Earlier text: NEED OF REFORMATION.A COMMON SOURCE OF ERROR.
Men fall into error by starting with false premises, and then bringing everything to bear to make the error true. In some cases the first principles have a measure of truth interwoven with the errors, but it does not lead to any just action; and this is why men are misled. In order to reign and become a power, they employ Satan’s methods to justify their own principles. They exalt themselves as men of superior judgment, and profess to stand as representatives of God. These are false gods. Sinful men can find hope and righteousness only in God; and no human being is righteous any longer than he has faith in God, and maintains a vital connection with him. A flower of the field must have its root in the soil; it must have air, dew, showers, and sunshine. It will flourish only as it receives these advantages, and all are from God. So with men. We receive from God that which ministers to the life of the soul. We are warned not to trust in man, nor to make flesh our arm. A curse is pronounced upon all that do this. “Thus saith the Lord; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the Lord. For he shall be like the heat in the desert, and shall not see when good cometh; but shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, in a salt land and not inhabited. Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit. The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? I the Lord search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings. . . . O Lord, the hope of Israel, all that forsake thee shall be ashamed, and they that depart from me shall be written in the earth, because they have forsaken the Lord, the fountain of living water.” Let no plans or methods be brought into any of our institutions that will place mind or talent under the control of human judgment; for this is not in God’s order. God has given to man, talents of183influence which belong to him alone, and no greater dishonor can be done to God than for one finite agent to purchase from men their God-given talent, or the product of such talent, to be absolutely under his control, even though the benefits of the same be used to the advantage of the cause. In such arrangements, one man’s mind is ruled by another man’s mind, and the human agent is separated from God, and exposed to temptations. Satan’s methods tend to one end, --to make men the slaves of men. And when this is done, confusion and distrust, jealousies and evil surmisings, are the result. Such a course destroys man’s faith in God, and in the principles which are to control his work, to purge from guilt and from every species of selfishness and hypocrisy. The Lord of heaven, who made our world, and who created man, guards the interests of every soul. To every man he has given his work. We are laborers together with God. There are diversities of gifts, and every man should appreciate the moral and spiritual capital which God has entrusted to him. No one should treat these entrusted talents with indifference. No one is accountable for the talents he has never had; none should complain of the smallness of their gifts. Every one is to trade on that which God has entrusted to him, working where he can, doing the best possible service for the Master. Our talent, well used, will gain other talents, and these still others. The man with a few pence can serve God faithfully with his pence. If he does this, he is judged as faithful in the sight of God as the one who has improved pounds. All are to realize their individual responsibility to employ their talents to the glory of God according to their ability. Let no man or council of men assume the responsibility of making as little as possible of these talents, according to their human estimate of God’s entrusted qualifications. No man is to weigh in the balances of human judgment the talents God has given to other men. Let every man appreciate God’s gifts to him, and faithfully trade upon them. No man is to merge his individuality into that of any other man. No man should be urged to make another man his steward. There are diversities of gifts, and a large work to be done in our world in the use of God’s entrusted goods. Let us never forget that we are here to be fashioned by the hand of God, fitted to do the work he has given us to do. That work is our own, the accountability is our own; it cannot be transferred to another. Let not human agents interpose to take another’s work out of the hands of God into their own finite hands. PRINCIPLES UNDERLYING OUR STEWARDSHIP.
I have borne abundant testimony, setting forth the fact that the ability to write a book, is, like every other talent, a gift from God, for which the possessor is accountable to him. This talent no man can buy or sell without incurring great and dangerous responsibility. Those who labor to bring about changes in the publication of books, to place the books wholly under the control of the publishing houses or the Conference, know not what they are talking about. Their eyes are blinded, and they work from a wrong standpoint. Selfishness is a root of bitterness whereby many are defiled. The efforts that have been made to turn all the profits derived from the talents of writers, into the hands of the Conference or the publishing house, will not prove a success; for the plan is not just and equal. From the light given me by God, the efforts made in this direction by those at the heart of the work, are not heaven-inspired. It is a very narrow, conceited arrangement, devised by human minds, and it does not bear the marks of God. Every man’s special work is appointed him of God, and he is individually responsible to God. When men connected with the publishing business make decisions and transact business as they have done and propose to do at Battle Creek, they give evidence that changes should be made as soon as possible; for God is not in any such plan. Those who write books are not to be left under the control of men who have no experimental knowledge of authorship. These men have a high appreciation of their own ability, but they have shown how little they appreciate the human agent, to whom God has given a certain work to do. They belittle men to whom God has given talents to use to his glory. He never designed that any man should sell his stewardship, as if he were not capable of managing the talents given him. The ideas which prevail, that, in order to give to the cause of God, a writer must place all the profits of his work, beyond a mere pittance, where other men shall control it for him, or invest as shall suit their ideas, are an error. Long ago, when such ideas were first advanced, they should have been treated as they deserved. Men took into their own hands responsibilities which they were not capable of treating justly or managing successfully. They have given evidence of this in the past in the fact that they would resort to unfair means, in order to wring from men God’s entrusted talents for their own appropriation. But the very persons whom God has entrusted with his goods, are held responsible to trade upon them, and thus develop talent. Every soul who has become the servant of God through the grace of Jesus Christ, has his own peculiar sphere of labor. He is not to be bought or sold, but he is to understand that “ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you, who by him do believe in God, that raised him from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God. Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently.” Who have greater need to be doers of this inspired injunction than have those who are living at the very close of this earth’s history? It is not our property that is entrusted to us for investment. If it had been, we might claim discretionary power; we might shift the responsibility upon others, and leave our stewardship with others. But this cannot be, because the Lord is testing us individually. If we act wisely in trading upon our Lord’s goods and multiplying the talents given us, we shall invest this gain for the Master, praying for wisdom that we may be divested of all selfishness and laboring most earnestly to advance the precious truth in our world. INDIVIDUAL RESPONSIBILITY.
Some men or councils may say, That is just what we wish you to do. The Conference Committee will take your capital, and will appropriate it for this very object. But the Lord has made us individually his stewards. We each hold a solemn responsibility to invest this means ourselves. A portion it is right to place in the treasury to advance the general interests of the work; but the steward of means will not be guiltless before God, unless, so far as he is able to do this, he shall use that means as circumstances shall reveal the necessity. We should be ready to help the suffering, and to set in operation plans to advance the truth in various ways. It is not in the province of the Conference or any other organization to relieve us of this stewardship. If you lack wisdom, go to God; ask him for yourself, and then work with an eye single to his glory. By exercising your judgment, by giving where you see there is need in any line of the work, you are putting out your money to the exchangers. If you see in any locality that the truth is gaining a foothold, and there is no place of worship, then do something to meet the necessity. By your own action encourage others to act, in building a humble house for the worship of God. Have an interest in the work in all parts of the field. While it is not your own property that you are handling, yet you are made responsible for its wise investment, for its use or abuse. God does not lay upon you the burden of asking the Conference or any council of men whether you shall use your means as you see fit to advance the work of God in destitute towns and cities, and impoverished localities. If the right plan had been followed, so much means would not have been used in some localities, and so little in other places where the banner of truth has not been raised. We are not to merge our individuality of judgment into any institution in our world. We are to look to God for wisdom, as did Daniel. Age after age Jesus has been delivering his goods to his church. At the time of the first advent of Christ to our world, the men who composed the Sanhedrin exercised their authority in controlling men according to their will. If men's wills were always submerged into God's will, this would be safe; but when men are separated from God, and their own wisdom is made a controlling power, the souls for whom Christ has given his life to free from the bondage of Satan, are brought under bondage to him in another form. Do we individually realize our true position, that as God’s hired servants we are not to bargain away our stewardship; but that before the heavenly universe we are to administer the truth committed to us by God? Our own hearts are to be sanctified, our hands are to have something to impart as occasion demands, of the income that God entrusts to us. The humblest of us have been entrusted with talents, and made agents for God, using our gifts for his name’s glory. It is the duty of every one to realize his own responsibility, and to see that his talents are turned to advantage186as a gift that he must return, having done his best to improve it. He who improves his talents to the best of his ability, may present his offering to God as a consecrated gift that will be as fragrant incense before him, a savor of life unto life. THE SAVIOUR’S INTERVIEW WITH NICODEMUS.
The change which must come to the natural, inherited, and cultivated tendencies of the human heart, is that change of which Jesus spoke when he said to Nicodemus, “Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Nicodemus was a man in high position of trust, a man who was looked up to as one educated in Jewish customs, a man whose mind was stored with wisdom. He was indeed in possession of talents of no ordinary character. He had heard the teaching of Jesus, and his mind had been aroused by the wonderful works. He desired to hear more, but he would not go to Jesus by day; he was not prepared to meet the jealousy of the scribes and Pharisees; and it would be too humiliating for a ruler of the Jews to acknowledge himself in sympathy with the despised Nazarene. He sought him at night, thinking, I will ascertain for myself the mission and claims of this teacher, and see whether he is indeed the Light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of Israel. “Rabbi,” he said to Jesus, “we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him.” Jesus answered and said unto him, “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” He virtually said to Nicodemus, It is not controversy that will help your case. Arguments will not bring light to your soul. You must have a new heart, or you cannot discern the kingdom of heaven. It is not greater evidence that will bring you into a right position, but new purposes, new springs of action. You must be born again. Until this change takes place, until all things are made new, the strongest evidence that could be presented would be useless. The want is in your own heart; everything must be changed or you cannot see the kingdom of God. To Nicodemus this was a very humiliating statement, and with a feeling of irritation he took up the words of Christ, saying, “How can a man be born when he is old?” He was not spiritually minded enough to discern the meaning of the words of Christ. But the Saviour did not meet argument with argument. Raising his hand in solemn, quiet dignity, he pressed home the truth with greater assurance: “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.” Some gleams of truth were penetrating the ruler’s mind. Christ’s words filled him with awe, and led to the inquiry, “How can these things be?” With deep earnestness, Jesus answered, “Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things?” Surely one entrusted with the religious interests of the people, should not be ignorant of truth so important for them to understand as the condition of entrance into the kingdom of heaven.187Christ’s words conveyed the lesson, that instead of feeling irritated over the plain words of truth, and indulging in irony, Nicodemus should have a far more humble opinion of himself, because of his spiritual ignorance. Yet the words of Christ were spoken with such solemn dignity, and both look and tone expressed such earnest love, that Nicodemus was not offended as he realized his humiliating position. “Verily, verily, I say unto thee,” continued Jesus, “we speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness. If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things?” I present this lesson to Nicodemus as highly applicable to those who today are in responsible positions as rulers in Israel, and whose voices are often heard in council, giving evidence of the spirit that Nicodemus possessed. The words of Christ are spoken just as verily to presidents of conferences, elders of churches, and those occupying responsible positions in our churches, “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Will the lesson given to the chief ruler have the same influence on their hearts and lives as it had on his? Nicodemus was converted as the result of this interview. In that night conference with Jesus, the convicted man stood before the Saviour under the softening, subduing influence of the truth which was shining into the chambers of his mind, and impressing his heart. Jesus said to him, “If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things?” And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of Man which is in heaven.” Jesus not only told Nicodemus that he must have a new heart in order to see the kingdom of heaven, but he told him how to obtain this new heart. He read the inquiring mind of the seeker after truth, and presented before him the representation of himself: “As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up: that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” Good news! good news! Let it ring throughout the world! Nicodemus caught the meaning of Christ’s words. He received his lesson, and became a true believer. He searched the Scriptures in a different way; he could say, “Old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” He did begin to see the kingdom of heaven, because he submitted himself to the leading of the Holy Spirit. His voice was heard in the Sanhedrin council, opposing the measures for compassing the death of Christ. “Doth our law judge any man, before it hear him?” he asked. The scornful answer was returned, “Art thou also of Galilee? Search, and look: for out of Galilee ariseth no prophet.” The lesson given to Nicodemus is of the greatest importance to every soul that lives, for the terms of salvation are here laid out in distinct lines; if one had no other text in the Bible, this alone would be a guide to the soul. Especially to every man who accepts responsibilities as a counselor, every one who is dealing with human minds, is this grand, beautiful truth to be a bright and shining light. It is no credit to the one who has the word of God in his possession188to say, “I have no experience. I do not understand these things.” He never will be wiser until he becomes of much less consequence in his own estimation, and diligently searches the Word to obtain knowledge. The change of heart represented by the new birth, can be brought about only by the effectual working of the Holy Spirit. If it molds and fashions your heart daily, you will have divine insight to perceive the character of the kingdom of God. But pride and self-love have resisted the Spirit of God. Every natural inclination of the soul opposes the change from self-importance and pride to the meekness and lowliness of Christ. It is only through receiving divine light only through the co-operation of heavenly intelligences that we can discern the spiritual character of the kingdom of God. Only thus can we have a lively sense of the duties due to all with whom we are brought in contact. We are under contract to God, in his divine service, to work as Christ worked, not in accordance with natural inclinations, but in accordance with the Spirit of God. But man has woven into the work of God, his own defects of character, devices that are human and earthly, delusions, ensnaring to himself and to all who accept them. He must make it his first duty to understand the work of God in the regeneration of the soul. He must learn this lesson as a little child. This change should take place in every man before he accepts a position as leader or ruler in connection with the work of God. If he has not a vital connection with God, his own spirit and sentiments will prevail, and he will offer strange fire in the place of the sacred. Consider the incident which Christ presented before Nicodemus in referring to the uplifted serpent. The Lord Jesus had protected the children of Israel from the venomous serpents in the wilderness, but this part of their history they did not know. Angels from heaven had accompanied them, and in the pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night, Christ had been their protection through all their journeyings. But they became selfish and discontented, and in order that they might not forget his great care over them, the Lord Jesus gave them a bitter lesson. He permitted them to be bitten by the fiery serpents, but in his great mercy he did not leave them to perish. Moses was bidden to make and lift the brazen serpent on the pole, and make the proclamation that whosoever should look upon it should live. And all who looked did live. They recovered health at once. Suppose ye that this life-giving message, the invitation to look upon the representation of Christ, was given in whispered tones? Suppose ye that there were meetings for discussion as to how the symbol of the brazen serpent could have any efficacy? Some hesitated, desiring a scientific explanation, but no light was given. They must accept the words given by Christ to Moses. It was proclaimed with the trumpet, and by the leading men of every tribe throughout the encampment. The word obeyed, would bring life and healing. What a strange symbol of Christ was that likeness of the serpent which stung them! This symbol was lifted on a pole, and they were to look to it, and be healed. So Jesus was made in the likeness of sinful flesh. He came as the sin-bearer. Under the symbol of the uplifted serpent, he was presented before the vast congregation of those who were entrusted with sacred truth. It was189God’s purpose that when Christ should appear in person, men might recognize his mission, and co-operate with him in the saving of humanity. He was crucified at one of the yearly gatherings of the Jews, when representatives from all nations were present at Jerusalem. The knowledge of the cruel work done to Jesus was to go to the remotest regions of the inhabited world. The message, Look and live, was given in the most decided manner. The same healing, life-giving message is now sounding. It means hope, courage, faith, pardon, and life. It points to the Saviour, uplifted on the shameful tree. Those who have been bitten by the old serpent, the devil, are bidden to look and live. Through the Saviour’s lesson, Nicodemus was brought to see that the ignorant and unbelieving are not to be enlightened by controversy and discussion. They must look and live. Nicodemus hoped that his people would let Christ speak to them as he had spoken to him; then they would no longer remain in unbelief. O that to-day men would hear the voice of Jesus, “Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God”! The explanation of the plan of salvation may to-day be presented to men who act as rulers and counselors, and yet, having eyes, they see not, and having ears, they hear not; they have no experimental knowledge of what it means to cease from sin? what it means to have the righteousness of Christ, to bear the divine similitude? Look only to Jesus as your righteousness and your sacrifice. As you are justified by faith, the deadly sting of the serpent will be healed. Then there will be no more of self; you will have peace with God through Jesus Christ. Open the door of your hearts, and let Jesus in. Some of you have become hard-hearted; you have resisted evidence, and have despised the messages of warning, of light and truth, which the Lord has sent you by the Holy Spirit, because he loves you and is loath to give you up. As a look to the brazen serpent brought life to the dying, so the look of faith to the Lamb of God will bring life to the soul dead in trespasses and sins. Above all others, the men in responsible positions need the converting power of God daily. They need to sanctify themselves, that others may be sanctified. If they would co-operate with God, looking to Christ every moment, believing in him as it is their privilege to do, their eyes would be opened, and their hearts would be made new. “God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” O who can measure such love as this? It is not that God loved us because Christ died for us; but while we were yet sinners, rebels against his law, he gave Jesus to bear our sins, that pardon may come to all who believe on him. The only hope of the world was for One who knew no sin, One equal with God, to come to our earth, and live the law, testifying that in his humanity, he could keep the Law, and that sinners might become partakers of the divine nature, and thus be obedient children of God. This is the great work that God has done for the fallen race. He is not willing that any shall perish, but that whosoever will, may come to him through Christ, and live.
MRS. E. G. WHITE.