Heaven

Bible Study Guides – An Opportunity Treasured

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September 15, 2013 – September 21, 2013

Key Text

“They [the sons of Reuben, and the Gadites, and half the tribe of Manasseh] cried to God in the battle, and He was entreated of them; because they put their trust in Him.” 1 Chronicles 5:20.

Study Help: Testimonies, vol. 2, 263–268; Christ’s Object Lessons, 296–299, 305, 306.

Introduction

“The warfare against self is the greatest battle that was ever fought. The yielding of self, surrendering all to the will of God, requires a struggle; but the soul must submit to God before it can be renewed in holiness.” Steps to Christ, 43.

1 PRIZING THE SPIRITUAL ASPECT

  • What blessing did Jacob pronounce upon Ephraim and Manasseh? Genesis 48:14–16. How can both young and old obtain similar blessings today?

Note: “You should feel an earnest desire for the Holy Spirit and should pray earnestly to obtain it. You cannot expect the blessing of God without seeking for it. If you used the means within your reach you would experience a growth in grace and would rise to a higher life.

“It is not natural for you to love spiritual things; but you can acquire that love by exercising your mind, the strength of your being, in that direction.” Testimonies, vol. 2, 263.

  • How did some from the tribe of Manasseh respond to calls for reformation on various occasions? Judges 6:11–15, 25–29; II Chronicles 15:1, 2, 8, 9; 30:1, 10,11. What can we learn from these events?

Note: “We all need to draw near to God. He will draw near to those who approach Him in humility, filled with a holy awe for His sacred majesty, and standing before Him separate from the world.” “Ellen G. White Comments,” The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, vol. 3, 1136.

2 SEIZE THE CHANCE

  • How is our opportunity to be among the 144,000 spiritual Israelites similar to the privilege extended to the sons of Joseph to become direct sons of Israel? Romans 11:13, 17, 19–21.
  • What should be our attitude regarding this opportunity? Romans 11:18, 22–25.

Note: “Some feel their need of the atonement, and with the recognition of this need, and the desire for a change of heart, a struggle begins. To renounce their own will, perhaps their chosen objects of affection or pursuit, requires an effort, at which many hesitate and falter and turn back. Yet this battle must be fought by every heart that is truly converted. We must war against temptations without and within. We must gain the victory over self, crucify the affections and lusts; and then begins the union of the soul with Christ. As the dry and apparently lifeless branch is grafted into the living tree, so may we become living branches of the True Vine.” Testimonies, vol. 5, 47.

  • Realizing that the tribe of Dan was cut off for indulging in backbiting, envy, and jealousy—and Ephraim ultimately rejected the chance to step in—what should each of us consider? Hosea 4:6; Revelation 3:11, 16.

Note: “The words of God to ancient Israel have a solemn warning to the church and its leaders today. Of Israel the Lord said, ‘I have written to him the great things of My law; but they were counted as a strange thing’ (Hosea 8:12). …

“Shall the warnings from God be passed by unheeded? Shall the opportunities for service be unimproved? Shall the world’s scorn, the pride of reason, conformity to human customs and traditions, hold the professed followers of Christ from service to Him? Will they reject God’s word as the Jewish leaders rejected Christ? The result of Israel’s sin is before us. Will the church of today take warning?” Christ’s Object Lessons, 306.

3 THE MEANING OF ISRAEL

  • By the weakness of his human nature, Jacob had been a supplanter and a liar. Nonetheless, what was his determination with regard to the things of God? Genesis 32:24–26.

Note: “[Proverbs 26:2; Isaiah 3:10, 11; Jeremiah 6:19 quoted.]

“Terrible is this truth, and deeply should it be impressed. Every deed reacts upon the doer. Never a human being but may recognize, in the evils that curse his life, fruitage of his own sowing. Yet even thus we are not without hope.

“To gain the birthright that was his already by God’s promise, Jacob resorted to fraud, and he reaped the harvest in his brother’s hatred. Through twenty years of exile he was himself wronged and defrauded, and was at last forced to find safety in flight; and he reaped a second harvest, as the evils of his own character were seen to crop out in his sons—all but too true a picture of the retributions of human life. …

“Jacob in his distress was not overwhelmed. He had repented, he had endeavored to atone for the wrong to his brother. And when threatened with death through the wrath of Esau, he sought help from God.” Education, 146, 147.

  • Why was Jacob’s name changed to Israel? Genesis 32:27–29; Hosea 12:2–6.

Note: “The error that had led to Jacob’s sin in obtaining the birthright by fraud was now clearly set before him. He had not trusted God’s promises, but had sought by his own efforts to bring about that which God would have accomplished in His own time and way. As an evidence that he had been forgiven, his name was changed from one that was a reminder of his sin, to one that commemorated his victory. ‘Thy name,’ said the Angel, ‘shall be called no more Jacob [the supplanter], but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed’ (Genesis 32:28).” Patriarchs and Prophets, 197, 198.

“In the power of His [God’s] might the forgiven one [Jacob] stood up, no longer the supplanter, but a prince with God. He had gained not merely deliverance from his outraged brother, but deliverance from himself. The power of evil in his own nature was broken; his character was transformed.” Education, 147.

4 AN INEVITABLE CHARACTERISTIC

  • What does the Lord emphasize about seeking the kingdom of God with firm determination? Matthew 6:33; 11:12.

Note: “With the great truth we have been privileged to receive, we should, and under the Holy Spirit’s power we could, become living channels of light. We could then approach the mercy seat; and seeing the bow of promise, kneel with contrite hearts, and seek the kingdom of heaven with a spiritual violence that would bring its own reward. We would take it by force, as did Jacob. Then our message would be the power of God unto salvation.” “Ellen G. White Comments,” The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, vol. 5, 1089.

“The characters we form here will decide our eternal destiny. What kind of material are we using in our character building? We must guard well every point, seeking to gain that purity which will make our lives harmonize with the saving truth we profess to believe. Our part is to put away sin, to seek with determination for perfection of character. As we thus work, God co-operates with us, fitting us for a place in His kingdom.” The Review and Herald, June 11, 1901.

  • How did the apostle Paul exemplify perseverance in spiritual matters? Philippians 3:7–14.

Note: “God calls upon you to no longer dally with the tempter, but to cleanse yourself from all filthiness of the flesh and of the spirit, perfecting holiness in His fear. You need to work fast to remove the defects from your character. You are in God’s workshop. If you will submit to the process of hewing and squaring and planing, that the rough edges may be removed, the knots and uneven surface smoothed and fitted by the planing knife of God, you will be fitted by His grace for the heavenly building. But if you cling to self, and are not willing to endure the trying process of fitting for the heavenly building, you will have no place in that structure which will come together without the sound of ax or hammer.” Testimonies, vol. 4, 258.

“The battle is yours. No one can fight it for you. Others can pray for you, but the work must be wholly your own.” Ibid.

5 AN INESTIMABLE TREASURE

  • What truths should we realize about the indescribable glory of Heaven? Matthew 13:44–46; I Corinthians 2:9.

Note: “At the day of judgment there comes to the lost a full realization of the meaning of the sacrifice made on Calvary. They see what they have lost by refusing to be loyal. They think of the high, pure association it was their privilege to gain. But it is too late. The last call has been made.” Testimonies, vol. 7, 16.

  • What can we learn from the way in which, on a difficult occasion, the hand of God was extended toward Manasseh? 1 Chronicles 5:18–20. What is the good news for the spiritual members of this tribe? Revelation 7:6, last part.

Note: “Heaven will be cheap enough, if we obtain it through suffering. We must deny self all along the way, die to self daily, let Jesus alone appear, and keep His glory continually in view. I saw that those who of late have embraced the truth would have to know what it is to suffer for Christ’s sake, that they would have trials to pass through that would be keen and cutting, in order that they may be purified and fitted through suffering to receive the seal of the living God, pass through the time of trouble, see the King in His beauty, and dwell in the presence of God and of pure, holy angels.

“As I saw what we must be in order to inherit glory, and then saw how much Jesus had suffered to obtain for us so rich an inheritance, I prayed that we might be baptized into Christ’s sufferings, that we might not shrink at trials, but bear them with patience and joy, knowing what Jesus had suffered that we through His poverty and sufferings might be made rich.” Early Writings, 67.

PERSONAL REVIEW QUESTIONS

1 How can we obtain spiritual blessings from God?

2 What should be our attitude as branches grafted into God’s olive tree?

3 Explain the spiritual significance of the term “Israel.”

4 What do Matthew 6:33 and 11:12 mean for each of us today?

5 Name some point which deeply impresses your mind about the value of the Christian’s goal.

Copyright © 2007 Reformation Herald Publishing Association, 5240 Hollins Road, Roanoke, Virginia. Reprinted by permission.

Inspiration – To See the King and The Glories of the Future World

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“Thine eyes shall see the king in His beauty: they shall behold the land that is very far off.” Isaiah 33:17.

If we desire to see the King in His beauty we must here behave worthily. We must outgrow our childishness. When provocation comes let us be silent. There are times when silence is eloquence. We are to reveal the patience and kindness and forbearance that will make us worthy of being called sons and daughters of God. We are to trust Him, and believe on Him, and rely upon Him. We are to follow in Christ’s steps. “If any man will come after me,” He says, “let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me” (Luke 9:23). … It may be a heavy cross to keep silent when you ought to. It may be a painful discipline, but let me assure you that silence does much more to overcome evil than a storm of angry words.

Here in this world we are to learn what we must be in order to have a place in the heavenly courts. We are to learn the lessons that Christ desires to teach us, that we may be prepared to be taken to the higher school in the courts above, where the Saviour will lead us beside the river of life, explaining to us many things that here we could not comprehend. … There we shall see the glory of God as we have never seen it here. We get but a glimpse of the glory now, because we do not follow on to know the Lord.

Every right principle, every truth learned in an earthly school, will advance us just that much in the heavenly school. As Christ walked and talked with His disciples during His ministry on this earth, so will He teach us in the school above, leading us beside the river of living waters, and revealing to us truths that in this life must remain hidden mysteries because of the limitations of the human mind, so marred by sin. In the heavenly school we shall have opportunity to attain, step by step, to the greatest heights of learning. There, as children of the heavenly King, we shall ever dwell with the members of the royal family; there we shall see the King in His beauty, and behold His matchless charms.

Long have we waited, but our hope is not to grow dim. If we can but see the King in His beauty we shall be forever blessed.

Glories of the Future World

“For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside Thee, what He hath prepared for him that waiteth for Him.” Isaiah 64:4.

Many have longed to penetrate into the glories of the future world and to have the secrets of eternal mysteries disclosed to them, but they knock in vain. That which is revealed is for us and for our children (Deuteronomy 29:29). … The Great Revealer hath opened to our intelligence many things that are essential in order that we may understand the heavenly attractions and have respect to the recompense of the reward. …

The unfoldings of Jesus in reference to heavenly things are of a character that only the spiritual mind can appreciate. The imagination may summon its utmost powers in order to picture the glories of heaven, but “eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him” (1 Corinthians 2:9). The heavenly intelligences are all around us. … Angels of light create a heavenly atmosphere about the soul, lifting us toward the unseen and eternal. We cannot behold their forms with our natural sight; only by the spiritual vision can we discern heavenly things. Our human powers would be extinguished by the inexpressible glory of the angels of light. The spiritual ear alone can distinguish the harmony of heavenly voices. It is not Christ’s plan to excite the emotions by brilliant descriptions. … He has with sufficient distinctness presented Himself, the way, the truth, and the life, as the only means whereby salvation is to be obtained. No more than this is really required.

He might bring the human soul to the threshold of heaven, and through the open door show us its inner glory flooding the heavenly sanctuary and shining out through its portals; but we must behold it by faith, not with the natural eyes. He does not forget that we are His human agents, to work the works of God in a world all seared and marred with the curse. It is in this world, that is clothed with moral darkness like the pall of death, where darkness covers the earth and gross darkness the people (Isaiah 60:2), that we are to walk in the light of heaven. …

Come, Ye Blessed

Those who truly love God will desire so to improve the talents that He has given them, that they may be a blessing to others. And by and by the gates of heaven will be thrown wide open to admit them, and from the lips of the King of Glory the benediction will fall upon their ear like richest music, “Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world” (Matthew 25:34). Thus the redeemed will be welcomed to the mansions that Jesus is preparing for them. There their companions will not be the vile of earth, but those who through divine aid have formed perfect characters. Every sinful tendency, every imperfection, has been removed by the blood of Christ; and the excellence and brightness of His glory, far exceeding the brightness of the sun in its meridian splendor, is imparted to them. And the moral beauty, the perfection of His character, shines through them in worth far exceeding this outward splendor. They are without fault before the great white throne, sharing the dignity and privileges of the angels.

“Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him” (I Corinthians 2:9). In view of the glorious inheritance which may be his, “What shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Matthew 16:26.) He may be poor; yet he possesses in himself a wealth and dignity that the world could never bestow. The soul, redeemed and cleansed from sin, with all its noble powers dedicated to the service of God, is of surpassing worth.

To dwell forever in this home of the blest, to bear in soul, body, and spirit, not the dark traces of sin and the curse, but the perfect likeness of our Creator, and through ceaseless ages to advance in wisdom, in knowledge, and in holiness, ever exploring new fields of thought, ever finding new wonders and new glories, ever increasing in capacity to know and to enjoy and to love, and knowing that there is still beyond us joy and love and wisdom infinite—such is the object to which the Christian’s hope is pointing.

Longing for Heaven

“My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth for the courts of the Lord: my heart and my flesh crieth out for the living God.” Psalm 84:2.

When God’s people take their eyes off the things of this world and place them on heaven and heavenly things they will be a peculiar people, because they will see the mercy and goodness and compassion that God has shown to the children of men. His love will call forth a response from them, and their lives will show to those around them that the Spirit of God is controlling them, that they are setting their affections on things above, not on the things of the earth.

In thinking of heaven, we may put our imagination to the utmost stretch and think the loftiest thoughts that we are capable of thinking, and our mind will grow weary in the effort to comprehend the breadth and depth and height of the subject. It is impossible for our minds to take in the great themes of eternity. It is impossible for us even to make an effort to understand these things without the effort affecting our whole character for good and having an uplifting influence on our minds. As we think of how Christ came to our world to die for fallen man, we understand something of the price that was paid for our redemption, and we realize that there is no true goodness or greatness apart from God.

Only by the light shining from the cross of Calvary can we know to what depths of sin and degradation the human race has fallen through sin. Only by the length of the chain let down from heaven to draw us up can we know the depths to which we had sunk. And it is only by keeping the unseen realities in view that we can understand anything of the wonderful theme of redemption.

We are almost home; we shall soon hear the voice of the Saviour richer than any music, saying, Your warfare is accomplished. Enter into the joy of thy Lord. Blessed, blessed benediction; I want to hear it from His immortal lips. I want to praise Him; I want to honor Him that sitteth on the throne. I want my voice to echo and re-echo through the courts of heaven. Will you be there? … God help us, and fill us with all fullness and power, and then we can taste of the joys of the world to come.

In Heavenly Places, 365-368.

Offices of Christ – part 3

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Our Lord has three grand offices assigned Him in the Scriptures in the work of human redemption. When He was upon our earth at His first advent, He was that prophet of whom Moses spake in Deuteronomy 18:15–19. (See also Acts 3:22–26.) When He ascended up to heaven, He became a great High Priest after the order of Melchizedek. (See Psalm 110; Hebrews 8:1–6.) But when He comes again, He is in possession of His kingly authority, as promised in the second psalm. It is by virtue of this office of King that He judges mankind. (See Matthew 25:34–40.) The transition from our Lord’s priesthood to His kingly office precedes His Second Advent. (See Luke 19:11, 12, 15.) It takes place when His Father sits in judgment, as described in Daniel 7:9–14.

The nature of the words addressed by the Father to the Son when He crowns Him King shows that coronation to be at the close of His priestly office. (See Psalm 2:6–9.) It is manifest that the giving of the heathen to the Son by the Father is not for their salvation but for their destruction. It could not, therefore, take place at the ascension of Christ when He entered upon His priesthood but must be when the work of that priesthood is finished. Daniel has placed the coronation of Christ at the Father’s judgment-seat, and to this fact the words of the second psalm perfectly agree. The priesthood of Christ is closed when the scepter of iron is placed in His hands; for when the wicked are given into the hands of Christ to be destroyed, it is plain that there is no further salvation for sinners. The coronation, which is described in Daniel 7:9–14, is simply the transition from the priesthood of Christ to His Kingly office.

It is plain that our Lord’s priesthood is brought to a conclusion at the time when the Ancient of Days sits in judgment. We need Him as Priest to confess our names at that tribunal and to show from the record of our past lives that w have perfected the work of overcoming so that our sins may, by the decision of the Father, be blotted out and our names retained in the book of life. But when the people of God have thus passed the decision of the investigative judgment, their probation is closed forever and their names, being found in the Book of Life when all that have failed to overcome are stricken therefrom, they are prepared for the standing up of Michael to deliver His people and to destroy all others with the scepter of His justice.

The priesthood of Christ continues till His enemies are given Him to be destroyed.

The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit Thou at My right hand, until I make Thine enemies Thy footstool. The LORD shall send the rod of Thy strength out of Zion; rule Thou in the midst of Thine enemies. Thy people shall be willing in the day of Thy power, in the beauties of holiness from the womb of the morning; Thou hast the dew of Thy youth. The LORD that sworn, and will not repent, Thou art a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. The LORD at Thy right hand shall strike through kings in the day of His wrath. He shall judge among the heathen, He shall fill the places with the dead bodies; He shall wound the heads over many countries. He shall drink of the brook in the way; therefore shall He lift up the head.” Psalm 110:1–7.

Closing Christ’s Intercession

These words are addressed by God the Father to Christ when He enters upon His priestly office and are equivalent to saying that in due time He should have His enemies given Him to destroy, viz., at the close of His work of intercession. For this reason it is that Paul represents Him as sitting at the Father’s right hand, in a state of expectancy. (See Hebrews 10:13.) But the words of the second psalm, bidding Him ask for the heathen, to destroy them, cannot be uttered till He finished His work of intercession. It appears that our Lord announces the close of His intercession by saying, “He that is unjust, let him be unjust still; and he which if filthy, let him be filthy still; and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still; and he that is holy, let him be holy still.” Revelation 22:11. In response to this declaration of the Intercessor, announcing to His Father the close of His work, the Father bids the Son ask of Him the heathen that He may devote them to utter destruction. And in fulfillment of the Son’s request, the Father crowns Him King as described in Daniel 7:9–14, as He sits in judgment and commits the judgment into His hands.

Christ, as our High Priest, or Intercessor, sits at the right hand of the Father’s throne, i.e., He occupies the place of honor in the presence of One greater, till He is Himself crowned King when He takes His own throne.

The position of the Saviour as High Priest cannot be one invariable, fixed posture of sitting. Indeed, although Mark says (see Mark 16:19), concerning our Lord, that “He was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God,” yet it is said of Stephen that “he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up steadfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God, and said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God.” Acts 7:55, 56. The fact that Stephen saw our Lord standing at His Father’s right hand and that after this Jesus did personally appear to Saul to constitute him a witness of His resurrection, which, in order to be an apostle, he must be, is not inconsistent with the mandate of the Father, “Sit Thou at My right hand, until I make Thine enemies Thy footstool.”

The Hebrew word yahshav, rendered sit in Psalm 110:1, is used an immense number of times in the Old Testament and is, in a very large proportion of these cases, rendered dwell. Thus, “Abram dwelled in the land of Canaan, and Lot dwelled in the cities of the plain.” Genesis 13:12. (See also Genesis 45:10; 1 Samuel 27:7.) But it is to be observed that Abraham, Lot, Jacob, and David, the persons spoken of in the texts, who dwelled, or, as rendered in Psalms 110:1, who sat in the places named, were not, during the time in which they acted thus, immovably fixed to those several places but were capable of going and returning during the very time in question. And the Greek word kathizo, used in the New Testament for Christ’s act of sitting at the Father’s right hand, though more generally used in the sense of sitting, is also used precisely like yahshav, in the texts above.

Christ’s Work More than that of an Intercessor

When our Lord went away, it was not simply that He should act as Intercessor for His people; He also had another work to do. He says: “In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto Myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.” John 14:2, 3. We cannot doubt that this work is wrought under our Lord’s personal inspection, and it is performed during the period that He is at the Father’s right hand.

The expression, “right hand,” is especially worthy of attention. In defining the Hebrew word yahmeen, i.e., right hand, Gesenius says: “To sit on the right hand of the king, as the highest place of honor, e.g., spoken of the queen (1 Kings 2:19; Psalm 14:9); of one beloved of the king and vicegerent of the kingdom. Psalm 110:1.”

When our Lord spoke of going away to intercede for His people, He said: “I go unto the Father, for My Father is greater than I.” John 14:28. In fulfilling His office of Intercessor, or High Priest, He has assigned to Him the highest place of honor in the presence of a greater; for He sits on the right hand of His Father’s throne. He is not, however, to sustain this relation always. It lasts while He pleads for sinful man. When it ceases, the impenitent are to be made His footstool and the dominion, and glory, and kingdom being given Him, He sits down upon His own throne. (See Revelation 3:21.) This gift of the heathen to Christ is when the Father sits in judgment, as we have seen from Daniel 7:9–14. We can well understand that at this tribunal, the question is determined as to who has overcome; and that, being settled, all the others are given to Christ to be broken with His iron scepter. The determination of the cases of the righteous in showing that they are worthy to have their sins blotted out is the final work of our Lord as High Priest. When this is accomplished, His priesthood is closed forever; and He assumes His kingly throne to judge His enemies and to deliver and reward His saints.

The Beginning of Christ’s Work as King

The Saviour, being crowned King at the close of His priestly office, begins the exercise of His Kingly power by delivering His people and by bringing to trial, pronouncing judgment upon, and executing His enemies.

The one hundred and tenth psalm, though it speaks very distinctly of the priesthood of Christ, enters even more largely into the exercise of His kingly office. It very clearly reveals the fact that our Lord acts as Judge by virtue of His kingly authority. Thus verse 1 assigns to Him, as Priest, the place of honor at His Father’s right hand, limiting His priesthood, however, by an event which changes His office from Priest to King. Verse 2 states the very act of making Christ King makes His enemies His footstool. Thus it says: “The Lord shall send the rod of Thy strength out of Zion; rule Thou in the midst of Thine enemies.” The first clause of this verse is parallel to Psalm 2:6, “Yet have I set My King upon My holy hill of Zion.” The heavenly Zion (see Hebrews 12:22; Revelation 14:1) is the place of Christ’s coronation. The last clause is the very words of the Father to the Son when He crowns Him King. This is sufficiently obvious from our common English version. But it is made still more evident from the French translation of David Martin in which the two clauses are connected by the words, “in saying.” Thus: “The Lord shall transmit out of Zion the scepter of Thy strength, in saying: Rule in the midst of Thy enemies.”

Our Lord being thus inducted into His Kingly office and proceeding to the exercise of His power against His enemies, the next verse states the sympathy of His people with this work: “Thy people shall be willing in the days of Thy power; in the beauties of holiness from the womb of the morning Thou hast the dew of youth.” Instead of “the day of Thy power,” Martin’s French Bible reads, “The day that Thou shalt assemble Thy army in holy pomp.” This is the time when the Son of man descends in power and great glory, and the armies of Heaven, i.e., all the holy angels, attend and surround Him. (See Matthew 24:30, 31; 1 Thessalonians 4:16–18; Revelation 19:11–21.) The people of God are to unite with Christ in His rule over the nations of wicked men. (See Revelation 2:26, 27; Psalm 2:6–9.) The morning of this verse must be the morning of the day which it mentions. One of the earliest events of that day is the resurrection of the just, when, like their Lord, they are born from the dead to life immortal. (See Revelation 20:4–6; Luke 20:35, 36; Colossians 1:18; Hosea 13:13, 14; 1 Corinthians 15:42–44, 51–54.)

The fourth verse of Psalm 110 confirms with an oath the priesthood of Christ. His prophetic office is the subject of solemn promise. (See Deuteronomy 18:15–18.)

The Limitations of Christ’s Priestly Office

His priesthood is established by an oath. (See psalm 110:4.) His kingly office is the subject of a fixed decree. (See Psalm 2:6, 7.) But the forever of His priesthood, as expressed by this verse, is limited by the fact that at a certain point of time, He is to cease to plead for sinful men and they are to be made His footstool.

It is important to observe that there are in this psalm two Lords, the Father and the Son. One in the original is called Jehovah; the other is called Adonai. The word LORD in small capitals is used for Jehovah. But the Lord at His right hand (verse 1) is Adonai, the Son. So we read of the Son in verse 5: “The Lord at Thy right hand shall strike through kings in the day of His wrath.” This will evidently be in the battle of the great day of God Almighty. (See Revelation 6:15–17; 19:11–21; Isaiah 24:21–23.)

Our Lord does not thus destroy His enemies by virtue of His kingly office until He has first judged them, for one of the first acts of His kingly power is to proceed to the judgment of His enemies. He represents Himself as judging by reason of His kingly office. (See Matthew 25:34, 40.) It is in the exercise of this power that He judges His enemies. So Psalm 110:6 reads thus: “He shall judge among the heathen; He shall fill the places with the dead bodies; He shall wound the heads over many countries.” This is the work in the day of His power, and to this work His people shall consent. (See verse 3.) This is indeed the great day of His wrath, and none shall be able to stand except those whose sins are blotted out. The wicked kings of the earth shall fall before Him when He is King of kings and Lord of lords.

Human probation closes with the priesthood of Christ. Those who are found in their sins after our Lord has taken His kingly power must be destroyed as His enemies. His priesthood terminates when He has obtained the acquittal of His people and secured the blotting out of their sins at the tribunal of His Father. Then and there He is crowned King; and from that coronation scene, He comes as King to our earth to deliver all who at that examination of the books are accounted worthy to have part in the world to come and in the resurrection of the just. (See Daniel 7:9, 10; 12:1; Luke 20:35, 36; 21:36.)

The righteous dead are “accounted worthy” of a part in the resurrection to immortal life before they are raised from among the dead. (See Luke 20:35, 36; Philippians 3:11; 1 Corinthians 15:52; Revelation 20:4–6.) They awake with the likeness of Christ. (See Psalm 17:15.) We may be certain, therefore, that the investigation and decision of their cases is an accomplished fact prior to their resurrection; for that event is declarative of their final justification in the judgment.

But Like 21:36 uses the same expression both in Greek and in English respecting those who are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord that Luke 20:35, 36 uses respecting those who are asleep. As the latter, before the resurrection, are “accounted worthy” to be made like the angels, so the former are “accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.” The things that shall come to pass before the deliverance of the saints are the events of the time of trouble such as never was. (See Daniel 12:1.) And those who are accounted worthy to escape these things are also worthy to stand before the Son of man at His appearing.

This act of accounting worthy does, therefore, relate to their eternal salvation and is performed before they enter that great time of trouble at which they are to be delivered; for that does not commence until the standing up of Michael, which is but another term for the coronation of Christ, or the beginning of His reign upon His own throne. But Michael, or Christ, does not take His throne till He has finished His work as Priest at the tribunal of His Father. It is at that tribunal that the righteous dead are accounted worthy of the resurrection to immortality and the righteous living are accounted worthy to escape the anguish of the time of trouble and to stand before the Son of man. Those only can be accounted worthy of this whose record in the book of God’s remembrance shows them to have been perfect overcomers.

The Saviour, while yet High Priest, confesses the names of such before His Father and the holy angels and secures the blotting out of their sins. Those who shall be raised to immortality and those who shall escape the things coming upon the earth and stand before the Son of man are severally counted worthy of this before the priesthood of Christ is closed. We cannot, therefore, doubt that with both these classes the investigation and decision of the judgment is passed before the Saviour takes the throne of His glory and begins the destruction of His enemies.

The righteous dead come first in the order of the Investigative Judgment; and while their cases are being examined and decided, probation continues to the living.

Probation Continues

It is certainly most natural that the cases of the righteous dead should be the first to come up in the Investigative Judgment, for their names stand first in the book of God’s remembrance. Reason would therefore teach us that these cases must earliest come into account before God. But we are not left simply to the reasonableness of this order of events. We have direct proof in the messages of Revelation 14:6–14 that probation to the living continues after the judgment hour has actually arrived:

The First Angel ushers in the hour of God’s judgment by a solemn announcement to all of the inhabitants of the earth that it has actually commenced. But the Second and Third Angels, who unite with this proclamation, deliver their messages in the judgment hour itself; and they address themselves to men still in probation. We have already learned that God the Father sits in judgment, as described in Daniel 7, before the advent of our Lord to this earth. And in Revelation 14, the fact that the hour of God’s judgment has come is announced to the inhabitants of the earth by a mighty proclamation. The judgment scene of Daniel 7 is closed by the coronation of Christ; and the judgment hour of Revelation 14 is followed by our Lord being seen upon the white cloud with a crown upon His head, a proof that His priesthood has then given place to His kingly office. Each of these pertains to the closing events of this dispensation. There can be, therefore, no doubt that the hour of God’s judgment announced in Revelation 14 is the time when God the Father sits in judgment, as described in Daniel 7:9–14.

The River of God

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There flows from the throne of God a mighty river, tinctured with all the elements for the sustenance of all the mighty works of His hands. What, of this river, may be seen by the angels of God, is past the comprehension of man. Man knows naught of the powerful tides flowing out from God to sustain the mighty orbs of heaven. To man no intelligence conveys an idea of the power that controls the motions of myriads of incomprehensibly immense planets which are hung apparently on nothing. What a stream of power must flow continuously to every orb, to say nothing of every possible inhabitant of every orb, is a theme not to be solved by the dwellers of earth, at least not in this life; but to us it is but a theme of wonder and an awe forever.

Yet man sees his small share of that mighty stream. Daily do its gracious drops sustain him; daily he basks in the reflection of its crystal tides; daily he carols in unison with its pulsating harmony, and bathes in the sparkling essence of its splendor. In and through and around man is the river of God ever flowing. On the sinking shores of time man stands and views the ever-flowing stream. Now he sees the silent eddy; then perhaps the rapids dash past him, covering the underlying rocks, yet showing by an uneven surface that they are there; then the mighty cataract thunders, dashes, foams, writhes, and hisses as if, in its mad fury, it would long to grasp every object, movable or immovable, and hurl it into the untold ruin beneath.

This is the portion of the stream of God that is placed immediately before the vision of man. This is that portion of the stream that we are told shall not last. It is a broad stream, even what we can see of it, so broad that we cannot see the other side. A Guidebook has been left us giving a description of some features of the other side. Some have been said to have crossed over, and we believe that Enoch and Moses and Elijah have done so. The Guidebook tells us that many of us also shall see the other side; not that in our present state we shall see it, but that, recreated and changed to incorruption and immortality, we shall cross over, and that there we shall see the Fountain Head of the great stream.

There are many strange features in this Guidebook that distinguishes it in nature from all other guidebooks ever written. It was not written by the diction of man, and no man has been, nor can ever be, able to write a work that will faithfully detail the nature of the other shore nor give any valuable directions as to how to reach it. Neither can any, by following any other book, ever reach, in a satisfactory state, that mysterious shore where we are told that the “surges cease to roll.” Chance will direct no one over. The Guidebook was placed here by the gracious Ruler of the mysterious province, because He wished to see mankind successfully conducted to His realm, and He knew there was no other knowledge on earth able to discern the way across the trackless waters.

Thousands have started without the proper directions, to reach the other shore. Those who have remained behind, and are acquainted with the directions given in the Book, are enlightened upon what must have been the fate of the rash adventurers. How many bodies have fallen into the angry grasp of the mad waters at the falls; how many have plunged headlong into the mighty confusion beneath, where the stream from above never ceases to pour its mighty weight, nor will till the close of time, remains one of the mysteries of the stream. As though to confirm the record of all its past doings, that mighty cataract thunders unceasingly down upon the insensible mass of all it has buried during the past ages. Into its keeping have been delivered all those who have attempted to pass without the Guidebook’s illuminations. Some who have read the Guidebook have dared to spurn its directions. Rash children of the angry waves! Where, oh, where are the bones and flesh that once supported thy proud spirits?

Those who have followed the Guidebook have found therein individual instructions. This is another peculiarity of the Book. While following the same general plan of instruction with all, it enforces certain points upon the very persons who need them. Also the Spirit of the Author of the Book accompanies the work, and this of itself is a powerful and indispensable factor in mastering the directions. Some unwisely have not valued this prime factor, but have tried to master the Book by their own understanding. Of these, some have carelessly given up; some have done so despairingly; but some, happy to relate, have discovered what was wanting and have wisely and cheerfully united their own intelligence with that of the Spirit, and have thereby gained the secrets of the pilotage.

Many who have launched out upon the river we are still able to discern. Invariably their first motion on the water has carried them under, but, as we have seen, this rather strengthened than weakened their confidence in the Book, for as each one has recovered from his submersion, he has been heard to quote words from the Book which, by the aid of the Spirit, seemed to be to him full of meaning. As nearly as I can quote the words, their substance is this: “Like as we have been buried beneath the water, so shall we rise from the earth.”

Some have gone beyond the limit of our observation. The last we saw of these, they were sunken into a peaceful slumber and were being carried by some of their friends. Garlands of flowers were about them, but they seemed to be asleep, and seemed not to be noticing their surroundings. By the aid of the Guidebook’s Spirit we were able to make out the following words, which seemed to be hanging over the presence of each sleeper, and in which we could almost imagine the sleeper himself was interested: “I shall be satisfied when I awake with Thy likeness.”

The Signs of the Times, December 11, 1893.

Question & Answer – After He arose, why did Jesus ascend to heaven before appearing to His disciples?

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Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God.” John 20:17.

Few people understand or notice the significance of what Jesus did.

“Jesus refused to receive the homage of His people until He had the assurance that His sacrifice was accepted by the Father. He ascended to the heavenly courts, and from God Himself heard the assurance that His atonement for the sins of men had been ample, that through His blood all might gain eternal life. The Father ratified the covenant made with Christ, that He would receive repentant and obedient men, and would love them even as He loves His Son. Christ was to complete His work, and fulfill His pledge to ‘make a man more precious than fine gold; even a man than the golden wedge of Ophir’ (Isaiah 13:12). All power in heaven and on earth was given to the Prince of Life, and He returned to His followers in a world of sin, that He might impart to them of His power and glory.

“While the Saviour was in God’s presence, receiving gifts for His church, the disciples thought upon His empty tomb, and mourned and wept. The day that was a day of rejoicing to all heaven was to the disciples a day of uncertainty, confusion, and perplexity.” The Desire of Ages, 790.

That covenant, the plan of salvation that was made between the Father and the Son, was now ratified.

“The plan of salvation had been laid before the creation of the earth; for Christ is ‘the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world’ (Revelation 13:8); yet it was a struggle, even with the King of the universe, to yield up His Son to die for the guilty race. But ‘God so loved the world, that He gave His only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life’ (John 3:16).” Patriarchs and Prophets, 63.

God the Father and the Son had previously made a covenant, the plan of salvation. After Jesus rose from the tomb the first thing He wanted to do was to go to His Father for His approval. He then revisited His disciples, bringing gifts to empower them for their mission.

Going Home

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“With the great truth we have been privileged to receive, we should, and under the Holy Spirit’s power we could, become living channels of light. We could then approach the mercy-seat; and seeing the bow of promise, kneel with contrite hearts, and seek the kingdom of heaven with a spiritual violence that would bring its own reward. We would take it by force, as did Jacob.” Review and Herald, February 14, 1899. Are you taking the kingdom of heaven by force? It is the taste of heaven here on this earth, for God is in the hearts of those who, with sufficient spiritual violence, take the kingdom by force. As Jacob was on his way back to his home land, he heard the news that Esau was coming to meet him with 400 armed men. He was virtually defenseless against such a force. He divided his family and flocks into two groups so that if one was destroyed, the other might survive. He then turned aside and went over the brook to wrestle alone in prayer with God. Ellen White tells us that we need to have this experience of wrestling with God.

Comparing the experience of Jacob to ours, we are told, “The season of distress and anguish before us will require a faith that can endure weariness, delay, and hunger—a faith that will not faint though severely tried. The period of probation is granted to all to prepare for that time.” The Great Controversy, 621. We are looking at a mature faith that we must have to endure this time. “Jacob prevailed because he was persevering and determined. His victory is an evidence of the power of importunate prayer. All who will lay hold of God’s promises, as he did, and be as earnest and persevering as he was, will succeed as he succeeded.” Ibid.

As Jacob was wrestling in prayer, a hand was suddenly laid on his shoulder—a strong hand. In the darkness he did not know who it was. He feared it might be a robber, or perhaps a member of Esau’s band. He wrestled for hours as the night dragged on. Usually the human body is exhausted in a matter of a very short time when it is putting out its full energy, wrestling for life; but Jacob was a very powerful man. As the light began to dawn in the east, he was aware of the divine character of his assailant. He then clung to Christ and said, “I will not let Thee go, except Thou bless me!” Genesis 32:26. This was not a presumptuous statement but one of supplication.

What is your prayer life like? Do you wrestle with God until you have the desired blessing? “Those who are unwilling to deny self, to agonize before God, to pray long and earnestly for His blessing, will not obtain it.” The Great Controversy, 621.

If we want the blessing of God and are willing to deny self, to agonize before God and to pray long and earnestly, then, as did Jacob, we can receive it. That blessing will sharpen our spiritual perception, allowing God to show us the things that we need to know; not only of the things taking place around us, but what is taking place inside us. We can go from faith to faith, from grace to grace, reaching new spiritual heights in Christ.

There is something that happens in the process of communing with God, something that takes place at no other time. We are changed in a way that we cannot fully understand. The divine superscription plays upon our hearts, and we come from that time refreshed. Rising above the petty problems that we confront in our daily lives—the harassments of Satan—we become a prince of God.

In the hour in which we live with the crisis that is coming, unimaginable in its ferocity, we need an inner experience that is deeper, broader, and higher than that experience that we are going to have to face.

“Wrestling with God—how few know what it is! How few have ever had their souls drawn out after God with intensity of desire until every power is on the stretch.” Ibid. That is the way it is when we wrestle, is it not? Every power is put on the stretch.

We will either receive the image of God or the image of the beast. When we begin the day with a mountaintop experience with God, having wrestled with Him, not letting Him go until we have the blessing, then we make progress in the divine science of the gospel of Jesus Christ. “When waves of despair which no language can express sweep over the suppliant, how few cling with unyielding faith to the promises of God. Those who exercise but little faith now, are in the greatest danger of falling under the power of satanic delusions and the decree to compel the conscience.” Ibid., 621, 622.

It is in the exercise of faith, this wrestling with God, this experience of saying to God, “I will not let You go until You bless me,” that God reveals to us His character which is at the foundation of Christianity. It is through the revelation of the Holy Spirit to our heart that we learn what the image of God is really like. Then that gives us a richness of faith and a spiritual perception and power to cope with satanic spirits.

For forty years Moses was in the wilderness guiding his flock, basically alone with God. When God finally came and spoke to him, he knew whom it was that was speaking to him. This is going to be, increasingly, the challenge for God’s people: to properly discern the spirits—to discern when it is the Spirit of God speaking as opposed to another spirit. That perception can only be achieved by a deep, living experience with God through His Word—an experience of wrestling and communing with Him.

“When this experience is ours, we shall be lifted out of our poor, cheap selves, that we have cherished so tenderly. We shall empty our hearts of the corroding power of selfishness, and shall be filled with praise and gratitude to God. We shall magnify the Lord, the God of all grace, who has magnified Christ. And He will reveal His power through us, making us as sharp sickles in the harvest field.” Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, vol. 5, 1089.

I am reminded of the man in John Bunyan’s allegory, Pilgrim’s Progress, who had to enter through a gate that was barricaded, by men with swords. A sword was placed in his hand, and with spiritual violence he had to charge at those men, successfully wielding the sword and gaining the gate, through which he was then able to access further heights in his Christian life.

“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, for Thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:35–39.

If you know what it means to wrestle with Christ and to not let Him go until you have His blessing, you have a treasure that is beyond anything in this world. You have a treasure that is eternal. There is nothing that can separate you from the love of God, which is Christ Jesus our Lord, as long as you maintain that relationship of faith and meet the conditions of faith. Heaven must begin here.

There is a yearning in the human heart for home that God has placed there. In Christ the heart finds its home. The hearts of all of those who are part of that true home have found their hearts anchored in the great heart of God—a heart that is so big and so deep that it is measureless.

There is not only love in a true home, but there is rest. It is a place where there is trust and peace, where the heart has rest. Jesus said, “Come unto Me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 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.” Matthew 11:28, 29. The world is restless; it can find no peace. It cannot even begin to understand what it is really longing for in its heart. But Jesus says, “Come unto Me . . . and I will give you rest.” So that home is a place where there is rest, where you can be yourself and people are not looking at you with a jaundiced eye, but they understand you.

You know, it is amazing to me as the representatives of the various ministries work together how the Lord brings us into a oneness. Christ says, “That they may be one just as We are one: I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me. Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am [there is that home], that they may behold My glory which you have given Me, for You loved Me before the foundation of the world. O righteous Father! The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me. And I have declared unto them Your name, and will declare it, and that the love with which You loved Me may be in them and I in them.” John 17:22–26. So here on earth we have a type of the heavenly home where there is love. There is rest, and the Prince of Peace offers peace that the world cannot give or take away.

There is also security, a sense of security and trust. “He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in Him will I trust.” Psalm 91:1, 2. The secret place of union with God—the secret place of communion. I love how it says it in the Hebrew: “He that dwelleth in the secret of God.” And I tell you; the secret of God is a very fascinating secret. It is there that He speaks His mysteries to us personally.

We each need an individual faith in these last days. We may be separated from friends and loved ones. We need an individual faith so that when everything else is stripped away, we have the most valuable thing that there is in the universe, that deep, living, and abiding experience with God.

Home is a place where there is shelter. During the great time of trouble, the faithful will be repeating Psalms 46 and 91. They will become living truth to them.

John the Baptist saw the necessity of dwelling in the secret of God, and from the time that he was a young man, he made the choice to go out into the wilderness and commune with God. There he read from the prophecies of Isaiah until his very soul was filled with the heavenly vision. Because he had bowed low before the King of kings, he was able to stand erect before earthly monarchs. He had things in their proper perspective. Is not that the perspective we need? But the fearful and unbelieving will not be in the kingdom. (See Revelation 21:8.) Those who have learned to wrestle with God, who have learned the reality of His power, who have learned to fear Him, and who have bowed low in His presence, are then prepared to stand erect before earthly kings and give an account of their faith.

The hour is coming when the attention of all Christendom will be drawn to God’s faithful ones. It is very clear from the Spirit of Prophecy that the final issue, which will be the great focus of attention, is the issue of the Sabbath. This issue will be brought to their attention by the defense of the faithful, made in courts of law.

“There is treasure to be desired, and oil in the dwelling of the wise, but a foolish man spendeth it up.” Proverbs 21:20. In the spiritual sense, in the kingdom of God, the child of God has the richest treasure—a treasure far beyond gold and silver, which no earthly panics can affect. A treasure that is beyond the reach of thieves and robbers. So in the true home, there are riches. In the heavenly home there are mansions prepared, but the greatest riches of all are the riches of Christ—to learn of Him throughout the ceaseless ages of eternity. To be able to personally go up to Christ, face to face, and speak to Him about the plan of salvation; about the cross of Calvary; about the science of salvation; about the mystery of redeeming love. There is treasure in the true home.

“For the joy of the Lord is your strength.” Nehmiah 8:10. There is also joy in a true home. There is joy in the heavenly home, and there is joy in the spiritual home of the kingdom of God.

In the home there is shelter from the storm. “He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the protection [or the shelter] of the most High.”

And there is order in the home. “Here are they that keep the Commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.” Revelation 14:12.

There is also freedom in the true home. “If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.” John 8:36. “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” John 8:32.

There is fraternity, or fatherhood of God in the true home of the faithful. Through all of these features of the home, God speaks to our hearts and says, “I want you, and you, and you in My heavenly home. I want you in the earth made new. I have a title for you, to Abraham’s farm.”

It rests with us to decide whether he [Satan] shall control our hearts and minds, or whether we shall have a place in the new earth, a title to Abraham’s farm.” Messages to Young People, 105.

What a wondrous expression from the Spirit of Prophecy. We have a title to Abraham’s farm. You may have the title deed taken away from your home here; but do not worry; you are only a pilgrim here. If you are justified by faith in Christ’s righteousness, you have a title—a deed—to Abraham’s farm. You have a spot waiting for you in the earth made new, which is more beautiful than is Eden. A title has been given to you by virtue of justification by faith in Christ. I want to have an experience of being on Abraham’s farm in the earth made new.

We need to cherish the longings of our heart for home. Home is found in the great heart of God. The dimensions of His wonderful character are all features of what it means to be dwelling at a place called home, and those characteristics will be disclosed every more fully as throughout the ceaseless ages of eternity we learn what it really means to be home. To be home with God forever and ever and ever and ever.

Let us be there.

The New Testament Church

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“He [Jesus], who was the foundation of the ritual and economy of Israel would be looked upon as its enemy and destroyer.” Desire of Ages, 111. The reason for this was that those who were in charge of the system viewed themselves as being the church and they realized that if Jesus were to be accepted, many of them would lose their positions.

Today there is similar problem in the professed church of God there are some inspired counsels we are willing to deal with but others that we are not. If many of the counsels of Ellen White were really advocated, they would be considered to be dangerous to the church, possibly even capable of destroying it. I do not believe, however, we will ever receive God’s blessing until we feed upon every word.

Principles of church organization affect every aspect of the church, from the youngest member on up to the General Conference. In the Bible and the Spirit of Prophecy, there is a great deal of information dealing with church organization that is written not only to those in leadership positions but to laymen as well.

Throughout history, whenever doctrine becomes corrupted, organization also becomes corrupt. In fact, in Revelation, God is as concerned about false organization as He is about false doctrine. In the writings of Ellen White there is a great deal written about doctrine, but I also find hundreds of pages written about church organization which we are afraid to touch because if we even read the quotation, we will be accused of criticism. It is time, however, that we have the courage of John the Baptist and, with the spirit of love, humbly look at the things God has given to us, praying that He will help us to implement these things so He can pour out His spirit and finish the work he is seeking to do.

First Corinthians 1:2 tells us how the New Testament church is organized. “To the church of God which is at Corinth, to those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints.’ The church at Corinth, identified by Paul, is not addressed as the church which is registered. It could be registered, but that is not the point. Nothing is said regarding their organization or where they meet. They may meet in some building and they are organized, but that is not the point. The church here in Corinth is those people in Corinth who are sanctified and called to be the saints of God. Now the church was to be organized, but the organization was not the church. The people were the church. These people could work in harmony, because this is possible when God is in your heart. So they would meet and work together, send out missionaries and take up offerings, and do all those things which are necessary for God’s work to progress. But the church itself was the people. This is what the church has always been.

In a special sense, the church is those people who are registered in the books of heaven. “But you have come to the Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the Firstborn who are registered in heaven” Hebrews 12:22,23. The church, the true church of God, is composed of those people who are registered in the Book of Life in heaven.

Now this presents a very interesting situation. Who decides who is going to be a church member? Is it the pope who has the keys? If it is not the pope, is it the church board? Can they decide? What about the church body? Can we decide who is saved and who is not, whose name is written in heaven and whose is not?

“Well, don’t we have anything to do?” Oh, yes, we have something to do. We are called to recognize those whom God has registered in the books in heaven; and those whom he has registered there, we are to register here. He does not, however, follow our suit; we are to follow His, and there is a difference.

Let us suppose that God takes someone’s name off of the books in heaven and they are disfellowshipped. Are they still church members? No. But suppose their names remain in the books on earth. This is an interesting dilemma. The church is purified when the books on earth match the books in heaven. You see, God has given mankind no authority to decide who can be a member and who cannot be a member, but simply to recognize those whom he has accepted or rejected.

God has local congregations here on earth and we have organizations here to help organize the work, but the headquarters of your local church is in heaven, where only the sanctified are registered, not in some office in your state or some office in Washington, D.C. Some people find this rather disconcerting, believing such a policy could lead to all kinds of trouble.

Just suppose that a coup took place in some local church or conference through politicking and some people who were not inspired by the Lord or filled with the Holy Spirit took over through manipulation and because of their prejudices certain people were unjustly disfellowshipped. Would those who were disfellowshipped cease to be church members? Certainly not. Suppose, on the other hand, that people were allowed to come into the church who were never converted. Because their names were in the books on earth, would they, therefore, be church members? Not in any way, shape or form. God has never left His church to be manipulated and tampered with by the political whims of mankind. There is coming a time when He is going to turn and overturn the professed church that is called by His name. God’s true church remains the same as it has always been—those people who are registered in the books of heaven.

“God has a church. It is not the great cathedral, neither is it the national establishment, neither is it the various denominations; it is the people who love God and keep His commandments. ‘Where two or three are gathered together in My name, there am I in the midst of them’ (Matthew 18:20). Where Christ is, even among the humble few, this is Christ’s church.” Upward Look, 315

When Paul was ordained, he was ordained to baptize and establish churches—the two together. According to inspiration, the same ordination that gives people the right to baptize gives them the right to establish churches. More and more, however, there are increasing restrictions controlling the starting of new churches.

I have been doing some studying on the history of Kansas. In 1903, Kansas had one hundred churches. The state has grown by almost a million people in the last fifty years, and during that period of time, we have gone from one hundred churches down to fifty-four.

Not only has God alone reserved the right to start and to recognize a church, but if you and I decide to go out and start a church apart from His will, no matter what conference committee may approve it, it will never be a church. “For the presence of the High and Holy One who inhabiteth eternity can alone constitute a church.” Ibid. [All emphasis supplied] If God’s presence is not the center of His church, it is not recognized by Him as His church whether or not it is recognized by a conference of the Seventh-day Adventist Church.

In New Testament times, the church was those who were called and sanctified. Wherever Paul went and converted a few people, he organized them into a church, right there and then, without seeking any other permission. It was not up to the church in Jerusalem to give permission or to decide if they were a church, but to recognize the fact that they were. Now, of course, if a church apostatized or if a local member apostatized, it was also up to the church in Jerusalem to decide that, as these people are no longer keeping the commandments of God, they are no longer recognized by us as being one of God’s churches.

For us individually to receive the Holy Spirit, we must study the Bible, pray, overcome sin and witness. For the church body to receive the Holy spirit, they must, as a body, also have these four things present. Not only is it necessary for us as individuals to be winning others to Christ, but God’s design for his church is that every church should start new churches.

One of the things that must take place before God can pour out His blessing upon the church is not only revival of primitive doctrine, but a revival of primitive organization. The New Testament churches had the freedom to go out and start new churches; but they were not just started and left to flounder by themselves, they were left with local organization. “And when they had preached the gospel to the city and made many disciples, they returned to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch, strengthening the souls of the disciples, exhorting them to continue in the faith, and saying, ‘We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God’ So when they had appointed elders in every church, and prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord in whom they had believed.” Acts 14:21-23

Authority in the early church was to be earned because of a godly life, and knowledge of the Scriptures and the ability that God had given to one; but never was it to come just by virtue of office. Today our church is almost being destroyed in some parts of this world, because some have assumed the office of minister and decided that because they have that office they are the king of the local church. God never intended that office to be that of a king, but one of service.

From Miletus, he sent to Ephesus and called for the elders of the church.” Acts 20:17. What elders were these that He called? These were the elders who had been appointed. Notice, it is elders plural, not the elder. “Therefore take heed to yourselves [this is the instruction he is giving to these elders] and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood. For I know this, that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. Also from among yourselves men will rise up, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after themselves. Therefore watch, and remember that for three years I did not cease to warn everyone night and day with tears.” Acts 20:28-31

So he called the elders to guard the church from wolves. In a correlating passage to this in Testimonies, vol. 5, 77, Ellen White, writing of her own experience, says that she could scarcely keep from weeping when she saw the people who were taking charge of the church who were trained by Satan. Paul had the same concern, and the elders were called to protect the church from these wolves.

Now the question is, suppose that a wolf came from Jerusalem. Were the elders to protect the church from that wolf? “Oh, no,” Someone says, “not a local elder.” Turn with me to one of the most interesting passages in the New Testament in regard to this. “Now when Peter had come to Antioch, I withstood him to his face, because he was to be blamed; for before certain men came from James, he would eat with the Gentiles; but when they came, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing those who were of the circumcision. And the rest of the Jews also played the hypocrite with him, so that even Barnabas was carried away with their hypocrisy.” Galatians 2:11-13. Paul stood up and rebuked Peter, but Paul was not happy about this because he was not the one who should have had to do the rebuking.

God had established a local leadership to protect the church. “Not from Peter ,” someone might say, “he was from Jerusalem. He was one of the pillars; he knew Jesus personally. No, not from Peter. They were only Gentiles who had been newly converted to the faith. You do not expect them, these Gentile Galatians who had just come into the Christian church a few years ago, to stand up and rebuke Peter, who was from the Jerusalem church, who had been a Jew all his life, one of the pillars in the church, a follower of Jesus—not Peter! I mean, Paul was an apostle. He could do that.” But Paul was most unhappy that he had to do that. “O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you as crucified?” Galatians 3:1

“Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage” Galatians 5:1. Someone might say, “That scripture is dealing with circumcision and all those things.” Circumcision was involved, and eating with Gentiles was involved, but that was not the issue! The issue in Galatians was that Peter had caused them to transgress and they were to stand in their freedom, even if it was Peter from Jerusalem who should come down and preach false theology.

“But strange fire has been offered in the use of harsh words, in self-importance, in self-exaltation, in self-righteousness, in arbitrary authority, in domineering, in oppression, in restricting the liberty of God’s people, binding them about by your plans and rules, which God has not framed, neither have they come into his mind. All these things are strange fire, unacknowledged by God, and are a continual misrepresentation of His character.” Testimonies to Ministers, 358

The Lord established the church upon the Rock, Jesus Christ, and he is to be the head of the church. See Ephesians 1:22,23. The issue in the days of Martin Luther was who was in charge of the church, the Lord or the pope. That was the issue in Wesley’s day and it was the issue in 1888. I have been amazed at how little Ellen White deals with doctrine in relationship to 1888. The problem with Jones and Waggoner was the they did not go through the “proper channels.” They were not approved by the “proper people.”

The following statements are from a letter that Ellen White wrote to Elder Butler. “God designs that men shall use their minds and consciences for themselves. He never designed that one man should become the shadow of another, and utter only another’s sentiments. But this error has been coming in among us, that a very few are to be mind, conscience, and judgment for all God’s workers. The foundation of Christianity is ‘Christ our Righteousness.’” 1888 Materials, 112. Do you want to know what Christ our Righteousness means? She tells us what it means. “Men are individually responsible to God and must act as God acts upon them, not as another human mind acts upon their mind.” Ibid. God is to decide what is right, not some human committee. God makes the rules, not some human rule book. The Bible is our creed. We always used to say: “We do not have a creed book; the Bible is our creed.”

“For if this method of indirect influence is kept up, souls can not be impressed and directed by the great I AM. They will, on the other hand, have their experience blended with another, and will be kept under a moral restraint, which allows no freedom of action or of choice….If we would be wise, and use diligently, prayerfully, and thankfully the means whereby light and blessings are to come to His people, then no voice nor power upon earth would have authority over us to say, ‘This shall not be.’” Ibid., 112,113

In the book Testimonies to Ministers, Ellen White wrote a great deal of material to the leadership and ministry in general after 1888. Much of this book is dealing with this very principle of church authority. Among other similar statements, she said, “The high-handed power that has been developed, as though position has made men god’s, makes me afraid, and ought to cause fear. It is a curse wherever and by whomever it is exercised.” Testimonies to Ministers, 361. “The spirit of domination is extending to the presidents of the conferences. If a man is sanguine of his own powers and seeks to exercise dominion over his brethren, feeling that he is invested with authority to make his will the ruling power, the best and only safe course is to remove him.” Ibid., 363

In the chapter “Under Which Banner?” she says, “Humanity is hailed as God.” Ibid.,365. She is talking to us dear friends. She says, “God will not vindicate any device whereby man shall in the slightest degree rule or oppress his fellowmen.” Ibid., 366. A curse is pronounced upon all who do this. See Jeremiah 17:5

“State conferences may depend upon the General Conference for light and knowledge and wisdom; but is it safe for them to do this? Battle Creek is not to be the center of God’s work. God alone can fill this place. When our people in the different places have their special convocations, teach them, for Christ’s sake and for their own soul’s sake, not to make flesh their arm. There is no power in men to read the hearts of their fellow men. The Lord is the only One upon whom we can with safety depend, and He is accessible in every place and to every church in the Union. To place men where God should be placed does not honor or glorify God. Is the president of the General Conference to be the god of the people?” Ibid., 375. Following the counsel and teaching of these ideas does not make a person very popular, but we are told to do it.

Instead of teaching the truth God has commissioned to be taught, do you know what she says we have taught? “For many years an education has been given to the people which places God second, and man first. The people have been taught that everything must be brought before the council of a few men in Battle Creek.” Testimonies to Ministers, 325. I want you to notice that this is a serious matter because it is breaking the first commandment. God says, “you shall have no other gods before Me.” Exodus 20:3. “Let me entreat our state conferences and our churches to cease putting their dependence upon men and making flesh their arm.” Ibid., 380. Today we have gone far beyond where they were in 1888.

“In reference to our conference, it is repeated o’er and o’er and o’er again, that it is the voice of God, and therefore everything must be referred to the Conference and have the conference voice in regard to permission or restriction or what shall be and what shall not be done in the various fields….We have heard enough, abundance, about that ’everything must go around in the regular way.’…He [God] wants every living soul that has a knowledge of the truth to come to their senses.” Spalding-Magan Collection, 163. “The Lord wants His Spirit to come in, he wants the Holy Ghost king.” Ibid., 166. Today we have come to the point, in many places, that if you ever invite someone to come and speak in the pulpit, you have to get the permission of the local conference.

God is looking for every one of us, from the General Conference president down, to be broken on the Rock. When Jesus is the King, unity, peace and love pervade. This does not do away with organization. It is the only thing that creates a working organization. We still have offices, but when God’s plan is followed, no one is striving for office because everyone is striving to serve one another. See Matthew 20;25-28.

The message of Christ our Righteousness has to become practical. We need to exercise less and less control over one another and do more and more praying for one another. Let us not decide that God has given any one of us authority to tell everyone else how they are to serve God. God is calling for much more freedom in His church than what we have been willing to allow. There is a place for order, a place for leadership, but dear friend, God is calling for us to be broken on the Rock, to be filled with the humility and the love of Jesus. Then we will find that once again the Holy Spirit will be King.

The End

The Happiest Place on Earth

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God has told us that He created men and women for happiness, and yet the majority in our world today do not experience it.

Many people mistakenly think that happiness is dependent on some type of outward circumstance. In other words, the thought that if I had a better job, if I had a nicer spouse, if I had better health, if I lived in a better house, and another hundred “ifs,” then I would be happy. That is a delusion.

Unhappiness began in heaven—in a perfect society. Nobody was sick; there was not one who did not have enough of anything they wanted or needed. It was a perfect society. There was no defect in the society of heaven, and yet, in a perfect place, unhappiness developed, because a leading angel found himself dissatisfied. Why? He became dissatisfied for two of the very same reasons that people become dissatisfied today. First, because he could not be first and highest in command, so he became jealous of Jesus Christ, who was above him.

A couple of thousand years ago, one of the most famous men of antiquity, Julius Caesar, was leading a group of soldiers through a deep mountain valley. Julius Caesar was not only one of the most famous men of antiquity, he was also one of the most wicked. As they passed through the deep mountain valley they noticed on the top of the mountain a little village with smoke rising from the home hearths. Julius Caesar was reported to say to one of his aids walking with him, “I would rather be number one in that little village than to be number two in Rome.” This was the same problem that Lucifer had and it is all through the human race.

Lucifer wanted to be number one but God did not consent for him to be number one and he was dissatisfied. The Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, sometimes had council meetings together where the angels were not included. These were secret councils. The angels were not told what happened in these secret councils. Lucifer was jealous thinking that he should be included. Because he was not accorded supreme honor, he began to ask some questions in which he impugned the justice of God and talked to the angels about his dissatisfaction. Ellen White wrote, “He bent all his powers to allure the angels from their allegiance. The fact that he was an archangel, glorious and powerful, enabled him to exert a mighty influence. His complaints against God’s government, at first met with no favor; yet being urged again and again, they were finally accepted by those who had before been loyal and happy subjects of the King of Heaven. There was not the shadow of justification or excuse for disaffection; but envy and jealousy, once cherished, gained a power that paralyzed reason and destroyed honor and loyalty.” The Signs of the Times, September 14, 1882.

It is impossible to reason with a person once his reason has been paralyzed. That happens to human beings all the time. If you have that problem, if there are times in your life when you get so wrought up with depression or anger or any other emotion that your reason becomes paralyzed, you must overcome that by the grace of God, or you will not be in kingdom of heaven.

Lucifer told the angels that God had shown preference to Jesus Christ, to the neglect of himself. He then started telling some lies. Jesus called the devil the father of lies (John 8:14).

“Henceforth all the sweet liberty the angels had enjoyed was at an end.” The Spirit of Prophecy, vol. 1, 19. Eventually, the result was contention among the angels. Satan and his sympathizers were striving to reform the government of God because they were discontented and unhappy. Remember, this problem started in heaven, the place that we say we want to go. But here angels are discontent because they could not look into God’s unsearchable councils.

How arrogant for a created being to think that he would have a right to make demands on what his Creator should or should not do. This opened into a revolt and we see this same arrogance displayed by human beings today in all kinds of situations. The Bible says because of this, war broke out in heaven (Revelation 12:7–9).

The translation of the Hebrew word Mich-a-el, which we call in English Michael, is One who is like God. Michael [Jesus] and His angels fought and the dragon fought, and his angels. The war in heaven was angels against angels. Evil did not prevail. The dragon (Satan) and his angels were cast out to the earth. The very same technique that Lucifer used to deceive the angels, by which he eventually succeeded in persuading approximately one third of them to rebel against the government of God, he started using down here on this earth with our first mother, Eve.

He lied about God just as he had to the angels. He also lied about herself, telling her that she was immortal and that if she ate the fruit she would become like God. Only God has immortality.

Since the fall in Eden, the devil has continued to stir up dissatisfaction among the people of the world, even among God’s professed people. For example, when the children of Israel were delivered from the land of Egypt there were 600,000 men over 20 years of age, and of those 600,000 men only two of them entered the land of Canaan. That is an awful record, all because of dissatisfaction.

God had miraculously rescued them from slavery but they did not trust Him. The first time they didn’t have enough water they murmured against Moses saying, “Why have you brought us out of Egypt, to kill us …” (Exodus 17:3, literal translation). They continually complained. In Numbers 11:1 it says, “… when the people complained, it displeased the Lord … His anger was aroused … .”

Verse 4 says, “Now the mixed multitude who were among them yielded to intense craving; so the children of Israel also wept again and said, ‘Who will give us meat to eat?’ ” They craved their Egyptian diet, not satisfied with the manna that fell from heaven that sustained them in health for 40 years. Today, there are still people craving their Egyptian diet over the original diet that God gave mankind in the beginning.

Ellen White wrote in The Signs of the Times, March 7, 1906, “Do not look on the dark side. When the Israelites were content with the portion of manna that God gave, they found it sweet and full of nourishment. When they became dissatisfied, it was loathsome to them. Content is a blessing; discontent, a curse.”

Unfortunately, “Because of their dissatisfied, impatient, and rebellious spirit, they wandered for forty years in the wilderness.” Ibid., July 22, 1886.

“Whenever their appetite was restricted, the Israelites were dissatisfied, and murmured and complained against Moses and Aaron, and against God …” “Ellen G. White Comments,” The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, vol. 1, 1102. The Bible says that the Lord gave them angel’s food. So why were they not happy with it? “In Egypt their taste had become perverted. God designed to restore their appetite to a pure, healthy state, in order that they might enjoy the simple fruits that were given to Adam and Eve in Eden.” Ibid. If they had been willing to deny their appetite in obedience to God’s restrictions, there would have been no feeble one in all their tribes.

“God’s commands are never designed to make men unhappy.” The Signs of the Times, September 29, 1881. God never tells you to do something or not to do something for an arbitrary reason or to make you unhappy.

“They [God’s commandments] are the dictates of infinite wisdom, goodness, and love. While they secure the glory of God, they also promote the happiness of men. His restrictions are a safeguard against depravity of heart and corruption of life. The appetites and passions, indulged without restraint, enslave and degrade the higher and nobler powers.” Ibid.

We are living in a time when men want to please themselves without restrictions of any kind. However, any restriction that God gives is given for the happiness of mankind. This problem of dissatisfaction did not cease in the wilderness. Some hundreds of years later God’s people became dissatisfied with the guidance of the King of kings through the prophets. They told Samuel they wanted a human king. Now just think that through. They already had a King, the God of heaven, but they wanted to trade Him for a human king so they could be like everybody else. So God gave them what they wanted.

Human carnal nature can not help itself but be dissatisfied. Right after Jesus had fed the five thousand, the multitudes became dissatisfied with Him. “Their dissatisfied hearts queried why, if Jesus could perform so many wondrous works as they had witnessed, could He not give health, strength, and riches to all His people, free them from their oppressors, and exalt them to power and honor? The fact that He claimed to be the Sent of God, and yet refused to be Israel’s king, was a mystery which they could not fathom. His refusal was misinterpreted.” The Desire of Ages, 385. This mystery that they could not fathom caused many to leave Jesus and never come back. They became dissatisfied, one of the most successful tools of the devil.

“The world is full of dissatisfied spirits who overlook the happiness and blessings within their reach, and are continually seeking for happiness and satisfaction that they do not realize.” Testimonies, vol. 2, 640.

The reason for this is the same reason the devil had in the beginning. He wanted control as do people today. Control springs from selfishness. It is rampant in people who have not died to self, have too much idle time, and who have never been born again in the Spirit of God.

“It is in a life of service only that true happiness is found. He who lives a useless, selfish life is miserable. He is dissatisfied with himself and with every one else.” The Review and Herald, May 2, 1907.

If we do not overcome the temptation to dissatisfaction, we will lose heaven. It is a habit that once it gains a hold in your mind will eventually lead to dissatisfaction with everything. If you were taken to heaven, you would eventually be dissatisfied with the Lord Himself.

The story of Abraham in Genesis 12 reveals the secret of overcoming the temptation to dissatisfaction. Abraham was seventy-five years old at the time, “Now the LORD had said to Abram: ‘Get out of your country, from your family and from your father’s house, to a land that I will show you. I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name great; and you shall be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed’ ” (verses 1–3).

God made some wonderful promises to Abraham. First, He promises He would bless him and make his name great. Today we see that has happened. Christian, Jewish and Muslim nations all know that Abraham is great and call him their father.

Abraham knew how the world would be blessed through him. Though the nations around him worshiped idols Abraham worshiped the true God. The Lord had appeared to him and explained the plan of salvation. He knew that someday the Messiah would come through one of his descendants and as a result, salvation would be available to everybody in the world. That thrilled him more than anything else. God had promised Abraham that He would bless him and make of him a great nation. But Abraham questioned how could this be, as he had no children.

“And behold, the word of the Lord came to him, saying, ‘This one [Eliezer of Damascus, Abraham’s servant] shall not be your heir, but one who will come from your own body shall be your heir.’ Then He brought him outside and said, ‘Look now toward heaven, and count the stars if you are able to number them.’ And He said to him, ‘So shall your descendants be’ ” (Genesis 15:4, 5).

God promised Abraham that his descendants would be as numerous as the stars of heaven. The Messiah would come from one of his descendants. His name would be great and he would be made into a great nation. But that was not all. Along with these promises would be a test.

Hebrews 11:8, 9, says, “By faith Abraham when he was called to go out into a place which he would receive as an inheritance, obeyed. And he went out, not knowing where he was going” (literal translation).

Abraham packed up and left his home, Ur of the Chaldees, without knowing where he would be led. Ur of the Chaldees is down by the Persian Gulf in the southern part of what is now called Iraq. Nimrod had founded a whole group of cities there in Mesopotamia, which means the land between the rivers.

It was a very fertile tropical country and in ancient times a large part of the world population lived there. They were a highly civilized group of people. Modern archeology has found out some very interesting things about Ur of the Chaldees. The streets were paved. The streets in the city had lights at night. Houses were built with indoor plumbing with running water. The people did not live in tents but in houses, permanent dwellings that were built out of brick or masonry.

God called Abraham from a comfortable living from one of the most wealthy, civilized cities in the world to an unknown place and by faith he obeyed. God said, I want you to leave your country, and leave all your relatives.

Ellen White says it was no light test that was brought upon Abraham, no small sacrifice that was required of him. There were strong ties to bind him to his country, his kindred, and his home. And what was worse, Abraham was not able to explain why he was doing this or where he was going so that his friends could understand. This must have appeared to his friends and family that he was crazy.

Abraham did not question God’s instructions. When God told Abraham something, he obeyed and he did not need to ask any questions. The Bible describes Abraham as the father of the faithful. The apostle Paul wrote, “Therefore know that only those who are of faith are sons of Abraham. And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise” (Galatians 3:7, 29).

So, Abraham left his home and went to Haran. Eventually he landed in southern Palestine in a place that was later called Shechem.

Abraham no longer had a masonry house. There were no paved streets or city lights at night. He lived in a tent and was not dissatisfied because, “God has spoken, and His servant must obey; the happiest place on earth for him was the place where God would have him to be.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 126.

If you are a child of Abraham and you know that you are where God wants you to be, that is all you need to know and you will be satisfied. Unfortunately, dissatisfaction is still a problem for God’s children all over the world today. Have you ever met somebody who is dissatisfied with where they are? In fact, often people come to work at places like Steps to Life and they are so dissatisfied in Wichita, Kansas, that they want us to move the ministry somewhere else. That has happened many times. We are asked why we do not move this ministry to Hawaii or some other place they would desire to be. Why not move the ministry to Colorado where there are some mountains to look at?

If you are a Christian, the question is the same as was the question for Abraham: Where does God want me to be? That’s it. If I know that, then that is all I need to know. It is not important if there are mountains, or how the economy is, or the condition of the soil, or any number of other things. All I need to know is, Is this where God wants me to be? That was all Abraham needed to know.

The happiest place on earth is where God wants you to be. The happiest place on earth for Abraham was where God wanted him to be, even without the temporal comforts of the city he had left.

Then came more trials. It had stopped raining and the land was in a famine. Abraham had a lot of livestock that he had the potential of losing, as well as not being able to get enough food for his family. They were threatened with starvation. What would he do now?

Often when trials come, people start to question if that is really where the Lord wants them to be. But not Abraham; he knew the Lord had led him there so he did not go back to where he had come from. To avoid starvation and losing everything he went as close as he could to the land of promise. He went down to the land of Egypt a while to sojourn there.

Abraham could not explain the leadings of providence and had not realized his expectations but he never questioned Him who knows all. Ellen White wrote, “God leads His children by a way that they know not, but He does not forget or cast off those who put their trust in Him.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 129.

God has always sent His children trials of various kinds to prepare them for heaven and Abraham had to go through some very severe trials. In Canaan he found that the whole land, populated with Canaanites, not only worshiped idols, but on the mountains they offered human sacrifices. It was a terrible place to be, but Abraham stayed, knowing that the Lord had led him there. For him it was where God had put him. There would be a purpose because the happiest place on earth for him was where God would have him to be.

My friend, if you surrender your life to God, it will cut short the thousands of problems the people of this world have, because you need to ask far fewer questions. All you need to ask is, What do You want me do and where do you want me to live?

It worked for Abraham; he was at the place where God would have him be. He would then rest in the Lord and wait to see the bright side of what God was going to do in his life. Do you see how simple it is? You just need divine guidance in your life and you don’t need to get in all the quandary the people in this world have.

Thank God for the example of Abraham in Scripture and for the faith that he manifested. Pray that God will impart to us that same faith that Abraham had and that we may learn the lesson of satisfaction in this life and overcome the temptation to be dissatisfied. Remember, the happiest place on earth is where God wants you to be.

(Unless appearing in quoted references or otherwise identified, Bible texts are from the New King James Version.)

Pastor John J. Grosboll is Director of Steps to Life and pastors the Prairie Meadows Church in Wichita, Kansas. He may be contacted by email at: historic@stepstolife.org, or by telephone at: 316-788-5559.

 

 

Bible Study Guides – The Millennium and the New Earth

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December 11, 2016 – December 17, 2016

Key Text

“Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth” (Matthew 5:5).

Study Help: Early Writings, 17–20, 288–295.

Introduction

“God’s entire universe was clean, and the great controversy was forever ended. Wherever we looked, everything upon which the eye rested was beautiful and holy. … The beautiful new earth, with all its glory, was the eternal inheritance of the saints.” Early Writings, 295.

Sunday

1 ENTERING THE KINGDOM OF GLORY

  • Where will the faithful be after Christ’s second coming? I Thessalonians 4:15–17.

Note: “We all entered the cloud together, and were seven days ascending to the sea of glass, when Jesus brought the crowns, and with His own right hand placed them on our heads. He gave us harps of gold and palms of victory. … All were perfectly satisfied with their crowns. And they were all clothed with a glorious white mantle from their shoulders to their feet.” Early Writings, 16, 17.

  • What gives the saints the right to enter the New Jerusalem? Psalm 87:3–6; Galatians 4:26; Revelation 22:14; Isaiah 26:1, 2.

Note: “Angels were all about us as we marched over the sea of glass to the gate of the city. Jesus raised His mighty, glorious arm, laid hold of the pearly gate, swung it back on its glittering hinges, and said to us, ‘You have washed your robes in My blood, stood stiffly for My truth, enter in.’ We all marched in and felt that we had a perfect right in the city.” Early Writings, 17.

Monday

2 THE MILLENNIUM

  • How long will the saints spend in heaven? Revelation 20:4. What will we be doing during this time? I Corinthians 6:2; Matthew 19:28.

Note: “During the thousand years between the first and the second resurrection the judgment of the wicked takes place. … In union with Christ they [the righteous] judge the wicked, comparing their acts with the statute book, the Bible, and deciding every case according to the deeds done in the body. Then the portion which the wicked must suffer is meted out, according to their works; and it is recorded against their names in the book of death.” The Great Controversy, 660, 661.

  • Where will Satan be during the millennium? Revelation 20:1–3. In what state will the earth be during this time? Jeremiah 4:23–27.

Note: “Here [on this earth] is to be the home of Satan with his evil angels for a thousand years. Limited to the earth, he will not have access to other worlds to tempt and annoy those who have never fallen. It is in this sense that he is bound: there are none remaining, upon whom he can exercise his power. He is wholly cut off from the work of deception and ruin which for so many centuries has been his sole delight. …

“For six thousand years, Satan’s work of rebellion has ‘made the earth to tremble’ (Psalm 60:2). He has ‘made the world as a wilderness, and destroyed the cities thereof.’ And he ‘opened not the house of his prisoners’ (Isaiah 14:17). For six thousand years his prison house has received God’s people, and he would have held them captive forever; but Christ has broken his bonds and set the prisoners free.

“Even the wicked are now placed beyond the power of Satan, and alone with his evil angels he remains to realize the effect of the curse which sin has brought. …

“For a thousand years, Satan will wander to and fro in the desolate earth to behold the results of his rebellion against the law of God. During this time his sufferings are intense. Since his fall his life of unceasing activity has banished reflection; but he is now deprived of his power and left to contemplate the part which he has acted since first he rebelled against the government of heaven, and to look forward with trembling and terror to the dreadful future when he must suffer for all the evil that he has done and be punished for the sins that he has caused to be committed.” The Great Controversy, 659, 660.

Tuesday

3 MOVING THE HEADQUARTERS

  • What will take place at the conclusion of the judgment in heaven? Revelation 21:2, 3.

Note: “With Jesus at our head we all descended from the city down to this earth, on a great and mighty mountain, which could not bear Jesus up, and it parted asunder, and there was a mighty plain. Then we looked up and saw the great city, with twelve foundations, and twelve gates, three on each side, and an angel at each gate. We all cried out, ‘The city, the great city, it’s coming, it’s coming down from God out of heaven,’ and it came and settled on the place where we stood.” Early Writings, 17, 18.

  • Where will the New Jerusalem be located? Zechariah 14:4.

Note: “As the place of His ascension, Jesus chose the spot so often hallowed by His presence while He dwelt among men. Not Mount Zion, the place of David’s city, not Mount Moriah, the temple site, was to be thus honored. There Christ had been mocked and rejected. There the waves of mercy, still returning in a stronger tide of love, had been beaten back by hearts as hard as rock. Thence Jesus, weary and heart-burdened, had gone forth to find rest in the Mount of Olives. The holy Shekinah, in departing from the first temple, had stood upon the eastern mountain, as if loath to forsake the chosen city; so Christ stood upon Olivet, with yearning heart overlooking Jerusalem. The groves and glens of the mountain had been consecrated by His prayers and tears. Its steeps had echoed the triumphant shouts of the multitude that proclaimed Him king. On its sloping descent He had found a home with Lazarus at Bethany. In the garden of Gethsemane at its foot He had prayed and agonized alone. From this mountain He was to ascend to heaven. Upon its summit His feet will rest when He shall come again. Not as a man of sorrows, but as a glorious and triumphant king He will stand upon Olivet, while Hebrew hallelujahs mingle with Gentile hosannas, and the voices of the redeemed as a mighty host shall swell the acclamation, Crown Him Lord of all!” The Desire of Ages, 829, 830.

Wednesday

4 A NEW EARTH

  • When the wicked are no more, what will happen to the earth? Revelation 21:1; Psalm 102:25, 26.
  • What will the redeemed do on the new earth? Isaiah 32:18; 65:21, 22.

Note: “Then we began to look at the glorious things outside of the city. There I saw most glorious houses, that had the appearance of silver, supported by four pillars set with pearls most glorious to behold. These were to be inhabited by the saints. In each was a golden shelf. I saw many of the saints go into the houses, take off their glittering crowns and lay them on the shelf, then go out into the field by the houses to do something with the earth; not as we have to do with the earth here; no, no. A glorious light shone all about their heads, and they were continually shouting and offering praises to God.” Early Writings, 18.

“In the earth made new, the redeemed will engage in the occupations and pleasures that brought happiness to Adam and Eve in the beginning. The Eden life will be lived, the life in garden and field.” Prophets and Kings, 730, 731.

  • How does the Bible describe the environment of the new earth? Isaiah 11:6–9; 65:25.

Note: “I saw another field full of all kinds of flowers, and as I plucked them, I cried out, ‘They will never fade.’ Next I saw a field of tall grass, most glorious to behold; it was living green and had a reflection of silver and gold, as it waved proudly to the glory of King Jesus. Then we entered a field full of all kinds of beasts—the lion, the lamb, the leopard, and the wolf, all together in perfect union. We passed through the midst of them, and they followed on peaceably after. Then we entered a wood, not like the dark woods we have here; no, no; but light, and all over glorious; the branches of the trees moved to and fro, and we all cried out, ‘We will dwell safely in the wilderness and sleep in the woods.’ ” Early Writings, 18.

“Their [children’s] minds should be filled with stories of the life of the Lord, and their imaginations encouraged in picturing the glories of the world to come.” Child Guidance, 488.

Thursday

5 INHERITING THE EARTH

  • What is prophesied of those who, though outcasts from the present world, will inherit the next? Psalm 37:8–11.

Note: “The meek ‘shall inherit the earth’ (Matthew 5:5). It was through the desire for self-exaltation that sin entered into the world, and our first parents lost the dominion over this fair earth, their kingdom. It is through self-abnegation that Christ redeems what was lost. And He says we are to overcome as He did (Revelation 3:21). Through humility and self-surrender we may become heirs with Him. …

“The earth promised to the meek will not be like this, darkened with the shadow of death and the curse. …

“There is no disappointment, no sorrow, no sin, no one who shall say, I am sick; there are no burial trains, no mourning, no death, no partings, no broken hearts; but Jesus is there, peace is there.” Thoughts from the Mount of Blessing, 17.

  • What will be the character of those who dwell in the new earth? 2 Peter 3:13.

Note: “The feet of the wicked will never desecrate the earth made new. Fire will come down from God out of heaven and devour them—burn them up root and branch. Satan is the root, and his children are the branches.” Early Writings, 52.

“The same fire from God that consumed the wicked purified the whole earth. The broken, ragged mountains melted with fervent heat, the atmosphere also, and all the stubble was consumed. Then our inheritance opened before us, glorious and beautiful, and we inherited the whole earth made new.” Ibid., 54.

Friday

PERSONAL REVIEW QUESTIONS

1 On what condition is a person counted as a citizen of the New Jerusalem?

2 What happens during the Millennium in heaven and on earth?

3 Why will God choose the earth for the new location of His headquarters?

4 Describe the earth made new.

5 What kinds of people will inherit the new earth?

Copyright © 2015 Reformation Herald Publishing Association, 5240 Hollins Road, Roanoke, Virginia. Reprinted by permission.

Keys to the Storehouse – Just a Little

by

When I was in grade school, my mother worked and I was home alone after school. During those times I would search the house just to see what Mom and Dad had. Wow, did I find something awesome! I found my mother’s gallon dime jar in her closet. I had never seen so many dimes in one place. I was just awed. I decided that Mom would not miss a few dimes and so I decided to use a few of them. Every day I would take just a few dimes and I would stop at the little market while walking home from school and buy some Fritos and pop! I thought I was in “dime heaven.” What I did not realize was that Mom’s jar was slowly going down and that judgment was about to come—and it did! Oh I felt so bad, but the damage was done. Of course, Mom forgave me, but it was a lesson that I never forgot.

I tell this story because that is how it is when we do things that we know to be wrong but do them anyway because nobody sees us. But Somebody is watching and is saddened by our actions and is writing in the books of heaven all about it. There is one that is very happy about our actions because he, Satan, put the thought into our minds. We simply followed his bidding and because of that we will end up with him, out of heaven, unless we repent and turn from wrong.

It is good to remain loyal to God. Why? Because our “… capacity to know, to enjoy, and to love would continually increase.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 51.

God has warned us as He warned Adam and Eve of the danger that threatens us! Satan does not want you to be obedient and walk with God. His disobedience cost him the joy of heaven and he wants you to follow him.

“To man, the crowning work of creation, God has given power to understand His requirements, to comprehend the justice and beneficence of His law, and its sacred claims upon him; and of man unswerving obedience is required.

“Like the angels, the dwellers in Eden had been placed upon probation; their happy estate could be retained only on condition of fidelity to the Creator’s law. They could obey and live, or disobey and perish.” Ibid., 52 53.

“But should they once yield to temptation, their nature would become so depraved that in themselves they would have no power and no disposition to resist Satan.” Ibid., 53.

When our hearts are devoid of the love of God and His ways, our enemy finds access and leads us to follow his evil ways causing hurt to ourselves and others.

Close those doors that give Satan access. Continually fill your mind with Scripture and Spirit of Prophecy which will put a block on the devil’s suggestions. Remember, “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things” (Philippians 4:8).

Heavenly Father: I am so sorry for following the devil’s impressions. Help me to think on heavenly things at all times, according to Philippians 4:8 so that the devil will not be able to lead me into things that will keep me out of my heavenly home which you have prepared for me. Please set my affections only on heavenly things and not on the things of this earth. Remind me always that even a little will hurt—eternally! Amen.