Temple of the Comforter, Another Witness

from the writings of Ellen G. White researched and compiled by

Rex Conklin and Frank Klin

Come now let us reason together. We are challenged to be Bereans so test the spirits and search
the Scriptures handed down from the Church in the Wilderness to see if these things are so.
Study with a friend and pray for discernment because we are promised that wherever two or three
are gathered in Jesus’ Name, He is there. Encourage each other. Pray with and for each other.
May you be richly blessed as you study His Word.

When Rex Conklin and I were putting together the study “Temple of the Comforter” about Christ
dwelling in us through His Spirit (http://www.scribd.com/doc/45624259/Temple-of-the-Comforter)
we used only the King James Scripture, a lexicon and concordance as our resources for study.
Since publishing that study we have come across a corroborating witness in the writings of Ellen
G. White from the book Desire of Ages. We were a bit amazed at what we read in her book when
compared to what we were led to share from Scripture. It was such an encouragement and
blessing that we wanted to share it with you.

“In the cleansing of the temple, Jesus was announcing His mission as the Messiah, and entering
upon His work. That temple, erected for the abode of the divine Presence, was designed to be an
object lesson for Israel and for the world. From eternal ages it was God's purpose that every
created being, from the bright and holy seraph to man, should be a temple for the indwelling of
the Creator. Because of sin, humanity ceased to be a temple for God. Darkened and defiled by
evil, the heart of man no longer revealed the glory of the Divine One. But by the incarnation of the
Son of God, the purpose of Heaven is fulfilled. God dwells in humanity, and through saving grace
the heart of man becomes again His temple. God designed that the temple at Jerusalem should
be a continual witness to the high destiny open to every soul. But the Jews had not understood
the significance of the building they regarded with so much pride. They did not yield themselves
as holy temples for the Divine Spirit. The courts of the temple at Jerusalem, filled with the tumult
of unholy traffic, represented all too truly the temple of the heart, defiled by the presence of
sensual passion and unholy thoughts. In cleansing the temple from the world's buyers and
sellers, Jesus announced His mission to cleanse the heart from the defilement of sin,--from the
earthly desires, the selfish lusts, the evil habits, that corrupt the soul. "The Lord, whom ye seek,
shall suddenly come to His temple, even the Messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in:
behold, He shall come, saith the Lord of hosts. But who may abide the day of His coming? and
who shall stand when He appeareth? for He is like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap: and He
shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and He shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as
gold and silver." Malachi 3:1-3. {Desire of Ages, page 161 par. 1}

"Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any
man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple
ye are." 1 Corinthians 3:16, 17. No man can of himself cast out the evil throng that have taken
possession of the heart. Only Christ can cleanse the soul temple. But He will not force an
entrance. He comes not into the heart as to the temple of old; but He says, "Behold, I stand at
the door, and knock: if any man hear My voice, and open the door, I will come in to him."
Revelation 3:20. He will come, not for one day merely; for He says, "I will dwell in them, and walk
in them; . . . and they shall be My people." "He will subdue our iniquities; and Thou wilt cast all
their sins into the depths of the sea." 2 Corinthians 6:16; Micah 7:19. His presence will cleanse
and sanctify the soul, so that it may be a holy temple unto the Lord, and "an habitation of God
through the Spirit." Ephesians 2:21, 22. {Ibid, par. 2}

The story of Zacchaeus on pages 552-556 of the Desire of Ages is pertinent to Christ abiding
within. We will quote a few paragraphs from the narrative.

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“Before Zacchaeus had looked upon the face of Christ, he had begun the work that made him
manifest as a true penitent. Before being accused by man, he had confessed his sin. He had
yielded to the conviction of the Holy Spirit, and had begun to carry out the teaching of the words
written for ancient Israel as well as for ourselves. The Lord had said long before, "If thy brother be
waxen poor, and fallen in decay with thee; then thou shalt relieve him: yea, though he be a
stranger, or a sojourner; that he may live with thee. Take thou no usury of him, or increase: but
fear thy God; that thy brother may live with thee. Thou shalt not give him thy money upon usury,
nor lend him thy victuals for increase." "Ye shall not therefore oppress one another; but thou shalt
fear thy God." Leviticus 25:35-37, 17. These words had been spoken by Christ Himself when He
was enshrouded in the pillar of cloud, and the very first response of Zacchaeus to the love of
Christ was in manifesting compassion toward the poor and suffering.”

“No repentance is genuine that does not work reformation. The righteousness of Christ is not a
cloak to cover unconfessed and unforsaken sin; it is a principle of life that transforms the
character and controls the conduct. Holiness is wholeness for God; it is the entire surrender of
heart and life to the indwelling of the principles of heaven.”

“To Zacchaeus the Saviour said, "This day is salvation come to this house." Not only was
Zacchaeus himself blessed, but all his household with him. Christ went to his home to give him
lessons of truth, and to instruct his household in the things of the kingdom. They had been shut
out from the synagogues by the contempt of rabbis and worshipers; but now, the most favored
household in all Jericho, they gathered in their own home about the divine Teacher, and heard for
themselves the words of life.

It is when Christ is received as a personal Saviour that salvation comes to the soul. Zacchaeus
had received Jesus, not merely as a passing guest in his home, but as One to abide in the
soul temple. The scribes and Pharisees accused him as a sinner, they murmured against Christ
for becoming his guest, but the Lord recognized him as a son of Abraham. For "they which are of
faith, the same are the children of Abraham." Galatians 3:7.

Now we turn to the vine and the branches from pages 675 through 677 of the Desire of Ages.

"I am the Vine, ye are the branches," Christ said to His disciples. Though He was about to be
removed from them, their spiritual union with Him was to be unchanged. The connection of the
branch with the vine, He said, represents the relation you are to sustain to Me. The scion is
engrafted into the living vine, and fiber by fiber, vein by vein, it grows into the vine stock. The life
of the vine becomes the life of the branch. So the soul dead in trespasses and sins receives
life through connection with Christ. By faith in Him as a personal Saviour the union is formed. The
sinner unites his weakness to Christ's strength, his emptiness to Christ's fullness, his frailty to
Christ's enduring might. Then he has the mind of Christ. The humanity of Christ has touched
our humanity, and our humanity has touched divinity. Thus through the agency of the Holy Spirit
man becomes a partaker of the divine nature. He is accepted in the Beloved.”

“This union with Christ, once formed, must be maintained. Christ said, "Abide in Me, and I in
you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except
ye abide in Me." This is no casual touch, no off-and-on connection. The branch becomes a part
of the living vine. The communication of life, strength, and fruitfulness from the root to the
branches is unobstructed and constant. Separated from the vine, the branch cannot live. No
more, said Jesus, can you live apart from Me. The life you have received from Me can be
preserved only by continual communion. Without Me you cannot overcome one sin, or resist one
temptation.”

"Abide in Me, and I in you." Abiding in Christ means a constant receiving of His Spirit, a life
of unreserved surrender to His service. The channel of communication must be open continually
between man and his God. As the vine branch constantly draws the sap from the living vine, so

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are we to cling to Jesus, and receive from Him by faith the strength and perfection of His own
character.”

“The root sends its nourishment through the branch to the outermost twig. So Christ
communicates the current of spiritual strength to every believer. So long as the soul is united
to Christ, there is no danger that it will wither or decay.”

“The life of the vine will be manifest in fragrant fruit on the branches. "He that abideth in Me," said
Jesus, "and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without Me ye can do nothing." When
we live by faith on the Son of God, the fruits of the Spirit will be seen in our lives; not one will be
missing.”

"Herein is My Father glorified," said Jesus, "that ye bear much fruit." God desires to manifest
through you the holiness, the benevolence, the compassion, of His own character. Yet the
Saviour does not bid the disciples labor to bear fruit. He tells them to abide in Him. "If ye abide in
Me," He says, "and My words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto
you." It is through the word that Christ abides in His followers. This is the same vital union that
is represented by eating His flesh and drinking His blood. The words of Christ are spirit and life.
Receiving them, you receive the life of the Vine. You live "by every word that proceedeth out of
the mouth of God." Matthew 4:4. The life of Christ in you produces the same fruits as in Him.
Living in Christ, adhering to Christ, supported by Christ, drawing nourishment from Christ, you
bear fruit after the similitude of Christ.”

A few more gems.

"Though the Lord be high, yet hath He respect unto the lowly." Psalm 138:6. Those who reveal
the meek and lowly spirit of Christ are tenderly regarded by God. They may be looked upon with
scorn by the world, but they are of great value in His sight. Not only the wise, the great, the
beneficent, will gain a passport to the heavenly courts; not only the busy worker, full of zeal and
restless activity. No; the poor in spirit, who crave the presence of an abiding Christ, the humble
in heart, whose highest ambition is to do God's will,--these will gain an abundant entrance. They
will be among that number who have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the
Lamb. "Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve Him day and night in His temple:
and He that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them." Revelation 7:15. {Desire of Ages,
page 301 par. 4}

“When the soul surrenders itself to Christ, a new power takes possession of the new heart. A
change is wrought which man can never accomplish for himself. It is a supernatural work,
bringing a supernatural element into human nature. The soul that is yielded to Christ becomes
His own fortress, which He holds in a revolted world, and He intends that no authority shall be
known in it but His own. A soul thus kept in possession by the heavenly agencies is impregnable
to the assaults of Satan. But unless we do yield ourselves to the control of Christ, we shall be
dominated by the wicked one. We must inevitably be under the control of the one or the other of
the two great powers that are contending for the supremacy of the world. It is not necessary for
us deliberately to choose the service of the kingdom of darkness in order to come under its
dominion. We have only to neglect to ally ourselves with the kingdom of light. If we do not co-
operate with the heavenly agencies, Satan will take possession of the heart, and will make it his
abiding place. The only defense against evil is the indwelling of Christ in the heart through
faith in His righteousness. Unless we become vitally connected with God, we can never resist the
unhallowed effects of self-love, self-indulgence, and temptation to sin. We may leave off many
bad habits, for the time we may part company with Satan; but without a vital connection with God,
through the surrender of ourselves to Him moment by moment, we shall be overcome. Without a
personal acquaintance with Christ, and a continual communion, we are at the mercy of the
enemy, and shall do his bidding in the end.” {Desire of Ages, page 324 par. 1}

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“He who would confess Christ must have Christ abiding in him. He cannot communicate that
which he has not received. The disciples might speak fluently on doctrines, they might repeat the
words of Christ Himself; but unless they possessed Christlike meekness and love, they were not
confessing Him. A spirit contrary to the spirit of Christ would deny Him, whatever the profession.
Men may deny Christ by evilspeaking, by foolish talking, by words that are untruthful or unkind.
They may deny Him by shunning life's burdens, by the pursuit of sinful pleasure. They may deny
Him by conforming to the world, by uncourteous behavior, by the love of their own opinions, by
justifying self, by cherishing doubt, borrowing trouble, and dwelling in darkness. In all these ways
they declare that Christ is not in them. And "whosoever shall deny Me before men," He says, "him
will I also deny before My Father which is in heaven." {Desire of Ages, page 357 par. 2}

“Jesus did not seek to attract the people to Him by gratifying the desire for luxury. To that great
throng, weary and hungry after the long, exciting day, the simple fare was an assurance not only
of His power, but of His tender care for them in the common needs of life. The Saviour has not
promised His followers the luxuries of the world; their fare may be plain, and even scanty; their lot
may be shut in by poverty; but His word is pledged that their need shall be supplied, and He has
promised that which is far better than worldly good,--the abiding comfort of His own presence.”
{Desire of Ages, page 367 par. 2}

"The prince of this world cometh," said Jesus, "and hath nothing in Me." John 14:30. There was in
Him nothing that responded to Satan's sophistry. He did not consent to sin. Not even by a thought
did He yield to temptation. So it may be with us. Christ's humanity was united with divinity; He
was fitted for the conflict by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. And He came to make us partakers
of the divine nature. So long as we are united to Him by faith, sin has no more dominion over us.
God reaches for the hand of faith in us to direct it to lay fast hold upon the divinity of Christ, that
we may attain to perfection of character.” {Desire of Ages, page 123 par. 3}

“And how this is accomplished, Christ has shown us. By what means did He overcome in the
conflict with Satan? By the word of God. Only by the word could He resist temptation. "It is
written," He said. And unto us are given "exceeding great and precious promises: that by these
ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world
through lust." 2 Peter 1:4. Every promise in God's word is ours. "By every word that proceedeth
out of the mouth of God" are we to live. When assailed by temptation, look not to circumstances
or to the weakness of self, but to the power of the word. All its strength is yours. "Thy word," says
the psalmist, "have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against Thee." "By the word of Thy lips
I have kept me from the paths of the destroyer." Psalm 119:11; 17:4. {Ibid, par. 4}

“God commanded Moses for Israel, "Let them make Me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among
them" (Exodus 25:8), and He abode in the sanctuary, in the midst of His people. Through all their
weary wandering in the desert, the symbol of His presence was with them. So Christ set up His
tabernacle in the midst of our human encampment. He pitched His tent by the side of the tents of
men, that He might dwell among us, and make us familiar with His divine character and life. "The
Word became flesh, and tabernacled among us (and we beheld His glory, glory as of the Only
Begotten from the Father), full of grace and truth." John 1:14, R. V., margin.” {Desire of Ages,
page 23 par. 3}

“Since Jesus came to dwell with us, we know that God is acquainted with our trials, and
sympathizes with our griefs. Every son and daughter of Adam may understand that our Creator is
the friend of sinners. For in every doctrine of grace, every promise of joy, every deed of love,
every divine attraction presented in the Saviour's life on earth, we see "God with us." {Desire of
Ages, page 24 par. 1}