Unity in the Church
407
has brought his spirit in opposition to God. He has a hard work before
him. Said Christ: “It must needs be that offenses come; but woe to
that man by whom the offense cometh.”
Brother B, the course that you have been pursuing was shown me
three years ago. I saw that you were wrong in almost every action,
and yet you tried to gauge the truth to your actions instead of gauging
them to the truth. You were not a light to the people of God, but a
terrible burden. You will not lift when there is lifting to be done, and
you discourage others from union of action. You are ever finding fault
and talking of your brethren, and while you have been questioning the
course of others, a rank growth of poisonous weeds has flourished and
taken deep root in your own heart. These roots of bitterness springing
up have defiled many and will defile many more unless you see them
and root them out.
I was shown that a harsh, pharisaical spirit would grow upon
Brother B and control him unless he sees the terrible defects in his
character and obtains grace from God to correct the evil. Before he
embraced the truth, his hand seemed to be against everyone; his com-
bative spirit would strengthen at any provocation, and his self-esteem
would be injured; he was a hard man, getting into and making trouble.
The truth of God wrought a reformation in him. God accepted him,
and His hand held him up. But since Brother B has lost the spirit
of consecration, his old, turbulent spirit, at variance with others, has
been strengthening and seeking to gain the mastery. When he dies to
self and humbles his proud heart before God he will find how weak
is his strength; he will feel the need of heavenly succor and will cry:
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“Unclean, unclean, before Thee, O God.” All his proud boasting in
self will have an end.
Life in this stormy world, where moral darkness triumphs over
truth and virtue, will be to the Christian a continual conflict. He will
find that he must keep the armor on, for he will have to fight against
forces that never tire and foes that never sleep. We shall find ourselves
beset with countless temptations, and we must find strength in Christ
to overcome them or be overcome by them and lose our souls. We
have a great and solemn work to do, and how terrible will be our loss
if we fail. If the work which our Master has left us be found undone,
we cannot have a second probation granted us. It must remain undone
forever.