He that hath mercy on them shall lead them, even by the
springs of water shall He guide them. And I will make all
My mountains a way, and My highways shall be exalted....
“Sing, O heavens; and be joyful, O earth; and break forth
into singing, O mountains: for the Lord hath comforted His
people, and will have mercy upon His afflicted. But Zion
said, The Lord hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten
me. Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should
not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may
forget, yet will I not forget thee. Behold, I have graven thee
upon the palms of My hands; thy walls are continually before
Me.” Isaiah 49:8-16.
The church is God’s fortress, His city of refuge, which
He holds in a revolted world. Any betrayal of the church is
treachery to Him who has bought mankind with the blood of
His only-begotten Son. From the beginning, faithful souls
have constituted the church on earth. In every age the Lord
has had His watchmen, who have borne a faithful testimony
to the generation in which they lived. These sentinels gave
the message of warning; and when they were called to lay
off their armor, others took up the work. God brought these
witnesses into covenant relation with Himself, uniting the
church on earth with the church in heaven. He has sent forth
His angels to minister to His church, and the gates of hell
have not been able to prevail against His people.
Through centuries of persecution, conflict, and darkness,
God has sustained His church. Not one cloud has fallen upon
it that He has not prepared for; not one opposing
