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The Spirit of Prophecy Volume 3
accept him, if it could be proven that he was indeed the Christ. The
apostles, as eyewitnesses, were to testify of Jesus and his resurrection.
They were to open to the people the prophecies relating to him, and
to show how perfectly they had been fulfilled. They were to bring
before the people the most convincing evidence of the truths which
they taught, and they were to proclaim the joyful tidings of salvation
to the world.
As all minds were interested in the history and mission of Jesus,
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because of the events which had just transpired at Jerusalem, this was
a time when the preaching of his gospel would make the most decided
impression upon the public mind. At the commencement of their work
the disciples were to receive a marvelous power. Their testimony of
Christ was to be confirmed by signs and wonders, and the performance
of miracles by the apostles, and those who received their message.
Said Jesus, “They shall cast out devils; they shall speak with new
tongues; they shall take up serpents, [as in the case of Paul] and if they
drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on
the sick, and they shall recover.”
At that time, poisoning was practiced to quite an extent. Unscrupu-
lous men did not hesitate to remove by this means those who stood
in the way of their ambition. Jesus knew that his apostles would be
subject to this danger, if not specially protected from it. He knew that
there would be many who would be so deluded as to think it would
be doing God service to these witnesses to death by any means. He
therefore guarded them against this insidious evil. Thus the Lord
assured his servants that they were not to labor in their own strength,
but in the strength of the Holy Ghost. Though the disciples received
their commission to preach the gospel to all nations, they did not at the
time comprehend the vast extent, and wonderful character of the work
that was before them—a work that was to descend to their successors,
and to be carried on to the end of time.
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