Position and Responsibility

Those who occupy positions of trust in the work of God should ever bear in mind that these positions involve great responsibility. The right performance of the solemn work for this time and the salvation of the souls connected with us in any way depend in a great degree upon our own spiritual condition. All should cultivate a vivid sense of their responsibility; for their own present well-being and their eternal destiny will be decided by the spirit they cherish. If self is woven into the work, it is as the offering of strange fire in the place of the sacred. Such workers incur the displeasure of the Lord. Brethren, remove your hands from the work, unless you can distinguish the sacred fire from the common.TM 260.1

Those who have stood as representative men are not all Christian gentlemen. There is prevalent a spirit that seeks the mastery over others. Men regard themselves as authority, they express their opinions and pass resolutions about matters of which they have no experimental knowledge. Some who are connected with the publishing house at ----- pass through the office, speaking with different ones, giving directions which they suppose it proper for them to give, when they do not understand what they are talking about.TM 260.2