“The people are hungering and thirsting for help from Heaven.  I have tried to put in practice these principles of self-sacrifice, and I know whereof I speak when I say that the blessing of God will rest upon you when you make the call of duty first.”  2SM:205.4.

 

“Obedience to God is the first duty of the Christian.  A humble mind and a grateful heart will elevate us above petty trials and real difficulties.  The less earnest, energetic, and vigilant we are in the service of the Master, the more will the mind dwell upon self, magnifying molehills into mountains of difficulty.  We shall feel that we are abused, when no disrespect even was designed.”  4T:610.2.

 

“With us as parents and as Christians it rests to give our children right direction.  They are to be carefully, wisely, tenderly guided into paths of Christlike ministry.  We are under sacred covenant with God to rear our children for His service.  To surround them with such influences as shall lead them to choose a life of service, and to give them the training needed, is our first duty.”  AH:484; MH:396.

 

“Our first duty to God and our fellow beings is in self-development.  Every faculty with which the Creator has endowed us should be cultivated to the highest degree of perfection, that we may be able to do the greatest amount of good of which we are capable.  In order to purify and refine our characters, we need the grace given us of Christ that will enable us to see and correct our deficiencies and improve that which is excellent in our characters.”  CG:164, 395; CTBH:41; CD:15 CH:27, 107; FLB:227; SD:313; TE:137 TSDF:184; BLJ:301; HR, April 1, 1877; ST, April 20, 1882; TMK:86; RH, September 23, 1884; RH, August 14, 1888.

 

“The development of all our powers is the first duty we owe to God and to our fellow men.”  COL:329.

 

“Our first duty, one which we owe to God, to ourselves, and to our fellowmen, is to obey the Laws of God.  These include the laws of health.”  CTBH:12, 41; CD:15, 21; CH:24-25; HL:20; 3T164; TSDF:173, 192; ST, January 27, 1909; PH138:7.

 

“If those who had been bitten by the serpents had stopped to doubt and question before they would consent to look, death would have been the result.  Our first duty is to look and live.  We should seek now to gather evidence upon which to base our faith.”  ST, October 28, 1880.

 

“You should feel that you have a work to do for time and for eternity.  You owe your first duty to your children.”  ST, July 22, 1889; AH:266.3.

 

“If you want to be useful, the opportunity is yours.  Your first duty is to help your mother who has done so much for you.  Lift her burdens, give her pleasant days of rest; for she has had few holidays and very little variety in her life.  You have claimed all the pleasure and amusement as your right, but the time has come for you to shed sunshine in the home.  Take up your duty; go right to work.  Through your self-denying devotion give her rest and pleasure.”  YI, March 2, 1893; AH:301.1.

 

“The minister’s duties lie around him, nigh and afar off; but his first duty is to his children.  He should not become so engrossed with his outside duties as to neglect the instruction which his children need.  He may look upon his home duties as of lesser importance, but in reality they lie at the very foundation of the well-being of individuals and of society.  To a large degree the happiness of men and women and the success of the Church depend upon home influence.”  AH:353.3; GW:204.2.

 

“With us as parents and as Christians it rests to give our children right direction.  They are to be carefully, wisely, tenderly guided into paths of Christlike ministry.  We are under sacred covenant with God to rear our children for His service.  To surround them with such influences as shall lead them to choose a life of service, and to give them the training needed, is our first duty.”  The Ministry of Healing, 396.

AH:484.1; MH:396.

 

“The talents, however few, are to be put to use.  The question that most concerns us is not, How much have I received? but, What am I doing with that which I have?  The development of all our powers is the first duty we owe to God and to our fellow men.”  COL:329.2.

 

“Our first duty, one which we owe to God, to ourselves, and to our fellowmen, is to obey the Laws of God.  These include the laws of health.”  CH:24.2; CTBH:12.3; 3T:164; HL:20.6.

 

“Some have felt under sacred obligations to their children.  They must give each a portion, but feel themselves unable to raise means to aid the cause of God.  They make the excuse that they have a duty to their children.  This may be right, but their first duty is to God. . . Let no one throw in his claims and lead you to rob God.  Let not your children steal your offering from God’s altar for their own benefit.”  1T:220; CS:94.1.

 

“The Lord has left every human agent responsible for his course of action.  God’s claims are to be your first consideration.  Obedience to God is your first duty.  You are to leave all the consequences in His hands.”  Letter 72, 1893; Ev:243.1.

 

“The Lord calls upon young men to enter the harvest field and work diligently as harvest hands.  He calls upon them to work for Him, not to labor with the Churches already established, but to connect with experienced laborers in work in the great harvest field.  Let young men of ability go forth and trade on their talents.  As they go, let them trust to the guidance of the Lord. . . {Ev:686.1}

 

“v 497.2 (Español (Spanish))

Év 612.1 (Français (French))

Ев 686.1 (Pусский (Russian))

Ev 686.1 (Română (Romanian))

Eva 686.1 (Dansk (Danish))

Ev 686.1 (Português (Portuguese))

Ew 443.6 (Polski (Polish))

This is the work young men should be encouraged to do, not to speak to an audience which does not need their immature labors, which is well aware of this fact, and feels no drawing of the Spirit.  The Lord has not given to young men the work among the Churches.  Their first duty is to learn lessons in various lines from the great Teacher.”  Ev:686.1-2.

 

“To a friend of the Reformation Luther wrote:  ‘We cannot attain to the understanding of Scripture either by study or by the intellect.  Your first duty is to begin by prayer.’ ”  GC:132.2; GC88:132.2.

 

“If those who were bitten by the serpents had stopped to doubt and question before they would consent to look, they would have perished.  It is our duty, first, to look; and the look of faith will give us life.”  PP:432.2.