| Christian Life and Doctrine | December 1949 |
“Songs in the Night”
DECEMBER 1
Even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.—Colossians 3:13
THE disposition to forgive should be with us always, and should be manifested by us at all times. Our loving generosity and kindness and desire to think no evil—or as little as possible—should be shown in all the words and acts of life. This course is Godlike. God had a kind, benevolent, generous sentiment toward us, even while we were yet sinners; nor did he wait for the sinners to ask forgiveness, but promptly manifested his desire for harmony and his readiness to forgive. The whole Gospel message is to this effect: “Be ye reconciled to God.” Our hearts should be so full of this disposition toward forgiveness that our faces would not have a hard look, nor our words of reproof a bitter sting. On the contrary, they should manifest the loving forgiveness that we should have in our hearts at all times.—Z 1912-67 (Hymn 21)
DECEMBER 2
The fear of the Lord is the instruction of wisdom; and before honor is humility.—Proverbs 15:33
THE parable of a man with a beam in his own eye trying to pick a mote out of his brother’s eye was a forceful method whereby the Master inculcated the necessity of humility on the part of those who would be taught of God. Humility is here as elsewhere put as a foundation virtue. The Latin word for humility is “humus,” ground. This implies that it is the soil out of which other virtues are produced. Those who think they know everything can learn nothing. As Chalmers has said: “The more a man does examine, the more does he discover the infirmities of his own character.” As Wheatley remarked, “Ten thousand of the greatest faults in our neighbors are of less consequence to us than one of the smallest in ourselves.” A knowledge of our sins and imperfections should make and keep all humanity humble; but how beautiful it is to realize that the perfect Jesus was humble, and that all the holy angels: are so!—Z 1912-164 (Hymn 95)
DECEMBER 3
Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, … he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season.—Psalm 1:1,3
WHILE the heights of perfection cannot be reached so long as we still have these imperfect bodies, there should be in every child of God very perceptible and continuous growth in grace, and each step gained should be considered but the stepping stone to higher attainments. If there is no perceptible growth into the likeness of God, or if there is a backward tendency, or a listless standstill, there is cause for alarm. Let us constantly keep before our eyes the model which the Lord Jesus set for our example—that model of the complete fulfillment of the will of God, in which the whole Law was kept blamelessly. Let us follow his steps of righteousness and self-sacrifice as nearly as a full measure of loving zeal and faithfulness and loyalty to God will enable us to do, and we shall have a blessed sense of the divine approval now, and the glorious reward of divine favor in due time.—Z 1911-181 (Hymn 78)
DECEMBER 4
Not as pleasing men, but God, which trieth our hearts.—I Thessalonians 2:4
THE heart represents the will, the intentions; the will must be kept true and centered in God, but it is the governing power of the whole man. Yet, though the will is the controlling power of man, it is also subject to influences. If the thoughts be impure, unjust, or unholy, the power of the will becomes more and more impaired. Hence. the wisdom of the admonition of the apostle as to what should be the character of our thoughts. In those Who are striving to perfect holiness in the fear of the Lord—to adorn themselves with the beauty of holiness—the thoughts must not be neglected and permitted to browse in every pasture, but must be disciplined to feed upon pure and healthful food.—Z 1911-165 (Hymn 114)
DECEMBER 5
If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God.—James 1:5
ONCE life was to us a maze, like as to the remainder of the world—a round of duties and responsibilities for which we could see no adequate result of reward. We are born, we eat, we drink, we sleep, we learn in the school, we labor, and, to a greater or lesser extent, we enjoy our life of mingled labor, suffering, and pleasure, but appreciate not the purpose of all these. Now, with increasing wisdom from on high, some of us see with the eyes of our understanding the great divine plan of the ages, and the divine purpose and loving-kindness toward us in Christ Jesus, and that we shall be heirs of God and joint-heirs with our Redeemer if so be we suffer with him. Seeing this has changed the entire current of life for us. Now, indeed, to be living is sublime—full of interest, full of importance. The days, hours, go swiftly by, and we feel them none too many for the grand purposes of God which we see are being accomplished in us and for us, and with which we are in fullest accord and sympathy. Still, we lack wisdom, and the more we gain the more we see we still lack. We need, therefore, to continually go to the fountain of all grace and wisdom and truth, that we may profitably use each experience of life as it comes to us, to the intent that ultimately we may come off conquerors—yea, more than conquerors—through him who loved us and bought us with his precious blood.—Z 1907-123 (Hymn 185)
DECEMBER 7
And He led them forth by the right way, that they might go to a city of habitation.—Psalm 107:7
WITH spiritual Israel it is particularly true that the Lord leads in the right way, in the best way; and that therefore all truly his people should be careful to note his leadings and quick in following them. In the end we will surely see that he has led us in the right way, however different that way may be from the one we would have chosen for ourselves. The difficulty with many is that the way they take is not the one which the Lord led and hence not the best way, even though the Lord may overrule their waywardness so that it shall not work to them a great injury which otherwise might have been theirs. The more of the true knowledge of the Lord we possess—the more of the knowledge which perfects our love for the Lord—the greater will be our faith, the more precious will be the results in this present life as well as in the life to come, in which—as star differeth from star in glory—the more faithful of the Lord’s people, and more zealous and more Christlike will have the more shining, the more blessed part and experience. Let us, then, with full faith in him who has led us hitherto, go forth through the coming days conquering and to conquer, fighting against the world, the flesh, and the Adversary, strong not in ourselves, but in him who has called us and led us hitherto.—Z 1907-287 (Hymn 315)
DECEMBER 6
And they were astonished at His doctrine: for His word was with power.—Luke 4:32
IT IS an old adage that truth is stranger than fiction. The fallen condition of the human mind and heart seems to lead us to accept as more reasonable its own imaginings of others rather than the direct clear statement of the divine Word. Hence, whenever the truth has been published the effect has been that the people were astonished at the doctrine, had never heard of such doctrines before, never had matters so clear. All the theories of men are confusing, blurred, inconsistent, when compared with the wonderful divine plan of salvation. We are not surprised, therefore—indeed it becomes the evidence of the truthfulness of our position—that we find similar conditions today. Many, as they hear of the glorious plan of the ages, make just such a remark as our text, that they are astonished at the teaching, its beauty, its power, its reasonableness, the way it glorifies God, the way in which it explains circumstances and conditions in the present time, birth, death, our hopes, our fears, the world’s ignorance, and the coming time of blessing and turning away of the curse and of darkness, and the shining in of the Son of Righteousness with healing in its beams, bringing in “times of restitution.” No less wonderful is the message respecting the high calling, the joint-heirship with Jesus in the heavenly things which eye hath not seen nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man. More and more we are convinced that the eyes of our understanding must be anointed in order that we may appreciate the lengths and breadths and heights and depths of the love of God, which passeth all understanding.—Z 1906-298 (Hymn 300)
DECEMBER 8
I will therefore that men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands.—I Timothy 2:8
NOT only should we pray frequently and with regularity, but we should be always in the attitude of prayer. The children of God should be in that attitude of heart which looks to the Lord for divine guidance in every perplexity and every experience. Just as the needle turns to the pole, so our hearts should turn to the Lord. If there is pain or trouble or difficulty in our pathway, we should look to him. If there is privilege of serving the Lord, we should not think ourselves competent for the service without turning to the Lord for help. In other words, the Christian’s prayer should ascend not only in the beginning of the day; the atmosphere of prayer should surround him continually. It should not be a mere sense of duty, but an appreciation of a great privilege. Those who appreciate the Lord at all could not afford to be without this privilege. Those who do appreciate this privilege rejoice to go to the Heavenly Father many times a day. Our advice to all who are seeking to walk the narrow way would be that they forget not this privilege.—Z 1913-88 (Hymn 115)
DECEMBER 9
Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time.—I Peter 5:6
INSTEAD of self-confidence, wisdom dictates a distrustfulness of self, remembering its weaknesses and imperfections, and correspondingly the greater reverence for God and reliance upon him, which more than anything else will strengthen us and enable us to depart from the evil of our fallen estate. It is no easy matter to tread the pathway of humility, to continually check the human aspirations, and to keep the sacrifice on the altar until it is fully consumed. But thus it is that we are to work out our own salvation to the divine nature with fear and trembling, lest we come short of worthiness for the prize promised to the faithful overcomers who tread closely in the footsteps of our blessed Forerunner, who was meek and lowly of heart. It is when we are thus humble and faithful that the Lord makes us his chosen vessels to bear his name to others. Thus, emptied of self and filled with his Spirit, and with his truth, we can go forth, strong in the Lord of Hosts and in his mighty power to do valiant service as soldiers of the cross.—Z 1913-57 (Hymn 83)
DECEMBER 10
Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.—Matthew 12:34
OUR heart is the most wonderful organ of our body. The tongue is the most subtle of all our members. The Lord takes our words as an index of our heart condition. But since we are imperfect, it is not possible for us to be faultless in word and deed. Yet we are diligently and faithfully to seek to attain the perfect mastery of our words. We should be especially on guard in respect to evil speaking. Every tendency toward slander is to be checked. Whoever of us is reviled is not to revile again. These tendencies belong to the old nature. To be pleasing to the Master we are to keep our hearts free from every form of evil. If this be done the heart is rightly instructed of the Lord. Then we will know that we must make good whatever is wrong. We are bound, thoroughly bound, to make it good to the best of our ability. Our heart must keep itself right.—Z 1913-164 (Hymn 198)
DECEMBER 11
The Good Shepherd giveth His life for the sheep.—John 10:11
THE Good Shepherd, so far from self-seeking, gladly laid down his life for the sheep, and it was by virtue of thus purchasing the sheep by his own precious blood that their eternal life is possible; without his purchase there would be no flock, and it is by this that he becomes the Shepherd of the flock. How clear, how beautiful the thought, “Ye were bought with a price”! No one else could give this ransom for us, no one else could purchase us or grant us life everlasting, no one else, therefore, could legally become our Shepherd or be able to lead us into the rest and peace of God, into the knowledge of the truth, and ultimately into the heavenly fold, the rest that remaineth for the people of God. Worthy the Lamb that was slain to receive glory, honor, dominion, and power!—Z 1908-94 (Hymn 257)
DECEMBER 12
Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into His rest, any of you should seem to come short of it.—Hebrews 4:1
IT IS well that the Lord’s people strive to live a rejoicing life, giving thanks always to the Father in all things, and rejoicing to be counted worthy to suffer shame, etc., for the cause of Christ. But as the apostle declares, let us rejoice with fear: let not our rejoicing be of that reckless, self-satisfying kind which might ensnare us and entrap us; let our rejoicing be in him who loved us and who bought us and who is ever present with us, our best Friend and truest Guide. Let us rejoice, not in feelings of our own strength and courage and wisdom, but in the fact that we have a Savior and a great One, who is able to deliver to the uttermost all that come unto the Father through him. Thus may the Lord be our strength, our confidence, our shield, our buckler.—Z 1906-347 (Hymn 202)
DECEMBER 13
Brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall.—II Peter 1:10
WITH all our striving and watchfulness we shall not be able, in our present condition, to reach our ideal. Perfection is something which can only be approximated in the present life. But the measure of our effort to attain it will prove the measure of our faithfulness and earnest desire to do so. And that effort will not be unfruitful. If no fruit appears, we may be sure that little or no effort is made at cultivation, pruning, etc. The fruit will appear, not only in the development of the Christian graces of character, but also in increasing activities. We must not wait for our immortal bodies, promised us in our resurrection, before our activity in God’s service begins. If we possess the spirit (the will, the disposition) of that new nature, our mortal bodies will be active in the service of God’s truth now. Our feet will be swift to run his errands, our hands prompt to do his bidding, our tongues ready to bear testimony to the truth, our minds active in devising ways and means to do so more and more abundantly and effectively. Thus we shall be living epistles, known and read by all about us—an honor to him who called us out of darkness into his marvelous light.—Z 1911-136 (Hymn 210)
DECEMBER 14
Every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord.—Proverbs 16:5
PRIDE must take its stand with the other reprehensible qualities of the fallen human mind, character. The Scriptures recognize two conditions of heart, the right and the wrong. The one that God approves is called love; the other, the one that he disapproves, is selfishness. All selfishness is opposed to God’s law. Anything selfish is contrary to the divine purpose. The quality of pride is especially abominable to the Lord, because there is not a creature in the universe that has anything to be proud of. Everything that anyone has is a gift; it is not of his own manufacture or creation. God gives the blessing. “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights.” (James 1:17) It is of his fullness that we have received. Everyone, therefore, who is proud, is certainly very reprehensible in God’s sight, for he has been only a recipient of favor, blessing. All God’s creatures are dependent upon him.—Z 1911-389 (Hymn 208)
DECEMBER 15
Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.—Matthew 5:48
YEARS ago it was the custom in the public schools to furnish the children with ruled copybooks, with copperplate engraved lessons at the top of each page. The lesson to the pupil was the copying of those perfect characters. Every modest child must certainly have felt abashed, timid, when receiving one of those lessons, from the realization that it could not produce characters that could at all compare with the copy. It was, however, explained that it was not expected that the child could duplicate the perfect copy, but that following the lines of the copy it would become more and more expert. How well this illustrates the Master’s words, “Be ye … perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect,” and the way in which he intends that we should profit by the instruction. Another lesson: It was the duty of the teacher to examine the work of the pupil, and surely in a majority of cases it was found that the best copy of the original was found on the first line, and that the work became poorer and poorer toward the end of the page. So it is with many in the school of Christ—the great Teacher perceives that their first endeavors to copy Godlikeness in the beginning of their Christian experience were more successful than their subsequent attempts. Why? The answer is the same in both cases. The child neglected to look at the copy and merely looked at its own imperfect efforts, and hence the poor results. So with the pupils in the school of Christ—their poor results come from comparing themselves with themselves, and neglecting to keep constantly before their minds the perfect copy.—Z 1906-82 (Hymn 165)
DECEMBER 16
Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb.—Revelation 19:9
LET us be so enthused with the glorious possibilities of this great feast that we will not be content to walk or to meander slowly, toying with the affairs of this world or the flowers or attractions beside the way which would lure us from the way, but let us press along. The way is rugged, and has been purposely so arranged by the Lord that only the zealous, the earnest, the faithful, the loyal, will be able to attain to the prize. Let us not be discouraged either, as though it were an impossibility to attain the blessing to which we have been called. The fact that the Lord has called us implies that he has made it possible for us to attain, and this possibility we see centers in our dear Redeemer—not merely in the work which he accomplished for us in the past when he redeemed us, but also in his gracious assistances which he renders us all along the journey. Let us remember his assurance that he is able and willing to make all things work together for good to them that love him, to the called ones according to his purpose.—Z 1906-252 (Hymn 164)
DECEMBER 17
The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy.—Psalm 103:8
OUR text reminds us that the Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and plenteous in mercy, and we see this well illustrated in the case of fleshly Israel in the wilderness experiences, in the history of the Lord’s people of this Gospel age, nominal spiritual Israel, and also in the cases of the faithful ones. Can we not all realize how patient and merciful the Lord has been to us in our various experiences in life? Can we not see how he would have been fully justified in canceling our covenant long ago, and that only of his mercy and love have we been permitted to come thus far on the way toward the heavenly kingdom? Surely a realization of these things should make us both humble and trustful. Moreover the Lord informs us that he has a still further requirement, namely, that if we would appreciate his greatness and mercy through Christ in our own cases we shall exercise similarly mercy and forbearance toward others who may transgress against us. Indeed, so earnest is the Lord in impressing this matter upon us that he positively declares that none of us can maintain relationship with him except as he shall develop this spirit, this character, in relationship to his brethren and fellow servants. How generous, how considerate, how moderate, how forgiving, all this should lead us to be in our dealings with the brethren, especially with those who have in any measure wounded or injured us or our interests.—Z 1907-270 (Hymn 243)
DECEMBER 18
Be ye kind one to another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.—Ephesians 4:32
THE more we each realize our own indebtedness to the Lord for the forgiveness of our sins and for our adoption into his family and for the blessings that come to us as the sons of God, the more should we seek to copy after his glorious character and be copies of our dear Redeemer, the essence of whose character is nothing less than justice to everyone—with as much additional of love and mercy as we can possibly attain to. The larger our attainments of this Godlike quality the more pleasing we will be in the Father’s sight and the better fitted for joint-heirship in the heavenly kingdom, in the dispensing of the bread of life to all the world of mankind.—Z 1907-125 (Hymn 218)
DECEMBER 19
Him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out.—John 6:37
AS SOON as the limit of time expired God manifested his favor toward the Gentiles by sending the Gospel message to Cornelius, a reverential and holy and generous Gentile. Since then God’s favors are as open to the Gentile as to the Jew—“the middle wall of partition” has been “broken down.” The Gentiles and Jews are now both received on the same terms, viz., faith in Jesus and consecration to walk in his steps. It is from this standpoint that we should read the apostle’s statement that the Gospel of Christ “is preached to every creature under heaven.” He did not mean, nor would it have been true, that the Gospel had been preached to every creature in the sense of being proclaimed to all. For now, eighteen centuries later, it has not yet been proclaimed to all mankind. What the apostle did mean is that the Gospel is now unrestricted, free to be preached to every creature under heaven, no matter what his nationality—that it is no longer confined to Jews as at first. Now, whoever has “an ear to hear, let him hear” the good message of the kingdom. Now, whoever hears and has a heart to accept God’s gracious message, let him present his body a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable unto God through Christ.—Z 1912-292 (Hymn 291)
DECEMBER 20
Whosoever heareth these sayings of Mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock.—Matthew 7:24
THOSE who build upon the rock our Lord explains to be such as not only hear his message but are obedient thereto to the extent of their ability. Let us remember the words to which he refers—they are the words or messages of the Sermon on the Mount, which show the things which are blessed of God in contradistinction to the things which would not have his approval. Those who do, who strive for, who to the best of their ability obey these divine teachings, the message from heaven, are laying the foundations which will be permanent, which will guarantee them against all the storms, difficulties and trials of the present life. Those who hear the Master’s words and say, “Yea, Lord,” but who do not put the Master’s teachings into practice, are not built properly upon the rock of truth, upon Christ. They are building their hope, their faith, their trust upon a foundation which will not stand. When the adversities of life come upon such their hopes will be undermined, their faith will collapse. Thus does the Lord teach us that it is not merely to know his will, to be doctrinally informed, but that he is looking for such character development in us as will bring us into full harmony with his teachings, into heart harmony, and, to the extent that we are able, to obedience, in all the affairs of life. The other, whose faith is built upon knowledge without obedience, without growth in grace, will not be accepted to the kingdom, will not be members of the bride class, will not be joint-heirs with God’s dear Son.—Z 1906-95 (Hymn 178)
DECEMBER 21
Render to … God the things that are God’s.—Mark 12:17
WHAT we shall render to God depends upon who we are and what we see and know respecting him and his will. The world in general realizes some responsibility to a Creator or First Cause, but their enlightenment being limited, their responsibilities are correspondingly limited. Those who have seen and heard and tasted that God is gracious, that his favor has been manifested in the redemption price paid at Calvary, have greater privileges than their less enlightened neighbors and’ correspondingly greater responsibilities. To these it is but a reasonable service that they should present to the Lord the little all that they possess in this present life, and this becomes a still more reasonable matter when they learn that God has sent forth during this Gospel age a special message of invitation to joint-heirship with his Son in the kingdom. Those who are thus enlightened and who possess any measure of wisdom should, it would seem, joyfully lay aside every weight and besetting sin and earthly ambition, and strive to attain to the gracious things of the divine promise to the seed of Abraham.—Z 1906-286 (Hymn 219)
DECEMBER 22
Cease to do evil; learn to do well.—Isaiah 1:16,17
OUR text represents God’s general attitude toward our race. He does not chide us for being sinners, for he himself explains that we were born in sin and misshapen in iniquity, in sin did our mothers conceive us. What the Lord desires in us is that, realizing our wrong condition, we shall turn therefrom to the best of our ability to do right. We shall not be able to effect this transformation in ourselves except so far as to have a right will and a pure heart, or honest endeavor for righteousness. To all such the Lord proposes succor, assistance, and this assistance he has provided for us in our Redeemer. He is an assistance already to those who can accept him and his Word by faith. He will be an actual assistance to the great majority of mankind through the establishment of his kingdom. Eventually all who will come to love righteousness and. hate iniquity shall be enabled to attain eternal life, and all who will love iniquity and hate righteousness shall have the punishment of the second death, symbolically represented in Gehenna—“everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord.”—Z 1911-186; (Hymn 14)
DECEMBER 23
If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the Father chasteneth not?—Hebrews 12:7
IN THIS statement the word “chastening” should not be understood as meaning disapproval on the part of our Father, and sin on the part of the individual, but rather instruction. We are guided in the matter by remembering that although our Lord was a Son in whom there was no sin, yet he received, in the Father’s providence, as a part of the “cup” poured for him, various trials, disciplines. All of these experiences were very profitable, showing that the Father loved him; that the Father had something which he was desirous that our Lord should do that he would not have been qualified to perform without some of these educational instructions and experiences.—Z 1911-387 (Hymn 333)
DECEMBER 24
Behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.—Luke 2:10
WHEREVER the story of God’s redeeming love has gone, even though confused by various falsities, it has carried more or less of blessing with it—even to neglectful hearers and not doers of the Word, it has brought blessing; and still more blessing to others who hear partly and obey partly. But it greatest blessing has been to the little flock, the royal priesthood who, entering into the spirit of the divine arrangement, have realized themselves justified through faith in the precious blood, and in harmony with the invitation of the Lord have gone forward, presenting themselves living sacrifices that they might have fellowship with Christ in the sufferings of this present time, and also, by and by in the kingdom glories that shall follow. It is this class chiefly that is now rejoicing in a still fuller opening up of the divine Word so long beclouded by the falsities coming down from the Dark Ages; it is this class that is chiefly now rejoicing in the discernment of the lengths and breadths and heights and depths of the divine love and of the divine plan which has purchased the whole world and will eventually recover from present degradation all who under the favorable conditions of the millennial kingdom will develop the character which God demands of all who shall have eternal life—a love of righteousness and hatred of iniquity.—Z 1902-364 (Hymn Appendix S)
DECEMBER 25
For unto you is born this day, in the city of David, a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.—Luke 2:11
LET us rejoice at this joyful season of the year and have our hearts filled with appreciation of the divine love and generosity, which gave us the great gift of Messiah, and thus indirectly a knowledge of the kingdom yet to come and of our share in that kingdom, which shall bless the world. As we have freely received, let us freely give, and thus copy our Lord and the Heavenly Father. Some may have the opportunity of giving many gifts of many kinds. All will have the privilege of offering to their fellows, directly or indirectly, gifts of God’s love, by making known to them the riches of his grace, as presented in the “Divine Plan of the Ages.” The message of God’s love is the most precious thing we have ever received, and let us have this in mind when offering gifts to, others that, whatever else we may or may not be able to give our dear friends and neighbors and loved ones, we may offer them this; and our manner and general deportment should show how we value it above rubies, and thus we may best commend the gift of God to others and help them to appreciate it. In such presentations kind words, kind looks, will proceed from the loving heart, which has itself been saved by the power of the truth from the domination of the Adversary and sin and selfishness. Let us learn to scatter these gifts of grace and truth and happifying influences to all about us, not merely once a year, but every day and every hour, and not merely upon our friends, but, Godlike, upon our enemies also, for “He is kind to the unthankful, and causes his sun to shine upon the evil and upon the good.”—Z 1908-381 (Hymn Appendix W)
DECEMBER 26
Great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt.—Matthew 15:28
THE more we study this subject of faith, the more we are convinced that in God’s sight faith is not only indispensable, but very precious. We cannot come to God without faith, we cannot abide in his love without faith, we cannot receive day by day his mercies and blessings and leadings except by faith in his promises. We cannot realize ourselves as his children, begotten of the Holy Spirit, and heirs of God, joint-heirs with Jesus Christ our Lord, except as we exercise faith in his Word of promise to this effect. We cannot go on day by day following the Lord except as we are willing to walk by faith and not by sight, for this is the test which he puts upon all of his followers. We cannot see how the oppositions of the world, flesh, and devil, which seem so baneful to us, are blessings in disguise, except as we exercise faith in God’s promises that it will be so. We cannot therefore be prepared for the heavenly kingdom in its glories and blessings and privileges except as we now have and exercise the faith which will enable us to profit by various lessons given us in the school of Christ.—Z 1906-171 (Hymn 174)
DECEMBER 27
For what is a man advantaged, if he gain the whole world, and lose himself, or be cast away?—Luke 9:25
OUR Lord stated a general truth when he declared that a selfish love of life under present sinful conditions would signify the loss of life eternal—would signify ultimately the second death. This applies to the church in the present time. We have covenanted with the Lord to leave all and follow him; we have exchanged our earthly hopes and aims for heavenly ones; and now, if we fail of the heavenly, all will be gone. Yes! it is a case of losing our earthly lives and gaining the heavenly, and no amount of earthly gain can compensate us for the loss of the life eternal hoped for. Somewhat similar principles will apply to the world during the millennial age, for they also will be required to break away from sin and cultivate righteousness if they would attain to life; and those who will not forego the sins and not battle against the weaknesses will never attain to the restitution perfections and everlasting life. The matter, then, resolves itself into this, for us now, and for them by and by: Do we prefer everlasting life in harmony with the divine law and righteous requirements, or do we choose the contrary, with the penalty, second death?—Z 1906-175 (Hymn 183)
DECEMBER 28
Henceforth we should not serve sin.—Romans 6:6
THIS question should be settled promptly by all who would grow in grace, in knowledge, in love, and character likeness of our Lord—have I forsaken sin, and the ways of sin and dishonesty? Have I made ample restitution so far as possible for every injury done to fellow creatures? What have I sacrificed, half of my goods or all of my goods to the Lord and to his cause? If as a Christian I have sacrificed all, how am I keeping that engagement, that covenant, that sacrifice? Am I remembering that time and talent and influence as well as money belong to him and are my reasonable service? Am I spending and being spent day by day or not? How will it stand with me when the Master reckons with his people? Will I have joy in rendering my account, or will I with sorrow be obliged to admit that as a steward I have been. unfaithful, and have buried my talents in earthly aims and objects and ambitions and services, or will I be able to present to the Lord fruits of my labor and sacrifice, and hear him say, “Well done, good and faithful servant; enter thou into the joys of thy Lord”?—Z 1906-278 (Hymn 184)
DECEMBER 29
Let every man abide in the same calling wherein he was called.—I Corinthians 7:20
WITH these it is necessary that there be a forsaking of boats and fishing tackle, etc., in the heart from the moment that a full consecration is made to the Lord. We cannot serve God and Mammon. We cannot have two objects in life, both equally prominent to our attention. The Lord will not have it so with those who are to be his joint—heirs in the kingdom. This class must appreciate the privilege of fellowship in his labor, sufferings and hopes of glory to such an extent that their hearts will no longer be in the ordinary affairs of life, their ambitions will no longer be for wealth or name or fame from the world’s standpoint. All such ambitions and hopes we must “forsake” if we would be his disciples. He must be first, joint-heirship with him must be our ambition; otherwise our hearts would not be in a condition that would be pleasing to the Lord or that would not be single for his service; we would be of the kind described as double-minded, unstable in all our works and ways.—Z 1906-46 (Hymn 331)
DECEMBER 30
If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us from our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.—I John 1:9
IT WAS evidently because the Lord foresaw that his people might become so abashed by their repeated failures through inherited weaknesses of their flesh that he provided the special exhortation for their encouragement, “Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” This is a point well to be remembered. As this, the close of another year and the opening of a new one, we urge that all Christians keep daily record with the Lord and never retire to rest without obtaining this grace of forgiveness and help. But if any have delayed the matter and a cloud has cone between them and the Lord, let them surely avail themselves of these promises in the close of this year that they may start the New Year with a clean slate—with the smile of their Father’s face upon them, and with the fellowship of their Redeemer and with fresh resolves for earnestness and carefulness in walking in his steps.—Z 1911-444 (Hymn 239)
DECEMBER 31
Thou crownest the year with Thy goodness.—Psalm 65:11
SPIRITUALLY, we have feasted on the bounties of divine favor; while in things temporal, under whatsoever circumstances we have been placed, having the assurance that all things work together for good to them that love God, we have realized that godliness with contentment is great gain, having promise of the life that now is (so long as God wills to have us remain here), and also of that which is to cone. Wherefore, we can and do most heartily “offer unto God thanksgiving.” And shall we not render unto him, not only the praise of our lips, but also the incense of truly consecrated 1ives, throughout the year upon which we are just entering? Dearly beloved, consecrate yourselves anew to the Lord today—not in the sense of invalidating the consecration made once for all, possibly many years ago, but rather in the sense of reaffirming and emphasizing that covenant. Tell the dear Lord that you consider yourselves entirely his, and that it is still your purpose to keep your all upon the altar of sacrifice during this new year and until it is wholly consumed in his service. Then let us proceed with studious care from day to day to pay these, our vows of full consecration. unto the most High.—Z 1906-3 (Hymn 34)