Martin Luther Archives - Steps to Life

Finishing the Reformation

February 3, 2020 by William Hughes

Have you ever considered how the Reformation would be finished? It would be finished by people who had the same experience as the man who got the ball rolling in the beginning.
I believe that the people who will finish the Reformation, and who will receive the Latter Rain, will embrace Christ, as did Martin Luther.

A Great Desire

This was the great desire, the great goal of the man who started the Protestant Reformation: “An earnest desire to be free from sin and to find peace with God led him [Martin Luther] at last to enter a cloister and devote himself to a monastic life.” The Great Controversy, 123. That should be the great desire of everyone who finishes it; they should cry out to God as did Jacob and say, I will not let You go unless You bless me.

Martin Luther had a great desire, and it was his only desire. “As his convictions of sin deepened, he sought by his own works to obtain pardon and peace. He led a most rigorous life, endeavoring by fasting, vigils, and scourgings to subdue the evils of his nature, from which the monastic life had brought no ease. He shrank from no sacrifice by which he might attain to that purity of heart which would enable him to stand approved before God.” Ibid.

Is that your heart longing, to have purity of heart, to have purity of mind, for that old man of sin to die so that Christ can be formed within? That was Martin Luther’s great desire. That was his great goal, the focal point of his life and his eventual ministry. He said, “‘I was indeed a pious monk,…and followed the rules of my order more strictly than I can express. If ever [a] monk could obtain heaven by his monkish works, I should certainly have been entitled to it.’” Ibid.

But he then goes on, “‘If it had continued much longer, I should have carried my mortifications even to death.’” Ibid. Ellen White says that from those painful supplications, from those agonizing efforts to save himself, Martin Luther physically never fully recovered. But, “When it appeared to Luther that all was lost, God raised up a friend and helper for him.” Ibid.

Listening to God

God will raise up a friend and a helper for you. God will provide a way of escape for whatever your situation may be. “The pious Staupitz opened the Word of God to Luther’s mind and bade him look away from himself, cease the contemplation of infinite punishment for the violation of God’s law, and look to Jesus, his sin-pardoning Saviour. ‘Instead of torturing yourself on account of your sins, throw yourself into the Redeemer’s arms. Trust in Him, in the righteousness of His life, in the atonement of His death.…Listen to the Son of God. He became man to give you the assurance of divine favor. Love Him who first loved you.’” Ibid., 123, 124.

“After many a struggle with long-cherished errors, he was enabled to grasp the truth, and peace came to his troubled soul.” Ibid., 124.

The great truth that Martin Luther found was justification by faith. Did he keep it buried in the monastery cell? No! Anyone who has had that truth burn in their hearts, wants to share it all around the world.

I think Pope John Paul believes that, too. We will look at a statement a little farther on that will prove that point.

Exposing the Errors

Martin Luther accepted the marvelous message that the just would live by faith, and he began preaching it in Wittenberg. After he had been preaching for a few years, a gentleman named Tetzel came to Germany to raise money to erect the faith healers’ church at Rome. He was an agent of the Catholic Church. Tetzel started selling indulgences. He repeated the most glaring falsehoods and related marvelous tales to deceive an ignorant, credulous, and superstitious people.

It was then that phase two of Martin Luther’s work came into being. He not only had been called to preach justification by faith, but he was now called upon to expose the errors of the mother church. So he nailed the 95 theses on the church door at Wittenberg on the day before the feast of All Saints day, and the Reformation began. (See Ibid., 127–129.)

Then came the Diet of Worms. Charles V convened it, but he certainly was encouraged by his friends in Rome. Eight years later, in 1529, the Diet of Spires convened, and a year later the Diet of Augsburg convened. One Diet after another convened for one purpose—to stamp out the Protestant Reformation. (See Ibid., 145–170, 197–210.) But they could not stop it because the gospel messages burned in the hearts of the people, and they were going to give those messages, come what may. They were living the messages, and they wanted to share them with everybody around them.

The Council of Trent

In 1546, the Vatican asked, How are we going to stop this Reformation? The Council of Trent was convened. Its only purpose was to destroy the Protestant Reformation. Vatican II was called by Pope John XXIII to absolutely demolish and destroy living Protestantism today.

To show you how successful the Catholic Church was in stopping the Reformation, the church at this very time period was identified in Revelation 3, as the church of Sardis. This was the church of the Reformation.

When the 95 theses were nailed to the door at Wittenberg, the Reformation began, as did the church of Sardis. “Unto the angel of the church in Sardis write; These things saith He that hath the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars; I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead.” Revelation 3:1.

What brought life to the Reformation church? It was the preaching of the message of justification by faith. Sola Scriptura, the Bible and the Bible only, and Sola Fide, by faith alone. As the reformers died, the church died with them, because the traditions that the papacy had planned began to infiltrate the churches that had been raised up in the Protestant Reformation. The Reformation died.

Was The Council of Trent successful? Yes, it was. When some Millerite preachers in the 1830s and the early 1840s, and then the early Adventists, began to preach Revelation 14, they said the Reformation churches had become so bad that by 1844 they were called Babylon.

Called to Restore the Truth

“And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.” Revelation 14:8. God started the Protestant Reformation. God raised up a people, and as certain churches fell, God had somebody else to take their place. So He raised up the Adventist people in 1844. They began to preach and add to the messages that Martin Luther preached, and to carry them to every nation, kindred, tongue and people. God’s people could then go home.

They were called to restore the great message of Christ’s ministry in the Most Holy Place. They were called to restore the Law of God that had been trampled in the dust. In fact, they had been called to raise up and restore everything that pagan and papal Rome had tried to destroy from the earth for over 1,800 years.

That very work is outlined in Daniel 8:9–12: “And out of one of them came forth a little horn, which waxed exceeding great, toward the south, and toward the east, and toward the pleasant land. And it waxed great, even to the host of heaven; and it cast down some of the host and of the stars to the ground, and stamped upon them. [Both pagan and papal Rome were persecuting powers.] Yea, he magnified himself even to the prince of the host.…”

And who was the prince? Jesus! So pagan Rome thought to destroy Christ; it was a pagan Roman governor that gave permission to crucify Christ. But the little horn also identifies the papacy. They sought to attack Christ in many ways,—through His ministry in the sanctuary above and to destroy Him as the Word of God.

“By him the daily sacrifice was taken away, and the place of his sanctuary was cast down.” Ibid. Pagan Rome destroyed the sanctuary in 70ad and the papacy sought to destroy the sanctuary message throughout the entire period of the Dark Ages. Verse 12 continues, “And an host was given him against the daily sacrifice by reason of transgression, and it cast down the truth to the ground; and it practised, and prospered.”

Pagan and papal Rome attacked the truth, and the truth, of course, is Jesus. He said, I am the way and the truth, but He also said His Word and His Law are truth. (See John 14:6; John 17:17.) Pagan and papal Rome would attack Christ; they would attack the Word of God, and they would attack the Law of God. So, through Daniel 8:9–12, we see a power that would attempt to destroy everything for which God stands and that wanted to be exalted in the earth.

That is Not the End of the Story

In Daniel 8:13 it says, “Then I heard one saint speaking, and another saint said unto that certain saint which spake, How long shall be the vision concerning the daily sacrifice, and the transgression of desolation, to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden under foot?” How long shall the law of God be trampled upon the earth? How long will it be before God’s people will be vindicated?

The answer is in verse 14: “And he said unto me, Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.” Adventists understood, after the great disappointment in 1844, that Jesus had begun the Investigative Judgment. They understood that prophecy had been fulfilled.

There is something else that Daniel 8:13, 14 is telling us. That is that God would raise up a people, in and around 1844, to restore everything that the papacy had sought to destroy. God would raise up a people who would again exalt the Law of God. God would raise up a people who would give the message that Christ was ministering in the sanctuary above.

God is in Control

What would the papacy do? They would seek to turn every den of hell against this Advent people. The papacy would come against God’s last day people, at the end of earth’s history, with unbridled fury. (See Ellen White, in The Review and Herald, March 18, 1884.

God is responsible for the Protestant Reformation, and God is responsible for the finishing of the Reformation. God will have a people who will carry His messages to victory.

The Reformation today, is in the process of being finished. It is not something to which we look forward, something that will happen down the road. It is going on right now! People’s lives are being reformed because they are embracing the truth, and those people are on fire!

Renailing the 95 Theses to the Wittenberg Door

The pope knows that the Reformation is being finished. In Exportation Article 73, entitled “The Challenge of the Sects,” he wrote, “The proselytizing activity of the sects and new religious groups of America is a grave hindrance to the work of evangelization. The success of proselytism by the sects and new religious groups in American cannot be ignored.”

Who is he talking about? Is he talking about a church that was started up 400 years ago? Is he talking about a church that was started over 100 years ago? Who could possibly get in the way of the papacy’s drive to take over this world? God’s people. We are identifying here God’s people with those who have the Advent message and are preaching it. We are not talking about those who had the Advent message and failed to share it.

“The proselytizing activity of the sects and new religious groups of America is a grave hindrance to the work of evangelization.” What does grave mean? It means serious. In Malachi Martin’s book, The Keys of This Blood, he makes it very clear that when Russia and the United States are in subjection to the Vatican, John Paul should be the only game in town. Does John Paul recognize that there is another game in town? John Paul recognizes that there are people who are still nailing the 95 theses on the door of Wittenberg.

In the early 1900s, the leaders of Seventh-day Adventism, including Stephen Haskell, W. W. Prescott, Willie White, and A. G. Daniels, began discussing the daily in Daniel 8. That became their focus, and that was all they could see.

Ellen White, with Christian graciousness, integrity, and firmness, told them to stop discussing this issue. She said they were getting distracted on something that was not important to salvation and was taking time from God’s work. (See Selected Messages, Book 1, 167.) Evangelize, put all our energy and all our talents into reaching lost people who do not know what Jesus can do for them. Jesus is coming soon. Do not get sidetracked, brethren.

Stopping the Message

John Paul said the papacy is going to figure out, in every country, how to stop this Advent message. He goes on to say to that, “there is need for an appropriate coordination of initiatives among diocese aimed at bringing about a more effective cooperation to shared projects which will produce better results.”

Now what in the world do all of those five-syllable words mean—appropriate coordination of initiatives, “effective cooperation,” producing better results? The papacy is saying that the Advent message from ministries and people all over this earth is pushing forward and it is hurting their efforts to take over the world. So they are going to have to figure out how to finally stop this message.

A Message of Judgment

Jeremiah 1:13, 16 tells us, “And the word of the Lord came unto me the second time, saying, What seest thou? And I said, I see a seething pot; and the face thereof is toward the north.…And I will utter My judgments against them touching all their wickedness, who have forsaken Me, and have burned incense unto other gods, and worshipped the works of their own hands.”

The Message Will Not be Stopped

A family of 11 from Detroit, Michigan, received a copy of The National Sunday Law. They read through the book. As a result, the parents are now keeping the seventh-day Sabbath in their home.

It is their desire that their nine children will embrace the message of the Sabbath truth. The Reformation is being finished!

Do Not Go to Rome!

In North Carolina, a gentleman saw the “Earth’s Final Warning” ad in the USA Today newspaper. He read it and then contacted the Eternal Gospel Church for materials. After reading The National Sunday Law, he said he was in a state of shock for two weeks. He saw, for the first time in his life, that he had been duped, and he praised God that he saw God’s truth.”

At the time he was reading this book, his parents were on a world cruise that was to arrive in Rome on Easter Sunday. It broke this young man’s heart, so he e-mailed his parents a half dozen times, pleading, “Mom and dad, the pope is the antichrist. The papal power is running away from God. They are deceiving the world. Do not go to Rome!” This young man wants to tell everybody this message. The Reformation is being finished!

Out of Jacksonville, Florida, several people who have received materials and books have started keeping the Sabbath right in their home. Praise God, the Holy Spirit is working. The Reformation is being finished!

A Roman Catholic priest from Ghana in West Africa recently wrote to me. He said, “I went through Roman Catholic seminary. I was a priest. I was given one of the National Sunday Law books. He said that after reading it he could not be a priest anymore; he had to follow the truth of the Word of God.

Do you believe that the Reformation is being finished? A man from Nigeria wrote that they held an effort where they handed out truth-filled books. The people studied the books, and after reading them and attending the meetings, over 1,000 people embraced the Advent message. The Advent message is going forward!

Visions and Dreams

A very influential, Catholic gentleman in Uganda, who is quite well to do, received the little book, The National Sunday Law. That night he was deeply disturbed; he did not know what to do. But God knew his heart, and He knew what he was going through. That night the man had a dream. In his dream he saw his house burning, and he saw his entire village being destroyed.

As the man was watching this in his dream, he began to scream and to cry out, and his wife came running to him. She shook him and asked him what was wrong. He told her about the dream and about a voice that told him that the people who had come into the village that day were preaching the truth of heaven, and that the book he was reading had light from heaven that he must listen to.

This gentleman and his entire family read the whole book, and they went to the preacher who was sent into the village to preach. They are now Sabbath-keepers, and they are going everywhere through Uganda handing out books, tapes, and videos door-to-door. The Reformation is being finished!

The Gospel of Peace

November 15, 2018 by John J. Grosboll

Pope Pius XII was born in 1876. His father was an attorney and both parents were staunch Roman Catholics—a tradition that he carried on in his decision to train for the priesthood. He became a priest, and later became the archbishop of Germany; his name was Eugenio Pacelli. He created the legal agreement between the papacy and Nazi Germany in 1933 and 1934 and became the 260th pope in 1939, a position he retained during the Korean War until his death in 1958.

His personal physician, Dr. Galeazzi Lisi, wrote an article for a publication in Rome in which he described the agonizing death of Pope Pius XII and revealed the pope’s constant insecurity regarding the future. The article met with disapproval on the part of church authorities, and so the copies of the newspaper were confiscated before they could be distributed and Dr Galeazzi Lisi was dismissed from his position. After all, here is a person who is supposed to send you to heaven or hell, and as he is approaching death he is fearful and he has great insecurity regarding the future.

Dr. Walter Montano, a Protestant, and the editor of the Christian Heritage at the time, said, “Well, this is the very same thing that happened when Pope Benedict XV died in 1922.” The following appeared in the December 1958 issue of Christian Heritage:

“One can feel only a sense of pity for the last end of such a man. How is it possible that the ecclesiastical demigod who had the keys of heaven and earth is unable to use those keys to gain entrance into his own eternal salvation? What a pathetic ending for a man who has devoted his life to religion, who has directed, as they say, the bark of St. Peter, who is infallible, who has elevated the virgin Mary to a state that no other pope had dared to imagine. At the end of his life he dies in fear and agony, not knowing what the future holds in store for him. All the pomp and ceremony, all the masterfully devised rituals in his honor may impress the people, especially Roman Catholics, but they cannot gain him one inch of heaven. What about his soul and his eternal destiny? What Roman Catholic knows where this pope is right now?”

The doctrine of the Roman Catholic Church established that anyone who says “I am saved” at any time in his life commits a mortal sin. If Pope Pius XII had the courage to express faith in the One who died for our sins, if he had realized that there is only one mediator between God and man, if he had accepted the fact that Christ’s death invalidated any other sacrifice and that He died for the sins of the world, then he would not have faced a death of fear and desperation; a truly agonizing death. Instead, he would have been able to say, “I know in whom I believe.”

Do you know in whom you believe? If you had to face death today, would it be a fearful, agonizing experience, or could you say, as the apostle Paul said to Timothy just before he died, “I know in whom I believe and I know he can keep that which I have committed to Him until that day.” II Timothy 1:12.

One of the most religious men in the world who devoted his whole life to religion somehow didn’t understand the very basis of the Christian religion or the gospel. Unfortunately, this misunderstanding is not isolated to Catholicism. How can you have confidence that a certain person can give you eternal life if he does not have any confidence himself of eternal life when he dies?

“In whom we have the redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of transgressions according to the richness of His grace which super abounded unto us in all wisdom and knowledge, having made known to us the mystery of His will according to His good pleasure which He purposed beforehand in Himself so that in the management of the fullness of the times He might gather altogether all things in Christ, the things upon the heavens and the things upon the earth in Him.” Ephesians 1:7–10.

Paul says our redemption price has been paid and we have redemption now. Money has nothing to do with our redemption. There are hundreds of millions of people today who call themselves Christians who believe that their redemption lies in going through certain religious ceremonies and paying money to the church, but that is not what the Bible says.

How do we have redemption? From where does the redemption come? The Bible teaches that we have redemption through His blood. Galatians 3:21: “Is therefore the law against the promises of God? Not at all. For if a law had been given which is able to make life or to bring to life, then righteousness would have been from the law.” He goes on to show that this was not possible; there is no law that has ever been given or can ever be given that can give life. If eternal life could be given through a law or through your keeping a law, if life could be given that way, Jesus would not have needed to come and die on the cross.

But righteousness is not obtained in that way. You cannot get righteousness by going to church; you get righteousness from Jesus Christ. It is His blood that paid the price for our sins. We do not generate righteousness ourselves. Look in the book of Isaiah 64:6: “We are all as an unclean thing, all of us; all of our righteousness is as a filthy garment; then we fade as a leaf, all of us; our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.” (Literal translation.)

What is our righteousness like? We do not have any, we cannot generate it, we cannot make it and we cannot get it for money. This false concept was one of the precipitating factors of the Protestant Reformation.

In Isaiah 55, God invites everybody who is thirsty to come, for it is not through paying money or doing good works that you can get your sins forgiven.

Romans 10:3 says: “For they being ignorant of the righteousness of God and seeking to establish their own righteousness, they have not submitted to the righteousness of God.” The Jews were trying to work out their own righteousness, but were unable.

Paul states clearly that righteousness is not obtained through works. In the books, Romans and Galatians, Paul explained most fully righteousness by faith. Why do you suppose that it is in the book to the Romans that righteousness by faith is explained in the most detail? God knew that it would be in the Roman church where men would depart from the truth of the gospel regarding righteousness by faith. When you depart from this, you do not have the gospel anymore and you are headed for an ending like that of Pope Pius XII. He came from a very distinguished family and was a brilliant man—a genius and talented in many areas. He had tremendous ability, but none of this helped him one bit when he came to the end of his life. Nor shall it help anyone else in the end. We may not die before Jesus comes. No matter how or when, though, the end will come and result in either eternal death or eternal life, the latter of which is unattainable unless the gospel is received and understood.

“There is not a point that needs to be dwelt upon more earnestly, repeated more frequently or established more firmly in the minds of all than the impossibility of fallen man meriting anything by his own best good works. Salvation is through faith in Jesus Christ alone.” Faith and Works, 18.

There is nothing that you will ever be able to do that will merit salvation; nothing. Salvation comes by faith in Jesus Christ alone. Through His grace we are capable of good works, but the good works should not be an attempt to merit grace.

When Paul explained the gospel to the Galatians and showed them that they had strayed in this regard, he told them that they started right but now were going to try to finish the Christian experience a different way. He said that even if an angel of heaven tells you another gospel, let him be cursed. That is strong language.

The reason Paul stated it that way is because there is an angel that used to be in heaven that is telling the people another gospel all the time, including Adventists. Martin Luther believed this, and he tried so hard and never gained any assurance of salvation. That is why Pope Pius XII had no assurance of salvation when he came to his death, because he never knew if he had done enough. Martin Luther believed the same thing and was trying to work his way to salvation by doing good works. He went to Rome and, while he was there, he climbed a staircase that was supposed to have come from Jerusalem. The rumor was that these stairs had been taken miraculously by angels from Jerusalem to Rome, and ascension was supposed to offer special grace.

Martin Luther was climbing up this staircase on his knees, attempting to do everything that he knew to obtain salvation. He said later that Romans 1:16, 17 came to him, “like a thunderclap in my ear”; “The righteous man shall live by faith.” He got up and he walked back down the stairs and he never tried to earn salvation through works again. He started studying the subject in Romans and Galatians and the Old Testament concerning David. Right at this time, the headquarters of the Roman Catholic Church was being built in St. Peter’s Square where it still stands today, a building of enormous cost. A man by the name of Tetsel came to town and told the people that if they pay money to the church it would go towards building St. Peter’s in Rome, and for supporting this “noble cause” all sins would be forgiven immediately. The people were paying their money, and they thought their sins were forgiven. Martin Luther was outraged by this practice, and worked to put an end to it.

A war started, as Tetsel was threatened by what Martin Luther taught. In 1517, Martin Luther developed 95 theses against the selling of indulgences, and nailed it to the church door. Within a matter of days, that document had been copied and was all over town, and within a matter of about five or six weeks, it was all over Europe. The debate between the Reformation and Roman Catholicism was over the simple question, how are you saved?

“Knowing that a man is not made righteous, or justified from the works of the law, but rather through faith in Jesus Christ or the faith of Jesus Christ, and we have believed in Jesus Christ in order that we might be made righteous or justified out of the faith of Christ and not out of the works of the law.” He goes on to say that not one single person can pay for their salvation in any way. Galatians 2:16.

Paul says that no flesh will be justified, or made righteous, by works. Ephesians 2:8–10 says, “By grace you have been saved through faith and this not from yourselves, it is a gift of God. Not out of works, in order that anyone should boast; for we are made in him, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God prepared beforehand in order that we should walk in them.”

Notice the progression here in verses eight to ten; he says that you have been saved by grace. It is not of works; it is a gift. But when you have been saved, then you can do good work. It is very important not to get the cart before the horse, as they say. Yes, good works appear, but do good works appear in order that you can be justified, or do good works appear after you are justified; which is it? Do good works cause you to be saved, or are the good works the result of your being saved? Which is it; what is it saying here? Do you get the order right? You are saved by grace, and as a result of being saved, good works do follow in your life.

We can read many texts on this; let us look at the gospel of John. The writings of Paul are not the only place where the gospel appears, of course, in the Bible. John 3:35, 36, John the Baptist speaking, it says, “For the Father loves the Son and has given all things into his hand. The one who believes in the Son has eternal life, or everlasting life, and the one who is disobedient to the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains upon him.”

What is necessary to receive life? To believe in the Son. If you believe in Him, you have life. If you will not believe in Him, if you will not commit to Him, then you will not have life. He says the very same thing in I John 5:11, 12: “The one that has the Son has life; the one who does not have the Son does not have life.”

Teachers used to say, if you really know something, you can explain it in simple language. That is the way with the gospel. The apostle Paul, in Acts 16, explains it to a heathen man in one sentence.

Acts 16:30, 31—to the Philippian jailer—“And bringing them outside he said, ‘lords, what is necessary for me to do so that I might be saved?’ ” That is the most important question a human being can ask. What shall I do so that I might be saved? Well, Paul is going to tell him the answer; here it is, in one verse: “And they said, believe upon the Lord Jesus and you will be saved, and your house.”

Could it be this simple? Look at that text; it covers everything. What do you have to do to be saved? You believe. By the way, the word “believe” means to commit. You commit to whom? It says, believe upon the Lord. Who is the Lord? The apostle Paul told him in one sentence how to be saved: believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved. It is that simple; if you make the commitment to Jesus as your Lord and Savior you will be saved. Jesus—the word Jesus means “Savior,” and if you commit to Him as the Lord of your life and Savior from sin, you are going to be saved. The concept is not the complicated part: it is the execution that becomes hazy for most. It is simple, but it is hard to do. We have a natural instinct to want to be independent. You cannot be saved if you are independent of Jesus. The result of receiving the gospel: Paul mentions it in Romans 5:1; it is peace. This was the very thing Pope Pius XII did not have on his deathbed.

Paul was not in turmoil when he was going out to be beheaded; in fact, the people who witnessed his martyrdom converted to Christianity because of his quiet spirit. There is no fear, no torment, or trouble. In his face they saw that he had the peace of heaven, and many onlookers wanted to have a share of that peace. Unfortunately, the world today does not have it, and even many people who call themselves Christians do not have it. Pope Pius XII did not have it. But Paul calls the gospel the “gospel of peace,” because our God is a God of peace.

Study the New Testament, and look at the salutations that Paul gives to the churches when he writes his letters. He always gives it in a certain order. Grace and peace be to you. He never says peace and grace; why? Because you have to receive grace first or you will not have any peace, but when you receive the grace of God, when you receive the gospel, then you have peace. You do not have any peace today unless you have received the grace of God into your heart and into your life.

Many Adventists are afraid that the stock market is going to crash, and therefore they are going to have to run somewhere. Why are Adventists so fearful? There is only one thing that makes people so fearful, and that is that they have never really experienced the gospel. The apostle Paul experienced the gospel, and nothing could make him fearful; he was not troubled because they were going to chop his head off; he was not troubled because of that.

Peter knew he was going to be crucified, and yet he wasn’t troubled. In reading the history of the rest of the apostles and the early Christians, death couldn’t take their peace away; why not? Look at what Jesus said about it.

Jesus, speaking to his disciples on the night that he was betrayed, says, “Peace I am leaving with you, my peace I am giving to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” John 14:27.

If you have the peace of Jesus, you are not going to be troubled or afraid. Friends, have you read prophecy; do you know what is going to happen right as we approach the end of the world? Well, what are you going to be doing as you see all these things happening that are described in the latter half of the book of Revelation? Is there fear or peace? Have the peace of Jesus, and no matter what happens on the outside, it cannot take away that peace.

Paul says in Galatians 1 that the gospel makes peace. If the gospel does not bring peace to your mind in this troubled world, then you do not really have the gospel yet. The gospel is called the good news. Is it a message about righteousness resulting in good works, leading people to strive to gain peace with God through either ceremonies or duties? That would not be good news, because that message would never bring peace; that would bring turmoil to the person who is struggling to meet the standards that are built on the system.

In The Desire of Ages, 35, 36, Ellen White says that every system of false religion is built on the doctrine of salvation by works. Every system; it is not just the Roman Catholic system, it is all systems of false religion.

This peace is the healing of the relationship between God and man, and when you have peace with God, as Paul says in Romans 5:1, then it does not matter what happens in the world outside. That is why Jesus said, in John 14:27, “I am not giving peace to you like the world gives; the peace of the world can be taken away, but the peace that Jesus gives cannot be taken away.” The apostles were always talking about it: almost every letter that Paul wrote he begins by saying, “Grace and peace to you.”

Peter preached the gospel to a heathen man who does not understand it, and the very first sermon was the good news of peace through Jesus. “We do not ask people to bring anything in their hand in an attempt to buy peace because Jesus is our peace.” Ephesians 2:14.

You and I cannot make peace with God ourselves. Not only can we not make peace with God ourselves; we are incapable of maintaining peace with God, but Jesus has made the peace for us already, and He has given it to us as a gift. This is what Paul talks about in Romans 3:24–26, 28, about how we are justified, and Romans 4:4, 5, how it doesn’t come through works; it is a gift. In Romans 3 and 4 Paul says over and over that works have nothing to do with it.

God knew there would be people who would be saying we are saved by grace and works, but that is not the gospel. If you believe you are saved by grace and works, here is the first question for you. When have you done enough works? Do you see the dilemma you are in? You will never be able to do enough works so that you feel satisfied; you will never have peace, because you do not have the gospel. Salvation by grace and works is not the gospel.

Christ’s righteousness is credited to the believer on the basis of faith alone. It is not credited to those who work to gain it, but only to those who trust in the all-sufficient Savior alone.

“Therefore what shall we say, that the nations which had not pursued righteousness have obtained righteousness, but it is the righteousness which is of faith. But Israel, which pursued the righteousness which is of the law, did not attain unto righteousness. Why? Because it is not of faith, but out of works; they stumbled at that stumbling stone, just as it is written, Behold I lay in Zion a stumbling stone and a rock of offense, and the one who believes in Him will not be put to shame.” Romans 9:30–33.

So, justification is by faith because it is in harmony with grace, which is the free and unmerited favor of God, and it cannot be earned or purchased or merited. Faith has no merit of itself; it performs no meritorious works to gain favor; it simply trusts in the giver of the grace, and is the only basis by which God declares a sinner righteous.

When you are justified by faith, the result is always peace inside; if you do not have the peace, you have not experienced the gospel yet. It is that simple. Paul said: the Jews want a sign; the Greeks, they want wisdom; we preach Christ and Him crucified; to the Jews, it is a stumbling block, and to the Greeks it is just foolishness, but to those of us who are to be saved, it is the wisdom of God and it is the power of God. Is that the peace that you have, or does the following quotation describe more accurately the condition of your heart right now?

“The reason for the uncertainty of the state of grace lies in this: without a special revelation nobody can, with certainty of faith, know whether or not he has fulfilled all the conditions that are necessary for achieving justification.” That comes from the Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma, 262, published in 1974. If that is your belief, you will never have peace, because you will never know if you have ever done enough. So, what are the conditions to achieve justification? Is it something that you are going to have to do? No. It is when you believe in Jesus as the Lord of your life and your Savior from sin. Then you are given His righteousness, and as a result of receiving His righteousness He gives you at the same time His peace. Then you will have peace, no matter how much trouble there is in the world outside.

From now on until Jesus comes, there is going to be every manner of rumor and scare imaginable, and you are not going to make it unless you have the gospel. If you have the gospel and you have committed your life to Jesus Christ, you will have peace on the inside, and you don’t need to worry about what everybody is saying on the Internet is going to happen. You don’t have to worry, because you can have peace on the inside.

“If any man can merit salvation by anything he may do, then he is in the same position as the Catholic to do penance for his sins. Salvation, then, is partly of debt, that may be earned as wages. If man cannot, by any of his good works, merit salvation, then it must be wholly [completely] of grace, received by man as a sinner because he receives and believes in Jesus. It is wholly a free gift. Justification by faith is placed beyond controversy. And all this controversy is ended, as soon as the matter is settled that the merits of fallen man and his good works can never procure eternal life for him. … Justification is wholly of grace and not procured by any works that fallen man can do.” Faith and Works, 19, 20.

Ellen White goes on writing about this, and emphasizes it over and over again. Do you have peace inside? Do you realize that as we approach the end of the world the people of this world are going to get more and more troubled until, as Jesus said, their hearts are going to fail them for fear and for looking for what is coming on the earth? What is going to happen to you then? If you have accepted the gospel, if you have accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior, He says, My peace I have given to you; do not be troubled, do not be afraid; I will never leave you, and I have given my peace to you, and you do not need to be afraid and panicky like everybody else in the world. We need to say, Lord Jesus, I am committing my life to you. I want you as my Lord and Savior from sin; I pray that you will give me that grace, that justification that will result in peace so that I do not have to be troubled like everybody else in the world. It is the most wonderful thing you can ever receive: Jesus’ peace that nobody can take away from you.

(Some Bible verses paraphrased.)

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

Bible Study Guides – After the Scriptures Were Penned

January 22, 2018 by Reformation Herald Publishing

December 11, 2011 – December 17, 2011

Key Text

“Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.” Jude 3.

Study Help: Early Writings, 222–226; Maranatha, 15–17.

Introduction

“The Waldenses, John Wycliffe, Huss and Jerome, Martin Luther and Zwingli, Cranmer, Latimer, and Knox, the Huguenots, John and Charles Wesley, and a host of others brought to the foundation material that will endure throughout eternity.” The Acts of the Apostles, 598.

1 BIBLE-BELIEVING CHRISTIANS

What is the main key to victory and genuineness in the Christian life? Matthew 4:4.

Note: “This word [of God] is the bread of heaven, and those who read and study it, making its truths a part of the life, will be given power from above.” The Review and Herald, March 24, 1904.

How important is Scripture to the Christian faith? Acts 20:32; II Timothy 3:16, 17.

Note: “Spiritual life must be sustained by communion with Christ through His Word. The mind must dwell upon it, the heart must be filled with it. The Word of God laid up in the heart and sacredly cherished and obeyed, through the power of the grace of Christ can make man right, and keep him right; but every human influence, every earthly invention, is powerless to give strength and wisdom to man. It cannot restrain passion, or correct deformity of character. Unless the truth of God controls the heart, the conscience will be warped.” Selected Messages, Book 2,124.

2 THE CHURCH IN THE WILDERNESS

In the early centuries after the Scriptures were penned, what happened to the true believers in Bible religion, as symbolized by a pure woman? Revelation 12:12–14.

Note: “The faith which for centuries was held and taught by the Waldensian Christians was in marked contrast to the false doctrines put forth from Rome. Their religious belief was founded upon the written word of God, the true system of Christianity. But those humble peasants, in their obscure retreats, shut away from the world, and bound to daily toil among their flocks and their vineyards, had not by themselves arrived at the truth in opposition to the dogmas and heresies of the apostate church. Theirs was not a faith newly received. Their religious belief was their inheritance from their fathers. They contended for the faith of the apostolic church—‘the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.’ Jude 3. ‘The church in the wilderness,’ and not the proud hierarchy enthroned in the world’s great capital, was the true church of Christ, the guardian of the treasures of truth which God has committed to His people to be given to the world. …

“The Waldenses were among the first of the peoples of Europe to obtain a translation of the Holy Scriptures. Hundreds of years before the Reformation they possessed the Bible in manuscript in their native tongue. They had the truth unadulterated, and this rendered them the special objects of hatred and persecution.” The Great Controversy, 64, 65.

What was one of the key doctrines which these persecuted saints upheld? Luke 6:5.

Note: “Among the leading causes that had led to the separation of the true church from Rome was the hatred of the latter toward the Bible Sabbath. As foretold by prophecy, the papal power cast down the truth to the ground. The law of God was trampled in the dust, while the traditions and customs of men were exalted. The churches that were under the rule of the papacy were early compelled to honor the Sunday as a holy day.” The Great Controversy, 65.

3 THE GREAT REFORMATION

What precious promises did Christ give to the faithful few living in the era of Thyatira during the Dark Ages? Revelation 2:24–28. How was the prophecy of the “morning star” fulfilled?

Note: “In the fourteenth century arose in England the ‘morning star of the Reformation.’ John Wycliffe was the herald of reform, not for England alone, but for all Christendom. The great protest against Rome which it was permitted him to utter was never to be silenced. That protest opened the struggle which was to result in the emancipation of individuals, of churches, and of nations.” The Great Controversy, 80.

What beautiful, yet hidden, gems of truth were rediscovered by men such as Martin Luther? I Timothy 2:5; Romans 1:16, 17.

Note: “Notwithstanding all the persecution of the saints, living witnesses for God’s truth were raised up on every hand. Angels of the Lord were doing the work committed to their trust. They were searching in the darkest places and selecting out of the darkness men who were honest in heart. These were all buried up in error, yet God called them, as He did Saul, to be chosen vessels to bear His truth and raise their voices against the sins of His professed people. Angels of God moved upon the hearts of Martin Luther, Melanchthon, and others in different places, and caused them to thirst for the living testimony of the Word of God. The enemy had come in like a flood, and the standard must be raised against him. Luther was the one chosen to breast the storm, stand up against the ire of a fallen church, and strengthen the few who were faithful to their holy profession. He was ever fearful of offending God. He tried through works to obtain His favor, but was not satisfied until a gleam of light from heaven drove the darkness from his mind and led him to trust, not in works, but in the merits of the blood of Christ. He could then come to God for himself, not through popes or confessors, but through Jesus Christ alone.

“Oh, how precious to Luther was this new and glorious light which had dawned upon his dark understanding and driven away his superstition! He prized it higher than the richest earthly treasure. The Word of God was new. Everything was changed. The book he had dreaded because he could not see beauty in it, was now life, eternal life, to him. It was his joy, his consolation, his blessed teacher.” Early Writings, 222, 223.

4 THE LAODICEAN ERA

What did William Miller, a meticulous Bible student, begin to realize in the 1830s?

Note: “He [William Miller] was forced to the conclusion, from the study of Scripture alone, that the period allotted for the continuance of the earth in its present state was about to close.” The Great Controversy, 323.

Explain some of the important prophecies which came to light among the believers in the second-advent movement. Daniel 8:14; Revelation 1:7; 14:1–12.
Despite the great light entrusted and the urgency of the hour, why has Christ been disappointed in the church of this era? I Corinthians 14:8; Revelation 3:14–17.

Note: “We are in danger of giving the third angel’s message in so indefinite a manner that it does not impress the people. So many other interests are brought in that the very message which should be proclaimed with power becomes tame and voiceless.” Testimonies, vol. 6, 60.

Due to the lukewarm state of spirituality, what does Christ warn? Revelation 3:18, 19. Yet with the passing of time, has this problem become better—or worse? James 2:10–12.

Note: “Of those who boast of their light and yet fail to walk in it Christ says, ‘But I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the day of judgment, than for you. And thou, Capernaum [Seventh-day Adventists, who have had great light], which art exalted unto heaven [in point of privilege], shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been done in thee had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. But I say unto you, That it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for thee’ [Matthew 11:22–24].” The Review and Herald, August 1, 1893. (All explanations in brackets were penned by the author.)

5 A MOVEMENT OF REFORMATION SEPARATED

When the highest level of church-body leadership turns from its original course, to persecute and condemn to imprisonment and death those upholding the very principles on which the body was founded, what does that indicate? Matthew 23:37–39.

Note: “By the stoning of Stephen the Jews finally sealed their rejection of the gospel.” The Desire of Ages, 233.

“There are clear, decided distinctions to be restored and exemplified to the world in holding aloft the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. The beauty of holiness is to appear in its native luster in contrast with the deformity and darkness of the disloyal, those who have revolted from the law of God. Thus we acknowledge God and recognize His law, the foundation of His government in heaven and throughout His earthly dominions. His authority should be kept distinct and plain before the world, and no laws are to be acknowledged that come in collision with the laws of Jehovah. If in defiance of God’s arrangements the world be allowed to influence our decisions or our actions, the purpose of God is defeated. However specious the pretext, if the church waver here, there is written against her in the books of heaven a betrayal of the most sacred trusts, and treachery to the kingdom of Christ.” Testimonies to Ministers and Gospel Workers, 16, 17.

Why does God endorse a separation in such circumstances? Psalm 11:3; Jude 3.

Note: “Satan has laid every measure possible that nothing shall come among us as a people to reprove and rebuke us, and exhort us to put away our errors. But there is a people who will bear the ark of God.” Testimonies to Ministers and Gospel Workers, 411.

PERSONAL REVIEW QUESTIONS

1 How can I develop a greater appreciation for the Bible as the foundation of faith?

2 Why are we to be inspired by our church forefathers in the wilderness?

3 What made Martin Luther’s experience such a joyous one?

4 Why does God place all church organizations on probation?

5 When God calls forth a reformatory movement, what is its continual duty?