“But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.”  { 2 Peter 3:18.} “It is the privilege of the young, as they grow in Jesus, to grow in spiritual grace and knowledge. We may know more and more of Jesus through an interested searching of the Scriptures, and then following the ways of truth and righteousness therein revealed. Those who are ever growing in grace will be steadfast in the faith, and moving forward. {AG 284.2} There should be an earnest desire in the heart of every youth who has purposed to be a disciple of Jesus Christ to reach the highest Christian standard, to be a worker with Christ. If he makes it his aim to be of that number who shall be presented faultless before the throne of God, he will be continually advancing. The only way to remain steadfast is to progress daily in divine life. Faith will increase if, when brought in contact with doubts and obstacles, it overcomes them. True sanctification is progressive. If you are growing in grace and the knowledge of Jesus Christ, you will improve every privilege and opportunity to gain more knowledge of the life and character of Christ.” {AG 284.3}  Amazing Grace by Ellen G....

“He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.” Revelation 21:7. We do not realize how near is the end of all things. We do not sense as we should the need of being daily overcomers and of securing the eternal reward. It is those who overcome the temptations that are in the world through lust who are partakers of the divine nature. The sacrifice has been made for us. Will we accept it? … It requires prayer, it requires faith, it requires understanding, to become a partaker of the divine nature. But as we obtain this experience we are not benefiting ourselves alone; we are giving to all around us an evidence that all May be partakers of the divine nature, all May be overcomers. Let us determine to be victorious. Let us seek for a large measure of divine grace…. Let us not be swayed by the elements of the world, but let us show that we are determined to become overcomers day by day and hour by hour…. Let us represent Christ and the truth wherever we go, that we May … glorify God. My brethren and sisters, Jesus loves to make intercession for you. Cling to Jesus. Strive to be overcomers, that the Saviour May welcome you to the city of God, where you can sing the triumphs of redeeming grace. O what a scene of rejoicing it will be when the Lamb of God shall place upon the heads of the redeemed the victor’s crown! Never, never more will you be led into temptation and sin. You will see the King in His beauty. And those whom you have helped heavenward will meet you there. They will throw their arms about you and acknowledge what you have done for them. “You watched over me,” they will say; “you prayed for me; you helped me to gain heaven.” … Let us go forward in the strength of the Mighty One, considering the joy that is set before us of seeing His face in the kingdom of God and of going out no more forever. Let us remember that we are to be partakers of the divine nature, and that angels of God are right around us, that we need not be overcome by sin. Let us send our petitions to the throne of God in time of temptation, and in faith lay hold of His divine power. In Heavenly Places, by Ellen G. White. For free access to books and writings from Ellen G. White,...

Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee. Ex. 20:12 The best way to educate children to respect their father and mother is to give them the opportunity of seeing the father offering kindly attentions to the mother, and the mother rendering respect and reverence to the father. It is by beholding love in their parents that children are led to obey the fifth commandment. . . . Our obligation to our parents never ceases. Our love for them, and theirs for us, is not measured by years or distance, and our responsibility can never be set aside. When the nations are gathered before the judgment seat of Christ, but two classes will be represented –those who have identified their interest with Christ and suffering humanity; those who have ignored their God-given obligations, done injury to their fellow men, and dishonor to God. Their eternal destiny will be decided on the ground of what they did and what they did not do to Christ in the person of His saints. Parents are entitled to a degree of love and respect which is due to no other person. . . . The fifth commandment requires children not only to yield respect, submission, and obedience to their parents, but also to give them love and tenderness, to lighten their cares, to guard their reputation, and to succor and comfort them in old age. While the parents live it should be the children’s joy to honor and respect them. They should bring all the cheerfulness and sunshine into the life of the aged parents that they possibly can. They should smooth their pathway to the grave. There is no better recommendation in this world than that a child has honored his parents, no better record in the books of heaven than that he has loved and honored father and mother. From My Life Today – Page 283 by Ellen G....

“Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.” Matthew 4:7. Lets all remember how adroitly and cunningly did Satan command Christ to cast Himself from the Temple, quoting scripture to show Him that it was the very thing for Him to do, for in this way He could give evidence to all the people that He was what He claimed to be. “If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone” (verse 6). In quoting the scripture Satan left out a very important point, … “to keep thee in all thy ways” (Psalm 91:11). In consenting to do Satan’s bidding, Christ would be venturing into Satan’s ways, not in ways that God had devised for His Son. That was a dare, and Satan’s agents are full of presumptuous dares to get a chance to work his will with those who will accept his dare. But Christ would not accept the dare of Satan. Christ would not enter into controversy with the arch deceiver and tempter. He said, “It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.” … Angels, as ministering spirits, are in the path where duty calls the heirs of salvation to travel, and God will protect them from all evil. But when Satan marked out a path of his own, … Christ had no right to walk in that way. He was to keep His feet in the path which the Lord had marked out. Thus Christ in His humanity gave an example of what man should do when tempted by Satan’s suggestions. We are … never to accept a dare to prove the truth to men who are inspired by Satan to make proposals that God has not originated; for in this way Satan would lead us to step out of the path of God’s providence and place ourselves in a position where we might be worsted by the enemy, and be overcome to our own hurt and to the injury of the cause of God. Our only safety every day and every hour is to be on watch. We cannot become indolent and careless. I tell you that God would have His people to be ever on guard. Ellen G. White from In Heavenly...

“My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not.” Proverbs 1:10. “We must not put ourselves on the enemy’s ground. We are only here as probationers. We must not act as though there were no tempting devil. There are temptations that come to us, and we cannot accept them and give them a place in the mind unless we peril our souls. We want to know that our feet are in safe paths. You who associate with the disobedient and worldly-minded, heed the injunction: “Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, and will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty” (2 Corinthians 6:17, 18). Is this not encouragement enough for us—to have living connection with the God of heaven? When you go where sin is, and place yourself on the enemy’s ground, you place yourself where the angels of God do not preserve you from evil influence. We are to know that Christ is constantly by our side. We are to put all our trust in Christ…. What dependence can you place in human nature that is not under the control of the influence of God? The world knows Him not today. The line of demarcation is plain and distinct between those who keep His commandments and those who do not. We cannot serve the world and please God…. Many seem to be sad because of their religion. We should not go about begging pardon of the world because we are Christians. I beg pardon of Jesus Christ only, because I am not complete in Him…. If we love Jesus we shall become heirs of God, and the Father will love us as He loves His Son Jesus Christ. We are members of the royal family, children of the heavenly King…. It was the highest exaltation of Christ to obey His Father and keep His law as the apple of His eye. Let it have this effect upon our characters…. Let us exalt Jesus. Let us give Him our hearts’ best service, and He will say, I will confess you before My Father, and before His angels. From In Heavenly Places ~ Ellen G....

“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 6:12. “We do not understand as we should the great conflict going on between invisible agencies, the controversy between loyal and disloyal angels. Over every man, good and evil angels strive. This is no make believe conflict. It is not mimic battles in which we are engaged. We have to meet most powerful adversaries, and it rests with us to determine which shall win. Could human beings know the number of the evil angels, could they know their devices and their activity, there would be far less pride and frivolity. Satan is the prince of demons. The evil angels over whom he rules do his bidding. Through them he multiplies his agencies…. He instigates all the evil that exists in our world. If Satan sees that he is in danger of losing one soul, he will exert himself to the utmost to keep that one. And when the individual is aroused to his danger, and, with distress and fervor, looks to Jesus for strength, Satan fears that he will lose a captive, and he calls a reinforcement of his angels to hedge in the poor soul, and form a wall of darkness around him, that heaven’s light May not reach him. But if the one in danger perseveres, and in his helplessness casts himself upon the merits of the blood of Christ, our Saviour listens to the earnest prayer of faith, and sends a reinforcement of those angels that excel in strength to deliver him. Satan cannot endure to have his powerful rival appealed to, for he fears and trembles before His strength and majesty. At the sound of fervent prayer, Satan’s whole host trembles…. And when angels, all-powerful, clothed with the armory of heaven, come to the help of the fainting, pursued soul, Satan and his host fall back…. The great Commander in heaven and earth has limited Satan’s power. Around every tempted soul there are angels of God, ready to lift up the standard of righteousness, if the tempted one will only show a spirit of resistance to evil. Each May be an overcomer. Christ has in our behalf withstood the fiercest temptations of the enemy.” Ellen G. White...