Recreation

The Bible as a Counselor

Teachers need an intimate acquaintance with the word of God. The Bible, and the Bible alone, should be their counselor. The word of God is as the leaves of the tree of life. Here is met every want of those who love its teachings and bring them into the practical life. Many of the students who come to our schools are unconverted, though they may have been baptized. They do not know what it means to be sanctified through a belief of the truth. They should be taught to search and understand the Bible, to receive its truths into the heart and carry them out in the daily life. Thus they will become strong in the Lord; for spiritual sinew and muscle are nourished by the bread of life. PH145 46.3

The Lord desires His stewards to discharge their duties faithfully, in His name and in His strength. By believing His word and acting upon its teachings, they may go on conquering and to conquer. But when men depart from the principles of righteousness, they conceive a high opinion of their own goodness and abilities, and unconsciously they exalt themselves. The Lord allows such ones to walk alone, to follow their own way. Thus He gives them opportunity to see themselves as they are, and to manifest to others their weakness. He is seeking to teach them that the Lord's way is always to be closely followed, that His word is to be taken as it reads, and that men are not to devise and plan according to their own judgment, irrespective of His counsel. PH145 46.4

Our schools are to be as the schools of the prophets. In them the truths of the Bible are to be earnestly studied. If rightly brought before the mind, and thoughtfully dwelt upon, these truths will give the students a desire for that which is infinitely higher than worldly amusement. As they draw near to God, becoming partakers of the divine nature, earth-born amusements will sink into nothingness. The minds of the students will take a higher turn, and beholding the character of Jesus, they will strive to be like Him. PH145 47.1