will require but attendance upon a meeting
full of the Spirit of Christ to sweep away their unbelief. No matter
what we have to meet, what opposition, what effort to turn souls
away from the truth of heavenly origin, we must give publicity to
our faith, that honest souls may see and hear and be convinced for
themselves. Our work is to say, as did Philip: “Come and see.”
We hold no doctrine that we wish to hide. To those who have
been educated to keep the first day of the week as a sacred day, the
most objectionable feature of our faith is the Sabbath of the fourth
commandment. But does not God’s word declare that the seventh
day is the Sabbath of the Lord our God? True, it is not an easy matter
to make the required change from the first to the seventh day. It
involves a cross. It clashes with the precepts and practices of men.
Learned men have taught the people tradition till they are full of
unbelief and prejudice. Yet we must say to these people: “Come and
see.” God requires us to proclaim the truth and let it discover error.
Attendance of Church Members
It is important that the members of our churches should attend
our camp meetings. The enemies of truth are many; and because
our numbers are few, we should present as strong a front as possible.
Individually you need the benefits of the meeting, and God calls
upon you to number one in the ranks of truth. [39]
38 Testimonies for the Church Volume 6
Some will say: “It is expensive to travel, and it would be better
for us to save the money and give it for the advancement of the work
where it is so much needed.” Do not reason in this way; God calls
upon you to take your place among the rank and file of His people.
Strengthen the meeting all you possibly can by being present with
your families. Put forth extra exertion to attend the gathering of
God’s people.
Brethren and sisters, it would be far better for you to let your
business suffer than to neglect the opportunity of hearing the message
God has for you. Make no excuse that will keep you from gaining
every spiritual advantage possible. You need every ray of light. You
need to become qualified to give a reason of the hope that is in
you with meekness and fear. You cannot afford to lose one such
privilege.
Anciently the Lord instructed His people to assemble three times
a year for His worship. To these holy convocations the children
of Israel came, bringing to the house of God their tithes, their sin
offerings, and their offerings of gratitude. They met to recount
God’s mercies, to make known His wonderful works, and to offer
praise and thanksgiving to His name. And they were to unite in the
sacrificial service which pointed to Christ as the Lamb of God that
taketh away the sin of the world. Thus they were to be preserved
from the corrupting power of worldliness and idolatry. Faith and love
and gratitude were to be kept alive in their hearts, and through their
association together in this sacred service they were to be bound
closer to God and to one another.
In the days of Christ these feasts were attended by vast multitudes
of people from all lands; and had they been kept as God intended, in
the spirit of true worship, the light of truth might through them have
[40] been given to all the nations of the world.
With those who lived at a distance from the tabernacle, more
than a month of every year must have been occupied in attendance
upon these holy convocations. The Lord saw that these gatherings
were necessary for the spiritual life of His people. They needed to
turn away from their worldly cares, to commune with God, and to
contemplate unseen realities.
If the children of Israel needed the benefit of these holy convocations
in their time, how much more do we need them in these
Camp Meeting 39
last days of peril and conflict! And if the people of the world then
needed the light which God had committed to His church, how much
more do they need it now!
This is a time for everyone to come up to the help of the Lord,
to the help of the Lord against the mighty. The forces of the enemy
are strengthening, and as a people we are misrepresented. We desire
the people to become acquainted with our doctrines and work. We
want them to know what we are, and what we believe. We must find
our way to their hearts. Let the army of the Lord be on the ground
to represent the work and cause of God. Do not plead an excuse.
The Lord has need of you. He does not do His work without the
co-operation of the human agent. Go to the camp meeting, even
though you have to make a sacrifice to do so. Go with a will to
work. And make every effort to induce your friends to go, not in
your place, but to go with you, to stand on the Lord’s side and obey
His commandments. Help those who are interested to attend, if
necessary providing them with food and lodging. Angels who are
commissioned to minister to those who are heirs of salvation will
accompany you. God will do great things for His people. He will
bless every effort to honor His cause and advance His work. [41]
Preparation of Heart
At these gatherings we must ever remember that two forces are at
work. A battle unseen by human eyes is being waged. The army of
the Lord is on the ground, seeking to save souls. Satan and his host
are also at work, trying in every possible way to deceive and destroy.
The Lord bids us: “Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be
able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against
flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against
the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness
in high places.” Ephesians 6:11, 12. Day by day the battle goes
on. If our eyes could be opened to see the good and evil agencies
at work, there would be no trifling, no vanity, no jesting or joking.
If all would put on the whole armor of God and fight manfully the
battles of the Lord, victories would be gained that would cause the
kingdom of darkness to tremble.
40 Testimonies for the Church Volume 6
None of us should go to the camp meeting depending on the
ministers or the Bible workers to make the meeting a blessing to us.
God does not want His people to hang their weight on the minister.
He does not want them to be weakened by depending on human
beings for help. They are not to lean, like helpless children, upon
someone else as a prop. As a steward of the grace of God, every
church member should feel personal responsibility to have life and
root in himself. Each one should feel that in a measure the success
of the meeting depends upon him. Do not say: “I am not responsible.
I shall have nothing to do in this meeting.” If you feel thus, you are
giving Satan opportunity to work through you. He will crowd your
mind with his thoughts, giving you something to do in his lines.
[42] Instead of gathering with Christ, you will scatter abroad.
The success of the meeting depends on the presence and power
of the Holy Spirit. For the outpouring of the Spirit every lover of
the cause of truth should pray. And as far as lies in our power, we
are to remove every hindrance to His working. The Spirit can never
be poured out while variance and bitterness toward one another
are cherished by the members of the church. Envy, jealousy, evil
surmising, and evilspeaking are of Satan, and they effectually bar
the way against the Holy Spirit’s working. Nothing else in this world
is so dear to God as His church. Nothing is guarded by Him with
such jealous care. Nothing so offends God as an act that injures the
influence of those who are doing His service. He will call to account
all who aid Satan in his work of criticizing and discouraging.
Those who are destitute of sympathy, tenderness, and love cannot
do Christ’s work. Before the prophecy can be fulfilled, The weak
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shall be “as David,” and the house of David “as the angel of the
Lord” (Zechariah 12:8), the children of God must put away every
thought of suspicion in regard to their brethren. Heart must beat in
unison with heart. Christian benevolence and brotherly love must
be far more abundantly shown. The words are ringing in my ears:
“Draw together, draw together.” The solemn, sacred truth for this
time is to unify the people of God. The desire for pre-eminence must
die. One subject of emulation must swallow up all others—who will