Editorial by Editor

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Washington, D. C. · Apr 13, 1911

Editorial

By Editor

“WALK worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called, with all lowliness and meekness, with long-suffering, forbearing one another in love; endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”

To build up the believers in this unity, the gifts of the Spirit are placed in the church. All the gifts are needed, and no one gift is independent of the others. They are all set in the church to build it up “till we all come in the unity of the faith, . . . unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ.”

ALL through the early years of the message our brethren had experiences with factions that drew off, some on one thing, some on another, with the one similarity that they all seem to have raised the cry of popery when they could not dominate the body of believers, and attacked the spiritual gifts in the church, usually both the spirit of prophecy and the administrative gifts by which the work was kept moving forward harmoniously.

IN one such experience, in 1857, Elder R. F. Cottrell wrote:—

If it is a fact, as we fully believe it is, that the third message of Revelation fourteen is now being given, the Lord is now doing a special work, equal, at least, to that of leading the Israelites through the desert to the land of Canaan. This message will consummate the work of preparing the remnant of God’s people for translation,—a people in whose mouth will be found no guile, being without fault before the throne. The importance of the work, and the fact that the Director of it is “excellent in working,” are a sufficient guaranty that it will be accomplished as harmoniously as any in which he anciently engaged. Poor, fallible, human instruments may fail. A Moses or an Aaron may be tempted to speak unadvisedly with his lips, and die on this side of Jordan. In such case the garments of Aaron will be put upon Eleazar (Num. 20:26), and Moses will lay his hands upon Joshua (Deut. 34:9), and thus the work move on harmoniously ; but the sons of Korah will perish in their gainsaying. Numbers 16; Jude 11.

God has not sent the third angel’s message into the world without choosing the means and instruments by which to send it. Men, as instruments, are liable to err, or even to fall away from the truth. Even the apostle Paul, who had not only a special but a miraculous call to preach the gospel to the nations, was still obliged to keep his body under, and bring it into subjection, lest when he had preached the gospel to others, he himself should be a castaway. But the operations of God can not be subverted. He is not divided in these operations against himself. He does not fail in the first attempt, and have to begin again. There is no such precedent upon record—no such failure written aforetime for our learning; but all the reverse. Therefore we may confidently come to this conclusion: that if the same God that led Israel through the desert has set his hand to fulfil the prophetic message of the third angel,—the last merciful warning to the world before the coming of the Son of man,—he never will be driven to the necessity of perfecting the work by means of a rebellion in the camp, taking sides with the rebels and thus destroying the harmony of his own work. But God will overrule such factions for the good of his children, as Paul wrote aforetime for our learning, saying, “There must be also heresies [sects, margin] among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest.” 1 Cor. 11:19.