Heavenly Pilgrim asked:
"Possibly BR or others would be so kind as to tell us of the import of such a controversial study surrounding goats and Satan and how this makes them a better person or draws them closer to Christ or sheds the least shred of light on our salvation. I see it as an issue to sidetrack us from the important issues personally."
First of all, WE didnt start all of this about the subject of the goat and the Sanctuary, Shiloh did. --and he cannot seem to let it go...
Secondly, I dont claim to speak for Bob, but this is my outlook on this subject, since you asked, and it is also the Seventh Day Adventist view of the Great Controversy:
One has to get the concept of the thread running through the entire scriptures of the Great Controversy between God and Satan.
If you view the entire thing as revolving around "me and my salvation" then you will miss the entire point.
This is primarily between God and Satan. Lucifer who became God's adversary in Heaven, deceived a third of the angels in heaven, by wanting to be God himself, and all throughout the history of the world we see him casting doubt upon the character of God. Such as in what he did to Eve in the Garden of Eden to start this entire thing.
"oh did God tell you this?" "Well He really just didnt want you to know that you are little gods yourself"
Satan has done this time and again, as we see the scenario acted out in the book of Job. The entire thing starts out with Satan telling God that although Job is serving him, he is only doing it out of selfishness... not out of love for God... its because of the blessings he receives... Nobody would ever serve God just because of the righteousness of His Government out of appreciation for His ways and His character of love.
So God allows Job to lose everything. He proves Satan wrong. Job said "Though He slay me, yet I will trust in Him". We must realize this same scenario is acted out in all of our lives..
At the very beginning in the book of Genesis, we are told God puts enmity between God's children and Satan. Satan will bruise the heel of Jesus (on the cross) but Jesus will bruise HIS HEAD.... we must realize this is telling us that at the cross there was much more at stake, involving SATAN and his lies about the character of God.
Gen:3:15: "And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel."
Meaning that at the cross, yes the atonement was finished, but also in a broader sense the death of Jesus on the cross proved the love of God forever... the complete unselfish character of God was shown in Jesus dying for us on the cross. Light about God, the true picture of God was revealed at that cross... Jesus said if you've seen Me you have seen the Father... Satan's lies PUT TO REST FOREVER! "Immanuel, GOD WITH US". Its not all about God is the mean old tyrant of the old testament but Jesus is the "nice" forgiving one.
2Cor:5:19: ...God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself
READ!! THIS IS WHY JESSUS CAME HERE! to show us what the Father is really like and to obliterate the lies Satan has told, deceiving the entire world about God:
Jn:1:
5: And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.
7: The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe.
8: He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.
Its not just about our salvation, in a broader sense its all about God and the fact that though most dont realize this, but God is on trial before the entire universe...
Rom:3:4: God forbid: yea, let God be true, but every man a liar; as it is written, That thou mightest be justified in thy sayings, and mightest overcome when thou art judged.
Could one sin have been found in Christ, had He in one particular yielded to Satan to escape the terrible torture, the enemy of God and man would have triumphed. Christ bowed His head and died, but He held fast His faith and His submission to God.
"And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night." Rev. 12:10.
This is what we are supposed to be realizing.. you dont do good works to "merit heaven"... rather, our entire Christian experience is SUPPOSED to revolve around glorifying God and proving/showing His character of love to the world, showing Satan's false charges against God to be wrong
Mt:5:16: Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
THIS is what its always been all about, in the old testament AND the new:
Deuteronomy 4:
5: Behold, I have taught you statutes and judgments, even as the LORD my God commanded me, that ye should do so in the land whither ye go to possess it.
6: Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.
7: For what nation is there so great, who hath God so nigh unto them, as the LORD our God is in all things that we call upon him for?
8: And what nation is there so great, that hath statutes and judgments so righteous as all this law, which I set before you this day?
This is what Seventh Day Adventists call "'THE GREAT CONTROVERSY" between Christ and Satan.
The "it is finished" really and truly ends with Satan and his evil angels being thrown into the Lake of Fire.
THAT was what the lake of fire was intended for in the first place:
Mt:25:41: Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels
at the end of this entire GREAT CONTROVERSY... THIS is what happens:
Rv:15:3: And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints.
THAT is what its all about. That is what His loving forgiveness is all about, that is what His undeserved grace is all about, showing HIS LOVE to those who dont deserve it.
THAT is what us repenting and changing our ways is supposed to be all about, walking as He walked, reflecting His character of love to the world. Its not completely all about "me and whether or not I get saved"
THIS is the Seventh Day Adventist "Great Controversy" theme and once you comprehend it many Scriptures begin to open up to you... that you hadnt noticed before... and you notice this theme more and more throughout the Scriptures.
Its all about GOD.
Mt:6:33: But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.
...and it is definitely Satan's fault, because he is the one who has deceived people and angels throughout history about God's character. Ultimately he is the deceiver, "the Adversary", but at the same time, we are responsible for allowing ourselves to be deceived by him.
Rv:12:9: And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.
Thats why in the Sanctuary, God has some things He wants to portray about Satan and his part in all of this... its not just about atoning for our sins.
Ezek:28:
6: Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Because thou hast set thine heart as the heart of God
13: Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering, the sardius, topaz, and the diamond, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the carbuncle, and gold: the workmanship of thy tabrets and of thy pipes was prepared in thee in the day that thou wast created.
14: Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire.
15: Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee.17: Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness: I will cast thee to the ground, I will lay thee before kings, that they may behold thee.
18: Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the multitude of thine iniquities, by the iniquity of thy traffick; therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee.
19: All they that know thee among the people shall be astonished at thee: thou shalt be a terror, and never shalt thou be any more.
Claudia
