"Exceeding
Great and
Precious
Promises"
A COLLECTION OF SCRIPTURE TEXTS
WITH COMMENTS
SELECTED FROM THE HARVEST MESSAGE
Abbreviations used: R.—for Reprints. c.—for column. p.—for paragraph. A.—for Volume 1. Scripture Studies. E.—for Volume 5. Scripture Studies. F.—for Volume 6. Scripture Studies. T.—for Tabernacle Shadows.
THE IMPORTANCE OF THE PROMISES
Angels of His mercy—His promises exceeding great and precious—minister unto us and strengthen us. R2412,c2,p3
As we fill our minds with God's promises, the whole character, the whole life, becomes more transformed. R5739,c1,p1
In proportion as the promises are before our minds, in that proportion we have strength and courage to run the narrow way. R5095,c1,p4
The Lord's people should so thoroughly apply the precious promises of Divine care that their hearts would be entirely free from anxiety. F572,p2
Those who can and will exercise full confidence in all the Divine promises, may go from victory to victory, from blessing to blessing, from joy to joy, from one attainment to another, and have a glorious victory in the end over the world, flesh and Adversary, through the imputed merit and continued assistance of Him who loved and bought us. To this class the giants of opposition and despair lose their power, even as did Goliath before the sling stone of David. R4046,c2,bottom
These promises that are given to us are the spiritual food upon which we, as embryotic New Creatures, must feed. No matter how much food may be supplied, if, for any reason, we fail to appropriate the necessary spiritual nourishment, we will be deficient to some extent. The Apostle's words seem to corroborate this thought—"To us are given exceeding great and precious promises that by these we might become partakers of the Divine nature"—that is to say, If we do not use these we will not be partakers of the Divine nature, but by the use of these we may "make our calling and election sure" and become joint-heirs with Christ. R4665,c2,p4
Must not be neglected. Must be continually used.
The promises of the Divine Word were given to us as the basis of faith,—as the fuel to produce the power in us to will and to do God's good pleasure. And hence these gracious promises must not be neglected; they must be continually used and must continue in us to energize us. And the energy must be applied, and we must progress proportionately against the course of this world. R2879,c1,top
Delve into the promises of God more and more. As you do this, the roots of faith will draw up the nutriment and send it out into your life, and you will grow, just as a tree grows, because nourished, fed. Thus alone will you become established in The Faith. R5559,c2,p1
The heart must be filled with the promises.
If the promises of the Divine Word be not received into the heart to satisfy its cravings or longings, it will feed upon other things; and the world, the flesh and the devil are all crowding upon it, offering various attractions, some of which will be received if the heart be not filled and kept filled. R3552,c2,p1
No greater stimulus to true Godliness can be found than the precious promises given unto us. R2228,c2,p5
Our joy is largely dependent upon our study of the Word and our knowledge of the precious promises contained therein for those who overcome. R5460,top
Endeavor to realize their import.
Soberly, thoughtfully, we are to weigh and endeavor to realize the import of the promises and to gather from them their invigorating inspiration. R3149,c1,p6
Their value more fully realized as we live closer to the
Lord.
As the Spirit of God draws our hearts into closer fellowship and sympathy with the Divine mind, the value of these precious promises is more and more fully realized, until there glows in our hearts the same holy enthusiasm that so filled the hearts of the Apostles. R3149,c1,p3
Appropriating them to ourselves is growing in grace
and knowledge.
After the promises are ours, it requires time and a continual application of faith, in order to rightly appreciate God's promises, and appropriate them to ourselves; and this is Scripturally called "growing in grace and knowledge." We grow in knowledge as we take note of the promises of God, and by faith apply them to ourselves, and seek to discern in our lives the fulfilment of these promises; we grow in grace simultaneously, for unless each item of knowledge be received into a good and honest heart, and bring forth its measure of obedience and righteousness (grace) we will not be prepared for the next step of knowledge, and would be thus stopped, or possibly turned back. R3156,c2,p1
Precious promises are these, wonderful words of life! Let us count them over and over again, that all their sweet significance may sink deep into our hearts and bring forth their blessed fruitage in our lives. May they cheer us in every dark and trying hour and reinforce our waning powers with renewed vigor, courage, and zeal, that we may press along the narrow way until indeed our "eyes shall see the King in His beauty." R5863,c1,p2
That the year shall be one of more than usual progress and spiritual blessing, we recommend that each of us give more attention than ever before to God's promises to us as His Church and to the conditions upon which they shall be made sure to us. R2240,c1,p2
Courage and strength from the promises.
There are many difficulties to be surmounted, and it requires courage to surmount difficulties. But the courage born of faith in God and in His "exceeding great and precious promises" strengthens them when otherwise they might be overwhelmed. It gives them a strength to which all others are strangers. If a child of God becomes discouraged and loses his hope and strength, it is because he has lost his hold upon the Lord's promises to help. To lose courage is to lose faith. Loss of faith and courage make a child of God powerless before his foes. We must trust our Father even when the meaning of His providences is veiled from our eyes and when our efforts to serve Him seem to be hedged up. R5712,c1,p7; c2,p1
Must be Really, Fully Believed and Personally Appropriated.
A Powerful Influence.
The promises of God made to this class are exceeding great and precious, and if they are really believed they cannot fail to powerfully influence the life; but if they are not received, it is manifest that they can have no power over the life. And more, if they be not fully believed, if they be not personally appropriated, they are not applicable, and no one can hope for anything in them. This is clearly intimated in the words of the Apostle—"Now the just shall live by faith." R1798,c1,p6
Faith so Tenacious that the Promises Become Living
Realities.
Paul reached forward to the things that were before, his faith took hold of the promises of God with such tenacity that to him they were living realities, inspiring zeal and faithfulness. Upon the Heavenly themes he allowed his mind to dwell, as he also advised others, saying, "Whatsoever things are true, honest, just, pure, lovely, of good report, virtuous or praiseworthy,—think on these things." This is the way he reached forward to the things before; and thus also we must gather our inspiration to holiness and our courage to endurance and persevering faithfulness, even unto death. R1885,c2,p2
Each should cultivate faith in his own heart: (a) By refreshing his memory continually with the Divine promises, becoming very familiar with these in the Father's Word. (b) He should seek more and more to remember that having made his covenant with the Lord these promises are his, and in his heart and with his lips he should claim them as his before the Lord in prayer with thanksgiving. He should claim them as his in his own thoughts, and in his conferences on holy things with the brethren. When trials or difficulties or perplexities arise, he should think of these promises, remembering that they belong to him—because God has promised them to such as love Him,—who have made a covenant by self-sacrifice. R2642,c2,p7
"EXCEEDING GREAT AND
PRECIOUS PROMISES"
Fear not Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding
great reward. Gen. 15:1
God was his shield—to protect him, to guard him from the anger and power of all the kings of earth and their armies, and able and willing to make all things work together for his good. What a comfort was in this thought. How it reminds us that God is our shield also; our protector from every evil thing and power. The thought is beautifully expressed in one of our hymns:—"Shield of my soul, though tempests rage, And 'gainst me hosts of foes engage, My refuge and my fortress thou; Before Thee every foe must bow." R2853,c2,p3
The consolation here offered to Abraham is that offered to all who are of the faith of Abraham, and its parallel in the New Testament is that precious statement of our Lord (John 14:21,23)—"He that loveth Me shall be loved of My Father, and I will love him and will manifest Myself to him,...and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him." So in the midst of all the temptations and trials that beset us in our earthly pilgrimage, while we walk by faith toward the blessed inheritance reserved for the overcoming saints, we also may recognize the voice of our God, saying, "Fear not: I am thy shield, and thine exceeding great reward." R1906,c1,p1
Is any thing too hard for the Lord? Gen. 18:14
The spirit of God is powerful in whatever way it is applied. As an illustration of its power, the Apostle points us to our Lord Jesus and His literal death, and how God's holy spirit raised Jesus from the dead in His resurrection. The thought is that this power of God thus exercised on behalf of the Lord Jesus, and which He promises so to exercise in the close of this age on behalf of all the faithful members of the body of Christ, indicates a power of God by which, if we avail ourselves of it, the new nature will find strength to conquer, to keep the flesh under, and, more than this, to make it active, energetic in the service of righteousness. R3203,c1,p4
Behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places
whither thou goest. Gen. 28:15
From the further end of the ladder Jacob heard the Lord's voice saying, "I am the Lord, the God of Abraham thy father and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest to thee will I give it and to thy seed....And behold I am with thee and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest."...Here was the very comfort and encouragement that Jacob needed....He was content with the loss of all things else since he still had the Divine favor and was thus acknowledged of God as being the heir of this wonderful promise, the full import of which he could but faintly appreciate. And so it is with all who have heard the Father's voice and been drawn or attracted by His promises, and who have surrendered all other ambitions in life that they might attain to the Divine favor and chief blessing as heirs of God. R3965,c1,p1,2
I will be with thy mouth, and teach thee what thou
shalt say. Exod. 4:12
To the humble ones now, as to Moses of old, God declares: "I will be with thee; I will be with thy mouth and teach thee what thou shalt say." As one lesson is to have no confidence in ourselves or in our own judgment or strength, another important lesson is that we should have every confidence, absolute confidence, in God. Not until this lesson is learned will any be really fit to be God's mouth-pieces....Everything in the Scriptures points us to the fact that humility is a quality most essential to all of the Lord's people who would be used of the Lord in any important or special work for Him. If the followers of the Lord could continually keep this in memory, and would persistently shape their course accordingly, how much they would be used, we may be sure. R5262,c2,p1,3
My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee
rest. Exod. 33:14
The Lord is ever present with His people. He is always thinking of us, looking out for our interests, guarding us in danger, providing for us in temporal and spiritual things, reading our hearts, marking every impulse of loving devotion to Him, shaping the influences around us for our discipline and refining, and hearkening to our faintest call for aid or sympathy or fellowship with Him. R3251,c2,p2
When God speaks of His presence with His servants we are not to think of His being with them in His bodily presence, but by His spirit and through His angelic messengers, sustaining, blessing and guiding them. He protects them from whatever will harm them. He watches over their every interest and tenderly cares for them. R5547,c2,p4
The Lord shall open unto thee His good treasure.
Deut. 28:12
And now the day of the Lord has come: we are now living in the day of the presence of the Son of Man—"the Lord of Harvest," "having on His head a golden crown (Divine authority) and in His hand (power) a sharp sickle"—the sickle of "present truth," the clear unfolding of the "Word of God (which) is quick and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword...and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart." And He is sending forth such "laborers," "angels" or "messengers" into the harvest as He sent forth into the harvest of the Jewish age, viz., His consecrated and faithful disciples, bearing the Harvest Message—the now fully revealed Plan of God and its appointed times and seasons. R1362,c1,p3
The Lord thy God, He it is that doth go with thee; He
will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. Deut. 31:6
It may yet be true of the Lord's people that things will look very dark; but they are not in despair, and will not be in despair whatever may come; for the Lord has said that He will never leave us nor forsake us. This gracious promise should give us a hope sure and steadfast. Our anchor of hope should hold. Our position, therefore, is very different from that of the world, who have no particular hope. The world have no solid anchor, no precious promises to hold them fast. We know that if the worst comes to the worst, if we should even die of starvation, our hope lies beyond the veil, beyond death. Therefore God's saints of today look upon death as the gateway by which to enter...into a realization of all our hopes and joys. R5671,c1,p3
And the Lord, He it is that doth go before thee; He
will be with thee, He will not fail thee, neither forsake
thee: fear not, neither be dismayed. Deut. 31:8
The providence of God over these, His sons, is a very particular providence: All their steps are ordered of the Lord; and the very hairs of their head are all numbered. (Luke 12:7) His eyes are ever upon the righteous, and His ears are open to their prayers. All the angels are ministering spirits sent forth to minister to these heirs of salvation. All things are made to work together for good to these, who love God and are called according to His purpose. How wonderful and particular is this care; and they have the promise of it to the end of their trial state. God is indeed a Father to all that put their trust in Him; but there is a wide difference between those who are His sons, and those who remain aliens, and even enemies. R1561,c1,p4
The beloved of the Lord shall dwell in safety by Him;
and the Lord shall cover him all the day long, and he shall
dwell between His shoulders. Deut. 33:12
But it is only the faithful who are thus kept. We are not to understand that the Lord keeps any who do not themselves make the proper effort to know the will of God that they may do it; it is those who are following in the footsteps of Jesus, doing all in their power to please the Lord as they are able to discern the way wherein He would have them walk. These are today causing the voice of His praise to be heard, and grace sufficient is their portion. If the trials of faith, submission and trust shall be greater in the near future than they have yet been, these faithful ones will not fall....These will be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might, even though they be required for a time to follow where they cannot see. R5501,c2,p2
Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither
be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee
whithersoever thou goest. Josh. 1:9
To battle with the world, the flesh and the devil requires more strength than we possess; we need the courage coming to us from this Divine assurance given to Joshua. (Above) R3080,c2,middle
Not one thing hath failed of all the good things which
the Lord your God spake concerning you. Josh. 23:14
In the smallest and in the greatest affairs of our lives, He has ever watched for our interests. Every cloud has had a golden lining! What, then, shall we render unto the Lord? R5538,c1,last p; c2,top
He will keep the feet of His saints. 1 Sam. 2:9
Nothing shall touch them as New Creatures in Christ. R5862,c2,p3 Our Times in God's Hands.
We do not know whether we who are here today shall meet again in the flesh or not. What matters it? We are fully content, either to live or to die—whatever His providence may direct in respect to us. "My times are in Thy hands; my God, I wish them there"—that expresses it beautifully, does it not? We wish to have the Lord's will done in respect to the time of our change, and in respect to all we enjoy together daily—it is all committed to Him. Our wills are entirely dead. His will is to rule in your body and in mine, and in all of us. R5728,c2,p5
For the Lord will not forsake His people for His great
name's sake: because it hath pleased the Lord to make
you His people. 1 Sam. 12:22
Applying this verse to spiritual Israel, we may take great comfort from it, too. If it was a favor to natural Israel to be adopted as the Lord's peculiar people, as the house of servants, how much greater is the blessing to spiritual Israel, adopted of the Lord as the house of sons under the chief Son, Jesus; "whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end!" (Heb. 3:6.) It is well that the Lord's people be called upon to fear, to reverence the Lord; but if the Scriptures were entirely made up of commands and reproofs, the Lord's people would all surely have been discouraged long ago. On the contrary, with the reproofs and corrections, the Lord gives us very precious testimonies respecting His love and mercy, His goodness and long-suffering kindness, to encourage us. R3223,c2,p3
The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer.
2 Sam. 22:2
This is a blessed assurance applicable to all the Lord's people, and it is amply verified to all those who delight themselves in the Lord, who meditate upon His goodness and render to Him the praise that is due His holy name.—"The Lord is my rock (upon which I may safely build my hopes), and my fortress (in which I may safely hide), and my deliverer (in every time of trouble)." R2032,c2,p1
For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout
the whole earth, to show Himself strong in the behalf of
them whose heart is perfect toward Him. 2 Chron. 16:9
These "eyes" referred to are the Lord's influence, His power of knowing, whatever the means....God has means, no doubt, far superior to any of ours....He tells us that angels are His ministers, and that these have a charge over His people....But the angels of the Lord...have a charge more particularly over us of the Gospel Church than over any other of the Lord's people at any previous time in the world's history. The Lord is especially interested in Spiritual Israel. These angels, then, care for us, supervise our affairs, and are God's agencies or channels of communication to us as to His will; that is, communication in the sense of providences for us, causing this providence or the other providence. R5634,c1,p3,4; R5635,c1,p2
The joy of the Lord is your strength. Neh. 8:10
Our capacity for joy now is not what it will be by and by, but it is possible now to have our little earthen vessels as full as they can hold of the joy of the Lord....(Turn to John 14:23.)—In such company as this can any Christian fail utterly to realize some measure of joy in the Lord? No, if his faith grasps the promise and holds it, the realization of joy in the Lord is sure to follow, and the more firmly his faith lays hold upon the promise the more will he realize its fulfilment, and the more fully will his joys abound; for in the presence of the Lord is fulness of joy, no matter what may be the conditions and circumstances. R1949,c1,p2,3
He shall deliver thee in six troubles: yea in seven
there shall no evil touch thee. Job 5:19
If we abide in Christ and His Word abides in us, He will be our deliverer in six troubles, and in the seventh He will not forsake us—because we have been called of God, because we have responded to the call, because we are seeking to glorify Him in our bodies. Hence we need not fear what any man can do unto us. R5539,c1,p8
Some of these promises have been summed up by the poet...."When through the deep waters I call thee to go, The rivers of woe shall not thee overflow; For I will be with thee thy troubles to bless, And sanctify to thee thy deepest distress." R4784,c2,top
I have set the Lord always before me: because He is
at my right hand, I shall not be moved." Psa. 16:8
"At my right hand"—nearest in my affections. A92
Instead of self-confidence, wisdom dictates a distrustfulness of self, remembering its weaknesses and imperfections, and correspondingly the greater reverence for God and reliance upon Him, which more than anything else will strengthen us and enable us to depart from the evil of our fallen estate....It is when we are thus humble and faithful that the Lord makes us His chosen vessels to bear his name to others. R5186,c1,p1; c2,p2
Thou wilt show me the path of life: in thy presence is
fullness of joy; at Thy right hand there are pleasures
forevermore. Psa. 16:11
These have learned to estimate the things of this present life according to their true values; they see that all of its joys are both transient and unsatisfactory and that the only real value in it is in the opportunities it affords for experience and discipline and education in the things of God and for hearing the call of God and making our calling and election sure. In thus making the proper use of the present life—walking in the path of life which God shows us through His Word—we have the present joys and hope and faith in the things unseen, but sure and eternal; knowing also that by and by in the immediate presence of God we shall have fulness of joy, and pleasures for evermore at His right hand—the chief place of favor. R1949,c1,p1
Our joy is largely dependent upon our study of the Word and our knowledge of the precious promises contained therein. R5460,c1,top
The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer;
my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my
buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high
tower. Psa. 18:2
"The Lord is a buckler (a defense) to all those who trust in Him; for who is God (is mighty) save the Lord? or who is a rock (a safe anchorage to our souls) save our God?" There is no other one to whom we may anchor our faith and hope; but securely anchored to Him we may trust and not be afraid, and may sweetly rest under the shadow of His wing. "The Lord liveth; and blessed be our rock; and let the Lord of our salvation be exalted." Psa. 18:46. R3337,c2,p4
It is God that girdeth me with strength; and maketh
my way perfect.
For by Thee I have run through a
troop; and by my God have I leaped over a wall.
Psa. 18:32,29
If any man attempts to do this in his own strength, he must surely fail; for the fiery trial that is to try every one will prove too much for the mind of the flesh; but God who worketh in the consecrated to will and to do His good pleasure, will so fortify and equip those who depend upon His grace, that, with the Psalmist, they can say, (the above text); and with Paul, "I can do all things through Christ, who strengtheneth me." R2154,c1,p4
The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want.
Psa. 23:1
Proper sheep will submit their wills to the Shepherd's will and trust wholly to His guidance, and so doing are relieved of that anxious craving so common to the children of the world. R3269,c1,p3
They may not have much learning, and, humanly speaking, would not be able to grapple with all the sophistries of error. But, being so well acquainted with the Master's voice, they quickly perceive that such voices are the voices of strangers, and they will not follow them; for they are loyal and obedient to the Shepherd only. In such an attitude of mind and heart is our only safety in the midst of all the difficulties and confusion of this evil day. And all such may confidently sing with the Psalmist—the 23rd Psalm. R3116,c1,p4,5
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures; He leadeth
me beside the still waters. Psa. 23:2
Which of the Lord's sheep has not found such green pasturage of spiritual refreshment in his private devotions and studies of Divine things...and in assembling with others for study of the Word, for prayer, for testimonies of the Lord's goodness and mercy? All these opportunities and privileges...are provisions made for the sheep by the great Shepherd....The streams of truth and grace are living, but comparatively quiet waters....These are not to be found by the sheep alone; to find them requires the leading of the spirit....Let us discriminate, discern His voice, with its truthful accent, so different from the voice of error. Strangers true sheep will not follow, for they know not the voice of strangers. They do not like its money ring, or its worldly ambition ring, or its priestcraft tone, or its contradiction of the spirit of the Divine message and method. R3269,c1,p5; c2,p1
He restoreth my soul; He leadeth me in the paths of
righteousness for His name's sake. Psa. 23:3
He restoreth my soul (reclaims it from death); He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for His name's sake (because I am His child and bear His honored name). R3116,c2,middle
The application...to the Christian experience would make these experiences, called restoring of soul or being, to correspond with our justification to life...that we may sacrifice and...walk in the footsteps of the great Shepherd who laid down His life for the sheep. Thus are the true sheep led in the right paths,...advantageous to their spiritual development....This favor and blessing and opportunity comes to them not for their own sakes or worthiness, but through the Lord's grace—"for His name's sake." R3269,c2,p2
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow
of death, I will fear no evil: for Thou art with me; Thy
rod and Thy staff they comfort me. Psa. 23:4
The sheep of the little flock fear no evil because of the Lord's favor, because He is with them, on their side, and has shown His favor in the redemption price already paid. He is with them, too, in His Word of promise—His assurance that death shall not mean extinction....What wonder that these can walk through the valley of the shadow of death singing and making melody in their hearts....As the Shepherd's crook was used to assist the sheep out of difficulties, to defend it from its too powerful enemies and to chasten it when inattentive, and as all of these uses of the rod were for the sheep's interest and welfare, so with the Lord's little flock and their Shepherd and His rod of help....The true sheep learn to love the providences of the Shepherd and are comforted by them. R3269,c2,p3,4
Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of
mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup
runneth over. Psa. 23:5
What a variety of these tables there are and how different are the viands, doctrinally. The food on most of them seems to have been spoiled in the preparation. Some of it is sad, some of it is sour, and much of it is musty. For the most part of it originated in the "dark ages," and the dear friends who sit at these tables find that they have little appetite for such food....We would attract their attention to the generous, bountiful supply of Divine truth which the Lord Himself is dispensing to the household of faith, "things new and old" but all of them pure, sweet, delicious, grand. This table is open to all those who love the Lord with all their heart, mind, soul and strength—better than they love houses or lands, parents or children, husband or wife, lodge or society or sectarian system or self. R3270,c1,p2
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the
days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord
forever. Psa. 23:6
Saint Paul speaks of the full assurance of hope and of full assurance of faith as being the proper conditions for the Lord's people. And this is the thought expressed by the Prophet, in the above text—full confidence that He who has begun a good work in us is both able and willing to complete it. (Phil. 1:6.) But how few Christians, comparatively, have this full assurance of faith; how few can say, Surely, undoubtedly, goodness and mercy shall follow me...and by God's grace I ultimately shall gain the Heavenly Kingdom!...The few who can enter fully into sympathy with the Apostle and Prophet in these expressions have therein a great joy, a great blessing, a great rest of heart which others do not possess. R2642,c1,p4
The meek will He guide in judgment: and the meek
will He teach His way. Psa. 25:9
Meekness = patient submission to the Divine will. R2586,c1
While God permits wilful men to fall into erroneous views and to prosper in spreading them, He does, on the other hand, guide the meek in judgment and teach them His way, and He raises up a standard for them by which they are enabled to see the truth and to distinguish it from error. And though, in this "evil day" a thousand shall fall under those errors, they shall not overthrow the meek ones whom the Lord is pledged to guide and to keep from falling. R1268,c1,p3
He who learns this lesson (of meekness) is getting the most important preparation for Divine service. R5261,c1,p5
What man is he that feareth the Lord? him shall He
teach in the way that He shall choose. Psa. 25:12
Beloved, our advice to you in these perilous times, when error is taking on its most baneful and deceitful forms, and when it is finding its most active agents amongst false brethren and sisters in your very midst, and when fidelity to truth, therefore, occasions the severing of some of the tenderest social ties you have ever known, even among those with whom you once held sweet converse as you walked together to the house of God—yes, in these times let us again urge the counsel of Paul—"Continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them"; for it is written (John 6:45), "They shall be all taught of God." R1320,c2,p6
The secret of the Lord is with them that fear Him;
and He will show them His covenant. Psa. 25:14
This is stated as though it were a very important matter to see or clearly understand God's Covenant: and it is an important matter, for God's Covenant is really the key to the entire Divine Plan. What God promised to Abraham in the Covenant, "In thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed," included directly and indirectly all the riches of Divine grace....With our eyes anointed, and our hearts fully consecrated to the Lord and fully desirous to know just what is His will and His way, we look at the great Covenant, and behold, it opens gloriously before us into three parts: (1) All the families of the earth—every member of the human family is to receive a blessing. (2) The Seed of Abraham is to be the channel of these Divine blessings to every creature. (3) This Seed in its primary sense we find meant our Lord Jesus Christ; but in its secondary sense it includes the "Bride the Lamb's Wife," His joint-heir in this Covenant and in all of the Divine mercies. R2209,c1,p5; c2,p1
The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I
fear? the Lord is the strength of my life; of whom
shall I be afraid? Psa. 27:1
This text suggests the proper frame of mind for all the Lord's people who are now fighting the good fight of faith. Though the situation may look dark and dangerous, and though the foes may multiply and perplexities increase, it bids them fear not. R2016,c2,top
This consolation, variously expressed throughout the Scriptures, comes with all its blessed potency in our times of greatest need....Courage, born of faith and strengthened by endurance, cries with humble boldness in the midst of the deepest darkness of the most perplexing difficulties, and in the midst of the wildest storms and most threatening dangers, "The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall we fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?" R1915,c1,p1; c2,p3
In the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion:
in the secret of His tabernacle shall He hide me; He
shall set me up upon a rock. Psa. 27:5
It is well, especially in this time of greatest need, that the Lord's people should consider the value of this portion of the Christian's armor (faith) and that the doors of their faith should thoroughly shut them into the secret place of the Most High. When reproaches fall thick and fast...when their names are cast out as evil...ah, then is the time for firmly grasping the shield of faith and for adopting the triumphant language of the Psalmist—(as above). R1788,c1,p5.
When my father and my mother forsake me, then the
Lord will take me up. Psa. 27:10
To be numbered among the people of God is a very great privilege; but it means much more than many seem to understand—much more both on their part, and on God's part. On their part, it signifies...that they have become sons and heirs of God through Christ, that they have fully consecrated themselves to God to follow in the footsteps of His dear Son....On God's part it signifies the fulfilment of all His gracious promises to such through Christ, both for the life that now is, and for that which is to come. It signifies that in the present life we have His Fatherly love, care, discipline, counsel, teaching, protection and encouragement to the end, and that afterwards we shall be received into His glorious presence and everlasting rest and joy and peace. Oh, how blessed to be the people of God! even in the present life the reward of His favor is beyond computation. R1787,c2,p5; R1788,c1,p1
Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and He shall
strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord.
Psa. 27:14
We see that the Lord has declared that His people shall not be especially protected along earthly lines; and if in His wisdom it is best in any way to bruise us and put us to shame, as was done with our Master, we are to be of good courage, and He will strengthen our hearts, because we trust in Him, we have confidence in Him. We know that He is too wise to err, and that there must be a motive, a reason for the permission, whatever it may be. We know assuredly that the saintly ones are precious in the sight of the Lord—are as the apple of His eye; and thus we know that all things are working together for good to us. R5330,c2,p7
The Lord will give strength unto His people; the Lord
will bless His people with peace. Psa. 29:11
In this text strength means, in large measure, courage. R4817,c1,p9
Let us be faithfully "His people," and let us earnestly desire and faithfully use the strength promised. Faithful is He that hath promised, who also will do it. So, then, if you lack the strength to use faithfully your talent, the fault is yours, not God's. You either have not His service close enough at heart or else do not make use of the strength He provides. "The Lord will give strength to His people"—His trusting, faithful servants—those who are using to His praise the talents consecrated to their Master, however many or few they may be. R3697,c1,p2
Thou shalt hide them in the secret of Thy presence
from the pride of man: thou shalt keep them secretly in
a pavilion from the strife of tongues. Psa. 31:20
Oh, how precious is this hiding place! What rest and refreshment we find in the midst of the commotion that is even now bestirring the whole world, but especially the nations of Christendom—rest from the pride and folly of men in their abortive efforts to readjust the present unsatisfactory social order; and rest from the strife of tongues in their equally vain attempt to evolve the clear principles of truth and righteousness from the present confusion of human traditions. (Psa. 31:20) Here we find rest, peace, light and joy, which the world can neither give nor take away. R1788,c1,p3
Be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your
heart, all ye that hope in the Lord. Psa. 31:24
Whenever we come in contact with worldly people we find, as it were, a wet blanket thrown on our simple trust, even though they say not a word to us. We need to have good courage and to hope in the Lord, as our text enjoins. ...But a courage from right principles, based on faith in the Lord, is not one of braggadocio, but a courage that is noble and pleasing to God. It has its source in a realization that God has promised, and that God is watching, and desires us to be joint-heirs with His Son in His Kingdom. He is merely testing us to see whether we will prove faithful. And this courage with us must also be to do things in the right way. R5329,c2,p5; R5330,c1,p4
I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which
thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye.
Psa. 32:8
An earthly parent rejoices most in the obedient and promptly submissive child, for whom the word or look of reproof is sufficient to prune away the evil; and so also our Father in Heaven declares His approval of those who "tremble at His Word." (Isa. 66:5) Such cooperate with God in the development of their own characters, noting their own defects and seeking to correct them,—hearkening for the Father's voice of direction, instruction or loving reproof, and ever seeking His approving smile. ...To this class, obedient and watchful, the Lord says, "I will guide thee with Mine eye."...Those who can be guided only by continual scourging are not of the overcoming class. E233,234,top
The angel of the Lord encampeth round about them
that fear Him and delivereth them. Psa. 34:7
Encampment—a continued and abiding presence. R3441,c1,p2
During the Gospel Age it has been God's will that the Spiritual House of Israel should walk by faith and not by sight, and therefore it would be inappropriate after the Church was fully established to expect angels to appear, to manifest themselves outwardly....The followers of Christ have the Bible and the invisible ministries of the holy angels to provide for their interests and to providentially guard and guide their affairs. This, to us, is very real and of great comfort. If we had the thought that God was doing all this personally, we would think that He had certainly forgotten us. But having the assurance of His Word that not a hair of our heads can fall to the ground without our Father's attention, our mind can rest in the fact that He accomplishes His purposes in Christ for His children through the ministrations of the holy angels. R5635,c1,p1; c2,p2
O taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the
man that trusteth in Him. Psa. 34:8
Those who have a mere curiosity interest to know what good things are found upon the table of the Lord can never know. Only those who come with sincere hearts to taste and see for themselves can ever know. Theirs is the "hidden manna."...Only those are invited to this table of the Lord—this feast of spiritual blessings, of communion and fellowship with God, of a knowledge of the deep things of God, the exceeding great and precious promises, and of joy in co-operating with Him in His Plan of salvation—who desire to forsake all other tables....Only deeply appreciative ones are desired at this feast—those who will gladly forsake all to enjoy the favor. R1957,c2,p4,6
The eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous, and His
ears are open unto their cry. Psa. 34:15
May we not in all our trials and perplexities take them to the Lord in prayer? Yes, yes; truly we can. And no comfort will be greater to the perplexed or sorrowing than the privilege of telling all to the Lord. His ear is ever open to the cry of His "little ones"; and the very telling of them to Him and realization of His interest in all our affairs will refresh and cheer us. It will bring to remembrance His promises never to leave nor forsake us, and His wisdom and love....Casting all our care upon Him...we may arise from our knees stronger, happier and more confident, as well as in much closer fellowship and communion with the Lord, than if we had attempted to order our own affairs. R1999,c2,p5
The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken
heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.
Psa. 34:18
Houses and lands and carefully hoarded belongings may disappear under the sheriff's hammer. Friends long trusted may suddenly grow cold and turn their backs upon you, and even become your enemies. The home you love must some time break up, the family be scattered or invaded by death. The love that glows upon the home altar may flicker and become dim or extinct. How many have found the high hopes of youth and early life turn to ashes in a few short years or months. To all of these the Word of the Lord should appeal with special force, when calling them to come to Him with their burdens and their broken hearts. (See above text.) His love and His precious promises come like the sweet balm of Gilead to those who, sad and disappointed in the struggle of life, come to Christ for rest and comfort, for life and healing. R5862,c1,p3,4
Many are the afflictions of the righteous; but the
Lord delivereth him out of them all. Psa. 34:19
The daily experiences of life have a most important mission to us, and the manner in which we receive them should be a matter of deepest concern; for according to the use we make of them, each day's prosperity or its adversity and trial bear to us a blessing or a curse....Sorrow and griefs may, and perhaps often will, come in like a flood, but the Lord will be our Stay and Strength in every experience which He permits. The soul that has never known the discipline of sorrow and trouble has never yet learned the joy and preciousness of the Lord's love and helpfulness. It is in seasons of overwhelming sorrow and grief, when we draw near to the Lord, that He draws especially near to us. R5802,c1,p4,6
Delight thyself also in the Lord; and He shall give
thee the desires of thine heart.
Commit thy way unto
the Lord; trust also in Him; and He shall bring it to
pass. Psa. 37:4,5
It is when continued trust in the Lord and His many responsive providences in our lives have ripened into precious personal acquaintance and intimacy that we learn to delight in Him....Then, however dark may be our way,...the thought of Divine protection is ever with us....To them He is the One altogether lovely. His law is their delight. His friendship and love are their very life. When the heart has become thus centered in God, it is the most natural impulse to commit its way unto Him....Surely these have the desires of their heart, and no good thing shall be withheld from them. R5803,c2,p2,3,5
The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord: and
he delighteth in His way. Psa. 37:23
It is the source of weakness in many of the Lord's people that they do not properly grasp by faith this and similar promises; for only in proportion as they have this faith and grasp these promises can they be buoyed up by this, and be encouraged to press along the line for the mark. R3157,c1,p1
They can delight in this way, be it ever so thorny and narrow and rugged, because of their confidence in God's love and wisdom, and that He who began a good work in them is thus completing it and blessing them with experiences which Divine wisdom sees will be to their profit eventually. R2762,c2,p4
Though he fall he shall not be utterly cast down: for
the Lord upholdeth him with His hand. Psa. 37:24
We must not overlook...the assurance that though the child of God may stumble at times in the way, these will never mean to him an utter fall, because his hand is still held by the Lord! What a comforting thought is here! How well calculated it is to deliver the Lord's people from utter despondency in respect to themselves and each other! The all-important thoughts to be kept in mind are, Am I still the Lord's? Am I still trusting in the precious blood? Am I still consecrated to the Lord and His righteous way? If these can be answered in the affirmative we can still realize that we are God's children, and that our hands are still in His; that the spirit of begetting...has not perished; and that it is God's will that we should recover ourselves as quickly as possible from any stumbling, and looking well at the difficulties and trials which led us into it, we should fortify our characters against those difficulties as respects the future, and thus go on really stronger. R3157,c2,p1
I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not
seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.
Psa. 37:25
"Trust in the Lord and do good, and verily thou shalt be fed."...These promises are sure, and while doing good and trusting we may also rejoice. This does not imply that you will have no business trials and vexations and disappointments and discouragements. Such experiences may be just what you need to develop your Christian character—in meekness, patience, brotherly-kindness,—Love. Your meal and oil may run low, as did those of the widow of Zarephath; but God knoweth it and will provide, with spiritual blessings accompanying, if you will but trust Him and do what you can do. The Lord may provide the things needful through our own industry, or through the generosity of friends, or by public provision. While the former is to be desired and sought, the latter are not to be despised or rejected. None of these methods are begging. Accepting proffered help is not begging. R2021,c2,p2
Hearken, O daughter, and consider, and incline thine
ear, forget also thine own people, and thy father's house;
So shall the King greatly desire thy beauty: for He is thy
Lord; and worship thou Him. Psa. 45:10,11
Was ever a proposal of marriage couched in more delicate and beautiful phrase? With astonishment I read it again and again. Surely it can mean nothing less than this: I am invited by the King of Kings to become the bride of His royal Son—His only begotten Son and heir of all things. And since clothed with the imputed robe of His righteousness, which hides all the unrighteousness of my own robes, I am really considered beautiful in the eyes of the King, I am told, so that He desires to make me His bride—if I am willing for His dear sake to forget my own people and my father's (Adam's) house—the world in general, with all its hopes, aims and ambitions. R1494,c2,p5
God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in
trouble.
Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be
removed, and though the mountains be carried into the
midst of the sea. Psa. 46:1,2
This text should be borne in mind as a comforting and sustaining power to the Lord's faithful. It is in full harmony with the words of the Apostle in the New Testament, who declares that "all things are working together for good to them who love God, who are the called according to His purpose." R3232,c2,p2
Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and He shall sustain
thee: He shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.
Psa. 55:22
There are works of grace to be wrought out in us which only the hard experiences of life can accomplish. For instance, we would be inclined to lean too much to our own understanding, if we were not at times brought face to face with problems that baffle our skill. It is when we are "afraid to touch things that involve so much," that in our perplexity we come to Him who has kindly said, "Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and He will sustain thee," and ask Him to undertake for us. Or we might be inclined to trust too much in the arm of flesh, if the arm of flesh had never failed us, and the disappointment driven us to the Lord to seek the shelter of His wing. Or we might learn to trust in uncertain riches, if moth and rust had never corrupted nor thieves stolen the little or much of our earthly possessions. Or we might have been satisfied with earthly friendships and loves had not their loss sometimes left us alone with God to prove the sweetness of His consolation. R2130,c1,p2
I will sing of Thy power; yea I will sing aloud of Thy
mercy in the morning: for Thou hast been my defense and
refuge in the day of my trouble. Psa. 59:16
This nearness to God, into which His "very elect" will be gathered, will be the source of their protection. And the dangers to others will be in proportion to their distance to this great citadel of strength, this fortress, this refuge or tower....Oh, that we could get this thought rightly settled in our minds!...that our Lord is at the helm superintending all of earth's affairs at the present time in a much more practical sense than ever in the past. And have we not seen His graciousness towards the church in the thirty-four years of the harvest period that are already past? And can we doubt His continued supervision of the affairs of His betrothed to the grand consummation? "He who hath begun the good work in us is able to complete it."..."Who led thee first will lead thee still; Be calm and sink into his will." R4379,c2,p2,4
Because thy loving kindness is better than life, my
lips shall praise thee. Psa. 63:3
Those who love the present life close their lips and refrain from speaking of His loving kindness; but those faithful to their covenant, and appreciative of the Lord's favor as "better than life," will show forth His praise at any and every cost of an earthly kind. R2853,c1,top
We must appreciate the loving favor of God as better than earthly life, else we are not worthy of Him and not of the kind He is seeking....When we begin to weigh and contrast fellowship with God and the eternal hopes, ...in contrast with earthly loves and family ties and earthly ambitions and pleasures, the latter all seem quite insignificant in comparison, dross as compared to pure gold. And from this standpoint we gladly renounce all, giving up life itself for the favor of God. R2852,c1,top
Thou wilt guide me with thy counsel, and afterward
receive me to glory. Psa. 73:24
How wonderfully the Lord has guided His people! His children have ever been His constant care. No good thing will He withhold from them, and all things have been made to work together for their good if they obeyed Him. Who that has trusted the Lord through many years, through sunshine and shadow, through smiles and tears, by still waters and through storm and tempest, has not proved the verity of His precious promises and His abiding faithfulness! R5538,c1,p8
We appreciate the necessity for a Counselor, and a very wise one. We find that even the best of earthly counsel is of value only as it has been directed by the Divine counsel....Moreover, there is...assurance that this counsel shall be sufficient for us, so that ultimately, by giving heed thereto, we shall reach the everlasting prize at the end of the race course. R2240,c1,p5
My flesh and my heart faileth; but God is the strength
of my heart, and my portion forever. Psa. 73:26
In seasons of heavy trial the darkness may indeed so deepen upon the soul, as in our dear Lord's case, as almost to shut out the stars of hope; yet if, like the Lord, we hold on to the omnipotent arm of Jehovah and meekly say, "Nevertheless, not my will, but Thine be done," His grace will always be sufficient; and with the Psalmist we can say, "Though my flesh and my heart fail, yet God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever"; and, with the Lord, our hearts will respond—"The cup which My Father hath given me, shall I not drink it?" R1802,c2,top
The Lord God is a sun and shield. Psa. 84:11
Our text is a great encouragement to the David class, the beloved class, the anointed ones, the members of Christ. To these the Lord God is both a sun and shield; He not only enlightens these but He will not suffer them to be injured by the blessings which He bestows upon them. He will shield them from all enemies and everything that would tend to injure them in any manner; all things shall work together for good to those that love Him, to the called ones according to His purpose. With such blessed assurances, then, we may look forward into the future with rejoicing and with confidence, trusting to have a share in the glorious rewards God has promised to the faithful. R4219,c2,p4
My covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing that
is gone out of my lips. Psa. 89:34
While seeking to copy the Lord in every particular, and to be fully rounded out in character-likeness to Him, let us now have specially in mind as a part of the lesson of this text, God's faithfulness to His engagements; and let us, as His people, resolve that by His assistance and grace we will grow daily in this quality, in His likeness—that we, also, may say of ourselves, concerning our covenants or agreements, as the Lord says of Himself, "My covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing that is gone out of My lips." R3109,c2,p2
He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High
shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. Psa. 91:1
This secret place of the Most High, Beloved, is the place of intimate communion and fellowship with God, through the blessed privilege of prayer and through faith in His precious Word and His promised providential care. ...Oh, how precious is this hiding place! What rest and refreshment we find in the midst of the commotion that is even now bestirring the whole world....Here we find rest, peace, light and joy, which the world can neither give nor take away. R1788,c1,p2,3
"Abide under the shadow of the Almighty"—as typed by the cloud covering the typical Tabernacle, which symbolized the Lord's presence and protection. R1913,c2,p1
I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress:
my God; in Him will I trust. Psa. 91:2
We are to keep firm hold of our confidence; for this assures us that God is our Father. We all know something of the wireless telegraphy which is now being used in a marvelous manner on the sea and land. And this is only a feeble illustration of the wireless communication that maintains between the true Christian and the Heavenly Lord. In every circumstance this confidence, leaning on the Lord, will look to Him. There will be the wireless communication between Father and child. R5595,c1,p6
Surely He shall deliver thee from the snare of the
fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. Psa. 91:3
The pestilence of infidelity will stalk abroad. R844,c1,p6
Every error held obscures and hinders some truth; and we have now come to the time when every child of God needs all the panoply of truth—the Armor of God. He who has not on the "whole Armor of God" is sure to fall into error in this "evil day," this "Hour of Temptation." ...And "judgment must begin at the house of God." Who shall be able to stand? None except those who are "building themselves up in the most holy faith" with the precious promises and vital doctrines of the Word of God. R5801,c2,p4
He shall cover thee with His feathers, and under His
wings shalt thou trust: His truth shall be thy shield and
buckler. Psa. 91:4
Our Heavenly Father's love and care and protection are His wings and His feathers, shielding us from all harm, keeping us warm and safe. R5438,c2,p1
Yes, His Truth—that grand system of truth comprised in the Divine Plan of the Ages—is an ample shield and buckler to all who in simplicity of heart receive it and prove faithful to it. It is the armor of God. R3332,c1,top
The Harvest message in its various features, bearing on every phase of Truth now due and every phase of error now being brought forward, is God's keeping power by which, according to His guarantee, we know that nothing shall by any means hurt the "feet" members of the true "body of Christ." R3441,c2,p1
Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor
for the arrow that flieth by day; nor for the pestilence
that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that
wasteth at noonday. Psa. 91:5,6
Remember the Prophet David's explanation of our day with its arrows, pestilences, stumbling blocks, etc., and the declaration that a thousand would fall at our side. Let us not forget either our Lord's positive assurances, that He would keep His very own, His elect—those making their calling and election sure....The shielded ones will be those who live very near to the Lord—not only outwardly, but in their heart experience. These very elect have the assurance that God will give His messengers charge concerning them, so that the feet shall not be dashed against the stumbling stone, but be borne up, lifted higher by the Divinely appointed agencies of Jehovah. (Psa. 91.) R4438,c2,p5
A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at
thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee. Psa. 91:7
We must remember that this promise is limited to the class specified, to those who have made the Lord, even the Most High, their refuge and habitation. R4167,c2,bottom
We are not to think of those who will be injured and who will fall...as of the world, but rather as being friends of the Church; closely associated with the Church. The world could not fall from Divine favor, for it has not been in Divine favor....This verse seems to apply to those who were actually begotten of the Holy Spirit or who have assumed a position such as those begotten of the Holy Spirit; as, for instance, the tares which affect to be wheat....There is a distinction between the thousand falling at the side and the ten thousand at the right hand. We might infer that the one thousand may fall into total unbelief, and the ten thousand, the "great company," into the great time of trouble to wash their robes white and to purify themselves. They will be partakers with Babylon in her sins and have part in her great fall....Only the sanctified in Christ Jesus, copies of God's dear Son, will be able to stand complete in Him. R4926,c1,p5; c2,p1
Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge,
even the Most High, thy habitation. Psa. 91:9
This gives us a clue to the security of the saints. Their strength will lie in great part in that they are taking heed to the warnings of the Apostle respecting the present time, and hence know how to beware of the wiles of the Adversary. The "very elect" will be so in harmony with the Lord and so filled with the spirit of His Word, and so blessed by the exercise of their privileges as under-reapers in this harvest, and so disposed to lay down their lives for the truth, and in its service, that none of these snares and delusions of the Adversary...will be special attractions for them. R2770,c2,p4
There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any
plague come nigh thy dwelling. Psa. 91:10
No evil befall thee—the new creature. See R4767,c1,p3
We are to recognize that there are two classes of spirit begotten ones, and that our text has reference to only one class of these....They have kept nothing back of their love and devotion; things may happen disastrous to their fleshy interests; but they remember that they are "not in the flesh but in the spirit," and realize that no outside influence can mar their real interests as New Creatures, nor hinder them, if faithful, from attaining to the glories of the Kingdom....It is to this class, and to all the things that may befall them, that the assurance is given—"there shall no evil befall thee." As for the other of the two classes—the "Great Company"—some evils do befall them. They will be put into great tribulation. R4767,c2,p4,5
For He shall give His angels charge over thee, to keep
thee in all thy ways. Psa. 91:11
The harvest message is God's keeping power. R3441,c2,p1
We believe that the Lord has raised up messengers, agencies, which have been very helpful to all the "feet" class. These agencies have been various. The printed page with its message of present truth has gone...to all parts of the earth, to seek out and sustain the members of the "feet" of Christ....He will continue to use these agencies, and there will be the strengthening of His people to the end of the way. If there are any who will not be thus led, it must be because there is something wrong in themselves. We should each see to it that we are of the "thee" class. "No evil shall come nigh thee." That will mean Divine protection to the very end of our course. R5817,c2,top; p1
They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash
thy foot against a stone. Psa. 91:12
According to this Psalm we see that now is the time when the "feet" members are in special danger of stumbling, and hence require special assistance....Our Lord's presence and His work were neither understood nor appreciated in the Jewish harvest; and so here....The events of today are manifestations of His presence. These things and the vital truths of Scripture, now more clear and luminous than ever, are stumbling stones to the world, but are blessings to the faithful, watching ones. The true people of God, mounting on this stepping-stone, are lifted up to a higher viewpoint and kept from stumbling. The doctrine of the Ransom and the evidences of the Master's second presence at this time are unspeakable advantages to the saints of the Lord. R5816,c2,p7; R5817,c1,p1
Because he hath set his love upon Me, therefore will I
deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known
My name. Psa. 91:14
Because he hath set his love upon Me (saith Jehovah), therefore will I deliver him (from the pestilence, etc.): I will set him on high (exalt him to joint-heirship with Christ, make him a member of the "Royal Priesthood," and a "partaker of the Divine nature"), because he hath known (appreciated) My name. R3332,c2,p4
He shall call upon Me and I will answer him: I will be
with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honor him.
Psa. 91:15
Praise the Lord for such assurances of His loving care! "Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name!" R3332,c2,p6
The intimation here is that the Lord will not, necessarily, prevent our getting into trouble....The trouble might prove very beneficial to us. The Lord has already told us in His Word that we are to rejoice even under tribulation....So while the Lord does not promise us that we shall escape trouble, He does promise that with the trouble He will give His children consolation of heart, sustaining grace, that will enable them to rejoice in the midst of their tribulation. R5758,c1,p3; c2,p1
Light is sown for the righteous and gladness for the
upright in heart. Psa. 97:11
All of the "brethren" will be awakened in season to put on the "whole armor of God."...Whoever shall be left asleep and in darkness and thus not be prepared to "stand" in this evil day, will thereby make it evident, whatever his professions, that God who readeth the heart did not find him worthy of the light of present truth. "Light (truth) is sown for the righteous and gladness (the gladness which comes from a realization of the truth) for the upright in heart." R2453,c1,p4; R3648,c1,p3
Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth
them that fear Him.
For He knoweth our frame; He remembereth
that we are dust. Psa. 103:13,14
He invites us to confide in Him as children...in full assurance of His loving interest, even in our smallest affairs. R3161,c2,p1
A further word from the mouth of God assures us that He knoweth our frame, He remembereth that we are dust—weak, imperfect, dying; and that it is not His purpose that we shall continue always to be in conflict with ourselves—perfect will against imperfect body; but that He has provided that, in the resurrection, we shall have new, perfect bodies, in full accord with our new minds. R4897,c2,p6
But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to
everlasting upon them that fear Him, and His righteousness
unto children's children; to such as keep His covenant,
and to those that remember His commandments to do
them. Psa. 103:17,18
One of the narrowing features of this way is that at the present time no one is accepted of God unless he makes a definite covenant with God. If he does not choose to make that covenant, he may think he is a Christian, but he is not. In the world today four hundred million people are counted as Christians....But the Bible very plainly states: "If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Me." This self denial and cross bearing is the sacrifice necessary to discipleship in Christ at the present time. Many people are not Christians because they have not entered into a covenant with God....After having entered this straight gate and narrow way, we should continue therein—not necessarily without stumbling, not necessarily without making mistakes; if we can go on ever so falteringly, to the best of our ability and with hearts loyal to the Lord, we shall be granted to sit on His throne—members of His Bride class. R5055,c1,p7,8; c2,p3
And He led them forth in the right way. Psa. 107:7
With Spiritual Israel it is particularly true that the Lord leads in the right way, in the best way; and that therefore all truly His people should be careful to note His leadings and quick in following them. In the end we will surely see that He has led us in the right way, however different that way may be from the one we would have chosen for ourselves. The difficulty with many is that the way they take is not the one which the Lord led and hence not the best way, even though the Lord may overrule their waywardness so that it shall not work to them a great injury which otherwise might have been theirs....Let us then, with full faith in Him who has led us hitherto, go forth through the coming days conquering...strong not in ourselves but in Him who has called us and led us hitherto. R4064,c2,p2
He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof
are still. Psa. 107:29
Like many other Scriptures this text has a special application to the Church of Christ. St. Paul tells us that these things were written beforehand for our admonition, instruction. (1 Cor. 10:11.) We believe that nearly all the prophecies recognize the Lord and His body first. There have been many storms permitted by the Lord to come upon...His followers. Sometimes the whole journey of life has been a stormy one. We sometimes sing, "When the storms of life are raging." In his epistles, the Apostle intimates that those who do not have storms, trials and difficulties lack proof that they are God's children; for God would not be dealing with such as His children. (Heb. 12:7,8) If we are children of God, we need to have trials and testings, that these may make us "meet for the inheritance of the saints in light." (Col. 1:12.) In all these experiences, the tendency of the trial is to drive us nearer to the Lord, to make us feel that we need the Divine shelter and care. And so a blessing comes out of these storms. R5239,c1,p2,3
Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His
saints. Psa. 116:15
So may it be with all those consecrated to walk in the footsteps of their Redeemer. Covered with His robe of righteousness they are all precious to the Father, and their death under whatever circumstances will really not be accidental, but a kiss of Divine approval and seal of the coming blessing in the First Resurrection. R4054,c2,p1
Not even a hair of their heads can fall without His notice. F646
Death itself is powerless to touch us until God's time for us shall have come. R5546,c2,p3
Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto
my path. Psa. 119:105
God wishes those who are awake to be learning more and more of His plan. These will grow in grace and in knowledge as they watch. They will not be like the world. The world will be in a stupor—they will be unworthy of the day. Darkness covers the whole earth at the present time. But God's people are granted a special light. They love the light. "Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path." It is not a light like that of the moon, which reaches far out, but merely a little light at the feet of those who are watching for it. Those who are going to sleep will find their light going out. R5256,c2,p5
Great peace have they which love Thy law: and nothing
shall offend them. Psa. 119:165
Offend—or stumble them. See R1356,c2,p3.
To love God's law, then, would be to appreciate the fact that God has a great purpose; to take delight in finding out what God's will is; and to have full confidence in His justice, wisdom, love and power. Great peace have all those who do so. They do not understand every dealing of Divine justice, but their faith holds to the fact that He is too wise to err. Thus they have peace in confiding their interests to Him. R4898,c1,p2
My help cometh from the Lord, which made Heaven
and earth. Psa. 121:2
A general lesson is taught by the fact that the Ark preceded and remained in the river-bed until all had passed over. This to them was the Lord's guarantee of the safety of their passage....A lesson to all Spiritual Israelites should be, "In all thy ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct thy paths" (Prov. 3:6);..."Without Me ye can do nothing";..."My help cometh from the Lord";..."I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me"; and..."All things are yours, for ye are Christ's and Christ is God's."...Let us in the strength of these Divine promises enter into the blessings of the Lord more and more day by day, and allow His leadings past and present to give us courage and fortitude for the future. "Who led us last will lead us still, Be calm and sink into His will." R4064,c1,p1,2
He will not suffer thy foot to be moved: He that keepeth
thee will not slumber. Psa. 121:3
The God of Israel is indeed ever present with His true people. He never forgets us, but is constantly looking out for our interests, guarding us in every time of danger, providing for our every need, both temporal and spiritual, whatever is best for the interest of the New Creature. He reads every thought of our hearts; He marks every impulse of devotion and love to Him; He shapes all the influences surrounding our lives for our disciplining and refining, and hearkens to our every cry for aid and comfort and sympathy and fellowship with Him. He is never for even a moment forgetful or off guard. "He that keepeth Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps." R5548,c2,p7
The Lord shall preserve thee from all evil; He shall
preserve thy soul. Psa. 121:7
The closer we live to the Lord, and the greater our faith, the more we shall realize the Divine direction, and the more we shall make use of the means He has provided for our strengthening and upholding. We may call upon Him in time of trouble; we may go to Him in prayer; and He never fails those who put their trust in Him and earnestly seek to walk in His appointed way. This being true, we may go forth upon our journey, in perfect trust and confidence. Having consecrated our all to the Lord, we are to seek for His guidance, for His presence is with us, in all the affairs of our life. R5548,c1,p6
The Lord shall preserve thy going out and thy coming
in from this time forth and even forever. Psa. 121:8
It is our privilege to know the comforting fact that Jehovah's knowledge and wisdom are superior to all the exigencies of His universal empire; and that the wrath of man and of all the combined powers of darkness cannot in the slightest degree frustrate the Divine Plan. The same power that was able to transform the spiritual Son of God to the human nature was able also to protect Him against all opposers, from helpless infancy up to the appointed time of His sacrifice for the world's redemption. R1681,c1,p6
They that trust in the Lord shall be as Mount Zion,
which cannot be removed, but abideth forever.
Psa. 125:1
The great day now upon us is trying every man's character structure, of what sort it is, and but very few, even among professed Christians, will stand the test. The few who will pass safely through this crucial trial without loss are those only who have become established in the Truth of God, "rooted and grounded and built up into Christ." The difference between a strong and steadfast Christian and a bigot is that one is established in Truth, and the other is established in error. The "fire" of this day will continue to burn and to manifest the great difference between the two classes, until all have been tested and tried and found worthy or unworthy. R5558,c2,p4,5
As the mountains are round about Jerusalem, so the
Lord is round about His people from henceforth even forever.
Psa. 125:2
We can well see that the City of Jerusalem, located as it is, in the top of the mountains, and flanked by them in every direction, would be a difficult one for an enemy to successfully attack. The mountain roads would be difficult of approach because easily defended. The suggestion of the prophet that the Lord is a fortress and protection to His people under every adverse influence, is a beautiful one which all can appreciate. R4623,c1,p4
The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon Him, to
all that call upon Him in truth.
He will fulfil the desire
of them that fear Him: He also will hear their cry, and
will save them. Psa. 145:18,19
If the Master Himself needed strengthening, surely we also need it; and if He received it in response to supplications with strong cryings and tears, it is an intimation to us of the way in which God is pleased to bestow the full assurance of faith which is able to strengthen us as good soldiers to endure any and everything in His name and service....But however the strength may come, it must be the assurance, not of men or of angels, but of God, that we are pleasing and acceptable to Him—and that we may claim and expect the exceeding great and precious things which He has in reservation for them that love Him. R2775,c1,p4
The Lord preserveth all them that love Him.
Psa. 145:20
In the midst of the "perilous times" of this "evil day," and the warning voices of the Holy Prophets and Apostles pointing out snares and pestilences and subtle dangers on every hand—and in the midst, too, of a realizing sense of the actual existence of such evil besetments and perils—how precious to the saints are the assurances of Divine protection and care and personal love! R5257,c1,p4
Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not to
thine own understanding.
In all thy ways acknowledge
Him and He shall direct thy paths. Prov. 3:5,6
If at times we know not whether to turn to the right or to the left, know not wherein to walk, let us lift our hearts to the Lord, and wait before Him, remembering the Divine assurance, "Delight thyself in the Lord: and He shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in Him; and He shall bring it to pass." "In all thy ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct thy paths." Thus His dear voice brings comfort, strength, rest, in the midst of all the cares and perplexities of the way. "As many as walk according to this rule, peace be on them, and mercy, and upon the Israel of God!" (Gal. 6:16.) R5807,c2,p3
The path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth
more and more unto the perfect day. Prov. 4:18
The fact that the Great Teacher is present superintending the "harvest" work is, we believe, a further assurance along this line. We comfort ourselves with the thought that His eye, His rod and His staff are guiding His sheep from grace to grace and from knowledge to knowledge. Hence it is not astonishing that we find, as was predicted, that "the path of the just is as a shining light—shining more and more unto the perfect day." Little details may, indeed should be, expected to grow clearer day by day, but all the fundamentals of our faith superstructure are unchangeable. R3856,c2,p1
The blessing of the Lord, it maketh rich and He addeth
no sorrow with it. Prov. 10:22
Another kind of riches comes to the Royal Priesthood, faithful in performing their self-sacrifices. These are riches of the Holy Spirit. They find as they sacrifice the selfish interests, earthly aims, earthly projects, etc., in the service of the Lord and the Truth, that they grow more and more in likeness to their Heavenly Father and to their Lord, and that the fruits of the Holy Spirit abound in them more and more—meekness, patience, gentleness, brotherly kindness, love. Furthermore, they find a peace and a joy to which formerly they were strangers. ...This peace and joy come through a realization that having given their all to the Lord, all of His exceeding great and precious promises belong to them. Now their faith can firmly grasp these promises as their own. R2762,c2,p2,3
The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth
his trust in the Lord shall be safe. Prov. 29:25
Whoever of a loyal, obedient heart can exercise faith has thus provided for himself strength and grace for every time of need, for every hour of trial, for every difficulty and perplexity and for all the affairs of life—the ballast which will give equilibrium and enable us to profit by all of life's experiences, the bitter as well as the sweet. R3545,c1,top
Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is
stayed on Thee: because he trusteth in Thee. Isa. 26:3
Stephen had this same rest and joy even while his enemies were stoning him to death; and thousands more of God's saints can testify to the same thing—in the midst of poverty, sickness, affliction, temptation, and enemies on every hand, and even in the flames of violent persecution. Whence comes it? or how are rest and even joy compatible with such conditions? The answer is: it is a rest of mind—"Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on Thee." None can know the blessedness of this rest until they have experienced it. And none can realize its great value until they have been put to the tests of affliction. R1961,c2,p6
In quietness and in confidence shall be your strength.
Isa. 30:15
The Lord gives the key to this rest in the words—"Learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly of heart." Truly, in a meek and quiet spirit is the secret of rest. To be meek is to cultivate the graces of patience; of loving submission to the will of God; of abiding confidence in His love and care and in the wisdom of His guiding counsel and overruling providences; and to perseveringly pursue this course through evil and through good report, or through favorable or unfavorable circumstances. Let the beloved children of God seek more and more to copy Christ's meek and quiet spirit, accepting the providences of God and obeying His precepts and leading as He did, armed with the strength which He alone can supply, and will, to all those who take His yoke upon them, and learn of Him. R1962,top
Bread shall be given him; his waters shall be sure.
Isa. 33:16
Let us ask for nothing beyond our actual needs, as God (not we) sees the necessity and expediency—thankful always for the "bread and water" promised, as well as for every additional comfort. Realizing always God's superior wisdom and boundless love for us, we should fear to take our interests in any degree out of His hand. Thus we may always live rejoicing, realizing that, whatever may befall us, all is working out for good to us. We may need an acquaintance with pain, or to come into perplexity and almost to want, in order to have needful experience or testing or chastisement. And we should learn to search for and appreciate the lesson or chastisement quickly, and prove ourselves apt pupils in the school of Christ. R2009,c2,p5
Thine eyes shall see the King in His beauty.
Isa. 33:17
Oh, what a vision of rest and peace, of glory and blessing, of joyful fellowship, of deathless love, of unsullied purity and unending bliss! Who, but those who have caught a glimpse of its glory, can estimate its power to inspire to holy zeal, to earnest endeavor, and to patient endurance of all the losses and crosses of the path of discipline that leads to it. It is no matter of surprise that not all who name the name of Christ are filled with the inspiration of this blessed vision; for but few, even of those who theoretically know these things, really behold the vision, and by faith realize that they have a place in it....If thou art a faithful doer of the Word of God, and not a hearer only, then, even now "thine eyes" of faith shall catch the inspiration of the glory to be revealed, and thy steps shall be quickened in the paths of righteousness. R2087,c2,p3
But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their
strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they
shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not
faint. Isa. 40:31
If any hope in themselves, and lean upon their own strength mainly, it will be to their advantage that the Lord shall allow them to come to the point of discouragement, that they may become more timid, may lose all self-assurance, may realize their utter helplessness and weakness and their need of leaning wholly upon the Lord, of looking constantly to Him for guidance and support. As the Lord's children thus learn to wait upon Him, to them is fulfilled the promise, "They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles;...they shall walk and not faint." R5712,c2,p6
Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed;
for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help
thee; yea I will uphold thee with the right hand of my
righteousness. Isa. 41:10
Each member of the Body of Christ, the true Israel of God, is privileged to have the continual guidance of the Lord in every experience of our wilderness journey. Heavenly Manna is furnished for our daily sustenance. The water of life flows out to us for our daily refreshing, from the smitten Rock of Ages. Our Father's chastening rod restrains us when we are in danger, or when we wander into any forbidden path. How lovingly He brings us back into the right way, and heals our wounds, and graciously forgives our stumblings and weaknesses. Surely we may have implicit confidence in our Heavenly Guide. Thus we may rest in Him and be kept in perfect peace. R5548,c2,top
For I the Lord thy God will hold thy right hand, saying
unto thee, fear not; I will help thee. Isa. 41:13
What a blessing of peace, quietness of spirit, ability to endure hardness as a good soldier of Christ, and sustenance and strength in time of trial, lies behind these precious assurances...no tongue can express. It has in the past permitted His faithful ones to pass through many dark and trying experiences with a fortitude that has surprised the world, which has seen them in the fiery furnace, but has not seen that there is with them the form of the Son of God. (Dan. 3:25.) They have endured as seeing Him who is invisible. (Heb. 11:27.) R4784,c2,p4
When thou passest through the waters, I will be with
thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee;
when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be
burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.
Isa. 43:2
As Israel in passing through Jordan had nothing to fear because the ark of the Lord, the symbol of the Divine presence stood in the midst of the threatening danger, so the Christian has nothing to fear so long as he realizes the Divine presence and approval. Through rivers and seas of trouble he may wade, and through fiery furnaces of affliction he may pass, but none of these things can harm him while the Lord is with him. The Lord's presence and love realized under such circumstances as they cannot be under ordinary conditions give such strength to faith and hope and love as could not otherwise be gained. And thus all things are made to work together for good to them that love God, to the called according to His purpose. R1857,middle
My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure:
...yea, I have spoken it, I will also bring it to pass; I
have purposed it, I will also do it. Isa. 46:10,11
What was it that held them (the Lord and the Apostles) so firmly and gave them such rest of mind while they suffered? It was their faith—their faith in the love, power and wisdom of God. They believed that what God had promised He was able also to perform, that His righteous and benevolent Plan could know no failure; for by the mouth of His prophets He had declared, "My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure....Yea, I have spoken it, I will also bring it to pass; I have purposed it, I will also do it." "The Lord of hosts hath purposed, and who shall disannul it?" On the assurances of God they rested. In Him their faith was anchored, and it mattered not how fiercely the storms raged or how they were tossed by the tempests of life while their anchor still held fast to the throne of God. R1834,c2,p7
Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should
not have compassion on the son of her womb?
Yea, they
may forget, yet will I not forget thee.
Behold, I have
graven thee upon the palms of My hands. Isa. 49:15,16
As we read these assurances of tenderest love on the part of our Heavenly Father, and then consider our low estate, we can scarcely realize that we are indeed the objects of that love. Yet if we are humbly walking in the narrow way, these assurances are for our comfort and consolation. R957,c1,p1
For the Lord God will help me; therefore shall I not be
confounded; therefore have I set my face like a flint, and
I know that I shall not be ashamed. Isa. 50:7
To the world it may seem that the course of the Christian is far from peaceful, for the Lord's saints often have a stormy voyage. But if our hearts continue to be stayed on Christ by faith, and we do not let go our anchor, we shall be kept through all the tempests of life, however severely we may be tossed, however fiercely the storms may rage. Faith can exclaim with the Prophet Isaiah (as above). On the assurances of the Lord we may rest, because our anchor holds fast to the throne of God. The language of our Master's heart was, "O righteous Father, the world hath not known Thee; but I have known Thee." He had been with the Father from the beginning and He knew His love and goodness; He had seen the manifestations of His power; He had marked His loving-kindness. So we who have come into a similar relationship to God have come to thus know and trust His love and faithfulness. R5432,c1,p2,3
Hearken unto Me, ye that know righteousness, the
people in whose heart is My law; fear ye not the reproach
of men, neither be ye afraid of their revilings.
I, even I,
am He that comforteth you: who art thou, that thou
shouldst be afraid of a man...which shall be made as
grass. Isa. 51:7,12
What condescension on the part of the Almighty to thus consider our weakness when the darts of the enemy wound our hearts, and to pour in the balm of His consolation. He would not have one of His children whom Christ has made free to come again under the bondage of "the fear of man which bringeth a snare." He would have every man in Christ realize his liberty from sin and superstition and his solemn accountability to God for all his thoughts, words and doings.—"Sanctify the Lord of hosts Himself, and let Him be your fear, and let Him be your dread. R1788,c2,p2
I have put My words in thy mouth, and I have covered
thee with the shadow of Mine hand, that I may plant the
heavens, and lay the foundations of the earth, and say
unto Zion, Thou art My people. Isa. 51:16
It is to inspire faith...that the Lord has offered us, in addition to all His precious promises, so many encouragements to simple, childlike trust in Him, and that He has bidden us turn a deaf ear to the reproaches of men. ..."Plant the heavens (establish the new heavens), and lay the foundations of the earth (the new earth), and say unto Zion (the people tried and proved by these afflictions to be worthy heirs of the new Kingdom—the new heavens and earth), Thou art My people." R1788,c2,p1
No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper.
Isa. 54:17
Many tongues have arisen against the Lord's Zion as a whole and against each member individually—tongues laden with the "poison of asps," tongues bitter with envy, malice, hatred and strife,—tongues which hesitate not to slander and misrepresent, to say all manner of evil falsely. And to a large extent these weapons and tongues have succeeded, have wrought havoc with the sheep, as also with the Shepherd; and God permitted it—He neither stopped the weapon nor stilled the tongue; and yet He assures us apparently to the contrary of this in our text. What is the true explanation?...The explanation is that "Ye are not in the flesh, but in the spirit"...ye are "new creatures" in Christ Jesus....(Rom. 8:9; 2 Cor. 5:17.) The weapons and tongues merely do injury to the old creature—to the flesh, which we have already consecrated to death anyway. R3050,c2,p8,9
So shall My Word be that goeth forth out of My
mouth: it shall not return unto Me void, but it shall
accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the
thing whereto I sent it. Isa. 55:11
Those who claim that Jehovah has been trying for six thousand years to convert the world, and failing all the time must find it difficult to reconcile such views with the Bible assurance that all God's purposes shall be accomplished, and that His Word shall not return unto Him void, but shall prosper in the thing whereto it was sent. The fact that the world has not yet been converted, and that the knowledge of the Lord has not yet filled the earth, is a proof that it has not yet been sent on that mission. A95,p2
And the Lord shall guide thee continually. Isa. 58:11
If, in the Father's providence, some of the circumstances connected with our earthly affairs turn in this or that direction, our hearts should look to the Lord for the lesson to be drawn therefrom, and thus be able to glorify God thereby. The Christian should never view any experience as being lucky or unlucky, but should remember that all things connected with him, if he be living close to the Lord, are ordered and directed by the Lord. R4628,c2,p3
Thou shalt be called by a new name,...Thou shalt
also be a crown of glory in the hand of the Lord, and a
royal diadem in the hand of thy God. Isa. 62:2,3
So the church in the Hand of God is the church in the hand of Divine power. That power will use the church and she will be a crown of glory and a thing of beauty, gloriously reflecting to all eternity the workmanship of our God. How glorious it will be! How beautiful! The Lord Jehovah will have the setting of these precious jewels, one reflecting upon another in that crown of glory and diadem of beauty, with the Lord Jesus in the chief place, for the Father will not give to the church any glory that He would not give to the Lord Himself. The church is to be displayed before men as "a thing of beauty and a joy forever"—God's handiwork. R4914,c1,p2
In all their affliction He was afflicted. Isa. 63:9
The Scriptures point out the fact that the Lord's consecrated people belong so completely to Him that in all their afflictions He is afflicted. When Saul of Tarsus was persecuting the early church, our Lord called out to him on the way to Damascus, and said, "Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou ME? And he said, who art thou, Lord? and the Lord said, I am Jesus, whom thou persecutest." Saul was not persecuting the glorified Savior directly, but he was persecuting the followers of Jesus—not the new creatures, but the flesh. R5173,c1,p7
Before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet
speaking, I will hear. Isa. 65:24
How many prayers are not heard or are hindered because the one who asks does not first purify himself of evil in his own heart? "Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts;" i.e., you ask selfishly and without regard to the will of God. But to the chastened and sanctified comes the promise—"Before they call (reading the desire of the heart even before it finds expression in words) I will answer (will begin so to shape events as to bring the answer soon or later); and while they are yet speaking I will hear." While this is in connection with a prophecy relating to the Lord's people in the Millennial Age, it nevertheless is true of all His faithful ones of this age. Praise the Lord for all His loving kindness to even the least of His lowly children! R1866,c2,p2
As one whom his mother comforteth, so will I comfort
you. Isa. 66:13
The Lord's people, having embraced the truth, find themselves beset on every hand with oppositions from the Evil One and his servants; and were it not that they have the comfort and consolation of the Scriptures, and the joy and peace which the world can neither give nor take away, theirs would be a sad lot indeed. But under conditions as the Lord has arranged them, it is their privilege, even while suffering the loss of earthly things for righteousness' sake, to rejoice in tribulation, and in everything give thanks. What is the secret of this rejoicing in tribulation? Whence comes so great comfort as this? We answer, it comes through the comfort of the Scriptures, made luminous by the holy Spirit. R3436,c1,p3,4
Call unto Me, and I will answer thee and shew thee
great and mighty things which thou knowest not.
Jer. 33:3
To us it is given to know the mysteries of the Kingdom of God, which many prophets and many righteous persons of the past were not privileged to see. Thank God for the light of present truth! Now we can see a plan of God—a plan which covers every detail of history past, and of revelation future; a plan that is complete—lacking and disjointed at no part; a plan that is in strictest conformity with Divine Justice, Wisdom, Power and Love, and with every text of the Divine Word; and which thus proves itself to be not only a reasonable plan, but the plan of God, in comparison with which all other theories and plans are defective and evidently erroneous, out of harmony with the Divine attributes and with the Divine Word. Those who have come to an understanding of the Plan of the Ages recognize it as of Divine and not of human origination. R1867,c1,p5,6
His compassions fail not.
They are new every morning:
great is Thy faithfulness. Lam. 3:22,23
We have learned to know our God and to trust His faithful Word. We have proven His gracious promises in many a time of stress and danger, and we know that He will not fail us....If we were to let go this hope, this anchor to our souls, we should be adrift upon a shoreless sea, whose mighty billows would sweep us down to eternal death. A great time of trouble is now about to break upon the whole world, and any of the Lord's people whose faith and hope are not firmly anchored to the Rock of Ages, any who are fearful to trust His promises, will be overwhelmed in the storm. Shall this be our experience? ...Some of the Lord's real children will have their part in this great trouble-time; yet none who are faithful, who are obedient, will suffer thus. These will be kept in perfect safety to the end of their course, and will, we believe, be gathered "within the veil" before the great storm breaks in its fury. R5497,c2,p2,3,4
It is good that a man should both hope and quietly
wait for the salvation of the Lord. Lam. 3:26
The precious promises of God's Word, which are only for His people, those who are wholly His, give these every reason for hope; they have full authority to be strong and of a good courage. The children of God will have trials and experiences similar to those of the world, besides experiences and trials peculiar to them as followers of Christ. These come not to us in a haphazard way, however, as to the world, but are under the direct supervision of the Lord....So these learn, as they are guided by the Word of the Lord, that they are to be of good courage as they pursue their onward way. There are many difficulties to be surmounted, and it requires courage to surmount difficulties. But the courage born of faith in God and in His "exceeding great and precious promises" strengthens them when otherwise they might be overwhelmed. It gives them a strength to which all others are strangers. R5712,c1,p4,7
The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble;
and He knoweth them that trust in Him. Nahum 1:7
They (the saints) will recognize the trouble as the preparation, according to God's Plan, for blessing the whole world, and they will be cheered and comforted through it all....Thus comforted and blessed by the Divine assurance, the first duty of the saints is to let the world see that in the midst of all the prevailing trouble and discontent, and even while they share the trouble and suffer under it, they are hopeful, cheerful and always rejoicing in view of the glorious outcome foretold in God's Word. A338,p2,3
And they shall be mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in
that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare
them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him.
Mal. 3:17
The first of these jewels was our Lord Jesus....He (Jehovah) has arranged that other jewels be cut and polished after the similitude of His son...as it is written, "We are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works." These gems must all be found by God, who is making up these jewels. But having been found of Him, they are placed in the hands of the great Lapidarist, our Lord Jesus, that He may cut, polish and fit them for the glorious work of shining with Him in the Kingdom. ...He has not spared this class in the sense of relieving them from all suffering, for if they were thus spared they could not share the glory to follow this trial time. He did not spare Jesus, the Head....But He will not permit them to be tempted above what they are able to bear. He has an interest in them and a sympathy for them, and delivers them from those things which would prove too weighty for them. R5119,c1,p2,3,4
"EXCEEDING GREAT AND
PRECIOUS PROMISES"
Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word
that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. Matt. 4:4
But how is it possible for us to live by the words that proceed out of the mouth of God? What did Jesus mean? How can God's Words give life? He meant that all hope of attaining eternal life depends upon God—upon the Divine Plan and its promises. Looking into these promises we can see distinctly that the Divine Plan, dating from before the foundation of the world, is that all of God's creatures, created in His likeness and abiding in faith, love and obedience in harmony with Him, shall have life everlasting. This is God's Word upon the subject, namely, that obedience is the condition of life everlasting. This is, undoubtedly, what our Lord had in mind in the words of our text. R4896,c2,p5,6
Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom
of heaven. Matt. 5:3
Present conditions are especially helpful, indeed, for those who would cultivate trust, dependence upon the Lord. In this respect we see that the poor have an advantage over the rich; and it was those who were poor, like the lilies of the field, that our Lord Jesus was addressing....And it is to those who are poor in spirit, who realize their own impotency, who long for the rest and peace that Jesus alone can give, who come to Him for this rest, that all the Master's gracious promises and lessons of wisdom, comfort and instruction are given. R5991,c2,p3
Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
Matt. 5:4
All who are earnestly striving for the victory over self, and the world, and sin, are sure to make a sufficient number of failures along the way to insure them considerable experience in mourning for these deflections—if their hearts are in the right attitude toward the Lord. Gracious indeed is the promise to such, "They shall be comforted." Our Lord does comfort such with the assurance that He notes their tears as well as their efforts in opposition to sin, and that He is thus preparing them through present experiences and the development of character for the Kingdom. R2250,c1,p4
Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
Matt. 5:5
The Century Dictionary defines meek as "self controlled and gentle; not easily provoked or irritated; forbearing under injury or annoyance." Webster defines meekness as "submissive to the Divine will; patience and gentleness from moral and religious motives." R3734,c2,p2
The reward of this grace...like the others, is future; ...these shall be heirs of God, joint-heirs with Jesus Christ; and the earth is part of that great inheritance, which in turn, by Divine arrangement, they shall bestow at the close of the Millennial age, upon the world of mankind. R2586,c1,p5
Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after
righteousness: for they shall be filled. Matt. 5:6
"They shall be filled"—they shall be satisfied....We have the Lord's guarantee of the blessing for all who are in the attitude of mind to seek and to use the spiritual refreshments He provides. R3735,c1,p1,2
"According to your faith be it unto you," is the promise. The desire to draw nearer and nearer to God must be in our heart; else we shall fail to go on and attain our privilege in Christ. Such a desire is a manifestation of our hunger and thirst after righteousness, which the Lord expects to see before He makes good to such His engagement that they shall be filled. R5425,c1,p1
Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.
Matt. 5:7
Our Lord said if you do not from the heart forgive those who trespass against you neither will your Heavenly Father forgive your trespasses. He thus teaches us that our mercy must be more than formal, more than outward forgiveness—it must be from the heart, sincere. In proportion, therefore, as we each realize our need of Divine mercy through Jesus, in that same proportion let us be very merciful to others—especially toward the brethren. R3735,c1,p5
Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
Matt. 5:8
A pure heart would be a fully consecrated heart—the whole mind given up to the Lord's will. R5277,c2,p1
How precious the thought, that we may attain to absolute purity of intention, of love, etc., toward all mankind as well as toward the Lord, and that God will thus accept us in His Beloved One, not counting to us the unintentional weaknesses and blemishes which we realize and which others realize perhaps still more than we. How blessed the thought that such will see God, that such have the clearest views of God's character and Plan now, that such shall see Him shortly when changed in the resurrection, when they shall have awakened in the likeness of their dear Redeemer. R3735,c2,p4
Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called
the children of God. Matt. 5:9
Those who are thinking on the true and lovely and good and beautiful things will speak to each other of the same; hence the importance of having our hearts filled with good things, in order that out of the abundance of the good things of our hearts our mouths may speak continually. ...Such have a very precious promise, well worthy of their efforts—"They shall be called the children of God"—they have God's spirit, the likeness of His dear Son has been traced in their hearts....Moreover, this is a test which we may well recognize for ourselves particularly, and to some extent for each other, as evidencing the degree of our growth as children of God—our peaceable dispositions, and our carefulness to pursue such a course in life as will tend toward peace. R2588,c1,p4,5
Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness'
sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Matt. 5:10
Our faith and trust in the Lord and His gracious promises for the future life are to be so strong that they will more than counterbalance the opposition of the world, of false brethren, and of Satan's blinded servants;—so much so that these persecutions will be recognized and rejoiced in as the agencies of Divine providence in chiseling, shaping and polishing us as the living stones for the glorious Temple which God is constructing. And viewing our trials from this standpoint we can indeed possess our souls, our lives, and enjoy them even amidst tribulation, with cheerful endurance, constancy. R2791,c1,p5
Blessed are ye when men shall revile you, and persecute
you, and shall say all manner of evil against you
falsely, for my sake. Matt. 5:11
"Blessed are ye," signifies that persecution is a favor from God...not because of the reviling, but because they shall say these things of you falsely, for Christ's sake....All that we suffer now is storing up for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, if borne for Him. From this standpoint we should really desire persecution...realizing that if we lack it we lack one of the evidences of being true disciples of the Lord, we rejoice when in the providence of God it is our portion. R5544,c1,p4,5,6
Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward
in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which
were before you. Matt. 5:12
Instead of feeling downcast and discouraged by these experiences, and thinking them strange, evidences that God is against us, we should conclude the very reverse. We should say to ourselves, "This is the same kind of experience that the Lord had and that His people of the past have had."...So far from being discouraged, we are to rejoice—not that any could rejoice in persecution for its own sake, for persecution is grievous; but we are to rejoice because "great is your reward in Heaven." R5545,c1,p5
Consider the lilies of the field....Wherefore, if God
so clothe the grass of the field, which today is, and
tomorrow is cast into the oven, shall He not much more clothe
you, O ye of little faith? Matt. 6:28,30
Does poverty pinch and cause anxious thought? take that also to the Lord in prayer; and then, while diligently using the means at hand, to provide things decent...patiently and confidently wait and watch the indications of providence, assured that He...who clothes the grass of the field...is both able and willing to clothe and feed you and yours. R1865,c2,p6
For your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need
of all these things.
But seek ye first the kingdom of God,
and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added
unto you. Matt. 6:32,33
Let us seek the Kingdom as the preeminent matter of our lives....If seeking the Kingdom seems to hinder some of our earthy prospects, so much the better. The Master said it must cost us our all. R5048,c2,p5
If the Kingdom was made first, all their earthly needs would be supplied. R5917,c2,p4
But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.
Matt. 10:30
O how sweet is the realization of such loving, abiding care! R5803,c1,top
These are not to esteem that any of their affairs are accidental, for being fully consecrated to the Lord and fully accepted by Him, all of their affairs, great and small, are under Divine supervision—their health or sickness, their rights or privileges, their joys or sorrows. R3415,c2,bottom
What thing is too small for His notice who numbers even the very hairs of our heads? In today's household or business cares, then, we may have His loving sympathy and helpfulness. R1865,c2,p4
No man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither
knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to
whomsoever the Son will reveal him. Matt. 11:27
The average reader gets very little meaning out of this passage at first. The Christian who has been making progress for years, growing in grace and in the knowledge of the Lord, can appreciate it much better. He realizes that while he had some knowledge about Jesus and about the Father at first...yet it was a different matter to come to know the Father and to know the Son in the intimate sense, in the sense of becoming well acquainted with them, knowing their mind as one knows the mind, the heart, of an intimate friend. It is a privilege to receive such an acquaintance. It is not to be had by everybody; it requires seeking for and knocking for, and such seeking, and knocking implies an earnest desire to have an intimate fellowship and communion. R2624,c2,p4
Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones;
for I say unto you, that in heaven their angels do always
behold the face of my Father which is in heaven.
Matt. 18:10
The Master's words seem to imply at least one or more angels having charge over the consecrated ones, the very elect. He uses a still different figure of speech in illustrating the matter, as though He would assure us that messengers would not be delayed in caring for our interests, would not be hindered by more important Heavenly business, but would at once have direct access to the Divine presence and attention, so that our interests would have all needed consideration. R3441,c1,p2
Lo I am with you alway, even unto the end of the
age. Matt. 28:20
All who abide faithful to Him, all who truthfully can say, "I am my Beloved's and my Beloved is mine," have not only the promise of the life that is to come, but also the promise of this present life. They hear the Master's voice saying, "Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the age," and in the end of the age He is to be specially near, specially precious, and is to reveal Himself to His faithful in an especial manner, even before she is so changed as to behold Him in His glory. It is the privilege of these to apply to themselves, and to realize as properly theirs, all the "exceeding, great and precious promises" of the Divine Word. R4784,c1,p3,4
If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts
unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly
Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him.
Luke 11:13
The Heavenly Father is pleased to have us desire and ask for more and more of the Holy Spirit—a disposition more and more fully in harmony with His Spirit: and all who thus desire and ask and seek it shall obtain their good desires; the Father will be pleased to so order the affairs of such that hindrances to the Spirit, whether in them or in their environment, shall be overcome, that His loving Spirit may abound in them—that they may be filled with the Spirit....The spirit of holiness in abundance can only be received by those who earnestly desire it and seek it by prayer and effort. E223
Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good
pleasure to give you the kingdom. Luke 12:32
Nor will any other creatures either in heaven or in earth receive such marks of special favor as are and ever will be the portion of the beloved Bride of Christ. Although the whole family in heaven and in earth will be blessed through Him, His Wife, co-operating with Him in His work, will alone be His companion, His confidante, His treasure. R5862,c2,p4
Though but few take this step of entire consecration to God's will, still fewer live it out practically, keeping their hearts constantly submissive to the Lord's will only. R1563,c2,top
Verily I say unto you, that He shall gird Himself, and
make them to sit down to meat, and will come forth and
serve them. Luke 12:37
Whoever admits that we are in the Harvest time at all—that we have been in it since 1875—must acknowledge this also, that the Lord promised that at that time He would cause His people to sit down to a bountiful repast of spiritual food and that He will be their servant and bring forth to them "things new and old." All who recognize these things must recognize these Studies in the Scriptures as being identified with the fulfilment of that promise. R4709,c2,p5
And they shall be all taught of God. John 6:45
He who would continue to be taught of the Lord must continue to listen for His voice, continue to be in the hearing and obeying attitude of heart. The difficulty with some apparently is that their own wills are not fully extinct, dead—that their consecration is not complete; hence while consecrated enough to wish not to disobey the Lord's voice, they have certain ideas of their own respecting what His voice should say, and they prefer to interpret His message in conformity to their own preferences: they will to do more or less their own wills, and will to hear the Lord's voice directing them in accordance with their own wills. This is a most dangerous situation and is generally accompanied by self-conceit and self-assertion and will ultimately lead far from the Christian's goal. Let each of us resolve by the Lord's grace that we will out of an honest heart continually seek to hear the pure Word of God, and that with a desire to obey it as far as we are able. R4092,c2,p3
If any man will do His will, he shall know of the doctrine,
whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself.
John 7:17
This is a message from the Master's own lips. He gives us the key to a clear knowledge of His doctrines, namely, that the student must be fully consecrated to God and fully desirous of knowing His will and His Plan. In order...to see the Truth, from the Divine standpoint of the Divine revelation, we must draw near to God in the spirit of our minds, consecrated in our heart. We must will to do His will....It is to these that the promises of our text apply....Shall we not...determine in our wills to do God's will? If so, following the instructions of the Word of God...we shall doubtless be blessed and enabled fully to know, to appreciate, to understand, the doctrines of Christ—the deep things of God, which are revealed to this class by the Spirit of God. R5137,c2,p3,5,6
If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples
indeed; and ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall
make you free. John 8:31,32
To continue in the doctrine set forth in the inspired writings, to study and meditate upon them, to trust implicitly in them, and faithfully to conform our characters to them, is what is implied in continuing in the Word of the Lord. R3153,c2,p2
Blessed promise!...Dearly beloved, having received this favor from the Lord, shall we not continue in it, giving no heed to seducing doctrines? And shall we not be faithful to it under all circumstances, defending it against every assault, and with it bearing its reproach? Let us prove our appreciation of it by our loyalty and faithfulness to it. R3154,c2,p1
He calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them
out. John 10:3
Some may fail to see the particular interest which the Lord takes in each one who is His. Every true child of God is the Lord's in the particular sense of having entered into a Covenant of Sacrifice. We should always remember this....The Master emphasized His peculiar and personal interest in each of His followers. He calls Himself their Shepherd, and says, "He calleth His own sheep by name, and leadeth them out." This means a very special supervision of the affairs and interests of each one of His true disciples. Whatever may come to these is not a matter of chance or luck. R5711,c2,p3
When He putteth forth His own sheep, He goeth before
them, and the sheep follow Him: for they know His
voice.
And a stranger will they not follow. John 10:4,5
Having come into this Fold of God, we have every reason for confidence in the great Shepherd, and should recognize His constant care over us, His supreme interest in our spiritual welfare. Let us be good sheep! Let us not stray from the Fold, to the right hand or to the left, nor be attracted away from the green pastures and pure waters to go browsing on the thistles and poisonous weeds of some by-path, or to drink of the muddy, polluted waters of human speculation and delusive theories of men....If we are the Lord's true sheep, we shall know His Voice. We shall not make a mistake. The true sheep...will respond quickly to His call; it will watch for His guidance. R5491,c1,p2; c2,p1
My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they
follow me. John 10:27
Many are professing to be the true sheep of the Lord's flock, but in this day of the Shepherd's presence His voice, the Truth, becomes the test. R2673,c1,p1
We now hear various voices calling the sheep in various directions, as never before. This is, in the Lord's providence, for the purpose of separating all others from His own "little flock." His sheep will hear His voice and follow Him—other sheep, consecrated to human leaders, human institutions, human theories, human efforts, will follow their own bents, and thus be separated from the "little flock," and this is now the Lord's good pleasure. R2673,c1,p4
I will come again and receive you unto myself; that
where I am, there ye may be also. John 14:3
What joyful hopes, what exuberant anticipations, cluster around this promise, in the hearts of the Lord's faithful! In a few words it sums up all the good things that God hath in reservation for them that love Him....To the extent that the testimony of God's Word dwells in us rightly, and enables us to recognize the lengths and breadths of Divine love and compassion covering unintentional shortcomings—to this extent the Lord's faithful ones are able to rejoice in this promise, and to look forward with joy not only to the meeting with the Lord, but also to their abiding everlastingly in His presence and companionship. But to all others...to all who are not seeking to walk circumspectly in the footsteps of Jesus, the words of the text come bringing only a measure of joy, a measure of hope, and not an exuberant overflow. R3191,c1,p5,6
He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them,
he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be
loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest
myself to him. John 14:21
Should the child of God, the heir of glory, the inheritor of all the exceeding great and precious promises, and the present companion of Divinity itself which condescends to our low estate, ever feel disconsolate or forsaken or alone? or fear that His love will ever forsake or leave him to be tossed helplessly upon the billows of misfortune at the mercy of the prince of this world who now worketh in the hearts of the children of disobedience? Ah, no! Greater is He that is for us than all they that can be against us. We are not alone in the world; for we have the blessed promise, "I will never leave thee nor forsake thee." (Heb. 13:5) Nor is the smallest interest of ours overlooked. R1906,c2,p2
If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my
Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and
make our abode with him. John 14:23
To grow in grace is to grow in favor with the Lord through an intimate personal acquaintance and fellowship of spirit with Him. It implies, first, a knowledge and recognition on our part of our redemption through His precious blood and a personal faith in and dependence upon all the promises of the Father made to us through Him, and then an intimate communion with Him in our daily life of prayer, and of observation of His will and obedience to it. If such be our constant attitude of mind and heart, there must be a constant ripening of the fruits of the spirit, rendering us more and more pleasing and acceptable to our Lord. A sense of the Divine acceptance and favor is given to us from day to day in increasing measure, in fulfilment of the above precious promise of our Lord. R3215,c1,p6
Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not
as the world giveth, give I unto you.
Let not your heart
be troubled, neither let it be afraid. John 14:27
Thus, with abounding compassion and tenderness, did our Lord, on the last night of His earthly life, bestow upon His beloved disciples His parting blessing, His legacy of peace. It was the richest legacy He had to bequeath, and was one of priceless value. It was the promise of that tranquility of soul, that rest and ease of mind, which He Himself possessed—the peace of God. It was the same peace which the Father Himself has always enjoyed, even in the midst of all the commotion which the permission of evil has brought about; but it was not derived from the same source. In Jehovah this peace was self-centered, because He realized in Himself the omnipotence of power and wisdom; while the peace of Christ was centered, not in Himself, but in God, by faith in His wisdom, power and grace. So also if we would have "the peace of God," the peace of Christ—"my peace"—it must, like His, be centered in God by faith. R1834,c1,p3
Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh
away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it,
that it may bring forth more fruit. John 15:2
The methods of the Lord's prunings should be understood by all the branches, otherwise they may be discouraged and droop and fail to bring forth the proper fruitage. It would appear that the great Husbandman prunes the branches of the Christ sometimes by taking away earthly wealth or property, or sometimes by hindering cherished schemes and plans. Sometimes He prunes us by permitting persecution and the loss of name and fame, and sometimes...by permitting the loss of earthly friendships toward which the tendrils of our hearts extended too strongly....Many others of the Lord's dear people have found some of their most valuable lessons on the bed of affliction....Such prunings, instead of causing discouragements, should be to us, rightly understood, sources of encouragements. We realize...that when we have these special prunings it is an evidence that the Father Himself loveth us and is caring for our best interests. R3545,c1,p3-5
If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall
ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.
John 15:7
If your hearts and energies are thus absorbed in the Father's Plan, you may ask all the desires of your heart—"ye may ask what ye will." I make you this liberal promise, not...that the Father would change His plans to yours and do your will, but you can come so fully into sympathy with the Father and the Plan of the Ages which He is working out, that you will never be dissatisfied, but always able to see your wishes being accomplished, because your will and wish, your pleasure and satisfaction, will be to see God's will and plan progressing in God's own way and time. Thus your every prayer and wish will be accomplished—the very reverse of the experience of those who seek to do their own wills...and pray for their own desires. R1999,c1,last p
As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you:
continue ye in my love. John 15:9
What a wonderful thought this is, that our Master has toward us the same kind of love that the Father has toward Him! Could our faith always grasp this thought and maintain this hold, we should indeed have nothing to wish or to fear—our summer would last all the year. The next thought suggested is that having reached, having attained this high position in the Lord's favor, if we are His disciples and truly appreciate what He has done for us in this respect, we will desire to continue in His love. Next in order come the terms and conditions upon which we may continue in that love, namely, that we keep His commandments. By way of showing us that this is not an unreasonable proposition, our Lord declared that these are the same terms on which the Father deals with Him, namely, "Even as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in His love." We cannot expect to abide in the Lord's love and be careless of His injunctions. R3546,c2,p4,5
Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you.
John 15:16
The world does not like these chosen ones because, confessing their own weaknesses and striving against them, they call them by their proper names—sins, meannesses, filthiness of the flesh and spirit. Every effort made by these to cleanse themselves is a reproof to others who are not striving to cleanse themselves, and who hate to be reminded that the things in which they take their greatest pleasure are greed, selfishness, inordinate affections, strifes, pride, vainglory. Whoever is fully satisfactory to the world may be sure that he is not satisfactory to the Lord. Whoever is satisfactory to the Lord need not expect to be satisfactory to the world; for the fellowship of this world is enmity to God, and therefore, the world is not subject to the Divine standard, neither indeed can be....Its heart is in the other direction. R5737,c2,p5
When the spirit of truth is come, he will guide you
into all truth:...and will show you things to come.
John 16:13
The Apostles at Pentecost received an illumination of the mind which enabled them to understand...the deep things of God....Jesus had this...thought in mind when He declared that there were certain things His disciples could not understand at that time, but would know afterwards, because He would send the Holy Spirit, which would bring all things to their remembrance whatsoever He had spoken; and would show them things to come. This was not only true with the Apostles, but has been true with respect to all the members of the Body of Christ throughout this age....It is to these the Bible has promised, "He will show you things to come." It is these that are to be guided into all Truth as it shall become due. It is for these that the Word of God is a Storehouse, from which "things both new and old" are to be produced under the Spirit's guidance, as they become "meat in due season" to the "household of faith." R5088,c1,p6-8
And ye now therefore have sorrow: but I will see you
again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man
taketh from you. John 16:22
What are our joys which no man taketh from us? and which persecution and affliction and trouble can only deepen and widen and make more sweet? What joy is this? This joy is a foretaste of the blessings to come, an earnest of our inheritance. It is inspired by confidence in Him on whom we have believed: confidence that He is both able and willing to perfect the work which He has begun and which we desire shall be perfected in His own best way: confidence that so long as we are firmly holding to His gracious promises with the arms of our faith, He will not permit us to be separated from Him....Our confidence is that "no one is able to pluck us out of the Father's hand," and that "the Father himself loveth" us, and will not turn us away so long as we desire to abide obediently in His love. R2232,c1,p1
Ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.
John 16:24
Not until we have taken the Lord into our daily life as our living, personal companion and confidential friend and counselor and comforter and guide, as well as our Redeemer and Lord, can we fully learn of Him those precious lessons which give to His disciples a joy which the world can neither give nor take away. May this intimate communion and fellowship with Christ impart to us each more and more of His own spirit, so that the world may take knowledge of us, as they have of others (Acts 4:13), that we have been with Jesus. R1789,center of page
The Father himself loveth you. John 16:27
What would you take, my dear brother, for what that text teaches of the love of God toward us as His children? He has a love for the world. As a God, a Creator, He has the supervision of all His creatures. God has made provision for every creature, even the sparrow. But for all who have come into this loyal attitude of mind, He has love—sympathy, and more, esteem!...I think, and so do you, that God loves us very, very much, or He would never have made such wonderful provisions in the riches of His grace and in His loving kindness toward us who are in Christ Jesus....I believe that daily, weekly, monthly, yearly, as we think upon these things, as we consider, study out and understand the great love of God as expressed in His marvelous plan, we are getting a wonderful realization of how much "the Father himself loveth" us. But we cannot understand it fully. But the very fact that any father would do such wonderful things for any child would imply a great deal of love. R5725,c2,p4,6,7
That the world may know that thou hast sent me, and
hast loved them, as thou hast loved me. John 17:23
In amazement we inquire, How can this be?...But we have been washed and cleansed, and, however imperfect our earthen vessels may still be, our hearts are perfect in His sight who is able to read the heart. And, as He sees us with a perfect heart—a perfect purpose and intention—striving to overcome the weaknesses and disabilities of our imperfect flesh, and with painful, yet determined, effort to do His will, and humbly trusting in the provisions which He has made for our redemption from the fall, God recognizes in us that which is worthy of His love. And so our Lord Jesus gives us clearly to understand that the Father loves us, even as He loved the Son. R3161,c2,p2
For if we have been planted together in the likeness
of His death, we shall be also in the likeness of His
resurrection. Rom. 6:5
Call to mind now what was the likeness of His resurrection. It was an exceeding high exaltation, far above the human nature, "far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named." It was an exaltation even to the Divine nature, of which, says Peter, we also, who follow His steps as He set us an example, may become partakers. (2 Pet. 1:4) To follow in the Lord's steps of humiliation and sacrifice, even unto death, is no light undertaking. It means the giving up of our will for the accomplishment of the Divine will. R1262,c2,p4
Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall
also live with him. Rom. 6:8
The requirements or conditions attached to the invitation to share with Christ the coming glories and dignities, are plainly stated: Such must share His death, be immersed or buried into His death....To be sharers in His death means that as our Redeemer spent His life, not in self gratification (even lawful), but consumed it in the interest of truth and righteousness, in opposing sin and doing the work and executing the plan of the Father, so we must use our time, talents, energies, rights, and privileges. Redeemed by Him and given to us, we not only consecrate these all to the Father's service, but we must use them faithfully even unto death—as He has set us the example—walking in His footsteps as nearly as possible. If thus we be dead with Him, we shall in due time live with Him. R1542,c2,p3
The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that
we are the children of God. Rom. 8:16
To be numbered among the children of God is a great privilege; but it means much more than many seem to understand—much more both on their part and on God's part....On God's part it signifies the fulfilment of all His gracious promises to such through Christ....It signifies that in the present life we have His fatherly love, care, discipline, counsel, teaching, protection and encouragement, to the end; and that afterwards we shall be received into His glorious presence, and into everlasting rest, joy and peace. Oh, how blessed to be the people of God! Even in the present life the reward of His favor is beyond computation. R1787,c2,last p; R1788,c1,p1
And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs
with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that
we may be also glorified together. Rom. 8:17
The Christian has set before him the most noble ambition possible. God is calling from the world a people for His name. Before these He sets the loftiest ambition. These are invited to become joint-heirs with Jesus Christ our Lord. This is an ambition which inspires them to develop all the higher qualities of mind and character, in order to prepare themselves for the society, friendship and fellowship of the Heavenly Father and the Lord. Let us have this high ambition ever before us, as an incentive to the most earnest endeavor to heed the Word of the Lord....The Bride is to make herself ready. (Rev. 19:7.) So these should seek to get ready themselves and to help others of the dear family of God. R5185,c1,p3,5
For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time
are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall
be revealed in us. Rom. 8:18
The world has often wondered at the calmness of the Lord's humble little ones under circumstances which would cause the stoutest heart to quail. But to follow the course in life which will glorify our God and magnify His grace, to be able to meet wisely and courageously the trials and difficulties as they come to us as Christians, representatives of the King of heaven, and to meet them in the spirit of rejoicing, counting our tribulations all joy, it is necessary that our hearts be in attune with the Lord, that we have no will but His, and that the fear of man, which bringeth a snare, shall be overcome. We cannot accomplish this in our own strength, but in the strength of God alone. R5540,c2,p4
And we know that all things work together for good
to them that love God, to them who are the called according
to His purpose. Rom. 8:28
We have the guarantee from the Lord that "all things shall work together for good to those that love God," who put their trust in Him. Whatever would not be a blessing to us will not be permitted. R5546,c2,p6
The well-instructed soul has learned that the good here referred to is not always, nor very often, earthly good—temporal advantage: they that love God...know that the "all things" include chiefly the trials and disappointments and perplexities and difficulties and temptations of the narrow way, in which they have consecrated themselves to walk; and that the "good" which will be worked out, will be in the chiseled and polished characters, likenesses to the character of Christ, which through faithfulness unto the end will be perfected in the Divine honor and glory. R2241,c2,p5
If God be for us, who can be against us? Rom. 8:31
Each one of these (the "saints") may say to himself, and realize to the very bottom of his heart as applicable to himself, these wonderful words—God is for us. He may endeavor to grasp the significance of these words, but he will surely fail to get all of their wonderful meaning. It is not possible for the human mind to grasp the riches of Divine grace and love and power. We cannot comprehend them, we can merely apprehend them. If God be for us, with all of His infinite wisdom and power, it implies also that Christ is for us, for He is one with the Father; it implies also that all the angels, cherubim and seraphim, and all the heavenly powers of our knowledge and beyond our knowledge are for us—all enlisted upon our side, to do us good, to help us, to succor us in time of need, to uphold us in time of temptation, to strengthen us to do the Father's will....The fact that God is "for us" and that He is making all things work together for good...is the central thought, the essence, the strength of this message to "us." R4214,c1,p9; c2,p1
For all things are yours; and ye are Christ's; and
Christ is God's. 1 Cor. 3:21,23
These have more enjoyment of the earth now than have others; while others are grasping these are enjoying. As the Apostle declares, "God hath given us all things richly to enjoy." (1 Tim. 6:17.) Freed from the grasping spirit, we can pass through the streets and observe the rich displays of the shop windows without covetousness, without wishing that we had the various works of art and beauty under our special care and control. We can feast our eyes upon them and be without the care of them at a time when all of our talents are consecrated to the Lord and His service, and when we have more important things to do than caring for earthly trinkets called works of art. R3734,c2,p4
God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted
above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also
make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.
1 Cor. 10:13
Our Lord's words respecting the temptations and trials of the Church assure us that this class shall have nothing to fear, that they will be kept, that it will not be possible for them to be tempted, for with every temptation the Lord will provide a way of escape....What we do desire is that each consecrated child of God may see the way of escape which God has provided and may use the same, and thus be in line with the Lord's provision and amongst those shielded ones, the very elect—"called, chosen, faithful."...We believe that many of our readers will agree with us that the Lord's special provision for keeping us from the power of the Evil One is the Present Truth, which He has supplied largely through the Watch Tower publications. R4253,c1,p2,3
We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we
are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not
forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed; always bearing
about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the
life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body.
2 Cor. 4:8-10
And so we are not to allow the troubles of life to distress us as they distress other people. We have something that others do not have—the Lord's assurance that everything in our lives shall be a bearer of blessing to us if we are faithful. This enables us to rejoice in tribulation, if we really believe this promise of our Father's Word....Those who are engaged in the work of the Lord have some perplexity. But the anxiety or uncertainty of the Lord's people should never go to the length of despair. Those who are of the world, getting out of work and being in various difficulties, become very despondent. Frequently we hear of suicides. Things look very dark to people who take their own life. It may yet be true of the Lord's people that things will look very dark; but they are not in despair, whatever may come; for the Lord has said that He will never leave us nor forsake us. This gracious promise should give us a hope sure and steadfast. Our anchor of hope should hold. R5670,c2,p6; R5671,c1,p2,3
For our light affliction, which is but for a moment,
worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight
of glory. 2 Cor. 4:17
While an exceeding and eternal weight of glory is to be the inheritance of all of the elect body of Christ who are now laying up treasure in Heaven, the Apostle clearly intimates here that that treasure may be augmented by special zeal and faithfulness under the peculiar trials of the present time. R1821,c1,p3
When we remember that the closer we come to Him in the present trials and experiences and sufferings...the closer we will be to Him in the future, it explains to us the meaning of the Apostle's words when speaking of his severe trials—(in our text above). R3362,c2,p5
For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle
were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house
not made with hands, eternal in the Heavens. 2 Cor. 5:1
Our position...is very different from that of the world, who have no particular hope. The world have no solid anchor, no precious promises to hold them fast. We know that if the worst comes to the worst, if we should even die of starvation, our hope lies beyond the veil. Therefore God's saints of today look upon death as the gateway by which to enter into fulness of life, into a realization of all our hopes and joys. R5671,c1,p3
And I will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be My
sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty. 2 Cor. 6:18
What a promise! What a suggestion!—that we, by nature defiled and imperfect, should not only have the notice of our sovereign Creator, but should be invited to become His children and be given the assurance of His parental affection for us—that "like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that reverence Him." How wonderful it seems! And then, as the Apostle elsewhere declares, this is not the end of the matter, but merely the beginning, for He says, "If children, then heirs, heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ, if so be that we suffer with Him, that we may be also glorified together." R5739,c2,p2
God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that
ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound
to every good work. 2 Cor. 9:8
To be appreciated of the Lord, the gift must be a thank-offering, prompted by a realization of our debt of everlasting gratitude to Him from whom cometh every good and every perfect gift. And to such, the Apostle assures us, "God is able to make all things abound." Whoever gives anything in the Divine service—time, talent, strength, money or influence—will find himself proportionately abounding in the different graces; for such are in the right attitude of heart to grow in grace. The Apostle seems to imply that such will have "sufficiency in all things," as well as be able to "abound in every good work." Sufficiency may not mean luxury and every comfort; but "all sufficiency" is gained always where there is "godliness with contentment." R5927,c2,p2,3
My grace is sufficient for thee: for My strength is
made perfect in weakness. 2 Cor. 12:9
How often would this good counsel of the Lord, if remembered, bring a blessing and a relief from the attacks of the adversary who fain would make us believe that our unavoidable weaknesses and imperfections are proofs that we are not the Lord's. With this counsel before us, what a strength we should have in combating the besetments of the world, the flesh and the devil. How it should lead us in the moment of temptation to lift up our hearts in prayer to the Lord for "grace to help in time of need." The Lord wishes us to learn the lesson of our own weakness and imperfection and to learn to go to Him for strength and succor—not before we need it, but "in time of need," in every time of trouble. R2241,c2,p2
And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and
heirs according to the promise. Gal. 3:29
To "be Christ's," therefore, evidently means a great deal more than faith, respectability and good endorsement. It means to belong to Christ;—to be His, body, soul and spirit;—to be His today and forever; His servant, to do His will in His way and at His time; when convenient and pleasurable, and when inconvenient, painful and difficult. It means furthermore, that we cannot belong to anyone else in this complete sense, for no man can serve two masters. Here comes in a difficulty for those who belong to secret or other societies. The laws, professions and customs of these are almost certain to conflict with or infringe upon a full consecration to Christ. R1697,c1,p1
For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus
unto good works. Eph. 2:10
The bringing together of these living stones beyond the veil will be by the resurrection power, beautifully illustrated in the erection of Solomon's Temple, of which we read that its stones were prepared at the quarry and then finally assembled for the construction of the Temple, and that they were so perfectly shaped and marked for their various places that they came together without the sound of a hammer—without...chiseling or...other labor upon them at the time of the construction. So St. Paul says, the Church is God's workmanship. And His work will be so perfectly accomplished that there will be no need of rectification or alteration beyond the veil. It is this viewpoint that is especially interesting and profitable to the Lord's people. Such of them as can realize that they have been called of God to this high calling, to membership in the temple, can fully appreciate thereafter the necessity for the trials and difficulties of life which are shaping them, fitting them, for heavenly glory, honor and immortality. R5713,c2,p6,7
Being confident of this very thing, that He which hath
begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of
Jesus Christ. Phil. 1:6
Let us not forget that the work is the Lord's, in the sense that His strength supplied to us is vouchsafed to accomplish it, and that He who has begun the good work in us is able to complete it; and He will do so, if we let Him; i.e., if we follow His leading, doing His will. R2124,c1,p1
But how few Christians comparatively, have this full assurance of faith....The few who can enter fully into sympathy with the Apostle...(here) have therein a great joy, a great blessing, a great rest of heart which others do not possess. R2642,c1,p4
For it is God which worketh in you both to will and
to do of His good pleasure. Phil. 2:13
He works in us, to will and to do, through these exceeding great and precious promises and the glorious prospects and rewards that attach to them; but the amount that He will work in us and the results that will be worked out through these promises, depend upon us. ...We could neglect the word of His promise, neglect the various means of grace which He provides for our strengthening, establishing and upbuilding in the knowledge and grace of the truth. And thus neglecting His provisions we would proportionately fail to abide in His love—fail to obtain the promised favors. The Apostle intimates this, saying:—"Keep yourselves in the love of God." Jude 21. R3021,c2,p2
And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding,
shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Phil. 4:7
In this text the Apostle differentiates between the mind and the heart. The heart represents the affections. The Apostle urges not only that we should have good feelings in the matter, but that our minds should be at rest....The text does not refer to our own peace, but to the peace of God, the peace which comes to us through a realization of God's power, of His goodness and willingness to hold us by His right hand as His children. This peace stands guard continually, as a sentinel, to challenge every hostile or worrying thought or fear. It so keeps the Christian's mind that he at heart has peace with the Lord, fellowship, communion; and it guards his mind also, his reasoning faculties, instructing him and assuring him respecting the Divine power, wisdom and love. R4898,c1,p3,4
Those things, which ye have both learned, and received,
and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of
peace shall be with you. Phil. 4:9
How many (how few!) can say what the apostle says in this verse?...This should be the standard of every Christian, because they each and all are representatives of the Lord, ambassadors for Him; hence, so far as in them lieth, their conduct and words should be such as would be living epistles, read by the brethren, and by the world to profit. No wonder the Apostle adds that, doing thus, "the God of peace shall be with you." So surely as He was with the Apostle He will be with all others similarly walking in the footsteps of Jesus. R3129,c2,p1
I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth
me. Phil. 4:13
Not self-confidence, not self-reliance is the most desirable, but rather confidence in God and reliance upon His promised "grace to help in every time of need." This maintains the desirable humility and meekness, yet gives the courage and force suggested by the Apostle's words: "I can do all things through Christ, which strengtheneth me." As St. Paul again declares, "Our sufficiency is of God!" Thus inspired by faith in God and in His promises those "taught of God" become marvelously "strong in the Lord and in the power of His might." (Eph. 6:10) The righteous is strong as a lion, saying, "I will not fear what man may do unto me." I will not heed what man may say of me or do to me. So long as I have the Almighty Creator for my Father and the Redeemer for my elder Brother I shall be content, relying on their "exceeding great and precious promises." R5113,c2,p5,6
My God shall supply all your need according to His
riches in glory by Christ Jesus. Phil. 4:19
What a glorious promise that is which Paul records in his letter to the...Philippians....That is a Divine promise, made to be kept. I can put that away where I put my U.S. bonds, with a comfortable certainty of no defalcation. This passage is one of the "Government Securities" of heaven. It is my God who issued the promise; my own personal Father. He does not bind Himself to give me all I may lust after; not even all I may pray for. Many of my wants are purely artificial, and born of selfishness. I may crave wealth, and He may see that my soul would be richer if I were poor. I may ask for some promotion, and He may know that my way to holiness lies through a valley of humiliation and disappointment. So He only agrees to give me what I need, which is a very different thing from what I may be craving. (By T. L. Cuyler) R572,c1,p7
Ye are complete in Him. Col. 2:10
A cipher alone has no value, but it is a power indeed, when it follows one; and so it is with us when we follow Christ—His merit gives us association and cooperation with Him; gives us weight and influence and power for God and His cause. "Ye are complete in Him;" "accepted in the Beloved." R3149,top
When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall
ye also appear with Him in glory. Col. 3:4
God has a special pleasure in those who delight to do His will, and who do not need to be whipped into an appreciation of right and wrong. These He calls "overcomers." These have the likeness of the Lord...and are accounted worthy to be with Him where he is and to share His honor, glory, Kingdom and power. It is not because the "little flock" of "overcomers" suffer more than the great company of tribulation saints that they are to get the prize, but simply because they suffer gladly, willingly, self-sacrificingly. R1669,c1,p7,8
Faithful is He that calleth you, who also will do it.
1 Thes. 5:24
It is our Father's good pleasure to give the Holy Spirit to those who ask, and to make all things work together for their good, and to bring them under the leading of the great Chief Shepherd and ultimately to the Kingdom. In other words, "He is faithful who has called us, who will also do it"—He will do all He has promised to do, exceedingly more abundantly than we could have asked of Him or expected. The whole matter is with us: if our consecration is based upon faith in the redemptive work of our Lord, if it is a full and complete consecration, and if we live it out day by day, the results will be all and more than we ever expected. R3659,c2,last p
But the Lord is faithful, who shall stablish you, and
keep you from evil. 2 Thes. 3:3
The prophet Daniel says that particularly in this time of the end, "many shall be purified and made white and tried;" and Malachi compares the trials of this time to the "refiner's fire" and to "fuller's soap," which are designed to refine and purify the Lord's people. The Apostle Paul urges that we fight the good fight of faith and patiently endure afflictions to the end. And many are the words of consolation and blessed comfort offered by the Psalmist and others (one above) to the tempest-tossed and suffering people of God.—See Psa. 77:1-14; 116:1-14; 34:19; 31:24; 2 Thes. 3:3. R1823,c2,p1
For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of
power, and of love, and of a sound mind. 2 Tim. 1:7
The spirit of fear in a Christian is the spirit of doubt, and marks a lack of faith, a lack of the Holy Spirit. The spirit of fear is a fruitful source of evil in spiritual matters, in every feature of the Christian growth, individually and as a Church; and it is also closely identified with physical weakness and disabilities. The child of God who is filled with the Holy Spirit is a giant in comparison with his own natural self; because his fears are quelled, his heart is established, his faith is rooted and grounded, and his soul is anchored sure and steadfast, within the veil. Thus he is held from being driven onto the rocks of disaster, when the stormy winds of trouble prevail. The Holy Spirit is thus a power to those who possess it, which has often caused amazement to their enemies. E249
It is a faithful saying: for if we be dead with Him, we
shall also live with Him: if we suffer, we shall also reign
with Him; if we deny Him, He also will deny us.
2 Tim. 2:11,12
Others interpret the trials of life as evidences of Divine disfavor, and fail to realize that they are designed of the Lord to shape and polish our characters and thus to work out for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. Because of their misunderstanding they are profited little by many of life's experiences through which they are called to pass—they feel the rod, but not discerning the loving purpose behind it, they fail to learn the lesson intended....It is not enough that we have tasted of the brook of experiences, that we have learned something of obedience...endured some trials, that on some occasions we have learned obedience through the things we have suffered; we must continue drinking until we can gladly say—Father, Thy will, not ours be done! R2936,c1,p4,2
The Lord knoweth them that are His. 2 Tim. 2:19
He is looking for those who humble themselves, and who are glad to have His truth at any cost, and whose hearts, long famished, hunger and thirst for the truth, and who know the Shepherd's voice, and who find in His message that which "satisfies their longings as nothing else could do." These will gladly accept the armament and by becoming faithful students will make it their own—will put it on. These will be kept while others will fall at their side. R4439,c1,p1
Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall
suffer persecution. 2 Tim. 3:12
This is the promise, the assurance of Scripture. We should not court persecution, but should desire this evidence of our faithfulness, and should wish to be one of the "blessed" ones, of whom the Master speaks in Matt. 5:11—"Blessed are ye when men shall revile you and persecute you." R5544,c1,p7
Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to
minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?
Heb. 1:14
It is important that every Christian should have the eyes of his understanding opened, that he may see by faith that which was shown to Elisha and his servant literally. During this Gospel age the Lord does not open our natural eyes to see the wonderful provisions He has made for us, and His power for our protection; but instead He gives us a still better knowledge of the subject through His Word of grace and truth, so that we are enabled to walk by faith and not by sight; to see the armies of the Lord encamped around about us and to recognize their protection of us, without any miracle being performed upon our natural sight. None of us are sufficiently strong to pass through the fight of Christian warfare without just such assistances as these which the Lord has provided, and which faith beholds, accepts, lays hold of, rests upon and is strengthened by. R2350,c1,p1
For we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the
beginning of our confidence steadfast unto the end.
Heb. 3:14
The spirit of discontent looks away from the heavenly manna of Divine provision, longing for other food of their own provision or of other earthly supply. The Lord grants such an opportunity of feasting to the full on what they are desiring....The Bible supplies the Manna of Divine Truth. The truth needs to be gathered, ground and baked, but it is God's provision. It is wholesome and nutritious, it is the very thing that we, as the people of God, need for our strengthening and perfecting. Yet some crave the flesh pots of Egypt—the world's theories. Then He allows these to come within their reach. They fill themselves with Higher Criticism and Evolutionary theories, and as a result perish as New Creatures, cease to be the people of God, cease to walk in the Master's footsteps. They are consumed by the fire, or fever, which the errors they crave produce. R5306,c2,bottom; R5307,c1,p1
Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace,
that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time
of need. Heb. 4:16
But to have this help in time of need we must invoke it. Every day and every hour is indeed a time of need; hence our necessity of living in an atmosphere of prayer—to pray without ceasing. R1802,top
Those who are the Lord's true people feel so aggrieved at their failures that they are promptly led to the throne of grace that they may obtain mercy and find grace to help in future time of need, but others take their failures lightly and fail to profit by them accordingly....The sentiment of the consecrated is well expressed by the poet, who says: "Oh, may no earth-born cloud arise
To hide Thee from Thy servant's eyes!"
R3407,c1,top; p1
Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both
sure and steadfast, and which entereth into that within
the veil. Heb. 6:19
The spiritual-minded New Creature in the "Holy" by faith looks forward through the rent "Veil" into the "Most Holy," catching glimpses of the glory, and immortality beyond the flesh; which hope is an anchor to the soul, sure and steadfast, entering into that which is beyond the veil. T21,p2
Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without
wavering; for He is faithful that promised. Heb. 10:23
The Apostle's argument is that we should hold fast the faith which began our Christian life and which is also to be the finisher of our Christian life. The Lord is able to carry us through and He will do it, if we do our part. But the terms on which the Lord has received us are that we purpose to abide faithful. Hence everything depends on our holding fast to this faith which we have professed, without wavering, without harboring any doubts and fears; and the basis of our faith in our ultimate triumph is the assurance that "He is faithful that promised." We know that in the Bible there are "exceeding great and precious promises" for us....If therefore we hold fast to our faith, we may obtain all that God has promised us. He will be faithful; He will not disregard His promises; He will do all that He has said. R5698,c1,p5
Cast not away therefore your confidence which hath
great recompense of reward. Heb. 10:35
Do hosts of foes oppose themselves—place obstacles in your way, hinder your influence and seek to dishearten you by heaping upon you reproaches, and do circumstances seem to conspire against you to fill your heart with alarm and dread? Say to your soul, "Fear not," "hope thou in God," and mark His loving providences as—"Through waves and clouds and storms, He gently clears thy way"—until a blessed acquaintance with God through such experiences develops in the heart that perfect love that casteth out fear. Then shall you enter more and more fully into the blessed rest of faith, and like the eagle that soars above the storm cloud, live at such an altitude of Christian experience as to enable you to rejoice in the Lord always and in everything to give thanks. R1906,c1,p3
For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done
the will of God, ye might receive the promise. Heb. 10:36
What is the will of God? Stated in concrete form, "This is the will of God (concerning you), even your sanctification" (1 Thes. 4:3)....We are doing the will of God when we fully consecrate ourselves to Him....But He wills to put us to the test. How much do we love God? How sincere are we?...So we are tested as to our loyalty. What are we willing to endure for Christ's sake? How fully are we submitted? How deep does our submission go? Are we wholly in harmony with the will of the Lord? Is our interest merely superficial, or does it enter fully into our hearts? The question is not merely, Shall we make the consecration?—but after the Christian has taken all these preliminary steps, to what extent will he manifest patient endurance and obedience and loyalty? God puts us to these tests because He has great honors to bestow on those who will be overcomers. They are to be a select company, and these will receive the promise. R5332,c1,p5-7; c2,p3
For whom the Lord loveth He chasteneth, and scourgeth
every son whom He receiveth.
If ye endure chastening,
God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is
he whom the Father chasteneth not?
Now no chastening
for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous:
nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of
righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.
Heb. 12:6,7,11
He explains that such discipline is not prompted by anger...but by His love, and if we are rightly exercised by the disciplines, trials, experiences of life, they will "work out for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;"—they will work out in us such characters as the Lord will be able to use in the service to which He has called us....The proper response of all who have the true spirit of sonship is expressed in the language of our Lord and Master, "Not my will but thine be done," O Lord; "I delight to do Thy will, O my God; yea thy law is within my heart." Such as thus respond to the chastisement of the Lord, step more and more into Divine favor, and hear other words of comfort, of grace, of help. R3059,c2,p2
He hath said, I will never leave thee nor forsake thee.
Heb. 13:5
Our highest interests...are matters of our Father's constant care. If we keep very near to the Lord, we are protected from the power of the fallen angels. ...Only a lack of faithfulness would subject us to their power to any extent so far as our New Creature interests are concerned. They can neither harm our bodies in any way nor cause any violence to us, unless the Lord permits it for our highest good—perhaps for our deliverance and exaltation, as in the case of our Master....When...Pilate...said to our Lord on the night of His arrest and trial, "Knowest thou that I have the power to crucify thee, and have power to release thee?" Jesus answered: "Thou couldest have no power at all against me, except it were given thee from above." So it is with all the footstep followers of the Master. God's grace will be sufficient. Man is powerless to harm a hair of our heads, unless it is permitted of our Father in heaven for His glory and our own highest welfare. R5540,c1,p2; c2,p3
So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and
I will not fear what man shall do unto me. Heb. 13:6
The Christian's position in the world is a peculiar one. None others can afford to be so courageous and independent as he. Yet the true child of God is not self-sufficient nor independent of any outside help. He is exhorted in the Word of the Lord to be not boastful, but humble-minded, realizing his powerlessness of himself and his need of God. Indeed, unless he is humble-minded he cannot be pleasing to the Lord. But at the same time he is to be full of courage and confidence. No power in the universe is able to cope with our God; and He has declared that He is the support and shield of His children. He is the strong tower of those who put their trust in Him. R5539,c1,p6
If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that
giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it
shall be given him.
But let him ask in faith, nothing
wavering. Jas. 1:5,6
The thing acceptable in the Divine sight is humility of spirit. Such a disposition is essential to those who would receive the wisdom which cometh from above—they must have a humble appreciation of their own deficiencies and lack of wisdom, else they cannot receive freely, heartily, the wisdom which God is pleased to grant in the present time, only to those who are in the attitude of heart to receive it. And it will be seen also that this humility of mind is essential as a basis for the spirit of a sound mind—for who is in a proper condition to think justly, reasonably, impartially, except first of all he have a humble disposition? Hence we must agree that humility is a primary element in the disposition or mind of Christ. R2585,c2,p3
Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when
he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the
Lord hath promised to them that love Him. Jas. 1:12
As the Apostle says, these "fiery trials must try you." It is a matter of must, of necessity, as respects all who would be graduated from the present school of Christ to a share in His glorious Kingdom—that they must pass the examination. Ah, if we could but keep this thought before us continually, how it would serve us to will and to do the Lord's good pleasure—enduring faithfully and cheerfully whatever our loving Master sees best to permit, knowing that thus He is working out for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. From this standpoint "How light our trials then will seem! How short our pilgrim way!" R2793,c2,p3,4
God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the
humble. Jas. 4:6
The heavenly Father has deeper love for those who are humble. This is the reason why we should humble ourselves. Since we find that "God resisteth the proud," and that humility is one of the basic principles of a properly crystallized character, we should more and more seek to develop this grace and attain to the attitude in which God can give us the greatest blessing. R5843,c2,p1
Only the humble-minded are prepared to learn the greatest lessons which must be learned before they will be ready for exaltation that would be profitable to themselves or to others....Jesus on the contrary, has illustrated to us the proper course which leads to glory, honor and immortality; namely, the course of full self-abasement and of full submission to whatever may be the Divine will. R5847,c2,p3,4
Draw nigh to God, and He will draw nigh to you.
Jas. 4:8
Let us cultivate the Lord's acquaintance more, drawing near to Him in prayer, in the study of His precious Word, in meditation upon all His goodness, His providential care, the marked manifestations of His grace in our own individual experiences, and His precious promises which are all yea and amen in Christ Jesus. Thus "draw nigh to God, and He will draw nigh to you." He will manifest Himself to you and take up His abode with you. R1949,c2,p2
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus
Christ, which according to His abundant mercy hath begotten
us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of
Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible,
and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in
heaven for you. 1 Pet. 1:3,4
Can mortal man conceive so marvelous a glory? The very thought of such a Calling should cause us to bow our hearts in the dust before our God, realizing our great unworthiness of such stupendous grace—of bliss so transcendent! What can we render unto the Lord that can fittingly demonstrate our gratitude, our thankfulness, for so unspeakable a favor? Surely, the most faithful service we can give is but a very feeble return to Him who has so loved us, so blessed us, so honored us! R5855,c1,p2
Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto
salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
1 Pet. 1:5
The power of God (His Word and Providences). R3282,c1,top
Kept by the power of God (His exceeding great and precious promises and providences upon which we lay hold). R1007,c1,p2
When we are in difficulty, we are to look up in confidence and trust to the Lord. Our Heavenly Father wishes us to exercise faith in Him. St. Peter tells us that we are "kept by the power of God, through faith unto salvation." Therefore we greatly rejoice, even "though now for a season we are in heaviness through manifold trials" and temptations. "The trial of your faith is much more precious than that of gold that perisheth." R5403,c1,p4
For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and
His ears are open to their prayers. 1 Pet. 3:12
We cannot come too often to the throne of the Heavenly grace, if we are those who can claim the abiding presence of the Father and the Son—if we love Him and keep His commandments....Let no child of God hesitate to come to Him often or to tarry long in communion and fellowship with him....In coming to God we need have no fear that He is too busy with other matters of greater importance, or that He is weary of our coming to Him repeatedly with things of small importance. R1865,c1,p5,7; c2,p1
Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial
which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened
unto you: but rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers
of Christ's sufferings; that when His glory shall be revealed,
ye may be glad also with exceeding joy. 1 Pet. 4:12,13
We are forewarned to think not strange of the fiery trial that shall surely try us if we are indeed the sons of God and soldiers of Christ....These things should be expected and carefully prepared for by the Christian soldier. Peter intimates that the power by which we are to resist the adversary is the power of faith—"whom resist, steadfast in the faith." And John expresses the same thought—"That is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith." (1 John 5:4.)...Faith must grasp the exceeding great and precious promises of God and appreciate their value. Faith must lay hold also upon the power of God and find the grace to help in every time of need. R1859,c2,p5,6
Casting all your care upon Him; for He careth for
you. 1 Pet. 5:7
These experiences the Lord permits for the very purpose of leading His people to cast their care upon Him, of bringing them closer to Himself, of teaching them patient endurance, of showing them more fully their need of Him, their utter helplessness and wretchedness without Him....Anxieties...that would rob us of our peace in the Lord—should be dropped, not carelessly, however, but intelligently, with the thought that Jesus, our great Burden-bearer, has invited us, yea, urged us, to cast all our care—all that would disturb our peace—upon Him. He will make our burden light and ease our tribulations. This is a test of faith, and cannot be attained otherwise than through faith in His love, faith in His promises. R5509,c1,p2,3
Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and
precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers
of the Divine nature. 2 Pet. 1:4
By these—by obedience to them....Oh, how wonderful that the great Creator should condescend not only to redeem sinners but to urge, to entice them to receive His bounties and blessings! R3059,c1,p4
The exceeding great and precious promises are unfolded to us gradually, as we prove faithful and go on, in order that by these—by the strength and courage which they infuse—we may be enabled so to run as to obtain the prize. C220,p2
Giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue;...
for if these things be in you and abound, they make you
that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the
knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Pet. 1:5,8
He urges that, in addition to our faith in the...precious promises which inspire zeal and give us renewed courage, we should give all diligence to add to our faith virtue, knowledge, etc. Then he adds, "For if ye do these things, ye shall never fall." The steady persistent cultivation of these graces of character will also clarify our spiritual vision, enabling us the more fully to comprehend the Truth of God, and thus, "by the armor of righteousness on the right hand and on the left," we shall be able to "withstand all the fiery darts of the Adversary" and to win the victory of faith and make our calling and election sure. R1859,c2,p7,8
Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make
your calling and election sure; for if ye do these things
ye shall never fall.
For so an entrance shall be ministered
unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom
of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. 2 Pet. 1:10,11
We may rest assured that none who are fit for the kingdom will be sifted out. Of such it is written, "No man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand;" and again, "If ye do these things (hearken to the voice of the Lord and cultivate His spirit and walk in His ways), ye shall never fall (for so doing), and an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord." R2257,c2,top
If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive
us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1 John 1:9
These things are written not to cultivate in us the thought that we may be overtaken with faults through carelessness...and then go to the Lord for forgiveness. Quite the contrary, these assurances of Divine favor and willingness to forgive are designed to have upon our hearts a mellowing influence which will make us all the more careful to avoid sin....We may keep so closely in touch with the Lord in the spirit of our minds that we may have continual fellowship with Him: and by confessing our faults and seeking His forgiveness we may continue to the end of our journey clean from sin, even though we must still acknowledge the imperfections of the flesh. R2235,c2,p5; R2236,c2,p2
But whoso keepeth His Word, in him verily is the love
of God perfected. 1 John 2:5
Having found the Word of God, we should keep it, in the sense of reverencing it and obeying it. We should strive to regulate our lives and all of our doings by that Word. Whoso keepeth God's Word will as a result find that God's love is perfected in him....We believe it is possible for us to have this perfect love of God. If it were perfect works of the flesh that were required, we might doubt our ability to have perfection. But since it is a matter of the heart, it is possible for us to attain it; for we can be pure in heart....To have, then, this love of God perfected in us, would seem to indicate that we would have the very highest ideal—that we love as God loves. R5276,c2,p3,5,6
Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed
upon us, that we should be called the sons of God; therefore
the world knoweth us not, because it knew Him not.
1 John 3:1
If you give diligence to the Word of God, and receive its truths into a good, honest, consecrated heart, it will beget in you such a love for God and His plan, and such a desire to tell the good tidings, to preach the Gospel, that it will become the all-absorbing theme of life thereafter; and this will not only separate you from the world and from many nominal Christians, in spirit, but it will lead to separation from such entirely. They will think you peculiar and separate you from their company, and you will be despised and counted a fool for Christ's sake; because they know us not, even as they knew not the Lord. A347,p1
But we know that, when He shall appear, we shall be
like Him; for we shall see Him as He is.
And every man
that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as He is
pure. 1 John 3:2,3
We know of no point of truth which has greater purifying influence than this one referred to in our text—"that blessed hope"—the appearing of our glorious Lord. This hope purifieth. "He who hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as He is pure." 1 John 3:3....None but the pure in heart can honestly and truly entertain this hope....Let us dear brethren keep well before our minds the Master's promised return, and now in the time of His "parousia" (invisible presence) let it have its full weight and influence upon our every word and act; yea upon our very thoughts. Let the hope that we shall soon experience our resurrection change and be made like our dear Redeemer and see Him as He is...energize our hearts, loose our lips and strengthen us for every duty, privilege and opportunity—to serve our Master and the household of faith. R3193,c2,p1,2,4
Greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the
world. 1 John 4:4
The Lord of hosts is with us. His promises, as well as His providences, are walls of salvation and protection on every hand. What shall separate us from the love of God in Christ? Shall tribulation? No! it shall but cause us to draw closer to Him; and under His protecting care we shall rest. His grace is sufficient for us. His strength is made manifest in our weakness. When we feel weak in ourselves, then we are strong in Him. He will never leave us nor forsake us. R1653,c2,p5
If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and His
love is perfected in us. 1 John 4:12
As we learn to love one another the love of God is being perfected in us, the true, benevolent love which the Lord commands. The Lord said that we should love one another as He loved us—to the extent of being willing to lay down our lives for one another. We are not to love some of the brethren some of the time, and some of the brethren all of the time; but we should love all the brethren all of the time; and overlook their frailties and imperfections, taking that high standpoint from which God views them, forgiving one another, as God, for Christ's sake, overlooks our blemishes. We ought to forgive those who trespass against us as we hope and trust that God will forgive our trespasses. No one can be of the "elect" class unless this love be perfected in Him. R4849,c2,p5
This is the victory that overcometh the world, even
our faith. 1 John 5:4
The degree of our success in this conflict (against sin) will depend largely upon the keenness of our faith and trust in the great Teacher. If we feel confident in His wisdom, we will follow closely His instructions and keep our hearts (minds) with all diligence. Faith in the Lord's wisdom and help in every time of need is necessary to us in order that we may be thoroughly obedient to Him; and hence it is written, "This is the victory that overcometh the world, even your faith;" i.e., it will be by the exercise of faith and the obedience which flows therefrom that we will be enabled to "come off conquerors and more than conquerors through Him that loved us and gave Himself for us." R2249,c2,p1
He that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that
wicked one toucheth him not. 1 John 5:18
If they keep their hearts, "that Wicked One toucheth them not," will not injure them, will not harm them. His besetments may serve to test, may be permitted of God to work out for them, "a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;" but the Adversary can do them no harm, because they belong to God, and He is pledged to defend in the highest sense the best interests of all those who have given their hearts to Him in full consecration. R4660,c2,p3
Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a
crown of life. Rev. 2:10
It is not enough to make a good consecration; it is not enough that for a time we fight a good fight. No, indeed! God is not accepting to the Kingdom those who once were faithful. He desires to have those who were once faithful, who were afterwards faithful, who are always faithful! He desires to have in the Kingdom class those whom He can trust implicitly, those to whom He can safely give the glory, honor and immortality that He has promised to the faithful. And before they receive this high reward and exaltation, they must be thoroughly tested and proven. R5594,c2,p3
He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second
death. Rev. 2:11
The human mind staggers in its endeavor to comprehend such a height of glory; yet those whose hearts are deeply in love with the Lord can appreciate the exceeding favor of the invitation to be the beloved Bride of Christ, to be made like Him and to be in His glorious presence forever. Amazing grace! and the wonder grows when we reflect upon the high exaltation of Christ, even beyond the glory which He had with the Father before the world was—a glory of person which is "the express image of the Father's person," a glory of wealth which places the whole universe at His feet as "the Heir of all things," a glory of power, of "all power in Heaven and on earth," a glory of office, too, which is second only to that of Jehovah, the great Emperor of the Universe (1 Cor. 15:27,28), and a glory of character which shines with all the luster of unsullied purity. R1262,c1,p6
To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden
manna, and I will give him a white stone, and in the
stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving
he that receiveth it. Rev. 2:17
The White stone signifies a precious token of the Lord's love, and the new name written in the stone suggests the Bridegroom's name. The statement indicates a special acquaintance with the great King of kings, secret between Himself and the individual. The overcomers are not to be recognized merely as a class—the Bride class—but each will have the personal favor of the Lord. Of this no one will know save himself and the King. There is an individual and personal friendship between the Lord and the overcomers, who may be said to receive the mark of identification—the antitypical white stone—now, in this life. This mark is the sealing of the Holy Spirit by which the Lord identifies the overcomers....The full seal of the Holy Spirit will be given in the Resurrection....Then we shall have complete knowledge of the name by which we shall be known to the Lord and He to us forever. R5113,c1,p4; c2,p2.
He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white
raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book
of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and
before His angels. Rev. 3:5
The Bible mentions two books of life—one appertaining to the present time, and the other to the Millennial Age....The special Book of Life that is open at this present time is the one in which the names of all the overcomers of this Gospel Age are written....This recording has been going on throughout this present Age. This means that those whose names are therein written are not only members of the family of God, but also members of the Bride class. In order to maintain this position, they must be overcomers....In this text we may not be sure whether or not the Great Company is included. From one standpoint it looks as though they were; from another, as though they may not be. We do well not to settle it too definitely in our minds, but wait to see what the Lord's intention is. R5377,c1,p8; c2,p2,3
Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I
also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which
shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon
the earth. Rev. 3:10
"The word of my patience,"—or, the patience which my Word inculcates....This word patience has the thought of an endurance of evil in a cheerful, willing, patient manner....Such a development of heart and character as manifests itself in an endurance of wrong or affliction with contentment, without rebellion of will, with full acquiescence in the Divine wisdom and love. ...If ever patient endurance was necessary it is necessary now; if ever it was true, "In patience possess ye your souls," it is so now. Those running the race acceptably, and possessing this patient endurance, will be able "to stand in this evil day," and no others will be able to stand. R2790,c2,p6; R2792,c1,p6; c2,p1
Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple
of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will
write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the
city of my God, which is New Jerusalem, which cometh
down out of heaven from my God; and I will write upon
him my new name. Rev. 3:12
God proposes a new name for His people—His Church—the Bride, the Lamb's wife. As Jesus was our Lord's name and He became the Christ, the Messiah, so all who become members of His body come under His new name, and are recognized of the Lord and may be recognized of each other as members of the Christ (Rev. 3:12); and again, the Lord, prophetically speaking of Christ, says, "This is the name whereby He shall be called, The Righteousness of Jehovah" (Jer. 23:6): and again, speaking of the Bride of Christ, we read, "This is the name by which she shall be called, The Righteousness of Jehovah." (Jer. 33:16.) The name of the Bridegroom is given to His Bride—"They shall be mine, saith the Lord, in that day when I make up my jewels." And those who will get this new name, we may be sure, will all be called upon to demonstrate that they will be overcomers. R3970,c2,p3
Behold, I stand at the door and knock: if any man
hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him,
and will sup with him, and he with me. Rev. 3:20
This is the special reward of those who are running the race with patient endurance in the present time, in the Laodicean period; while it was not our privilege to escape the hour of temptation, it is our privilege to have a counterbalancing special blessing as a result of living in the time of our Lord's presence. We may have His fellowship, His instruction, His dispensing of spiritual food which is now "meat in due season," in a manner and to a degree which none of the faithful of past periods enjoyed these. But as we might expect, this greatest favor is correspondingly offset by the subtlety and severity of the trials of this hour of temptation coming upon the whole world. R2792,c1,p6
To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in
my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down
with my Father in His throne. Rev. 3:21
We have had within this harvest period many and severe storms of opposition; and still there are doubtless more severe trials to follow. But those who, with overcoming faith, outride them all—who patiently endure, who cultivate the spirit of Christ with its fruits and graces, and who valiantly fight the good fight of faith, rather than withdraw from the field—such will be the "overcomers" to whom the laurels of victory will be given when the crowning day has come. R1656,c2,p3