John in Exile
53
Sin is the transgression of God’s law, and the penalty of sin is death.
There would have been no discord in heaven or in the earth if sin had
never entered. Disobedience to God’s law has brought all the misery
that has existed among His creatures. Why will not men be reconciled
to God?
It is no light matter to sin against God, to set the perverse will of
man in opposition to the will of his Maker. It is for the best interest
of men, even in this world, to obey God’s commandments. And it is
surely for their eternal interest to submit to God, and be at peace with
Him. The beasts of the field obey their Creator’s law in the instinct
which governs them. He speaks to the proud ocean, “Hitherto shalt
thou come, but no further” (
Job 38:11
); and the waters are prompt to
obey His word. The planets are marshaled in perfect order, obeying
the laws which God has established. Of all the creatures that God
has made upon the earth, man alone is rebellious. Yet he possesses
reasoning powers to understand the claims of the divine law and a
conscience to feel the guilt of transgression and the peace and joy of
obedience. God made him a free moral agent, to obey or disobey. The
reward of everlasting life—an eternal weight of glory—is promised
to those who do God’s will, while the threatenings of His wrath hang
over all who defy His law.
The Majesty of God
As John meditated upon the glory of God displayed in His works,
he was overwhelmed with the greatness and majesty of the Creator.
[77]
Should all the inhabitants of this little world refuse obedience to God,
He would not be left without glory. He could sweep every mortal from
the face of the earth in a moment, and create a new race to people it
and glorify His name. God is not dependent on man for honor. He
could marshal the starry hosts of heaven, the millions of worlds above,
to raise a song of honor and praise and glory to their Creator. “The
heavens shall praise thy wonders, O Lord: thy faithfulness also in the
congregation of the saints. For who in the heaven can be compared
unto the Lord? who among the sons of the mighty can be likened unto
the Lord? God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints, and
to be had in reverence of all them that are about him” (
Psalm 89:5-7
).