Saturday, December 31, 2016

Devoción Matutina en español

Devoción Matutina en español

December 31, 2016


“He aquí el cordero de Dios”

“He aquí el Cordero de Dios, que quita el pecado del mundo”. Juan 1:29.

Juan por naturaleza padecía de las mismas faltas y debilidades comunes a la humanidad; pero el toque del amor divino lo había transformado. Al haber comenzado el ministerio de Cristo, los discípulos de Juan vinieron donde él con la queja de que todos los hombres seguían al nuevo Maestro, pero Juan demostró cuán plenamente comprendía su relación con el Mesías, y cuán alegremente le extendía la bienvenida a Aquel cuyo camino él había preparado.

“No puede el hombre recibir nada—declaró—si no le fuere dado del cielo. Vosotros mismos me sois testigos de que dije: Yo no soy el Cristo, sino que soy enviado delante de él. El que tiene la esposa, es el esposo; mas el amigo del esposo, que está a su lado y le oye, se goza grandemente de la voz del esposo; así pues; este mi gozo está cumplido. Es necesario que él crezca, pero que yo mengüe”. Juan 3:27-30.

Mirando con fe al Redentor, Juan había alcanzado la cumbre de la abnegación. Se interesaba, no en atraer a los hombres a sí mismo,

sino en elevar sus pensamientos más y más, hasta que descansaran en el Cordero de Dios. Él mismo había sido solo una voz, un clamor en el desierto. Ahora, con gozo aceptaba el silencio y las sombras, para que la vista de todos se volviese a la Luz de la vida.

Los que son fieles a su llamamiento como mensajeros de Dios no procurarán la honra personal. El amor propio quedará absorbido en el amor de Cristo. Reconocerán que su obra es proclamar, como lo hizo Juan el Bautista: “He aquí el Cordero de Dios, que quita el pecado del mundo”. Juan 1:29. Levantarán a Jesús, y con él la humanidad entera será levantada...

El alma del profeta, vaciada del yo, se llenó de la luz del Divino. En lenguaje que era casi el paralelo de las palabras del mismo Cristo, dio testimonio de la gloria del Salvador... En esta exaltación de Cristo todos sus seguidores han de participar... Podemos recibir la luz del cielo solo mientras estemos dispuestos a vaciarnos del yo. Podemos discernir el carácter de Dios, y aceptar a Cristo por la fe, solo al consentir sujetar todo pensamiento a la voluntad de Cristo. A todos los que hagan esto, el Espíritu Santo les será dado sin medida. En Cristo “habita corporalmente toda la plenitud de la Deidad, y vosotros estáis completos en él...”. Colosenses 2:9, 10—Testimonies for the Church 8:348, 349.


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Daily Devotional

Daily Devotional

December 31, 2016


Prove All Things

Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Matt. 7:15.


In the work in which my husband and I were called by the providence of God to act a part, even from its very beginning in 1843 and 1844, we have had the Lord to devise and plan for us, and He has worked out His plans through His living agents. False paths have been so often pointed out to us, and the true and safe paths so clearly defined in all the enterprises connected with the work given us to do, that I can say of a truth I am not ignorant of Satan’s devices, nor of the ways and works of God. We have had to tax every power of mind, relying upon wisdom from God to guide us in our investigations, as we have had to review the different theories brought to our attention, weighing their merits and defects in the light shining from the Word of God and the things God has revealed to me through His Word and the testimonies, in order that we might not be deceived nor deceive others. We surrendered our will and way to God, and most earnestly supplicated His aid; and we never sought in vain. Many years of painful experience in connection with the work of God have made me acquainted with all kinds of false movements. Many times I have been sent to different places with the message, “I have a work for you to do in that place; I will be with you.” When the occasion came, the Lord gave me a message for those who were having false dreams and visions, and in the strength of Christ I bore my testimony at the Lord’s bidding. . . .

During the past forty-five years, I have had to meet persons claiming to have from God messages of reproof to others. This phase of religious fanaticism has sprung up again and again since 1844. Satan has worked in many ways to establish error. Some things spoken in these visions came to pass; but many things—in regard to the time of Christ’s coming, the end of probation, and the events to take place—proved utterly false. . . .

“Take heed therefore how ye hear” (Luke 8:18), is an admonition of Christ. . . . Examine closely, “prove all things” (1 Thess. 5:21). . . . This is the counsel of God; shall we heed it?

From Devotional: Our Father Cares, p. 323.


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Thought of the Day

Thought of the Day

December 31, 2016


The tempter can never compel us to do evil. He cannot control minds unless they are yielded to his control. The will must consent, faith must let go its hold upon Christ, before Satan can exercise his power upon us. But every sinful desire we cherish affords him a foothold. Every point in which we fail of meeting the divine standard is an open door by which he can enter to tempt and destroy us. Desire of Ages, p. 125.


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Daily Devotional

Daily Devotional

December 31, 2016


Keeping the Sabbath as a Family

Therefore know that the Lord your God, He is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments. Deuteronomy 7:9, NKJV.

Search the scriptures, parents. Be not only hearers, but doers of the Word. Meet God's standard in the education of your children. Let them see that you are preparing for the Sabbath on the working days of the week. All preparation should be made, every stitch taken, on the six working days; all cooking for the Sabbath should be done on the preparation day. It is possible to do this, and if you make it a rule, you can do it....

Explain your work and its purpose to your children, and let them help themselves and their parents in their preparation to keep the Sabbath according to the commandment. Lead your children to consider the Sabbath a delight, the day of days, the holy of the Lord, honorable....

On Friday the clothing of the children ... should all be laid out by their own hands under the direction of the mother, so that they can dress quickly, without any confusion or rushing about, and hasty speeches.... This is God's holy day; the day that He has set apart to commemorate His creative works; a day which He has sanctified and hallowed....

On the Sabbath, parents should give all the time they can to their children, thus making it a delight. I have seen many families where father, mother, and the older members of the household take themselves away from the younger children, and leave them to amuse themselves as best they can. After a while, the children become weary and go out of doors, and engage in play or some kind of mischief. Thus the Sabbath has no sacred significance to them. In pleasant weather the parents can take their children out for a walk in the fields and forest, and talk to them of the lofty trees, the shrubs and flowers, and teach them that God is the Maker of all these things. Then teach them the reasons for the Sabbath, that it is to commemorate God's created works. After working six days, He rested the seventh, and blessed and hallowed the day of His rest. Thus the most profitable instruction can be given. - Lake Union Herald, April 14, 1909.

From Devotional: To Be Like Jesus, p. 157.


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Thought of the Day

Thought of the Day

December 31, 2016


When depressed and discouraged, you are ready to yield to despair, look to Jesus, and the darkness that encompasses you will be dispelled. - MHH 39


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Friday, December 30, 2016

Devoción Matutina en español

Devoción Matutina en español

December 30, 2016


Los cristianos deben representar a Cristo en todo acto

Y vosotros, hermanos, no os canséis de hacer bien. 2 Tesalonicenses 3:13.

¿Qué podemos decir para despertar en los que profesan ser seguidores de Cristo la comprensión de la solemne responsabilidad que descansa sobre ellos? ¿No hay una voz capaz de hacerlos trabajar mientras dure el día? Nuestro divino Hacedor dio su vida por un mundo arruinado. ¿Quién negará el yo y hará algún sacrificio para rescatar las almas por las que El murió?

En cada acto de la vida los cristianos deben representar a Cristo, hacer atractivo el servicio que le brindan. Ninguno haga repulsiva la religión mediante quejas y gesticulaciones y el relato de sus pruebas, abnegación y sacrificios personales. No nieguen su profesión de fe mediante la impaciencia, el mal genio y el descontento. Permitan que las gracias del Espíritu se manifiesten en bondad, humildad, paciencia, alegría y amor. Demuestren que el amor de Cristo es una motivación permanente; que la religión de ustedes no es un ropaje que se pone o se saca de acuerdo con las circunstancias, sino que es un principio sereno, constante e invariable. ¡Ay del que abriga orgullo, incredulidad y egoísmo, que como un cáncer consume la piedad vital del corazón de muchos profesos cristianos!...

El amor a Jesús será visto y sentido. No puede esconderse. Ejerce un poder maravilloso. Hace intrépido al tímido, diligente al perezoso y sabio al ignorante. Hace elocuente a la lengua titubeante; despierta al intelecto dormido hacia una vida nueva y vigorosa. Da esperanzas al desalentado, y alegría al abatido. El amor a Cristo conducirá a su poseedor a aceptar responsabilidades por amor a El y a llevarlas con sus fuerzas. El amor a Cristo no desmayará por la tribulación ni se apartará del deber por el vituperio...

La paz de Cristo es de más valor que todos los tesoros terrenales. Busquemos al Señor con todo nuestro corazón, aprendamos de Cristo a ser mansos y humildes para que encontremos descanso para el alma. Despertemos nuestras energías dormidas y seamos activos, entusiastas y fervientes. La conducta y el ejemplo, así como las palabras del cristiano, debieran ser tales que despierten en el pecador el deseo de acercarse a la Fuente de vida.

Abramos, entonces, nuestros corazones a los brillantes rayos del Sol de justicia. Trabajemos gozosa y alegremente para nuestro Maestro. Alabémosle, no sólo con nuestras palabras, en la congregación de los santos, sino también con una vida bien ordenada y una piadosa conversación; una vida que manifieste un esfuerzo cristiano activo y noble. Seamos diligentes en asegurar nuestro llamamiento y nuestra elección, recordando que al fin triunfaremos si no nos cansamos de hacer el bien.— The Signs of the Times, 24 de junio de 1886.


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Daily Devotional

Daily Devotional

December 30, 2016


A Character the World Will Recognize

That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world. Phil. 2:15.


It is God’s purpose to manifest through His people the principles of His kingdom. That in life and character they may reveal these principles, He desires to separate them from the customs, habits, and practices of the world. . . . By beholding the goodness, the mercy, the justice, and the love of God revealed in His church, the world is to have a representation of His character. And when the law of God is thus exemplified in the life, even the world will recognize the superiority of those who love and fear and serve God above every other people in the world.

Seventh-day Adventists, above all people, should be patterns of piety, holy in heart and in conversation. To them have been entrusted the most solemn truths ever committed to mortals. Every endowment of grace and power and efficiency has been liberally provided. They look for the near return of Christ in the clouds of heaven. For them to give to the world the impression that their faith is not a dominating power in their lives is greatly to dishonor God.

Because of the increasing power of Satan’s temptations, the times in which we live are full of peril for the children of God, and we need to learn constantly of the Great Teacher, that we may take every step in surety and righteousness. Wonderful scenes are opening before us; and at this time a living testimony is to be borne in the lives of God’s professed people, so that the world may see that in this age, when evil reigns on every side, there is yet a people who are laying aside their will and are seeking to do God’s will—a people in whose hearts and lives God’s law is written. . . .

Their thoughts are to be pure, their words noble and uplifting. The religion of Christ is to be interwoven with all that they do and say. They are to be a sanctified, purified, holy people, communicating light to all with whom they come in contact. It is His purpose that by exemplifying the truth in their lives, they shall be a praise in the earth. The grace of Christ is sufficient to bring this about.

From Devotional: Our Father Cares, pp. 322, 323.


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Thought of the Day

Thought of the Day

December 30, 2016


Every promise in God's word is ours. "By every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God" are we to live. When assailed by temptation, look not to circumstances or to the weakness of self, but to the power of the word. All its strength is yours. Desire of Ages, p. 123.


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Thought of the Day

Thought of the Day

December 30, 2016


Christ waits to adopt you into His family. His strength will help your weakness; He will lead you step by step. - MH 85


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Daily Devotional

Daily Devotional

December 30, 2016


The Sabbath Was Kept Anciently, and Is Today

"Fear God and give glory to Him, for the hour of His judgment has come; and worship Him who made heaven and earth, the sea and springs of water." ... "Here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus." Revelation 14:7-12, NKJV.

The prophet ... points out the ordinance which has been forsaken: "Thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in. If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honourable; and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words: then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord" (Isaiah 58:12-14)....

Hallowed by the Creator's rest and blessing, the Sabbath was kept by Adam in his innocence in holy Eden; by Adam, fallen yet repentant, when he was driven from his happy estate. It was kept by all the patriarchs, from Abel to righteous Noah, to Abraham, to Jacob. When the chosen people were in bondage in Egypt, many, in the midst of prevailing idolatry, lost their knowledge of God's law; but when the Lord delivered Israel, He proclaimed His law in awful grandeur to the assembled multitude, that they might know His will and fear and obey Him forever.

From that day to the present the knowledge of God's law has been preserved in the earth, and the Sabbath of the fourth commandment has been kept. Though the "man of sin" succeeded in trampling underfoot God's holy day, yet even in the period of his supremacy there were, hidden in secret places, faithful souls who paid it honor. Since the Reformation, there have been some in every generation to maintain its observance. Though often in the midst of reproach and persecution, a constant testimony has been borne to the perpetuity of the law of God and the sacred obligation of the creation Sabbath.

These truths, as presented in Revelation 14 in connection with "the everlasting gospel," will distinguish the church of Christ at the time of His appearing. For as the result of the threefold message it is announced: "Here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus." And this message is the last to be given before the coming of the Lord. Immediately following its proclamation the Son of man is seen by the prophet, coming in glory to reap the harvest of the earth. - The Great Controversy, 452-454.

From Devotional: To Be Like Jesus, p. 156.


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Thursday, December 29, 2016

Devoción Matutina en español

Devoción Matutina en español

December 29, 2016


El manto de la justicia de Cristo es para los arrepentidos

Mejorad ahora vuestros caminos y vuestras obras, y oíd la voz de Jehová vuestro Dios, y se arrepentirá Jehová del mal que ha hablado contra vosotros. Jeremías 26:13.

Aunque como pecadores estamos bajo la condenación de la ley, sin embargo Cristo, mediante la obediencia que prestó a la ley, demanda para el alma arrepentida los méritos de su propia justicia. Con el fin de obtener la justicia de Cristo, es necesario que el pecador sepa lo que es ese arrepentimiento que efectúa un cambio radical en la mente, en el espíritu y en la acción. La obra de la transformación debe comenzar en el corazón y manifestar su poder mediante cada facultad del ser. Sin embargo, los seres humanos no son capaces de originar un arrepentimiento tal como éste, y sólo pueden experimentarlo mediante Cristo, que ascendió a lo alto, llevó cautiva la cautividad y dio dones a la humanidad.

¿Quién desea llegar al verdadero arrepentimiento? ¿Qué debe hacer? Debe ir a Jesús, tal como es, sin demora. Debe creer que la palabra de Cristo es verdadera y, creyendo en la promesa, pedir, para de esa manera recibir. Cuando un sincero deseo mueve a las personas a orar, no orarán en vano. El Señor cumplirá su palabra, y dará el Espíritu Santo para conducir al arrepentimiento hacia Dios y la fe hacia nuestro Señor Jesucristo. El pecador orará, velará y se apartará de sus pecados, haciendo manifiesta su sinceridad por medio del vigor de su esfuerzo para obedecer los mandamientos de Dios. Mezclará la fe con la oración, y no sólo creerá en los preceptos de la ley sino que los obedecerá. Se declarará del lado de Cristo en esta controversia. Renunciará a todos los hábitos y las compañías que tiendan a desviar de Dios el corazón.

El que quiera llegar a ser hijo de Dios, debe recibir la verdad que enseña que el arrepentimiento y el perdón han de obtenerse nada menos que mediante la expiación de Cristo. Asegurado de esto, el pecador debe realizar un esfuerzo en armonía con la obra hecha en beneficio de él y, con una súplica incansable, debe acudir al trono de la gracia para que el poder renovador de Dios llegue hasta su alma.

Únicamente Cristo perdona al arrepentido, pero primero hace que se arrepienta aquel a quien perdona. La provisión hecha es completa y la justicia eterna de Cristo es acreditada a cada alma creyente. El manto costoso e inmaculado, tejido en el telar del cielo, ha sido provisto para el pecador arrepentido y creyente, y él puede decir: “En gran manera me gozaré en Jehová, mi alma se alegrará en mi Dios; porque me vistió con vestiduras de salvación, me rodeó de manto de justicia”. Mensajes Selectos 1:460, 461.


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Daily Devotional

Daily Devotional

December 29, 2016


Teaching from House to House

I kept back nothing that was profitable unto you, but have shewed you, and have taught you publickly, and from house to house. Acts 20:20.


Among the members of our churches there should be more house-to-house labor in giving Bible readings and distributing literature. . . . As we sow beside all waters we shall realize that “he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.”

Christ’s example must be followed by those who claim to be His children. Relieve the physical necessities of your fellow men, and their gratitude will break down the barriers and enable you to reach their hearts. . . . Women as well as men can engage in the work. . . . They can do in families a work that men cannot do, a work that reaches the inner life. They can come close to the hearts of those whom men cannot reach. Their work is needed. Discreet and humble women can do a good work in explaining the truth to the people in their homes. The word of God thus explained will do its leavening work, and . . whole families will be converted. . . .

In the home circle, at your neighbor’s fireside, at the bedside of the sick, in a quiet way you may read the Scriptures and speak a word for Jesus and the truth. Precious seed may thus be sown that will spring up and bring forth fruit. . . .

There is missionary work to be done in many unpromising places. The missionary spirit needs to take hold of our souls, inspiring us to reach classes for whom we had not planned to labor and in ways and places that we had no idea of working. The Lord has His plan for the sowing of the gospel seed. In sowing according to His will, we shall so multiply the seed that His word may reach thousands who have never heard the truth.

Thousands upon thousands, and ten thousand times ten thousand angels are waiting to co-operate with members of our churches in communicating the light that God has generously given, that a people may be prepared for the coming of Christ.

Our sisters, the youth, the middle-aged, and those of advanced years, may act a part in the closing work for this time; and in doing this as they have opportunity, they will obtain an experience of the highest value to themselves. In forgetfulness of self, they will grow in grace.

From Devotional: Our Father Cares, pp. 321, 322.


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Thought of the Day

Thought of the Day

December 29, 2016


In our own strength it is impossible for us to deny the clamors of our fallen nature... by passing over the ground which man must travel, our Lord has prepared the way for us to overcome. Desire of Ages, p. 122.


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Daily Devotional

Daily Devotional

December 29, 2016


Believe God's Word, Not Human Reasoning

The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but those things which are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law. Deuteronomy 29:29, NKJV.

It has been the special work of Satan to lead fallen humanity to rebel against God's government, and he has succeeded too well in his efforts. He has tried to obscure the law of God, which in itself is very plain. He has manifested a special hatred against the fourth precept of the Decalogue, because it defines the living God, the maker of the heavens and the earth. Yielding to his devices, people have turned from the plainest precepts of Jehovah to receive infidel fables.

They will be left without excuse. God has given sufficient evidence upon which to base faith, if one wishes to believe. In the last days, the earth will be almost destitute of true faith. Upon the merest pretense, the Word of God will be considered unreliable, while human reasoning will be received, though it be in opposition to plain Scripture facts. Men and women will endeavor to explain from natural causes the work of Creation. But just how God wrought in the work of Creation He has never revealed to mortals. Human science cannot search out the secrets of the God of heaven....

Human beings professing to be ministers of God raise their voices against the investigation of prophecy, and tell the people that the prophecies, especially of Daniel and John, are obscure, and that we cannot understand them. Yet some of these very ones eagerly receive the suppositions of geologists, which dispute the Mosaic record. But if God's revealed will is so difficult to be understood, certainly people should not rest their faith upon mere suppositions in regard to that which He has not revealed. God's ways are not as our ways, neither are His thoughts as our thoughts....Humans, with their vain reasoning, make a wrong use of these things which God designed should lead them to exalt Him. They fall into the same error as did the people before the Flood - those things which God gave them as a benefit, they turned into a curse, by making a wrong use of them. - The Signs of the Times, March 20, 1879.

From Devotional: To Be Like Jesus, p. 155.


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Thought of the Day

Thought of the Day

December 29, 2016


Never feel that Christ is far away. He is always near. His loving presence surrounds you. - MH 85


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Wednesday, December 28, 2016

Devoción Matutina en español

Devoción Matutina en español

December 28, 2016


Completos en él

Y vosotros estáis completos en él, que es la cabeza de todo principado y potestad. Colosenses 2:10.

Usted no podrá entrar al cielo con alguna deformidad o imperfección de carácter. Durante el período de prueba de la vida debe recibir la preparación necesaria. Si desea tener acceso a las moradas de la justicia cuando Cristo venga, ahora debe ser objeto de la obra profunda del Espíritu Santo que se hace visible en la experiencia personal. Esto lo hará completo en Cristo, quien es la plenitud de la Divinidad corporalmente. En virtud del poder de la justicia de Cristo, podemos abandonar toda iniquidad. Debe haber una conexión viviente entre la criatura y su Redentor. El canal de comunicación entre ambos tiene que permanecer continuamente abierto, para que el ser humano pueda crecer en la gracia y el conocimiento de su Señor.

Sin embargo, cuántos no oran. Sienten que están bajo los efectos de la condenación del pecado, y siguen pensando que no pueden acercarse a Dios, a menos que logren conseguir algún mérito o que él se olvide de sus transgresiones. Dicen: “Como no puedo presentarle manos santas, sin iras ni dudas, todavía no puedo ir”. De este modo permanecen alejados de Cristo, y, mientras piensan así, están pecando, puesto que sin él nada bueno podemos hacer.

El que comete un pecado, inmediatamente debería correr al trono de la gracia para confesarlo a Jesús. Al mismo tiempo, debería llenarse de tristeza, porque el pecado debilita la espiritualidad, aflige a los ángeles celestiales, y lastima y hiere el amante corazón del Redentor. Pero cuando con contrición le pida perdón, crea que él ya lo perdonó. No ponga en duda la gracia divina, ni rehuya el bálsamo de su amor infinito.

Si un hijo desobedece y realiza algo condenable en contra suya, y luego con tristeza de corazón viene a pedirle perdón, usted sabe perfectamente bien lo que haría. Seguramente lo acercaría a su pecho para garantizarle que su amor no ha cambiado, y que la transgresión está perdonada. ¿Será que usted es más misericordioso que nuestro Padre que está en los cielos, que dio “a su Hijo unigénito para que todo aquel que en él cree, no se pierda, mas tenga vida eterna” The Bible Echo, 1 de febrero de 1892.


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Daily Devotional

Daily Devotional

December 28, 2016


A Crisis Ahead

Alas for the day! for the day of the Lord is at hand, and as a destruction from the Almighty shall it come. Joel 1:15.


The prophecies which the great I AM has given in His word, uniting link after link in the chain of events, from eternity in the past to eternity in the future, tell us where we are today in the procession of the ages, and what may be expected in the time to come. All that prophecy has foretold as coming to pass, until the present time, has been traced on the pages of history, and we may be assured that all which is yet to come will be fulfilled in its order.

Today the signs of the times declare that we are standing on the threshold of great and solemn events. Everything in our world is in agitation. Before our eyes is fulfilling the Saviour’s prophecy of the events to precede His coming: “Ye shall hear of wars and rumors of wars. . . . Nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.”

The present is a time of overwhelming interest to all living. Rulers and statesmen, men who occupy positions of trust and authority, thinking men and women of all classes, have their attention fixed upon the events taking place about us. They are watching the relations that exist among the nations. They observe the intensity that is taking possession of every earthly element, and they recognize that something great and decisive is about to take place—that the world is on the verge of a stupendous crisis.

The Bible, and the Bible only, gives a correct view of these things. Here are revealed the great final scenes in the history of our world, . . . the sound of their approach causing the earth to tremble and men’s hearts to fail them for fear.

Today men and nations are being tested by the plummet in the hand of Him who makes no mistake. All are by their own choice deciding their destiny, and God is overruling all for the accomplishment of His purposes.

Christians should be preparing for what is soon to break upon the world as an overwhelming surprise, and this preparation they should make by diligently studying the word of God and striving to conform their lives to its precepts.

From Devotional: Our Father Cares, pp. 320, 321.


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Thought of the Day

Thought of the Day

December 28, 2016


In our own strength it is impossible for us to deny the clamors of our fallen nature. Desire of Ages, p. 122.


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Daily Devotional

Daily Devotional

December 28, 2016


The Sabbath Reminds Us of God's Creative Power

Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; and His greatness is unsearchable. Psalm 145:3, NKJV.

Infidel geologists claim that the world is very much older than the Bible record makes it. They reject the testimony of God's Word because of those things which are to them evidences from the earth itself that it has existed tens of thousands of years. And many who profess to believe the Bible are at a loss to account for wonderful things which are found in the earth, with the view that Creation week was only seven literal days, and that the world is now only about six thousand years old. These, to free themselves from difficulties thrown in their way by infidel geologists, adopt the view that the six days of Creation were six vast, indefinite periods, and the day of God's rest was another indefinite period; making senseless the fourth commandment of God's holy law. Some eagerly receive this position; for it destroys the force of the fourth commandment, and they feel a freedom from its claims upon them.

Bones of human beings and animals are found in the earth, in mountains and in valleys, showing that much larger humans and beasts once existed. Instruments of warfare are sometimes found; also petrified wood. Because the bones found are so much larger than those of humans and animals now living, or that have existed for many generations past, some conclude that the earth was populated long before the record of Creation by a race of beings vastly superior in size to those now living. Those who reason in this manner have limited ideas of the size of people, animals, and trees, before the Flood, and of the great changes which then took place in the earth.

Without Bible history, geology can prove nothing.... When human beings leave the Word of God, and seek to account for His creative works upon natural principles, they are upon a boundless ocean of uncertainty. Just how God accomplished the work of Creation in six literal days, He has never revealed to mortals. His creative works are as incomprehensible as His existence. - The Signs of the Times, March 20, 1879.

From Devotional: To Be Like Jesus, p. 154.


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Thought of the Day

Thought of the Day

December 28, 2016


Christ desires you not only to touch His garments, but to walk with Him in constant communion. - MH 85


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Tuesday, December 27, 2016

Devoción Matutina en español

Devoción Matutina en español

December 27, 2016


Toma tiempo

Yo Jehová la guardo, cada momento la regaré; la guardaré de noche y de día, para que nadie la dañe. Isaías 27:3.

La mente de un hombre o de una mujer no desciende en forma abrupta de la pureza y la santidad a la depravación, la corrupción y el crimen. Toma tiempo transformar de lo humano a lo divino, o degradar a los que han sido formados a la imagen de Dios al nivel de lo brutal o lo satánico. Por contemplar nos transformamos. Aunque formado a la imagen de su Hacedor, el hombre puede educar su mente de tal manera que el pecado que una vez le pareció repugnante le resulte placentero. Al dejar de velar y orar, abandona la guardia de la ciudadela y el corazón... Se debe mantener una guerra constante contra la mente carnal; y debemos ser ayudados por la influencia refinadora de la gracia de Dios, que atraerá la mente hacia lo alto y la habituará a meditar en las cosas puras y santas.— Testimonies for the Church 2:478, 479.

El carácter no se adquiere por casualidad. No queda determinado por un arranque temperamental, por un paso en la dirección equivocada. Es la repetición del acto lo que lo convierte en hábito y moldea el carácter para el bien o para el mal. Los caracteres rectos pueden formarse únicamente mediante el esfuerzo perseverante e incansable, utilizando para la gloria de Dios cada talento y capacidad que él ha dado.— Conducción del Niño, 150.

Dios espera que edifiquemos nuestros caracteres de acuerdo con la norma que él nos ha dado. Debemos colocar ladrillo sobre ladrillo, añadiendo gracia sobre gracia, descubriendo nuestros puntos débiles y corrigiéndolos de acuerdo con la dirección dada.— Ibid. 151.

Dios nos da fortaleza, razonamiento y tiempo, a fin de que edifiquemos caracteres que él pueda aprobar. Quiere que cada uno de sus hijos edifique un carácter noble, realizando obras puras y nobles, para que al final pueda presentar una estructura simétrica, un hermoso templo, honrado por el hombre y Dios...

El que quiera transformarse en un hermoso edificio para el Señor, debe cultivar cada actitud de su ser. Únicamente empleando debidamente los talentos es posible desarrollar armoniosamente el carácter.— Ibid. 152.


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Thought of the Day

Thought of the Day

December 27, 2016


Often [satan] comes to us as he came to Christ, arraying before us our weakness and infirmities. He hopes to discourage the soul, and to break our hold on God... If we would meet him as Jesus did, we should escape many a defeat. By parleying with the enemy, we give him an advantage. Desire of Ages, p. 121.


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Daily Devotional

Daily Devotional

December 27, 2016


Spiritual Giant or Dwarf?

Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God. 2 Cor. 7:1.

The Lord reproves and corrects the people who profess to keep His law. He points out their sins and lays open their iniquity because He wishes to separate all sin and wickedness from them, that they may perfect holiness in His fear and be prepared to die in the Lord or to be translated to heaven. . . .

God will accept nothing but purity and holiness; one spot, one wrinkle, one defect in the character, will forever debar them from heaven, with all its glories and treasures.

Most professed Christians have no sense of the spiritual strength they might obtain were they as ambitious, zealous, and persevering to gain a knowledge of divine things as they are to obtain the paltry, perishable things of this life. The masses professing to be Christians have been satisfied to be spiritual dwarfs. They have no disposition to make it their object to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness; hence godliness is a hidden mystery to them, they cannot understand it. They know not Christ by experimental knowledge.

Ample provisions have been made for all who sincerely, earnestly, and thoughtfully set about the work of perfecting holiness in the fear of God. Strength, grace, and glory have been provided through Christ, to be brought by ministering angels to the heirs of salvation. None are so low, so corrupt and vile, that they cannot find in Jesus, who died for them, strength, purity, and righteousness, if they will put away their sins, cease their course of iniquity, and turn with full purpose of heart to the living God. He is waiting to strip them of their garments, stained and polluted by sin, and to put upon them the white, bright robes of righteousness; and He bids them live and not die. In Him they may flourish. Their branches will not wither nor be fruitless. If they abide in Him, they can draw sap and nourishment from Him, be imbued with His Spirit, walk even as He walked, overcome as He overcame, and be exalted to His own right hand.

From Devotional: Our Father Cares, pp. 319, 320.


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Thought of the Day

Thought of the Day

December 27, 2016


Proper periods of sleep and rest and an abundance of physical exercise are essential to health of body and mind. - GW 422


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Daily Devotional

Daily Devotional

December 27, 2016


The Sabbath Memorializes a Literal Day

God thunders marvelously with His voice; He does great things which we cannot comprehend. Job 37:5, NKJV.

When God spoke His law with an audible voice from Sinai, He introduced the Sabbath by saying, "Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy." He then declares definitely what shall be done on the six days, and what shall not be done on the seventh. He next gives the reason for thus observing the week, by pointing us back to His example on the first seven days of time. "For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it." This reason appears beautiful and forcible when we understand the record of Creation to mean literal days.

The first six days of each week are given to us in which to labor, because God employed the same period of the first week in the work of Creation. The seventh day God has reserved as a day of rest, in commemoration of His rest during the same period of time after He had performed the work of Creation in six days.

But the infidel supposition, that the events of the first week required seven vast, indefinite periods for their accomplishment, strikes directly at the foundation of the Sabbath of the fourth commandment. It makes indefinite and obscure that which God has made very plain. It is the worst kind of infidelity; for with many who profess to believe the record of Creation, it is infidelity in disguise. It charges God with commanding us to observe the week of seven literal days in commemoration of seven indefinite periods, which is unlike His dealings with us, and is an impeachment of His wisdom....

The Word of God is given as a lamp unto our feet, and a light unto our path. Those who cast His Word behind them, and seek by their own blind philosophy to penetrate the mysteries of Jehovah, will stumble in darkness. A guide has been given to mortals whereby they may trace His works as far as will be for their good. Inspiration, in giving us the history of the Flood, has explained wonderful mysteries that geology alone could never fathom. - The Signs of the Times, March 20, 1879.

From Devotional: To Be Like Jesus, p. 153.


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Monday, December 26, 2016

Devoción Matutina en español

Devoción Matutina en español

December 26, 2016


Tierna consideración hacia los obreros ancianos

Delante de las canas te levantarás, y honrarás el rostro del anciano, y de tu Dios tendrás temor. Yo Jehová. Levítico 19:32.

La historia de Juan nos proporciona una notable ilustración de cómo Dios puede usar a los obreros de edad. Cuando Juan fue desterrado a la isla de Patmos, muchos lo consideraban incapaz de seguir sirviendo, una caña vieja y cascada, propensa a caer en cualquier momento. Pero el Señor juzgó conveniente usarlo todavía. Aunque alejado de las escenas de su trabajo anterior, no dejó de dar testimonio de la verdad. Aun en Patmos se hizo de amigos y ganó conversos. Su mensaje era de gozo, pues proclamaba a un Salvador resucitado que desde lo alto estaba intercediendo por su pueblo hasta que regresara para llevarlo consigo. Después de envejecer en el servicio de su Señor, Juan recibió más comunicaciones del cielo de las que había recibido durante todos los años anteriores de su vida.

La más tierna consideración debe manifestarse hacia aquellos cuyos intereses de toda la vida han estado ligados con la obra de Dios. Esos obreros ancianos han permanecido fieles en medio de tormentas y pruebas. Pueden tener achaques, pero aún poseen talentos que los hacen aptos para ocupar su lugar en la causa de Dios. Aunque gastados e imposibilitados de asumir las pesadas cargas que los más jóvenes pueden y deben llevar, el consejo que pueden dar es del más alto valor.

Pueden haber cometido equivocaciones, pero de sus fracasos aprendieron a evitar errores y peligros... Sufrieron pruebas y dificultades y aunque han perdido parte de su vigor, el Señor no los pone a un lado. Les da gracia especial y sabiduría.

Los que han servido a su Señor cuando el trabajo era duro, que han soportado la pobreza y se han mantenido fieles cuando sólo unos pocos estaban de parte de la verdad, deben ser honrados y respetados... Reconozcan los más jóvenes que son sumamente favorecidos al tener entre ellos a esos obreros. Déseles un lugar de honor en sus concilios.

A medida que se acerquen al fin de su ministerio terrenal los que han gastado la vida en el servicio de Cristo, el Espíritu Santo los impulsará a contar los incidentes que han tenido en relación con la obra de Dios. El relato del maravilloso trato de Dios con su pueblo, de su gran bondad al librarlos de las pruebas, debe repetirse ante los que son nuevos en la fe. Dios desea que los obreros ancianos y probados ocupen su lugar y hagan su parte para impedir que los hombres y mujeres sean arrastrados por la poderosa corriente del mal; desea que mantengan ceñida su armadura hasta que El les ordene deponerla.— Los Hechos de los Apóstoles, 473, 474.


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Daily Devotional

Daily Devotional

December 26, 2016


A High Standard

And ye shall be holy unto me: for I the Lord am holy, and have severed you from other people, that ye should be mine. Lev. 20:26.

I also saw many do not realize what they must be in order to live in the sight of the Lord without a high priest in the sanctuary through the time of trouble. Those who receive the seal of the living God and are protected in the time of trouble must reflect the image of Jesus fully.

I saw that many were neglecting the preparation so needful and were looking to the time of “refreshing” and the “latter rain” to fit them to stand in the day of the Lord and to live in His sight. Oh, how many I saw in the time of trouble without a shelter! They had neglected the needful preparation; therefore they could not receive the refreshing that all must have to fit them to live in the sight of a holy God. Those who . . . fail to purify their souls in obeying the whole truth . . . will come up to the time of the falling of the plagues, and then see that they needed to be hewed and squared for the building. But there will be . . . no Mediator to plead their cause before the Father. Before this time the awfully solemn declaration has gone forth, “He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still.”

I saw that none could share the “refreshing” unless they obtain the victory over every besetment, over pride, selfishness, love of the world, and over every wrong word and action. We should, therefore, be drawing nearer and nearer to the Lord and be earnestly seeking that preparation necessary to enable us to stand in the battle in the day of the Lord. Let all remember that God is holy and that none but holy beings can ever dwell in His presence.

We are today to watch that we offend not in word or deed. . . . We must today seek God and be determined that we will not rest satisfied without His presence. We should watch and work and pray as though this were the last day that would be granted us. How intensely earnest, then, would be our life. How closely would we follow Jesus in all our words and deeds.

From Devotional: Our Father Cares, pp. 318, 319.


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Thought of the Day

Thought of the Day

December 26, 2016


Whenever one is encompassed with clouds, perplexed by circumstances, or afflicted by poverty or distress, Satan is at hand to tempt and annoy. He attacks our weak points of character. He seeks to shake our confidence in God, who suffers such a condition of things to exist. Desire of Ages, p. 120.


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Daily Devotional

Daily Devotional

December 26, 2016


Jesus Kept the Sabbath by Doing Good

Then Jesus said to them, "I will ask you one thing: is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to destroy it?" Luke 6:9, NKJV.

It is no violation of the Sabbath to perform works of necessity, as ministering to the sick or aged, and relieving distress. Such works are in perfect harmony with the Sabbath law. Our great Exemplar was ever active upon the Sabbath, when the necessities of the sick and suffering came before Him. The Pharisees, because of this, accused Him of Sabbathbreaking, as do many ministers today who are in opposition to the law of God. But we say, Let God be true, and every man a liar who dares make this charge against the Savior.

Jesus answered the accusation of the Jews thus, "If ye had known what this meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice, ye would not have condemned the guiltless." He had already declared to them that He had kept His Father's commandments. When He was accused of Sabbathbreaking in the matter of healing the withered hand, He turned upon His accusers with the question "Is it lawful to do good on the sabbath days, or to do evil? to save life, or to kill?" In summing up His answer to the questioning of the Pharisees He said, "Wherefore it is lawful to do well on the sabbath days." Here Christ justified His work as in perfect harmony with the Sabbath law. - The Signs of the Times, February 28, 1878.

Those who hold that Christ abolished the law teach that He broke the Sabbath and justified His disciples in doing the same. Thus they are really taking the same ground as did the caviling Jews. In this they contradict the testimony of Christ Himself, who declared, "I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love" (John 15:10).

Neither the Savior nor His followers broke the law of the Sabbath. Christ was a living representative of the law. No violation of its holy precepts was found in His life.

Looking upon a nation of witnesses who were seeking occasion to condemn Him, He could say unchallenged, "Which of you convicteth me of sin?" (John 8:46, RV)....

"The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath," Jesus said. The institutions that God has established are for the benefit of humankind.... The law of Ten Commandments, of which the Sabbath forms a part, God gave to His people as a blessing. "The Lord commanded us," said Moses, "to do all these statutes, to fear the Lord our God, for our good always, that he might preserve us alive" (Deuteronomy 6:24). - The Desire of Ages, 287, 288.

From Devotional: To Be Like Jesus, p. 152.


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Thought of the Day

Thought of the Day

December 26, 2016


The natural mind leans toward pleasure and self-gratification. It is Satan's policy to manufacture an abundance of this. - AH 521


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Sunday, December 25, 2016

Devoción Matutina en español

Devoción Matutina en español

December 25, 2016


La naturaleza del espíritu: un misterio

El Espíritu de verdad, al cual el mundo no puede recibir, porque no le ve, ni le conoce; pero vosotros le conocéis, porque mora con vosotros, y estará en vosotros. Juan 14:17.

No es esencial para nosotros ser capaces de definir con precisión qué es el Espíritu Santo. Cristo nos dice que el Espíritu es el Consolador, “el Espíritu de verdad el cual procede del Padre”. Se asevera claramente tocante al Espíritu Santo, que en su obra de guiar a los hombres a toda verdad “no hablará por su propia cuenta” Juan 15:26; 16:13.

La naturaleza del Espíritu Santo es un misterio. Los hombres no pueden explicarla, porque el Señor no se la ha revelado. Los hombres que albergan opiniones fantásticas pueden reunir pasajes de las Escrituras y darles interpretación humana; pero la aceptación de esos conceptos no fortalecerá a la iglesia. En cuanto a estos misterios, demasiado profundos para el entendimiento humano, el silencio es oro.

Se especifica claramente el oficio del Espíritu Santo en las palabras de Cristo: “Cuando él venga, convencerá de pecado, y de justicia, y de juicio”. Juan 16:8. Es el Espíritu Santo el que convence de pecado. Si el pecador responde a la influencia vivificadora del Espíritu, será inducido a arrepentirse y a comprender la importancia de obedecer los requerimientos divinos.

Al pecador arrepentido, que tiene hambre y sed de justicia, el Espíritu Santo le revela el Cordero de Dios que quita el pecado del mundo. “Tomará de lo mío, y os lo hará saber”, dijo Cristo. “El os enseñará todas las cosas, y os recordará todo lo que yo os he dicho” Juan 16:14; 14:26.

El Espíritu Santo se otorga como agente regenerador para proporcionarle eficacia a la salvación obrada por la muerte de nuestro Redentor. El Espíritu Santo constantemente está tratando de llamar la atención de los hombres a la gran ofrenda hecha en la cruz del calvario, de exponer al mundo el amor de Dios, y de abrir al alma arrepentida las cosas preciosas de las Escrituras.— Los Hechos de los Apóstoles, 42, 43.


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Daily Devotional

Daily Devotional

December 25, 2016


God’s Judgments in the Land

Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth. Luke 21:26.

O that God’s people had a sense of the impending destruction of thousands of cities, now almost given to idolatry! . . .

Not long ago a very impressive scene passed before me. I saw an immense ball of fire falling among some beautiful mansions, causing their instant destruction. I heard someone say, “We knew that the judgments of God were coming upon the earth, but we did not know that they would come so soon.” Others said, “You knew? Why then did you not tell us? We did not know.” On every side I heard such words spoken. . . .

Soon grievous troubles will arise among the nations—trouble that will not cease until Jesus comes. As never before we need to press together, serving Him who has prepared His throne in the heavens and whose kingdom ruleth over all. God has not forsaken His people, and our strength lies in not forsaking Him.

The judgments of God are in the land. The wars and rumors of wars, the destruction by fire and flood, say clearly that the time of trouble, which is to increase until the end, is very near at hand. We have no time to lose. The world is stirred with the spirit of war. The prophecies of the eleventh of Daniel have almost reached their final fulfillment. . . .

Last Friday morning, just before I awoke, a very impressive scene was presented before me. I seemed to awake from sleep but was not in my home. From the windows I could behold a terrible conflagration. Great balls of fire were falling upon houses, and from these balls fiery arrows were flying in every direction. It was impossible to check the fires that were kindled, and many places were being destroyed. The terror of the people was indescribable.

Strictly will the cities of the nations be dealt with, and yet they will not be visited in the extreme of God’s indignation, because some souls will yet break away from the delusions of the enemy, and will repent and be converted, while the mass will be treasuring up wrath against the day of wrath.

From Devotional: Our Father Cares, pp. 317, 318.


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Thought of the Day

Thought of the Day

December 25, 2016


If we have in any sense a more trying conflict than had Christ, then He would not be able to succor us. But our Saviour took humanity, with all its liabilities. He took the nature of man, with the possibility of yielding to temptation. We have nothing to bear which He has not endured. Desire of Ages, p. 117.


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Daily Devotional

Daily Devotional

December 25, 2016


The Commandments Are for All

Also the sons of the foreigner who join themselves to the Lord, to serve Him, and to love the name of the Lord, to be His servants - everyone who keeps from defiling the Sabbath, and holds fast My covenant - even them I will bring to My holy mountain. Isaiah 56:6, 7, NKJV.

Under the mosaic law, strangers and eunuchs were excluded from the full enjoyment of the privileges granted to Israel. But the prophet declares that a time is coming when these restrictions will cease. The holy oracles were especially committed to the Jews; not to be an Israelite was not to belong to the favored people of God. The Jews had come more and more to regard themselves as superior by divine right to every other people upon the earth; yet they had not been careful to maintain their separate and holy character by rendering obedience to all the commandments of God.

Now the prophet declares that the stranger who will love and obey God shall enjoy the privileges that have belonged exclusively to the chosen people. Hitherto, circumcision and a strict observance of the ceremonial law had been the conditions upon which Gentiles could be admitted to the congregation of Israel; but these distinctions were to be abolished by the gospel. [Isaiah 56:6-8 quoted.] ...

The first part of [Isaiah 58] brings to view a people who apparently delight in the service of God; they seek Him daily, "as a nation that did righteousness, and forsook not the ordinance of their God." Yet their lives are not right before the Lord; for He commands His prophet, "Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins." ...

This prophecy reaches down the centuries to the time when the man of sin attempted to make void one of the precepts of God's law, to trample under foot the original Sabbath of Jehovah, and in its stead exalt one of his own creation. And when the Christian world set aside God's holy Sabbath, and in its place accept a common working day, unsanctioned by a single "Thus saith the Lord," they are encouraging infidelity, and virtually acknowledging the supremacy of that power by whose authority alone the change has been effected. The rejection of the Sabbath has led to the rejection of the whole law, and thousands of professed Christians now boldly declare it void. - The Signs of the Times, February 28, 1884.

From Devotional: To Be Like Jesus, p. 151.


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Thought of the Day

Thought of the Day

December 25, 2016


Worldly pleasures are infatuating; and for their momentary enjoyment many sacrifice the friendship of Heaven. - AH 521


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Saturday, December 24, 2016

Devoción Matutina en español

Devoción Matutina en español

December 24, 2016


La influencia: un poder para el bien o para el mal

Y no contristéis al Espíritu Santo de Dios, con el cual fuisteis sellados para el día de la redención... Antes sed benignos unos con otros, misericordiosos, perdonándoos unos a otros, como Dios también os perdonó a vosotros en Cristo. Efesios 4:30, 32.

La vida de Cristo era de una influencia siempre creciente, sin límites; una influencia que lo ligaba a Dios y a toda la familia humana. Por medio de Cristo, Dios ha investido a los hombres y a las mujeres de una influencia que les hace imposible vivir para sí. Estamos individualmente vinculados con nuestros semejantes, somos una parte del gran todo de Dios y nos hallamos bajo obligaciones mutuas. Nadie puede ser independiente de sus prójimos, pues el bienestar de cada uno afecta a los demás. Es el propósito de Dios que cada uno se sienta necesario para el bienestar de los otros y trate de promover su felicidad.

Cada alma está rodeada de una atmósfera propia, de una atmósfera que puede ser cargada del poder vivificante de la fe, el valor y la esperanza, y endulzada por la fragancia del amor. O puede ser pesada y fría por causa de la bruma del descontento y el egoísmo, o estar envenenada por la contaminación fatal de un pecado acariciado. Toda persona con la cual nos relacionamos queda, consciente o inconscientemente, afectada por la atmósfera que nos rodea.

Es ésta una responsabilidad de la que no nos podemos librar. Nuestras palabras, nuestros actos, nuestro vestido, nuestra conducta, hasta la expresión de nuestro rostro, tienen influencia. De la impresión así hecha dependen resultados para bien o para mal que nadie puede medir. Cada impulso impartido de ese modo es una semilla sembrada que producirá su cosecha. Es un eslabón de la larga cadena de acontecimientos humanos, que se extiende hasta no sabemos dónde.

Si por nuestro ejemplo ayudamos a otros a desarrollar buenos principios, les damos poder para hacer el bien. Ellos a su vez ejercen la misma influencia sobre otros, y éstos sobre otros más. De este modo, miles pueden ser bendecidos por nuestra influencia inconsciente.

Arrojen una piedrecita al lago, y se formará una onda, y otra y otra, y a medida que crecen éstas, el círculo se agranda hasta que llega a la costa misma. Lo mismo ocurre con nuestra influencia. Más allá del alcance de nuestro conocimiento o dominio, obra en otros como una bendición o una maldición.— Palabras de Vida del Gran Maestro, 274, 275.


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Daily Devotional

Daily Devotional

December 24, 2016


Uplift Jesus as the Center

I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star. Rev. 22:16.


The perils of the last days are upon us, and in our work we are to warn the people of the danger they are in. Let not the solemn scenes which prophecy has revealed be left untouched. If our people were half awake, if they realized the nearness of the events portrayed in the Revelation, a reformation would be wrought in our churches, and many more would believe the message. We have no time to lose. . . . Advance new principles, and crowd in the clear-cut truth. It will be as a sword cutting both ways. But be not too ready to take a controversial attitude. There will be times when we must stand still and see the salvation of God. Let Daniel speak, let the Revelation speak, and tell what is truth. But whatever phase of the subject is presented, uplift Jesus as the center of all hope, “the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star.”

We do not go deep enough in our search for truth. Every soul who believes present truth will be brought where he will be required to give a reason of the hope that is in him. The people of God will be called upon to stand before kings, princes, rulers, and great men of the earth, and they must know that they do know what is truth. They must be converted men and women. God can teach you more in one moment by His Holy Spirit than you could learn from the great men of the earth. The universe is looking upon the controversy that is going on upon the earth. At an infinite cost, God has provided for every man an opportunity to know that which will make him wise unto salvation. How eagerly do angels look to see who will avail himself of this opportunity! When a message is presented to God’s people, they should not rise up in opposition to it; they should go to the Bible, comparing it with the law and the testimony, and if it does not bear this test, it is not true. God wants our minds to expand. He desires to put His grace upon us. We may have a feast of good things every day, for God can open the whole treasure of heaven to us.

From Devotional: Our Father Cares, p. 317.


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Thought of the Day

Thought of the Day

December 24, 2016


Many claim that it was impossible for Christ to be overcome by temptation. Then He could not have been placed in Adam's position; He could not have gained the victory that Adam failed to gain. Desire of Ages, p. 117.


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Daily Devotional

Daily Devotional

December 24, 2016


Set Example of Sabbath Sacredness, and Teach It

These words which I command you today shall be in your heart; you shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. Deuteronomy 6:6, 7, NKJV.

You have failed in your family to appreciate the sacredness of the Sabbath and to teach it to your children and enjoin upon them the importance of keeping it according to the commandment. Your sensibilities are not clear and ready to discern the high standard that we must reach in order to be commandment keepers. But God will assist you in your efforts when you take hold of the work earnestly. You should possess perfect control over yourself; then you can have better success in controlling your children when they are unruly.

There is a great work before you to repair past neglects; but you are not required to perform it in your own strength. Ministering angels will aid you in the work. Do not give up the work nor lay aside the burden, but take hold of it with a will and repair your long neglect. You must have higher views of God's claims upon you in regard to His holy day. Everything that can possibly be done on the six days which God has given to you should be done. You should not rob God of one hour of holy time.

Great blessings are promised to those who place a high estimate upon the Sabbath and realize the obligations resting upon them in regard to its observance: "If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath [from trampling upon it, setting it at naught], from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honourable; ... I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it."

When the Sabbath commences, we should place a guard upon ourselves, upon our acts and our words, lest we rob God by appropriating to our own use that time which is strictly the Lord's....

Nothing which will in the sight of Heaven be regarded as a violation of the holy Sabbath should be left unsaid or undone, to be said or done upon the Sabbath. God requires not only that we refrain from physical labor upon the Sabbath, but that the mind be disciplined to dwell upon sacred themes. - Testimonies for the Church 2:701-703.

From Devotional: To Be Like Jesus, p. 150.


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