E NEED TO COME STILL CLOSER to God. After Moses had been assured that his request was answered, and that God would go up with him, he pleaded still for greater blessings. “Show me thy glory” was his prayer. And God listened to that mighty man of faith, and He said, “I will make all my goodness pass before thee; and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before thee; and will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy. . . . And the Lord said, Behold, there is a place by me, and thou shalt stand upon a rock; and it shall come to pass, while my glory passeth by, that I will put thee in a cleft of the rock, and will cover thee with my hand while I pass by.” “And the Lord passed by before him, and proclaimed, The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth.”

 

Why is it that our hearts have been so insensible to the love of God? Why have we had so hard a judgment of our Heavenly Father? From the light that God has given me, I know that Satan has misrepresented our God in every possible way. He has cast his hellish shadow athwart our pathway, that we might not discern our God as a God of mercy, compassion, and truth. This is why the iron has entered into our souls. Then we have talked of the darkness that the evil one has cast upon us, and we have bemoaned our condition; and in so doing, we have only spread the shadow over other souls, and that which has injured us was an injury to them. As we have uttered our words of unbelief, others have been enshrouded in darkness and doubt. We cannot afford to do this work.

 

We thus put our kind Heavenly Father in a false light. All this should change. We must gather up the rays of divine truth, and let our light shine upon the darkened pathway of others. Heaven’s light shines for those who will follow Christ, the light of the world. He says, “He that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.”

 

What kind of recommendation do you give to the world of the religion of Christ, if you go repining and complaining, and filled with sorrow? Those who keep the commandments of God should make it manifest that the truth is sanctifying the soul, refining and purifying the thoughts, and elevating the character and life. Christ has died that the moral image of God might be restored in our souls, and might be reflected to those around us. 

We need to drink deeper and deeper of the fountain of life. I hope that not a soul will be satisfied without making thorough work for eternity; and from this time on, may it be seen, both by precept and example, that you are representatives of Christ. You may have a living testimony to bear: “Hear what the Lord has done for my soul.” The Lord is ready to impart still greater blessings. He permitted all His goodness to pass before Moses; He proclaimed His character to him as a God full of mercy, long-suffering, and gracious—forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin. Moses was to represent this character to the people of Israel, and we are to do the same. We are to go forth to proclaim the goodness of God, and to make plain His real character before the people. We are to reflect His glory. Have we done this in the past? Have we revealed the character of our Lord by precept and example? Have we not joined in the work of the enemy of souls, and misrepresented our Heavenly Father? Have we not been passing judgment on our brethren, criticizing their words and actions? 

Then the love of God has not been enthroned in our souls. Let us make a decided change. Let us declare the character of God to the people as Moses did to Israel, both in spirit and life. We are to catch the light of His countenance, full of compassion and love, and reflect it to perishing souls.

 

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The above excerpt, from an article originally titled “In Him Is Light,” was the text of a sermon delivered by Ellen G. White in South Lancaster, Massachusetts, on January 19, 1889, and printed in the February 26 edition of Advent Review and Sabbath Herald (now the Adventist Review). Seventh-day Adventists believe that Ellen G. White exercised the biblical gift of prophecy during more than 70 years of public ministry.