No trace of luxury, ease, selfish gratification, or indulgence was brought into His life, which was a continual round of self-denial and self-sacrifice. In accordance with His humble birth, He had apparently no greatness or riches, in order that the humblest believer need not say Christ never knew the stress of pinching poverty. Had He possessed the semblance of outward show, of riches, of grandeur, the poorest class of humanity would have shunned His society; therefore He chose the lowly condition of the far greater number of the people (Manuscript 9, 1896). {7BC 903.5}

Ingen spor af luksus, bekvemmelighed, selvtilfredsstillelse eller eftergivenhed kom ind i Hans liv, som var en uafsluttet ring af selvfornægtelse og selvopofrelse. I overensstemmelse med hans ydmyge fødsel, havde Han tilsyneladende ingen storhed eller rigdomme, for at de ydmygeste troende ikke skal sige at Kristus aldrig kendte til den knibende fattigdoms belastning. Havde han skikkelse af ydre fremvisning, rigdomme og storslåethed, ville menneskenes (904) fattigste klasse have undgået Hans selskab; derfor valgte de ydmyge forhold det største antal mennesker havde. (MS 9, 1896).