The plan of redemption was formed to bring unity and peace to men. The world was at war with the law of Jehovah; sinners were at enmity with their Maker; Jesus came to make overtures of peace. At the appointed time angels were commissioned to announce His birth, and give expression to their joy in the salvation of the one lost sheep, the fallen world. . . .
His Legacy
Shortly before His crucifixion, Christ bequeathed to His disciples a legacy of peace. “Peace I leave with you,” He said; “my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” This peace is not the peace that comes through conformity with the world. It is an internal rather than an external peace. Without will be wars and fightings, through the opposition of avowed enemies, and the coldness and suspicion of those who claim to be friends. The peace of Christ is not to banish division, but it is to remain amid strife and division.
Though He bore the title of Prince of Peace, Christ said of Himself, “Think not that I am come to send peace on earth; I came not to send peace, but a sword.” By these words He did not mean that His coming was to produce discord and contention among His followers. He desired to show the effect His teaching would have on different minds. . . . And He warned His followers: “In the world ye shall have tribulation.” “They shall lay their hands on you, and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues, and into prisons, being brought before kings and rulers for my name’s sake. . . . Ye shall be betrayed both by parents and brethren, and kinsfolks, and friends; and some of you shall they cause to be put to death.”
This prophecy has been fulfilled in a marked manner. Every indignity, reproach, and cruelty that Satan can instigate human hearts to devise has been visited upon the followers of Jesus. And it will be fulfilled in a yet more marked manner; for the carnal mind is still at enmity with the law of God, and will not be subject to its commands. We have been highly favored in living under a government where we can worship God according to the dictates of our conscience. But human nature is no more in harmony with the principles of Christ today than it has been in ages past. The world is still in opposition to Jesus. . . .
Cultivating Peace
We are required to be Christlike toward those who are our enemies; but we must not, in order to have peace, cover up the faults of those we see in error. The world’s Redeemer never purchased peace by covering iniquity. . . . He was the friend of sinners, and He would not remain silent while they were pursuing a course that would ruin their souls—the souls that He had purchased with His own blood. He was a stern reprover of all vice. . . . Living in a world marred and seared with the curse brought upon it by disobedience, He could not be at peace with it if He left it unwarned, uninstructed, unrebuked. This would be to purchase peace at the neglect of duty. His peace was the consciousness of having done the will of His Father, rather than a condition of things that existed as the result of not having done His duty.
Those who love Jesus and the souls for whom He had died will follow after the things which make for peace. But they must take care lest in their efforts to prevent discord, they surrender truth; lest in warding off division, they sacrifice principle. True brotherhood can never be maintained by compromising principle. . . . That peace and harmony which are secured by mutual concessions to avoid all differences of opinion are not worthy of the name. . . .
The apostle Paul exhorts us, “If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men.” Care should be taken by Christians to give no offense, that the truth may not be evil spoken of. But the text suggests that no amount of diligence and care will preserve this harmony in all cases. Dissensions will arise even between church members, because they are not Christlike in character….The church as a body is to do all in its power to promote union and prevent schisms. If unsound doctrine is introduced, the safety of the flock of Christ will be endangered; and it is the duty of those in authority, who are jealous for the truth as it is in Jesus, to make a firm, decided protest.
Our Responsibility
To those who have been injured without cause these words of Scripture apply, “If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men.” Their failure to live at peace with all men is not due to the course they themselves have pursued, but to the envy, jealousy, and evil surmising of those who have been in the wrong. A division is caused. How shall it be healed? Shall the man that has been sinned against, misjudged, and maligned be called to give an account? . . . Shall he acknowledge himself in the wrong for the sake of making peace? No. If he has tried to do his duty, and has been patient under abuse, he is not to humble himself to acknowledge that he is guilty. . . . Concessions that are not true from the one who has been wrongfully treated gratify the feelings of the carnal heart. The wrongdoers interpret their position as zeal for God, when in truth it is zeal to do the work of the adversary of souls. . . .
There is a work for us to do. We must begin here to cultivate the meekness of Christ. There are stern battles for us to fight against our traits of character that leads us to decisions that make it hard and unfavorable for others. We are not commended by God for a zeal that savors of pharisaism; for this is not of Christ. We are not to go to an extreme in false charity, neither are we to follow a course of unbending severity in cases where kindness and mercy and love would have a telling power. . . . True conversion is needed. Heart work is essential. The nature must be renewed after the divine image, until the work of grace is completed in the soul.
Seventh-day Adventists believe that Ellen G. White (1827-1915) exercised the gift of prophecy during more than 70 years of public ministry. This excerpt is taken from the Review and Herald, June 16, 1900.