THIRD QUARTER 2020
SABBATH SCHOOL INSIGHT #12
SEPTEMBER 19, 2020
“A MESSAGE WORTH SHARING”

What a wonderful title for this week’s lesson. Elder Finley notes that “the gospel is all about Jesus. He died (the second death) for us and now lives for us. He came once to deliver us from the penalty of sin and is coming again to deliver us from the presence of sin. He died the death we deserve so that we can live the life He deserves. In Christ, we are justified, sanctified, and one day glorified.”

We know that the gospel means “good news” and that Christ commanded His disciples: “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.” Matthew 24:14. This command continues to apply to God’s last day church today as Christ waits patiently for His bride.

But we are told multiple times by E.G. White that Christ, the Groom, would have come long before this. One example is, “Had the purpose of God been carried out by His people in giving to the world the message of mercy, Christ would, ere this, have come to the earth, and the saints would have received their welcome into the city of God.—Testimonies for the Church 6:450.”

Notice that this says “would have come”, not could have, or might have, or wanted to come and this was at a time when the SDA church had global membership of less than 25,000! (vs. 21 million+ today).

This suggests that “the message of mercy”, the everlasting gospel referred to by the first angel of Revelation 14:6 has not yet been preached to the world by His people, His last day church.

One of the factors we face today is that there are multiple gospels being preached in Christian churches today and even within our Seventh Day Adventist church. And we know that even a little error mixed with truth creates confusion and throws us off track. God is truth and His word is truth so we need to study for ourselves to determine what is “the message of mercy”, “the everlasting gospel” that Christ is asking us to share with the world? On Wednesday’s lesson, it emphasizes that we need to understand God’s message more fully.

Thankfully, we have considerable guidance from E.G. White to give us clarity as we study together. One of the best-known quotes is from Testimonies to Ministers, pg. 91-92: “The Lord in His great mercy sent a most precious message to His people through Elders Waggoner and Jones. This message was to bring more prominently before the world the uplifted Saviour, the sacrifice for the sins of the whole world. It presented justification through faith in the Surety; it invited the people to receive the righteousness of Christ, which is made manifest in obedience to all the commandments of God. Many had lost sight of Jesus. They needed to have their eyes directed to His divine person, His merits, and His changeless love for the human family. All power is given into His hands, that He may dispense rich gifts unto men, imparting the priceless gift of His own righteousness to the helpless human agent. This is the message that God commanded to be given to the world. It is the third angel's message, which is to be proclaimed with a loud voice, and attended with the outpouring of His Spirit in a large measure. TM 91.2”

We see that the Lord sent this message to us, His people, through Elders Waggoner and Jones. It was sent in His great mercy to refocus us on Christ, the uplifted Saviour, His merits, and His changeless infinite agape (totally unselfish) love for the entire human race so that we would see the need for the priceless gift of His righteousness in our lives. This message is truly the antidote for our Laodicean condition that is described in Revelation 3. Thus, this message is the everlasting gospel that God commanded that we are to give to the world, it is the third angel’s message! Continuing on in Testimonies to Ministers, we read:

“Therefore, God gave to His servants a testimony that presented the truth as it is in Jesus, which is the third angel's message, in clear, distinct lines. John's words are to be sounded by God's people, that all may discern the light and walk in the light: “He that cometh from above is above all: he that is of the earth is earthly, and speaketh of the earth: He that cometh from heaven is above all. And what He hath seen and heard, that He testifieth; and no man receiveth His testimony. He that hath received His testimony hath set to his seal that God is true. For He whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God: for God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto Him. The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into His hand. He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.” TM 93.1

This is the testimony that must go throughout the length and breadth of the world. It presents the law and the gospel, binding up the two in a perfect whole. (See Romans 5 and 1 John 3:9 to the close of the chapter.) These precious scriptures will be impressed upon every heart that is opened to receive them. “The entrance of Thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple”—those who are contrite in heart. “As many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name.” These have not a mere nominal faith, a theory of truth, a legal religion, but they believe to a purpose, appropriating to themselves the richest gifts of God. They plead for the gift, that they may give to others. They can say, “Of His fullness have we all received, and grace for grace.” TM 94.1

“He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love. In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent His only-begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us, and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another. No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and His love is perfected in us. Hereby know we that we dwell in Him, and He in us, because He hath given us of His Spirit.” TM 94.2

Ultimately, as we read it becomes clear that the core of this most precious message is God’s infinite agape love as reflected in Christ’s infinite sacrifice for you and me and every member of the human race. Here are a few more E.G. White quotes that provide her thoughts on the impact of God’s message on the people of her day and the special meaning for His people in these final days of Earth’s history:

1. God has set before you an open door; let not man seek to close it. Open your heart and mind, and let the Sun of Righteousness shine into your soul. How long will it be before the word of truth will have weight with you? How long will it be before you will believe the testimonies of God's Spirit? When is the truth for this time to find access to your hearts? Will you wait till Christ comes? How long will God permit the way to be hedged up? Clear the King's highway, I beseech you, and make His paths straight. RH March 18, 1890, par. 6

I have traveled from place to place, attending meetings where the message of the righteousness of Christ was preached. I considered it a privilege to stand by the side of my brethren, and give my testimony with the message for the time; and I saw that the power of God attended the message wherever it was spoken. You could not make the people believe in South Lancaster that it was not a message of light that came to them. The people confessed their sins, and appropriated the righteousness of Christ. God has set His hand to do this work. We labored in Chicago; it was a week before there was a break in the meetings. But like a wave of glory, the blessing of God swept over us as we pointed men to the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world. The Lord revealed His glory, and we felt the deep movings of His Spirit. Everywhere the message led to the confession of sin, and to the putting away of iniquity. RH March 18, 1890, par. 7

2. Think you, my brother, if the Lord has raised up men to give to the world a message to the people to prepare them to stand in the great day of God, that anyone could by their influence stop the work and close the mouth of the messengers? No; if every human agent should hold his peace, a voice would be put into the stones, and they would cry out. The message would go in greater and still greater power. And shall such men as Elder Smith, Elder Butler, and yourself, be left behind in the special message and work for this time to carry the people forward and upward to a higher, holier state of spirituality? 1888 1140.3

3. The Lord has raised up Brother Jones and Brother Waggoner to proclaim a message to the world to prepare a people to stand in the day of God. The world is suffering the need of additional light to come to them upon the Scriptures, — additional proclamation of the principles of purity, lowliness, faith, and the righteousness of Christ. This is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth. Many will be moved and humbled. After a time, they will drink of the waters of life. Jesus proclaimed Himself the bread of life: “I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live forever: and the bread that I will give is My flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.” John 6:51. 1888 1814.4

Jesus knew every soul that believed not, for Jesus knew from the beginning who they were who believed not and who would betray Him. Many of the disciples walked away from Christ and no more believed on Him. We need not be surprised if the same experience should be realized in our day. If they went away from Christ at His words spoken to them, there will be those who claim to believe the third angel's message—even men who have been long in the faith—who will be offended at His words that shall come through His delegated human agents. 1888 1815.1

4. God has given Brother Jones and Brother Waggoner a message for the people. You do not believe that God has upheld them, but He has given them precious light, and their message has fed the people of God. When you reject the message borne by these men, you reject Christ, the Giver of the message. Why will you encourage the attributes of Satan? Why will you and Brother Henry despise God's delegated ministers, and seek to justify yourselves? Your work stands revealed in the sight of God. “Turn ye, turn ye, for why will ye die?” 1888 1353.3

I also wanted to leave you with a quote which I enjoyed from one of God’s messengers, A.T. Jones, which provides a “taste” of the message we need today:

“The disciples and apostles of Christ had a deep sense of their own inefficiency, and with humiliation and prayer they joined their weakness to His strength, their ignorance to His wisdom, their unworthiness to His righteousness, their poverty to His inexhaustible wealth. Thus, strengthened and equipped, they hesitated not in the service of their Master.” GCB/GCDB 1893, p. 166.15

What an equipment that is, though! Think of that equipment! Strength, wisdom, righteousness, wealth! Those are the very things that we need in the face of the things that are against us, for we cannot make any calculations upon any power of earth nor reputation that men will give nor upon any wealth that this world might furnish or any considerations of it or of life. So here are almost the very things enumerated that we considered in a previous lesson. GCB/GCDB 1893, p. 166.16

But how was it that they obtained strength? By acknowledging their weakness, confessing their weakness. How did they get wisdom? By confessing their ignorance. How did they get righteousness? By confessing their unworthiness. How did they get wealth, inexhaustible wealth? By confessing their poverty. GCB/GCDB 1893, p. 167.1

Now then that is the situation in which we are to be: inefficient, ignorant, poor, unworthy, and blind. Is not that just what the Laodicean message tells us—that we are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked and do not know it? Someone was reading that the other day and he touched upon that word “blindness,” and immediately my mind ran to the ninth chapter of John and the last verse. All turn to that, if you will. John 9:41. It is at the end of the account of that man’s healing from the blindness and restoration of sight to the man that had been born blind. What does that verse say? GCB/GCDB 1893, p. 167.2

“Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin; but now you say, We see. Therefore your sin remaineth.” GCB/GCDB 1893, p. 167.3

When Jesus tells you and me we are blind, the thing for us to do is to say, “Lord, we are blind.” He told those folks they were blind and they were blind, but they said it was not so. It was so. If they had confessed their blindness they would have seen God in that man’s healing from his blindness. Well, then, brethren, the thing for us to do is to come square up to that Laodicean message and say that every word He says is so. When He says you and I are wretched, tell Him, “It is so, I am wretched; miserable; it is so, I am miserable; poor, it is so; I am poor, a perfect beggar, I shall never be anything else in the world; blind, I am blind, and shall never be anything else; naked, that is so; and I do not know it; that is so, too. I do not know it at all, as I ought to know it.” And then I will say to Him every day and every hour, “Lord, that is all so. But, oh, instead of my wretchedness, give me thine own satisfaction. Instead of my misery, give me thine own comfort. Instead of my poverty, supply all thine own riches. Instead of my blindness, be thou my sight. Instead of my nakedness, oh, do thou clothe me with thine own righteousness. And what I know not, Lord, teach Thou me.” [Congregation: “Amen.”]
GCB/GCDB 1893, p. 167.4

Brethren, when we come with one heart and one mind to that place, we shall have no difficulty at all in repenting. It will not be difficult to repent and there will be no lack of repentance. That next verse will be fulfilled: “As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Be zealous therefore and repent.” GCB/GCDB 1893, p. 167.5

The difficulty about our not being able to repent is that we have not confessed that what the Lord has told us is the truth. When I know that I am wretched then I know that I need something that will satisfy me. And I know that nothing but the Lord can give that, and I depend upon nothing but Him to give it. And if I have not Him, why it is only wretchedness. Any moment that I have not Him it is only wretchedness, and any moment that I have not His comfort it is only misery. Any moment that I have not absolute dependence upon His unsearchable riches—the unsearchable riches of Christ—I am utterly poor, a complete beggar. And every moment that I do not see and confess that I am blind and have Him as my sight, I am in sin. He says so. GCB/GCDB 1893, p. 167.6

Now you say you see. Therefore your sin remaineth. And every moment that I do not see my nakedness and depend only and absolutely upon Him and His righteousness to clothe me, why so certainly I am ruined, utterly ruined, and every moment that I begin to say, “Now I know so much,” no, I do not know that at all. Well, then, the thing that I am to do is to say, “Lord, I do not know it. I depend upon Thee to teach me everything, even to teach me that I am wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked and that I need all these things. And when I tell Him all that He will give all I need. He will do it. That is our situation. GCB/GCDB 1893, p. 167.7

Looking at these quotes, it becomes even more clear that we need God’s most precious message now individually and as His bride, the last day church, both as a remedy for our Laodicean condition and to share with the world so that Jesus may come and take us home soon!

Blessings,
John Campbell