The great center of attraction, Jesus Christ, must not be left out of the third angel's message. By many who have been engaged in the work for this time, Christ has been secondary, and theories and arguments have had the first place.[1]
The Lord in His great mercy sent a most precious message to His people ...This message was to bring more prominently before the world the uplifted Saviour, the sacrifice for the sins of the whole world. It presented justification through faith in the Surety, it invited the people to receive the righteousness of Christ, which is made manifest in obedience to all the commandments of God. Many had lost sight of Jesus. They needed to have their eyes directed to His divine person, His merits, and His changeless love for the human family.[2]
Jesus Christ was to be the great center of attraction in the message of 1888. Theories and arguments were not to have first place while Christ was made secondary. Many people had even lost sight of Jesus.
What about today? Is Christ the great center of attraction in our teaching and preaching of Christ our righteousness, or have the methods and processes of justification and the various theories and arguments about justification and sanctification been predominant? The emphasis is usually on the process and not on Christ. The disagreements that are so strongly presented seem to always focus on the method by which we are justified and not on the Person by Whom we are justified. Ellen White said:
"They needed to have their eyes directed to His divine person, His merits, and His changeless love for the human family."[3]
How easily we miss the focus and emphasis in Christ, Our Righteousness. Jesus, The Person, The Christ, is the heart and theme of Christ Our Righteousness. Justification and sanctification are the results, the products of His great work on our behalf. But the Producer, the Active Agency is Jesus, the Christ. The theme must always be on Christ; then secondarily, what He accomplished for us.
Intimately related to Christ, the great center of attraction and focusing on the Person of Jesus is the rest of the title: "Christ Our Righteousness." The righteousness of Jesus is to be emphasized above all other themes. His character, His holiness, His virtues, His righteousness or merits, as Ellen White often called them, is the primary theme in "Christ Our Righteousness." While we need to know how we are counted righteous, etc., we must first see and always behold the beauty of the character of Jesus which is His righteousness.
Ellen White described the message of Christ Our Righteousness as:
I have had the question asked, "What do you think of this light that these men are presenting?" Why, I have been presenting it to you for the last forty-five years--the matchless charms of Christ. This is what [I] have been trying to present before your minds. When Brother Waggoner brought out these ideas in Minneapolis, it was the first clear teaching on this subject from any human lips I had heard, excepting the conversations between myself and my husband.[4]
She used this phrase, "matchless charms of Christ," in other places such as p. 256 of Through Crisis to Victory and Review and Herald, Dec. 22, 1896. Her picturesque language (matchless charms) describes the righteousness of Jesus, His perfect character. When His beauty of character is seen it grips our attention so that our eyes are riveted upon Him. His beauty of holiness is so appealing, so attractive that we are charmed by such great beauty that we find ourselves staring at Him, transfixed in admiration, possessed by such perfection.
"Matchless charms of Christ" was her description of the 1888 message. How different from all the legal, objective presentations which we have heard so frequently on this subject. How appealing when compared to all the theories and arguments. How simple and personal. Her descriptions of Jesus found elsewhere probably also refer to the righteousness of Christ. In Testimonies to Ministers, p. 81 she speaks of "the preciousness of Christ." In Thoughts From the Mount of Blessing, p. 76, "the attractive loveliness of Christ." In Testimonies to the Church, Volume 6, the righteousness of Christ is likened to "sweet music":
The sweetest melodies that come from God through human lips--justification by faith, and the righteousness of Christ--do not call forth from them a response of love and gratitude.[5]
Perhaps many never realized that the Bible had reference to the righteousness of Christ, His character, in such well known descriptions of Jesus as the One who is "altogether lovely," Song of Solomon 5:16; "I am the Rose of Sharon, and lily of the valleys," Song of Solomon 2:1; "I am ... the bright and morning star," Revelation 22:16; "the desire of all nations," Haggai 2: 7. This is surely a unique view of the 1888 message. Has this been our emphasis when we speak of justification by faith and Christ our righteousness? While God desires us to understand the process of justification by faith in the righteousness of Christ and sanctification and all the various aspects of this message, Christ and His righteousness is the heart of it, the power, the appeal and the beauty of that message. If we correctly understand all of it, but in our emphasis make Jesus merely secondary, we lose everything. Nothing must be permitted to supersede Jesus--the Person.
Lest we misunderstand, the "matchless charms" of Jesus does not refer to any physical, external beauty or attraction, for the Bible teaches that Jesus would not have this outward appeal. "He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him." Isaiah 53:2 NIV. It does refer to His inward character or beauty, and this beauty was reflected in the face of Jesus, in His teachings, His treatment of people and all of His works. His inward perfection can be discerned by us. His love, purity, self-denial, humiliation, patience, holiness and, all of His virtues were constantly demonstrated.
As a result, people perceived this beauty of character called righteousness and were drawn to Him. Little children wanted to be near Him, or held by Him. Fishermen, farmers, tax collectors, Roman soldiers and the heathen gathered to Him as if by some irresistible force. Even the demoniacs, when delivered, wanted to always be with Him. These activities were a demonstration of the matchless charms of Jesus in operation.
Christ our righteousness, "the matchless charms of Jesus," appeals to our hearts, not merely the intellect. It is an entirely different way of soul winning. All argument, selling, and logic are omitted. It is the presentation of the beauty of Christ's character or righteousness in such a way that it has the effect of "charming" the listener or viewer.
Webster's Collegiate Dictionary has this definition of "charm" as "a trait or quality that fascinates and allures, as if by a spell;" "to affect by or as by charm or magic;" "to fascinate, bewitch, enchant;" "to attract irresistibly;" to delight exceedingly." How pleasant and enjoyable is such a work as drawing listeners irresistibly and at the same time they are delighted exceedingly.
You should search the Bible; for it tells you of Jesus. As you read the Bible, you will see the matchless charms of Jesus. You will fall in love with the Man of Calvary, and at every step you can say to the world, "His ways are ways of pleasantness, and all His paths are peace." You are to represent Christ to the world.[6]
Matchless charms! What a different message is this!
Messages bearing the divine credentials have been sent to God's people; the glory, the majesty, the righteousness of Christ, full of goodness and truth have been presented; the fullness of the Godhead in Jesus Christ has been set forth among us with beauty and loveliness, to charm all whose hearts were not closed with prejudice.[7]
What did they preach? "The glory, the majesty, the righteousness of Christ, full of goodness and truth, have been presented, the fullness of the Godhead in Jesus Christ." And how did they present it? "...has been set forth among us with beauty and loveliness." And why was it presented? " ... to charm all hearts." With such great appeal and power in the messages of that time how could anyone resist such attraction? The answer is given in the quotation: PREJUDICE. And it can still harden our hearts today. But we may also fail to respond today for other reasons. Many of us are fearful of heart religion. Some have great difficulty with LOVE. We seem unable to handle such appeals that strike us where we are vulnerable, perhaps helpless. Many insist on making their religion coldly scientific, logical and objective, but a religion that charms me by-passes all of this and grips my heart in a subjective manner which is often impossible to explain or understand. Mentally, we flee from such presentations and harden our hearts. But God wants our hearts and Jesus came to win them. This is a necessity if we are to be truly Christian. See Steps to Christ, page 18 and Christ's Object Lessons, page 97.
Oh what a privilege and opportunity we have to present "the matchless charms of Christ." This is the message which is so desperately needed today.
Notes: