Bible Handbook Study

Righteousness by Faith

A Bible handbook study

June 17, 2026 20 sections 45k words KJV throughout

Thesis. What sin lost was the IMAGE of God in man (Gen. 1:26; Gen. 5:3) — His glory, His name, His character (Exo. 33-34); and with it His presence (Isa. 59:2) and the life that comes from Him (Eze. 18:20). The Law is an image of God (God is love — 1 John 4:8 — and the law is love's standard), so the schoolmaster shows us the image we have marred. Christ is the EXPRESS image (Heb. 1:3) and the Life (John 14:6); He took our nature, was tempted in all points yet without sin (Heb. 4:15), and came to restore the image. By beholding His glory we are changed into the same image (2 Cor. 3:18), and truth is the sanctifier (John 17:17). The sanctuary is the structure of that restoration: Christ is the Ladder, the Gate, the House of God (John 1:51; John 10:9; 1 Chr. 28:10), and its three compartments are Justification, Sanctification, and Glorification.

Method. After Haskell's Bible Handbook: every line is ref → gloss, Bible and pioneer/EGW alike. Each passage is walked, and every symbol is defined the first time it appears — symbol = meaning, with the Scripture receipts that prove it (Miller's Rule 12: let the Bible define its own figures); later sections reference the owning section by title. Every section closes with the DEFINITION the verses built; the appendix gathers every symbol into one dictionary. The cloud of witnesses is the pioneers (esp. Waggoner and Jones of 1888) and Ellen White, each verified against the local corpus.

Part I — The Image, the Law, the Life

1. The Image of God, and What Sin Lost

Man was made in the image of God; that image is God's glory, His name, His character — and what sin lost was not three things but one, for the lost presence and the forfeited life both stem from the marred image.

Man made in the image — Gen. 1:26-27; 5:1, 3; 9:6:

The image is God's glory — His name — His character — Exo. 33:18-20; 34:5-7:

Sin lost the image — and with it the presence and the life — Isa. 59:2; Eze. 18:4, 20; Rom. 3:23:

Only the Creator can restore what sin lost — Heb. 1:3; Col. 3:10; 2 Cor. 3:18; John 1:1:

DEFINITION — THE IMAGE OF GOD, AND WHAT SIN LOST = man was created in the image of God (Gen. 1:26-27; Gen. 5:1, 3) — His likeness reproduced in a creature, the standard being God's own moral character. Exodus 33-34 fixes the master-equation: the glory Moses asked to see is "all my goodness," which is "the name of the LORD," which is the proclaimed list of attributes — glory = name = character = the image (Exo. 33:18-19; 34:5-7; AG 322.2). What sin lost is therefore not three separable things but one: the marred image (Ed 15.2; PP 595.2) is the root, from which follow the lost presence — the hidden face (Isa. 59:2) — and the lost life — death (Eze. 18:4, 20); to sin is to "come short of the glory of God" (Rom. 3:23). What man cannot recover by striving (SC 49.1), the Creator restores: Christ, the express image (Heb. 1:3; John 1:1), re-creates the marred likeness (DA 37.3; CIS 104.3), and the method is beholding His glory until we are "changed into the same image" (2 Cor. 3:18; Col. 3:10). This is the spine of the whole handbook: IMAGE lost → restored.

Symbols defined here:

Symbols carried: none — this is the opening section that establishes the IMAGE thread (image of God = glory = name = character) carried by every section that follows.

2. The Law — an Image of God

Walk the law down to its root and it collapses into one word: love; and "God is love" — so the law is a drawn likeness of God Himself, and sin is whatever mars that likeness.

Do the law and live — Lev. 18:5; Luke 10:25-28:

The law summed to two principles — Matt. 22:36-40:

Two principles to one — love — Rom. 13:8-10; James 2:8:

God IS love — so the law is His image — 1 John 4:8, 16:

Sin = transgression of the law — and Christ pushes it inward — 1 John 3:4; Matt. 5:

The law is the schoolmaster — Gal. 3:24-26:

DEFINITION — THE LAW — AN IMAGE OF GOD = the law = love = God; therefore the law is the written transcript, the photograph, the drawn likeness of God's character (COL 305.3; GC 467.1; SC 60.2; WOR 42.5). Walk it down: "this do, and thou shalt live" (Lev. 18:5; Luke 10:28) summarizes to two principles — love God, love neighbour (Matt. 22:36-40) — which compress to one: love, the royal law, the fulfilling of the law (Rom. 13:8-10; James 2:8; 1 John 5:3). And "God is love" (1 John 4:8, 16), so to keep the law whole is to wear His likeness, and life follows. Sin is the transgression of that law (1 John 3:4), which Christ drives inward (Matt. 5:21-22, 27-28, 48): not the outward act only but anger, lust, any thought that mars the image of God is transgression — for offend in one point and the whole likeness is broken (James 2:10-11). The law is the schoolmaster that exposes the marred image and brings us to Christ to have it restored (Gal. 3:24-26; see "Christ — the Express Image of God").

Symbols defined here:

Symbols carried: image of God / character of God (see "What Was Lost — the Image of God"); sin = the marring of that image (see "What Was Lost — the Image of God"); Christ the express image, the living law (see "Christ — the Express Image of God"); the law as mirror (see "The Mirror of the Law").

3. Christ — the Express Image, the Life

The image lost in man (see "The Image of God — What Was Lost") is restored only through One who IS it: Christ is the express image of God and the Life — to see Him is to see the Father, and to know Him is life eternal.

Christ names Himself the Life — John 14:6; 11:25; 1:4:

The Life is given to us, and only in the Son — 1 John 5:11-12; John 10:10:

Christ is the express image and the brightness of His glory — Heb. 1:3; Col. 1:15; 2 Cor. 4:4:

To see Christ is to have seen the Father — John 14:7-9; 12:45; 1:18; Matt. 11:27:

To know Him is the Life; and the knowing restores the image — John 17:3; 2 Cor. 3:18:

DEFINITION — CHRIST — THE EXPRESS IMAGE, THE LIFE = Jesus Christ is the Life (John 14:6; 11:25) — the eternal, original, underived life that is the exclusive property of God, held in the Son as in the Father (John 1:4; 5:26; DA 530.3; 5BC 1130.3; CHR 22.1) — and He is the express image of God, the brightness of His glory, the exact engraved likeness of the Father's person and character (Heb. 1:3; Col. 1:15; 2 Cor. 4:4; 1SM 264.2; 8T 268.2). Because He is that image, to see Him is to have seen the Father and to know Him is to know God (John 14:7-9; 12:45; 1:18; Matt. 11:27; ST June 9, 1890). And because life eternal is to know God (John 17:3) and beholding the image changes us into it (2 Cor. 3:18; COL 355.1), His coming "that they might have life" (John 10:10) IS His coming to restore the defaced image of God in man (RH May 8, 1894; CT 49.3). The Life given and the image restored are one act.

Symbols defined here:

Symbols carried: image / likeness of God ("The Image of God — What Was Lost").

4. The Nature of Christ — Tempted in All Points

Walk the witnesses on one question (let Scripture define its own figures): in what flesh did the Son of God come? — He took OUR nature, the seed of David in its fallen condition, was tempted in all points like as we are, yet without sin; and whether sin can be overcome at all hangs on the answer.

He was MADE flesh, of the seed of David and of Abraham — John 1:14; Rom 1:3; Heb 2:14, 16:

In the LIKENESS of sinful flesh — not a simulation, but the real flesh — Rom 8:3-4; Phil 2:7-8:

Tempted in ALL points like as we are, yet without sin — Heb 4:15-16; 2:17-18; 5:8-9:

Real risk, real victory — He took humanity WITH the possibility of failure — DA 117.2; DA 49.1; DA 311.5:

Why the flesh could be ours while the life stayed sinless — the battle is in the MIND, not the flesh — 1 Cor 15:45; Phil 2:5; Eze 18:20:

The Spirit confessing Christ come in the flesh — the test of doctrine — 1 John 4:2-3:

The pattern and the promise — 1 Pet 2:21-22; Rev 3:21:

DEFINITION — THE NATURE OF CHRIST — TEMPTED IN ALL POINTS = the Son of God was MADE flesh (John 1:14), made of the seed of David and Abraham (Rom 1:3; Heb 2:16), in the likeness of sinful flesh (Rom 8:3) — that is, the very fallen human nature all men wear, "in its deteriorated condition," weakened by four thousand years of sin (1SM 253.1; DA 49), taken with all its liabilities and the real possibility of failure (DA 117.2; DA 49.1) — yet "in the least" not participating in its sin (1SM 256.1), tempted in all points like as we are, yet without sin (Heb 4:15). This is possible because man is body AND mind, not matter only: guilt is not a substance bred in the flesh (Eze 18:20), and "the flesh of itself cannot act contrary to the will of God" (AH 127.2) — sin is the soul's variance from God's expressed will (MB 51.3). So Christ could take our fallen flesh and keep a sinless mind; the prince of this world found NOTHING in Him (John 14:30; GC 623.1), because no cherished desire was harboured to give temptation its foothold. Therefore the battle is in the heart, not the flesh — and what was lost in Eden and is restored by Him is "the original mind" (7BC 926.4). To deny He came in this flesh is the spirit of antichrist (1 John 4:2-3). "He took our nature and overcame, that we through taking His nature might overcome" (DA 311.5): the same victory He won is granted to him that overcometh, "even as I also overcame" (Rev 3:21) — and this is the ground on which sin CAN be overcome by faith, the engine of the whole plan (see "Christ — the Express Image, the Life," "The Laver — Power to Overcome").

Symbols defined here:

Symbols carried: the express image, the Life (defined in "Christ — the Express Image, the Life"); the image of God, glory / name / character (defined in "The Image of God, and What Sin Lost"); the flesh finally changed at the second advent (carried forward to "The Most Holy Place — Glorification").

5. Beholding We Are Changed — Truth the Sanctifier

Look at the glory and you become it; the truth that shows the glory is the sanctifier, and that truth is the Word, which is Christ — so to feed on the Word is to feed on Him.

The law of the gaze — 2 Cor. 3:18:

What we behold is the character — Ex. 33:18; 34:6-7:

The truth is what sanctifies — John 17:17:

Man lives by the Word — Deut. 8:3; Matt. 4:4:

The Word is Jesus — John 1:1, 14:

Eat His flesh, drink His blood — John 6:53-54, 63:

To eat is to know Him — John 17:3:

The Word does the work — Heb. 4:12; 1 Pet. 1:23; Jer. 15:16; Ps. 119:11:

DEFINITION — BEHOLDING WE ARE CHANGED — TRUTH THE SANCTIFIER = the upward channel that restores the lost image. The soul takes the character of whatever it steadily contemplates (2 Cor. 3:18; COL 355.1; SA 179.1); what is to be contemplated is the glory of God, which is His character (Ex. 33:18; 34:6-7; 8T 322.1), shown in the face of Christ, the express image (Heb. 1:3). The instrument of that change is truth — the revealed character of God in His Word, which sanctifies (John 17:17; John 8:32; 1SM 318.2). And the Word is a Person: "the Word was God... made flesh" (John 1:1, 14; CHR 8.2; EVCO 243.2), so man lives "by every word" (Deut. 8:3; Matt. 4:4), and to eat His flesh and drink His blood is to receive His self-interpreting words — to behold, to feed, and so to KNOW Him, which is life eternal (John 6:53-54, 63; John 17:3; DA 389.3; LOF_ATJ 73.2). Beholding = eating = knowing = becoming. The Word eaten is living and does the work itself (Heb. 4:12; 1 Pet. 1:23).

Symbols defined here:

Symbols carried: the image of God / the glory / the character ("What Was Lost — the Image of God"); the express image ("Christ the Express Image — the Life That Restores"); the Table of Shewbread, the daily eating, sanctification ("The Holy Place — Sanctification"); the new birth by the living seed ("The Outer Courtyard — Justification").

6. Two Things to Be Dealt With — Death and Separation

Before the sanctuary can mean anything, name the two facts it answers: man is under a death-penalty he must pay, and a gulf of separation stands fixed between him and God that no effort of his can cross. Death and the gulf — these are the two things to be dealt with.

The sentence is death — Gen. 2:17; Ezek. 18:4, 20:

Man must die a slave — Rom. 6:6-7, 16, 20-23:

The gulf is fixed — Isa. 59:1-2; Hab. 1:13; Luke 16:26:

Dead in sins, and reconciled — Eph. 2:1, 5; Col. 1:20-21; 2:13; 2 Cor. 5:18-20:

The bridge: a ladder, a gate — Gen. 28:12-17; John 1:51; John 10:9:

Why a sanctuary at all — Exo. 25:8:

DEFINITION — TWO THINGS TO BE DEALT WITH — DEATH AND SEPARATION = the two facts the sanctuary exists to answer. (1) DEATH — the law's wage on the sinner, a debt justice demands be paid (Gen. 2:17; Ezek. 18:4, 20; Rom. 6:23; 1SM 308.1); man is a slave of sin whose only exit is to die (Rom. 6:6-7, 16, 20-21). (2) SEPARATION — the impassable gulf sin fixed between man and God, opened by His holiness, severing communion and cutting earth off from heaven (Isa. 59:2; Hab. 1:13; Luke 16:26; COL 269.3; SC 20.1). The two are one wound seen twice: to be cut off from God, the fountain of life, is to be dead (MB 61.2). Both are answered at the cross — the death paid (penalty) and the gulf bridged (reconciliation, Rom. 5:8, 10; Col. 1:20-21; 2 Cor. 5:18-20) — figured by Jacob's ladder, which Christ claims as Himself (Gen. 28:12-17; John 1:51; John 10:9; DA 311.5; 1SM 261.1). And the whole reason both must be dealt with is Exo. 25:8: God desires to dwell among men (DA 23.3).

Symbols defined here:

Symbols carried: the ladder / gate / door and the sanctuary-as-dwelling — defined in "Jesus = Ladder = Gate = Sanctuary"; the image of God, life, and the hidden face — defined in "What Was Lost in Sin — the Image of God"; the nature of Christ, the cross planted between humanity and divinity — defined in "The Nature of Christ — Tempted in All Points."

7. The Ladder, the Gate, the House of God — Christ the Sanctuary

Sin opened an impassable gulf; Jacob's dream names the one bridge — a ladder set on earth and reaching heaven, the gate, the house of God — and Christ takes all three names to Himself, so that Jesus = Ladder = Gate = Sanctuary, the one way God comes down to dwell with man and man goes up to God.

The gulf sin opened — Isa. 59:2:

Jacob's dream names the bridge — Gen. 28:12-17, 22:

Christ takes the ladder to Himself — John 1:51:

Christ takes the gate to Himself — John 10:7-10:

Christ is the sanctuary, the house of God — John 2:19, 21; Heb. 9:11; 10:19-20:

Therefore Jesus = Ladder = Gate = Sanctuary:

God's purpose: to dwell with us — Exo. 25:8-9:

The sanctuary reverses sin — its whole work answers the separation:

DEFINITION — THE LADDER, THE GATE, THE HOUSE OF GOD — CHRIST THE SANCTUARY = sin opened an impassable gulf, hiding God's face and cutting earth off from heaven (Isa. 59:2; SC 20.1). Jacob's dream names the one bridge across it under three names at one place — a ladder set on earth reaching heaven, the gate of heaven, and the house of God (Gen. 28:12-17, 22). Christ claims all three to Himself: the ladder (John 1:51; DA 311.5), the door (John 10:9; DA 477.3), and the temple of His body (John 2:21; Heb. 9:11; Heb. 10:19-20). Therefore Jesus = Ladder = Gate = Sanctuary — His humanity rests on earth where we are, His divinity lays hold upon the throne (19MR 338.4), and the only access to the Father is through Him (John 14:6; 1 Tim. 2:5; Eph. 2:13, 18). God's purpose in the structure is to dwell with us again (Exo. 25:8; DA 23.3; CWCP 26.1, 62.2), so the sanctuary is the appointed instrument that reverses the effects of sin and ends in God dwelling eternally with redeemed men (Rev. 21:3, 22; Eph. 2:21-22).

Symbols defined here:

Symbols carried: the gulf of separation, the lost life, and the marred image of God — defined in "The Image Lost — What Sin Took"; the two natures of the Ladder — defined in "The Nature of Christ — the Ladder Reaches the Earth."

8. The Three Compartments — Justification, Sanctification, Glorification

Build the skeleton before you hang the furniture: one sanctuary, three compartments, three stages of one salvation — Court = justified, Holy Place = sanctified, Most Holy = glorified — the very order Paul names in Romans 8:30.

God asks for a dwelling, built strictly to a heavenly pattern — Exo. 25:8-9, 40; Heb. 8:5:

The structure is three-fold: a fenced court, then two apartments divided by the veil — Exo. 27:9; 26:33; Heb. 9:1-3:

The two services keep the two stages distinct — Heb. 9:6-7; Lev. 16:16:

The veil barred the way until Christ — then opened it from court to throne — Heb. 9:8-12; 10:19-20:

Paul names the three in order; so does the gospel — Rom. 8:30; 1 Cor. 6:11; 1 Th. 5:23:

DEFINITION — THE THREE COMPARTMENTS — JUSTIFICATION, SANCTIFICATION, GLORIFICATION = the one sanctuary, built strictly to a heavenly pattern (Exo. 25:9, 40; Heb. 8:5), is divided into three — fenced court, Holy Place, Most Holy — by its hangings and the two veils (Exo. 27:9; 26:33; Heb. 9:1-3), and those three compartments map the three stages of one salvation: outer court = JUSTIFICATION (pardon and power, peace with God, where the worshipper is brought from outside in — Rom. 5:1; 1 Cor. 6:11); Holy Place = SANCTIFICATION (the daily, continual growth of the pardoned soul by Word, light, and prayer — Heb. 9:6; 1 Th. 5:23; CCh 51.2); Most Holy Place = GLORIFICATION (the unveiled presence, the final atonement, the redeemed brought home and made like Him — Heb. 9:7; Rom. 8:30; AA 320.2). The way through all three was barred under the type and thrown open by Christ's own torn flesh (Heb. 9:8-12; 10:19-20), so the road now runs unbroken from court to throne. Paul names the three in their exact order (Rom. 8:30); the rest of this study walks each piece of furniture in turn.

Symbols defined here:

Symbols carried: Jesus = Ladder = Gate = Sanctuary (see "Jesus = Ladder = Gate = Sanctuary"); pardon = justification, faith, the altar (see "The Altar of Sacrifice — Forgiveness").

Part II — The Sanctuary: Justification, Sanctification, Glorification

9. The Gate — Faith

There is one entrance into the court, and it is faith — the gift of God, the hand the soul reaches out to take hold of grace; no man comes but the Father draws him, and the drawing is the lifted-up Christ Himself.

One door, one entrance — John 10:9; Matt. 7:13; Luke 13:24:

Jesus enters at the faith He sees — Mark 2:5; Matt. 9:2; Luke 5:20:

The woman enters at the gate of faith — John 8:11:

Faith is the gift of God, not a work — Eph. 2:8-9; Rom. 12:3:

The drawing is the lifted-up Christ — John 12:32; 6:44; 6:37:

Without faith, no man pleases God — Heb. 11:6, 1; Rom. 5:1; 10:17; Hab. 2:4; Rom. 1:17:

The pioneers on the gate — faith is taking God at His word, and it obeys:

DEFINITION — THE GATE — FAITH = the single entrance into the court of salvation, the first step of justification — Christ Himself received by believing (John 10:9, "I am the door"; Matt. 7:13; Luke 13:24). It is the gift of God, not a work, dealt to every man, meriting nothing, only laying hold of the merits of Christ (Eph. 2:8-9; Rom. 12:3; 3SM 198.3; AG 315.4; 6BC 1073.7; FW 25.2). The drawing toward the gate is the lifted-up Christ on the cross, so that no man comes but the Father draws him, and none who comes is cast out (John 12:32; 6:44; 6:37; LHU 230.3; SC 27.1). It is the hand that takes hold of infinite help, and the substance of things hoped for; without it none can please God, and at it Jesus begins His work — He sees their faith, then forgives, then empowers (Mark 2:5; John 8:11; Heb. 11:1, 6; MYP 102.3). True faith is taking God at His word and obeys (LOF_ATJ 15.1; WOR 8.4).

Symbols defined here:

Symbols carried: door / Christ as the way (see "The Sanctuary — the House of God"); the forgiveness the gate opens onto (see "The Altar of Sacrifice — Forgiveness"); the power that follows (see "The Laver — Power").

10. The Altar of Sacrifice — Forgiveness

Inside the gate, the first thing the sinner meets is the altar: the Substitute already slain, the debt already paid, so that the word over him is "thy sins be forgiven thee." Faith brought him in; here the curse is lifted before he ever rises to walk.

The paralytic — the sin is dealt with before the body — Mark 2:3-12:

The woman taken in adultery — condemnation removed — John 8:3-11:

Why forgiveness costs a death — the altar and the lamb — Lev. 1; 4:29; 17:11:

Without shedding of blood, no remission — Lev. 17:11; Heb. 9:12-22:

The Substitute who pays the debt — the pioneers on the ransom:

DEFINITION — THE ALTAR OF SACRIFICE — FORGIVENESS = the second piece of outer-court furniture and the second step of Justification: having entered by the gate of faith (see "The Gate — Faith"), the sinner meets the altar, where a spotless Substitute has been slain in his stead and the guilt confessed and laid on the victim's head is lifted by the shedding of blood — "thy sins be forgiven thee" / "Neither do I condemn thee" (Mark 2:5; John 8:11). Because "the life of the flesh is in the blood" and "without shedding of blood is no remission" (Lev. 17:11; Heb. 9:22), forgiveness is never a bare word but a purchased thing: the Lamb of God taketh away the sin of the world by paying the ransom of His own life (John 1:29; CHR 70.3; 1SM 321.4). Man can make no atonement for himself; he confesses and forsakes, and by faith accepts the atonement already made (SC 37.2; 1 John 1:9). Forgiveness is never separated from power: the pardon at the altar is what makes the rising at the laver possible (see "The Laver — Power").

Symbols defined here:

Symbols carried: gate / faith ("The Gate — Faith"); laver / power, "go, and sin no more" ("The Laver — Power"); the High Priest who carries the blood within ("The Holy Place — Sanctification").

11. The Laver — Power to Overcome

The same Voice that forgives the sin gives power to leave it: at the laver the pardoned hands and feet are washed, and the man rises to walk. Healing is never severed from power — "Arise" and "go, and sin no more" are one word.

The piece itself — Ex. 30:18-21; 40:30-32:

Forgiveness and power are one word — Mark 2:9-12; Matt. 9:6:

The word "forgiven" is creative power — John 5:8-14:

"Go, and sin no more" — John 8:10-11:

The washing of regeneration — Titus 3:5; Ezek. 36:25-27; John 3:5-6:

Partakers of the divine nature — 2 Pet. 1:3-4:

DEFINITION — THE LAVER — POWER TO OVERCOME = the third and last station of the outer court: between the altar of pardon and the door of the holy place stands the brass laver, where the pardoned sinner's hands and feet are washed that he may live and walk (Ex. 30:18-21; 40:30-32). It is the gospel truth that forgiveness and power are one word — "Arise" with "thy sins be forgiven," "go, and sin no more" with "neither do I condemn thee" (Mark 2:9-12; Matt. 9:6; John 5:8-14; John 8:10-11). The word "forgiven" carries creative energy, making the man a new creature, not reforming the old (LOF_ATJ 59.2; SC 18.2; 2 Cor. 5:17). Scripture names it the washing of regeneration and the new birth of water and Spirit (Titus 3:5; Ezek. 36:25-27; John 3:5-6; Rom. 6:4), and its highest gift is to make us partakers of the divine nature, His divine power given to keep us from sinning and restore the image (2 Pet. 1:3-4; DA 24.3; COL 314.2; CCh 216.4). Healing is never separated from power: the same Voice that pardons supplies the strength to obey.

Symbols defined here:

Symbols carried: Gate (= faith) (see "The Gate — Faith"); Altar of Sacrifice (= forgiveness), the perfect Substitute (see "The Altar of Sacrifice — Forgiveness"); the IMAGE of God restored (see "The Image of God — What Was Lost").

12. Justification — Faith, Forgiveness, Power as One

The three court pieces are one act, not three transactions: Mark 2 and John 8 each run all three steps — faith, forgiveness, and power — in a single breath; justification is making-just, and the just one walks. Forgiveness without power is not justification at all.

One miracle holds all three — Mark 2:5, 9-12:

The woman taken in adultery — the same three — John 8:7, 10-11:

The faith comes from Christ lifted up — John 12:32; Eph. 2:8-9:

Justified by faith without the deeds of the law — Rom. 3:24-28; 4:5; 5:1:

Faith that works — not forgiveness without power — Gal. 5:6; Rom. 6:14; Acts 13:38-39:

No pardon while practising known sin — 1SM 366.1; 1 John 1:9:

The power is the faith of Christ Himself — Gal. 2:16, 20; Rom. 8:3-4:

The third angel's message in verity — 1SM 372.2:

DEFINITION — JUSTIFICATION — FAITH, FORGIVENESS, POWER AS ONE = justification is God's act of making a man just (Lat. justus, righteous; the Bible's making-righteous, not a bare legal label) — faith counted for righteousness (Rom. 4:5), the sin freely pardoned through the blood (Rom. 3:24-25), and power given to do the law (Rom. 8:4; DA 608.2) — the three court pieces of the Gate, the Altar, and the Laver fused into one act. Mark 2 and John 8 each run all three in a single breath (Mark 2:5, 10-12; John 8:11): faith opens, pardon speaks, the man walks. Forgiveness without power is not justification at all, for the pardoned soul that practises known sin cannot wear the righteousness (1SM 366.1); justifying faith is "faith which worketh by love" (Gal. 5:6; WOR 66.3), the very faith OF Christ living in the believer (Gal. 2:20; CWCP 26.2). This is the 1888 message — Christ's righteousness imputed as a free gift (1SM 360.1) — and it is "the third angel's message, in verity" (1SM 372.2).

Symbols defined here:

Symbols carried: faith ("The Gate — Faith"); forgiveness ("The Altar of Sacrifice — Forgiveness"); power ("The Laver — Power to Overcome"); blood ("What Is a Trumpet?"); the fallen nature Christ took and overcame ("The Nature of Christ — Tempted in All Points").

13. The Daily Walk to Heaven — Entering Sanctification

The man healed at the altar is told to "go home" — and home is up. Through the gate of the Holy Place (faith again, Heb. 11:6) the redeemed enter the narrow way: not a single crossing but a daily choosing, the lifetime walk that is sanctification.

The healed man is sent home, and the way is Christ — John 14:1-3, 6:

The gate is strait, the way is narrow — Matt. 7:13-14; Luke 13:24:

The gate of the Holy Place is faith again — Heb. 11:6:

The ladder and the gate of heaven — Gen. 28:12, 17; John 1:51:

The walk is daily — the cross taken up day by day — Luke 9:23; Matt. 16:24; 1 Cor. 15:31:

Walk in the Spirit, renewed day by day — Gal. 5:16, 25; Rom. 6:4; 2 Cor. 4:16:

Work out salvation; press toward the mark — Phil. 2:12-13; 3:13-14:

Sanctification is the work of a lifetime — CCh 51.2; COL 65.2; MYP 35.2:

The world is carried inside; the walk is not a flight from it — GTI 20.1, 20.2:

The new and living way, consecrated through the flesh — CWCP 82.2, 83.3:

DEFINITION — THE DAILY WALK TO HEAVEN — ENTERING SANCTIFICATION = the man healed and forgiven in the courtyard is sent "home" (John 14:2-3), and home is up — entered through the gate of the Holy Place, which is faith again (Heb. 11:6; LOF_ATJ 38.8). The road is the strait gate and the narrow way (Matt. 7:13-14; Luke 13:24) — Christ Himself the way and the door (John 14:6; John 10:9), the ladder Jacob saw set between earth and the throne (Gen. 28:12, 17; John 1:51). It is walked not once but daily: the cross taken up "daily" (Luke 9:23), self dying daily (1 Cor. 15:31), the inward man renewed "day by day" (2 Cor. 4:16; MYP 68.4), salvation worked out while God works within (Phil. 2:12-13). Sanctification is therefore not a moment but the work of a lifetime — continual growth with "no stopping place" (CCh 51.2; COL 65.2) — the imparted righteousness that is the soul's "fitness for heaven," as justification was its "title" (MYP 35.2). The same faith that justified now sanctifies (GTI 111.2); the just live by it (GTI 5.1), walking the new and living way through the world, not out of it (GTI 20.1-2; CWCP 82.2).

Symbols defined here:

Symbols carried: the gate / faith ("The Gate — Faith"); the laver / power, the Holy Spirit ("The Laver — Power"); Jesus the ladder, gate, house of God, and the Holy Place / first apartment ("The Sanctuary — Jesus the Ladder, Gate, House of God").

14. The Table of Shewbread — Daily the Word

The first piece of furniture in the Holy Place stands on the north and is never empty: bread before the LORD alway. The bread is the Word, the Word is Christ, and by eating it daily the soul lives and is changed into His image.

The table itself, set on the north — Ex. 25:23, 30; Lev. 24:5-8:

Man lives by the Word — Deut. 8:3; Matt. 4:4:

The Word is Christ — John 1:1, 14; 6:35, 51, 63:

To eat His flesh is to receive the Word by faith — John 6:53-57; Matt. 26:26:

By the Word eaten the natural is destroyed and the image restored — John 6:63; 17:17:

Where to get the bread, and the warning against false bread — 6T 132.2; 1SM 160.3; 1SM 57.3:

DEFINITION — THE TABLE OF SHEWBREAD — DAILY THE WORD = the first vessel of the Holy Place, set on the north and never bare, holding twelve loaves before the LORD "alway" and renewed every sabbath continually (Ex. 25:23, 30; Lev. 24:5-8) = the daily eating of the Word of God. Man lives "by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God" (Deut. 8:3; Matt. 4:4), and that Word is a Person — the Word made flesh, the Bread of Life (John 1:1, 14; 6:35, 51). To "eat His flesh and drink His blood" is to receive Him by faith through His word, "for He is the Word" and "the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life" (John 6:53-57, 63; EVCO 253.1; LOF_ATJ 73.2). So fed, "the word destroys the natural, earthly nature, and imparts a new life in Christ Jesus" (DA 391.1), sanctifying the soul by the truth (John 17:17) and changing it daily into the image of God — the only way that image is restored, by coming to know Him whose Word it is (John 17:3; Ed 126.3; DA 389.3). The bread is the Word, and the Word is Christ.

Symbols defined here:

Symbols carried: the Word made flesh / nature of Christ ("The Nature of Christ"); faith ("The Gate — Faith"); incense / prayer ("The Altar of Incense — Prayer"); truth the sanctifier ("The Holy Place — the Daily Walk"); the broken body ("The Altar of Sacrifice — Forgiveness"); the image of God ("The Image of God").

15. The Candlestick — the Light of Good Works

The candlestick stood on the south of the Holy Place and was never to go dark; its lamp is the believer's good works, and Christ Himself is the oil and the flame — what we have received of His light we set on the stand, that men seeing it may be drawn to glorify the Father.

The lamp that must burn always — Exo. 25:31, 37; 27:20-21; Lev. 24:2, 4:

Christ is the Light; we have none of our own — John 1:4, 9; 8:12; 9:5:

Ye are the light of the world — Matt. 5:14-16:

Good works are the sign, never the source — Eph. 2:10; Titus 2:14; SC 58.3:

The works are made by the Spirit, and the glory goes to God — Phil. 2:15; Luke 12:35; MB 44.4; 80.5:

The candlestick IS the church holding forth the light — Zech. 4:2-6; Rev. 1:20; SSP 197.2; 367.2; TAR 56.3:

DEFINITION — THE CANDLESTICK — THE LIGHT OF GOOD WORKS = the lamp-stand of pure beaten gold on the south of the Holy Place, kept burning continually by pure beaten oil (Exo. 25:31, 37; 27:20-21; Lev. 24:2, 4) = the believer's, and the church's, good works held forth before men (Matt. 5:14-16; Rev. 1:20; Zech. 4:2). The flame is Christ's own light — His life and character, the Image of God made visible (John 1:4, 9; 8:12; MB 40.1; COL 416.2) — and the oil that feeds it is the Holy Spirit, by whom every good work is wrought (Zech. 4:6; MB 80.5). Therefore the works are the SIGN of righteousness already received, never its SOURCE: created in Christ, then walked in (Eph. 2:10; Titus 2:14; GTI 104.2; CHR 69.1; SC 58.3). We do not strive to make the light shine; if Christ dwells within, we let it shine (MB 41.1; 5T 381.2), that men "may see your good works, and glorify your Father" — the praise returning wholly to the Giver, and the light drawing others to faith (Matt. 5:16; MB 80.5; Isa. 60:1, 3; SSP 367.2).

Symbols defined here:

Symbols carried: oil = the Holy Spirit, the supply that feeds the lamp (defined in "The Altar of Incense — Prayer"); the Word, the light of the church that feeds the flame (defined in "The Table of Shewbread — the Word"); the IMAGE of God restored in Christ the Life (defined in the governing thread, "What Was Lost — the Image of God").

16. The Altar of Incense — Prayer and the Spirit

The third piece of the Holy Place stands west, set apart against the veil: prayer rising as incense, by which the Spirit is given — and without the Spirit there is neither understanding of the Word nor fruit on the branch.

The altar named, and burned upon perpetually — Exo. 30:1, 7-8:

The Bible defines the incense — Psa. 141:2; Rev. 5:8; 8:3-4:

What prayer is, and what it does — SC 93.2; GW 254.4, 259.1; Ed 259.1:

Prayer is the way the Spirit is received — Luke 11:13; Matt. 7:7, 11; Jas. 1:5:

The Spirit who inspired the Word must open the Word — 2 Pet. 1:21; 2 Tim. 3:16; 1 Cor. 2:10-14:

Without Me ye can do nothing — John 15:5; SC 69.1; 1SM 381.2; CWCP 49.1:

The Spirit is how Christ Himself abides in us — John 14:16-18; 16:13-14; Rom. 8:26-27; Eph. 6:18; Jude 20:

DEFINITION — THE ALTAR OF INCENSE — PRAYER AND THE SPIRIT = the third piece of the Holy Place, set west against the veil, where prayer ascends as incense (Exo. 30:1, 7-8; Psa. 141:2; Rev. 5:8; 8:3-4) — burned perpetually, morning and evening, mingled with the incense of Christ's imputed righteousness without which no worship is accepted (PP 353.2; CIS 61.2). Prayer is the appointed channel by which the Holy Spirit is given (Luke 11:13; Matt. 7:7, 11; Jas. 1:5; COL 419.1); and the Spirit who inspired the Word is the only One who can open it, so that without Him even the learned err and the natural man cannot discern it (2 Pet. 1:21; 2 Tim. 3:16; 1 Cor. 2:10-14; GC vii.2; 5T 705.1). The Spirit given is Christ Himself abiding in us as the Vine in the branch (John 14:16-18; 16:13-14), so that "without me ye can do nothing" (John 15:5): without prayer, no Spirit; without the Spirit, neither understanding of the Word nor fruit on the branch. So the third piece completes the daily walk — Praying, with Reading and Doing — by which we are transformed into His image (see "The Table of Shewbread — Eating the Word"; "The Candlestick — Good Works / Our Light").

Symbols defined here:

Symbols carried: the Holy Place and its Gate (= faith), the Word eaten ("The Table of Shewbread — Eating the Word"); good works / our light ("The Candlestick — Good Works / Our Light"); Christ's imputed righteousness, the substitute's merit ("The Altar of Sacrifice — Forgiveness"); the nature Christ took, "as the man who is without God" ("The Nature of Christ").

17. Sanctification — the Daily Transformation

The Holy Place service was DAILY; so the change is daily — Pray, Read, Do — until by beholding the glory of God the marred image is being restored, more and more, into His likeness. Sanctification is the work of a lifetime.

The verse that names the work — 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24:

The law of the change: by beholding we become changed — 2 Corinthians 3:18:

The work is the restoration of the marred image — Ed 15.2; DA 37.3:

The daily walk: Pray, Read, Do — Luke 9:23; Romans 12:1-2; John 17:17:

It is the growth of a lifetime, ever toward perfection — 2 Peter 1:4-7; Proverbs 4:18:

The goal named: perfection, the image fully restored — Matthew 5:48; 2 Corinthians 7:1; Hebrews 12:14:

DEFINITION — SANCTIFICATION — THE DAILY TRANSFORMATION = the lifelong, God-wrought setting-apart of the whole man — spirit, soul, and body (1 Th. 5:23) — by which the marred image of God is restored in the believer (Ed 15.2; DA 37.3; Col. 3:10). Its LAW is "by beholding we become changed" (2 Cor. 3:18; GC 555.1): the soul is assimilated to what it loves and reverences, so that beholding the glory of the Lord — seen in the law, His transcript, and in Christ, His express image — transforms into that same image, from glory to glory (1SM 240.3; COL 355.1; 5T 744.3). Its MEANS is the daily walk of the Holy Place — Pray, Read, Do (Luke 9:23; Rom. 12:1-2; John 17:17) — for the inward man is renewed day by day (2 Cor. 4:16). It is GROWTH, never a finished state in this life: perfect at every stage yet ever advancing (COL 65.2), pressing from light to greater light (1SM 317.2), shining more and more unto the perfect day (Prov. 4:18); the work of a lifetime (ML 267.2), the daily overcoming of the foe (TMR 136.2). Its GOAL is perfection — the law perfectly expressed in the life (CWCP 81.1), holiness perfected in the fear of God (2 Cor. 7:1), the image fully restored — yet the saint never says "I have attained," but presses toward the mark (Phil. 3:12-14). What Justification began at the altar, Sanctification carries forward day by day; what it presses toward, Glorification completes.

Symbols defined here:

Symbols carried: divine nature ("The Laver — Power Over Sin"); the daily walk — Pray, Read, Do ("The Holy Place — the Daily Walk to Heaven"), the Word read ("The Table of Shewbread — Eating the Word"), prayer ("The Altar of Incense — Prayer"); the marred image and its restoration ("The Image of God — What Was Lost"); holiness without which none see God ("The Most Holy Place — Glorification").

18. The Most Holy Place — Glorification

The courtyard pays the penalty and the holy place sanctifies the heart, but the flesh still remains sinful; only at His coming is the flesh itself changed — incorruptible, like Him, presented faultless before the consuming fire that is God's own presence.

No sin can stand in the presence — Isa. 33:14-16:

Yet the flesh remains sinful — Rom. 8:3:

At His coming the flesh itself is changed — 1 Cor. 15:51-53:

We shall be like Him — 1 John 3:2-3; Phil. 3:20-21:

Presented faultless before the throne — Jude 1:24-25:

DEFINITION — THE MOST HOLY PLACE — GLORIFICATION = the third and final stage of restoration, the standing of the redeemed in the unveiled presence of God, whose presence is a consuming fire that no sin can survive (Isa. 33:14-16; Deut. 4:24; Heb. 12:29). The courtyard pays sin's penalty and the holy place sanctifies the heart, yet the flesh remains "sinful flesh" (Rom. 8:3) until His coming, when at the last trump the corruptible body is changed — raised or translated incorruptible and immortal (1 Cor. 15:51-53). The image of God lost in sin is then fully restored: we are made like Him by seeing Him as He is, our vile body fashioned like His glorious body (1 John 3:2; Phil. 3:21), and presented faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy (Jude 1:24-25) — face to face, His name in our foreheads, the plan of salvation complete (Rev. 22:4; GC 676.4).

Symbols defined here:

Symbols carried: gate / altar / laver, forgiveness, power ("The Outer Courtyard — Justification"); table of shewbread, candlestick, altar of incense, the beholding that transforms ("The Holy Place — Sanctification"); image of God ("The Image of God — What Was Lost"); trumpet ("The Outer Courtyard — Justification" / the day-of-the-LORD last trump).

19. The Image Restored — the Whole in One View

The whole canon walks one road: man was made in God's image, sin marred it, and the entire plan of salvation — law, Christ, truth, sanctuary — is the single work of restoring that image in man.

Man was made in the image — Gen. 1:26-27; 5:3:

The image was marred, not the body only — Isa. 59:2; Rom. 3:23:

The law is the image — the teacher that shows the marring — 1 John 4:8; Gal. 3:24; GC 467:

Christ is the express image — the Life that restores — Heb. 1:3; John 1:1; 14:6; 10:10:

Truth is the sanctifier — the daily change from glory to glory — John 17:17; 2 Cor. 3:18:

The sanctuary is the structure; the end is the image whole — Exo. 25:8; Col. 3:10; Eph. 4:24; Rom. 8:29; 1 John 3:2:

DEFINITION — THE IMAGE RESTORED — THE WHOLE IN ONE VIEW = the plan of salvation is one work under one figure — the restoring of God's image in man (Ed 15.2; AG 11.5; PP 595.2). The image is God's character, glory, and name (Gen. 1:26-27; Exo. 33:18-19); sin marred it and severed the presence and the life that flow from it (Isa. 59:2; Rom. 3:23; ECE 593.2). The road home is single and ordered: the LAW (the image in precept) is the teacher that reveals the marring and drives the man to Christ (Gal. 3:24; GC 467.3-4; CHR 48.2); CHRIST (the express image) is the Life that re-creates the pattern, for "none but Christ can fashion anew the character" (Heb. 1:3; John 14:6; 10:10; AG 11.5); TRUTH is the sanctifier that changes the beholder "from glory to glory" into the same image (John 17:17; 2 Cor. 3:18; 12MR 55.3); and the SANCTUARY is the structure — its three rooms the three stages, justification, sanctification, glorification — by which the restoration is accomplished and God dwells with man again (Exo. 25:8; Col. 3:10; Eph. 4:24; Rom. 8:29; 1 John 3:2). The work outdoes the first creation, bringing man "to a higher state of perfection than when they first came from the hand of the Creator" (CIS 104.3; GTI 200.1). IMAGE lost → LAW the teacher → CHRIST the Life → TRUTH the sanctifier → SANCTUARY the structure — one image, one restoration, one plan.

Symbols defined here:

Symbols carried: image of God, glory / name / character, separation ("The Image of God — What Was Lost"); the law / transcript of His character ("The Law — the Image of God in Precept"); express image, the Life ("Christ — the Express Image and the Life"); knowing God ("Knowing God Is Life"); truth / the Word ("Truth — the Sanctifier"); the sanctuary, justification, sanctification, glorification ("The Sanctuary — the Structure of Restoration").

Appendix — Symbol Dictionary

Every symbol defined in this handbook, alphabetically (leading articles ignored), with its receipts and owning section.