Blog Archives - WELCOME TO THE JOY OF TROY

August 21, 2020

8/21/2020

DO NOT PROVOKE

        This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church.--Ephesians 5:32

    [We are] not to provoke those who have accepted this spurious Sabbath, an institution of the Papacy, in the place of God's holy Sabbath. Their not having the Bible arguments in their favor makes them all the more angry and determined to supply the place of arguments that are wanting in the Word of God by the power of their might. The force of persecution follows the steps of the dragon. Therefore great care should be exercised to give no provocation. And again, let us as a people, as far as possible, cleanse the camp of moral defilement and aggravating sins. When sin is making its march upon the people who claim to be elevating the moral standard of righteousness, how can we expect God to turn His power in our behalf and save us as a people that did righteousness?

    All the policy in the world cannot save us from a terrible sifting, and all the efforts made with high authorities will not lift from us the scourging of God just because sin is cherished. If as a people we do not keep ourselves in the faith and not only advocate with pen and voice the commandments of God, but keep them every one, not violating a single precept knowingly, then weakness and ruin will come upon us. It is a work that we must attend to in every one of our churches. Each man must be a Christian. (Letter 55, December 8, 1886)

REFLECTION: In the presentation of unpopular truth, which involves a heavy cross, preachers should be careful that every word is as God would have it. Their words should never cut. They should present the truth in humility, with the deepest love for souls and an earnest desire for their salvation, and let the truth cut. They should not defy ministers of other denominations and seek to provoke a debate....The defying, boasting, and the railing must come from the opposers of truth, who act the Goliath. (Evangelism, 162)

We have been blessed as a people with the truth. Let us not use it to provoke or put down. Let us instead use the truth to elevate our standards so that others can see Christ in us and all we do.

August 20, 2020

8/20/2020

HE WILL NEVER FORSAKE YOU

        David said, "No one may carry the ark of God but the Levites, for the Lord has chosen them to carry the ark of God and to minister before Him forever."--1 Chronicles 15:2

    God never forsakes people or individuals until they forsake Him. Outward opposition will not cause the faith of God's people, who are keeping His commandments, to become dim. The neglect to bring purity and the truth into practice will grieve the Spirit of God and weaken them because God is not in their midst to bless. Internal corruption will bring the denunciations of God upon this people as it did upon Jerusalem. Oh, let pleading voices, let earnest prayer be heard, that those who preach to others shall not themselves be castaways. My brethren, we know not what is before us, and our only safety is in following the Light of the world. God will work with us and for us if the sins which brought His wrath upon the world, upon Sodom and Gomorrah and upon ancient Jerusalem, do not become our crime.

    The least transgression of God's law brings guilt upon the transgressor, and without earnest repentance and forsaking of sin he will surely become an apostate. You inquire in regard to the course which should be pursued to secure the rights of our people to worship according to the dictates of our own conscience. This has been a burden on my soul for some time, whether it would be a denial of our faith and an evidence that our trust was not fully in God. But I call to mind many things God has shown me in the past, in regard to things of a similar character, as the draft and other things. I can speak in the fear of God it is right we should use every power we can to avert the pressure that is being brought to bear upon our people. I know that were our people spiritualized by the truth, the greatest love would be maintained. (Letter 55, December 8, 1886)

REFLECTION: While excellence of character can never be attained except by our own exertion, do not forget that at every step you need and may obtain help and grace from Christ. He himself passed through all the experience of childhood and youth, and he knows how to sympathize with the young. He will never forsake a soul that trusts in him. He will listen to the prayer of the contrite, and will be a present help in every time of need. Do not, then, become discouraged in your efforts. (The Signs of the Times, August 23, 1883)

August 19, 2020

8/19/2020

CHILDREN OF GOD--PUT GOD IN YOUR EVERYDAY LIFE

        His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness...by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.--2 Peter 1:3-4

    Let the churches who claim to believe the truth, who are advocating the law of God, keep that law and depart from all iniquity. Let the individual members of the churches resist the temptations to practice evils and indulge in sin. Let the church commence the work of purification before God by repentance, humiliation, deep heartsearching, for we are in the antitypical day of atonement--solemn hour fraught with eternal results.

    Let those who teach the truth present it as it is in Jesus. Under the subduing, sanctifying, refining influence of the truth of God, they are as clean vessels. Let them be leavened with Bible religion, and what an influence would go forth from them to the world! Let the individual members of the church be pure, steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the love of Jesus, and they will then be a light to the world. Let the men standing as watchmen and as shepherds of the flock proclaim the solemn truth, sound the notes of warning to all people, nations and tongues. Let them be living representatives of the truth they advocate, and honor God's law by strict and holy compliance with its requirements, walking before the Lord in purity, in holiness, and a power will attend the proclamation of the truth that will reflect light everywhere. (Letter 55, December 8, 1886)

REFLECTION: The members of the church of Christ should gather up the divine rays of light from Jesus, and reflect them to others, leaving a bright track heavenward in the world. They are to be as the wise virgins, having their lamps trimmed and burning, representing the character of Christ to the world. We are not to be satisfied with anything short of this. We are not be satisfied with our righteousness, and content without the deep movings of the Spirit of God. (The Review and Herald, October 8, 1889)

August 18, 2020

8/18/2020

BE A LIVING EXAMPLE

        Let no one despise your youth, but be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity.--1 Timothy 4:12

    We are far from being the people God would have us to be, because we do not elevate the soul and refine the character in harmony with the wonderful unfolding of God's truth and His purposes. "Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people" [Proverbs 14:34]. Sin is a disorganizer. Wherever it is cherished--in the individual heart, in the household, in the church--there is disorder, strife, variance, enmity, envy, jealousy, because the enemy of man and of God has the controlling power over the mind. But let the truth be loved and brought into the life, as well as advocated, and that man or woman will hate sin and will be a living representative of Jesus Christ to the world.

    The people claiming to believe the truth will not be condemned because they had not the light, but because they had great light and did not bring their hearts to the test of God's great moral standard of righteousness. The people who claim to believe the truth must be elevated by living it out. Real Bible religion must leaven the life, refine and ennoble the character, making it more and more like the divine model. Then will the home be vocal with prayer, with thanksgiving and praise to God. Angels will minister in the home and accompany the worshiper to the house of prayer. (Letter 55, December 8, 1886)

REFLECTION: Paul was a living example of what every true Christian should be. He lived for God's glory....He who was once a persecutor of Christ in the person of his saints now holds up before the world the cross of Christ. Paul's heart burned with a love for souls, and he gave all his energies for the conversion of men. There never lived a more self-denying, earnest, persevering worker. His life was Christ; he worked the works of Christ. (The Review and Herald, May 29, 1900)

August 17, 2020

8/17/2020

LIGHT OF THE WORLD

        Jesus spoke to them again, saying, "I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life."--John 8:12

    The more and increased light God has given makes the receiver more responsible. It does not place the receiver in any safer position unless the privileges are wisely improved, prized, and used to advance God's glory. Christ said, "Woe unto thee, Chorazin! Woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works, which were done in you, had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes" [Matthew 11:21].

    When Jerusalem was divorced from God it was because of her sins. She fell from an exalted height that Tyre and Sidon had never reached. And when an angel falls he becomes a fiend. The depths of our ruin is measured by the exalted light to which God has raised us in His great goodness and unspeakable mercy. Oh, what privileges are granted to us as a people! And if God spared not His people that He loved because they refused to walk in the light, how can He spare the people whom He has blessed with the light of heaven in having opened to them the most exalted truth ever intrusted to mortal man to give to the world? (Letter 55, December 8, 1886)

REFLECTION: Light was before them. As the moon and the stars of the solar system shine by the reflected light of the sun, so far as their teaching is true, do the world's great thinkers reflect the rays of the Sun of Righteousness. Every gem of thought, every flash of the intellect, is from the Light of the world. (The Desire of Ages, 465)

August 16, 2020

8/16/2020

TRIAL BY FIRE

    Behold, I stand at the door and knock.--Revelation 3:20

    The worthies who refused to bow to the golden image were cast into a burning fiery furnace, but Christ was with them there, and the fire did not consume them....

    Now some of us may be brought to just as severe a test. Will we obey the commandments of men, or will we obey the commandments of God? This is a question that will be asked of many. The best thing for us is to come into close connection with God; and if He would have us martyrs for the truth's sake, it may be the means of bringing many more into the truth....

    Many whom we try to reach with the truth of God will not accept it, and why? Because it involves a cross....

    Now we take His character and life. The Saviour of the world who came to make us better, to give us strength to overcome everything that is unlike Christ--that precious Saviour is leading us, and we can follow where He leads. It is a path of sacrifice, but what if it is? That is just what we need, because we are all full of self, all full of defects and errors and sin; and we want to separate from our own inclinations and self-indulgence and go where Jesus leads the way....

    We have been piling up the rubbish before the door of our hearts, and this must all be cleared away. Christ cannot enter there until we do. "Behold, I stand at the door and knock," He says. [Revelation 3:20.] Clear away the barriers that have been piled up around the heart. He wants you to clear them away, and He will come in. (Manuscript 83, September 1886)

REFLECTION: Circumstances may separate friends; the restless waters of the wide sea may roll between us and them. But no circumstance, no distance, can separate us from the Saviour. Wherever we may be, He is at our right hand, to support, maintain, uphold, and cheer. Greater than the love of a mother for her child is Christ's love for His redeemed. It is our privilege to rest in His love, to say, "I will trust Him; for He gave His life for me." (The Ministry of Healing, 72)

August 15, 2020

8/15/2020

FORM A RIGHTEOUS CHARACTER

        Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.--Jeremiah 33:3

    We can talk with Jesus as Enoch talked with God; he could tell his Lord all about his trials. Here was the way Enoch walked with God, and when the light shone out upon his pathway, he did not expect to say, "Why, what will my friends and relatives say of me if I take this course?" No, he did that which was right whatever the consequences.

    Now Enoch sought to have a connection with God, and those who do not have a connection with God have a connection with some one else who will lead them away from everything good. All of us have a character to form.

    Enoch formed a righteous character, and the result was that he was translated to heaven without seeing death. When the Lord shall come the second time, there will be some who will be translated without seeing death, and we want to know if we will be among that number. We want to know if we are wholly on the Lord's side--partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust--not by trying to make a clear path for our feet where we shall have no trials or difficulties to meet, but by placing ourselves in right relation to God and letting Him take care of the consequences.

    Enoch was the light to the world in his day, and how far that light extended! The light that Enoch reflected from God was broad and deep, and there were those who walked in this light, were blessed in this light, and died in this light, and will come up in the first resurrection. (Manuscript 83, September 1886)

REFLECTION: As we walk in the streets with those who care not for God or heaven or heavenly things, we can talk to them of Jesus. We have something more precious than they to look upon--it is Jesus. He is with us in the moral darkness of this age. We can tell Him of the afflictions of our soul and the wickedness in the world, and none of these things need hinder us. We can talk with Jesus. (Manuscript 83, September 1886)

August 14, 2020

8/14/2020

DIVIDE AND SCATTER

        If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.--Mark 3:25

    In our conferences it is revealed that the brethren do not see eye to eye in understanding the Word of God. There is among us a manifest want of searching the Scriptures. We must know the reasons of our faith. The importance and solemnity of the scenes opening before us demand this, and on no account must the spirit of complaining be encouraged....

    As we do all we can as men and women who are not ignorant of Satan's devices, we are to manifest no bitterness of feeling. Constantly we are to offer prayer for divine aid. It is God alone who can hold the four winds until the angels shall seal the servants of God in their foreheads.

    The Lord will do a great work in the earth. Satan makes a determined effort to divide and scatter His people. He brings up side issues to divert minds from the important subjects which should engage our attention....With one heart and mind we are to prepare for the conflict, with faith laying our petitions before the mercy seat. The throne of God is arched by the bow of promise, and the prayers offered in simplicity and faith will be heard. It is God's glory to answer the supplications of His people....

    Many are holding the truth only with the tips of their fingers. They have had great light and many privileges. Like Capernaum they have been exalted to heaven in this respect. In the time of test and trial that is approaching, they will become apostates unless they put away their pride and self-confidence, unless they have an entire transformation of character. (Letter 5, November 1883)

REFLECTION: One thing every worker in the vineyard of the Lord must learn, that is, to practice the prayer of Christ, to move as one in Christ Jesus. Jesus prayed that His disciples might be one, as He is one with the Father. The enemy is at work, to divide, to scatter. Now as never before he will make determined efforts to scatter our forces....The truths we present from the Bible are as firm and immovable as the throne of God. (Selected Messages, Book 2, 87)

August 13, 2020

8/13/2020

TIME TO WAKE UP

        Let us who are of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope of salvation.--1 Thessalonians 5:8

    Now and onward to the close of time the people of God should be wide-awake, not trusting in their own wisdom, but wholly in the wisdom of their Leader. They should set aside days for fasting and prayer. Entire abstinence from food should not be required, but they should deny themselves the food they usually enjoy and partake of [a] plain, simple diet. No one should lift up his soul unto vanity, walking in self-indulgence, and pride, for this is a time that demands genuine humiliation and most earnest prayer. We are nearing the most important crisis that has even come upon the world. If we are not wide-awake and watching, it will steal upon us as a thief. Satan is preparing to work through his human agencies in secrecy.

    There is in our churches a decided want of love for Christ and for one another. Christlike simplicity is looked upon as weakness. There is little clear spiritual discernment. Wrongs remain unconfessed. The transgression condemned in the law of God is on the increase in our borders. Sin is cherished, and the result is hardness of heart. Because those who are handling sacred things do not walk in the light, that light is becoming darkness to them, and how great is that darkness....

    Men who do not possess moral worth are exalted, while those who are endeavoring to seek the Lord and walk in His steps are not appreciated. This danger will become more and more apparent. We must awake to the perils that are opening around us. All Pharisaism, all self-righteousness must be separated from the soul. Then we shall realize that we need Christ's righteousness, and we shall accept it by faith. (Letter 5, November, 1883)

REFLECTION: Then who shall we choose to serve? Shall we make Christ our personal Saviour; study his life and practise; go only where we are sure he leads the way, and where we can keep him by our side as an honored Friend and Counselor? Our heart's desire, breathed out in prayer to God, should be, Abide with me. (The Review and Herald, October 27, 1896)

August 12, 2020

8/12/2020

TODAY IS THE DAY

        He says: "In an acceptable time I have heard you, and in the day of salvation I have helped you." Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.--2 Corinthians 6:2

    Great trouble will soon arise among the nations which will not cease until Jesus comes. The world is becoming more and more lawless. The churches are united in their efforts to restrict religious liberty.

    What are we as a people doing in this crisis? Are we purifying our souls by obedience to Christ's words? Are we humbling our hearts before God and confessing our sins? Are we seeking with earnestness and contrition of soul Him who is the source of our strength? Are we claiming the promises, believing that Jesus pardons our transgressions and forgives our sins? Are we educating ourselves to overcome all temptation or to murmur and complain?...

    All are given the same opportunity that was granted to the first great rebel to demonstrate the spirit that moves them to action. It is God's purpose that every one shall be tested and proved to see whether he will be loyal or disloyal to the laws which govern the kingdom of heaven. To the last, God permits Satan to reveal his character as a liar, and accuser, and a murderer. Thus the final [triumph] of his people is made more marked, more glorious, more full and complete.

    The words of the prophet will then be fulfilled, "The day of vengeance is in my heart, and the year of my redeemed is come." [Isaiah 63:4.] The song of God's people will be, "The Lord reigneth; let the people tremble: he sitteth between the cherubims, let the earth be moved. The Lord is great in Zion; he is high above his people." [Psalm 99:1, 2.] (Letter 5, November 1883)

REFLECTION: There is no time to put off searching our hearts and accepting God's free gift of salvation.