Helena Welch

Children’s Story – Hands Across the Wheat Field

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The wheat stood bright and golden in the big field, and Peter liked to watch as puffs of wind blew across it. “It waves, Father, just like water!” he exclaimed.

Peter’s father smiled and put his rough hand on the boy’s fair head. “Yes, it does, son. And tomorrow the machines will start rolling through it.”

Peter knew what machines his father meant. They were the big combines that went around and around the field. They harvested the grain from the growing stalks of wheat and dumped it in trucks to be hauled to the market in town.

The wheat crop had been good this year in Argentina, the country where Peter and his family lived, and Peter had had lots of fun playing in the field. Now, in a way, he was a little sad to think that he wouldn’t be able to see the grain waving in the wind much longer. If the combines started in the morning, most likely by evening the whole field would be harvested.

“I’ll miss the wheat, Father,” Peter mourned.

Father smiled and nodded his head. “I guess I will too. But it is harvesttime. You know the Bible tells us that there is a time to sow and a time to harvest. We sowed the wheat at the right time, and it grew green and tall. After many weeks the wind and rain made it ripen. Now it is ready to be harvested. If it stands too long, the wheat stems will weaken and fall. Then we will lose the grain.”

Quietly Peter listened to his father, then he smiled too. He knew that his parents needed the money the wheat would bring to help them live through the coming winter. Slowly Peter reached out and took his father’s hand. “I’m glad it is harvest time,” he said.

Father squeezed Peter’s hand tightly in his. “I’m glad it is too.”

Early the next morning Peter and his small sister, Rosita, went outside to watch for the big combines to come down the road from town. The sky was clear and bright and the sun rose higher and higher. A long time passed, but the combines did not come.

Rosita grew restless. “Let’s do something else,” she begged. “I’m tired of watching for the ‘bines.”

Peter laughed. “All right. Why don’t we chase butterflies for a change? I just saw one fly into the wheat field.”

“Oh, yes!” exclaimed Rosita happily. “I see one right now.”

Away she ran toward the house as fast as her chubby little legs would carry her, following the pretty butterfly. For a few seconds Peter watched her. Then he saw a big beautiful butterfly of many colors flitting past and began a chase of his own.

Just how long Peter chased butterflies he didn’t know. He soon lost the big butterfly, but he saw others of all colors and sizes. He forgot about Rosita. And he forgot about the combines, too, until he heard them coming down the road.

“Rosita!” he shouted at his little sister, starting back toward the house. “Here comes the combines!”

But Rosita didn’t answer. Mother heard Peter and came out on the porch.

“Rosita isn’t with me,” Mother said. “I thought she went out with you to watch for the combines.”

“She did,” Peter explained, “but we began chasing butterflies. I saw her chase one toward the house.”

Peter saw his father coming from the barn, and he ran to meet him. “Father, is Rosita at the barn?” he called.

“No,” Father answered in a puzzled voice. “I thought she was with you.”

Peter wanted to cry. “She was,” he explained again, “but we began chasing butterflies, and now I don’t know where she is.”

Father looked worried, but he patted Peter’s shoulder. “We’ll find her,” he comforted. “I’ll tell the men not to start the combines. Rosita may be in the wheat field.”

With a sinking heart Peter stared across the acres and acres of waving grain. How would they ever find his little sister in such a big field?

But Father had a plan. Mother and Peter would join hands and walk across the field. “We will walk and call until we reach the back side,” Father explained. “Then we will turn and walk back again. That way we won’t miss any ground. Rosita may have sat down somewhere to rest and fallen asleep. If she had, she won’t hear us call. If we don’t join hands, in this tall wheat we may miss her.”

The men thought the plan was a good one. As they all lined up and joined hands, Father prayed and asked for Jesus’ help.

When the prayer was over, Peter took Father’s hand and looked around for someone else’s hand. But there was no one else. He was on the end of the line.

Father looked down at Peter and said softly, “Just take hold of Jesus’ hand, son. He will help us find Rosita.”

As they began moving across the field Peter almost felt that Jesus was holding his hand. The wheat was very tall. It was over his head in places, but somehow it wasn’t hard to walk through.

All up and down the line Peter could hear the men calling Rosita’s name. Mother and Father called too. Peter didn’t call. He had to keep up with his father, who could take long steps.

All at once Peter pulled his hand from Father’s and began to run through the wheat field. When he was a little way ahead of the others, he stopped and knelt down and prayed. He could hear Father calling him to come back before he got lost too. But when he had finished praying, he got up and ran in another direction. Something seemed to tell him to keep going. On and on he ran.

Then suddenly he stopped and stood still. Right in front of him was Rosita. She was fast asleep, her head pillowed on a little pile of wheat stalks.

“Father!” Peter shouted as loudly as he could. “Father, here’s Rosita. I’ve found her!”

When Father came, Rosita woke up and rubbed her eyes. “I got losted,” she sniffled. “I called and called, but no one knew where I was.”

Peter reached out and took her hand. “Jesus knew where you were,” he told her. “He helped me find you. Father told me to take Jesus’ hand when we joined hands to look for you, and Jesus told me what to do.”

By this time the others who had been looking for Rosita came up to where she was. They heard what Peter said. One of the men smiled at him and said, “Son, I think Jesus really did take your hand. I think He led you right to your little sister.”

Peter smiled back at the man. He thought that Jesus had too. In fact, he was certain that Jesus had stretched His hand across the whole wheat field!

Heaven, Please! Helena Welch, 10–15.

The Efficacy of Christ’s Blood

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The children of Israel were anciently commanded to make an offering for the entire congregation to purify them from ceremonial defilement. This sacrifice was a red heifer and represented the more perfect offering that should redeem from the pollution of sin. This was an occasional sacrifice for the purification of all those who had necessarily or accidentally touched the dead. All who came in contact with death in any way were considered ceremonially unclean. This was to forcibly impress the minds of the Hebrews with the fact that death came in consequence of sin and therefore is a representative of sin. The one heifer, the one ark, the one brazen serpent, impressively point to the one great offering, the sacrifice of Christ.

This heifer was to be red, which was a symbol of blood. It must be without spot or blemish, and one that had never borne a yolk. Here, again, Christ was typified. The Son of God came voluntarily to accomplish the work of atonement. There was no obligatory yoke upon Him, for He was independent and above all law. The angels, as God’s intelligent messengers, were under the yoke of obligation; no personal sacrifice of theirs could atone for the guilt of fallen man. Christ alone was free from the claims of the law to undertake the redemption of the sinful race. He had power to lay down His life and to take it up again. “Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God” (Philippians 2:6).

Yet this glorious Being loved the poor sinner and took upon Himself the form of servant, that He suffer and die in man’s behalf. Jesus might have remained at His Father’s right hand, wearing His kingly crown and royal robes. But He chose to exchange all the riches, honor, and glory of heaven for the poverty of humanity, and His station of high command for the horrors of Gethsemane and the humiliation and agony of Calvary. He became a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief, that by His baptism of suffering and blood He might purify and redeem a guilty world. “Lo, I come,” was the joyful assent, “to do Thy will, O My God” (Psalm 40:7, 8).

The sacrificial heifer was conducted without the camp and slain in the most imposing manner. Thus Christ suffered without the gates of Jerusalem, for Calvary was outside the city walls. This was to show that Christ did not die for the Hebrews alone, but for all mankind. He proclaims to a fallen world that He has come to be their Redeemer and urges them to accept the salvation He offers them. The heifer having been slain in a most solemn manner, the priest, clothed in pure white garments, took the blood in his hands as it issued from the body of the victim and cast it toward the temple seven times. “And having an high priest over the house of God; let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water” (Hebrews 10:21, 22).

The body of the heifer was burned to ashes, which signified a whole and ample sacrifice. The ashes were then gathered up by a person uncontaminated by contact with the dead and placed in a vessel containing water from a running stream. This clean and pure person then took a cedar stick with scarlet cloth and a bunch of hyssop, and sprinkled the contents of the vessel upon the tent and the people assembled. This ceremony was repeated several times in order to be thorough and was done as a purification from sin.

Thus Christ, in His own spotless righteousness, after shedding His precious blood, enters into the holy place to cleanse the sanctuary. And there the crimson currents is brought into the service of reconciling God to man. Some may look upon this slaying of the heifer as a meaningless ceremony, but it was done by the command of God and bears a deep significance that has not lost its application to the present time.

The priest used cedar and hyssop, dipping them into the cleansing water and sprinkling the unclean. This symbolized the blood of Christ spilled to cleanse us from moral impurities. The repeated sprinklings illustrate the thoroughness of the work that must be accomplished for the repenting sinner. All that he has must be consecrated. Not only should his own soul be washed clean and pure, but he should strive to have his family, his domestic arrangements, his property, and his entire belongings consecrated to God.

After the tent had been sprinkled with hyssop, over the door of those cleansed was written: I am not my own; Lord, I am Thine. Thus should it be with those who profess to be cleansed by the blood of Christ. God is no less exacting now than He was in olden times. The psalmist, in his prayer, refers to this symbolic ceremony when he says: “Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.” “Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.” “Restore unto me the joy of Thy salvation; and uphold me with Thy free spirit” (Psalm 51:7, 10, 12).

The blood of Christ is efficacious, but it needs to be applied continually. God not only wants His servants to use the means He has entrusted to them for His glory, but He desires them to make a consecration of themselves to His cause. If you, my brethren, have become selfish and are withholding from the Lord that which you should cheerfully give to His service, then you need the blood of sprinkling thoroughly applied, consecrating you and all your possessions to God.

[All emphasis author’s.]

Testimony Treasures, 481–483.

Current Events – An Atheist China Warms to the Vatican

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Religious Persecution “Intensifies”

A recent article written by CNN reporters James Griffiths and Matt Rivers details the growing relationship between atheist China and the Vatican. (www.cnn.com/2017/02/28/asia/china-religious-persecution-christianity/index.html)

While noting the increasing persecution of Protestants in China, the authors write of the “warming ties” between Beijing and Rome: “As the situation has worsened for Protestants, relations between the Vatican and Beijing are at their strongest level in years.

“Pope Francis has expressed his desire to visit China, and reports last year suggested the two sides were moving to a deal on the ordination of bishops, long a sticking point. …

“Asked about the potential for a deal, the Vatican would not comment, with a spokesman saying it was a ‘work in progress.’

“Father Simon Zhu, a Chinese priest in an officially-sanctioned church, told CNN, ‘We pray for this normalization between Rome and Beijing.’ ”

While the increasing improvement in the relationship between the two is heralded by some, it is viewed with skepticism by others. Retired Cardinal Joseph Zen, former Bishop of Hong Kong, remarked, “We are afraid it’s going to be a bad deal. There’s no reason to hope the Communists will change. They already have very tight control of the above ground church, their hope is to have the underground church under their control as well.”

The ultimate goal, of course, is for Rome to control both the “above ground church” and the “underground church.”

“And let it be remembered, it is the boast of Rome that she never changes. The principles of Gregory VII and Innocent III are still the principles of the Roman Catholic Church. And had she but the power, she would put them in practice with as much vigor now as in past centuries. … While they are bent upon the accomplishment of their purpose, Rome is aiming to re-establish her power, to recover her lost supremacy.” The Great Controversy, 581.

Health – Magnesium – Why You Need It

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Researchers have found magnesium to be a vital mineral that can lower blood pressure, protects the heart, and prevents stroke.

It has been shown to boost everything from heart health to bone density, and it can lower the risk of diabetes, high blood pressure, and stroke. It even improves memory, eases anxiety, treats headaches, and targets depression.

Magnesium is an inexpensive, readily available essential nutrient that many health experts are calling a “miracle mineral.”

But chances are that you, like most people, don’t get enough of it. Carolyn Dean, M.D., author of The Magnesium Miracle tells Newsmax that it is the most beneficial health-boosting mineral available. Yet most people have never heard of it … .

“Magnesium affects every organ, tissue, and cell in the body,” said Dean, a Hawaii-based physician and holistic specialist. “Magnesium deficiency is killing people, and it’s a simple solution to many of our chronic diseases.” Government studies going back more than two decades have found the standard American diet fails to meet the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s recommended daily allowance of magnesium, which is 400–420 mg per day for men, and 310–320 for women. Dean believes health officials and the mainstream medical establishment need to do more to raise the public awareness of magnesium’s many benefits.

“A hundred years ago we were getting 500 mg in our daily diet,” she said. “Today we are fortunate to get 200 mg. Most people think that their doctors would have warned them about this problem. But doctors are as ignorant as the public about magnesium’s health effects.”

Nature’s Disease Fighter

Magnesium is one of the body’s most common essential minerals. It is found in the body’s muscles, bones, blood, and tissues. It is involved in regulating everything from blood pressure to heart activity, energy production, nervous system function, cell growth, bone density, muscle strength, and metabolism.

Magnesium is present in a range of foods, including spinach, wheat germ, bran cereals, brown rice, beans, tofu, soybeans, and nuts. But the problem is that decades of commercial agricultural processes have depleted the levels of magnesium and other nutrients in farm soils. This has resulted in less of the nutrients being in fruits and vegetables.

A U.S. Department of Agriculture study published in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition found the levels of nutrients in American-grown produce were as much as 38 percent higher in 1950 than they are today. A growing body of scientific evidence has shown that magnesium deficiency can raise the risk of a range of diseases.

Blood pressure: Over a four-year period, men with sufficient magnesium had a lower risk of hypertension than men consuming lower levels, according to a study of 30,000 men. A second survey of 8,000 women also found that the risk of hypertension decreased as dietary magnesium intake increased.

Heart disease, stroke: Magnesium helps regulate heart rate, says Chauncey Crandall, M.D., director of preventive medicine at the Palm Beach Cardiovascular Clinic. “The mineral is particularly important for people who have had an irregular heartbeat,” he told Newsmax. “Magnesium helps suppress extra heartbeats.”

A 2011 study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found a 40 percent greater risk of sudden cardiac death among women with low levels of magnesium.

Several other studies have linked higher blood levels of magnesium to a lower risk of heart disease and stroke.

Diabetes: Magnesium is a key regulator of carbohydrate metabolism. It influences the release and activity of insulin, the hormone that helps control blood sugar levels. Low blood levels of magnesium are often seen in Type 2 diabetes patients.

Two major research projects, the “Nurses’ Health Study” and the “Health Professionals’ Follow-Up Study,” that followed more than 170,000 people, have found the risk for Type 2 diabetes is greater in people with lower magnesium.

Osteoporosis: Calcium and vitamin D are important for bone health. But studies also show magnesium deficiency is a risk factor for postmenopausal osteoporosis. This is probably because magnesium deficiency alters calcium metabolism and the hormones that regulate calcium absorption. Several studies have found that magnesium supplements and diets that meet the recommended daily allowances for the mineral improve bone mineral density.

In addition, Dean noted dozens of other studies have linked magnesium to a host of mental health benefits – in treating migraines, tension headaches, insomnia, depression, panic attacks, stress, and anxiety.

She said research has also found that adequate intake of magnesium can help in the prevention and treatment of such conditions as pre-eclampsia, eclampsia, premenstrual syndrome, dysmenorrhea, kidney stones, fibromyalgia, blood clots, fibrositis, tooth decay, insomnia, and muscle and nerve problems.

Are You At Risk?

One of the major problems with magnesium is that current diagnostic tests do not provide an accurate indication of whether a patient has a deficiency. “Doctors don’t have the tools to measure magnesium levels properly,” Dean explains. The best way to tell if you’re getting enough is to consider the long list of symptoms deficiency can cause.

Here are the most common: muscle cramps, twitching, heart palpitations, migraines, angina, irregular heartbeat, asthma, anxiety, fatigue, poor concentration, depression, numbness of hands or feet, back pain, diabetes, high blood pressure, osteoporosis, PMS, and seizures. If you suffer from any of these problems regularly, you may have low levels of magnesium.

Finding the right supplement: However, not all magnesium supplements are the same. The primary side effects of taking the mineral are digestion problems and possible diarrhea. Cheaper supplements have a laxative effect. The solution is to take a quality, time-released supplement that allows your body to absorb the mineral slowly.

Seek out also pesticide free magnesium rich foods in the diet, which include seeds, whole grains, avocados, bananas, dried fruit, figs, artichokes, potatoes and especially leafy green vegetables. Add to these a high quality magnesium supplement, assuring the body of obtaining the level of magnesium it needs for highest function.

Question & answer – Explain “build up Zion with blood, and Jerusalem with iniquity” in Micah 3:10

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“They build up Zion with blood, and Jerusalem with iniquity” (Micah 3:10).

“These words faithfully described the corrupt and self-righteous inhabitants of Jerusalem. While claiming to observe rigidly the precepts of God’s law, they were transgressing all its principles. They hated Christ because His purity and holiness revealed their iniquity; and they accused Him of being the cause of all the troubles which had come upon them in consequence of their sins. Though they knew Him to be sinless, they had declared that His death was necessary to their safety as a nation. ‘If we let Him thus alone,’ said the Jewish leaders, ‘all men will believe on Him: and the Romans shall come and take away both our place and nation’ (John 11:48). If Christ were sacrificed, they might once more become a strong, united people. Thus they reasoned, and they concurred in the decision of their high priest, that it would be better for one man to die than for the whole nation to perish.

“Thus the Jewish leaders had built up ‘Zion with blood, and Jerusalem with iniquity’ (Micah 3:10). And yet, while they slew their Saviour because He reproved their sins, such was their self-righteousness that they regarded themselves as God’s favored people and expected the Lord to deliver them from their enemies. ‘Therefore,’ continued the prophet, ‘shall Zion for your sake be plowed as a field, and Jerusalem shall become heaps, and the mountain of the house as the high places of the forest’ (verse 12).” The Great Controversy, 27.

“The long-suffering of God toward Jerusalem only confirmed the Jews in their stubborn impenitence. In their hatred and cruelty toward the disciples of Jesus they rejected the last offer of mercy. … Men did not reason; they were beyond reason—controlled by impulse and blind rage. They became satanic in their cruelty. In the family and in the nation, among the highest and the lowest classes alike, there was suspicion, envy, hatred, strife, rebellion, murder. There was no safety anywhere. Friends and kindred betrayed one another. Parents slew their children, and children their parents. The rulers of the people had no power to rule themselves. Uncontrolled passions made them tyrants. The Jews had accepted false testimony to condemn the innocent Son of God. Now false accusations made their own lives uncertain. By their actions they had long been saying: ‘Cause the Holy One of Israel to cease from before us’ (Isaiah 30:11). Now their desire was granted. The fear of God no longer disturbed them. Satan was at the head of the nation, and the highest civil and religious authorities were under his sway.” Ibid. 28, 29.

Inspiration – The Wise Use of Talents

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In the parable of the talents, the servant to whom were entrusted five talents traded upon them wisely, and in the day of reckoning was able to return double this number to the Master. The one also who received two talents, doubled these. But the man who received only one talent, hid it in a napkin, and buried it in the earth. When the master returned and reckoned with his servants, the sentence pronounced upon this slothful servant was, “Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents” (Matthew 25:28).

To every man and to every woman God has given a work for him. He has not given to all the same work. Some have a greater number of talents than others have. God’s children are to use their talents according to their several ability. Those who have five talents should faithfully put them out to the exchangers. To those who have two talents the Lord says, “Trade upon your talents, using and improving them to My glory.”

The One Talent

Those who have received only one talent (and to each is entrusted at least one), should resolve by God’s grace to use it wisely. Instead of burying it, say: “Though I have but one talent, I must make the most of it. I will be faithful in the little things; for the Word declares, ‘He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much’ (Luke 16:10) I will use to the very best advantage that which is given me. I will not waste one jot of my powers in indulging appetite or in gratifying pride of appearance. In my family I will strive to be a faithful parent, teaching my children to be honest and truthful, kind and patient, and training them for the future, immortal life. By God’s help, I myself will try to be all that I desire my children to be; for in speaking of His disciples, Christ said, ‘For their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also might be sanctified’ (John 17:19).”

My brother, my sister, if you have buried in the earth the one talent entrusted to you, I beseech you to improve it before God inquires, “What have you done with the talent that I gave you?” Thank Him that He has manifested His great love to you by entrusting you with even one talent. By word and act show that you appreciate this gift, and that you regard it as a treasure of greater value than anything else you possess. Put your talent out to the exchangers.

The Talent of Speech

The power of speech is a precious possession, given us by the Master to be used in blessing our fellow beings. In using this talent aright, we honor him. But we dishonor him by using the gift of speech to tell of our discouragements and to magnify our trials. We need stronger faith, more perfect trust. How changed would be our experience if the time we spend in repining were spent in beholding Jesus, and in telling others of his love! Then our words would be profitable. Then we should offer to God thanksgiving instead of complaint. Then we should have no inclination to talk about our trials, so filled would our minds be with the thought that we are receiving abundant blessings.

The Talent of Means

Often the talent of means is laid away, hidden and unused. Money lying idle in banks is regarded by the Lord as a buried talent. God desires His followers to use the talent of means in His service. We should do our part in helping to carry forward the different lines of His work in all parts of the earth. A great work is to be done in the cities. Camp-meetings are to be held in many places. Those who have means may multiply their talent by using it to help support laborers in proclaiming the message of truth for this time. When through this instrumentality some one is led to accept the truth, our talent is doubled. And when this convert brings others into the truth, there is still further increase of talents. Those who double their talents in the work of saving souls, bring joy to the angels and call forth songs of praise from the heavenly choir.

The Reward of Faithfulness

To him who uses aright his one talent, as well as to the wise steward of many talents, the Master will say, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy Lord” (Matthew 25:21). The well-doer is not rewarded in proportion to the number of his entrusted talents, but in proportion to his faithfulness in using wisely that which he has, and the unselfishness of the motive that prompts his efforts.

Dear reader, God desires to use you in His service. There is a place for you to fill in this world. For no other purpose does He entrust men and women with talents. If you are faithful in filling the place He desires you to fill, He will work in your behalf, and you will see of the salvation of God.

The Atlantic Union Gleaner, September 16, 1903.

Keys to the Storehouse – Just a Little

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When I was in grade school, my mother worked and I was home alone after school. During those times I would search the house just to see what Mom and Dad had. Wow, did I find something awesome! I found my mother’s gallon dime jar in her closet. I had never seen so many dimes in one place. I was just awed. I decided that Mom would not miss a few dimes and so I decided to use a few of them. Every day I would take just a few dimes and I would stop at the little market while walking home from school and buy some Fritos and pop! I thought I was in “dime heaven.” What I did not realize was that Mom’s jar was slowly going down and that judgment was about to come—and it did! Oh I felt so bad, but the damage was done. Of course, Mom forgave me, but it was a lesson that I never forgot.

I tell this story because that is how it is when we do things that we know to be wrong but do them anyway because nobody sees us. But Somebody is watching and is saddened by our actions and is writing in the books of heaven all about it. There is one that is very happy about our actions because he, Satan, put the thought into our minds. We simply followed his bidding and because of that we will end up with him, out of heaven, unless we repent and turn from wrong.

It is good to remain loyal to God. Why? Because our “… capacity to know, to enjoy, and to love would continually increase.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 51.

God has warned us as He warned Adam and Eve of the danger that threatens us! Satan does not want you to be obedient and walk with God. His disobedience cost him the joy of heaven and he wants you to follow him.

“To man, the crowning work of creation, God has given power to understand His requirements, to comprehend the justice and beneficence of His law, and its sacred claims upon him; and of man unswerving obedience is required.

“Like the angels, the dwellers in Eden had been placed upon probation; their happy estate could be retained only on condition of fidelity to the Creator’s law. They could obey and live, or disobey and perish.” Ibid., 52 53.

“But should they once yield to temptation, their nature would become so depraved that in themselves they would have no power and no disposition to resist Satan.” Ibid., 53.

When our hearts are devoid of the love of God and His ways, our enemy finds access and leads us to follow his evil ways causing hurt to ourselves and others.

Close those doors that give Satan access. Continually fill your mind with Scripture and Spirit of Prophecy which will put a block on the devil’s suggestions. Remember, “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things” (Philippians 4:8).

Heavenly Father: I am so sorry for following the devil’s impressions. Help me to think on heavenly things at all times, according to Philippians 4:8 so that the devil will not be able to lead me into things that will keep me out of my heavenly home which you have prepared for me. Please set my affections only on heavenly things and not on the things of this earth. Remind me always that even a little will hurt—eternally! Amen.

Angels – Their Ministration

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Before Adam and Eve sinned, their home was in “Eden, the garden of God” (Ezekiel 28:13). Here they were visited, not only by holy angels, but God Himself held communion with them, and they talked with Him face to face.

After the fall, man could no longer talk with God. Neither could any sinful being see His face and live. Even to Moses, the man of God, He said, “Thou canst not see My face: for there shall no man see Me, and live” (Exodus 33:20).

It was not, however, the Creator’s will to cut man off from communication with heavenly beings. And in the darkness and uncertainty following the entrance of sin, man has ever felt the need of “some ministering spirit, some heavenly visitant from the world of light, to instruct him in the things of God.” Hence it is but natural that man should ever be reaching out for some method of communication with heaven. This need of the human soul the Lord supplies by means of the ministration of angels.

Ministering Spirits

To the inhabitants of this world the angels are messengers (see margin Judges 2:1) sent from the courts above. Around the throne of God in heaven there is an “innumerable company of angels” (Hebrews 12:22) that go and come at His command.

Says John, “I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne” (Revelation 5:11).

David says, “The Lord hath prepared His throne in the heavens; and His kingdom ruleth over all. Bless the Lord, ye His angels, that excel in strength, that do His commandments, hearkening unto the voice of His word. Bless ye the Lord, all ye His hosts; ye ministers of His, that do His pleasure” (Psalm 103:19–21).

In an earthly kingdom the conditions are similar. The monarch resides at the capital of his kingdom, which is the seat of government. Here trusty messengers bring to him reports from every part of the realm. As questions of moment are settled, the decisions are placed in the hands of those who are empowered to act in the name of the king. Thus affairs of the kingdom receive proper attention, no matter how broad or widely scattered the dominion may be.

We can readily see that the Lord employs His servants, the angels, in a similar manner. “He always works by means, or agents. The angels are His officers, or messengers, whom He has appointed to represent Him and to have charge of the affairs of this earth. They watch over God’s people, and administer to their wants. They bear the prayers of the saints up before the Lord, and come again to answer them according to His direction.”

The statement of the apostle Paul is very clear on the ministry of angels: “To which of the angels said He at any time, Sit on My right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool? Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation” (Hebrews 1:13, 14)?

To Jacob, on his lonely way as he fled from his father’s house, the attendance and ministration of heavenly angels was made very real: “And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it” (Genesis 28:12).

On his return journey, many years after, as he was about to meet his brother Esau, whom he had so cruelly wronged in his younger days, and whom he greatly feared, “the angels of God met him. And when Jacob saw them, he said, This is God’s host: and he called the name of that place Mahanaim” (Genesis 32:1, 2).

The meaning of Mahanaim is two hosts, or camps, referring to the great camp of Jacob’s band, and the camp of the angels of God. This was evidence to the patriarch that the camp of heaven was by his side to protect him in the dreaded meeting with his brother.

Angels are at times sent from heaven in answer to prayer. In Daniel 9:21, 22, we read that as the prophet was praying, the angel Gabriel was sent to answer his prayer.

Another instance in the life of Daniel gives the most realistic account of angelic ministration. The prophet was deeply burdened regarding the sins and the captivity of his people. For three weeks he had fasted and prayed to God that the way might be opened for Israel to return to their own land. Then the angel appeared to him and said:

“Fear not, Daniel: for from the first day that thou didst set thine heart to understand, and to chasten thyself before thy God, thy words were heard, and I am come for thy words. But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and twenty days: but, lo, Michael, one of the chief princes [margin, the first Prince], came to help me; and I remained there with the kings of Persia” (Daniel 10:12, 13). [Emphasis supplied.]

Daniel’s “three full weeks” (verse 2) of fasting and prayer for his people had not been in vain. The angel (doubtless Gabriel) said to him that from the first day of his fast his words were heard. Gabriel had been with the king of Persia for three weeks—just the time Daniel had been afflicting his soul.

What a lesson regarding answer to prayer! During his three weeks of fasting and prayer Daniel had no evidence that his prayers were bringing any answer. Yet every day of this time this mighty angel was engaged with the king in his effort to bring about the very results for which Daniel was praying.

During all these days Satan opposed the efforts of Gabriel to move the heart of the king. The task was too unequal, and Michael, the Son of God Himself, came to the court of the king to complete the work. Gabriel is thus released, and goes swiftly to Daniel, to assure him that his prayers are heard, and to give him the instruction for which he has been pleading.

Michael, equal with the Father in all the power of heaven, is soon able to bring the king of Persia to terms, and the release of Israel is assured.

We read and talk of the romance of history, and of the titanic forces employed in modern warfare. But what earthly event can compare with this scene, in which the actors were, first, Daniel, the aged prophet in prayer; secondly, Michael and Gabriel, two of the strongest beings from heaven itself; thirdly, the king of Persia; fourthly, Satan and his powerful angels. Truly it was a royal battle, the nature of which was little suspected by the human characters interested in it.

The day of wonderful answers to prayer is not of the past alone. God is as ready to hear and answer now as He was in the days of Daniel. The sincere Christian who prays in faith, and expects and looks for answers, will receive answers and know that he receives them. Yet the response from heaven may be so far-reaching that we would be startled if our eyes were opened. The delay that tries the faith of the suppliant may arise from necessary work upon other hearts as hard and as stubborn as that of the king of Persia or the Pharaoh of Egypt.

Guardian Angels

“Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones [servants of God, not necessarily children]; for I say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of My Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 18:10).

The Bible clearly indicated that a guardian angel is appointed to every follower of Christ. So in every conflict with the powers of darkness, it is a comforting and inspiring thought that we have not only a Father in heaven, but we have also a powerful angel by our side. We have always within immediate reach a power sufficient to beat back all the assaults of the enemy. These angels bring to us light and courage, and in all cases are at hand to protect us.

Satan himself recognized, in the experience of Job, the efficiency of this angelic guardianship. The Lord called his attention to the integrity of Job, and Satan replied, “Doth Job fear God for nought? Hast not Thou made an hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side” (Job 1:9, 10)? Of the character of Job the Lord said, “There is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man” (verse 8). Hence powerful angels were placed like a guarding wall about him, to protect him and all he possessed from the power of Satan and his hosts of evil. He was practically placed beyond their malign influence. “No evil could approach him except as God gave special permission.”

Satan claimed that if this protection was removed, and his possessions were destroyed, “He will curse Thee to Thy face” (Job 1:11).

“And the Lord said unto Satan, Behold, all that he hath is in thy power; only upon himself put not forth thine hand” (verse 12).

Yet through all the calamities the evil one was permitted to bring upon him, he was not forsaken by the heavenly messengers. They were there to see that Satan should not afflict Job beyond the permission given by Jehovah. Even though tempted to sin, he retained his integrity, for it is said, “In all this Job sinned not” (verse 22).

So, although God in His wise providence allows His children to be tempted, tried, and afflicted, they are never forsaken. Heavenly messengers maintain a constant communication between them and their heavenly Father, and no evil is permitted to come upon them only so far as it is for their good and the advancement of His work in the earth.

The psalmist tells us how God protects His children: “The angel of the Lord encampeth round about them that fear Him, and delivereth them” (Psalm 34:7).

Peter’s guardian angel released him from prison more than once. At one time Herod had cast him into prison, intending to kill him as he had James. But the Lord had yet a work for Peter to do.

“And when Herod would have brought him forth, the same night Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains: and the keepers before the door kept the prison. And, behold, the angel of the Lord came upon him, and a light shined in the prison: and he smote Peter on the side, and raised him up, saying, Arise up quickly. And his chains fell off from his hands. And the angel said unto him, Gird thyself, and bind on thy sandals. And so he did. And he saith unto him, Cast thy garment about thee, and follow me” (Acts 12:6–8).

The apostle did not understand what was transpiring, “but thought he saw a vision.” “And when Peter was come to himself [when he realized it was all real and true], he said, ‘Now I know of a surety, that the Lord hath sent His angel, and hath delivered me out of the hand of Herod, and from all the expectation of the people of the Jews (Acts 12:9, 11).”

Then Peter went to the house of Mary, the mother of John, where the disciples were “gathered together praying” (verse 12). They were doubtless beseeching God for the release of the imprisoned apostle.

As he “knocked at the door of the gate, a damsel came to hearken, named Rhoda” (verse 13). When she heard his voice asking admission, she did not let him in for very joy, but, instead, ran and told the praying disciples that Peter stood at the gate. At first they could not believe the words of the maid, but she insisted that he was really there. “Then said they, It is his angel” (verse 15).

“They did not mean that it was Peter’s spirit, for they supposed he was yet alive and in prison. They meant … what they said, that it was his angel—the one who attended him.”

The ninety-first Psalm describes the position of God’s people during the time of trouble. Of the mission of the angels during this time, we read, “He shall give His angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy food against a stone” (Psalm 91:11, 12).

They Hear Our Words

An angel is always present and hears what we say. “Suffer not thy mouth to cause thy flesh to sin; neither say thou before [in the presence of] the angel, that it was an error” (Ecclesiastes 5:6). The angels of God can not be deceived.

They See Us

“For I think that God hath set forth us the apostles last, as it were appointed to death: for we are made a spectacle unto the world, and to angels, and to men” (1 Corinthians 4:9). We are never alone. We could see our angel visitor if our eyes were opened. (See 2 Kings 6:3–23).

Angels in the Gospel

When the work of creating the earth and its inhabitants was finished, “the morning stars [angels] sang together” (Job 38:7).

When man sinned and was driven from Eden, the “angels ceased their songs of praise. Throughout the heavenly courts there was mourning for the ruin that sin had wrought.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 62.

When the plan of salvation through Christ, which was to give the human race another chance, was proclaimed to the angels, they made heaven ring again with the song that later sounded over the hills of Bethlehem: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men” (Luke 2:14).

Before the fall, angels were the teachers of Adam and Eve. They told them of the fall of Satan, and of the ceaseless efforts he and his fallen companions would make to cause them to sin and fall as he had fallen.

Since the fall, the interest of holy angels in the human family has intensified. As before the fall they were to warn our first parents of the danger that lurked in the wiles of Satan, so after the fall they were to instruct man in the plan of salvation that had been devised in his behalf.

As man had failed to stand the test while surrounded by every influence that could guard him from evil, he must now regain the character he had lost by disobedience in a world that had fallen under the dominion of Satan.

To meet these adverse conditions the angels were appointed as guardians, ministers, and messengers from heaven to aid fallen humanity in its struggle with evil. Then how deep must be the interest of angels in the welfare of man, and in the advancement of the gospel in the earth!

Angels have ever acted a prominent part in the spread of the gospel. Though the preaching of the gospel has been given to men, yet angels have an important mission to perform in aiding and guiding the earthly minister in his work.

The case of Cornelius is an example. Cornelius was a Gentile. He was also an officer in the Roman army. It was said of him that he was “a just man, and one that feareth God, and of good report among all the nation of the Jews” (Acts 10:22).

But Cornelius knew nothing of Jesus Christ. It seems that he was seeking for light from heaven, for he “prayed to God always,” and to such a man help will always be sent when needed. In this case the angel appeared to the Roman officer while he was fasting and praying. He instructed him to send for Peter, saying, “He shall tell thee what thou oughtest to do” (verses 2–6).

Cornelius therefore sent two servants and a devout soldier to the place where Peter abode in Joppa. The next day, as the three men were nearing Joppa, Peter “went upon the housetop to pray” (verse 9). There he saw a vision, and a heavenly messenger instructed him to go with the men in response to the call of Cornelius, notwithstanding he was a Gentile.

So Peter returned with them, and found the house of Cornelius filled with his “kinsmen and near friends” (verse 24). And as he preached the gospel to them, “the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word” (verse 44). And they believed and were baptized.

In this instance the actual intervention of angels, both to Cornelius and to Peter, was necessary to bring about this result.

An incident in the life of the deacon Philip is to the point. Crossing the desert near Gaza was a eunuch, an officer of great authority in the court of Candace, queen of Ethiopia. He was returning from Jerusalem, where he had been to worship. As he rode in his chariot, he was reading Isaiah’s prophecy in regard to Christ, but did not understand it. At the command of the angel, Philip met the eunuch at this time. He was invited to a seat in the chariot, and there he explained the passage from Isaiah, and preached Christ to the Ethiopian officer.

As a result, the eunuch believed, and as they passed a pool he asked for baptism. “And they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him” (Acts 8:38).

And the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, and carried him to Azotus, But the eunuch went on his way rejoicing, a new channel through which the light of the gospel was to be carried into darkest Africa.

This whole transaction, which was so important in carrying the gospel into new territory, was due to the appearance of the angel to lead God’s minister on this important errand.

Angels appeared to Daniel, and revealed to him many important truths pertaining to the work of the gospel, some of which refer to the times in which we now live. Especially is the instruction of the angel Gabriel important, as it concerns the atonement, or the investigative judgment, and the sacrifice of the Messiah. (See Daniel 8:13–17; 9:10–27.)

It was Gabriel also who came to Mary to announce the birth of Christ, and to Zacharias to foretell that of John the Baptist. (See Luke 1:11–19, 26–33.)

A powerful angel appeared many times to the apostle-prophet John, as recorded in the Revelation, presenting before him important events and truths pertaining to the work of God to be done in the earth, and in regard to the triumph of God’s people and their great reward.

In Revelation 14:6, 7, an angel is seen flying “in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come.” [Emphasis supplied.] And other angels followed, each having a special message to proclaim.

Special messages have gone to the world at special times. God sends His angels to direct the minds of His ministers to the lines of truth He would have them proclaim. Angels stand by their side as they speak the truth to the people. Angels are beside the listeners to impress their hearts. So through it all, as in the cases of Cornelius and Peter, and of Philip and the eunuch, angels are moulding the work of the ministers, and pressing home the truths to the hearts of the people.

Past, Present, and Future, by James Edson White, 69–83.

The Most Holy Place Message and Health

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“When you sit down to eat with a ruler, Consider carefully what is before you; And put a knife to your throat If you are a man given to appetite. Do not desire his delicacies, For they are deceptive food.” Proverbs 23:1–3

“Do not mix with winebibbers, Or with gluttonous eaters of meat; For the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty, And drowsiness will clothe a man with rags.” Proverbs 23:20, 21

Is neglect of physical law sin? God answers this question clearly. “The transgression of physical law is transgression of God’s law. Our Creator is Jesus Christ. He is the author of our being. He is the author of the physical law as He is the author of the moral law. And the human being who is careless and reckless of the habits and practises [sic] that concern his physical life and health, sins against God. God is not reverenced, respected, or recognized. This is shown by the injury done to the body in violation of physical law.” Healthful Living, 17.

Yes, neglect of physical law is sin. But the issue with appetite goes well beyond the issue of sin.

In looking at the “shadow” or “type” of the earthly sanctuary we learn that on the typical Day of Atonement, God required that people “afflict their souls, and do no work on that same day.” The consequences for disregarding these instructions were clear cut and serious. God said, “For any person who is not afflicted in soul on that same day shall be cut off from his people” and “that person I will destroy from among his people” (Leviticus 23:27–30). We are living in the antitypical Day of Atonement. The same requirement is in effect for us, only in a much greater degree.

Here we will look at health and its relation to the Most Holy Place message, “keep your garments spotless.” Why is this topic so critically important to the message of the Most Holy Place?

God says, through His servant, “The strength of the temptation to indulge appetite can be measured only by the inexpressible anguish of our Redeemer in that long fast in the wilderness. He knew that the indulgence of perverted appetite would so deaden man’s perceptions that sacred things could not be discerned.” Counsels on Diet and Foods, 167.

Friends, are you indulging appetite? If so, what does God say? He says “sacred things could not be understood.” One may wish to quibble over these words. We may question a plain statement from the Lord. Adam and Eve both questioned God and that led to their fall. We must take God at His word. God says, “He knew that the indulgence of perverted appetite would so deaden man’s perceptions that sacred things could not be discerned.”

One may think they understand sacred things, but if appetite is indulged, what does God say? He says, that regardless of what you think or believe, the reality is that those who indulge perverted appetite cannot understand sacred things.

“The controlling power of appetite will prove the ruin of thousands, when, if they had conquered on this point, they would have had moral power to gain the victory over every other temptation of Satan. But those who are slaves to appetite will fail in perfecting Christian character.” Ibid., 163.

We need to state very briefly here that it is not only what we eat, but how much we eat, whether we eat at regular times, and whether we eat between meals, etc., as well. God has warned, “even health reformers can err in the quantity of food. They can eat immoderately of a healthful quality of food.” Ibid., 244.

“It is impossible for those who give the reins to appetite to attain to Christian perfection.” Ibid., 236.

This is why, of all the topics that we need to study in perfecting our characters, this is the one that we are studying. I don’t want to talk about this. God put this burden in my mind, and I cannot refuse, but at the risk of my own soul.

“Those who would have clear minds to discern Satan’s devices must have their physical appetites under the control of reason and conscience. The moral and vigorous action of the higher powers of the mind are essential to the perfection of Christian character. And the strength or the weakness of the mind has very much to do with our usefulness in this world, and with our final salvation. The ignorance that has prevailed in regard to God’s law in our physical nature is deplorable. Intemperance of any kind is a violation of the laws of our being. Imbecility is prevailing to a fearful extent. Sin is made attractive by the covering of light which Satan throws over it, and he is well pleased when he can hold the Christian world in their daily habits under the tyranny of custom, like the heathen, and allow appetite to govern them.” Messages to Young People, 236, 237.

“If men and women of intelligence have their moral powers benumbed through intemperance of any kind, they are, in many of their habits, elevated but little above the heathen. Satan is constantly drawing the people from saving light, to custom and fashion, irrespective of physical, mental, and moral health. The great enemy knows that if appetite and passion predominate, health of body and strength of intellect are sacrificed upon the altar of self-gratification, and man is brought to speedy ruin. If enlightened intellect holds the reins, controlling the animal propensities, keeping them in subjection to the moral powers, Satan well knows that his power to overcome with his temptations is very small. …

“A large share of the Christian world have no right to call themselves Christians. [They are breaking the 3rd commandment. They are taking God’s name in vain.] Their habits, their extravagance, and general treatment of their own bodies, are in violation of physical law, and contrary to the Bible standard. They are working out for themselves, in their course of life, physical suffering, mental and moral feebleness.” The Review and Herald, September 8, 1874.

“God gives no permission to man to violate the laws of his being. But man, through yielding to Satan’s temptations to indulge intemperance, brings the higher faculties in subjection to the animal appetites and passions. When these gain the ascendency, man, who was created a little lower than the angels, with faculties susceptible of the highest cultivation, surrenders to be controlled by Satan. And he gains easy access to those who are in bondage to appetite. Through intemperance, some sacrifice one-half, and others two-thirds, of their physical, mental, and moral powers, and become playthings for the enemy. Those who would have clear minds to discern Satan’s devices, must have their physical appetites under the control of reason and conscience. The moral and vigorous action of the higher powers of the mind are essential to the perfection of Christian character. And the strength or weakness of the mind has very much to do with our usefulness in this world, and with our final salvation. The ignorance that has prevailed in regard to God’s law in our physical nature is deplorable. Intemperance of any kind is a violation of the laws of our being. Imbecility is prevailing to a fearful extent. Sin is made attractive by the covering of light which Satan throws over it, and he is well pleased when he can hold the Christian world in their daily habits under the tyranny of custom, like the heathen, and allow appetite to govern them.” Ibid.

“Why do some of our ministering brethren manifest so little interest in health reform? It is because instruction on temperance in all things is opposed to their practice of self-indulgence. In some places this has been the great stumbling block in the way of our bringing the people to investigate and practice and teach health reform. No man should be set apart as a teacher of the people while his own teaching or example contradicts the testimony God has given His servants to bear in regard to diet, for this will bring confusion. His disregard of health reform unfits him to stand as the Lord’s messenger.” Testimonies, vol. 6, 378.

These are strong words but sometimes God uses strong words like these to wake us up out of lethal slumber. If we do not wake up and change our habits, He knows that we cannot be in eternity with Him, and He longs for you and me to be with Him throughout eternity. This is why He uses such strong language. However, there is something else I would like us to consider and understand.

When Jesus comes to get His saints, and all are seated at that great wedding feast, will any intemperate person be at that table? No, not one. When does the change have to take place? Jesus told a well-known and true story from Old Testament times that gives us the answer. The application of this story is found in The Spirit of Prophecy, vol. 3, 40, 41. The story is of the building of the temple of God during the reign of Solomon. Spirit of Prophecy says the following: “The stones were not prepared for their respective places just as they were about to be laid in the wall of the temple; all the fitting and planning was done previous to their being brought to the place of building. So it is that all the hewing, fitting and polishing of character must be done during man’s probation. When Christ shall come again to earth it will not be to purify and refine the characters of men, and to fit them for Heaven. His work then will only be to change their corruptible bodies and fashion them like unto Christ’s most glorious body. Only a symmetrical and perfect character will in that day entitle men to the finishing touch of immortality.

“Earth is the quarry and the work-shop where men are to be fitted and refined for the courts of Heaven.”

My friends, if we want to be at that great banquet table in heaven, we must conquer appetite here. If we do not, we cannot understand God’s great plan for our salvation. If we choose to remain in sin on this point, we will also bear the sin of leading other people into the paths that lead away from God and heaven. We must control our appetites here. It is an essential part of the Most Holy Place message, “keep your garments spotless.”

“The church is making history. Every day is a battle and a march. On every side we are beset by invisible foes, and we either conquer through the grace given us by God or we are conquered. I urge that those who are taking a neutral position in regard to health reform be converted. This light is precious, and the Lord gives me the message to urge that all who bear responsibilities in any line in the work of God take heed that truth is in the ascendancy in the heart and life. Only thus can any meet the temptations they are sure to encounter in the world.” Testimonies, vol. 6, 377, 378.

“The light that the Lord has given on this subject in His word is plain, and men will be tested and tried in many ways to see if they will heed it. Every church, every family, needs to be instructed in regard to Christian temperance. All should know how to eat and drink in order to preserve health. We are amid the closing scenes of this world’s history, and there should be harmonious action in the ranks of Sabbathkeepers. Those who stand aloof from the great work of instructing the people upon this question do not follow where the Great Physician leads the way. ‘If any man will come after Me,’ Christ said, ‘let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me’ (Matthew 16:24).” Ibid., 378.

“How many are deceiving their own souls and cheating themselves out of the blessings that others might secure if they would believe and obey? Probation still lingers, and it is our privilege to lay hold of the hope set before us in the gospel. Let us repent and be converted and forsake our sins, that they may be blotted out. ‘Heaven and earth shall pass away: but My words shall not pass away. And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares. For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man’ (Luke 21:33–36).” Ibid., vol. 9, 268, 269.

Remember, my friends, we have a compassionate Saviour. In His mercy in our behalf He endured that “long fast in the wilderness” that we might have His power to overcome. Oh, friends, let us not show despite to His great love and mercy, His tremendous suffering and sacrifice on our behalf. Let us claim the victory that was His and overcome as He overcame. Let us indeed “keep our garments spotless” through the mighty new covenant provided for us by our loving, merciful and just Father and His only begotten Son.

Brenda Douay is a staff member at Steps to Life. She may be contacted by email at: brendadouay@stepstolife.org.

The Christian Walk

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In Paul’s letter to the Colossians, he wrote in chapter 1, verses 9 and 10, that he did not cease to pray that they might walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him.

A bit later in his letter, he wrote, “As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving” (Colossians 2:6, 7).

Then near the end of his letter, he wrote, “Walk in wisdom toward those who are outside, redeeming the time” (Colossians 4:5).

It is clear that Paul was not simply talking about the act of putting one foot in front of the other. In his letter to the Colossians, he was using the word “walk” in the same sense that Christ did when He said in John 8:12, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life,” and again in John 12:35, when He said, “Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you.”

The Greek word translated “walk” is peripateō, which Strong’s Concordance defines as “figuratively to live, deport oneself, follow.” With that understanding, the relationship between the Bible writers’ use of ‘walk’ and the principle expressed in this quote from the Testimonies becomes clear: “God leads His people on step by step. The Christian life is a battle and a march. In this warfare there is no release; the effort must be continuous and persevering. It is by unceasing endeavor that we maintain the victory over the temptations of Satan. Christian integrity must be sought with resistless energy and maintained with a resolute fixedness of purpose.” Testimonies, vol. 8, 313.

It would be a challenge to find in inspired writings stronger counsel concerning our daily challenge, i.e., our Christian walk.

Paul often referred to the conduct of our daily lives as a walk. In Romans 6:4–6, he wrote, “Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin.”

In chapter 8 of Romans, verses 1 through 4, he wrote, “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.”

As he neared the end of his letter to the Romans, Paul wrote, “Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts” (Romans 13:13, 14).

Paul’s understanding of life as a walk is expressed throughout his epistles. Each one of them contains similar usage of the word. We have already cited instances in Colossians and Romans. Here are some from his other letters:

“For we walk by faith, not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7).

“For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, and being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled” (2 Corinthians 10:3–6).

“I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh” (Galatians 5:16).

“If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit” (verse 25).

“I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Ephesians 4:1–3).

“This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind, having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart; who, being past feeling, have given themselves over to lewdness, to work all uncleanness with greediness” (verses 17–19).

“Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma” (Ephesians 5:1, 2).

“For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth), finding out what is acceptable to the Lord” (verses 8–10).

“See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil” (verses 15, 16).

“Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Therefore let us, as many as are mature, have this mind; and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal even this to you. Nevertheless, to the degree that we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule, let us be of the same mind. Brethren, join in following my example, and note those who so walk, as you have us for a pattern” (Philippians 3:13–17).

“Finally then, brethren, we urge and exhort in the Lord Jesus that you should abound more and more, just as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God; for you know what commandments we gave you through the Lord Jesus” (I Thessalonians 4:1, 2).

“For we hear that there are some who walk among you in a disorderly manner, not working at all, but are busybodies” (2 Thessalonians 3:11).

It would be near impossible to read through these texts without gaining a fairly comprehensive understanding of what the Christian walk should be like—and what it should not be like. Perhaps most importantly, we are to walk, meaning, of course, to live, in a manner that fully pleases the Lord. To accomplish that noble task, we must know not only what pleases Him, but what He finds abominable as well. Such can only be accomplished through a thorough and continuing search of His word.

Understanding the enlightened instruction Paul provides in his letters gives us an excellent starting point for knowing how to walk in a manner that is “fully pleasing” to God the Father. A recurring theme is Paul’s admonition to “walk in the spirit” versus his caution against walking in the flesh. A summary of the principles expressed in the verses cited above should provide clear guidance for living the Christian walk. Let’s look at some of Paul’s instructions to gain a fuller understanding of the manner in which a Christian should conduct his daily life.

  • After baptism, we are to walk “in newness of life.” Old habits and conduct that is contrary to the will of God must be “done away with” (Romans 6:4–6).
  • The Christian walks “according to the Spirit,” not “according to the flesh,” (Romans 8:1–4), “and by faith, not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7).
  • The Christian does not make provision for the flesh, but rather walks “properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy” (Romans 13:13, 14). Note the similarity in Paul’s allusion here to walking “in the day” to that which Christ made in John 8:12 and John 12:35 regarding light and darkness.

Paul provides an excellent summary of the Christian’s spiritual walk versus walking in the flesh in Ephesians 4. A Christian walks “with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (verses 1–3).

Contrary to that is the fleshly walk, expressed so clearly in verses 17 through 19: “You should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind, having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart; who, being past feeling, have given themselves over to lewdness, to work all uncleanness with greediness.”

Paul continues to clarify the contrast between the Christian walk and walking in darkness in Ephesians 5:1–21. A prayerful reading of those texts will provide an excellent means of “finding out what is acceptable to the Lord” (verse 10).

Truly, the Christian walk is “a battle and a march,” but with prayerful study of God’s word, the sincere seeker can obtain clear instruction on how to win that battle and how to march successfully.

All quotes NKJV unless otherwise noted.

John Pearson is the office manager and a board member of Steps to Life. After retiring as chief financial officer for the Grand Canyon Association, Grand Canyon, Arizona, he moved to Wichita, Kansas, to join the Steps team. He may be contacted by email at: johnpearson@stepstolife.org.