Many people accept the truth as the condition for salvation and for eternal life. But they do not love the truth. They follow a healthy diet but they do not love it. Many would like to divorce and get married again to someone else a second time, but because of the church teaching they do not do it. But they do not love this part of the truth. Some do not love Sabbath keeping or tithe paying, but they do it for the purpose of gaining heaven.

Of such people Paul writes, “having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.” 2 Timothy 3:5

There are millions of professing Christians of whom Jesus said, “Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? It is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.” Matthew 5:13

Their feet bring them to church. Their mouths say the prayers. Their eyes read the Bible, but their hearts are not in it.

“The people who profess the truth are backsliding from God. Jesus is soon to come, and they are unready.” –Testimonies for the Church, vol. 4, p. 400

In 1882 Sister White wrote, “The church has turned back from following Christ, her leader and is steadily retreating toward Egypt.” –Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 217

It is possible for the whole church to go backwards towards Egypt and the world, yet believe at the same time that they are on the way to heaven. Meetings were held, ceremonies were conducted, missionary work was done, and people were added to the church, but they were going in the wrong direction.

We need to look into our compass and find out our direction. Is our love to God is growing greater? Is our love for His truth, that is, every part of the truth, getting stronger? Is our missionary spirit increasing and also our prayer life? How is our daily Bible study, and also our appearance? Do our clothing make us look like a Christian? Are we more faithful in health reform now than before? Daily, we need to see change in our spiritual life, especially in our humility.

Paul writes to us, “For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.” 1 Corinthians 1:18

Those who love God and His truth receive from the preaching of the cross a mighty power, that makes them the angel of Revelation chapter 18, and the world will be lightened with their glory.

They will be like Elijah, who alone stood on Mount Carmel against King Saul and his men, against the hundreds of priests of Baal and Ashtaroth and the people of Israel. He did not hide the fact that he was on the Lord’s side. And this is what the Elijah of the last days needs to be.

Love is a great power; also our faith works by love. Without love our faith is dead (Galatians 5:6). Even during the Sunday law we must make it publicly known that we are Sabbath keepers. Love takes away all our fears. A professed Christian who does not have this power of God has lost his way and the preaching of the cross means nothing to him. His love has become cold toward God, toward the truth and toward his neighbour. This is the condition when we lose the Holy Spirit, because love is part of the fruit of the Spirit.

If we do not love the truth, God will send us a strong delusion that we will believe a lie. “And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” 2 Thessalonians 2:10–12

Many professed Christians fall into a delusion of sin, and of the world without realizing it. Delusions of heresies, false doctrines will cause them to leave the church of God. If we love the truth, our love to God and to our fellow men will grow, and it is seen in more earnest efforts in missionary work.

The burden for souls is the thermometer of our love to God and to our fellow men.

If our love for the truth is dying, then our missionary spirit will die also. We do less Bible reading, religious meetings are seen as having little value. We will hardly ever attend prayer meetings. Then finally comes the terrible choice—to sin with knowledge. We know it is wrong, but we do not care. At this point the Holy Spirit is about to leave us, and never to return, slowly, silently man passes beyond salvation. Yet he may remain in the church, doing all the outward ceremonies like the Jewish people who crucified Jesus. One day they will wake up from their deathly sleep.

“It is impossible to describe the horror and despair of those who have trampled upon God’s holy requirements.” –The Great Controversy, p. 639. They cry to the mountains and rocks, “fall on us, and hide us from the face of Him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb.” Revelation 6:16

The other scene we find in The Great Controversy, p. 650, “The heirs of God have come from garrets, from hovels, from dungeons, from scaffolds, from mountains, from deserts, from the caves of the earth, from the caverns of the sea. On earth they were ‘destitute, afflicted, tormented.’ Millions went down to the grave loaded with infamy because they steadfastly refused to yield to the deceptive claims of Satan.”

Love to God and to our fellow men comes from the preaching of the cross. Jesus dying upon the cross for us is the fountain of love. We need to meditate on it and keep it in our minds daily; this will make us strong Christians, and we become fountains of love to others, and then we will be the Elijah of the last days, whose glory shall lighten the earth.

Then the truth that we learned to love will be preached to the world by us. May the Lord help us to make right decisions in this trying time in which we live. Amen.

Timo Martin