He that is not with me is against me: and he that gathereth not with me scattereth.
There is no middle ground toward Christ, for to stand apart from Him is to stand against Him, and to fail to gather souls to Him is to scatter them away, leaving every person wholly on one side or the other. Indifference, idleness and careless inaction are not neutrality but denial and opposition that scatter and lead toward ruin. To gather with Him is to be united to Him by consecration, enthroning Him in the heart and obeying Him, and His abiding presence makes believers His co-workers in gathering souls with strength and power. To scatter is to work against His cause by hindering those who would do good, discouraging soul-winning, and turning people away from God and the truth toward ruin, thereby strengthening the kingdom of darkness. This division is shown daily, for words, actions, dress, use of influence and training of children all reveal whether a person gathers with Christ or scatters away from Him.
No Neutral Position
There is no neutral position toward Christ, for to be not with Him is to be against Him, and to gather not with Him is to scatter, so every person is either wholly on the Lord's side gathering or on the enemy's side scattering, and this marks the division between good and evil. To be with Him is to be united with Him, to enthrone Him in the heart and to obey Him, which gives safety from Satan's snares, while His abiding presence makes believers His co-workers in gathering souls and gives their work strength and power, and without that union they do not gather with Him. Failing to obey the Redeemer, take up the cross and follow Him makes even a professed follower one who scatters, with eternal consequences. Each person's influence works either for Christ or against Him, to gather with Jesus being to serve His cause and to scatter being to work against it, so true conversion involves a radical change in the direction of mind and heart until life becomes new in Christ. Truth received and cherished in the heart turns a person from evil and changes the whole life, for truth and error cannot abide together in the same heart. To be with Christ is to be consecrated to His service, separated from the world and refusing worldly schemes and practices that keep the church under the enemy's influence, and to gather with Him is to lift the cross of Calvary, to stand in one's own lot and place, and to exert a positive influence for good with heroic ardor and living faith.
Absence of open hostility is not service to Him, and indifference, idleness and careless inaction are not neutrality but denial of Christ and opposition to Him that scatters abroad. Whoever withholds what God has entrusted for His service, whether time or means or any other gift, works against Him, and to think otherwise is to deceive the soul. A person either gathers with Christ by encouraging others to advance His cause or scatters by hindering them, for everyone's influence is used either to help save souls through earnest effort or to lead them toward perdition through careless indifference. Idleness in the Lord's work is not harmless but hinders those who are serving, and those who do not earnestly seek their own salvation and the salvation of others become available for Satan's work. Many professed Christians do nothing to gather with Him, and families need conversion and must seek the Lord with all their hearts.
Compromise with the world leaves no middle ground, for a person cannot compromise with the world and still enjoy the Lord's blessing, but those who belong to God are to be separate from the world, seek and do God's will, and let truth transform life so that character and conduct bear witness to faith. Following Him requires a firm, wholehearted commitment that remains when the work is difficult, not enthusiasm that fades when excitement passes, for those who are not wholly for Him stand against Him. A person who does not give himself wholly to God comes under another power and serves the enemy of righteousness, so half-hearted service places a person on the enemy's side as an ally who helps work against Christ and can draw Christ's followers away from Him. Wavering and repeatedly resisting the call to surrender to God is therefore failure to follow Him, and disregarded conviction hardens the conscience until it is less responsive to the Spirit and neglected light becomes darkness.
Refusing to advance with Christ in the truth while standing in the way of others makes a person scatter rather than gather with Him, and such influence obstructs the work Christ sends His servants to do. Misusing God-given abilities and discouraging others from advancing in the good they would do makes a person an obstacle to winning souls for Christ and brings accountability before God.
Gathering with Christ
To gather with Christ is to be with Him through union with Him, consecration to His service, enthroning Him in the heart, and obeying Him. That union brings safety from Satan's snares, while His abiding presence makes believers His co-workers in gathering souls to Him and gives their work strength and power, so that without that union they do not gather with Him. True conversion therefore involves a radical change in the direction of mind and heart, so that life becomes new in Christ and serves His cause. To be with Him in this way is to be separated from the world, refusing worldly schemes and practices that keep the church under the enemy's influence.
Gathering requires firm, wholehearted commitment that remains when the work is difficult, not enthusiasm that fades when excitement passes. It seeks God's favor and kingdom and righteousness first, letting right principles appear plainly and holding conscientious scruples even when scorned and despised. It calls for using all mental, physical, and moral powers in His service, following the impressions and convictions God gives to guide toward that service when they are heeded. There is no neutral use of education, privilege, and influence, for all acquirements must be used to gather toward Christ and do good to others, staying in a position to always say No to pleasant companionable tempters and to Satan's traps.
Gathering is active labor after Christ's sacrificed life, through diligence, sacrifice, and self-denial in the work His followers have to do for Him. It encourages others to advance His cause and help save souls through earnest effort, rather than hindering them. It lifts the cross of Calvary, stands in one's own lot and place, and exerts a positive influence for good with heroic ardor and living faith.
Gathering means being in union with God's people and with the proclamation of solemn saving truth that separates from the world and unites with God's peculiar people. It brings souls into the truth and establishes them upon the third angel's message and the important, saving truths of God's Word. Truth received and cherished in the heart turns a person from evil and changes the whole life, for truth and error cannot abide together in the same heart. Presenting the Sabbath separated from that message loses force and power, while the Sabbath connected with the message of the third angel and the testimony of Jesus together cannot be overthrown and has power to convict unbelievers and bring them out to stand and live and grow and flourish.
Gathering upholds spirituality and holiness and keeps the church a living, working church, while a life devoted to God's service and Christ's work helps gather people with Him. Those who belong to God are to be separate from the world, seek and do God's will without compromise, and let truth transform their lives so that character and conduct bear witness to faith. Those who take a leading position in churches must by life and deportment gather in this way instead of scattering, since scattering hinders the work of God and defeats His purpose.
Scattering Against Christ
To scatter is to work against Christ's cause and to obstruct the work He sends His servants to do. It hinders those who would advance in the good they would do, discourages the winning of souls, and stands in the way of others instead of advancing with Christ in the truth. Influence that leads people away from God and the truth and away from Christ toward ruin and perdition is scattering rather than gathering, whether exerted through careless indifference or open opposition. In a workplace connected with God's cause such influence should be separated and removed at once, because to retain it lets it scatter others.
Scattering works in the opposite direction from God's work of correcting, bringing up, and uniting His people, and it displeases Him even when the person thinks his course is nearly right. It encourages unbelief and doubts, sets minds to run in a wrong channel, and divides and alienates instead of bringing together. It causes weak and trusting souls to stumble and faint and falter, and strengthens the hands of those in opposition to God's work and the influence of truth. It also strengthens unbelief by voice and makes strange paths that cast many into uncertainty and confusion.
Scattering comes from rejecting light and opposing His message, from resisting the influence of the Spirit of God and refusing to submit to the divine claims. It misuses God-given abilities and wastes God-given endowments instead of employing powers in obedience to the God of heaven. It uses common fire instead of the sacred fire of His kindling, is unwise and unfaithful in many things, and fails to be saved from sin and to make life the success God desires. Unless steps are immediately retraced, this course brings bitter remorse and ends at last in the confession that the harvest is past, the summer is ended, and they are not saved.
Those who scatter strengthen the kingdom of darkness, become active agents in the enemy's hands, and serve Satan as servants and parties to the ruin of souls. There is no neutral position, for a person is either wholly on the Lord's side or on the enemy's, and not gathering with Christ means scattering. Wavering and repeatedly resisting the call to surrender is therefore failure to follow Him. Disregarded conviction hardens the conscience until it is less responsive to the Spirit, and neglected light becomes darkness. In the family this warns that neglectful or unwise discipline can place children among those who scatter, while children whose influence is wholly on Christ's side become His co-workers helping others find the path of life.
The spirit antagonistic to pure truth stands condemned in the teachings of the law of God. With light and evidence of present truth now given, there must be a halt and a different order of religious faith. Every form of error must be avoided, and each person must openly show his true position on Christ's side, since there are only two positions, on the side of Christ Jesus or against Him.
Daily Life and Work
There is no neutral use of education, privilege, and influence toward Christ, for all acquirements must be used to gather toward Him and to do good to others, and any use that turns influence away from Him is scattering from Him and an abuse of granted privilege. Gathering with Him in this daily use requires being fortified with religious principles and seeking first God's favor and kingdom and righteousness. Right principles must appear plainly, and conscientious scruples must be held even when scorned and despised. The gatherer stays in a position to always say No to pleasant companionable tempters and to Satan's traps.
In the family, neglect of religious life and of training children to follow Christ exerts an influence against Christ and the truth, since those not on His side are against Him. Neglectful or unwise discipline can place children among those who scatter and strengthen the kingdom of darkness, while children whose influence is wholly on Christ's side become His co-workers and help others find the path of life. Many professed Christians do nothing to gather with Him in bringing people to Him, so families need conversion and must seek the Lord with all their hearts.
Words, actions, and dress daily show whether a person is with Christ, for they either gather with Him or scatter. Dress is a daily testimony that can gather or can scatter people away from Him and lead others to reject the truth. Association between the righteous and the wicked is never neutral: untold good is done when the righteous work with and for the wicked by drawing with Christ to lead sinners to God. When those who should lead do not draw with Christ, the law of assimilation works in reverse, the unrighteous draw church members into frivolity and careless pleasure, and souls are scattered away from truth, leaving undone the work for God, for one another, and for the world through lack of true missionary spirit. Church members are pledged to a character in every way different from worldlings, and without that change they assimilate to the world and let the leaven of the world destroy the purity and holiness of the church.
Those who take a leading position in churches must by life and deportment gather with Christ instead of scattering from Him, for gathering upholds spirituality and holiness and keeps the church a living, working church, while scattering hinders the work of God and defeats His purpose. Influence that divides and alienates and scatters rather than gathers is opposed to Christ's work, and dissension undermines the community instead of bringing it together. In workplaces connected with God's cause, especially publishing offices, those whose influence leads people away from God and the truth are scattering rather than gathering, acting as servants of Satan in opposing Christ's purpose, and should be separated from the office at once lest their influence scatter others from Christ. Satan uses every device to bring about such scattering, including unwise marriages that turn aside young men who might teach the truth and lower the standard of spirituality and holiness.
Toward God's instrumentalities and institutions, a person either helps build up or works to tear down, for no one is neutral and every influence either supports or opposes Christ's work. Those who see problems should help improve them by giving constructive counsel to the responsible workers, rather than spreading criticism that tears down the institution and its workers. Merely finding fault without offering a helpful way forward is not working to build up God's work. Failing to unite in action hinders the advance of God's people.
There is no neutral position toward Christ, for those who do not join Him in His work scatter rather than gather, and failing to obey the Redeemer, take up the cross, and follow Him makes a professed follower part of those who scatter, with eternal consequences. A minister's wife either helps Christ's work by laboring unitedly with her husband for souls or hinders it by putting herself first, and she must have a self-sacrificing missionary spirit and be willing to endure trials and disappointments for Christ's sake. God is displeased when His people instead of gathering with Him scatter abroad, and scattering means using common fire instead of the sacred fire of His kindling, being unwise and unfaithful in many things, wasting God-given endowments, strengthening unbelief by voice, and making strange paths that cast many into uncertainty and confusion. Gathering means using the sacred fire of His kindling, being saved from sin, not wasting endowments, and making life the success God desires, while scattering unless immediately retraced brings bitter remorse and ends at last in the confession that the harvest is past, the summer is ended, and they are not saved.
Failing to gather with Christ is scattering and being against Him, and gathering means being in union with God's people and with the third angel proclaiming a solemn message, bringing souls into the truth and establishing them upon that message and the important, saving truths of God's Word that separate them from the world and unite them with God's peculiar people. A profession of sanctification that is only theory, thrown as a garment over disunion, not practically carrying out holiness, covering a course opposed to the law of God, and not abstaining from the very appearance of evil, has a scattering influence and does not gather with Christ. Such a worker is deceived and does not know what spirit he is of, is at war with God's people being led out upon important truths, and unites his influence with the dragon host to oppose those who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus. Presenting the Sabbath separated from the message loses its force and power like the same teaching without the message, while the Sabbath connected with the message of the third angel and the testimony of Jesus together cannot be overthrown and has power to convict unbelievers and bring them out to stand and live and grow and flourish.
There is no middle ground toward Christ, for to stand apart from Him is to stand against Him, and to fail to gather souls to Him is to scatter them away, leaving every person wholly on one side or the other. Indifference, idleness and careless inaction are not neutrality but denial and opposition that scatter and lead toward ruin. To gather with Him is to be united to Him by consecration, enthroning Him in the heart and obeying Him, and His abiding presence makes believers His co-workers in gathering souls with strength and power. To scatter is to work against His cause by hindering those who would do good, discouraging soul-winning, and turning people away from God and the truth toward ruin, thereby strengthening the kingdom of darkness. This division is shown daily, for words, actions, dress, use of influence and training of children all reveal whether a person gathers with Christ or scatters away from Him.
No Neutral Position
There is no neutral position toward Christ, for to be not with Him is to be against Him, and to gather not with Him is to scatter, so every person is either wholly on the Lord's side gathering or on the enemy's side scattering, and this marks the division between good and evil. To be with Him is to be united with Him, to enthrone Him in the heart and to obey Him, which gives safety from Satan's snares, while His abiding presence makes believers His co-workers in gathering souls and gives their work strength and power, and without that union they do not gather with Him. Failing to obey the Redeemer, take up the cross and follow Him makes even a professed follower one who scatters, with eternal consequences. Each person's influence works either for Christ or against Him, to gather with Jesus being to serve His cause and to scatter being to work against it, so true conversion involves a radical change in the direction of mind and heart until life becomes new in Christ. Truth received and cherished in the heart turns a person from evil and changes the whole life, for truth and error cannot abide together in the same heart. To be with Christ is to be consecrated to His service, separated from the world and refusing worldly schemes and practices that keep the church under the enemy's influence, and to gather with Him is to lift the cross of Calvary, to stand in one's own lot and place, and to exert a positive influence for good with heroic ardor and living faith.
Absence of open hostility is not service to Him, and indifference, idleness and careless inaction are not neutrality but denial of Christ and opposition to Him that scatters abroad. Whoever withholds what God has entrusted for His service, whether time or means or any other gift, works against Him, and to think otherwise is to deceive the soul. A person either gathers with Christ by encouraging others to advance His cause or scatters by hindering them, for everyone's influence is used either to help save souls through earnest effort or to lead them toward perdition through careless indifference. Idleness in the Lord's work is not harmless but hinders those who are serving, and those who do not earnestly seek their own salvation and the salvation of others become available for Satan's work. Many professed Christians do nothing to gather with Him, and families need conversion and must seek the Lord with all their hearts.
Compromise with the world leaves no middle ground, for a person cannot compromise with the world and still enjoy the Lord's blessing, but those who belong to God are to be separate from the world, seek and do God's will, and let truth transform life so that character and conduct bear witness to faith. Following Him requires a firm, wholehearted commitment that remains when the work is difficult, not enthusiasm that fades when excitement passes, for those who are not wholly for Him stand against Him. A person who does not give himself wholly to God comes under another power and serves the enemy of righteousness, so half-hearted service places a person on the enemy's side as an ally who helps work against Christ and can draw Christ's followers away from Him. Wavering and repeatedly resisting the call to surrender to God is therefore failure to follow Him, and disregarded conviction hardens the conscience until it is less responsive to the Spirit and neglected light becomes darkness.
Refusing to advance with Christ in the truth while standing in the way of others makes a person scatter rather than gather with Him, and such influence obstructs the work Christ sends His servants to do. Misusing God-given abilities and discouraging others from advancing in the good they would do makes a person an obstacle to winning souls for Christ and brings accountability before God.
Gathering with Christ
To gather with Christ is to be with Him through union with Him, consecration to His service, enthroning Him in the heart, and obeying Him. That union brings safety from Satan's snares, while His abiding presence makes believers His co-workers in gathering souls to Him and gives their work strength and power, so that without that union they do not gather with Him. True conversion therefore involves a radical change in the direction of mind and heart, so that life becomes new in Christ and serves His cause. To be with Him in this way is to be separated from the world, refusing worldly schemes and practices that keep the church under the enemy's influence.
Gathering requires firm, wholehearted commitment that remains when the work is difficult, not enthusiasm that fades when excitement passes. It seeks God's favor and kingdom and righteousness first, letting right principles appear plainly and holding conscientious scruples even when scorned and despised. It calls for using all mental, physical, and moral powers in His service, following the impressions and convictions God gives to guide toward that service when they are heeded. There is no neutral use of education, privilege, and influence, for all acquirements must be used to gather toward Christ and do good to others, staying in a position to always say No to pleasant companionable tempters and to Satan's traps.
Gathering is active labor after Christ's sacrificed life, through diligence, sacrifice, and self-denial in the work His followers have to do for Him. It encourages others to advance His cause and help save souls through earnest effort, rather than hindering them. It lifts the cross of Calvary, stands in one's own lot and place, and exerts a positive influence for good with heroic ardor and living faith.
Gathering means being in union with God's people and with the proclamation of solemn saving truth that separates from the world and unites with God's peculiar people. It brings souls into the truth and establishes them upon the third angel's message and the important, saving truths of God's Word. Truth received and cherished in the heart turns a person from evil and changes the whole life, for truth and error cannot abide together in the same heart. Presenting the Sabbath separated from that message loses force and power, while the Sabbath connected with the message of the third angel and the testimony of Jesus together cannot be overthrown and has power to convict unbelievers and bring them out to stand and live and grow and flourish.
Gathering upholds spirituality and holiness and keeps the church a living, working church, while a life devoted to God's service and Christ's work helps gather people with Him. Those who belong to God are to be separate from the world, seek and do God's will without compromise, and let truth transform their lives so that character and conduct bear witness to faith. Those who take a leading position in churches must by life and deportment gather in this way instead of scattering, since scattering hinders the work of God and defeats His purpose.
Scattering Against Christ
To scatter is to work against Christ's cause and to obstruct the work He sends His servants to do. It hinders those who would advance in the good they would do, discourages the winning of souls, and stands in the way of others instead of advancing with Christ in the truth. Influence that leads people away from God and the truth and away from Christ toward ruin and perdition is scattering rather than gathering, whether exerted through careless indifference or open opposition. In a workplace connected with God's cause such influence should be separated and removed at once, because to retain it lets it scatter others.
Scattering works in the opposite direction from God's work of correcting, bringing up, and uniting His people, and it displeases Him even when the person thinks his course is nearly right. It encourages unbelief and doubts, sets minds to run in a wrong channel, and divides and alienates instead of bringing together. It causes weak and trusting souls to stumble and faint and falter, and strengthens the hands of those in opposition to God's work and the influence of truth. It also strengthens unbelief by voice and makes strange paths that cast many into uncertainty and confusion.
Scattering comes from rejecting light and opposing His message, from resisting the influence of the Spirit of God and refusing to submit to the divine claims. It misuses God-given abilities and wastes God-given endowments instead of employing powers in obedience to the God of heaven. It uses common fire instead of the sacred fire of His kindling, is unwise and unfaithful in many things, and fails to be saved from sin and to make life the success God desires. Unless steps are immediately retraced, this course brings bitter remorse and ends at last in the confession that the harvest is past, the summer is ended, and they are not saved.
Those who scatter strengthen the kingdom of darkness, become active agents in the enemy's hands, and serve Satan as servants and parties to the ruin of souls. There is no neutral position, for a person is either wholly on the Lord's side or on the enemy's, and not gathering with Christ means scattering. Wavering and repeatedly resisting the call to surrender is therefore failure to follow Him. Disregarded conviction hardens the conscience until it is less responsive to the Spirit, and neglected light becomes darkness. In the family this warns that neglectful or unwise discipline can place children among those who scatter, while children whose influence is wholly on Christ's side become His co-workers helping others find the path of life.
The spirit antagonistic to pure truth stands condemned in the teachings of the law of God. With light and evidence of present truth now given, there must be a halt and a different order of religious faith. Every form of error must be avoided, and each person must openly show his true position on Christ's side, since there are only two positions, on the side of Christ Jesus or against Him.
Daily Life and Work
There is no neutral use of education, privilege, and influence toward Christ, for all acquirements must be used to gather toward Him and to do good to others, and any use that turns influence away from Him is scattering from Him and an abuse of granted privilege. Gathering with Him in this daily use requires being fortified with religious principles and seeking first God's favor and kingdom and righteousness. Right principles must appear plainly, and conscientious scruples must be held even when scorned and despised. The gatherer stays in a position to always say No to pleasant companionable tempters and to Satan's traps.
In the family, neglect of religious life and of training children to follow Christ exerts an influence against Christ and the truth, since those not on His side are against Him. Neglectful or unwise discipline can place children among those who scatter and strengthen the kingdom of darkness, while children whose influence is wholly on Christ's side become His co-workers and help others find the path of life. Many professed Christians do nothing to gather with Him in bringing people to Him, so families need conversion and must seek the Lord with all their hearts.
Words, actions, and dress daily show whether a person is with Christ, for they either gather with Him or scatter. Dress is a daily testimony that can gather or can scatter people away from Him and lead others to reject the truth. Association between the righteous and the wicked is never neutral: untold good is done when the righteous work with and for the wicked by drawing with Christ to lead sinners to God. When those who should lead do not draw with Christ, the law of assimilation works in reverse, the unrighteous draw church members into frivolity and careless pleasure, and souls are scattered away from truth, leaving undone the work for God, for one another, and for the world through lack of true missionary spirit. Church members are pledged to a character in every way different from worldlings, and without that change they assimilate to the world and let the leaven of the world destroy the purity and holiness of the church.
Those who take a leading position in churches must by life and deportment gather with Christ instead of scattering from Him, for gathering upholds spirituality and holiness and keeps the church a living, working church, while scattering hinders the work of God and defeats His purpose. Influence that divides and alienates and scatters rather than gathers is opposed to Christ's work, and dissension undermines the community instead of bringing it together. In workplaces connected with God's cause, especially publishing offices, those whose influence leads people away from God and the truth are scattering rather than gathering, acting as servants of Satan in opposing Christ's purpose, and should be separated from the office at once lest their influence scatter others from Christ. Satan uses every device to bring about such scattering, including unwise marriages that turn aside young men who might teach the truth and lower the standard of spirituality and holiness.
Toward God's instrumentalities and institutions, a person either helps build up or works to tear down, for no one is neutral and every influence either supports or opposes Christ's work. Those who see problems should help improve them by giving constructive counsel to the responsible workers, rather than spreading criticism that tears down the institution and its workers. Merely finding fault without offering a helpful way forward is not working to build up God's work. Failing to unite in action hinders the advance of God's people.
There is no neutral position toward Christ, for those who do not join Him in His work scatter rather than gather, and failing to obey the Redeemer, take up the cross, and follow Him makes a professed follower part of those who scatter, with eternal consequences. A minister's wife either helps Christ's work by laboring unitedly with her husband for souls or hinders it by putting herself first, and she must have a self-sacrificing missionary spirit and be willing to endure trials and disappointments for Christ's sake. God is displeased when His people instead of gathering with Him scatter abroad, and scattering means using common fire instead of the sacred fire of His kindling, being unwise and unfaithful in many things, wasting God-given endowments, strengthening unbelief by voice, and making strange paths that cast many into uncertainty and confusion. Gathering means using the sacred fire of His kindling, being saved from sin, not wasting endowments, and making life the success God desires, while scattering unless immediately retraced brings bitter remorse and ends at last in the confession that the harvest is past, the summer is ended, and they are not saved.
Failing to gather with Christ is scattering and being against Him, and gathering means being in union with God's people and with the third angel proclaiming a solemn message, bringing souls into the truth and establishing them upon that message and the important, saving truths of God's Word that separate them from the world and unite them with God's peculiar people. A profession of sanctification that is only theory, thrown as a garment over disunion, not practically carrying out holiness, covering a course opposed to the law of God, and not abstaining from the very appearance of evil, has a scattering influence and does not gather with Christ. Such a worker is deceived and does not know what spirit he is of, is at war with God's people being led out upon important truths, and unites his influence with the dragon host to oppose those who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus. Presenting the Sabbath separated from the message loses its force and power like the same teaching without the message, while the Sabbath connected with the message of the third angel and the testimony of Jesus together cannot be overthrown and has power to convict unbelievers and bring them out to stand and live and grow and flourish.