Wednesday, January 31, 2018

Daily readings for 2018-01-31: Reflecting Christ

Hi Raul,

Reflecting Christ — Day 31 of 365

Christ The Channel Of Saving Grace, January 31

For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. Colossians 2:9.

By His humanity, Christ touched humanity; by His divinity, He lays hold upon the throne of God. As the Son of man, He gave us an example of obedience; as the Son of God, He gives us power to obey....

In stooping to take upon Himself humanity, Christ revealed a character the opposite of the character of Satan....

Christ was treated as we deserve, that we might be treated as He deserves. He was condemned for our sins, in which He had no share, that we might be justified by His righteousness, in which we had no share. He suffered the death which was ours, that we might receive the life which was His. “With his stripes we are healed.”

By His life and His death, Christ has achieved even more than recovery from the ruin wrought through sin. It was Satan's purpose to bring about an eternal separation between God and man; but in Christ we become more closely united to God than if we had never fallen. In taking our nature, the Saviour has bound Himself to humanity by a tie that is never to be broken. Through the eternal ages He is linked with us.... To assure us of His immutable counsel of peace, God gave His only-begotten Son to become one of the human family, forever to retain His human nature.... God has adopted human nature in the person of His Son, and has carried the same into the highest heaven. It is the “Son of man” who shares the throne of the universe. It is the “Son of man” whose name shall be called, “Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6).... In Christ the family of earth and the family of heaven are bound together. Christ glorified is our brother. Heaven is enshrined in humanity, and humanity is enfolded in the bosom of Infinite Love....

Through Christ's redeeming work the government of God stands justified. The Omnipotent One is made known as the God of love. Satan's charges are refuted, and his character unveiled. Rebellion can never again arise. Sin can never again enter the universe. Through eternal ages all are secure from apostasy. By love's self-sacrifice, the inhabitants of earth and heaven are bound to their Creator in bonds of indissoluble union.

The work of redemption will be complete. In the place where sin abounded, God's grace much more abounds.... Our little world, under the curse of sin the one dark blot in His glorious creation, will be honored above all other worlds in the universe of God.—The Desire of Ages, 24-26.


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Thought of the Day

January 31, 2018

Jesus is our only Saviour; and although millions will reject His offered mercy, not one who trusts in His merits will be left to perish. - GW 411-415

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Daily Devotional

January 31, 2018

God's Law Leads to True Repentance

Perhaps everyone will listen and turn from his evil way, that I may relent concerning the calamity which I purpose to bring on them because of the evil of their doings. Jeremiah 26:3, NKJV.

[The apostle Paul writes that] "I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet." ... The law which promised life to the obedient pronounced death upon the transgressor. "Wherefore," he says, "the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good."

How wide the contrast between these words of Paul and those that come from many of the pulpits of today. The people are taught that obedience to God's law is not necessary to salvation; that they have only to believe in Jesus, and they are safe. Without the law, human beings have no conviction of sin, and feel no need of repentance. Not seeing their lost condition as violators of God's law, they do not feel their need of the atoning blood of Christ as their only hope of salvation.

The law of God is an agent in every genuine conversion. There can be no true repentance without conviction of sin. The Scriptures declare that "sin is the transgression of the law," and that "by the law is the knowledge of sin."

In order to see their guilt, sinners must test their character by God's great standard of righteousness. To discover their defects, they must look into the mirror of the divine statutes. But while the law reveals their sins, it provides no remedy. The gospel of Christ alone can offer pardon. In order to stand forgiven, sinners must exercise repentance toward God, whose law has been transgressed, and faith in Christ, their atoning sacrifice.

Without true repentance, there can be no true conversion. Many are deceived here, and too often their entire experience proves to be a deception. This is why so many who are joined to the church have never been joined to Christ.

"The carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be." In the new birth, the heart is renewed by divine grace, and brought into harmony with God as it is brought into subjection to His law. When this mighty change has taken place, the sinner has passed from death unto life, from sin unto holiness, from transgression and rebellion to obedience and loyalty. The old life of alienation from God has ended; the new life of reconciliation, of faith and love, has begun. Then will "the righteousness of the law" "be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." - The Spirit of Prophecy 4:297, 298.

From Devotional: To Be Like Jesus, p. 381.

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Thought of the Day

January 31, 2018

The Bibles "living principles, running through our lives like threads of gold, are our only safeguard in trial and temptation." - FLB 7

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Daily readings for 2018-01-31: Reflecting Christ

Hi Raul Diaz,

Reflecting Christ — Day 31 of 365

Christ The Channel Of Saving Grace, January 31

For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. Colossians 2:9.

By His humanity, Christ touched humanity; by His divinity, He lays hold upon the throne of God. As the Son of man, He gave us an example of obedience; as the Son of God, He gives us power to obey....

In stooping to take upon Himself humanity, Christ revealed a character the opposite of the character of Satan....


		The Ellen G. White Estate 12501 Old Columbia Pike, Silver Spring, MD 20904, USA Phone: +1 301 680 6540 Help: subscribe@ellenwhite.org

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Tuesday, January 30, 2018

Daily readings for 2018-01-30: Reflecting Christ

Hi Raul,

Reflecting Christ — Day 30 of 365

Christ's Followers To Do Greater Works Than He, January 30

Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father. John 14:12.

Christ did not mean that the disciples would make more exalted exertions than He had made, but that their work would have greater magnitude. He did not refer merely to miracle working, but to all that would take place under the agency of the Holy Spirit. “When the Comforter is come,” He said, “whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me: and ye also shall bear witness, because ye have been with me from the beginning” (John 15:26, 27).

Wonderfully were these words fulfilled. After the descent of the Holy Spirit, the disciples were so filled with love for Him and for those for whom He died, that hearts were melted by the words they spoke and the prayers they offered. They spoke in the power of the Spirit; and under the influence of that power, thousands were converted.

As Christ's representatives, the apostles were to make a decided impression on the world. The fact that they were humble men would not diminish their influence, but increase it; for the minds of their hearers would be carried from them to the Saviour, who, though unseen, was still working with them. The wonderful teaching of the apostles, their words of courage and trust, would assure all that it was not in their own power that they worked, but in the power of Christ. Humbling themselves, they would declare that He whom the Jews had crucified was the Prince of life, the Son of the living God, and that in His name they did the works that He had done.

In His parting conversation with His disciples on the night before the crucifixion, the Saviour made no reference to the suffering that He had endured and must yet endure. He did not speak of the humiliation that was before Him, but sought to bring to their minds that which would strengthen their faith, leading them to look forward to the joys that await the overcomer. He rejoiced in the consciousness that He could and would do more for His followers than He had promised; that from Him would flow forth love and compassion, cleansing the soul temple, and making men like Him in character; that His truth, armed with the power of the Spirit, would go forth conquering and to conquer.

“These things I have spoken unto you,” He said, “that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world” (chap. 16:33).—The Acts of the Apostles, 22, 23.


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Daily Devotional

January 30, 2018

Repentance Essential During Day of Atonement

Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, "Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down." Revelation 12:10, NKJV.

God is leading His people out from the abominations of the world, that they may keep His law; and because of this, the rage of "the accuser of our brethren" knows no bounds. "The devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time."

The antitypical land of promise is just before us, and Satan is determined to destroy the people of God, and cut them off from their inheritance. The admonition "Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation" was never more needed than now. We are now living in the great day of atonement. In the typical service, while the high priest was making the atonement for Israel, all were required to afflict their souls by repentance of sin and humiliation before the Lord, lest they be cut off from among the people.

In like manner, all who would have their names retained in the book of life should now, in the few remaining days of their probation, afflict their souls before God by sorrow for sin, and true repentance. There must be deep, faithful searching of heart. The light, frivolous spirit indulged by so many of professed Christians must be put away. There is earnest warfare before all who would subdue the evil tendencies that strive for the mastery.

The work of preparation is an individual work. We are not saved in groups. The purity and devotion of one will not offset the want of these qualities in another. Though all nations are to pass in judgment before God, yet He will examine the case of each individual with as close and searching scrutiny as if there were not another being upon the earth. Everyone must be tested, and found without spot or wrinkle or any such thing.

Solemn are the scenes connected with the closing work of the atonement. Momentous are the interests involved therein. The judgment is now passing in the sanctuary above.... Soon - none know how soon - it will pass to the cases of the living....When the work of the investigative judgment closes, the destiny of all will have been decided for life or death. Probation is ended a short time before the appearing of the Lord in the clouds of heaven. Christ in the Revelation, looking forward to that time, declares: ... "Behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be." - The Gospel Herald, August 1910.

From Devotional: To Be Like Jesus, p. 380.

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Thought of the Day

January 30, 2018

The life of God in the soul is man's only hope. - CCh 216

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Thought of the Day

January 30, 2018

All who love God should do what they can to make the Sabbath a delight, holy and honorable. - 1TT 281

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Daily readings for 2018-01-30: Reflecting Christ

Hi Raul Diaz,

Reflecting Christ — Day 30 of 365

Christ's Followers To Do Greater Works Than He, January 30

Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father. John 14:12.


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Monday, January 29, 2018

Daily readings for 2018-01-29: Reflecting Christ

Hi Raul,

Reflecting Christ — Day 29 of 365

Christ Revealed The Riches Of Heaven, January 29

The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted. Isaiah 61:1.

Never was there such an evangelist as Christ. He was the Majesty of heaven, but He humbled Himself to take our nature, that He might meet men where they were. To all people, rich and poor, free and bond, Christ, the Messenger of the covenant, brought the tidings of salvation. His fame as the Great Healer spread throughout Palestine. The sick came to the places through which He would pass, that they might call on Him for help. Hither, too, came many anxious to hear His words and to receive a touch of His hand. Thus He went from city to city, from town to town, preaching the gospel and healing the sick—the King of glory in the lowly garb of humanity.

He attended the great yearly festivals of the nation, and to the multitude absorbed in outward ceremony He spoke of heavenly things, bringing eternity within their view. To all He brought treasures from the storehouse of wisdom. He spoke to them in language so simple that they could not fail of understanding. By methods peculiarly His own, He helped all who were in sorrow and affliction. With tender, courteous grace, He ministered to the sin-sick soul, bringing healing and strength....

What a busy life He led! Day by day He might have been seen entering the humble abodes of want and sorrow, speaking hope to the downcast and peace to the distressed. Gracious, tenderhearted, pitiful, He went about lifting up the bowed-down and comforting the sorrowful. Wherever He went, He carried blessing.

While He ministered to the poor, Jesus studied also to find ways of reaching the rich. He sought the acquaintance of the wealthy and cultured Pharisee, the Jewish nobleman, and the Roman ruler. He accepted their invitations, attended their feasts, made Himself familiar with their interests and occupations, that He might gain access to their hearts, and reveal to them the imperishable riches.

Christ came to this world to show that by receiving power from on high, man can live an unsullied life. With unwearying patience and sympathetic helpfulness, He met men in their necessities. By the gentle touch of grace, He banished from the soul unrest and doubt, changing enmity to love, and unbelief to confidence....

At the sound of His voice the spirit of greed and ambition fled from the heart, and men arose, emancipated, to follow the Saviour.—The Ministry of Healing, 22-25.


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Daily Devotional

January 29, 2018

Everyone to Work for the Lost

And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him. 1 John 4:16, NKJV.

"If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us"; and that love cannot be restrained.... Only by becoming partakers of the divine nature can the law of God be fulfilled by men and women. Only those who love God with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength, and their neighbor as themselves, can give glory to God in the highest, and peace on earth, good will to men. This was the work of Christ; and when His work is appreciated and represented by His followers, the great result will be achieved in the "joy that was set before him" in the saving of the souls for whom He gave His life.

The Lord has been laboring constantly from age to age to awaken in the souls of human beings a sense of their divine kinship, and thus to establish an order and divine harmony proportionate to the great and eternal deliverance He has wrought out for everyone who will receive Him. The Lord calls upon all who profess to believe in Him to be coworkers with Him, to use every God-given ability, opportunity, and privilege to lead perishing souls within the sphere of their influence to Jesus Christ.

Here is the only hope for transformation of character; this will give peace and joy in believing, and fit them for the society of the heavenly angels in the kingdom of God. Oh, how earnest, persevering, and untiring should be the efforts of every sin-pardoned soul to seek to bring other souls to Jesus Christ, that their neighbors shall become joint-heirs with Jesus!

Whoever is your neighbor is to be sought for, labored for. Are they ignorant? Let your communication, your association, make them more intelligent. The outcast, the youth, full of defects in character, are the very ones God enjoins upon us to help. "I came not to call the righteous," said Christ, "but sinners to repentance." ...

Those who will be humble enough to learn, the very nobility of the world will consider it an honor to go to heaven in their company, and angels of God will cooperate with such as are workers together with God. We need to hunger and thirst after righteousness, that we may have Christ in us as a well of water, springing up into everlasting life. - Special Instruction Relating to the Review and Herald Office and the Work in Battle Creek, 4-6.

From Devotional: To Be Like Jesus, p. 379.

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Thought of the Day

January 29, 2018

#Religion tends to promote health, to lengthen life, and to heighten our enjoyment of all its blessings. - EP 435

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Thought of the Day

January 29, 2018

Catch the spirit of the great Master-Worker. Learn from the Friend of sinners how to minister to sin-sick souls. - UL 330

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Daily readings for 2018-01-29: Reflecting Christ

Hi Raul Diaz,

Reflecting Christ — Day 29 of 365

Christ Revealed The Riches Of Heaven, January 29

The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted. Isaiah 61:1.

At the sound of His voice the spirit of greed and ambition fled from the heart, and men arose, emancipated, to follow the Saviour.—The Ministry of Healing, 22-25.


		The Ellen G. White Estate 12501 Old Columbia Pike, Silver Spring, MD 20904, USA Phone: +1 301 680 6540 Help: subscribe@ellenwhite.org

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Sunday, January 28, 2018

Daily readings for 2018-01-28: Reflecting Christ

Hi Raul,

Reflecting Christ — Day 28 of 365

Christ Filled His Disciples’ Thoughts, January 28

When they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marvelled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus. Acts 4:13.

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 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....

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.”

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.

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.—The Acts of the Apostles, 45, 46.


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Thought of the Day

January 28, 2018

It is the purpose of God that His children shall blend in unity. Do they not expect to live together in the same heaven? - CCh 43

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Daily Devotional

January 28, 2018

God's People to Reflect His Glory

The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me, because the Lord has anointed Me to preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound. Isaiah 61:1, NKJV.

The Lord is not pleased to have His people a band of mourners. He wants them to repent of their sins, that they may enjoy the liberty of the children of God. Then they will be filled with the praises of God, and will be a blessing to others. The Lord Jesus was anointed also "to appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garments of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that He might be glorified." ...

Oh, that this might be the purpose of our lives! Then we should have regard even to the expression of our countenance, to our words, and even to the tone of our voice when we speak. All our business transactions would be wrought in faith and integrity. Then would the world be convinced that there is a people that are loyal to the God of heaven....

God calls for all to come into harmony with Himself. He will receive them if they will put away their evil actions. By a union with the divine nature of Christ, they may escape the corrupting influences of this world. It is time for every one of us to decide whose side we are on. The agencies of Satan will work with every mind that will allow itself to be worked by him. But there are also heavenly agencies waiting to communicate the bright rays of the glory of God to all that are willing to receive Him. It is truth that we want, precious truth in all its loveliness. Truth will bring liberty and gladness. - The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, Ellen G. White Comments, vol. 4, 1153, 1154.

From Devotional: To Be Like Jesus, p. 378.

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Thought of the Day

January 28, 2018

We need an abiding, heartfelt dependence upon the Son of God for salvation and for all wisdom and spiritual influences. - UL 333

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Daily readings for 2018-01-28: Reflecting Christ

Hi Raul Diaz,

Reflecting Christ — Day 28 of 365

Christ Filled His Disciples’ Thoughts, January 28

When they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marvelled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus. Acts 4:13.


		The Ellen G. White Estate 12501 Old Columbia Pike, Silver Spring, MD 20904, USA Phone: +1 301 680 6540 Help: subscribe@ellenwhite.org

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Saturday, January 27, 2018

Daily readings for 2018-01-27: Reflecting Christ

Hi Raul,

Reflecting Christ — Day 27 of 365

Jesus Provided a Model of Character, January 27

For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory. Colossians 3:3, 4.

Let your light shine forth in good works. Said Christ, “Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.” I fear that there are many who are in this condition. All have not the same work to do; different circumstances and talents qualify individuals for different kinds of work in God's vineyard. There are some who fill more responsible positions than do others; but to each one is given his work, and if he does his work with fidelity and zeal, he is a faithful steward of the grace of God.

God does not intend that your light shall so shine that your good words or works shall bring the praise of men to yourself; but that the Author of all good shall be glorified and exalted. Jesus, in His life, gave to men a model of character. How little power did the world have over Him to mold Him according to its standard! All its influence was thrown off. He declared, “My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work!” If we had this devotion to the work of God, doing it with an eye single to His glory, we should be able to say with Christ, “I seek not mine own glory.” His life was full of good works, and it is our duty to live as our great Example lived. Our life must be hid with Christ in God, and then the light will be reflected from Jesus to us, and we shall reflect it upon those around us, not in mere talk and profession, but in good works, and by manifesting the character of Christ. Those who are reflecting the light of God will cherish a loving disposition. They will be cheerful, willing, obedient to all the requirements of God. They will be meek and self-sacrificing, and will work with devoted love for the salvation of souls....

All who are true lightbearers will reflect light upon the pathway of others. Let those who have named the name of Christ, depart from all iniquity. If you yield to the claims of God, and become permeated with His love, and filled with His fullness, children, youth, and young disciples will look to you for their impressions of what constitutes practical godliness; and you may thus be the means of leading them in the path of obedience to God. You will then be exerting an influence which will bear the test of God, and your work will be compared to gold, silver, and precious stones, for it will be of an imperishable nature.—The Review and Herald, October 16, 1888.


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Daily Devotional

January 27, 2018

Jesus Pays the Debt of Repentant Sinners

Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance? Romans 2:4, NKJV.

Among the disciples who ministered to Paul at Rome was Onesimus, a fugitive slave from the city of Colosse. He belonged to a Christian named Philemon, a member of the Colossian church. But he had robbed his master and fled to Rome.... In the kindness of his heart, the apostle sought to relieve the poverty and distress of the wretched fugitive, and then endeavored to shed the light of truth into his darkened mind. Onesimus listened attentively to the words of life which he had once despised, and was converted to the faith of Christ. He now confessed his sin against his master, and gratefully accepted the counsel of the apostle.

He had endeared himself to Paul by his piety, meekness, and sincerity, no less than by his tender care for the apostle's comfort and his zeal to promote the work of the gospel. Paul saw in him traits of character that would render him a useful helper in missionary labor, and he would gladly have kept him at Rome. But he would not do this without the full consent of Philemon.

He therefore decided that Onesimus should at once return to his master.... It was a severe test for this servant to thus deliver himself up to the master he had wronged; but he had been truly converted, and, painful as it was, he did not shrink from this duty. Paul made Onesimus the bearer of a letter to Philemon, in which he with great delicacy and kindness pleaded the cause of the repentant slave, and intimated his own wishes concerning him....

He requests Philemon to receive him as his own child. He says that it was his desire to retain Onesimus, that he might act the same part in ministering to him in his bonds as Philemon would have done. But he did not desire his services unless Philemon should voluntarily set him free; for it might be in the providence of God that Onesimus had left his master for a season in so improper a manner, that, being converted, he might on his return be forgiven and received with such affection that he would choose to dwell with him ever after, "not now as a servant, but above a servant, a brother beloved." ...

How fitting an illustration of the love of Christ toward repenting sinners! As the servant who had defrauded his master had nothing with which to make restitution, so sinners who have robbed God of years of service have no means of canceling their debt; Jesus interposes between them and the just wrath of God, and says, I will pay the debt. Let them be spared the punishment of their guilt. I will suffer in their stead. - Sketches from the Life of Paul, 284-287.

From Devotional: To Be Like Jesus, p. 377.

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Thought of the Day

January 27, 2018

Every Christian family should illustrate to the world the power and excellence of Christian influence. - AH 19

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Thought of the Day

January 27, 2018

Golden opportunities are lost by delivering elaborate discourses, which display self, but do not magnify Christ. - GW92 39

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Daily readings for 2018-01-27: Reflecting Christ

Hi Raul Diaz,

Reflecting Christ — Day 27 of 365

Jesus Provided a Model of Character, January 27

For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory. Colossians 3:3, 4.


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Friday, January 26, 2018

Daily readings for 2018-01-26: Reflecting Christ

Hi Raul,

Reflecting Christ — Day 26 of 365

Jesus is Our Example, January 26

In a word, as God's dear children, try to be like him. Ephesians 5:1, N.E.B.

God's watchmen must not study how they shall please the people, nor listen to their words and utter them; for they must listen to hear what saith the Lord, what is His word for the people. If they rely upon discourses prepared years before, they may fail to meet the necessities of the occasion. Their hearts should be laid open so that the Lord may impress their minds, and then they will be able to give the people the precious truth warm from heaven....

There is altogether too little of the Spirit and power of God in the labor of the watchmen. The Spirit which characterized that wonderful meeting on the Day of Pentecost is waiting to manifest its power upon the men who are now standing between the living and the dead as ambassadors for God. The power which stirred the people so mightily in the 1844 movement will again be revealed. The third angel's message will go forth, not in whispered tones, but with a loud voice.

Many who profess to have great light are walking in sparks of their own kindling. They need to have their lips touched with a live coal from off the altar, that they may pour forth the truth like men who are inspired....

Had Christ come in the majesty of a king, with the pomp which attends the great men of earth, many would have accepted Him. But Jesus of Nazareth did not dazzle the senses with a display of outward glory and make this the foundation of their reverence. He came as a humble man to be the Teacher and Exemplar as well as the Redeemer of the race. Had he encouraged pomp, had He come followed by a retinue of the great men of earth, how could He have taught humility? how could He have presented such burning truths as in His Sermon upon the Mount? His example was such as He wished all His followers to imitate. Where would have been the hope of the lowly in life had He come in exaltation and dwelt as a king upon the earth?

Jesus knew the needs of the world better than they themselves knew. He did not come as an angel, clothed with the panoply of heaven, but as a man. Yet combined with His humility was an inherent power and grandeur that awed men while they loved Him. Although possessing such loveliness, such an unassuming appearance, He moved among them with the dignity and power of a heaven-born king. The people were amazed, confounded. They tried to reason the matter out; but, unwilling to renounce their own ideas, they yielded to doubts, clinging to the old expectation of a Saviour to come in earthly grandeur.—Testimonies for the Church 5:252, 253.


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Daily Devotional

January 26, 2018

Good Works to Follow Revival

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9, NKJV.

The soul that lives by faith in Christ desires no other nor greater good than to know and to do the will of God. It is God's will that faith in Christ shall be made perfect by works; He connects the salvation and eternal life of those who believe with these works, and through them provides for the light of truth to go to all countries and peoples. This is the fruit of the working of God's Spirit.

The truth has taken hold of hearts. It is not a fitful impulse, but a true turning unto the Lord, and the perverse will of human beings is brought into subjection to the will of God. To rob God in tithes and offerings is a violation of the plain injunction of Jehovah and works the deepest injury to those who do it; for it deprives them of the blessing of God, which is promised to those who deal honestly with Him....

If Satan cannot keep souls bound in the ice of indifference, he will try to push them into the fire of fanaticism. When the Spirit of the Lord comes among His people, the enemy seizes the opportunity to work also, seeking to mold the work of God through the peculiar, unsanctified traits of different ones who are connected with that work. Thus there is always danger that unwise moves will be made. Many carry on a work of their own devising, a work which God has not prompted....

If the enemy can push individuals to extremes, he is well pleased. He can thus do greater harm than if there had been no religious awakening. We know that there has never yet been a religious effort made in which Satan has not tried his best to intrude himself, and in these last days he will do this as never before. He sees that his time is short, and he will work with all deceivableness of unrighteousness to mingle errors and incorrect views with the work of God and push men and women into false positions....

Hearts that are under the influence of the Spirit of God will be in sweet harmony with His will. I have been shown that when the Lord works by His Holy Spirit, there will be nothing in its operations which will degrade the Lord's people before the world, but it will exalt them. The religion of Christ does not make those who profess it coarse and rough. The subjects of grace are not unteachable, but ever willing to learn of Jesus and to counsel with one another. - Testimonies for the Church 5:644-647.

From Devotional: To Be Like Jesus, p. 376.

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Thought of the Day

January 26, 2018

To the end of time, men will arise to create confusion and rebellion among those who claim to be representatives of the true God. - PK 442

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Thought of the Day

January 26, 2018

God takes no pleasure in a forced obedience, and to all He grants freedom of will, that they may render Him voluntary service. - CTr 7

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Daily readings for 2018-01-26: Reflecting Christ

Hi Raul Diaz,

Reflecting Christ — Day 26 of 365

Jesus is Our Example, January 26

In a word, as God's dear children, try to be like him. Ephesians 5:1, N.E.B.


		The Ellen G. White Estate 12501 Old Columbia Pike, Silver Spring, MD 20904, USA Phone: +1 301 680 6540 Help: subscribe@ellenwhite.org

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Thursday, January 25, 2018

Daily readings for 2018-01-25: Reflecting Christ

Hi Raul,

Reflecting Christ — Day 25 of 365

The Personality of God Revealed in Christ, January 25

I and my Father are one. John 10:30.

As a personal being, God has revealed Himself in His Son. The outshining of the Father's glory, “and the express image of his person” (Hebrews 1:3), Jesus, as a personal Saviour, came to the world. As a personal Saviour He ascended on high. As a personal Saviour He intercedes in the heavenly courts. Before the throne of God in our behalf ministers “one like unto the Son of man” (Revelation 1:13).

Christ, the Light of the world, veiled the dazzling splendor of His divinity and came to live as a man among men, that they might, without being consumed, become acquainted with their Creator. Since sin brought separation between man and his Maker, no man has seen God at any time, except as He is manifested through Christ.

“I and my Father are one,” Christ declared (John 10:30). “No man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal Him” (John 10:30; Matthew 11:27).

Christ came to teach human beings what God desires them to know. In the heavens above, in the earth, in the broad waters of the ocean, we see the handiwork of God. All created things testify to His power, His wisdom, His love. Yet not from the stars or the ocean or the cataract can we learn of the personality of God as it was revealed in Christ.

God saw that a clearer revelation than nature was needed to portray both His personality and His character. He sent His Son into the world to manifest, so far as could be endured by human sight, the nature and the attributes of the invisible God....

Taking humanity upon Him, Christ came to be one with humanity, and at the same time to reveal our heavenly Father to sinful human beings. He who had been in the presence of the Father from the beginning, He who was the express image of the invisible God, was alone able to reveal the character of the Deity to mankind. He was in all things made like unto His brethren. He became flesh even as we are. He was hungry and thirsty and weary. He was sustained by food and refreshed by sleep. He shared the lot of men; yet He was the blameless Son of God.... Tender, compassionate, sympathetic, ever considerate of others, He represented the character of God, and was constantly engaged in service for God and man.—The Ministry of Healing, 418-423.

The theme of redemption will employ the minds and tongues of the redeemed through everlasting ages. The reflection of the glory of God will shine forth forever and ever from the Saviour's face.—Letter 280, 1904.


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