Episodios

  • The First Advent of Christ by Ellen G. White (1872)

    The First Advent of Christ by Ellen G. White (1872)
    May 22 2025
    The Son of God was next in authority to the great Lawgiver. He knew that his life alone could be sufficient to ransom fallen man. He was of as much more value than man as his noble, spotless character, and exalted office as commander of all the heavenly host, were above the work of man. He was in the express image of his Father, not in features alone, but in perfection of character.The blood of beasts could not satisfy the demands of God as an atoning sacrifice for the transgression of his law. The life of a beast was of less value than the life of the offending sinner, therefore could not be a ransom for sin. It could only be acceptable with God as a figure of the offering of his Son.Man could not atone for man. His sinful, fallen condition would constitute him an imperfect offering, an atoning sacrifice of less value than Adam before his fall. God made man perfect and upright, and after his transgression there could be no sacrifice acceptable to God for him, unless the offering made should in value be superior to man as he was in his state of perfection and innocency.The divine Son of God was the only sacrifice of sufficient value to fully satisfy the claims of God’s perfect law. The angels were sinless, but of less value than the law of God. They were amenable to law. They were messengers to do the will of Christ, and before him to bow. They were created beings, and probationers. Upon Christ no requirements were laid. He had power to lay down his life, and to take it again. No obligation was laid upon him to undertake the work of atonement. It was a voluntary sacrifice that he made. His life was of sufficient value to rescue man from his fallen condition.The Son of God was in the form of God, and he thought it not robbery to be equal with God. He was the only one, who as a man walked the earth, who could say to all men, Who of you convinceth me of sin? He had united with the Father in the creation of man, and he had power through his own divine perfection of character to atone for man’s sin, and to elevate him, and bring him back to his first estate.The sacrificial offerings, and the priesthood of the Jewish system, were instituted to represent the death and mediatorial work of Christ. All those ceremonies had no meaning, and no virtue, only as they related to Christ, who was himself the foundation of, and who brought into existence, the entire system. The Lord had made known to Adam, Abel, Seth, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, and the ancient worthies, especially Moses, that the ceremonial system of sacrifices and the priesthood, of themselves, were not sufficient to secure the salvation of one soul.The system of sacrificial offerings pointed to Christ. Through these, the ancient worthies saw Christ, and believed in him. These were ordained of Heaven to keep before the people the fearful separation which sin had made between God and man, requiring a mediating ministry. Through Christ, the communication which was cut off because of Adam’s transgression was opened between God and the ruined sinner. But the infinite sacrifice that Christ voluntarily made for man remains a mystery that angels cannot fully fathom.The Jewish system was symbolical, and was to continue until the perfect Offering should take the place of the figurative. The Mediator, in his office and work, would greatly exceed in dignity and glory the earthly, typical priesthood. The people of God, from Adam’s day down to the time when the Jewish nation became a separate and distinct people from the world, had been instructed in regard to the Redeemer to come, which their sacrificial offerings represented. This Saviour was to be a mediator, to stand between the Most High and his people. Through this provision, a way was opened whereby the guilty sinner might find access to God through the mediation of another. The sinner could not come in his own person, with his guilt upon him, and with no greater merit than he possessed in himself. Christ alone could open the way, by making an offering equal to the demands of the divine law. He was perfect, and undefiled by sin. He was without spot or blemish. The extent of the terrible consequences of sin could never have been known, had not the remedy provided been of infinite value. The salvation of fallen man was procured at such an immense cost that angels marveled, and could not fully comprehend the divine mystery that the majesty of Heaven, equal with God, should die for the rebellious race.As the time drew near for the Son of God to make his first advent, Satan became more vigilant in preparing the hearts of the Jewish people to be steeled against the evidences he should bring of his Messiahship. The Jews had become proud and boastful. The purity of the priesthood had not been preserved, but was fearfully corrupted. They retained the forms and ceremonies of their system of worship, while their hearts were not in the work. They did not sustain personal piety and virtuous characters. And the more ...
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    18 m
  • The Obedient and the Disobedient by Ellen G. White (1897)

    The Obedient and the Disobedient by Ellen G. White (1897)
    May 21 2025
    The ContrastGod’s law is his great standard of righteousness. This law is perfect in all its requirements; and God calls upon us to obey it; for by it our cases will be decided in that day when the books of heaven are opened, and the deeds of all come up in review before the Judge of the universe.But there are, and ever have been, two classes in this world; and the question, What constitutes the difference between these two classes? is grave and important. One class love and fear God; the other do not wish to retain him in their knowledge. One class render obedience to his law; the other disregard and disobey his requirements.Those who are unwilling to obey God’s law declare that it is done away, that God has abolished it. But if this law is perfect, why should God abolish or change it? That which is perfect can not be improved by any change. An attempt to remodel a perfect enactment only causes imperfection. God has neither abolished nor changed his law. It is the foundation of his government; and it will stand forever, the immutable, unalterable standard which all must reach would they be saved. “Till heaven and earth pass,” declared Christ, “one jot or one tittle shall in nowise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.”“The law of the Lord is perfect,” writes the psalmist, “converting the soul; the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes.... Moreover by them is thy servant warned, and in keeping of them there is great reward.” How then does the God of heaven look upon those who pour contempt upon his law? Let not the words spoken against the law of God by those who refuse to obey it, be regarded as wise; for God has said, “The wise in heart will receive commandments; but a prating fool shall fall.”After Adam lost Eden by disobedience, and sin entered the world, men became more and more disobedient. The entire world, with a few exceptions, were given up to depravity and corruption. “God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented the Lord that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. And the Lord said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them.’ And by a flood the Lord swept the earth of its moral corruption.But even in that age the Lord had his representatives. These men loved God; they obeyed him; and he gave them light and truth. Christ walked with them, giving them moral power to obey him, and opening before them the future of this earth’s history, and the scene of his second coming. “Enoch walked with God; and he was not; for God took him.” Of him Jude writes, “Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousand of his saints, to execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him.”Noah, too, witnessed for God in that age of wickedness. “These are the generations of Noah: Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God.” When God was about to destroy the inhabitants of the earth with a flood, he said to Noah, “Come thou and all thy house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation.”What constituted the difference between Enoch and Noah, and those who were destroyed by the flood? Enoch and Noah were obedient to the law of God; the others walked in the imagination of their own hearts, and corrupted their ways before the Lord, disregarding all his requirements. By their disobedience they separated themselves from him, and provoked him to destroy them. Enoch and Noah were found righteous when tested by the law of God. Had the antediluvians kept the way of God, had they obeyed his commandments, they too would have been found righteous, and would have received the Lord’s commendation.In his letter to the Romans Paul writes of the obedient and the disobedient. “I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ,” he says; “for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, The just shall live by faith.” These are the obedient. As faith in God increases, the more distinctly we endure the seeing of him who is invisible, and we are strengthened to obey him.The apostle then presents the great army of the disobedient, those who do not love to retain God in their knowledge, but choose their own disloyal ways, and follow the imagination of their own ...
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    11 m
  • A Living Church by Ellen G. White (1880)

    A Living Church by Ellen G. White (1880)
    May 20 2025
    A living church will be a working church. Practical Christianity will develop earnest workers for the advancement of the cause of truth. There is a great lack of this practical religion among us as a people. Worldliness and pride, love of dress and display, are steadily increasing among those who profess to be keeping God’s commandments, and to be waiting for their Lord.The great sin of ancient Israel was in turning from God to idols. This is also the great sin of modern Israel. The apostle Paul said to the Gentile churches that he had raised up, “Ye turned from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his Son from Heaven.” He could truly say to many of them, “In Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel.” When he saw them becoming indifferent, the ardor of their faith chilled by backslidings, he exclaimed, “I am jealous over you with godly jealousy; for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.” He entreats them to be followers of God as dear children, and to walk worthy of the vocation wherewith they are called, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God. Again, he exhorts them to walk in Christ Jesus, even as they had received him, that they might be rooted and built up in him, and established in the faith. He reminds them, “Ye know how we exhorted and comforted and charged every one of you, as a father doth his children, that ye would walk worthy of God, who hath called you unto his kingdom and glory.” To the Thessalonians he writes, “We beseech you, brethren, and exhort you by the Lord Jesus, that as ye have received of us [the ministers of Christ] how ye ought to walk and to please God, so ye would abound more and more.”We long to see the true Christian character manifested in the church; we long to see its members free from a light, irreverent spirit; and we earnestly desire that they may realize their high calling in Christ Jesus. Some who profess Christ are exerting themselves to the utmost to so live and act that their religious faith may commend itself to people of moral worth, that they may be induced to accept the truth. But there are many who feel no responsibility, even to keep their own souls in the love of God, and who, instead of blessing others by their influence, are a burden to those who would work and watch and pray. These careless, indifferent ones are a dead weight upon our churches everywhere. Their principal study is not how they can let their light so shine that others will be drawn to God and the truth, but how they will manage, by affectation and display, to attract attention to themselves. Those who are seeking in humbleness of mind to exalt the truth of Christ by their exemplary course, are represented in the word of God as fine gold; while the class whose chief thought and study is to exhibit themselves, are as sounding brass and a tinkling cymbal.The latter class are far more numerous in our churches than the former. These idle, frivolous persons will never be anything better than driftwood unless there is a decided change in their life and character. They are Christians only in profession; their life, their deportment, is a constant testimony to the world that they know nothing of experimental godliness, of a self-denying life of cross-bearing for Christ’s sake. They are ever studying their convenience, ever planning for their own comfort, their amusement or gratification. They are as salt without the savor. In the day when the Judge of all the earth shall balance the accounts of men, this class will be pronounced wanting.What the church needs is to be cleansed of those who defile it. The spirit of reformation must be kindled among us, and this class must be converted or be separated from the church. We entreat those who have a connection with God to pray earnestly and in faith, and not to stop here, but to work as well as pray, for the purification of the church. The present time calls for men and women who have a moral fixedness of purpose, men and women who will not be molded or subdued by any unsanctified influences. Such persons will make a success in the work of perfecting Christian character through the grace of Christ so freely given. For those who are ready to be discouraged at every unfavorable circumstance, the great enemy of souls will so shape circumstances as to give them abundant reason to be always discouraged.Oh that I could speak in language so plain and convincing as to move souls from their position of careless ease and worldly conformity! A genuine experience alone will qualify us to join the throng who come up out of great tribulation, having washed our robes of character, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. I am alarmed because of the indifference and ...
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    17 m
  • Timely Instruction by Ellen G. White (1902)

    Timely Instruction by Ellen G. White (1902)
    May 19 2025
    I have been unable to sleep much during the past night. I have thought of the church at which must be left much of the time without preaching. It is the duty of those who are connected with the church to feel an individual responsibility to do their utmost to strengthen it, and make the meetings so interesting that unbelievers will be attracted. Nothing can weaken a church so manifestly as disunion and strife. “By their fruits ye shall know them.” “Doth a fountain send forth at the same place sweet water and bitter? Can the fig-tree, my brethren, bear olive berries? either a vine, figs? so can no fountain both yield salt water and fresh.” “Who is a wise man and endued with knowledge among you? Let him show out of a good conversation his works with meekness of wisdom.”Let not anyone place himself forward as having great wisdom and ability; for if he has these talents, he will not be the one to make them the most prominent. It is those who have the most distrust of self, whom God will use as his willing instruments. These will show by their conversation that they have been communing with God, and receiving the lessons taught by Christ. They have exalted views of Jesus, and words of wisdom flow forth from their souls in words that will stir other hearts. Their works are made manifest, not by pompous words of self praise, but in meekness of wisdom. They have no words to the demerit of others and only a very humble opinion of themselves, because they have had a clear view of Jesus, His holy character, His self-denial, His self-sacrifice, and His holy mission.It is when men lose sight of Jesus, His purity, His spotless perfection, that they lift up themselves, and are self-sufficient, self-important, puffed up, self-inflated; then if others do not give them all that deference and respect that they think they should have, they are uneasy, dissatisfied, and think themselves ill used. They reveal their true character in an unmistakable manner, showing their defects in fault-finding and complaining, ready to combat anything that does not meet their mind, even when assembled to worship God. If they had wisdom, they could see the result of their own unchristlike course; but blinded with self-importance, they do not discern their weakness, and manifest to all that they cannot be trusted. These will go through the world doing but very little good, boisterous, and obtrusive, pushing themselves to the front, and thus by the want of wisdom misrepresent in every way the religion of Jesus Christ. They, in the place of bringing people to Christ, disgust them, and turn them away from the truth, so that souls are lost.“But if ye have bitter envying and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth.” If I should say these words of myself, how many would say, “Sister White has a hard spirit, she does not understand me.” But God understands you, and He plainly declares that if you have envying and strife, you need not glory, calling it a Christian boldness, for it is not of God but of the devil. Though you may profess to believe the truth, and your judgment assents to it, yet if you have not the truth as it is in Jesus, you cannot properly present it. Your very words and appearance will show that you have not brought the truth into your life, and woven it into your character, but tied the truth on to the tree that bears thorn-berries.“This wisdom descendeth not from above ... But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle and [mark the fruits here stated] easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy.” Are there any of the church who are not easy to be entreated, who will argue for their own way, who will in self-confidence hold to their own ideas, and will not give them up, but will talk as though they were the only ones whose ways were perfect and unquestionable,—these are not easily entreated because they are not converted. They are not divested of self. They are full of self-esteem, and are sure to disgust unbelievers with their words and ways, by talking the objectionable features of our faith, in all proud boasting, and self-confidence. “By their fruits ye shall known them.” “And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace.”In the small meetings of our people there is danger of killing the interest by imprudence. Let there be no long prayers. Have your long prayers for the closet. Let not your prayers be all over the world. Pray right to the point, for the blessing of God upon yourselves and upon those assembled then and there. When you pray alone in your closet, then lay before God all the burden of your heart; but in the assembly, such prayers are all out of place; they kill the interest, and make the meetings tedious. Look at the example of prayer given by Christ to His disciples. How brief, how comprehensive that prayer. When approaching God, pray briefly and in ...
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    7 m
  • Prayer and Faith by Ellen G. White (1891)

    Prayer and Faith by Ellen G. White (1891)
    May 18 2025
    “Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months. And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit.” Important lessons are presented to us in the experience of Elijah. When upon Mount Carmel he offered the prayer for rain, his faith was tested, but he persevered in making known his request unto God. Six times he prayed earnestly, and yet there was no sign that his petition was granted, but with strong faith he urged his plea to the throne of grace. Had he given up in discouragement at the sixth time, his prayer would not have been answered, but he persevered till the answer came. We have a God whose ear is not closed to our petitions; and if we prove his word, he will honor our faith. He wants us to have all our interests interwoven with his interests, and then he can safely bless us; for we shall not then take glory to self when the blessing is ours, but shall render all the praise to God. God does not always answer our prayers the first time we call upon him; for should he do this, we might take it for granted that we had a right to all the blessings and favors he bestowed upon us. Instead of searching our hearts to see if any evil was entertained by us, any sin indulged, we would become careless, and fail to realize our dependence upon him, and our need of his help.Elijah humbled himself until he was in a condition where he would not take the glory to himself. This is the condition upon which the Lord hears prayer, for then we shall give the praise to him. The custom of offering praise to men is one that results in great evil. One praises another, and thus men are led to feel that glory and honor belong to them. They begin to feel as did Nebuchadnezzar when he walked around the palaces of his kingdom, exclaiming, “Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honor of my majesty?” God had warned the king of his danger in thus taking the glory to himself, but he did not heed the warning, and God sent his threatened judgment upon him, and Nebuchadnezzar was humbled. After he had learned his lesson, and had given honor to God, he was restored to his kingly state and power. Giving praise to men lifts them up in their own estimation, and they forget that their ability is of God, an intrusted capital put in their charge to be used for the glory of the Giver. Men are tested in the use of this earthly capital to see if they may be intrusted with the heavenly riches. When we are in a right condition before God, we shall realize that a great sacrifice has been made in our behalf, and we shall see our own human frailty and weakness, and offer praise to God, instead of to man. All the praise belongs to God. When great men are called upon to speak, it is too often the case that their words do not carry with them a solemn weight of conviction; for much of their address is given to win the applause of the people. They render praise to men, and fail to realize that all power and ability are from God, to whom all the glory belongs. When you exalt man, you lay a snare for his soul, and do just as Satan would have you. You should praise God with all your heart, soul, might, mind, and strength; for God alone is worthy to be glorified. If we should realize that our salvation cost the infinite price of the life of the Son of God, we should have more humble views of self. Our Saviour knew that there was no hope of redemption for us except through him, and he came to the world to be wounded for our transgression, to be bruised for our iniquities, to bear our chastisement, that through his stripes we might be healed.In order to exalt the Lord as we should, we must have genuine faith, that will lead us to render obedience to the law of God. There are many who claim to have faith in God, but it is a faith that does not work, and the apostle says, “Faith without works is dead.” It is of like character with the faith possessed by the evil angels, for they “believe and tremble.” We must have the faith of the Bible,—the faith that works by love, and purifies the soul.How are we to know that we have faith in God, that we are his children and have love for him? Is it by our profession? I once visited at the home of a minister who prided himself on his family government. His children made great outward demonstrations of affection, but when he asked them to do some errand for him, or perform some task, they paid no attention to his wants, and did not regard his request. I asked him how he could think that his children really loved him, when they paid no attention to his desires. He replied that he knew they loved him, because they showed such fondness for him; they clung to his neck and kissed him, and seemed eager to manifest their love. But without obedience, all outward profession of ...
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    10 m
  • Tests of Christian Character by Ellen G. White (1883)

    Tests of Christian Character by Ellen G. White (1883)
    May 17 2025
    “He that saith he abideth in Him, ought himself so to walk, even as He walked.” “And if any man have not the spirit of Christ, he is none of his.” Conformity to Jesus will not be unobserved by the world. It is a subject of notice and comment. Yet the Christian may not be conscious of the great change; for the more closely he resembles Christ in character, the more humble will be his opinion of himself. Those who have the deepest experience in the things of God, are the farthest removed from pride or self-exaltation. They have the humblest thoughts of self, and the most exalted conceptions of the glory and excellence of Christ. They feel that the lowest place in his service is too honorable for them.Moses did not know that his face shone with a brightness painful and terrifying to those who had not, like himself, communed with God. Paul had a very humble opinion of his own advancement in the Christian life. He says, “Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect.” He speaks of himself as the “chief of sinners.” Yet Paul had been highly honored of the Lord. He had been taken, in holy vision, to the third heaven, and had there received revelations of divine glory which he could not be permitted to make known.John the Baptist was pronounced by our Saviour the greatest of prophets. Yet what a contrast between the language of this man of God and that of many who profess to be ministers of the cross. When asked if he was the Christ, John declares himself unworthy even to unloose his Master’s sandals. When his disciples came with the complaint that the attention of the people was turned to the new Teacher, John reminded them that he himself had claimed to be only the forerunner of the Promised One. To Christ, as the bridegroom, belongs the first place in the affections of his people. “The friend of the bridegroom, that standeth and heareth him, rejoiceth because of the bridegroom’s voice. This my joy, therefore, is fulfilled. He must increase, but I must decrease. He that cometh from above is above all.” “He that hath received His testimony, hath set to his seal that God is true.”It is such workers that are needed in the cause of God today. The self-sufficient, the envious and jealous, the critical and fault-finding, can well be spared from his sacred work. God is not straitened for men or means. He calls for workers who are true and faithful, pure and holy; for those who have felt their need of the atoning blood of Christ and the sanctifying grace of his Spirit.When we see those who profess the faith firm in principle, fearless in duty, zealous in the cause of God, yet humble and lowly, gentle and tender, patient toward all, ready to forgive, manifesting love for souls for whom Christ died, we do not need to inquire, Are they Christians? They give unmistakable evidence that they have been with Jesus and learned of him. When men reveal the opposite traits, when they are proud, vain, frivolous, worldly-minded, avaricious, unkind, censorious, we need not be told with whom they are associating, who is their most intimate friend. They may not believe in witchcraft, but notwithstanding this, they are holding communion with an evil spirit.To this class I would say, “Glory not, and lie not against the truth. This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish. For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work. But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be entreated; full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy. And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace.”When the Pharisees and Sadducees flocked to the baptism of John, that fearless preacher of righteousness addressed them, “O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance.” These men were actuated by unworthy motives in coming to John. They were men of poisonous principles and corrupt practices. Yet they had no sense of their true condition. Filled with pride and ambition, they would not hesitate at any means to exalt themselves and strengthen their influence with the people. They came to receive baptism at the hand of John that they might better carry out these designs.John read their motives, and met them with the searching inquiry, “Who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?” Had they heard the voice of God speaking to their hearts, they would have given evidence of the fact, by bringing forth fruits meet for repentance. No such fruit was seen. They had heard the warning as merely the voice of man. They were charmed with the power and boldness with which John spoke; but the Spirit of God did not send conviction to their hearts, and as the sure result bring forth fruit unto eternal life. They gave no evidence of a change of heart. Without the transforming power of the Holy Spirit, John would ...
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    16 m
  • A Dream by Ellen G. White (1869)

    A Dream by Ellen G. White (1869)
    May 16 2025
    While at Battle Creek, about five months since, I dreamed of being with a large body of people. A portion of this assembly started out prepared to journey. We had heavily-loaded wagons. As we journeyed, the road seemed to ascend. On one side of this road was a deep precipice. On the other side was a high, white, smooth wall, like the hard finish upon plastered rooms.As we journeyed on, the road grew narrower and steeper. Some places in the road seemed very narrow, so much so that we concluded that we could travel no longer with the loaded wagons. We then loosed them from the horses, and took a portion of the luggage from the wagons and placed it upon the horses, and journeyed on horseback.As we progressed, the path still continued to grow narrow. We were obliged to press close to the wall, in order to save ourselves from falling off the narrow road, down the deep precipice. In doing this, the luggage on the horses pressed against the wall, and caused us to sway toward the precipice. We feared that we should fall, and be dashed in pieces on the rocks.We then cut the luggage from the horses, which fell over the precipice. We continued, on horseback, greatly fearing as we came to the narrower places in the road, that we should lose our balance, and fall. At such times, a hand seemed to take the bridle and guide us over the perilous way. As the path grew more narrow, we decided that we could go no longer on horseback with safety, and we left the horses and went on foot, in single file, one following in the footsteps of another.At this point, small cords were let down from the top of the pure white wall, which we eagerly grasped, to aid us in keeping our balance upon the path. As we traveled, the cord moved along with us. The path finally became so narrow that we concluded that we could travel more safely without our shoes; so we slipped them from our feet, and went on some distance without them. Soon it was decided that we could travel more safely without our stockings; these were removed, and we journeyed on with bare feet.We then thought of those who had not accustomed themselves to privations and hardships. Where were such now? They were not in the company. At every change, some were left behind, and those only remained who had accustomed themselves to endure hardships. The privations of the way only made these more eager to press on to the end. Our danger of falling from the pathway increased. We pressed close to the white wall, yet could not place our feet fully upon the path, for it was too narrow.We then suspended nearly our whole weight upon the cords, and would exclaim, “We have hold from above! We have hold from above!” The same words were uttered by all the company in the narrow pathway. As we heard the sounds of revelry and mirth that seemed to come from the abyss below, we shuddered. We heard the profane oath, the vulgar jest, and low, vile songs. We heard the war songs and the dance songs. We heard instrumental music, and the loud laugh, mingled with cursing and cries of anguish and bitter wailing, and were more anxious than ever to keep upon the narrow, difficult pathway.Much of the time we were compelled to suspend our whole weight upon the cords. And these increased in size as we progressed.I noticed that the beautiful white wall was stained with blood. It caused a feeling of regret to see the wall thus stained. This feeling, however, lasted but for a moment, as I soon thought that it was all as it should be. Those who are following after will know that others have passed the narrow, difficult way before them, and will conclude that if others were able to pursue their onward course, they can do the same. And as the blood should be pressed from their aching feet, they would not faint with discouragement; but, seeing the blood upon the wall, they would know that others had endured the same pain.At length we came to a large chasm at which our path ended. There was nothing now to guide the feet, nothing upon which to rest them. Our whole reliance must be upon the cords, which had increased in size, until they were as large as our bodies. Here we were for a time thrown into perplexity and distress. We inquired in fearful whispers, “To what is the cord attached?”My husband was just before me. The large drops of sweat were falling from his brow. The veins in his neck and temples were increased to double their usual size, and suppressed, agonizing groans came from his lips. The sweat was dropping from my face, and I felt such anguish as I had never felt before. A fearful struggle was before us. If we failed here, all the difficulties of our journey had been experienced for naught. Before us, on the other side of the chasm, was a beautiful field of green grass, about six inches high. I could not see the sun, but bright, soft beams of light, resembling fine gold and silver, were resting on this field. Nothing I had seen upon earth could compare in beauty and glory with this field.But could ...
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    7 m
  • Labor as a Blessing by Ellen G. White (1876)

    Labor as a Blessing by Ellen G. White (1876)
    May 15 2025
    Many look upon work as a curse, originating with the enemy of souls. This is a mistaken idea. God gave labor to man as a blessing, to occupy his mind, to strengthen his body, and to develop his faculties. Adam toiled in the garden of Eden, and felt it to be one of the pleasures of his holy existence to do so. Later, when he was driven from his beautiful home, as the result of his disobedience, and was forced to struggle with a stubborn soil to gain his daily bread, that very labor, although far different from his pleasant occupation in the garden, was a relief to his sorrowing soul, a protection against temptation.Judicious labor is a healthful tonic for the human race. It makes the feeble strong, the timid brave, the poor rich, and the wretched happy. Our varied trusts are proportioned to our various abilities. Every man will be rewarded of God according to his individual capacity. He expects corresponding returns for the talents he has given to his servants. It is not the greatness of the talents possessed that determines the reward, but the manner in which they are used, the degree of faithfulness with which the duties of life have been performed, be they great or small. Where much is given much will be required.Whoever does his work conscientiously and well, whether in the shop, the field, or the pulpit, will be rewarded according to the spirit in which he has worked.Idleness is the greatest curse that can fall upon man; for vice and crime follow in its train. Satan lies in ambush, ready to surprise and destroy those who are unguarded, whose leisure gives him opportunity to insinuate himself into their favor under some attractive disguise. He is never more successful than when he comes to men in their idle hours.The greatest curse following in the train of wealth is the fashionable idea that work is degrading. “Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom, pride, fullness of bread, and abundance of idleness was in her, and in her daughters, neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy.” Ezekiel 16:49. Here is presented before us the terrible results of idleness, which enfeebles the mind, debases the soul, and perverts the understanding, turning into a curse that which was given as a blessing.God designed that all should be workers, and upon those whose opportunities and abilities are greatest rests the heaviest responsibilities. The patient beasts of burden deserve more commendation than the indolent do-nothing who does not improve his physical and mental powers, refusing to do the tasks which God has set for his accomplishment.The indolence of the many occasions the overwork of the few earnest and devoted laborers. These are failing for want of recreation, sinking beneath the double burdens they are bearing. Their graves are way-marks along the upward paths of reform. This is because they are allowed to do the work of others in addition to their own. A large class refuse to think and act for themselves; they have no disposition to step out of the old ruts of prejudice and error; they block up the way of advancement with their indolence and perversity, and force the standard-bearers of the right to more heroic efforts in their march forward.The glory and joy of life is found only by the working man and woman. Labor brings its own reward, and the rest is sweet that is purchased by the fatigue of a well-spent day. But there is a self-imposed toil, utterly unsatisfying and injurious. It is that which gratifies unsanctified ambition, which seeks display or notoriety. The love of appearance or possession leads people to carry to excess what is lawful, to devote the entire strength of body and mind to that which should occupy but a small portion of their time. They bend every energy to the acquisition of wealth or honor; they make all other objects secondary to this; they toil unflinchingly for years to accomplish their purpose; yet when the goal is reached, the coveted reward secured, it turns to ashes in their grasp; it is a shadow, a delusion. They have given their lives for that which profiteth not.Yet all the lawful pursuits of life may be safely followed if the spirit is kept free from selfish hopes and the contamination of deceit and envy. The business life of the Christian should be marked with the same purity that held sway in the workshop of the holy Nazarene. It is the working men and women who see something great and good in life, those who are willing to bear its responsibilities with faith and hope.Patient laborers, remember they were sturdy working-men whom Christ chose from among the fishermen of Galilee and the tent-makers of Corinth, to labor with him in the work of salvation. From these humble men went forth a power that will be felt through all eternity.The angels are workers; they are ministers of God to the children of men. Those slothful spirits who look forward to a Heaven of inaction will be disappointed, for the economy of the Creator prepares no such place...
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