Issue: 2005 April

Where Did Easter Come From?

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Few people realize that Easter is not the resurrection of Christ; in fact, the only time the word is found in the Bible (in Acts 12:4), it is only Easter by mistranslation. The word in the original Greek is Passover.

Jesus died at the time of the Passover feast. But the Passover is not Easter, and Jesus did not die at Easter time. Here is information you will want to know. It comes from a publication entitled, Easter: Where It Came From, printed many years ago, by Southern Publishing Association. . . .

Sunday Held Sacred

“Sunday was held sacred centuries before Sinai. December 25 was highly honored; the time of Easter was religiously observed; and Lent was a time for healing—all thousands of years before the coming of the Babe to Bethlehem!

“After the Flood, the Garden of Eden was no longer on the earth. You remember the Lord had placed angels with flaming swords at its gates. As the people came to the gates to worship God, their faces were toward the west, for the gates were on the east side of the Garden. [Genesis 3:24.] When Eden was taken up to God’s dwelling place, and no one knows just when that was, Satan had so confused some that they worshiped the things that God had made instead of God himself. The next brightest thing men saw was the sun, and they began to worship it. God, at creation, had given them the Sabbath, to remind them every week that He had made everything, but Satan has always tried to make men forget the Sabbath, so they would forget the true God.

Nimrod and Semiramis

“One of Noah’s great grandsons was called Nimrod. Nimrod was a great leader, and was the first empire builder. His wife, history says, was named Semiramis, and she was a very great queen. Satan was working to counterfeit God’s plan of salvation; and, when Nimrod died, the people said he was a god. Semiramis told them that he was indeed the sun god, and that his spirit was still living, dwelling, in the sun.

“In order that the people should love her as queen as long as she lived, Semiramis told them that hers was the spirit of the moon; and, when she died, she would dwell in the moon as Nimrod already dwelt in the sun.

“Satan was laying the foundation for every system of falsehood and error the world has ever known. The sun god, under different names, was worshiped in Babylon, Egypt, Greece, and Rome, as conquering nations were conquered by the religion of their captives.

Birthday of the Sun

“Every year when the cold season began, the people believed their sun god was leaving them. They came to learn that his lowest dip on the horizon, about December 21, was followed by his gradual return, until in midsummer he was directly overhead at noonday. It was on the 25th of December that they noticed, each year, the coming back, a little, of their god. This day they called the birthday of the sun. It was their belief in the annual journey of their god that Elijah alluded to in his conflict with the priests of Baal, the Syro-Phoenician sun god. [1 Kings 18:19–40.]

“After the death of Nimrod, Semiramis never married again—indeed how could the queen of heaven marry an ordinary man? But some years later she gave birth to a son. His name was Tammuz, and he was born on the 25th day of December! There was wild rejoicing in the nation over which Semiramis was queen. She told the people that the spirit of the sun, her husband Nimrod, was the father of Tammuz, and thus through her sin, Satan persuaded the people of the counterfeit birth of Jesus; for Jesus was really born of a virgin.

Son of the Sun

“Tammuz was hailed as the Son of the Sun, and the first letter of his name became in time the symbol of sun worship. Human sacrifices to the sun god were offered on this initial letter, made of wood, known as the cross. His birthday, December 25, was honored more and more, and the first day of the week was called the Sun’s day, or Sunday. The people forgot God’s Sabbath, and honored the day of the sun. To honor Semiramis they set aside a time in honor of the moon. This was the first full moon after the vernal equinox, or the twenty-first of March. The first Sunday after this full moon was indeed a gala day.

“While yet a young man, Tammuz, a hunter like his supposed father, was killed by a wild boar. What weeping there was in the kingdom! And the forty days before the time of the celebration for the moon were set apart as days of weeping for Tammuz.

“God’s people were constantly being tempted to follow this religion instead of that of the Bible. Often Satan succeeded in his purpose. In the eighth chapter of Ezekiel we read of the women’s weeping for Tammuz and the people’s turning their backs on the temple of God and worshiping the sun toward the east. They also worshiped the moon goddess, making cakes to the queen of heaven. (Jeremiah 7:18, 19.) These were round cakes on which had been cut a cross.

Distinguishing Marks

“The great distinguishing mark of the heathen was Sunday and the mark of God’s people was the Sabbath. [Ezekiel 20:12–20.] Side by side through the centuries were God’s people worshiping Him, obeying His commandments, keeping His Sabbath; and the heathen were worshiping the sun, keeping Sunday, offering their children in the fire as a sacrifice to the sun, or crucifying their human victims to turn away his supposed anger.

“One writer in a noted periodical says that ‘Sunday was the wild, solar holiday of all pagan times.’ It was on this day that the worst features of sun worship were practiced. Too often Israel did these things too, but God constantly sent them messages to obey Him.

The Son of God

“Finally Christ, the Son of God, was born. The exact day of His birth no one knows, but it was probably in October. He was just thirty-three and a half years old when He was crucified, in April, at the time of the Passover. How Jesus loved His people! He loved them so much that He was willing to suffer abuse and mocking, scourging and death. Remember that Tammuz was exalted by Satan to be the great rival of Jesus, and the symbol of the cross was the sign of sun worship. Through all the years it had seemed that the sun god was greater than the true God, for Israel alone followed God, but often even Israel followed the sun god.

“Oh yes, Jesus loved His people! He came into a world that had forgotten Him, its Creator, suffered every insult at its hands, and finally died upon the symbol of sun worship, ‘even,’ says Paul, ‘the death of the cross.’ (Philippians 2:8.)

“What rejoicing then by the demons! The Son of God, delivered by His own people and crucified by the sun-worshiping Romans on the symbol of sun worship! Oh the condescending Jesus! How He must have loved His people! . . .

Crucifixion and Resurrection

“But God honored that sacrifice! On the third day after His crucifixion, the first day for sun worship, while the spirits of demons were in the wildest orgy of celebration over their victory—for, through many men, Satan’s angels all rejoiced in the victory of false worship on that very day set aside and honored by the name of the sun—God raised His Son from the grave a conqueror! As after Creation He had rested, so after redemption He rested in the tomb on His Sabbath; and now, on the day of the sun, He was raised, eternal victor over the sun worship and all false systems of worship. That was why God raised Him on Sunday. Once more the Sabbath is God’s sign between Him and His people. His disciples kept it while they lived.

Compromise

“But Satan was not yet through with the world. First, he persecuted God’s people, and then he tempted them again. The heathen were still keeping Sunday; and, as the Christians were scattered throughout the world, Satan whispered in the ears of God’s people that they should try to gain favor by being more like the heathen. Was not Christ born toward the end of the year? The exact date was uncertain. Why not call it the same date as the birth of Tammuz? So December 25 became Christmas.

“Again, Christ was crucified and resurrected in the spring, near the time of the moon festival. Why not have the same time as the heathen, and even do as they did, but call it in honor of Christ’s resurrection? The cakes to the queen of heaven became the hot cross buns. The forty days of ‘weeping for Tammuz’ became Lent; and at the close of Lent came Easter Sunday, a counterfeit masterpiece. . . .

Flag of God Trampled

“Oh the cowards! The cowards! They allowed the flag of God, His holy Sabbath, to trail in the dust. They trampled it under their feet; they exalted the sun’s day; they broke the command of God, and all in the name of the One who had given His life to save His people from that very thing!

“Oh, how Jesus in heaven must have wept when His so-called followers, to gain influence, set up the mark of rebellion against heaven—Sunday. And how He must weep today when people profess to honor His resurrection by trampling on His day and honoring the flag of the defeated foe. God forgive our nation if she ever passes a law to do that—if she ever passes a National Sunday law.”

“Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come. Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.” 1 Corinthians 10:11, 12.

“It was by associating with idolaters and joining in their festivities that the Hebrews were led to transgress God’s law and bring His judgments upon the nation. So now it is by leading the followers of Christ to associate with the ungodly and unite in their amusements that Satan is most successful in alluring them into sin. ‘Come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean.’ 11 Corinthians 6:17. God requires of His people now as great a distinction from the world, in customs, habits, and principles, as He required of Israel anciently. If they faithfully follow the teachings of His word, this distinction will exist; it cannot be otherwise. The warnings given to the Hebrews against assimilating with the heathen were not more direct or explicit than are those forbidding Christians to conform to the spirit and customs of the ungodly.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 458.

Reprinted with permission from The Real Story Behind Christmas, Easter, and Halloween, Harvestime Books, Altamont, Tennessee 37301 USA, 2003, 44–50. Copies of this book may be purchased from the publisher. Visit their web site at: www.SDADefend.com.

Lessons from the Children of Israel, Part IV

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There are very few passages of Scripture that can be classified as sad passages, but Numbers 20, for several reasons, is indeed a very sad chapter.

First of all, it is sad because two of Israel’s leaders die. A third leader is told that he will die at a later point in time. This chapter is also sad because of the rebellion that once again manifests itself in the lives of the children of Israel and provokes Moses to such an extent that he loses out in going into the Promised Land. This is to stand as an object lesson not only to people throughout the ages but also to those in positions of leadership throughout history, that every aspect of decorum, attitude, and demeanor must be above all reproach.

It is one thing to kick a hole in a wall of your home, while you are there by yourself, because of the frustrations that you have encountered, but it is completely another thing to kick a hole in a wall while the congregation is watching. Such an action will be held in altogether a different light as far as God is concerned. If there is anything that this chapter tells us, it is that very fact.

As we study this chapter, there is one thing that repeatedly comes through: How are the chosen of God going to react to adverse circumstances? Have you had any adverse circumstances come your way? How did you react to them? The older we become and the more experiences we have, the greater is our accountability in developing refined, Christian characters, so that those who are looking to us for words of encouragement and help will find the highest levels of example. At least it should be that way.

In my experience, as I have watched the adverse behavior of church members, I do not find myself nearly as disappointed as when I see such behavior in those of leadership. When I see those to whom I have looked and held in high esteem fail, because of their own internal passion in how they relate to issues, I am much, much more disappointed.

“Then came the children of Israel, [even] the whole congregation, into the desert of Zin in the first month: and the people abode in Kadesh; and Miriam died there, and was buried there.” Numbers 20:1. We need to remember that at this point in time there was almost an entirely new congregation than the one that found themselves at Kadesh when the ten spies gave their reports after scouting the Promised Land. (See Numbers 13.) At the time of their first stop in Kadesh, members of the present congregation were 20 years old or younger. The children of Israel made their wanderings; they experienced the manna falling in the wilderness on every day but the Sabbath day, with a double portion on Friday. Their shoes never wore out, nor did their clothes. This generation experienced all of these miracles and then found themselves back at Kadesh.

“And there was no water for the congregation: and they gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron. And the people chode with Moses, and spake, saying, Would God that we had died when our brethren died before the Lord! And why have ye brought up the congregation of the Lord into this wilderness, that we and our cattle should die there? And wherefore have ye made us to come up out of Egypt, to bring us in unto this evil place? it [is] no place of seed, or of figs, or of vines, or of pomegranates; neither [is] there any water to drink. And Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and they fell upon their faces: and the glory of the Lord appeared unto them. And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, Take the rod, and gather thou the assembly together, thou, and Aaron thy brother, and speak ye unto the rock before their eyes; and it shall give forth his water, and thou shalt bring forth to them water out of the rock: so thou shalt give the congregation and their beasts drink. And Moses took the rod from before the Lord, as he commanded him. And Moses and Aaron gathered the congregation together before the rock, and he said unto them, Hear now, ye rebels; must we fetch you water out of this rock? And Moses lifted up his hand, and with his rod he smote the rock twice: and the water came out abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their beasts [also]. And the Lord spake unto Moses and Aaron, Because ye believed me not, to sanctify me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore ye shall not bring this congregation into the land which I have given them. This [is] the water of Meribah; because the children of Israel strove with the Lord, and he was sanctified in them.” Numbers 20:2–13.

This rebellion occurred because the children of Israel had not yet learned the lessons God wanted them to learn. This generation that now finds itself at Kadesh is a generation that has to go through its own particular test.

Often, we who are parents, having raised our children in the Lord, think that there is a special blessing due us by God. He is expected to work a miracle because of our faithfulness in providing them occasions of worship and rehearsing to them the stories of God’s miracles. We often think that they should, as a result of what we have done, be able to develop Christian characters and be ushered into a life of righteousness without going through their own testing times. It never works that way. Every generation must go through its test. Every individual must be tested, to see if he or she has learned of God to the extent that his or her character is ready for the kingdom of heaven. No one enters into the kingdom of heaven just because they are born of a certain line—their parents are in ministry or in medical work or in church leadership or whatever—without going through the test. Every generation has to have its test. The 40 years, which had been decreed upon the children of Israel as a punishment, were almost over.

Death of Miriam

As the camp was assembled there at Kadesh for the second time, Miriam passed on to her death and was buried there. There is little reference to this. Miriam, of course, was a prophetess of God. Remember, she was the one who, as the older sister of Moses and Aaron, led the singing on the shore of the Red Sea when Pharaoh and his hosts were thrown into the deep. As nearly as we can tell chronologically, Miriam was about 130 years old when she died. There is not much more recorded concerning her life. There may be a reason for that. Like Aaron, Miriam had also sinned greatly in her jealousy regarding Moses. She was probably about 90 years old at that point in time. She should have been old enough to know better.

There is one true lesson in this, even for Moses, and that is that one’s age does not prevent one from sinning. Some people, when referring to righteousness by faith, have jokingly called it righteousness by senility, in that, upon becoming old, an individual becomes unable to have the grasp or comprehension to distinguish between right and wrong. Therefore, they reason, the Lord looks upon the past life and governs accordingly. I do not think that is how God views this situation.

Accountability of Leadership

There is a great deal of significance placed upon the sins of leaders, and those sins bring a greater penalty than the sins of the members of the congregations. I have for some time now been pondering about how we are to relate to leadership today. One of the greatest needs in the historic movement is that of true leadership and organization.

In Scripture, I find that those who have been called to positions of leadership are going to be held to a greater accountability. They are going to be held to a greater accountability, because they have been placed in a position of leadership over the congregation, and they are to lead that congregation in the right way under any and all circumstances.

“The sins of good men, whose general deportment has been worthy of imitation, are peculiarly offensive to God. They cause Satan to triumph, and to taunt the angels of God with the failings of God’s chosen instruments, and give the unrighteous occasion to lift themselves up against God.” The Story of Redemption, 168. Leaders hold a special place in the eyes of God. Not only are they accountable for their own sins, but they are also accountable as to how they influence their congregation and the stands that they take. The congregation is not held to that accountability.

As we read this story of Moses and the children of Israel, there is the tendency for us to look at what Moses did, and say, “I just don’t see it as that bad of a situation.” We have a tendency to make the same rationalization regarding Eve at the tree. “I just don’t see that it was that bad.” But God sees the example that it sets, and we see the consequences of the disobedience. Concerning whether or not Miriam, will be in the kingdom of heaven, the Scriptures are silent. It just says that Miriam died and was buried there. She failed to enter into the Promised Land.

Blinded by Unbelief

The next part of the narrative reads as though there had not been any interval of years. One may perceive that it was the old generation that was at Kadesh just a short time before, but it was a different generation—a generation that had not learned the lessons of the previous generation.

“Just before the Hebrew host reached Kadesh, the living stream ceased that for so many years had gushed out beside their encampment. It was the Lord’s purpose again to test His people. He would prove whether they would trust His providence or imitate the unbelief of their fathers.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 413.

As mentioned before, being raised in a good Seventh-day Adventist home does not guarantee for you a place in the kingdom of heaven. You have no guarantee just because you had the benefit of being raised in that type of home. You must have your own tests. You will be brought through trials to test your own individual experience. God is going to prove every person. If you do not meet a test, if you fall and fail in a test, God is going to bring you right back around, and you will find yourself at the very same place again.

This is basically what happened with the children of Israel. Where had they before failed? The first generation failed at Kadesh. The whole congregation had moved through the experiences of the numerous times God had provided every possible example for them of faithfulness, bringing them around again and again to the same, exact place. God will do that.

These people who had rejoiced that the water was available to them day by day by day, should have rejoiced when it stopped. Why should they have rejoiced when it stopped? Because they were going to enter into the Promised Land. They should have seen this as evidence—a sign to them. This was a sign that they should have understood, just as Jesus tells us, in Matthew 24, “These are the signs that are going to come to pass. Watch for this; watch for that. When you see these things, lift up your head.” They should have known they were getting close to entering the Promised Land. Their wilderness wandering was nearly over.

“Had they not been blinded by their unbelief, they would have understood this. But that which should have been an evidence of the fulfillment of God’s promise was made the occasion of doubt and murmuring.” Ibid. 414. Here, for a short while, was an opportunity for them to walk by faith instead of by sight, but the first trial developed the same, turbulent, unthankful spirit that had been manifested by their fathers. No sooner was the cry for water heard in the encampment than they forgot the hand that had for so many years supplied their wants, and instead of turning to God for help, they murmured against Him.

Missed Learning Opportunity

What a situation for a learning opportunity! It was this generation’s first occasion to be tried, but they had the history of their parents’ generation. When the Israelites had set up camp, during the early days of their freedom, they found that they were without water. (See Exodus 17.) They came to Moses, and at the Lord’s instruction, Moses struck the rock in Horeb and water flowed. Paul says that Rock followed them. That Rock was Christ. (See 1 Corinthians 10:2–4.) Had God supplied their need there? He certainly had.

Now this generation was experiencing the same trial, but something was wrong. They repeated the same sin. That tells me that there was a failure on the part of the older generation to instruct the younger ones as to the blessings of God. It tells me that they perhaps did not have worship together as they gathered around the campfire each evening. They neglected to recount the blessings of God in their past history.

This generation did not know; they did not have enough instruction, so when they faced an experience similar to that of their parents, they did not know what to do. This can happen. Parents can fail to instruct their children as to the faithfulness of God. When the children are brought into trying experiences, they do not know what to do.

There was also a problem with the younger generation that should have been seeking for knowledge—What can you tell me about the faithfulness of God—Mom, Dad, Aunt, Uncle, Grandpa, Grandma? What can you tell me? What has been your experience? You have lived much longer than I. They did not learn, nor were they taught.

Discontented Hearts; Reckless Tongues

One thing is for sure. As far as we know, there was a failure. Numbers 20:3 says, “And the people chode with Moses.” They do not just come to Moses with a plea for water. “Moses, I am thirsty. Moses, my animals are panting.” It says, they “chode with Moses.”

To be concluded . . .

Pastor Mike Baugher is Associate Speaker for Steps to Life. He may be contacted by e-mail at: mikebaugher@stepstolife.org, or by telephone at: 316-788-5559.

Peter’s Counsel to Parents, Part IV

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These words [11 Peter 1:1–13] should mean a great deal to us; and we should study this chapter diligently, that we may learn to practice the virtues it presents before us. If we do these things, the apostle says, we “shall never fall.” It is of great consequence to us in our spiritual experience that we have the assurance that we are treading securely and walking understandingly in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

I wish this afternoon to address particularly the parents and children. These should understand that they have solemn obligations resting upon them—the most solemn that ever rested upon mortals. Let parents take up their work and labor intelligently for the salvation of their families.

Children be Prepared for Eternity

Fathers and mothers, we are verging upon the eternal world, and that which we should now most earnestly seek to understand is what we should do to inherit eternal life. If you will follow on to know the Lord, you will know that His going forth is prepared as the morning. We must prepare for the great crisis that is just before us. Will you not sense your responsibilities in regard to the education and training of your children in spiritual matters?

Here are the children. Your daughters are inclined, if they see a dress different from that which they have, to desire a dress similar to that. Or perhaps they want something else that they see others have, which you do not feel would be in accordance with your faith to grant them. Will you allow them to tease this thing out of you, letting them mold you instead of molding them according to the principles of the gospel? Our children are very precious in the sight of God. Let us teach them the word of God and train them in His ways. It is your privilege to teach your children to live so that they will have the commendation of heaven.

Are we preparing for heaven? We say we are; and we ought to be making ready for the future immortal life. We should be so conducting ourselves that we shall make right impressions upon those who are brought in contact with us. Let us not encourage our children to follow the fashions of the world; and if we will be faithful in giving them a right training, they will not do this. But if you let your children rule you, they will surely get away from the pure principles of the word of God and will walk in the ways of the world. Let them see how much the Lord sacrificed in their behalf when He came to this world. There was everything to oppose His advance, yet He gave us a perfect example in every detail of life—just the example that we follow and teach our children to follow.

Proper Dress for Children

Dress your children in simple and neat clothes, but do not let them have anything that they may suppose they want. They may ask for a dress that is cut low in the neck because it is the fashion to wear them so. Who has supposed such a fashion? It is not a right fashion, and we should not allow ourselves to consider it right. We should dress our children in such a way that they will learn to fashion their lives in simple orderly lines. We are to be preparing for the grand review that is soon to take place, and our children must have a part in this work of preparation. We want the light, the pure light of heaven, to shine into our hearts.

Heaven’s Interest in Children

All heaven is interested in our children, and parents grieve the Spirit of God when they fail to bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. Parents, be kind to your children, but be firm. Let them see that you mean all that you tell them. The fashions of the world often take a ridiculous form, and you must take a firm position against them. Our manner of dress, as well as our deportment, is to be a ministry, an education.

Parents, you are responsible for the work of bringing up your children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. These children need instruction line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little. You may feel annoyed sometimes because your children go contrary to what you have told them. But have you ever thought that many times you go contrary to what the Lord has commanded you to do that you might prepare yourselves for His work and know His will as revealed in His word? If you will follow on to know the Lord you can make a splendid representation of Christ before the world.

Gentleness in Discipline

Never manifest passion when your children do wrong. When the mother gives her child a jerk or a blow, do you think it enables him to see the beauty of the Christian character? No indeed; it only tends to raise evil feelings in the heart, and the child is not corrected at all. We need to consider, as we endeavor to do our duty intelligently, that our children are to be brought into right relation to God, that they may have an entrance through the gates into the City of God and have right to all the advantages that heaven can give.

Forming Children’s Characters

We have but little time now. Let us prepare earnestly for the solemn scenes of the future. The Lord would have us work under the direction of His word. It does not show any true love to let your children do as they please, and to think that in doing so they are doing just right. Husband and wife should be united in the work of seeking to form in their children correct habits of speech and conduct. If they will draw constantly in Christ’s lines, the will of Christ will be rule in their lives, and they will see of the salvation of God in their homes. Let them invite the Spirit of God to act His part in training the children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. With this power to help in every time of need, they will obtain the victory.

Has not God given you every evidence of His love? Did He not allow Jesus to come to this world as our pattern? Men could not endure the perfection of Christ’s character, and they took and crucified Him. There is a crucifixion that must go on in our lives, a constant dying to self and sin. We must walk circumspectly, that our lives may preach the gospel of Christ to those with whom we associate. If we will speak and walk circumspectly, the light of Christ will be revealed in our lives.

I desired at the beginning of my talk to speak these words to you. I leave them with you to think about. Let us be faithful to the duties of the home life. Let your children understand that obedience must reign there. Teach them to distinguish between that which is sensible and that which is foolish in the matter of dress, and furnish them with clothes that are neat and simple. As a people who are preparing for the soon return of Christ we should give to the world an example of modest dress in contrast with the prevailing fashion of the day. Talk these things over, and plan wisely what you will do, then carry out your plans in your families. Determine to be guided by higher principles than the notions and desires of your children.

Seek Confession of Heart

Parents need to come up on a higher platform. They have a sacred work to do in bringing their children into harmony with Christ. Parents, do not neglect this work. You need to move constantly in the counsel and fear of the Lord God of Israel. Talk with your children in regard to the lessons of the word; pray with them. Seek for confession of heart from them. Show them which is the wrong and which is the right way, and their need of yielding their wills to the will of God if they would be overcomers. I see many parents taking a course with their children that will shut them out of the kingdom of God. O that these might now repent, and seek to redeem the time, that God might help them to act their part.

I did not expect to speak more than a few words to you this afternoon. I want you to have the light and blessing that the Lord desires to give you. Reach out for these blessings, seek for a fitness for eternal life, that others may see that you are coming into harmony with heaven. When the soul takes its position on the side of right, all heaven is filled with rejoicing and praise and thanksgiving. Shall we not take hold with Christ to do our best? Pray with your children. Impress their minds with the thought that Christ was given to our world that we might love His beauty of character and seek to follow Him in every particular. If you will follow on to know the Lord, the blessing of God will rest upon you. We need to glorify God more than we do, to praise Him with uplifted soul. If we would study more faithfully the virtues of His character, we would desire to be more like Him. If in the minor points we would carry out the directions of the Lord, He will give us strength to follow Him in the large matters. We need to see the necessity of bringing the principles of the truth into every purpose and action of the life.

There is a large work to be carried on in this locality. Consider how God has wrought to bring these buildings into our possession. We have made every possible effort to establish the work in this place; and there are but few who know of the real difficulties we have had to meet. Now we are in possession and, for this I thank the Lord with heart and soul and voice.

Contrary to the World

There are many here who will need to take their position directly contrary to the world’s customs and fashions. They may not want to do this, but this must make no difference. We are to have a large experience here in a little while, and everything should be brought into line with right principles. Here are men and women of capability. We want you to realize your capabilities, and act your part in carrying out the purposes of God for this place. Here are men who are preparing to enter on high positions of truth; but they are not ready for these positions. They need to be reconverted, and to let the blessing of God come into the life to transform the character. If those who come here to obtain an education will seek to help in every possible way, God will multiply blessings to them, and giving them His knowledge and His grace will make them overcomers through the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony.

(Manuscript 45, 1911. Sermon at Loma Linda, California, November 6, 1911.)

To be continued . . .

“Simplicity . . . no single word could describe Ellen G. White as accurately as this one. Born into a family where the deeper values of life took priority over social standing, surrounded by the grueling poverty of the early 1800s and severely handicapped, she found herself elevated from mediocrity to a position of guiding leadership in a great church, her actions aided and directed by a seemingly endless number of inspired revelations.” Rene Noorbergen, Ellen G. White Prophet of Destiny, TEACH Services, Inc., Brushton, New York, 2001, vii.

How to Have Life, Part I

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John 10:10 says, “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have [it] more abundantly.” With these words, Christ proclaimed His purpose for coming to this earth—to give us life.

The word life is translated from the Greek word zoe, which, in a theological sense, is eternal life. It is the kind of life that Adam and Eve were given before the fall. They were created with zoe, but they lost it when they sinned. Their physical life was extended, but they were no longer conditionally immortal. Jesus came to restore the condition of immortality. That is in contrast with what the thief said, which is also mentioned in this verse; he came to steal and to kill and to take away that life.

Jesus said that He not only wants us to have that life but He wants us to have it more abundantly. Our physical life is a great blessing, but He wants to restore us to the original life that has been stolen by the thief.

This life of Christ is what He spoke about in Matthew 4:4, when He said that “man should not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.” “Bread alone” is needed for the physical life, but the Word of God is essential for that zoe, that immortal life, that eternal life. It is for the spiritual, intellectual life.

In John 14:6, we read: “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” This must be one of the most basic short verses in the entire Bible! It tells us how to get to God, how to get life, which is only through Jesus, because Jesus is the way. Jesus is the path back to the Father. That path has been lost through the separation brought on by sin. Christ is the reality of the promise that we can have that life, as He offers to unite His divine life with our human life. When those two are put together, we end up with zoe; that is the life that He wants to restore.

Man does not have any life in himself. Ellen White wrote: “Separated from God, existence may be ours for a little time, but we do not possess life.” Thoughts from the Mount of Blessing, 61. So we have existence, but we do not have life, according to the Spirit of Prophecy. An example of how this could happen is given in 1 Timothy 5:6: “But she that liveth in pleasure is dead while she liveth.” This verse is talking about people who are physically alive but spiritually dead.

As previously stated, when Adam and Eve were created, God gave them this zoe life. As long as they remained perfect and connected to God, Who is the Source of life, their lives continued on in conditional eternal life. As long as there was a union between them and God, this zoe life continued, but as soon as they sinned, this union—this life- giving relationship—was broken. Life immediately began to withdraw from them. They were banished from God’s presence. By what were they banished? They were banished by sin. They were banished by their choice of being independent of God.

The serpent came along and told Adam and Eve that he had a better way, and they bought into it. So, they were separated from God by their own independence. They were still alive—alive to sinning, but they were dead to spiritual things. They were physically alive but spiritually dead. All of man’s functions, from that point on, began to operate on a natural, carnal level. Except for Christ, every man since then has experienced this broken union with God, the Source of life. Nowhere is man’s life, in its natural state, seen to be in a right state of dependence upon God.

Physically Alive–Spiritually Dead

Let us look at Ephesians 2:1–6: “And you [hath he quickened], who were dead in trespasses and sins; Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) And hath raised [us] up together, and made [us] sit together in heavenly [places] in Christ Jesus.” (Note that in some versions of the Bible quickened is interpreted as “made alive” and conversation is interpreted as “living in the pleasure of or indulging in the passions of our flesh.”) Obviously, the people Paul referred to in this passage were physically alive, but he said they were dead.

It seems that men still believe Satan’s original lie that somehow we can have life apart from God. It is called self-sufficiency, and every day that we walk out the doors of our homes and go out into the world without having hooked up to God, without having spent time with Him through His Word and prayer, we prove that we still believe that lie. We think that somehow we can have life without being connected to the Source of life.

Now, we may walk out the door and stay “moral.” God’s definition of “moral” is a lot deeper than the world’s. As for the worldly meaning, we may walk out the door and stay “moral,” but we are not spiritual. We cannot be spiritual unless we connect to the Source of spiritual life. Culture, worldly education, and even the exercise of the will may enable us to put up good fronts—at least for a time.

Mrs. White wrote: “Education, culture, the exercise of the will, human effort, all have their proper sphere, but here they are powerless. They may produce an outward correctness of behavior, but they cannot change the heart; they cannot purify the springs of life. There must be a power working from within, a new life from above, before men can be changed from sin to holiness. That power is Christ. His grace alone can quicken the lifeless faculties of the soul, and attract it to God, to holiness.” Steps to Christ, 18.

Even though culture and worldly education and the use of the will may enable us to put up good fronts and fool some people, we will not fool God. Without actually having this connection with God, we will not be able to see any further than the kingdom of man. We will not be able to understand or perceive God’s kingdom. We will still just be natural or carnal humans—possibly reasonable, good, moral humans, but if we cultivate the natural man, what do we get? We just get more of the natural man.

If we have a whole garden full of weeds and all we do is take care of those weeds, we are going to end up with weeds. We may have some good, healthy weeds, and we may have more weeds than when we started, but they are still just weeds. If we cultivate the natural man, that is all we are going to end up with—the natural man, plus self-exaltation and pride, because of the cultivation that we have given to that natural man.

Hold Fast

You may recall that these natural traits got Lucifer booted out of heaven, and if we are going to go to heaven and take his place, we are going to have to get rid of those kinds of character traits. There is no place for the natural man in the kingdom of God. The Bible speaks of two Adams, and from them two kinds of life emerged: the natural, which is standard equipment, and the spiritual, which would be like after-market equipment. The first Adam lost life by alienation from God through sin. The second Adam, Christ, came to redeem us from that separation. The Spirit of Prophecy says, “The first Adam fell; the second Adam held fast to God and His Word under the most trying circumstances.” “Ellen G. White Comments,” Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, vol. 5, 1129. The first Adam, in other words, let go of that hold on God. The second Adam held fast. “His faith in His Father’s goodness, mercy, and love did not waver for one moment.” Ibid.

Consider the following statement very carefully. “Sin not only shuts us away from God, but destroys in the human soul both the desire and the capacity for knowing Him.” Education, 28, 29. That is a somber thought. We know that sin separates us from God, but do we realize that it also destroys our desires and capacities for knowing Him? The only way back to God is through His Son. John 17:3 tells us, “And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.” The only way to eternal life is through the Son, but the statement above says that sin destroys both the desire and the capacity for knowing Him. Now that is a serious problem!

Sin will separate us from God, from zoe life. We have to go back to God through Christ to get zoe life, yet we cannot know Him, as we need to know Him, because of sin. Because of sin, we do not have the desire. How glad we should be that God came looking for us, and we do not have to go looking for Him! Romans 3:11 says, “There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.” None of us go seeking for God; we respond to God seeking for us.

Recognize the Need

Do we realize that we need something that we do not possess? Apparently Nicodemus realized his need. John 3:1–6 tells his story: “There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him. Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born? Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and [of] the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.”

Nicodemus was a highly educated man, a member of the Sanhedrin, but apparently, with all his learning and position, he realized that something was missing. He may not have known exactly what it was, and in his pride, he may not even have known what he was looking for, but something drove him to come to Jesus.

He came to Jesus by night; he came to be taught. In his position, Nicodemus could have sent one of his servants or one of his students, but he came personally. Why did he do that? Let me answer that question with an illustration, a parable.

Pre-chewed Food

Recently, I took my wife, Paula, to a restaurant for dinner. On the bottom of the restaurant’s menu was a short statement that said we could get any item on that menu as pre-chewed food for only several dollars more than the same item cost unchewed.

I asked the waiter, “What in the world is pre-chewed food?”

He explained, “We have a couple of guys in the back that will chew up your selection for you. All you have to do is spoon it into your mouth and swallow it.”

That sounds revolting, but are we trying to live off of pre-chewed food in the spiritual capacity? Do we come to Jesus personally, as Nicodemus did, and examine Jesus’ Word? Or are we trying to live off of the pre-chewed food that we get from the pulpit? The discourse between Jesus and Nicodemus goes right to the heart of man’s problem to bring about a spiritual change from death to life. A new birth—a spiritual regeneration and re-creation—has to take place.

Nicodemus perhaps knew something radical had to happen, but he was not sure what it was or how to get it. Do you ever feel that way? Do you ever feel like something radical has to happen in your life, but you do not know what it is, where to get it, or how it happens? We all go through that from time to time. Sometimes I wonder if it is ever going to happen, but by faith, I know that God is faithful.

Greatest Need

What do we as sinners most need to receive from Christ? Christ explained that to Nicodemus.

First, we have to understand that we are born of the flesh. We are tied to sin by our nature. If we walk in our own desires, we are under the power of nature—the one with which we are born.

Second, the fleshly nature can only produce after its kind. As stated previously, “That which is born of the flesh is flesh.” We know things only produce after their kind. We do not get catfish from alley cats—unless something supernatural happens, unless someone does some genetic engineering. We know that it is not normal to have things cross species. The flesh stays flesh, and the spirit stays spirit, and unless something supernatural happens, we are going to stay flesh. “That which is born of flesh is flesh.”

Third, the spiritual life in man can only be created by the spiritual power of God through the Holy Spirit. We have to be reborn from above, which indicates that it is a supernatural life. Elaborating on John 3:3, Mrs. White explains: “The Saviour said, ‘Except a man be born from above,’ unless he shall receive a new heart, new desires, purposes, and motives, leading to a new life, ‘he cannot see the kingdom of God.’ ” Steps to Christ, 18. I was referring to this earlier, when I stated that we cannot perceive the kingdom of God. The word see, in John 3:3, is actually talking about seeing with perception—not just seeing with our eyes, but perceiving with understanding the kingdom of God.

Little Boost or New Birth

“To arouse those spiritually dead, to create new tastes, new motives, requires as great an outlay of power as to raise one from physical death.” Review and Herald, March 12, 1901. Have you tried raising anyone from the dead? It takes quite a bit of power! It obviously takes supernatural power. It is very important to understand that the new birth is not the fallen nature renovated; it is a whole new life from heaven.

Recently, I heard a preacher on the radio say, “We do not need a boost from beneath; we need a birth from above.” A lot of times we think that we just need a boost to get us into the kingdom of God, but we need a whole new birth and a whole new life, if we are going to be in the kingdom.

Many do not understand that it is not a one shot deal, either. A number of people are able to tell you the date, usually back in the past, when they were “born again.” When we meet someone who says that, we need to ask him or her if they were born again this very morning. This experience must be a daily conversion. Yesterday’s victories are good, but they are not good enough for today. Each new day brings new temptations. New victories, new life from above has to happen each day. We must, like Paul, die daily and be spiritually reconnected daily to the new life. (1 Corinthians 15:31.) This comes only through the Source of life.

Cost of Connecting

That connection will cost you something, though. There is an interesting statement in the December 13, 1887, Review and Herald: “The power of evil is so identified with human nature that no man can overcome except by union with Christ. Through this union we receive moral and spiritual power. If we have the Spirit of Christ, we shall bring forth the fruit of righteousness.” Stopping right there, we could undo that equation the other way. If we do not have the fruit of righteousness, what does that tell us? It tells us that we do not have the Spirit of Christ.

Mrs. White continues, “A union with Christ by living faith is enduring; every other union must perish. Christ first chose us, paying an infinite price for our redemption; and the true believer chooses Christ as first and last, and best in everything. But this union costs us something.” Ibid. How much does it cost? “It is a relationship of utter dependence, to be entered into by a proud being.” Ibid. So, it will cost us getting rid of our pride, and a proud being does not like that.

“All who form this union must feel their need of the atoning blood of Christ. They must have a change of heart. They must submit their own will to the will of God. There will be a struggle with outward and internal obstacles. There must be a painful work of detachment, as well as a work of attachment.” Ibid. Oh, yes, the union will cost us!

Not a Self-improvement Program

When Christ gives us this life, He does not just give it to us to possess on our own. He does not make us unconditionally immortal. This life is ours only as long as we remain connected with the Source of life. Even throughout eternity, I do not believe that God just hands us immortality. We are immortal throughout eternity, because we choose never to commit sin, which separated us from zoe life in the first place. We know sin will never rise again the second time, so no one will ever choose to disconnect, but as long as we stay connected, we have zoe life, and that can begin now. (See Nahum 1:9; The Faith I Live By, 71.) We do not have to wait until Christ returns. As a matter of fact, if we wait until then, we will not have it then either. We have to start now.

God does not just hand us zoe life and say, “Now go develop yourself.” It is not a self-improvement program, a self-centered program; they fail every time. We are told, “The idea that it is necessary only to develop the good that exists in man by nature, is a fatal deception.” Steps to Christ, 18, 19. If we want to die eternally, all we have to do is stay on that program.

The world offers all kinds of self-improvement programs. They are based on ego motivation, and they do work to a certain extent. Some people do experience success with them. Many have learned to put up a good front to receive the praises of men. It seems that one of the biggest problems God has is to get man to see the bankruptcy of all purely human systems—all the human systems that the world offers—and to see the need of the entirely new, completely surrendered life to Christ. God has a difficult time getting us to see that we have that need. The last thing man wants to give up is trust in himself.

If you have ever read one of those little books that gives different facts about the Bible, you know that Psalm 118:8 is the very central verse of the whole Bible. If you were to start counting from the front then start counting from the back of the Bible, when you would get right to the middle, you would find this is the very central verse. It says something very interesting, because it is talking about the very central issue in the great controversy. It says, “[It is] better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in princes” or men. We are not to trust in ourselves or in anyone else. I cannot believe that it is a coincidence that this text is the central verse in the Bible.

To give up on self and to depend totally on God is so hard for us to experience, let alone believe that we need to do so. It took Paul being struck blind to be able to do it. And Peter had to deny his Lord before he could do it. I wonder what will it take before we do it.

Constant Union

Life, even spiritual life, is dependent upon God’s continued action. There must be a constant union between God and us in order for life to continue. That is the purpose for which Christ came, not only to make that union possible, but to demonstrate and show us what it looks like when it is maintained. The union begins when we respond to God’s drawing into His invitation to a new birth. It is active as long as we are connected to Him. (See John 15:1–8.)

Electrically, things work real well, as long as they are plugged in, but if they are unplugged, they are worthless. This planet chose to “unplug” itself from the Source of life. The miracle of moment by moment regeneration reverses that problem that was caused by sin. The new birth, which once again unites us with God and this life of zoe, is the result.

When Christ was here in the flesh, He maintained the union with the Father, and He prayed that we would experience that union as well. “And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one: I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.” John 17:22, 23. If we do not have that connection to Christ, we are not Christians, no matter what our profession is.

To be continued . . .

Steve Currey is a Bible worker for Steps to Life. He may be contacted by e-mail at stevecurrey@stepstolife.org, or by telephone at 316-788-5559.

Babylonian Captivity, Part I

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In the Hebrew Bible, 11 Chronicles is the last book of the Bible. If you turn in the Hebrew Bible to 11 Chronicles 36, the last chapter in the Hebrew Bible, you find this statement in verses 15 and 16: “And Jehovah God sent to their fathers [warnings], sent to them by His messengers, rising early and sending, because He had pity upon His people and upon His dwelling place. But they mocked His messengers, and they despised His words, and they scoffed at His prophets, until it came up the wrath of Jehovah upon His people, until there was no healing [no remedy].”

In this passage of Scripture, we see the reluctance of God to bring judgments or punishments upon His people. In an effort to avert the punishment, He sends messengers to them to tell them what will happen if they continue in their sinful ways and to appeal to them to repent. To repent means to change your mind, to turn around and go in a different direction. So God, it says, rose up early and sent messengers—many messengers—to try to get His people to repent, because He “had pity on his people.” But they would not listen. Not only would they not listen, but they scoffed at His messengers; they despised their words. Finally, it says, there was no healing. There was no remedy, and the lightest punishment that a merciful God could bring upon His rebellious people was to send them into captivity.

A large portion of what we call the Old Testament was written throughout that period just before, during, and right after the captivity. For example, both Jeremiah and Ezekiel prophesied during that time. Daniel prophesied in Babylon during that time, and not too long before it happened, Isaiah was sent to appeal to the people that they might turn around. There were also prophets such as Hosea, Micah, and Amos who were sent to God’s people with a message of warning, but as we just read in 11 Chronicles 36:15, 16, God’s professed people, His chosen people, would not listen. As a result, doom was approaching, doom that could not be averted.

A Solemn Warning

To understand the significance of what we are going to read, we need to understand that these Old Testament prophecies—these stories—were not just given to tell us the history of God’s people in ancient times. They were given to describe to us what is going to happen in our time and to warn us of what will happen should we give the same regard to the prophets—the messengers—that God sends to us as ancient Israel gave to the messengers He sent to them.

“Let none who claim to be the depositaries [sic] of God’s law flatter themselves that the regard they may outwardly show to the commandments will preserve them from the exercise of divine justice. Let none refuse to be reproved for evil, nor charge the servants of God with being too zealous in endeavoring to cleanse the camp from evil-doing. A sin-hating God calls upon those who claim to keep His law to depart from all iniquity. A neglect to repent and to render willing obedience will bring upon men and women today as serious consequences as came upon ancient Israel. There is a limit beyond which the judgments of Jehovah can no longer be delayed. The desolation of Jerusalem in the days of Jeremiah is a solemn warning to modern Israel, that the counsels and admonitions given them through chosen instrumentalities cannot be disregarded with impunity.” Prophets and Kings, 416, 417.

The desolation of Jerusalem, Ellen White wrote, is a solemn warning to modern Israel. Please think this through. What does that sentence mean?

A very similar sentence appeared in The Signs of the Times, February 12, 1880: “The desolation of Jerusalem stands as a solemn warning before the eyes of modern Israel.” Let me tell you, friends, doom is approaching modern Israel today.

During those days, when Jeremiah was prophesying, he was in constant danger. Once, he was placed in prison. Once, he was placed in a dungeon. Once, he was beaten. A number of times his life was threatened. The rulers went to the king and told him to have this man put to death, because he was weakening the arms of the people. (Jeremiah 38:4.)

Peace, Peace

During that same time, there were false prophets that were very popular among the people. This might seem ironic or paradoxical to the person who is not a student of sacred history, but anyone who has studied the Bible from beginning to end knows that this is a common reaction among God’s professed people. They love the messages of the false prophets, and they hate the messages of the true prophets. Peter stated, when he wrote his last letter to the Christian church, that, in the future, it would be this way. (11 Peter 2.)

He talked briefly first about what happened in Old Testament times, and then he told what would transpire in the future. He said: “And there were false prophets among the people, as also there should be among you false teachers, which will secretly bring in heresies of destruction, even denying the Sovereign who purchased them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction. And many will follow after them in sensuality [or in licentious living], through which the way of truth will be evilly spoken of.” 11 Peter 2:1, 2. So Peter said it would be exactly the same in the future as it was in the past.

Of course, the false prophets told ancient Israel, “Do not worry. The Lord is going to break the power of the king of Babylon. You are not going to go into captivity. You are going to stay right here. There is going to be prosperity. There is going to be peace.”

Jeremiah told of such prophecies. (Jeremiah 14:13, 14.) Ezekiel spoke of the same thing. He said that these false prophets cry “Peace, peace,” when the Lord has not spoken peace. (Ezekiel 13:16.)

Do you remember the story in Jeremiah 28 where the Lord instructed Jeremiah to take the yoke of wood, put it on his neck, and go and prophesy, not only to the children of Israel but also to the other nations? He was to tell them that God had given them to the king of Babylon. They were to serve under this king, and if they submitted to the servitude and rebelled not against it, things would become better for them. The false prophets did not like this.

Hananiah, for one, became so angry that he took the wooden yoke off Jeremiah’s neck and broke it. He said, “Listen, the Lord is going to break the power of the king of Babylon.” So the Lord told Jeremiah to go prophesy again and this time to take with him yokes of iron instead of yokes of wood, and tell them that the Lord was going to place these yokes upon them. The yokes of iron would not be broken. (Verses 13, 14.) In fact, Jeremiah said that even if the entire Babylonian army was wounded, they would still rise up and take the city captive.

Jeremiah also had a message for the false prophets. He said, concerning Hananiah, that because he had spoken without the Lord having given him a message, he would die within the year. He died two months later.

History Repeated

It is the false prophets who prophesy peace when there is no peace. Will the same thing happen in our time? It has been happening for a long time already. Ellen White predicted that it would happen. People say, “There is no reason to worry. Everything is going to be all right.” I have heard people say that we are going to stay here till the Lord comes. That is what the false prophets said to the people, but Jeremiah said, “No, you are not going to stay here. You are going to Babylon.”

Ellen White wrote: “The patience of God has an object, but you are defeating it. He is allowing a state of things to come that you would fain see counteracted by and by, but it will be too late. God commanded Elijah to anoint the cruel and deceitful Hazael king over Syria, that he might be a scourge to idolatrous Israel. Who knows whether God will not give you up to the deceptions you love? Who knows but that the preachers who are faithful, firm, and true may be the last who shall offer the gospel of peace to our unthankful churches? It may be that the destroyers are already training under the hand of Satan and only wait the departure of a few more standard-bearers to take their places, and with the voice of the false prophet cry, ‘Peace, peace,’ when the Lord hath not spoken peace. I seldom weep, but now I find my eyes blinded with tears; they are falling upon my paper as I write. It may be that erelong all prophesyings among us will be at an end, and the voice which has stirred the people may no longer disturb their carnal slumbers.

“When God shall work his strange work on the earth, when holy hands bear the ark no longer, woe will be upon the people.” Testimonies, vol. 5, 77.

Standing Alone

It is the false prophet who cries, “Peace, peace,” when the Lord has not spoken peace. The message of the false prophet is more popular. They do not have to stand alone, as did Jeremiah and the other true prophets. Are you willing to stand alone for God’s truth?

In 1888, Mrs. White wrote: “It does not seem possible to us now that any should have to stand alone; but if God has ever spoken by me, the time will come when we shall be brought before councils and before thousands for his name’s sake, and each one will have to give the reason of his faith.” Review and Herald, December 18, 1888.

Are you ready for this situation? Are you ready to appear before councils, before thousands, for Jesus’ sake and to stand completely alone, giving the reasons why you believe what you believe? Can you do it? Are you ready to do it?

Mrs. White wrote, in 1893: “Many will have to stand in the legislative courts; some will have to stand before kings and before the learned of the earth, to answer for their faith. Those who have only a superficial understanding of truth will not be able clearly to expound the Scriptures, and give definite reasons for their faith. They will become confused, and will not be workmen that need not to be ashamed. Let no one imagine that he has no need to study, because he is not to preach in the sacred desk. You know not what God may require of you.” Ibid., February 14, 1893.

Are you ready? Are you ready to stand alone and to give your testimony?

Know that you will never actually be alone. The angels of God will always be with you, but from a human point of view, with your natural sight, you may not be able to visibly see anyone with you.

Troublous Times to Come

The church has yet to see troublous times. Any preacher who is not warning you of these times is giving you the message of the false prophet, because it is the false prophet, Ellen White wrote, who speaks, “Peace, peace,” when the Lord has not spoken peace. God has not spoken peace today, friends.

God has told us, “Until Christ shall appear in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory, men will become perverse in spirit and turn from the truth to fables. The church will yet see troublous times. She will prophesy in sackcloth.” Testimonies, vol. 4, 594.

So the church will yet see troublous times. Some people think such times are in the past—that the church prophesied in sackcloth from 538 to 1798. Yes, that is true, but notice what we just read. The church will have to prophesy in sackcloth again. Some people say, “Oh, the Babylonian captivity—that was back in Jeremiah’s time.” Yes, it was. Or some may say that the Babylonian captivity in the new covenant times was during the time of 538 to 1798. Yes, it was. But we are going to see that the Lord predicts there will again be a time like the Babylonian captivity at the end of time.

Appeal to Repent

God had not spoken peace. He appealed to the people to repent. The time came when, because of their sins, the Babylonian captivity was allowed, as the lightest punishment that could be given, and even then, God decided to make their lot lighter by telling them to cooperate with their conquerors. In fact, if you read through the middle chapters of the Book of Jeremiah, you will see that right up until the last, God repeatedly appealed to them. He appealed to the leaders and to the king to listen, to obey, and to turn around, giving them one chance after another.

Here is the last chance. Jeremiah 38:17 says, “And Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, ‘Thus says Jehovah, God of hosts, God of Israel: if you will indeed go out to the rulers of the king of Babylon, your soul will live, and this city will not be burned with fire; you will live and your house.’ ”

There it is. There is the last chance. Jeremiah tells Zedekiah, “If you will surrender, if you will do what the Lord tells you to do, this city will not be burned with fire. You, then, will not only live, but your house also will live.”

Would you think—if you knew that the God of heaven was speaking to you and that if you would listen to His message, you and your family would live, and the city would be saved from destruction—that obeying the message would be the thing to do? The king did not do it. Why? Because of fear of the Jews.

Fear of the Jews

Verses 19 and 20 say, “And he said, the king Zedekiah, to Jeremiah, ‘I am afraid of the Jews, those who have fallen out to the Chaldeans, lest they deliver me into their hand, and they abuse me.’ And Jeremiah said, ‘Not they will deliver; not they will give you. Please, listen to my voice, the voice of Jehovah, just as I am speaking to you, and it will be well with you, and your soul will live.’ ”

From our point of view, if we step back from our future vantage, we may wonder why Zedekiah would not listen to what God told him to do. But he said he was afraid of the Jews. He was afraid of the people around him. He secretly wanted to know the truth, but he was not willing to obey it. Why was this king not willing to listen to divine counsel, even when he believed? Over and over again, he would secretly send for Jeremiah, and he would ask, “Tell me, is there a message from Jehovah for us? Tell me, I want to know.” Yet, when he received the message, he did not believe it. He did not obey it for fear of the Jews.

Price to Pay

How did such terrible fear take hold of Zedekiah’s mind that he eventually lost everything? Not only was the city burned, but also thousands of people lost their lives as a result of his example and disobedience. There was a terrible price to pay. Look what it says in Jeremiah 39:4–7: “And it was, just as Zedekiah the king of Judah saw, and all the men of war [they were seeing the walls of the city broken down and the armies coming in], they fled, and went out by night from the city, by the way of the king’s garden, in the gate between the walls. And they went out by the way of Arabah [that is, through the desert]. But they pursued the army of the Chaldeans after them, and they overtook Zedekiah at Arabah [in the plains of Jericho]. And they took him and brought him up to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, to Riblah in the land of Hamath, and he gave him there judgments. And the king of Babylon slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah in Riblah before his eyes, and all the rulers of Judah he slaughtered. And the eyes of Zedekiah he blinded, and he bound him with bronze fetters, and brought him to Babylon.”

What a terrible story! The city was burned. Thousands of God’s people were killed. The rulers were slaughtered. Zedekiah watched his own family be slaughtered, and after that, his eyes were put out, and he was then taken to Babylon.

Consequences of Disobedience

Ellen White wrote, in 1905, about this. She said, “The calamities came, because he [Zedekiah] would not, through obedience, place himself under the protection of God. With his eyes put out, he was led in chains of captivity to Babylon.

“What a sad and awful warning is this to those who harden themselves under reproof, and who will not humble themselves in repentance, that God may save them! (Letter 281, 1905).” “Ellen G. White Comments,” Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, vol. 2, 1040.

False Prophets Still

Why did this happen? Well, one reason was that Zedekiah would not humble himself and obey. Of course, another reason was because of the false prophets. The false prophets were very popular with the people and with the rulers. Jeremiah was not popular, but the false prophets were very popular. There are still false prophets who are very popular—more popular than are God’s servants.

Ellen White wrote about them in words like this: “There are many false prophets in these days, to whom sin does not appear specially repulsive. They complain that the peace of the people is unnecessarily disturbed by the reproofs and warnings of God’s messengers. As for them, they lull the souls of sinners into a fatal ease by their smooth and deceitful teachings. Ancient Israel was thus charmed by the flattering messages of the corrupt priests. Their prediction of prosperity was more pleasing than the message of the true prophet, who counseled repentance and submission.

“The servants of God should manifest a tender, compassionate spirit and show to all that they are not actuated by any personal motives in their dealings with the people, and that they do not take delight in giving messages of wrath in the name of the Lord. But they must never flinch from pointing out the sins that are corrupting the professed people of God, nor cease striving to influence them to turn from their errors and obey the Lord.

“Those who seek to cloak sin and make it appear less aggravating to the mind of the offender are doing the work of the false prophets and may expect the retributive wrath of God to follow such a course.” Testimonies, vol. 4, 185.

False Prophets Believed

The false prophets of ancient Israel said, “Why are you making these poor people to be continually reminded of their sins and threatened with punishment?” By giving such messages, they strengthened the people to resist the message of the true prophet. That is one of the reasons why the message of the true prophet was rejected. The message of the false prophet, predicting prosperity, was so much more flattering and sounded so much more wonderful.

Here is another reason. Concerning Zedekiah, Mrs. White wrote: “Foremost among those who were rapidly leading the nation to ruin was Zedekiah their king. Forsaking utterly the counsels of the Lord as given through the prophets, forgetting the debt of gratitude he owed Nebuchadnezzar, violating his solemn oath of allegiance taken in the name of the Lord God of Israel, Judah’s king rebelled against the prophets, against his benefactor, and against his God. In the vanity of his own wisdom he turned for help to the ancient enemy of Israel’s prosperity, ‘sending his ambassadors into Egypt, that they might give him horses and much people.’ [Ezekiel 17:15.]” Prophets and Kings, 450, 451. [Emphasis supplied.]

What was the problem? He turned to the vanity of his own wisdom. There is no insanity so dreadful as human philosophy and wisdom unaided and undirected by the wisdom and knowledge of God. Paul wrote to the Corinthians: “If any man among you seemeth to be wise in this world, let him become a fool, that he may be wise.” 1 Corinthians 3:18. That was the third reason.

A fourth reason is given in Prophets and Kings: “Through Jeremiah, Zedekiah and all Judah, including those taken to Babylon, were counseled to submit quietly to the temporary rule of their conquerors. It was especially important that those in captivity should seek the peace of the land into which they had been carried. This, however, was contrary to the inclinations of the human heart; and Satan, taking advantage of the circumstances, caused false prophets to arise among the people, both in Jerusalem and in Babylon, who declared that the yoke of bondage would soon be broken and the former prestige of the nation restored.” Ibid., 440, 441. The truth was contrary to the inclinations of the human heart, and Satan took advantage of the situation.

Friends, it is predicted that this will be the exact same situation in the last days. Notice what the apostle Paul wrote about it: “For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only the One holding back until now [will do so] until He shall be taken out of the way. And then shall be revealed the lawless one, whom the Lord Jesus shall kill with the spirit of his mouth and shall destroy with the brightness of His coming. Whose coming is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, with all unrighteous deception among those who are perishing, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And on account of this God will send them powerful delusion, that they might believe in the lie, in order that they all might be condemned who do not believe in the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” 11 Thessalonians 2:7–12.

To be continued . . .

[Bible texts quoted are literal translation.]

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

The Seven Churches, Part VII : The Church of Sardis

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Revelation 1:3 says, “Blessed [is] he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written in it; for the time [is] near.” The Bible says that there is a special blessing for those who read the words of Revelation. The Bible’s blessings are not like a salutation that we may put in a letter or like saying “blessings on you” when someone sneezes or saying “good luck” to someone. When God gives blessings, they are real, tangible blessings.

When He gave the Sabbath, He blessed it. We are accustomed to the simple, meaningless blessings from mankind, but when God blesses something, there is meaning in it. His blessing on the Sabbath means that we can learn things out of God’s Word, as we worship and study on that day, that we cannot learn were we worshipping Him on any other day. It is that simple. There is a blessing on the Sabbath that is not given on any other day.

People can be saved who are living up to all the light they know and who have never heard of the Sabbath, but they still are missing the blessing. There is a blessing on the Sabbath. God blesses people. He loves people. There is a blessing on the Sabbath that will never be found on any other day of the week. It matters not how sincere a person is or if he or she is saved.

When we begin reading the Book of Revelation, it says that there is a blessing in the reading of it. There is life in the reading of Revelation, but not only in the reading. “Blessed are those who read and hear and keep.” Do you suppose that we can hear the Word without keeping it and end up with at least half a blessing? No, it does not work that way. It is like a man and a woman. Both of them are blessed with the ability to create, but alone they cannot create half a being, can they? It takes both to create a whole being. So it is here; there is no half blessing in hearing only. It has got to be the whole thing in order to receive the blessing. That is the message of Sardis. The church of Sardis was especially adept at hearing without doing. That is why they did not receive a full blessing. In fact, they did not receive any blessing at all.

A Review

Before going any farther, perhaps a little review would be helpful. Revelation was written as a blessing—if people read it. What was it that God gave at the very beginning of the Book of Revelation that was to be a blessing to mankind? It says, “I, John, both your brother and companion in the tribulation and kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was on the island that is called Patmos for the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ. I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day.” You see, there is a blessing! John was keeping the Lord’s Day, and that is when Jesus came down and communicated with him. There is a blessing in the keeping of the Sabbath, and on the Sabbath Day—the Lord’s Day—John had a vision. “And I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trumpet, saying, ‘I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last,’ and, ‘What you see, write in a book and send [it] to the seven churches which are in Asia: to Ephesus, to Smyrna, to Pergamos, to Thyatira, to Sardis, to Philadelphia, and to Laodicea.’ ” Verses 9–11.

These seven churches represent seven different periods of the earth’s history—the seven periods of the Christian church from Jesus’ day to the end of time. God, as He is so skillful in doing, has here used illustrations. I guess we are all of kindergarten maturity when it comes to our understanding of truth, so God has to keep drawing simple illustrations for us. Old Babylon became illustrative of the churches in the end of time. When we read, in Revelation 18:2, “Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen,” God is using an example from old Babylon to illustrate the last days. Revelation 16:12 refers to the drying up of the river Euphrates. That is an illustration from old Babylon.

All through Revelation, God uses illustrations, as He is doing when He speaks of the seven churches. God chose seven different, real, literal, tangible churches that were meeting every Sabbath morning. Each of them had special problems or special attributes—one or the other. He picked out seven churches to represent the different periods of earth’s history. As you can see, all of these counsels applied to one or another of these churches, just as all of these counsels apply to different churches today. There may be a church that more closely represents one than another, but in general, each church in a special way represented a special era of Christian history.

Ephesus

Ephesus was the church the apostles started. It lasted from the time of Jesus’ ascension until the apostles died. They were a faithful church, faithful to the gospel. They were a hardworking church, but the Bible says they were lacking their first love. The Bible tells us that even if you have all faith and all knowledge and even if you give your body to be burned, but do not have love, it will profit you nothing. (1 Corinthians 13:2, 3.) God says, “You have all these things, but because you do not have love—the first love, My love—and have not made Me first in your life and in your affections, your candlestick will be removed.” (Revelation 2:1–5.)

Smyrna

Then we come to the church of Smyrna. This is the church that existed during the pagan persecution. It continued to the time when Constantine was “converted,” in the early part of the fourth century. That is when Constantine became kind, even though he was not truly converted. The church of Smyrna existed during an age when thousands of Christians were persecuted and lost their lives. The ones who were not killed had their goods confiscated. They were poor, dirt poor. They had nothing—any legal property—for it was all taken from them. The Bible says, “You think you are poor, but actually you are rich.” (Revelation 2:9.) You see, they were poor for only a few short years while on this earth, compared to the riches of eternity.

Pergamos

The church of Pergamos, which was the compromising church, followed the church of Smyrna. That was the time when the church became popular, which is a danger. If a persecuted church suddenly becomes popular, that is one of the greatest temptations that can happen. If Steps to Life suddenly became extremely popular with the conference—which probably will not happen—do you suppose there would be a temptation to compromise a little bit here or there in order to retain that favor? That is what we see happening with the church of Pergamos.

The church had been extremely unpopular; people would spit on Christians. Then the emperor became a Christian! Suddenly it was popular to be a Christian; everyone wanted to be a Christian. Do you suppose there was a little temptation to want to hold on to those good public relations for a little while? I want to tell you, the church began to slide, and it never stopped sliding.

The church promoted worship on Sunday and the wearing of clerical vestments, and the people started to wear the clothing styles of the world that they had not before worn. One thing after another began to happen after they first compromised until—believe it or not, and totally beyond the wildest imagination of the people—they not only were worshipping on the pagan day of the sun and believing in various pagan customs, allowing their children to celebrate Easter bunnies and Easter eggs and those kinds of things, but they began worshipping idols in the church. They changed the names of the idols to St. Peter, St. Mary, or St. Somebody Else, but the church came to a place where they were worshipping idols. Of course, they did not like the word idols, so they called them images or statues or whatever else. I remember hearing a saying once: “A rose by any other name is still a rose.” That is right! I want to tell you, an idol by any other name is still an idol!

The church even came to the place where—and this was straight from paganism—they began to pray to the dead. God condemned this act so straightly in the Old Testament. He said, “If anyone communicates with the dead and prays to the dead, they are to be stoned and killed.” (See Leviticus 20:27.) That is from the devil, straight from hell. We are to pray to God. When praying to the dead came into the church, they decided to make it “kosher.” The people called the dead, to whom they prayed, saints, but whatever you call them, “A rose by any other name is still a rose.” A dead person by any other name is still a dead person. The church began praying to the dead. That was a compromising church.

Thyatira

God had little good to say about the church of Pergamos, but an even worse church followed it. The church of Thyatira, the church of Jezebel, was the church during the Dark Ages from a.d. 538 until about the Protestant Reformation, when the church was united with the world, even legally. During this time, there was a union of church and state, and the Christian church persecuted people for trying to practice their faith. When the church itself begins to persecute, that is a very serious situation.

Sardis

That brings us to Sardis, the church that we are now studying. Sardis was the church of the Protestant Reformation—those stalwart men and women who stood up and said, “We will die rather than sacrifice our faith.” During that time, people died and were burned at the stake for owning a Bible and for believing it.

We can expect to hear many good things about the church during the Sardis era. We think of those great men, such as Martin Luther, who were willing to stand against all the forces of medieval bigotry and the perverted religion that had overtaken the world. We think of Zwingli, Melancthon, Calvin, Knox, and Tyndale.

Many men gave their lives for the Lord. The favorite method of torture for these Protestant heretics was burning at the stake. These stalwart men of the cross changed the face of Europe and impacted history and our lives. It was the principles of these Protestant reformers that were incorporated into the United States’ Bill of Rights, guaranteeing liberty and the separation of church and state.

So, we expect to hear many wonderful things about the church of Sardis, but what a surprise! What a shock to find that the very time we expect to hear the greatest blessing and acclamation of praise, it is not so.

Spiritually Dead

A church is made up of more than its leaders. Sometimes there are good leaders and bad churches. Sometimes there are bad leaders and good churches. A church seldom rises higher than those who lead it. Most people are like sheep, sad to say, in blindly following evil, and they will never rise higher than their human teachers. Sometimes—more often—God will have sent leaders, but the church lags behind, and thus it was with the Protestant reformers.

“And to the angel of the church in Sardis write, ‘These things says He who has the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars.’ ” Revelation 3:1. What are the seven Spirits of God? What are the seven stars? We read in Revelation 1:20 that these seven stars represent the seven angels, the seven messengers. In some Bible versions, “seven stars” is translated as the seven preachers, the seven ministers, the seven messengers, or the seven angels. These are God’s messengers to the churches—such as Huss and Jerome, Luther, Zwingli, and Melancthon. God held them in His hands; He protected them; He gave them a message.

But what does He say to the church? “I know your works, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead.” Revelation 3:1. This text is very appropriate for us in the last days, because it also applies to Laodicea. Over and over again, this is the description of God’s people in the last days.

Matthew 7:21 is part of the Laodicean message, and it applies to the people of God immediately before the last days. It says, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord’ . . . .” These people have a name that says they are Christians, and they believe they are saved. They have a name, but Jesus says that not everyone who has a name “shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.” It is not just hearing; it is doing.

“Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’ ” Verses 22, 23. They had a name that they were living, but they were spiritually dead. This is the message of Sardis.

Shut Door

“Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I say to you, will seek to enter and will not be able. When once the Master of the house has risen up and shut the door,” that is the close of probation. Luke 13:24, 25. This is at the end of time. Notice that there are people still living and arguing, but the door is shut, just as the door of the ark was shut. In Revelation, we find that the door is going to be shut; probation is going to close. Some at that time are going to be found wise with extra oil; some are going to be found foolish.

When once the door is shut, many will find themselves standing on the outside, knocking at the door, and saying, “Lord, Lord, open to us.” This is going to be the experience of a multitude of Seventh-day Adventists. They are going to say, “We are still Adventists; our names are still on the church books. Open the door to us,” but the door will be shut. The Lord will answer and say to them, “I do not know you, where you are from.” Verse 25.

These people have a name. They say, “Lord,” but the Lord does not know them. They have a name that they are living, that they are Christians, but they are dead. That is the greatest, most awful deception that can come upon anyone—to think that they are saved when they are most assuredly lost.

“Then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in Your presence [they partook of the Lord’s Supper], and You taught in our streets [we listened to You preach].’ ” Verse 26. They thought the messengers were teaching the Words of God, and they listened. That was Sardis. They listened to Martin Luther; they listened to the messengers. God taught in their streets, and they accepted the message, but they were never converted.

First Shall be Last

“But He will say, ‘I tell you I do not know you, where you are from. Depart from Me, all you workers of iniquity.’ There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, and yourselves thrust out. They will come from the east and the west, from the north and the south, and sit down in the kingdom of God. And indeed there are last who will be first, and there are first who will be last.” Verses 27–30. There was never a more appropriate message for the Seventh-day Adventist Church, for the Christian church, or for the world today.

It is a solemn reality. There are many people who have been Adventists all their lives—even church leaders—who are going to find that they are thrust out, while God brings others in to take their places. The first shall be last and the last shall be first.

Hide It Not

Why do you suppose God likened the church to a candlestick? Because, Jesus said, “You are the light of the world.” But God says, “Do not hide the light under a bushel.” Matthew 5:14; Luke 11:33. Is it possible for the church to hide the light under a bushel? It happened in the Jewish church, and millions of people were lost.

God has given freedom. You see, sin is the misuse of freedom. The Jewish people misused their freedom, and God held them accountable, more so than the pagans, because they were to be the light of the world, but they hid it. Is it possible for the light to be perverted? Yes, it is. When once a people have the light but then they hide it or pervert it, they are worse off than if they had never had the light in the beginning.

Do you remember what Jesus told His true people—those who went to church on the Sabbath, paid their tithe, had the oracles of God, and who were the Jewish people of Capernaum? He said, “You people are worse than those of Sodom and Gomorrah,” who were homosexuals who died of the judgments of God, because He sent fire down from heaven, when they became so wicked. God told the people of Capernaum, “You are worse than they.” (See Matthew 11:23–25.) Is it important what we do with the light?

Do you know what I want to see happen in all of our churches? I want to see people who have the love of Jesus within, who love the Lord with all their hearts, souls, minds, and strength, and who are going to share this message and love one another as themselves. They did not do that in Sardis.

To be continued . . .

Pastor Marshall Grosboll, with his wife Lillian, founded Steps to Life. In July 1991, Pastor Marshall and his family met with tragedy as they were returning home from a camp meeting in Washington state, when the airplane he was piloting went down, killing all on board.

Editorial – When God is Displeased With the Church Part I

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We love to read the statements in the Bible that describe God rejoicing over His rescued heritage with singing (Zephaniah 3), but the Bible also teaches that God is a moral governor as well as a father. He is displeased when His professed people go directly contrary to His counsel. (See, for example, Proverbs 1:24–31; Deuteronomy 29:14–27.)

“We see God looking down upon the church with displeasure, because there are those who claim to be God’s representatives who have not in precept and example pointed to purity and holiness, but to earthliness and sensuality.” Manuscript Releases, vol. 21, 165.

“Jesus comes near to us individually every day by His agencies, inviting us to secure the things which make for our peace. The book of the recording angel is still unsealed. Will you individually now pay heed and be converted, that the curse that rested on the symbolic fig tree may not rest upon you, the deceptive leaves screening and masking the utter barrenness? Shall the outward work of man be attempted to be put in the place of the inner work of God? Plenty of knowledge, plenty of form, [but] destitute of repentance and faith? Plenty of foliage, but wanting in corresponding fruit?

“We are living in these last days, when lukewarmness and apostasy abound. The apostle saw in prophetic vision what should exist near the close of time, and if our hearts were not calloused by sin and iniquity, we should discern and sense the prophetic picture held up to our view. [11 Timothy 3:1–5, quoted.] I cry out in remorse of soul, But who shall be able to stand when Christ shall come? [Malachi 3:2, 3, quoted.] Who shall stand the proving of God? Only those will bear the test, who have washed their robes of character and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

“Paul’s picture that is presented before us should cause us trembling and anguish of soul. This is the state of a large share of those who have the form of godliness in these last days. The doom of the withered fig tree has a personal application. Who cannot see the living counterpart in the men and women who claim to have great light, in advance of every other people on the face of the earth, whose daily life and unholy characters belie their profession of godliness?

“There is a manifestation of pride and selfishness in many ways, peevish, fretfulness, frivolity, discontent, uncharitableness, and censoriousness, thinking evil, speaking evil of brethren. There is no inward crucifixion of sin. The mold of Christ is not upon them. [They bear] leaves of profession to conceal their deformity, but no fruit.

“There is more hope of the open sinner than of such. The chambers of the soul are desecrated by sin to Satan’s control. Will this people be Christians? Will they heed the counsel of Christ, be zealous, and repent? Will they have true contrition of heart? Will they humble their hearts before God before it shall be forever too late? Will they repent of their backslidings? May God help you just now, in this thy day, to confess your sins and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out and your name retained in the Lamb’s book of life.

“You have a work to do for your soul that no one else can do for you. . . .

“If you only will make thorough work, if you only will confess your sins, the Lord will forgive you your sins.” Ibid., 167, 168.