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Commentary on "All Have Sinned"

GABRIEL PROKSCH

 

Day 7: Friday, July 16, 2010 - Further Study

 

Overview

This week’s lesson ends today with two relevant quotations from Ellen White, the prophet of Seventh-day Adventism who confirms the author’s interpretation of the human sinful condition.

 

Observations

“Many are deceived concerning the condition of their hearts. They do not realize that the natural heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked. They wrap themselves about with their own righteousness, and are satisfied in reaching their own human standard of character; but how fatally they fail when they do not reach the divine standard, and of themselves they cannot meet the requirements of God.”—Ellen G. White, Selected Messages, book 1, p. 320.

At first glance this quotation places Ellen White in the evangelical stream of gospel teaching in that she rejects the attainability of personal righteousness on the grounds of the sinfulness of the human heart. Nevertheless, the key in understanding the difference between Ellen’s position and the evangelical, biblical gospel, is found in the final sentence: “of themselves they cannot meet the requirements of God”. By using the expression “of themselves” Ellen deliberately limits the rejection of human righteousness to the pelagian version of it. In other words, she rejects only the righteousness which people obtain without the assistance of God’s grace, or the obedience which they achieve entirely “of themselves”. As many of her writings prove, she’s endorsing the concept that by cooperation with God’s grace (grace being defined as the supernatural power God brings to assist man in his effort to keep the law) one may attain the “divine standard”—or the “requirements of God”. She goes so far as to teach that not only are God’s requirements attainable, but if the believer fails to cooperate with God to the point that he becomes as perfect as God’s standard requires, he cannot pass the final investigative judgment, and he will miss heaven. The next quotation illustrates this point as well.

 

EGW and personal cleansing

After describing the depressed condition of sinful humanity without including God in their struggle against sin, Ellen turns her attention first toward the larger category of those who profess to be Christians and second, with more emphasis, toward those who compose the “remnant”, the Adventists for whom she employs strong words. Usually Ellen’s detractors are charged with focusing on her criticisms without “balancing” her negative words with her positive, encouraging statements. Some may wonder what amount of positive thinking can restore the balance of this next quotation:

“Even some who profess to be looking for His appearing are no more prepared for that event than Satan himself. They are not cleansing themselves from all pollution.”

Notice carefully her words, “from all pollution”. She’s speaking about perfection of character; she’s presenting God’s perfect standard. God’s people must have no trace of sin. They must be cleansed from all of it—100% of their sin must be gone, not 50% or 60% or 70 %—not even only 99%. It’s an “all or nothing” situation. Those who are not involved in this rejection of sin from their lives, those who are still partially enticed by sin, those who are struggling with sin at some level and are failing to appear to make decisive and visible progress—they are as prepared for the second coming of Jesus as Satan is. She assumes that her readers know how prepared Satan is for the second coming and what awaits him afterwards.

Of course, Ellen White is writing to Adventists who don’t believe that Satan will suffer endlessly in hell, just burn for a finite time; still even with this “light” version of hell, to put believers struggling with sanctification into the same category as Satan is pushing them toward spiritual depression and even complete loss of faith. In this version of the gospel, only perfection of character, only cleansing from all pollution can assure somebody that he’s not fighting in vain. Until this supposed cleansing from “all pollution” is attained, there is no assurance of salvation. Ironically, however, there is a certain kind of assurance—it’s an assurance of doom since the believer’s preparation for the second coming is equated with Satan’s preparation for hell,

 

Crazy-making attempts to negate EGW’s hopeless statements

It seems that the author partially understands the problem raised by this quotation, and he tries to counteract its possible negative results by asking, “Why is it important not to give up in despair but to keep claiming God’s promises—first, of forgiveness; second, of cleansing?”

While encouraging people to have faith that God will cleanse them perfectly and prepare them for the second coming, he simultaneously snatches away their hope by associating a true promise of God (perfect justification, perfect forgiveness of sins) with something that God hasn’t promised (perfect sanctification and perfect cleansing before the resurrection or translation). He destroys the credibility of God’s true promise by linking it with a false promise. When sensitive people realize that the second “promise “is not going to come true, they will either go through the motions, hoping that some day God’s promise will come true, or they will reject both this false promise and the true promise of God’s forgiveness. They will throw the baby out with the water. There countless people who can testify to the despair produced by this kind of mishandling of God’s promises.

Another question from the author: “Who is the one that wants you to say, once and for all, ‘It’s no use. I’m too corrupt. I can never be saved, so I might as well give up’?” While it is true that Satan and his cohorts are interested in people giving up their hope for salvation and abandoning themselves to sin, the suggestion that one can never measure up is created by Ellen’s statements, not by God’s word. She’s telling “the remnant” that they need to attain perfection if they are to be saved. If this requirement of perfection would be resolved by telling the believer to trust exclusively in Christ’s perfect sacrifice for sin and the robe of His perfect righteousness imputed to him, all would be well. But when inherent perfection, not imputed perfection, is required and is made the condition of salvation, Satan is handed the perfect occasion to plunge believers into despair.

A last question comes from our author: “Do you listen to him or to Jesus, who will say to us, ‘Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more’?“

The author is attempting to build his case by misusing a passage of Scripture that is not present in the oldest manuscripts. While the story of the woman caught in adultery may be a true story, the words the author quotes may or may not be the actual words of Jesus. In either case, they cannot be interpreted to mean Jesus expected this woman to maintain her forgiveness and standing with God by making sure she never sinned again.

Jesus and His word clearly articulated the condition for salvation:

“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life” (Jn. 5:24).

“For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day” (Jn. 6:40).

He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life (1 Jn. 5:12).

Obedience and perfection are never conditions of maintaining salvation. Salvation is of the Lord; He calls us, loves us, and keeps us (Jude 2). Our efforts and cooperation are never part of the equation.

 

Summary

  1. Ellen White has misled thousands of people, causing them to give up in despair because they cannot attain righteousness, even though they pray and ask for God to help them.
  2. The Bible teaches that sanctification is entirely the work of Jesus that occurs after we are securely saved by belief in the Lord Jesus.
  3. Sanctification is not a condition of salvation.
  4. Ellen White has confused Adventists and misrepresented God’s word and the Lord Jesus Christ.
  5. When we trust Jesus, we pass from death to life at that moment, and we do not come into judgment. Ellen’s fear-inducing statements are untrue and have caused people to lose their faith.
  6. Life and hope and truth are found only in the Lord Jesus. Trust Him. He is all we need.

 

 

Copyright 2010 BibleStudiesForAdventists.com. All rights reserved. Revised July 15, 2010. This website is published by Life Assurance Ministries, Glendale, Arizona, USA, the publisher of Proclamation! Magazine. Contact email: BibleStudiesForAdventists@gmail.com.

The Sabbath School Bible Study Guide and the corresponding E.G. White Notes are published by Pacific Press Publishing Association, which is owned and operated by the Seventh-day Adventist church. The current quarter's editions are pictured above.

 

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