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

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.

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

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.

Episode Title: Preaching the Cross

Episode Summary (short): W. D. Frazee opens 1 Corinthians 1:17–18 to show why "the preaching of the cross is the power of God"—and how beholding Calvary daily becomes the secret of victory over sin.

Show Notes / Description:

What does Paul mean when he says "the preaching of the cross… is the power of God"? In this 1968 message, Pastor W. D. Frazee turns to 1 Corinthians 1:17–18 and walks us carefully through what the cross is not—not a heathen-style arrangement to appease an angry deity, and not a license to break God's law without consequence—and what the cross truly is: the supreme revelation of how terrible sin is and how deep the Father's love runs.

With his trademark warmth and vivid illustrations (a flick of a light switch on the TVA grid, a friend who "fixes" speeding tickets with the judge, and a hammer poised over a mother's hand), Pastor Frazee invites every listener to come to Calvary and behold two great lessons: how bad Satan really is, and how good God really is. When those truths become real, "the power of sin is broken."

The message closes with Christ at the door of the heart in Revelation 3:20—His scarred hand still knocking—and the old hymn "Who At My Door Is Standing?" inviting a personal response.

Key Scriptures

• 1 Corinthians 1:17–18 (main text)
• 1 Samuel 3:9
• Romans 13:1
• Matthew 28:18–20
• 2 Corinthians 5:19
• Matthew 27 · Mark 15 · Luke 23 · John 19
• Isaiah 53 · Psalm 22
• Revelation 1:1; 3:20

Key Themes

• The cross as the very power of God
• Two misconceptions of the cross — appeasement and license
• How Calvary unveils the true character of Satan
• How Calvary unveils the heart of the Father
• "Jesus died for me as if that death were to be forever"
• The scarred hand still knocking at the door of the heart

Companion References

• Ellen G. White, The Acts of the Apostles (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1911), 209.
• Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1898), 83.
• Hymn: "Who At My Door Is Standing?" by Mary B. Slade

Memorable Line

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.

They Pierced My Hands | W.D. Frazee Sermons #0729

What was going through the mind of Jesus during those dark hours on the cross? In this reverent meditation, Elder W.D. Frazee walks through Psalm 22 — written a thousand years before Calvary — to trace the very thoughts that passed through the suffering soul of Christ between His first cry, "My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?" and His final declaration, "It is finished."

Elder Frazee unfolds the physical agony, the shame, the God-abandonment, and the demonic temptation to desert the human race. But at the heart of the sermon is a breathtaking moment: with no visible evidence, no lifting of the darkness, no voice from Heaven — Jesus presses the hand of faith through the blackness and declares, "Thou hast heard Me." And by that faith alone, He sees His seed. He sees the redeemed. He sees you and me.

This is a sermon to listen to quietly, prayerfully, and with an open heart.

Key Themes: — Psalm 22 as the inner life of Christ on the cross — The darkness of God-abandonment: no voice, no dove, no glory — Christ justifying the Father even while crying out in agony — The mob as bulls, lions, and dogs — fulfilling prophecy unknowingly — The hand of faith pressed through the darkness: "Thou hast heard Me" — By faith, Jesus sees His seed and declares victory: "It is finished"

Key Texts: Psalm 22 | Matthew 3:17 | Isaiah 53:11–12 | Mark 11:24

Less Attempted, More Achieved | W.D. Frazee Sermons #0399

What if the key to accomplishing more for God is to attempt less? In this remarkably practical study from March 24, 1972, Elder W.D. Frazee opens the familiar invitation of Matthew 11:28–30 to reveal something most of us miss: Jesus promises rest not by removing the yoke, but within it. And for some of us, finding that rest means learning to put fewer dishes on our tray.

With warmth and humor — from overloaded cafeteria trays to a dog trying to keep up with a Cadillac — Elder Frazee addresses the conscientious Christian who is always behind, always burdened, always trying to catch up. Drawing from inspired counsel written to Dr. John Harvey Kellogg, he shows that the failure to learn moderation was at the very foundation of Kellogg's departure from the faith.

The sermon's liberating message: life is a cafeteria, and most of what passes before you is not for your tray. The truly temperate Christian learns to say "No, thank you" — not just to food, but to work, obligations, and opportunities — and finds in that holy moderation the rest that Jesus promised.

Key Themes: — Rest found in the yoke, not apart from it (Matthew 11:28–30) — Moderation as preparation for the Second Coming (Philippians 4:5) — "The power of man cannot hasten the work" (Testimonies, Vol. 7) — Life as a cafeteria: learning what not to put on your tray — The Kellogg warning: gathering responsibilities God never assigned — Temperance in all things — including work itself — Morning devotion as the key to knowing what to do the rest of the day

Key Texts: Matthew 11:28–30 | Philippians 4:5 | 1 Corinthians 9:25 | Revelation 14:12 | 2 Thessalonians 3:10–12 | John 15:2 | Isaiah 50:4 | 1 Corinthians 2:9

Spirit of Prophecy References: Testimonies, Vol. 7, p. 298 | Testimonies, Vol. 8, pp. 188–189 | Temperance, pp. 138–139 | Medical Ministry, p. 294 | Evangelism, pp. 80–81, 653–654 | Fundamentals of Christian Education, p. 316

Best with What You Have | W.D. Frazee Sermons #1478

Can you do your best with what you have? In this candid study from March 5, 1980, Elder W.D. Frazee tackles a principle that most of us struggle with — the temptation to believe that progress depends on getting more space, more equipment, more personnel, and more budget. With gentle humor and repeated caution that "this is not for everybody, and it's not for anybody all the time," he unfolds a liberating truth: Christian leadership means learning to accomplish more with less.

Using unforgettable illustrations — a dachshund pumped with growth hormones, an automobile overloaded with gadgets, dinosaurs that grew too big to survive, and a missionary whose total possessions were a coconut shell and a spoon — Elder Frazee shows that God's method has always been small, efficient, and Spirit-dependent. Jesus Himself operated on a very small budget with minimal buildings and equipment, yet He was the greatest Teacher, Physician, and Evangelist the world has ever seen.

The test of Christian leadership is not how much you can accumulate, but whether you can make what you have efficient for God's purpose.

Key Themes: — "God can bless twenty acres of land and make them as productive as one hundred" — The danger of constantly investing for more room, more convenience — Four resources of leadership: space, equipment, personnel, budget — Be content with what you have (Hebrews 13:5) and start using it — The feeding of the 5,000: "How many loaves have ye? Go and see" — Pruning for productivity (John 15:2) — more fruit through less — Getting things "into as compact a compass as possible"

Key Texts: Philippians 4:5, 19 | Hebrews 13:5 | Mark 6:38 | John 15:2, 5 | 1 Corinthians 9:25

Spirit of Prophecy References: Testimonies, Vol. 5, p. 152 | Testimonies, Vol. 8, p. 48

Where Jesus Wants You | W.D. Frazee Sermons #0359

Have you found the one thing worth selling everything for? In this warm, personal study from November 15, 1977, Elder W.D. Frazee opens the twin parables of the hidden treasure and the pearl of great price (Matthew 13:44–46) to address one of life's deepest questions: How do I know where God wants me?

Speaking from nearly 36 years at Wildwood and over 70 years of life, Elder Frazee shares with transparent honesty that he is a happy man — not because he never made mistakes, but because he found the treasure in the field God gave him to plow. Through the examples of David herding sheep after being anointed king, Jesus working as a carpenter for two decades, and Elder A.G. Daniells wrestling in a hayloft until he knew God's will, this sermon dismantles the restless idea that happiness comes from constant promotion, new challenges, or being somewhere else.

The message is simple and life-changing: the plan of the universe centers where you are, as far as you're concerned. You can't aim any higher than being just where Jesus wants you to be.

Key Themes: — The hidden treasure and the pearl: finding what's worth your whole life — Why restlessness is never cured by constant change — David's patience: anointed as king, sent back to the sheep — Jesus the carpenter: 20+ years of faithful, hidden service — A.G. Daniells in the hayloft: owning your calling before God — "No human being can get in your way except you"

Key Texts: Matthew 13:44–46 | Proverbs 18:22 | 1 Samuel 16:7 | Luke 2:49 | Hebrews 1:9 | Philippians 2:8

Spirit of Prophecy References: Christ's Object Lessons (parables of the treasure and pearl)

Who Is a Wise Man? | W.D. Frazee Sermons #0030

What does it really mean to be educated? In this study from June 8, 1979, Elder W.D. Frazee opens James 3:13 to show that true wisdom is not measured by degrees or years in school, but by the demonstration of the life — how you live, how you relate, and how you handle yourself.

Elder Frazee identifies three relationships every truly educated person must master, and they must be learned in order: first, knowing God; second, knowing yourself; and third, getting along with others. Through the examples of Joseph, Daniel, Solomon, and Samson, he shows that without the first, the other two are impossible — and that even the wisest and strongest men in Scripture failed when they lost that foundation.

With his trademark humor, Elder Frazee illustrates human conflict through the unforgettable story of a skunk, a grizzly bear, and a porcupine on a mountain trail — a vivid reminder that Jesus sends us out "as lambs among wolves," not as skunks or porcupines. The sermon is a practical, searching call to examine how we're getting along in the three great areas of life's education.

Key Themes: — True education demonstrated by lifestyle, not credentials (James 3:13) — Humility and confidence together: the examples of Joseph and Daniel — Three relationships of the educated life: with God, with self, with others — "Each has an individuality that no one can handle as successfully as himself" — The skunk and porcupine: wrong methods of getting along with people — Living peaceably with all men — and when failure to do so is faithfulness

Key Texts: James 3:13 | Genesis 41:16 | Jeremiah 9:23–24 | John 17:3 | John 15:5 | Romans 12:18 | 1 John 1:9

Spirit of Prophecy References: Medical Ministry, p. 80

Drawn by Love | W.D. Frazee Sermons #0176

What is the most powerful force in the universe? In this study from April 28, 1978, Elder W.D. Frazee opens John 12:32 to reveal the magnetic drawing power of the cross — a power stronger than any force in nature, yet one that can be resisted by a single human choice.

Elder Frazee traces the drawing work of the Holy Spirit from its earliest, often unconscious stirrings in the heart, through surrender and justification, and into the call to active soul-winning service. Along the way, he unfolds a beautiful truth: God not only draws us to Himself, but draws us to the very people we are uniquely equipped to reach — like a key made to fit a particular lock.

Through the stories of Peter, Andrew, Matthew, and Philip, Elder Frazee shows that responding to God's drawing influence is a step-by-step, daily experience — and that the same love that saves us is the love that sends us.

Key Themes: — The cross as God's great magnet (John 12:32) — The difference between God's drawing and a physical magnet: the power of choice — Every conviction of sin and desire for right is evidence of the Spirit's work — Justification received and retained through continual response to God's love — The "key" illustration: you can reach someone no one else can — Philip and the Ethiopian: responding to the Spirit's guidance in soul-winning

Key Texts: John 12:32 | John 6:44 | Hosea 11:4 | Romans 2:4 | John 1:29 | Colossians 2:6 | Matthew 4:19 | Matthew 9:9 | Luke 9:23 | Acts 8

Spirit of Prophecy References: Steps to Christ, pp. 26–27 | Selected Messages, Book 1, pp. 365–366 | Testimonies, Vol. 1, p. 187 | Welfare Ministry, p. 101

To Know Him Is to Love Him | W.D. Frazee Sermons #0717

What are the only two things that stand between any soul and a bright, victorious Christian experience? In this deeply personal study from November 6, 1959, Elder W.D. Frazee identifies them plainly: an unwillingness to give up sin, and a fear that God hasn't truly accepted us. And he reveals the one remedy that cures both — seeing the love of God.

Beginning with a striking passage from Gospel Workers ("If the people receive it fully, his power will be broken"), Elder Frazee shows why Satan fights so hard to keep this truth from being clearly presented. Through the parable of the prodigal son, vivid illustrations, and tender appeals, he unfolds a God whose strictness flows entirely from love — like a father keeping his child from a hot stove — and whose welcome far exceeds anything the repentant sinner dares to hope for.

The sermon closes with a powerful passage from Testimonies, Volume 6, revealing the double view every soul-winner must carry: Christ on the cross dying to pardon, and Christ at the mercy seat interceding with wounded hands.

Key Themes: — The righteousness of Christ as a free gift that breaks Satan's power — Two obstacles to victory: cherished sin and lingering doubt — God's strictness as an expression of His love — The prodigal son: what the Father's welcome reveals about God — The double view: Christ on the cross and Christ at the mercy seat — Practical soul-winning: how to lead others to behold Jesus

Key Texts: Matthew 25:21, 23 | Hebrews 12:2 | John 12:32 | Luke 15:11–24 | 1 John 3:1

Spirit of Prophecy References: Gospel Workers, p. 161 | Testimonies, Vol. 6, pp. 66–67 | Christ's Object Lessons, p. 203

Hymns: "The King of Love My Shepherd Is" | "Oh, Listen to Our Wondrous Story" | "I Surrender All" (SDA Hymnal #309)