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-Bob Spangler's Doctrinal Position MARKED!
VENDEN/SPANGLER COMPARISONBOB
SPANGLER- “MARKED”
MARKED
WITH THE MARK OF WORKS
The
following study was prepared at a time when the Venden analysis was very
nearly completed. Something about Morris Venden's unusual message rang a
bell in the back of my mind. I had read that teaching somewhere else.
Here it is: "MARKED!" Morris
Venden's view of Revelation 13 and 14 recalls to mind the puzzlement
that came to mind when we read "Marked!" by Bob Spangler
awhile back. This was a leading missionary book of a few years ago
("Marked!" by Bob Spangler, Review and Herald Publishing
Association, 1981, 156 pages, paperback.) Robert
Spangler is the head of the Ministerial Association of the General
Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, and in that position is a very
influential man. He has oversight over ministerial training programs as
well as the content of "The Ministry" magazine. It is our
prayer that he will cling to the Spirit of Prophecy and historic
Adventism as though his life depended upon it. Morris
Venden's spiritualizing away of the Three Angels' Messages, the Beast,
the Mark, the Seal, the Image, and Babylon, recalls to mind this book by
Spangler which had such a similar message. Since this book purports to
present the Seventh-day Adventist view of Revelation 13 and 14 for a
non-Adventist readership, one would expect to find a clear statement of
the history of the Change of the Sabbath, and the truth about the
Beast-Papal Rome the destroyer in past ages and again in the near
future. But one will have to search far to find any hint of these
messages so vital to a world on the verge of the biggest crisis in all
history. Instead,
one encounters a strange spiritualizing away of the truths of Revelation
13 and 14, that seems to be an endeavor to satisfy both the historic
Adventists and the "new theologians" in the Church. Here are some examples of what we find in his book: THE
EVERLASTING GOSPEL- It is the opposite -of "the natural impulse of
man to seek salvation on his own terms and by his own efforts."-33. THE
KINGDOM- OF THE BEAST-And then, in the next sentence we are- told about
the territory governed by the Beast: "This is the principle at the
heart of the system ruled over by the beast. The 'everlasting
gospel'-God's method of salvation for man-is entirely
different."-33. The "kingdom of the Beast" is not the
Vatican; it is the effort to achieve salvation by intentionally doing
good things. One might say that this is all right, for Spangler's point
is doing good things apart from God,-but read on. HOW
WE AR E SAVED-"Later in this book we will be looking in detail at
God's plan of salvation, the gospel that has come down to us from the
very beginning. Reduced to its most simple expression it is 'believe on
the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be -saved' (Acts 16: 31), 'for
there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must
be saved' (chap. 4:12). This salvation does not Come as a result of our
actions. We cannot earn it by our works or deserve it; ft comes as the
free gift of God's grace."-37.' THE
FIRST ANGEL'S MESSAGE AND THE MARK OF THE BEAST -"The first angel,
then, appeals to every man, woman, and child to accept the 'everlasting
gospel,' to accept God's gracious offer of salvation and refuse the mark
of the beast, which is salvation by works of
self-righteousness."-38. All this sounds so much like Venden. THE
EVERLASTING GOSPEL-"We have said that the 'everlasting gospel'
reduced to its simplest terms is salvation by faith in Jesus Christ
apart from any works or righteousness on our part. The mark-of-the-beast
principle is the counterfeit, or salvation by human effort. A
counterfeit, however, must closely resemble the genuine."-39.
Here we have a book written for non-Adventists to explain the importance
of obeying the Law of God (which is the message of Revelation 13 and 14)and
instead the reader is continually warned against getting caught in a
"works program!" THE
MARK-OF-THE-BEAST SYSTEM-“The true way of salvation is by grace
through faith in Christ. It is the Lord's work; He is the One who does
the saving. In the mark-of-the-beast system, salvation revolves around
man and what he can do to save himself. It is salvation by works, a
man-centered system."-46. In the one system, God saves us apart
from our works; in the other--the "Beast system"-our works
form a part of our salvation. -But seriously now: Are you going to be
saved if you refuse to obey God? OUR
SALVATION-"Christ-not repentance, confession, justification, or
sanctification-is our salvation. We don't praise the gospels; we praise
Jesus. We don't worship any or all of the steps of salvation, but we
worship the Lord of salvation. Some make the mistake of letting the
cross of Christ obscure the Christ of the cross." -54-55.
Repentance, confession, justification and sanctification have nothing
to do with our salvation? Christ, only Christ,-but how can He save us
apart from those precious tear-stained steps? Who is Spangler writing
to? non-Adventists or Adventist intellectuals? Why was this book
proclaimed to be a Missionary Book of the Year,-when 'it is not teaching
our Revelation 13-14 doctrines to the world? THE
FIGHT OF FAITH-"It [the plan of salvation] sounds incredibly
wonderful, doesn't it? But wait a moment! The greatest battle facing
every sinner is overlooking or not looking to Jesus. Paul employs a
battle term to illustrate this point 'fight the good fight of faith, lay
hold on eternal life: (1 Tim. 6:12). The' 'fight of faith' is the
struggle to look to Jesus rather than focusing on our temptations. It is
a battle to look to Jesus by faith alone. . . It is so much easier to do
something rather, than to look at something to be saved. . It is so
much easier to study the Bible for information rather than for
inspiration and salvation."-60. Don't do something to be saved, the
non-Adventists are told, only look. BABYLON-"Babylon
began in distrust of God."-74. THE FOURTH ANGEL-"In Revelation
18:1 John sees a mighty angel who floods the earth with its glory. This
angel represents a combination of all three of the angels of Revelation
14."-81. In reality, the Fourth Angel of Revelation 18 is a
powerful repetition of the Second Angel's Message (GC 603), and unites
with the Third Angel (GC 604) in giving the Loud Cry. Also, notice GC
390. BABYLON-"In
its simplest form, then, 'Babylon is fallen' means spiritual
confusion. No doubt the 'Christians in John's day applied the title
'Babylon' to imperial Rome, which mercilessly tortured and murdered the
early Christians. Both symbolically and literally, Babylon has bee.,
traditionally re. cognized as the enemy of God's truth and His people.
Thus, as it is used in the second angel's message, this name becomes
symbolic of all apostate religious organizations, whether Christian
:or non-Christian."-82. If you want to know what God . says Babylon
is, read chapters 25 and 35 of the book, "Great Controversy." THE
SECOND ANGEL'S MESSAGE-"God's appeal to you is: 'Come out of
falsehood and take your stand on the side of right. . Come out of her
while you can!"-83. But what is the non-Adventist to come out of?
They are not told. THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF JESUS-"So in the spiritual
captivity of the last days, only a few will listen to God's appeal and
come out of Babylon, taking their place fearlessly on the side of God
and truth. But to those who do, God will give the righteousness of Jesus
to cover their sins. They will receive forgiveness and peace and
eternal life with God Himself."-83-84. Not to take away their sins,
but to cover them. PROMISE
OF ASSURANCE-"Praise God for the second angel's message, which is
one of tremendous hope! Connected with the appeal of Revelation
18:4-'Come out of her, my people/-it [the Second Angel's Message] is a
wonderful promise of assurance that when we are willing to set aside
our natural self-sufficiency and pride to give our wills to God, our
lives will be 'lightened with his glory' (verse 1)."-84-85. Did
you know that all that is involved in the Fourth and Second Angels'
Messages-is a call to "set aside our natural self-sufficiency and
pride and give our wills to God"? One thing is certain: That is the
very same message that Morris Venden is giving-"set aside our
self-sufficiency and give our wills to God." THE
SEAL-OF-GOD PRINCIPLE-"I must run the risk of wearying you by
repeating that salvation is God's work, not man’s! This is why it is
termed salvation through faith alone in Jesus Christ. This is the heart
of the seal-of God principle. The Mark-of the-beast principle is that
man can save himself, or at the very least do something that will get
him to heaven and make him acceptable to God. It is a hateful,
despicable counterfeit of God's true plan of salvation. Furthermore,
it is an insult to God to try to buy one's way into the kingdom when He
has offered it as a gift, it the enormous price of the life, death,
resurrection, and high priestly ministry of His Son, Jesus Christ”
-88-89. FULFILLING
THE LAW'S REQUIREMENTS-"We see God as a man among men, by His
perfect life settling forever the immutability of heaven's precepts and
completely fulfilling the law's requirements on man's behalf."-89., LEGALLY
FORGIVEN BEFORE ADAM-"What a wonderful Lord we are dealing with! He
is so wonderful that He legally forgave the human race for all their
sins even before Adam and Eve sinned."-91. LEGALLY
SAVED I F WE CHOOSE TO ACCEPT -"Because of His infinite,
reconciling love, God could legally save the whole human race in the
righteousness of its substitute, Jesus Christ, but He will never destroy
our freedom to choose [to accept that salvation] :'-92. THE
GOOD NEWS-"So the good news is that Christ has paid our debt
without any work or action on our part." 92. THIS
WORKS PRINCIPLE-"There are a thousand ways for this 'works
principle' to become a part of our everyday life. Even the performance
of some kind deed to a person in need gives us a sense of
satisfaction, and it should. But do not let it ever lead you to think
that these actions give you credit in heaven for salvation."-93. SALVATION
BY WORKS-"This salvation by-works syndrome rears its ugly head in
all facets of life. . This, too, is part of salvation by works and the
mark-of-the-beast principle."-93. ' BY
FAITH ALONE-"They [men today! don't know the message of salvation
by faith alone in Jesus. They don't know that because of Heaven's
priceless gift, Jesus, the war is over."-96. PERMANENT
PEACE-'The kind of peace Jesus offers Is Permanent. It is this peace
that everyone desperately seeks and few really find, because they are
looking for it in the wrong places. The key to finding this permanent,
satisfying peace lies in a single word. It is one that we have mentioned
before, but it needs broader emphasis. That word is justification."-96.
REDEEMING
GRACE APART -"Martin Luther rediscovered centuries later-God's,
redeeming grace apart from man's worthiness. It needs to be discovered
individually by those who hope to enter heaven. How I wish every human
being on earth would discover it and be saved I When the great truth of
justification by faith alone in Christ is lost sight of, man begins to
invent ways and means of recommending himself to God, of getting to'
heaven by his own merits."-103. People need to know that salvation
comes through Christ, but when we only teach that that salvation comes
by faith alone apart from any moral behavior on our part, then we are
teaching a "new gospel." Spangler does what Venden does: He
pits "by faith alone" salvation against "righteousness by
works,"—as If there Is no other alternative: the Bible-Spirit of
Prophecy view which is Forgiveness and Obedience by Faith in Christ's
enabling merits. Christ alone saves us-but not in sin. He saves us from
sin by empowering us to obey His Law. APART
FROM LAW-"But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has
been made known. Note the words 'apart from law,' or in other words,
apart from works. No penance, no money, no pilgrimage, no performance of
some duty could achieve this righteousness."-104. RIGHTEOUS
WHILE IN SIN-"God declares us to be justified, or righteous, before
our characters are changed. God accepts us as' His sons and daughters
even before we act like sons and daughters."-105. THIS
ANTICHRIST CONGLOMERATE-"The Lord's ultimate concern for humanity
is salvation-nothing more, nothing less, and nothing else. The ultimate
concern of the prince of evil is to destroy humanity, and his most
insidious way of destruction is to entice man with a counterfeit gospel
. . The beast described in Revelation 13:2 and warned against in chapter
14:9-12 [the Third Angel's Message], receives his power, throne, and
great authority from Satan the dragon (see chap. 12:9), and thus has
similar characteristics. It is this beast, this antichrist conglomerate,
that is the object of the most fearful threatenings God has ever
addressed to mortals: [Revelation 14:9-10 quoted] . . What is the basic
difference between those who worship the beast and his image and those
who worship the Lamb, Christ Jesus? It is the same difference found
between those who build on the Rock and those who build on the sand. As
previously noted, that difference is found in two methods of salvation
that can be traced from Genesis to Revelation. One is salvation by man's
own methods and works, the other is salvation through grace by faith in
Jesus Christ."-115-116. Spangler tells his readers that obedience
will naturally follow salvation by faith, and that obedience is part
of our worship of God, but that it is not fundamental to salvation
(page 112). The picture given to us is that salvation is by faith alone,
and as far as ultimate salvation is concerned, nothing else really
matters. As with Venden, Spangler believes and teaches that obedience is
an automatic, spontaneous something that will effortlessly flow forth
from the saved life. AUTOMATIC
OBEDIENCE-"Thus the whole issue between Christ and Satan, between
the marked ones and the sealed ones, centers on faith in Jesus Christ
and a love for Him that automatically results in obedience to His
will."-123. SALVATION
BY RELATIONSHIP ALONE-"Only those who have this kind of
relationship with our Lord, the lovely Jesus, will stand on the sea of
glass having gotten the victory over the beast and its image and its
mark."-123. How thankful we can be for the beautiful pictures, but,
unfortunately, the emphasis here is on salvation by faith and relationship
apart from behavior and obedience. COVERS
OUR FUTURE ACCOUNT -"Justification settles our present account, but
it also applies to our future as a covering umbrella from the moment we
accept Christ until we meet the Lord."-125. ASSURANCE
APART FROM PERFORMANCE -"Satan is just as pleased when
individuals think that eternal life can be theirs without a new-birth
experience as he is over those who are working night and day to buy
eternal life with the money of works. Either extreme is equally false
and equally disastrous. May I add one more point' from my own' personal
experience? I am constantly ,aware of my faults, shortcomings,
weaknesses, mistakes, and sins. How depressed and discouraged I would be
if I believed that my assurance of salvation depended upon my
performance. Despair would overwhelm me."-127. MY
RESPONSIBILITY IS TO PERMIT-"Yet at the same time, while I no
longer look to myself [my actions, as having any part] for assurance of
salvation, I am also aware of my responsibility to God. 'Responsibility'
involves the idea of responding to any given situation. In the case of
salvation, my 'response' to what Christ has done for me [justification
by faith that saves me] is to permit Him to do something in me. When I
say 'permit,' I mean I am eager—in fact have an unutterable
longing-for God to change 'The inside."-127. Spangler's view is
that of Venden: We submit to Christ and He does the changing in our
lives apart from our having to be concerned about the matter.
Obedience will be a spontaneous result of justification by faith alone. NO
RIGHT TO ENTER-"I know that my salvation depends on Christ alone,
not on myself. When my Lord returns and I hear the words 'Well done,' do
you think for a moment I will ever feel that I deserve to hear those
words? Do you think that those words will make me feel that I have a
right to enter His eternal kingdom? Never!"-128-129. Ellen White,
in commenting on Revelation 22: 14, tells us that the saints will know
that they have a right to enter the Holy City because of obedience
through Christ. It is only because of Christ that we, are saved, but
obedience is involved. Justification by faith cannot save us apart from
definite, chosen obedience on our part. OUR
OBEDIENCE NOT PARTLY OF OUR EFFORTS -"Now let me come to another
point that needs careful consideration. Is our obedience to God's will
(as some assert) composed partly of our efforts and part of God's? No!
Such is not the case! God must have the total credit for all phases of
salvation-past, present, and future."-129. Of course, all our
efforts to obey are prompted by the Holy Spirit and empowered by the
Holy Spirit,-but the fact remains that obedience to the Law of God is
partly due to our effort. We do not simply lie down and do nothing.
Christianity is more than submission; it is also active cooperation of
the human with the Divine. God will not save I us apart from our own
decided efforts. “ OUR
COOPERATION IS BELIEVING-" 'But we must cooperate with God in the
sanctification process,' some insist. Of course sanctification requires
our cooperation, but it also requires our cooperation to be
justified-and that cooperation is called believing. To believe and
accept by faith that God justifies me is really no different than
believing and accepting by faith that God sanctifies me. This is a key
point in understanding victory over sin. I have never been able in my
own experience to distinguish between the quality of faith that accepts
God's gift of justification and the quality of faith that accepts God's
gift of sanctification. It requires an enormous amount of the gift of
faith to believe that God justifies me and declares me righteous when my
faulty emotions madly struggle to tell me that I have to do something or
give something to earn God's favor. Those same emotions also scream at
me that God can't call me righteous when I am so wicked! But faith, and
faith alone, must rise above these feelings to lay hold of the
magnificent truth that God does justify me, by faith alone, through the
grace of Jesus Christ. Likewise,
it also requires an enormous amount of the gift of faith to believe
daily that God can and will give me victory over every wrong
action—even wrong thoughts! There is always the emotional tendency to
feel that I can overcome anything by trying hard enough or at least by
trusting a combination of His help and my effort."-129-130. This
is Venden's teaching on "cooperation:" Not His help combined
with my effort to resist sin and obey, but looking to Him in faith to do
it all apart from my earnest efforts. SALVATION
BY FAITH ALONE- "Salvation-both
justification and sanctification-is all of God. Did we create ourselves?
Even the ability to think-an action of the brain-is a gift from God. The
consequences of justification is sanctification, but both are received
and experienced by faith" in Christ alone”-130. NOT
OUR EFFORT COMBINED WITH GOD'S GRACE – “To
believe that sanctification is a combination of our effort and God's
grace, while justification is by faith alone, leads inevitably to the
despicable state of pride. If we see sanctification as partly a result
of our effort, every evidence of growth in Christ becomes a cause for
taking credit to ourselves. We may outwardly seem to be advancing, but
inwardly we are going backward. It is the age-old struggle between
righteousness by works and righteousness by faith. it is the age-old
struggle between taking credit to self and giving God the credit for
everything."--131. We
are nearing the end of the book, and as with Venden's books, we are
coming to the punch-line: the "how it is done" part. Spangler
here is talking about sanctification, and he tells us that our part in
obeying the Law of God has nothing to do with the process. All this
would seem quite confusing if we had not already read the larger picture
of this error given us in Venden's statements. [See the previous set of
studies in this series: "Morris Venden and-THE NEW OBEDIENCE.] THE
LAW COMES AFTER DELIVERANCE IS COMPLETED-"It is God who puts His
laws, His will, into our hearts. We are totally incapable of doing this
of ourselves. Those operating on the mark-of-the-beast principle try in
their own strength to satisfy God and His requirements, but God's way is
much different. It is an important point, too, that God gave Israel His
law after He delivered the people from slavery." -136. The new
scheme of final events: Those trying to keep the requirements of God
will receive the Mark of the Beast; those who do not try to do this, but
wholly trust to God to do it apart from any effort on their part, will
receive the Seal. OBEDIENCE
IS GRATITUDE AFTER SALVATION "The
was never given as a means of earning salvation. Rather, the law is a
standard that gives the converted person a knowledge of how to show his
loyalty and gratitude to the One who has saved him and whom he loves
above all else."-136-137. THE
MARK OF THE BEAST – "It
is not keeping the law in order to be saved, but it is obedience to God
because of the Holy Spirit's sanctifying presence in the heart. Such
obedience is God's seal; obedience from any other motive is really not
obedience at all and is the mark of the beast."-141. Truth: The
Seal is obedience, through Christ, to the Law of God; the Mark is
disobedience to the Law of God. The climax of this will be seen in
obedience or disobedience to the Fourth Commandment. Error:
The Seal is obedience to the Law of God in one way; the Mark is just a
different kind of obedience to that same Law. No clear-cut distinctions,
but fine-line theology over "this obedience" vs. "that
obedience" is the final confusing issue to be presented to all
the world. Not disobedience vs. obedience, but obedience vs. obedience. An
earlier chapter was entitled, "AlI by Faith." And now we come
to the closing chapter in Spangler's book, "Marked!" It is
entitled "Rest for the Restless," and explains that the true
religion is rest in Christ from works. He introduces his chapter with
a passage from Revelation that Venden likes to use:. "One theme,
previously mentioned, relates to the warning" against receiving the
mark of the beast: 'There is no rest day or night for those who worship
the beast and his image, or for anyone who receives the mark of his
name' (Rev. 14:11, N.I.V.)"-142. This passage, speaking about
hellfire, is applied by Venden and Spangler to mean the unrest of those
who are working their way to heaven by trying to obey God's laws,
instead of submitting to His plan for their lives. At last, Spangler has
come to the Sabbath Truth-and he uses Bacchiocchi to present it: THE
SABBATH MEANS REDEMPTIVE REST- "Samuele
Bacchiocchi, a personal friend, in his book 'Divine Rest for Human
Restlessness’ has enumerated many beautiful things connected with the
Sabbath, some of which I want to incorporate in this chapter. He points
out that the true Sabbath rest is intimately connected with the
redemptive rest Jesus offers His followers."-145-146. TIME
TO CELEBRATE THE GOOD NEWS- "But
above and beyond all, the Sabbath, in the light of the cross is a time
to celebrate both the good news of God's perfect creation and the good
news of Christ’s complete redemption. The Sabbath day is a time to
remember His rest of forgiveness and. salvation."-146-147. . THE
BEAST SYSTEM- "In
contrast to those who faithfully adhere to the seal-of-God principle, we
find a host who follow the beast and worship him. This group includes
almost the entire world. . As pointed out before, this beast system
operates on the principle of salvation by works."-149. " At
last, Spangler is coming to the point where he is going to identify the
Beast of Revelation. The Spirit of Prophecy clearly identifies it as
Rome ("Great Controversy," chapter 25-26, etc.). ALL
KINDS OF RELIGIONS- "Therefore
this multifaceted system includes as many plans, doctrines, and
beliefs as there are people who follow them. The world is filled with
all kinds of religions, but at the heart and core of them all, save
one-true Christianity-is the do-it-yourself concept. Most of
Christianity itself, sad to say, operates on this principle."149-150. BABYLON- "On
the other hand are those forces opposed to God's will-led by fallen
Babylon, apostate Christianity. In disregard of God, these insist on
following their own method of salvation independently of their
Creator-the principle of salvation by works."-150. There are only
six pages remaining in this book, and still the non-Adventist readers
are given no hint of what Babylon is-other than the fact that it is an
"apostate Christianity" that believes in "salvation by
works"! This is incredible. SABBATH
KEEPING WILL SAVE NO ONE- "Please
understand that I do not believe that, of itself, Sabbath keeping can
save a person any more than can honoring one's parents. I am referring
to the results of salvation in a person's life. Those results are seen
in the willingness of one who has been saved to allow the Holy Spirit to
bring his life daily into harmony with the commandments of
God."-152. Spangler always declares salvation to be something
concluded and past in the life of the Christian. How
thankful we are, that in the final four-and-a-half pages, the Sabbath
message is finally given! Thank you, Elder Spangler. Although the Beast,
the Lamb-like Beast, and the Image are not identified, yet we are now
finally told that the Seal is related to Sabbath observance and that the
Mark is related to disobedience to the Sabbath (pages 152:3-154:3).
His audience is then asked to let God do the work for them that is
needed in their lives, so that they can have the Sabbath fulfilled in
their lives (pages 155-156). This 156-page book is now completed. Morris
Venden places more emphasis on a a continuing, methodical, daily time
for personal worship with God. Thus the heart of his message is one of
the finest emphases ever seen in our Church. How tragic to find it
linked to a gospel of no-effort, no-try, no-succeed when the converted
Christian attempts to resist sin and obey his Maker. No need to try to
resist or overcome sin means no responsibility on our part for our sins.
And that is a frightening theology. Robert
Spangler shares Venden's concern for justification continued, but
Spangler's emphasis is on the fact that when we were justified we were
saved at that moment Even though he recognizes that we could possibly
later fall, he primarily sees salvation in the ordinary life of the
Christian as something in the past It is finished and completed; a past
event. As with Venden, Spangler sees the salvation of man as something
done solely by God apart from any effort, behavior or morality of the
man being saved. We are saved by faith alone. While
sharing Venden's burden that man's obedience is just ancillary
"fruit," quite apart from salvation solely through faith in
Christ, Spangler likes to emphasize the "salvation already
completed." Whereas Venden’s concern is for the daily time alone
with God. In this, we see Morris Venden's view to be more mature. For,
at least, he recognizes prominently the great danger if one does not
maintain a daily walk with Christ. PILGRIMS'
REST - BEERSHEBA SPRINGS, TN 37305 |
