Pastors' Blog

In a few hours, the leaders of our faith community will gather in historic Battle Creek, Michigan, for the Annual Council of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. For months both the official and unofficial church websites have been hotly debating the matter of unity and administrative control within this faith community. Far-reaching decisions will be made at Battle Creek.

But could it be that Heaven itself awaits an even more critical decision—the decision of spiritual leaders to demonstrate to an on-looking church and world the nature of Christ-like leadership at every level of the church?

On January 5, 1903, around noon in St Helena, California, Ellen White, one of the founders of this church and a divinely appointed and inspired messenger of God, sat down at her desk to write. Below in its entirety is a letter she wrote to the leadership in Battle Creek. Could it be what she was shown was in fact what might even yet transpire in Battle Creek right now?

To the Battle Creek Church
One day at noon I was writing of the work that might have been done at the last General Conference if the men in positions of trust had followed the will and way of God. Those who have had great light have not walked in the light. The meeting was closed, and the break was not made. Men did not humble themselves before the Lord as they should have done, and the Holy Spirit was not imparted.

I had written thus far when I lost consciousness, and I seemed to be witnessing a scene in Battle Creek.

We were assembled in the auditorium of the Tabernacle. Prayer was offered, a hymn was sung, and prayer was again offered. Most earnest supplication was made to God. The meeting was marked by the presence of the Holy Spirit. The work went deep, and some present were weeping aloud.

One arose from his bowed position and said that in the past he had not been in union with certain ones and had felt no love for them, but that now he saw himself as he was. With great solemnity he repeated the message to the Laodicean church: “‘Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing.’ In my self-sufficiency this is just the way I felt,” he said. “‘And knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked.’ I now see that this is my condition. My eyes are opened. My spirit has been hard and unjust. I thought myself righteous, but my heart is broken, and I see my need of the precious counsel of the One who has searched me through and through. Oh, how gracious and compassionate and loving are the words, ‘I counsel thee to buy of Me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.’” Revelation 3:17, 18.

The speaker turned to those who had been praying, and said: “We have something to do. We must confess our sins, and humble our hearts before God.” He made heartbroken confessions and then stepped up to several of the brethren, one after another, and extended his hand, asking forgiveness. Those to whom he spoke sprang to their feet, making confession and asking forgiveness, and they fell upon one another’s necks, weeping. The spirit of confession spread through the entire congregation. It was a Pentecostal season. God’s praises were sung, and far into the night, until nearly morning, the work was carried on.

The following words were often repeated, with clear distinctness: “As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent. Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear My voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with Me.” Verses 19, 20.

No one seemed to be too proud to make heartfelt confession, and those who led in this work were the ones who had influence, but had not before had courage to confess their sins.

There was rejoicing such as never before had been heard in the Tabernacle.

Then I aroused from my unconsciousness, and for a while could not think where I was. My pen was still in my hand. The words were spoken to me: “This might have been. All this the Lord was waiting to do for His people. All heaven was waiting to be gracious.” I thought of where we might have been had thorough work been done at the last General Conference, and agony of disappointment came over me as I realized that what I had witnessed was not a reality. (Testimonies to the Church 8:104-106)

Could it be what she was shown was in fact what might even yet transpire in Battle Creek right now? Could it be that what “might have been” might even yet become what is now?

Then let us join with brothers and sisters across the face of this earth to earnestly petition God to turn this “might have been” into the very spiritual transformation every leader and member longs for. For without such revival, how can this remnant community ever fulfill her apocalyptic mission?

The Google dictionary defines “synchronicity” as, “the simultaneous occurrence of events that appear significantly related but have no discernible causal connection.” Someone taught me the word twelve months ago, and it has opened my eyes to a dimension of life I never really gave much thought to before.

With my new friend Vincent Dehm preaching his heart out each morning this week for our university Week of Prayer—his theme, “Residence: The Holy Spirit Inside”—it seems the right moment to invite you to brood with me over this notion of synchronicity.

Here’s how Douglas Cooper describes it: “Synchronicity is experienced. Once you have placed yourself in oneness with God and He is living in you by His Spirit, you are connected everywhere you go and everywhere you are (think broadband, Wi-Fi, DSL, 4G cellular network!) with the same great creative super-intelligent [Being] that created and sustains the world and continues to expand the very dimensions of the unfathomably immense universe. ‘Meaningful coincidences’ begin to happen. (A coincidence is God’s way of working a miracle anonymously!).” (Gentle Dove: The Holy Spirit, God’s Greatest Gift 17). What’s that have to do with the Holy Spirit? Much—let me explain.

A year ago God used Helmut Haubeil’s little book, Steps to Personal Revival: Being Filled with the Holy Spirit, to change my life—simply because it introduced me to a Bible teaching I had never heard or been taught before. The daily baptism of the Holy Spirit. Oh yes, I knew all about the “early rain” and the “latter rain” of the Holy Spirit, even preached a series of sermons on it years ago. But nobody ever told me that the Bible in fact repeatedly teaches the daily baptism of the Holy Spirit.

Jesus Himself taught it: “‘If you who are evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who [Greek—continually, daily] ask Him!” (Luke 11:13). Paul himself taught the same: “Be filled [Greek—continually, daily] with the Spirit” (Ephesians 5:18). And “Walk [Greek—continually, daily] in the Spirit” (Galatians 5:18). But did they practice what they preached? “Morning by morning [Jesus] communicated with His Father in heaven, receiving from Him daily a fresh baptism of the Holy Spirit” (Signs of the Times 11-21-1895).

So a year ago I decided to take these verses seriously and pray each morning for a fresh baptism of the mighty Third Person of the Godhead. And as I just said, my life has not been the same since.

Synchronicity? It began happening everywhere. Little and not so little “coincidences” (God’s anonymous miracles, as Cooper put it) that not only caught me by surprise, but were direct responses it seemed to the very prayers I was praying. Synchronicity—what God Himself promises: “Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear” (Isaiah 65:24). Amazing—God is so engaged in the very details of your life (and mine) that He anticipates our prayers and before we even breathe them (sometimes even days before), He initiates a chain of events/circumstances that synchronize themselves to the very moment we petition His throne . . . or the very moment we pick up the phone . . . or the very moment we get an email . . . or the very moment we bump into a stranger . . . or the very moment we look in our wallets . . . or the very moment we are broadsided by a crisis! Synchronicity, “the simultaneous occurrence of events that appear significantly related but have no discernible causal connection.” Only you and I now know better—for by faith we can perceive the “discernable causal connection” of the Holy Spirit!

So every morning I invite you to join me with the humble prayer: “Lord Jesus, please abide with me today, and let me abide with you.” Which, of course, is a prayer for the daily baptism of the Holy Spirit, since the Bible is clear: “And this is how we know that He [Jesus] abides in us: We know it by the Spirit He gave us” (1 John 3:24).

By the way, that's not "babble"—it's "Babel," as in the Tower of Babel. Because the accumulating headlines of late, while they may sound like so much babble and background noise, mirror the fatal confusion of that ill-fated attempt long ago to outmaneuver God.

"Now the whole earth had one language and a common speech" (Genesis 11:1). So what's new—the lingua franca of this generation is English, and the modus operandi of communication is social media—one language, one common speech.

But the brewing trouble exploded into the open when that ancient band of humanity united to "'build ourselves a
city . .  . so that we may make a name for ourselves'" (Genesis 11:3-4).

It's that "making a name for ourselves" business that has ever been the Achilles heel of sophisticated thinking. Rome and its prelates and pontiffs, America and its politicians and presidents—the engine driving the machinations of both powers is still the luciferian temptation to "make a name for ourselves." Gullible, fallible humans that we are, we trip and fall constantly for that deadly baited hook, do we not?

No wonder we are witnesses to unprecedented levels of hubris and one-upmanship played out in the arena of "one language and a common speech." When has this generation ever witnessed a papal nuncio publicly (on the screens of a billion smartphones) call for the resignation of the supreme pontiff! And when have we been such gawkers to an unfolding saga of bitter, chaotic, partisan acrimony 24/7 in our news feeds!

Babel. Meaning "confusion." As in "[And God said,] 'Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other'" (Genesis 11:7). Does anybody understand anybody anymore?

"As messages [at the Tower of Babel] were thus passing from one to another the language was confounded, so that material was called for which was not needed, and the directions delivered were often the reverse of those that had been given. Confusion and dismay followed. All work came to a standstill. There could be no further harmony or co-operation. The builders were wholly unable to account for the strange misunderstandings among them, and in their rage and disappointment, they reproached one another [sound familiar?]. Their confederacy ended in strife and bloodshed" (Patriarchs and Prophets 119).

Confusion. Babel. Babble. "For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there" James 3:16).

That's what concerns me about the unraveling headlines from Rome and this nation—that behind the confusion and chaos "every evil thing" hides. Simply put—behind all of this babble is in fact Babel (or Babylon) coiled and ready to strike.

"Then I heard another voice from heaven say: 'Come out of her [Babylon], My people, so that you will not share in her sins . . .'" (Revelation 18:4, cf 2). If we're not careful, the one-language common-speech technology we heed can subtly draw our very souls into the cacophony of Babylonian confusion, all in the name of needing to keep abreast of the news as well-informed citizens. But at what price do we feed at the trough of such confusing slop? Lucifer's original sin of pride and self-worship is fatally contagious.

"'Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth'" (Psalm 46:10). Daily. Quiet. Alone. With Christ.

"When every other voice is hushed, and in quietness we wait before Him, the silence of the soul makes more distinct the voice of God. . . . Amid the hurrying throng, and the strain of life's intense activities, the soul that is thus refreshed will be surrounded with an atmosphere of light and peace. The life will breathe out fragrance, and will reveal a divine power that will reach [people's] hearts" (Desire of Ages 363).

Recent national headlines remind us of a well-known horticultural law. And you don't even have to be an "Ag" major to know it—all you need is a fruit tree out back. Because everyone knows you can tell the health of a tree by its fruit. Sick trees produce sickly fruit. Healthy trees bear healthy fruit. And guess what—what's true of a tree is true of a human. You can tell the truth about a person by the kind of fruit that person grows. Horticulture 101. Psychology 101. Spirituality 101.

In the words of Jesus: "Every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. . . . Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them" (Matthew 7:17, 20).

The #MeToo movement has become a powerful social expression and tool in the hands of those seeking to expose (and even eradicate) sexual harassment and abuse—in the marketplace, in the entertainment industry, in politics, in sports, in the church, in every walk of society and life. And as men of power and of influence have been toppled by the groundswell of painful anger from their victims, the public has drawn courage from the women who have bravely stepped forward to recount their suffering. "How the mighty have fallen!" (2 Samuel 1:19)—the list of names is a veritable Who's Who in American life. "By their fruits you will know them."

Even the political corridors of Washington now echo the click-click of angry high heels stepping forward to expose the abuse they have suffered. A celebrity lawyer pleads guilty to being the conduit of payoff money to women claiming to have had an affair at one time with the lawyer's client. #MeToo is apparently no respecter of persons. "By their fruits you will know them."

And while it could be argued that there is no #MeToo connection with this heartbreaking story, the truth is the grand jury report released last week in Pennsylvania, listing 1000 child victims of 300 priests in that diocese over the past seventy years, is very much the tragic tale of #MeToo suffering at last being exposed for the awful truth it reveals. "By their fruits you will know them." Seventy years of silent suffering at the hands of spiritual leaders can only be measured and requited before Heaven's tribunal. And while some wonder the nature of a religious system that would cover-up the documented suffering of innocent children for so many years—by so many spiritual leaders—the headline at least deserves an attachment to our Lord's somber warning: "By their fruits you will know them."

Furthermore, in a stunning reverse #MeToo moment this week, one of the initial Hollywood female champions of the #MeToo movement has been accused by a young male actor of sexual harassment and coercion against his will in a hotel room years ago. Equal opportunity exposure of an equal opportunity sin. "By their fruits you will know them."

The heart of Christ still weeps, we can be sure—for untold sufferings in untold places exposing an untoward reality—sickly trees bear sick fruit.

But there is yet hope for both victims and their victimizers. The same Lord who pronounced to the accusers, "He who is without sin—let him cast the first stone," is the same Savior who promises the accused, "Neither do I condemn you—go now and leave your life of sin" (John 8:7, 11). Keep reading: "As you see the enormity of sin, as you see yourself as you really are, do not give up to despair. It was sinners that Christ came to save. We have not to reconcile God to us, but—O wondrous love!—God in Christ is 'reconciling the world unto Himself.' 2 Corinthians 5:19" (Steps to Christ 35).

Turns out the gospel truth of Jesus is the only good news left for sinners such as you and I. For only He can heal our heart of its sickness. And only He can recreate our life to flower with fresh fruit, new fruit, good fruit. And so to His offer to do just that I say we both say, "Me, too."