The Review and Herald
March 17, 1903
The Worth of Souls
God's servants need a realization of the value of souls. Christ died for human beings. His sacrifice on the cross is the measure of their value in God's sight. RH March 17, 1903, par. 1
Of the high priest of Israel we read, “Aaron shall bear the names of the children of Israel in the breastplate of judgment upon his heart, when he goeth in unto the holy place, for a memorial before the Lord continually.” What a beautiful and expressive figure this is of the unchanging love of Christ for his church! Our great High Priest, of whom Aaron was a type, bears his people upon his heart. And should not his earthly ministers share his love and sympathy and solicitude? As ministers labor in connection with one another, they are to follow the example of Christ, manifesting his tenderness, his kindness, his courtesy, his love. RH March 17, 1903, par. 2
Christ as the great high priest, making a perfect atonement for sin, stands alone in divine majesty and glory. Other high priests were only types, and when he appeared, the need of their services vanished. “But this man, because he continueth ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood. Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them. For such an high priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens; who needeth not daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins, and then for the people's: for this he did once, when he offered up himself.” RH March 17, 1903, par. 3
“After he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever,” he “sat down on the right hand of God; from henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool. For by one offering he hath perfected forever them that are sanctified.... Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh; and having an high priest over the house of God; let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.... And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works.” RH March 17, 1903, par. 4
Let human beings, subject to temptation, remember that in the heavenly courts they have a high priest who is touched with the feeling of their infirmities, because he himself was tempted, even as they are. And let those in positions of responsibility, especially, remember that they are subject to temptation, and wholly dependent on the merits of the Saviour. However sacred the work to which they may be called, they are still sinners, who can be saved only through the grace of Christ. One day they must stand before the throne of God, saved by the blood of the Lamb, or condemned to the punishment of the wicked. RH March 17, 1903, par. 5
Human beings are Christ's property, and they are not to be treated with disrespect because they do not follow the lines of action that men have marked out. Men err. Often they mark out false lines and set up false standards. But O how thankful I am that the Lord never makes a mistake! Those who follow his leading will never be disappointed. They will never be led astray. RH March 17, 1903, par. 6
How grieved Christ is by the lack of love and tenderness manifested by his people in their dealings with one another! He notes the words, the tones of the voice. He hears the harsh, severe judgment passed on those whom he, in infinite love, is presenting to the Father. He hears every sigh of pain and sorrow caused by human harshness, and his Spirit is grieved. RH March 17, 1903, par. 7
Apart from Christ we can do no good thing. How inconsistent, then, it is for human beings to exalt themselves! How strange that any should forget that they must repent, in common with their fellow men, and that those whom they condemn with severity may stand justified before God, receiving the sympathy of Christ and the angels. RH March 17, 1903, par. 8
Let God's messengers act as wise men. Let them not lift up their souls unto vanity, but cherish humility. “Thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.” RH March 17, 1903, par. 9
Let no one be sharp and dictatorial in his dealing with God's workers. Let those who are inclined to censure remember that they have made mistakes as grievous as the mistakes which they condemn in others. Let them bow in contrition before God, asking his pardon for the sharp speeches that they have made, and the unchristlike spirit they have revealed. Let them remember that God hears every word they speak, and that as they judge, so they will be judged. RH March 17, 1903, par. 10
Christ is pleading the case of every tempted soul, but while he is doing this, many of his people are grieving him by taking their stand with Satan to accuse their brethren, pointing to their polluted garments. RH March 17, 1903, par. 11
Let not the criticised ones become discouraged; for while their brethren are condemning them, Christ is saying of them, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands. By creation and by redemption thou art mine. RH March 17, 1903, par. 12
God's word is, “Honor all men. Love the brotherhood.” Show all men respect, even though they do not reach the standard you have set for them. They may have made mistakes, but is your life faultless? Have you censured your own errors as severely as you have censured the errors of others? RH March 17, 1903, par. 13
Christ Our King
Before God's servants take up any work, they are to pray to him in all humility, and with a sense of their dependence on him, realizing that they must be worked by the Holy Spirit. They are to guard against setting themselves up as kings, because if they attempt to do this, they will dishonor the Lord, and make a failure of their work. RH March 17, 1903, par. 14
Man's ingenuity, his judgment, his power to execute, all come from God. To God's service they should be devoted. The principles of the Bible are to control the Lord's servants. His workers are ever to do justice and judgment, steadfastly keeping the way of the Lord. “Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness.” Make this the point round which your life centers, and then all things needful will be given you. Put the Redeemer's interests before your own or those of any other human being. He has bought you, and all your powers of mind and body belong to him. RH March 17, 1903, par. 15
Christ is our King—he who is called, “Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” And he is not only our King, but our Saviour. To him you may go with your burdens. However great your sin, you need not fear repulse. If you have injured your brother, go to him, and confess the wrong that you have done him. Clear away the difficulty that exists between you and him. When you have done this, come to your King, asking him for pardon. He will never take advantage of your confessions. He will never disappoint you. He has pledged his word to forgive your transgressions and to cleanse you from all defilement. The names of his people are written in his book of life. RH March 17, 1903, par. 16
Remember that Christ is our only hope, our only refuge. He “bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness.” “If the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance.” RH March 17, 1903, par. 17