The Life God Has Given You
The first of a two-part series based upon the “two questions” of CSDA Evangelism. Those of you who have been associated with us for any real period of time know that a very useful set of questions we ask consist of these two:
- Are you satisfied with the life that God has given you?
- Are you satisfied with the life that you are giving Him?
Those who can answer, “Yes” to those questions, with complete honesty, are the people to whom we cannot teach anything. Now, this does not necessarily mean that they are converted. If they are honest with an answer of yes to both these questions, the possibility does exist that they are simply self-deceived, and we have met people like that. This is the reason why the Scriptures, and not our perceptions, must be the foundation of our faith… for if we can answer “Yes” to those questions, and we are ignorant of (for example) the Sabbath blessing, we are still missing out on an element of Christianity that is vital for the process of our sanctification in these last days.
But those who can answer “Yes” to those two questions, and who have an intelligent understanding of Yahweh’s requirements are the ones who are being fitted for translation, for they have learned not only the Law, not only the requirements, but the Spirit that is behind it, and that is what Adventists describe as the “Sabbath more fully.”
Today, and the next time we speak, I am going to be examining these questions, starting with the first one, “Are you satisfied with the life that God has given you?”
A few studies ago, I gave a message about the Joy of Yahweh being our strength, taken from Nehemiah 8:10. The basic idea behind that study is that the people of Yah are to have a spirit of thanksgiving. This concept seems to be where the Spirit of Yah is leading us right now, because brother Luke’s recent sermon was about the importance of asking for the specific things that we want. In a recent email to someone, I said the following, emphasizing the point made by brother Luke, leaving out some of the specifics:
Yah can only lead His people, He cannot push them against their will, so He can only allow for what the Church and Its members are ready to act on. As we ask for wisdom to see needs, we can then begin to pray about those needs; and when those needs are met, we appreciate the blessing in a way that sanctifies us. Asking for “help in all our endeavors,” as I often pray, is not at all bad for general purposes and prayers, but when we are preparing for something specific, if we see the urgency of it, we will pray for help with that specific thing. With [others], I have advised [them] to pray for specific blessings, and specific healing from defects as they come to light, and these have been granted to the degree that [they have] seen the need and asked for those very things... so we have cause to celebrate, because we have continuing testimony that Yah hears and answers the prayers of His people.
People are often tempted to think that because Yah knows everything, it is acceptable at all times to simply pray, “Please give us all you know we need.” But Yah is also a Person in the fullest sense of the word, and who would treat a friend in that way? With a friend we open ourselves up, and share with him/her what is truly bothering us, what is truly necessary for us to receive. It is this kind of relationship that He is seeking to promote with His people, and if they fail to develop that relationship, then blessings and providence cannot follow us consistently, OR ELSE, Satan will have an accusation against us just as he did with Job... and [the Accuser] will say, “This person only follows you because you give them all they need without them even asking.” Yah will be obliged, as he did with Job, to say to Satan, “You have leave to find out.”
Such a time is coming anyway, the time of trouble, but we have no need to make it harder on ourselves (or other people!), or begin it early, because we allow such an accusation against us to arise.
That was what I said in the email. From these things, I believe we can see that there is more than one reason to be thankful to Yahweh, not only for the general things, but for specifics. And nothing is too small for Yahweh to receive praise for. When Christ was on earth, he would oven remove the minds of the people from the grand things, from the things that men count as impressive, and would instead point them to the simple:
Mat 6:26-30
David said, and I will read all of Psalm 131 (all three verses):
Psa 131:1-3
Now, do not make the mistake of thinking that because David writes, “neither do I exercise myself in great matters, or in things too high for me,” it means his eyes are not fixed on the Savior and Redeemer of Israel. In another place he writes:
Psa 25:15
Psa 141:8
When the Psalmist feels that he is not directly experiencing the joy of salvation, he writes in heaviness of spirit:
119:82
It is clear that David’s eyes were always turned toward Yahweh, either rejoicing in what he could see, or awaiting a revelation of what he could not yet see. But it did not require “great matters” for him to be content, or joyful. Even the ordinary things drew his attention, for remember he grew up in the fields with his father’s sheep, playing a harp and eating a commoner’s food.
And as for us, we have a greater responsibility than David ever did, for we have seen the Savior walking on the earth, we have had the Revelation of the Son of Yah come to us vividly through the eyes of the Gospel writers, and those who followed after, reflecting on what they learned from His earthly ministry. Further, we have had the privilege of sharing the visions of those who have seen Yahshua working on our behalf in Heaven.
Paul saw it, and gained a ministry that powerfully influences us two thousand years later. John saw it, and gave us the Book of Revelation. A number of prophets since that time have also seen it, and this is why we have the current light we do in Adventism. But for all these things, and all these blessings, have Creation Seventh Day Adventists been thankful enough? Which of us can say, and I mean say in public, “I am happy with the life God has given me?”
Now those of you who have learned the message of the CSDA Church, and have even been baptized, may say, “Of course I am happy with this life!” But how is this revealed? Do you think you are happy with this life, or are you truly happy with it? How do we test that? Well, let me ask a question, “Do you take advantage of the opportunities you are given to express your thankfulness?”
Now, I’m not talking about to the world… I am not talking about expressing your thankfulness to the world. We can start even smaller than that. You will remember that my focus lately, and from this point forward, has been about the practicality of our studies. What practical impact does the knowledge that we gain from sermons, New Moon meetings, articles, and books, have upon us? For this topic, I would comment this way:
Our times of praise and testimony in CSDA congregations during our weekly meetings have not always been what I would consider “occasions of joyful sharing.” We have had examples of good testimonies before us in the Tennessee sanctuary, and this morning’s was not bad at all. Some have been short, some have been long, but those based upon the spiritual joys of Yah’s salvation have always filled the room (or those who have heard from a distance) with the light of Heaven. Everyone should come with praise before the presence of Yahweh, and this every time!
The Bible tells us, and again I am reading an entire Psalm, this time the full five verses of Psalm 100:
Psalm 100
These words reveal to us a great reason to rejoice. Should not we, the redeemed, the gathering of the 144,000, not be the most faithful to the instructions of those blessed words?
I am not talking about the celebration movement here. They are in the ditch on the other side of the narrow way. I am not saying we take our rejoicing to the extent that we forget we must “take up our cross and walk.” Yahshua was a Man of Sorrows, and He has promised us that there will be trails. The blessing is that He has promised He will be with us in these trials, as He says in Matthew 28:20, but this does not mean we must not walk through the Valley of the Shadow of Death at times. Even in trials, there is joy if we are in Christ.
It is a shame before the angels of Heaven when the people of Yahweh, the most fortunate people in the entire universe, sit silently when they are asked to bring forth a testimony. Can they not think of one good thing that happened to them the last few days by Yahweh’s grace? Do they think their little trials overcome, and their little blessings received, are too small for the congregation to hear?
Or do they truly have nothing to rejoice in? Think about these things as you examine yourself and ask the question, “Am I happy with the life that God has given me?”
Paul gives us divine instruction:
Phil 4:4
He further says:
1Th 5:16-23
The end result of the instructions given, rejoicing always, praying constantly, being free with our thanksgiving, being open to the leadings of the Spirit, the end result of this is that we become sanctified “wholly,” and isn’t this what we are emphasizing in the power of the Fourth Gospel Angel?
I am not proposing that we all start go give long testimonies. A couple New Moon studies ago I shared with you a quote from Ellen White’s writings that I think contain a very relevant portion, explaining that long, drawn-out testimonies can be a real plague to the spirituality of the meeting. At the same time, what are we to say about our joy in Yahweh, if during Sabbath testimonies, and Camp Meetings, these occasions of rejoicing, we have little or nothing to say?
Are you happy with the life Yahweh is giving you? What does that question mean to you? We are not discussing a vague sensation of “happiness,” but specifics. There is such a thing as false joy, we have seen it among us in our camp meetings and congregations by those who have come, and then gone. There are those who will constantly say, “Praise Yahweh, what a wonderful (something) He has given to me,” when their actions, and their other words – at less public times – reveal hearts that are not in harmony with love, peace and joy to the very least degree. We must beware of self-deception, as I mentioned above. Some can honestly answer, “Yes” to the questions of CSDA evangelism, but be self-deceived. Paul writes:
2Cor 13:5
We use that verse to explain the importance of self-examination, on New Moons and at other times, but the verse also implies that there are some who cannot tell whether or not they are in the faith. They are either not sure, or they think they are when they are truly not. They are “reprobate;” their minds have been ruined by indulgence in sin, and only the miraculous healing of Yahweh can restore such a mind, if that mind will even be willing to receive this healing and ask for it in recognition of a genuine need.
But, as the epistle to the Hebrews says:
Heb 6:9-12
It has been necessary, at times, to “thus speak,” that we may be reminded of the things Heaven values, and the life to which we have been called. Let us remember to be thankful, truly thankful, for the life that Yahweh has given us, and this need not only be for the larger things. You may ask yourself these questions, and thereby “prove your own selves”:
Are you happy with:
a) Your job? Are you content with what you probably spend a large amount of your time awake doing? This can be employment in some field, or working at home, but these are blessings for which to be thankful. The Scripture tells us (Gen 3:17-19). Although it was a “curse” you notice it was also for our sakes. I did a study a long time ago about this, explaining the value of work, and the dangers of idleness in the life. Paul certainly was in harmony with this idea: 2Th 3:10.
b) Your home? Are you thankful for the place that Yah has given to you as a home? By this I mean not only the building, but also the environment… the people around you as a mission field, the places nearby you can visit and perhaps spend time with nature. These things are important for spiritual development, and the house has always been a sacred place for those who serve Yahweh. The Bible instructs wives, although it really has principles that apply to anyone: Titus 2:5
c) Your income? Do you spend more time complaining about how much you make than you do giving thanks for what you make? The Scriptures tell us that as long as we are faithful to our Father in Heaven, He will be faithful to us. He says, for example, Mal 3:10-12.
d) Your bills? To be thankful for bills… this is an unusual concept for most people, but remember that all things are truly a blessing, if accepted in a Christian Spirit. The Word tells us 1Tim 5:8. We’ve had people connected with our Church (for a brief time, and not as members) who could not even support their own families, yet wanted to peach a message that teaches they are worse than infidels… There is a place to rejoice in responsibilities, for by them we have many opportunities to reveal to the world and on-looking universe a converted, Christ-like character.
e) Your lifestyle? By this I mean the lifestyle you are able to uphold due to your means, not the things you choose to do with your life. That is a topic for the second sermon. Are the things you do satisfying to you, and are you thankful that you are able to do them? 1Cor 10:31. This verse can be used for both this side and the next, for we must remember to give thanks for the food and drink by which we may choose to honor our Creator.
f) Your family? The Bible tells us that the earliest divisions of humanity took place “after their families” (Gen 10:5). Now, we may of course pray for our families, particularly if they are not filled with converted people, and we may certainly be aware of the shortcomings of our relatives, but are we thankful for the blessings we did receive from them? Are we thankful that none of us had too little to survive – because here we all are – and do we declare this to Yahweh, to our Church, and to, our families themselves? This, even this, can be a testimony to them.
Next time, we will look at the other question from our set of two, “Are you satisfied with the life that you are giving Him?” We will see from these two studies that all our messages boil down, ultimately, to a way to answer to these two questions.
Even the most specific of our doctrines, like protesting the Mark of the Beast, the SDA Trademark, brings people face to face with these questions. And on a larger scale, Victory, Purity and Unity, the three pillars of the CSDA faith, seek to instruct mankind how it may answer, “Yes” to these two questions without deception, and without self-deception.
We, who are called to rejoice always for the blessings we receive from our Father, are the ones directed to lead the way, and I pray that this message will make us aware, perhaps as never before, the importance of bearing always with us a testimony, a testimony of joy, and thanksgiving, and praise.