“We need to study the revelations of Himself that God has given.” (MH 410)

“The knowledge of God as revealed in Christ is the knowledge that all who are saved must have. It is the knowledge that works transformation of character. This knowledge, received, will re-create the soul in the image of God. It will impart to the whole being a spiritual power that is divine.” (MH 425)

When we approach God with the purpose of studying Him, we should do so with a humble and reverent attitude. We should earnestly ask God to reveal to us what He has purposefully made known through His Word. We should also ask for a clear discernment about which aspects He has revealed, and which ones He has not.

This is not about which portions of the Bible should be studied and which ones not. Everything that is in the Bible is God's revelation to us. Rather, we need discernment in the manner of interpreting Scriptures. We may find ourselves connecting two verses together, thinking they point to one conclusion, but the conclusion to be wrong. There is nothing wrong in the verses themselves, rather with the meaning we put on those verses.

Importance of correct principles

One way of guiding our interpretation of Scriptures in the right direction is by establishing correct principles.

Imagine two geologists—a creationist and an evolutionist—sitting in front of each other, with a piece of rock in front of them. They have the same data: the rock. For both men, the weight of the rock is the same, the chemical composition is the same, the data is the same. However, when they attempt to explain the origins of that rocks, their interpretation will be very different: one may tell you the rock is billions of years old, while the other may tell you it’s only about 4,000 years old.

The data is the same, but the interpretations are different, because their principles are different. Interpretation is based on one’s worldview, or basic principles. That worldview is a choice.

It’s important to make the difference between data and interpretation when it comes to Bible study as well, and to be aware of the principles that determine our choice in interpretation.

Foundational Principles

Two chapters in The Ministry of Healing are dedicated to define the human limits for our understanding of God. These limits are to be accepted by faith, even when we feel capable enough to figure out such things.

This table is a summary of the two chapters:

False ideas about God

Nature is God

God's handiwork in nature is not God Himself in nature. The things of nature are an expression of God's character and power; but we are not to regard nature as God. The artistic skill of human beings produces very beautiful workmanship, things that delight the eye, and these things reveal to us something of the thought of the designer; but the thing made is not the maker. It is not the work, but the workman, that is counted worthy of honor. So while nature is an expression of God's thought, it is not nature, but the God of nature, that is to be exalted. (MH 413.5)

God is in nature

Today there are coming into educational institutions and into the churches everywhere spiritualistic teachings that undermine faith in God and in His word. The theory that God is an essence pervading all nature is received by many who profess to believe the Scriptures; but, however beautifully clothed, this theory is a most dangerous deception. It misrepresents God and is a dishonor to His greatness and majesty. And it surely tends not only to mislead, but to debase men. Darkness is its element, sensuality its sphere. The result of accepting it is separation from God. And to fallen human nature this means ruin. . .

These theories, followed to their logical conclusion, sweep away the whole Christian economy. They do away with the necessity for the atonement and make man his own savior. These theories regarding God make His word of no effect, and those who accept them are in great danger of being led finally to look upon the whole Bible as a fiction. They may regard virtue as better than vice; but, having shut out God from His rightful position of sovereignty, they place their dependence upon human power, which, without God, is worthless. The unaided human will has no real power to resist and overcome evil. The defenses of the soul are broken down. Man has no barrier against sin. When once the restraints of God's word and His Spirit are rejected, we know not to what depths one may sink. (MH 428)

Why are these theories so dangerous? Our lives will be shaped according to our image or perception of God. What we believe affects the way we act, our whole lives. Notice how Ellen White brings words like "debase," "sensuality," "darkness," "no barrier against sin." Pantheism and related theories do away with the realities of sin, heaven, the necessity of the Cross, the inspiration of the Bible, and accountability to a Personal God. By offering a distorted image of God, these theories are able to shape our characters and our lives. Notice how the apostle Paul emphasizes the relationship between man's perception of God and his morality:

Had God desired to be represented as dwelling personally in the things of nature—in the flower, the tree, the spear of grass—would not Christ have spoken of this to His disciples? To take the works of God, and represent them to be God, is a fearful misrepresentation. This misrepresentation of God I was called upon to oppose at the beginning of my work, when the Lord sent me forth to proclaim the message that He should give me to speak. . .

I have seen the results of these fanciful views of God in apostasy, spiritualism, free-lovism. The free-love tendencies of these teachings were so concealed that it was difficult to present them in their real character. Until the Lord presented it to me I knew not what to call it, but I was instructed to call it unholy spiritual love. . .

The theory that He is an essence, pervading everything, is one of Satan's most subtle devices. I warn you to beware of being led to accept theories leading to any such view. I tell you, my brother, that the most spiritual-minded Christians are liable to be deceived by these beautiful, seducing, flattering theories. But in the place of honoring God, these theories, in the minds of those who receive them, bring Him down to a low level, where He is nothingness. (Lt 230, 1903)

The Root Problem

These theories seeks to explain God--what He is and where He is. Those who believe these theories claim that their effect is to bring them closer to God and to a deeper understanding of His love.

We are told that whenever we are tempted to speak of these things, we should keep silence and cling to the solid truth of the Bible, that God is a personal Being.

And all through my life I have had the same errors to meet, though not always in the same form. In Living Temple the assertion is made that God is in the flower, in the leaf, in the sinner. But God does not live in the sinner. The Word declares that He abides only in the hearts of those who love Him and do righteousness. God does not abide in the heart of the sinner; it is the enemy who abides there.

There are some things upon which we must reason, and there are other things that we must not discuss. In regard to God—what He is and where He is—silence is eloquence. When you are tempted to speak of what God is, keep silence, because as surely as you begin to speak of this, you will disparage Him.

Our ministers must be very careful not to enter into controversy in regard to the personality of God. This is a subject that they are not to touch. It is a mystery, and the enemy will surely lead astray those who enter into it. We know that Christ came in person to reveal God to the world. God is a person and Christ is a person. Christ is spoken of in the Word as “the brightness of His Father's glory, and the express image of His person.”

I was forbidden to talk with Dr. Kellogg on this subject, because it is not a subject to be talked about. And I was instructed that certain sentiments in Living Temple were the Alpha of a long list of deceptive theories. (1SAT 343)

These theories brought what is called the "Alpha Crisis" in Adventist history, at the beginning of the 19th century, when Kellogg published a book called the Living Temple. Ellen White warned that certain sentiments in Living Temple where the Alpha of a long list of deceptive theories. She also trembled for the future of the church:

Living Temple contains the Alpha of these theories. The Omega would follow in a little while. I tremble for our people. These beautiful representations are similar to the temptation that the enemy brought to Adam and Eve in Eden. (Ms 46, 1904)

We might think that these theories do not affect us today. In reality, they do affect us to a great degree. They are the reason for the many conflicts of the church on a great variety of issues, doctrinal and practical: methods of evangelism, worship styles, gender issues, family and education, medical work, as well as our views on prayer, inspiration, the sanctuary, tithes, church, and the Godhead, among others.

Things Which are Revealed

His creative and sustaining power

God created everything by the power of the Word.

By the same word, God sustains His creation every single moment:

God is constantly employed in upholding and using as His servants the things that He has made. He works through the laws of nature, using them as His instruments. They are not self-acting. Nature in her work testifies of the intelligent presence and active agency of a Being who moves in all things according to His will. (MH 416)

It is not by inherent power that year by year the earth yields its bounties and continues its march around the sun. The hand of the Infinite One is perpetually at work guiding this planet. It is God's power continually exercised that keeps the earth in position in its rotation. It is God who causes the sun to rise in the heavens. He opens the windows of heaven and gives rain. . . It is not as the result of a mechanism, which, once set in motion, continues its work, that the pulse beats and breath follows breath. In God we live and move and have our being. The beating heart, the throbbing pulse, every nerve and muscle in the living organism, is kept in order and activity by the power of an ever-present God. (MH 416-417)

God communicates with His creation

The Bible shows us God in His high and holy place, not in a state of inactivity, not in silence and solitude, but surrounded by ten thousand times ten thousand and thousands of thousands of holy beings, all waiting to do His will. Through these messengers He is in active communication with every part of His dominion. By His Spirit He is everywhere present. Through the agency of His Spirit and His angels He ministers to the children of men.

Above the distractions of the earth He sits enthroned; all things are open to His divine survey; and from His great and calm eternity He orders that which His providence sees best. (MH 417)

"By His Spirit He is everywhere present. Through the agency of His Spirit and His angels He ministers to the children of men."

In the two chapters from the Ministry of Healing, she talks very little about the Holy Spirit. These two sentences are the clearest and most direct reference that she makes in those two chapters. As we will see a little bit later in this note, Ellen White does not endeavor to explain at this moment the nature of the Holy Spirit, but His work or office. The point that Ellen White is making here is that God communicates and ministers to His creation through two main agencies: the angels and the Holy Spirit.

Most Adventists today believe that the Holy Spirit is a separate Person, distinct from the Father and the Son. Some believe that the Holy Spirit is not a distinct person, that He is ontologically the Father Himself, His eternal presence, or Jesus Christ Himself, His life and presence. Others seek for a middle position, and believe He has a certain degree of individuality, while at the same time He is an extension of the presence of the Father and the Son.

The language used neither sustains these views, nor denies them. The preposition "by" is synonymous with "through." They are both used to indicate "means, agency, or intermediacy" (Merriam-Webster). Webster's 1828 defines "by" this way:

3. Through, or with, denoting the agent, means, instrument or cause; as, 'a city is destroyed by fire; ' 'profit is made by commerce; ' 'to take by force.' This use answers to that of the Latin per, through, denoting a passing, acting, agency, or instrumentality.

You can use a part of yourself as an instrument, or you can also use an object outside of yourself. The preposition "by" gives room to both possibilities. The language that Ellen White used, and the brevity with which she treats the subject, makes it clear that she is not trying to explain the matter at this moment. In other places in her writings, she does dig deeper into the subject, emphasizing our need for the Holy Spirit and how God works in our hearts by this powerful divine agency. Only what is necessary is revealed, so that we can understand how He works in our hearts.

There is a small indication that makes the weight of evidence to lean slightly in one direction. It is the phrase "to be present by." Consider the explanation of this phrase in Webster's 1828 Dictionary:

13. 'To be present by attorney.' In this phrase, by denotes means or instrument; through or in the presence of a substitute.

However, one definition is not sufficient to establish a whole doctrine. In that case, at this point we will leave the matter just as it is, giving everyone the benefit of the doubt.

The point that we should take from here is that God communicates through the agency of the Holy Spirit. In this particular statement, we are not told the nature of the Holy Spirit, only His work.

His Personality

“God saw that a clearer revelation than nature was needed to portray both His personality and His character. He sent His Son into the world to manifest, so far as could be endured by human sight, the nature and the attributes of the invisible God.” (MH 419)

"God is a Spirit; yet He is a personal Being; for so He has revealed Himself." (MH 413.1)

The word "personality" as we use it today has a different meaning than in Ellen White's day. For us it is linked to temperament, the qualities of one's character and way of being. In the 19th century, however, it meant "that which constitutes an individual a distinct person, or that which constitutes individuality" (Webster's 1828).

What constitutes personality?

• Appearance: Daniel described Him as the Ancient of Days. He has arms with which He embraced the Son at His ascension.
• Location: The Bible teaches that God dwells in Heaven, which is a literal place, and that He sits on a literal throne.
• Capacity to experience time: God is able to think, feel, and act like a person. He held councils with His Son, and struggled to give Him up to die for the world. He feels the pain of people who reject Him, and the joy over one sinner that repents. He enjoys communion, even though He already knows everything from beginning to end. God is not an indefinite, motionless, insensitive spirit, but "He is a personal Being; for so He has revealed Himself." (MH 413.1)

The personality of God played a crucial role in the formation of Adventist doctrine, especially the doctrine of the sanctuary. This was one of the points that the pioneers studied and departed from the generally accepted view in Protestantism that God was a mysterious power or energy, "without body, parts, passions, centre, circumference, or locality" (D.W. Hull, Review & Herald, Nov. 10, 1859). For more information, read note on the Personality of God.

His character

This is probably the revealed truth which has the most direct bearing on our salvation and restoration to God's image:

The knowledge that we should seek is a better understanding of His character and of His will for our lives:

The Lord God with whom we have to do expects those for whom He has done so much to search for His way, and pray to know His will. He desires that they shall be faithful to the light that He gives in His Word, and regulate their spirit and disposition and character after the infallible standard of His declared will. . . Every one who will have perfect trust in God will do this. God inspires the desire, the devotion, the fervor, of the soul to cry out after the revealing of Himself, that man may behold just as far as finite beings can, the unveiling of His power and glory in the perfection of His character. . . As our knowledge of God increases, we shall have a more perfect estimate of self. We shall realize the weakness and ignorance of humanity, and will long with intense longing to overcome every defect in our characters, that sin may not dwell in our mortal bodies. Then there will be an intense hungering and thirsting after righteousness and true holiness of heart. This is how Enoch walked with God. He studied the character of God to a purpose. He did not set up his own finite will to carry things his way, but he studied to assimilate himself to the divine likeness. (Ms 127, 1897)

The relation between the Father and the Son

"The Scriptures clearly indicate the relation between God and Christ, and they bring to view as clearly the personality and individuality of each. [Hebrews 11:1-5 quoted]. The personality of the Father and the Son, also the unity that exists between Them, are presented in the seventeenth chapter of John, in the prayer of Christ for His disciples: [John 17:20,21 quoted]. The unity that exists between Christ and His disciples does not destroy the personality of either. They are one in purpose, in mind, in character, but not in person. It is thus that God and Christ are one. (MH 421, 422)

The relation between God and Christ has two essential characteristics: individuality and unity.

Christ the Word, the Only Begotten of God, was one with the eternal Father,—one in nature, in character, and in purpose,—the only being in all the universe that could enter into all the counsels and purposes of God. By Christ the Father wrought in the creation of all heavenly beings. “By Him were all things created, that are in heaven, ... whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers” (Colossians 1:16); and to Christ, equally with the Father, all heaven gave allegiance. (GC 493.1)

The love of God was Christ's theme when speaking of his mission and his work. . . This is a love the depth of which no sounding can ever fathom. As the disciples comprehended it, as their perception took hold of God's divine compassion, they realized that there is a sense in which the sufferings of the Son were the sufferings of the Father. From eternity there was a complete unity between the Father and the Son. They were two, yet little short of being identical; two in individuality, yet one in spirit, and heart, and character. (YI December 16, 1897, par. 5)

See also: I and My Father are One.

Things Which are Not Revealed

Most of chapter 36 is dedicated to the dangers of treading on forbidden ground.

“The secret things belong unto the Lord our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children forever.” Deuteronomy 29:29. The revelation of Himself that God has given in His word is for our study. This we may seek to understand. But beyond this we are not to penetrate. The highest intellect may tax itself until it is wearied out in conjectures regarding the nature of God, but the effort will be fruitless. This problem has not been given us to solve. No human mind can comprehend God. None are to indulge in speculation regarding His nature. Here silence is eloquence. The Omniscient One is above discussion.

Even the angels were not permitted to share the counsels between the Father and the Son when the plan of salvation was laid. And human beings are not to intrude into the secrets of the Most High. We are as ignorant of God as little children; but, as little children, we may love and obey Him. Instead of speculating in regard to His nature or His prerogatives, let us give heed to the words He has spoken… (MH 429, 430)

She continues by mentioning stories like Job, Uzzah, Jacob and the ladder, the tabernacle in the wilderness, the Day of Atonement, and then she solemnly states that none should “seek with presumptuous hand to lift the veil that conceals His glory,” “for to lift the veil that conceals the divine presence is death” (p. 438).

This is strong language! A right understanding of what “God’s nature” is referring to would correctly set the limits to our study, reveal the Biblical “safety zones,” remove undue fear from our minds, and most importantly, hinder us from committing a fatal mistake in our interpretation of Scripture. The language used clearly show that this is a salvational issue.

God's nature

We are not to speculate in regard to God's nature or His prerogatives.

The meaning of the term “nature” can be quite vague for most people. Let's turn to the 1828 Webster’s Dictionary for a bit of clarification.

And regarding the word “prerogative,” this is the definition from the same dictionary:

According to the above definitions, “God’s nature” refers to three definite aspects:

1. The cause for His existence, that is, His origin or birth (definitions 2 and 12)
2. That which constitutes Him as a Being; what He is made of (definitions 3 and 6)
3. His appearance (definition 7)

His "prerogatives" are the exclusive and peculiar privileges that belong solely to God. His creative power, His omnipotence (that He is all-powerful), omniscience (that He is all-knowing) and omnipresence (that He is present everywhere).

Let us read a few paragraphs which help us understand the limits which God has placed on human understanding, and where our focus should be instead:

We need more to be shut in the audience with God. There is need of guarding our own thoughts. We are surely living amid the perils of the last days. We must walk before God meekly, with deep humility, for it is only such that will be exalted.

O how little man can comprehend the perfection of God, His Omnipresence united with His almighty power. A human artist receives his intelligence from God. He can only fashion his work in any line to perfection from materials already prepared for his work. In his finite power he could not create and make his materials to serve his purpose if the Great Designer had not been before him, giving him the very improvements first in his imagination.

The Lord God commands things into being. He was the first Designer. He is not dependent on man, but graciously invites man’s attention, and co-operates with him. . .

When will Christians know and have a better understanding of God? God says, “I AM THAT I AM,” the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity. “Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God.” “I am the Lord, I change not.” With Him is no variableness neither shadow of turning.

The Lord God with whom we have to do expects those for whom He has done so much to search for His way, and pray to know His will. He desires that they shall be faithful to the light that He gives in His Word, and regulate their spirit and disposition and character after the infallible standard of His declared will. Through high and exalted waiting and watching, ever looking to the One infinite in wisdom, man may render effectual enlightenment to the understanding.

Every one who will have perfect trust in God will do this. God inspires the desire, the devotion, the fervor, of the soul to cry out after the revealing of Himself, that man may behold just as far as finite beings can, the unveiling of His power and glory in the perfection of His character. This will inspire them to say, “Great and marvelous are thy works, Lord God Almighty: just and true are thy ways, thou king of saints; who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name.”

As our knowledge of God increases, we shall have a more perfect estimate of self. We shall realize the weakness and ignorance of humanity, and will long with intense longing to overcome every defect in our characters, that sin may not dwell in our mortal bodies. Then there will be an intense hungering and thirsting after righteousness and true holiness of heart. This is how Enoch walked with God. He studied the character of God to a purpose. He did not set up his own finite will to carry things his way, but he studied to assimilate himself to the divine likeness. . .

O what deficiencies there are in our conversation. How little we talk of God in sanctified, holy strains. How we mingle the common and earthly and sensual with the sacred. God does not receive the pure incense of praise and thanksgiving from the lips and voices entrusted to man for His name’s glory. The fragrance of heaven is not manifested in words or deportment or actions as it should be. God is a spirit, and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth and in the beauty of holiness. 12LtMs, Ms 127, 1897, par. 13

The Lord calls upon us. Shall we hear what He says? “For who hath stood in the counsel of the Lord, and hath perceived and heard His word? who hath marked his word, and heard it? ... But if they had stood in my counsel, and had caused my people to hear my words, then they should have turned them from their evil ways, and from the evil of their doings. Am I a God at hand, saith the Lord, and not a God afar off? Can any hide himself in secret places, that I shall not see him? saith the Lord. Do not I fill heaven and earth? saith the Lord.” 12LtMs, Ms 127, 1897, par. 14

I am afraid we have altogether too cheap and common ideas. “Behold the heaven of heavens cannot contain thee.” Let not any one venture to limit the power of the Holy One of Israel. There are conjectures and questions in regard to God’s work. Take off thy shoes from off thy feet; for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground. Yes, angels are the ministers of God upon the earth, doing His will. (Ms 127, 1897, par. 5-15)

There are many conversations among Christians today which should never take place. Questions regarding God's omnipresence and His nature, the mysteries regarding why, how, when, and where of His existence, are not given us to solve.

In the manuscript just quoted, Ellen White clearly states that our focus should be His character and His will for us, not the mysteries regarding His omnipresence.

God’s Word and His works contain the knowledge of Himself that He has seen fit to reveal to us. We may understand the revelation that He has thus given of Himself. But it is with fear and trembling, and with a sense of our own sinfulness, that we are to take up this study, not with a desire to try to explain God, but with a desire to gain that knowledge which will enable us to serve Him more acceptably. Let no one venture to explain God. Human beings cannot explain themselves, and how, then, dare they venture to explain the Omniscient One? Satan stands ready to give such ones false conceptions of God.

To the curious I bear the message that God has instructed me not to frame answers to the questions of those who enquire, in regard to the things that have not been revealed. The things that are revealed belong unto us and to our children. Beyond this, human beings are not to attempt to go. We are not to attempt to explain that which God has not revealed. We are to study the revelation that Christ, the great Teacher, has given of the character of God, that in spirit and word and act we may represent Him to those who know Him not.

In regard to the personality and prerogatives of God, where He is and what He is, this is a subject which we are not to dare to touch. On this theme silence is eloquence. It is those who have no experimental knowledge of God who venture to speculate in regard to Him. Did they know more of Him, they would have less to say about what He is. The one who in the daily life holds closest communion with God, and who has the deepest knowledge of Him, realizes most keenly the utter inability of human beings to explain the Creator.

Let men beware how they seek to look into the mysteries of The Most High. As the ark of the Lord was being taken from the land of the Philistines into Canaan, the men of Bethshemesh, curious to know what made the ark so powerful, ventured to look into it. And God “smote of the men of Bethshemesh, because they had looked into the ark of Jehovah, He smote of the people seventy men, and fifty thousand men: and the people mourned, because Jehovah had smitten the people with a great slaughter. And the men of Bethshemesh said, Who is able to stand before Jehovah, this holy God?” [1 Samuel 6:19, 20.] (Ms 132, 1903)

The Nature of the Holy Spirit

One of the subjects which Ellen White specifically mentions as not revealed, is the nature of the Holy Spirit.

It is not essential for us to be able to define just what the Holy Spirit is. Christ tells us that the Spirit is the Comforter, “the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father.” It is plainly declared regarding the Holy Spirit that, in His work of guiding men into all truth, “He shall not speak of Himself.” John 15:26; 16:13.

The nature of the Holy Spirit is a mystery. Men cannot explain it, because the Lord has not revealed it to them. Men having fanciful views may bring together passages of Scripture and put a human construction on them, but the acceptance of these views will not strengthen the church. Regarding such mysteries, which are too deep for human understanding, silence is golden.

The office of the Holy Spirit is distinctly specified in the words of Christ: “When He is come, He will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment.” John 16:8. It is the Holy Spirit that convicts of sin. If the sinner responds to the quickening influence of the Spirit, he will be brought to repentance and aroused to the importance of obeying the divine requirements. (AA 51, 52)

This gives us an important principle to interpret Scriptures. "Men having fanciful views may bring together passages of Scripture and put a human construction on them." If we bring several texts together and the conclusion is an explanation of the nature of the Holy Spirit, then it is simply the wrong combination of texts. The links and connections that these people may present are not the message God intended to convey through those texts.

Throughout the history of the church, Ellen White warned of the danger of piling up "masses of Scriptures" and giving them a wrong interpretation (See Ms 59, 1905).

The nature of the Holy Spirit has not been revealed to us. What is revealed is His office, or His work. This should be our focus.

Throughout all of Ellen White's writings, you will notice that whenever she talks about the presence and indwelling of the Holy Spirit, or the presence and the indwelling of Christ, she refers to the way the divine presence works on the thoughts and character of man. She never attempts to explain the indwelling of the Spirit from an ontological or physical perspective. See Indwelling of Christ and the Holy Spirit.

Waggoner's remarks are appropriate in this context:

There is one question, which has been much controverted in the theological world upon which we have never presumed to enter. It is that of the personality of the Spirit of God. Prevailing ideas of person are very diverse, often crude, and the word is differently understood; so that unity of opinion on this point cannot be expected until all shall be able to define precisely what they mean by the word, or until all shall agree upon one particular sense in which the word shall be used. But as this agreement does not exist, it seems that a discussion of the subject cannot be profitable, especially as it is not a question of direct revelation. We have a right to be positive in our faith and our statements only when the words of Scripture are so direct as to bring the subject within the range of positive proof.

We are not only willing but anxious to leave it just where the word of God leaves it. From it we learn that the Spirit of God is that awful and mysterious power which proceeds from the throne of the universe, and which is the efficient actor of the work of creation and of redemption. (J. H. Waggoner, The Spirit of God, p. 8)

Blending of divinity and humanity

There are certain aspects about the Incarnation that we will never be able to explain.

Bro. Baker, avoid every question in relation to the humanity of Christ, which is liable to be misunderstood. Truth lies close to the track of presumption. . . It is a mystery that is left unexplained to mortals that Christ could be tempted in all points like as we are, and yet be without sin. The incarnation of Christ has ever been, and will ever remain, a mystery. That which is revealed is for us and for our children, but let every human being be warned from the ground of making Christ altogether human, such an one as ourselves, for it cannot be. The exact time when humanity blended with divinity, it is not necessary for us to know. We are to keep our feet on the Rock, Christ Jesus, as God revealed in humanity. (Lt 8, 1895)

But although Christ's divine glory was for a time veiled and eclipsed by His assuming humanity, yet He did not cease to be God when He became man. The human did not take the place of the divine, nor the divine of the human. This is the mystery of godliness. The two expressions human and divine were, in Christ, closely and inseparably one, and yet they had a distinct individuality. Though Christ humbled Himself to become man, the Godhead was still His own. (ST May 10, 1899, par. 11)

Unity between Father and Son

Another clear truth presented in the Scriptures is the unity between the Father and the Son.

The Lord Jesus Christ, the divine Son of God, existed from eternity, a distinct person, yet one with the Father. . . There are light and glory in the truth that Christ was one with the Father before the foundation of the world was laid. This is the light shining in a dark place, making it resplendent with divine, original glory. This truth, infinitely mysterious in itself, explains other mysterious and otherwise unexplainable truths, while it is enshrined in light, unapproachable and incomprehensible. (RH April 5, 1906)

How did the Father and the Son become one? It is not revealed to us. We are presented with the fact that they are one, and this is the farthest we can go. We believe it, we rejoice in it, but we cannot comprehend it.

The love existing between the Father and His Son cannot be portrayed. It is measureless. In Christ God saw the beauty and perfection of excellence that dwells in Himself. Wonder, O heavens, and be astonished, O earth; for God spared not His own Son, but gave Him up to be made sin for us, that those who believe may be made the righteousness of God in Him. “God commendeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”

Language is too feeble for us to attempt to portray the love of God. We believe it, we rejoice in it, but we cannot comprehend it. (Ms 31, 1911, par. 30-31)

The mightiest human being, whatever may be his claim, is not infinite. He can not understand infinity. Christ plainly stated, “No man knoweth the Father but the Son.” A teacher was once endeavoring to present the exaltation of God, when a voice was heard saying, “We can not as yet understand who He is.” The teacher nobly replied, “Were I able fully to set forth God, I should either be a god myself, or God Himself would cease to be God.” The mightiest created intellect can not comprehend God; words from the most eloquent tongue fail to describe Him; in His presence silence is eloquence. ST June 28, 1899, par. 7

Christ represented the Father to the world, and He represents before God the chosen ones in whom He has restored the moral image of God. They are His heritage. To them He says, “He that hath seen Me hath seen the Father.” No man “knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, but the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal Him.” No priest, no religionist, can reveal the Father to any son or daughter of Adam. Men have only one Advocate, one Intercessor, who is able to pardon transgression. Shall not our hearts swell with gratitude to Him who gave Jesus to be the propitiation for our sins? Think deeply upon the love that the Father has manifested in our behalf, the love that He has expressed for us. We can not measure this love; for measurement there is none. Can we measure infinity? We can only point to Calvary, to the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. (ST June 28, 1899)

We cannot understand infinity. We can only point back to the rainbow of the covenant, encircling the Father and the Son in planning for the salvation of man.

The Nature of the Son

Inspiration makes clear that the Son has the attribute of infinity.

Christ is equal with God, infinite and omnipotent. (YI June 21, 1900)

The Son of man alone must be lifted up; for only an infinite nature could undertake the redemptive process. (ST March 5, 1896, par. 6)

The Lord Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of the Father, is truly God in infinity, but not in personality. (Ms 116, 1905)

Because of this attribute, the same rule applies to Him: we cannot explain God's nature. It has not been revealed to us.

Was the Son "birthed" or "begotten" in a literal, ontological sense? We cannot know. We are not told, and it has not been revealed. In fact, the term begotten refers to the covenant, which is the correct limit in our study of God (For a full exposition of the term "begotten", read Sonship of Christ in Proverbs 8, Sonship of Christ in Hebrews 1, Sonship of Christ in Psalm 2).

The Problem of Christ's Beginning

Sadly, the Jews in the time of Christ, and the church fathers of the early Christian church, sought to explain God's nature. The church Fathers wanted to explain how Christ was ontologically begotten of the Father in eternity past. Christ was the Word, which existed in the mind of the Father, and at one point in eternity past, God spoke the Word and it came into being. This seemed to reconcile the two seemingly contradictory notions that Christ was both eternal and had a beginning.

They thought they had found the perfect explanation. It did not lessen Christ's divinity; Christ inherited divine nature just like "fire kindles fire." Justin Martyr wrote:

“I shall give you another testimony, my friends,” said I, “from the Scriptures, that God begat before all creatures a Beginning, [who was] a certain rational power [proceeding] from Himself. . . He was begotten of the Father by an act of will; just as we see happening among ourselves: for when we give out some word, we beget the word; yet not by abscission, so as to lessen the word [which remains] in us, when we give it out: and just as we see also happening in the case of a fire, which is not lessened when it has kindled [another], but remains the same; and that which has been kindled by it likewise appears to exist by itself, not diminishing that from which it was kindled. (Ante-Nicene Fathers, 1:227)

This concept is also found in the Nicene Creed, although wrapped in language that is less obvious.

". . .one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all worlds; God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God; begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made."

This is a core belief of the Roman Catholic Church:

"From all eternity the Father begets the Son, and the Son proceeds from the Father. The Father and Son breathe forth the Holy Ghost, and He proceeds from Them, as from one Source." (Louis Laravoire Morrow, Bishop of Krishnagar, One God in Three Persons, My Catholic Faith: a Manual of Religion, p. 30)

Influenced by Greek philosophy, the church fathers gave birth to many other complex ideas which had no Biblical basis. Among these are found the ideas that God has no body or shape, that Christ is "eternally begotten," and that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are mysteriously one and the same being.