Christ’s Ambassadors
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the lessons upon practical godliness given them by Christ in His word
and teach them to the people.
Christ opened the Scriptures to His disciples, beginning at Moses
and the prophets, and instructed them in all things concerning Himself,
and also explained to them the prophecies. The apostles in their
preaching went back to Adam’s day and brought their hearers down
through prophetic history and ended with Christ and Him crucified,
calling upon sinners to repent and turn from their sins to God. The
representatives of Christ in our day should follow their example and
in every discourse magnify Christ as the Exalted One, as all and in all.
Not only is formality taking possession of the nominal churches,
but it is increasing to an alarming extent among those who profess
to be keeping the commandments of God and looking for the soon
appearing of Christ in the clouds of heaven. We should not be narrow
in our views and limit our facilities for doing good; yet while we
extend our influence and enlarge our plans as Providence opens the
way, we should be more earnest to avoid the idolatry of the world.
While we make greater efforts to increase our usefulness, we must
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make corresponding efforts to obtain wisdom from God to carry on all
the branches of the work after His own order, and not from a worldly
standpoint. We should not pattern after the customs of the world, but
make the most of the facilities which God has placed within our reach
to get the truth before the people.
When as a people our works correspond with our profession, we
shall see very much more accomplished than now. When we have
men as devoted as Elijah, and possessing the faith which he possessed,
we shall see that God will reveal Himself to us as He did to holy
men of old. When we have men who, while they acknowledge their
deficiencies, will plead with God in earnest faith as did Jacob, we shall
see the same results. Power will come from God to man in answer to
the prayer of faith. There is but little faith in the world. There are but
few who are living near to God. And how can we expect more power
and that God will reveal Himself to men, when His word is handled
negligently and when hearts are not sanctified through the truth? Men
who are not half converted, who are self-confident and self-sufficient
in character, preach the truth to others. But God does not work with
them, for they are not holy in heart and life. They do not walk humbly