Place in the Plan of Salvation by ELBRIDGE M. ADAMS

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Dec 23, 1915

Place in the Plan of Salvation

By ELBRIDGE M. ADAMS

The Holy Spirit — No. 3

Place in the Plan of Salvation

ELBRIDGE M. ADAMS

ALTHOUGH the Holy Spirit is so very important to us in all that pertains to life and spirituality, its identity has not been revealed. “It is not essential for us to be able to define just what the Holy Spirit is. Christ tells us that the Spirit is the Comforter, ‘the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father.’ It is plainly declared regarding the Holy Spirit, that in his work of guiding men into all truth, ‘he shall not speak of himself.’”

“The nature of the Holy Spirit is a mystery. Men cannot explain it, because the Lord has not revealed it to them. Men having fanciful views may bring together passages of Scripture and put a human construction on them; but the acceptance of these views will not strengthen the church. Regarding such mysteries, which are too deep for human understanding, silence is golden.”—The Acts of the Apostles, pages 51, 52. “The secret things belong unto the Lord our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children forever, ‘that we may do all the words of this law.’” Deut. 29:29.

But though we do not know its nature, we may know the part it acts in the redemption of our souls and in the work of saving others. “The office of the Holy Spirit is distinctly specified in the words of Christ: ‘When he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment.’”—Id., page 52.

Two things Jesus has left us to do. One is to purify our own lives, and the other is to preach the gospel of the kingdom to all the world. No argument is necessary to convince us that to overcome sin in our hearts is no little task. And when we get a view of the world with its millions in darkness and its hindrances to the preaching of the gospel, together with the few who are thus engaged, we almost feel that we are facing a work that is impossible of accomplishment.

Paul tells us that our warfare is not waged against flesh and blood, but “against the principalities, against the powers, against the world rulers of this darkness, against the spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.” Eph. 6:12, R. V. The thought of meeting in battle the wicked spirits—those whom we cannot see, and yet who are possessed of supernatural power—would be disheartening in the extreme, did we not have the promise of supernatural help. God knows our utter weakness, and has told us, “Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, saith the Lord.” Of the disciples we read in The Desire of Ages, pages 410, 411, trade edition: “They are to contend with supernatural forces, but they are assured of supernatural help. All the intelligences of heaven are in this army. And more than angels are in the ranks. The Holy Spirit, the representative of the Captain of the Lord’s host, comes down to direct the battle. Our infirmities may be many, our sins and mistakes grievous; but the grace of God is for all who seek it with contrition. The power of Omnipotence is enlisted in behalf of those who trust in God.”

It is sometimes painful to think that all our sins, selfishness, and infirmities are known to God, and that nothing is hid from him. But it is well for us that our God is perfectly acquainted with us. He takes no advantage of this knowledge. He does not laugh at our weaknesses, nor expose them unnecessarily to others. But he looks in pity upon us, extending his strong arm to lift us up. He has admonished us to ask help of him. But he does not leave us to do even this in our own strength. “Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities; for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.” “The religion that comes from God is the only religion that will lead to God. In order to serve him aright, we must be born of the divine Spirit. This will purify the heart and renew the mind, giving us a new capacity for knowing and loving God. It will give us a willing obedience to all his requirements. This is true worship. It is the fruit of the working of the Holy Spirit. By the Spirit every sincere prayer is indited, and such prayer is acceptable to God. Wherever a soul reaches out after God, there the Spirit’s working is manifest, and God will reveal himself to that soul. For such worshipers he is seeking. He waits to receive them, and to make them his sons and daughters.”—Id., page 211.

The following words show the efficiency of the Holy Spirit, and to what extent we may expect its help. This promise ought to bring courage and hope to the weakest heart: “All who consecrate soul, body, and spirit to God, will be constantly receiving a new endowment of physical and mental power. The inexhaustible supplies of heaven are at their command. Christ gives them the breath of his own spirit, the life of his own life. The Holy Spirit puts forth its highest energies to work in heart and mind. The grace of God enlarges and multiplies their faculties, and every perfection of the divine nature comes to their assistance in the work of saving souls. Through cooperation with Christ they are complete in him, and in their human weakness they are enabled to do the deeds of Omnipotence.”—Id., page 993.

In the Bible we find many expressions similar to these: “He that abideth in me, and I in him;” “that Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith.” Now, the question may present itself, How does Christ dwell in us? This is the answer: “It is through the Spirit that Christ dwells in us; and the Spirit of God, received into the heart by faith, is the beginning of the life eternal.”—Id., page 454.

Has it ever occurred to you that the death of Christ on the cross would have been of no avail without the Holy Spirit? The following significant words are taken from The Desire of Ages, pages 802, 803:—

“In describing to his disciples the office work of the Holy Spirit, Jesus sought that to inspire them with the joy and hope that inspired his own heart. He rejoiced because of the abundant help he had provided for his church. The Holy Spirit was the highest of all gifts that he could solicit from his Father for the exaltation of his people. The Spirit was to be given as a regenerating agent, and without this the sacrifice of Christ would have been of no avail. The power of evil had been strengthening for centuries, and the submission of men to this satanic captivity was amazing. Sin could be resisted and overcome only through the mighty agency of the third person of the Godhead, who would come with no modified energy, but in the fullness of divine power. It is the Spirit that makes effectual what has been wrought out by the world’s Redeemer. It is by the Spirit that the heart is made pure. Through the Spirit the believer becomes a partaker of the divine nature. Christ has given his Spirit as a divine power to overcome all hereditary and cultivated tendencies to evil, and to impress his own character upon his church.”

Now if Jesus himself relies on the Holy Spirit to make his great sacrifice really effectual in our lives, what may we expect to accomplish while endeavoring to preach the gospel without the presence of this same Spirit?

“The preaching of the word will be of no avail without the continual presence and aid of the Holy Spirit. This is the only effectual teacher of divine truth. Only when the truth is accompanied to the heart by the Spirit, will it quicken the conscience or transform the life. One might be able to present the letter of the Word of God, he might be familiar with all its commands and promises; but unless the Holy Spirit sets home the truth, no souls will fall on the Rock and be broken. No amount of education, no advantages, however great, can make one a channel of light without the cooperation of the Spirit of God. The sowing of the gospel seed will not be a success unless the seed is quickened into life by the dew of heaven. Before one book of the New Testament was

written, before one gospel sermon had been preached after Christ’s ascension, the Holy Spirit came upon the praying apostles. Then the testimony of their enemies was, ‘Ye have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine.’”—Id., pages 803, 804.

Sometimes we are almost ready to say, If it is a matter of so great importance, why does not God give us his Spirit in greater measure? But we must find the cause of failure in ourselves.

“The lapse of time has wrought no change in Christ’s parting promise to send the Holy Spirit as his representative. It is not because of any restriction on the part of God that the riches of his grace do not flow earthward to men. If the fulfillment of the promise is not seen as it might be, it is because the promise is not appreciated as it should be. If all were willing, all would be filled with the Spirit. Wherever the need of the Holy Spirit is a matter little thought of, there is seen spiritual thought, spiritual darkness, spiritual declension and death. Whenever minor matters occupy the attention, the divine power which is necessary for the growth and prosperity of the church, and which would bring all other blessings in its train, is lacking, though offered in infinite plenitude.”—The Acts of the Apostles, page 50.

Shall we not, brethren, give the Holy Spirit its place? There is nothing else in the world that we need so much.

“Since this is the power by which we are to receive power, why do we not hunger and thirst for the gift of the Spirit? Why do we not talk of it, pray for it, and preach concerning it? The Lord is more willing to give the Holy Spirit to those who serve him than parents are to give good gifts to their children. For the daily baptism of the Spirit, every worker should offer his petition to God. Companies of Christian workers should gather to ask for special help, for heavenly wisdom, that they may know how to plan and execute wisely. Especially should they pray that God will baptize his chosen ambassadors in mission fields with a rich measure of his Spirit. The presence of the Spirit with God’s workers will give the proclamation of truth a power that not all the honor or glory of the world could give.”—Id., pages 50, 51.