The Bible has been placed in the background, while the sayings of great men, so-called, have been taken in its stead. May the Lord forgive us the slight we have put upon his word. Though inestimable treasures are in the Bible, and it is like a mine full of precious ore, it is not valued, it is not searched, and its riches are not discovered. Mercy and truth and love are valuable beyond our power to calculate; we cannot have too great a supply of these treasures, and it is in the word of God we find out how we may become possessors of these heavenly riches, and yet why is it that the word of God is uninteresting to many professed Christians? Is it because the word of God is not spirit and is not life? Has Jesus put upon us an uninteresting task, when he commands us to “search the Scriptures”? [ John 5:39 .] Jesus says, “The words that I speak unto you, they are spirit and they are life.” [ John 6:63 .] But spiritual things are spiritually discerned, and the reason of your lack of intere…
"Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me."
Ellen White directly references John 5:39 in this passage.
"It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life."
Ellen White directly references John 6:63 in this passage.
"Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O Lord God of hosts."
Both passages emphasize the importance of God's word and the joy and nourishment it provides. Jeremiah 'ate' God's words and found joy, while EGW laments the neglect of the Bible despite its treasures.
"We should ask the Lord to open our understanding, that we may comprehend divine truth. If we humble our hearts before God, empty them of vanity and pride and selfishness, through the grace abundantly bestowed upon us; if we sincerely desire and unwaveringly believe, the bright beams of the Sun of Righteousness will shine into our minds, and illuminate our darkened understanding. Jesus is the light that lighteth every man that cometh into the world. He is the light of the world, and he bids us come unto him, and learn of him. Jesus was the great Teacher. He could have made disclosures on the sciences that would have placed the discoveries of the greatest men in the background as utter littleness; but this was not his mission or his work. He had come to seek and to save that which was lost, and he could not permit himself to be turned from his one object. He allowed nothing to divert him. This work he has given into our hands. Shall we do it? CE 80.2"
"That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world."
EGW directly quotes and expands upon John 1:9, making it an explicit allusion rather than a thematic parallel.
"Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures,"
EGW directly references the need for the Lord to open our understanding to comprehend divine truth, which is a clear allusion to Luke 24:45 where Jesus opened the disciples' understanding to understand the scriptures.
"Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls."
Both passages emphasize learning from Jesus, but the connection is thematic rather than a direct quote or principle. EGW's passage speaks of coming to Jesus to learn, and Matthew 11:29 directly invites people to learn of Jesus.