Thoughts on God, Christ and the Holy SpiritWonderful Savior!

1.) Jesus was equal with God in every sense from Eternity.

Christ was God essentially, and in the highest sense. He was with God from all eternity, God over all, blessed forevermore. The Lord Jesus Christ, the divine Son of God, existed from eternity, a distinct person, yet one with the Father. He was the surpassing glory of heaven. He was the commander of the heavenly intelligences, and the adoring homage of the angels was received by Him as His right. was God essentially, and in the highest sense He was equal with God, infinite and omnipotent. He was above all finite requirements. He was Himself the law in character. Of the highest angels it could not be said that they had never borne a yoke. The angels all bear the yoke of dependence, the yoke of obedience. They are the appointed messengers of Him who is Commander of all heaven. {12MR 395.2}

No one of the angels could become a substitute and surety for the human race, for their life is God's; they could not surrender it. On Christ alone the human family depended for their existence. He is the eternal, self-existent Son, on whom no yoke had come. When God asked, "whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?" Christ alone of the angelic host could reply, "Here am I; send Me." He alone had covenanted before the foundation of the world to become a surety for man. He could say that which not the highest angel could say--"I have power over My own life. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again" [see John 10:18]. {12MR 395.3}2.) Being equal with God, Jesus shared Gods attributes.

God is omnipresent: The Lord's throne is in heaven" (Psalm 11:4); yet by His Spirit He is everywhere present. He has an intimate knowledge of, and a personal interest in, all the works of His hand "Whither shall I go from Thy Spirit? Or whither shall I flee from Thy presence? (Psalms 139:7) {Ed 131.1-132.1} Is omnipotent: He was equal with God, infinite and omnipotent. {12MR 395.2} Is omniscient: God is omnipotent, omniscient, immutable. {ST, July 23, 1902 par. 12}3.) Jesus being equal with God, was in the form of God and was Spirit.

But Christ, "being in the form of God, counted it not a thing to be grasped to be on an equality with God, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in the likeness of men." Philippians 2:6, 7, R. V., margin. {DA 22.3}God is a Spirit: and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth." (John 4:24)God is a spirit; yet He is a personal being, for man was made in His image. {Ed 131.1}4.) Jesus revealed Himself in the world as the Spirit of God before the incarnation. The spirit of God hath made me, and the breath of the Almighty hath given me life. (Job 33:4)The Lord Jesus made the world. {ST, March 28, 1895 par. 6} Then a personal, self-existing God breathed into that form the breath of life, and man became a living, breathing, intelligent being. {8T 264.1}For by Him (Jesus) were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether [they be] thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by Him, and for Him. (Colossians 1:16)All things were made by Him; and without Him was not any thing made that was made. (John 1:3) The Spirit of God, revealed to him as moving and directing these wheels, brought harmony out of confusion; so the whole world was under His control In like manner, when God was about to open to the beloved John the history of the church for future ages, He gave him an assurance of the Saviour's interest and care for His people by revealing to him "One like unto the Son of man," walking among the candlesticks, which symbolized the seven churches. {5T 752.2,3}After the transgression of Adam, the Lord spoke no longer directly with man; the human race was given into the hands of Christ, and all communication came through Him to the world. {RH, November 28, 1893 par. 4}He is with us as we teach the words He spoke in the Old Testament as well as in the New. He who gave commandment in the New Testament is the One also who gave the instruction contained in the Old Testament. The Old and New Testaments are both sacred; for they both contain the words of Christ. All communication from heaven to earth since Adam's fall has come through Christ. {KC 126.2}For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake [as they were] moved by the Holy Ghost. (2 Peter 1:21)Now the Lord is that Spirit... For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, (it is He Who) hath shined in our hearts (2 Corinthians 3:17, 4:6 margin)- Holy Spirit is made manifest through the agencies of Gods angels.

Let every man who enters the pulpit know that he has angels from heaven in his audience. And when these angels empty from themselves the golden oil of truth into the heart of him who is teaching the word, then the application of the truth will be a solemn, serious matter. The angel messengers will expel sin from the heart, unless the door of the heart is padlocked and Christ is refused admission. Christ will withdraw Himself from those who persist in refusing the heavenly blessings that are so freely offered them. {TM 337.2}

From the two olive trees, the golden oil was emptied through golden pipes into the bowl of the candlestick and thence into the golden lamps that gave light to the sanctuary. So from the holy ones that stand in God's presence, His Spirit is imparted to human instrumentalities that are consecrated to His service. The mission of the two anointed ones is to communicate light and power to God's people. It is to receive blessing for us that they stand in God's presence. As the olive trees empty themselves into the golden pipes, so the heavenly messengers seek to communicate all that they receive from God. The whole heavenly treasure awaits our demand and reception; and as we receive the blessing, we in our turn are to impart it. Thus it is that the holy lamps are fed, and the church becomes a light bearer in the world. {TM 510.1}5.) He emptied Himself: Several Things changed at Jesus incarnation.

He is not Spirit anymore

Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have. And when he had thus spoken, He showed them [his] hands and [his] feet. Luke 24:39,40

He is not omnipresent anymore

Cumbered with humanity, Christ could not be in every place personally. {DA 669.2} Not omnipotent: He becomes dependant

But the Son of God was surrendered to the Father's will, and dependent upon His power. So utterly was Christ emptied of self that He made no plans for Himself. He accepted God's plans for Him, and day by day the Father unfolded His plans. {DA 208.2}I can of mine own self do nothing (John 5:30)When Jesus was awakened to meet the storm, He was in perfect peace. There was no trace of fear in word or look, for no fear was in His heart. But He rested not in the possession of almighty power. It was not as the "Master of earth and sea and sky" that He reposed in quiet. That power He had laid down, and He says, "I can of Mine own self do nothing." John 5:30. He trusted in the Father's might. It was in faith--faith in God's love and care--that Jesus rested, and the power of that word which stilled the storm was the power of God. {DA 336.1} Not omniscient?

But of that day and hour knoweth no [man], no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only. (Matthew 24:36)In his humanity Christ was dependent upon the Father, even as humanity is now dependent upon God for divine power in attaining unto perfection of character. {ST, December 12, 1895 par. 2} He is now subject and obeys, whereas He was not under any yoke and above all law

Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared; Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered. Hebrews 5:7,8For he hath put all things under his feet. But when he saith all things are put under [him, it is] manifest that he is excepted, which did put all things under him. And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all. (1 Corinthians 15:27,28)6.) The Holy Spirit is revealed to be Jesus. Only after the incarnation is the Holy Spirit spoken of as a separate or third Person of the Godhead.

Cumbered with humanity, Christ could not be in every place personally; therefore it was altogether for their advantage that He should leave them, go to His father, and send the Holy Spirit to be His successor on earth. The Holy Spirit is Himself divested of the personality of humanity and independent thereof. He would represent Himself as present in all places by His Holy Spirit, as the Omnipresent. {14MR 23.3}[Even] the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you. (John 14:17,18)Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord [is], there [is] liberty. (2 Corinthians 3:17)7.) Therefore the incarnation of Jesus represents Jesus ETERNAL sacrifice, that we might receive His Holy Spirit: His own life and Soul.

- Jesus blood/Holy Spirit takes away sinsThe Holy Spirit was the highest of all gifts that He could solicit from His Father for the exaltation of His people. The Spirit was to be given as a regenerating agent, and without this the sacrifice of Christ would have been of no avail. The power of evil had been strengthening for centuries, and the submission of men to this satanic captivity was amazing. Sin could be resisted and overcome only through the mighty agency of the Third Person of the Godhead, who would come with no modified energy, but in the fullness of divine power. It is the Spirit that makes effectual what has been wrought out by the world's Redeemer. It is by the Spirit that the heart is made pure. Through the Spirit the believer becomes a partaker of the divine nature. Christ has given His Spirit as a divine power to overcome all hereditary and cultivated tendencies to evil, and to impress His own character upon His church. {DA 671.2}through the blood of the atonement, we become partakers of the divine nature; through Christ we are children of God, and we have the assurance that God loves us even as He loved His Son. {5T 741.1}Their robes must be spotless, their characters must be purified from sin by the blood of sprinkling. {GC 425.1}The law of God requires nothing short of spiritual perfection; and through the infinite sacrifice of the Son of God complete provision has been made that man may become a partaker of the divine nature, and through the merits of the blood of Christ be an overcomer. {RH, August 27, 1901 par. 4}The blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin. It speaketh better things than the blood of Abel, for Christ ever liveth to make intercession for us. We need to keep ever before us the efficacy of the blood of Jesus. That life-cleansing, life-sustaining blood, appropriated by living faith, is our hope. We need to grow in appreciation of its inestimable value, for it speaks for us only as we by faith claim its virtue, keeping the conscience clean and at peace with God. {OHC 47.4} The Jews had become familiar with blood as a purifier from guilt, and they had almost lost sight of the fact that sin made necessary all this shedding of the blood of beasts, and that it prefigured the blood of God's dear Son which was to be shed for the life of the world {3SP 21.1}For the life of the flesh [is] in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it [is] the blood [that] maketh an atonement for the soul. (Leviticus 17:11)- He poured out His Soul for usThe impartation of the Spirit is the impartation of the life of Christ. {DA 805.3}because he hath poured out his soul unto death: Isaiah 53:12The Promise of the Spirit by Mrs. E. G. WhiteChrist declared that after his ascension, he would send to his church, as his crowning gift, the Comforter, who was to take his place. This Comforter is the Holy Spirit,--the soul of His life, the efficacy of his church, the light and life of the world. With his Spirit Christ sends a reconciling influence and a power that takes away sin. {RH, May 19, 1904 par. 1}Christ's priestly intercession is now going on in our behalf in the sanctuary above. But how few have a real understanding that our great High Priest presents before the Father His own blood, claiming for the sinner who receives Him as his personal Saviour all the graces which His covenant embraces as the reward of His sacrifice. {7BC 932.7}The great Sacrifice had been offered and had been accepted, and the Holy Spirit which descended on the day of Pentecost carried the minds of the disciples from the earthly sanctuary to the heavenly, where Jesus had entered by His own blood, to shed upon His disciples the benefits of His atonement. {EW 259.1}Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear (Acts 2:33)- The wounds of Calvary signify His eternal sacrificeOne reminder (of sin) alone remains: Our Redeemer will ever bear the marks of His crucifixion. Upon His wounded head, upon His side, His hands and feet, are the only traces of the cruel work that sin has wrought. Says the prophet, beholding Christ in His glory: "He had bright beams coming out of His side: and there was the hiding of His power." Habakkuk 3:4, margin. That pierced side whence flowed the crimson stream that reconciled man to God--there is the Saviour's glory, there "the hiding of His power And the tokens of His humiliation are His highest honor; through the eternal ages the wounds of Calvary will show forth His praise and declare His power.8.) The Everlasting Covenant between Jesus and the Father was that we might receive the Holy Spirit.

The covenant of mercy was made before the foundation of the world. It has existed from all eternity, and is called the everlasting covenant. So surely as there never was a time when God was not, so surely there never was a moment when it was not the delight of the eternal mind to manifest His grace to humanity. {ST, June 12, 1901 par. 7}As the divine Sufferer hung upon the cross, angels gathered about him, and as they looked upon him, and heard his cry, they asked, with intense emotion, "Will not the Lord Jehovah save him? Will not that soul-piercing cry of God's only begotten Son prevail?" Then were the words spoken: "The Lord hath sworn, and he will not repent. Father and Son are pledged to fulfill the terms of the everlasting covenant. God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." {YI, June 14, 1900 par. 5} Christ was not alone in making his great sacrifice. It was the fulfilment of the covenant made between him and his Father before the foundation of the world was laid. With clasped hands they had entered into the solemn pledge that Christ would become the surety for the human race if they were overcome by Satan's sophistry. {YI, June 14, 1900 par. 6}the promise is more definitely repeated to Abraham: "Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac; and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him." {1SP 96.2}Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ. (Galations 3:16)That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. (Galations 3:14)behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high. (Luke 24:49)And, being assembled together with [them], commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, [saith he], ye have heard of me. For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence. (Acts 1:4,5)Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hearThen Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, [even] as many as the Lord our God shall call. (Acts 2:33, 38,39)- This covenant required the death of the Testator. And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions [that were] under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance. For where a testament [is], there must also of necessity be the death of the testator. (Hebrews 9:15,16) ~ (the New Testament is called the ministration of the spirit see 2 Corinthians 3:6,8; also it is called the ministration of righteousness 2 Corinthians 3:9)

(when Jesus made the covenant with the Father He was not a man, but in the Form of God, therefore the Testator was God and not a man. In forever accepting the form of a servant, Jesus, in the form of God, died; He would never for eternal ages exist in that glorious form again. This fulfilled the necessity for an eternal death (He suffered the death which was ours, that we might receive the life which was His. : we owed eternal death), albeit it is impossible for God to die, yet Jesus made an eternal sacrifice) In His incarnation He had reached the prescribed limit as a sacrifice, but not as a Redeemer. {14MR 23.3} (I believe this refers to Death of the Testator the prescribed limit)9.) By becoming a man, Jesus has made Himself eternally subject (obedient to God), so that He might save us from willful rebellion and that we could be led to willingly serve Him when we see and understand His great love and price (sacrifice of Himself) He paid for us.

- Jesus became a man, to be one of a race of beings whose whole duty by the law is to serve God.Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this [is] the whole duty of man. (Ecclesiastes 12:13)His mercy was not weakness, but a terrible power to punish sin because it is sin; yet a power to draw to it the love of humanity. {7BC 935.15}God desires from all His creatures the service of love--homage that springs from an intelligent appreciation of His character. He takes no pleasure in a forced allegiance, and to all He grants freedom of will, that they may render Him voluntary service. {GC 493.2}10.) Through this sacrifice Jesus will gain a Kingdom, where the subjects retain free choice, yet rebellion will never again rise. Wonderful Savior!

The Efficacy of the Cross.--The death of Christ upon the cross made sure the destruction of him who has the power of death, who was the originator of sin. When Satan is destroyed, there will be none to tempt to evil; the atonement will never need to be repeated; and there will be no danger of another rebellion in the universe of God. That which alone can effectually restrain from sin in this world of darkness, will prevent sin in heaven. The significance of the death of Christ will be seen by saints and angels. Fallen men could not have a home in the paradise of God without the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. Shall we not then exalt the cross of Christ? The angels ascribe honor and glory to Christ, for even they are not secure except by looking to the sufferings of the Son of God. It is through the efficacy of the cross that the angels of heaven are guarded from apostasy. Without the cross they would be no more secure against evil than were the angels before the fall of Satan. Angelic perfection failed in heaven. Human perfection failed in Eden, the paradise of bliss. All who wish for security in earth or heaven must look to the Lamb of God. The plan of salvation, making manifest the justice and love of God, provides an eternal safeguard against defection in unfallen worlds, as well as among those who shall be redeemed by the blood of the Lamb. Our only hope is perfect trust in the blood of Him who can save to the uttermost all that come unto God by Him. The death of Christ on the cross of Calvary is our only hope in this world, and it will be our theme in the world to come. Oh, we do not comprehend the value of the atonement! If we did, we would talk more about it. The gift of God in His beloved Son was the expression of an incomprehensible love. It was the utmost that God could do to preserve the honor of His law, and still save the transgressor. Why should man not study the theme of redemption? It is the greatest subject that can engage the human mind. If men would contemplate the love of Christ, displayed in the cross, their faith would be strengthened to appropriate the merits of His shed blood, and they would be cleansed and saved from sin {ST, December 30, 1889 par. 4}WONDERFUL SAVIOR!!!_________________________________________________________________________________________________________

And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. 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 3:14-16Through faith in Christ, faith in His blood, God has made provision that we should receive JESUS OWN EVERLASTING LIFE: THE HOLY SPIRIT. The Holy Spirit, The Soul of HIS LIFE, creates in us Perfection of Character. We are imparted the Character of Christ. And if we die before He returns, He will raise us up. Even as Jesus had Gods perfect character and God did raise Him up after He had died. And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last dayWhoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. John 6:40,54

those who seek Christ in His true character have within them the elements of everlasting life, because they are partakers of the divine nature {1SM 136.2}Come unto me, all [ye] that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. (Matthew 11:28,29)To learn of Christ means to receive His grace, which is His character. {COL 271.1}Christ has given His Spirit as a divine power to overcome all hereditary and cultivated tendencies to evil, and to impress His own character upon His church. {DA 671.2}But while "they that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them," "the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps." The latter class had received the grace of God, the regenerating, enlightening power of the Holy Spirit, which renders His word a lamp to the feet and a light to the path. {GC 393.4}The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen. (Revelation 22:21 - the last verse of the Holy Bible)