Digging For Truth : Prepared to stand

Quotations from the writings of Ellen G. White with the phrase . . .

p r e p a r e d t o s t a n d ( 4 RELATED PHRASES )

The phrase 'Prepared to stand' appears 89 times in the published writings of EGW page not on Original site Related phrase: prepared to stand in the judgment ( below ) - - prepared to stand against ( )

God has revealed what is to take place in the last days, that His people may be prepared to stand against the tempest of opposition and wrath. Those who have been warned of the events before them are not to sit in calm expectation of the coming storm, comforting themselves that the Lord will shelter His faithful ones in the day of trouble. We are to be as men waiting for their Lord, not in idle expectancy, but in earnest work, with unwavering faith. It is no time now to allow our minds to be engrossed with things of minor importance. While men are sleeping, Satan is actively arranging matters so that the Lord’s people may not have mercy or justice. The Sunday movement is now making its way in darkness. The leaders are concealing the true issue, and many who unite in the movement do not themselves see whither the undercurrent is tending. Its professions are mild and apparently Christian, but when it shall speak it will reveal the spirit of the dragon. It is our duty to do all in our power to avert the threatened danger. We should endeavor to disarm prejudice by placing ourselves in a proper light before the people. We should bring before them the real question at issue, thus interposing the most effectual protest against measures to restrict liberty of conscience. We should search the Scriptures and be able to give the reason for our faith. Says the prophet: “The wicked shall do wickedly: and none of the wicked shall understand; but the wise shall understand.” { 5T 452.1} Read entire chapter 51 also { RH December 11, 1888, par. 8 } - { LDE 125.3 }

God had committed to His people a work to be accomplished on earth. The third angel’s message was to be given, the minds of believers were to be directed to the heavenly sanctuary, where Christ had entered to make atonement for His people. The Sabbath reform was to be carried forward. The breach in the law of God must be made up. The message must be proclaimed with a loud voice, that all the inhabitants of earth might receive the warning. The people of God must purify their souls through obedience to the truth, and be prepared to stand without fault before Him at His coming. { Evangelism, 695.2} - { 1SM 67.9}

I saw angels hurrying to and fro in heaven, descending to the earth, and again ascending to heaven, preparing for the fulfillment of some important event. Then I saw another mighty angel commissioned to descend to the earth, to unite his voice with the third angel, and give power and force to his message. Great power and glory were imparted to the angel, and as he descended, the earth was lightened with his glory. The light which attended this angel penetrated everywhere, as he cried mightily, with a strong voice, “Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird.” The message of the fall of Babylon, as given by the second angel, is repeated, with the additional mention of the corruptions which have been entering the churches since 1844. The work of this angel comes in at the right time to join in the last great work of the third angel’s message as it swells to a loud cry. And the people of God are thus prepared to stand in the hour of temptation, which they are soon to meet. I saw a great light resting upon them, and they united to fearlessly proclaim the third angel’s message. { EW 277.1} Read entire section

God has permitted the light of health reform to shine upon us in these last days, that by walking in the light we may escape many of the dangers to which we shall be exposed. Satan is working with great power to lead men to indulge appetite, gratify inclination, and spend their days in heedless folly. He presents attractions in a life of selfish enjoyment and of sensual indulgence. Intemperance saps the energies of both mind and body. He who is thus overcome has placed himself upon Satan’s ground, where he will be tempted and annoyed, and finally controlled at pleasure by the enemy of all righteousness. Parents need to be impressed with their obligation to give to the world children having well-developed characters,—children who will have moral power to resist temptation, and whose life will be an honor to God and a blessing to their fellowmen. Those who enter upon active life with firm principles, will be prepared to stand unsullied amid the moral pollutions of this corrupt age. Let mothers improve every opportunity to educate their children for usefulness. { CE 175.3 } - { FE 139.1 } -

Moral and Spiritual Guidance Must Be Given — Parents need to be impressed with their obligation to give to the world children having well-developed character—children who will have moral power to resist temptation, and whose life will be an honor to God and a blessing to their fellow men. Those who enter upon active life with firm principles will be prepared to stand unsullied amid the moral pollutions of this corrupt age. { CG 189.3}

The work of co-operating with the gospel minister in carrying the present truth to all nations, tongues, and peoples, is indeed a most essential one. It should be conducted in a manner in keeping with the exalted truth which we profess to love. Through the canvassing work, the minds of many who are now absorbed in iniquity and error, may be enlightened. Through this agency a people may be prepared to stand in the great day of God which is just before us.— Review and Herald, May 20, 1890. { CM 101.1 }

Those who endeavor to obey all the commandments of God will be opposed and derided. They can stand only in God. In order to endure the trial before them, they must understand the will of God as revealed in His word; they can honor Him only as they have a right conception of His character, government, and purposes, and act in accordance with them. None but those who have fortified the mind with the truths of the Bible will stand through the last great conflict. To every soul will come the searching test: Shall I obey God rather than men? The decisive hour is even now at hand. Are our feet planted on the rock of God’s immutable word? Are we prepared to stand firm in defense of the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus? { DD 36.2 } - { GC 593.2} Read entire chapter 37 - { LDE 66.3 }

The great controversy between good and evil will increase in intensity to the very close of time. In all ages the wrath of Satan has been manifested against the church of Christ; and God has bestowed His grace and Spirit upon His people to strengthen them to stand against the power of the evil one. When the apostles of Christ were to bear His gospel to the world and to record it for all future ages, they were especially endowed with the enlightenment of the Spirit. But as the church approaches her final deliverance, Satan is to work with greater power. He comes down “having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.” Revelation 12:12. He will work “with all power and signs and lying wonders.” 2 Thessalonians 2:9. For six thousand years that mastermind that once was highest among the angels of God has been wholly bent to the work of deception and ruin. And all the depths of satanic skill and subtlety acquired, all the cruelty developed, during these struggles of the ages, will be brought to bear against God’s people in the final conflict. And in this time of peril the followers of Christ are to bear to the world the warning of the Lord’s second advent; and a people are to be prepared to stand before Him at His coming, “without spot, and blameless.” 2 Peter 3:14. At this time the special endowment of divine grace and power is not less needful to the church than in apostolic days. { GC ix.4} Introduction

Every one of us needs to have a deep insight into the teachings of the Word of God. Our minds must be prepared to stand every test and to resist every temptation, whether from without or from within. We must know why we believe as we do, why we are on the Lord’s side. The truth must keep watch in our hearts, ready to sound an alarm and summon us to action against every foe. The powers of darkness will open their batteries upon us; and all who are indifferent and careless, who have set their affections on their earthly treasure, and who have not cared to understand God’s dealings with His people will be ready victims. No power but a knowledge of the truth as it is in Jesus will ever make us steadfast; but with this, one may chase a thousand, and two put ten thousand to flight.—Review and Herald, April 29, 1884. (HC 332.) { 1MCP 67.4 }

When a crisis finally comes, as it surely will, and God speaks in behalf of His people, those who have sinned, those who have been a cloud of darkness and who have stood directly in the way of God’s working for His people, may become alarmed at the length they have gone in murmuring and in bringing discouragement upon the cause; and, like Achan, becoming terrified, they may acknowledge that they have sinned. But their confessions are too late and are not of the right kind to benefit themselves, although they may relieve the cause of God. Such do not make their confessions because of a conviction of their true state and a sense of how displeasing their course has been to God. God may give this class another test, another proving, and let them show that they are no better prepared to stand free from all rebellion and sin than before their confessions were made. They are inclined to be ever on the side of wrong. And when the call is made for those who will be on the Lord’s side to make a decided move to vindicate the right, they will manifest their true position. Those who have been nearly all their lives controlled by a spirit as foreign to the Spirit of God as was Achan’s will be very passive when the time comes for decided action on the part of all. They will not claim to be on either side. The power of Satan has so long held them that they seem blinded and have no inclination to stand in defense of right. If they do not take a determined course on the wrong side, it is not because they have a clear sense of the right, but because they dare not. { 3T 271.2}

God has revealed what is to take place in the last days, that His people may be prepared to stand against the tempest of opposition and wrath. Those who have been warned of the events before them are not to sit in calm expectation of the coming storm, comforting themselves that the Lord will shelter His faithful ones in the day of trouble.... { FLB 325.3}

Our minds must be prepared to stand every test, and to resist every temptation, whether from without or from within. We must know why we believe as we do, why we are on the Lord’s side. The truth must keep watch in our hearts, ready to sound an alarm, and summon us to action against every foe. The powers of darkness will open their batteries upon us; and all who are indifferent and careless, who have set their affections on their earthly treasure, and who have not cared to understand God’s dealings with His people, will be ready victims. No power but a knowledge of the truth as it is in Jesus, will ever make us steadfast; but with this, one may chase a thousand, and two put ten thousand to flight. { OHC 332.5} - { RH April 29, 1884, Art. B, par. 6 }

P r e p a r e d t o s t a n d i n t h e j u d g m e n t

Those who had accepted the light concerning the mediation of Christ and the perpetuity of the law of God found that these were the truths presented in Revelation 14. The messages of this chapter constitute a threefold warning (see Appendix) which is to prepare the inhabitants of the earth for the Lord’s second coming. The announcement, “The hour of His judgment is come,” points to the closing work of Christ’s ministration for the salvation of men. It heralds a truth which must be proclaimed until the Saviour’s intercession shall cease and He shall return to the earth to take His people to Himself. The work of judgment which began in 1844 must continue until the cases of all are decided, both of the living and the dead; hence it will extend to the close of human probation. That men may be prepared to stand in the judgment, the message commands them to “fear God, and give glory to Him,” “and worship Him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.” The result of an acceptance of these messages is given in the word: “Here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.” In order to be prepared for the judgment, it is necessary that men should keep the law of God. That law will be the standard of character in the judgment. The apostle Paul declares: “As many as have sinned in the law shall be judged by the law, ... in the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ.” And he says that “the doers of the law shall be justified.” Romans 2:12-16. Faith is essential in order to the keeping of the law of God; for “without faith it is impossible to please Him.” And “whatsoever is not of faith is sin.” Hebrews 11:6; Romans 14:23. { Great Controversy, 435.2}

Those who had accepted the light concerning the mediation of Christ and the perpetuity of the law of God found that these were the truths presented in Revelation 14. The messages of this chapter constitute a threefold warning which is to prepare the inhabitants of the earth for the Lord’s second coming. The announcement, “The hour of his judgment is come,” points to the closing work of Christ’s ministration for the salvation of men. It heralds a truth which must be proclaimed until the Saviour’s intercession shall cease and He shall return to the earth to take His people to Himself. The work of judgment which began in 1844 must continue until the cases of all are decided, both of the living and the dead; hence it will extend to the close of human probation. That men may be prepared to stand in the judgment, the message commands them to “fear God, and give glory to him,” “and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.” The result of an acceptance of these messages is given in the Word: “Here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.” In order to be prepared for the judgment, it is necessary that men should keep the law of God. That law will be the standard of character in the judgment. The apostle Paul declares: “As many as have sinned in the law shall be judged by the law, ... in the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ.” And he says that “the doers of the law shall be justified” ( Romans 2:12-16). Faith is essential in order to the keeping of the law of God; for “without faith it is impossible to please him.” And “whatsoever is not of faith is sin” ( Hebrews 11:6; Romans 14:23). { LHU 342.2}

That men may be prepared to stand in the judgment, the message commands them to “fear God, and give glory to him,” “and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea and the fountains of waters.” The result of acceptance of these messages is given: “Here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.” Revelation 14:7, 12. { HF 270.1 }

We may multiply forms and ceremonies, and heap resolution upon resolution, and be nothing better for all these things. What we need is purity of heart; and God can give us this as a free gift of his grace. Many blame circumstances for their defective characters. They say, “I could do so much better if things were only different; but this one tries me, and that one vexes me, and that is the reason that I am not a better Christian.” But this is a deception. There is grace with God to enable you to serve him just where you are, and excuses of this order have no weight with him. Do not charge your circumstances with your failure. The Lord knows where you are, and he would have you practise those things which make for godliness. You need not be an element of strife, no matter what arises to try to vex you. You may be a peacemaker, whatever may be your circumstances. Jesus says, “Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.” What a shame it is that Satan is allowed to work so successfully among us! Why do we permit gossips to pour into our ears complaints and reproaches concerning our brethren and our friends? Why do we take up a reproach and stir up strife, instead of making peace? This grieves God’s Holy Spirit, and causes love to leak out of the heart as water out of a leaky vessel. Let us have a practical religion. Look to Christ by faith, and behold his purity, his mercy, and his love, and bring our actions into harmony with the divine Spirit. Let us have the Spirit of Jesus in our homes. Let us sing and make melody unto the Lord in our hearts. If the praise of God is in our household, there will be no danger of discord in the church. Where there are peacemakers, there is the ministry of holy angels. Be converted; repent; realize what religion is. Open your hearts, and let the Lord Jesus in. We cannot be half-hearted in the service of God, and be prepared to stand in the judgment. We must have Christ in the inward parts, and his sacred presence will create a pure atmosphere in the home and in the church. If he abides with us, sweet music will come from our hearts, and our prayer and praise circle will be enlarged. Have little Bible classes among yourselves, and make them interesting. Go out and behold God in nature, and when you glorify God, he will honor you. Unless we give ourselves entirely to Christ, Satan will take control. Let us run with patience the race that is set before us, keeping our eyes fixed upon the Author and Finisher of our faith. Take your stand fully under the blood-stained banner of the cross. Look to Christ by faith, and light and joy and melody will spring up in your heart. Cultivate the faith that works by love and purifies the soul, and you will be among the blessed, and shall see God, and praise him through the endless ages of eternity. { YI January 9, 1896, par. 4 }

We are in the great day of atonement, when our sins are, by confession and repentance, to go beforehand to Judgment. God does not now accept a tame, spiritless testimony from his ministers. Such a testimony would not be present truth. The message for this time must be meat in due season to feed the church of God. But Satan has been seeking gradually to rob this message of its power, that the people may not be prepared to stand in the day of the Lord. { RH March 22, 1887, par. 8 }

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Prepared to stand

p r e p a r e d t o s t a n d ( 4 RELATED PHRASES )

P r e p a r e d t o s t a n d i n t h e j u d g m e n t

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