Heart Work in Sabbath-School Teacher and Scholar
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shining in the minds and hearts of teachers and scholars, that they may
diffuse it to those who are out of Christ. The saving message is to
be given to those who have not yet opened their hearts to receive the
heavenly gift. The truth must be urged upon the attention of those who
seem indifferent. If all felt a burden for the souls for whom Christ
died, how intense would be the interest in every agency employed
for the salvation of souls! How little our thoughts would be upon
the indulgence of self, upon display in dress, and upon seeking for
amusement! How little money would be expended for entertainments
and pleasure if we realized the importance of investing our means in
the cause of God, which demands every penny not needed for actual
wants.
Pray that the Holy Spirit may come to your hearts, and then you
will wear Christ’s yoke, and bear His burden, and grow into complete
union with Jesus. Our views are too narrow; we need a more extended
vision, that we may take in the wants of the cause.
What the cause most needs is consecrated young men and women,
who feel a personal responsibility for the advance of the work, and
who will cooperate with divine agencies to shed light into the moral
darkness of the world.
Many who profess to be Christians do not more than half believe
the Word of God. They do not study it earnestly, but waste precious
time in reading novels and story-books. A mere intellectual under-
[58]
standing of the Word of God will not be sufficient to influence the
habits of the life, for the life is regulated by the condition of the heart.
When Sabbath-school teachers have taught the lessons of external
revelation, their work is but just begun, and they should not cease
their labor until they have evidence that the precepts of heaven are not
only accepted by the understanding of the pupil, but written upon the
heart.—
Sabbath-School Worker, April 1, 1892
.