“For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that you through his poverty might be rich.” 2 Corinthians 8:9.

Christ is the great pattern; His character must be our character. All excellence is in Him. Turning from man and every other model, with open face we behold Jesus in all His glory. And their minds are filled with the grand and overpowering ideas of His excellency; every other object sinks into insignificance, and every part of moral discipline is lost which does not promote their likeness to His image. –Selected Messages, book 1, p. 362.

In giving to men an example of what they should be and do, Jesus, the world’s Redeemer, did not have a smooth path to travel…. Jesus had been the commander of heaven, yet on earth He was as one that served. Uncomplainingly He endured privations, and lived the life of a poor man. He did not indulge in the luxuries that many who claim to be His followers surround themselves with; He studied not at all His pleasure, ease, or convenience. He was a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. His whole life was one of self-denial, expressing the prayer, “Not my will, but thine, O God, be done.” –That I May Know Him, p. 156.

Christ has left us an example, that we should follow in His steps. He always drew near to the most needy, the most hopeless, and, attracted by His sympathy, they came close to Him. He assures every suffering, needy, sinful soul that he will never want for a great Physician to give him spiritual help. We stand too far away from suffering humanity. Let us draw nearer to Christ, that our souls may be filled with His grace, and with a desire to give this grace to others. –Evangelism, p. 524.