Issue: 2018 February

Question and Answer – How do you perfect holiness?

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Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God” (2 Corinthians 7:1).

“The formation of a right character is the work of a lifetime, and is the outgrowth of prayerful meditation united with a grand purpose. The excellence of character that you possess must be the result of your own effort. Friends may encourage you, but they cannot do the work for you. Wishing, sighing, dreaming, will never make you great or good. You must climb.

“The conversation we have by the fireside, the books we read, the business we transact, are all agents in forming our characters, and day by day decide our eternal destiny.

“Mental ability and genius are not character, for these are often possessed by those who have the very opposite of a good character. Reputation is not character. True character is a quality of the soul, revealing itself in the conduct.

“A character formed according to the divine likeness is the only treasure that we can take from this world to the next. Those who are under the instruction of Christ in this world will take every divine attainment with them to the heavenly mansions. And in heaven we are continually to improve.

“A good character is a capital of more value than gold or silver. It is unaffected by panics or failures, and in that day when earthly possessions shall be swept away, it will bring rich returns. Integrity*, firmness, and perseverance are qualities that all should seek earnestly to cultivate; for they clothe the possessor with a power which is irresistible—a power which makes him strong to do good, strong to resist evil, strong to bear adversity.” My Life Today, 267.

*Integrity = uncompromising adherence to moral and ethical principles; moral soundness or purity; incorruptness; uprightness; honesty. Integrity comprehends the whole moral character.

Pen of Inspiration – The Crisis Imminent

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I am deeply exercised in mind in reference to the low standard of piety among our people. And when I think of the woes passed on Capernaum, I think of how much heavier will come the condemnation upon those who know the truth and have not walked according to the truth, but in the sparks of their own kindling. In the night seasons I am addressing the people in a very solemn manner, beseeching them to ask their own consciences, What am I? Am I a Christian, or am I not? Is my heart renewed? Has the transforming grace of God moulded my character? Are my sins repented of? Are they confessed? Are they forgiven? Am I one with Christ as He is one with the Father? Do I hate what I once loved? Do I now love what I once hated? Do I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus? Do I feel I am the purchased possession of Jesus Christ, and that every hour I must consecrate myself to His service?

We are standing upon the threshold of great and solemn events. The whole earth is to be lightened with the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the channels of the great deep. Prophecies are being fulfilled and stormy times are before us. Old controversies which have apparently been hushed for a long time will be revived, and new controversies will spring up; new and old will commingle, and this will take place right early. The angels are holding the four winds, that they will not blow, until the specified work of warning is given to the world; but the storm is gathering, the clouds are loading, ready to burst upon the world, and to many it will be as a thief in the night.

Many smiled and would not believe when we told them, twenty and thirty years ago, that the Sunday Law would be urged upon all the world, and a law be made to compel its observance, and force conscience. We see it being fulfilled. All that God has said of the future will surely come to pass; not one thing will fail of all that He has spoken. Protestantism is now reaching hands across the gulf to clasp hands with the papacy, and a confederacy is being formed to trample out of sight the Sabbath of the fourth commandment and the man of sin, who, at the instigation of Satan, instituted the spurious Sabbath, this child of papacy, will be exalted to take the place of God.

All heaven is represented to me as watching the unfolding of events. A crisis is to be revealed in the great and prolonged controversy in the government of God on earth. Something great and decisive is to take place, and that right early. If any delay, the character of God and His throne will be compromised. The armory of heaven is open; all the universe of God and its equipments are ready. One word has justice to speak, and there will be terrific representations upon the earth, of the wrath of God. There will be voices and thunderings and lightnings and earthquakes and universal desolation. Every movement in the universe of heaven is to prepare the world for the great crisis.

Intensity is taking possession of every earthly element; and as a people who have had great light and wonderful knowledge, many of them are represented by the five sleeping virgins with their lamps, but no oil in their vessels; cold, senseless, with a feeble, waning piety. While a new life is being diffused and is springing up from beneath and taking fast hold of all Satan’s agencies, preparatory to the last great conflict and struggle, a new light and life and power is descending from on high, and taking possession of God’s people who are not dead, as many now are, in trespasses and sins. The people who will now see what is soon to come upon us by what is being transacted before us, will no longer trust in human inventions, and will feel that the Holy Spirit must be recognized, received, presented before the people, that they may contend for the glory of God, and work everywhere in the byways and highways of life, for the saving of the souls of their fellow-men. The only rock that is sure and steadfast is the Rock of Ages. Those only who build on this Rock are secure.

Those who are carnally minded now, notwithstanding the warnings given of God in His word and through the testimonies of His Spirit, will never unite with the holy family of the redeemed. They are sensual, debased in thought, and abominable in the sight of God. They have never been sanctified through the truth. They are not partakers of the divine nature, have never overcome self and the world with its affections and lusts. These characters are all through our churches, and as the result the churches are weak and sickly and ready to die. There must be no indifferent testimony borne now, but a decided, pointed testimony, rebuking every impurity and exalting Jesus. We must as a people be in the attitude of expectation, working and waiting and watching and praying.

This blessed hope of the second appearing of Christ needs to be presented often to the people, with its solemn realities; looking for the soon appearing of our Lord Jesus to come in His glory, will lead to the regarding of earthly things as emptiness and nothingness. All worldly honor or distinction is of no value, for the true believer lives above the world; his steps are advancing heavenward. He is a pilgrim and stranger. His citizenship is above. He is gathering the sunbeams of the righteousness of Christ into his soul, that he may be a burning and shining light in the moral darkness that has enshrouded the world. What vigorous faith, what lively hope, what fervent love, what holy, consecrated zeal for God is seen in him, and what a decided distinction between him and the world! “Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man” (Luke 21:36). “Watch ye therefore, for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come” (Matthew 24:42). “Therefore be ye also ready; for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh” (verse 44). “Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments” (Revelation 16:15).

Special Testimonies, Ellen G. White, February 18, 1892.

Keys to the Storehouse – Heart Longing

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There are times that many have a heart-longing that just does not seem to be satisfied by home, family or friends. It is a longing, a desire, for spiritual fulfillment which only God can supply. At the moment of this longing there are no words to express it to our heavenly Father.

One day as this longing came upon me, I happened to be reading in the book of Colossians and the Lord opened to my eyes, and to my heart, a perfect prayer to put into words to express this longing. Please look at the scripture found in Colossians 1:9–11 (KJV).

“… and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God; Strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness.”

“How complete this prayer is! There is no limit to the blessings that it is our privilege to receive. We may be ‘filled with the knowledge of His will.’ The Holy Ghost would never have inspired Paul to offer this prayer in behalf of his brethren, if it had not been possible for them to receive an answer from God in accordance with the request. Since this is so, we know that God’s will is manifested to His people as they need a clearer understanding of His will.” “Ellen G. White Comments,” The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, vol. 7, 906.

There is no limit to the blessings you and I may receive when we pray that prayer. Paul was praying for his brethren that most beautiful prayer and I realized that this prayer spoke of the longing of my heart also. Needless to say, I transformed that prayer into my personal prayer and I have been much blessed. I share my personalized version with you, as follows, so you may be blessed as much as I have been blessed.

“God of heaven and earth: I desire to be filled with the knowledge of Thy will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding, that I may walk worthy of Thee unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in a knowledge of Thee; that I may be strengthened with all might according to Thy glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness.”

Pray this with all of your heart and God will satisfy your longing.

Heavenly Father, thank You for Your Word which puts prayers into our hearts that may ascend heavenward to Thy glory. Thank You for Your Word which satisfies our need and personal yearnings for a closer relationship with You. Bless us now as we personalize and put into our hearts Thy Word and then with heart yearning, send that personalized Word up to You. Amen.

Current Events – Your Brain on Cellphones

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According to Heather Wilhelm, NationalReview.com, our addiction to our smartphones is “damaging American mental health.” Today’s phones are so powerful, fast, and filled with dazzling images and alluring tidbits of information from social media and the internet that they are virtually impossible to resist. She said, “Who among us hasn’t looked up at least once, smartphone in hand, slightly dazed, only to discover that precious bundles of minutes or hours have somehow slithered by, lost to all eternity usually in exchange for no discernible enlightenment at all?” 

The average smartphone user checks in about 80 times a day; click on one Facebook or Instagram feed or web link, and down you go into the digital rabbit hole. Americans now “eat, sleep, and breathe media,” consuming some form of it 12 hours a day. Not surprisingly, scientific research has linked smartphone use to decreased concentration, lower problem-solving skills, and depression. For youngsters, smartphone addiction is truly disastrous, with the incidence of depressive episodes souring to 60 percent. Why give kids under 12 what for them is “a very expensive portable internet porn finder/social-media stalking system/mean girls text center”? Adults should limit their kids’ smartphone minutes—and their own. Our collective mental health may depend on it.

The Week, October 27, 2017

Children’s Story – Carl & Grover

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Carl was trying hard not to cry. After all, he was almost nine years old, and he knew nine-year-old boys didn’t cry. But he felt like crying. He buried his face in Grover’s soft brown fur and felt better. Grover was his very best friend. Grover didn’t care that Carl couldn’t run and play like the other boys and girls at school. When Carl went tap, tap, tapping down the street with his crutches, Grover didn’t seem to mind at all. He would follow close behind or sometimes he would run ahead as fast as his four feet would carry him—and then come racing back to Carl.

And now Carl didn’t know what he was going to do, because Grover had to have a license, and the license cost $12.50 and Carl didn’t have $12.50. Carl didn’t have even fifty cents.

The animal control officer had told Carl that a new rule passed by the city council required all dogs to be registered and have a license. The license would be a small metal tag that would be fastened to a collar around the dog’s neck. If Grover didn’t have a license by next week, the man told Carl, he would have to take the dog to the animal shelter. No wonder Carl felt like crying! What would he do without Grover? How could he possibly buy a license by next week? Carl was going to lose his best friend because he didn’t have the money to keep his faithful companion!

Just then Carl remembered something he had heard his pastor say in church. The pastor had said that Jesus always hears our prayers. He had said that if boys and girls will pray to Jesus, He will hear and answer their prayers.

“That’s what I’ll do,” Carl said out loud. “I’ll pray and ask Jesus to let me keep Grover.”

After he had whispered a prayer, Carl felt better. He looked up and saw Tommy coming down the street. Now Grover was Carl’s very best friend, but Tommy was his very best human friend. Carl felt so much better after his short prayer to Jesus that he even smiled when he saw Tommy coming toward him—especially when he saw the big grin on Tommy’s face. It was clear that Tommy was a very, very happy boy.

“Why are you so happy?” Carl asked.

“I’m on my way to Mason’s Hardware Store,” Tommy told him. “I’m going to look at the new bicycle in the window one more time. It’s really a great bike. I’ve been saving and saving my money to buy it. I almost have enough. I think I’ll have enough money next week to buy it!”

Carl was happy for his friend. He couldn’t ride a bicycle himself, of course, since he had to walk with crutches. But he could imagine how much fun it would be.

Tommy sat down on the grass beside Carl and began to rub Grover’s head. Grover rolled over and wagged his tail. Carl told Tommy about Grover needing a license and how he had prayed to Jesus to help him. “Jesus is going to let me keep Grover,” he said. “I know He is.”

A few minutes later, Tommy got up and was on his way to the hardware store. But as he walked down the street, he kept thinking about Grover and Carl. He sure doesn’t have much to make him happy, Tommy thought to himself. It would break his heart to have to give up Grover.

Just then he arrived at the window where the precious bicycle stood. It was great just to look at it and think about flying down the street holding on to the handlebars! But then, a picture of Grover and Carl filled Tommy’s mind. He sighed, Someone has to buy that license, he thought to himself. Besides, it would be fun to help Jesus answer Carl’s prayer. He stood in front of the window thinking very hard. At last Tommy made a decision. The bicycle will just have to wait a little longer, he thought.

Running back to where he had left Carl a few minutes before, Tommy asked, “Carl, could Grover stay at my house just for tonight? Can I borrow him? I don’t have a dog, and it would be fun to keep Grover for a little while.”

Carl tightened his arms around his faithful friend. He wasn’t sure he wanted Grover staying overnight at Tommy’s house. “Won’t your mother mind?” he asked.

“She won’t mind,” Tommy assured him.

“Do you promise to take good care of him?” Carl asked. “You won’t forget to feed him or make sure he has lots of water to drink?”

“Of course, I’ll take good care of him,” Tommy insisted.

“OK,” Carl agreed. “If you’re sure you’ll take good care of him. But only for tonight.”

The next morning Carl sat on the top step of his back porch watching the neighborhood children play. He missed Grover, and he hoped Tommy would bring him back soon. He knew Jesus was going to answer his prayer. He had faith.

Then all at once Grover came bounding around the corner of the house. With a hop and jump, the excited dog was in his master’s arms. “Grover!” Carl exclaimed as his friend licked his face and wriggled happily. Then, as Carl was rubbing Grover’s fur, he felt something around the dog’s neck. It was a brand new collar! Carl looked at it carefully. Attached to the collar was a small metal disk—the license that the city required!

Carl let out a happy shout! Jesus had answered his prayer! “Thank You, Jesus,” he prayed.

A few blocks away, Tommy was sitting on his bedroom floor counting quarters and nickels and dimes. Beside him, turned upside down, was the jar he had been keeping his money in for weeks as he saved for the shiny bicycle in the window of Mason’s store. I’ll just have to keep saving a bit longer, Tommy thought to himself as he finished counting the coins. But I’m glad I helped Jesus answer Carl’s prayer. It was fun buying Grover’s license and collar—almost as much fun as it will be to ride my new bicycle. And he poured all the quarters and nickels and dimes back into his jar and put it in the far corner of his closet.

Storytime, Character-building Stories for Children, 22–25.

It truly is more blessed to give than to receive.

The True Object of Worship

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I am the Lord thy God. … Thou shalt have no other gods before Me,” or “beside Me” (Exodus 20:2, 3 Revised Version), is the first of the ten commandments. …

Just as the Decalogue is the summary of the Scriptures, the first commandment is the summary of the whole law. In principle it prohibits all kinds of idolatry and everything in the nature of false worship. Jesus gave a summary of man’s whole duty when He said to the tempter who offered Him the dominion of the world for an act of worship, “Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve” (Matthew 4:10).

It was idolatry, or false worship, that excluded man from Paradise, and the passport to paradise restored is the worship of and obedience to the only true God. “Blessed are they that do His commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city” (Revelation 22:14).

Because He is the Creator, the supreme right of the Lord in this world is the recognition of His sovereignty and the reverent obedience of His subjects. The first and greatest of all the obligations of man is to his Creator, in whom “we live, and move, and have our being” (Acts 17:28). In the first commandment, therefore, is the foundation of the whole law, the basis of all the commands that follow.

The Decalogue, like the Lord’s prayer, begins at the place of all beginnings—with God. That is where the Bible begins—“In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth” (Genesis 1:1). The New Testament begins at the same place: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1). The Gospel of John is just as truly the beginning of the New Testament as is the book of Matthew.

Evidence of Divinity

The Lord does not leave us without proof of His divinity and supremacy over all other gods. He issues two challenges to false gods, which they are unable to meet. The first and greatest evidence of Deity is the power to create, and Jehovah challenges all other gods to prove their right to be worshiped by exhibiting the power of creation. (See Psalms 95:3, 5, 6; 96:8–10; 86:8–10; Isaiah 45:18–22; Jeremiah 10:10–15.)

It is because Jehovah is the Creator that the sinless inhabitants of heaven worship Him. In vision the revelator saw these creatures “fall down before Him that sat on the throne, and worship Him that liveth forever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying, Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for Thou hast created all things, and for Thy pleasure they are and were created” (Revelation 4:10, 11). There is no other true basis of worship. No created being has a right to worship or receive worship from another creature. Since no creature has creative power, the Creator alone is the true and only God.

The Lord also issues another challenge to false gods as a proof of His divinity and the right to command and receive worship, namely, His ability to see and foretell the future. (See Isaiah 41:21–24; 48:3–6.) Only the members of the Godhead can foresee and forecast future events. All prophecy originates with the Father and is revealed to man by the Son through the agencies of the Holy Spirit, the angels, and the prophets. (See 1 Peter 1:10, 11; 2 Peter 1:19–21; Revelation 1:1.)

The angel Gabriel, the most exalted creature in the heavenly host, refused to receive worship from the prophet John, because he himself was likewise a creature. He told him to “worship God” (Revelation 19:10). Paul and Barnabas indignantly refused worship and divine honors from the people of Lystra because of a miracle they had performed in their midst. “They rent their clothes, and ran in among the people, crying out, And saying, Sirs, why do ye these things? We also are men of like passions with you, and preach unto you that ye should turn from these vanities unto the living God, which made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all things that are therein” (Acts 14:14, 15). In accepting worship, Satan or any of his followers exalt themselves to the place of God.

Polytheism Condemned

The first command is a condemnation of, and a warning against, polytheism, or the worship of many gods. “There be gods many, and lords many” (1 Corinthians 8:5),  said Paul. It has been estimated that the Greeks worshiped thirty thousand gods. The Babylonians “praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron, of wood, and of stone” (Daniel 5:4). The gods of the Egyptians were almost innumerable. The Romans had so many gods that in the city of Rome they built a temple called the Pantheon, or the temple of all the gods. They were so numerous that the priests of the temple could not name or enumerate them all. Modern India is said to have more than 330,000,000 gods, and they are almost as numerous in China. The Israelites had just been delivered from a nation where polytheism and pantheism reigned supreme, and from which the Jews were never completely delivered till after their return from Babylonian captivity. The promised land was filled with nations that were polytheistic in their worship, and whose gods became a snare to the children of Israel. Polytheism is the religion of the vast majority of the inhabitants of the modern world, and the first commandment of the Decalogue is just as applicable and up to date as when given thirty-five hundred years ago. The law of God is universal. It belongs to the whole human race in all ages. Even in countries where idols or graven images are no longer worshiped as such, gods in other forms constitute an idolatry no less displeasing to Jehovah.

Idolatry Defined

The apostle Paul defines idolatry as the exchanging of “the truth of God for a lie” and the worshiping and serving of “the creature rather than the Creator” (Romans 1:25, R.V.), or “more than the Creator.” “They had bartered the reality of God for what is unreal and had offered divine honors and religious service to created things, rather than to the Creator,” is the Weymouth translation. In other words idolatry in its broad meaning is false worship of every kind. Any object of adoration and worship that takes the place of God or comes between us and God is an idol.

Creature worship is just as popular and universal now as when paganism reigned supreme. It began at the dawn of human history when man first sinned. Adam set up an idol in his heart when he served and obeyed Satan instead of the Creator by eating of the forbidden fruit. That was the beginning of idolatry and false worship on the earth. Self and Satan took the place of God. Creature worship supplanted Creator worship.

Idolatry in many forms became prevalent among the descendants of Adam and Eve. It was the great sin of the antediluvian world. It was reintroduced after the deluge by the great rebel Nimrod. Babylon became the cradle of the idolatrous and spurious worship that has come down to modern times. The counterfeit religion of Satan is still divinely called “Babylon the Great, the Mother of Harlots and Abominations of the earth” (Revelation 17:5).

Modern Idolatry

For the vast majority of earth’s inhabitants there has been no change in the forms of pagan idolatry. The same gods without change even in names are being worshiped in heathen and pagan lands. In countries influenced by the gospel the old gods are still present but in different forms and under new names. The only graven images known to many of us are those seen in museums or exhibited by missionaries returned from heathen lands. There is not the least danger of our worshiping images in these forms of gross idolatry, but the devil is cunning and deceptive. He has hidden the identity of the old gods in new and attractive garments, and they are worshiped with as much fervor and devotion as were the gods in days of yore.

The instinct to worship was divinely planted in human nature. It is not even necessary to command worship, for all races of mankind, whether their civilization be high or low, have had deities and forms of worship. Voltaire declared that “if there were no God, it would be necessary to invent Him.” And Theodore Parker truthfully said, “Yet, if he would, man cannot live all to this world. If not religious, he will be superstitious. If he worship not the true God, he will have his idols.” Job recognized the universal instinct to worship and the inherent principle of idolatry in fallen man when he said: “If I have made gold my hope, or have said to the fine gold, Thou art my confidence; if I rejoiced because my wealth was great, and because mine hand had gotten much; If I beheld the sun when it shined, or the moon walking in brightness; And my heart hath been secretly enticed, or my mouth hath kissed my hand: This also was an iniquity to be punished by the judge: for I should have denied the God that is above” (Job 31:24–28).

In this text gold and wealth in which men trust is reckoned as idolatry, along with the worship of the heavenly bodies. The god of gold is one of the chief gods of modern idolatry. The ancient name of this god was “mammon,” and Jesus declared, “Ye cannot serve God and mammon” (Matthew 6;24; Luke 16:13). Today the rule of gold is more powerful than the golden rule in the lives of the majority of human beings.

The Lord is “a jealous God” (Exodus 20:5) who refuses to share worship with any other god. The worship of the true God cannot be mixed with the worship of false gods. An ancient proverb declares that “when the half-gods go, the gods arrive.” When we dismiss all the lesser gods, the great God Himself arrives to claim our allegiance and worship. With Him it is all or none. He accepts no halfhearted service. We must seek and serve Him with all the heart. The promise is, “The Lord is with you, while ye be with Him; and if ye seek Him, He will be found of you; but if ye forsake Him, He will forsake you” (2 Chronicles 15:2). We are then told that the Jews “sought Him with their whole desire; and He was found of them: and the Lord gave them rest round about” (verse 15). Jesus laid down the same principle when He said, “He that is not with Me is against Me; and he that gathereth not with Me scattereth abroad” (Matthew 12:30).

Excerpts from The Ten Commandments, by Taylor G. Bunch, 25–32. (The Review and Herald, 1944.)

Ephesus and Eternity

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“To the angel of the church of Ephesus write, ‘These things says He who holds the seven stars in His right hand, who walks in the midst of the seven golden lampstands: I know your works, your labor, your patience, and that you cannot bear those who are evil. And you have tested those who say they are apostles and are not, and have found them liars; and you have persevered and have patience, and have labored for My name’s sake and have not become weary. Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place—unless you repent.’ ” 

Revelation 2:1–5 NKJV

In this message to the Ephesians, God commends them for their good works, for their labor, their patience, their intolerance of evil, for perseverance and labor for Christ’s name. He commends the fact that they have not become weary. That is quite a list, a wonderful litany of praise. Not one negative or evil or wrong is given concerning the things this church is doing. We find no sins of commission; however, it seems there is only one thing missing. To us, this lack may not even be discernable as they seem to be doing all the right things. This is a church that has left its first love. And due to that one ingredient being missing, Jesus says unless they repent, He will remove their lampstand from its place. That signifies a condition of being rejected—bottom line, a loss of eternity.

Do we, in our human point of view think this is a little unreasonable, maybe just a little stern, or too demanding? What a wonderful litany is given of this church’s character, and just because of the loss of one thing they are rejected? Well, let’s consider a few things in relation to this.

The following quote was written in 1856, just 14 short years after the disappointment of the expected return of Jesus. This article gives us a glimpse of God’s view of things. “The glory and majesty of God was made to pass before me. Said the angel, ‘He is terrible in His majesty, yet ye realize it not; terrible in His anger, yet ye offend Him daily. Strive to enter in at the straight gate, for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat; because straight is the gate and narrow is the way that leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it’ (Matthew 7:13).” The Review and Herald, January 6, 1863. This is God’s message also in the message to the church of Ephesus.

Let’s think for a moment about who God is. Human words are too feeble, too weak, too inadequate, so we will turn to God’s inspired Word to find descriptions of who God is.

“For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together” (Colossians 1:16, 17).

“And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power” (Hebrews 1:3).

“Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, indeed everything that is in the heavens and the earth; Yours is the dominion, O Lord, and You exalt Yourself as head over all. Both riches and honor come from You, and You rule over all, and in Your hand is power and might; and it lies in Your hand to make great and to strengthen everyone. Now therefore, our God, we thank You, and praise Your glorious name” (1 Chronicles 29:11–13).

“ ‘There is none like unto Thee, O Jehovah; Thou art great, And Thy name is great in might. Who should not fear Thee, O King of the nations’ (Jeremiah 10:6, 7, A. R. V.)? …

“ ‘Known unto God are all His works from the beginning of the world.” “Who hath known the mind of the Lord? or who hath been His counselor? Or who hath first given to Him, and it shall be recompensed unto Him again? For of Him, and through Him, and to Him, are all things: to whom be glory forever’ (Acts 15:18; Romans 11:34–36). …

“ ‘He stretcheth out the north over the empty place, And hangeth the earth upon nothing. He bindeth up the waters in His thick clouds; And the cloud is not rent under them. … He hath compassed the waters with bounds, Until the day and night come to an end’ (Job 26:7–10).

“ ‘The pillars of heaven tremble and are astonished at His rebuke. He stilleth the sea with His power. … By His Spirit the heavens are beauty; His hand hath pierced the gliding serpent. Lo, these are but the outskirts of His ways: And how small a whisper do we hear of Him! But the thunder of His power who can understand’ (Job 26:11-14, A. R. V., margin)?

“ ‘The Lord hath His way in the whirlwind and in the storm, And the clouds are the dust of His feet’ (Nahum 1:3). …

“ ‘Great is Jehovah, and greatly to be praised; And His greatness is unsearchable. One generation shall laud Thy works to another, And shall declare Thy mighty acts. Of the glorious majesty of Thine honor, And of Thy wondrous works, will I meditate. And men shall speak of the might of Thy terrible acts; And I will declare Thy greatness. They shall utter the memory of Thy great goodness, And shall sing of Thy righteousness.’ …

“As we learn more and more of what God is, and of what we ourselves are in His sight, we shall fear and tremble before Him.” Testimonies, vol. 8, 281–283.

We see here a God of limitless power; a God of indescribable glory; God, the Great and Mighty, full of light brighter than the sun, the One who travels “from star to star.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 69. This is the God who is returning to this earth—not this time as “the meek and lowly one” (The Desire of Ages, 20, 112, 295, 422), but rather as “the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.”

At this point in time, what would happen to any human being if they were once to catch a glimpse of this God? “The Father’s person I could not behold, for a cloud of glorious light covered Him. I asked Jesus if His Father had a form like Himself. He said He had, but I could not behold it, for said He, ‘If you should once behold the glory of His person, you would cease to exist.’ ” Early Writings, 54. First Timothy 6:16 KJV tells us, “Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom be honour and power everlasting. Amen.”

God does not want us to be destroyed. He loves us with a love stronger than death. What did He do, for a time that we might not be destroyed by His very presence? “God forbears for a time the full execution of the sentence of death pronounced upon man. Satan flattered himself that he had forever broken the link between Heaven and earth. But in this he was greatly mistaken and disappointed. The Father had given over the world into the hands of His Son for Him to redeem from the curse and the disgrace of Adam’s failure and fall. Through Christ alone can man now find access to God. And through Christ alone will the Lord hold communication with man.” The Review and Herald, February 24, 1874.

In His great mercy, love, and forbearance, the Father separated Himself from us that His majesty, His power, the brightness of His glory would not destroy us fallen, sinful, degraded human beings. Did He then abandon us? No, No. He now holds communion with man through Christ. Our God is so gracious, so merciful, so long-suffering. In mercy He separated Himself from fallen man, communicating His love, His mercy, His compassion, and the great plan for the restoration of fallen man, through Christ, His One and Only Son. He did this that His “light unapproachable” might not consume us! But He will not always maintain that separation.

“ ‘Hereafter,’ said Jesus, ‘shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven’ (Matthew 26:64). In these words Christ presented the reverse of the scene then taking place [in the judgment hall of Annas the high priest]. He, the Lord of life and glory, would be seated at God’s right hand.” The Desire of Ages, 707, 708. No, that separation will not be maintained forever.

At that time, not only will the Father return, but Christ will no longer veil the glory of the Father that He also bears. He will come in the full glory of the Father, who dwelt in light unapproachable by humanity, so full of glory that no man could behold his face and live (see 1 Timothy 6:16).

We don’t want to be destroyed by His coming. But I wonder sometimes if we really want to be changed to reflect His image, or if by our actions, if not by our very words, we rather express the unspoken desire that God Himself change and thereby accept us in our fallen state, or at least in some degree excuse or lesson the obligations just a little.

Let’s think that through for a moment. Do you want this God to change to meet us where we are? Just think what that would mean! Consider the earlier statements about who and what God is! He not only created ALL things, but He upholds ALL things through His power.

We all claim that we want a change from this world of pain, misery, sorrow and death. We all claim to desire heaven. Friends, the only option is for us to change—completely. There is no other option. If we didn’t change—completely, wholly, entirely, we would replicate this earth in heaven! This is why in Revelation 2, a message of rebuke is presented to the church of Ephesus. We must attain to the perfection of God if we want to meet Him at the second coming, if we want to “see His face” (Revelation 22:4) without being destroyed.

And the bottom line in this change, the motive power for this change, and all the things we think, say and do, must be love. Good works, perseverance, labor, intolerance of evil—all these things must be motivated or undergirded, must spring from the great underlying principle of all heaven, the very character of God—love. “God is love” (1 John 4:8). [Emphasis supplied.] Therefore, no matter what we do, think, say, are, if it is not undergirded by the very essence of God—love, it will not stand in the day of final account, and our lampstand will be removed.

This is the burden of my heart and thought—who God is, who we are, who and what we must become if we are to “see His face” and live.

My friends, let us “reason together” (Isaiah 1:18) as God invited us to do. Let us see the beauty, the wisdom, the love, the yearning, the tenderness, and the absolute justice of His will and way. Let us return unto our Lord with the motive of pure, unadulterated love so that we may “abide the day of His coming” and be able to “stand when He appeareth” (Malachi 3:2 KJV).

All Bible quotes NASB unless otherwise noted.

Brenda Douay is a staff member at Steps to Life. She may be contacted by email at: brendadouay@stepstolife.org.

What Does God Really Mean?

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The Sabbath is a time for reflection, a time to stop and consider whether we are gaining ground and better prepared for that pure kingdom in which no transgressor will enter. Are we better prepared today than we were last Sabbath? It is a time to consider how it is with my soul. Has the past week been a week of spiritual gain, or a week of spiritual loss?

Jesus Christ came to this world to give us a pattern of how to live. In The Upward Look, 184, it says, “Christ came to the earth to give to men the pattern of the perfect character that all must obtain who would be welcomed to the future heavenly world.”

Most Christians believe that if you come to the Lord and confess Him as your Saviour from sin, the battle is won and you are saved. However, the truth is that you are saved if you don’t turn your back on Him. Jesus has promised to save the repentant sinner and deliver him from his sins so that his character might reflect His own. Matthew 1:21 says, “… and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins.”

Character reflects who you are, not just what you profess. A perfect character is one that is Christ-like. When the Lord returns, He is coming for His pure church, described as “without spot or wrinkle” (Ephesians 5:27 RSV). It will be “holy and without blemish.” Ibid.

Many believe they will continue in their bad habits and sin until the return of Jesus and miraculously those things will somehow be taken away in a flash of light. There is no magic button to eliminate sin. Our best efforts to transform our own lives will never be good enough. So how can we obtain that perfect character? The following statement explains the process:

“God leads His people on, step by step. He brings them up to different points calculated to manifest what is in the heart. Some endure at one point, but fall off at the next. At every advanced point the heart is tested and tried a little closer. If the professed people of God find their hearts opposed to this straight work, it should convince them that they have a work to do to overcome, if they would not be spewed out of the mouth of the Lord. Said the angel: ‘God will bring His work closer and closer to test and prove every one of His people.’ ” Testimonies, vol. 1, 187.

If you are one of God’s children, this will be your experience. Do not be discouraged when it does not happen in an instance. It is a process. God is going to bring various situations to you for you to grow in the power of the Holy Spirit. Not many people like tests, but they are very important. You would never want to fly on an airplane with a pilot who had not been tested and proven worthy to fly. You would never want to have surgery by a surgeon who had not been tested and proven that he is fit to operate on you. I hope you would not want an accountant to keep your books who had not been tested. Tests are necessary for us to know our true condition and to get us from where we are to where we need to be.

“ ‘God will bring His work closer and closer to test and prove every one of His people.’ Some are willing to receive one point; but when God brings them to another testing point, they shrink from it and stand back, because they find that it strikes directly at some cherished idol.” Ibid.

On the Christian journey, you will meet many trials or tests. When you conquer on one point and keep walking with the Lord, you will find another temptation will come your way. This is the way life is, a continual battle with trials and tests. However, you need never face these tests and temptations alone. You may come to a place where you think you can not go any farther. “I can’t do that,” you may think to yourself. When that happens, you stop right there and do not advance until you overcome that trial. The Lord may bring you around and give you that same test again; each time it becomes more difficult but He wants to save you.

Jesus talked about this situation in John 12:35, 36: “Then Jesus said to them, ‘A little while longer the light is with you. Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you; he who walks in darkness does not know where he is going. While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of the light.’ ”

We do not know just how much time we have in this life and it is therefore dangerous to reject opportunities to know Jesus. Walk in the light, because the light is moving and pretty soon it will be dark.

“Here they have opportunity to see what is in their hearts that shuts out Jesus. They prize something higher than the truth, and their hearts are not prepared to receive Jesus. Individuals are tested and proved a length of time to see if they will sacrifice their idols and heed the counsel of the True Witness. If any will not be purified through obeying the truth, and overcome their selfishness, their pride, and evil passions, the angels of God have the charge: ‘They are joined to their idols, let them alone,’ and they pass on to their work, leaving these with their sinful traits unsubdued, to the control of evil angels. Those who come up to every point, and stand every test, and overcome, be the price what it may, have heeded the counsel of the True Witness, and they will receive the latter rain, and thus be fitted for translation.” Testimonies, vol. 1, 187.

God is in the process of perfecting, of purifying His church. If the people in that church will not allow it to happen, then the angels will pass on and let them go.

Ellen White wrote, “Will the church that professes to keep the commandments of God keep them in truth?” The Present Truth, January 26, 1893. The church that professes to keep the commandments of God is the Seventh-day Adventist church, the Free Seventh-day Adventist churches, the Reformed Seventh-day Adventist church, the Advent Christian Church, and the Church of God, Seventh-day. All of those churches claim, and profess, and say, “We are commandment keepers.” But are they really?

We know from Bible prophecy that at the end of time there is going to be an attack against all commandment keepers. But that attack is not going to come from the true church.

In The Signs of the Times, April 22, 1889, it says, “… it is not the true church of God that makes war with those who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ. It is the people who make void the law, who place themselves on the side of the dragon, and persecute those who vindicate God’s precepts.”

If you really love Jesus, you will love the law of God. Jesus said He delighteth in the law of God (Psalm 40:8). When God’s law is written in a person’s heart, that person will not be fighting somebody else who is a commandment keeper.

There are many learned people, professional people and even ministers with doctorates who do not know the spiritual meaning of the ten commandments, even though it is not complicated. It is appalling that so many Seventh-day Adventists could be so far off in their understanding when we have so much information. In the book Patriarchs and Prophets, 305, Ellen White goes through each one of the commandments explaining in exquisite detail their spiritual meaning.

Regarding the first commandment, she wrote, “Man is forbidden to give to any other object the first place in his affections or his service.” Many men and women are guilty of violating this commandment while making gods of their spouses. The Creator is to have the first place in our affections.

It was reported that Dwight Eisenhower, the 34th president of the United States, elected in 1952 and president until 1961, once said to his wife Mamie that she had the third place in his affections. The reporter did not say what or how she responded. Eisenhower told her that his first allegiance was to the God of heaven. Secondly, his allegiance was to his country, and she was third.

Whatever you think about his statement, President Eisenhower at least was not breaking the first commandment if in reality he acted in accordance with his statement. “Whatever we cherish that tends to lessen our love for God or to interfere with the service due Him, of that do we make a god.” Ibid.

The second commandment is about images. Remember, to have a perfect character, God’s commandments will be written in my heart and my mind. I will live my thoughts. My speech and my actions will be in perfect harmony with God’s precepts. This commandment forbids the use of images in the worship of God.

Most people who do use images in their worship will tell you that they do not worship the images but just use them as a visual representation of God to enhance their worship. That is what all educated heathen have said for thousands of years.

Roman Catholics or those from the Greek Orthodox church will all tell you that they do not worship their images. However, the second commandment forbids the making of them and also bowing down to them. When I read the Roman Catholic literature about this, it states that they don’t worship the virgin Mary; they just “adore” her. The problem is that this is a violation of the second commandment.

The third commandment says, “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain” (Exodus 20:7). There are many people who will tell you they never violate the third commandment, when they are violating it every day of their lives, because they have not studied out what it truly means. Obviously, it refers to false oaths or to common swearing. Everybody understands that, but is that all it means?

Using the name of God in a light, careless manner or thoughtlessly mentioning the name of God in common conversation is breaking the third commandment. Imagine having a conversation with someone and every other sentence you say that person’s name and then about twenty words later you say their name again, and then again. After you have said that name about fifteen times it would sound really strange, but there are people who, when they pray, say God’s name every other sentence, over and over, ten or twenty times. Ask yourself the question, Is that polite? We should treat God with courtesy and kindness in accordance with the third commandment. Do we make appeals to Him in trivial matters, by frequent and thoughtless repetition of His name? Also, burning words of passion are written down in heaven as a species of swearing which is breaking the third commandment.

The fourth commandment, the longest commandment, is the one that Adventists are known for more than any of the others. People who know almost nothing about Seventh-day Adventists, will often times know that they keep the seventh-day Sabbath.

The command is to keep the Sabbath holy. Have you ever thought that through and realized that it is impossible to keep the Sabbath holy unless you are a holy person? God has told us that the Sabbath is a sign between Him and us and that He will make us holy. I love that promise found in Ezekiel 20:12 and in Exodus 31:13.

When our children were small, especially on Friday evening, my wife and I used to gather our family together, and I would claim those promises for my family. I would pray, “Lord, You have promised that if we would keep this day to You, that You would make us holy. You have promised, Lord. We can’t make ourselves holy, but You have promised that if we do this, and you can see that we have laid aside all of our secular business, You have promised us that if we do this, You will make us holy.”

Sabbath keeping involves more than physical preparation. In Isaiah 58:12–14 it says, “Those from among you shall build the old waste places; you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; and you shall be called the Repairer of the Breach, the Restorer of Streets to Dwell in.” Daniel 11 speaks of a power that is going to make a breach of God’s people. This power was mentioned in Daniel 11:13 and 14 several hundred years before it came into existence. However, Isaiah prophesied that God’s people in the last days are going to repair that breach.

Isaiah 58:13 says, “If you turn away your foot from the Sabbath, from doing your pleasure on My holy day, and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy day of the Lord honorable, and shall honor Him, not doing your own ways, nor finding your own pleasure, nor speaking your own words …”

This has been one of the most difficult things that I have ever faced as a Seventh-day Adventist minister, because it is very difficult and gut-wrenching to me to have to rebuke somebody. I don’t like to do it. I don’t want to do it. The Spirit of Prophecy has given us instructions that ministers are to rebuke those who speak their own words on the Sabbath. I often say to myself, “Lord, do You want me to say something now, or do You want me to just change the conversation? What do I do in this situation?”

Ellen White writes about this in Patriarchs and Prophets, 307, where she says, “Those who discuss business matters or lay plans on the Sabbath are regarded by God as though engaged in the actual transaction of business. To keep the Sabbath holy, we should not even allow our minds to dwell upon things of a worldly character.”

Paul wrote, “Examine yourselves, whether you are in the faith” (2 Corinthians 13:5, literal translation). Are you really a Sabbath keeper? Is your mind keeping the Sabbath? We have some praying to do when our mind wanders onto all sorts of worldly business or pleasure on the Sabbath.

The fifth commandment says that there is a duty of respect and love due to our parents that are due to no other person. Disobedience to parents is one of the signs of the last days, according to 2 Timothy 3. Because of the complicated situations that some children are in today, there needs to be an explanation. In Ephesians 6:1, the New Testament puts a qualification on the fifth commandment. It says, “Children, obey your parents in the Lord.” That means that if your parent commands you to do something that is in violation of the ten commandments, you are not to obey, because your earthly father does not have more authority than your heavenly father. However, even in that situation, we should ask the Lord to teach us and show us how to bring honor to even our ungodly parents. Who knows that if you keep the fifth commandment, and show honor and respect to your ungodly parent, maybe you will be able to save them in the kingdom of heaven.

The sixth commandment in the Hebrew language is only four words, “You shall not kill” (Exodus 20:13). Most people would not even think to break that one. However, there are many ways this is violated. In the book, Patriarchs and Prophets, 308, Ellen White mentions eight different ways people constantly break this commandment. They include:

  • all acts of injustice that tend to shorten life
  • a spirit of revenge
  • a spirit of hatred
  • the indulgence of any passion that leads to injurious acts towards others, or causes us even to wish them harm
  • the selfish neglect of caring for the needy or suffering
  • self-indulgence
  • unnecessary deprivation
  • excessive labor that tends to injure health

A person may not murder or kill anyone but they continually violate the commandment by holding onto habits that will shorten their life. Research shows that by smoking just one cigarette, you are shortening your life by at least six minutes. To abuse health principles knowingly is to be in violation of the sixth commandment.

The seventh commandment is also short and to the point. “You shall not commit adultery” (Exodus 20:14). Everybody knows this refers to acts of impurity, but it extends to sensual thoughts and desires, or any practice that tends to excite. (See Patriarchs and Prophets, 308.) Many believe that you can think whatever you want as long as you do not act on it. That may be what the world thinks, but it is not what the Lord thinks. Today, there is so much entertainment available that stimulates sensual desire. People willingly engage in it and then wonder why they cannot control their thoughts.

Then we are commanded not to steal. This is also huge. It includes kidnapping or man stealing. Surely it includes slave dealing. No human being has a right to make a slave of another human being. It surely would forbid wars of conquest, which is one of the main causes of wars. The other main cause is difference of religion.

The eighth commandment forbids the overreaching in trade, which is almost universal in our society. It seems everybody wants to buy something for less than it is worth, and they want to sell it for more than it’s worth. When buying and selling, ask the Lord to help you know what is fair and what is right, and not take advantage of anyone.

In regard to the payment of just debts or wages, we are told that, “… every attempt to advantage oneself by the ignorance, weakness, or misfortune of another is registered as fraud in the books of heaven.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 309. In this society, to buy goods for ten cents on the dollar is called a fire sale, but be careful not to take advantage of someone in need. You would not want that on your page in the books of heaven.

The ninth commandment forbids false speaking, or the attempt to deceive. There is more to this than what I do with my tongue. You can break this law without saying a thing by just a glance of the eye, a motion of the hand, an expression of the countenance. A falsehood may thus be told just as effectively as with the tongue. Intentional overstatements, any hint or insinuation calculated to convey an erroneous or exaggerated expression or statement of facts in such a manner as to mislead, is a falsehood.

Any effort to injure my neighbor’s reputation by misrepresentation or by evil surmising, or by slander, or by tale bearing, breaks this law. In fact, just by being silent, thereby suppressing the truth, is dishonest.

The tenth commandment reaches down to the root of every sin there is. The selfish desire is what is wrong. Are you praying that the Lord will divest you from selfishness?

We are told: “Let our daily prayer go up to God that He will divest us of selfishness.” Our High Calling, 242. The Lord would not tell me to pray about something every day if I didn’t have a problem.

“Jesus said, ‘The Father has not left Me alone, because I do always those things that please Him’ ” (John 8:29, literal translation). This infuriated the Jews to the point that they wanted to kill Him.

When Jesus comes again, He is going to have a church, a people of whom He can say, They always do what pleases Me. Make it your goal to be part of that church, part of that group of people.

Jesus said, “I have kept My Father’s commandments” (John 15:10).

He invited His disciples to have the very same experience that He had and that invitation is still open today. Your past may all be a jumble of one sin after another, but the Lord wants to deliver you from your guilt and give you a new heart, a new spirit, and a new life. When He comes, He wants to be able to say about you, “That person always does what pleases Me. My law is written in his heart.” That is the promise of the new covenant.

We each need to have that experience for ourselves. We are not saved as families; we are saved as individuals. The fact that your mother, your father, your son, or your daughter is saved has nothing to do with whether or not you are going to be saved. It is wholly between you and the Lord.

Do you want that law written in your heart, so that when Jesus comes He will be able to say that you always do what pleases Him? The law of God tells you what pleases Him. Pray that these principles may be written in all of our hearts.

(Unless appearing in quoted references or otherwise identified, Bible texts are from the New King James Version.)

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

Editorial – Watch: the Time of Reckoning is Near

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

“The restraining Spirit of God is even now being withdrawn from the world. Hurricanes, storms, tempests, fire and flood, disasters by sea and land, follow each other in quick succession. Science seeks to explain all these. The signs thickening around us, telling of the near approach of the Son of God, are attributed to any other than the true cause. Men cannot discern the sentinel angels restraining the four winds that they shall not blow until the servants of God are sealed; but when God shall bid His angels loose the winds, there will be such a scene of strife as no pen can picture. …

“Could the curtain be rolled back, could you discern the purposes of God and the judgments that are about to fall upon a doomed world, could you see your own attitude, you would fear and tremble for your own souls and for the souls of your fellow men. Earnest prayers of heart-rending anguish would go up to heaven. You would weep between the porch and the altar, confessing your spiritual blindness and backsliding.” Testimonies, vol. 6, 408.

“When Jesus ceases to plead for man, the cases of all are forever decided. This is the time of reckoning with His servants. To those who have neglected the preparation of purity and holiness, which fits them to be waiting ones to welcome their Lord, the sun sets in gloom and darkness, and rises not again. Probation closes; Christ’s intercessions cease in heaven. This time finally comes suddenly upon all, and those who have neglected to purify their souls by obeying the truth are found sleeping. They became weary of waiting and watching … .They became indifferent and careless, as though His coming were yet in the distance. But while their interest was buried up in their worldly gains, the work closed in the heavenly sanctuary, and they were unprepared.

“If such had only known that the work of Christ in the heavenly sanctuary would close so soon, how differently would they have conducted themselves, how earnestly would they have watched! … Those not found waiting and watching are finally surprised in their unfaithfulness. The Master comes, and instead of their being ready to open unto Him immediately, they are locked in worldly slumber, and are lost at last.”  Testimonies, vol. 2, 191, 192.