September 14–20

This weekly feature is dedicated to Adventists who are looking for biblical insights into the topics discussed in the Sabbath School lesson quarterly. We post articles which address each lesson as presented in the Sabbath School Bible Study Guide, including biblical commentary on them. We hope you find this material helpful and that you will come to know Jesus and His revelation of Himself in His word in profound biblical ways.

 

Week 12: “To Love Mercy”

This week’s lesson has a good introudction. And it’s very good to see all three persons of the Godhead mentioned as working in and through us instead of adding Jesus as an afterthought or as a person of lesser importance. 

The way that the three persons of the Godhead are mentioned, and the role that each plays in our salvation and our living it out in our lives sounds theologically sound on the surface. 

If one knows anything about the Adventist idea of three separate “persons” that together make up what we call God, however, then you can see the underlying tri-theism that is based on the early Adventist leaders’ errors that included the Arian view that Jesus was elevated to become God, but started out as less than God.

These errors Adventists are unable to now renounce because that would attack the very foundation of the inspiration of EGW who established this idea as the right one. Even though she later drifted into a more orthodox understanding, she never admitted her former error or denounced its lies.

 

Kingdom Priorities

We find here a good balance of “obey God and obey man”. Also, the author makes good use of Jesus’ command to “render to Caesar” which is recorded in Matthew, Mark and Luke.

That, combined with Jesus’ admonition in Matthew 6 about not having anxiety because God knows our needs, is used accurately in showing how trusting God with our money changes our priorities away from ourselves and onto others. When we trust God to supply our needs, we are free to focus on others and their needs.

 

Compassion Fatigue

In this section, there are good, practical instructions and ideas for making a difference for those who are suffering or in need and handling “compassion fatigue”.

The four sections where this is discussed are Compassion, Education, Prayer, and Expectations, and again the author uses good explanations and applications for practically using these resources.

 

Generosity

Here is another section that makes excellent use of Biblical admonitions to be generous and to help those in need.

This idea perfectly agrees with Jesus’ command to love one another recorded in John 13:35. Living out that love includes helping those in need.

 

Peacemaking

This week’s lesson was going so well, but then we get to this section and read this statement:

“At the heart of the gospel of Jesus is God’s gracious and grand act of peacemaking, reconciling sinful human beings to their Creator.” 

Without an understanding of Adventist theology and its lack of understanding of the human soul which is born dead in sin, this seems to be a good statement. But the gospel is about so much more than just “peacemaking” between sinful man and God. It is about making our dead spirits alive in Him.

So, the lesson is good—as far as it goes; but it could, and should, go a lot farther.

Furthermore, as a result of that “peacemaking”, we are to live out God’s love in our lives and extend that peace to others—not only in sharing the gospel of peace with them—but also living out that peace. Romans 12:18 says it very well: “If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men.”

 

A Voice for the Voiceless

From the lesson:

“Seventh-day Adventists advocate justice for the poor and ‘speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves’ and against those who ‘deprive the poor of their rights’. We participate with God who ‘secures justice for the poor’ (Seventh-day Adventist Official Statement on Global Poverty, June 24, 2010).”

As part of a mission statement, this statement sounds good, even laudable. But, once again, the policy of allowing Adventist hospitals to perform on-demand abortion is clearly a lack of speaking up “for those who cannot speak for themselves”.

Overall, there are good suggestions on just how to live out the gospel in our lives and be at peace with others. Unfortunately, it assumes that the Adventist readers are able to practice the good suggestion in the lesson, but without trusting Jesus and being born again, even these good efforts will fall short and will not be the “works of God”. †