Testimonies for the Church, vol. 9

Conditions of Acceptable Service

As a people we must come into a sacred nearness to God. We need the light of heaven to shine into our hearts and into the chambers of our mind; we need the wisdom that God alone can give, if we carry the message to these cities with success. Let our churches everywhere come into line. Let none who have pledged themselves by baptism to live for the service and glory of God take back their pledge. There is a world to be saved; let this thought urge us on to greater sacrifices and more earnest labor for those who are out of the way. 9T 133.1

When you follow out the principles of the word of God, your influence will be of value to any church, any organization. You are to come up to the help of the Lord, to the help of the Lord against the mighty. All frivolous words, all lightness and trifling, are enticements of the enemy to deprive you of spiritual strength. Brace yourselves against this evil, in the name of the God of Israel. If you will humble yourselves before God, He will give you a message for those in the highways and the hedges, and for those in foreign countries who need your help. Trim your lamps, and keep them burning, that wherever you may go you may reveal in speech and action precious rays of light. 9T 133.2

If we will give ourselves for service to the Lord, He will instruct us what to do. If we will come into close relation with God, He will work with us. Let us not become so absorbed in self and self-interests that we shall forget those who are climbing the ladder of Christian experience and who need our help. We must stand ready to use our God-given capabilities in the work of the Lord, ready to speak words in season and out of season—words that will help and bless. 9T 134.1

My brethren and sisters, do we take into consideration the needs of the large cities of the East? Do we not know that they must be warned of Christ's near approach? The work we have to do is a wonderfully great work. There is a world to be saved; there are souls to be labored for in the cities of the East, in the states where the message of the coming of our Lord was first preached. Who will give themselves to do this line of missionary work? There are hundreds of our people who ought to be out in the field who are doing little or nothing for the advancement of the message. Those who have had every advantage of knowing the truth, who have received instruction line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little, have a great responsibility resting upon them in these souls who have never heard the last gospel message. 9T 134.2

If in this opportune time the members of the churches will come humbly before God, putting out of their hearts all that is wrong and consulting Him at every step, He will manifest Himself to them and will give them courage in Him. And as the church members do their part faithfully, the Lord will lead and guide His chosen ministers, and strengthen them for their important work. In much prayer let us all unite in holding up their hands and in drawing bright beams from the heavenly sanctuary. 9T 134.3

The end is near, stealing upon us stealthily, imperceptibly, like the noiseless approach of a thief in the night. May the Lord grant that we shall no longer sleep as do others, but that we shall watch and be sober. The truth is soon to triumph gloriously, and all who now choose to be laborers together with God will triumph with it. The time is short; the night soon cometh when no man can work. Let those who are rejoicing in the light of present truth now make haste to impart the truth to others. The Lord is inquiring: “Whom shall I send?” Those who wish to sacrifice for the truth's sake are now to respond: “Here am I; send me.” Isaiah 6:8. 9T 135.1

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Let those who bear responsibilities remember that it is the Holy Spirit who is to do the fashioning. It is the Lord who controls. We are not to try to mold, according to our own ideas, those for whom we work, but to let Christ do the molding. He follows no human pattern. He works according to His own mind and Spirit. It is man's work to reveal to the world that which Christ has placed in his heart; through His grace man becomes a partaker of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. The higher powers of the one who receives Christ are strengthened and ennobled, and he receives a fitness for God's service. 9T 135.2

Many of the world's learned men have received so high an education that they cannot touch the common people. Their knowledge is intricate. It soars high, but rests nowhere. The most intelligent businessmen desire simple truth such as Christ gave to the people when He was on this earth—the truth that He declares to be spirit and life. His words are as the leaves of the tree of life. What the world needs today is the light of Christ's example reflected from the lives of Christlike men and women. The intellect most powerful in behalf of truth is the intellect that Christ controls, ennobling and purifying it by the sanctification of the Holy Spirit. 9T 135.3

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Christ has given His commission: “Go ye into all the world.” Mark 16:15. All must hear the message of warning. A prize of richest value is held up before those who are running the Christian race. Those who run with patience will receive a crown of life that fadeth not away. 9T 136.1

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Cultivate restfulness, and commit the keeping of your souls unto God as unto a faithful Creator. He will keep that which is committed to His trust. He is not pleased to have us cover His altar with our tears and complaints. You have enough to praise God for already, if you do not see another soul converted. But the good work will go on if you will only go forward and not be trying to adjust everything to your own ideas. Let the peace of God rule in your hearts, and be ye thankful. Let the Lord have room to work. Do not block His way. He can and will work if we will let Him. 9T 136.2

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While extensive plans should be laid, great care must be taken that the work in each branch of the cause be harmoniously united with that in every other branch, thus making a perfect whole. 9T 136.3