In this issue:
Are You Getting Enough Protein?
Is Justification, Salvation?
David Clayton
When we talk about salvation today, most Christians tend to focus on justification. In fact one of the phrases that is used to describe the message of righteousness in Christ, is, “Justification By Faith.” For most Christians justification is the basis of salvation, it is the basis on which God accepts and receives us.
Justification is a legal word and it means, “to be declared just.” So, let’s say, for example, a person is charged with a crime, but when his case is tried in court, he is declared innocent. We say this person has been justified. The question is not whether or not he did actually commit the crime, the issue is, what decision did the court make? Legal justification has to do with the decision of the court not the actual state of the person.
However if we see salvation as related only to justification in this legal sense, then the picture is far from complete. Because many Christian groups focus only on justification, there is a tendency to become careless about how they live and in many cases their behavior is a reproach to the cause of God. This is because they are made to believe that their legal status is all that matters. But let us take a closer look at what the Bible says on this issue of salvation.
Abraham Justified
What shall we say then that Abraham our father, as pertaining to the flesh, hath found? For if Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory; but not before God. For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness. (Rom 4:1-3)
Notice that it says that Abraham’s faith was “counted” unto him for righteousness. The question is, when Abraham was counted righteous was he really righteous? If we understand “righteous” to mean that a person is, declared to be righteous, then he was righteous, but if we understand “righteous” to mean a person who is good and whose behavior is morally blameless, then Abraham was not actually righteous. When we look at his faith Abraham was an outstanding child of God, but some of the things that he did are not things that Christians today would want to practice. For example Abraham lied to Pharaoh and also lied to Abimelech when he told both these men that Sarah was his sister rather than his wife. Abraham also made war and slaughtered many people, something which many Christians today would consider to be contrary to the principles of Christ.
Was David Righteous?
Perhaps if I use King David as an example it will be easier to make my point. The Bible says that David was a man after God’s own heart. Many people believe that this is saying that David was so righteous and good that he appealed to God’s heart. But there are certain things about David’s beliefs and his behavior which seem to contradict that picture. All of us are familiar with the story of David’s adultery with Uriah’s wife and how he murdered Uriah. These were sins that David acknowledge and repented of. But look at what David says here:
Do not I hate them, O LORD, that hate thee? and am not I grieved with those that rise up against thee? I hate them with perfect hatred: I count them mine enemies. (Ps 139:21-22)
These are the words of David and even though they are written in the Psalms, can we say that these are the statements of a person who possessed the righteousness of God? In other words, is this the attitude that God has towards his enemies? Jesus says, “love your enemies,” did David have that spirit in his heart?
When David was chased from Jerusalem by his son Absalom, he was met by a man named Shimei, a relative of Saul, who cursed him and threw stones at him. Sometime later after Absalom had been defeated and killed, David was returning to Jerusalem and again Shimei came to meet him, but this time he came with a different attitude. He came to David with a show of great humility and asked David to forgive him for what he had done.
. . . . And Shimei the son of Gera fell down before the king, as he was come over Jordan; And said unto the king, Let not my lord impute iniquity unto me, neither do thou remember that which thy servant did perversely the day that my lord the king went out of Jerusalem, that the king should take it to his heart. For thy servant doth know that I have sinned: therefore, behold, I am come the first this day of all the house of Joseph to go down to meet my lord the king . . . . Therefore the king said unto Shimei, Thou shalt not die. And the king sware unto him. (2Sam 19:18-23)
David claimed to have forgiven Shimei, but years later when he was on his deathbed, here is what David said to his son Solomon:
And, behold, thou hast with thee Shimei the son of Gera, a Benjamite of Bahurim, which cursed me with a grievous curse in the day when I went to Mahanaim: but he came down to meet me at Jordan, and I sware to him by the LORD, saying, I will not put thee to death with the sword. Now therefore hold him not guiltless: for thou art a wise man, and knowest what thou oughtest to do unto him; but his hoar head bring thou down to the grave with blood. (1Kgs 2:8-9)
Was David righteous? Was this the spirit of Christ? Yet David has the assurance of salvation because we are justified by faith, not by our works! It is not by our righteousness, it is not by our understanding of truth, it is by our faith that we are justified. David, like Abraham, was loved by God and was justified because of his faith, not on the basis of his understanding, or misunderstanding of truth.
The more we understand, the more it becomes clear that the one great element as far as humanity is concerned, is faith. Nothing else can compare with or equal faith in terms of our relationship with God. Faith is the key element.
So the point is, Abraham was counted as righteous. It was something God credited to his account even though he was not in himself actually righteous at that moment. This is what justification means and in a sense it is legal fiction. It is something which is legally true, but is not true in actual experience.
Was Samuel Righteous?
Samuel is another example that we could use. Though Samuel was an outstanding prophet of God and someone that we expect to see in heaven, look at what Samuel did here:
And Samuel said, As thy sword hath made women childless, so shall thy mother be childless among women. And Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before the LORD in Gilgal. (1Sam 15:33)
Most of us today would regard this as a horrific act, vicious and brutal. Samuel did not just simply kill Agag, he chopped him into pieces. Was this the action of a Christian? Is this something that Christ would do? When we consider these and many other examples, it is clear that these men never had our understanding or our experience of righteousness. The coming of the comforter and the experience of Christ living within has made a great difference in how we Christians understand and behave today, as compared to how they behaved before Christ came. This is why we can only be saved by grace through faith. This is why justification is the open door to salvation. It cannot be on the basis of our works or on the basis of our understanding of doctrine, it can only be on the basis of justification which we access by faith.
At this point, let us take careful note of the fact that justification is not salvation, it is the assurance of salvation, but it is not the experience of salvation. This will become more evident as we continue with this study.
All Justified
For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: (Rom 3:23-24)
But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. (Rom 5:8-9)
Notice this very interesting point; it is all who have sinned, and therefore it is all who have been justified. Amazing as it may seem this includes the entire planet, everyone in the entire world, all who live and who have ever lived. God justifies the ungodly, but in order to understand this we have to understand what justification really means. The following passages give us some further insight into the meaning of the word.
Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life. (Rom 5:18)
To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. (2Cor 5:19)
This is one of the most amazing verses in the Bible. It says that God does not impute their sins to the people who are in the world. Note, it is not speaking of Christians only, it is not speaking of those who repent only, it is speaking of all the world, everyone who lives in it. When sin is imputed to a person, it means that sin is charged to that person’s account. The fact that God does not impute sin to anyone in the world means that sin is no longer charged to anyone. As amazing as this sounds it is the conclusion we have to arrive at when we look at the verses with an open mind. What God is saying is that he has dealt with the sin problem so conclusively, so finally, that sin can never again be a barrier between him and people.
Justification is not salvation
But if this is true, does it mean that everyone will be saved? Unfortunately the answer is no. Although guilt is no longer an issue in terms of the relationship between God and man, there is still an issue that even God cannot overcome, which will result in many billions being lost in spite of the fact that sin is no longer charged to man.
For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. (John 3:17-18)
Notice what the problem is now: people are condemned because of unbelief, not because of their sins! Sin has been dealt with finally and conclusively by Jesus Christ and completely taken out of the way. Now, it is not his sins which condemns the sinner but his unbelief, the fact that he will not receive Jesus Christ, the one who has dealt with the problem of sin. It is not God who condemns him, it is not his sin that condemns him, it is unbelief that condemns him.
Let us notice however, that when we say sin is no longer a problem, when we say sin has been taken out of the way, what we are really talking about is the guilt caused by sin. The state of being guilty before God with the consequence of alienation from God, and the sentence of death have been taken away by Jesus Christ. This no longer exists as a barrier between God and man. This is not saying that sin no longer exists in the world and in the behavior of people, it is saying that the guilt caused by sin is no longer an issue in terms of the relationship between God and man.
So we have here the truth that the whole world is justified, but the whole world cannot receive justification because the world will not believe. In order to experience the benefits of justification one must believe. This emphasizes a very important point; while justification is the entitlement to salvation, it is not salvation! Abraham believed God and it was counted unto him for righteousness, but it does not mean that Abraham himself was righteous at that moment. It does not mean that he was in a state, or had the experience of salvation. He was entitled, but entitlement is not the same as the experience.
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Salvation is Life
For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. (Rom 5:10)
The death of Jesus reconciles, the death of Jesus justifies but it does not save you. Salvation is not simply justification. It is the life of Jesus Christ that saves us. The whole world is reconciled to Jesus, but the whole world is not saved. First of all you have to believe in that reconciliation, and secondly you have to receive that life. If you don’t receive that life of Jesus, it doesn’t matter how often you go to church, it doesn’t matter how much information you have in your head, it doesn’t matter if you know all the truth about God and his son. If you have not received his life, you do not have salvation. Salvation is the life of Jesus Christ, period.
This is why we conclude that neither Abraham, David nor Samuel actually possessed salvation, although they were justified by faith and had the assurance of eternal life. Assurance is different from experience and the actual experience of eternal life was not available to anyone until Jesus Christ came, lived, died and was resurrected and poured out his glorified life upon his people. This is a great truth, the life of Jesus Christ is the central element of the gospel. It is the whole point of righteousness by faith and it is the whole reason why we must understand the truth about God. The life of Jesus is everything. So justification is the entitlement to eternal life. Faith is the condition of receiving eternal life, but the literal life of Jesus is the experience of eternal life.
The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. (John 10:10)
Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. (John 6:53-54)
So we could be justified, we could know the truth, we could be able to recite the Bible from Genesis 1 until Revelation 22, but if we don’t eat his flesh and drink his blood, we have no life in us. Salvation is not a theoretical status, it’s an experience where the very life of Christ is in us. Jesus says those who eat his flesh and drink his blood have [past tense] eternal life! Not “will have”, but already have eternal life in the present tense.
Never Before available
Jesus said he came to give us life. But why would he come to give us life if we already had life? The Bible teaches clearly that before Jesus came, there are some things that were not available to God’s people. Jesus Christ came and made a great change. The idea that what God gives us, was always available, and that all God’s people always have the same kinds of privileges, is not true. Even the well-established Adventist doctrine of the Day of atonement teaches otherwise. Adventists understand that on the day of atonement an experience is available to God’s people that was never available before the anti-typical day of atonement actually arrived.
So we can have an experience at a certain point in time that they could not have in the previous age. The Bible teaches it clearly. Jesus Christ came and brought something that was not available before. We see this clearly taught in Matthew 11:11.
Greater than John
Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. (Matt 11:11)
John the Baptist was the greatest; greater than Moses, Enoch, Elijah, David, Samuel, Sampson, Isaiah, Jeremiah. But the least in the kingdom is greater than John, therefore greater than all who lived before John. This only makes sense when we understand that the kingdom arrived with the coming of Jesus Christ. Jesus brought the kingdom of God into the human environment and all who have the life of Christ in them are a part of this kingdom. This is something that nobody possessed before Jesus brought it to humanity. This is the element that makes the least of us in the kingdom, greater than all who lived before the time of Christ. This is very clearly taught in the Scriptures.
A Three-Step Process?
Most Adventists are not comfortable with saying, “I am saved.” It probably has to do with the fact that Ellen White says, we should not be taught to use this phrase. I think what she meant was that, we should not be made to feel that we are beyond being lost. If a Christian cannot say, “I am saved,” then it means that his status as a Christian does not mean very much. The security and the faith, the joy and expectation, and the hope that he should have are missing. I grew up with the idea that if you commit a sin, and you die before you are able to say, “I’m sorry,” you are lost. But the truth is, most of us can testify that although we try very hard, we do commit acts of transgression every day. Does it mean that each time we transgress we lose our salvation and then have to go and seek it all over again?
In fact, I learned that salvation is a three-part process, first of all you are justified, and this is followed by sanctification, and finally glorification. Justification was the first step in the Christian journey, in this experience God sees you as if you are righteous even though you are not. Sanctification was a process of being made more and more holy, a process of gradually overcoming sin during the course of your lifetime, a process that would never end as long as you lived. Glorification was the experience when your body would be changed from mortality to immortality, at the second coming of Jesus.
What is Sanctification?
During the time when Ellen White was alive, the word sanctification was used with a different meaning than what it has in the Bible. Many Christians at that time interpreted the word, “sanctification,” to refer to a condition where a person was growing in his Christian experience, becoming progressively more and more holy as he was getting rid of his sins day by day. This was the way sanctification was understood at that time, but we must make it clear that this is not the biblical understanding of sanctification.
In Genesis 2:3, it says,
And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made. (Gen 2:3)
When God sanctified the seventh day, was that sanctification a process, or an event? It was an event! Here the fact that it was sanctified, simply means that God set it aside for a holy purpose. It happened that very instant, it was not a process that took place over an extended period of time. This is the primary meaning of the word in the Bible. Let us look at another verse that is even more clear:
And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God. (1Cor 6:11).
So if you’re a Christian, you are justified by faith, but you are also sanctified, set apart by the Holy Spirit. This is what Paul teaches. So it is the experience of receiving the Holy Spirit which sets apart, or sanctifies the child of God.
What About Glorification?
The word glorification has two different meanings in the Bible. The first meaning is that it refers to the state that we experience when our bodies are changed and we are transformed into immortal beings.
When he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe (because our testimony among you was believed) in that day. (2Thess 1:10)
So Paul uses the word glorification in connection with the return of Jesus and the transformation of our bodies at his coming. This is what most people consider to be glorification, so they say, “well we can have the hope of salvation, but until we are glorified we are not saved.” But there are other meanings to this word, “glorification”, here are some other implications: Paul says in Romans 6:4:
Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. (Rom 6:4)
What is this glory of the Father which raised Jesus from the dead? It was the Spirit of God! In the Bible, the glory of God is primarily the spirit of God. The Bible says that when Moses raised up the tabernacle in the wilderness, it was filled with the glory of God. When Solomon built his version of the temple the same thing happened again. This glory of God was actually the presence of God which is the same as the Spirit of God.
Now the verse says that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the father, so also we are raised up by the same glory to walk in newness of life. It is the spirit of God that raises us up, that glorifies us and enables us to walk in new life. So when a person is glorified it means that the Spirit of God has come to dwell inside that person.
Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified. (Rom 8:30)
Here the apostle Paul makes it clear that glorification is not something which awaits the last day. He says that Christians have already been justified, have already been sanctified, and have already been glorified! Glorification is something in the past for Christians. If this is true, then how can it be that any genuine Christian who has the spirit of God cannot say, “I am saved?”
Not time, quality
Eternal life in essence, is not a period of time, but is a quality of existence. It is the state in which we exist when we possess the life of God through Jesus Christ. It is God’s own life, how can it be anything but eternal life? This is what Jesus said, and he didn’t mean that we would never sleep, because he said, “I will raise him up at the last day.” So although we may sleep in death, yet even in death we do possess eternal life because we have the quality of life which is God’s own life. It is impossible for a person to possess these and still to say, “I don’t know if I’m saved.”
And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. (1John 5:11-12)
We obtain eternal life by obtaining the son. In other words the package is Jesus and eternal life comes with him, if we have him we have eternal life, if we don’t have him we have nothing. Again we come back to this wonderful truth that what the Bible is emphasizing is the reality of Christ living in you. It is “Christ in you, the hope of glory.” (Colossians 1:27). This is what salvation is all about, and in all our discussions, our searching, our visiting meetings, our listening to messages, everything must zero in on this one great point.
But it is not just our salvation that is at stake; Christ in us is the essence of our salvation, but it is also the means by which God glorifies his own name. How are we going to have the slightest part in glorifying God’s name if our method is to try to do it by human effort? It is pitiful to even think of the idea of approaching a divine work by human methods and abilities. We must have Jesus living inside and that is the great center of the plan of salvation. It is a great marvel that the universe will look at, and wonder at for all the future years of eternity. It’s the wonder of how God worked out a plan to give us his own life, through giving us his son. If only we can believe it to the point where we can experience it to the fullest extent! This is what the world is waiting for!
Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him. (1John 3:15)
Eternal life is something that is living in us, in the present tense. It is not simply the hope of the future, it is not simply a figurative way of speaking. A person who is a murderer does not have eternal life abiding, or living in him, but it is clear that God’s people do not have this murderous spirit, because Jesus is living in them, they do possess eternal life abiding in them.
Legal fiction?
I started studying deeply into the subject of righteousness by faith when I encountered this question, “is the gospel legal fiction?” I thought, “it cannot be fiction, does God accept a lie? Does God see me as righteous when I am really dirty?” Trying to find the answer to that question made me recognize that it is the life of Jesus that makes me righteous. The gospel never became a practical experience until Jesus came. Before Jesus came what they had was a promise. They were justified by faith, they had justification, but not glorification. It was legal fiction at that time, their hope was based on something that would happen in the future, but Jesus did come, and when he came he brought that salvation in the present tense.
When David comes up out of the grave he will not hate his enemies, nobody will go into eternity with that spirit. In the resurrection David will arise with the life of Jesus Christ, and the life of Jesus Christ is purely righteous. When we receive the life of Jesus Christ it changes our spirit, it changes our nature. It is not theoretical salvation, it is not salvation in the books, it is experiential salvation. If we don’t have this today, then of course we do not yet have eternal life, we do not have salvation. But no Christian today should be living simply in the place of justification. The truth is too clearly taught in the New Testament for us to be still living in the shadow of the Old Testament.
Was Jesus Different?
There are two perspectives among us as to what God accomplished by sending Jesus to become one of us.
Just another human
1. The first perspective is that Jesus was just another human being, exactly like all men, who was able to live a perfect life by faith and surrender to God. God lived his life through him, but Jesus’ part was to trust and surrender. In this perspective, the central issue is whether or not we have faith and choose to surrender. If we can believe and surrender as Jesus did, we can live exactly as he did. The key consideration is what we put into the struggle, the primary ingredient is our faith and surrender, but somehow it seems that the most important thing is our human input. With these, all things become possible. Those who believe this do not even emphasize the need to be born again, it is all about human effort. I once believed this, but this was before I understood what it means that Christ is my righteousness.
A divine human
2. The second perspective is that Jesus was a human being who had a divine mind, or spirit. Genetically he was fully a man, with all the limitations of a man, but inwardly in the spiritual part, he was the Son of God who pre-existed and came from heaven. Though he left his memories and powers behind, he did not leave his identity behind. He was still the Son of God. But the question is, in what sense was he still the son of God? He was still the son of God because he possessed the one essential quality which separates divinity from all creation; that one quality is that he was good in himself. His nature was good, not because God was living in him, but his nature was good because he himself was God by nature!
Borrowed goodness?
There were two possible sources of the goodness which was in Jesus. The first possibility was that it was a borrowed goodness, infused into him by the indwelling holy spirit. In other words, Jesus was not good in himself, but goodness appeared in him because God (the Father) was manifesting himself through him. Without this presence of the Father in him, Jesus would not have been good, but would have been just as carnal and evil as all other men.
Inherently good?
The second possibility is that Jesus was good in himself, just as God the Father is, because he is the begotten son of God. He has inherited the nature of God which essentially is pure goodness (selfless love). Though he was fully a human, genetically identical to all men, suffering the same genetic deficiencies as all of us, yet his mind or his spirit was not the same as ours. Yes, it was limited to human capabilities like all of us, but it was morally, far superior to ours. Jesus never hated anyone, Jesus never desired evil for anyone, Jesus never had a selfish motive, but where did that come from? Was it another being (God the father) loving through him, or was it Jesus himself loving men from the basis of his own loving nature? The answer is very important and let me explain why.
Example or substitute?
Those who say Jesus was not good in himself, will always say that Jesus came to be primarily our example. Jesus had to live our life, face our temptations, overcome sin – all in exactly the same way and by the same method and means as we do. The idea is that if he wasn’t like us and didn’t overcome like us, then he would not be our example, and it would not be possible for us to overcome as he did. The idea is that he came to show that man can keep the law of God, so therefore, he had to demonstrate this as one of us under exactly the same conditions and circumstances. This is a false perspective and it lies at the root of two completely different approaches to salvation, one legalistic and human focused, the other focused on Christ, faith and the new birth.
Substitute
Those who say Jesus was good in himself (which is what I believe), understand that Jesus did not come to be an example to us as to how to overcome sin. That was not his mission because there is no man who lives, or who has ever lived who can live the life that Jesus lived. He is the only man who ever lived and who will ever live who was absolutely flawless morally, in whom Satan could find not the least area where he fell under Satan’s principles. Jesus did not come to show us the way, he came to be the way! He is not our example of how to overcome sin, he himself is our victory over sin! In other words, he does not say, “look, see how I walked, now follow in my steps.” No, no, no. Rather he says, “step into my arms and I will take you through. I will live instead of you.” We do not follow Christ’s example, instead we allow Christ to live again and he who lived perfectly once, will do it again in us. It is not the imitated life, but the substituted life!
I am not saying that Jesus’ example is not a good thing to seek to emulate. His life was perfect and surely a good ideal to reach for. However, there is more implied in the concept that Jesus is my example and that is what I am opposed to. Most people who say that Jesus is our example, insist that Jesus was exactly as we are, plus or minus nothing. These are the people who believe that the ultimate goal in the universe is the keeping of the law. So they say, Jesus came to show us that it was possible for the law to be kept. His life says, “I did it so you can too.” In other words, the life of Jesus was primarily a challenge to us which says, if you emulate me, you can do just as I did, I did it, so why can’t you?” This perspective presents Jesus as the “way shower,” rather than the way. It makes Jesus the means to the end, rather than the end itself. Is the victorious life a matter of emulating Christ, or is it a matter of receiving Christ and allowing him to live through us as we surrender to him moment by moment?
The new humanity
It is true that Jesus had to come as a man, fully under the conditions of fallen humanity. He had to take the curse upon himself on the cross, but was it as an example? Did he do these things so that he could then ask us to imitate him? This is the perspective which leads to legalism. No, he did these things so that he could take the old humanity upon himself and take it to the cross to death. In the resurrection he was raised as the second Adam, the head of a new human race in which the curse has been destroyed and which possesses all the attributes which he hammered into that life when he was a man. This is what we inherit when we are born again into Christ. It is what we inherit, not what we imitate! Jesus had to be us, so that he could create this new reality for us, not so that we could imitate him.
Love displayed
In addition to this, let us consider this truth: If God had been the one living the life of Jesus, then how could it be true that God’s love was truly displayed in Jesus? If Jesus was simply a surrendered vessel being used by God, then on the cross when Jesus died for us, was it that Jesus went through with it because his love for us was so great, or was it that he went through and endured it because of the wishes of His Father? Was the cross a display of Jesus’ love for man, or of his obedience to his Father, or both?
GOD’s Love or Divine Nature?
Many in the godhead movement have tended to focus on the gift of Jesus as the ultimate manifestation of the love of God, and I am one of those. However, there are other facets and angles to that demonstration of love which need to be explored. It was not just God’s feelings of love which needed to be demonstrated, but the very fundamental nature of what God is truly like. The only way God could be revealed to human beings in his true nature was if he came down to our level, became one of us and lived his life on our plane, without pretense or fakery, under conditions which could not be manipulated. We all know that God could never become a man. He could take on the form of a man, but he could never be truly a man. It would be pretense, play-acting. He would still be God almighty, just in an assumed form. But the SON of God could become a man! His power, glory, knowledge, memories etc. Could be taken from him and he could be placed in circumstances where he could reveal God on a human level, because his nature is the express image of the father’s person. Even if he became a man, the inward nature of God would remain pure and holy, utterly selfless. Therefore, in this way, though he were a human being, yet the glory of God – God’s utterly selfless love, God’s mercy and tender compassion would shine through him on a human level.
His own goodness
This is the critical point. If Jesus was not manifesting his own divine goodness, then he was not really revealing what God is like. He was only revealing what God can display through any human being. In fact, there is every possibility that it could have been a show put on by God, using a human body. The acid proof that Jesus was good in himself, is Calvary. On Calvary God abandoned Jesus, left him alone. Why did Jesus remain good and continue to choose good? No created being can be good, or choose what is truly good without the influence of God’s spirit. But Jesus did not have that on the cross. If we are to believe the words of Jesus himself, God forsook him on the cross and he was left entirely alone to bear the sin of the world, to take the curse upon himself. Why then did he still choose good? How was it possible for him to do this when separated from God? The answer is that he did, because he is good in himself because by nature, he is God!
In other words, the true nature of God was revealed on Calvary. Jesus showed that fundamentally, divinity is selfless and cares more about others than itself. Jesus demonstrated that fundamentally, there is a great difference between divinity and the creation. Goodness is not a matter of what we know, or what we choose to do. Goodness is something which resides only in divinity. Jesus was not just defending God the Father as a person, he was defending the very nature of God, the nature of divinity so as to make it clear why it was impossible for any creature to sit in the same councils as God (as Lucifer had wanted to do). Only a divine being can truly be good. The difference between God and creature is not a difference in information, it is a difference of nature. All of us can learn more, we can obtain more information, but we cannot change our natures. None of us can make ourselves inherently good because that is a quality which belongs to divinity only. (Mark 10:18)
Tempted as we are
The question is often asked, “but wasn’t Jesus tempted in all points like as we are? How could this be possible if he was divine in his spirit? How could he be truly tempted as I am if he was not exactly like me with all my tendencies and limitations? Were the temptations of Jesus simply a pretense?
First of all, let us note that Jesus was not tempted as we are in all details. Jesus was never tempted to use drugs, to be a homosexual, to murder someone. At least, it is inconceivable to me that he was. I am not tempted by those things and some things such as homosexual desire will never be a temptation to me. My nature recoils from it. I am sure it was the same for Jesus with most temptations. So, the point is, when the Bible says he was tempted in “all points,” it must mean he was tempted as we are, in principle, not in details. The underlying principle behind all temptations is highlighted by John when he says,
For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. (1John 2:16)
Three categories
In other words there are three principal categories into which sin falls and Jesus was tempted in all three of those categories, just as we are. When we look at his wilderness temptations it is clear that they fell into these three categories.
1. The lust of the flesh – the temptation to turn stones to bread in a moment of extreme hunger.
2. The lust of the eyes – The temptation to obtain all the kingdoms of the world
3. The pride of life – the temptation to show who he was by a vain demonstration of power.
Look at those three temptations. They almost seem to be trivial. I hardly think any of those would be much of a temptation for me if they were presented to me openly, up front. One wonders, where was there any power in those temptations? However, when we consider the true nature of sin, it becomes easier to understand. This is the key to understanding how Jesus was tempted.
The root principle
The root of sin in essence, is the self-governed life, the life that is lived independently of God. Satan could have had no hope of success with Jesus by trying to induce him to commit those gross acts of transgression to which we fall so easily. He could not get him to commit adultery, to steal, to lie, to blaspheme etc. However, if he could get him to act on the principle of sin, the result would be the same. Jesus was tempted to act on the basis of self-government and in this sense, he was tempted upon the same points as we are. This is the foundation principle that underlies all sin. We sin (in whatever form it manifests itself) because we run our own lives! There is absolutely no other reason and there is no other explanation as to why born again Christians still fall into sin.
Jesus’ temptations were more subtle, more sophisticated, but in principle, they were exactly the same as ours. They were focused on getting Jesus to act independently of God, on the basis of his own initiative. Self-government is the principle of Satan’s kingdom. Living by the directives of God’s holy spirit is the principle of the kingdom of God.
Nature or character
The question may be asked, why is it that Christians still continue to fall into sin, even though they are born again? Doesn’t this demonstrate that the really critical factor is our own human effort, the exercise of our will, rather than the new nature which we receive? However, there are certain other factors involved which we need to understand.
When a person is born again, he receives a new nature, not a new character. Nature is inherited, we receive it when we are born, but character is formed or developed in the conflicts of life. We are saved on the basis of the nature we possess, the one we receive in Jesus, but we glorify God in the world by the character which we display. The basis of salvation is to some degree, different from the basis on which I reveal God’s glory in the earth.
I am human, that is my nature and instinctively I behave like a human. But we know that all humans behave in inhuman ways if they are tempted strongly enough. It would be worse if there was another kind of nature involved pulling us in another direction. The point I am making is that even though we have a new nature and our instincts have changed, we still need to make choices and to consciously surrender, to yield, to exercise faith in giving Christ the reins of our life. We possess a new nature, but we still walk by faith. In other words, we have the instincts the desires and the capability to do what is morally good, but if this is not allied to faith, our habitual practice of self-dependence and taking the safer, or more pleasant route will override the impulses of the new nature and drag us into the path of self-government.
The New Birth
One problem is that we have not understood the true nature of man, nor the nature of the change which takes place when a person is born again. The Bible says,
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. (2Cor 5:17)
It is patently plain that this is not true in the absolute sense. The new birth is not a new birth of the conscious mind, the memories or the intellect. Everything which we have ever learned, our memories and our learned behavior still remains in our brains, even after we have been converted and born again of the spirit of Christ. However, what the Bible teaches is that the Lord Jesus has come to dwell in our spirits (2 Tim 4:22). It is a rebirth of the spirit, not a rebirth of the conscious mind. It is in the inner man that our motives and instincts have been renewed, but our conscious mind still is the place where our decisions are made and it is still influenced by the memories and habits and information gathered over our lifetime. So on the one hand we have the impulses of the new nature prompting us to do what is good, while on the other hand we have the intellect directing us into the habits of a lifetime. This is where the power of choice still comes into play. This is where walking with Jesus, abiding in him consciously, impacts upon the decisions we ultimately make.
Spirits, not Intellect
But here is the critical point; Our spirits are renewed, inwardly, all things have become new. This inward transformation is manifested in our outward behavior as we learn to “walk in the spirit,” as we “walk by faith and not by sight.” As we “lean not to our own understanding,” and learn to act from the spirit rather than the intellect. This is where growth takes place in our experience. So we have the paradox that we are already transformed, new creatures, yet we are still growing and changing. The answer to the seeming contradiction lies in the fact that we are made up of body, soul and spirit. The conscious mind continues to learn and to be renewed. We never get rid of the information in it. All our lifetime the spirit will continue to grow and change and develop. But on the other hand, the spirit is completely transformed when we are born again.
The good thing is that we have the assurance that we are not saved because our characters are perfect. If this were so, I don’t think anyone would be saved. No, we are saved because the life of Christ has been united with our life, spirit with spirit so that his seed is in us and remains in us. This is the basis of our salvation, not what we learn or how we develop, but the seed in us.
No unavailable power
Jesus exercised no power that we may not have in our conflict with sin. How can we reconcile this with the fact that Jesus was very different in his spirit than any human being? All This has to be true because it is Jesus himself who lives his life again in us. Surely, all that he did when he was in the flesh he is able to do again in our flesh when we are yielded to him! But the point is, it is he who is living, it is he who is doing it, it is not we who are doing it by emulating him. If you want to know the reason why nobody seems to be living the life of Christ then we need investigate no further after we have grasped this fact. We fail miserably, we speak but do not live, because it is we who emulate Christ, it is not Christ who lives. We are in a relationship with the principles of Christ, with the morality of Christ, with the philosophy of Christ, but Christ himself is not allowed to live.
See You Soon Daliah
The righteous perisheth, and no man layeth it to heart: and merciful men are taken away, none considering that the righteous is taken away from the evil to come. (Isa 57:1)
These were the only words which we could think of to help us to understand the tragedy, when our dear Sister Daliah Deerr was suddenly and unexpectedly taken away from us on Wednesday, November 8, 2017.
She was sick for about a month with what everyone, including the doctors thought was only a minor illness – a touch of bronchitis they diagnosed. On the final, fateful day, she showed signs of rapid deterioration and was rushed to the hospital. She died almost immediately upon reaching there. The autopsy said it was heart failure, but I guess we will never know exactly what happened until we see her again in the resurrection of the just (just a few short moments in the future).
We will miss her singing, we will miss her presence at our meetings – especially at campmeeting where she was always one of the first to arrive and was ever ready to make her contribution to the program.
At times such as this, we have many questions to ask of the Lord, but ultimately, we keep on trusting Him. We would never accuse Him of taking her away, we understand that death is the work of the enemy. But we know for a fact that what he allows is always for a good reason and we continue to give him thanks in all things and look for the better reason behind it all.
Daliah leaves her two sons behind, Darren and D’Andre. We all feel the deep grief of loss, but we solicit your continued prayers for them, and also her mother, Zemrie Wright who has been hard hit by the loss of her eldest daughter.
May we all be faithful that we may see her again in that resurrection morning when she will rise again, still with a smile on her face, still with her beautiful voice and a body that will never again be subject to death.
Hasten the day Lord!
Are You Getting Enough Protein?
Lenworth Frankson
Many of us fall short of getting the optimum amount of protein that our bodies need to stay healthy. Protein is an important substance found in every cell in the human body. In fact, except for water, protein is the most abundant substance in the body. Proteins are made up of smaller building blocks called amino acids, joined together in chains. There are 20 different amino acids. Our bodies utilize the dietary protein that we consume and build protein that makes up our bodies. Protein is used in many vital processes and therefore needs to be consistently replaced. For this reason we regularly consume foods that contain protein.
Repair and Maintenance
Protein is vital in the maintenance of body tissue, including development and repair. Our hair, skin, eyes, muscles and organs are all made from protein. While it is needed by everyone to maintain and repair the body, protein is especially important for babies and toddlers who are growing quickly, and so need more protein per pound of body weight than older kids and adults.
Energy
Protein is one of the major sources of energy and if we consume more protein than we need for body tissue maintenance and other necessary functions, the body will use it for energy. If it is not needed due to sufficient intake of other energy sources such as carbohydrates, the protein will be used to create fat and becomes part of fat cells. Protein follows the all-or-none law. What this means is that if there is inadequate essential amino acids, the body will excrete proteins in urine as urea. The remainder of the protein is converted to glucose, fat, or metabolized for energy.
Hormones
Protein is involved in the creation of some hormones. These substances help control body functions that involve the interaction of several organs. Insulin, a small protein, is an example of a hormone that regulates blood sugar. It involves the interaction of organs such as the pancreas and the liver. Secretin is another example of a protein hormone. This substance assists in the digestive process by stimulating the pancreas and the intestine to create necessary digestive juices.
Enzymes
Enzymes are proteins that increase the rate of chemical reactions in the body. In fact, most of the necessary chemical reactions in the body would not efficiently proceed without enzymes. For example, one type of enzyme functions as an aid in digesting large protein, carbohydrate and fat molecules into smaller molecules, while another assists the creation of DNA.
Transportation and Storage
Protein is a major vehicle in transportation of certain molecules. For example, hemoglobin (an iron-rich protein present in red blood cells) is a protein that transports oxygen throughout the body. Protein is also sometimes used to store certain molecules. Ferritin is an example of a protein that combines with iron for storage in the liver.
Antibodies
Protein forms antibodies that help prevent infection, illness and disease. These proteins identify and assist in destroying bacteria and viruses. They often work in conjunction with the other immune system cells. For example, these antibodies identify and then surround these foreign bodies in order to keep them contained until they can be destroyed by white blood cells.
Cravings
Our bodies are intelligently designed and if we are not getting enough protein, one of the first ways your body lets you know is by craving protein-rich foods. If you have been craving a big omelet at breakfast and chili for lunch, follow your gut and load up on the protein. You can always stick to vegan options like oatmeal with nut butter and seeds or three bean chili if you prefer.
Another point is that the human body needs protein for recovery and repair. Many athletes are aware of this so they will eat a protein snack or drink a protein shake after a long run or an intense workout. Our bodies are craving it to repair our muscles. We use protein to grow new cells, tissue and skin. If a cut is taking a long time to heal, look at the protein intake in your diet.
Having a serious craving for something sweet in the morning could be another sign that your body needs protein. When we don’t get enough proteins, our blood sugar levels can spike and then rapidly fall, leaving us craving anything that will quickly bring it back up (i.e. white flour and sugar). Just having a handful of cereal in the morning for breakfast will give you an energy burst right away, but your energy will decline shortly after. This up-and-down blood sugar level is what causes the craving. Protein helps to stabilize our blood sugar levels. If you eat a meal that is mostly carbohydrates, with little to no protein, it will digest quicker than a meal with protein but will cause your blood sugar to rise. Eat some protein with your carbs at each meal or snack to prevent this blood sugar spike. Even healthy carbs by themselves can elevate our blood sugar level.
Getting sick often
If you are constantly catching every cold and flu going around, it could be an indicator that you are protein deficient. Protein helps keep our immune system cells healthy and working. Our immune cells need enough protein to repair them-selves and to multiply. Without enough protein, we will be at a much higher risk for coming down with any germs we’re exposed to. Protein is needed to build the components of our immune system so not eating enough protein, over time, can weakens the immune system
Protein has many jobs and one of them is pulling fluid back into our blood vessels preventing the leakage into other tissues. Protein helps bring salt back into the blood vessels, which then attracts fluid back in. When fluid leaks out of these blood vessels and sits in the tissues, it leads to edema (the medical term for swelling).
It is possible that after a long flight your shoes could feel a little tight. That is because fluid has pooled around the feet and ankles, causing tightness and swelling. Swelling in the feet and ankles could signal that you are not getting enough protein. If you are experiencing this edema, look at your diet and see if you are eating enough protein. Checking with your doctor about the swelling is also advisable.
Spiking blood levels
Because protein has such a balancing and stabilizing effect on our blood sugar, it is crucial for other body systems as well. For example, when our blood sugars are spiking and dropping, it is natural for our brains to feel a little foggy or slow. Eating protein with carbohydrates helps in slowing the release of the carbs a little at a time, giving a steady supply of energy. However, without that protein the carbs could spike the blood sugars, and then cause them to plummet, leaving us light headed and crabby. Keep an emergency stash of nuts or pretzels and hummus nearby for those times when you don’t have time for a real meal.
Hair falling out
Because our hair is mostly made up of protein, it can give us clues as to how much protein we need added in our diets. If the body is low on protein and you don’t replace it, our bodies are designed to compensate by pulling protein out of the non-essential body parts, like hair. Once your hair doesn’t get the nutrients it needs, it starts falling out. If you are noticing more hair in the shower drain or on your brush than usual, take a look at your meals and the amount of protein included.
Body built
A fit body starts with our diet. Our muscles are made up of protein, so if we are not getting enough in our diets, it makes sense that our muscles will lose some mass.
When the body does not have the adequate amount of protein it needs to carry out all the necessary functions, then the body start breaking down the protein stores it has. This starts in the muscles. So if you have been skimpy on the protein or just not eating as much as your body needs, it will break down muscle to function. Do yourself a favor and make a protein shake if you haven’t been getting enough. Your muscles will thank and reward you.
How much protein do we need?
The Dietary Reference Intake (DRI) for protein is 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight, or 0.36 grams per pound. This amounts to: 56 grams per day for the average sedentary man and 46 grams per day for the average sedentary woman. Foods that are high in protein are poultry, eggs, meat –including fish and dairy. However if you’re looking for plant-based proteins – which I am all for – because you are a vegetarian or simply don’t want to eat meat everyday, go for protein rich beans, nuts, seeds, legumes, soy products and some grains. The important thing to keep in mind is to eat a wide variety of foods in the protein family. One protein food source isn’t the best choice for providing all your body’s protein needs. Eat a variety of protein foods to adequately meet your protein requirements on a daily basis. We will be able to get enough protein from our diets so long as we are eating a good variety of healthy foods.
If you are burning tons of calories, due to your activity and lifestyle you will need even more protein. The bottom line is that the “right” amount of protein for any one individual depends on many factors, including activity levels, age, muscle mass, physique goals and current state of health.
A word of caution however, consuming excessive protein can be detrimental to your health and well being. Too much can interfere with your health and fitness goals in a number of ways, including weight gain, extra body fat, stress on your kidneys, dehydration, and leakage of important bone minerals. If we eat more protein than the body requires, it will simply convert most of those calories to sugar and then fat. Increased blood sugar levels can also feed bacteria that cause diseases and yeast, such as Candida, as well as fueling the growth of cancer cell. Another important point is that when we eat protein, we also take in nitrogen byproducts that our kidneys have to filter out of our blood. If you’re eating a normal amount of protein, you urinate out the nitrogen, and that’s normal. But if you are eating a lot more protein than your body needs, you force your kidneys to work harder than usual to get rid of all the extra nitrogen, which, over time, might have the potential to cause kidney damage.
Protein is the building block of life, but our bodies cannot store it, so it is necessary and important that we, daily, give our bodies the adequate amount of protein that it needs to stay healthy and function properly.
Jamaica Campmeeting
The annual Jamaica Campmeeting for 2018 will begin on Thursday, March 29, and will end on Monday, April 2. We are highly motivated to make this coming year a special one in every spiritual way and we encourage all believers in Jamaica, and those who can attend from overseas to make a special effort to be with us at camp this coming March. You don’t want to miss the blessing. Start preparing NOW, and if you have not yet applied for leave from your work, be sure to do so as soon as possible.
For those who have not attended camp for the past three years, the map to the right will assist in finding the campsite. It is located near the tiny community of Spice Grove in Manchester, which is about a half an hour to the west of the town of Mandeville.
Traveling from Mandeville westward, on the road to Santa Cruz, you will come to Spur Tree hill in about 10-15 minutes. Shortly after you begin to descend the hill (approx. ¼ mile down), you will come to a traffic island in the road which will enable you to turn right. From that point, simply follow the map faithfully and you will get to the campsite. The road is unpaved and rocky after you get to Spice Grove, and you may think that you are lost because there are very few houses, but continue to the end which is about another ½ mile beyond Spice Grove, and you will be at the campsite.
Looking forward to seeing you there!
Open Face
January 2018
Open Face is dedicated to the promotion and the restoration of apostolic Christianity. In particular to the restoration of those truths which have been cast down to the ground and trampled underfoot by the papacy, and adopted by her daughters.
Our purpose is to motivate our readers to commit themselves wholly to the task of personal preparation for the coming of the Lord, and to the taking of the final warning message to every nation, kindred, tongue and people.
Open Face is published bi-monthly, and is sent free of cost to all who desire to receive it.
Editor: David Clayton
Publishing committee: Howard Williams
Karleen Williams
Jennifer Clayton
David Clayton
P.O. Box 23, Knockpatrick
Manchester, Jamaica W.I.
Phone: (304) 932-4543
Jamaica: (876) 603-0821
email: vidclay@gmail.com
Website: http://www.restorationministry.com
