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Commentary on "Garments of Splendor"
Day 1: Sabbath Afternoon, May 14, 2011 - Introduction
Overview
Know: Compare the way earthly things (such as clothing) wear out, and contrast this transience with God’s glorious and eternal garments of salvation.
Feel: Delight in the splendid garments of praise, righteousness, and salvation.
Do: Daily accept and wear the robe of righteousness that God offers to us, and, as His priests, witness to others about the joys of salvation. [Teacher’s Quarterly, Page 91]
Problems
This week’s lesson is about garments of praise, righteousness and salvation as described by many passages from Isaiah. Much about the lesson gives hope and points properly to Jesus.
However, throughout the lesson the focus is on Jesus’ death. This is fine as far as it goes, but it is incomplete. In order to get the entire picture one must move from the crucifixion to the resurrection and from the resurrection to Pentecost. Apart from this triumvirate praise, righteousness and salvation are meaningless.
Also, as is the constant practice of SDA theology, the appeal is to behavior: What I must do. For example, the “Do” portion of the week’s learning objectives asks us to “daily accept and wear the robe…” Does this mean the robe is taken away? Did I lose it somehow the previous day? Is this robe equivalent to the manna God gave Israel – good today, but rancid tomorrow?
I am not being hyper-critical. Adventism is no different than other denominational approaches. Humans, including you and me, always tend towards behavioral means to an end. By contrast, Jesus provides a radical departure from this self-absorption. My criticism is that Adventist theology, like most other denominational theologies, never takes salvation far enough. They stop at the cross, wonder why there is no power in their lives and substitute the facade of personal effort for that lack of power.
Summary
- There is much to like in this week’s lesson. Isaiah’s message truly is remarkable.
- We must be careful, however, never to stop at the cross. The cross has power over one thing – sin. It does not, indeed cannot, provide power for life.
Copyright 2011 BibleStudiesForAdventists.com. All rights reserved. Revised May 2, 2011. This website is published by Life Assurance Ministries, Glendale, Arizona, USA, the publisher of Proclamation! Magazine. Contact email: BibleStudiesForAdventists@gmail.com.
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