Gods Sabbath

500

E NTERING INTO G OD ’ S S ABBATH R EST

workers to operate in this fashion, that is exactly how people of ten treat the heavenly Master-Architect and His Son. These are the Designers whose competence is unparalleled. There is no problem that is too great for Them. Things which we cannot even begin to cope with are simplicity to God and His Son. Anticipating the sin problem even before it arose, God careful ly formulated a plan for its immediate solution, in full agree ment with His Son. In due time the heavenly Architects called a messenger and a team of workers until they had built up quite a movement. The object of this crew of workers was not to serve themselves, but the spiritually sick world around them. During the early stage of the church’s development, the believers were careful to follow the plans made for them by the Master Archi tects, but invariably the time came when they called for a differ ent order of things. Discarding God’s plan, they appointed hu man committees to devise schemes for the continuation of the work. Human wisdom took the place of divine foresight and the outcome was disastrous. God was fully aware of His workers’ activities, for unlike the architects and head builder in our illustration, He was not pre occupied with other work in some distant location. He did not in stantly dismiss those who had usurped His position, for God does not use physical force to solve problems. He gives everyone complete freedom to follow either His perfect plan or their own faulty ones. He can accept only that obedience which comes from a willing and sincere desire to follow the Lord in everything. So after God had made it abundantly clear that He was not in volved in this change of procedures, in contrast to our parable, He let the determined workers build after their own ideas. Ev ery time this happened, the workers who dismissed God from His rightful place were not willing to see that the fault lay with themselves and absolutely refused to cooperate with Him. In their stubborn pride they continued their work, claiming to be God’s chosen people who had started in the correct way and would complete the work in what they also insisted was the right way. They did not deem the changes in procedure to be as important as their honest desire and dedicated determination to persevere even though enough evidence proved that their plans were bound for failure.