ALL ON A LEVEL | AdventAI

The Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Dec 31, 1861

ALL ON A LEVEL.

The Scriptures recognize all who love and serve God, whether rich or poor, free or bond, white or black, as brethren. In this respect they are all on a level. God is the Father of all these; they have but one Saviour, one Spirit, one faith, one hope, one baptism; they belong to the one body, and are bound for the same holy heaven.

The same exceeding great and precious promises are for all, the same blessed hope animates all to press their way onward in the same straight and narrow path to life. The same Saviour will come the second time for all the faithful, and the very same trump of God that awakes from the slumber of death the noble Abraham, Paul, Luther, Wesley, and Wm. Miller, will also call to life the Christian red man and the pious slave. All will be conducted to the same holy city, and have right to the same tree of life—all on a level.

Unfortunately in this life, however, there are different grades of society—not all on a level. This is a misfortune. Here are the rich with their temptations to be proud, haughty, selfish, vain, and oppressive to the poor. But many of them have good qualities which the poor should not despise. Perhaps the rich man has been prompt in business, economical of his time, and has wasted his strength in acquiring his honest property.

He should not be despised by the poor for these things, but, rather respected. If he be converted, the grace of God will take away his love for this world, and make him a blessing to the cause. Then his habits of promptness, activity, and love to have all things done decently and in order, will help make him a faithful and influential Christian.

But the poor brother often views such in a wrong light. Their more wealthy brethren love to be active that they may have more to help the cause; but this by the poor brother may be regarded as worldly and very wicked. Those who have sustained a position in worldly society, after laying off superfluities, as hoops, gold, and artificials, still prize their former habits of cleanliness and order in dress. Thank God that they do. But this, by some poor brethren and sisters, who are slack in their habits, is regarded as pride. This is a calamity. And you will sometimes hear them say, “The third message will bring us all down on a level.” We do not object to the level, if it be a right one. But the third message is designed to elevate, not bring God’s people down on a low level. We most solemnly believe that it was designed to bring all up on a high and holy level.

But this is one of those sensitive subjects that many preachers and brethren dread to touch. They know that if they labor with the untidy, and try to reform them, they will in most cases be regarded as proud and too particular. And how difficult to reform persons who regard you as most at fault on the point in question. No one means to be untidy, but each looks to others lower in the scale than themselves as being the ones deserving reproof, therefore all let the testimony slide over them to others, unless it be definite and pointed. Just here we are reminded of the little boy who said (as his mother to keep him from suffering with cold, took down an inside door and placed it on the scanty covering for her child), “Mother, what do poor children do who have no doors to put over them?” As this little boy could not see poverty in any only in those worse off than himself, so the sloven cannot see any fault in this respect only in those more slovenly than himself. Such will give every point in the testimonies against pride in dress and appearance an extreme meaning, even that which the writer never thought of.

Those who have correct views of cleanliness and order in apparel, good manners and Christian courtesy, are frequently stung to the heart at the lack of these things in some of their brethren, which lack they know will disgust their friends whom they are laboring to bring to the truth. But the careless and slack act upon the plan, to have all come down upon a level, hence well-bred men and women are by them driven from the truth, while perhaps a few who choose a low level will embrace it. When our preachers enter a community to labor and find our faith represented by such, unless they can correct these errors, they had better leave, than to remain and waste their strength and precious time; for one slack couple of well-known Sabbath-keepers, especially if they have with them a dirty, crying babe, if in a city or village, or first class farming community, will create more prejudice against the truth than he can create faith in it.

Let not these remarks strengthen any one who indulges in Bible-forbidden pride. We would say to those not yet stripped for the race, tear off your hoops, your gold, and your gewgaws, and no longer be a stumbling-block to those who choose a low level; but be in a position to take hold with us and try to raise all up to the high level of the word of God.

The 144,000 will all stand on a level—a high level. Reader, are you fashionably polite? the third message will take from you vanity and pride, and leave you a courteous Christian. Are you coarse, rough in manners, slack in habits, disagreeably forward? the third message should elevate you, refine your feelings, and make of you a meek, unassuming, modest Christian, unobjectionable to those of the finest feelings. Think of the order and refinement of heaven, and remember, the change at the coming of Jesus is only of these vile bodies. The change of our vile natures must be prior to the advent. May God in mercy help us to all come up on a level, prepared to enter a pure and holy heaven.