Evangelism

God’s Saving Power

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War is a terrible way to settle problems between nations, for it often results in the deaths of millions of innocent people.  World War II was historically the bloodiest war ever. Today, there are more wars than ever.

My name is Gregg Richards. I am a teacher in a small Seventh-day Adventist group in Bishop, California. This is the story about a member of our small group who was a Navy fighter pilot in WW II. His name is Bob Hambley.

Bob is 98 years of age; he lives by himself and still drives. He joined the Navy to do his part in saving our country from the invasion of the Japanese and the Germans. Bob was 20 years old when he joined the military. He had never been exposed to God then, but he now knows that without God‘s intervention, he would have died at the age of 22. The following statements are just some of the dangers he faced as a fighter pilot. He has three fighter planes at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean and one he had to bail out of over land. He gives full credit to our great Saviour, because he knows that without God’s intervention he would never have seen tomorrow. Written in his own words, Bob describes just a couple of the difficult situations he had to face.

Pilot Eject

Graduation Day was only two weeks away when we would receive our Gold Wings and Commission as Ensigns in the United States Naval Reserve. Some of us, however, had to make up two hours of night flying in order to fulfill graduation requirements.

Two of us took off about 9:00 pm and flew in formation for the required time and then were preparing to land at the airbase. I wiggled my wings as a sign that I was going to leave the formation and drop down from 3,000 feet to 800 feet and enter the traffic pattern. The other pilot was to stay at his altitude and make a 360-degree turn leaving sufficient space between our two planes so as to eliminate any mid-air collisions.

As I entered the traffic pattern at 800 feet, I was suddenly hit by the pilot who was supposed to have stayed up to prevent such an accident. When he hit my plane, I couldn’t imagine what had happened. I knew I was in a dangerous situation. The other pilot told me sometime later, that he fell sound asleep and when he hit my plane, he said he could see me in the cockpit and could even see my instrument panel. He instantly hit his release button and bailed out. We were the only two aircraft flying in the area at this hour, with the whole sky to ourselves. The odds of having such an accident were astronomical.

Realizing the perilous condition I found myself in, I knew I had to leave the plane instantly, so I released my seat belts and it felt like an arm lifted me right out of the cockpit. I reached for my ripcord but could not find it. After about three grabs, I pulled the ripcord and heard a pop, but I was swinging so far out that I feared all of the air would come out of the parachute and I would drop without it. I pulled on one of the shroud lines to stop the swinging and then I hit the ground. I remember when I hit the ground that I did a tuck and roll which is what we were taught to do in parachute school, but I did this automatically without thinking and wound up lying on my back. Looking at the stars above me I realized that I had been saved from certain death.

I lay there for a moment contemplating what had just happened and realized that God was the only answer to my still being alive. One minute I was safely flying my airplane and getting ready to land and five or six minutes later, I am lying on the ground without a scratch. I hit the ground about as hard as a mother would lay her baby in its crib. I did not land in a cactus patch, on a tree, or on a rooftop or any other hazardous terrain, but just where my Savior wanted me to land. I did not know what the surrounding territory was like because it was so dark, so I knelt and gave a prayer of thanks to God, who at that time I did not know.

In the distance I heard a cry for help. Now I knew that my fellow pilot had survived the collision, so I called and kept calling for him to answer so I could find my way to where he was. When I found him, he was laying on his back and I told him not to move until I could see if he had broken bones or in any way was not able to move. He also had not been injured; so I helped him get up and he asked me, “What are we going to do now?”

In the distance we could see a big search light. It was our airbase. It was about 1:00 in the morning and they were waiting for us to come home. We started walking in that direction and after walking some distance, we heard the barking of a very large dog; so we knew there would be a home nearby. We just hoped that the dog was chained. We went to the house and knocked on the door and the man who answered had heard the collision. I asked if we could use his telephone to call the base. He did not have a telephone, but had a car and was willing to drive us to town where we could find a telephone. By then it was about 2:00 in the morning. After we contacted the base, a jeep was sent to pick us up.

The next morning, we were required to fly for one hour to be sure we were not affected by the collision in any way. We both passed the test and could now look forward to receiving our Gold Wings and Commission and to continue whatever assignment was ahead. We were looking forward to flying real fighter planes, whereas before we were flying advanced trainers. After graduation, I never again saw or heard from the pilot who had crashed into my plane.

Drama in the Storm

One of several other life and death experiences I had was when I was assigned to Melbourne, Florida, after coming back from overseas. I was to train four new ensigns and two instructors in Advanced Combat Training. None of the six had ever flown a real Navy fighter plane and we were going to train on the new Grumman Hellcat. My job was to familiarize them with navigation, gunnery and all the other things that a fighter pilot needed to know before going into combat.

One day, I had my group in the Gulf of Mexico and we were practicing making runs on a target that was towed by an airplane and learning the different approaches in confronting the enemy. My plane began to have engine problems; so I picked up my microphone and told my group to continue practicing the drills and that I would be back as soon as possible. When I landed at the airbase, I told one of the mechanics that I needed another plane and that my group was practicing in the Gulf and I needed to get back to them. He pointed to a Hellcat that was ready to go, so I jumped in and took off heading to the Gulf to join up with my group. Suddenly a terrific storm came up in the Gulf and all planes were to return to the base as soon as possible. This storm was one of the most severe I had ever encountered with lightning, thunder, and tremendously heavy rain and wind. I turned back toward the base and knew that if I flew east, I would hit the coast of Florida and then north to my base.

The Biscayne Highway goes from Maine to Miami and has four lanes traveling north and four lanes travelling south. This highway is located right along the east coast of Florida and my airfield is located on the other side of this highway. At that time, the ceiling of the horrific storm was only 150 feet from the ground, so I could fly no higher than that. After crossing Florida to the ocean, I turned north. The thunder and lightning was so severe that I had to disconnect my headset. There were thousands of cars on the highway that could not move and were stacked up for miles going in both directions because the rain was so heavy that their windshield wipers could not clear enough to drive.

I was flying about 100 feet above the cars and when I glanced at my fuel gauge it showed that I was on empty. Here I was flying a seven-ton Hellcat just above the thousands of cars and my instruments tell me my engine will quit at any second. I moved to the right side of the highway so as not to be flying over the cars. The terrain was like a jungle without any trees and I thought at any second my 2000 horsepower engine would stop. I decided that when it did, I had no option than to roll my plane to the right and dive it into the ground. I did not want to try for a landing because I knew I could be badly injured and would not be rescued for hours. I would rather be killed instantly and not have to suffer. I knew that when the propeller stopped, I was going to die.

Looking to my left, I saw a lake and knew then that I was hopelessly lost because I had flown this area many times and had never seen a lake. My heart sank, but as I looked again I saw a tower in the lake and then noticed some hangars and realized that it was my airbase which was flooded. Now my problem was to get across the eight lanes of parked cars and get over the fence to the airfield. In my mind I thought I could make it without crashing into the cars, even if the engine quit. I dropped my flaps to get more lift and made it over the fence onto the airbase. I dropped my landing gear and landed on a runway. The water was so deep that it was almost like a water landing. The water flew over my plane slowing me down immediately. I made a turn to the right and my engine quit. The plane was out of gas.

Had I gone a little further to my usual parking spot I would not have realized that my Savior had saved me again. My plane did not have a faulty gauge, I was out of gas and Jesus kept that engine running until I was safe. I jumped out of my plane into the driving rain and ran to my room in the Bachelor Officer Quarters (BOQ) and lay on my bed soaking wet, once again praising the Lord for giving me my life back.

In later years, I had a hip replacement which caused a great deal of pain. Physical therapy was not helping until a friend told me about a physical therapist who had helped him a great deal and suggested I make an appointment with him. His name is Gregg Richards, who not only relieved my hip pain, but invited me to attend his Sabbath Day meeting where he is a teacher. I started meeting with this group at the age of 90 and have stayed with them ever since. On September 15th 2012 I was baptized in an outdoor natural hot spring in Bishop, California.

In closing, I want to thank Gregg for all I have learned about the Bible. It has changed my life completely. Thank-you God for saving my life. May my life’s story be a blessing to others.

Bob Hambley.

As told to Gregg Richards, Three Angels Ministry. You can contact us at: richthumper@gmail.com

Winter in Maine

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It is October in Maine and the leaves are falling, reaching their peak color soon in the north. As I go over my list of all the myriad tasks that need to be accomplished before winter, I am still amazed at how much more there is to do before the heavy snows arrive. It seems when one is checked off, more are revealed.

This winterizing process all begins anew when the ground finally thaws in May. However, this particular year was different having taken off the month of May to drive across the country to Steps to Life camp meeting. What an adventure and a blessing it was to meet the staff and hear the wonderful sermons. Relatives and friends that we had not seen in years were visited along the way, making our trip all the more memorable.

Although short a month preparing for the coming winter, we knew God would make up the time we missed if we were diligent workers. The first job on arrival home was the grass that appeared unattended and unloved. Nothing looked like it did when we left.

We got busy, there was lots to do before the first snows in November or December. Wood would be needed. Fortunately, we have a lumber company on a nearby road where remnants of hardwood can be bought in huge quantities at a small cost to be stacked high in the garage. We were thankful for the leftover wood from the previous year for our old wood stove, which would see us through another winter. We then also had to purchase a couple of tons of wood pellets, making room for them too in our small garage. Then there were always the little jobs to do – places to seal, like lower basement windows, as the thawing snows of winter begin to melt, trying to drip inside the basement walls. In August each year, I begin to gather kindling of the many fallen limbs along forest roadsides, collecting only the limbs that break easily and are seasoned. This task takes a number of hours on days when weather permits. I do enjoy this quiet task out in nature, parking here and there along country roads on the fringes of the deep woods. In between all of these tasks, I trimmed rose bushes and mulched them for our neighbors, along with cutting back a very large bush in front of their house, so they could see more of their property. I took out toys and an old bird’s nest at the base and much dead wood and mulched the bush, in anticipation of a beautiful blooming tree in the Spring. Our neighbors emailed stating their appreciation. For busy, working young parents with two small children and one on the way there is not a lot of time left for yard work. This was how we could witness to them in a way that we had been unable to do thus far. Winterizing and waterproofing are huge jobs in these colder climates. While the days become shorter and the cold Fall winds begin to blow in this little town in the woods, there are cracks and holes to be filled and painted with so many other daily tasks to accomplish.

I was reminded during this process of how much more we should be winterizing our souls, taking time out every day, not just to prepare our surroundings, our properties, our car(s) for the coming winter, but for the winter of our souls, for those trying times just ahead. We need to be fortifying our minds and perfecting our characters with the truth of God’s word. We should be always striving to help others to spiritually prepare for what is surely to be soon, our last winter on earth. We are assured by the Scriptures that after the last trying days of earth’s history, eternal Spring will arrive, and we will be in the Kingdom. But are we ready spiritually to withstand the last winter of this world?

For a couple of weeks last winter, we had a big thaw, and although the snowstorms had left very high snows before that, not much of it was left when another blizzard was forecasted to arrive in early March. I went out to check the grounds of our house almost in disbelief that another blizzard was predicted for that night. We had been feeling quite complacent before this weather forecast, believing we would have an early Spring and the sudden mild temperatures we had experienced were a sure sign. But this huge wake-up blizzard came with a fury.

In many parts of the United States and around the world, unpredictable weather is arriving with storms, floods, earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanoes to shake it up. God is trying to get our attention. We are told that “the last movements will be rapid” (Testimonies, vol. 9, 11), and as we live on this planet, with every passing day, we realize what a short time is left for us to bring our lives into line for our own salvation, as well as making every attempt to insure the salvation of others. We should not be fooled by the lulls in current events, or that we have more and more time to get ready for Jesus to come. Life is fragile for all, young and old and none know how much time we have left. Grasp every precious hour, holding on to possibly our last earthly moments with Jesus.

When I was about three years old, we lived in a little house in the woods in Southern Maryland. One day a repair man came to our house and while he was fixing the appliance, my mother began to witness to him. He responded by saying he was young, that he had plenty of time to make up his mind about spiritual matters. A couple of weeks later she heard that he had been killed in an accident. Sometimes lives are cut short in an instant, and I must always ask myself if this should happen – am I ready to meet Jesus at that very moment? This may have been the first, and yet the last chance for this young man to know Jesus.

Are we ready to stand in times of great trial? Very soon now Christians will be tested in courts of law concerning their beliefs.

As the December snows begin anew, I question, am I ready, no matter the adversity, to stand up for Jesus during earth’s last winter? If not now, when? When can I say I am so close to the kingdom that it will be a natural transition from this life to life everlasting? For every great event in life, it seems the only way to meet it is to prepare, prepare, prepare – and although we may never feel good enough, or worthy enough – we can grow more and more like Jesus, every day becoming new in Christ. This is surely how Enoch was able to be like Jesus. By beholding Him, Enoch was changed, and God just took him. Isn’t this the heavenly goal we should hold so dear to our hearts? Are we the person we think we are? Are we careful to take a daily inventory of our hearts, watching, praying, and studying the scriptures to become more like Jesus?

“This earth is the place of preparation for heaven. The time spent here is the Christian’s winter. Here the chilly winds of affliction blow upon us, and the waves of trouble roll against us. But in the near future, when Christ comes, sorrow and sighing will be forever ended. Then will be the Christian’s summer. All trials will be over, and there will be no more sickness or death. ‘God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away’ (Revelation 21:4).” The Upward Look, 311.

Sorrow and sighing forever ended – then will be the Christian’s summer.

Ripples of Influence

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Our mom worked hard to keep us together as a family after our dad passed away while we were still school aged children. We faithfully attended Sunday morning church services and continued this custom as adults with our young families. That was until I heard Dan, a new acquaintance, speak of the seventh day as God’s true Sabbath.

Now I needed to know the truth and I earnestly prayed for it. I had a Bible which I had never really read or studied, but now I began randomly to turn its pages and each time I stopped to read a verse, it spoke to me about the Sabbath. This happened again and again until I realized that God was answering my prayer, and I accepted with joy this wonderful truth. Thus began a change in many lives.

After attending a Seventh-day Adventist Church for a few weeks, I wrote to my sister Jeannie about the Sabbath. At that time I didn’t know that she had asked our mom, who lived with her, to visit some other churches than the one they attended. Mom’s dad had believed that the Lutheran Church was the closest to Bible truth, and our mom also believed that.

Not long after I wrote to my sister, Mom drove the four-hour drive to my brother’s home, which was a short distance from where I lived. While there, Mom called me on a Sabbath afternoon to invite me to go to church with her the next day, Sunday. We had been taught to obey our parents and as I momentarily hesitated to answer her, I heard a voice say, “If you don’t tell her now, you never will.” I knew and understood that was true and quickly replied, “I go to church on Sabbath now.” That ended our conversation and Mom returned home.

My sister wrote to let me know how unhappy Mom was about my going to church on the Sabbath day. When Dan heard this news, he suggested that we fast and pray for my mom and sister, which we then did. I had never fasted before, but I deeply desired that God would help my family to understand this important truth. I felt so near to God as I fasted and prayed for three and a half days without eating any food, but did drink plenty of water.

Meanwhile my sister said to Mom concerning the Sabbath, “But Mom, we need to check it out to see if it is truth.” God was soon answering our prayers as mom and my sister started to attend church on Sabbath. And this was just the beginning of God’s rich blessings to us and to many others.

Shortly after my husband, our children and I were baptized, Dan Collins baptized Mom, my sister and her children in February 1975. And the blessings continued; one year later Mom became a colporteur and Bible worker. She loved the truth and sharing it with others. In 1981, she was selected as the literature evangelist of the year in the North Pacific Conference.

A fellow Bible worker wrote this report about our mom:

“Every one who knew Annabelle would probably describe her with one word—Committed. She was committed to her Lord and His work. She left behind an example of untiring effort and enthusiasm for sharing the Lord through literature and Bible studies. And as the words of God’s people in ages past continue to tell their story, even so Annabelle continues her work of soul saving through the seeds she left behind. The story unfolded at a Bible study a couple of weeks ago.

“Upon arriving at my Wednesday afternoon study with Lisa and her mother Carol, I was pleasantly surprised at what had transpired since our last lesson. Carol told me the story; it went something like this: While at their church’s weekly Bible study, someone in the discussion brought up the state of the dead. And when Carol defended the biblical position, there was quite a disagreement. I was thrilled that Carol stood in defense of Bible truth, not only before this small study group, but even before her pastors.

“I was somewhat puzzled at where she could have gotten her information as we were nowhere near that topic in our studies. Then it was that I noticed the familiar looking family Bible that she was using that week. I asked her, ‘Where did you get that family Bible?’ She replied, ‘A lady sold it to me about 21 years ago.’ Feeling sure that this was Annabelle’s work, I asked, ‘Was this lady in her early sixties at the time and did she have white curly hair?’ ‘Yes,’ she replied, ‘And these Bible studies in the back of this Bible is where I get a lot of my information.’

“Now I knew the source of her information; it was the sure result of Annabelle’s service in the Lord’s army. It was the fulfillment of one of her favorite Bible promises, ‘So shall My word be that goeth forth out of My mouth; it shall not return unto Me void’ (Isaiah 55:11). Even though Annabelle rests, the seeds she planted still continue to bear their harvest. In dying, she has passed the baton on to us. May we, as Annabelle, be faithful to the call. And some day soon when this war is over and the controversy ended, may we all be reunited in the kingdom of heaven.”

Ellen G. White illustrates our influence on others in this way: “Throw a pebble into the lake, and a wave is formed, and another and another; and as they increase, the circle widens, until it reaches the very shore. So with our influence. Beyond our knowledge or control it tells upon others in blessing or in cursing.” Christ’s Object lessons, 340.

Georgia Jacobs went to Wildwood Sanitarium four years after her baptism and was in the nursing program from 1978–1985; then worked at Hope International as an artist for the Our Firm Foundation magazine from 1988–1992. She later resided in South Africa where she did some missionary work.

Jeannie Hogarty also contributed to this article. She worked for Amazing Discoveries for more than seven years packing and shipping orders for all the world except Canada.

The Trip That Changed My Life

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In 1971, I was three years out of college and working as head of the operations department for a major department store in Dallas, Texas. A coworker with whom I had become a good friend who worked in the sporting goods department had acquired a large camping tent. We eventually formulated a plan to use it on a camping trip to the Rocky Mountain and Yellowstone national parks that summer.

That was my first ever camping trip and re-ignited within me a love of the natural world that was first kindled when I briefly lived in rural east Texas, shortly after my grandfather’s passing in November, 1955. My grandparents lived on a 40-acre farm in Cass County. After my grandfather passed away, my grandmother didn’t want to leave the farm, but the family didn’t want her to live there by herself. I was chosen to finish the school year down on the farm to keep her company and provide whatever help an eleven-year old could supply (which wasn’t much).

What’s a city boy to do when he suddenly finds himself in the country? I reveled in it! On weekends, my grandmother would pack a sack lunch for me and I would head off through the piney woods and spend the day absorbing nature—and loving it.

That same love lay dormant for over fifteen years until that July camping trip to the Rocky Mountains and Yellowstone. That trip began the process that the Lord was using to change my life. He “knows our frame,” and He knew exactly what it would take to pull me out of the world and set me on the straight and narrow path.

The summer following the trip to the Rockies and Yellowstone, I wanted to experience the beauties of another national park—but which one? Being a fifth-generation Texan (and misguidedly proud of it), I thought to myself that there must be a national park in Texas I could visit. Back in 1972, there was no web to surf to answer that question, but somehow I discovered that there was indeed a national park stuck way out in west Texas, in the bend of the Rio Grande, southeast of El Paso. It is aptly named Big Bend National Park.

So in August 1972, I borrowed the tent from my friend that we had used the summer before and packed up my camping gear in the trunk of my Pontiac Grand Prix—not your typical camping vehicle. But I was living the high life in Dallas, occupying a luxury apartment, driving a fancy car, doing all the preppy things a successful corporate executive was supposed to do. By then I was in charge of the receiving department, supervising about 30 employees, with two assistants.

This vacation, however, was indeed the trip that changed my life. I was smitten with the incredibly wide openness of Big Bend, the vistas that stretched for miles in every direction, without a single golden arch to be seen. The nearest town was 108 miles away. The nearest Walmart or McDonald’s was a bit farther. The nearest airport was 225 miles away. It’s about as remote a location as one can find in the United States.

I spent a week camping in The Basin campground, which is nestled in a huge igneous bowl about a mile in diameter in the heart of the Chisos Mountains. The campground occupied the site that was used by a 1930’s Civilian Conservation Corps camp. Late summer is the rainy season there, and every afternoon there were fascinating thunderstorms that dumped buckets of rain in short order, giving life to the intermittent waterfalls that cascaded off the mountain ridges that surrounded the campground.

That week, I explored remote trails, soaking in the beauty of the Chihuahuan Desert and the astounding Chisos Mountains—the only mountain range that is wholly contained within the boundaries of a national park, whose highest peak tops out at 7,825 feet.

When I got back to Dallas, I bought every book I could find that had anything to do with Big Bend and read them voraciously. I couldn’t get enough. The memories of that trip haunted me day and night, to the extent that I made plans to leave Dallas and move to Big Bend. The only hitch: to live in a national park, you have to work there, and in the early 1970s the park service was under orders to diversify. Consequently, they were not hiring white Anglo-Saxon males under 40—the only unprotected class under anti-discrimination regulations.

Then I discovered that there was a concessioner in the park that was always eager to hire minimum wage workers. I applied, but never received a job offer, only a letter asking me why I wanted to quit my present job.

I’m sure it seemed a bit odd to them for someone who lived in a big metropolitan area and held a responsible, well-paying position to want to go to work in a very remote location for minimum wage. I responded with what to me was a plausible explanation, but never received a response.

Unable to get my mind off Big Bend, I eventually traded my Grand Prix for a Volkswagen, sold everything I had that wouldn’t fit in it, quit my job, and headed for the park.

When I got there, with great anxiety, I went to the office of the concessioner and introduced myself, asking for the manager by name, which I knew from the last letter I had received from him a few months earlier. He came out immediately, saying that he knew who I was and why I was there. Whew—anxiety relieved a bit!

After a brief interview with him and his assistant, I was offered a job as a desk clerk for the lodge. Because I had a college degree, they agreed to pay me fifteen cents above minimum wage. The job came with free housing and three meals a day for one dollar per meal. What a deal!

So I moved into the men’s dorm with seven or eight other workers, only one of whom spoke English. It was quite a difference from the luxury apartment I had lived in in Dallas, but it was in Big Bend!

I stayed there for a total of thirteen years. I met my wife there. We had three children there. We all still consider Big Bend our special place, although none of us lives there anymore.

As I look back on this wonderful experience, I don’t think I’m stretching it too much to view my years in Big Bend as perhaps similar to Moses’ four decades of tending sheep. The Lord knew that I had too much worldliness in me to walk the narrow way successfully. He lovingly ordered the providences in my life so that I could begin my exit from Babylon.

Because the school at Big Bend only went through the sixth grade, the family had to move as our children grew, first landing in San Diego. Talk about culture shock—moving from a remote residence with about a hundred neighbors to a metropolis of almost six million! We could tolerate that change for only about a year and a half and when I was offered a job in Tucson, Arizona, we gladly accepted and relocated there. And it was in Tucson that the Lord helped me to take the next step in my exit from Babylon.

I was the chief financial officer for a multi-million-dollar non-profit corporation that operated book stores in National Park Service visitor centers. At that time, we had 66 outlets in 11 western states. I got paid to visit some of the most beautiful sites west of the 100th meridian. To this day, I continue to be awed at the gracious manner in which the Lord worked to lead me to His loving and patient side.

After I served several years in that position, the need arose in the organization for a controller, who would report to me. It turned out that one of the individuals who applied, a recent college graduate, asked in my initial contact with him if the job would require that he work on Saturday. I was puzzled by his question, but told him that I had worked there for eight years and had never had to work on Saturday. He responded that if that were the case, he would agree to an on-site interview.

During that interview, he again stressed that he would not want to be considered for the job if it would ever require him to work on Saturday, explaining that he was a Seventh-day Adventist.

I had initially heard of SDAs in 1975 when I spent the summer working in a seafood processing factory in Alaska. One day I saw the plant manager talking to three young men who had entered the plant. I couldn’t hear the conversation, but I saw the manager shake his head and the three fellows leave. Later the manager told me that they were Seventh-day Adventists and wouldn’t work on Saturday; so he wouldn’t hire them.

The next time I heard of Seventh-day Adventists was following the siege at Waco in 1993. When we saw the story on the news, my wife wondered what her aunt thought about the incident, as she was a Seventh-day Adventist and the Davidians were considered by some to be an off-shoot of the SDA church.

On a later business trip to Washington, D.C., I stayed with my wife’s aunt, who lived in Silver Spring, Maryland, and with her attended the huge SDA church there on Sabbath. There was nothing particularly memorable about the service, other than that it was on Saturday. So I didn’t make any inquiries about her faith.

Well, we ended up hiring the young college graduate as the controller, admonishing him beforehand that he had to keep his religion to himself and not evangelize in the workplace—a stipulation to which he agreed.

One of the National Park Service outlets we operated was a trading post on the Navajo reservation. At the time it was our largest source of revenue. Since the controller was responsible for the financial accounting for that operation, it was important for him to become familiar with it right away. Because of its remote location, the only way to get there was to drive. So a day or two after he was hired, we began the six-hour trip.

As soon as we got out of town, I asked him about this “seventh day Sabbath thing.” He reminded me that he had agreed not to discuss his religion and didn’t want to violate his agreement. I assured him that since I was the one who brought up the subject, he wouldn’t get in trouble. He cautiously began to explain that the Bible was very clear that the seventh day was the Sabbath and that there was nothing in Scripture to justify worshiping on the first day.

Being a faithful SDA, he had his Bible tucked in his suitcase, brought it out and used it to skillfully address every question I raised — questions that every SDA is asked sooner or later. The two things he said that impressed me the most were that Seventh-day Adventists believe the whole Bible is true, and they believe that God has had His hand over the Scriptures to prevent any material changes from happening to them.

When we reached our destination, I got the Gideon Bible from my motel room and joined him in his. We conversed and read Scripture until 11:00 that night. And at 11:00 that night, I became a Seventh-day Adventist.

I returned to Tucson with the joy of my new-found faith beaming from my countenance. Unfortunately, that joy was not shared by my wife. When my son, who was baptized the following year at the same camp meeting I was, later expressed a desire to become a Bible worker, my wife filed for divorce, declaring that she couldn’t handle two Christians in the same household, admitting that she was a convicted atheist and always had been, a fact that she had concealed from me until I accepted Christ as my Saviour.

As I look back over the journey that brought me to where I am today, I can only praise a loving God who knew exactly what was needed to draw me closer to Him and set me on the path of truth and righteousness, although that path has had a few bumps. I have no doubt that He is equally interested in the salvation of everyone. My prayer is that all will respond to the pleadings and leadings of the Holy Spirit and come out of Babylon.

Epilogue

My ex-wife has since passed away. Two of my children who were baptized into the church have since left the church and returned to the world.

John R. Pearson is the office manager and a board member of Steps to Life. He may be contacted by email at: johnpearson@stepstolife.org.

Testimony – My Home

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I was born in India to Armenian parents and spent some of my younger years in England before moving to Australia with my parents.

Years later, I was excited when my husband Edmond, a U.S. American citizen, received his Australian citizenship. We attended the ceremony that was held in a large hall of the Council office presided over by the mayor.

The candidates all stood on the podium while I stood watching with my three-year-old Katie standing on the chair next to me. She was so excited to see her daddy and waved to him. The music started playing and everyone stood to sing the national anthem, “Australia all let us rejoice for we are young and free …” Suddenly, I heard a little voice beside me singing. Katie, maybe thinking she was in church with everyone dressed in suits, started singing with gusto, in tune and on key, “Jesus loves me this I know, for the Bible tells me so …”

The two songs blended so well, and people were smiling at Katie. As the anthem continued, “In history’s page, let every stage, Advance Australia Fair,” could be heard,

“Yes Jesus loves me, the Bible tells me so.”

After the ceremony we met the mayor and found out that he had grandchildren Katie’s age. The mayor took the medallion from around his neck and placed it around Katie’s. She was all smiles and so happy. I will always remember this event with great joy.

My little Katie, so innocent and unashamed to praise Jesus.

“And Jesus called a little child unto Him, and set him in the midst of them, and said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 18:2, 3).

Sixteen years later it was I who stood before the citizenship officials to obtain my American citizenship. With all the candidates, I placed my hand over my heart while the national anthem started to play. I had heard the Stars and Stripes anthem so many times since living in this country, but that day it was different. Tears welled up in my eyes as I felt such joy, ownership and belonging. I was now accepted into the same citizenship of my family and felt a belonging as never before.

Very soon, Jesus will come to take His children home. The pearly gates will open and we will hear His welcoming words, “Come, ye blessed of My Father” (Matthew 25:34). The national anthem of the redeemed will play and we will sing in melodious tones the song of “Moses and the Lamb.” I have tasted the joy of being welcomed into a new society, but that is nothing compared to the joy the saints will experience when entering at last into the kingdom of heaven where the redeemed will be happier than they have ever imagined.

Oh friend, how wonderful Heaven will be. Let us live to be a blessing to others. After all, very soon our citizenship of Heaven will be a reality.

Arise, Shine, Part I

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Jesus is about to come, brothers and sisters, and things are not about to slow down; they are about to pick up. I want you to know, this is it! There is not going to be another church raised up to do what God has called this one to do. Some of the senior citizens in this church are being kept alive for the sole purpose of being able to tell the young people, the young preachers, “That is not right! Do not start conforming to the new groove.” Sometimes it becomes difficult when people start telling you, “You are old,” but your voice is needed, because hopefully, before our young adults and young people have their eyes completely gouged out, they will plead to lean on the pillars and be taught what is true Adventism.

Giving the Cry

Right now Jesus is sifting this church, and He is preparing a people to go out and give the final Loud Cry of the Fourth Angel’s Message of Revelation 18, “Come out of her, my people!!” This coming out is a physical coming out of a body of darkness. Many people are not in Babylon physically but their mind set is Babylonian. This is why God has to carefully start moving through His church to find those who really love those things that are true and honest and just and lovely and of a good report with virtue in them. He is looking for those who really appreciate the truth.

“He cried also in mine ears with a loud voice saying, Cause them that have charge over the city to draw near, even every man with his destroying weapon in his hand. And, behold, six men came from the way of the higher gate, which lieth toward the north, and every man a slaughter weapon in his hand; and one man among them was clothed with linen, with a writer’s inkhorn by his side: and they went in, and stood beside the brasen altar. And the glory of the God of Israel was gone up from the cherub, whereupon He was, to the threshold of the house. And He called to the man clothed with linen, which had the writer’s inkhorn by his side; And the LORD said unto him, Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and set a mark upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that be done in the midst thereof. And to the others He said in mine hearing, Go ye after him through the city, and smite: let not your eye spare, neither have ye pity: Slay utterly old and young, both maids, and little children, and women: but come not near any man upon whom is the mark; and begin at My sanctuary. Then they began at the ancient men which were before the house. And He said unto them, Defile the house, and fill the courts with the slain: go ye forth. And they went forth, and slew in the city. And it came to pass, while they were slaying them, and I was left, that I fell upon my face, and cried, and said, Ah Lord GOD! wilt thou destroy all the residue of Israel in thy pouring out of thy fury upon Jerusalem?” Ezekiel 9:1–8.

The Final Rebellion of God’s People

Here Ezekiel gives a picture of what transpires during the process of the closing of probation. This particular angel starts sealing God’s people on their forehead, and we understand that the sealing is a settling into truth; it is a process. What brings about this attitude of God where His glory, or His Spirit, leaves the church and comes up and gives this final command to the people?

It is important that we understand what brought this about so that we can really know and identify where we are today. This was brought about by a final rebellion of God’s people. The sins of God’s church had become so prevalent; the church had become so corrupt, and we are not talking about the people—God first looks at the pastors and the clergy, the leadership. In Ezekiel 8, we are told He came down, grabbed Ezekiel by a lock of his hair, lifted him up and suspended him between heaven and earth. And He said, “Look Ezekiel, I want you to see the people in My house, in My church, the way I see them. I do not want you to see them in the pews on Sabbath; I do not want you to see them so courteous; I want you to look at them when no one else is looking and see what is really taking place. Look into the hearts of the people.”

When Ezekiel looked he saw all types of filthy abominations. Ezekiel did not want to see this, because he loved the people of God. He started weeping, and God said, “No, Ezekiel, I want you to look further.” He looked further, and it got worse. God said, “No, Ezekiel, do not stop there; I want you to look even further.” Ezekiel looked further, and it got even more horrible! When he thought that it could not get any worse, the Bible says, “Ezekiel, No, I need you to take a deep look to see what my leadership is doing, to see what is really happening.” You see, we cannot put these people off on somebody else, these were Seventh-day Adventists of that day. These were God’s remnant people, the chosen vehicle to take a peculiar message to the world.

Is Your Back Turned?

“Look, Ezekiel, look at what they are doing!” All this time the glory of God was still in the church, still trying to war with the church and wrestle with them, but now it is time to make a separation. What happened to cause God to remove His glory? Notice what it says in Ezekiel 8:16, “And He brought me into the inner court of the Lord’s house, and, behold, at the door of the temple of the LORD, between the porch and the altar, were about five and twenty men, with their backs toward the temple of the LORD, and their faces toward the east; and they worshipped the sun toward the east.” They had started treating not only the Sabbath like a regular day, but they turned their backs on the true God and started worshiping the sun.

My question is, Do you think that our church is in a condition where they really believe God? Two years ago, the pope was not playing games when he wrote that letter calling on a national day of worship, saying that we need to restore the sacredness of the Sabbath, and he went on to call Sunday the Sabbath! The world is turning her back on God, and let me tell you something, brothers and sisters, we are relaxed; we are not crying out! That means our backs are turned, too!

When they chose to start worshiping this sun-god, Jesus said, “It is time! Go and seal my people.”

“What is the hurry?” asked the angel with the inkhorn. He said, “If you do not hurry, even the very elect will be lost!”

Sin is about to overwhelm this world like we have never seen it before, and if you are not preparing to be sealed, you are preparing to be seared.

Business as Usual is Folly

Let me tell you something—Jesus started to come! He started to come, but His coming was interrupted. As a matter of fact, it is put this way in Revelation 7—to be relaxed in a crisis situation is to be out of your mind! It is a state of unbelief that will cause you to be lost. To be able to continue business as usual and be caught up with the folly and concerns of this world, rather than trembling before the altar of God, making sure your life is right, is sure death.

There is an angel going around, and at any minute he could place a seal upon your forehead or withdraw his presence and go back to the Father and say, “All that we can do, they refuse!” Do you not know that every single day the angel is giving that solemn report? Every single day the angel is going to the throne room of God and saying, “Everything that heaven can appeal with has been used, and they refuse! They want to hang on to their infidelity. They want to hang on to their carnal security. They want to hang on to those things that must perish, and they find joy in it!”

This is where we are. Right now there are things that we find greater joy in than we do in the study of God’s Word and in the teaching of His Word. Those things are idols! Our young people are not prepared for a crisis. Mrs. White says normally the anticipation of trouble is greater than the reality, but not so here! This is not the case when it comes to what this world is about to go through. She says the most vivid presentation could not describe what we must go through as a people. (See The Great Controversy, 622.)

What are we ready for? Some of us cannot handle it if our lights are out for two days. If there is a heat wave coming through town and we have air conditioning, we still murmur and complain. With wonderful comforts in life we are complaining! We are not ready! We are not preparing our children to be ready. We are preparing to act just like the children acted when Jerusalem was besieged. Do you know what they were doing? They were eating their parents because there was no food. The parents had led them to be caught up in worldly things. Oh, they talked about God, but the child could see that it was not in their heart, and if you do not have heart religion, you are simply breathing out demonic influence.

Why do you think Jesus says, “Give me your heart,” not your mouth? Jesus says, “I want you to go and I want you to seal. I want you to set a mark upon the people that cry and sigh for the abominations that are done in the land.” They are not self-righteous; they are crying! They are agonizing in prayer! Their whole life is consumed with trying to bring people to Christ.

“And after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree. And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and He cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea, Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads.” Revelation 7:1–3.

The Words were on His Tongue

Hurt not the earth! Ellen White says she saw this in vision; Jesus was about to turn; He was about to quote Revelation 22; it was on His tongue. Remember, brothers and sisters, the Word of God does not have to be acted on. Man’s word has to be acted on. If I say I would like you to have a handkerchief which I have, I have to walk over to you and give you the handkerchief. But when God says something, it is done. He does not have to move afterward. Jesus was about to say, “Let him that is filthy be filthy still; Let him that is unjust be unjust still; Let him that is righteous be righteous still; and he that is holy be holy still.” (See Revelation 22:11.) And upon Him saying it, it would have been done immediately! And Ellen White said when He turned to do it, He caught a glimpse of some people who, if they had a few more moments, would turn to God and be saved. She said immediately He started crying, ” My Blood, My blood, My Blood, Father!” And then another angel was dispatched and that angel said “Hold! Hold! Hold the winds!” (See Early Writings, 38.)

Now, brothers and sisters, we are told by that same divine inspiration that Jesus will not extend probation again. He will not do it! When Jesus says, “He that is unjust be unjust still,” you must be ready! You must be holy when He says that. Your life must be prepared. You must look radiant because probation is closing; it is closing on this earth. Jesus is about to step out of the Most Holy Place! We are hearing final cries, and they do not seem so urgent because we have weaned the Spirit of God, and we have become so light about God and holy things that we cannot hear the way we used to hear. It does not sound as clear.

Brothers and sisters, some of the things that we are participating in do not make any sense. Some of the things we put before God make no sense at all! Yet we are finding great pleasure. The tragedy is, the thought of God does not even come to our mind while we are doing it. We can sit down and watch two hours of TV without thinking of Jesus. We are engaged in some of the grossest sins, which are breaking the heart of Jesus, and the devil wants us to keep believing that time is going to just keep on going.

Periodically the California Highway Patrol sets up road blocks. You may just be driving down the street and see that everybody on that street has stopped, and when you stop, a couple of police officers pull up; one in back of you so you cannot turn around, and one in front of you so you cannot go forward. Then they start checking your car to make sure that it is up to code. When someone tells you, “Listen, if you go down 79th Street, the road block is up,” you are going to make sure you do not go that way if your car is not right.

God tells you that thousands of years ago an angel started coming with an inkhorn. You know that in 1844 he started sealing all the cases, and right now He is sealing people who may be reading this article. Even now probation could be closing on somebody reading this magazine. Right this minute!

Beyond the Time of Preparation

Notice what the Bible says in Daniel 12— often when we read this we think of preparation. We think that we have time, we think of it as a preparation stage. Now is the time that we need to BE prepared. We are beyond the time of preparation. Time is out! Every prophetic sign that Jesus said would take place prior to His coming has already taken place. Every sign! Not one is left, brothers and sisters, except the passing of a national worship day and the falling of the seven last plagues.

The book Evangelism says, when the law comes that makes man worship on a false day, and you know what I am talking about, at that time the commandment keeping people are going to be confronted first and instantly; probation is either going to close on you or you are going to have the final sealing. At that time you cannot shape character because you become afraid and emotional. Mrs. White describes these people; she says she saw many of them running without a shelter during the time of trouble. Why were they running? Because they believed they were all right with God. Why were they fleeing? Because they thought that last minute confession could change their character, but it would not change it.

God knew that the only reason why they were praying was because they knew that trouble was coming. Like Judas of old, who cast the coins down and confessed because he was afraid of his judgment not of what he had done. Here we are living in a time when we think we can get prepared. No! It is right now! Everyone should be prepared right this minute! Do you think you are ready for it?

An Overwhelming Surprise!

Mrs. White states that the church is not ready for what is to soon overtake us as an overwhelming surprise. An overwhelming surprise! That means you are not going to be ready. It is going to shock you. God is crying throughout the earth, “Get ready! Get ready! Get ready!” and you are worried about who is going to win some foolish NBA championship. God is not in that. God is not in it even when it is not on the Sabbath. The Spirit of Prophecy says that Satan invented sports to keep God’s people’s minds off of the Word. (See Review and Herald, June 13, 1907.)

Do you think that there is ever a time to lend your mind to an invention of Satan? I know, for some of you, that I just tore your god out of your heart. Let me tell you something; you are going to have to face it, because now, every time you watch sports, these thoughts are going to come to your mind, and the minute they stop is when God’s angel reports and says, “Nothing we do is going to arouse him.”

God has to get the earthliness out of us, brothers and sisters. That whole spirit of competition came from heaven,— Satan competing against Jesus. And he tells you, “Oh, good sportsmanship. It is okay to lose as long as you have a good attitude.” If you lose in this game of life, you pay with your soul and your attitude will not be good!

When it is Too Late

It is time for God’s remnant church to start looking different, talking different, and to have a different flavor about their whole lifestyle. Why? Because the Loud Cry must come from you! Yes, millions of people who love God are not Seventh-day Adventists. As a matter of fact, our prophet says the majority of God’s true people are not in the Seventh-day Adventist church. The majority! She says millions of Catholics are true, devout Christians, and they are going to hear the final cry and follow God with all their hearts. But the cry is going to come from those few who are sealed, and when that law is passed, brothers and sisters, the Latter Rain has already fallen because it is the message of righteousness by faith, a true indwelling of Christ that causes you to have the full power of the Holy Spirit and to radiate this message.

Millions are going to come out of those churches. They are going to stand on the side of the people of God, and then probation is going to close worldwide. When it closes worldwide, “…at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of Thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time Thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book. [Or written to life.]” Daniel 12:1. In other words, when Michael stands up, that is it. The deliverance at that level is not deliverance out of sin, the deliverance at that level is deliverance off this earth.

That time of trouble—when the plagues start falling on this earth and eyes start coming out of their sockets because of the radiant heat of the sun; when blood is everywhere and there is no water to drink; millions are dying of scorching boils, blisters and thirst—men start cursing God. They curse God because the Holy Spirit has withdrawn Himself, and they are incapable of praising God now. You see, when Jesus stands up, that is a symbol of the close of probation.

Let me give you an example. Acts 7 was a symbol of the close of probation. One of the things that happens when someone is in negotiation is that they sit down at the table together, and Jesus is sitting down at the table right now, He is negotiating on your behalf. Satan is the prosecuting attorney, and he is desperately accusing, calling every sin, even sins you do not realize, to account. We start living carelessly, and we are sinning without even thinking about it, but Satan is taking strict account. If you think a video recorder can reproduce what we do, what do you think the devil, with his skills and powers, can do?

Satan has pled his case, and now Jesus gets to the point. He pleads His case and now He stands up. The negotiation is over. That is it. He has done all He can do; that is it. You who are unjust, you stay that way. You filthy? Stay filthy; you righteous, stay righteous; you holy, you stay that way. That could happen at any moment to any one of us, as well as to the whole world. When Michael stands up, probation closes!

To be continued…

Arise, Shine, Part II

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This article is taken from a sermon by Pastor Stephen Lewis. The coloquial phraseology was retained in the transcript.

In Acts 7, we read that Stephen was preaching with power. He was about to be killed, and he knows it, but it was alright because he was so filled with the power of God that he started giving the church their final cry. People in the crowd were being convicted. Saul was in the crowd watching, and he was convicted, brothers and sisters! Stephen was giving the church what you are getting today, a final warning, It is time to repent!

“When they heard these things, they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed on him with their teeth, but he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing on the right hand of God, And said, Behold I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God.” Acts 7:54–6. When Jesus stood at this time it was a sign of probation closing on the children of Israel and that is why you see, from chapter 8 on, the gospel going to the Gentiles.

What does it mean? It means God has now closed probation on those who would not represent Him and now the gospel is given to the Gentiles to learn and to proclaim. But who went out and gave this final message? It was the remnant people, Peter and James and John. The Gentiles were not giving it. Paul was an Adventist; he was just a deluded Adventist. He had been brainwashed from some of the things he had learned in the seminary. I can hear you exclaiming, “Wait a minute, what are you saying?” I am saying what the prophet says, that is why Jesus had to take him to the desert for two or three years. He had to “unlearn” him, reorient his thinking, because the scholars had messed up his head.

Stephen’s Light Must be Our Light

The way Stephen was, we must be. In other words, when probation closes on this earth there will be physical signs on the people of God, and those who are rejecting God are going to see the physical sign on the people of God, but the people of God will not notice it on themselves.

Acts 6:15 tells us how Stephen looked. When they looked at Stephen at this point, his face was like a light. It was the same way that Moses’ face looked when he came down off the mount with the Ten Commandments, his face was so lit up that the people could not look upon him. They turned and they said, “Veil his face until he finishes talking to us, we cannot bear the light.” (See Exodus 34:29–35.) The light was the glory of God coming out of him. Stephen was so full of the Holy Spirit that the light in him became visible.

This is why people hate the Three Angel’s Message; this is why you do not see three angels everywhere on all of the Seventh-day Adventist papers anymore. This is why you do not see three angels hanging in front of many of the churches; and you do not see three angels clearly defined, because these three angels are a peculiar message that the Stephens of today must preach in order for the world to radiate Jesus. Notice what it says in Revelation 14:6: “And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people.” He says every kindred, nation, and tongue. When you talk about kindreds, nations, tongues and people, that includes all of us, brothers and sisters.

And God says with a loud voice, “…Fear God, and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come:” Revelation 14:7. In other words, Satan is pointing at God; he is saying God’s law cannot be kept, and God is sitting on the witness stand and He’s saying, ” Wait a minute…” He is looking for somebody to point to who will have the glory of God in them. You see, brothers and sisters, when you fill yourself up with the Word of God and you surrender every earthly attribute to Jesus as He asks for it, eventually there will be a light that will come out of you! This light has been longed for in mankind!

Jesus is about to come and you can keep playing if you want to, but somebody is going to be ready when the light comes! Because the light must come before probation closes on the world and those who get the light will give the final cry to the world.

Going to Babylon

Let me tell you something. It does not phase me when I get cancelled from speaking appointments and when people start lying about me saying, “He is saying this and saying that,” because Satan is afraid of the Adventist message. I am not a biblical scholar, everything I preach comes straight out of the Spirit of Prophecy, and the old pillars, the pioneers. Ellen White said we should study the writings of our pioneers, not all these new books! (See Counsels to Writers and Editors, 28.) She says study, and she says study the writings of our pioneers. Why? Because they founded this movement. We are so far off now you can pick up anything in some of our bookstores—”Life of Billy Graham.” What does Billy know? T.D. Jakes loses a hundred pounds. So what? We do not need to go to Jakes! What is wrong with us?

What have we become as a people? How is it that rather than eat whole grain and get it first hand we are eating meat and getting it second hand? That is the same thing when you watch the gospel people who are taking the Spirit of Prophecy and preaching it to their first day congregations. It is an indictment to those of us who are trying to be like them! You will never hear this type of message in one of those churches. It is a clear ring when the trumpet is sounded and it is important that the trumpet be sounded and be unique. Why? Because ten days prior to the Day of Atonement there was a certain sound, and when that sound was blasted, the church knew that it was time to get ready! (See Leviticus 23:24.)

When we ring this sound through the world, with a high pitch of holy angels exploding it everywhere it goes, the world will be drawn to us. Our choirs cannot do what their choirs can do; we cannot do it. Our preachers cannot do what their preachers can do; we can practice, but we cannot do it. God will not allow it! We must win with truth and nothing but the truth! When you preach the truth and nothing but the truth, you can stutter it and people will be convicted. When the truth is preached, anyone can understand it.

Peter was sitting there. Jesus was looking around; He was saddened. Why? Because He was about to die. He said, “All of you are going to scatter; you are all going to leave when the Shepherd is smitten,” and Peter said, “No not me!” Jesus looked around the room; He is looking for a preacher, and He though, “Nobody will be there to rebuke him when he denies Me;” so He went to the animal kingdom and He caused the rooster to preach the Word! He gave Peter the ability to understand that tone, and he is rebuked, (See Mark 14:27–30.) When thee truth is preached, a donkey can do it! It has a different ring.

We have heretics in our church. We have something that the world does not have. Why are we trying to be like them? Why are we afraid of what people will think about us? Forget what they think; stand for the power of God!

Oh God of heaven! Please pour out Your Spirit! Please, dear God of heaven! Our people are lost! Please Lord, help us today. When there is a crusade, the people do not even see the need of being there. They do not even realize the promise of reaping what you sow. If they just go, they are going to reap someone else in their family by showing up to a meeting somewhere. They say, “I am too tired!” What are they really too tired of? God? Do not act like you are going home from church to pray. Do not act like you are going home to study. You are lost! If the gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost. You have no concern; it is just not easy to make a sacrifice for your own salvation. We are in trouble! Do you think Jesus is coming to the crusades? You say you love God, then why would you not want to be where He is?

God gave me a job to present the message. After I do that, I have done my part, but what about your part? What about you?

This is where we are spiritually; you cannot help yourself—you are lost! And you can get as mad as you want to get, but in the heat of your rage I want you to pull out a piece of paper and mark down how much time you spend with God every morning. I want you to mark down how much you read your Bible. I want you to mark down how much time you spend reading the Spirit of Prophecy. I want you to mark down the last time your heart was heavy and your eyes were wet with tears because you understood that a soul might be lost.

The Main Attraction in Town

It has been a long time, and yet God comes through for you every time. But it seems everything else we do is so much more important than these souls that Jesus left heaven to die for. The devil gives us a thousand excuses as to why we cannot do what is most important. The Holy Spirit, during the hours of a crusade, is the main attraction in your town! It is nowhere else except there, unless you are doing the same thing somewhere else. Even if you are at home praying, the main attraction is the meeting, because He said, “Go ye therefore!” (See Matthew 28:19.) It was God who spoke, brothers and sisters.

And here was Stephen; the light was glowing about him. Today, God is calling forth someone who will have that light. Jesus said the Son of man came to seek and to save that which was lost. What was lost? “And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul.” Genesis 2:7. Adam and Eve were clothed with the light of righteousness. (See Review and Herald, January 26, 1897.)

The same light that was around Stephen’s head; the same light that was around Moses, covered the whole bodies of Adam and Eve. That was their clothing! The minute they sinned it was like taking a bb gun and shooting a light bulb. The minute the bb hits the bulb, Boom! the light goes out. The Bible says “…the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked, and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.” Genesis 3:7.

Before sin, Adam had the ability to look into plant life and know exactly what was there. He could look at a flower and understand how the white would just melt into the red and yellow. He understood all nutritional value and everything that made up every piece of fruit. (See Christian Education, 207.) A fig leaf is a small leaf; there are a lot of leaves larger than a fig leaf that you can use to try to cover yourself. Why the fig leaf? Because figs have healing propensities. Figs are full of magnesium. Magnesium is used to make electricity. Adam was trying to light himself up again. He wanted to glow.

A works religion will not do, Adam. Adam was hoping, trying to spark the leaves and God said, “Adam? Where are you and your light project? Adam, what are you doing? Adam, where are you?” (See Genesis 3:9.)

Many of us are going to find ourselves scrambling and running when it is too late, trying to light ourselves up, trying to get what was lost. Jesus came, and after He died and resurrected, the light became available to everybody! “I am the light of the world; if you leave the world alone and grab onto Me, you will light up!” (See John 8:12.)

Do the Seventh-day Adventists have a message or what? This is not my message; this is in our books! This is what we used to get every single Sabbath and every Wednesday night. We would come to church all the time and when the church could not be open, we would be at each other’s houses, not just talking small talk and laughing as we eat and drink! We would be in the Word. Ellen White says that some of the socials of her day were all night prayer meetings. (See Manuscript Releases, vol. 5, 242.) People would get together and they would start praying and studying and praying and all of a sudden the glory of God would come into the house and they would be ‘slain in the Spirit;’ they would fall down. (See Spiritual Gifts, 27, 28; Christian Experience and Teachings, 130; Life Sketches, 261, 1888 and Life Sketches, 127, 1915; Manuscript Releases, vol. 5, 239.)

There were no drums, no tambourines, no bass guitar, none of that, just prayer and the Word. They did not even have electricity, but they had the light that the Holy Ghost brought.

Coming for His Bride

Look at how far we are. We are coming to the point where Jesus is going to see who really loves Him. Revelation 19:8 says that when Jesus gets ready to come, He is coming for a bride. If you know brides like I know them, before a bride walks down the aisle, everything has already been prepared—no more trying to get the dress fixed and the flowers ordered. No, no, no! The minute that door opens and that bride stands there with the veil over her face, it is done. When Jesus comes to get His bride, she is going to be dressed, according to Revelation 19:8, in fine, white linen. The Bible says that white linen is the righteousness of the saints, not the righteousness of Christ. You see, “You loved Me so much, and you rejected the things of this world every time I asked you to; and you took ridicule and suffering, and you sacrificed for Me so much that now it is not My righteousness anymore, I am giving it to you—it is yours!” And this is what is going to happen with the remnant first—they are going to have the light! And at that time, the Bible says in Isaiah 59:16, “And He saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor…” Jesus has left the Most Holy Place—there is no intercessor!

That is why, if you look at Isaiah 59:1, 2 it gives a two fold message. It says God’s hand is not shortened, He is not slack, but it is your iniquities that have separated you.” Well, brothers and sisters, the time is going to come when God’s ear will not hear you because of your life style. Right now He will hear you no matter what your life is like, but the time will come when there will be no intercessor. “…therefore His arm brought salvation unto Him; and His righteousness, it sustained Him.” Isaiah 59:16. Christ had to stand without a mediator and His own righteousness had to sustain Him. He is going to give that to you! And even though it is His, He says, “No, it is yours; it will not leave. You are sealed now.”

At that time the remnant are going to go to the world with the mighty message. Now those who are not sealed are going to continue in their forms of worship. As a matter of fact, Mrs. White says that when probation closes on the church, Satan is going to cause them to really have a prayer meeting. The church is going to get serious all of a sudden. They are going to have time to pray and time to agonize, but she says, there is no more intercessor. (See Great Controversy, 614, 615.)

Notice what we are told is going to happen. “Arise, shine, for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and His glory shall be seen upon thee.” Isaiah 60:1.

Your Children Will be Saved

You are going to be bright, preaching with power, and it says, at that time “…the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising. Lift up thine eyes round about, and see all they gather themselves together, they come to thee: thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side.” Ibid, 3, 4. Your children will be saved, if you just live right! Let the light come upon you! When you have the power, that light will draw people. Why? Because the light is Jesus and He says, “…if I be lifted up, I will draw all men unto Me.” John 12:32. “Then thou shalt see, and flow together, and thine heart shall fear, and be enlarged, because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, and the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee.” Isaiah 60:5.

God is going to draw people, if we let the light shine, but the light cannot shine with darkness. The light cannot work with Satan.

Ellen White says, “God does nothing in partnership with the devil.” (See Testimonies, vol. 4, 229; Ibid, vol. 5, 671.) Nothing! I want to share a vision with you, and I pray that the Father gives you understanding as you read.

Too Late, Too Late!

“Then I saw Jesus lay off His priestly attire and clothe Himself with His most kingly robes. Upon His head were many crowns, a crown within a crown. Surrounded by the angelic host, He left heaven. The plagues were falling upon the inhabitants of the earth. Some were denouncing God and cursing Him. Others rushed to the people of God and begged to be taught how they might escape His judgments. But the saints had nothing for them.…”

” When the saints, and all heaven, were interested for their salvation, they had no interest for themselves. Life and death had been set before them. Many desired life, but made no effort to obtain it. They did not choose life, and now there was no atoning blood to cleanse the guilty, no compassionate Saviour to plead for them, and cry, ‘Spare, spare the sinner a little longer.’ All heaven had united with Jesus, as they heard the fearful words, ‘It is done. It is finished.’ The plan of salvation had been accomplished, but few had chosen to accept it. And as mercy’s sweet voice died away, fear and horror seized the wicked. With terrible distinctness [around the world] they heard the words, ‘Too late! Too late!’

Can you imagine? Too late! Lord, I do not want to hear those words! With terrible distinctness, with all the other sounds in the world, they heard the words, “Too late.”

“Those who had not prized God’s Word were hurrying to and fro, wandering from sea to sea, and from the north to the east, to seek the Word of the Lord. Said the angel, ‘They shall not find it. There is a famine in the land; not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but for hearing the words of the Lord. What would they not give for one word of approval from God…!’”

What would they not give for just one word of approval from God. One more time God, but, it is ‘too late!’ When all heaven was interested, you were too caught up doing your own thing. Too late!

“Day after day have they slighted salvation, prizing earthly riches and earthly pleasure higher than any heavenly treasure or inducement. They have rejected Jesus and despised His saints. The filthy must remain filthy forever.

“Many of the wicked were greatly enraged as they suffered the effects of the plagues. It was a scene of fearful agony. Parents were bitterly reproaching their children, and children their parents, brothers their sisters, and sisters their brothers. Loud, wailing cries were heard in every direction,” [Look what was being said!] ‘It was you who kept me from receiving the truth which would have saved me from this awful hour.’ The people turned upon their ministers with bitter hate and reproached them, saying, ‘You have not warned us.’ Early Writings, 281, 282.

Those Who Know “The Truth” are condemned

When I first read this, I thought it was talking about the first day preachers! No! It was you who knew the truth, who decided to let our young people dance and party, rather than teach them that that type of music came from spiritualism, rather than tell them the truth, that demons come and that angels leave with that type of worship, no matter how sincere you are!

It was you, who kept calling our young people to federation after federation and congress after congress only to lift up Satanic music, with unconverted people standing up, showing off as they sing, shaking their hips back and forth. They do not have devotion, they do not know our message, and yet it was you who would not tell the young people the truth!

Oh, yes, it is going to be heard! Let me tell you something, we are sending our young people to hell! We are insulting our young people. We are acting like our young people cannot come together unless we let them act the fool!

Let us start talking to God. We need to look at our hearts right now. Ask God right now, “Do I really belong to You, Lord, or have I sold out to some crutch in my life?

I am not afraid to back up what I say about this music! I have all the Biblical stats, Spirit of Prophecy stats, scientific stats and historical stats. You have nothing but fluff! And I would be happy to gather all the young people, and anyone who thinks I am wrong, and sit down and talk about it. Nobody has been able to show me yet; it is easier to try to silence me. If you cannot stop the Truth, kill the messenger! But it will not work! If a rooster has to start crowing, it is going to crow, and you are going to understand it. If a donkey has to come, the Lord will send them running through the city— “Where did all these donkeys come from? And they are preaching the same thing!” How can a dumb stupid donkey preach the truth and a sensible human be stuck in error?

Right now we need to make a decision; we have looked into the past, and we must admit that we are unworthy, that we are sinners, that we love sin! But this day the light has come. Do you want that light to be breathed in you? Do you want it to shine out of you? Do you want to be trusted to take this final message to the world? Are you concerned with what God thinks, and not with what people think? Now is the time for salvation.

Watchman, Beware! – Part I

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As we see things of this world coming very rapidly to an end, we must rejoice! That is what Christ told His disciples to do (See Luke 21:28.) Rejoice when you see these things coming to pass because redemption is at hand. However, the things that have been happening are still a surprise to many of us. It never even came to my mind that I was going to be facing what I am facing today. [Editor’s note: Pastor Perez, the Eternal Gospel Church and its directors have been sued by the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists in November, 1999.]

The more that I read the Federal Judge’s ruling, the less it makes sense. It is just a secular law being applied to a religious group, to a religious institution. I invite each one of you to go to our website when you have a little time, www.eternalgospel.com. There you can see the entire 16 pages of the Judge’s decision protecting the order of the structure church. They have a trademark that they have to protect, and the Judge states that he has to protect that trademark.

I never, brothers and sisters, even dreamed that a Federal Judge from this great nation would come out with a ruling calling God’s people, the worshippers of the Most High, “customers”! And he repeats the word “customers” time after time throughout the document.

Running a Business

So what the General Conference, the structure from Silver Springs, Maryland, had requested of the civil government of this nation was that they be able to protect their business, their customers. I never thought—and I am sure that none of you ever thought—that the General Conference is running a commercial business.

This is a very serious thing! I understand that some of you still feel a need to be part of the structure, because you are trying to help some brethren over there. My heart goes out to you, and I hope you will be able to help some brethren. But if that is not the main purpose for you to still be attending a structure church, brothers and sisters, pray! I am sure the Lord will guide you to be completely separated from that structure.

How do you suppose they are going to go to the Federal government and request that their customers not be stolen away? Back in 1990, 1991, when I heard some of the Seventh-day Adventist pastors accusing me of stealing their members, I took it as a joke. I still take it as a joke; but do you know what? It is a very serious thing.

180 Degree Turn Around

We have come to a point in this nation, where the institution that God called out to give the last message of warning to mankind has been turned 180 degrees, and they are opposing the people who are, by the grace of God, giving this very message to the people. So, it has been shocking to me. It has been like a nightmare.

Is a church a commercial business? I do not think any of the brethren think of it that way. I want you to think, those of you who are still going and will be going next Saturday to your local churches; think of this: your leaders consider you a customer, just as if you were going to MacDonald’s, to Burger King, or to the grocery store.

I do not think you want to be treated like a customer. It is about time, brothers and sisters, that we try, not only with words but also with our actions, to stop this ind of action in our land.

The Judge’s ruling also says that the Plaintiff’s registration covers religious books, magazines, pamphlets, newsletters and more. And then he concluded the list by saying, “Also religious services.”

What does that mean? Do you see, brothers and sisters, the Lord is trying to wake up His people before it is too late. I have a copy of a letter from New Zealand addressed to the President of the United States. This New Zealand brother wrote a letter on my behalf, and I hope that somebody high up in government levels will read it. It says, “The only church in the whole world that has trademarked the name of the church, is the Seventh-day Adventist Church.”

Even the Roman Catholic Church has not done that. Right in the county where we live, Palm Beach County, there is an independent Catholic Church and, as far as I know, the Bishop and the Catholic Diocese are not trying to sue them. This Catholic Church calls the pope the antichrist, by the way. I mean, it is like God is trying to speak to us through the stones.

Learning a Hard Lesson

Part of the message, part of the warning that we should be giving to the world, now God is using people of the world to give us a lesson. We received one of the most beautiful letters from Bob Jones University. You know they are not Adventists, they are Baptists. Bob Jones has written a nice letter on our behalf!

I called him, and he said, “As you know, I cannot agree with everything that you are putting in these newspapers, The Earth’s Final Warning. But one thing that I agree with you 100 percent, you are under the Constitution of this nation, and you have the right to express your religious beliefs.” He went on to say, “Who do those people in Silver Springs, Maryland, think they are, trying to stop you from expressing your religious faith?”

I said, “Well, that is the question I have been trying to resolve for quite a long time.” Yet, it is so sad to see so many of our brethren being appeased. Their conscience has been compromised. The General Conference will be making them believe that the Three Angels’ Messages is being preached, because they are doing that Net ‘95, ‘96, ‘99, 2000 program.

Do a little testing, if you do not want to believe me. If some of you sincerely believe that the presentation of these global nets are giving the Three Angels’ Messages to the world, test it out. Ask your pastor, or call your Conference leader, and ask them to put those same messages out on secular television where you live and see what they do.

A Time of Double Standards

Let us not be so naïve, brothers and sisters. We put in our newsletter a copy of a letter from Pastor Doug Bachelor, the same pastor who was preaching on the so-called Net ’98 and ’99 programs. He said he was telling the people in America to pray for the heart of Pastor Perez to be converted, so he would not give so much trouble to the General Conference. He does not even know me! You see, we are living in a time of double standards.

There is a beautiful quote from Mrs. White about how no voice should be stopped in preaching the Three Angels’ Messages (See Sermons and Talks, vol. 2, 308.) Yet, look what they are doing! You see, there is a double standard. The same brother out in California, after he wrote that letter, said, “Oh, we have to try to stop this terrible thing that the General Conference is persecuting a little group in Florida.” This same brother! How long are we going to be playing games with our salvation and the salvation of so many people?

The time has come, brothers and sisters, that we have to take seriously the calling which God has given to us. God has called you and me, not only to be part of His kingdom but also to bring souls to His kingdom. Do we understand that? Do we understand that there cannot be a greater commission, a greater appointment by anybody given—even by God—than the commission of being made an instrument of salvation to others?

Luke 21 talks a little bit about the experience that we are going to be facing in these last days. For example, it states in verse 12, “‘But before all these, [Jesus is talking about all the signs that would happen before the Second Coming], they shall lay their hands on you, and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues, and into prisons, being brought before kings and rulers for My name’s sake.’”

Misapplied Scriptures

You know, many of us, when we used to read these verses, especially those of us who have come out of Roman Catholicism, thought that these verses meant people would be fleeing from the Roman Catholic Church. We thought it was the Roman Catholic Church that would go after us. I remember, about twenty years ago, coming out after attending a Roman Catholic Seminary, and coming to this beautiful light. I said, when I came to this message, “In the near future we are going to see the Roman Catholic Church persecuting us and taking us to the court.” To be honest with you, until seven or eight years ago, that was my mentality. All of a sudden we are learning, through experience, that our worst enemies are our own brethren!

I could imagine the Roman Catholic leaders sitting down in their big palace, crossing their arms and laughing at us: “Look at them; we have to deal with these ‘offshoots.’” But my own General Conference brothers have taken care of it for them.

Now they are laughing at each one of us. They say, “Look, we do not have to do it, we have been doing a good job by even trying those churches. They are doing what we are supposed to be doing against those ‘offshoots.’”

And, of course, Luke 21:16 goes on to say, “‘And ye shall be betrayed both by parents, and brethren, and kinsfolks, and friends, and some of you shall they cause to be put to death.’” So we see in the book of Luke, very clearly, that we would be used for the sake of testifying for Christ; for verse 13 says, “‘And it shall turn to you for a testimony.’” Like Sister White says, that may be the only means that those men and women will have to come across the message. (See The Desire of Ages, 630.)

In the book of Matthew, we see another aspect of these words from Christ that we may not have seen in Luke 21. Look what it says in Matthew 24:10. Jesus is talking about the last days, “And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another.” Why do you suppose many were going to be offended? because of the Three Angels’ Message.

Confronted with Opposition

You know, it is the same principle, the same method that Satan has been using against mankind forever. Every time that God has raised up His people, to give a special truth for a particular generation, a hatred has developed. People get offended and they go against the message and against the messenger. That has happened time after time. Sister White says very clearly that God has a message of present truth for this time. “Who dare refuse to publish it?” The Great Controversy, 609.

Because she knew that it is part of our human makeup to want to be accepted, God created us to live together. Remember that. God created all of us as a family. And it is part of our nature to want to be accepted by everybody. Everybody wants to be popular. Everybody wants to be in accord with the rest of the people. I am sure that is the same way you feel.

Brothers and sisters, very soon, we are going to come to our heavenly place, and then, yes, there will be forever and ever that unity, that one family for the rest of eternity. But while we are here, we are going to be confronted with opposition.

You know, it is not a surprise that in Matthew 24:14 it says He presented us a clear sign for the aid of the preaching of this gospel. “‘And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.’”

Look how clearly the book of Mark presents it. Notice how Mark registered that quote: ” “‘And the gospel must first be published among all nations.’” Mark 13:10. We have been told, time after time, that the reason God raised up the Seventh-day Adventist people was to give this message, the last message.

Speak Smooth Things, Brother

On pages 94 and 95 of the book, Counsels to Writers and Editors, we are told that the people of the world will try to induce us to soften our message.

Have they done that? Of course!

For those of you who have not read it, I have a report from the General Conference, which they proudly post on their network. They have announced, how after more than 15 years of meetings between the Catholic Church in Poland and the Adventist Church, they have now come to agreement. The Catholic Church will no longer treat the Adventist Church as a sect or a new religious group. This is declared in a joint statement drawn by the Roman Catholic Church and the Adventist Church. So, again, the structure church has been doing a good job by allowing the infiltration of the Roman Catholics into the church to soften the message.

Oh, let us not preach anything negative about the people, they say. But God tells us to unveil the man of sin. God said to unmask the things of Babylon, but the world says, oh, no, no, do not do it! Do not do it! And Satan’s agents are not only saying do not do it, but they are persecuting the ones who are doing it. Satan has been very successful with the saints.

The world, Mrs. White says, will try to suppress one of our more distinctive features. “They say: ‘why do you in your teaching make the seventh-day Sabbath so prominent? This seems to be always thrust before us; we should harmonize with you if you would not say so much on this point.’” Ibid., 94.

Compromise, Compromise

Do you know what was the very first complaint from the evangelical leaders, Barnhouse and Martin, to the General Conference leaders back in 1956? It is recorded in the book, Letters to the Church, by M. L. Andreason. The very first thing that Martin noticed when he sat down in the office was a book that talked about the mark of the beast, according to Pastor Andreason’s report. He said, How can you be seeking to be accepted into the mainstream churches when you are teaching those things about the mark of the beast?

According to Pastor Andreason, the very next quarter the scheduled Sabbath School Quarterly had an entire chapter dealing with the mark of the beast. Do you know what happened to that chapter? It disappeared from the Sabbath School Quarterly.

For those of you who have not read the book, Letters to the Church, by M. L. Andreason, I recommend that you get the book. It is available from Steps to Life. You will be surprised.

You see, these things have been happening for quite a long time; the thing is, we have been asleep. People have been asleep. Satan has been trying to keep us just conforming. Many of us are conforming ourselves in a selfish manner. I do not even see how he knew a person could pretend to be saved by himself, because God called you and me for His kingdom, and with the same calling, He also called us to disciple others.

Run, Hide, Do Nothing!

Some feel that you can be saved, just by trying to ensure that only you are going to be saved. I have found, especially in the Spanish countries, a little wind of doctrine blowing. Recently, in Puerto Rico, some brethren have been going and hiding in places. Now it is good to be going into the country, but they are going beyond that. They said, “We do not see the need for you to be putting these messages out, because the law is going to be in control of all the message, anyway.”

I looked at one of the leaders, and said, “Who do you suppose God has been calling to get this message out?” God help us to accept this responsibility. We are going to be responsible for those souls, thousands and thousands of souls, who are perishing because of lack of knowledge, and their blood will be on us.

We were recently in Guatemala, and we were hardly able to find people to take care of a little work, because everybody was running and leaving the whole responsibility to finish the work for God.

Betraying a Sacred Trust

It does not matter which means Satan uses to keep the message from going out. He does not care which way he does it. We are not to get worried about that. But we are to be very aware. Look what Mrs. White says, “Shall we for the sake of policy, betray a sacred trust? If the world is in error and delusion, breaking the law of God, is it not our duty to show them their sin and danger? We must proclaim the Third Angel’s Message.” Ibid., 95.

This is not a matter of choice, whether we want it or do not want it. I came from a very strong Roman Catholic background. I have five or six cousins who are Roman Catholic priests. One of them was made a Bishop in the Dominican Republic not too long ago. He recently came to see me. They are still working hard to get me to go back home, so to speak, back into the “house.” They see me as the black sheep of the family.

And my heart is broken, because I know they are being deceived. I know them. They grew up with me, and still they cannot see that they have been, not only deceived, but manipulated by the Roman Catholic Institution. They are now deceiving the whole church; they are being manipulated. It is a heartbreaking experience. The message should be going out. It is so late, brothers and sisters, to be playing with the salvation of so many souls. Their blood will be on our hands.

It Has Nothing to do With the Name

We have been very anxious to go out and preach, even more than ever, because we know that the trial and the lawsuit is not really because of the name, Seventh-day Adventist. We are not deceived. It is because of the work that has been going on. Knowing that, we are trying to go as many places as possible to spread this message, even outside of North America.

There is a need for this message to go out. I just heard a brother from California. Their board has already made a decision to do some of this work out there, too, even though we have already done this several times in California. But California is huge, and I believe that some other people should start doing this, too, so the General Conference will see that it is not only a little “offshoot” people down there in Florida, but it is God’s people, around the world. Some of you told me that you took the Earth’s Final Warning to a local paper, and they refused to print it, even though you offered to pay. You can always bulk mail it to the zip codes. That is what we are doing. Also give it out; pass it out to the people. Very soon that is not going to be accepted, we know that, but sometimes the Lord opens up little opportunities and big opportunities.

Setting the Record Straight

Not too long ago somebody sent me a copy of an article that was in the Cairo, South Carolina, paper. It was almost a half page article entitled, “Thus Shall it Rest.” It says that every minister of the ministerial association officially declares a day of rest. I called the brother who sent this, and I said, “Did anybody in South Carolina answer this article? I know there are a lot of Seventh-day Adventists there.”

They said, “No, everybody has been quiet.”

“You mean not even one letter to the Editor, sent by somebody who is a Seventh-day Adventist?”

“Not as far as we know.”

So I called information, and I asked for the phone number of the newspaper. I had in front of me a copy of the articles of both the evangelical and the Roman Catholic churches. They said that they are trying to introduce the idea, or trying to implement the idea, of Sunday worship—you know, not enforcing, but presenting a day of worship.

“I am a Seventh-day Adventist,” I told the lady who was taking care of me over the phone, “and we believe that that is wrong.”

She said, “Well. . .”

“Will you allow me to write an article and put it in the paper?” I asked.

She said, “Well, let me see what can be done.” After a moment she said, “We can sell you some space.”

I said, “Okay, that is fine. I need you to give me a full-page ad.”

She said, “A full page?”

I said, “Yes, a full page. Not a quarter of a page, a full page.”

“Well, send me the material” she said. Then she wanted to charge me like a business.

I said, “No, we are a church, and we have a non-profit status.” I know, after a while of dealing with them, you have to press hard to get the cheapest rate possible. I always ask, “Do you have a stand-by program?” You know, like you set it aside.

That is what I recommend to you, if you are planning to do this. When you talk to the newspaper, tell them not only to give you the non-profit rate but also what they call Ramen, like a remnant space. If, at the last minute, they cancel an ad, they have your material right there, ready, and they will call you and say, “Okay, we have a page available, now. Do you want to go?”

“Yes!” We do not have a specific date to come out. It can come out any time.

That is the way we have been doing it. And let me tell you, in the Los Angeles Times, we were able to get the price down from $78,000 to only $21,000 by using this method. And the U.S.A. Today ad went from $150,000–$160,000 worldwide, to $52,000. You send them the material, they keep it there; and when they have had some other advertisers cancel, they put in your ad. It works well.

One time we did that with the Miami Herald, and the day the Secretary of State, Madeline Albright, was coming to Miami, there was a cancellation of a full page ad in the Miami Herald, and our Earth’s Final Warning came through right on the same day that she was in Miami! A $5,000 ad, and we got it for $1,600.

Madeline Albright is a very, very strong Roman Catholic lady. But do you not feel that she needs to be confronted with the Three Angels’ Messages, too? Yes, of course.

Then we received a lot of letters. You know, brothers and sisters, for the grace of God 80 percent of the people were requesting more books and materials. The other 20 percent were upset. When I give the 1-800 phone number, whoever calls, it is because they are in need of calling. And whoever sits down and writes a letter is either very angry at the message or is very interested in the message.

To be continued . . .

And I Wept

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I wept when I saw him in church for the first time on Wednesday. He was in his mid-70’s, with thinning silver hair and a neat brown suit.

Many times in the past I had invited him to come. Several other Christian friends had talked to him about the Lord and had tried to share the good news with him. He was a well-respected, honest man with so many characteristics a Christian should have, but he had never put on Christ, nor entered the doors of the church.

“Have you ever been to a church service in your life?”, I had asked him a few years ago. We had just finished a pleasant day of visiting and talking.

He hesitated. Then with a bitter smile he told me of his childhood experience some sixty years ago. He was one of many children in a large impoverished family. His parents had struggled to provide food, with little left for housing and clothing. When he was about ten, some neighbors invited him to worship with them. The Sunday School class had been very exciting! He had never heard such songs and stories before! He had never heard anyone read from the Bible!

After class was over, the teacher took him aside and said, “Son, please don’t come again dressed as you are now. We want to look our best when we come into God’s house.”

He stood in his ragged, unpatched overalls. Then looking at his dirty bare feet, he answered softly, “No, ma’am, I won’t—ever.”

“And I never did,” he said, abruptly ending our conversation.

There must have been other factors to have hardened him so, but this experience formed a significant part of the bitterness in his heart.

I’m sure that Sunday School teacher meant well. But did she really understand the love of Christ? Had she studied and accepted the teachings found in the second chapter of James?

What if she had put her arms around the dirty, ragged little boy and said, “Son, I am so glad you are here, and I hope you will come every chance you get, to hear more about Jesus.”

I reflected on the awesome responsibility a teacher, or pastor, or a parent has to welcome little ones in His name. How far-reaching her influence was! I prayed that I might be ever open to the tenderness of a child’s heart, and that I might never fail to see beyond the appearance and behavior of a child to the eternal possibilities within.

Yes, I saw him in the church house for the first time on Wednesday. As I looked at that immaculately dressed old gentleman lying in his casket, I thought of the little boy of long ago, and I could almost hear him say, “No, ma’am, I won’t—ever.”

And I wept.

Watchman, Beware! – Part II

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We Have Not Been Called to Convert

After all, we have not been called to convert people; God has not been calling us to convert people. No! It says we are to preach the message and to publish the message. That is what God has been telling us.

We put our ad in the Fresno Bee awhile ago, and a Roman Catholic priest wrote us a letter, dated April 4, 2000.

Look at the reasoning he gives for opposing this message, this ad. He says, “I am a Catholic priest who was engaged in interface dialog for many years. It always pains me to see the promotion of an anti-ecumenical divisive spirit such as displayed in your organization’s recent full-page advertisement published in the Fresno Bee.”

Brothers and sisters, when I read letters like this, I say to myself, what would the people today do to Christ if He were to come back to earth? Crucify Him again? He said it pains him—it gives him a lot of pain—because this is not ecumenical. But if you read the Bible, forget about the Spirit of Prophecy for a moment, let us just consider the Bible, where can we find the spirit of ecumenism in the Bible? The Bible says, to each one of us, to call God’s people to come out of her (Babylon) (See Revelation 18:4.) That is not being ecumenical. I think it is just the opposite.

Heritage Denied

And yet, the next day the Seventh-day Adventist pastor of a church of about 1,400 members, put a letter in the Fresno Bee. Now, by the way, this pastor happens to be a friend of mine. He has stayed in my home in the past. He has preached in my church before, and he is fully bilingual. He is the pastor of the English church in Fresno.

In the letter he said, “Oh, do not be alarmed. That is not a Seventh-day Adventist. We are the Seventh-day Adventists in Fresno. Those people are from Florida, and they are being sued already by our church.”

I do not understand it, my brothers and sisters. But do you know what? Praise the Lord!

To offset a letter like that, we got another letter from an ex-Roman Catholic Monsignor. He has not only accepted the Sabbath already, but he also spoke out on the radio program that we had a few weeks ago in South Florida. He said that he knew that something was wrong with his church. After 40 years working under the Roman Catholic Church as a priest and as a Catholic Monsignor, he knew something was wrong.

This man said that he read the ad a couple of years ago in the L. A. Times, and that for two years he was debating inside of his heart whether he was going to accept this or not. A couple of months ago he decided to give me a call. He had read The Great Controversy that we sent him.

He came on the radio program in Spanish, he is from Spain, and he publicly said that he has not only accepted the Sabbath, but he is also willing to start working with us. We have to pray for that man. He was revealing things on the radio program that shocked me! I thought we were talking plainly, but he was revealing things that made us tremble.

He said, “The sad part is that even the Seventh-day Adventist Church which God has called to give this message, does not realize that they are being used as an instrument of the Vatican by persecuting people like you.” That was a monsignor talking on the radio. His name is Raphael also. So now there are two Raphael’s giving the message in America!

Persecution About to Begin

The time is not far, brothers and sisters, when we are going to see a world criminal court being implanted on this earth. Look what the Roman Catholic newspaper, April 13, 2000, came out with in Florida. “Pope Urges United Nations to Promote Holistic Vision of Development.” There are pictures of John Paul II with the Secretary of the United Nations, and it says, “John Paul II greets United Nations Secretary General.” Then, at the Vatican on June 15, 2000, he opened a worldwide conference seeking to establish the first permanent global criminal court.

Do you know where the central criminal court is going to be? In Rome. They are not hiding it any more. They know that they even have the Seventh-day Adventist structure on their side. You can imagine who they are going to be trying.

The question that I want to put to you is, Do you see the urgency, brothers and sisters, to wake up the people? Wake up not only the media. I praise the Lord that the men in the media have been telling me, “As we see the development of this nation trying to repudiate the principles of our Constitution, we are going to be standing on your side very soon.” Men in the media! We are praying for those men. They are waiting to see the final development of all these things that are taking place today.

Suppressing the Message

And while this is happening, the church, the structure, the organization that God raised up to give this message, is trying to suppress the message. It is like in Jesus’ time. It is a mystery. No wonder Jesus was trying to draw His people away from the structure.

The disciples were trying to bring Jesus to the structure. Look at the structure! Look at the building! Look at the beauty of the building! It is the same thing today. Look at the structure. Look at Loma Linda. Look at White Memorial. Look at the Review and Herald. The same thing.

Christ Jesus is trying to tell us, “No, forget about the structure. Come to Me. Follow Me. I am the way. I am the life. I am the gate. Follow Me.” We are so far off, brothers and sisters. We have to ask the Lord each day for discernment. It is so deep, the apostasy, today.

In the Catholic newspaper, April 27, 2000, it says, “Pope calls for a New World Order. Surrounded by a multitude of Jubilee Year Pilgrims, Pope John Paul celebrated the holiest day of the Christian Calendar with a call for a New World order.” The pope is speaking more clearly than ever.

Who do you think the leader of that New World Order is going to be? The pope, of course. That has been their aim for many years. They have been waiting to give the last strike against people.

Remember when the pope went to Israel not too long ago? (March 2, 2000.) Two years ago we read his famous letter on the Sunday, Dominus Dei Domini. Now John Paul II, at Mount Sinai, calls for a return to universal moral law.

How Long Before We Wake?

What is the universal moral law to which he is trying to return? You know, brothers and sisters, when I read all these things happening today, I ask myself, How long are God’s people going to wait to wake up and give this message like never before?

People have been asking me, “Are you not afraid, seeing that even in Florida the Catholic Church leads? According to them, there are several agencies that they need to be watching in America. On the top of the list is the Eternal Gospel Church.

Do you know what, brothers and sisters? The Bible tells us that we should not fear man, but we should fear God. (See Ecclesiastes 12:13.) As long as we do God’s work and God’s will and surrender ourselves to Him every day, we have nothing to fear. All these threats are nothing. It does not matter.

That is why I can tell you, with a clear conscience, yes, we have to be wise as serpents. We are to take some precautions, you know. But the Lord is the one who has to be in control of our life.

God is in control. He has to be in control. In the meantime, we have to do His will, His work. Forget about what His enemies are trying to do to destroy us.

A few days ago I was given material from my brother who was researching the possibility of an environmental Sabbath. Remember 1992? There was a big meeting in Brazil, and the participants set aside an environmental Sunday for that weekend. This brother gave me some information that I was kind of skeptical of at the beginning, but he also gave me a phone number and he said, “I want you to call.” I guess he noticed that I was not too sure what he was telling me was the truth.

So he said, “If you want, you can call yourself.” The name of the organization was International Organization for Standardization. Have you heard of that? It is some kind of governmental agency that has to do with the calendar and the time, sun timing, and all those things. So I called them and I said to them, “Is it true that you have a web site in which you are presenting the idea of trying to implement a new calendar in America?”

The man said, “Well, if you want to check all our information, I can give you the web site.”

I said, “Okay, give me the web site.”

A New Calendar

So they gave me the web site, and I found that they are trying to bring in a world calendar. You see, most of the countries already have Sunday as the seventh day and Monday as the first day of the week. Spain and most of the Latin American countries are like that.

But they are trying to introduce the idea that Monday is the first day officially and Sunday is the seventh day. Even though we can go to the Bible and prove that Sunday is the first day, many people do not care about the Bible, you know.

Under this calendar—remember this is a government agency—it says, this PFC calendar object displays the days of the week, Monday through Sunday. According to the International Organization of Standardization, IOS, Monday is the first day of the week. The purpose for this extension is to allow the calendar object to comply with standardization.

And then it presents the new calendar. I was told by the brother who gave me all of this information, that the idea of the Y2K “scare” thing was just a smoke screen. They wanted time to have this calendar established.

It was interesting to see, on the web site of this governmental agency, that piece of information.

In The Keys of This Blood, Malachi Martin says (paraphrasing) that the Pope has to use whatever must be used to bring in this New World Order—even fixing the timetable. In the End Game, according to Malachi Martin, the End Game follows a new calendar.

Martyrs for Christ

You know, he died from a heart attack in 1999. I believe that this man was maybe revealing too many things that he knew were coming, things that the establishment did not want him to reveal. He died unexpectedly.

I had the ex-Catholic Jesuit priest, Alberto Rivera, on my radio program a couple of times, and we became quite close to each other. We shared information for a few years. One day his wife called me. She was crying; she was desperate. She said, “I am calling you to let you know what they did to my husband.”

I said, “What are you talking about?”

She said, “My husband was killed. He was poisoned a couple of days ago.”

I said, “What are you talking about? Who did it?”

She said, “Who else?”

I said, “But do you know where he was poisoned?”

She said, “We had an idea but . . .”

I said, “Well, if you had an idea, then why do you not start a legal action in this?”

“No, no, you do not understand”, she said. “You do not know; you do not understand yet how hard it is in the situation that we are in. I am just letting you know to please take care of yourself. I am going away to another state.”

This lady has been hiding since then. It is sad to see such happenings in a free country. This man was revealing too much.

If I can just accomplish one thing for you as you read this article, it would be that you feel the urgency of the hour, the need to see this work proclaimed unto the ends of the earth. If God does not give you the calling to go yourself, at least try to see the need for support that this work might move forward.

Tried for God’s Glory

I want to review with you a statement that I think is more relevant today than it was 100 years ago when Sister White wrote it. This is a matter of religious freedom. This is a matter of God’s Word being involved. She said, “We are not doing the will of God if we sit in quietude, doing nothing to preserve liberty of conscience.” Testimonies, vol. 5, 714.

Some sincere brethren have asked me, “Is it worth it to be involved in this lawsuit?”

Sometimes I answer; sometimes I stay quiet. But I have not started a lawsuit. I am being taken to court. It is different. When I think about Jesus, He could very well have prevented my being taken to court. But He did not prevent it. He Himself went to court.

And Paul not only allowed himself to be taken to court, but he appealed to the highest court. So, I do not know how we see all this, but God is telling us that we are not doing the will of God if we sit in quietude and say, “Okay, so they took you to court.”

You know they give you 20 days to answer, and one man even called me to say, “Do not worry about that. Throw that in the garbage.”

If you throw the summons in the garbage, like he was telling me, you will be picked up by an officer after the 20 days, because you will be in violation of the law. You have to answer this type of a thing. It is not a matter of choice. And we are called to preserve liberty of conscience.

We know that there is going to be trouble later; we know that. But can you think of how many people are going to come into the knowledge of the message by doing what God tells us to do?

Great Loss to be Suffered

Let me share this quote from Testimonies, vol. 5, 715, 716. It says, “If the leading men in our conferences [I want you to pay attention to this because this is a clear picture of what is going on today within the leadership of the conferences. They are not only denying the message but also persecuting the people who are giving the message.] do not now accept the message sent them by God, and fall into line for action, the churches will suffer great loss. [We have seen that for many years.] “When the watchman, seeing the sword coming, gives the trumpet a certain sound, the people along the line will echo the warning, and all will have opportunity to make ready for the conflict.”

Are we willing to come into line with the watchman to give the warning that God has for mankind? Or are we going to entertain ourselves and appease our conscience by saying, “Well, that is God’s work. Let me try to work out my salvation by myself or my little group, my little church, my little ministry?”

Again, the calling of God is more than that. “The people along the line will echo.” We need people who will be willing, for God’s sake, to come along the line and echo the cry of the watchman. All have an opportunity to make ready for the conflict.

“But too often the leader has stood hesitating, seeming to say: Let us not be in too great haste. [Let us pray first. I have heard people pray for seven years already, trying to start doing something, and they are still praying. Do you know what? The time of probation will close and we will still be praying, trying to get into line and do the watchman’s work.] There may be a mistake.” Ibid., 715.

“Well, we will see.” I had a man, not too long ago say to me that he took the whole afternoon, and after he reviewed the Earth’s Final Warning ad, he said, “You know what? I have to admit it to you. This is the first time I have read it all. It is 99 percent the Word of God.” The other 1 percent, of course, is quoting from the Catholic Church, so we put it over on a different page.

How long do we have to do God’s work? How long? Look at what it says:

“‘There may be a mistake. We must be careful not to raise a false alarm.’ The very hesitancy and uncertainty on his part is crying: “Peace and safety.” Do not get excited. Be not alarmed. There is a great deal more made of this religious amendment question than is demanded. This agitation will all die down. Thus he virtually denies the message sent from God, and the warning which was designed to stir the churches fails to do its work. The trumpet of the watchman gives no certain sound, and the people do not prepare for the battle. Let the watchman beware lest, through his hesitancy and delay, souls shall be left to perish, and their blood shall be required at his hand.” Ibid., 715, 716.

Brothers and sisters, Jesus spoke very clearly. The last sign, the specific sign that will bring the end to this world, is the publishing of this gospel. God is waiting for a people to be ready, yes, to be translated to heaven, but those people have to do a work in this earth. If we do not do it, who is going to do it? If we do not do it now, when are we going to do it? God help us to be faithful to the calling of the great watchman, who is Christ. We are just fellow watchmen with Him. God bless you as you prepare to meet thy God.