Testimonies on Sabbath-School Work

Chapter 29—God's Manner of Imparting Knowledge

Day by day Jesus gained knowledge from the great library of animate and inanimate nature. He who had created all things, at whose word of power hill and vale, river and tree, had come into being, was now a child of humanity, and He studied the lessons which His own hand had written in leaf and flowers and tree. The parables, by which, during His ministry, Jesus loved to teach His lessons of truth, show how open His Spirit was to the sweet influence of nature, and how, during those hidden years, He delighted to gather the spiritual teachings from all the surroundings of daily life. To Jesus the significance of the word and the works of God unfolded gradually, as He was thinking, seeking to understand the reason of things, as any youth may seek to understand. TSS 105.1

Every child may gain knowledge, as Jesus did, from the works of nature and the pages of God's Holy Word. As we try to become acquainted with our heavenly Father through His Holy Word, angels will come near, our minds will be strengthened, our character will be elevated and refined, and we shall become more like our Saviour. And as we behold the beauty and grandeur of the works of nature, our affections go out after God; while the heart is awed and the spirit subdued, the soul is invigorated by coming in contact with the Infinite through His marvelous works. Communion with God through humble prayer, develops and strengthens the mental and moral faculties, and spiritual powers increase by cultivating thoughts upon spiritual things. TSS 105.2

Those who consecrate soul, body, and spirit to God, purifying their thoughts by obedience to the law of God, will continually receive a new endowment of physical and mental power. There will be heart yearnings after God, and earnest prayer for clear perception to discern the office and work of the Holy Spirit. It is not for us to use it, but for the Holy Spirit to use us, moulding, fashioning every power. TSS 106.1