Before Jesus ascended to heaven He promised His disciples that He would send to them another Helper who would guide them into all truth and bring to their remembrance what He had taught them. This promise has lost none of its force for Christians today, but like every other promise it is given on conditions and will only be fulfilled to those who ask for the Holy Spirit’s guidance as they study God’s word. God has given us His word to study and He does not intend to study it for us.
“It is of the greatest importance to us that we obtain a knowledge of the Bible. … Our only safety is in becoming personally acquainted with the reasons of our faith. …
“The law of God will be made void in the world; its authority will be despised just as it was in heaven in the first great rebellion … .
“God has made full provision in the Scriptures for our equipment against deception, and we shall be without excuse, if, through neglect of God’s word, we are unable to resist the errors of the evil one. We need to watch unto prayer. We need daily to search the Scriptures diligently, that we may not be ensnared by some delusive error that seems like truth.
“Our greatest danger lies in our tendency to refuse increased light, and our only safety is to see and understand for ourselves ‘what saith the Lord.’ …
“The prophet [John] described the faithful ones, saying, ‘Here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.’ This is the class that excite the wrath of the dragon because they obey God, and are loyal to His commandments. …
“There is safety alone in taking the Scriptures as our rule of life, and as the test of our doctrines. Martin Luther exclaimed, ‘The Bible, and the Bible alone, is the foundation of our faith!’ Our work is to hold up the law of God; for Christ has said that ‘it is easier for heaven and earth to pass, than for one tittle of the law to fail.’ ” The Signs of the Times, April 22, 1889