of daily as used in Daniel ~ Further Study ~ Further Study 1 Seventh-day Adventist and the Sanctuary. Writing of what must be accomplished by the emerging Seventh-day Adventist Church before the Lord shall come, Ellen G. White in 1883 said: The minds of believers were to be directed to the heavenly sanctuary, where Christ had entered to make atonement for His people. {1Selected Messages 67.9} In a crisis in 1906, in which certain of the basic teachings of Seventh-day Adventists were threatened, she wrote: ‘The correct understanding of the ministration [of Christ] in the heavenly sanctuary is the foundation of our faith.’ {Evangelism 221.2} {Christ In His Sanctuary, vii.3-6} We are God’s commandment-keeping people. For the past fifty years [180 years] every phase of heresy has been brought to bear upon us, to becloud our minds regarding the teaching of the Word especially concerning the ministration of Christ in the heavenly sanctuary, and the message of Heaven for these last days, as given by the angels of the fourteenth chapter of Revelation. Messages of every order and kind have been urged upon Seventh-day Adventists, to take the place of the truth which, point by point, has been sought out by prayerful study, and testified to by the miracle-working power of the Lord. But the waymarks which have made us what we are, are to be preserved, and they will be preserved, as God has signified through His Word and the testimony of His Spirit. He calls upon us to hold firmly, with the grip of faith, to the fundamental principles that are based upon unquestionable authority. {1Selected Messages 208.2} Satan invents unnumbered schemes to occupy our minds, that they may not dwell upon the very work with which we ought to be best acquainted. The archdeceiver hates the great truths that bring to view an atoning sacrifice and an all-powerful mediator. He knows that with him everything depends on his diverting minds from Jesus and His truth. {Great Controversy 488.1} “I know that the sanctuary question stands in righteousness and truth, just as we have held it for so many years. It is the enemy that leads minds off on sidetracks. He is pleased when those who know the truth become engrossed in collecting scriptures to pile around erroneous theories, which have no foundation in truth. The scriptures thus used are misapplied; they were not given to substantiate error, but to strengthen truth.” {Gospel Workers 303.1} Further Study 2 We may have less to say . . . There is need of a much closer study of the word of God; especially should Daniel and the Revelation have attention as never before in the history of our work. We may have less to say in some lines, in regard to the Roman power and the papacy; but we should call attention to what the prophets and apostles have written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit of God. The Holy Spirit has so shaped matters, both in the giving of the prophecy and in the events portrayed, as to teach that the human agent is to be kept out of sight, hid in Christ, and that the Lord God of heaven and His law are to be exalted. Read the book of Daniel. Call up, point by point, the history of the kingdoms there represented. Behold statesmen, councils, powerful armies, and see how God wrought to abase the pride of men, and lay human glory in the dust. . . . {TM 112.2} The light that Daniel received from God was given especially for these last days. The visions he saw by the banks of the Ulai and the Hiddekel, the great rivers of Shinar, are now in process of fulfillment, and all the events foretold will soon come to pass. {TM 112.3} Consider the circumstances of the Jewish nation when the prophecies of Daniel were given. {TM 113.1} Further Study 3 Jesus is Our Daily. Daily we are to behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. [John 1:29] If we would look away from self to Jesus, making him our guide, the world would see in our churches a power that it does not now see. {RH, August 2, 1906 par. 18} Daily we are to receive from Heaven the healing balm of God’s grace to impart to the needy and suffering. {WM 98.3} We are to be molded and fashioned by the precious truths of the Bible. Daily we are to hold communion with Him who knoweth the end from the beginning. {21MR 425.3} Practical religion is far-reaching in its influence, and will aid us in fulfilling the duties of daily life. Daily we are to learn of Him who is meek and lowly in heart, and find rest unto our souls. It is in obeying the word of God that peace and rest come in. O, what fragrance might be brought into the daily life if all were to follow simply and completely the teachings of the word of God, which is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path! Like the rays of the sun in heaven, which brighten the earth, so are the commandments of God exceeding broad. {ST, August 22, 1895 par. 5} The fourth chapter of Ephesians contains precious instruction for the children of God at this time. We are to make continual advancement in the perfecting of Christian character, that we may be no more ‘children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the slight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; but speaking the truth in love, may grow up unto him in all things, which is the head, even Christ.’ {YI, February 11, 1908 par. 7} Through the ages that have passed since the days of the apostles, the building of God’s temple has never ceased. We may look back through the centuries and see the living stones of which it is composed gleaming like jets of light through the darkness of error and superstition. Throughout eternity these precious jewels will shine with increasing luster, testifying to the power of the truth of God. The flashing light of these polished stones reveals the strong contrast between light and darkness, between the gold of truth and the dross of error. {AA 598.2} Further Study 4 The Study of the Sanctuary is Vital for the Christian. The subject of the sanctuary and the investigative judgment should be clearly understood by the people of God. All need a knowledge for themselves of the position and work of their great High Priest. Otherwise it will be impossible for them to exercise the faith which is essential at this time or to occupy the position which God designs them to fill. Every individual has a soul to save or to lose. Each has a case pending at the bar of God. Each must meet the great Judge face to face. How important, then, that every mind contemplate often the solemn scene when the judgment shall sit and the books shall be opened, when, with Daniel, every individual must stand in his lot, at the end of the days. [Dan 7:10; 12:13] {GC 488.2} All who have received the light upon these subjects are to bear testimony of the great truths which God has committed to them. The sanctuary in heaven is the very center of Christ’s work in behalf of men. It concerns every soul living upon the earth. It opens to view the plan of redemption, bringing us down to the very close of time and revealing the triumphant issue of the contest between righteousness and sin. It is of the utmost importance that all should thoroughly investigate these subjects and be able to give an answer to everyone that asketh them a reason of the hope that is in them. {GC 488.3} The intercession of Christ in man’s behalf in the sanctuary above is as essential to the plan of salvation as was His death upon the cross. By His death He began that work which after His resurrection He ascended to complete in heaven. We must by faith enter within the veil, whither the forerunner is for us entered. Heb 6:20. There the light from the cross of Calvary is reflected. There we may gain a clearer insight into the mysteries of redemption. The salvation of man is accomplished at an infinite expense to heaven; the sacrifice made is equal to the broadest demands of the broken law of God. Jesus has opened the way to the Father’s throne, and through His mediation the sincere desire of all who come to Him in faith may be presented before God. {GC 489.1} The great plan of redemption, as revealed in the closing work of these last days, should receive close examination. The scenes connected with the sanctuary above should make such an impression upon the minds and hearts of all that they may be able to impress others. All need to become more intelligent in regard to the work of the atonement, which is going on in the sanctuary above. When this grand truth is seen and understood, those who hold it will work in harmony with Christ to prepare a people to stand in the great day of God, and their efforts will be successful. {5T 575.1} The central theme of the Bible, the theme about which every other in the whole book clusters, is the redemption plan, the restoration in the human soul of the image of God. From the first intimation of hope in the sentence pronounced in Eden to that last glorious promise of the Revelation, They shall see His face; and His name shall be in their foreheads (Rev 22:4), the burden of every book and every passage of the Bible is the unfolding of this wondrous theme, man’s uplifting, the power of God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 1Cor 15:57. {Ed 125.2} He who grasps this thought has before him an infinite field for study. He has the key that will unlock to him the whole treasure house of God’s word. {Ed 126.1} The science of redemption is the science of all sciences; the science that is the study of the angels and of all the intelligences of the unfallen worlds; the science that engages the attention of our Lord and Saviour; the science that enters into the purpose brooded in the mind of the Infinite kept in silence through times eternal (Rom 16:25, R.V.); the science that will be the study of God’s redeemed throughout endless ages. This is the highest study in which it is possible for man to engage. As no other study can, it will quicken the mind and uplift the soul. {Ed 126.2} The excellency of knowledge is, that wisdom giveth life to them that have it. The words that I speak unto you, said Jesus, they are spirit, and they are life. This is life eternal, that they should know Thee the only true God, and Him whom Thou didst send. Eccl 7:12; John 6:63; 17:3, R.V. {Ed 126.3} Further Study 5 Daily Cleansing the Soul Temple. The work of cleansing the soul-temple and preparing for Christs appearing must be done while we are in this world of temptation. Just as Christ finds us in character when he comes, so we shall remain. {HS 134.5} We should make daily advancement in the work of character-building. When we try to separate from us our sinful habits, it may at times seem that we are tearing ourselves all to pieces; but this is the very work that we must do if we would grow up unto the full stature of men and women in Christ Jesus, if we would become fit temples for the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. It is not the will of God that we should remain in feebleness and darkness. He would have us put on the whole armor, and fight valiantly the battle against sin and self. And after we have truly repented of our sins, and done all that we can to overcome them, he would have us manifest a calm, unyielding trust in the merits of a crucified and risen Saviour. {HS 134.6} Further Study 6 Satan invents unnumbered schemes. Satan invents unnumbered schemes to occupy our minds, that they may not dwell upon the very work with which we ought to be best acquainted. The archdeceiver hates the great truths that bring to view an atoning sacrifice and an all-powerful mediator. He knows that with him everything depends on his diverting minds from Jesus and His truth. {Great Controversy 488.1} We are to go forward in the strength of the Mighty One. Never are we to yield to Satan’s attacks. Why should not we, as Christian warriors, stand against principalities and powers, and against the rulers of the darkness of this world? God calls upon us to press forward, using the gifts entrusted to us. Satan will place temptation before us. He will try to overcome us by stratagem. But in the strength of God we are to stand firm as a rock to principle. {9T 219.4} |