Weighed and found wanting

A few thousand years ago, a Greek King ordered some craftsmen to make him
a crown of gold. The craftsmen were paid handsomely and delivered a beautiful golden crown worthy of royalty. The King had a gut feeling that the craftsmen had cheated him, so he went to the wisest man in his kingdom for help. The name of the man was Archimedes. Archimedes accepted the project, admitted it was a challenge, and requested the King for time to determine
whether the crown had been made of pure gold. Archimedes thought for days, the problem riddling him, and absorbing his life. One day he filled his tub with water to its normal level, he was preparing to bathe. upon entering the tub, Archimedes realized that the water level rose a few inches. His weight had displaced the water and raised the volume in the tub. Archimedes found what he was looking for. Running out of the tub, he yelled, "Eureka! Eureka! I found it!' Archimedes discovered that to determine whether the crown was pure gold
all he had to do was determine the amount of gold the crown was supposed to weigh, place it in a tub of water, and mark the water displacement. Afterwards, the same process would be repeated with the crown. If the craftsmen made the crown out of pure gold, it would displace the same amount water as the pure gold. If, however, the crown was not made out of pure gold, the amount of water displaced would differ. In the end, it was determined that the King had been
cheated. The gold in the crown was weighed, and found wanting.

We use the _expression, "the writing is on the wall," to mean the signs are obvious. In the biblical passage for this week-- Daniel 5 --it means that you have crossed the point of no return, and judgment has been rendered. If Belshazzar were a crown, Archimedes would have found him lacking gold. Belshazzar was at best gold plated. What type of Christians are we? Are we pure gold or gold
plated? Pure gold will not tarnish and become purified in the fire. Gold plated will tarnish and completely melt in the flames. How can we become pure gold Christians?

The author of Hebrews says that "without faith it is impossible to please God" (Hebrews 11:6). So to become pure gold Christians, we need faith. Where do we get faith? Roman 10:17 says, "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." But it is not just any faith or belief in God. James 2:19 says, "Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble." The faith we are talking about here it is humanly impossible to develop. Human faith is corrupted by sin, imperfect,
and finite. Revelation 14:12 describes the multitude that God saves as having the faith of Jesus. This is pure gold faith. Human faith is gold plated faith.

Belshazzar lacked this faith of Jesus. His problem got worse because he had opportunities to acquire it, but chose not to, against the convictions of his heart, despite all the evidence God had given him. Daniel points this out to Belshazazar as he interprets the writing on the wall:

Daniel 5:18 O thou king, the most high God gave Nebuchadnezzar thy father a kingdom, and majesty, and glory, and honour:
Daniel 5:19 And for the majesty that he gave him, all people, nations, and languages, trembled and feared before Him: whom He would He slew; and whom He would He kept alive; and whom He would He set up; and whom He would He put down.
Daniel 5:20 But when his heart was lifted up, and his mind hardened in pride, he was deposed from his kingly throne, and they took his glory from him:
Daniel 5:21 And he was driven from the sons of men; and his heart was made like the beasts, and his dwelling was with the wild asses: they fed him with grass like oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven; till he knew that the most high God ruled in the kingdom of men, and that he appointeth over it whomsoever he will.
Daniel 5:22 And thou his son, O Belshazzar, hast not humbled thine heart, though thou knewest all this;
Daniel 5:23 But hast lifted up thyself against the Lord of heaven; and they have brought the vessels of his house before thee, and thou, and thy lords, thy wives, and thy concubines, have drunk wine in them; and thou hast praised the gods of silver, and gold, of brass, iron, wood, and stone, which see not, nor hear, nor know: and the God in whose hand thy breath is, and whose are all thy ways, hast thou not glorified:

Sister White concerning Daniel and Belshazzar,

Daniel did not swerve from his duty. He held the king's sin before him, showing him the lessons he might have learned but did not. Belshazzar had not heeded the events so significant to him. He had not read his grandfather's history correctly. The responsibility of knowing truth had been laid upon him, but the practical lesson he might have learned and acted upon had not been taken to heart; and his course of action brought the sure result. (Ellen G. White Notes, 36)

Those, who like Belshazzar reject the opportunities that God grants them will also be found wanting. They are gold plated Christians. 2 Timothy 3:5 describes them as, "Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away." Revelation 3 calls them Laodicean--

Revelation 3:15 I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.
Revelation 3:16 So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.
Revelation 3:17 Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:

Sister White explains regarding those who follow the steps of Belshazzar,

In the history of Nebuchadnezzar and Belshazzar, God speaks to the people of today. The condemnation that will fall upon the inhabitants of the earth in this day will be because of their rejection of light. Our condemnation in the judgment will not result from the fact that we have lived in error, but from the fact that we have neglected Heaven-sent opportunities for discovering truth. The means of becoming conversant with the truth are within the reach of all; but, like the indulgent, selfish king, we give more attention to the things that charm the ear, and please the eye, and gratify the palate, than to the things that enrich the mind, the divine treasures of truth. It is through the truth that we may answer the great question, "What must I do to be saved?" (E. G. White Notes, p. 33)

God offers us-- Laodiceans, an opportunity to become pure gold faith Christians. He says to us in Revelation 3:18,

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.

Will we accept His invitation?

The Special Insights web page resides at:
http://www.1888message.org/sabbathschool/

Keeping It Real

Daniel 4 is a chapter not often mentioned. Not even in the Daniel and Revelation Seminars is it talked about. A lot of the focus is in the miracles, dreams and prophecy. However, Daniel 4 is a powerful chapter. Daniel 4 is the gospel in verity. Daniel 4 shows us that we are sinners in need of a Savior, what we become when we are proud and rebellious, and what we can become if we just listen and submit to God by faith. Like Nebuchadnezzar, we would be not afraid to worship God and tell others about it if we tasted and saw how good He is.

You see, outside of Christ we are all Nebuchadnezzars. In our sinful nature, we are all proud and rebellious. Pride and arrogance are usually combined in the Old Testament, and sometimes used intermittently. These terms mean presumption, swelling, exaltation, and puffed up; thinking yourself more important and better than you really are. Pride is a delusion that comes from our human sinful condition, and rebellion follows in its trail. Rebellion is unwillingness to yield to the authority of the ruler or government to which one owes obedience. Now, if obedience as per the Old Testament, means to listen attentively, to hear-- with a willingness to do, then rebellion is obviously disobedience whether felt or expressed verbally or behaviorally. Sinfulness is the path of wanting to do your own thing, your own way, and in your own timing. It is self-righteousness, and nothing less. As has been so aptly stated by Pastor Sequeira, "All of this world's systems- nationalism, commerce, education, politics, recreation, sports clubs, are based on Satan's principle of self-love." Self-centeredness, and selfishness underlie all of these systems, because they were constructed by sinful human beings, for whom self seeking is the norm. According to I Cor. 13, love seeks not her own, is not puffed up, is not boastful, rejoices in the right... you get the picture. So none of the systems devised by the world (human beings) are based on true love. Instead ethics and morals, and policies have been used to replace God’s indwelling Spirit. But,they are all vanity and futile (Ecclesiastes 2:11) and will fade away like a leaf. In reality, when we put our trust in these systems, and their outcome to "have the good life," we fail of reaching the mark of God's character He has set before us, and we sin--“for whatsoever is not of faith is sin.” (Romans 14:23.)

We can understand why God sends us His messengers, trials and judgments, if we want to. He wants to restore us to what we would have been had we never sinned. Sin is deceptive, and we have a bent to it, a tendency to lean into crookedness. We can never be with them (the Father, Son and Holy Spirit) while we have the attributes of His mortal enemy. Thus the messengers, trials and judgments are to allow us to see how we really are, and who He really is in relation to us. God want us to get a reality check. In a sense God wants for us
to keep it real. This is an _expression now used to mean: do not forget where you come from, and the ones who love you. God is trying to remind us that we belong to Him and no one can ever love – agape - us like He does. God is reminding us that we need to totally depend on Him, if we are to be good and righteous. “As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:” (Rom. 3:10.) and, “there is none good but one, that is, God.” (Mark 10:18.)

Like with Nebuchadnezzar, sometimes His judgments seem harsh. But, are they really? Someone determined that between Daniel 1 and Daniel 4 was at least 25 years. In twenty-five years he still did not get it. You may also notice in Daniel 4, and throughout the Scriptures, that God always sent warnings prior to sentencing the guilty parties and executing the sentence upon them. There was ample time and opportunity for Nebuchadnezzar to repent from his proud and rebellious ways. I would argue that God revealed his character to Nebuchadnezzar and those surrounding him, through
the Hebrew captives who served him. He is not a God who hides His true nature. To save the king, God allowed him to become outwardly, what he was inwardly: a beast without consciousness or dignity. God did say He would humble the proud. He humbled King Nebuchadnezzar, and He will humble all of us-- to save us from ultimate destruction-- if it is necessary. Talk about keeping it real. Daniel 4 says,

Dan. 4:34 And at the end of the days I Nebuchadnezzar lifted up mine eyes
unto heaven, and mine understanding returned unto me, and
I blessed the most High, and I praised and honoured him that liveth for ever, whose dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom is from generation to generation:
Dan. 4:35 And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and
he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the
inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?
Dan. 4:37 Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honour the King of
heaven, all whose works are truth, and his ways judgment: and those that walk in pride he is able to abase.

Nebuchadnezzar’s words-- his ultimate praise of God's sovereignty and power, can be ours if we only learn his lesson. Sister White says,

The lesson that the Lord would have all humanity learn from the experience of the king of Babylon is that all who walk in pride He is able to abase. By stern discipline Nebuchadnezzar had to learn the lesson that God, not man, is Ruler, that His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom. So men today must learn that God is supreme. When men gain success in the work of the Lord, it is because God
has given them this success, not for their own glory, but for God's glory. He who seeks to steal a ray of light from the glory of the Lord will find that he will be punished for his presumption. (E. G. White Notes, p. 26)

Christ says in Revelation 3:20-- " 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." How will we answer Him?
--
Raul Diaz & Maria Greaves-Barnes

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Today is October 22, 2004. It has been 160 years since the Great Disappointment. 160 years of our Seventh Day Adventist movement. Happy Disappointment Day to all. The Investigative Judgment of the Magnificent Cosmic Atonement Age is underway. When our High Priest is done, He will come for us. Amen!!! Hallelujah!!! Here is a poem to commemorate this great event.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
It is no secret that we all long to connect to that special someone. However, dating may not be the best way to find them. It opens up the door of or hearts to many hurts and pain. God longs to bring them to us, just like He did with Adam and Isaac. He promises we will be joyful if we wait on Him. Here is how He has done it with me.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Special Insights web page resides at:
http://www.1888message.org/sabbathschool/

Unshakable Faith

The story is told of a group of Christian refugees praying in a church during a time of civil upheaval. Storming the church property, a group of soldiers discovered the people praying. Not wanting to alert the people to their presence right away, they quietly searched the church for anything of value. Unfortunately, they found nothing but a picture of Jesus on the wall. Angered, the commanding officer decided to take it out on the praying Christians. Ordering all those present to come forward, the commander insisted they approach the picture, spit on it, and renounce Jesus by stating, “You are worthless, and I don’t need you!” If they failed to do this, the commander threatened to shoot them on the spot. The elders of the Church were the first to come forward. Boldly they stood up, approached the picture, spat on it, and repeated the heinous words. Others, one by one, followed the example of the elders. After a few moments, and several persons later, a young girl stood up. Walking to the picture with her scarf in her hand, the young girl wiped away the saliva, softly uttering the words, “Jesus, I need You for I am worthless.” All were silent, wondering what would happen next. The girl, apparently unafraid, stepped before the Commander and said, “You can shoot me now.” Falling to his knees, the now contrite commander began to cry inconsolably; his heart broken, he gave it to Jesus. This true story of courageous faith occurred in Rwanda during the bloody massacre of its people. We all need to ask ourselves this question, "in the moment of truth, will we have 'the faith of Jesus' " as this little girl did?

Although frightening, we often wonder, "how can I develop this type of unshakable faith--and do I want to?" To these questions, let's add the question, "is wanting to enough?" Let's begin by looking in the book of Daniel, to see if there is an answer. Scripturally, the story in Daniel chapter 2 follows consecutively the one in chapter 3, as would be expected. Thus both stories seem to have occurred relatively close in time, yet they did not. Ten to twelve years intervened between the King's dream of the image, and his golden construction of it. How easy it is to forget the impression made on the mind by the Holy Spirit, and the response of faith, when we do not abide in Him. The time in between chapter 2 and chapter 3 provides a test for King Nebuchadnezzar-- namely, will he after accepting the interpretation of the dream as from the Lord, wait on Him for its fulfillment. All of heaven and earth were
waiting to see, "will the Babylonian King surrender his will -- along with its attendant pride and ambitious plans -- to the King of Kings, or after a time of delay, will he be found building a monument to his own dreams?"

In Daniel chapter 2, King Nebuchadnezzar is confronted with the choice to exercise faith. Brought to the point of decision at the revelation of his dream, the king honors the Lord by saying in Daniel 2:47-"Of a truth it is, that your God is a God of gods, and a Lord of kings, and a revealer of secrets, seeing thou couldest reveal this secret." Hearing this, we would say that the King believed Daniel, and God. But His response, while a heart response, was not made by a broken, contrite heart. It was made by a heart still prideful and boastful, thus allowing Satan control of this stronghold in his life. The disciples also found themselves in this predicament when they could not cast out the demon filled child (Matt. 17:14-21) and again when they were almost capsized in the squall on the lake (Matt. 14:22-33). Vacillating between the "pride of life, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes," they were unprepared to hold on to the Word of promise -- their living saviour.

In Daniel chapter 3, the three Hebrew youth are also confronted with the choice to exercise faith. They too are brought to the point of decision when it is declared that if they do not bow down and worship the golden image they are to be burned alive. Imagine, the peer pressure to conform. It was worse than when they refused to eat the King's food from his table. After all, the King has his pride to lose if these Hebrew youth refuse to follow his orders this time, and that will make him extremely hostile and angry. All the dignitaries of every land of importance are there, ready to oblige the King's decree. There is no mention of Daniel's whereabouts, so we must assume he is absent, but everyone else is present. The statue itself is 90 feet tall and 9 feet wide--in plain view--in the plain of Dura. It was not to be missed. So, how do the Hebrew youth stand up to that pressure? How would you stand? In Daniel 3:12, we note that they did not yield--bow down. The pressure to yield to doubt and disbelief increased greatly, as they were called before the king. In verse 14-15, the King gives them another chance to obey his decree, because he liked them. What is their response? Let's view Daniel 3: 15-18:

"O Nebuchadnezzar, 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 our 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."

Their response is one of belief and trust in the God who delivers. According to their statement, they believed that God would do right by them whatever the outcome was. Yet they had determined to stand steadfast without regard to whether they were delivered or not, for they were representing Him --and He changes not. Their will was to do the will of Him who sent them there, which was to demonstrate His character to Babylon as well as the surrounding nations. Israel and Judah's kings had been proud and boastful. They lacked the humility that comes from a contrite and broken heart, and so they led the people and their nation into captivity.

In captivity, how did the Hebrew youth get to this place of faith? The answer is in Daniel chapter one. Remember, they refused to eat the King’s food-- because they knew that it was God who fed them (with manna in the wilderness then, and in captivity now) to make them know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of the Lord doth man live (Deut. 8:3). Although captives, their hearts were contrite and broken over the wickedness that led to their national ruin and captivity. Yielding their will to God in the little things, they were counted faithful, and God blessed them further. By remembering God's goodness and mercy, they continued to be faithful. Through prayer and fasting, they were prompted to join with Daniel as he beseeched the Lord to reveal the dream and with its interpretation (in chapter two). Thus Christ developed these youth from faith to faith, and from grace to grace. By the constant yielding of their will to Christ, they were dying daily, and thus were prepared to state that fact under great pressure.

The three Jewish youth were like Job who said, “Though he slay me, yet will I trust in Him:” (Job 13:15). There was in these three – and in Job – a total dependence on Christ. Such a life of yielding, Christ lived, remaining faithful to the end by depending on His Father completely. This constant dependence on God for everything enables us to conquer, as He conquered. It is through dependence on God that we receive the power of the Holy Spirit flowing through us, enabling us to be willing to hear and to do all of His good will. This is what gives us unshakable faith.

The King of Babylon did not yield his heart. He yielded his emotions, and intellectually assented to the truth. Thus he had no root in himself, and as the great tree, could not stand. Had his feelings and thoughts been constantly bound up with the truth, had he like the King of Nineveh, who repented by faith through grace, his pride would not later have driven him mad. Lessons of those who with contrite and broken heart demonstrated the faith of Jesus are among the pages of inspiration and we would do well to hear them. Listen well, for our willingness to attentively hear and to do is at the foundation of heart obedience without which it will be impossible to endure.

According to Sister White:

"Important are the lessons to be learned from the experience of the Hebrew youth on the plain of Dura. In this our day, many of God's servants, though innocent of wrongdoing, will be given over to suffer humiliation and abuse at the hands of those who, inspired by Satan, are filled with envy and religious bigotry. Especially will the wrath of man be aroused against those who hallow the Sabbath of the fourth commandment; and at last a universal decree will denounce these as deserving of death.

As in the days of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, so in the closing period of earth's history the Lord will work mightily in behalf of those who stand steadfastly for the right. He who walked with the Hebrew worthies in the fiery furnace will be with His followers wherever they are. His abiding presence will comfort and sustain." (Ellen White Notes, page 25.)

As unpleasant as it may seem, let Christ break our hearts upon Himself, let Him wash us and make us contrite. It will be natural to yield to Him then, and we will have that unshakable faith we so desperately need.

The Special Insights web page resides at:
http://www.1888message.org/sabbathschool/

How God shows He cares

You have read in the Bible how God takes cares of everything if you trust Him. If you believe He will provide for everything, and if you pray then He will answer. You share this with some friends, and to your surprise, there is disbelief. You are amazed, because, you know they read the same scripture you do, and perhaps even the same translation. To your puzzled _expression, comes the reply, “God gave you a brain so you could use it,” or “How do you know it is the voice of God,” or “God has more important things to worry about.” Some go as far as to say, “God does not intervene in the affairs of men.” Yet, Daniel 2 shows me differently.

Daniel 2 shows me that the attitude of these nay-sayers is not new. If anything, it is an age old attitude arising from the fall of Adam and Eve. The question was put to Eve in a subtle manner, suggesting doubt in the form of, did God really say thus and thus...? So the tendency to doubt and distrust is not new, not for the followers of God, (and certainly not for those who follow lesser gods). Indeed, this is the human condition. From Genesis through Revelation, we can find numerous instances of doubt, and distrust of God's love and care for us. So, we should not be surprised, when specifically in Daniel 2, we see the wise men of the court, intimating the same thing, namely, that God is far away, and cannot be bothered with trivial things, such as the meaning of a dream. In fact, their response to King Nebuchadnezzar's command to reveal his dream and its interpretation is:

Daniel 2:11 "And it is a rare thing that the king requireth, and there is none other that can shew it before the king, except the gods, whose dwelling is not with flesh."

To these wise men, the gods did not live among their creation, instead, he remained afar off--perhaps disinterested. We wonder, how can Christians -- those who know and love God, have the same belief system as those who make no profession? How is this possible? It's certainly understandable that a new follower of Christ could have questions about the nearness of God to us. But how can we? Through the various authors of the scriptures, God has described how the enemy has clouded our minds so that we cannot discern God's personal love and care for us. Yet, many behave as if God intended for us go out on our own -- become independent thinking -- once we are of age. Although many think this way, a different picture presented in the scripture. And, that picture is crucial to understanding the Gospel message and prophecy.

The accurate and true picture of God, is that He is so interested in us that He even knows the amount of hair we have -- or in some cases, no longer have, on our heads (Matthew 10:30). He states, "Behold, I have engraven thee on the palms of My hands; thy walls are continually before Me" (Isaiah 49:16). Here God is telling us that He knows all about us, and that like a precious jewel with an engraved message of love from the beloved, He has engraved our names on His hands-- we are never forgotten. God also says that He has searched and known us, that our thoughts are continually before Him, that He is before, behind (and in) us, and even laid His hand upon us. Through the psalmist, David, God continues by saying that He knew us when as yet we were not made, when we were unperfected (in the womb), and that in His book all was written, even when there was none (Psalms 139:1-5, 15, 16). How much more of an intimate knowledge could God have concerning us. And, the whole worship service -- yes, the plan of salvation is one long story of God initiating a relationship with us, in hopes that it will be reciprocal.

Looking back to the inception of the 'God with us' experience, we see in Exodus 25:8 & 29:45, God telling Moses: “And let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them. And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will be their God.” Furthermore, in Isaiah 9:6, a child is promised us, and in Matthew 1:21-23, we see His name is not only "Jesus -- who will save us from our sins, but Emmanuel, which is interpreted, God with us." In John 14: 2, 3, Jesus says that although He's going away He wants to be with us, so He's preparing a place for us that where He is, we might be too. Lastly, Paul assures us in 1 Corinthians 2:16, that God’s Spirit dwells in our body-temples. It's amazing how often Christ has told us that He desires intimacy with us. Unfortunately, sometimes we're slow to hear, afraid as were the 'Children of Israel,' who when the Lord spoke, " And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die" (Exodus 20:19; Hebrews 12:19, 20). Thus, another way God shows He cares, is by choosing persons to speak to us in His behalf--that we not be afraid.

So in essence, God dwells among us, through His prophets. The word in Hebrew for prophet is “Nabi.” It may mean: one who is called to men in the name of God, or one who calls to men on behalf of the name of God. (It is also possible to mean: One who calls to God in prayer). A prophet then is the one who not only speaks the words of God, given from God, but gives the message to the audience targeted by God, for His purposes. A prophet is an ambassador. When God sends the prophet somewhere, the Prophet represents Him (See Jonah). The scripture says that prophets "were men of like passions." Although they did not consider themselves more special than others, they did think their relationship with God was special and wished all men could have the same relationship. Prophets were in a continual communication with God -- as was Enoch-- and submitted their will entirely to God -- continuously.

How could you tell if a prophet was from God? According to our lesson, the true prophet's message always focused on God, who inspired or gave the message. True prophecy always reveals God’s glory – which is His character (Exodus 33:18). True prophecy always reveals God’s intention – which is to, 1) save us from Sin and its eternal consequences and, 2) restore us to what we would have been had we never fallen, so that we may enjoy eternity with Him. True prophecy reveals God’s agape – unconditional Love. True prophecy reveals God does care for us. God dwells among us through His Son. “Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:” (Philippians 2:6-7). Indeed, John 1:14 says that He as the Word, became flesh. Romans 8:3 says that He took upon Himself sinful flesh and “was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.” (Hebrews 4:15). Luke 4:1 says that Jesus was filled with the Spirit. And, this is the same Spirit Christ has promised to us if we ask for Him.

Speaking through the prophet Joel, God said:

Joel 2:28 And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions:
Joel 2:29 And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit.

Just as Daniel and Sister White, were imbued with "His Spirit," God will pour His Spirit on us, and give gifts to men. We will all be called to use them to build up His kingdom, thereby demonstrating His character of unconditional love (I Corinthians, chapters 12-14). Are we willing to submit ourselves to His loving Spirit?

--
Raul Diaz & Maria Greaves-Barnes

The Special Insights web page resides at:
http://www.1888message.org/sabbathschool/