Moses, God’s chosen leader, knew the joys and pains of guiding a mixed multitude through a wilderness in search of the Promised Land.

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A close reading of these verses reveals that the children of Israel were angry at God because they did not trust Him. Moses and Aaron, the human representatives of God’s ultimate Lordship, were easy targets for the nation’s anger. The need for physical and mental safety is a core motivation that all human beings possess. When either is threatened, or we perceive something as a threat to our physical or mental well-being, we can become irate or even irrational.

The Israelites harbored legitimate fears about the challenges that lay ahead in possessing the Promised Land, “but when men yield their hearts to unbelief they place themselves under the control of Satan, and none can tell to what lengths he will lead them.”—Ellen G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 389. Moses faced an almost insurmountable leadership challenge in this moment. The fears of the people soon mushroomed into anger against Aaron and Moses and into open rebellion against God. When the people sought new leaders to replace the prophet/leader chosen by God (Deuteronomy 34:10-12, Numbers 14:4), Joshua and Caleb tore their clothes and pleaded with the people to trust in God despite their fears: “ ‘If the Lord delights in us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us, “a land which flows with milk and honey.” Only do not rebel against the Lord, nor fear the people of the land’ ” (Numbers 14:8-9, NKJV).

<–Sabbath Monday–>

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Read for This Week’s Study

Numbers 13:26-30; Jeremiah 36:20-26; 2 Chronicles 36:15-16; Matthew 23:30-35; 1 Corinthians 10:6-12.

Memory Text:

“Now these things happened to them as an example, and they were written for our instruction, upon whom the ends of the ages have come” (1 Corinthians 10:11, NASB).

Some people today are encouraged to speak “their truth”—their experiences, their ideas, their needs, their boundaries, their ­convictions—whatever these may be. Every “truth” is valid (the thinking goes) and should not be silenced. What happens, however, when some of these deeply held “truths” conflict with the Truth, Jesus Christ, and His Written Word?

What happens is that some people will accept biblical truths and turn away from their errors; others, however, will cling to their lies. Some change their behavior in response to truth; others rebel against it. Such has been the history of humanity.

Biblical prophets were often called to deliver messages that people did not want to hear. As a result, many were criticized, ostracized, even threatened with death or indeed killed (Hebrews 11:32-38). Despite all this, God’s prophets faithfully proclaimed their messages because divine prophetic guidance was not optional for them. It was lifesaving instruction for the people of God. Hence the messages had to be delivered, no matter the personal cost to the prophet.

*Study this week’s lesson to prepare for Sabbath, November 14.

Sunday–>

By Gina Wahlen

Naum had to stand up for his faith at the tender age of seven. In Yugoslavia, school was obligatory every Saturday. Although young, Naum determined not to attend school on Sabbath. After missing two Saturdays in a row, the first-grader was confronted by a special commission set up to interrogate him.

Coming to his classroom, the group of five officials dismissed everyone in the class except for Naum.

Standing alone, the seven-year-old bravely faced the school director, two teachers, and two uniformed police officers—one of whom was the regional director of the secret police.

“Why aren’t you attending school on Saturday?” the interrogator began.

“Because I believe in God, and according to the fourth commandment of His law, I’m not to be in school on His Sabbath. This is why I’ll be in church every Sabbath, not in school,” Naum replied.

“You’ll be expelled from school, and will have no further opportunities to receive an education!” the man glared.

Naum’s response came quickly. “I’ll be in church anyway, because God is first in my life.”

“So, what do you do at your church?” the interrogator continued.

“We read the Bible, sing songs, and pray.”

“Sing us a song!” the group demanded. So, Naum sang a hymn and prayed a simple prayer, thanking the Lord for opportunities given, for health, for the government, and to direct the commission properly and honestly.

Following his prayer, Naum was asked if his father had told him not to go to school.

“No,” Naum answered honestly.

If the answer had been “yes,” his father would have gone immediately to prison. Knowing his son could be interrogated, Naum’s father had never told him not to attend school.

The commission was silent for a few moments. Then abruptly Naum was told, “You will be informed whether or not you will stay in school.”

Naum hurried home to tell his parents what had happened. Not surprised, “they knew what my decision would be,” he recalls.

No directive came from the commission, so Naum continued attending school, except on Sabbaths.

Upon completing primary school, Naum was not allowed to continue his education because of his firm decision to keep the Sabbath. So, at age 15 he started working full-time with his father on their farm.

But God had other plans for Naum.

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Ellen G. White’s Writings

Ellen G. White’s experience and writings parallel much of what we have studied this week regarding God’s messengers in the Bible. She, too, received a divine commission to write out what had been revealed to her.

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Reflecting in 1909, Ellen G. White wrote, “Because of the accident which had nearly cost me my life, I had been feeble in health and unable to write. . . . But one night the angel of the Lord came to my bedside and said to me, ‘You must write out the things that I give you.’ I said, ‘I can not write.’ Again the command was given, ‘Write out the things I give you.’ I thought I would try, and taking up a lapboard from the table, I began to write, and found that I could trace the words easily.”—The General Conference Bulletin, May 31, 1909.

Like the inspired writers of Scripture, Ellen G. White also employed literary assistants. Her secretaries did the work that editors are expected to do—assist authors in expressing their messages clearly while not inserting thoughts of their own. They were not ghostwriters or coauthors. Their work was dependent upon the material that Ellen G. White herself produced, whether written out by hand or delivered orally.

Ellen G. White also quoted and adapted material from other literary sources in her writing to aid in the presentation of her messages. By recommending to her readers some of the very books she used, it is evident that she was not intending to be deceitful or unfair to those authors, but she found in their language apt expressions to convey the truths that she wished to express.

What about discrepancies or inaccuracies?

“In regard to infallibility,” she wrote, “I never claimed it; God alone is infallible.”—Selected Messages, book 1, p. 37.

One may encounter certain statements in her writings that are difficult to understand or harmonize with others. Ellen G. White’s humanity was not overridden by her divine calling. Like all of us, Ellen White would grow and mature as well, a growth and maturity that is revealed in her writings.

As already stated, but worth repeating, she also corrected those who believed that every word she wrote came directly from heaven. “There are times when common things must be stated, common thoughts must occupy the mind, common letters must be written and information given that has passed from one to another of the workers. Such words, such information, are not given under the special inspiration of the Spirit of God.”—Selected Messages, book 3, p. 58.

Further Study Click Here.

<–Thursday

Paul writes of God’s treasure as being entrusted to “earthen vessels” (human beings), so that God’s power might be shown in contrast to our own weaknesses. Scripture reveals that just as God’s messengers were not supernaturally preserved from failings in their personal lives (Moses, Elijah, David, Jonah, and Peter, for example), so their writings were not exempt from the imperfections of human understanding and communication.

“The union of the divine and the human, manifest in Christ, exists also in the Bible. The truths revealed are all ‘given by inspiration of God;’ yet they are expressed in the words of men and are adapted to human needs.”—Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 747.

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The humanity of God’s messengers is not overridden by their divine calling to communicate the treasures of truth, as Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 4:7. Nor does it appear that the Holy Spirit saw fit to prevent His messengers from making statements and writing words that we today find hard to harmonize or to explain. However few these verses are, it takes a very narrow mind to stumble over them. As Bible-believing Christians, we are to surrender to the Word of God to the degree that we understand it and trust the Lord, despite what we don’t understand.

Some discrepancies may be attributed to inconsequential mistakes by later copyists or to conflicting sources (records) that the inspired authors relied upon. When considering problematic passages, we need to ask ourselves if we fully understand the meaning of the writer’s words and whether further study might solve the difficulty.

Even if we are not able to resolve every seeming mistake or discrepancy, we find that they are inconsequential to the essence of the message being presented. We can have confidence that the divine truths of Scripture are faithfully revealed despite the imperfections of God’s messengers.

<–Wednesday Friday–>

“And moreover, because the Preacher was wise, he still taught the people knowledge; yet, he pondered and sought out and set in order many proverbs. The Preacher sought to find acceptable words; and what was written was upright—words of truth” (Ecclesiastes 12:9-10, NKJV).

This passage can be read to show that Solomon did not originate all the proverbs that he recorded. Under the inspiration of God, he “sought out” many sayings and searched to find “acceptable words.” In fact, the oft-quoted description of the virtuous woman in Proverbs 31:1-31 is attributed to the mother of an otherwise unknown King Lemuel, not Solomon (Proverbs 31:1). Evidence points to the influence of Egyptian literature on Proverbs as well.

Similarly, the inspired historians of the Old Testament tell us that they referenced archives and other historical annals to narrate faithfully the story of God’s people.

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Ezra and Nehemiah are other examples of Bible writers who relied upon historical records to document their accounts. Ezra includes copies of letters and royal decrees regarding Jerusalem and Persia (see Ezra 4:1-24; Ezra 5:1-17; Ezra 6:1-22; Ezra 7:1-28), and Nehemiah tells us about genealogical registries that he found and incorporated into his narrative (see Nehemiah 7:5-72).

This principle appears in the New Testament as well. “It is clear from Luke’s experience that Inspiration functions in a manner consistent with the natural operation of the mental faculties and does not set them aside. Here is an inspired writer who was led by the Holy Spirit to give diligent study to the available oral and written source materials on the life of Christ, and then to combine into a connected narrative the information thus gathered.”—The SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 5, p. 669.

Jude seems to be quoting from 1 Enoch 1:9—a noncanonical, inter­testamental Jewish work. Without mentioning their names, Paul also quoted from Greek philosophers (see Acts 17:28 and Titus 1:12).

<–Tuesday Thursday–>