HOME / PROCLAMATION! MAGAZINE / 2013 / SUMMER / THE LIFE EXAMINED WITH CAROLYN MACOMBER
S U M M E R • 2 0 1 3
VOLUME 14, ISSUE 2
D E P A R T M E N T S
The life EXAMINED with Carolyn Macomber
HUMBLE YOURSELF AND
REPENT
“Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time He may exalt you, casting all you anxieties on Him, because He cares for you” (1 Pet. 5:6-7).
This text leads with a command to humble oneself. My problem is I do not like the process of humbling myself, especially when I have to admit that I am wrong. Furthermore, if I’m to be perfectly honest, I hate being wrong, because it hurts my pride—and pride is a beast that does not die easily. Humility is difficult.
If I look at pride closely it includes the following things: self-importance, self-love, self-adulation, self-admiration, self-regard, conceit, vanity, and big-headedness. Ouch!!! I believe pride can also include a certain amount of self-deceit. In other words, I can rationalize away my guilt: it was really someone else’s fault, or a circumstance out of my control caused me to be wrong or stay stuck. Pride often gets me into trouble. Humility often brings me out of trouble.
An example of this process of humility was admitting I had followed a false gospel and a false prophet. I had been a commissioned associate pastor of the Adventist Church. I had baptized people into false doctrines. I was wrong. I was humbled. One of the most difficult things I have had to do was admit my error and turn away from the Adventist Church.
This humbling experience was excruciatingly painful and set into motion other painful experiences. But the pain has brought much gain, and the gain is hard to articulate. I have a deep-seated joy in the realization that I am secure in Christ forever and ever.
I am reminded that the Seventh-day Adventist Church had a golden opportunity to humble itself and repent in 1919. At the 1919 Bible Conference, key Adventist leaders convened to discuss many topics but particularly whether Ellen G. White was a true prophet of God with verbal inspiration. The minutes to this conference were sealed for 50 years but were finally made public. These minutes are extremely lengthy, but telling. You can read the official transcript for yourself here: TruthOrFables.com
In this 1919 conference it was determined that the Seventh-day Adventist organization would not humble itself and admit the theological problems of Ellen G. White to their constituents. Instead, it was determined not to disclose the clear evidence that E.G. White was a false prophet and was not inspired by God. The minutes mention that leaders were afraid that if the truth were known, members of the Adventist church would “lose their faith”. These minutes were sealed for 50 years and unknown to the public.
What might have happened if the truth had been told forthrightly by the leaders of the Adventist organization in 1919? Would that religion be “celebrating” its 150th organizational anniversary? Would thousands of constituents continue to read Ellen G. White as if she were inspired by God? Would hundreds of Seventh-day Adventists have died believing they had the truth, but dying without the saving knowledge of the gospel of Jesus Christ? What would have happened if key leaders had humbled themselves and repented of their error?
Before God, we have to ask ourselves some hard questions. How will we humble ourselves when truth is revealed and a decision must be made? Will we humble ourselves in truth or continue in pride? Are we willing to humble ourselves in repentance whatever the situation or circumstance may be?
Scripture says, “Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will exalt you” (Jas. 4:8-10).
Humbling ourselves before the Lord is difficult, but the Lord promises that He will exalt us in time. He asks us to have the courage to humble ourselves in repentance whatever our situations, relationships, or circumstances, and sooner or later we all have to ask ourselves the same question: will I humble myself before God, or will I continue to live in pride?
The pain in the humbling is worth the gain. †
Copyright 2013 Life Assurance Ministries, Inc., Casa Grande, Arizona, USA. All rights reserved. Revised July 10, 2013. Contact email: proclamation@gmail.com
Carolyn Macomber was a doctoral student at Andrews University when she discovered inconsistencies between Adventism and the Bible. She withdrew her membership from the Seventh-day Adventist Church in 2009. She is a member of The Chapel Evangelical Free Church in St. Joseph, Michigan, where she is the leader of a Former Adventist Fellowship. She works helping families prepare their children for school readiness, and she is a small group leader for Bible Study Fellowship in Granger, Indiana.
