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Ordination

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The City of Refuge

February 25 – March 2, 2024

Key Text

“For this reason I left you in Crete, that you should set in order the things that are lacking, and appoint elders in every city as I commanded you.” Titus 1:5

Study Help: The Desire of Ages, 812–815

Introduction

“The number of workers in the ministry is not to be lessened, but greatly increased. Where there is now one minister in the field, twenty are to be added; and if the Spirit of God controls them, these twenty will so present the truth that twenty more will be added.” Gospel Workers, 65, 66

Sunday

1 CHURCH RESPONSIBILITIES

1.a. When we join the church, how are we interdependent? Ephesians 4:15, 16

1.b.        Who is the originator of all gifts in the church, and how will understanding this help us honor each other? 1 Corinthians 12:11; Romans 12:10

Note: “The Lord desires His church to respect every gift that He has bestowed on the different members.” Pacific Union Recorder, December 29, 1904

1.c. Although all are brethren and sisters, what are some of the more important responsibilities in the organizational structure of the church? 1 Corinthians 12:28; Revelation 1:20; 2:1

Note: “God’s ministers are symbolized by the seven stars, which He who is the first and the last has under His special care and protection. The sweet influences that are to be abundant in the church are bound up with these ministers of God, who are to represent the love of Christ.” Gospel Workers, 13, 14

Monday

2 THE WORK OF THE APOSTLES/MINISTERS

2.a. What are the main duties of an apostle? How does Paul show he took this work seriously? John 21:15–17; 2 Corinthians 11:28

2.b.        How does the care of Paul for the believers show the extent of an apostle’s (minister’s) work? 1 Corinthians 4:17; Colossians 4:15, 16

Note: “Our ministers should plan wisely, as faithful stewards. They should feel that it is not their duty to hover over the churches already raised up, but that they should be doing aggressive evangelistic work, preaching the Word and doing house-to-house work in places that have not yet heard the truth. … They will find that nothing is so encouraging as doing evangelistic work in new fields.” Evangelism, 382

“Our ministers must not think that God has appointed them to hover over believers, or to tie themselves down to a business office. Let business men attend to the business, and let ministers be left free to labor in the camp meetings.” The Review and Herald, September 16, 1902

“God has no use for those who seek a safe and easy place. By an unreserved consecration we are to prepare ourselves for God’s service. Our ministers are not to hover over the churches, regarding the churches in some particular territory as their special care. Believers are to have root in themselves, striking firm root in Christ, that they may bear fruit to His glory. As one man, they are to strive to attain one object—the saving of souls.” Pacific Union Recorder, August 28, 1902

2.c. In the days of the early church, who would send forth the apostles? Acts 11:22, 23; 15:22, 25

Note: “God foresaw the difficulties that His servants would be called to meet, and, in order that their work should be above challenge, He instructed the church by revelation to set them apart publicly to the work of the ministry. Their ordination was a public recognition of their divine appointment to bear to the Gentiles the glad tidings of the gospel.” The Acts of the Apostles, 161

“Paul regarded the occasion of his formal ordination as marking the beginning of a new and important epoch in his lifework. It was from this time that he afterward dated the beginning of his apostleship in the Christian church.” Ibid., 164, 165

Tuesday

3 RESPONSIBILITIES OF LOCAL ELDERS

3.a. Aside from evangelism, nurturing churches, and other responsibilities in administration, what other work is highly important for an apostle to accomplish? Titus 1:5

Note: “Christ is about to ordain His disciples for their work. By these feeble agencies, through His Word and Spirit, He designs to place salvation within the reach of all.

“God and the holy angels beheld this scene with interest and with great gladness. The Father knew that from these men divine light would shine forth, that the words spoken by them as they witnessed for the truth would echo from generation to generation.” The Signs of the Times, July 18, 1900

3.b.        What are the duties of a local elder? Acts 20:28–31; 1 Peter 5:1–6

Note: “ ‘Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble.’

“But this does not authorize any one man to undertake the work of ordering his brethren arbitrarily to do as he thinks advisable, irrespective of their own personal convictions of duty. Nor are God’s chosen laborers to feel that at every step they must wait to ask some officer in authority whether they may do this or that. While cooperating heartily with their brethren in carrying out general plans that have been laid for the prosecution of the work, they are constantly to look to the God of Israel for personal guidance.” Testimonies to Ministers and Gospel Workers, 491

3.c. How versed should an elder be in the word of God? 2 Timothy 2:15

Note: “The cause of God needs efficient men; it needs men who are trained to do service as teachers and preachers.” Gospel Workers, 9

3.d.        Because the work of the elders is so important to the growth of the church, with what respect should we regard them? Hebrews 13:17, 18; 1 Peter 5:5. Why? 1 Corinthians 11:1

Wednesday

4 PROCEDURES IN ORDINATION I

4.a. How were candidates for ordination chosen in the days of the apostles? Acts 6:1–4; Titus 1:5–9

Note: “Let not our young men be deterred from entering the ministry. There is danger that through glowing representations some will be drawn away from the path where God bids them walk. … The Lord calls for more ministers to labor in His vineyard. The words were spoken, ‘Strengthen the outposts; have faithful sentinels in every part of the world.’ God calls for you, young men. He calls for whole armies of young men who are large-hearted and large-minded, and who have a deep love for Christ and the truth.” Gospel Workers, 63

“It is entirely wrong for teachers, by suggesting other occupations, to discourage young men who might be qualified to do acceptable work in the ministry. … There is among us more than an average of men of ability. If their capabilities were brought into use, we should have twenty ministers where we now have one.” Testimonies, Vol. 6, 135

“None but God can decide who shall engage in the solemn work [of laboring for souls]. There were good men in the apostles’ days, men who could pray with power and talk to the point; yet the apostles, who had power over unclean spirits and could heal the sick, dared not with merely their wisdom set one apart for the holy work of being mouthpiece for God. They waited unmistakable evidence of the manifestation of the Holy Spirit. … If it should be left to a few individuals here and there to decide who was sufficient for this great work, confusion and distraction everywhere would be the fruit.” Ibid., Vol. 1, 208, 209

4.b.        What preparation was required of the church, together with the apostles, before the ordination of Paul and Barnabas? Acts 13:1–3

Note: “Jesus, when preparing for some great trial or some important work, would resort to the solitude of the mountains and spend the night in prayer to His Father. A night of prayer preceded the ordination of the apostles.” The Ministry of Healing, 509

“Before being sent forth as missionaries to the heathen world, these apostles [Paul and Barnabas] were solemnly dedicated to God by fasting and prayer and the laying on of hands. Thus they were authorized by the church, not only to teach the truth, but to perform the rite of baptism and to organize churches.” The Acts of the Apostles, 161

Thursday

5 PROCEDURES IN ORDINATION II

5.a. How is an ordination performed? Acts 6:5, 6; 1 Timothy 4:14. Who does the actual ordaining? Acts 14:23

Note: “The apostles were led by the Holy Spirit to outline a plan for the better organization of all the working forces of the church. The time had come, the apostles stated, when the spiritual leaders having the oversight of the church should be relieved from the task of distributing to the poor and from similar burdens, so that they might be free to carry forward the work of preaching the gospel. ‘Wherefore, brethren,’ they said, ‘look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business. But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the word.’ This advice was followed, and by prayer and the laying on of hands, seven chosen men were solemnly set apart for their duties as deacons.” The Acts of the Apostles, 89

“God foresaw the difficulties that His servants would be called to meet, and, in order that their work should be above challenge, He instructed the church by revelation to set them apart publicly to the work of the ministry. Their ordination was a public recognition of their divine appointment to bear to the Gentiles the glad tidings of the gospel.

“Both Paul and Barnabas had already received their commission from God Himself, and the ceremony of the laying on of hands added no new grace or virtual qualification. It was an acknowledged form of designation to an appointed office and a recognition of one’s authority in that office. By it the seal of the church was set upon the work of God.

“To the Jew this form was a significant one. When a Jewish father blessed his children, he laid his hands reverently upon their heads. When an animal was devoted to sacrifice, the hand of the one invested with priestly authority was laid upon the head of the victim. And when the ministers of the church of believers in Antioch laid their hands upon Paul and Barnabas, they, by that action, asked God to bestow His blessing upon the chosen apostles in their devotion to the specific work to which they had been appointed.” Ibid., 161, 162

5.b.        Whenever the apostles visited a place and needed to speak to a church, with whom did they consult? Acts 20:17. How did the deacons’ ordination impact the church? Acts 6:1–7

Note: “That this step [the ordination of the seven deacons] was in the order of God, is revealed in the immediate results for good that were seen.” The Acts of the Apostles, 89

Friday

PERSONAL REVIEW QUESTIONS

1     Why is the work of the apostles so important to the church?

2     Why are ministers to spend little time in established churches?

3     How does living by example inspire respect for the ministerial office?

4     What qualifications should be considered in the examination of a candidate for ordination?

5     What is the meaning of the laying on of hands?

Copyright 2008, Reformation Herald Publishing Association, 5240 Hollins Road, Roanoke, Virginia 24019-5048, U.S.A.

Recipe – Panna Cotta with Mixed Berries

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Berries

Berries are usually juicy, round, brightly-colored, sweet, sour, or tart, and do not have a stone, although many pips or seeds may be present. Common examples are strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, cranberries, red currants, black currants, huckleberries, bilberries, and bearberries.

A true berry is a fruit which grows from one flower with one ovary. Cranberries and blueberries are considered true berries since they grow from flowers containing one ovary. Strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, cranberries, and boysenberries are considered aggregate fruits since the flowers they grow from have more than one ovary, so the fruit is actually dozens of tiny fruits growing together. These tiny fruits, or bumps, are called drupelets. The number of drupelets that make up the berry is directly connected to the number of times a bee has landed on the berry flower to pollinate it.

The tiny hairs on raspberries and blackberries are called “styles,” which serve to protect the berry from damage. The silver color on the exterior of the blueberry is called “bloom,” which acts as a natural barrier to seal in moisture.

Berries are bursting with nutrition. They average nearly 10 times more antioxidants than other fruits or vegetables, are high in flavonoids and vitamins, and provide an excellent source of fiber.

Berries are simple to add to your diet. Toss them in smoothies, sprinkle on cereals, incorporate into desserts, or simply enjoy them fresh from the vine.

Sources: minnesotamonthly.com/sponsored/10-fun-facts-about-berries; justfunfacts.com/interesting-facts-about-berries

Recipe – Panna Cotta with Mixed Berries

Ingredients

1 14 oz. can full fat coconut milk

¼ cup maple syrup, amber-colored, or brown rice syrup

1 tsp. non-alcoholic vanilla flavoring

¼ tsp. salt

½ tsp. agar agar powder or 1 Tbs. agar agar flakes

3 cups fresh or frozen mixed berries (blackberries, raspberries, blueberries)

Process

To a saucepan, add coconut milk, maple or brown rice syrup, vanilla flavoring, and salt. Whisk to combine. Bring to a gentle boil. Reduce heat to low, sprinkle in agar agar powder or flakes and immediately whisk well. Let simmer 2 minutes, whisking frequently. Divide mixture evenly between serving jars, place in refrigerator to set—at least 25-35 minutes—until bouncy. For fresh berries, warm in saucepan until tender. Add a little maple syrup for sweetness, if desired. For frozen berries, allow to thaw until no longer cold. Top panna cotta with thawed and warmed mixed berries and mint leaves.

The Original Mind

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Our study of Romans 8:3 over the last few months has been divided into four major parts. We have covered three of the four. Let’s do a quick summary.

Part 1

It was clearly seen that sinful flesh is the sinful nature, the fallen nature entailed upon man by Adam’s disobedience, and because of this sinful nature, man is unable to keep God’s law.

“Those who have permitted their minds to become beclouded in regard to what constitutes sin are fearfully deceived.” Testimonies, Vol. 9, 267. Mrs. White is writing to the church and its ministers, making this a truly terrible indictment of the church and its leaders. They have forgotten the spiritual nature of God’s law. Sin is the transgression of the law, but you cannot understand what sin is unless you understand the spiritual nature of the law; and if you don’t understand the spiritual nature of the law, then the relationship of the humanity of Jesus Christ to the law is also obscured. This is a major problem in Adventism. What was the relationship of the humanity of Jesus Christ to the law? “In His [Jesus’] humanity, He was the impersonation of the divine character. God embodied His own attributes in His Son.” The Youth’s Instructor, September 16, 1897

The dictionary gives four definitions for the word embody. They are as follows:

  1. To invest with or in a bodily form.
  2. To represent in a concrete form.
  3. To personify (a quality or concept in physical form).
  4. To make something part of a system or part of a whole.

What were the attributes of God that were embodied in His Son? “His power, His wisdom, His goodness, His purity, His truthfulness, His spirituality, and His benevolence. In Him, though human, all perfection of character, all divine excellence, dwelt.” Ibid.

Jesus was an exact replica of the divine character, born with the law of self-sacrificing love written in His human heart, full of holiness, grace, and the Holy Spirit. The law is a transcript of God’s character. Christ came as a man to be the embodiment of the law. He was the law of God, walking and talking, loving and caring.

In contrast, you and I are born with the law of selfishness written in our hearts and the natural selfishness of our nature is sin. “Selfishness is sin, and it grieves away the Spirit of Christ.” The Signs of the Times, April 13, 1891

Part 2

It was seen that the word likeness means “a form” and is therefore primarily referring to the body, the physical nature that the Father had prepared for Jesus. (See Hebrews 10:5.)

Paul wrote, “What the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh.” Romans 8:3. “The humanity of the Son of God is everything to us. It is the golden chain that binds our souls to Christ, and through Christ to God. This is to be our study.” The Youth’s Instructor, October 13, 1898. This is not talking about His divinity. However there are Adventists today who are as confused about Jesus’ divinity as they are about His humanity.

Great is the mystery of godliness. God was manifest in the flesh (1 Timothy 3:16). “Christ was a real man; He gave proof of His humility in becoming a man. Yet He was God in the flesh. When we approach this subject, we would do well to heed the words spoken by Christ to Moses at the burning bush, ‘Put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.’ We should come to this study with the humility of a learner, with a contrite heart. And the study of the incarnation of Christ is a fruitful field, which will repay the searcher who digs deep for hidden truth.” Ibid. This mystery is so deep that we will study it throughout eternity, but still will be unable to fully understand it.

Part 3

It was revealed that there are several warnings applicable to those who believe that the word likeness means “the same” and how this belief is a barrier to true justification and ultimately to sanctification, so the result is that a person never enters into the rest spoken of in Hebrews 4.

Confession is a prerequisite to justification. Without a correct understanding of what sin is, how can we make the type of confession that is required. Without justification there is no sanctification. The Sabbath is a sign that God is restoring—sanctifying—His righteousness and character in man by separating him from his natural selfishness.

“Let us therefore fear lest a promise being left us of entering into His rest, any of you seem to come short of it.” Verse 1. A spurious justification will lead to a spurious sanctification which will prevent one from entering into His rest, the true sanctification of the Sabbath. Someone might make an outward show of keeping the Sabbath, but if a person’s heart is not touched, they are only keeping the Sabbath out of a sense of legal obligation, and is not impressed with their need of being sanctified in preparation for the second coming of Christ.

Part 4

Our study of the fourth part of Roman 8:3 will show us how the first three parts relate to the offering of Cain and the idol sabbath or Sunday-keeping. “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest for Me; because you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.” Hosea 4:6. It may seem harsh when you first read this text, but God is speaking of a specific knowledge that, if lacking, demonstrates the inability to understand the spiritual character of the law of God.

“The law of God has been largely dwelt upon and has been presented to congregations, almost as destitute of the knowledge of Jesus Christ and His relation to the law as was the offering of Cain.” Faith and Works, 18

Mrs. White is saying that Adventist preachers have largely dwelt upon the law of God, but that their preaching is destitute of the knowledge of Jesus Christ and His relation to the law. When this was written, Adventist preachers had been preaching the three angels’ messages and the law of God for over 40 years, so naturally they thought that they understood it. Sadly, Mrs. White says they did not, and you cannot solve a problem if you do not recognize that there is one. Multitudes of Seventh-day Adventists today, like the Jews of old, have forgotten the relationship of Christ’s humanity to the law, and the result is that many are rejecting knowledge regarding this relationship.

Seventh-day Adventists have been entrusted with the oracles of God. They have been called to give the three angels’ messages to the world, to repair the breach that has been made in the law, which involves far more than just what day you go to church. However, because many people fail to see how the humanity of Jesus is related to the spiritual nature of the law, they present this relationship as the offering of Cain. Inspiration links the offering of Cain-type worship to both the Pharisees and to Laodicea. And my hope is that we will see that—just as the Pharisees of old accused Jesus of breaking the letter of the law, of being a Sabbath-breaker—Laodicea, who is spiritually blind (Revelation 3), is unwittingly accusing Jesus of breaking the Sabbath in its spiritual realm, presenting the law apart from Jesus.

What was wrong with Cain’s offering? “The sacrificial offerings were instituted to be a standing pledge to man of God’s pardon through the great offering to be made, typified by the blood of beasts. Through this ceremony man signified repentance, obedience, and faith in a Redeemer to come. That which made Cain’s offering offensive to God was his lack of submission and obedience to the ordinance of His appointment.” The Review and Herald, March 3, 1874

Cain obeyed by offering the sacrifice, but by offering the fruit of the ground, wrought by the toil of his own hands, he disobeyed, denying his dependence upon Jesus for salvation. Cain was not a humble man. He did not like expressing his weaknesses and sinfulness, nor did he accept that he needed someone else to save him. In giving the offering of his choice rather than the offering God required, Cain slighted the blood of the atonement. “Cain brought of the fruit of the ground unto God, instead of bringing the blood of a slain lamb, the type of Christ, slain for the sins of the world.” The Signs of the Times, June 1, 1891

What is the significance of the blood of the Lamb? The great promise—enmity between the devil and God’s church—and the prophecy—He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel—found in Genesis 3:15 is fulfilled by the blood of Jesus Christ. “By virtue of His blood the enmity is abolished.” The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, Vol. 5, 1109

“With Christ the enmity was in one sense natural; in another sense it was supernatural, as humanity and divinity were combined. And never was the enmity developed to such a marked degree as when Christ became a resident of this earth. Never before had there been a being upon the earth who hated sin with so perfect a hatred as did Christ.” Manuscript Releases, Vol. 16, 118

“This enmity is supernaturally put, and not naturally entertained. When man sinned, his nature became evil, and he was in harmony, and not at variance, with Satan.” The Review and Herald, July 18, 1882. Once man sinned, he was no longer in harmony with God, nor at variance with Satan. Satan had deceived angels and caused the downfall of Adam and Eve. He thought that he would have control over all of the human race, becoming the god of this world, and waging a worldwide rebellion against God with the full cooperation of all mankind.

But God said, “I am going to put hatred between you [Satan] and the woman [the church] and between your seed and her Seed [Christ].”

“When man sinned, all heaven was filled with sorrow; for through yielding to temptation, man became the enemy of God, a partaker of the Satanic nature. The image of God in which he had been created was marred and distorted. The character of man was out of harmony with the character of God; for through sin man became carnal, and the carnal heart is enmity against God, is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be [Romans 8:7].” The Signs of the Times, February 13, 1893

“By the transforming agency of His grace, the image of God is reproduced in the disciple; he becomes a new creature. Love takes the place of hatred, and the heart receives the divine similitude.” The Desire of Ages, 391. The definition of to reproduce is “to produce something that has been destroyed.” The reproduction of the character of God in man is the purpose of the plan of redemption.

Man’s nature had been ruined by sin, but God said that He would restore, through the humanity of Christ, His image, His character, in the heart of man.

“Man was originally endowed with noble powers and a well-balanced mind. He was perfect in his being, and in harmony with God. His thoughts were pure, his aims holy. But through disobedience, his powers were perverted, and selfishness took the place of love.” Steps to Christ, 17

When the divine similitude is reproduced, divine love takes the place of hatred in the heart. There is a direct reversal of what happened to man; God undoes what Satan did to man as a result of the Fall.

“When Satan heard that the Seed of the woman should bruise the serpent’s head, he knew that though he had succeeded in depraving human nature, and assimilating it to his own, yet by some mysterious process, God would restore to man his lost power, and enable him to resist and overcome his conqueror.” The Review and Herald, July 18, 1882

“Christ became a man that He might mediate between man and God. He clothed His divinity with humanity, He associated with the human race, that with His human arm He might encircle humanity, and with His divine arm grasp the throne of Divinity. And this humiliation [becoming a human being] on His part was that He might restore to man the original mind, the image of God, which he lost in Eden through Satan’s alluring temptations, that man might realize that it is for his present and eternal good to obey the requirements of God.” The Signs of the Times, October 14, 1897

“The excellence and value of pure love consists in its efficiency to do good, and to do nothing else but good. Whatsoever is done out of pure love, be it ever so little or contemptible in the sight of men, is wholly fruitful; for God measures more with how much love one worketh, than the amount he doeth. Love is of God. The unconverted heart cannot originate nor produce this plant of heavenly growth.” Testimony for the Church at Battle Creek, 37

The unconverted heart of man cannot originate or produce love. It is a gift that Jesus wants to give to you and it lives and flourishes only where Christ reigns. So divine love is the inherent power in the image of God.

“The law of God from its very nature is unchangeable. It is a revelation of the will and the character of its Author. God is love, and His law is love. Its two great principles are love to God and love to man. ‘Love is the fulfilling of the law.’ ” The Great Controversy, 467. When God embodied His own attributes in the humanity of His Son, His love became a tangible, living form, an exact replica of the Father’s character.

“God, who at various times and in different ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds; who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become so much better than the angels, as He has by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.” Hebrews 1:1–4

“When God gave His Son to our world, He endowed human beings with imperishable riches—riches compared with which the treasured wealth of men since the world began is nothingness.” The Ministry of Healing, 37. When God gave His Son, He endowed human beings with the possibility of receiving a wealth of riches that this world cannot even conceive of. It is deeply saddening to see people who choose not to follow Christ because they prefer a business or a piece of real estate or a partner. Jesus said, “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?” Mark 8:36

“Christ came to the earth and stood before the children of men with the hoarded love of eternity, and this is the treasure that, through our connection with Him, we are to receive, to reveal, and to impart.” The Ministry of Healing, 37. Try to imagine it—the hoarded love of eternity! And this Christ offers to every man, woman, and child who will accept it.

The law of God and His divine love are directly opposed to Satan’s law of selfishness. Through the promise to place enmity between the seed of the serpent and the Seed of the woman, God’s covenant to put His law and love in the hearts and minds of His people was fulfilled. It was manifested in the life of Jesus Christ, who is the living example of what God wants to do for His church. However, we have a part in this covenant as well. We must cooperate with Him by taking up our cross (Luke 9:23). It is an unpopular thing, taking up our cross, but when we do, God has promised to supernaturally instill in the hearts of His people the same hatred for sin that was manifested in the life of Jesus.

Jesus came to this world so that God could reproduce His character in the heart of man. The world can make no better offer than the one that Jesus is making to you today. Take up your cross, follow Him, and experience the miracle as God reproduces His character in your life.

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

Health – Colors

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Who knew! I always thought that colors were just pretty. But there is a whole science behind colors and how they can affect human beings—physically, psychologically, and emotionally—called Color Psychology.

Did you know? – Your age and cultural background can affect how you respond to colors.

This subject is too broad to explain in this one article, so I am going to share just a few specific topics. The source material will be included to allow you to visit the websites yourself to find out more.

The Meanings of Colors

Red – passion, excitement, love

Orange – warmth, kindness, joy

Yellow – hope, joy, danger

Green – nature, growth, freshness

Blue – wisdom, hope, reason, peace, loyalty

Purple – mysterious, noble, glamorous

Black – noble, fear, sadness

White – truth, relief

A 2020 study that surveyed the emotional associations to color of 4,598 people from 30 different countries found that certain colors are associated with specific emotions:

68% and 50%
associated red and pink, respectively, with love

35% and 43%
associated blue and white, respectively, with relief

39%
associated green with contentment

52% and 44%
associated yellow and orange, respectively, with joy

51%
associated black with sadness

Chromotherapy (Color Therapy)

Ancient cultures, including the Egyptians and Chinese, used color to heal, and it is still used today as a holistic or alternative treatment.

Red – used to stimulate the body and mind, and increase circulation.

Yellow – stimulates the nerves and purifies the body.

Orange – increases energy levels and heals the lungs.

Blue – believed to soothe illnesses and treat pain.

How Much Influence?

Research has found that color can impact people in surprising ways. For example, white-colored pills are associated with greater pain relief and red pills are thought to be more stimulating.

However, at this time, there are still many unanswered questions regarding Color Psychology.

How do color associations develop?

How powerful is its influence on real-world behavior?

Can color be used to increase work productivity?

Do certain personality types prefer specific colors?

Interestingly, one study found that by exposing students to the color red before they took an exam resulted in a negative impact on their test performance. A segment described in the study included giving 71 college students participant numbers colored either, red, green, or black prior to a five-minute test. The results showed that the students with the red participant numbers tested 20% lower than those with the participant numbers in green and black. One theory is that the reduced scores for the red group might be because teachers grade in red; too much red on your test paper is not an encouraging thing.

A person might prefer brighter, more attention-getting colors when they are young, but are drawn to more traditional colors as they age.

Colors can play an important role in communication, creating moods, and influencing decisions. They can influence what you buy, what you wear, and how you decorate your surroundings.

Did you know? Colors are used in the Bible, too—Blue for faith; purple for royalty; white for purity. A good Sabbath activity, go on a Bible scavenger hunt for more colors and what they represent.

Color may have an influence on how we feel and act, but it is still subject to personal, cultural, and situational factors, and more scientific research is needed.

So, until we know more, let’s all go out and have an orange day!

Sources: webmd.com/mental-health/what-is-color-psychology; Wikipedia.org/wiki/Color_psychology; awpnow.com/main/2016/09/color-psychology

Nature – Dragonflies

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There are approximately 5,000 known species of dragonflies, identified as a part of the Odonata order of insects. Of those species, 3,000 extant species of true dragonflies are known. Most are found in tropical regions and begin life in the water. The nymphal stage of its development can last up to five years, but its adult lifespan is only five weeks to one year.

The adult dragonfly’s body has three distinct segments: the head, the thorax, and the abdomen. It has an exoskeleton made of hard plates held together with flexible membranes. The head is large with short antennae, and is nearly all eye, a wrap-around compound containing more than 30,000 lenses providing a 360-degree field of view. Two pairs of wings and three pairs of legs are attached to the thorax. It rarely uses its legs for walking; instead they are used for perching and climbing plants.

Dragonflies are predatory insects with serrated teeth. Once they enter the larval stage, which can last for up to two years, it will eat just about anything—tadpoles, mosquitoes, fish, and even each other. It can eat hundreds of mosquitoes per day. Using its feet, it captures its prey while flying. In fact, it only eats what it catches while flying. It is such a proficient hunter that, according to a Harvard University study, it catches 90-95% of what it aims for.

Some dragonflies migrate—like the green darner and globe skimmer. Scientists have tracked their migratory habits by attaching tiny transmitters to their wings with a combination of eyelash adhesive and superglue. They found that they fly an average of 7.5 miles per day, although there was one over-achieving dragonfly that traveled 100 miles in one day. A globe skimmer dragonfly has the longest migration of any insect—11,000 miles back and forth across the Indian Ocean.

Dragonflies are technically cold-blooded, but they have ways to keep themselves warm or cool. Patrolling dragonflies use a rapid whirring movement of their wings to raise their body temperature. Perching dragonflies rely on solar energy and position their bodies to maximize the surface area exposed to sunlight. Other species use their wings as reflectors, tilting them to direct the solar radiation toward their bodies. Conversely, when the weather is hot, they position themselves to minimize sun exposure and use their wings to deflect the sunlight.

Modern dragonflies have a wingspan of two to five inches, but fossil records tell us that before the worldwide flood of Genesis, some dragonflies had wingspans of about 30 inches.

They’re strong too! About half of their body mass is devoted to flight muscles, giving them the ability to lift more than twice their bodyweight—a feat that no manmade aircraft has ever come close to matching.

Among the fastest of all insects, the dragonfly has been clocked at more than 25 mph. It can take off backward, accelerate quickly, and then stop in an instant, execute an unbanked turn as if on a pivot, somersault in the heat of combat, and fly virtually any maneuver using seemingly endless combinations of its four wings. Using wind tunnels, the United States Air Force has studied the amazing flight versatility of dragonflies hoping to uncover the secret to their incredible aerodynamic abilities.

“And every creature which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, I heard saying: ‘Blessing and honor and glory and power be to Him who sits on the throne, And to the Lamb, forever and ever!’ ” Revelation 5:13

Sources: smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/14-fun-facts-about-dragonflies; wikipedia.org/wiki/Dragonfly; thoughtco.com/fascinating-facts-about-dragonflies

Giant Troubles

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“Then David said to Saul, ‘Let no man’s heart fail because of him; your servant will go and fight with this Philistine.’

“And Saul said to David, ‘You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him; for you are a youth, and he a man of war from his youth. …’

“Moreover David said, ‘The Lord, who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.’ And Saul said to David, ‘Go, and the Lord be with you!’ ” 1 Samuel 17:32, 33, and 37

We all know the outcome of that battle.

“ ‘You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you and take your head from you. And this day I will give the carcasses of the camp of the Philistines to the birds of the air and the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.’ ” Verses 45, 46

We all know the outcome of that battle—a young boy, a slingshot, a stone, and a confident reliance on God that could not be swayed by size, force, or violence.

Sometimes we have troubles. The Bible says that we will. And sometimes they feel like giant troubles, too big for us to handle. But just as Goliath was no match for David and his reliance on God, your giant troubles can be overcome when you place your full reliance upon God.

God does not always remove our giants, but He does promise to always help us overcome them.

Corrie ten Boom tells of a time when she and her sister Betsie—imprisoned in a German concentration camp for hiding Jews in their home—had been thrown into a pit. While in this pit, Corrie remarked that the pit was very deep. Betsie replied, “There is no pit so deep that He is not deeper still.”

Source: jenniferdukeslee.com/deeperstill

It doesn’t matter how deeply you have sunk in sin; how big your debts might be; what personal hell you may be living in, if you want Jesus Christ in your life, if you want to have complete confidence that He always keeps His promise to help you, He will be there for you.

No mountain is so high but God is higher still; nowhere so deep but God is deeper still.

“Come to God just as you are, and let Him heal all your infirmities. Press your case to the throne of grace; let the work be thorough. Be sincere in dealing with God and your own soul. If you come to Him with a heart truly contrite, He will give you the victory.” God’s Amazing Grace, 87

Story – Timour and the Ant

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Timour was a famous chief in Asia. His enemies were on his track. If they caught him, they were going to kill him. To save his life, he hid in a lonely building in the wilderness. He was sad and discouraged. It seemed to him that his load was heavier than he could bear. He did not know what to do. He felt like giving up in despair.

As he sat in the rude hut looking at the bare walls, he saw a little ant trying to carry a grain of wheat up the wall. The wheat was larger than the ant. It seemed too heavy for the tiny insect to pull up the steep wall.

Timour watched the little worker. Up the wall it slowly struggled with its heavy load. It had not gone far when the grain of wheat fell to the floor. Quickly the little ant came down the wall. It seized the wheat and started up again. But the load was too heavy, and again it dropped back to the floor.

Was the ant discouraged? Oh, no! Down it came again for its prize. Time after time the load proved too much for the little creature. Sixty-nine times he watched the determined little ant return to its task. But the seventieth time it carried its load successfully!

“I was in despair,” said the chief, “but the plucky little ant gave me new courage, and I have never forgotten the noble lesson it taught me.”

The Bible says, “Go to the ant, thou sluggard; Consider her ways, and be wise.”

True Education Series, Book 3, ©1930, 131, 132.

Bear Ye One Another

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“Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.”

Galatians 6:2

One Sabbath morning in March, 2022, at the Whitwell, Tennessee Seventh-day Adventist Church (a mission church), I watched and heard an Outpost Centers International (OCI) report broadcast on YouTube during Sabbath School. The host of the broadcast was Steve Dickman, president of OCI and a leader at the Harbert Hills Academy west of Nashville, Tennessee. OCI is made up of independent Adventist ministries all over the world. The report was concerning the crisis the Ukrainian people are facing since Russia began its attack in February, 2022.

Listening to the report, my heart was immediately struck by the word “war” and the pictures of people fleeing their homes. I was 3 ½ years old and my brother was 15 months old when our soldier father died near the demilitarized zone in Korea. My mother was in her 20s and my father was 25. We grew up with a loving, hardworking mother and grandparents who gave us lots of attention. We had a stepfather, but as we grew a little older, we ached for the love and affection of our own father.

So on that day, in Sabbath School, when I saw and heard about the crisis in Ukraine, I was pierced in my heart for the pain of the people and families directly involved in the conflict—on both sides of the battle. Human beings want to live! They don’t generally want to die. Women don’t want to lose their sons or brothers through war or violence. A wife doesn’t want to be notified by telegram or by two uniformed men knocking at the door that her husband has been killed by a landmine.

Following church I went home and watched the OCI reports again. I had been asking God for a new assignment. I was ready for another assignment, but nothing had presented itself until I heard about the work in Ukraine that Sabbath morning. I applied to help Gideon Rescue Company (GRC) pass out encouraging tracts such as “Where is God when I’m Hurting?” to those fleeing from the east to the west side of the country. The purchase of these tracts was funded by an Adventist brother and approved of by the church in Ukraine.

As I talked to one of the GRC leaders in Ardmore, Oklahoma, I told him up front that I was 74 years old! I wanted to be transparent and to only go if useful. He replied that “Joshua and Caleb were old when they went into the promised land, so I think we can use you!” I had two hands and two feet to pass out the spiritual bread of life to those who would receive it. When I hung up the phone, I was kind of floating on air.

When I was given permission to travel with the team, there were some who didn’t think I should go and were verbal about it. But friends, there is no retirement from God’s Army, regardless of your age. My heart knew that if God wanted me to go, He would provide for my needs. It was in God’s hands. “God’s people are to be united in the accomplishment of one great work. They are to make a combined effort of consecration. By a tender, respectful regard for one another, they are to cherish the influence that works for the recovery of sinners. As good soldiers of the cross they are to strive to win sinners to loyalty.” The Review and Herald, July 21, 1903

Within four or five days, I had the money needed to make the journey. The biggest challenge was packing for the trip. Though most of the team would only be gone from home a little over one week, I knew I would not go for such a short time since I was single and had no one to financially support. My initial return ticket was for months later!

March 28, 2022, arrived and a very supportive lady friend took me to a Groome Transportation station for the ride to the airport. The first leg of my flight was from Atlanta to Dallas. GRC had arranged for me to stay with a family in the Dallas area until I caught my flight to Amsterdam the next day. Doane, his wife, and children were so kind to me. I was deeply touched and grateful for their kindness and hospitality.

It was not until I arrived in Amsterdam that I met Greg and his 10-year-old son David, who left Dallas the same day I did, but on a different flight. They were part of the team coming from Ardmore, Oklahoma, and they had the biggest smiles I’d ever seen! We also met a retired gentleman, a New York City firefighter, who had survived the 9/11 catastrophe. Going on the trip was catharsis for him. He had a lot of emotional pain and felt that helping others would help him heal.

We traveled to Poland together on our final flight. After sleeping in a church one night in Poland, a church contact took us to Lviv, Ukraine, where we would stay for about five days. There we met the other members of our team: two young American ladies who had been in the city for at least two weeks before we arrived, two European young men, a former Mennonite young man, and Brock, our team leader, whom I had initially talked to.

The church where we stayed housed many people who were seeking refuge. The ladies of the church fed all of us three times a day. We collated tracts and prepared to hand them out along with small handmade pictures for children which had been made by pupils from the Adventist Academy in Ardmore, Oklahoma.

For about four days, we gave out these hope-giving, life-giving tracts to people near the crowded train station. At the end of the day, we met to pray and share our experiences in offering encouragement and the bread of life to those hurting people. Some people were not interested in receiving what we had to give, others wanted to talk and we listened and prayed with them. The local churches had set up tents near the train station in Lviv and other local people offered hot food, such as borscht, or medical services to those needing it. Sometime later, when my young partner, Stanley, went to Poland many months later, he was able to offer fruit with the literature he was giving out. People liked that! Stanley is a quiet, shy young man who loves to sing and share God’s love with others. By the time you read this, he will be in Germany, the land of his ancestors, and I am sure he will be sharing God’s love with all whom he meets.

Our group also included at least two nurses, a paramedic, and others trained in disaster response. They held a class for civilians addressing helpful medical techniques to use in case of emergency. This was not a planned activity, but something they were requested to do by authorities. This was an emotionally difficult thing for them to do. One man told me he never thought he’d be training people to defend themselves and help others in the midst of a war.

The time in Lviv went by quickly and when the men who had families left and the two young women who had been there the longest departed, Stanley and I were the only Americans remaining. We were advised to go south to a “safer area.” I smiled and said “I didn’t come here looking for safety.” However, since people in Chernivtsi had shown an interest in our coming, we left to go there the next day.

When we arrived in the southern-most part of western Ukraine, we were able to share some medical equipment with a dedicated doctor in that city. The new equipment was given to us by a group of Mormons who had been volunteering there and wanted it put to good use. It was one of many divine providences that God arranged. Within a few days, Stanley went to a church camp, which was and still is (as of this writing), serving orphans of many different ages. It is in a very rural area and he felt he could be of more use there than in the city.  Most of these children had been orphaned before the war began. Their home place was destroyed in the war and the Seventh-day Adventist camp manager was asked to shelter them. To this day, the staff continues to run the camp, feeding, providing clothes, and keeping the children warm and active. Some are transported by bus to a nearby school. The original overseers of the children who came with the orphans need your prayers. Their hearts need to be opened to feel gratitude for what God is doing for them through the church camp staff. Some are distanced from our heavenly Father. The children need our prayers to feel the love and compassion Christ has for them as seen through the lives of the Christian staff members. The staff who work unselfishly to support and minister to these needy ones need wisdom, patience, and sincere devotion to God, to be faithful in their positions of influence.

Many churches and probably other schools besides the church school where I stayed, were housing families and individuals whose lives were in danger—IDPs. “What is an IDP?” I wondered. Dr. “Y” told me that means an internally displaced person. You see, one is not a refugee until he or she has left their own country. I lived with them, ate with them, slept in the same building with them. At times we communicated through a phone translator, or through a real person who knew both English and Ukrainian or Russian. Smiles and hugs communicated feelings also. Genuine politeness, sharing, listening, and acts of kindness can show others God’s love for them. When people ask me, “How did you communicate when you didn’t know the language?” I am reminded of the phrase: “a picture is worth a thousand words.” People watch you, and can learn a lot by the way you behave. I did study the language through a phone app so I could speak some Ukrainian. Some people only spoke Russian, so learning just one language was not necessarily enough!

At the local free clinic, people from Kiev and Chernivtsi worked together to help those in need. Having been a nurse, I was asked to draw blood, but it had been almost 34 years since my last blood draw. I was ashamed that I felt I couldn’t do it, and I hate to inflict pain, but I didn’t want to cause more anxiety in people if I was unable to get their blood drawn, so I declined. The doctor in charge put me to work helping his staff learn more English. They anticipated having others come from other countries to help and he knew most of the staff did not know much English. With the help of some kind and patient staff members, I was able to present some classes to them. Most lessons were a mix of medical terms, songs, encouraging words, and thoughts from the Bible.

I really didn’t go to Ukraine with the intention of teaching English, but I was blessed to have two very special, local preteens as biweekly students. Twice a week I was able to meet with these diligent preteens and we developed a close relationship. They and their parents, the school principal, and others really wanted the English classes. For them it was a gift during a difficult time.

The huge, prestigious church school which the girls normally attended was largely not functioning due to the IDPs being housed in the school classrooms. Older students held classes using a Zoom-type platform. Unlike language curriculum used in teaching English in other countries, we used the Bible for our lesson content. They memorized Psalm 57:1 and we repeated it every class time.  I taught them several songs. “Make Me a Servant” was one of them. Another was “My God Loves Me” and they enjoyed that one also. Not using the board at all, we played Scrabble and they enjoyed it a lot. One of the older IDP teens who lived with us for a while helped me teach them because he knew English better than they did.

I am still in touch with these girls and another bright IDP their age who joined our class later. May their desire ever be to know our Father better and His Son whom He sent. The school principal told me that their parents were very happy about the faith-based lessons. I praise God for the opportunity to share Him with them! May God be glorified through these girls.

I had not been in Chernivtsi very long when a young doctor from the free, church-sponsored clinic invited me to visit a patient at the local hospital with him. The patient was a young lady about 20 years old. She was lying in a very small, plain hospital room in what appeared to be an older part of the building. Her family lived far away and was not helpful to her the doctor said, and she could not navigate on her own without a wheelchair or crutches. She didn’t know a lot of English, but she had been a struggling college student when the war broke out. The doctor left us alone for a while and we communicated through our phone translators and body language. After I left her, the doctor who had brought me there said that neither the doctors at the hospital nor those at the clinic where he worked knew what to do with her. She had had all the tests they could afford to give her and without more money, the hospital would not or could not do anything more. I felt very sad for this smiling, young lady.

Soon an anonymous donation was received so that she could be transferred to an Adventist Health International lifestyle center in Ukraine. I had heard about a place called “Our Home” while I was at the Wildwood Medical Missionary School in Georgia a few years ago, and thought it would be the best place for her, but her doctor told me there was a lifestyle center much closer. However, it would be necessary for someone to stay with and care for her at the facility. Someone had been chosen to go with her, but she had other things she wanted or needed to do. When I heard that, I volunteered.

It was an interesting experience to see this young lady getting, almost daily, clay poultices put directly on her legs, hands, and feet. A couple of hours later I would be helping her unwrap from the saran wrap-type bandages. She received massage therapy, physical therapy, and time in a Jacuzzi. I will call her “Patience” because we both needed a lot of it at times. I could not leave her when she had a chance to get physically better. She had had a difficult childhood and I wanted her to become more self-sufficient.

Besides the kind doctor and therapists who treated her, she was transported by wheelchair by two special gentlemen from the northern part of the country. They themselves had left their homes due to the crisis and were working at the center. What a blessing of patient endurance they were to all of us. They transported her over grassy areas that would have been hard for me to navigate. They carried her up many steep steps each Sabbath so she could attend the services. Their own families had fled to Poland to escape harm. Before the three weeks were up, Patience was walking with just one crutch and sometimes with none at all! We were able to return to Chernivtsi together and she is staying with other IDPs in that general area today.

An older gentleman, I’ll call him “Van,” came to Chernivtsi for refuge with his son. Van was about 80 years old and his son “Ivan” was approximately 50. Ivan’s wife and child had gone to another country when the conflict began, but he stayed in Ukraine to help his father. Ivan and younger men often were asked to help with the many tasks involved with feeding and clothing the ever increasing influx of people. Sometimes older men just sat around and talked, but Van was different. He wanted to work. He wanted to be useful. It was a joy to see him sweeping the playground and area near the dining hall. He was deaf and mute, but had a lovely demeanor. I was drawn to him by his humble attitude and his work ethic. Sometimes I was able to sit with him at the back of the congregation on Sabbath.

I met a number of older ladies in Chernivtsi who were cared for by the local church, cooks, and teachers from the private school. One of my favorite ladies, I’ll call her “Vera,” used a walker, but could not navigate steps which kept her from attending the meals in the dining room. Her son faithfully brought her meals three times a day. She slept on a mattress on the floor with many other people (adults and children), but I never heard her complain. She was always happy and thankful when I went to treat her legs.

I was staying in a room at the local school, and Mikolai, a math teacher, was staying in the computer room of the school. He had also been displaced and was sleeping on a mattress by night and communicating with his distant students by day. He helped me with the setup of the computer as I prepared lessons for the clinic workers and local students. He was such a kind man and tolerant of my needing access to a computer.

Natalie was a 60-something-year-old physical therapist who had owned her own prosperous business with a number of physical therapists under her. When I met her, she was humbly sorting clothing donations in the huge gymnasium which had been converted into a makeshift thrift shop with clothing in piles on the floor. We became friends because I’d agreed to work with her teenage granddaughter who wanted to improve her already decent English. She was always trying to help me and invited me to her newly-rented, very small apartment for borscht and tea. A few times I met her at her daughter’s family’s apartment (also newly acquired) for a sweet cake with tea. She always looked tired, but she smiled through the heaviness in her heart and we came to love each other.

It was refreshing to see people helping each other and never complaining about their plight. One day, a woman handed me one of the many pieces of shrapnel which she found in her home. Yes, pain was present in that place, but she didn’t appear angry. It seemed that people were focusing on what they had, which was food, clothing, and shelter. They comforted each other by taking turns keeping their space clean and going for walks in nearby parks, singing, and having devotions together at night. We were like a big family. Were we angels? No, but generally speaking, normally, people got along with each other.

Please pray for wisdom for the people of Ukraine and Russia whose lives are forever changed because of the wickedness of men. Our everyday challenge is to remain faithful soldiers of the cross. If we have enlisted in God’s Army, the Holy Spirit daily puts challenges before us.

It is my hope and earnest prayer that we may, by beholding, become so like our Saviour in character that we will reflect His glory to the ever-darkening world around us. It is time to rise up, men and women of God! Put on His armor and pray, for your very life depends on it.

Sandy L. Roberts is a new member of the Steps to Life staff. She may be contacted by email at sandyroberts@stepstolife.org

Two Images

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As King Nebuchadnezzar looked down on the plain of Dura and watched the men building his huge image of gold, he was thinking about the dream that he had had not too long before. In it, he had seen an image of gold, silver, bronze, and iron, with feet that were a mixture of iron and clay, and he remembered what Daniel had said about the image as he interpreted his dream.

“ ‘You, O king, are a king of kings. For the God of heaven has given you a kingdom, power, strength, and glory; and wherever the children of men dwell, or the beasts of the field and the birds of the heaven, He has given them into your hand, and has made you ruler over them all—you are this head of gold.’ ” Daniel 2:37, 38

He felt proud thinking of himself as the head of gold. He wanted to reign forever and be seen by all as the king of kings. The rest of the dream involved other kingdoms that were to come after him, and a stone that would crush not only those kingdoms, but his own. He did not like that part of his dream, so he decided that the best way to ensure that part of the dream didn’t happen was by building a giant image of pure gold. His heart filled with pride, he was determined that all the people would see and know that his kingdom was forever.

This is one of the manifestations of selfishness. Pride takes the place of reason and causes men to think of themselves and not of others. Exalting oneself is the beginning of pride. “Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself.” Philippians 2:3

The Israelites had a long history of idol worship. They remembered the stories of how Jacob buried the idols that Rachel had taken from her father’s house, how Moses had broken the tablets of the ten commandments when he saw their ancestors dancing around and worshiping the golden calf. They knew of God’s hatred of image worship. In fact, the second commandment listed on the tablets of stone, written by God’s own finger, commanded that they were not to bow down to images.

They had heard of Elijah and how God had told him to destroy the images of the false prophets and to slay them all for their heresy. Yet when the Babylonians and their captives were all gathered on the plain of Dura before the great image of gold, and the music stopped, they obediently bowed before it, except for three young men. As the Israelite captives bowed before the image of gold, they had forgotten the words of God, “ ‘You shall not worship the Lord your God in that way; for every abomination to the Lord which He hates they have done to their gods; for they burn even their sons and daughters in the fire to their gods.’ ” Deuteronomy 12:31

The pride of the king had been damaged, and those three young men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, were about to experience a trial by literal fire. They were thrown into the fiery furnace for their obedience to God. Miraculously, Jesus Himself was in the fire with them and saved them (Daniel 3).

This example of defiance toward the king of Babylon was told to remind us of a future event that is soon to take place. Another image is about to be set up that will try the world on threat of death. In his dream, King Nebuchadnezzar saw the image composed of four different metals, representing four kingdoms:

Babylon – head of gold

Medo-Persia – chest and arms of silver

Greece – belly and thighs of bronze

Roman Empire – legs of iron

But after all this, another empire of a different sort was to come. It was represented as a mixture of iron and clay.

Daniel described it like this: “ ‘Then I wished to know the truth about the fourth beast [Roman Empire], which was different from all the others, exceedingly dreadful, with its teeth of iron and its nails of bronze, which devoured, broke in pieces, and trampled the residue with its feet; and the ten horns that were on its head, and the other horn which came up, before which three fell, namely, that horn which had eyes and a mouth which spoke pompous words, whose appearance was greater than his fellows.’ ” Daniel 7:19, 20

Then the angel Gabriel explains this last beast power and the little horn, “Thus he said: ‘The fourth beast shall be a fourth kingdom on earth, which shall be different from all other kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, trample it and break it in pieces. The ten horns are ten kings who shall arise from this kingdom. And another shall rise after them; he shall be different from the first ones, and shall subdue three kings. He shall speak pompous words against the Most High, shall persecute the saints of the Most High, and shall intend to change times and law. Then the saints shall be given into his hand for a time and times and half a time.’ ” Verses 23–25

This little horn is also identified as the first beast of Revelation 13. Here it is shown as a mixture of all the other kingdoms before it. We know it is the same power because of some of the same identifying marks. “And he was given a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies, and he was given authority to continue for forty-two months. Then he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme His name, His tabernacle, and those who dwell in heaven. It was granted to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them. And authority was given him over every tribe, tongue, and nation.” Verses 5–7. This last power, the fourth kingdom of Daniel 2, represented by the feet of iron and clay of the image Nebuchadnezzar saw in his dream, receives its power from the dragon beast of Daniel 7, which represented the Holy Roman Empire and ultimately became the papacy or the Roman Catholic Church.

After 538 AD, the Roman Catholic Church became the de facto Christian entity that ruled over nations and men. Over the centuries, kingdoms rose and fell but, behind the scenes, the Roman Catholic Church was the power spoken of in Daniel 2 and 7. In Revelation 18:13, it describes it as marketing in the “souls of men.” For 1,260 years it ruled with as much cruelty as the pagan Roman Empire before it, keeping the world ignorant of God’s word, until the Protestant Reformation with the printing press made God’s word available to the common man once again.

As we understand this part of the prophecy, it sets up the scene to understand the two images of the future. First let’s continue to understand this first image of Revelation 13. Once we understand that the papacy is the first beast, then we can see clearly how the image that will be set up later resembles it in some ways.

When we talk about images, it is helpful to understand what an image is. Webster’s dictionary describes it this way:

  • “a visual representation of something, such as a likeness of an object produced on a photographic material, or a picture produced on an electronic display (such as a television or computer screen);
  • the optical counterpart of an object produced by an optical device (such as a lens or mirror) or an electronic device;
  • a mental picture or impression of something;
  • a mental conception held in common by members of a group and symbolic of a basic attitude and orientation.”

So, an image does not have to be a carved statue, but simply a “visual representation” of something.

The second beast of Revelation 13 will then make an image or likeness to the first beast, the papacy. A likeness can look like the original. It can share some of the same characteristics of the original, but it is not the original. So, this image will resemble the papacy in some ways, but will be different in others. Also, we must remember that this image will resemble the dragon that gave it the power to begin with. “Now the beast which I saw was like a leopard, his feet were like the feet of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. The dragon gave him his power, his throne, and great authority.” Revelation 13:2

Like the papacy during its reign from 538 AD to 1798 AD, this is not a benevolent power, but a persecuting power. Why? Because its power comes from the dragon. “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.” Revelation 12:9. The dragon, which represents both the pagan Roman power and the power behind it [Satan, the great dragon], gives its power to the new Roman power that is clothed in a false Christianity. It will have the likeness of Christianity, using Christ’s name, claiming the apostles as its founders, using the Bible for its references, just as Satan did when he tempted Christ, but it will also use its own doctrines and policies that do not represent true Christianity.

As Satan used scripture to present himself as an angel of light to tempt Christ, so the papacy uses scripture to push its own agendas. Recently, the courts have granted people who lost their jobs for refusing to work on the “Sabbath” to be compensated and ruled it illegal to terminate their employment. Yet the “sabbath” that they referred to was not the biblical Sabbath but Sunday, the day of worship changed by the papacy. As time goes on, we will see many more of these false doctrinal arguments presented to the world. This way, the image to the papacy attempts to frame its power as righteous and based on the Bible, while behind the scenes, it is a deception to get the world to accept the laws and commandments of men rather than the law of God.

We are warned not to bow down or worship any image, but like the Israelites in Babylon who bowed before Nebuchadnezzar’s golden image, so the Christian world will bow down to the new image in the last days. These images, or likenesses, are in reality the representation of the character of Satan. Let’s look at some of these characteristics of the image that will not allow us to buy or sell unless we submit to its power.

First of all, Revelation 13:14, first part, says that he (the second beast) will deceive us. How will we be deceived? “And he deceives those who dwell on the earth by those signs which he was granted to do in the sight of the beast….”

If we do not love the truth, if we do not know the truth, this image to the papacy will fool us into believing we are following God. “Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition,” “The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved.” 2 Thessalonians 2:3, 9, 10

Those who will follow the image will be those who do not love righteousness. Now, no one would admit they do not love truth and righteousness if they call themselves Christians. But Paul warns that just such a thing will happen. “But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!” 2 Timothy 3:1–5. As Christians, we must look inward to examine ourselves to see if any of these traits are in us, because if we have even one, then we will be fooled by the image of the beast into thinking we are righteous.

King Nebuchadnezzar’s Babylon was a “type” of the spiritual Babylon at the end of time. It was full of pride and selfishness. The king believed he was righteous in his acts to exalt himself above the God of heaven, even as the Babylon of Revelation has exalted itself above God. Babylon (or the Roman Catholic Church) is full of wickedness. “And he [the angel] cried mightily with a loud voice, saying, ‘Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and has become a dwelling place of demons, a prison for every foul spirit, and a cage for every unclean and hated bird!’ ” Revelation 18:2. The doctrines and policies of the papacy have a form of godliness, but it is rebuked by God’s angel exclaiming that it exists by the power of Satan.

In King Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, the image was destroyed by a stone that became a great mountain. As the Rock, which represents Jesus, crushed the feet of the image in the dream, so it will be with spiritual Babylon. This is a prophecy that shows the end of Satan’s rule and his kingdom. At the second coming of Jesus, the beast (papacy), the image (the false prophet), and all who follow them will be destroyed. “Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war. … Then the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who worked signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image. These two were cast alive into the lake of fire burning with brimstone. And the rest were killed with the sword which proceeded from the mouth of Him who sat on the horse. And all the birds were filled with their flesh.” Revelation 19:11, 20, 21

There is a second image that we also must look at. This image is a much different type of image. We find it in the very first book of the Bible. “Then God said, ‘Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.’ So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.” Genesis 1:26, 27

This image reflects the likeness of God Himself—very different from that of the beast power. When Adam and Eve were first created, they had the likeness of God. Every aspect of creation, whether animate or inanimate, was created in its own individual likeness, but mankind was created in the likeness of God. Remember an image is something that is like, but not the same as something else. Adam and Eve had all the characteristics of God. Their hearts were pure and kind, without sin. They walked with God in the garden of Eden, they handled and took care of every living thing in the garden. They had clear minds that were curious and ever learning the true science of creation. They were part of the family of God and communed with the angels of God.

Only beings with this image can ever be in the presence of God. Their character and demeanor were without spot or blemish. “How precious is Your lovingkindness, O God! Therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of Your wings.” Psalm 36:7. What a contrast between these perfect humans and the humans today. Paul writes about the characteristics of the image of God. If we are to overcome the image of the beast, we must reflect God’s character. “Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering.” Colossians 3:12

Our character is to be without spot or blemish by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. Paul again admonishes us by contrasting the image of Satan with the image of God. “Now the works of the flesh [the image of the beast] are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.” Galatians 5:19–23

With the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, the image of Satan is destroyed, and our characters are restored to the image of God, replaced with God’s character and lovingkindness. The two images are warring within us for dominance. One leads to everlasting destruction, the other leads to everlasting life. If we are not to be fooled by the image of the beast, we must do away with the attitudes of the world. We are told to be separate from the world. This separation is not physical but spiritual. When we entertain in our minds the agendas of the world, we pollute our character, and we will not reflect the image of God. “Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice.” Ephesians 4:31. The world wants to draw us into its strife and contentions, but God’s people will do away with all of these things that tarnish the character of God.

These two images—the image of God and the image of the beast—are very different from one another. The image of the dragon or Satan is an image of force. It goes against the true teachings of the Bible. Adhering to the false teachings of the papal church, it creates an image that is dictatorial and persecuting. This image wants to use force to further its idea of a world power. It dominates the world through wars and riches, dragging the people down into its depths of depravity.

But the image that God wants to create in us is a benevolent one. It will not raise a hand to hurt another. It will bend a knee to care for a suffering human. It is always kind in its words and seeks to uplift rather than tear down. It reflects the character of Jesus and as it is created in us, we, too, will reflect that character or image of the One who cares for us. There are two paths, two images, two likenesses that we can choose from. Which one will you choose?

 Michael C. Wells is the director of Anointing Oil Ministries.

The Basic Principles of God’s Kingdom

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“Jesus came to this earth … to show us how to live so as to secure life’s best results.” The Ministry of Healing, 365

One of the most foundational principles of the great controversy between Christ and Satan is that the law of God is so basic, so fundamental, that it cannot be changed. It existed when Adam and Eve were created and it will last forever and will never be changed.

“And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one tittle of the law to fail.” Luke 16:17

Not a Tittle

The word tittle comes from the Latin and was used to distinguish the letter i from the strokes of other letters nearby. Hence the word means the dot above the lowercase i or j. The Greek word for tittle is keraia, a diacritic (an accent sign) used in Greek writing meaning a hook or serif that looks similar to an apostrophe. The Hebrew letter daleth is made with two strokes of the pen. The tiny extension of the roof line of the letter is a tittle .

Luke 16:17 is one of the strongest statements in the whole of Scripture regarding the permanency of God’s law.

Think about this text. Jesus Himself is speaking. But, you might say, “There are a lot of texts spoken by Jesus in the Bible.” Jesus is the Creator. Just imagine how He created the entire universe and upholds all things by the word of His power (Hebrew 1). And when the Creator says that God’s law will never be changed, then we can be confident that nothing, not one word, not one dot of a letter will be changed.

God’s government has a foundation. The Bible tells us what that foundation is. We find it in the book of Psalms.

“Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne.” Psalm 89:14, first part

“For all Your commandments are righteousness.” Psalm 119:172, last part

Paul says, “Therefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy and just and good.” Romans 7:12

The words just and righteous come from the same word in Hebrew and Greek. They are synonyms, so you can use just and righteous interchangeably and it would mean the same thing. All of God’s commandments are the definition of just and righteousness and are the very foundation of His government.

The great controversy began because Lucifer wanted God to change His law. Specifically, he wanted Him to change the first commandment. “You shall have no other gods before Me.” Exodus 20:3

The trouble was, Lucifer wanted a place in the Godhead, and God said “No.”

“For you have said in your heart: ‘I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of the congregation on the farthest sides of the north; I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High.’ ” Isaiah 14:13, 14

But Jesus said He would destroy the entire universe before He would allow even a part of a letter of His law to fail. That is strong language, isn’t it?

The Bible says there is one God who has the ability to create and destroy; even the devil will find that out one day soon. We are told that the day is coming when God will destroy Satan and all those who follow him (Malachi 4:1).

The foundation of God’s government, His law, is based on two principles.

The first four commandments explain the first principle—to love God above all, the first and great commandment. And the last six commandments explain the second principle—to live to serve and help others, and to love them, affording to them the same value that God places on me (Matthew 22:34–40).

In simple language, the commandments teach us to love God and our fellow man more than we love ourselves, and that we are called to be servants to both God and man. Christ paid an infinite price to save sinners, all sinners. His painful death on the cross for humanity—no matter how deep in sin we may be—vividly demonstrates the immeasurable, incalculable value Jesus Christ and His Father places on us.

The basic principle of Satan’s kingdom is self-service. That’s it; and if I am living to please myself, to serve myself, to help myself get ahead, even if I call myself a Christian, then in the books of heaven it will be recorded that I am a member of Satan’s kingdom.

Mrs. White wrote many times that when Satan sees people serving themselves, he is satisfied. “They consent to live for the service of self, and Satan is satisfied.” The Desire of Ages, 130

If I am living for myself, I am a member of Satan’s kingdom, and he will be happy.

Conversely, if I love God and my fellow man, living for others and not myself, then it will be recorded in the books of heaven that I am a member of God’s kingdom.

Why Did Jesus Die?

“And He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again.” 2 Corinthians 5:15

Jesus died so that you and I could learn how to deny self and live for others.

“ ‘Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword. For I have come to set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; and a man’s enemies will be those of his own household. He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it.’ ” Matthew 10:34–39

“Then Jesus said to His disciples, ‘If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.’ ” Matthew 16:24

Because of our sinful nature, we need specific instruction on this point, otherwise we would never think of this. The principle of the cross is self-denial, denying myself in order to help someone else. Jesus did that. He gave up His throne, power, and glory, and came to this world as a man. God was teaching the principle of self-denial through Jesus’s life here in this world (Counsels on Stewardship, 158; Matthew 19:29).

Born, not in a palace, but in a manger, Christ represented the principle of selflessness—“I gave up everything to save you.”

As one of the poorest men on earth—no money, property, possessions—the only one Jesus had to make provision for was His mother. For Mary’s care, he gave her into the hands of the one person who loved Him so much, knowing that He could trust John the beloved to care for her. With this one precious possession cared for, Jesus was ready to die so that mankind could be saved.

What did He leave behind when He left heaven? Denial requires giving up something. Christ left His throne, His position of leadership, His glory and the praise of angels, the companionship of His Father, to come here to be a man, so that He could know how to help me. He showed me by His life how to live my life, and then He gave up His life—fully separated from His Father and all of heaven—so that I would be able to deny myself and take up my cross and follow Him. After He died and ascended back to heaven, what did Jesus take with Him from this world? Some nail prints, perhaps scars on His forehead, a physical body like ours.

“He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also. If anyone serves Me, him My Father will honor.” John 12:25, 26

Jesus is saying that if I want to be part of His kingdom, I must understand the basic principles of His kingdom. “ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your, soul, and with all your mind.’ … ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ ” Matthew 22:37, 39, last part

In God’s kingdom, love reigns supreme, and love does no harm, it sacrifices, restores, and transforms. But in Satan’s kingdom, self reigns and selfishness abounds.

These two contradictory principles are the basis of the great controversy: the law of love and righteousness, the transcript of the character of God, that could not be changed, and the law of pride and selfishness that would not change.

God knew from eternity that when we fell, when we took on this selfish nature, it would be an uphill battle to overcome selfishness. Mrs. White says that selfishness is sin (The Signs of the Times, April 13, 1891), and it results in self-serving. I may profess to be a Christian, but if I am serving self, it won’t matter what I say, I am a member of Satan’s kingdom. Jesus came to this world and died to save me from the kingdom of selfishness. Will I accept this sacrifice? Will I come to understand that I must surrender my life to the Lord to be broken and converted?

God knows the battle that we must fight, and He is ready to provide strength and encouragement to those who choose to follow the narrow way and fight the battle.

“Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.” Matthew 7:13, 14

On the broad road, I can serve myself all I please—that is what comes naturally to me. But the broad road is Satan’s kingdom and I will lose my life when I follow that road. If I want to be a part of the kingdom of heaven, only the narrow road, the difficult way leads there, and that is the road I must take. Why is the way difficult and narrow? Because I have to overcome my sinful nature and my desire to serve myself.

God Our Father is Also Our King

It is a wonderful thing to live in America where we have no human king. The idea and desire for a human king came from the devil. But in heaven there is no republic or democracy, no elections to decide who our ruler will be. Heaven is governed by a King who has absolute, albeit benignant, authority.

Lucifer used this principle in his attack against God. He thought that if a king had absolute authority, then he could do whatever he pleases, and Lucifer wanted to do whatever he pleased. He told the angels that if they would join him, they would have absolute liberty, the ability to choose to do whatever they wanted to do.

This was the cause of the great controversy. Lucifer didn’t want to be under the authority of his Father and King. He wanted to be free to do as he pleased, and what would please him was to be a king himself, and so he protested against Jesus and God. He convinced thousands of angels to follow him in his protest. In spite of God’s efforts to win him back, to help him see the pride and selfishness that was developing more and more in his heart, Lucifer remained persistent, and ultimately, God was left with no choice but to expel him, and the angels who followed him, from heaven.

It should move all our hearts to understand what the rest of the universe has known for thousands of years. God, the King of all heaven and earth, with absolute authority, could exercise that authority to do whatever pleased Him. And what pleased the God of heaven and earth? To allow His Son to come into this world, to live a life of self-denial and self-sacrifice, and to finally die on the cross to save me.

Once Satan reached this world, he started telling people that if they would join his government, they could do whatever they wanted. Because man had inherited, since the fall of Adam, a selfish and sinful nature, that sounded great. It was the temptation in the garden of Eden and it is still the temptation today. Satan teaches that if I want to do something I shouldn’t, I should just do it, and that I can do it for my whole life, confess, and do it again … and still be saved. He says I can do as I please and still go to heaven. But that is a lie, a delusion, cooked up in the devil’s kitchen, and it is contrary to the law of God.

People wonder how they can ever resist the draw of their own selfish nature and the temptations that Satan brings to them every day. God knew these awful temptations would come. He provides encouragement through His word and this gives us faith and strength to overcome. We need only believe.

“ ‘To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.’ ” Revelation 2:7, last part

“ ‘He who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments, and I will not blot out his name from the book of life; but I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels.’ ” Revelation 3:5

“ ‘To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.’ ” Revelation 3:21

“ ‘He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son.’ ” Revelation 21:7

God says, “If you will choose to love Me with all your heart, soul, mind, and spirit, to serve and follow Me, to walk the narrow path, if you will deny self and love and serve your fellow man, if you will, by the power and grace I offer, overcome temptation and sin in the name of Jesus Christ, then I will send the Holy Spirit to work a miraculous transformation in your life, and I will give you the gift of eternal life. And for all your sacrifice in this life, I will repay you a hundredfold.”

Eternal life is a gift. You can’t earn it. You can’t buy it. You can’t take it by force. The devil will tell you that if you follow the Lord, you will lose all these things, worldly things. You won’t have fame or money, power, popularity. You won’t be able to do what you want to do nor can you do it with whomever you want to do it. Satan says that if you follow God, you will lose your freedom, but this, too, is a lie. God offers freedom from sin, freedom from the selfishness that rules your nature. Satan offers only slavery. God offers eternal life and compensation for what you sacrificed for Him. Satan offers only death.

How Do I Gain the Mastery Over Self?

Denying self is hard. There is nothing in the world that I will ever be asked to do that is more difficult. So how do I gain the mastery over my sinful nature? How do I continue to walk the narrow way? How do I keep from backsliding?

A backslider is a person who has been following God, but has slipped back to serving him or herself. They started up the narrow way, they were serving God and their fellow man, and they intended to always do so. But the devil came and flashed a shiny new temptation before them, and while they believed they couldn’t be tempted, they were, and they yielded to that temptation. When you go back to serving yourself, you have become a backslider.

We are living in a time when there are more backsliders than ever before, many of whom may not even realize they have backslidden. But we have a pattern that God’s word says we can follow with confidence. Jesus Christ is our pattern—the way we must follow, the truth in which we can place our confidence, the life we receive when we obey and trust Him. The shaking time is here. Will we stay true to God? Will we follow the pattern that Jesus has given us to follow?

“Jesus came to this earth to accomplish the greatest work ever accomplished among men. He came as God’s ambassador, to show us how to live so as to secure life’s best results.” The Ministry of Healing, 365

So, if that is what Jesus came for, then shouldn’t we be studying the Bible and the Spirit of Prophecy, asking the Holy Spirit to open our hearts and minds to receive the lessons that we need in order to follow Jesus’ pattern?

If I am going to take a trip to a place I’ve never been before, I will take out a map and plan out the roads I need to follow. It is the same with following Jesus’ pattern. I can’t know how to follow it if I don’t have directions.

“The life of Christ that gives life to the world is in His word. It was by His word that Jesus healed disease and cast out demons; by His word He stilled the sea, and raised the dead; and the people bore witness that His word was with power. He spoke the word of God, as He had spoken through all the prophets and teachers of the Old Testament. The whole Bible is a manifestation of Christ, and the Saviour desired to fix the faith of His followers on the word. When His visible presence should be withdrawn, the word must be their source of power. Like their Master, they were to live ‘by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.’ Matthew 4:4

“As our physical life is sustained by food, so our spiritual life is sustained by the word of God. And every soul is to receive life from God’s word for himself. As we must eat for ourselves in order to receive nourishment, so we must receive the word for ourselves. We are not to obtain it merely through the medium of another’s mind. We should carefully study the Bible, asking God for the aid of the Holy Spirit, that we may understand His word. We should take one verse, and concentrate the mind on the task of ascertaining the thought which God has put in that verse for us. We should dwell upon the thought until it becomes our own, and we know ‘what saith the Lord.’

“In His promises and warnings, Jesus means me. God so loved the world, that He gave His only-begotten Son, that I by believing in Him, might not perish, but have everlasting life. The experiences related in God’s word are to be my experiences. Prayer and promise, precept and warning, are mine. ‘I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave Himself for me.’ Galatians 2:20. As faith thus receives and assimilates the principles of truth, they become a part of the being and the motive power of the life. The word of God, received into the soul, molds the thoughts, and enters into the development of character.

“By looking constantly to Jesus with the eye of faith, we shall be strengthened. God will make the most precious revelations to His hungering, thirsting people. They will find that Christ is a personal Saviour. As they feed upon His word, they find that it is spirit and life. The word destroys the natural, earthly nature, and imparts a new life in Christ Jesus. The Holy Spirit comes to the soul as a Comforter. By the transforming agency of His grace, the image of God is reproduced in the disciple; he becomes a new creature. Love takes the place of hatred, and the heart receives the divine similitude. This is what it means to live ‘by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.’ ” The Desire of Ages, 390, 391

Mrs. White isn’t talking about a cursory reading: this verse today, and another verse tomorrow. The Lord has instructed her to tell us that we must read the Scriptures and the words of Inspiration, and pray for understanding, daily, until the principles of truth have been assimilated into our lives. We are told to commit each word to memory, not to just memorize the words, but to fill our minds and hearts with their inspired meanings until there is no room for the world.

“The Old and the New Testament Scriptures need to be studied daily. The knowledge of God and the wisdom of God come to the student who is a constant learner of His ways and works. The Bible is to be our light, our educator.” Messages to Young People, 189

I loved to read as a child. I read so much, I believe I might have read myself into near-sightedness and had to start wearing glasses early in my life. As a teenager, I continued to read and I determined that I wanted to read the Bible and all the Spirit of Prophecy books I could, memorizing as much as my mind would hold. Later when I became a pastor, I learned to read the Bible in both Greek and Hebrew. I have to read more slowly in Greek and Hebrew, but I have found that, for me, in reading more slowly in any language, I have better comprehension of what the Lord is trying to tell me.

All of us in these last days—particularly our youth—should start a program of studying the life of Jesus Christ every day. This would involve reading the Gospels and The Desire of Ages.

“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.” The Desire of Ages, 83

Which Kingdom

We must learn the difference between God’s kingdom of love and Satan’s kingdom of selfishness. The primary principle of Satan’s kingdom is “me.” The primary principle of God’s kingdom is love for God and self-denial as demonstrated by loving service to others and by denying self.

One day very soon, heaven is going to be filled with people who lived on this earth to help and bless others just as Jesus did. No one who puts “me” first will be there. Only those who have struggled against their sinful nature and overcome by following after the pattern left by Jesus will be there.

Which kingdom will you be a part of?

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