The first step in the path of obedience is to surrender the will to God. This may seem a difficult thing to do; for Satan will present every possible objection, and will manufacture difficulties, and magnify perplexities before the mind; but take the first step, and the next step on the ladder of progress will be easier. The ladder of progress must be climbed round by round; but God is above the ladder, and his glory will illuminate every step of advancement. The path of faith and self-denial is an upward path; its way is heavenward, and as you advance, the misleading clouds of doubt and evil will be left behind.
No one need be blinded by any delusion. He who makes the word of God his guide and counselor, and will listen to no voice that would lead him to take the words of men instead of that word, will always dwell safely. Let him bring the principles of the law of God into his life to regulate and control his conduct, and his life will be a success. He will grasp the righteousness of Christ by faith, and becoming a partaker of the divine nature, will thus become a doer of the divine law.
Nothing but willing obedience on the part of those who profess to love God is acceptable in his sight. He has given to every man his work; but that work is in nowise of such a nature that the worker must needs show disrespect to any of the requirements of God’s law. The wisdom and glory of every man’s life is to make the ways and the will of God his will and his ways, and every one who takes a course that leads away from obedience to the law of God will meet with disappointment in his plans, failure in his life, and will suffer the loss of his soul at last. Who can afford thus to do? There is no madness in our world so disastrous as that which leads men to live in rebellion against God. We are now deciding our destiny for both time and eternity.
– The Review and Herald, October 9, 1894