Have you ever tried to eat an artificial banana? If you’re hungry, it looks like the real thing, but it doesn’t fool the monkeys (I tried to fool them when I lived in Africa). “1888” pinpoints not only a true Christ, but also exposes a counterfeit false christ and a false holy spirit. Truths that make up “1888” center in this double disclosure.
“1888” proclaimed how close Jesus has come to us. This makes all the difference in our personal, day-by-day Christian living (but Satan didn’t like the idea!).
In the end, there will be only two great “faiths” in the world: “Babylon” and the Revelation 18 “loud cry ” message that will lighten the earth with glory.
“1888” probed deeply
To get ready for the second coming of Christ requires that we distinguish the nearness of Jesus from the popular idea of the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary. Here is the first published statement from E. J. Waggoner following the Minneapolis Conference; it summarizes it nicely:We have an exhortation which comprehends all the injunctions given to the Christian. It is this: “Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus.” To do this as the Bible enjoins, to consider Christ continually and intelligently, just as He is, will transform one into a perfect Christian, for “by beholding we become changed” (Heb. 3:1).
Here’s a triple-edged truth: (a) Seeing Jesus “just as He is” is seeing Him as taking upon His sinless nature our fallen, sinful nature, but living a sinless life therein. (b) Receiving Him in this way transforms His people into being “perfect,” ready for Christ’s appearing. (c) This is accomplished not by a works program, but simply by His people “beholding” Him “just as He is,” but not as Babylon portrays Him.
Thus in these few words was encapsulated what the church had been waiting for ever since the Midnight Cry of 1844 because in “1888” lay the beginning of what we had been praying God to send—the initial outpouring of the “latter rain.”
Simple, but also profound
The popular dogma of the Immaculate Conception teaches that when the Virgin Mary was conceived in the womb of her mother, God worked a miracle to break the genetic DNA that all other humans have inherited from the fallen Adam. She was virtually therefore a new creation, as was mother Eve at creation. But this one was “unfallen.” She was not a true human being.This privately invented “Mary” was so “pure” that she could not be tempted as all other humans are—particularly with sexual temptation. We might say, okay; at last we have a perfectly sinless woman; so what?
But the problem is her Son: is He also not a true human being?
In this teaching, the Virgin Mary gave to her Son Jesus a nature different from ours, which means that Jesus in His incarnation took only the sinless nature of Adam before his fall and could not have been tempted in all points like we are.
In other words, Mary and Jesus were not descendants of the fallen Adam as are all humans. And of course this meant that Jesus could not have been “in all points tempted like as we are,” as Hebrews 4:15 says. He had to be “exempt” from having the flesh where our temptations arise and thus He would be tempted differently (if at all). This teaching removed Jesus from humanity. This present-day widely prevalent view has its source in Romanism.
Many see Him only in the cathedral windows and assume they know Him; but the true Christ has been hidden from them.
It was simple Bible truth that the 1888 messengers proclaimed
“The [true] gospel of God … concern[s] His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh” (Rom. 1:1-3). The heavenly angel told Joseph before Jesus’ birth that His name shall be “‘Immanuel,’ which is translated, ‘God with us,’” not God far away.We see Him revealed in this Bible picture: “What the law [the ten commandments] could not do in that it was weak through the flesh [that is, our fallen, sinful], God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh [ours, fallen, sinful]” (Rom. 8:3).
The origin of our world’s problem with sin was the claim of Satan when he was “Lucifer” that God is unfair to maintain His law, for nobody can keep it— especially humans who are already sinful by nature (as we all are). The prime exhibit seemed convincing: after some 4000 years of human history when Jesus came, not one human had ever been able to avoid falling into sin. Satan crowed: “See! I’m right! God is unfair!” If Jesus had sidestepped the contest by taking the sinless nature of the unfallen Adam, Satan would forever after have trumpeted, “Foul! Unfair!” A soldier with a bulletproof vest is braver than one without.
But the Father gave Jesus a job description
With no “exemption,” no “bullet-proof vest,” Jesus entered into the same arena where we have all lost the battle. And right here in our human flesh and human nature He “condemned,” defeated, outlawed, conquered, crushed, trampled on, annihilated, excommunicated, destroyed … sin. He came to where it had taken root—in human flesh.
In our same flesh He won the great controversy with Satan, opened the gates of heaven for believing, repenting sinners, and the hearts of heaven rejoiced.
The next verse tells what will now happen: “That the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.”
That phrase “righteous requirement” is one word in the original, dikaioma, which means the righteousness that has its origin in Christ but has been imparted to the believing human being.
Here again is the cardinal truth of “1888”: human beings by the faith of Jesus will overcome sin, “condemn” it in our fallen flesh, and will become ready in one generation for the second coming of Jesus—something no other corporate group has realized in all past history. God had intended that Christ should return in that 1888-era generation!
But this is not the heresy of “perfectionism.” This overcoming victory will not be motivated by fear or pride, nor by a selfish hope of reward. It will be the work of grace which abounds much more than all the sin the devil can invent for these last days.
Hebrews describes how this works
Inasmuch then as the children [that’s we] have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy [Greek, paralyze] him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. For indeed He does not give aid to angels [who have a sinless nature], but He does give aid to the seed of Abraham (2:14, 15).Hebrews never suggests that Christ HAD a sinful nature. He HAD a sinless one; but He “took” our sinful nature.
Why?
Therefore, in all things He had to be made LIKE His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, … for in that He Himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted (vss. 17-18).This is the glorious gospel of hope that many have been hindered from seeing. But the Lord gave it to Seventh-day Adventists, and Ellen White said that “God commanded [it] to be given to the world.”
It presented a Christ who knows how the sinner is tempted, and can save Him from the lowest hell. “We do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin” (4:15).
It has been generally assumed that getting serious about overcoming sin means only hard, boring work. But “1888” had only joyful Good News. Here’s a sample:
Grace is not simply more powerful than is sin. … This, good as it would be, is not all. … There is much more power in grace than there is in sin. For “where sin abounded, grace did much more abound.” … Let no one ever attempt to serve God with anything but the present, living power of God, that makes him a new creature; with nothing but the much more abundant grace that condemns sin in the flesh, and reigns through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord. Then the service of God will indeed be “in newness of life”; then it will be found that His yoke is indeed “easy” and His burden “light”; then His service will be found indeed to be with “joy unspeakable and full of glory.”
Jesus came to the world, and put Himself in the flesh, just where men are; and met that flesh, just as it is, with all its tendencies and desires; and by the divine power which He brought by faith, He “condemned sin in the flesh,” and thus brought to all mankind that divine faith which brings the divine power to man to deliver him from the power of the flesh and the law of sin, just where he is, and to give him assured dominion over the flesh, just as it is.
He who takes God for the portion of his inheritance, has a power working in him for righteousness, as much stronger than the power of inherited tendencies to evil, as our heavenly Father is greater than our earthly parents.
When people receive such a message wholeheartedly, will it not prepare them for the coming of Jesus when they will be caught up to meet Jesus without dying (that’s the meaning of the word “translation”)? (See 1 Thess. 4:16, 17. Enoch and Elijah were “translated” without dying; Heb. 11:5, 2 Kings 2:11.) There will also be an innumerable corporate crowd who have learned to follow wherever the Lamb leads (Rev. 14:1-6).