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53 - The Desire of Ages - Ellen Gould · Sacred Texts Archive

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The last journey from Galilee. As the close of his ministry drew near,
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there was a change in Christ's manner of labor. Heretofore he had sought to
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shun excitement and publicity. He had refused the homage of the people, and
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had passed quickly from place to place. When the popular enthusiasm in his favor
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seemed kindling beyond control. Again and again he had commanded that none should declare
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him to be the Christ. At the time of the Feast of Tabernacles,
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his journey to Jerusalem was made swiftly and secretly. When urged by his brothers
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to present himself publicly as the Messiah, his answer was, my time has
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not yet come. John seven six. He made his way to Jerusalem unobserved,
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and entered the city unannounced and unhonored by the multitude. But not so
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with his last journey. He had left Jerusalem for a season because of the
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malice of the priest and the rabbis. But he now set out to return,
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traveling in the most public manner by Sir Cuatou Shrout, and proceeded by
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such an announcement of his coming as he had never made before. He was
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going forward to the scene of his great sacrifice, And to this the attention
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of the people must be directed. As Moses lifted up the serpent in the
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wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up John three fourteen.
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As the eyes of all Israel had been directed to the uplifted serpent,
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the symbol appointed for their healing, so all eyes must be drawn to Christ,
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the sacrifice that brought salvation to the lost world. It was a false
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conception of the Messiah's work and a lack of faith in the divine character of
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Jesus that had led his brothers to urge him to present himself publicly to the
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people at the feast of Tabernacles. Now in a spirit akin to this,
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the disciples would have prevented him from making the journey to Jerusalem. They remembered
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his words concerning what was to befall him there. They knew the deadly hostility
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of the religious leaders, and they would fain have dissuaded their master from going
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thither to the heart of Christ. It was a bitter task to press his
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way against the fears, disappointment, and unbelief of his beloved disciples. It
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was hard to lead them forward to the anguish and despair that awaited them at
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Jerusalem, and Satan was at hand to press his temptations upon the son of
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Man, Why should he now go to Jerusalem to certain death. All around
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him were souls hungering for the bread of life. On every hand were suffering
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one's waiting for his word of healing. The work to be wrought by the
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gospel of his grace was but just begun, and he was full of the
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vigor of manhood's prime. Why not go forward to the vast fields of the
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world with the words of his grace, the touch of his healing power.
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Why not take to himself the joy of giving light and gladness to those darkened
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and sorrowing millions. Why leave the harvest gathering to his disciples, so weak
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in faith, so dull of understanding, so slow to act. Why face
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death now and leave the work in its infancy. The foe, who in
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the wilderness had confronted Christ, assailed him now with fierce and subtle temptations.
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Had Jesus yielded for a moment, had he changed his course in the least
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particular to save himself, Satan's agencies would have triumphed and the world would have
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been lost, but Jesus had steadfastly set his face to go to Jerusalem.
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The one law of his life was the father's will. In the visit to
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the temple in his boyhood, he had said to Mary, wished ye not
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that I must be about my father's business Luke two forty nine at Cana,
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when Mary desired him to reveal his miraculous power, his answer was, mine
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hour is not yet come. John two four, with the same words he
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replied to his brothers when they urged him to go to the feast. But
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in God's great plan, the hour had been appointed for the offering of himself
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for the sins of men, and that hour was soon to strike. He
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would not fail nor falter. His steps are turned toward Jerusalem, where his
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foes have long plotted to take his life. Now he will lay it down.
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He set his face steadfastly to go to persecution, denial, rejection,
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condemnation, and death. And he sit messenger before his face. And they
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went and entered into a village of the Samaritans to make ready for him.
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But the people refused to receive him because he was on his way to Jerusalem.
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This they interpreted his meaning that Christ showed a preference for the Jews,
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whom they hated with intense bitterness. Had he come to restore the temple and
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worship upon Mount Gerrism, they would gladly have received him. But he was
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going to Jerusalem, and they would show him no hospitality. Little did they
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realize that they were turning from their doors the best gift of heaven. Jesus
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invited men to receive him. He asked favors at their hands, that he
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might come near to them to bestow the richest blessings. For every favor manifested
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toward him, he requited a more precious grace, But all was lost to
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the Samaritans because of their prejudice and bigotry. James and John, Christ's messengers
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were greatly annoyed at the insults showed to their Lord. They were filled with
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indignation because he had been so rudely treated by the Samaritans, whom he was
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honoring by his preser. They had recently been with him on the Mount of
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Transfiguration and had seen him glorified by God and honored by Moses and Elijah.
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This manifest dishonor on the part of the Samaritans should not, they thought,
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be passed over without marked punishment. Coming to Christ. They reported to him
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the words of the people, telling him that they had even refused to give
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him a knight's lodging. They thought that a grievous wrong had been done him.
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And, seeing Mount Carmel in the distance, where Elijah had slain the
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false prophets, they said, wilt thou that we command fire to come down
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from heaven and consume them, even as Elias did. They were surprised to
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see that Jesus was pained by their words, and still more surprised as his
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repute fell upon their ears. Ye know not what manner of spirit year of,
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For the Son of Man is not come to destroy men's lives, but
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to save them. And he went to another village. It is no part
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of Christ's mission to compel men to receive him. It is satan, and
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men actuated by his spirit seek to compel the conscience under a pretense of zeal
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for righteousness. Men who are confederate with evil angels bring suffering upon their fellow
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men in order to convert them to their ideas of religion. But Christ is
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ever showing mercy, ever seeking to win by the revealing of his love.
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He could admit no rival in the soul, nor except of partial service.
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But he desires only voluntary service, the willing surrender of the heart under the
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constraint of love. There can be no more conclusive evidence that we possess the
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spirit of Satan than the disposition to hurt and destroy those who do not appreciate
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our work or who act contrary to our ideas. Every human being, in
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body, soul, and spirit, is the property of God. Christ died
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to redeem all. Nothing can be more offensive to God than from men through
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religious bigotry, to bring suffering upon those who are the purchase of the Saviour's
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blood. And he arose from thence and cometh into the coast of Judea,
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by the farther side of Jordan, and the people resort unto him again,
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And as he was wont he taught them again Mark ten to one. A
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considerable part of the closing months of Christ's ministry was spent in Paria, the
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province on the farther side of Jordan from Judea. Here the multitude thronged his
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steps, as in his earlier ministry in Galilee, and much of his former
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teaching was repeated, as he had sent out the twelve, So he appointed
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seventy others, and sent them two and two before his face into every city
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in place, whether he himself was about to come Luke ten I r v.
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These disciples had been for some time with him in training for their work.
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When the twelve were sent out on their first separate mission, other disciples
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accompanied Jesus in his journey through Galilee. Thus they had the privilege of intimate
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association with him and direct personal instruction. Now this larger number also were to
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go forth on a separate mission. The directions to the seventy were similar to
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those that had been given to the twelve, but the command to the twelve
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not to enter into any city of the Gentiles or of the Samaritans was not
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given to the seventy. Though Christ had just been repulsed by the Samaritans,
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his love toward them was unchanged. When the seventy went forth in his name,
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they visited, first of all the cities of Samaria, the Saviour's own
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visit to Samaria, and later the commendation of the good Samaritan and the grateful
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joy of that leper a Samaritan, who alone of the ten returned to give
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thanks to Christ, were full of significance. To the disciples, The lessons
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sank deep into their hearts. In his commission to them just before his ascension,
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Jesus mentioned Samaria, with Jerusalem and Judea, as the places where they
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were first to preach the gospel. This commission his teaching had prepared them to
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fulfill. When in their Master's name they went to Samaria, they found the
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people ready to receive them. The Samaritans had heard of Christ's words of commendation
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and his works of mercy for men of their nation. They saw that,
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notwithstanding their rude treatment of him, he had only thoughts of love toward them,
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and their hearts were won. After his ascension, they welcomed the Saviour's
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messengers, and the disciples gathered a precious harvest from among those who had once
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been their bitterest enemies. A bruised reed shall he not break, and the
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dimly burning flax shall he not quench. He shall bring forth judgment unto truth,
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and it is name shall the gentile's trust Isaiah forty two three, margin
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Matthew twelve twenty one. In sending out the seventy. Jesus bade them,
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as he had bidden the twelve, not to urge their presence where they were
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unwelcome. Into whatsoever city, ye enter, and they receive you not,
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He said, Go your ways out into the streets are the same. And
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say, even the very dust of your city, which cleaveth on us,
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we do wipe off against you. Notwithstanding be sure of this that the Kingdom
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of God has come nigh unto you. They were not to do this from
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motives of resentment or through wounded dignity, but to show how grievous a thing
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it is to refuse the Lord's message or a messengers. To reject the Lord's
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servants, is to reject Christ himself, I say unto you. Jesus added
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that it shall be more tolerable in that day for Sodom than for that city.
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Then his mind reverted to the Galileys in towns where so much of his
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ministry had been spent. In deeply sorrowful accents, he exclaimed, woe unto
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thee Chorazen, woe unto thee Bethsata. For if the mighty works had been
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done, entire and sidon which had been done in you. They had a
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great while ago repented sitting in sackcloth and ashes. But it shall be more
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tolerable for tire and Sidon at the judgment than for you, and Thou Capernaum,
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which art exalted to Heaven, shalt be thrust down to Hell. To
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those busy towns about the Sea of Galilee. Heaven's richest blessings had been freely
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offered day after day. The Prince of Life had gone in and out among
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them. The glory of God, which prophets and kings had longed to see,
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had shown upon the multitudes that thronged the Savior's steps. Yet they had
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refused the heavenly gift with a great show of prudence. The rabbis had warned
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the people against receiving the new doctrines taught by this due teacher, for his
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theories and practices were contrary to the teachings of the fire. The people gave
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credence to what the priest and pharisees taught in place of seeking to understand the
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word of God for themselves. They honored the priests and rulers instead of honoring
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God, and rejected the truth that they might keep their own traditions. Many
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had been impressed and almost persuaded, but they did not act upon their convictions
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and were not reckoned on the side of Christ. Satan presented his temptations until
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the light appeared as darkness. Thus many rejected the truth that would have proved
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the saving of the soul. The true witness says, behold, I stem
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at the door knock Revelation three twenty. Every warning, reproof, and entreaty
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in the Word of God or through his messengers is a knock at the door
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of the heart. It is the voice of Jesus asking for entrance. With
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every knock unheeded, the disposition to open becomes weaker. The impressions of the
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Holy Spirit, if disregarded to day, will not be as strong tomorrow.
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The heart becomes less impressible and lapses into a perilous unconsciousness of the shortness of
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life and of the great eternity beyond. Our condemnation in the judgment will not
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result from the fact that we have been in air, but from the fact
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that we have neglected heaven sent opportunities for learning what is truth. Like the
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apostles, the seventy had received supernatural endowments as a seal of their mission.
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When their work was completed, they returned with joy, saying, Lord,
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even the devils are subject unto us through thy name. Jesus answered, I
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beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven. The scenes of the past and the
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future were presented to the mind of Jesus. He beheld lucifer as he was
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first cast out from the heavenly places. He looked forward to the scenes of
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his own agony, when before all the worlds the character of the deceiver should
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be unveiled. He heard the cry it is finished John nineteen thirty, announcing
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that the redemption of the lost race was forever made certain, that Heaven was
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made eternally secure against the accusations, the deceptions, the pretensions that Satan would
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instigate. Eight beyond the cross of Cavalry, with its agony and shame,
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Jesus looked forward to the great final day, when the Prince of the power
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of the Air will meet his destruction in the earth so long marred by his
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rebellion. Jesus beheld the work of evil forever ended, and the peace of
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God filling heaven and earth. Henceforward, Christ's followers were to look upon Satan
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as a conquered foe. Upon the cross, Jesus was to gain the victory
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for them. That victory he desired them to accept as their own. Behold,
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he said, I give unto you power to tread upon serpents and scorpions,
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and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any
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means hurt you. The omnipotent power of the Holy Spirit is the defense of
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every contrite soul. Not one that in penitence and faith has claimed his protection.
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Will Christ permit to pass under the enemy's power. The Savior is by
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the side of his tempted and tried ones. With him, there can be
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no such thing as failure, loss, impossibility, or defeat. We can
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do all things through Him who strengthens us. When temptations and trials come,
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do not wait to adjust all the difficulties, but look to Jesus, your
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helper. There are Christians who think and speak altogether too much about the power
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Satan. They think of their adversary, they pray about him, they talk
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about him, and he looms up greater and greater in their imagination. It
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is true that Satan is a powerful being, but thank God, we have
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a mighty savior who cast out the evil one from heaven. Satan is pleased
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when we magnify as power. Why not talk of Jesus, Why not magnify
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his power and his love. The rainbow of promise in circling the throne on
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high is an everlasting testimony that God so loved the world that he gave his
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only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have
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everlasting life John three sixteen. It testifies to the universe that God will never
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forsake his people and their struggle with evil. It is an assurance to us
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of strength and pret detection as long as the throne itself shall endure. Jesus
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added, notwithstanding in this, rejoice not that the spirits are subject unto you,
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but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven. Rejoice not in
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the possession of power, lest you lose sight of your dependence upon God.
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Be careful lest self sufficiency come in and you work in your own strength rather
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than in the spirit and strength of your master. Self. Is ever ready
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to take the credit. If any measure of success attends, the work self
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is flattered and exalted, and the impression is not made upon other minds.
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That God is all and in all. The apostle Paul says, when I
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am weak, then I am strong second Corinthians twelve ten. When we have
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a realization of our weakness, we learn to depend upon a power not inherent.
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Nothing can take so strong a hold on the heart as the abiding sense
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of our responsibility to God. Nothing reaches so fully down to the deepest motives
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of conduct as a sense of the pardoning love of Christ. We are to
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come in touch with God, then we shall be imbued with His holy spirit
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that enables us to come in touch with our fellow men. Then rejoice that
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through Christ you have become connected with God, members of the heavenly family.
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While you look higher than yourself, you will have a continual sense of the
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weakness of humanity. The less you chaer yourself, the more distinct and full
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will be your comprehension of the excellence of your Savior. The more closely you
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connect yourself with the source of light and power, the greater light will be
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shed upon you, and the greater power will be yours to work for God.
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Rejoice that you are one with God, one with Christ, and with
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the whole family of heaven. As a seventy listened to the words of Christ.
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The Holy Spirit was impressing their minds with living realities and writing truth upon
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the tablets of the soul. Though multitudes surrounded them, they were as though
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shut in with God. Knowing that they had caught the inspiration of the hour,
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Jesus rejoiced in spirit and said, I thank thee O, Father,
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Lord of heaven and Earth, that thou hast hid these things from the wise
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and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes. Even so, Father,
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for so it seemed good in thy sight. All things are delivered to me
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of my Father. And no man knoweth who the Son is but the Father,
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And who the Father is but the Son, and he to whom the
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Son will reveal him. The honored men of the world, the so called
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great and wise men, with all their boasted wisdom, could not comprehend the
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character of Christ. They judged him from outward appearance, from the humiliation that
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came upon him as a human being. But to fishermen and publicans it had
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been given to see the invisible. Even the disciples failed of understanding all that
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Jesus desired to reveal. To them. But from time to time, as
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they surrendered themselves to the Holy Spirit's power, their minds were illuminated. They
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realized that the Mighty God, clad in the garb of humanity, was among
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them. Jews rejoiced that though this knowledge was not possessed by the wise and
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prudent, it had been revealed to these humble men, often as He had
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presented the Old Testament scriptures and showed their application to himself and his work of
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atonement. They had been awakened by His Spirit and lifted into a heavenly atmosphere
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of the spiritual truth spoken by the prophets. They had a clearer understanding than
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had the original writers themselves. Hereafter, they would read the Old Testament scriptures
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not as the doctrines of the scribes and pharisees, not as the utterances of
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wise men who were dead, but as a new revelation from God. They
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beheld him whom the world cannot receive because it seeth him, not neither knoweth
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him. But ye know Him, for He dwelleth with you and shall be
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in you John fourteen seventeen. The only way in which we can gain a
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more perfect apprehension of truth is by keeping the heart tender and subdued by the
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spirit of Christ. The soul must be cleansed from vanity and pride, and
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vacated of all that has held it in possession, and Christ must be enthroned
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within. Human science is too limited to comprehend the atonement. The plan of
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redemption is so far reaching that philosophy can know explain it. It will ever
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remain a mystery that the most profound reasoning cannot fathom. The science of salvation
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cannot be explained, but it can be known by experience. Only he who
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sees his own sinfulness can discern the preciousness of the Savior. Full of instruction
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were the lessons which Christ taught as he slowly made his way from Galilee toward
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Jerusalem. Eagerly the people listened to his words. In Perea, as in
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Galilee, the people were less under the control of Jewish bigotry than in Judea,
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and his teaching found a response in their hearts. During these last months
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of his ministry, many of Christ's parables were spoken. The priests and rabbis
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pursued him with ever increasing bitterness, and his warnings to them he veiled in
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symbols, they could not mistake his meaning. Yet they could find in his
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words nothing on which to ground an accusation against him. In the parable of
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the Pharisees and the publican the self sufficient prayer God, I thank THEE that
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I am not as the rest of men, stood out in sharp contrast to
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the penitents, plea, be merciful to me the sinner Luke eighteen eleven thirteen
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r v. Margin. Thus Christ rebuked the hypocrisy of the Jews, and
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under the figures of the barren fig tree and the Great Supper, he foretold
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the doom about to fall upon the impenitent nation. Those who had scornfully rejected
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the invitation to the Gospel feast heard his warning words. I say unto you
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that none of those men which were bidden shall taste of My supper Luke fourteen
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twenty four. Very precious was the instruction given to the disciples. The parable
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of the importunate widow and the Friend asking for bread at midnight gave new force
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to his words. Ask and it shall be given you, Seek and ye
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shall find. Knock and it shall be opened unto you Luke eleven nine.
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And often their wavering faith was strengthened by the memory that Christ had said,
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shall not God do justice for his elect which cry to him day and night?
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And he is long suffering over them. I say unto you that he
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will do them justice. Speak eighteen seven eight r v. Margin. The
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beautiful parable of the Lost Sheep, Christ repeated, and he carried its lessons
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still farther, as he told of the lost piece of silver and the prodigal
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Son. The force of these lessons the disciples could not then fully appreciate.
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But after the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, as they saw the in gathering
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of the Gentiles and the envious anger of the Jews, they better understood the
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lesson of the prodigal Son and could enter into the joy of Christ's words.
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It was meet that we should make merry and be glad for this. My
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son was dead and is alive again. He was lost and is found Luke
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fifteen thirty two twenty four. And as they went out in their Master's name,
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facing reproach and poverty and persecution, they often strengthened their hearts by repeating
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his injunction spoken on this last journey. Fear not, little flock, for
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it is your father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom, Sell that ye
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have, and give alms. Provide yourselves bags which wax not old, a
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tre mere in the heavens that faileth not, where no thief approacheth, neither
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moth corrupteth. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
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Louke twelve thirty two to thirty four, end of Chapter fifty three.