this, will you look at them, and feed on their defective characters? If you do, you too will be ranked among the tares. Christ is the only perfect pattern of Christianity. Let us hear what He says, “I am the bread of life; he that cometh to Me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.” “I am that (198) living Bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live forever; and the bread which I will give for the life of the world.” “Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink His blood, ye have no life in you. Whoso eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed.” The same principles are expressed in John 15. The explanation of this is given. “It is the Spirit that quickeneth, the flesh profiteth nothing; the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.”

It is the privilege of all to feed on Christ. They need not feed on the real or supposed faults of their brethren. If they do, they will have a false Christian experience themselves, because they will be contentious, and will not obey the truth, but will obey unrighteousness. Jesus Christ is to be your theme of conversation. He is the sin-bearer. The Lord has not made Brother or Sister Shannan, or Brother Muckersey, or Brother Smith, or Brother Prismall, or any of the brothers or sisters in the North Fitzroy church, sin-bearers. Christ, the sin-bearer must take away their sins, or they will perish miserably.

Christ never ordained that man should look to man, and make the defective characters of man a cause of stumbling or an excuse for imperfection. God commands every soul to repent of his own sins, confess his own sins, and be contrite of heart because of his own imperfections of character. Christianity is a divine system of religion. The Bible is the code of conduct for everyone.

(199) No one can come to God through any other man. God demands men to repent of their sins, and come to Him just as they are, all covered with sin and pollution. They are to receive His crucified, only begotten Son into their hearts, and be one with Him as He is one with the Father. It is the privilege of everyone who is weary and heavy laden to come to Christ. “Take My yoke upon you,” He says, “and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart; and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light.”

When Brother Prismall shall fall upon the rock Christ Jesus, then the Lord can restore the moral image of God in him. But, my brother, you [359] have an unsubdued heart. You have practically said, I will not perform my duty to God and to my fellow-men until the tares are rooted out of the church. Because of counterfeit professors, you refuse allegiance to God and to His commandments. But will another man’s disloyalty to God help your soul, if you refuse to be loyal. The defects of professed Christians are no excuse for you to sin, and they will be no protection to you. O how foolish are men’s subterfuges to screen themselves.

Christ’s invitation is made to you personally. You must take Him as your personal Saviour, or you are lost, eternally lost. God has claims upon you, and these claims are made without consideration of any other person’s perfections or imperfections. Brother Prismall, you have a soul to save, or a soul to lose, just as though you were the only person in existence. The question of the salvation of your soul is a matter between you and your God. Turn away from the short-comings of your brethren and sisters. You have an individual case pending in the courts of heaven. Have (200) you secured the Advocate to plead for you?

The arch Adversary is cheating your soul out of peace and hope and faith and joy in Jesus Christ. If you lose heaven, it will be because you have been determined to have your own way at all hazards. If you would look at yourself with one half the keenness that you look at the motives and actions of others, you would be filled with terror, and you would cry out, “what must I do to be saved?” Cast your helpless soul on Christ, and become, as it were, a little child. When tempted to criticize, seal your lips. Utter not a word until you ask God to strengthen you and help you by His grace. O it is such a terrible thing to use the voice and tongue wrongly. These talents were given us by God to be used only to His glory.

In your family you need to cultivate patience. Put yourself under the control of God; submit your will to the will of God, and then you will live to do God’s service. Commence now. Fall upon the rock, and be broken. Let Jesus put his signature upon you. Then you will rejoice in the Lord always. “Let your moderation be known unto all men; the Lord is at hand. Be careful for nothing, but in everything with prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.” Tell all your troubles to the One who best made known unto God.” Tell all your troubles to the One who best knowns how to help you. Rest your case in His hands, and believe that He hears your simple, heartfelt prayers. “And the peace of God which passeth all understanding shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” You need this peace; for you are very easily disturbed. You are educating yourself in this direction. But the peace of God, which comes through entire service to Him, will give you strength of nerve and brain. You will no longer be as you (201) have been represented to me,—taking no genuine comfort in yourself, and giving no comfort to those around you.

“Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. These things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard and seen in me, do; and the God of peace shall be in you.” Take heed to these words.

I do not want you to put this aside. I will again send you the communication which I sent you more than one year ago, and will ask if you received it. I dreamed that I asked you if you had received this letter, and you were very positive that you had not. This leads me to send it to you again, hoping that you will receive it.

I have been commissioned to write to you since it has been shown me [360] that you and Brother Shannan have united in the work of acute criticism, which you have been doing for a long time; yes, during the whole of your lifetime. My brother, the humanity shown in the life of Christ must be shown in your life. Yield up your will to God, and He will deliver you from the thralldom of sin. He will arouse the spiritual nature, which you have neglected to keep alive. He will quicken your conscience, and bring you under the control of Christ. Living by faith and hope in Christ will satisfy the demands of a genuine humanity. Human nature can only be perfected by education, and this education can only be perfected by education, and this education can be obtained in the school of Christ. He is the greatest Teacher the world has ever known.

You have lost time, you have lost moral power, because (202) the food you have given your mind has been the criticism of others. Be more concerned about your own personal relation to the kingdom of God than about expressing your disgust at other persons. Many are just as disgusted with you as you are with those you criticize, accuse, and condemn. Have you not served the enemy long enough in this line? Christ calls you, Follow Me, and you shall not walk in darkness.

Christ not only uttered precepts, but He illuminated these precepts by His life. He has been, in humanity, that which He enjoins every individual to be. This they can and will be if they join themselves to Christ. We are not to demand that we ministered unto, but we are to minister. See what you can do to make others happy. Lighten the sorrows, and relieve the distress of others. Let not your eager watchful eye be ever looking for something to charge against others. Our love toward men is to be like the Lord’s. You can carry the needs and sorrows of men in your mind. When you have the mind of Christ, you will not feed upon the garbage of their fruits and mistakes, but you will seek to help them. God would awaken in you a desire to think of others without despising their ways and manners. You are very far from perfect; but does God despise you? No; he is grieved with your course of action, yet He invites you as a sinner to come to Him, and let Him take away your sins, your harshness, your exaggerated expressions, your accusing power.

Satan has used you for a long time as his agent in this line, and will you not now step close to the bleeding side of Jesus? I tell that you have no time to lose. Christ sets before you a perfect example. Will you consider this? Will you behold this? Will you talk of the perfection of Jesus Christ? On (203) our behalf He surrendered ease, supremacy, honor, riches. For our sakes He became poor, that we through His poverty might be made rich. He submitted to suffering, stepping down still lower even after He had accepted humanity; He bore insult, mockery, and the most cruel death to save you and me. “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus.” Use your voice for the rest of life to talk of the matchless depths of a Saviour’s love. Let not one word of evil speaking be expressed toward your brethren. God has not given you this work to do. You may feel all the disgust you please at the way you have used your tongue in the past; for you have dishonored God and the truth. Give expression to the love you have for the perfect character of Christ. All His teachings are invested with a beauty that charms the mind. His words breathe the inspiration of truth, and are weighted with eternal wisdom. Talk of the perfection of Christ, until you become inspired with His loveliness of character. To see Christ is to see the Father.

The more you dwell upon Christ, and the less you exalt self, the more you will see to love and admire in Christ. He took our infirmities, and carried our sickness. He was the Majesty of heaven, the high and exalted One; but He came to earth in human disguise. He never shrank from actual contact with man, nor required others to do the work from which His taste revolted. He never made the ignorance of human beings the [361] subject of conversation. He went about doing good. His life was spent in purposes of holiness. His refinement never shut Him away from the lowly and the ignorant. He was not the One to tear to pieces and destroy; but he sought to restore the moral image of God in man by lessons and practice.

(204) This is you work. Do, I beseech you, change square about. In view of the love of Christ for humanity, take up the cross, deny self, live the life of a Christian. Then you will strive for a pure and holy heaven. Let it be your highest aim to become Christlike. When anyone comes to you with their burden of criticism, refuse to take up a reproach against your neighbor. Tell them that your eyes are fixed upon the author and finisher of your faith. If you love pure and perfect things, seek for them where they can be found. Manifest refinement in words, in spirit, and in character. Love all men as brethren. Christ’s character formed within you to aim for sanctified humanity.

Our education is incomplete whatever ideas we may have of grace and refinement, unless we are learning to be complete in Christ. God has not given us any sinful human being as our model. He has given us His only begotten Son as our sample of character. And when we have the perfect pattern to follow, if we do not represent Christ, we do our heavenly Father great dishonor. By devoting our thoughts and our tongues to the defects of professed Christians, we manifest the attributes of Satan.

Christ has specified what kind of fruit will always grow on the Christian tree. “Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. (They surmise evil; they tear character in pieces) Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns? or figs of thistles? Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit, but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit; neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is (205) hewn down, and cast into the fire. Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.”

What kind of fruit is brought forth from the mind and heart that takes the supposed evil deeds of his neighbors for the subject of his medication and conversation. Evil speaking is condemned by the Lord Jesus. To unsettle the confidence of brother in brother is a most contemptible work, and should not be tolerated in those who claim to be Christians any more than taking the Lord’s name in vain; for every word of accusing is as the sin of swearing. “If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridle not his tongue, and deceiveth his own heart, this man’s religion is vain. Pure religion before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers. And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamor, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice. And be ye kind one to another, tender hearted, forgiving one another; even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.”

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, meekness, faith, temperance; against such there is no law. And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh, with the affection and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not be desirous of vainglory, provoking one another, envying one another.” “Be not deceived; God is not mocked; for whatsoever a man soweth, that all shall he also reap. For he that soweth to the (206) flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth [362] to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. Let us not be weary in well-doing; for in due season we shall reap if we faint not. As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them that are of the household of faith.

Here is a specification traced by the pen of inspiration of the character which every follower of Christ will reveal. It denotes not simply a character which centers and terminates in itself ourselves, but a loving, unselfish, generous regard for others. There are those who live, and breathe, and act for self. Such will never perfect a character after the divine similitude. Grace and refinement after Christ’s order will never be revealed in the character as long as self is considered the supreme object. Humanity after the divine pattern will renew the spirit which renders us human in all our life practice. The man that studies Jesus and aims to reach his faultless character, will not ignore his relationship to humanity; for humanity in the full acceptation of the term, will regard all men as brethren, with similar God-given abilities, aspirations, capacities, and similar need of help. Minister to one another; for happiness brought into the lives of others brings happiness to every soul who does this loving, unselfish work.

In humanity is the opposite of this. Man may have grand notions and wonderful ideas. He may have knowledge, but without love to his fellow-man, he is a sounding brass, and a tinkling cymbal. Any harshness, injustice, or cruelty manifested in spirit or in words, any commands or injunctions, savoring of an overbearing and dictatorial spirit, is sinful; it is man’s inhumanity. All who are imbued with the spirit of Christ will (207) build on Christ, the only true foundation of righteous humanity. And a righteous humanity will communicate with humanity, having a true sense of human brotherhood, a true love for a man. God has paid an infinite price for man, in that while he was dead in trespasses and sin, He gave his life a ransom for his redemption, without distinction of rank, relationship, race, or knowledge. And as man shows respect for his fellow-man, he shows his respect for the One who placed such a high estimate on man.

The Lord God made man capable, giving him all the qualifications, that through the merits of Jesus Christ he could obtain victories, which would exalt him as a child of God, to win the immortal crown that fadeth not away. Any man who shall demerit his fellowman, and place himself as a hindrance to his winning the immortal crown, will receive according to his work. The outward appearance may be forbidding; but if with one hand he reaches forth to grasp his fellow-brother’s hand, while by faith he lays hold of the hand of Christ, what may he not accomplish?

The one who sees the value of Christ’s character is to reveal that character. Husband and wife each have a personality, as far as the salvation of their souls is concerned. The individuality of the husband cannot be submerged in that of the wife or the individuality of the wife in the husband. Each individual life is God’s personal property, and while they do their utmost to help one another heavenward, not one principles in the teachings of Christ is to be ignored. We are Christ’s purchased possession, to do his work on the earth.

Christ was the greatest Teacher the world has ever known. Was there ever a man that could find any defects, in speech, (208) or in character in Him? And if not, it is safe to practice that humanity which you know to be perfect. Then you will sympathize with the One who desires to make you a partaker of the divine nature, to clothe you with His power. No man is to be permitted to interpose between Christ and our souls.

The spell of a stronger and a perfect mind will be over us if we have a living connection with the source of all-enduring strength. And [363] gratitude must needs be expressed for these continued mercies. In our divine life we shall be brought into captivity to Jesus Christ. We no longer live the common life of selfishness, for Christ lives in us, His character is reproduced in our nature. Then the bitter, poisonous plant of selfishness will be uprooted. Tender feelings, full of sympathy for the erring, takes possession of the man or woman who has fallen on the Rock and been broken. It becomes a delight to do all his commandments. The tree must be made good in order that the fruit may be good.

Man is of more value in the sight of heaven than he realizes. A sense of his responsibility as a possessor of humanity after the perfection of the similitude of Christ in human nature will make man understand as he has not before done, the truth of the words, “Ye are not s your own; for ye are bought with a price; therefore glorify God (not yourself) in your body and in your spirit, which is God’s.” “I will make a man if he will use the talents entrusted to him by God more precious than fine gold; even a man than the golden wedge of Ophir.”

Here, my brother, you can see your accountability and responsibility. You cannot be a Christian and despise one of those with whom Christ associated. Your fellow-men may be (209) weak in knowledge, he may be sinful; but with association with Christ, even though poor and degraded, he may be uplifted. Christ was divinity in human form. He assumed humanity that He might uplift man. Did He not love man in that He gave Himself to ransom him? Then shall man speak of his fellow-man with scorn? Shall he lift up his soul unto vanity?

You could have been a real blessing, my brother, in the church, if you had placed yourself under the control of God. The cross of Calvary reveals Christ’s redeeming work, and this has invested humanity with great possibilities, even eternal life in the kingdom of God. The infinite sacrifice made for you and me should call us to our duty. The incarnation of Christ, His death, and His resurrection, are subjects upon which you should converse. They will close your lips, so that you will not help Satan in his work, as an accuser of the brethren. The Lord’s estimate of man, shown by the price He has paid for him, warns everyone off the accuser’s ground. Christ was not ashamed to assume our nature, and to submit to its liabilities. Then let each appreciate himself. I call upon you in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth to come out from the world and be separate. Now is the time for you to make your calling and election sure. May the Lord bless you, and incline your heart to honor Him by true service, is my prayer. [364]

(210) Letter to S. McCullagh after his confession of repentance:—

[365]

Lt 33, 1899 “Sunnyside,” Cooranbong, New South Wales, Australia
February 12, 1899

Mr. S. McCullagh
Dear Brother:

Since receiving your letter, I have commenced several letters to you. I am thankful to God that you are convinced of your wrong course of action, and that you see things in a new light. Gather every ray of light that shines upon your pathway, and turn to the Lord with all the heart. Be diligent in seeking for the true path, the strait gate.

We always feel deeply over those Satan has deceived and led astray, because the synagogue of Satan triumphs when the enemy can lead the Lord’s professed people, as he has you, to bear false witness. I know that the Lord had heard prayer in your behalf, when at Dora Creek you were healed, and the glory of God filled the room. I have ever felt great sadness when I thought of your denying the truth, because I believe you have had a genuine experience in the truth. You did fight manfully under the banner of Prince Emmanuel against the world, the flesh, and the devil. You did love the truth. For a long time the enemy was insidiously working your ruin before you took the final step. Light was given me that when you took this step, you were altogether too well-satisfied with your attainments. You did not feel the necessity of becoming an earnest Bible student.

Had the truth been impressed upon your mind sufficiently to give you that faith that works by love and purifies the soul from all deception, all prevarication, all covetousness, you would held firmly to the hand of Christ, placing your dependence in One who is all-sufficient, and you would never have denied the truth and grieved the Holy Spirit by falsifying God’s servants and placing me, who had been your best and truest earthly friend, in a terribly ridiculous light before the people. In doing this, you stood side by side with Elder Canright, but even he did not descend to accuse me as you have done. How you could do it was for some time a mystery to me, but when the Lord saw fit to show me distinctly that you did not dig deep and make your foundation sure, riveting your soul to the Eternal Rock, I better understood.

Threads of self-deception were woven with your experience. You were led astray. But when you knew this by the conviction of the Spirit of God, you would not heed the voice. When your statements were shown to be false, you would not acknowledge your wrong and come to the light. You would not open the door of your heart to Christ. You fought against the Spirit of God inch by inch, and then you changed your uniform, and joined the rebel army, to war against the truth and receive pay. You pretended you were satisfied; but as you recall the past, were you satisfied with yourself? [366]

This matter was presented to me night after night. I heard the words you spoke in public against me, words which were written in God’s book, for they were spoken against Him, who had given me my work. And when your brethren presented some of the facts in the case, you braced yourself against the truth. So long had the work of secret deception been going on, and to such lengths had it been carried, that when conviction came upon you with almost overwhelming power, you would not yield, but tried the more vehemently to make yourself and others believe that you were justified in your course of action.

The Lord heard the falsehoods that you and your wife fabricated against me. Mr. Hawkins knew me not. He could fabricate nothing against me. He was turned away from the truth when it was supposed that you were leading him to better understand the truth. You linked with him to make of none effect the counsels of your brethren, while they were trusting you, you turned traitor to the cause of God. While you were receiving wages for presenting the truth to those who knew it not and bringing them to a knowledge of God, you were planning and devising how you could carry the whole church with you in a wrong way. When your disappointment came and your course was interrupted, you said all that your tongue could frame under the inspiration of Satan against Mrs. White and her work. This had a telling effect, for you were regarded as one who knew the inwardness of Mrs. White’s work.

This false testimony against my work has resulted in turning souls from the truth. People thought that such a good man as Mr. McCullagh appeared to be telling the truth. You can explain this matter only by a wholehearted retraction, by placing Mrs. White before the people in the position you should always have held her. My brother, make your course straight. Make plain paths for your feet, for the weak and undecided have been turned from the right path by your course. Many souls convicted of the truth have been turned from investigation into error. For Christ’s sake, repent, confess your sins, and be converted.

You had not the least foundation for your bitterness against me. Every word of the testimonies given me in regard to your child was truth. I could not have felt any greater anxiety and tenderness for a child of my own than I did for your daughter. Your dangers were presented to me. I presented them to you, as I will continue to do if you again act a part in the work of the Lord for these last days. Through covetousness, which is idolatry, there has been a deception in your life, and more so in the life of Mrs. McCullagh. You both need genuine conversion, and when you are converted, strengthen your brethren that they may avoid the sad experience you have had. Let the mellowing influence of the Spirit of Christ come into your heart. Thank God, it is not too late for wrongs to be righted. For Christ’s sake turn this defeat into a victory. Keep far from the pit into which you fell. [367]

When you entered the army of Christ, when you were numbered with the believers, there was nothing in your family relationship to strengthen you. Your unhappy training had left its impress upon mind and character. Externally you improved by association, but often your inclinations were in the wrong direction. Your connection with the chosen people of God gave you superior advantages. The truth has given you all you have that is worth, refined, and elevated. My brother and sister, had you improved your opportunities for obtaining a knowledge of the truth, you would not have been corrupted by false theories. But you became proud and self-sufficient, and the result is before you. You would not receive admonition. Your hearts rose up in rebellion against reproof. You despised the warnings God sent to keep you in the right way. They did not please you. You did not search the Scriptures to learn the evidence of truth. You did not work upon the plan of addition as outlined in the first chapter of Second Peter.

In consideration of your early training, you both need to be more watchful and more diligent, to make earnest efforts to become fully acquainted with the reasons of our faith. “Wherefore I will not be negligent,” the inspired apostle declares, “to put you always in remembrance of these things, thou ye know them, and be established in the present truth. Yea, I think it meet, as long as I am in this tabernacle, to stir up by putting you in remembrance. . . . For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming our Lord Jesus Christ, and were eye witnesses of his majesty.

“For he received from God the Father honor and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. And this voice which came from heaven we heard, when we were with him in the holy mount. We have also a more sure word of prophecy, whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts.”

You felt that you were rich and increased with goods and had need of nothing, when you were both perishing for lack of experimental knowledge. Had you spoken the truth at all times and in all places, your course would have been one of steady religious growth. Truth would have been spoken and acted; there would have been no pretension. True piety was greatly needed. You should have been as true as steel to principle, careful in diet, and guarded in speech, that you might not offend God. May you now see the rock on which you split.

Were you only a common soldier, instead of a captain in the army of the Lord, it would not be necessary to make these statements. But as your future may be spent in opening the Scriptures to others, it is of the greatest importance that you understand your position. It is not possible that we can come to you, but you can come to us. There is need of the deep moving of the Spirit of God, that if the word shall come to you, “Put on the armor, and fill your appointed place,” you will not serve with eye-service, but as the servant of Christ, “with good will doing service as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether he be bond or free.” If you will co-operate with God, you will realize the proof of His forbearing love for you, in that after you have put Him to open shame by denying the truth, you have been granted time for repentance. [368]

Sister White has not changed, she is the same as she was when you made her a target at which to fire, and she will give you the word of the Lord, whether you will hear or whether you will forbear. I speak to you now, asking you not to cover up the work you have done against God and His servants. You were once trusted, but you and your wife must now give evidence that you have felt true repentance. [369]

Do not think we are hardhearted, for we are not. We receive you very thankfully if you are soundly converted, but do not take charge of the flock as a shepherd until you are under the supervision of the true Shepherd, learning of Him that you may impart to others. We want you to dig deep and lay your foundation sure. We want you to have a soul-experience, and stand on the solid Rock. I have written this, not because I would hold you off, but because I want you to make sure how ye are building. “Ye are God’s husbandry; ye are God’s building.”

You have made sacred things so common that there will always be danger unless your whole being is transformed. The profanation of that which has been set apart for God shows an obtuseness of spiritual discernment. It is dangerous to have such an influence connected with the church. It is a high offense against the majesty of God, because He is dishonored when a spirit of vanity and covetousness is shown in the use of the things which relate to His service.

It is dangerous to meddle with holy things. The men of Bethshemesh merely looked into the ark with what many would regard as harmless curiosity; but God smote them with death. Uzzah only touched the ark, but we read that because of it the anger of the Lord was kindled against him, and he was slain for his rashness. Those who would make sacred things common are here admonished that God sees every action and the motives that lead to action, and [He] writes all in a book.

We learn from the Word of God that self-sufficiency is sin, and that it prepares the way for ruin. Let him who thinks, God cares not if I do this, who says in a spirit of self-indulgence, “Soul, take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry; for no one knows of this action,” remember that God knows.

Your minds must be elevated and ennobled. Weighed in the balances and found wanting was pronounced against you when you separated from the truth and from God’s people. I now appeal to you as a family to make wrong right. Confess your sins, and show that repentance that needeth not to be repented of, that you may receive a full and free pardon. As far as I am concerned I can forgive everything where I have been held up personally before the people as a fraud. When by confession you make things right with God, He will abundantly pardon.

Be sure that in this work with God you realize that you have greatly dishonored the Lord. Every principle, every action, heart, life, and character, are put into the golden scale and weighed. Infinite Justice watches the beam, and weighs accurately every imagination of the heart, determining the value of the whole man—his thoughts, his words, his works. Does he love God supremely? Do sincerity and devotion mark his hours? Does he show his love for those around him by setting an example of obedient, faithful service? Let the two tables of the holy law be placed on the other side of the scale, with their precepts, “Thou shalt,” and “Thou shalt not,” in their full spiritual meaning. All heaven watches the result. Whatever man can place on the scale worthy of commendation is less than nothing. The law requires heart, soul, mind, and strength. This is the weight of the divine law.

Eternal justice examines the balances. What is the decision of the Judge? Is it, Thou are found wanting? Or is it, The righteousness of Christ is imputed to you because you have let Him take away your sins? How is it with your soul? You know not how soon you may be called upon [370]

to render your account to God. The word comes to each one, “Be ye also ready; for in such an hour as ye think not, the Son of man cometh.” “Behold, the judge standeth at the door.” [371] Come to Christ with your whole heart. Realize the sin of prevarication and untruthfulness. See yourselves hopeless, sinful, and polluted. See that Christ is your offering, your righteousness. His righteousness will outweigh all the demands of justice. Accept Him as your personal Saviour, and you will not be found wanting when the Lord shall come. “Behold, now is the accepted time; behold now is the day of salvation.” There is pardon for all who repent.