The 1888 message: Ellet J.

Waggoner

What did he actually teach in 1888?

Lee F Greer III

Loma Linda, California © 2001
(Last updated December 2002)

The Jesus Institute Forum: http://www.jesusinstituteforum.org/1888message.html

Introduction. The General Conference session of the 1888 in Minneapolis, MN,

continues to be very significant for the Seventh-day Adventist Church. At that
meeting there was a struggled attempt to restore the truth of justification by
faith to the center of the young church's message which was only about 40 years
beyond the Great Disappointment of the Advent (Millerite) Movement (1844). The
message was spearheaded by young minister Ellet J. Waggoner supported by his
friend Alonzo T. Jones (with an enthusiastic reception by Ellen G. White). Part of
the great significance of this 19th century conference was that here was a small,
young Sabbatarian church (without a lot of creedal inertia), which taught a
personal, premillenial Second Advent of Jesus and a pre-Advent judgment (like the
NT), poised to recapture justification by faith, the mighty truth of the New
Testament and the Protestant Reformation! What was the glorious potential of that
moment? By the Spirit of grace, the young Advent movement might then and there
have recaptured the Gospel of justification by faith alone in its original NT-
eschatological, Day of Atonement, judgment context! The earth might have been
'lightened with his glory' (Rev. 18:1) in preparation for the long-delayed Second
Advent! What might have been... quickly degenerated into a narrow spirit of
denominational bickering and closed-minded resistance by far too many of those
delegates of yesteryear. The session ended without breakthrough.
However, the General Conference of 1888 remains a beacon of Advent hope for many
Seventh-day Adventists because what might have been represents what many see as
the real raison d'etre and hope of the Advent faith. The history of that era has
long been clouded by the sad fact that Ellet J. Waggoner and Alonzo T. Jones
abandoned the NT-Reformation truth of justification by faith and drifted during
the 1890s into subjectivism (justification by the indwelling Christ, rather than
sanctification by the indwelling Christ, as Scripture teaches) and pan[en]theism
(Christ as really 'present' in every human being and in all nature). The
pantheistic trend reached full crisis with Dr. John Harvey Kellogg's book The
Living Temple about the turn of the century, who therein acknowledged his special
indebtedness to both Waggoner and Jones. Those subjective, pantheistic teachings
now supported by the charismatic medical director of Battle Creek Sanitarium in
Michigan (and brother of the founder of Kelloggs, the cereal company) nearly
destroyed the Seventh-day Adventist Church by obscuring the Gospel: Christ's
objective substitutionary atonement (His perfect doing and dying) and intercession
at God's right hand in heaven. Providentially, the crisis finally came to an end
about 1906 – largely through the writings of Ellen White leading up to and during
this era (Steps to Christ, The Desire of Ages, Thoughts from the Mount of
Blessing, Christ's Object Lessons, and a spate of articles on justification by
faith especially from 1888-1892), the young church was slowly being nudged toward
faith in Christ's eternal divinity, and toward acceptance of the objective
substitutionary atonement and intercession of Christ, and a faith that believing
sinners are "justified alone through the imputation of Christ’s righteousness"
(RH, 11-11-1890).
What started out as the young SDA church's greatest opportunity, when missed and
resisted, led almost inexorably to the pantheism crisis which nearly spelled its
destruction. The theological turmoil of the 1890s has led many over the years
since then to misunderstand what was proclaimed in 1888. Ellen White's long-
continued endorsement of righteousness by faith, of openness to light, and of the
work of Waggoner and Jones was certainly not an endorsement of those subjective,
pantheistic views which she never taught and which were directly contrary to the
tenor of her own work, and far more importantly, contrary to Scripture. Sadly, we
as Seventh-day Adventists more than 120 years later have yet to grasp
justification by faith in its NT-Reformation splendor.
In the compendium below, we cite primary historical evidence for what Ellet J.
Waggoner actually taught in 1888. How wonderfully close E. J. Waggoner was in 1888
to recapturing the NT-Reformation truth of justification by faith alone, let the
reader note from the historical evidence cited below! God will yet have a people
who will preach the everlasting Gospel in proper relation to His eternal,
objective Law in full eschatological, New Testament glory (Rev. 14:6-12; 18:1-4)!
________________________________________
The Ellen G. White 1888 Materials, p. 1575
"To U. Smith"
"The law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that
we might be justified by faith." In this scripture, the Holy Spirit
through the apostle is speaking especially of the moral law. The
law reveals sin to us, and causes us to feel our need of Christ, and
to flee unto him for pardon and peace by exercising repentance toward
God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.
An unwillingness to yield up preconceived opinions, and to
accept this truth, lay at the foundation of a large share of the
opposition manifested at Minneapolis against the Lord's message through
Brethren Waggoner and Jones. By exciting that opposition, Satan
succeeded in shutting away from our people, in a great measure, the
special power of the Holy Spirit that God longed to impart to them.
The enemy prevented them from obtaining that efficiency which might
have been their's in carrying the truth to the world, as the apostles
proclaimed it after the day of Pentecost. The light that is to lighten
the whole earth with its glory was resisted, and by the action of
our own brethren has been in a great degree kept away from the world."

Seventh-day Adventists in General Conference Assembled,

Minneapolis, MN: 17 October – 02 November 1888
The General Conference Daily Bulletin
Wednesday, October 17, 1888:
"At 10:30 a.m., Elder Uriah Smith discussed the question of the ten horns of the
fourth beast of Daniel vii., the speaker taking the position of that the Huns were
one of the ten kingdoms into which Rome was divided. Some held the view that
Allemanni should be counted as one of the ten kingdoms instead of the Huns [i.e.,
A. T. Jones]. A spirited discussion was held at the conclusion of the remarks, in
which a number of the delegates participated. At the close of the discussion it
was voted that, taking all the light we have received, and all the reference
given, we will faithfully and carefully study this question, praying that the
spirit my guide us into the truth.
"It was also voted that the chair appoint a committee of seven to devise a plan by
which those who think they have received light on any point, may present it to the
denomination.
"At 2:30 p.m. Elder E. J. Waggoner discussed the question of the law of God and
its relation to the Gospel of Christ. The discussion was based principally on the
Epistle to the Romans" [Uriah Smith, "First Day's Proceedings," General Conference
Daily Bulletin 2, no. 1 (19 Oct. 1888): 2.]
Thursday, October 18, 1888:
"At 9 a.m. Elder E. J. Waggoner gave another lesson on the law and gospel. In this
lesson the first and second chapters of Galatians, in connection with Acts 15,
were partially presented by him to show that the same harmony existed there as
elsewhere; that the key to the book was ‘justification by faith in Christ,’ with
the emphasis on the latter word; that liberty in Christ was always freedom from
sin, and that separation from Christ to some other means of justification always
brought bondage. He stated incidentally that ‘the law of Moses’ and ‘the law of
God’ were not distinctive terms as applied to the ceremonial and moral laws, and
cited Num. xv., 22-24, and Luke ii., 23-24, as proof. He closed at 10:15 by asking
those present to compare Acts xv., 7-11, with Rom. ii., 20-25. Appeals were made
by Brother Waggoner and Sister White to the brethren, old and young, to seek God,
put away all spirit of prejudice and opposition, and strive to come into the unity
of faith in the bonds of brotherly love." [Uriah Smith, "Second Day's
Proceedings," General Conference Daily Bulletin 2, no. 1 (19 Oct. 1888): 2.]
Friday, October 19, 1888:
"At 9 a.m. Elder Waggoner continued his lessons on the law and gospel. The
Scriptures considered were the fifteenth chapter of Acts and the second and third
of Galatians, compared with Romans iv. and other passages in Romans. His purpose
was to show that the real point of controversy was justification by faith in
Christ, which faith is reckoned to us as to Abraham, for righteousness. The
covenant and promises to Abraham are the covenant and promises to us." [Uriah
Smith, "Third Day's Proceedings," General Conference Daily Bulletin 2, no. 2 (21
Oct. 1888): 1.]
Waggoner's series continued until Thursday, October 25, 1888. Uriah Smith then
wrote this summarizing comment:
"A series of instructive lectures has been given on 'Justification by faith' by
Eld. E. J. Waggoner. The closing one was given this morning. With the foundation
principles all are agreed, but there are some differences in regard to the
interpretation of several passages. The lectures have tended to a more thorough
investigation of the truth, and it is hoped that the unity of the faith will be
reached on this important question." [Uriah Smith, "Eighth Day's Proceedings,"
General Conference Daily Bulletin 2, no. 7 (26 Oct. 1888): 3.]
Of considerable interest is Waggoner's synopsis of both A. T. Jones’ and his own
lectures in the November 2, 1888, issue of the Signs of the Times:
"The principal subjects of Bible study were the ten kingdoms into which, according
to the prophecy, the Roman Empire was divided, the establishment of the Papacy,
and of its counterpart, the proposed National Reform Government; and the law and
the gospel in their various relations, coming under the general head of
justification by faith. These subjects have aroused a deep interest in the minds
of all present; and thus far during the Conference one hour a day has been devoted
to a continuance of their study." [E. J. Waggoner, "Editorial Correspondence,"
Signs of the Times, 02 Nov. 1888, p. 662].
"However, the lack of a complete record of Waggoner’s presentation has made it
easy for some to read their own particular views on righteousness by faith into
the 1888 conference" (McMahon, 1979). Sadly, proper weight has not been give to
the General Conference Bulletin of 1888 and Waggoner’s actual published work from
1888.
Explicit historical evidence long neglected
Although neglected, it is very significant that in The Gospel in the book of
Galatians: A Review (Oakland, December 1888) we have exactly what E. J. Waggoner
taught in 1887-1888:
• On the meaning and centrality of justification by faith,
• On the nature of sin,
• On faith and pardon,
• On the covenants,
• On the moral & ceremonial laws,
• On the human nature of Christ,
• On Acts 15, Romans 4, and Galatians 2-3 (the very texts at issue in
Minneapolis, 1888),
• On the Reformation ideal of continual reform and growth in Bible doctrine in
the church,
• As well as what were the key arguments of the opposition.
The Gospel in the book of Galatians: A Review was written and privately circulated
in 1887 in response to George I. Butler’s booklet The Law in Galatians. However
after the public exposure of the issue at the General Conference at Minneapolis in
the fall of 1888, E. J. Waggoner published this book as his official position for
the world to see in December 1888.
OUTLINE of
The Gospel in the book of Galatians: A Review. (December 1888):
Explanatory note. E. J. Waggoner opens by giving the reasons why he delayed nearly
two years to publish this letter (Feb. 1887 till Dec. 1888) – to avoid controversy
before the general public. Now with the public nature of the General Conference,
Waggoner doubtless felt free to publish his views on justification by faith and
the issues at controversy. This book contains a summary of the 1888 message and of
its reception by church leaders.
Pages 1-2. Waggoner expressed his personal regard for the GC president, George I.
Butler and insisted that all he has published was in harmony with the
denomination.
• "In my articles in the Signs [published in 1886] I have mentioned only a few
points that might seem to be objections to the law, and which are often quoted as
showing its abolition, to show that they are really the strongest arguments for
the perpetuity of the law."
• "As to the propriety of publishing the matter in the Signs when I did, I
have nothing to say. Whatever censure is due on that score, I willingly take, as I
already have. … Quotations that will appear further on, will show that I am not
the one who has departed from the standard works of our people."
Page 2. Waggoner cites Butler’s misapprehension of the meaning of circumcision as
"a sign of their [Jewish] separation from the rest of the human family" and notes
the practice of circumcision as common among the ancient Egyptians, and among many
indigenous peoples of Africa and S. America, and among the Arabs, "tutur tahir"
i.e., purification. What made it unique for the Jews was that it was a ‘sign’ of
their "putting off the impurity of the heart" (Deut. 10: 16), of their Covenant
relationship with God, a "sign of the possession of righteousness; and when
righteousness was wanting the circumcision amounted to nothing."
On the Biblical definition of Righteousness by faith
Page 2. Waggoner gives the Scriptural meaning of circumcision by citing Romans 4:
11, from the only passage in Scripture that explicitly defines the meaning of the
phrase "the righteousness of faith" or "righteousness by faith":
"And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the
righteousness of the faith which [he had yet] being
uncircumcised: that he might be the father of all them that
believe, though they be not circumcised; that righteousness
might be imputed unto them also"
Or literally in the Greek:
"And a sign he received of circumcision, a seal of the
righteousness of the faith [while] in uncircumcision, for
to be a father of all the [ones] believing through uncircumcision,
for the righteousness to be reckoned to them [also] ….
But to us also to whom it shall be reckoned if we believe" (Rom. 4: 11, 13, 24).
Here we see the only explicit definition in Scripture of "righteousness by faith"
or of the "righteousness of faith" – it is the perfect Righteousness which God
Himself reckons to all who believe, i.e., Justification by faith. It explains
exactly what Romans 3 means when it refers to ‘being justified by faith.’ In the
Greek, ‘justification’ and ‘righteousness’ come from the same verb dikaiou, to
declare righteous; adj. dikaios, righteous; n. dikaiosune, righteousness.
On the Bible meaning of Justification by faith and its centrality in Romans and
Galatians
Page 5. Waggoner defines justification by faith and its centrality in Romans and
Galatians:
• Romans: "Now let us look for a moment at the subject of the two books, –
Romans and Galatians. The leading thought in the book of Romans is justification
by faith. The apostle shows the depraved condition of the heathen world; then he
shows that the Jews are no better, but that human nature is the same in all. All
have sinned, and all are guilty before God, and the only way that any can escape
final condemnation is by faith in the blood of Christ. All who believe on Him are
justified freely by the grace of God, and His righteousness is imputed to them
although they have violated the law. This truth, which brought out so clearly in
the third chapter of Romans, is repeated and emphasized in the fourth, fifth,
sixth, and seventh chapters. And in the eighth chapter the apostle concludes that
there is no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus. He has before shown
that all sinners are under, or condemned by the law, but when we come to God
through faith in Christ, and are justified freely by His grace through the
redemption that is in Jesus Christ, we are no longer under the law but under
grace. This condition is represented in various places as 'dead to the law by the
body of Christ,’ ‘delivered from the law,’ etc. Everywhere faith in Christ and
justification by faith are made prominent. So we may say that justification by
faith is the key-note of the book of Romans.
• Galatians: "Now how about the book of Galatians? There is no question in the
mind of any but that the Galatians were being induced to submit to circumcision.
Were they submitting to the demands of the Jews[ish Christians] that they should
be circumcised, because they thought it a great privilege to be circumcised? Not
by any means, but because certain Jews were teaching them that if they were not
circumcised they could not be saved. See Acts 15: 1. They were therefore looking
to circumcision as a means of justification. But since there is none other name
under heaven except that of Christ whereby we can be saved, it follows that to
depend on anything except Christ for justification is a rejection of Christ. It
was this which called out Paul's letter to them. Now since the Galatians were
being led to trust in circumcision for justification from sin, what else could be
the burden of a letter designed to correct this error, but justification by faith
in Christ? That this is the burden of the epistle is seen from Galatians 2: 16-21;
3: 6-8, 10-14, 22, 24, 26, 27; 4: 4-7; 5: 5-6; 6: 14-15, and other passages. In
the book of Romans the apostle develops his argument on justification by faith in
a general way, building up a general treatise; but when he wrote to the Galatians
he had a special object in view, and he adapted his epistle to the necessities of
the case. It is the most natural thing in the world that he should write on
justification by faith to the Galatians, when there were in danger of losing their
faith, even if his treatise on the subject to the Romans had been already written.
The truth is, however, that the book of Galatians was written first. In the book
of Romans he expanded the book of Galatians into a general treatise."
On the real issue of law in the Jerusalem Council of Acts 15 and its connection to
the book of Galatians and Romans – the hot issue at Minneapolis
Pages 8:3 – 11:2. Waggoner showed that the justification by faith and the moral
law were especially the subjects of Jerusalem Council of Acts 15.
• "Do you really believe that the council took no cognizance of the ten
commandments? If so, can you tell me of what law fornication is the
transgression?…"
Pages 11:2 – 13:2. Waggoner showed that both the moral and ceremonial laws were
spoken of in Galatians but especially the moral law – the main trust of his
argument.
On faith and pardon (or justification by faith)
Pages 13:3 – 15:2. EJW clearly defined the moral law and the ceremonial law. He
showed that "the ceremonial law was simply the ordinances of the gospel" and to
despise the ceremonial law was to reject the only way of pardon and peace. The
Covenant rituals might change, but the everlasting Covenant is the same in both
the OT and NT and justification by faith is the way of salvation in both OT and NT
times. This was the mature position of the Protestant Reformers centuries before.
• "Let me repeat the argument: If the curse attaches to the ceremonial law,
then violation of the ceremonial law is sin; and if violation of the ceremonial
law is sin, then there is sin not forbidden by the ten commandments; and then the
ten commandments are not a perfect rule of action; moreover, since the ceremonial
law is done away, it follows that the standard of righteousness is not so perfect
now as it was in the days of Moses. It this is not a legitimate conclusion from
your premises, I must confess my ignorance of logic. Another point: No sin can
remove itself, neither can it be atoned for by any subsequent good deed. So then
there must be some scheme of atonement for sin. Now if sin were imputed for
neglect of the ceremonial law, what remedy was provided for that sin? The
ceremonial law was simply the ordinances of the gospel. If condemned sinners were
still further condemned by the very remedy provided for their salvation, then
indeed it must have been a yoke. A man is in a truly pitiable condition when the
remedy given him for a sore disease only aggravates that disease.
• "But you will say, and correctly too, that those who refused to comply with
the requirements of the ceremonial law were put to death. Why was this, if the
curse did not attach to the ceremonial law? I will answer. The violator of the
moral law justly merited death, but God had provided a pardon for all who would
receive it. This pardon was on condition of faith in Christ, and it was ordained
that faith in Christ should be manifested through the rites of the ceremonial law.
Now if a man repented of his sins, and had faith in Christ, he would manifest it,
and would receive the pardon; and then of course the penalty would not be
inflicted upon him. But if he had no faith in Christ, he would not comply with the
conditions of pardon, and then of course the penalty for sin would be inflicted.
The penalty was not for failure to carry out the rites of the ceremonial law, but
for the sin which might have been remitted had he manifested faith. I think
anybody can see the truthfulness of this position. Let us illustrate it…. [story
of a murder offered a pardon by the governor]. So it is with the sinner in his
relation to the law of God. If he despises the offer of pardon, and shows his
disregard by a refusal to take the steps necessary to receive the pardon, then the
curse of the law, death , is allowed to fall upon him. But refusing to receive
pardon is not a sin. God invites men to receive pardon, but He has no law to
compel them to be pardoned. The murderer who has been offered pardon and has
rejected it, is no more guilty [of murder] than another man who has committed the
same crime but who has not been offered a pardon. I do not know as this can be
made any clearer; I cannot see that it needs to be. The sum of it all is simply
this: Sin is the transgression of the moral law, and the violation of no other
law; for the moral law covers all duty. There is a curse attached to the violation
of the law, and that curse is death; ‘for the wages of sin is death.’ But there is
provision for the pardon of those who exercise faith in Christ. And this faith is
indicated by a performance of certain rites. Before Christ, it was by the offering
of sacrifices; since Christ it is by baptism and the Lord’s Supper. Those who have
real faith will indicate it in the prescribed manner, and will escape the penalty.
Those who have no faith will receive the penalty. This is exactly what Christ
meant when He Himself said to Nicodemus: ‘For God sent not His Son into the world
to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved. He that
believeth on Him is not condemned; but he that believeth not is condemned already,
because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.’ John
3:17, 18" [Italic emphases are Waggoner’s; underlining mine].
• "I marvel that you can read Galatians 3:11, 12, and imagine that the word
law in those verses has the slightest reference to the ceremonial law. I quote
them: ‘But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident;
for, The just shall live by faith. And the law is not of faith; but, The man that
doeth them shall live in them’…. The question is not what law may be referred to,
but what law is referred to? The law here referred to is a law of which it is
said, ‘The man that doeth them shall live in them.’ Now this is emphatically true
of the moral law. It is equivalent to Romans 2:13: ‘The doers of the law shall be
justified.’ The sad fact that there are no doers of the law does not destroy the
truth that the doers of the law shall be justified. Perfect compliance with the
moral law alone is all that God can possibly require of any creature. Such service
would necessarily give eternal life….
• "Again, the text says, ‘And the law is not of faith.’ But the ceremonial law
was of nothing else but faith; it was a matter of faith from beginning to end. It
was faith that constituted all the difference between the offering of Abel and
that of Cain. See Hebrews 4:11…."
What part of Christ's atonement is universal and what part is individual? Christ
has made a universal atonement in that the SINS OF THE WHOLE WORLD WERE IMPUTED TO
HIM (Isa. 53; Rom. 5:18-19; II Cor. 5:17, John 1:29) and so His death expiated the
sins of the whole world (II Cor. 5:14-21). This is universal, objective, and
forensic (judicial). This provides our temporal life today (John 6; Rom. 5:18),
and the promise of eternal life. However, there is a second individual, objective
and forensic side of the atonement: HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS IS IMPUTED TO THE ONES WHO
BELIEVE (Gen. 15:6 = Gal. 3:5 = Rom. 4:3 = James 2:23; Rom. 1:16-18; 3: 19-28;
4:1-24-25; 5:1-17; John 3:16-19, 5:24; II John 5:11-13, Gal. 2:16; 3:7-8, 11, 24;
Lev. 1-17; etc.) This is individual, objective, and forensic (judicial) mediated
above at the right hand of God (Heb. 4:12-16; 7:25; 12:20-25; Rom. 8:31-39; etc.).
This is what justifies the individual believer and saves eternally.
Scripture is clear on both the universal forensic work and even more at length on
the individual forensic justification. To obscure or lose either is to miss part
of the Gospel: Especially if the individual, objective part is missing, then the
way to eternal life for lost, despairing individual souls is obscured. For it is
the individual, forensic imputation of Christ's that justifies and saves the
believing sinner eternally.
It must be remembered that the only truth that can possibly change the selfish
motivation to an unselfish one is the faith that Christ has paid it all, and that
His perfect doing and dying are accounted ours! This is grace! This is the
Biblical definition of grace! All other 'graces' flow from and are fruits of this.

On the ‘added’ law in Galatians

Pages 16 – 20:5. Waggoner with crisp, starkly beautiful logic shows that the law
added 430 years after the Covenant promise to Abraham (Gal. 3:17-19) was
emphatically the moral law, not the ceremonial law, but rather the same law
referred to in Rom. 5:20.
• Page 17:1. "You say that the ceremonial law was added because of
transgressions, that is, as a remedial system. Then why was it not added as soon
as the transgression was committed, instead of 2,500 years later? I claim that the
remedial system entered immediately after the fall, and for proof I cite you to
the offering of Abel. Your argument would put off the remedial system until the
exode. You may say that at that time the ceremonial law was given more formally
and circumstantially than before; very good, but if that argument will apply to
the ceremonial law, as it undeniably will, why will it not apply to the moral
law?"
• Page 19:1. "The very same thing is stated in Romans 5:20, ‘Moreover, the law
entered that the offense might abound;’ and I never knew any Seventh-day Adventist
to have any trouble in applying that to the moral law, yet it is certainly as
difficult a text as Galatians 3:19. The word rendered ‘entered’ is, literally,
‘came in.’ … Although the law existed in all its force before the exode, yet it
‘came in,’ ‘entered,’ was spoken or given, or ‘added’ at that time. And why? That
the offense might abound, i.e., ‘that sin by the commandment might become
exceeding sinful;’ that what was sin before might be more plainly be seen to be
sin. Thus it entered, or was added, ‘because of transgressions.’… And so it became
the school-master, pedagogue, to bring men to Christ, in order that they might be
justified by faith, and be made the righteousness of God in Him."
• Page 20:5. "Your argument against the moral law being ‘added because of
transgressions’ will apply with equal force against the moral law having ‘entered
that the offense might abound.’ If you claim that Galatians 3:19 cannot apply to
the moral law, then you must claim also that Romans 5:20 does not apply to that
law."
On the relation between the Abrahamic Covenant and the Law
• Page 21. "But God had made a covenant with Abraham, and had promised
wonderful things, but only on condition of perfect righteousness through Christ….
So the law entered that the offense might abound; and because the offense
abounded, and men saw their depravity, they found that grace super-abounded to
cover their sins. The case is so plain, and the argument in Galatians 3:19 is so
plainly parallel, that I marvel how anybody who has any just conception of the
relation of the law and the gospel can question it for a moment."
• Page 26:2-27. "…the law was given upon Mount Sinai, because of
transgression, that is, that the people might know what sin was, and might
appreciate the pardon that was offered in the covenant to Abraham…." (Gen. 15:6 =
Gal. 3:5 = Rom. 4:3 = James 2:23).
Summary of the message of 1888
Pages 32-34. Waggoner summarizes in 8 points the message of 1888 (italic emphases
his; underlined emphases mine) from Galatians 3: 19-25:
• 1) "Wherefore the law was our school-master to bring us unto Christ, that
we might be justified by faith. But after that faith is come, we are no longer
under a school-master.’ By no manner of reasoning whatever can these verses be
made to apply to ceremonial law. The reference must be to the moral law, and to
that alone, as I shall show.
• 2) "The text does not read that the law was our school-master to point us
to Christ… [but] ‘to bring us to Christ’ … that is, the was our school-master till
we came to Christ. Now the ceremonial law brought no one to Christ. The
performance of it was an act of faith on the part of the performer, showing the
belief he already had in Christ.
• 3) "Faith did not release people from the observance of the ceremonial
law; on the contrary, the person did not begin the observance of the ceremonial
law until he had faith in Christ.
• 4) "…[v. 22] ‘before faith came, we were under the law;’ but before faith
came, people did not have anything to do with the ceremonial law.
• 5) "If the ceremonial law were referred to in this verse, then, according
to verse 25, we should conclude that as soon as people learned to have faith in
Christ they had nothing more to do with the ceremonial law; but the truth is that
the patriarchs and prophets were most punctual in their observance of the
ceremonial law, and no one had more faith than they. Take the case of David; his
writings abound with references to sacrifices and to ceremonies in the court of
the Lord’s house. He offered multitudes of sacrifices, yet there is no writer in
the Bible who shows a more perfect knowledge of Christ, or who exhibits more faith
in Him.
• 6) "But you say that the apostle is reasoning of dispensations, and not
of individual experiences, and that bringing them to Christ means bringing them to
His first advent, and to ‘the system of faith there inaugurated.’ But that is the
weakest position you could take, for if that were the meaning, then it would
follow that the law accomplished its purpose only for the generation that lived at
Christ’s first advent….
• 7) Again; the text says it brings men to Christ, that they may be
justified by faith. Are people justified by faith in a national capacity [or in a
dispensational capacity?] …. Justification by faith is an individual, and not a
national [or dispensational], matter…. I repeat, justification by faith is
something that each individual must experience for himself. Thousands who lived at
Christ’s first advent knew nothing of this experience, while thousands who lived
long before, were actually brought to Christ for pardon, and they received it.
Abel was counted righteous through faith; Noah was heir of the righteousness which
is by faith; and Abraham actually saw Christ’s day, and rejoiced in it, although
he died 2,000 years before the first advent. And this most positively proves that
the apostle, in the third chapter of Galatians, is speaking of individual
experience, and not of dispensational changes. There can be no Christian
experience, no faith, no justification, no righteousness, that is not an
individual matter. People are saved as individuals, and not as nations.
• 8) The strongest argument against the ceremonial law view is found in
verse 24: ‘Wherefore the law was our school-master to bring us unto Christ, that
we might be justified by faith.’ Now it is an undeniable fact that the possession
of faith led to the offering of sacrifices, and not the offering of sacrifices to
faith. ‘By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain.’… if
that [ceremonial law theory] were true, then the text would teach that no man was
justified until Christ’s first coming, which is preposterous and unscriptural….
The law must retain its office of pedagogue or task-master, until all have come to
Christ who will, and this will not be until probation closes and the Lord comes….
This promise was made to Abraham, not because of his inherent righteousness, but
because of his faith, which was accounted to him for righteousness. The promise
was confirmed in Christ, that is, none but those who exercised faith in Christ for
the forgiveness of their sins could be heirs of the promise. But forgiveness of
sins depends on repentance of sin, and repentance of sin presupposes a knowledge
of sin, and a knowledge of sin can be obtained only by the law. Therefore the law
acts as a pedagogue, overseer, or task-master, to overwhelm men with a sense of
their sin, that they may flee to Christ to be justified by faith. And this office
it must perform until all those who can be influenced to come to Christ have
come…." (Note the use of Romans 4).
On faith in the Object, rather than faith as the object
vs. Dispensationalism
• Page 36:1. "In your pamphlet (page 50) you make considerable of the words
‘the faith’ or ‘that faith,’ as though the word ‘faith’ were used in a different
sense than a personal faith in Christ. But I repeat again (1), There can be no
faith except faith in Christ. And (2) faith in Christ is a personal matter; each
one must have faith for himself. Therefore the coming of faith is to each
individual as an individual, and to not to any people as a class [or to a
dispensation]. For the same reason I cannot accept your statement that ‘the faith’
refers to ‘the whole system of truth devised by God of the salvation of men,’ and
that its coming refers to the revelation of Christ at His first advent. If that
were true, it would prove that the system of truth devised by God for the
salvation of men, was not known till Christ came, which is so evidently
unscriptural as to need no comment. The theory you hold, when traced to its
conclusion, inevitably makes God have two plans of salvation, one for people
before the coming of the Lord, and another for those after. It makes the Jews
judged by one standard, and the Gentiles."
On Justification by faith being the exegetical subject of Romans 3
• Page 38. "Galatians 3:22 says that the Scripture hath concluded or shut up
all under sin, ‘that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them
that believe.’ In the third [chapter] of Romans Paul shows that Jews and Gentiles
are alike under sin, in order to prove that ‘the righteousness of God, which is by
faith of Jesus Christ,’ may be ‘unto all and upon all them that believe; for there
is no difference; for all have sinned [historic past tense], and [continue] to
come short of the glory of God [present continuous tense]; being justified freely
[present continuous tense] through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.’ Verses
22-24. And in Romans 11:32 he states that God hath shut them all up together (both
Jews and Gentiles) in unbelief, ‘that He might have mercy upon all.’ All are in
the same bondage – all are under the law – and none can be delivered from their
prison until they come to Christ. He is the only door to freedom."
On the two covenants – matters of status before God not dispensation
• Page 39. "The law does no leave the man when he comes to Christ, but the
man’s relation to it is changed. Before he was ‘under the law,’ now he is ‘in the
law’ (Psalm 119:1) and the law is in him (Psalm 37:31). He is in Christ, who is
the personification of the law, and in Him he is made the righteousness of God. 2
Corinthians 5:21."
• Page 40:3-41:2. "[Quoting GB]. "Here you yourself admit the charge which I
have brought against your theory, namely, that it virtually makes two plans of
salvation. If the ‘great system of justification by faith’ was not reached till
the cross of Christ, pray tell me whether anybody was ever justified before Christ
came, and if so, how? My reading of the Bible convinces me that ‘the great system
of justification by faith’ was known as soon as sin entered the world. I read that
‘by faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he
obtained witness that he was righteous.’ Hebrews 11:4. And in Psalms 32:1, 2;
68:6, 13; Isaiah 1:18, 53:10, 11; 55:6, 7; Habakkuk 2:4, and scores of similar
texts, I find the clearest reference to the great system of justification by
faith…. I have never seen a man with so much knowledge of God that he could not
study with profit the words of David and Isaiah concerning justification by
faith…."
• Page 41:2. "After the battles we have had to wage with Campbellites
concerning the value of the Old Testament Scriptures, and the unity and
universality of God’s plan of salvation, it seems almost incredible that anyone
should be called on to defend, against Seventh-day Adventists, the idea that the
well-informed Jew had a full knowledge of Christ, and was justified only through
faith."
On the human nature of Christ and ‘original sin’
Pages 43-48. Waggoner argues that to be "under the law" always means to be "under
the condemnation of the law." He protests George Butler’s citation of
lexicographer Greenfield (turned commentator) as an authority that "under the law"
in Galatians 4:4 means "subject to the law." Waggoner wrote, "Seventh-day
Adventists, of all people in the world, ought to be free from dependence upon the
mere opinion of men. They should be Protestants indeed, testing everything by the
Bible alone" (44:1).
Galatians 4:4-5: "But when the fullness of the time came, God sent for the His
Son,
having become of a woman, having become under law, that those under law He might
redeem, that the adoption of sons we may receive" (from the Greek).
George Butler took great exception in his assessment of E. J. Waggoner’s
understanding of Gal. 4:4. Butler wrote, "That He did voluntarily take the sins of
the world upon Him in His great sacrifice upon the cross, we admit; but He was not
born under it condemnation. Of Him that was pure, and had never committed a sin in
His life, it would be an astonishing perversion of all proper theology to say He
was born under the condemnation of God’s law" (Butler, The Law in Galatians, p.
58). Waggoner retorted by quoting John 1:1, 14; Rom. 8:3; Phil. 2: 5-7; Heb. 2:9;
Rom. 1:3, Heb. 2:16, 17 to show that Christ really became a human being. He cited
II Cor. 5:21 ‘made Him to be sin for us’ as parallel to Gal. 4:4. He cited Isa.
53:4 about Him bearing "our griefs and sorrows" and even cited Ps. 51:5 to show
that David, an ancestor of Jesus, had a sinful nature.
• Page 46:5. "It may be a perversion of all proper theology, but it is exactly
in harmony with the Bible, and that is the main point. Can you not see that your
objection lies just as much against your position as against mine? You are shocked
at the idea that Jesus was born under the condemnation of the law, because He
never committed a sin in His life. But you admit that on the cross He was under
the condemnation of the law. What! Had He then committed sin? Not by any means."
Now concerning the question at which Waggoner seems at first to hesitate: When he
asserted "that Christ was born under the condemnation of the law" (46:5; 47:3),
did he mean
• 1) Christ was ‘born under the law’s condemnation’ becoming our Sin-Bearer
because He became a human being
OR
• 2) Christ was ‘born under the law’s condemnation’ becoming our Sin-Bearer
because our sins were imputed to Him, the opposite of justification by faith.
One of these options is indeed a perversion and a falsehood, but the other is
splendid Bible truth. Whatever he taught in later years, in 1888, Ellet J.
Waggoner gave the only Biblical answer:
• Page 47:2. "Again; why was Jesus baptized? He said that it was ‘to fulfill
all righteousness.’ We may not say that it was simply as an example; for that
would be really denying the vicarious nature of the atonement. It must have been
for the same reason that He died, namely, for sin. Not His own sin, but ours; for
as in His death, so in His life, our sins were counted as His. And thus it is that
He could be all His life, even from His birth, under the condemnation of the law.
It was not on His own account, but on ours."
Nowhere in Scripture is it taught that Christ became our Sin-Bearer because He was
born in our humanity. For He who was "holy, harmless, undefiled, having been
separated from sinners" (Heb. 7: 26), whose humanity is described as that "holy
thing" in Luke’s gospel, was never born as we are with "the carnal mind which is
enmity against God" (Rom. 8:7). He is able to "suffer with our weaknesses" because
he has "been tempted in all respects according to [our] likeness apart from sin"
(Heb. 4: 15, Greek). He was never a sinner by nature as we are. The description of
the human race in Romans 3:1-23 was not a description of the Lamb without blemish.
As in the Gospel "is revealed the righteousness of God from faith to
faith...[that] the one righteous by faith shall live" (Rom. 1:16-17) so also in it
"is revealed [the] wrath of God from heaven against all impiety and
unrighteousness of men" (Rom. 1:18); "for all have sinned and continue to fall
short [present continuous] of the glory of God" (Rom. 3:23); "the many were
constituted sinners" (Rom. 5:19); even the truly converted whose minds have been
renewed to serve God, discover the inward battle of that "sin indwelling within
me....the sin dwelling in me. I find then the law that when I would do good that
evil is present with me...the law of sin, the one being in my members" (Rom. 7:17-
23); "if we say we have no sin [present tense] we deceive ourselves and the truth
is not in us" (I John 1:8); "for in many ways we all offend [stumble]" (present
tense, James 3:2); "the carnal mind is enmity against God" (this is precisely what
we inherit; Rom. 8:7); "conceived in sin, shapen in inquity" (Ps. 51:5); "the
wicked are estranged from the womb, they stray from the belly, speaking lies" (Ps.
58:3); "by nature children of wrath" (Eph. 2:3); "For I know you will surely
betray and trespass, from the womb you were called such" (Isa. 48:8); "the heart
is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked" (Jer. 17:9); "all evil is
from within…defiles the man" (Mark 7:18-23); "the day you were born… I saw you
squirming in your blood…. I said, Live!" (Ez. 16:6); "who can bring a clean out of
an unclean thing, not one" (Job 14:4); "every man is tempted from within, tempted
by his own lusts…" (James 1:13-15). All these show that it is by nature that we
are sinners, condemned by the eternal Law of a holy God, and not only by our
deliberate commissions or omissions. None of these were ever true of Jesus Christ.

Christ became our Sin-Bearer, condemned on our behalf, only through imputation,
i.e., because our sins were reckoned as His: "the LORD has laid on Him the
iniquity of us all …. He was reckoned with the transgressors; and He bore the sin
of the many, and made intercession for the transgressors" (Isa. 53: 12). "He made
Him to be sin on our behalf Who knew no sin" (II Cor. 5: 21). "Then said He unto
them, ‘But now, he that has a purse, let him take [it], and likewise [his] wallet:
and he that has no sword, let him sell his garment, and buy one. For I say unto
you, that what has been written must be fulfilled in Me, And with the lawless He
was reckoned: for the thing concerning Me has a fulfillment’" (Luke 22: 36-37).
"Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; He has put [Him] to grief: when You shall
make His soul an offering for sin" (Isa. 53:10). Only thus could He "carried up
our sins in His body onto the tree" (I Pet. 2:24) because He received the full
curse of sin and death within because of an outside-of-Himself sin reckoned as
His. Even so, by faith alone we receive the full blessing of life and
righteousness within, because of an outside-of-ourselves Righteousness reckoned as
ours(Isa. 53; Rom. 3-4; Ps. 32:1).
On E. J. Waggoner’s main desire in writing
• Page 52:2. "I have written this brief review, as I did my articles in the
Signs, with the desire to vindicate the law of God, and to show its perpetuity,
its binding claims upon all mankind, and the beautiful harmony between it and the
gospel. The law of God is the groundwork of all our faith. It may be said to be
the backbone of the Third Angel’s Message."
Ecclesia Reformata Semper Reformanda
On the ‘Reformed Church Ever Reforming’
Ellet J. Waggoner saw himself as helping to recover the faith once delivered so
gloriously to the saints in the 1st century AD and recovered so mightily in the
16th century. On the subject of the law and the gospel in the book of Galatians,
he declared the need for reform. His words still ring true for us as a people
today on our need to more fully grasp the Gospel in its New Testament, apostolic,
Day of Atonement context. In 1888, Ellet J. Waggoner stood with Ellen White as a
Protestant Reformer to the Advent people:
• Page 52:3. "I know you will say that it will be a humiliating thing to
modify our position on so vital a point as this, right in the face of the enemy.
But if a general has a faulty position, I submit that it is better to correct it,
even in the face of the enemy, than to run the risk of defeat because of his
faulty position. But I do not see anything humiliating in the matter. If our
people should to-day, as a body (as they will sometime), change their view on this
point, it would simply be an acknowledgment that they are better informed to-day
than they were yesterday. It would simply be taking an advance step, which is
never humiliating except to those whose pride of opinion will not allow them to
admit that they can be wrong. It would simply be a step nearer the faith of the
great Reformers from the days of Paul to the days of Luther and Wesley. It would
be a step closer to the heart of the Third Angel's Message. I do not regard this
view which I hold as a new idea at all. It is not a new theory of doctrine.
Everything that I have taught is perfectly in harmony with the fundamental
principles of truth which have been held not only by our people, but by all the
eminent reformers. And so I do not take any credit to myself for advancing it. All
I claim for the theory is, that it is consistent, because it sticks to the
fundamental principles of the gospel. (1)
Concluding remarks on the overwhelming centrality of Justification by faith
• Page 53:1-2. "Before I close, I cannot refrain form expressing my regret to
see in your book (on page 78) the expression, ‘the much-vaunted
doctrineofjustification by faith.’ Do you know of any other means of
justification? Your words seem to intimate that you think that doctrine has been
overestimated. Of one thing I am certain, and that is, that those who have held to
the theory of the law, which you are endeavoring to uphold, have not overestimated
the doctrine of justification by faith; because that theory leads inevitably to
the conclusion that men are justified by the law. But when I read Romans 3:28, and
read also that Paul knew nothing among the Corinthians but Jesus Christ and Him
crucified, and that ‘the just shall live by faith,’ and that ‘this is the victory
that overcometh the world, even our faith’ (1 John 5:4), and that Paul wanted to
be found [in Him] when Jesus comes, having nothing but ‘the righteousness which is
of God by faith’ (Philippians 3:9), I conclude that it is impossible to
overestimate the doctrine of justification by faith. You may call it a ‘much-
vaunted’ if you please; I accept the word, and say with Paul: ‘God forbid that I
should glory [or vaunt], save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the
world is crucified to me, and I unto the world.’
• "Hoping that you will read this letter in the spirit in which it was
written, and that you will believe that I have written it with only the utmost
good-feeling and brotherly love for you personally, and praying that God will
guide both of us and all His people to the most perfect knowledge of the truth as
it is in Jesus, I remain your brother in Christ, E. J. WAGGONER."
Comparison of E. J. Waggoner’s position in 1888 with that of the Protestant
Reformation:
Topic Protestant Reformation Waggoner’s position in 1888
Justification by faith (i.e. 'righteousness by faith')
The pardon and righteousness reckoned to all who believe
• grasped by faith alone "without works" (Rom. 4:1-8)
• Christ’s life & death reckoned ours continuously not just for past sins but
for our present ‘coming short’ (Rom. 3:24-28; 4:8; 8:1, 31-39; Heb. 7:25) The
pardon and righteousness reckoned to all who believe
• grasped by faith (not as clear on "without works")
• Christ’s righteousness reckoned ours mostly for past sins (EJW like fellow
SDAs not clear on the ‘present continuous’ nature of justification)
Nature of the Atonement Substitutionary Substitutionary
Sanctification = "fruit of the Spirit" [in] love, obedience, and good works; to
be "completed in you until the day of Jesus Christ" (Gal. 5: 22-23; Phil. 1: 6)
= love and obedience (less explicit on the nature of the work of the Holy
Spirit in sanctification)
Centrality of Justification by faith "the article of the standing and falling
church" (Luther); "the principal hinge of religion" (Calvin) "impossible to
overestimate" (Waggoner)
Nature of faith Faith in the Object, Christ (because faith is without merit or
virtue in itself)
Not faith as the object, love (as held by the Medieval church) Faith in the
Object, Christ
Nature of sin
Explicitly and Biblically: Not only what we do but what we are More
implicitly: Not only what we do but what we are (not as clear on the nature of
sin)
Human nature of Christ Like us in all things, sin excepted Like us in all things,
sin excepted (although not as clearly articulated)
Christ as our Sin-Bearer By imputation only By imputation only
Old & New Covenants A matter of status before God not dispensation (sinners
justified by faith alone in the OT also) A matter of status before God not
dispensation (sinners justified by faith in the OT also)
The Covenant to Abraham = the Gospel = the Gospel
Law in Galatians Both but especially the moral law Only the moral law
Justification by faith in its NT-apostolic, eschatological Day of Atonement
context (Rom. 1-3; Hebrews; John 12; 16; Rev. 12, etc.) Not fully recovered:
Sensed a connection with acquittal in the final judgment, but not the full
significance or consequences Not fully recovered: Sensed its connection with 3rd
Angel’s message but not the full significance or consequences
________________________________________
At the gate
Francis S. Greene
(25 October 1989)
There came two men to heaven, and at its splendid gate
They answered, each man for himself, the Keeper of their fate.
The Searcher there of hidden hearts, Who for each seeker yearned,
Gave test to all their source of trust and all their souls had learned.
"What claim for your redemption can grant you entrance here?
How do you qualify to walk where holy angels fear?"
The first man said, "My life is clean! Behold me, void of sin.
This did the Christ within my life, that I might enter in.
All holy, harmless, undefiled, and such a one as He.
All praise to Him, who fashioned thus a miracle like me!"
The candidate who followed next then stood before his Lord
To answer Him whose holy voice was as a two-edg’d sword.
"What offering do you present? Do you have Heaven's key?
No flesh can come with empty hands. Where is your gift to Me?"
"I have no gift to make Thee, Lord," the second softly said.
"All good appearing in my life, Christ wrought it in my stead.
He wove the very robe I wear, and made my eyes to see
That there is not a scrap of good belonging unto me.
Therefore, my ransom is His blood; in it I rest my fate.
I claim Thy Christ as entrance, Lord, for Jesus is my Gate."
To whom did Heaven open wide? The answer's clear to see:
No flesh shall be self-justified, and none can buy what’s free.
________________________________________
Appendix I
A brief compilation of clear statements on Justification by faith
Martin Luther & the Reformers Ellen White & Seventh-day Adventists
• "God accounts and acknowledges him as righteous without any works who
apprehends His Son by faith alone….This, then, is the amazing definition of
Christian righteousness. It is the divine imputing or accounting for righteousness
or unto righteousness because of faith in Christ or for Christ’s sake" (D. Martin
Luthers Werke, Vol. III, p. 1229).
• "It is faith alone that achieves this that all sins are remitted to us and
that the whole Decalogue is fulfilled by faith, because faith alone gives me
Christ, who is the fulfillment and the end [telos completion] of the law. What
else does faith give? It imparts and brings with it the Holy Spirit, from whom all
good works flow" (D. Martin Luthers Werke, Kuitische Gesamtausgabe [Weimar,
1883-], Vol. XXXIX, Pt. 1, p. 482).
• "But the doctrine of Justification is this, that we are pronounced righteous
and are saved solely by faith in Christ, and without works. . . . it immediately
follows that we are pronounced righteous neither through monasticism nor through
vows nor through masses nor through any other works. . . ." (Martin Luther,
Lectures on Galatians, 1535).
• ‘The article of Justification, which is our only protection, not only
against all the powers and plottings of men but also against the gates of hell, is
this: By faith alone [sola fide] in Christ, without works, we are declared just
[pronuntiari iustos] and saved’ (Martin Luther, comp. E. M. Plass, What Luther
Says, 2: 701).
• ‘Therefore a man can with confidence boast in Christ and say: ‘Mine are
Christ’s living, doing, and speaking, his suffering and dying, mine as much as if
I had lived, done, spoken, suffered, and died as He did’ (Martin Luther, Luther’s
Works, 31: 297).
• "… the obedience of Christ is imputed to us for righteousness. That glory
cannot be taken away from Christ and transferred to either our renewal or our
obedience without blasphemy" (Martin Chemnitz, 1522-1586; Examination of the
Council of Trent, Pt. 1, pp. 490-491; cf. Rom. 10: 4).
• "Justifying righteousness is the doing and suffering of Christ when He was
in the world. This is clear because we are…justified by His obedience… (Rom. 5:19;
10:4). This righteousness resides in and with the person of Christ; it is of
justifying virtue only by imputation, i.e. by God’s reckoning it to us, even as
our sins made the Lord Jesus a sinner…by God’s reckoning it to Him" (John Bunyan,
Justification by an Imputed Righteousness, a sermon; 17th century).
• "…if we are justified on the grounds of the work of the Holy Spirit in us,
we are called to rest on a work, which, so far from being finished and accepted,
is not even begun in the case of any unrenewed sinner; and which, when it is begun
in the case of a believer, is incipient only…marred and defiled by remaining sin…
and never perfected in this life" (J. Buchanan, The Doctrine of Justification, p.
402). • "Christ was a Protestant…. Luther and his followers did not
invent the reformed religion. They simply accepted it as presented by Christ and
the apostles" (Ellen White, ‘Visit to the Vaudois Valleys,’ Review and Herald, 06-
01-86).
• "The great doctrine of justification by faith, so clearly taught by Luther,
had been almost wholly lost sight of…[England, 18th c.]" (Ellen White, The Great
Controversy, p. 253).
• "The point which has been urged upon my mind for years is the imputed
righteousness of Christ. I have wondered that this matter was not made the subject
of discourses in our churches throughout the land, when the matter has been kept
constantly urged upon me, and I have made it the subject of nearly every discourse
and talk that I have given to the people. (Ellen White, MS 36 1890 cited in Faith
and Works, p. 18).
• "The believing sinner is pronounced innocent, while the guilt is placed on
Christ. The righteousness of Christ is placed on the debtor's account, and against
his name on the balance sheet is written: Pardoned. Eternal Life" (Ellen White,
RH, 08-24-1897).
• "Through His imputed righteousness they are accepted of God as keeping all
His commandments" (Ellen White, TM 37).
• "Righteousness without a blemish can be obtained only through the imputed
righteousness of Christ" (Ellen White, RH, 9-3-01).
• "Let not the fallacies of Satan deceive you; you are justified by faith
alone …. but genuine faith… bring[s] forth the fruits of the Spirit." (Ellen
White, Signs of the Times, 03-24-90).
• "They [sinners] are justified alone through the imputed righteousness of
Christ" (Ellen White, Mss. Rel., Vol. 8, p. 255).
• "Christ only is the way, the truth, the life; and man can be justified alone
through the imputation of Christ’s righteousness. Man is justified freely by God’s
grace through faith, and not by works, lest any man should boast. Salvation is the
gift of God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Many have felt their hopeless
condition, and have asked in perplexity, ‘How shall we gain … the world to come?
Earth lies under the curse, and is doomed to destruction; how shall we be able to
enter the city of God?’ We would point you to Christ, the way, the truth, the life
– the mystic ladder between heaven and earth" (Ellen White, RH, 11-11-1890)
• "…What is the ground of our acceptance; And we reply that it is not our
righteousness, nor our humility, nor contrition, nor tears, nor repentance, nor
anything that the Holy Spirithaswrought in us, but what Christ has done for us"
(John Brunson, RH, 12 August 1902).
• "When the sinner believes that Christ is his personal Saviour, then,
according to his unfailing promises, God pardons his sin, and justifies him
freely. The repentant soul realizes that his justification comes because Christ,
as his substitute and surety, has died for him, is his atonement and
righteousness" (Ellen White, RH, 11-04-1890).
________________________________________

References & Notes

Buchanan, J. (1867). The Doctrine of Justification: An Outline of its History in
the Church and of its Exposition from Scripture. Carlisle, PA: The Banner of Truth
Trust (1961, 1984, 1991, 1997). One of the finest works ever on Justification by
faith. Clearly elucidates a Biblical position on the Covenants, showing that
believers in the Old Testament were also justified by faith alone in the imputed
righteousness of Christ who was yet to come.
Bunyan, J. "Justification by an Imputed Righteousness." For the full text of John
Bunyan's timeless sermon on justification by faith.
Chemnitz, M. (1522-1586). Examination of the Council of Trent, Part 1. St. Louis,
MO: Concordia Publishing House (1971). A systematic evaluation of the teachings of
the Council of Trent in the light of Scripture and history by a leading Protestant
Reformer of the 16th cenutry. One of the best works on the doctrinal issues of the
Protestant Reformation.
The General Conference Daily Bulletin (October 17 – November 2, 1888). Battle
Creek, MI: The Review and Herald Publishing Association. Primary, albeit brief,
historical evidence for what E. J. Waggoner actually taught at the pivotal 1888
General Conference.
McMahon, D. (1979). Ellet Joseph Waggoner: The Myth and the Man (The full text
online). Fallbrook, CA: Verdict Publications. An evaluation of the tenor and
development of E. J. Waggoner's teachings from 1882 to his death in 1916 in the
light of the NT-Reformation teaching of justification by faith alone. Contains
probably the most comprehensive bibliography of Waggoner's works available.
Waggoner, E. J. (1888, December). The Gospel in the book of Galatians: A Review.
Oakland, CA: Pacific Press Publishing Association. Definitive, primary historical
evidence on what E. J. Waggoner actually taught in 1888.
White, E. G. (1888-1915). The 1888 materials. Washington, DC: The Ellen G. White
Estate (1987). Collected letters and manuscripts relating to the 1888 General
Conference and its aftermath. This collection especially highlights the need to
accept justification by faith and be sanctified by the truth in our solemn time.
Ellen White strongly endorsed the necessity of reform and being open to the
leadings of the Holy Spirit into all truth, i.e., Ecclesia Reformata Semper
Reformanda.