Ellet J. Waggoner | The Present Truth | February 1, 1894
You do not want to be the Lord’s unless you are the Lord’s, for the Lord wants you to be His so much that He gave Himself for you; and the only thing that ever kept you from Him was your unwillingness. “I want to serve the Lord.” You do not want to serve Him unless you are serving Him. “To whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, His servants ye are” (Rom. 6:16). The enemy is simply deceiving you. Satan has deceived multitudes of souls, and is still deceiving, making them satisfied with the want to live the Christian life instead of the Christian life. People have thought, If we can only want and keep wanting, and let the Lord and the people know that we want everything that is good, want the Lord to dwell with us, and want to serve Him, what more could be asked than that?
There is a good deal more we could ask for. I am hungry; I want something to eat. What more could you ask? Food is better than that. Eating is a good deal more satisfactory than wanting to eat. To want to eat is dissatisfaction. When a man is hungry and wants to eat, there is nothing in the world that will satisfy him but something to eat. The man who is always wanting to serve the Lord, will be “found wanting” at last.
The Lord says there is no want to them that fear Him, for He supplies the want. “Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies.” Satan is round about us seeking to destroy us. Yes; and the enemy has dominion in ourselves, in the evil that is in our hearts. Yet the Lord prepares the table before us. That presents a picture of wonderful confidence in God. The enemy is raging around us, while we sit down to eat with the Lord, and have a good feast. The Lord has provided the table, and says we are to eat. “Yes, Lord, but here is the enemy coming.” “Never mind; eat.” What is the food that is prepared in the presence of the enemy? “As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who feeds on Me will live because of Me” (John 6:57). Eat Him. Take Him into the inmost being, and there is life. Then He gives the victory. He is the victory. He is our strength. He satisfies the desire of every living thing. “My God shall supply all your need, according to His riches in glory” (Phil. 4:19).
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