My Vision on the Testator Forever Sacrifice &
Righteousness by Faith
Heb 9:16 For where a testament is, there
must also of necessity be the death of the testator.
Heb 9:17 For a testament is of force after
men are dead: otherwise it is of no strength at all while the testator liveth.
I was shown that
the reason God’s people have not embraced righteousness by faith is because
they have not understood and responded to the great sacrifice made by Christ in
order to proffer the highest good, crowning gift that heaven can bestow, the
Divine Nature Holy Spirit of Christ. I was shown that this is the reason why
the two men who delivered the message of Righteousness by Faith, A. T. Jones
and E. J. Waggoner mutinied and joined Kellogg in the alpha heresy.
The most
compelling factor to the acceptance and practice of true righteousness by
faith, is a knowledge of the forever sacrifice that was necessary to give man
the gift of the Divine Nature Holy Spirit, the highest good, crowning gift that
heaven can bestow. If a person won’t respond to the great sacrifice made on the
part of Christ, it is likely he/she will respond to no appeal made by the Holy
Spirit.
I was shown that
it might take periods of fasting and certainly much prayer, to understand the
highest good, crowning gift that heaven can bestow.
The “Cannot
Understand” Factor in Isaiah 58:10-12
Isaiah 58:10-12
says three times that ALL
the dumb-dog watchmen CANNOT
UNDERSTAND. This was dramatically proven in the alpha heresy, at which
time all the dumb-dog watchmen were looking on to Kellogg’s heresy on the
Godhead, but they could not seem to understand. It is important to note that
Isaiah 56:10-12 says ALL three times. This includes the watchmen that many set
up upon a pedestal, and attribute their every word as from God.
The inept
watchmen will marginalize the truth on the issue of the Godhead as nonsense!
Because they cannot understand it, and it works against their adoption of
Rome’s Trinity Doctrine, thereby questioning their adoption of such an
antichrist doctrine.
Why the Trinity Doctrine
is Anti-Christ. The trinity doctrine denies the forever sacrifice of the death
of the Testator, by teaching that he is co-eternal with the Father. Even a
three-day death on the cross would make Him NOT co-eternal because the Father
did not die. The ministering brethren have looked on to the church’s adoption
of the Trinity Doctrine of Rome, but they have not understood the serious
implications of that doctrine of Rome because God’s Word says that they CANNOT
UNDERSTAND. That is why God has always used prophets to explain the
implications of erring watchmen in the old and new Testament. But those
prophets were hated and even killed because the dumb-dog watchmen didn’t like
their authority being questioned.
Speaking of
authority, George R. Knight has a new book out entitled Authority Wars that is most enlightening on the issue of authority
in the church, The general rule as established by the leaders is to search and
study, but then consent to the decisions of the leaders, and this is not always
according to biblical counsel as George’s book abundantly proves, and as this
vision will abundantly prove.
Sanctuary Gone Atonement Gone -- "In a representation which passed
before me, I saw a certain work being done by medical missionary workers. Our ministering brethren were
looking on, watching what was being done, but they did not seem to understand.
The foundation of our faith, which was established by so much prayer, such
earnest searching of the Scriptures, was being taken down, pillar by
pillar. Our faith was to have nothing to rest upon--the sanctuary was gone, the
atonement was gone." E.G. White, The Upward Look, 152.
The very foundation of our faith which was established by so much prayer,
such earnest searching of the Scriptures was being taken down, pillar by
pillar. The Sanctuary was gone, the atonement was GONE. As though that was not
bad enough, Ellen White said that the omega heresy was to be far worse, and
indeed it is because it involves the personality of God and Christ via The
Trinity Doctrine.
Heb 9:16 For where a testament is, there must also of
necessity be the death of the testator.
Heb 9:17 For a testament is of force after men are
dead: otherwise it is of no strength at all while the testator liveth.
The Testator of
the Everlasting Covenant, providing a means of dealing with the breach in God’s
law, was Jesus Christ. God’s Word says that in some way the Testator must die,
and that while the testator liveth, the testament is
of no strength.
Since Divinity
cannot “die” as man conceives of death, the Testator had to “die” in some other
way. He offered His soul as an offering for sin. Quite naturally, my question
to my attending angel was, How did Christ offer His Soul as an offering for
sin.
“Christ had
stooped to take upon Himself man’s nature; He was to bear an infinite weight of
woe as He should make His
soul an offering for sin; yet angels
desire that even in His humiliation the Son of the Highest might appear before men
with a dignity and glory befitting His character.” E.G. White, The Great Controversy, pp. 313, 314.
"Thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin." Isaiah 53:10.
What
is the Soul of Christ?
"Christ
declared that after his ascension, he would send to his church, as his crowning
gift, the Comforter, who was to take his place. This Comforter is the Holy
Spirit,--the soul of his life, the efficacy
of his church, the light and life of the world. With his Spirit Christ sends a
reconciling influence and a power that takes away sin.
In the gift of the Spirit [HIS LIFE--THE SOUL OF HIS
LIFE], Jesus gave to
man the highest good that heaven could bestow....
The Spirit was given as a regenerating agency, and
without this the sacrifice of Christ would have been of no avail....
It is by the
Spirit that the heart is made pure. Through the Spirit the believer becomes a
partaker of the divine nature. Christ has given his Spirit as a divine power to
overcome all hereditary and cultivated tendencies to evil, and to impress his
own character upon the church." E.G. White, Review and Herald Articles, May 19, 1904, vol. 5, p. 42.
“Christ had stooped
to take upon Himself man’s nature; He was to bear an infinite weight of woe as He should make His soul an offering for sin;
yet angels desire that even in His humiliation the Son of the Highest might
appear before men with a dignity and glory befitting His character.” E.G.
White, The Great Controversy, pp.
313, 314.
My next question
was : How did Christ make His Soul, His Holy Spirit, an offering for sin?
What was man’s death before the Incarnation
Sacrifice? It was eternal death. The wages of sin is death, eternal death.
One Spirit Eternal Spirit
Hbr 9:14 How
much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without
spot to God, purge your
conscience from dead works to serve the living God?
Jhn 4:24
God [is] a Spirit: and they that worship him must
worship [him] in spirit and in truth.
“They have one God
and one Saviour; and one Spirit—the Spirit of Christ” (9T p. 289)
I asked my Angel
to explain once again, and confirm for me exactly how Christ made His soul, His
Holy Spirit, an offering for sin, even a FOREVER offering for sin, since the
Testator’s Testament is of no strength while the Testator liveth.
I was shown that the way in which Christ made His soul, His Holy Spirit, an
offering for sin, was that He volunteered to divest Himself (leave His past
eternal life as Holy Spirit ONLY), to become human FOREVER, and to bequeath the
gift of His Holy Spirit to man, as the only power for overcoming sin. I WAS SHOWN that this
termination of living ONLY in the form
of God as the Holy Spirit, to become a human priest FOREVER, was like a
“forever death” to His past existence as Holy Spirit ONLY, prior to His
Incarnation into humanity, Christ was ONLY HOLY SPIRIT WITH THE FATHER. Ellen
White said they both had the same essence and substance, which the Bible
describes as SPIRIT, HOLY SPIRIT.
Christ Became Human FOREVER according to the Bible and the Spirit of
Prophecy
Christ human forever
VIII. Christ Retains Human Nature Forever
“Christ ascended to heaven,
bearing a sanctified, holy humanity. He took this humanity with Him into the heavenly courts, and through
the eternal ages He will bear it, as the One who has redeemed every human being
in the city of God.” -- The Review and Herald, March 9, 1905. {7ABC
488.1}
What a
sacrifice! To be Holy Spirit God FROM ETERNITY, and then to exchange that form
of Being to become human FOREVER. Was/is that a sacrifice of all sacrifices?
All so man could receive the gift of the Holy Spirit as EMPOWERMENT for living
Righteousness by Faith. That gives a whole NEW MEANING TO RIGHTEOUSNESS BY
FAITH, and should compel
every child of Christ, to desire that gift which cost Him so much.
Most
Christians conceive of Jesus as dying for three days, then being raised to His
former estate. That is not true. That is not representative of heaven’s Highest
Good, Crowning FOREVER gift that Christ gave to man for his sanctification.
That would not fulfill the Testator’s prescribed limit as a sacrifice which
was/is DEATH OF THE TESTATOR.
"The darkness rolled away from the Saviour
and from the Cross. Christ bowed His head and died. In His Incarnation He had reached the
prescribed limit as a sacrifice, but not as a redeemer." E.G. White Manuscript
Releases Volume Twelve, p. 409.
Christ redeemed us from our past sins by taking
them upon Himself and being faithful unto death, even the death of the cross.
He was faithful unto death, as some of us may have to be. But the cross would have been to
no avail but to pardon sin forever, if the REMEDY had not been provided by the
offering of His Soul (Holy Spirit), as a gift for OVERCOMING SIN AND LIVING
RIGHTEOUSNESS BY FAITH.
"The darkness rolled away from the Saviour and
from the Cross. Christ bowed His head and died. In His Incarnation He had
reached the prescribed limit as a sacrifice, but not as a redeemer." E.G.
White Manuscript Releases Volume Twelve, p. 409.
"The Incarnation of Christ was an act of
self-sacrifice; His life was one of continual self-denial. The highest glory of the love of
God to man was manifested in the sacrifice of His only-begotten Son, who was
the express image of His person. This is the great mystery of godliness.
It is the privilege and the duty of every professed follower of Christ to have
the mind of Christ. Without self-denial and cross bearing we cannot be His
disciples." E.G. White, Selected
Messages, Book 2, p. 185.
This gives new meaning to God’s character of love,
that He would give His Son as a FOREVER sacrifice for us.
"The Incarnation of Christ was an act of
self-sacrifice; His life was one of continual self-denial. The highest glory of the love of
God to man was manifested in the sacrifice of His only-begotten Son, who was
the express image of His person. This is the great mystery of godliness.
It is the privilege and
the duty of every professed follower of Christ to have the mind of Christ.
Without self-denial and cross bearing we cannot be His disciples." E.G.
White, Selected Messages, Book 2, p. 185.
"Christ
declared that after his ascension, he would send to his church, as his crowning
gift, the Comforter, who was to take his place. This Comforter is the Holy
Spirit,--the soul of his life, the efficacy
of his church, the light and life of the world. With his Spirit Christ sends a
reconciling influence and a power that takes away sin.
In the gift of the Spirit [HIS LIFE--THE SOUL
OF HIS LIFE], Jesus gave to man the highest
good that heaven could bestow....
The Spirit was given as a regenerating agency,
and without this the sacrifice of Christ would have been of no avail....
It is
by the Spirit that the heart is made pure. Through the Spirit the believer
becomes a partaker of the divine nature. Christ has given his Spirit as a
divine power to overcome all hereditary and cultivated tendencies to evil, and
to impress his own character upon the church." E.G. White, Review and Herald Articles, May 19,
1904, vol. 5, p. 42.
Without
the FOREVER SACRIFICE of the Holy Spirit soul of His life as a gift to man for
overcoming all known sin, the cross would have been of no avail BUT TO PARDON SIN FORVER,
BECAUSE THERE WOULD HAVE BEEN NO REMEDY FOR SIN, just pardon. That’s what the
above statement means when it says: “Jesus gave to man the highest good that heaven could bestow....
The Spirit was given as a regenerating agency, and
without this the sacrifice of Christ would have been of no avail....”
If this account of
the Love of God won’t motivate man to live righteous by faith, nothing will for there is
no higher sacrifice.
Thus, this knowledge of the FOREVER SACRIFICE and
its availability to every person who truly desires it, is A REQUISITE to
appreciating the gift that made righteousness by faith possible. How can any
person reject so great a gift, provided as such a huge sacrifice of the Son of
God? And the sacrifice redowned upon God the Father
as well because He had to agree to allow His son to volunteer this sacrifice.
John 3:16. The analogy of Abraham offering up his beloved Son, Isaac, is
applied to God’s giving up of His beloved son to become a human forever when
they were truly kindred spirits in a way we will better understand in heaven.
THE FOREVER SACRIFICE “death” to His former state
of existence as Holy Spirit GOD, ONLY:
“In stooping to take upon Himself humanity, Christ
revealed a character the opposite of the character of Satan. . . . In taking
our nature, the Saviour has bound Himself to humanity by a tie that is never to
be broken. Through the eternal ages He is linked with us. "God so loved
the world, that He gave His only-begotten Son." John 3:16. He gave Him not
only to bear our sins, and to die as our sacrifice; He gave Him to the fallen
race. To assure us of His immutable counsel of peace, God gave His only-begotten
Son to become one of the human family, forever to retain His human nature. This is the pledge that
God will fulfill His word. "Unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given:
and the government shall be upon His shoulder." God has adopted human
nature in the person of His Son, and has carried the same into the highest
heaven.”--Ibid., p. 25. {7ABC 456.4}
Man a priest forever
Christ as a man and a HIGH PRIEST forever -- Hebrews 7:24 But this
[man], because he continueth ever, hath an
unchangeable priesthood.
Hbr 7:24
But this [man], because he continueth ever, hath an
unchangeable priesthood.
“However much a shepherd may love his sheep, he loves his sons and daughters
more. Jesus is not only our shepherd He is our "everlasting Father."
And He says, "I know Mine own, and Mine own know Me, even as the Father knoweth Me, and I know the Father." John 10:14, 15,
R.V. What a statement is this!--the only-begotten Son, He who is in the bosom
of the Father, He whom God has declared to be "the Man that is My
fellow" (Zech. 13:7),--the communion between Him and the eternal God is
taken to represent the communion between Christ and His children on the
earth!”--The Desire of Ages, p. 483. {7ABC 438.4}
Christ felt our sin -- "As one with us, He must bear the burden of
our guilt and woe. The Sinless One must feel the shame of sin. . . . Every sin,
every discord, every defiling lust that transgression had brought, was torture
to His spirit."--The Desire of Ages, p. 111. {7ABC 450.1
One Substance -- The Jews had never before heard
such words from human lips, and a convicting influence attended them for it
seemed that divinity flashed through humanity as Jesus said, "I and my Father are
one." The words of Christ were full of deep meaning as he put forth the
claim that he and the Father were of one substance, possessing the same
attributes.--The Signs of the Times,
Nov. 27, 1893, p. 54. {7ABC 437.3}
“The words of Christ were full of deep
meaning as he put forth the claim that he and the Father were of one substance,
possessing the same attributes. The Jews understood his meaning, there was no
reason why they should misunderstand, and they took up stones to stone him.
Jesus looked upon them calmly and unshrinkingly, and
said, "Many good works have I showed you from my Father; for which of
these works do ye stone me?" {ST, November 27, 1893 par. 5}
The Majesty of heaven stood, calmly assured, as a god before his
adversaries. Their scowling faces, their hands filled with stones, did not
intimidate him. He knew that unseen forces, legions of angels, were round about
him, and at one word from his lips they would strike with dismay the throng,
should they offer to cast upon him a single stone. He stood before them
undaunted. Why did not the stones fly to the mark?--It was because divinity
flashed through humanity, and they received a revelation, and were convicted
that his were no common claims. Their hands relax and the stones fall to the ground.
His words had asserted his divinity, but now his personal presence, the light
of his eye, the majesty of his attitude, bore witness to the fact that he was
the beloved Son of God. {ST, November 27, 1893 par. 6}
The Signs of the Times.,
2002
“The Saviour's joy is in seeing, in the kingdom of glory, the souls
that have been saved by His agony and humiliation.” Heaven, p. 84
A Saviour From Eternity
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath
blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: according
as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should
be holy and without blame before him in love. Eph. 1:3, 4
Since the Fall the Lord has wrought out His will in the plan of
redemption, a plan by which He is seeking to restore man to his original
perfection. Christ’s death on the cross has made it possible for God to receive
and pardon every repentant soul.
As the divine Sufferer hung upon the cross, angels gathered about Him,
and as they looked upon Him, and heard His cry, they asked, with intense
emotion, "Will not the Lord Jehovah save Him?" . . . Then were the
words spoken: "The Lord hath sworn, and He will not repent. Father and Son
are pledged to fulfill the terms of the everlasting covenant. God so loved the
world, that He gave His only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him
should not perish, but have everlasting life." Christ was not alone in making
His great sacrifice. It was the fulfillment of the covenant made between Him
and His Father before the foundation of the world was laid. With clasped hands
they had entered into the solemn pledge that Christ would become the surety for
the human race if they were to overcome by Satan’s sophistry.
The salvation of the human race has ever been the object of the
councils of heaven. The covenant of mercy was made before the foundation of the
world. It has existed from all eternity, and is called the everlasting
covenant. So surely as there never was a time when God was not, so surely there
never was a moment when it was not the delight of the eternal mind to manifest
His grace to humanity. [On Noah, for example--Ron).
The more we consider this subject, the greater depths we find, and yet
there are depths that we do not reach as we study the Redeemer’s glory. It is
the glory of the Prince of life, and the mightiest powers of man cannot reach
it. The angels themselves desire to look into this mysterious and wonderful
theme, the redemption of the human race.
From Devotional: Our Father Cares, pp. 67, 68.
Conclusions:
1. As one better appreciates the huge sacrifice of
the Son of God, that far transcended even the cross, by being a FOREVER
sacrifice, ONE SHOULD LOVE JESUS THE MORE! MUCH MORE and aspire to the gift of
Righteousness by Faith by receiving the Divine Nature to overcome the lusts
(sins) of the world.
2Pe 1:4 Whereby
are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be
partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the
world through lust.
Will you
determine more than ever to be a partaker of the Divine Nature of our Lord and
Saviour Jesus Christ, who sacrificed so much
FOREVER, to afford you the gift of righteousness by faith and eternal
life.
I was shown that
there is no greater appeal to desire and strive for righteousness by faith,
than the account of the greatness of God’s love in providing heavens highest
good, crowning gift, the Holy Spirit that we might live righteous by faith in
Him by His enabling Holy Spirit GRACE POWER for obedience. Romans 1:5.
2. I was shown
that there is nothing Satan hates more than the atonement, and the Holy
Spirit’s enabling grace POWER for living righteously by faith.
3. When man
sinned, Satan thought he had man in the clutches of his domain. There is
NOTHING Satan hates more than the Incarnation Sacrifice Atonement WHICH GIVES
MAN ANOTHER CHANCE.
4. Don’t wait
for or expect better appeals, for they will never come! This I was shown. This
is why I waited to present evidence on Righteousness by Faith. First, we need
to understand the great sacrifice that made righteousness by faith possible.
This is why I spent about three years on the Godhead before dealing with righteousness
by faith.
5. The only form
of protection in these wicked last days is living within God’s hedge of
protection, obedience to His law, which was designed for that purpose and the
best welfare of all his creatures, especially man.
6. The trinity doctrine
does total despite to the Incarnation sacrifice, by denying that the Incarnated
Son of God, a MEMBER OF THE GODHEAD IN HEAVEN, died to being His former Holy
Spirit only self, AND IS THUS NOT CO ETERNAL with the father, as the Trinity
Doctrine teaches, thus denying the Sanctuary/Atonement sacrifice. The leaders
and MEMBERS of the apostate church did not understand these serious
implications in 1980 when the church adopted the Trinity Doctrine of Rome. But
now that God has provided the truth on this issue, there is no longer any
excuse to embrace and take a baptismal Vow to the Trinity Doctrine, which does
total despite to the Sanctuary Atonement, as did Kellogg’s heresy in the alpha.
7. Many wrongly
conclude that the error with the Trinity Doctrine is THREE PERSONS, Ellen White
plainly states that there are THREE MEMBERS TO THE GODHEAD.
8. To eliminate
THREE PERSONS is to eliminate the humanity of Christ and His gift of His holy
Spirit.
9.The humanity of Christ was created As
God he could not be tempted: but as a man he could be tempted, and that
strongly, and could yield to the temptations. His human nature must pass
through the same test and trial Adam and Eve passed through. His human nature was created [AT
HIS INCARNATION]; it did not even possess the angelic powers. It was
human, identical with our own. He was passing over the ground where Adam fell.
He was now where, if he endured the test and trial in behalf of the fallen
race, he would redeem Adam’s disgraceful failure and fall, in our own humanity.
3SM 129.3
THIS (ABOVE) IS
WHY CHRIST, AS A MEMBER OF THE GODHEAD, is NOT CO-ETERNAL with the other members
of the Godhead. THIS IS PROOF PERFECT THAT THE TRINITY DOCTRINE IS ERRANT for
it teaches that all the members of the Godhead are CO-ETERNAL, and that is what
the baptismal certificate of the apostate SDA church makes ALL MEMBERS TAKE A
VOW TO, AN ANTICHRIST, ABOMINABLE LIE.
The following
article by Ellen G. White is of considerable encouragement to all who are
aspiring to fulfill the conditions of righteousness by faith.
Bible
Biographies
Second Advent
Review and Sabbath Herald, January 22,
1880
The lives recorded in the Bible are
authentic histories of actual individuals. From Adam down through successive
generations to the time of the apostles, we have a plain, unvarnished account
of what actually occurred, and the genuine experience of real characters. It is
a subject of wonder to many, that inspired history should narrate facts in the
lives of good men that tarnish their moral characters. Infidels seize upon
these sins with great satisfaction, and hold their perpetrators up to ridicule.
The inspired writers did not testify to falsehoods, through fear that the pages
of Sacred History would be clouded by the record of human frailties and faults.
The scribes of God wrote as they were dictated by the Holy Spirit, having no
control of the work themselves. They penned the literal truth, and stern,
forbidding facts are revealed, for reasons that our finite minds cannot fully
comprehend. It is one of the best evidences of the authenticity of the
Scriptures, that the truth is not glossed over, nor the sins of its chief
characters suppressed.
Many will urge that it is an easy matter to
relate what has occurred in an ordinary life. But it is a proven fact that it
is a human impossibility to give an impartial history of a contemporary; and it
is almost as difficult to narrate, without deviating from the exact truth, the
story of any person or people with whose career we have become acquainted. The
human mind is so liable to prejudice that it is almost impossible for it to
treat the subject impartially. Either the faults of the person under review
stand out in glaring relief, or the virtues shine with undimmed luster, just as
the writer is prejudiced for or against him. However impartial the historian
may design to be, all critics will agree that it is a very difficult matter to
be truly so.
But Inspiration, lifted above the
weaknesses of humanity, tells the simple, naked truth. How many biographies
have been written of faultless Christians, who, in their ordinary home life and
church relations, shone as examples of immaculate piety. No blemish marred the
beauty of their holiness, no fault is recorded to remind us that they were of
common clay, and subject to the ordinary temptations of humanity. Yet had the
pen of Inspiration written their histories, how different would they have
appeared. There would have been revealed human weaknesses, struggles with
selfishness, bigotry and pride, hidden sins perhaps, and the continual warfare
between the spirit and the flesh. Even private journals do not reveal on their
pages the writer's sinful deeds. Sometimes the conflicts with evil are
recorded, but usually only when the right has gained the victory; but they may
contain a faithful account of praiseworthy acts and noble endeavors, when the
writer honestly intends to keep a faithful journal of his life. It is next to a
human impossibility to lay open our faults for the possible inspection of our
friends.
Had our good Bible been written by
uninspired persons, it would have presented quite a different appearance, and
would have been a discouraging study to erring mortals, contending with natural
frailties and the temptations of a wily foe. But, as it is, we have a correct
record of the religious experiences of marked characters in Bible history. Men
whom God favored, and intrusted with great responsibilities, were sometimes
overcome by temptation and committed sins, even as we of the present day
strive, waver, and frequently fall into error. But it is encouraging to our
desponding hearts to know that through God's grace they could gain fresh vigor
to rise again above their evil natures, and, remembering this, we are ready to
renew the conflict ourselves.
The record of the murmurings of ancient
Israel and of their rebellious discontent, is given for our benefit, as well as
that of the mighty miracles wrought in their favor and the punishment of their
idolatry and ingratitude. Their example is given as a warning to the people of
God, that they may avoid unbelief and escape his wrath. If the iniquities of
the Hebrews had been omitted from the Sacred Record, and only their virtues
recounted, their history would fail to teach us the lesson that it does.
Infidels and lovers of sin excuse their
crimes by citing the wickedness of men to whom God gave authority in olden
times. They argue that since these holy men yielded to temptation and committed
sins, it should excite no wonder that they too are guilty of wrongdoing. More
than this, they even intimate that they are not so bad, after all, since such illustrious
examples of iniquity are placed before them. The principles of justice require
a faithful narration of facts for the benefit of all who read the Sacred
Record. In this we discern the evidences of divine wisdom. We are required to
obey the law of God and are not only instructed as to the penalty of
disobedience, but we have, narrated for our benefit and warning, the history of
Adam and Eve in Paradise, and the sad results of their disobedience of God's
commands. The account is full and explicit. The law given to man in Eden is
recorded, together with the penalty incurred because of its transgression. The
record of our first parents is given as a warning to the children of men, that
they may understand how strictly God requires his creatures to conform to all
his requirements, and how surely his retributive justice follows disobedience.
When the law of Sinai was proclaimed, how definite was the penalty annexed! how
sure the punishment that followed its transgression! and how plain are the
cases recorded in evidence of that fact!
The pen of Inspiration, true to its task,
tells us of the sins that overcame Noah, Lot, Moses, Abraham, David, and
Solomon, and how Elijah's strong spirit sunk under temptation during his
fearful trial. Jonah's disobedience and Israel's idolatry are faithfully
recorded. Peter's denial of Christ, the sharp contention of Paul and Barnabas,
the failings and infirmities of the prophets and apostles, are all laid bare to
the gaze of succeeding generations, that they may profit by the experience of
those who preceded them. If no faults had marked their lives, they certainly
would have been more than human, and we, with our sinful natures, would despair
of ever reaching such a point of excellence. But, seeing where they struggled and
fell, took heart again and conquered through the grace of God, we are
encouraged to press on over the obstacles that degenerate nature places in our
way.
God has ever been faithful to punish crime.
He sent his prophets to warn the guilty, denounce their sins, and pronounce
judgment upon them. Those who question why the word of God brings out the sins
of his people in so plain a manner for scoffers to deride and saints to
deplore, should consider that it was all written for their instruction, that they
might avoid the evils recorded, but imitate the righteousness of those who
served the Lord.
We need just such lessons as the Bible
gives. The sorrow and penitence of the guilty and the wailings of the sinsick soul, come to us from the past, telling that man
was then, as now, in need of the pardoning mercy of God. The record shows us
that while he is a punisher of crime, he pities and forgives the repenting
sinner. In his good providence the Lord has seen fit to teach and warn his
people in this way through the Sacred Writings, that all might understand his
will. If God's people would recognize his dealings with them, and accept his
teachings, they would find a straight path for their feet, and a light to guide
them through darkness and discouragement. David learned wisdom from God's
dealings with him, and bowed in humility beneath the chastisement of the Most
High. The faithful portrayal of his true state by the prophet Nathan, made
David acquainted with his own sins and aided him to put them away. He accepted
counsel meekly, and humbled himself before God. "The law of the
Lord," he exclaims, "is perfect, converting the soul."
Repentant sinners have no cause to despair because
they are reminded of their transgressions and warned of their danger. These
very efforts in their behalf show how much God loves them and desires that they
shall be saved. They have only to follow his counsel and do his will to inherit
eternal life. God sets before his erring people their sins, that they may
behold them, in all their enormity, under the light of divine truth. It is then
their duty to renounce them forever.
God is as powerful to save from sin today
as he was in the times of the patriarchs, of David, and of the prophets and
apostles of Bible times. The multitude of cases recorded in Sacred History,
where God has delivered his people from their iniquities, should make the
Christian of this time eager to receive divine instruction, and zealous to
perfect a character that will bear the close inspection of the Judgment.
Bible history stays the fainting heart with
the hope of God's mercy. We need not despair when we see that others have
struggled through discouragements like our own, fallen into temptations, even
as we have done, yet recovered their ground and been blessed of God. The words
of Inspiration comfort and cheer the erring soul. Although the patriarchs and
apostles were subject to human frailties, yet through faith they obtained a
good report, fought their battles in the strength of the Lord, and conquered
gloriously. Thus may we trust in the virtue of the atoning sacrifice, and be
overcomers in the name of Jesus. By Mrs. E. G. White.
How Righteousness by Faith Works
The story of
Abraham and Isaac provides a good illustration of how righteousness by faith
works: I will use Rom. 1-5 as well.
Jas 2:23 And the
scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed
unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God.
The Holy Spirit
gave Abraham faith by which he believed God. Abraham’s part was to believe, to
accept what the Holy Spirit showed him, and he exercised faith in his belief
when he attempted to offer up his beloved Son Isaac. Abraham’s faith and
obedience based on faith in God, was imputed unto him for righteousness. It
works the same with us. And I will use Romans 1:5 to illustrate this truth:
Rom 1:2 (Which he had promised afore by his prophets
in the holy scriptures,)
Rom 1:3 Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord,
which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh;
Rom 1:4 And declared to be the Son of God with
power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the
dead:
Rom 1:5 By whom we have received grace and
apostleship, for obedience to the faith among all nations, for his name:
Rom 1:6 Among whom are ye also the called of Jesus
Christ:
Ellen White
defines grace as the Holy Spirit. In this case (above), it is the POWER OF THE
HOLY SPIRIT given for obedience and righteousness by faith. We receive POWER to
obey from the Holy Spirit, but since the POWER (EMPOWERMENT) is from the Holy
Spirit, it is not by any power of our own, and for that reason IT IS IMPUTED to
our account just as Abraham’s obedience was imputed to his account.
Imputed Righteousness: The Righteousness of Christ, Our Immediate
Need--Many feel that their faults of character make it impossible for them to
meet the standard that Christ has erected but all such ones have to do is to
humble themselves at every step under the mighty hand of God. Christ does not
estimate the man by the amount of work he does, but by the spirit in which the
work is performed. When He
sees men lifting the burdens, trying to carry them in lowliness of mind, with
distrust of self, and with reliance upon Him, He adds to their work His
perfection and sufficiency, and it is accepted of the Father. We are accepted in the Beloved.
The sinner's defects are covered by the perfection and fullness of the Lord our
righteousness. Those
who with sincere will, with contrite heart, are putting forth humble efforts to
live up to the requirements of God, are looked upon by the Father with pitying,
tender love. He regards such as obedient children, and the righteousness of
Christ is imputed to them. . . . O, may the Lord imbue me with His Holy
Spirit constantly that I may present the attractions of Christ so as to engross
the whole mind of those for whom I labor! O, that my brethren might appreciate
the promises of God in all their breadth and fullness! Then they might be saved
from themselves, from self-confidence, criticism, unbelief, and pharisaism. Then self-exaltation would not be increasing,
but decreasing spiritual pride undone. {11MR 284.5}
This scenario
(below) accords with Paul’s assessment that we are saved through faith by
Christ’s Holy Spirit’s EMPOWERMENT to obey, so it is the Holy Spirit that gets
the credit lest any man should boast. We get credit when our faith is IMPUTED
to us as righteousness, RIGHTEOUSNESS BY FAITH. But the POWER is that of
Christ’s Holy Spirit. Our part is to have faith in the Holy Spirit’s POWER TO
DO THE WORK. Jesus said of Himself that His Father doeth the works.
Jhn 5:20
For the Father loveth the Son, and sheweth him all
things that himself doeth: and he will shew him greater works than these, that
ye may marvel.
Jhn
14:10 Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and
the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in
me, he doeth the works.
So Jesus was
righteous by faith in His Father’s POWER to do the works, so even Jesus’ works
were IMPUTED UNTO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS because His Father did the works in and
through Him, by dwelling in Him, and He dwelling in the Father. This may come
as a surprise to many.
It was by
righteousness by faith
Eph 2:7 That in
the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his
kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.
Eph 2:8 For by grace are ye saved
through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
Eph 2:9 Not of works, lest any man
should boast. (How can man boast of works he cannot do of himself, but
only by the empowerment of the Holy Spirit of Christ, our Father?)
Eph 2:10 For we
are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath
before ordained that we should walk in them.
When we aspire
to righteousness by buying gold tried in the fire, faith in and love for
Christ, He abides in us and we in Him. He can’t abide in a person who wills
(chooses) to sin, but He will abide in any person who chooses not to sin by the
empowerment of Christ’s indwelling Holy Spirit.
Another aspect
of our part is to trust (believe), behold in order to believe (have and
exercise faith).
The law of God is made
void, and God calls upon us to stand in defense of the truth. Satan is a
powerful general. He had a long experience in the heavenly courts, and he knows
how to mingle right sentiments and principles with evil. He knows how to
misapply and wrest the Scriptures. Herein lies the power of his deception. Thus
he deceives men, and seeks to obliterate the line of demarcation between
believers and unbelievers. God calls for faithful Calebs,
who will stand firmly and steadfastly at their post of duty. {RH, June 4, 1901 par. 15}
Our work is aggressive. We
need the heavenly anointing, that our spiritual eyesight may be clear. We are
living in the last remnant of time. Truth is now to be sought for as hidden
treasure. The commandments of men have taken the place of the commandments of
God. The Lord calls upon His workmen to watch and work and pray. Precious
truths are to be recovered from the human traditions under which men have buried
them. God desires His people to show a constantly increasing interest in the
things of eternity. He desires us to value more highly the favor of His
friendship. Let us not become Satan's agents to belittle the solemn, important
truth which we profess to believe. Let us not show an evil heart of unbelief in
departing from the living God. {RH, June 4, 1901 par. 16}
God did not give His only
begotten Son to die on the cross of Calvary in order that man might have
liberty to transgress His law. He did not pay such an expensive price to make
His law null and void. The falsehood that Christ died to abrogate the law
originated with the enemy of all good. By giving His life for the life of the
world, Christ placed the immutability of the law of God beyond controversy. His
death on the cross is an indisputable testimony that not one jot or tittle of
the law shall ever fail. Hear the words of the Saviour, "Think not that I
am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to
fulfill. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one
tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. Whosoever
therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so,
he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven." The disobedient
will never find entrance there. "But whosoever shall do and teach them,
the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven." {RH, June 4, 1901 par. 17}
God weighs every man in
the balances of the sanctuary. In one scale there is placed the perfect,
unchangeable law, demanding continuous, unswerving obedience; if in the other
there are years of forgetfulness, of selfishness, or rebellion and
self-pleasing, God says, "Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found
wanting." But Christ has made it possible for us to keep the law. He lived
on this earth a life of perfect obedience, that His righteousness might be
imputed to us. To us is given the glorious assurance that though we have fallen
through disobedience, we may, through the merits of the Son of God, hear the
words, "Well done, good and faithful servant; . . . enter thou into the
joy of thy Lord." {RH, June 4, 1901 par. 18}
The Righteousness by Which we are Sanctified
IMPARTED IMPUTED TICKET TO
HEAVEN
Righteousness
within is testified to by righteousness without. He who is righteous within is
not hard-hearted and unsympathetic, but day by day he grows into the image of
Christ, going on from strength to strength. He who is being sanctified by the
truth will be self-controlled, and will follow in the footsteps of Christ until
grace is lost in glory. The
righteousness by which we are justified is imputed; the righteousness by which we
are sanctified is IMPARTED. The first is our title to heaven, the second is our fitness for
heaven.—The Review and Herald, June 4, 1895. {MYP 35.2}
If the righteousness
by which we are justified is IMPUTED, and the righteousness by which we are
sanctified is IMPARTED, what cause has any man to boast?
Righteousness
within is testified to by righteousness without. He who is righteous within is
not hard-hearted and unsympathetic, but day by day he grows into the image of
Christ, going on from strength to strength. He who is being sanctified by the truth will be
self-controlled, and will follow in the footsteps of Christ until grace is lost
in glory. The righteousness by which we are justified is imputed; the
righteousness by which we are sanctified is imparted. The first is our title to
heaven, the second is our fitness for heaven.—The Review and Herald, June 4,
1895. {MYP 35.2}
In the Name of
the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob,
R. William
Beaulieu