Issue: 2021 March

Keys to the Storehouse – When One Is Too Many

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I am an avid stitcher. I love working counted cross-stitch patterns. I learned from my mother when I was in my early 20s, and it has since been a pleasing outlet for my creativity and also a way to relieve stress.

Many years ago, I was in Silver Dollar City and found a small, hole-in-the-wall shop that sold cross-stitch sampler patterns. Around the top over all four walls were old, completed samplers and as I gazed around the room at the delightful colors and intricacies of the different patterns, I noticed one sampler in particular. It began A B C D as you would expect, but then skipped to F G H and so on. Between the D and F there was a caret, an insertion mark that indicated something was being added at that spot, and above the caret was an E stitched at a crooked angle. I was intrigued. I thought why wouldn’t they recount, remove the incorrect stitching and just make the correction. I asked the storekeeper and he told me that a couple hundred years earlier people believed that only God was perfect, so they would deliberately make a mistake to prove that belief to be true.

Sometime after my visit to that shop, I began stitching a set of four patterns, seasonal flowers – winter, spring, summer and fall – in different baskets and pots. The first three I completed perfectly, but while I stitched the flowers of the fourth pattern perfectly, I incorrectly counted while stitching the flowerpot. I didn’t notice at first. It took a couple or three rows before I began to see the results of the error I had made. I didn’t have to deliberately make a mistake to prove that God is perfect and I am not. I thought I should take the stitching out and do it correctly, but then I thought about what I’d learned that day in that shop. One mistake could change everything in a picture. So, I left it and you can see that the error caused my flowerpot to have a crack in it.

That got me thinking about spiritual choices. The decisions we make regarding right and wrong, the choices we make that result in yielding to temptation and ultimately sin. One sin can lead to another and then another. We are often unaware of what we have done until the results can be seen, like the crack in the flowerpot. You might say, “I made a choice and I felt so bad when I realized what I had done, that I corrected the action and I’ve never done it again.” Praise God! I worked another, very elaborate cross-stitch pattern of a Japanese geisha. She had a flowing robe and in the fold of the robe, I made a mistake. I searched and searched to find that mistake, but I was never able to locate it so that I could correct it. As a result, while no one else can see the error and no matter how well I may have been able to get back on track, the results of that error in counting can still be seen, if only by me.

It is the same with sin. One sin can have consequences, unfortunately, that cannot be changed.  You might sin and realize what you’ve done and correct your course, but the consequences of that sin will remain; sometimes seen by all, like the flowerpot and sometimes, like the Japanese geisha, seen only by you and God.

“There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death” (Proverbs 14:12).

Story – Alfred the Great

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Once there was in England a good king named Alfred. He was so brave and wise and did so many fine things for his people that he is always called Alfred the Great.

When Alfred was a little boy, his mother used to teach him from the wonderful book known as the Bible. She had five sons, Alfred being the youngest. One day she called the five boys to her and showed them the Holy Bible. She said:

“I’ll give this book to the one of you that learns to read it first.”

The five young princes began to study hard. They studied one reading lesson after another, as fast as they could. The Bible was a fine prize, and each one of them was anxious to win it.

Not very long afterwards, one of the boys came to his mother and said, “Mother, I believe that I can read the book now.” And sure enough, when she gave him a test, he could read it; and he received it as a prize.

Now, which of the five princes do you think it was who won the prize?

Yes, it was Alfred, the youngest of the five. He won the beautiful book, and he loved books all his life.

While Alfred was king, the Danes were fighting his people – the English. The Danes were strong, fierce people who came in boats from another country. They wanted to live in England, and they tried to rob and kill Alfred’s people.

King Alfred had a hard time fighting the Danes, but at last he won in one or two battles and made them stay in one part of the country by themselves. He drew a long line between his people and the Danes and would not allow the Danes to cross the line.

Alfred trained his men to be good soldiers. At the same time, he allowed some of them to stay on their farms all the time in order that plenty of food might be produced for everybody.

King Alfred also had his men build ships. In time of war the ships were used to carry soldiers, and all the time they were used to carry food and other things that the people needed.

All his life Alfred the Great loved books. He loved books so much that he wanted all of his people to have books, and he wanted every boy (maybe every girl, too) to learn to read.

So King Alfred built schoolhouses and hired school teachers. He gathered together many good books and many good teachers. But as long as he lived there was one book that he always loved best: it was the Bible – the book he had first learned to read.

History Stories for Children, John W. Wayland, © 1991, 79–81.

Inspiration – Walk in the Light

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I was shown that God’s people dwell too much under a cloud. It is not His will that they should live in unbelief. Jesus is light, and in Him is no darkness at all. His children are the children of light. They are renewed in His image, and called out of darkness into His marvelous light. He is the light of the world, and so also are they that follow Him. They shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. The more closely the people of God strive to imitate Christ, the more perseveringly will they be pursued by the enemy; but their nearness to Christ strengthens them to resist the efforts of our wily foe to draw them from Christ.

I was shown that there was too much comparing ourselves among ourselves, taking fallible mortals for a pattern, when we have a sure, unerring pattern. We should not measure ourselves by the world, nor by the opinions of men, nor by what we were before we embraced the truth. But our faith and position in the world, as they now are, must be compared with what they would have been if our course had been continually onward and upward since we professed to be followers of Christ. This is the only safe comparison that can be made. In every other there will be self-deception. If the moral character and spiritual state of God’s people do not correspond with the blessings, privileges, and light which have been conferred upon them, they are weighed in the balance, and angels make the report, Wanting.

With some the knowledge of their true state seems to be hidden from them. They see the truth, but perceive not its importance or its claims. They hear the truth, but do not fully understand it, because they do not conform their lives to it, and therefore are not sanctified through obeying it. And yet they rest as unconcerned and well satisfied as though the cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night, as token of God’s favor, went before them. They profess to know God, but in works deny Him. They reckon themselves His chosen, peculiar people, yet His presence and power to save to the uttermost are seldom manifested among them. How great is the darkness of such! yet they know it not. The light shines, but they do not comprehend it. No stronger delusion can deceive the human mind than that which makes them believe that they are right, and that God accepts their works, when they are sinning against Him. They mistake the form of godliness for the spirit and power thereof. They suppose that they are rich, and have need of nothing, when they are poor, wretched, blind, and naked, and need all things.

There are some who profess to be Christ’s followers, yet put forth no effort in spiritual things. In any worldly enterprise they put forth effort, and manifest ambition to accomplish their object, and bring about the desired end; but in the enterprise of everlasting life, where all is at stake, and their eternal happiness depends upon their success, they act as indifferent as though they were not moral agents, as though another were playing the game of life for them, and they had nothing to do but wait the result. Oh, what folly! what madness! If all will only manifest that degree of ambition, zeal, and earnestness for everlasting life that they manifest in their worldly pursuits, they will be victorious overcomers. Everyone, I saw, must obtain an experience for himself, each must act well and faithfully his part in the game of life. Satan watches his opportunity to seize the precious graces when we are unguarded, and we shall have a severe conflict with the powers of darkness to retain them, or to regain a heavenly grace if through lack of watchfulness we lose it.

But I was shown that it is the privilege of Christians to obtain strength from God to hold every precious gift. Fervent and effectual prayer will be regarded in heaven. When the servants of Christ take the shield of faith for their defense, and the sword of the Spirit for war, there is danger in the enemy’s camp, and something must be done. Persecution and reproach only wait for those who are endowed with power from on high to call them into action. When the truth in its simplicity and strength prevails among believers, and is brought to bear against the spirit of the world, it will be evident that there is no concord between Christ and Belial. The disciples of Christ must be living examples of the life and spirit of their Master.

Young and old have a conflict, a warfare, before them. They should not sleep for a moment. A wily foe is constantly on the alert to lead them astray and overcome them. Believers in present truth must be as watchful as their enemy and manifest wisdom in resisting Satan. Will they do this? Will they persevere in this warfare? Will they be careful to depart from all iniquity? Christ is denied in many ways. We may deny Him by speaking contrary to truth, by speaking evil of others, by foolish talking or jesting, or by words that are idle. In these things we manifest but little shrewdness or wisdom. We make ourselves weak; our efforts are feeble to resist our great enemy, and we are conquered. “Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh” (Matthew 12:34), and through lack of watchfulness we confess that Christ is not in us. Those who hesitate to devote themselves unreservedly to God make poor work of following Christ. They follow Him at so great a distance that half the time they do not really know whether they are following His footprints or the footsteps of their great enemy. Why are we so slow to give up our interest in the things of this world and take Christ for our only portion? Why should we wish to keep the friendship of our Lord’s enemies, and follow their customs, and be led by their opinions? There must be an entire, unreserved surrender to God, a forsaking and turning away from the love of the world and earthly things, or we cannot be Christ’s disciples.

The life and spirit of Christ is the only standard of excellence and perfection, and our only safe course is to follow His example. If we do this He will guide us by His counsel and afterward receive us to glory. We must strive diligently and be willing to suffer much in order to walk in the footsteps of our Redeemer. God is willing to work for us, to give us of His free Spirit, if we will strive for it, live for it, believe for it; and then we can walk in the light as He is in the light. We can feast upon His love and drink in of His rich fullness.

Testimonies, vol. 1, 405–409.

God’s Unerring Justice

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It is a sad, yet sober reality, perhaps even unavoidable, that human justice often falls short of being just. Unscrupulous prosecutors and corrupt judges frequently succeed in condemning innocent victims to jail time and even to death. The premier example of justice gone awry is that of Jesus Christ. Falsely accused and convicted by evil men, He was condemned to death by the highest court in the Jewish nation for a crime He had never committed. This unfortunate scenario has been repeated countless times in the course of human history, especially in the case of Christian martyrs. Perfectly blameless words and acts deliberately misconstrued, motives impugned and maligned, they were assigned by unjust human tribunals to the rack, the stake, or the sword to suffer a martyr’s fate. We have been warned that Sabbath keepers will likewise experience this miscarriage of justice at the end of the world.

But even without resort to fraud and deceit, human jurisprudence is seriously flawed on two counts:

  1. Being framed by fallen human legislatures, the laws are not perfect. Note the following insightful words of inspiration: “Men had well-nigh lost the knowledge of the true God. Their minds were darkened by idolatry. For the divine statutes, which are ‘holy, and just, and good’ (Romans 7:12), men were endeavoring to substitute laws in harmony with the purposes of their own cruel, selfish hearts.” Prophets and Kings, 15.

Examples of such deficient laws include those dealing with abortions, rights of homosexuals, and laws attempting to stifle the conscience.

  1. Human laws can operate only in the outward domain of the words and acts of people, and not the inner domain of the character. This is the reason we so often read about “lone wolves,” “sleeper cells” and psychologically deranged would-be murderers and criminals walking freely abroad in society. They cannot be charged until the act is either carried out or its intent expressed in some manner, and then it makes the headlines.

In sharp contrast to human jurisprudence is God’s jurisprudence. In the Bible we have been provided a compendium of laws revealing the will of God for us. This affords us an answer to the second of life’s core questions: What is my raison d’etre – Why am I here? It is to carry out the will of the great Creator God. The Bible also gives us soul-satisfying answers to life’s first big question about our origin (Where did I come from?) and the third question relating to our final destiny (Where am I headed?). But we find ourselves against a huge problem at this point because the Scriptures also declare: “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts” (Isaiah 55:9). With our limited capacity we cannot fully comprehend the mind of God and how His justice operates in every instance. How can anyone serve One whose actions he/she cannot understand, much less agree with? We all have troubling questions which God will answer only in the great hereafter. Notice the following Scripture, revealing a principle of God’s dealings, which was a matter of great perplexity to me:

“Thou shewest lovingkindness unto thousands, and recompensest the iniquity of the fathers into the bosom of their children after them: the Great, the Mighty God, the Lord of hosts, is His name” (Jeremiah 32:18).

I was puzzled! From my earthbound perspective I was unable to wrap my mind around the notion of children suffering for the sins of their fathers. How was this just and equitable? Jesus reinforced it to the Jews of His day: “That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar” (Matthew 23:35).

The prophecy was fulfilled in AD 70 when the Roman General, Titus Vespasian besieged Jerusalem killing 1.2 million Jews, leaving the city and the temple in ruins, and creating the diaspora by scattering the Jews into every country under the sun. It was an act of God’s retributive wrath against a nation that had crucified His Son – except it was a whole generation after the crucifixion in AD 31! It is highly unlikely that any of the original actors in the death of Jesus were still alive. Certainly, Caiaphas was long gone, along with Pilate and Herod and the Sanhedrin. The only ones alive from that time were likely the little children whose mothers wept for Jesus along Via Dolorosa. But they were too little to be aware of what was going on, much less could they be held liable for it. So where was God’s justice in punishing a completely different generation than the actual perpetrators?

This enigmatic ethic is evidenced in several other Scriptures as well. Notice God’s dealings with the Amorites in Palestine: “But in the fourth generation they shall come hither again: for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full” (Genesis 15:16).

Our end time prophet offers an inspired commentary on this verse: “Although this nation was conspicuous because of its idolatry and corruption, it had not yet filled up the cup of its iniquity, and God would not give command for its utter destruction. … The compassionate Creator was willing to bear with their iniquity until the fourth generation. Then, if no change was seen for the better, His judgments were to fall upon them.” Testimonies, vol. 5, 208. Clearly, the judgments of God would fall on the fourth generation, while sparing the first three who were just as guilty. Was this really just and fair? I wondered.

The excerpt continues with more thought-provoking insight:

“With unerring accuracy the Infinite One still keeps an account with all nations. While His mercy is tendered with calls to repentance, this account will remain open; but when the figures reach a certain amount which God has fixed, the ministry of His wrath commences. The account is closed. Divine patience ceases. There is no more pleading of mercy in their behalf.” Ibid.

Mark the two concepts expressed in the passages above: 1) The concept of the Cup of Iniquity, and 2) The concept of the Accretion (accumulation) of Guilt.

The Cup of Iniquity is a metaphor for a mysterious “vessel” in which God collects and stores unconfessed and unforgiven sins. Because it is of limited capacity, which God alone determines, the cup can be filled up at some point. The concept of the Accretion of Guilt further teaches that sin can be understood as an objective product of human will and action, like drops of poison, which can add up over time. From the inspired records we understand that individual cups are placed in the hands of each person at birth, while national, corporate cups are placed in the hands of the leaders. Obviously, individual cups cease to exist at death, while national cups roll over to succeeding generations until God intervenes. We see the filling up of individual cups (e.g., King Saul) as well as national cups in the histories of both Israel and Judah.

Prophecy indicates that the United States will also fill up her cup of iniquity whenever the National Sunday Law is passed: “The people of the United States have been a favored people; but when they restrict religious liberty, surrender Protestantism, and give countenance to popery, the measure of their guilt will be full, and ‘national apostasy’ will be registered in the books of heaven. The result of this apostasy will be national ruin.” The Review and Herald, May 2, 1893. This cup in the hands of U.S. leaders has been gradually filling up over many generations. It will be filled to the brim with the passing of the National Sunday Law.

In line with the concept of the full cup, the sufferings of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane offer an amazing insight. Three times He prayed, “O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from Me: nevertheless not as I will, but as Thou wilt” (Matthew 26:39). The sins of the whole human race were crushing the life out of Him. He was suffering the wrath of God against sin on behalf of each child of Adam. And since the ministry of God’s wrath begins only when the cup of iniquity is full, the cup that Jesus held in His trembling grasp was clearly overflowing with the poison of each individual cup of humanity.

Our feeble minds cannot comprehend the enormous cup that Jesus had to drink in order to save us. Is it any wonder He perspired great drops of blood before Gabriel was commissioned to strengthen Him to drink it? But in emptying our cups He made provision that they might remain empty, allowing us to escape the penalty of our own sins. Forever we should be grateful for the cup that the Savior drained in our stead!

But now we are faced with a conundrum: The Bible also explicitly declares: “The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him” (Ezekiel 18:20). This scripture effectively sweeps away the doctrine of Original Sin, which as Seventh-day Adventists we reject. So, how can we justify the act of God in punishing one generation for the sins of previous ones, when His Word clearly teaches individual accountability? It posed an insurmountable dilemma until I was able to grasp an important truth that had eluded me for years. It was stated in the Spirit of Prophecy, but it had never registered with me before. With reference to the 3rd plague we read:

“The angel of God declares: ‘Thou art righteous, O Lord, … because Thou hast judged thus. For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and Thou hast given them blood to drink; for they are worthy’ (Revelation 16:5, 6). By condemning the people of God to death, they have as truly incurred the guilt of their blood as if it had been shed by their hands. In like manner Christ declared the Jews of His time guilty of all the blood of holy men which had been shed since the days of Abel; for they possessed the same spirit and were seeking to do the same work with these murderers of the prophets.” The Great Controversy, 628.

Here was an act of God’s justice, completely outside the realm of human jurisprudence. With unerring accuracy, the God of Heaven was able to read the thoughts and purposes of humanity lurking within the deepest recesses of the mind. Here was the infallible basis for God’s judgments! The light finally came on in my mind. God did not need to wait until the secret desire or purpose manifested itself in action. I had misapprehended Divine justice by assuming it worked on the same level as human justice. While human jurisdiction was limited to the observable words and acts, God’s jurisdiction embraced also the very heart and mind, enabling Him to render perfect judgment based entirely on the hidden thoughts and purposes. Amazing!

Thus, the apparently contradictory Scriptures are harmonized: Every man will pay the penalty for his own rebellion (in keeping with the principle of individual accountability) while later generations will be punished for the sins of their forefathers for harboring the same wicked thoughts and purposes. God’s foreknowledge enables Him to predict with unfailing accuracy the potential for the same evil deeds, given the opportunity. Thus, a corrupt mind will inevitably devolve into corrupt deeds under the proper circumstances. Individual accountability is still preserved in this scenario. But because they collectively contribute to the filling up of the national cup by the same rebellious purposes as their forebears, God can justifiably rain His retributive wrath on their heads.

We have now a credible explanation for some other obscure passages of inspiration:

  1. The Death Sentence against God’s people we know is an exercise in futility because not one saint suffers martyrdom under it. Yet we read in Revelation 16:5, 6 regarding the 3rd plague: “And I heard the angel of the waters say, Thou art righteous, O Lord, which art, and wast, and shalt be, because thou hast judged thus. For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and thou hast given them blood to drink; for they are worthy.” The only reason the angels can speak of the shedding of blood as a done deed is because of the murder potential inherent in the Death Decree.
  2. The Spirit of Prophecy numbers the 144,000 among the martyrs of the ages. In describing them after the time of Jacob’s Trouble, Ellen White states the following: “There stood revealed the throne of God. Around it were ten thousand times ten thousand and thousands upon thousands, and close about the throne were the martyrs. Among this number I saw the very ones who were so recently in such abject misery, whom the world knew not, whom the world hated and despised.” Selected Messages, Book 3, 428.

This is an amazing statement because we know that not one of the 144,000 will suffer death at the hands of their enemies. Notice: “God would not suffer the wicked to destroy those who were expecting translation and who would not bow to the decree of the beast or receive his mark. I saw that if the wicked were permitted to slay the saints, Satan and all his evil host, and all who hate God, would be gratified. And oh, what a triumph it would be for his satanic majesty to have power, in the last closing struggle, over those who had so long waited to behold Him whom they loved!” Early Writings, 284. Yet, strangely, they are included among the martyrs. How can this be if they were never killed? It is because they possessed the faith of the martyrs. Ready and willing to seal their testimony with their blood, they had taken their stand on the hill of God’s law on which they were willing to die. And God recognizes this fact by conferring on them the high honor of wearing a red border on their garments. So here again we see God acting from His knowledge of the heart and not merely the outward reality. What an amazing God!

  1. Ellen White has much to say about “cherished” sins: “The righteousness of Christ will not cover one cherished sin. A man may be a law-breaker in heart; yet if he commits no outward act of transgression, he may be regarded by the world as possessing great integrity. But God’s law looks into the secrets of the heart. … Only that which is in accord with the principles of God’s law will stand in the judgment.” Christ’s Object Lessons, 316. As depicted here, cherished sins are not necessarily open and observable, but they have the potential to break out under the proper circumstances. A cherished sin resides in a corrupt heart. It may not be indulged for lack of opportunity, yet it cannot accord with God’s law and will be condemned in the Judgment. Sadly, there will be many in the lake of fire, like the rich young ruler, (Matthew 19:16–22) who may not have broken the Ten Commandments outwardly, but with pride, envy, covetousness, selfishness, lust or malice resident in the heart (known only to God, of course) they could not be saved!

That God will stand fully vindicated in His dealings with sin and sinners is without question. This is why “every knee shall bow to Me, and every tongue shall confess to God” (Romans 14:11). “To declare, … at this time His righteousness: that He might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus” (Romans 3:26). In undertaking the salvation of the human race, God acts from a divine, infallible perspective. His judgments will be able to pass the closest scrutiny of intelligent beings. And the reason He is able to guarantee that sin will never arise the second time (Nahum 1:9) is because He saves only those whose hearts are devoid of any secretly cherished sin. Like Joseph, they will not sin even under ideally hidden circumstances because they live as in the sight of a holy God. Not only do they love righteousness, but they hate sin. Thus, with sin eradicated from the heart by His grace, God accomplishes the complete eradication of sin from the universe and ensures its eternal non-emergence, all in the context of free, uncoerced human will. Hallelujah!

“Let us strive with all the power that God has given us to be among the hundred and forty-four thousand” (Maranatha, 241) who have crucified and died to self. They have no guile in their mouths because they have none in their hearts (Revelation 14:5). Their prayer throughout has been, “Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting” (Psalm 139:23, 24).

Amen!

[All emphasis supplied.]

 Dr. Pandit is a retired cardiologist living in Arkansas with his wife Dorothy. He is proud to call himself a historic Seventh-day Adventist. He, with his wife, is involved in backing two self-supporting ministries in India 1) Medical Missionary Training and Lifestyle Center in South India and 2) A printing ministry in Western India. They are also founding members of a “home church” located in Hot Springs, AR. He can be contacted via his email address: sudor777@gmail.com, or phone: 870-356-4768.

Trust in the Lord

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“Fret not thyself because of evildoers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity. For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb. Trust in the Lord, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed. Delight thyself also in the Lord; and He shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in Him; and He shall bring it to pass. And He shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light, and thy judgment as the noonday. Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass. Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise to do evil. For evildoers shall be cut off: but those that wait upon the Lord, they shall inherit the earth. For yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be: yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and it shall not be. But the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.”
Psalm 37:1–11

In these eleven verses we have set before us something to do and something not to do, noting first what we’re told not to do. Verse 1 reads, “Fret not thyself.” You will find this repeated in the seventh and eighth verses. Apparently, it is one of the great themes in this scripture. Don’t get anxious; don’t get worried; don’t murmur and complain; don’t be bothered about anything. Somebody says, Well, that’s very well for David to write down there, but David didn’t live in our time. That is true, but the Holy Spirit does and He’s the One who inspired this.

Take a look at the other side of the coin and see what we are to do if we are not to fret. We are to trust. Consider the wonderful message of this same Psalm as it relates to trust. Note that trust is not a substitute for work. You’ll find that in the 3rd verse. “Trust in the Lord, and do good.” Trust in the Lord, and do something. Faith is not a substitute for action, rather it inspires action. As someone has said, Faith is so good it works.

Another sidelight occurs in the latter part of the third verse, “Trust in the Lord, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land.” Dwell means to live, to stay, to inhabit; in other words, the way to meet problems is not to run away because they fret us. Settle down and meet the problem by trusting God and by doing good. And what is the result? “Verily thou shalt be fed,” satisfied, physically and spiritually. Another translation says, “And enjoy security.” Philippians 4:19 echoes that wonderful promise: “My God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”

Now notice Psalm 37:4: “Delight thyself also in the Lord; and He shall give thee the desires of thine heart.” That is also translated, “He shall give thee the petitions of thy heart.” In other words, He will give you what you ask for. Jesus says in the Sermon on the Mount, “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find” (Matthew 7:7). Trust, then, is not a substitute for prayer, just as it is not a substitute for work. Rather it inspires prayer as it inspires work. The more we trust God the more our petitions will be sent to Him.

Paul says in Philippians 4:6, “Be careful [anxious] for nothing, but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.” What a wonderful combination of trust and prayer. What a difference it makes to God and to us if our prayers are banging on the door as if God had to be waked up and we were trying to change His mind and get Him interested, or whether we come as children to a loving father or mother, saying, I know you’re interested and here is the thing that’s on my heart. Trust and prayer belong together. Notice the wonderful promise, “And He shall give thee the desires of thine heart.” What an order!

There’s not a craving in the mind

Thou dost not meet and still;

There’s not a wish the heart can have,

Which Thou dost not fulfill.
Frederick William Faber, 1860.

What a God! He is there at the center of the universe, marshalling all the forces of omnipotence to give you what you want, to grant your heart’s desires, not only to fill your needs, your basic requirements, but even to gratify your wishes. What a friend! Oh, to trust Him, to come with confidence knowing that He’s waiting to hear our requests. “He that spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things” (Romans 8:32)? He loves to give.

“Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in Him; and He shall bring it to pass” (Psalm 37:5). Notice the marginal reading: “Roll thy way upon the Lord.” The picture is of a burden too heavy for us. Jesus says to let go of it and let it roll on Him. Peter picks up the thought and echoes it in 1 Peter 5:7, “Casting all your care upon Him; for He careth for you.” That word translated casting has the thought of flinging, throwing the burden down at Jesus’ feet, an active choice of the mind, choosing to let go of the worry, the fretting care and giving it to Jesus. “Cast thy burden on the Lord. Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in Him; and He shall bring it to pass.” The trust goes with the committal. As we turn over the burden to Him, we are to believe He accepts it and accepts us, and makes Himself responsible for our success. “Trust also in Him; and He shall bring it to pass.” As another translation puts it, “Leave all to Him, rely on Him and He will see to it.” Will He do it? Oh, He says He will. He will act without any question.

Now that beautiful seventh verse: “Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him.” A part of trusting is resting and waiting. Trust does not do away with the need for waiting. Some people suppose that if a man had faith, enough faith, strong enough faith, that he could get things done in an instant. They’re looking for somebody like that. The devil will have some miracle workers around before long to show us spectacular miraculous things, but they’ll be from hell, not from heaven. The people of God in this last generation are distinguished by patience. Revelation 14:12 says, “Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.” And patience is developed by waiting.

So, trust is not a substitute for waiting. Trust is not something that makes waiting unnecessary. Trust inspires waiting. It keeps us hopeful during the waiting period, whether it be long or short. In James there is a parallel statement. “Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth” (James 5:7, first part). Whether it’s apples or pears, grapes or strawberries, the farmer must wait for the harvest. There is no way to put in the plant today and reap the crop tomorrow. “The husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain. Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh” (verses 7, last part, 8).

Notice that expression again, “Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him” (Psalm 37:7). The margin says on rest, “Be silent to the Lord.” In an earlier verse we learned that we are to pour out our heart’s requests in supplication; we are to make known our desires in petitions but along with it we are to learn to be silent. “Be still, and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10). In the quietness God will speak. Be silent to the Lord and wait patiently for Him. When we are waiting, wondering, it is sometimes a hard time to be still, but trust is exhibited in quietly, patiently, calmly waiting. When we have prayed, when we have worked, there’s a time to wait – quietly, trustfully, before God.

Think of Joseph in Egypt, ten years in Potiphar’s house as a slave, then unjustly accused and thrown into prison. Then his hopes are raised as, having interpreted the dreams of the butler and the baker, he is promised that he will be remembered in the throne room. Nevertheless, the chief butler forgot him. Can you imagine how Joseph felt, forgotten? But it was all in God’s providence. We usually think that God is always working to help people to remember things, but He also lets some people forget things. And it might be that God could allow somebody to forget something that you want them very much to remember. But after two years, one day that man woke up. The hour had struck. God’s time had come, and Joseph left the dungeon forever to be the prime minister of Egypt. Joseph had learned the lesson of crying to God for help, doing anything and everything he could to work out the plan, and then waiting, waiting, waiting, waiting. Thank God for these precious lessons. Resign yourself unto the Lord and wait.

Trust, true trust, goes deeper, higher, further than anything we’ve yet looked at. Trust enables us, when we have prayed, when we have worked, when we have waited, to accept a result which is contrary to the thing we thought we wanted. Trust enables us to join with Paul in saying we know that “All things work together for good to them that love God” (Romans 8:28). And we love God enough to trust Him and we trust Him knowing that He loves us.

Take this beautiful passage in Steps to Christ, page 122: “Jesus is our friend; all heaven is interested in our welfare. We should not allow the perplexities and worries of everyday life to fret the mind and cloud the brow. If we do, we shall always have something to vex and annoy. We should not indulge a solicitude that only frets and wears us, but does not help us to bear trials.

“You may be perplexed in business; your prospects may grow darker and darker, and you may be threatened with loss; but do not become discouraged; cast your care upon God, and remain calm and cheerful. Pray for wisdom to manage your affairs with discretion, and thus prevent loss and disaster. Do all you can on your part to bring about favorable results. Jesus has promised His aid, but not apart from our effort. When relying upon our Helper, you have done all you can, accept the result cheerfully.”

That’s true with a crop, it’s true with a business, it’s true in our medical work as we try to help sick people. It’s true with every human circumstance. We are to pray, asking for what we believe is God’s will. We are to work seeking to accomplish what we believe is God’s will. We are to wait whether the time be long or short till the answer comes and if that answer comes as we’ve expected, how joyously we pour out our song of thanksgiving, but if a final answer that comes is no, trust still carries on, trust still says, Lord, I thank Thee.

This was the lesson that Jesus was seeking to teach Martha and Mary as recorded in John 11. You remember that Lazarus fell sick and, knowing of Christ’s love for their brother, they simply sent Him the message, “The one You love is sick” (John 11:3, last part). They thought Jesus would drop everything and come, but He just stayed where He was. Pretty soon Lazarus died and they thought, What does all this mean? They couldn’t figure it out. Had Jesus forsaken them? No. Had He forgotten them? No. He had sent them the message in answer to their message, “This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God” (verse 4). And how wonderfully it finally worked out.

Friends, we must never, and I stress this, we must never make our faith in God dependent upon the way He answers our prayers. He knows better than we do. He loves us better than we love ourselves. To trust Him does not mean that we get what we want; it means that we learn to submit to His way so that He gets what He wants. Somebody says, but Brother Frazee, you just read that if we delight ourselves in the Lord that He will give us the desires of our heart. Precisely. And Martha and Mary got more than they desired when their brother came back from the grave. It was a far more abundant answer than if Christ had come and simply broken the fever and raised up the sick man. God has a thousand ways of answering our prayers of which we know nothing. Sometimes the explanation of the answer awaits the eternal world. Jesus said to Peter, “What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter” (John 13:7).

In The Ministry of Healing, 474, we are told: “In the future life the mysteries that here have annoyed and disappointed us will be made plain. We shall see that our seemingly unanswered prayers and disappointed hopes have been among our greatest blessings.” We love to read about marvelous, spectacular answers to prayer and they are wonderful. The lines in the top right corner express a great truth.

We have never learned really to trust until we’ve mastered the principles set out in Psalm 37. Far on past the answers that are spectacular, far on past those experiences, comes the chapter on trusting God when there seems to be no answer or when the answer is no. This instead of coming from less faith is possible only when there’s more faith.

The apostle Paul had a thorn in his flesh. His eyesight had been left greatly diminished after that meeting with Christ on the road to Damascus and how that scholarly man longed for good eyesight that he might continue his earnest study of the Old Testament scrolls and that he might write out the messages to the churches, but for reasons that God did not see fit fully to explain, Paul was left with poor eyesight. He carried that thorn in the flesh all his life, and he says, “For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me” (2 Corinthians 12:8). God finally said no to Paul and answered him: “My grace is sufficient for thee: for My strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly” then he says, “will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, … in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong” (verses 9, 10).

Oh friends, prayer and trust and waiting and even work, all joined together, are not some sort of slot machine where you put in a quarter and wait and here comes the candy bar or the toy. There is more to it than that. We’re not dealing with a computer; we’re dealing with a Creator who is our friend. And He knows better than we do what we need. If He knows and He loves us, why worry our heads about it? Why not just wait until He gives it to us? Trusting Him means that we have faith in what He says and we choose to cooperate with Him and He has said that it is a part of His plan to grant us an answer to the prayer of faith that which He would not bestow did we not thus ask.

To trust Jesus means that we pray because He has asked us to pray. We work because He has invited us to be partners with Him. We wait because that is His assignment. And through it all, in it all, and after all, we trust, we believe that He is in charge, that He is seated on the throne and that He is marshalling all the powers of the universe to carry out in our lives that which is best for us. Trust Him then. Trust Him when dark days assail. Trust Him when there seems to be no answer. Trust Him patiently, calmly waiting.

Sometimes when hearts are weak

He gives the very gifts believers seek;

But often faith must learn a deeper rest,

And trust God’s silence when He does not speak;

For He whose name is love

Will send the best to those who seek.

 

He knows, He loves, He cares;

Nothing this truth can dim.

He gives His very best to those

Who leave the choice to Him.

 

The Weaver, Source Unknown

Elder W.D. Frazee studied the Medical Missionary Course at the College of Medical Evangelists in Loma Linda, California. He was called to Utah as a gospel medical evangelist. During the Great Depression, when the church could not afford to hire any assistants, Elder Frazee began inviting professionals to join him as volunteers. Thus began a faith ministry that would become the foundation for the establishment of the Wildwood Medical Missionary Institute in 1942. He believed that each person is unique, specially designed by the Lord, of infinite value, and has a special place and mission in this world which only he can fill. His life followed this principle and he encouraged others to do the same.

Someone Cares

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Everyone needs someone who cares for them. Everyone needs a personal friend, but often when we need a friend the most, there is no one to fill the void.

Sometimes those whom we thought were friends fail us, and often even our truest friends and closest loved ones do not understand us.

In the heart of every person there are forebodings which the tongue cannot utter, feelings which cannot be expressed; experiences the heart has locked within; a burden of guilt that no one shares; uncertainties and perplexities no one comprehends; critical times of loss – divorce, death or rejection – when we need arms around us that are often not there.

There is a longing within every heart for a true friend, someone who has shared the same trials, someone to listen and to walk by our side. When we do not find such a one, the human heart grows discouraged and despondent. One of the main reasons for marriage is to satisfy this heart longing for companionship. And yet, too often, marriage may simply increase the loneliness. So, what is the solution?

We find the solution where all solutions are found – in the Bible. The solution for the lonely heart is Jesus, but if Jesus is the solution, why do Christians experience the same loneliness and heartache as those in the world? Why does church seem so empty? Why do Christian homes break up? Why do Christian young people get so desperate for friendship that they marry those who are not converted or well suited to themselves? The answer is that most Christians are Christians in name only and do not experience the solution for heartache and loneliness that Jesus offers.

The Bible gives a graphic example of someone in need of a true friend. It picks the loneliest situation in the world – the person who is lonely in marriage. Suppose that one is very lonely in their marriage and then meets someone whom they believe understands and cares for them much better than their spouse. The Bible gives the wrong solution and the right solution.

“Do you not know, brethren (for I speak to those who know the law), that the law has dominion over a man as long as he lives? For the woman who has a husband is bound by the law to her husband as long as he lives. … So then if, while her husband lives, she marries another man, she will be called an adulteress; but if her husband dies, she is free from the law, so that she is no adulteress, though she has married another man” (Romans 7:1–3).

Divorce and remarriage are the wrong solutions, for that is breaking the express commandment of God. We can never hope to find happiness, peace or true friendship by rebelling against God. But there is an implied solution even within the prohibition: “If, while her husband lives, she marries another man. …” If her husband should die, then she could marry her “true” friend with God’s blessing. So the true solution is death of one of the partners. But which partner must die?

Paul presents a solution that is even stranger – we are to kill not our partner, but ourselves. “Therefore, my brethren, You also have become dead … that you may be married to another—to Him who was raised from the dead, that we should bear fruit to God” (Romans 7:4). [Emphasis supplied.]

The one caught in a bad and lonely marriage must die. What a solution! I must die in order to find a solution from my loneliness? The Bible presents no other solution to one’s personal and emotional needs.

Jesus said, “He who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me” (Matthew 10:38). A cross is a painful death. The next verse says, “He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it” (verse 39).

The Bible’s way seems backward: losing life to save it, dying the only way to live. Only through the resurrecting power of God can one find life by dying. The non-Christian cannot understand this miracle, but the Christian finds a fulfilling life through death by faith in God’s power to raise him from the dead. It is the ultimate faith to submit to death, as Isaac did (see Genesis 22). When Christ raises you up from the dead, He forms a lasting and intimate friendship with you that will never bring disappointment.

“Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. For he who has died has been freed from sin. Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him” (Romans 6:3–8).

Those who have died have been freed from sin. A dead person cannot steal. A dead person cannot lie. A dead person cannot covet. A dead person cannot feel sorry for himself. And so we are to die to self. We must give up that precious “self” that we have always tried to protect, defend, pity and exalt. In giving up self we are really fulfilled.

According to the world, God’s way seems foolish and backward. The Bible says, “Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom” (Luke 6:38). In the world we get by keeping, but Christ said we get by giving! Only Christians can understand these strange solutions.

“For the message of the cross [dying in order to live] is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written: ‘I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.’ … Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men” (1 Corinthians 1:18, 19, 25).

Christ’s way is utter foolishness with the world. How does one find happiness by giving up happiness?  How does one find fulfillment by giving up his own needs? Peter once asked Jesus, “We have left everything and followed You, therefore what will we have?” Jesus answered, “Assuredly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands, for My sake and the gospel’s who shall not receive a hundredfold now in this time … and in the age to come, eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last first” (Mark 10:29–31). Those who have given up self the most will receive the most. Those who have retained the most of self will receive the least.

It is only through death that one can find happiness, fulfillment or friendship. When Jesus foretold His death to His disciples, they wondered how He was going to establish His kingdom if He was going to die. Jesus told them that it was only through death that His kingdom could be established; for it is only through death that life is produced. Jesus illustrated it by a grain of wheat (see John 12:24, 25). As long as a grain of wheat remains dry and intact, it remains alone and lonely. It may be preserved for a hundred years in that secure state, but it will always be alone. But if it is put into the ground, it will get wet and split apart and apparently be destroyed. Out of that death will spring forth a new life that will produce a hundred grains of wheat that are a part of the parent stalk. No longer is the wheat alone or lonely, but now it has a hundred companions that are a part of itself.

Like all of us, the disciples had to learn this hard lesson that in giving up self we gain life and in dying we find happiness and fulfillment. After a night in prayer and all-day teaching and healing, Jesus was very tired and at the end of the day the disciples took Jesus across Galilee by boat, at which time Jesus fell asleep as the disciples guided the boat. A great windstorm suddenly arose, and the disciples instinctively began to try to save their lives. Their first and natural thought was of themselves, not Jesus – they forgot all about Him. They did not say, “We must save Jesus; let us row harder.” Instead, they tried with all their might to save self, but found themselves powerless against the terrible storm.

Finally, when all else failed, they remembered Jesus and waking Him they said, “ ‘Teacher, do You not care that We are perishing?’  Then He [Jesus] arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, ‘Peace, be still!’ And the wind ceased and there was a great calm. But He said to them, ‘Why are you so fearful’ ” (Mark 4:38–40)? [Emphasis supplied.] They seemed more concerned about themselves than Jesus dying. Self was not yet dead in these disciples and in trying to preserve it, they almost lost it. Had they been thinking more about Jesus’ safety they would never have been in the predicament of almost drowning for as soon as the storm arose, Jesus would have immediately calmed the waters.

It is in seeking the happiness of others that we ourselves are blessed. This is the basic principle of Christianity. Only by giving up what we have do we get what we are looking for.

The religious leaders in the New Testament tried hard to be righteous. They would do anything to be righteous. They made rules and regulations, offered long prayers, had tedious religious ceremonies, all for the purpose of reaching their goal of making themselves righteous. But the more they tried to find righteousness for themselves, the more unrighteous they became until they were filled with so much hate that they crucified Jesus.

“We are all like an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags” (Isaiah 64:6). It is when we quit trying to seek righteousness for ourselves and start trying to bring glory and righteousness to the Lord that we too find righteousness ourselves.

The question of our life should not be, “What can I do that I might be righteous?” but “What can I do that I might bring glory and honor to the Lord Jesus Christ?” That is the way Jesus lived. He did not live to glorify Himself, but to bring glory to His Father.

There is One who cares for us very much, but He cannot always show us His care because we are doing everything for ourselves. There is Someone who can bring us happiness such as no other person can, but if we are seeking to find happiness for ourselves, He cannot do for us that which He would like to do. For that to be accomplished, we must have a submissive spirit.

“He satisfies the longing soul, and fills the hungry soul with goodness” (Psalm 107:9). Millions are seeking for happiness, but each one fails. Only our Maker can fulfill our deepest longings. “He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.” “The Lord lifts up the humble; He casts the wicked down to the ground” (Psalm 147:3, 6). The one whom God helps is the one who is humble, the one who has died to self.

This dying to self and trusting one’s care and keeping to the Lord is what the Bible calls conversion. It affects every aspect of life. When we are converted, we live in such a way as to bring glory to the Lord rather than glory to ourselves. That results in the Lord bringing glory to us.

Jesus said, “If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love. … These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full. This is My commandment, that you love one another [not to be loved, but to love] as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends. You are My friends if you do whatever I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends” (John 15:10–15). If we put Him first, He will put us first. Jesus said, “To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne” (Revelation 3:21).

So Jesus says, I have called you friend; I will be a Friend that sticks closer than a brother; I am One who cares. Do you need Someone who cares for you? who understands you? who knows your heart’s deepest burdens? The Bible says that Jesus wants to be that Friend. As we give up self, then Jesus will seek for the happiness and goodwill for us. He can bring us far more happiness than we can ever bring to ourselves. “He who finds his life will lose it, but he who loses his life for My sake will find it” (Matthew 10:39).

“Keep your wants, your joys, your sorrows, your cares and your fears before God. You cannot burden Him; you cannot weary Him. … Take to Him everything that perplexes the mind. Nothing is too great for Him to bear, for He holds up worlds, He rules over all the affairs of the universe. Nothing that in any way concerns our peace is too small for Him to notice. There is no chapter in our experience too dark for Him to read; there is no perplexity too difficult for Him to unravel. No calamity can befall the least of His children, no anxiety harass the soul, no joy cheer, no sincere prayer escape the lips, of which our heavenly Father is unobservant, or in which He takes no immediate interest. … The relations between God and each soul are as distinct and full as though there were not another soul upon the earth to share His watchcare, not another soul for whom He gave His beloved Son.” Steps to Christ, 100.

May you experience the joy that only a true friendship can bring. May you experience the truest joy that only the truest Friend can bring. There is Someone who cares, and His name is Jesus.

 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 – The Mark of the Beast

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According to Revelation 13:1–17, the United States of America is the beast that arises from the earth. We know this because: (1) after the first beast receives a deadly wound in 1798, it becomes a world power (Revelation 13:1–12), (2) it comes up out of the earth, in contrast to other beasts of Daniel and Revelation that come up from the sea (Revelation 17:15), (3) it was “to grow up perfectly like a plant.” As George Townsend said, “like a silent seed we grew into an empire,” (4) it would influence the thinking of the world (Revelation 13:14), and (5) it was to be gentle and innocent in its appearance when it arose (Revelation 13:11).

However, the United States of America ultimately becomes an intolerant, persecuting power forcing all to receive the mark of the papacy (Revelation 13:12 and 15–17). Sunday worship is not commanded anywhere in the Bible, yet it will become the mark of the beast. The papacy has said that Sunday keeping is a mark of their authority: “Of course the Catholic Church claims that the change was her act, and the act is a mark of her ecclesiastical authority in religious matters. …

 “… Had she not such power, she could not have done that in which all modern religionists agree with her – she could not have substituted the observance of Sunday, the first day of the week, for the observance of Saturday, the seventh day, a change for which there is no Scriptural authority.” The Convert’s Catechism of Catholic Doctrine, Third Edition.

The United States, on behalf of the Church of Rome, will force all to receive the mark of the papacy and any refusing to receive the mark will be unable to buy or sell, and then a death decree will be enacted against them.

How will this happen? “Communications from the spirits will declare that God has sent them to convince the rejecters of Sunday of their error, affirming that the laws of the land should be obeyed as the law of God. They will lament the great wickedness in the world and second the testimony of religious teachers that the degraded state of morals is caused by the desecration of Sunday. Great will be the indignation excited against all who refuse to accept their testimony” The Great Controversy, 591.

Notice the sequence of events:

  1. great wickedness will develop in the United States,
  2. this wickedness will be so great that people will long for the violence and lawlessness to end,
  3. supernatural spirits will say with human religious teachers that the degraded moral state is the result of the desecration of Sunday,
  4. a Sunday Law will be passed and the spirits will say the laws of the land should be obeyed as the law of God, and
  5. their testimony will turn the world against those who keep the law of God.

In the final judgment, every person will be judged over this issue (Revelation 14:9–12; Revelation 22:14, 15; Revelation 19 and 20). Which side will you be on?