Ellen White played an important role during the formation of the fundamental beliefs of the Adventist Church. She was the first--indeed, the only--leader before 1888 to express in writing the position on the human nature of Jesus that was ultimately embraced by the young community.
After her first statements on this matter in 1858, Ellen White continued to express her thoughts on the subject with increasing clarity in articles published in the Review and Herald, and later in her books. In 1874 a series of articles dealing with the temptation of Christ set forth the essence of her Christology.[l] In 1888, at the General Conference session in Minneapolis, where Ellet J. Waggoner made Christ's divinity and humanity the foundation of justification by faith, all the elements of his Christology had already been expressed in Ellen White's writings.
The person and work of Jesus were always at the center of Ellen White's interest. "The humanity of the Son of God" was everything to her. She called it "the golden chain that binds our souls to Christ, and through Christ to God."[2] This subject is central to her writings up until her death in 1915. Only six months before laying down her pen, she wrote: "He [Christ] made Himself of no reputation, took upon Himself the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of sinful flesh. ... Sinless and exalted by nature, the Son of God consented to take the habiliments of humanity, to become one with the fallen race. The eternal Word consented to be made flesh. God became man.[3]
Unfortunately, Ellen White never treated the subject as a whole in a systematic manner. This is a source of difficulty. Among her 120,000 manuscript pages,[4] her statements on the human nature of Jesus number in the hundreds. Moreover, depending on the circumstances and the specific point under consideration, the same concepts are sometimes presented so differently that they may sometimes appear contradictory. So it is important to place the statements in their proper context and avoid the temptation to rely on isolated statements, a basic requirement of sound exegesis. We will strive to follow these rules in the synthesis of Ellen White's Christology which follows.
The Humanity of Jesus Christ
As we have seen, Ellen White compellingly stated the divinity of Christ. She is emphatic on this point. Yet she speaks of the humanity of Jesus with the same conviction. There is no trace of docetism in her writings. The triumph of the plan of salvation depends entirely upon the Incarnation, upon the Word becoming flesh, and upon the Son of God made into man.
"Christ did not make believe take human nature; He did verily take it. He did in reality possess human nature. 'As the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same' (Heb. 2:14, KJV). He was the son of Mary; He was of the seed of David according to human descent. He is declared to be a man, even the Man Christ Jesus."[5]
Ellen White stresses the human reality of Jesus. "He did not have a mere semblance of a body, but He took human nature, participating in the life of humanity."[6] "He voluntarily assumed human nature. It was His own act, and by his own consent "[7]"He came as a helpless babe bearing the humanity we bear"[8]
Not content with stating this concept in a general manner, Ellen White is not hesitant to be specific: "When Jesus took human nature, and became in fashion as a man, He possessed all the human organism."[9] His faculties had even been brought down "to the level of man's feeble faculties." [10] Although Christ took human nature with "the results of the working of the great law off heredity," yet He "was free from physical deformity."[11] His physical structure was not marred by any defect; His body was strong and healthy. And throughout His lifetime He lived in conformity to nature's laws. Physically as well as spiritually, He was an example of what God designed all humanity to be through obedience to His laws."[12]
Repeatedly Ellen White explains that "had He not been fully human, Christ could not have been our substitute.[13] On this particular point there is no divergence among Adventist theologians. The points of view differ, but only with regard to the kind of human nature with which Christ was clothed: Was it that of Adam before or after the Fall?
Adam's Nature Before or After the Fall?
This is really a paramount question. Proponents of two opposing interpretations have clashed vigorously since 1950. It is amazing that the question should have arisen at all. Obviously no one would insinuate that Adam before the Fall had a flesh "like unto sinful flesh," as the apostle Paul says Christ had (Rom. 8:3, KJV).
Ellen White compares the nature and position of Adam before the Fall, and the nature and position of Jesus after thousands of years of sin: "Adam was tempted by the enemy, and he fell. It was not indwelling sin which caused him to yield; for God made him pure and upright, in His own image. He was as faultless as the angels before the throne. There were in him no corrupt principles, no tendencies to evil. But, when Christ came to meet the temptation of Satan, He bore the likeness of sinful flesh."[14]
In her book The Desire of Ages, Ellen White several times contrasts the nature and situation of Adam and Jesus: "It would have been an almost infinite humiliation for the Son of God to take man's nature, even when Adam stood in his innocence in Eden. But Jesus accepted humanity when the race had been weakened by four thousand years of sin. Like every child of Adam He accepted the results of the working of the great law of heredity. What these results were is shown in the history of His earthly ancestors. He came with such a heredity to share our sorrows and temptations, and to give us the example of a sinless life."[15]
Again, "In our humanity, Christ was to redeem Adam's failure.
But when Adam was assailed by the tempter, none of the effects of sin were upon him. He stood in the strength of perfect manhood, possessing the full vigor of mind and body. He was surrounded with the glories of Eden, and was in daily communion with heavenly beings. It was not thus with Jesus when He entered the wilderness to cope with Satan. For four thousand years the race had been decreasing in physical strength, in mental power, and in moral worth; and Christ took upon Him the infirmities of degenerate humanity. Only thus could He rescue man from the lowest depths of his degradation.[16]
Finally, Ellen White leaves little doubt about her position regarding the post-Fall nature of Christ in this 1874 statement: "The great work of redemption could be carried out only by the Redeemer taking the place off fallen Adam."[17] A 1901 statement makes the same point: "The nature of God, whose law had been transgressed, and the nature of Adam, the transgressor, meet in Jesus, the Son of God, and the Son of man."[18] However, she does qualify this in an 1890 statement: "We must not think that the liability of Christ to yield to Satan's temptations degraded His humanity and that He possessed the same sinful, corrupt propensities as man. The divine nature, combined with the human, made Him capable of yielding to Satan's temptations. Here the test to Christ was far greater than that of Adam and Eve, for Christ took our nature, fallen but not corrupted."[19]
In all of Ellen White's writings there is not a single reference that identifies Christ's human nature as that of Adam before the Fall. On the contrary, declarations abound that affirm that Jesus took Adam's nature after 4,000 years of sin and degeneration. In other words, He took our flesh in a fallen state; or, to borrow Paul's expression: "in the likeness of sinful flesh."
A Human Nature in a Fallen State
Ellen White strongly stresses the likeness between Jesus' nature and ours. Not content with saying that Jesus took our nature, she repeats that He took it in its "fallen state," "degenerated and marred by sin," with its "weaknesses" and "infirmities." She used such expressions repeatedly to describe the human nature assumed by Jesus.
The expression Ellen White uses most to describe the flesh that Jesus took is borrowed from Paul: "in the likeness of sinful flesh" (Rom. 8:3, KJV). She amplifies it by saying: "He was not only made flesh, but he was made in the likeness of sinful flesh."[20] In another statement she uses the language of Philippians 2:7, which states that Jesus Christ was "made in the likeness of men." She also uses Romans 8:3: "He made Himself of no reputation, took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of sinful flesh."[21]
Ellen White often cites 2 Corinthians 5:21: "God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us." She connects this not only with the death of Christ on the cross as a vicarious substitution "for the sins of the whole world" (1 John 2:2), but also in connection with the beginning of His ministry, at the time of His temptation in the wilderness, and throughout His life, as establishing the true nature of Christ, who "himself bore our sins in his body on the tree" (1 Peter 2:24).
"Christ bore the sins and infirmities of the race as they existed when He came to the earth to help man. ... And in order to elevate fallen man, Christ most reach him where he was. He took human nature, and bore the infirmities and degeneracy of the race. He, who knew no sin, became sin for us. He humiliated Himself to the lowest depths of human woe, that He might be qualified to reach man, and bring him up from the degradation in which sin had plunged him."[22]
With regard to subjects as serious and delicate as this one, Ellen White is very clear, and she uses distinct language without double meanings. The participation of Christ in the fallen nature of humanity could not be described with more clarity.
"Laying aside His royal crown, He condescended to step down, step by step, to the level of fallen humanity.[23] "Think of Christ's humiliation. He took upon himself, fallen, suffering human nature, degraded and defiled by sin."[24] Even more: "He humbled Himself, and took mortality upon Him."[25] "This was humiliation greater than finite man can comprehend."[26] "Christ took upon Him the infirmities of degenerate humanity. Only this could He rescue man from the lowest depths of his degradation."[27]
To avoid any possible misunderstanding about the reality of the participation of Jesus in the nature of fallen humanity, Ellen White often employs the verb "assume," implying that He really had taken it upon Himself. "Christ assumed our fallen nature, and was subject to every temptation to which man was subject."[28] "He assumed the liabilities of human nature, to be proved and tried."[29] "He assumed human nature, and its infirmities, its liabilities, its temptations."[30]
Christ's participation in the full and complete human nature in its fallen state is set forth by Ellen White as the sine qua non for man's salvation. "It was in the order of God that Christ should take upon Himself the form and nature of fallen man, that He might be made perfect through suffering, and endure Himself the strength of Satan's temptations, that He might the better know how to succor those who should be tempted."[31] "By this act of condescension He would be enabled to pour out His blessing in behalf of the fallen race. Thus He has made it possible for us to partake of His nature.[32]
This is also what the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews teaches us. Jesus "had to be made like his brothers in every way," so that He might be in a position to deliver human beings from their sins (Heb. 2:17). Then he adds: "Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted" (verse 18).
"Tempted in Every Way, Just as We Are"
Ellen White did all she could to explain the meaning of this truth. "Our Saviour came to this world to endure in human nature all the temptations wherewith man is beset."[33] "He knows by experience what are the weaknesses of humanity, what are our wants, and where lies the strength of our temptations; for He was 'in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.' "[34] "He knows how strong are the inclinations of the natural heart,"[35] having experienced them Himself. "Some may think that Christ, because He was the Son of God, did not have temptations as children now have. The Scriptures say He was tempted in all points like we are tempted."[36]
"The temptations to which Christ was subjected were a terrible reality. ... If this were not so, if it had not been possible for Him to fall, He could not have been tempted in all points as the human family is tempted. The temptations of Christ, and His sufferings under them, were proportionate to His exalted, sinless character. ... He 'resisted unto blood' in that hour when the fear of moral failure was as the fear of death. As He bowed in Gethsemane, in His soul agony, drops of blood fell from His pores, and moistened the sods of the earth. ... Upon the cross Christ knew, as no other can know, the awful power of Satan's temptations."[37]
"Never another of woman born was so fiercely beset by temptation."[38] "As really did He meet, and resist the temptations of Satan as any of the children of humanity."[39] In His conflict in the wilderness, "the humanity of Christ was taxed as none of us will ever know. ... These were real temptations, no pretense."[40] The apostle confirms this when he speaks of the tests that Jesus had to bear: "In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood" (Heb. 12:4). In the same letter Ellen White lists the temptations Jesus had to confront: "The Son of God in His humanity wrestled with the very same fierce, apparently overwhelming temptations that assail men--temptations to indulgence of appetite, to presumptuous venturing where God has not led them, and to the worship of the god of the world, to sacrifice the eternity of bliss for the fascinating pleasures of this life."[41]
"The enticements which Christ resisted were those that we find it so difficult to withstand. They were urged upon Him in as much greater degree as His character is superior to ours. With the terrible weight of the sins of the world upon Him, Christ withstood the test upon appetite, upon the love of the world, and upon that love of display which leads to presumption."[42]
"It is a mystery that is left unexplained to mortals that Christ could be tempted in all points like as we are, and yet be without sin."[43] On occasion individuals questioned the fallen nature of Jesus. Ellen White responded: "Letters have been coming in to me, affirming that Christ could not have had the same nature as man, for if He had, He would have fallen under similar temptations. If He did not have man's nature, He could not be our example. If He was not a partaker of our nature, He could not have been tempted as man has been. If it were not possible for Him to yield to temptation, He could not be our helper."[44]
"Many claim that it was impossible for Christ to be overcome by temptation. Then He could not have been placed in Adam's position; He could not have gained the victory that Adam failed to gain. If we have in any sense a more trying conflict than had Christ, then He would not be able to succor us. But our Saviour took humanity, with all its liabilities. He took the nature of man, with the possibility of yielding to temptation. We have nothing to bear which He has not endured,"[45]
However, "in taking upon Himself man's nature in its fallen condition, Christ did not in the least participate in its sin."[46] Here is another solemn truth which Ellen White never failed to repeat while emphasizing the reality of the temptations to which Jesus was subjected. For, as it is written: "We have one [Jesus] who has been tempted in every way, just as we are--yet was without sin" (Heb. 4:15).
"... Yet Was Without Sin"
Every rime Ellen White wrote on the delicate subject of the fallen nature of Christ, she was careful to add immediately that Christ lived "without committing sin," neither in thought, word, or deed.
In a letter to W.L.H. Baker, who evidently had a tendency to speak of Christ as a man "altogether human," Ellen White suggested that he be more guarded: "Never, in any way, leave the slightest impression upon human minds that a taint of, or inclination to, corruption rested upon Christ, or that He in any way yielded to corruption."[47] "Not even by a thought could Christ be brought to yield to the power of temptation."[48] "Not one impure ward escaped His lips. Never did He do a wrong action, for He was the Son of God. Although He possessed a human form, yet He was without a taint of sin."[49] "In His human nature, He maintained the purity of His divine character. He lived the law of God, and honored it in a world of transgression."[50]
"Amid impurity, Christ maintained His purity. Satan could not stain or corrupt it. His character revealed a perfect hatred for sin."[51]
"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."[52]
Some believe that Jesus was tempted only externally, never internally. If that were so, He would not truly have been tempted as we are. Neither would He have known "the strength of our temptations"[53] and "the strength of passion of humanity"[54] to which humans are subjected. But "never did He yield to temptation to do one single act which was not pure and elevating and ennobling."[55]
Ellen White explains: "To the multitude, and afterward more fully to His disciples, Jesus explained that defilement comes not from without, but from within. Purity and impurity pertain to the soul. It is the evil deed, the evil word, the evil thought, the transgression of the law of God, not the neglect of external, man-made ceremonies, that defiles a man."[56] "If the law extended to the outward conduct only, men would not be guilty in their wrong thoughts, desires, and designs. But the law requires that the soul itself be pure and the mind holy, that the thoughts and feelings may be in accordance with the standard of love and righteousness."[57]
"Unless there is a possibility of yielding, temptation is no temptation. Temptation is resisted when a man is powerfully influenced to do a wrong action, and, knowing that he can do it, resists by faith, with a firm hold upon divine power. That was the ordeal through which Christ passed."[58]
"In taking upon Himself man's nature in its fallen condition, Christ did not in the least participate in its sin. ... We should have no misgivings in regard to the perfect sinlessness of the human nature of Christ."[59] This does not mean that His nature was sinless in itself--which would contradict all she had written elsewhere--but in the sense that because of His perfect obedience, He had made it sinless "by condemning sin in the flesh."
Both Divine and Human
The reality of the Incarnation does not mean that Jesus renounced His divinity. Ellen White was accustomed to saying that "He clothed His divinity with His humanity," or that He "veiled His divinity with humanity." This type of expression is found as much as 125 times in her writings."[60] Here are a few examples: "For our sake He stepped down from His royal throne, and clothed His divinity with humanity. he laid aside his royal robe, his kingly crown, that he might be one with us."[61]
"Christ had not exchanged His divinity for humanity; but He had clothed His divinity in humanity,"[62] "He veiled His divinity with the garb of humanity, but He did not part with His divinity."[63] "Though He took humanity upon Himself, He was divine. All that is attributed to the Father Himself is attributed to Christ."[64] "In Him God Himself came down from heaven."[65]
In a commentary on the visit of Jesus to the Temple at Jerusalem, she writes: "The second temple was honored, not with the cloud of Jehovah's glory but with the living presence of One in whom dwelt all the fullness of the Godhead bodily--God Himself manifest in the flesh."[66] "This is why, although He was tempted in all points like as we are, He stood before the world, from His first entrance into it, untainted by corruption, though surrounded by it."[67]
Having said that, Ellen White then asks this question: "Are we not also to become partakers of that fullness, and is it not thus, and thus only, that we can overcome as He overcame?"[68] In fact, "He withstood the temptation, through the power that man may command. He laid hold on the throne of God, and there is not a man or woman who may not have access to the same help through faith in God."[69]
"Christ in the weakness of humanity was to meet the temptations of one possessing the powers of the higher nature that God had bestowed on the angelic family. But Christ's humanity was united with divinity, and in this strength He would bear all the temptations that Satan could bring against Him, and yet keep His soul untainted by sin. And this power to overcome He would give to every son and daughter of Adam who would accept by faith the righteous attributes of his character."[70]
Partaker of the Divine Nature
Ellen White has specially emphasized the possibility offered to humanity to "participate in the divine nature" (2 Peter 1:4). This is the purpose for which Christ came into this world. He came to bring men the power of God to deliver them from the power of sin, and to make them children of God. To this end Christ had to participate in the fallen nature of man so that we might be able to participate in His divine nature.
"He [Christ] took our nature and overcame, that we through taking His nature might overcome. Made 'in the likeness of sinful f1esh' (Rom. 8:3, KJV), He lived a sinless life."[71] For "the life that Christ lived in this world, men and women can live through His power and under His instruction. In their conf1ict with Satan they may have all the help that He had. They may be more than conquerors through Him who loved them and gave Himself for them."[72]
In His humanity Christ triumphed over sin through the power of God on which He laid hold. Every member of the human family has the privilege of doing that. "Christ did nothing that human nature may not do if it partakes of the divine nature."[73] "He exercised in His own behalf no power that is not freely offered to us. As man, He met temptation, and overcame in the strength given Him from God."[74]
"If Christ had a special power which it is not the privilege of man to have, Satan would have made capital of this matter."[75] According to Ellen White, "Satan declared that it was impossible for the sons and daughters of Adam to keep the law of God,"[76] making the responsibility rebound on the lawgiver and not on man. But "He [Christ] came to this world to be tempted in all points as we are, to prove to the universe that in this world of sin human beings can live lives that God will approve."[77] "The Lord Jesus came to our world, not to reveal what a God could do, but what a man could do, through faith in God's power to help in every emergency. Man is, through faith, to be a partaker in the divine nature, and to overcome every temptation wherewith he is beset.[78]
Ellen White consistently taught that the work of salvation accomplished by Jesus Christ was not confined to a single purely legal act, the pardon of our sins, but that this work also includes victory over temptation and sin. "Christ came to make us 'partakers of the divine nature,' and His life declares that humanity, combined with divinity, does not commit sin."[79]
"It was a solemn reality that Christ came to fight the battles as man, in man's behalf His temptation and victory tell us that humanity must copy the Pattern; man must become a partaker of the divine nature."[80] "His life testified that by the aid of the same divine power which Christ received, it is possible for man to obey God's law.[81]
Obviously, this test would not have been effective if Jesus had lived a sinless life in a human nature different from ours--that is, in Adam's nature before the Fall. This explains why, with perfect logic, Ellen White affirmed that "the great work of redemption could be carried out only by the Redeemer taking the place of fallen Adam." [82]
Conclusion
Ellen White wrote extensively on a wide variety of topics, such as dietetics, health, education, theology, medical work, gospel preaching, and many more."[83] Nevertheless, her favorite subject was undoubted1y the person and work of Jesus. Although she does not treat Christological themes in a systematic manner, they saturate her writings.
As she has stated it so well: "Christ, His character and work, is the center and circumference of all truth; He is "the chain upon which the jewels of doctrine are linked. In Him is found the complete system of truth."[84] For this reason, she writes, "The humanity of the Son of God is everything to us. It is the golden chain that binds our souls to Christ, and through Christ to God."[85]
As we can see, the core of Ellen White's Christology is based on the mediatorial work of Jesus Christ for the sake of reconciling sinful human beings with God Himself. She is in perfect harmony with Paul, who says that this reconciliation is possible because of the incarnation of Christ "in the likeness of sinful flesh" (Rom. 8:3, KJV).
We can think of no better summary of Ellen White's Christology than her commentary on the Sermon on the Mount: "Christ is the ladder that Jacob saw, the base resting on the earth, and the topmost round reaching to the gate of heaven, on the very threshold of glory. If that ladder had failed by a single step of reaching the earth, we should have been lost. But Christ reaches us where we are. He took our nature and overcame, that we through taking His nature might overcome. Made 'in the likeness of sinful flesh' (Rom. 8:3), He lived a sinless life. Now by His divinity He lays hold upon the throne of heaven, while by His humanity He reaches us. He bids us by faith in Him attain to the glory of the character of God. Therefore are we to be perfect, even as our 'Father which is in heaven is perfect."[86]
To Ellen White, Christ manifested in "the likeness of sinful flesh" constitutes the condition without which there can be no reconciliation with God. "The completeness of His humanity, the perfection of His divinity, form for us a strong ground upon which we may be brought into reconciliation with God."[87]
Notes: