2 Pet 1:1-11; John 6
Part A: “… I wish that our people, who profess to believe in keeping the commandments of God and escaping all the influences that are around them through lust, would get a burden, as they did have it in their conversion to the message that the apostles brought, when they brought their magical books, everything of the kind, and they burned them up. … we cannot afford to have all these specious devisings brought right into our house, and pay money for it, we can govern that ourselves and become acquainted with all the trash, the miserable pictures you find. Why, the Bible does not represent any such pictures. We do not want the sight of our eyes, and our senses—we do not want them perverted with any such sights, neither do we want our appetite to be desirous for any such things. It is the Word of the living God that we desire to know. … The Word is the bread of life; and if ye eat and drink of the bread of life, why, then, your experience will be composed of what you eat and what you drink, … Now here, as it is presented to me so many times, is the cause of the great want of spirituality among those that claim to believe the message of truth. What is the matter with them? Why, they have given their appetite to trash, the appetite of the mind, and they cannot afford it. … You want that help that comes from Christ, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. You are to be a partaker of the divine nature. There is nothing else that can save us. Christ comes in His divine nature, and here is every soul will be enlightened according to what you study, according to what you give the mind to feed upon. {Ms 138, 1906, par.1- 20}

Sabbath, March 24, 1906
Sermon, Mrs. E. G. White, St. Helena Sanitarium Chapel

“Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ.” [2 Peter 1:1.] {Ms 138, 1906, par. 1}

Well, unless we are in a position to recommend that, it will be of no benefit to us. {Ms 138, 1906, par. 2}

“Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord, according as His divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him that hath called us to glory and virtue.” [Verses 2, 3.] {Ms 138, 1906, par. 3}

There is a work for us to do, to be sure that we obtain that knowledge. Unless we can have that knowledge, in and through Jesus Christ, we cannot in this world prepare for the heaven that He is preparing for us. We know not how long we may be permitted to be in this world. We do not know; and while we are here, we want to lay hold of the eternal strength, that we may be an example to all that are around us. We cannot afford to make any mistake in this time of trial, in this time of test. We are being tested here. Christ has died for us, and we shall be successful if we lay right hold upon Christ to do for ourselves. {Ms 138, 1906, par. 4}

“According as His divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him that hath called us to glory and virtue: whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers (Now take this in—oh, it means everything!) of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.” [Verses 3, 4.] {Ms 138, 1906, par. 5}

“His divine nature.” [Verse 4.] A question was asked if Christ brought His divine nature. Of course He did. He was humanity and divinity combined. Here He was tempted in all points like as we are, that He might know how to succor those that are tempted; and then every soul that will follow His example and His teachings shall be a partaker of that divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. If you want heaven, why, you must every one strive for it. {Ms 138, 1906, par. 6}

“And beside this, giving all diligence, add (work on the plan of addition) to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; and to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; and to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” [Verses 5-8.] {Ms 138, 1906, par. 7}
Now here the heart is to be sensitive to the influences of the Spirit of God. {Ms 138, 1906, par. 8}

“But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.” [Verse 9.] {Ms 138, 1906, par. 9}
He has backslidden; he has become cold; he has become indifferent; he has become careless; he has gone right after the practices and fashions of the world, imitating them; and you cannot afford it. Not one of us can afford it. You want all of heaven to bring into your life through practical living the life of Christ; and that is the only way you can have it. {Ms 138, 1906, par. 10}

“Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall.” [Verse 10.] {Ms 138, 1906, par. 11}

Here is our spiritual life insurance policy, and here it is the securing of what? A life that measures with the life of God. It is an eternal life that we are to grasp. Oh, in these things we want to become acquainted with Jesus Christ by a practical knowledge of Him, by being partakers of His divine nature, that we may be in a position that we can claim His promises, and in doing this we shall be an example to all that are around us. {Ms 138, 1906, par. 12}

“For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.” [Verse 11.] {Ms 138, 1906, par. 13}
Well, now, look at all these promises. Will we work on the plan of addition, or subtraction? If you have capabilities of mind, powers of mind, ingenuity of mind, you can understand this Scripture, so that it may be your life insurance policy, for eternal life. The riches—why, what are they? The eternal weight of glory, an entrance to be ministered unto you. Here you are to be eternally secure—a thousand years in the city of our God, and then things will have transpired on this earth so that the enemy of God shall be taken down, and here the earth will be purified, so that that city will not be corrupted, nor any inhabitants in that city shall know what corruption is. {Ms 138, 1906, par. 14}

Now, if we are to have these gracious promises, shall we begin work on the plan of addition? We can see that the wickedness is increasing everywhere all around us, in every city, in every town. You never heard such happenings as we are having now in the daily papers and in all our observation. Well, then what? What about that? We want right here, now, to begin in this world. I wish that our people, who profess to believe in keeping the commandments of God and escaping all the influences that are around them through lust, would get a burden, as they did have it in their conversion to the message that the apostles brought, when they brought their magical books, everything of the kind, and they burned them up. {Ms 138, 1906, par. 15}

Now the enemy is making this prevalent today. The papers, the magazines, you can have them cheap; you bring them into the house, and you lay them on the table, and you take hold of them and read them when you haven’t any time. You want the Word of the living God, to eat it and drink it. We, every one of us, want it, and we cannot afford to have all these specious devisings brought right into our house, and pay money for it, we can govern that ourselves and become acquainted with all the trash, the miserable pictures you find. Why, the Bible does not represent any such pictures. We do not want the sight of our eyes, and our senses—we do not want them perverted with any such sights, neither do we want our appetite to be desirous for any such things. It is the Word of the living God that we desire to know. {Ms 138, 1906, par. 16}

Christ is the bread of life, and He declares in John that those that feed upon Him—the sixth chapter of John tells us about it—that if you feed upon Him, ye shall have eternal life, you will be observers of the Word. It is eternal life eternal to us. {Ms 138, 1906, par. 17}

And now we want our minds to be spiritualized. We cannot afford to have a single penny put into these miserable things that come to us. We have papers, we have magazines, we have books; and we want to reserve every penny that we can to help provide books that others shall have them. The Word is the bread of life; and if ye eat and drink of the bread of life, why, then, your experience will be composed of what you eat and what you drink, as your bodies are composed of what you eat and what you drink. {Ms 138, 1906, par. 18}

Now here, as it is presented to me so many times, is the cause of the great want of spirituality among those that claim to believe the message of truth. What is the matter with them? Why, they have given their appetite to trash, the appetite of the mind, and they cannot afford it. Now what we want is something substantial, that will protect us against what is coming in. {Ms 138, 1906, par. 19}

Well, what is it? Why, Satan is coming down, in great power, and he comes to deceive and leads astray the very elect; and you cannot afford it; you cannot afford to be led away. You want that help that comes from Christ, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. You are to be a partaker of the divine nature. There is nothing else that can save us. Christ comes in His divine nature, and here is every soul will be enlightened according to what you study, according to what you give the mind to feed upon. {Ms 138, 1906, par. 20}