How Will God Finish His Work? Part I

A most vital and important subject to discuss is the title of this article—“How Will God Finish His Work?” We are Seventh-day Adventists. Whether we are in a self-supporting work, an independent ministry, denominational work, or a home church, as long as we believe and follow the foundational principle beliefs of true, original, historic Seventh-day Adventism, then we are true Seventh-day Adventists.

One thing of which we may be sure is that God is going to take the reins into His own hands. Ellen White penned: “There will be those among us who will always want to control the work of God, to dictate even what movements shall be made when the work goes forward under the direction of the angel who joins the third angel in the message to be given to the world. God will use ways and means by which it will be seen that He is taking the reins in His own hands.” Testimonies to Ministers and Gospel Workers, 299. She continued, “The workers will be surprised by the simple means that He will use to bring about and perfect His work of righteousness.” Ibid.

Personally, I believe the gospel of the kingdom of God has been preached to all of the parts of the world already. Does this shock you? Allow me to repeat that: I believe with all my personal convictions that the gospel of the kingdom of God, as Jesus Christ promised, has been already preached in all the parts of the world. The next thing to come is the end!

I believe that. Do you know why I believe that? I want to tell you why through this article. Jesus Christ is coming soon. There is no doubt about that whatsoever. God is doing something tremendous nowadays, and many Adventists are not really aware of it.

How will God finish His work? From the November 22, 1906, Review and Herald, we read:

“Earthquakes, tempests, tidal waves, pestilence, and famine have multiplied. The most awful destructions, by fire and flood, are following one another in quick succession. The terrible disasters that are taking place from week to week speak to us in earnest tones of warning, declaring that the end is near, that something great and decisive will soon of necessity take place.” The increase of natural disasters is well-known to each one of us.

Statistics

Recent statistics have reported that the organized Seventh-day Adventist Church has raised up one church in every four days of the last decade. Approximately 2,700 baptisms have occurred every day throughout the world. I do not know whether or not those 2,700 individuals are all truly converted people. Only God knows, but according to some reports, probably they are not.

Interestingly enough, after relating those statistics, the mission department at Andrews University in Berrien Springs, Michigan, has said that Jesus will not come within 500 years if the evangelistic efforts continue at the pace it is going now. Do you understand what they are saying? They are absolutely right. If we continue our evangelistic efforts at the current pace, Jesus Christ cannot come soon. How can we prepare for and hasten His Second Coming at the slow pace we are moving, as far as evangelism is concerned?

They are saying that the church has been baptizing 2,700 souls every day. Oh, big deal! More than 350,000 babies are coming into the world every day. We cannot even keep up with the natural growth of the population of the world.

Do you understand that about which I am talking? This is the situation we are in, but God has a different way to spread His gospel and to finish His work. Praise His name for His plan!

Time Past

In Mrs. White’s time, which was 100 or 150 years ago, the church had a small number of missionaries reaching out to fewer regions of the world than we do now. However, the Spirit of Prophecy has always been proclaiming that the Lord’s coming is at hand. Upon what basis does she say that?

“At that time, while the work of salvation is closing, trouble will be coming on the earth, and the nations will be angry, yet held in check so as not to prevent the work of the third angel. At that time the ‘latter rain,’ or refreshing from the presence of the Lord, will come, to give power to the loud voice of the third angel, and prepare the saints to stand in the period when the seven last plagues shall be poured out.” Early Writings, 85, 86.

It is very obvious that the reason Mrs. White said that was because of the power of the latter rain, the loud cry. That is the only hope for you and me to see Jesus Christ coming in the sky. This is the only hope that we have as the church of God.

“I heard those clothed with the armor speak forth the truth with great power. It had effect. . . . I asked what had made this great change. An angel answered, ‘It is the latter rain, the refreshing from the presence of the Lord, the loud cry of the third angel.’ ” Ibid., 271.

When that time comes, we will be surprised how simple will be the methodology God is using—very simple means and simple people. He is going to finish His work, and we will go home.

Holy Spirit Outpouring

“The world seemed to be lightened with the heavenly influence. Great blessings were received by the true and humble people of God. I heard voices of thanksgiving and praise, and there seemed to be a reformation such as we witnessed in 1844.” Testimonies, vol. 9, 126. The phenomena we heard about 1844 are going to be repeated, even more, even better, even more powerful by the Holy Spirit.

“Before the work is closed up and the sealing of God’s people is finished, we shall receive the outpouring of the Spirit of God. Angels from heaven will be in our midst. The present is a fitting-up time for heaven when we must walk in full obedience to all the commands of God.” Selected Messages, Book 1, 111.

Before the outpouring of the latter rain, the Holy Spirit, you and I must walk in full, not partial, obedience to all of the commands of God. She did not even say commandments, but she says commands. That includes some other admonitions of God.

Not Our Own Power

Is our standard such a high standard? Yes, it is. It is possible to reach the standard, but only through the power of the Holy Spirit and Jesus Christ dwelling within us. We need to be rescued every day from our own sinful natures. We need to be delivered from our own weaknesses every day; otherwise we cannot do it. We must possess the heart and the mind of Jesus Christ. Without the mind of Jesus Christ, how can we exercise the faith of Jesus—the faith that Jesus Christ lived when He was here for 33 years?

Two Seals

Read Revelation 7:1–4: “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. And I heard the number of them which were sealed: [and there were] sealed an hundred [and] forty [and] four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel.”

There are two different kinds of seals in the Bible. The seal of the Holy Spirit is a seal for the conversion experience. Everyone must have the seal of God, which is the Holy Spirit seal. But this passage is talking about the seal of the living God. The seal of the living God is only for the last generation. When we go through the Sunday law crisis, then God is going to give us the seal of the living God. It has to do with the observing and keeping of the seventh-day Sabbath.

Sabbath Experience

What is the Sabbath keeping experience? Many people think when they come to the church on the seventh-day Sabbath that they are keeping the Sabbath. That is far from the truth! Many Adventists who are keeping the seventh-day Sabbath will receive the mark of the beast at the end.

Keeping the Sabbath is an experience; it is not only keeping the Saturday. Many people are keeping the Saturday, not the Sabbath. Sabbath is our outward seal, the outward appearance for the inward righteous experience, as the circumcision was the outward sign for the inward experience of faith in Abraham. God accepted Abraham before he was circumcised, so circumcision was only an outward expression of his obedience to all that God said.

Seventh-day Sabbath keeping is only an outward sign that we obey God’s Word. It is a sign that we obey and follow His commandments in our hearts. It is not just attending church, sitting and listening to the sermon, and singing and praying. It is far from that.

When we go into the Sabbath experience we must stop sinning. We must rest in God’s power of creation, and then we rest in Him. God’s people must have a rest experience in Jesus Christ; then we will have a true Sabbath keeping experience. When we have that and the Sunday law comes, there is no fear. We are going to go through and show an outward sign of what we have inside. We have faith in Jesus Christ.

When you walk into church on the seventh-day Sabbath, which is Saturday, you are declaring to the world two things:

  1. You are saying to the world that you believe God is the Creator and that He created this world in six literal days. That is one thing you are proclaiming.
  2. You are also stating that if God has that kind of power, He is able to change you and re-create you as a new person, so that you can obey His commandments.

We are silently declaring these two things to the world as we go to church on the seventh-day Sabbath. Friends, that is the seal of the living God in our foreheads. It is very important to understand.

Now, if you have that Sabbath experience, you are not going to discuss politics or business on Sabbath. You will not want to—not because you are restraining yourself from it, but because you do not want to. You want to honor God. You love Him; you want to serve Him and please Him. That should be your motivation for celebrating the Sabbath. He is delivering you from your sins. That is the celebration of the Sabbath experience.

Firstfruits

The seal of God is going to be placed on the 144,000, the Bible says—on all the tribes of the children of Israel. Revelation 14:4, 5 says, “These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins. These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth. These were redeemed from among men, [being] the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb. And in their mouth was found no guile: for they are without fault before the throne of God.”

This is the Day of Atonement experience. Simply stated, our sins are going to be blotted out. When we stand before the Commandments of God, those commandments will not find any fault in our lives, not because we have not sinned, but because we have confessed and have forsaken our sins. We forsook them by the grace of God, and we do not repeat them anymore, because we hate sin. We must stand before God without a mediator, and that time is going to come very soon, whether you believe it or not. It is coming.

“Angels are holding the four winds, represented as an angry horse seeking to break loose, and rush over the face of the whole earth, bearing destruction and death in its path. . . .

“I tell you in the name of the Lord God of Israel that all injurious, discouraging influences are held in control by unseen angel hands, until everyone that works in the fear and love of God is sealed in his forehead.” Selected Messages, Book 3, 409.

To be continued . . .

Pastor David Kang is Director of Light for Life Ministry operating out of Hartwell, Georgia. His sermons are broadcast weekly on New York and Virginia Korean television stations. Pastor Kang also frequently travels to Asia where he trains pastors who often work “underground.” Pastor Kang may be contacted by telephone at: 706-377-1004.