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2 Peter 1:12


August 2002

Dear Readers,

“To the saints and faithful brethren in Christ… Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” (Colossians 1:2) I pray that this month finds you well and prospering in the Lord. I would like to thank each of you who were able to attend the 2002 West Virginia camp meeting. I greatly appreciated the fellowship and the chance to get to know you better. It wouldn’t have been the same without you. On behalf of each of us here at Smyrna, thank you for coming.

In this Issue

Doctrine of a Trinity Subversive of the Atonement

by Joseph H. Waggoner

Questions and Answers

by Lynnford Beachy

Letters from our Readers

Update on Michael Sibanda

The Work in Africa

by Lynnford Beachy

Galatians 5:22-26

by Alonzo T. Jones

Fearfully and Wonderfully Made (Part 7)

by George McDaniel

Camp Meeting Report

 


Doctrine of a Trinity Subversive
of the Atonement

by Joseph H. Waggoner

(In 1884 Joseph Harvey Waggoner published a book entitled The Atonement in the Light of Nature and Revelation. This book contains some wonderful insights into the plan of salvation. There are four chapters in particular that I believe will be a blessing to you. The June issue began our reprint of these four chapters (4-7) which deal with the death of Christ and how our view of God directly affects our understanding and appreciation of the atonement. This month we are printing chapter 6 of this book.    Editor)

It will no doubt appear to many to be irreverent to speak thus of the doctrine of a trinity. But we think they must view the subject in a different light if they will calmly and candidly examine the arguments which we shall present. We know that we write with the deepest feelings of reverence for the Scriptures, and with the highest regard for every Scripture doctrine and Scripture fact. But reverence for the Scriptures does not necessarily embrace reverence for men’s opinions of the Scriptures.

It is not our purpose to present any argument on the doctrine of the trinity, further than it has a bearing on the subject under consideration, namely, on the Atonement. And we are willing, confidently willing to leave the decision of the question with all who will carefully read our remarks, with an effort to divest themselves of prejudice, if they unfortunately possess it. The inconsistencies of Trinitarians, which must be pointed out to free the Scripture doctrine of the Atonement from reproaches under which it has too long lain, are the necessary outgrowth of their system of theology. No matter how able are the writers to whom we shall refer, they could never free themselves from inconsistencies without correcting their theology.

Many theologians really think that the Atonement, in respect to its dignity and efficacy, rests upon the doctrine of a trinity. But we fail to see any connection between the two. To the contrary, the advocates of that doctrine really fall into the difficulty which they seem anxious to avoid. Their difficulty consists in this: They take the denial of a trinity to be equivalent to a denial of the divinity of Christ. Were that the case, we should cling to the doctrine of a trinity as tenaciously as any can; but it is not the case. They who have read our remarks on the death of the Son of God know that we firmly believe in the divinity of Christ; but we cannot accept the idea of a trinity, as it is held by Trinitarians, without giving up our claim on the dignity of the sacrifice made for our redemption.

And here is shown how remarkably the widest extremes meet in theology. The highest Trinitarians and lowest Unitarians meet and are perfectly united on the death of Christ—the faith of both amounts to Socinianism. Unitarians believe that Christ was a prophet, an inspired teacher, but merely human; that his death was that of a human body only. Trinitarians hold that the term “Christ” comprehends two distinct and separate natures: one that was merely human; the other, the second person in the trinity, who dwelt in the flesh for a brief period, but could not possibly suffer, or die; that the Christ that died was only the human nature in which the divinity had dwelt. Both classes have a human offering, and nothing more. No matter how exalted the pre-existent Son was; no matter how glorious, how powerful, or even eternal; if the manhood only died, the sacrifice was only human. And so far as the vicarious death of Christ is concerned, this is Socinianism. Thus the remark is just, that the doctrine of a trinity degrades the Atonement, resting it solely on a human offering as a basis. A few quotations will show the correctness of this assertion.

As God, he obeyed all the requirements of the law, and made it honorable in the justification of sinners; as man, he bore its curse on the tree, and endured its penalty.”—Manual of Atonement, page 25.

“The sufferings of Christ were endured in his human nature. Though possessing a divine nature, yet in that he could not suffer and die. His sufferings were endured in his human nature.” Id., page 88.

“It is no part of the doctrine of the Atonement that the divine nature, in the person of the Saviour, suffered.”—Barnes on Atonement, page 224.

“It was meet that the mediator should be man, that he might be capable of suffering death; for, as God, he could not die.”—Buck’s Theol. Dict., Art. Mediator.

“Trinitarians do not hold to the sufferings or death of divinity.”—Mattison on the Trinity, page 39.

“His mediation between God and man is chiefly in his human nature, in which alone he was capable of suffering and dying.”—Scott on 1 Tim. 2:5.

“I know not any scripture, fairly interpreted, that states the divine nature of our Lord to be begotten of God, or to be the Son of God.”– Clarke on Heb. 1:8.

“Is it to be wondered that the human body in which this fullness of the Godhead dwelt, and in which the punishment due to our sins was borne upon the tree, should be exalted above all human and all created things?”– Id. on Phil. 2:9.

Dr. Clarke says the apostle John doubtless directed his first letter against the heretics then abounding. Of them he says:—

“The Gnostics even denied that Christ suffered; the AEon, or Divine Being that dwelt in the man Christ Jesus, according to them, left him when he was taken by the Jews.” &c.– Note on 1 John 1:8.

So far as that particular heresy of the Gnostics is concerned, it has become wide-spread and almost all-prevailing in the denominations of the present day. Indeed, we cannot see but Dr. Clarke himself was tinctured with it, according to the quotations given above.

We trust that we have shown to the full conviction of every one who “trembles at the word” of the Lord, that the Son of God, who was in the beginning, by whom the worlds were made, suffered death for us; the oft-repeated declarations of theological writers that a mere human body died are, by the Scriptures, proved untrue. These writers take the doctrine of a trinity for their basis, and assume that Christ is the second person in the trinity, and could not die. Again, they assume that death is not a cessation of life; and between the two unscriptural assumptions they involve themselves in numerous difficulties, and load the doctrine of the Atonement with unreasonable contradictions. We would not needlessly place ourselves in opposition to the religious feelings of any class, but in order to clear the doctrine of the Atonement from the consequences of these assumptions, we are compelled to notice some of the prominent arguments presented in favor of the doctrine of a trinity.

In the “Manual of Atonement,” 1 John 5:20 is quoted as containing most conclusive evidence of a trinity and of the Supreme Deity of Christ. It is there claimed that he is called “the true God and eternal life.” The whole verse reads thus: “And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life.” A person must be strongly wedded to a theory who can read this verse and not see the distinction therein contained between the true God and the Son of God. “We are in him that is true.” How? “In his Son Jesus Christ.” The distinction between Christ and the true God is most clearly shown by the Saviour’s own words in John 17:3: “That they might know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.”

Much stress is laid on Isa. 9:6, as proving a trinity, which we have before quoted, as referring to our High Priest who shed his blood for us. The advocates of that theory will say that it refers to a trinity because Christ is called the everlasting Father. But for this reason, with others, we affirm that it can have no reference to a trinity. Is Christ the Father in the trinity? If so, how is he the Son? or if he is both Father and Son, how can there be a trinity? for a trinity is three persons. To recognize a trinity, the distinction between the Father and Son must be preserved. Christ is called “the second person in the trinity;” but if this text proves a trinity, or refers to it at all, it proves that he is not the second, but the first. And if he is the first, who is the second? It is very plain that this text has no reference to such a doctrine.

In seeking an explanation of this text, we must bear in mind the work of Christ as brought to view in this and parallel passages. These words refer to the “child born,” the “son given,” who, as we have seen, bears the title of God subordinate to his Father. And if an apostle could call himself the father of those whom he had begotten in the gospel (1 Cor. 4:15; 1 Tim. 1:2; Titus 1:4), how appropriately is this title applied to the Prince of Peace, who is, in a peculiar sense, the everlasting Father of all to whom he gives everlasting life. The New Jerusalem is called the Bride, the Lamb’s wife (Rev. 21); Christ of course is the Bridegroom, the husband. But Paul says Jerusalem above is our mother. Gal. 4:26. If so, why not her husband, the bridegroom, be our father? Surely there is nothing inappropriate in this. But, as the New Jerusalem is not the mother of the unregenerate, these being reckoned the children of the bondwoman, so Christ is not called their father. They are not his children, and he does not give them everlasting life. Therefore the title is applied to him in a subordinate and restricted sense. In its unrestricted and universal sense it applies only to the Supreme One, “the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” 2 Cor. 11:31; Eph. 1:3; 1 Peter 1:3. [Editor’s note: Also see Isaiah 8:18 and Hebrews 2:13.]

John 12:40, 41, has been supposed to prove the Supreme Deity of Christ, and therefore a trinity. “These things said , when he saw his [Christ’s] glory, and spake of him.” This refers to Isa. 6, which chapter speaks of “the King, the Lord [Jehovah] of hosts;” and it is thence inferred that Christ is that Lord of hosts. But those who quote this in such a manner should know (and some of them do know) that there are two words in Isa. 6 rendered Lord, just as there are in Ps. 110:1, which says: “The LORD said unto my Lord.” The first is Jehovah; the second Adonai—the Father and Son. In Isa. 6:3, 5, 12, Jehovah is used; in verses 1, 8, 11, Adonai is used. Now John 12:40 is a quotation from Isa. 6:10, which refers to Adonai, the Son, and not to Jehovah. Many have been misled by a wrong application of this text. Those who know the fact above stated cannot honestly use it as it has been used in theological controversies.

Jer. 23:5, 6 is supposed to afford decisive proof of a trinity, in that the “Branch” which is raised up unto David shall be called Jehovah. Clarke, in his commentary, gives the following rendering of this text, from Dr. Blayney: “And this is the name by which Jehovah shall call him, our righteousness.” He adds:—

“Dr. Blayney thus accounts for his translation: Literally, according to the Hebrew idiom,—and this is his name by which Jehovah shall call our righteousness; a phrase exactly the same as, ‘And Jehovah shall call him so,’ which implies that God would make him such as he called him, that is, our righteousness, or the Author and Means of our salvation and our acceptance. So that by the same metonymy Christ is said to ‘have been made of God unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption.’ 1 Cor. 1:30.

“I doubt not that some persons will be offended with me, for depriving them by this translation of a favorite argument for proving the Divinity of our Saviour from the Old Testament. But I cannot help it. I have done it with no ill design, but purely because I think, and am morally sure, that the text, as it stands, will not properly admit of any other construction. The Septuagint have so translated it before me in an age when there could not possibly be any bias or prejudice either for or against the forementioned doctrine—a doctrine which draws its decisive proofs from the New Testament only.”

On this Dr. Clarke remarks: “I prefer the translation of Blayney to all others… As to those who put the sense of their creed upon the words, they must be content to stand out of the list of Hebrew critics. I believe Jesus to be Jehovah, but I doubt much whether this text calls him so.”

We must be careful to distinguish between a criticism and an opinion. After clearly defining the doctrine of the text, Dr. Clarke tells us what he believes, which is not the doctrine of the text.

And we are constrained to question its being the doctrine of the Scriptures. There must be a distinction between the Father and the Son; and that must be precisely the distinction between Jehovah and his Anointed One, Jesus the Christ. We have recently read an argument by a man of undoubted ability, who endeavors to prove that Jesus is Jehovah, by comparing the words of the prophets with those of the New Testament. Thus, the prophets say that Jehovah is the Saviour of men, and the New Testament says that Jesus is the Saviour; therefore Jesus is Jehovah.

That is apparently, but not really, an argument. They who speak thus seem to forget the teachings of the New Testament, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself.” 2 Cor. 5:19. “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16. And again Jesus said: “My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me.” “He that sent me is with me; the Father hath not left me alone; for I do always those things that please him.” “The words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself; but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works.” John 7:16; 8:29; 14:10. God hath indeed spoken unto us in these last days, but it is “by his Son.” Heb. 1:1, 2. It is very true, “that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.” 1 John 5:11. The Son comes in the name of the Father; he represents the Father to the world; he accomplishes the will and purpose of the Father in redemption. As Christ is the Son of God, and the only representative of the Father, it could not be considered strange that he should bear the name and title of his father; “for it pleased the Father that in him should all fullness dwell.” Col. 1:19. But the Son is not the Father; and therefore it cannot be that Christ is Jehovah, but was sent of Jehovah to do his will and work, and to make known the counsels of his grace.

As before remarked, the great mistake of Trinitarians, in arguing this subject, is this: they make no distinction between a denial of a trinity and a denial of the divinity of Christ. They see only the two extremes, between which the truth lies; and take every expression referring to the pre-existence of Christ as evidence of a trinity. The Scriptures abundantly teach the pre-existence of Christ and his divinity; but they are entirely silent in regard to a trinity. The declaration, that the divine Son of God could not die, is as far from the teachings of the Bible as darkness is from light. And we would ask the Trinitarian, to which of the two natures are we indebted for redemption? The answer must, of course, be, To that one which died or shed his blood for us; for “we have redemption through his blood.” Then it is evident that if only the human nature died, our Redeemer is only human, and that the divine Son of God took no part in the work of redemption, for he could neither suffer nor die. Surely, we say right, that the doctrine of a trinity degrades the Atonement, by bringing the sacrifice, the blood of our purchase, down to the standard of Socinianism.

But we are not the only ones who see this difficulty in the Trinitarian views of the atoning sacrifice. Their own expressions betray a sense of the weakness of their position, and of the necessity of something more than a human offering for the redemption of man. Dr. Barnes, as quoted, says that “the divine nature in the person of Christ” could not suffer, nor die; yet, in speaking of the nature of the Atonement, he says:—

“If it be a part of the doctrine of the Atonement, and essential to that doctrine, that the Redeemer was divine, that he was ‘God manifest in the flesh,’ that there was in a proper sense an incarnation of Deity, then it is clear that such an incarnation, and the sufferings of such an one on a cross, were events adapted to make an impression on the universe at large, deeper by far than would be done by the sufferings of the guilty themselves.” “All must feel that it was appropriate that the Eternal Father should command the sun to withdraw his beams, and the earth to tremble, and the rocks to rend—to spread a universal pall over the world—when his Son expired on the cross.” “He had descended from Heaven, and had taken upon himself the form of a servant. He had subjected himself voluntarily to poverty, shame, and contempt; he had been bound, and scourged, and publicly rejected; he had submitted to a mock trial and to an unjust condemnation; he had borne his own cross to the place of crucifixion, and had voluntarily given himself up to be put to death in a form that involved the keenest torture that man could inflict.” Pages 255-257.

If it were true that the divine nature—that which “descended from Heaven”—could not suffer and die, such remarks as the above are only calculated to mislead; and it must appear to all that they betray a consciousness, on the part of the writer, that if the sacrifice was only human, as he had elsewhere said, the offering lacked in dignity, and the Atonement in efficacy.

The Manual of Atonement, as quoted, says he could only die as man; that in his divine nature he could neither suffer nor die; and yet uses the following words:—

“It was sin that drew Christ from the skies, and influenced him to lead a life of suffering in this world. It was sin that wounded his sacred head—that agonized his soul in the garden—that led him to Calvary—that nailed him to the cross, and drew out his heart’s blood as a sin-atoning sacrifice.” Page 138

Who would not suppose from the above that the very Christ that came “from the skies” died on the cross? Why is this language used? Evidently to make an impression of the enormity of the sin, and the value of the sacrifice, which could not be made by the death of a human being. That object might be accomplished without any contradiction, by allowing what the Scriptures plainly teach of the death of the Son of God.

Dr. Scott, who says his death was only in his human nature, further says:—

“‘I am he that liveth;’ the ever-living, self-existent God, to whom as mediator it was given to have life in himself, and to be the life of men; and who had also been obedient to death for sinners; but behold he was alive as the first-fruits of the resurrection, to die no more.”– Note on Rev. 1:18.

“This same person, who created and upholds all worlds, as the high priest of his people, purged away the guilt of their sins, by himself, and the sacrifice of his death upon the cross.”– Note on Heb. 1:3.

If it was given to the “self-existent God” to have life in himself, by whom was it given? Here is a plain declaration that “the ever-living, self-existent God” died for sinners, which we cannot believe, and Dr. Scott did not believe, for he contradicted it elsewhere. The self-existent God could not purge away our sin “by himself,” but the Son of God could “by himself” (as Paul says, Heb. 1:3), and the self-existent God could by his Son; for God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself.

Dr. Clarke, in his Commentary, says:—

“Considering him (Paul) as writing under the inspiration of the Holy Ghost, then we have from the plain, grammatical meaning of the words which he has used, the fullest demonstration (for the Spirit of God cannot lie) that He who died for our sins, and rose again for our justification, and in whose blood we have redemption, was God over all.”—Clarke on Col. 1.

In view of the remark from the same author, which we before quoted, that the suffering or punishment due to our sins was borne in the human body, the above is a most remarkable statement. In the former quotations he said that the divine nature was not the Son of God; that the Godhead dwelt in a human body, and it was the human body that endured the punishment due to our sins; and in the latter quotation he says that “he who died for our sins, and rose again for our justification, and in whose blood we have redemption, was God over all.” Can it be possible that he thought that the human nature, in distinction from the divine nature which dwelt therein, is God over all? We very well know that he thought the divine nature which dwelt in the human was God; and if the human nature, which died for us, was also God, then he certainly has presented to us two Gods, namely, a divine God and a human God! And each one is God over all. We think he has fallen into the same inconsistency which was manifested by the Manual of Atonement, by Dr. Scott, and by Dr. Barnes. Each said that divinity or the divine nature could not suffer nor die, and each said that the pre-existing divinity suffered and died. Dr. Scott even said that the self-existent God died as our mediator. We believe that the doctrine of the trinity lies at the foundation of these errors on the part of these able authors. The Bible is not, and should not be made, responsible for such inconsistencies. They are not at all necessary to an understanding of the Bible or the doctrine of the Atonement. On the contrary, they prevent an understanding of the truth, and cause the teachings of the Scriptures to appear confused and uncertain in the eyes of all who trust in the wisdom of the wise of this world.

Dr. John Harris, in his first volume on Theological Science—the Pre-Adamite Earth—has very forcibly stated the truth concerning the pre-existence and manifestation of the Redeemer. He says:—

“For en arch [in the beginning] even then He already hn [was]. The assertion of his pre-existence is included alike in en arch and in hn. For when every created thing had yet to be, He already was. He comprehends every being in himself.” Page 31.

And of the manifestation of this pre-existent one he further says:—

“His disciples subsequently declared that the life had been manifested, and that they had seen it; that that which was from the beginning they had handled and seen, even the Word of Life.” Page 34.

Now, when the disciples also declare that that Word which they saw and handled was put to death on the cross, and rose from the dead, we cannot avoid the conclusion that that which was from the beginning, which was before all things, actually died for man. Of course we cannot believe what men say about his being co-equal with God in every respect, and that the divine Son of God could not suffer nor die. These are mere human words. But that the Word, or Logos, was the Son of God, that he was before all things, that he was made flesh, that he was seen and handled of men, that he was put to death, that he was raised from the dead—these are the words of inspiration. “What is the chaff to the wheat? saith the Lord.”

“The mystery of godliness,” the mystery of the incarnation, is great indeed. It is to be doubted whether a finite mind will ever be able to comprehend it. This does not speak against it as a fact; for we may accept a fact revealed, when we cannot comprehend the nature of the fact. We may believe that a certain star is thousands of millions of miles from the earth, but the human mind can have no just conception of such a distance. We believe in the being of the omnipotent God, but we cannot comprehend his being. We believe that he who was glorified with the Father before the world was, was made flesh, and dwelt among men; in whom, as the Methodist Discipline justly expressed it, were two natures joined together in one person, never to be divided; who truly suffered and died for us. What a sacrifice for guilty man! What an offering to the immutable law of Jehovah! What a vindication of the mercy and justice of the Father!

“Here’s love and grief beyond degree;
The Lord of glory dies for men!”

“O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!” See 1 Cor. 2:8; Rom. 11:33.

?

(This article was taken from pages 164–179 of Joseph H. Waggoner’s book entitled, The Atonement in the Light of Nature and Revelation.    Editor)


Questions and Answers

by Lynnford Beachy

(From time to time people send us questions, requesting answers. To help benefit others who may have similar questions we have been printing some of these questions, along with their answers, in Present Truth. We do not answer every question in Present Truth, and we do not always print them immediately. I would like to state that these answers are provided to help you in your Bible study, not to replace it. You still must search the Scriptures daily to see whether those things are so. (Acts 17:11) I pray that you will be blessed by these questions and their Bible answers.    Editor)

Question:  What is prohibited on the Sabbath?

“What about taking a bath on a Sabbath day? …it looks like there are two classes as far as this concept is concerned. What’s your opinion?”

Zimbabwe

“Is it a sin to buy food, drink or anything on the Sabbath? (I am not talking about doing business, thus buying and selling.)”

Ghana

(I will answer these two related questions together.    Editor)

Answer:

First of all my opinion is not worth a hill of beans. We must not be concerned about people’s opinions on a given subject, but rather we must be concerned about what God says.

The Bible prohibits working upon the Sabbath day. In the heart of the Ten Commandments, we read,

“Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.” (Exodus 20:8-11)

We learn from other Scriptures some of the things this includes, such as: gathering sticks (Exodus 15:32-36), gathering food (Exodus 16:22-28), kindling a fire (Exodus 35:3), buying anything including food (Nehemiah 10:31),  selling anything including food (Nehemiah 13:15), harvesting fields (Nehemiah 13:15), bearing burdens (Jeremiah 17:21), doing your own ways, finding your own pleasure, and speaking your own words (Isaiah 58:13). All manner of secular work is prohibited on the Sabbath day, which begins at sunset Friday evening and ends at sunset Sabbath evening. (Leviticus 23:32; Nehemiah 13:19)

Although these things are prohibited on the Sabbath day, let us not become like the Pharisees and condemn the innocent. We read:

“At that time Jesus went on the sabbath day through the corn; and his disciples were an hungred, and began to pluck the ears of corn, and to eat. But when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto him, Behold, thy disciples do that which is not lawful to do upon the sabbath day. But he said unto them, Have ye not read what David did, when he was an hungred, and they that were with him; How he entered into the house of God, and did eat the shewbread, which was not lawful for him to eat, neither for them which were with him, but only for the priests? Or have ye not read in the law, how that on the sabbath days the priests in the temple profane the sabbath, and are blameless? But I say unto you, That in this place is one greater than the temple. But if ye had known what this meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice, ye would not have condemned the guiltless.” (Matthew 12:1-7)

The priests were not only permitted, but required, to perform many tasks related to the sanctuary service upon the Sabbath day, which tasks would be a sin if they were performed by anyone else for any other reason. The priests were innocent while performing these tasks for God’s service upon the Sabbath day.

The disciples who were engaged in God’s work were innocent when they plucked and ate “the ears of corn” upon the Sabbath. This was done to nourish their bodies while they were about their Father’s business.

Jesus also demonstrated that acts of mercy to relieve the suffering upon the Sabbath day is in harmony with the commandment. Many times Jesus healed the sick on the Sabbath. (Matthew 12:10-13; Luke 13:10-13; 14:1-4, etc.)

Regarding taking a bath on the Sabbath, to my knowledge there is nothing in the Bible that prohibits bathing on the Sabbath. In fact, during the years of the earthly sanctuary service, there were many requirements for God’s people to wash themselves. They were required to wash themselves under many circumstances, including if they had touched a dead man or animal, or if they touched anything that a dead animal had touched. Many of these circumstances that required bathing undoubtedly occurred on the Sabbath, and therefore required bathing upon the Sabbath. God wants us to be clean and presentable upon His holy day, if that can be done by bathing just before the Sabbath, that would probably be better than bathing on the Sabbath, but there is no command prohibiting bathing on the Sabbath. If bathing is a weekly occurrence as was common several years ago, and still may be common in some parts of the world, then it would be best to bathe the day before the Sabbath so you can be clean on the Sabbath.

I hope this helps to answer your questions.

Question:  How can I honor the Sabbath in prison?

“Now that I’m aware of the true and correct Sabbath, what would be the best way for me to honor it in this environment of incarceration. I don’t want to miss out on the church worshipping service that’s held on Sunday, but I want to be, in every way, correct in God’s order.
    “Needless to say, the Holy Spirit has confirmed all the reading material you have sent me, but what do I do, here in prison?”

Florida

Answer:

Praise the Lord that He has led you to understand the truth regarding the Sabbath. I am sure there are many struggles ahead for you. Remember that Jesus said, “Ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.” (Matthew 10:22) I pray that you will endure unto the end.

You really asked two questions. First you asked, “How can I honor the Sabbath in prison?” There are definitely circumstances in prison that can make it more difficult to honor the Sabbath than if you were on the outside, yet God has promised, “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.” (1 Corinthians 10:13)

The commandment prohibits us from doing any work on the Sabbath including buying and selling. I have read many stories of people who were in prisons and their captors tried to force them to work upon the Sabbath. Yet, they refused to work on God’s holy day and were persecuted for it. They were faithful to God, however, and after some trials, they were left alone to worship their God on Sabbath in peace.

God requires strict obedience to His laws regardless of circumstances. Some people are fair-weather Christians, choosing to serve God when it suits them, but as soon as troubles arise they get offended and forsake God. Jesus described these people when He spoke of the sower sowing the seed in stony ground. He said, “These are they likewise which are sown on stony ground; who, when they have heard the word, immediately receive it with gladness; And have no root in themselves, and so endure but for a time: afterward, when affliction or persecution ariseth for the word’s sake, immediately they are offended.” (Mark 4:16, 17) Let us take heed that persecution does not turn us away from God.

In prison you must refuse to work upon the Sabbath and cease from any secular activities that you may engage in on other days of the week. God said that on the Sabbath we must “honour him, not doing [our] own ways, nor finding [our] own pleasure, nor speaking [our] own words.” (Isaiah 58:13) God desires us to cease from worldly cares and concerns on the Sabbath and completely devote that time to fellowship with Him by prayer and the study of His Word. This can be done by yourself, or you can share this time with others who are seeking the same communion with God. You can do this no matter where you are.

The second question you asked was regarding attending worship services on Sunday. That is a decision between you and God. In your decision-making consider the following points:

The fourth commandment prohibits work upon the Sabbath day and commands that all work must be done on “the six working days.” This does not mean that all religious services must be avoided on Sunday, just as there is no prohibition against religious services on any other day of the week. Yet, in your religious gathering on Sunday, let nobody suppose that you regard Sunday to be honored above any other day, or that work should be ceased on that day.

From my studies in the Bible and history I have found that Sunday observance will again be used by the governments of this world to persecute God’s people. [For a thorough study on this subject, please contact us and request the booklet entitled “A Time to Choose.”]

The Roman Emperor Constantine enacted the first Sunday law in 321 AD, stating,

“Let all the judges and town people, and the occupation of all trades, rest on the venerable day of the sun: but let those who are situated in the country, freely and at full liberty, attend to the business of agriculture; because it often happens that no other day is so fit for sowing corn and planting vines; lest the critical moment being let slip, men should lose the commodities granted by Heaven.” (Encyclopedia Britannica, article Sunday)

This Sunday law was strictly and completely a religious law, and could only be a religious law. Even though this first Sunday law was enacted by a pagan emperor to benefit pagan sun worshipers, Sunday observance as a religious holiday was adopted by Christians.

Notice what one historian has to say about this:

“Centuries of the Christian era passed away before the Sunday was observed by the Christian church as a Sabbath. History does not furnish us with a single proof or indication that it was at any time so observed previous to the Sabbatical edict of Constantine in A.D. 321.” (Sir Wm. Domville, Examination of the Six Texts, page 291 as quoted in History of the Sabbath and First Day of the Week, page 344, by John N. Andrews, Steam Press 1873)

Today, there is a large movement pushing for more Sunday laws. Even today, in the United States, we have many Sunday laws on the books—called blue laws. Have you ever wondered why many businesses are closed or have shorter hours of operation on Sunday? In many cases it is not because of choice, but because laws restrict their businesses on Sunday. In most states it is illegal to buy or sell alcohol until noon on Sunday. In the state of Indiana it is illegal to buy or sell a car on Sunday. There are many other such Sunday laws in effect all over the country. All of these Sunday laws are religious laws and are in direct violation of the First Amendment to our Constitution which says, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.”

According to the Bible, Sunday is one of the “six working days.” (Ezekiel 46:1) God said, “Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work.” (Exodus 20:9) Honoring one day of the week above another is strictly religious in nature, directly relating to our worship of God. There can be no other reason for honoring a day of the week than that of worship. Seeing that Sunday observance can only relate to worship, the government has no right to regulate what I may or may not do on Sunday, if it is lawful any other day of the week. Yet, this is precisely what the government sought to do in the time of Constantine, and it was used to persecute God’s people, and it is what the so-called “Christian Coalition” is seeking to do again.

I speak on behalf of many of my brethren when I say, we are completely opposed to any Sunday law because it is, and can be, only religious in nature, and only relates to worship, which the government has no right to enact. We would be just as opposed to a Sabbath law enacted by a worldly government as we are opposed to a Sunday law.

Jesus said, “Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s; and unto God the things that are God’s.” (Matthew 22:21) Here Jesus made a distinction between that which we owe to our fellow man, and that which we owe to God. We must not render to Caesar the things that belong to God, yet that is exactly what the government asks of us when they seek to enact a Sunday law.

The government of Babylon asked their subjects to render to the government that which must be rendered only to God—worship. We read the story in the third chapter of Daniel.

To you it is commanded, O people, nations, and languages, That at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, dulcimer, and all kinds of musick, ye fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king hath set up: And whoso falleth not down and worshippeth shall the same hour be cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace.” (Daniel 3:4-6)

This command by the government forced people to worship or face death. In such circumstances God requires His people to continue serving Him as if the law did not exist. This is exactly what the three young Hebrews did when they were faced with this command to worship. The king was furious when he learned of their decision to disobey his command.

“Nebuchadnezzar spake and said unto them, Is it true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, do not ye serve my gods, nor worship the golden image which I have set up? Now if ye be ready that at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds of musick, ye fall down and worship the image which I have made; well: but if ye worship not, ye shall be cast the same hour into the midst of a burning fiery furnace; and who is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands? Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, answered and said to the king, O Nebuchad- nezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter. If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king.  But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.” (Daniel 3:14-17)

God rewarded the faithfulness of these three Hebrews by performing a miracle to protect them in the fiery furnace, thus endorsing their decision and showing that God has no consideration for a man-made law requiring worship. We also must be faithful in the face of a similar crisis if we expect to be found worthy to enter the kingdom of God. God has warned us that, again, a crisis will come upon this earth and, again, it will revolve around worship.

“And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship [the beast], whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world… And [the second beast] had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed. And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.” (Revelation 13:8, 15-18)

The mark of the beast crisis will revolve around worship and the government legislation of worship. It is certain that the governments of this world will pass a universal law regarding worship. They will follow the example of Constantine and enforce religious observance of Sunday.

Since Sunday observance is a form of worship, and it is wholly religious in nature, we refuse to honor or respect a man-made law requiring Sunday observance. Because Sunday observance is pagan in origin and religious in nature we have chosen to stay far away from honoring that day, or even letting it appear as if we honor that day. Keep these things in mind when you make the decision of whether or not to fellowship on Sunday.

I hope this helps to answer your questions.

?


Letters from our Readers

(Each month we receive letters that help us to know how God’s work is progressing throughout the world. Because we think you are interested in this work as well, we are printing some of them for you. If you do not wish your letter to be printed, please let us know when you write.    Editor)

The Work in Africa

(Many of these letters from Africa include requests. Thanks to the kindness of our Lord, and the generosity of His people, some of these needs have been met. However, there are many that we are unable to meet due to lack of funds. If the Lord impresses you to help meet any of these needs, please contact us and we will give you the necessary information. Thank you!                        Editor)

“I have received the Present Truth newsletter you sent me. Thank you very much and may God richly bless you. Please, can you send me 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001 issues of Present Truth newsletter and also, if you could send me one of the New King James Bibles I would be most grateful.”

Ghana

(Thank you for your encouragement. We only send out the King James Version of the Bible.    Editor)

“I’m so grateful for your teachings. Your explanations of the Scriptures are pure spiritual dynamite. Your absolute solid-rock-bottom truths of the Scriptures have never been more clear to me. Truly, you are anointed and blessed in your calling.
    “The Holy Spirit testifies to me with great force and life that what you say is God speaking. You are so anointed. The clarity of your fearless declaration of truth of the gospel has literally overcome me. You’re my pastor and your teachings are my meat. Thank God for your ministry.
    “Your monthly newsletter arrived in my hand on May 20, 2002. Please keep sending me your world newsletter. I have gotten so much out of them.”

Malawi

“I want to thank you for your incredible response to my request. I am an Evangelist and preach for the church of God Ministry in Nigeria. We’re Sabbath keepers, the Seventh day of our Lord.
    “Let me first of all talk about my belief concerning God, His Son Jesus Christ and His Holy Spirit: According to the truth of the Word of God, there is nothing like ‘Trinity.’ God cannot be three in one. This is a misconstruction and the teachings of Satan. There is only one God Almighty, Omnipresence, Omniscience and Omnipotent. The world could not comprehend God and His infinite power and knowledge, they went on interpreting Him to suit their foolish belief…
    “Now, in quest for my needs, and as those whose goal is to provide truth-filled literature to the world, and to clearly reveal the character of God so that people will have a better understanding of God’s character, enabling them to have a closer relationship with Him. Don’t you then see that my work is interwoven with yours? I go place to place to speak or preach, but you document yours and send out to places.
    “Please, what I am saying here in effect is that I sincerely want your assistance. I can send some amount of money for the post or shipment of my requests, if you don’t mind. I came across one book titled America in Prophecy, which you asked people to contact you for more copies of it. Please, I ask for it and some other literature you can make available for me. It is to enrich my vocabulary, library and our converts and also for our pastors. Do your best for me to hear your message.”

Nigeria

“I have received the package of video tapes you sent to me… I was so happy when I received the package. I have begun studying them from the moment they arrived. May God richly bless you all and your ministry. May God give you wisdom, knowledge and understanding to continue doing His work.
    “I am most grateful for the video tapes you sent me. Thank you very much. I have also received the June edition of the Present Truth newsletter and I am most thankful for that. May God richly bless you.”

Ghana

Camp Meeting

“Blessings to you and the brothers and sisters in the Lord down there in Welch, West Virginia. My friend is heading there from Kentucky for the Camp Meeting tomorrow. I am very far away and not able to go. I pray that a blessed time will be had by all, and it will be a time of renewal and refreshing for the saints.”

Virginia

“I cannot tell you the rich blessings from above that I received at the West Virginia camp meeting. It will be in my thoughts for months to come. As you probably by now realize, I am supporting Smyrna 100% with my tithe money. I could not support the mother organization any longer with a clear conscience. I would like to spread this message whenever possible through your videos, books and handouts wherever I can… May God richly bless you continually through the grace of His Son, Jesus Christ.”

Florida

Literature

 “Greetings in the name of the Lord. I saw one of your leaflets, and some of the members in my church enjoyed it. And after reading it myself, I saw that it was worthy to use as a missionary tool for church growth. I would like to reproduce it so that we can have our local address on it and also to keep yours on it too. I did not want to take up the time to produce one tract of that type since you did such a blessed job on it… I would also have it translated in Creole and French for the French people and also Spanish.”

Florida

(You are not only permitted, but strongly encouraged to duplicate any or all of our literature and to translate it. We only ask that you retain all of our contact information, which can be used along with yours. Also, if you translate any of the literature, please send us a copy of the translation, preferably in a format usable by computers. You may wish to check with us first, since some of our literature has already been translated.    Editor)

“I have read the copy of the Present Truth on “Which Bible.” It cleared up a whole lot of what I didn’t understand at first, so I thank you very much for helping me out with it.”

Ohio

“I am a girl of 22 years of age and I have finished secondary school in 1999. Please, I received your address from a friend of mine who showed me some of your books and told me if I want to understand the Bible I have to connect with you. Please, there are so many confusions in the Bible. Some churches say we should worship on Sunday, others say Saturday. Which one is true? I need details of Christmas, Easter, Revelation 12:1-18, Revelation 13:1-18, Revelation 17:1-18. Who are the beasts in the book of Daniel? There are so many symbols in Revelation and Daniel. Please, I want you to help me to understand and I would like to partake in the Bible study. I would be very grateful if you could help me. I hope to hear from you soon.”

Ghana

(We have covered many of these subjects in past issues of Present Truth and will continue. We also have some books and tracts on these subjects that I would recommend, such as 100 Facts on the Sabbath Question, A Time to Choose, and The Millennium.    Editor)

“A friend of mine told me about your ministry and I have read some of your literature on your website. Could you please send me a paper copy of your newsletter. I ask this so I may be able to read it during the times I am not able to be online. It is also better to be able to read the information over and over again in order to retain it.”

Virginia

“Please remove my name from your mailing list.”

Florida

“I am writing about the book that I found online called ‘The Formulation of the Doctrine of the Trinity.’ It says that there is a $1.00 donation for the book. But it doesn’t tell the price for the postage. If you could please send us information how we can order the books and the prices for all charges. Thank you for your time.”

E-mail

(We send literature to those who request it, along with a suggested donation to help cover the cost of the literature. After you receive the package you can add to the donation the actual cost of postage found on your package.    Editor)

“Thank God for your ministry. The Lord is helping you to spread the gospel. I would like you to send the following tracts to me: ‘The Holy Spirit,’ ‘The Truth About God,’ and ‘The Love of God.’… I will be grateful to receive them from you.”

Nigeria

Health

“We are blessed by your health articles. Thanks for ‘Fearfully and Wonderfully Made’ (Part 6). May I please have the previous five parts of this series and any other articles that I can include in a health packet. Please continue to send Present Truth.”

California

“Please send me the newsletter with parts 1-4 of the articles ‘Fearfully and Wonderfully Made.’ My daughter has Crohn’s Disease and it has helped us greatly. Her doctors could only prescribe medication that made her sicker. Thank God for people like you who continue to Present Truth in all areas of our lives. Praise God, my daughter has been released from her doctors.”

Maryland

Letters from Prisoners

“I love you and the Truth Seekers Ministries for all of the reading material you have supported me with in correcting and strengthening my walk in the Lord. Thank you so much!
    “And me and my wife both appreciate you adding her name to your mailing list and sending her some studies so we can study together. (It means so much to know we have a Christian family out there to support us on this end.)
    “As soon as I received your letter, book and Bible study, (I couldn’t wait!) I called my wife and informed her that she would be receiving a Bible study from you all to study along with me. (She was elated!)”

Florida

“I did receive the newspaper and your welcome letter here last week. Sorry for the delay in answering back. Oh well, I didn’t and don’t have the postage right now to send them [the lessons] back! But a friend has loaned me a stamp so now I can answer…
    “Things are not going too good at this time! But the Lord is my Shepherd so why should I want?
    “I don’t know how to put this but these lessons you have so kindly been sending me have been a comfort and guide to me. I thank you from the inner part of my heart. But I do not know how I’ll be able to send them back to you now as I don’t have any way to mail them to you. That’s sad! My family doesn’t want to send me any more… So that’s where I stand right now—without!! But I sure love you all for your kindness toward me.”

Florida

(We will be happy to furnish prisoners with stamps if it is needed to return Bible Lessons to us.    Editor)

The Work Around the World

“How was the camp meeting? Did all things go well? We are increased in all. Some small groups are formed in some places around Brazil. We are meeting in houses for now… We are very hard at work here. This week we are going to spread 5,000 little papers with message about the Trinity and the truth about God. This will be our first work with the population of the city.”

Brazil

“Brother _____ is already in Miami… [he] will be departing for camp meeting Monday morning. Is not that a blessing? Praise the Lord!
    “Now I hope our Almighty Father will touch those hearts from the brethren to raise a blessing, so this work in Peru won’t fade out and we continue the commission to spread the truth here in South America. I hope that Jesus Christ will open the understanding of the people assisting, that present truth could be delivered from here to the rest of South America, that the Lord’s will be made here in Peru, the headquarters for His truth for the rest of the Spanish speaking countries.
    “I hope you can share this vision with the rest of the brethren, and make this battlefield strong, and a place that all the brothers around the world could come and stay with us, to share the good news of salvation. Pray for us as we pray for you, and lift those praising songs to our loving Father and Jesus Christ our Saviour and Messiah, for strength and love for the ones that are ignorant of the truth. Amen. God bless you and keep you.”

Peru

“Thank you for your reply to my request.
    “Your address was given to me by my brother who got this newsletter and the address from an Australian. My brother works at a rural area where there are no e-mail facilities. I am contacting you through his e-mail address. And he said, that he already contacted you by snail mail. Have you received his mail? He too would like to have your Present Truth
    “Please, send your ‘Christ Our Righteousness’ and ‘These Last Days’ Bible lessons.”

Sri Lanka


An Update on Michael Sibanda

(A prisoner on death row in Zimbabwe, falsely accused of murdering his wife.)

“It was so good to read the letters from Brother Michael and his mother, Melody, in the May issue of Present Truth. I had been wondering what was happening concerning Michael. To my joyful surprise, I received letters from each of them a couple of days ago [June 15], in response to letters I had written to them the first of February.
    “I am happy to share them with your reading audience if you would like to print them. I am certain others are praying in Michael’s behalf and would appreciate another update if you hadn’t one planned already.”

Montana

“Dear Sister_____, I am greeting you in the name of Jesus Christ the Son of the Father. How are you and your family? I am very sorry in delaying to answer your letter which came at the right time. I was very much thankful to receive warm encouragement from you, Sister _____, and also booklets which was also encouraging our souls. I do thank and praise God for knowing that I have a sister in Montana who is offering daily prayers in my behalf. It is amazing how God fills His own children with power of the true Spirit from the Father.
    “Here is your letter from Michael which he wrote to you from prison… Thank you for everything. God bless you.”

Melody Tshabalala

“Dear Sister_____, I got very excited to receive a letter of encouragement and some books from you. Thank you very much. I would also like to apologize for taking too long to answer your letter as I am someone bound, everything with me tends to be in fetters.
    “Your words of encouragement are a good medicine to my bones. Even now when I feel like losing hope I just take your letter and read it again in order to be refreshed. I am glad to have a sister in Christ like you, who sacrifices her money and time to write a letter to an outcast like me.
    “The devil doesn’t like such good Samaritans, people with the mind of Christ. They are his worst enemies. So everything you do in life put Jesus first. In every Christian’s way the devil is busy planting obstacles and digging pitfalls.
    “Thank you for your prayers; keep on praying for me please until the walls of Jericho fall down. I believe that through your prayers I will be acquitted as Paul says in 2 Corinthians 10:3, 4, that although we live in this world we are not carrying on a worldly war, but the weapons of our warfare have divine power to destroy strongholds.
    “I am also praying for you that the Lord Jesus may keep you in faith so that even if we do not meet here on this earth let us meet in Heaven.”

Michael Sibanda


The Work in Africa

by Lynnford Beachy

(The work in Africa is continually growing. Many people are accepting the truth through the untiring labors of many ministers in Africa who have accepted the truth about God and His Son. Please continue to pray for the work there. We would like to share some letters with you so that you can pray intelligently and understand the progress of the work there. I would also like to let you know about the great need for a printing work to be started further north than the one in Zimbabwe to help supply literature to Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda and Kenya. Several thousand dollars would be needed to begin this work.    Editor)

Tanzania

“Grace unto you and peace from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord.

“We hope that everything goes well with your camp meeting preparations, and to all that will be attending. We pray that you may receive special blessings from God and please make use of this season to acquire new experiences with Christ.

“Further to my earlier communication… hereby is a promised report from [our meetings].

“Having complied with the requirements from authorities, in conducting such open meetings, we started the meetings on June 3rd to 19th. However, we faced several obstacles which almost interrupted our opening program. These included: i) The death of Brother _____’s father who is our member and was also in the program. ii) The only generator which was to be hired was broken; the only alternative was to buy another one. Thanks to the Lord, just in the last minute, this was possible to get one for $200. A new one sells for $600. iii) On the scheduled opening day a child from the family of Brother _____’s elder brother died, so we rescheduled our time table accordingly.

“We have had very blessed meetings, and the following are the results: i) Eleven souls showed great interests after we made the call, and asked for more lessons on our subjects presented. ii) We discovered that there were some others who were interested, but were scared of their religious leaders, to make an open decision. Some of these followed our lectures as far as one mile over our loud speaker. iii) One minister from a prominent Lutheran church of this area was so moved that he promised to organize his congregation for a seminar from our non-trinitarian teachings. We are now waiting for the approval of their bishop which this minister said was necessary.

“You may notice, therefore, that the money you sent was to enable us to conduct such meetings in two different places, but following the unexpected expense for the generator we are not able to proceed as planned. We appreciate very much the co-operation we received from Brothers _____ and _____ in conducting the meetings and preaching… We are looking forward that your help for June would also assist us to cover the transport costs to _____. Indeed, we understand the financial situation as Sister Esther has told us, however at this infancy stage of our work here we have only to look upon the providence of God, using His instrumentalities. Kindly be assured that your sacrifices will not be in vain.

“Receive dear Brother Lynnford our warmest regards, as we also send our hearty greetings to every one attending West Virginia Camp Meeting. Please tell them that they are invited to attend also the first Tanzania Camp Meeting of the non-trinitarian church that will be held in _____ in the latter part of September, 2002. [For more information contact us here at Smyrna Gospel Ministries.]

“If anyone may not be physically present they have still the opportunity to either participate by sharing with us some cost through donation, or by sending us some enriching subjects which will be studied during this time.

“We thank you all in advance for considering our appeal, and may the Lord richly bless you.”

Later we received the following letter:

“This is to acknowledge with THANKS the receipt of your dear letter, and your support for the work in Tanzania. We indeed appreciate your sacrifices of love to the work here. We pray that this labour may be for the glory of our only true God. Thank you very much.

“In relation to the proposed Rwanda trip, I see the need… Just today I have received another e-mail from _____ saying, “We have been in touch with Brother Beachy but we still don’t understand. As you know, our English is very little, please come.”

“From my experience it is not safe to travel to Rwanda by road. Last year _____ could not attend the seminar… as he was stopped when he tried to come out by road. The only certain means is by air. Unfortunately, we have financial limitations as you have explained, and I understand. So I would suggest to postpone this trip until some other time. The Lord will open the way for us and we will keep praying for the solution.

“In the meantime, kindly be informed that I am now ready for the _____ trip which was also postponed because of the _____ crusades. As it was noted earlier, there we have potentials. I am looking forward to meeting them and will let you know after my booking is confirmed.

“One thing we thank God is that each day our understanding of God and His dear Son grows and becomes clearer and clearer. We praise God for this experience.”

Another brother wrote the following report of the same meetings, which gives a little more detail. The redundant portions were deleted.

“We are fine together with our fellows and we have come back from our outreach effort.

A Short Summary of Our Outreach Effort
From June 3-19, 2002

“The Lord opened our way that we got the allowance of doing our outreach which was very difficult. Although Satan was there to fight with the Lord, Satan was defeated and we continued with our outreach well. Some of the things that happened included:…

“The truck which we depended on for our transport got damaged a few minutes after we started for our outreach… The journey itself was from 2:00 p.m. until 4:00 p.m. And God gave us another truck when the other one was immobilized…

“There were some who were asking why we don’t eat meat, tea, and coffee and we asked them to wait till later when those studies will be reached. Afterwards, we discovered that there was a riot of religious leaders to disturb our congregation.

“Our first lesson was ‘God is One, Jesus Christ is His only Son.’ This lesson brought a lot of questions among them because of what they thought they knew about the Lord Jesus and the Holy Spirit and they listened in different ways.

“When our studies went on, especially in the second week of our outreach, they started to ask us many questions, and our answers attracted them to come together and listen to the message we gave them.

“At the end of our effort a number of people asked us to go on with our lesson at least a week, because the preaching was very new to everyone. We discussed together with them and they asked us to do another effort like that one as soon as possible.

Results of our Outreach

“Over 30 people need our lessons in more detail. One pastor of a Sunday church wanted to call his people in order to take our lessons in more detail. So at the end of this first effort we have a tough work ahead—to preach to them what God wants… Our plan is to do two more efforts.

“We thank you, Brother Lynnford, for giving us the cost of this outreach. [It was not me, but the Lord through His people—Editor] God be with you. If you remember, when the generator got damaged which we depended on, we didn’t want to buy a generator. But we had to buy one because of the given situation… We decided to buy the generator which will be used for other efforts.

“I am sorry for that, because it came out of the money for our effort, but that occurred when Satan wanted to stop our program. I know I am out of the money for our efforts, but because of the emergency we had to do so.

“I used $200 US which was the budget of conducting another effort which I already mentioned. Up until now people are waiting for that effort and for the time being I don’t have the ability of doing so because of the misplacement of our budget. I am waiting for your suggestions.

“I would like to thank you for your prayers which you offered together with us to facilitate our meetings. However, Satan fought hard against it, but because of your prayers, Christ defeated Satan in this effort. I also thank all those who were together with us in spirit and prayers.”

Zambia

A brother in Zambia recently made a trip to Malawi to spread the good news about God there. Here are several letters from this brother giving us a report on this trip:

“The Reason why I have kept quiet without communicating to you through an e-mail is because when I was at the border between Zambia and Malawi, I started distributing some tracts on the Zambian side. When I was about to cross the border into Malawi I developed some malaria and a terrible cough. Because of this I was down for some few days. This prompted me to go back to _____ and seek medical treatment from a private doctor. Here in Africa there are a lot of mosquitoes and a lot of people are affected with malaria and in my case it was lucky that I pulled through from this dreaded disease.

“At the moment I am alright and keep on remembering me in your daily prayers. And I am in Lilongwe, capital city of Malawi. God opened many doors for seminars… Please, may God add more blessings so that these precious messages can find access to many people here.”

After his return this brother wrote:

“Back from Malawi! We returned home safely. Thank you for your support and your prayers. We praised God that He has, and is, providing so many open doors for the message these last days.

“Thank God and His Son, many souls in Malawi have accepted the most important truth about God and His Son through door to door witnessing, distribution of tracts, and Bible studies.

“While we were in Malawi, we learned, and attained experience, that door to door witnessing and distribution of tracts and Bible studies is one way that people can understand the truth fast. What was most exciting was that in all houses that we were visiting, people welcomed us and were also interested because the message we had was new to them… We also visited a lot of cities in Malawi and we even reached Malawi/Mozambique border, but we failed to cross the border into Mozambique because I developed some fever which I suspected to be malaria. Later on we just decided to come back to Zambia.

“We found Malawian people to be very good people and are very much thirsty and starving for the truth. I thank the Lord for the opportunity of going on this mission trip. People were excited about the message and they told us the message of God and His Son is true and they need it. They also told us to go back to Malawi in August to hold one to two weeks’ evangelism meetings or seminars.

“Hallelujah! Praise be to God, glory and honour. I hope to hear from you soon. May God bless you all as you continue dispensing His everlasting gospel to all parts of the world.”

This brother has a great desire to see this message go forward. He recently wrote:

“We stand rebuked by God because many countries are unworked and unwarned. Funds are needed to take the gospel to the world in this generation.

“In August, as funds permit, we need to visit the following countries: Malawi again, Mozambique, Lesotho, Swaziland, Namibia. Will you join us? Will you help us now? Funds needed for completion is $1500. The Macedonian Cry is sounding from all countries. (Acts 16:9-10) We need your response today!!

“If the Spirit of God moves on your heart to give of your means to this evangelist work, please contact us at: The King is Coming Evangelist Training Institute, PO Box 23804, Lusaka - Zambia. Account #0100122037600 Standard Chartered Bank Zambia Ltd., North-End Branch, PO Box 31353, Lusaka - Zambia. Fax: 260-1-221857.

“Mission Zambia - Funds needed to cover the cost of this project monthly will need the following funds: Postage, E-mail (sending and receiving), Transport, Shops Rental, Total amount $500 monthly.”

Regarding the work in Congo this brother wrote:

“I received an e-mail from Congo. The brothers from Congo have opened an e-mail address. They are seeking for an assistance from you in terms of money to enable them to send and receive some e-mail (communication purposes). May the Almighty God continue to bless you and the work there.

“The brothers in Congo invite me to attend their Bible Conference, from July 10-18, 2002, to help them in answering questions about the non-Trinitarian message.”

This brother has been acquiring literature from the brethren in Zimbabwe who are busy printing literature. Of the need for more literature he wrote:

“We want to hear how the 2002 camp meeting was conducted. The tracts, ‘The God of the Bible,’ ‘Which God?,’ ‘Satan’s Deadliest Lie,’ ‘The Holy Spirit,’ etc., aroused many people to study… The materials really have the message which has touched the hearts of many people. We need more tracts for mission Malawi, Mozambique, Botswana, South Africa and Congo. Indeed, literature is one of the means ordained of God to prepare the minds of men for eternal decisions of life and death. The response of the people to our tracts here in Zambia is tremendous. We will be needing 20 boxes of tracts. Thank you for the love of God and man that has prompted your ministry.”

Just before printing this issue of Present Truth, this brother wrote:

“I failed to go to Congo because right now I received many people coming from different places here in Zambia who want to learn the most important truth about God and His Son. I am glad to receive many people and many letters. What a joy being in the service of the King. I am overjoyed because the number of the students for our Bible correspondence ministry is increasing everyday. As watchmen and light bearers, we won’t be silent over the precious message about God and His Son. By God’s grace we will continue lighting up a fire which will keep on burning till the second coming of Jesus Christ. Praise be to our mighty God.

“Now is our time of peril. Our safety is walking in the footsteps of Christ and wearing His yoke. We must not expect to escape insult and misjudgment. It is our hope that will not become discouraged. God’s hands are on the wheel of His providence, guiding His work to the glory of His name.

“There is yet much to do. May the God of all grace continue to supply our needs so that others could be reached. May the God of all peace be with you all is my prayer.

“I sent a message to Congo today. The church in Lusaka East wants to disfellowship 18 people because of receiving the non-trinitarian message. Please pray for them. We are in the time of shaking.”

Zimbabwe

The brethren in Zimbabwe have been busy spreading the message. They have also printed many boxes of literature which have gone to several countries in the surrounding areas. Please keep these brethren in prayer. Recently a Bible Worker from Zimbabwe wrote:

“It has been my desire to keep you informed about the gospel progress in Zimbabwe. The Lord is at work though there is strong opposition from the mother body. Anyway, we have nothing to fear lest we forget how the Lord has led in the past.

“For this month of June I had dedicated all Sundays for prayers with newly interested members and sharing with them the knowledge about the true God of the Bible. Literature distribution is done on a daily basis to the targeted places. It is hard though, to carry on this project, because of the harsh pastors and leaders. People are accepting the truth in the message with determination.

“With the desire of leaving no one ignorant of the message, we also conduct the Bible studies in rural areas and distribute literature. The video cassettes are also viewed and are raising a lot of zeal. Thus we have decided to buy our own VCR so that we can view cassettes during seminars. We invite your prayers to cease not concerning the work in Africa. We hope the Lord will do wonders about His work. Pass my tender greetings to all brethren over at your place.”

Uganda

The brethren in Uganda have been sharing the truth with many people. They are also looking into the possibility of starting an orphanage to help meet the needs of the many homeless children in Uganda. Please pray for them. Recently a brother wrote:

“Thank you for all activities you are rendering in the vineyard of the Lord…

“Truly I was talking about Brother _____ for I wrote to him some time back and he promised that he has some pamphlets and they are indeed needed. Even we are translating some in Uganda but we do not know how we shall print them.

“I had planned to go to Rwanda in May, as I wrote to you before, but due to home problems I could not make it, but now I am ready to move.

“We shall go with Brother _____. Our need for the trip is transport and maybe lodging for we may take time to visit others and if at all you have more contacts please give us that information…

“I had talked earlier to Brother Beachy about a motorcycle for easy transport because we have heavy rains, so at times it is very tiresome and at times I get late, but as I promised that I was looking for a cheaper one, I have a friend who has one at one million point five 1.5, but it is in good condition for it belonged to a government sector. This can be worth $1000 US or less—$800 US.

“Also about the orphanage. God is opening a way for me to get people who have knowledge to run such a project. So I will communicate again concerning the orphanage project.”

Another brother wrote:

“I am sorry to have taken a long time to communicate with you to know from you how you are carrying on with God’s work. It is only a few months without hearing from you but to me I feel like it has been a year. How are the brothers and sister in the Lord? I hope you are all fine!

“God is still caring for us. And He is guiding us in His work in the capacity we have understood it. The Sunday pastor, whom we studied with, is serious with the message, until he is put on church discipline with some of his members by their ministry. They are judging him for the different teachings and beliefs contradicting the ministry’s belief according to their facts. God has given me another old man who has believed the message. He claims to have been knowing these biblical teachings but he had no base of the system of how to arrange these studies. He is a staunch believer in one God and His Son. So he asked me to assist him that we work together to spread this message in our local language, especially in rural areas by translating all the tracts in Luganda (local language in Uganda). So far we have translated five now but the problem we are facing is to print them from handwriting to computer print because we cannot hand them out in handwriting form. We have followed exactly as you arranged them and references to Smyrna Gospel Ministries and Restoration Ministries plus my personal address in case of urgent contacts.

“I thank you very much for connecting us with Brother _____, he is still supporting us… Still many thanks to you for your supporting me to study the computer, though it was just an introduction, but I can now open and read all your studies. I would like to continue with the next step but they charge high fees.”

Please pray for all these brethren, that the Lord will supply all their needs and that the message will continue to spread, not only in Africa, but in all parts of the world.

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Galatians 5:22-26

by Alonzo T. Jones

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance; against such there is no law. And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the passions and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not be desirous of vainglory, provoking one another, envying one another.” (Galatians 5:22-26)

We have seen somewhat of the essential evil and deceitfulness of the works of the flesh. But, thank the Lord, there is a better picture.

The Spirit of God, which, in His fullness, is freely given to every believer, lusteth against the flesh, so that in Him who is led by the Spirit of God the flesh cannot do the things that it would. In such the Spirit of God rules, and causes to appear in the life “the fruit of the Spirit,” instead of “the works of the flesh.”

And though it be true “that they which do such things” as are described in the list of the works of the flesh, “shall not inherit the kingdom of God,” (Galatians 5:21) yet in the gift of the Holy Spirit, through the grace of Christ, God has made full provision by which every soul, in spite of all the passions, lusts, desires, and inclinations of the flesh, can “inherit the kingdom of God.”

In Christ the battle has been fought on every point, and the victory has been made complete. He was made flesh itself—the same flesh and blood as those whom He came to redeem. He was made in all points like these; He was “in all points tempted like as we are.” (Hebrews 4:15) If in any “point” he had not been “like as we are,” then, on that point he could not possibly have been tempted “like as we are.”

He was “touched with the feeling of our infirmities,” because He “was in all points tempted like as we are.” When He was tempted, he felt the desires and the inclinations of the flesh, precisely as we feel them when we are tempted. For “every man is tempted when he is drawn away of his own lusts [his own desires and inclinations of the flesh] and enticed.” (James 1:14) All this Jesus could experience without sin, because to be tempted is not sin. It is only “when lust hath conceived,” (James 1:15) when the desire is cherished, when the inclination is sanctioned—only then it is that “it bringeth forth sin.” And Jesus never even in a thought cherished a desire or sanctioned an inclination of the flesh. Thus in such flesh as ours He was tempted in all points as we are and yet without a taint of sin.

And thus, by the divine power that he received through faith in God, He, in our flesh, utterly quenched every inclination of that flesh and effectually killed at its root every desire of the flesh and so “condemned sin in the flesh.” (Romans 8:3) And in so doing He brought complete victory and divine power to maintain it to every soul in the world. All this He did “that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh but after the Spirit.” (Romans 8:4)

This victory in its fullness is free to every soul in Christ Jesus. It is received by faith in Jesus. It is accomplished and maintained by “the faith of Jesus,” (Romans 3:22; Galatians 2:16) which He has wrought out in perfection and has given to every believer in Him. For “this is the victory which overcometh the world, even our faith.” (1 John 5:4)

He “abolished in His flesh the enmity” that separated mankind from God. In order to do this, He took the flesh and must take the flesh in which that enmity existed. And he abolished in his flesh the enmity, “for to make,” in order to make, “in himself of twain,” God and the estranged man, “one new man, so making peace.” (Ephesians 2:15)

He “abolished in his flesh the enmity,” in order “that he might reconcile both” Jew and Gentile—all mankind who are subject to the enmity—“unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity in himself.” (Ephesians 2:16), margin. “The enmity” was “in himself” by being “in his flesh.” And there “in his flesh” He slew it and abolished it. And He could do this only by its being indeed “in his flesh.”

Thus Jesus took upon Him the curse in all its fullness, precisely as that curse is upon mankind. This He did by “being made a curse for us.” (Galatians 3:13) but “the curse causeless shall not come” (Proverbs 26:2) and never came. The cause of the curse is sin. He was made a curse for us, because of our sins. And to meet the curse as it is upon us, He must meet sin as it is in us. Accordingly, God “hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin” and this “that we might be made the righteousness of God IN HIM.” (2 Corinthians 5:21)

And though He thus placed Himself entirely at the same great disadvantage as are all mankind—made in all points like us and so “in all points tempted like as we are”—yet not a single tendency or inclination of the flesh was ever allowed the slightest recognition, even in thought; but every one of them was effectually killed at the root by the power of God, which, through divine faith, He brought to humanity.

And thus, “as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same, that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; and deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. For verily he took not on him the nature of angels; but he took on him the seed of Abraham. Wherefore in all things it behooved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people. For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succor them that are tempted.” (Hebrews 2:14-18)

And this victory which Christ wrought out in human flesh is brought by the Holy Spirit to the rescue of everyone in human flesh who today believes in Jesus. For by the Holy Spirit the very presence of Christ Himself comes to the believer, for it is His constant desire to “grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith, that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height, and to know the love of Christ which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fullness of God.” (Ephesians 3:16-19)

Thus the deliverance from the guilt of sin and from the power of sin which holds the believer in triumph over all the desires, the tendencies and inclinations of his sinful flesh, through the power of the Spirit of God—this is wrought today by the personal presence of Christ Jesus in human flesh in the believer, precisely as it was wrought by the personal presence of Christ in human flesh eighteen hundred and seventy years ago.

Christ is ever the same—“the same yesterday and today and forever.” (Hebrews 13:8) The gospel of Christ is ever the same—the same yesterday and today and forever. The gospel of Christ today is the same that it was eighteen hundred and seventy years ago. Then it was “God manifest in the flesh,” (1 Timothy 3:16) and today it is the same—“God manifest in the” same flesh, the flesh of sinful men, human flesh, just as human nature is.

That gospel is “Christ in you, the hope of glory,” (Colossians 1:27)—Christ in you just as you are, sins, sinfulness, and all; for He gave Himself for our sins and for our sinfulness. And you, just as you are, Christ has bought and God “hath made accepted” in Him. He has received you just as you are and the gospel, “Christ in you, the hope of glory,” (Colossians 1:27) brings you under the reign of the grace of God and through the Spirit of God makes you so subject to the power of Christ and of God that “the fruit of the Spirit” appears in you instead of “the works of the flesh.”

And the fruit of the Spirit is—

LOVE—the love of God which is shed abroad in the heart by the Spirit of God. And instead of hatred or any of its kin ever being allowed, even in thought, no man can possibly do anything to you that can cause you to do anything but love him. For this love, being the love of God, is “the same yesterday and today and forever” (Hebrews 13:8) and loves not for reward but for the mere sake of loving; it loves simply because it is love and being only that, it cannot do anything else.

JOY is “ardent happiness arising from present or expected good.” But in this case, the alternative “or” is excluded, for this joy is ardent happiness arising from present AND expected good, for the cause of it is eternal. Accordingly, it is everlastingly present and is everlastingly to be expected. And therefore it is “exultant satisfaction.”

PEACE—perfect peace that rules in the heart—“the peace of God which passeth all understanding,” (Philippians 4:7) and which “keeps the heart and mind” of him who has it.

LONGSUFFERING, GENTLENESS, GOODNESS, FAITH—This faith— pistis, Greek—is “firm persuasion; the conviction which is based upon trust, NOT upon knowledge [the faith of ‘the heart,’ not of the head; the faith of Christ, not of the creed]; a firmly relying confidence cherished by conviction and bidding defiance to opposing contradictions.”

MEEKNESS, TEMPERANCE—Temperance is self-control. Thus, the Spirit of God delivers the man from subject to his passions, lusts and habits, and makes him a free man, master of himself.

“Against such there is no law.” (Galatians 5:23) The law of God is against nothing but sin. In human lives the law of God is against everything that is not the fruit of the Spirit of God. Therefore it is certain that everything in human life that is not the fruit of the Spirit of God is sin. And this is but stating, in another way, the eternal truth that “whatsoever is not of faith is sin.” (Romans 14:23)

Therefore “if we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.” (Galatians 5:25) And because we do live in the Spirit and walk in the Spirit, “let us not”—yea, we shall not; yea, we cannot “be desirous of vainglory, provoking one another, envying one another.”

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(This article was first printed in the October 2, 1900 issue of The Review and Herald. It is also found on pages 137-141 of the book Lessons on Faith by A. T. Jones and E. J. Waggoner. I italicized Bible verses, capitalized some pronouns and added some verse references that were left out in the original.    Editor)


Fearfully and Wonderfully Made (Part 7)

by George McDaniel

(This is the seventh in a series of health articles that are designed to help you gain a deeper appreciation for God’s amazing handiwork of the human body and a better understanding of how it works and how it can be better maintained by simple methods. George McDaniel is my father-in-law, and has been a registered nurse for many years, which, along with much research, has taught him many useful health principles. I pray that you are being blessed by these articles.     Editor)

Nutrition - 3

This month we continue the subject of nutrition; what happens to the food after it has been digested and taken into the body from the small intestine. Before it can be used by the cells of the body for energy, growth, carrying on of normal activities and repairs, it has to be processed even further. The digested food compounds go into the portal vein and are taken first to the liver. The liver is the largest gland of the body and one of the most complex of human organs. It weighs about three pounds and is located in the right upper part of the abdomen. It is the body’s central processing factory and one of its major storehouses of food.

The liver performs many essential functions. It aids in digestion by producing bile and discharging it into the small intestine where it assists in the digestion of fat. It produces bile continuously, even when there is no food in the stomach. Bile is stored in the gallbladder for use when needed. Someone who has had their gallbladder surgically removed will have to eat a low-fat diet the rest of their lives.

The liver stores food obtained from digestion and releases it into the blood when the body needs it. The chief fuel for the body’s cells is glucose, which is sometimes referred to as blood sugar. The liver stores excess glucose in the form of glycogen, which is a starch-like compound. If the blood sugar gets too low, the liver will change some glycogen into glucose and release it into the blood. Glycogen is also stored in muscle tissue. If the store of glycogen gets low, the liver can change fatty acids and amino acids into glucose. In this way the liver ensures a constant supply of glucose for the needs of the body.

The liver also changes other sugars, such as fructose, which is obtained from cane and beet sugar, into glucose, which can then be used by the body for producing energy. The body cannot use any other sugar than glucose.

The liver also stores vitamins; especially A, D, E and K, and the B Complex group. The liver makes various blood proteins such as albumin, globulin and fibrinogen. Albumin is the major protein of the blood plasma. It raises the osmotic pressure of the plasma and helps keep fluid inside the blood vessels. A person in the late stages of starvation has a lower amount of albumin in the blood. Fluid leaks out into the tissues and the person will swell up all over. Globulins are part of the immune system. They help fight infections. Fibrinogen helps to seal off a broken blood vessel by forming a clot.

The liver makes cholesterol. Cholesterol is essential. All cell membranes contain cholesterol. Cholesterol in the skin, when acted upon by ultraviolet light from the sun, is changed to Vitamin D. Many of the body’s hormones are made from cholesterol. Cholesterol transports fatty acids in the blood. Cholesterol has received a bad reputation due to its association with hardening of the arteries and a higher risk of heart attacks and strokes. It is being learned that the problem is not the cholesterol itself, but wrong dietary choices.

Another function of the liver is detoxification of poisons. The liver makes poisons less toxic and rids the body of them, either through the bile or the kidneys via the blood stream. This function of the liver was originally designed to deal with metabolic wastes and substances produced by the death and breakdown of body cells. For example, when the liver changes an amino acid into glucose, ammonia can be formed. This is toxic. The liver changes it into urea, which is less toxic and which is then eliminated through the blood to the kidneys. When a cell dies, because of normal wear and tear or because of injury, white blood cells called macrophages clean up the debris and it is taken to the liver for processing; what can be recycled is saved, the rest is eliminated.

The liver also has to deal with unnatural toxins to which it is exposed daily. This includes such things as food additives, (preservatives, coloring agents, flavorings), agricultural poisons (insecticides, fungicides, herbicides), alcohol, and drugs, both illegal and legal. Every doctor’s office has a copy of a large book called The Physician’s Desk Reference, commonly referred to as the “PDR.” This book is provided by the pharmaceutical industry and lists all currently used prescription drugs. These are what doctors prescribe as medicine. Many of these “medicines” have liver toxicity listed as a potential side effect. The liver tries to detoxify these substances and, frequently, is itself poisoned by them. Long term exposure to toxins can result in the death of liver cells and the formation of scar tissue. This is called cirrhosis of the liver. Alcoholism is the most common cause of cirrhosis. Cirrhosis is the sixth leading cause of death in the USA. Because of the liver’s role in the body, it is also frequently involved in infections and cancer.

Another role of the liver is the manufacture of amino acids. There are ten amino acids, needed by the body for making proteins, that cannot be made by the liver. These have to come from the food we eat. These are called “essential amino acids.” As a result of the work of the liver in processing the raw materials obtained from the digestion of food, nutrients are made available to the cells in a form that can be easily assimilated by them for their needs. As long as everything is working well, we have good health. When the process slows down at some point, we begin to suffer.

Another organ that assists the body in using nutrients is the pancreas. It is located just under the liver. We read in the previous article of its role in producing digestive enzymes. It produces two other substances that are essential for carbohydrate usage. Within the pancreas are small groups of cells called Islets of Langerhans. These consist of two types of cells, Alpha and Beta cells. Alpha cells produce glycogen; Beta cells produce insulin. When blood sugar gets low, the Alpha cells produce glycogen, which signals the liver to change glycogen to glucose and release it into the blood. When the blood sugar goes up the Beta cells produce insulin. Insulin has several actions to help lower blood sugar. First, it enables the cells to take glucose in through the cell membrane. Glucose has to be actively transported into the cell, and insulin helps in this process. Second, any excess glucose is changed into fat and stored in specialized fat cells for future use. Insulin is necessary for this also.

So far in this series we have mainly considered the primary nutrients: fats, proteins and carbohydrates. There are also other essential nutrients needed by the body.

Enzymes: These are essential chemicals that are the foundation of all bodily functions. They are catalysts in the chemical reactions that continually occur in the body. Every action of the liver, for instance, is mediated by enzymes. Enzymes are made up mainly of protein. There are at least 20,000 different enzymes at work in the body. Life could not exist without enzymes.

Each enzyme has a specific function in the body that no other enzyme can fill. The shape of an enzyme is so specialized that it will initiate a reaction only in certain substances.

While the body manufactures enzymes, it can also obtain enzymes from food. Unfortunately, enzymes are very sensitive to heat. Temperatures of 120 to 130 degrees Fahrenheit will deactivate enzymes, so in order to obtain enzymes from food, it must be eaten raw.

Vitamins:  Vitamins are essential to life. They help regulate the metabolism and assist in the processes that release energy from digested food. It is believed that vitamins act as coenzymes to carry on the activities necessary to life. In other words, the enzyme will not function without the vitamin to assist it and the vitamin is useless without the enzyme.

Some vitamins are water soluble and some are oil soluble. Water soluble vitamins must be taken daily as they cannot be stored and are excreted within a few days. These include Vitamin C and the B Complex. Oil soluble vitamins can be stored for longer periods of time in the body fat and the liver. These include Vitamins A, D, E and K. Both types are needed for proper function of the body.

Minerals: Minerals are naturally occurring elements found in the earth. Rocks are made up of mineral salts. The soil is formed of small mineral particles and decaying organic matter. Plants take up the minerals for their own use and they are then passed on to people when they eat the plants.

There are two groups of minerals as relates to human use: macro minerals, needed in large amounts, and micro, or trace minerals, needed in small amounts. Minerals needed in large amounts include calcium, magnesium, sodium, potassium and phosphorus. Trace minerals include zinc, iron, copper, manganese, boron, chromium, selenium, iodine and about 60 or 70 others needed in extremely small amounts.

Macro minerals are used by the body to form strong bones and teeth and to serve as electrical conductors in and around the cells. Micro minerals become part of the structure of enzymes or function as coenzymes.

Vitamins and minerals should both be taken in balanced amounts. Too much of one can sometimes cause reduced intake of others. For instance, too much zinc can cause a deficiency of copper. The best source of nutrients is food grown in soil which contains all the elements needed for health of plants and people. Supplements should preferably be from whole food sources, and should be balanced, not isolated nutrients. Deficiencies of specific nutrients in an individual need to be dealt with knowledgeably.

In discussing the work of the liver, I have mentioned how it detoxifies harmful substances. There are other organs of the body that assist in the elimination of toxins. This work is also essential to health and will be covered in the next issue.

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2002 West Virginia Camp
Meeting Report

For those of you who were able to attend camp meeting, I am sure you will agree that the Lord abundantly blessed. I greatly enjoyed the renewed challenge to press for higher ground in my relationship with God and His Son. I also enjoyed the fellowship with my dear brothers and sisters.

The theme of our camp meeting was “To know and love Him.” It seemed like every message challenged us in this area, to know God more and to love Him with all our heart, soul, strength and mind. This theme was especially present in our afternoon seminar entitled, “The Truth About God Seminar.”

One thing that was different about this year’s camp meeting was the increased focus upon the issue of the Godhead. The last two years this subject was barely mentioned in any of the sermons, whereas this year it seemed to be prominent in many of the messages. The interesting thing about this was that none of the ministers knew the message topics of any of the other ministers, apart from the Truth About God Seminar. I believe this was ordained by God, especially considering the various winds of doctrine that have recently been floating around on this subject.

The attendance of this year’s camp meeting was very good, but somewhat less than last year; possibly due to the scheduling over the 4th of July weekend. For those who did come, we can testify that the Lord blessed us with a renewed desire and determination to serve Him without holding anything back. One brother wrote, “I cannot tell you the rich blessings from above that I received at the West Virginia camp meeting. It will be in my thoughts for months to come.” I believe many others could express the same thoughts.

I encourage you to make every effort to attend the next camp meeting so that you too can have a similar testimony. I also encourage you to request some of the audio or video cassettes from the camp meeting.    Editor

 


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Editor: Lynnford Beachy, PO Box 315, Kansas, OK 74347, USA. Phone: (304) 633-5411, E-mail: webnewsletters@presenttruth.info.

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