Divine Assurance – Part 2

We have just seen this beautiful comfort, rest, assurance for my personal salvation. Something you need to enlarge and ponder on more and more. It will unfold more and more. As it does, it will lead you to greater heights of obedience to God. It will purge His people.

If you don’t have this, the apostles raised the alarm bells. What did we read in Romans 16:25? What did the apostle Paul say?
What gospel? My gospel which was the mystery. His gospel. Let’s see the alarm bells that were raised by the shepherds of the flock of early Christianity. If you read the whole book of Galatians, you will notice they were trying to be saved by keeping the law without understanding the saving knowledge of Jesus. Notice what he says in Galatians 1:6: “I marvel that you are so soon removed from Him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel.” What did he call it? Another gospel.

Galatians 1:7. “Which is not another, but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. 8 But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. 9 As we said before, so say I now again, if any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.”

How serious is the contortion of this subject? Let him be accursed. The gospel that I have just delineated, this mystery of Christ in you through the incarnation that Sis. White says is a mystery indeed but must be revealed is so poorly understood. If the teachers of the gospel do not preach this, let him be accursed. That’s what is written, these are not my words.

2 Corinthians 11: 2-4. “For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. 3 But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtlety, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. 4 For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.”

Notice the beautiful reference to one body and one flesh? One connection. Note it says another Jesus. The Jesus who was in the flesh like you and I. The Jesus who really did have sin in His flesh, the Jesus who really did have sin in his flesh so that He might be our example, if anybody reaches another Jesus… God is jealous over you. What frightful danger it is when people are beguiled by Satan into another gospel. It is still the gospel of Jesus Christ they claim. Yes, Jesus did all these things, He did become a man, they agree with all that. But they are preaching another Jesus. Not the Jesus with the sinful flesh which you and I have. Which is the mystery of the incarnation.

Galatians 1: 11, 12. “But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man. 12 For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ. 13 For ye have heard of my conversation in time past in the Jews’ religion, how that beyond measure I persecuted the church of God, and wasted it.

He says it very plainly. It’s not after man theologically working things out. It is what was revealed to me. It was the gospel of the apostle. They proclaimed the pure gospel. How easily the true gospel can be lost. It’s what he said in Galatians: “What happened to you? I marvelled that you were so soon removed from it.”

Has this happened to Christianity ever since? Have they lost the true gospel? Have they taken hold of the wrong Jesus? Indeed.

In Paul’s jealousy over his flock, he warned the people. He named those who were teaching the error. He named them. This is something that really struck me. I sometimes imagine naming the people who teach the error. I then have people pouncing on me, you shouldn’t be talking like that. Listen to the apostle Paul; listen to him who is jealous over his flock. Acts 20:29-31. 29 “For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. 30 Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them. Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears.”

This is intense-can you see? If we do not have a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ, we are lost. With tears he pleaded with them. I sometimes wonder whether I should be doing this when I see people drifting away from the pure gospel. Jude 3 “Contend earnestly for the faith once delivered to the saints.” What does contend mean? You are going to fight for the truth, you are going to uphold it and you are going to contend for it.

1 Timothy 4:16 “Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee.” How carefully he warned and carefully he was prepared to expose the counterfeiters of the pure gospel. 1 Timothy 1: 18-20.

“This charge I commit unto thee, son Timothy, according to the prophecies which went before on thee, that thou by them mightest war a good warfare; 19 Holding faith, and a good conscience; which some having put away concerning faith have made shipwreck: 20 Of whom is Hymenaeus and Alexander; whom I have delivered unto Satan, that they may learn not to blaspheme.”

How would you like to be a member of the church and the minister to say they were the ones I delivered unto Satan? He named them. What were they doing? Blaspheming. Isn’t that what the Catholic Church eventually did? What was Jesus telling them to do with the unfaithful ones? Get rid of them. I am very happy that you are against them in certain stages as he speaks. They were removed.

Why should these people be named? Why should these false doctrines be identified? Can you make sense of it? If people can’t quite understand this mystery and then they get false doctrines, those who clearly can see what is going on, they have to warn the flock, don’t they? Here is where the danger is, can you see it?

2 Timothy 2:17-19. 17 “And their word will eat as doth a canker; of whom is Hymenaeus and Philetus; 18 Who concerning the truth have erred, saying that the resurrection is past already; and overthrow the faith of some. 19 Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are His. And, let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.”

Here are erring teachers, he identifies and names them. What does Jesus do in Revelation? Who does He identify here? Revelation 2: 15-16. 15 “So hast thou also them that hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which thing I hate. 16 Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth.”

The doctrine of the Nicolaitans. There was a company of people that existed in the Christian church called the Nicolaitans. If there is in the Christian church people that have perverted the doctrine, are we going to say, “oh, we must not say anything about them?”

According to Jesus what must we do? We must identify them as Jesus did.
The doctrine of the Nicolaitans. What is the doctrine of the Nicolaitans? “The doctrine is now largely taught that the gospel of Christ has made the law of God of no effect. That by believing we are released of the necessity of being doers of the word. But this is the doctrine of the Nicolaitans that Christ so unsparingly condemned. Can you see Jesus nailed it down and He identified the people who were preaching it? Should I do the same? I am going to. I
am going to let you see for yourself. I am going to let you see from the word of God and what the word of God identifies about these people.

1 John 4:1-3. 1 “Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. 2 Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: 3 And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.” Here the Bible identifies the people who preach that Jesus Christ did not come in the flesh are of the spirit of anti-Christ.

I am going to quote an excerpt of the Catholic Catechism. It says something very interesting about the nature of Christ. When people read this they think that it is going to be easy.

“There have been men who refused to believe that God would humble Himself so much as to become really man. They taught that Jesus had only the appearance of a man. We know that God’s love is such that He sent His Son down to become a real man. Really one of us. He took the nature of a slave. As Paul tells us, fashioned in the likeness of men and presenting Himself to us in human form. Jesus had and will have forever all that makes a real man. He had a man’s soul that was directly created by God as ours was and a man’s body that He took from His mother, He had all the
powers of a man, His mind learned in the way ours does. He used it to think, to know, to plan and to judge. He had a man’s free will, He had a man’s love, and with it He loved His Father and loved all men for the sake of His Father. His body was in every way a man’s body with the senses and powers of a man. It had the needs of a man’s body, food and rest. It could feel weariness and pain as a man’s body can. It developed from babyhood, to boyhood, to manhood as every man’s body does. He had the feelings of a man and He showed those feeling as a man does. Joy in His
faithful friends, sorrow at heard-hearted pride and betrayal, sympathy with others in their sorrows. Because He was a real man, He could suffer for us both in body and in soul.”

Do you agree with all this? It’s true, isn’t it? So are they of the spirit of the anti- Christ? We know they are anti-Christ. But do they teach the truth? Read carefully. “He has been through every trial fashioned as were are, only sinless.” Douay Bible. Because He is all holy, He could not possibly sin and He did not have impulses rising up within Him and tempting Him such as we have as the result of original sin.” (Ibid)

They sounded so good for so long, didn’t they, and then all of a sudden they come up with the devil’s perversion of the true Jesus. Do you know that this is why so many people today do not recognise that the Catholic Church is wrong? We can recognise it better but they can’t recognise it in the spirit of the other churches. Quote from the Seventh Day Adventist 27 Fundamental Beliefs Book: “Both Adam and Christ, the last Adam or the second man represent all humanity. While the natural birth saddles each person with the results of Adam’s transgression, everyone who experiences the spiritual birth receive the spiritual benefits of Christ’s perfect life and sacrifice. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. Adam’s rebellion brought sin, condemnation and death to all. Christ reversed the downward trend. In His great love He subjected Himself to the divine judgment on sin and became the humanities’ representative.

His substitutionary death provided the deliverance from the penalty of sin and the gift of eternal life for repentant sinners. Scripture clearly teaches the universal nature of Christ’s substitutionary death.”

This is all I could find together with the other things, which they had absolutely right, just like the Catholic Catechism. Once upon a time the SDA church taught exactly as I have been showing you. Bible Readings for the Home Circle, p.174, 1915 edition. “In His humanity Christ partook of our sinful fallen nature. If not, then he was not made like unto His Brethren, was not in all points tempted as we are, did not overcome, as we have to overcome and is therefore the complete, perfect Saviour man needs and must have to be saved. The idea that Christ was born of an immaculate or sinless mother, inherited no tendencies to sin and for this reason did not sin; removes Him from the realm of a fallen world and from the very place where help is needed. On His human side Christ inherited just what every child of Adam inherits, a sinful nature. On the divine side from the very conception He was begotten and born of the spirit as all are and all this was done to place mankind on vantage ground and to demonstrate that in the same way everyone who is born of the spirit may gain like victories over sin in his own sinful flesh. Thus each one is to overcome as Christ overcame.

Without this birth there can be no victory over temptation and no salvation from sin. God in Christ, condemned sin not by pronouncing against it merely as a judge sitting on the judgment seat, but by coming and living in sinful flesh and yet without sinning. In Christ He demonstrated that it is possible by His grace and power to resist temptation, overcome sin and live a sinless life in sinful flesh.”

One hundred percent correct, isn’t it? One hundred percent. He had sinful flesh. This is now from the ministry written by the Adventist leadership to its people. And to the ministers who teach the people:

The Ministry-September 1956. “When He Christ took upon Him sinless human nature, He did not cease to be God. [Notice the first mistake, sinless human nature]

Many years ago a statement appeared in the Bible Readings for the Home Circle, the 1915 edition [as quoted above], which declared that Christ came in sinful flesh. Just how this expression slipped into the book is difficult to know, but when that book was revised in 1946, this expression was eliminated. Since it was recognised as being out of harmony with our true position. When God became man, He partook of the same moral nature that Adam possessed before the fall.”

What is the public standing of the SDA church today? A repudiation of what they once stood for. The SDA church, point 4: “Differing with the positions of the church on nonessentials. While apostasy always takes its toll, one of the heavy pressures on the remnant church today is the divisive effect of some segments of the church who nevertheless profess dedication to Christ and the finishing of the mission of the church. These members hold certain positions on the human nature of Christ, the nature of sin, and the doctrine of righteousness by faith in an end-time setting. Since the Adventist people as a whole do not share these views, the former feel that the church has apostatized from the faith of the pioneers. Some would even suggest that the organized church is no longer fulfilling the role of the remnant church as specified in prophecy.

In some respects the present situation is similar to the experience of the early church and the Jerusalem Council. The world church of Seventh-Day Adventists has agreed on 27 Fundamental Beliefs, summarization of basic Biblical teachings, and seeks to rally the membership to the Saviour and this core of Bible truths. The specific topics alluded to above are not a part of these summarizations. The world church has never viewed these subjects as essential either to salvation or to the mission of the remnant church. The Scriptures do not make these subjects central; the data is sparse; and there are sharp differences of view with devoted Christians on both sides.

There can be no strong unity within the world church of God’s remnant people so long as segments who hold these views vocalize and agitate them both in North America and in overseas divisions. These topics need to be laid aside and not urged upon our people as necessary issues. We should not let Satan take an advantage of God’s church at this point and allow such matters to divide us and, consequently, to weaken our outreach and fellowship…”

“The humanity of the Son of God is everything to us. It is the golden chain that binds our souls to Christ, and through Christ to God. This is to be our study. Christ was a real man; He gave proof of His humility in becoming a man. Yet He was God in the flesh. When we approach this subject, we would do well to heed the words spoken by Christ to Moses at the burning bush, ‘Put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.’ (Ex.3:5) We should come to this study with the humility of a learner, with a contrite heart. And the study of the incarnation of Christ is a fruitful field, which will repay the searcher who digs deep for hidden truth.” 1 SM 244.1

“There are many who err, and who feel their shame and folly. They look upon their mistakes and errors until they are driven almost to desperation. These souls we are not to neglect. When one has to swim against the stream, there is all the force of the current driving him back. Let a helping hand be held out to him, as was the Elder Brother’s to the sinking Peter. Speak to him hopeful words, words that inspire him with courage.

Tell him of an almighty hand that will hold him up, of an infinite humanity in Christ that pities him. It is not enough for him to believe in law and force, things that have no pity, and never hear the call for help. He needs to clasp a hand that is warm, to trust in a heart full of tenderness. Keep his mind stayed on the thought of the divine Helper ever beside him, ever looking upon him with pitying love. Bid him think of a Father’s heart that ever grieves over sin, of a Father’s hand stretched out still, of a Father’s voice saying, ‘Come unto Me,… and I will give you rest.’” RH, January 19, 1911, par. 8

I was once part of a membership of the Seventh Day Adventist Reform Movement that says this about the nature of Christ. This was a declaration they made in 1999: They do say like the others say, that Jesus Christ did come in the same human flesh as us, but then they say: “While He, Christ took our fallen nature we believe in harmony with what is written that in Him there is no evil propensity to sin but that He was tempted from without, not from within.” SDA Reform Movement-Glad Tidings Magazine.

They are saying exactly the same thing as what the Catholic Church is saying. There was no sinful impulses coming through Him. They follow on to say: “Christ partook of our sinful nature and was thus encompassed with infirmities, weaknesses, and liabilities but He had no evil propensities in human nature. Evil tendencies are evil propensities or evil leanings, inclinations and bias. These reside in our mind, not in our physical flesh. Christ had none of these in His mind or flesh.” SDA Reform Movement-Glad Tidings Magazine.

Shall we be silent and not identify false teachers? The central pillar of the SDA three angel’s messages is the faith of Jesus The experience that Jesus made in our sinful flesh. If that is deranged, we have no saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. We need to identify through the flock, the error and who teaches it. Just like Paul did. So the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus give you a divine assurance, a divine assurance that you are saved through the precious gift of the atonement of Jesus Christ in the incarnation that you can follow His example and deal with your sin in your sinful flesh in exactly the same way as Jesus dealt with His. Anyone who teaches different, is of the spirit of the anti- Christ.

Through this understanding you can be assured where it says, if they do not speak according to the law and to the testimony, there is no light in them. They might have all the other truths right, but if they do not proclaim it with living application, there is no light in them.

We must stand up and be counted on the very central pillar of the SDA faith that was once delivered to the saints. That we would watch ourselves and the doctrine and uphold the pure doctrine that is the central pillar that upholds every other doctrine so that we don’t become confused by false teachings that are around us today. There has been a sad destruction of pure truth in the ranks of Christendom today, but praise God that all the central pillars of the faith have been delivered to God’s people. Let us uphold, preach, teach, and agitate them to the ends of the earth, for then Christ can come, when the true gospel is restored.
AMEN.

John Thiel, Austrialia