All the light of the past, which shines unto the present and reaches forth into the future, as revealed in the word of God, is for every soul who comes to our health institutions. The Lord designs that the sanitariums established among Seventh-day Adventists shall be symbols of what can be done for the world, types of the saving power of the truths of the gospel. They are to be agencies in the fulfillment of God’s great purposes for the human race.
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To God’s people and His institutions in this generation as well as to ancient Israel belong the words written by Moses through the Spirit of Inspiration:
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“Thou art an holy people unto the Lord thy God: the Lord thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto Himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth.”Deuteronomy 7:6.
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“Behold, I have taught you statutes and judgments, even as the Lord my God commanded me ∙∙∙ . Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people. For what nation is there so great, who hath God so nigh unto them, as the Lord our God is in all things that we call upon Him for? And what nation is there so great, that hath statutes and judgments so righteous as all this law, which I set before you this day?”Deuteronomy 4:5~8.
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Even these words fail of reaching the greatness and the glory of God’s purpose to be accomplished through His people.— Manuscript 166, 1899.
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Sanitariums are needed, in which successful medical and surgical work can be done. Those institutions, conducted in accordance with the will of God, would remove prejudice and call our work into favorable notice. The highest aim of the workers in these institutions is to be the spiritual health to the patients. Successful evangelistic work can be done in connection with medical missionary work. It is as these lines of work are united that we may expect to gather the most precious fruit for the Lord.—Letter 202, 1903.
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Our sanitariums in all their departments should be memorials for God, His instrumentalities for sowing the seeds of truth in human hearts. This they will be if rightly conducted.—Testimonies for the Church 6:225.
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As to drugs’ being used in our institutions, it is contrary to the light which the Lord has been pleased to give. The drugging business has done more harm to our world and killed more than it has helped or cured. The light was first given to me why institutions should be established, that is, sanitariums were to reform the medical practices of physicians.—Letter 69, 1898.
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The God of heaven is honored by an institution managed in this way. The----Sanitarium was established in the order of God, that men and women might better understand the virtues of the tree of life. In His mercy God has made the sanitarium such a power in the relief of physical suffering that thousands are drawn to it to be cured of their maladies, and very often they are not only cured physically, but from the Saviour they receive the forgiveness of their sins, and they identify themselves completely with Christ, with His interests, His honor. Their sins are taken away and are placed at Christ’s account. His righteousness is imputed to them. The healing balm is applied to the soul. They receive the grace of Christ and go forth to impart to others the light of truth. The Lord makes them His witnesses. Their testimony is, He was made “to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him.”2 Corinthians 5:21. They never forget the prayers, the songs of praise and thanksgiving, that they heard while at the sanitarium. Can we realize how much God is glorified by this work?—Letter 38, 1899.
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The purpose of our health institutions is not first and foremost to be that of hospitals. The health institutions connected with the closing work of the gospel in the earth stand for the great principles of the gospel in all its fullness. Christ is the one to be revealed in all the institutions connected with the closing work, but none of them can do it so fully as the health institution where the sick and suffering come for relief and deliverance from both physical and spiritual ailment. Many of these need, like the paralytic of old, the forgiveness of sin the first thing, and they need to learn how to “go, and sin no more.”John 8:11.
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