RIGHTEOUSNESS BY FAITH

The 1888 Message given by Doctor Ellet J. Waggoner and Elder Alonzo T. Jones at the Minneapolis General Conference Session in 1888 is one of the most important messages ever given to our Church. It was a special message from God to His people.

"The Lord in His great mercy sent a most precious message to His people through Elders Waggoner and Jones. . . It presented Justification through Faith in the surety; It invited the people to receive the Righteousness of Christ, which is made manifest in obedience to all the commandments of  God." Testimonies to Ministers, pages 91-92.

"The message given us by A.T. Jones and E.J. Waggoner is the message of God to the Laodicean Church." E.G.W., Letter S-24-1892.

A clear understanding today of this message is the key to our future as a people, but it is also the Loud Cry message to be presented to a lost world:

"The loud cry of the third angel has already begun in the revelation of the Righteousness of Christ, the sin pardoning Redeemer. This is the beginning of the light of the angel whose glory shall fill the whole earth." Review, November, 1892.

(1) The Shorthand Reports of E. J. Waggoner, taken down by Jessie F. Moser-Waggoner, and later edited by Waggoner, himself, to confirm their accuracy, and then put into book form by himself: "Christ and His Righteousness," 96 pages. 1890; "The Gospel in Creation," 176 pages. 1893; and "The Glad Tidings," 265 pages, 1900. All three of these books were based on his 1888 shorthand notes.

(2) Elder A.T. Jones studies preached at the General Conference session of 1893. These 24 sermons were a repetition of his 1888 messages and are recorded in the General Conference Daily Bulletins which were published at the time.

(3) Unequivocal statements by the Spirit of Prophecy that the Waggoner-Jones message was the Truth of God on Righteousness by Faith and confirmatory statements by inspiration written at that time to clarify the message they gave.

The writings of these men, supported by detailed statements in the Spirit of Prophecy, together present a broad and clear view on the doctrine of Righteousness by Faith. They are more than a match for the speculations of men today regarding that message. The evidence below will conclusively show that the Brinsmead Ford Paxton position on Righteousness by Faith is a false one, when compared with Jones and Waggoner and inspiration.

The Reformation Theologians were freshly come out of Roman Catholicism, and they taught a message in reaction against the church of Rome. Determined to stay far away from such things as Penance, Prayers for the Dead, Recitation of Hail Marys, Asceticism, indulgences, and Veneration of images, they spoke out against all religious acts of mankind, whatever might be the motivation. But righteousness is right-doing, and right-doing is right acts. Justification is the Christians entry way into the path of living with Christ. Justification is not the full spectrum of Righteousness.

Waggoner and Jones brought to us the message that true acts of Righteousness are not the works of self but the works of Faith. The every-day acts of right living ("works") are the fruit of faith, but obedience is the source of good works and must be of Faith.

"Therefore, when the apostle says that we do not make void the law of God by faith, but that, on the contrary, we establish it, he means that faith does not lead to violation of the law, but to obedience. No, we do not say that faith leads to obedience, but that faith itself obeys." E. J. Waggoner, Christ and His Righteousness, page 95.

E.J. Waggoner in his sermons and writings always equated Righteousness of Faith with obedience.

It is too simplistic to say that obedience is but a mere result of our faith. Obedience is the very expression of our faith, it is our faith. Their message was this: Accept by Faith the Obedience of Christ worked out in the believers daily life. This is Heavens way of fitting him to walk amongst the angels and to see the Father face to face. This is Righteousness by Faith the Righteousness of Christ that God is waiting for His Church to experience personally. The Key to this experience is Christ in you, the anticipation of the glory that will be yours at His Second Coming. This experience must be ours, and will be brought to its fullest expression in the Latter Rain. But the key to it all is an indwelling Saviour. This is the mystery of the gospel.

"The mystery of the Gospel is Christ in the believer, the hope of glory." E.J. Waggoner. Glad Tidings, page 20.

Ford and Brinsmead tell us that Justification has nothing to do with being made righteous. (They say it only means to declare or account righteous.) But the truth is that Justification which declares us righteous immediately leads to right thinking and living "in Christ." We are "made righteous" in Him.

"The meaning of the word justified. is made righteous. This is the exact term that appears in [Bibles in] other languages . . . The Latin word for righteousness is justitia. To be just is to be righteous. Then we add the termination fy from the Latin word meaning to make, and we have the exact equivalent of the simpler term, make righteous. " E.J. Waggoner, Glad Tidings, page 40.

There can be no doubt that the message of God given to the Remnant in 1888 was to be centered in and received in the indwelling fullness of Jesus Christ. The entire experience of Righteousness by Faith is just that an experience. An experience within the heart and life of the believer. It is not merely a legal transaction made "outside" of the believer up in heaven. Justification begins with the declaring of a man righteous. This is not the end of the matter, for it immediately leads to the Christian living and growth in Christ we call Sanctification. Indeed, without Sanctification, there can be no Justification:

"Those who are justified by faith must have a heart to keep the way of the Lord. It is an evidence that a man is not justified by faith when his works do not correspond to his profession. James says, Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was his faith made perfect. " (James 2:22)

The faith that does not produce good works does not justify the soul. Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only. (James 2:24)." Selected Messages, volume 1, page 397.

Obedience is worked out for us and with us and in us by the very One who Himself shared our fallen nature while on earth. Waggoner clearly saw the importance of the religious experience of Christ during His earthly years. If Christ did not come in our sinful nature with all its hereditary weaknesses, He could not, as an indwelling Saviour, provide us with a resistance to temptation which He Himself had not experienced.

Christ, in order to be our Saviour, had to be tempted in all points as ourselves. He needed to experience the temptations from within as well as from without. He did this and still remained holy and without stain.

"To believe on His name is to believe that He is the Son of God. To believe that He is the Son of God, means to believe that He is come in the flesh, in human flesh, in our flesh, for His name is God with us. "

"Moreover, the fact that Christ took upon Himself the flesh, not of a sinless being, but of sinful man, that is, that the flesh which He assumed had all the weaknesses and sinful tendencies to which fallen human nature is subject, is shown by the statement that He was made of the seed of David according to the flesh. David had all the passions of human nature. He says of himself, Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me. Psalm 51:5." E.J. Waggoner, Christ and His Righteousness, 1890, page 26.

"He was made to be sin. Here is the same mystery as that the Son of God should die. The spotless Lamb of God, who knew no sin, was made to be sin. Sinless, yet not only counted as a sinner, but actually taking upon Himself sinful nature. He was made to be sin in order that we might be made righteous." E.J. Waggoner, Christ and His Righteousness. pp 27.

"His humanity only veiled His Divine Nature, by which He was inseparably connected with the invisible God, and which was more than able successfully to resist the weaknesses of the flesh. There was in His whole life a struggle. The flesh, moved upon by the enemy of all righteousness, would tend to sin, yet His Divine Nature never for a moment harbored an evil desire, nor did His Divine power for a moment waver." E.J. Waggoner, Christ and His Righteousness, page 20.

Jones agreed with this basic truth of the importance of the Nature of Christ to the individual believer: "And thus it is that for the sins which we have actually committed, for the sins which are past, His righteousness is imputed to us, as our sins were imputed to Him. and to keep us from sinning, His righteousness is imparted to us in our flesh, as our flesh, with all its liability to sin, was imparted to Him. Thus He is the complete Saviour.

"In that genealogy [of Christs earthly ancestors], there are Jehoiakim who for his wickedness was buried with the burial of an ass, drawn and cast forth beyond the gates of Jerusalem, Manasseh, who caused Judah to do worse than the heathen, Ahaz, who made Judah naked, and transgressed sore against the Lord; Rehoboam, who was born of Solomon after Solomon turned from the Lord; Solomon himself, who was born of David and Bathsheba; . . .

"Now it is at the end of such a genealogy as that, that the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us. It was at the end of such a genealogy as that that He was made of a woman. It was in such a line of descent as that that God sent His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh.

"Whether temptation be from within or from without, He is the perfect shield against it all, and so saves to the uttermost all who come unto God by Him." A.T. Jones. The Consecrated Way to Christian Perfection, pages 42-44.

"[Hebrews 4:15 quoted] He was in all points tempted like as we are. Therefore He was in all points like as we are!" A.T. Jones, The Consecrated Way to Christian Perfection, pages 38-39.

Elder A.T. Jones in his 1893 General Conference Sermons a repeat of his 1888 Message, showed that Righteousness by Faith is not merely an act of Justification, but includes Sanctification.

"[Speaking of the 1888 Conference, and quoting the Spirit of Prophecy 1892 Review passage cited above] Then what did the brethren in that fearful position in which they stood, reject at Minneapolis? They rejected the latter rain the loud cry of the third angels message . . Christ came into the world, revealing the true gospel as never before Christ in man." A.T. Jones, General Conference Bulletin, 1893, page 266.

This was the emphasis of Minneapolis, not the historic Christ, but the personal presence of God in us. This is the meaning of Righteousness by Faith.

"The only possible way in which anybody in this world can know the righteousness of God, can receive the righteousness of God . . . is by having the mind of Christ itself. . . Where do we get that mind? (Congregation: in Christ.) Then is it possible for any man, by any possible means, to render to the Ten Commandments what they require, and what only they will accept, without having the mind of Jesus Christ itself? (Congregation: No. sir.) Well, can I have the mind of Christ without the rest of Him? No, I cannot. Therefore as I cannot have the mind of Christ without the rest of Him, it follows that I must have the personal presence of Christ Himself." A.T. Jones, 1893 General Conference Bulletin, 1893, page 245.

Martin Luther was at the coming-out from Catholicism. We are at the entering-in to Translation. Luther was unprepared for the full light on Righteousness by Faith that we have. The message was given us in order to finish the work of God on this earth.

"Do you see it is Christ in us, that Living Presence that does the righteous work, and that is by the Holy Spirit? That is what the Holy Spirit brings; that is the outpouring of the latter rain, is it not? You see we cannot study anything else. That is the message for us now. When we receive the message what do we receive? (Congregation: Christ.) When we receive Him what have we? (Voice: The Holy Spirit. The Latter Rain.)" A.T. Jones, 1893 General Conference Bulletin, page 360.

Elder A.T. Jones agreed with Elder E.J. Waggoner in the definition of Justification:

"Justified is made righteous. So whenever we read it here, you can just put the words, made righteous there instead, and you have the same thing always." A.T. Jones, General Conference Bulletin, 1893, page 362.

The message of an indwelling Saviour is a major emphasis of the true teaching of Righteousness by Faith:

"Anyone who cannot go from this meeting with the living consciousness of the presence of Jesus Christ in His power, with His light and His glory upon Him, and in his life, that minister had better not leave this place as a minister, or as a professed minister; because he goes to a work that he cannot do; he goes to meet a people whom he cannot meet: he goes to meet responsibilities that he cannot meet." A.T. Jones, General Conference Bulletin, 1893, page 495.

We are thankful for the wonderful truth of Justification by Faith, for it is an integral part of the message of Righteousness by Faith. But it is the full message which will finish Gods work on earth. Justification begins a step. Sanctification carries it through. Justification begins the next step. Sanctification carries that through. The two go together all the way to the city of God. Crying to Christ and obeying in Christ are the two phases on our part. Forgiveness in Christ and enabling in Christ, the two phases on Gods part. Two phases: Justification and Sanctification a complete message.

Here is what Ellen White said to the Minneapolis Session on the first Sabbath of the gathering:

"Many will say, I am saved. I am saved. I am saved. Well, have they been cleansed from all filthiness of the flesh and the spirit? And can they cleanse themselves by the righteousness of the law? Jesus Christ came to this world, and there is His righteousness to impart to the children of men who are obeying the law of God. Here is the Jesus Christ who comes right in and imparts His Righteousness to us: we cannot overcome in our own strength, but by faith in Him. . . . We can be filled with all the fullness of God. Our lives may measure with the life of God.. God help us and fill us with all fullness and power, and then we can taste of the joys of the world to come." E.G.W., Manuscript 8, 1888. Sermon presented at the Minneapolis Conference. Sabbath, October 20. 1888.

In a final written message entitled. "A Call to a Deeper Study of the Word," addressed to the Brethren assembled at the Minneapolis General Conference, she stated:

"I see the beauty of truth in the presentation of the Righteousness of Christ in relation to the law as the doctor (Waggoner) has placed it before us. You say, many of you, it is light and truth. Yet you have not presented it in this light heretofore. Is it not possible that through earnest, prayerful searching of the Scriptures he has seen still greater light on some points? That which has been presented harmonizes perfectly with the light which God has been pleased to give me during all the years of my experience." Manuscript 15, 1888.

Elsewhere, she made similar comments:

"[It] is a message from God: It bears the divine credentials."    E.G.W., Review, September 3, 1889.

"Messages bearing the Divine credentials have been sent to Gods people." Review, May 27, 1890.

Not only did Ellen White openly and repeatedly support the message of Jones and Waggoner, but she even traveled with them as they went from place to place, following the Minneapolis meetings, presenting them to the people:

"I have traveled from place to place. attending meetings where the message of the Righteousness of Christ was preached. I considered it a privilege to stand by the side of my brethren, and give my testimony with the message for the time." Review, March 18. 1890.

In the providence of God, the Messenger of the Lord was present to give added support to the message for the people a message that Heaven wanted them to have, and a message that we need today.

Almost the entire General Conference Session of 1893 was devoted to a presentation of this subject by Elders Waggoner and Jones. It is considered to have been a re-presentation of the message delivered in 1888.

Here are additional passages from the Spirit of Prophecy that will further clarify the important message of the 1888 Minneapolis General Conference:

"Unless divine power is brought into the experience of the people of God, false theories and erroneous ideas will take minds captive. Christ and His Righteousness will be dropped out of the experience of many, and their faith will be without power or light." Review, September 3, 1889.

"The Righteousness by which we are justified is imputed: the righteousness by which we are sanctified is imparted. The first is our title to heaven, the second is our fitness for heaven." Review, June 4, 1895, Messages to Young People. page 35.

The ones whom Christ acknowledges as His when he returns, will not be those who chose to remain in their sins:

"On Christ's coronation day He will not acknowledge as His any who bear spot or wrinkle or any such thing. But to His faithful ones He will give crowns of immortal glory. Those who would not that He should reign over them will see Him surrounded by the army of the redeemed, each of whom bears the sign. the Lord our Righteousness." Review, November 24, 1904.

Righteousness by Faith will change our lives and enable us to represent the Character of Christ before all men.

"This name is hallowed by the angels of heaven, by the inhabitants of unfallen worlds. When you pray, Hallowed be Thy name, you ask that it may be hallowed in this world, hallowed in you. God has acknowledged you before men and angels as His child; pray that you may do no dishonor to the worthy name by which ye are called. God sends you into the world as His representatives. In every act of life you are to make manifest the name of God. This petition calls upon you to possess His character. You cannot hallow His name, you cannot represent Him to the world, unless in life and character you represent the very life and character of God. This you can do only through the acceptance of the grace and righteousness of Christ." Mount of Blessing, page 158.

Paul declares in the first chapter of Romans that he is "not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ, . . . For therein is the Righteousness of God revealed, from faith to faith." In the Greek of this message, it is faith anti faith, faith upon faith. Faith growing, building, enlarging. The Faith to receive Justification, which becomes the Faith to walk with Jesus day by day in the experience of Sanctification. The Righteousness of God is revealed from one Faith to another.

"For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to [anti] faith; as it is written, the just shall live by faith." Romans 1:16-17.

How do the messengers that brought us the Minneapolis message of Righteousness by Faith, view the correct meaning of this text?

"Here we have Righteousness by Faith: The just shall live by faith. Nothing else? By faith and works? Add not thou unto His words, lest He reprove thee, and thou be a liar. To be just is to be righteous, and a righteous man will do righteous acts. This is the fruit of righteousness. But how does he do these works? By Faith." E. J. Waggoner, Bible Studies on the Book of Romans, page 1.

"When the personal presence of Christ comes to us, He will be closer to us than if He would come in here to these meetings with us every day. Is that so? (Congregation: Yes, sir.) Well then, that is the gospel, is it not? That is the Righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ. That is the gospel, for therein is the Righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith. (Romans 1:17)." A.T. Jones, General Conference Daily Bulletin, 1893, page 301.

Inspiration, as we have seen, agrees with these messages of Jones and Waggoner that it is faith that works, and it is done in Christ, through His imparted grace, and by the indwelling Holy Spirit within us:

"The Righteousness of Christ is revealed from Faith to Faith, that is from your present Faith to an increased understanding of that Faith which works by love and purifies the soul . . . I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ; for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth; to the Jew first and also to the Greek for therein is the Righteousness of God revealed from Faith to Faith. When Christ imparts to any the blessing of His grace, He lays the recipients under special obligation." E.G.W., Review, September 77, 1908. Bible Commentary, volume 6, page 1067.

"The Spirit of God works in the believers soul, enabling him to advance from one line of obedience to another, reaching on from strength to greater strength, from grace to grace in Jesus Christ." E.G.W., Selected Messages, volume 1, page 375.

The above writers clearly see the Scriptural scope of Righteousness by Faith in Romans 1:16-17 as referring to Sanctification, and not merely to Justification in its narrow sense of depersonalized or objective righteousness.

Philippians 3:9

Paul is a man who lived very close to Christ. Indeed, he urges all followers of Christ to live such a life a life of sanctified Obedience (2 Corinthians 10:5). Right-doing, or obedience, is righteousness. It can be done only by faith in Christs enabling strength. Every Christian as Paul, must be right-doing.

Paul states plainly that the works of righteousness performed by the Christian should not be the works (i.e., righteousness) of Self, but, by denial of self, be the Righteousness of Christ. Here is how he describes it:

"And be found in Him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the Law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith." Philippians 3:9.

This text of Scripture leaves no doubt that the imparted Righteousness of Christ the sanctified life of the believer is not the righteousness of Self, but by the denial of self, is the Righteousness of Faith.

Sanctification by Faith in Christs Righteousness is Scriptural. To deny this, is to deny Scripture and to repudiate the working of Christ in ones own life. Who would want to be guilty of such a serious accusation against the atoning work of Christ, provided for us at Calvary, mediated for us in the Sanctuary in Heaven? May God have mercy on those who so glibly toss out words about the Holy Work of Christ within the life of the believer.

Romans 10:4, 6-8

Paul in Romans ten shows that while the Righteousness of Faith cannot be earned, yet it can be lived. In the heart and life of His children, as a gift from God!

"For Christ is the end [Greek: objective or goal] of the law for righteousness to everyone that believeth but the righteousness which is of faith speaketh on this wise, say not in thine heart, who shall ascend into heaven? (That is to bring Christ down from above:), or, who shall descend into the deep? (That is, to bring Christ again from the dead.) But what sayeth it? the word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thine heart." Romans 10:4, 6-8.

"When we bring our lives into complete obedience to the law of God, regarding God as our Supreme Guide, and clinging to Christ, as our hope of Righteousness, God will work in our behalf. This is a Righteousness of Faith. This obedience works out for us the divine will, bringing into our lives the Righteousness and perfection that was seen in the life of Christ." E.G.W., Sons and Daughters of God, page 66.

Galatians 2:20

Here is Pauls summary in Galatians of the Christians relationship to Christ:

"I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live, yet not I but Christ liveth in me, and the life which now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me." Galatians 2:20.

Paul, a converted Christian, is completely dead to self. He is quite obviously living the experience of Romans Eight, not of Romans Seven. The life that he lived a life of Righteousness he lived by Faith in the indwelling Saviour.

Paul emphasizes in Galatians that the Righteousness of the saints is manifested "without the law" outside of the laws condemnation because Jesus dwells in the heart by faith, thus enabling him to fulfill its requirements. The law can condemn unrighteousness, but cannot impart righteousness. But the Righteousness which comes from a personal acceptance and a personal relationship with Christ is a real Righteousness, and one that in our lives fulfills every one of the laws requirements.

"In their professed service to God, the Jews were really working for self. Their righteousness was the fruit of their own efforts to keep the law according to their own ideas and for their own selfish benefit. Hence it could be no better than then were. In their endeavor to make themselves holy they were trying to bring a clean thing out of an unclean. The law of God is as holy as He is holy, as perfect as He is perfect. It presents to men the righteousness of God. It is impossible for man of himself, to keep this law: for the nature of man is depraved, deformed, and wholly unlike the character of God. It is the works of a selfish heart that are as an unclean thing and all our righteousness are as filthy rags. Isaiah 64:6.

"While the law is holy, the Jews could not attain righteousness by their own efforts to keep the law. The disciples of Christ must obtain righteousness of a different character from that of the Pharisees, if they would enter the kingdom of Heaven. God offered them, in his Son, the perfect righteousness of the law. If they would open their hearts fully to receive Christ, then the very life of God, His love, would dwell in them, transforming them into His own likeness: and thus through Gods free gift they would possess the righteousness which the law requires." Mount of Blessing. 54-55.

Notice that only the works not of faith are unclean and as a filthy rag. The heart that is fully opened to receive Christ is transformed into His own likeness, and by His enabling merit alone the believers obedience to the law of God will give him possession of the "Righteousness which the law requires." This Righteousness of Faith within the heart and life of the believer is not unclean, nor is it a filthy rag. It is perfect.

Romans 3: 21-22, 24

"But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; even the Righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe." Romans 3:21-22.

"Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus." Romans 3:24.

This Righteousness is "unto all them that believe." It is obviously imparted Righteousness. Paul shows us clearly that there is real Righteousness communicated from God to man, through Faith in Jesus Christ. And, then, having explained this, he tells of Justification, in verse 24. The "all" of verse 22, are the ones "being justified" in verse 24. "Righteousness" is larger than being declared righteous. It also includes the accompanying change in character.

Hebrews 11:32-33

"And what more shall I say, for time would fail me if I tell of Gideon and the prophets who by faith performed acts of righteousness." Hebrews 11:32-33 (N.E.B.).

Paul here tells us that the prophets "by faith performed acts of righteousness." But this truth is denied by the "Present Error" theology of Brinsmead and Ford in many of their statements to the effect that Righteousness by Faith never in the New Testament includes sanctification. The meaning of the above passage in Hebrews is clear. "Righteousness" is simply defined as an "act," and "by faith" shows that it is genuine the entire experience proceeding from a connection with Christ Himself that is as close as that of the branch engrafted fiber-by-fiber with the Vine. Thus we are told that "acts of righteousness" that proceed from Faith constitute right living, according to the Bible. Or to say it in different words: Obedience is Righteousness by Faith.

Ephesians 5:9 and Galatians 3:2

Paul tells us in Ephesians 5:9 that "the fruit of the Spirit is . . goodness and righteousness." In Galatians 3:2, he asks, "Receive ye the Spirit. . by . . faith?" The Holy Spirit produces Righteousness in the believer (Ephesians 5:9), and a man receives the Holy Spirit by faith (Galatians 3:2). Therefore that righteousness he received from the Holy Spirit is a Righteousness resulting from Faith. Ephesians 5:9 is clearly speaking of Sanctification, for the terms "goodness and righteousness" merely define the quality of life. So the "fruit of the Spirit" may be called either Sanctification by Faith, or Righteousness by Faith. Both terms in Biblical theology have the same meaning.

It is thus clearly seen that in order for a Christian to go to heaven, he must first be fitted to walk and live among sinless beings. It is not enough to give him a title for heaven, the Righteousness of God must be imparted to him. Only the indwelling Righteousness of Christ will suffice.

The Latter Rain Experience will be a far deeper infilling. of Jesus, an experience we are to seek now. As we are to walk in the light of an Indwelling Saviour then, so we are to live now.

"Who will be fitted for the loud cry of the third angel? Those who have the presence of Jesus Christ. This means the personal presence, too not imaginary, a way-off presence; It is not that at all." A.T. Jones, General Conference Daily Bulletin, 1893, page 297.

"Live with Him, brethren! Live with Him; live with Him, this is what He wants. Why, He is raised from the dead, and we are raised up with Him that we may live with Him. (Romans 6:8). His personal presence is to be with us. That is what the Laodicean message is to do for us; it brings the presence of Christ to live in us." A.T. Jones, General Conference Daily Bulletin, 1893, page 300.

Justification naturally leads to Sanctification, and as we take each step in Christ, we bear witness to the Righteousness of God by Faith in His Son.

"He called Abraham out doors to show him the stars but He can show us sins without calling us out doors. Has He shown you a great many sins? Has He? (Congregation: Yes). Now He says, If thou be able to number them, they shall be as white as snow. What do you say? (Congregation: Amen) Then what does the Lord say? (Congregation: You are righteous) Are you? (Voice: Yes) Do people become righteous as easy as that? Is it as simple a transaction as that? (Congregation: Yes). Amen." A.T. Jones, General Conference Daily Bulletin, 1893, page 378.

We work because Jesus works in us. Apart from Him we are nothing. Apart from Him we can do nothing. Our best is as good as our worst, apart from an Indwelling Christ. But in Christ, the future is bright, for Heaven begins in our lives.

"The difficulty is, when the people get their minds on works, and works, and works, instead of upon Jesus Christ in order to work, they pervert the whole thing." A.T. Jones, General Conference Daily Bulletin, 1893, page 298.

"Who then is to do the work in order that it may be good works indeed? Let us read again: [from Steps to Christ, page 75] "If Christ is dwelling in our hearts, He will work in us both to will and to do of His good pleasure." We shall work as He works; we shall manifest the same spirit. And thus, loving Him and abiding in Him, we shall "grow up into Him in all things, which is the Head, even Christ." Now then, that is what the Lord wants, that is what the mind of Christ is." A.T. Jones, General Conference Daily Bulletin, 1893, page 298.

The accuracy of Alonzo T. Jones and Ellet J. Waggoner in presenting the correct message to the people was due in no small way to their understanding of Spirit of Prophecy principles. A careful study of their lectures is a striking insight into their indebtedness to those writings. They quote extensively from them.

The message is a clear one. The message of God to us today, is echoing down from the days of Minneapolis to pray for deliverance from a Satanic experience of Unrighteousness by Faith, and by the power of a Forgiving Christ and an Indwelling Christ, become fitted by Him, under the guidance of His Holy Spirit, in accordance with the teachings of His Word for what is ahead. For six thousand years men needed to prepare to die. God is waiting today for a people who will prepare for translation. And it will take more than 16th Century Lutheranism or 5th Century Augustinian Catholicism to do it. Refuse to listen to those who would take away Gods Word. Their only objective is to destroy the keeping of the law of God from our midst, and lead us in captivity back to Babylon.

"The minds of many have been so darkened and confused by worldly customs, worldly practices, and worldly influences, that all power to discriminate between light and darkness, truth and error, seems destroyed . . . There are men among us in responsible positions who hold that. . . such a faith as that of Paul, Peter, or John, is old-fashioned, and insufferable at the present day. It is pronounced absurd, mystical, and unworthy of an intelligent mind." Testimonies, volume 5, page 62, 79.

"That, however, is but a sample. There will be things to come that will be more surprising than that was to those at Minneapolis, more surprising than anything we have yet seen. And, brethren, we will be required to receive and preach that truth." A.T. Jones, General Conference Daily Bulletin, 1893, page 185.

"Not a soul of us has ever been able to dream yet the wonderful blessings that God had for us at Minneapolis, and which we would have been enjoying these four years, if hearts had been ready to receive the message which God sent. We would have been four years ahead. We would have been in the midst of the wonders of the loud cry itself, tonight. Did not the Spirit of Prophecy tell us here at that time that the blessing of God was hanging over our heads? Well, brethren, you know." A.T. Jones, General Conference Daily Bulletin, 1893, page not given [quoted in 1888 Re-examined, page 55].

"I have had the question asked, What do you think of this Light that these men A.T. Jones and E.J. Waggoner are presenting? Why, I have been presenting it to you for the last forty-five years, the matchless charms of Christ is what I have been trying to present before your minds." E.G.W., Sermon at Rome, New York, June 17, 1889, Manuscript 5. 1889.

"Many commit the error of trying to define minutely the fine points of distinction between justification and sanctification. Into the definitions of these two terms they often bring their own ideas and speculations. Why try to be more minute than is inspiration on the vital question of Righteousness by Faith? Why try to work out every minute point, as if the salvation of the soul depended upon all having exactly your understanding of this matter. You are in danger of making a world of an atom and an atom of a world." E.G.W., February 27, 1891 Diary, at Battle Creek; also: Manuscript 6, 1903.

"This great truth must be established as a living principle in our minds and hearts the efficacy of the offering made for us; that God can and does save to the uttermost all who come unto Him complying with the conditions specified in His Word. Our work is to place our will on the side of Gods will. Then through the blood of the atonement, we become partakers of the divine nature; through Christ we are children of God, and we have the assurance that God loves us even as He loves His Son. . . . Our hope is to be constantly strengthened by the knowledge that Christ is our Righteousness. Let our faith rest upon this foundation, for it will stand fast forever." Testimonies, volume 5, page 741-742.

"Christ has made every provision for us to be strong. He has given us His Holy Spirit, whose office it is to bring to our remembrance all the promises that Christ has made, that we may have peace and a sweet sense of forgiveness. If we will but keep our eyes fixed on the Saviour and trust in His power, we shall be filled with a sense of security, for the Righteousness of Christ will become our Righteousness." My Life Today, page 45.

"The proud heart strives to earn salvation; but both our title to heaven and our fitness for it are found in the Righteousness of Christ. The Lord can do nothing toward the recovery of man until, convinced of his own weakness, and stripped of all self-sufficiency, he yields himself to the control of God. Then he can receive the gift that God is waiting to bestow. From the soul that feels his need, nothing is withheld. He has unrestricted access to Him in whom all fullness dwells." Desire of Ages, page 300.

"Righteousness within is testified to by Righteousness without. He who is righteous within is not hard-hearted and unsympathetic, but day by day he grows into the image of Christ, going on from strength to strength. He who is being sanctified by the truth will be self-controlled, and will follow in the footsteps of Christ until grace is lost in glory. The Righteousness by which we are justified is imputed; the Righteousness by which we are sanctified is imparted. The first is our title to heaven, the second is our fitness for it." Review, June 4, 1895, Messages to Young People, page 35.

"The foundation of Christianity is Christ our Righteousness." Testimonies, volume 5. page 725.

"God gave to His servants at Minneapolis a testimony that presented the truth as it is in Jesus, which is the third angels message, in clear, distinct lines." Testimonies to Ministers, page 93.

The rejection of the 1888 Message meant a rejecting of the Spirit of Prophecy.

[After reminding them that the brethren in 1888 rejected the loud cry] "They didnt know they were doing this, but the Spirit of the Lord was there to tell them they were doing it . . . When the prophet told them what they were doing, they simply set the prophet aside with all the rest." A.T. Jones, General Conference Daily Bulletin, 1893, page not given [in 1888 Re-examined, page 81).

"If the ministers will not receive the light [given at Minneapolis], I want to give the people a chance; perhaps they will receive it.. . . [Formerly] you acknowledged that Sister White was right. But somehow it has changed now, and Sister White is different. Just like the Jewish nation." E.G.W., October 24, 1888, Manuscript 9, 1888.

"The office of a messenger whom God has chosen to send with reproofs and warnings is strangely misunderstood at the present time." E.G.W., Review, July 18, 1893.

"The influence that grew out of the resistance of light and truth at Minneapolis tended to make of no effect the light God had given to His people through the Testimonies. Great Controversy, Volume 4 [our volume 5], has not had the circulation that it should have had, because some of those who occupy responsible positions were leavened with the spirit that prevailed at Minneapolis, a spirit that clouded the discernment of the people. What account will be rendered to God for thus retarding the work?" E.G.W., Letter read at the General Conference Session, February 27, 1893.

"I went to large expense in bringing out the illustrated editions of Great Controversy and Patriarchs and Prophets, But these books were allowed to fall almost dead from the press, and for nearly three years little was done with them." E.G.W. Letter D-237-1903.

"Oh, it is the hardest place in the world, to speak where great light has come, to men in responsible positions. They have been enlightened, but have chosen darkness rather than light . . You may depend I have great sorrow of heart. What will be the end of this stubborn unbelief we have yet to learn." E.G.W., Letter dated September 18, 1890. Manuscript W-32, 1890.

"Let us thank the Lord that He is dealing with us still, to save us from our errors, to save us from our dangers. to keep us back from wrong courses, and to pour upon us the latter rain, that we may be translated. That is what the message means translation to you and me." A.T. Jones, General Conference Daily Bulletin, 1893, page 185.

"I say again, that in all cases he who believes in Jesus Christ most fully will work most fully for Him.

"Now let us have this word, and that will be the best close I could make to the whole thing tonight: Steps to Christ, page 79, The heart that rests most fully upon Christ will be the most earnest and active in labor for Him. Amen. (Congregation: Amen) Do not forget that now. Do not think that the man who says that he rests wholly upon Jesus Christ is either a physical or a spiritual loafer. If he shows this loafing in his life, he is not resting on Christ at all, but on his own self.

"No sir; the heart that rests most fully upon Christ will be the most earnest and active in labor for Him. That is what Faith is. That is faith that will bring to you the outpouring of the latter rain." A.T. Jones, General Conference Daily Bulletin, 1893, page 302.

The Message was a call to put away sin not to "cover it over with righteousness. "

"When sin is pointed out to you, say, I would rather have Christ than that. And let it go. (Congregation: Amen) . . . Then where in the world is the opportunity for any of us to get discouraged over our sins? [from wanting to hold on to them] Now some of the brethren have done that very thing. They came here free; but the Spirit of God brought up something they never saw before. The Spirit of God went deeper than it ever went before, and revealed things they never saw before: and then, instead of thanking the Lord that that was so, and letting the whole wicked business go, and thanking the Lord that they had ever so much more of Him than they ever had before, they began to get discouraged . . . and they got no good out of the meetings day after day.

"If the Lord has brought up sins to us that we never thought of before, that only shows that He is going down to the depths, and He will reach the bottom at last; and when He finds the last thing that is unclean or impure, that is out of harmony with His will, and brings that up, and shows that to us, and we say, I would rather have the Lord than that then the work is complete, and the seal of the living God can be fixed upon that character . 

"Which would you rather have, the completeness, the perfect fullness of Jesus Christ. or have less than that, with some of your sins covered up that you never knew of? . . So He has got to dig down to the deep places we never dreamed of, because we cannot understand our hearts . . . Let Him go on, brethren; let Him keep on His searching work . . . Brethren, let us be honest with the Lord, and treat Him as He wants us to." A.T. Jones, General Conference Daily Bulletin, 1893, page 404.

"We have the word here that those things are among us; ambition for place, jealousy of position, and envy of situation: those things are among us. Now the time has come to put them away; now the time has come for each one to find how low he can get at the feet of Christ, and not how high in the Conference, or in the estimation of men, or how high in the Conference Committee, or General Conference Committee; that is not the question at all . . . No difference what it costs; that has nothing to do with it." A.T. Jones, General Conference Daily Bulletin, 1893, page 183.

"Shall the Ark of the Covenant containing the Law and the Righteous mediation of Christ be removed from this people? Shall idols be smuggled in? Shall false principles and false precepts be brought into the sanctuary? Shall antichrist be respected? Shall the true doctrines and principles given us by God, which have made us what we are, be ignored? . . . This is directly where the enemy, through blinded, unconsecrated men, is leading us.

"Things have gone as far as they should without someone protesting against them in plain words. The Lords time to set things in order has fully come." E.G.W., Manuscript 29, 1890, Counsels to Writers and Editors, pages 95-96.

"The nearer we come to the second coming of the Saviour the more fully Spiritualism will be professing Christ. Satan, himself . . . comes as Christ; he is received as Christ. So then the people of God must be so well acquainted with the Saviour that no profession of the name of Christ will be received or accepted where it is not the actual, genuine thing." A.T. Jones, General Conference Daily Bulletin, 1893, page 342.

"Then although these folks quote the words of Christ, it is all counterfeit. You know that Volume 4 [Great Controversy, our volume 5] tells us that when Satan himself comes with the gracious words that the Saviour uttered, he will talk them with much the same tone, and will pass it off on those who have not the mind of Christ. Brethren, there is no salvation for us, there is no safety for us, there is no remedy for us at all, but to have the mind of Christ." A.T. Jones, General Conference Daily Bulletin, 1893, page 343.

"That is Righteousness by Faith: that is a faith that works, thank the Lord, not a faith that believes something away off, that keeps the truth of God in the outer court, and then seeks by his own efforts to make up the lack. Not that. No, but faith that works. It, itself, is working; it has a divine power to it.

"This is enough to show that the Papal Doctrine of Justification by Faith is Satans doctrine; it is simply the natural mind depending upon itself, working through itself, exalting itself; and then covering it all up with a profession of belief in this, that, and the other, but having no power of God. Then, brethren, let it be rooted up forever." A.T. Jones, General Conference Daily Bulletin, 1893, page 265-266.

The papal teaching is the antichrist teaching. It asserts that man cannot have power from Christ to overcome in his life. He must go it alone. He may do what he wants, but he shall not receive help from Christ in the problems of life, and only an occasional canonized saint will succeed in obtaining victory through self.