“I am that bread of life.” John 7:48. Have any of the Scribes or Pharisees believed on Him? “Those to whom the message of truth is spoken seldom ask, ‘Is it true?’ but, ‘By whom is it advocated?’ Multitudes estimate it by the numbers who accept it; and the question is still asked, ‘Have any of the learned men or religious leaders believed?’ Men are no more favorable to real godliness now than in the days of Christ. They are just as intently seeking earthly good, to the neglect of eternal riches; and it is not an argument against the truth, that large numbers are not ready to accept it, or that it is not received by the world’s great men, or even by the religious leaders.” The Desire of Ages, p. 459 Is this the criteria whereby we can see if something is true or right—by asking who is advocating it ?
What if our spiritual forefathers had accepted what the Seventh-Day Adventist General Conference were saying: “Have any of the leading men of the General Conference accepted this weird doctrine of being a Conscientious Objector?” Can we put our faith or trust in our church organization to save us? Like something can only be true if our own organization endorses it? What did Sister White do time after time with the General Conference leaders and the corporate entity of Adventism? And on the other side, people seldom ask about the message if they can dismiss it by attacking those who advocate it.
Slander—to blacken the reputation of someone. There are some of us in our church who seem to believe that as long as he has left our church, then slander is okay. . . . It is okay if he has left our church, isn’t it? “To speak evil of no man, to be no brawlers, but gentle, shewing all meekness unto all men. For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another. But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared, Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour; That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life. This is a faithful saying, and these things I will that thou affirm constantly, that they which have believed in God might be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable unto men.” Titus 3:2–8 We are to speak evil of no man, the Bible says.
“For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?” Matthew 7:2–3. Be careful how you treat others—it is going to be measured back to you again.
We have the Seventh-Day Adventist example before us of what they have done with the writings of Ellen G. White. They have tried to trademark them, so that no one can use them on one hand; and on the other, they say it is only right if it comes out of their church organization.
“When we condemn or criticise others, we declare ourselves guilty; in the very act of judging them, we are breaking God’s law. Our own character is revealed in the way we treat others. He who is censorious, self-sufficient, in judging others, shows that he himself is devoid of the grace of Christ. It is those that are blinded by the enemy to their own defects of character who are forward in criticising and condemning. Their own lack of the spirit of forbearance and love leads them to make a world of an atom. He who is watching for the defects of others, ready to accuse and condemn, is doing the same work in which Satan has been engaged since his rebellion. He links himself with him who is the accuser of the brethren.
“Thus in accusing others we are passing sentence upon ourselves, and God declares that this sentence shall stand. Remember this, you who are so ready to criticise others. The sentence which you think to pass upon them you are passing upon yourselves, and thus it stands in the records of heaven. God accepts the sentence, your own verdict against yourselves. Are you willing to abide by it in the final day?” –Signs of the Times, March 21, 1892
“For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son: And hath given Him authority to execute judgment also, because He is the Son of man.” John 5:22, 27
“God declares that He has committed all judgment unto the Son. Not to finite men, who can judge only from the outward appearance, but to Him who reads the heart, who knows the secret springs of action, and who deals tenderly and compassionately,—to Him it is given to decide the case of every soul. And those who take upon themselves the work of passing judgment or pronouncing upon the motives of another, are assuming the prerogatives of the Son of God. Are they not thus also linking themselves with Satan, the usurper?” –Signs of the Times, March 21, 1892
Can we be looking at our own faults if we are focused on the faults of others? How did the Pharisees lose Christ? Wasn’t it this very way? “Those who allow prejudice to bar the mind against the reception of truth cannot receive the divine enlightenment. Yet, when a view of Scripture is presented, many do not ask, Is it True,—in harmony with God’s word? but, By whom is it advocated? and unless it comes through the very channel that pleases them, they do not accept it. So thoroughly satisfied are they with their own ideas, that they will not examine the Scripture evidence, with a desire to learn, but refuse to be interested, merely because of their prejudices.
“The Lord often works where we least expect Him; He surprises us by revealing His power through instruments of His own choice, while He passes by the men to whom we have looked as those through whom light should come. God desires us to receive the truth upon its own merits,—because it is truth.
“The Bible must not be interpreted to suit the ideas of men, however long they may have held these ideas to be true. We are not to accept the opinion of commentators as the voice of God; they were erring mortals like ourselves. God has given reasoning powers to us as well as to them. We should make the Bible its own expositor.
“All should be careful about presenting new views of Scripture before they have given these points thorough study, and are fully prepared to sustain them from the Bible. Introduce nothing that will cause dissension, without clear evidence that in it God is giving a special message for this time.
“But beware of rejecting that which is truth. The great danger with our people has been that of depending upon men, and making flesh their arm. Those who have not been in the habit of searching the Bible for themselves, or weighing evidence, have confidence in the leading men, and accept the decisions they make, and thus many will reject the very messages God sends to His people, if these leading brethren do not accept them.
“No one should claim that he has all the light there is for God’s people. The Lord will not tolerate this. ‘I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it.’ [Revelation 3:8.] Even if all our leading men should refuse light and truth, that door will still remain open. The Lord will raise up men who will give the people the message for this time.
“Truth is eternal, and conflict with error will only make manifest its strength. We should never refuse to examine the Scriptures with those who, we have reason to believe, desire to know what is truth. Suppose a brother held a view that differed from yours, and he should come to you, proposing that you sit down with him and make an investigation of that point in the Scriptures; should you rise up, filled with prejudice, and condemn his ideas, while refusing to give him a candid hearing? The only right way would be to sit down as Christians, and investigate the position presented, in the light of God’s work, which will reveal truth and unmask error. To ridicule his ideas would not weaken his position in the least if it were false, or strengthen your position if it were true. If the pillars of our faith will not stand the test of investigation, it is time that we knew it. There must be no spirit of Phariseeism cherished among us.” –Gospel Workers 1892, p. 125–127
Do you remember Martin Luther’s example when studying the Bible—what he said about the kind of attitude we should have when it comes to studying the Bible? (Though he was very learned, yet he humbled himself like a little child).
“We should come with reverence to the study of the Bible, feeling that we are in the presence of God. All lightness and trifling should be laid aside. While some portions of the word are easily understood, the true meaning of other parts is not so readily discerned. There must be patient study and meditation, and earnest prayer. Every student, as he opens the Scriptures, should ask for the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit, and the promise is sure, that it will be given.
“The spirit in which you come to the investigation of the Scriptures will determine the character of the assistant at your side. Angels from the world of light will be with those who in humility of heart seek for divine guidance. But if the Bible is opened with irreverence, with a feeling of self-sufficiency, if the heart is filled with prejudice, Satan is beside you, and he will set the plain statements of God’s word in a perverted light.
“There are some who indulge in levity, sarcasm, and even mockery toward those who differ with them. Others present an array of objections to any new view; and when these objections are plainly answered by the words of Scripture, they do not acknowledge the evidence presented, nor allow themselves to be convinced. –Gospel Workers, 92 p. 127–128
We must be very careful when it comes to examining truth—and not gauge it by whom it is advocated, merely. We also have to be careful not to criticize or condemn others that have left our church organization—feeling free to slander or blacken their chracters, just because they have left us—perhaps, especially if they have left us—for how could they ever find their way back to the truth, if we only condemn and slander them?
In fact, when we dwell upon the faults and errors of others at any time, we are really in great danger—why? Because then we can’t see our own faults and errors—and those are the very ones that we have to focus upon, isn’t it? (In fact, the Spirit of Prophecy says it is better for us to see ten of our own faults, than one of someone else’s faults).
“I then saw a company pressing through the crowd with their eyes intently fixed upon the heavenly crown. As they earnestly urged their way through the disorderly crowd, angels attended them, and made room for them to advance. As they neared the heavenly crown, the light emanating from it shone upon them and around them, dispelling their darkness, and growing clearer and brighter, until they seemed to be transformed, and resembled the angels. They cast not one lingering look upon the earthly crown. Those who were in pursuit of the earthly, mocked them, and threw black balls after them. These did them no injury while their eyes were fixed upon the heavenly crown, but those who turned their attention to the black balls were stained with them. The following scripture was presented before me: ‘Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light. But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness! No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.’ Matthew 6:19-24.
“Then that which I had seen was explained to me as follows: The multitude who were so eagerly striving for the earthly crown, were those who love this world’s treasure, and are deceived and flattered with its short-lived attractions. Some, I saw, who profess to be the followers of Jesus, are so ambitious to obtain earthly treasures that they lose their love for heaven, act like the world, and are accounted of God as of the world. They profess to be seeking an immortal crown, a treasure in the heavens; but their interest and principal study is to acquire earthly treasures. Those who have their treasures in this world, and love their riches, cannot love Jesus.” –Christian Experience and Teachings of Ellen G. White, p. 163–164
Couldn’t we also say that these treasures include the power that this world has to offer? The Jews did not recognize Jesus when He came to them, because the Scribes and Pharisees would not accept Him. Is it any different for us today? How many people are willing to accept truth in any guise in which it comes to them? Only those who will be saved, isn’t it?
Jerry Eaton