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Expanded Comments |
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| 1 There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: |
Nicodemus – An influential man amongst the Jews, a member of the Sanhedrin, and widely known as a professor of holiness--of full consecration to God--a Pharisee. R4124:3, 2572:3
Above average in piety and considerably impressed with what he had heard respecting the Lord's teachings. NS98:3
His wealth and learning gave him advantages over many of the poor and unlearned, and yet they also brought disadvantages: "How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God." (Luke 18:24) R2572:3
On various occasions he manifested sincerity and considerable faith in our Lord and sympathy with his cause. His sympathy continued, as evidenced by the fact that he requested the privilege of burying our Lord's body. R3485:3
We know not what may have been the end of his course, but we fear that while he was too good to be an opponent of the truth, he had not enough stamina in character to be one of the Lord's disciples. R3485:3
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| 2 The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him. |
The same came – Evidently early in our Lord's ministry. R3485:3
Nicodemus discerned the wide difference between the Jewish hopes of an earthly kingdom and the kind proclaimed by Jesus and his disciples. We may reasonably infer that his queries were along this line. R2572:3; NS100:5
To Jesus – It was his desire for the truth which led him to seek it from the lips of one of no reputation amongst the worldly wise. R2421:2
By night – Semi-secretly. R2572:3
Not necessarily from fear; possibly wisdom guided him, a prudent recognition of the interests of others as well as of his own. Possibly because he might have a better opportunity for private conversation with the Master. R4124:3
No fault for this: during the day our Lord was busy teaching and a visit would have been an interruption; besides, Nicodemus had no right to cast the influence of his presence and office on the side of our Lord until he had in some degree satisfied himself on the subject. R3485:3
Probably because of adverse public sentiment, especially among the Pharisees. He was anxious to solve the mystery, yet apparently ashamed to acknowledge publicly that such claims had any weight upon his mind. A277
Being prominent, so that the common people might not be encouraged thereby, and that the ecclesiastical leaders might not be offended. NS98:3
To protect influence and social standing, as well as possibly with a hope to have a more quiet conversation. R2572:3
He displayed the ignoble element of his disposition by coming privately, secretly, at night, whereas he should have acted up to his convictions fairly, and have come forward to inquire of the Lord, if not in public, at least in daylight and openly. R2421:3
Many Christians of the Nicodemus type have a standing in the nominal church and great respect for the "honor of one another." ( John 5:44) R2421:3
Similarly, there are people today hindered, as was Nicodemus, by their station, education, reputation, etc., from taking a stand for the truth. Their riches and reputation are hindrances to them. NS98:3
And said – Evidently but a small portion of this conference is furnished us, the questions being asked relating to the Kingdom of God, which John the Baptist had declared was at hand, and our Lord declared to be at the door. R2421:6
Rabbi – Or, Teacher. R4124:4
He was very reverential and courteous. R4124:4
Our Lord's strict observance of the Law no doubt made him at first a favorite with the Pharisees. R1459:6
Thou art a teacher – You and your disciples proclaim "The kingdom of heaven is at hand." But you have neither an army, wealth or influence, and to all appearances your claim is a fraud. A277; R837:2
Nicodemus had nobility of mind to discern that Jesus was not an imposter. R2421:2
Come from God – A servant of God, in whom God evidently delighted, as manifested by his miracles. R4124:4
Except God – I am convinced that you are a teacher sent of God, for your miracles attest this. R837:2
My fellow Pharisees regard you as an imposter, but as I said before, I am sure there must be some truth in your teachings, for no man can do these miracles except God be with him. R837:3
Evidently he had been impressed by the teachings and miracles, although not ready to confess him the Messiah. R2572:3
With that much evidence in hand he would have been fully justified in going to our Lord in a public way, acknowledging as much as he saw and asking for further proofs. R3485:6
Evidencing that the Pharisees were blinded by their own willful prejudice beyond that prejudice engendered by the fall. R724:1
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| 3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.
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Except a man – If only those regenerated by the holy Spirit are to be saved, then the entire heathen world and almost the entire bulk of Christendom will be lost. Therefore many prefer not to believe this doctrine. NS99:2
Be born again – Born anew. R4124:5, 2572:6
Therefore a new creature in Christ Jesus, to whom "all things have become new." (2 Cor. 5:17) NS102:1
Regeneration by the holy Spirit is the same thought. NS98:6
The same Greek word gennao is used in referring to both the begetting and the birth. A278; R4125:4, 2573:1, 1445:5; HG366:4; NS100:3
It is our opinion that the translation "born" is correct, except in verses 3 and 7, where we think the significance is begotten. R837:2
Sometimes the translation is dependent upon the nature of the act, whether masculine or feminine. Thus used in connection with ek, signifying from or out of, it should be translated born. A278
In our common translation it is rendered beget, conceive, begotten, as well as born, delivered, bear. R836:6
When God is associated with the matter he is always regarded as of the masculine gender; hence gennao, when used in connection with God, as in this instance, should be always rendered beget or begotten. R837:1
Begetting of the Spirit should be understood wherever the word is used in connection with the present life, while birth of the Spirit should be understood as relating to the future life entered upon by a resurrection. HG366:4
Whenever the word "gennao" is used figuratively respecting the beginning of the word of grace in the heart it should be translated begotten or begetting; and whenever it refers to the completion of this work of grace, in the resurrection, it should be rendered birth or born. NS100:4
Should be rendered begotten, because to introduce the subject of the second birth (resurrection) so abruptly would be unreasonable, while to introduce the new begetting would be highly proper. R837:2
There are two thoughts behind this one word--the thought of begetting, and, after gestation, ultimately birth. R3486:2, 1445:4
Except a man be both begotten and born again he cannot see the Kingdom of God. R1445:5
Not merely the begetting of the Spirit, as at consecration, but also the birth of the Spirit, in resurrection. R2980:4, 3175:1, 1510:5 HG129:3, 145:3
Only one who is begotten of the Spirit can be born of the Spirit, just as birth in the natural life follows only upon begetting. HG132:4; 366:4; NS101:3
Just as there is a begetting of the fleshly being, then the quickening and finally the birth, so also with the spiritual ones. The Christian is first begotten of the Spirit (begotten again--1 Pet. 5:3), then quickened by the Spirit (Rom. 8:11) and then having attained to full development as an embryotic new creature, he will be "born of the Spirit" in the resurrection. Q749:2; NS101:4
To participate in the resurrection to spirit nature we must now be begotten of the holy Spirit, and must then be chastened, developed and fitted for the spirit conditions. NS101:6
As Jesus was begotten of the Spirit at his baptism, so he was born of the Spirit at his resurrection. R1278:4
Beyond all contradiction, the resurrection is a birth. Hence, if conversion is also a birth, a man must be born three times in order to inherit the Kingdom of God. HG63:3
The begetting of this new nature comes only to believers, already justified by faith in the Redeemer. R1510:5
The Master used the natural order or arrangement to represent the spiritual. Q749:2
The word "born" is properly enough used here and in verse 5, and thus we learn that the Lord had reference to the future--to the resurrection birth. R3485:6
A Scriptural use of the word, for we read that our Lord Jesus in his resurrection was the "first-born from the dead." (Col. 1:18) R2573:1, 2422:2, 189:1
Our Lord's resurrection is referred to three other times as a birth from the dead, but our Common Version has beclouded the thought by giving the word begotten instead of born. (Acts 13:33; Heb. 1:5; 5:5) NS101:3
When we present ourselves to God in consecration, and our sacrifice is accepted of him, we die as men; but we are likewise begotten to the new nature. This new life, begotten from above, continues to grow by the assimilation of spiritual nourishment, until it will, in due time, be born a fully developed spirit being, like unto our Lord. R5580:1
For God to interfere with human pro-creation and insert a Platonic "spark of deity" into every babe would make this text meaningless, by implying that man's begetting and God's begetting are simultaneous. R3774:2
Throughout the New Testament, the regeneration of the Church is the topic, because this Gospel age is chiefly intended for the development of the Little Flock. Nevertheless, those of the world who would attain eternal life in the next age must pass through like experiences. The world must be born again, or regenerated--not, however, to spirit nature, but to human nature. NS102:2
Jesus calls the great Millennial age and work regeneration--Greek, palingenesia. This is not the same word rendered "born again," but signifies more nearly restitution, restoration or renovation. R2574:4
Children are not begotten of the spirit unless they accept the privilege at maturity. HG129:4
Cannot see – For flesh and blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of God. (1 Cor. 15:50) T23
Greek, eidon, to know or be acquainted with the Kingdom of God. Translated "consider" in Acts 15:6 and "behold" in Rom. 11:22 and 1
John 3:1, substantiating that Jesus meant that except a man be begotten of the Spirit he cannot know, understand, or be acquainted with the doctrines and facts relative to the spiritual kingdom. R837:3; A278
Your request to have a full understanding regarding the Kingdom of heaven cannot be answered to your satisfaction; not that I do not know about it fully, but, in your present condition, you could not understand it. A278; R837:3
The intimation was that the kingdom would be an invisible kingdom, that none could even see it, except he would be born again. R2421:6
The Kingdom of Heaven would be so different from what he was expecting. The Kingdom of God will be a spiritual one, and all who will be members of it will be spirit beings, as invisible to mankind as are the angels at the present time. NS100:6
As a man cannot see trees, houses and flowers, nor enjoy these, until after being born of the flesh, so likewise no one can either see or enter into the heavenly Kingdom, except he be born of the Spirit. R2572:6
Earthly beings can see earthly beings, but as "no man hath seen God at any time" ( John 1:18), none will be able with the natural eye to see the glorified Church. R3175:1
These born-again ones out of the resurrection alone enter into the Kingdom, alone see the Kingdom. Mankind in general will not see the Kingdom members, the Bridegroom and the Bride, because these will all "be changed." (1Cor. 15:51) HG366:5
Since flesh cannot see, cannot enter into, cannot inherit the Kingdom of God (1 Cor. 15:50), we should not imagine the King himself to be flesh; and the members of his Body, the Church, must be "changed" and be made like him. (1 John 3:2) R1952:6
The Jews restored will be natural men, bearing the image of the earthly, and such can neither see nor inherit the real Kingdom of God. R56:5*
We, the Church of translation, must go up into the great Kingdom--enter into the joys of our Lord and be in his likeness--before we can see as we are seen and know as we are known. The Bride can only be seen from the standpoint of the Kingdom. R113:1
"The glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together." (Isa. 40:5) Yet none but the holy see the King, and none but those born of the spirit--spiritual bodies--can see the Kingdom of God. R153:5
Our Lord would not put a patch upon the Jewish system and call it Christianity, but he established a totally new thing; those who would enter his Kingdom must first be begotten again, and ultimately born again, before they would share it. R2134:2
The kingdom of God – As a student of the Scriptures, he knew to expect the Kingdom. Having confidence in Jesus, he wished to learn particulars respecting the Kingdom. R4124:5
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| 4 Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born? |
How can a man – Such a question was desired by our Lord and gave opportunity for the explanation that the first birth to human nature with a flesh body is a type of a higher spiritual birth to a spiritual nature with a spirit body. R2572:6
Nicodemus had never heard of a spiritual kingdom, and failed totally to realize our Lord's meaning. NS101:1
Be born – Correctly rendered born, as the association is feminine. R837:2
Into his mother's womb – You cannot mean that he must be born again from his mother? R837:4
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| 5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
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Be born – In verses 5, 6 and 8, "born" is undoubtedly the correct translation, because water, flesh, and spirit, are treated as feminine, the literal meaning of the Greek being "born out of water, flesh and spirit." R837:2
Of water – The reform of heart and life. R837:4
No Jew could become a follower of the Lord Jesus and enter into the Kingdom, until first of all he had experienced reformation and been baptized, "born of water"; in addition to this there must be the begetting of the spirit, and then, in the resurrection, the birth to the spirit nature. Q796:4
The reference to water would probably, in the mind of Nicodemus, recall the water baptism for the remission of sins, and as a sign of repentance which John the Baptist and his disciples had been preaching. R4124:6
Associating John's baptism of water unto repentance with the spirit begetting which began at Pentecost. Repentance from sin was essential to the right condition of heart which would prepare a Jew for transfer from the earthly kingdom to the heavenly. R2572:6
The baptism of John the Immerser represented in symbol a change of mind, a beginning of life anew. R837:4
Israel was a consecrated nation, a covenanted people, baptized into Moses in the sea and in the cloud. The baptism of John signified a repentance, and not the new birth. A279; Q796:4
Water may have a fuller significance. We see that symbolical water represents truth, and that our begetting of the holy Spirit is said to be also a begetting "through the Word of truth." (Jas. 1:18) R4124:6, 3600:6, 2422:1
Our regeneration or begetting again of the holy Spirit, and our renewing by it, comes to us in conjunction with the washing or cleansing which is effected to us by the operation of the Truth--the divine message. R4125:1
Symbolized in Israel's Tabernacle service, in which the priests, before entering the Holy and thus typically becoming new creatures, washed at the laver. R4125:1
The Apostle refers to the bath of a new birth, the making new by the holy Spirit. (Titus 3:5) R2422:6
At the laver the new life of the Christian begins. Here the begetting of the Spirit and the Word takes place. It is reckoned as a full birth and symbolized by the rising from the watery grave--the grave of the old carnal nature. R117:5*
The Word does teach water immersion, and all of the Lord's people who discern this teaching would and should be glad to obey it, but we fail to see that the Lord has laid such a stress upon water immersion. R3600:6, 2422:5
The Lord refers here to the true baptism, which is merely symbolized by immersion in water, and the rising out of it. R2422:5
And of the Spirit – Such a change of heart and life, as shown by John's baptism, was necessary, but more is necessary: the still higher begetting and birth of which I am now telling you. R837:4; A279
Repentance will bring you back to a justified condition; in that condition you will be able readily to recognize me as Messiah; and thus consecrating to me, you will be begotten of the Father to a new life and the divine nature. A279
Born from the dead, by the power of God, as a spirit being. R2422:5
From the Spirit. R1189:3
Enter into – In the sense of share, or partake of, as in other cases where the same Greek word is used. The Lord spoke of those who would share in, or be members of the Kingdom or ruling power as royal officers, and not of those millions who should be blessed by the Kingdom, and be under it as subjects, blessed and ruled by it. R837:6
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| 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
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Born of the flesh – All recognize that this expression does not mean merely begotten of the flesh, but a birth into independent flesh-life as a result of the begetting and gestation. R2422:1; NS100:3
As there cannot be any birth of the flesh without first a begetting of the flesh, so there can be no birth of the spirit without first a begetting of the spirit. R4125:3, 2573:1
Is flesh – Human nature. R4793:6
The term flesh as used in the New Testament evidently refers to humanity as a whole, and not to what covers our bones, in common parlance called flesh. R89:2
To be begotten of an earthly father and later to be born of an earthly mother would insure that the progeny would be earthly also. R3486:1
The natural birth of the flesh is a figure or symbol illustrative of a new birth, a spirit birth. R4124:6, 3486:1, 3250:3
The claim is made that Adam died a spiritual death; but nothing in the Scriptures informs us that he was a spirit being. On the contrary, the Scriptures tell us that he was of the earth, earthy. R2841:1
Fleshly beings cannot see spirit beings. HG366:3
"Flesh and blood cannot enter the kingdom of heaven." (1 Cor. 15:50) NS100:1
Jesus as a man was born of a woman and was flesh, thus taking human nature. R122:3*
Born – Whoever is not begotten of the Spirit can never hope to be born of the Spirit. R2422:4
There must also be a period of gestation for the spiritual new creature that will precede its resurrection birth. All who will share in the spiritual Kingdom as spirit beings must first be begotten of the Spirit and subsequently be developed of the Spirit. R3486:1, 2422:2; Q822:3
Of the Spirit – The article "the" does not appear in the Greek text. R4124:6
The holy Spirit, in this sense of the word, is guaranteed only to the house of sons. E177
The Spirit of God, the spirit of holiness, the spirit of the truth. R2422:1
Is spirit – Since there are two distinct kinds of bodies, we know that the spiritual, whatever it may be, is not composed of flesh, blood and bones: it is heavenly, celestial, spiritual. A182
The spirit-begotten and spirit-born class, the Little Flock, which will inherit the Kingdom, will not be flesh-beings in any sense of the word, but spirit beings. R2422:1
The human body would no longer be suitable. He must have again a spirit body. R2318:2
The Spirit's work for us will not be finished until we are born of the Spirit, and then we will be spirit, and being like him, we shall see him as he is. R103:4*
The Church is spoken of as being spiritual, inasmuch as she is in harmony with the Lord and is declared to be begotten again by the Spirit to a new nature, a spirit nature. E175
From this statement he would understand that the Kingdom would not be a fleshly or earthly one, but a spirit Kingdom, a heavenly Kingdom. R4124:6, 3082:3, 2422:1
Therefore our Lord's resurrection body was not the same body that hung upon the cross and was laid in Joseph's tomb, merely caused to shine and therefore called a glorious body, a spiritual body. R1856:3, 274:2
That which is produced by the divine spirit is divine. R89:3
Jesus at his resurrection was not flesh but spirit. R122:3*
When Jesus was raised it was by the Spirit, and therefore not in the flesh; and when the saints are raised "it is raised a spiritual body" (1 Cor. 15:44) for the same reason. R27:6*
If Jesus is, and has been since his resurrection, a spiritual body, why should we look for him to be a fleshly body at his second coming? R242:4
There are two kinds of bodies--earthly and spiritual. Adam was the head of the earthly, human family, and a pattern of the perfect human being. Christ Jesus was the firstborn of the dead to the perfect new nature, the spiritual, and he is spirit, an illustration of a perfect spiritual body. R277:2, 205:6
There is a great lesson here for many pre-millennialists, who vainly think, as Nicodemus, that the Kingdom of God will be a fleshly kingdom. R2422:1
Modern spiritualism, like modern theology, teaches that all men become spiritual beings at death. The Bible teaches that one must be born of the Spirit in order to become a spiritual being. HG29:6
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| 7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.
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Marvel not – Nicodemus must not be too surprised at the great mistake he had and others had made in regard to the terms and conditions which would qualify them for a place in the Kingdom. R3486:3
That I said – Wonder not at my first statement, that you must be begotten from above ere you can understand, know and appreciate the things of which you inquire. A280
Be born again – A reiteration of our Lord's first statement in verse 3, and should be rendered begotten. R837:2
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| 8 The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.
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The wind bloweth – While Jesus was talking, quite probably the wind whistled through the apartment in which they were sitting, rattling the doors, and Jesus seized upon this as a good illustration. R2573:1
Greek, pneuma, translated ghost, spirit, life, spiritual and wind. E174
Canst not tell – We must repel the suggestion that he meant that the Spirit of which we would be begotten is invisible, for although that is true enough, it is not what our Lord is saying. R4125:2
Not that the Lord means that the holy Spirit passes hither and thither throughout the world, begetting some and passing others by, and that we know not who may be begotten of the Spirit. R4125:2
So is – Like the wind which can go and come, can be heard and to some extent felt, but which cannot be seen. R3486:3
Men in the flesh will be unable to see them, as they are unable to see the wind, though they will be everywhere present and influential, as is the wind. R2573:2
Intangible, invisible, while present and powerful. R4125:1; NS101:2
His Kingdom will be invisible to mortals, but it shall act through visible agencies and produce visible results. R210:6
This is as good an illustration as I can give you of those born of the spirit in the resurrection. Those who will constitute the Kingdom will all be invisible as the wind, and men not thus born of the spirit will neither know whence they come, nor whither they go. A280; R837:5
Like Jesus after his resurrection, appearing and disappearing as he had never done previously, but as angels had frequently done. A231; R2801:5, 2478:1, 2455:3, 2422:3, 2081:6, 1856:6, 1817:1, 1416:2, 579:2, 274:2, 262:4, 189:1; HG63:4
Every one – Everyone who experiences a resurrection to the spirit nature. R3904:2
Only these born-again ones of the spirit-resurrection can go and come like the wind. HG366:4
Even as are the angels and all spirit beings. Q749:2, 838:4
Born of the Spirit – "Changed" in the first resurrection. D618
It will be within their province to appear as men, as the angels have done, if there be necessity for so appearing, although we are inclined to think that there will be no such necessity, as God has already provided an earthly class as the representatives of the Kingdom amongst men. (Heb. 11:39, 40) R2422:3
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| 9 Nicodemus answered and said unto him, How can these things be? |
How – Could it be possible that himself and all the great teachers of the Jewish nation had such a misconception of the Kingdom? R3486:2, 4125:2
Can these things be – Your claims seem more unreasonable to me the more I hear them. I cannot conceive it possible for beings to be present yet invisible. R837:5
To him it seemed as though an invisible spirit being would be nothing. NS101:1
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| 10 Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things?
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A master – You are of the Pharisees, who professedly believe in angels as spirit beings. A281
Of Israel – Evidence that the house of Israel was no longer regarded by our Lord and the apostles as the "ten tribes" merely. C293; R1341:1
Knowest not – Evidently, therefore, a proper study of the matter from the Scriptural standpoint might have led true Israelites indeed to more or less of an appreciation of the character of the Kingdom. R3486:4
This should not have been so strange--the powers which our Lord described were the very powers which in the past from time to time had been manifested through holy angels. R2573:2
As a thoughtful student of the Law and the prophets, Nicodemus should have seen that there were insurmountable difficulties connected with the prevailing thought that God's Kingdom would be an earthly one. R4125:2
Our Master's words were not chiding, but rather a declaration of facts, because, as the Apostle declares, it is impossible for the natural man not begotten of the holy Spirit to understand spiritual things. R4125:4
We may, with much greater point, say to the Christians who cavil today, Are you begotten of the Spirit and taught of God, and yet ignorant of these things? R2422:4
Undoubtedly this is the trouble with the great majority of the people today also--they have not been begotten of the holy Spirit, and hence are unable to understand spiritual things. R4125:5
These things – That spirit beings can be present, yet invisible. Have you, who attempt to teach others, never read about Elisha and his servant, or about Balaam's ass? A280; R837:5
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| 11 Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness.
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We do know – I have been telling you such things as are known and to a considerable extent have been demonstrated amongst men through the ministry of angels. R2573:3
The intimation is that our Lord could tell heavenly things, but that he was not disposed to do so, because Nicodemus and others found it difficult to receive even the earthly things. R5065:6
Ye – Pharisees. A281
Receive not – Nicodemus was unable or, because of prejudice, perhaps unwilling to believe. R2422:5, 3486:4
The trouble with Nicodemus was that he was not ready to be taught. He had called our Lord Teacher, and yet was unready to receive the testimony of the only one who was capable of giving him the instruction. R4125:4
We are to tell heavenly things, but not to the natural man. R5065:6
Our witness – Our message. R3486:4
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| 12 If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things?
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Earthly things – Our Lord does not even class this teaching of begettal and birth as being especially spiritual, but rather earthly, such as natural man should be able to understand and appreciate. R2422:5
Many of our day look at the matter similarly, and refuse to believe the things beyond the range of their natural senses--they lack the sixth sense of faith, or spiritual apprehension. R3486:5
Believe not – Are unable to receive them. R4166:4
How shall ye believe – It would be useless for me to attempt to tell you of heavenly things, for you would not be convinced, and my preaching would seem the more foolish to you. A281
Nicodemus would not have been to blame for not understanding spiritual things, for only the spirit begotten can clearly grasp and appreciate these things. R2573:3
Obedience to the natural things, which they can see, is a prerequisite to advancement in knowledge; as during the entire Gospel age it has been a prerequisite to begetting to the new nature. R838:1
Those whose minds are on so gross an earthly plane that they cannot appreciate so simple a matter as this are not in the condition to be inducted into the deeper things of God. They are babes who need milk instead of strong meat. (Heb. 5:12) R2422:5
The person who cannot grasp with clearness and distinctness the features of God's plan which relate to the world in general, certainly need not expect that he would be in any condition to understand or appreciate the things which pertain to the spiritual conditions. R3486:4
This is the explanation of why our Lord Jesus did not present teachings as deep along spiritual lines as did some of the apostles. It was not inability on his part to present them, but those truths would have been meat out of season to his disciples. R4166:4
The Lord's works were on a fleshly plane as a matter of necessity because the holy Spirit had not yet come. After Pentecost the Lord's people, as his representatives, began to do greater works than those which he himself had performed. R2455:1,4
Seeing that his hearers were not prepared to understand the heavenly things, our Lord gave his attention chiefly to discourses on earthly things, and to parables and dark sayings which the Spirit would subsequently make known. R3307:3
If what I have taught or illustrated by earthly things, which you could and do understand, has not brought conviction, it would be no more convincing to you if I were to tell you of heavenly things of which you know nothing. A281; R837:6
If you would be led of God into all truth, and find a position in the Kingdom which I am announcing, you must follow the light, step by step. As you do so, more light will come; and this as rapidly as you will be prepared for it. R837:5; A279
When any are found who have not the hearing ear for the Truth, we should not seek to pound it into them, but rather should take a different tack, and seek their consecration. R4125:5
An ability to appreciate the deeper things comes only to, and is only for, those who have come into the spiritual covenant relationship of the sons of God as new creatures. R4125:5
Hence it was necessary to give the proofs of a spiritual matter (namely, that Christ has been raised from the dead a spirit being) along lines which the unilluminated could appreciate. R2081:3
If I tell you – A natural man, not begotten, cannot know or be acquainted with spiritual truths, even though the great Master were the instructor. R838:1
Of heavenly things – Not until Jesus finished his sacrifice and ascended on high could any receive the holy Spirit, and not until then could any understand spiritual things. R4314:3
The fact is that the revelation of heavenly or spiritual things dates from Pentecost, after he was gone. R507:1; F632
A knowledge of the heavenly things can be received only after the begetting of the Spirit. How much more will the realities mean when, born of the spirit, we shall be like our Lord and share his glory! A282; F729
It is impossible to describe heaven with its beauties and charms. In line with this, the Bible makes no attempt to describe heaven itself, nor its inhabitants. R4966:3, 4675:3; CR117:1
To talk of heaven with its pianos, harps, organs, etc., is to merely think of the blessings God has provided for the faithful and obedient of the world on earth, and not of the "heaven of heavens" promised to the Church. R4966:3, 4675:3
As to how and when our Lord came to an appreciation of his pre-human condition, we have no direct revelation. Of one thing we are assured, that during our Lord's ministry he had a clear knowledge of the heavenly things. R5156:6
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| 13 And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man.
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No man – The words in this verse were intended to remind Nicodemus that he need not look to fellow human creatures for information respecting heavenly things, as they could not know them any more than himself. R2423:1
The Kingdom of Heaven class was not started until our dear Redeemer's first advent, when he gave himself a ransom for all, and began the selection of the Little Flock. R2342:1
There is no suggestion that when his servants would die they would go to that "far country" to be with their King, and there receive their reward for well-doing or ill-doing. HG664:2
Including Enoch, Elijah, Moses and David, or any of the patriarchs. R5772:3, 5333:5, 5207:2, 5188:5, 5179:5, 4757:1, 3417:4, 3378:4, 2342:1, 838:5, 619:6; F676; HG347:5; Q713:4
Therefore Moses and Elijah, on the Mount of Transfiguration, only appeared to be present, but they were not actually present, because it was merely a vision. R2659:5, 2288:3, 1761:2
Therefore Adam did not go to heaven. Q742:4
Therefore when the Prophet David declared, "Thou wilt not leave my soul in sheol; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption" (Psa. 16:10), he was speaking of Jesus and not of himself. NS663:4
Elijah is said to have ascended to heaven; but, from this statement, that must be understood to refer to the air, not to the heavenly condition. R2153:3, 558:5
Everything in the Scriptures agrees that the prophets of old as well as the apostles, and all the faithful as well as the unfaithful, fell asleep in death, and "know not anything" (Eccl. 9:5) until awakening in the resurrection morning. NS429:4
God does not perfect separate individuals, but works by dispensations. Under the Jewish dispensation, not a Gentile could be saved; even the Jew could not be made perfect, without us. (Heb. 11:40) No man could ascend into heaven. HG15:5
Therefore Lazarus, when dead, had not been to heaven. R4161:4, 3531:4; PD61/72; SM100:1
Dorcas, whom all the creeds of "Christendom" would send to heaven, when she was awakened to life, had no wonderful experiences or mysterious visions to relate, nor any disappointment to express at being recalled to this mundane sphere. R1450:6
St. Peter's words (Acts 2:34,29) imply that if King David had ascended to heaven he would have no sepulchre on earth, for the very thought connected with the word sepulchre is that of a personality awaiting a resurrection. R5132:4
Entirely incompatible with the teaching of modern theology, that the righteous dead are not really dead, but more alive than ever in heaven. R1378:2; CR21:2
There could be no resurrection of the dead if there were no dead--if the dead were really more alive than they ever were. NS519:6
John Wesley said no human being had gone to heaven. He said they went to hades. Nobody has gone to heaven; nobody will go to heaven until after the resurrection and judgment. 145:4
Those who, at the point of death, see visions of angels or hear celestial strains of music see merely a phantasmagoria induced by an excited condition of the imaginative powers of the mind, with a correspondingly dormant state of the reasoning facilities. Q762:1
There is no indication that his disciples would die and go to the Lord, and be reckoned with and rewarded then; but that our Lord will come a second time, to receive his people unto himself, and to then reward them. R2765:2
What a peculiar place some people must fancy heaven to be: full of infants, idiots and heathens, with an occasional "saint" from civilized lands. R3398:6; HG644:1
Hath ascended – This statement by our Lord would cause no particular surprise to Nicodemus, for nothing in the Law or the prophets or teachings of orthodox Judaism ever held to the idea prevalent amongst the heathen that the dead were alive. R4125:6
To heaven – Hence none could corroborate my testimony. A281
None had ever been there, or seen heavenly things. R2573:3
But he that came down – The Son of man, who alone had come down from heaven, was alone able to speak with knowledge and authority respecting heavenly matters. R3486:6, 1059:5; A281
He had recollection of his previous existence as a spirit being with the Father. Our Lord's success against temptation was as a result of being rightly exercised by this knowledge of God. (Isa. 53:11) R1125:5; HG293:1
He alone left the glory which he had with the Father before the world was; he alone exercised that wonderful faith in the Father which permitted him to sacrifice everything with joy. R3912:2
If our Lord Jesus, when on earth, was nothing but flesh--a mere man--then he could not be truly said to have come down from heaven. R106:5*
Unitarians and others take away from the dignity and honor of our Lord, beside contradicting much Scripture, by denying that he had an existence before his conception in Mary. R505:2*
The Son of man – The Scriptures identify "The Son of Man" with the Lord of glory, and with the man Christ Jesus who gave himself, and with the pre-human Logos, which came down from heaven and was made flesh. E150
Which is in heaven – The oldest Greek MSS (the Sinaitic and the Vatican) omit the last four words of verse 13 with evident propriety, for although our Lord is now in heaven, he was not in heaven at the time he addressed Nicodemus. A282; E92, E150; R3487:1, 2573:3, 2422:6, 506:6, 445:6*
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| 14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:
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And as Moses – The verses from here on were not spoken to Nicodemus, but combined various of our Lord's teachings which the writer here brought together conveniently. R4125:6
Our Lord did not stop with a mere answer to his visitor's questions about the Kingdom being heavenly, but proceeded to give him in brief form an outline of the entire plan of salvation. R3487:2
Our Lord turned the subject by way of showing the grand basis for this spiritual Kingdom, and that he himself could not enter into that Kingdom while still in the flesh. R2573:4
Lifted up – The remedy for the bites of the serpents was to look at a brazen (copper) serpent fastened to the top of a pole, said pole probably being carried throughout the camp of Israel, that all the sick, suffering ones might have the opportunity of looking upon it and thus being healed. R3101:6
"And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me." ( John 12:32) Not lifted up by glorifying, but clearly the lifting up of the cross. Moses did not glorify the serpent. R1054:2, 669:3
The serpent – Of brass (literally, copper), which is a type of the human nature. R1849:2
Apparently of immense size and capable of being seen by the Israelites from quite a distance. R4048:3
To which the Israelites, who would exercise faith, might look and receive healing. R3487:2
The serpent on the pole represented Christ on the cross, and represented the atonement transaction better than any other emblem could. R3101:6, 3102:1
The serpent represented sin in every sense of the word; and as the whole world was serpented or inoculated, our Lord must take the place of the sinner in order that the sinner might get free from the sentence. R3102:1
We can think of only one way that our Lord was viewed as a serpent--in the sense that he underwent all the experiences which a sinner could have been required to undergo. R5253:4, 5577:5, 5239:1, 4704:2, 2423:4, 1696:2
A symbol of the punishment for their sin. R837:6
A synonym for sin, because it was the tool for sin. R5238:6
The fiery serpent of sin has bitten our race. We are all dying. Only by the exercise of faith in the Crucified One can any be healed. R5316:4, 4126:1, 3102:1, 2573:4
Even so must – There is an object in my coming, and before you or others could be begotten of the Spirit, I must perform my mission. R837:6
The drawing of the world could not take place except he were lifted up as the sin-offering. R2467:4
Be lifted up – Be crucified. R5577:5, 5065:1
Christ, who knew no sin, was made a sin-offering on our behalf, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. He is the antitype of the brazen serpent. R1696:2, 5577:5, 5054:3
On the cross, and thus made to appear as the sinner--to take the place of the sinner--so that the whole world of mankind, bitten by sin and dying as a result, might look unto him by faith and be healed. R3487:2
It was not divinely intended that our Lord should be stoned, but that he should be treated as a cursed one--hanged upon a tree. (Deut. 21:22,23) R5221:3
Comparatively early in his ministry Jesus stated this. As he came down nearer to the time of his humiliation, his degradation, he realized all that it meant. R5421:3
The result of the lifting up of Christ will eventually be the drawing of all men unto him. "And I, if I be lifted up, will draw all men unto me. This he said, signifying what death he should die." ( John 12:32,33) R1849:3
The only ground for hope that any of the fallen race of Adam will ever know anything about the heavenly condition is then stated by our Lord to depend upon his own justifying work on man's behalf. R2423:1
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| 15 That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
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Whosoever – The Israelites bitten by those serpents represented or typified sinners bitten by sin and suffering from the consequences thereof--the fall. R4048:4
Believeth in him – Bitten by sin, they must by faith recognize in him their sin bearer, the one upon whom their penalty was placed, and by whose sin-offering they were redeemed; that believing on him thus, they might have life. R837:6
The serpent-bitten had to look with their physical eyes, and the sin-bitten have to look with their mental eyes. R1328:6*
Not only was it necessary that Christ should die for our sins, but that none could be saved through his death except by looking unto him, exercising faith in the merit of his great atonement-sacrifice. R4048:5
It is not sufficient for us to believe in Jesus as the great Teacher, but also that there was a redemption accomplished by our Lord in his crucifixion. R4048:5
Many may get some blessing morally, mentally and physically from looking at Jesus as a great Jew or a great teacher, but only those who view him as the antitype of the serpent in the wilderness have his promise of forgiveness and acceptance with God unto eternal life. R3102:4
Should not perish – Lose life altogether. R5608:2
As unfit to live and enjoy God's blessing. R5275:4
In the second death. R883:1
Let no one be deceived regarding the duration of the punishment of the wicked as it is repeatedly put forth in the Scriptures that it is for eternity and not merely for a season. However, it is not a question as to the duration of the punishment, but it is a question as to the nature of the punishment. Q768:2
Not a word respecting any danger of the world going into eternal torment, nor did he utter a word respecting the salvation of any in ignorance. R2573:4, 2423:4; HG707:2*; NS646:2
In sending Israel relief, God foreshadowed the greater relief he would afterward send to mankind in general--Christ, the sinner's ransom-price. R1849:2
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| 16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
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For – A brief statement of why the Heavenly Father has provided the blessing which he had been describing--God's sympathetic love for humanity. R2573:5
Luther called this verse the "little Bible." We would express it, "the Gospel in a nut shell." The whole message of God is contained in condensed form: (1) man's need, his perishing condition, is shown; (2) God's love is declared, proven in the gift of his Son; (3) our Lord's willing cooperation is evidenced; (4) the lengths and breadths of this love and redemption are declared to embrace the whole world; and (5) the limitations of divine grace are plainly stated, that the blessing can be obtained only through a true acceptance of Christ. R3487:4, 2573:5, 2423:4
God so loved – The love prompting man's redemption was not phileo or duty-love, for God had not wronged his creatures in the sentence of death. It was agapee, or disinterested charity, benevolence, love. R2807:4
Divine sympathy exercised toward the race of sinners. NS740:5
The love of pity and sympathy toward all those who have fallen below the standard of moral excellence, or who suffer in any way. R1670:2
A love for the world which will not only be glad to see them lifted up out of degradation and sin to holiness, but will be glad to cooperate to these ends as opportunities may offer. R2755:2
God loves the world with a broad, sympathetic love; but he has a special love for his true Church, those who have consecrated themselves fully to him during this Gospel age. OV423:3; CR473:2
Before Jesus came into the world. NS524:4
While we were yet sinners. R4133:4, 1833:4, 1693:6, 1266:6; NS384:3
Including those who lived before Jesus came, as much as those who had not yet been born. NS384:3
This perfect love extends even to enemies and those who injure us and speak evil of us falsely for Christ's righteousness sake. R2755:2
The difficulty with the world and with the church in the past has been that we have not emphasized the love of God. R5353:3
God is not bound by justice to give any future life to anybody, but he has arranged so to do. R5314:4
God was a God of love prior to the sending forth of his Son, but his love was hidden--not revealed, not manifest to men. It was manifest for the first time when he sent his Son to be man's Redeemer. NS406:3
Some deny God's love in the matter and claim that all the love was Christ's, but it was God that devised the plan as it is being carried forward. R1572:3, 77:1*, 9:2*
Orthodoxy says that it was Jesus that so loved the world. The Father did not love them, but Jesus loved them and threw himself between them and his angry Father. R405:3*
God from the beginning foreknew his intention to send his Son into the world for human redemption. HG595:3
Christ likewise so loved the world as to freely become the instrument of Jehovah for its salvation. R2099:3
Would it not seem that if God loved the world so much, he might have made provision, not only that believers might be saved, but also that all might hear in order to believe? ; HG343:6; OV225:T
We are to love the world only in the sense of having sympathy with it, as our Heavenly Father has, while we are unsympathetic with its arrangements. R4766:5, 3804:6; SM390:2
The love which is worthy of our emulation is that which benevolently ignores personal antagonisms and animosities, and, overleaping all selfish considerations and vengeful feelings, considers only the possibilities and the ways and means for peace and reformation and salvation. R4766:4
God's love for mankind, as well as divine justice and wisdom, prepared man's penalty. Had they continued to have access to the trees of life, and thus to continue existence, it would have meant everlasting life for sinners. NS645:5
God's love for sinners was so great that he would not allow them to have everlasting life, because that would mean to them everlasting imperfection and sorrow. NS646:1
There was nothing in the fallen man that God could really love, in the sense of fellowshiping him. R5724:3
Not only passive love for sinners which would not arrange for their eternal suffering through a perpetuation of life out of harmony with himself, but the active love which arranged for their recovery. NS646:1
Does love plan torture? Does loving provision not imply wisdom in the use of power, that the creature may not be injured, if he shall not be benefited by the program. NS645:3
God's mercy is his love in active operation for the relief of the condemned. Although God is love, and hence must have always been loving, kind, and merciful of disposition, yet this quality of his character was held in restraint as respects condemned men for more than 40 centuries. NS863:4
God does not love the world with a love of fellowship, nor are we to do so. R3804:6
The world – As well as the Church. R5597:2; 178:1
Not only the Church, but also the world; not only redeeming the Church, but also redeeming the world. R5354:4
Greek, kosmos, the people, or world of mankind. R206:3
The human family; though not in the sense in which he loves the Church of Christ. R5138:2
Note the different kinds, or degrees of love: first, we have love for the world; second, in a much higher and special sense, "The Father himself loveth you"--you who have accepted Jesus Christ as your Redeemer. ( John 16:27) R3033:6
The whole world, including the Canaanites, as well as the Israelites. R5314:4
The whole world was loved of God. The whole world has been provided for in the glorious sacrifice of Jesus, and the whole world is to have the benefit resulting from that sacrifice. Christ's death is not merely for the Church, the elect few. OV380:4
It would surprise none of us to read that God so loved the holy angels--they have always been loyal and true; nor that he so loved the saints, who have turned to righteousness. NS645:2
"The earth" is not "the world," nor is "the age." The primary idea of it appears to be "an arrangement," the human race under an arrangement, including every individual of the human race, from the first man to the very last of his posterity. R1328:1*
Giving the thought of the wideness of God's mercy and of his provision for our race. R2423:4
The whole world. R405:3*
Some things are universal. God's sunshine is universal; it shines from pole to pole, upon both the just and the unjust. So is his love. Light and truth are yet to be universal, and so is the testimony of the ransom. R2632:6*
That he gave – To humiliation and sacrifice in death. R2573:5, 884:3*
The birth of Jesus, to be rightly understood and esteemed, must be considered from the standpoint of a gift of love divine. R5135:2
Suggesting the cost of the world's salvation to our Heavenly Father. R1696:5
It is plain therefore that the salvation which God has provided is purely an act of his free grace--an act to which he was in no sense obligated, and to which he was impelled only by his abounding love. R1266:6, 1265:4
This is a gift--not called for by divine justice, but prompted by divine love. HG595:4
Salvation is thus a free gift to all men, the conditions being accept, believe, obey. R1965:2*
Not that God compelled his only begotten Son to die for us, but rather he set before him a great prize, so that Jesus counted it all joy to lay down his life. NS646:3
Only begotten Son – Only begotten from the very beginning of his existence. At age 30 he made his consecration. Then he was begotten of the Spirit to a spirit nature; but he was the only begotten Son of God the whole time. Q372:1
More than a begotten son by the word of truth. Jesus claimed to be the Son of God, and consequently the Messiah. If Christ was the son of God only as we are sons of God, then he was not the Son of God, but a son. R944:4*
A Son on the higher plane before he was sent. R1059:5, 445:6*
It is impossible for us to tell the riches of divine grace toward us--the numberless blessings and mercies which are ours through our Lord. He represents to us the very fullness of every divine provision for our eternal welfare. R5927:6
Our sins were laid upon Christ, our Redeemer, and his righteousness is transferred correspondingly to our account. R1262:1
This phraseology brings us into conflict with an old theory--trinitarianism. R405:6*
By God sending his Son, he manifests his sympathetic love which otherwise neither angels nor men might ever have known. R5430:4
Whosoever – Of mankind. R5430:4
All the willing and obedient may thus come into relationship with the Life-giver and obtain the everlasting life. R5354:5
Believeth – Obediently. R2120:5
He limits his favor by two conditions: (1) the blessing through his Son shall only go to those who intelligently know of it and by faith accept it; and (2) it shall be available only to those who desire to come into harmony with divine laws as obedient children. NS646:5
None can obtain everlasting life except through a personal relationship to Christ, the Redeemer, and the exercise of faith in his redeeming blood and obedience to his counsels. R5354:2
Those who claim that all infants and the mass of the heathen will be saved without believing do violence to these texts. R936:1
Knowledge will be forced upon all, and obedience will be forced to a certain limit, but in the end the sinner himself must determine whether or not he will accept the grace of God for the remission of his sins. NS648:1
As the effects or results of Adam's failure were inherited by those in him, so the results of Christ's obedience will be shared by all who believe into him. R1601:6
Here is the truth that sanctifies. Q638:3
The Scriptures make specific mention of the necessary faith, but always imply a character consistent with the faith. R3114:2
"How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?" (Rom. 10:14) R405:6*
Should not perish – Our pardon, sealed with the precious blood of Christ and signed by the great Sovereign of the Universe. R1494:3
The penalty that is upon the world is not an eternal torment penalty, but a penalty of destruction. R5597:3, 5353:6, 2423:4; 163:2
Webster gives the primary meaning of "perish" as "to die, to lose life, in any manner." Liddel and Scott define the original word "to destroy utterly, kill, slay, murder." The text really defines its own meaning by placing "perish" as the opposite of "life." R406:1*
We know what perishing signifies. The brute beasts, when they die, perish, because God has made no provision for their resurrection. R5353:6; NS647:5
Let us get rid of the thought that "perish" means to preserve in eternal torment. NS647:4
The sentence of perishing was eternal, were it not for the fact that God provided a redemption through Jesus Christ. HG120:4
All will perish who will not accept of Jesus' finished work, the ransom sacrifice which he gave; but their perishing will be as a "second death," because all must at some time be brought to a knowledge of this truth (the ransom) and must reject it and the life (or escape from perishing) which it offers. R884:4
Nevertheless, all who will refuse this grace of God in Christ and fail to come into vital union with him will perish. R5354:5
But have – Obtain. R2573:5
He who believes in me and becomes my true, faithful follower, may reckon that he has already begotten in him the new life, and that I will assist him and carry him through to a share in the first resurrection. R3730:6
Everlasting life – In due time, recovering from the death penalty through faith in Christ and obedience to him. R5597:3
After God applies the various temptations or tests so as to demonstrate whether or not they are worthy of eternal life. R4760:6
The word here translated "everlasting" does not necessarily mean endless. Competent authorities render it "age-lasting"; and the age may be long or short, according to the nature and circumstances of the case. R1328:4*
The awakening from death is only the beginning of the salvation or restitution which will be completed within the limits of that age. R936:4
That in him all families of the earth might be blessed. R5180:3
They shall, by resurrection processes, return to full harmony with the Lord and to repossess the blessings and favors lost by Father Adam when he sinned. NS647:3
To attain to all that was lost in Adam, all that was redeemed by Jesus--eternal life, fellowship with God and the Son and communion with the holy Spirit, and fellowship in all the rights on both the heavenly and earthly planes. NS647:6
The Scriptures set forth two salvations, entirely separate and distinct--that of mankind, shown here; and that of the Church, shown in such texts as Eph. 5:25-27. HG252:5; 3; NS768:1
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| 17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
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For God – This is perhaps in answer to another question, or perhaps merely a part of the further discourse to Nicodemus. R2573:5
Sent not – He does not intimate that the world had yet been saved, or that anything had yet been done for the world's salvation, except the sending of the one who would redeem the world by the sacrifice of himself. E425
Our Lord's first advent was not with a view to increasing the Adamic condemnation but the reverse of this, to effect the sacrifice by which it might ultimately be canceled. R4126:4
Our Lord Jesus in all matters acts as a representative of the Father, Jehovah, in the work of salvation. E35
His pre-human existence is implied in this sending and mission. E88
His Son – This feature of the Master's teachings especially angered the Jews, for they declared that in claiming to be the Son of God, he was establishing himself upon a pedestal of honor, dignity, glory, in competition with Jehovah. R5768:1; OV329:2
Into the world – Here signifying the world as a place. R97:3*
To condemn – Greek, krino, sentence. R699:6
The governments are to be destroyed that the people may be delivered. A255
The world has already been condemned, for it had shared in Father Adam's condemnation as his race. It needed no more condemnation, but it did need salvation. R4126:2, 4702:1, 857:6; HG617:1
Our word damned, from misusage and the bad theology of the Dark Ages, has a sulphurous odor, whereas its plain, simple meaning, is the same as the word condemn. NS860:3
"To judge" (Revised Ver.). The world had been judged previously. God did not send his Son into the world to do that over again. R1328:3*
Be saved – From the damnation or condemnation under which they already were through Adam's death. R857:6
God merely overlooked or "winked" at the ignorance and superstition of the period from Adam to the death of our Redeemer. But as soon as Jesus had died, God offered forgiveness and reconciliation to those who would believe in Jesus and accept the divine terms. Such have their sins forgiven, come back to fellowship with God. And, in the next age, such shall eventually attain full human perfection. SM150:1
One of Jesus' titles is The Savior which, in the Syrian language spoken in Palestine in Jesus' day, signifies "The Life-Giver." All human life was forfeited through Adam. All mankind are dying as a result. A Life-Giver, a Savior from death, was what was needed. R4702:1
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| 18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
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He that believeth – These believers are such as not only believe that such a person as Jesus lived and died, but that his death was accepted of God as a ransom price. R1229:5
Is not condemned – Believers in Christ are reckoned as justified by their faith--as passing out from the remainder of the world, freeing themselves of the original Adamic condemnation. NS402:5
Believeth not – There is no suggestion anywhere in the Scriptures that God has made provision for salvation in blindness, ignorance and superstition. There must be faith, and there must be knowledge preceding faith. HG114:6
Condemned already – Condemned six thousand years ago, and, if a Jew, additionally bound by the Law Covenant, and has not escaped the condemnation that is on the world. R1726:1, 970:6, 688:6
The whole human family originally came under divine sentence or condemnation through father Adam's disobedience. Children were born sharers in his blemishes by heredity, and sharers likewise in his condemnation. NS402:5
Before they believe in Christ, men are in the attitude of condemned beings, condemned on account of father Adam's sin. R2059:2
All men are lost until found, or recovered. R857:5
The wrath of God (death, inherited from Adam) abides on him (verse 36). No man is on trial individually until brought to a knowledge of Christ. R2059:4
The question is not, What shall we do to escape coming under condemnation, but, How shall we, who are already condemned of God as unworthy of everlasting life, get free from that condition in which we were born, and back into the condition of perfection which God will approve? HG651:1
Hath not believed – These will be brought to a knowledge of the great foundation truth of the ransom in the times of restitution, and when they accept it, their sins will be blotted out. R1229:5
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| 19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.
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This is the condemnation – Quite separate and distinct from the Adamic condemnation, which was inherited; this condemnation, resulting from an intelligent rejection of light, bears an individual penalty. R4126:4
A measure of increased condemnation in proportion as the light is seen by any one and rejected. R4126:4, 1655:5
Those who violate their consciences and ignore the light which they enjoy and sin against it, will find themselves proportionately degraded when they shall come under the Kingdom influences and tests. R5037:5
At the first advent of our Lord an increased measure of light came to men, and to that extent increased their responsibility. R2612:6
The light which then shone and which has since shone through his followers, has carried with it a measure of responsibility--a measure of condemnation to all who have resisted the light. R4126:4, 722:1
The condemnation already upon men, justified by their course. R2573:6
Judgment; this is the testimony of God, that Christ is the judgment of the world. R1329:2*
Although there will be rewards and "stripes" according to the deeds of the present life, the verdict in the end will be in harmony with the choice expressed by the conduct of each during that (Millennial age) of trial. R2611:5
Condemnation is no more the equivalent of judgment than damnation is. The process of judgment will result either in justification or in condemnation, according to the merits or demerits of each case. R1330:1*
Christ is the judgment of the world because he is its love, and he is its love because he is its light, and he is its light because he is its life. R1329:2*
Light is come – Jesus is the true light which ultimately, in the Kingdom, shall be a great Sun of Righteousness with healing in his beams. R2573:6
An increased measure of light, which increased to that extent their responsibility. R722:1
There is a measure of light in the world, emanating from our dear Redeemer, his words and his works, and still shines forth from all those who are truly his, but this is not that light of the world which is to scatter all of earth's darkness and cause all to appreciate the glory of God. R3686:2
Since the death of Jesus a measurable blessing of knowledge of God has come into the world. NS559:1
His Church is invited to become associated with him as lamp-bearers; and if faithful in permitting their light to shine now, they will by and by be parts of that great Sun of Righteousness which shall heal the world with its beams. SM560:3
Whether of conscience or of revelation. R2612:6, 722:1
And men – Strange to say, darkness was not confined to the ignorant then, nor is it today. It is no respecter of stations. Indeed, the powers of darkness are greatest in the more influential and better educated. SM241:1
The Scriptures plainly declare that blindness in part is upon all the children of Adam through the fall, yet from Jesus' words we must conclude that these Pharisees were not totally blind. R723:6
Loved darkness – Mankind has become so depraved, so in sympathy with sin, so out of accord with absolute truth, justice and righteousness, that it was not attractive to them--or rather, less attractive to them than the error. SM240:3
It will be less tolerable for those who reject the light of divinely revealed truth, and thus prefer the darkness to the light, because their deeds are evil. R1618:4
He who loves the darkness remains in the darkness, and he who loves the light comes to the light. R1329:5*
Rather than light – In proportion as any who have seen even a glimmer of the true light have hated and refused it, in that proportion they have added to their responsibility. Such is the condition of Churchianity today--so-called Christendom. NS559:1
Throughout the Scriptures light is used to represent God, his truth, his righteousness, his servants and their messages. Contrariwise, darkness is the synonym for Satan, the Prince of Darkness, and all his deluded followers, the children of darkness. SM240:2
Evil – Here "evil" is the opposition of "truth." He that doeth evil is the opposite of him that doeth truth. R1329:4*
The world is in an evil condition; it has not the spirit of the Lord, the spirit of love. R4445:3
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| 20 For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.
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Hateth the light – For it is the nature of light to scatter the darkness. SM241:T
The darkness of sin and error is in direct antagonism to the light of truth. The effect of light upon the darkened world is to awaken opposition, antagonism, and thus to disturb and make uncomfortable those in sympathy with darkness. R4813:3, 4761:2, 2415:1
It is altogether a mistake, therefore, to suppose that you or I or any other person, or all of the Lord's consecrated people, letting their light shine faithfully before men, could convert the world. CR126:2
The reason for every willful act. Error abides in darkness. The brilliancy of a light attracts blinded bugs--big bugs as well as lesser ones--which vainly try to destroy the light. HG712:4*
All who do evil intentionally, in the light, thereby manifest their hatred of the light. R4126:5
Even where there are no selfish motives to impel the persecution, there is ever present the distinction between "light" and "darkness." R2501:2
Even those who have gotten out of the extreme darkness of moral pollution into a kind of twilight of civilized reformation and moral reform, cannot endure the clear, searching light of the true Gospel. R4813:5, 2415:2
Jesus' persecutors were those who had some light, but who hated the brilliancy of the great light which shone upon them. Similarly, the Lord's consecrated ones have been hated almost exclusively by those who had some light, but whose light was as darkness in comparison with the great light of the holy Spirit shining through these. R2415:2
The faithful servants of the Lord will be ostracised by the world. Their attitude of full consecration to do the Father's will is not appreciated, for to the world it seems foolish--it is a reproof. R5173:6
There are many dark places now into which they can get away from the light, but the light-bearer is at hand, and though they shall call for the rocks and the mountains to cover them that they may remain in the dark, yet the light will shine. (Isa. 40:5) R192:6
Where such is the case in marriage, separation may follow, whether accompanied by a decree of divorce from earthly courts or not, but the new creature is not at liberty to remarry, except for the ground of unfaithfulness. F505
Spiritualism hates the light, and their works are done under cover of their favorite principle--darkness. Their work of proselyting, too, is dark, covered--secret. R266:3
The condemnation of Jesus was a triumph of darkness over light only in appearance; for God's plan was thus being carried out. R5561:2
The theory of erroneous religious teachings is that ignorance and superstition are necessary for the preservation of sacerdotal power. R5561:2
Be reproved – Made manifest, lest they should thus be obliged to confess that for years they had been teaching errors which His Word does not authorize, in the name of the Lord. R1035:5
The effect of the light is to make manifest the evils of darkness which would not otherwise appear; and thus to disturb and make uncomfortable those in sympathy with darkness. R2415:1
To the sinful, envious, hateful heart of the fallen nature everything akin to beauty, goodness, truth and love is distasteful, there is no beauty in it, nothing desired--it is a reproof. E161
The world wants a man good enough to be honest, temperate, trustworthy and faithful, but despises the higher forms of goodness because their own heart is not in sympathy with such ideals and does not desire to be in the presence of so high a standard. R2460:5
It makes manifest the error, the sin, with which they are identified and which, to some extent at least, they love. R4126:5
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| 21 But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.
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He that doeth truth – If something contrary to God's will may be exposed in their own conduct or theories, they are glad of this also, that they may have an opportunity for correcting the same. R4126:5
If we are doing the best we know how to do day by day, year by year, we may rest in the Lord's unchanging grace toward us in Christ, however weak, however imperfect our results. NS245:2
Thus all the doers of "many wonderful works in Christ's name" (Matt. 7:22) lack the proper credentials, in that they do not have the truth which they surely would have if they were in the Lord's favor and confidence. R3120:4
Cometh to the light – Our perception of the love of God must lead to appreciation, our appreciation to reciprocation, and our reciprocation must never come to an end. R1329:4*
If our hearts condemn us, let us remember that God is still a higher and more strict Judge than we are apt to be of ourselves. R1194:5
We are to prove the things which we receive, by their harmony with the Scriptures and their ability to unlock them and make clear their meaning. Whatever assists us in this direction is from God. R2532:5
Be made manifest – They desire that their course in life shall become manifest, that all shall know that, to the extent of their ability, they are seeking to do the Lord's will. R4126:5
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| 22 After these things came Jesus and his disciples into the land of Judaea; and there he tarried with them, and baptized. |
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| 23 And John also was baptizing in Aenon near to Salim, because there was much water there: and they came, and were baptized. |
In Aenon – Probably at a pool in the Jordan river. R1541:2
It matters not where one is baptized--in a regularly prepared baptistry, which might be hired for the occasion, or the river, or any place where there is plenty of water. R396:5
There was much water – No one can for a moment suppose that if John sprinkled his converts, the largeness of the water supply could be a consideration. R1541:2
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| 24 For John was not yet cast into prison. |
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| 25 Then there arose a question between some of John's disciples and the Jews about purifying. |
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| 26 And they came unto John, and said unto him, Rabbi, he that was with thee beyond Jordan, to whom thou barest witness, behold, the same baptizeth, and all men come to him. |
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| 27 John answered and said, A man can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven. |
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| 28 Ye yourselves bear me witness, that I said, I am not the Christ, but that I am sent before him. |
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| 29 He that hath the bride is the bridegroom: but the friend of the bridegroom, which standeth and heareth him, rejoiceth greatly because of the bridegroom's voice: this my joy therefore is fulfilled. |
Hath the bride – Here the Jewish marriage is set forth as the example of the union between Christ and the Church--a very different figure from our marriage custom of the present time. When a betrothal took place, legal and binding documents were signed, but no actual marriage or union took place for about a year. HG409:2
The bridegroom – To the Jewish house Jesus presented himself in three characters--as Bridegroom, Reaper ( John 4:35,38), and King (Matt. 21:5,9,4). To the Christian house he presents himself in the same three characters. (2 Cor. 11:2; Rev. 14:14,15; 17:14) B238
Jesus, personally, is the Bridegroom; not Jesus and the overcomers. R398:4
There is as much evidence of Christ being the Bridegroom in that typical church, as that he was Reaper in the harvest of that typical age. For example, the Jewish church is spoken of as the Lord's wife; John introduced Jesus as the Bridegroom. R109:2
Christ came in the character of Bridegroom at the beginning of the Jewish harvest as a part of the pattern, and at the beginning of the Gospel harvest as a parallel. R51:3
It was just three and a half years after John had announced Jesus as the Bridegroom to the typical house of Israel, that he came to them as their King (parallelling AD 1874-1878). R88:5, 39:6*; B239
The friend – Not the Bride, not a member of the Bride class, the Church. HG132:2
The old custom was for the father or some friend of the man to make a contract and arrange terms for him with the one to be invited to become his wife and joint-heir. Such a one was called "the friend of the bridegroom." R1388:4
John the Baptist occupied this position toward the Jewish nation--seeking to have them accept of Christ the Bridegroom and become his Bride. R1388:5, 5510:5
John the Baptist, the greatest prophet, did not claim the honor of being a part of the Bride, but to be a friend of the Bridegroom, and to introduce him. R219:1; SM251:2
Showing that John himself seemed to understand that he could not be of the Kingdom class. His grand work terminated before the Redeemer's sacrifice was finished. R4940:2, 5030:6, 4543:1, 1737:4
Rejoiceth greatly – In the privilege of announcing the Bridegroom. R4543:1
This my joy – John declared that in introducing his cousin according to the flesh, and thus accomplishing his part in the divine purpose and prophecy, his joy was fulfilled. R1916:2, 219:1
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| 30 He must increase, but I must decrease. |
He – As the light. R1694:6
Must increase – And so it was. After John was put into prison Jesus' ministry became more and more public, especially by the numerous works performed by him. R5037:1, 4644:6
Jesus (at the hands of his disciples) baptized more than did John and his co-laborers. ( John 4:1) R4130:2
I must decrease – In influence. R703:4*
Observe the humility and self-abnegation of John in pointing out his cousin according to the flesh as the "Lamb of God" ( John 1:29), whose rising popularity must soon eclipse his own. R1694:3
It was this meekness, this complete self-abnegation and singleness of purpose to accomplish the righteous will of God, that constituted the moral greatness of John. R1916:2
John's attitude here contrasted with that of the chief priests, scribes and Pharisees. R1735:3
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| 31 He that cometh from above is above all: he that is of the earth is earthly, and speaketh of the earth: he that cometh from heaven is above all. |
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| 32 And what he hath seen and heard, that he testifieth; and no man receiveth his testimony.
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What he hath seen – It was his knowledge of heavenly things, his intimate and long acquaintance with the Father, begetting faith in the Father's promises, which enabled him, as a perfect man, to overcome the world and present an acceptable sacrifice for our sins. E91; R1060:1, 446:2*
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| 33 He that hath received his testimony hath set to his seal that God is true. |
Set to his seal – Illustrated by endorsing a bank check. Each one must personally accept, adopt, and endorse the promise of God by his own individual faith, or he will derive no benefit from it. R1074:6*
That God is true – That our Lord changeth not, but "is the same yesterday, today and forever." (Heb. 13:8) E230
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| 34 For he whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God: for God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him. |
God giveth – This anointing with the holy Spirit corresponded to the anointing of Israel's high priests and kings with the holy anointing oil. The oil was poured upon the head and ran down over the body. F443
Spirit – The spirit of adoption. R182:2
Elsewhere called the Spirit of Christ, because in Christ the Spirit of God dwelt richly and without measure. R2064:2
This is the secret of all power in the work of the Lord. No preaching, no teaching is of value, except it be in the power of the holy Spirit. R1917:1
By measure – Jesus, being perfect, received the Spirit "without measure." Those who received the holy Spirit at Pentecost received it by measure, that is, in limited degree. R2820:1, 1416:6; CR401:3
Without measure, unlimitedly; while his followers receive it by measure, or limitedly--a measure of the Spirit is given to every man in the Church. (Rom. 12:3) E185
We have only a certain capacity, and we can receive only according to our capacity; only as we get free from the spirit of the world can we be filled with the holy Spirit. In the case of our Redeemer, he was the perfect one and had full capacity, and there was nothing to hinder him from receiving the spirit without measure. Q183:T
When he was thirty years of age, on the banks of Jordan at the time of his consecration, he was "anointed with the oil of gladness above his fellows." (Psa. 45:7) T37
Unlimited or complete power, as in Col. 1:19, "For it was the good pleasure of the Father that in him should all fullness dwell." R1063:6*
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| 35 The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand. |
Loveth the Son – There are two kinds of love: the intense, particular affectionate love shown here; and the general love, or kindness. R1254:2
Given all things – He bought all, and none can obtain life (complete, perfect, everlasting) except through him. E143
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| 36 He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him. |
He that believeth – The believer referred to in this text is the one who believes with the heart--not merely one with an intellectual appreciation of the fact that Christ is the Son of God. R4840:2
Coming into full harmony with the Heavenly Father and with the Lord Jesus, by the merit of Christ's sacrifice. It will mean a full turning away from sin and a full devotion to God and to righteousness. SM153:2
None can obtain everlasting life except through a personal relationship to Christ, the Redeemer, the exercise of faith in his redeeming blood, and obedience to his counsels. R5354:2
The good tidings of a Savior shall be to all people (Luke 2:10,11), but the special salvation from sin and death will come only to his people (Matt. 1:21)--those who believe into him--for we read that the wrath of God continues to abide on the unbeliever (verse 36). A107
All of Adam's posterity will have an opportunity to accept Jesus, either as his brethren at the present time, or as his children in the next age. R4819:2
The willing and obedient. R2122:1
On the Son – God's good desires and plan are all centered in Christ. He has appointed no other name by which we must be saved, and no other conditions than faith in his blood and obedience to his precepts of righteousness. R1273:4
Hath everlasting life – Full perfection of life, everlasting life. NS340:5
A right, privilege, or grant of life as God's gift. E386
Believers already possess eternal life. NS336:1 From the standpoint of God's reckoning, from the legal standpoint, the everlasting life provided for such is already considered as theirs, while they abide under the robe of Christ's righteousness. R5931:2
It is proper to say that we have a thing either when we are in actual possession of it, or when we have a clear deed or title to it. A believer has a clear title to life, signed by Jehovah himself and sealed with the precious blood of Christ. R606:2
Our Lord has still a human life ungiven away. He does not give to the Church human life. R5622:2
This is only a beginning of the resurrection, or raising up process, which will not be perfected until the thousand years are finished. R2051:3
And he – This verse expresses the results of the new trial for life everlasting made possible by his ransom-sacrifice. R1598:4
Believeth not – Man will be obliged to accept the great Mediator, but upon those who do not accept God's arrangements, the wrath of God will still abide. R4840:6
No man can be made alive in Christ or through Christ except by coming into him and through him. All who would have life in that age must become children of Christ, begotten of truth. R1219:2
It is because the death of Christ will save none but believers, specially and everlastingly, that God wills that all shall come to a knowledge of the facts. R1253:4, 1077:4
Not see life – Perfect life. E386
Everlasting life. R4881:6
Eternal life. HG424:1
That is, get fully free from death. R1077:4
Has no right to, nor promise of, life. R1219:2
Although the Lord's provision is abundant for all, it is not applicable to any except on certain conditions, namely (1) that they accept Christ as their Redeemer, and (2) that they strive to avoid sin and live in harmony with God and righteousness. E385
A recovery of what was lost (Adam's perfections and opportunities) comes to all, but God's gift of everlasting life through Jesus Christ is only to those who obey him. R1265:4, 1106:6
None out of Christ will be made alive, fully resurrected, though all experience the awakening from death--the first step of the process of resurrection and their trial to prove their worthiness or unworthiness. R1592:4
There surely will be some lost, as well as some saved. R3083:2
The Apostles Peter, Paul, James and John--aside from the founder of Christianity, certainly the greatest theologians of the Christian Church, and the only ones whose teachings can be recognized as of plenary inspiration--have not one word to say relative to the punishment for sin being eternal grief or eternal torment. HG305:5
The wrath of God – The sentence of God. SM315:T
The sentence of death everlasting. R4881:6
The pronounced penalty for sin, the curse, the sentence, death. E404; R4881:6, 2841:3, 2320:1; Q328:T; NS230:4, 405:4; NS707:2
The remainder of mankind are still under the death sentence, the wrath of God. They are not under the sentence of eternal torment, but under the curse, the condemnation of death. R4840:3
A good God, perfect in justice, wisdom, love and power, would exercise his wrath, his anger, along reasonable, just and merciful lines and not devilishly. NS707:2
Abideth on him – Will continue to abide on him because of his refusal to accept and obey the message of mercy. NS230:4
Leaving the unworthy subject to the just penalty always enunciated by the great judge of all, death. E404
If not removed, either in this age or the next. R606:3
Speaking of the dying race from the judicial standpoint, our Savior called them all dead. None has even a reckoned life, except such as by faith have accepted him as their Life giver--Savior. CR131:2
The "wrath," the "curse," will be lifted from all who come into harmony with God through Jesus the Mediator, and all who do not avail themselves of this grace will be swallowed up of the second death. E439, E468; Q328-329
While all are to come under the control of the great Messiah, they are not to be turned over perfect, but as they are found--in a dying condition, the wrath of God, because of imperfection, still being upon them, still subject to the weaknesses resulting from the sentence of death. R4819:1
Those who at the end of the hundred years of trial remain obstinate in heart, and only obedient outwardly, under compulsion, shall be judged hopeless "sinners" and will be cut off from all further trial for life. R1772:3
Such as shall accept of Christ as their ransom, we are expressly told, "shall be saved from wrath through him." (Rom. 5:9) R787:3
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