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Chapter 4 - Pentecost
As the disciples returned from Olivet to Jerusalem,
the people looked on them, expecting to see on their faces expressions
of sorrow, confusion, and defeat; but they saw there gladness and
triumph. The disciples did not now mourn over disappointed hopes.
They had seen the risen Saviour, and the words of His parting promise
echoed constantly in their ears. {AA 35.1}
In obedience to Christ's command, they waited in Jerusalem
for the promise of the Father - the outpouring of the Spirit. They
did not wait in idleness. The record says that they were "continually
in the temple, praising and blessing God." Luke 24:53. They
also met together to present their requests to the Father in the
name of Jesus. They knew that they had a Representative in heaven,
an Advocate at the throne of God. In solemn awe they bowed in prayer,
repeating the assurance, "Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father
in My name, He will give it you. Hitherto have ye asked nothing
in My name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full."
John 16:23, 24. Higher and still higher they extended the hand of
faith, with the mighty argument, "It is Christ that died, yea
rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God,
who also maketh intercession for us." Romans 8:34. {AA 35.2}
As the disciples waited for the fulfillment of the
promise, they humbled their hearts in true repentance and confessed
their unbelief. As they called to remembrance the words that Christ
had spoken to them before His death they understood more fully their
meaning. Truths which had passed from their memory were again brought
to their minds, and these they repeated to one another. They reproached
themselves for their misapprehension of the Saviour. Like a procession,
scene after scene of His wonderful life passed before them. As they
meditated upon His pure, holy life they felt that no toil would
be too hard, no sacrifice too great, if only they could bear witness
in their lives to the loveliness of Christ's character. Oh, if they
could but have the past three years to live over, they thought,
how differently they would act! If they could only see the Master
again, how earnestly they would strive to show Him how deeply they
loved Him, and how sincerely they sorrowed for having ever grieved
Him by a word or an act of unbelief! But they were comforted by
the thought that they were forgiven. And they determined that, so
far as possible, they would atone for their unbelief by bravely
confessing Him before the world. {AA 36.1}
The disciples prayed with intense earnestness for
a fitness to meet men and in their daily intercourse to speak words
that would lead sinners to Christ. Putting away all differences,
all desire for the supremacy, they came close together in Christian
fellowship. They drew nearer and nearer to God, and as they did
this they realized what a privilege had been theirs in being permitted
to associate so closely with Christ. Sadness filled their hearts
as they thought of how many times they had grieved Him by their
slowness of comprehension, their failure to understand the lessons
that, for their good, He was trying to teach them. {AA 37.1}
These days of preparation were days of deep heart
searching. The disciples felt their spiritual need and cried to
the Lord for the holy unction that was to fit them for the work
of soul saving. They did not ask for a blessing for themselves merely.
They were weighted with the burden of the salvation of souls. They
realized that the gospel was to be carried to the world, and they
claimed the power that Christ had promised. {AA 37.2}
During the patriarchal age the influence of the Holy
Spirit had often been revealed in a marked manner, but never in
its fullness. Now, in obedience to the word of the Saviour, the
disciples offered their supplications for this gift, and in heaven
Christ added His intercession. He claimed the gift of the Spirit,
that He might pour it upon His people. {AA 37.3}
"And when the Day of Pentecost was fully come,
they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came
a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all
the house where they were sitting."
{AA 37.4}
The Spirit came upon the waiting, praying disciples
with a fullness that reached every heart. The Infinite One revealed
Himself in power to His church. It was as if for ages this influence
had been held in restraint, and now Heaven rejoiced in being able
to pour out upon the church the riches of the Spirit's grace. And
under the influence of the Spirit, words of penitence and confession
mingled with songs of praise for sins forgiven. Words of thanksgiving
and of prophecy were heard. All heaven bent low to behold and to
adore the wisdom of matchless, incomprehensible love. Lost in wonder,
the apostles exclaimed, "Herein is love." They grasped
the imparted gift. And what followed? The sword of the Spirit, newly
edged with power and bathed in the lightnings of heaven, cut its
way through unbelief. Thousands were converted in a day. {AA 38.1}
"It is expedient for you that I go away,"
Christ had said to His disciples; "for If I go not away, the
Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send Him
unto you." "When He, the Spirit of truth, is come, He
will guide you into all truth: for He shall not speak of Himself;
but whatsoever He shall hear, that shall He speak: and He will show
you things to come." John 16:7, 13. {AA 38.2}
Christ's ascension to heaven was the signal that His
followers were to receive the promised blessing. For this they were
to wait before they entered upon their work. When Christ passed
within the heavenly gates, He was enthroned amidst the adoration
of the angels. As soon as this ceremony was completed, the Holy
Spirit descended upon the disciples in rich currents, and Christ
was indeed glorified, even with the glory which He had with the
Father from all eternity. The Pentecostal outpouring was Heaven's
communication that the Redeemer's inauguration was accomplished.
According to His promise He had sent the Holy Spirit from heaven
to His followers as a token that He had, as priest and king, received
all authority in heaven and on earth, and was the Anointed One over
His people. {AA 38.3}
"And there appeared unto them cloven tongues
like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all
filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues,
as the Spirit gave them utterance." The Holy Spirit, assuming
the form of tongues of fire, rested upon those assembled. This was
an emblem of the gift then bestowed on the disciples, which enabled
them to speak with fluency languages with which they had heretofore
been unacquainted. The appearance of fire signified the fervent
zeal with which the apostles would labor and the power that would
attend their work. {AA 39.1}
"There were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout
men, out of every nation under heaven." During the dispersion
the Jews had been scattered to almost every part of the inhabited
world, and in their exile they had learned to speak various languages.
Many of these Jews were on this occasion in Jerusalem, attending
the religious festivals then in progress. Every known tongue was
represented by those assembled. This diversity of languages would
have been a great hindrance to the proclamation of the gospel; God
therefore in a miraculous manner supplied the deficiency of the
apostles. The Holy Spirit did for them that which they could not
have accomplished for themselves in a lifetime. They could now proclaim
the truths of the gospel abroad, speaking with accuracy the languages
of those for whom they were laboring. This miraculous gift was a
strong evidence to the world that their commission bore the signet
of Heaven. From this time forth the language of the disciples was
pure, simple, and accurate, whether they spoke in their native tongue
or in a foreign language. {AA 39.2}
"Now when this was noised abroad, the multitude
came together, and were confounded, because that every man heard
them speak in his own language. And they were all amazed and marveled,
saying one to another, Behold, are not all these which speak Galileans?
and how hear we every man in our own tongue, wherein we were born?"
{AA 40.1}
The priests and rulers were greatly enraged at this
wonderful manifestation, but they dared not give way to their malice,
for fear of exposing themselves to the violence of the people. They
had put the Nazarene to death; but here were His servants, unlettered
men of Galilee, telling in all the languages then spoken, the story
of His life and ministry. The priests, determined to account for
the miraculous power of the disciples in some natural way, declared
that they were drunken from partaking largely of the new wine prepared
for the feast. Some of the most ignorant of the people present seized
upon this suggestion as the truth, but the more intelligent knew
it to be false; and those who understood the different languages
testified to the accuracy with which these languages were used by
the disciples. {AA 40.2}
In answer to the accusation of the priests Peter showed
that this demonstration was in direct fulfillment of the prophecy
of Joel, wherein he foretold that such power would come upon men
to fit them for a special work. "Ye men of Judea, and all ye
that dwell at Jerusalem," he said, "be this known unto
you, and hearken to my words: for these are not drunken, as ye suppose,
seeing it is but the third hour of the day. But this is that which
was spoken by the prophet Joel: And it shall come to pass in the
last days, saith God, I will pour out of My Spirit upon all flesh:
and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young
men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams: and
on My servants and on My handmaidens I will pour out in those days
of My Spirit; and they shall prophesy." {AA 41.1}
With clearness and power Peter bore witness of the
death and resurrection of Christ: "Ye men of Israel, hear these
words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles
and wonders and signs, which God did by Him in the midst of you,
as ye yourselves also know: Him . . . ye have taken, and by wicked
hands have crucified and slain: whom God hath raised up, having
loosed the pains of death: because it was not possible that He should
be holden of it." {AA 41.2}
Peter did not refer to the teachings of Christ to
prove his position, because he knew that the prejudice of his hearers
was so great that his words on this subject would be of no effect.
Instead, he spoke to them of David, who was regarded by the Jews
as one of the patriarchs of their nation. "David speaketh concerning
Him," he declared: "I foresaw the Lord always before My
face, for He is on My right hand, that I should not be moved: therefore
did My heart rejoice, and My tongue was glad; moreover also My flesh
shall rest in hope: because Thou wilt not leave My soul in hell,
neither wilt Thou suffer Thine Holy One to see corruption. . . .
{AA 41.3}
"Men and brethren, let me freely speak unto you
of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his
sepulcher is with us unto this day." "He . . . spake of
the resurrection of Christ, that His soul was not left in hell,
neither His flesh did see corruption. This Jesus hath God raised
up, whereof we all are witnesses." {AA 42.1}
The scene is one full of interest. Behold the people coming from
all directions to hear the disciples witness to the truth as it
is in Jesus. They press in, crowding the temple. Priests and rulers
are there, the dark scowl of malignity still on their faces, their
hearts still filled with abiding hatred against Christ, their hands
uncleansed from the blood shed when they crucified the world's Redeemer.
They had thought to find the apostles cowed with fear under the
strong hand of oppression and murder, but they find them lifted
above all fear and filled with the Spirit, proclaiming with power
the divinity of Jesus of Nazareth. They hear them declaring with
boldness that the One so recently humiliated, derided, smitten by
cruel hands, and crucified, is the Prince of life, now exalted to
the right hand of God. {AA 42.2}
Some of those who listened to the apostles had taken
an active part in the condemnation and death of Christ. Their voices
had mingled with the rabble in calling for His crucifixion. When
Jesus and Barabbas stood before them in the judgment hall and Pilate
asked, "Whom will ye that I release unto you?" they had
shouted, "Not this Man, but Barabbas!" Matthew 27:17;
John 18:40. When Pilate delivered Christ to them, saying, "Take
ye Him, and crucify Him: for I find no fault in Him;" "I
am innocent of the blood of this just Person," they had cried,
"His blood be on us, and on our children." John 19:6;
Matthew 27:24, 25. {AA 42.3}
Now they heard the disciples declaring that it was
the Son of God who had been crucified. Priests and rulers trembled.
Conviction and anguish seized the people. "They were pricked
in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles,
Men and brethren, what shall we do?" Among those who listened
to the disciples were devout Jews, who were sincere in their belief.
The power that accompanied the words of the speaker convinced them
that Jesus was indeed the Messiah. {AA 43.1}
"Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized
every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of
sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise
is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off,
even as many as the Lord our God shall call." {AA 43.2}
Peter urged home upon the convicted people the fact
that they had rejected Christ because they had been deceived by
priests and rulers; and that if they continued to look to these
men for counsel, and waited for them to acknowledge Christ before
they dared to do so, they would never accept Him. These powerful
men, though making a profession of godliness, were ambitious for
earthly riches and glory. They were not willing to come to Christ
to receive light. {AA 43.3}
Under the influence of this heavenly illumination
the scriptures that Christ had explained to the disciples stood
out before them with the luster of perfect truth. The veil that
had prevented them from seeing to the end of that which had been
abolished, was now removed, and they comprehended with perfect clearness
the object of Christ's mission and the nature of His kingdom. They
could speak with power of the Saviour; and as they unfolded to their
hearers the plan of salvation, many were convicted and convinced.
The traditions and superstitions inculcated by the priests were
swept away from their minds, and the teachings of the Saviour were
accepted. {AA 44.1}
"Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and
the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls."
{AA 44.2}
The Jewish leaders had supposed that the work of Christ
would end with His death; but, instead of this, they witnessed the
marvelous scenes of the Day of Pentecost. They heard the disciples,
endowed with a power and energy hitherto unknown, preaching Christ,
their words confirmed by signs and wonders. In Jerusalem, the stronghold
of Judaism, thousands openly declared their faith in Jesus of Nazareth
as the Messiah. {AA 44.3}
The disciples were astonished and overjoyed at the greatness of
the harvest of souls. They did not regard this wonderful ingathering
as the result of their own efforts; they realized that they were
entering into other men's labors.
Ever since the fall of Adam, Christ had been committing
to chosen servants the seed of His word, to be sown in human hearts.
During His life on this earth He had sown the seed of truth and
had watered it with His blood. The conversions that took place on
the Day of Pentecost were the result of this sowing, the harvest
of Christ's work, revealing the power of His teaching. {AA 44.4}
The arguments of the apostles alone, though clear
and convincing, would not have removed the prejudice that had withstood
so much evidence. But the Holy Spirit sent the arguments home to
hearts with divine power. The words of the apostles were as sharp
arrows of the Almighty, convicting men of their terrible guilt in
rejecting and crucifying the Lord of glory. {AA 45.1}
Under the training of Christ the disciples had been
led to feel their need of the Spirit. Under the Spirit's teaching
they received the final qualification, and went forth to their lifework.
No longer were they ignorant and uncultured. No longer were they
a collection of independent units or discordant, conflicting elements.
No longer were their hopes set on worldly greatness. They were of
"one accord," "of one heart and of one soul."
Acts. 2:46; 4:32. Christ filled their thoughts; the advancement
of His kingdom was their aim. In mind and character they had become
like their Master, and men "took knowledge of them, that they
had been with Jesus." Acts 4:13. {AA 45.2}
Pentecost brought them the heavenly illumination. The truths they
could not understand while Christ was with them were now unfolded.
With a faith and assurance that they had never before known, they
accepted the teachings of the Sacred Word. No longer was it a matter
of faith with them that Christ was the Son of God. They knew that,
although clothed with humanity, He was indeed the Messiah, and they
told their experience to the world with a confidence which carried
with it the conviction that God was with them. {AA 45.3}
They could speak the name of Jesus with assurance;
for was He not their Friend and Elder Brother? Brought into close
communion with Christ, they sat with Him in heavenly places. With
what burning language they clothed their ideas as they bore witness
for Him! Their hearts were surcharged with a benevolence so full,
so deep, so far-reaching, that it impelled them to go to the ends
of the earth, testifying to the power of Christ. They were filled
with an intense longing to carry forward the work He had begun.
They realized the greatness of their debt to heaven and the responsibility
of their work. Strengthened by the endowment of the Holy Spirit,
they went forth filled with zeal to extend the triumphs of the cross.
The Spirit animated them and spoke through them. The peace of Christ
shone from their faces. They had consecrated their lives to Him
for service, and their very features bore evidence to the surrender
they had made. {AA 46.1}
Chapter 5 - The Gift
of the Spirit
When Christ gave His disciples the promise of the Spirit, He was
nearing the close of His earthly ministry. He was standing in the
shadow of the cross, with a full realization of the load of guilt
that was to rest upon Him as the Sin Bearer. Before offering Himself
as the sacrificial victim, He instructed His disciples regarding
a most essential and complete gift which He was to bestow upon His
followers - the gift that would bring within their reach the boundless
resources of His grace. "I will pray the Father," He said,
"and He shall give you another Comforter, that He may abide
with you forever; even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot
receive, because it seeth Him not, neither knoweth Him: but ye know
Him; for He dwelleth with you, and shall be in you." John 14:16,
17. The Saviour was pointing forward to the time when the Holy Spirit
should come to do a mighty work as His representative. The evil
that had been accumulating for centuries was to be resisted by the
divine power of the Holy Spirit. {AA 47.1}
What was the result of the outpouring of the Spirit
on the Day of Pentecost? The glad tidings of a risen Saviour were
carried to the uttermost parts of the inhabited world. As the disciples
proclaimed the message of redeeming grace, hearts yielded to the
power of this message. The church beheld converts flocking to her
from all directions. Backsliders were reconverted. Sinners united
with believers in seeking the pearl of great price. Some who had
been the bitterest opponents of the gospel became its champions.
The prophecy was fulfilled, "He that is feeble. . . shall be
as David; and the house of David . . . as the angel of the Lord."
Zechariah 12:8. Every Christian saw in his brother a revelation
of divine love and benevolence. One interest prevailed; one subject
of emulation swallowed up all others. The ambition of the believers
was to reveal the likeness of Christ's character and to labor for
the enlargement of His kingdom. {AA 48.1}
"With great power gave the apostles witness of
the resurrection of the Lord Jesus: and great grace was upon them
all." Acts 4:33. Under their labors were added to the church
chosen men, who, receiving the word of truth, consecrated their
lives to the work of giving to others the hope that filled their
hearts with peace and joy. They could not be restrained or intimidated
by threatenings. The Lord spoke through them, and as they went from
place to place, the poor had the gospel preached to them, and miracles
of divine grace were wrought. {AA 48.2}
So mightily can God work when men give themselves
up to the control of His Spirit. {AA 49.1}
The promise of the Holy Spirit is not limited to any
age or to any race. Christ declared that the divine influence of
His Spirit was to be with His followers unto the end. From the Day
of Pentecost to the present time, the Comforter has been sent to
all who have yielded themselves fully to the Lord and to His service.
To all who have accepted Christ as a personal Saviour, the Holy
Spirit has come as a counselor, sanctifier, guide, and witness.
The more closely believers have walked with God, the more clearly
and powerfully have they testified of their Redeemer's love and
of His saving grace. The men and women who through the long centuries
of persecution and trial enjoyed a large measure of the presence
of the Spirit in their lives, have stood as signs and wonders in
the world. Before angels and men they have revealed the transforming
power of redeeming love. {AA 49.2}
Those who at Pentecost were endued with power from
on high, were not thereby freed from further temptation and trial.
As they witnessed for truth and righteousness they were repeatedly
assailed by the enemy of all truth, who sought to rob them of their
Christian experience. They were compelled to strive with all their
God-given powers to reach the measure of the stature of men and
women in Christ Jesus. Daily they prayed for fresh supplies of grace,
that they might reach higher and still higher toward perfection.
Under the Holy Spirit's working even the weakest,
50 by exercising faith in God, learned to improve their entrusted
powers and to become sanctified, refined, and ennobled. As in humility
they submitted to the molding influence of the Holy Spirit, they
received of the fullness of the Godhead and were fashioned in the
likeness of the divine. {AA 49.3}
The lapse of time has wrought no change in Christ's
parting promise to send the Holy Spirit as His representative. It
is not because of any restriction on the part of God that the riches
of His grace do not flow earthward to men. If the fulfillment of
the promise is not seen as it might be, it is because the promise
is not appreciated as it should be. If all were willing, all would
be filled with the Spirit. Wherever the need of the Holy Spirit
is a matter little thought of, there is seen spiritual drought,
spiritual darkness, spiritual declension and death. Whenever minor
matters occupy the attention, the divine power which is necessary
for the growth and prosperity of the church, and which would bring
all other blessings in its train, is lacking, though offered in
infinite plenitude. {AA 50.1}
Since this is the means by which we are to receive
power, why do we not hunger and thirst for the gift of the Spirit?
Why do we not talk of it, pray for it, and preach concerning it?
The Lord is more willing to give the Holy Spirit to those who serve
Him than parents are to give good gifts to their children. For the
daily baptism of the Spirit every worker should offer his petition
to God. Companies of Christian workers should gather to ask for
special help, for heavenly wisdom, that they may know how to plan
and execute wisely. Especially should they pray that God will baptize
His chosen ambassadors in mission fields with a rich measure of
His Spirit. The presence of the Spirit with God's workers will give
the proclamation of truth a power that not all the honor or glory
of the world could give. {AA 50.2}
With the consecrated worker for God, in whatever place
he may be, the Holy Spirit abides. The words spoken to the disciples
are spoken also to us. The Comforter is ours as well as theirs.
The Spirit furnishes the strength that sustains striving, wrestling
souls in every emergency, amidst the hatred of the world, and the
realization of their own failures and mistakes. In sorrow and affliction,
when the outlook seems dark and the future perplexing, and we feel
helpless and alone, - these are the times when, in answer to the
prayer of faith, the Holy Spirit brings comfort to the heart. {AA
51.1}
It is not a conclusive evidence that a man is a Christian
because he manifests spiritual ecstasy under extraordinary circumstances.
Holiness is not rapture: it is an entire surrender of the will to
God; it is living by every word that proceeds from the mouth of
God; it is doing the will of our heavenly Father; it is trusting
God in trial, in darkness as well as in the light; it is walking
by faith and not by sight; it is relying on God with unquestioning
confidence, and resting in His love. {AA 51.2}
It is not essential for us to be able to define just
what the Holy Spirit is. Christ tells us that the Spirit is the
Comforter, "the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the
Father." It is plainly declared regarding the Holy Spirit that,
in His work of guiding men into all truth, "He shall not speak
of Himself." John 15:26; 16:13. {AA 51.3}
The nature of the Holy Spirit is a mystery. Men cannot
explain it, because the Lord has not revealed it to them. Men having
fanciful views may bring together passages of Scripture and put
a human construction on them, but the acceptance of these views
will not strengthen the church. Regarding such mysteries, which
are too deep for human understanding, silence is golden. {AA 52.1}
The office of the Holy Spirit is distinctly specified
in the words of Christ: "When He is come, He will reprove the
world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment." John
16:8. It is the Holy Spirit that convicts of sin. If the sinner
responds to the quickening influence of the Spirit, he will be brought
to repentance and aroused to the importance of obeying the divine
requirements. {AA 52.2}
To the repentant sinner, hungering and thirsting for
righteousness, the Holy Spirit reveals the Lamb of God that taketh
away the sin of the world. "He shall receive of Mine, and shall
show it unto you," Christ said. "He shall teach you all
things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have
said unto you." John 16:14; 14:26. {AA 52.3}
The Spirit is given as a regenerating agency, to make
effectual the salvation wrought by the death of our Redeemer. The
Spirit is constantly seeking to draw the attention of men to the
great offering that was made on the cross of Calvary, to unfold
to the world the love of God, and to open to the convicted soul
the precious things of the Scriptures. {AA 52.4}
Having brought conviction of sin, and presented before
the mind the standard of righteousness, the Holy Spirit
withdraws the affections from the things of this earth and fills
the soul with a desire for holiness. "He will guide you into
all truth" (John 16:13), the Saviour declared. If men are willing
to be molded, there will be brought about a sanctification of the
whole being. The Spirit will take the things of God and stamp them
on the soul. By His power the way of life will be made so plain
that none need err therein. {AA 52.5}
From the beginning, God has been working by His Holy
Spirit through human instrumentalities for the accomplishment of
His purpose in behalf of the fallen race. This was manifest in the
lives of the patriarchs. To the church in the wilderness also, in
the time of Moses, God gave His "good Spirit to instruct them."
Nehemiah 9:20. And in the days of the apostles He wrought mightily
for His church through the agency of the Holy Spirit. The same power
that sustained the patriarchs, that gave Caleb and Joshua faith
and courage, and that made the work of the apostolic church effective,
has upheld God's faithful children in every succeeding age. It was
through the power of the Holy Spirit that during the Dark Ages the
Waldensian Christians helped to prepare the way for the Reformation.
It was the same power that made successful the efforts of the noble
men and women who pioneered the way for the establishment of modern
missions and for the translation of the Bible into the languages
and dialects of all nations and peoples. {AA 53.1}
And today God is still using His church to make known
His purpose in the earth. Today the heralds of the cross are going
from city to city, and from land to land, preparing the way for
the second advent of Christ. The standard of God's law is being
exalted. The Spirit of the Almighty is moving upon men's hearts,
and those who respond to its influence become witnesses for God
and His truth. In many places consecrated men and women may be seen
communicating to others the light that has made plain to them the
way of salvation through Christ. And as they continue to let their
light shine, as did those who were baptized with the Spirit on the
Day of Pentecost, they receive more and still more of the Spirit's
power. Thus the earth is to be lightened with the glory of God.
{AA 53.2}
On the other hand, there are some who, instead of
wisely improving present opportunities, are idly waiting for some
special season of spiritual refreshing by which their ability to
enlighten others will be greatly increased. They neglect present
duties and privileges, and allow their light to burn dim, while
they look forward to a time when, without any effort on their part,
they will be made the recipients of special blessing, by which they
will be transformed and fitted for service. {AA 54.1}
It is true that in the time of the end, when God's
work in the earth is closing, the earnest efforts put forth by consecrated
believers under the guidance of the Holy Spirit are to be accompanied
by special tokens of divine favor. Under the figure of the early
and the latter rain, that falls in Eastern lands at seedtime and
harvest, the Hebrew prophets foretold the bestowal of spiritual
grace in extraordinary measure upon God's church. The outpouring
of the Spirit in the days of the apostles was the beginning of the
early, or former, rain, and glorious was the result. To the end
of time the presence of the Spirit is to abide with the true church.
{AA 54.2}
But near the close of earth's harvest, a special bestowal
of spiritual grace is promised to prepare the church for the coming
of the Son of man. This outpouring of the Spirit is likened to the
falling of the latter rain; and it is for this added power that
Christians are to send their petitions to the Lord of the harvest
"in the time of the latter rain." In response, "the
Lord shall make bright clouds, and give them showers of rain."
"He will cause to come down . . . the rain, the former rain,
and the latter rain," Zechariah 10:1; Joel 2:23. {AA 55.1}
But unless the members of God's church today have
a living connection with the Source of all spiritual growth, they
will not be ready for the time of reaping. Unless they keep their
lamps trimmed and burning, they will fail of receiving added grace
in times of special need. {AA 55.2}
Those only who are constantly receiving fresh supplies
of grace, will have power proportionate to their daily need and
their ability to use that power. Instead of looking forward to some
future time when, through a special endowment of spiritual power,
they will receive a miraculous fitting up for soul winning, they
are yielding themselves daily to God, that He may make them vessels
meet for His use. Daily they are improving the opportunities for
service that lie within their reach. Daily they are witnessing for
the Master wherever they may be, whether in some humble sphere of
labor in the home, or in a public field of usefulness. {AA 55.3}
To the consecrated worker there is wonderful consolation
in the knowledge that even Christ during His life on earth sought
His Father daily for fresh supplies of needed grace; and from this
communion with God He went forth to strengthen and bless others.
Behold the Son of God bowed in prayer to His Father! Though He is
the Son of God, He strengthens His faith by prayer, and by communion
with heaven gathers to Himself power to resist evil and to minister
to the needs of men. As the Elder Brother of our race He knows the
necessities of those who, compassed with infirmity and living in
a world of sin and temptation, still desire to serve Him. He knows
that the messengers whom He sees fit to send are weak, erring men;
but to all who give themselves wholly to His service He promises
divine aid. His own example is an assurance that earnest, persevering
supplication to God in faith - faith that leads to entire dependence
upon God, and unreserved consecration to His work - will avail to
bring to men the Holy Spirit's aid in the battle against sin. {AA
56.1}
Every worker who follows the example of Christ will
be prepared to receive and use the power that God has promised to
His church for the ripening of earth's harvest. Morning by morning,
as the heralds of the gospel kneel before the Lord and renew their
vows of consecration to Him, He will grant them the presence of
His Spirit, with its reviving, sanctifying power. As they go forth
to the day's duties, they have the assurance that the unseen agency
of the Holy Spirit enables them to be "laborers together with
God." {AA 56.2}
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