Testimony for the Church — No. 17

Epistle Number Twelve

Dear Bro. ——: In the last vision I was shown that you do not understand yourself. You have a work to do for yourself which no other can do for you. Your experience in the truth is short, and you have not a thorough conversion. You esteem yourself highly when you will not bear the estimate you put upon yourself. I was pointed back to your past life. You have not been elevated. Your mind has dwelt upon subjects not calculated to lead to purity of actions. You have had habits which were corrupt, which has given tone to your morals by tainting them. You have been too familiar with the other sex, and have not possessed modesty of deportment. You would be well suited were there greater familiarity encouraged between males and females, much after Dr. ——'s theory. Your influence at —— was not good. You was not a proper person for that place. Your lightness, and trifling, vain conversation disqualified you to exert a good influence. T17 155.1

The character of your music was not of a nature to encourage elevated thoughts or feelings, but to degenerate the thoughts and feelings. Your influence has been improving for some weeks in the past, but you lack a firm principle. You lack in many things, and in some things you must know where you fail. The follies of your youth have left their impress upon you, and you can never recover what you have lost through impure habits. These things have benumbed your sensibilities so that sacred things are not clearly discerned. You cannot, with your present experience, resist temptation. You cannot endure trials. You are not sanctified through the truth. You have taken hold of the truth, but the truth has not taken hold upon you, to transform you by the renewing of your mind. Oh! do not, I entreat of you, remain deceived in regard to your true condition. You are a self-deceived man. You have not felt deep conviction because of your sins, and in deep humility sought the Lord with anguish of heart, that your transgressions might be blotted out. You could not see that your ways were so sinful before God. The work is not inwrought in your soul. A self-righteous garment you have clothed yourself with to cover up the deformity of sin; but this is not the remedy. You know not what true conversion is. The old man with you is not dead. You have a form of godliness, but not the cleansing power of God. You can, and do, talk and write smoothly. Your words, as far as they go, may possibly be correct, but the true language of the heart is not spoken. You know this. You are thus much acquainted with yourself. Your case is perilous; yet God pities you, and will save you if you fall all broken at his feet, feeling your vileness, and impurity, and rottenness of soul, without the transforming power of God. T17 155.2

I do not wish to discourage you, but to lead you to investigate your motives and acts as in the light of eternity. Break away from Satan's snare. Do not, I beg of you, lead any person to think of you in an elevated light that you cannot bear, for when this deception shall be removed, and your true self appear as you are, there will be a reaction. You do have convictions of the Spirit of God, and feel the force of truth when you listen to it; but these sacred, softening impressions wear away, and you are a forgetful hearer. You are not established, strengthened, and settled, in the truth. You have thought it best for your interest to adopt the truth, but you have not yet experienced its sanctifying influence. Now we I would entreat of you, be not deceived, God is not mocked. It is not too late for you to become a Christian; but don't move by impulse. Weigh every move well, and don't deceive your own soul T17 156.1

E. G. W.

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