Amen, Brother Beacon and Brother Richard!
The simplicity of the gospel is so profound that we are liable to undervalue it. Beholding the love of God in Christ, our hearts are drawn to Him. As we surrender to His wooing, humble love that awakens affectionate obedience in our hearts to Him who first loved us, the life we live takes on new significance and purpose because all of the fruits of the Spirit without one missing are seen in the life that God directs in His path of selfless service. This is the beginning of life eternal and will only deepen throughout the ceaseless ages of eternity. Spend time with Jesus. It really matters. He really matters. All else in life without Him is "vanity of vanities" (Ecclesiastes 1:2), as Solomon sorrowfully learned. That is what Ecclesiastes is all about.
"From the joy of divine communion, Solomon turned to find satisfaction in the pleasures of sense." {Patriarchs and Prophets, page 76, paragraph 1}
And that is why all of life seemed utterly meaningless. But the very same things Solomon was blessed to do could have been very meaningful had he not lost sight of the purpose of his existence in knowing and loving God and being a true missionary. Solomon could have led by example in marrying a godly Israelite woman and doing all he did with an eye single to the purpose of furthering Israel's mission to win souls by revealing the Lamb of God who was to come. Though he failed in many respects, Solomon did repent. Praise God for second chances with God! He is so merciful!
When we have Jesus abiding in us, we see meaning and purpose in even the simplest life experiences, because we are doing all we do in union and communion with God in Christ by the Holy Spirit. Then the promise is fulfilled: "That your days may be multiplied, and the days of your children, in the land which the LORD sware unto your fathers to give them, as the days of heaven upon the earth" (Deuteronomy 11:21). We can have a veritable heaven in our souls even now by having Jesus abide in us continually, or we can be "wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked" (Revelation 3:17), having only a head knowledge of truth that we do not practice. That is what makes the Laodicean condition so utterly deplorable. Knowing truth that is not practiced with a heart in love with Jesus brings about an unconverted spiritual crisis. But Jesus has provided a RESCUE for each of us if we find ourselves in such a condition! Hear His heart nearly breaking with tears of pity, love, and yearning:
"I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see. As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent. Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear My voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with Me" (Revelation 3:18-20).
And have you ever wondered how to actually get those three remedies (gold tried in the fire, white raiment, and white raiment)? If you know what they actually are, you find them just the way the Israelites experienced healing in the wilderness when they looked to the uplifted serpent that represented the Savior lifted up on the cross. Faith working by love is the gold tried in the fire. "Gold is tried in the fire, that it may be purified from dross; but faith that is purified by trial, is more precious than refined gold." {Our High Calling, page 312, paragraph 2} We also need the white raiment, which is the righteousness of Christ. And the eyesalve is provided by the Holy Spirit in giving us a converted experience with true spiritual discernment. So...here is how we can experience this:
"It would be well for us to spend a thoughtful hour each day in contemplation of the life of Christ. We should take it point by point, and let the imagination grasp each scene, especially the closing ones. As we thus dwell upon His great sacrifice for us, our confidence in Him will be more constant, our love will be quickened, and we shall be more deeply imbued with His spirit. If we would be saved at last, we must learn the lesson of penitence and humiliation at the foot of the cross." {The Desire of Ages, page 83, paragraph 4}
It hard to put into words what life becomes like when we are having this converted experience. It is so healing. The confidence that we have in Christ is another way of saying we have His faith that works by love, helping us in each trial to persevere without a murmur of complaint. As we are more deeply imbued with His Spirit, we have eyesalve to discern His will in each situation so we are enabled to do nothing in any line that will displease God. Abiding in Christ's experience, we reflect His character and the white raiment of spiritual light diffused in and through us is a restoration of what our first parents lost when they sinned, for they were made in the image of God, of whom it is written: "Who coverest thyself with light as with a garment" (Psalm 104:2). So we, too, can be clothed in His light of selfless character--then there is an attractive loveliness about a life that is having this experience, drawing and wooing others so that many more will swell the anthem of praise that we will enjoy forever. Jesus is coming soon. Let Him first abide in you!
