Demons of Righteousness

8/14/2019 Demons of Righteousness

1/22


2/22

WHO'S GOT THE TRUTH?hand and drag us into another. Bad as it is to be

snared in the slime of sinful indulgence, the ultimatedeception is the opposite ditch off the gospel free-way: legalism. People imagine they are followingGod when in reality another force is empoweringthem.

Remember the Pharisees, those paragons of piety.They had conquered the flesh and its lusts to thepoint that they fasted twice a week. But Jesus said

these trophies of self-discipline and the disciples oftheir zealous evangelism were actually sons of hell(see Matt. 23:15).

"Lord, I thank Thee for what Thou art doing in mylife," prayed the Pharisee in the sanctuary as hescorned the struggling soul who cast himself uponGod's mercy. That model of self-mastery knew notthat his own soul was in bondage to demons-notdemons of self-indulgence but demons of self-right-eousness!

Demons of righteousness? Yes! The Bible warns ofspiritual zealots who preach Christ-but not Christ asour only hope. They preach a gospel, but one ofmerit rather than mercy (see 2 Cor. 11:2-4). Thisfalse gospel brings them "into bondage" (verse 20)bondage to demons of righteousness: "For suchare false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming

themselves into apostles of Christ. And no wonder!For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel oflight. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministersalso transform themselves into ministers of right-eousness" (verses 13-15).

White magicSatan's wolf-in-sheep's-clothing strategy multiplies

his power to deceive. Take witchcraft, for example.According to the Encyclopedia Americana, "magic tocause harm is often called black magic or sorcery,and magic intended to help or cure is frequently

229


3/22

DEMONS OF RIGHTEOUSNESStermed white magic."1 Do you see the deception?

For those eager to indulge in evil, the devil has blackmagic (I lament the racial overtones of that term,but such is the world of witchcraft). And for thosewho admire the miracles of blessing Jesus per-formed, Satan has white magic. Black magic orwhite magiche doesn't care whether people do evilor do good as long as he is in control.

In Christ's day, Herod by the demons of indul-

gence killed John the Baptist for the sake of lust,while the Pharisees by demons of righteousnesskilled Jesus for the sake of law. In succeeding centur-ies the emperors of Rome were playboys in theirpalaces, as the bishops of Rome venerated monast-ics in the desert and promoted perfectionism (withpurgatory as a fire escape for those not quite worthyof heaven). Today, Satan continues his two-prongedassault from opposite extremes. The singerMadonna embodies immorality, while the virginMadonna images celibacy. No church is immunefrom demonic attack. You can be sure that thischurch, entrusted by God with the truths of the finalremnant, is a special target of both the demons ofindulgence and the demons of self-righteousness.

In some Seventh-day Adventist churches, demonsof indulgence champion a cheap gospel that com-

promises lifestyle and doctrine. Sin isn't taken seri-ously. Sabbath rest becomes just a vacation fromthe office and classroom. To many, hell and the judg-ment are outmoded myths. The pleasures of theworld become a chosen lifestyle in which people cel-ebrate their supposed freedom in Christ with a glassof California wine.

Meanwhile, demons of righteousness pull other

church members toward the opposite extreme, pro-moting obedience and victory apart from gratitude

1"Magic," Encyclopedia Americana (Danbury, Conn.: Grolier,1991), v. 18, p. 84.

230


4/22

WHO'S GOT THE TRUTH?and assurance in Jesus. Members under their influ-

ence are zealous for doctrine but devoid of God'slove. They live in the desert at Mt. Sinai. Their livesare like the burning bush, but with the flame ofGod's blessing gone out. Not satisfied with burningoff sin's dead leaves, they have broken off life's in-nocent branches. Finally they become an unadornedstump of stern spirituality.

Counterfeit victoryRecently I interviewed a member who told me howSatan had given him victory over sin. Through read-ing various private publications he became ob-sessed with acquiring a sinless character worthy ofheaven. As he prayed, he received a power thatbrought victory over every sin on his checklist.Meanwhile, a hard-hearted, critical spirit displacedhis love, joy, and peace. Then an inner voice toldhim to join an independent group. He becamedeeply involved with them, but eventually their Wa-conian-style mind control methods opened his eyes.Having come to his senses, he fled to Calvary forrefuge from the demons of righteousness. He's backin church, eager as ever to keep God's command-ments, but now he trusts in the blood of Christrather than in his own attainment of sinlessness to

qualify him for heaven.His wife told me how terrible it had been to live

with a man that attained "perfection." She discernedthat his spiritual power was inspired by an alienforce. Though amazingly victorious over the usualbesetments, he had ceased being a loving husband.

"By their fruits you shall know them," Jesus said.And the fruit of the Spirit above all is "love, joy,

peace" (Gal. 5:22). God's true Spirit always worksthrough the joy and peace that come from believingin Jesus (see Rom. 15:13). We might fast all day andpray all night for the Holy Spirit, but without faith in

231


5/22

DEMONS OF RIGHTEOUSNESSthe blood of Jesus our earnest incantations are in

vain. Another spirit may possess us.Remember, evil spirits are deceptive, luring usfrom opposite directions. We can steer away fromone ditch and plunge into the other extreme. Atstake is our eternal destiny.

Legalism versus liberalismThis colossal conspiracy between demons of indul-

gence and demons of righteousness manifests itselfin a tug of war between legalism and liberalism. Theliberalism here warned against is not warm-hearted,open-minded, Christianity that calls for a commit-ment to social justice for the poor and oppressed.Liberation in Christ from all injustice is a basic ele-ment of koinonia. But false liberalism from thedemons of indulgence is a counterfeit spiritualitythat marches in step with secular humanism, care-lessly and flagrantly violating God's law while wav-ing the banner of love. Such liberalism maximizeslove and minimizes law; whereas legalism majors inlaw and tends to minor in love. Not realizing that liv-ing God's love involves keeping His commandmentsand vice versaboth liberals and legalists have asuperficial concept of religion. Both groups are skat-ing on thin ice, yet they are true Christians if their

faith, though shallow, is sincere. The blood of Christcovers honest ignorancebut not willful blindness(see Acts 17:30; John 9:41).

Intense religiosity isn't necessarily sincerity. Theclergy who crucified Christ retained zeal while suc-cumbing to hypocrisy. Spiritual fervor can be asmoke screen for secret sin and also an attempt toatone for bad habits with good works. Only God

knows when legalists and liberals go so far as to for-feit what feeble faith they might have. The church atGalatia crossed that line into damnation, havingturned away from "the grace of Christ, to a different

232


6/22


7/22

DEMONS OF RIGHTEOUSNESScommitment to join the self-denying ministries that

represent their respective beliefs; they would rathersit back and send donations (tax deductible, ofcourse). Lukewarm liberals talk about followingChrist's loving example like Mother Teresa, but theywould rather applaud her than go and do likewise.Lukewarm legalists also speak much about followingChrist's example, in terms of fulfilling the law's re-quirements as He did. But they fail to entirely de-

vote themselves to the high standards they champi-on.

Two roads to hellCarnally-minded liberals take the low road to hell.

God says love not the world, but they heed not Hiswarning. They do what the world does, watch whatthe world watches, eat what the world eats, anddress like the world dresses. They claim the name ofChrist as their ticket to heaven, but unless they re-pent, they will tragically wake up 1,000 years toolate facing hellfire.

And who will be with them in the second resurrec-tion unto damnation? The legalists, who took thehigh road to hell, having rejected comfort in Christas well as the pleasures of the world. They spurnedthe blood of Jesus to make health reform their gos-

pel, sipping lukewarm soy milk and eating oil-freetofu burgers sprinkled with organic bean sprouts(and perhaps raw wheat germ). Imagine their sur-prise when they wake up in the resurrection of dam-nation and find themselves keeping company withgood-time Charlies and sultry harlots.

"God!" they shout with shaking fists. "If we knewwe were going to hell, we wouldn't have fasted twice

a week! At least we would have watched MTV!"All their good works amounted to nothing in the

judgment. They had taken the high road to hell.Let's recall that it wasn't a gang of hungover drug

234


8/22

WHO'S GOT THE TRUTH?addicts or a commune of leftover hippies from the

sixties who crucified Jesus. His murderers were thesternest, strictest religionists of history, and theykilled Him in the name of Moses, the lawgiver. Withsweat pouring down their clenched faces, theyscaled the Alps of spiritual discipline, determined toplant the banner of self-righteousness on the snow-capped heights. Often they peered below them,scorning the wretched sinners cruising in their con-

vertibles down easy street, the low road to hell."Commandment-breaking fools!" they scoffed."Maybe you're having a good time now, but youdon't know what's waiting for you around the bendin the road on the other side of Mt. Sinai.

Then, redoubling their efforts, they pressed on-ward and upward to what they imagined was their just reward. Occasionally they would strenuouslysing: "I'm pressing on the upward way, new heightsI'm gaining every day!" They imagined that whenthey finally gained the summit, God Himself wouldbe obliged to step aside respectfully and let themmarch on through heaven's golden arch of triumph.

Finally, after endless self-denial and exertion, theyproudly reached the top. Butnobody was therewaiting for them. No smiling angels handing themcrowns of jewels never worn before. It was bleak,

foggy and cold. Very slippery, too. They wanderedaround up there, shivering and sliding, trying tokeep warm. Suddenly their feet slipped on a patch ofice and they found themselves skidding down theother side of the mountain. Screaming in terror, theyplunged over an unseen cliff and down, way down,all the way down to hell. Having rejected the gift ofGod in Jesus Christ, they reaped the same reward as

those who took the easy way out of religious re-sponsibility."What then shall we say? That the Gentiles, who

did not pursue righteousness, have obtained it, a

235


9/22


10/22

WHO'S GOT THE TRUTH?saved. We know what it's like to be tempted to in-

dulge appetite, thanks to the demons of indulgence.And we all know what it's like to feel guilty aboutsins confessed and forsaken. God has forgiven us,but we still feel guilty. What's wrong? Spiritual har-assment from the demons of righteousness. Where-as the passions are the playpen of the demons of in-dulgence, the conscience is the workbench of thedemons of righteousness.

Depending upon one's personality, environmentand attitude, there may be a predisposition that putseither legalism or carnal liberalism on center stageyet the other is also there, hiding behind the cur-tains. Even straightlaced legalists experience wildfantasies that they dare not indulge or even acknow-ledge. And on the other hand, reprobates despitetheir sinful lifestyle have invisible, unfulfilled yearn-ings for legalism. Their conscience may be rustedand warped, but it still works. When particularlytroubled by conviction they sin with a frenzy, seek-ing to silence God's still small voice. In their sobermoments they make sporadic resolutions to over-come addictive or abusive habits, hoping to worktheir way back to the Father's house from theplaypens and pigpens of their far-off land. But theyare deterred by the steep stairway to God they think

they would have to climb. Many fear they could nev-er be forgiven, or if they got past that hurdle theycould never walk across the tightrope of divine ex-pectations for daily living. Thus hopeless, they re-main helplessly trapped by the latent legalism thatoften smolders underneath the surface of sinfulness.

Liberalism and legalism may both be active, oftenin binge/purge behavior. Demons of indulgence

tempt people to go on a binge of sinning. Thendemons of righteousness take over and tempt thedefeated ones to purge themselves of sin and climbthe steep stairs back to God. This is how guilt from

237


11/22

DEMONS OF RIGHTEOUSNESSan ice cream feast is followed with a week of atone-

ment fruit fast.Extremes of both liberalism and legalism some-times get entangled in an incongruous mess. Onezealot whose family I counselled assigned his wifedaily readings in health and dress testimonies, for-cing her to adopt rigid and outmoded standards.Meanwhile he enjoyed the charms of well-adornedgirlfriends and regularly molested his daughter.

Most church members wouldn't descend to suchdegradation, but all of us suffer cravings for bothlegalism and liberalism. Without the moment by mo-ment intervention of the Holy Spirit, unenlightenedconscience pulls us toward legalism and unres-trained flesh pulls us toward liberalism. We maytrain ourselves not to heed these cravings or to sup-press one kind beneath the other, but the fact re-mains that both legalism and liberalism in varyingproportions attract each of us. Despite disagree-ments about theology and differences in lifestyle,we have much more in common with fellow believ-ers and lost sinners than we realize or might want toadmit.

Unaware of their shared weaknesses, proponentsof legalism and liberalism view the errors of the op-posing camp and thank God they don't participate.

Their continual contention is fueled by extremism onboth sides.

Christ-centered legalists and liberalsWe must not condemn extremist legalists and lib-

erals; many are tragically sincere. They may evendevoutly follow Jesus as their example. Christ-centered legalists pursue a relationship with Him

mostly for the sake of strength to fulfill the law asHe did so they can be saved. Trusting in their ownattainments rather than in Christ's accomplishmentson their behalf, they unwittingly compete with His

238


12/22


13/22

DEMONS OF RIGHTEOUSNESSthem good people. God is absolutely holy and none

can ever become righteous enough to deserve ac-ceptance; the only hope of relieving sin's debt is thegift of God's grace in Christ.

Perhaps surprisingly, the solution for legalists alsois a deeper understanding of God's law. They wouldhunger and thirst for Christ's righteousnessHisaloneif they fathomed the hopelessness and sin-fulness of their own supposed goodness. Before they

can truly appreciate the Saviour, they must compre-hend what He is saving them from. For that, theyneed the convicting testimony of God's law.

Legalists major in minors but have "neglected themore important matters of the lawjustice, mercyand faithfulness" (Matt. 23:23, NIV). They try to pryout the specks of dust from the liberals' eyes whileneglecting the beams of their own blindness. Theyspeak of "raising the standards," not knowing thatSinai's righteous standard is much higher than theirown comprehension. To God, the inhumanity of mantoward man is our greatest sin, while heaven-bornlove fulfills the law.

The irony of such legalismany kind of legalism,lukewarm or otherwiseis that its own standard istoo low. It cannot adequately measure and quantifythe absolute holiness required by God's command-

ments. Remember, the law condemns not just obvi-ous sins of commission such as killing, stealing, andfornicating, but also sins of omission. Neglecting tobear one another's burdens violates the law ofChrist. Withholding an encouraging word of witnessis a sin. Any failure to show the total love of Christ inevery situation is sinful behavior. Thus by God'sstandard, all of us are sinners, unworthy servants.

We all fall short of accurately reflecting Christ's char-acter of caring. Our only hope is to come to thecross and lay hold upon His mercy to atone for ourguilt before God's law.

240


14/22

WHO'S GOT THE TRUTH?Any time the law is mentioned, though, those who

tend toward liberalism will raise the charge of legal-ism. Actually, those who rightly regard God's law cannever live as legalists, hoping to be saved throughsuccess in keeping the commandments. Honoringthe high demands of the holy law produces what theBible calls "the fear of God," which involves respectfor His righteousness. Convinced that we cannot dobusiness with Almighty Yahweh on the basis of our

merit, we crave His mercy. Fleeing Mt. Sinai, we findrefuge at Calvary, crying "Jesus, Son of David, havemercy on me!" Thus saved from the curse of con-demnation, our gratitude for life-giving grace unitesus to the Saviour. We become Christ-centered in-stead of law-centered.

We also cease being sin-centered, since faith inChrist requires that we shun the world's counterfeitfulfillments. Ancient Lot learned this the hard wayafter pitching his tent toward Sodom. Today's envir-onment is even more treacherous; even the air-waves around us have sodomized with televisedtemptation. Many liberals let the devil ravage themwith his allurements. They need to repent of thisspiritual fornication, but they don't welcome warn-ings about breaking God's law. They want a pastorwho affirms them in loving themselves rather than

one who guides them in loving God and losing them-selves for Christ's sake. Without old-fashioned re-pentance for sin, however, confidence in God'smercy amounts to presumption. Mere infatuationwith God's forgiveness is not faith. Remember,happy songs of praise and even fervent prayers canbe an exercise in damnation: "One who turns awayhis ear from hearing the law, even his prayer shall

be an abomination" (Prov. 28:9).

Assurance of salvationHaving forsaken what the world offers for what

241


15/22

DEMONS OF RIGHTEOUSNESSGod offers us at Calvary, we may rejoice in His sal-

vation. Carnally-minded liberals overlook the import-ance of repentance before claiming assurance inChrist. They refer to the welcoming arms of theprodigal's father, forgetting that the repentant soncame home empty-handed. He wasn't bringing backthe wine bottles of his former lifestyle.

When listening to lukewarm liberals, one picturesSt. Peter at heaven's gate happily handing out lolli-

pops to everyone alike, no matter how they lived.Going to the other extreme, legalists would portraythe mythical gatekeeper with his arms crossed,wearing a suspicious scowl, grimly disqualifying anypoor soul who had recently indulged in a chocolatemilk shake.

Many legalists consider any assurance of salvationas something of a questionable amusement. Othershave fallen prey to a cruel and deceptive counter-feit: "Sure you can have the assurance of salvation!Just pray for the Holy Spirit's power to overcome allsin, and then based on your victorious experience,you can know you are saved." That sounds simpleenough, except that all of us are sinners. So who canhave any assurance? We had better find a betterbasis than our own perfection.

Since liberals who are carnally minded enjoy as-

surance, mistaken though it is, their worship isemancipated from anxiety about the Almighty.Sometimes their services are sophisticated andsometimes boisterous. Legalists, by contrast, havean aura of counterfeit reverence that may reflectspiritual apprehension. They are solemn and sub-dued. Everything is decent and in orderas it shouldbeyet there is no heartbeat in their worship. But

watch them come alive Sunday afternoon during theRedskins' football game. See them clapping and cel-ebrating. Does their refusal to rejoice in heavenlythings while they adore the things of this world say

242


16/22

WHO'S GOT THE TRUTH?anything about their spirituality?

Not that it's necessarily wrong to watch a footballgame, nor is enthusiastic praise the only proper wor-ship format. The point is that whatever our style, wemust worship God in spirit as well as in truth, withour hearts and souls as well as with our minds. If weare incapable of spiritual emotion but full of enthusi-asm as sportsaholics, perhaps our faith is funda-mentally flawed.

God alone can judge. And remember, He will dojust that. A holy God must ultimately punish sin ineven the least of its manifestations. So let us hideourselves in Christ. Only through the Lord's merciesare we not consumed, thus we must cease makingsinlessness our hope of salvation. Whatever good isin our lives is never good enough to make us worthy.

When we learn to respect the height and depth ofGod's law, we will become ashamed of our ownworks and glorify the works of Jesus Christ. We willcease being enamored with all we are doing for Himand feel our utter need of what He offers us. We willconsistently and exclusively present the truth as it isin Jesus. Then the Sabbath will no longer be atightrope on which to perform our holy acts; we willhonor it as the memorial of Christ's accomplish-ments. Heaven's sanctuary will no longer be a fur-

niture showroom of denominational antiquities;when we think of Christ's final phase of priestly min-istry, as symbolized by the second apartment, wewill focus on the mercy seat, the throne of grace. Fora long time, God has been waiting there to meetwith us. As we make ourselves at home in His mer-its, Christ's coming will no longer be the cursedthreat of those who lack assurance of salvation; it

will indeed become our blessed hope.

Is the church going through?Speaking of assurance, it's amazing how many Ad-

243


17/22

DEMONS OF RIGHTEOUSNESSventists have none regarding personal salvation

they don't even believe in ityet they proclaimonce-saved always-saved for our organizationalstructure: "No matter what happens, the Sev-enth-day Adventist Church is going through to thekingdom!" One man told me: "Even if the GeneralConference president and I are the only ones left inthe church, I'm staying with the ship."

Let us thank God for spiritual leadership, but then

we must pause and consider for ourselves: What isthis "ship" of salvation? Merely having our names re-corded on the books of the Adventist Church? Or is itthe gospel of Jesus Christ in the context of biblicaltruth?

And what do we mean by "the church" that is "go-ing through"? Do we mean that God will preserve aremnant in the last days who keep His command-ments and have the faith of Jesus? Or do we imaginethat the Seventh-day Adventist organization is guar-anteed a once-saved, always-saved status?While some Adventists are harsh and irrational intheir criticism of the church and its institutions, oth-ers are caught up in blind denominational patriot-ism. Have they forgotten the principle of conditionalprophecy? Obedience to God's covenant has alwaysbeen the condition of salvationand that goes for

organizations as well as individuals. So how can weinsist that it is impossible for our church to forfeitfavor with God, no matter what we do? The arrog-ance of such a statement is exceeded only by its ig-norance. Do we imagine ourselves immune from therejection suffered by the Jewish nationGod'schosen peoplewhen they rejected the gospel?

Let me affirm again my personal appreciation for

those leaders of integrity God has given to ourchurch. How sad that we tend to criticize them morethan we pray for them. If we could look past our ownlimited perspective and see the multi-faceted di-

244


18/22

WHO'S GOT THE TRUTH?mensions of the problems they wrestle with, we

might cherish greater appreciation for what they aredoing.Speaking personally, I'm not an administrator; I

just don't have that talent. Whatever mistakes arebeing made in this church, I'm certain that I'd bemaking 10 times as many if I tried to do the job. (Ifthat sounds humble, let me assure you that I haveevery reason to be!) So I had better pray more than

criticize. How about you? And let's not allow thethings that are wrong keep us from rejoicing in allthat is right about our church.While we praise God for whatever He is doing, wealso need the courage to confess and confront ourundeniable spiritual problems. While our songs andsermons insist that we want Jesus to return, perhapsmany of us are no more eager for Christ to comethan for Attila the Hun to come and invade ourprosperity. Such seems to be is the spiritual state ofmany members. We don't smoke, but we're not onfire. We don't drink, but we refuse to be under His in-fluence. We don't dance but neither do we delight inHis salvation.This lethargic attitude causes our Lord to lament: "Iknow your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. Icould wish you were cold or hot" (Rev. 3:15).

We Adventists have long recognized the relevance ofthis rebuke to our own generation. We could be rejoicing in the New Jerusalem but instead are lan-guishing in Laodicea. Being selfish and indolent, weare yet somehow proud of ourselves for possessingthe pillars of truth.Many Adventists have yet to learn the truth withinthe truth. Like the Pharisees of old, are we zealous

sabbatarians who have resisted Sabbath rest? Weknow where the dead are but we have not beenalive in Christ. We accept the sanctuary doctrine butwe ignore the daily intercession of our Priest. We

245


19/22

DEMONS OF RIGHTEOUSNESStalk of His soon return, yet we live as if He never

will.God attempted a breakthrough in 1888 with thetruth as it is in Jesus. Still we slumber, more than acentury later. Yet the pillars of our truth remain. Andsince this is the only denomination that has claimedthose pillars of truth, we are indeed the fold Godseeks to prepare for His sheep from Babylon. Noquestion about it. Enfeebled and defective though

we be we are still God's chosen movement of des-tiny. But where do we go from here?Thank God, there's still hope. Christ's warning toLaodicea closes with a heart touching invitation toHis lukewarm church and a glorious promise foreternity: "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. Ifanyone hears My voice and opens the door, I willcome in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.He who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on Mythrone, as I also overcame and sat down with MyFather on His throne" (Rev. 3:20,21).Our church has here a wonderful glorious promise ifwe repent, but a fearful warning if we refuse to getdown to business with God. One thing is certain. Je-sus wasn't bluffing when He threatened rejection ofLaodicea. Ellen White recognized this when shewarned in 1888 that "if the Church should go into

darkness the Lord would raise up others to finish theworkthat He had agents that He could call into ac-tion at any moment."2 Evidently we Adventists don'thave an exclusive franchise on God's truth, nor is Heobligated to wait forever until we finally sing Hissong.

One hundred and fifty years ago, the Lord entrus-ted a New England man with a special message for

the community. He hesitated and squandered his op-portunity, perhaps thinking that God was obliged to

2Ellen G. White, quoted in LeRoy E. Froom, Movement ofDestiny, p. 255. Emphasis supplied.

246


20/22

WHO'S GOT THE TRUTH?wait. Then one morning he woke up and somebody

else was singing his song. The Lord chose a humbleteenager to take his place. The rest of the story ishistory, the history of Ellen White and the Seventh-day Adventist Church.

Four essentialsLet us beware that history does not repeat, this

time against our favor. To preserve our heritage, I

see four essential goals we must achieve and main-tain:1) Uphold Christ crucified as the central focus of

our public proclamation and personal beliefs. Re-member our mandate: "Of all professed Christians,Seventh-day Adventists should be foremost in uplift-ing Christ before the world."3 Until this actually hap-pens, we will never be the people God wants us tobe.

Jesus is the way, the truth and the life. Any beliefor lifestyle standard that denies or diminishes this isa doctrine of devils.

2) Keep the Bible alone as our rule of faith andteaching. Some fellow Christians consider us a cultbecause too many of us have done with Ellen Whitewhat the Pharisees did to Moses. While some Ad-ventists ignore her prophetic gift, others seek to en-

throne her as lord over the Word, its final authority.The way to truly honor Ellen White is to do what shesays and keep the Bible first and foremost in ourteaching.

3) Keep the law of God as our standard of holi-ness, not cultural standards that don't make sense.Let us put the emphasis where God does on faithfulobedience and loving service, not exaggerating the

importance of trinkets and trivia. There must be suf-ficient tolerance for individual worship styles and thefreedom to serve God according to one's individual

3Ellen G. White, 1888 Manuscripts, p. 68N.

247


21/22

DEMONS OF RIGHTEOUSNESStalents and personality. "Where the Spirit of the Lord

is, there is liberty" (2 Cor. 3:17).4) Affirm the historic doctrines of the church butbe open to learn more about the truth as it is in Je-sus. We must guard every pillar of our faith, whileseeking constantly to upgrade our appreciation oftruth as it is in Jesus. Remember, "the path of thejust is like the shining sun, that shines ever brighterunto the perfect day" (Prov. 4:18). God wants us to

be ever growing, never holding back.Perhaps right now many of us need to get joltedby some lightning and thunder from Mt. Sinai. Thatmight wake us up from both liberalism and legalism.Then we will be able to hear that still, small voicefrom Calvary: "Father, forgive them, for they knownot what they do." Drawn by that tender love tomake an uncompromised commitment, we will wel-come lifestyle standardsbut we will also acknow-ledge that vegetarian virtues are not kosher enoughto qualify us for the kingdom. Realizing that we havebeen forgiven much, we will love much. Filled withhope, joy and peace through believing in Jesus, wewill have the Holy Spirit's power in our lives. See Ro-mans 15:13. With the faith of Jesus in our hearts, wewill finally be keeping the commandments of God.No longer will we be satisfied offering merely the

turtledoves of tithe. Restored to the joy of His salva-tion, we will offer bullocks of personal sacrifice.That's what it will take to finish the work of God.Nothing less will do.The final overcomers

From the tragedy of the Titanic, we get a symbolof the saints who survive the shipwreck of legalism

and liberalism in the last days. Imperiled passengerson that sinking ship no longer segregated them-selves into first class, second class and steerage.They crowded together on the sloping decks, pray-

248


22/22

WHO'S GOT THE TRUTH?ing and singing as they waited for the lifeboats. Like-

wise, when our human institutions and organizationscollide with the icebergs of earth's final crisis, wewill not mind mingling with one another while wait-ing for Jesus, our lifeboat. No longer will we segreg-ate ourselves along racial, cultural and economiclines. Huddled together under the shelter of Hiswings, we will sing "Nearer My God to Thee." And wewill mean it. The church will then finally experience

koinonia, that quality of community that the earliestChristians enjoyed after Pentecost.Meanwhile, may God save us from both the

demons of indulgence with their carnal liberalism,and the demons of righteousness with their legal-ism. In the final time of trouble so soon to burstupon us, the world will be caught in the clutches ofSatan's deceptions. But there will be a remnantpeople who "keep the commandments of God andthe faith of Jesus" (Rev. 14:12). By keeping God'scommandments, the final remnant overcome thedemons of indulgence. And by cherishing faith in Je-sus, they overcome the demons of righteousness.

So let us beware and be wise. Amid the worldli-ness around us, God offers His church victory oversin, but so does the devil. May we resist his tempta-tion to jump from the frying pan with the demons of

indulgence into the fire with the demons of right-eousness.___________________

249

Demons of Righteousness

Documents

Transcript of Demons of Righteousness