The Lord talks to his people through his Word, and they talk to him in prayer. Prayer is only a response to the voice of God as he speaks to us by the promptings of the Holy Spirit and the Word that he has given us. Where the written Word is unknown, God speaks to his people through nature. In this enlightened land we have the written Word, and it is the infallible voice of God speaking to us as much as if with our own ears we heard him speak the words. We do not appreciate the preciousness of the Bible because we do not always obey its precepts. We need to place a higher value upon the Scriptures than we have in the past, for therein is revealed the will of God to man.
HAITIAN MISSION HEADQUARTERS
Photo was taken while revolution was active in the city, indicated by flag. Brother and Sister Albert F. Prieger are standing together on the porch.
When Satan met Jesus weakened by the forty days' fast in the wilderness, and tempted him by suggesting that he command the stones to be made bread, Satan was met and defeated with the text of Scripture, “It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.” Matt. 4:4. The passage of Scripture the Saviour referred to included every blessing that comes to men in this life. That text, if believed, would defeat every attack of Satan, physically, temporally, and spiritually. Notice how it reads: “He humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the Lord doth man live. Thy raiment waxed not old upon thee, neither did thy foot swell, these forty years.” Deut. 8:3, 4. This blessing came because they followed the cloud. Whenever God speaks it is the duty of his people to respond; and were it necessary in order for them to obey, one suit of clothes would last for forty years, neither would any disease come upon them, and God would feed them with manna rained from heaven. If we hope to pass through the trying times before us, we need to learn now to trust more fully in the Word of God; for that is what will save us then.
The Bible represents God to the person who takes it by faith and applies it to the soul; and our attitude to the Bible is our attitude toward God. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” In the Word is God's voice; it contains all the power, intelligence, and wisdom of God himself. “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us.” John 1:14. Jesus was simply the Word clothed in humanity that we might behold it lived out from a human standpoint. Christ used no divine power that is not accessible to the weakest child of God. In Christ dwelt all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. The same may be said of the Holy Spirit. “The words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.” John 6:63. In the Bible the Trinity meet, and our relation to the Bible is simply a manifestation of our relation to God, the Holy Spirit, and our Saviour Jesus Christ. If we love to study the Bible and receive from it daily food for our soul, then we shall love, like Mary, to sit at the feet of our Lord and listen to his gracious words; but if we neglect to study our Bibles, like Martha we shall be so cumbered with our daily cares we shall have no time to receive instruction from the Saviour were he to visit us in person. “The word of God is quick [or living], and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” Heb. 4:12. The Word of God is the only avenue by which mortals can connect with the throne of the Deity; this privilege comes through the righteousness and merits of our Saviour, who died for us. God in giving his Son gave all12heaven for a lost race. The Holy Spirit convinces us of sin, and prayer is the response of the soul; the Holy Spirit then presents our petitions before the God of heaven. Our invisible God is in a measure made visible to us in the Word he has given us.
How shall we obtain the victory over sin?—By studying the Word, believing it, and appropriating it to the heart by faith. This will imperceptibly change the heart. It will unconsciously bring victory to the soul. “Seeing ye have purified your soul in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently: being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth forever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.” 1 Peter 1:22-25. “As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby.” 1 Peter 2:2.
Prayer is the expressed desire for help from the Lord to appropriate the Word to our hearts by faith. When we take the Word into our souls, we appropriate the power and character of our divine Lord and Master. By beholding the beauties of the Word, we are changed. Those characteristics of the divine life that we love to contemplate become a part of our own character. By beholding we become partakers of the divine nature. But, alas! this secret is not experienced by every one who professes to be a disciple of Christ. It is believed in theory, but not always practiced. We look at it as a wonderful thing, and truly it is wonderful, but in all cases it is not made use of. It is within the reach of every soul, but it is not practically taken hold of, because we fail to spend time daily beholding the beauties of God's Word. We should daily learn something from the Scriptures; but we should come to them with humility of heart, and prayer that the Lord will enlighten us, and give us an understanding of his Word. One reason why many do not get more out of the Bible is because they do not search for the truth as for hid treasures; they do not seek after God in and through his Word as for silver, for then they would understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God. Prov. 2:3-6. There is too much surface work in Bible study. We may have learned the theory of present truth, but real acquaintance with God is another thing. There is too much relying upon theory; too much going to the Bible for some special doctrine which we believe is true.
It is quite important to have a correct theory, but the most perfect theory will not of itself save one soul. We may have a profession as high as heaven, but without victory over sin and selfishness in all its forms, and an abiding love in the heart for souls for whom Christ died, our souls will be as barren as the hills of Gilboa. When we tell others of the Word, our faith in it will produce an effect on their hearts. The faith we have in the Word, and the love we have for souls, make the Word effectual.
I was the first Seventh-day Adventist that ever visited Basutoland, South Africa. I had letters of introduction to a native who had been educated by the missionaries to translate and print for them, and also to the paramount chief and to certain missionaries. But my letter made an unfavorable impression on the missionaries, for the one who gave it to me had been disfellowshipped for immoral conduct. This I had not known.
A native by the name of Kalaka, who had been educated by the French missionaries to translate the Bible into the native language, was engaged to carry me in his conveyance through the country to visit the different mission stations. Knowing the prejudice that existed against me on account of my letter of introduction, and also because of the doctrine of the Sabbath, I did not in a single instance suggest to this native missionary one argument in favor of any point of truth. But we read the Scriptures together for an hour or more each day, and I selected portions that taught our faith. When reading, I often reread verses and emphasized certain words to make an impression on his mind. For a month and a half we were together, and not by a word or a look could I discern that the reading had any effect on him. One day as we were near the end of our journey, we stopped by a little brook to rest and feed our horses, and he remarked, “See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized?” I at once replied, “If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest.” He answered, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.” Had there been sufficient water I should have baptized him without question. The sequel of it was, this man, Kalaka, had taken in every point of doctrine, and he at once began translating “Steps to Christ” into his language. He then went to Cape Colony, where he was baptized and became one of the first missionary workers who helped to establish our work in Basutoland. He remained faithful until his death, and I understand that his son has also been a faithful worker.
More than once I have seen the power of the Word manifested on the hearts of individuals, and it will accomplish like changes in our own lives if we study it. Many of us remember how earnestly we studied our Bibles when we first received the message, and how that study changed the whole course of our lives. God designed that work to continue day by day until we reflect the divine image. Who has continued it? How many of us study our Bibles as earnestly and with the same love as when we first believed? The one who does this will have the “first love” ever abiding in his heart. Through the divine agency of the Word of the Lord, secret sins can be overcome, and victories gained, through the strength and merits of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. The Bible is a wonderful book. Our God is a wonderful God. The divine power of the Word can captivate and subdue the hardest heart and bring victories that all the power of hell cannot prevent. We see our need; we apply the remedy, and God makes it effectual.
Jacob's history is an assurance that God will not cast off those who have been betrayed into sin, if they return unto him with true repentance. It was only by self-surrender and confiding faith that Jacob gained the victory in God that he failed to gain in his own strength. God thus taught his servant of the divine power that is in the Word, and that grace alone could give him the blessing he craved. Thus it will be with us who live in the last days. The greatest victories to the church of Christ, or to the individual Christian, are not those gained by talent or by education, by wealth or by the favor of men; they are those gained in the audience chamber with God, when earnest, agonizing prayer lays hold upon the mighty arm of power.
God overthrew the king of Assyria and all his host in answer to the prayers of two faithful men of God. 2 Kings 19. Daniel's prayer of faith moved the king of Persia to issue the decree for the deliverance of God's people. We are nearing more troublous times than any in past history. [This was written before the European war broke out.] Great victories will be gained by the people of God in the closing of the work. Who is exercising that faith in God's promises now that will enable him to walk by faith when no human help is nigh and we have only the promises by which to walk?
