A certain man gave a great supper and invited many, and sent his servant at supper time to say to those who were invited, “Come, for all things are now ready.” Luke 14:16, 17. (Read Luke 14:16-24.)

This parable correctly represents the condition of many professing to believe the present truth. The Lord has sent them an invitation to come to the supper which He has prepared for them at great cost to Himself, but worldly interests look to them of greater importance than the heavenly treasure. They are invited to take part in the things of eternal value, but their farms, their cattle, and their home interest, seem of so much greater importance than obedience to the heavenly invitation that they overpower every divine attraction, and these earthly things are made the excuse for their disobedience to the heavenly command, “Come; for all things are now ready.” …

The very blessings which God has given to these individuals, to prove them, to see if they will render “unto God the things that are God’s,” they use as an excuse that they cannot obey the claims of truth. They have grasped their earthly treasure in their arms and say, I must take care of these things; I must not neglect the things of this life; these things are mine. Thus the hearts of these people have become as unimpressible as the beaten highway….

Their hearts are so overgrown with thorns and cares of this life that heavenly things can find no place. Jesus invites the weary and heavy laden with promises of rest if they will come to Him…. He would have them lay aside the heavy burdens of worldly cares and perplexities, and take His yoke, which is self-denial and sacrifice for others. This burden will prove to be light. Those who refuse to accept the relief Christ offers them, and will continue to wear the galling yoke of selfishness, tasking their souls to the utmost in plans to accumulate money for selfish gratification, have not experienced the peace and rest found in bearing the yoke of Christ and lifting the burdens of self-denial and disinterested benevolence which Christ has borne in their behalf….

Souls for whom Christ died might be saved by their personal effort and godly example…. But the precious light is hid under a bushel, and it gives no light to those who are in the house.—The Review and Herald, August 25, 1874.

From From the Heart

They shall see His face, and His name shall be on their foreheads. Revelation 22:4.

When Moses pleaded with God, saying, “I beseech thee, shew me thy glory,” God said, “Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live.” … Moses could not behold the revelation of the glory of the face of God, and live; but there is a promise given to us, “They shall see his face.”

When Moses came down from the mount where he had been given a view of the glory of God, his face was so lighted up that Aaron and all the children of Israel “were afraid to come nigh him.” …

We cannot now see the glory of God; but it is only by receiving Him here that we shall be able by and by to see Him face to face. God would have us keep our eyes fixed on Him, that we may lose sight of the things of this world….

Today by our associations, by our life, by our character, we are choosing whom we will have as our king. Heavenly intelligences are seeking to draw us to Christ…. Though we are transgressors of the law of God, if we repent in faith, God can work through us the works of Christ….

When Christ ascended on high, He sent His Representative as a Comforter. This Representative is by our side wherever we may be—a watcher and a witness to all that is said and done—standing ready to protect us from the assaults of the enemy if we will but place ourselves under His protection. But we must act our part, and then God will act His part. When we are brought into trial and affliction for His sake, the Comforter will stand by our side, bringing to our remembrance the words and teachings of Christ.

Is your name written in the book of life? Only by looking to Jesus, the Lamb of God, and following in His steps, can you prepare to meet God. Follow Him, and you will one day walk the golden streets of the city of God….

Those who consecrate their lives to the service of God will live with Him through the ceaseless ages of eternity….

He takes them as His children, saying, Enter ye into the joy of your Lord. The crown of immortality is placed on the brow of the overcomers.—Youth’s Instructor, August 20, 1896.

From From the Heart

As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. 1 Peter 4:10.

The Lord has made men and women His agents, and with hearts filled with the love of Jesus, they are to cooperate with Him in turning human beings from error to truth. God blesses the earth with sunshine and showers. He causes the earth to bring forth its plenteous treasures for the use of all. The Lord has made us His almoner to dispense His heavenly gifts by bringing souls to the truth. Will my brethren in America [written from Australia in 1895] inquire how the precious, saving truth reached them when they were in darkness? Men and women brought their tithes and offerings unto God, and as means filled the treasury, laborers were sent out to advance the work. This same process must be repeated if souls in darkness are reached in this day….

The necessities of the work now demand a greater outlay than ever before. The Lord calls upon His people to make every effort to curtail their expenses…. Let the money that has been devoted to the gratification of self flow into the Lord’s treasury to sustain those who are working to save perishing souls….

The Lord is soon to come. We must work while the day lasts, for the night is coming in which no one can work. Oh, many, many have lost the spirit of self-denial and sacrifice. They have been burying their money in temporal possessions. There are souls whom God has blessed, whom He is testing to see what response they will make to His benefits…. Make haste, brethren, you now have opportunity to be honest with God; delay not. For your soul’s sake no longer rob God in tithes and offerings….

As the plan of redemption begins and ends with a gift, so it is to be carried forward. The same spirit of sacrifice which purchased salvation for us will dwell in the hearts of all who become partakers of the heavenly gift. Says Peter, “As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.” Said Jesus to His disciples as He sent them forth, “Freely ye have received, freely give.” …

Let all do everything in their power to help, both by their means and by their prayers, to carry the burden for souls for whom the ministers are laboring.—The General Conference Bulletin, 2nd quarter, 1897.

From From the Heart

Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them. Matthew 28:19.

Our churches are often appealed to for gifts and offerings to aid missionary enterprises in the home field and to sustain the missionary work abroad…. From every church prayers should ascend to God for an increase of devotion and liberality. Those whose hearts are knit with the heart of Christ will be glad to do what they can to help the cause of God. They will rejoice in the continual expansion and advancement, which means larger and more frequently given offerings.

We may well feel that it is a privilege to be laborers together with God by giving of our means to set in operation that which will carry out His purposes in the world. All who possess that Spirit of Christ will have a tender, sympathetic heart and an open, generous hand. Nothing can be really selfish that has Christ for its absorbing object….

Consider the necessities of our mission fields throughout the world. Our missionaries labor hard and earnestly, but often they are greatly hindered in their work because the treasury is empty, and they cannot be given facilities necessary for the greatest success of their labor. May God help those who have been entrusted with this world’s goods to awaken to His design and to their individual responsibilities. God says to them, I have put you in possession of My goods that you may trade upon them to carry forward the Christian missions that are to be established far and near….

Not all can go as missionaries to foreign lands, but all can do the work waiting for them in their own neighborhood. All can give of their means for the carrying forward of foreign missionary work….

God will encourage His faithful stewards who are ready to put all their energies and God-given endowments to the very best use. As all learn the lesson of faithfully rendering to God what is His due, He through His providence will enable some to bring princely offerings. He will enable others to make smaller offerings; and the small and the large gifts are acceptable to Him if given with an eye single to His glory. “He that ministereth seed to the sower both minister bread for your food, and multiply your seed sown, and increase the fruits of your righteousness; being enriched in every thing to all bountifulness, which causeth through us thanksgiving to God.”—The Review and Herald, April 18, 1912.

From From the Heart

The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve. Mark 10:45.

Christ was continually receiving from the Father, that He might communicate to us. “The word which ye hear,” He said, “is not mine, but the Father’s which sent me.” … Not for Himself, but for others, He lived and thought and prayed. From hours spent with God He came forth morning by morning to bring the light of heaven to those who heard Him. Daily He received a fresh baptism of the Holy Spirit. In the early hours of the new day the Lord awakened Him from His slumbers, and His soul and His lips were anointed with grace, that He might impart to others. His words were given Him fresh from the heavenly courts, words that He might speak in season to the weary and oppressed….

Christ’s disciples were much impressed by His prayers and by His habit of communion with God. One day after a short absence from their Lord, they found Him absorbed in supplication. Seemingly unconscious of their presence, He continued praying aloud. The hearts of the disciples were deeply moved. As He ceased praying, they exclaimed, “Lord, teach us to pray.” In answer Christ repeated the Lord’s Prayer, as He had given it in the Sermon on the Mount….

“Which of you,” He said, “shall have a friend, and shall go unto him at midnight, and say unto him, Friend, lend me three loaves; for a friend of mine in his journey is come to me, and I have nothing to set before him?” …

Here Christ represents the petitioner as asking that he may give again…. In like manner the disciples were to seek blessings from God. In the feeding of the multitude and in the sermon on the bread from heaven, Christ had opened to them their work as His representatives. They were to give the bread of life to the people…. Souls that were hungering for the bread of life would come to them, and they would feel themselves to be destitute and helpless. They must receive spiritual food, or they would have nothing to impart. But they were not to turn one soul away unfed. Christ directs them to the source of supply…. And would not God, who had sent His servants to feed the hungry, supply their need for His own work?—The Review and Herald, August 11, 1910.

From From the Heart