For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. Romans 1:16.
(TDG 18.1)
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There is no defect in God’s plan for the salvation of men. If the gospel is not to every soul the power of God unto salvation, it is not because the gospel is at fault, but because men are not practical believers, practical receivers of the grace and righteousness of Christ.... The professed believers do not take Christ as their personal Saviour, but follow Jesus a great way off. One reason for this lack of personal religion is that they have not been educated in these vital principles.
(TDG 18.2)
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Another cause for the apathy and indifference in our churches is that the younger members have not been patiently, perseveringly taught how to work as faithful soldiers in Christ’s army....
(TDG 18.3)
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Many have accepted the truth without digging down deep to understand its foundation principles, and when it is opposed, they forget the arguments and evidences that sustain it. It should be impressed upon all that true and abiding knowledge can be gained only by earnest labor and persevering energy. Were the minds of the people brought under discipline by thorough searching of the Scriptures, there would be hundreds converted to the truth where there is one today....
(TDG 18.4)
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Many are as ignorant as the very heathen in regard to the way in which a sinner can come to God and be justified before Him. They have no excuse for their ignorance; for the inspired oracles declare, “The entrance of thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple” (Psalm 119:130). “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom (Proverbs 9:10)....
(TDG 18.5)
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A religious experience that is not founded in Christ and Him alone is worthless.... Men of intellectual powers need a clear, scriptural presentation of the plan of salvation. Let the truth in its simplicity and power be presented to them. If this does not hold the attention and arouse the interest, they never can be interested in heavenly and divine things. In every congregation there are souls who are unsatisfied. Every Sabbath they want to hear something definite explaining how they can be saved, how they are to become Christians. The important thing for them to know is, How can a sinner be justified before God?—Letter 23a, January 10, 1893, , to Brother E. H. Gates.
(TDG 18.6)
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In all their experiences, God was trying to teach them obedience to their heavenly Guide, and faith in His power to deliver them. Their deliverance from affliction in Egypt, and their passage through the Red Sea, revealed to them His power to save. When they rebelled against Him, and went contrary to His will, God punished them. When they persisted in their rebellion, and were determined to have their own way, God gave them that for which they asked, and in this way showed them that, that which He withheld from them, He withheld for their own good. Every judgment that came as a result of their murmurings was a lesson to that vast multitude, that sorrow and suffering are always the result of transgression of the laws of God.
(TDG 254.4)
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Only the influence of the grace of God will lead men to take their stand on the self-denying liberal side. The cause of God must not in any case be hindered. The message “Repent and be converted,” must go to all parts of the world. God has freely bestowed upon us His treasures of sunshine and shower, to cause vegetation to flourish, and He expects every believer to show willing liberality in advancing the cause of truth. We need now to work as we have never worked before, that the gospel, which is the power of God unto salvation, may be proclaimed throughout the world. And those who are converted to the truth are to be the means, through their self-sacrifice, of keeping the treasury supplied, that there may be meat in the Lord’s house.
(TDG 347.2)
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