Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 21 (1906)

Ms 143, 1906

Oakland, California

September 1, 1906

Previously unpublished. Incomplete.

1 Corinthians 2:1 quoted. Let us mark every word of this, because we need it. 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 1

Verse 2 quoted. What do we make of that verse? It is that of ourselves, we are not to be easily disturbed with outside considerations, things that may happen unto us—to consider that we are having a hard time; but we are to stand in the wisdom of God, whatever our calling, whatever our work may be; we are to bear the living testimony that it is through Christ Jesus, who was crucified for us. We will be ashamed then to get into a quarrel with anybody, we will be ashamed to spend our precious time with picking up little tidbits, of this and that and the other, that we can find fault with. Because if we do this, we do not remember Jesus Christ, that He was crucified for us individually; and we have an individual work, we have an important work, we have a work that we must do for our individual selves through the excellency of Jesus Christ which He has presented before us in His own matchless character. 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 2

Verse 3 quoted. Why? Why was there all this fear and trembling? It was that he was afraid that he should not strike the very note that he ought to strike in the hearts of those whom he wanted to encourage and comfort. There was where his fear came in. 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 3

Verse 4 quoted. Paul was not trying to make a great flourish of something to exalt himself. We do not need it. If we are indeed the followers of Jesus Christ, we have the greatest work to perform. We hang our helpless souls upon the merits of the blood of a crucified and risen Saviour. When we make Christ our helper, make Christ our dependence, will He fail us? Never, never, my brethren and sisters. 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 4

O, if I did not believe this I should not have been alive today. But I took my cross, as it was presented to me in my very girlhood, to present the truth before those who knew it not. And what was that truth? It was the merits of the blood of Jesus Christ. 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 5

And now our work is to be very humble. O there are so many that lose so much; they swell unto such large proportions, and swelling as they do, enlarging themselves, they lose that power that they might have if they would let Christ work upon heart and character; then they could reveal that Christ who works in them. 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 6

Paul says, verse 4, quoted. There is a power for us. Verse 5 quoted. We need not feel that we must have all that education of words. God can give us words. 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 7

I was 16 years old when I took my pen, to commence to write. Why did I delay so long? Because of this accident, my nerves were ruined by a careless throw of a stone to frighten me. It caused me all the suffering of a lifetime. But when I pleaded with God, when I entreated Him to take me as a helpless child and to give me of His Spirit, and I would bear anything, the Lord took me off in a vision and showed me Christ—merciful, full of kindness, full of tenderness, full of love. One look prostrated me, but O, that has been enough for a lifetime. There is nothing, no inducement, no attraction, nothing at all that can come in, that can separate Christ from my soul. I love Him, I love Him with my whole heart. Why? Well, why shouldn’t I? He revealed Himself to me as my Saviour; and since that time, I have in every emergency hung my helpless soul upon Jesus Christ. 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 8

And when, through manifold visions, the great work of salvation has been spread open to me, and the part that I must act in it, it seemed impossible. But the work given to me with that trembling hand—for the nervous system seemed to be destroyed after the accident—was: Write the things that I shall give thee. “Why,” I said, “I cannot write. I have not been to school, not a day since I was 12 years old, and I cannot write.” “Write the things that I shall give thee.” 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 9

Well, there I had had my monitor. And who do you think was placed as my monitor but the very one that cast that stone when I was trying to get an education, and had to leave the school; my writing was under her. She knew what she had done to me, and she would try to guide my hand, but I could not write. The tears would come to her eyes, and the perspiration to her face, and she would cry. “No use.” Therefore I gave up school. 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 10

But I took in answering any points, “Write the things that I shall show thee.” And I took pen and paper, and I traced just as easily, and wrote an even hand, and the blessing of God rested upon me. Little did I think that that was to reach until I was 78 years old; that work of writing volume after volume, and volume after volume, that has passed all through our world. I have been writing the things that He gave me. And there was a helpless, unlearned child. Why have I not reason to praise Him? Have I not reason to glorify our God? I have, and I magnify His holy name! 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 11

Verses 6-10 quoted. Now we want to come right to the simplicity of true godliness. Do we know Him by an experimental knowledge? Do we understand Him, that we can take Him at His word? O, that the Spirit and power of God might open blind eyes of understanding, that they might see Him. 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 12

Here Christ so loved the world that He made His pledge in regard to the creation of men, that if they failed He would give His life to redeem them. And “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not,”—that “not” is worth everything to us,—“should not perish, but have everlasting life.” [John 3:16.] O I am so glad that we have had such a value put upon us individually. Individually—we must understand that a value is put upon us individually. What did Christ do in order to save us? He laid off His royal crown, He laid off His kingly robe, and He clothed His divinity with humanity. Just think of it! He came to our world as a little child. There He came as a babe in Bethlehem—no place. Who was He? Why, “Unto us a child is born—Prince of Peace.” [Isaiah 9:6.] Don’t you want Him? Will you be so careful, for fear that you will not be exalted here in this life, that you run the risk of losing life everlasting? 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 13

Give your life to Jesus Christ, just as you are, to be a partaker with Him of His suffering. And when you are opposed and misjudged, do not make a fuss about it. Remember Christ bore it for you. And so He stood with divinity clothed with humanity, and gave an example to the whole world, that God would protect and keep by His love and power every soul that would take hold of His strength and make peace with Him. This is the very work every one of us wants. 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 14

We want heaven. What is this world good for, with all its uncertainties and its pain and its sufferings and its calamities? Tell me what this world is good for, if we have no prospect for a better life than this. 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 15

Well then, what are we to do? We are to consider the humanity of Christ, who was tempted in all points like as we are, yet without sin. And if we will learn of Him, what then? Humanity takes hold of divinity, and humanity escapes the corruption that is in the world through lust. And every victory that is gained, O what joy there is in heaven, to testify that humanity can, through partaking of divinity, be obedient to all God’s requirements—that is what it means—and escape the corruptions. 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 16

O, the world is so corrupt. It need not be. Christ embraced the whole of humanity. He wants to clothe you with the robe of His righteousness. That is why He laid off His kingly robe and came in the guise of humanity, that He might be an example to all humanity that should live upon the face of the earth. 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 17

O, as I have been writing so many years upon these subjects, they are never exhausted; I have just as much more to write. And as I begin to write, there is a word, perhaps, I want to put right in that place—just what it is I cannot immediately grasp. Soon it opens up as plain as day, and what it means. O how grateful I am! I lay down my pen, and I thank God that I will and can be worked by the Holy Spirit of God, that He gives me wisdom. 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 18

Now, I do not know what experiences we may have to come to in our world, if we will only escape the corruption that is in the world through lust, by taking hold and being partakers of the divine nature. That is what we need. You never will be lonesome; you never will be homesick. Why? Angels of God are around us. And we should be so grateful, so full of thankfulness, that the whole angelic host is interested in our welfare. We are not left alone to struggle on to be an overcomer in our own strength. The heavenly angels are watching to see our minds turning toward the heavenly, and then they have the perfect power to take charge of that mind. 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 19

But men must act. Man has a work to do for himself, and we must do our work. We must have the simplicity of Jesus Christ. All this faultfinding, all this perceiving of others’ wrongs that are in the church, it hurts my soul. It hurts my heart, and I feel as though I should die as I think of it. When that soul might be looking to be a partaker of the divine nature, he is looking at somebody else’s wrong, to cover up his own. Now God help us that we may walk humbly with Him. We want to be a partaker of the divine nature. And I feel so grateful to God that He will work out for us such wondrous things. I have seen it, and I know it, and He will work for us, if we will only get ourselves out of the way and give Christ a chance. But we are holding on to ourselves. We want this, we want that, and we want the other. Why, God can do wondrously for us; and He wants us to come right to Him, just as we are—needy. 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 20

“Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither hath entered into the heart of man the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him. But God hath revealed them to us by His Spirit. For the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.” [1 Corinthians 2:9, 10.] Then let us, for Christ’s sake, take right hold, and be determined that we will be partakers of the divine nature; and if we will do this, we shall realize the expectation in Second Peter, the first chapter. Here we have verses 1 and 2 quoted. We want to know Him by an experimental knowledge. 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 21

Verses 3, 4 quoted. Now you are not to stop at any place—there is no hitching post. Now He has given us a sum in addition: Verses 5-8 quoted. O that we could hold to that! That we had the experimental knowledge of Jesus Christ; that His life was our pattern. He lived as we should live. He came as our example, from His childhood up; and at 12 years of age, He began to give them to understand that He knew His work and what was before Him. 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 22

Then they lost Him. His parents could not find Him. When they returned home, they were visiting and they forgot about the Saviour; and when they came to look for Him, He was not to be found. Then they went back. Three days they were searching for Christ, and at last His mother caught the words—His voice she understood it—and He was in the temple sitting among the doctors, listening to them and asking them questions. Now, what kind of questions was He asking them? Right in regard to the very promises that centered in Himself. 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 23

His mother came in grief, and she said: “Thy father and I have sought Thee sorrowing, why have Ye done thus with us?” He reached up His hand to heaven, while divinity flashed through humanity: “Wist ye not that I must be about My Father’s business?” [Luke 2:48, 49.] And yet He went home and was subject unto them. 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 24

Now we have the revelations that God gave, even to children; and if fathers and if mothers could only realize, and educate their children to live upon this plan of addition from their very childhood, what families we might have—a church in every family. The father is the house-band of the family circle; the mother is the queen and educator of these children that are under her care; not a slave to educate these children; but she is to be just as tender and careful and true to teach these children how to bear the responsibilities of childhood from their earliest years. Why? Because a life, a life of wrestling, of trial, and of victory is before them. 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 25

Therefore she must educate line upon line, and precept upon precept, not to see how beautifully they can be dressed, and how they can look to excite praise, and wear out her life in that kind of work, but teach them how to lay right hold upon the things that are of value, that they may be clothed with humility and meekness, and be fitted to take their position in the family circle—the older members of the family to take care of the younger members; and thus the education, just like a church, goes on in the family. And what next? Then she is prepared that these children shall, as they are educated in the Word of God, come into church fellowship, be baptized, and there is a whole family that is where? Taking hold of the divine nature. How many fathers educate about that divine nature? Partakers of the divine nature—think of it, and talk of it. 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 26

But here is a knowledge that is presented: temperance, patience, godliness; and as we work in families on the plan of addition, to add to our own faith by faithfulness at home, by patience, by self-denial of our appetites—no liquor, no tobacco, nothing of this kind to come into our house, to keep all these narcotics away. There is little enough of us, but we want to keep what brain we have; we want to keep its strength; we want to keep the nerve power; we want to keep the nerves under control, that we will not smite our children unmercifully if they do not come right into line. There is another way. It is to pray with them; it is to talk with them. If punishment is needed, let the children see that you are punished more than they, that tears are in your eyes, that you hate to punish the flesh. This work, there is but very little of it done in our world. What an accountability fathers and mothers must meet in the judgment! 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 27

Now, it is stated here just as distinctly, that if we work on the plan of addition, Christ will work. “Grace and peace be multiplied unto you, through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord.” [2 Peter 1:2.] Now, the more we try for knowledge, the more that knowledge will be multiplied, and you will see that there will be a learning and an education and a solidity of character and of wisdom that God imparts unto the man, so that he shall be a useful man in every line. But man destroys himself, by taking liquor and other things that lessen his vitality. 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 28

That is why we have to build sanitariums, we have to build institutes. The Lord has presented to me that there should be sanitariums all through our world, and school buildings and churches. 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 29

Where are the laborers? Where are they? An education must be given in the very household converted to God. Then we could take hold of the work. But what about all this that is being gained? 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 30

Verse 5 quoted. “charity.” [Verse 7.] What kind of households would you have, if you cultivated these graces? 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 31

Verse 8 quoted. That knowledge is imparted to you, if you will live on the plan of addition. 21LtMs, Ms 143, 1906, par. 32

[Remainder missing.]