Is it Okay to Have a Merry Christmas?

The Tampa First Seventh-day Adventist Church, where I worship, presented The Messiah last Sabbath and it was a wonderful blessing to all.

Imagine this scenario, It’s a beautiful sunny Florida day. You call me and say, “William, lets go to the beach and enjoy a beautiful sunset.” I respond, “No way! Don’t you know that some pagans worship the sun, therefore we should have nothing to do with it!” Not very balanced thinking huh? Likewise just because there may be some pagan things pertaining to Christmas it should not keep us from worshiping the Son on that day! I have heard that Christmas is a Catholic holiday. Does that make it wrong? Just because you are not a Catholic does not mean everything they do or have done is bad. Catholics operate good hospitals all over the world where people of all faiths and beliefs receive compassionate care. If we are not Catholic does that mean that we should not have good hospitals just because they do? There are many good Catholics who pray every day. Should we refrain from prayer because Catholics pray? For the sake of time and space I shall not go on, but the point is, while many protestants reject Catholic traditions that replace the Bible, keep in mind, not all Catholic traditions replace the Bible and fact is, some of our own traditions may not be Biblical. Catholics are not always wrong and protestants are not always right. We should reject the traditions of man only when they conflict with the Bible. Fact is we all remember our own birthdays so why not remember Christ’s? Not that I personally celebrate Christmas as Christ’s birth as much as I just celebrate the fact that He came to our world to die for our sins.

So, just because people worship a sun or a tree does not mean that we can’t enjoy these things in their proper balance. We can take advantage of the Christmas holiday to share God’s love, peace and good will with others! Here are what others have to say:

Click here to listen to a response from Amazing Fact’s evangelist Doug Batchelor, on the tree reference to a quote in Jeremiah 10. Is it wrong to have a Christmas tree?

The following is from the chapter “Christmas” in the  book, The Adventist Home.

Chap. Seventy-Seven – Christmas

     Christmas as a Holiday.–”Christmas is coming,” is the note that is sounded throughout our world from east to west and from north to south. With youth, those of mature age, and even the aged, it is a period of general rejoicing, of great gladness. But what is Christmas, that it should demand so much attention? . . .  {AH 477.1} 
     The twenty-fifth of December is supposed to be the day of the birth of Jesus Christ, and its observance has become customary and popular. But yet there is no certainty that we are keeping the veritable day of our Saviour’s birth. History gives us no certain assurance of this. The Bible does not give us the precise time. Had the Lord deemed this knowledge essential to our salvation, He would have spoken through His prophets and apostles, that we might know all about the matter. But the silence of the Scriptures upon this point evidences to us that it is hidden from us for the wisest purposes.  {AH 477.2} 
     In His wisdom the Lord concealed the place where He buried Moses. God buried him, and God resurrected him and took him to heaven. This secrecy was to prevent idolatry. He against whom they rebelled while he was in active service, whom they provoked almost beyond human endurance, was almost worshiped as God after his separation from them by death. For the very same purpose He has concealed the precise day of Christ’s birth, that the day should not receive the honor that should be given to Christ as the Redeemer of the world–one to be received, to be trusted, to be relied on as He who could save to the uttermost all who come unto Him. The soul’s
                                                                           478
adoration should be given to Jesus as the Son of the infinite God.  {AH 477.3} 
     The Day Not to Be Ignored.–As the twenty-fifth of December is observed to commemorate the birth of Christ, as the children have been instructed by precept and example that this was indeed a day of gladness and rejoicing, you will find it a difficult matter to pass over this period without giving it some attention. It can be made to serve a very good purpose.  {AH 478.1} 
     The youth should be treated very carefully. They should not be left on Christmas to find their own amusement in vanity and pleasure seeking, in amusements which will be detrimental to their spirituality. Parents can control this matter by turning the minds and the offerings of their children to God and His cause and the salvation of souls.  {AH 478.2} 
     The desire for amusement, instead of being quenched and arbitrarily ruled down, should be controlled and directed by painstaking effort upon the part of the parents. Their desire to make gifts may be turned into pure and holy channels and made to result in good to our fellow men by supplying the treasury in the great, grand work for which Christ came into our world. Self-denial and self-sacrifice marked His course of action. Let it mark ours who profess to love Jesus because in Him is centered our hope of eternal life.  {AH 478.3} 
     The Interchange of Gifts as Tokens of Affection.– The holiday season is fast approaching with its interchange of gifts, and old and young are intently studying what they can bestow upon their friends as a token of affectionate remembrance. It is pleasant to receive a gift, however small, from those we love. It is an assurance that
                                                                           479
we are not forgotten, and seems to bind us to them a little closer. . . .  {AH 478.4} 
     It is right to bestow upon one another tokens of love and remembrance if we do not in this forget God, our best friend. We should make our gifts such as will prove a real benefit to the receiver. I would recommend such books as will be an aid in understanding the word of God or that will increase our love for its precepts. Provide something to be read during these long winter evenings.  {AH 479.1} 
     Books for Children Are Recommended.–There are many who have not books and publications upon present truth. Here is a large field where money can be safely invested. There are large numbers of little ones who should be supplied with reading. The Sunshine Series, Golden Grains Series, Poems, Sabbath Readings, [NOTE: REFERENCE IS MADE IN THIS ARTICLE TO NONCURRENT PUBLICATIONS. AS THE PRINCIPLES SET FORTH IN THIS CONNECTION ARE APPLICABLE TODAY, THESE SPECIFIC REFERENCES ARE LEFT IN THE ARTICLE.] etc., are all precious books and may be introduced safely into every family. The many trifles usually spent on candies and useless toys may be treasured up with which to buy these volumes. . . .  {AH 479.2}
     Let those who wish to make valuable presents to their children, grandchildren, nephews, and nieces procure for them the children’s books mentioned above. For young people the Life of Joseph Bates is a treasure; also the three volumes of The Spirit of Prophecy. [NOTE: EARLY E. G. WHITE BOOKS PRECEDING THE PRESENT "CONFLICT OF THE AGES SERIES."] These volumes should be placed in every family in the land. God is giving light from heaven, and not a family should be without it.
                                                                           480
Let the presents you shall make be of that order which will shed beams of light upon the pathway to heaven.  {AH 479.3}
     Jesus Not to Be Forgotten.–Brethren and sisters, while you are devising gifts for one another, I would remind you of our heavenly Friend, lest you should be unmindful of His claims. Will He not be pleased if we show that we have not forgotten Him? Jesus, the Prince of life, gave all to bring salvation within our reach. . . . He suffered even unto death, that He might give us eternal life.  {AH 480.1} 
     It is through Christ that we receive every blessing. . . . Shall not our heavenly Benefactor share in the tokens of our gratitude and love? Come, brethren and sisters, come with your children, even the babes in your arms, and bring your offerings to God according to your ability. Make melody to Him in your hearts, and let His praise be upon your lips.  {AH 480.2} 
     Christmas–a Time to Honor God.–By the world the holidays are spent in frivolity and extravagance, gluttony and display. . . . Thousands of dollars will be worse than thrown away upon the coming Christmas and New Year’s in needless indulgences. But it is our privilege to depart from the customs and practices of this degenerate age; and instead of expending means merely for the gratification of the appetite or for needless ornaments or articles of clothing, we may make the coming holidays an occasion in which to honor and glorify God.  {AH 480.3} 
     Christ should be the supreme object; but as Christmas has been observed, the glory is turned from Him to mortal man, whose sinful, defective character made it necessary for Him to come to our world.
                                                                           481
 {AH 480.4} 
     Jesus, the Majesty of heaven, the royal King of heaven, laid aside His royalty, left His throne of glory, His high command, and came into our world to bring to fallen man, weakened in moral power and corrupted by sin, aid divine. . . .  {AH 481.1} 
     Parents should keep these things before their children and instruct them, line upon line, precept upon precept, in their obligation to God–not their obligation to each other, to honor and glorify one another by gifts and offerings.  {AH 481.2} 
     Turn Thoughts of the Children Into a New Channel.– There are many things which can be devised with taste and cost far less than the unnecessary presents that are so frequently bestowed upon our children and relatives, and thus courtesy can be shown and happiness brought into the home.  {AH 481.3} 
     You can teach your children a lesson while you explain to them the reason why you have made a change in the value of their presents, telling them that you are convinced that you have hitherto considered their pleasure more than the glory of God. Tell them that you have thought more of your own pleasure and of their gratification and of keeping in harmony with the customs and traditions of the world, in making presents to those who did not need them, than you have of advancing the cause of God. Like the wise men of old, you may offer to God your best gifts and show by your offerings to Him that you appreciate His Gift to a sinful world. Set your children’s thoughts running in a new, unselfish channel by inciting them to present offerings to God for the gift of His only-begotten Son.
                                                                           482
 {AH 481.4} 
     “Shall We Have a Christmas Tree?”–God would be well pleased if on Christmas each church would have a Christmas tree on which shall be hung offerings, great and small, for these houses of worship. [NOTE: REFERENCE IS MADE IN THIS ARTICLE TO CURRENT BUILDING PROJECTS. AS THE PRINCIPLES SET FORTH IN THIS CONNECTION ARE APPLICABLE TODAY, THESE SPECIFIC REFERENCES ARE LEFT IN THE ARTICLE.] Letters of inquiry have come to us asking, Shall we have a Christmas tree? Will it not be like the world? We answer, You can make it like the world if you have a disposition to do so, or you can make it as unlike the world as possible. There is no particular sin in selecting a fragrant evergreen and placing it in our churches, but the sin lies in the motive which prompts to action and the use which is made of the gifts placed upon the tree.  {AH 482.1}
     The tree may be as tall and its branches as wide as shall best suit the occasion; but let its boughs be laden with the golden and silver fruit of your beneficence, and present this to Him as your Christmas gift. Let your donations be sanctified by prayer.  {AH 482.2} 
     Christmas and New Year celebrations can and should be held in behalf of those who are helpless. God is glorified when we give to help those who have large families to support.  {AH 482.3} 
     A Tree Laden With Offerings Is Not Sinful.–Let not the parents take the position that an evergreen placed in the church for the amusement of the Sabbath school scholars is a sin, for it may be made a great blessing. Keep before their minds benevolent objects. In no case should mere amusement be the object of these gatherings. While there may be some who will turn these occasions into seasons of careless levity, and whose minds will not receive the divine impress, to other minds and characters
                                                                           483
these seasons will be highly beneficial. I am fully satisfied that innocent substitutes can be devised for many gatherings that demoralize.  {AH 482.4} 
     Provide Innocent Enjoyment for the Day.–Will you not arise, my Christian brethren and sisters, and gird yourselves for duty in the fear of God, so arranging this matter that it shall not be dry and uninteresting, but full of innocent enjoyment that shall bear the signet of Heaven? I know the poorer class will respond to these suggestions. The most wealthy should also show an interest and bestow their gifts and offerings proportionate to the means with which God has entrusted them. Let there be recorded in the heavenly books such a Christmas as has never yet been seen because of the donations which shall be given for the sustaining of the work of God and the upbuilding of His kingdom.

The Divinity and Humanity of Christ

I am writing today from the beautiful Tampa Bay area.

Here is the study for Tuesday’s Group Bible Study. At the request of one of our students we are exploring the humanity and divinity of Christ. Many find I a mystery how Jesus could be 100% man and 100% God all at the same time. The math seems a little fuzzy there. A country gospel song I heard a while back explains it best I think. In the song Jesus in the temple visiting the teachers, who ask Him how old He is. In the song he answers, “On my mother’s side I am 12 years old. On my Father’s side I am the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end.”

 

 

The Human Nature of Jesus

 

John 1:1-3, 14 —————————- Did Jesus really become flesh?

Hebrews 2:14-17 ——————————— Who was He made like?

Romans 1:1-3 —————— Who was one of His earthly ancestors?

Romans 8:3, 4 ——– What type of flesh did He take upon Himself?

1 John 4:3 ——————— What does the spirit of antichrist deny?

NOTE: The word flesh here always refers to fallen flesh. Never once

is it used in reference to unfallen, sinless flesh.

Philippians 2:5-7 ————- Who was Jesus made in the likeness of?

NOTE: The phrase “made Himself of no reputation” means literally

“emptied Himself.” When He became man, He emptied Himself of

His Godly powers to meet the Devil on the same ground we must meet

him on. These three powers were His omniscience (all knowing),

omnipotence (all powerful), and omnipresence (all present).

Mark 13:32 – Did Jesus still know all things while in His human form?

John 5:19, 30 ——— How only was He able to do the things He did?

John 8:28 ——————- How much was He able to do on His own?

Matthew 26:39, 42 - To Whom did He always keep His will submitted?

Revelation 3:21 ——————————– How are we to overcome?

James 4:7 ——————————– What are we called upon to do?

Here is a parting thought: On the cross Christ was completely man and completely God. While everyone was mocking and crucifying Him one man turned to Him and repented. Christ then used his divine right to forgive sin. He never used His divinity to save Himself, only to save others. He gave up all divine rights on the cross, save the right to forgive sinners.

Please click here for a Desire of Ages study on the divinity and humanity of Christ.

You may find more studies and devotionals at http://www.InLightOfTheCross.com

How Jesus Taught us to Pray

I am writing today from the beautiful Tampa Bay area.

In our small group Bible study last Tuesday we looked at the Lord’s prayer and our payer life.

 

And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites [are]: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.  Matthew 6:5-6

 

Jesus endorses both public and private prayer, but there is a difference. Public prayers should be simple and brief. In our private prayers we share more specifically what is on our hearts. For example, if Aunt Jane has started drinking and running around with men again we do not need to bring that up in public prayer. When we do this it is nothing more than gossip. We save this news for Jesus’ ears only. Also our private prayers have no time restraint. Jesus spent all night in personal prayer but did not spend all night in public prayer. When we have the morning prayer for church and pray a long prayer what we are telling everyone is that we have no personal prayer life, so we have to make up for it by making long public prayers. Jesus’ public prayers were very brief because He had a personal prayer life outside of public speaking.

 

But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen [do]: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.  Matthew 6:7

 

A vain repetition is when we recite words that do not come from the heart. Songs as well as prayers can be vain repetitions if we are not singing from the heart. God wants us to share our hearts with Him not just our lips. I love the way one author puts it:

 

“Keep your wants, your joys, your sorrows, your cares, and your fears before God. You cannot burden Him; you cannot weary Him. He who numbers the hairs of your head is not indifferent to the wants of His children. “The Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy.” James 5:11. His heart of love is touched by our sorrows and even by our utterances of them. Take to Him everything that perplexes the mind. Nothing is too great for Him to bear, for He holds up worlds, He rules over all the affairs of the universe. Nothing that in any way concerns our peace is too small for Him to notice. There is no chapter in our experience too dark for Him to read; there is no perplexity too difficult for Him to unravel. No calamity can befall the least of His children, no anxiety harass the soul, no joy cheer, no sincere prayer escape the lips, of which our heavenly Father is unobservant, or in which He takes no immediate interest. “He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds.” Psalm 147:3. The relations between God and each soul are as distinct and full as though there were not another soul upon the earth to share His watchcare, not another soul for whom He gave His beloved Son.” – Steps to Christ, p. 100

 

Remember God wants a relationship with us. He is not a vending machine, where we just tell Him what we want, get it and go. Also while many wonder why they do not get there requests in the time they would like there may be many reasons (See Psalm 66:18) but the biggest reason may be as simple as we are not God’s boss!

 

Let’s take a look now at the model prayer Jesus gave us. This prayer does not need to be repeated word for word. Many recite this prayer with no thought and thus it too becomes a vain repetition.

 

Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.  Matthew 6:9

 

We begin by acknowledging Who we are talking to. Yes He is our friend but He is also ruler of the universe and more than capable of handling any problem we may have.

 

Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as [it is] in heaven.  Matthew 6:10

 

God drove Lucifer out of heaven and He can do the same here on earth. God’s will can be done in our hearts, homes, and communities, as we pray for God’s will to be done in those places as well as in heaven.

 

Give us this day our daily bread.  Matthew 6:11

 

Jesus never asked for anything just for Himself. He also asked for the blessings of others as well as Himself. When Daniel’s prayer was answered in Daneil 2 it was not only his own life that was saved but that of all the wise men as well. When the disciples prayed Jesus to save them from the storm at sea, it was not just their boat that was saved from the storm but all those around them on the sea as well.

 

And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.  Matthew 6:12

 

Again no self or pride in Jesus’ prayer. He does not pray “forgive everyone else but as you know I have never sinned.” No, there is no pride in His prayer. Pride may allow us to pray on our knees while we are still standing in our heart.

 

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.  Matthew 6:13

 

Christ’s prayer concludes with again reaffirming Who it is we are praying to and acknowledging that He is more than able to care for all our needs.

In Preperation For Communion

A picture of the Lord’s Super, represenitng Jesus’ disciples all over the world. This picture is placed on the lobby wall of the Tampa First Seventh-day Adventist Church where I share the gospel in the beautiful Tampa Bay area.

In preparation for this coming Sabbath’s communion service, in our Tampa First group Bible study tonight we covered the chapter “In Remembrance of Me” in the classic biography on the life of Christ, The Desire of Ages. Those who are new to the faith as well as those who are seasoned members found this very inspiring and eye opening as we read and discussed this tonight. Everyone agreed it would be a blessing to share with the entire church in preparation for communion, so I have shared it below for your benefit. Please enjoy!

“In Remembrance of Me”

 

     “The Lord Jesus the same night in which He was betrayed took bread: and when He had given thanks, He brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is My body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of Me. After the same manner also He took the cup, when He had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in My blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of Me. For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do show the Lord’s death till He come.” 1 Corinthians 11:23-26.  {DA 652.1} 

     Christ was standing at the point of transition between two economies and their two great festivals. He, the spotless Lamb of God, was about to present Himself as a sin offering, that He would thus bring to an end the system of types and ceremonies that for four thousand years had pointed to His death. As He ate the Passover with His disciples, He instituted in its place the service that was to be the memorial of His great sacrifice. The national festival of the Jews was to pass away forever. The service which Christ established was to be observed by His followers in all lands and through all ages.  {DA 652.2} 

     The Passover was ordained as a commemoration of the deliverance of Israel from Egyptian bondage. God had directed that, year by year, as the children should ask the meaning of this ordinance, the history should be repeated. Thus the wonderful deliverance was to be kept fresh in the minds of all. The ordinance of the Lord’s Supper was given to commemorate the great deliverance wrought out as the result of the death of Christ. Till He shall come the second time in power and glory, this ordinance is to be celebrated. It is the means by which His great work for us is to be kept fresh in our minds.  {DA 652.3} 

     At the time of their deliverance from Egypt, the children of Israel ate the Passover supper standing, with their loins girded, and with their staves in their hands, ready for their journey. The manner in which they celebrated this ordinance harmonized with their condition; for they were about to be thrust out of the land of Egypt, and were to begin a painful and difficult journey through the wilderness. But in Christ’s time the condition of things had changed. They were not now about to be thrust out of a strange country, but were dwellers in their own land. In harmony with the rest that had been given them, the people then partook of the Passover supper in a reclining position. Couches were placed about the table, and the guests lay upon them, resting upon the left arm, and having the right hand free for use in eating. In this position a guest could lay his head upon the breast of the one who sat next above him. And the feet, being at the outer edge of the couch, could be washed by one passing around the outside of the circle.  {DA 653.1} 

     Christ is still at the table on which the paschal supper has been spread. The unleavened cakes used at the Passover season are before Him. The Passover wine, untouched by fermentation, is on the table. These emblems Christ employs to represent His own unblemished sacrifice. Nothing corrupted by fermentation, the symbol of sin and death, could represent the “Lamb without blemish and without spot.” 1 Peter 1:19.  {DA 653.2} 

     “And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is My body. And He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; for this is My blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father’s kingdom.”  {DA 653.3} 

     Judas the betrayer was present at the sacramental service. He received from Jesus the emblems of His broken body and His spilled blood. He heard the words, “This do in remembrance of Me.” And sitting there in the very presence of the Lamb of God, the betrayer brooded upon his own dark purposes, and cherished his sullen, revengeful thoughts.  {DA 653.4} 

     At the feet washing, Christ had given convincing proof that He understood the character of Judas. “Ye are not all clean” (John 13:11), He said. These words convinced the false disciple that Christ read his secret purpose. Now Christ spoke out more plainly. As they were seated at the table He said, looking upon His disciples, “I speak not of you all: I know whom I have chosen: but that the scripture may be fulfilled, He that eateth bread with Me hath lifted up his heel against Me.”  {DA 653.5} 

     Even now the disciples did not suspect Judas. But they saw that Christ appeared greatly troubled. A cloud settled over them all, a premonition of some dreadful calamity, the nature of which they did not understand. As they ate in silence, Jesus said, “Verily I say unto you, that one of you shall betray Me.” At these words amazement and consternation seized them. They could not comprehend how any one of them could deal treacherously with their divine Teacher. For what cause could they betray Him? and to whom? Whose heart could give birth to such a design? Surely not one of the favored twelve, who had been privileged above all others to hear His teachings, who had shared His wonderful love, and for whom He had shown such great regard by bringing them into close communion with Himself!  {DA 654.1} 

     As they realized the import of His words, and remembered how true His sayings were, fear and self-distrust seized them. They began to search their own hearts to see if one thought against their Master were harbored there. With the most painful emotion, one after another inquired, “Lord, is it I?” But Judas sat silent. John in deep distress at last inquired, “Lord, who is it?” And Jesus answered, “He that dippeth his hand with Me in the dish, the same shall betray Me. The Son of man goeth as it is written of Him: but woe unto that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed! it had been good for that man if he had not been born.” The disciples had searched one another’s faces closely as they asked, “Lord, is it I?” And now the silence of Judas drew all eyes to him. Amid the confusion of questions and expressions of astonishment, Judas had not heard the words of Jesus in answer to John’s question. But now, to escape the scrutiny of the disciples, he asked as they had done, “Master, is it I?” Jesus solemnly replied, “Thou hast said.”  {DA 654.2} 

     In surprise and confusion at the exposure of his purpose, Judas rose hastily to leave the room. “Then said Jesus unto him, That thou doest, do quickly. . . . He then having received the sop went immediately out: and it was night.” Night it was to the traitor as he turned away from Christ into the outer darkness.  {DA 654.3} 

     Until this step was taken, Judas had not passed beyond the possibility of repentance. But when he left the presence of his Lord and his fellow disciples, the final decision had been made. He had passed the boundary line.  {DA 654.4} 

     Wonderful had been the long-suffering of Jesus in His dealing with this tempted soul. Nothing that could be done to save Judas had been left undone. After he had twice covenanted to betray his Lord, Jesus still gave him opportunity for repentance. By reading the secret purpose of the traitor’s heart, Christ gave to Judas the final, convincing evidence of His divinity. This was to the false disciple the last call to repentance. No appeal that the divine-human heart of Christ could make had been spared. The waves of mercy, beaten back by stubborn pride, returned in a stronger tide of subduing love. But although surprised and alarmed at the discovery of his guilt, Judas became only the more determined. From the sacramental supper he went out to complete the work of betrayal.  {DA 655.1} 

     In pronouncing the woe upon Judas, Christ also had a purpose of mercy toward His disciples. He thus gave them the crowning evidence of His Messiahship. “I tell you before it come,” He said, “that, when it is come to pass, ye may believe that I AM.” Had Jesus remained silent, in apparent ignorance of what was to come upon Him, the disciples might have thought that their Master had not divine foresight, and had been surprised and betrayed into the hands of the murderous mob. A year before, Jesus had told the disciples that He had chosen twelve, and that one was a devil. Now His words to Judas, showing that his treachery was fully known to his Master, would strengthen the faith of Christ’s true followers during His humiliation. And when Judas should have come to his dreadful end, they would remember the woe that Jesus had pronounced upon the betrayer.  {DA 655.2} 

     And the Saviour had still another purpose. He had not withheld His ministry from him whom He knew to be a traitor. The disciples did not understand His words when He said at the feet washing, “Ye are not all clean,” nor yet when at the table He declared, “He that eateth bread with Me hath lifted up his heel against Me.” John 13:11, 18. But afterward, when His meaning was made plain, they had something to consider as to the patience and mercy of God toward the most grievously erring.  {DA 655.3} 

     Though Jesus knew Judas from the beginning, He washed his feet. And the betrayer was privileged to unite with Christ in partaking of the sacrament. A long-suffering Saviour held out every inducement for the sinner to receive Him, to repent, and to be cleansed from the defilement of sin. This example is for us. When we suppose one to be in error and sin, we are not to divorce ourselves from him. By no careless separation are we to leave him a prey to temptation, or drive him upon Satan’s battleground. This is not Christ’s method. It was because the disciples were erring and faulty that He washed their feet, and all but one of the twelve were thus brought to repentance.  {DA 655.4} 

     Christ’s example forbids exclusiveness at the Lord’s Supper. It is true that open sin excludes the guilty. This the Holy Spirit plainly teaches. 1 Corinthians 5:11. But beyond this none are to pass judgment. God has not left it with men to say who shall present themselves on these occasions. For who can read the heart? Who can distinguish the tares from the wheat? “Let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup.” For “whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.” “He that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body.” 1 Corinthians 11:28, 27, 29.  {DA 656.1} 

     When believers assemble to celebrate the ordinances, there are present messengers unseen by human eyes. There may be a Judas in the company, and if so, messengers from the prince of darkness are there, for they attend all who refuse to be controlled by the Holy Spirit. Heavenly angels also are present. These unseen visitants are present on every such occasion. There may come into the company persons who are not in heart servants of truth and holiness, but who may wish to take part in the service. They should not be forbidden. There are witnesses present who were present when Jesus washed the feet of the disciples and of Judas. More than human eyes beheld the scene.  {DA 656.2} 

     Christ by the Holy Spirit is there to set the seal to His own ordinance. He is there to convict and soften the heart. Not a look, not a thought of contrition, escapes His notice. For the repentant, brokenhearted one He is waiting. All things are ready for that soul’s reception. He who washed the feet of Judas longs to wash every heart from the stain of sin.  {DA 656.3} 

     None should exclude themselves from the Communion because some who are unworthy may be present. Every disciple is called upon to participate publicly, and thus bear witness that he accepts Christ as a personal Saviour. It is at these, His own appointments, that Christ meets His people, and energizes them by His presence. Hearts and hands that are unworthy may even administer the ordinance, yet Christ is there to minister to His children. All who come with their faith fixed upon Him will be greatly blessed. All who neglect these seasons of divine privilege will suffer loss. Of them it may appropriately be said, “Ye are not all clean.”  {DA 656.4} 

     In partaking with His disciples of the bread and wine, Christ pledged Himself to them as their Redeemer. He committed to them the new covenant, by which all who receive Him become children of God, and joint heirs with Christ. By this covenant every blessing that heaven could bestow for this life and the life to come was theirs. This covenant deed was to be ratified with the blood of Christ. And the administration of the Sacrament was to keep before the disciples the infinite sacrifice made for each of them individually as a part of the great whole of fallen humanity.  {DA 656.5} 

     But the Communion service was not to be a season of sorrowing. This was not its purpose. As the Lord’s disciples gather about His table, they are not to remember and lament their shortcomings. They are not to dwell upon their past religious experience, whether that experience has been elevating or depressing. They are not to recall the differences between them and their brethren. The preparatory service has embraced all this. The self-examination, the confession of sin, the reconciling of differences, has all been done. Now they come to meet with Christ. They are not to stand in the shadow of the cross, but in its saving light. They are to open the soul to the bright beams of the Sun of Righteousness. With hearts cleansed by Christ’s most precious blood, in full consciousness of His presence, although unseen, they are to hear His words, “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you.” John 14:27.  {DA 659.1} 

     Our Lord says, Under conviction of sin, remember that I died for you. When oppressed and persecuted and afflicted for My sake and the gospel’s, remember My love, so great that for you I gave My life. When your duties appear stern and severe, and your burdens too heavy to bear, remember that for your sake I endured the cross, despising the shame. When your heart shrinks from the trying ordeal, remember that your Redeemer liveth to make intercession for you.  {DA 659.2} 

     The Communion service points to Christ’s second coming. It was designed to keep this hope vivid in the minds of the disciples. Whenever they met together to commemorate His death, they recounted how “He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; for this is My blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father’s kingdom.” In their tribulation they found comfort in the hope of their Lord’s return. Unspeakably precious to them was the thought, “As often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do show the Lord’s death till He come.” 1 Corinthians 11:26.  {DA 659.3} 

     These are the things we are never to forget. The love of Jesus, with its constraining power, is to be kept fresh in our memory. Christ has instituted this service that it may speak to our senses of the love of God that has been expressed in our behalf. There can be no union between our souls and God except through Christ. The union and love between brother and brother must be cemented and rendered eternal by the love of Jesus. And nothing less than the death of Christ could make His love efficacious for us. It is only because of His death that we can look with joy to His second coming. His sacrifice is the center of our hope. Upon this we must fix our faith.  {DA 660.1}

     The ordinances that point to our Lord’s humiliation and suffering are regarded too much as a form. They were instituted for a purpose. Our senses need to be quickened to lay hold of the mystery of godliness. It is the privilege of all to comprehend, far more than we do, the expiatory sufferings of Christ. “As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness,” even so has the Son of man been lifted up, “that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.” John 3:14, 15. To the cross of Calvary, bearing a dying Saviour, we must look. Our eternal interests demand that we show faith in Christ.  {DA 660.2} 

     Our Lord has said, “Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink His blood, ye have no life in you. . . . For My flesh is meat indeed, and My blood is drink indeed.” John 6:53-55. This is true of our physical nature. To the death of Christ we owe even this earthly life. The bread we eat is the purchase of His broken body. The water we drink is bought by His spilled blood. Never one, saint or sinner, eats his daily food, but he is nourished by the body and the blood of Christ. The cross of Calvary is stamped on every loaf. It is reflected in every water spring. All this Christ has taught in appointing the emblems of His great sacrifice. The light shining from that Communion service in the upper chamber makes sacred the provisions for our daily life. The family board becomes as the table of the Lord, and every meal a sacrament.  {DA 660.3} 

     And how much more are Christ’s words true of our spiritual nature. He declares, “Whoso eateth My flesh, and drinketh My blood, hath eternal life.” It is by receiving the life for us poured out on Calvary’s cross, that we can live the life of holiness. And this life we receive by receiving His word, by doing those things which He has commanded. Thus we become one with Him. “He that eateth My flesh,” He says, “and drinketh My blood, dwelleth in Me, and I in him. As the living

Father hath sent Me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth Me, even he shall live by Me.” John 6:54, 56, 57. To the holy Communion this scripture in a special sense applies. As faith contemplates our Lord’s great sacrifice, the soul assimilates the spiritual life of Christ. That soul will receive spiritual strength from every Communion. The service forms a living connection by which the believer is bound up with Christ, and thus bound up with the Father. In a special sense it forms a connection between dependent human beings and God.  {DA 660.4} 

     As we receive the bread and wine symbolizing Christ’s broken body and spilled blood, we in imagination join in the scene of Communion in the upper chamber. We seem to be passing through the garden consecrated by the agony of Him who bore the sins of the world. We witness the struggle by which our reconciliation with God was obtained. Christ is set forth crucified among us.  {DA 661.1} 

     Looking upon the crucified Redeemer, we more fully comprehend the magnitude and meaning of the sacrifice made by the Majesty of heaven. The plan of salvation is glorified before us, and the thought of Calvary awakens living and sacred emotions in our hearts. Praise to God and the Lamb will be in our hearts and on our lips; for pride and self-worship cannot flourish in the soul that keeps fresh in memory the scenes of Calvary.  {DA 661.2} 

     He who beholds the Saviour’s matchless love will be elevated in thought, purified in heart, transformed in character. He will go forth to be a light to the world, to reflect in some degree this mysterious love. The more we contemplate the cross of Christ, the more fully shall we adopt the language of the apostle when he said, “God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.” Galatians 6:14.  {DA 661.3} 

Thoughts on Loved and Loving: John’s Epistles Lessons 11 and 12

I am writing today from the beautiful Tampa Bay area.

Friday’s section of this week’s SS Lesson asks the question, “What do you do with the question of “calling sin by its right name”? How can we deal with wayward members without being judgmental or condemnatory? At the same time, are we not shirking our Christian duty if we don’t confront brothers or sisters in the church who are doing wrong? How do we deal with this difficult subject?”

 The word of God says, “Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and show my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins.” Isaiah 58:1 However please notice He says show my people their transgression and the house of Jacob their sins. God is not telling us to rebuke those who don’t know better, but those who are in the church, who have a knowledge of the truth. For example, in Exodus 25 and 1 Chronicles 15 we see that only the priests were to carry the ark and that it was to be carried on the poles. When the philistines raided the temple they took the ark back to their own temple. One of the funniest things I have read in the Bible is when their god Dagon kept falling over in front of the ark. Well the philistines decide they don’t want the ark and that they should send it back. How did they do it? Not at all like God had instructed. They handled it and put it on a cart drawn by oxen and sent it back. None of the philistines received any harm even though they did not follow God’s plan in moving the ark. They did not know any better. Years later though David is moving the ark and instead of moving it the way God had said he put in on a cart of oxen like the philistines had done. Uzza touches the ark and is struck dead. Why? Uzza knew better! David gets mad at God when he really should have been mad at himself, because if David had moved the ark the way God had said no harm would have come to Uzza, but no, David did not want to pattern himself after God on this but after the world instead. So God does not reprove those who don’t know better but he does require obedience from those who do. See 1 Chronicles 13

 It is not our mission to tell the world all that they are doing wrong. It is our mission to tell them about a God who loves them. As they form a relationship with Jesus we can teach them here and there as it becomes appropriate more and more about God’s love and His truth. (Isaiah 28:10, Matthew 28:19-20)

 A wise pastor told me a long time ago we are to be conservative towards ourselves and liberal towards others. We can show our wayward brother his error by just living a Christian life! Also I have found that when you pray God will open doors and actually have these “wayward” people ask you what is right and wrong. Wait for God to create opportunities instead of making them ourselves. Jesus says in John 5:17, “My Father worketh hitherto, and I work.” Jesus is saying He works where He sees His Father working and where His Father is creating opportunities to share the truth. Jesus shared the truth only when He knew it could be understood and appreciated. Often times He rebuked people not with His words but with His life which is a much more gentle and valid rebuke than words.

Sure He often rebuked with His words, but please read this from The Desire of Ages, P. 353    ”Behold,” said Jesus, “I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.” Christ Himself did not suppress one word of truth, but He spoke it always in love. He exercised the greatest tact, and thoughtful, kind attention in His intercourse with the people. He was never rude, never needlessly spoke a severe word, never gave needless pain to a sensitive soul. He did not censure human weakness. He fearlessly denounced hypocrisy, unbelief, and iniquity, but tears were in His voice as He uttered His scathing rebukes. He wept over Jerusalem, the city He loved, that refused to receive Him, the Way, the Truth, and the Life. They rejected Him, the Saviour, but He regarded them with pitying tenderness, and sorrow so deep that it broke His heart. Every soul was precious in His eyes. While He always bore Himself with divine dignity, He bowed with tenderest regard to every member of the family of God. In all men He saw fallen souls whom it was His mission to save.  

Please check out more of my studies and devotionals at InLightOfTheCross.com

Thoughts on Loved and Loving: John’s Epistles Lesson 10

I am writing today from the beautiful Tampa Bay area.

In Sabbath’s section of this week’s SS lesson we read, ““And this is the confidence which we have in him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us” (1 John 5:14, ESV).”

 

 

 To me the most thrilling part of prayer is, just knowing that God hears me. I am just a grain of dirt in this magnificent universe and yet He cares for me!

 

Last year my apartment lease was up and I singed a new lease. I asked about a free months rent for re-signing and they said no way definitely not. I singed any way. Meanwhile I had a burden on my heart and was sharing it with God. On the first day of my new lease I was walking to the apartment office to pay my rent. I was praying about my burden as I walked. All of a sudden I found myself telling God, “if You want me to do such and such have them give me a free months rent when I get to the office”.  I thought, there is no way that can happen. They have already told me no.”  I got to the office and gave them the check. The lady looked to enter it on the computer but then paused and said, “wait a minute, it is showing no rent is due this month from you.” She went into her boss’ office to confirm and then came back and said, “You owe no rent this month.” I can not explain this. I was told more than once when signing my lease there was no free rent. When I went in I did not ask but just gave them the check and they handed it back to me. What is more thrilling then a month’s free rent is that God heard my prayer!

 

 

Many moons ago I was a Literature Evangelist selling Christian books in Oklahoma. I was leading my division in sales. However in the summer I ran into a dry spell. Three weeks with no sales. I began to doubt my calling. I had been told before what a wonderful work being and LE was, but as I continued to go with no sales I could not help but doubt. I thought maybe it was a great work a hundred years ago when they did not have radio and television to spread the Good news. One day I was driving to Tahlequah Oklahoma to show a Baptist school principal the books. As I drove I prayed to God, “If I am still doing an important work for this time please let me know.” I drove on and got to the school and showed the man the books. He bought them! As he was writing out the check I was writing out the order. He paused as he wrote and said, “you know this is a very important work you are doing”. I thanked him but it did not really hit me as a direct answer to prayer until he paused again and said, “and especially for this time.” Chills went down my spine as I realized that this man was repeating the exact words I had used in my prayer! I went on and led my division in sales by the end of the year. What is more thrilling though is that God heard my prayer!

 

 

I have had many other direct answers to prayer. Many of them I cannot share because they involve other people who may not want them shared. Still, what is more important than getting what I ask for, is knowing there is a God who loves and cares for me, and even takes time to listen and care about what is on my heart, even though I am just a tiny speck of dust in His great universe! Of course He loves you just as much!

 

 

“Keep your wants, your joys, your sorrows, your cares, and your fears before God. You cannot burden Him; you cannot weary Him. He who numbers the hairs of your head is not indifferent to the wants of His children. “The Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy.” James 5:11. His heart of love is touched by our sorrows and even by our utterances of them. Take to Him everything that perplexes the mind. Nothing is too great for Him to bear, for He holds up worlds, He rules over all the affairs of the universe. Nothing that in any way concerns our peace is too small for Him to notice. There is no chapter in our experience too dark for Him to read; there is no perplexity too difficult for Him to unravel. No calamity can befall the least of His children, no anxiety harass the soul, no joy cheer, no sincere prayer escape the lips, of which our heavenly Father is unobservant, or in which He takes no immediate interest. “He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds.” Psalm 147:3. The relations between God and each soul are as distinct and full as though there were not another soul upon the earth to share His watchcare, not another soul for whom He gave His beloved Son.”  {Steps to Christ p. 100.1}

 

You can find more studies and devotionals at my personal Website: InLightOfTheCross.com

Thoughts on Loved and Loving: John’s Epistles Lesson 9

I am writing tonight from the beautiful Tampa Bay area. (notice alligator by the river bridge)

Thursday’s section of this week’s SS lesson asks the question, “What about folk who have never had the opportunity to hear the gospel presented in a clear manner? Are they all automatically lost? As you think about your answer, don’t forget to take into account God’s universal love for all humanity. How can you learn to better trust the Lord on this difficult question?”

 Sometimes I don’t think we realize how legalistic we are even when we think we aren’t. We just can’t imagine salvation being as easy as the Bible says. We dwell on the thousands who were lost at the flood while only eight were saved, forgetting that dumb animals were saved who simply did not resist the draw to the ark. The Bible never told us salvation was hard or is suppose to be hard. It is the way of the transgressor that is hard. Proverbs 13:15. 

We think we have left legalism and the works of the flesh when we tell people they can be saved if they understand and believe the steps to salvation. However in that case all we have done is transferred the legalism from the works of the flesh to the works of the brain. We quote Ephesians 2:8 and tell people we are saved by our faith, but that is not what that verse says. It says we are saved by grace. So many of us have things backwards. We look at Ephesians 2:8 and think that if we have faith God will recognize it and then give us grace. “Oh they believe in me so I will be graceful and save them.” Wrong! Our faith is in response to God’s grace, NOT God’s grace in response to my faith! At the cross Jesus saved us and gave us our free choice back. 

A few weeks ago I was sharing a verse in my Revelation Seminar from Acts 4:12, “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” A beautiful verse for sure but so many of us read that verse with a legalistic slant. We think that we must know that name and if we know it then we can be saved. That is not what the verse is saying. The verse is not saying that our salvation depends upon us knowing that name. We are saved by that name knowing us! There is no other name that knows or will save us other than Jesus Christ. I have had people lament to me that their wife or brother doesn’t believe in God. I tell them don’t worry, God believes in your wife and brother! 

In closing consider this passage from The Desire of Ages p. 638 “ Those whom Christ commends in the judgment may have known little of theology, but they have cherished His principles. Through the influence of the divine Spirit they have been a blessing to those about them. Even among the heathen are those who have cherished the spirit of kindness; before the words of life had fallen upon their ears, they have befriended the missionaries, even ministering to them at the peril of their own lives. Among the heathen are those who worship God ignorantly, those to whom the light is never brought by human instrumentality, yet they will not perish. Though ignorant of the written law of God, they have heard His voice speaking to them in nature, and have done the things that the law required. Their works are evidence that the Holy Spirit has touched their hearts, and they are recognized as the children of God. How surprised and gladdened will be the lowly among the nations, and among the heathen, to hear from the lips of the Saviour, “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these My brethren, ye have done it unto Me”! How glad will be the heart of Infinite Love as His followers look up with surprise and joy at His words of approval!”

You can find more studies and devotionals on my personal website at http://www.InLightOfTheCross.com

Thoughts on Loved and Loving: John’s Epistles Lesson 7

I am writing today from the beautiful Tampa Bay area.

 

This week’s SS lesson asks the question, “Some people are afraid of the idea that we are saved only by what Jesus has done for us. They say, if our salvation rests in Christ’s righteousness and not in our own, what’s to stop us from continuing in sin? How would you respond to that concern?”  

The solution is to find what it is that Jesus has saved us from. In other words, the Bible makes it clear we are saved by God’s grace alone, but what is it we are saved from? While it is true that God’s grace saves us from the grave it also saves us from a sinful lifestyle. However many times people only refer to God’s grace saving us from the grave even in cases where the context is not about the grave but plainly about a sinful lifestyle. Please allow me to share three examples.

 The first verse that is often used for this subject is Ephesians 28-9 which beautifully reads, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: [it is] the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” There you have it. Now works but God’s grace. Yet this does not mean that we can continue in sin without a changed life. The very next verse reads, “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.” So it is by God’s work, in other words borrowing from the question in the SS lesson it is “Only by what Jesus has done for us” that we now have good works. Also let’s examine the context of what Paul is talking about. Here is Ephesians 2:1-10 in its entire context:

 “And you [hath he quickened], who were dead in trespasses and sins: Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.     But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) And hath raised [us] up together, and made [us] sit together in heavenly [places] in Christ Jesus:That in the ages to come he might show the exceeding riches of his grace in [his] kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.    For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: [it is] the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.”

 The context is very clear that Jesus has saved us from a sinful lifestyle by grace and not by works, but too many times we take the “saved by grace” and apply it only to being saved from hell when that is not even a part of the subject at all.

  Paul uses the word ‘grace” in Romans 1:5 when he says, “By whom we have received grace and apostleship, for obedience to the faith among all nations, for his name.” The context here is grace giving us the power to obey. Nothing here about escaping death, Paul here is clearly talking about escaping a sinful lifestyle.

 In Titus 2:11-12 Paul writes, “For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world.” Again Paul is not limiting grace to saving us from death. As a matter of fact he is not talking about death at all. He is talking about grace saving us from a sinful lifestyle and empowering us to live a victorious life in the here and now. 

I read just recently in The Great Controversy when Martin Luther became a priest it bothered him how so many of the other priests professed piety, while practicing the most basest of sins and conversation.  While Martin Luther recognized that works do not save a man, he recognized too that the grace of God which alone we rely for salvation is what saves us from the power of sin as well as the penalty of sin. In other words, while our works will not save us from a sinful lifestyle, the grace of God will. 

Here is a previous post with promises from the classic book The Desire of Ages guaranteeing us victory! I have posted this before but every time I do someone writes who sees and appreciates it for the first time. I invite you to take a look! I also invite you to check out my personal website with Christ centered studies and devotionals.

Thoughts on Loved and Loving: John’s Epistles Lesson 5

I am writing today from the beautiful Tampa Bay area.

Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.  Matthew 5:13

I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.  John 17:5-17. 

In Friday’s section of this week’s SS lesson it states: “Some people, heeding the call against loving the world, isolate themselves from the world as much as they can, moving into monasteries or communities that are radically separate from the norm. Is this a good idea?” 

Some people try to take themselves out of the world to become “godly”. However Titus 2:11-12 promises us holiness in this present world. “For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world.”  

Fact is Jesus says we are the salt of the earth. In order for the salt to save or preserve the food it must be mixed with it. Here are some passages I have found in the Spirit of Prophecy that may help us be a blessing to the world without becoming “worldly”. 

Hearts that respond to the influence of the Holy Spirit are the channels through which God’s blessing flows. Were those who served God removed from the earth, and His Spirit withdrawn from among men, this world would be left to desolation and destruction, the fruit of Satan’s dominion. Though the wicked know it not, they owe even the blessings of this life to the presence, in the world, of God’s people whom they despise and oppress. But if Christians are such in name only, they are like the salt that has lost its savor. They have no influence for good in the world. Through their misrepresentation of God they are worse than unbelievers.–The Desire of Ages, p. 306. 

 

  And he went forth unto the spring of the waters, and cast the salt in there, and said, Thus saith the Lord, I have healed these waters; there shall not be from thence any more death or barren land. 2 Kings 2:21 

     In casting salt into the bitter spring, Elisha taught the same spiritual lesson imparted centuries later by the Saviour to His disciples when He declared, “Ye are the salt of the earth.” The salt mingling with the polluted spring purified its waters and brought life and blessing where before had been blighting and death. When God compares His children to salt, He would teach them that His purpose in making them the subjects of His grace is that they may become agents in saving others. . . . 

     Salt must be mingled with the substance to which it is added; it must penetrate, infuse it, that it may be preserved. So it is through personal contact and association that men are reached by the saving power of the gospel. They are not saved as masses, but as individuals. Personal influence is a power. It is to work with the influence of Christ, . . . and to stay the progress of the world’s corruption. . . . It is to uplift, to sweeten the lives and characters of others by the power of a pure example united with earnest faith and love. . . . 

     The polluted stream represents the soul that is separate from God. . . . Through sin, the whole human organism is deranged, the mind is perverted, the imagination corrupted; the faculties of the soul are degraded. There is an absence of pure religion, of heart holiness. The converting power of God has not wrought in transforming the character. . . .       The heart that receives the word of God is not as a pool that evaporates. . . . It is like a river constantly flowing and, as it advances, becoming deeper and wider, until its life-giving waters are spread over all the earth. . . . So it is with the true child of God. The religion of Christ reveals itself as a vitalizing, pervading principle, a living, working, spiritual energy. When the heart is opened to the heavenly influence of truth and love, these principles will flow forth again like streams in the desert, causing fruitfulness to appear where now are barrenness and dearth.  – Conflict and Courage, p. 224 

  “We as a people do not believe it our duty to go out of the world to be out of the fashion. If we have a neat, plain, modest, and comfortable plan of dress, and worldlings choose to dress as we do, shall we change this mode of dress in order to be different from the world? No, we should not be odd or singular in our dress for the sake of differing from the world, lest they despise us for so doing. Christians are the light of the world, the salt of the earth. Their dress should be neat and modest, their conversation chaste and heavenly, and their deportment blameless.  – Testimonies for the Church Vol. 1, p.424 

Now I would just like to share a thought of my own. While serving as a lay pastor in Texas I was always troubled by the several dark counties that we had there. I often prayed for opportunities to enter those dark counties and evangelize them. However, I  had so much to do in my own county I could never do that. Then a thought occurred to me. Maybe it is not my responsibility. Maybe rather than having thousands of Adventists congregate into one little Adventist community like Keene or Collegedale, God would rather have those people move out into these dark counties and plant new churches. Just a thought I would like to throw out before I go back to minding my own business now.

Thoughts on “Loved and Loving: John’s Epistles, Lesson 3

I am writing today from the beautiful Tampa Bay area.

Thursday’s section of this week’s SS lesson asks a very powerful question, “How can we learn to live with the tension of being sinners, and yet being admonished—very strongly in the Bible—not to sin?”

 

Many people will say the correct answer is to strive and try real hard knowing you still will never make it. Just do the best you can. That is pure legalism! At the same time victory can be ours.  The reality of God’s grace literally justifies us. Justification is our freedom from the penalty of sin which is death. It is my title to heaven. Justification is also, “me in Jesus”.  I was in Jesus when He lived a perfect life, so I am saved by His life. Romans 5;10. God also literally sanctifies us. Sanctification is my freedom from the power of sin, which is Christ in me. Colossians 1:26. This is my fitness for heaven.

 

Satan is full of lies on every side. He tells us if we sin too many times we cannot be forgiven. That is a lie! A broken and a contrite heart the Lord will not despise no matter how many times sin has broken that heart before. He also tells us that there will be no victory over sin this side of heaven. That too is a lie! Nothing is too hard for the Lord and with God all things are possible! Hebrews 4 is very clear that we have a Savior who can give us the grace in time of temptation so we can overcome. If we sin, we have a Savior who can give us mercy and forgiveness. This is why Paul in Hebrews exclaims, ‘How can we neglect so great a salvation!”

 

Many will say that legalism is trying to keep the law to very letter. That is not legalism, that is the gospel! Legalism is trying to keep the law in your own power for your own glory. The gospel is keeping God’s law by His power for His glory.

 

This is a lesson God has been trying to teach us from the very beginning. When Adam and Eve sinned they tried covering themselves by making their own clothes out of fig leaves. Notice in Genesis 3, after they made themselves fig leaves and aprons they still felt naked when God approached them. God then made coats of skin for them. This means a totally innocent animal had to die to truly cover their nakedness. Likewise our efforts will never cover our spiritual nakedness but the death of Jesus on the cross will literally cover our shame.

 

Later God tells Abraham I will make you the father of many nations. Even though God has promised, Abraham thinks he is the one who is going to make it happen. So he goes and takes Hagar as his wife. God says, no, that’s not what I was talking about Abraham. I promised and I am going to make it happen. God has Abraham circumcised. Now, to many, circumcision is nothing more than a barbaric ritual. That is because they don’t understand what God was telling Abraham by having him circumcised. God was basically telling Abraham, cast away your flesh. Your flesh and your strength and effort will never accomplish what I have promised to do Myself. By being circumcised Abraham was casting away his confidence in his own flesh and put his confidence in God. Abraham had to circumcise the part of his body he was putting his faith in. Philippians 3:3. God provided the child He had promised in the way He had promised.

 

Adam and Eve were not justified by their own works or even faith. Their faith did not save them. After all they were running from God when He justified them. Romans 5 tells us God justified us when we were still His enemies. Adam and Eve as well as everyone else has been justified by the faith of Jesus and not by their faith. We are justified not by our faithfulness to Him but by His faithfulness to us.

 

Abraham was being sanctified not by his promises but by the promises God made with him. Abraham had to get rid of self so God could literally sanctify him. Abraham was not sanctified by his faith in God but by God’s faithfulness to him.

 

Now we go to Mount Sinai. What we call a lesson on the Ten Commandments is actually God’s biggest lesson on grace! In Exodus 19 God tells the Hebrews I delivered you from Egypt and bare you on eagle’s wings. God is telling them your salvation from bondage is real and literal but you did nothing to make it happen, I did it all! You were totally helpless and I came down and delivered you. It is the same today. Our salvation from the bondage of sin is real and literal but we do nothing to make it happen. God does all the work for us and in us!

 

Properly understanding Exodus 19:5 is the key. “Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people.” That word “obey” in the Hebrew is the word “shawmah” which means to be attentive and listen. That makes more sense than just obey, as we don’t obey a voice, we listen to it. The word “keep” is the Hebrew word “shawmar” which means to cherish and tenderly regard. It is the same word in Geneses 2 when Adam is told to keep the garden. Now a covenant in the Bible is a one way promise. Today it may be a two party agreement, but in the Bible it was a promise. So what God is telling the Hebrews and the rest of us in verse 5 is this, “Listen carefully (obey) to my voice, and cherish (keep) my promises (covenant) so that I can make you something very special. Something you could never make for yourself.”  God then goes on and explains through chapter 20 that just as the Hebrews were saved from Egyptian bondage not by their efforts, but by the grace of God, likewise God promises that He will save them from the bondage of other gods, and from the bondage of false worship (commandments or ‘promises” 1-4). God promises them that just as he brought them out of the house of bondage (Exodus 20:2) that He will also free them from the bondage of unhealthy relationships in our homes and our communities (promises 6-10).

 

All of this is accomplished not by our works but by Christ working in and through us. See Romans 8:4, Colossians 1:26-29, Philippians 1:6, Galatians 2:20, Ephesians 3:14-21.

 

Even in the Greek and New Testament the word “keep” means the same when speaking of the Commandments. In John 14:15 where Jesus says, “If you love me keep my Commandments”, and in Revelation 14:12 where John writes, “Here is the patience of the saints: here [are] they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus” the Greek word “keep” is “tereo” which means to cherish and regard. The grace we find in the New Testament was actually there all along in the Old Testament. Jesus is telling us again in the New Testament what He was telling us Adam and Eve, Abraham, the Hebrews and all the world, “Cherish My promises and I will set you free. And in Revelation 14:12 we see that it is those who cherish His commandments that also Cherish His faith! Those who are kept pure and not defiled by anything other than the pure gospel found in the first 11 verses of Revelation 14 are not even saved by their own faith. They are saved by cherishing Jesus’ promises to be faithful to them!

 

Please let me share a solution for striving against sin. Don’t argue with yourself or anyone else as to if it can be done or not. I don’t debate theology anymore. I am in love with God and my love life is not up for debate! Let’s cherish the promises of Jesus and cling to His faith and not our own. He who has promised is faithful! See Hebrews 10:23 and Hebrews 11:11. It is Jesus who promises and it is Jesus who is faithful to make us just what He wants us to be, whatever that is! All I need to do is look to the Cross and fall in love with Jesus!

 

So while many people want to debate if we can stop sinning or not, I just want to fall in love with Jesus! Instead of wondering if I can be perfect or not I just fall in love with Jesus and cherish His promises that He can make me literally into something very special. Even more special than I even imagine possible! Ephesians 3:14-21.

 

 

I also want to share a quote concerning 1 John 2:1-2 that I believe to be very inspired and encouraging to me personally.

 

“If any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.” How careful is the Lord Jesus to give no occasion for a soul to despair. How he fences about the soul from Satan’s fierce attacks. If through manifold temptations we are surprised or deceived into sin, he does not turn from us, and leave us to perish. No, no, that is not like our Saviour. Christ prays for us. He was tempted in all points like as we are; and having been tempted, he knows how to succor those who are tempted. Our crucified Lord is pleading for us in the presence of his Father at the throne of grace. His atoning sacrifice we may plead for our pardon, our justification, and our sanctification. The Lamb slain is our only hope. Our faith looks upon him, grasps him as the one who can save to the uttermost, and the fragrance of the all-sufficient offering is accepted of the Father. Unto Christ is committed all power in heaven and in earth, and all things are possible to him that believeth. Christ’s glory is concerned in our success. He has a common interest with all humanity. He is our sympathizing Saviour.  {RH, September 1, 1891 par. 2}