Centering Too Much in Battle Creek
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Spirit of the Lord is upon Me,” He said, “because He hath anointed
Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He hath sent Me to heal the
brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering
of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, to preach
the acceptable year of the Lord.”
Luke 4:18, 19
.
We are to carry forward the work placed in our hands by the Master.
He says: “If thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the
afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness
be as the noonday: and the Lord shall guide thee continually, and
satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be
like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail
not.” “The poor shall never cease out of the land: therefore I command
thee, saying, Thou shalt open thine hand wide unto thy brother, to thy
poor, and to thy needy, in thy land.” “All things whatsoever ye would
that men should do to you, do ye even so to them.”
Isaiah 58:10, 11
;
Deuteronomy 15:11
;
Matthew 7:12
.
We shall be tempted to be covetous, to be avaricious, to cultivate
an insatiable desire for more. If we yield to this temptation, it will
bring upon us the same perils that fell upon ancient Jerusalem. We
shall fail to know God and to represent Him in character. We need
to watch ourselves closely lest we fall because of unbelief, as did the
Jews. We are to work unselfishly. We are to feel a deep interest in
the establishment and growth of other institutions besides those over
which we have supervision. I sincerely wish that the sanitarium were
miles away from Battle Creek. From the light given me of God, I know
this would be better for its spirituality and usefulness. The college near
Lincoln, Nebraska, will take a large number from Battle Creek, and
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this is as it should be. The light should shine forth from other places,
as well as from Battle Creek. God designs that light shall shine forth
from different cities and various localities.
To center so much in one place is a mistake; it savors of selfishness.
Battle Creek is receiving more than its share of advantages. Were the
important interests established there divided and subdivided, strength
would be given to other churches. We are to labor unselfishly in the
Lord’s great vineyard, dividing time, money, educational interests, and
ministerial institutes in such a way that as large a number as possible
shall reap the benefit. The ambition that leads men to center so many
facilities in Battle Creek should be restricted, that other places may