p. 3 | A Burning Message by Editor

Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Jan 20, 1903

A Burning Message

By Editor

Editorial

A Burning Message

This advent message may be called a burning message. It ought to be a burning message. It ought first to burn in our own hearts as fire shut up in the bones, that cannot be quenched, but that must reveal itself. It ought to be a burning message in that it is a cleansing message; such a revelation of the glory of God, such a revelation of the presence of God in and among his people, that devouring glory, which will remove all the dross of sin and evil, and prepare a people cleansed unto the day of the revelation of his glory when our Lord comes. It ought to be a message of burning, a word of fire; the Lord's word, which he says is a fire, cleansing; a sword, a flaming sword, that cuts and divides; a separating power that will separate from the world, and from those things that are perishable. This advent message is more than a putting together of some statements of the Word concerning an event that is to take place, and yet concerning which, after we have gone over the statements, we have more or less uncertainty. That is not this advent message at all. This advent message is a living thing; it is a living power; it is a living experience; it is that which takes hold of heart and life, and rules it; it is that which becomes all in all to a person, so that he himself, in his own experience, is simply the incarnation of a message to the earth, a living voice to the earth. Now when the advent message becomes that in the hearts of a believing people, there will be a visible power in the earth; there will be a loud voice in the earth. This voice will encircle the earth; and in every nation, kindred, tongue, and people there will be those who will say, The day of the Lord is at hand; prepare to meet thy God. That is the work to which this people are called, in this very hour.

An Emancipation Proclamation

The service of God is perfect freedom. The service of sin and Satan is bondage. “Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. . . . Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin. And the servant abideth not in the house forever: but the Son abideth ever. If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.” The gospel is the good news of freedom,—freedom from sin and the power of sin,—freedom from the bondage of a hard master, and the privilege of blessed service in the freedom with which Christ has made us free. This is the gospel which Jesus preached. At the very beginning of his ministry he read these words, as descriptive of his mission: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the broken-hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised.” Christ died on the cross in order that he might make effective his mission to bring deliverance to the captives. We accept his work in our behalf when we identify ourselves with him in his experience of death and resurrection, accepting him as our sacrifice, our substitute, and our surety. Here is the statement of the Scripture: “Our old man was crucified with him, that the body of sin might be done away, that so we should no longer be in bondage to sin; for he that hath died is released from sin. But if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him; knowing that Christ being raised from the dead, dieth no more; death no more hath dominion over him. For the death that he died, he died unto sin once: but the life that he liveth, he liveth unto God. Even so reckon ye also yourselves to be dead unto sin, but alive unto God in Christ Jesus.” Then follows a conclusion and a promise, which is in itself an emancipation proclamation to every one who is willing to accept the terms: “Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey the lusts thereof: . . . for sin shall not have dominion over you.” What a glorious assurance! Let us accept it, and be free men and women in Christ Jesus.