"Hands Off Brethren!"

It takes all of eternity to unfold the glories and bring out the precious treasures of the Word of God. Do not let any living man come to you and begin to dissect God's Word, telling what is revelation, what is inspiration and what is not, without a rebuke. Tell all such they simply do not know. They simply are not able to comprehend the things of the mystery of God. What we want is to inspire faith. We want no one to say, "This I will reject, and this will I receive," but we want to have implicit faith in the Bible as a whole and as it is. . .

It takes all of eternity to unfold the glories and bring out the precious treasures of the Word of God. Do not let any living man come to you and begin to dissect God's Word, telling what is revelation, what is inspiration and what is not, without a rebuke. Tell all such they simply do not know. They simply are not able to comprehend the things of the mystery of God. What we want is to inspire faith. We want no one to say, "This I will reject, and this will I receive," but we want to have implicit faith in the Bible as a whole and as it is.

We call on you to take your Bible, but do not put a sacrilegious hand upon it, and say, "That is not inspired," simply because somebody else has said so. Not a jot or tittle is ever to be taken from that Word. Hands off, brethren! Do not touch the ark. Do not lay your hand upon it, but let God move. It is with His own power, and He will work in such a manner that He will compass our salvation. We want God to have some room to work. We do not want man's ideas to bind Him about.

I know something of the glory of the future life. Once a sister wrote to me and asked if I would not tell her something about the city of our God, further than we have in the Word. She asked me if I could not draw something of its plans. I wrote her that I would have to say to her, "Put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground." "No," said I, "you cannot paint, you cannot picture, and the martyr tongue cannot begin to give any description of the glory of the future life; but I will tell you what you can do: you can 'press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.' You can die to self; you can seek to grow up to the perfection of Christian character in Christ Jesus." That is our work; but when men begin to meddle with God's Word, I want to tell them to take their hands off, for they do not know what they are doing. --The SDA Bible Commentary, Ellen G. White Comments, on 2 Tim. 3:16, pp. 919, 920.

July 1971

Download PDF
Ministry Cover

More Articles In This Issue

The Man of the Mountain

The famous sculptor, Gutzon Borglum, discovered Abraham Lincoln, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Theodore Roosevelt concealed in Mount Rushmore in South Dakota. There for more than ten years with hammer and chisel he carved these timeless likenesses that have lured millions of tourists to witness the awe-inspiring sight. . .

Our Work Among the Evolutionists

WHEN humanity is considered from a global perspective it is easily perceived that men are strongly biased creatures thinking, acting, and seeing in accordance with their respective patterns of culture, and apprehensive of that which is foreign in thought, deed, or race. . .

Are You Training Your Laymen?

ADDRESSING the church pastors in 1970, our world president, Robert H. Pierson, stated: "As a minister in the cause of God, your greatest ambition and joy is soul winning, leading lost men and women to Jesus Christ. This is an enormous task and an awesome responsibility. We cannot accomplish it alone. The presence of the Spirit of God is indispensable. . .

What Shall We Preach?

Here are some topics that must be preached in every congregation. . .

Pastor Discusses Questions About Revival

Editorial Note: A local elder wrote asking some searching questions of a pastor concerning revival. This sparked the response on the part of the pastor that we are sharing here, along with the letter.

Building a Fellowship

SO YOU have been asked to serve as elder of the local church! This may be your first year in this responsible position or perhaps you have held it for several years. In either case the anxious question in your heart is: Just what is expected of me and how can I most effectively fulfill those responsibilities?

The Unchanging Christ in a Changing World

THE great glory of our Christian faith is that we are dealing with a living Christ, who is to all His disciples today what He was to those who saw and heard Him nearly twenty centuries ago. His biography is not that of one who has slept for ages in a Judean tomb. It is the biography of an earthly life that is continued in the heavens. . .

The Touchstone of Truth and Value in Religions

IS THERE a touchstone by which all religions may be compared to determine their truth and value? Many have thought there is. Before the modern era, it was common to seek this basis of comparison in the doctrine of God, or of man, or of salvation, or some other central doctrine. . .

The Six Loves of a Ministers Wife (Concluded)

How are we relating ourselves to the church's great task? Are we every day giving ourselves to God to be used in the place where we are to lighten some dark corner?

Be an Evangelist? (Part II)

ANYONE who is working his heart out for a cause must be prepared for criticism. This is true of those in positions of leadership in the work of the church, and it is especially true of the public evangelist. Among the most distressing criticisms are the charges that his "converts don't stick," that "they aren't well indoctrinated," or that "their campaigns are too expensive."

View All Issue Contents

Digital delivery

If you're a print subscriber, we'll complement your print copy of Ministry with an electronic version.

Sign up
Advertisement - SermonView - Medium Rect (300x250)

Recent issues

See All