The character of your religious experience is made manifest largely by the character of the books that you choose to read in your leisure moments. The Bible is the book of books; and if you love the Scriptures, searching them when you have opportunity, that you may come in possession of the rich treasures of the Word of God and be thoroughly furnished unto all good works, then you may be assured that Jesus is drawing you to Himself. But to read the Scripture in merely a casual way, without seeking to comprehend the lesson of Christ, that you may comply with His requirements, is not enough. There are rich treasures in the Word of God that can be discovered only by sinking the shaft deep into the mine of truth. The Scriptures are given for our benefit, that we may have instruction in righteousness. … 16LtMs, Ms 133, 1901, par. 2
The carnal mind rejects the truth, but the soul that is converted undergoes a marvelous change. The book that was unattractive, because it revealed truths that testified against the sinner, to the converted heart becomes the food of the soul, the consolation and joy of a life. The eyes anointed with spiritual discernment behold new beauties in the Word of God and see that the inspired words of the Scriptures are especially adapted to the needs of the soul. The Sun of Righteousness shines upon the Word, and there is the flashing of divinity through humanity. The Spirit of God speaks to the soul, and the heart of the true believer becomes like a watered garden. To those who love Christ, the Bible is as the garden of God; those promises are as grateful to the heart as the fragrance of flowers to senses. Then take your Bibles and, with fresh interest, begin to study the sacred records of the Old and New Testaments. … 16LtMs, Ms 133, 1901, par. 3
I have a word from the Lord to you who are handling sacred things and yet who do not appreciate the value of eternal realities and have not spiritual discernment to understand the work that you are doing. The Spirit of God is grieved because works of a worldly character which are calculated to charm the senses, to fill the mind with that which can only be compared to wood, hay, and stubble, are multiplied in the office of publication. These books are read with eagerness, and they contain no spiritual nourishment, whereby the soul can acquire more strength; give no true idea of Christian life or instruction in regard to the common duties of life. The atmosphere they breathe is one that is detrimental to solid Christian experience. Were Christ upon the earth today, He would cleanse the office of many things that are not in accordance with our high profession, as He cleansed the temple of its unholy traffic. It is written, “My house shall be called an house of prayer, but you have made it a den of thieves.” [Matthew 21:13.] Let every one begin to cleanse his own soul-temple and thus co-operate with Christ in the work of purifying the office. 16LtMs, Ms 133, 1901, par. 4