The Desire of Ages
by Ellen G. White
Chapter 1: "God With Us"
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And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. — John 1:14
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Pacific Press Publ. Assoc. |
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"His name shall be called Immanuel, . . . God
with us." "The light of the knowledge of the glory of God" is
seen "in the face of Jesus Christ." From the days of eternity the
Lord Jesus Christ was one with the Father; He was "the image of God,"
the image of His greatness and majesty, "the outshining of His
glory." It was to manifest this glory that He came to our world. To this
sin-darkened earth He came to reveal the light of God's love,—to be
"God with us." Therefore it was prophesied of Him, "His name
shall be called Immanuel." {DA 19.1}
By coming to dwell with us, Jesus was to reveal God both to
men and to angels. He was the Word of God,—God's thought made
audible. In His prayer for His disciples He says, "I have declared unto
them Thy name,"—"merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and
abundant in goodness and truth,"—"that the love wherewith
Thou hast loved Me may be in them, and I in them." But not alone for His
earthborn children was this revelation given. Our little world is the lesson
book of the universe. God's wonderful purpose of grace, the mystery of
redeeming love, is the theme into which "angels desire to look," and
it will be their study throughout endless ages. Both the redeemed [20]
and the unfallen beings will find in the cross of Christ their science and
their song. It will be seen that the glory shining in the face of Jesus is the
glory of self-sacrificing love. In the light from Calvary it will be seen that
the law of self-renouncing love is the law of life for earth and heaven; that the
love which "seeketh not her own" has its source in the heart of God;
and that in the meek and lowly One is manifested the character of Him who
dwelleth in the light which no man can approach unto. {DA 19.2}
In the beginning, God was revealed in all the works of
creation. It was Christ that spread the heavens, and laid the foundations of
the earth. It was His hand that hung the worlds in space, and fashioned the
flowers of the field. "His strength setteth fast the mountains."
"The sea is His, and He made it." Psalm 65:6; 95:5. It was He that
filled the earth with beauty, and the air with song. And upon all things in
earth, and air, and sky, He wrote the message of the Father's love. {DA 20.1}
Now sin has marred God's perfect work, yet that handwriting
remains. Even now all created things declare the glory of His excellence. There
is nothing, save the selfish heart of man, that lives unto itself. No bird that
cleaves the air, no animal that moves upon the ground, but ministers to some
other life. There is no leaf of the forest, or lowly blade of grass, but has
its ministry. Every tree and shrub and leaf pours forth that element of life
without which neither man nor animal could live; and man and animal, in turn,
minister to the life of tree and shrub and leaf. The flowers breathe fragrance
and unfold their beauty in blessing [21] to the world. The sun
sheds its light to gladden a thousand worlds. The ocean, itself the source of
all our springs and fountains, receives the streams from every land, but takes
to give. The mists ascending from its bosom fall in showers to water the earth,
that it may bring forth and bud. {DA 20.2}
The angels of glory find their joy in giving,—giving
love and tireless watchcare to souls that are fallen and unholy. Heavenly beings
woo the hearts of men; they bring to this dark world light from the courts
above; by gentle and patient ministry they move upon the human spirit, to bring
the lost into a fellowship with Christ which is even closer than they
themselves can know. {DA
21.1}
But turning from all lesser representations, we behold God
in Jesus. Looking unto Jesus we see that it is the glory of our God to give.
"I do nothing of Myself," said Christ; "the living Father hath
sent Me, and I live by the Father." "I seek not Mine own glory,"
but the glory of Him that sent Me. John 8:28; 6:57; 8:50; 7:18. In these words
is set forth the great principle which is the law of life for the universe. All
things Christ received from God, but He took to give. So in the heavenly courts,
in His ministry for all created beings: through the beloved Son, the Father's
life flows out to all; through the Son it returns, in praise and joyous
service, a tide of love, to the great Source of all. And thus through Christ
the circuit of beneficence is complete, representing the character of the great
Giver, the law of life. {DA
21.2}
In heaven itself this law was broken. Sin originated in
self-seeking. Lucifer, the covering cherub, desired to be first in heaven. He
sought to gain control of heavenly beings, to draw them away from their
Creator, and to win their homage to himself. Therefore he misrepresented God, [22]
attributing to Him the desire for self-exaltation. With his own evil
characteristics he sought to invest the loving Creator. Thus he deceived angels.
Thus he deceived men. He led them to doubt the word of God, and to distrust His
goodness. Because God is a God of justice and terrible majesty, Satan caused
them to look upon Him as severe and unforgiving. Thus he drew men to join him
in rebellion against God, and the night of woe settled down upon the world. {DA 21.3}
The earth was dark through misapprehension of God. That the
gloomy shadows might be lightened, that the world might be brought back to God,
Satan's deceptive power was to be broken. This could not be done by force. The
exercise of force is contrary to the principles of God's government; He desires
only the service of love; and love cannot be commanded; it cannot be won by
force or authority. Only by love is love awakened. To know God is to love Him;
His character must be manifested in contrast to the character of Satan. This
work only one Being in all the universe could do. Only He who knew the height
and depth of the love of God could make it known. Upon the world's dark night
the Sun of Righteousness must rise, "with healing in His wings."
Malachi 4:2. {DA 22.1}
The plan for our redemption was not an afterthought, a plan
formulated after the fall of Adam. It was a revelation of "the mystery
which hath been kept in silence through times eternal." Romans 16:25, R.
V. It was an unfolding of the principles that from eternal ages have been the
foundation of God's throne. From the beginning, God and Christ knew of the
apostasy of Satan, and of the fall of man through the deceptive power of the
apostate. God did not ordain that sin should exist, but He foresaw its
existence, and made provision to meet the terrible emergency. So great was His
love for the world, that He covenanted to give His only-begotten Son,
"that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting
life." John 3:16. {DA
22.2}
Lucifer had said, "I will exalt my throne above the
stars of God; . . . I will be like the Most High." Isaiah 14:13,
14. But Christ, "being in the form of God, counted it not a thing to be grasped
to be on an equality with God, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a
servant, being made in the likeness of men." Philippians 2:6, 7, R. V.,
margin. {DA 22.3}
This was a voluntary sacrifice. Jesus might have remained at
the Father's side. He might have retained the glory of heaven, and the homage
of the angels. But He chose to give back the scepter into [23] the
Father's hands, and to step down from the throne of the universe, that He might
bring light to the benighted, and life to the perishing. {DA 22.4}
Nearly two thousand years ago, a voice of mysterious import
was heard in heaven, from the throne of God, "Lo, I come."
"Sacrifice and offering Thou wouldest not, but a body hast Thou prepared
Me. . . . Lo, I come (in the volume of the Book it is written of Me,)
to do Thy will, O God." Hebrews 10:5-7. In these words is announced the
fulfillment of the purpose that had been hidden from eternal ages. Christ was
about to visit our world, and to become incarnate. He says, "A body hast
Thou prepared Me." Had He appeared with the glory that was His with the
Father before the world was, we could not have endured the light of His
presence. That we might behold it and not be destroyed, the manifestation of
His glory was shrouded. His divinity was veiled with humanity,—the
invisible glory in the visible human form. {DA 23.1}
This great purpose had been shadowed forth in types and
symbols. The burning bush, in which Christ appeared to Moses, revealed God. The
symbol chosen for the representation of the Deity was a lowly shrub, that
seemingly had no attractions. This enshrined the Infinite. The all-merciful God
shrouded His glory in a most humble type, that Moses could look upon it and
live. So in the pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night, God
communicated with Israel, revealing to men His will, and imparting to them His
grace. God's glory was subdued, and His majesty veiled, that the weak vision of
finite men might behold it. So Christ was to come in "the body of our
humiliation" (Philippians 3:21, R. V.), "in the likeness of
men." In the eyes of the world He possessed no beauty that they should
desire Him; yet He was the incarnate God, the light of heaven and earth. His
glory was veiled, His greatness and majesty were hidden, that He might draw
near to sorrowful, tempted men. {DA 23.2}
God commanded Moses for Israel, "Let them make Me a
sanctuary; that I may dwell among them" (Exodus 25:8), and He abode in the
sanctuary, in the midst of His people. Through all their weary wandering in the
desert, the symbol of His presence was with them. So Christ set up His
tabernacle in the midst of our human encampment. He pitched His tent by the
side of the tents of men, that He might dwell among us, and make us familiar
with His divine character and life. "The Word became flesh, and
tabernacled among us (and we beheld His glory, glory as of [24] the
Only Begotten from the Father), full of grace and truth." John 1:14, R.
V., margin. {DA 23.3}
Since Jesus came to dwell with us, we know that God is
acquainted with our trials, and sympathizes with our griefs. Every son and
daughter of Adam may understand that our Creator is the friend of sinners. For
in every doctrine of grace, every promise of joy, every deed of love, every
divine attraction presented in the Saviour's life on earth, we see
"God with us." {DA
24.1}
Satan represents God's law of love as a law of selfishness.
He declares that it is impossible for us to obey its precepts. The fall of our
first parents, with all the woe that has resulted, he charges upon the Creator,
leading men to look upon God as the author of sin, and suffering, and death.
Jesus was to unveil this deception. As one of us He was to give an example of
obedience. For this He took upon Himself our nature, and passed through our
experiences. "In all things it behooved Him to be made like unto His
brethren." Hebrews 2:17. If we had to bear anything which Jesus did not
endure, then upon this point Satan would represent the power of God as
insufficient for us. Therefore Jesus was "in all points tempted like as we
are." Hebrews 4:15. He endured every trial to which we are subject. And He
exercised in His own behalf no power that is not freely offered to us. As man,
He met temptation, and overcame in the strength given Him from God. He says,
"I delight to do Thy will, O My God: yea, Thy law is within My
heart." Psalm 40:8. As He went about doing good, and healing all who were
afflicted by Satan, He made plain to men the character of God's law and the
nature of His service. His life testifies that it is possible for us also to
obey the law of God. {DA
24.2}
By His humanity, Christ touched humanity; by His divinity,
He lays hold upon the throne of God. As the Son of man, He gave us an example
of obedience; as the Son of God, He gives us power to obey. It was Christ who
from the bush on Mount Horeb spoke to Moses saying, "I AM THAT I AM.
. . . Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent
me unto you." Exodus 3:14. This was the pledge of Israel's deliverance. So
when He came "in the likeness of men," He declared Himself the I AM.
The Child of Bethlehem, the meek and lowly Saviour, is God "manifest in
the flesh." 1 Timothy 3:16. And to us He says: "I AM the Good
Shepherd." "I AM the living Bread." "I AM the Way, the
Truth, and the Life." "All power is given [25] unto Me
in heaven and in earth." John 10:11; 6:51; 14:6; Matthew 28:18. I AM the
assurance of every promise. I AM; be not afraid. "God with us" is the
surety of our deliverance from sin, the assurance of our power to obey the law
of heaven. {DA 24.3}
In stooping to take upon Himself humanity, Christ revealed a
character the opposite of the character of Satan. But He stepped still lower in
the path of humiliation. "Being found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself,
and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross." Philippians
2:8. As the high priest laid aside his gorgeous pontifical robes, and
officiated in the white linen dress of the common priest, so Christ took the
form of a servant, and offered sacrifice, Himself the priest, Himself the
victim. "He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our
iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him." Isaiah 53:5. {DA 25.1}
Christ was treated as we deserve, that we might be treated as
He deserves. He was condemned for our sins, in which He had no share, that we
might be justified by His righteousness, in which we had no share. He suffered
the death which was ours, that we might receive the life which was His.
"With His stripes we are healed." {DA 25.2}
By His life and His death, Christ has achieved even more
than recovery from the ruin wrought through sin. It was Satan's purpose to
bring about an eternal separation between God and man; but in Christ we become
more closely united to God than if we had never fallen. In taking our nature,
the Saviour has bound Himself to humanity by a tie that is never to be broken.
Through the eternal ages He is linked with us. "God so loved the world,
that He gave His only-begotten Son." John 3:16. He gave Him not only to
bear our sins, and to die as our sacrifice; He gave Him to the fallen race. To
assure us of His immutable counsel of peace, God gave His only-begotten Son to
become one of the human family, forever to retain His human nature. This is the
pledge that God will fulfill His word. "Unto us a child is born,
unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon His
shoulder." God has adopted human nature in the person of His Son, and has
carried the same into the highest heaven. It is the "Son of man" who
shares the throne of the universe. It is the "Son of man" whose name
shall be called, "Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting
Father, The Prince of Peace." Isaiah 9:6. The I AM is the Daysman between
God and humanity, laying His hand upon both. He who is "holy, harmless,
undefiled, separate from sinners," is not ashamed to call us brethren.
Hebrews 7:26; 2:11. In Christ the family of earth and the family of heaven are [26]
bound together. Christ glorified is our brother. Heaven is enshrined in
humanity, and humanity is enfolded in the bosom of Infinite Love. {DA 25.3}
Of His people God says, "They shall be as the stones of
a crown, lifted up as an ensign upon His land. For how great is His goodness,
and how great is His beauty!" Zechariah 9:16, 17. The exaltation of the
redeemed will be an eternal testimony to God's mercy. "In the ages to
come," He will "show the exceeding riches of His grace in His
kindness toward us through Christ Jesus." "To the intent that
. . . unto the principalities and the powers in the heavenly places
might be made known . . . the manifold wisdom of God, according to
the eternal purpose which He purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord." Ephesians
2:7; 3:10, 11, R. V. {DA
26.1}
Through Christ's redeeming work the government of God stands
justified. The Omnipotent One is made known as the God of love. Satan's charges
are refuted, and his character unveiled. Rebellion can never again arise. Sin
can never again enter the universe. Through eternal ages all are secure from
apostasy. By love's self-sacrifice, the inhabitants of earth and heaven are
bound to their Creator in bonds of indissoluble union. {DA 26.2}
The work of redemption will be complete. In the place where
sin abounded, God's grace much more abounds. The earth itself, the very field
that Satan claims as his, is to be not only ransomed but exalted. Our little
world, under the curse of sin the one dark blot in His glorious creation, will
be honored above all other worlds in the universe of God. Here, where the Son
of God tabernacled in humanity; where the King of glory lived and suffered and
died,—here, when He shall make all things new, the tabernacle of God
shall be with men, "and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His
people, and God Himself shall be with them, and be their God." And through
endless ages as the redeemed walk in the light of the Lord, they will praise
Him for His unspeakable Gift,—Immanuel, "God with us." {DA 26.3}
Click here to read the next chapter:
"The Chosen People"
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