God's will
“And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and He doeth according to His will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay His hand, or say unto Him, What doest Thou?
At the same time my reason returned unto me; and for the glory of my kingdom, mine honour and brightness returned unto me; and my counsellors and my lords sought unto me; and I was established in my kingdom, and excellent majesty was added unto me.
Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honour the King of heaven, all whose works are truth, and His ways judgment: and those that walk in pride He is able to abase.” (Dan. 4:35-37).
“For of Him, and through Him, and to Him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen.” (Rom. 11:36). “In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of Him who worketh all things after the counsel of His own will.” (Eph. 1:11).
God’s purposes stand and we have no say in the matter. “Thou wilt say then unto me, Why doth He yet find fault? For who hath resisted His will?
Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus?
Hath not the potter power over the clay.” (Rom. 9:19-21).
God is not arbitrary but He is certainly sovereign in heaven and earth. We can cooperate with Him and be rewarded in the establishing of His kingdom of purity, love and unselfishness. Or we can fight against Him and lose out on everything.
At certain mileposts in this great controversy He has prepared His holy nation to unite with Him in the advancement of truth against Satan’s regime on earth. Slowly through the eons the refugee King of creation has labored for His reestablishment to His rightful throne. Inch by inch He has wrested the kingdom back from Lucifer through the choice and willing obedience of key, loyal human subjects and others who have followed them. As Isaiah so aptly said it, “Behold, I and the children whom the Lord hath given me.” (Is. 8:18).
Satan has untiringly situated his seed among God’s loyal ones and sought to enthrone his own key players at the head of God’s work in order to derail it and forestall his eventual destruction. And God, in His infinite wisdom has allowed this. He has planned His goals well enough in advance (in fact, from eternity) to let Satan’s subjects play out their attempts to exalt themselves and sabotage God’s advances.
We all get our chance to take part in this great conflict. Will we end up sanctified by continued, unswerving faith in Christ, our pride finally laid in the dust? Or will we find the truth to be too blinding and our pride swelling more and more so we resist conviction and fight against it until the light of the Holy Spirit finally departs from our conscience, leaving us in total darkness? “And the Lord said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh.” (Gen. 6:3).
When God has needed a strong-will enforcer of His law He imbues the natural gifts with supernatural virtue and raises up that person to accomplish His will. Afterward, that the servant must choose to give God the glory and continue safely serving God and rejoicing in His purity, or he can choose to take the glory to himself as did king Saul, Jehu, Jeroboam, and others, and end up another statistic and example to all future generations showing what happened to those who will squander the privileges given from heaven.
When God has had need of a person of wisdom, “He spake, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast.” (Ps. 33:9). He endows a Solomon. When, in primitive circumstances, its time for one of great physical strength, He endows a Samson. When His people need the guidance of a prophet He develops a Daniel or a Samuel.
By the early efforts to faithfulness to God they largely succeed in His work or fail. So that a nobody becomes a David or a Saul, a priest ends up a Samuel or an Eli, a quick wit turns out to be a Paul of Tarsus or a Judas Iscariot, a zealous youth finishes the race as a John Mark and a Timothy or a Demas. If God needs a missionary to reach thieves, a Zacchaeus or a Matthew receives Jesus or a Barabbas or a rich, young ruler rejects Him. If He needs to begin a holy dispensation based on patriarchy, a usurper Jacob surrenders to God or a galant Esau never does, a Levi and Judah rise up out of their murderous ways or a Rueben remains stuck in his. “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.” (Gal. 6:7,8). What would we have done in their circumstances? Everything depends on the right action of the will.
In God’s work, our freedom of choice is never suspended, nor is salvation ever a guaranteed diploma in our hands until we breathe our last breath faithful in God’s service. From the first day we unite with Him to the last we can turn away, but when we do the warning comes in trumpet tones to us, “Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him.” (Heb. 10:38). We must burst through that divinely situated barrier to depart from God. But, when we are solidly determined to leave, it sickens His heart to do so, but He must let us go—and by our choice, permanently. By our choice we have bruised the conscience so badly that it becomes unable to sense the Spirit of God and is subject to the spirit of Satan.
Many shipwrecks have strewn the path as those whom God brought in close to His side. He turns no one down who desires to pick up the cross of God. But, many whom He has privileged to do His work have turned Him down repeatedly and He has resorted to a neighbor theirs who was better than them. Then they see the work once offered them given to another, and too often the transfer of heaven’s blessing confirms them in pride and locks them in rebellion permanently.
William Foy and Hazen Foss both lost their great prophetic privilege to young, sickly Ellen Harmon and they died lost men. This need not to have occurred; but God’s will must prevail on earth. The hour of His judgment had come and a prophet must lead, to their exceeding great reward if they cooperate, or to their exceeding detriment if they reject.
A.T. Jones and E. J. Waggoner received the great privilege as worker with Christ at another crucial juncture in the last days before the Day of Judgment. But neither one could accept the guidance of the Judge’s prophet. While D. M. Canright chose to steel his pride against her counsels and correction and instruction, Joseph Bates received her reproof and rejoiced in the Spirit of God. Elder Bates lived a life of unrivaled activity into hisi ‘70’s and died a happy man; Elder Canright ended his life a miserable wretch of a man, sighing a crying the woes of his loss of God’s voice and eternal life. He passed his days living damnation before his had perished. He that hath not the Son hath eternal death; he is dead even while he liveth. He was a living walking testament of warning of what happens when a soul strives for too long against his Maker and his Maker’s human representative.
However, those who take hold of Christ that he might make peace with Him joyfully hear this testimony by faith, “Let [Christ’s] apparel and horse be delivered to the hand of one of the King's most noble princes, that they may array the man withal whom the King delighteth to honour, and bring him on horseback through the street of the city [of New Jerusalem], and proclaim before him, Thus shall it be done to the man whom the King delighteth to honour.” (Est. 6:9).
At the same time my reason returned unto me; and for the glory of my kingdom, mine honour and brightness returned unto me; and my counsellors and my lords sought unto me; and I was established in my kingdom, and excellent majesty was added unto me.
Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honour the King of heaven, all whose works are truth, and His ways judgment: and those that walk in pride He is able to abase.” (Dan. 4:35-37).
“For of Him, and through Him, and to Him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen.” (Rom. 11:36). “In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of Him who worketh all things after the counsel of His own will.” (Eph. 1:11).
God’s purposes stand and we have no say in the matter. “Thou wilt say then unto me, Why doth He yet find fault? For who hath resisted His will?
Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus?
Hath not the potter power over the clay.” (Rom. 9:19-21).
God is not arbitrary but He is certainly sovereign in heaven and earth. We can cooperate with Him and be rewarded in the establishing of His kingdom of purity, love and unselfishness. Or we can fight against Him and lose out on everything.
At certain mileposts in this great controversy He has prepared His holy nation to unite with Him in the advancement of truth against Satan’s regime on earth. Slowly through the eons the refugee King of creation has labored for His reestablishment to His rightful throne. Inch by inch He has wrested the kingdom back from Lucifer through the choice and willing obedience of key, loyal human subjects and others who have followed them. As Isaiah so aptly said it, “Behold, I and the children whom the Lord hath given me.” (Is. 8:18).
Satan has untiringly situated his seed among God’s loyal ones and sought to enthrone his own key players at the head of God’s work in order to derail it and forestall his eventual destruction. And God, in His infinite wisdom has allowed this. He has planned His goals well enough in advance (in fact, from eternity) to let Satan’s subjects play out their attempts to exalt themselves and sabotage God’s advances.
We all get our chance to take part in this great conflict. Will we end up sanctified by continued, unswerving faith in Christ, our pride finally laid in the dust? Or will we find the truth to be too blinding and our pride swelling more and more so we resist conviction and fight against it until the light of the Holy Spirit finally departs from our conscience, leaving us in total darkness? “And the Lord said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh.” (Gen. 6:3).
When God has needed a strong-will enforcer of His law He imbues the natural gifts with supernatural virtue and raises up that person to accomplish His will. Afterward, that the servant must choose to give God the glory and continue safely serving God and rejoicing in His purity, or he can choose to take the glory to himself as did king Saul, Jehu, Jeroboam, and others, and end up another statistic and example to all future generations showing what happened to those who will squander the privileges given from heaven.
When God has had need of a person of wisdom, “He spake, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast.” (Ps. 33:9). He endows a Solomon. When, in primitive circumstances, its time for one of great physical strength, He endows a Samson. When His people need the guidance of a prophet He develops a Daniel or a Samuel.
By the early efforts to faithfulness to God they largely succeed in His work or fail. So that a nobody becomes a David or a Saul, a priest ends up a Samuel or an Eli, a quick wit turns out to be a Paul of Tarsus or a Judas Iscariot, a zealous youth finishes the race as a John Mark and a Timothy or a Demas. If God needs a missionary to reach thieves, a Zacchaeus or a Matthew receives Jesus or a Barabbas or a rich, young ruler rejects Him. If He needs to begin a holy dispensation based on patriarchy, a usurper Jacob surrenders to God or a galant Esau never does, a Levi and Judah rise up out of their murderous ways or a Rueben remains stuck in his. “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.” (Gal. 6:7,8). What would we have done in their circumstances? Everything depends on the right action of the will.
In God’s work, our freedom of choice is never suspended, nor is salvation ever a guaranteed diploma in our hands until we breathe our last breath faithful in God’s service. From the first day we unite with Him to the last we can turn away, but when we do the warning comes in trumpet tones to us, “Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him.” (Heb. 10:38). We must burst through that divinely situated barrier to depart from God. But, when we are solidly determined to leave, it sickens His heart to do so, but He must let us go—and by our choice, permanently. By our choice we have bruised the conscience so badly that it becomes unable to sense the Spirit of God and is subject to the spirit of Satan.
Many shipwrecks have strewn the path as those whom God brought in close to His side. He turns no one down who desires to pick up the cross of God. But, many whom He has privileged to do His work have turned Him down repeatedly and He has resorted to a neighbor theirs who was better than them. Then they see the work once offered them given to another, and too often the transfer of heaven’s blessing confirms them in pride and locks them in rebellion permanently.
William Foy and Hazen Foss both lost their great prophetic privilege to young, sickly Ellen Harmon and they died lost men. This need not to have occurred; but God’s will must prevail on earth. The hour of His judgment had come and a prophet must lead, to their exceeding great reward if they cooperate, or to their exceeding detriment if they reject.
A.T. Jones and E. J. Waggoner received the great privilege as worker with Christ at another crucial juncture in the last days before the Day of Judgment. But neither one could accept the guidance of the Judge’s prophet. While D. M. Canright chose to steel his pride against her counsels and correction and instruction, Joseph Bates received her reproof and rejoiced in the Spirit of God. Elder Bates lived a life of unrivaled activity into hisi ‘70’s and died a happy man; Elder Canright ended his life a miserable wretch of a man, sighing a crying the woes of his loss of God’s voice and eternal life. He passed his days living damnation before his had perished. He that hath not the Son hath eternal death; he is dead even while he liveth. He was a living walking testament of warning of what happens when a soul strives for too long against his Maker and his Maker’s human representative.
However, those who take hold of Christ that he might make peace with Him joyfully hear this testimony by faith, “Let [Christ’s] apparel and horse be delivered to the hand of one of the King's most noble princes, that they may array the man withal whom the King delighteth to honour, and bring him on horseback through the street of the city [of New Jerusalem], and proclaim before him, Thus shall it be done to the man whom the King delighteth to honour.” (Est. 6:9).
posted by David | 1:16 PM
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