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In the study preceding this one, I mentioned that I would be speaking about the role of doctrines, a proper Biblical understanding of truth, in today’s study. I do not intend, however, to speak about why it is important to have sound doctrine, at least not as my primary goal. That should be obvious; if we believe error, our minds will be focused on something other than the glory of the Father and Son, and our sanctification will be imperfect or incomplete. We read, “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” (John 8:32) And again, “Sanctify them through Thy truth; Thy Word is truth.” (John 17:17)
It is truth that draws us to Yahweh, and it is truth that prepares us for everlasting life. But I have seen this idea, and these very verses, used as a tool in the hands of the Enemy.
I mentioned last week that I had a conversation with someone on Facebook chat, who was quoting these and other similar verses at me. With the verses themselves, I have no issue, and agree with them completely; however, he was quoting them in response to a statement I made, that unity in Christ is not about doctrinal agreement, but about having a common Spirit. After all, it does not say, “Justify them through Thy truth,” but rather “sanctify” them that way, which comes after one is already declared justified “in Christ.”
The Savior’s disciples had misunderstandings among them, both during His earthly ministry and afterwards. We read of them correcting one another, even rebuking one another at times; nevertheless, they identified themselves as having “one Lord, one faith, one baptism” in Ephesians 4:5.
For someone to say, “We must agree first on doctrines, and then we will have unity,” this is an indication of a severe misunderstanding of the Bible’s teachings on Christian unity and the fellowship of the Spirit. Today I am going to make another one of those “bold claims,” and it is this: No doctrine that is taught in the New Testament as “new light” is suitable for use as a test of fellowship.
Nothing that is introduced in the New Testament for the first time, or cast in an entirely new light by Christ or His apostles, is intended for use as a test of Christian unity.
How can I know this? How can I prove this? I can prove it quite easily… because the New Testament exists. Consider what the New Testament actually is; it consists of four books that describe the earthly ministry of Yahshua the Messiah, the Son of the Almighty, and then the rest of the collection is a set of letters called “epistles” that were written for the Church. Now, that last part is key; consider that the epistles were written to edify the Church, to teach people IN the Church about doctrine. That means that their call to unity, their “baptizability” did not depend on them understanding anything that was written to them afterward for their learning.
This may take a little while to grasp, but think of it like school. You do not teach children Math, English, and Science, and then afterwards send them to school. No; rather, you enroll them in school because they do not already know these things, and expect them to learn there. Similarly, as we have been discussing over the past few weeks, the primary internal purpose of the Church on earth is to “edify the body of Christ,” and thus perfect the saint. It is to teach spiritual principles and sanctifying truth to those who have already committed themselves to Yahshua, and who have experienced His life within them, to the degree that a messenger ordained by Heaven has said, “This person is suitable for baptism.”
So imagine that; the unity of the Christian does not depend upon perfectly understanding what Paul, and Peter, and John, and the others are teaching. They were to be baptized, based upon the faith that was already delivered to the world through the Old Testament prophets, and then, as a single, united body, they were to be “edified” by the things that the Apostles taught and prepared for the judgment to come. As it is written, “sanctify them through thy Truth.”
We find in the Old Testament that Yahweh has given us His Law, His Ten Commandments, (Exodus 20) His promise to send us a Son to die for us, (Zech 12:10) His promise to transform us by taking away hearts of stone, and giving us instead hearts of flesh upon which His Law is written, (Jer 31:33) and so on. This doctrine, this Scripture, was sufficient for the translation of Enoch, Elijah, and others. And they had no advantages over us in any way; in fact we have advantage over them, but what was sufficient for them to triumph completely over sin and the grave is sufficient for us as well. In His Mercy, Yahweh has responded to the increasingly clever attacks of Satan with ever-increasing light, so that we may have no excuse for falling short, and what He has given will lead any who are living by the Spirit, and not the flesh, right to the gates of New Jerusalem.
As CSDAs we sometimes have these “two questions” that determine whether or not someone has a clear conscience towards the Creator: Are you satisfied with the life that Yahweh has given you? Is Yahweh satisfied with the life that you are giving Him? You know, the basis of the correct answer to both of those questions can be found in the Old Testament.
Are you satisfied with the life that Yahweh has given you? We read, “Therefore thou shalt keep the commandments of Yahweh thy God, to walk in His ways, and to fear Him. For Yahweh thy Elohim bringeth thee into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and depths that spring out of valleys and hills; a land of wheat, and barley, and vines, and fig trees, and pomegranates; a land of oil olive, and honey; a land wherein thou shalt eat bread without scarceness, thou shalt not lack any thing in it; a land whose stones are iron, and out of whose hills thou mayest dig brass. When thou hast eaten and art full, then thou shalt bless Yahweh thy Elohim for the good land which He hath given thee.” (Deu 8:6 – 10)
We read in another place, “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on Thee, because he trusteth in Thee.” (Isa 26:3) Those who believe these promises, will answer that question with an enthusiastic “Yes!” He has given us, and promises to continue giving us, anything we could truly want.
Is Yahweh satisfied with the life that you are giving Him? We read, “When thou art come into the land which Yahweh thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not learn to do after the abominations of those nations. [Then it gives some examples of those abominations] Thou shalt be perfect with Yahweh thy Elohim.” (Deu 18:9, 13) Those who believe this promise will say, “Yes, I accept this. My Father is pleased with the life that I am giving Him.” This was, after all, the testimony of Yahshua: “And He that sent Me is with Me; the Father hath not left Me alone, for I do always those things that please Him.” (John 8:29) He said that because He believed the truth that is found in passages like Deuteronomy 18.
Yahshua testified to what was taught in the Scriptures of His day, which we now call the Old Testament, and it was on the basis of that testimony that He redeemed the world. Those that receive His testimony are made “One” with Him, and one with each other – not because of the doctrines, but because of the testimony of who He was, and Who the Father had sent to us. And you might say, “Well, aren’t those things His doctrines?” In a sense, yes… but if you listen to religious people speaking these days about “doctrine,” they are not talking about the testimony of Yahshua. They are not talking about the power of God to make us perfect in His sight, to give us a life that brings us joy, and a life that pleases Him. When modern Christianity uses the word “doctrine,” it is almost always talking about specific positions on beliefs and practices, about things that we do, or don’t do… not about what the Father has done for us through the Son.
And I am the last one who would undermine the importance of doctrine, in any sense of the word. I thoroughly enjoy seeing how the teachings of the Bible interconnect, forming a web of sanctifying power. A truth taught over here in this book explains a verse over there in another, and it is all perfect, harmonious like music. I am not in support of Ecumenism, the idea that “It doesn’t matter what you believe – just come, get baptized, and we’ll all form a great big Church. There are many valid interpretations of any given passage.” No, again, the reason why the New Testament exists is to edify the Church, to tell them what the truth is so that they will all believe that one truth. I do not believe all beliefs are equal, nor that errors of any kind will persist in the minds and hearts of those who are genuinely converted. The Bible says that the intention of Christian unity is “that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.” (1Cor 1:10)
But one must be “genuinely converted” in order to appreciate truth, to grasp its implications, and to make it a part of your character, so that you are not just learning a list of things to do and things to avoid, but you are learning who you are in Christ, what your character and personality were intended to be from the foundation of the world. It is not a recipe, or a checklist, that may be memorized or forgotten; rather, learning doctrine as a converted human is uncovering the reality of your existence that has been covered up by the world, but is now released into the universe as a beacon of light. As it is written, and we have already quoted, “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” (John 8:32) What I am talking about is the timing, the sequence, the order, of the process of salvation.
That brings us to today. This idea could be used, it might seem, against the Creation Seventh Day Adventist Church. This idea of unity coming before a detailed examination of doctrine, that sounds like it contradicts something that we teach quite emphatically.
Remember how we summarize the Three Angels’ Message. The First Angel speaks of preparation for judgment; thus, it is declaring the existence and need for perfect Victory over Sin. The Second Angel declares the fall of Babylon, the end of confusion, and thus the restoration of Pure Doctrine. The Third Angel calls upon a people to stand in unity against the Beast and its Image, to avoid the Mark, and to reflect the character of Christ to the world instead. This can only be done as One, and so we have the order here as Victory, then Purity, then Unity.
But you might see the problem here. If it is Victory, then Purity of doctrine, then Unity, are we not agreeing with our critics, who say that a pure doctrine must come first? Don’t we give support to those who say we must first agree on points of true doctrine when Babylon falls under the Second angel, and only then may we unify to glorify Yahweh against the Beast?
We need to understand what “the fall of Babylon” actually is. We need to understand what a “pure doctrine” means, and what the confusion ending signifies for the individual believer.
Doubting the promises of Yahweh leaves an individual confused, and unstable, as we discussed last week. However, attempting to build unity on the basis of common doctrinal beliefs leaves a group confused, and unstable corporately. For them, Babylon does not fall, but endures, and causes them to split apart, just as the original incident at Babel did in Genesis 11. That is what Babylon does; not only does it confuse, it divides. The evidence for the truth of this is before our very eyes. We see a bleak landscape of confused and contentious denominations, we see independent ministries and self-sent ministers divided over disagreements, vying for attention and supremacy, for followers and for their tithe. Why is this? The Bible tells us that divisions, seditions, are the work of the flesh. (Galatians 5:19, 20) It is the carnal mind that causes men to split apart into factions when disagreements arise. If our unity in Christ depended on our own understanding, it would be a fragile thing indeed, and so we are taught not to rely on it.
“Trust in Yahweh with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.” (Pro 3:5) Unity in Christ can never depend upon our own understanding, even our own understanding of truth, even our enlightened understanding of truth. The Bible itself directly denies that notion.
The world does not understand the balance between faith and works. This is a problem that Sabbath-keepers must meet in their evangelism, in order to be effective. In exactly the same way, the world does not understand the difference – cannot tell the difference – between a set of common beliefs, and genuine love that binds men and women together in a common spirit.
Just as true faith always leads to genuine works, so true unity always leads to common doctrines. Faith and works are both important, but faith must come first, or the works are useless. There is a parallel here. Love and a common spirit are important, and so is a shared understanding of doctrine. However, the binding of Philadelphia and Agape, of brotherly and divine love, must come first, or doctrinal agreement is useless, and will inevitably fall apart and lead to further division. We have seen it, so we know it is so.
When the Second Angel says, “Babylon is fallen, is fallen,” it does not mean that everyone who hears its cry will immediately understand all doctrine. No, the elimination of confusion does not immediately convey perfect knowledge and understanding. When confusion departs, then learning can begin; Isaiah says, “Cease to do evil, learn to do well.” Purity of doctrine is the beginning of the process, not the end. We have a perfectly pure doctrine, because we have put away all the errors that have bound us, and now begin to learn what the Apostles taught in the New Testament. When we have been thus humbled, when we are ready to learn, then the Third Angel guides us into unity and knowledge.
A Pure Doctrine is not a perfect understanding of every teaching of the Church. It is an ability and a willingness to grow in grace and knowledge, and thus glorify Yahweh. When I was first converted by hearing the Gospel as taught by the CSDA church, I heard the First Angel, and I said, “I believe in victory over sin. I claim it, and I will go forward in the life that my Father has prepared for me.” Then I heard the Second Angel, and confusion left me. I began to understand that the Godhead was not a Trinity, that the Trademark Law enacted by the SDA Church was the modern Mark of The Beast, and that the Sabbath was not just a day, but a state of mind given to me by the Savior. I began to learn these things. Did I know, and do I know now, exactly what the Godhead is? Of course not. These are mysteries for Eternity; but as the errors began to fall away, as the tower of confusion began to crumble, I was prepared for the Third Angel, for baptism, for unity with the Church, for impending glory when Yahshua shall soon return.
The Second Angel says, “Babylon is fallen, is fallen.” There is an end to confusion. There is a lack of confusion about who Yahweh is. But a lack of confusion, again I stress this, does not mean a fullness of conscious knowledge. A baby is not confused. It just doesn’t know very much yet, but it is learning, and growing in wisdom. Now if you lie to a baby, and tell it about Christmas, and Easter, and Halloween, for example, you’re going to confuse that young human. You are going to introduce error into the truths that it is learning, especially about spiritual things, and disrupt the process of sanctification. You imprison it in Babylon, where selfishness, and self-deception, and impurity of many kinds, are considered as virtues.
In just the exact opposite process, the Second Angel strips away the illusions. It destroys the falsehoods, and restores the path of sanctification. It enables us to recognize true doctrine when we hear it, because it adds to the pure truth that we retain, that we already have. This must come before unity, of course; Heaven will never sanction the baptism of someone who is not willing to learn, and who stubbornly clings to errors that have already been exposed by the Holy Spirit; but then after that, in the School of The Prophets, in the Church of Yahshua the Messiah, then the learning of doctrinal specifics may begin, because it is only in that setting that they have any value whatsoever.
If you teach a worldling that the Trinity is false, then you end up with a slightly more educated worlding. You do not end up with a Christian, or a saint, or a believer. But if you teach a worlding to believe in the promises of Yahweh, that they have been set free from sin, that there is a truth that they may learn free from error and confusion, that there is a place prepared for them, a Creation Seventh Day Adventist Church prepared for them, in which they may learn the “meat” of the Gospel… then, you have a new, young saint.
Paul wrote, “I have fed you with milk, and not with meat; for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able.” (1Cor 3:2) This tells us that the Corinthians did not all have the same understanding, or an adequate understanding, of many things. This did not interrupt their unity; they were still the Corinthian Church. Also, Paul was not content to leave them in ignorance. He taught them. He wrote them a letter teaching them, and just a few chapters later points out the ideal, which we have already read, that they are to be the same in understanding and judgment. This is the balance; they did not need all knowledge to be “as one,” but neither were they left in that state of incompleteness.
For us, in these last days, we will have that meat. We will have that understanding that allows us to follow the Lamb of Yahweh, perfectly whithersoever He goeth. But first, Babylon must fall. First, we must permit the Second Angel to strip away any pride, any selfishness, and any blind spots that went undetected and unidentified when we accepted the First Angel’s Message. Someone may commit no known sin, and yet have blind spots that keep him from seeing the fullness of truth. That must go. For the 144,000, that must go. The Everlasting Gospel consists of three vital parts, and we must have a Pure Doctrine on which to build our continuing understanding of truth as the Third Angel Guides us as a Body.
The Second Angel comes before the Third, before there can be unity. But it is in that unity that the Pure Doctrine, which begins with the Second angel, flourishes. Thus, unity comes before doctrinal agreement, but not before we are prepared for doctrinal agreement by confusion’s end. Meditate on that, and see how Yahweh has led you thus far. It is time for the “meat” of subjects like this, because it is only in this way that we can counter the errors that Satan introduces into the narrative, trying to convince Christians, for example, that these incomplete, superficial ideas of “unity” are what will get people to Heaven.
We have read this verse before, but I would like to use it in a new way today, as we close: “‘But let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth Me, that I am Yahweh which exercise lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, in the earth; for in these things I delight,’ saith Yahweh.” (Jer 9:24)
We have used this verse as an anti-pride statement; that our only source of boasting is in Yahweh, not in any attribute of the “self.” But Jeremiah’s words are also anti “doctrinism,” against the idea that all beliefs must be exactly the same, and that every interpretation must line up before unity may be experienced. We must know the truth about Yahweh; His personality is everything to us as a people. But some say, “To know God means to know that He has a Son, and that He isn’t a Trinity.”
No, that is not what Yahweh says. He says “Glory that you know Me,” but not only that, “Glory, or boast, that you know this about Me, that I am loving, that I am kind, that I am just, that I am righteous. These are the things that please Me about Myself, and that please Me when they are within My people.”
The Second Angel reveals this purest of doctrine. It ends confusion about who Yahweh is, and prepares us to learn what it means that He is loving, and kind, and just, and righteous. The issues of what the Holy Spirit is, and is not, don’t mean anything until we first know these things about our Creator. That knowledge is important, yes, that men have failed to explain the Godhead; but it doesn’t save the sinner from death. It prepares the saint more perfectly for Heaven, and those two are not the same thing.
Of course, we are responsible for more light now than ever before in human history, but the standards of Yahweh’s requirements on His people have never changed. The things that He is telling us about Himself have never changed. “Have you received my Son, whom I have sent into the world to save you? Does He dwell within your transformed heart, so that you have ceased from sin, and have begun to learn of righteousness?” These are the questions He asks our hearts, not, “Have you overcome all your ignorance yet?”
Because Babylon has fallen, we awaken to knowledge of Yahweh. We have a “Pure Doctrine” of His character, which humbles us and becomes our only source of value. In our new humility, we have knowledge of His saving power that has just set us free from our heavy chains, and this must happen before there can be unity. But once we accept it, once we stand in the judgment of the First Angel, and stand in victory over confusion by the Second Angel, then we inevitably unite with others who bear that identical testimony. This is what forms the foundation of our unity, our shared experience with the Savior. Then, when we are united together, joined under the Third Angel, baptized into that One Body, then we refine our beliefs, then we are led to perfection of understanding, more and more unto that perfect Day.
This is the Everlasting Gospel that our Creator, in His infinite love and wisdom, has provided for us. This is the pattern of the Sanctuary laid out in Heaven, and duplicated here on earth in the experience of His people. With one voice, we are called to declare the coming judgment of Yahweh, an invitation to everlasting life. We are called to declare an end to the confusion surrounding who Yahweh is, that He is loving, and kind, and just, and righteous. We are called to declare an end to the Beast and its Image, to the work of Satan within and among mankind, because the Only Begotten Son is on His way, and we are appointed as His heralds, as His fore-runners, to prepare a people to receive Him in joy and in peace.
Let us be eternally grateful for the work of the ministry that has been set before us, for in this way – like no other – we express love to our fellow men, and bring them out of Babylon and into Yahweh’s glorious Kingdom.
David.