Desire of Ages: Preface and Chapter 1

Preface

What is the inexpressible longing that God places within the heart of mankind?

In the hearts of all mankind, of whatever race or station in life, there are inexpressible longings for something they do not now possess.

How has Satan perverted this longing?

Satan, by wily scheme and craft, has perverted these longings of the human heart. He makes men believe that this desire may be satisfied by pleasure, by wealth, by ease, by fame, by power;

What is the result?

but those who have been thus deceived by him (and they number myriads) find all these things pall upon the sense, leaving the soul as barren and unsatisfied as before.

What is God’s design and desire of this longing?

It is God’s design that this longing of the human heart should lead to the one who alone is able to satisfy it.

What are and are not the purposes of The Desire of Ages?

It is the purpose of this book to set forth Jesus Christ as the one in whom every longing may be satisfied.

… its purpose is to present the love of God as revealed in his Son, the divine beauty of the life of Christ, of which all may partake, …

it is the purpose of this book so to present the blessed Redeemer as to help the reader to come to Him face to face, heart to heart, and find in Him, even as did the disciples of old, Jesus the Mighty One, who saves “to the uttermost,” and transforms to His own divine image all those who come unto God by Him.

It is not, however, the purpose of this work to set forth a harmony of the gospels, or even to give in strictly chronological order the important events and wonderful lessons of the life of Christ; … and not to satisfy the desires of the merely curious nor the questionings of critics.

State how Jesus Christ is revealed in The Desire of Ages.

To state it in brief, Jesus Christ is revealed as the Fullness of the Godhead, the infinitely merciful Saviour of sinners, the Sun of Righteousness, the merciful High Priest, the Healer of all human maladies and diseases, the tender, compassionate Friend, the constant, ever-present and helpful Companion, the Prince of the House of David, the Shield of His people, the Prince of Peace, the Coming King, the Everlasting Father, the culmination and fruition of the desires and hopes of all the ages.

Chapter 1—“God With Us”

Why did Jesus come to our world?

From the days of eternity the Lord Jesus Christ was one with the Father; He was “the image of God,” the image of His greatness and majesty, “the outshining of His glory.” It was to manifest this glory that He came to our world.

By  coming  to  dwell   with   us , Jesus was to  reveal   God  both to  men  and to  angels .

1 Peter 1:12 NKJV

… things which angels desire to look into.

Luke 15:10 NKJV

… there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”

What is God’s theme?

God’s wonderful purpose of grace, the mystery of redeeming love, is the theme into which “angels desire to look,” and it will be their study throughout endless ages.

Define the “law of life.”

In the light from Calvary it will be seen that the law of self-renouncing love is the law of life for earth and heaven;

Name some of the things Christ did as Creator.

• It was Christ that spread the heavens,

• and laid the foundations of the earth.

• It was His hand that hung the worlds in space,

• and fashioned the flowers of the field.

• “His strength setteth fast the mountains.”

• “The sea is His, and He made it.”

• It was He that filled the earth with beauty,

• and the air with song.

• And upon all things in earth, and air, and sky, He wrote the message of the Father’s love.

There is  nothing ,  save  the  selfish   heart  of  man , that lives unto itself.

What is the “great principle?”

… Looking unto Jesus we see that it is the glory of our God to give. “I do nothing of Myself,” said Christ; “the living Father hath sent Me, and I live by the Father.” “I seek not Mine own glory,” but the glory of Him that sent Me. John 8:28; 6:57; 8:50; 7:18. In these words is set forth the great principle which is the law of life for the universe. All things Christ received from God, but He took to give. …

So in the heavenly courts, in His ministry for all created beings: through the beloved Son, the Father’s life flows out to all; through the Son it returns, in praise and joyous service, a tide of love, to the great Source of all. And thus through Christ the circuit of beneficence is complete, representing the character of the great Giver, the law of life.

 Sin  originated in  self – seeking .

Name what Lucifer tried to do in heaven.

Lucifer, the covering cherub, desired to be first in heaven.

How did he go about what he tried to do?

He sought to gain control of heavenly beings, to draw them away from their Creator, and to win their homage to himself. Therefore he misrepresented God, attributing to Him the desire for self-exaltation. With his own evil characteristics he sought to invest the loving Creator. Thus he deceived angels.

What were the results?

Thus he deceived men. He led them to doubt the word of God, and to distrust His goodness. Because God is a God of justice and terrible majesty, Satan caused them to look upon Him as severe and unforgiving. Thus he drew men to join him in rebellion against God, and the night of woe settled down upon the world.

Why couldn’t God use force to stop Satan?

The exercise of force is contrary to the principles of God’s government; He desires only the service of love; and love cannot be commanded; it cannot be won by force or authority. Only by love is love awakened.

The  plan  for  our   redemption  was not an  afterthought , a  plan  formulated  after  the fall of Adam.

It was an  unfolding  of the  principles  that from  eternal   ages  have been the  foundation  of  God’s   throne .

What is the significance of the following quote: “God did not ordain that sin should exist, but He foresaw its existence, and made provision to meet the terrible emergency.”?

Why did Christ veil His divinity when He came to Earth?

Had He appeared with the glory that was His with the Father before the world was, we could not have endured the light of His presence. That we might behold it and not be destroyed, the manifestation of His glory was shrouded. His divinity was veiled with humanity,—the invisible glory in the visible human form.

This great purpose had been  shadowed   forth  in  types  and  symbols .

Give the ways in which Christ appeared to Moses and the children of Israel.

• The burning bush

• The pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night

• “So Christ set up His tabernacle in the midst of our human encampment.”

How does Satan represent the law of God?

Satan represents God’s law of love as a law of selfishness.

What did Jesus do to reveal this deception?

As one of us He was to give an example of obedience. For this He took upon Himself our nature, and passed through our experiences. “In all things it behooved Him to be made like unto His brethren.” Hebrews 2:17.

If we had to bear something Jesus did not, what would have Satan claimed?

If we had to bear anything which Jesus did not endure, then upon this point Satan would represent the power of God as insufficient for us.

And He  exercised  in His own behalf  no   power  that is not  freely   offered  to us.

How did Christ show a character different than what Satan claimed?

As He went about doing good, and healing all who were afflicted by Satan, He made plain to men the character of God’s law and the nature of His service.

Compare the ways Christ was treated, condemned, and how He suffered, with what we received.

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.

What more did Christ achieve through His life and death?

By His life and His death, Christ has achieved even more than recovery from the ruin wrought through sin. It was Satan’s purpose to bring about an eternal separation between God and man; but in Christ we become more closely united to God than if we had never fallen.

By Christ taking upon human nature, what happened?

In taking our nature, the Saviour has bound Himself to humanity by a tie that is never to be broken. Through the eternal ages He is linked with us.

What does it mean, “God has adopted human nature in the person of His Son, and has carried the same into the highest heaven.”

The exaltation of the redeemed will be an  eternal   testimony   to   God’s   mercy .

How is the government of God justified?

Through Christ’s redeeming work the government of God stands justified. The Omnipotent One is made known as the God of love. Satan’s charges are refuted, and his character unveiled.

What will be the end result?

Rebellion can never again arise. Sin can never again enter the universe. Through eternal ages all are secure from apostasy. By love’s self-sacrifice, the inhabitants of earth and heaven are bound to their Creator in bonds of indissoluble union.

The  work  of  redemption  will be  complete .