1917

June 1, 1917

Press Onward and Upward

EGW 

The Lord is waiting to do great things for His people; but they must be pure in heart before they can see God or know Him as a pure and holy God. Jesus led His disciples into the audience chamber of the Most High. He impressed upon their minds what was to be the burden of their prayer. They were to pray for the gift of the Holy Spirit, which would supply every need of the soul, for it would work by love and purify the soul. The Spirit taking its abode in the heart, will transform the entire being, conforming it to the likeness of Christ. BTS June 1, 1917, par. 1

Let us humble our hearts before God, and believe He has pardoned all our transgressions and forgiven all our sins. We cannot honor God unless we do believe this, and make Jesus our personal Saviour. We must as a people rise up from our formality. We must enter the straight gate. Satan has placed his active agents all along the passage to dispute the way of every soul. Christ has encouraged His followers not to be intimidated; press, urge your way through, strive to enter in at the straight gate, “for many, I say unto you, shall seek to enter in, but shall not be able.” Darling, cherished idols will have to be given up, the sins that have been indulged in, even if it comes as close as the plucking out of the right eye, or cutting off the right arm. Arouse, force your way through the very armies of hell that oppose your passage. BTS June 1, 1917, par. 2

Oh, we must be terribly in earnest to impress upon every soul that there is a hell to shun and a heaven to be won. Every energy of the soul must be aroused to force their passage, and seize the kingdom of heaven by force. Satan is active, and we must be active. Satan is untiring and persevering and we must be. This is no time now to make excuses and blame others for our backslidings, no time now to flatter the soul—if circumstances had only been more favorable, how much easier for us to work the works of God. We must tell even those who profess the truth that they must cease to offend God by their sinful excuses. Jesus has provided for every emergency. If they will walk where He leads the way, He will make rough places plain. He, with His presence will create an atmosphere for the soul. He closes the door, and brings the soul into seclusion with God, and the needy soul is to forget everyone and everything but God. Satan will walk with him, but speak aloud to God, and He will drive back the hellish shadow of Satan. With humble, subdued, thankful hearts they will come forth saying, Thy gentleness hath made me great. BTS June 1, 1917, par. 3

The sincere seeker comes forth from the audience with God, rich in the assurance of His love, to go forth to distil a heavenly fragrance wherever he goes. He can talk of the righteousness of Christ, he can talk of the love of God with sincerity. He has tasted, and he knows the Lord is good. This work is to be done in all our churches. Christ, His love, His forgiveness, His purity, is to be the theme upon which we are to dwell. The charms of Jesus are to be kept ever before our minds, charged with the elevated character of the true model that every soul must copy. Let us turn our eyes from everything that would dishearten and discourage. Satan will seek to distort everything to our vision, and make a mountain of a mole hill. Our eyes must be fixed on Jesus. BTS June 1, 1917, par. 4

The Lord Jesus is our leader. We must follow where He leads the way. We are not to commence to plan for the second step. We are not to say, Lord, after I have taken that step, what shall I do, for I shall meet with difficulties; but by faith we must take that one step, come what will, and trust in Jesus. BTS June 1, 1917, par. 5