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Advent Review and Sabbath Herald 10-16-00
The eternal Father is waiting for us to take our eyes off finite man, and place our dependence on him. Then look not to man
for your light and strength. Put not your trust in the arm of flesh. All your love and praise and exaltation are to be given to him
who loved you and gave himself for you. Strive to be one with Christ as he was one with the Father; but in no case exalt man,
not even the ablest speaker that ever lived. Lift up Jesus. Talk of him, extol his name, and by so doing your own hearts will be
warmed and encouraged and strengthened. As the believer studies the word and beholds Christ, he will become more and more
like Christ. Searching the Scriptures, he will learn of Christ, whom to know aright is life eternal.
The Home Missionary 06-01-97
Every individual must seek by earnest prayer to know the word of God for himself, and then to do it. Only in day by day
putting his trust in God, and not in the arm of flesh, will any soul obtain the experience essential to answer the prayer of Christ,
"And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent." This is the lesson
given to every soul who has commenced the new year. In all your temporal concerns, in all your cares and anxieties, wait
upon the Lord. Put not your trust in princes, nor in the sons of man because they may be in positions of trust. The Lord has
united your heart with him. If you love him, and are accepted in his service, bring all your burdens, both public and private, to
the Lord, and wait upon him. You will then have an individual experience, a conviction of his presence and his readiness to
hear your prayer for wisdom and for instruction, that will give you assurance and confidence in the Lord's willingness to succor
you in your perplexities.
The Great Controversy 598
God has given us His word that we may become acquainted with its teachings and know for ourselves what He requires of us.
When the lawyer came to Jesus with the inquiry, "What shall I do to inherit eternal life?" the Saviour referred him to the Scriptures,
saying: "What is written in the law? how readest thou?" Ignorance will not excuse young or old, nor release them from the
punishment due for the transgression of God's law; because there is in their hands a faithful presentation of that law and of its
principles and claims. It is not enough to have good intentions; it is not enough to do what a man thinks is right or what the
minister tells him is right. His soul's salvation is at stake, and he should search the Scriptures for himself. However strong may
be his convictions, however confident he may be that the minister knows what is truth, this is not his foundation. He has a chart
pointing out every waymark on the heavenward journey, and he ought not to guess at anything.
It is the first and highest duty of every rational being to learn from the Scriptures what is truth, and then to walk in the light
and encourage others to follow his example. We should day by day study the Bible diligently, weighing every thought and
comparing scripture with scripture. With divine help we are to form our opinions for ourselves as we are to answer for
ourselves before God.
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