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Ministry ofElijah’s Message |
…The Lord is regarded as cruel by many in
requiring His people to make war with other nations. They say that it is
contrary to His benevolent character. But He who made the world, and formed man
to dwell upon the earth, has unlimited control over all the works of His hands,
and it is His right to do as He pleases, and what He pleases with the work of
His hands. Man has no right to say to
his Maker, Why doest Thou thus? There is no injustice in His character. He
is the Ruler of the world, and a large portion of His subjects have rebelled
against His authority, and have trampled upon His law. He has bestowed upon
them liberal blessings, and surrounded them with everything needful, yet they
have bowed to images of wood and stone, silver and gold, which their own hands
have made. They teach their children that these are the Gods that give them
life and health, and make their lands fruitful, and give them riches and honor.
They scorn the God of
A family picture was presented before me.
A part of the children seem anxious to learn and obey the requirements of the
father, while the others trample upon his authority, and seem to exult in
showing contempt of his family government. They share the benefits of their
father's house, and are constantly receiving of his bounty. They are wholly
dependent upon him for all they receive, yet are not grateful, but conduct
themselves proudly, as though all the favors they received of their indulgent
parent were supplied by themselves. The father notices all the disrespectful
acts of his disobedient, ungrateful children, yet he bears with them. {2SM 333.2}
At length, these rebellious children go
still further, and seek to influence and lead to rebellion those members of
their father's family who have hitherto been faithful. Then all the dignity and
authority of the father is called into action, and he expels from his house the
rebellious children, who have not only abused his love and blessings
themselves, but tried to subvert the remaining few who had submitted to the
wise and judicious laws of their father's household. {2SM 334.1}
For the sake of the few who are loyal,
whose happiness was exposed to the seditious influence of the rebellious
members of his household, he separates from his family his undutiful children,
while at the same time he labors to bring closer to himself the remaining
faithful and loyal ones. All would honor the wise and just course of such a
parent, in punishing most severely his undutiful, rebellious children. {2SM 334.2}
God has dealt thus with His children. But
man, in his blindness, will overlook the abominations of the ungodly, and pass
by unnoticed the continual ingratitude and rebellion and heaven-daring sins of
those who trample upon God's law and defy His authority. They do not stop here,
but exult in subverting His people, and influencing them by their wiles to
transgress and show open contempt for the wise requirements of Jehovah. {2SM 334.3}
Some
can see only the destruction of God's enemies, which looks to them unmerciful
and severe. They do not look upon the other side. But let everlasting thanks be
given, that impulsive, changeable man, with all his boasted benevolence, is not
the disposer and controller of events. "The tender mercies of the
wicked are cruel" (Prov. 12:10). --Spiritual Gifts, vol. 4, pp.
49-52. {2SM 334.4}
The
Character of the Most High
…who
can know it?
Those who love His ways and follow in
willing obedience, because they trust and love the One whom they admire, will
one day very soon see Him face to face and enjoy all of eternity learning of
His marvelous character. In our finite conditions who can know His great and wondrous
character when in our present state our hearts are deceitfully wicked and
blinded by our own sinful state? The proud claim to know God but they deceive
themselves. They have not known nor
understood: for he hath shut their eyes, that they cannot see; and their
hearts, that they cannot understand. Isaiah 44:18 (KJV) But we are all as an unclean thing, and all
our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our
iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away. Isaiah 64:6 (KJV) Praise be
to the glory of the Most High for His never changing, undying benevolence
toward His faithful ones. To the humble He shows mercy but to the proud He
says; “Ye do err, not knowing the
scriptures, nor the power of God. Matthew 22:29 (KJV) But
this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After
those days, saith Yahovah, I will put My law in their inward parts, and write
it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be My people. Jeremiah
31:33 And what is His law? In setting
aside the law of God, men know not what they are doing. God's law is the transcript of His character. It embodies the
principles of His kingdom. He who refuses to accept these principles is placing
himself outside the channel where God's blessings flow. {
Man makes a grievous error by limiting the character
of the Most High to fit in the framework of man’s finite understanding. Our
ways are not His ways. Notwithstanding
that Cain had by his crimes merited the sentence of death, a merciful Creator
still spared his life, and granted him opportunity for repentance. But Cain
lived only to harden his heart, to encourage rebellion against the divine
authority, and to become the head of a line of bold, abandoned sinners. This
one apostate, led on by Satan, became a tempter to others; and his example and
influence exerted their demoralizing power, until the earth became so corrupt
and filled with violence as to call for its destruction. {PP 78.1}
In sparing
the life of the first murderer, God presented before the whole universe a
lesson bearing upon the great controversy. The dark history of Cain and his
descendants was an illustration of what would have been the result of
permitting the sinner to live on forever, to carry out his rebellion against
God. The forbearance of God only rendered the wicked more bold and defiant in
their iniquity. Fifteen centuries after the sentence pronounced upon Cain, the
universe witnessed the fruition of his influence and example, in the crime and
pollution that flooded the earth. It was made manifest that the sentence of
death pronounced upon the fallen race for the transgression of God's law was
both just and merciful. The longer men lived in sin, the more abandoned they
became. The divine sentence cutting
short a career of unbridled iniquity, and freeing the world from the influence
of those who had become hardened in rebellion, was a blessing rather than a
curse. {PP 78.2}
In mercy to the world, God blotted out its
wicked inhabitants in Noah's time. In mercy He destroyed the corrupt dwellers
in
"The
wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ
our Lord." Romans 6:23. While life is the inheritance of the righteous,
death is the portion of the wicked. Moses declared to
In
consequence of Adam's sin, death passed upon the whole human race. All alike go
down into the grave. And through the provisions of the plan of salvation, all
are to be brought forth from their graves. "There shall be a resurrection
of the dead, both of the just and unjust;" "for as in Adam all die, even
so in Christ shall all be made alive." Acts 24:15; I Corinthians 15:22.
But a distinction is made between the two classes that are brought forth.
"All that are in the graves shall hear His voice, and shall come forth;
they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have
done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation." John 5:28, 29. They who
have been "accounted worthy" of the resurrection of life are
"blessed and holy." "On such the second death hath no
power." Revelation 20:6. But those who have not, through repentance and
faith, secured pardon, must receive the penalty of transgression--"the
wages of sin." They suffer punishment varying in duration and intensity,
"according to their works," but finally ending in the second death.
Since it is impossible for God, consistently with His justice and mercy, to
save the sinner in his sins, He deprives
him of the existence which his transgressions have forfeited and of which he
has proved himself unworthy. Says an inspired writer: "Yet a little
while, and the wicked shall not be: yea, thou shalt diligently consider his
place, and it shall not be." And another declares: "They shall be as
though they had not been." Psalm 37:10; Obadiah 16. Covered with infamy,
they sink into hopeless, eternal oblivion.
{GC 544.2}Thus will be made an end of sin, with all the woe and ruin
which have resulted from it. {GC 545.1}
A
large class to whom the doctrine of eternal torment is revolting are driven to
the opposite error. They see that the Scriptures represent God as a being of
love and compassion, and they cannot believe that He will consign His creatures
to the fires of an eternally burning hell. But holding that the soul is
naturally immortal, they see no alternative but to conclude that all mankind
will finally be saved. Many regard the
threatenings of the Bible as designed merely to frighten men into obedience,
and not to be literally fulfilled. Thus the sinner can live in selfish
pleasure, disregarding the requirements of God, and yet expect to be finally
received into His favor. Such a
doctrine, presuming upon God's mercy, but ignoring His justice, pleases the
carnal heart and emboldens the wicked in their iniquity. {GC 537.1}
It is important at this point to note: “For centuries men have been describing the
death of the wicked as an event where men suffer terrible physical torture in
“an eternally burning hell.” But when fire (God’s glory) does finally descend
from God to “consume the wicked” it is “corpses” (Is. 66:24) that are burned.
The real purpose of “the cleansing flames” ”the same fire from God that
consumes the wicked” is to “purify the whole earth.” Even Malachi 4:1 describes
the final end of Satan and his followers as the burning up of “stubble” which
is the dead remains of the harvest.” Courtesy of Kenneth Hart in “The Final End
of Sin and Sinners” To punish beyond the point of learning is to torture
and this is not the way of the Benevolent Giver of Life. He says, “For I know the thoughts that I think toward
you, saith Yahovah, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected
end.” Jeremiah 29:11. By our own choices we chose what that “expected end”
will be.
For the Lord of hosts hath purposed, and who
shall disannul it? and his hand is stretched out, and who shall turn it back?
Isa. 14:27. {CC 371.1}Each actor in
history stands in his lot and place; for God's great work after His own plan
will be carried out by men who have prepared themselves to fill positions for good
or evil. In opposition to righteousness, men become instruments of
unrighteousness. But they are not forced
to take this course of action. They need not become instruments of
unrighteousness, any more than Cain needed to. . . . {CC 371.2}
Men of all
characters, righteous and unrighteous, will stand in their several positions in
God's plan. With the characters they have formed, they will act their part in
the fulfillment of history. In a crisis, just at the right moment, they will
stand in the places they have prepared themselves to fill. Believers and
unbelievers will fall into line as witnesses to confirm truth that they
themselves do not comprehend. All will cooperate in accomplishing the purposes
of God, just as did Annas, Caiaphas, Pilate, and Herod. In putting Christ to
death, the priests thought they were carrying out their own purposes, but
unconsciously and unintentionally they were fulfilling the purpose of God. {CC 371.3}
God looks
into the tiny seed that He Himself has formed, and sees wrapped within it the
beautiful flower, the shrub, or the lofty, wide-spreading tree. So does He see
the possibilities in every human being. We
are here for a purpose. God has given us His plan for our life, and He desires
us to reach the highest standard of development. . . . {CC 371.4}
To be effective rat poison must be 98%
good food but that 2% poison is what does its deadly work. This compiler was
recently given a book entitled “We Must Know Him Aright”. It is 98% “good food”
for the soul. The 2% that is deadly is not what was added but rather what was excluded
and the conclusions these omissions draw the read to. On the last page partial
quotes are blatantly given to persuade the reader over to the compilers’
understanding. They quote “The work of destruction is a "strange
work" to Him who is infinite in love.
{PP 138.4} This statement is taken out of context to support their dogma
of “God does not destroy” which is built around one statement of Ellen White.
But they leave out the text right before this quote which is: “But the true character of the
heavenly messengers was now revealed [one of them being Christ Himself]. Though they were on their way as ministers of wrath, yet to Abraham,
the man of faith, they spoke first of blessings. Though God is strict to mark iniquity and to punish transgression, He
takes no delight in vengeance. The work of destruction is a "strange
work" to Him who is infinite in love.
{PP 138.4} His prophet, Ellen White, is clear that although He must
at times resort to His “strange act” or “strange work” of vengeance the
Infinite One never takes pleasure in it. And again this erroneous theory is
deceitfully given by omission of text rather than addition in: “The wicked have
passed the boundary of their probation; the Spirit of God, persistently
resisted, has been at last withdrawn. Unsheltered by divine grace, they have no
protection from the wicked one.” What the compilers (knowingly or otherwise)
omitted was the very next statements which give the whole and balanced picture.
The whole quote in context should have been: “The wicked have passed the boundary of their probation; the Spirit of
God, persistently resisted, has been at last withdrawn. Unsheltered by divine
grace, they have no protection from the wicked one.--GC 614 (1911). {LDE 242.5}At Times Holy Angels Exercise Destructive Power [THE SINNER
MUST HIMSELF BEAR FULL RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE PUNISHMENT THAT IS METED OUT TO
HIM. ELLEN WHITE STATES, "GOD DESTROYS NO ONE. THE SINNER DESTROYS HIMSELF
BY HIS OWN IMPENITENCE." 5T 120. SEE FURTHER THE GREAT CONTROVERSY, PP.
25-37.]
God's judgments were awakened against
Under God
the angels are all-powerful. On one
occasion, in obedience to the command of Christ, they slew of the Assyrian army
in one night one hundred and eighty-five thousand men.--DA 700
(1898). {LDE 243.2}
The same angel who had come from the
royal courts to rescue Peter had been the messenger of wrath and judgment to
Herod. The angel smote Peter to arouse him from slumber. It was with a
different stroke that he smote the wicked king, laying low his pride and
bringing upon him the punishment of the Almighty. Herod died in great agony of mind and body, under the retributive
judgment of God.--AA 152 (1911).
{LDE 243.3}
A single angel destroyed all the
first-born of the Egyptians and filled the land with mourning. When
David offended against God by numbering the people, one angel caused that terrible destruction by which his
sin was punished. The same destructive power exercised by holy angels
when God commands, will be exercised by evil angels when He permits. There are
forces now ready, and only waiting the divine permission, to spread desolation
everywhere.--GC 614 (1911). {LDE 243.4}
The compilers in the aforementioned book misrepresent
the character of the Most High. We are all guilty of this because we do not
know full of what we speak, as we only see “as through a glass darkly”. The
Creator of the Universe does not resort to Mafia tactics, as some would
suppose. He does not use Satan to do His dirty work. What He does must be done
and He takes full responsibility for it. The very character of the Most High
Creator is on trial in this Great Controversy. Are His ways to be trust? Are
His laws just? We can not help His cause by wresting the Scriptures or the
writings of His modern day prophet. Whether He destroys, or allows someone else
to do it, ultimately He is still responsible. It is important that we
understand that His strange act is an act of true mercy. We are puzzle pieces
fitted together into a whole picture, by our own choices, under His all-knowing
supervision. Almighty Yah knows the beginning from the end for each one of
us. Just as any mindful, earthly parent
knows the choices their children are likely to make, our Heavenly Father
foresees our choices. The Infinite One knows our hearts and our outcome. This
is beyond our understanding. Those accrediting the “judgments of God” to Satan
exalt the enemy of the Most High above his Creator and thereby commit
blasphemy. To those dear souls, that
Christ our Redeemer gave His precious life for, we would say, “Friend, repent
before your probation closes. You have misrepresented the Giver and Taker of
Life to meet your own finite standards. You have placed the All-knowing,
Ever-present, All-powerful Creator in a box of your own devising. You have shut
out light on the true nature of the Alpha and the Omega and unless you turn
back to Him with a humble heart you will be thrown into the darkness where
there is gnashing of teeth.”
The
True Witness speaks to us today, and says, "I have somewhat against thee,
because thou hast left thy first love. Remember therefore from whence thou art
fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee
quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou
repent." {1888 960.10}
Only by beholding are we changed. His Law (Torah –
teachings) is a reflection, transcript, of His divine character. It is only as
we study and implement His teachings into our lives that we barely begin to
truly understand the character of the Almighty and the beauty of His perfect
ways. The law of Yahovah is perfect,
converting the soul: the testimony of Yahovah is sure, making wise the simple.
Psalm 19:7 I delight to do thy will, O my
God: yea, thy law is within my heart. Psalm 40:8 (KJV)
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Revised 2007-01-01