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Commentary on "Temperance"
Day 7: Friday, May 28, 2010
Overview
Look at this quote taken from Friday’s study:
"There are few who realize as they should how much their habits of diet have to do with their health, their character, their usefulness in this world, and their eternal destiny.’ What does this mean in practical terms?" (Teacher’s Quarterly, P. 112).
Observations
Here is the week’s final proof that Adventism is concerned solely with externals.
No less an authority than Ellen White says that our eternal destiny is tied directly to our diet.
What this means in practical terms is that I must eat, drink, work, live and exercise in exactly the right way, or I will be damned to hell. Are you willing to bet your life on this lie?
Please never equate health, character and usefulness in this world with eternal destiny.
It absolutely is true that poor habits can ruin my health and severely limit my usefulness in this world. But these habits are nothing more than an expression of my character, not the cause of my character. My character is formed by my flesh or by the Spirit. If by the flesh, I should not be surprised at the disgusting behaviors I display.
If my character is formed by the Spirit, then I know, on the testimony of God’s word, that I already have eternal life. I also know, on the testimony of God’s word, that I will battle with my flesh until I die or Jesus returns. I sometimes will lose that battle, but I have a choice that the lost person never has.
“So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature [flesh]. For the sinful nature [flesh] desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature [flesh]. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law.” (Galatians 5:16-18)
Finally, the teacher’s portion of this lesson (P. 103) briefly mentions that religion can be addictive. There is no more addictive religion than Seventh-day Adventism. It is rife with the pleasure-pain cycles that characterize addictive behaviors. Look no further than most Adventists’ inability to engage in a meaningful relationship with anyone but another Adventist. I’m not talking about marriage here, but about the tendency of Adventists to exist in ghettos large and small around the world.
The grace of God results in the opposite. It frees us from our addictions of all kinds, restores balance to our lives, gives us purpose, and enables us to be the fragrance of life to others within a dead, putrid world.
Summary
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Official Adventist Resources
Standard Edition Study Guide Week 9
Teacher's Edition Study Guide Week 9
Easy Reading Edition Study Guide Week 9
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