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Commentary on "A Love Response"

RICK BARKER

 

Day 4: Tuesday, June 5, 2012 - Motivated to Serve

 

The point of this lesson appears to be convincing the reader than proclaiming love must be followed up by acting on that love. So the "motivation" is to align our actions with our words. This lesson is filled with the favorite SDA alternative to actual Bible study, calls for personal speculation and philosophical responses showing off the individual's intelligence and library. "What if Jesus had pledged…" "What if He had declared…" "Can we be a blessing to others even if we are wrongly motivated in our actions?...Whatever your answers bring it to class on Sabbath and discuss."

The answers we should be seeking here aren't found in our guesses, not matter how well educated or brilliant we might be. This type of study is popular, and from what we can see here, even encouraged in SDA Sabbath school classes. This is NOT Bible study. However, since SDAism confuses our intellect with our spirit, it isn't surprising that vain philosophical discussions pass for being "spiritual". Allow me to repeat what I said in week 5.

" Speculation and intellectualizing on a topic are not Bible study. Every one merely confirms what they have already been taught to think. And since the whole class agrees, it must be correct, and therefore the SDA teaching must be correct. The Bible is our source of truth and doctrine. So if your answers to this question cannot be found in Scripture, you are adding to the Word of God when you speculate and call it Biblical fact."

And this really brings us to the heart of the error with this lesson, perhaps with the entire concept of this quarter. You can't have a Biblical discussion of "motivation" without discussing the Spirit, both the indwelling of the Holy Spirit and our spirit being made alive when we are born again.

Phil 2: 13 for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.

The "will" or the "motivation" as this lesson calls it, comes from God as the result of His work in us. Trying to find outside reasons for motivation is humanist psychology, not the Bible. Love is a fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22). This tells us that Godly love isn't something that we produce or muster up. Love is produced in us by the indwelling Holy Spirit.

 

GO TO DAY 5

 

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