General Conference Bulletin, vol. 4

SERMON

J. A. Brunson

April 17, 7 P. M.

We want to study to-night a few fundamental facts which are clearly revealed in the word of God, hoping thereby to reach a clearer conception of the obligation that rests upon us as the representatives of Jesus Christ. The first fact to which we wish to call your attention is the purpose for which God created the world. We find that stated in Isaiah 45:18: “For thus saith the Lord that created the heavens; God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it, he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited; I am the Lord; and there is none else.” GCB April 21, 1901, page 372.11

Here it is expressed clearly that God created the earth for the purpose of being inhabited, and as we turn over to the early chapters of Genesis, we find that when the work of creation had been accomplished, God, looking down from his holy place, could pronounce it “very good.” There were no wild wastes; there were no barren rocks; but everything which would render this earth inhabitable had been prepared by God. GCB April 21, 1901, page 372.12

Observe in the next place the next fact,—the kind of beings which God designed to inhabit the earth. He not only created it to be inhabited, but he created it to be inhabited by beings that are holy and righteous, in perfect harmony with his will and accurately reflecting his own divine characteristics. GCB April 21, 1901, page 373.1

I read in Genesis 1:26, 27 the kind of creatures whom God made: “And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness, and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.” GCB April 21, 1901, page 373.2

Now observe: God made the earth, he made it to be inhabited, and then made the creatures which he designed to inhabit the earth; and made these creatures in his own image. Let us see what it means to bear the image of God. We learn that in the third chapter of Colossians. I turn to the chapter, and read as follows, beginning with the tenth verse: “And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him: Where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free; but Christ is all, and in all. GCB April 21, 1901, page 373.3

“Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering; Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye. And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness.” GCB April 21, 1901, page 373.4

Observe that Paul says. “Therefore put on these things” “Therefore,”—for what reason?—Because ye have been renewed after the image of him that created, and because of this renewal after the image of God, we are to put on these things. And mark you, the qualities that are herein enumerated, observe that every one is an attribute of Jesus Christ. Let me read this again. Here is the attribute of mercy, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, long-suffering, forbearance, love. Is not every single attribute enumerated an attribute of Jesus Christ?—Certainly. GCB April 21, 1901, page 373.5

But every attribute here is described as belonging to him who has been renewed after the image of God. Therefore every individual who bears the image of God, is one who has these qualities of heart that we have just described. Then, since God made man in his own image, and place him here on earth, this being, bearing the image of God, bore also the characteristics of God. Therefore, we conclude that the kind of being which God wants, the kind of being which he must have, is just the kind that he created; and the kind that he created bears his image, and he who bears the image of God, bears the divine characteristics. Therefore, God designed that this earth, created as it was, beautiful and fair, should be inhabited by beings who are living in perfect harmony with his will and accurately reflecting his image and his characteristics. That is to say, God designs that the creatures which shall inhabit this earth shall be those who are in harmony with himself, and are the true representatives of the principles of heaven. GCB April 21, 1901, page 373.6

Now we come to the third fact. This being whom God thus created, and thus splendidly equipped and endowed, lost his first estate. He lost his innocency, and thereby forfeited his right to live, so that he who was, but a short while before, God’s free man, now became a slave of Satan: he who was rejoicing in all the privileges, rights, and immunities by the Sonship, was brought under the dominion of evil, and upon him a sentence of damnation was placed, so that he became subject to death. It looked then as if God’s plan would be defeated. Here was the earth that he created, fair and young, and blushing with all the bloom of heaven-born beauty—there it was, ready—a beautiful and delightful home. But the fair creature whom God had made to live in this earth, yielding himself to the power of sin, became a selfish being, lost his freedom, and became subject to the bonds of death. GCB April 21, 1901, page 373.7

But just at that moment. Jesus Christ came in as the Redeemer of man, and gave himself for man, thereby enabling God to give to man a time of probation. Just when it seemed as if all hope was lost, when it seemed as if there was no hope of redemption, just at that moment God spoke Genesis 1:16, and there we find the whole gospel involved; the great cardinal principles of truth that are involved in Genesis 1:16 are evolved throughout the whole of the Scriptures that follow. There is just as true gospel in that one Scripture as ever was preached by Paul in the gospel to the Romans, or Galatians. There is just as much true gospel in Genesis 1:16 as can be found anywhere within the lids of the book. So, then, I say, just at the critical moment, when it seemed as if man, by yielding himself to the influence of an adverse power, had lost all hope, God preached to him the gospel of salvation through a suffering Saviour. GCB April 21, 1901, page 373.8

Now, then, having learned these facts, we come down to consider the next; the purpose for which Christ redeemed us. Observe that God through redemption will ultimately accomplish that which he originally designed through creation. We have all seen his design. We have all seen that he designed this earth to be the home of pure, innocent, righteous beings; and because he designed just that kind of creature to live here, that is still the kind of creature he made, and that is still the kind of creature that is not found on this earth now. Therefore the creatures which we now see, the individuals whom we meet, those whom we know, who are controlled by the principles of selfishness, which are the principles of sin,—these individuals in their sin and selfishness, can never become the permanent inhabitants of this earth,—never! GCB April 21, 1901, page 373.9

Brethren, let us understand this. God made this earth for unselfish beings, and it is ultimately to be inhabited by unselfish beings. Not one particle of selfishness can ever enter the kingdom of heaven. Not one. Why, brethren, it was selfishness that robbed heaven of its brightest jewel, ever Jesus Christ. It was unselfishness that erected the cross on Calvary’s hill. It was selfishness that nailed the Saviour there. It was unselfishness that brought the Saviour down to the tomb. GCB April 21, 1901, page 373.10

Then do you not see that God can not save selfishness. Selfishness is sin. Man did not become selfish because he was a sinner, but he became a sinner because he was selfish. And every deed of sin that has ever been on this earth, whether committed by you or somebody else, can be traced either directly or indirectly back to selfishness. GCB April 21, 1901, page 373.11

Consider the temptation that was presented to our first parents. Observe, too if you please, the reasoning of the woman before she took of the forbidden fruit. When we turn here to the third of Genesis, we read in the sixth verse: “And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant for the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.” GCB April 21, 1901, page 373.12

Selfish considerations led her to violate the commandments of God. See: She observed first, that the tree is good for food. There was an appeal to the physical appetite. She observed, secondly, that it was pleasant to the eyes; there was an appeal to her fancy. She observed, thirdly, that it was to be desired to make one wise; there was an appeal to her intellect, pride; and in considering all these things from a selfish standpoint, and desiring just these supposed blessings, she was led to do that which God had forbidden. Therefore we see that Satan, in presenting temptation, appeals to the selfishness of human nature. GCB April 21, 1901, page 374.1

I repeat, then, brethren, that selfishness is the source of sin. Selfishness produces all the suffering and sorrow that we have. Selfishness brings upon us all the distresses and trials; in other words, all sin is directly traceable to selfishness. I do pray God that we may be cured of this evil. There is no one thing that militates so successfully against the work of God as selfishness. It is the science of sin—a monster vice. GCB April 21, 1901, page 374.2

But, thank God, the Lord Jesus Christ has provided for us a way of escape therefrom. And I repeat, brethren, that not one of us, minister or layman, can ever enter the kingdom of heaven until every particle of selfishness has been eradicated from the very warp and woof of our characters. Salvation means unselfishness, and unselfishness means salvation. Every completely unselfish soul will be saved, and every saved soul will be absolutely and completely unselfish; for, I repeat, if God should admit any degree of selfishness into the kingdom, it would be necessary for Christ to die again, because sin would be again introduced into the world. GCB April 21, 1901, page 374.3

Then we say, inasmuch as God’s purpose in creating the world, and in creating man to inhabit the earth, was that he should have here on earth creatures in harmony with himself, representing the principles of himself: and inasmuch as this work was interrupted by sin, and Jesus Christ came to redeem us from sin; therefore we conclude our business here to-night is to represent Jesus Christ. GCB April 21, 1901, page 374.4

Our business, as saved souls, whether in pew or pulpit, whether in public or private, whether at home or abroad, is, first, last, and always, to represent the principles of heaven. We are to embody them in our lives; we are to incorporate them in our characters. We are to live them daily; in other words, we are to be the truth, in order that we may live the truth. GCB April 21, 1901, page 374.5

Now see in this the purpose of redemption. The Scriptures do not leave us at all in the dark here. Let us turn, for example, to 1 Peter 2:9: There I think we find clearly stated just why Christ has redeemed us: “Ye are a chosen generation.” “Ye,”—that means you; it means me. “Ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should show forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.” GCB April 21, 1901, page 374.6

Pardon me if I give that a little more literal translation, Let me read it this way; Ye are a picked out generation. That is what you are. God picked you out. He picked you out from the world. He picked you out from the world for a purpose, and because he did this, you tonight, members of this church, and of every other church that represents Jesus Christ, are picked out generation,—a royal, or kingly priesthood, a holy nation, a peculiar people. Why? Observe now; that ye should show forth the good qualities of him that hath called you from darkness into his marvelous light. That word that we translate “virtue” literally means “good qualities.” It means “good qualities” in its most comprehensive form. GCB April 21, 1901, page 374.7

Do you not see the point? You and I were in the world, members of the world, under the control of the spirit of the world; our lives were shaped in accord with the world about us. We were living and being controlled by selfish principles. We thought for self, we spoke for self, we lived for self, our purpose and our aim was self-aggrandizement. Such we were, such you were; but God for Christ’s sake accepted us in the Beloved; for we repented and turned to the Lord. Then we, having believed, God picked us out from the world, not because we were better than other people, not because we were more worthy than other people; nut because God saw that we would submit to him so that he could take us just as the potter takes the clay, and mold us into vessels fitted for his honor and glory. GCB April 21, 1901, page 374.8

He picked us out, then he took us unto himself. He has made us unto himself a peculiar people, into a royal priesthood, and now our business is henceforth to show forth in our lives the good qualities of him that called us. I want to ask you this question: How can you show forth good qualities which you do not possess? Therefore every child of God must be emptied of self, and filled with the Spirit of the Lord, controlled by the Spirit, so that his entire life, both in private and in public, will simply be a representation of the true principles of heaven. That is why God has called us. GCB April 21, 1901, page 374.9

Understand that we are in the midst of a great conflict, but the issue is not between “isms” and “ologies;” it is not between so-called Protestantism and Catholicism; it is not between Seventh-day Adventism and any other “ism.” The conflict, I repeat, is between the principles of truth and error. It is between the principles of right and wrong, the principles of Christ and Satan, the principles of love and force, the principles of unselfishness and selfishness. It makes no difference what may be your profession; it makes no difference whether you stand behind the desk, or whether you are only an occupant of the pew; it makes no difference whether you be a college president, or whether you be a president of a conference, you are engaged in the conflict, and you are called upon by God to represent the principles of heaven; that is your business. GCB April 21, 1901, page 374.10

The work of God in the earth is to be done in accord with the wisdom and the will of God, and God is calling now for men, he is calling for individuals, men and women, in whom the Spirit of God, residing, will show forth in their lives the good qualities of God. That is just what he is calling for, and every bit of the work in which we are engaged as followers of the Lord Jesus Christ is simply and solely to represent this principle. See how clearly that is brought out here in the letter to the Corinthians. (2 Corinthians 5:19, 20): “God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.” Now see: “Now then [because he hath committed unto us (that is, to you and me, these picked out ones), whom he hath chosen, this word of reconciliation, therefore] we [the picked ones] are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God.” GCB April 21, 1901, page 374.11

If that scripture means anything, it seems to me it means that every single follower of Jesus Christ is standing here to-night in Christ’s stead. That is to say, brother, that there is a sphere of action and influence which I, John A. Brunson, must fill. No man can fill it but myself, however humble the sphere may be. The angel Gabriel himself is incapable of filling it. Then Jesus Christ is dependent upon me to represent him in this sphere in which I live and move and have my being; and if I fail through selfishness, through pride, through vanity, through inertia, or any other cause,—if I fail to represent the principles of Jesus Christ, which are the principles of heaven, in this little sphere in which I move, then there is one particular sphere on this earth in which Jesus Christ is left without a representative. Is not that true? GCB April 21, 1901, page 375.1

Then you are living in your sphere of action. It may be humble, it may be obscure. You may be a mother, you may be a father, you may not be called upon to labor in any public capacity. That does not make any difference. Wherever you are, there is a sphere of influence marked out for you. You alone can fill it. You alone can live and represent Jesus there. Then if you refuse to heed the call of God’s Spirit, and refuse to yield yourself to God, and let the Lord Jesus reign in your heart, then there is a particular sphere of life in which Christ is calling for a representative, and in which he has none. No other living being can represent Jesus in your sphere of action. Then you, to the extent of your influence, to the extent of your character, to the extent of the gifts that God has bestowed upon you, are to be the living representative of Jesus: you are standing in Christ’s stead. GCB April 21, 1901, page 375.2

O, then, brother, can you stand in Christ’s stead, and represent Christ, unless the principles of Christ have been embodied in your heart? How can you? Notice that the principles of Christ are the principles of mercy and love and unselfishness generally. Therefore every single individual, be he whom he may; every individual Christian is to be, and must be, the living representative, the living embodiment, of the true principles of heaven. Then you see when that is the case, we are holding forth before the world the superiority of God’s truth. GCB April 21, 1901, page 375.3

That is the conflict that is on. We are not called upon to maintain a church. Why, sometimes it seems to me that we become so exceedingly interested in the outward show, and in outward forms and organizations, that actually we misrepresent Jesus Christ when we are trying to accomplish his work. Can Jesus Christ then put his indorsement upon such conduct?—Nay, verily. Brethren, Jesus Christ can not indorse the conduct of any living man or woman whose life is in violation of the principles of heaven. He can not. It may be that I, as a preacher of the gospel, standing behind the desk proclaiming to you the truths of God,—if I proclaim those truths from a selfish motive, it makes no difference how true they are, God can not let his blessings rest upon me as an individual and indorse my conduct; for if he did, he would be indorsing the principle of selfishness, which is the principle of sin. GCB April 21, 1901, page 375.4

So I say again, in all the work that we are called upon to accomplish, our first business is to show forth in our lives the good qualities of him that called us, and until we do this, we are not living as Christ would have us live, we are not doing the work of Jesus Christ. I can conceive of missionaries going out into foreign fields, burying themselves in the heart of Africa, and yet, not have the approval of Jesus Christ. Why?—Simply because they are attempting to do the work of Christ in the way which Christ can not indorse. Brethren, don’t you know that there is no such thing as a failure in God’s work? Don’t you know that there is not the shadow of a possibility of a failure? Don’t you know that there can never possibly come any kind of embarrassment to God’s true work? GCB April 21, 1901, page 375.5

Well, then, you say, how is it that embarrassments do come?—Every embarrassment that has arisen in the conduct of God’s work has been due to the fact that we are attempting to accomplish God’s work in a way of which God can not approve. That is right. God is not calling for money now. Think you that God is “broken?”—Nay, verily. Listen here to what he says: I turn now to Haggai. Let us see now just what God says about his financial strength: “The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the Lord of Hosts.” Then the Lord has plenty. I turn again to the Corinthian letter (1 Corinthians 10:26): “For the earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof.” Then certainly he has all the means that he wants. Deuteronomy 10:14: “Behold, the heaven and the heaven of heavens is the Lord’s thy God, the earth also, with all that therein is.” And all the means that has been accumulated on this earth has been accumulated by the power and wisdom of God. Listen here to the statement of God in Deuteronomy 8:18: “But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth.” GCB April 21, 1901, page 375.6

From these statements we learn that God is not financially embarrassed, that all the world and the fullness thereof belong to him, that all the gold and the silver are his. We furthermore learn that all the talent and the strength of body and the energy of the soul that are used by any human being, whether he be believer or unbeliever, all these talents that are employed in the accumulation of wealth, are the gift of God; therefore, if the gold and the silver belong to God, if the talent employed in accumulating the gold and silver belonging to God, if the wisdom that was exhibited and needed in order to accumulate this means came from God,—then certainly that which is accumulated belongs to God also; therefore we see that God is not embarrassed. We see that he has abundance of means to carry on the work. GCB April 21, 1901, page 375.7

God is not calling for means. He is calling for men who are the living embodiment of the principles of Jesus Christ. That is what he wants. I will tell you to-night, Brethren, what will be the greatest contribution that you can make to the cause of God. I will tell you what will do more to advance the cause of God, than the gift of ten thousand dollars, or ten thousand times ten thousand dollars, and that is the complete, absolute, and unconditional surrender of your heart to Jesus Christ. Brethren, surrender that proud will of yours to Jesus. Surrender it completely. Partial surrender will not suffice. Partial surrender is only the postponement of complete rebellion. God is calling for a complete and an unconditional surrender. He is calling for men and women who will lay all upon the altar. God is calling for individuals who are willing to recognize the fact that they are not their own, but that Jesus has purchased them, and they belong to Christ, body, soul, and spirit, pocketbook and all, time, talent, and influence, everything that they have belongs to the Lord; and when God gets men and women who are thus submitted to him, men and women thus completely surrendered, men and women who have laid all upon the altar,—brethren, when that is the case, then you are going to see the beginning of the loud cry of the loud cry, but not before; for I tell you to-night, God is anxious for the principles of heaven to be illustrated on earth. GCB April 21, 1901, page 375.8

They must be represented on earth. The great conflict, as we have seen, is between the principles of Satan and the principles of Christ. The studied plan of Satan, from the very incipiency of rebellion until the present time, has been to belittle the law of God. Satan has proclaimed, over and over again, that the law of God can not be embodied here in human flesh; that the principles of God are too high and holy and exacting. He has stated over and over that they are arbitrary, and hundreds of thousands and thousands upon thousands accept the dictum of Satan rather than the plain, simple statements of God. GCB April 21, 1901, page 376.1

Let me give you a pointing illustration: some time ago I was talking with a Christian, a member of the church. He was about to become involved in a lawsuit, and that suit was of such a nature that it would most likely develop very ugly features. I was deeply distressed. Finally I ventured to say, “I will not give you any advice, my brother, but I will tell you what I would do if I were in your place.” GCB April 21, 1901, page 376.2

“Well, what?” GCB April 21, 1901, page 376.3

“I would follow the injunction given in Matthew 5:44.” GCB April 21, 1901, page 376.4

“What does Matthew 5:44 say?” GCB April 21, 1901, page 376.5

“‘Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you,’ and so on.” GCB April 21, 1901, page 376.6

“Well,” he said, “I know Matthew 5:44 says that, but—but—“ GCB April 21, 1901, page 376.7

What did he do? He was saying that God’s law was so impractical that he could not carry it out. Is not that just what Satan has been saying? GCB April 21, 1901, page 376.8

The substance of what we have said is this: That God has created the earth; created it to be inhabited; created it to be inhabited by beings in harmony with himself, accurately and perfectly reflecting the principles of the kingdom of heaven. That is clear from the Scripture. But man, through sin, yielding to the influence of the enemy, fell from this lofty estate, and now, having been redeemed from sin by Jesus Christ, he has been redeemed simply and solely for the purpose of becoming a channel through which God can manifest himself to the world. Christ has redeemed, adopted, him into the family of God, solely and simply that he, being redeemed, being restored to all the immunities and privileges of sonship, shall so submit to the control of God, that God himself will place in him, in his soul, his law, his truth, and his love, so that the Christian indwelt by the Spirit of God, and in whose heart the law of God is written, wherever he is, wherever he goes, whatever he does, whatever he says, whether it be in the pulpit or whether it be around the fireside or in the field, wherever he is, will fitly represent the principles of Jesus Christ. That is why Christ has redeemed us. GCB April 21, 1901, page 376.9

Then all in the world you have got to do is to submit to Jesus and let Christ take you and live in you. That is what Paul meant when he said in the Corinthian letter to let the life of Christ be known in the great conflict. That is what he meant in the Galatian letter when he said, “I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me.” That is what is meant there. Now, then, if you submit to the Lord Jesus, if you surrender that hard will of yours, if you surrender that heart completely and unreservedly, then what?—Then Jesus Christ takes you completely under control. You are his. You then become the clay; he becomes the potter. Then Jesus Christ is the divine potter, and, taking that clay that has been submitted to him, he will fashion and mold it until it is made unto him a vessel that may accurately reflect the glory of God. GCB April 21, 1901, page 376.10

Then, brethren, I declare to you there is not anything on earth so attractive to me as this. What is wealth to be considered with the privilege of reflecting the glory of Jesus Christ? What is wordly honor? what is all that the world can confer upon a human being, when compared with the fact that humble clay, with all its weaknesses, all its foibles and follies, can be so indwelt by the Spirit of Jesus Christ that the principles of truth and of honesty and integrity and love will shine forth in the life? GCB April 21, 1901, page 376.11

My brother, I repeat, I would rather be a living representative of the principles of Jesus Christ than to be robed in royal splendor, and seated upon the highest throne man can erect. Would you prefer that? Do you want everything within you to be controlled and instructed by the Spirit of God? Brethren, we must die a deeper death to self than we have yet died. I say to our ministering brethren, We, as the mouthpieces of God, must think less of self and more of Christ. I say to those who sit in the pew, You must submit all to Jesus Christ, and say from your heart that you, yourselves, are dead to sin, but alive unto God in Jesus Christ. The language of Paul must be the language of each one of us. Through the cross of Christ I have been crucified to the world, and the world unto me. Crucified to self. Dead to sin, but risen in Jesus Christ to newness of life. That is what we want. That is what we must have. God redeemed us for that purpose. May God help us so completely to submit to him that from this time henceforth we shall not live for self, but for the glory of Christ, that Christ may work with us, in us, through us, by us, just what he wants. Brethren, that is just what he wants. GCB April 21, 1901, page 376.12

What difference if he should send you here or yonder or elsewhere? It is not a question of place; it is not a question of office; it is not a question of the kind of labor in which you shall engage. It is a question of living the principles of Jesus Christ. It is not a question of living; it is a question being. Brother, the Christian does not rejoice in something that he possesses. You are not to rejoice because you possess the truth; you are not to rejoice because you possess riches. You are to rejoice because you are the truth. You can not preach the truth until you become the truth. You can preach the truth only in so far as you have become the truth. GCB April 21, 1901, page 376.13

I repeat: It is a question of being. A man must be before he can do. A man must live before he can act. You must be like Christ before you can think like Christ, or be like Christ. You can not make yourself like Christ. But when you submit to him, Jesus Christ can take you, and put his own Spirit in your heart, and use your brain to think his thoughts, your tongue to speak his word your feet and hands to run his errands and do his delight. GCB April 21, 1901, page 376.14

Brethren, I pray that every soul among us, little and big, old and young, preacher and layman, may become so filled with the principles of truth that each one will be the truth in his own individual sphere, and live, live, LIVE the principles of Jesus Christ. Then God can do something through us. GCB April 21, 1901, page 376.15