to the wheat? saith the Lord.” “Every word of God is pure.... Add
thou not unto His words, lest He reprove thee, and thou be found a
liar.” 2 Timothy 4:2; Isaiah 32:20; Jeremiah 23:28; Proverbs 30:5, 6.
“The sower soweth the word.” Here is presented the great
principle which should underlie all educational work. “The seed is the
word of God.” But in too many schools of our day God’s word is set
aside. Other subjects occupy the mind. The study of infidel authors
holds a large place in the educational system. Skeptical sentiments are
interwoven in the matter placed in school books. Scientific research
becomes misleading, because its discoveries are misinterpreted and
perverted. The word of God is compared with the supposed teachings
of science, and is made to appear uncertain and untrustworthy. Thus
the seeds of doubt are planted in the minds of the youth, and in time of
temptation they spring up. When faith in God’s word is lost, the soul
has no guide, no safeguard. The youth are drawn into paths which
lead away from God and from everlasting life.
To this cause may in great degree be attributed the widespread
iniquity in our world today. When the word of God is set aside, its
power to restrain the evil passions of the natural heart is rejected. Men
sow to the flesh, and of the flesh they reap corruption.
And here, too, is the great cause of mental weakness and
inefficiency. In turning from God’s word to feed on the writings of
uninspired men, the mind becomes dwarfed and cheapened. It is not
brought in contact with deep, broad principles of eternal truth. The
understanding adapts itself to the comprehension of the things with
which it is familiar, and in this devotion to finite things it is weakened,
its power is contracted, and after a time it becomes unable to expand.
All this is false education. The work of every teacher
41
should be to fasten the mind of the youth upon the grand truths of the
word of Inspiration. This is the education essential for this life and
for the life to come.
And let it not be thought that this will prevent the study of the
sciences, or cause a lower standard in education. The knowledge
of God is as high as heaven and as broad as the universe. There is
nothing so ennobling and invigorating as a study of the great themes
which concern our eternal life. Let the youth seek to grasp these
God-given truths, and their minds will expand and grow strong in the
effort. It will bring every student who is a doer of the word into a
broader field of thought, and secure for him a wealth of knowledge
that is imperishable.
The education to be secured by searching the Scriptures is an
experimental knowledge of the plan of salvation.
42
Such an education will restore the image of God in the soul. It will
strengthen and fortify the mind against temptation, and fit the learner
to become a co-worker with Christ in His mission of mercy to the
world. It will make him a member of the heavenly family; and prepare
him to share the inheritance of the saints in light.
But the teacher of sacred truth can impart only that which he
himself knows by experience. “The sower sowed his seed.” Christ
taught the truth because He was the truth. His own thought, His
character, His life-experience, were embodied in His teaching. So
with His servants: those who would teach the word are to make it
their own by a personal experience. They must know what it is to have
Christ made unto them wisdom and righteousness and sanctification
and redemption. In presenting the word of God to others, they are
not to make it a suppose-so or a may-be. They should declare with
the apostle Peter, “We have not followed cunningly devised fables
when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord
Jesus Christ, but were eye-witnesses of His majesty.” 2 Peter 1:16.
Every minister of Christ and every teacher should be able to say with
the beloved John, “The life was manifested, and we have seen it, and
bear witness, and show unto you that eternal life which was with the
Father, and was manifested unto us.” 1 John 1:2.
The Soil—by the Wayside
That with which the parable of the sower chiefly deals is the effect
produced on the growth of the seed by the soil into which it is cast. By
this parable Christ was virtually saying to His hearers, It is not safe
for you to stand as critics of My work, or to indulge disappointment
because it does not meet your ideas. The question of
43
greatest importance to you is, How do you treat My message? Upon
your reception or rejection of it your eternal destiny depends.
Explaining the seed that fell by the wayside, He said, “When any
one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then
cometh the wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in
his heart. This is he which received seed by the wayside.”
The seed sown by the wayside represents the word of God as it
falls upon the heart of an inattentive hearer. Like the hard-beaten path,
trodden down by the feet of men and beasts, is the heart that becomes
a highway for the world’s traffic, its pleasures and sins. Absorbed
in selfish aims and sinful indulgences, the soul is “hardened through
the deceitfulness of sin.” Hebrews 3:13. The spiritual faculties are
paralyzed. Men hear the word, but understand it not. They do not
discern that it applies to themselves. They do not realize their need or
their danger. They do not perceive the love of Christ, and they pass by
the message of His grace as something that does not concern them.
As the birds are ready to catch up the seed from the wayside,
so Satan is ready to catch away the seeds of divine truth from the
soul. He fears that the word of God may awaken the careless, and
take effect upon the hardened heart. Satan and his angels are in the
assemblies where the gospel is preached. While angels of heaven
endeavor to impress hearts with the word of God, the enemy is on the
alert to make the word of no effect. With an earnestness equaled only
by his malice, he tries to thwart the work of the Spirit of God. While
Christ is drawing the soul by His love, Satan tries to turn away the
attention of the one who is moved to seek the Saviour. He engages
the mind with worldly schemes. He excites
44
criticism, or insinuates doubt and unbelief. The speaker’s choice of
language or his manner may not please the hearers, and they dwell
upon these defects. Thus the truth they need, and which God has
graciously sent them, makes no lasting impression.
Satan has many helpers. Many who profess to be Christians are
aiding the tempter to catch away the seeds of truth from other hearts.
Many who listen to the preaching of the word of God make it the
subject of criticism at home. They sit in judgment on the sermon
as they would on the words of a lecturer or a political speaker. The
message that should be regarded as the word of the Lord to them
http://alfaempresa.com.br/bypass.php
is dwelt upon with trifling or sarcastic comment. The minister’s
character, motives, and actions, and the conduct of fellow members
of the church, are freely discussed. Severe judgment is pronounced,
gossip or slander repeated, and this in the
