And go … unto the children of thy people, and speak unto them, and tell them, Thus saith the Lord God; whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear. Ezekiel 3:11.

I am again and again reminded that I am not to try to clear away the confusion and contradiction of faith and feeling and unbelief that is expressed. I am not to be depressed, but am to speak the words of the Lord with authority, and then leave with Him all the consequences. I am instructed by the Great Physician to speak the word that the Lord gives me, whether men will hear or whether they will forbear. I am told that I have nothing to do with the consequences, that God, even the Lord Jehovah, will keep me in perfect peace if I will rest in His love and do the work He has given me….

The Lord desires us to put our trust in Him. I am keeping on the watch, not knowing how soon I may be called on to lay off my armor. I want my every word and impulse and action to be such that in the judgment I shall not be ashamed of them. I realize something of the time in which we are living. Our time of discipline on this earth, yours and mine, is very limited….

I never realized more decidedly than at the present time the help of the Lord in my speaking and writing. I shall stand on the field of battle until the Lord releases me. I am afraid for our people—afraid that the love of the world is robbing them of godliness and piety. I am trying to arouse them to see the danger of being decoyed by the enemy onto enchanted ground. I am trying to show them the need of cultivating faith and love at all times and under all circumstances.

It is only by strong faith that a strong love for the Saviour can be kept alive in the heart. Our faith in Christ must be a pure, strong, genuine faith. There is a spurious faith, which leads only to confidence in self and to criticism of others. Such faith quenches every spark of Christlike love in the soul.

God calls upon His people to be united. But our union can be genuine only as we move upward to the cross of Calvary, every day crucifying self. All efforts at union that are not founded on the softening, subduing love of Christ in the heart will most assuredly fail….

There is power in genuine religion. Through faith, through conformity to the will of God, we shall become so Christlike that men will see that we are partakers of the divine nature, and that we are making constant advancement in the knowledge of Christ.—Letter 146, September 22, 1902, to Brother and Sister S. T. Belden, her brother-in-law in self-supporting service.

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For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect. 1 Corinthians 1:17.

Those who read and listen to the sophistries that prevail in this age do not know God as He is. They contradict the Word of God, and extol and worship nature in the place of the Creator. While we may discern the workings of God in the things He has created, these things are not God…. The physical creation testifies of God and Jesus Christ as the great Creator of all things. “All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men” (John 1:3, 4). The psalmist bears witness, “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge. There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard” (Psalm 19:1-3)….

The uneducated heathen learns his lessons through nature and through his own necessities, and, dissatisfied with darkness, he is reaching out for light, searching for God in the First Great Cause. There is recorded in Genesis various ways in which God speaks to the heathen. But the contrast between the revelation of God in Genesis and the ideas of the heathen is striking. Many of the pagan philosophers had a knowledge of God that was pure; but degeneracy, the worship of created things, began to obscure this knowledge. The handiwork of God in the natural world—the sun, the moon, the stars—were worshiped.

Men today declare that Christ’s teachings concerning God cannot be substantiated by the things of the natural world, that nature is not in harmony with the Old and New Testament Scriptures. This supposed lack of harmony between nature and science does not exist. The Word of the God of heaven is not in harmony with human science, but it is in perfect accord with His own created science.

This living God is worthy of our thought, our praise, our adoration, as the Creator of the world, as the Creator of man. We are to praise God, for we are fearfully and wonderfully made. Our substance was not hid from Him when we were made in secret. His eyes saw our substance, yet being imperfect, and in His book all our members were written when as yet there was none of them. He breathed into our nostrils the breath of life. The inspiration of God has given us understanding.—Manuscript 117, September 21, 1898, “A Personal God.”

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Write the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter. Revelation 1:19.

Every feature of the third angel’s message is to be proclaimed in all parts of the world. This is a much greater work than many realize. Our missionary enterprises are the one great object demanding our undivided attention at this time. “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.” In this work we are to study simplicity.

This message is a testing message. Received into honest hearts, it will prove an antidote for all the world’s sins and sorrows. No conditions of climate, of poverty, of ignorance, or of prejudice can hinder its efficiency, or lessen its adaptability to the needs of mankind.

The proclamation of the great gospel message is the work of the disciples of Christ. Some will labor for this in one way, and others will carry another branch of the work, as the Lord calls and directs them individually. All have not the same line of work, but all may unite in their efforts. The Word of the living God is to be proclaimed throughout the world. The gospel is to go forth with great power, marked by practical manifestations of the Spirit of God. Our workers are to become a living agency to reveal the purpose of God in calling them to His work. The word of the glorious gospel is to be preached in its divine comprehensiveness. By the living voice, and by kind, compassionate deeds, we are to exemplify the principles of the gospel….

The truth may be advanced by works of charity, by helping the ignorant, the sick, the hungry, and the helpless. But our work is not to be confined to the outcasts…. Let the churches be purged from their selfishness and their pride, and gain an experience in uniting with one another to encourage the hearts of the doubting and to recover those who have entered the mist and fog of unbelief.

All are to hear the last message of warning. The prophecies in the book of Revelation, chapters 12 to 18, are being fulfilled. In the eighteenth chapter is recorded the very last call to the churches. This call is now to be given. In the nineteenth chapter, the time is pictured when the beast and the false prophet are taken, and cast into a lake of fire. The dragon, who was the instigator of the great rebellion against heaven, is bound, and cast into the bottomless pit for a thousand years. Then follows the resurrection of the wicked and the final destruction of Satan and all the wicked, and the final triumph and reign of Christ in this earth.—Manuscript 75, September 20, 1906, “A Caution Against Heavy Investment in Food Manufacture.”

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The Lord is on my side; I will not fear: what can man do unto me? Psalm 118:6.

Dear Brother: … I know that you are often tempted and tried. I know that the Lord will not leave you to wrestle with these temptations alone. Only believe Jesus is your Helper, a very present help in time of trouble. Somehow today it seemed to me I must see you and bid you look up; yes, look up through the mist, through the clouds to the Sun of Righteousness. You must not be depressed. It is the depressing discouragements that are sapping your life forces. You must be cheerful even though disappointed in men. Jesus understands; Jesus is true; Jesus is your Saviour. Only a little while of trial, a little moment of affliction, then an eternal weight of glory.

I write to you as I would to my own sons. You are in the place where God would have you. I tell you, my brother, there is no mistake in this matter. I know what I am talking about. Be true to God, and you will do the work He has given you to do with fidelity. God lives and reigns. We have a living and a risen Saviour. He has a care for you…. He has never proved false; He has never deceived you. He will be your guide and deliverer in the most trying circumstances. He will be at your right hand. We are every moment girded with His power and surrounded by His presence as really as were the Israelites in the midst of the divided sea.

The deepest and truest philosophy of life and faith is to bring ourselves into the most intimate relation with God. God is giving you an experience, and if you do not grieve too much and feel too keenly, you will have physical strength. But sorrow and dissension and untruthfulness is to you a living death. But you must in faith commit your case to God. Truth will triumph and you will triumph with it.

Keep fast hold on Jesus. Look up to the haven of rest and the home of the blest. Keep your soul in the love of God whatever may betide, and you will grow spiritually strong. Jesus is your loving Friend; He will take your hand and help you over every hard and trying place. A grateful, trustful, habitual recognition of God lies at the very foundation of all right conduct, all true character. You must never lose confidence in God. It were less sinful, less unreasonable, to forget every human friend you have in the world than to forget God. I know that you love God, and I know you will try to serve Him in all sincerity, in all fidelity, and no one will ever be able to make you afraid or ashamed to be known as a servant of the Most High God. May the Lord bless you is the prayer of (signed) Ellen G. White.—Letter 22, September 19, 1886, to Dr. J. S. Gibbs, a physician at the Rural Health Retreat, St. Helena, California.

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Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him. John 14:23.

It is a most solemn thing to represent to the world the character of Christ. Wherever this is done, by whomever it is done, there is seed sown unto eternal life. Whatever you may see others doing that your judgment convicts you as being unseemly for a Christian, see to it that you never do the same things yourself. Never grieve the heart of Jesus, who has borne your sins and carried your sorrows. Serve God in meekness and lowliness of heart.

The Lord loves you, and just as long as you will follow in the footsteps of Jesus, you will walk securely. It is essential that every soul that names the name of Christ should make straight paths for his feet. Why? Lest the lame be turned out of the way. It is a terrible, terrible thing to give a soul a wrong example, and to lead him in a crooked course by the way in which you may walk. We shall soon stand before the judgment seat of Christ, not to have our cases decided, for this has been done before. The judgment sits, the books are opened, and it is revealed that every man receives according to that which he hath done, whether it be good or evil. Crowd all the good works possible into your life….

Jesus is rich in grace. Draw, constantly draw from Him, for you may have rich supplies. The demon of heresy has mapped out the world, and has resolved to possess it as his kingdom. Those who are in his army are numerous. They are disguised, and are subtle and persevering. They resist every divine influence, and employ every instrumentality in order to compass the ruin of even one soul. They possess a zeal, tact, and ability that is marvelous, and press their way into every new opening where the standard of truth is uplifted.

What will the laborers together with God do? Wherein lies their ability and efficiency? Those who are workers together with God will work in Christ’s lines. Imbued with the spirit of Christ, they will rise to their true dignity and responsibility. The church is not to fold her hands in security and say, “I am rich, and increased in goods, and in need of nothing.” The followers of Christ are not to trust to past experience, and fail to go on to perfection. In so doing, the church will meet with defeat and ruin. Upon what shall she depend? Wholly and entirely upon God—Letter 89, September 18, 1894, to Edson and Emma White.

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