Nature and revelation alike testify of God’s love.
It is transgression of God’s law—the law of love—that has brought
woe and death. Yet even amid the suffering that results from sin, God’s
love is revealed. "God is love" is written upon every opening
bud, upon every spire of springing grass.
Jesus came to live among men to reveal the infinite
love of God. Love, mercy, and compassion were revealed in every act of
His life; His heart went out in tender sympathy to the children of men.
He took man’s nature, that He might reach man’s wants. The poorest
and humblest were not afraid to approach Him. Such is the character of
Christ as revealed in His life. This is the character of God.
It was to redeem us that Jesus lived and suffered and
died. He became a "Man of Sorrows," that we might be made
partakers of everlasting joy. But this great sacrifice was not made in
order to create in the Father’s heart a love for man, nor make Him
willing to save. No, no! "God so loved the world, that He gave His
only-begotten Son." John 3:16. The Father loves us, not
because of the great propitiation, but He provided the propitiation
because He loves us. None but the Son of God could accomplish our
redemption.
What a value this places upon man! Through
transgression the sons of man become subjects of Satan. Through faith in
the atoning sacrifice of Christ the sons of Adam may become the sons of
God. The matchless love of God for a world that did not love Him! The
thought has a subduing power upon the soul and brings the mind into
captivity to the will of God.
Man was originally endowed with noble powers and a
well-balanced mind. He was perfect in his being, and in harmony with
God. His thoughts were pure, his aims holy. But through disobedience,
his powers were perverted, and selfishness took the place of love. His
nature became so weakened through transgression that it was impossible
for him, in his own strength, to resist the power of evil.
It is impossible for us, of ourselves, to escape from
the pit of sin in which we are sunken. Our hearts are evil, and we
cannot change them. There must be a power working from within, a new
life from above, before men can be changed from sin to holiness. That
power is Christ. His grace alone can quicken the lifeless faculties of
the soul, and attract it to God, to holiness. To all, there is but one
answer, "Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the
world" (John 1:29). Let us avail ourselves of the means provided
for us that we may be transformed into His likeness, and be restored to
fellowship with the ministering angels, to harmony and communion with
the Father and the Son.
How shall a man be just with God? How shall the
sinner be made righteous? It is only through Christ that we can be
brought into harmony with God, with holiness; but how are we to come to
Christ?
Repentance includes sorrow for sin and a turning away
from it. We shall not renounce sin unless we see its sinfulness; until
we turn away from it in heart, there will be no real change in the life.
But when the heart yields to the influence of the
Spirit of God, the conscience will be quickened and the sinner will
discern something of the depth and sacredness of God’s holy law, the
foundation of His government in heaven and on earth. Conviction takes
hold upon the mind and heart.
The prayer of David, after his fall, illustrates the
nature of true sorrow for sin. His repentance was sincere and deep.
There was no effort to palliate his guilt; no desire to escape the
judgment threatened, inspired his prayer. David saw the enormity of his
transgression; he saw the defilement of his soul; he loathed his sin. It
was not for pardon only that he prayed, but for purity of heart. He
longed for the joy of holiness, to be restored to harmony and communion
with God. A repentance such as this is beyond the reach of our own power
to accomplish; it is obtained only from Christ.
Christ is ready to set us free from sin, but He does
not force the will. If we refuse, what more can He do? Study God’s
Word prayerfully. As you see the enormity of sin, as you see yourself as
you really are, do not give up in despair. It was sinners that Christ
came to save. When Satan comes to tell you that you are a great sinner,
look to your Redeemer and talk of His merits. Acknowledge your sin, but
tell the enemy that "Christ came into the world to save
sinners" and that you may be saved (1 Tim. 1:15).
"He that covereth his sins shall not prosper:
but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy." Proverbs
28:13. The conditions of obtaining the mercy of God are simple and
just and reasonable. Confess your sins to God, who only can forgive
them, and your faults to one another. Those who have not humbled their
souls before God in acknowledging their guilt, have not yet fulfilled
the first step of acceptance. We must be willing to humble our hearts
and comply with the conditions of the Word of truth. The confession that
is the outpouring of the inmost soul finds its way to the God of
infinite pity. True confession is always of a specific character and
acknowledges particular sins. All confession should be definite and to
the point. It is written, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful
and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all
unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9).
God’s promise is, "Ye shall seek Me, and find
Me, when ye shall search for Me with all your heart." Jeremiah
29:13. The whole heart must be yielded, or the change can never be
wrought in us by which we are to be restored to His likeness.
The warfare against self is the greatest battle that
was ever fought. The yielding of self, surrendering all to the will of
God, requires a struggle; but the soul must submit to God before it can
be renewed in holiness.
In giving ourselves to God, we must necessarily give
up all that would separate us from Him. There are those who profess to
serve God while they rely upon their own efforts to obey His law, to
form a right character, and secure salvation. Their hearts are not moved
by any deep sense of the love of Christ, but they seek to perform the
duties of the Christian life as that which God requires of them in order
to gain heaven. Such religion is worthless.
When Christ dwells in the heart, the soul will be so
filled with His love, with the joy of communion with Him, that it will
cleave to Him; and in the contemplation of Him, self will be forgotten.
Love to Christ will be the spring of action. Such do not ask for the
lowest standard, but aim at perfect conformity to the will of their
Redeemer.
Do you feel that it is too great a sacrifice to yield
all to Christ? Ask yourself the question, "What has Christ given
for me?" The Son of God gave all—life and love and suffering—for
our redemption. And can it be that we, the unworthy objects of so great
love, will withhold our hearts from Him? What do we give up, when we
give all? A sin-polluted heart, for Jesus to purify, to cleanse by His
own blood, and to save by His matchless love. And yet men think it hard
to give up all! God does not require us to give up anything that it is
for our best interest to retain. In all that He does, He has the
well-being of His children in view.
Many are inquiring, "How am I to make the
surrender of myself to God?" You desire to give yourself to Him,
but you are weak in moral power, in slavery to doubt, and controlled by
the habits of your life of sin. Your promises and resolutions are like
ropes of sand. You cannot control your thoughts, your impulses, your
affections. The knowledge of your broken promises and forfeited pledges
weakens your confidence in your own sincerity, and causes you to feel
that God cannot accept you; but you need not despair.
What you need to understand is the true force of the
will. This is the governing power in the nature of man, the power of
decision, or of choice. Everything depends on the right action of the
will. The power of choice God has given to men; it is theirs to
exercise. You cannot change your heart, you cannot of yourself give to
God its affections; but you can choose to serve Him. You
can give Him your will; He will then work in you to will and to do
according to His good pleasure. Thus your whole nature will be brought
under the control of the Spirit of Christ; your affections will be
centered upon Him, your thoughts will be in harmony with Him.
Desires for goodness and holiness are right as far as
they go; but if you stop here, they will avail nothing. Many will be
lost while hoping and desiring to be Christians. They do not come to the
point of yielding the will to God. They do not now choose to be
Christians.
Through the right exercise of the will, an entire
change may be made in your life. You will have strength from above to
hold you steadfast, and thus through constant surrender to God you will
be enabled to live the new life, even the life of faith.
As your conscience has been quickened by the Holy
Spirit, you have seen something of the evil of sin, of its power, its
guilt, its woe; and you look upon it with abhorrence. It is peace that
you need. You have confessed your sins, and in heart put them away. You
have resolved to give yourself to God. Now go to Him and ask that He
will wash away your sins and give you a new heart.
Then believe that He does this because He has
promised. The gift which God promises us, we must believe we do
receive, and it is ours. You are a sinner. You cannot atone for your
past sins; you cannot change your heart and make yourself holy. But God
promises to do all this for you through Christ. You believe that
promise. You confess your sins and give yourself to God. You will to
serve Him. Just as surely as you do this, God will fulfill His Word to
you. If you believe the promise—God supplies the fact. Do not wait to feel
that you are made whole, but say, "I believe it; it is so, not
because I feel it, but because God promised."
Jesus says, "What things soever ye desire, when
ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them"
(Mark 11:24). There is a condition to this promise—that we pray
according to the will of God. But it is the will of God to cleanse us
from sin, to make us His children, and to enable us to live a holy life.
So we may ask for these blessings, and believe that we receive them, and
thank God that we have received them.
Henceforth you are not your own; you are bought with
a price. Through this simple act of believing God, the Holy Spirit has
begotten a new life in your heart. You are a child born into the family
of God, and He loves you as He loves His Son.
Now that you have given yourself to Jesus, do not
draw back, do not take yourself away from Him, but day by day say,
"I am Christ’s; I have given myself to Him"; and ask Him to
give you His Spirit and keep you by His grace. As it is by giving
yourself to God, and believing Him, that you become His child, so you
are to live in Him.
Here is where thousands fail; they do not believe
that Jesus pardons them personally, individually. They do not take God
at His Word. It is the privilege of all who comply with the conditions
to know for themselves that pardon is freely extended for every sinner.
Put away the suspicion that God’s promises are not meant for you. They
are for every repentant transgressor.
Look up, you that are doubting and trembling; for
Jesus lives to make intercession for us. Thank God for the gift of His
dear Son.
"If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature:
old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." 2
Corinthians 5:17.
A person may not be able to tell the exact time or
place, or trace all the chain of circumstances in the process of
conversion; but this does not prove him to be unconverted. A change will
be seen in the character, the habits, the pursuits. The contrast will be
clear and decided between what they have been and what they have become.
Who has the heart? With whom are our thoughts? Of whom do we love to
converse? Who has our warmest affections and our best energies? If we
are Christ’s, our thoughts are with Him. There is no evidence of
genuine repentance unless it works reformation. The loveliness of the
character of Christ will be seen in His followers. It was His delight to
do the will of God.
There are two errors against which the children of
God especially need to guard: The first is that of looking to their own
works, trusting to anything they can do, to bring themselves into
harmony with God. All that man can do without Christ is polluted with
selfishness and sin. It is the grace of Christ alone, through faith,
which can make us holy.
The opposite and no less dangerous error is that
belief in Christ releases men from keeping the law of God; that since by
faith alone we become partakers of the grace of Christ, our works have
nothing to do with our redemption.
Obedience is the fruit of faith. Righteousness is
defined by the standard of God’s holy law, as expressed in the ten
commandments (Ex 20:3-20). That so-called faith in Christ, which
professes to release men from the obligation of obedience to God, is not
faith, but presumption. The condition of eternal life is now just what
it always has been—just what it was in paradise before the fall of our
first parents—perfect obedience to the law of God, perfect
righteousness. If eternal life were granted on any condition short of
this, then the happiness of the whole universe would be imperiled. The
way would be open for sin, with all its train of woe and misery, to be
immortalized.
Christ changes the heart. He abides in your heart by
faith. You are to maintain this connection with Christ by faith and the
continual surrender of your will to Him; and so long as you do this, He
will work in you to will and to do according to His good pleasure.
The closer you come to Jesus, the more faulty you
will appear in your own eyes; for your vision will be clearer. This is
evidence that Satan’s delusions are losing their power. No deep-seated
love for Jesus can dwell in the heart that does not realize its own
sinfulness. The soul that is transformed by the grace of Christ will
admire His character. A view of our sinfulness drives us to Him who can
pardon; and when the soul, realizing its helplessness, reaches out after
Christ, He will reveal Himself in power. The more our sense of need
drives us to Him and to the Word of God, the more exalted views we shall
have of His character, and the more fully we shall reflect His image.
The change of heart by which we become children of
God is in the Bible spoken of as birth. Again it is compared to the
germination of the good seed sown by the husbandman. It is God who
brings the bud to bloom and the flower to fruit. It is by His power that
the seed develops.
As the flower turns to the sun, that the bright beams
may aid in perfecting its beauty and symmetry, so should we turn to the
Sun of Righteousness, that heaven’s light may shine upon us, that our
character may be developed into the likeness of Christ.
Do you ask, "How am I to abide in Christ?"
In the same way as you received Him at first. "As ye have therefore
received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him." Colossians 2:6.
By faith you became Christ’s, and by faith you are to grow up in Him—by
giving and taking. You are to give all—your heart, your will, your
service—give yourself to Him to obey all His requirements; and you
must take all—Christ, the fullness of all blessing, to abide in your
heart, to be your strength, your righteousness, your everlasting helper—to
give you power to obey.
Consecrate yourself to God in the morning; make this
your very first work. Let your prayer be, "Take me, O Lord, as
wholly Thine. I lay all my plans at Thy feet. Use me today in Thy
service. Abide with me, and let all my work be wrought in Thee."
This is a daily matter. Each morning consecrate yourself to God for that
day. Surrender all your plans to Him, to be carried out or given up as
His providence shall indicate. Thus day by day you may be giving your
life into the hands of God, and thus your life will be molded more and
more after the life of Christ.
A life in Christ is a life of restfulness. There may
be no ecstasy of feeling, but there should be an abiding, peaceful
trust. When the mind dwells upon self, it is turned away from Christ,
the source of strength and life. Hence, it is Satan’s constant effort
to keep the attention diverted from the Saviour and thus prevent the
union and communion of the soul with Christ.
When Christ took human nature upon Him, He bound
humanity to Himself by a tie of love that can never be broken by any
power save the choice of man himself. Satan will constantly present
allurements to induce us to break this tie—to choose to separate
ourselves from Christ. But let us keep our eyes fixed upon Christ, and
He will preserve us. Looking unto Jesus, we are safe. Nothing can pluck
us out of His hand. All that Christ was to the disciples, He desires to
be to His children today.
Jesus prayed for us, and He asked that we might be
one with Him, even as He is one with the Father. What a union is this!
Thus, loving Him and abiding in Him, we shall "grow up into Him in
all things, which is the head, even Christ" (Ephesians 4:15).
God is the source of life and light and joy to the
universe. Wherever the life of God is in the hearts of men, it will flow
out to others in love and blessing.
Our Saviour’s joy was in the uplifting and
redemption of fallen men. For this He counted not His life dear to
Himself, but endured the cross, despising the shame. When the love of
Christ is enshrined in the heart, like sweet fragrance it cannot be
hidden. Love to Jesus will be manifested in a desire to work as He
worked for the blessing and uplifting of humanity. It will lead to love,
tenderness, and sympathy toward all the creatures of our heavenly Father’s
care. Those who are the partakers of the grace of Christ will be ready
to make any sacrifice, that others for whom He died may share the
heavenly gift. They will do all they can to make the world better for
their stay in it. This spirit is the sure outgrowth of a soul truly
converted. No sooner does one come to Christ than there is born in his
heart a desire to make known to others what a precious friend he has
found in Jesus. If we have tasted and seen that the Lord is good, we
shall have something to tell. We shall seek to present to others the
attractions of Christ and the unseen realities of the world to come.
There will be an intensity of desire to follow in the path that Jesus
trod.
And the effort to bless others will react in
blessings upon ourselves. Those who thus become participants in labors
of love are brought nearest to their Creator. The spirit of unselfish
labor for others gives depth, stability, and Christlike loveliness to
the character, and brings peace and happiness to its possessor. Strength
comes by exercise. We need not go to heathen lands, or even leave the
narrow circle of the home, if it is there that our duty lies, in order
to work for Christ. With a loving spirit we may perform life’s
humblest duties "unto the Lord" (Colosssians 3:23). If the
love of God is in the heart, it will be manifested in the life. You are
not to wait for great occasions or to expect extraordinary abilities
before you go to work for God. The humblest and poorest of the disciples
of Jesus can be a blessing to others.
Many are the ways in which God is seeking to make
Himself known to us and bring us into communion with Him. If we will but
listen, Nature speaks to our senses without ceasing. God’s created
works will teach us precious lessons of obedience and trust.
No tears are shed that God does not notice. There is
no smile that He does not mark. If we would but fully believe this, all
undue anxieties would be dismissed. Our lives would not be so filled
with disappointment as now; for everything, whether great or small,
would be left in the hands of God.
God speaks to us through His providential works and
through the influence of His Spirit upon the heart. God speaks to us in
His Word. Here we have in clearer lines the revelation of His character,
of His dealings with men, and the great work of redemption. Fill the
whole heart with the words of God. They are the living water, quenching
your burning thirst. They are the living bread from heaven.
The theme of redemption is one that the angels desire
to look into; it will be the science and the song of the redeemed
throughout the ceaseless ages of eternity. Is it not worthy of careful
thought and study now? As we meditate upon the Saviour, there will be a
hungering and thirsting of soul to become like Him whom we adore.
The Bible was written for the common people. The
great truths necessary for salvation are made as clear as noonday. There
is nothing more calculated to strengthen the intellect than the study of
the Scriptures. But there is little benefit derived from a hasty reading
of the Bible. One passage studied, until its significance is clear to
the mind and its relation to the plan of salvation is evident, is of
more value than the perusal of many chapters with no definite purpose in
view and no positive instruction gained.
Keep your Bible with you. As you have opportunity,
read it; fix the texts in your memory.
We cannot obtain wisdom without earnest attention and
prayerful study. Never should the Bible be studied without prayer.
Before opening its pages, we should ask for the enlightenment of the
Holy Spirit, and it will be given. Angels from the world of light will
be with those who in humility of heart seek for divine guidance. How
must God esteem the human race, since He gave His Son to die for them
and appoints His Holy Spirit to be man’s teacher and continual guide!
Through nature and revelation, through His
providence, and by the influence of His Spirit, God speaks to us. But
these are not enough; we need also to pour out our hearts to Him. In
order to commune with God, we must have something to say to Him
concerning our actual life.
Prayer is the opening of the heart to God as to a
friend. Not that it is necessary in order to make known to God what we
are, but in order to enable us to receive Him. Prayer does not bring God
down to us, but brings us up to Him.
Our heavenly Father waits to bestow upon us the
fullness of His blessing. What a wonder it is that we pray so little!
God is ready and willing to hear the sincere prayer of the humblest of
His children. What can the angels of heaven think of poor helpless human
beings who are subject to temptation, when God’s heart of infinite
love yearns toward them, ready to give them more than they can ask or
think, and yet they pray so little and have so little faith?
The darkness of the evil one encloses those who
neglect to pray. The whispered temptations of the enemy entice them to
sin; and it is all because they do not make use of prayer. Yet prayer is
the key in the hand of faith to unlock heaven’s storehouse, where are
treasured the boundless resources of Omnipotence.
There are certain conditions upon which we may expect
that God will hear and answer our prayers:
One is that we feel our need of help from Him. If we
regard iniquity in our hearts, if we cling to any known sin, the Lord
will not hear us; but the prayer of the penitent, contrite soul is
always accepted. When all known wrongs are righted, we may believe that
God will answer our petitions.
Another element of prevailing prayer is faith. When
our prayers seem not to be answered, we are to cling to the promise; for
the time of answering will surely come, and we shall receive the
blessing we need most. But to claim that prayer will always be answered
in the very way and for the particular thing that we desire, is
presumption.
When we come to God in prayer, we should have a
spirit of love and forgiveness in our own hearts.
Perseverance in prayer has been made a condition of
receiving. We must pray always if we would grow in faith and experience.
We should pray in the family circle, and above all we
must not neglect secret prayer, for this is the life of the soul. Family
or public prayer alone is not sufficient. Secret prayer is to be heard
only by the prayer-hearing God.
There is no time or place in which it is
inappropriate to offer up a petition to God. In the crowds of the
street, in the midst of a business engagement, we may send up a petition
to God and plead for divine guidance.
Let the soul be drawn out and upward, that God may
grant us a breath of the heavenly atmosphere. We may keep so near to God
that in every unexpected trial our thoughts will turn to Him as
naturally as the flower turns to the sun. Keep your wants, your joys,
your sorrows, your cares, and your fears before God. You cannot burden
Him; you cannot weary Him. He is not indifferent to the wants of His
children.
We sustain a loss when we neglect the privilege of
associating together to strengthen and encourage one another in the
service of God. If Christians would associate together, speaking to each
other of the love of God and the precious truths of redemption, their
own hearts would be refreshed and they would refresh one another.
We must gather about the cross. Christ and Him
crucified should be the theme of contemplation, of conversation, and of
our most joyful emotion. We should keep in our thoughts every blessing
we receive from God, and when we realize His great love we should be
willing to trust everything to the hand that was nailed to the cross for
us.
The soul may ascend nearer heaven on the wings of
praise. As we express our gratitude, we are approximating to the worship
of the heavenly hosts.
Many are at times troubled with the suggestions of
skepticism. God never asks us to believe, without giving sufficient
evidence upon which to base our faith. Disguise it as they may, the real
cause of doubt and skepticism, in most cases, is the love of sin. We
must have a sincere desire to know the truth and a willingness of heart
to obey it.
—Summary of Steps to Christ,
pages 51 to 111, in the author’s own words.
