God Has Promised...series "When You Are Tempted?"

 

When You Are Tempted

 

"In Christ, God has promised means for subduing every evil trait and resisting every temptation, however strong."

 ~The Ministry of Healing, pp. 65,66.

 

 

"Jesus revealed no qualities, and exercised no powers, that men may not have through faith in Him. His perfect humanity is that which all His followers may possess., if they will be in subjection to God as He was."
~ The Desire of Ages, p. 664.

 

"Those who fail to realize their constant dependence upon God will be overcome by temptation. We may now suppose that our feet stand secure, and that we shall never be moved. We ma say with confidence, I know in whom I have believed...But Satan is planning to take advantage of our hereditary and cultivated traits of character, and to blind our eyes to our own necessities and defects. Only through realizing our own weakness and looking steadfastly unto Jesus can we walk securely."

~ The Desire of Ages, p. 382.

 

"The Father's presence encircled Christ, and nothing befell Him but that which infinite love permitted for the blessing of the world. Here was His source of comfort, and it is for us. He who is imbued with the Spirit of Christ abides in Christ. The blow that is aimed at him falls upon the Saviour, who surrounds him with His presence. Whatever comes to him comes from Christ. He has no need to resist evil, for Christ is his defense. Nothing can touch him except by our Lord's permission."

~ Thoughts From the Mount of Blessing, p. 71.

 

"Christ will never abandon those for whom He has died. We may leave Him and be overwhelmed with temptation, but Christ can never turn from one for whom He has paid the ransom of His own life."

~Prophets and Kings, p. 176 

 

"Nothing is apparently more helpless, yet really more invincible, than the soul that feels its nothingness and relies wholly on the merits of the Saviour. God would send every angel in heaven to the aid of such a one, rather than allow him to be overcome."

~ Testimonies, col. 7, p. 17.

 

"Our heavenly Father measures and weighs every trial before He permits it to come upon the believer. He considers the circumstances and the strength of the one who is to stand under the proving and test of God, and He never permits the temptations to be greater than the capacity of resistance. If the would is overborne, the person overpowered, this can never be charged to God, as failing to give strength in grace, but the one tempted was not vigilant and prayer and did not appropriate by faith the provisions God had abundantly in store for him. Christ never failed a believer in his hour of combat. The believer must claim the promise and meet the foe in the name of the Lord, and he will not know anything like failure."

~ Ellen G. White manuscript 6, 1889.

 

Could our spiritual vision be quickened, we should see souls bowed under oppression and burdened with grief...We should see angels flying quickly to the aid of these tempted ones, forcing back the hosts of evil that encompass them, and placing their feet on the sure foundation.

~ Prophets and Kings, p. 176.

 



God Has Promised...series "Are You Lonely?"

This is very timely for me - since my husband is out of town. It does get lonely, but God is near. :O)

 

Are You Lonely?

 

We need never feel that we are alone. Angels are our companions. The Comforter that Christ promised to send in His name abides with us. In the way that leads to the City of God there are no difficulties which those who trust in Him may not overcome. There are no dangers which they may not escape. There is not a sorrow, not a grievance, not a human weakness, for which He has not provided a remedy.

None need abandon themselves to discouragement and despair. Satan may come to you with the cruel suggestion, "Yours is a hopeless case. You are irredeemable." But there is hope for you in Christ. God does not bid us overcome in our own strength. He asks us to come close to His side. Whatever difficulties we labor under, which weigh down soul and body, He waits to make us free. He who took humanity upon Himself knows how to sympathize with the sufferings of humanity. Not only does Christ know every soul, and the peculiar needs and trials of that soul, but He knows all the circumstances that chafe and perplex the spirit. His hand is outstretched in pitying tenderness to every suffering child.  The Ministry of Healing, p. 249.


Never feel that Christ is far away. He is always near. His loving presence surrounds you.
The Ministry of Healing, p. 85.

Jesus knows us individually, and is touched with the feeling of our infirmities. He knows us all by name. He knows the very house in which we live, the name of each occupant. He has at times given directions to His servants to go to a certain street in a certain city, to such a house, to find one of His sheep.  The Desire of Ages, p. 479.

At all times and in all places, in all sorrows and in all afflictions, when the outlook seems dark and the future perplexing, and we feel helpless and alone, the Comforter will be sent in answer to the prayer of faith. Circumstances may separate us from every earthly friend; but no circumstance, no distance, can separate us from the heavenly Comforter. Wherever we are, wherever we may go, He is always at our right hand to support, sustain, uphold, and cheer. The Desire of Ages, pp. 669,670.

We are never along. Whether we choose Him or not, we have a companion. Remember that wherever you are, whatever you do, God is there. ~The Ministry of Healing, p. 490

To those who... acquaint themselves with Christ, the earth will nevermore be a lonely and desolate place. It will be their Father's house, filled with the presence of Him who once dwelt among men.  ~ Education, p. 120.

God will not suffer one of His truehearted workers to be left alone, to struggle against great odds and be overcome. ~ The Ministry of Healing, p. 488


Not a sigh is breathed, not a pain felt, not a grief pierces the soul, but the throb vibrates to the Father's heart... God is bending from His throne to hear the cry of the oppressed. To every sincere prayer He answers, "Here am I." He uplifts the distressed and downtrodden. In all our afflictions He is afflicted. In every temptation and every trial the angel of His presence is near to deliver.  ~ The Desire of Ages, p. 356.

Every step in life may bring us closer to Jesus, may give us a deeper experience of His love, and may bring us one step nearer to the blessed home of peace. ~Steps to Christ, p. 125




God Has Promised...series "Are Your Trials More Than You Can Bear?"

 

Are Your Trials More Than You Can Bear?

"The fact that we are called upon to endure trial shows that the Lord Jesus sees in us something precious which He desires to develop. If He saw in us nothing whereby He might glorify His name, He would not spend time in refining us. He does not cast worthless stones into His furnace. It is valuable ore that He refines. The blacksmith puts the iron and steel into the fire that he may know what manner of metal they are. The Lord allows His chosen ones to be placed in the furnace of affliction to prove what temper they are of and whether they can be fashioned for His work."

The Ministry of Healing, p. 471

 (in the "God Has Promised" book- they did not put the entire paragraph - I just added the last couple of sentences)

 

 

 "od has a purpose in sending trial to His children. He never leads them otherwise than they would choose to be led if they could see the end from the beginning, and discern the glory of the purpose that they are fulfilling. All that He brings upon them in test and trial comes that they may be strong to do and to suffer for Him."

Prophets and Kings, pg. 578

 

 "God's love for His children during the period of their severest trial is as strong and tender as in the days of their sunniest prosperity;"

The Great Controversy, pg. 621

The rest of the paragraph - I am adding because I think it is very helpful as well:

"but it is needful for them to be placed in the furnace of fire; their earthliness must be consumed, that the image of Christ may be perfectly reflected."

 

"Seek the Lord for wisdom in every emergency. In every trial plead with Jesus to show you a way out of your troubles, and your eyes will be opened to behold the remedy and to apply to your case the healing promises that have been recorded in His Word. In this way the enemy will find no place to lead you into mourning and unbelief, but instead you will have faith and hope and courage in the Lord... Every draught of bitterness will be mingled with the love of Jesus, and in place of complaining of the bitterness, you will realize that Jesus' love and grace are so mingled with sorrow that it has been turned into subdued, holy, sanctified joy." ~ Selective Message, book 2, pp. 273-274.

 

"The precious Savior will send help just when we need it. The way to heaven is consecrated by His footprints. Every thorn that wounds our feet has wounded His. Every cross that we are called to bear, He has borne before us. The Lord permits conflicts, to prepare the soul for peace." Colporteur Ministry, p. 116

 

"Our heavenly Father has a thousand ways to provide for us, of which we know nothing. Those who accept the one principle of making the service and honor of God supreme will find perplexities vanish, and a plain path before their feet." The Desire of Ages, pg. 330.  

 

"Those who are finally victorious will have season 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."

~Messages to Young People, p. 63

 

 "If received in faith, the trial that seems so bitter and hard to bear will prove a blessing. The cruel blow that blights the joys of earth will be the means of turning our eyes to heaven. How many there are who would never have known Jesus had not sorrow led them to seek comfort in Him!"

~Thoughts From the Mount of Blessing, pg. 10.

 

"We need not keep our own record of trials and difficulties, griefs, and sorrows. All these things are written in the books, and heaven will take care of them."
~The Ministry of Healing, pg. 487.

 

 

 "The Saviour is by the side of His tempted and tried ones. With Him there can be no such thing as failure, loss, impossibility, or defeat;"

~The Desire of Ages, pg. 490. 

 the rest of the sentence:

  "we can do all things through Him who strengthens us. When temptations and trials

Page 493

come, do not wait to adjust all the difficulties, but look to Jesus, your helper. "

 



God Has Promised ....series "Are You Discouraged?"

 

Are You Discouraged?

It is Satan's work to discourage the soul; it is Christ's work to inspire with faith and hope.

~The Desire of Ages, p. 249

 

Satan is ready to steal away the blessed assurances of God. He desires to take every glimmer of hope and every ray of light from the soul; but you must not permit him to do this. Exercise faith; fight the good fight of faith; wrestle with these doubts; become acquainted with the promises.

~Testimonies, vol. 5, p. 629.

 

Christian life is more than many take it to be. It does not consist wholly in gentleness, patience, meekness, and kindliness. These graces are essential; but there is need also of courage, force, energy, and perseverance. The path that Christ marks out is a narrow, self-denying path. To enter that path and press on through difficulties and discouragements requires men who are more than weaklings. ~The Ministry of Healing, p. 497.

 

Instead of thinking of your discouragements, think of the power you can claim in Christ's name....

Let your thoughts be directed to the evidences of the great love of God for you.

 Faith can endure trial, resist temptation, bear up under disappointment. Jesus lives as our advocate. All is ours that His mediation secures....All experiences and circumstances are God's workman whereby good is brought to us.

~ Ibid., pp. 488, 489.

 

When in faith we take hold of His strength, He will change, wonderfully change,

the most hopeless, discouraging outlook.
~ Testimonies, vol. 8, p. 12.

 

Do not dishonor God by words of repining, but praise Him with heart and soul and voice. .... Do this, and see how smoothly everything will go. 
~Selected Messages, book 2, p. 267.

 

Some look always at the objectionable and discouraging features, and therefore discouragement overtakes them. They forget that the heavenly universe is waiting to make them agencies of blessing to the world; and than the Lord Jesus is never-failing storehouse from which human beings may draw strength and courage.  There is no need for despondency and apprehension. The time will never come when the shadow of Satan will not be cast athwart our pathway... But our faith should pierce this shadow. God calls for cheerful co-workers, who refuse to become discouraged and disheartened by opposing agencies. The Lord is leading us, and we may go forward courageously, assured that He will be with us, as He was in past years.

 ~ Gospel Workers, pp. 265, 266.

 

We are too quickly discouraged, and earnestly cry for the trial to be removed from us, when we should plead for patience to endure and grace to overcome.

~Testimonies, vol. 1, p. 310

 

I have seen the tender love that God has for His people, and it is very great. I saw angels over the saints with their wings spread about them. Each saint had an attending angel. If the saints wept through discouragement, or were in danger, the angels that ever attended them would fly quickly upwards to carry the tidings, and the angels in the city would cease to sing.... And all the angels in the city would weep....But if the saints fixed their eyes upon the prize before them, and glorified God by praising Him, then the angels would bear the glad tidings to the city, and the angels in the city would touch their golden harps and sing with a loud vice...And the heavenly arches would ring with their lovely songs.

~My Life Today, p. 302.

**********************************************

 

Next Week we will look at quotes for "Are Your Trials More Than You Can Bear?"

 

 

 

 

God Has Promised..series... Do You Feel Sad?

Do You Feel Sad?

 

All heaven is interested in the happiness of man. Our heavenly Father does not close the avenues of joy to any of His creatures. ~ Step to Christ, p. 46.

 

Do no think that God wishes us to yield up everything which it is for our happiness here to retain. He requires us to give up only that which it would not be for our good and happiness to retain. ~ Testimonies, vol. 2, p. 588.

 

God would not have any of us remain pressed down by dumb sorrow, with sore and breaking hearts....Oh, the blessed Savior stands by many whose eyes are so blinded by tears that they do not discern Him. He longs to clasp our hands firmly, while we cling to Him in simple faith, imploring Him to guide us...If we will let the comfort and peace of Jesus into our lives, we shall be kept close to His great heart of love. ~ Selected Messages, book 2, pp. 257,258.

 

Many are sad and discouraged, weak in faith and trust. Let them do something to help someone more needy than themselves, and they will grow strong in God's strength. Christian Service, p. 151.

 

Do not allow the perplexities and worries of everyday life to fret your mind and cloud your brown. If you do, you will always have something to vex and annoy. Life is what we make it, and we shall find what we look for. If we look for sadness and trouble....we shall find plenty of them to engross our thoughts and our conversation. But if we look on the bright side of things, we shall find enough to make us cheerful and happy. ~ The Adventist Home, p. 430.

 

When the mind is free and happy from a sense of duty well done and the satisfaction of giving happiness to others, the cheering, uplifting influence brings new life to the whole being. ~The Ministry of Healing, p. 257.

 

Those who take Christ at His word, and surrender their souls to Him keeping, their lives to His ordering, will find peace and quietude. Nothing of the world can make them sad when Jesus makes them glad by His presence. ~ The Desire of Ages, p. 331.

 

When the Spirit of God takes possession of the heart, it transforms the life. Sinful thoughts are put away, evil deeds are renounced; love, humility, and peace take the place of anger, envy, and strife. Joy takes the place of sadness, and the countenance reflects the light of heaven. No one sees the hand that lifts the burden, or beholds the light descend from the courts above. The blessing comes when by faith the soul surrenders itself to God. _Ibid. p. 173.

 

It is the duty of God's children to be cheerful. They should encourage a happy frame of mind. God cannot be glorified by His children living continually under a cloud and casting a shadow wherever they go. ~ Ellen G. White, in Review and Herald, April 28, 1859.

 

 

 

God Has Promised...series "Are Your Burdens Too Great to Bear?"

Are Your Burdens Too Great to Bear?

 

Through all our trials we have a never-failing Helper. He does not leave us alone to struggle with temptation, to battle with evil, and be finally crushed with burdens and sorrow.

The Desire of Ages, p. 483

 

Keep your wants, your joys, your sorrows, your cares, and your fears before God. You cannot burden Him; you cannot weary Him. He who numbers the hairs of your head is not indifferent to the wants of His children. "The Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy." James 5:11. His heart of love is touched by our sorrows and even by our utterances of them. Take to Him everything that perplexes the mind. Nothing is too great for Him to bear, for He holds up worlds, He rules over all the affairs of the universe. Nothing that in any way concerns our peace is too small for Him to notice. There is no chapter in our experience too dark for Him to read; there is no perplexity too difficult for Him to unravel. No calamity can befall the least of His children, no anxiety harass the soul, no joy cheer, no sincere prayer escape the lips, of which our heavenly Father is unobservant, or in which He takes no immediate interest.

Steps to Christ, p. 100

 

Whatever your anxieties and trials, spread out your case before the Lord. Your spirit will be braced for endurance. The way will be opened for you to disentangle yourself from embarrassment and difficulty. The weaker and more helpless you know yourself to be, the stronger will you become in His strength. The heavier your burdens, the more blessed the rest in casting them upon the Burden Bearer.

The Desire of Ages, p. 329

 

It is true that disappointments will come; tribulations we must expect; but we are to commit everything, great and small, to God. He does not become perplexed by the multiplicity of our grievances nor overpowered by the weight of our burdens. His watchcare extends to every household and encircles every individual; He is concerned in all our business and our sorrows. He marks every tear; He is touched with the feeling of our infirmities. All the afflictions and trials that befall us here are permitted, to work out His purpose of love towards us. ~ Testimonies, vol. 5, p. 742

 

We need to trust in Jesus daily, hourly, He has promised that as our day is, our strength shall be. By His grace we may bear all the burdens of the present and perform its duties. But many are weighed down by the anticipation of future troubles. They are constantly seeking to bring tomorrow's burdens into today. Thus a large share of all their trials are imaginary. For these, Jesus has made no provision. He promises grace only for the day. - Ibid.. p. 200.



God Has Promised...series "Do You Need Strength?"

"Do You Need Strength?"

God does not ask us to do in own strength the work before us. HE has provided divine assistance for all the emergencies to which our human resources are unequal.

Testimonies, vol. 8, p. 19

When you rise in the morning, do you feel your helplessness and your need of strength from God/ and do you humbly, heartily make known your wants to your heavenly Father? If so, angels mark your prayers, and if these prayers have not gone forth out of feigned lips, when you are in danger of unconsciously doing wrong an exerting n influence which will lead others to do wrong, your guardian angel will be by your side, prompting you to better course, choosing your words for you, and influencing your actions.

Testimonies, vol. 3, pp. 363,364

Words cannot describe the peace and joy possessed by him who takes God at His word. Trials do not disturb him, slights do not vex him. Self is crucified. Day by day his duties may become more taxing, his temptations stronger, his trials more severe; but he does not falter, for he receives strength equal to his need. 

Messages to Young People, p. 98

In the darkest days, when appearances seem most forbidding, have faith in God. He is working out His will, doing all things well in behalf of His people. The strength of those who love and serve Him will be renewed day by day.

~The Ministry of Healing, p. 482

If we encounter difficulties, and in Christ's strength overcome them; if we meet enemies, and in Christ's strength put them to flight; if we accept responsibilities, and in Christ's strength discharge them faithfully, we are gaining a precious experience. We learn, as we could not otherwise have learned, that our Saviour is a present help in every time of need.

Testimonies, vol. 5, p. 34.

You can do nothing in your own strength, but in the strength of Jesus you can do all things. Testimonies, vol 4, p. 259

The promises of God are full and abundant, and there is no need for anyone to depend upon humanity for strength. To all that call upon Him, God is near to help and succor.

Testimonies to Ministers, p. 381

Strength and grace have been provided through Christ to be brought b y ministering angels to every believing soul.

Steps to Christ, p. 53

It is obstacles that make men strong. It is ...difficulties, conflicts, rebuffs, that make men of moral sinew. Too much ease and avoiding responsibility have made weaklings and dwarfs of those who ought to be responsible men of moral power and strong spiritual muscle.

Testimonies, vol. 3, p. 495

  







God Has Promised.....series

God Has Promised

~God stands back of every promise He has made.

"For any gift HE has promised, we may ask; then we are to believe that e receive, and return thanks to God that we have received." Education, p. 258

"God stands back of every promise He has made." ~Christ Object Lessons, p. 147

"Can you not trust in your heavenly Father? Can you not rest upon His gracious promise? ....
Can we not have implicit trust, knowing that He is faithful who has promised? I entreat you to let your trembling faith again grasp the promises of God. Bear your how weight upon them with unwavering faith; for they will not, they cannot, fail." ~Testimonies, vol. 2. p. 497

"Let these blessed promises, set in the framework of faith, be placed in memory's halls. Not one of them will fail. All that God hath spoken He will do. 'He is faithful that promised.' " Testimonies, col. 5, p. 680

"We should now acquaint ourselves with God by proving HIs promises. Angels record every prayer that is earnest and sincere. We should rather dispense with selfish gratification than neglect communion wit God." The Great Controversy, p. 622

"Our heavenly Father has a thousand ways to provide for us, of which we know nothing." The Desire of Ages, p. 330

"Think of Christ. Look to Him in faith, believing His promises. Keep your mind trustful. He will be your stay. Lean on Him, depend on Him....Put your trust in One whose arm will never fail....Looking to Jesus you will find encouragement." Selected Messages, book 2, p. 265

"The Comforter that Christ promised to send in His name abides with us. In the way that leads to the City of God there are no difficulties which those who trust in Him may not overcome. There are no dangers which they may not escape. There is not a sorrow, not a grievance, not a human weakness, for which He has not provided a remedy." The Ministry of Healing, p. 249

"All things are possible to him that believeth; and whatsoever things we desire when we pray, if w believe that we receive them we shall have them. This faith will penetrate the darkest cloud and bring rays of light and hope to the drooping, desponding soul. It is the absence of this faith and trust which brings perplexity, distressing fears, and surmising of evil. God will do great things for His people when they put their entire trust in Him." Testimonies, vol. 2, p. 140

"All His (God's) gifts are promised on condition of obedience." Christ Object Lessons, p. 145

"The enemy never can take out of the hand of Christ the one who is simply trusting in His promises." The SDA Bible Commentary, Ellen G. White Comments, on Revelation 3:3, p. 959

"If you have...given yourself to Christ you are a member of the family of God, and everything in the Father's house is for you. All the treasures of God are opened to you, both the world that now is and that which is to come. The ministry of angels, the fit of His Spirit, the labors of His servants--all are for you. The world, with evertying in it, is yours so far as it can do you good. Even the enmity of the wicked will prove a blessing by disciplining you for heaven. If  'ye are Christ's,' 'all things are yours.' " Thoughts From the Mount of Blessing, p. 110

"To him who is content to receive without deserving, who feels that he can never recompense such love, who lays all doubt and unbeliefs aside, and comes as a little child to the feet of Jesus, all the treasures of eternal love are a free, everlasting gift." ~Ellen G. White letter 19E, 1892

"It is through the gift of Christ that we receive every blessing. Through that gift there comes to us day by day the unfailing flow of Jehovah's goodness. Every flower, with its delicate tints and sweet fragrance, is given for our enjoyment through that one Gift. The sun and moon were made by Him; there is not a stay that beautifies the heavens which HE did not make. There is not an article of food upon our tables that HE had not provided for our sustenance. The superscription of Christ is upon it all." Testimonies, vol. 8, pp. 287,288

"The Saviour has not promised HIs followers the luxuries of the world, their fare may be plain, and even scanty; but His word is pledged that their need shall be supplied, and He has promised that which is far better than worldly good- the abiding comfort of His presence." The Desire of Ages, p. 367

"He(Christ) is to be with us, not only at the beginning and the end of our course, but at every step of the way." Steps to Christ, p. 69

"It is possible even for a parent to turn away from his hungry child, but God can never reject the cry of the needy and longing heart." Thoughts From the Mount of Blessing, p. 132



If you would like to check out any of these quotes - you will find most of the books at Ellen G. White Estate
You won't find the quotes from letters or the Testimonies at the site above but you would be able to find the rest.