22 (John 5:40; Luke 12:48). No Provision for Willful Blindness—[John 15:22 quoted.]... Those who have an opportunity to hear the truth, and yet take no pains to hear or understand it, thinking that if they do not hear, they will not be accountable, will be judged guilty before God the same as if they had heard and rejected. There will be no excuse for those who choose to go in error when they might understand what is truth. In His sufferings and death Jesus has made atonement for all sins of ignorance, but there is no provision made for willful blindness....
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We shall not be held accountable for the light that has not reached our perception, but for that which we have resisted and refused. A man could not apprehend the truth which had never been presented to him, and therefore could not be condemned for light he had never had. But if he had opportunity to hear the message, and to become acquainted with the truth, and yet refused to improve his opportunity, he will be among the number of whom Christ said, “Ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.”John 5:40. Those who deliberately place themselves where they will not have an opportunity of hearing the truth, will be reckoned among those who have heard the truth, and persistently resisted its evidences (The Review and Herald, April 25, 1893).
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Light That Has Shone, Will Condemn—None will be condemned for not heeding light and knowledge that they never had, and they could not obtain. But many refuse to obey the truth that is presented to them by Christ′s ambassadors, because they wish to conform to the world′s standard; and the truth that has reached their understanding, the light that has shone in the soul, will condemn them in the judgment (The Review and Herald, November 25, 1884).
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Judged According to Light—Men will not be judged for light they have never had. But those who have kept Sunday, whose attention has been called to this error, but who would not open their eyes to behold wondrous things out of the law, will be judged according to the light that has come to them (The Review and Herald, September 13, 1898).
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Illustration of Jesus′ Intercession in Heavenly Sanctuary—This chapter contains the intercessory prayer offered by Christ to His Father just before His trial and crucifixion. This prayer is a lesson regarding the intercession that the Saviour would carry on within the veil, when His great sacrifice in behalf of men, the offering of Himself, should have been completed. Our Mediator gave His disciples this illustration of His ministration in the heavenly sanctuary in behalf of all who will come to Him in meekness and humility, emptied of all selfishness, and believing in His power to save (Manuscript 29, 1906).
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1-6. The Prayer Before Gethsemane—[John 17:1-6 quoted.] ... This was Christ′s last prayer with His disciples. It was offered just before He went into the Garden of Gethsemane, where He was to be betrayed and taken. When He reached Gethsemane, He fell prostrate upon the ground, in an agony of distress. What caused His agony? The weight of the sins of the whole world was resting upon His soul. As we study this prayer, let us remember that it was just before this experience and just before His betrayal and trial, that these words were uttered (Manuscript 52, 1904).
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2, 3. Relation of Father and Son—The seventeenth chapter of John speaks plainly regarding the personality of God and of Christ, and of their relation to each other. “Father, the hour is come,” Christ said: “glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee.” [John 17:23, 3, 5-11 quoted.] Here is personality, and individuality (Manuscript 124, 1903).
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3 (see EGW comment on John 1:4; Romans 11:33). To Know Christ Is to Practice His Words—[John 17:3 quoted.] These words mean much. It is only by knowing Christ that we can know God. The Sent of God calls upon all to listen to these words. They are the words of God, and all should give heed to them; for by them they will be judged. To know Christ savingly is to be vitalized by spiritual knowledge, to practice His words. Without this, all else is valueless (The Signs of the Times, January 27, 1898).
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