30 June 2021 | The July 3, 2021 ATSS guest will be Hansa (Germany) Conference President Dennis Meier. Reading: An excerpt from “The Most Godless Region of the World: Atheism in East Germany” by Sophie L. Goddyn, St. Mary’s Academy: With a population of 52.1% presently identifying as atheists, East Germany ranks as the most […] Source: https://atoday.org/dennis-meier-adventism-in-the-most-godless-region-of-the-world/
By Their Fruits Ye Shall Know Them
Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit…. Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them. Matthew 7:17-20.
No matter how high his profession, he whose heart is not imbued with love for God and for his fellow-men, is not a disciple of Christ. Though he should possess great faith, and even have power to work miracles, yet without love his faith would be worthless. He might display great liberality, but should he from some other motive than genuine love, bestow all his goods to feed the poor, the act would not commend him to the favor of God. In his zeal he might even meet a martyr’s death, yet if destitute of the gold of love he would be regarded by God as a deluded enthusiast or an ambitious hypocrite.—Testimonies for the Church 5:168,
There is an eloquence far more powerful than the eloquence of words in the quiet, consistent life of a pure, true Christian. What a man is has more influence than what he says…. It is our own character and experience that determine our influence upon others. In order to convince others of the power of Christ’s grace, we must know its power in our own hearts and lives. The gospel we present for the saving of souls must be the gospel by which our own souls are saved. Only through a living faith in Christ as a personal Saviour is it possible to make our influence felt in a skeptical world. If we would draw sinners out of the swift-running current, our own feet must be firmly set upon the Rock, Christ Jesus. The badge of Christianity is not an outward sign, not the wearing of a cross or a crown, but it is that which reveals the union of man with God.—The Ministry of Healing, 469, 470.
With God at Dawn p. 183
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Prayer Requests
—-Please continue to pray for Annie. Pray also for Ronnie Jay as they are wanting him to work on Sabbath this week. Please pray that they will allow him to have God’s holy day off. Rose
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Dear Friends,
Today, I thought I’d share with you one of my favorite passages of Scripture.
“Behold, my servant shall deal prudently, he shall be exalted and extolled, and be very high. As many were astonied at thee; his visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men: So shall he sprinkle many nations; the kings shall shut their mouths at him: for that which had not been told them shall they see; and that which they had not heard shall they consider. Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed? For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him. He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth. He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken. And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth. Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.” Isa 52:13-53:12
Yes, in times of great trial and adversity, we can find comfort in our Dear Saviour’s Sacrifice for us. He, Whom all Heaven adores, left the glories of that perfect land, left the worship of all the unfallen beings in His great universe, left the close fellowship of His Father’s side, and came to this dark and sin-laden planet to live a perfect life in the midst of all of the hatred and trials that the evil one through wicked men could heap upon Him. And if that were not enough, Jesus gave Himself as our Sacrifice for sin by dying the cruelest of deaths, even death upon the cross. In anguish He cried, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” Matt 27:46
Through times when we feel forsaken by God, He is very near. He promises, “As one whom his mother comforteth, so will I comfort you.” “Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine. When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee. For I am the LORD thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour.” Isa 66:13; 43:1-3 Indeed, He is “the God of all comfort; Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God. For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also aboundeth by Christ.” 2 Cor 1:3-5
May we, when the evil one attacks us beyond our strength, cling to the One Who loves us with an everlasting love and find our strenth in Him. (Jer 31:3) May we feel His Loving Arms around us bringing us comfort and peace. May we look forward to the time when “God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain.” Rev 21:4
Rose
Source: Thursday: A Restless Wanderer
Read Genesis 4:1-12. What made Cain “a restless wanderer” (Genesis 4:12) on the earth?
The biblical text does not explicitly state why God respected Abel and his offering but did not “respect” Cain and his offering ( Genesis 4.4-5). But we know why. “Cain came before God with murmuring and infidelity in his heart in regard to the promised sacrifice and the necessity of the sacrificial offerings. His gift expressed no penitence for sin.
Image © John Baker at Goodsalt.com
He felt, as many now feel, that it would be an acknowledgment of weakness to follow the exact plan marked out by God, of trusting his salvation wholly to the atonement of the promised Saviour. He chose the course of self-dependence. He would come in his own merits.” — Ellen G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 72.
When God said that Cain would be “a restless wanderer” on the earth, it wasn’t that God made him that way; rather, that is what happened as the result of his sinful actions and disobedience. Not finding rest in God, Cain discovered that he couldn’t find it any other way, at least not true rest.
The Hebrew word translated as “respected” (Genesis 4:4) could also be rendered “looked closely, considered carefully.” The focus of God’s careful and close-up look is not so much the offering but more the attitude of the offeror. God’s rejection of Cain’s fruit offering is not an arbitrary reaction of a capricious God. Rather, it describes the process of carefully considering and weighing the character, attitudes, and motivations of the one bringing the offering. It is a good example of an investigative judgment.
Read Genesis 4:13-17 and describe Cain’s reaction to God’s judgment.
When we try to run away from God’s presence, we become restless. We try to fill the yearning for divine grace with things, human relationships, or overly busy lives. Cain started to build a dynasty and a city. Both are great achievements and speak of determination and energy, but if it’s a godless dynasty and a rebellious city, it will ultimately amount to nothing.
| Even if we end up suffering the consequences of our sins as we usually do, how can we learn to accept the forgiveness for them offered us through the cross? |
Amen!
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Ezra 3:11
With praise and thanksgiving they sang to the LORD: “He is good; his love toward Israel endures forever.” And all the people gave a great shout of praise to the LORD, because the foundation of the house of the LORD was laid.
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Rest for our Physical and Spiritual Well-Being
As health-conscious Adventists we put a lot of emphasis on what we eat, while rest also plays a vital role in our physical and spiritual well-being. In 1 Kings 19 Elijah is stressed out, feeling like he is all alone in his spiritual battles. Finally he runs away and then prays an unreasonable prayer, asking God to just let him die. (Interestingly, Elijah, the one man who asks to die never gets to die!) God does not chastise Elijah for his foolish prayer. God realizes the reason Elijah is so unreasonable is because he is simply tired. Elijah just needed rest.
Then he lay down and slept under the broom tree. 1 Kings 19:5 NLT
When I became a literature evangelist years ago, we had a meeting with an elderly retired literature evangelist. He shared his wisdom with us, telling us that the cure for a discouraging hard day may simply be a good night’s rest. He claimed a good night’s rest can solve a lot of problems. A while later I had a terrible day at work. It seemed everything was going wrong, and no one was helping me. I came home ready to quit. Early in the evening I was preparing my resignation in my head. Then a thought came to me. Just go to bed. But it’s too early for bed I thought. Again the thought came, just go to bed. Don’t plan anything. Don’t make any decisions. Just go to bed! I decided to listen to myself and though it was mid-evening, well before bedtime, I went ahead and went to bed and got some sleep. The next morning I woke up feeling refreshed and could not even remember why I was so upset the day before.
I am a big believer in getting the appropriate amount of rest for both our physical and spiritual well-being. After all, John realized how closely our spiritual and physical health are both intertwined.
Dear friend, I hope all is well with you and that you are as healthy in body as you are strong in spirit. 3 John 1:2 NLT
Most of us live in a society that almost makes being “too busy” a status symbol. We feel pressured to do more and more. Is all that more and more really necessary? Great grandmother did all her laundry on a scrub board and still sat on the front porch and drank lemonade. Today we have washing machines and dryers and all sorts of electronics making work so much easier. So how many of us sit on the front porch and drink lemonade now? Almost none of us. We are busy creating more work. We need to take time to rest like Mary did at the feet of Jesus.
Does God require us to be workaholics?
This is what he requires of you: to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God. Micah 6:8 NLT
Let’s heed the words Jesus told Martha when Martha complained about Mary resting at the feet of Jesus instead of doing more work.
But the Lord said to her, “My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details! There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.” Luke 10:41-42 NLT
While Jesus never condoned idleness, He never condoned being a workaholic either. He tells all His disciples
“Let’s go off by ourselves to a quiet place and rest awhile.” Mark 6:31 NLT
Amen!(0)
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