Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.—Revelation 14:12

Mysteries into which angels desire to look, which prophets and kings and righteous men and women desired to understand, the remnant church will carry in messages from God to the world. The prophets prophesied of these things, and they longed to understand that which they foretold; but to them this privilege was not given….

The truths of the third angel’s message have been presented by some as a dry theory; but in this message is to be presented Christ the Living One. He is to be revealed as the first and the last, as the I AM, the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright and morning Star. Through this message the character of God in Christ is to be manifested to the world. The call is to be sounded: “O Jerusalem, that bringest good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God! Behold, the Lord God will come with strong hand, and His arm shall rule for Him: behold, His reward is with Him, and His work before Him. He shall feed His flock like a shepherd: He shall gather the lambs with His arm, and carry them in His bosom” (Isaiah 40:9-11).

Now, with John the Baptist, we are to point to Jesus, saying: “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world” (John 1:29). Now as never before is to be sounded the invitation: “If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, and drink.” “The Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely” (John 7:37; Revelation 22:17).

There is a great work to be done, and every effort possible must be made to reveal Christ as the sin-pardoning Saviour, Christ as the Sin Bearer, Christ as the bright and morning Star; and the Lord will give us favor before the world until our work is done.—Testimonies for the Church 6:19-21.

Further Reflection: When was the last time that God granted me favor as I tried to reveal Christ to someone? How did it feel to know that God used me to share the Bright and Morning Star with others?

From Jesus, Name Above All Names

“For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.”—John 3:17

Christ said to His disciples, “Ye are the light of the world.” As the sun goes forth in the heavens to fill the world with brightness, so must the followers of Jesus shed the light of truth upon those who are groping in the darkness of error and superstition. But Christ’s followers have no light of themselves. It is the light of Heaven that falls upon them, which is to be reflected by them to the world….

The light of life is freely proffered to all. Everyone who will may be guided by the bright beams of the Sun of Righteousness. Christ is the great remedy for sin. None can plead their circumstances, their education, or their temperament as an excuse for living in rebellion against God. Sinners are such by their own deliberate choice. Said our Saviour, “This is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.” …

When the claims of God are presented, those who love sin evince their true character by the satisfaction with which they point to the faults and errors of professed Christians. They are actuated by the same spirit as their master, Satan, whom the Bible declares to be the “accuser of the brethren.” Let an evil report be started, and how rapidly it will be exaggerated and passed from lip to lip! How many will feast upon it, like vultures upon a heap of garbage….

The true Christian, “he that doeth truth, cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.” His godly life and holy conversation are a daily testimony against sin and sinners. He is a living representative of the truth which he professes. Of these true-hearted followers, Jesus declares that He is not ashamed to call them brethren. Everyone who at last secures eternal life will here manifest zeal and devotion in the service of God…. To know their duty is to do it heartily and fearlessly. They follow the light as it shines upon their path, regardless of consequences. The God of truth is on their side and will never forsake them.—The Signs of the Times, March 9, 1882.

Further Reflection: Is my life a testimony for or against sin? How can I know the answer?

From Jesus, Name Above All Names

“The LORD will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace.”—Exodus 14:14

I think of the meditation of Christ and the promise, “I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you” (John 14:18). The agency of the Holy Spirit is to combine with human effort and all heaven is engaged in the work of preparing a people for to stand in these last days. The end is near, and we want to keep the future world in view. The burden of my prayer is that the churches may be aroused from their moral torpor and awaken to earnest, interested endeavor. Oh, that they could see and understand that in this last conflict the Captain of the Lord’s host is leading on the armies of heaven and mingling in the ranks and fighting our battles for us. We shall have apostasies; we expect them. “They will go out from us because they were not of us” (1 John 2:19). “Every plant, which My heavenly Father hath not planted, shall be rooted up” (Matthew 15:13).

The angel, the mighty angel from heaven, is to “lighten the earth with His glory” while He cries mightily with a loud voice, “Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen” (Revelation 18:1, 2). Oh, how I wish the church to arise and shine because the glory of the Lord has risen upon her. What can we not do in God if every human agency is doing its very utmost. “Without Me ye can do nothing” (John 15:5).

We would lose faith and courage in the conflict if we were not sustained by the power of God. Every form of evil is to spring into intense activity. Evil angels unite their powers with evil people and, as they have been in constant conflict and attained an experience in the best modes of deception and battle, and have been strengthening for centuries, they will not yield the last great final contest without a desperate struggle. All the world will be on one side or the other of the question. The battle of Armageddon will be fought. And that day must find none of us sleeping. Wide awake we must be, as wise virgins having oil in our vessels with our lamps. What is this? Grace, grace! The power of the Holy Ghost must be upon us and the Captain of the Lord’s host will stand at the head of the angels of heaven to direct the battle.—Letter 112, 1890.

Further Reflection: Satan and his evil army will do everything within their power to fight the armies of God. Am I ready to take my place in the great battle to come? What can I do today to prepare?

From Jesus, Name Above All Names

Therefore, in all things He had to be made like His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.—Hebrews 2:17

Wonderful—almost too wonderful for human beings to comprehend—is the Saviour’s sacrifice in our behalf, shadowed forth in all the sacrifices of the past, in all the services of the typical sanctuary. And this sacrifice was called for. When we realize that His suffering was necessary in order to secure our eternal well-being, our hearts are touched and melted. He pledged Himself to accomplish our full salvation in a way satisfactory to the demands of God’s justice, and consistent with the exalted holiness of His law.

No one less holy than the Only Begotten of the Father, could have offered a sacrifice that would be efficacious to cleanse all—even the most sinful and degraded—who accept the Saviour as their atonement and become obedient to Heaven’s law. Nothing less could have reinstated human beings in God’s favor.

What right had Christ to take the captives out of the enemy’s hands?—The right of having made a sacrifice that satisfies the principles of justice by which the kingdom of heaven is governed. He came to this earth as the Redeemer of the lost race, to conquer the wily foe, and, by His steadfast allegiance to right, to save all who accept Him as their Saviour. On the cross of Calvary He paid the redemption price of the race. And thus He gained the right to take the captives from the grasp of the great deceiver, who, by a lie, framed against the government of God, caused the fall of humanity, and thus forfeited all claim to be called a loyal subject of God’s glorious everlasting kingdom.

Our ransom has been paid by our Saviour. No one need be enslaved by Satan. Christ stands before us as our all-powerful helper. “In all things it behooved Him to be made like unto His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people” (Hebrews 2:17).—Selected Messages 1:309, 310.

Further Reflection: When was the last time Jesus delivered me from the enemy?

From Jesus, Name Above All Names

He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him.—John 1:11

Jesus came by the authority of God, bearing His image, fulfilling His word, and seeking His glory; yet He was not accepted by the leaders in Israel; but when others should come, assuming the character of Christ, but actuated by their own will and seeking their own glory, they would be received. And why? Because he who is seeking his own glory appeals to the desire for self-exaltation in others. To such appeals the Jews could respond. They would receive the false teacher because he flattered their pride by sanctioning their cherished opinions and traditions. But the teaching of Christ did not coincide with their ideas. It was spiritual, and demanded the sacrifice of self; therefore they would not receive it. They were not acquainted with God, and to them His voice through Christ was the voice of a stranger.

Is not the same thing repeated in our day? Are there not many, even religious leaders, who are hardening their hearts against the Holy Spirit, making it impossible for them to recognize the voice of God? Are they not rejecting the word of God, that they may keep their own traditions?

“Had ye believed Moses,” said Jesus, “ye would have believed Me: for he wrote of Me. But if ye believe not his writings, how shall ye believe My words?” It was Christ who had spoken to Israel through Moses. If they had listened to the divine voice that spoke through their great leader, they would have recognized it in the teachings of Christ. Had they believed Moses, they would have believed Him of whom Moses wrote.

Jesus knew that the priests and rabbis were determined to take His life; yet He clearly explained to them His unity with the Father, and His relation to the world. They saw that their opposition to Him was without excuse, yet their murderous hatred was not quenched. Fear seized them as they witnessed the convincing power that attended His ministry; but they resisted His appeals, and locked themselves in darkness.

They had signally failed to subvert the authority of Jesus or to alienate the respect and attention of the people, many of whom were convicted by His words.—The Desire of Ages, 212, 213.

Further Reflection: How can I hear Jesus clearly and follow His leading when He speaks to me?

From Jesus, Name Above All Names