The biggest problem facing the church today is similar to that which the Jewish church faced in the time of Christ! The constituted church authority condemned Jesus and instructed the people to reject Him. In these last days we have the constituted authority of the SDA church that has rejected the Biblical faith of the pioneers, which, in 1904 Ellen White was shown that God had established during the fifty years prior, and that efforts to overturn it were to be resisted.

These Fundamental Principles were published in the 1889 Adventist Yearbook. We must resist Caiaphas before we can resist Caesar. The Mark of the Beast will bring us in conflict with Caesar. But if we cannot run with the footmen (Caiaphas’s modern day equivalent), how will we contend with horses (the powers of earth who will impose false worship)?

Modern Christianity has gone astray on two counts, and like ancient Israel that often went astray, we need to repent.

1. We have displaced God the Father from His position as the Supreme Being in the universe – in most cases, putting Jesus in His place, which Jesus Himself does not accept.

2. We have spread the notion that the death of Jesus Christ pays the penalty for all sins – making persons either liable to pay a debt which has already been paid or free to sin with impunity because the debt for all their sins has already been paid.

BEWARE THAT WE DO NOT MISS THE ISSUES

On the first count, consider the following:

1.         The issue is not that Jesus is not God. Jesus is God by nature – same nature and character as His Father. But Jesus has a God who begot Him (John 1:14). Jesus has a God who anoints Him (Heb.1:9). Jesus has a God who appoints Him (Heb. 1:2). Jesus has a God who sends Him (John 17:18). Jesus has a God whose will He does (John 6:38). Jesus has a God who reveals things to Him (John 5:20). Jesus has a God who gives Him power (1 Cor. 15:27). There is concern that Jesus is being diminished. Really? It is the Father who is being diminished. He dwells in light that no man can approach unto (1 Tim. 6:16). No one anoints Him. No one appoints Him. No one sends Him. No one reveals anything to Him. No one instructs Him (Isa. 40:13). He does the will of no one but His own will. No one gives Him power. He can swear by none greater than Himself (Heb. 6:13). It is His name that the saved will have written in their foreheads (Rev. 14:1). The entire family in heaven and in earth is named after Him (Eph. 3:15).

2.         The issue is not that the Holy Spirit is not a person separate from God and Christ. Rather, it is that The Holy Spirit is sent by God and not a co-equal with God; and there is no biblical precedent of anyone worshipping the Holy Spirit.

3.         God gave His only begotten Son to die for us. It was not an eternal God who cannot die, who simply came and appeared to die but, in reality, cannot die. What is confusing most Trinitarians is the lack of appreciation that a living soul has two parts, body and spirit (Gen. 2:7). The difference between us and Christ is that Christ has a spirit like His Father, while He has a body like us – so, in that sense, He is both God and man. The Bible is clear, that in becoming human, Christ – the spirit being who pre-existed with the Father, the only other person who has a God-spirit fully, like the Father – took on a human body after putting off His celestial body, which was similar but not identical to the Father’s celestial body (Phil. 2:5-8; 1 Cor. 15:39-49). In putting off His celestial body, Christ effectively died from the foundation of the world – since the body without the spirit is dead (Rev. 13:8; James 2:26). His entire existence was now in the hands of His Father, who gave Him a human body (Heb. 10:5) – making Him alive again, as a human, but still retaining His God-spirit. The reverse took place when He died, as a human, and was made alive again at the resurrection with a glorified human body. On the cross, He committed the keeping of His spirit to His Father (Luke 23:46) and it was His Father who afterward raised Him from the dead (Gal. 1:1).

PENALTY REMAINS FOR SINS NOT REPENTED OF

Regarding the second count on which modern Christianity has gone astray, one should think about this: Whoever said that Christ paid the penalty for all sins? Do not the wicked pay the penalty for their own sins in the lake of fire (Rev. 21:8)? And doesn’t Satan, as the Scapegoat, pay the penalty for the sins that he would have caused the repentant sinner to commit, when those confessed sins are placed upon him (Lev. 16:21, 22)? It does not suffice to say that the penalty was paid but people are lost because they did not accept that the debt is already paid, because many will claim to accept Christ, wanting salvation, even saying, “Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in your name?” and will still be lost because they did not do God’s will (Matt.7:21, 22).

It is the sin of Adam that had condemned us all that Christ paid the penalty for at Calvary. That is the free gift to all. But we must confess our own sins and repent of them to be forgiven of them – “Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life.” (Rom.5:18); “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9).

In addition to the free gift of forgiveness to all humanity for the sin of Adam that had condemned us all, and God’s offer of forgiveness for our individual sins, if we repent of them, God offers us a new heart and spirit that will empower us to live righteously – “A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.” (Eze. 36:26, 27). These latter gifts we can receive only by our conscious choice, whereas the former gift was given freely to all humanity when we were enemies, independent of any choice that we would have made or not made – “For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.” (Rom. 5:10).

By His present life, as our Advocate and High Priest, Christ intercedes on our behalf before the Father and in the presence of the holy angels so that we can be forgiven of our sins and be empowered with spiritual gifts so that we can live righteously. He will receive the kingdom of this earth from His Father and will return at His second coming to receive us (1 John 2:1; Eph. 4:10-15; Rev.3:5; Heb.4:14-16; Dan. 7:13, 14; John 14:1-3).

So, let us repent and seek God’s forgiveness for our own sins and accept the power that He offers us to live righteously. Let us not think that we are rich and increased with goods and have need of nothing, when we are in God’s sight, “wretched, and miserable, and poor and blind and naked” (Rev. 3:17). Instead, let us seek God for gold tried in the fire that we might be rich, white raiment that we might be clothed, that the shame of our nakedness does not appear, and eyesalve that we might see (Rev.3:18).

“He that hath ears to hear, let him hear” (Matt. 11:15).

For further information, please visit Patience of the Saints at http://thecommandmentsofgodandthefaithofjesus.com/

Questions and comments may be sent by e-mail to: commandmentsofgodandfaithofjesus@yahoo.com

The SDA church is right about the great controversy world view. But they could never accept the Trinity if they really believed the great controversy vision that Ellen White got in 1858, which was a repeat of what was revealed to her ten years earlier (Spiritual Gifts Vol. 2, p. 270). This time, she got specific instructions to write it out, and she was told that Satan would try to stop her from writing it. She was struck with partial paralysis the very next day, and she saw that it was Satan’s attempt to kill her before she could write the vision (Spiritual Gifts Vol. 2, p. 272). God protected her and she wrote it.

What did Ellen White see in the great controversy vision? She saw that Lucifer was a high and exalted angel in heaven, next in honour to Jesus Christ, God’s dear Son, before he rebelled and became Satan. Lucifer was jealous of Jesus, because God exalted Jesus, and this envy caused Lucifer to rebel against God, the Father of Jesus (Spiritual Gifts Vol. 1, p. 17).

Do Seventh-day Adventist believe this? If so, how is it that the church is now saying that Jesus is not the literal Son of God but only one of three coequal beings who is simply playing a role as Son? And that there is a third divine being who is coequal with the Father? They say that the mark of the remnant church is that they keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus which is the spirit of prophecy. But do they really accept the great controversy vision as divine revelation through the spirit of prophecy? Question to ponder.

The Father of Christ is Supreme and Not One-third of a Three-part God

To be clear, the Trinity doctrine is not simply that there is Father, Son and Holy Spirit, which is quite biblical. Instead, the Trinity doctrine is that the three (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) make up the one God, which is false and unscriptural. The Bible teaches that there is one supreme Being, who is the “God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Eph. 1:3; 3:14, 15) – “One God and Father of all, who is above all” (Eph. 4:6). The entire family in heaven and in earth is named after Him (Eph. 3:15). He is not one-third of a three-part God. There is “one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus” (1 Tim. 2:5);  “the head of Christ is God” (1 Cor. 11:3). Jesus said of Him, “I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God.” (John 20:17). He is Jesus’s God. He is “the blessed and only Potentate” (1 Tim.6:15), “dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see” (1 Tim.6:16).

Jesus is God, by nature – same nature as His Father, but He is not the supreme Being. He has a God to whom He submits. There is no mystery in this. We should not mystify that which is already plain. The Trinity makes nonsense of the gospel by making out that the immortal God died. How can one be dead and be immortal at the same time? The Bible refers to God as “Him that sat on the throne, who liveth for ever and ever” (Rev. 4:9) while referring to Christ as “he that liveth, and was dead” (Rev. 1:18).

The scriptures are simple and clear on the matter of who God is. God is the father of Christ. Christ is the Son of God. The Holy Spirit is someone sent by Christ to represent Him until He returns. “For though, there be that are called gods, whether in heaven or in earth, (as there be gods many, and lords many,) But to us there is but one God, the Father” (1 Cor. 8:5, 6); “One God and Father of all, who is above all” (Eph. 4:6). The Father is not one-third of a three-part God.

May modern Israel, the people of God, be armed with the truth so that the Trinity Goliath of pagan falsehood that was brought into Christianity by Rome might be decisively defeated.

Our heritage comes from the apostles and the church that had to flee into the wilderness for 1260 years after the Edict of Thessalonica (380 AD), enforcing the Trinity, took full effect after the so-called Arian nations were defeated in 538 AD. Our pioneers built on the biblical foundation that was preserved by the church in the wilderness, not on the creeds and councils of Rome.

“Thus Saith The Lord…” Above Human Speculation

A highly respected Union President once said: “An ounce of inspiration is better than tons of speculation”.

Good king Jehoshaphat said: “Hear me, O Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem; Believe in the LORD your God, so shall ye be established; believe his prophets, so shall ye prosper.” (2 Chron. 20:20).

The truth concerning God and Christ was revealed in vision to Ellen G. White in the Great Contoversy vision in 1858 while at a funeral service in Lovett’s Grove, Ohio. You can read how she got the vision and how Satan tried to kill her to prevent her writing it, in the book Spiritual Gifts Vol. 2 pgs. 265-272 (by Ellen G. White). You will read that she “could write at first but one page a day, then rest three”. In this condition she wrote what was revealed to her concerning the Great Controversy. The very first words she wrote were as follows:

“The Lord has shown me that Satan was once an honored angel in heaven, next to Jesus Christ. His countenance was mild, expressive of happiness like the other angels. His forehead was high and broad, and showed great intelligence. His form was perfect. He had a noble, majestic bearing. And I saw that when God said to his Son, Let us make man in our image, Satan was jealous of Jesus. He wished to be consulted concerning the formation of man. He was filled with envy, jealousy and hatred. He wished to be the highest in heaven, next to God, and receive the highest honors. Until this time all heaven was in order, harmony and perfect subjection to the government of God. 1SG 17.1

It was the highest sin to rebel against the order and will of God. All heaven seemed in commotion. The angels were marshaled in companies with a commanding angel at their head. All the angels were astir. Satan was insinuating against the government of God, ambitious to exalt himself, and unwilling to submit to the authority of Jesus. Some of the angels sympathized with Satan in his rebellion, and others strongly contended for the honor and wisdom of God in giving authority to his Son. And there was contention with the angels. Satan and his affected ones, who were striving to reform the government of God, wished to look into his unsearchable wisdom to ascertain his purpose in exalting Jesus, and endowing him with such unlimited power and command.” Ellen G. White, Spiritual Gifts Vol. 1 pg. 17

God is love. Love trumps unity. The Trinity teaches unity, but the truth teaches love.

Here is the love of God manifested:

“Said the angel, Think ye that the Father yielded up his dearly beloved Son without a struggle? No, no. It was even a struggle with the God of heaven, whether to let guilty man perish, or to give his beloved Son to die for them. Angels were so interested for man’s salvation that there could be found among them those who would yield their glory, and give their life for perishing man. But, said my accompanying angel, That would avail nothing. The transgression was so great that an angel’s life would not pay the debt. Nothing but the death and intercessions of his Son would pay the debt, and save lost man from hopeless sorrow and misery.” Ellen G. White, Spiritual Gifts Vol. 1, pg. 26.

Not even the prophet herself has the authority to contradict what God revealed directly. Thus saith the LORD…. above all human speculation.

The three powers of heaven are God, Christ and angels. The Comforter is a messenger sent by Christ from the Father, aided by other ministering spirits.

Like Abraham, when he was called to yield his only son, Isaac, God gave His only begotten Son. Christ was already His Son before coming to this earth.

Where in the Bible does it say that the one God is three persons?

IT IS TIME TO REPENT!

Think . . .Why were there pagan Trinities but none in Israel?

“God is one” (Deut.6:4) – not three.

“One God and Father of all, who is above all” (Eph.4:6).

“the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Eph.1:3).

I challenge any Trinitarian to show me the love of the Father in their Trinitarian philosophy.

I repeat: “An ounce of inspiration is better than tons of speculation”.

“Jehoshaphat stood and said, Hear me, O Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem; Believe in the LORD your God, so shall ye be established; believe his prophets, so shall ye prosper.” (2 Chron. 20:20).

Ask yourselves, which Bible writer ever taught or ever articulated such an idea that God is three persons? Every Bible scholar knows that the entire concept was formulated between 325 AD and 381 AD during the period of apostasy that started with Emperor Constantine.

It is time to repent!

“He that hath ears to hear, let him hear” (Matt. 11:15).

For further information, please visit Patience of the Saints at http://thecommandmentsofgodandthefaithofjesus.com/

Questions and comments may be sent by e-mail to: commandmentsofgodandfaithofjesus@yahoo.com