Section 8
Who Says 1
Who Says 2
Who Says 3
Who Says 4
Who Says 5
Who Says 6
Who Says 7
Who Says 8
The Remnant
Praise God, the remnant understands and believes the truth about the Son of God. They know that at some point in eternity, Michael was begotten of His Father, although they have no idea how this took place. It has not been revealed and they are content.
“God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son….” John 3:16.
Did God give His Son to this world, or did a council of three God-Beings make a decision among themselves that One would play the role of a Son to redeem mankind? If so, then redemption is simply an agreement between equals. The deep immeasurable love of a Father giving His Son to the world has nothing to do with it.
Said the prophet, “O that everyone would realize the great love, the self-sacrifice, the benevolence, and the kindness of our heavenly Father, in giving His Son to die for us that we might, if we believe and do His commandments, have a sweet peace, the Father's joy, the Father's love, and unite with Him, heart, soul, mind, and strength, to maintain righteousness and to draw in even lines with Christ.
It is not the sacrifice of Christ only; it is the Father's sacrifice also. The Father, in union and loving sympathy, with His Son, subjected himself to suffer with His Son. He spared not His only begotten Son but freely delivered Him up for us all. This gift of Christ is the crowning truth of God's love, and His Fatherhood, through all time and through eternity. Here is the love of God in His Fatherhood. Let us drink in this love, that we may know by experience what a real, tender, joyful, experience there is in a realization of the Fatherhood of God.” Spalding and Magan p68.
Yes, God had a Son to give…..
When Adam and Eve sinned, sorrow filled heaven as it was realised that man must die. The angels watched the Son approach the exceeding bright light enshrouding the Father’s throne. His face was an expression of sympathy, for He too was sorrowing.
“The host of heaven awaited the result with an intensity of interest that words cannot express. Long continued was that mysterious communing – the counsel of peace – for the fallen sons of men. The plan of salvation had been laid before the creation of the earth… yet it was a struggle, even with the King of the universe to yield up His Son to die for the guilty race.” Patriarchs and Prophets p63.
This is the love of God.
“Said the angel, ‘Think ye that the Father yielded up His dearly beloved Son without a struggle? No, No.’ It was even a struggle with the God of heaven, whether to let guilty man perish, or to give His darling Son to die for them.” Early Writings p127.
The anxiety of the angels was intense while the Son was communing with His Father. “Three times He was shut in by the glorious light about the Father, and the third time He came from the Father we could see His person. His countenance was calm, free from all perplexity and trouble, and shone with a loveliness which words cannot describe.” Early Writings p126.
The angels could not rejoice as Christ opened to them the plan of redemption. “In grief and wonder they listened to His words as He told them how He must descend from heaven’s purity and peace, its joy and glory and immortal life, and come in contact with the degradation of earth, to endure its sorrow, shame, and death.
He was to stand between the sinner and the penalty of sin; yet few would receive Him as the Son of God….
“He must endure anguish of soul, the hiding of His Father’s face, while the guilt of transgression – the weight of the sins of the whole world – should be upon Him….
Christ assured the angels that by His death He would ransom many, and would destroy him who had the power of death. He would recover the kingdom which man had lost by transgression, and the redeemed were to inherit it with Him, and dwell therein forever…” Patriarchs and Prophets p65.66.
“Then joy, inexpressible joy, filled heaven, and the heavenly choir sang a song of praise and adoration… because of the great mercy and condescension of God in yielding up His dearly Beloved to die for a race of rebels.” Early Writings p126.
Do we appreciate the gift of God’s only begotten Son?
Many years later, Abraham was given a difficult test in which he saw Isaac as a ‘type’ or ‘figure’ of God’s promise to sacrifice His dearly beloved Son. In Abraham’s trial, his son was spared, but in God’s trial, His Son must die. Jesus said of the patriarch, “Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it, and was glad.” John 8:56.
“It had been difficult for the angels to grasp the mystery of redemption – to comprehend that the Commander of heaven, the Son of God, must die for guilty man. When the command was given to Abraham to offer up his son, the interest of all heavenly beings was enlisted. With intense earnestness they watched each step in the fulfilment of this command.
When to Isaac’s question, ‘Where is the lamb for a burnt offering?’ Abraham made answer, ‘God will provide Himself a lamb’; and when the father’s hand was stayed as he was about to slay his son, and the ram which God had provided was offered in the place of Isaac – then light was shed upon the mystery of redemption, and even the angels understood more clearly the wonderful provision that God had made for man’s salvation.” Patriarchs and Prophets p155.
Do we understand the plan of redemption?
Jesus asked Peter the question, “Whom say ye that I am?” The disciple answered, “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Matthew 16:15.16 .
“The truth Peter had confessed is the foundation of the believer’s faith. It is that which Christ Himself had declared to be eternal life…. ‘The secret of the Lord is with them that fear Him’, and the fact that Peter discerned the glory of Christ was an evidence that he had been ‘taught of God’…. The church was built upon One against whom the gates of hell could not prevail.” The Desire of Ages p412.413.
God has done everything He could possibly do to help us understand that He had sent His beloved Son to redeem this world, and we have a choice – either we believe the Word of God or we reject it.
“For God so loved the world….”
How much love did God have for this world? Was it a committee agreement, or did He send His only begotten Son?
Beloved, this is the love of God.
“In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us, and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world.
Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in Him, and he in God…. Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God….
“Whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world; and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God…” 1 John 4:9.10.14.15. 5:1.4.5.
Do you believe God sent His beloved Son to die for you?
If you know this to be the truth, you have the witness in yourself, for the Spirit of God is within, testifying of the truth. But if you do not believe, is it not true that you are revealing another spirit? “He that believeth not God hath made Him a liar, because he believeth not the record that God gave His Son.” 1 John 5:10.
Are you prepared to call God a liar?
We are counselled to test the spirits by the Scriptures “because many false prophets are gone out into the world.” 1 John 4:1.
“Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God… Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God, and every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God; and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.” 1 John 4:1-3.
Remember that Satan is determined to undermine the truth about God’s Son. He has hated Him from the moment envy began to stir in his heart over His superiority. That jealousy has now grown into a vengeance that will not be denied.
If we are not worshipping Jesus Christ as the only begotten Son of God, who are we worshipping?
Satan’s greatest deception is to deceive Christians into believing that Jesus is not the Son of God. He has won the heathen world long ago, and sadly Christendom has also fallen for his trap. His target is now the remnant – the seed of the woman – those who keep the commandments of God and have the faith of Jesus.
Will he deceive you?
“Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist that denieth the Father and the Son. Whosoever denieth the Son, the same hath not the Father…. Hereby know ye the Spirit of God…. Every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God; and this is the spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come, and even now already is it in the world.” 1 John 2:22.23, 4:2.3. (This is not simply a confession of Jesus as a man; even Jews and Spiritists believe there was a Jesus in the flesh)
If you and I have the spirit of antichrist, no matter how strongly we urge our case, we have sided with the Man of Sin. In the end, this Antichrist power will win the world to its side for, “All that dwell upon the earth shall worship him.” Revelation 13:8.
And Satan will be gloating.
Remember his boastful words, “I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God…. I will be like the most High.” Isaiah 14:13.14.
At that time, Satan will have fulfilled his longing desire for supremacy and worship, for “they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast… the great dragon… that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan.” Revelation 13:4. 12:9.
The crowning act in this great deception will be when Satan impersonates Christ Himself.
“In different parts of the earth, Satan will manifest himself among men as a majestic being of dazzling brightness, resembling the description of the Son of God given by John in the Revelation. Revelation 1:13-15.
The glory that surrounds him is unsurpassed by anything that mortal eyes have yet beheld. The shout of triumph rings out upon the air:
‘Christ has come! Christ has come!’
“The people prostrate themselves in adoration before him, while he lifts up his hands and pronounces a blessing upon them, as Christ blessed His disciples when He was upon the earth. His voice is soft and subdued, yet full of melody. In gentle, compassionate tones he presents some of the same gracious, heavenly truths which the Saviour uttered; he heals the diseases of the people, and then, in his assumed character of Christ, he claims to have changed the Sabbath to Sunday, and commands all to hallow the day which he has blessed. He declares that those who persist in keeping holy the seventh day are blaspheming his name by refusing to listen to his angels sent to them with light and truth. This is the strong, almost overmastering delusion.” The Great Controversy p624.
Will the remnant people be deceived?
No, for they know their God. “This is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom He hath sent.” John 17:3.
Who says God has a Son?
The Remnant
Who Says God has No Son?