The Review and Herald
November 28, 1899
“Come Out From Among Them, and Be Ye Separate”
“Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? and what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? and what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, and will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.” RH November 28, 1899, par. 1
Never was there a time when this warning was more appropriate than at the present time. Far too large a number of professed Christians are Christians only in name. They have no root in themselves. Their hearts are filled with pride, impurity, unholy ambition, self-importance, and love of supremacy. They may have an intelligent knowledge of the theory of the truth, and prove their doctrines to be sound and Scriptural, but they hold the truth in unrighteousness. By their course of action they deny the Saviour. Their hearts are not sanctified through the truth. They are unholy in heart, and unchristlike in deportment. Unless the spirit and principles that characterized the life of Christ are planted in the heart, they can not control the life. The law of God must be written in the heart, the truth of God must illuminate the soul. Holiness, mercy, truth, love, must be brought into the life. Unless the soul-temple is cleansed from its defilement, unless there is purity of heart, unless earnest efforts are made to meet the standard of God's word, they will never be fitted to be the companions of the pure and holy; they will never wear the white linen which is the righteousness of the saints. RH November 28, 1899, par. 2
There will always be in positions of trust men who have never overcome self, professors who flatter the pleasure-lover, and court his approval by uniting with him. They determine not to obey the call to come out and be separate, and as a consequence, iniquity abounds. Anything is more acceptable to them than the putting away of the evil thing. They profess to believe the word of God, but they do it not. With a knowledge of sacred truth before them, they cherish sin in the heart. The will of God is known, but rejected, and their hearts become more hard, their consciences more unimpressible, and their ruin more sure than if they had had no knowledge of the truth. These men are not moved by the messages of warning. The terrors of the Lord have no lasting effects upon their minds. The love of Jesus, his pity, his compassion for fallen man, which led him to leave the royal courts and lay aside his robes of honor, for our sake to become poor, that we through his poverty might be rich; his life of self-denial and self-sacrifice, may be presented before them. His entreaties, his invitations, his rich promises, may be repeated to them; but their selfish hearts are proof against them all. They feel that God's claims are arbitrary, and the truth finds no place. Let there be more license, less restraint, pleads the carnal heart. The temple of the soul is used for idols, and the truth of God's word has no power to cause them to turn from sin. The indulgence of self, which keeps them in harmony with the world's customs and practises, has a controlling power upon their lives. RH November 28, 1899, par. 3
Over the lives of very many professed Christians the power of God has but little control. Innumerable favors are bestowed upon them by the God of heaven, without awakening in them one thought of gratitude in return. The love of Jesus is not a ruling principle in the soul, and therefore can not exercise a constraining power upon the life. RH November 28, 1899, par. 4
A partial surrender to truth gives Satan free opportunity to work. Until the soul-temple is fully surrendered to God, it is the stronghold of the enemy. This influence is leading souls away from the grand old waymarks into false paths. When the mind becomes confused, when right is considered unessential, and error is called truth, it is almost impossible to make these deceived souls see that it is the adversary who has confused their senses and polluted the soul-temple. A tissue of lies is placed where truth, and truth alone, should be. The word of God is a dead letter to them, and the Saviour's love is unknown. RH November 28, 1899, par. 5
“Come out from among them, and be ye separate.” Will we hear the voice of God and obey, or will we make half-way work of the matter, and try to serve God and mammon? Christ has placed before us the conditions of eternal life. “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God,” he says, “with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbor as thyself.” “This do, and thou shalt live.” Those who hear from the lips of Christ the words, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant,” will be heroic ministers of righteousness. They may never preach a discourse from the pulpit, but, loyal to a sense of God's claims upon them, and jealous for his honor, they will minister to the souls who are the purchase of Christ's blood. They will see the necessity of carrying into their work a willing mind, an earnest spirit, and a hearty, unselfish zeal. They will not study how best they can preserve their own dignity, but by care and thoughtfulness will seek to win the hearts of those whom they serve. On every hand the agents of Satan will seek to induce them to sin, but those who will to love and fear God will stand as firm as a rock to their heaven-inspired purpose. Like Daniel, they will refuse to be moved from their convictions of duty. RH November 28, 1899, par. 6
The apostle Paul urges upon us the advantages placed within our reach. “Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved,” he says, “let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.” We are to separate from the world in spirit and practise if we would become sons and daughters of God. In his prayer for his followers, Christ asked, “I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.” RH November 28, 1899, par. 7
There is earnest work before each one of us. Right thoughts, pure and holy purposes, do not come to us naturally. We shall have to strive for them. In all our institutions, our publishing houses and colleges, pure and holy principles must take root. If our institutions are what God designed they should be, they will not pattern after any other in the land. They will stand as peculiar, governed and controlled by the Bible standard. They will not come into harmony with the principles of the world in order to gain patronage. No motives will have sufficient force to move them from the straight line of duty. Those who are under the control of the Spirit of God will not seek their own pleasure or amusement. If Christ presides in the hearts of the members of his church, they will answer to the call, “Come out from among them, and be ye separate.” Partake not of her sin. RH November 28, 1899, par. 8
God has a work for his faithful sentinels to do in standing in defense of the truth. They are to warn and entreat, showing their faith by their works. They are to stand as did Noah, in noble, whole-souled fidelity, their characters untarnished by the evil around them. They are to be saviors of men, as Christ was. The worker who thus stands true to his trust will be exposed to hatred and reproach. False accusations will be brought against him to drag him from his high position. But this soul has his foundation upon the Rock, and he remains unmoved, warning, entreating, rebuking sin and pleasure-loving by his own moral rectitude and circumspect life. RH November 28, 1899, par. 9