Dial Daily Bread: A Fish That Made a "Big Splash" in the News

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

A fish has made a "big splash" in the news [when this message was written in 1998]. It's 4 feet long, weighs 64 pounds, and doesn't belong in our modern world say the scientists. Well-preserved fossils show that this identical fish lived at the same time as the dinosaurs, the same fish that has been caught off the coast in Indonesia. And scientists have told us that was 60 million years ago.

But here he is, coelacanth (SEE-le-kanth), found in deep water in our modern ocean, unchanged by these supposed 60 million years during which evolution was supposed to have occurred. By now, that's long enough for this "animal" to be looking like a humanoid! But no, here he is looking just like his ancient friends when they frolicked in the waters side by side with the dinosaurs. No progress.

It would probably be easier for Christians to go to prison or even the stake standing for their faith than it is to stand alone in the intellectual trial facing the ridicule of the scientists. The latter tell us that the Genesis story of Creation and the Flood is false, and they quote reams of supposed scientific evidence. You're just naive if you believe the Bible, they say.

It would be absurd for this tiny tidbit of Good News to try to adduce scientific evidence to support belief in the Book of Genesis. But we must face the test of faith, like the apostles having to face ridicule because they believed the Carpenter of Nazareth to be the Son of God. The real issue now underlying all others is not trying to interpret scientific "evidence" this way or that, but appreciating agape--a love that cannot originate on planet earth. Ask any evolutionist where he thinks agapehas come from. (If he is ignorant of its existence, that would indicate the church has not told him the truth about it!)

The Bible idea of agapeis a love that no human could invent or develop through social evolution. It is expressed at the cross of Christ. The evolutionist is silenced by it. Reaching the heart by that simple story can bypass the impact of a library of "scientific" literature.

--Robert J. Wieland

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: September 26, 1998.
Copyright © 2019 by "Dial Daily Bread."

Dial Daily Bread: Does the Book of Revelation Reveal What's going on in the World Today?

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

Does the book of Revelation tell us what its name means--that is, reveal the meaning of what's going on in the world today? Yes! Let it speak. Its series of Seven Churches reveals the overall history of Christ's true church through the ages down to our time today (chapters 2, 3). Its series of Seven Seals reveals the history of apostasy in the Christian church down through the ages (chapters 4-7). Its series of Seven Trumpets reveals the meaning of world history in relation to God's plan of salvation (chapters 8-11).

For centuries, humble Protestant scholars have seen in chapter 9 the story of Islam and its significance in the world. "The fifth angel sounded: And I saw a star fallen from heaven to the earth. ... And the sun and the air were darkened ..." (vss. 1, 2). The sixth trumpet pinpoints the identity (vss. 13-21). Islam was divinely permitted for a special task: to be a scourge to the fallenness of apostate Christianity.

The apostasy ("the falling away," 2 Thess. 2:3-7) in the popular church in the early Christian centuries fed a ferocious zeal for Islam's propagation. Reverence for idols, for example, ignited in the Muslim breast an anger they saw as "righteous," and in retrospect one understands it directed at blatant public contradictions of God's holy law. Muslims had protested a fallen Judaism; now they protested a fallen church. They saw Islam as the world's savior. Thus they still see it.

The culture of the West is widely viewed as "Christian." We are in history redivivus. The "fallen star" had its origin in heaven; its monotheism impacts the thinking of the billion-odd Muslims, among whom die-hard zealots view Hollywood and dancing cheerleaders as the ultimate essence of "Christianity." The book of Revelation clarifies the confusion of our post 9/11 world. "Blessed is he who reads, and those who hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written in it; for the time is near" (1:3). Its message to all is, "Repent" (3:19).

Take a good look at the "seven trumpets." The "seventh" is even now sounding (11:15-19). The News behind the news is Christ's High Priestly ministry.

--Robert J. Wieland

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: August 2, 2005.
Copyright © 2019 by "Dial Daily Bread."

Dial Daily Bread: A "Gift" Given to "All Men"

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

What the Bible teaches about "justification" is clear as sunlight, but "the little horn" of Daniel's prophecies has sought to confuse this truth. It had been God's intention that "the faith of Jesus" should lighten the earth with glory. But the great "falling away" (apostasy) that Paul predicted in 2 Thessalonians 2 (based on Daniel!) was the work of "the man of sin" (vss. 3-7). He has stirred up debate and confusion about "justification." These have darkened this glorious truth for many sincere people. (Maybe you, too!)

The New English Bibleaptly defines that word "justification" as simply God's "verdict of acquittal" (Rom. 5:16). Our enemy, Satan, condemns us in God's law court; he himself is shut out of heaven, and charges that we should be, too. But God steps in and vindicates, "acquits" us, as though we had never sinned. Now He can send His rain and sunshine on all alike as though we were innocent. He gives "all men" this "free gift ... resulting in justification of life" (Rom. 5:18; Matt. 5:45). But how can the Father pronounce this "acquittal" that Satan hates? Is it fair? Muslims say, "No!" But what's the Bible answer?

The Son of God has become "the second Adam," the new corporate Head of our human race, has taken all our guilt upon Himself ("the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all," Isa. 53:6), accepted our condemnation, died our second death both "for us" and "as us," and thus has "acquitted" us. We are "justified by His blood," says Paul (Rom. 5:9), which was shed at the cross of Jesus. Six times Paul says the "acquittal" is a "gift" given to "all men." "Many" reject the "gift," throw it away, "sell the birthright." But if you clasp it to your heart, cherish it, keep it, appreciate it, that is, "believe"--you cannot be lost.

--Robert J. Wieland

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: March 8, 2005.
Copyright © 2019 by "Dial Daily Bread."

Dial Daily Bread: The Story Is in Luke 24--Can You Begin to Grasp How the Followers of Jesus feel?

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

We must learn about (1) the most oppressive despair humans have ever known and (2) the most explosive joy that followed. We shall never lighten the earth with the glory of a fully developed "everlasting gospel" of Revelation 18 until we taste (2). And no one can ever know that until first he has known (1). The story is in the last chapter of Luke (fascinating book to read all the way through).

Every hope that humanity is capable of knowing has been fulfilled in Jesus the Nazarene. He has proven Himself to be the Son of God; the Eleven have confessed Him so. They and many other "witnesses" have seen the coming of the Messiah. Even the Samaritans have seen in Him "the Savior of the world." "The hopes and fears of all the years," all 4000 of those years, were "met" in Him. What Abraham and all the prophets had longed to see, the Eleven have seen. "We were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel," lament Cleopas and his friend as they trudge despondingly to Emmaus. Like a sudden avalanche, the most horrible things have suddenly happened to the Son of God; He has been murdered by the leaders of the one true church, the "chosen people," Israel. Can you begin to grasp how the followers of Jesus feel? They are "us" in a corporate sense; yes, we are one with them. We identify.

The sun has been blackened out of our sky! Not only is the Messiah dead; He has been humiliated, despised, by the most hateful, Satanic rejection the universe has ever witnessed. No way can this have happened to the Son of God! The horrible thought intrudes on our conscious or unconscious minds--could we have been deceived? Yes, say the leaders of the one true "church" on earth--Israel. The Pharisees, the Sanhedrin Council say, You've been fools to believe this charlatan. (It's easy to learn that you are a sinner; what hurts is to learn you're a fool.) Number (1) is unspeakably painful.

Then this Stranger draws near to the two. Kind, gracious. He gives them a simple Bible study "beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning" the world's Savior. "Ought not the Christ to have suffered these things?" Why, the cross fits perfectly as the crowning demonstration of God's validation of Jesus of Nazareth!

Wisely, the risen Savior doesn't tell them in words who He is; He simply reveals Himself. Then the two race back to tell the Eleven in Jerusalem.

Human hearts virtually explode with joy. All the devils in hell can't stop these "witnesses" from telling the story everywhere. Do you share the joy?

--Robert J. Wieland

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: March 17, 2003.
Copyright © 2019 by “Dial Daily Bread.”

Dial Daily Bread: What It Means to Be "Reconciled to God"

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

The Bible is full of comforting, encouraging assurances of the heavenly Father's unending love. He is the "Wonderful, Counselor" (Isa. 9:6) who alone understands all the intricate details of our lives since our conception (Psalm 139:7-17).

When the Bible pleads with us, "Be reconciled to God" (2 Cor. 5:20), the plea is for us to believe His character of love, that infinite though He is as the Ruler of the universe, He is also the personal, intimate "our Father in heaven" whose heart yearns for us as if we were the only person for whom the Savior gave His eternal life.

His close, intimate love goes both ways: (1) forward into our future ("I will never leave you nor forsake you," Heb. 13:5); and (2) backward to our very conception in the womb of our mother, according to that psalm.

We can't "do" anything to earn salvation; when the jailer in Philippi asked the apostles what he should "do to be saved" they told him frankly, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ" (Acts 16:30, 31). That means again, "be reconciled to God."

We sometimes think that the book of Hebrews is over our heads; but Paul ends chapter 13 with a humble, simple, heart-warming request for us to "pray for him" as though he is as needy as any of us (vs. 18). So we get down on our knees, side by side with "our beloved brother Paul" (2 Peter 3:15), and just like us, he prays for "a good conscience."

As we face our future confident that the Lord will never "forsake us" or let go of our "right hand" (Isa. 41:13), let's trust that He has led us unerringly in our past. Part of our being "reconciled" to Him includes that confidence that His leading in our past has been only faithful love.

--Robert J. Wieland

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: September 9, 2006.
Copyright © 2019 by "Dial Daily Bread."

Dial Daily Bread: The Next Event on the World's Agenda

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

John the Baptist had the great honor of introducing the Messiah to the Jewish nation: "Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!" he cried (John 1:29). The name "Lamb of God" means that Jesus must die for the world, in place of humanity dying. That death has to be the second death, the eternal one.

That's what Jesus meant when He said, "I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself. This He said, signifying by what death He would die" (John 12:32, 33). He is the Son of God, the Creator, the Redeemer; all of humanity will gather at His cross, "drawn" irresistibly to the amazing sight of the world's Creator enduring the curse of God in Himself, dying as One "despised and rejected of men," suffering the unspeakable horrors of hell itself.

It's a spectacle that even the angels of heaven and the inhabitants of the vast universe are also "drawn" to watch with wonder, for Christ is not only "the Savior of the world" (John 4:42), He is also the Savior of the throne, the government, of God. The fate of the universe trembled in the balance as Jesus was dying on that cross. Let Him utter one angry, impatient word, and all is lost. Why was the event so vastly important?

Everything in the universe that makes life possible, the cohesion of atoms, the basic principle of life itself, was in jeopardy. God had an Enemy who had been the highest angel, the highest created being, who had rebelled against His government and its fundamental principle of agape. Sin was a challenge to the very foundation of God's existence and thus to the existence of His realm. Now the Son of God was to meet that Enemy on the battlefield and wrestle hand to hand. He was to "die to sin" (Rom. 6:10), to be exposed naked to the gaze of the world and of the universe (the Romans always crucified their victims naked). Now the mysterious foundation pillars of God's government must be exposed. Jesus doesn't want to die the second death any more than you do; going to eternal hell was no more fun for Him than for anyone. "God with us" is now both human and divine, finite and infinite both. As one of His seven steps of condescension (Phil. 2:5-8), He must "empty Himself."

He must not die alone, unseen, uncomprehended. If He must "taste death [the second] for everyone" (Heb. 2:9), "everyone" must see Him do it--the grandest, most terrible sight possible for any intelligent being to "behold." And there we have the next event on the world's agenda--"Christ and Him crucified" proclaimed, which is the message of Revelation 18 that must and will "lighten the earth with glory." And that is Good News.

--Robert J. Wieland

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: March 6, 2004.
Copyright © 2019 by "Dial Daily Bread."

Dial Daily Bread: A People Will Be Ready!

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

Jesus promised in John 14:1-3, "I will come again." And He clearly explained in Matthew 24 that His coming will be personal and literal, and He will resurrect the "dead in Christ." 1 Thessalonians 4:16, 17 tells us that those who will be resurrected are "the dead in Christ" who have chosen to abide in Him. So, the question makes real sense: What kind of special preparation will those people make who go through the final time of trouble, overcome the mark of the beast, stand on the sea of glass "without fault" (Rev. 14:1-5), and actually welcome Christ at His second coming?

The Bible is full of Good News, but here is where it is finally focused in its greatest brilliance. First comes what appears on the surface to be intense bad news--the Holy Spirit will shine that Light into the darkened chambers of the human heart until every secret, previously unknown sin is mercilessly exposed. God's people will be painfully aware of its deep existence that they had never before fully realized. Every last vestige of spiritual pride will be laid in the dust.

The superficial idea that we're "OK" will be shattered by the realization that no one of us is any better or more righteous of ourselvesthan anybody else in the world. The sin of somebody else will be seen to be oursin, but for the grace of Christ. At last, those who believe in Christ will realize what God said through Isaiah long ago, "Their righteousness is from Me" (54:17), not from themselves.

And what will be the crowning sin in which they at last realize they share guilt? The crucifixion of Christ! Zechariah 12:10 says, "they will look on Me whom they have pierced." Each will see himself or herself at the cross!

Then comes the Good News: "A fountain shall be opened" for cleansing that will flow in unprecedented glory (13:1). Grace will abound "much more," corresponding to the "much more" conviction of sin that God's people will experience. The final negative will be matched by the final Positive. A people will be ready!

--Robert J. Wieland

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: August 30, 1998.
Copyright © 2019 by "Dial Daily Bread."

Dial Daily Bread: A Phrase Coined by the Apostle Peter that Catches Our Interest

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

The apostle Peter coined a phrase that catches our interest in each succeeding generation of earth's history: "the present truth" (2 Peter 1:12). We begin to think of that neglected side of the history of Jesus--His "marriage." It's the "wedding" of all time, and even of all eternity. The Son of God takes a Bride! It seems that that grand denouement of history is "the present truth."

Weddings are festive occasions in all cultures and in all times; this Wedding causes all Heaven and the universe itself to break into singing. There are four grand Hallelujah choruses of joy unsurpassed and music never heard in all eternity.

"The Lamb" is the Son of God, the "Word" who was "in the beginning," who "was with God," who "was God," the Creator in whom "was life; and the life was the light of men," the One who "became flesh and dwelt among us" (John 1:1-4, 14). He is the Prince of Heaven, and He is also our King of kings and Lord of lords. He is getting married!

He is the Great Protagonist in the "war in heaven" in which the battlefield was transferred to this earth. The struggle is with "the great dragon," who was at one time Lucifer and is now "that old serpent, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world." "The marriage of the Lamb" comes simultaneous with the Lamb's final victory over Satan (Rev. 12:7-10; 19:1-9). The "Lamb's wife" is in the middle of the excitement.

As any bride complements her husband, so "the Lamb's wife" has a role in this great final celebration. It can't take place until she "makes herself ready"! All around the world it seems that Christian people are being drawn to ponder the current cosmic crisis of why and how the Bride-to-be has delayed her getting ready. Heaven is Concerned!

--Robert J. Wieland

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: July 6, 2002.
Copyright © 2019 by "Dial Daily Bread."

Dial Daily Bread: The Gift of the Sabbath

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

No matter who you are or where you are, the Sabbath is a blessing that God does not merely offer you, but gives you. Someone may be sick in the hospital, or a prisoner on Death Row, but no one can be deprived of the holy hours of the true Lord's Day, the Sabbath.

You don't have to be converted, or be a good person, to receive this "gift" of the Sabbath. It's like the "gift" of justification that Romans 5 says five times God has givento the world "in Christ," not just offered us. You may have spent your whole life in disregarding this gift of the Sabbath; if so, you have deprived yourself of blessings you could have enjoyed immensely. The one who disregards the holy Sabbath day is like Esau, the man to whom God gavethe inestimable blessing of the birthright but "despised" it and "sold" it for a trifle of worldly pleasure (Gen. 25:34; Heb. 12:16, 17).

When the Sabbath begins at sundown, welcome its holy hours. Kneel and thank its Giver for it. Turn off the voices of the world so you can hear the still small voice of the Holy Spirit. Don't reduplicate Esau in yourself--don't "sell" even a few moments of this holy time for a worldly indulgence of godless amusement. Demonstrate that you cherish and treasure God's gift of the holy Sabbath--how else can you demonstrate that you cherish and treasure the sacrifice of the Son of God which Sabbath-keeping "signifies"? (That's how the Sabbath is a "sign" of sanctification, Ezek. 20:12.)

None of us are the least bit worthy of this gift of the Sabbath. Our hearts are by nature carnal; the holy hours of the seventh day find us contaminated with worldly thoughts and desires. Hence, a sincere, honest, thoughtful prayer that the same "Lord of the Sabbath" who created the gift may hallow our soiled hearts, cleanse us, and grant us in these holy hours to be a student in the "school of Christ" for this one day.

You'll be sorry to see the Sabbath "go" when again the sun goes down and you'll immediately look forward to another Sabbath to come. We live the six days for this personal "heart-to-heart" with our Savior. Which is what it means to "remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy."

--Robert J. Wieland

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: January 24, 2003.
Copyright © 2016 by "Dial Daily Bread."

Dial Daily Bread: Are You Longing for Some Solid Truth You Can Trust?

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

Are you longing for some solid truth, firm as a rock, that you can trust, that's also good news? Here it is in Titus 2:11-14:

It's truth taught by the "grace of God that brings salvation ... to all men" (vs. 11). It's not a fear motivation. The "grace" is that "much more abounding" kind that's greater than all our sin (Rom. 5:20). And it's given, not merely offered, to "all men." It overwhelms you when you think about it. "Every man" does one of two things: he either receives it or he rejects it.

That grace (not fear!) teaches us to say "No!" to every temptation to sin that Satan can fling at us (Titus 2:12, New International Version). That's where our problems are--"worldly passions." We don't naturally know how to do it, but that "grace" teaches us to "live soberly, righteously, and godly, in the present age" right where we are (vs. 12). The worst sinner learns under that tutelage. It's being in school with Christ as the Teacher. (That's a great privilege!)

We cherish "the blessed hope" of seeing Him come again--we believe His literal second coming is that soon! (vs. 13). That otherwise impossibility is accomplished by comprehending how He "gave Himself for us" (vs. 14). It's looking, beholding, grasping, absorbing, the four grand dimensions of a love (agape) that passes knowledge (Eph. 3:16-19). When you gaze at His cross, the lethal bites of the "serpent" are healed (John 3:14, 15).

Why did He "give Himself for us"? To save us "in sin"? No, to save us from it (Titus 2:14). You see yourself as the believing thief crucified with Him. Self dies with Him. You share His cross, by living faith.

What He's doing is to "purify for Himself" 144,000 people in a time when the Enemy says it's impossible to happen (vs. 14 again; see also Rev. 7:1-4; 14:1-5). Whether that's a literal or symbolic number is not the point. What you must believe is that the Savior loves you so much that He invites you to be among them, to "overcome ... as I also overcame" (Rev. 3:21). He wouldn't invite you if it were not possible.

--Robert J. Wieland

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: October 3, 2012.
Copyright © 2019 by "Dial Daily Bread."

Dial Daily Bread: Does God "Harden" Some People's Hearts?

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

Does God "harden" some people's hearts so they cannot believe? Does He "fit" some people for "destruction"? Did He "harden Pharaoh's heart"? There is a text in Romans that some think says so; and unless we understand it, we have a little nagging doubt hidden away in our hearts that is certain to confuse us and discourage us in some sudden moment of temptation.

Speaking of Pharaoh, Paul seems to say that he is an example of people God has "raised up" for the one purpose of destroying them. Our English Bible has misunderstood the Greek that Paul actually wrote: "Hath not the potter power over the clay ... to make one vessel unto honor, and another unto dishonor? ... God ... endured ... the vessels of wrath fitted for destruction" (Rom. 9:21, 22, King James Version). Surely sounds like He has "fitted" some people "to destruction"! Some read that and think of themselves as toys in God's hands that He purposes to break and throw away.

They must not think that way. The key word in the Greek in verse 22 which is translated as "fitted" is a word that grammatically can be understood two different ways: either as a perfect passive (as in our English translation) or as a middle participle which means they "fitted themselves for destruction." According to everything else the Bible says about God's character, that is the proper translation.

Paul says that God has "endured with much longsuffering" this wearisome process that people put themselves through of fitting themselves for destruction. God created them and fitted them for eternal salvation, and He redeemed them; but by unbelief (disbelief) they have resisted His grace and perverted it. Like Pharaoh, the prime example, the more light God shed upon their pathway, the more they hardened their own heart.

There are ten Bible texts that say Pharaoh "hardened his own heart." And there are ten that say "God hardened his heart." Contradiction? No; it's the metaphor of the clay again: the more sunlight shines upon it, the harder it gets. Until we "let" the Holy Spirit give us a "new heart," the more light the Lord shines upon us, the more we harden these poor sinful, selfish hearts.

The Good News? You can pray the prayer that is 100 percent sure to be answered: ask for a tender, melted, broken heart (Psalm 51:10, 17). The answer will come through understanding, appreciating, what happened on Christ's cross.

--Robert J. Wieland

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: October 28,1999.
Copyright © 2019 by "Dial Daily Bread."

Dial Daily Bread: New "Elijahs" Facing Old King Ahabs

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

The conscientious, alert follower of Jesus is in constant tension. Every wind of doctrine is blowing with force. Publications on the Internet and by printing are flooding our mailboxes, both postal and electronic. Voices are clamoring to be heard with new interpretations of key Bible teaching. Some are seriously aberrant but are clothed in appealing language that is intended to deceive "if possible, even the elect" (Matt. 24:24).

The tension is heightened by remembering that it is wrong to let oneself be deceived by clever falsehoods (we should by now have "eye salve," Rev. 3:18), but at the same time it is a revived rejection of Christ if we "despise prophecies" that are of heavenly origin (cf. 1 Thess. 5:20). The Lord has a way of raising up "messengers" (often humble ones!) to whom He has revealed new truth that His people need to hear. They are new "Elijahs" facing old King Ahabs, or new "John the Baptists" facing the old "Sanhedrins" that still condemn truth.

In John 6 Jesus stood alone before the Jews, confronting them with a real problem: He split the congregation! The leaders and people were perplexed; how could they interpret the data about Jesus? Was He the Messiah? Were the evidences He gave them valid proofs? We say "yes!" but the problems weren't always easy for the people. Not one of the leaders of the people accepted Him for what He said He was. That confused the common people.

Jesus sympathized with their perplexity, and He sympathizes with yours. He said, "If anyone wants to do [the Father's] will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is from God or whether I speak on My own authority" (John 7:17). That promise doesn't excuse us from studying; evidence must be carefully weighed. But it is an assurance of the unerring guidance of the Holy Spirit. Now is the time when we need it as never before!

--Robert J. Wieland

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: August 20, 2005.
Copyright © 2019 by "Dial Daily Bread."

Sabbath School Today, Lesson 3, Quarter 3-19

Sabbath School Today
With the 1888 Message Dynamic

The Least of These:
Ministering to Those in Need
Lesson 3: Sabbath: A Day of Freedom

 

Many of you have heard this story of the beloved Nduri, but it's worth repeating in the context of the Sabbath, a day of freedom:

Nduri was an African widow living in a village on the slopes of Mount Kenya who had been taught by the Presbyterian missionaries to reverence the Bible and the worship of God (thank God for their work!). In her "family worship" one day she read Hebrews 7, the story of the strange man, "Melchizedek," who served God all alone, "without father, without mother" (vs. 3). She marveled that any one could serve God all alone like that.

Then she hurried to sell her beans in the market, but had no success for three days. In desperation, she walked many miles to Tharaka, where people always had cash for beans. There she listened to Pastor Solomon explain Bible truths she had never dreamed were therein--the second coming of the Lord Jesus, the thousand years of Revelation 20, the glorious new earth yet to be created, and the news about the holy seventh-day Sabbath of the Lord.

As he pleaded with the congregation for a decision to follow Jesus all the way, renouncing the world and its sinful ways, trusting in Him, taking up the cross to follow Jesus, her heart thrilled; she wanted to say "Yes!" but then she thought, "How can I serve the Lord all alone in my village? I would be the only one there who kept the Sabbath as the Bible says we should; no, I'm afraid that being all alone I might not remain faithful!"

But then like a flash there popped into her mind that story about that strange man, "Melchisedek." "If he could serve the Lord all alone, I can, too!" Then came that smile of victory.

When I met her, she asked me to baptize her, to seal her decision to follow Jesus every step of the way. (I'll never forget that clear ice water in the stream that flowed from Mount Kenya's snow.) Until her death, Nduri remained an inspiration to many in Kenya, and those around the world who have heard her story.

_____________________________

Like Nduri, as a member of the "body" of Christ, you will "grow up into him." You are like a branch united to the Vine. By faithful attendance at worship on the holy Sabbath day, the true "Lord's day," you gain an ever greater knowledge of his holy truth, and a closer, warmer fellowship with others of your brothers and sisters in faith. Thus, as a branch united to the Vine, you will "bear fruit" in holiness and purity of life, and in willing others to eternal life through faith in the Savior.[1] When you appreciate the Redeemer's love for you, you automatically find it possible to love others, even those who are unlovely, yes, even your enemies.[2]

You have begun to love God's law, His Ten Commandments as ten promises of victory over temptation Satan may bring against you; you love obedience to the fourth, keeping holy His blessed seventh-day Sabbath as a precious gift from Him.

But how is the Sabbath part of the 1888 message?

The sinner has no merits of his own, as he has no good works of his own; but to be reconciled means he is "made obedient."This is the 1888 idea of being "made righteous." The sinner has "received the atonement" [3] and his deep-seated enmity against the law has been removed by the "mighty argument of the cross." [4] In justification by faith "the love of Christ constraineth us" and becomes the new motivation to holy living (2 Cor. 5:14, 15). Lukewarmness is done forever! Grace being stronger than sin, the 1888 messengers (A. T. Jones and E. J. Waggoner) grasped the astonishing idea that it's easy to be saved and hard to be lost if one understands and believes "the truth of the gospel" (Gal. 2:5, 14).

Ellen White was overjoyed when she heard the two messengers tell this. She clearly said the message went beyond what she called "the good old doctrines," for it was "fresh light." This "justification by faith" will be "fresh" to us and to the Evangelical world for it's "the third angel's message in verity." [5]

"Every fiber of my heart said amen," she said, because here at last was the unique, distinct Seventh-day Adventist idea of the everlasting gospel "which is made manifest in obedience to all the commandments of God." [6] Thus it had to go beyond that of the popular Sunday-keeping churches.

The Sabbath truth is embedded in a full and complete view of justification by faith because the Sabbath is the "sign" of that true faith. [7] Where the Sabbath truth is denied, there has to be either a counterfeit or an immature view of justification by faith. [8] Rightly conceived, justification by faith itself becomes the message that will raise up people all over the world to "keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus."

But when we begin to exercise faith, we "cease" from our own works because we enter "into His rest" (Heb. 4:10). The Lord then works within us both to will and to do of His good pleasure. When all our works are wrought in Him, they are right. This is indeed rest. It comes when we realize that the Word which made the heavens and the earth and which upholds them has also redeemed us personally. This rest comes through the Sabbath. The same power that sanctified the Sabbath sanctifies the believer in Christ.

The Sabbath is the seal of a new creature in Christ, one who is united with Him by faith. Born a creature of the dust, He is now a newly born member of the heavenly family. The Sabbath is therefore the "seal of God" which is placed upon "the foreheads" of God's servants in these last days (Rev. 7:1-4). It came from Paradise and marks those who are destined to live eternally in Paradise. As they assemble through eternity from Sabbath to Sabbath, they will "sing for joy" because of what their Savior has done for them:

Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches 
and wisdom, and strength, and honor, and glory, and blessing.

--From the Writings of Robert J. Wieland

Endnotes:
[1]See John 15:1-3; Ex. 20:8-11; Rev. 1:10; Isaiah 58:13, 14; Psalm 92; Luke 4:16; Acts 2:46, 47; Heb. 10:22-25; Rev. 14:12.
[2] See Matt. 5:43-48; 1 John 4:11-13, 19, 20.
[3] See Rom. 5:1-11 for the heart of Paul's view of "justification by faith."
[4] Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church, vol. 4, p. 375.
[5]Ellen G. White, Review and Herald, April 1, 1890.
[6] Ellen G. White, Manuscript 5, 1889; Testimonies to Ministers and Gospel Workers, pp.91, 92.
[7] See Ellet J. Waggoner, Christ and His Righteousness, pp. 37-45, Glad Tidings ed. (1999); "The Rest That Remains for the People of God," Bible Students Library, Jan. 1893; The Glad Tidings, pp. 140-144, CFI ed. (2016).
[8] See A. T. Jones, 1893 General Conference Bulletin, pp. 243-245, 261, 262, 342-343, 358.

Notes:
Pastor Paul Penno's video of this lesson is on the Internet at: 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKJFOFovLcs

"Sabbath School Today" is on the Internet at: http://1888message.org/sst.htm

Dial Daily Bread: A Serious Question—Is Your Heart “Loyal to Him”?

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

Do you ever ask the question, What is Jesus Christ doing now? With instant electronic news, millions of people know almost immediately what is happening around the world. Can we be as well informed about what Jesus is doing? Is He looking after our interests? And can we know this for sure?

Hebrews 7:25 says, "He ever lives to make intercession for [us]." Is Jesus trying to change the Father's mind toward us? No, because the Father loves us as much as He does. Those who come to God through Him enjoy His interceding to protect them from the cruel attacks of Satan, not only physical violence but also his evil spirits of despair and condemnation.

Psalm 121:4 tells us that He "neither slumbers nor sleeps." Heaven's "helpline" is open 24 hours a day.

The Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Jesus, will respond to your prayer for help. God even answers the prayers of children, and He sometimes will answer your selfish prayers in order to encourage you in any way possible. But He so much wants to teach you to grow up to appreciate what Jesus is doing as our great High Priest--preparing a people to be ready for His second coming in power and great glory!

The total resources of Heaven, of its vast government, are directed toward instructing and training every human soul who will respond, to get ready. You can read it in 2 Chronicles 16:9: "The eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him."

What's important is this. Instead of you trying to get in contact with Him, He is trying to find a way to get in contact with you! Does your heart respond to Him; is your heart "loyal to Him"? Now that's a serious question!

--Robert J. Wieland

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: March 24, 1998.
Copyright © 2019 by "Dial Daily Bread."

Dial Daily Bread: Can the Dream Be Recovered?

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

With the end of the papal Dark Ages in 1798, the world entered into a new and hopefully glorious era. Little Mary Jones walked her weary trek to London to buy her fabulous prize of a Holy Bible; and lo, the British and Foreign Bible Society was formed, soon followed by the American.

Inventions began pouring out of fertile minds. The horror of slavery began to be abolished; the little nation of ex-British colonies began to prosper in the New World; Christian people awakened as from a long sleep--the second coming of Christ was near. The world had embarked on what the Bible describes as "the time of the end." A preparation for the return of Jesus Christ became to intelligent people a reasonable "blessed hope." Through unmistakably divine leading, the message began to go worldwide.

Hearts responded and capable people did things. Clearly blessed by the Holy Spirit, a message joining together the gospel of Jesus with the ideals of healthful living worked wonders in tired, sickly people; the world's finest health institution (for then) was established in Battle Creek, Michigan, where even European royalty crossed the Atlantic to come. There the "West's" finest Christian publishing house was established. What the apostles after Pentecost longed for seemed to be on the verge. A solemn but joyous sense that the world had entered into the cosmic Day of Atonement gripped hearts worldwide. The "blessed hope" of the imminent return of Christ made life here below a taste of heaven.

Then it was discovered that Christ's message to the seventh church of history had become applicable: the church was "Laodicea," the one whose worldly lukewarmness made the Lord so nauseous that He felt like throwing up (Rev. 3:14-21). Now a battle rages in people's minds and hearts: is that last organization into a "body of Christ" doomed to eventual failure? Or is a corporate repentance possible (and sure)? Can the dream be recovered?

--Robert J. Wieland

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: June 29, 2006.
Copyright © 2019 by "Dial Daily Bread."

Dial Daily Bread: The Preamble to the Ten Commandments--Choose to Believe It

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

People are often afraid to think about the "two covenants" (the Old and the New), fearing that it's a theological puzzle beyond their understanding.

In truth, it's the simplest concept in the Bible to grasp: the New Covenant is the promises of God to Abraham and to his descendants by faith (if you believe John 3:16), that He will bless you abundantly now and forever. That's the New Covenant (you can read the seven promises in Genesis 12:2, 3). In contrast, the Old Covenant is the promise of the people at Mount Sinai to "do" everything that that they think God requires (Ex. 19:8).

Under the Old Covenant we see the Ten Commandments as ten stern demands. But under the New Covenant we see them as ten glorious promises that the Lord will save us from the sin mentioned.

For example, the seventh: under the Old Covenant it's a stern demand that we never covet our neighbor's spouse, but under the New Covenant it's a promise that the Lord will hold us by the hand forever and save us from falling into the hole that Proverbs 22:14 says is a "deep pit." The wonderful promise applies to us in our teenage years, also. (That's when it's especially precious.)

But is there no condition regarding what wemust do?

Yes: we must believe the Preamble to the Ten Commandments. We must believe that by virtue of His sacrifice of Himself on His cross, the Lord Jesus has delivered us "out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage." By becoming our new Head of the human race, our new Adam, Christ has adopted the human race in Himself (Eph. 1:3-7); He has become the "Savior of the world" (John 4:42--that is, in a legal or judicial sense), but "especially" so of "those who believe" (1 Tim. 4:10). His love (agape) then constrains us to live joyfully unto Him. Self-sacrifice for Him is a joy.

That's the truth of the Preamble to the Ten Commandments. You must choose to believe it. Let Him "help [your] unbelief." He will! (Mark 9:24).

--Robert J. Wieland

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: February 29, 2008.
Copyright © 2019 by "Dial Daily Bread."

Dial Daily Bread: As We Celebrate Independence Day . . .

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

Americans are celebrating 243 years of independence as a nation. It's a miracle how this nation has grown from thirteen feeble colonies to its present status. Its rise to world preeminence is clearly set forth in Revelation 13. God has blessed this nation in that it has provided the liberty and resources to be the evangelist nation in sending forth missionaries to all parts of the earth with the third angel's message of the everlasting gospel.

As a nation we continue to enjoy God's favor, in spite of our many vices and evils, because this nation continues to give assurance of religious liberty. We enjoy God's blessing, not for our goodness (we have none!) but for those lamblike principles enshrined in the American Constitution, principles of religious and civil liberty, principles borrowed from the Bible itself.

Are those principles of religious liberty threatened today? Yes, they are. Will they be repudiated? The prophecy of Revelation 13 says yes. Then will "national ruin follow national apostasy"? Yes. But should fear and self-concern dominate our Christian experience today? No.

What should dominate our thinking today? Gratitude that we still have the privilege of giving to world missions, that we can still proclaim the gospel, and can still labor to help others understand it. What should we pray for--liberty, so we can keep taking vacations, eating gourmet food, and enjoying entertainment?

No; we should pray that the dear Lord may help us use our last opportunities for proclaiming the gospel, and for understanding what the gospel is, so when "the night cometh" we may have the satisfaction of knowing we have worked "while it is day." See John 9:4--very serious words!

--Robert J. Wieland

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: July 4, 1997.
Copyright © 2019 by "Dial Daily Bread."

Dial Daily Bread: You Have the Evidence That God Has Adopted You as His Child

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

In a special sense Ephesians and Romans teach that Christ the Son of God became the world's second Adam and reversed the judicial condemnation that the fallen Adam brought upon us all.

Christ has given to "all men" a judicial verdict of acquittal, and in Himself adopted us. He is "the Savior of the world" (John 4:42), "the Savior of all men, especially of those who believe" (1 Tim. 4:10). "The free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of life" (Rom. 5:18; of course, we are free to refuse the "gift" if we choose to).

Says Ephesians: "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has ... predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He has made us accepted in the Beloved" (Eph. 1:3-6).

But how can one know this personally? If you had some tangible, intimate evidence you could see, wouldn't that make you happy?

Romans says yes, you have it: if your heart cries out "Father," that is the evidence that you have been personally "adopted." No human could cry "Father!" unless in a real sense he has been "born again," or at least has begun to be born again: "As many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear [as is natural for all humans], but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, 'Abba, Father'" (8:14-16; remember, a baby is a live son!).

Think it through: walk softly before the Lord, look to Him for guidance, cry out in your distresses, "Father!" and confess that like a child crossing busy traffic hangs on to father's hand, so do you to Him--you have the evidence that God has adopted you as His child. Now demonstrate your adoption by how you live!

Hold your head high!

--Robert J. Wieland

From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: September 25, 2006.
Copyright © 2019 by "Dial Daily Bread."

Dial Daily Bread: "Faith and Love"—Do We Really Know What They Mean?

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

We have been talking about "faith and love" for many decades, but do we really know what they mean? Is our Lord trying to tell us that we don't really understand what love is, and therefore cannot have true faith? Is the "angel" of the Church destitute of "such love as dwelt in the heart of Christ"?

Yes, he is, according to the True Witness. This is very shocking to contemplate. But let us look more deeply into the matter. There are two great contradictory ideas of "love." One has come from Hellenism and is the kind of "love" on which popular Christianity is based. The other is completely different and is the kind of love that can have its source only in the ministry of the true High Priest in His cleansing of the heavenly sanctuary.

Our Lord's charge becomes baffling and incomprehensible to us when we are ignorant of what that love really is. Some will say, "I know I love my family and friends. What else is there?" Self-satisfied hearts will feel no need to be "awakened." But many do feel a great need and will immediately recognize the "gold" when they see it.

In its full context, as a wise writer said, the "gold" is "faith that works by love." Therefore, in order to understand what the Tue Witness means by saying "buy of Me gold tried in the fire," we must first of all examine what "love" is. Only then will we be able to understand what "faith" is.

Christ Himself makes clear what New Testament faith is, and His view is different from that of the popular concept. "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him ..." (John 3:16). Note: (1) God's love is the first thing, and until that love is revealed, there can be no "believing." (2) As the result of His "loving" and "giving," the sinner finds it possible to "believe." ("To believe" and "to have faith" is one word in Greek.) Thus, faith is a heart-experience ("heart-work"), and it cannot exist until God's love is understood and appreciated.

Note this fundamental point: the "believing" is not motivated by a fear of perishing or an acquisitive reward of everlasting life. The primary causative clause of Jesus' statement is "for God so loved." The two secondary clauses are "that He gave His only begotten Son" and "that whosoever believeth." The believing is a direct result of the loving. And Christ Himself spoke the words of John 3:16.

Thus there begins to emerge a clear definition of New Testament "faith":Faith is a heart-response to, or a heart-appreciation of, the love of God revealed at the cross. Re-read Romans and Galatians with this John 3:16 definition in mind and you will find Paul reproduced with startling realism. He will come alive for you.

--Robert J. Wieland

From:The Knocking at the Door.
Copyright © 2019 by "Dial Daily Bread."