Questions and Answers – Love Not the World

Question

“Love not the world, neither the things [that are] in the world.” I John 2:15. I have read this, but I live in this world. How can I do this?

Answer

Thank you for this question. That is a big problem not only for you, but for all of us. We do live here in this world, and we are in constant contact with the things of this world.

Many of the commodities of this world are necessary for our existence, and besides that, Satan is constantly alluring us to the things that would keep us from giving our attention to Christ. He hates Christ and has for six thousand years been studying how to defeat God in the plan of redemption. No human being is a match for Satan, and it is useless for us to try to devise a plan where we can defeat him. We must depend upon God for help.

Satan is trying to win our attention through the temptations of things that appeal and please the body. Therefore, he tries to control our mind through the desires of the body. In other words, sensual pleasures are given priority over intelligent choices. We learn to love the things of this world because they are temporarily pleasing to the eye, to the taste, to the feelings, and to the body in general. In this way he controls our mind through satisfying our body desires. Christ teaches us that our mind should be in control of our body, which is a totally different concept than that of Satan.

How to accomplish this is the problem. Remember, all of God’s biddings are our enablings, so let us see what the Bible has to say.

The first text that comes to mind is, “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 2:5. In order to have the mind of Jesus we must study His life. Another suggestion is: “It would be well for us to spend a thoughtful hour each day in contemplation of the life of Christ. We should take it point by point, and let the imagination grasp each scene, especially the closing ones. As we thus dwell upon His great sacrifice for us, our confidence in Him will be more constant, our love will be quickened, and we shall be more deeply imbued with His spirit. If we would be saved at last, we must learn the lesson of penitence and humiliation at the foot of the cross.” The Desire of Ages, 83.

It is easy to float down the stream and end up in the ocean, but to swim up-stream and end up in the country takes effort. So it is with the Christian life; it takes thought and effort.

No one lives in a vacuum; everyone loves something because this is the way we were created. Either we are going to love the world and the things that are in the world, or we will learn to love God.

The Lord is the giver of every perfect gift, and it is not wrong to love the gifts He has given us as long as our love for the Giver is more than our love for the gift.

In heaven the Lord is going to give us far more than anything we have in this world, but first we must learn to love Him supremely before He can trust us with the gifts.

Man was created for joy and happiness, and Jesus promised that those who are faithful would have the privilege of entering into the joy of the Lord, for He said to the faithful servant, “Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.” Matthew 25:23.

Philosophy of Education

God, by the abundance of life, is as a great magnet, drawing humanity to Himself. So close is the union that in Christ are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. In one Man—a Man made of flesh and blood like all men now living—there dwelt the spirit of wisdom. More than this, in Him are “hid all the treasures of wisdom;” and hence the life of Immanuel stands a constant witness that the wisdom of the ages is accessible to man. And the record adds, “Ye are complete in Him.” Colossians 2:3, 10.

This wisdom brings eternal life; for “this is life eternal, that they might know Thee the only true God.” John 17:3.

Christ, at Jacob’s well, explained to the woman of Samaria, and through her to you and me, the means of gaining wisdom. The well of living water, from the depths of which the patriarch had drawn, and which he bequeathed as a rich legacy to generations following, who drank and blessed his name, symbolized heavenly wisdom. Men today mistake worldy wisdom for the wisdom described in Job 28, of which God understandeth the way and knoweth the place. Christ spoke of this latter when He said, “If thou knewest the gift of God and Who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldst have asked of Him, and He would have given thee living water.” “If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, and drink.” John 4:10; 7:37.

Why, then, if wisdom may be had for the asking, are not all fulfilled? Only one reason can be given: men in their search accept falsehood in the place of truth. This blunts their sensibilities, until the false system seems true and the true false.

There is a distinction between the wisdom of God and that of this world. (See I Corinthians 1:20; 2:6.) How, then, can we attain to the real and true wisdom?

Dealing with wisdom is education. If it be the wisdom of the world, then it is worldly education; if, on the other hand, it is a search for the wisdom of God, it is Christian education. Over these two questions, the controversy between good and evil is waging. The final triumph of truth will place the advocates of Christian education in the kingdom of God.

The Heavenly School

God’s throne, the center around which circled the worlds which had gone forth from the hand of the Creator, was the school of the universe. The Upholder of the worlds was Himself the great Teacher; and His character, love, was the theme of contemplation. Every lesson was a manifestation of His power. To illustrate the workings of the laws of His nature, this Teacher had but to speak, and before the attentive multitudes there stood the living thing. “He spake, and it was, He commanded and it stood fast.” Psalm 33:9.

Angels and the beings of other worlds in countless numbers were the students. The course was to extend through eternity; observations were carried on through limitless space and included everything from the smallest to the mightiest force, from the formation of the dewdrop to the building of the worlds, and the growth of the mind. To finish the course, if such an expression is permissible, meant to reach the perfection of the Creator Himself.

To the angelic host was given a work. The inhabitants of worlds were on probation. It was the joy of angels to minister to and teach other creatures of the universe. The law of love was everywhere written; it was the constant study of the heavenly beings. Each thought of God was taken by them; and as they saw the workings of His plans, they fell before the King of kings, crying, “Holy, holy, holy.” Eternity was all too short to reveal His love.

The Father and Son were often in council. Wrapped together in that glory, the universe awaited the expression of Their one will. As one of the covering cherubim, Lucifer stood the first in power and majesty of all the angelic host. His eye beheld, his ear heard, he knew of all except the deep counsels which the Father, from all eternity, had purposed in the Son.

Hitherto all eyes had turned instinctively toward the center of light. A cloud, the first one known, darkened the glory of the covering cherub. Turning his eyes inward, he reasoned that he was wronged. Had not he, Lucifer, been the bearer of light and joy to worlds beyond? Why should not his might be recognized?

The Rival System

While Lucifer thus reasoned, Christ, wrapped within the glory of the Father, was offering His life for the world at its creation. Sin had not yet entered; the world was not yet created; but as the plans were laid, the Son had said, “Should sin enter, I am, from this time, one with those We now create; and their fall will mean My life on earth.”

Here was born the rival system—selfishness facing the utter self-forgetfulness of Christ, reason over against faith.

God planted a garden eastward in Eden and from the beauties of the earth chose the most beautiful spot for the home of the new pair. In the midst of the garden stood the tree of life, the fruit of which afforded man a perfect physical food. Beneath its spreading branches God Himself visited them and, talking with them face to face, revealed to them the way of immortality. As they ate of the fruit of the tree of life and found every physical want supplied, they were constantly reminded of the need of the spiritual meat which was gained by open converse with the light from heaven. The glory of God surrounded the tree; and enwrapped in this halo, Adam and Eve spent much time in communing with the heavenly visitors. According to the divine system of teaching, they were here to study the laws of God and learn of His character. They were not only His children but students receiving instruction from the all-wise Creator.

Divine Method of Teaching

As new beauties came to their attention, they were filled with wonder. Each visit of the heavenly teachers elicited from the earthly students scores of questions which it was the delight of the angels to answer; and they in turn opened to the minds of Adam and Eve principles of living truth which sent them forth to their daily tasks of pleasure full of wondering curiosity, ready to use every God-given sense to discover illustrations of the wisdom of heaven. “So long as they remained loyal to the divine law, their capacity to know, to enjoy, and to love would continually increase. They would be constantly gaining new treasures of knowledge, discovering fresh springs of happiness, and obtaining clearer and yet clearer conceptions of the immeasurable, unfailing love of God.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 51.

The divine method of teaching is here revealed—God’s way of dealing with minds which are loyal to Him. The governing laws of the universe were expounded. Man, as if looking into a picture, found in earth, sky, and sea, in the animate and inanimate world, the exemplification of those laws. He believed; and with a heavenly light, which is the reward of faith, he approached each new subject of investigation. Divine truths unfolded continually. Life, power, happiness—these subjects grew with his growth. The angels stimulated the desire to question, and again led their students to search for answers to their own questions. At his work of dressing the garden, Adam learned truths which only work could reveal. As the tree of life gave food to the flesh and reminded him constantly of the mental and spiritual food necessary, so manual training added light to the mental discipline. The laws of the physical, mental, and spiritual world were enunciated; man’s threefold nature received attention. This was education, perfect and complete.

Unable to reach the soul of man by direct means, Satan approached it through those outer channels, the senses. He had everything to win and proceeded cautiously. If man’s mind could be gained, his great work would be accomplished. To do this, he used a process of reasoning—a method the reverse of that used by the Father in His instruction at the tree of life. The mind of Eve was strong and quickly drew conclusions; hence, when her teacher said, “If ye eat, ye shall be as gods,” in the mind of Eve arose the thought, God has immortality. “Therefore,” said Satan, “if ye eat, ye shall not surely die.” The conclusion was logically drawn; and the world, from the days of Eve to the present time, has based its religious belief on that syllogism, the major premise of which, as did Eve, they fail to recognize as false. Why? Because they use the mind to decide the truth instead of taking a direct statement from the Author of wisdom. From this one false premise comes the doctrine of the natural immortality of man, with its endless variations, some modern names of which are theosophy, spiritualism, reincarnation, and evolution. The sons and daughters of Eve condemn her for the mistake made six thousand years ago, while they themselves repeat it without question. It is preached from the pulpit; it is taught in the schoolroom; and its spirit pervades the thought of every book written whose author is not in perfect harmony with God and truth. Now began the study of “dialectics” so destructive to the Christian’s faith.

The Effects of Doubt

Having accepted the logic of the serpent and having transferred her faith from the word of God to the tree of knowledge, at Satan’s suggestion the woman could easily be led to test the truth of all his statements by her senses. A theory had been advanced; the experimental process now began. That is the way men now gain their knowledge, but their wisdom comes otherwise. She looked upon the forbidden fruit, but no physical change was perceptible as the result of the misuse of this sense. This led her to feel more sure that the argument used had been correct. Her ears were attentive to the words of the serpent, but she perceived no change as a result of the perverted use of the sense of hearing. This, to the changing mind of the woman, was still more conclusive proof that the words of Christ and angels did not mean what she had at first thought they meant. The senses of touch, smell, and taste were in turn used; and each corroborated the conclusion drawn by the devil. The woman was deceived; and through the deception, her mind was changed. This same change of mind may be wrought either by deception or as a result of false reasoning.

Eve approached Adam with the fruit in her hand. Instead of answering in the oft-repeated words of Christ, “In the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die” (Genesis 2:17), he took up the logic of the serpent. Having eaten, his mind was also changed. He, who from creation had thought the thoughts of God, was yielding to the mind of the enemy.

The completeness of the change which took place is seen in the argument used when God walked in the garden in the cool of the evening. Said Adam, “The woman gave me to eat. Thou gavest me the woman. Therefore Thou art to blame.” (See Genesis 3:12.) This was another decidedly logical conclusion, from the standpoint of the wisdom of the serpent; and it was repeated by Eve, who laid the blame first on the serpent, and finally on God Himself. Self-justification, self-exaltation, self-worship—here was the human origin of the papacy, that power which “opposeth and exalteth itself above all that is called God.” II Thessalonians 2:4.

Faith Versus Reason

God, through His instruction, had taught that the result of faith would be immortal life. Satan taught, and attempted to prove his logic by a direct appeal to the senses, that there was immortal life in the wisdom that comes as the result of human reason. The method employed by Satan is that which men today call the natural method; but in the mind of God, the wisdom of the world is foolishness. The method which to the godly mind, to the spiritual nature, seems natural is foolishness to the world.

There are but two systems of education—the one based on what God calls wisdom, the gift of which is eternal life; the other based on what the world regards as wisdom but which God says is foolishness. This last exalts reason above faith, and the result is spiritual death. That the fall of man was the result of choosing the false system of education cannot be controverted. Redemption comes through the adoption of the true system of education.

Re-creation is a change of mind—an exchange of the natural for the spiritual. “Be not conformed to this world, but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind.” Romans 12:2. In order to render a change possible, Christ must bruise the head of the serpent; that is, the philosophy of the devil must be disproved by the Son of God.

Man’s spiritual nature, at first the prominent part of his being, was dwarfed and overruled until it was but the “small voice” within. With the development of the physical and the intellectual to the neglect of the spiritual have come the evils of modern society—the love of display, the perversion of taste, the deformity of the body, and those attendant sins which destroyed Sodom and now threaten our cities. Man became careless in his work also, and the earth failed to yield her fullness. As a result, thorns and thistles sprang up.

True Science and Life

It is not surprising to find that the system of education introduced by Christ begins with the instruction given in the garden of Eden and that it is based on the simple law of faith. We have a greater appreciation for the gift of Christ when we dwell upon the thought that while suffering physically, while taking our infirmities into His own body, He yet preserved a sound mind and a will wholly subject to the Father’s, that by so doing, the philosophy of the archdeceiver might be overthrown by the divine philosophy.

Again, it is but natural to suppose that when called upon to decide between the two systems of education, the human and the divine, and Christian education is chosen, that man will also have to reform his manner of eating and living. The original diet of man is again made known; and for his home he is urged to choose a garden spot, away from crowded cities, where God can speak to his spiritual nature through His works.

God does use the senses of man; but knowledge thus gained becomes wisdom only when enlightened by the Spirit, the gateway to whose fountain is opened by the key of faith.

Beneath the tree of life originated the highest method of education—the plan that the world needs today. Beneath the branches of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil arose the conflicting system, having ever one object in view—the overthrow of the eternal principles of truth. Under one guise, then under another, it has borne sway upon the earth. Whether as Babylonish learning, Greek philosophy, Egyptian wisdom, the high glitter of papal pomp, or the more modest but no less subtle workings of modern science, the results always have been, and always will be, a savor of death unto death. Man’s reason is opposed to simple faith, but those who will finally reach the state of complete harmony with God will have begun where Adam failed. Wisdom will be gained by faith. Self will have been lost in the adoration of the great Mind of the universe; and he who was created in the image of God, who was pronounced by the Master Mind as “very good,” will, after the struggle with sin, be restored to the harmony of the universe by the simple act of faith.

Dr. E.A. Sutherland was one of the early educators at Battle Creek and Berrien Springs, and also one of the founding fathers of the college at Madison, Tennesee. He, with Percy Megan, revolutionized Christian education. Many missionaries were sent to all parts of the world after short courses at Madison College.

Higher Education – Man’s Way or God’s Way?

The Apostle Paul tells us, “The wisdom of this world is foolishness with God.” I Corinthians 3:19. No Seventh-day Adventist should let foolishness keep him or her from the kingdom. “Those who would share the benefits of the Saviour’s mediation should permit nothing to interfere with their duty to perfect holiness in the fear of God.” The Great Controversy, 488.

Are we not told to so live “Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man [or woman], unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ”? Ephesians 4:13.

Read what the Lord’s end-time messenger, Ellen G. White, has told us about education: “I am instructed to say that in our educational work, there is to be no compromise in order to meet the world’s standards. God’s commandment-keeping people are not to unite with the world, to carry various lines of work according to the world’s plans and worldly wisdom.

“Our people are being tested as to whether they will obtain their wisdom from the greatest Teacher the world has ever known or seek to the god of Ekron. Let us be determined that we shall not be tied as much as a thread to the educational policies of those who do not discern the voice of God, and who will not hearken to His commandments.” Loma Linda Messages, 447.

“If the recommendation goes forth from our people that our workers are to seek for success by acknowledging as essential the education which the world gives as superior to that which God gives, we are virtually saying that the influence the world gives, is superior to that which God gives. God will be dishonored by such a course.” Ibid, 453.

Here is what the Lord’s end-time messenger has to say about what constitutes higher education: “Through His own chosen messengers God has given us light and instruction as to what constitutes higher education. There is no higher education to be gained than that which was given to the early disciples, and which is given to us through the word. …

“Light has been given me that tremendous pressure will be brought upon every Seventh-day Adventist with whom the world can get into close connection.

“We need to understand these things. Those who seek the education that the world esteems so highly are gradually led further and further from the principles of truth until they become educated worldlings. At what a price they have gained their education! They have parted with the Holy Spirit of God. They have chosen to accept what the world calls knowledge in the place of the truths which God has committed to men through his ministers, apostles and prophets. And there are some who, having secured this worldly education, think they can introduce it into our schools. But let me tell you that you must not take what the world calls higher education and bring it into our schools and sanitariums and churches. I speak to you definitely; this must not be done.” Loma Linda Messages, 405, 406.

In spite of this counsel, many Seventh-day Adventists have sought higher education in the colleges and universities which teach “the wisdom of the world.” Is this not, therefore, foolishness?

The advocates for accreditation of our colleges used this statement from Ellen G. White to justify their position: “Inasmuch as there are legal requirements making it necessary that medical students shall take a certain preparatory course of study our colleges should arrange to carry their students to the point of literary and scientific training that is necessary.” Counsels to Parents, Teachers, and Students, 480.

It was decided in 1928 to select a few of the most spiritually mature teachers and send them to non-Seventh-day Adventist universities. It would then require only a short time to equip our schools with the teaching personnel technically qualified to give the necessary training in our schools in the future.

In the course of time, the above resolution deteriorated until large numbers of Seventh-day Adventist teachers and numerous ministers enrolled in schools of the world for higher degrees. Did any of these worldly-educated Seventh-day Adventists take what the world calls higher education and bring it into our schools, sanitariums, and churches? At the present time, do most Seventh-day Adventist schools have a generation of teachers who received their major training largely from teachers educated in schools of the world?

A.W. Spalding’s Letter

In answer to those questions, and in connection with the foregoing passages from the words of Ellen G. White, it is of value to understand what was happening in the educational system of the denomination. A.W. Spalding, author of the five volume History of Seventh-day Adventists, spent 50 years of his life in educational work, in and out of Seventh-day Adventist schools. He talks about the necessity of following the Lord’s instruction even when it may seem like foolishness to men.

He indicated that we came to our educational Kadesh-Barnea in 1928. The promised land was ahead of us, but the majority of our spies brought back an evil report. We became discouraged at the report of perceived giants and walled cities. We turned away from the commands of the Lord, and rejected His instructions not to seek our education from the universities and schools of the world. (See God’s instruction to His people in Fundamentals of Christian Education, 347, 359, 451, 467, 474.) The true higher education lies in the study of God’s revealed knowledge and wisdom. (See Education, 14.) There were a few Calebs and Joshuas there, but their voices were drowned out by the clamors of the multitude. We voted for accreditation, with all the involved affinity with the world’s education.

The Lord, through Ellen G. White, tells how to escape from the results of our foolishness: “God works through those who hear and obey His voice, those who will, if need be, speak unpalatable truths, those who do not fear to reprove popular sins. The reason He does not oftener choose men of learning and high position to lead out in reform movements is that they trust in their creeds, theories, and feel no need to be taught of God.” The Great Controversy, 455, 456.

The Omega

If we believe the Lord has spoken to our church through His last-day messenger, we must know that we are living in the season of the omega of apostasy. The Lord says this through His servant: “I knew that the omega would follow in a little while; and I trembled for our people. … Our religion would be changed. The fundamental principles that have sustained the work for the past fifty years would be accounted error. A new organization would be established. Books of a new order would be written. A system of intellectual philosophy would be introduced. … The Sabbath of course, would be lightly regarded, as also the God who created it.” Selected Messages, Book 1, 203, 204.

After denouncing the alpha of apostasy which shook the foundations of our church, the Lord made this prediction through the Spirit of Prophecy: “The omega will follow, and will be received by those who are not willing to heed the warning God has given.” Ibid., 200. “The omega will be of a most startling nature.” Ibid., 197.

Do we have among the diversities of doctrine in our church the soul-destroying omega? In writing to a leading church member (John Harvey Kellogg, M.D.) whom Satan influenced to bring in the alpha of apostasy, and which seems particularly applicable today in regard to the omega, the servant of the Lord delivered the following scathing comments: “You were professedly believing the Testimonies, and yet walking and working contrary to them, following your own impulses, turning from the plain, Thus saith the Lord, to carry out your own plans and devisings.” Battle Creek Letters, 119.

Unity in Diversity

At the 1995 General Conference in Utrecht, a principal speaker called for unity in diversity. Later our general church paper ran an article on the same theme. Can we have unity in diversity if some of this diversity is the soul-destroying omega against which we have been warned? The Lord says: “The missionaries of the [Seventh-day Adventist] Christian church are to stand in their God-given manhood, with the privilege of freedom of speech and freedom of faith. When they see that a fellow-laborer is not doing as a man in his position ought to do, they are not to harmonize with his plans, or be cowered into silence by a masterful spirit. For them to do this would be a great injury to him [Dr. Kellogg] and to them.

“Our [ministers and] physicians are to stand where no binding influence will hold them speechless when they hear wrong sentiments expressed. At times, with burning earnestness and words of terrible severity, Christ denounced the abominations that He saw in the church and in the world. He would not allow the people to be deceived by false claims to righteousness and sanctity.

“We are to unify, but not on a platform of error.” Battle Creek Letters, 111.

“We have a testing message to give, and I am instructed to say to our people, ‘Unify, unify,’ But we are not to unify with those who are departing from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of devils. With our hearts sweet and kind and true, we are to go forth to proclaim the message, giving no heed to those who lead away from the truth.” Selected Messages, Book 3, 412.

“Our church members see that there are differences of opinion among the leading men, and they themselves enter into controversy regarding the subjects under dispute. Christ calls for unity. But He does not call for us to unify on wrong practices. The God of heaven draws a sharp contrast between pure, elevating truth and false, misleading doctrines. He calls sin and impenitence by the right name. He does not gloss over wrong doing with a coat of untempered mortar. I urge our brethren to unify upon a true, scriptural basis.” Selected Messages, Book 1, 175.

“He [Christ] labored that man should be true to himself, true to his higher and eternal interest. The servants of Christ are called to the same work, and they should beware lest, in seeking to prevent discord, they surrender the truth. They are to ‘follow after things that make for peace’ (Rom. 14:19.); but real peace can never be secured by compromising principle. And no man can be true to principle without exciting opposition.” The Desire of Ages, 356.

Now our last question—would the warnings of the Lord through Ellen G. White regarding the alpha also apply in the season of the omega?

“Will the men in our institutions keep silent, allowing insidious fallacies to be promulgated to the ruin of souls? The sentiments of the enemy are being scattered everywhere. Seeds of discord, of unbelief, of infidelity, are being sown broadcast. …

“The dangers coming upon us are continually increasing. It is high time that we put on the whole armor of God, and work earnestly to keep Satan from gaining any further advantage. Angels of God, that excel in strength, are waiting for us to call them to our aid, that our faith may not be eclipsed by the fierceness of the conflict. Renewed energy is now needed. Vigilant action is called for. Indifference and sloth will result in the loss of personal religion and of heaven. …

“My message to you is: No longer consent to listen without protest to the perversion of truth. Unmask the pretentious sophistries which, if received, will lead ministers and physicians and medical missionary workers to ignore the truth. Every one is now to stand on his guard. God calls upon men and women to take their stand under the blood-stained banner of Prince Emmanuel. I have been instructed to warn our people; for many are in danger of receiving theories and sophistries that undermine the foundation pillars of the faith. …

“Be not deceived; many will depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of devils. We have now before us the alpha of this danger. The omega will be of a most startling nature.” Selected Messages, Book 1, 195–197.

“I was shown a platform braced by solid timbers,—the truths of the Word of God. Some one high in responsibility was directing this man and that man to loosen the timbers supporting this platform. Then I heard a voice saying, ‘Where are the watchmen that ought to be standing on the walls of Zion? Are they asleep? This foundation was built by the Master Worker, and will stand through storm and tempest. Will they permit this man to present doctrines that deny the past experience of the people of God? The time has come for decided action.’

“The enemy of souls has sought to bring in the supposition that a great reformation was to take place among Seventh-day Adventists, and that this reformation would consist of giving up the doctrines which stand as the pillars of our faith, and engaging in a process of reorganization. Were this reformation to take place, what would result? The principles of truth that God in His wisdom has given to the remnant church would be discarded. …

Laodicean Fog?

“Shortly before I sent out the testimonies regarding the efforts of the enemy to undermine the foundations of our faith through the dissemination of seductive theories, I had read an incident about a ship in a fog meeting an iceberg. For several nights I slept but little. I seemed to be bogged down as a cart beneath sheaves. One night a scene was clearly presented before me. A vessel was upon the waters, in a heavy fog. Suddenly the lookout cried, ‘Iceberg just ahead!’ There, towering high above the ship, was a gigantic iceberg. An authoritative voice cried out, ‘Meet it!’ There was not a moment’s hesitation. It was a time for instant action. The engineer put on full steam, and the man at the wheel steered the ship straight into the iceberg. With a crash she struck the ice. There was a fearful shock, and the iceberg broke into many pieces, falling like thunder to the deck. The passengers were violently shaken by the force of the collision, but no lives were lost. The vessel was injured, but not beyond repair. She rebounded from the contact, trembling from stem to stern, like a living creature. Then she moved forward on her way.

“Well I knew the meaning of this representation. I had my orders. I had heard the words, like a voice of our Captain, ‘Meet it!’ ” Ibid., 204–206.

“Meet It”?

“The church may appear as about to fall, but it does not fall. It remains, while the sinners in Zion will be sifted out—the chaff separated from the precious wheat. This is a terrible ordeal, but nevertheless it must take place.” Selected Messages, Book 2, 380.

“A revival of true godliness among us is the greatest and most urgent of all our needs. …

“Are we hoping to see the whole church revived? That time will never come. …

“We must pray more, and talk less. Iniquity abounds, and the people must be taught not to be satisfied with a form of godliness without the spirit and power.” Selected Messages, Book 1, 121, 122.

[All emphasis supplied.]

Dr. Donald Hewitt, now deceased, was a practicing physician in Hawaii and was a foremost temperance promoter and authored the book, Everything You Wanted to Know About Alcoholism, But Were Too Drunk to Ask. Dr. Donald Hewitt was a good friend of Marshall Grosboll who helped to promote his book.

All for Jesus

My heart is very heavy for humanity. The whole earth has been in turmoil and struggle for so long. Satan is in a life and death struggle for each soul. Many people feel the effects of this spiritual conflict and are caught between attraction for this world and a deep need for the love that only God can give. What a battle! It is the age-old war that has been going on since Eve first picked the fruit. This is not just a battle for this earth as a whole, but a fierce war within each individual who feels the call of the Holy Spirit in their lives. That war will persist until one of two things happen; either a person surrenders completely to God, or sin is dallied with for so long that the Holy Spirit quits striving with them and Satan then has sway to degrade as he wishes.

Surrendering is a terrible inward conflict. It means not having any agenda for ourselves, but being willing to be placed wherever God wants us to be, and being happy and finding blessings in that place. “God’s promise is, ‘Ye shall seek Me, and find Me, when ye shall search for Me with all your heart.’ Jeremiah 29:13.” Steps to Christ, 43. It takes that complete surrender. Notice the words “with all your heart.” I do not find any reference in the Bible which indicates that any portion can be withheld, no matter how small. “The whole heart must be yielded to God, or the change can never be wrought in us by which we are to be restored to His likeness. By nature we are alienated from God. The Holy Spirit describes our condition in such words as these: ‘Dead in trespasses and sins;’ ‘the whole head is sick, and the whole heart faint;’ ‘no soundness in it.’ We are held fast in the snare of Satan, ‘taken captive by him at his will.’ Ephesians 2:1; Isaiah 1:5, 6; 11 Timothy 2:26. God desires to heal us, to set us free. But since this requires an entire transformation, a renewing of our whole nature, we must yield ourselves wholly to Him.” Steps to Christ, 43.

What a dichotomy from the teaching of the world! Even the “church” has bought into the mindset of making our own lives. But what else was Paul saying when he says in Philippians 4:11, “Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content”? This whole chapter is such a promise, such a gift that presents what we can have in God. I recommend not only reading it, but soaking it into your heart so the daily life is affected. The following is an excerpt from Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary that sheds some additional light on this verse: “I leave it to others if they will, to be discontented. I, for my part, have learned, by the teaching of the Holy Spirit, and the dealings of Providence (Heb 5:8), to be content in every state.” The Commentary goes on to expound on contentedness: “Content—The Greek, literally expresses ‘independent of others, and having sufficiency in one’s self.’ But Christianity has raised the term above the haughty self-sufficiency of the heathen Stoic to the contentment of the Christian, whose sufficiency is not in self, but in God.” The key here is the phrase, “whose sufficiency is not in self, but in God.” Nothing comes from our own independence! John 15:5 says, “I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.” Paul says, in Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.” You see, in and of ourselves we have nothing we can call good. In Isaiah 64:6 we read, “But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.” That is unmistakably clear.

I look at the ongoing misery and see the unhealthy ways in which people seek for fulfillment. I long for each person’s happiness. What most do not understand is that happiness in life comes from a true, complete surrender to God. One of the ways we look for fulfillment is by looking to another human. It is inevitable that they will disappoint us. There is not a single human in life who will not eventually disappoint or hurt. I have learned and am still learning to be okay with that. I am learning that this sad fact is part and parcel of a sinful world. God allows difficulties into our lives so we will learn that lesson. Without complete surrender, and dependence on Him, one can never find the peace or love that God offers. “In giving ourselves to God, we must necessarily give up all that would separate us from Him. Hence the Saviour says: ‘Whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be My disciple.’ Luke 14:33.” Ellen White further expounds on this saying, “Whatever shall draw away the heart from God must be given up. Mammon is the idol of many. The love of money, the desire for wealth, is the golden chain that binds them to Satan. Reputation and worldly honor are worshiped by another class. The life of selfish ease and freedom from responsibility is the idol of others. But these slavish bands must be broken. We cannot be half the Lord’s and half the world’s. We are not God’s children unless we are such entirely.” Steps to Christ, 44.

“This world is not my home, I’m just a passin’ through.” If we truly have this in the core of our heart, things will not matter so much here. Our own agenda will disappear and we can focus our eyes on the promises and glory to come. How truly, how deeply, how fervently God loves each one. Yet, I can truly say, the decision is yours, and yours alone. He has not a hair of feeling of coercion or force in Him; only a deep longing and love for you and your happiness, not only for heaven, but even here and now. Refer once again to Steps to Christ, 43. “The government of God is not, as Satan would make it appear, founded upon a blind submission, an unreasoning control. It appeals to the intellect and the conscience. ‘Come now, and let us reason together’ is the Creator’s invitation to the beings He has made. Isaiah 1:18. God does not force the will of His creatures. He cannot accept an homage that is not willingly and intelligently given.”

Whenever I feel overwhelmed by the difficulties of life, when I feel intense pain from a particular situation, I go to the life of Jesus. I think of the solitude that Jesus chose above all else when He left the perfect oneness with His Father; not like the broken connections we so cherish here. It is a connection not one of us here on earth has known or will ever know. Yet God the Father and Jesus chose the separation to achieve our salvation, only to have 100% of the people of earth desert Jesus in His darkest hour. This scene, this amazing character, this abounding love is ever open for our contemplation. The thought overwhelms me as I only just begin to grasp the immense love that must have been in their hearts to make the decision to go through that terrible separation. You know, when Jesus died, it was not from physical causes, and it was, medically speaking, from a broken heart. The separation from His Father, literally, broke His heart and it killed Him. “But it was not the spear thrust, it was not the pain of the cross, that caused the death of Jesus. That cry, uttered ‘with a loud voice’ (Matt. 27:50; Luke 23:46), at the moment of death, the stream of blood and water that flowed from His side, declared that He died of a broken heart. His heart was broken by mental anguish. He was slain by the sin of the world.” The Desire of Ages, 772. I only pray that God will subdue my own heart that I will choose to dwell on that and let His love so shape me that I can then share that love and peace with others.

There is another thought that is incomprehensible to me. God the Father loves Jesus even more because He gave His life to save whoever would accept His salvation on this sinful planet. Think about that. The Creator of an entire universe of perfection and beauty beyond compare allowed His Son to come to a planet filled with misery and hatred. He endured the separation of a perfect relationship, and to crown all, loves His Son more dearly for that sacrifice! What wondrous love.

Each and every one of us has pain in this life. That has been the lot of humanity since sin entered. Even Jesus had pain in His life. The crux of the matter comes in what we choose to do with that pain. What Jesus did with His pain is a study in and of itself. It is easy when we feel that pain to cherish it, to feel it and let it influence our decisions, to reason with ourselves that we are “entitled” to feel it. What a struggle. It brings us back again to surrender. Will we surrender it to God or let it rule our lives? I struggle with that decision on a regular basis, though I notice that the more I make conscious choice to live above it through the grace of God, the easier it becomes, which is what God promises. Praise Him.

“It is a mistake to entertain the thought that God is pleased to see His children suffer. All heaven is interested in the happiness of man.” Steps to Christ, 46. There is nothing to lose, and only happiness to gain here as well as in heaven. Will you surrender today?

Brenda Douay works as a part of the LandMarks team. She can be reached by e-mail at: landmarks@stepstolife.org.

Ever Watchful

“Watch ye therefore: for ye know not when the master of the house cometh, at even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning: Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping. And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch.”
Mark 13:35-37.

Both Jesus and most of the writers of the New Testament share a common motif, which is the need for watchfulness, especially as the earth moves toward its close. Matthew says, “Watch therefore …” Matthew 25:13; Mark records, “Watch ye therefore …” Mark 13:35; Doctor Luke documents, “Watch ye therefore, and pray always …” Luke 21:36; Acts 20:31; John, recording the words of the true witness, says, “Be watchful …” “If therefore thou shalt not watch …” Revelation 3:2, 3; The apostle Paul counsels, “Watch ye, stand fast …” I Corinthians 16:13; “Continue in prayer, and watch … .” Colossians 4:2; “… watch and be sober.” I Thessalonians 5:6; “But watch thou in all things …” II Timothy 4:5; Peter states, “… watch unto prayer.” I Peter 4:7.

So, in this message I desire to address the urgency that is placed upon a Christian to watch, within the context of the end of the great controversy between Christ and Satan.

If ever there was a time for every Christian to watch and be ready, it is now! What did Jesus mean when he admonished us to watch? Let’s read again Jesus’ words found in Mark 13:35–37: “Watch ye therefore: for ye know not when the master of the house cometh, at even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning: Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping. And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch.”

The Greek word gregoreuo is word number 1127 in the Strong’s Concordance and means “watch,” “to keep awake,” “be vigilant,” “be awake,” “be watchful.” This word, gregoreuo, comes from word number 1453 which is egeiro, which means “to waken from sleep, sitting or lying, from disease, from death, from inactivity,” etc. Hence, we understand that this is a call to soberness and constant alertness on the part of the Christian; a constant state of readiness!

In commenting on the meaning of Mark’s account to “watch ye therefore,” God’s servant states, “Jesus has left us word, ‘Watch ye therefore: for ye know not when the Master of the house cometh, at even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning: lest coming suddenly He find you sleeping. And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch.’ We are waiting and watching for the return of the Master, who is to bring the morning, lest coming suddenly He find us sleeping. What time is here referred to? Not to the revelation of Christ in the clouds of heaven to find a people asleep. No; but to His return from His ministration in the most holy place of the heavenly sanctuary, when He lays off His priestly attire and clothes Himself with garments of vengeance, and when the mandate goes forth: ‘He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is 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.’

“When Jesus ceases to plead for man, the cases of all are forever decided. This is the time of reckoning with His servants. To those who have neglected the preparation of purity and holiness, which fits them to be waiting ones to welcome their Lord, the sun sets in gloom and darkness, and rises not again. Probation closes; Christ’s intercessions cease in heaven. This time finally comes suddenly upon all, and those who have neglected to purify their souls by obeying the truth are found sleeping. They became weary of waiting and watching; they became indifferent in regard to the coming of their Master. They longed not for His appearing, and thought there was no need of such continued, persevering watching. They had been disappointed in their expectations and might be again. They concluded that there was time enough yet to arouse. They would be sure not to lose the opportunity of securing an earthly treasure. It would be safe to get all of this world they could. And in securing this object, they lost all anxiety and interest in the appearing of the Master. They became indifferent and careless, as though His coming were yet in the distance. But while their interest was buried up in their worldly gains, the work closed in the heavenly sanctuary, and they were unprepared.

“If such had only known that the work of Christ in the heavenly sanctuary would close so soon, how differently would they have conducted themselves, how earnestly would they have watched! The Master, anticipating all this, gives them timely warning in the command to watch. He distinctly states the suddenness of His coming. He does not measure the time, lest we shall neglect a momentary preparation, and in our indolence look ahead to the time when we think He will come, and defer the preparation. ‘Watch ye therefore: for ye know not.’ ” Testimonies, vol. 2, 190, 191.

To whom is this warning addressed? We read in the following gospels these words: “And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.” Matthew 24:4; “And Jesus answering them began to say, Take heed lest any [man] deceive you.” Mark 13:5; “And he said, Take heed that ye be not deceived.” Luke 21:8.

We are told, “The Saviour’s instructions to His disciples were given for the benefit of His followers in every age. He had those in view who were living near the close of time, when He said: ‘Take heed to yourselves.’ It is our work, each for himself, to cherish in the heart the precious graces of the Holy Spirit.” Testimonies, vol. 5, 102, 103.

“To illustrate the importance of being alert, Jesus spoke six parables: the Porter, which is here condensed into one verse, the Master of the House, the Faithful and Unfaithful servants, the Ten Virgins, the Talents, and the Sheep and the Goats. Christians are not to await their Lord’s return in idle expectancy. While waiting and watching they are to be vigilant in purifying their own souls by obedience to the truth, and to be earnest in working for others. It is their privilege ‘not only to look for but to hasten the coming of the day of God.’ ” “Ellen G. White Comments,” The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, vol. 5, 504, 505.

Jesus uses three phrases in admonishing us to alertness; they are: “take heed,” “watch,” and “be ready.” He who is sincerely looking for the coming of Jesus will be ready whenever his Lord may appear.

We can then conclude that Christ’s warning to “watch therefore,” although applicable to the whole world, is especially addressed to His end-time church—Laodicea.

So why is it addressed to the Laodicean church? The Scripture tells us concerning the Laodicean Christians. Revelation 3:14–17: “Unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God; I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth. Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked.” The Laodiceans’ problem is self-deception, and as a consequence of this attitude they have failed to follow the counsel of Jesus—to watch. Thus they have become blinded and deluded by Satan to their true spiritual condition. Luke tells us the warning that Christ left the Laodiceans: “And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and [so] that day come upon you unawares. For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.” Luke 21:34–36.

“When the Saviour pointed out to His followers the signs of His return, He foretold the state of backsliding that would exist just prior to His second advent. There would be, as in the days of Noah, the activity and stir of worldly business and pleasure seeking—buying, selling, planting, building, marrying, and giving in marriage—with forgetfulness of God and the future life. For those living at this time, Christ’s admonition is: ‘Take heed to yourselves … watch and pray always.’

“The condition of the church at this time is pointed out in the Saviour’s words in the Revelation: ‘Thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead.’ And to those who refuse to arouse from their careless security, the solemn warning is addressed: ‘If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.’ Revelation 3:1, 3.” The Great Controversy, 309, 310.

The beloved apostle John, writing verily to us, emphatically pleads: “Love not the world, neither the things [that are] in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that [is] in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.” I John 2:15, 16.

The messenger to the remnant church points out that “the love of the world and the deceitfulness of riches eclipse our faith, and we do not long for, and love, the appearing of our Saviour. We try too hard to take care of self ourselves. We are uneasy and greatly lack a firm trust in God. Many worry and work, contrive and plan, fearing they may suffer need. They cannot afford time to pray or to attend religious meetings and, in their care for themselves, leave no chance for God to care for them. And the Lord does not do much for them, for they give Him no opportunity. They do too much for themselves, and believe and trust in God too little.” Testimonies, vol. 2, 196.

“Men and women professing to be waiting and loving the appearing of their Lord are shut up to self. The noble, the godlike, they have parted with. The love of the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, the pride of life, have so fastened upon them that they are blinded. They are corrupted by the world and discern it not.” Ibid., 197.

Here we see four problem areas that cause Christ to give warning to Laodicea—His church living in the period just before the end of the world.

  • The love of the world
  • The lust of the flesh
  • The lust of the eyes
  • The pride of life.

Let us take a closer look at these four areas [table below]:

  1. The love of the world—this has to do with those things that are alien and hostile to God, or worldly affairs that lead away from God. It has to do with everything and anything that is contrary to the words of God, its teaching and lifestyle.

Accordingly, when John bids his readers, ‘Love not the world,’ he is not thinking of the earth as it came from the hand of God, but of the earthly elements, animate and inanimate, that Satan has marshaled in rebellion against God. John knows how attractive these things can appear, and bids Christians to beware of them and to resist their seductive power.

  1. The lust of the flesh—this has to do with the sensuous nature of man, in which, “dwelleth no good thing” and which lusts to evil. The lust of the flesh is the craving of the flesh for indulgence in evil. It includes all strong desires for indulgence contrary to the will of God. Those strong desires may very well include perverted sexual desires, perverted appetite, crave for power or fame, excessive desire to control, diabolical motivation to make self prominent, etc.
  2. The lust of the eyes—If “lust of the flesh’ applies particularly to sins arising from the body, ‘lust of the eyes’ may be understood to refer to mental pleasure stimulated through sight. Much of the sinful pleasure of the world is experienced through the eyes. Many who would hasten to disclaim and intention of indulging in open sin themselves are eager to read about sin, to study it in a picture or to watch it depicted upon a screen. The word of God declares, “Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery: But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.” Matthew 5:27, 28. Also, “Lust not after her beauty in thine heart; neither let her take thee with her eyelids.” Proverbs 6:25.
  3. The pride of life—This has reference to boastful display. It implies a materialistic satisfaction with worldly goods, a state of mind that substitutes the material for the spiritual. Some take pride in their work, other in their possessions, still others in their own beauty of their children. Some other pride themselves with educational and academic accomplishments.

The warning of Christ is relevant for us living in these closing days of probation to take heed, watch therefore, and be ready. This is so because we who are called by God’s name are totally absorbed in worldliness and are unaware that probation is about to be closed forever. These words stand as an indictment against us: “The cares of the world engross the mind to that degree that self-examination and secret prayer are neglected. The armor is laid off and Satan has free access to them, benumbing their sensibilities and causing them to be unsuspicious of his wiles.” Testimonies, vol. 7, 126. “Many have partaken so largely of the spirit and influence of the world that they act like the world.” Ibid., 127.

What should the remnant people be doing now as evidence that they are watching? As a people of prophecy we know that we are now living in the antitypical day of atonement. As it was in the sanctuary system of the Old Testament that on the day of atonement the people were required to afflict their souls, they were to do serious self-examination, confessing and repenting of all sin in order to be in oneness with God. So now we must be doing the same work, for our sins must be blotted out or our names will be blotted out of the book of life forever. So we have a work of watching to do!

The prophet Isaiah declares, “Behold, the day of the Lord cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate: and he shall destroy the sinners thereof out of it.” Isaiah 13:9.

“In view of that great day the word of God, in the most solemn and impressive language, calls upon His people to arouse from their spiritual lethargy and to seek His face with repentance and humiliation: ‘Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in My holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the Lord cometh, for it is nigh at hand.’ ‘Sanctify a fast, call a solemn assembly: gather the people, sanctify the congregation, assemble the elders, gather the children … let the bridegroom go forth of his chamber, and the bride out of her closet. Let the priests, the ministers of the Lord, weep between the porch and the altar.’ ‘Turn ye even to Me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning: and rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the Lord your God: for He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness.’ Joel 2:1, 15–17, 12, 13.” The Great Controversy, 311.

“When Christ took human nature upon Him, He bound humanity to Himself by a tie of love that can never be broken by any power save the choice of man himself. Satan will constantly present allurements to induce us to break this tie—to choose to separate ourselves from Christ. Here is where we need to watch, to strive, to pray, that nothing may entice us to choose another master; for we are always free to do this. But let us keep our eyes fixed upon Christ, and He will preserve us. Looking unto Jesus, we are safe. Nothing can pluck us out of His hand. In constantly beholding Him, we ‘are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.’ II Corinthians 3:18.

“It was thus that the early disciples gained their likeness to the dear Saviour. When those disciples heard the words of Jesus, they felt their need of Him. They sought, they found, they followed Him. They were with Him in the house, at the table, in the closet, in the field. They were with Him as pupils with a teacher, daily receiving from His lips lessons of holy truth. They looked to Him, as servants to their master, to learn their duty. Those disciples were men ‘subject to like passions as we are.’ James 5:17. They had the same battle with sin to fight. They needed the same grace, in order to live a holy life.” Steps to Christ, 72.

The warning is clear: “Watch ye therefore: for ye know not when the master of the house cometh, at even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning: Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping.” Mark 13:35, 36.

The pen of inspiration states, “The church of God is required to fulfill her night watch, however perilous, whether long or short. Sorrow is no excuse for her to be less watchful. Tribulation should not lead to carelessness, but to double vigilance. Christ has directed the church by His own example to the Source of their strength in times of need, distress, and peril. The attitude of watching is to designate the church as God’s people indeed. By this sign the waiting ones are distinguished from the world and show that they are pilgrims and strangers upon the earth.” Testimonies, vol. 2, 205.

Pastor Ivan Plummer ministers through the Emmanuel Seventh Day Church Ministries in Bronx, New York. He may be contacted by telephone at: 718-822-3900.

Pen of Inspiration – A People Called

The truth is a power, and those who see its force will stand boldly and fearlessly in its defense. Truth must be apprehended by the intellect, received into the heart, and its principles incorporated into the character; and then there must be a constant effort to win others to accept it, for God holds men responsible for the use they make of the light He imparts to them.

The Lord calls upon all His people to improve the ability He has given them. The mental powers should be developed to the utmost; they should be strengthened and ennobled by dwelling upon spiritual truths. If the mind is allowed to run almost entirely upon trifling things and the common business of everyday life, it will, in accordance with one of its unvarying laws, become weak and frivolous, and deficient in spiritual power.

Times that will try men’s souls are just before us, and those who are weak in the faith will not stand the test of those days of peril. The great truths of revelation are to be carefully studied, for we shall all want an intelligent knowledge of the word of God. By Bible study and daily communion with Jesus we shall gain clear, well-defined views of individual responsibility and strength to stand in the day of trial and temptation. He whose life is united to Christ by hidden links will be kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation.

More thought should be given to the things of God, and less to temporal matters. The world-loving professor, if he will exercise his mind in that direction, may become as familiar with the word of God as he now is with worldly business. “Search the Scriptures,” said Christ; “for in them ye think ye have eternal life; and they are they which testify of Me.” The Christian is required to be diligent in searching the Scriptures, to read over and over again the truths of God’s word. Willful ignorance on this subject endangers the Christian life and character. It blinds the understanding and corrupts the noblest powers. It is this that brings confusion into our lives. Our people need to understand the oracles of God; they need to have a systematic knowledge of the principles of revealed truth, which will fit them for what is coming upon the earth and prevent them from being carried about by every wind of doctrine.

Great changes are soon to take place in the world, and everyone will need an experimental knowledge of the things of God. It is the work of Satan to dishearten the people of God and to unsettle their faith. He tries in every way to insinuate doubts and questionings in regard to the position, the faith, the plans, of the men upon whom God has laid the burden of a special work and who are zealously doing that work. Although he may be baffled again and again, yet he renews his attacks, working through those who profess to be humble and God-fearing, and who are apparently interested in, or believers of, present truth. The advocates of truth expect fierce and cruel opposition from their open enemies, but this is far less dangerous than the secret doubts expressed by those who feel at liberty to question and find fault with what God’s servants are doing. These may appear to be humble men; but they are self-deceived, and they deceive others. In their hearts are envy and evil surmisings. They unsettle the faith of the people in those in whom they should have confidence, those whom God has chosen to do His work; and when they are reproved for their course they take it as personal abuse. While professing to be doing God’s work they are in reality aiding the enemy.

Brethren, never allow anyone’s ideas to unsettle your faith in regard to the order and harmony which should exist in the church. Many of you do not see all things clearly. The directions in regard to order in the tabernacle service were recorded that lessons might be drawn from it by all who should live upon the earth. Men were selected to do various parts of the work of setting up and taking down the tabernacle, and if one strayed in carelessly and put his hands to the work assigned to another, he was to be put to death. We serve the same God today. But the death penalty has been abolished; had it not been, there would not now be so much careless, disorderly work in His cause. The God of heaven is a God of order, and He requires all His followers to have rules and regulations, and to preserve order. All should have a perfect understanding of God’s work.

It is unsafe to cherish doubt in the heart even for a moment. The seeds of doubt which Pharaoh sowed when he rejected the first miracle were allowed to grow, and they produced such an abundant harvest that all subsequent miracles could not persuade him that his position was wrong. He continued to venture on in his own course, going from one degree of questioning to another, and his heart became more and more hardened until he was called to look upon the cold, dead faces of the first-born.

God is at work, and we are not doing one half that must be done to prepare a people to stand in the day when the Son of man shall be revealed. Woe be to the man that shall in the least degree seek to hinder the work which God is doing. We must labor for others; we must try to weaken the hold of our brethren upon their earthly treasures; for many will sell their birthright to eternal life for worldly advantages. How much better to encourage them to lay up their treasure in heaven than complainingly to drop the words: “It is money, money, that these men are continually calling for; and they are getting rich by it.” How sweet are words like these to the world-loving professor! How they strengthen his courage to withhold from God the proportion which belongs to Him and which should be returned to Him in tithes and offerings! The curse of the Lord will rest upon those who fail to render to Him His own. Let us work in harmony with God. His servants have a message to bear to money lovers; why should they not bear a close testimony in regard to bringing all the tithes into the storehouse, when the Lord Himself has set them the example?

The religion of Christ subdues the selfish spirit and transforms the mind and the affections; it lays low the pride of men, that God alone may be exalted. This is what Brother A wants. He needs a practical faith in God. He needs to see and feel the glory of serving Christ; he needs to exalt principle and elevate the Christian standard; he needs to store his mind with the rich promises, the warnings, the counsels and threatenings, of God’s word; he needs to see the importance of having faith and corresponding works, that he may fairly represent, at home, in the church, and in his business, the purity and elevated character of religion. He should place himself in connection with Christ, that he may have spiritual power. His connection with the world, and with influences adverse to the spirit of truth, have greater power over him than the Spirit of Christ. Here is his danger; and he will eventually make shipwreck of faith unless he changes his course of action and firmly connects with the Source of light.

Testimonies, vol. 5, 272–275.

Who’s in Charge?

Though it often leads to a dispute when made the subject of conversation, the Bible is very clear about who is in charge of this world.

In the Gospel of John, Jesus refers to Satan three times as “the ruler of this world.” (See John 12:31, 14:30, and 16:11.)

John also made it clear in his first epistle when he wrote, “We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one” (1 John 5:19).

Paul, in his second letter to the Corinthians, also acknowledged the power of the enemy in this world: “But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them” (2 Corinthians 4:3, 4).

In his letter to the Ephesians, Paul used a different term, referring to Satan as “the prince of the power of the air” (Ephesians 2:2).

Later in that same letter, Paul expresses even more clearly the scope of Satan’s power and of the fallen angels who are in allegiance with him: “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:12).

Lest there be any doubt as to who the above texts refer to, the Revelator makes it clear in Revelation 12:9: “So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.”

How did it come to be that Satan acquired the power to deceive the whole world and claim it as his dominion?

“Satan was determined to succeed in his temptation of the sinless Adam and Eve. And he could reach even this holy pair more successfully through the medium of appetite than in any other way. The fruit of the forbidden tree seemed pleasant to the eye and desirable to the taste. They ate and fell. They transgressed God’s just command and became sinners. Satan’s triumph was complete. He then had the vantage ground over the race. He flattered himself that, through his subtlety, he had thwarted the purpose of God in the creation of man.

“Satan made his exulting boasts to Christ and to loyal angels that he had succeeded in gaining a portion of the angels in heaven to unite with him in his daring rebellion; and now that he had succeeded in overcoming Adam and Eve, he claimed that their Eden home was his. He proudly boasted that the world which God had made was his dominion; that having conquered Adam, the monarch of the world, he had gained the race as his subjects, and should now possess Eden, making that his headquarters, and would there establish his throne and be monarch of the world.” Confrontation, 15, 16.

“Mighty issues for the world were at stake in the conflict between the Prince of light and the leader of the kingdom of darkness. After tempting man to sin, Satan claimed the earth as his, and styled himself the prince of this world. Having conformed to his own nature the father and mother of our race, he thought to establish here his empire. He declared that men had chosen him as their sovereign. Through his control of men, he held dominion over the world.” The Desire of Ages, 114, 115.

“When Satan was thrust out of heaven, he determined to make the earth his kingdom. When he tempted and overcame Adam and Eve, he thought that he had gained possession of this world; ‘because,’ said he, ‘they have chosen me as their ruler.’ He claimed that it was impossible that forgiveness should be granted to the sinner, and therefore the fallen race were his rightful subjects, and the world was his.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 69.

Although our first parents did indeed succumb to Satan’s specious argument that “You will not surely die” (Genesis 3:4), God, in His incredible mercy and love for the pinnacle of His creation, provided a remedy for the repentant. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).

This fact should not be taken to mean that all will be saved. Many places in the Bible make it clear that all individuals have a role to play in their personal salvation. Ezekiel speaks directly against the assertion “once saved—always saved” in Ezekiel 18:24, when he wrote, “But when a righteous man turns away from his righteousness and commits iniquity, and does according to all the abominations that the wicked man does, shall he live? All the righteousness which he has done shall not be remembered; because of the unfaithfulness of which he is guilty and the sin which he has committed, because of them he shall die.”

The Revelator also made clear the importance of overcoming “the accuser of the brethren” in his efforts to ruin the souls of all mankind when he wrote, “Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, ‘Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death’  ” (Revelation 12:10, 11).

So, the answer to the question “Who’s in charge” depends on you. Are you claiming the promises in God’s word and complying with the conditions on which those promises are based? Or are you loving your life to the death?

All Bible quotes NKJV unless otherwise noted.

John R. Pearson is the office manager and a board member of Steps to Life. He may be contacted by email at: johnpearson@stepstolife.org.

Commitment to a Lost World

Week of Prayer for Sabbath

“Love to man is the earthward manifestation of the love of God. It was to implant this love, to make us children of one family, that the King of glory became one with us. And when His parting words are fulfilled, ‘Love one another, as I have loved you’ (John 15:12); when we love the world as He has love`d it, then for us His mission is accomplished. We are fitted for heaven; for we have heaven in our hearts.” The Desire of Ages, 641.

How did Christ love the world? “The work of the good Samaritan represents Christ’s mission to the world. Our Saviour came to reveal the character of God, to represent his love for man. He acted just as the Father would have done in all emergencies. Christ manifested for us a love that the love of man can never equal. He died to save those who were his enemies; he prayed for his murderers. When we were bruised and dying, he had pity upon us. He did not pass us by on the other side, and leave us, helpless, and hopeless, to perish. He did not remain in his holy, happy home, where he was honored by all the heavenly host, who loved to do his bidding. He beheld our sore need; he undertook our case, and identified his interests with humanity. He became ‘a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief . . . . He was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.’ [Isaiah 53:3, 5.]” The Home Missionary, October 1, 1897.

Naturally, our hearts are cold and hard and selfish. This is not just a problem in the world but in the church as well: “There are sins among us as a people. Love is not cherished as it should be. A cold, selfish, indifferent hard-heartedness is increasing, and this has separated us from our God. There are reasons why the Lord does not favor us with his presence and love; there is great need of sharp, pointed testimonies, for selfishness has eaten out the love of God from our hearts. Hear what the Lord says to his people: ‘If there be among you a poor man of one of thy brethren within any of thy gates in thy land which the Lord thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not harden thine heart, nor shut thine hand from thy poor brother; but thou shalt open thine hand wide unto him, and shalt surely lend him sufficient for his need, in that which he wanteth. Beware that there be not a thought in thy wicked heart, saying, The seventh year, the year of release, is at hand; and thine eye be evil against thy poor brother, and thou givest him naught; and he cry unto the Lord against thee, and it be sin unto thee. Thou shalt surely give him, and thine heart shall not be grieved when thou givest unto him; because that for this thing the Lord thy God shall bless thee in all thy works, and in all that thou puttest thine hand unto. For the poor shall never cease out of the land; therefore I command thee, saying, Thou shalt open thine hand wide unto thy brother, to thy poor and to thy needy, in thy land.’ [Deuteronomy 15:7–11.]” Review and Herald, March 11, 1884.

“Those who have the mind of Christ can not look with indifference upon human suffering. They can not be heartless, cold, and selfish. Those who are naturally inclined to tenderness and sympathy when unreservedly surrendered to God will cooperate with him in doing deeds of mercy, in relieving the distressed, tho it may call for the practice of self-denial. But those who do not cultivate gratitude to God for his mercy and love to them, who do not appreciate the great gift of Christ to our world, will not manifest sympathy for the suffering and needy, will not seek to comfort the bereaved, to minister to the fatherless and the widow. They may, like the Pharisees, make long prayers, and yet rob the widow and the fatherless, forgetting in their hardness of heart that the Lord will judge those who neglect the needy and the suffering as though they had neglected him in the person of his saints.” The Signs of the Times, January 23, 1896.

Disunity

The lack of love makes the gospel presentation nearly powerless, because what is preached from the pulpit is not matched up with what the unbeliever sees in the lives of the professed Christian believers. This is why the non-Christian world is not convinced of the superiority of the Christian religion. Non-Christians, who are called pagans and heathens by Christians, will say that they are more honest, truthful, pure, less covetous, or revengeful than some Christians they know. Christ is misrepresented in the lives of His professed followers, and the world is then deluded by the deceptions of Satan, which could not take effect if the lives of professed Christians reflected the life of Him whom they profess to be following as disciples.

At the same time, those who are in the valley of decision look at the professed followers of Christ and say that they certainly do not appear to be members of one family, since they are divided into almost countless schisms and divisions. Christian leaders for hundreds of years have known that the many divisions of Christians into various sects are a source of weakness to the Christian church. For many years, Christian leaders have been calling for Christian unity.

The papacy entered this challenge in a big way with the Vatican II Council held from 1962 to 1965, and today, the world is racing toward an ecumenical world church. One day soon, God’s remnant will have to face this ecumenical world church, headed by antichrist, which will include not just Catholicism and Protestantism but also the non-Christian world. In comparison with this colossus, God’s children will be a very small group.

Necessary Ingredient for Victory

We will never be able to successfully meet what is before us unless we have something to meet it with that our opponents do not have. What is this something with which we need to meet the future crisis and that the opposing side will not have but which will be powerful enough to win the victory over the whole world? The following quotations point out what the ingredient is that we must have in our hearts to meet the coming crisis.

“ ‘Behold,’ says the Scripture, ‘the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people; but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and His glory shall be seen upon thee.’ Isaiah 60:2.

“It is the darkness of misapprehension of God that is enshrouding the world. Men are losing their knowledge of His character. It has been misunderstood and misinterpreted. At this time a message from God is to be proclaimed, a message illuminating in its influence and saving in its power. His character is to be made known. Into the darkness of the world is to be shed the light of His glory, the light of His goodness, mercy, and truth. . . .

“Those who wait for the Bride-groom’s coming are to say to the people, ‘Behold your God.’ The last rays of merciful light, the last message of mercy to be given to the world, is a revelation of His character of love. The children of God are to manifest His glory. In their own life and character they are to reveal what the grace of God has done for them. . . .

“This is the work which the prophet Isaiah describes when he says, ‘Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh? Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily; and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the Lord shall be thy rereward.’ Isaiah 58:7, 8.

“Thus in the night of spiritual darkness God’s glory is to shine forth through His church in lifting up the bowed down and comforting those that mourn.

“All around us are heard the wails of a world’s sorrow. On every hand are the needy and distressed. It is ours to aid in relieving and softening life’s hardships and misery.

“Practical work will have far more effect than mere sermonizing. We are to give food to the hungry, clothing to the naked, and shelter to the homeless. And we are called to do more than this. The wants of the soul, only the love of Christ can satisfy. If Christ is abiding in us, our hearts will be full of divine sympathy. The sealed fountains of earnest, Christlike love will be unsealed.

“God calls not only for our gifts for the needy, but for our cheerful countenance, our hopeful words, our kindly handclasp. When Christ healed the sick, He laid His hands upon them. So should we come in close touch with those whom we seek to benefit.

“There are many from whom hope has departed. Bring back the sunshine to them. Many have lost their courage. Speak to them words of cheer. Pray for them. There are those who need the bread of life. Read to them from the word of God. Upon many is a soul sickness which no earthly balm can reach nor physician heal. Pray for these souls, bring them to Jesus. Tell them that there is a balm in Gilead and a Physician there. . . .

“The whole earth, wrapped as it is in the darkness of sin, and sorrow, and pain, is to be lighted with the knowledge of God’s love. From no sect, rank, or class of people is the light shining from heaven’s throne to be excluded.

“The message of hope and mercy is to be carried to the ends of the earth. Whosoever will, may reach forth and take hold of God’s strength and make peace with Him, and he shall make peace. No longer are the heathen to be wrapped in midnight darkness. The gloom is to disappear before the bright beams of the Sun of Righteousness. The power of hell has been overcome.

“But no man can impart that which he himself has not received. In the work of God, humanity can originate nothing. No man can by his own effort make himself a light bearer for God. It was the golden oil emptied by the heavenly messengers into the golden tubes, to be conducted from the golden bowl into the lamps of the sanctuary, that produced a continuous bright and shining light. It is the love of God continually transferred to man that enables him to impart light. Into the hearts of all who are united to God by faith the golden oil of love flows freely, to shine out again in good works, in real, heartfelt service for God.

“In the great and measureless gift of the Holy Spirit are contained all of heaven’s resources. It is not because of any restriction on the part of God that the riches of His grace do not flow earthward to men. If all were willing to receive, all would become filled with His Spirit.

“It is the privilege of every soul to be a living channel through which God can communicate to the world the treasures of His grace, the unsearchable riches of Christ. There is nothing that Christ desires so much as agents who will represent to the world His Spirit and character. There is nothing that the world needs so much as the manifestation through humanity of the Saviour’s love. All heaven is waiting for channels through which can be poured the holy oil to be a joy and blessing to human hearts.

“Christ has made every provision that His church shall be a transformed body, illumined with the Light of the world, possessing the glory of Emmanuel. It is His purpose that every Christian shall be surrounded with a spiritual atmosphere of light and peace. He desires that we shall reveal His own joy in our lives.

“The indwelling of the Spirit will be shown by the outflowing of heavenly love. The divine fullness will flow through the consecrated human agent, to be given forth to others.” Christ’s Object Lessons, 415–419.

Love is Powerful

The love of God in our hearts will begin to impel us to do something for the salvation of our fellow men. Nobody can do everything, because God has not given all the talents to any one person, but everybody can do something. The question is, Are we doing what we can do? Jesus said, concerning Mary Magdalene, “She has done what she could.” Mark 14:8. In the day of judgment, will it be said, concerning you and me, “That person has done what he or she could?” When we have the love of God in our hearts, all of us can do a very great deal, because love is powerful. In fact, it is the most powerful force in the universe, as the following quotation shows.

“Love cannot live without action, and every act increases, strengthens, and extends it. Love will gain the victory when argument and authority are powerless. Love works not for profit nor reward; yet God has ordained that great gain shall be the certain result of every labor of love. It is diffusive in its nature and quiet in its operation, yet strong and mighty in its purpose to overcome great evils. It is melting and transforming in its influence, and will take hold of the lives of the sinful and affect their hearts when every other means has proved unsuccessful. Wherever the power of intellect, of authority, or of force is employed, and love is not manifestly present, the affections and will of those whom we seek to reach assume a defensive, repelling position, and their strength of resistance is increased. Jesus was the Prince of Peace. He came into the world to bring resistance and authority into subjection to Himself. Wisdom and strength He could command, but the means He employed with which to overcome evil were the wisdom and strength of love. Suffer nothing to divide your interest from your present work until God shall see fit to give you another piece of work in the same field. Seek not for happiness, for it is never to be found by seeking for it. Go about your duty. Let faithfulness mark all your doings, and be clothed with humility.” Testimonies, vol. 2, 135.

Strongest Human Impulse

When we have the love of God in our hearts so that we love the world the way Christ loved it, then Christ’s mission for us is complete, and we are ready to go to heaven! In fact, we have heaven already in our hearts! (The Desire of Ages, 641.)

This is no small order of change for us, because: “Selfishness is the strongest and most general of human impulses, the struggle of the soul between sympathy and covetousness is an unequal contest; for while selfishness is the strongest passion, love and benevolence are too often the weakest, and as a rule the evil gains the victory. Therefore in our labors and gifts for God’s cause, it is unsafe to be controlled by feeling or impulse.” Counsels on Stewardship, 25.

“A constant battle must be kept up with the selfishness and corruption of the human heart.” Manual for Canvassers, 60.

“Selfishness girds many about as with iron bands. It is ‘my farm,’ ‘my goods,’ ‘my trade,’ ‘my merchandise.’ Even the claims of common humanity are disregarded by them. Men and women professing to be waiting and loving the appearing of their Lord are shut up to self. The noble, the godlike, they have parted with. The love of the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, the pride of life, have so fastened upon them that they are blinded. They are corrupted by the world and discern it not. They talk of love to God, but their fruits show not the love they express. They rob Him in tithes and offerings, and the withering curse of God is upon them. The truth has been illuminating their pathway on every side. God has wrought wonderfully in the salvation of souls in their own households, but where are their offerings, presented to Him in grateful thanks for all His tokens of mercy to them? Many of them are as unthankful as the brute creation. The sacrifice for man was infinite, beyond the comprehension of the strongest intellect, yet men who claim to be partakers of these heavenly benefits, which were brought to them at so great a cost, are too thoroughly selfish to make any real sacrifice for God. Their minds are upon the world, the world, the world.” Testimonies, vol. 2, 197, 198.

“Schism and division are not the fruits of righteousness; they are of the wicked one. The great hindrance to our advancement at this time is the selfishness that prevents believers from having true fellowship with one another. The last prayer that Christ offered for His disciples before His trial was that they might be one in Him. Satan is determined that this oneness shall not be, for it is the strongest witness that can be borne that God did indeed send His Son to reconcile the world to heaven.—Letter 41, February 24, 1903, to Dr. F. E. Braucht, a physician laboring in Chicago.” The Upward Look, 69.

Needed Change of Heart

How are we going to acquire the change in heart that we so desperately need so the devil may be forced to quit mocking Christ by the lives of His professed followers? This is what the devil is saying to the Lord about us now:

“Satan urges before God his accusations against them, declaring that they have by their sins forfeited the divine protection, and claiming the right to destroy them as transgressors. He pronounces them just as deserving as himself of exclusion from the favor of God. ‘Are these,’ he says, ‘the people who are to take my place in heaven and the place of the angels who united with me? While they profess to obey the law of God, have they kept its precepts? Have they not been lovers of self more than of God? Have they not placed their own interests above His service? Have they not loved the things of the world? Look at the sins which have marked their lives. Behold their selfishness, their malice, their hatred toward one another.’ ” Testimonies, vol. 5, 473, 474.

Counsel Given

Divine counsel is given for people in our condition:

  1. Because of our great need for a change of heart, we are counseled to pray every day to be delivered from selfishness: “Let our daily prayer go up to God that He will divest us of selfishness. . . .” Our High Calling, 242.
  2. Begin to practice self-denial for the good of others.

“What can I say to you, my brethren and sisters, that will arouse you to the importance of the times in which we live, and lead you to a faithful examination of heart and life? Are your lives in harmony with the life of sacrifice that Christ lived on the earth? In giving his Son to the human race, the Father gave to his church a wonderful example of self-forgetting love. Christ came that he might open to the comprehension of men and women the principles that underlie the great plan of redemption, that they might be led to cooperate with him in his work of sacrifice for the salvation of mankind. But the want of fervor, the lack of self-denial, on the part of many who bear Christ’s name, hinder the doing of the very work for which his church on earth was organized. The selfishness and indifference manifested by professing Christians soothes the consciences of many who would be aroused from their unbelief, had they before them in the lives of professing Christians, a living witness to the power of the gospel to transform the character.

“Self-sacrifice is the key-note of Christ’s teachings. Often this is enjoined upon believers in language that seems authoritative, because there is no other way to save men than to cut them away from their life of selfishness. Christ gave, in his life on earth, a true representation of the power of the gospel. He suffered the cruel death on the cross, that we might have a true conception of his love for us, and of the spirit of self-sacrifice that must take possession of every believer in him. He became poor that we through his poverty might be made rich. To every soul who will suffer with him in resistance of sin, in labor for his cause, in self-denial for the good of others, he promises a part in the eternal reward of the righteous. Through the exercise of the spirit that characterized his life-work, we are to become partakers of his nature. Partaking in this life of sacrifice for the sake of others, we shall share with him in the life to come the ‘far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.’ [11 Co-rinthians 4:17.]” Review and Herald, September 28, 1911.

  1. Do something active to help people who are suffering.

“There is a great work to be done in our world, and as we approach the close of earth’s history, it does not lessen in the least degree; but when the perfect love of God is in the heart, wonderful things will be done. Christ will be in the heart of the believer as a well of water springing up unto everlasting life. But those who manifest indifference to the suffering ones of humanity will be charged with indifference to Jesus Christ in the person of his suffering saints. Nothing saps spirituality from the soul more quickly than to inclose it in selfishness and self-caring. Those who indulge self and neglect to care for the souls and bodies of those for whom Christ has given his life, are not eating of the bread of life, nor drinking of the water of the well of salvation. They are dry and sapless, like a tree that bears no fruit. They are spiritual dwarfs, who consume their means of self; but ‘whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.’ [Galatians 6:7.]” Ibid., January 15, 1895.

  1. Practice economy, so you will have money to give to the Lord’s cause in the world and be faithful in returning to the Lord His own in tithes and offerings.

“God calls upon his people to awake to their responsibilities. A flood of light is shining from his Word, and there must be a meeting of neglected obligations. When these are met, by giving to the Lord his own in tithes and offerings, the way will be opened for the world to hear the message that the Lord designs it to hear. If our people had the love of God in the heart, if every church-member were imbued with the spirit of self-sacrifice, there would be no lack of funds for home and foreign missions; our resources would be multiplied; a thousand doors of usefulness would be opened; and we should be invited to enter. Had the purpose of God been carried out in giving the message of mercy to the world, Christ would have come, and the saints would have received their welcome into the city of God.

“If ever there was a time when sacrifices should be made, it is now. My brethren and sisters, practise economy in your homes. Put away the idols that you have placed before God. Give up your selfish pleasures. Do not, I beg of you, spend means in embellishing your houses; for your money belongs to God, and to him you must give an account for its use. Do not use the Lord’s money to gratify the fancies of your children. Teach them that God has a claim on all they possess, and that nothing can ever cancel this claim.

“Money is a needed treasure. Do not lavish it upon those who need it not. Some one needs your willing gifts. There are those in the world who are hungry, starving. You may say, I can not feed them all. But by practising Christ’s lessons of economy, you can feed one. ‘Gather up the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost.’ [John 6:12.] These words were spoken by him whose power wrought a miracle to supply the needs of a hungry multitude.

“If you have extravagant habits, cut them away from your life at once. Unless you do this, you will be bankrupt for eternity. Habits of economy, industry, and sobriety, are a better portion for your children than a rich dowry.” Review and Herald, December 24, 1903.

“But ‘if thou forbear to deliver them that are drawn unto death, and those that are ready to be slain; if thou sayest, Behold, we knew it not; doth not He that pondereth the heart consider it? and He that keepeth thy soul, doth not He know it? and shall not He render to every man according to his works?’ Proverbs 24:11, 12. In the great Judgment day, those who have not worked for Christ, who have drifted along thinking of themselves, caring for themselves, will be placed by the Judge of the whole earth with those who did evil. They receive the same condemnation.” The Desire of Ages, 641.

“To men he offers the kingdom of this world on condition that they will acknowledge his supremacy. He requires that they sacrifice integrity, disregard conscience, indulge selfishness. Christ bids them seek first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; but Satan walks by their side and says: Whatever may be true in regard to life eternal, in order to make a success in this world you must serve me. I hold your welfare in my hands. I can give you riches, pleasures, honor, and happiness. Hearken to my counsel. Do not allow yourselves to be carried away with whimsical notions of honesty or self-sacrifice. I will prepare the way before you. Thus multitudes are deceived. They consent to live for the service of self, and Satan is satisfied. While he allures them with the hope of worldly dominion, he gains dominion over the soul. But he offers that which is not his to bestow, and which is soon to be wrested from him. In return he beguiles them of their title to the inheritance of the sons of God.” Ibid., 130.

Our Influence

If we are not working for Christ by helping to save a lost world, if we are drifting along thinking about ourselves, caring for ourselves, serving ourselves, we are in as lost a condition as any evildoer. Many of us need to ask ourselves if we are not in a lost condition by our failure to be active in the cause of Christ.

We each have an influence. To every soul a trust is given. Someone is either going to be saved or lost because of our influence. What is our influence in our family? in our local church? in our workplace? among our social acquaintances? Someday, the Judge of all the earth is going to ask us to give an account of our influence. He is going to ask us where those people are whom He gave us to influence. “Of everyone the Chief Shepherd will demand, ‘Where is the flock that was given thee, thy beautiful flock?’ And ‘what wilt thou say when He shall punish thee?’ Jeremiah 13:20, 21.” Ibid., 641.

Pastor John Grosboll is Director of Steps to Life and pastors the Prairie Meadows Church in Wichita, Kansas.

Don’t Turn Back!

After the flood came and took them all away, the earth was as desolate as were those who, in the spiritual sense, had been taken away by the judgments of God. The apostasy became so bad in Noah’s day that only eight were saved off the whole earth! Had it not been for Noah’s unfailing courage and unselfish dedication, the whole world would have been lost. God, in His eternal mercy gave man another chance, and the world was washed clean and new.

“To re-people the desolate earth, which the Flood had so lately swept from its moral corruption, God had preserved but one family, the household of Noah . . . Yet in the three sons of Noah was speedily developed the same great distinction seen in the world before the Flood.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 117.

Very soon after the flood the apostasy started all over again. Through the family of Ham the agenda of apostasy, from within the camp, continued. Humans often try to figure out how to go their own way. We want “to do our own thing,” and get away with it. The days following the Flood were no exception. First the people had not taken God at His word when He said there was to be a flood. Then, they would not believe Him when He said there would not be another!

In the undertaking of raising up the Tower of Babel, “the people were fully united in their Heaven-daring undertaking . . . Their confederacy was founded in rebellion; a kingdom established for self-exaltation, but in which God was to have no rule or honor. Had this confederacy been permitted, a mighty power would have borne sway to banish righteousness—and with it peace, happiness, and security—from the earth. For the divine statutes, which are ‘holy and just and good’ (Romans 7:12), men were endeavoring to substitute laws to suit the purpose of their own selfish and cruel hearts.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 123.

“The very last deception of Satan will be to make of none effect the testimony of the Spirit of God . . . Satan will work ingeniously, in different ways and through different agencies, to unsettle the confidence of God’s remnant people in the true testimony.” Selected Messages, vol. 2, 78.

 

Babylon is Born

 

“But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.” Matthew 24:37. How true are these words. Babylon found its birth on the plains of Shinar. The essence of Babylon is to make of none effect the true testimony; to replace the true testimony with the opinions and rebellions of men. It wants to shake the confidence of God’s people in His Word, and turn away the present generation from the true God. To exalt self and to lead the people into idolatry, are Babylon’s goals.

“The whole undertaking [the building of the Tower of Babel] was designed to exalt still further the pride of its projectors and to turn the minds of future generations away from God and lead them into idolatry . . . The people rejoiced in their success, and praised the gods of silver and gold, and set themselves against the Ruler of heaven and earth.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 119.

This is exactly what is going on right now. The results demonstrated in the history of the Tower of Babel will be the same, without deviation, for the present generation if they continue to choose the same course. Sister White wrote: “We must as a people arouse and cleanse the camp of Israel. Licentiousness, unlawful intimacy, and unholy practices are coming in among us in a large degree; and ministers who are handling sacred things are guilty of sin in this respect. They are coveting their neighbor’s wives, and the seventh commandment is broken. We are in danger of becoming a sister to fallen Babylon, of allowing our churches to become corrupted, and filled with every foul spirit, a cage for every unclean and hateful bird; and will we be clear unless we make decided movements to cure the existing evil?” Manuscript Releases, vol. 21, 380. [All emphasis supplied.]

God is in the business of saving every single soul who will accept Him. God calls the wandering soul unto Himself through various methods and agencies. One who has the knowledge of God and then rejects it is far more guilty than one who has not come to the light of truth. It follows then that an Adventist is held in higher responsibility because of his profession to a higher knowledge. Our responsibilities increase with the privilege of greater truth. To be a leader in Adventism, a representative of Christ Himself, and misuse this office or mislead people, is to deepen one’s damnation! The claim to Adventism has very serious consequences, and the acceptance of leadership, the highest consequences.

In years past, God turned away from those who united in their apostate agenda and chose Abraham to carry out His will. Just so in this age, God turns from those who persist in apostasy, to men of His own choosing who will carry on the closing work. Abraham grew up “in the midst of superstition and heathenism.” The world beckoned on every side, but Abraham promptly answered God’s call. Because he was well acquainted with heathenism and idolatry he could view with sharp eyes the stark contrast between God’s way and the way of the world.

He became different from his friends and relatives when he answered the call, breaking many close ties that would have pulled him downward. It was by necessity that God asked him to separate himself from his former associates.

“Now that Abraham was, in a special sense, connected with heaven, he must dwell among strangers. His character must be peculiar, different from all the world. He could not even explain his course of action so as to be understood by his friends. Spiritual things are spiritually discerned, and his motives and actions were not comprehended by his idolatrous kindred.

“It was no light test that was thus 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. But he did not hesitate to obey the call . . . God had 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.

 

Conformity to World

 

Lot, Abraham’s nephew, was not as mature or wise as his uncle. I am sure Lot felt, as many of us perhaps have, that the influences of worldliness would not eclipse his dedication to God. Lot, by choice, settled in the thriving metropolis of Sodom. In this city of unchecked frivolity was found a society of “if it feels good, do it” inhabitants. A people that closely parallel the society of the present world. This was the society in which Lot chose to live. Maybe he felt he could do some good for these poor people, and perhaps bring a little religion into their lives. But as the years went by it was not Sodom who was being converted to Christianity, but Lot’s family who was being converted to heathenism.

“Conformity to worldly customs converts the church to the world; it never converts the world to Christ. Familiarity with sin will inevitably cause it to appear less repulsive. He who chooses to associate with the servants of Satan will soon cease to fear their master. When in the way of duty we are brought into trial, as was Daniel in the king’s court, we may be sure that God will protect us; but if we place ourselves under temptation we shall fall sooner or later.” The Great Controversy, 509.

The condition of Sodom had become so bad that it provoked the Lord to destroy it. Christ Himself came down to oversee the task and spoke about it with Abraham. He was willing to hold off the destruction of that thriving city for only ten souls, but there were not ten righteous souls in that city.

Lot had placed his family in association with those who scoffed at the Word of God. They did not believe that God paid attention to or would punish their crimes against His kingdom of righteousness. All of this had taken a toll on Lot’s family, and perhaps he did not even realize until the test came, that it was too late to improve his circumstances.

The angels arrived in Sodom on that last night, and were besieged at Lot’s house by a lawless crowd inflamed by the vilest passions, saying, “Bring them out to us that we may them (that is sexually).” Such is the perversion in the minds and lives of those who disregard God.

Lot’s family was warned of the destruction soon to fall, but they were reluctant to leave the city. How powerful the gravity of Satan’s deceptions over the human heart. In this generation, do we have less to fear from the effects of our own society? As many are running back to apostate conference churches, please read the next words carefully, and apply them to today. “The angels revealed to Lot the object of their mission . . . The strangers who Lot had endeavored to protect, now promised to protect him, and to save also the members of his family who would flee with him from the wicked city . . . Lot went out to warn his children. He repeated the words of the angels, ‘Up, get you out of this place; for the Lord will destroy this city.’ But he seemed to them as one that mocked. They laughed at what they called his superstitious fears. His daughters were influenced by their husbands. They were well enough off where they were . . . Lot returned sorrowfully to his home and told the story of his failure. Then the angels bade him arise and take his wife and the two daughters who were yet in his house and leave the city. But Lot delayed . . . He did not realize the terrible necessity for God’s judgments to put a check on sin . . . But for the angels of God, they would all have perished in the ruin of Sodom. The heavenly messengers took him and his wife and daughters by the hand and led them out of the city . . . Hesitancy or delay now would be fatal. To cast one lingering look upon the devoted city, to tarry for one moment from regret to leave so beautiful a home, would have cost their life . . . If Lot himself had manifested no hesitancy to obey the angels’ warning, but had earnestly fled toward the mountains, without one word of pleading or remonstrance, his wife also would have made her escape. The influence of his example would have saved her from the sin that sealed her doom. But his hesitancy and delay caused her to lightly regard the divine warning. While her body was upon the plain, her heart clung to Sodom, and she perished with it.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 159–161.

 

Spiritual Suicide

 

Brothers and sisters, we must understand that to once have left, or have been disfellowshipped from a church, for the reason of fidelity to God, and then to go back, is doing the same thing as Lot’s wife. We cannot afford to turn back unless we are obeying the truths and principles of God’s guidance. To return to a conference, self-supporting ministry or church that continues to demonstrate an agenda of apostasy is spiritual suicide!

Did you notice that the influence of Lot could have saved his wife? I can tell you this. If either my wife or I went back to a ministry or a church that was still preaching and promoting apostasy, we would go alone. This was part of our original wedding vows and our personal vows to our God. He must, and will always, come first in the life of true Christians and that means even above wife, husband or family members.

My friends, God understands your desire for fellowship. He shares that desire with you, and as quickly as He safely can, He wants to bring you into physical companionship with Himself, forever. But loneliness or a lack of fellowship will not excuse one from the consequences of disregarding the express requirements of our Lord. We are not to look back as did Lot’s wife! To do so would be fatal.

“It is only those who render perfect and thorough obedience to God that He will choose. Those who follow the Lord are to be firm and straightforward in obeying His directions. Any deviation to follow human devising or planning disqualifies them for being trustworthy. Even if they have to walk as did Enoch, [a representation of the 144,000] with God alone,—His children must separate from those who do not obey Him, who show that they are not in vital connection with Him.” Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, vol. 2, 1036.

My dear beloved friends in Jesus, once having laid your hands to the plow, do not look back, save to remember how God has graciously led you in the past.

 

Be Ye Separate

“Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, and will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.”

II Corinthians 6:14–18

“And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”

Romans 12:2

Be ye separate. The theme of a great separation runs through the Bible. There are only two sides—him that serveth God, and him that serveth him not. Those who serve God have chosen to leave behind anything that would separate them from Jesus. Those who love and copy the ways of the ungodly world around them have chosen a different path. Today, in the very last days of earth’s history, it is of the greatest necessity that we know which side we are on. For to choose to be partly on the side of the world is to be completely an alien to the side of Christ.

“The Lord, by close and pointed truths for these last days, is cleaving out a people from the world and purifying them unto Himself.” Testimonies, vol. 3, 52.

“It is God’s design to manifest through His people the principles of His kingdom. That in life and character they may reveal these principles, He desires to separate them from the customs, habits, and practices of the world.” Medical Ministry, 187.

“God’s people today are to keep themselves distinct and separate from the world, its spirit, and its influences.” Counsels on Health, 290.

How important is it that we as Christians separate ourselves from the world, its values, practices, and influences? Any concept that encourages laxity of Christian principles in this area is like a small needle that deflates the balloon of the entire Christian experience. In fact, the very biblical definition of a Christian is one who has separated from the sinful ways of the world.

“A Christian, as described by the Scriptures, is a person who is separated from the world in his aims and practices and is united with Christ—a possessor of the peace which Christ alone can bestow, finding that the joy of the Lord is his strength and that his joy is full.” In Heavenly Places, 168.

“Those who come out of the world in spirit and in all practice may regard themselves as sons and daughters of God.” Manuscript 11, 1901.

In other words, God regards as His followers only those who are willing to leave the world behind. Those who still grasp its ways with one hand, as Lot’s wife did, unwilling to give them up, are not His sons and daughters. In fact, our separation from the ways of the world is a thermometer of the depth of our Christian experience.

“The strength and spirituality of the people of God are manifest by the distinctness of the line of demarcation which separates them from the world.” The Southern Work, 17.

“There are conditions to meet if we would be blessed and honored by God. We are to separate from the world, and refuse to touch those things that will separate our affections from God.” The Review and Herald, January 2, 1900.

“Do you desire to become the sons and daughters of the Most High? Here is stated the condition of this great privilege. Come out, be separate, touch not the unclean. You cannot keep the fellowship of the world, participate in its pleasures, identify yourself with its interests, and still be the sons of God.” That I May Know Him, 310.

Each of us desires to be a son or daughter of the Most High, and God mercifully makes known to us how we can cooperate with the work He wants to do in us. He has not left us to stumble in the dark, seeking for acceptance with God. Instead, He has made the conditions plain, and one of them—a very important one—is separation from the world. “The condition of our acceptance with God is a practical separation from the world.” Counsels on Health, 51.

Practically speaking, what is separation from the world, and how separate are we to be? This revolves around our upholding and living the Law of God, which is trodden down by those around us. It involves our believing and teaching the great message of truth committed to us by God in His Word. And, just as importantly, it involves our living out this truth in our daily lives. Our daily lives must be in wide contrast to the habits and customs of those around us.

“We are not to elevate our standard just a little above the world’s standard, but we are to make the distinction decidedly apparent. The reason we have had so little influence upon unbelieving relatives and associates is that there has been so little decided difference between our practices and those of the world.” Testimonies, vol. 6, 146, 147.

“In the service of God there is no middle ground. … Let none expect to make a compromise with the world, and yet enjoy the blessing of the Lord. Let God’s people come out from this world, and be separate.” Our High Calling, 305.

There is no middle ground, no gray area. The distinction is to be decidedly apparent. In other words, by observing my daily life, I ought to be able to see without a shadow of a doubt that I am a follower of Jesus.

“We have a representation to make to the world of pure principles, holy ambitions, noble aspirations, that will distinguish us from all other people, making us a separate nation, a peculiar people.” God’s Amazing Grace, 249.

The principles given to us by the Lord are so high and holy that they should distinguish us from every other group of people.

“By waiting and watching, God’s people are to manifest their peculiar character, their separation from the world. By our watching position we are to show that we are truly strangers and pilgrims upon the earth. The difference between those who love the world and those who love Christ is so plain as to be unmistakable.” Testimonies, vol. 2, 194.

“We are called to be the Lord’s special people in a much higher sense than many have realized. The world lies in wickedness, and God’s people are to come out of the world, and be separate. They are to be free from worldly customs and worldly habits. They are not to accord with worldly sentiments, but are to stand out distinct, as the Lord’s peculiar people, earnest in all their service.” This Day With God, 248.

Do I stand out as distinct? This is an important question that each of us must answer. And yet it is a difficult question. It can be uncomfortable to stand out in the crowd, to be noticed for our convictions, to be different from our associates. For this reason, many people have chosen the easier route of, to a greater or lesser degree, conforming to the world’s styles and practices. And for this reason, we experience so little of the power of God, because we are not wholly on His side.

“Will separation from the world, in obedience to the divine command, unfit us for the work the Lord has left us? Will it hinder us from doing good to those around us? No; the firmer hold we have on heaven, the greater will be our power of usefulness.” In Heavenly Places, 312. God would not so clearly command us to separate ourselves from this world’s way of living if it were not for the best good of the upbuilding of His kingdom. In fact, “The reason we have had so little influence upon unbelieving relatives and associates is that we have manifested little decided difference in our practices from those of the world.” Fundamentals of Christian Education, 289. Obedience to God will not make us less effective in witnessing, but rather more. The world must see that ours is a religion that transforms the daily life.

Jesus told His followers that they would not be loved by the world. The natural human heart cannot understand spiritual things. True religion will not make us popular. However, the honest in heart will be attracted to the beauty of holiness. If people of the world see no difference between us and themselves, we have not reached the high standard of God.

It is true that a person can be very different from all around him, and still have a heart unsurrendered to God. Yet, it is equally true that when the heart is surrendered to God, we will respond in loving obedience by choosing the clean and pure and rejecting the polluted. There is no merit in being different of itself. What God asks is obedience, and because of the condition of the world around us, obedience automatically means being different.

This, then, is the special work we must focus on in this time. “There must be a straining of every nerve and spirit and muscle to leave the world, its customs, its practices, and its fashions. …” Selected Messages, vol. 3, 155.

Coming into line with God’s heavenly principles of life needs to be our top priority. Any worldly weight that anchors us down to this earth needs to be dropped overboard. Our lives must be searched for any hidden corner where the world has put down its roots, any area in which we are out of harmony with the life that Jesus lived on this earth.

The message of separation from the world has for a great part been lost sight of by most professed Christians. It is essential that we not neglect it now. In His great mercy, God has built the wall of separation between His pure people and the sinful world. Although many have hoped to break down this wall, they have not succeeded, but have merely succeeded in placing themselves completely on the enemy’s side. God’s separation between holiness and unholiness remains. It is our responsibility to be certain that all blinders are removed from our eyes, and that we know without a doubt on which side we are.

“The Lord Himself has established a separating wall between the things of the world and the things which He has chosen out of the world and sanctified to Himself. The world will not acknowledge this distinction. … But God has made this separation, and He will have it exist. In both the Old and the New Testaments the Lord has positively enjoined upon His people to be distinct from the world, in spirit, in pursuits, in practice; to be a holy nation, a peculiar people, that they may show forth the praises of Him who hath called them out of darkness into His marvelous light (1 Peter 2:9). The east is not farther from the west than are the children of light, in customs, practices, and spirit, from the children of darkness. This distinction will be more marked, more decided, as we near the close of time. …” That I May Know Him, 308. The distinction is a great one—so marked as to be unmistakable. And it will become more marked as we near the close of time, which certainly is now. Why is this? While the world’s people are sinking deeper and deeper in sin and lack of restraint, God’s people are to be coming higher and higher, always learning more of the character of Jesus, and rising to meet the standard.

This is not a time to relax our principles. It is not a time to enjoy what unbelievers enjoy. It is not a time to follow the fashions. It is not a time to let the world shape our recreational tastes, or to heap up treasures on this earth. This is a time to come apart and be separate. Which side will you be on?

Amy Pavlovik has been a teacher and missionary in Macedonia but her highest calling at present is mother to two year-old Naomi and helpmeet to her husband Mile Pavlovik, Bible worker at Steps to Life.