"Walking in the Light: Turning Away from Sin"

The truth is that if you could turn yourself from sin you would not need God, and if you could turn from one sin, eventually you could turn from all sin and Christ would have died in vain.

"To you first, God, having raised up His Servant Jesus, sent Him to bless you, in turning away everyone of you from your iniquities" (Acts 3:26, NKJV).

"Each one may say if he will, 'O Lord, I am Thy servant, ... the son of Thy handmaid. Thou hast loosed my bonds' (Psalm 116:16).

"The thing is true whether we believe it or not. We are the Lord's servants, though we may stubbornly refuse to serve. He has bought us; and having bought us, He has broken every bond that hindered us from serving Him. If we but believe, we have the victory that has overcome the world (1 John 5:4; John 16:33). The message to us is that our 'warfare is ended' and our 'iniquity is pardoned' (Isaiah 40:2).

'My sin--oh, the bliss of the glorious thought!
My sin, not in part, but the whole,
Is nailed to His cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!'

"All this deliverance is 'according to the will of our God and Father.' The will of God is our sanctification (1 Thess. 4:3). He wills that all men should be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth (1 Tim. 2:4). And He 'accomplishes all things according to the counsel of His will' (Eph. 1:11). 'Do you mean to teach universal salvation?' someone may ask. We mean to teach just what the Word of God teaches--'the grace of God hath appeared, bringing salvation to all men' (Titus 2:11, RV). God has wrought out salvation for every man, and has given it to him; but the majority spurn it and throw it away. The judgment will reveal the fact that full salvation was given to every man and that the lost have deliberately thrown away their birthright possession." [1]

Ever remember that the Gospel is the power of God unto salvation and not the power of man.

In 1 Corinthians 2:1-5, Paul writes that he did not come declaring the mystery of God with excellency of speech so that their faith should not be in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God. He only wanted to know Christ and Him crucified among them. Colossians 1:26, 27 explains that the mystery of God "is Christ in you, the hope of glory" (glory being character). Following this mystery of God to Revelation 10:5-7, we read, "in the days of the sounding of the seventh angel, when he is about to sound, the mystery of God would be finished." This is the finishing of God's character in us just before the close of probation.

Writing about the experience of the apostle Paul, Waggoner says, "1. The Gospel is a mystery. 2. It is a mystery that is made known by revelation of Jesus Christ. 3. It was not merely that Jesus Christ revealed it to him, but that he was made to know the mystery by the revelation of Jesus Christ in him. ... The conclusion therefore is that the Gospel is the revelation of Jesus Christ in men." [2]

Being crucified with Christ, it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me, and the present mortal life that I am now living in this flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me (Gal. 2:20). "Even now Christ bears the sins of the world, for 'in Him all things consist.' ... Therefore, wherever sin is found, there we may be sure is the cross of Christ." [3]

"So believing in Christ, we are justified by the faith of Christ, since we have Him personally dwelling in us," by the Spirit, and "exercising His own faith." [4] His faith that never failed to keep the commandments of God and His endless life that endures in us to the end (Rev. 14:12).

"In Romans 6:6 (KJV) Paul writes, 'Our old man is crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.'

"That which is destroyed is the body of sin, and it is destroyed only by this personal presence of the life of Christ. It is destroyed in order that we may be freed from its power and may no longer need to serve it. It is destroyed for everybody, for Christ in His own flesh has abolished 'the enmity,' the sinner's carnal mind. Our sins, our weaknesses, were upon Him. For every soul the victory has been gained, and the enemy has been disarmed. We have only to accept the victory, which Christ has won. The victory over all sin is already a reality." [5]

"The offense of the cross is that the cross is a confession of human frailty and sin and of inability to do any good thing. To take the cross of Christ means to depend solely on Him for everything, and this is the abasement of all human pride. Men love to fancy themselves independent. But let the cross be preached, let it be made known that in man dwells no good thing and that all must be received as a gift, and straightway somebody is offended." [6]

The flesh cannot be converted. It must be crucified. --Daniel Peters
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[1] The Glad Tidings, Ellet J. Waggoner, edited by Robert J. Wieland, pp. 13, 14 (Pacific Press Publishing Assn.; Glad Tidings Publishers).
[2] The Everlasting Covenant, Ellet J. Waggoner, pp. 18, 19 (Glad Tidings Publishers ed.).
[3] The Glad Tidings, p. 44.
[4] Ibid., p. 42.
[5] Ibid., p. 43.
[6] Ibid., p. 113.
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"Jesus and the Johannine Letters"

The Beloved John, The Loving Disciple

John's pastoral love for the believers is not sentimental self-seeking love, but a sincere concern for the children of God, whom he considers his own. John's love is demonstrated in his concern to correct errors that have come into the church.

The Heresy of Docetism
The teachers of this heresy had left the church, but their influence lingered. Docetism denies the reality of the incarnation and teaches that Christ only appeared to have a human body. John, probably the last living disciple, is in a unique position to refute this idea. He wastes no time, for in the first verse of the first epistle he states, "we have heard," "we have seen" and "our hands have handled." He establishes that he is a competent witness to the reality of Jesus Christ. Ellen White tells us John lived to be nearly one hundred years old (Selected Messages, book 2, p. 223). We can take comfort that God loves His faithful servants their entire lives, and uses them to share a special witness even when they are aged. We should not ignore them or their testimony.

The Heresy of Sinlessness
John uses three "If we say" hypotheticals to soften his warnings against what must have been folks in the church claiming they had stopped sinning. John calls them liars, but does not say they are sinning. There will come a time when there will be a people who stand fully cleansed and sealed, but that is not their message. They do not know their true condition, but are used by God to demonstrate to the universe that Satan is the liar when he claims God cannot dwell in His people to give them righteous characters.

"He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him." This statement in 1 John 2:4 is similar to John 14:15: "If ye love Me, keep My commandments." In both, John is emphasizing that the actions stem from heartfelt love. It does not follow that if we outwardly keep His commandments, without surrendering the heart, that it will result in knowing or loving Him.

Warning of the Antichrist
The word "antichrist" is used only four times, all in John's epistles. Paul and Peter allude to apostasy or hypocrisy from within, which we understand to refer to antichrist (Acts 20:30; 2 Peter 2:1, 2; 1 Tim. 4:1-3; 2 Tim. 3:1-8; 2 Thess. 2:3-4) Paul describes the "man of sin" as he "who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God. ... (2 Thess. 2:3-4). In his epistles, John adds that the antichrist denies that Christ came in the flesh (2 John 7).

While we use the term antichrist to describe individuals and organizations who are worthy of the term, it is also possible that we avoid personal responsibility by doing so. If we are depending on our own efforts rather than accepting the righteousness of God to be assured of salvation, we will never have the confidence to keep the sign of loyalty to God, His Sabbath, come what may. One who denies that Christ came in the flesh when He came to earth, may also deny that He can come into human flesh today. If we insist that we can contribute to our own righteousness, we are attempting to preempt the role that only God can fill through His Son. It is only by accepting the mind of Christ that we receive that robe "without a thread of human devising."How is this done?

"... in order to have the righteousness of God--which is the latter rain, which is the preparation for the loud cry--we must have the mind of Christ only; ... This is precisely the advice that is given to us in the Scriptures: 'Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus.' Phil. 2:5, 6. ... Now what mind is in us to start with? The mind of self. What does that mind do? It exalts self. ... Therefore as we have a [self centered] mind to start with, and must have another than that, while that other empties of self the one in whom it is, does it not follow inevitably that that mind which we have to start with, is a mind only of self? (A. T. Jones, 1893 General Conference Bulletin, #12, p. 257).

Satan's difficulty began when he looked at himself and allowed pride to work its destructive process.

"... he began to give himself credit for what he was ... He would be in the place of Christ; and anyone who puts himself in the place of Christ puts himself in the place of God, because God is in Christ" (ibid.).

If we cannot have the righteousness of God without having the mind of Christ, we must replace the self-centered mind we have naturally with the mind of Christ. How can we accomplish this?

"The word of God must be interwoven with the living character of those who believe it. The only vital faith is that faith which receives and assimilates the truth till it is a part of the being, and the motive power of the life and action. ... The followers of Christ must be partakers of His experience. They must assimilate the word of God. They must be changed into its likeness by the power of Christ, and reflect the divine attributes. ... This is genuine sanctification" (Signs of the Times, April 13, 1888).

"By His perfect obedience He has made it possible for every human being to obey God's commandments. When we submit ourselves to Christ, the heart is united with His heart, the will is merged in His will, the mind becomes one with His mind, the thoughts are brought into captivity to Him; we live His life. This is what it means to be clothed with the garment of His righteousness. Then as the Lord looks upon us He sees, not the fig-leaf garment, not the nakedness and deformity of sin, but His own robe of righteousness, which is perfect obedience to the law of Jehovah" (Christ's Object Lessons, p. 312).

As we study this quarter's lessons based on John's epistles, may we all, like the noble Bereans, search the scriptures for ourselves, so we assimilate the truth till it is a part of our being. Only when we deny any confidence in self will we have the assurance that no one can take away our faith.
--Arlene Hill

Heaven

The notion that individuals enter heaven at death is widely believed, in spite of scripture's description that it will be a cataclysmic, corporately universal event. The glimpses of the second advent we are given involve multitudes of intelligent beings all aware of the events. It would be uncharacteristic of God to let the marriage of His Son with the "bride who has made herself ready" happen piece meal as ordinary daily celestial activity. A wedding, especially the Wedding of the Ages, calls for a celebration the likes of which only Divinity can arrange.

With no understanding of a pre-advent judgment, it is logical to assume a person's eligibility for heaven must be decided at death. Even people who have no religion cannot accept that, worthy or not, everyone goes to heaven. Almost always, the imagined conditions for entering heaven involve burdensome sacrifice and denial. This effort must catch God's attention so He will feel better about the person and admit them to heaven.

Stop Trying to Earn Heaven

A world that misunderstands the character of our loving God can never believe that the experience of heaven can begin here during our earthly lifetime. All pagan religions believe the gods withhold blessings until sufficient sacrifice or "works" are demonstrated. God does not need that because the cross is the basis of our salvation. We simply accept it by faith. Even faith is the gift of God, so effort and merit are never part of the equation. Because the cross is an accomplished historical fact, God can bestow the blessings of heaven before we actually arrive there. Our lesson uses two of many texts to demonstrate that the benefits exist here and now: 1 John 3:2, "Beloved, now we are children of God ..., and John 5:24, "... he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life" (NASV, emphasis added). Almost any verse in the first chapter of Ephesians confirms that what Christ accomplished for us at the cross is already ours in Christ.

Ask for Belief

There are many ways the believer can experience heaven on earth, but they all depend on accepting God's promises by faith. Upon hearing the gospel of the cross, the repentant believer's most immediate blessing is peace. "Therefore having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Rom. 5:1). Once we have peace, we can rest from our efforts to save ourselves.

Ask for a Heart to Enter into Rest

Israel repeatedly refused to enter God's rest even though it was promised. "My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest" (Ex. 33:14, KJV). Jesus repeated this: "Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest" (Matt. 11:28, KJV). The margin expands the word "labor" to mean "work to exhaustion."

"The rest that was offered to the children of Israel in the desert, is the very same rest that Christ offers to all mankind, ... why then do not all people have rest?--For the simple reason that as a general thing men do not recognize His presence, nor even His existence, ... This shows that the general inability to please God, and so to find rest, arises from practical unbelief that He exists" (The Everlasting Covenant, pp. 283-284).

When the Jews asked Jesus, "What shall we do, that we might work the works of God?" they repeated the self-confidence of their ancestors at Sinai when they said: "All that the Lord has spoken, we will do" (ibid., p. 235). Jesus corrected them: "This is the work of God, that ye believe on Him whom He hath sent" (John 6:29). Their arrogance revealed that they refused to believe in a God who would do the work for them. Instead, they insisted on "laboring" to exhaustion under man made "heavy loads." Thus, they could not enter into that rest that God had prepared for them.

Enter into the Special Sabbath Rest

The Lord gave Adam rest in the garden even though he was given work to "keep" it. His work was not to make the garden perfect, but to keep the perfection created by God. Work is not part of the curse of sin, but fatigue is. "That perfect, new creation has disappeared,--but the rest still remains" (ibid, pp. 308-309). The rest that remains in spite of the curse is the Sabbath of the Lord, the seventh day. Like Adam "keeping" the garden, we are to "keep" the Sabbath day that God created and made holy. We are not to create a new Sabbath, nor must we make it holy. God has already made, blessed, and hallowed the Sabbath. God asked only that we "keep" the Sabbath He created. Before sin, humans had no trouble entering into that rest. Once the rebellion entered, nothing good came naturally to those whose natures had become evil. Nothing short of a new creation was necessary.

"The Sabbath comes revealing Christ the Creator as the burden-bearer ... It is in the cross of Christ that we receive life, are made new creatures. The power of the cross, therefore, is creative power. ... Now we can understand why the Sabbath occupies so prominent a place in the record of God's dealings with Israel ... because Sabbath-keeping is the beginning of that rest which God promised His people in the land of Canaan ... This is the heritage of the Lord, now is the time, today is the day in which we may enter upon it, for He is the portion of our inheritance, and in Him we have all things (ibid., pp. 312-315).

Do you want to live as if you have already reached the heavenly rest? Ask God to give you the mind of Christ to enter into the Sabbath rest during the entire week. This does not mean inactivity, but a mental rest in the Lord for all needs, all week long.

See Trials as "Helpers on to Zion"

But someone says, "I don't feel so rested, I have problems, trials, and temptations." "Then the Lord wants us to be so well acquainted with fiery trials that, ... we can say, 'All right; glad to meet you, sir; I know you; come along.' ... let us not think it strange concerning the fiery trials "as though some strange thing happened" unto us. We are not to meet them and deal with them as strangers, but as acquaintances; not only that, but we are to meet them as helpers on to Zion" (A. T. Jones, 1893 General Conference Bulletin, #10, p. 203).

--Arlene Hill

The Christian Life: "Rest"

From the beginning, creation and God's rest have been inseparably linked together. We know that God who created all things was named Jesus and that all things were created by Him, for Him, through Him, "and He is before all things, and in Him all things consist" (Col. 1:17). "He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made" (John 1:2, 3).

This same Jesus promised Moses and the people of Israel, "My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest" (Ex. 33:14). This is the same promise recorded in Matthew 11:28: "Come to Me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."

"But God always was and is everywhere present; why then do not all people have rest?--For the simple reason that as a general thing men do not recognize His presence, nor even His existence." Romans 1:20 makes it clear that "it is as Creator that God reveals Himself, for the fact that He creates marks Him as the self-existent God, and distinguishes Him from all false gods." [1]

"Our help is in the name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth" (Psalm 124:8). Now since rest is found only in God's presence, and His presence is truly known and appreciated only through His works, it is evident that the promised rest must be very closely connected with creation. [2]

The rest and the inheritance are always associated together in the promise (Deut. 12:8-16). They always associated together because they are one. Our inheritance is rest (3:18, 20). David rightly adds to our understanding in Psalm 16:5, 6: "O LORD, You are the portion of my inheritance and my cup; You maintain my lot. The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places; yes, I have a good inheritance." He is both our rest and our inheritance; having Him, we have all. He is also "THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS" (Jer. 23:6, 7; 33:16). The Lord, our rest from sin.

Yet with all the power of the universe at their disposal, the people of Israel did not enter into God's rest. Hebrews 4:1-11 discloses their history, because what they did, we are at high risk of doing also. They did not enter in because of unbelief. They did not believe the gospel that was preached to them because they did not mix what they heard with faith. They did not believe it--they did not accept it--they did not enter into God's rest.

Here we see a parallel to our own recent history in 1888. The Lord in His great mercy brought the clearest presentation of the gospel to this people. They did not accept it--they did not believe it. As we have learned, unbelief prevents one from entering into God's rest--just like the ancient people of Israel. It is a principle.

The fact that "they could not enter in because of unbelief" shows that they would have entered in if they had believed; and the fact that perfect rest was ready for them, is further shown by the statement, "the works were finished from the foundation of the world." [3]

The rest that is promised is God's rest. This incomparable rest is what God gave man in the beginning. "The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it" (Gen. 2:15). "Eden" means delight, pleasure; the garden of Eden is the garden of delight; the Hebrew word which in this place is rendered "put" is a word meaning rest; therefore Genesis 2:15 may be rendered thus: "And the Lord God took the man, and caused him to rest in the garden of delight to dress it and to keep it." [4]

Adam entered into rest, because he entered into God's perfect, finished work. He was God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God had before prepared, that he should walk in them (Eph. 2:10). "This is the work of God, that you believe" (John 6:29), and it was solely by faith that Adam could enjoy God's work and share His rest; for as soon as Adam disbelieved God, taking the word of Satan instead, he lost everything.

"We which believe do enter into rest," because "this is the work of God, that ye believe." The two statements are identical in meaning, because the work of God, which is ours by faith, is completed work, and therefore to enter upon that work is to enter upon rest.

God did the work and placed Adam in possession of it, with directions to keep it--this he did so long as he kept the faith.

It is impossible for man to keep the Sabbath of the Lord without faith because the "just shall live by faith." Sabbath rest is a spiritual rest, so that physical rest apart from spiritual rest is not Sabbath keeping at all. Sabbath rest is much more than a nap.

Bear this in mind that while the Sabbath day is the seventh day of the week, the rest, which the Sabbath day brings to view, is continuous. [5] When Jesus cried, "It is finished," He was announcing that through His cross could be obtained the perfect works of God, which were finished from the foundation of the world.

"And I heard another voice from heaven saying, 'Come out of her, My people, ...,'" and "Come to Me, ... and I will give you rest." "Here are those that have entered into God's rest by His faith--the ones who believed Him when He said, 'It is finished'" (Rev. 18:4; Matt. 11:28; paraphrase of Rev. 14:12).

And on the seventh day Jesus rested from all His work.

--Daniel Peters

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[1] Ellet J. Waggoner, The Everlasting Covenant, chapter 38.

[2] Ibid.

[3] Op. cit., chapter 40; Heb. 4:3.

[4] Ibid. (chapter 40).

[5] Op. cit., chapter 41.

Read these chapters online:

Chapter 38 - http://1888mpm.org/book/38-promises-israel-promised-rest-part-1-2

Chapter 39 - http://1888mpm.org/book/39-promises-israel-promised-rest-part-2-2

Chapter 40 - http://1888mpm.org/book/40-promises-israel-another-day -part-1-2

Chapter 41 - http://1888mpm.org/book/41-promises-israel-another-day -part-2-2