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23:1

@@@^“Here we see that the church — the Lord’s sanctuary — was the first to feel the stroke of the wrath of God. The ancient men, those to whom God had given great light, and who had stood as guardians of the spiritual interests of the people, had betrayed their trust. They had taken the position that we need not look for miracles and the marked manifestation of God’s power as in former days. Times have changed. These words strengthen their unbelief, and they say, The Lord will not do good, neither will He do evil. He is too merciful to visit His people in judgment. Thus peace and safety is the cry from men who will never again lift up their voice like a trumpet to show God’s people their transgressions and the house of Jacob their sins. These dumb dogs, that would not bark, are the ones who feel the just vengeance of an offended God. Men, maidens, and little children, all perish together.” — @9Testimonies@7, Vol. 5, pg. 211.

23:2

@@@^“8. That the law of ten commandments points out sin, the penalty of which is death. The law cannot save the transgressor from his sin, nor impart power to keep him from sinning. In infinite love and mercy, God provides a way whereby this may be done. He furnishes a substitute, even Christ the Righteous One, to die in man’s stead, making ‘Him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him.’ 2 Cor. 5:21. That one is justified, not by obedience to the law, but by the grace that is in Christ Jesus. By accepting Christ, man is reconciled to God, justified by His blood for the sins of the past, and saved from the power of sin by his indwelling life. Thus the gospel becomes ‘the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth.’ Rom. 1:16. This experience is wrought by the divine agency of the Holy Spirit, who convinces of sin and leads to the Sin-Bearer, inducting the believer into the new covenant relationship, where the law of God is written on his heart, and through the enabling power of the indwelling Christ, his life is brought into conformity to the divine precepts. The honor and merit of this wonderful transformation belong wholly to Christ. 1 John 2:1, 2; 3:4; Rom. 3:20; 5:8-10; 7:7; Eph. 2:8-10; 3:17; Gal. 2:20; Heb. 8:8-12.

2:2

@@@^“The love of riches has an infatuating, deceptive power. Too often those who possess worldly treasure forget that it is God who gives them power to get wealth. They say, ‘My power and the might of mine hand hath gotten me this wealth.’ Their riches, instead of awakening gratitude to God, lead to the exaltation of self. They lose the sense of their dependence upon God and their obligation to their fellow-men. Instead of regarding wealth as a talent to be employed for the glory of God and the uplifting of humanity, they look upon it as a means of serving themselves. Instead of developing in man the attributes of God, riches thus used are developing in him the attributes of Satan....

5:3

@@@^“Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law. And ye know that He was manifested to take away our sins; and in Him is no sin. Whosoever abideth in Him sinneth not: whosoever sinneth hath not seen Him, neither known Him. Little children, let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as He is righteous. He that committeth sin is of the Devil; for the Devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the Devil. Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God. In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the Devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother.” 1 John 3:4-10.

13:5

@@@^“Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the Devil. And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, He was afterward an hungered. And when the tempter came to Him, he said, If Thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread. But He answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. Then the Devil taketh Him up into the holy city, and sitteth Him on a pinnacle of the temple, and saith unto Him, If Thou be the Son of God, cast Thyself down: for it is written, He shall give His angels charge concerning Thee: and in their hands they shall bear Thee up, lest at any time Thou dash Thy foot against a stone. Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God. Again, the Devil taketh Him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth Him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; and saith unto Him, All these things will I give Thee, if Thou wilt fall down and worship me. Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve. Then the Devil leaveth Him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto Him.” Matt. 4:1-11.

29:1

@@@^Yes, hundreds and thousands of things may happen, but he that trusts in God and does His work well shall find all these so-called hindrances or mishaps wonderful deliverances, and avenues to success, all carrying out God’s marvelous plans, and God’s way toward your promotion from one great thing to another. When you are in God’s care and in His control never say the Devil did this or that regardless what it be, for he can do nothing except he is allowed to do it. Always give God the credit.

16:3

@@@^@0@9Deut. 4:26-31 — “I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that ye shall soon utterly perish from off the land whereunto ye go over Jordan to possess it; ye shall not prolong your days upon it, but shall utterly be destroyed. And the Lord shall scatter you among the nations, and ye shall be left few in number among the heathen, whither the Lord shall lead you. And there ye shall serve gods, the work of men’s hands, wood and stone, which neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell. But if from thence thou shalt seek the Lord thy God, thou shalt find Him, if thou seek Him with all thy heart and with all thy soul. When thou art in tribulation, and all these things are come upon thee, even in the latter days, if thou turn to the Lord thy God, and shalt be obedient unto His voice; (For the Lord thy God is a merciful God;) He will not forsake thee, neither destroy thee, nor forget the covenant of thy fathers which He sware unto them.”@7@^Here Moses predicted the disintegration of the kingdom then expected, and the dispersion of the people of Israel throughout the nations, the exact situation in which we are today. He also herein predicted our visitation in the latter days, our time — the time we as Christians find ourselves as fugitives and sinners among the nations, the time we are visited by Inspiration and are advised to “turn to the Lord,” to “be obedient unto His voice.” And if we obey, He will hear us and save us.

40:1

@@@^@0@9Ezek. 38:14, 16; 39:4, 7, 9-14 — “Therefore, son of man, prophesy and say unto Gog, Thus saith the Lord God; In that day when My people of Israel dwelleth safely, shalt thou not know it?...And thou shalt come up against My people of Israel, as a cloud to cover the land; it shall be in the latter days, and I will bring thee against My land, that the heathen may know Me, when I shall be sanctified in thee, O Gog, before their eyes.... Thou shalt fall upon the mountains of Israel, thou, and all thy bands, and the people that is with thee: I will give thee unto the ravenous birds of every sort, and to the beasts of the field to be devoured.... So will I make My holy name known in the midst of My people Israel; and I will not let them pollute My holy name any more: and the heathen shall know that I am the Lord, the Holy One in Israel.... And they that dwell in the cities of Israel shall go forth, and shall set on fire and burn the weapons, both the shields and the bucklers, the bows and the arrows, and the handstaves,and the spears, and they shall burn them with fire seven years: so that they shall take no wood out of the field, neither cut down any out of the forests; for they shall burn the weapons with fire: and they shall spoil those that spoiled them, and rob those that robbed them, saith the Lord God. And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will give unto Gog a place there of graves in Israel, the valley of the passengers on the east of the sea: and it shall stop the noses of the passengers: and there shall they bury Gog and all his multitude: and they shall call it The valley of Hamon-gog. And seven months shall the house of Israel be burying of them, that they may cleanse the land. Yea, all the people of the land shall bury them; and it shall be to them a renown the day that I shall be glorified, saith the Lord God. And they shall sever out men of continual employment, passing through the land to bury with the passengers those that remain upon the face of the earth, to cleanse it: after the end of seven months shall they search.”@7@^Still further, you will now note that all these wonders God does for His people, not because they have been good, or because they are now good, but for God’s own great name. Listen to what the Lord Himself says:

40:1

@@@^“...It is impossible to give any idea of the experience of the people of God who shall be alive upon the earth when celestial glory and a repetition of the persecutions of the past are blended. They will walk in the light proceeding from the throne of God. By means of the angels there will be constant communication between heaven and earth. And Satan, surrounded by evil angels, and claiming to be God, will work miracles of all kinds, to deceive, if possible, the very elect. God’s people will not find their safety in working miracles; for Satan will counterfeit the miracles that will be wrought. God’s tried and tested people will find their power in the sign spoken of in Ex. 31:12-18....” — @9Testimonies@7, Vol. 9, pg. 16.

16:3

@@@^“God’s everlasting arm encircles the soul that turns to Him for aid, however feeble that soul may be. The precious things of the hills shall perish; but the soul that lives for God, shall abide with Him. ‘The world passeth away, and the lust thereof; but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever.’ The city of God will open its golden gates to receive him who learned while on earth to lean on God for guidance and wisdom, for comfort and hope, amid loss and affliction. The songs of the angels will welcome him there, and for him the tree of life shall yield its fruit. ‘The mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but My kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of My peace be removed, saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee.’”

2:2

@@@^M.B., pp. 149, 150 — “If you have given yourself to God, to do His work, you have no need to be anxious for tomorrow.... When we take into our hands the management of things with which we have to do, and depend upon our own wisdom for success, we are taking a burden which God has not given us.... We may well have anxiety, and anticipate danger and loss; for it is certain to befall us. But when we really believe that God loves us, and means to do us good, we shall cease to worry about the future. We shall trust God as a child trusts a loving parent. Then our troubles and torments will disappear; for our will is swallowed up in the will of God.

6:3

@@@^“But,” you may ask, “is this idea not contrary to our former belief?” — I admit that it is. But are we to go on by what we have believed? or by what the Word of the Lord says? And for what purpose are those prophecies if we are not to give heed to them? And why are they now unsealed and brought to our attention if this is not the time in which God is to manifest His power and accomplish all these things? It should be remembered that we are not the first and the only people who have had to change our way of thinking; we are not the first and only people to discover that God’s plans are the opposite of our plans. Moses, too, found that his plan for delivering the children of Israel from their Egyptian bondage was not God’s plan. Likewise God’s plan for the route they were to take in their journey to the promised land was not their plan. The apostles positively believed that Christ was to set up His kingdom at His first advent, but they, too, had to change their belief. Moreover, since the Hebrews, whom out of slaves God had made kings, had been promised that their kingdom was to stand forever, they were indeed astounded when it went down. And there have been other surprises all along from the dawn of history.

30:4

@@@^I agree with you that these promises do seem incredible and even fantastic. But the more they so appear, the brighter the prospect, for God does not do what seems possible to man, but He does the things that seem altogether impossible to them. Think of God’s marvelous work in the Exodus Movement: He led them out of Egypt, while they marched through the Red Sea, through the desert, and through the Jordan. He brought down manna from heaven, and continued to do so for forty long years. Visualize, if you can, Pharaoh’s brick slaves becoming prophets, priests, and kings! The three Hebrews comfortably standing in the midst of the fiery furnace; and of Daniel in the lion’s den; of Mordecai’s victory over Haman; of David’s victory over the giant; of Joseph feeding the world; of Moses surviving the Nile; of Samson pulling down the temple by bare hands. Countless are the wonders of God’s mighty power all through the ages. All these deliverances, and many others were absolutely impossible with men, but very much possible with God. These mighty miracles bring us face to face with the fact that God is in the business of making “possibles” out of discordant “impossibles.” Therefore, “let your hands be strong, ye that hear in these days these words” of the Lord.

10:4

@@@^The most outstanding sin of the goat class of professed believers is that they are all for self and none for others. The sheep class are the opposite in character. Since those who do charity work are not to make a display of it — not to let the left hand know what the right hand is doing (Matt. 6:3) — and since the system of such benevolent work is clearly pointed out in the Hebrew economy, we would do well to look there for it: “To promote the assembling of the people for religious service, as well as to provide for the poor, a second tithe of all the increase was required. Concerning the first tithe, the Lord had declared, ‘I have given the children of Levi @9all the tenth@7 in Israel.’ But in regard to the second he commanded, ‘Thou shalt eat before the Lord thy God, in the place which he shall choose to place his name there, the tithe of thy corn, of thy wine, and of thine oil, and the firstlings of thy herds and of thy flocks; that thou mayest learn to fear the Lord thy God always.’ Thus tithe, or its equivalent in money, they were for two years to bring to the place where the sanctuary was established. After presenting a thank-offering to God, and a specified portion to the priest, the offerers were to use the remainder for a religious feast, in which the Levite, the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow should participate. Thus provision was made for the thank-offerings and feasts at the yearly festivals, and the people were drawn to the society of the priests and Levites, that they might receive instruction and encouragement in the service of God.” — “Patriarchs And Prophets,” p. 530. For this work to be carried out systematically by the Lord’s treasury through gifts and free will offerings, sometimes called second tithe, we cannot but do likewise if we are to find favor with God. Now back to—

20:3

@@@^@0@9Verse 4 — “And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, My people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.”@7@^This voice from heaven, you see, comes to God’s people after the earth is lightened with the Loud Cry of the angel. The burden of the Voice is that God’s people should come out of Babylon so that they be not partakers of her sins, and receive not of her plagues. If on this account they must come out of Babylon, then it must be that the place into which they are called to come is free from sin and thus free from danger of the plagues. And where could that be but in the purified land and church of God, where there is no more sin and no more sinners to endanger the peace of God’s people? Vain, indeed, it would be if the people were called from one place of sin and brought into another place of sin. As clear as crystal it is that the purification of the church (“cleansing” — Dan. 8:14; Judgment of the Living — 1 Pet. 4:17) takes place before the Loud Cry of the Third Angel’s message begins in the world, before God’s people are called out of Babylon.

8:1

@@@^@0@9Verse 5 — “For all people will walk every one in the name of his God, and we will walk in the name of the Lord our God for ever and ever.”@7@^Those outside of the Kingdom that the Spirit of God cannot convince of their error, will continue to walk in the name of their false gods. But the people in the Kingdom “will walk in the name of the Lord our God for ever and ever.”

17:3

@@@^“Here we see that the church — the Lord’s sanctuary — was the first to feel the stroke of the wrath of God. The ancient men, those to whom God had given great light, and who had stood as guardians of the spiritual interests of the people, had betrayed their trust. They had taken the position that we need not look for miracles and the marked manifestation of God’s power as in former days. Times have changed. These words strengthen their unbelief, and they say, The Lord will not do good neither will he do evil. He is too merciful to visit his people in judgment. Thus peace and safety is the cry from men who will never again lift up their voice like a trumpet to show God’s people their transgressions and the house of Jacob their sins. These dumb dogs, that would not bark, are the ones who feel the just vengeance of an offended God. Men, maidens, and little children, all perish together.” — “Testimonies,” Vol. 5, pg. 211. And through the apostle Peter, Inspiration declares:

14:2

@@@^@0@9Verses 7-10 — “Therefore I will look unto the Lord; I will wait for the God of my salvation: my God will hear me. Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy: when I fall, I shall arise; when I sit in darkness, the Lord shall be a light unto me. I will bear the indignation of the Lord, because I have sinned against Him, until He plead my cause, and execute judgment for me: He will bring me forth to the light, and I shall behold His righteousness. Then she that is mine enemy shall see it, and shame shall cover her which said unto me, Where is the Lord thy God? Mine eyes shall behold her: now shall she be trodden down as the mire of the streets.”@7@^These verses present God’s faithful people, the people to whom these prophecies have been unfolded as having an enemy that bears the feminine designation “she.” This “she” questions and doubts God’s presence among His people, she mocks them for their faith.

10:6

@@@^“By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh. By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God. But without faith it is impossible to please Him: for he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him.

24:1

@@@^@0@9Verses 2-4 — “It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing: the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon, they shall see the glory of the Lord, and the excellency of our God. Strengthen ye the weak hands, and confirm the feeble knees. Say to them that are of a fearful heart, Be strong, fear not: behold, your God will come with vengeance, even God with a recompence; He will come and save you.”@7@^This great commission and opportunity to proclaim God’s soon coming vengeance are ours. We must not fail to take advantage of these privileges. With the mighty message for this time we must @9strengthen@7 the weak; we must make @9firm@7 the knees that are giving out. Those who are unable to stand up and to hold their own must be strengthened. We must reassure the fearful that God is to come with vengeance against the unbelieving and with recompence for the faithful.