General Conference Daily Bulletin, vol. 1
February 18, 1897
32ND SESSION. - LINCOLN, NEBRASKA, - VOL. 1. - NO. 5
General Conference Daily Bulletin,
PUBLISHED DAILY BY THE
GENERAL CONFERENCE OF SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTISTS.
Terms, 35 Cents for the Session. JACOB NORTH & CO., PRINTERS, LINCOLN, NEB. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 65.1
The Science of Salvation. - No. 2. A. T. JONES. (Continued from page 64.)
So, then, when the fact stands thus demonstrated in threefold measure before the world, of the absolute impotence of every effort of the human mind in its perfection to attain to any good when the heart is turned from God, what can the Lord do for the world if these three world-lessons will not teach the people? What can he do for men if they will follow in that way, in spite of these three examples of solemn warning? God has recorded these three instances to teach us the impotence of the highest effort of the mind in all branches of science, art, and literature, to do men any good, to keep them back from sin, to lead them toward any good of any kind whatever, when they forget the salvation of God and the science of salvation, which he has given to the hearts of men. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 65.2
I ask therefore: Are we to copy the foolishness of Greek and Roman? Are we to be charmed by their idolatry, and to think it is art? Are we to be interested in their religion, when it is altogether enormity? It is not enough to say it is mythology; it is enormity. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 65.3
But someone will say, Is not their literature invaluable? Let us see what God thought it was worth. At the time when through the Greek language he was introducing the science of salvation throughout the world, the Lord had the whole world of Greek literature before him, and the Roman, too, for that matter. Yet he found only three short sentences in the whole realm that were worth picking up and putting in this treatise on the science of salvation. I will give you them. One of them is in the seventeenth chapter of Acts. It is quoted from a Greek writer by the name of Aratus, and is this. I read from the twenty-eighth verse. Paul is speaking, and says:- GCDB February 18, 1897, page 65.4
“Certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring.” A Greek writer said that man is the offspring of God. The Lord picked that up, and said, That is true. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 65.5
Another one is in the fifteenth chapter of first Corinthians, and the thirty-third verse. The first part of the verse is, “Be not deceived.” These are the Lord’s words. The rest of the verse is quoted from a Greek writer named Menander: “Evil communications, corrupt good manners.” GCDB February 18, 1897, page 65.6
The other one is in Titus, the first chapter and the twelfth verse, and is from Epimenides, as follows: “The Cretians are alway liars, evil beasts, slow bellies.” GCDB February 18, 1897, page 65.7
Those three passages were all that the Lord was able to find in the whole realm of Greek literature that were worth taking up and putting his endorsement upon. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 65.8
Well, then, I do not say that this is all that anybody can use to profit. There are historical facts in the Greek language that are of value. But God is teaching the things that are most valuable to all mankind; he is teaching the principles of right and truth, not simply bringing before the world an array of facts. And all that he could find in the whole field of Greek literature that could be used in the interests of truth or righteousness as principles to guide man, was just these three statements: “We are also His offspring;” “Evil communications corrupt good manners;” and “the Cretians are alway liars.” Who else can find any more than that, that will do him any good in the way of righteousness and truth, purity and integrity? GCDB February 18, 1897, page 65.9
Now do not forget. The Greeks and Romans were not low down, degraded, ragged, ignorant heathen; they were aristocratic, cultivated, and most highly educated. How could it be otherwise when the things which they knew and taught are the pinnacle to which teachers of to-day aspire? Julius Caesar was one of the most accomplished men that ever lived - in courtliness, etiquette, aesthetics, and manners generally. But what was his character? The most guarded description of it, to be anywise full or fair, would be unfit to print. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 66.1
When the Lord has shown how absolutely vain is all science, all learning of all kinds without his salvation, then I say again, What can he do for men if these things which he has set before the world will not instruct them that that is not the way to take? If men will not be instructed by these things to take the right way, to allow that God’s science is the chief, and that what he knows is the best, then how can mankind hope to escape the evil that has come upon all these that have gone before? GCDB February 18, 1897, page 66.2
The science of God’s salvation is the one thing for men to know, first of all; and to have that lead us, guide us, balance us, to hold us everywhere in all things, and against all things evil. And it will do all this. That is the blessed truth. I read last night, and read again:- GCDB February 18, 1897, page 66.3
Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ; and to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ. Ephesians 3:8, 9. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 66.4
What is that mystery of God? - “Christ in you, the hope of glory.” Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God, the gospel, the power of God unto salvation - that is the mystery of God; that is the science of salvation. That is the scientific truth, around which all other sciences center. That power of God unto salvation every man must have to hold him back from the evil that is in him. The evil that is born in every man will carry him to perdition, in spite of all science, all literature, all art, all religion, everything the world can furnish, or that it ever could furnish, unless he lays hold upon the power of God unto salvation, which comes to a man by faith of Jesus Christ. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 66.5
Without that power in the heart, even the science which God taught - to say nothing of the literature, the art, the religion, and all that the heathen taught - is impotent to hold back man from sinning. Without that, every vestige of evil that is in a man will show itself, in spite of all these other things. That is why it is the power of God unto salvation: it saves man against every evil. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 66.6
The mystery of God, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory; Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God; Christ and him crucified; that alone, that all in all, that over all, in all, through all, now and through eternity, - that is the science of salvation, the chief of all sciences; that which leads all sciences, takes precedence of all, and guides in the study of all. Let it be so with all forever. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 66.7
Then let the Lord by his Spirit so draw us to himself; let the heart be so opened to that power, to the fellowship of that mystery, to the Spirit of God, that he may implant there Jesus Christ, his grace and his virtue. And as we hold our hearts open to him always, and to none but him, as a flower to the sun, we obtain in all its fulness, his righteousness, his power, his salvation, his mercy, his truth, his joy, his gladness, his peace - O, and his eternal life! GCDB February 18, 1897, page 66.8
Charity. 1
G. E. FIFIELD.
(Sunday Evening, Feb. 14, 1897.)
THE text is 1 Corinthians 13:13: “And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.” GCDB February 18, 1897, page 66.9
Here is surely a wonderful comparison. Faith, without which man’s life would be like that of the beasts that perish, bounded by the narrow span between the waking and the evening. Faith that sweeps back the horizon of our existence until eternity, with all its sublime possibilities, is brought as a motive power into our lives. How great is faith! Yet it is not the greatest, or the grandest. “And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.” GCDB February 18, 1897, page 66.10
Hope, without which the heart would break. Hope that in every darkest night still whispers of the dawning morrow; on the brow of the blackest storm-cloud ever writing the bow of promise. How grand is hope! Yet it is neither the greatest nor the grandest; for the greatest of these is charity. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 66.11
We have lost the beauty of this word, as we have that of many others, by conventional usage. Charity is not the coin flung to the beggar, nor is it that quality of the mind which enables us to think and say that a lie is as good as the truth, if one believes it sincerely. Truth is all-important; and Christ came from heaven to earth, saying, “I am the truth.” God himself sanctifies us only through the truth. Still, while charity does not depreciate the importance of truth, it is that which looks upon a man’s opinions beyond their truth or their falsehood, their orthodoxy or their heterodoxy, their popularity or their lack of popularity; beyond man’s social state; beyond his education or his ignorance, his poverty or his wealth; beyond even his morality or immorality; and back of it all, and beyond it all, and away down underneath it all, charity sees a human soul. A poor, deformed, shrunken thing it may be, infinitely missing the high possibility for which God created it; and yet a human soul still, so precious as to cause Christ to give his life for it. And charity loves it not for what it is merely, but for what it is capable of becoming, and gives itself in love and longing to bring out the possible in that life. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 67.1
Peter says, “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.” So charity is the highest Christian grace, the topmost round of the Christian’s ladder from which the soul steps off to heaven with its eternal joys. It is the love of God - not merely our love to God, but his love acting in our hearts as it does in his. We read, “God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” This word “world” is cosmos. It means “order, harmony, arrangement, beauty.” But one says, The world was full of sin, out of order, out of harmony, almost a chaos instead of a cosmos. But God’s keen eye of love saw the possible cosmos underneath the chaos, and gave himself in his Son to bring out that possible in the world, and in our lives. The second verse in the Bible says, “The Spirit of God moved [or brooded] upon the face of the waters.” O, this brooding love is love not of what is merely, but of what is to be! It is thus that God’s Spirit broods not only over the chaos in the unformed world, but over the chaos in every human heart and life. As Carlyle says, “With other eyes could I now look upon my fellow men; with an infinite love, an infinite pity. Poor, wandering, wayward man! Art thou not tried and beaten with stripes, even as I am, and ever? Whether thou wearest the royal mantle or the beggar’s gabardine, thou art so weary and so heavy-laden, and thy bed of rest is but a grave. O, my brother, my brother, why can not I clasp thee to my bosom and wipe all thy tears away? Man, with his so mad wants and so mean endeavors, had become the dearer to me; and even for his sufferings and his sins I now first named his ‘brother’.” GCDB February 18, 1897, page 67.2
This is the only true way of looking at humanity. John says, “Beloved, now are we the sons of God; and it doth not yet appear what we shall be.” So the best of us are only prophecies and possibilities of some grand future beyond our utmost dreaming. Humanity takes on new glory when we behold it thus, and underneath the rough exterior Love’s keen eye beholds some good in every heart. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 67.3
Some people make great effort to love God. They seem to seek to project their love into space, hoping it will hit him somewhere. God wants us to love him here, enshrined as he is in a weary and hungry-hearted humanity. He says, Inasmuch as ye did it unto one of the least of these, ye did it unto me. In the beautiful legend of Sir Launfal, the man who had sought afar through all his life for Christ and the Holy Grail, when he realized his failure, and felt himself akin to that other failure in the beggar’s form before him, giving the asked-for coin not in coldness, but in love, found there what he had been seeking in vain all his life, for the beggar was transformed before his gaze into the image of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 67.4
Studies in the Book of Hebrews. - No. 6. E. J. WAGGONER. (Monday Afternoon, Feb. 15, 1897.)
WE begin with the ninth verse: “We see Jesus.” Where are we looking? GCDB February 18, 1897, page 67.5
(Voice) “To man in his fallen state.” GCDB February 18, 1897, page 67.6
Yes, our gaze is directed to man’s first dominion; as we look we see him fall, and, still looking, we see Jesus taking man’s fallen condition, and crowned with glory and honor. We, as well as the rest of the professed Christian world, have been for the most part looking at what is rather than at what ought to be. When we have read of the dealings of God with his people in the Old Testament, we have lost sight of his design for them, and have seen what they took, rather than what God intended them to have. God’s design was one thing, and what they took was something else. If they had accepted God’s plan, and taken what he had for them, their history would have been vastly different. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 67.7
God was with them all the time; he did not forsake them; but that was no proof that what they did was right. If it were, that would be an end to any improvement in Christian living whatever. “God has been with me in the past when I kept Sunday,” says one. That is all right. “God has been with me, and I won’t change.” He was with such, but he will not remain with them long if they proceed on that basis. If they think they have nothing still to receive, they are leaving the Lord. The Lord was with Israel that by all means within his power he might lead them to take what he had for them in the beginning. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 68.1
Now we look at the wonderful dominion that God gave to man, every man, for Jesus in winning it back tasted death for every man, - and that is what we want to look at a great deal, - the completeness of the dominion, the dignity conferred on man. So wonderful was the honor placed on man, that although God himself is the supreme ruler of the universe, his purpose was that he would rule the earth only through man, and that he would not interfere outside of man. But man is dust. And here is a lesson of what God can do through dust. But while looking there we do not now see all things put under man, but we see Jesus - Jesus lower than angels, that is, man. The Word was made flesh. God was manifest in the flesh, in human flesh in the beginning, because the power that worked in Adam was God’s power. Then when man sinned, and repudiated God, God did not take him at his word, and leave him alone, but went down with him as low as he fell, and said, Poor man, I will help you; and He stayed with him. So we see Jesus lower than the angels; that is, we see him as man. But we see Him crowned with honor and glory as the son of man. Mark this, it is as the Son of man, not as the Son of God, that we see him crowned with glory and honor. It was not necessary for the Son of God to come to this earth to suffer in order that he might be crowned with glory; for he was the very shining forth of the bright glory of God. But he made himself of no reputation, emptied himself, and became man; took human flesh, in order that man might again be crowned with glory and honor. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 68.2
“We see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, because of the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor.” Notice that in this verse we have the whole of Christ’s work for man. We have his humiliation and death, and his resurrection and ascension. When Christ was raised from the dead, how high was he raised? Read again: “The exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe according to the working of his mighty power, which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come.” Ephesians 1:19-21. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 68.3
When Christ was raised from the dead he was raised to the throne of God. “And you hath he quickened who were dead in trespasses and sins.” He “hath raised us up together with him.” Christ was raised from the dead to glory just the same way as when the righteous are raised from the dead they are raised to glory. But even now through the power of the resurrection we are raised with him who sits in heavenly places as the man Christ Jesus. All this was done for Christ as man, for Christ as one of us. There is no question about that. We all understand that. If we do understand it, we understand a great deal. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 68.4
I do not mean to say we comprehend it, but we understand it in the way that we understand any truth. “By faith we understand.” That does not mean to say that we can figure it out and explain it; that cannot be done. That cannot be known even in eternity; it cannot be explained. That is the mystery of God. Only the mind of God can fathom it; only God can understand it; but we can understand it and get the good of it by believing it, and it then becomes a practical experience to us. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 68.5
Jesus by the grace of God tasted death for every man: “For it became him for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the Captain of their salvation perfect through suffering.” It became him; it was a fitting thing; it was a necessary thing, it was exactly the thing to do. Whom did it become? Look closely at that verse. He who brings many sons unto God, makes the Captain of their salvation - Christ - perfect through suffering. So we have in this verse God the Father, the many sons who are brought to glory, and the Captain through whose sufferings they are brought to glory. It became God to make their Captain perfect through sufferings. He tasted death for every man. It was a fitting thing to do, and the only thing that could be done to carry out the original plan of giving the earth to man, - that eternal purpose that could not be changed even by man’s fall. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 68.6
All judgment is committed to the Son, to Christ, not because he is the Son of God, but because he is the Son of man. As we studied a few minutes ago, God has designed (and he does not change his purpose) to rule the world, the dominion which he gave to man, - not this world, but the world to come, - solely through man. Because dominion was given to man, therefore to man is given judgment. But do not forget that God’s people are not to rule in this world. It is not this world, but the world to come, that God has put in subjection to man, - a perfect world under the dominion of perfect man. Now just note in passing how the simple truth takes the bottom out of every false theory. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 69.1
Take the theory that Christians are the people above all others that have the right to rule in this world, because they are the only ones that are fit to rule. But they are the only ones that have no right to rule in this world. They have nothing to do with it. To them is given the world to come. O, let us not be selfish; when God has given to us the world to come, let us not try to rob the people of this world of all the comfort they can get out of it. Do not rob them of it; it is not fair. Instead of Christians being the only ones who are to rule this world, they are the ones who are to keep their hands off. Let those rule it to whom it pertains. To God’s people pertains the world to come. Then what have we to do? - Our part is to get away from this world, and to gather into our arms as many poor souls as we can get, and take them along. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 69.2
So in the pursuance of God’s original plan, the dominion being lost by man, man must win it back, because if some other being than man wins it back, then the plan is not carried out. But we say it is God in man. Of course it is, because it was God in man in the beginning. It is God in man all the time. Who could rule the world in the beginning? Man could not rule it; dust could not lift itself up to do anything; but God in man could do all things. So as by man came death, by man came also the resurrection from the dead. O, there is a wonderful honor God has placed upon man, but man must not think that he is God. He is dust, but God’s presence in him glorifies him. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 69.3
“For both he that sanctifieth, and they that are sanctified, are all one.” Wherefore Christ is not ashamed to call them brethren. We have seen instances of men who were ashamed of their families - men who, having come into better circumstances, acquired a little bit of learning perhaps, or a little extra money, are ashamed to have it known that they belong to their family. They do, nevertheless; they are the same blood. But he who sanctifies, and they who are sanctified, are all one. Wherefore he is not ashamed to acknowledge the family relation. Do not you see that that binds the Lord Jesus to us, in indissoluble bonds? He acknowledges he is not ashamed to own us as brethren. What is the proof of it? - Saying, “I will declare thy name unto my brethren.” To whom is he speaking when he says, I will declare thy name? - Christ speaks to the Father, and says, I will declare thy name unto my brethren. Who is that? - It is we. Is it because we are so good that He is not ashamed to call us brethren? If we were good, would there be any use of saying that he is not ashamed? There must be something that, under ordinary circumstances, would make him ashamed. O, there is enough, under ordinary circumstances, to be ashamed of. But the proof that he is not ashamed is found in the fact that he says, “I will declare thy name unto my brethren.” GCDB February 18, 1897, page 69.4
Now, what condition is it that would make it necessary that Christ should declare God’s name to any one? What is the only condition under which he should need to declare the name of the Father? - It is that they do not know the name. There would be no use in declaring the name if they knew it. Then those to whom he declares the name of God, are those who do not know the name of the Father, and they are his brethren. What do we call those who do not know the name of the Lord? - Heathen, are they not? Such we were before we were converted. You can remember the time when you did not know him. I can remember the time when I did not know him any more than if I had been born in the heart of Africa. I had heard the name, but I did not know him. Then those to whom Christ says, I will “declare the name of the Lord,” are the heathen people - not necessarily the heathen in Africa, but the heathen in America, or Europe, and all over the world. The Lord says, They are my brethren. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 69.5
God would bring many sons to glory. He calls them sons. They are his sons, dishonored, disgraced. Adam is said in the genealogy in Luke, to have been the son of God. When he fell, what then? - A fallen son, a prodigal son. The prodigal son took his father’s goods, and then went and wasted it: but he was a son nevertheless. The father said, “This, my son, was dead, and is alive; was lost, and is found.” So we read, “Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God.” On whom? - On us - on poor fallen wretches. “Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us.” Who? - Me; that I should be called the son of God. That is love. Christ is up there in heaven. We are groping in darkness and ignorance, and he says to the Father, I will go down and declare thy name to my brethren. I will show my brethren who you are. They do not know you. They are aliens and foreigners. They have been misled, and have talked against you; I will go and declare your name to them. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 70.1
And what is that name? In Exodus 34:6, 7, we read:- GCDB February 18, 1897, page 70.2
The Lord God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 70.3
That is the name of the Lord. “The name of the Lord is a strong tower.” Now Christ says, “I will declare thy name unto my brethren.” It makes no difference what the color of the skin, where the men are born, what they have done, where they have lived, how poor, despised, and weak. Christ says, I will go and “declare thy name unto my [their] brethren.” So every follower of Christ will say, “I will go and declare thy name unto my brethren” in China, in India, in the slums of the city. We will go and declare his name to all of our brethren whom we can find. And that is the only thing that will put life into the missionary work. We are all brethren - there is no such thing as “foreign missionary work.” The field is the world. It is all the same field. In one sense we are all foreigners, pilgrims, strangers, in a foreign field; but there is no foreign field in the sense that one part of the world is foreign to the other. Christ regards himself as one with all mankind, and that is why he saves man; and we can really share his work of saving sinners only as we recognize our relation to them. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 70.4
Take the tenth chapter of Romans for a moment, beginning with the sixth verse: “But the righteousness which is of faith speaketh on this wise, Say not in thine heart, Who shall ascend into heaven? (that is, to bring Christ down from above:) or, Who shall descend into the deep? (that is, to bring up Christ again from the dead.)” This text is quoted from Deuteronomy 30:12-14, when Christ is called the “Word:” - GCDB February 18, 1897, page 70.5
It is not in heaven that thou shouldest say, Who shall go up for us to heaven, and bring unto us, that we may hear it, and do it? Neither is it beyond the sea, that thou shouldest say, Who shall go over the sea for us, and bring it to us, that we may hear it, and do it? But the word is very nigh unto thee, in thy mouth, and in thy heart, that thou mayest do it. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 70.6
Say not in thy heart, who shall ascend into heaven and bring Christ down. Why not? - Because he is already here. The coming down is the humiliation, the crucifixion: coming down, he humbled himself, and became obedient, even to the death of the cross. Or, say not, who shall descend into the deep, to bring Christ up. Why not? - He has risen. But where is this crucified and risen Christ? - “The Word is nigh thee.” How near? - “In thy mouth, and in thy heart; that is, the word of faith, which we preach: that if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” GCDB February 18, 1897, page 70.7
What kind of people are addressed when it is said, “Keep these commandments that I command thee this day? GCDB February 18, 1897, page 70.8
(A voice) “Sinners.” GCDB February 18, 1897, page 70.9
But they say they cannot do it. They may say, I do not know what the commandment is. The word is to those people who do not know it, or if they do know it, they do not do it; at any rate the word comes to sinners. Yes, God sends the word to all peoples, to let them know the eternal truth. He has come here, in the flesh. God is made flesh, and in that flesh he is glorified, because he has tasted death for every man. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 70.10
Christ has come in the flesh, my flesh. Why? Is it because I am so good? - O, no; for there is no good flesh for Christ to come into. Christ has come in the flesh, in every man’s flesh. “That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.” The life is the light, and lights every man. In other words, every man in this world lives upon the grace of God. “It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed;” and that is true of the man who blasphemes God. Where did that man get his breath? - From God. God continues breath to him in his wickedness, in order that the gift may reveal God’s goodness and he repent; for it is the goodness of God. He is kind to the evil and the good; he sends rain upon the just and the unjust; that is God. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 70.11
He [God] giveth to all life, and breath, and all things, and hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, that they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us: for in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring. Acts 17:25-28. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 71.1
What am I doing now? - Moving. How am I able to move? - By the power of God. It is God’s power by which I move. Now, as I am moving, making this motion [throwing out the arms], I am not doing any harm. But suppose I get nettled at some one, and I come so close to him that his head should be near where my fist is as I strike out, and I should hit him; would it be a different force which I use? - No; the strength that we use to fight even against God is simply the power of God in us, - Christ’s power in the man. The goodness and long-suffering of God is such that he will stay with us, and let his power be so prostituted and turned against him, in hope that we shall be brought to repentance. Here is the glorious truth - in him we move. If we are willing to allow God to use his own power, his own way, then all our movements will be just such as God prompts. Fourteenth verse:- GCDB February 18, 1897, page 71.2
Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is the devil; and deliver them who through fear of death were all their life-time subject to bondage. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 71.3
Some one asks, Is the power of God in man when he sins? How are you going to find out? Look to the Word. The Word was made flesh. How many kinds of flesh are there? - One flesh of man. All men are of one flesh. We are all sons of Adam. We are all brethren. We are all relations, and we need not be ashamed to deny the relationship, because the best man is of himself no better than the vilest. Christ is not ashamed. Where does power come from? “Power belongs to God.” Is there any other originator of power, or source of power? - No; but there is perverted power. That is rebellion. Suppose the United States should have war with Spain; would that be rebellion? - No. They are two independent nations. But suppose the State of Nebraska should begin war with the United States. O, that is rebellion, because the United States are one power. Men are in rebellion against God because they have turned his power against him. But the fact that we are in rebellion against God, shows that we are his children, fallen, but living only by the power of his life. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 71.4
I do not want any one to make a purely theoretical thing of this; it is the joy of salvation. It is the power of the gospel to me personally. It is everything to me. It is what gives me the hope of salvation, and courage to work for fallen humanity who are just as bad, some of them, as I was. I never saw any one in the world that I thought was any worse than I was. Here is a man that does not know the Word. He may say, I don’t know anything about it. He may say in his heart, How can I find the way? how can I know how to be right? I can’t find God. Say to him, Did you make yourself? - No. Do you support yourself, even when you say you are earning your living? Who gives you your strength? Now, there is one thing we need all the time to keep our lives going. It is air. Did you make this air? Where did you get the air you breathe? It is God’s air; it is the breath of God. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 71.5
God put his own breath into man’s nostrils, in order that he might live. That is the way we continue to breathe. It is the breath of God that keeps us alive, the Spirit of God in our nostrils. Well, that man must acknowledge what is so patent that he cannot help but acknowledge it; namely, that he did not bring himself into existence, and that he cannot perpetuate his existence for one instant. He is brought face to face with the power of God in him, keeping him alive. It is Christ in fallen man, it is Christ in cursed man, it is Christ with the curse on him, it is Christ crucified. Christ taking fallen, sinful humanity upon him, is Christ crucified. Do not say in your heart, Who will ascend up into heaven to bring Christ down to me, that is to be crucified? No; he is here in the flesh. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 71.6
“If thou wilt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus.” What is it to confess him? To confess a thing is not to make it so, but it is to acknowledge that the thing is so. Now the fact that we are to confess is, that Christ is come in the flesh. O, let me read a word here. Romans 1:18-20: “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold down the truth in unrighteousness.” What is the truth? Christ says, “I am the truth.” Thus the truth that is stated is that “the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men” who hold back Christ in them. “Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them;” for ever since the creation of the world, the invisible things of God are clearly seen, “being understood by the things that are made.” GCDB February 18, 1897, page 72.1
Look at the trees; we see the power and the divinity of God in the trees and grass, and in every thing that God has made, and see it clearly, too. But I read that text for years, and forgot that I was one of the things that God made. Am I not one of the things of the creation, just as well as a tree? Then what is seen and understood in the things that God has made, even man not excluded? - His eternal power and divinity. So we are without excuse. Now if thou wilt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, that he is in your flesh, - but do not stop with that confession, - “and shalt believe in thy heart that God has raised him from the dead,” lifted him up to his own right hand in the heavenly places, “thou shalt be saved.” That is Christ crucified, and raised in every man. When he will confess the truth, and believe the truth, then he has Christ in him, crucified and risen, with the resurrection power, to do whatsoever God says. I tell you there is power in the gospel that can lift a man out of the ditch to the throne of God, and I am glad of it. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 72.2
Who is like unto the Lord our God, who dwelleth on high, who humbleth himself to behold the things that are in heaven, and in the earth! He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, and lifteth the needy out of the dunghill; that he may set him with princes, even with the princes of his people. Psalm 113:5-8. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 72.3
Thank God for that! GCDB February 18, 1897, page 72.4
“We love him because he first loved us.” “And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also.” GCDB February 18, 1897, page 72.5
God in Nature. - No. 2. J. H. KELLOGG, M. D. (Tuesday Forenoon, Feb. 16, 1897.)
I AM impressed that this is a most important occasion; in fact, the most important occasion at which I have ever been present. It is a most critical time, and I feel incompetent to occupy a moment of your time in anything I might have to say; and I am very glad that I have not occasion to say very much; but what I have to present to you consists of words direct from the Lord himself. I believe that every person here has faith and confidence that the words that I am going to read to you are from the Lord: that they came from divine impression; that they are the result of inspiration; that they are instruction said to us, which we ought to receive. That which I am going to read to you is a part of a testimony sent to me fourteen or fifteen years ago, and received at the Conference held in Rome, N. Y., in 1882. It has never been published, but it has been of invaluable service to me. It bears on these very questions that have been discussed here for the past day or two - the subject of our fundamental relation to God. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 72.6
At the time when I received it, I thought I was right in the belief that I then held; but I have since seen that I was in part skeptical. I was trying to believe in God and nature. I had two gods. But I could not go on thus. I could not see how God could be above nature, so I had taken the position that God was not above nature. I had only a glimpse of the truth. I was in great perplexity; I did not know that God was in nature; so I believed that nature was almost equal with God. I did not understand that the laws of nature are but the habits of God, and that they were immutable because they were perfect; and that they never changed, because God taught the best thing the first time; and so God’s laws could never be changed, because he did the very best thing, the very first time, and consequently it was always the very same thing. I did not understand that, and, consequently, I did not see how God could be higher than nature; but I had been taught that God is one thing, and nature another thing. But when I found out that God was in nature, I thought of it in a different light. This article is entitled, - GCDB February 18, 1897, page 72.7
GOD IN NATURE
Men are naturally disposed to measure divine things by their perverted conceptions: they dwell upon infinite benevolence, but try to disbelieve in infinite justice. They grasp human assertions that the judgment executed against sin is contrary to right ideas of God’s benevolent character, and they put his word into the background, and men’s opinions in the front. Spiritual things are spiritually discerned. Those who have no vital connection with God are swayed this way and that, ever grasping the opinions of learned men who sit in judgment upon God and his works and ways. Weak, finite minds weigh God’s Word with men’s balances. The wisdom of these so-called great men is foolishness with God. They are blinded by the god of this world. Those only who are willing to be accounted fools in the eyes of these very worldly-wise men, will have the wisdom which is divine. God will not dwell with those who reject his truth; for all who disregard truth, disregard its Author. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 73.1
Of every house that has not Jesus for an abiding guest he says when he withdraws his presence. “Your house is left unto you desolate.” How can those who are destitute of divine enlightenment have correct ideas of God’s plans and ways? They either deny him altogether, and ignore his existence, or they circumscribe his power by their own finite, worldly-wise views and opinions. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 73.2
That which I have seen of eternal things, and that which I have seen of the weakness of men, as God has presented the matter before me, has deeply impressed my mind, and influenced my life and character. I see nothing wherein man should be exalted or praised or glorified. I see no reason why the opinions of learned men, and the so-called great men should be trusted in and exalted. Those who are connected with the infinite God are the only ones who make a proper use of their knowledge or of the talents entrusted to them by the omniscient Creator. No man can ever truly excel in knowledge and influence unless he is connected with the God of wisdom and power. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 73.3
The real evidence of a living God is not merely in theory; it is in the conviction which God has written in our hearts, illuminated and explained by his words. It is the living power in his created works, seen by a sanctified eye. The precious faith inspired of God gives strength and nobility of character. The natural powers are enlarged because of holy obedience. All the philosophies of human nature have led to confusion and shame when God has not been recognized as all in all. The life which we live by faith on the Son of God is a series of triumphs not always seen and understood by the interested parties, but with results reaching far into the future, where we shall see and know as we are known. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 73.4
The most profound intellects of the world, when enlightened by God’s Word, become bewildered and lost while trying to investigate the matters of science and revelation. The Creator and his works are beyond his finite comprehension, and they conclude that because they cannot explain the works and ways of God from natural causes, the Bible history is not reliable. Many are so intent upon excluding God from the exercise of sovereign will and power in the established order of the universe, that they demean man, the noblest of his creatures. The theories and speculations of philosophy would make us believe that man has come by slow degrees, not merely from a savage state, but from the very lowest form of the brute creation. They destroy man’s dignity because they will not admit God’s miraculous power. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 73.5
God has illuminated human intellects, and poured a flood of light on the world through discoveries in art and science. But those who view these from a merely human standpoint will most assuredly come to wrong conclusions. The thorns of error, skepticism, and infidelity are disguised by being covered with the garments of philosophy and science. Satan has devised this ingenious manner of winning souls away from the living God, away from the truth and religion. He exalts nature above nature’s Creator. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 73.6
The only safety for the people now is to feel the importance of combining religious culture with general education, that we may escape the curse of unsanctified knowledge. Every effort should be made in the education of youth to impress their minds with the loveliness and power of the truth as it is in Jesus. When the vail shall be removed which separates time from eternity, then will come to many minds the clear perception of the policy of human wisdom in comparison with the sure word of prophecy. All true science leads to harmony with, and obedience to God. When that which has seemed incomprehensible is seen in the light shining from the throne of God, it will fill the soul with the greatest astonishment that it was never seen and comprehended before. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 73.7
Christ and the Father are continually working through the laws of nature. Those who dwell on the laws of matter and the laws of nature, in following their own limited, finite understanding, lose sight of, if they do not deny, the continual and direct agency of God. Many express themselves in a manner which would convey the idea that nature is distinct from the God of nature, having in and of itself its own limits and its own powers wherewith to work. There is with many a marked distinction between natural and supernatural. The natural is ascribed to ordinary causes, unconnected with the interference with God. Vital power is attributed to matter, and nature is made a deity. Matter is supposed to be placed in certain relations, and left to act from fixed laws, with which God himself cannot interfere; that nature is endowed with certain properties and placed subject to laws, and left to itself to obey these laws, and perform the work originally commanded. This is false science; there is nothing in the Word of God to sustain it. God does not annul his laws, but he is continually working through them, using them as his instruments. They are not self-working. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 73.8
God is perpetually at work in nature. She is his servant, directed as he pleases. Nature in her work testifies of the intelligent presence and active agency of a Being who moves in all his works according to his will. It is not by an original power inherent in nature that year by year the earth produces its bounties, and the world keeps up its continual march around the sun. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 73.9
The hand of infinite power is perpetually at work guiding this planet. It is God’s power momentarily exercised that keeps it in position in its rotations. The God of heaven is constantly at work. It is by his power that vegetation is caused to flourish, that every leaf appears and every flower blooms. It is not as the result of a mechanism, that, once set in motion, continues its work, that the pulse beats and breath follows breath. In God we live and move and have our being. Every breath, every throb of the heart, is the continual evidence of the power of an ever-present God. It is God that maketh the sun to rise in the heavens. He openeth the windows of heaven and giveth rain. He maketh the grass to grow upon the mountains. “He giveth snow like wool, and scattereth the hoarfrost like ashes.” “When he uttereth his voice, there is a multitude of waters in the heavens, he maketh lightnings with rain, and bringeth forth the wind out of his treasures.” Although the Lord has ceased his work in creating, he is constantly employed in upholding and using as his servants the things which he has made. Said Christ, “My Father worketh hitherto, and I work.” GCDB February 18, 1897, page 74.1
Men of the greatest intellect cannot understand the mysteries of Jehovah as revealed in nature. Divine inspiration asks many questions which the most profound scholar cannot answer. These questions were not asked, supposing that we could answer them, but to call our attention to the deep mysteries of God, and to make men know that their wisdom is limited, that in the common things of daily life there are mysteries past the comprehension of finite minds; that the judgment and purposes of God are past finding out, is wisdom unsearchable. If he reveals himself to man, it is by shrouding himself in the thick cloud of mystery. God’s purpose is to conceal more of himself than he makes known to man. Could men fully understand the ways and works of God, they would not then believe him to be the infinite One. He is not to be comprehended by man in his wisdom, and reasons, and purposes. “His ways are past finding out.” His love can never be explained upon natural principles. If this could be done, we would not feel that we could trust him with the interests of our souls. Skeptics refuse to believe, because with their finite minds they cannot comprehend the infinite power by which God reveals himself to men. Even the mechanism of the human body cannot be fully understood; it presents mysteries that baffle the most intelligent. Yet because human science cannot in its research explain the ways and works of the Creator, men will doubt the existence of God, and ascribe infinite power to nature. God’s existence, his character, his law, are facts that all the reasoning of men of the highest attainments cannot controvert. They deny the claims of God, and neglect the interest of their souls, because they cannot understand his ways and works. Yet God is ever seeking to instruct finite men that they may exercise faith in him and trust themselves wholly in his hands. Every drop of rain or flake of snow, every spire of grass, every leaf and flower and shrub, testifies of God. These little things so common around us, teach the lesson that nothing is beneath the notice of the infinite God, nothing too small for his attention. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 74.2
God is to be acknowledged more from what he does not reveal of himself, than from that which is open to our limited comprehension. If men could comprehend the unsearchable wisdom of God, and could explain that which he has done or can do, they would no longer give him reverence, or fear his power. In divine revelation God has given to men mysteries that are incomprehensible, to command their faith. This must be so. If the ways and works of God could be explained by finite minds, he would not stand as supreme. Men may be ever searching, ever inquiring, ever learning, and yet there is an infinite beyond. The light is shining, ever shining with increasing brightness upon our pathway, if we but walk in its divine rays. But there is no darkness so dense, so impenetrable, as that which follows the rejection of heaven’s light, through whatever source it may come. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 74.3
Can men comprehend God? - No. They may speculate in regard to his way and works, but only as finite beings can. The question is asked by the Lord through his prophet, “Who hath measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, and meted out heaven with the span, and comprehended the dust of the earth in a measure, and weighed the mountains in scales, and the hills in a balance? Who hath directed the Spirit of the Lord, or being his counselor hath taught him? With whom took he counsel, and who instructed him, and taught him in the path of judgment, and taught him knowledge, and showed to him the way of understanding? Behold the nations are as a drop of a bucket, and are counted as the small dust of the balance: behold he taketh up the isles as a very little thing. And Lebanon is not sufficient to burn, nor the beasts thereof sufficient for a burnt-offering. All nations before him are as nothing; and they are counted to him less than nothing, and vanity. To whom then, will ye liken God? or what likeness will ye compare unto him? ... Have ye not known? have ye not heard? hath it not been told you from the beginning? have ye not understood from the foundations of the earth? It is he that sitteth upon the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers; that stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain, and spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in: that bringeth the princes to nothing; he maketh the judges of the earth as vanity. Yea, they shall not be planted; yea, they shall not be sown; yea, their stock shall not take root in the earth; and he shall also blow upon them, and they shall wither, and the whirlwind shall take them away as stubble. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 74.4
“To whom then will ye liken me, or shall I be equal? saith the Holy One. Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by number; he calleth them all by names, by the greatness of his might, for that he is strong in power; not one faileth. Why sayest thou, O Jacob, and speakest, O Israel, My way is hid from the Lord, and my judgment is passed over from my God? Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? There is no searching of his understanding. He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: but they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not be faint.” GCDB February 18, 1897, page 74.5
Now, my friends, I assure you that I have found this a very precious thing to me, and I am sure there is truth in it, and instruction in it for us all. I would like to add to this a few selections that I have made from other Testimonies, which I think you will be interested in, - from other writings from Sister White, right along this same line. About two years later she wrote some articles which appeared in the Signs of the Times, and I will read a paragraph or two here, published March 20, 1884:- GCDB February 18, 1897, page 75.1
Many teach that matter possesses vital power. They hold that certain properties are imparted to matter, and it is then left to act through its own inherent power; and that the operations of nature are carried on in harmony with fixed laws, that God himself cannot interfere with. This is false science, and is sustained by nothing in the Word of God.... GCDB February 18, 1897, page 75.2
God is the foundation of everything. All true science is in harmony with his works; all true education leads to obedience to his government. Science opens new wonders to our view; she soars high and explores new depths; but she brings nothing from her research that conflicts with divine revelation. Ignorance may seek to support false views of God by appeals to science; but the book of nature and the written word do not disagree, each sheds light on the other. Rightly understood, they make us acquainted with God and his character by teaching us something of the wise and beneficent laws through which he works. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 75.3
So you see these same things have been presented to our people; and this thought, it seems to me, suggests very forcibly the idea that we ought to study nature; and we ought to see God around us; and we ought to be able, when we go out, to see God, to understand what he is doing around us. It is one of the most important branches of education. Again I read:- GCDB February 18, 1897, page 75.4
The Creator of man has arranged the living machinery of our bodies. Every function is wonderfully and wisely made. And God has pledged himself to keep this machinery in healthful action, if the human agent will obey his laws, and co-operate with God. Every law governing the human machinery is to be considered just as truly divine in origin, in character, and in importance, as the Word of God. Every careless, inattentive action, any abuse put upon the Lord’s wonderful mechanism, by disregarding his specified laws in the human habitation, is a violation of God’s law. We may behold and admire the work of God in the natural world, but the human habitation is the most wonderful. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 75.5
Those who perceive the evidence of God’s love, who understand something of the wisdom and beneficence of his laws, and the blessings that result from obedience, will come to regard their duties and obligations from an altogether different point of view. Instead of looking upon an observance of the laws of health as a matter of sacrifice or self-denial, they will regard it as it really is - an inestimable blessing. - Christian Temperance, p.1. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 75.6
This is from a letter I received on the 5th of August, 1895:- GCDB February 18, 1897, page 75.7
It is just as much sin to violate the laws of our being as to break one of the ten commandments; for we cannot do either without breaking God’s law. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 75.8
Now here is a wonderful statement:- GCDB February 18, 1897, page 75.9
Our first duty, and one which we owe to God, to ourselves, and to our fellow-men, is to obey the laws of God, which include the laws of health. - Vol. III., p.164. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 75.10
A violation of these laws is a violation of the immutable law of God, and the penalty will surely follow.” - The Review and Herald, 1883, 41. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 75.11
Now I read a few words further:- GCDB February 18, 1897, page 75.12
When nature’s laws are transgressed, physical suffering and disease of every stripe and type are seen; for every transgressions of the laws of physical life, is a transgression of the laws of God. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 75.13
Christians should regard a transgression of these laws as a sin against God, to be accounted for in the day of judgment, when every case shall come in review before God. The world to-day is full of pain and suffering and agony, but is it the will of God that such a condition shall exist? - No. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 75.14
When people get sick, they violate some law; but the penalty is intended to make a man better. That is what it is for. If it were not for the penalties, we would be doing wrong all the time. But the penalty comes in as a correction, and not as an arbitrary punishment. Penalty is simply a consequence of the sin. It is a natural consequence of the things that a man did, and not an arbitrary thing. I continue reading:- GCDB February 18, 1897, page 75.15
God, the Creator of our bodies, has arranged every fiber, and nerve, and sinew, and muscle, and has pledged himself to keep the machinery in order, if the human agent will co-operate with him, and refuse to work contrary to the laws which govern the physical system. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 75.16
God’s law is written by his own finger upon every nerve, every muscle, every faculty which has been entrusted to man. These gifts were bestowed upon him not to be abused, corrupted, and abased, but to be used to his honor and glory. Every misuse of any part of our organism is a violation of the law which God designs shall govern us in these matters, and by violating this law, human beings corrupt themselves, sickness disease of every kind, ruined constitutions, premature decay, untimely death, - these are the result of the violation of nature’s laws. The living organism is God’s property. It belongs to him by creation and by redemption; and by a misuse of any of our powers we rob God of the honor due him. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 75.17
The need of healthful habits is a part of the gospel which must be presented to the people by those who hold forth the word of life. The importance of the health of the body is to be taught as a Bible requirement. “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God. For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith. For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office: so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another.” GCDB February 18, 1897, page 76.1
This is a sermon which needs to be presented to the people. The question of health reform is not agitated as it must and will be. A simple diet, the entire absence of drugs, leaving nature free to recuperate the wasted energies of the body, would make our sanitariums far more effectual in restoring the sick to health. The intellectual and moral energies of Christians need to be awakened. Far less money and time should be given to the table, and more to the advancement of missionary work in our land. Cooks should be thought of, and their strength saved as much as possible; for they have souls to save. The many dishes usually prepared for dessert should be dispensed with. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 76.2
Every minister who preaches the gospel to the people should study the laws of physical health. He should carefully consider what effect eating and drinking have upon the health of the soul. By precept and example, by a life of obedience to nature’s laws, he can present the truth in a forcible manner. The teachers and workers in our sanitariums should not only preach, but practice abstinence from food which stimulates fleshly lusts which war against the soul. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 76.3
There are many other things, but I will leave them for another time. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 76.4
Relation of General Conference Committee to Business Interests. (Read before the Conference.)
THE General Conference Committee has a weighty responsibility in caring for the interests of our people, and of the work which is committed to them. As the field of our work widens, this responsibility becomes greater. It is not the will of God that those who are called to this position should so load themselves down with business cares that they are crippled in the work to which they have been chosen. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 76.5
Especially is this true in regard to the president of the General Conference. His time is not to be filled up with the details of business; for this in a great degree disqualifies him for the very work which he should do. He cannot continue to carry the burden he has carried in these lines, without neglecting lines of work which cannot be left to others. Let men be chosen to give themselves to the business part of the work, and leave the president of the General Conference free to attend to its spiritual interests. Let him have time to understand the spiritual needs of the churches. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 76.6
The voice of the General Conference has been represented as an authority to be heeded as the voice of the Holy Spirit. But when the members of the General Conference Committee become entangled in business affairs, and financial perplexities, the sacred, elevated character of their work is in a great degree lost. The temple of God, becomes as a place of merchandise, and the ministers of God’s house as common business men. Their work is brought down on a level with common things. Business cares and perplexities unfit them for the consideration of matters relating to the spiritual interests of the work which require the keenest perception, the most careful thought, the most delicate tact, and the deepest spiritual insight. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 76.7
God does not intend that the General Conference Committee should embrace financial responsibilities that call for a large amount of labor; for the churches are thus deprived of the very help they need. And the decisions of the Conference will come to be regarded as on a level with the opinions of business men. The sacred authority with which God has invested his servants is lost. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 76.8
The sixth chapter of Acts should be carefully studied by the members of the General Conference Committee, and its instructions should be heeded. Let men be chosen to attend to the business lines of the work, and give counsel in these matters. Let them be devoted men, men of faith and prayer, set apart to do this special work. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 76.9
ELLEN G. WHITE.
God In Man. - No. 1. J. H. KELLOGG, M. D. (Monday Evening, Feb. 15, 1897.)
IN considering what thoughts to present to you that might be of some profit, a few words occurred to me that are found in the eighth Psalm:- GCDB February 18, 1897, page 76.10
When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; what is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him? For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honor. Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet: all sheep and oxen, yea, and the beasts of the field; the fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea, and whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas. O Lord our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! GCDB February 18, 1897, page 77.1
“What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?” This is the question to which I want to invite your attention to-night. When we look at a human being, what do we see? - The image of God. Yes, man was made in the image of God. We sometimes hear this text explained as meaning that God made man in his own image in a sort of figurative way. Man was made in the image of God because he was immortal; so people tell us that man has an immortal part, and consequently he is like God because he is immortal. That is one of the false doctrines that have sprung up in the world. I think we have foundation for a very much better view than this, the foundation which we find in the Scriptures, and which we find illustrated and emphasized by what we can learn in nature outside of the Bible. This expression, “the image of God,” means that God put into the mass of clay, out of which man was made, everything of God that it is possible to manifest through the human form. Adam was created in the first place in the image of God, a perfect man. Adam fell - wandered away from God. Again “God manifest in the flesh,” appeared in Christ, the second Adam. In Christ we have the same sort of an image of God that we had in the first Adam. We are apt to think of Christ as possessed of a divinity absolutely different in kind from what we find anywhere else except in God; but as there is only one God, there is only one kind of divinity; and as Christ was divine, wherever we find the image of God we find the same divinity. Christ was divine in an unmeasurably larger and more perfect sense than man, and yet we have in man the same image of God and the same divinity as in Christ. Christ was a perfect man. Adam, as God made him, was a perfect man. Man now, as we find him, is not perfect. Man’s perfection was in his divinity. In the lapse of ages man wandered so far away from God, because so deformed, debased, and depraved, so different from the first man who was created in the image of God, that it became almost impossible to recognize the image of God in the human form. God then sent the second Adam to reveal himself to man. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 77.2
Christ came to show us the humanity of God - God as he might be manifested in the flesh, the perfect image of God as manifested through the human form. Now, we are apt to think of Christ, the Son of God, as a being so entirely different from humanity that it is impossible for us to approach the ideal he set for man. Without Christ, we cannot understand God. God is too great for our finite minds to comprehend. His greatness, his majesty, and his power inspire us with awe. It is not easy for us to comprehend God as being a God of kindness, a God that has the feelings peculiar to us, so that he may have sympathy for us. We could not possibly comprehend God in this sense unless we had seen him in Jesus Christ. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 77.3
We cannot see God when we look out upon the world, unless we have been enlightened; but in Jesus Christ we have the incarnation of God in human flesh, so that we can see not only the attributes of God as a God of mercy and love with a kinship to humanity, but also those characteristics of God which he places before us to emulate, in which he requires us to become like him. We see in Christ the manifestation of those characteristics of God which are intended by him to be manifested in the flesh by us, and which we must look forward to as the ideal to which we are to attain. We are likely to think of Christ, the incarnation of God, as being God here upon earth, moving about with mighty power, working miracles and forgiving sins, and so far above us as to be unapproachable. But may we not believe that in Christ we are to see God brought down to the human plane? God in human form, thus manifested to enable man to come into personal touch with him, to become personally acquainted with him. “God come down to the earth to take little steps beside us,” as another has said, just as a parent takes little steps beside the child in teaching it to walk. Through Christ we are enabled to know God as a loving brother, a faithful friend, a wise counselor, a masterly teacher, a compassionate sympathizer, and a self-sacrificing Redeemer. It is impossible for the finite mind to conceive how a being so great and so all-powerful can at the same time be infinitely gentle and merciful. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 77.4
Christ, the incarnation of God in the human form, made God intelligible to man as the one perfect man, one man in whom God was manifested in the highest degree possible in human form. He is to us the illustration, the example, the pattern of all those things in which man may be godlike. Man may not be godlike in all things, but he may in all things be Christlike. Redemption through Christ is the restoration of the image of God in man which Adam lost by sin, - the restoration to man of those godlike attributes which were given to Adam, and which were reproduced in the second Adam. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 77.5
The great lesson of Christ’s life was not in his miracles, but in his perfect life. The vineyard hanging full of ripe clusters, each filled with natural wine, is a greater miracle than the miracle of Cana of Galilee. A great western corn-field is a far greater miracle than the feeding of the multitude with the five loaves. A cyclone is a vastly greater manifestation of divine power than the withering of a fig-tree. The miracle of being, the miracle of existence, the miracle enacted in our bodies here to-night, of our own individual existence, - all these are greater miracles than Christ ever did. Christ did not manifest God in his creative power, but manifested God in his human side. For our benefit God came down here, so that we might understand a part of him, that part of him that it is necessary for us to know, for us to imitate; the part that we must be like. The great lesson of Christ’s life was the perfection of his service to God. His devotion to humanity; the infinite depth of his love and sympathy; the absolute harmony of his will with God’s will; the demonstration that perfection of conduct is possible to man here on this earth, if only his will is in perfect harmony with God’s will. The same divinity that was in Christ is in us, and is ever seeking to lead us to the same perfection which we see in Christ, to the attainment of which there can be no hindrance except our individual wills. This thought once thoroughly in possession of our minds, will lead us to the most absolute surrender to God, the most perfect consecration to him, and absolute obedience to his will in everything. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 78.1
The question may arise in the mind of some one, How do we know that God is in us? We are perhaps too prone to think of God as in heaven, or in some definite place, and only omnipresent in an accommodated or figurative sense. Let us ask ourselves the question, “Where is God?” Job asked this question long ago. Job 23:3: “Oh that I knew where I might find him! that I might come even to his seat!” How often we find ourselves in that state of mind, wishing that we might find God, reaching out after God seeking to find God. “Oh that I knew where I might find him.” How many of us have had that thought in our hearts. Well, now, God is not very far off. According to the declaration of the apostle, he is “not far from every one of us.” Acts 17:27. The nineteenth Psalm tells us where to find God:- GCDB February 18, 1897, page 78.2
The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handiwork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night showeth knowledge. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 78.3
Now we learn from these words that all things about us - the things of nature - talk to us of God. They are speaking to us, if we will only understand the language - and we can understand; for in the next verse we read: “There is no speech nor language where their voice is not heard.” Now it is said that there are languages in which the word “God” does not occur, because those who speak the languages know nothing of God. But even these benighted savages may know of God through nature. Even those who have no language can hear and understand the voice of God in nature. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 78.4
We may well believe that when Adam was placed there in the garden of Eden, as we read in the eighth Psalm, when all things were put under him, and he was given dominion over the works of God’s hands, he could understand the voice of God in nature better than we can understand it; that he could see deeper into things than we can, that he could talk with the beasts and the flowers; and that he appreciated everything that God had made; and that he saw the divine idea of God in the beauty of every flower - that everything was to him an expression of God. He could see God in every flower and tree and animal upon the face of the earth; in every insect, and every bird, and everything that had life upon the face of the earth. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 78.5
Again we read:- GCDB February 18, 1897, page 78.6
Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead. Romans 1:19, 20. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 78.7
So, then, all are without excuse, because all nature speaks of God. How does all nature speak of God? Mankind from the earliest days have recognized the fact that there was something back of the phenomena of nature. The sun, the moon, the stars have always excited the awe of human beings to such a degree that a large part of the human family - at the present time at least one-fifth - have worshiped the sun. Every object in nature is worshiped. Go to central Africa, and there you will find natives bowing down to a tree, and worshiping that. Now, this is an evidence that there is in the human heart, in human beings the most ignorant, the most barbarous, a recognition of God in nature; and the text here tells us that “the invisible things of God from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made.” Now, we cannot see God himself, we cannot understand and appreciate the mystery of God, the eternal existence of God, the infinite power of God. We cannot appreciate that, we cannot see that, we cannot understand it; nevertheless, we can to some extent grasp these invisible things by a study and appreciation of the things that are made. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 78.8
From the earliest times men have been groping after God, and God has been recognized in some way in every religion, even the most primitive. In a certain sense also God has been recognized by scientists, though often blindly. Again, these men have arisen who have undertaken to explain nature without God. For example, Pliny, the naturalist who lived in the early part of the Christian era, and many who followed him, believed in the idea of spontaneous development of life, and gave a recipe for making frogs by allowing water to become stagnant; or rats and mice by bringing together a heap of rags with meat, bones, and other food such as rats and mice are fond of. A writer in the Middle Ages sought to explain the phenomena of life by the theory that everything in nature has an animus. We have an illustration of that same doctrine in the doctrine of the immortality of the soul. It is not the man that thinks, but an animus that makes him think - that operates his brain. This idea is very fully illustrated in an epitaph on a Kansas tombstone, which reads:- GCDB February 18, 1897, page 79.1
Under this sod, and under these trees,
Lieth the body of Solomon Pease;
He is not in this hole, but only his pod;
He shelled out his soul, and went up to God.
GCDB February 18, 1897, page 79.2
This is the idea of the doctrine of the immortality of the soul. It is that there is an animus in the body, and that the soul is immortal, while the body is nothing but a worthless pod that we can trample under foot, or throw away as garbage, and that the real thing of the man is the animus in him, and the body is simply a shell. That little epitaph puts it so forcibly that I think it illustrates the absurdity of this doctrine as well as anything possibly could. In that idea is the whole history of the degeneration and neglect of the human body; the whole thing is right there. The body is of no account; the great and important thing is the animus in it. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 79.3
Now there is a germ of truth in this, - in the thought that the body needs something to animate it; that back of everything there is something more than what we see, an invisible something; that what we see is simply an outward manifestation of this unseen power. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 79.4
When Newton discovered gravitation, there was a new world, the universe, opened up to man. Newton found that every object in the universe was related to every other object in the universe; that the planets were all associated together; that everything in the universe was in touch with every other thing; that all the planets and all objects in the universe were taking hold of hands, so to speak, with every other object. He showed that this was a law operating throughout the whole universe, so far as revealed to man; that it controlled the planets, the sun, the moon, the stars; that they all obeyed one law - the law of gravitation. The discovery of the law of gravitation was a stepping-stone to other discoveries. Newton did not discover gravitation. He only discovered the rule by which the force of gravitation acts, and named the force “gravitation.” GCDB February 18, 1897, page 79.5
As time went on, new discoveries were made, one after another, until the scientists became possessed of the idea that they knew pretty much all about things. A quarter of a century ago it would have been nearly impossible to find a scientist who thoroughly believed in God. Students of science believed in nature. They believed that man somehow originated by spontaneous generation. Bastian, an English scientist, thought he had proved the theory of spontaneous generation by the fact that living forms appeared in water which had been sealed tightly in a flask. Prof. Pasteur, the French chemist who recently died, and whose discoveries threw so much light upon the germ theory, proved that if the temperature of boiling water was raised a little higher, say 230 to 240 degrees Fahrenheit, no living forms appeared. Previous experiments, then, proved only than there are certain forms of life that are hard to kill. If it could have been proved that any form of life whatever could be produced without God, there would have been room for the supposition that man could get along without God. But such a thing has never been proved and cannot be proved. Consequently, scientific men have come to recognize the great truth presented in the Bible - that God is in and underneath everything. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 79.6
Mr. Huxley, one of the great scientists of modern times, finding it impossible to accept the popular religious creeds, and supposing these to be a true interpretation of the Bible, announced himself to be not an infidel, but an agnostic; by which he simply declares that in matters pertaining to God, the origin of things and the future, he confesses his absolute ignorance and knows nothing. Mr. Herbert Spencer goes a little farther, saying that after we have made every possible explanation of the phenomena of nature, we are obliged to admit that underneath everything there is constantly at work an unknowable intelligence. Mr. Spencer recognizes an intelligent cause in operation in everything in nature. He is unfortunate in the fact that this intelligence is to him unknown. Not having known Jesus Christ, he does not know God; because the only way we can really become acquainted with God is through Jesus Christ. And that is why Jesus Christ came to this world - so that we might get acquainted with God. We cannot understand God as Creator; we cannot comprehend God as the ruler of the universe; and we cannot comprehend God as the Being that keeps all the planets, the stars, and all the things about us in the universe in order. But we can comprehend him in Christ, a human being like ourselves, only so perfectly surrendered in his will, so perfectly in harmony with God, that every act of his life is a perfect act, every thought a perfect thought, and still human in every sense of the word. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 80.1
(To be continued.)
Wednesday Morning Meeting. (Feb. 17, 1897.)
THE morning services of the general meeting, instead of being held in the Scandinavian Chapel, were held in the church. Elder R. M. Kilgore led the meeting, and read portions of an article in Testimony 33, entitled “Workers in the Cause.” GCDB February 18, 1897, page 80.2
The general trend of the meeting was, that every soul is individually responsible to God, and that God is able to make known his will, and perform his work through every soul whom he has chosen, no matter what the position to which he is called. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 80.3
“If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.” “They shall be all taught of God.” Such texts as these seemed to have a new and enlarged meaning to all who were present. The Lord came in by his Spirit, and revealed his presence by bringing his blessing to all. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 80.4
In this line of thought, Elder A. T. Jones read from a recent communication from Mrs. E. G. White, the following, bearing on “God’s plan of organization:”- GCDB February 18, 1897, page 80.5
Organization is a good thing. I have the word of the Lord plain and decisive that all who see the necessity of organization must themselves become an example by being organized, and carrying out to the letter the principles of organization in their life practice. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 80.6
Organization, carried out in the life as God means that it shall be, brings to every soul who is engaged in the work of God his submission to the divine will. It leads them to give themselves to God, to be worked by his Holy Spirit. Any who suppose that it does not mean this, are no longer to stand in responsible positions, having voice to control in the great closing work of these last days. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 80.7
CALIFORNIA
If You Are Going There, GCDB February 18, 1897, page 80.8
by all means inquire about the Burlington Route Personally Conducted Excursions to San Francisco and Los Angeles, which leave Chicago every Wednesday, with a Pullman Palace Tourist Car through to destination. The route is via Denver, the Denver & Rio Grande Ry. (Scenic Line) and Salt Lake City. The Cars are fitted with carpets, upholstered seats, mattresses, pillows, blankets, bed linen, berth curtains, toilet rooms, heat and light, and, in fact, all the conveniences of a standard Pullman Palace car; they lack only some of the expensive finish of the Pullmans run on the limited express-trains, while the cost per berth is only about one third of the price. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 80.9
Write for full particulars to T. A. GRADY, Excursion Manager, C. B. & Q. R. R., 211 Clark street, Chicago, Ill. GCDB February 18, 1897, page 80.10