Lessons on Faith by Jones and Waggoner- Reading club only

[Gail]

These are a series of very rich lessons on faith in the daily life.

Would anyone like to also read it through and we can discuss what we are seeing?

You can download the book for free online.

[Gail]

Bump

This really is an exceptional work!

[joeb]

Gail,

I just started reading this. I find it to be excellent so far. I've only gotten about 4 or 5 pages into it, but I've found a whole lot of valuable truth in those pages. It's taken me, who would normally read 4 or 5 pages in a few minutes, a couple of hours to digest it. These lessons on faith are very concentrated and it takes time to absorb everything.

[joeb]

Here's one of the quotes I found that I really like. It's probably the clearest statement I've ever seen on purpose of the Gospel.

Quote:

This statement is the summing up of what the apostle has to say about the gospel. The gospel is the power of God unto salvation, but only "to every one that believeth." In it the righteousness of God is revealed. The righteousness of God is the perfect law of God, which is but the transcript of his own righteous will. All unrighteousness is sin or the transgression of the law. The gospel is God's remedy for sin; its work, therefore, must be to bring men into harmony with the law--to cause the workings of the righteous law to be manifested in their lives. But this is wholly a work of faith--the righteousness of God is revealed from "faith to faith"-- faith in the beginning and faith to the end--as it is written, "The just shall live by faith." LoF p. 2

[Gail]

I like where it's said that faith is essentially believing that God's word will accomplish what it says just because God said it. It can't do anything else ("It will not return unto me void" is the scripture that popped into my head). It's switching our focus from the role of God's word in creation to the role of His word in our lives through the Spirit. That is where the power comes in.

I'm like you- reading slowly because it is so deep.

I am moving this to the theology section and will invite more to join in the discussion.

[Gail]

This thread is only for those who have read or are reading this work.

You can download it easily for free online.

At the moment, it's Joeb and myself, but anyone is free to join in AS LONG AS S/HE IS READING OR HAS READ THE WORK That is the only rule. The comments need to pertain to the book.

So in that way it is sort of a closed discussion.

[joeb]

Here's a link for the download. It's a .pdf file so very, very few people won't be able to read it.

http://csda-adventistchurch.to/Books/LessonsOnFaith.pdf

[Gail]

Thanks, Joe. I surely hope to see more comments!

[joeb]

Thanks, Joe. I surely hope to see more comments!

Well, you will see some more. That's guaranteed, as I'll make a few more comments anyway....

[joeb]

I often see the assertion that faith was not a part of the believer's life, at least not at the same kind of level as the post-Jesus believer. Waggoner answers that assertion very well.

Quote:

This is true in all ages since the fall of man and will be true until the saints of God have His name in their foreheads and see Him as He is. It was from the prophet Habbakuk (2:4) that the apostle quoted the statement. If the prophets had not revealed it, the first Christians could not have known of it, for they had only the Old Testament. To say that in the most ancient times men had but an imperfect idea of faith in Christ is to say that there were no just men in those times. But Paul goes right back to the very beginning and cites an instance of saving faith. He says, "By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous." Heb. 11:4 LoF p. 2

The very first martyr was a man of great faith. He died for his faith, because it was his faith that so angered his brother. This OT example of faith in Christ shows the truth of Ephesians 5:13.

Quote:

13 But all things that are reproved are made manifest by the light: for whatsoever doth make manifest is light.

[joeb]

Quote:

I am crucified with Christ; nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. Gal. 2:10.

Here is the secret of strength. It is Christ, the Son of God, the One to whom all power in heaven and earth is given, Who does the work. If He lives in the heart to do the work, is it boasting to say that continual victories may be gained? Yes, it is boast; but it is boasting in the Lord, and that is allowable. Says the psalmist, "My soul shall make her boast in the Lord" and Paul says, "God forbid that I should glory save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me and I unto the world." Gal. 6:14. LoF p. 4

Christ in you, the hope of glory. Oh what promises there are to those that have faith in God's word. His word will accomplish its work in us if we will allow it to happen, if we will trust God's word.

Who does the work? Not us. It is Christ, through the Holy Spirit that changes us. We can no more change ourselves into God's image than we can justify ourselves before God.

[joeb]

Quote:

Well, our Captain is the Lord of hosts. He has met the chiefest foe of all and has vanquished him single-handed. Those who follow Him invariably go forth conquering and to conquer. Oh, that those who profess to be His followers would put their trust in Him and then, by the repeated victories that they would gain, they would show forth the praises of Him who has called them out of darkness into His marvelous light. LoF p. 4

Do we really believe our Captain has always been victorious, and is undefeated in all His battles with the devil? If so, why do we doubt His ability to defeat the evil within us? Aren't we following in His footsteps? Does not He live within us? Is not His power to change us available at all times? Can He not recreate us just as easily as He created us in the first place? Has His word lost its power?

[Gail]

I like how it is written how many Christians declare Jesus when they are first converted and the working of the Holy Spirit, but never again and their spiritual life dies.

I suspect that we will get some information here on helping them come to life again!

[joeb]

I was going to use that quote, but decided not to. To me Waggoner is pointing out our flawed ideas as to what sanctification is. We think we have to change ourselves when in fact it is God who changes us, and we have no part in it but to surrender. Sanctification is as much by faith as justification is.

[Ted Oplinger]

Well, Gail, you can put me in the mix. I bought my copy of this book some 25 years ago, digested it, and created a series of sermons from this book a couple of years later. It was one of the first books on the 1888 Message I read early in my journey.

I've read it through again a couple of times since then, and always learn something new each time.

It was how Christ declared the very definition of faith (written on p. 16) which caught my attention first and foremost. Even today, I find people amazed at the thought Christ declared the very definition of faith to His disciples. I find current hesitation to grasp that definition sad, as it is the ONLY way Laodicea can truly repent; it is the ONLY way the remnant can bear both the faith and the testimony of Christ.

It is not enough that we think we may keep the commandments and be called the Remnant of God.

"Faith is expecting the Word of God itself to do what the Word says, and depending upon that Word itself to do what the Word says."

p. 19, Lessons on Faith

The Word, and the Word only.

Blessings,

[joeb]

Ted,

The quote you gave is in complete agreement with how Christ met every challenge in His life--with the word of God. He quoted scripture to meet every challenge. He trusted God's word to have the power to meet any problem and any challenge.

[Gail]

I was going to use that quote, but decided not to. To me Waggoner is pointing out our flawed ideas as to what sanctification is. We think we have to change ourselves when in fact it is God who changes us, and we have no part in it but to surrender. Sanctification is as much by faith as justification is.

[Gail]

Ted,

The quote you gave is in complete agreement with how Christ met every challenge in His life--with the word of God. He quoted scripture to meet every challenge. He trusted God's word to have the power to meet any problem and any challenge.

Amazing! I have thought on this before, but always good.

[Gail]

Well, Gail, you can put me in the mix. I bought my copy of this book some 25 years ago, digested it, and created a series of sermons from this book a couple of years later. It was one of the first books on the 1888 Message I read early in my journey.

I've read it through again a couple of times since then, and always learn something new each time.

It was how Christ declared the very definition of faith (written on p. 16) which caught my attention first and foremost. Even today, I find people amazed at the thought Christ declared the very definition of faith to His disciples. I find current hesitation to grasp that definition sad, as it is the ONLY way Laodicea can truly repent; it is the ONLY way the remnant can bear both the faith and the testimony of Christ.

It is not enough that we think we may keep the commandments and be called the Remnant of God.

"Faith is expecting the Word of God itself to do what the Word says, and depending upon that Word itself to do what the Word says."

p. 19, Lessons on Faith

The Word, and the Word only.

Blessings,

Yes, thank you, Ted! You are very welcome to the discussion! Thank you for quoting, too. There is just SO MUCH material to glean from!

[Gail]

Quote:

"He spake, and it was." Before He spoke, there were no worlds; after He spoke, the worlds were there. Thus the word of God spoken by Jesus Christ is able to cause that to exist which has no existence before the word is spoken, and which, except for that word, never could have existence.

In this same way precisely it is in man's life. In man's life there is no righteousness. In man there is no righteousness from which righteousness can appear in his life. But God has set forth Christ to declare righteousness unto and upon man. Christ has spoken the word only, and in the darkened void of man's life there is righteousness to everyone who will receive it. Where, before the word is received, there was neither righteousness nor anything which could possibly produce righteousness, after the word is received, there is perfect righteousness and the very Fountain from which it springs. The word of God received by faith--that is, the word of God expected to do what that word says and depended upon to do what it says--produces righteousness in the man and in the life where there never was any before; precisely as, in the original creation, the word of God produced worlds where there never were any worlds before. He has spoken, and it is so to everyone that believeth: that is, to every one that receiveth. The word itself produces it.

That is found on page 13

Isn't that cool?

[Gail]

And this:

Quote:

"The knowledge of what the Scripture means when urging upon us the necessity of cultivating faith is more important than any other knowledge that can be obtained."

P. 14

[Gail]

P. 13

[Ted Oplinger]

He who exercises faith can understand that though before the Word of God was spoken, neither the things which are now seen nor the substance of which those things are composed, appeared anywhere, simply, because those did not exist; yet, when that Word was spoken, the worlds were, simply because the Word itself caused them to exist

Hebrews 11:1-3 in the light of Matthew 8:5-10.

The Word of God contains within itself the creative power God puts into it, to bring into existence the very thing He has spoken - Isaiah 55:11.

When we read in Exodus 20 God spoke the commandments to all Israel, what does this tell us about obedience and righteousness? Does it come by the promise by man to do it (Exodus 19:8)? Or by the promise of God that man may depend upon to produce the obedience and righteousness God has declared (Deuteronomy 8:3)?

Our current Christian walk - does it progress based upon the Baptismal vows we make to God and the congregation? or by dependence upon the power of God found in His Word to produce the righteousness symbolized by the white raiment in Revelation 3:18?

Blessings!

[Gail]

[Gail]

From p.15:

Quote:

And all "they which be of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham." All they who, excluding--yea, repudiating--all works, plans, devices, and efforts, of their own, depend in utter helplessness upon the word of God only to accomplish what that word says--these are they which be of faith and are blessed with faithful Abraham with the righteousness of God.

All works, plans, devices, and efforts, of their own... When these are repudiated (look it up, it's a great word) and we depend in utter helplessness, THEN we are said to have faith.