"But the best way for you is to give your mind to Jesus Christ. And the mind is the will to put it on, and do just as Matthew did. – {1SAT 210.2}
The Lord Jesus came to Matthew. He was in a very unpopular business, and all the Jews looked upon them [publicans, as people] to be despised, and Christ said to Matthew, “Matthew, follow Me.” Did he say, “O Lord, when I get good enough I will follow you”? Did he say, “O Lord, when I have this agony, this awful agony for my sin, then I will come”? – {1SAT 211.1}
Well, that is what many of you are saying. No, Matthew rose up and followed Him. He was walking in the light, because he could not follow Christ unless he was walking in the light. Well then, what are we to do? We are just to believe as simply as a little child. We are to take our position on the Lord’s side, and we are to be Christ’s children because He wants us to be, and because He died that we might be; and will we be?"
From a Sabbath morning sermon given at the Healdsburg, California, Camp Meeting, Sept. 19th, 1891.
Now, God wants His converting power to come on this occasion. There are some that come to our meetings—they will sit all through the meetings; they have borne a few words of testimony now and then; they have gone home and done just exactly [the same as], if not worse than, before. Why? Because they had not the new heart. What is the new heart? It is the new mind. What is the mind? It is the will. Where is your will? It is either on Satan’s side or Christ’s side. Now it is up to you. Will you put your will today on Christ’s side of the question? That is the new heart. It is the new will, a new mind. “A new heart will I give thee.” Then let us begin right here. – {1SAT 210.1}
Conversion is simple, very simple. Let us commence right here to come into the kingdom of heaven. How? As a little child. Just as simple as simple can be. You may get all your mysteries of the new birth, and you cannot make anybody understand it, or understand it yourself. But the best way for you is to give your mind to Jesus Christ. And the mind is the will to put it on, and do just as Matthew did. – {1SAT 210.2}
The Lord Jesus came to Matthew. He was in a very unpopular business, and all the Jews looked upon them [publicans, as people] to be despised, and Christ said to Matthew, “Matthew, follow Me.” Did he say, “O Lord, when I get good enough I will follow you”? Did he say, “O Lord, when I have this agony, this awful agony for my sin, then I will come”? – {1SAT 211.1}
Well, that is what many of you are saying. No, Matthew rose up and followed Him. He was walking in the light, because he could not follow Christ unless he was walking in the light. Well then, what are we to do? We are just to believe as simply as a little child. We are to take our position on the Lord’s side, and we are to be Christ’s children because He wants us to be, and because He died that we might be; and will we be? – {1SAT 211.2}
I love Jesus. I had things trouble me before I went on the cars. I was afraid the shadow would hang over me all the way; and I could not forbear as I would wake up in the night season, saying over and over, “I love the Lord; I love the Lord; I know I love Thee; Oh, I love Jesus who gave His life for me. I love the souls of all those for whom Christ has died.” And thus I feel the sweet comfort of peace and hope and light and love in my heart. Well, let us educate our minds; let us educate our thoughts. – {1SAT 211.3}
Now I am not going to hold you here, but I do want that the converting power of God should be in your midst. There is a great work to be done for many souls, but they don’t see it. They don’t realize it enough to go to work. Why, how, you say, can I be going to work to help myself? How can I do it? God works, and all you have to do is to cooperate with Him, and let Him work. Work in harmony with God. But He never works unless the human agent wills that He shall work, and works with Him. Then, with the human and the divine combined, we can make a glorious success. We will have the victory. Will you let Christ work on your human mind? Shall this glorious opportunity in 1891 pass over and work no decided change in our ideas and feelings? Go to work, brethren; go to work, sisters. I appeal to you to go to work. – {1SAT 211.4}
Christ is coming, and Christ is to be revealed in you, if you will only allow His image to be revealed in you. Fall on the Rock and be broken. What did they do to Moses? They took that atom of humanity, the heavenly intelligences, and put him in the cleft of the rock, and the hand of God over the rock. Now, what you want is to be in the cleft of the rock. You want to break in pieces before God your pride, yourself, your folly, your wickedness, your dishonesty, your corruption of heart, your licentiousness, your impurity. You want to fall on that Rock, and then if the superscription of the divine plays upon you, that the love of Christ may abide with you and Jesus be in your heart. – {1SAT 212.1}
God help you to begin the work right here; not to wait for the ministers to stir you up to a wonderful excitement. God wants intelligent Christians. He wants you to count the cost of the battle. He wants you to count whether you can war against Satan and his spiritual wickedness in high places. He wants you to see the plan of the battle, of the confederacy of evil, and then He wants you to see that angels are in the army, that the Captain of our salvation is at the head. It is they that do the warring. It is they that do the work, and we cooperate, coincide, and work with them. – {1SAT 212.2}
Now, that is our work. Will you commence the warfare here against lust? Will you commence it against wickedness? Will you commence it against impurity? Will you be fitting up for the home in heaven above? God help you right here to be converted. You want to go from this meeting with your affection lighted up with the glory of God, saying, Hear what the Lord has done for me. He has put a new song in my mouth; even praise to our God. Well now, commence to praise God. And praise Him with heart and soul and voice. The devil doesn’t want you [to], because you would be a living witness to them that you had drunk of the living waters, and he doesn’t want you to praise God. Still, shall we disappoint the devil? Shall we please Jesus Christ? – {1SAT 213.1}
Well, let us work as intelligent Christians, and may we hear the beautiful testimony from your lips, “I love Jesus, and I know that He loves me.” Then the world will see [that we] have been with Jesus and have learned of Him. This is the lesson that we want you to learn in the school of Christ.—Ms. 36, 1891. – {1SAT 213.2}