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“Even from the days of your fathers ye are gone away from mine
"But this I say, brethren, the time [is] short..." (1 Corinthians 7:29). "The angels of God in their messages to men represent time as very short. Thus it has always been presented to me. It is true that time has continued longer than we expected in the early days of this message. Our Saviour did not appear as soon as we hoped. But has the word of the Lord failed? Never! It should be remembered that the promises and threatenings of God are alike conditional.
"God had committed to His people a work to be accomplished on earth. The third angel's message was to be given, the minds of believers were to be directed to the heavenly sanctuary, where Christ had entered to make atonement for His people. The Sabbath reform was to be carried forward. The breach in the law of God must be made up. The message must be proclaimed with a loud voice, that all the inhabitants of earth might receive the warning. The people of God must purify their souls through obedience to the truth, and be prepared to stand without fault before Him at His coming.
"Had Adventists, after the great disappointment in 1844, held fast their faith, and followed on unitedly in the opening providence of God, receiving the message of the third angel and in the power of the Holy Spirit proclaiming it to the world, . . .the Lord would have wrought mightily with their efforts, the work would have been completed, and Christ would have come ere this to receive His people to their reward.
"But in the period of doubt and uncertainty that followed the disappointment, many of the advent believers yielded their faith. . . . Thus the work was hindered, and the world was left in darkness. . . .
"For forty years did unbelief, murmuring, and rebellion shut out ancient Israel from the land of Canaan. The same sins have delayed the entrance of modern Israel into the heavenly Canaan. In neither case were the promises of God at fault. It is the unbelief, the worldliness, unconsecration, and strife among the Lord's professed people that have kept us in this world of sin and sorrow so many years." (Maranatha, Page 61)
In the previous study on “Regardless of Our Condition, Trust Him”, we saw that the world and the church is in their current condition, because of their focus on being in the shadow of the cross, which points not to an occupied tomb with a dead Christ, but to an empty tomb, which reveals to us a risen Christ, Who sits now, even on The Right Hand of the throne of Majesty.
In looking at the picture of the church, which is the people of God, both Adventist and the none Adventist have an unfinished work to be done, which has kept the coming of Christ, as The Bridegroom waiting for His Bride, to get herself ready by faith, to be taken into the most Holy Place, to be one with GOD by HIS Son. The same sins that have delayed the union between Christ and the children of Israel of old, are the same sins that have delayed the union between the spiritual church of Israel and Christ today.
As God had committed to the Adventist church a work, to direct the minds of believers to the heavenly sanctuary, where Christ has entered to make atonement for His people, GOD by HIS Word had committed to Paul a message to direct the minds of the members of the church--spiritual Israel, to look to their high calling of being One with The Lord Jesus Christ. Paul said, “Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus; Who was faithful to him that appointed him, as also Moses [was faithful] in all his house. For this [man] was counted worthy of more glory than Moses, inasmuch as he who hath builded the house hath more honour than the house. For every house is builded by some [man]; but he that built all things [is] God. And Moses verily [was] faithful in all his house, as a servant, for a testimony of those things which were to be spoken after; But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end” (Hebrews 3:1-6).
Notice that according to the picture of the condition of the church, which Paul has painted, we are to be the house for the dwelling of Christ Jesus, Who is a Son over His Own house, which we are, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end. But the picture that Ellen G. White has revealed showed that in “…the period of doubt and uncertainty that followed the disappointment, many of the advent believers yielded their faith. . . . Thus the work was hindered, and the world was left in darkness. . . .”
Ellen G. White wrote and said that, “Dissensions and divisions came in. The majority opposed with voice and pen the few who, following in the providence of God, received the Sabbath reform and began to proclaim the third angel's message. Many who should have devoted their time and talents to the one purpose of sounding warning to the world, were absorbed in opposing the Sabbath truth, and in turn, the labor of its advocates was necessarily spent in answering these opponents and defending the truth. Thus the work was hindered, and the world was left in darkness. Had the whole Adventist body united upon the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus, how widely different would have been our history! It was not the will of God that the coming of Christ should be thus delayed. God did not design that His people, Israel, should wander forty years in the wilderness. He promised to lead them directly to the land of Canaan, and establish them there a holy, healthy, happy people. But those to whom it was first preached, went not in "because of unbelief" (Heb. 3:19). Their hearts were filled with murmuring, rebellion, and hatred, and He could not fulfill His covenant with them.” (Selected Messages, Book 1, Page 68.2, 3)
Like the children of Israel, which were the house of The Lord for forty years in the wilderness; not all of them made it into the land of Canaan. For it is said that, “For forty years did unbelief, murmuring, and rebellion shut out ancient Israel from the land of Canaan.” And today the church--the mix multitude have been in the wilderness for more than thirty-four years, revealing that many of the leaders have yielded their faith, to hold to a belief that shuts Christ out from His Own dwelling, because they kept not the faith onto His coming.
Although a few still hold fast to their confidence in their rejoicing, to keep their hope firm unto the end, Christ Jesus had revealed a message through John to the Laodicean church, to open their hearts to that certain sound knocking at the door of their hearts, to give them The Treasures of His Heart. Through Paul, The LORD by HIS Word said, “Wherefore (as the Holy Ghost saith, To day if ye will hear his voice, Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness: When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my works forty years. Wherefore I was grieved with that generation, and said, They do alway err in [their] heart; and they have not known my ways” (Hebrews 3:7-10). Notice that the reason for “the period of doubt and uncertainty that followed the disappointment” was that like the children of Israel, they did not know The Ways of The LORD by HIS Word.
As John said of Christ, “He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, [even] to them that believe on his name…” (John 1:10-12). Believing on The Apostle and High Priest of our profession Christ Jesus is important for us to partake of His divine nature and become One with Him, and He with us. Until the church can comprehend The Way The Truth and The Life of Christ, Who leads us from the bondage of darkness into His marvelous Light, she the church will continue to be in darkness with the world, which is in unbelief. For by the leaders yielding up their faith, to accept a doctrine, which is given by a church, which has committed spiritual fornication with the kings of this world in many generations, and has kept the majority of Christ followers in darkness to The Truth, then by her admitting to The Way of The LORD and HIS Word, as being a Mystery, she has shared her beliefs to her daughters, to be in doubt and uncertainty, in not taking and believing GOD at HIS Word. And if her daughters are holding on to that belief, to be linked in darkness against The Truth, then the message of the third angel cannot be given to the world of confusion, if the church is also in this condition of confusion to link herself to Christ, Who is The Way, The Truth, Who sanctifies unto Life Eternal.
For it is said, “there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication. And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive [his] mark in his forehead, or in his hand, The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name” (Revelation 14:8-11).
Is this a serious matter to be concerned about? It is when we look and consider what was said about the adversary, who made war against the church, which keeps The Commandments of The LORD and has kept The Spirit of Prophecy, Which is The Testimony of Jesus Christ. For it is said of the adversary that, “… it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world” (Revelation 13:7, 8). How serious is it when the whole world is in darkness to The Light of Truth found in The Word of GOD, to worship the beast, his image and to receive his mark?
While the churches look for signs of apostasy to come, she has already accepted the error by yielding her faith to doctrines of devils that crept into the faith. And because of this darkness of not knowing The Truth, as revealed by GOD in HIS Word, it is said of this world of confusion that, “…Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird. For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies” (Revelation 18:2, 3). Notice that this is the condition of the world in gross darkness, because they know not The Word, Who has revealed The Ways of GOD in The Testimonies of HIS Word.
In revealing the condition of the church, Ellen G. White wrote of what was revealed to her and said, “In the light of God's word, there must be a decided change in the attitude and character of his chosen people, or they will never obtain the overcomer's reward. In their present state of spiritual inefficiency, they could never fight the good fight of faith as successful soldiers of Jesus Christ. While the great enemy of God and his people is wide awake, earnest, and untiring in his efforts to ensnare, where are the men and women who are qualifying themselves to meet and expose his arts and deceptions? Every man, every woman, and every youth is under obligation to work for the strengthening and up-building of the cause of Christ; but would not a large number of his professed people, in their present condition, be pronounced slothful servants? Brethren, you do not exercise skill, diligence, and devotion in the cause of your Master. After having received the richest gifts of heaven, you are content to give but little in return. Do not entertain complacent feelings in view of the talents which have been intrusted to you.
"God will prove you; and when he finds you are selfishly absorbed in your own plans and interests, he will take these talents away from you, and give them to those who have wrought unselfishly in his service. A day of reckoning is drawing on, when the rewards will be given to the faithful traders with their Lord's goods; but these true servants take no credit to themselves; they give their Lord all the glory. "Lord, thy pound hath gained ten pounds." There could have been no gain without the deposit, no interest without the principal. The pound was committed to the faithful servant, and he has gained besides it, or through its help, other pounds also. He does not feel that he has done more than his duty.
"The capital was advanced to him, and if he has been enabled to trade successfully with it, his Lord alone shall have the glory. When brethren render to God a small portion of their time, money, or intellect, which are all his own, they are inclined to feel well pleased with themselves, and to think that they have placed the Lord under obligation to them. But why should Brn. Whitney, Smith, Brown, Haskell, or any of these ministers, give all their powers to the service of God, and bear burdens in his cause, and the hundreds of believers go free, carrying no responsibility of the work? Has God given these brethren faculties different from yours? No, my brethren and sisters; you have the very same reasoning powers that they possess, but you have allowed your farm or business to absorb all your time and energies.
There is work for all in the cause of God. The church in your own neighborhood requires care. Men of thought and self-denial are needed,--men who will work to keep up the interests of the church, even if their own worldly affairs suffer. You will give your thought and care to that cause whose prosperity you prize most highly. If it is your farm, your trade, or your business, then this will be first considered. But a day of reckoning is surely coming, when a full and minute account will have to be rendered as to how you have employed your God-given abilities.
(Review and Herald October 28, 1884 par. 11-15)
Notice that it is a serious matter for all nations to be found drinking from the confusion that is in the world, and for the church to believe that The Truth of GOD is a Mystery, when HE--The Father has sent HIS Word to reveal The Truth to all, who will receive HIS Word to give HIM Glory for The Source of the fountains of Living Water. As it was said by Ellen G. White that, “In the light of God's word, there must be a decided change in the attitude and character of his chosen people, or they will never obtain the overcomer's reward.” In these words there is the hope given on condition of responding to The High Calling of GOD given in HIS Word. For Ellen White said, “The message must be proclaimed with a loud voice, that all the inhabitants of earth might receive the warning. The people of God must purify their souls through obedience to the truth, and be prepared to stand without fault before Him at His coming.” She said, “It should be remembered that the promises and threatenings of God are alike conditional.” The question we should consider is this: Which would we prefer to receive, The Blessings of HIS Word of Promise, or the curse of the threatenings because men reject HIS Word?
The two main institutions that made it out of the Garden of Eden, to be maintained throughout the history of mankind were the Sabbath, which was instituted not on the first day of creation, but on The Seventh-day of creation, and the institution of the marriage between man and woman, which is a symbol designed by GOD, to reveal Christ and His Bride--His Church. But also the two that were made in The Image of GOD by HIS Word, they brought these institutions out of Eden to be maintained throughout the history of mankind.
It is written that, “God Himself gave Adam a companion. He provided "an help meet for him"--a helper corresponding to him--one who was fitted to be his companion, and who could be one with him in love and sympathy. Eve was created from a rib taken from the side of Adam, signifying that she was not to control him as the head, nor to be trampled under his feet as an inferior, but to stand by his side as an equal, to be loved and protected by him A part of man, bone of his bone, and flesh of his flesh, she was his second self; showing the close union and the affectionate attachment that should exist in this relation. "For no man ever yet hated his own flesh; but nourisheth and cherisheth it." "Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one."
“First Marriage Performed by God.--God celebrated the first marriage. Thus the institution has for its originator the Creator of the universe. "Marriage is honourable"; it was one of the first gifts of God to man, and it is one of the two institutions that, after the fall, Adam brought with him beyond the gates of Paradise. When the divine principles are recognized and obeyed in this relation, marriage is a blessing; it guards the purity and happiness of the race, it provides for man's social needs, it elevates the physical, the intellectual, and the moral nature.
“He who gave Eve to Adam as a helpmeet performed His first miracle at a marriage festival. In the festal hall where friends and kindred rejoiced together, Christ began His public ministry. Thus He sanctioned marriage, recognizing it as an institution that He Himself had established. . . . Christ honored the marriage relation by making it also a symbol of the union between Him and His redeemed ones. He Himself is the Bridegroom; the bride is the church, of which, as His chosen one, He says, "Thou art all fair, My love; there is no spot in thee." (The Adventist Home, Page 26)
Notice that it was through Christ that the institution of marriage was given to be a symbol of His close union and the affectionate attachment that should exist in this relation with man, who was a reflection of His Second Self, Which in the fullness of time came to be known as The Second Adam--Jesus Christ. For He--Christ in fulfilling The Law of Love to GOD, He fulfills also His Love to man as He loves Himself, Who in the fullness of time He would become one with man, to become a quickening Spirit--The Man Christ Jesus to save all, who would follow after Him. If GOD made man in HIS OWN Image, then by looking at the union of man and woman, which were considered as one, companions of the same nature, this image reveals The Truth of The Oneness of The Father and The Son, Who is The Expressed Image of The Father, by Whom HE created all things. This Image of marriage, or the union of two of the same nature reveals The Only True GOD, WHO is SPIRIT and HIS Only begotten Son, Whom HE has sent. The union of marriage was not designed to reflect the image of three of the same kind. For if it did, the union between man and woman and another creation would reveal the wrong Image of Christ, Who left His throne at His Father’s side to cleave unto His Bride--the church. He became bone of man’s bone and flesh of man’s flesh that man might become born again of His Spirit.
It is also written in “Counsel to a Newly Married Couple.--Marriage, a union for life, is a symbol of the union between Christ and His church. The spirit that Christ manifests toward His church is the spirit that the husband and wife are to manifest toward each other. If they love God supremely, they will love each other in the Lord, ever treating each other courteously, drawing in even cords. In their mutual self-denial and self-sacrifice they will be a blessing to each other. . . . (The Adventist Home, Page 95)
Notice that marriage is a symbol of the union between Christ and His church. It is a union for Life, and not death. But because the world does not comprehend, what GOD is revealing by this symbol of marriage, men and women are seeking to promote a new form of marital unions, not with man and woman, as GOD has designed in creation, but with man with man, and woman with woman.
The world in its’ confused state could choose to be politically correct by siding with the movements that are spreading from city to city, to allow for man to marry man, and woman to marry woman, which reveals a people, who are confused and do not know, or they have chosen to be unaware of the end result, and what that same sex marriage symbolizes. Jesus revealed Himself as The Vine, and all, who will follow Him to bear The Fruit of His Spirit, they are said to be His branches. This reveals a picture of a Vine with its’ branches, or a tree that bears fruit by The Source of Life. But the same sex union paints a picture of a branch in union with a branch. In other words, when two branches are grafted together without a root system, they cannot sustain life, or produce fruit to continue life.
And because they want to have things they own way against The Will of GOD in HIS Word, many are turning down the volume of their consciousness from comprehending the reason for maintaining GOD’S way of Life. For if marriage is a symbol of the union of Christ with His Bride--the church, or a union of The Creator of Life, Who joins with His creation, which are dependant upon Him for Life, then what does the marriage between two of the same sex symbolize by their union? It reveals the desire of the adversary, who is a created being, who wants to be joined in union with another created being, and to make himself the head over that creation, rather than The Christ, Who is The Head over His Own house--His dwelling, which we are, as dependants upon Him for His Life in us.
It is written that, “…Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself” (Luke 10:27). Would we be showing neighborly love to our brothers and sisters, who desires a companion of the same sex, which goes against The Will of GOD, to suffer the curse of GOD, because they were not informed of the results of the path that they have chosen, to cut themselves off from GOD’S Gift of Life by HIS Word not being in them? Do we care if the adversary seeks to lead them to follow in the same way that he led Eve to believe in his lie, to cause her and Adam to sin against GOD and HIS Word, to suffer darkness and death?
The same result of death will be for all, who choose to worship Satan, as a god on the first day, rather than The True GOD on the Seventh-day of the week, which GOD The Father has set aside as the day of fellowship with HIM and HIS Word. Yet, many are choosing to follow the adversary by worshiping him on the day he has set aside for those, who are following him in disobedience to GOD’S Will by HIS Word. And they seek to prevent anyone from informing them of The Truth revealed in GOD’S Word. In other words, they do not want to know that the path that they have chosen leads to death.
It is written that “In His human nature Christ rendered perfect obedience to the law of God, thus proving to all that this law can be kept. He endured the death penalty himself, not to abrogate the law, not to immortalize sin, but to take away sin. It is because He has borne the punishment that man can have a second probation. He may, if he will, return to his loyalty. But if he refuses to obey the commands of God, if he rejects the warnings and messages God sends, choosing rather to echo the words of the deceiver, he is willingly ignorant, and the condemnation of God is upon him. He chooses disobedience because obedience means lifting the cross, practicing self-denial.
“The natural mind leans toward pleasure and self-gratification. It is Satan's policy to manufacture an abundance of this. He seeks to fill the minds of men with a desire for worldly amusement, that they may have no time to ask themselves the question, How is it with my soul? The love of pleasure is infectious. Given up to this, the mind hurries from one point to another, ever seeking for some amusement. Obedience to the law of God counteracts this inclination, and builds barriers against ungodliness. Each person, as a rational human being, is under the most sacred obligation to obey the law. The Spirit has been provided to enable all to do this. Those who transgress the law by resting on the first day of the week instead of on the seventh, bear false witness to the world. God desires His people to uphold the dignity of His law by resting on the seventh day, His memorial of creation.” (The Review and Herald, May 28, 1901)
“Today men think and act the words of the great deceiver, giving the impression that God does not mean what He says. The accusation which Adam brought against Eve, "The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat," had no influence to save him from the result of disobedience. God said, "Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it; cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee." Adam and Eve were shut out of Eden, and an angel with a flaming sword guarded the way to the tree of life, that the disloyal, disobedient pair might not gain access to it, and thus immortalize transgression.
“Mark this point. The Lord did not place in Adam fallen and disobedient the confidence which He placed in Adam loyal and true, living by every word that proceeded out of the mouth of God. God's plan was to give man clear-sightedness in all his work. This was arranged for Adam by his heavenly Father. There was to be co-operation between God and man. But this plan was interfered with by Adam's transgression. Satan led Adam into sin, and the Lord could not communicate with him after he had sinned as He did when he was without sin. Satan's instrument, the serpent, was cursed. And all who today allow themselves to be used by Satan as his instruments in leading others to disregard the commands of heaven, are under the curse of God. Man's safety lies in whole-hearted belief in a "Thus saith the Lord." This is the declaration of truth. Those who from any motive are led away from the truth, to venture into a path of their own choosing, are following a path which will lead them to destruction.” (The Signs of the Times, May 29, 1901)
Notice that it was the adversary’s plan to cause Adam and Eve to sin by joining with him in rebellion, and then get them to eat of The Tree of Life, to immortalize the sinful nature in man with him--Satan, as the ruler over man. Man was made in The Image of GOD, to be after HIS Kind. But Satan wanted to be a god, to rule over man in sin after his kind. But since Adam and Eve die as the result of sin, Satan has been working to gather the whole world, including the churches under his leadership. And he is so bent on following his own way to become a god, that he has blinded himself to The Truth that he is not GOD, nor is he The Son of GOD, Who became flesh, to save man from the transgression of sin. Satan is not a source of life, for he himself is also a dependant creature upon The Great Life Giver of GOD to receive life from The Holy One, Whom he hates. For The Life given of GOD comes through The Gift of HIS Son--The Christ, Who is The Light and Life of man.
Like the lively stones of the living temple of the church of old, which received The Books of Moses, as a Law, to instruct the people in The Way they were to go, and to be an influence of blessing to all the nations around them, the spiritual temple of the Adventist church was given The Third Angel's Message, and the work to point the minds of believers, not to the earthly sanctuary, which was no longer in service by the high priest, but to Christ Jesus, our Great High Priest in the heavenly sanctuary in heaven above, where He is working with The Father to make us one with Himself by cleansing us from all sin, by His working in us by His works of Righteousness, to Glorify The Father in us.
It is written that, “The great plan of redemption, as revealed in the closing work of these last days, should receive close examination. The scenes connected with the sanctuary above should make such an impression upon the minds and hearts of all that they may be able to impress others. All need to become more intelligent in regard to the work of the atonement, which is going on in the sanctuary above. When this grand truth is seen and understood, those who hold it will work in harmony with Christ to prepare a people to stand in the great day of God, and their efforts will be successful. By study, contemplation, and prayer God's people will be elevated above common, earthly thoughts and feelings, and will be brought into harmony with Christ and His great work of cleansing the sanctuary above from the sins of the people. Their faith will go with Him into the sanctuary, and the worshipers on earth will be carefully reviewing their lives and comparing their characters with the great standard of righteousness. They will see their own defects; they will also see that they must have the aid of the Spirit of God if they would become qualified for the great and solemn work for this time which is laid upon God's ambassadors.” (Testimonies to the Church, Volume 5, Page 575)
Ellen G. White wrote in her writings and said, “I am instructed to say to teachers, ministers, and physicians, who hold responsible positions in the work of the third angel's message, You have a solemn work to do, a holy work. Those who hold positions of trust in the cause of God are to perfect the life after the divine similitude. In the home, in the church, before the world, they are to reveal the power of Christian principle to transform the life. Let them work honestly; let them seek to reveal the spirit of Christ in their work; let them ever strive to reach higher ground. As I realize the perilous times before us and the great responsibilities resting upon teachers, ministers, and physicians, a heavy burden comes upon me lest they be unfaithful in the discharge of duty.” (Counsels to Parents, Teachers and Students, Page 397)
“Our only security against falling into sin is to keep ourselves constantly under the molding influence of the Holy Spirit, at the same time engaging actively in the cause of truth and righteousness, discharging every God-given duty, but taking no burden that God has not laid upon us. Physicians and medical students must stand firm under the banner of the third angel's message, fighting the good fight of faith, perseveringly and successfully, relying not on their own wisdom, but on the wisdom of God, putting on the heavenly armor, the equipment of God's word, never forgetting that they have a Leader who never has been and never can be overcome by evil.” (Counsels to Parents, Teachers and Students, Page 488)
“Therefore thus saith the Lord God, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation” (Isaiah 28:16). "In the Scriptures the figure of the erection of a temple is frequently used to illustrate the building of the church. . . . Writing of the building of this temple, Peter says, "To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious, ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood . . ." (1 Peter 2:4, 5). . . .
“The apostles built upon a sure foundation, even the Rock of Ages. To this foundation they brought the stones that they quarried from the world. Not without hindrance did the builders labor. Their work was made exceedingly difficult by the opposition of the enemies of Christ. They had to contend against the bigotry, prejudice, and hatred of those who were building upon a false foundation. . . . But in the face of imprisonment, torture, and death, faithful men carried the work forward; and the structure grew, beautiful and symmetrical. . . . Through the ages that have passed since the days of the apostles, the building of God's temple has never ceased. We may look back through the centuries and see the living stones of which it is composed gleaming like jets of light through the darkness of error and superstition. Throughout eternity these precious jewels will shine with increasing luster. . . .
“But the structure is not yet complete. We who are living in this age have a work to do, a part to act. We are to bring to the foundation material that will stand the test of fire--gold, silver, and precious stones. . . . The Christian who faithfully presents the word of life, leading men and women into the way of holiness and peace, is bringing to the foundation material that will endure, and in the kingdom of God he will be honored as a wise builder.
“Divine power will unite with our efforts, and as we cling to God with the hand of faith, Christ will impart to us His wisdom and His righteousness. Thus, by His grace, we shall be enabled to build upon the sure foundation.” (God’s Amazing Grace, Page 123)
She also said, "...When God sees the efforts made to build a house for His honor, even if it be humble according to their ability, He will accept it and the heartfelt service of the worshipers. You will see by the prayer of Solomon that Israel's dependence was in the God of Israel. The people that built the Temple were many and the house that they built was large and grand and the Lord God of heaven honored them because they had built Him a sanctuary where they could meet to worship Him. Those that worshiped Him sincerely had His blessing.
"The first tabernacle, built according to God's directions, was indeed blessed of Him. The people thus were preparing themselves to worship in the temple not made with hands--a temple in the heavens. The stones of the Temple built by Solomon were all prepared at the quarry and then brought to the Temple site. They came together without the sound of ax or hammer. The timbers were also fitted in the forest. The furniture was likewise brought to this house all prepared for use.
"Even so, the mighty cleaver of truth has taken out a people from the quarry of the world and is fitting this people, who profess to be the children of God, for a place in His heavenly temple. We want the cleaver of truth to do its work for us. We are taken from the quarry of the world. The material must not be a dead substance but living souls, and these souls must be brought out of the quarry of the world, where the hand of God can fit them for the temple in heaven. We are here as probationers, and we must pass under the hand of God. All rough edges and rough surfaces must be removed and we must be stones fitted for the building. We are brought into church capacity with defects of character, but we must not retain them. We must be fitted and squared for the building. We must be "laborers together with God," for we are "God's husbandry," we are "God's building." In view of this we must see that our temple is not defiled with sin. We should be lively stones, not dead ones, but live ones that will reflect the image of Christ. We must be worshipers in spirit and in truth." (Manuscript Releases, Volume 3, Page 231)
Notice that we are to be as living stones for the dwelling place of GOD to be one with HIM by HIS Son, Who is shaping and molding us to be fitted for His dwelling. We are to be squared for the building by The Cleaver of Truth. This means that we are made the dwelling of a Holy Place for Him, Who is The Dwelling of The Most Holy Place of The Father, WHO sent Him to redeem us from the quarry of the world.
We are to be co-laborers together with Christ as being His representatives in reaching the world to call into fellowship with Him by representing GOD’S Word of Truth. It is The Truth that sanctifies and makes us Holy, and not we of ourselves. We must see that our temple is not defiled with sin, which is the transgression of GOD’S Law, Which is The Character of Christ revealed in The Ten Holy Precepts of The Commandment written on stone, to show His unchanging nature of Holiness.
When GOD by HIS Word preached through Noah to save, all who would hear The Truth by him, the world was not walking in righteousness to respond to GOD’S call by HIS Word through Noah. The Truth was to cut the snares that kept them ensnared in bondage to the things of this world of sin. But when the door of the Ark was shut, there were only eight souls saved alive in the Ark of safety. And when Christ send His angels to redeem Lot and his family from the city of Sodom and Gomorrah, Lot spent the night trying to influence his friends and family to leave the city with him before it was to late. But when he and his wife and two daughters were led out of the city before the day dawned, only Lot and his two daughters were saved. The mother of the daughters looked back to turn not only in her heart, but also is her actions.
GOD wants to save more than just eight soul here and three souls there, for it is written that, “…God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved” (John 3:16-20).
And because of the world of darkness, sin and death, Isaiah testified of Christ and said, “…he [was] wounded for our transgressions, [he was] bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace [was] upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all” (Isaiah 53:5, 6).
Notice that The Light of GOD’S Word has been given to the world, not to keep men and women comfortable in their sin in this world of darkness and death, but to lead mankind from the condition of sin darkness and death to Righteousness in The Light and Life of GOD’S Word. Because, to remain in darkness to The Truth GOD has revealed by HIS Word, Who is The Expressed Glory of The Father, man would be separated from HIM, WHO has no darkness in HIM at all. And to be separated from GOD is to be joined with the adversary in darkness and death. Because he--the adversary has cut himself off from The Gift of Life in GOD’S Word, he is walking around as a roaring lion, seeking to take with him all, who will follow him, as the false christ to their eternal death.
For it is said that, “Satan led Adam into sin, and the Lord could not communicate with him after he had sinned as He did when he was without sin. Satan's instrument, the serpent, was cursed. And all who today allow themselves to be used by Satan as his instruments in leading others to disregard the commands of heaven, are under the curse of God.” (The Signs of the Times, May 29, 1901) Notice that there are many that are in this condition, which need to seek repentance and follow The Will of GOD by HIS Word rather than the deceptions of the enemy that goes against The Word of GOD.
How is Satan working to accomplish being the head that leads all, who follow him unto death? According to the testimony of John, The Word of GOD--Christ Jesus said, “…this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent” (John 17:3). Now if Life Eternal is received by knowing The Only True GOD and Jesus Christ, Whom HE—The Father has sent, then if He, Who is The Expressed Glory of The Father is kept from being received and revealed by the instruments of Satan, who work to lead Christ flock to disregard the commands of GOD, and are presenting a different gospel to keep the members in darkness and death, then those, who do not have The Gift of Eternal Life abiding in them, they are in the bondage of spiritual Babylon, which is of confusion that leads to death, because they know not The Truth of GOD by HIS Word.
Paul testified of The Word of GOD and said, “Therefore seeing we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we faint not; But have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully; but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God. But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them” (2 Corinthians 4:1-4).
"Stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel" (Philippians 1:27). Ellen G. White wrote and said,"I pray that the people of God may not cast aside the peculiarities of their faith. Christ is glorified by a life of constant, well-defined faith. Paul declares, "The life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me" (Gal. 2:20). Christ is to be glorified by the living, working faith of His people. The just shall live by faith. Christ has not left His people to stumble along in darkness. He has marked out the way before them. He says, "Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me" (Mark 8:34). It is along the path of self-denial, the royal highway cast up by the Redeemer, that God's people are to travel.
"My brother, bow in submission before Him who has brought life and immortality to light. Let your will and the will of Christ be one. Talk this, pray this, live this. God's word to us is, "Go forward," and this word we are to obey, though we shall meet with obstacles seemingly as insurmountable as the Red Sea. Let us trust the Lord God of heaven to open the way before His people. "Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass" (Ps. 37:5). This patience of the soul is the rest of faith. The Lord will bless His tried, faithful people. He will not leave them to become confused.
"In the last great day every word, every act, will be subjected to the crucial test of the Judge of all the earth. . . . The Lord calls for heartfelt repentance from those who claim to be His people. Self-indulgence is to find no place in their lives. The church of God is to be jealously guarded from every phase of dishonesty, every taint of corruption. The love of Christ is directly opposed to all avarice, all pride, all pretense. The Lord calls for humble, contrite hearts. He will work by His Holy Spirit upon all who will be worked, all who love Him and keep His commandments. And they will make the presence and power of God so manifestly to appear that the enemies of the truth will be compelled to say that God and His angels are indeed the friends and helpers of those who serve Him.
"Schism and division are not the fruits of righteousness; they are of the wicked one. The great hindrance to our advancement at this time is the selfishness that prevents believers from having true fellowship with one another. The last prayer that Christ offered for His disciples before His trial was that they might be one in Him. Satan is determined that this oneness shall not be, for it is the strongest witness that can be borne that God did indeed send His Son to reconcile the world to heaven.-- Letter 41, Feb. 24, 1903, to Dr. F. E. Braucht, a physician laboring in Chicago." (The Upward Look, Page 69)
It is of those, who stand fast in The Word of GOD that Paul spoke of that will not become confused in following Christ Jesus by their faith. For he said, “…we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake. For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to [give] the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us” (2 Corinthians 4:5-7). Notice that Paul clearly revealed that The Truth of The Spirit of Christ’s Power was not only in him, but also in all, who were with him in The Knowledge of The Truth, Who was shining The Light of His Own Glory out of the heart of Paul, to bear Witness of Himself and of The Father, WHO sent Him. The Word of GOD is The Spirit of Christ, Who put on the garment of flesh, to be The Man Christ Jesus and Our Example. He has Testified of The Father and of Himself through the hearts of those, who received Him, to be a third witness, to bear witness of The Light of His Expressed Glory of The Father, WHO sent Him to others through them, just as He preached to others through Noah in his time before the flood.
"Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ" (Ephesians 4:13).
"The standard of character which Christ has made it possible for us to reach . . . is a perfect standard. In trying to measure [up to] it, the senses become confused. The question is asked, "Who by searching can find out God?" (See Job 11:7.) Yet He has made it possible for us to become like Him in character. Oh, what will impress men and women with their need of that transformation which will enable them to reflect the divine image?
Many who claim to follow Christ present to the world an inferior representation of Christianity because they do not reach the standard which makes them the elect of God. He who fails to keep constantly before him the standard of God's holy law creates a standard of his own. He becomes destitute of the life-giving principles of the gospel. He is an unprofitable servant, for he lives and works on a low plane of action. Christ's presence does not sustain him, and his spiritual representations are deformed. His life is a farce. He does not draw the higher life from God, and is unfitted to become a member of the royal family, a child of the heavenly King. Spiritually he is dead, for he does not assimilate into his own life the life which Christ has provided. He does not grasp the power which heaven has provided to enable him to be an overcomer.
No one can take to heaven his natural and cultivated traits of character. He who has carried these traits with him through his period of probation has misrepresented Christ by acting upon principles which God cannot endorse. The principles of true spiritual life are not understood by those who know the truth, but fail to practice it.
The Lord calls for reforms, marked, distinct reforms. Those in whose hearts Christ dwells will reveal His presence in their dealing with their fellow men. But the principles of some have been so long perverted that they have lost their discernment, and the arrow seldom reaches its mark. How can this be cured? Only by heeding Christ's prayer, "Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth. As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world. And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth" (John 17:17-19). There is no roundabout way in which the work of sanctification can take place.--Manuscript 16, Feb. 25, 1901, "Testimony to the Battle Creek Church." (The Upward Look, Page 70)
"Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling" (Philippians 2:12). "If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new" (2 Cor. 5:17). Nothing but divine power can regenerate the human heart and imbue souls with the love of Christ, which will ever manifest itself with love for those for whom He died. The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance. When a man is converted to God, a new moral taste is supplied, a new motive power is given, and he loves the things that God loves; for his life is bound up by the golden chain of the immutable promises to the life of Jesus. Love, joy, peace, and inexpressible gratitude will pervade the soul, and the language of him who is blessed will be, "Thy gentleness hath made me great" (Ps. 18:35).
"But those who are waiting to behold a magical change in their characters without determined effort on their part to overcome sin will be disappointed. We have no reason to fear while looking to Jesus, no reason to doubt but that He is able to save to the uttermost all that come unto Him; but we may constantly fear lest our old nature will again obtain the supremacy, that the enemy shall devise some snare whereby we shall again become his captives.
"We are to work out our own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God that worketh in you to will and to do of His good pleasure. With our limited powers we are to be as holy in our sphere as God is holy in His sphere. To the extent of our ability, we are to make manifest the truth and love and excellence of the divine character. As wax takes the impression of the seal, so the soul is to take the impression of the Spirit of God and retain the image of Christ.
"We are to grow daily in spiritual loveliness. We shall fail often in our efforts to copy the divine Pattern. We shall often have to bow down to weep at the feet of Jesus, because of our shortcomings and mistakes; but we are not to be discouraged; we are to pray more fervently, believe more fully, and try again with more steadfastness to grow into the likeness of our Lord.--Selected Messages, book 1, pp. 336, 337
By Carron Lake @ www.thelightoftheword.org
ordinances, and have not kept [them]. Return unto me, and I will
return unto you, saith the LORD of hosts."
(Malachi 3:7)
The Spirit of Christ is revealed to us through His Witnesses,
and GOD The Father is revealed to us through Him. (Click)