I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well. Psalm 139:14.

Only one lease of life is granted us here, and the inquiry with every one should be, How can I invest my life that it may yield the greatest profit? Life is valuable only as we improve it for the benefit of our fellow creatures and the glory of God. Careful cultivation of the abilities with which the Creator has endowed us will fit us for usefulness here and eternal life in the world to come.

That time is well spent which is directed to the establishment and preservation of sound physical and mental health…. It is easy to lose health, but it is difficult to regain it….

We can ill afford to dwarf or cripple a single function of mind or body by overwork or by abuse of any part of the living machinery. So sure as we do this, we must suffer the consequences. It is our first duty to God and our fellow beings to develop all our powers. Every faculty with which the Creator has endowed us should be cultivated to the highest degree of perfection, that we may be able to do the greatest amount of good of which we are capable. The grace of Christ is needed to refine and purify the mind; this will enable us to see and correct our deficiencies, and to improve that which is excellent in our characters. This work, wrought for ourselves in the strength and name of Jesus, will be of more benefit to society than any sermon we might preach. The influence of a well-balanced, well-ordered life is of inestimable value….

There are few as yet who are aroused sufficiently to understand how much their habits of diet have to do with their health, their characters, their usefulness in this world, and their eternal destiny. The appetite should ever be in subjection to the moral and intellectual organs. The body should be servant to the mind, and not the mind to the body. All should understand in regard to their own physical frames, that with the psalmist they may be able to exclaim, “I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.” ^{28The Review and Herald, September 23, 1884.}

From That I May Know Him

I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. John 10:10.

Every moment of our life is intensely real. Life is no play; it is charged with awful importance, fraught with eternal responsibilities. When we look upon life from this point of view, we realize our need of divine help. The conviction will be forced upon us that a life without Christ will be a life of utter failure, but if Jesus abides with us, we shall live for a purpose. We shall then realize that without the power of God’s grace and Spirit we cannot reach the high standard He has placed before us. There is a divine excellence of character to which we are to attain, and in striving to meet the standard of heaven, divine incentives will urge us on, the mind will become balanced, and the restlessness of the soul will be banished in repose in Christ.

How often do we come in contact with people who are never happy. They fail of enjoying the contentment and peace that Jesus can give. They profess to be Christians but they do not comply with the conditions upon which the promise of God is fulfilled. Jesus has said, “Come unto me…. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:28-30). The reason why many are in a state of unrest is that they are not learning in the school of the Master. The submissive, self-sacrificing child of God understands by experience what it is to have the peace of Christ.^{26The Review and Herald, September 22, 1891.}

Life’s best things—simplicity, honesty, truthfulness, purity, unsullied integrity—are not to be bought or sold. They are free to the illiterate as to the educated, to the white man as to the black man, to the poor man as to the king upon his throne….

In the field of life we are all sowing seeds. As we sow, so shall we reap. Those who sow self-love, bitterness, jealousy, will reap a like harvest. Those who sow unselfish love, kindness, tender thoughtfulness for the feelings of others, will reap a precious harvest.^{27Letter 109, 1901.}

From That I May Know Him

And they shall be mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him. Malachi 3:17.

The kingdom of heaven is represented as being like unto a merchantman “seeking goodly pearls: who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it.”

This parable has a double significance, and applies not only to man seeking the kingdom of heaven, but to Christ seeking His lost inheritance. Through transgression man lost his holy innocence, and mortgaged himself to Satan. Christ, the only begotten Son of God, pledged Himself for the redemption of man, and paid the price of his ransom on the cross of Calvary. He left the worlds unfallen, the society of holy angels in the universe of heaven, for He could not be satisfied while humanity was alienated from Him. The heavenly Merchantman lays aside His royal robe and crown. Though the Prince and Commander of all heaven, He takes upon Him the garb of humanity, and comes to a world that is marred and seared with the curse, to seek for the one lost pearl, to seek for man fallen through disobedience….

He finds His pearl buried in rubbish. Selfishness encrusts the human heart, and it is bound by the tyranny of Satan. But He lifts the soul out of its darkness to show forth the praises of Him who hath called us out of darkness into His marvelous light. We are brought into covenant relationship with God, and receive pardon and find peace. Jesus finds the pearl of lost humanity, and resets it in His own diadem….

He would inspire the most sinful, the most debased, with hope. He says, “Him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out” (John 6:37). When a soul finds the Saviour, the Saviour rejoices as a merchantman that has found his goodly pearl. By His grace He will work upon the soul until it will be like a jewel polished for the heavenly kingdom. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” ^{25The Youth’s Instructor, October 10, 1895.}

From That I May Know Him

Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it. Matthew 13:45, 46.

This goodly pearl represents the priceless treasure of Christ, as does the gold hid in the field. In Christ we have everything that is needful for us in this life, and that which will make up the joy of the world to come. All the money in the world will not buy the gift of peace and rest and love. These gifts are provided for us through faith in Christ. We cannot purchase these gifts from God; we have nothing with which to buy them. We are the property of God, for mind, soul, and body have been purchased by the ransom of the life of the Son of God….

Then what is it to buy the eternal treasure? It is simply to give back to Jesus His own, to receive Him into the heart by faith. It is cooperation with God; it is bearing the yoke with Christ; it is lifting His burdens…. The Lord Jesus laid aside His royal crown, He left His high command, He clothed His divinity with humanity, in order that through humanity He might uplift the human race. He so appreciated the possibility of the human race that He became man’s substitute and surety. He places upon man His own merit, and thus elevates him in the scale of moral value with God.

Christ is the atoning sacrifice. He left the glory of heaven, He parted with His riches, He laid aside His honor, not in order to create love and interest for man in the heart of God, but to be an exponent of the love that existed in the heart of the Father…. Jesus paid the price of all His riches, He assumed humanity, He condescended to a life of poverty and humiliation, in order that He might seek and save that which was lost.

Through the grace of Christ we may be strengthened and matured, so that though now imperfect we may become complete in Him. We have mortgaged ourselves to Satan, but Christ came to ransom and redeem us. We cannot purchase anything from God. It is only by grace, the free gift of God in Christ, that we are saved.^{24The Youth’s Instructor, September 5, 1895.}

From That I May Know Him

Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. John 14:6.

When Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life,” He uttered a truth of wonderful significance. The transgression of man had separated earth from heaven, and finite man from the infinite God. As an island is separated from a continent, so earth was cut off from heaven, and a wide channel intervened between man and God. Jesus bridged this gulf, and made a way for man to come to God. He who has no spiritual light sees no way, has no hope, and men have originated theories of their own regarding the way to life…. But the only name given among men whereby they can be saved is Jesus. Across the gulf that sin has made come His words, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” …

Man can be justified alone through the imputation of Christ’s righteousness. Man is justified freely by God’s grace through faith, and not by works, lest any man should boast. Salvation is the gift of God through Jesus Christ our Lord….

After the enemy had betrayed Adam and Eve into sin, the connection between heaven and earth was severed, and had it not been for Christ, the way to heaven would never have been known by the fallen race…. Christ is the mystic ladder, the base of which rests upon the earth, and whose topmost round reaches to the throne of the Infinite. The children of Adam are not left desolate and alienated from God, for through Christ’s righteousness we have access unto the Father.

“By me,” said Christ, “if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture” (John 10:9). Let earth be glad, let the inhabitants of the world rejoice, that Christ has bridged the gulf which sin had made, and has bound earth and heaven together. A highway has been cast up for the ransomed of the Lord. The weary and heavy laden may come unto Him and find rest to their souls. The pilgrim may journey toward the mansions that He has gone to prepare for those who love Him.^{23The Review and Herald, November 11, 1890.}

From That I May Know Him