The Sabbath by L. A. Phippeny

Pacific Press Publishing Company · Mountain View, California · Jan 11, 1905

The Sabbath

By L. A. Phippeny

Jesus Christ, the Revelation and the Knowledge of God.

“No man cometh unto the Father, but by Me,” said Jesus; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal Him.” “I am the way.”

The world is seeking after God,—some in one way, some in another way,—but is slow to recognize and acknowledge that Jesus Christ is the only revelation of the Father to humanity. If He is not, then there is some other way whereby we must be saved, and He was an imposter; for there are His words. And another word is, “There is no other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.”

These statements of Scripture are exceeding broad. It is not simply that He is the Revealer of divinity to humanity from the beginning of the Christian era. In order that these words shall be true, He is the Way from earth to heaven, the Door into the celestial realm from the beginning, and forevermore. He is the Saviour from the time a Saviour was needed. He is the Sacrifice from the beginning, the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

All-embracing.

It is essential that this great fact be clearly grasped, that through one individual the fulness of the Godhead has been revealed to humanity, and not to humanity only, but to all created intelligences; that Jesus Christ, the world's Redeemer, is identical with the Word by whom all things were made; that “all things were created by Him, and for Him; and He is before all things, and by Him all things consist.” It is essential that His words be believed when He said, “Before Abraham was, I am,” and “I and my Father are one.” Believing and grasping these facts as revealed, it still need not be assumed that Jesus, the Man, while on earth was self-conscious of His own life preceding the incarnation; but it must be believed that every principle, and teaching, and act of the Man Christ Jesus, while performing His mission among men, deviated not a shadow of turning from the principles of His own life before that time, and were based on those principles.

Not only were His teachings and deeds based on the divine principles inhering in Him previous to His work on earth as man, but they were a continuation of one great plan, another and advanced scene in the great controversy between truth and error. His resurrection, ascension, and official work by the Father's throne continue the story of redemption. Creator; “from the days of eternity” “with God;” yielding the equality and becoming the Angel of divine presence, the Leader of the chosen people, the Messiah, Redeemer, High Priest, King of Glory—indicate in a word the plan, and the outworking, and revealing, of the plan in which Jesus Christ appears as chief actor. “God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself” from the time it needed reconciliation. “Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, and to-day, and forever.”

Vicarious Atonement.

Therefore the Gospel of Jesus Christ is the power of God unto salvation, and there can be no other Gospel of salvation that has the power of God with it. The one who believes in Jesus Christ must believe in the fall of man and in man's utter inability to save himself by any deed of merit that he can himself do, and he will believe in the vicarious atonement. He must believe the Word which says that since the fall man is by nature dead in trespasses and sins. Believing that it is at once clear why the power of God is necessary to save men from their sins, for the power must be resurrection power, the power to give life,—creative power. And the greatest argument in favor of the Gospel of Jesus Christ is that IT DOES THE WORK.

“If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature [creation]; old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” The old man of sin is crucified and dead; the new man lives because Christ lives within. The perplexities and cares that troubled before are not permitted to vex and worry now. The impatient spirit gives place to patience.

The man has heard and accepted the invitation, “Come unto Me, . . . and I will give you rest.” He has ceased from the works of the flesh and has entered into God's rest in Christ. The power of God has worked in him; he is resurrected, recreated, saved from sin. And the sign that salvation has been accomplished is his own soul-rest, as revealed in his life.

What Regeneration Means.

Then it is that the man is reconciled to God. Then it is that the man has ceased to be an alien—a foreigner. Then it is that the ignorance which was in him by reason of sin which caused him to forget God, has been changed. He is given a new mind,—a mind which knows and appreciates his Creator. God has been revealed to him and has taken up His abode with him. The life's conduct has been touched and transformed, and the Lord will do in and through him the works of righteousness. Christ enthroned within will do the Christ work in human flesh again, and from him will also sound on the call, “Come . . . and . . . rest.”

Then will have been accomplished God's purpose in creating man. “Where is the place of My rest?” is the question propounded by the Lord. “Where is the house that

ye build unto Me?” Ah! Here is the answer: “Heaven is My throne, and the earth is My footstool.” My hand made them. No house that can be built can contain Me. Nevertheless My rest is not there. “But to this man will I look; even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at My word.” Who is the Questioner?—The one who made heaven and earth, the Leader of the people, the Redeemer, the Saviour.—“Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, and to-day, and forever.”

This man in whom this Lord finds rest is a man after the Master's heart, for he has been created and re-created by Him in His own image. He is a man who fears God, and who trembles at His word. He honors that word, for it is a word that never changes, never deceives. It is a word of power, and salvation, and life. In the beginning it went forth from the Master-builder and made the earth the footstool. But the place of divine rest was not found until the Builder crowned His creative work by forming the man. Then He rested.

In the Image of His Creator

was the man made,—upright, perfect. And God dwelt with and in him, and the man knew God and entered into life and into the rest prepared for him. And there was a sign of that rest and knowledge given him. What was it?—The same sign that was given to Israel when the Lord revealed Himself to them in the mighty deliverance from the Egyptian death. “Hallow My Sabbaths,” He said to Israel, “and they shall be a sign between Me and you, that ye may know that I am the Lord your God.” The weekly cycle at creation was closed with the Sabbath, a joy and a delight to the man, and given to him as an outward sign of the wonderful life inaugurated for him and into which he had been ushered by creative power.

That sign is the same to-day as then. The same Creator lives and His Word remains unaltered. He looks to see if we fear and tremble at that Word, for He is looking for a place of rest.

[The next and third article in this series is “Blessing, Sanctification, and Knowledge.”]