I will read 2 Corinthians, the sixth chapter:
"We then, as workers together with Him, beseech you also that ye receive not the grace of
God in vain. (For He saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I
succored thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.) Giving no
offense in anything, that the ministry be not blamed; but in all things approving ourselves as the
ministers of God, in much patience, in afflictions, in necessities, in distresses, in stripes, in
imprisonments, in tumults, in labors, in watchings, in fastings; by pureness, by knowledge, by
longsuffering, by kindness, by the Holy Ghost, by love unfeigned, by the word of truth, by the
power of God, by the armor of righteousness on the right hand and on the left, by honor and
dishonor, by evil report and good report: as deceivers, and yet true; as unknown, and yet well
known; as dying, and, behold, we live; as chastened, and not killed; as sorrowful, yet always
rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things. . . .
"Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness
with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? and what concord hath
Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? and what agreement hath
the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God
hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be My
people. 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."
You should study also the seventh chapter, but I will not take time to read it now.
There is constant danger among our people that those who engage in labor in our schools and
sanitariums will entertain the idea that they must get in line with the world, study the things
which the world studies, and become familiar with the things that the world becomes familiar
with. This is one of the greatest mistakes that could be made. We shall make grave mistakes
unless we give special attention to the searching of the word.
The question is asked, What is the higher education? There is no education higher than that
contained in the principles laid down in the words I have read to you from this sixth chapter of
Second Corinthians. Let our students study diligently to comprehend this. There is no higher
education to be gained than that which was given to the early disciples, and which is given to us
through the word. May the Holy Spirit of God impress your minds with the conviction that there
is nothing in all the world in the line of education that is so exalted as the instruction contained in
the sixth and seventh chapters of Second Corinthians. Let us advance in our work just as far as
the word of God will lead us. Let us work intelligently for this higher education. Let our
righteousness be the sign of our understanding of the will of God committed to us through His
messengers.
It is the privilege of every believer to take the life of Christ and the teachings of Christ as his
daily study. Christian education means the acceptance, in sentiment and principle, of the
teachings of the Saviour. It includes a daily conscientious
walking in the footsteps of Christ, who consented to lay off His royal robe and crown and to
come to our world in the form of humanity, that He might give to the human race a power that
they could gain by no other means. What was that power? It was the power resulting from the
human nature uniting with the divine, the power to take the teachings of Christ and follow them
to the letter. In His resistance of evil and His labor for others Christ was giving to men an
example of the highest education that it is possible for any one to attain.
The Son of God was rejected by those whom He came to bless. He was taken by wicked
hands and crucified. But after He had risen from the dead, He was with His disciples forty days,
and in this time He gave them much precious instruction. He laid down to His followers the
principles underlying the higher education. And when He was about to leave them and go to His
Father, His last words to them were, "I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world."
To many who place their children in our schools, strong temptations will come, because they
desire them to secure what the world regards as the most essential education. Who knows what
constitutes the most essential education, unless it is the education to be obtained from that Book
which is the foundation of all true knowledge? Those who regard as essential the knowledge to
be gained along the line of worldly education are making a great mistake, one which will cause
them to be swayed by individual opinions that are human and erring. To those who feel that their
children must have what the world calls the essential education, I would say, Bring your children
to the simplicity of the word of God, and they will be safe. We are going to be greatly scattered
before long, and what we do must be done quickly.
The light has been given me that tremendous pressures will be brought upon every
Seventh-day Adventist with whom the world can get into close connection. Those who seek the
education that the world esteems so highly, are gradually led further and further from the
principles of truth until they become educated worldlings. At what a price have they gained their
education! They have parted with the Holy Spirit of God. They have chosen to accept what the
world calls knowledge in the place of the truths which God has committed to men through His
ministers and prophets and apostles. And there are some who, having secured this worldly
education, think that they can introduce it into our schools. But let me tell you that you must not
take what the world calls the higher education and bring it into our schools and sanitariums and
churches. We need to understand these things. I speak to you definitely. This must not be done.
Upon the mind of every student should be impressed the thought that education is a failure
unless the understanding has learned to grasp the truths of divine revelation, and unless the heart
accepts the teachings of the gospel of Christ. The student who, in the place of the broad
principles of the word of God, will accept common ideas, and will allow the time and attention to
be absorbed in commonplace, trivial matters, will find his mind becoming dwarfed and
enfeebled. He has lost the power of growth. The mind must be trained to comprehend the
important truths that concern eternal life.
I am instructed that we are to carry the minds of our students higher than it is now thought to
be possible. Heart and mind are to be trained to preserve their purity by receiving daily supplies
from the fountain of eternal truth. The divine Mind and Hand has preserved through the ages the
record of creation in its purity. It is the word of God alone that gives to us an authentic account of
the creation of our world. This word is to be the chief study in our schools. In it we may hold
converse with patriarchs and prophets. In it we may learn what our redemption has cost Him who
was equal with the Father from the beginning, and who sacrificed His life that a people might
stand before Him redeemed from
everything earthly and commonplace, renewed in the image of God.
If we are to learn of Christ, we must pray as the apostles prayed when the Holy Spirit was
poured upon them. We need a baptism of the Spirit of God. We are not safe for one hour while
we are failing to render obedience to the word of God.
I do not say that there should be no study of the languages. The languages should be studied.
Before long there will be a positive necessity for many to leave their homes and go to work
among those of other languages; and those who have some knowledge of foreign languages will
thereby be able to communicate with those who know not the truth. Some of our people will
learn the languages in the countries to which they are sent. This is the better way. And there is
One who will stand right by the side of the faithful worker to open the understanding and to give
wisdom. The Lord can make their work fruitful where men do not know the foreign language. As
they go among the people, and present the publications, the Lord will work upon minds,
imparting an understanding of the truth. Some who take up the work in foreign fields can teach
the word through an interpreter. As the result of faithful effort there will be a harvest gathered,
the value of which we do not now understand.
There is another line of work to be carried forward, the work in the large cities. There should
be companies of earnest laborers working in the cities. Men should study what needs to be done
in the places that have been neglected. The Lord has been calling our attention to the neglected
multitudes in the large cities, yet little regard has been given to the matter.
We are not willing enough to trouble the Lord with our petitions, and to ask Him for the gift
of the Holy Spirit. The Lord wants us to trouble Him in this matter. He wants us to press our
petitions to the throne. The converting power
of God needs to be felt throughout our ranks. The most valuable education that can be obtained
will be found in going out with the message of truth to the places that are now in darkness. We
should go out just as the first disciples went out in obedience to the commission of Christ. The
Saviour gave the disciples their directions. In a few words He told them what they might expect
to meet. "I send you forth," He said, "as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as
serpents, and harmless as doves." These workers were to go forth as the representatives of Him
who gave His life for the life of the world.
The Lord wants us to come into harmony with Him. If we will do this, His Spirit can rule our
minds. If we have a true understanding of what constitutes the essential education, and endeavor
to teach its principles, Christ will help us. He promised His followers that when they should
stand before councils and judges, they were to take no thought what they should speak. I will
instruct you, He said. I will guide you. Knowing what it is to be taught of God, when words of
heavenly wisdom are brought to our mind, we shall distinguish them from our own thoughts. We
shall understand them as the words of God, and we shall see in the words of God wisdom and life
and power. . . .
We are to educate the youth to exercise equally the mental and the physical powers. The
healthful exercise of the whole being will give an education that is broad and comprehensive. We
had stern work to do in Australia in educating parents and youth along these lines; but we
persevered in our efforts until the lesson was learned that in order to have an education that was
complete, the time of study must be divided between the gaining of book-knowledge and the
securing of a knowledge of practical work. Part of each day was spent in useful work, the
students learning how to clear the land, how to cultivate the soil, and how to build houses, using
time that would otherwise have been spent in playing games and seeking amusement
And the Lord blessed the students who thus devoted their time to acquiring habits of usefulness.
Instruct the students not to regard as most essential the theoretical part of their education. Let
it be more and more deeply impressed upon every student that we should have an intelligent
understanding of how to treat the physical system. And there are many who would have greater
intelligence in these matters if they would not confine themselves to years of study without a
practical experience. The more fully we put ourselves under the direction of God, the greater
knowledge we shall receive from God. Let us say to our students: Keep yourselves in connection
with the Source of all power. Ye are laborers together with God. He is to be our chief
instructor.--Review and Herald, November 11, 1909.