True Motive in All Service
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keep him steadfast. This alone can enable him to withstand trial and
temptation.
And love will be revealed in sacrifice. The plan of redemption
was laid in sacrifice,—a sacrifice so broad and deep and high that it is
immeasurable. Christ gave all for us, and those who receive Christ will
be ready to sacrifice all for the sake of their Redeemer. The thought of
His honor and glory will come before anything else.
If we love Jesus, we shall love to live for Him, to present our thank
offerings to Him, to labor for Him. The very labor will be light. For His
sake we shall covet pain and toil and sacrifice. We shall sympathize
with His longing for the salvation of men. We shall feel the same
tender craving for souls that He has felt.
This is the religion of Christ. Anything short of it is a deception.
No mere theory of truth or profession of discipleship will save any
soul. We do not belong to Christ unless we are His wholly. It is
by halfheartedness in the Christian life that men become feeble in
purpose and changeable in desire. The effort to serve both self and
Christ makes one a stony-ground hearer, and he will not endure when
the test comes upon him.—
Christ’s Object Lessons, 49, 50
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