darkness

I See

by

David the Psalmist says, “I will praise Thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are Thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.” Psalm 139:14. We are fearfully and wonderfully made, created by a God who is infinite in goodness.

One of the most wonderful gifts we have received is the ability to see. The eyes are a marvelous mystery to man. We cannot fully understand how they work.

Medical journals tell us about the eye: The photographic camera is patterned after it, but it is only a feeble approach to the eye itself. The sensitivity of the retina is adjusted to the intensity of the light, and the eye adjusts itself automatically to the varying amounts of light and to the distances near and far. It creates its own transparent skin to separate it from the outer world but to shut out no light. This covering will allow oxygen to pass through it and into the eye, but will not let it escape. It will allow carbon dioxide to escape, but will not allow it to enter. The eye imparts to the brain a perfect picture of everything in front of it with all of the vivid colors and teeming activities, and does it continuously so that the least motion is detected. These pictures are impressed upon the brain so vividly that the record of them remains as long as life lasts. The eye is an amazing thing!

The eye gives us the ability to see in color. God could have given us eyesight to see only in black and white. That would have been all right, but, oh, how much more wonderful is color! Color only comes by way of light. In other words, light produces color.

The Sight of Light

Is it necessary to have physical eyesight in this life to have physical life? Is eyesight necessary for spiritual life? The answer to both questions, interestingly enough, is that everyone who is blind is dependent upon those who see. This is true in the physical world as well as in the spiritual world.

What does God say is needful for us to have sight—physical sight or spiritual sight? “For with Thee is the fountain of life: in Thy light shall we see light.” Psalm 36:9. Light is necessary for sight.

What is God’s light that gives us sight? Psalm 119:105 tells us, “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” God’s Word, if we choose to believe it, is a light that gives us sight.

There is no sight in unbelief. Jesus said, “I am the Light of the world.” John 8:12. In John 1:14 we are told that “The word was made flesh, and dwelt among us.…Jesus, the Light of the world, came to give sight to those who know they are blind and who desire to see. “And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind.” John 9:39.

There are some people who believe they can see when, in fact, they cannot. Jesus came to open the eyes of those who know that they are blind. Is it not wonderful that as you read through God’s Word, a picture builds before you of what is necessary for our salvation? God’s Word, indeed, is light to those who believe it.

What actually brings condemnation to mankind? “And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men love darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.” John 3:19, 20.

Choosing Darkness

If we, and every human being in the world, are condemned at last, we will not be condemned because we chose darkness. We will be condemned because we did not choose the light. To reject light is to reject Him who is the light of the world. It does not get any simpler than that. The gospel is good news, because it is so simple that even the little ones can understand it, if it is rightly told to them.

Isaiah 59 gives us a tremendous description of how heaven looks at this world and what it sees. It is a description of our world in the dark. “Therefore is judgment far from us, neither doth justice overtake us: we wait for light, but behold obscurity; for brightness, but we walk in darkness. We grope for the wall like the blind, and we grope as if we had no eyes: we stumble at noonday as in the night; we are in desolate places as dead men.” Verses 9, 10.

That is a description of this world, spiritually speaking. It is a description of the world that lies in darkness; that is what sin brings. Sin shuts the light away. “We roar all like bears, and mourn sore like doves: we look for judgment, but there is none; for salvation, but it is far off from us. For our transgressions are multiplied before Thee, and our sins testify against us.…” Verses 11, 12.

Sin brings darkness. Darkness brings blindness. Blindness brings transgression. It is a cycle that continues from generation to generation to those who choose to love darkness rather than light.

When we combine Psalm 119:105, “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path,” with John 17:17, “Sanctify them through Thy truth: Thy word is truth,” what we see is simply that God’s Word is light, that light equals truth, and that truth gives us sight into the reality of the eternal world.

Ah, to See!

This, too, is a cycle. It can be a cycle as much as sin, darkness, blindness are a cycle. We can choose to have light and truth and sight and reality. We can choose that because the gospel is an alternative to sin.

God has allowed the light of His grace to cover this world through the life and death of His Son, that He might bring the light to a darkened world. The gospel of Jesus Christ is light; it is salvation, and it is reality.

Psalm 34:8 tells us another truth about light. “O taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in Him.” Spiritual sight is not a profession, it is an experience. You can have a profession and be blind. You can have an experience and see.

Tasting is trusting, believing the Word. When we believe the Word, the Word becomes light to us. Then we can see where God wants us to walk.

To be satisfied with a profession or a form of godliness is to choose blindness. Let us look at what the blindness of the leaders in Israel, in Jesus’ day, caused them to do.

Out of Focus

What did they do in their blindness? “Howbeit,” Jesus said, “in vain do they worship Me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.” “Making the Word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye have delivered: and many such like things do ye.”
Mark 7:7, 13.

They put men’s laws in the place of God’s laws. Only blindness will do that! Only darkness would attempt to do such a thing. They put tradition above God’s Word. Spiritual blindness distorts our priorities and puts things totally out of focus.

“Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor! Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold? And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty. Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift?” Matthew 23:16–19.

Did they have distortion in regard to their priorities? Oh, yes, they were totally out of focus, and yet they proclaimed themselves to be the children of God, the chosen of God, the light of the world, but their priorities were all upside down. Is it any different in our day?

What Possesses You?

In our day, among professed Christians, men are satisfied with a profession of truth rather than a possession of truth. You and I will never walk through one of those tall gates into the city of God without allowing the truth to possess us. You can hold this truth and walk around with the Bible that has all this light in it; you can put it in your mind; you can memorize it, but if it never gets to your heart, if it never possesses you, you are in the darkness. Possessing truth will take you from darkness into light.

Men today are satisfied with merely professing the truth, not allowing the truth to possess them. Men are satisfied with hearing God’s Word rather than doing it. They are satisfied with following religious leaders more than with following Jesus. That is a sad thing.

I do not care who the man is, he is not Jesus. One of the great distortions of our day is that we find Christians who profess the truth, who are defending a name and a church more than the truth. Is that a distortion of priority? Yes, it is. When we start compromising the truth, while defending an organization or a church, we are in darkness.

The Invitation

The message to Laodicea brings us up to date, as it were, because we are in the midst of the period of Laodicea. Laodicea has some serious priority problems. Laodicea has some serious eyesight problems. Jesus says to Laodicea, “Thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked.” Revelation 3:17.

Laodicea says, I can see. God says, You are blind. Whom are we to believe, our leaders or God, our own understanding or God’s understanding? Do we have needs? Yes, we have tremendous needs. The description says we are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked. Those are not complimentary statements. Yet, we are patting ourselves on the back for all the wonderful progress we think we have made in regard to the Three Angels’ Messages. Something is wrong with this picture.

Jesus gives a solution, because Jesus always has a solution. He has a solution for every problem that you and I have, no matter what sin it is. In verse 18 He says, “‘I counsel thee to buy of Me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich. And white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear. And anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.’” You notice that He never forces us—He invites us. The gospel is an invitation from God in heaven who loves us supremely and who is looking out for only our best, our highest good. He will not force our choice, but He will counsel us. He will woo us because He loves us. The “gold tried in the fire” is faith that works by love in the midst of the fire, the fire of temptation, the fire of trial. The white raiment is the wonderful righteousness of Jesus. Truly, to receive Jesus is to receive His righteousness, and it is in receiving His righteousness, imputed and imparted, that we become like Him. His name alone will not save us. His name alone will not transform us, but His righteousness will. Jesus wants us to see—not in black and white, but in color, in reality—the things, that without faith, we cannot see.

Working In Harmony

What is the eyesalve that He wants to give us to help us see? It is His Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit gives us the ability to see. “Howbeit when He, the Spirit of truth, is come, He will guide you into all truth.…” John 16:13. We have learned that truth is God’s Word, and God’s Word is light. This truth is reality, reality from the heavens of light. So He leads us into all truth, “for He shall not speak of Himself; but whatsoever He shall hear, that shall He speak: and He will shew you things to come.” Ibid.

One–Two–Three

The Holy Spirit always works in harmony with God’s Word, with God’s truth. They always go together, always! John 16:8 tells us that God wants us, through His Holy Spirit, to see three things clearly. “And when He is come, He will reprove [convince] the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment.”

First God wants us to clearly see what is sin. We have already seen that sin brings darkness, darkness brings blindness, and blindness brings sin. God wants the Holy Spirit to show us sin so we can understand what sin is, because He does not want us to be blind. Does that mean that He is going to show us sin in everybody else? No. He wants to help each of us to see our own sin so we will not be blind.

The second thing the Holy Spirit is to help us see clearly is righteousness. How is God going to show that to us? By His Holy Spirit, by His Word, and by His truth.

If we are separating ourselves from those, we cannot expect to see clearly. Even if we pray for the Holy Spirit, if we are not bringing our minds into contact with God’s will, we will not see clearly. There is always balance in salvation.

The third thing God wants us to see clearly is the judgment. He wants us to see that we will have to give a personal account to Him of what we have done in this earth. He wants everybody to understand that it is a personal account. We are not saved in groups. We are not saved in families. We are saved as individuals, and we will be judged as individuals. He wants us to understand our personal responsibility to Him.

Receiving Sight

How can a person, who recognizes that they are spiritually blind, receive their sight? We have alluded to it in some degree, but I want you to notice a few things. Let us look at a man who was physically blind, and then healed, and see what we can learn in regard to spiritual healing of our blindness.

“And they came to Jericho: and as He went out of Jericho with His disciples and a great number of people, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the highway side begging. And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me. And many charged him that he should hold his peace: but he cried the more a great deal, Thou Son of David, have mercy on me. And Jesus stood still, and commanded him to be called. And they call the blind man, saying unto him, Be of good comfort, rise; He calleth thee. And he, casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus. And Jesus answered and said unto him, What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? The blind man said unto Him, Lord, that I might receive my sight. [I want to see. I want to see the color. I want to see what You made.] And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole.” Mark 10:46–52.

Immediately he began to see! Immediately! What did he do after he could see? He “followed Jesus in the way.” Verse 52.

Are You Blind?

What can we learn about spiritual blindness in the physical healing of Bartimaeus? One thing about Bartimaeus, he knew that he was blind. That is number one. We have to recognize that we are blind. We have to know we are sick before we seek a physician. We must know and recognize that we are spiritually blind, that we need help.

Number two, as he cried out to Jesus, he believed that Jesus could heal him. When he cried out, the people said, Shhhh, shhhh. Shhhh, keep it quiet; do you not understand this is a man of God? What did Bartimaeus do? He cried out all the more!

Bartimaeus was determined. He wanted to see, and he knew and believed in his heart that Jesus could heal him. Nothing anybody said could change that faith. He was determined, and we must be determined if we want to see, spiritually. We must show God that we do want to see and that when we receive our spiritual sight, we will follow Him.

Taking Responsibility

I want you to notice, also, that Bartimaeus was being personally responsible. He did not ask anybody else to go to Jesus for him. His faith was laying hold of the Great Healer, personally. It must be personal; there is no proxy salvation! My wife cannot stand in for me, and I cannot stand in for her. It is personal. If we are going to see, then we must address Him personally.

Jesus said unto him, “Go thy way.” I know that he obeyed that command. How do I know? Because he was healed. He obeyed the command because he believed the word spoken to him.

Do we, when we confess our sins before God and in our heart forsake those sins, believe God when He says, I forgive you? We can, because He does. He is a God who is faithful, a God of His Word.

Notice in verse 51, Bartimaeus comes to Jesus. Is it evident that this man is blind? Yes. What does Jesus ask him when he comes over to Him? “What wilt thou that I should do unto thee?” Why does Jesus ask such a question? Because He wants us to personally bring our needs to Him. He wants us to verbally tell Him what are our needs. Does He know what you need right now? Does He know your sickness? Yes, physical or spiritual, He knows all about you, but we are to come to Him by faith and let Him know our needs. That is the way that we regain our spiritual eyesight—just like Bartimaeus regained his physical eyesight.

Compromising the Light

Bartimaeus had spiritual eyesight before he regained his physical eyesight. We can have the same spiritual eyesight. God’s program does not change. He is not dealing with dispensational salvation. He does not do one thing one time and then say, this is how we are going to do it next time. It is always the same. He says, I never change. I am the same yesterday, today and forever. (See Malachi 3:6; Hebrews 13:8.) How He saved Abraham is how He is going to save you and me—if we believe and allow Him to give us sight to see, because no one is walking through the gates into the Holy City without spiritual eyesight.

The light, we have already seen, is the most important factor to give us sight. Light and sight go together. A warning is given about compromising the light. This warning deals with losing our sight and how that could happen. “Yielding to temptation begins in permitting the mind to waver, to be inconstant in your trust in God. If we do not choose to give ourselves fully to God then we are in darkness. When we make any reserve we are leaving open a door through which Satan can enter to lead us astray by his temptations. He knows that if he can obscure our vision, so that the eye of faith cannot see God, there will be no barrier against sin.” Thoughts from the Mount of Blessing, 92. So we can lose our spiritual eyesight by compromising the light.

Mark 8:22–25 shows us that God wants us to see clearly, not dimly. “And He cometh to Bethsaida; and they bring a blind man unto Him, and besought Him to touch him. And He took the blind man by the hand, and led him out of the town; and when He had spit on his eyes, and put His hands upon him, He asked him if he saw ought. And he looked up, and said, I see men as trees, walking. After that He put His hands again upon his eyes, and made him look up: and he was restored, and saw every man clearly.”

Through the Eyes of Jesus

That is what Jesus wants us to see. He wants us to see men clearly. He does not want us to see men as trees, as just objects to pass by. He wants us to see men in their needs, so we can be used of God to help them. It takes spiritual eyes to see men like that.

What will God’s people eventually see? “Look upon Zion, the city of our solemnities: thine eyes shall see Jerusalem a quiet habitation, a tabernacle that shall not be taken down; not one of the stakes thereof shall ever be removed, neither shall any of the cords thereof be broken.” Isaiah 33:20.

The New Jerusalem is a city that shall never pass away, never come to an end. It is a city that the redeemed shall some day see on the horizon as they approach it with Jesus. Can you see it on the horizon? We are told that there is One waiting in the city. When Jesus comes the second time, He comes with every angel from that city. There is only One person left there. It is God the Father, all alone, waiting, waiting, waiting for you. Only spiritual eyes will see that wonderful city some day. I want to have those eyes, because someday I want to see that city, and I do not want to see it from the outside in the second resurrection. I want to see the city on the inside, nevermore to leave.

I Shall See the King

Paul says, “Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him.” 1 Corinthians 2:9. But there is more to see! “Thine eyes shall see the king in His beauty: they shall behold the land that is very far off.”

Some day Jesus will be a reality to these human eyes. Some day, with our spiritual sight and His righteousness, we will be able not only to see the city but also to see the King. We are told in the inspired writings that some day Jesus is going to put a crown, personally, upon the head of every redeemed soul. (See The Spirit of Prophecy, vol. 4, 464.) That means you and me, if we choose to make our calling and election sure by allowing God to help us to see and to maintain our sight.

God would have us see clearly sin, righteousness, and judgment. May we each recognize our spiritual blindness and seek God’s healing hand.

Freedom to Choose

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“God never asks us to believe, without giving sufficient evidence upon which to base our faith. His existence, His character, the truthfulness of His word, are all established by testimony that appeals to our reason; and this testimony is abundant. Yet God has never removed the possibility of doubt. Our faith must rest upon evidence, not demonstration. Those who wish to doubt will have opportunity; while those who really desire to know the truth will find plenty of evidence on which to rest their faith.” Steps to Christ, 105.

“To those who refuse the precious rays of light which would illuminate the darkness, the mysteries of God’s word remain such forever. From them the truth is hidden. They walk blindly, and know not the ruin before them.” The Desire of Ages, 588.

You are Responsible

“God gives sufficient light and evidence to enable man to distinguish truth from error. But He does not force man to receive truth. He leaves him free to choose the good or to choose the evil. If man resists evidence that is sufficient to guide his judgment in the right direction, and chooses evil once, he will do this more readily the second time. The third time he will still more eagerly withdraw himself from God and choose to stand on the side of Satan. And in this course he will continue until he is confirmed in evil, and believes the lie he has cherished as truth. His resistance has produced its harvest (Manuscript 126, 1901).” “Ellen G. White Comments,” Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, vol. 6, 1112.

“The perception and appreciation of truth, He [Jesus] said, depends less upon the mind than upon the heart. Truth must be received into the soul; it claims the homage of the will. If truth could be submitted to the reason alone, pride would be no hindrance in the way of its reception. But it is to be received through the work of grace in the heart; and its reception depends upon the renunciation of every sin that the Spirit of God reveals.” The Desire of Ages, 455.

Light or Darkness

“And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.” John 3:19, 20.

“The word of the Lord comes to us all who have not resisted His Spirit by determining not to hear and obey. This voice is heard in warnings, in counsels, in reproof. It is the Lord’s message of light to His people. If we wait for louder calls or better opportunities, the light may be withdrawn, and we left in darkness. . . .

“It pains me to say, my brethren, that your sinful neglect to walk in the light has enshrouded you in darkness. You may now be honest in not recognizing and obeying the light; the doubts you have entertained, your neglect to heed the requirements of God, have blinded your perception so that darkness is now to you light, and light is darkness. God has bidden you to go forward to perfection. Christianity is a religion of progress. Light from God is full and ample, waiting our demand upon it. Whatever blessings the Lord may give, He has an infinite supply beyond, an inexhaustible store from which we may draw. Skepticism may treat the sacred claims of the gospel with jests, scoffing, and denial. The spirit of worldliness may contaminate the many and control the few; the cause of God may hold its ground only by great exertion and continual sacrifice, yet it will triumph finally.” Selected Messages, Book 1, 28.

“Light makes manifest and reproves the errors that were concealed in darkness; and as light comes, the life and character of men must change correspondingly, to be in harmony with it. Sins that were once sins of ignorance, because of the blindness of the mind, can no more be indulged in without incurring guilt. As increased light is given, men must be reformed, elevated, and refined by it, or they will be more perverse and stubborn than before the light came.” Gospel Workers, 162.

“Many are the ways by which Satan works through human influence to bind his captives. He secures multitudes to himself by attaching them by the silken cords of affection to those who are enemies of the cross of Christ. Whatever this attachment may be, parental, filial, conjugal, or social, the effect is the same; the opposers of truth exert their power to control the conscience, and the souls held under their sway have not sufficient courage or independence to obey their own convictions of duty.

“The truth and the glory of God are inseparable; it is impossible for us, with the Bible within our reach, to honor God by erroneous opinions. Many claim that it matters not what one believes, if his life is only right. But the life is molded by the faith. If light and truth is within our reach, and we neglect to improve the privilege of hearing and seeing it, we virtually reject it; we are choosing darkness rather than light.

“‘There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.’ Proverbs 16:25. Ignorance is no excuse for error or sin, when there is every opportunity to know the will of God.” The Great Controversy, 597, 598.

No Excuse

“By giving heed to the teachings of God’s word, men may rise from the lowest depths of ignorance and degradation to become sons of God, associates of sinless angels.” Review and Herald, August 19, 1884.

“He [Jesus] came in humility, in order that the humblest being upon the face of the earth could have no excuse because of his poverty or ignorance, and say, Because of these things I cannot obey the law of Jehovah. Christ clothed His divinity with humanity, that humanity might touch humanity; that He might live with humanity, and bear all the trials and afflictions of man. He was tempted in all points like as we are, yet without sin. In His humanity He understood all the temptations that will come to man.” Sermons and Talks, Book 2, 111, 112.

“Jesus is mighty to save his people from their sins. Light from heaven has illumined our pathway. Sin has been revealed to us by the word and the spirit of truth, that we may not be found transgressors of the divine precepts; and there is no opportunity to plead the excuse of ignorance. The command is, ‘Depart from iniquity.’ [11 Timothy 2:19.]” Review and Herald, March 27, 1888.

“The times of ignorance God winked at, but now, with the blazing light of truth shining all around us, with warnings, with reproofs, with increasing light if we will but open our eyes to see it, there is no excuse of any, even the weakest child of God, that they should not disperse light to the world. The four angels are holding the four winds that a special work may be accomplished: the saints of God are to be sealed in their foreheads. Brethren, how long before you will be ready for the seal of God? Every step you advance upon the path which God forbids, toward your own pleasure and in sin, is a step nearer your destruction. Every act of disobedience to the word of the Lord is exposing you to irreparable loss. Every moment of ease, of self-indulgence, secured by you in neglecting the divine admonitions and call to duty in earnest work for the Master, is placing you under the power and control of the prince of darkness.” Review and Herald, June 7, 1887.

Easily Entrapped

“Many are deceived today in the same way as were the Jews. Religious teachers read the Bible in the light of their own understanding and traditions; and the people do not search the Scriptures for themselves, and judge for themselves as to what is truth; but they yield up their judgment, and commit their souls to their leaders. The preaching and teaching of His word is one of the means that God has ordained for diffusing light; but we must bring every man’s teaching to the test of Scripture. Whoever will prayerfully study the Bible, desiring to know the truth, that he may obey it, will receive divine enlightenment. He will understand the Scriptures. ‘If any man willeth to do His will, he shall know of the teaching.’ John 7:17, R. V.” The Desire of Ages, 459.

“Notwithstanding the Bible is full of warnings against false teachers, many are ready thus to commit the keeping of their souls to the clergy. There are today thousands of professors of religion who can give no other reason for points of faith which they hold than that they were so instructed by their religious leaders. They pass by the Saviour’s teachings almost unnoticed, and place implicit confidence in the words of the ministers. But are ministers infallible? How can we trust our souls to their guidance unless we know from God’s word that they are light bearers? A lack of moral courage to step aside from the beaten track of the world leads many to follow in the steps of learned men; and by their reluctance to investigate for themselves, they are becoming hopelessly fastened in the chains of error. They see that the truth for this time is plainly brought to view in the Bible; and they feel the power of the Holy Spirit attending its proclamation; yet they allow the opposition of the clergy to turn them from the light. Though reason and conscience are convinced, these deluded souls dare not think differently from the minister; and their individual judgment, their eternal interests, are sacrificed to the unbelief, the pride and prejudice, of another.” The Great Controversy, 596.

“Those to whom the message of truth is spoken seldom ask, ‘Is it true?’ but, ‘By whom is it advocated?’ Multitudes estimate it by the numbers who accept it; and the question is still asked, ‘Have any of the learned men or religious leaders believed?’ Men are no more favorable to real godliness now than in the days of Christ. They are just as intently seeking earthly good, to the neglect of eternal riches; and it is not an argument against the truth, that large numbers are not ready to accept it, or that it is not received by the world’s great men, or even by the religious leaders.” The Desire of Ages, 459, 460.

Accept or Reject Christ

“The prophets of God were hated by apostate Israel because through them their hidden sins were brought to light. Ahab regarded Elijah as his enemy because the prophet was faithful to rebuke the king’s secret iniquities. So today the servant of Christ, the reprover of sin, meets with scorn and rebuffs. Bible truth, the religion of Christ, struggles against a strong current of moral impurity. Prejudice is even stronger in the hearts of men now than in Christ’s day. Christ did not fulfill men’s expectations; His life was a rebuke to their sins, and they rejected Him. So now the truth of God’s word does not harmonize with men’s practices and their natural inclination, and thousands reject its light. Men prompted by Satan cast doubt upon God’s word, and choose to exercise their independent judgment. They choose darkness rather than light, but they do it at the peril of their souls. Those who caviled at the words of Christ, found ever-increased cause for cavil, until they turned from the Truth and the Life. So it is now. God does not propose to remove every objection which the carnal heart may bring against His truth. To those who refuse the precious rays of light which would illuminate the darkness, the mysteries of God’s word remain such forever. From them the truth is hidden. They walk blindly, and know not the ruin before them.

“Christ overlooked the world and all ages from the height of Olivet; and His words are applicable to every soul who slights the pleadings of divine mercy. Scorner of His love, He addresses you today. It is ‘thou, even thou,’ who shouldest know the things that belong to thy peace. Christ is shedding bitter tears for you, who have no tears to shed for yourself. Already that fatal hardness of heart which destroyed the Pharisees is manifest in you. And every evidence of the grace of God, every ray of divine light, is either melting and subduing the soul, or confirming it in hopeless impenitence.

“Christ foresaw that Jerusalem would remain obdurate and impenitent; yet all the guilt, all the consequences of rejected mercy, lay at her own door. Thus it will be with every soul who is following the same course. The Lord declares, ‘O Israel, thou hast destroyed thyself.’ ‘Hear, O earth: behold, I will bring evil upon this people, even the fruit of their thoughts, because they have not hearkened unto My words, nor to My law, but rejected it.’ Hosea 13:9; Jeremiah 6:19.” The Desire of Ages, 587, 588.

Out of the Darkness of Error

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For while one saith, I am of Paul; and another, I [am] of Apollos; are ye not carnal? Who then is Paul, and who [is] Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed, even as the Lord gave to every man? I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase. So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase. Now he that planteth and he that watereth are one: and every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labour. For we are labourers together with God: ye are God’s husbandry, [ye are] God’s building. According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon.” 1 Corinthians 3:4–10.

In the Corinthian church, they were having a bit of a controversy. Paul had raised up the church at Corinth; he had evangelized and started a church. Apollos was chosen by the church to do follow-up work by continuing to sow seeds and to water, or nurture, the church. Some church members were claiming to be of Paul and others were claiming to be of Apollos. Paul said, “You are yet carnal.” Paul was trying to make it very clear to the Corinthian church that no matter who did the sowing of the seed, all people are under the control of God. He said they were still carnal, because they were still looking to man.

Paul had sown seeds; Apollos had sown seeds, but the One that gave the increase, the One that transformed the characters of the Corinthian believers was God. It was His grace, shed in their hearts, that made that transformation. Not one soul will be converted unless the Holy Spirit is working on their heart, and that is what Paul is trying to get across to the brethren in Corinth.

Under God’s Control

Paul goes over the principle, time and again, that we do not own ourselves. We are only under the control of God. “For we are labourers together with God: ye are God’s husbandry, [ye are] God’s building.” We need to understand that when God sheds light upon our paths we are then made stewards of the truth that God has given us. Paul states, “Let a man so account of us, as of the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God.” 1 Corinthians 4:1. If God has worked within us, we are then made stewards of what He has done for us. We are made stewards to share it with other people “. . . according to the grace of God which is given unto me . . . .” When God gives us something, He then makes us stewards over that, and we will be held accountable in the Day of Judgment for what He has given us. What a precious opportunity God has given us to become laborers with Him, but what a weighty responsibility! The grace and the truth that He has given us make us want to become laborers together with Him, to sow the seeds of truth.

We are told, in 1 Corinthians 3:9, that we are God’s husbandry, or farmer. A farmer tills the ground, preparing it for planting; then he plants and waters. Those tasks are also our responsibility. We are to go out and sow the seeds of truth that God has given us.

God’s Building

In the verses given above, Paul was talking about our work, about the foundation that we lay, and upon what it is laid—whether earthly possessions such as gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, or stubble. These texts are useful when studying health principles with people: “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and [that] the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which [temple] ye are.” Verses 16, 17. The context in which Paul was speaking is our work. How can we defile our soul temples, our bodies, where God’s Spirit is to dwell? We defile it by not sowing seeds of truth, by locking up all of the grace and all of the truth inside, and not giving it to other people.

Think of the responsibility that we have, with all of the truth that we have been given. We can be like the Laodiceans, rich and increased with goods and feeling we are in need of nothing, not even knowing that we are poor, blind, and naked. We do not even understand our true condition. Keep these texts in mind—your body is God’s building.

Glorify God

Again Paul shows that God possesses us. “What? Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost [which is] in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?” We do not own ourselves; God owns us by creation and by redemption. “For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.” 1 Corinthians 6:19, 20.

Consider Jesus for a moment. How did He glorify His Father? “And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent. I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do.” John 17:3, 4. Paul was telling the Corin-thians that they had accepted another Jesus. People can know some type of Jesus, but it does not mean that they know the only true God and Jesus Christ whom He sent. In Acts 4:13, it says that “they took knowledge of them [the disciples], that they had been with Jesus.” By their very acts, their words, and by the expressions on their faces, the people knew that they had been with Jesus. They were showing the true Jesus to the world through their characters because of what God had done for them in their lives. So Jesus says, “This is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent. I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do.”

A Work

The time of this statement was right before Jesus went to the cross. What work is it that He had finished? John 17:8 tells us, “For I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me; and they have received [them], and have known surely that I came out from thee, and they have believed that thou didst send me.”

At the end of your life, can you say with Jesus, “I have finished the work that You have given me to do; I have done everything in my power to spread the gospel, to reflect Your character; I have done everything, by God’s grace, by the grace that has been given me; to reflect Your character and glorify Your name, and I have also spread the gospel truth”?

Live the Truth

If this is Jesus’ work, what is our work? “Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth. As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world. And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth. Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word.” John 17:17–20. This is our responsibility as a church. Jesus has given us a commission that we give to others the words that have been given to us. What a responsibility we have of sharing this truth! Jesus said that we have to be sanctified through the truth in order for that truth to have any effect when we give it to other people. It has to be a living reality in our lives; we have to be living it out every day, because the truth that we give to others will have no power if we are not living it ourselves.

“That they all may be one; as thou, Father, [art] in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.” Verse 21.

Do you know what the world is looking for today? An unbeliever told me that they are looking for some people who live out the truth. There is nothing this world needs more today than a manifestation of the love of God in those who are claiming to be His people. We need to pray, asking the Lord to fill us with that kind of love. We must be living out that truth in our lives, sanctified by the truth that we know, or it will not do a bit of good, because we will be holding the truth in unrighteousness.

People in the world are looking at us, watching us. Paul says we are epistles known and read of all men. (11 Corinthians 3:2.) Are they taking knowledge that we have been with Jesus? Have we spent time with Him on our knees? The truth that we read every day—are we living it out in our lives? That is what the world wants to see.

From Darkness into Light

“Every truly converted soul will be intensely desirous to bring others from the darkness of error into the marvelous light of the righteousness of Jesus Christ.” Review and Herald, July 21, 1896.

That is a wonderful quote, but it is a hard one, because it shows whether or not we are truly converted. We have to ask ourselves, “Am I truly converted to the Lord, or am I connected to the vine but have no vital fluid running through it to bear fruit?” How do we know? If we are truly converted, we will be intensely desirous to bring others out of the darkness of error into the righteousness of Christ. This will take a searching of heart.

When I first came to the Lord, I could not help but share with others. I could not help it! I did not care who they were, what was their status, or what they looked like—I wanted to share with them! Why? Because I knew what God had done for me in my life. I have to ask myself if I am as intensely desirous now as I was then. Has that intensity lessened, or has it grown greater? It should grow day by day so that every truly converted soul will be intensely desirous of bringing others out from the darkness of error into the marvelous light of the righteousness of Christ.

Mrs. White continues: “The great outpouring of the Spirit of God, which lightens the whole earth with His glory . . .” Do you remember what His glory is? It is His character. It is going to be fully exhibited in His people, and it will fill the whole earth. That is what people are waiting for today—a people who will shine forth with the light of truth that will lighten the entire earth. “. . . His glory will not come until we have an enlightened people, that know by experience what it means to be laborers together with God.” Ibid.

Waiting for the Latter Rain

Do we have an experience of bringing souls out of darkness? We can all say that we are waiting for the Latter Rain, and we can say that we want it, but it will not come unless we have an enlightened people that know by experience what it means to be laborers with God. First of all, we need to be converted, and if we are converted, we will be intensely desirous of bringing others out of the darkness. We will do that by leading them step by step out of darkness into His marvelous light through God’s Word. It will not come, however, unless our people are enlightened and are sharing in the experience of bringing others out of darkness.

“When we have entire, whole-hearted consecration to the service of Christ, God will recognize the fact by an outpouring of his Spirit without measure; but this will not be while the largest portion of the church are not laborers together with God.” Ibid.

If we have that burden for souls, we will start bringing people out of the darkness of error into the marvelous light of Christ. What a responsibility we have! “God cannot pour out His Spirit when selfishness and self-indulgence are so manifest; when a spirit prevails that, if put into words, would express that answer of Cain—‘Am I my brother’s keeper?’ (Genesis 4:9).” Ye Shall Receive Power, 310. We can labor all we want, we can pass out literature and do all of the things that God wants us to do, but we must ask ourselves, “Am I truly converted? Am I intensely desirous for souls? Does selfishness and self-indulgence defile the soul temple?” It most certainly will, because “if the truth for this time, if the signs that are thickening on every hand, that testify that the end of all things is at hand, are not sufficient to arouse the sleeping energy of those who profess to know the truth, then darkness proportionate to the light which has been shining will overtake these souls.” Ibid.

Where are we?

Are we at the end of time? The signs are definitely thickening around us, and they should arouse the sleeping energies. We can become so accustomed to disasters and everything else that they just become a part of life, but we need
to look at these occurrences in a different light. We need to be thinking about the fact that Jesus is coming soon. Do we have selfishness and self-indulgence manifested in our lives? Have we backslidden a little bit? Are we still as intensely desirous of sharing God’s truth as when we first came to the Lord?

If we do not share the light that has shown upon our pathways, it is going to go out in darkness. Jesus said, in Luke 8:16–18, that if we have hidden our light under a bushel, it will go out, and it will be taken from us. “There is not the semblance of an excuse for their indifference that they will be able to present to God in the great day of final reckoning. There will be no reason to offer as to why they did not live and walk and work in the light of the sacred truth of the Word of God, and thus reveal to a sin-darkened world, through their conduct, their sympathy, and their zeal, that the power and reality of the gospel could not be controverted.” Ibid.

My Prayer

I pray that we can have a true experience and true conversion in the Lord every day, and that the love that has been implanted in our hearts by God will be a well of water, springing up into everlasting life for those weary people in this world who are suffering under the bondage of sin. We can have this experience, and I pray that as we look back to our beginnings with the Lord, we will ask ourselves, “Am I as intensely desirous now as I was then?”

I pray that we each may have this experience, so we can have the out-pouring of the Latter Rain power to finish the work and go home. Are you not sick of this world? The signs are thickening around us, so let us work, for the night is coming when no one is going to be able to work. Let us not hear the words from our neighbors, “You knew these things and you did not tell us.” (See John 9:4; Review and Herald, August 15, 1907.) What excuse are we going to give in the day of final reckoning? Are we going to say, “Oh, yes, I could have given them a book, but I was too afraid of what they would think about me; I was afraid I would offend them; I was afraid I would not have good relations with them”? Friends, it is better that we tell them now than at that time when it will be too late.

“God has appointed His children to give light to others, and if they fail to do it, and souls are left in the darkness of error because of their failure to do that which they might have done, had they been vitalized by the Holy Spirit, they will be accountable to God. We have been called out of darkness into His marvelous light, in order that we may show forth the praises of Christ.” Review and Herald, December 12, 1893.

Mike Bauler pastors the Historic Message Church in Portland, Oregon. He may be contacted by e-mail at: mbauler@molalla.net.

Keeping Up with the Light

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The path of the just is like the shining sun, that shines ever brighter unto the perfect day.” Proverbs 4:18. Notice, this verse does not say the room of the just, but the path of the just. As you walk that path, if you stay on it, the light is going to become brighter and brighter. But it is also true, friend, that if you do not keep walking on the path, the light is going to become darkness, because the light is moving.

The Bible talks about present truth. (See II Peter 1:12.) There are certain things that can be preached at one time that cannot be preached at another time. There are some truths that are timeless, but there is some truth that is present truth. What is present truth today is not exactly the same as it was 100 years ago.

I believe that very soon God’s servants are going to have to preach things that we have never thought we were going to preach. We are in a situation very similar to the Jews in the time of Christ. The devil had manipulated them into a situation, through what they had been taught, so that they were ready to reject the truth. They had developed a series of criteria which, if Jesus was the Messiah, they believed He would meet. Interestingly enough, they based these expectations on the Old Testament. Jesus did not, however, meet their criteria. It is interesting to note, in the study of history, that almost every time prophecy which is fulfilled is not fulfilled in the way expected.

Seventh-day Adventists used to wonder what Ellen White meant when she said, “I was shown the startling fact that but a small portion of those who now profess the truth will be sanctified by it and be saved.” Testimonies, vol. 1, 608. Very soon we are going to find out.

This concept that spiritual light is moving and the person who does not keep walking in the light finds himself in the dark explains many spiritual phenomena that are happening all around us that otherwise would be very confusing. A few years ago, two Seventh-day Adventist ministers came to question me. One of them asked something like this: “Do you believe that the Seventh-day Adventist Church organization was ordained by God? Well, do you or don’t you?” Well, let me ask you some questions? Do you believe that the Jewish church organization was ordained by God, or that He had a hand in setting it up? Was there a time when the Jews were in the light? Yes, there was. The Jews had been called by God and chosen as His special people. They had been in the light. They had, friends, the spirit of prophecy. They had all of the Old Testament; that is the spirit of prophecy. But when the light moved, they did not move with it. God had more light for them, but they would not accept it. They stayed put and, as a result, they were left in the dark.

Jesus is the light of the world. I want you to notice Revelation 14:4 and what it says about the 144,000. “These are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever He goes.” When the light (Jesus) moves, the 144,000 follow. The problem today is that when the light moves, there are so many people who do not follow it; they stay put. They are left in the dark and are then spiritually blind. There was a time when they were in the light; but the light moved, and they did not move with it. “As the light and life of men was rejected by the ecclesiastical authorities in the days of Christ, so it has been rejected in every succeeding generation.” The Desire of Ages, 232. Did you notice that she said that this has taken place in every succeeding generation? “Again and again the history of Christ’s withdrawal from Judea has been repeated. When the Reformers preached the Word of God, they had no thought of separating themselves from the established church; but the religious leaders would not tolerate the light.” Ibid. What happened? The religious leaders refused to walk in the light. “And those that bore it were forced to seek another class, who were longing for the truth.” Ibid. Everyone who does not love the truth is going to be deceived and be lost.

“Few are listening for the voice of God, and ready to accept truth in whatever guise it may be presented. Often those who follow in the steps of the Reformers are forced to turn away from the churches they love, in order to declare the plain teaching of the Word of God.” Ibid. Did you know that there are many people who no longer believe that this statement can apply today? Have you ever heard people say, “Well, the cycles have to stop somewhere, and they stopped in 1863 because that is when we incorporated”? The trouble is, friends, The Desire of Ages was not even written until 1898.

We are living in a time that a few years ago no one expected to see. We believed that when persecution came, it would come from outside of the church. We failed to understand what Ellen White meant when she said that we have far more to fear from within than from without. (See Selected Messages, Book 1, 122.) Who would have thought that in Adventism the apostasy would become so great that in many places it would become spiritually dangerous to even attend the local Seventh-day Adventist Church because error was being “forced home to the people”? (See Early Writings, 125.) We were not expecting the true and faithful Seventh-day Adventists to be disfellowshipped and persecuted by their former brethren all over the world, as is taking place today. But when we go to the inspired writings, we see all of this prophesied—we just did not understand it. People have come to believe that these things would not happen until after the National Sunday Law. Friend, that theory is a dangerous deception. The National Sunday Law does not initiate the shaking; it brings the shaking to a climax! Those who are waiting to take a bold, unyielding stand for the truth until the Sunday law test comes are simply preparing to receive the mark of the beast.

You see, when anyone rejects the light of truth that God has given to this people, he has turned his back on the light and goes out in darkness. He may still call himself a Seventh-day Adventist, but if he does not believe the First Angel’s Message and the truth of the Investigative Judgment beginning in 1844, he has gone into darkness. You cannot, with safety, go to his church and listen to him preach. When a person rejects the truth of the great Day of Atonement that began in 1844 and says that instead of afflicting the soul (Leviticus 16:29, 30) it is time to celebrate, they have gone out into darkness. If a preacher says that you will sin until Jesus comes, he has accepted Satan’s fatal sophistry (See The Great Controversy, 489.), and you dare not go and listen to him preach lest you be deceived and lose your own soul. Finally, if you are not hearing the historic doctrines of Adventism preached in your church, if you are hearing the same kinds of sermons that you could hear in any other church, then you are endangering your soul if you do not either find a Historic Seventh-day Adventist congregation, or start a home church where you can teach the truth, at least to your own family.

Our opportunities for learning and knowing God’s last message to a perishing world and being prepared for what is coming on the world are very limited at best, and we dare not allow ourselves and our families to be exposed to either heretical preaching or “peace and safety” messages that come just before destruction. “I saw that we have no time to throw away in listening to fables. Our minds should not be thus diverted, but should be occupied with the present truth, and seeking wisdom that we may obtain a more thorough knowledge of our position, that with meekness we may be able to give a reason of our hope from the Scriptures. While false doctrines and dangerous errors are pressed upon the mind, it cannot be dwelling upon the truth which is to fit and prepare the house of Israel to stand in the day of the Lord.” Early Writings, 125.

Every Sabbath after church, you should be more fitted to stand in the day of the Lord than before. But the prophet wrote sadly, “Those who have been regarded as worthy and righteous prove to be ring-leaders in apostasy and examples in indifference and in the abuse of God’s mercies. Their wicked course He will tolerate no longer, and in His wrath He deals with them without mercy.

“It is with reluctance that the Lord withdraws His presence from those who have been blessed with great light and who have felt the power of the word in ministering to others. They were once His faithful servants, favored with His presence and guidance; but they departed from Him and led others into error, and therefore are brought under the divine displeasure. …

“Not all who profess to keep the Sabbath will be sealed. There are many even among those who teach the truth to others who will not receive the seal of God in their foreheads. They had the light of truth, they knew their Master’s will, they understood every point of our faith, but they had not corresponding works. These who were so familiar with prophecy and the treasures of divine wisdom should have acted their faith. They should have commanded their households after them, that by a well-ordered family they might present to the world the influence of the truth upon the human heart.

“By their lack of devotion and piety, and their failure to reach a high religious standard, they make other souls contented with their position. Men of finite judgment cannot see that in patterning after these men who have so often opened to them the treasures of God’s Word, they will surely endanger their souls. Jesus is the only true pattern. Everyone must now search the Bible for himself upon his knees before God, with the humble, teachable heart of a child, if he would know what the Lord requires of him. However high any minister may have stood in the favor of God, if he neglects to follow out the light given him of God, if he refuses to be taught as a little child, he will go into darkness and satanic delusions and will lead others in the same path. …

“What are you doing, brethren, in the great work of preparation? Those who are uniting with the world are receiving the worldly mold and preparing for the mark of the beast.” Testimonies, vol. 5, 212–216.

Friends, it is a dangerous thing to fail to advance in the opening providence of God. The light is moving. Are you moving with it or are you in the dark? Early in her experience, Ellen White saw a vision about this light. You can read this vision in Early Writings, 15–20. In other places in her writings, she speaks about the light that was set up at the beginning of the path that the Advent company was traveling that shone all of the way up to the Holy City. This path, friends, is narrow, and if you do not have light on the path, you are going to stumble and fall off.

What was that light that was set up at the beginning? Sister White says that it was the Midnight Cry. The Midnight Cry was based on the Bible prophecies of Daniel 8 and 9, and Revelation 14:6, 7—the message of the 2300 days and the sanctuary and the Investigative Judgment. The devil knows that if we reject these truths, we will stumble and fall off the path. It is amazing how successful the devil has been in leading people to reject them.

We have been told that, “When the power of God testifies as to what is truth, that truth is to stand forever as the truth. No after suppositions contrary to the light God has given are to be entertained.” Selected Messages, Book 1, 161. Yet there are Adventist teachers and ministers today who no longer believe these truths. Friend, if you are in the situation where you listen to this error, you are in the dark; you are going to lose your way. The Lord is not going to work a miracle to save you; you have turned your back on the light. This idea that you can have a spirit of free inquiry and ask any question you want to is not according to the Scriptures. Jesus rebuked people for their doubt. Friend, if these truths are not being upheld in your church, your church is in the dark.

In Testimonies, vol. 2, 594–597, Ellen White describes a very impressive dream. “I dreamed of being with a large body of people. A portion of this assembly started out prepared to journey. We had heavily loaded wagons. As we journeyed, the road seemed to ascend. On one side of this road was a deep precipice; on the other was a high, smooth, white wall. … As we journeyed on, the road grew narrower and steeper. … We concluded that we could no longer travel with the loaded wagons. We … took a portion of the luggage from the wagons and placed it upon the horses, and journeyed on horseback. As we progressed, the path still continued to grow narrow. … We then cut the luggage from the horses, and it fell over the precipice. We continued on horseback. … A hand seemed to take the bridle and guide us over the perilous way. As the path grew more narrow, we … left the horses and went on foot, in single file. … At this point small cords were let down from the top of the pure white wall; these we eagerly grasped. … The path finally became so narrow that we concluded that we could travel more safely without our shoes, so we slipped them from our feet. … Soon it was decided that we could travel more safely without our stockings; these were removed, and we journeyed on with bare feet.”

One of the most interesting points of this dream is that several changes were made. They began with heavily loaded wagons, then changed to horses with a portion of the luggage, to horses with no luggage, to single file on foot, to removing their shoes, and finally to removing their stockings. Notice that “at every change some were left behind, and those only remained who had accustomed themselves to endure hardships. The privations of the way only made these more eager to press on to the end. … We pressed close to the white wall, yet could not place our feet fully upon the path, for it was too narrow. We then suspended nearly our whole weight upon the cords, exclaiming: ‘We have hold from above!’ ” Ibid.

The light, friends, is moving. Are you keeping up with the providence of God? Are you aware that the road we are traveling is getting narrower? Have you noticed it? How are you going to stay on the path and keep up with the providence of God? The only way is to have faith. These cords represent faith. A few years ago a good friend of mine told me that he was sorry that I had worked so many years for the Adventist denomination and now had to give up all of my retirement benefits. If you stay on the road all the way to the end, you are going to give up much more than retirement benefits.

Oh friend, how much time are you spending in prayer? If you are energetic enough to get up and to pray, God will hear and answer.

“Where there is no active labor for others, love wanes, and faith grows dim.” The Desire of Ages, 825. You must not only study your Bible and pray, you must be actively involved in missionary work. If you are not, ask the Lord to show you what to do to become involved in some type of outreach program spreading the Third Angel’s Message.

We did not follow the path to the end of the vision. The time came, however, when the path disappeared and all that was left were the cords that had been let down from above. When you come to this place in your experience, will you have a faith that will hold you? Do you want the Lord to let down a cord of faith today so that you can get a hold from above? If so, determine that from this day forward you will faithfully walk in the light as God sheds it upon your pathway.

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

Bible Study Guides – Light for the Gentiles

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March 1, 2009 – March 7, 2009

Key Text

“Behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee.” Isaiah 60:2.

Study Help: Testimonies, vol. 6, 23–30; Ibid., vol. 7, 9–24.

Introduction

“[The prophet Isaiah] saw the bearers of the glad tidings of salvation going to the ends of the earth, to every kindred and people.” Prophets and Kings, 374.

1 What encouraging prophecy was revealed to Isaiah, and how was it fulfilled? Isaiah 9:1, 2; Matthew 4:16.

Note: “The prophet was permitted to look down the centuries to the time of the advent of the promised Messiah. At first he beheld only ‘trouble and darkness, dimness of anguish.’ Isaiah 8:22. Many who were longing for the light of truth were being led astray by false teachers into the bewildering mazes of philosophy and spiritism; others were placing their trust in a form of godliness, but were not bringing true holiness into the life practice. The outlook seemed hopeless; but soon the scene changed, and before the eyes of the prophet was spread a wondrous vision.” Prophets and Kings, 373.

2 What glorious hope is offered to the literal descendants of Abraham and to all earnest seekers after God? Isaiah 11:9, 10.

Note: “Among all nations, kindreds, and tongues, He sees men and women who are praying for light and knowledge. Their souls are unsatisfied: long have they fed on ashes. See Isaiah 44:20. The enemy of all righteousness has turned them aside, and they grope as blind men. But they are honest in heart and desire to learn a better way. Although in the depths of heathenism, with no knowledge of the written law of God nor of His Son Jesus, they have revealed in manifold ways the working of a divine power on mind and character.

“At times those who have no knowledge of God aside from that which they have received under the operations of divine grace have been kind to His servants, protecting them at the risk of their own lives. The Holy Spirit is implanting the grace of Christ in the heart of many a noble seeker after truth, quickening his sympathies contrary to his nature, contrary to his former education.” Prophets and Kings, 376, 377.

3 What assurances from Isaiah 54 can we claim today, and on what conditions? Isaiah 54:4, 5, 13, 17; I John 3:22; 2:4–7.

Note: “All the fifty-fourth chapter of Isaiah is applicable to the people of God, and every specification of the prophecy will be fulfilled. The Lord will not forsake His people in their time of trial. … Are these words of comfort spoken to those who are making void the law of God? No, no, the promise is for those who amid general apostasy, keep the commandments of God, and lift up the moral standard before the eyes of the world who have forsaken the ordinance, and broken the everlasting covenant.” “Ellen G. White Comments,” The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, vol. 4, 1148.

4 In what sense do the promises of Isaiah 54 also involve responsibilities? Isaiah 54:2; 57:14.

Note: “Earnest effort is to be put forth to counterwork the influences that have kept back the message for this time. A solemn work is to be done in a short space of time.” “Ellen G. White Comments,” The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, vol. 4, 1148.

“God’s people have a mighty work before them, a work that must continually rise to greater prominence. Our efforts in missionary lines must become far more extensive. A more decided work than has been done must be done prior to the second appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ. God’s people are not to cease their labors until they shall encircle the world. …

“New territories are to be worked by men inspired by the Holy Spirit. New churches must be established, new congregations organized. At this time there should be representatives of present truth in every city and in the remote parts of the earth. The whole earth is to be illuminated with the glory of God’s truth. The light is to shine to all lands and all peoples. And it is from those who have received the light that it is to shine forth. The daystar has risen upon us, and we are to flash its light upon the pathway of those in darkness.” Testimonies, vol. 6, 23, 24.

“Where there are one or two men struggling to carry forward the different branches of the cause, there should be hundreds at work.” Ibid., 26.

“The home missionary work will be farther advanced in every way when a more liberal, self-denying, self-sacrificing spirit is manifested for the prosperity of foreign missions; for the prosperity of the home work depends largely, under God, upon the reflex influence of the evangelical work done in countries afar off. It is in working actively to supply the necessities of the cause of God that we bring our souls in touch with the Source of all power.” Ibid., 27.

5 What prophecy is soon to be fulfilled and how? Isaiah 44:4, 5.

Note: “Our watchword is to be: Onward, ever onward. The angels of God will go before us to prepare the way. Our burden for the ‘regions beyond’ can never be laid down until the whole earth shall be lightened with the glory of the Lord.” Testimonies, vol. 6, 29.

6 What does God declare regarding the new souls who accept the present truth? Isaiah 56:2–8. How does this concept apply today?

Note: “Many of these converts from heathenism would wish to unite themselves fully with the Israelites. … None of these were to say, ‘The Lord hath utterly separated me from His people’ (Isaiah 56:3), for the word of God through His prophet to those who should yield themselves to Him and observe His law was that they should thenceforth be numbered among spiritual Israel—His church on earth.” Prophets and Kings, 372.

7 How is God’s power to be manifested even in the lives of some of the seemingly most hopeless cases? Isaiah 49:22–25.

Note: “Heaven’s plan of salvation is broad enough to embrace the whole world. God longs to breathe into prostrate humanity the breath of life. And He will not permit any soul to be disappointed who is sincere in his longing for something higher and nobler than anything the world can offer. Constantly He is sending His angels to those who, while surrounded by circumstances the most discouraging, pray in faith for some power higher than themselves to take possession of them and bring deliverance and peace. In various ways God will reveal Himself to them and will place them in touch with providences that will establish their confidence in the One who has given Himself a ransom for all, ‘that they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep His commandments.’ Psalm 78:7.” Prophets and Kings, 377, 378.

8 What call of God is to involve every one of us? Isaiah 60:1–3.

Note: “The missionary spirit needs to be revived in our churches. Every member of the church should study how to help forward the work of God, both in home missions and in foreign countries. Scarcely a thousandth part of the work is being done that ought to be done in missionary fields. God calls upon His workers to annex new territory for Him. There are rich fields of toil waiting for the faithful worker. And ministering angels will co-operate with every member of the church who will labor unselfishly for the Master.” Testimonies, vol. 6, 29.

9 In the grand task before us, how does God take into account the wide variety of resources entrusted to us? Isaiah 6:8; II Corinthians 5:14, 15.

Note: “An American businessman who was an earnest Christian, in conversation with a fellow worker remarked that he himself worked for Christ twenty-four hours of the day. ‘In all my business relations,’ he said, ‘I try to represent my Master. As I have opportunity, I try to win others to Him. All day I am working for Christ. And at night, while I sleep, I have a man working for Him in China.’

“In explanation he added: ‘In my youth I determined to go as a missionary to the heathen. But on the death of my father I had to take up his business in order to provide for the family. Now, instead of going myself, I support a missionary. In such a town of such a province of China, my worker is stationed. And so, even while I sleep, I am, through my representative, still working for Christ.’

“Why should not the members of a church or of several small churches unite to sustain a missionary in foreign fields? If they will deny themselves of selfish indulgences, dispense with needless and hurtful things, they can do this. Brethren and sisters, will you not help in this work? I beseech you to do something for Christ, and to do it now. Through the teacher whom your money shall sustain in the field, souls may be saved from ruin to shine as stars in the Redeemer’s crown.” Testimonies, vol. 6, 29, 30.

10 What thoughts should ever resound in our heart? John 4:34–36.

Note: “Have you so deep an appreciation of the sacrifice made on Calvary that you are willing to make every other interest subordinate to the work of saving souls?” Testimonies, vol. 7, 10.

“There is a picture representing a bullock standing between a plow and an altar, with the inscription, ‘Ready for either,’ ready to toil in the furrow or to be offered on the altar of sacrifice. This is the position of the true child of God—willing to go where duty calls, to deny self, to sacrifice for the Redeemer’s cause.” The Ministry of Healing, 502.

Additional Reading

“It was not alone upon the hills of Judea, not among the lowly shepherds only, that angels found the watchers for Messiah’s coming. In the land of the heathen also were those that looked for Him; they were wise men, rich and noble, the philosophers of the East. Students of nature, the Magi had seen God in His handiwork. From the Hebrew Scriptures they had learned of the Star to arise out of Jacob, and with eager desire they awaited His coming, who should be not only the ‘Consolation of Israel,’ but a ‘Light to lighten the Gentiles,’ and ‘for salvation unto the ends of the earth.’ Luke 2:25, 32; Acts 13:47. They were seekers for light, and light from the throne of God illumined the path for their feet. While the priests and rabbis of Jerusalem, the appointed guardians and expounders of the truth, were shrouded in darkness, the Heaven-sent star guided these Gentile strangers to the birthplace of the newborn King.

“It is ‘unto them that look for Him’ that Christ is to ‘appear the second time without sin unto salvation.’ Hebrews 9:28. Like the tidings of the Saviour’s birth, the message of the second advent was not committed to the religious leaders of the people. They had failed to preserve their connection with God, and had refused light from heaven; therefore they were not of the number described by the apostle Paul: ‘But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.’ I Thessalonians 5:4, 5.

“The watchmen upon the walls of Zion should have been the first to catch the tidings of the Saviour’s advent, the first to lift their voices to proclaim Him near, the first to warn the people to prepare for His coming. But they were at ease, dreaming of peace and safety, while the people were asleep in their sins. Jesus saw His church, like the barren fig tree, covered with pretentious leaves, yet destitute of precious fruit. There was a boastful observance of the forms of religion, while the spirit of true humility, penitence, and faith—which alone could render the service acceptable to God—was lacking. Instead of the graces of the Spirit there were manifested pride, formalism, vainglory, selfishness, oppression. A backsliding church closed their eyes to the signs of the times. God did not forsake them, or suffer His faithfulness to fail; but they departed from Him, and separated themselves from His love. As they refused to comply with the conditions, His promises were not fulfilled to them.

“Such is the sure result of neglect to appreciate and improve the light and privileges which God bestows. Unless the church will follow on in His opening providence, accepting every ray of light, performing every duty which may be revealed, religion will inevitably degenerate into the observance of forms, and the spirit of vital godliness will disappear. This truth has been repeatedly illustrated in the history of the church. God requires of His people works of faith and obedience corresponding to the blessings and privileges bestowed. Obedience requires a sacrifice and involves a cross; and this is why so many of the professed followers of Christ refused to receive the light from heaven, and, like the Jews of old, knew not the time of their visitation. Luke 19:44. Because of their pride and unbelief the Lord passed them by and revealed His truth to those who, like the shepherds of Bethlehem and the Eastern Magi, had given heed to all the light they had received.” The Great Controversy, 315, 316.