Rest and Reflect

Home Loan June 23, 2011

Heritage Building Society

Haematolatry June 13, 2011

Paul used to stone those who disagreed. Does God do the same to us?

“There is power in the blood”

What does all this blood achieve? “You search the scriptures…” (John 5:39), but they point to me (Jesus). The Bible has no power except to bring us to Jesus.

There is no power in the blood. The power is in the one who shed His blood – God himself. The blood of the sacrificial system was part of God’s emergency measures.

To shed your blood simply means to die. Why did Jesus choose to die?

We “esteemed” Christ as being stricken by God (Isaiah 53).
The reality was we had misunderstood God. It was not God who had to change His heart towards us. God came to die to change our hearts towards Him.

Christ died to demonstrate God’s love for us (Romans 5:8) and that He is indeed righteous, able to make us right and worthy of our trust (Romans 3:25-26).

Christ’s death was not to overrule (or find a loophole around) the law. Christ did not come to do away with the law (moral or ceremonial – The Ten Commandments or the sacrificial system). Rather the law should be relocated: off the wall and into our heart and mind (Hebrews 10:16).

Christ was crucified by the most pious law-abiding, seventh-day Sabbath keeping, health reforming, tithe paying Adventists the world has ever known. Such is the danger of the wrong picture of God. “Love me or I’ll kill you.”

A sullen submission to the will of the Father will develop the character of a rebel. — 12MR236

What God is seeking is that we “know” Him intimately (Jeremiah 9:24). As did Abraham, Moses and Job. As did the Apostle Paul who wrote 1 Cor 13:4-13.

Why 1844 Matters June 13, 2011

Daniel and his friends did not ask, “is this a salvation issue?” Rather their focus was, “How can God be glorified in this situation?” I will live my life in a way that will bring glory and honour to Him. It matters not where exactly the line is drawn – what is the bare minimum that I must achieve to make it to heaven.

1260 years – During which the principles of Satan’s government are allowed to come to its fullness. No wonder opposition to the Roman church culminated in the French Revolution.

In the sixteenth century the Reformation, presenting an open Bible to the people, had sought admission to all the countries of Europe. Some nations welcomed it with gladness, as a messenger of Heaven. In other lands the papacy succeeded to a great extent in preventing its entrance; and the light of Bible knowledge, with its elevating influences, was almost wholly excluded. In one country, though the light found entrance, it was not comprehended by the darkness. For centuries, truth and error struggled for the mastery. At last the evil triumphed, and the truth of Heaven was thrust out. “This is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light.” John 3:19. The nation was left to reap the results of the course which she had chosen. The restraint of God’s Spirit was removed from a people that had despised the gift of His grace. Evil was permitted to come to maturity. And all the world saw the fruit of willful rejection of the light.

The war against the Bible, carried forward for so many centuries in France, culminated in the scenes of the Revolution. That terrible outbreaking was but the legitimate result of Rome’s suppression of the Scriptures. (See Appendix.) It presented the most striking illustration which the world has ever witnessed of the working out of the papal policy– an illustration of the results to which for more than a thousand years the teaching of the Roman Church had been tending.

The suppression of the Scriptures during the period of papal supremacy was foretold by the prophets; and the Revelator points also to the terrible results that were to accrue especially to France from the domination of the “man of sin.”

Great Controversy 265-6

Time prophecy comes to its fulfilment. There will be no more “time” (Rev 10:6). The rise of the Second Advent Movement (Rev 10:7-11) in which the “mystery of God will be accomplished” by “prophesying again to many peoples, nations, languages and kingdoms.” What is the “mystery of God”? It is “Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Col 1:27). God’s two witnesses (His word) is exalted, but not before the beast from the Abyss deals His word a fatal blow. This controversy culminates in Rev 11:19 as the temple in heaven is opened and the ark of the covenant revealed. In this time the principles of God’s government, and His character, is revealed through His people.

“The whole earth was lightened with His glory” (Rev 18:1)

“And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.” This is the company with whom we desire to stand. Then let us show it by our works, and remove from our hearts everything that will shut out Jesus. The latter rain is to fall upon the people of God. A mighty angel is to come down from heaven, and the whole earth is to be lighted with his glory. Are we ready to take part in the glorious work of the third angel? Are our vessels ready to receive the heavenly dew? Have we defilement and sin in the heart? If so, let us cleanse the soul temple, and prepare for the showers of the latter rain. The refreshing from the presence of the Lord will never come to hearts filled with impurity. May God help us to die to self, that Christ, the hope of glory, may be formed within! I must have the Spirit of God in my heart. I can never go forward to do the great work of God, unless the Holy Spirit rests upon my soul. “As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God.” The day of judgment is upon us. O that we may wash our robes of character, and make them white in the blood of the Lamb!

Review and Herald, 21 April 1891

May the Lord give us to see the need of drinking from the living fountain of the water of life. Its pure streams will refresh and heal us and refresh all connected with us. Oh, if the hearts were only subdued by the Spirit of God! If the eye was single to God’s glory, what a flood of heavenly light would pour upon the soul. He who spake as never man spake was an educator upon earth. After His resurrection He was an educator to the lonely, disappointed disciples traveling to Emmaus, and to those assembled in the upper chamber. He opened to them the Scriptures concerning Himself and caused their hearts to be bound with a holy, new, and sacred hope and joy.

From the Holy of Holies, there goes on the grand work of instruction. The angels of God are communicating to men. Christ officiates in the sanctuary. We do not follow Him into the sanctuary as we should. Christ and angels work in the hearts of the children of men. The church above, united with the church below, is warring the good warfare upon the earth. There must be a purifying of the soul here upon the earth, in harmony with Christ’s cleansing of the sanctuary in heaven. There we shall see more clearly as we are seen. We shall know as we are known.

It is a melancholy and dispiriting thing to observe how little effect the solemn truths relating to these last days have upon the minds and hearts of those who claim to believe the truth. They listen to the discourses preached, they seem to be deeply interested as they hang upon the lips of the speaker, and if his words are sublime they are delighted; tears flow as the love of Christ is the theme brought before them.

But with the close of the discourse the spell is broken. Enter the homes and you will be surprised to not hear one word that would lead you to think that a deep impression was made as the circumstances warranted in the presentation of such elevating things. It was exactly as if they had listened to some pleasant song or melody. It is done, and the impression gone like the morning dew before the sun.

What is the reason of this? The truth is not brought into the life. They did not accept the truth spoken as the word of God to them. They did not look past the instrument to the great Worker within the heavenly sanctuary. They did not take the word as a special message from God, of whom the speaker was only the one who was entrusted with the message. Is it then any marvel that the truth is so powerless, that with a larger number, if there is some excitement, a little animal ecstasy, a little head knowledge, the influence is no deeper?

There is altogether too much sermonizing. There is too little listening and hearing the voice of God, but hearing only the voice of man; and the hearers go to their homes with souls unnourished but empty as before, and prepared to sit in judgment upon the sermon, commenting upon it as they would upon a tragedy, reviewing the matter as a human effort. “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.” Fill the mind with the great humiliation of Christ, and then contemplate His divine character, His majesty and glory of the Highest, and His disrobing Himself of these and clothing His divinity with humanity. Then we can see a self-denial, a self-sacrifice, that was the marvel of angels.

Oh, it was poverty indeed apportioned to the Son of God that He should be moving upon a province of His own empire and yet not be recognized or confessed by the nation He came to bless and to save. It was poverty that when He walked among men, scattering blessing as He trod, the anthem of praise floated not around Him, but the air was often freighted with curses and blasphemy. It was poverty that as He passed to and fro among the subjects He came to save, scarcely a solitary voice called Him blessed, scarcely a solitary hand was stretched out in friendship, and scarcely a solitary roof proffered Him shelter. Then look beneath the disguise, and whom do we see?–Divinity, the Eternal Son of God, just as mighty, just as infinitely gifted with all the resources of power, and He was found in fashion as a man.

I wish that finite minds could see and sense the great love of the infinite God, His great self-denial, His self-sacrifice, in assuming humanity. God humbled Himself and became man and humbled Himself to die, and not only to die, but to die an ignominious death. Oh, that we might see the need of humility, of walking humbly with God, and guarding ourselves on every point.

I know that Satan’s work will be to set brethren at variance. Were it not that I know [that] the Captain of our salvation stands at the helm to guide the gospel ship into the harbor, I should say, Let me rest in the grave.

Our Redeemer liveth to make intercession for us, and now if we will daily learn in the school of Christ, if we will cherish the lessons He will teach us in meekness and lowliness of heart, we shall have so large a measure of the Spirit of Jesus that self will not be interwoven into anything that we may do or say. The eye will be single to the glory of God. We need to make special efforts to answer the prayer of Christ that we may be one as He is one with the Father, He who declared Himself actually straitened while in the days of His humiliation because He had many things to say to His disciples which they could not bear now. The wonders of redemption are dwelt upon altogether too lightly.

Letter 37, 18 February 1887, to Elders EJ Waggoner and AT Jones

“When the fruit is brought forth, immediately he putteth in the sickle, because the harvest is come.” Christ is waiting with longing desire for the manifestation of Himself in His church. When the character of Christ shall be perfectly reproduced in His people, then He will come to claim them as His own.

It is the privilege of every Christian not only to look for but to hasten the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, (2 Peter 3:12, margin). Were all who profess His name bearing fruit to His glory, how quickly the whole world would be sown with the seed of the gospel. Quickly the last great harvest would be ripened, and Christ would come to gather the precious grain.

(Christ Object Lessons 69)

Now Christ is in the heavenly sanctuary. And what is He doing? Making atonement for us, cleansing the sanctuary from the sins of the people. Then we must enter by faith into the sanctuary with Him, we must commence the work in the sanctuary of our souls. We are to cleanse ourselves from all defilement. We must “cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.” Satan will come and tempt you and you will give way to his temptations. What then? Why, come and humble your hearts in confession, and by faith grasp the arm of Christ in the heavenly sanctuary. Believe that Christ will take your confession and hold up His hands before the Father–hands that have been bruised and wounded in our behalf– and He will make an atonement for all who will come with confession. What if you cannot understand about this matter? He says, “He that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins” (2 Peter 1:19).

Now brethren and sisters, I want you to see that you must “add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; and to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; and to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Now when you commence to work, Satan is going to work in an opposite direction; and if you are unkind and harsh, and if you are not seen in the house of God bearing your cross, you have not the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ; you do not discern Him in His love and matchless purity.

Many will say, I am saved, I am saved, I am saved. Well, have they been cleansed from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit? and can they cleanse themselves by the righteousness of the law? Jesus Christ came to this world, and there is His righteousness to impart to the children of men who are obeying the law of God. The whole world can say, I am saved, as well as any transgressor today. They can say, I believe on Christ that He is my Saviour, but why do they disregard His law which is the transcript of His character? When they disregard the law of Jehovah they disregard the Lord Jesus Christ.

Now, I want to say to you before closing, that we have a wonderful friend in Jesus, who came to save His people from the transgression of the law. What is sin? The only definition of sin is that it is the transgression of the law. Then here is Jesus Christ, who comes right in and imparts His righteousness to us; we cannot overcome in our own strength, but by faith in Him. If you will believe on Jesus Christ, you will have Him today. You must believe that He is your Saviour now, and that He imputes to you His righteousness because He has died, and because He has been obedient unto every requirement of that transgressed law of God. If you do this, you will have a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. Adam and Eve lost Eden because they transgressed that law, but you will lose heaven if you transgress it.

We can be filled with all the fullness of God. Our lives may measure with the life of God. Then can we press back the powers of darkness. Glory to God in the highest! I love Him because He first loved me. I will magnify His name. I rejoice in His love, and when we shall enter in through the gates into the city it will be the highest privilege to cast my crown at His feet. Why? Because He gave me the victory, because He wrought out the plan of salvation. And when I look at the glory, and at the saints redeemed, just like a flash will I cast my crown at the feet of my Redeemer. It is His; it was He who purchased my redemption. Glory to God in the highest! Let us praise Him and talk of His mightiness and of what He will do for us. Let us keep His law and then He can trust us, for He has a law and He will reward obedience to that law; He will give us a crown of glory.

Now, brethren, we are almost home; we shall soon hear the voice of the Saviour richer than any music, saying, Your warfare is accomplished. Enter into the joy of thy Lord. Blessed, blessed, benediction; I want to hear it from His immortal lips. I want to praise Him; I want to honor Him that sitteth on the throne. I want my voice to echo and re-echo through the courts of heaven. Will you be there? Then you must educate your voice to praise Him on earth, and then you can join the heavenly choir and sing the song of Moses and the Lamb. God help us, and fill us with all fullness and power, and then we can taste of the joys of the world to come.– Manuscript 8, 1888.

Sabbath Talk – 20 October 1888 – Minneapolis General Conference

Hermeneutics June 5, 2011

Reading the comments on this article on Spectrum regarding hermeneutics, I came across some insightful comments by Mr Potato:

Mr. Potato – Sat, 06/04/2011 – 08:10
Four methods of Bible study are a good place to start.

Prooftexting: Based on a previous agenda, simply chooses texts without regard to context or writer’s intent. The texts are chosen because they may be forced to say something the compiler wants to hear, even if they are used in a way the original writer never intended. In Adventism, prooftexting is often utilized by people with agendas based on EGW.

Historical Grammatical: This method has been decried by Ray Cottrell as a pseudo hermeneutic which pretends to be objective but actually isn’t. It’s purpose, in Adventism, is to maintain the status quo derived from EGW and corroborated by prooftexting.

Historical Critical: Probably has a range of applications and severity. Depending on who is using it, it can be quite offensive to people who view Scripture as the Word of God. Some HC scholars, believing that the copyists made mistakes in transmitting the text, actually try to reconstruct the text based on their ideas about what it should say. These attempts place it on the same level as the HG method but at the opposite end of the spectrum. HG proponents have a faith based agenda while some HG scholars have a non faith based agenda which may be destructive to the faith building process in individual lives.

Real HC scholarship requires a level of scholarship attainable by only a few, including expertise in various elements of the original Biblical languages as well as languages related to those languages. It’s unfortunate that, in a rarefied field, those capable of the art use their knowledge to destoy the faith of others by criticizing Scripture in a negative way.

Historical Method: Considers writers original intent, immediate context, word meanings, and cross references, as well as historical context. Approachs Scripture inductively, without an agenda and is not proscribed by EGW or creedal considerations.

[Tip of the hat to Ray Cottrell]

Mr. Potato – Sat, 06/04/2011 – 10:03
One issue with Bible interpretation is the context in which the Bible is being used. People in academia, for example, are concerend about numerous issues which a person in a foreign country might find irrelevant or a waste of time. I say irrelevant with reference to the salvation of people who have not heard the gospel. Jesus said, for example, his words are spirit and life. Galatians indicates that the Spirit is supplied to believers through the word. Scripture says that faith comes by hearing the word of God; consequently the interplay between the Word and the human soul has potential salvific dynamics.

These dynamics are largely absent from academia. In general, individuals studying the Bible in a university are already Christians. Many are preparing for a profession from which their future income will be derived. They are engaged in professional study to earn a living, not seeking for truth upon which their eternal salvation is based.

Jan has stated above that there are problems with the gospels which are not minor. I’d be interested to know what problems there are which impact its efficacy as a channel through which the Holy Spirit can convict people of sin and bring them to repentance. If the “problems” are of interest primarily to academics who are essentially being paid to deconstruct Scripture and destroy ite credibility, then people have moved away from a platform of Christian faith and are engaged in humanistic study of a non redemptive nature. One might even say that peole engaged in study of this nature are apostates, since they have moved off the platform of faith in Scripture.

It might be argued that we should place our faith in Jesus; however, I would remind others that apart from Scripture, we have essentially no knowledge of Jesus. Paul spoke of bringing the crucifixion of Jesus into the midst of those who listened to his teaching. It was more than information about a historical event. It was a living spiritual reality, Christ crucified in their midst, that whosoever believed might experience the blessing of His shed blood.

Certainly there are teachers in academia who recognize and value the redemptive aspects of the Bible. These individuals would likely fall into the “historical school” of Biblical interpretation. An excellent example of this approach might be found in Farmer’s essay in the Canon Debate. In the midst of scholarship and academia, his essay uplifted the Saviour, something which few higher critics of a certain bent are ill prepared to do. They really can’t do it because they are unbelievers.

Mr. Potato – Sun, 06/05/2011 – 01:48
While considering the ways this discussion might go, I noticed the following remark by David Larson on another thread:

“The specialists in the ethics of scientific research whom I respect hold that scientists are ethically accountable for the destructive outcomes of their work that they anticipate. But that’s not all; they are accountable as well for the negative outcomes they could have and should have foreseen.”

If scientists should be held accountable for their work, how about theologians, Biblical critics, et al.?
Notice the following quotes regarding Ehrman’s works:

Ehrman investigates ancient sources to:

• Reveal which New Testament books were outright forgeries.
• Explain how widely forgery was practiced by early Christian writers—and how strongly it was
condemned in the ancient world as fraudulent and illicit.
• Expose the deception in the history of the Christian religion.

Ehrman’s fascinating story of fraud and deceit is essential reading for anyone interested in the truth about the Bible and the dubious origins of Christianity’s sacred texts.

In Forged, Ehrman’s fresh and original research takes readers back to the ancient world, where forgeries were used as weapons by unknown authors to fend off attacks to their faith and establish their church. So, if many of the books in the Bible were not in fact written by Jesus’s inner circle—but by writers living decades later, with differing agendas in rival communities—what does that do to the authority of Scripture?

I find this line revealing “Ehrman’s fascinating story of fraud and deceit is essential reading for anyone interested in the truth about the Bible and the dubious origins of Christianity’s sacred texts.”

From Prof essor Ehrman we can learn that what some consider Sacred Scripture was inspired, not by the Holy Spirit, but rather conceived in a milieu of fraud and deceit giving the NT dubious origins.
Perhaps if you are a secular humanist, an atheist, who has chosen to attack Scripture as a way of earning a living or validating your own unbelief, you might find this approach to the Bible helpful.

I’m interested in offering the Bible as a Revelation of God’s love for mankind. I offer Scripture as a vehicle for the Holy Spirit to transform lives from darkness to light, from Satan unto God, from unbelief to faith. I’m not sure how Prof Ehrman’s approach can help me do this.

GYC and other such conferences and youth rallys June 5, 2011

Responding to the Adventist Review interview on the GYC, Andrew Hanson says on Spectrum:

I’m a survivor of the Missionary Volunteer and Youth Congress movement of the 50’s and 60’s. We too were assured by evangelists and charismatic youth leaders that they were preaching THE TRUTH, that we were living in END TIMES and that our generation was THE ONE THAT WOULD FINISH THE WORK and usher in the return of Christ. Only three of the graduating class of my Adventist high school and less than a dozen of my college companions at Pacific Union College are Adventists. And by no stretch of the imagination would any of us be comfortable at a GYC convention. Why did the Adventist youth movement of my day fail? Because, over time, irrational doctrines breed cynicism. Because along the way, we met and even married wonderful people who weren’t Adventists. Because we read the Bible rather than the Adult Quarterly. Because calling ourselves “the elect” fostered a kind of egotism that we became ashamed of. Because of the realization that we are going to die rather than “be caught up in the air”. Because of bureaucratic pettiness. Because of the Church’s official misogyny and homophobia. Because we had children and grandchildren whom we loved more than we loved Adventism. Because we could be followers of Christ without being afraid. What I am saying is that emotional, anti-intellectual, conservative movements like GYC don’t accomplish much in the long run in spite of all the hoopla. They are ineffective in achieving their own long-term goals and can be spiritually harmful to the young innocents who blame themselves for delaying the Second Advent.

What he says about “emotional” and “hoopla” is true. What is needed is a return to “primitive godliness”, but what that means is an internal unshakeable loyalty to God and genuine concern for the well-being of all of God’s children. That will not come from a exuberant and inspiring conference, but from the “still small voice” at work in our daily walk with God.

Will your oil last? Or will it be consumed in a momentary blaze of youthful excitement?

No regrets June 4, 2011

On our deathbeds, the top 5 regrets are:
http://thenextweb.com/lifehacks/2011/05/31/the-top-5-regrets-people-make-on-their-deathbeds/?all=1

Essentially they boil down to two things…
1. The courage to live against the grain and prioritise the things that really bring happiness, and not the values of employers and erstwhile friends – who offer advice but lack the courage to pursue their own dreams – set the terms of your life. Honour the dreams you have by the choices you make. Create the space you need to live. Have the courage to true to yourself and honest with others.
2. Build and maintain relationships. Which is the desired end for which the advice above is the means.