0938, Cross - Offense or Power

1046, Restore the Home

Episode Title: Restore the Home—Authority, Affection, and the Elijah Message Episode Summary W. D. Frazee calls parents, children, and the whole church back to the Christian home as the starting point of the last great reformatory movement, showing that God prepares a people for Christ’s coming by restoring family authority, affection, obedience, and home religion. Show Notes / Description “Are you ready for Jesus to come?” With that searching question, Pastor W. D. Frazee opens this 1956 study on the Elijah message and the restoration of the home. Beginning with Luke 1:17, he shows that the work of making ready “a people prepared for the Lord” begins where inspiration says it must begin: with the turning of the hearts of fathers to children and children to fathers. Drawing from Testimonies for the Church, Fundamentals of Christian Education, The Ministry of Healing, Genesis 18, Ephesians 5, and the Ten Commandments, Pastor Frazee argues that the Christian home is not a secondary matter in last-day preparation. It is the beginning point of the great reformatory movement. If God’s people are to be ready for Jesus to come, fathers, mothers, and children must be brought back into harmony with the principles of God’s law. The message develops several urgent lessons: The Elijah message begins in the home — the preparation for Christ’s coming starts with restored relationships between parents and children, and especially with parents fitted to stand in their families in the place God has appointed. The Christian home as the greatest sermon — a true home, built on God’s principles, has more influence on hearts and lives than any sermon that can be preached. Abraham as the model father — Genesis 18 shows that the promises to Abraham were connected with his faithfulness in commanding his children and household after him. The father as center, lawmaker, and priest — Frazee emphasizes the father’s sacred responsibility to lead the home spiritually, not with pride or harshness, but as an empty cup filled by God. Authority and affection blended — true family government must reflect God’s own character, where love includes justice as well as mercy, firmness as well as kindness. The danger of sentimentalism — Frazee warns against a counterfeit love that abandons discipline and weakens the foundation of parental authority. The mother’s delegated work when the father is absent — when the father cannot or does not lead, the mother must carry forward both affection and authority, claiming a double portion of the Spirit. The Fifth Commandment as the foundation of human relationships — children are called not merely to obey but to honor father and mother, bringing joy, dignity, and blessing to the home. The sermon closes with the example of Jesus, who was subject to His earthly parents until the age of thirty, bearing the burdens of home life. Such a program, Frazee insists, develops the character that reflects Jesus fully and prepares God’s people for the finishing of His work. Key Scriptures Luke 1:17 Psalm 19:7 Revelation 12:9 Genesis 18:17–19 Ephesians 5:25–28 Exodus 20:3 Exodus 20:12 Revelation 14:12 Luke 2:51 Key Themes The Elijah message and the restoration of the home Making ready a people prepared for the Lord Home religion as the beginning of the last great reformatory movement Parents standing in the place God has appointed The Christian home as a powerful object lesson Abraham’s household government The father as center, lawmaker, and priest of the household Authority and affection blended in family life Love with law, mercy with justice, kindness with firmness The danger of sentimentalism and discipline without love The mother’s responsibility when the father is absent Children honoring father and mother Jesus’ subjection in the home as the model for children and youth Companion References Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church, vol. 1 (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1948), 547. Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church, vol. 6 (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1948), 119. Ellen G. White, Fundamentals of Christian Education (Nashville: Southern Publishing Association, 1923), 467. Ellen G. White, The Ministry of Healing (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1905), 352. Ellen G. White, Evangelism (Washington, DC: Review and Herald, 1946), 582. Ellen G. White, The Adventist Home (Nashville: Southern Publishing Association, 1952), 212. Hymn: “The Theme of the Bible Is Jesus.” Memorable Line “God is not dispensing love without discipline. God is not interested in love without law.” About To My Dear Friends brings the timeless messages of Pastor W. D. Frazee to a new generation of listeners. Visit WDFsermons.org for the full sermon library.

0869, The Home Must Triumph

Episode Title: The Home Must Triumph—The Home as the Heart of the Church Episode Summary W. D. Frazee shows why the home must succeed if the church is to triumph, presenting the household as a “little church” where the law of God, family love, home religion, and morning-by-morning communion prepare God’s people for the final demonstration. Show Notes / Description “The home is the heart of this demonstration.” Working from Ephesians 3:8–11, Pastor W. D. Frazee continues a study on God’s eternal purpose: to reveal His manifold wisdom, not merely through isolated individuals, but through the church. Then he presses the point closer. If the church must triumph, the home must triumph, because homes make up the church. Drawing from The Ministry of Healing, The Adventist Home, and the Elijah message of Malachi 4:5–6, Pastor Frazee presents the household as the heart of the church, the community, and the nation. The restoration and uplifting of humanity begins in the home. In that setting, fathers, mothers, husbands, wives, and children are called to reveal before angels and men the love, order, discipline, and wisdom of God. The message develops several major lines of thought: The home as the heart of the church — the church is not simply an aggregation of individuals, but a fellowship of homes. The home is a “little church” where worship, service, and character formation take place every day. The Elijah work begins in the family — before the great and dreadful day of the Lord, Elijah comes to restore all things by turning the hearts of fathers to children and children to fathers. Saints first in the family — Frazee lingers over the statement, “He who would become a saint in heaven must first become a saint in his own family.” The home is the first proving ground of genuine Christianity. The Seventh Commandment and marriage love — “Thou shalt not commit adultery” is unfolded positively through Ephesians 5:25: “Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church.” Frazee appeals to husbands and wives to seek a deep spiritual fellowship that belongs only within the marriage bond. The Fifth Commandment and family restoration — “Honor thy father and thy mother” is presented as a call to a degree of love and respect due to no other person. Parents and children alike are urged to let Elijah turn their hearts toward one another. Children as helpers in God’s work — Frazee corrects the idea that children are an excuse to do less for God. Properly trained, they become the helping hand of the parents, increasing the family’s power to work for the Master. Morning-by-morning communion — the closing key is Isaiah 50:4. Victory in the home begins when each person first goes alone with God, listens to His voice, and begins the day in fellowship with Him. The sermon closes with practical counsel: settle the cares of the day with God before sleep, go to bed counting promises rather than worries, and wake with the thought of God in the heart. The home that begins and ends the day with God can become “a little Heaven here on earth to go to Heaven in.” Key Scriptures Ephesians 3:8–11 Malachi 4:5–6 Matthew 17:11 Romans 1:16 Exodus 20:12 Exodus 20:14 Ephesians 5:25 Isaiah 50:4 Psalm 139:17–18 Key Themes God’s eternal purpose revealed through the church The home as the heart of the church, community, and nation The household as a “little church” The Elijah message and the restoration of family relationships Home religion as the foundation of church prosperity Becoming saints first in one’s own family The Seventh Commandment and exclusive marriage love The Fifth Commandment and honor for parents Parents and children united in service The first victories won in the home life Morning-by-morning communion with God Counting promises instead of worries before sleep Companion References Ellen G. White, The Ministry of Healing (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1905), 349, 351. Ellen G. White, The Adventist Home (Nashville: Southern Publishing Association, 1952), 317–23, 485. Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church, vol. 6 (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1948), 119, 354. Ellen G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1890), 308. Hymn: “Still, Still with Thee,” by Harriet Beecher Stowe. Memorable Line “If we work with Him, we can have a little Heaven here on earth to go to Heaven in.” About To My Dear Friends brings the timeless messages of Pastor W. D. Frazee to a new generation of listeners. Visit WDFsermons.org for the full sermon library.

0676, Out of The Mouths of Babes

Episode Title: Out of the Mouths of Babes—Children Who Stand for God Episode Summary W. D. Frazee appeals to parents, teachers, children, and youth to prepare now for the final conflict, showing that God will use rightly trained children to witness with courage, obedience, and praise when the majority forsake the truth. “If we’ll stand up for Jesus here, He’ll stand up for us up in heaven.” With that call to courage, Pastor W. D. Frazee opens this 1963 message with the hymn “Stand Up! Stand Up for Jesus,” then turns to a striking contemporary report from Newsweek: evangelical Christian children in Soviet Russia separated from their parents because of their faith, beaten and pressured, yet still praying, singing, and asking God to help them stand firm. From Psalm 8:2—“Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings hast thou ordained strength”—Pastor Frazee presses home the great burden of the sermon: God will use children and youth in the closing crisis, but they must be trained now. The world imagines childhood as a time for frivolity and indulgence, while adulthood is the time for responsibility. Scripture reverses that assumption. Joseph, Daniel, the captive maid, Esther, John the Baptist, and the children who praised Jesus in the temple all show that the young can stand for God with courage, conviction, and spiritual power. The sermon develops several urgent lessons: Children and youth in the final conflict — believing parents must recognize that their children will have decisive battles to fight for the Lord. Character before crisis — crisis does not create character; it reveals what has already been formed in the home, school, and secret place with God. The courage to stand alone — Joseph and Daniel received the training they needed before they were separated from home, and then they stood faithful without visible human support. The danger of neutrality — Frazee warns children and youth not to join wrongdoing, but also not to “play neutral” when classmates, roommates, or fellow students break God’s law. The need for brave obedience — obedience is learned through hard things, not through a religion that makes everything merely “fun.” Prayer at dawn and twilight — following the example of Jesus, young people must learn to meet God alone, receiving wisdom and power for daily tests. Rightly educated children as last-day witnesses — in the closing work, children’s voices will again be raised to give God’s final warning to the world. The sermon closes with a solemn appeal for children, youth, parents, teachers, and older believers to be “100-percent loyal,” to abandon compromise and Laodicean neutrality, and to stand up for Jesus now. Key Scriptures Psalm 8:2 Psalm 144:12 Isaiah 55:9 Matthew 21:15–16 Matthew 22:14 Psalm 60:3 Hebrews 5 Key Themes Children and youth in the closing crisis Standing for Jesus when the majority forsake the truth Character formed before the crisis and revealed in the crisis Joseph, Daniel, the captive maid, Esther, and John the Baptist as youth examples The danger of neutrality in the face of wrongdoing Bravery, loyalty, and obedience in Christian education Hard things as part of spiritual training Daily solitary prayer as the source of wisdom and power Rightly educated children giving the final message The call to be all out for God now Companion References Ellen G. White, The Acts of the Apostles (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1911), 566. Ellen G. White, “The Responsibility of Parents,” Review and Herald, April 23, 1889. Ellen G. White, Child Guidance (Nashville: Southern Publishing Association, 1954), 491–92. Ellen G. White, Education (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1903), 259, 262. Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church, vol. 1 (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1948), 162. Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5 (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1948), 136. Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church, vol. 6 (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1948), 96, 202. Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1898), 70. Newsweek, January 28, 1963. Hymn: “Stand Up! Stand Up for Jesus,” by George Duffield Jr. Memorable Line “Character is not developed in a crisis. It’s only revealed in a crisis.” About To My Dear Friends brings the timeless messages of Pastor W. D. Frazee to a new generation of listeners. Visit WDFsermons.org for the full sermon library.

0938, Cross - Offense or Power

Episode Title: Cross—Offense or Power Episode Summary (short): W. D. Frazee asks the searching question: is the cross to you a stumbling block, or is it the power of God? A study on daily cross-bearing in appetite, service, and sacrifice. Show Notes / Description: "Is the cross a stumbling block to you—or is it the power of God and the glory of God?" With that piercing question, Pastor W. D. Frazee opens a 1963 study on the daily cross that Jesus calls every disciple to lift. Working from Galatians 6:14, Luke 9:23, and 1 Corinthians 1:23–24, Pastor Frazee gives the inspired definition of cross-bearing: to take a course directly against our inclinations—and to do it daily. He then walks through two of the three areas where that principle must be applied: * Temperance and the control of appetite — tracing from Eden through Noah, Sodom, and Israel in the wilderness, and warning that "Satan's temptation to indulge appetite will be more powerful… as we near the close of time." Whenever someone offers a health program that doesn't require denying appetite, Pastor Frazee cautions, "you had better be afraid of it." * Personal ministry to the poor and sick — a close look at Isaiah 58 and Matthew 25, where God deliberately designed medical-missionary work to cost us inconvenience. Donations cannot substitute for personal ministry; Satan stands ready as the great medical missionary of a sacrifice-free gospel. Along the way, he lingers on the rich young ruler, on David's refusal to offer what cost him nothing (2 Samuel 24:24), and on one of the most arresting lines in all his preaching: "Jesus didn't give up bad things so He could be saved. He gave up good things so we could be saved." The message ends with a sobering realization: there will be no cross in Heaven. No inclinations to deny. No suffering soul to minister to. The only opportunity we will ever have to show our love for Jesus by self-denial is here and now. Key Scriptures * Galatians 6:14 (opening text) * Galatians 5:11, 24 * 1 Corinthians 1:23–24 * Luke 9:23 * 1 Corinthians 9:25–27; 15:31 * Isaiah 58:7 * Matthew 25:35–36 * Mark 10:17–22 * 2 Samuel 24:24 Key Themes * The cross as offense, snare, or the power of God * Daily cross-bearing defined: a course against our inclinations * Temperance and the last-day battle with appetite * Isaiah 58 and the cost of true medical-missionary work * Satan's sacrifice-free gospel and the counterfeit health program * "Love for Jesus" as the one sufficient motive for cross-bearing * No cross in Heaven — the urgency of self-denial now Companion References * Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church, vol. 1 (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1948), 286. * Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5 (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1948), 70, 94. * Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church, vol. 6 (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1948), 275, 662. * Ellen G. White, The Ministry of Healing (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1905), 453. * Ellen G. White, Counsels on Diet and Foods (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald, 1938), 145, 147, 162, 164. * Hymn: "In the Cross of Christ I Glory," by John Bowring Memorable Line "Jesus didn't give up bad things so He could be saved. He gave up good things so we could be saved." About To My Dear Friends brings the timeless messages of Pastor W. D. Frazee to a new generation of listeners. Visit WDFsermons.org for the full sermon library.

0851, The Two Gardens

Episode Title: The Two Gardens Episode Summary (short): W. D. Frazee walks us from the Garden of Eden to the Garden of Gethsemane—from the smallest test God could devise to the infinite cup our Savior drained for every man. Show Notes / Description: Two gardens stand at the hinge of salvation history: the Garden of Eden, where everything was lost, and the Garden of Gethsemane, where everything was won back. In this 1960 evening study, Pastor W. D. Frazee invites us to place these two gardens side by side and let the Spirit do His work. Opening with Genesis 2, Pastor Frazee shows how Eden's single forbidden tree was the smallest test God could devise—because love requires the freedom of choice. He then takes us, four thousand years later, across the brook Cedron to Gethsemane, whose very name—"oil press"—foreshadows the infinite pressure about to crush our Lord. Anchored in Hebrews 2:9 and rich counsel from the Spirit of Prophecy, the message peers into what really happened among the olive trees: not merely dread of the coming scourge and nails, but the full weight of the second death pressed onto the Son of God. Human nature, we are told, would have died then and there but for an angel sent—not to remove the cup, but to strengthen Him to keep drinking it. Here Pastor Frazee paints one of the most tender pictures in all his preaching: the Father's one hand raising the sword of justice, the other hand placed beneath His Son to hold Him up beneath the blow. The message closes with a sober and searching invitation: to spend a thoughtful hour each day beneath the shade of the olive trees, where sin gets spoiled for us, where pride looks ugly, and where the love that drained the cup demands "my life, my soul, my all." Key Scriptures * Genesis 2:8–10, 15–17 (Eden) * John 18:1–2 (Entry into Gethsemane) * Matthew 26:38 * Hebrews 2:9 (main text) Key Themes * Eden and Gethsemane as parallel gardens of history * The smallest test God could devise and the reality of moral freedom * The meaning of Gethsemane — "oil press" * What it means to "taste death for every man" * Why the angel came to strengthen, not to spare * The Father's suffering alongside the Son * Daily contemplation of the closing scenes of Christ's life Companion References * Ellen G. White, The SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 5 (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald, 1956), 1103. * Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1898), 83, 694, 759. * Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church, vol. 2 (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1948), 205. * Hymn: "My God, my God, and Can It Be," by Frederick W. Faber * Hymn: "When I Survey the Wondrous Cross," by Isaac Watts (stanza quoted) Memorable Line "Jesus took the sin and endured the separation, that we might give up the sin and have the separation ended." About To My Dear Friends brings the timeless messages of Pastor W. D. Frazee to a new generation of listeners. Visit WDFsermons.org for the full sermon library.