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Testimonies to Ministers and Gospel Workers
work, His strange work; and bring to pass His act, His strange act.
Now therefore be ye not mockers, lest your bands be made strong:
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for I have heard from the Lord God of hosts a consumption, even
determined upon the whole earth.”
We are living in times full of importance to each one. Light is
shining in clear, steady rays around us. If this light is rightly received
and appreciated, it will be a blessing to us and to others; but if we
trust in our own wisdom and strength, or in the wisdom and strength
of our fellowmen, it will be turned into a poison. In the struggle for
eternal life, we cannot lean upon one another. The bread of life must
be eaten by each one. Individually we must partake of it, that soul,
body, and mind may be revived and strengthened by its transforming
power, thus becoming assimilated to the mind and character of Jesus
Christ. God must be made first and last and best in everything.
Each one must hunger and thirst after righteousness for himself.
Leaning upon men, and trusting in their wisdom, is dangerous to
the spiritual life of any Christian. Those in whom confidence is
placed may be honest and true, serving the Lord with all diligence.
But if, individually, we are endeavoring to walk in the footsteps of
Christ, we can follow Him as well as those whom we admire for
their consistent, humble lives.
Not Man but the Lord
It is too often the case that those who are looked up to are not
what they are supposed to be. Often sin lurks in the heart, and wrong
habits and deceptive practices are woven into the character. How
does our heavenly Father regard this? His counsel is always reliable,
and He has evidenced His great love for the human race, and He
looks on with sadness when His children are encouraged to turn
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away from Him and place their dependence upon finite men, whom
they know not, and whose judgment and experience may not be
reliable. But this has been done, and God has been made secondary.
In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, I beseech the people
of God to depend upon the Lord for strength. Beware how you
place men where God should be. We are not safe in taking men
as our authority or our guide, for they will surely disappoint us.
Individually, we are to work out our own salvation with fear and