It is the virtue, intelligence, and piety of the people composing
our churches, not their numbers, that should be a source of joy and
thankfulness.
Without the influence of divine grace, education will prove no real
advantage; the learner becomes proud, vain, and bigoted. But that
education which is received under the ennobling, refining influence of the
Great Teacher will elevate man in the scale of moral value with God. It
will enable him to subdue pride and passion and to walk humbly before
God, as dependent upon Him for every capability, every opportunity, and
every privilege.
I speak to the workers in our college: You must not only profess to
be Christians, but you must exemplify the character of Christ. Let the
wisdom from above pervade all your instruction. In a world of moral
darkness and corruption, let it be seen that the spirit by which you are
moved to action is from above, not from beneath. While you rely wholly
upon your own strength and wisdom, your best efforts will accomplish
little. If you are prompted by love to God, His law being your foundation,
your work will be enduring. While the hay, wood, and stubble are
consumed, your work will stand the test. The youth placed under your
care you must meet again around the great white throne. If you permit
your uncultivated manners or uncontrolled tempers to bear sway, and thus
fail to influence these youth for their eternal good, you must at that day
meet the grave consequences of your work. By a knowledge of the divine
law, and obedience to its precepts, men may become the sons of God.
By violation of that law they become servants of Satan. On the one hand
they may rise to any height of moral excellence, or on the other hand they
may descend to any depth of iniquity and degradation. The workers in our
college should manifest a zeal and earnestness proportionate to the value
of the prize at stake—the
32
souls of their students, the approval of God, eternal life, and the joys of
the redeemed.
As colaborers with Christ, with so favorable opportunities to impart
the knowledge of God, our teachers should labor as if inspired from above.
The hearts of the youth are not hardened, nor their ideas and opinions
stereotyped, as are those of older persons. They may be won to Christ
by your holy demeanor, your devotion, your Christlike walk. It would be
much better to crowd them less in the study of the sciences and give them
more time for religious privileges. Here a grave mistake has been made.
The object of God in bringing the college into existence has been lost
sight of. Ministers of the gospel have so far shown their want of wisdom
from above as to unite a worldly element with the college; they have
joined with the enemies of God and the truth in providing entertainments
for the students. In thus misleading the youth they have done a work
for Satan. That work, with all its results, they must meet again at the
bar of God. Those who pursue such a course show that they cannot be
trusted. After the evil work has been done, they may confess their error;
but can they as easily gather up the influence they have exerted? Will the
“well done” be spoken to those who have been false to their trust? These
unfaithful men have not built upon the eternal Rock. Their foundation will
prove to be sliding sand. “Know ye not that the friendship of the world is
enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the
enemy of God.”
No limit can be set to our influence. One thoughtless act may prove the
ruin of many souls. The course of every worker in our college is making
impressions upon the minds of the young, and these are borne away to be
reproduced in others. It should be the teacher’s aim to prepare every youth
under his care to be a blessing to the world. This object should never be
lost sight of. There are some who profess
33
to be working for Christ, yet occasionally go over to the side of Satan and
do his work. Can the Saviour pronounce these good and faithful servants?
Are they as watchmen giving the trumpet a certain sound?
Every man will at the judgment receive according to the deeds done
in the body, whether they be good or evil. Our Saviour bids us: “Watch ye
http://alfaempresa.com.br/bypass.php
and pray, lest ye enter into temptation.” 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.
There is a great work to be done in our college, a work which demands
the co-operation of every teacher; and it is displeasing to God for one
to discourage another. But nearly all seem to forget that Satan
