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Temperance
can impart. But with every temptation we have the promise of God
that there shall be a way of escape. Why, then, are so many over-
come? It is because they do not put their trust in God. They do not
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avail themselves of the means provided for their safety. The excuses
offered for the gratification of perverted appetite, are therefore of no
weight with God.—
Christian Temperance and Bible Hygiene, 22
.
The Only Remedy
—For every soul struggling to rise from a life
of sin to a life of purity, the great element of power abides in the only
“name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.”
Acts 4:12
. “If any man thirst,” for restful hope, for deliverance from
sinful propensities, Christ says, “let him come unto Me, and drink.”
John 7:37
. The only remedy for vice is the grace and power of
Christ.
The good resolutions made in one’s own strength avail nothing.
Not all the pledges in the world will break the power of evil habit.
Never will men practice temperance in all things until their hearts
are renewed by divine grace. We cannot keep ourselves from sin for
one moment. Every moment we are dependent upon God....
Christ lived a life of perfect obedience to God’s law, and in
this He set an example for every human being. The life that He
lived in this world we are to live, through His power and under His
instruction.
Perfect Obedience Required
—In our work for the fallen, the
claims of the law of God and the need of loyalty to Him are to be
impressed on mind and heart. Never fail to show that there is a
marked difference between the one who serves God and the one who
serves Him not. God is love, but He cannot excuse willful disregard
for His commands. The enactments of His government are such that
men do not escape the consequences of disloyalty. Only those who
honor Him can He honor. Man’s conduct in this world decides his
eternal destiny. As he has sown, so he must reap. Cause will be
followed by effect.
Nothing less than perfect obedience can meet the standard of
God’s requirement. He has not left His requirements indefinite. He
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has enjoined nothing that is not necessary in order to bring man into
harmony with Him. We are to point sinners to His ideal of character,
and to lead them to Christ, by whose grace only can this ideal be
reached.