All The To Me Is: World

The International Paper for Seventh-day Adventists
Ja nu a r y 2 01 6
Jesus
World
is
All the
20
Gods Way of
to Me
Righteousness
32
Life-changing
Love
34
A Journey
of Grace
North American Division | n a d
Ja nua r y 2016
The International Paper for Seventh-day Adventists
Januar y 2016
C O V E R
24
Jesus
World
is
All the
to Me
S T O R Y
F E A T U R E
Jesus Is All the

World to Me
The story of salvation begins and ends

with Jesus.
20
Gods Way of
Righteousness
32
Life-changing
Love
34
29 Fascinated With Christ

Associate editor Lael Caesar interviews Shawn

Brace and Bogdan Scur about the implications of
Christ our righteousness.
32 Life-changing Love
A Journey
of Grace
T E S T I M O N Y
8 Christ, Our Righteousness

W O R L D
V I S T A
The long, sometimes tortuous journey to know

Gods acceptance
By Ted N. C. Wilson
A gift so generous comes with just one string

attached.
20 Gods Way of Righteousness

D E V O T I O N A L
By Cheyenne Francis
By William G. Johnsson
Its easier and more uncomplicated than most

of us realize.
34 A Journey of Grace
A D V E N T I S T
H E R I T A G E
By Gluder Quispe
How the church has grown in its understanding of

the gospel
36 From Karachi to California

N A D
F eat u re
By Jane Allen Quevedo
The effects of being a missionary never end.
Reach the World
D E PA RT M E N T S
3 W O
R L D
R E P O R T
3
News Briefs
6
News Feature
10
NAD News
14
NAD Update
17
NAD Perspective
18
NAD Letters
19 W O R L D H E A
Blood Health
L T H
23 S pirit of P rophe c y
Christ, Our Righteousness
42 B I B L E Q U E S T I O N
The Glory of the Lord
43 B I B L E S T U D Y
Abraham: Risking It All
44
I D E A
E X C H A N G E
Christ Our Righteousness

Over the next five years, Adventist
World will offer features related to
three worldwide emphases of the
Seventh-day Adventist Church: Christ
Our Righteousness, Faithfulness,
and Total Member Involvement. This
logo, which will appear occasionally,
indicates one emphasis in our desire
to share our message and reach the
world for Christ.
www.adventistworld.org
Available in 10 languages online
The Adventist World (ISSN 1557-5519), one of the Adventist Review family of publications, is printed monthly by the Pacific Press Publishing Association. Copyright 2016. Send address changes to
your local conference membership clerk. Contact information should be available through your local church. PRINTED IN THE U.S.A. Vol. 12, No. 2, January 2016.
Adventist World - nad | January 2016
C o v e r
P h o t o :
A n j a
O s e n b e r g
Prediction Fulfilled
1Ellen
G. White, Be Zealous and Repent,

Review and Herald, Dec. 23, 1890.
2Ellen G. White letter 8, 1890.
WORLD REPORT
By Andrew McChesney
Miracle Hospital Opens

in
Hong Kong
Chinese births support US$219 million expansion
P HOTOS : T W A H
One interest will prevail, one subject

will swallow up every otherChrist our
righteousness.1
For all we like to use the term, there
probably is no such thing as a self-fulfilling prophecy.
The circumstances we label with that
phrase are often those that might more
aptly be titled the power of an idea whose
time has come. Gods gift of prophecy,
invading human history and experience,
nonetheless invites and sometimes even
requires human participation. The
prophet hears and accepts Gods call upon
the life: he or she responds in faithfulness,
and Gods message is preached and taught.
Listeners recognize the divine source of
the words proclaimed, and by their cooperation help to set in motion the revivals
and the reformations that change the
course of nations, reshape institutions,
and share the gospel in places it has never
been heardall as predicted in prophecy.
One hundred twenty-five years ago
Gods messenger to this movement
Ellen Whitepassionately predicted the
theme that would dominate the conversation of Gods end-time remnant. And
while the Lord has always had among us
witnesses who held high the light shining
from the cross, there can be no doubting
that the past decades of our history as a
people have been marked by a growing
spotlight on the righteousness of Christ.
From pulpits, in our evangelistic outreach, in personal conversations and correspondence, one interest has, in fact,
begun to prevailthe all-sufficiency of
Jesus, what Ellen White so frequently
termed the loveliness of Jesus.2
Your church has made this theme the
foremost of its emphases for the next five
years, and thus this issue of Adventist World
is specially focused on that subject [that]
will swallow up every other. Read with an
open heart. Expect the best as you trace
again the best news ever told.
Left: OLD AND NEW: The original five-story Adventist hospital stands in front
of the new 25-story building. Right: OFFICIAL OPENING: Hospital, church, and
government leaders attend the grand opening of a new building at Hong Kong
Adventist Hospital, Tsuen Wan.
erched on a Hong Kong hill is a brand-new 25-story hospital

building that Seventh-day Adventist Church leaders call
nothing short of a miracle.
The US$219 million building will significantly expand Adventist
health-care services in a secular megacity where the church has found
that the most effective way to share Jesus love is through the healing
work of its two local hospitals.
God brought the right people to the right positions at the right
time to make sure this project was successful, said Robert Folkenberg, Jr., chair of the two hospitals and president of the Adventist
Churchs Chinese Union Mission.
The new building is an expansion of Hong Kong Adventist Hospital,
Tsuen Wan, which has been housed in a neighboring five-story building
since its founding by prominent Adventist doctor Harry Miller in 1964.
The hospital, which got off to a rocky start, has flourished over the
past decade, especially for a period of about seven years when the
Continued on next page
January 2016 | Adventist World - nad
WORLD REPORT
Hong Kong government allowed
mothers from mainland China to have
their babies in Hong Kong. This open
door allowed our hospitals, whose
maternity wards were immediately
flooded, to minister to thousands of
families from China while at the same
time bringing in much-needed revenue that provided the considerable
funds to build this massive expansion,
Folkenberg said.
Income from other patient services
and donations also paid for a large
portion of the new buildings price tag
of 1.7 billion Hong Kong dollars,
while a fourth of the cost was covered
by a bank loan.
Hong Kong Adventist Hospital,
Tsuen Wan, is the only private hospital
serving a district of 1.5 million people,
and the expansion will allow it to care
for 1,000 outpatients a day from its
previous 300 to 400. The number of
beds will increase from 120 to 470,
with 20 percent of the beds set aside
for low-income patients referred from
public hospitals.
Hong Kongs top health official, Ko
Wing-man, praised the expansion as a
way to provide higher-quality health
care in a city that needs more private
hospitals. Hong Kong is facing an
unprecedented challenge in terms of
our health-care system, he told 400
guests gathered in a grassy garden area
on the new buildings sixth floor for
an opening ceremony in mid-November. We are facing a rapidly aging
population . . . and an escalation in
peoples expectations for the quality of
medical services.
The hospital aims to do much
more than treat the ill. A major focus
is on preventative medicine, helping
people live healthfully through
improved diet, rest, and exercise.
Speakers at the opening ceremony
underscored public health statistics

that show most illnesses are caused by
noncommunicative diseases linked to
poor lifestyle choices.
We must do more, and this is one
step in that direction, said Ella Simmons, general vice president of the
Adventist world church.
It is gratifying to note that this
great new initiative . . . includes a stateof-the-art facility not only for diagnosing and treating diseases but also for
creating an environment to promote
health, said Peter N. Landless, director
of the Adventist world churchs Health
Ministries Department.
Construction of the 56,412-squaremeter (607,213-square-foot) hospital
building started in 2011 and is scheduled for completion in 2016. In addition to the wards, the building features
10 operating theaters, four endoscopy

suites, and the sky garden, where the
opening ceremony was held.
Folkenberg said the newly
expanded hospital would shine as a
beacon of Christs healing love in a
crowded metropolis known for having
more buildings above 35 meters (115
feet) and more skyscrapers above 150
meters (490 feet) than any other city
in the world. The new hospital building stands 110 meters (360 feet) high.
In the middle of the city with the
most skyscrapers in the world, at the
center of an urban, secular, materialistic megacity, we continue to provide
excellent, Christ-centered healing
ministry to this non-Christian population, Folkenberg said. As our motto
says, we exist to extend the healing
ministry of Jesus. n
By Andrew McChesney
1 Million Members Sought

in
Northern Asia
Division leader Jairyong Lee unveils ambitious initiative.
he Seventh-day Adventist
Churchs Northern AsiaPacific Division rolled out
an ambitious initiative to increase
membership in its territory to at least
1 million over the next five years.
The initiative, presented at the
divisions headquarters near Seoul,
South Korea, came as the Adventist
Churchs 13 divisions and other entities held a blitz of year-end meetings
to announce their five-year plans to
share the news of Jesus return.
The Northern Asia-Pacific Divisions goal is formidable for a territory

with 1.6 billion people, making it the
churchs largest in terms of population,
but also among the least reached with
the gospel, with only 3 percent who
identify themselves as Christian. The
other 97 percent are Buddhists, Shintoists, Muslims, Shamans, and atheists.
As we begin another quinquennium, we should not simply continue
with what we have done in the past
five years, division president Jairyong
C o n f e r e n c e
U n i o n
Japa n
STEADY GROWTH: Pastor Masuya

Yasui (right) baptizes a new member
at a camp meeting in Fujikawaguchiko, Japan, in 2013.
Lee said as he unveiled the Vision One

Million 2020 initiative at year-end
meetings. We need to have a new
start with renewed commitment and
unprecedented dedication to the mission of the church.
The Adventist Church now has
702,081 members in the Northern
Asia-Pacific Division, which encompasses China, Japan, Mongolia, North
Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan,
according to division statistics. The
division grew by 77,841 members and
more than 100 new congregations
over the past five years.
In contrast, the Adventist world
church is adding about 1 million new
members a year, and reached 18.7 million members in July. Three world
divisionsInter-American, Southern
Africa-Indian Ocean, and East-Central
Africacount more than 3 million
members on their territories.
To reach its goal, the Northern
Asia-Pacific Division plans to align
its outreach efforts with initiatives
promoted by the Adventist world
church, including Mission to the Cit-
ies, Comprehensive Health Ministry,

and Total Member Involvement. It
also will rely on homegrown programs such as the His Hands Mission
Movement, which prepares and sends
missionaries within their own countries, and the 1000 Missionary Movement and the Pioneer Mission Movement, which sends missionaries
between countries.
Other divisions made similar plans
at their year-end meetings. North
American Division president Daniel
R. Jackson announced 11 goals for the
next five years, including 1,000 new
congregations and the involvement of
every one of his territorys 1.2 million
church members in preparing their
communities for Jesus return.
Inter-American Division leaders
said their congregations were doing
more to reach out to former members

thanks to an ongoing membership
audit in which 690,000 members were
removed from its books.
In South Korea, Lee cautioned that
time is running short to share the
Adventist message. We still have
many mission opportunities in our
territory. However, the opportunities
will not always remain, Lee said.
Evangelism will become much more
challenging in the near future. People
are becoming more humanistic, materialistic, and egocentric as time passes.
They are becoming more and more
focused on surviving in a highly competitive society. Quoting Jesus, he
said, We must work the works of
Him who sent Me while it is day; the
night is coming when no one can
work [John 9:4]. n
By Andrew McChesney
Cant Speak English?

Well Worship Anyway
South Korean church changes its culture and grows.
ow far would you go to draw

believers to your church?
The eight members of a
struggling church in South Korea
made the drastic decision to hold
worship services only in English, even
though no one spoke the language. To
their delight, the churchs hall filled up
with 38 people the next Sabbath, and
attendance has remained strong since.
There was such a big difference
in just a week, said Kwon JohngHaeng, a pastor and church planter
who first suggested that the Pangsung church embrace English-language services.
The story began when the Pangsung churchs part-time pastor, Kim
Soongi, called Kwon at his office in the
headquarters of the Adventist
Churchs Northern Asia-Pacific Division near Seoul. After a brief conversion, Kwon learned that the church,
which had opened 20 years earlier, was
situated only five minutes by foot
from Camp Humphreys, a U.S. Army
WORLD REPORT
Speaking Migrants Language
Kwon, who has served as the divisions director of Adventist Mission

and Stewardship Ministries, said that
embracing a foreign language is a concept that he has seen work well for
many churches during his 13 years of
church planting in Asia, where many
countries have large migrant communities. He said South Korea alone
has 1.7 million migrant workers,
mostly in cities, and he has helped
open Cambodian, Indian, and Filipino
churches to meet their needs.
The Pangsung church, meanwhile,
prays that attendance will continue to
grow as word spreads about its English-language services and the last of
28,500 U.S. troops relocate to Camp
Humphreys. The Adventist Churchs
West Central Korean Conference
recently voted to change the name of
the Pangsung church to the Pyeongtaek International church. n
J o h n g Ha e n g
Kwon called a local English

teacher from South Africa, Moe
Zonke, and secured his assistance in
helping Pangsung transform into an
international church. The church also
posted news about their English services on Facebook.
That Sabbath five U.S. soldiers with
13 family members showed up to worship. One of them, Candice Roelofs,
to have declining memberships, while

those in cities tend to grow.
K w o n
New Ideas and Directions
told the congregation that she had been

seeking an English-speaking church for
two years. I was looking for a church
like this, she said, according to Kwon.
I am very happy.
The church members were thrilled
as well, Kwon said. Not only did their
attendance more than triplethey also
were able to understand the worship
service. A supporting staff member
from the base turned out to be a former Adventist pastor who spoke good
Korean. He provides simultaneous
translation from the back of the hall.
God, through His providence,
allowed the Pangsung church to seize
the opportunity of having the large
U.S. base nearby, said Yutaka Inada,
recently elected executive secretary of
the Northern Asia-Pacific Division.
Other struggling churches will have to
pray for creative ways to reach their
own communities, he said.
He noted that churches in rural
areas of the division, which encompasses China, Japan, Mongolia, North
Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan, tend
P HOTOS :
garrison that will become the largest

in Asia in 2016.
Kwon attended the churchs worship
services the next day and called the
eight members and their three young
children to a special meeting afterward.
You have done everything for 20 years,
but the church is not growing, he said.
Why dont you change your vision
from serving only Korean people? We
have a U.S. Army base within a fiveminute walk where there may be Seventh-day Adventist service members
whom we can serve.
Kwon, who recounted the meeting
in an interview in his division office,
said the members were excited about
the proposal, even though he explained
to them that the services would have to
be in English. One of the members,
who had helped establish the church
with her husband two decades earlier,
embraced Kwon and tearfully expressed
hope that the idea would work.
Kwon has found in working with
other international churches that English-only services tend to be more
effective than consecutive interpretation, in which a person speaks and
pauses for the translation. If interpretation is needed, simultaneous translation with headphones is better, he said.
The Pangsung church members
decided to start English services the
very next Sabbath.
Left: READY FOR WORSHIP: The building where the newly renamed Pyeongtaek
International Church meets features the letters SDA on a mid-story window.
Right: BILINGUAL WORSHIP: Candice Roelofs speaks as Kwon JohngHaeng
records from a pew. The interpreter can be seen in the back corner.
SPECIAL SUPPLEMENT
The
Loma Linda Report
January 2016
MANY STRENGTHS. ONE MISSION.
School of Dentistry students provide dental care

to homeless and low-income patients
oothache from decay, infection or

injury can make it hard to sleep or
think clearly; the pain can affect
the entire side of ones face, making it difficult to eat.
According to Zegar Zegar, DDS,
toothaches are what often bring patients
to the MEND dental clinic in Californias
San Fernando Valley.
Every Tuesday, students from Loma
Linda University School of Dentistry
(LLUSD) volunteer at MEND (Meet
Each Need with Dignity), providing dental care to the homeless and those who are
living at the poverty level.
Zegar began working in the MEND
clinic when he was studying in Loma
Linda Universitys International Dentist
Program (IDP).
Dentists who have received training
outside the United States must complete
two years of training in the States before
they can apply for licensure to practice in
the United States. Since 1986, 504 dentists from more than 80 countries have
earned their DDS degrees through the
School of Dentistrys IDP training.
Escaping political unrest in his home
country of Iraq, Zegar entered the School
of Dentistrys IDP in 2011, graduated in
2013 and remained with the School as an
assistant professor.
While IDP students volunteer in
MEND for six months as part of their program, says Zegar, all LLU dental students
are welcome to volunteer in the clinic.
Zegar now oversees the work of School of
Dentistry students at MEND.
Each year dentists from as many as 17
countries are enrolled in IDP. It is special, says Zegar, for patients for whom
English is a second language to come to
MEND and to be able to communicate
with their dentist about their care in their

first language.
About 80 percent of the MEND
patients, says Zegar, are medically compromised. The oral cavity not only provides the bodys source of food, it is an
entry area for bacteria.
He continues, Consequently, access to
dental care is essential to overall health and
healing, as well as the prevention and treatment of illnesses, including oral cancer and
heart disease. Many of our patients have
been turned down and refused care; our
clinic is their only remaining option.
MEND is made possible by donations
and grants, including $858,314 in grants
from the UniHealth Foundation; it is the
only clinic to provide complimentary dental care to local residents.
The mission of Loma Linda University
Health is to continue the teaching and
healing ministry of Jesus Christ.
Before the dental students see their
first patient, Zegar meets with them. It is
essential that they learn the importance of
providing compassionate care, he says, I
emphasize that the treatment we provide

to every patient should be done as if we are
caring for Christ Himself.
While LLUSD dental students have
been joined by their volunteering counterparts from the University of California Los
Angeles (UCLA) School of Dentistry and
Western Universitys College of Dentistry,
MEND staff members thank Zegar for
the influence that the Loma Linda University students have on the clinic.
They observe our dental students
praying together before we start treating
patients, he says. We get to know our
patients as people; trust is developed, and
they know us by our names.
While some of our patients are homeless because of drug dependency or mental
health issues, others are educated, hardworking individuals who have lost everything because of a series of unthinkable
situations, says Zegar. The need is so
great that I am committed to providing
care at MEND, and I hope that there is
always someone to continue this work. It
is a true blessing.
Photo by Russell Sasaki
By Nancy Yuen
Zegar Zegar, DDS, and Denise Sanchez, manager, MEND dental clinic. According to
UniHealth, the clinic has two full-time administrative employees and has experienced
incredible growth since 2008, when nine volunteer dentists and Loma Linda University
dental students completed 972 patient encounters. Today, 36 community dentists see as
many as 40 new patients a month, completing more than 5,000 appointments each year.
W O R L D
V I S T A
s we begin this new year,

now is an excellent time
to consider a foundational
aspect of salvation: Christ and His
righteousness.
Matthew records a fascinating parable of Jesus involving a wedding and
proper wedding attire. In Matthew 22
we read that a great wedding was
arranged by the king. Theres a lot of
excitement as the king prepared this
celebration for his son. He sent out
his servants to call those who were
invited to the wedding (verse 3).
Sadly, those who received the invitation werent excited about attending.
Can you imagine a king inviting people to a wedding, and they didnt want
to come? We should keep in mind that
this parable has meaning for us today.
Jesus is calling us to His wedding feast.
Are we coming?
The Reception
Receptions can be a challenge. If

youve ever prepared one, you know.
Weve had two wedding receptions in
our home and one at the church, and
Im glad people came to the wedding
receptions for our daughters.
But in this parable not only did
the guests not show upthey didnt
even appreciate the kings generous
invitation. They made light of it and
went their ways (verse 5). Are we so
busy with life, trying to negotiate the
twenty-first century, that were too
busy to come to the most important
meal God will ever serve?
Rejecting the King
In the parable, those who received

the wedding invitation seized the kings
servants, treated them cruelly, and
killed them. When you go out as Gods
colaborers, be prepared to be refused,
to be tormented, to be shunned, and
maybe even to be killed. The Christian
church as a whole, and the Seventh-day
Adventist Church specifically, have had
By
Ted N. C. Wilson
hrist
,
C
Our Righteousness
What are you wearing to the wedding?

their share of martyrs.
Lets not be afraid about the
future. Dont be afraid regarding the
prophetic unfolding of what we know
is going to take place. We are assured
of Christs presence until the very end
of time (see Matt. 28:20). Anyone
watching current events will know
that prophecy is being fulfilled just as
God foretold. We are not living in
normal times.
When the king in the parable
heard how his servants were treated,
he was furious. He sent out his armies,
destroyed the murderers, and burned
their city (Matt. 22:7).
Starting Over
Then the king started over. He

told his servants, The wedding is
ready, but those who were invited
were not worthy. . . . Go into the
highways, and as many as you find,
invite to the wedding (verses 8, 9).
Many people cameboth bad and
goodand the wedding hall was
filled with guests (verse 10).
Today as Gods message is proclaimed, there will be people who
arent aligned with Gods holy Word
but will be part of those who come. To
the very end of time there will be the
good and the bad, the wheat and the
tares. But there will be a shaking. In
fact, I believe the shaking has begun.
The world has crept into the church in

such an incredible way.
Theres only one way you and I can
prevent ourselves from being swept up
with erroneous ideas, with cultural
implications, with a twist that will
push us against Gods Word. Theres
only one way from being shaken out,
and that is complete reliance upon the
righteousness of Jesus Christ. We must
receive Christs justifying power, His
sanctifying power, His reviving and
reforming power.
Claim His Promises
The Bible is filled with beautiful

promises showing what Jesus can and
will do for us when we accept His
robe of righteousness: As many as
received Him, to them He gave the
right to become children of God, to
those who believe in His name (John
1:12). The apostle Paul encourages us
to let this mind be in you which was
also in Christ Jesus (Phil. 2:5). And
John the revelator tells us exactly who
we are, and how we are to be remedied from the terrible curse of selfcenteredness: Buy from Me gold . . . ,
that you may be rich; . . . white garments, that you may be clothed . . . ;
and anoint your eyes with eye salve,
that you may see. As many as I love, I
rebuke and chasten. Therefore be
zealous and repent (Rev. 3:18, 19).
Proper Attire
Returning to the parable, we see

that what happened next is actually a
fascinating explanation of Christs
ministry. We read that when the king
came in to see the guests, he noticed a
man not wearing a wedding garment.
Friend, he asked, how did you come
in here without a wedding garment?
(Matt. 22:12). The man was speechless.
The wedding garment

represents the pure,
spotless character which
Christs true followers
will possess.
This poor fellow, even though hed
been given a perfect suit, didnt accept
and wear it.
The King not only invites strangers
(thats you and me) to the wedding of
His SonHe also provides the proper
clothing as a gift. When Christ provides His robe of righteousness, its a
perfect fit, and it fits everyone! We just
have to accept it and put it on.
Delving Deeper
That magnificent book Christs

Object Lessons delves deeply into the
parables of Christ, further illuminating the many valuable lessons found
there. There we read that the wedding
garment represents the pure, spotless
character which Christs true followers
will possess.1
And that character is not our character; its Christs. It is the righteousness of Christ, His own unblemished
character, that through faith is
imparted to all who receive Him as
their personal Savior.2 Do we really

believe this?
The chapter also includes this wonderful promise: Only the covering
which Christ Himself has provided can
make us meet [prepared] to appear in
Gods presence. This covering, the robe
of His own righteousness, Christ will
put upon every repenting, believing
soul. . . . This robe, woven in the loom
of heaven, has in it not one thread of
human devising. Christ in His humanity wrought out a perfect character,
and this character He offers to impart
to us. All our righteousnesses are as
filthy rags (Isa. 64:6). . . . By His perfect obedience He has made it possible
for every human being to obey Gods
commandments.3
Dont fall for the trap people set up
when they say, Its impossible to keep
the commandments; its impossible to
live a perfect life. Its true that we cant
live a perfect life on our owntheres
no possible way! But when we wear the
robe of Christs righteousness, we
appear to the heavenly Father as perfect.
Sanctification Moves In
Then something else happens. Sanctification starts to move in, and that is
Christs righteousness as well. Ellen
White wrote: When we submit ourselves to Christ, the heart is united with
His heart, the will is merged in His will,
the mind becomes one with His mind,
the thoughts are brought into captivity
to Him; we live His life. This is what it
means to be clothed with the garment
of His righteousness. . . . Righteousness
is right doing, and it is by their deeds
that all will be judged. Our characters
are revealed by what we do. The works
show whether the faith is genuine.4
We read further: The man who
came to the feast without a wedding
garment represents the condition of
many in our world today. . . . They do
not realize their need of Christ or exercise faith in Him. They have not over-
come their hereditary or cultivated

tendencies to wrongdoing. Yet they
think that they are good enough in
themselves, and they rest upon their
own merits instead of trusting in
Christ. Hearers of the Word, they come
to the banquet, but they have not put
on the robe of Christs righteousness.5
Let Seventh-day Adventists be
known as people who trust, not in
their own merits, but only in the merits of Jesus Christ!
As Ellen White wrote: It is in this
life that we are to put on the robe of
Christs righteousness. This is our only
opportunity to form characters for the
home which Christ has made ready for
those who obey His commandments. . . .
Take heed lest you be found at the Kings
feast without a wedding garment.6
Moving Forward
As we move forward, are you willing to receive from the hand of Christ
His covering garment that will enable
you to be a co-laborer with heaven?
Accepting the beautiful gift of Christs
robe that covers and transforms us
into His image is foundational to
becoming a follower of Christ.
May we be so filled with the power
of the Holy Spirit that people will say,
Those Seventh-day Adventists know
Jesus. He lives in their hearts, and they
are the greatest proclaimers of Christs
righteousness. n
1Ellen
G. White, Christs Object Lessons (Washington, D.C.:

Review and Herald Pub. Assn., 1900), p. 310.
2Ibid.
3Ibid., 311, 312.
4Ibid., p. 312.
5Ibid., p. 315.
6Ibid., p. 319.
Ted N. C. Wilson is president of the Seventh-day

Adventist Church.
H e n n i n g
B r i a n
B r i a n
H e n n i n g
NAD NEWS
Adventist Conducts
Community
Benefit Concert
O
n July 16, 2015, a young man

opened fire on two military
installations in Chattanooga,
Tennessee. Four marines and a sailor
were killed, and a Marine recruiter
and a police officer were wounded.
In addition to the victims and their
families, this tragic event touched the
lives of many in the community.
In an effort to honor the victims
and support their families, the Chat-
10
tanooga community organized a

benefit concert at Coolidge Park on
Wednesday, September 16. Actor and
former Chattanooga resident Samuel
L. Jackson served as emcee for the
event, which raised more than
$400,000.
Chattanooga mayor Andy Berke
invited vocalist Harry Connick, Jr., to
attend the concert and perform the
Navy Hymn, Eternal Father, Strong to
Save. When Connick agreed, he

wanted a new arrangement composed
that would include himself (vocals
and piano), his nine-piece band,
strings, and a chorus. This arrangement required the direction of a
skilled orchestra leader. Those on the
organizing team for the event were
familiar with the East Tennessee Symphony Orchestra (ETSO), and reached
out to its director, Richard Hickam,
Far Left: During a break in rehearsals,

Hickam chats with event emcee and actor,
Samuel L. Jackson. Left: Harry Connick,
Jr., left on piano, with Richard Hickam
conducting, perform at a benefit concert
for those killed at a recruiting center in
Chattanooga, Tennessee. The event raised
more than $400,000.
who is currently minister of music at

the Florida Hospital Seventh-day
Adventist Church in Orlando.
Hickam had spent 10 years serving
as band and orchestra director at
nearby Collegedale Academy. Being
from Chattanooga and observing the
tragedy from a distance, when I was
offered a tangible way to assist the families, it was an easy personal decision,
said Hickam. My wife, Darlene, and
my senior pastor, Andy McDonald, also
thought that this was a rare opportunity and gave me the go-ahead.
Hickam received the score for the
hymn a few days before the benefit
took place. With the help of ETSO
concertmaster Rhonda Burnham, a
string section was assembled (Connicks band does not include strings)
and intense rehearsals began.
Roughly 80,000 people attended
some portion of the event that celebrated the pride and patriotism of the
Chattanooga community. When asked
how he saw this experience as an
extension of his full-time ministry,
Hickam said, First Peter 4:10 commends us to use whatever gift you have
received to serve others. The funds
raised and the sentiment of community unity behind these families shows
that God can always make something
good come out of a tragedy.
By Tami Cinquemani, Orlando,
Florida
Community Joins
to Support
Syrian Refugees
L
ocal communities joined

together at the Greenway
Auditorium in Coleraine,
Minnesota, on November 5, 2015,
to raise awareness and donations for
Syrian refugees. Some estimate that
since the outbreak of Syrian civil
war in 2011, between 7 and 9 million
Syrians have fled their homes and
entered neighboring countries such

as Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, and Iraq.
Doug Hardt, pastor of the Iron Range
district, which includes the Blackberry,
Grand Rapids, Hibbing, Northome,
and International Falls Seventh-day
Adventist churches, saw firsthand the
challenges faced by refugees when he
visited Iraq last year.
A quartet, originally from Russia, was one of the musical groups that
performed at the concert.
W i l d T r i l l i u m
P h o t o g r ap h y
11
W i l d T r i l l i u m
P h o t o g r ap h y
Doug Hardt, pastor of the Iron Range

District, spoke about the plight of
Syrian refugees.
12
C o l l e e n
The Blackberry church invited

musicians from the churches and
schools in their area to take part in a
benefit concert to aid the refugees.
Choirs from the Deer River, Grand
Rapids, and Greenway high schools
performed, along with the Grand
Rapids Area Male Chorus, the St.
Andrews Mens Choir, a quartet of
Russian teenagers, and the pastors
daughter, Nicole Hardt.
During the event Hardt spoke and
showed pictures from Iraq. Many of
those who came to the concert were
moved to donate to UNICEF, the charity working specifically with children
affected by the refugee crisis. The program featured inspiring music that filled
the auditorium with a sense of hope.
Concertgoers contributed more
than $4,500, far exceeding Hardts
expectations. Consequently, he organized another benefit concert at the
Hibbing First Presbyterian Church.
The total raised through both concerts, along with some matching
funds, amounted to $5,500.
By Brian Mungandi and Doug
Hardt, Minnesota Conference
K e l ly
NAD NEWS
The CRAVE event was held on student

union grounds in the center of the Indiana
University campus. Inset: Campus evangelist Jeff
Tatarchuk captivated audiences with his casual yet enduring
appeal to get to know God.
Craving God
on Campus
joint effort among North

American Divisions Adventist
Christian Fellowship (ACF),
Lake Union Conference, Indiana
Conference, and the Bloomington
church resulted in 100 new student
relationships, one baptism, new Bible
studies, and four Life Groups that form
a continuing spiritual community.
CRAVE was held September 14-18 on
the student union grounds at Indiana
Universitys Bloomington campus.
The program, called CRAVE, recognizes humans ultimate craving for
a relationship with God.
John Leis, a lay leader from Bloomington church, said the idea came as
the local church board explored mission projects for the year. The church
is situated next to the Indiana University (IU) campus, and one third of its
members are students at the university. The church board decided to
research programs that could help
them reach their campus neighbors.
The board contacted Adventist

Christian Fellowship and the North
American Division Evangelism Institute (NADEI) for campus ministry
ideas to help them reach their mission
goals. ACF volunteer coordinator Ron
Pickell jumped at the opportunity,
sending campus ministry leaders Javier
Melendez and Jermaine Gayle to live
in Bloomington for six months after
the weeklong CRAVE event to conduct
one-on-one Bible studies and organize
Life Group activities. Campus evangelist and musician Alison Brooks gave
presentations all week, as well as a final
concert. Evangelist Jeff Tatarchuk said,
In my opinion the week was epic.
Leis observed, These kids want to
change the world. They have a lot of
energy. There were some international
students from China there, and theyll
take God back [to China] with them.
The event would not have been a
success without the help of seven
campus missionaries from the Michi-
gan Conferences public campus ministries department, who were there the
week before and during the CRAVE
event. They were on campus connecting with IU students and helping to
get the word out. Prior to the CRAVE
meetings, flyers and posters were distributed on campus, along with sidewalk chalk signs. Free hugs and chair
massages were offered to students. As
they signed up with text messages,
they received T-shirts and free food
along with spiritual food.
We at ACF conducted three prior
CRAVE events from 2012 to 2014 at
the University of Florida at Gainesville,
California State University at San Marcos, and at the Church of the Wild,
said Pickell. But no follow-up was
organized to continue the work. We
hope that the Bloomington model will

serve as a pilot for conducting a similar
campus ministry next year at the University of California at Berkeley.
A reaping series in November in
Bloomington, targeted the September
CRAVE attendees to continue their
CRAVE for Jesus. We want to work
with the rhythm and flow on campus,
Pickell said.
Adventist Christian Fellowship
serves more than 100 student groups
in Canada, the United States, Bermuda, and Guam, and counts among
its members between 1,500 and 2,000
students. In North America, 15,000
degree-granting organizations of
higher education have a population of
22 million students.
By Colleen Kelly, Indiana Conference
Students listened and were encouraged

to learn more and follow their natural inclination to crave a relationship with Jesus.
C o l l e e n
K e l ly
13
N A D U P D AT E
he year 2016 brings many

exciting events to the
North American Division
(NAD). Some will help you grow
your ministry and enhance your
relationship with Jesus Christ. The
church will hold several events
designed to help you nurture your
spiritual walk with Jesus, increase your
talents and skills in ministry, and learn
how to relate better to those in your
local community.
Emotional Wellness Summit
January 13-17
Orlando, Florida
This summit is designed for health
professionals, health leaders, pastors,
and individuals who want to learn
more about prevention, treatment,
and recovery strategies for better
mental health. Information shared
will be evidence-based and wholistic,
highlighting the role of faith communities and faith-based institutions
in enhancing the mental and emotional well-being of individuals and
families in the community.
If you want your congregation or
clinical practice to be relevant, and be
able to address current mental and
behavioral health issues, you will want
to attend. More information can be
found at www.healthsummit.com.
Just Claim It Prayer Conference
February 17-20
Ontario, California
The Just Claim It (JCI) Prayer Experience is now a youth prayer ministry
resource for the local church. Whether
one attends the Youth Prayer Conference or not, this resource will provide
you with a total resource package that
will keep young people engaged in
devotion with God 24 hours a day,
seven days a week, 365 days a year.
14
P I X A B AY
Called to
Collaborate
Catching the vision of
cooperative action
This years JCI World Youth Prayer

Conference will take place February
17-20 in Ontario, California. We are
asking for every church in North
America to send at least one attendee
for the purpose of training and implementation back home. Every attendee
will leave with one thing: a ministry.
A special feature, The Call to Ministry, will provide daily opportunities
for youth and young adults to connect
with select pastors to talk about
answering Gods call to the full-time
gospel ministry, or engaged, Spirit-led

lay ministry.
Find out more about the conference at www.jci5.org.
Global Adventist Internet
Network (GAiN)
February 24-27
Silver Spring, Maryland
GAiN is a conference designed to foster the use of technology, media, and
the Internet to enhance the mission
of the Adventist Church. Through
annual worldwide events, we seek to

educate and train communication
and technology professionals in finding new ways to reach their communities. This is a conference for people
who work in communication, media,
and technology, both professionally
and in their local churches. More
information is available at gain.
adventist.org.
Days of Hope and Compassion
April 16-17
Division-wide
The Day of Hope and Compassion
will serve as a festive two-day division-wide commemoration of our
hope in Jesus Christ. Division president Dan Jackson envisions all
Adventist congregations, K-12
schools, colleges, universities, and

hospitals in North America to celebrate our hope through acts of
compassion, a social media blitz, joyful worship services, and distribution
of Adventist literature that is inspiring, practical, and specific to the
daily lives and needs of our
communities.
This celebration will provide
opportunities for a grand collaboration among church members, church
ministries, and institutions. The
North American Division will develop
resources and create a media promotional campaign to assist congregations, schools, and hospitals for this
extraordinary celebration.
Mark your calendars: we need total
involvement to make it a reality.
Modeling Hope and Compassion
The North American Division

leadership team will celebrate the
Day of Hope and Compassion by
partnering with local churches, conferences, and union conferences in
Columbia, Maryland, the future
home of the headquarters of the
Seventh-day Adventist Church in
North America. Dan Jackson and
our North American Division leadership team would love to see all
union conference and local conference leaders do the same in their
geographical areas.
To stay up-to-date on the latest
events and news from throughout the
North American Division, sign up for
the NAD e-newsletter, NewsPoints, at
www.nadadventist/newspoints. n
15
She just told us what

shes thinking. Will you?
@adventistreview
/adventistworldmagazine
NAD PERSPECTIVE
By Daniel R. Jackson
The
pat h
Ahead
any years ago I took

my three children on a
hiking adventure into the
mountains near Jasper, Alberta. The
beauty of the mountains in that area
is, at points, breathtaking. However,
on this fall afternoon we had other
things on our minds than the view:
other things like leaves, fallen trees,
and streams to explore.
We marched through the woods
like a band of soldiers, happy and
content with our surroundings. We
saw gophers and deer, and a variety of
other wildlife, includingat a distancea mother bear with three
cubs. On that day, for a dad and his
three children, the journey was truly
the reward.
After a while we came across a
stream. We saw little minnows coursing their way up the stream, and leaves
floating along as though they were
meant to be there. Then, as if it were a
great discovery, my youngest daughter
saw her face reflected in the water.
Though not amazing to me or to her
siblings, she became transfixed. She
couldnt stop looking at herself.
Though I asked her to come away from
the water, she just kept staring into
that familiar face looking back at her.
After a minute or so, her momentary
fixation caused her to lose balance, and
she tumbled facefirst into the water.

Needless to say, our hike came to
an untimely end. Lesson learned:
reflection is good, but only to a point.
Reflection is a good thing. We
gain from reviewing the past, from
seeking to understand things that
have happened and how we can learn
from past experiences. How many
mistakes would we avoid if we
learned to analyze those things that
happened in our past? Failure to
review what has happened can lead
us into repeated failures.
We Seventh-day Adventist Christians recognize the validity of Ellen
Whites comment We have nothing
to fear for the future, except as we
shall forget the way the Lord has led
us, and His teaching in our past history.1 Reflecting, or looking back, is
useful for traveling toward the future,
because we know how God has
blessed His people in the past, even
to this point.
However, too much looking backward as a church, and too much individual dwelling on ourselves in the
pool of the past, can cause us to fall
flat on our spiritual faces. Fixating
on what some call the good old
days can block out the glorious
vision of what God has yet to accomplish for His church. Focusing on our
mistakes, our failures, and our losses

as individuals can serve to fix our
attention so intensely upon ourselves
that we shut out the light God wants
to shine on us.
Ellen White said it so well: You
are not to look to yourself or think
about your own feelings. Look to
Christ. Think of His love and of the
beauty of His perfect character. Think
of Christ and how He humbled Himself and lived for others. Think of His
purity, of His holiness, and of His
wonderful love.2
While it is true that we have to
learn our lessons from the past, the
point of the Christian life is looking
forward to see how God wants to use
us in the present. Paul made perhaps
the best statement on this when he
wrote: Forgetting those things which
are behind and reaching forward to
those things which are ahead, I press
toward the goal for the prize of the
upward call of God in Christ Jesus
(Phil. 3:13, 14).
The year 2016 is fresh and new. In
this early part of the year, lets anticipate what God is about to do for us.
Lets see in the beautiful Jesus the basis
of all our hopes and dreams. Then
lets go out and face with confidence
the uncertainty of the days ahead,
knowing that He is leading us and
guiding His church to a glorious end.
Have a wonderful new year! n
1
Ellen G. White, Life Sketches of Ellen G. White (Mountain View,

Calif.: Pacific Press Pub. Assn., 1915), p. 196.
2 Ellen G. White, Steps to Jesus (Washington, D.C.: Review and
Herald Pub. Assn., 1981), p. 71.
Daniel R. Jackson is president of the North American

Division of the Seventh-day
Adventist Church.
17
s
dventist
th-day A
or Seven
l Paper f
rnationa
The Inte
O c tob e r 2015
OR L D
Hinitthiatie veW
s
ArchsCbold
Echu
RThe
for the next 5 year
NAD Letters
Different Patient, Different
Prescription
I appreciated the October 2015 issue,

in particular Relief From Osteoarthritis Pain.
The doctors mentioned reduction
of weight as a possible benefit. However, I wish they had mentioned some
types of foods to avoid that might be
helpful. In my case, I had crippling in
my hands a number of years ago, but
the disease stopped advancing almost
immediately when I avoided dairy
products.
Interestingly, recently while I was
taking another medication, I experienced swelling and pain again. So obviously, medications in some individuals
seem to complicate this health issue.
Eric Kreye
College Place, Washington
Justice and Mercy
In Sex, Seriously (October 2015)

Angel Manuel Rodrguez overlooked
one important aspect of judgment in
his answer. Mosaic laws on sexual
offences limited the allowance of honor
killings. The scene from Genesis 34
about Jacobs daughter, Dinah, was not
to be repeated. If one views these laws
as limitations of what was tolerated,
rather than a command to be followed,
they seem totally different in intent.
18
Exodus 22:16 lays out provision for

the financial support of women who
have been violated. The God who says
He would have mercy and not sacrifice wants mercy, not execution.
Lewis E. Miles
Chickamauga, Georgia
Joseph Olstad, in his vigorously argued
article, Looking for Legalism, Finding
Hypocrisy (November 2015), pointed
out that Jesus never described actions
commonly called legalism today as
legalism, but rather as hypocrisy.
However, it should be noted that
Jesus never would have used the term
legalism, because the term did not exist
in His day, nor is it found in Scripture.
Legalism is a theological term describing part of Pauls theology in which he
describes and decries his own experience as a one-time Pharisee obsessed
with external works of the law (the
letter), while missing the whole point
of the law (the spirit). Jesus described
that point, which Paul and others like
him had missed, as weightier matters, such as justice, mercy, and
faith, also summing up the ultimate
point of all the law and the prophets
as being the twin principles of love for
God and for humanity.
Paul later expounded, The greatest of these is love (1 Cor. 13:13).
Pauls own legalistic experience was
common, and it infected Judaism in
Christs day (as it still does today),
even though Jesus always called it (and
other love-less errors) hypocrisy. . . .
The word hypocrite was not a theological term, as legalism is, but rather
a common word that Christs hearers
would have used to designate actors in
Greco-Roman theaters. . . . Legalism, if
properly derived from Pauls theology,
is not merely the error of trying to be
saved by works; it is also a nit-picking
obsession with works themselves,
which misses the whole point of the
law. By nature, legalism is always a

form of hypocrisy as well. The terms
are not mutually exclusive.
Dennis Berlin
Price, Utah
Thanks for Making It Possible
Ive been receiving Adventist World for

about three years now, ever since my
baptism and membership in the Seventh-day Adventist Church in College
Place, Washington. I always appreciate
each issue, and even pass each one on
to someone who I feel could use the
inspiration.
Thank you, Adventist World, and
all who make it possible for me to
receive this gift.
Jerry G. Thompson
Aberdeen, Washington
Embracing the Possibilities
It Makes a Difference, by Phyllis

Washington (September 2014), adequately explains some of the main
problems why kids and their parents
are missing out on an essential spiritual
foundation for experiencing or sharing
the gospel. In my opinion, she was
much too kind in her assessment of the
problems our church faces in accomplishing this task of transferring spiritual formation to future generations. . . .
Washington gives some excellent
solutions, but here is one that would
make the most difference: following
the counsel weve had for more than
100 years: every church with five or six
children having a church school
(Child Guidance, pp. 306-309).
But the problem is money! No,
the problem is not money, but a lack
of faith and determination. Nothing is
impossible with God (see Matt. 17:20;
Luke 1:37; Jer. 32:17, 27).
Thanks to you and the author for a
great article.
Ertis L. Johnson
Elk City, Oklahoma
W O R L D
H E A L T H
By Peter N. Landless and Allan R. Handysides
Health
I am scheduled for major but non-urgent surgery in the next few months, and
I may need a blood transfusion. Do Seventh-day Adventists agree to blood
transfusions? Are they safe?
eventh-day Adventists are in

favor of blood transfusions.
We encourage our members
to be regular donors as they are
able, because blood is a lifesaving
commodity. Modern screening
methods have made transfusions safe
and beneficial. All interventions carry
risk, but the benefits of appropriately
used transfusions outweigh the risk.
Blood is part of the circulatory
system, which helps to supply oxygen
and nutrition to all the tissues of the
body and return carbon dioxide to the
lungs and waste products to the kidneys. Blood helps regulate body temperature and also distributes hormones to the various target organs.
Blood is made up of a protein-rich
fluid called plasma, in which are suspended the cellular elements of the
blood. The cellular elements include
red blood cells, white blood cells, and
platelets. Plasma also carries proteins
that defend the body against infection
(antibodies), vitamins, and other proteins, which assist in blood clotting
when trauma occurs. There are
approximately 5.5 liters of blood in
the circulatory system. This volume
remains constant to ensure adequate
blood pressure, so that the blood can
reach all the tissues and cells in the
body, assuring normal function and
energy metabolism throughout the

life cycle of the individual.
The body is very sensitive to
changes in blood volume (mainly
changes in plasma), which is affected
by dehydration or blood loss that may
occur following trauma or major surgery. Blood transfusion services have
developed very reliable systems for
screening and banking blood, which is
then available as needed. Blood is
divided into various blood groups
depending on special carbohydrate
substances that may be present on the
red cells. The best known are the A
and B antigens. These are all inherited. In broadest terms, blood groups
are divided into A, B, AB, and O (O
groupuniversal donors; AB
groupuniversal recipients). An
important additional subgroup is the
Rh (rhesus) factor group.
When blood is requested for a specific patient, a blood sample is sent
to the blood bank along with the order
so that the blood may be crossmatched. This is to prevent reactions
with blood that may not be compatible because of varying antigens. Blood
is screened to prevent the transmission
of viral diseases, especially hepatitis B,
hepatitis C, and HIV. If one has been
in a malaria area, one may not donate
blood within a given period of time
The body is
very sensitive to
changes in
blood volume.
after leaving that area, determined by
each transfusion service.
You may wish to ask your surgeon
about the possibility of donating your
own blood in advance for your own
use on the day of surgery, if needed
(autologous transfusion).
We are fearfully and wonderfully
made. As Christians, we are blessed to
know that our spiritual health is covered
and guaranteed by the blood of Jesus
Christ, freely shed on our behalf. n
Peter N. Landless, a board-certified cardiologist,

is director of the General Conference Health
Ministries Department.
Allan R. Handysides, a board-certified gynecologist,

is a former director of the General Conference
Health Ministries Department.
19
Gods Way
of
By William G. Johnsson
Righteousness
Simple, easy, uncomplicated
ight and day the earnest young man struggled to

find peace with God. Torturing his body, he fasted
and prayed, racking his brains to confess every sin
he had ever committed. Nothing worked. After hours spent
in confession, he would awake in the middle of the night
with a terrifying thought: What about the sins he could
not remember, those that still lay unconfessed and would
condemn him before an angry God?
The struggling soul was the monk Martin Luther. His
life-and-death quest to find righteousness gave birth to the
Protestant Reformation. Luther tried every path to peace
that the church of his day offered, but all in vain. At last,
however, he found what he desperately craved through
study of Pauls letter to the Romans.
Night and day, he wrote later, I pondered until I saw
the connection between the justice of God and the statement that the just shall live by his faith. Then I grasped
that the justice of God is that righteousness by which
through grace and sheer mercy God justifies us through
faith. Thereupon I felt myself to be reborn and to have
gone through open doors into paradise.1
Luthers liberating discovery was an idea utterly foreign
to human thought to this point. We do not earn righteousness by our human striving; instead, God freely reckons
His righteousness to us as we trust Him. Not our efforts,
20
but Gods gift. Not because of our good works, but through
faiththis is Gods way of righteousness.
The book of Romans rings with this glorious affirmation. It is indeed the gospel, good news. For in the gospel
the righteousness of God is revealeda righteousness that
is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: The righteous will live by faith (Rom. 1:17).2 But now apart from
the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to
which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness
is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe
(Rom. 3:21, 22).
The Teachings of Jesus
Long before Luther discovered the liberating good news

of righteousness by faith, Jesus had emphasized the concept. He did not employ closely reasoned arguments the
way Paul did, but used disarmingly simple, profound illustrations and parables.
The religious leaders of Jesus society had constructed an
elaborate theology that centered on the law. They counted
613 commandments in the Pentateuch, and to them they
added a series of oral traditions designed to establish a hedge
around the 613 stipulations. Thus, to the plain Sabbath commandment in the Decalogue they had added a long list,
specifying what activities were permitted and what were not.
P HOTO :
G e r d
A lt m a n
D E V O T I O N A L
Jesus clashed sharply with the scribes and Pharisees

over their view of religion. In the Sermon on the Mount
He told His hearers: For I tell you that unless your
righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the
teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the
kingdom of heaven (Matt. 5:20). Disputing with
them over their rules concerning ceremonial
purity, He said: You have a fine way of setting
aside the commands of God in order to observe
your own traditions (Mark 7:9).
Jesus raised the bar of righteousness so high
that the whole system of attempting to please
God by scrupulous attention to detailed observances collapsed under its own weight. He taught
that in Gods eyes righteousness is more than not
committing murder, adultery, and so on: Gods righteousness embraces even our thoughts and motives so
that hate and lust make us transgressors of the law (see
Matt. 5:21-47). This was a righteousness of an altogether
new order, a righteousness beyond human achievement, a
righteousness that Jewish religious teachers never
attempted to embrace. This was a righteousness so
demanding that humans can never attain it, a righteousness
that only God can provide as a gift.
Over and over the parables of Jesus surprise, even
shock, the reader. They reverse the way the world functions. Here someone who works only one hour receives the
same pay as the person who labors the whole day (Matt.
20:1-16). Here two men go to the Temple to pray, one a
Pharisee who gives his whole life to strict observance of the
law, the other a tax collector, someone despised by others
because he serves the interest of the hated Roman overlords and grows rich by unscrupulous practices. The Pharisee as he prays thanks the Lord that he isnt like other people, certainly not like the tax collector standing nearby. By
contrast, the tax man simply bows his head and says, God,
have mercy on me, a sinner (Luke 18:13).
And surprise! God accepts the prayer of the tax collector, not the Pharisees.
In another parable Jesus tells about a king who prepares
a huge banquet. He invites a list of guests, but for one
flimsy excuse or another they all refuse to come. Then the
king orders his servants to go out on the streets and into
the lanes and bring all whom they find to the celebration.
These new guests are a motley lot, but for every one of
them the king provides a wedding garment. Later, however,
as he greets the guests, he discovers a man who isnt wearing wedding clothes. He orders that person thrown out of
the party (Matt. 22:1-14).
Jesus mode of teaching differs from Pauls, but the
ideas are the same: we do not earn Gods righteousness; He

gives it to us. Our part is to trust Him and accept His gift.
In the Old Testament
Some Christians draw a heavy line between the Old Testament and the New Testament, asserting that the former is
the era of works, the latter the era of grace. Not so: righteousness by faith runs like a golden thread from Genesis
to Revelation.
We read that Abram believed the Lord, and he credited
it to him as righteousness (Gen. 15:6). The apostle Paul
underscores this passage in both Romans (4:1-4) and Galatians (3:6-9). Jeremiah calls Yahweh The Lord Our Righteousness (Jer. 23:6, NKJV),3 a wonderful name that gives
hope to despairing sinners. In the book of Zechariah the
prophet sees a vision of Joshua the high priest clothed in
filthy garments. He represents the people of Israel in their
great need; but then a comforting word comes from heaven:
Take off his filthy clothes. . . . See, I have taken away your
sin, and I will put rich garments on you (Zech. 3:4).
Many additional examples of righteousness by faith
might be cited from the Old Testament. One passage, however, is so outstanding that we cannot leave it unmentioned. In Isaiah 52:13-53:12 we find a powerful description of the Suffering Servant who bore the sin of many,
and made intercession for the transgressors (Isa. 53:12).
He was despised and rejected by mankind. . . . He took up
our pain and bore our suffering. . . . He was pierced for our
transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities, the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his
wounds we are healed. . . . The Lord has laid on him the
iniquity of us all (verses 3-6).
Here, approximately 700 years before Jesus birth, we
find encapsulated the ministry of our Savior. Here we gaze
into the heart of Gods plan to save a lost world: Gods own
Son, His Suffering Servant, takes upon Himself our guilt
and shame.
In Adventist History
In every age the gospel has seemed too good to be true.

Whenever it is proclaimed, it arouses opposition, just as it
did when Paul brought it to the Galatians. Not surprisingly,
therefore, Adventist history presents a mixed picture with
regard to righteousness by faith.
Early Adventist preachers, feeling called to declare the
importance of the Sabbath, tended to focus on the law
rather than the gospel. They preached the law to such an
extent that Ellen White stated that their sermons were as
dry as the hills of Gilboa.4 Matters came to a head at the
General Conference session of 1888, held in Minneapolis,
21
D E V O T I O N A L
We do not earn Gods

righteousness; He gives it
to us. Our part is to trust
Him and accept His gift.
Minnesota. Two young ministers, Ellet J. Waggoner and
Alonzo T. Jones, sounded the theme of righteousness by
faith alone. Leaders of the church, thinking that this
emphasis weakened the arguments for the law and the Sabbath, opposed them strongly. So Waggoner and Jones stood
alone against George I. Butler, president of the General
Conference; Uriah Smith, editor of the Review and Herald;
as well as other stalwarts.
Not quite alone! One leader publicly espoused the
cause: Ellen G. White. In a sad turn of events, however, she
found her counsel rejected.
But the gospel was unstoppable, just as it has been in
every age. Following the 1888 General Conference session,
especially under Ellen Whites leadership by pen and voice,
the message of righteousness by faith slowly advanced,
wider and wider, further and further, until it became an
established teaching of the Seventh-day Adventist Church.
Ellen White penned some of the loveliest expressions
of the gospel found anywhere. Echoing Isaiahs prophecy
of the Suffering Servant, she wrote: Christ was treated as
we deserve, that we might be treated as He deserves. He
was condemned for our sins, in which He had no share,
that we might be justified by His righteousness, in which
we had no share. He suffered the death which was ours,
that we might receive the life which was His. With his
stripes we are healed.5
Commenting on Jesus parable of the man without a
wedding garment, she noted: Only the covering which
22
Christ Himself has provided can make us meet to appear

in Gods presence. This covering, the robe of His own righteousness, Christ will put upon every repenting, believing
soul. I counsel thee, He says, to buy of me . . . white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of
thy nakedness do not appear (Rev. 3:18, KJV).
This robe, woven in the loom of heaven, has in it not
one thread of human devising.6
During Adventisms struggle over the gospel, editor
Uriah Smith wrote a series of editorials in the Review in
which he argued that we need Christs righteousness to be
justified, but after we accept Christ we must develop a
righteousness of our own by keeping the law. Ellen White
rebuked him sharply in a letter. She stated that she had
read Smiths editorial and that a noble personage had
stood beside her and told her that Uriah Smith is walking
like a blind man into the prepared net of the enemy, but he
feels no danger because light is becoming darkness to him
and darkness light.7
Of all Ellen Whites numerous gems on righteousness
by faith, here is my favorite: To him who is content to
receive without deserving, who feels that he can never recompense such love, who lays all doubt and unbelief aside,
and comes as a little child to the feet of Jesus, all the treasures of eternal love are a free, everlasting gift.8
A Question
Friend of mine, I leave you with this question: Are you

content to receive without deserving? Are you willing to
admit that all your righteousnessall your work, all your
service, all your good livingcounts for nothing before
Gods holiness, that it is only filthy rags? Will you, leaving
aside every human boast and all pride, simply accept Gods
righteousness as the free gift of His marvelous grace? n
1Roland
Bainton, Here I Stand: A Life of Martin Luther (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1940), p. 68.
otherwise noted, Bible texts in this article are from the New International Version.
texts credited to NKJV are from the New King James Version.
4In Review and Herald, Mar. 11, 1890.
5The Desire of Ages (Mountain View, Calif.: Pacific Press Pub. Assn., 1898), p. 25.
6Christs Object Lessons (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Pub. Assn., 1900), p. 311.
7Letter 55, 1889, in The Ellen G. White 1888 Materials (Washington, D.C.: Ellen G. White Estate,
1987), p. 336.
8Letter 19e, 1892, in Ellen G. White, Manuscript Releases (Silver Spring, Md.: Ellen G. White Estate,
1990), vol. 8, p. 186.
2Unless
3Bible
William G. Johnsson, former editor of Adventist

World, is retired, living with his wife, Noelene, in
Loma Linda, California, United States.
S P I R I T
O F
P R O P H E C Y
C hrist,
Our Righteousness
Ellen White answers our questions on the topic.
What does it mean to say Christ is
our righteousness?
Apart from Christ we have no merit, no
righteousness. Our sinfulness, our weakness, our human imperfections make it
impossible that we should appear before
God, unless we are clothed in Christs
spotless righteousness. We are to be
found in Him, not having our own
righteousness, but the righteousness
which is through Christ. . . .
Christ is called the Lord our righteousness, and through faith, each
one should be able to say, The Lord
my righteousness. . . . No works that
the sinner can do will be efficacious in
saving his soul. Obedience was always
due to the Creator; for He endowed
man with attributes for his service.
God requires good works from man
always; but good works cannot avail to
earn salvation. It is impossible for
man to save himself.
That sounds pretty bleak.

There is hope for every one; 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 [John 3:16]
. . . .When faith lays hold upon this
gift of God, the praise of God will be
upon our lips, and we shall be able to
say, Behold the Lamb of God, which
taketh away the sin of the world.
Then we shall be able to tell the lost
concerning the plan of salvation, that

while the world was lying under the
curse of the law, meriting death, the
Lord presented terms of mercy to the
fallen and hopeless sinner, and
brought out the meaning and value of
His grace. Grace is unmerited favor.
But how does Christ take our

place?
In his humanity Christ was tried with
as much greater temptation, with as
much more persevering energy than
man is tried by the evil one, as his
nature was greater than mans. This is
a deep mysterious truth, that Christ is
bound to humanity by the most sensitive sympathies. The evil works, the
evil thoughts, the evil words of every
son and daughter of Adam press upon
His divine soul. . . .
The work of Christ upon earth was
to seek and save that which was lost.
Ever before Him, He saw the result of
His mission, although the baptism of
blood must first be received, although
the weight of sins of the world was to
gather upon His innocent soul,
although the shadow of an unspeakable woe was ever over Him; yet for
the joy that was set before Him, He
endured the cross and despised the
shame. He endured all this that sinful
man might be saved, that he might be
elevated and ennobled, and have a
place with Him upon His throne.
Does that mean once saved,

always saved?
If the love of God is not appreciated,
and does not become an abiding principle in the hard heart to soften and
subdue the soul, we are utterly lost. The
Lord has no reserve power with which
to influence man. He can give no
greater manifestation of His love than
that which He has given. Heavens richest gift has been freely offered for your
acceptance. If the exhibition of the love
of Jesus does not melt and subdue your
heart, by what means can you be
reached? Has the love of Christ failed
to bring forth an earnest response of
love and gratitude? . . . Let not Christ
say of you, Ye will not come unto me
that ye might have life. . . .
It is impossible for man to save
himself. He may deceive himself in
regard to this matter; but he cannot
save himself. Christs righteousness
alone can avail for his salvation, and
this is the gift of God. . . . Let faith take
hold of Christ without delay, and you
will be a new creature in Jesus, a light
to the world. n
This dialogue is arranged from the article
Christ Our Hope, published in Review
and Herald, December 20, 1892. Seventhday Adventists believe that Ellen G. White
(1827-1915) exercised the biblical gift of
prophecy during more than 70 years of
public ministry.
23
C OV E R S T O RY
esus
J World
is
All the
to Me
P h o t o :
n 1904 American composer Will Lamartine Thompson

told of his love for Jesus in the hymn Jesus Is All the
World to Me. In doing this, he voiced, in words and
music, the precious and personal sentiments that millions
of Christians have shared through the millennia since the
resurrected Christ entered upon His program of mediating
to us His priceless merits, so that we might live heavenly lives
even in the midst of earths fierce challenges (Heb. 7:25).
The compelling interest in this months testimonies
from Adventists around the world is in the way they show
Christians living out Christs life on a day-to-day basis in
By Sicelicile Ndlovu
In Church Without Jesus
I got baptized at the age of 15. I

had anticipated some magical change
24
to take place in my life as a result of

being dipped in water. I thought baptism would automatically transform
me from the sinner I was into a saint.
But that did not happen.
The first 20 years of my life I went to
church, but I was unconnected to the
God of the church. I served in the house
O s e n b e r g
widely differing circumstances. Here are the earnest words

of a high school teenager who loves Jesus, and there, the
story (two, in fact) of how a wife learns, through bitter
bereavement, a deeper sense of the preciousness of knowing Christs righteousness is real and personal. These testimonies help us appreciate greater spiritual, emotional, and
ethical dimensions that belong to the third angels message
in verity (see Ellen G. White, Last Day Events, pp. 199, 200).
The viewpoints expressed in these testimonies are
those of the respective authors as they reflected on their
journey with Christ.Editors
Only Jesus Can

Truly Satisfy
y parents encouraged us
children to go to church
every Sabbath, though they
themselves never attended church.
A n j a
of God, yet I never knew the God I served.

Repentance and forgiveness of sin were all
foreign to my Christian experience.
When I went to university, I was not
yet anchored in my Christian experience. I
developed an addiction to fashion and
parties. I was obsessed with my looks, and
I would spend any amount to decorate my
body. I knew this was ungodly, but I could
not resist the temptation.
Outwardly I looked lively and happy,
but deep inside I suffered much from
guilt, and I felt empty and desolate.
I got busy with church work thinking
that it would bring me peace and righ-
teousness. I desperately needed peace,

but the more I toiled, the more empty
I felt. My good works could not expiate my guilt. They could not purchase
righteousness.
The Change
In October 2008 a guest came to

our church and spoke about Christs
righteousness. For the first time it
dawned on me that Christ could actually justify me regardless of my past. I
felt so thrilled to know that as a repentant sinner, I now stood before God as
one who had never committed a single
sin. My struggle with guilt was over.
For the first time I went home after

church feeling happy and at peace with
God. Soon after that, I started reading
the book Steps to Christ. The book
pointed me to the Scriptures.
I remember how my soul delighted
to read the assuring words of the
apostle Paul in Romans 8:1: There is
therefore now no condemnation to
those who are in Christ Jesus.
My deepest desire was to be in
Christ Jesus. I understood from my
study of Steps to Christ that not only
had Christ dealt with my past sins, but
He had given me a clean heart and gives
me power to live a life of obedience.
Jesus Has My Folder

By Alareece Collie
n the skit The Good-O-Meter,*

people stood in a line and one by
one approached what I believed to
be angels. Each individual would hand
over their folders with all the deeds
they had done in life. Many had red
sheets of paper indicating bad deeds.
The angel would do a quick review,
then ask the person to step on a scale
that ranged from bad to good.
Regardless of the professed good
deeds, each scale reading displayed
bad, and the person was rejected.
One unfortunate individual even tried
to buy his way in with a credit card.
Finally someone turned in a folder
filled with red sheets.
However, Jesus appeared and submitted a folder that read child of
God. Shocked, the angel declared to
the gentleman, Sorry, I didnt know
He was with you. Jesus proceeded to
step on the scale in place of the man,
and the Good-O-Meter at last measured good. Then Jesus and this
child of God happily walked away

and took their seats in what I would
call the righteous side of the room.
Righteousness Illustrated
The skit is a simplified portrayal

of the concept of righteousness.
Sometimes it is easy for concepts or
scriptures to remain one-dimensional and never impact the way a
person lives. To me, righteousness is
about a relationship, and this influences daily living. A key passage is 2
Corinthians 5:17, which reads,
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ,
[she] is a new creation; old things
have passed away; behold, all things
have become new.
Yet what does it mean to be in
Christ? Verses 14 and 15 provide
greater insight; they read: For the
love of Christcompels us, because we
judge this: thatif One died for all,
then all died;and He died for all, that
those who live should live no longer
Today I thank God for delivering

me from my bond to fashion and parties, which never really satisfied. I am
still learning to live a life of daily surrender to Him.
Sometimes its hard when my faith
gets tried by the cares of life. When I fall, I
know in whom I have believed, and that I
can always go back to Him. His grace is
ever sufficient. He gives me strength to
do all things, and has given me a peace
that passes all understanding. n
Sicelicile Ndlovu is a vegan restaurateur

in Harare, Zimbabwe, who loves cooking
and playing the piano.
for themselves, but for Him who died

for them and rose again.
In other words, when Christ died,
we all died. It can then be said that if we
symbolically died because we were in
Him, we were also resurrected when He
was resurrected. This is the new creation. His actions for us were not just
an outlier event, but rather an essential
part of being in relationship with Him.
Being in Christ is deserving of an
emphatic sigh of relief, because no
amount of my good deeds would have
ever been enough. This new creation
does not seek my righteousness
through my good deeds. It relies on a
relationship with the One who is good.
In my twenty-first-century world people think Im more successful because
I do more. For myself, Im glad to
enjoy success by stepping aside and
allowing my Jesus Christ to turn in His
folder for me and step on the scale for
me. He fills my place with His righteousness. Im thrilled about that. n
Alareece Collie loves Jesus and longs to

work for Him all the time. She is from Nassau, Bahamas.
*Central Films, The Good-O-Meter, YouTube. Online
video clip: https:www.youtube.com/watch?v=XrLzYw6ULYw
(accessed Oct. 6, 2015).
25
C OV E R S T O RY
His Righteousness,
My Peaceful Beach
By La Verne Tavarez
rowing up in Antigua, I loved

to look from the beach at the
glasslike sea that caressed
my islands shores. However, we
learned to fear the beaches when
the hurricane season visited us and
the sea became a monster that could
swallow anyone who dared to leave
the safety of higher ground.
Drowning in Fear
As a child, many times I felt as if I

had been pulled into wild waters and
was hopelessly drowning in an ocean of
brimstone. In the Anglican tradition we
were taught that if we did not live a
good life, hell was waiting for us. I
learned that Jesus was God and was in
heaven, but that He was part of the punishment was what scared me so much.
Every Sunday I felt that the priest
was talking to me, convincing me of
my unrighteousness. It was almost as
if he knew all my sins. I did not want
to go to the sea of fire! But I always
felt that hell was waiting for me.

I did not find any comfort attending a Catholic school: I was scared that
if I died I was going to burn forever. I
do not recall learning any specific Bible
verses, only creeds, the liturgy that we
repeated, and some Bible stories.
Somehow I always knew that our
lives needed to be Christ-centered,
but the waves around me did not
allow me to find that much-desired
peace I needed.
An Amazing Change
I moved to New York and met a

Seventh-day Adventist who brought
me to his church. I learned about
righteousness by faith.
I was shocked to learn that I had
been deceived about the character of
God, and became angry that I had
lived in a system based on fear. I
resolved to accept this truth of righteousness by faith. I was not yet ready,
but at the same time, I cannot
Saving My
Marriage and Me
By Craig Bardo
joined the Seventh-day Adventist

Church as an adult who had come
through a series of failures and
disappointments. A childhood friend
introduced me to the Bible, and I
realized that if the Bible was the basis
of doctrine, then Adventism made
intellectual sense.
26
Not That Quickly
But my failures and disappointments didnt end with my new faith. I

looked forward to Sabbath, but was
unable to reconcile my thoughts and
behavior with my faith. I wondered
why my efforts werent being rewarded
if Christianity was supposed to be a
describe the emotions of being overwhelmed by joy; there are no words to

describe the emotion of feeling Jesus
righteousness. On the other hand, I
met Adventists whose lives also confused me for a while, but not too long.
I accepted fully the righteousness
of Jesus, but I had to overcome the
discouragement of my experience
with people for whom I expected
Christs righteousness to have made a
change in their lives. When I made the
decision to be baptized, I knew it was
the right thing; it was the public
expression of accepting salvation in
Jesus Christ. I had to make the decision regardless of what I had experienced with some people around me; I
had to make my choice: As for me, I
am going to follow Jesus.
At that moment I felt that if I died,
I was safe in Christ for eternity. His
righteousness is so perfect! I felt that I
was sitting at the beach and saw one
of those peaceful sunsets: the light and
warmth gave me peace, the promise of
the sea of glass in the new earth. n
La Verne Tavarez is an accounting professional who has lived with her two daughters in Miami, Florida, since the passing of
her husband, a pilot, by accident in 2012.
striving toward Christlikeness. Why

was I always at odds with my wife and
in a contentious relationship with my
children? The whole Christian thing
wasnt working for me, and it clearly
wasnt working for my family. My wife
was ready to divorce me.
Then the pastoral leadership team
at my church began to lead us in a
study of Romans 5. As I listened and
read, I saw that Paul was describing
me: without strength, ungodly, a sinner and an enemy of God (verses 6, 8,
and 10). But all of the action fell to
Christ! In fact, Paul declared that
Paul declared that without confession, without repentance,

without even going to God at all, I was reconciled to God by
the death of His Son, and that the life of Jesus would save me.
without confession, without repentance, without even going to God at
all, I was reconciled to God by the
death of His Son, and that the life of
Jesus would save me (verse 10).
A Stunning Difference
The words stunned me. I looked at

the Bible with new eyes. But it got better. Paul detailed how we were all condemned in Adam (verse 18), but Jesus
set the record straight (verse 19), justifying everyone. This notion that all are
justified freely continued an argument
that Paul had started in Romans 3:24.
I felt a weight lift from my shoulders. Jesus did not wait for me to come
to Him. He came all the way to me!

As I study more, a scriptural pattern is becoming clearer to me. God
has saved and delivered us all from the
penalty of sin as a gift before we confess, repent, or even believe. He frees us
from the hold of sin when we believe
and confess (Rom. 5:19, 1 John 1:9).
He frees us from the dominion and
service of sin by what Paul describes as
the mind of Christ (Phil. 2:5) and
through our faith in Jesus (Gal. 2:20).
The obligations and penalties of Scripture fell on Jesus, and the benefits of
His acceptance of those obligations are
ours, so long as we believe.
No longer do I stress out about
By Sharon Pergerson
Preparing Us for Tomorrow
Without a doubt, God was speaking

to us and giving us a highly concen-
Craig Bardo is senior director at a New

York-based investment firm, and a board
member of GospelNet Global Ministries, a
Seventh-day Adventist supporting ministry.
Christ became one with us and
gives us the opportunity to receive all
that is His, including His righteousness. Thats why Isaiah 54:17 says,
This is the heritage of the servants of
the Lord, and their righteousness is of
me, saith the Lord.
Here I Stand
y husband, William C.
Pergerson II, a Seventhday Adventist evangelist,
was killed in a plane crash on
August 27, 2015.
My two teenage children and I were
privileged to attend his last sermon
series about Christs righteousness in
Tobago, West Indies, about two weeks
before the accident. Every one of those
sermons prepared our family for what
was shortly to happen. I remember
thinking, Wow, he is preaching so powerfully, so clearly, and with such urgency.
reconciling my thoughts and behaviors with my profession of faith;

growth in grace is not a matter of
stressing out about personal inadequacies. My sufficiency is from God
(2 Cor. 3:5). My Sabbaths are filled
with worship to God and service to
others. Heaven fills my heart with love
for my wife and children. I pray that
my activities glorify God. I rest in the
assurance that it is not my life but
Jesus life that saves me. n
trated dose of His mind and soul-soothing medicine: righteousness by faith.

God knew the dosage we needed to be
able to endure the traumatic experience
and to continue to hold on to Him.
One point that my husband
underscored in his sermons that has
grown more personal to me since his
death is how close Christ is to each of
us. Hebrews 7:26 says, For such an
high priest became us.1 Jesus Christ
has come much closer to us than
many of us were raised to believe. He
found it fitting to become one with us,
even closer than a Siamese twin. My
children and I appreciate Proverbs
18:24: And there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother.
He Shares My Pain
Oh, what a kind God! I cant help

loving this Friend God, who condescended to be with me in my pit of
heartbrokenness. I am drawn to this
Great Brother who feels my loss,
because it is His loss, too. I cherish
this I AM God who was in that small
plane with my husband as His neverfailing helper, holding him tight, and
reminding him of His love as he circled the airport in Battle Creek, Michigan, seeking to make an emergency
landing shortly after takeoff.
I dont know why the plane suddenly plummeted to the ground,
instantly killing Will, the only occu-
27
C OV E R S T O RY
pant, but God will explain everything
when He wakes my husband up soon.
I am indebted to this heavenly
Father God, who Ive watched succor
my fatherless children and give them
resilience, joy, and a determination to
ever live to honor Him. I am sold out
to this Savior God, who has filled our
lives with the riches of souls transformed by beholding Him.
Satan Knows
Satan hates this message of the

righteousness of Christ. Hes read
Ellen G. Whites words, One interest
will prevail, one subject will swallow

up every otherChrist our righteousness.2 Hes noted Romans 9:28, where
the apostle Paul wrote, For he will
finish the work, and cut it short in
righteousness. He knows that the revelation and heart reception of Christs
perfect righteousness will break the
chokehold he has on Gods people.
Hes very aware that this message will
mature us to be able to stand fearlessly
in these last days, even in the face of
persecution and death.
I cant speak for anyone else, but I
have chosen to respond to Christ and
Who Is Christ?
By Jorge Mendoza Alvir
od uses difficult situations

to show who He is. When
we think there are no other
answers but our own, God shows His
power to make us see who He is and
what we are as humans.
People often ask: If theres a God,
why doesnt He show Himself to us? If
there is a God, why is there so much
evil in this world? But one of the questions most often asked is Why, if I
pray, doesnt He answer me? I used to
think that if I prayed I needed an
answer to know that God was with
me. This misunderstanding was the
actual start of my personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
God Is My Friend
A personal relationship with Jesus

is being His friend and knowing that
He is your friend in good times and in
bad times. Throughout the Bible we
see people whose faith was put to the
test, and who were often the ones that
28
God blessed after tribulation.

Once we humans are brought out
of our comfort zone, we often seek
God. This was my case. I used to think
I had a good relationship with God.
But when I look at what God has
helped me through in life, I see that I
didnt know a lot that I needed to
know in order to have the best relationship with Him.
Yet Jesus stayed with me through
those times and helped me to learn to
love Him more and grow in Him. I
used to pray for five minutes when I
woke up, pray again when I was eating, and one more time before going
to bed. I thought this was what it
meant to have a close, personal relationship with God. But when God
used tribulation to wake me up, I
understood that I was really far from
knowing God.
From what I have been through, I
can tell you that a personal relationship with God is not only praying five
His righteousness with love, gratitude,

repentance, faith, humility, and surrender. My heart is fully open to Him. I am
all His and at His service. Like Paul and
my husband, I too say, I determined
not to know anything among you, save
Jesus Christ, and him crucified (1 Cor.
2:2). On Christ the solid rock I stand. n
1Bible
texts are taken from the King James Version.

2Ellen G. White, Sons and Daughters of God (Washington, D.C.:
Review and Herald Pub. Assn., 1955), p. 259.
Sharon Pergerson lives with her children,

William III and Jaissa, in Berrien Springs,
Michigan.
minutes three times a day. Prayer is

one of the most important things to
do if we want a good relationship with
God. Talking to God and thanking
Him for what He has done in our life;
understanding that whatever He says
and whatever He does is for my own
good, this is what God wants me to
realize that a relationship is.
I didnt understand this until I put
it into practice. I started to learn more
and study more of Gods Word; I keep
understanding more and more things
that I didnt understand before. I am
learning to listen to His voice, and
although at first it was really hard to
pray without an answer, I learned that
just as human relationships need time,
a relationship where we can actually
hear God needs dedication and time.
Now I appreciate that God will not
answer if I pray only for selfish reasons; but if I pray for others, and for
His will to be done, He will answer.
Since I have understood what a
personal relationship is, I have really
learned to appreciate Gods care for
me. I have learned to let Him be first
in my life, and He always provides. n
Jorge Menzoda Alvir is a grade 12
student in London, Ontario, Canada.
A D V E N T I S T
D I A L O G U E
ascinated
FWith
Christ
Lael Caesar, with Bogdan
Scur and Shawn Brace
Adventist pastors Bogdan Scur

and Shawn Brace are ecstatic
about Christs presence in their
lives. This interview shares that
thrill with you. You may also listen to the podcast,1 where Scur,
Brace, and Elizabeth Talbot
(Jesus101.tv) discuss this subject
together. Brace and Scur first
explained why, in a world of
many moral teachers, they are so
fascinated with Jesus Christ.
Brace: I am so fascinated with Jesus Christ because He

is so fascinated with me. And all humans, including me, are
supremely loved by Christ. He values us more than He values Himself. We owe our very existence to Himthrough
both creation and redemption. And after you taste this
love, you cannot help being fascinated and drawn to Him.
Scur: Indeed, Jesus is so superior to every other moral
leader. He is the only perfect, faultless human being and
flawless moral leader. His wisdom is original, while the wisdom of all other moral leaders is derivative.
But I am even more fascinated by who Jesus Himself
was and is. He is both the true God and a full human being.
He is the beloved Son of God and the Savior of the world.
What does reading your Bible have to do with believing
in Jesus?
Brace: The Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, reveals
the heart of Christ and the heart of the Godhead as a
wholea heart of love. Reading it helps me understand
His love and respond better. Paul says that with the heart
one believes (Rom. 10:10). When I encounter Christ
through His Word, my heart is stirred to respond to His
love by faith. The Bible is a way for me to continuously
encounter Christs love and be compelled by it.
Scur: Jesus Himself tells me that all of the Scripture testifies about Him. This key principle lets me see all of Scripture as either preparation for the gospel of Jesus Christ, the
gospel of Jesus Christ itself, or implications of the gospel of
Jesus Christ.
29
A D V E N T I S T
D I A L O G U E
Does everybody have to be converted? When you think

about Christs righteousness, what about all the good
people who have obviously dedicated their lives to good
causes, such as peace, but dont care about Jesus
Christ? Arent they all on the same side? Jesus is the
Prince of Peace, isnt He?
Scur: Yes, He is. And precisely because He is, He is the
one who defines what peace is. Without Him we do not
know what life is, or how to love God and each other.
Without Him we do not understand what peace is and how
we should work for it.
Brace: Instead of thinking about should or
shouldnt, we need to ask what will bring an individual
the greatest happiness and fulfillment. We know that
there will be people in heaven who never consciously
heard of or responded to Christs love (Rom. 2:12-15).
But why rob them of the opportunity to experience the
great joy, peace, and fulfillment of meeting and surrendering to the loving Christ?
Of course, it isnt for me to decide who is or isnt converted. But I can always share the hope within me and pray
that everyone who hears will be attracted to a deeper

understanding of and encounter with Christ and His ways.
I once heard a member of one of my churches say, I
brought myself into this church. Is it OK with you that
people bring themselves into Gods church?
Brace: The reality is, as sinful human beings, none of us
have even an ounce of natural inclination to come to God,
much less know how to do it.
Scur: We are much too occupied pursuing our own selfish interests and building our own kingdom. Any inclination to God and faith is a gift of grace and the work of God
in our lives. We do not bring ourselves into the church. We
are led there by God.
Brace: John Wesley, to whom Adventists owe a great
deal of theological understanding, called this prevenient
grace. Such a teachingwhich is a very biblical teaching
says that, if left to ourselves, we would never even concoct
the idea or inclination to seek God, much less go to church.
Note this from Ellen White: Christ teaches that salvation
does not comethrough our seeking after God but through
Gods seeking after us.2
Scur: Very often God uses other people to lead us to
faith. We see somebody who beautifully, though not per-
The Bible is a way for me to

continuously encounter Christs
love and be compelled by it.
Shawn Brace
30
Jesus Christ is reordering my

thinking, my communication, my
attitudes, my feelings, and everything
else that I bring into my relationships.
Bogdan Scur
fectly, exemplifies the life of a disciple of Jesus, and we get

the overwhelming desire to live such a life ourselves.
I wonder, is this what youre saying? Salvation is all of
God. There really is nothing humans can do. My earnest
church member was probably sincerely wrong because
its all automatic. People should neither brag nor worry,
because everybody is going to be saved: Jesus turned on
the salvation switch on the cross. Is that it?
Brace: The word yield, and such other kindred words
as let, allow, surrender, etc., are words Ellen White uses
a great deal. Yielding is our part, if we can put it in such
terms. Our job is not to resist what Christ has already
started for us at the cross. Through the cross, Christ justified our lives (since we should all be dead right now
because of our sins) and draws us all to Himself (John
12:32). If we do not resist [we] will be drawn to Jesus and
brought to repentance.3 It takes greater effort to run away
from God than it does to let Him draw you. Many will be
lost at last because they choose to resist and reject the
drawing power of Gods grace.
Scur: There is a role for human behavior. We do not
save ourselves, but we accept or reject what God has done
to save us. We still have a free choice. Our salvation is not
automatic. Even though Jesus did everything to save us, He
does not stifle our will.
What does trusting in Christ do for you today?
Brace: Trusting in Christ does everything for me!
When I realize that faith works by love (Gal. 5:6) and
that the love of Christ compels us (2 Cor. 5:14), I recognize that Christs love and faith is the fuel that propels
all my actions. My life now becomes the way in which I
express my gratitude, love for, and faith in Christ
through limitless cooperation with His desires for me

call it obedience, if you wish.
Scur: Trusting in Christ is changing my marriage, my
parenting, my relationship to my colleagues, and many
other aspects of my life. Jesus Christ is reordering my
thinking, my communication, my attitudes, my feelings,
and everything else that I bring into my relationships.
A final question: where do you think this passion of
yours for Christ will take you?
Scur: I fully expect that this passion will take me
deeper into the mystery that is Jesus Christ. Jesus is too
good a Savior and too benevolent a Lord not to take me
closer to Himself.
Brace: Believing in Christ is not simply a good life
insurance policy. Id like to think thatlike Moses, like
Paul, like Jesus HimselfI would even be willing to give
eternity up if it meant someone elses gain. I follow Jesus
not for what He can give me in the future, but because of
the incredible gratitude I have for what Hes already given
to me in the past. I dont covet future reward or even present safety, because I dont deserve anything else good. So,
ultimately, I have no idea where this passion will take me!
And thats kind of neat! n
1Soundcloud.com/adventistworld/fascinated.
2Ellen
G. White, Christs Object Lessons (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Pub. Assn.,
1900), p. 189.
3Ellen G. White, Steps to Christ (Mountain View, Calif.: Pacific Press Pub. Assn., 1956), p. 27.
Lael Caesar is an associate editor of Adventist

World magazine. Shawn Brace, author of three
books, is a pastor in Maine, United States, and
blogs at newenglandpastor.net. Bogdan Scur
is a Hebrew Bible specialist at Washington Adventist University,
Maryland, United States.
31
T E S T I M O N Y
Searching for Gods Love
The Bible stories Mom read us at

bedtime said God loved people; but
He also seemed rather free with His
punishments. For example, the stories
of Jonah, the Flood, and Sodom and
Gomorrah told about those who
experienced Gods wrath. My Sabbath
school teacher talked about Gods
love, and Id grown up singing Jesus
Loves Me; still, I couldnt quite figure
things out. For all His professions of
love, God certainly did have strict
rules. I was supposed to obey because
I loved Him, but so far I hadnt been
able to generate enough love to keep
me from even the simplest infractions,
such as bickering with my brother.
Outside Sabbath school and childrens books, love seemed often
ignored in my circle of Adventist
friends and family. Everyone, it
seemed, knew about Gods love, but
the people I looked up to felt that
those who harped on love also had a
tendency to downplay obedience. Not
wanting to be guilty of that, they
focused instead on pertinent present
32
By Cheyenne Francis
Life-changing
C o
Love
P I X A B AY / F o u n d r y
ain pummeled the metal roof

and siding of our home as gusts
of wind whipped the treetops
outside my window. A blaze of lightning
cast skeletal shadows on my bedroom
wall. As thunder clapped I quaked and
pulled the covers around my face. God
must be angry tonight, I thought. No
doubt I had been the one to stir up His
wrath. God, I whimpered, go ahead
and take me like Jonah, so that my
whole family doesnt have to die.
Long after the summer storm subsided, my young heart still quivered.
What if a tornado had ripped our
house apart, or I had been struck by
lightning? Surely I would awake in the
wrong resurrection, only to be consumed in hell. Thats what happens to
people who dont obey God, and I
surely hadnt figured out how to keep
from disobeying Him.
The journey from faith to

truth topics that pointed out the
signs of the times and helped us get
our act together. They didnt waste
much time on such basics as love.
Recognizing Gods Love
In the middle of all this I read the

book My Life Today, by Ellen White,
and subscribed to a junior-teen magazine called Young Disciple. Through
them I began to understand salvation
and Gods true intentions toward me. I
saw in the lives of Bible heroes, reformers, martyrs, and missionaries that following God brings the best kind of
happiness. I learned about surrendering
my will to His will, and the power He
gives to overcome. To my great surprise,
it actually worked in real life! I learned
how to study my Bible to understand
Gods true character. As I pondered the
cross and Christs earthly life, I understood why we sang Jesus Loves Me.
Slowly God revealed Himself to me,
and slowly I gave myself to Him. With

a new perspective on love and obedience, I began to believe I could be
saved. Now that my view of God had
shifted, I even found myself wanting to
please Him. Id never been happier!
Soon I noticed Gods love surfacing in everyday life. I started seeing
His love in nature, in answered
prayers, in small daily blessings. Now
that I understood that Jesus wasnt
asking something impossible of me,
that He overcame for me and now
enabled me to live victoriously, His
love seemed more relevant and,
frankly, more genuine.
Fundamental Love
Still, wasnt love elementary, and

shouldnt I be moving on to something more complicated and challenging? Thats what Id been taught. Yet I
began to see that elementary also
means fundamental. Love isnt
Love
isnt merely beginners stuffits

the foundation that gives stability, meaning,
and purpose to every aspect of life.
love subdue the barriers locked

around my soul. How often I went to
secondary sources for approval,
acceptance, and a sense of well-being.
How much I belittled and sabotaged
myself when I could have experienced
worth and stability built on the strongest foundation imaginable.
Challenged to Hold On
assurance
merely beginners stuffits the foundation that gives stability, meaning,
and purpose to every aspect of life.
Love is the agent that enables us to
understand God and become like Him.
Ellen White wrote: The first step
toward salvation is to respond to the
drawing of the love of Christ. . . . It is
that [men and women] may understand the joy of forgiveness, the peace
of God, that Christ draws them through
the manifestation of His love. If they
respond to His drawing, yielding their
hearts to His grace, He will lead them
on step by step, to a full knowledge of
Himself, and this is life eternal.1
She also wrote: Such love is without a parallel. . . . Theme for the most
profound meditation! The matchless
love of God for a world that did not
love Him! The thought has a subduing
power upon the soul and brings the
mind into captivity to the will of God.2
Yet how little I let Gods matchless
I didnt recognize the chasm in my

heart until I experienced a year that
shook my inner foundations. God
used common events (albeit traumatic ones) to show me that I had
been depending on others rather than
on Him. That year I broke off a serious relationship, moved away from
my home and workplace of eight
years, and began examining my childhood family experiences in an objective light. With supportive friends and
church family members now hundreds of miles away, my family ties in
a jumble, and a state of shattered, aching confusion in my heart, I found my
soul desolate and tattered.
As I floundered for peace and
inner stability, begging Christ for
help, a glowing theme started shining
through Scripture. It had always been
there, but now I paid attention to the
best, most unfathomable news in the
Book: I have incalculable worth, based
not on my performance, talents, or
circumstances, but on the devoted,
abiding, unshakable love of God.
Since you were precious in My
sight, you have been honored, and I
have loved you (Isa. 43:4).
The Lord delights in you (Isa. 62:4).
What else could matter in view
of that? In amazement and gratitude
I began highlighting in pink, like little
love notes, every Bible verse that
showed me Gods love and my worth
to Him. Old, familiar passages quickly

took on new, radiant beauty.
It took me more than a decade to
realize it, but now I know that while Ill
never comprehend my worth to Him, I
can believe it and build my life on it.
Live in contact with the living
Christ, wrote Ellen White, and He
will hold you firmly by a hand that will
never let go. Know and believe the love
that God has to us, and you are secure;
that love is a fortress impregnable to all
the delusions and assaults of Satan.3
Now when Im discouraged,
tempted, or lonely, I open my Bible
and look for pink texts, or for new
verses to highlight. I trust those promises more than my feelings, more than
my circumstances, more than anything else in the world. I know without doubt that I am cherished.
This is the message we are called to
live. Even though we cant explain His
love, cant describe its vastness and
tenderness, we can show those around
usour families, friends, coworkers,
even the people we meet in shops and
businesseshow much they are loved.
Love flows from Christs heart, melting indifference and making everything relevant!
The awesome love of God is the
most powerful message we have to
share with the world. And the best way
to share it is to live it. n
1Gods
Amazing Grace (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald

Pub. Assn., 1973), p. 99.
2Steps to Christ (Mountain View, Calif.: Pacific Press Pub. Assn.,
1956), p. 15.
3Thoughts From the Mount of Blessing (Mountain View, Calif.:
Pacific Press Pub. Assn., 1896), p. 119.
Cheyenne Francis is a
freelance writer who enjoys

sharing Gods love with teens
and other young adults.
33
A D V E N T I S T
H E R I T A G E
eventh-day Adventists have always believed that we

are saved and delivered from sin through Christ alone.
Baptist William Miller, whose preaching inspired
the movement from which our church arose, penned a
Creed in 1822 that included his personal beliefs on the
topic of Christ our righteousness. He wrote, I believe that
Jesus Christ was the sacrifice for sin which justice
demanded; and that all those who confess their sin on the
head of this victim may expect forgiveness of sin through
the blood of the atonement, which is in Jesus Christ, the
great High Priest in the Holy of Holies.
1844-1863
Christ Our Righteousness: A Present Truth?
The early focus of Sabbatarian Adventism was on other issues

as present truth, including the Sabbath and the heavenly
sanctuary, thanks to the influence of Joseph Bates. Still, the
topic of the sanctuary increased Adventists understanding of
the work of Christ in the heavenly sanctuary as giving hope
to sinners. In 1847 Bates linked the Sabbath to the heavenly
sanctuary. He argued that the door to the Most Holy Place of
Revelation 11:19 revealed the Ten Commandments.
While this conclusion led Adventist pioneers to focus
more on keeping the commandments than on Christs
work on the cross, James White and John N. Andrews saw
that the moral law pointed us to Jesus.1 In 1854 J. H. Waggoners pamphlet on the law in Galatians affirmed that the
law in Galatians 3:24, 25 referred to the moral law. He concluded his book with a clear appeal for readers to accept
the righteousness of Christ.2
Waggoners book did not convince everybody. Three
years later Stephen Pierce responded to Waggoners view,
saying that the moral law alone was our schoolmaster to
bring us to Christ we have no evidence. Instead, it was the
types and shadows of the dispensation of law, whose body
is of Christ, that led to Christ.3
1863-1888
A Focus on Human Righteousness
Journey
of
Grace
The church has grown

in understanding.
George Butler
Uriah Smith
Alonzo Jones
Ellet Waggoner
For many Adventists, Pierces position emphasized law over

gospel and sharpened their opposition to critics who would
do away with the Sabbath. It became our pioneers position
during the next 30 years after Waggoners work appeared.
Our church organizers did not want to compose a creed.
The Bible is our creed, they said. But they did adopt a
church covenant, underlining their commitment to keep
the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus Christ.4
In 1872 Uriah Smith produced our first statement of belief.
Its second point states: That there is one Lord Jesus Christ, . . .
[who] lived our example, died our sacrifice, was raised for our
34
By Gluder Quispe
Francis D. Nichol
LeRoy E. Froom
P HOTO s : C e n t e r f o r
A d v e n t i s t R e s e a r c h
justification, ascended on high to be our only mediator in the

sanctuary in Heaven, where, with His own blood He makes
atonement for our sins; which atonement, so far from being
made on the cross, which was but the offering of the sacrifice, is
the very last portion of His work as priest. However, Smiths
declaration did not keep many pioneers from, consciously or
unconsciously, focusing on their own good behavior.
1888-1931
Justification by Faith
The 1888 General Conference session was one of the turning points in Adventist history. The struggle at Minneapolis was essentially about two basic questions: How are we
saved? How do works relate to that salvation?
One group, led by Smith and George Butler, emphasized human effort, works, obedience, law, commandments, our righteousness, and justification by
works. Another, led by Ellet Waggoner and Alonzo Jones,
focused on Christ, faith, justification by faith, and
terms related to Christs righteousness.
In the end, Ellen White joined her testimony to the two
younger men, Waggoner and Jones: 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.5 This was not new light to me, for it had come
to me from [a] higher authority for the last forty-four
years.6 The remaining 27 years of her life saw Ellen White
concentrate her focus on Christ and salvation themes.
Books from that period include: Steps to Christ (1892),
Thoughts From the Mount of Blessing (1896), The Desire of
Ages (1898), Christs Object Lessons (1900), and others.
1931-1957
Our Justification Versus His Righteousness
In 1931 a new Fundamental Beliefs of Seventh-day

Adventists statement was released. Statement 3 reads:
While retaining His divine nature [Christ] took upon
Himself the nature of the human family, lived on the earth
as a man, exemplified in His life as our example the principles of righteousness, attested His relationship to God by
many mighty miracles, died for our sins on the cross, . . .
He ever lives to make intercession for us.7
Six years later M. L. Andreasens book The Sanctuary Service was published. It proved to be quite divisive to Adventism. Andreasen established a strongly perfectionistic understanding that has earned him many followers over the
years. His chapter The Last Generation argues forcefully
about the final vindication of Gods character by the last
generation of perfect saints.8 Todays Adventism cannot be
understood without a proper appreciation for the struggle
that ensued since Andreasen, particularly heightened by the

publication of the book Questions on Doctrine in 1957.
1957-1980
Perfectionism Versus His Righteousness
As in 1888, two contrastingindeed, opposingsides

reached a crisis point. Andreasens perfectionism was
opposed by LeRoy E. Frooms and Francis D. Nichols
attention to Christs righteousness. The 1975 release of
Perfection: The Impossible Possibility shows Herbert E.
Douglass and C. Mervyn Maxwell believing that Christ
came with a fallen nature, while Edward Heppenstall and
Hans K. LaRondelle espoused His unfallen nature.9
1980-2015
Focusing on Christ Our Righteousness
The 1980 General Conference session, in Dallas, Texas,

approved a new official statement of Fundamental Beliefs
of Seventh-day Adventists. During the years of spiritual
and theological maturation that followed, much deep biblical study of the theme of Christ our righteousness has continued. Successive volumes on our fundamental beliefs
have been published by the General Conference. Also, individual scholars have published on the topic, including, for
example, Norman Gulley (Christ Our Substitute, 1982), and
the book Christology (1984), edited by Raoul Dederen. As a
denomination, we have also published a Handbook of Seventh-day Adventist Theology, which includes two chapters
related to Christ: His Person and Work and Salvation.
Today Adventists, as a body and as individual church
members, rejoice in the thrill of infinite love and mercy by
which God made Christ, who knew no sin to be sin for us,
that we might become the righteousness of God in Him
(2 Cor. 5:21). n
1[James White], Justified by the Law, Review and Herald, June 10, 1952, p. 24; John N. Andrews,
Thoughts on the Sabbath, and the Perpetuity of the Law of God (Paris, Maine: James White, 1851), p. 22.
2J. H. Waggoner, The Law of God: An Examination of the Testimony of Both Testaments (Rochester,
N.Y.: Review and Herald, 1854), p. 120.
3Stephen Pierce, Answer to Bro. Merriams Question Respecting the Law of Gal. III, Review and
Herald, Oct. 8, 1857, pp. 180, 181.
4 Doings of the Battle Creek Conference, Oct. 5 & 6, 1861, Review and Herald, Oct 8, 1861, p. 148.
5 Ellen G. White, A Call to a Deeper Study of the Word, manuscript 15, 1888, in The Ellen G.
White 1888 Materials (Washington, D.C.: Ellen G. White Estate, 1987), p. 164.
6Ellen G. White, Selected Messages (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald, 1958, 1980), book 3, p. 168.
7 Fundamental Beliefs of Seventh-day Adventists, in 1931 Year Book of the Seventh-day Adventist
Denomination (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald, 1931), p. 377.
8 M. L. Andreasen, The Sanctuary Service (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald, 1937), pp. 279-297.
9Herbert E. Douglass et al., Perfection: The Impossible Possibility (Nashville: Southern Pub. Assn., 1975).
Gluder Quispe is director of postgraduate studies for the School of Theology at Peruvian Union
University. He and his wife, Silvana, are parents
of Yerling and Harley.
35
N A D F E AT U R E
Karachi
By Jane Allen Quevedo
from
The far-reaching
Taj Khan, a member of the board of Lodi

Memorial Hospital, has fond memories
of Dr. Carrie Robbins and other Adventists who served at Karachi Adventist
Hospital in Pakistan.
eated comfortably next to his

father in a small rickshaw, Taj
Khan watches as their driver
pedals the three-wheeled vehicle
through the streets of Karachi, Pakistan.
In the mid-1950s it usually took about
a half hour to travel from their home
to the hospital where his mother was
recovering after lifesaving surgery.
Through the eyes of the young
Muslim boy, the Seventh-day Adventist hospital, located on the citys
eight-lane main thoroughfare, appears
noticeably shiny and new. He hopes
to see Dr. Carrie Robbins again while
visiting his mother, and perhaps the
36
doctors daughter, too, since the little

girl frequently accompanied her
mother on hospital rounds.
Something special about Dr. Robbins assures Taj that his mother is in
the hands of someone who really cares.
The doctor is tall and slender, and
wears glasses. Her hair is braided and
wrapped around her head in a fashion
that frames her gentle face. To Taj, she
has the countenance of an angel.
After many months of suffering
severe abdominal pain, Tajs mother
underwent surgery to remove a blockage in her colon, finally getting much
welcome relief. She will wear the nineinch scar from her incision like a battle stripe for the rest of her life,
unashamedly showing it off to family
and friends.
Look at my scar! she proudly
exclaims, exposing the pink seam
across her stomach. After her recovery
and return home, Mrs. Khan always
speaks of her doctor with fondness
and admiration.
Unforgettable Influence
Because of his mothers gratitude

for her care at the Adventist hospital,
over the ensuing years Taj went to the

clinic affiliated with the Adventist hospital whenever he needed medical
care. He also passed by the hospital
when he visited the large library
across the street, operated by U.S.
Information Services. Growing up in
the turbulent 1950s and 1960s, in the
aftermath of the 1947 separation of
Pakistan from India, Taj completed his
education and worked as an engineer.
Eventually he moved to the United
States, arriving in San Francisco in
1969 with $25 in his pocket.
Work took him from California to
Minnesota to Massachusetts to Spain,
and back to California, where he eventually settled in the rural town of
Lodi. After retiring from Sacramento
Municipal Utility District in 1979, he
did consulting work; ran for, but did
not win, a city council seat; served on
a community college board; occasionally wrote a guest column for the Lodi
News; and in 2005 began serving on
the Lodi Memorial Hospital board of
directors.
While writing for the newspaper,
Taj accepted a speaking invitation at a
nearby Seventh-day Adventist church
to
California
influence of a missionarys life
Carrie J. Anderson, M.D., Physician and Surgeon reads the sign on

the window where Dr. Robbins first
practiced medicine, before she went
to serve as a missionary.
to answer members questions about

his Muslim faith. While there, he met
Dr. Jack Gilliland, and mentioned to
him his mothers experience at the
hospital in Pakistan.
I wonder if you can help me find
Dr. Carrie Robbins or her daughter,
he asked.
Through the Loma Linda University School of Medicine alumni office,
Dr. Gilliland learned that Dr. Robbins
had retired and lived in North Dakota.
However, the details were sketchy, and
Taj never had opportunity to meet her
before she died in 2003. Left with fading memories of a kind missionary
doctor making rounds with her young
daughter at her side in that shiny,
clean, new hospital in Karachi, Taj
never forgot the woman with the face
of an angel who saved his mothers life.
Following his speaking appointment at the Adventist church, Taj
wrote a column about the influence of
Dr. Robbins and other Christian missionaries in countries such as his
homeland, saying their work was a
manifestation of their faith and belief
that helping humanity is the best
approach in spreading peace in the
world. He called them the best

ambassadors for any nation . . . dedicated, honest, and true to their belief
and cause.
While Taj cherished his memories
of Dr. Robbins, he did not know her
background, or the path that had led
her to Karachi many years ago.
A Life Devoted to Service
Carrie Robbins story began in the

small community of Hagerman, New
Mexico, where she was born in 1906.
From her youth, Carrie Anderson
dreamed of becoming a missionary
doctor in India. Her father died when
she was only 14, leaving her mother to
see that she and a brother received a
Christian education. The three moved
first to Texas, then to Minnesota
where her mother, a graduate of the
nursing course at Battle Creek Sanitarium, worked so her children could
attend Adventist schools.
Young Carrie devoted her life to
preparing for service to the people of
a faraway country she knew only from
Sabbath school mission reports,
books, and magazine articles. After
two years at Pacific Union College in
37
Whether American,
Pakistani, Hindu,
Christian, or Muslim,
Robbins treated
her patients with
courtesy, compassion,
and love.
all
California, she moved to Southern

California to study medicine at the
College of Medical Evangelists, now
Loma Linda University. There she met
another medical student, a young man
who shared a common desire for mission service. Unfortunately, before
their relationship had a chance to
develop, he contracted meningitis and
died. Devastated, Carrie buried herself
in her studies and tried to understand
Gods plan for her future.
Completing part of her clinical
work at Ellen G. White Memorial Hospital in Los Angeles, she gained valuable obstetrical experience making
what medical students referred to as
home deliveries among the large
population of immigrant families in
Los Angeles. Carrie knew delivering
babies in less-than-ideal situations
would prove valuable when she
became a missionary doctor, but she
38
Carrie J. Anderson (to the right of

the CME insignia)
graduated from the
College of Medical
Evangelists, Now Loma
Linda University Medical
School, in 1933.
did not fully realize it would take more

than classroom and clinical experience
to prepare her for overseas service.
While church officials in Washington, D.C., kept Carries name on a list
of prospective missionaries, when she
graduated from medical school in
1933 the world was in the midst of the
Great Depression. On account of multiple circumstances, including having
to care for her ill mother, Carries mission appointment was delayed. Instead
of India, Carrie went to the mission
fields of Chicago and rural Colorado,
where she met and eventually married
Charles Robbins. Shortly after their
wedding, he enrolled in the ministerial
program at Union College in Lincoln,
Nebraska, where Carrie opened a
medical practice until her husband
completed his studies.
Challenge and Tragedy
After Charles graduated, the couple accepted an invitation to Pakistan,

where Carrie reopened a medical dispensary at Chuharkana, about 30
miles west of Lahore. This is where
Adventist health care had begun in
Pakistan in 1914 when missionaries
operated a dispensary and/or hospital
facility affiliated with a school. The
dispensary closed around 1936.

The Robbinses arrived in Southern
Asia in late 1946, a few months before
the partition of India. It was a time of
political unrest and violence as a twoway stream of some 5 million Hindus
and Muslims crisscrossed the IndiaPakistan border to settle in their newly
designated homelands.
After a few months of language
study, the young Americans were soon
ensconced in their missionary assignments, Carrie with patients at the
clinic and surrounding villages, and
Charles in evangelistic work. They
even began to dream of a new hospital
to better serve the Pakistani people.
In the fall of 1947 Carrie learned
she was pregnant. As her delivery time
neared, she went to a small mission
hospital in Surat to await the babys
arrival. The birth of Marian Joann on
May 1, 1948, was one of the happiest
days of Carries life. But it would be
soon overshadowed by tragedy.
Before the baby was 18 months
old, Charles contracted polio and died
in late 1949, leaving Carrie to raise
their child alone. She and Baby Marian remained in Pakistan until the
summer of 1950, then returned to
Boulder, Colorado, for a couple years.
During this time, thanks to a Thirteenth Sabbath Overflow Offering, a

hospital was built in Karachi, replacing a small clinic operated since 1947
by Dr. G. Joy Ubbink. Once again,
church officials turned to Dr. Robbins
and invited her to join the new hospitals medical staff.
Carrie worked long hours, keeping
appointments with patients, performing surgeries, and delivering babies,
rarely taking her weekly scheduled day
off. As a rule, she went about her work
with a calm yet professional demeanor,
focusing her attention on whatever
needed to be done at the moment. But
let a man arrive at the hospital
bemoaning, My wife has been in
labor for 24 hours, and Dr. Robbins
would insist, in her best Urdu, to get
her to the hospital immediately.
Daughter Marian, who often
expressed her desire for a brother or
sister, was usually in the care of a servant when not in school or with her
mother in the hospital. She was at the
Vincent Hill boarding academy for
missionary children in 1961 when Carrie adopted a Pakistani baby rather
than allow it to be placed in an orphanage. News of Baby Valyndas addition to
their little family delighted 13-year-old
Marian, who could not contain her
excitement. Running through the hallways of her dormitory, she cried, Im a
big sister! Im a big sister!
progress. Former missionary Aileen

Saunders told of an uprising in 1965
in which demonstrators filled the road
in front of the hospital and set fire to
the U.S. Information Service library.
Later it was reported that soldiers were
seen stationed on the wall around the
hospital compound. Unaware of the
presence of soldiers, hospital officials
instead believed they had been protected by the presence of angels.
Dr. Robbins served the people of
Karachi as a full-time missionary until
1967, returning occasionally as a relief
doctor. By the time she officially
retired from practicing medicine she

had delivered more than 5,000 babies.
Whether American, Pakistani, Hindu,
Christian, or Muslim, she treated all
her patients with courtesy, compassion, and love.
When she died at the age of 97, Dr.
Carrie Robbins left a legacy of care
and service that continues to have an
influence today.
More than a half century later, and
thousands of miles from Pakistan, her
example as a devoted missionary physician contributed to a recent decision by
a community hospital in California. As
Dr. Robbins holds the

first baby born when
she and her husband,
Charles, served as missionaries in Karachi.
Living History
Over the years, Dr. Robbins and the

other missionaries saw Karachi Adventist Hospital develop new services and
expand as needs changed and money
became available. In 1963 the Pakistani
government, supported by USAID,
invited the Loma Linda University
heart team to Karachi, and in five weeks
they performed 41 heart surgeries.
In its 66-year history, todays 138bed Karachi Adventist Hospital has
suffered turmoil and tragedy as well as
Charles, Carrie,
and Marian Robbins pose for a photo. Soon Charles
would die, struck
down by polio.
39
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N A D F E AT U R E
More than a half

century later, Robbins
example as a devoted
missionary physician
contributed to a
recent decision by a
community hospital
in California.
Dr. Carrie Robbins often made rounds with her daughter, Marian.
board members of Lodi Health considered various potential new operators,

Taj Khan and others related their experiences with Adventist hospitals. For
Taj, the choice of Adventist Health
seemed like a natural fit for Lodi
Memorial Hospital, an organization
built on compassionate care from the
day it opened.
Crossroad in Time
Shortly after World War II, residents

of Lodi launched a grassroots fundraising effort to build a hospital in their
community. Homemakers, teachers,
farmers, bankerspeople from all
walks of lifewent door to door asking their neighbors for donations.
Some gave as little as $10, while others
gave more. In the five years between
1945 and 1950, they raised $800,000.
With a keen sense of community
pride and ownership, Lodi Memorial
Hospitalnamed to honor those who
gave their lives in World War II
opened in 1952. That feeling of pride
and ownership flowed over to the kind
of care that patients and their families
received at the hospital.
As the world of health care

evolved, with the formation of large
corporations and systems, Lodi
Memorial chose to remain independent, eventually growing into a complex organization with two hospital
campuses, 15 medical practices, and
about 50 outpatient programs or services, all while the health-care industry became increasingly regulated.
Finally, challenged with healthcare reform, high-deductible insurance, declining inpatient census, and
Californias seismic regulations, Lodi
Memorial came to a crossroad: either
retain its independent status at the
risk of sacrificing quality, or become
part of a larger organization that
could help it remain a vibrant institution, providing high-quality health
care. Leaders sought a system with
similar values and capable of investing
resources to ensure the hospitals
long-term viability.
Adventist Health, based in Roseville, California, was one of nearly 20
potential suitors that submitted proposals to the Lodi hospital, and
Adventists, of course, were not new to
Lodi. Todays Lodi Academy began as a

teacher-training center in 1908, and
several Adventist churches are in the
area. Additionally, Adventist doctors,
nurses, and other professionals have
worked for many years in the hospital
and community.
After two years of extensive factfinding and evaluation, Adventist
Health emerged as the best match.
With the transaction complete in June
2015, Lodi Health officially joined the
churchs West Coast health-care system.
While each of the three narratives
related above is a story in itself, presented together they reveal a much
larger story that no one could have
imagined a half century ago. But more
significantly, they tell of the far-reaching influence of a life devoted to serving others.
Daniel Wolcott, newly appointed
CEO for Lodi Health, sees these events
as part of a divine plan, reminding
him of a passage in The Desire of Ages:
But like the stars in the vast circuit of
their appointed path, Gods purposes
know no haste and no delay.* n
*Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages (Mountain View, Calif.:
Pacific Press Pub. Assn., 1898), p. 32.
Further Reading
Elizabeth Spalding McFadden,

Some Rain Must Fall (Mountain View,
Calif.: Pacific Press Pub. Assn., 1965).
Jane Allen Quevedo, A Thousand
Miracles Every Day (Ringgold, Ga.:
TEACH Services, 2003).
Carrie J. A. Robbins, M.D., Pioneers Near Hagerman, in Hagerman
Historical Society, Meeting the Train
(Santa Fe, N.Mex.: Sunstone Press,
1975).
Jane Allen Quevedo is a

freelance writer and editor
who lives in Ocala, Florida.
41
B I B L E
Q U E S T I O N S
A N S W E R E D
The
Moses asked to see the

glory of God, but was
only able to see His back
(Ex. 33:18-23). What
does that mean? What
did Moses see?
Glory
of the
The narrative is
indeed intriguing but
not necessarily difficult
to understand. It combines
human capacities to see and hear
with Gods willingness to be heard and seen. It is
about the certainty of Gods presence with
Moses and, by extension, with us. Well examine the context, then comment on what is heard and seen.
1. Context: The background of the story is the worship
of the golden calf by the Israelites at Mount Sinai, a serious
violation of their covenant with God. As a result of this sin
the Lord is ready to abandon His people in the wilderness.
Through Moses intercession God promises to take them to
the Promised Land through the presence and leading of
His angel. Moses insists that the Lord Himself accompany
them. The Lord finally accedes to the request. What follows
in the narrative is what appears to be Moses desire to make
sure that the Lord will indeed accompany them.
2. The Request to See: The emphasis on Moses part is
on seeing. In the Bible reality or creation is apprehended
through the eye. Humans are aware of the concreteness of
reality and that they can access and understand it through
sight. Gods vast creation is open to the human eye to
enjoy and to fathom its mysteries. Biblical wisdom literature is, to some extent, based on this conviction that
includes observation, analysis, and drawing conclusions
from what is observed. But what about seeing that which is
not part of creation, namely, the Creator? By not being part
of creation, He is not, by nature, apprehensible to the
naked eye.
Moses is aware of the otherness of God and phrases his
request carefully: Please, show me [hareni, cause me to
see, cause to let me see] Your glory (Ex. 33:18). The
human eye can see God only when He makes Himself
accessible to it. What Moses specifically wants to see is
Gods glory (kabod, weight, glory), and God denies
the request, because no man shall see Me, and live (verse
20). We know that Moses and the Israelites had previously
42
Lord
seen the glory of the Lord and did not die. This suggests
that Moses wants an experience that goes beyond those
manifestations of Gods glory hidden in the cloud of His
presence. He wants to see Gods glory unmediated; to see
Him in the majesty, power, and brilliance of His being.
Moses seems to be asking the Lord to break into the world
as He is in Himself because this will assure him that God
will indeed accompany the people in their journey to
Canaan. But finite creatures cannot observe the fullness of
the Infinite One and survive the experience.
3. Seeing Through Hearing: Moses will see the goodness of God, not through his eyes but through his ears.
Yes, the Lord will descend in the glory of His majesty to
speak to Moses, giving him what he needs, i.e., a proclamation of His name, of His character, as Yahweh/the Lord.
The problem of the sin of the people would not be solved
though an overpowering display of Gods glory but
through the revelation of His character. He is a merciful
and compassionate God (verse 19) who is always ready to
forgive iniquity and transgression and sin (Ex. 34:7). This
is who He is! This is what Moses will see.
The narrative becomes intimate as God asks Moses to
stand on the rock, probably Mount Sinai, to wait. At the
right moment God will protect Him from the majesty of
His glory by hiding him in the cleft of the rock, covering
him with His hand. Moses will experience the reality of
Gods presence but will see only My back (Ex. 33:12, 23),
not Gods face. Moses saw only the afterglow of Gods dazzling presence after His unseeable glory passed by. The
message seems clear: We can better see the presence of God
after His saving action on our behalf. For now we can see
only His back. n
After a career serving the church as a pastor,

professor, and theologian, ngel
Manuel
Rodrguez is retired in Texas, United States.
B I B L E
S T U D Y
By Mark A. Finley
S t e m i e r
Abraham
A
brahams story is in a sense your story and my story.

It is the story of a man who was committed to God,
but whose faith wavered. He made mistakes; but in
each instance he recognized his lack of faith and continued
growing through each life experience. Unyielding
commitment to do the will of God characterized his life.
In his humanness he failed, but he never turned his back
on the God he loved and served. In this lesson we will
study Abrahams growing faith in the midst of extremely
challenging circumstances.
O . A .
Risking It All
What seemed impossible to Abraham and Sarah was not
impossible to God. Gods question to Abraham, Is anything too hard for the Lord? (verse 14), echoes through
the centuries. It speaks to us of a mighty God fully capable
of solving our problems and causing us to triumph in the
face of lifes greatest challenges.
5 How did Abraham reveal his true character in

Genesis 18:20-26?
1 What vision guided Abrahams life? Read

Hebrews 11:8-10 to discover what kept Abraham
faithful to God in the face of lifes challenges.
Abrahams concern to save Sodom is apparent in his discussions with God. Abraham reverently argues with God as
if he is appealing to a friend. In 2 Chronicles 20:7 Abraham
is called Gods friend forever. There is no higher calling
than that of being a friend of God.
Abraham looked beyond the challenges he faced to the God

who was the divine ruler of the universe and had an eternal
city prepared for Abraham and his family. Its been said, You
can endure almost anything if you know there is the hope of
a bright future. Abrahams heart was filled with hope.
6 What expression did God use at the birth of

Isaac that is similar to an expression used to
describe Jesus birth? Compare Genesis 21:1-3 and
Galatians 4:4.
Although Abraham was deeply disappointed

when Gods promise was not fulfilled in the birth of
Ishmael, what reassurance did God give Him? Read
Genesis 17:18, 19.
What do you discover about Abrahams character in Genesis 18:1-8? Compare this passage with
Hebrews 13:1, 2.
Abraham had a caring heart. He greeted three strangers
with utmost courtesy and provided for their physical and
emotional needs. This gesture of hospitality is a call for us
to offer random acts of kindness to meet the needs of those
with whom we come into contact.
As time went on, Abraham and Sarahs faith continued to be tested. The child of promise had not yet
been born, and they were aging. How did God respond
to their lack of faith? Read Genesis 18:11-14, 16-19.
In the significant events of salvation history, God accomplishes His supreme will on a divine timetable. We can be
incredibly thankful that the plan of salvation is not in
human hands, subject to random changes; it is in the
steady hands of God.
What was the greatest test Abraham ever

faced, and how does Gods solution apply to each of
us personally? Read Genesis 22:1-14 and compare it
to John 1:29 and Revelation 5:1-6.
Abrahams faith was tested by his willingness to offer Isaac.
In this supreme act of faith Abraham demonstrated his
absolute trust in God. God provided a substitute sacrifice.
We too come in faith to Gods altar, trembling, wondering
if we stand alone. But through Jesus a sacrifice has been
provided, and we praise God for the Lamb sacrificed in our
place. Jesus is all we need. n
43
IDEA EXCHANGE
P I X A B AY
This is not the only matter Ellen G.

White foresaw many years ago. Think
about what she wrote about children
and education. Psychologists are now
confirming all she said. Prophecy
always affirms our faith.
Carlos Olgun Quiroz
Santiago, Chile
Ellen Whites Influence
Letters
Adventists Urged to Examine
Their Meals
I am writing about Andrew

McChesneys article Adventists Urged
to Examine Their Meals (December
2015). Reading this, I can only smile.
When we brought up this issue in our
local church, we were dismissed as
bent on introducing false teachings to
the church. I hope many will now listen to the WHO report.
Eric Eyaru
Soroti, Uganda
Thank you for this relevant article.
What hope and blessing is prevalent in
our health message! We can be proactive in preventing cancer and many
other diseases.
Josephine Kelley
Rogue River, Oregon, United States
Prayerw
Thank you for publishing Crolyn

Azos article Ellen Whites GreatGreat-Great-Grandson Up Close
(December 2015). Ellen White
prophesied about what would happen, it happened, and it will continue
to occur. I like her books, especially
The Great Controversy.
George Koromo
Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
Great advice from [Ellen Whites relative] Justin Torossian! I read two of
Whites books this year; Im working
on my third book. I am a lifelong
Adventist but have never before relished her writings as I do now.
Eunice Gregory-Richard
Tucson, Arizona,
United States
Ellen Whites writings are excellent

counsel. They are not to replace the
Bible, however. She writes that we
must put the Bible first.
I love her books, and read them
every day. I read my Bible first. In
January 2016 I will read it through
for the fiftieth time. Then I will read
her writings. They are such a blessing! My favorite is The Desire of
Ages, with Patriarchs and Prophets a
close second.
Illana Goodwin
Portland, Oregon, United States
When God Surprises
Our Lords way is the only way. Jesus

mingled with people, met their needs,
won their confidence, and invited
them follow Him . I loved reading
Mark A. Finleys article When God
Surprises (August 2015), about Pauls
ministry.
I have had a bitter experience with
several churches Ive attended, but I
will never leave the church or the
truth, which I found after a life of hell
on this earth. Praise God that He
opened my eyes to see the truth!
Anyone can shine from the
pulpit. But we need to remember to
minister to the poor, the abused, and
the outcast.
Moni Dominic
via e-mail
PRAISE
Please pray for my mother. She is having financial difficulty. She owes
money to many people.
Felicia, South Africa
44
Please pray for my family, and for me

to trust God until the end of time, and
hold on until He comes back. Pray also
for my fianc and me to find jobs so
we can marry and enter Gods plans.
Withney, Martinique
I am requesting prayer for patience.

Im not sure what to do with my life.
Do I go back to school? find more fulfilling work? start a relationship? Im
leaning on God, and I need Him to
help me be more patientand for
Him to direct me.
Rashel, Jamaica
Lifetime
In Thanks
Most of my challenges have been

addressed by Adventist World. It has
made such a difference in my life; it
always seems to be just for me. May
God bless the authors and staff.
Daniels Muteesa
Kampala, Uganda
I love Adventist World magazine.
Be blessed!
Ir Tuyishime Hiti John
Democratic Republic of the Congo
Thanks for Adventist World! May God
bless us all as we continue to share the
good news.
Lokasasa Craig Kalzii
Honiara, Solomon Islands
Achievement
Lilya Wagner, director of Philanthropic Service for Institutions (PSI) at the

North American Division, was recently awarded the Henry A. Rosso Medal
for Lifetime Achievement in Ethical Fund-raising from the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy in the United States. During the
past 25 years Wagner is only the second Seventh-day Adventist to be so honored (the first was Milton J. Murray in 1992).
The award recognizes fund-raising professionals who adhere to the
highest standards of ethical fund-raising and serve as role models among
philanthropic professionals.
Fiber Up
beans (all kinds)
Greek yogurt
figs
Letters Policy: Please send to: letters@adventistworld.org.
Letters must be clearly written, 100-word maximum. Include the

name of the article and the date of publication with your letter.
Also include your name, the town/city, state, and country from
which you are writing. Letters will be edited for space and clarity. Not all letters submitted will be published.
You dont have to starve yourself

to lose weight. The following eight
foods deliver dietary fiber, protein,
and essential nutrients:
apples
potatoes
eggs
wheat berries
oats
Source: Womens Health
I returned to school at age 53 and am

in my first full-time semester. I feel
overwhelmed. Please pray that I will
be able to balance all my responsibilities and earn the grades I need to gain
admission to the associate degree
nursing program.
Jeanne, United States
I thank God for my life and family.

Please pray for me to find a husband
according to Gods will.
Grace, Zambia
The Place of Prayer: Send prayer requests and praise (thanks

for answered prayer) to prayer@adventistworld.org. Keep entries
short and concise, 50-words or less. Items will be edited for
space and clarity. Not all submissions will be printed. Please
include your name and your countrys name. You may also fax
requests to: 1-301-680-6638; or mail them to Adventist World,
12501 Old Columbia Pike, Silver Spring, MD 20904-6600 U.S.A.
45
IDEA EXCHANGE
Behold, I come quickly
G C
A r c h i v e s
109
P HOTOS :
Years Ago
n January 1, 1907, what is now Burman University, opened in

temporary quarters in the town of Leduc, Alberta, Canada.
The initial enrollment of nine students increased to 27 before
the end of the three-month term.
At the 1901 General Conference session in Battle Creek, Michigan,
United States, J. W. Boynton, of Nebraska, was assigned to Alberta,
then a mission field (it became a Canadian province in 1905). Of the
50 members Boynton found upon his arrival, 35 were German believers meeting in a church at Leduc, 100 kilometers (60 miles) north of
the universitys present site.
At a 1906 camp meeting held in Red Deer, the Alberta Conference
was organized, with C. A. Burman as the first conference president. By
that time three church schools had been opened in the province, but
the growing number of Seventh-day Adventist families created a
demand for higher levels of education.
Upon the recommendation of the conference committee, Burman
took charge of the new educational enterprise. Now located near
Lacombe, Alberta, and known over the years as Canadian Union College and Canadian University College, the university is named after
Charles and Leona Burman, the husband-and-wife team who
founded the institution. Charles served as its first and third president,
and Leona, in addition to serving as school nurse, taught English, science, geography, and physiology.
Outof the Blue

More than
3 billion yards of denim

are woven each year, enough to
wrap around the world
67 times.
Source: USA Today
46
Our mission is to uplift Jesus Christ, uniting

Seventh-day Adventists everywhere in beliefs,
mission, life, and hope.
Publisher
The Adventist World, an international periodical of
the Seventh-day Adventist Church. The General
Conference, Northern Asia-Pacific Division of Seventh-day
Adventists, is the publisher.
Executive Publisher and Editor in Chief
Bill Knott
Associate Publisher
International Publishing Manager
Chun, Pyung Duk
Adventist Review Ministries Board
Ted N. C. Wilson, chair; Guillermo Biaggi, vice chair; Bill Knott,
secretary; Lisa Beardsley-Hardy; Williams Costa; Dan Jackson;
Peter Landless; Robert Lemon; Geoffrey Mbwana; G. T. Ng;
Daisy Orion; Juan Prestol-Puesn; Ella Simmons; Artur Stele;
Ray Wahlen; Karnik Doukmetzian, legal advisor
Adventist World Coordinating Committee
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Editors based in Silver Spring, Maryland
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Unless otherwise indicated, all Bible references are taken
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Call Loretta at (800) 249-2882
We chose Fletcher Park Inn because their

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especially the 90% Return of Capital!
We can walk to Fletchers health food store,
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All The To Me Is: World

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The International Paper for Seventh-day Adventists

North American Division | n a d

Jesus Is All the

The story of salvation begins and ends

29 Fascinated With Christ

Associate editor Lael Caesar interviews Shawn

8 Christ, Our Righteousness

The long, sometimes tortuous journey to know

A gift so generous comes with just one string

20 Gods Way of Righteousness

Its easier and more uncomplicated than most

How the church has grown in its understanding of

36 From Karachi to California

By Jane Allen Quevedo

The effects of being a missionary never end.

Reach the World

Christ Our Righteousness

Adventist World - nad | January 2016

G. White, Be Zealous and Repent,

Miracle Hospital Opens

Chinese births support US$219 million expansion

One interest will prevail, one subject

erched on a Hong Kong hill is a brand-new 25-story hospital

January 2016 | Adventist World - nad

underscored public health statistics

10 operating theaters, four endoscopy

1 Million Members Sought

Division leader Jairyong Lee unveils ambitious initiative.

Adventist World - nad | January 2016

The Northern Asia-Pacific Divisions goal is formidable for a territory

STEADY GROWTH: Pastor Masuya

Lee said as he unveiled the Vision One

ies, Comprehensive Health Ministry,

more to reach out to former members

Cant Speak English?

South Korean church changes its culture and grows.

ow far would you go to draw

January 2016 | Adventist World - nad

Speaking Migrants Language

Kwon, who has served as the divisions director of Adventist Mission

Kwon called a local English

to have declining memberships, while

New Ideas and Directions

told the congregation that she had been

garrison that will become the largest

Adventist World - nad | January 2016

Loma Linda Report

MANY STRENGTHS. ONE MISSION.

School of Dentistry students provide dental care

oothache from decay, infection or

with their dentist about their care in their

emphasize that the treatment we provide

Photo by Russell Sasaki

s we begin this new year,

Receptions can be a challenge. If

In the parable, those who received

What are you wearing to the wedding?

Then the king started over. He

Adventist World - nad | January 2016

The world has crept into the church in

The Bible is filled with beautiful

Returning to the parable, we see

The wedding garment

Associate editor Lael Caesar interviews Shawn

The long, sometimes tortuous journey to know

A gift so generous comes with just one string

Its easier and more uncomplicated than most

How the church has grown in its understanding of

The effects of being a missionary never end.