BY JOHN A. OPPY.
(Healdsburg, Cat)
(Concluded)
This “being made free from sin,” John says, is what constitutes the climax of difference between a child of God and a child of the Devil. Hear his testimony: “In this [the fact that they do not sin] the children of God are manifest, and the children of the Devil.” 1Jn. 3:10 John says further: “He that committeth sin is of the Devil. . . For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the Devil.” 1Jn. 3:8 Then sin, is to be destroyed, not mutilated, overcome, or held in check. It does seem to me that if the oil were not so low in our lamps, these plain “thus-saith-the-Lord ” truths would flash upon our pathway. Brethren, it is time for us to lift up our heads, for our redemption draws nigh: In view of this, what manner of persons ought we to be? Paul, in Eph. 1:4, answers the question: “We should be holy and without blame before him in love.” 0 what a heritage is this! Are we not spending too much time in searching for hidden treasures, and stumblingover many precious gems that lie upon the surface?
Paul, in Galatians 5, tells us at length what the works of the flesh are. Then he says: “Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.” Gal. 5:16 Next he sets forth the fruit of the Spirit, which is “love, joy, peace, long-suffering,” etc., and then he adds: “They that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.” Gal. 5:24 So we see, brethren, that not only is the flesh crucified, but the affections and lusts are killed, too. 0, I would to God we all had such an experience as this! But with the light of advancing truth, there is hope for us all. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1Jn. 1:9. When God for Christ’s sake forgives our sins, that makes our past record right; but it does not make us right, for even at this time we are sinners by nature; or, in other words, forgiving our sins does not change our nature, but simply refers to the record of our past lives.
Christ stands as our substitute, and on him falls the penalty attached to our past record. Were we to die with nothing more done for us than our sins forgiven, we would be lost. But the latter part of the text just quoted makes ample provision for full salvation, in these words: “And to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” When we are cleansed from all unrighteousness, how much is left? At this time:—
“The Spirit answers to the blood,
And tells us we are born of God.”
“If ye know that he [Christ] is righteous, ye know that every ‘one that doeth righteousness is born of him.” 1Jn 2:29. But when we are “born of him,” we have the nature of God’s Spirit. Proof: “That which is born of the Spirit is spirit.” Jn. 3:6, last clause. But we are liable to be deceived by good-meaning men who offer a substitute for the complete work. Accordingly, we are warned, “Little children, let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he [Christ] is righteous.” 1 John 3: 7. Did Christ need to be forgiven for wrong-doing? —Certainly not. Then if we are righteous, even as Christ was, and do righteousness as he did it, will we need to be forgiven for wrong-doing? So long as the tree is holy, the fruit will be holy.
But the objector may urge that we may live a short time without sin, but that it would be impossible to live all the time in such a state. But we reply that there is not in all the Bible any provision made for a voluntary surrender to sin. We are not at liberty to alternate our services in any such way. We are not at liberty to serve God one day and Satan the next. “The oath which he aware to our father Abraham, . . . that . . . we might serve him without fear, in holiness and righteousness before him, all the days of our life.” Luke 1:73-75. This text affirms that we may serve him in holiness and righteousness, all the days of our life. The Bible is abundantly rich in such glorious promises. We give one more: “And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” 1 Thess. 5:23. Mark the language: we are to be preserved blameless unto the coming of Christ. Notat the coming, norafter the coming. Now, to preserve a thing is to put it in such a condition for future use or reference that when we want it, we can have it all right. Now if we are “preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ,” then when Jesus comes, we shall be found of him in peace, not having, our own righteousness, but the righteousness which is of faith; and we shall be ready for translation.
I cannot close this article without referring to Paul’s letter to the Ephesians. He says, “Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of, Christ.” Chap. 4:13. Here is full standard measurement. It is a perfect man, the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. What was Christ’s fullness? John 1:14 says that he was “full of grace and truth.” Then in the 16th verse, he says: “And of his fullness have all we received, and grace for grace.” This fullness is not the heritage of those who are born of “blood,” or of the “will of the flesh,” or of the “will of man;” but is restricted to those who are born of God. Verse 13. In Christ dwelt all the fullness (moral perfections) of the Godhead bodily. It is not necessary that we should have all his attributes, in order to have his image. Paul says that by the Spirit of the Lord we are changed into the same image, the image of God.
Paul prays that we, “may be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and hight; and to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that we might be filled with all the fullness of God.” Eph. 3:18, 19. How high, how deep, how long, how broad is the “love of God”! Ah, it “passeth knowledge,” but it does not pass experience; for we are to be filled with all the fullness of God! In this fullness is seen the “divine nature.” May we have it ?—Yes. “Man may become a partaker of the divine nature.” “Man must become a partaker of the divine nature.””Christ came to be our example, and to make known to us that we may be partakers of the divine nature.” (See RH, February 18, 1890)
Having obtained the divine nature, can we successfully resist evil and overcome? “Men may have a power to resist evil, a power that neither earth nor death nor hell can master; a power that will place them where they may overcome as Christ overcame.” (See RH, February 18, 1890) But in order to overcome as Christ overcame, we must know what he overcame. Did he overcome sin within himself?– No; for “in him is no sin.” Then what he overcame must have been outside of himself. To this fact the word of God bears pointed testimony:
“In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.” John 16:33. Here Christ says that it was the world that he overcame. We cannot overcome sin inside of us. Its very presence there shows that it has the mastery over us. In Rom. 6:12, Paul compares it to a king reigning over us, or rather, in, us. He says, “Let not sin therefore reign in our mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.” Rm.6:12 The only way to keep this monarch from having dominion over us, is to dethrone him. As long as he is in the heart, he will sway his scepter over its empire. He must be killed, crucified, cast out. He will fight for his dominion as long as he has an inch of his empire to stand upon. Paul says we are to be filled with the Spirit. When we are filled with the Spirit, there will be no room for sin or Satan. “What we need is the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Without this, we are no more fitted to go forth to the world, than were the disciples after the crucifixion of their Lord.” (See RH, February 18, 1890)
The measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ requires us to measure as much as Christ (morally), if we overcome as he overcame. The plan of conquest would be unequal, if we do not stand on the same moral ground with Christ. “Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, unto him be glory in the church by Jesus Christ throughout all ages,
world without end. Amen.” Eph. 3:20, 21.
(concluded)
The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald September 9, 1890