The requirements of God are set plainly before us; the question to be settled is, Will we comply with them? Will we accept the condition laid down in his Word—separation from the world? This is not the work of a moment or of a day. It is not accomplished by bowing at the family altar and offering up lip-service, nor by public exhortation and prayer. It is a lifelong work. Our consecration to God must be a living principle, interwoven with the life, and leading to self-denial and self-sacrifice. It must underlie all our thoughts, and be the spring of every action. This will elevate us above the world, and separate us from its polluting influence.SW April 14, 1908, par. 1

As the truth is brought into practice in the life, the standard is to be elevated higher and higher, to meet the requirements of the Bible. This will necessitate opposition to the fashions, customs, practices, and maxims of the world. Worldly influences, like the waves of the sea, beat against the followers of Christ to sweep them away from the true principles of his meekness and grace; but we are to stand as firm as a rock to principle. It requires moral courage to do this, and those who are not firmly established on the Eternal Rock will be swept away by the worldly current. We can stand firm only as our life is hid with Christ in God.SW April 14, 1908, par. 2

All our actions are affected by our religious experience. If our experience is founded in God; if we are daily tasting the power of the world to come, and have the fellowship of the Spirit; if each day we hold with a firmer grasp the higher life, principles that are holy and elevating will be inwrought in us, and it will be as natural for us to seek purity and holiness and separation from the world, as it is for the angels of glory to execute the mission of love assigned them. Every one who enters the pearly gates of the city of God will be a doer of the Word. He will be a partaker of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.SW April 14, 1908, par. 3

Probation is about to close. In heaven the edict will soon go forth, “It is done.” “He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still. And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.” Soon the last prayer for sinners will have been offered, the last tear shed, the last warning given, the last entreaty made, and the sweet voice of mercy will be heard no more.SW April 14, 1908, par. 4

This is the reason why Satan is making such mighty efforts to secure men and women in his snare. He has come down with great power, knowing that his time is short. His special work is to secure professed Christians in his ranks, that through them he may allure and destroy souls. The enemy is playing the game of life for every soul. He is working to remove from us everything of a spiritual nature, and in the place of the precious graces of Christ to crowd our hearts with the evil traits of the carnal nature,—hatred, evil surmising, jealousy, love of the world, love of self, love of pleasure, and the pride of life. We need to be fortified against the incoming foe, who is working with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; for unless we are watching and prayerful, these evils will enter the heart, and crowd out all that is good.SW April 14, 1908, par. 5

Many who profess to believe the word of God do not seem to understand the deceptive working of the enemy. They do not realize that the end of time is near. It is so easy to drift into worldly methods and customs, and have no more thought of the time in which we live than had the people in Noah's day. But if men forget, Satan does not; and while men sleep, he works. Through his influence, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life control men and women. Satan is at work even among the people of God, to cause disunion. Selfishness, corruption, and evil of every kind are taking a firm hold upon hearts. With many the precious word of God is neglected. A novel or a story book engages the attention, and fascinates the mind. That which excites the imagination is eagerly devoured, while the word of God is set aside.SW April 14, 1908, par. 6

It was because they overlooked the word of God that the Jewish nation rejected Christ, demanding that a robber be granted them, and that the Prince of Life be crucified. And in these last days professed Christians are committing the same sin. They are weighed in the balances and are found wanting because they suffer their minds to be engrossed with things of little importance, while eternal truth is neglected. The truth of God, which would elevate and sanctify and refine, and fit men for the finishing touch of immortality, is set aside for things of minor importance.SW April 14, 1908, par. 7

I appeal to the churches: Stand out separate and distinct from the world,—in the world, but not of it, reflecting the bright beams of the Sun of Righteousness, being pure, holy, and undefiled, and by faith carrying light into all the highways and byways of the earth. O that all may arouse and manifest to the world that theirs is a living faith, that a vital issue is before the world, and soon Jesus will come. Let men see that we believe that we are on the borders of the eternal world.SW April 14, 1908, par. 8

April 7, 1908

April 28, 1908