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Birthday Letter
239
intelligent. They do not love to dwell upon the mystery of godliness.
They know not the language of heaven and are not educating their
minds so as to be prepared to sing the songs of heaven or to delight
in the spiritual exercises which will there engage the attention of all.
Professed Christians, worldly Christians, are unacquainted with
heavenly things. They will never be brought to the gates of the New
Jerusalem to engage in exercises which have not hitherto specially
interested them. They have not trained their minds to delight in
devotion and in meditation upon things of God and heaven. How,
then, can they engage in the services of heaven? how delight in the
spiritual, the pure, the holy in heaven, when it was not a special
delight to them upon earth? The very atmosphere there will be
purity itself. But they are unacquainted with it all. When in the
world, pursuing their worldly vocations, they knew just where to
take hold and just what to do. The lower order of faculties being in so
constant exercise, grew, while the higher, nobler powers of the mind,
not being strengthened by use, are incapable of awaking at once to
spiritual exercises. Spiritual things are not discerned, because they
are viewed with world-loving eyes, which cannot estimate the value
and glory of the divine above the temporal.
The mind must be educated and disciplined to love purity. A love
for spiritual things should be encouraged; yea, must be encouraged,
if you would grow in grace and in the knowledge of the truth. Desires
for goodness and true holiness are right so far as they go; but if you
stop here, they will avail nothing. Good purposes are right, but will
prove of no avail unless resolutely carried out. Many will be lost
while hoping and desiring to be Christians; but they made no earnest
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effort, therefore they will be weighed in the balances and found
wanting. The will must be exercised in the right direction. I
will
be a wholehearted Christian. I
will
know the length and breadth,
the height and depth, of perfect love. Listen to the words of Jesus:
“Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for
they shall be filled.” Ample provisions are made by Christ to satisfy
the soul that hungers and thirsts for righteousness.
The pure element of love will expand the soul for higher attain-
ments, for increased knowledge of divine things, so that it will not
be satisfied short of the fullness. Most professed Christians have no
sense of the spiritual strength they might obtain were they as ambi-