654
Testimonies for the Church Volume 5
of men. Nothing can be more offensive to God, who is constantly
bestowing His gifts upon man, than to see him selfishly grasping these
gifts and making no returns to the Giver. Jesus is today in heaven
preparing mansions for those who love Him; yes, more than mansions,
a kingdom which is to be ours. But all who shall inherit these blessings
must be partakers of the self-denial and self-sacrifice of Christ for the
good of others.
Never was there greater need of earnest, self-sacrificing labor in
the cause of Christ than now, when the hours of probation are fast
closing and the last message of mercy is to be given to the world. My
soul is stirred within me as the Macedonian cry comes from every
direction, from the cities and villages of our own land, from across the
Atlantic and the broad Pacific, and from the islands of the sea: “Come
over, ... and help us.” Brethren and sisters, will you answer the cry?
saying: “We will do our best, both in sending you missionaries and
money. We will deny ourselves in the embellishment of our houses,
in the adornment of our persons, and in the gratification of appetite.
We will give the means entrusted to us into the cause of God, and we
will devote ourselves also unreservedly to His work.” The wants of
the cause are laid before us; the empty treasuries appeal to us most
pathetically for help. One dollar now is of more value to the work than
ten dollars will be at some future period.
Work, brethren, work while you have the opportunity, while the
day lasts. Work, for “the night cometh, when no man can work.” How
soon that night may come, it is impossible for you to tell. Now is your
opportunity; improve it. If there are some who cannot give personal
effort in missionary work, let them live economically and give of their
earnings. Thus they can contribute money to send papers and books to
[733]
those who have not the light of truth; they can help pay the expenses
of students who are fitting for missionary work. Let every dollar that
you can spare be invested in the bank of heaven.
“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 nor steal: for where
your treasure is, there will your heart be also.”