August 21:  Delight and Goodwill.

Foolish Wickedness.
To do evil is like sport to a fool, but a man of understanding has wisdom.--Proverbs 10:33, NKJV

IN THE OLD TESTAMENT the word "fool" is used to designate an apostate, or one who has abandoned himself to wickedness.--Thoughts From the Mount of Blessings, 57.

There were many giants [in Noah's day], men of great stature and strength, renowned for wisdom, skillful in devising the most cunning and wonderful works; but their guilt in giving loose rein to iniquity was in proportion to their skill and mental ability.

God bestowed upon these antediluvians many rich gifts; but they used His bounties to glorify themselves, and turned them into a curse by fixing their affections upon the gifts instead of the Giver.  They employed the gold and silver, the precious stones and the choice wood, in the construction of habitations for themselves, and endeavored to excel one another in beautifying their dwellings with the most skillful workmanship.  They sought only to gratify the desires of their own proud hearts, and reveled in scenes of pleasure and wickedness....

..."God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was filled with violence."  God had given man His commandments as a rule of life, but His law was transgressed, and every conceivable sin was the result.  The wickedness of men was open and daring, justice was trampled in the dust, and the cries of the oppressed reached unto heaven.--Patriarchs and Prophets, 90, 91.

The sins that called for vengeance upon the antediluvian world exist today.  The fear of God is banished from the hearts of men, and His law is treated with indifference and contempt.  The intense worldliness of that generation is equaled by that of the generation now living.--Patriarchs and Prophets, 101.

August 20:  Delight and Goodwill.

Self-Destructive Feelings of Bitterness.
"If I have rejoiced at my enemy's misfortune or gloated over the trouble that came to him....then let briers come up instead of wheat and stinkweed instead of barley.--Job 31:29, 40, NIV


BITTER FEELINGS...are foreign to the spirit of Christ.--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 2, 51.

Jesus, when reviled, abused, and insulted, did not retaliate.  "Who, when He was reviled, reviled not again."  When the cruelty of man caused Him to suffer painful stripes and wounds, He threatened not, but committed Himself to Him who judgeth righteously....Is the servant greater than his master?  Christ has given us His life as a pattern, and we dishonor Him when we become jealous of every slight, and are ready to resent every injury, supposed or real.  It is not an evidence of a noble mind to be prepared to defend self, to preserve our own dignity.  We would better suffer wrongfully a hundred times than wound the soul by a spirit of retaliation, or by giving vent to wrath.--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 2, 426.

No resentment must come into our hearts.  When reviled, we must not revile again.  O jealousy and evil surmising, what mischief have ye wrought! how have ye turned friendship and love into bitterness and hatred!  We must be less proud, less sensitive, have less self-love, and be dead to self-interest.--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 2, 566.

                              Do not rejoice when your enemy falls,
                        And do not let your heart be glad when he stumbles;
                                lest the Lord see it, and it displease Him,
                                And He turn away His wrath from Him.
                                                                                 --Proverbs 24:17, 18, NKJV

August 19:  Delight and Goodwill.

Draw Me From the Path of Uprightness.
To deliver you from the way of evil, from the man who speaks perverse things, from those who leave the paths of uprightness to walk in the ways of darkness; who rejoice in doing evil, and delight in the perversity of the wicked.--Proverbs 2:12-14, NKJV

SINCE THE FALL OF ADAM it has been the fashion of the world to sin.--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 6, 129.

In the unregenerate heart there is love of sin and a disposition to cherish and excuse it.--The Great Controversy, 508.

The prevalence of a sinful desire shows the delusion of the soul.  Every indulgence of that desire strengthens the soul's aversion to God.  The pains of duty and the pleasures of sin are the cords with which Satan binds men in his snares.--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, 53.

By beholding we become changed.  Though formed in the image of his Maker, man can so educate his mind that sin which he once loathed will become pleasant to him. As he ceases to watch and pray, he ceases to guard the citadel, the heart, and engages in sin and crime. The mind is debased, and it is impossible to elevate it from corruption while it is being educated to enslave the moral and intellectual powers, and bring them in submission to grosser passions.  Constant war against the carnal mind must be maintained; and we must be aided by the refining influence of the grace of God, which will attract the mind upward and habituate it to meditate upon pure and holy things.--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 2, 478.

The Spirit of God is continually impressing the minds of men to seek for those things which alone will give peace and rest--the higher, holier joys of heaven.  Christ, the Lord of life and glory, gave His life to redeem man from Satan's power.  Our Saviour is constantly at work, through influences seen and unseen, to attract the minds of men from the unsatisfying pleasures of this life to the priceless treasure which may be theirs in the immortal future.--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 4, 580.

August 18:  Delight and Goodwill.

Unsound Doctrine.
So God will cause them to be greatly deceived, and they will believe these lies.  Then they will be condemned for enjoying evil rather than believing the truth.--2 Thessalonians 2:11, 12, NLT

THOSE WHO ARE UNWILLING to accept the plain, cutting truths of the Bible are continually seeking for pleasing fables that will quiet the conscience.  The less spiritual, self-denying, and humiliating the doctrines presented, the greater the favor with which they are received.  These persons degrade the intellectual powers to serve their carnal desires.  Too wise in their own conceit to search the Scriptures with contrition of soul and earnest prayer for divine guidance, they have no shield from delusion.  Satan is ready to supply the heart's desire, and he palms off his deceptions in the place of truth.

....All who neglect the word of God to study convenience and policy, that they may not be at variance with the world, will be left to receive damnable heresy for religious truth.  Every conceivable form of error will be accepted by those who willfully reject the truth.  He who looks with horror upon one deception will readily receive another.  The apostle Paul, speaking of a class who "received not the love of truth, that they might be saved," declares: "For this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: that they all might be damned who believe not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness."  2 Thessalonians 2:10-12.  With such a warning before us it behooved us to be on our guard as to what doctrines we receive.--The Great Controversy, 523.

August 17:  Delight and Goodwill.

Counterfeit Pleasures: The Knowledge of Evil.
So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate.  She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate.--Genesis 3:6, NKJV

IT WAS THE WILL OF GOD that Adan and Eve should not know evil.  The knowledge of good had been freely given them; but the knowledge of evil,--of sin and its results, of wearing toil, of anxious care, of disappointment and grief, of pain and death,--this was in love withheld.

While God was seeking man's good, Satan was seeking his ruin....

Satan desired to make it appear that this knowledge of good mingled with evil would be a blessing, and that in forbidding them to take the fruit of the tree, God was withholding great good.  He urged that it was because of its wonderful properties for imparting wisdom and power that God had forbidden them to taste it, that He was thus seeking to prevent them from reaching a nobler development and finding greater happiness....

When Eve saw "that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat."  It was grateful to taste, and, as she ate, she seemed to feel a vivifying power, and imagined herself entering upon a higher state of existence.  Having herself transgressed, she became a tempter to her husband, "and he did eat."  Genesis 3:6.

"Your eyes shall be opened," the enemy had said;" ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil."  Genesis 3:5.  Their eyes were indeed opened; but how sad the opening!--Education, 23-25.

If Adam and Eve had never touched the forbidden tree, the Lord would have imparted to them knowledge, knowledge upon which rested no curse of sin, knowledge that would have brought them everlasting joy.--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 8, 290.

August 16:  Delight and Goodwill.

Stay Far Away From Them.
Treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power.  Avoid such people.--2 Timothy 3:4, 5, ESV

THERE IS A FORM OF RELIGION which is nothing more than selfishness.  It takes pleasure in worldly enjoyment.  It is satisfied with contemplating the religion of Christ, and knows nothing of its saving power.--Messages to Young People, 106.

One of the sins that constitute one of the signs of the last days, is that professed Christians are lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God.  Deal truly with your own souls.  Search carefully.  How few, after a faithful examination, can look up to Heaven and say, "I am not one of those thus described.  I am not a lover of pleasure more than a lover of God.--Messages to Young People, 84.

God does not own the pleasure-seeker as His follower.  Those only who are self-denying, and who live lives of sobriety, humility, and holiness, are true followers of Jesus.  And such cannot enjoy the frivolous, empty conversation of the lover of the world....

The true followers of Christ will have sacrifices to make.  They will shun places of worldly amusement because they find no Jesus there--no influence which will make them heavenly minded and increase their growth in grace.  Obedience to the Word of God will lead them to come out from all these things, and be separate.--Messages to Young People, 376. 


                              Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass,
                 you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness,                    

                               considering yourself lest you also be tempted.
                      Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ,
                              
                                                           --Galatians 6:1, 2, NKJV

August 15:  Delight and Goodwill.

The Pleasures That Separate Us From God.
But the widow who lives for pleasure is dead even while she lives.--1 Timothy 5:6, NIV

THOSE WHO LOVE PLEASURE may keep up a form of godliness, but they have no vital connections with God.  Their faith is dead, their zeal has departed.--Messages to Young People, 141.

Though church members, they are unconverted.  They may take part in the church service, they may chant the psalm, "As the heart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after Thee, O God" {Psalm 42:1}; but they testify to a falsehood.  They are no more righteous in God's sight than is the veriest sinner.  The soul that longs after the excitement of worldly pleasure, the mind that is full of love for display, cannot serve God....Such a one has no inclination to war against the lust of the flesh.  He longs to indulge appetite.  He chooses the atmosphere of sin.--Christ's Object Lessons, 269.

Professed Christians, worldly Christians, are unacquainted with heavenly things.  They will never be brought to the gates of the New Jerusalem to engage in exercises which have not hitherto specially interested them.  They have not trained their minds to delight in devotion and in meditation upon things of God and heaven.  How, then, can they engage in the services of heaven? how to delight in the spiritual, the pure, the holy in heaven, when it was not a special delight to them upon earth?--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 2, 265.

                                        Why, my soul, are downcast?
                                          Why so disturbed within me?
                                                Put your hope in God,
                                               for I will yet praise him,
                                               my Savior and my God.
                                                                       --Psalm 42:11, NIV

August 14:  Delight and Goodwill.

Sinful Pleasures Hinder a Fruitful Life.
"Now the ones that fell among thorns are those who, when they have heard, go out and are choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity."--Luke 8:14, NKJV

SATAN PRESENTS THE WORLD with its most alluring, flattering charms to poor mortals, and they gaze upon it, and its glitter and tinsel eclipse the glory of heaven and that life which is as enduring as the throne of God.  A life of peace, happiness, joy unspeakable, which shall know nothing of sorrow, sadness, pain, nor death, is sacrificed for a short lifetime of sin.--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 2, 100.

Life in the cities is false and artificial.  The intense passion for money getting, the whirl of excitement and pleasure seeking, the thirst for display, the luxury and extravagance, all are forces that, with the great masses of mankind, are turning the mind from life's true purpose.  They are opening the door to a thousand evils.  Upon the youth they have almost irresistible power.

One of the most suitable and dangerous temptations that assail the children and youth in the cities is the love of pleasure.  Holidays and numerous; games and horse racing draw thousands, and the whirl of excitement and pleasure attracts them away from the sober duties of life.  Money that should have been saved for better uses is frittered away for amusements.--The Ministry of Healing, 364.               


                              No testing has overtaken you that is not common to everyone.
                         God is faithful, and he will not let you be tested beyond your strength,
                                       but will with the testing he will also provide the way out
                                                        so that you may be able to endure it.
                                                                                             --1 Corinthians 10:13, NRSV

August 13:  Delight and Goodwill.

Pride Which Comes From Prosperity.
I also gathered for myself silver and gold and the special treasure of kings and of the provinces.  I acquired male and female singers, the delights of the sons of men, and musical instruments of all kinds.--Ecclesiastes 2:8, NKJV

NOBLE IN YOUTH, noble in manhood, the beloved of his God, Solomon entered on a reign that gave high promise of prosperity and honor.  Nations marveled at the knowledge and insight of the man to whom God had given wisdom.  But the pride of prosperity brought separation from God.  From the joy of divine communion Solomon turned to find satisfaction in the pleasures of sense.  Of this experience he says;

"I made me great works; I builded me houses; I planted me vineyards: I made me gardens and orchards:...I got me servants and maidens:...I gathered me also silver and gold, and the peculiar treasure of kings and of the provinces: I gat me men singers and women singers, and the delights of the sons of men, as musical instruments, and that of all sorts.  So I was great, and increased more than all that were before me in Jerusalem.

...And whatsoever mine eyes desired I kept not from them, I withheld not my heart from any joy; for my heart rejoiced in all my labor....Then I looked on all the works that my hands had wrought, and on the labor that I had labored to do: and, behold, all was vanity and vexation of spirit, and there was no profit under the sun.  And I turned myself to behold wisdom, and madness, and folly: for what can the man do that cometh after the king? even that which hath been already done?"

"I hated my life....Yea, I hated all my labor which I had taken under the sun."  Ecclesiastes 2:4-12, 17, 18.

By his own bitter experience, Solomon learned the emptiness of a life that seeks in earthly things its highest good.--Education, 152, 153.

August 12:  Delight and Goodwill.

The Pitfall of Boasting.
But now you boast in your arrogance.  All such boasting is evil.--James 4:16, NKJV

IF MEN COULD SEE for a moment beyond the range of finite vision, if they could catch a glimpse of the Eternal, every mouth would be stopped in its boasting.--Councils to Parents, Teachers, and Students, 66.

It is a wicked pride that delights in the vanity of one's own works, that boasts of one's excellent qualities, seeking to make others seem inferior in order to exalt self, claiming more glory than the cold heart is willing to give to God.  The disciples of Christ will heed the Master's instruction.  He has bidden us love one another even as He has loved us.--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 4. 223.

Love rejoices in the truth and institutes no envious comparisons.  He who possesses love compares only the loveliness of Christ and his own imperfect character.

...There is no religion in the enthronement of self.  He who makes self-glorification his aim will find himself destitute of that grace which alone can make him efficient in Christ's service.  Whenever pride and self-complacency are indulged, the work is marred.

...The smallest duty done in sincerity and self-forgetfulness is more pleasing to God than the greatest work when marred with self-seeking.--Christ's Object Lessons, 402.

Every man who praises himself brushes the luster from his best efforts.--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 4, 607.

All boasting of merit in ourselves is out of place.--Christ's Object Lessons, 401.

                                     Though the Lord is great, he cares for the humble,
                                           but he keeps his distance from the proud.
                                                                                               --Psalm 138:6, NLT