daniel's blog

To Leadership: "Only A Show"

 We can not deceive God, and it is useless to deceive ourselves or others. "The Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart." 1 Sam. 16:7. The circumcision in which the "false brethren" were seeking to induce the Galatians to trust, meant self-righteousness, instead of righteousness by faith. They had the law only as "the form of righteousness and of truth." With their works they could make "a fair show in the flesh," but it was only an empty show; there was no reality in it.

Are You An Orthodox Squirrel?

AN ORTHODOX SQUIRREL.

MY attention was arrested the other day by what I saw in the window of a little shop. Cages hung from wires and hooks, while their occupants seemed intent upon making the most of their limited space, by leaping from side to side, and from top to bottom. Attracted by an idle curiosity, I entered, and accosted the proprietor.

"Well, my friend, you have quite a show of animals. This is a small menagerie in its way, is it not?”

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Born of God | E. J. Waggoner

THERE are few texts that have been the subject of more anxious inquiry than 1 John 3:9: “Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him; and he cannot sin, because he is born of God." This is made much of by the self-styled “holiness" people, who use it to bolster up their own claims to perfection. They seem to take it for granted that they are specially referred to in the text, and think that all one has to do to be beyond the reach of sin is to profess to be born again.

The God of the Living

“Why is it said that God is not the God of the dead, but of the living, when just before He is declared to be the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob? I believe the text, but should be glad to have it made more plain through the pages of PRESENT TRUTH."

HERE we must learn, as elsewhere, that the answer lies in the text itself. Of course other texts serve to make it plainer; but in every case the very text over which we stumble has within it the way out of the difficulty.

Different Kinds of Righteousness

The Bible recognizes two classes of righteousness. In his sermon on the mount, Christ said to his disciples, and to the multitude, “For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.” Matt. 5:20. The Pharisees were the best people in the Jewish nation, and it may be said, in the world. That is, so far as outward acts were concerned.

True Sabbath Observance | 1888 Essential Reading

When the Jews persecuted Jesus for the good deed done to the impotent man, He justified Himself by saying, “My Father worketh hitherto, and I work.” That was a real justification of His act, for to do that which God does is the most per­fect righteousness. Moreover, the acts of Jesus were not simply copies of what the Father did; if they were, then there would be in them no lessons or help for us, for it would show no connection between Him and frail human beings.