With God at Dawn: July—“He Shall Call ..., I Will Answer”: Seek the Lord Continually, July 1

God Calls to Prayer

Seek the Lord and his strength, seek his face continually. 1 Chronicles 16:11.

Prayer is heaven’s ordained means of success in the conflict with sin and the development of Christian character. The divine influences that come in answer to the prayer of faith will accomplish in the soul of the suppliant all for which he pleads. For the pardon of sin, for the Holy Spirit, for a Christlike temper, for wisdom and strength to do His work, for any gift He has promised, we may ask; and the promise is, “Ye shall receive.”—The Acts of the Apostles, 564.

When the mind of man is brought into communion with the mind of God, the finite with the Infinite, the effect on body and mind and soul is beyond estimate. In such communion is found the highest education. It is God’s own method of development.—The Acts of the Apostles, 126.

Not all your good purposes and good intentions will enable you to withstand evil. You must be men and women of prayer. Your petitions must not be faint, occasional, and fitful, but earnest, persevering, and constant. It is not always necessary to bow upon your knees in order to pray. Cultivate the habit of talking with the Saviour when you are alone, when you are walking, and when you are busy with your daily labor. Let the heart be continually uplifted in silent petition for help, for light, for strength, for knowledge. Let every breath be a prayer.—The Ministry of Healing, 510.

Beginning of the End: Why the Tithe Is Sacred

 Whenever we experience a special deliverance, or new and unexpected favors are granted us, we should acknowledge God’s goodness by gifts or offerings to His cause. As we are continually receiving the blessings of God, so we are to be continually giving.

“Of all that You give me,” said Jacob, “I will surely give a tenth to You.” Shall we who enjoy the full light of the gospel be content to give less to God than was given by those who lived before Jesus came? Aren’t our obligations even greater? But how useless to measure time, money, and love mathematically against a love so immeasurable and a gift of such incredible worth. Tithes for Christ! Oh, meager pittance, shameful response to that which cost so much! From the cross of Calvary Christ calls for total consecration of all that we have, all that we are.

With new faith and assured of the presence of heavenly angels, Jacob continued his journey to “the land of the people of the East.” But how different was his arrival from that of Abraham’s messenger nearly a hundred years before! Eliezer, the servant, had come with attendants riding on camels, with rich gifts of gold and silver; the son was a lonely, foot-sore traveler, with no possessions except his staff. Like Abraham’s servant, Jacob stopped beside a well, and it was here that he met Rachel, Laban’s younger daughter. On making known his family relationship, he was welcomed to the home of Laban. A few weeks showed the worth of his diligence and skill, and he was urged to stay. It was arranged that he would give Laban seven years’ service to be able to marry Rachel.

With God at Dawn: By Their Fruits Ye Shall Know Them, June 30

The Life Is Transformed

Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.... Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them. Matthew 7:17-20.

No matter how high his profession, he whose heart is not imbued with love for God and for his fellow-men, is not a disciple of Christ. Though he should possess great faith, and even have power to work miracles, yet without love his faith would be worthless. He might display great liberality, but should he from some other motive than genuine love, bestow all his goods to feed the poor, the act would not commend him to the favor of God. In his zeal he might even meet a martyr’s death, yet if destitute of the gold of love he would be regarded by God as a deluded enthusiast or an ambitious hypocrite.—Testimonies for the Church 5:168,

There is an eloquence far more powerful than the eloquence of words in the quiet, consistent life of a pure, true Christian. What a man is has more influence than what he says.... It is our own character and experience that determine our influence upon others. In order to convince others of the power of Christ’s grace, we must know its power in our own hearts and lives. The gospel we present for the saving of souls must be the gospel by which our own souls are saved. Only through a living faith in Christ as a personal Saviour is it possible to make our influence felt in a skeptical world. If we would draw sinners out of the swift-running current, our own feet must be firmly set upon the Rock, Christ Jesus. The badge of Christianity is not an outward sign, not the wearing of a cross or a crown, but it is that which reveals the union of man with God.—The Ministry of Healing, 469, 470.

Beginning of the End: Jacob’s Flight and Exile

This chapter is based on Genesis 28 to 31. 

Threatened with death by Esau, Jacob went out from his father’s home a fugitive, but with the father’s blessing. Isaac had renewed the covenant promise to him and had told him look for a wife among his mother’s family in Mesopotamia.

Yet it was with a deeply troubled heart that Jacob set out on his lonely journey. With only his staff in his hand he must travel hundreds of miles through a country inhabited by wild, roving tribes. In his remorse and dread he tried to avoid people, to prevent his angry brother from following him. He feared that he had lost forever the blessing God had wanted to give him, and Satan was at hand to press temptations upon him.

The evening of the second day found him far away from his father’s tents. He felt he was an outcast, and he knew that all his trouble had come upon him because of his own wrong actions. Despair pressed upon his soul, and he hardly dared to pray. But he was so lonely that he felt the need of protection from God as never before. With weeping he confessed his sin and asked earnestly for some evidence that he was not utterly forsaken. He had lost all confidence in himself, and he feared that God had rejected him.

But God’s mercy was still extended to His erring, distrustful servant. The Lord compassionately revealed just what Jacob needed—a Savior. He had sinned, but God revealed a way for him to be restored to divine favor.

Tired, the wanderer lay down on the ground with a stone for his pillow. As he slept he saw a ladder whose base rested on the earth while the top reached to heaven. Angels were ascending and descending on this ladder. Above it was the Lord of glory, and from the heavens His voice was heard: “I am the Lord God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. ... In you and in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” This promise had been given to Abraham and to Isaac, and now it was renewed to Jacob. Then words of comfort and encouragement were spoken: “Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring  you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have spoken to you.”

The Lord in mercy opened up the future before the repentant fugitive so he might be prepared to resist the temptations that would come to him when alone among idolaters and schemers. The knowledge that the purpose of God was reaching its accomplishment through him would constantly prompt him to faithfulness.

In this vision Jacob saw the parts of the plan of redemption that were essential to him at that time. The mystic ladder revealed in his dream was the same to which Christ referred in His conversation with Nathanael: “You shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man” (John 1:51). The sin of Adam and Eve separated earth from heaven so that human beings could not have communion with their Maker, yet the world was not left in hopelessness. The ladder represents Jesus, the appointed way of communication. Christ connects us in our weakness and helplessness with the source of infinite power.

All this was revealed to Jacob in his dream. Although his mind at once grasped a part of the revelation, its great and mysterious truths were the study of his lifetime, unfolding to his understanding more and more.

Jacob awoke in the deep stillness of night. The vision had disappeared, only the dim outline of lonely hills and the heavens bright with stars now met his gaze. But he had a solemn sense that God was with him. “Surely the Lord is in this place,” he said, “and I did not know it. ... This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven!”

“Then Jacob rose early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put at his head, and set it up as a pillar, and poured oil on top of it.” He called the place Bethel, or “the house of God.” Then he made the solemn vow, “If God will be with me, and keep me in this way that I am going, and give me bread to eat and clothing to put on, so that I come back to my father’s house in peace, then the Lord shall be my God. And this stone which I have set as a pillar shall be God’s house, and of all that You give me I will surely give a tenth to You.”

Jacob was not trying to bargain with God—the Lord had already promised him prosperity, and this vow came from a heart filled with gratitude for the assurance of God’s mercy. Jacob felt that the special evidences of divine favor demanded a return.

Christians should often remember with gratitude the precious deliverances that God has given to them, opening ways for them when all seemed dark and threatening, refreshing them when they were ready to faint. In view of countless blessings each one should often ask, “What shall I render to the Lord for all His benefits toward me?” (Psalm 116:12).

With God at Dawn: The Fruits of the Spirit Are Borne, June 29

 The Life Is Transformed

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. Galatians 5:22, 23.

This fruit can never perish, but will produce after its kind a harvest unto eternal life.... Christ is waiting with longing desire for the manifestation of Himself in His church. When the character of Christ shall be perfectly reproduced in His people, then He will come to claim them as His own.

It is the privilege of every Christian, not only to look for, but to hasten the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Were all who profess His name bearing fruit to His glory, how quickly the whole world would be sown with the seed of the gospel. Quickly the last great harvest would be ripened, and Christ would come to gather the precious grain.—Christ's Object Lessons, 69.

The heart in which love rules, will not be filled with passion or revenge, by injuries which pride and self-love would deem unbearable. Love is unsuspecting, ever placing the most favorable construction upon the motives and acts of others. Love will never needlessly expose the faults of others. It does not listen eagerly to unfavorable reports, but rather seeks to bring to mind some good qualities of the one defamed.... The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, and peace. Discord and strife are the work of Satan and the fruit of sin. If we would as a people, enjoy peace and love, we must put away our sins, we must come into harmony with God, and we shall be in harmony with one another. Let each ask himself: Do I possess the grace of love? Have I learned to suffer long, and to be kind?—Testimonies for the Church 5:169.

Beginning of the End: Esau Could Not Repent

 Esau had lightly valued the blessing when it seemed within his reach, but now that it was gone from him his grief and rage were terrible. “Bless me—me also, O my father! ... Have you not reserved a blessing  for me?” But the birthright that he had so carelessly bargained away he could not regain. Esau sold his inheritance “For one morsel of food,” for a momentary gratification of his appetite that had never been restrained.

But when he saw his folly, it was too late to recover the blessing. “He found no place for repentance, though he sought it diligently with tears” (Hebrews 12:17). Esau was not shut out from seeking God’s favor by repentance, but he could find no way to recover the birthright. His grief did not spring from conviction of sin; he did not desire to be reconciled to God. He sorrowed because of the results of his sin, but not for the sin itself.

In Scripture Esau is called a “profane person” (verse 16). He represents those who lightly value the redemption Christ purchased for them and are ready to sacrifice their heavenly inheritance for the perishable things of earth. Multitudes live with no thought or care for the future. Like Esau they cry, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die” (1 Corinthians 15:32). The desires of appetite prevail, and God and heaven are virtually despised. When they are presented with the duty of cleansing themselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God, they are offended.

Multitudes are selling their birthright to indulge their senses. They sacrifice health, weaken their mental abilities, and forfeit heaven, all for temporary pleasure that both weakens and debases them. Esau awoke too late to recover his loss. In the day of God it will be the same with those who have traded their status as heirs of heaven for selfish gratifications.

With God at Dawn: The Transformed Life Bears Fruit, June 28

The Life Is Transformed

Being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God. Philippians 1:11.

The plant does not germinate, grow, or bring forth fruit for itself, but to “give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater.” So no man is to live unto himself. The Christian is in the world as a representative of Christ, for the salvation of other souls.

There can be no growth or fruitfulness in the life that is centered in self. If you have accepted Christ as a personal Saviour, you are to forget yourself, and try to help others. Talk of the love of Christ, tell of His goodness. Do every duty that presents itself. Carry the burden of souls upon your heart, and by every means in your power seek to save the lost. As you receive the Spirit of Christ,—the spirit of unselfish love and labor for others,—you will grow and bring forth fruit. The graces of the Spirit will ripen in your character. Your faith will increase, your convictions deepen, your love be made perfect. More and more you will reflect the likeness of Christ in all that is pure, noble, and lovely.—Christ's Object Lessons, 67.

It is His plan, by conforming His servants day by day to the image of Christ, by making them partakers of the divine nature, to cause them to bear fruit abundantly.

He desires His people, through actual experience in the truth of the gospel, to become true, solid, trustworthy, experimental missionaries. He would have them show results far higher, holier, and more definite than in our day have yet been revealed.—Testimonies for the Church 8:186.

Beginning of the End: Consequences of Deception

 Jacob and Rebekah succeeded in their plan but gained only trouble and sorrow by deception. God had declared that Jacob was to receive the birthright, and His word would have been fulfilled if they had waited in faith for Him to work. Rebekah bitterly regretted the wrong counsel she had given her son. Jacob was weighed down with self-condemnation—he had sinned against his father, his brother, his own soul, and against God. In one short hour he had provided material for lifelong repentance. This scene was vivid before him in later years when the wicked course of his own sons pained his soul.

No sooner had Jacob left his father’s tent than Esau entered. Though he had sold his birthright, he was now determined to secure its blessing. With the spiritual was connected the temporal birthright, which would give him the headship of the family and a double portion of his father’s wealth. “Let my father arise,” he said, “and eat of his son’s game, that your soul may bless me.”

Trembling with surprise and distress, the blind old father learned the deception that had been practiced on him. He keenly felt the disappointment that must come upon his older son, yet the conviction flashed into his mind that it was God’s leading that had brought about the very thing he had determined to prevent. He remembered the words of the angel to Rebekah, and he saw in Jacob the one best fitted to accomplish the purpose of God. While the words of blessing were upon his lips, he had felt the Spirit of Inspiration upon him; and now he confirmed the benediction he had unwittingly pronounced on Jacob: “I have blessed him—and indeed he shall be blessed.”

With God at Dawn: The Transformed Life Is Sincere, June 27

The Life Is Transformed

That ye may approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ. Philippians 1:10.

Many whom God has qualified to do excellent work accomplish very little, because they attempt little. Thousands pass through life as if they had no definite object for which to live, no standard to reach. Such will obtain a reward proportionate to their works. Remember that you will never reach a higher standard than you yourself set. Then set your mark high, and step by step, even though it be by painful effort, by self-denial and sacrifice, ascend the whole length of the ladder of progress. Let nothing hinder you. Fate has not woven its meshes about any human being so firmly that he need remain helpless and in uncertainty. Opposing circumstances should create a firm determination to overcome them. The breaking down of one barrier will give greater ability and courage to go forward. Press with determination in the right direction, and circumstances will be your helpers, not your hindrances.

Be ambitious, for the Master’s glory, to cultivate every grace of character. In every phase of your character-building you are to please God. This you may do; for Enoch pleased Him, though living in a degenerate age. And there are Enochs in this our day....

A character formed according to the divine likeness is the only treasure that we can take from this world to the next. Those who are under the instruction of Christ in this world will take every divine attainment with them to the heavenly mansions. And in heaven we are continually to improve. How important, then, is the development of character in this life.—Christ's Object Lessons, 331, 332.

Beginning of the End: Esau Sells His Treasure

 Esau, coming home one day faint and weary from hunting, asked for the food that his brother was preparing. Jacob seized the advantage and offered to satisfy his brother’s hunger at the price of the birthright. “Look, I am about to die,” cried the reckless, self-indulgent hunter, “so what is this birthright to me?” For a dish of red stew he gave up his birthright and confirmed the transaction by an oath. To satisfy the desire of the moment he carelessly traded the glorious heritage God Himself had promised his fathers. His whole interest was in the present. He was ready to sacrifice heavenly things for earthly pleasures, to exchange a future good for a momentary indulgence.

“Thus Esau despised his birthright.” In giving it up he felt a sense of relief. Now he could do as he liked. For this wild pleasure, wrongly called freedom, many are still selling their birthright of an eternal inheritance in the heavens!

Esau took two Hittite wives. They worshiped false gods, and their idolatry was a bitter grief to Isaac and Rebekah. Esau had violated one of the conditions of the covenant, which prohibited intermarriage between the chosen people and the heathen; yet Isaac was still determined to bestow the birthright on him.

Years passed. Isaac, who was old, blind and soon to die, decided not to delay any longer  in giving the blessing to his older son. But knowing the opposition of Rebekah and Jacob, he decided to perform the solemn ceremony in secret. He instructed Esau, “Go out to the field and hunt game for me. And make me savory food, ... that my soul may bless you before I die.”

Rebekah told Jacob what had taken place, urging immediate action to keep the blessing from going to Esau. She assured her son that if he would follow her directions, he would obtain the birthright as God had promised. Jacob did not agree right away—the thought of deceiving his father caused him great distress. Such a sin would bring a curse rather than a blessing.

But finally he gave in and proceeded to carry out his mother’s suggestions. He did not intend to tell an outright lie, but once in the presence of his father he seemed to have gone too far to retreat, and he obtained the coveted blessing by fraud.

With God at Dawn: We Shall Be New Creatures, June 26

The Life Is Transformed

Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. 2 Corinthians 5:17.

As the mind dwells upon Christ, the character is molded after the divine similitude. The thoughts are pervaded with a sense of His goodness, His love. We contemplate His character, and thus He is in all our thoughts. His love encloses us. If we gaze even a moment upon the sun in its meridian glory, when we turn away our eyes the image of the sun will appear in everything upon which we look.

Thus it is when we behold Jesus; everything we look upon reflects His image, the Sun of Righteousness. We cannot see anything else, or talk of anything else. His image is imprinted upon the eye of the soul, and affects every portion of our daily life, softening and subduing our whole nature. By beholding we are conformed to the divine similitude, even the likeness of Christ. To all with whom we associate we reflect the bright and cheerful beams of His righteousness. We have become transformed in character; for heart, soul, mind are irradiated by the reflection of Him who loved us and gave Himself for us. Here again there is the realization of a personal, living influence dwelling in our hearts by faith.

When His words of instruction have been received, and have taken possession of us, Jesus is to us an abiding presence, controlling our thoughts and ideas and actions. We are imbued with the instruction of the greatest teacher the world ever knew. A sense of human accountability and of human influence, gives character to our views of life and of daily duties. Jesus Christ is everything to us—the first, the last, the best in everything.—Messages to Young People, 160, 161.

Beginning of the End: Jacob and Esau

This chapter is based on Genesis 25:19-34; 27.

Jacob and Esau, the twin sons of Isaac, present a sharp contrast in character and in life. Before their birth, the angel of God foretold how different from each other they would be. In answer to Rebekah’s troubled prayer, he declared that two sons would be given her. He opened to her their future history, that each would become the head of a mighty nation but that one would be greater than the other, and the younger would have prominence.

Esau grew up loving to please himself, centering all his interest in living for today. Unhappy with restraint, he delighted in the chase and the life of a hunter, yet he was his father’s favorite. This elder son fearlessly ranged over mountain and desert, returning home with game and exciting accounts of his adventurous life.

Jacob, who was thoughtful, diligent, and always thinking more of the future than the present, was content to live at home, occupied in caring for the flocks and working the soil. His mother valued his patient perseverance, thrift, and foresight. His gentle attentions added more to her happiness than the boisterous, occasional kindnesses of Esau. To Rebekah, Jacob was the dearer son.

Esau and Jacob were taught to regard the birthright as a matter of great importance, for it included not only an inheritance of worldly wealth, but spiritual pre-eminence. The one who received it was to be the priest of his family, and in the line of his descendants the Redeemer of the world would come.

On the other hand, certain obligations rested on the possessor of the birthright. The one who inherited its blessings must devote his life to the service of God. In marriage, in his family relations, in public life, he must consult the will of God.

Isaac made known to his sons these privileges and conditions and plainly stated that Esau as the eldest was the one entitled to the birthright. But Esau had no love for devotion, no inclination to a religious life. The requirements that accompanied the spiritual birthright were an unwelcome and even hateful restraint to him. Esau regarded the law of God, the condition of God’s covenant with Abraham, as a yoke of bondage.  Determined to indulge himself, he wanted nothing so much as the freedom to do as he pleased. To him power and riches, feasting and partying, were happiness. He gloried in the unrestrained freedom of his wild, roving life.

Rebekah remembered the words of the angel and read the character of their sons with clearer insight than her husband. Convinced that the heritage of divine promise was intended for Jacob, she repeated to Isaac the angel’s words. But the father’s affections were centered on the elder son, and he was unshaken in his decision to give him the birthright.

Jacob had learned from his mother that the birthright should fall to him, and he was filled with desire for the privileges it would confer. It was not his father’s wealth that he craved; it was the spiritual birthright that he longed for. To commune with God as Abraham had, to offer the sacrifice of atonement, to be a forefather of the chosen people of the promised Messiah, to inherit the immortal possessions included in the covenant—these were the privileges and honor that he earnestly desired.

He listened to all that his father told him concerning the spiritual birthright, and he carefully treasured what he had learned from his mother. The subject became the focus of his life, but Jacob did not have a personal relationship with the God whom he revered. His heart had not been renewed by divine grace. He constantly thought about devising some way to get the blessing that his brother held so lightly, but which was so precious to himself.

With God at Dawn: The Transforming Power of Truth, June 25

The Life Is Transformed

And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure. 1 John 3:3.

None but He who has created man can effect a change in the human heart. God alone can give the increase. Every teacher is to realize that he is to be moved by divine agencies. The human judgment and ideas of the most experienced are liable to be imperfect and faulty, and the frail instrument, subject to his own hereditary traits of character, has need to submit to the sanctification of the Holy Spirit every day, else self will gather the reins and want to drive. In the meek and lowly spirit of the learner, all human methods and plans and ideas must be brought to God for His correction and indorsement; otherwise the restless energy of Paul or the skillful logic of Apollos will be powerless to effect the conversion of souls.—Testimonies for the Church 6:167.

Jesus assumed humanity that He might meet humanity. He brings men under the transforming power of truth by meeting them where they are. He gains access to the heart by securing sympathy and confidence, making all feel that His identification with their nature and interest is complete. The truth came from His lips beautiful in its simplicity, yet clothed with dignity and power. What a teacher was our Lord Jesus Christ! How tenderly did He treat every honest inquirer after truth, that He might gain admission to his sympathies, and find a home in the heart.—Testimonies to Ministers, 190.

Christ has made every provision that His church shall be a transformed body, illumined with the Light of the world, possessing the glory of Immanuel. It is His purpose that every Christian shall be surrounded with a spiritual atmosphere of light and peace.—Christ’s Object Lessons, 419.

Beginning of the End: Before One Marries

 Isaac was the heir of the promises through which the world was to be blessed; yet when he was forty years old he let his father choose a wife for him. And the result of that marriage is a tender and beautiful picture of happiness at home: “Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah’s tent; and he took Rebekah and she became his wife, and he loved her. So Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death.”

Young people too often feel that selecting a life partner is something about which they should only consult themselves. They think they are fully qualified to make their own choice, without the aid of their parents. A few years of married life usually show them their error, but too late. The same lack of wisdom and self-control that dictated the hasty choice makes matters worse, until marriage becomes a bitter burden. This is the way that many wreck their happiness in this life and their hope of the life to come.

If ever the Bible was needed as a counselor, if ever divine guidance should be sought in prayer, it is before taking a step that binds persons together for life.

Parents should never lose sight of their responsibility for the future happiness of their children. While Abraham required his children to respect parental authority, his daily life testified that this authority was not selfish or arbitrary, but was rooted in love and had their well-being and happiness in view.

Fathers and mothers should guide the affections of youth so that they may place those affections on suitable companions. Mold the character of the children from their earliest years so that they will be pure and noble, attracted to the good and true. If love for truth, purity, and goodness is implanted in the soul early, the youth will seek to be around others who possess these characteristics.

Parents, try to be like our heavenly Father, who is love. Let your home be full of sunshine—this will be worth more to your children than lands or money. Let your home love be kept alive in their hearts so that they may look back on the home of their childhood as a place of peace and happiness next to heaven.

True love is a high and holy principle, entirely different from that love which flashes up quickly but suddenly dies when severely tested. In their parents’ home youth are to prepare themselves for homes of their own. Here they should practice self-denial, kindness, courtesy, and Christian sympathy.

The young man who goes out from such a household to stand at the head of a family will know how to promote the happiness of her whom he has chosen as a companion for life. Marriage, instead of being the end of love, will only be its beginning.

With God at Dawn: Having Done All, I Shall Stand, June 24

A Steadfast Experience

Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Ephesians 6:13.

Those who stand in defense of the honor of God, and maintain the purity of truth at any cost, will have manifold trials, as did our Saviour in the wilderness of temptation. While those who have yielding temperaments, who have not courage to condemn wrong, but keep silent when their influence is needed to stand in defense of the right against any pressure, may avoid many heartaches and escape many perplexities, they will also lose a very rich reward, if not their own souls. Those who are in harmony with God, and who through faith in Him receive strength to resist wrong and stand in defense of the right, will always have severe conflicts, and will frequently have to stand almost alone. But precious victories will be theirs while they make God their dependence. His grace will be their strength. Their moral sensibility will be keen and clear, and their moral powers will be able to withstand wrong influences. Their integrity, like that of Moses, will be of the purest character.—Testimonies for the Church 3:302.

Stupidity must be shaken off. We must arouse from the lethargy that will prove our destruction unless we resist it. Satan has a powerful, controlling influence upon minds.... There is no such thing now as a neutral position. We are all decidedly for the right, or decidedly with the wrong.... There are many who profess to believe the truth who are blind to their own danger. They cherish iniquity in their hearts and practice it in their lives. Their friends cannot read their hearts, and frequently think that such are all right.—Testimonies for the Church 3:328, 329.

Beginning of the End: Rebekah Believes God Has Spoken

 Rebekah herself was asked whether she was willing to go so great a distance from her father’s house to marry the son of Abraham. She believed that God had selected her to be Isaac’s wife, and said, “I will go.”

The servant, anticipating his master’s joy, was impatient to be gone, and when morning came they set out on the homeward journey. Abraham was living at Beersheba, and Isaac, who had been tending the flocks in the adjoining country, had returned to his father’s tent  to wait for the messenger from Haran. “And Isaac went out to meditate in the field in the evening; and he lifted his eyes and looked, and there, the camels were coming. Then Rebekah lifted her eyes, and when she saw Isaac she dismounted from her camel; for she had said to the servant, ‘Who is this man walking in the field to meet us?’ The servant said, ‘It is my master.’ So she took a veil and covered herself. And the servant told Isaac all the things that he had done. Then Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah’s tent; and he took Rebekah and she became his wife, and he loved her. So Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death.”

Abraham had noticed the result of intermarriage between those who feared God and those who did not, from the days of Cain to his own time. His own marriage with Hagar and the marriage connections of Ishmael and Lot were before him. Abraham’s influence on his son Ishmael was counteracted by the influence of Hagar’s idolatrous relatives and by Ishmael’s connection with heathen wives. The jealousy of Hagar and of the wives whom she chose for Ishmael surrounded his family with a barrier that Abraham tried to overcome, but could not.

Abraham’s early teachings had not failed to have an effect on Ishmael, but the influence of his wives resulted in establishing idolatry in his family. Separated from his father and embittered by the strife and contention of a home that lacked the love and fear of God, Ishmael was driven to choose the wild, plundering life of a desert chief, “his hand ... against every man, and every man’s hand against him” (Genesis 16:12). In later life he repented and returned to his father’s God, but the stamp of character given to his descendents remained. The powerful nation that came from him were a turbulent, heathen people.

The wife of Lot was a selfish, irreligious woman, and she worked to separate her husband from Abraham. If he could have had his way, Lot would not have stayed in Sodom. The influence of his wife and the associations of that wicked city would have led him to apostatize from God if it had not been for the faithful instruction he had received in his youth from Abraham.

It is dangerous for one who respects God to connect himself with one who does not respect Him. “Can two walk together, unless they are agreed?” (Amos 3:3). The happiness and prosperity of marriage depends on the unity of the parties; but there is a radical difference of tastes, inclinations, and purposes between the believer and the unbeliever. However pure and correct one’s principles, the influence of an unbelieving companion will tend to lead away from God.

Those who have entered marriage while unconverted and are later converted are under stronger obligation to be faithful to their companions, no matter how they may differ in religious faith. Yet the claims of God should be honored above every earthly relationship, even if this brings trials and persecution. The  spirit of love and faithfulness may win the unbelieving one, but marriage with the ungodly is forbidden in the Bible. “Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers” (2 Corinthians 6:14, 17, 18).

With God at Dawn: We Shall Be Rooted and Built Up in Him, June 23

A Steadfast Experience

As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving. Colossians 2:6, 7.

We need to be converted daily. Our prayers should be more fervent; then they will be more effectual. Stronger and stronger should be our confidence that God’s Spirit will be with us, making us pure and holy, as upright and fragrant as the cedar of Lebanon.—Gospel Workers, 272.

Many receive applause for virtues which they do not possess. The Searcher of hearts weighs the motives, and often deeds highly applauded by men are recorded by Him as springing from selfishness and base hypocrisy. Every act of our lives, ... is judged by the Searcher of hearts according to the motives which prompted it.—Gospel Workers, 275.

Those who are engaged in service for the Master need an experience much higher, deeper, broader, than many have yet thought of having. Many who are already members of God’s great family know little of what it means to behold His glory, and to be changed from glory to glory. Many have a twilight perception of Christ’s excellence, and their hearts thrill with joy. They long for a fuller, deeper sense of the Saviour’s love....

The Holy Spirit works with those who will be worked, moulds those who will be moulded, fashions those who will be fashioned. Give yourselves the culture of spiritual thoughts and holy communings. You have seen but the first rays of the early dawn of His glory. As you follow on to know the Lord, you will know that the “path of the righteous is as the light of dawn, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.”—Gospel Workers, 274.

Beginning of the End: Isaac’s Marriage: The Happiest in the Bible

 This chapter is based on Genesis 24.

Abraham had become an old man, yet one thing remained for him to do. God had appointed Isaac as the next keeper of the divine law and the father of the chosen people, but he was still unmarried.

The Canaanites were idol worshipers, and God had forbidden marriages between them and His people, knowing that such marriages would lead to abandoning their faith. Isaac was gentle and yielding. If he united with someone who did not fear God, he would be in danger of sacrificing principle for the sake of harmony. To Abraham, the choice of a wife for his son was extremely important, and he was anxious to have Isaac marry someone who would not lead him away from God.

In ancient times, marriage engagements were generally made by the parents, and this was the custom among those who worshiped God. None were required to marry those whom they could not love, but the youth were guided by the judgment of their God-fearing parents. It was a dishonor to parents, even a crime, to act contrary to this.

Trusting his father, Isaac was satisfied to commit the matter to him, believing also that God Himself would direct in the choice made. Abraham’s thoughts turned to his father’s relatives in Mesopotamia. They were not free from idolatry, but they had a knowledge of the true God. Isaac must not go to them, but it might be that one could be found among them who would leave her home and unite with him in maintaining the pure worship of the living God.

Abraham committed the important matter to Eliezer, his “oldest servant,” a man of experience and sound judgment who had served him long and faithfully. He insisted that this servant make a solemn oath that he would not take a wife for Isaac from the Canaanites but would choose a maiden from the family of Nahor in Mesopotamia. If a young woman could not be found who would leave her home and family, then the messenger would be released from his oath. Abraham encouraged him with the assurance that God would crown his mission with success. “The Lord God of heaven,” he said, “who took me from my father’s house and from the  land of my family ... He will send His angel before you.”

The messenger set out without delay. Taking ten camels for his own attendants and the bridal party that might return with him as well as gifts for the intended wife and friends, he made the long journey beyond Damascus to the plains that border on the Euphrates, the great river of the East.

When he arrived at Haran, “the city of Nahor,” he stopped outside the walls near the well where the women came at evening for water. His thoughts troubled him. Far-reaching results, not only to his master’s household but to future generations, might follow from the choice he made. Remembering that God would send His angel with him, he prayed for clear guidance. In his master’s family he was accustomed to constant kindness and hospitality, and now he asked that an act of courtesy might indicate the maiden whom God had chosen.

Hardly had he uttered the prayer before the answer was given. Among the women at the well, the courteous manners of one attracted his attention. As she came from the well, the stranger went to meet her, asking for some water from the pitcher on her shoulder. The request received a kind answer, and she offered to draw water for the camels also.

Thus the sign that he had asked for was given. The young woman “was very beautiful to behold,” and her prompt courtesy gave evidence of a kind heart and an active, energetic nature. So far the divine hand had been with him. The messenger asked whose daughter she was, and when he learned that her father was Bethuel, Abraham’s nephew, he “bowed down his head, and worshiped the Lord.”

The man told the young woman about his connection with Abraham. Returning home, she told what had happened, and Laban, her brother, at once hurried to bring the stranger to share their hospitality.

Eliezer would not eat any food until he had told them about his errand, his prayer at the well, and all the circumstances that went with it. Then he said, “Now if you will deal kindly and truly with my master, tell me. And if not, tell me, that I may turn to the right hand or to the left.” The answer was, “The thing comes from the Lord; we cannot speak to you either bad or good. Here is Rebekah before you; take her and go, and let her be your master’s son’s wife, as the Lord has spoken.”

With God at Dawn: The Word of Christ Shall Dwell in Me, June 22

A Steadfast Experience

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. Colossians 3:16.

Faith in Jesus will grow as you become better acquainted with your Redeemer by dwelling upon His spotless life and His infinite love. You cannot dishonor God more than to profess to be His disciple while you keep at a distance from Him, and are not fed and nourished by His Holy Spirit.

When you are growing in grace, you will love to attend religious meetings, and you will gladly bear testimony of the love of Christ before the congregation. God, by His grace, can make the young man prudent, and He can give to the children knowledge and experience. They can grow in grace daily. You should not measure your faith by your feelings.

Closely examine your own heart, and the state of your affections toward God. Inquire, Have I devoted the precious moments of today in seeking to please myself, seeking for my own amusement? or have I made others happy? Have I helped those connected with me to greater devotion to God and to appreciate eternal things? Have I brought my religion into my home, and there revealed the grace of Christ in my words and in my deportment? By my respectful obedience, have I honored my parents, and thus kept the fifth commandment? Have I cheerfully taken up my little, everyday duties, performing them with fidelity, doing what I could to lighten the burdens of others? Have I kept my lips from evil, and my tongue from speaking guile? Have I honored Christ my Redeemer, who gave His precious life that eternal life might be within my reach?—Messages to Young People, 121, 122.

Beginning of the End: Another Sodom

 In the religious world today God’s mercy has been taken for granted and treated lightly. Many people try to invalidate the law by “teaching as doctrines the commandments of men” (Matthew 15:9). Skepticism prevails in many churches, not skepticism in its broadest sense—an open denial of the Bible—but a skepticism undermining faith in the Bible as a revelation from God. Genuine devotion to God has been replaced by hollow formalism and as a result apostasy and immorality prevail. Christ declared, “As it was also in the days of Lot ... Even so will it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed” (Luke 17:28, 30). The world is quickly becoming ready for destruction.

Our Savior said, “Take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly. For it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth”—all whose interests are centered in this world. “Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man” (Luke 21:34-36).

Before the destruction of Sodom, God sent a message to Lot, “Escape for your life!” The same voice of warning was heard before the destruction of Jerusalem: “When you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its destruction is near. Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains” (Luke 21:20, 21).  Rather than delay, they must quickly take the opportunity to escape.

There was a coming out, a decided separation from the wicked, an escape for life. So it was in the days of Noah, Lot, and with the disciples before the destruction of Jerusalem, and so it will be in the last days. Again the voice of God is heard, calling His people to separate from the widespread wickedness.

The corruption and apostasy of the last days were presented to the prophet John in the vision of Babylon, “that great city which reigns over the kings of the earth” (Revelation 17:18). Before its destruction the call from heaven is to be given, “Come out of her, My people, lest you share in her sins, and lest you receive of her plagues” (Revelation 18:4). Just as in the days of Noah and Lot, there must be no compromise between God and the world, no turning back to get earthly treasures (see Matthew 6:24).

People are dreaming of prosperity and peace. Many people exclaim, “Peace and safety,” while Heaven declares that swift destruction is about to come on the transgressor. On the night before their destruction, the cities of the plain rioted in pleasure and laughed at the warnings of the messenger of God, but that very night the door of mercy was forever closed to the careless inhabitants of Sodom. God will not always be mocked.

The great majority of the world will reject God’s mercy and will be overwhelmed in swift and final ruin. But those who hear and obey the warning will dwell “in the secret place of the Most High,” and “abide under the shadow of the Almighty” (Psalm 91:1).

Lot did not live very long in Zoar. He saw that it was as wicked as Sodom and was afraid it too would be destroyed, so he soon moved to a cave in the mountains. Not long after, Zoar was consumed as God had seen necessary.

But the curse of Sodom followed Lot even to the mountains. The sinful conduct of his daughters was the result of evil associations in that vile place. Lot had chosen Sodom for its pleasure and profit, yet he had retained the fear of God in his heart. He was saved at last as “a brand plucked from the fire,” but without his possessions, mourning the loss of his wife and children, dwelling in caves, and covered with shame in his old age. And he gave to the world, not a race of righteous people, but two idolatrous nations, opposing God and warring with His people until, when their cup of iniquity was full, they were destroyed. How terrible the results that followed one unwise step!

“Labor not to be rich; cease from thine own wisdom.” “He who is greedy for gain troubles his own house.” “Those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition” (Proverbs 23:4 KJV; 15:27; 1 Timothy 6:9).

When Lot entered Sodom he fully intended to keep himself free from iniquity and command his household after him. But he failed. The result is there for us to see.

Like Lot, many see their children ruined, and they barely save their  own souls. Their lifework is lost; their life is a sad failure. If they had exercised true wisdom, their children might have had less worldly prosperity, but they would have made sure of a claim to the immortal inheritance.

The heritage that God has promised is not in this world. Abraham “dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise; for he waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God.” We must live as pilgrims and strangers here if we intend to gain “a better, that is, a heavenly country” (Hebrews 11:9, 10, 16).

With God at Dawn: I Shall Not Fear, June 21

A Steadfast Experience

The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? Psalm 27:1.

Those who are finally victorious will have seasons of terrible perplexity and trial in their religious life; but they must not cast away their confidence, for this is a part of their discipline in the school of Christ, and it is essential in order that all dross may be purged away. The servant of God must endure with fortitude the attacks of the enemy, his grievous taunts, and must overcome the obstacles which Satan will place in his way.

Satan will seek to discourage the followers of Christ, so that they may not pray or study the Scriptures, and he will throw his hateful shadow athwart the path to hide Jesus from the view, to shut away the vision of His love, and the glories of the heavenly inheritance. It is his delight to cause the children of God to go shrinkingly, tremblingly, and painfully along, under continual doubt. He seeks to make the pathway as sorrowful as possible; but if you keep looking up, not down at your difficulties, you will not faint in the way, you will soon see Jesus reaching His hand to help you, and you will only have to give Him your hand in simple confidence, and let Him lead you....

Jesus is the light of the world, and you are to fashion your life after His. You will find help in Christ to form a strong, symmetrical, beautiful character. Satan cannot make of none effect the light shining forth from such a character. The Lord has a work for each of us to do. He does not provide that we shall be sustained by the influence of human praise and petting; He means that every soul shall stand in the strength of the Lord.—Messages to Young People, 63.

Beginning of the End: Sodom Destroyed

 “The sun had risen upon the earth when Lot entered Zoar.” The bright rays of morning seemed to promise only prosperity and peace to the cities of the plain. The stir of active life began in the streets; people were going their various ways, intent on the business or pleasure of the day. The sons-in-law of Lot were making fun of the fears and warnings of the weak-minded old man.

Suddenly and unexpectedly as thunder from a cloudless sky, the storm broke. The Lord rained brimstone and fire on the cities and the plain. Palaces and temples, costly homes, gardens, vineyards, and the pleasure-seeking crowds that only the night before had insulted the messengers of heaven—all were consumed. The smoke went up like a great furnace. The lovely Valley of Siddim became a place never to be  built up or inhabited—a witness to all generations that God’s judgments on transgression are certain.

There are greater sins than those for which Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed. People who hear the gospel invitation calling to repentance, and pay no attention, are more guilty than the dwellers in the Valley of Siddim. The fate of Sodom is a solemn warning, not merely to those guilty of defiant sin, but to all who do not take seriously their Heaven-sent light and privileges.

The Savior watches for a response to His offers of love and forgiveness with more tender compassion than that which moves the heart of an earthly parent to forgive a wayward child. “Return to Me, and I will return to you” (Malachi 3:7). But anyone who persistently refuses that tender love will finally be left in darkness. The heart that has disrespectfully ignored God’s mercy for a long time becomes hardened in sin, no longer able to respond to the influence of the grace of God. It will be more tolerable in the day of judgment for the cities of the plain than for those who have known the love of Christ and yet have turned away to the pleasure of sin. In the books of heaven God keeps a record of the sins of nations, of families, of individuals. Calls to repentance, offers of pardon may be given; yet a time will come when the account will be full. The individual’s decision has been made, and by his or her own choice, that person’s destiny has been fixed. Then the signal will be given for judgment to be carried out.

With God at Dawn: Faithfulness in that Which Is Least, June 20

A Steadfast Experience

He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much. Luke 16:10.

As a man “thinketh in his heart, so is he.” Many thoughts make up the unwritten history of a single day; and these thoughts have much to do with the formation of character. Our thoughts are to be strictly guarded; for one impure thought makes a deep impression on the soul. An evil thought leaves an evil impress on the mind. If the thoughts are pure and holy, the man is better for having cherished them. By them the spiritual pulse is quickened, and the power for doing good is increased. And as one drop of rain prepares the way for another in moistening the earth, so one good thought prepares the way for another.

The longest journey is performed by taking one step at a time. A succession of steps brings us to the end of the road. The longest chain is composed of separate links. If one of these links is faulty, the chain is worthless. Thus it is with character. A well-balanced character is formed by single acts well performed. One defect, cultivated instead of being overcome, makes the man imperfect, and closes against him the gate of the Holy City. He who enters heaven must have a character that is without spot or wrinkle or any such thing. Naught that defileth can ever enter there. In all the redeemed host not one defect will be seen.

God’s work is perfect as a whole because it is perfect in every part, however minute. He fashions the tiny spear of grass with as much care as He would exercise in making a world. If we desire to be perfect, ... we must be faithful in doing little things.—Messages to Young People, 144.

Beginning of the End: Lot Loses Everything Except His Life

 Lot returned sorrowfully to his home and reported that his appeal had failed. Then the angels told him to take his wife and two daughters who were still in the house and leave. But Lot delayed. He had no true concept of the debasing sins practiced in that wicked city, and he did not realize the terrible necessity for God’s judgments to put a restraint on sin. Some of Lot’s children clung to Sodom, and the thought of leaving those whom he held dearest on earth seemed more than he could bear. It was hard to forsake his luxurious home and all the wealth of his whole life, to go out as a poor, homeless wanderer. Shocked with sorrow, he lingered. If it had not been for the angels, all of them would have perished. The heavenly messengers took him and his wife and daughters by the hand and led them out of the city.

In all the cities of the plain, even ten righteous persons had not been found. But in answer to Abraham’s prayer, the one man who feared God was snatched from destruction. The command was given with startling intensity: “Escape for your life! Do not look behind you nor stay anywhere in the plain. Escape to the mountains, lest you be destroyed.” To cast one lingering look on the city, to delay for one moment from regret to leave so beautiful a home, would cost their life. The storm of divine judgment was only waiting so that these poor fugitives could escape.

But Lot, confused and terrified, pleaded that he could not do what the two visitors had told him to do. Living in that wicked city, his faith had grown weak. The Prince of heaven was by his side, yet he pleaded for his own life as though God, who had shown such love for him, would not still take care of him. He should have trusted himself entirely to the divine Messenger. “See now, this city is near enough to flee to, and it is a little one; Please let me escape there (is it not a little one?) and my soul shall live.” Zoar was only a few miles from Sodom, and like it, was corrupt and doomed to destruction. But Lot asked for it to be spared, urging that this was just a small request. His desire was granted. The Lord assured him, “I have favored you concerning this thing also, in that I will not overthrow this city for which you have spoken.”

Again, the command was given to hurry, for the fiery storm would be delayed only a little longer. But one of the fugitives took a look backward to the doomed city, and she became a monument of God’s judgment. If Lot himself had earnestly fled toward the mountains without one word of objection, his wife would have made her escape also. His example would have saved her from the sin that sealed her doom, but his reluctance caused her to regard the divine warning lightly. While her body was on the plain, her heart clung to Sodom, and she perished with it. She rebelled against God because His judgments involved her possessions and children in the ruin. She felt that God had dealt severely with her in requiring that the wealth that had taken years to accumulate be left to destruction. Instead of thankfully accepting deliverance, she looked back presumptuously, longing for the way of life of those who rejected the divine warning.

There are Christians who say, “I don’t want to be saved unless my companion and children are saved.” They feel heaven would not be heaven without the presence of those who are so dear. But have those who cherish this feeling forgotten that they are bound by the strongest ties of love and loyalty to their Creator and Redeemer? Because our friends reject the Savior’s love, shall we also turn away? Christ has paid an infinite price for our salvation, and no one who appreciates its value will despise God’s mercy because others choose to do so. The fact that others ignore His claims should spur us on to be more diligent, that we may honor God and lead all whom we can to accept His love.

With God at Dawn: I Shall Be Like a Tree, June 19

 A Steadfast Experience

And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. Psalm 1:3.

There must be no pretense in the lives of those who have so sacred and solemn a message as we have been called to bear. The world is watching Seventh-day Adventists, because it knows something of their profession of faith, and of their high standard, and when it sees those who do not live up to their profession, it points at them with scorn.

Those who love Jesus will bring all in their lives into harmony with His will. They have chosen to be on the Lord’s side, and their lives are to stand out in vivid contrast with the lives of worldlings. The tempter will come to them with his blandishments and bribes, saying, “All this will I give thee if thou wilt worship me.” But they know that he has nothing worth receiving, and they refuse to yield to his temptations. Through the grace of God, they are enabled to keep their purity of principle unsullied. Holy angels are close beside them, and Christ is revealed in their steadfast adherence to the truth.

They are Christ’s minutemen, bearing, as true witnesses, a decided testimony in favor of the truth. They show that there is a spiritual power that can enable men and women not to swerve an inch from truth and justice, for all the gifts that men can bestow. Such ones, wherever they may be, will be honored of heaven, because they have conformed their lives to the will of God, caring not what sacrifices they are called upon to make.—Testimonies for the Church 9:23.

Men must have moral backbone, an integrity which cannot be flattered, bribed, or terrified.—Testimonies for the Church 5:297.