March 17 Esight, 2008

noneThere will be no weekly E-sight this week due to filming.

March 10 Esight, 2008

Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.—Matthew 6:10The Bible clearly states that God is an omnipotent¹ and sovereign² Creator who is confidently guiding the world toward his desired end. Yet, because of this all important truth, many Christians have gone a step further, and assumed that because God is omnipotent, sovereign, and has a plan that He is carrying out, that everything that happens in this world must somehow fit into His sovereign plan. This assumption has permeated much of Christian theology. It is also expressed in some of the clichés we often use in the face of suffering. We attempt to console others and ourselves by saying such trite statements such as “All things happen for a purpose,” “God has his reasons,” and “His ways are not our ways.” Popular hymns have also carried this message, such as Day by Day. The words to this familiar hymn read “Help me then when toil and trouble meeting, E’er to take as from a father’s hand…”

Augustine, arguably the most influential theologian in Church history, wrote “Nothing happens unless the Omnipotent wills it to happen.”³ This view of God’s relationship to the world takes many different forms, some saying that God ordains all things, others saying that He simply allows all tragic events to occur. But each one shares a common assumption that there is a specific divine reason for every tragic event, for, if God had wanted to prevent the event from taking place, He could have done so. Since He did not, He must have had a good reason for not doing so.

This teaching has done almost irreparable damage to the character of God in the hearts of many who have experienced great horror in their lives. It has led some to abandon their belief in God altogether.

Much to many people’s surprise, the scriptures do not support the view that there must be a specific and divine reason behind all tragedies. It is, rather, rooted in an imbalanced reading of the Bible. Although the scriptures do teach that God is sovereign, they also emphasize that there are agents who God has created who are free and can and do resist His will. Scripture does not teach that God controls all behavior of free moral agents, whether human or angel. Humans and angels are able to act contrary to God’s designs and purposes. While God’s general will for this world cannot fail, His particular will for individuals often does fail. Notice the following passages:

Genesis 6:6 And the LORD was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart.

Isaiah 63:10 But they rebelled and grieved His Holy Spirit; So He turned Himself against them as an enemy, And He fought against them.

Luke 7:30 But the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the will of God for themselves, not having been baptized by him.

Acts 7:51 You stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit; as your fathers did, so do you.

Ephesians 4:30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.

Hebrews 3:8 Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, In the day of trial in the wilderness.

Hebrews 3:15 While it is said: “Today, if you will hear His voice, Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.”

Hebrews 4:7 Again He designates a certain day, saying in David, “Today,” after such a long time, as it has been said: “Today, if you will hear His voice, Do not harden your hearts.”

Certainly God’s will is for everyone to be saved, yet, at the same time, He has created agents who are morally free, and with the potential to thwart His will.

1 Timothy 2:4 Who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.

Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.

According to the Bible, all the events of this world need to be understood against the backdrop of a spiritual warfare between God and free moral agents who have rebelled. ⁴ Therefore, when we look at the events that transpire here on earth, we are to remember that we are in the midst of warfare during which God’s will is not always carried out. The Bible pictures God as warring against opponents precisely because their will is working against His will. According to the Bible, we would not wonder about the specific reason God might have had in allowing a rape, murder, or child molestation. Rather, we would view these individuals as “victims of war” and assign the blame to either human or demonic beings who are opposing God’s will.

It seems, therefore, that we have one of two deductions to make: Either God does not prevent things because He chooses not to or because He is unable to. If we decide that He does not prevent evil events because He chooses not to, we are put in the position of a child who has two parents, one abusing and the other knowing about the abuse and doing nothing to stop it. In the heart of the child, then, neither parent can be trusted. If God knows that free moral agents are about to cause another free moral agent pain, and yet He makes a conscious choice not stop it, can God still be trusted? On the other hand, if you say that God does not prevent evil because He is unable to prevent it, how do you reconcile that with His omnipotence? The answer to these dilemmas, I believe, can be found in a closer look at the nature of love, the necessity of freedom, and the logical possibility that if God is to have His ultimate will carried out for His creation, as a God of Love⁵, He also risks the possibility of war breaking out in His creation. Yet, as we study the scriptures with the aim of understanding these three themes, we do begin to see that the ultimate explanation for the evil that transpires in our world is the purpose that a genuinely⁶ free moral agent had in freely carrying out his, her, or its particular deed. We need not look for some higher reason in God for a specific tragic event, but, rather, we need to find the ultimate reason for the atrocity in the free moral agent from whom the tragic event found its source.

Notice that when we look around on this planet, it is not God’s will that we see carried out.

Matthew 6:10 Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.

Jesus’ prayer makes sense when we realize that God’s will isn’t yet taking place on earth as it is in heaven. David also seems to hint at this idea.

Psalm 115:16 The heaven, even the heavens, are the LORD’s; But the earth He has given to the children of men.

It is a grave injustice to the character of God to state unqualified that “Nothing happens on this planet unless God allows it to happen” Paul and Jeremiah add clarification to the nature in which God allows evil. God does not specifically allow each particular tragedy, but, rather, He has generally allowed for the possibility of love between Himself and His creation; therefore, He has generally allowed us freedom of choice. Therefore, God has generally allowed the possibility of suffering to exist. Free moral agents themselves are the once who specifically choose whether or not to use their freedom of choice to bring hurt or to bless.

Romans 8:20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope;

God unwillingly subjected the creation to futility. He did not desire us to suffer; rather, we choose to plunge this creation into futility. Yet, if we were ever truly free not to sin, then we must be truly free to sin. Having made that choice, God, against His will, was forced by our choice to allow us to have what we had chosen.

Lamentations 3:33 For He does not afflict willingly, Nor grieve the children of men.

When people do things that they are unwilling to do, we call that being “forced against their will…”

6. If God prevented us from doing what we freely choose to do, are we truly ever free to commit those actions in the first place?

March 7 Esight, 2008

“Whom God set forth to be a reconciliation through faith in His blood . . .” (Romans 3:25, Geneva).Please forgive my tardiness with delivering this week’s e-sight devotional. I was on my way out of town for two weeks, and I desired to spend the three days I had at home with my lovely wife and three children. I’m sure you understand.

The above verse, which we are pondering this week states two of the greatest central themes from the everlasting gospel. First, the gift of Christ was initiated by God Himself, and second, it was for the purpose of reconciliation. Reconciliation is defined by the dictionary as “The ending of conflict or renewing of a friendly relationship between disputing people or groups.”

However, notice that this gift, with the end result of reconciliation in mind, was made by God. We, therefore, have two options to explain why God desired to reconcile with us. The first option is that God is the offended party, and out of duty, He gave us His Son because He felt it was the right thing to do. The second option is that God is the misunderstood party, and we are the offended; we declared civil war against heaven, and Christ came forth to reveal to us the truth about the Father in an effort to win back our love and allegiance.

This week, I would like to point out what is not said in John 3:16.

The passage does not say that God was “So angry with the world that He gave His only begotten Son,” nor does it say that God was “So offended with what this world did that He gave His only begotten Son.” No, no, dear reader, it states, too clearly to be misunderstood that God “So loved this world that He gave His only begotten Son.” He took all that was precious, and He gave; He gave all.

God appears to be whispering to us, “Your sin is against me, but I will bear it” (1 Peter 2:24); “Your debt is to me, but I will cancel it and nail to my cross” (Colossians 2:13,14); “Your grievances are against me, yet I will frankly forgive them all” (Luke 7:42); “I know, even if when you do not, that in regards to me, you have believed a lie” (Genesis 3:1-6); “You are under a delusion. Will you not let me show you the truth?” (John 8:32); “Will you let me show you who I really am? “

These are the questions all of heaven is asking. When all is said and done, of how many others, like Abraham, Lot, Daniel, Moses, and Paul, will it be said, “Behold one who was once lost, but whom once again has become My Friend.”

Listen, O heavens, and hear, O Earth, for the LORD speaks: “Sons I have reared and brought up, But they have revolted against Me. An ox knows its owner, And a donkey its master’s manger, But Israel does not know [Me], My people do not understand [Me]” (Isaiah 1:2-3).

Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God (2 Corinthians 18-20).

(For more on this topic please listen to Who Do You See?)

February 27 Esight, 2008

When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.—Colossians 2:13–14.I meet many people who are confused regarding what God’s thoughts and feelings toward them truly are. I find that much of this confusion is the result of a common misunderstanding regarding God’s forgiveness.

As in the above texts, the Bible states that God, through the cross, has forgiven every man, woman, and child of every sin he or she ever has or ever could commit. God is not harboring any ill feelings toward any of his children, faithful or wayward.

And yet, I hear many say, wait Herb, what about repentance, confession, and faith. Aren’t these necessary? Yes, absolutely! But here is the rub. The Bible speaks of two very different—related, but different—truths. They are different, but in English we have only one word to describe them both. That word is Forgiveness.

What are these two truths? First, that every person has a conscience. Thus, when they sin, they set in motion the effects of shame and guilt, the full weight of which, if they were left to bear it alone, would crush out their life. The Bible calls this cleansing of the shame and guilt transpiring in us forgiveness or, in the Greek, apheimi. And this change in us takes place through repentance, confession, and faith.

But the second truth is that God, in His heart, is not harboring any ill feelings toward any member of the human race. He has taken all our “debt,” “all” our “transgressions,” and nailed them to His cross. From His perspective, because of the cross, all charges have been dropped for every person who has ever lived or ever will live. The Bible calls this glorious good news of what is truly in God’s heart toward every person, repentant or rebellious, by the same word—Forgiveness or, in the Greek, Charizomai.

One experience takes place through faith and repentance; the other, called by the same word, has taken place in God’s heart toward all regardless of whether they repent or not.

The question arises, “Well, if God has forgiven everyone, then why will some be lost?” That is the million-dollar question.

“There is not the slightest reason why every man that has ever lived should not be saved unto eternal life, except that they would not have it. So many spurn the gift offered so freely” (Waggoner on Romans, p. 102).

“”What! Do you mean to teach universal salvation?” We mean to teach just what the Word of God teaches—that “the grace of God hath appeared, bringing salvation to all men.” Titus 2:11, R.V. “God has wrought out salvation for every man, and has given it to him; but the majority spurn it, and throw it away. The Judgment will reveal the fact that full and complete salvation was given to every man, and that the lost have deliberately thrown away their birthright possession” (Waggoner, Glad Tidings, p. 23).

“The common idea is that when God forgives sin the change is in Himself, and not in the man. It is thought that God simply ceases to hold anything against the one who has sinned. But this is to imply that God had a hardness against the man, which is not the case. God is not a man; He does not cherish enmity, nor harbor a feeling of revenge. It is not because God has an angry feeling in His heart against a sinner that he asks forgiveness, but because the sinner has something in his heart. God is all right, the man is all wrong; therefore God forgives the man, that he also may be all right” (Waggoner, The Power of Forgiveness).

Meditate on these themes this week and see whether God’s great forgiveness not only sets you free, but also awakens in you that same Forgiveness toward others as well.

“Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.” Ephesians 4:32

Have a great week!

February 18 Esight, 2008

“…Therefore no one is to act as your judge in regard to food or drink or in respect to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath day…”—Colossians 2:13-23Let the full impact of the following statement rest upon your heart.

“When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. When He had disarmed the rulers and authorities, He made a public display of them, having triumphed over them through the cross.” (emphasis added)

The above is quite possibly one of the most profound statements ever made by the apostle, Paul. It is as though God is saying to this world, through the medium of the cross, that all charges have been dropped. And it is on this basis that Paul wrote the very next statement.

“Therefore no one is to act as your judge in regard to food or drink or in respect to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath day.”

What does “food,” “drink,” “festivals,” “new moons,” or the “Sabbath” have to do with the great accomplishments of Calvary? With our being forgiven of all our transgressions? With having all our debt cancelled out?

The answer is quite astonishing.

First, the Sabbath is a holy day (Exodus 20:8-11). And holy days in the Old Testament were to be kept much like we celebrate holidays in our modern culture. “Then he said to them, ‘Go, eat of the fat, drink of the sweet, and send portions to him who has nothing prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not be grieved, for the joy of the LORD is your strength” (Nehemiah 8:10). This is the same spirit in which the Sabbath is to be celebrated. The Lord’s Sabbath is commemorative of not simply creation, but Redemption as well, along with all its accomplishments. (For more on this subject, please listen to A Rest That Remains from our sermons/downloads page at https://renewedheartministries.com/resources.asp?t=sermons)

Second, the situation in Colossia was much different than in Galatia. In the Galatian church, Judaisers were secretly stealing from and seeking to defraud the Galatians of their assurance by trying to add certain requirements of the law in addition to their receiving the grace of God through faith as conditions for their salvation. However, here in Colossia, it was not the Judaisers stealing, but the early Gnostics. The Gnostics believed in many things, yet one of their central beliefs was that the body was evil and a person’s soul was immortal and holy. In order to free or redeem his or her soul, a person needs to abase his or her body through severe treatment. They believed that any sensory pleasure, for any purpose, was wrong. This would strike right at the heart of celebrating Calvary. How could a person eat the fat and drink the sweet every Sabbath in celebration of the cross if all sensory pleasure was forbidden?

Paul continued, “Let no one keep defrauding you of your prize by delighting in self-abasement and the worship of the angels, taking his stand on visions he has seen, inflated without cause by his fleshly mind, and not holding fast to the head, from whom the entire body, being supplied and held together by the joints and ligaments, grows with a growth which is from God. If you have died with Christ to the elementary principles of the world, why, as if you were living in the world, do you submit yourself to decrees, such as, ‘Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch!’ (which all refer to things destined to perish with use) in accordance with the commandments and teachings of men? These are matters which have, to be sure, the appearance of wisdom in self-made religion and self-abasement and severe treatment of the body, but are of no value against fleshly indulgence.”

This week, stand fast in the glorious accomplishments of the cross. Let no one be your judge in regards to:

Food;

Drink;

Festivals or New Moons;

but especially, the Sabbath.

This Friday evening, when Sabbath roles around, be like those early Colossian believers who, having received the blessings of the Cross, longed to celebrate their Savior. Set aside that holy time to eat of the fat, drink of the sweet, and remember, the God of this universe has forgiven you all of your transgressions, having cancelled every last debt, having nailed them to His cross. May the meditation and celebration of these great themes truly set your heart free to run in the expanse of His grace.

February 11 Esight, 2008

“And I said, ‘I see, and behold, a lampstand all of gold with its bowl on the top of it . . . also two olive trees by it, one on the right side of the bowl and the other on its left side’ . . . Then he said, ‘These are the two anointed ones who are standing by the Lord of the whole earth.’”— Zechariah 4:2,3,14In Zechariah chapter 4, Zechariah sees a lamp stand with two olives trees standing on either side of it—”standing by” the lamp to provide oil for its light. The imagery here is striking!

First, there is the lamp stand. Anyone familiar with sanctuary imagery recognizes at once that this is an appropriate symbol for Christ, who is the light of the world (John 8:12), disseminating the light of truth about who God is and about His love, dispelling the darkness of lies that abound regarding God’s character.

But what are those two olive trees? Notice first that it’s through the trees, through the fruit (olives) they bear, that oil is provided for light. This is a fitting image to represent what God wants from each of us. He desires that we would give Him our life, so that He can provide “fruits” (Galatians 5:22), so that through those fruits He can shine forth the light of His love to this darkened world. Jesus taught this ever so clearly.

“Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works [the fruit of God’s love being awakened in each of us], and glorify your Father who is in heaven.” Matthew 5:16

Yet in the context of the book of Zechariah there is more. The sanctuary had been cast down, God’s people oppressed, and truth trampled in the dust. Yet there were two men, two olive trees, that responded to God’s call to return to Jerusalem, restore the sanctuary, and lift up the truth of God’s kingdom of grace and love once again. Who were they? Joshua and Zerubbabel.

I challenge you this week to go back into the Old Testament and read the stories of Joshua and Zerubbabel. Let the stories of these two great men inspire you. According to Daniel 7–12, we too are living in a time when God’s heavenly sanctuary has been cast down, God’s faithful oppressed, and the truth of His character of love cast down to the ground. But this is not where the story in Daniel ends.

“And he said unto me, Until two thousand and three hundred evenings and mornings: then shall the sanctuary be vindicated.”—Daniel 8:14

God is calling you, dear reader, to be an olive tree for Him! To rise up from your everyday routine. To let Him produce in you the fruits through which the light of His love is shed abroad. We are being called from our day-in, day-out monotony, to live for something greater than ourselves! To be part of something greater than ourselves! God is desiring that through our encounters with His love in a deeply relevant way, the fruits of that encounter can be produced in our lives, so that through those fruits, He might shine forth both to our world here and to the entire Universe the truth of who He really is.

The call of the ages is sounding. Will you choose to be “an anointed one who stands by the Lord” in this late hour of earth’s history? Will you be willing to spend and be spent for Him? I pray you will, for in no other pursuit will you ever find greater happiness, meaning, or fulfillment.

February 3 Esight, 2008

For, I think, God has exhibited us apostles last of all, as men condemned to death; because we have become a spectacle to the world, both to angels and to men. — 1 Corinthians 4:9In the above, Paul chose to use an interesting word in his letter to his fellow believers in Corinth. In most versions, the word is translated as “spectacle.” The Greek word that Paul chose was theatron. It is found only one other time in the New Testament (Acts 19:29&31), where it is translated as “theater,” a place for dramatic performances.

How appropriate! You and I are a theater of God’s grace before men and angels, fallen and unfallen. Our lives are bound up in the greatest drama that the universe has ever witnessed. For it is the story of the slander and vindication of the Character of our God before the on-looking eyes of all.

But we are not play-actors, my friends. This is real life! Not only is God holding us up as a display of His grace and love, which is poured “on” sinners (Ephesians 2:7), but he is holding us up as a theater where His grace and love are poured out “through” sinners to others, as well (Ephesians 3:10). What a testimony to the power of love, the power by which God is endeavoring to govern the universe.

“The church, being endowed with the righteousness of Christ, is His depository [a person with whom something is left in trust], in which the wealth of His mercy, His love, His grace, is to appear in full and final display” (CET 209).

“The church is God’s appointed agency for the salvation of men. It was organized for service, and its mission is to carry the gospel to the world. From the beginning it has been God’s plan that through His church shall be reflected to the world His fullness and His sufficiency. The members of the church, those whom He has called out of darkness into His marvelous light, are to show forth His glory. The church is the repository of the riches of the grace of Christ; and through the church will eventually be made manifest, even to “the principalities and powers in heavenly places,” the final and full display of the love of God” Ephesians 3:10 (Acts of the Apostles, p. 9).

This was this same method that God used with Christ. “Having undertaken our redemption, He will spare nothing, however dear, which is necessary to the completion of His work. No truth essential to our salvation is withheld, no miracle of mercy is neglected, no divine agency is left unemployed. Favor is heaped upon favor, gift upon gift. The whole treasury of heaven is open to those He seeks to save. Having collected the riches of the universe, and laid open the resources of infinite power, He gives them all into the hands of Christ, and says, All these are for man. Use these gifts to convince him that there is no love greater than Mine in earth or heaven” (Desire of Ages, p. 57).

To this same dispensing of God’s unfathomable grace, we too are called.

“So that the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known through the church to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 3:10).

May the work that Jesus began be finished in our lifetimes. May the church in these final moments cry out to this world and the unfallen universe above, “Behold your God” (Isaiah 40:9).

Have a blessed week!

January 30 Esight, 2008

Then I looked, and behold, the Lamb was standing on Mount Zion, and with Him one hundred and forty-four thousand, having His name and the name of His Father written on their foreheads.—Revelation 14:1Do you long to know God more deeply? Are you tired of all the voices in your head saying contradicting things about the character of our God? Does God’s love sometimes seem more confusing to you than simple? Please don’t despair. I have good news for you.

The book of Revelation speaks about a special work Jesus is going to do for you in regards to your desire to truly know His inmost thoughts and feelings for you. It’s called the sealing.

“After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth, so that no wind would blow on the earth or on the sea or on any tree. And I saw another angel ascending from the rising of the sun, having the seal of the living God; and he cried out with a loud voice to the four angels to whom it was granted to harm the earth and the sea, saying, ‘Do not harm the earth or the sea or the trees until we have sealed the bond-servants of our God on their foreheads’” (Revelation 7:1-3).

But what is it that is being sealed? Look carefully at this week’s opening text (Revelation 14:1). What is being sealed is the name or character of our God in our innermost thoughts and feelings so that nothing can shake us in our understanding of what our God is truly like. Would you like this blessing, dear reader? The promise is sure.

“There will no longer be any curse; and the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and His bond-servants will serve Him; they will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads” (Revelation 22:3-4).

But we do not have to wait till the streets of gold to have this grand experience.

“Just as soon as the people of God are sealed in their foreheads—it is not any seal or mark that can be seen, but a settling into the truth, both intellectually and spiritually, so they cannot be moved—just as soon as God’s people are sealed and prepared for the shaking, it will come. Indeed, it has begun already; the judgments of God are now upon the land, to give us warning, that we may know what is coming” (MS 173, 1902, emphasis added).

Did you catch that? We have been living in the time of the sealing for over 100 years. God is persistently but desperately trying to accomplish this in you right now. I meet so many people each weekend who are genuinely confused over what God thinks and feels toward them. And it’s no wonder when we stop to listen to all contradictory things we say about our God. We don’t yet truly see Him or His love as it really is. My desperate cry this week, my prayer, is that we will cease our cultural resistance and allow the settling into the truth of God’s character of love to reach its long-awaited, glorious, triumphant accomplishment in our hearts. That we will truly be the ones who “hasten” the fulfillment of His greatest desire. That His heart’s cry to be simply understood by us will finally find its fruition in the hearts of His people in this generation. Won’t you give Him, dear friend, opportunities, a little of your time? Open His Word this week, spend some time simply “with Him” this week, and let Him guide you more deeply into the most important experience of the ages? An encounter He calls “the sealing.”

January 20 Esight, 2008

“For Christ’s love compels us . . .”—2 Corinthians 5:14″It is no part of Christ’s mission to compel men to receive Him. It is Satan and men actuated by his spirit that seek to compel the conscience. Under a pretense of zeal for righteousness, men who are confederate with evil angels bring suffering upon their fellow men in order to convert them to their ideas of religion; but Christ is ever showing mercy, ever seeking to win by the revealing of His love. He can admit no rival in the soul, nor accept of partial service; but He desires only voluntary service, the willing surrender of the heart under the constraint of love. There can be no more conclusive evidence that we possess the spirit of Satan than the disposition to hurt and destroy those who do not appreciate our work, or who act contrary to our ideas” (The Desire of Ages, p. 487).

Christianity has a long history of tactics used to try to compel the consciences of others or to mandate group belief in a list of dogmas. What strikes me in the above statement is the method, by contrast, that Christ is “ever” using. He is ever showing mercy, ever seeking to win our hearts by the silent yet powerful revealing of His everlasting, unchanging love. Yet what’s so bad about applying a little pressure or a little discomfort to try to move another into a belief system that harmonizes with one’s own? The result is dangerous, even satanic. Christianity’s history was outlined in advance in the book of Revelation.

I would like you, dear reader, to consider briefly this week the prophecy found in Revelation, Chapter 6. I would also like you to remember, as you read it, that the definition of “conquer” is to take control by force or authority. Watch the activity of the white horse and its rider and look for what results from its use of a different method other than our Savior’s.

Did you catch the progression? When Christians use force, when we try and control what others believe, when we fail to simply be ever seeking to win through the revelation of love, the results, either in part or in whole, on a small scale or large, are always the same. When the white horse (God’s pure church) uses the principles of force and control (conquering and to conquer), it always leads to a red horse and bloodshed, which, in turn, leads to a black horse and famine for the pure truth of the gospel concerning God’s character, which, in turn, leads to a pale horse and spiritual death for all involved, both within the church and without.

Revelation Chapter 6 is given to us as a warning, dear fellow believer. It is a wake-up call, especially in today’s climate of Christian legislation, to remember that “It is not the fear of punishment, or the hope of everlasting reward that leads the disciples of Christ to follow Him. They behold the Savior’s matchless love, revealed throughout His pilgrimage on earth, from the manger of Bethlehem to Calvary’s cross, and the sight of Him attracts, it softens and subdues the soul. Love awakens in the heart of the beholders. They hear His voice, and they follow Him” (The Desire of Ages p. 480).

This week, why don’t you choose to go against the grain? Regardless of what others around you are doing, won’t you let heaven reveal its LOVE through you, instead? Look for ways you might simply help and bless those whom God brings across your path. Give yourself to heaven to be a channel of its “disinterested benevolence.” You’ll be amazed at how many are won when Christians too are “ever showing mercy, ever seeking to win by the revealing of His love.”

January 13 Esight, 2008

“Get yourself up on a high mountain, O Zion, bearer of good news, Lift up your voice mightily, O Jerusalem, bearer of good news; Lift it up, do not fear. Say to the cities of Judah, ‘Here is your God!’”— Isaiah 40:9Cry out! Spare not! Sound it from the rooftops! Explain to those who will hear, “Behold your God!” This is to be our message! Everything we say and do is to be for the purpose of revealing the character of our God to the world.

This week I find myself seated on an airplane. I’m on my way to give more presentations, but today seems different. I’ve spent the day in airports, watching hundreds, if not thousands, of people as our lives intersect, our paths cross if only but for a moment. My heart goes out to them. How in the world are we going to tell them all? Some will say, “Well, we have modern media, technology, the internet.” But to all those well-meaning answers I say, “Stop.” What the world needs, especially in this “information” age, is more than simply the intellectual communication of Biblical facts broadcast over the technology of airwaves. What this world needs is not YouTube. What the world is in desperate need of is a living, breathing, personal demonstration. Not more religion, but an exhibition. The world doesn’t need to just hear more information, they need to see something. Something alive, something tangible, something they can reach out and touch. What the world needs is an encounter!

Could that be what God is whispering to His church in these last days? Yes, the information we have to share is important, but it wasn’t until the “Word” was made flesh long ago that we truly beheld the Glory of the Father. When that happened, it changed the world. It birthed a movement. It parted time. All events, from the dawn of time to the end of this age, are today referred to as either happening before or after that great cosmic event. Could God be wanting to reveal His love in human flesh again? What will it look like? What will be its focus? What will be its effect? We’ve been told it will take place. The only question is, will God have a people who so come to know Him and His love for them, that the very same love is awakened in their hearts toward those around them, as well?

“Christ is waiting with longing desire for the manifestation of Himself in His church. When the character of Christ shall be perfectly reproduced in His people, then He will come to claim them as His own. It is the privilege of every Christian not only to look for but to hasten the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ (2 Peter 3:12, margin). Were all who profess His name bearing fruit to His glory, how quickly the whole world would be sown with the seed of the gospel. Quickly the last great harvest would be ripened, and Christ would come to gather the precious grain” (White, Christ Object Lessons, p. 69).

“Love is the basis of godliness . . . But we can never come into possession of this spirit by trying to love others. What is needed is the love of Christ in the heart. When self is merged in Christ, love springs forth spontaneously. The completeness of Christian character is attained when the impulse to help and bless others springs constantly from within — when the sunshine of heaven fills the heart and is revealed in the countenance” (Ibid., p.384).

“The one thing essential for us in order that we may receive and impart the forgiving love of God is to know and believe the love that He has to us” (White, Thoughts from the Mount of Blessings, p. 116).

Did you catch that? Maybe the hold-up is that we still don’t realize the “love that He has to us.” Could it be that simple? But, oh, how profound. The work that Jesus began of revealing the Father’s love will find its culmination and glorious triumph. My prayer is that it finds that fulfillment in our generation. If that is your desire, too, please join me in the following prayer.

“Dear Heavenly Father, please take my life today. Show me Your love in a depth I have yet to experience. Change my false pictures of You. May Your love awaken in my heart that same love for those around me. Use me, Father; I give myself to you whole-heartedly. May the impulse to help, bless, forgive, and love spring forth from my heart as a result of a deep heart encounter with Your love for me in these last days. In the name of our Savior, Jesus Christ, Amen.”

And may it begin for you, dear reader, today.