W - Quotes

We should contemplate the love of Jesus, his mission and his work in reference to us as individuals. We are to say, Jesus so loved me that he gave his own life to save me. The Father loves me, “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.” ST Apr. 24, 1893

The incarnation of Christ is the mystery of all mysteries. 21LtMs, Lt 216, 1906

Christ is the touchstone of all hearts. He is the revealer of the Father and of the Father’s love. 18LtMs, Lt 226, 1903

By the gift of His Son, God has made it possible for man to be redeemed and restored to oneness with Him. 17LtMs, Lt 134, 1902

If it were not possible for us to keep the commandments of God, we should all be lost. And if any man sin, he need not give up his hope in Christ. He need not say it is of no use longer to attempt to keep the commandments of God; for this would be placing himself wholly on Satan’s ground. Satan follows you with his temptations, in order that he may persuade you to yield and sin; and when you sin, then he tells you it is of no use for you to try, and you might just as well announce yourself an open transgressor of the law of God, for you cannot keep his commandments. In the name and strength given of God we may be obedient to all his commandments, and his commandments are not grievous. ST Apr. 24, 1893

As, seeing the sinfulness of sin, we fall helpless before the cross, asking forgiveness and strength, our prayer is heard and answered. Those who present their petitions to God in Christ’s name will never be turned away. The Lord says, “Him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out”. “He will regard the prayer of the destitute.” Our help comes from Him who holds all things in His hands. The peace that He sends is the assurance of His love to us. ST Oct. 29, 1902

Each individual may say, “He so loved me, that he gave me Jesus. I receive him as my personal Saviour. He is the God of forgiveness, the God of compassion and love. I receive his precious gift, he is mine and I am his.” RH Jun. 4, 1895

Missionaries of God are wanted to carry the light of truth to those who sit in the shadow of death. “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;” and this is the love his children are to manifest toward those that are without. Thousands who now reject the message of salvation would accept Christ if they could see the beauty of his character reflected in his followers.
Then can we be surprised that the enemy should put forth every effort in his power to create dissension, alienation, and strife in the church of God, that they may not reveal to the world the glory, the character, of Christ?
… When the love of Jesus is abiding in the heart, it will be revealed in every action. Differences of opinion will disappear; for self will no longer seek the supremacy. Thus the church may become a bright and shining light, and Heaven, looking on, may see that there is a body with one spirit, one hope, drawing toward one great center—Christ. RH Nov. 3, 1896

God sent His only begotten Son into the world to save the world! Amazing grace! “Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us,…
God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. Outraged justice might have passed speedy sentence upon man. But in love and mercy God gave him another opportunity. 6LtMs, Ms 22, 1890

Christ in His teaching linked with the warning of judgment the invitation of mercy. “The Son of man is not come,” He said, “to destroy men’s lives, but to save them.” COL 212

Looking upon men in their suffering and degradation, Christ perceived ground for hope where appeared only despair and ruin….? Wherever there existed a sense of need, there He saw opportunity for uplifting. Souls tempted, defeated, feeling themselves lost, ready to perish, He met, not with denunciation, but with blessing.
The beatitudes were His greeting to the whole human family. Looking upon the vast throng gathered to listen to the Sermon on the Mount, He seemed for the moment to have forgotten that He was not in heaven, and He used the familiar salutation of the world of light. From His lips flowed blessings as the gushing forth of a long-sealed fountain.
Turning from the ambitious, self-satisfied favorites of this world, He declared that those were blessed who, however great their need, would receive His light and love. …? To the poor in spirit, the sorrowing, the persecuted, He stretched out His arms, saying, “Come unto Me, ... and I will give you rest.”
Christ bound them to His heart by the ties of love and devotion; and by the same ties He bound them to their fellow men. With Him love was life, and life was service. “Freely ye have received,” He said, “freely give."
It was not on the cross only that Christ sacrificed Himself for humanity. As He “went about doing good”, every day’s experience was an outpouring of His life. In one way only could such a life be sustained. Jesus lived in dependence upon God and communion with Him....
“Never man spake like this Man.” This would have been true of Christ had He taught only in the realm of the physical and the intellectual, or in matters of theory and speculation solely. He might have unlocked mysteries that have required centuries of toil and study to penetrate. He might have made suggestions in scientific lines that, till the close of time, would have afforded food for thought and stimulus for invention. But He did not do this. He said nothing to gratify curiosity or to stimulate selfish ambition. He did not deal in abstract theories, but in that which is essential to the development of character; that which will enlarge man’s capacity for knowing God, and increase his power to do good. He spoke of those truths that relate to the conduct of life and that unite man with eternity.
Instead of directing the people to study men’s theories about God, His word, or His works, He taught them to behold Him, as manifested in His works, in His word, and by His providences. He brought their minds in contact with the mind of the Infinite.
The people “were astonished at His teaching, for His word was with power.” Never before spoke one who had such power to awaken thought, to kindle aspiration, to arouse every capability of body, mind, and soul.
Christ’s teaching, like His sympathies, embraced the world. Never can there be a circumstance of life, a crisis in human experience, which has not been anticipated in His teaching, and for which its principles have not a lesson. … His words will be found a guide to His co-workers till the end of time.
To Him the present and the future, the near and the far, were one. He had in view the needs of all mankind. Before His mind’s eye was outspread every scene of human effort and achievement, of temptation and conflict, of perplexity and peril. All hearts, all homes, all pleasures and joys and aspirations, were known to Him.
He spoke not only for, but to, all mankind. To the little child, in the gladness of life’s morning; to the eager, restless heart of youth; to men in the strength of their years, bearing the burden of responsibility and care; to the aged in their weakness and weariness, —to all, His message was spoken,—to every child of humanity, in every land and in every age.
In His teaching were embraced the things of time and the things of eternity—things seen, in their relation to things unseen, the passing incidents of common life and the solemn issues of the life to come.
The things of this life He placed in their true relation, as subordinate to those of eternal interest; but He did not ignore their importance. He taught that Heaven and earth are linked together, and that a knowledge of divine truth prepares man better to perform the duties of daily life.
To Him nothing was without purpose. The … toils of the man, life’s pleasures and cares and pains, all were means to the end—the revelation of God for the uplifting of humanity.
From His lips the word of God came home to men’s hearts with new power and new meaning. His teaching caused the things of creation to stand out in new light. Upon the face of nature once more rested gleamings of that brightness which sin had banished. In all the facts and experiences of life were revealed a divine lesson and the possibility of divine companionship. Again God dwelt on earth; human hearts became conscious of His presence; the world was encompassed with His love. Heaven came down to men. In Christ their hearts acknowledged Him who opened to them the science of eternity.
“Immanuel, ... God with us.”
In the Teacher sent from God, all true educational work finds its center. Of this work today as verily as of the work He established eighteen hundred years ago, the Saviour speaks in the words —
“I am the First and the Last, and the Living One.”
“I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end."
In the presence of such a Teacher, of such opportunity for divine education, what worse than folly is it to seek an education apart from Him—to seek to be wise apart from Wisdom; to be true while rejecting Truth; to seek illumination apart from the Light, and existence without the Life; to turn from the Fountain of living waters, and hew out broken cisterns, that can hold no water.
Behold, He is still inviting: “If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, and drink. He that believeth on Me, as the Scripture hath said,” out of him “shall flow rivers of living water.” “The water that I shall give him shall become in him a well of water springing up unto eternal life." ED 79-83

There are souls who are trembling in unbelief. They ask, “How can I know that God is reconciled to me? How can I be assured that He loves and pardons me?” It is not for you,… to make yourselves just with God. Jesus invites you to come to Him with all your burdens and perplexities.... Accept the promise and the provision that God has made.... Look away from self to Jesus; for in Christ the character of the Father is revealed.
The character of God as revealed by Christ invites our faith and love, for we have a Father whose mercy and compassion fail not. At every step of our journey heavenward He will be with us to guide in every perplexity, to give us help in every temptation.
The blood of Christ in ever-abiding efficacy is our only hope, for through His merits alone we have pardon and peace.
Your reason and imagination should be touched with the life-giving power of Christ, that forms of beauty and truth may be impressed thereon. There are great and precious truths that demand your contemplation, in order that you may have a sound foundation for your faith by having a correct knowledge of God. O that the superficial, vain seeker for truth would learn that the world by wisdom, however much acquired, knew not God.
It is proper to seek to learn all that is possible from nature, but do not fail to look from nature to Christ for the complete representation of the character of the living God. By contemplation of Christ, by conformity to the divine likeness, your conceptions of the divine character will expand, and your mind and heart will be elevated, refined, and ennobled. … aim high, not relying upon human wisdom, but living day by day as seeing Him who is invisible, doing their work as in the sight of the intelligences of heaven….
He who constantly depends upon God through simple trust and prayerful confidence, will be surrounded by the angels of heaven. He who lives by faith in Christ, will be strengthened and upheld, able to fight the good fight of faith, and lay hold upon eternal life. HP 16

Angels are sent from the heavenly courts, not to destroy, but to watch over and guard imperiled souls, to save the lost, to bring the straying back to the fold. 19LtMs, Lt 36, 1904

Our Redeemer has opened the way so that the most sinful, the most needy, the most oppressed and despised, may find access to the Father. All may have a home in the mansions which Jesus has gone to prepare. FLB 144

Praise God for this. My heart leaps with joy at the cheering prospect.
Religion is made to dwell too much in an iron case. Pure religion and undefiled leads us to a childlike simplicity. We want to pray and talk with humility, having a single eye to the glory of God. 1LtMs, Lt 2a, 1856

You are heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ to riches that will be imperishable. Christ says, “I go to prepare a place for you that where I am, there ye may be also.” Then we will be with Christ until the city of God comes upon the earth and we will take possession of our home. We will build houses and inhabit them, and plant vineyards and eat the fruit of them. 1SAT 238

We shall ever dwell with and enjoy the light of His precious countenance…. Heaven, sweet heaven, it is our eternal home. 1LtMs, Lt 9, 1856

The same precious hope which gladdened the heart of Abraham brings joy to the hearts of the children of Abraham. Every soul of us stands by faith, happy in hope. We are seeking a better country, even an heavenly, “a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.” 8LtMs, Lt 103, 1893

Let us prepare to move to that better country, even the heavenly. 12LtMs, Lt 128, 1897

The greatest there is least in self-esteem, and the least is greatest in his gratitude and wealth of love….
All is in perfect harmony, in perfect order and perfect bliss…
Heaven, sweet Heaven, the saints’ eternal home, the abode for the toilers, where the weary who have borne the heavy burdens through life find rest, peace, and joy! They sowed in tears, they reap with joy and triumph. Heaven is a home where sympathy is alive in every heart, expressed in every look. Love reigns there. There are no jarring elements, no discord or contentions or war of words.
With our deepest study and our broadest experience we shall never be able to describe heaven or our senses to comprehend it. All that is pure, all that is excellent and lovely are there. The possession of heaven is endless bliss, infinite glory, riches, and knowledge. The character of heaven is perfect love, holiness, peace. "Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither hath entered into the heart of men, the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him." 3LtMs, Lt 30, 1882

There will be music there, and song, such music and song as, save in the visions of God, no mortal ear has heard or mind conceived....
It is the waiting ones who are to be crowned with glory, honor, and immortality. You need not talk to me of the honors of the world, or the praise of its great ones. They are all vanity. Let but the finger of God touch them, and they would soon go back to dust again. I want honor that is lasting, honor that is immortal, honor that will never perish; a crown that is richer than any crown that ever decked the brow of a monarch.
I saw a very great number of angels bring from the city glorious crowns—a crown for every saint, with his or her name written thereon. As Jesus called for the crowns, angels presented them to Him, and with His own right hand, the lovely Jesus placed the crowns on the heads of the saints. In the same manner the angels brought the harps, and Jesus presented them also to the saints. The commanding angels first struck the note, and then every voice was raised in grateful, happy praise, and every hand skillfully swept over the strings of the harp, sending forth melodious music in rich and perfect strains. ...
Within the city there was everything to feast the eye. Rich glory they beheld everywhere. Then Jesus looked upon His redeemed saints; their countenances were radiant with glory; and as He fixed His loving eyes upon them, He said, with His rich, musical voice, “I behold the travail of My soul, and am satisfied. This rich glory is yours to enjoy eternally. Your sorrows are ended. There shall be no more death, neither sorrow nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain.” ...
I then saw Jesus leading His people to the tree of life... Upon the tree of life was most beautiful fruit, of which the saints could partake freely. In the city was a most glorious throne, from which proceeded a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal. On each side of this river was the tree of life, and on the banks of the river were other beautiful trees bearing fruit...
...Then we began to look at the glorious things outside of the city. There I saw most beautiful houses, that had the appearance of silver, supported by four pillars set with pearls, most glorious to behold, which were to be inhabited by the saints, and in which was a golden shelf. I saw many of the saints go into the houses, take off their glittering crowns and lay them on the shelf, then go out into the field by the houses to do something with the earth; not as we have to do with the earth here; no, no. A glorious light shone all about their heads, and they were continually offering praise to God.
And I saw another field full of all kinds of flowers, and as I plucked them, I cried out: “They will never fade.” Next I saw a field of tall grass, most glorious to behold; it was living green, and had a reflection of silver and gold, as it waved proudly to the glory of King Jesus. Then we entered a field full of all kinds of beasts—the lion, the lamb, the leopard, and the wolf, all together in perfect union. We passed through the midst of them, and they followed on peaceably after. Then we entered a wood, not like the dark woods we have here; no, no; but light, and all over glorious; the branches of the trees waved to and fro, and we all cried out: “We will dwell safely in the wilderness and sleep in the woods.” We passed through the woods, for we were on our way to Mount Zion.
As we were traveling along, we met a company who were also gazing at the glories of the place. I noticed red as a border on their garments; their crowns were brilliant; their robes were pure white. As we greeted them, I asked Jesus who they were. He said they were martyrs that had been slain for Him. With them was an innumerable company of little ones; they had a hem of red on their garments also. HB 388-391

In the Bible the inheritance of the saved is called a country. There the great Shepherd leads His flock to fountains of living waters. The tree of life yields its fruit every month, and the leaves of the tree are for the service of the nations. There are ever-flowing streams, clear as crystal, and beside them waving trees cast their shadows upon the paths prepared for the ransomed of the Lord. There the wide-spreading plains swell into hills of beauty, and the mountains of God rear their lofty summits. On those peaceful plains, beside those living streams, God's people, so long pilgrims and wanderers, shall find a home.
In the city of God “there shall be no night.” None will need or desire repose. There will be no weariness in doing the will of God and offering praise to His name. We shall ever feel the freshness of the morning, and shall ever be far from its close. “And they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light.” The light of the sun will be superseded by a radiance which is not painfully dazzling, yet which immeasurably surpasses the brightness of our noontide. The glory of God and the Lamb floods the holy city with unfading light. The redeemed walk in the sunless glory of perpetual day.
...The people of God are privileged to hold open communion with the Father and the Son. Now we “see through a glass, darkly.” We behold the image of God reflected, as in a mirror, in the works of nature and in His dealings with men; but then we shall see Him face to face, without a dimming veil between. We shall stand in His presence and gaze upon the glory of His countenance.
There immortal minds will study with never-failing delight the wonders of creative power, the mysteries of redeeming love. There is no cruel, deceiving foe to tempt to forgetfulness of God. Every faculty will be developed, every capacity increased. The acquirement of knowledge will not weary the mind or exhaust the energies. There the grandest enterprises may be carried forward, the loftiest aspirations reached, the highest ambitions realized; and still there will arise new heights to surmount, new wonders to admire, new truths to comprehend, fresh objects to call forth the powers of mind and soul and body.
As knowledge is progressive, so will love, reverence, and happiness increase. The more men learn of God, the greater will be their admiration of His character. As Jesus opens before them the riches of redemption and the amazing achievements in the great controversy with Satan, the hearts of the ransomed beat with a stronger devotion, and they sweep the harps of gold with a firmer hand; and ten thousand times ten thousand and thousands of thousands of voices unite to swell the mighty chorus of praise. SR 431-432

Language is altogether too feeble to attempt a description of heaven. As the scene rises before me, I am lost in amazement. Carried away with the surpassing splendor and excellent glory, I lay down the pen, and exclaim, “Oh, what love! what wondrous love!” The most exalted language fails to describe the glory of heaven or the matchless depths of a Saviour’s love. HB 390

Human language is inadequate to describe the reward of the righteous. It will be known only to those who behold it. No finite mind can comprehend the glory of the Paradise of God. SR 430

The Prince of life calls the attention to the eternal world. He brings it within range of the mind’s eye. He withdraws the curtain of heaven and reveals its treasures, the living glories within. Man can grasp only a notion of the infinite, eternal weight of glory, and the apostle who was taken up to the third heaven and heard things unutterable, declares, “Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.”
Should the greatness of the treasured glories of heaven be kept before the view, men would be wholly incapacitated for the affairs of the present world. The glory is curtained from our view. 6LtMs, Lt 42, 1890

Eternity alone can reveal the glorious destiny to which man, restored to God's image, may attain. RC 377

Oh, how much we lose by not educating the imagination to dwell upon divine things, rather than upon the earthly. We may give fullest scope to the imagination,…Fresh wonders will be revealed to the mind the more closely we apply it to divine things. We lose much by not talking more of Jesus and of heaven, the saints’ inheritance. The more we contemplate heavenly things, the more new delights we shall see and the more will our hearts be brim full of thanks to our beneficent Creator. Consider the wonderful love of God in giving His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him might not perish but have everlasting life. Oh, why do the professed followers of Christ become charmed and all absorbed with human frail beings and set their affections upon them and bow to them as to a deity, while Jesus is seeking to win our love and engage our thoughts, to bind us to His own heart by the disclosures of the tenderest sympathy and inexpressible love. 4LtMs, Lt 4, 1885

Many are the ways in which God is seeking to make himself known to us and to bring us into communion with him. Nature speaks to our senses without ceasing. The open heart will be impressed with the love and glory of God as revealed through the works of his hands. The listening ear can hear and understand the communications of God through the things of nature. The green fields, the lofty trees, the buds and flowers, the passing cloud, the falling rain, the babbling brook, the glories of the heavens, speak to our hearts, and invite us to become acquainted with him who made them all.
Our Saviour bound up his precious lessons with the things of nature. The trees, the birds, the flowers of the valley, the hills, the lakes, and the beautiful heavens, as well as the incidents and surroundings of daily life, were all linked with the words of truth, that his lessons might thus be often recalled to mind, even amid the busy cares of man's life of toil.
God would have his children appreciate his works, and delight in the simple, quiet beauty with which he has adorned our earthly home. CE 54

O what deep, rich experiences we might gain if we were devoting all our God-given ability to seeking knowledge and spiritual strength from God! ... How little we really know of sweet communion with God. How little we know the mysteries of the future life. We may know far more than we do know if all our powers are sanctified to discern the character of Christ.
There are heights for us to reach, depths of experience to sound, if we are to be the light of the world.... Let the mind expand, that you may take in the heavenly beauties of the blessed promises. Only believe in Jesus and learn in the school of the greatest Teacher the world ever knew, and His grace will act mightily upon the human intellect and heart. His teaching will give clearness to the mental vision. It will give compass to the thoughts; the soul hunger will be filled. The heart will be softened and subdued and filled with glowing love, that neither discouragement, despondency, affliction, or trial can quench. God will open to the mind’s eye His preciousness and His fullness. Then let us love and labor. I point you to Christ, the Rock of Ages. TMK 136

If we will but listen, God's created works will teach us precious lessons of obedience and trust. From the stars that in their trackless course through space, follow from age to age their appointed path, down to the minutest atom, the things of nature obey the Creator's will. And God cares for everything and sustains everything that he has created. He who upholds the unnumbered worlds throughout immensity, at the same time cares for the wants of the little brown sparrow that sings its humble song without a fear. When men go forth to their daily toil, as when they engage in prayer; when they lie down at night, and when they rise in the morning; when the rich man feasts in his palace, or when the poor man gathers his children about the scanty board, each is tenderly watched by the heavenly Father. No tears are shed that God does not notice. There is no smile that he does not mark.
If we would but fully believe this, all undue anxieties would be dismissed. Our lives would not be filled with disappointment as now; for everything, whether great or small, would be left in the hands of God, who is not perplexed by the multiplicity of cares, or overwhelmed by their weight. We would then enjoy a rest of soul to which many have long been strangers.
As your senses delight in the attractive loveliness of the earth, think of the world that is to come, that shall never know the blight of sin and death; where the face of nature will no more wear the shadow of the curse. Let your imagination picture the home of the saved, and remember that it will be more glorious than your brightest imagination can portray. In the varied gifts of God in nature we see but the faintest gleaming of his glory. CE 54-55

I saw a throne, and on it sat the Father and the Son. I gazed on Jesus’ countenance and admired his lovely person. The Father's person I could not behold, for a cloud of glorious light covered him. I asked Jesus if his Father had a form like himself. He said he had, but I could not behold it, for said he, if you should once behold the glory of his person you would cease to exist. ExV 43

I have often seen the lovely Jesus, that He is a person. …Said Jesus, “I am in the express image of My Father's person. EW 77

His mouth is most sweet: yea, he is altogether lovely.
We should bring the attractiveness of Christ into our Christian service. The soft beams of the Sun of Righteousness should shine into our hearts, that we may be pleasant and cheerful and have a strong and blessed influence on all around us. The truth of Jesus Christ does not tend to gloom and sadness.... We must look away from the disagreeable to Jesus. We must love Him more, obtain more of His attractive beauty and grace of character, and cease the contemplation of others’ mistakes and errors. We should remember that our own ways are not faultless. We make mistakes again and again.... No one is perfect but Jesus. Think of Him and be charmed away from yourself, and from every disagreeable thing, for by beholding our defects faith is weakened. God and His promises are lost from sight.... TMK 136

Christ was ever presenting before them the privileges bestowed upon [the] feeble, finite sinful nature of man, and that only through union with Christ could it be restored to healthful growth. The life of the Vine was to become the life of the adopted sapling. He sought to impress upon them that it was a positive necessity for them to understand spiritual things; yes, all mysteries and all knowledge. No longer were they to see through a glass darkly, but face to face. They were to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth and length and depth and height; and to know the love of God that passeth knowledge. The same God who had given Jesus to our world is able to perfect them for whom so great a sacrifice has been made, that through His grace they may be complete in Him. “He that hath begun a good work in you, will perform it unto the day of Christ Jesus,” is His promise. The work of Christ is concerned in the perfection of all His chosen ones, for they are members of His body, a part of Himself.
In taking upon Himself humanity, Christ is connected by relationship to the whole human family; but to any church this relation is of no avail without a personal faith—the identification of heart and mind and soul and strength with Jesus Christ. In thoughts and desires, in words and actions, there must be an identity with Christ, a constant imparting of His spiritual life. And it is in thus constantly receiving and constantly imparting that which we receive that makes us elements of light. 12LtMs, Lt 67, 1897

Christ is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. He gives us unsearchable, inexhaustible, and eternal riches. He who has given us the faculties to enter upon the grand work Christ has laid out for us in His life character, will not only be the Alpha but the Omega of the life work. “Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.”
We must grow in grace, grow in spiritual knowledge, grow in greater intelligence. Our resources are simply without limit, for when God gave Christ, the great gift of heaven, He gave all the treasures of heaven. 12LtMs, Ms 177, 1897

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