Thursday: Heaven’s Appeal for an End-Time Reformation
The Seventh-day Adventist Church is a reform movement.
Image © Krieg Barrie from GoodSalt.com
It was raised up by God to restore biblical truths lost sight of many centuries ago. Although the Holy Spirit worked powerfully through the Reformers, there were vital truths that they did not fully understand. God still had more truth to reveal to His people.
God is not interested in our understanding truth merely to fill our minds with more religious knowledge. Biblical truths are windows into His very heart. They reveal something about His character. The more clearly that we understand the truths of His Word, the more completely we will understand the depth of His love. False doctrine distorts His character. Truth unmasks the devil’s lies and reveals who he really is (take, for instance, eternal torment in hell as a prime example of what lurks in Satan’s heart).
From the inception of the great controversy in heaven, Satan has attempted to malign the character of God. He has lied about God’s intentions toward His creatures. But, in the life that He lived, in the truths that He taught, and in the death that He died, Jesus revealed what His heavenly Father was really like.
Read God’s end-time message of revival and reformation (Rev. 14:6-7, 12). Read carefully what is said there. What do these verses teach us about the character of God?
God’s end-time message of the “everlasting gospel” includes a call to obedience to God’s will in the light of the judgment hour. The judgment reveals to the whole universe both the justice and mercy of God. In an age of evolution, Jesus’ message of reformation also calls His people back to worship the Creator on the true Bible Sabbath. The Sabbath is a stunning rebuke to the error of Darwinian evolution and to the harsh and violent depiction of God that it presents.
What does it mean that the whole foundation of these messages is the “everlasting gospel”? How can you daily have the assurance that this gospel message is for you, whatever your mistakes? Why is it so important that you daily claim the gospel message for yourself?
To me the good news, the glad tidings, “the gospel” is the basis of the three angel’s messages because it points to God who is the authority in the universe and the one who will justify (vindicate) His church in the end through the judgment. While the last message is hard on the lost and rather negative in reality it is a call to join God’s kingdom that guarantees protection from Satan and his government for all eternity.
The entire reason for all that God has done is to share His love. He wanted humans, chose them and created them to be loving friends. He knew the risks He was taking, and that He would empty Heaven for us. I need to daily remind myself of just Who God is!! The Love He has and all that He does to make it possible for me to live with Him forever someday. In the mean time, I can have the privilege of a unified connection with Him while I have a chance to draw others to Himself. During my life on this earth, my mind and heart daily needs total saturation with Him and His love in order to draw others to God and Jesus.
We must continually to seek GOD daily and ask HIM for guidance and protection in this world. By reading HIS word and sharing our faith we will continue to grow spiritually. It is amazing how you feel HIS love surrounding you when you draw close to HIM. What an amazing GOD we serve!
Thank God for revival and reformation. That which has been dead and idle needs revived and that which has been tainted with sin reformed.