Which is to have the supremacy—the service of God, or the service of self? Let every student closely examine the ground on which he is standing…you are now deciding your own eternal destiny. You must put persistent effort into your Christian life if you would perfect a right character. It will be to your eternal loss if you have a dwarfed, weakly, babyish religious experience. We are to be “complete in Him.” “As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in Him.” This means that you are to study the life of Christ. You are to study it with as much more earnestness than you study secular lines of knowledge, as eternal interests are more important than temporal, earthly pursuits. If you appreciate the value and sacredness of eternal things, you will bring your sharpest thoughts, your best energies, to the solving of the problem that involves your eternal well-being; for every other interest sinks into nothingness in comparison with that. FE 303
Many unjust deeds are done in the hope of getting gain. The Lord has witnessed these deeds. No unrighteous act passes unnoticed. All that is gained in this way will be found to be loss, eternal loss. MM 154
But they make the love of the Redeemer in their behalf of no avail to them, and He looks with sadness on their work. Such youth meet with eternal loss. How will their fun and frolic appear to them in the day when every man shall receive from the Judge of all the earth according to the deeds done in the body? They have brought to the foundation wood, hay, and stubble, and all their life work will perish. What a loss! O, how much better is the condition of those who act their part in God's service, looking to Jesus for His approval, writing daily in their account book their mistakes, their errors, their sorrow, the victories they have gained over temptation, their joy and peace in Christ! Such youth will not have to meet their life record with shame and dismay. MYP 44
“Unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required.” We shall individually be held responsible for doing one jot less than we have ability to do. The Lord measures with exactness every possibility for service. The unused capabilities are as much brought into account as are those that are improved. For all that we might become through the right use of our talents God holds us responsible. We shall be judged according to what we ought to have done, but did not accomplish because we did not use our powers to glorify God. Even if we do not lose our souls, we shall realize in eternity the result of our unused talents. For all the knowledge and ability that we might have gained and did not, there will be an eternal loss.
But when we give ourselves wholly to God, and in our work follow His directions, He makes Himself responsible for its accomplishment. He would not have us conjecture as to the success of our honest endeavors. Not once should we even think of failure. We are to cooperate with One who knows no failure. MYP 309
Without continual effort and constant activity, there can be no advancement in the divine life, no attainment of the victor's crown.
The strongest evidence of man's fall from a higher state is the fact that it costs so much to return. The way of return can be gained only by hard fighting, inch by inch, hour by hour. In one moment, by a hasty, unguarded act, we may place ourselves in the power of evil; but it requires more than a moment to break the fetters and attain to a holier life. The purpose may be formed, the work begun; but its accomplishment will require toil, time, perseverance, patience, and sacrifice.
We cannot allow ourselves to act from impulse. We cannot be off guard for a moment. Beset with temptations without number, we must resist firmly or be conquered. Should we come to the close of life with our work undone, it would be an eternal loss. MH 452
The robe of your character must be washed till it is spotless, in the fountain opened for all uncleanness. Your moral worth will be weighed in the balances of the sanctuary, and if you are found wanting, you will be at an eternal loss. All the coarseness, all the roughness, must be removed from your character before Jesus comes; for when He comes, the preparation for every soul is ended.
If you have not laid aside your envy, your jealousies, your hatred one against another, you cannot enter into the kingdom of God. You would only carry the same disposition with you; but there will be nothing of this character in the world to come. Nothing will exist there but love and joy and harmony. Some will have brighter crowns than others, but there will be no jealous thoughts in any heart among the redeemed. Each one will be perfectly satisfied, for all will be rewarded according to their work. 3SM 155
A day of judgment would surely come, when all would be rewarded according to the deeds done in the body. Wealth, position, or honorary titles would be powerless to elevate man in the favor of God, or to ransom him from the slavery of sin. This life was his period of probation, in which he was to form a character for the future, immortal life. Should he neglect his present privileges and opportunities, it would prove an eternal loss; no new probation would be vouchsafed to him. All who should be found unholy in heart or defective in any respect when judged by the law of God, would suffer the punishment of their guilt. LP 241
Would you make your property secure? Place it in the hand that bears the nailprint of the crucifixion. Retain it in your possession, and it will be to your eternal loss. Give it to God, and from that moment it bears His inscription. It is sealed with His immutability. CS 329
Beware of procrastination. Do not put off the work of forsaking your sins and seeking purity of heart through Jesus. Here is where thousands upon thousands have erred to their eternal loss. I will not here dwell upon the shortness and uncertainty of life; but there is a terrible danger—a danger not sufficiently understood—in delaying to yield to the pleading voice of God's Holy Spirit, in choosing to live in sin; for such this delay really is. Sin, however small it may be esteemed, can be indulged in only at the peril of infinite loss. What we do not overcome, will overcome us and work out our destruction. SC 32
As a servant of Christ, I entreat you to awake that you may see yourself as you are. The profits you will obtain in the course you are now pursuing will be eternal loss. You will find at last that you have made a terrible mistake which can never be remedied. 2T 228
The religion of Christ is something more than talk. The righteousness of Christ consists in right actions and good works from pure, unselfish motives. Outside righteousness, while the inward adorning is wanting, will be of no avail…If we have not the light and love of God we are not His children. If we gather not with Christ we scatter abroad. We all have an influence, and that influence is telling upon the destiny of others for their present and future good or for their eternal loss. 3T 528
There must be thorough repentance, faith in our Saviour Jesus Christ, vigilant watchfulness, unceasing prayer, and diligent searching of the Scriptures. God holds us responsible for all that we might be if we would improve our talents. We shall be judged according to what we ought to have been, but were not; what we might have done, but did not accomplish because we did not use our powers to glorify God. For all knowledge that we might have gained but did not, there will be an eternal loss, even if we do not lose our souls. All our influence belongs to God. All that we acquire is to be used to His glory. All the property that the Lord has entrusted to us is to be held on the altar of God, to be returned to Him again. We are working out our own destiny. May God help us all to be wise for eternity. TM 146
Every passing hour of the present is shaping our future life. These moments spent in carelessness, in self-pleasing, as if of no value, are deciding our everlasting destinies. The words we utter today will go on echoing when time shall be no more. The deeds done today are transferred to the books of heaven, just as the features are transferred by the artist onto the polished plate. They will determine our destiny for eternity, for bliss or eternal loss and agonizing remorse. Character cannot be changed when Christ comes, nor just as a man is about to die. Character building must be done in this life. We fear that repentance will come to the self-indulgent, tainted soul all too late. A few resolves, a few tears, will never reverse a guilty past life nor blot out of the books of heaven the transgressions, the willful, knowing sins of those who have had the precious light of truth, and can explain the Scriptures to others, while sin and iniquity are drunk up like stolen waters. As though written with an iron pen, they may be found lead in the rock forever. TM 429
The coming of the Lord draweth nigh. We have but a little time in which to make ready. If precious opportunities are slighted, it will result in eternal loss. We need a close connection with God. We are not safe a moment unless guided and controlled by the Holy Spirit. OHC 187
Urge upon souls the eternal loss that all must sustain who refuse to give heart and mind and soul unreservedly to Christ. Every day passed in which Christ is refused admittance to the soul, is a day lost. Then show those for whom you labor how much is to be gained by surrender to God. TDG 53
If we do not overcome, we lose the crown; and if we lose the crown, we lose everything. Eternal loss or eternal gain will be ours. If we gain the crown, we gain all things; we become heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ. BEcho January 1, 1893
When sinful man can discern the inexpressible love of God in giving his Son to die upon the cross, we shall better understand that it is infinite gain to overcome as Christ overcame. And we shall understand that it is eternal loss if we gain the whole world, with all its pleasure and glory, and yet lose the soul. Heaven is cheap enough at any cost. RH March 18, 1875
The do-nothings will be speechless in that day. They will see the sin of their neglect. They have robbed God of the service of a life time. They have not influenced any for good. They have not brought one soul to Jesus. They felt content to do nothing for the Master; and they meet no reward, but eternal loss. They perish with the wicked, although they professed to be followers of Christ. RH March 14, 1878
It is safe to serve God. It may not be to your worldly advantage to keep God's ways; but the transgressor will be at an eternal loss…We must walk carefully and humbly before the Lord in these precious hours of probation. We must draw close to Jesus till his light is shed upon us. It is the desire of our Saviour that we should be the light of the world, reflecting every ray that shines upon us. What straight paths should we make for our feet, so that the lame may not be turned out of the way! This is an age of light. The Lord of heaven is sending the rays of light into the homes of the world. A special light is shining upon the commandments of God. The door of the most holy place of the heavenly Sanctuary stands ajar, and within, as in the most holy place of the ancient sanctuary, is the ark of the testimony. The law of the Most High is beneath the mercy-seat. The light of this law is shining upon the world, penetrating the moral darkness that has covered the people. RH January 31, 1888
The loss of the natural life is not so lamentable; but the loss of that life which is eternal, which measures with the life of God, is terrible to contemplate; this is an eternal loss. Then why is there so great indifference? Why are those who have a knowledge of Jesus Christ resting at ease? RH January 8, 1889
The ambitious man seeks for position, honor, and power. He gains his object, and sinks into the grave. The world applauds him, and calls him a successful man; but, weighed in the balances of the sanctuary, he is pronounced wanting, and it is too late to redeem his failure. He has gratified vanity and chased illusions, and in the books of Heaven eternal loss is put down opposite his name. ST July 3, 1884
How can I endure the provings of God? How can I meet provocations, and not lose self-control? When you claim that you cannot do this, you acknowledge that your life is not hid in Christ; that you are not exemplifying the character of your divine Lord; that self is not dead, but is clamoring for the supremacy. Your Christian life may be a victorious one; but you must strain every nerve and muscle in the contest against self and sin. There is no release in this war, no delightful arbor where you may rest and slumber; for your wily foe would gain advantages that would result in eternal loss. ST October 22, 1885
Every hour spent in careless inaction, in indifference to God's claims, is an hour lost forever. Every opportunity for service allowed to pass unimproved means an eternal loss. ST July 2, 1902
God calls. Do you hear His voice? He calls for earnest, whole-hearted workers. Will you hear, and, denying self, take up the cross and follow Him? Those who refuse, giving themselves up to love of ease and self-seeking, suffer an eternal loss. ST July 9, 1902
May the Lord God of Israel break the spell that has been upon you. In the name of the Lord, I tell you, it will be to your eternal loss if you continue to stand where you are. Satan is playing the game of life for your soul. Break the spell, and take your position wholly on the side of truth and righteousness. Lt 194, 1906
Day by day the hands, the feet, the tongue, follow the dictates of the spiritual nature, and faith makes their path a path that grows brighter and brighter unto the perfect day. Everything that keeps us from attaining unto the likeness of Christ is working out for us eternal loss. Then let no one plead for a continuance of his own way. Let no one seek to excuse his deficiencies of character by saying, It is “my way.” Cooperate with Jesus Christ and you will see that your own way is a way full of deficiency and fault, and that if it is not corrected it will cause you to put into your character building traits that will be as rotten timbers...Let nothing of these defects of character be found in your building. Build on the rock Christ Jesus. TMK 190
