Things New And Old - For Eternity - 1

The significance of the Jewish economy is not yet fully comprehended. Truths vast and profound are shadowed forth in its rites and symbols. The gospel is the key that unlocks its mysteries. Through a knowledge of the plan of redemption, its truths are opened to the understanding. Far more than we do, it is our privilege to understand these wonderful themes. We are to comprehend the deep things of God. Angels desire to look into the truths that are revealed to the people who with contrite hearts are searching the word of God, and praying for greater lengths and breadths and depths and heights of the knowledge which He alone can give.

As we near the close of this world's history, the prophecies relating to the last days especially demand our study. The last book of the New Testament scriptures is full of truth that we need to understand. Satan has blinded the minds of many, so that they have been glad of any excuse for not making the Revelation their study. But Christ through His servant John has here declared what shall be in the last days, and He says, “Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein.” Revelation 1:3.

“This is life eternal,” Christ said, “that they might know Thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom Thou hast sent.” John 17:3. Why is it that we do not realize the value of this knowledge? Why are not these glorious truths glowing in our hearts, trembling upon our lips, and pervading our whole being? COL 133

It Was You

“You can have absolute certainty that there is no one in the universe that is more precious to Him than you.”

Thus saith the LORD, thy Redeemer, and He that formed thee from the womb. Isaiah 44:24

The LORD hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath He made mention of my name. Isaiah 49:1

For Thou hast possessed my reins: Thou hast covered me in my mother's womb. I will praise Thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are Thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well. My substance was not hid from Thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in Thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them. How precious also are Thy thoughts unto me, O God! Psalm 139:13-17

It goes back further than these -

When He was hanging on the cross, your Beloved, with His divine GOD mind, thought only of you; He went through all of that agony, from Gethsemane to Calvary for you. 

It goes back further that these -

Each day of the 33.5 years on this earth He was living your life for you and gaining the victories for you that He knew you would need to conquer, so that as you invite Him to live His life of victory out, in and through you, the eternal victories will be experienced by you every moment.

It goes back further that these -

When He was forming Adam from the clay of earth He was writing your DNA code into Adam, and later in the 6th day of creation He wrote your DNA code into Eve.

It goes back further that these -

In all of eternity He was looking forward to having you in His world and Life, He created you for fellowship with Him; He wants to be married to you.

Christianity is deeply personal and very intimate. Because of His incarnation as 100% God and 100% Man He not only won the victory over sin but He is now able, through the Holy Spirit, to live, dwell, abide in your heart;

The impartation of the Spirit is the impartation of the life of Christ. DA 805

This is the power of the 3 Angel’s Messages - “the everlasting gospel” —> “the faith of Jesus”, which we are invited to live by.

Paul, who understood this “mystery of God…Christ in you the hope of glory” very well, tells us that “Christ is not divided” - 

You get 100% of His attention. Because He -

Gave 100% to save you

And 100% of mankind.

He personally gave 100% for you.

He is 100% yours.

If you give Him 100% management of your life.

He will abide with you 100% of the time.
100% of love to and for Him is the result.

You will then have 100% love to and for anyone He leads  you to

For 100% of time and eternity .  

He earned 100% of the title deeds to 100% of the estates of the universe x2; He twice owns you, for He created you and He has redeemed you.

He shares 100% of His inheritance with you if you believe 100% in Him.

Once with Him you will be able to see Him 100% of the time from anywhere in the universe.

So, yes, “You can be absolutely certain that there is no one in the universe that is more precious to Him than you.”

Go, And Sin No More

John 8:1-11

From the excitement and confusion of the city, from the eager crowds and the treacherous rabbis, Jesus turned away to the quiet of the olive groves, where He could be alone with God. But in the early morning He returned to the temple, and as the people gathered about Him, He sat down and taught them.

He was soon interrupted. A group of Pharisees and scribes approached Him, dragging with them a terror-stricken woman, whom with hard, eager voices they accused of having violated the seventh commandment. Having pushed her into the presence of Jesus, they said to Him, with a hypocritical show of respect, “Moses in the law commanded us, that such should be stoned: but what sayest Thou?”

Their pretended reverence veiled a deep-laid plot for His ruin. They had seized upon this opportunity to secure His condemnation, thinking that whatever decision He might make, they would find occasion to accuse Him. Should He acquit the woman, He might be charged with despising the law of Moses. Should He declare her worthy of death, He could be accused to the Romans as one who was assuming authority that belonged only to them.

Jesus looked for a moment upon the scene,—the trembling victim in her shame, the hard-faced dignitaries, devoid of even human pity. His spirit of stainless purity shrank from the spectacle. Well He knew for what purpose this case had been brought to Him. He read the heart, and knew the character and life history of everyone in His presence. These would-be guardians of justice had themselves led their victim into sin, that they might lay a snare for Jesus. Giving no sign that He had heard their question, He stooped, and fixing His eyes upon the ground, began to write in the dust.

Impatient at His delay and apparent indifference, the accusers drew nearer, urging the matter upon His attention. But as their eyes, following those of Jesus, fell upon the pavement at His feet, their countenances changed. There, traced before them, were the guilty secrets of their own lives. The people, looking on, saw the sudden change of expression, and pressed forward to discover what it was that they were regarding with such astonishment and shame.

With all their professions of reverence for the law, these rabbis, in bringing the charge against the woman, were disregarding its provisions. It was the husband's duty to take action against her, and the guilty parties were to be punished equally. The action of the accusers was wholly unauthorized. Jesus, however, met them on their own ground. The law specified that in punishment by stoning, the witnesses in the case should be the first to cast a stone. Now rising, and fixing His eyes upon the plotting elders, Jesus said, “He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.” And stooping down, He continued writing on the ground.

He had not set aside the law given through Moses, nor infringed upon the authority of Rome. The accusers had been defeated. Now, their robe of pretended holiness torn from them, they stood, guilty and condemned, in the presence of Infinite Purity. They trembled lest the hidden iniquity of their lives should be laid open to the multitude; and one by one, with bowed heads and downcast eyes, they stole away, leaving their victim with the pitying Saviour.

Jesus arose, and looking at the woman said, “Woman, where are those thine accusers? hath no man condemned thee? She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.”

The woman had stood before Jesus, cowering with fear. His words, “He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone,” had come to her as a death sentence. She dared not lift her eyes to the Saviour's face, but silently awaited her doom. In astonishment she saw her accusers depart speechless and confounded; then those words of hope fell upon her ear, “Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.” Her heart was melted, and she cast herself at the feet of Jesus, sobbing out her grateful love, and with bitter tears confessing her sins.

This was to her the beginning of a new life, a life of purity and peace, devoted to the service of God. In the uplifting of this fallen soul, Jesus performed a greater miracle than in healing the most grievous physical disease; He cured the spiritual malady which is unto death everlasting. This penitent woman became one of His most steadfast followers. With self-sacrificing love and devotion she repaid His forgiving mercy.

In His act of pardoning this woman and encouraging her to live a better life, the character of Jesus shines forth in the beauty of perfect righteousness. While He does not palliate sin, nor lessen the sense of guilt, He seeks not to condemn, but to save. The world had for this erring woman only contempt and scorn; but Jesus speaks words of comfort and hope. The Sinless One pities the weakness of the sinner, and reaches to her a helping hand. While the hypocritical Pharisees denounce, Jesus bids her, “Go, and sin no more.”

It is not Christ's follower that, with averted eyes, turns from the erring, leaving them unhindered to pursue their downward course. Those who are forward in accusing others, and zealous in bringing them to justice, are often in their own lives more guilty than they. Men hate the sinner, while they love the sin. Christ hates the sin, but loves the sinner. This will be the spirit of all who follow Him. Christian love is slow to censure, quick to discern penitence, ready to forgive, to encourage, to set the wanderer in the path of holiness, and to stay his feet therein. DA 460-462

Expect No Miracle to Undo Results of Wrong Course

I look at these flowers, and every time I see them I think of Eden. They are an expression of God's love for us. Thus He gives us in this world a little taste of Eden. He wants us to delight in the beautiful things of His creation, and to see in them an expression of what He will do for us.

 
He wants us to live where we can have elbow room. His people are not to crowd into the cities. He wants them to take their families out of the cities, that they may better prepare for eternal life. In a little while they will have to leave the cities. 

These cities are filled with wickedness of every kind,—with strikes and murders and suicides. Satan is in them, controlling men in their work of destruction. Under his influence they kill for the sake of killing, and this they will do more and more.

If we place ourselves under objectionable influences, can we expect God to work a miracle to undo the results of our wrong course?—No, indeed. Get out of the cities as soon as possible, and purchase a little piece of land, where you can have a garden, where your children can watch the flowers growing, and learn from them lessons of simplicity and purity. CL 16,17

The Spirituality of the Law

“I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill.”—Matthew 5:17.

It was Christ who, amid thunder and flame, had proclaimed the law upon Mount Sinai. The glory of God, like devouring fire, rested upon its summit, and the mountain quaked at the presence of the Lord. The hosts of Israel, lying prostrate upon the earth, had listened in awe to the sacred precepts of the law. What a contrast to the scene upon the mount of the Beatitudes! Under the summer sky, with no sound to break the stillness but the song of birds, Jesus unfolded the principles of His kingdom. Yet He who spoke to the people that day in accents of love, was opening to them the principles of the law proclaimed upon Sinai. 

When the law was given, Israel, degraded by the long bondage in Egypt, had need to be impressed with the power and majesty of God; yet He revealed Himself to them no less as a God of love. “The Lord came from Sinai,

And rose from Seir unto them;

He shined forth from Mount Paran,

And He came from the ten thousands of holy ones:

At His right hand was a fiery law unto them.

Yea, He loveth the tribes;

All their holy ones are in Thy hand:

And they sat down at Thy feet;

Everyone received of Thy words.” 

Deuteronomy 33:2, 3 , R.V., margin. 

It was to Moses that God revealed His glory in those wonderful words that have been the treasured heritage of the ages: “The Lord, The Lord God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin.” Exodus 34:6, 7.

The law given upon Sinai was the enunciation of the principle of love, a revelation to earth of the law of heaven. It was ordained in the hand of a Mediator—spoken by Him through whose power the hearts of men could be brought into harmony with its principles. God had revealed the purpose of the law when He declared to Israel, “Ye shall be holy men unto Me.” Exodus 22:31. 

But Israel had not perceived the spiritual nature of the law, and too often their professed obedience was but an observance of forms and ceremonies, rather than a surrender of the heart to the sovereignty of love. As Jesus in His character and work represented to men the holy, benevolent, and paternal attributes of God, and presented the worthlessness of mere ceremonial obedience, the Jewish leaders did not receive or understand His words. They thought that He dwelt too lightly upon the requirements of the law; and when He set before them the very truths that were the soul of their divinely appointed service, they, looking only at the external, accused Him of seeking to overthrow it. 

The words of Christ, though calmly spoken, were uttered with an earnestness and power that stirred the hearts of the people. They listened for a repetition of the lifeless traditions and exactions of the rabbis, but in vain. They “were astonished at His teaching: for He taught them as one having authority, and not as their scribes.” Matthew 7:29 , R.V. The Pharisees noted the vast difference between their manner of instruction and that of Christ. They saw that the majesty and purity and beauty of the truth, with its deep and gentle influence, was taking firm hold upon many minds. The Saviour's divine love and tenderness drew the hearts of men to Him. The rabbis saw that by His teaching the whole tenor of the instruction they had given to the people was set at nought. He was tearing down the partition wall that had been so flattering to their pride and exclusiveness; and they feared that, if permitted, He would draw the people entirely away from them. Therefore they followed Him with determined hostility, hoping to find some occasion for bringing Him into disfavor with the multitudes and thus enabling the Sanhedrin to secure His condemnation and death. 

On the mount, Jesus was closely watched by spies; and as He unfolded the principles of righteousness, the Pharisees caused it to be whispered about that His teaching was in opposition to the precepts that God had given from Sinai. The Saviour said nothing to unsettle faith in the religion and institutions that had been given through Moses; for every ray of divine light that Israel's great leader communicated to his people was received from Christ. While many are saying in their hearts that He has come to do away with the law, Jesus in unmistakable language reveals His attitude toward the divine statutes. “Think not,“ He said, “that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets.”

It is the Creator of men, the Giver of the law, who declares that it is not His purpose to set aside its precepts. Everything in nature, from the mote in the sunbeam to the worlds on high, is under law. And upon obedience to these laws the order and harmony of the natural world depend. So there are great principles of righteousness to control the life of all intelligent beings, and upon conformity to these principles the well-being of the universe depends. Before this earth was called into being, God's law existed. Angels are governed by its principles, and in order for earth to be in harmony with heaven, man also must obey the divine statutes. To man in Eden Christ made known the precepts of the law “when the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy.” Job 38:7. The mission of Christ on earth was not to destroy the law, but by His grace to bring man back to obedience to its precepts. 

The beloved disciple, who listened to the words of Jesus on the mount, writing long afterward under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, speaks of the law as of perpetual obligation. He says that “sin is the transgression of the law” and that “whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law.” 1 John 3:4. He makes it plain that the law to which he refers is “an old commandment which ye had from the beginning.” 1 John 2:7. He is speaking of the law that existed at the creation and was reiterated upon Mount Sinai. 

Speaking of the law, Jesus said, “I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill.” He here used the word “fulfill” in the same sense as when He declared to John the Baptist His purpose to “fulfill all righteousness” (Matthew 3:15); that is, to fill up the measure of the law's requirement, to give an example of perfect conformity to the will of God. 

His mission was to “magnify the law, and make it honorable.” Isaiah 42:21. He was to show the spiritual nature of the law, to present its far-reaching principles, and to make plain its eternal obligation.

The divine beauty of the character of Christ, of whom the noblest and most gentle among men are but a faint reflection; of whom Solomon by the Spirit of inspiration wrote, He is “the chiefest among ten thousand, ... yea, He is altogether lovely” (Song of Solomon 5:10-16); of whom David, seeing Him in prophetic vision, said, “Thou art fairer than the children of men” (Psalm 45:2); Jesus, the express image of the Father's person, the effulgence of His glory; the self-denying Redeemer, throughout His pilgrimage of love on earth, was a living representation of the character of the law of God. In His life it is made manifest that heaven-born love, Christlike principles, underlie the laws of eternal rectitude. 

“Till heaven and earth pass,” said Jesus, “one jot or one tittle shall in nowise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.” By His own obedience to the law, Christ testified to its immutable character and proved that through His grace it could be perfectly obeyed by every son and daughter of Adam. On the mount He declared that not the smallest iota should pass from the law till all things should be accomplished—all things that concern the human race, all that relates to the plan of redemption. He does not teach that the law is ever to be abrogated, but He fixes the eye upon the utmost verge of man's horizon and assures us that until this point is reached the law will retain its authority so that none may suppose it was His mission to abolish the precepts of the law. So long as heaven and earth continue, the holy principles of God's law will remain. His righteousness, “like the great mountains” (Psalm 36:6), will continue, a source of blessing, sending forth streams to refresh the earth. 

Because the law of the Lord is perfect, and therefore changeless, it is impossible for sinful men, in themselves, to meet the standard of its requirement. This was why Jesus came as our Redeemer. It was His mission, by making men partakers of the divine nature, to bring them into harmony with the principles of the law of heaven. When we forsake our sins and receive Christ as our Saviour, the law is exalted. The apostle Paul asks, “Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law.” Romans 3:31.

The new-covenant promise is, “I will put My laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them.” Hebrews 10:16. While the system of types which pointed to Christ as the Lamb of God that should take away the sin of the world was to pass away at His death, the principles of righteousness embodied in the Decalogue are as immutable as the eternal throne. Not one command has been annulled, not a jot or tittle has been changed. Those principles that were made known to man in Paradise as the great law of life will exist unchanged in Paradise restored. When Eden shall bloom on earth again, God's law of love will be obeyed by all beneath the sun. 

“Forever, O Lord, Thy word is settled in heaven.” “All His commandments are sure. They stand fast for ever and ever, and are done in truth and uprightness.” “Concerning Thy testimonies, I have known of old that Thou hast founded them forever.” Psalm 119:89; 111:7,8; Psalm 119:152. MB 45-51

Revelation 14:7

Saying with a loud voice, 

Fear God, 

give glory to him; 

for the hour of his judgment is come 

worship him 

that made heaven, earth, the sea, 

and the fountains of waters.

Wounded Afresh

What about Christ’s suffering, His pain? He no longer hangs on a cross of wood as He did for six hours nearly two millennia ago. However, for six thousand years sin has caused Him infinite grief and pain. Few think about it. Few understand it. The cross reveals to our dull senses the pain that began when sin began and can never stop until sin stops. 

Speaking of those who keep on sinning when they know better, the Scriptures say, “They crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame” (Hebrews 6:6). In the sanctuary service when a man had broken the law and brought his lamb and confessed his sin, when the substitute was slain and the blood had been ministered, the man went free. Forgiven and covered, he returned to his home. Suppose the next week he broke the law again. He must bring another lamb, for the previous lamb was dead and couldn’t die again. But in the heavenly reality God supplies the Lamb, and He has only one. “By every sin Jesus is wounded afresh” (DA 300).  

“As you near the cross of Calvary there is seen love that is without a parallel. As you by faith grasp the meaning of the sacrifice, you see yourself a sinner, condemned by a broken law. This is repentance. As you come with humble heart, you find pardon, for Christ Jesus is represented as continually standing at the altar, momentarily offering up the sacrifice for the sins of the world. He is a minister of the true tabernacle which the Lord pitched and not man. The typical shadows of the Jewish tabernacle no longer possess any virtue. A daily and yearly typical atonement is no longer to be made, but the atoning sacrifice through a mediator is essential because of the constant commission of sin” (1SM 343). 

I am sure I do not understand all that is involved in this statement. But I can grasp enough to know that here we face a stupendous fact. “Christ Jesus is represented as continually standing at the altar, momentarily offering up the sacrifice for the sins of the world.” Although life and joy come from it, the sanctuary service is one of pain, of suffering, of death. 

Do we still sin? Then something else continues. If God offers us the opportunity of forgiveness, an officiating priest must stand between us and the broken law, presenting the blood of His one all-sufficient atonement. “ The atoning sacrifice through a mediator is essential because of the constant commission of sin.” 

How long, then, must the ministration of that sacrifice continue? As long as the sins continue. The sanctuary can never be cleansed as long as you and I keep breaking God’s heart by breaking His holy law. When we truly understand this, we will rather die than transgress His commandments. Then we will be prepared to meet the test of the mark of the beast. When the decree goes forth that no man can buy or sell unless he breaks God’s holy Sabbath, the saints will remain immovable. They would rather starve, rather be put into prison, rather suffer death, than disappoint the One who died for them and who must suffer yet if they should break His law. When we love Him enough, it won’t be hard to keep His commandments. 

The last book of the Bible opens glorious revelations of Christ’s work in the temple above. In chapters 4 and 5 John sees a door opened in heaven. As the prophet looks in he views the seven lamps of re burning before the throne. He observes the worship of the living creatures, the twenty-four elders, and the myriads of the angel host. 

In the right hand of the King of the universe he notices a sealed book, and a strong angel proclaims with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the book, and to loose the seals thereof ?” (Revelation 5:2). The prophet weeps because no one in heaven or on earth can open the book. Then one of the elders comforts him, saying, “Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof ” (Revelation 5:5). 

Here comes a lion! He will open the book. John turns to look at the conquering lion. And what does he see? “I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts [“living creatures,”RSV] and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain” (Revelation 5:6). A lamb? a dying lamb? in heaven? Yes. Here on the Isle of Patmos John looks through the prophetic telescope and sees the temple of God in heaven. He views the candlesticks and the altar with the incense ascending before the throne, and in the center of it all he sees “a Lamb as it had been slain.” 

Let us not misunderstand. As far as the pain of the spikes in His hands and feet—that was over long ago. But His personal suffering due to sin did not begin when they nailed Him to the tree nor did it stop when they took Him down. “The cross is a revelation to our dull senses of the pain that, from its very inception, sin has brought to the heart of God. Every departure from the right, every deed of cruelty, every failure of humanity to reach His ideal, brings grief to Him” (Ed 263). 

Think how that very first sin in Eden must have pierced His heart! The beings He had made in His own image, those whom He had surrounded with everything beautiful, turned from their allegiance and joined with the great rebel. Oh, what sorrow filled heaven! Love sorrowed and suffered, and Love must find a way to ransom the lost and to remove the sin that had made the separation. “God so loved the world, that He gave his only begotten Son” (John 3:16), and when He told Adam and Eve of the plan of salvation, when the first lamb was slain, that very evening there began a series of sacrifices to vividly represent the pain which sin brings to God’s heart.  

Is it really true that our repeated transgression means repeated grief on our Lord’s part? Is it really true that the only way to end the continuous pain which sin causes Heaven is to stop sinning so that God can cleanse the sanctuary once for all? 

If all this is not true, nothing matters. But if it is true, nothing else matters. This is what our time is for—to behold Him on the cross and in the sanctuary till we are heart to heart with Him in His solemn, closing work, till we hate sin as He hates it and love righteousness as He loves it. Then He can sprinkle the blood on the mercy seat so that He can blot out the iniquity of His people forever. With sin no longer a barrier, the reunion will be eternal. R&R WDF

Names of Christ - Brother

For whosoever shall do the will of God, the same is my brother, and my sister, and mother. Mark 3:35

Under the training of Christ the disciples had been led to feel their need of the Spirit. Under the Spirit's teaching they received the final qualification, and went forth to their lifework…

They could speak the name of Jesus with assurance; for was He not their Friend and Elder Brother? Brought into close communion with Christ, they sat with Him in heavenly places… They had consecrated their lives to Him for service, and their very features bore evidence to the surrender they had made. AA 45,46

Behold the Son of God bowed in prayer to His Father! Though He is the Son of God, He strengthens His faith by prayer, and by communion with Heaven gathers to Himself power to resist evil and to minister to the needs of men. As the Elder Brother of our race, He knows the necessities of those who, compassed with infirmity and living in a world of sin and temptation, still desire to serve Him…to all who give themselves wholly to His service He promises divine aid. His own example is an assurance that earnest, persevering supplication to God in faith—faith that leads to entire dependence upon God, and unreserved consecration to His work—will avail to bring to men the Holy Spirit's aid in the battle against sin. Pr 170

Teaching The New And The Old

The faithful householder represents what every teacher of the children and youth should be. If he makes the word of God his treasure, he will continually bring forth new beauty and new truth. When the teacher will rely upon God in prayer, the Spirit of Christ will come upon him, and God will work through him by the Holy Spirit upon the minds of others. The Spirit fills the mind and heart with sweet hope and courage and Bible imagery, and all this will be communicated to the youth under his instruction.

The springs of heavenly peace and joy, unsealed in the soul of the teacher by the words of Inspiration, will become a mighty river of influence to bless all who connect with him. The Bible will not become a tiresome book to the student. Under a wise instructor the word will become more and more desirable. It will be as the bread of life, and will never grow old. Its freshness and beauty will attract and charm the children and youth. It is like the sun shining upon the earth, perpetually imparting brightness and warmth, yet never exhausted.

God's holy, educating Spirit is in His word. A light, a new and precious light, shines forth from every page. Truth is there revealed, and words and sentences are made bright and appropriate for the occasion, as the voice of God speaking to the soul.

The Holy Spirit loves to address the youth, and to discover to them the treasures and beauties of God's word. The promises spoken by the great Teacher will captivate the senses and animate the soul with spiritual power that is divine. There will grow in the fruitful mind a familiarity with divine things that will be as a barricade against temptation.

The words of truth will grow in importance, and assume a breadth and fullness of meaning of which we have never dreamed. The beauty and riches of the word have a transforming influence on mind and character. The light of heavenly love will fall upon the heart as an inspiration.

The appreciation of the Bible grows with its study. Whichever way the student may turn, he will find displayed the infinite wisdom and love of God. COL 131-132

AD 69

For nearly forty years after the doom of Jerusalem had been pronounced by Christ Himself, the Lord delayed His judgments upon the city and the nation. Wonderful was the long-suffering of God toward the rejectors of His gospel and the murderers of His Son. GC 27

What was happening in this time, just before Titus and his armies destroyed Jerusalem in AD 70?

Rejected/slew all the prophets.
All calls to repent – ignored.
All the prophecies incorrectly interpreted.
The true Christ rejected for a false.
Living and building in the city. Have not fled to the country.
Sudden destruction coming.
The armies of Rome are marshalling their forces.
House left desolate.
The new covenant people increasing around the world.
Continue meaningless ordinances and worship, which God cannot look at.
The leadership, the services, the denomination passed by.
Persecuting faithful believers.
Corrupt system.
The signs of the times not understood/noticed.
Final appeals despised.
Smug.
Criminal indifference.
Marrying and giving in marriage.
Feasting – eating and drinking.
Real estate – did not want to leave. Adding property to property.
Internal dissensions.

Yet in their blind and blasphemous presumption the instigators of this hellish work publicly declared that they had no fear that Jerusalem would be destroyed, for it was God's own city. GC 29

Every ray of light rejected, every warning despised or unheeded, every passion indulged, every transgression of the law of God, is a seed sown which yields its unfailing harvest. 
The Spirit of God, persistently resisted, is at last withdrawn from the sinner, and then there is left no power to control the evil passions of the soul, and no protection from the malice and enmity of Satan. GC 36

The world is no more ready to credit the message for this time than were the Jews to receive the Saviour's warning concerning Jerusalem. Come when it may, the day of God will come unawares to the ungodly. When life is going on in its unvarying round; when men are absorbed in pleasure, in business, in traffic, in money-making; when religious leaders are magnifying the world's progress and enlightenment, and the people are lulled in a false security--then, as the midnight thief steals within the unguarded dwelling, so shall sudden destruction come upon the careless and ungodly, "and they shall not escape." 1 Thessalonians 5:3.  GC 38

The fear of God no longer disturbed them. Satan was at the head of the nation, and the highest civil and religious authorities were under his sway. GC 28

Sound familiar?

Thirsty?

John 7:37,38

Day after day He taught the people, until the last, “that great day of the feast.” The morning of this day found the people wearied from the long season of festivity. Suddenly Jesus lifted up His voice, in tones that rang through the courts of the temple:

“If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, and drink. He that believeth on Me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.” The condition of the people made this appeal very forcible. They had been engaged in a continued scene of pomp and festivity, their eyes had been dazzled with light and color, and their ears regaled with the richest music; but there had been nothing in all this round of ceremonies to meet the wants of the spirit, nothing to satisfy the thirst of the soul for that which perishes not. Jesus invited them to come and drink of the fountain of life, of that which would be in them a well of water, springing up unto everlasting life.

The priest had that morning performed the ceremony which commemorated the smiting of the rock in the wilderness. That rock was a symbol of Him who by His death would cause living streams of salvation to flow to all who are athirst. Christ's words were the water of life. There in the presence of the assembled multitude He set Himself apart to be smitten, that the water of life might flow to the world. In smiting Christ, Satan thought to destroy the Prince of life; but from the smitten rock there flowed living water. As Jesus thus spoke to the people, their hearts thrilled with a strange awe, and many were ready to exclaim, with the woman of Samaria, “Give me this water, that I thirst not.” John 4:15.

Jesus knew the wants of the soul. Pomp, riches, and honor cannot satisfy the heart. “If any man thirst, let him come unto Me.” The rich, the poor, the high, the low, are alike welcome. He promises to relieve the burdened mind, to comfort the sorrowing, and to give hope to the despondent. Many of those who heard Jesus were mourners over disappointed hopes, many were nourishing a secret grief, many were seeking to satisfy their restless longing with the things of the world and the praise of men; but when all was gained, they found that they had toiled only to reach a broken cistern, from which they could not quench their thirst. Amid the glitter of the joyous scene they stood, dissatisfied and sad. That sudden cry, “If any man thirst,” startled them from their sorrowful meditation, and as they listened to the words that followed, their minds kindled with a new hope. The Holy Spirit presented the symbol before them until they saw in it the offer of the priceless gift of salvation. 

The cry of Christ to the thirsty soul is still going forth, and it appeals to us with even greater power than to those who heard it in the temple on that last day of the feast. The fountain is open for all. The weary and exhausted ones are offered the refreshing draught of eternal life. Jesus is still crying, “If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, and drink.” “Let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.” “Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.” Revelation 22:17; John 4:14. DA 453,454

Manifold Benefits of Active Out-of-Door Life

It would be well for you to lay by your perplexing cares, and find a retreat in the country, where there is not so strong an influence to corrupt the morals of the young. 
True, you would not be entirely free from annoyances and perplexing cares in the country; but you would there avoid many evils and close the door against a flood of temptations which threaten to overpower the minds of your children. They need employment and variety. The sameness of their home makes them uneasy and restless, and they have fallen into the habit of mingling with the vicious lads of the town, thus obtaining a street education.
To live in the country would be very beneficial to them; an active, out-of-door life would develop health of both mind and body. They should have a garden to cultivate, where they might find both amusement and useful employment. The training of plants and flowers tends to the improvement of taste and judgment, while an acquaintance with God's useful and beautiful creations has a refining and ennobling influence upon the mind, referring it to the Maker and Master of all. CL 16

Lights

“Ye are the light of the world.”—Matthew 5:14.

As Jesus taught the people, He made His lessons interesting and held the attention of His hearers by frequent illustrations from the scenes of nature about them. The people had come together while it was yet morning. The glorious sun, climbing higher and higher in the blue sky, was chasing away the shadows that lurked in the valleys and among the narrow defiles of the mountains. The glory of the eastern heavens had not yet faded out. The sunlight flooded the land with its splendor; the placid surface of the lake reflected the golden light and mirrored the rosy clouds of morning. Every bud and flower and leafy spray glistened with dewdrops. Nature smiled under the benediction of a new day, and the birds sang sweetly among the trees. The Saviour looked upon the company before Him, and then to the rising sun, and said to His disciples, “Ye are the light of the world.” As the sun goes forth on its errand of love, dispelling the shades of night and awakening the world to life, so the followers of Christ are to go forth on their mission, diffusing the light of heaven upon those who are in the darkness of error and sin. 

In the brilliant light of the morning, the towns and villages upon the surrounding hills stood forth clearly, making an attractive feature of the scene. Pointing to them, Jesus said, “A city set on a hill cannot be hid.” And He added, “Neither do men light a lamp, and put it under the bushel, but on the stand; and it shineth unto all that are in the house.” Most of those who listened to the words of Jesus were peasants and fishermen whose lowly dwellings contained but one room, in which the single lamp on its stand shone to all in the house. Even so, said Jesus, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” 

No other light ever has shone or ever will shine upon fallen man save that which emanates from Christ. Jesus, the Saviour, is the only light that can illuminate the darkness of a world lying in sin. Of Christ it is written, “In Him was life; and the life was the light of men.” John 1:4. It was by receiving of His life that His disciples could become light bearers. The life of Christ in the soul, His love revealed in the character, would make them the light of the world. 

Humanity has in itself no light. Apart from Christ we are like an unkindled taper, like the moon when her face is turned away from the sun; we have not a single ray of brightness to shed into the darkness of the world. But when we turn toward the Sun of Righteousness, when we come in touch with Christ, the whole soul is aglow with the brightness of the divine presence. 

Christ's followers are to be more than a light in the midst of men. They are the light of the world. Jesus says to all who have named His name, You have given yourselves to Me, and I have given you to the world as My representatives. As the Father had sent Him into the world, so, He declares, “have I also sent them into the world.” John 17:18. As Christ is the channel for the revelation of the Father, so we are to be the channel for the revelation of Christ. While our Saviour is the great source of illumination, forget not, O Christian, that He is revealed through humanity. God's blessings are bestowed through human instrumentality. Christ Himself came to the world as the Son of man. Humanity, united to the divine nature, must touch humanity. The church of Christ, every individual disciple of the Master, is heaven's appointed channel for the revelation of God to men. Angels of glory wait to communicate through you heaven's light and power to souls that are ready to perish. Shall the human agent fail of accomplishing his appointed work? Oh, then to that degree is the world robbed of the promised influence of the Holy Spirit!

But Jesus did not bid the disciples, “Strive to make your light shine;” He said, “Let it shine.” If Christ is dwelling in the heart, it is impossible to conceal the light of His presence. If those who profess to be followers of Christ are not the light of the world, it is because the vital power has left them; if they have no light to give, it is because they have no connection with the Source of light. 

In all ages the “Spirit of Christ which was in them” (1 Peter 1:11) has made God's true children the light of the people of their generation. Joseph was a light bearer in Egypt. In his purity and benevolence and filial love he represented Christ in the midst of a nation of idolaters. While the Israelites were on their way from Egypt to the Promised Land, the true-hearted among them were a light to the surrounding nations. Through them God was revealed to the world. From Daniel and his companions in Babylon, and from Mordecai in Persia, bright beams of light shone out amid the darkness of the kingly courts. In like manner the disciples of Christ are set as light bearers on the way to heaven; through them the Father's mercy and goodness are made manifest to a world enshrouded in the darkness of misapprehension of God. By seeing their good works, others are led to glorify the Father who is above; for it is made manifest that there is a God on the throne of the universe whose character is worthy of praise and imitation. The divine love glowing in the heart, the Christlike harmony manifested in the life, are as a glimpse of heaven granted to men of the world, that they may appreciate its excellence. 

It is thus that men are led to believe “the love that God hath to us.” 1 John 4:16. Thus hearts once sinful and corrupt are purified and transformed, to be presented “faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy.” Jude 24. 

The Saviour's words, “Ye are the light of the world,” point to the fact that He has committed to His followers a world-wide mission. In the days of Christ, selfishness and pride and prejudice had built strong and high the wall of partition between the appointed guardians of the sacred oracles and every other nation on the globe. But the Saviour had come to change all this. The words which the people were hearing from His lips were unlike anything to which they had ever listened from priest or rabbi. Christ tears away the wall of partition, the self-love, the dividing prejudice of nationality, and teaches a love for all the human family. He lifts men from the narrow circle that their selfishness prescribes; He abolishes all territorial lines and artificial distinctions of society. He makes no difference between neighbors and strangers, friends and enemies. He teaches us to look upon every needy soul as our neighbor and the world as our field. 

As the rays of the sun penetrate to the remotest corners of the globe, so God designs that the light of the gospel shall extend to every soul upon the earth. If the church of Christ were fulfilling the purpose of our Lord, light would be shed upon all that sit in darkness and in the region and shadow of death. Instead of congregating together and shunning responsibility and cross bearing, the members of the church would scatter into all lands, letting the light of Christ shine out from them, working as He did for the salvation of souls, and this “gospel of the kingdom” would speedily be carried to all the world.

It is thus that God's purpose in calling His people, from Abraham on the plains of Mesopotamia to us in this age, is to reach its fulfillment. He says, “I will bless thee, ... and thou shalt be a blessing.” Genesis 12:2. The words of Christ through the gospel prophet, which are but re-echoed in the Sermon on the Mount, are for us in this last generation: “Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee.” Isaiah 60:1. If upon your spirit the glory of the Lord is risen, if you have beheld His beauty who is “the chiefest among ten thousand” and the One “altogether lovely,” if your soul has become radiant in the presence of His glory, to you is this word from the Master sent. Have you stood with Christ on the mount of transfiguration? Down in the plain there are souls enslaved by Satan; they are waiting for the word of faith and prayer to set them free.We are not only to contemplate the glory of Christ, but also to speak of His excellences. Isaiah not only beheld the glory of Christ, but he also spoke of Him. While David mused, the fire burned; then spoke he with his tongue. While he mused upon the wondrous love of God he could not but speak of that which he saw and felt. Who can by faith behold the wonderful plan of redemption, the glory of the only-begotten Son of God, and not speak of it? Who can contemplate the unfathomable love that was manifested upon the cross of Calvary in the death of Christ, that we might not perish, but have everlasting life—who can behold this and have no words with which to extol the Saviour's glory? 

“In His temple doth everyone speak of His glory.” Psalm 29:9. The sweet singer of Israel praised Him upon the harp, saying, “I will speak of the glorious honor of Thy majesty, and of Thy wondrous works. And men shall speak of the might of Thy terrible acts: and I will declare Thy greatness.” Psalm 145:5,6. 

The cross of Calvary is to be lifted high above the people, absorbing their minds and concentrating their thoughts. Then all the spiritual faculties will be charged with divine power direct from God. Then there will be a concentration of the energies in genuine work for the Master. The workers will send forth to the world beams of light, as living agencies to enlighten the earth. 

Christ accepts, oh, so gladly, every human agency that is surrendered to Him. He brings the human into union with the divine, that He may communicate to the world the mysteries of incarnate love. Talk it, pray it, sing it; proclaim abroad the message of His glory, and keep pressing onward to the regions beyond. 

Trials patiently borne, blessings gratefully received, temptations manfully resisted, meekness, kindness, mercy, and love habitually revealed, are the lights that shine forth in the character in contrast with the darkness of the selfish heart, into which the light of life has never shone. MB 38-44

2 Timothy 2:22

Follow 

righteousness, 

faith, 

charity, 

peace, 

with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart. 

The Cure For Sin

It is Friday afternoon, and everyone scurries about getting ready for Sabbath. Just now Mother is mopping the kitchen floor. She is nearly finished when Mary comes in with muddy feet and runs across the floor. What will Mother do now? Some more mopping—if she wants a clean kitchen. 

Just as she gets almost through again, Johnny bursts in with muddy feet too! Now what will Mother have to do? Some more mopping. When will she get through? It depends on how long the family will keep tracking in mud. 

Ever remember that the thing which keeps Jesus in the sanctuary and delays the finishing of His work in the most holy place is not the iniquity of infidels and pagans. The stream of sin that defiles the sanctuary comes from God’s people. If we really want Jesus to come, we will confess every past sin so that He can pardon, and then we will learn from Him how to quit our habitual lawbreaking. Somebody may say, “that will never be in this world!” Then the sanctuary will have to stay open—unless you have found some other way to deal with the sin problem. But thank God, His plan will succeed. There will come a time when the sanctuary is cleansed and when Christ will demonstrate to all the universe that He has “put away sin by the sacrifice of himself ” (Hebrews 9:26). 

The Epistle to the Hebrews contrasts the earthly sanctuary with the heavenly, showing the weakness of the first and the effectual power of the second. Chapter 9 closes with a glorious climax: What the high priest did in type once a year, Jesus does in reality once for all. He puts an end to sin, thus making it possible for Him to “appear the second time without sin” (Hebrews 9:28). “For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect. For then would they not have ceased to be offered? Because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins” (Hebrews 10:1, 2). 

Notice that if those animal sacrifices could have taken away sin, if they could have perfected the worshipers, then they would “have ceased to be offered.” In other words, their continual repetition showed their inefficacy. “It is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins” (Hebrews 10:4). 

God intended that in looking at a bleeding bullock or dying lamb the sinner should behold the suffering of the promised Messiah. But many saw in it only the death of an animal, and some even came to look upon those sacrifices as the way to pay for their transgressions. If a man wanted to sin badly enough, he would be willing to lose a lamb or a bullock, wouldn’t he? So the stream of sin continued, and the rivers of blood owed on. 

You are acquainted with a great organisation that calls itself the Church. In its confessionals a man can kneel down before another man, recite his sins, and hear the words “I absolve you.” Then the priest gives him a penance to perform. But all this cheapens the concept of sin. People get the idea that sin is not so terrible after all. But there is a Protestant version, not very much better. Multitudes, who day after day and week after week transgress knowingly, ask God to forgive them but then keep right on sinning. What is the matter? If the sacrifice of the cross and Christ’s ministry in the heavenly sanctuary cannot take away sin, if they only offer a repeated program of sinning and repenting, is the new covenant really better than the old? 

Let us read on and find how Jesus solves the sin problem: “When he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering Thou wouldest not, but a body hast Thou prepared Me: in burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin Thou hast had no pleasure. Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of Me,) to do Thy will, O God. Above when He said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin Thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered by the law; then said He, Lo, I come to do Thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that He may establish the second. By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all” (Hebrews 10:5-10). 

When Jesus came into the world, He said, “Father, I know that you don’t desire all these sacrifices of animals. I know that You don’t require the blood of bulls and goats. That isn’t what You want, Father.”  

Someone may ask, “Why, then, was it done?” Notice that God didn’t require it. The people required it. They needed it to help them understand something. But do you think God took any pleasure in the death of a lamb? No! Every time a bullock was slain, every time a lamb died, God saw His own Son dying upon the cross of Calvary. Could that bring Him any pleasure? Of course not. It broke His heart. So when Jesus came into the world, He said, “Father, I know that You don’t want those sacrifices to continue. They must come to an end.” 

And what plan did Jesus have to terminate the sacrificial system with all its pain and suffering? What did He say? “Father, I know that You don’t want all these sacrifices, but I have come to do Your will. ‘I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart’” (Psalm 40:8). In other words, God doesn’t want the payment when men break the law. He wants us to keep the law. He is not looking for some sacrifice so that people can continue breaking the law, whether it is the bringing of a lamb or the doing of some penance or a careless prayer at night. 

Christ longs for His children to get to the place where they do not keep on breaking His heart. His goal is not the repeated forgiveness of sin but the putting away of sin. He takes away the first—the continual offering of sacrifices—that He may establish the second—the doing of God’s will (see Hebrews 10:9). In our human flesh He demonstrated that the law could be kept, and He used the same power available to us. Then this body in which He had fully manifested God’s will He offered on Calvary as a complete atonement, providing abundant salvation for you and me. “By one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified” (Hebrews 10:14). 

What the blood of beasts could never do, the blood of Jesus will accomplish for all who yield themselves. And how? Let me make it simple and very practical. We must sense the pain that sin brings to God. When we realize what our sins did to Jesus and what they do to Him now, there will not be money enough in this world to bribe us to break God’s law. No threat of punishment can scare us into transgression. We would rather die than sin. Soon the “remnant” must meet this test in the final issue over the seal of God and the mark of the beast. If we love Him, we will keep His commandments, for we cannot bear to break His heart by breaking His law.  

To many people sin means fun, a way to have what they call a good time. Does it look that way to you? If so, then you must be born again (see John 3:3). You need a new nature. Perhaps somewhere in your past life you did something wrong, and then, as you looked into the face of your father or mother and saw their tears, you began to realize something of how your disobedience had hurt them. And whatever pleasure you had felt was spoiled. 

Sin is not funny. Sin brings pain. You and I may not feel it instantly, but God does, and the pain never stops until the sin is gone. is is the message of the sanctuary. And this is the cure for sin. Sin brings separation between man and God, and this hurts God so much that it breaks His heart. God will never rest until sin is taken away so that man and God can be restored to perfect harmony, full unity, and complete fellowship. 

“It would be well for us to spend a thoughtful hour each day in contemplation of the life of Christ. We should take it point by point, and let the imagination grasp each scene, especially the closing ones. As we thus dwell upon His great sacrifice for us, our confidence in Him will be more constant, our love will be quickened, and we shall be more deeply imbued with His spirit. If we would be saved at last, we must learn the lesson of penitence and humiliation at the foot of the cross” (DA 83). R&R WDF

Names of Christ - Anchor

That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us: Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the veil; Whither the forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus, made an high priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec. Hebrews 6:18-20

“To whom shall we go?” Not from the teaching of Christ, His lessons of love and mercy, to the darkness of unbelief, the wickedness of the world. While the Saviour was forsaken by many who had witnessed His wonderful works, Peter expressed the faith of the disciples,—“Thou art that Christ.” The very thought of losing this anchor of their souls filled them with fear and pain. To be destitute of a Saviour was to be adrift on a dark and stormy sea. DA 393

Truth, New And Old

In every age there is a new development of truth, a message of God to the people of that generation. The old truths are all essential; new truth is not independent of the old, but an unfolding of it. It is only as the old truths are understood that we can comprehend the new…it is the light which shines in the fresh unfolding of truth that glorifies the old. He who rejects or neglects the new does not really possess the old. For him it loses its vital power and becomes but a lifeless form.
There are those who profess to believe and to teach the truths of the Old Testament, while they reject the New. But in refusing to receive the teachings of Christ, they show that they do not believe that which patriarchs and prophets have spoken. “Had ye believed Moses,” Christ said, “ye would have believed Me; for he wrote of Me.” John 5:46. Hence there is no real power in their teaching of even the Old Testament.
Many who claim to believe and to teach the gospel are in a similar error. They set aside the Old Testament Scriptures, of which Christ declared, “They are they which testify of Me.” John 5:39. In rejecting the Old, they virtually reject the New; for both are parts of an inseparable whole. No man can rightly present the law of God without the gospel, or the gospel without the law. The law is the gospel embodied, and the gospel is the law unfolded. The law is the root, the gospel is the fragrant blossom and fruit which it bears.
The Old Testament sheds light upon the New, and the New upon the Old. Each is a revelation of the glory of God in Christ. Both present truths that will continually reveal new depths of meaning to the earnest seeker.
Truth in Christ and through Christ is measureless. The student of Scripture looks, as it were, into a fountain that deepens and broadens as he gazes into its depths. Not in this life shall we comprehend the mystery of God's love in giving His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. The work of our Redeemer on this earth is and ever will be a subject that will put to the stretch our highest imagination. Man may tax every mental power in the endeavor to fathom this mystery, but his mind will become faint and weary. The most diligent searcher will see before him a boundless, shoreless sea.
The truth as it is in Jesus can be experienced, but never explained. Its height and breadth and depth pass our knowledge. We may task our imagination to the utmost, and then we shall see only dimly the outlines of a love that is unexplainable, that is as high as heaven, but that stooped to the earth to stamp the image of God on all mankind. 
Yet it is possible for us to see all that we can bear of the divine compassion. This is unfolded to the humble, contrite soul. We shall understand God's compassion just in proportion as we appreciate His sacrifice for us. As we search the word of God in humility of heart, the grand theme of redemption will open to our research. It will increase in brightness as we behold it, and as we aspire to grasp it, its height and depth will ever increase.
Our life is to be bound up with the life of Christ; we are to draw constantly from Him, partaking of Him, the living Bread that came down from heaven, drawing from a fountain ever fresh, ever giving forth its abundant treasures. If we keep the Lord ever before us, allowing our hearts to go out in thanksgiving and praise to Him, we shall have a continual freshness in our religious life. Our prayers will take the form of a conversation with God as we would talk with a friend. He will speak His mysteries to us personally. Often there will come to us a sweet joyful sense of the presence of Jesus. Often our hearts will burn within us as He draws nigh to commune with us as He did with Enoch. When this is in truth the experience of the Christian, there is seen in his life a simplicity, a humility, meekness, and lowliness of heart, that show to all with whom he associates that he has been with Jesus and learned of Him.
In those who possess it, the religion of Christ will reveal itself as a vitalizing, pervading principle, a living, working, spiritual energy. There will be manifest the freshness and power and joyousness of perpetual youth. The heart that receives the word of God is not as a pool that evaporates, not like a broken cistern that loses its treasure. It is like the mountain stream fed by unfailing springs, whose cool, sparkling waters leap from rock to rock, refreshing the weary, the thirsty, the heavy laden.
This experience gives every teacher of truth the very qualifications that will make him a representative of Christ. The spirit of Christ's teaching will give a force and directness to his communications and to his prayers. His witness to Christ will not be a narrow, lifeless testimony. The minister will not preach over and over the same set discourses. His mind will be open to the constant illumination of the Holy Spirit.
Christ said, “Whoso eateth My flesh, and drinketh My blood, hath eternal life.... As the living Father hath sent Me, and I live by the Father; so he that eateth Me, even he shall live by Me.... It is the Spirit that quickeneth; ... the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.” John 6:54-63.
When we eat Christ's flesh and drink His blood, the element of eternal life will be found in the ministry. There will not be a fund of stale, oft-repeated ideas. The tame, dull sermonizing will cease. The old truths will be presented, but they will be seen in a new light. There will be a new perception of truth, a clearness and a power that all will discern. Those who have the privilege of sitting under such a ministry will, if susceptible to the Holy Spirit's influence, feel the energizing power of a new life. The fire of God's love will be kindled within them. Their perceptive faculties will be quickened to discern the beauty and majesty of truth. COL 127-130