Home Missionary Work
NP
August 18, 1894
Formerly Undated Ms 34. This manuscript is published in entirety in RH 01/08/1895, 01/15/1895, 01/22/1895.
Those who love Christ will be imbued with the Holy Spirit, and whether they be at home or afar off, they will do missionary work. It is essential to devise plans, to advance money for the progress of the cause of God, but even more than this is required. Personal effort must be put forth to interest souls in the church, to attract the children and the youth. Missionaries should visit families and become acquainted with every member of the home circle, so working that they shall do their best to awaken an interest in every one to love the truth. This kind of work will not be in vain, but will leave results that will be as lasting as eternity. This is true home missionary work. 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 1
At present there is not the interest that should be manifested toward those for whom Christ died. The youth are passed by, and because no one seems to have an interest in them, they become reckless and irreligious. Those who love God ought to feed both the sheep and the lambs. They are God’s agents to do this very work. With busy hands, with sensitive hearts, with tongues that are as a pen of a ready writer, they are to win the unconcerned and unbelieving, and inspire their brethren and sisters with a missionary spirit. They are not to say, “Go on,” but “come on.” 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 2
As yet not one hundredth part of the efforts that should be made have been made in our large cities to diffuse the light of truth, yet the Lord holds the church accountable for the souls of those who are in darkness, who have not yet heard the warning message. There is altogether too much self-indulgence, too much investing of money in houses, in adornments, in picture taking, in buying unnecessary things for display; and souls are perishing out of Christ. Men, women, and youth, according to their capacity, should be engaged in some part of the Lord’s vineyard. Now is our time and opportunity. We are now in the midst of our God-given probation in which we are to develop character after Christ’s order. 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 3
A mere profession of faith does not make us Christians. The vital question is, Have we the mind of Christ? Our heavenly Father gave Christ to our world as a sin-bearer in order that not one who should believe in Him should perish, but have everlasting life. Having made so priceless a donation to men, will He not with Christ freely give us all things? In the gift of His Son, all heaven was opened up that its priceless treasures might enrich the men and women of faith. The love of God has been revealed to the hearts of believers that they should diffuse the light of heaven and not spend their time and money investing in and cultivating lands, and in taking pleasure in the things which their imaginations might picture as desirable, as did the inhabitants of the Noachic world. 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 4
Let every believer act his faith, and thus give a testimony to the unbelieving world that he does believe that the end of all things is at hand. “Ye are my witnesses, saith the Lord.” [Isaiah 43:10.] Self is not to figure so largely in the plans of those who claim to believe the truth. The truth for this time is a testing truth which should stimulate the mind, purify the soul, and sanctify the desires. Its reality should be demonstrated in saving those who are perishing out of Christ. God’s work is to be done in His way and in His Spirit. 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 5
In various places small companies are to consecrate themselves to God, body, soul, and spirit; and laying hold of the throne of God by faith, they are to work zealously, keeping their souls in the love of God. The vital current of His love will make itself felt, and will be recognized as from heaven in the good works of His people. These little companies, who know the truth, with one voice should bid their minister to go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Each one should seek to do individual work in the home, in the family, one for another. Not one who has tasted the goodness, the mercy, and the love of God can be excused from working for the souls of others. 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 6
What a large amount of the talents that God has given to His people are now bound up and buried in the earth in selfish worldly interests! But let every spiritually slothful man, woman, or youth who is not employing his talents by putting them out to the exchangers, remember that he will lose the precious treasures, God’s gifts to him, if he does not put them to use. Talents that are not improved [by men] will be taken from them and given to those who will make use of the heaven-intrusted capability. The people of God should realize the fact that God has not given them talents to be used almost entirely for the purpose of enriching themselves with earthly goods, but in order that they may lay up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come, that they may lay hold or come into possession of eternal life. 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 7
Let the churches say to those who preach the Word, “Go into the cities and villages, and preach the warning message. You are God’s watchmen on the walls of Zion, and however much we should be gratified to have your labors, we shall not hold you with us. We shall draw for ourselves from the treasure house of heaven by living faith. We shall not take upon ourselves the work of sermonizing—this cannot help the church—but we will fear God and serve Him, and speak often one to another. Not one of us will be guilty of seeking the supremacy, or [of] cherishing a burning zeal for speechifying; but in all humility of mind we will speak often one to another of our individual experiences in our daily life, and will present the precious things we have found in the Word of God by digging as for hid treasure. We will work in simplicity, and will pray much, that our prayers as sharp sickles may follow God’s delegated sowers and reapers in the harvest.” 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 8
In this kind of work the church will flourish in the Lord. They will have a growing experience in learning how to work and how to honor God with their self-denial and their gifts and offerings. They will learn how to help those who are weak and lame and deficient. By being witnesses for Christ, by their example in the faithful discharge of every duty, making manifest the fact that they are good servants, serving the Lord in singleness of heart, they will reveal to all that they are living out the truth which they profess to believe. In letting their light shine in the home missionary work, they will accomplish great results. Their earnest zeal will encourage the messenger for God as he labors for the conversion of sinners, proclaiming to the unbelieving the message of warning, and bidding men, women, youth, and children to escape from the wrath of God that is coming upon all who do not love and obey the truth. 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 9
Will not the large and small churches awake to their God-given responsibilities? Will they not love God in deed and in truth, and their fellow men as themselves? Will they not open the door of their hearts to Jesus, that He may come in and abide with them, and as a heavenly Guest accompany them wherever they shall go, that they may introduce Him to others? Shall not the people of God show forth the praises of Him who hath called them out of darkness into His marvelous light? To be a child of God means to be perfectly obedient to His words, to learn of Christ, and to teach others that which you have been taught. To be a child of God means to be constantly receiving grace, and constantly imparting it to others. You will then understand what these words mean: He giveth “grace for grace.” [John 1:16.] 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 10
The young man who came to Jesus asked what he should do that he might inherit eternal life. Jesus told him to keep the commandments, and enumerated several of the precepts of the law. The young man said, “All these have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet?” [Matthew 19:16-20.] The first four commandments enjoin upon man the duty of loving God supremely and the last six present the requirement of loving our neighbors as ourselves. How many are truly, sincerely, and wholeheartedly doing this? The Lord is coming in a little while, and are we performing the duties that result from righteousness? Love is the basis of godliness. 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 11
No man has love to God, no matter what his profession may be, unless he has unselfish love for his brother. As we love God because He first loved us, we shall love all for whom Christ died. We shall not feel like letting the soul who is in the greatest peril, and in the greatest need, go unwarned, unlabored for, and uncared for. We shall not feel like holding the erring off, and being critical and exacting, or letting them alone to plunge into further unhappiness and discouragement, and to fall on Satan’s battleground, for God will deal with us as He deals with our brethren or the younger members of the Lord’s family. 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 12
Cultivate tenderness of heart; surround yourselves in your home life with the atmosphere of love. The spirit that has largely pervaded the church is an offense to God. Everyone who has been free to condemn, to dishearten, and to discourage, who has failed to give tender kindness, sympathy, and compassion to the tempted and tried, will in his own experience be brought over the ground which others have passed over and suffered with their hardheartedness, and will feel what others have suffered because of his want of sympathy, until he shall abhor his hardness of heart and open the door for Jesus to come in. 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 13
The converting power of God must come to every soul who has any connection with the work and cause of God, that each one may be filled with the love and compassion of Christ, or many will never see the kingdom of heaven. The mutual admiration that is manifested among special friends will not abide the test of trial, for it is not of a holy character. When Christ abides in the soul, He will be revealed in the uplifting of those who most need uplifting. Our neighbor is every person who needs our help. Our neighbor is every soul who is wounded and bruised by the adversary. Our neighbor is every one who is the property of God. We have not seen the good Samaritan largely represented in our churches, or in our offices of publication. We have not seen the men who are reckoned to be God-fearing, manifesting tender compassion for needy souls that are straying away from Christ. Many who claim to have been God’s servants have been indifferent, unfeeling, and hard of heart. Oh that all who claim to be serving God would be baptized with the tenderness, the compassion, of Christ, in order that they may feel for those who need words of love and acts of compassion! 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 14
The people of God who profess to be keeping His commandments are but a few in comparison to those whom the world loves and honors. Those who obey the teachings of Christ must bear the cross and know what self-renunciation means. Those who have a true Christian experience with Sabbathkeepers should be the better for their association, for if they live out the commandments of God, they are representatives of the Father and the Son. 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 15
Many of those who have filled responsible positions of trust in the Review and Herald office have failed to practice the keeping of the commandments of God. They have not been particular to keep holy the Sabbath day which God has sanctified and blessed. The very ones they could have helped, they have passed by, as the priest and the Levite passed by the wounded and bruised stranger who had been left to die by the wayside. The very ones who needed the power of the divine Healer to cure their wounds have been left uncared for and unnoticed. Many have acted as though it were enough to know that Satan had his trap all set for a soul, and they could go home, and rest, and be at ease, and care no more for the one lost sheep. In manifesting such a spirit, it is evident that we have not been partakers of the divine nature, but partakers of the attributes of the enemy of God. This is how the Lord regards it. “He that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad.” [Matthew 12:30.] Jesus said, “Whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them.” [Matthew 7:12.] 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 16
To practice the principles of love which Christ taught by precept and example will make the experience of every one who follows Him like the experience of Christ. Such souls will labor in Christ’s lines, seeking to uplift and bless their fellow men. If we desire healthfulness of soul, a sunshiny experience, we must put into practice the rules given us in the 58th chapter of Isaiah. When those who are connected with the sacred work of God in all our institutions shall open the door of their hearts, Jesus will come in. For a long time He has been knocking for an entrance. When He is permitted to enter, the sunshine of His righteousness will pervade the soul; but “he that loveth silver shall not be satisfied with silver, nor he that loveth abundance with increase.” [Ecclesiastes 5:10.] 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 17
Souls are perishing out of Christ. I inquire, Who are earnestly making personal efforts to seek the straying ones? Who will seek to roll back every reproach from the sacred truth of God? The voice of Christ is heard giving the invitation, “Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” [Matthew 11:28.] Shall we, who claim to know by experience what is the blessing to be obtained in coming to Christ, lead others to Jesus? Shall anyone who professes to love God, and to love the truth, be cold, unsympathetic, and hardhearted toward those who stumble, toward those who err, and fail to give them a helping hand when they need help? By their neglect of the erring, by their unsympathetic words and indifferent deportment, some show themselves to be of that class who pass by on the other side. Some pour out words of gall and bitterness in censure, in reproach to the erring, and it is like pouring vitriol into an open wound, instead of pouring in the healing oil. 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 18
Oh, let us be witnesses for Christ, testifying to the power of His grace by representing Him in character! We are to work along Christ’s lines, and if we fail to do this, our experience will be marred, and our character will be defective. We are to be continually laboring together with Christ, seeking to turn the darkness of benighted souls into day. By our words, by our actions, we are to let heaven’s light shine upon them, and do nothing that will cut off one ray of the light of Christ, who is the light that lighteth every man that cometh into the world. 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 19
Many professed Christians have interposed themselves between Christ, the Sun of Righteousness, and the world. In place of diffusing light, peace, hope, and comfort, they diffuse darkness, discouragement, and hopelessness. Every poor, tried soul needs light, needs tender, sympathizing, hopeful words. Every widow needs the comfort of helpful and encouraging words that others can bestow. 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 20
Orphans who are lent to Christians in trust for God are too often passed by and neglected, and yet they are bought with a price, and are just as valuable in the sight of God as we are. They may be ragged, uncouth, rough, destitute, cold, and hungry; yet as God’s property, Christians should have a lively interest in them. They are members of the household of God, for whom Christians are responsible. “Their souls,” saith God, “will I require at thine hands.” [Ezekiel 3:18.] They must be cared for, they must receive special attention. You cannot expend your means in a better way than by opening your doors to make homes for them. When the Lord sees that you are faithful in doing what you can to relieve human misery, He will move upon others to provide means to care for those who need help. Those who enlarge their hearts in this kind of work do no more than their duty. 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 21
Christ is our Example. He was the Majesty of heaven, yet He did more for our fellow men than any of us can possibly do. “Ye are laborers together with God.” [1 Corinthians 3:9.] Let not one needless expenditure be made for the gratification of pride and vanity. Put your mites and your larger sums in the bank of heaven, where they will accumulate. Many who have had precious opportunities to wear the yoke of Christ in this most precious line of work have refused to submit to the yoke. It has not been pleasant to practice unselfishness, and they have neglected to make the cases of the poor and unfortunate their own. They do not heed the injunctions of Christ, and improve every talent that the Lord has given them, cooperating with heavenly intelligences in gathering souls who will serve, honor, and glorify the name of Christ. 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 22
There is a large work to be done in our world, and as we approach the close of earth’s history it does not lessen in the least degree; but when the perfect love of God is in the heart, wonderful things will be done. Christ will be in the heart of the believer as a well of water springing up unto everlasting life. But those who manifest indifference to the suffering ones of humanity will be charged with indifference to Jesus Christ in the person of His suffering saints. Nothing saps spirituality from the soul more quickly than to enclose it in selfishness and self-caring. Those who indulge self and neglect to care for the souls and bodies of those for whom Christ has given His life are not eating of the bread of life, nor drinking of the water of the well of salvation. They are dry and sapless, like a tree that bears no fruit. They are spiritual dwarfs, who consume their means on self; but “whatsoever a man soweth that shall he also reap.” [Galatians 6:7.] 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 23
Christian principles will always be made visible. In a thousand ways the inward principles will be made manifest. Christ abiding in the soul is as a well that never runs dry. Where He abides there will be an overflowing of beneficence. There will be acts of love for the needy, and provision will be made for the destitute. “But this I say, he which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully. Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work (as it is written, he hath dispersed abroad; he hath given to the poor: his righteousness remaineth forever. Now he that ministereth seed to the sower both minister bread for your food, and multiply your seed sown, and increase the fruits of your righteousness); being enriched in every thing to all bountifulness, which causeth through us (the living human agency) thanksgiving to God.” [2 Corinthians 9:6-11.] 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 24
How many, through selfish plans, rob God of the praise and the thanksgiving due to His holy name, because they would hold the goods lent them in trust and fail to relieve the necessities of their brethren who are in poverty and distress. They do not break the yoke of oppression. Many rob God in tithes and in offerings, so that there is no meat in the house of God. The Lord says of them, They have “gone away from mine ordinances, and have not kept them.” [Malachi 3:7.] 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 25
Listen to the voice of God, speaking to every church, to every family, to every individual: “Return unto me, and I will return unto you, saith the Lord of hosts. But ye said, Wherein shall we return? Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse; for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation.” [Verses 7-9.] 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 26
How many are in the position where they are professing to serve God, but are diligently serving themselves and dishonoring the God whose representatives they claim to be? They say, “I do not see that it is my duty to give to the Lord a certain portion of all my income, and I do not feel condemned in not giving it.” Wherein have we robbed God? The Lord answers through His servant the prophet. Listen to His words which you must meet in the judgment. You will have to meet with a revelation of the good you might have done in acts of charity, in giving back to God all that He claimed. 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 27
Open your hearts that you may be impressed with the words of the Lord: “Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse; for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation. Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it. And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the Lord of hosts. And all nations shall call you blessed; for ye shall be a delightsome land, saith the Lord of hosts.” [Verses 8-12.] 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 28
It is a serious thing to embezzle the Lord’s goods, to practice robbery toward God, for in so doing the perceptions become perverted and the heart hardened. How barren is the religious experience, how clouded is the understanding, of one who loves not God with pure, unselfish love, and who fails, therefore, to love his neighbor as himself. Though precious opportunities are often presented, he does not accept the opportunity, and refuses to wear the yoke of Christ, to be a laborer together with God. Those who follow their selfish, natural inclination, do not make their hearts an abiding place for Christ. They fail to bless others with means that God has lent to them in trust, in order that they may be His almoners; and instead of dispensing it to the poor, like the slothful servant they bury it in lands or in stocks, or give it to their relations, and the Lord receives neither interest nor principal. 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 29
The last great day will reveal to them and to the whole universe what good might have been done had they not followed their selfish inclinations, and thus robbed God in tithes and offerings. They might have placed their treasure in the bank of heaven, and preserved it in bags that wax not old; but instead of this, they expended it upon themselves and [their] children, and seemed to feel afraid that the Lord would get any of their money or their influence, and thus they met with eternal loss. Let them contemplate the consequence of withholding from God. The slothful servant, who put not out his Lord’s money to usury, loses an eternal inheritance in the kingdom of glory. 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 30
The Lord says, “Return unto me, and I will return unto you.” [Verse 7.] Do not, like the slothful servant, ask, Wherein have I return? Wherein have I robbed thee? God has laid out the truth plain and clear before every one who has embezzled his Lord’s goods. God is in earnest with us. We make desperate efforts to accumulate money, and there may be flattering appearances of our success, but God says, “I will blow upon it, I will scatter their substance as the wind scattereth the chaff.” [See Haggai 1:9.] 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 31
Those who believe in Christ as a personal Saviour will grow in healthful experience, because they fulfill the conditions laid down in the 58th chapter of Isaiah. The Lord says, “Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke? Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh? Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily: and thy righteousness shall go before thee (the Lord my Righteousness); and the glory of the Lord shall be they rereward.” [Verses 6-8.] 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 32
Consider these words, ye complaining, downcast, discontented, homesick souls. Here is the prescription that the prophet Isaiah [was] commanded of the Lord to present to you for the healing of the spiritual and bodily maladies. “Then shalt thou call, and the Lord shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am.” [Verse 9.] I am “thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.” [Isaiah 41:14.] “If thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke, the putting forth of the finger, and speaking vanity;” (not exalting yourself, not thinking yourself very wise and prudent, while censuring and oppressing those who meet with trials and misfortunes; not grieving others by unfeeling, reproachful words and actions); “And if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noonday.” Oh, how many souls are starving for words of tenderness, for words of brotherly kindness, for words of hope, of faith, of forgiveness, of Christlike love, that will not quench the last spark of hope. “And the Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not.” [Isaiah 58:9-11.] 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 33
Let us consider that all these rich blessings are for those who keep the commandments of God. What more can we desire? What richer reward can we ask? “And they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in. If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honorable; and shalt honor him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words: then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.” Isaiah 58:12-14. 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 34
“I will mention the lovingkindnesses of the Lord, and the praises of the Lord, according to all that the Lord hath bestowed on us, and the great goodness toward the house of Israel, which he hath bestowed on them according to his mercies, and according to the multitude of his lovingkindnesses. For he said, Surely they are my people, children that will not lie: so he was their Saviour. In all their affliction he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them: in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; and he bare them, and carried them all the days of old.” Isaiah 63:7-9. 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 35
“Go through, go through the gates; prepare ye the way of the people; cast up, cast up the highway; gather out the stones; lift up a standard for the people. Behold, the Lord hath proclaimed unto the end of the world, Say ye to the daughter of Zion, Behold, thy salvation cometh; behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him. And they shall call them, The holy people, The redeemed of the Lord: and thou shalt be called, Sought out, A city not forsaken.” Isaiah 62:10-12. 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 36
The Lord Jesus has come to our world to seek and to save that which was lost. He said, “I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” [Mark 2:17.] “God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” [John 3:16.] How earnestly we should believe in Christ as our personal Saviour, cultivating an intense desire to use every God-given faculty, every God-intrusted capability of means and influence to present a crucified and risen Saviour to those who are in darkness. What a pity it is that so many professed Christians are infatuated and deluded with the flattering prospect of becoming rich, in order to make a display and to glorify self before the world! 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 37
Let every follower of Christ become a living epistle, known and read of all men. Where Christ abides in the heart there will be deep yearnings of soul for the salvation of those who do not believe in Him. Let Christians reveal to every son and daughter of Adam the fact that they are more anxious to practice the good works of Christ in this world, and to be numbered as God’s chosen ones, than to be seeking for riches. Let your words and your example be a continual sermon, making manifest the fact that you are laying up your treasure above, that your life is hid with Christ in God, and that it is your hope to appear with Christ, who is your life, when He shall appear in glory. 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 38
“Whosoever will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.” [James 4:4.] Let this be your theme for both precept and example, for conformity to the world and harmony with Christ cannot be maintained. Worldly maxims and worldly practices sap spirituality from heart and life. Conformity to the world means resemblance to the world in meeting the world’s standard. But how dwelleth the love of God in the soul of him who assimilates to the world? No man can serve the world and Jesus Christ at the same time. There is an irreconcilable antagonism between Christ and the world. Every one who loves Jesus has a solemn work to do for the world, for “ye are laborers together with God.” [1 Corinthians 3:9.] 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 39
Christ sought to save the world, not by conformity to it, but by revealing to the world the transforming power of the grace of God to mold and fashion the human character after the likeness of the character of Christ. To go over to the world in our practices will not influence the world to change its principles and practices. With an eye single to the glory of God, we are to live above the world, and yet in every way we are to seek to let the heavenly light shine forth in Christlike actions, and thus exert a powerful influence to save sinners. The moment a professed Christian goes over the line, and follows the fashions of the world, he becomes an idolater, and a stumbling block to sinners. You can draw the world with you only as you wear Christ’s yoke; but you can have no influence upon the world in lowering yourself to its low level. Remember, Christ gave Himself to save you, and you can do no less than give yourself to save souls for whom Christ died. 9LtMs, Ms 62, 1894, par. 40