ISSUES: Part III – No New Organization – Section I

issues 3 no new organizationSECTION I – NO NEW ORGANIZATION

by JOHN J. GROSBOLL


Those who do not uphold God’s law are joining the new organization that was started by Satan.

Thousands of years ago in heaven God presided over a wonderful organization, a wonderful government. This government had representatives. We read in Patricachs and Prophets, page 36, about a time when God called a meeting shortly before the overt beginning of the great controversy and all the representatives of the unfallen worlds were present Although God’s government had representatives, it was not a democracy and no elections were ever held because our God is not only the Creator, He is a great king; and Jesus Christ the only begotten of God shared the Father’s throne, having equal authority, divinity and power with the Father. “The Father then made known that it was ordained by Himself that Christ, His Son, should be equal with Himself; so that wherever was the presence of His Son, it was as His own presence. The word of the Son was to be obeyed as readily as the word of the Father” LHU 18. Christ was “not a son by creation, as were the angels, nor a son by adoption, as is the forgiven sinner, but a Son begotten in the express image of the Father’s person, and in all the brightness of his majesty and glory, one equal with God in authority, dignity, and divine perfection. In him dwelt all the fullness of the Godhead bodily” ST 5/ 23/ 95.

Although the Father and the Son had absolute power and authority and had a law which governed the entire universe, their rule was very beneficent and mild. It came to the angels almost as a matter of surprise that God had a law when Lucifer brought it up as a point of contention.

We know that the organization or government of God had the following characteristics: (1) Only the service of love was desired— the use of force is contrary to the principles of God’s government (DA 22). (2) God willed to give to both the angels and to man freedom of will. This is the highest possible level of freedom. (3) Although each is given freedom of will, each is responsible for the choices made. God’s government is moral, that is, it is based on ethical principles which each citizen must at all times be in harmony with to remain a subject of the divine government. (4) To prevent the possibility of making a seriously wrong choice that would bring disaster and suffering on one’s self and others, God had (and still does have) a law that explicitly defines morality or right and wrong. This law although very brief is comprehensive enough to maintain peace and order and allow for the fullest development of happiness by all creatures in the universe and is of such pivotal importance it is the foundation of God’s government. (See GC 493.) In God’s government, the truth is always primary and to communicate anything at all that is not true is to step outside the perimeter of God’s government and start your own independent organization or government. (5) There was no hierarchy in God’s government— there was only one Lord and only one Father who was all in all. (6) Jesus Christ, being one with the Father from eternity, was exalted over all created intelligences and was the One who participated in the councils of the deity. (7) Another characteristic of God’s government is the necessity of work and bearing fruit or producing results. (See John 15: 1- 7.) Heaven is a place of intense activity. The Father and the Son are both constant and earnest workers and so are all the angels. If we are to be members of God’s organization we must be laborers together with God. There was one who wanted to reorganize the government of God. He wanted to start a new organization. He did not claim to be doing this. He said that he just wanted to improve on God’s government, but the government of God being perfect, any change would not be an improvement and God would not consent to a new organization.

THE ATTEMPT TO START A NEW ORGANIZATION– A NEW GOVERNMENT

God Himself had established the order of heaven. Lucifer decided to dispute the supremacy of Christ. His work to start a new organization involved an attempt, first of all, to change the law of God— specifically to effect a change in the first commandment which says, “You shall have no other Gods before me” Exodus 20: 2. He wanted to be equal with Christ and this would require a change in the first commandment. It is important to recognize that whenever there is an attempt to change God’s law that men have entered into a new organization which God has not authorized.

Lucifer began to insinuate doubts concerning the laws of God, intimating that they were not necessary for angels. He claimed to be loyal to the divine government and to be working for its stability when actually he was fomenting discord and rebellion.

Many of God’s loyal, faithful and true Seventh- day Adventist people today are being accused of separating from “God’s faithful movement” and starting a new organization. The charge has been tossed about far and near in various printed materials and needs to be carefully examined. Before you can rightfully accuse someone of separating and starting a new organization, you must know what it means to stay with the movement and stay loyal to God’s organization. Let us begin by looking at three inspired statements:

“But let it ever be remembered that the work must move solidly and in complete harmony with God’s plan of organization” 1SM 112.

God’s work is the same in all time, although there are different degrees of development and different manifestations of His power to meet the wants of men in the different ages. Beginning with he first gospel promise and coming down through he patriarchal and Jewish ages and even to the resent time, there has been a gradual unfolding of the purposes of God in the plan of redemption (PP 373).

Christ designs that heaven’s order, heaven’s plan of government, heaven’s divine harmony, shall be represented in His church on earth (DA 680).

We have already seen a few of the prominent characteristics of heaven’s order and plan of government. We are assured that God’s work is the same in all time so we may know when we are remaining true to God’s organization and when we have stepped off the foundation of God’s organization, even though we may call ourselves by the same name.

The church of God must have the same type of government as in heaven. To attempt to establish a different type of government is to start a new organization. When a new organization like this is started, it almost always retains the name of the original organization to give it legitimacy. But the original organization will always have the same identifying marks.

God’s plan of organization for His church today is no different than His plan for organization in heaven at the beginning of the great controversy. Our responsibility is to find out what that plan is and repent and come into harmony with it so that we are not condemned in the judgment for starting a new organization, which is always apostasy from the truth.

It is very serious to leave God’s organization and start something independently from Him. Following are a few ways that this is done.

1. “God has a church, and these churches are organized on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone” Testimonies to Southern Africa, 7. If we cease to teach and preach and operate according to the principles of the New Testament and the Old Testament, we have stepped off the foundation and started a new organization. This is what happened to the Roman church in the second century: “Romanists have persisted in bringing against Protestants the charge of heresy and willful separation from the true church. But these accusations apply rather to themselves. They are the ones who laid down the banner of Christ and departed from ‘the faith which was once delivered unto the saints’ Jude 3” GC 51. If you lay down the banner of Christ and depart from the faith once delivered unto the saints, you have started a new organization and the only saving way out of that situation is to repent, confess, make restitution and commit to stand again on the truth of God’s word. If that is not done, all is lost for that organization. If anyone is accused of starting a new organization, it must first be proved that they have left God’s organization. Paul went all over the world establishing new churches, but none of these were new organizations— they were just an enlargement of God’s organization, His church. Every home church or other church established on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets is likewise an enlargement of God’s organization on earth, His church.

“We now need skillful generals to organize into working companies the Lord’s believing children. Nothing must be looked upon as too great for us to undertake, if the Captain of the Lord’s host plans the work and arranges the battle and leads us forth, ‘terrible as an army with banners. ‘ Every movement will be a victory. We need Jesus as our constant Leader” Testimonies to Southern Africa, 44.

2. “Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice” John 18: 37. God has given to Seventh- day Adventists the present truth (II Peter 1: 12). If we leave this present truth, we have left the movement, God’s organization, and are in a new organization, even if we have the same name. “The burden of the warning now to come to the people of God, nigh and afar off, is the third angel’s message. And those who are seeking to understand this message will not be led by the Lord to make an application of the Word that will undermine the foundation and remove the pillars of the faith that has made Seventh- day Adventists what they are today” 2SM 103. “I saw a company who stood well guarded and firm, giving no countenance to those who would unsettle the established faith of the body. God looked upon them with approbation. I was shown three steps— the first, second, and third angels’ messages. Said my accompanying angel, ‘Woe to him who shall move a block or stir a pin of these messages. The true understanding of these messages is of vital importance” ‘ EW 258.

What is this platform? It is the messages in Revelation 14: 6- 12, and we are forbidden to step off of this platform. The first angel’s message in verses 6 and 7 proclaims that the hour of God’s judgment has come. This message cannot be proclaimed without an understanding of the sanctuary and the 2300 days prophecy, and the investigative judgment. Those who have left this historic Adventist teaching have stepped off the platform and are no longer a part of the organization founded on the prophets and the apostles. The same is true concerning those who no longer know who Babylon is (the second angel’s message), those who no longer know who antichrist is (the third angel’s message), etc., and also those who believe that the law cannot be kept perfectly, that a person cannot perfectly overcome. They no longer believe Revelation 14: 12, which is part of the third angel’s message. All of these people have stepped off the platform of present truth and have become part of a new organization. God has sent historic Adventist preachers to these people for years to urge them to get back on the platform that the church militant stands on. Very soon opportunity for repentance and reform and getting back on the platform with the church militant will be over for professed- only Seventh- day Adventists. “In every age there is given to men their day of light and privilege, a probationary time in which they may become reconciled to God. But there is a limit to this grace. Mercy may plead for years and be slighted and rejected; but there comes a time when mercy makes her last plea. The heart becomes so hardened that it ceases to respond to the Spirit of God. Then the sweet, winning voice entreats the sinner no longer, and reproofs and warnings cease.” DA 587.

The awful possibility of the Seventh-day Adventist church organization starting a new organization independent from God is a matter of prophecy. Ellen White prophesied that what we are seeing today could happen. We will look at the 12 main points of the prophecy having to do with the new organization in Adventism. It was a conditional prophecy in her day. It is coming to pass in our day.

Following are the 12 main points of the prophecy. Ellen White wrote that the enemy of souls would seek to bring in among us the supposition that a great reformation was to take place among Adventists. This reformation would consist in giving up the doctrines which stand as the pillars of our faith and engaging in a process of reorganization. Ellen  White then said that the result of this would be:

  1. Principles of truth that God…has given to the remnant church would be discarded—our religion would be changed.
  2. The fundamental principles that have sustained the work in the 19th century would be accounted as error.
  3. A new organization would be established.
  4. Books of a new order would be written.
  5. A system of intellectual philosophy would be introduced.
  6. The founders of this system would go into the cities to do a wonderful work.
  7. The Sabbath would be lightly regarded (as the God who created it).
  8. Nothing would be allowed to stand in the way of the new movement.
  9. The leaders would teach that virtue is better than vice, but God being removed,
  10. They would place their dependence on human power, which, without God, is worthless.
  11. Their foundation would be built on the sand.
  12. Storm and tempest would sweep away the structure.

Let us look at each of these 12 points briefly.

POINT #1:

Has our religion been changed? Have our teachings been changed? The book Apostasy is the Issue by Dr. Larson shows conclusively that this has occurred. Many authors have substantiated this fact. See also the booklet Issues: The Real Issue, the Side Issues, and the Pseudo-Issues by Dr. Larson, which also substantiates this fact.

POINT #2:

Predicts that fundamental principles would be changed. What are the fundamental principles? The fundamental principles are as follows:

  1. Those doctrines that have made Seventh-day Adventists what they are: “Messages of every order and kind have been urged upon Seventh-day Adventists, to take the place of the truth which, point by point, has been sought out by prayerful study, and testified to by the miracle-working power of the Lord. But the waymarks which have made us what we are, are to be preserved, and they will be preserved, as God has signified through His word and the testimony of His Spirit. He calls upon us to hold firmly, with the grip of faith, to the fundamental principles that are based upon unquestionable authority” Special Testimonies, Series B, no. 2, p. 59 (1904).
  2. The fundamental principles will not lead a man to transgress God’s law. (See RH 7/05/92)
  3. When the fundamental principles are given up, usually opposition to the visions of Ellen White are an early manifestation. (See The Progressive Years, vol. 2, 149.)
  4. An article by James White in the Signs of the Times in 1874 briefly explains the fundamental principles of the Seventh-day Adventist faith.

Part of these fundamental principles included the doctrines included the doctrines of the investigative judgment beginning in 1844 (the cleansing of the heavenly sanctuary), and not only a profession but a demonstration of living according to the counsels of the Spirit of Prophecy. The same books mentioned above document the fulfillment of point 2 of the prophecy.

POINT #3:

A new organization would be established. When do you establish a new organization? When did the Roman church separate from the true church and establish a new organization? When they laid down the banner of Christ and departed from the faith once delivered unto the saints (GC 51). When the above two points have been fulfilled and the organization supports these changes, then you no longer have the same organization—you have a new organization established.

When the angels in heaven chose to follow Lucifer instead of Jesus Christ, they had decided to start a new organization. They claimed that they were only trying to improve or work for the good of the original organization, but actually they were starting a new organization. Jesus Christ is still the head of the church today (Ephesians 1:22, 23) as he has been the Commander and Captain of the Lord’s host from the days of eternity. If any organization or group of human leaders changes leaders so that Jesus is not the Head of their organization, then that is a new organization. Has this ever happened in Adventism and is there any possibility of it happening today? Inspiration gives the answer in the following statements:

  1. “There are some who in the past have had a correct experience, but who have changed leaders. Not all, but many have been beguiled. There are leaders who, before God can own and accept them, must first be converted, and led back to God. The beauty of His holiness is eclipsed by their unsanctified words and acts. They are strangers to God. They have no union with Him.” Special Testimonies, Series B, p. 19.
  2. “Let none suppose that because they have been used as the Lord’s instrumentalities, they are all-sufficient. The Lord uses men and honors them by giving them His wisdom, as long as they are true to Him, and do not gather glory to themselves. Those who make themselves capable of managing the work, are not led by His Spirit, but by ‘another spirit.’ Satan steps in, and they change leaders. Then comes the crookedness and subtlety of the serpent’s guile. Manuscript 37, May 1, 1903, ‘Directions for Work’” UL 135.
  3. “If you indulge stubborness of heart, and through pride and self-righteousness do not confess your faults, you will be left subject to Satan’s temptations. If when the Lord reveals your errors you do not repent or make confession, his providence will bring you over the ground again and again. You will be left to make mistakes of a similar character, you will continue to lack wisdom, and will call sin righteousness, and righteousness sin. The multitude of deceptions that will prevail in these last days will encircle you, and you will change leaders, and not know that you have done so.” RH 12/6/90.
  4. “I would caution all believers to learn to maintain a godly jealously over yourselves, lest Satan shall steal your heart away from God, and you slip unconsciously into work in Satan’s lines, without perceiving that you have changed leaders, and be found in the treacherous power of a tyrant.” RH 11/8/56.
  5. “This is a time when Satan’s deceptive power is exercised, not only upon the mind of those who are young and inexperienced, but upon the minds of men and women of mature years and of broad experience. Men in positions of responsibility are in danger of changing leaders. This I know; for it has been plainly revealed to me. I have been instructed that the enemy seeks to link up with men bearing large responsibilities in the Lord’s work, in order that he may fill their minds with evil devisings. Under his influence men will suggest many things that are contrary to the mind of God.” Special Testimonies, Series B, p. 48.
  6. “Men have broken God’s laws, and despised and trampled on His Sabbath. Thus they have broken their contract with God, and He cannot work in their behalf. The Lord tells us in words too plain to be misapprehended that that metal of the faith of His once chosen people is corrupted. They have a spurious faith. They have changed leaders, and no longer bear the King’s sign. They cannot be trusted in time of test or trial, for they will act the traitor’s part. They do not draw from the Lord’s foundry.” 15 MR 36.

According to these statements, it is possible for leaders in Adventism to change leaders and not even know it! When this happens, a new organization has been established because Jesus is the Head of the church and if His leadership is changed for the leadership of Lucifer, a new organization has been formed (although as at the beginning, it will be claimed that only efforts for the good of the original organization are promoted).

POINT #4:

Books of a new order would be written. Again, this has been documented by many others in books such as Questions on Doctrine.

POINT #5:

A system of intellectual philosophy would be introduced. If you would like to see if a system of intellectual philosophy has been introduced, study such books as The Word Made Flesh by Dr. Larson or, for confirmation, read the book Issues Part II.

POINT #6:

The founders of this system would go into the cities and do a wonderful work. The great apostasy in the second century began as a tremendous campaign to be more successful in evangelism. Here is predicted large scale evangelistic campaigns, but the result would not be people who were taught that they could keep all of God’s law—Sabbath-keeping would be lax among these new converts. Point #6 pinpoints a problem we have had in Adventism for many years now.

POINT #7:

The Sabbath would be lightly regarded. Notice that the prophecy does not say that the Sabbath would be given up but that it would not be strictly kept. Is this happening where you live? If the church organization were to condone sending your children to school on Sabbath, would that fulfill this prophecy? That has been happening for many years in some parts of the world with the knowing silence of the Seventh-day Adventist world structure. (See The Kulakov File.)

POINT #8:

Nothing would be allowed to stand in the way of the new movement. This is being fulfilled before our very eyes. Anyone who protests the apostasy and will not bow to the new theological ideas today being promoted all over the world is stripped of church office, ostracized from all church functions (often not allowed to even pray or announce a song in public service) and then censured and finally disfellowshipped. We have found this happening in every part of the world where we have traveled, which includes most of the continents of the world. If the majority of the church stand for historic Adventism, the church is disbanded and then reorganized without the true and faithful Seventh-day Adventists.

POINT #9:

The leaders would teach that virtue is better than vice—they would give lip service to much theological truth but the truth would not be lived out—professed but not practiced.

POINT #10:

They would put their dependence on human rather than divine power. When a church who is supposed to be the bride of Christ puts her trust in the arm of the state-either legislative, judicial or executive powers of the state-have they fulfilled this prophecy? If a church begins to sue members who do not agree with the leaders who are changing the historic doctrines of the church, is that church fulfilling this prophecy?

POINT #11:

Their foundation would be built on the sand. What does it mean to have your foundation built on the sand? It means that your life-practice is not in harmony with the teachings of Christ (Matthew 7:24-27). When we step off the foundation of the three angel’s messages and will no longer preach them but rather want to preach a peace and safety message, a love and unity message, when we have been called to do a work similar to Elijah and John the Baptist, we are stepping off the true foundation and building a foundation on the sand. Have you noticed that little preaching of the actual three angels’ messages taking place where you live? Have you noticed that many so-called Adventist preachers are afraid to preach the three angel’s messages today? What will be the result of this?

POINT #12:

Storm and tempest sweep away the structure! As of this writing, this last point in the prophecy has not yet been fulfilled. The only way to prevent it from being fulfilled is by a thorough repentance followed by confession and restitution and a stepping back on the true foundation, the true platform—retracing all the steps of apostasy that we have taken and following the Lord in simple, humble obedience to all inspired counsel.

It is thought by many that we do not need to concern ourselves about unsanctified ministers because God will take care of this, and the Sunday law crisis coming will shake them out—God will correct anything and everything that is wrong at the head of the work.

The shaking will indeed culminate in the Sunday law crisis, but that is not the beginning of the shaking and sifting which will separate the wheat and the tares. The shaking begins as a result of the introduction of false doctrines among God’s people (TM 112), which already happened decades ago. The second phase of the shaking is the presentation of the straight testimony (EW 270), which has been in progress in Adventism now for several years. These two developments separate the church into two distinct camps. “Divisions will come in the church. Two parties will be developed” 2SM 114. Then, in the third phase of the shaking, the church will be sifted by the fiery trials of the Sunday law crisis, which will not start but finish the shaking and sifting process. The reaction of people to the shaking process which is now well under-way will, in almost every case, determine the decision they will make in the great test soon to come: “The mark of the beast will be urged upon us. Those who have step by step yielded to worldly demands and conformed to worldly customs will not find it a hard matter to yield to the powers that be, rather than subject themselves to derision, insult, threatened imprisonment, and death.” 5T 81. Whether or not we are yielding to worldly demands and conforming to worldly customs now makes all the difference in our eternal destiny. The purpose of the shaking is to purify the church (2SG 284) and this process began a long time ago. It is not something that begins and ends in the Sunday law crisis—that is simply the final end of a process that we have been in for a long time already. The church is becoming progressively more and more purified by this shaking process.

In most churches, the majority reject the straight testimony upon which the destiny of the church hangs (EW 270) and finally cast out the true and faithful, which we see happening around the world at the present time. When this occurs, that church has gone through the second phase of the shaking and the true and faithful who are meeting in someone’s home are the true church; the rest, who have the building, the pastor, the “organization,” the money, etc. are professed-only church—they still have the name, the profession, but they have been shaken out of the true church. Though they maintain all the forms of religion (see GC 378, 614, 615; 5T 210, 682), these forms will be powerless to give them the spiritual strength to remain true in the Sunday law test. They will then manifest whose synagogue they are really members of.

If we support unsanctified ministers, we will meet the same fate that they meet: “As there are woes for those who preach the truth while they are unsanctified in heart and life, so there are woes for those who receive and maintain the unsanctified in the position which they cannot fill.” 2T 552.

“If the truth has not sanctified, made pure and clean, the hands and heart of him who ministers in holy things, he is liable to speak according to his own imperfect experience; and when he speaks of himself, according to the decisions of his own unsanctified judgment, his counsel is not then of God, but of Himself. As he that is called of God is called to be holy, so he that is approved and set apart of men must give evidence of his holy calling and show forth in his heavenly conversation and conduct that he is faithful to Him who hath called him” 1T 261.

“Just as soon as God’s people are sealed and prepared for the shaking, it will come. Indeed, it has begun already;…(MS 173, 1902)” 4BC 1161.

“As the storm approaches, a large class who have professed faith in the third angel’s message, but have not been sanctified through obedience to the truth, abandon their position and join the ranks of the opposition. By uniting with the world and partaking of its spirit, they have come to view matters in nearly the same light; and when the test is brought, they are prepared to choose the easy, popular side. Men of talent and pleasing address, who once rejoiced in the truth, employ their powers to deceive and mislead souls. They become the most bitter enemies of their former brethren.” GC 608. We see this happening already. Those who join the ranks of the opposition are presently still calling themselves Seventh-day Adventists, but they are opposing with all their might the true and faithful Adventists and trying with all their power to keep control of the minds of God’s professed people.

Around the world there is a giant tidal wave taking place that many professed Adventist ministers are trying to stop. People are searching and finding historical Adventism—the same doctrines of the Bible that electrified our pioneers and made the Seventh-day Adventist church what it has been. These people are finding out that the present Seventh-day Adventist churches in their localities no longer believe and practice historic Adventism so they are assembling in home churches which are not recognized by “the conference.” It is then claimed that they are not united with the church. But the question needs again to be asked, Who and what is the church? Since the remnant of the woman’s seed consists of those who love God and keep His commandments and have the spirit of prophecy, if you are united with an organized body of historic Seventh-day Adventist believers, you are united with the church. (To have a church, you need to have two historic Seventh-day Adventists who are agreed and unified—see Matthew 18.)

Actually, to be truly united with the church, you must have a mutual spiritual experience. If this spiritual experience is lacking, we are not united to the church no matter where our physical membership may be located: “Union is strength, and the Lord desires that this truth should be ever revealed in all the members of the body of Christ. All are to be united  in love, in meekness, in lowliness of mind. Organized into a society of believers, for the purpose of combining and diffusing their influence, they are to work as Christ worked. They are ever to show courtesy and respect for one another. Every talent has its place, and is to be kept under the control of the Holy Spirit.” Testimonies to Southern Africa, 89.

WHEN DOES GOD FORBID US TO GO TO THE “BRETHREN” FOR COUNSEL?

“You who are finite, erring, and unsanctified, have supposed that God’s children were put under your jurisdiction, for you to plan for them, and bring them to your terms. The policy you have labored so hard to establish in your connection with the work is an offense to God. He has never justified an arrangement, through organization, discipline, or laws, whereby men who have evidenced that they are not susceptible to the Holy Spirit’s moving shall use their power to sustain others in a like disregard of the Spirit’s work. But such has been the arrangement that has prevailed.” 1888 Materials, 1367.

THE HOME CHURCH MOVEMENT BELIEVES IN CHURCH ORGANIZATION.

One of the most exciting aspects of the worldwide home church movement among historic Seventh-day Adventists is the fact that these people are not loners who prefer to act alone and they are not erratic people who want to pull apart or be disorganized into independent atoms. These are people who fully believe in church organization and want the unity for which Christ prayed; but they understand that you can never have the unity for which Jesus prayed unless you unite on the truth, and the conference churches they have gone to have made it abundantly clear to them that they will not stand simply on a plain “thus saith the Lord” in the writings of Ellen White, and sometimes not even in the Bible.

Around the world there are historic Seventh-day Adventists who want to press together in faith and love (RH 12/6/06) and God is drawing them together with other historic Adventist believers at the same time that they are being cast out of conference churches. These true and faithful believers are coming into line as God ordained that the church should always be. They are coming into perfect unity with other historic Adventist believers. At the very time when there is more pluralism and less harmony in many conference churches than ever before, God is drawing His true and faithful believers into a harmony and unity with other believers (who are having victory over sins in their lives) where you worship, you had better go to your closet and pray—soon your opportunity to be united with God’s true and faithful believers will be over. “We are to unify, but on a platform of error.” Battle Creek Letters, 111.

PERFECT UNITY

“I am instructed to say to Seventh-day Adventists the world over, God has called us as a people to be a peculiar treasure unto Himself. He has appointed that His church on earth shall stand perfectly united in the Spirit and counsel of the Lord of hosts to the end of time.—Letter 54, 1908. (Jan. 21, 1908.)” 2SM 397. Notice that the church is to be perfectly united in the spirit of the Lord and in the counsel of the Lord. We can never have unity until we are all under the control of the same Spirit. You cannot go to a church where music is played that comes from a different spirit and ever become united in unity with the Holy Spirit (see I Corinthians 10:20, 21). You cannot go to a church where there is a spirit of unbelief and ever be a united body with the Holy Spirit. Either the spirit of unbelief and the music with the wrong spirit will be overcome and cast aside or God will separate the true and faithful from those who refuse to repent and reform.

Neither can we be in unity until we are united in the counsel of the Lord—until we are willing to submit and obey the Spirit of Prophecy just as it reads. In spite of the fact that the true and faithful Seventh-day Adventists all over the world are being harassed and cast out of conference churches recognized by the general conference, these people are being led by the same Spirit and are submitting to the entire counsel of inspired writings—they are willing to follow all the divine directions to be ready for the soon coming of Christ, and the unity that is becoming more and more evident at their meetings is awesome to behold and experience.

NO NEW ORGANIZATION

Because the true and faithful Adventists have often been cast out of their churches and in other instances they can no longer with clear conscience go to their conference churches because of the apostasy that is being both taught and practiced, they have been forced to raise up home churches; but this is not a new organization of any kind—rather, it is the people who are determined to maintain all the old historic beliefs of Seventh-day Adventists—the people who are part of the original organization not only in name but in doctrine and spirit. This movement is not independent of the church—it is an integral part of the church (the true church, not just the church by profession only), God’s last remnant faithful people, those who keep the commandments of God and the spirit of prophecy as manifested in the writings of Ellen G. White. The same situation that was faced by Sutherland and Magan in educational work at the beginning of the 20th century is now faced by the home church movement. Just as it was necessary to begin educational institutions which were independent from the structure now (but never independent from the Lord). The counsel given then is just as much or more applicable to the home church movement today: “The Lord does not set limits about His workers in some lines as men are wont to set. In their work, Brethren Magan and Sutherland have been hindered unnecessarily. Means have been withheld from them because in the organization and management of the Madison school, it was not placed under the control of the conference. But the reasons why this school was not owned and controlled by the conference have not been duly consideredThe Madison School, 31, 32.

Recent developments among professed Adventist ministers, such as the video on a lost mine, the denial of basic Adventist doctrines on television by prominent Adventist ministers and the heart-sickening immorality by others, have left some Adventists reeling—Where is the prophesied pure, true sanctified ministry prepared for the latter rain (3SM 385) going to come from? It is not going to come from Adventist ministers who just stand by and do nothing and say nothing in such a crisis of apostasy as we are in today. “Many have tried neutrality in a crisis, but they have failed in their purpose. No one can maintain a neutral position” RH 4/ 19/ 98. “Preachers and people are in danger of being found upon the side of the powers of darkness. There is no such thing now as a neutral position. We are all decidedly for the right or decidedly for the wrong” 3T 328. “If God abhors one sin above another, of which His people are guilty, it is doing nothing in case of an emergency. Indifference and neutrality in a religious crises is regarded of God as a grievous crime and equal to the very worst type of hostility against God.” 3T 281.

Where is the pure, true sanctified ministry prepared for the latter rain going to come from—it is going to come from the faithful few who are standing in the gap and crying aloud and sparing not, calling on God’s people to come into line—come into full harmony with inspired counsels, be the cost what it may, and stand up for the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus, maintaining the testimony of Jesus. “There are precious ones now hidden who have not bowed the knee to Baal. They have not had the light which has been shining in a concentrated blaze upon you. But it may be under a rough and uninviting exterior the pure brightness of a genuine Christian character will be revealed” 5T 81.

We are in the exciting time when these hidden ones are beginning to come to view! It is only as we take a bold decided stand for the truth now that we will be enabled to stand in the soon-coming Sunday law crisis.

The devil is trying by every manner of fanaticism and attack from professed Adventists to divide and destroy the grass-roots revival and reformation that is taking place in Adventism. Unfortunately, the so-called structure is acting the part of one of the most skillful of the devil’s agents to bring this about. Every manner of smear tactic is being used. Independent ministers are being accused of being the same as David Koresh in Waco. This is indeed sad when one realizes that all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone (Revelation 21:8).

GOSPEL ORDER AND ACKNOWLEDGED TEACHERS

It is a necessity for home churches to not allow any person into the pulpit, even a conference employee, unless they meet the criteria in Early Writings on page 100: “I saw that the church should feel their responsibility at the lives, qualifications, and general course of those who profess to be teachers. If unmistakable evidence is not given that God has called them, and that the ‘woe’ is upon them if they heed not this call, it is the duty of the church to act and let it be known that these persons are not acknowledged as teachers by the church. This is the only course the church can take in order to be clear in this matter, for the burden lies upon them.” Those who are guilty of telling lies, and have not repented and are in apostasy from the truth, who no longer believe the three angels’ messages and try to prevent others from fulfilling their God-given duty of proclaiming them to the world, and who seek to rule with authority that God has not given them, must not be allowed to speak to God’s people.

WHEN THE SPIRIT OF PROPHECY DOES NOT ENDORSE THE CONFERENCE STRUCTURE

There is a time when the regular lines (the conference structure) is not to be endorsed or cooperated with: “We have heard much about everything moving in the regular lines. When we see that the ‘regular lines’ are purified and refined, that they bear the mold of the God of heaven, then it will be time to endorse these lines. But when we see that message after message given by God has been received and accepted, yet no change has been made, we know that new power must be brought into the regular lines. The management of the regular lines must be entirely changed, newly organized. There must be a committee, not composed of half a dozen men, but of representatives from all lines of our work, from our publishing houses, from our educational institutions, and from our sanitariums, which have life in them, which are constantly working, constantly broadening” 13MR 193. “The Lord in His wisdom has arranged that by means of the close relationship that should be maintained by all believers, Christian shall be united to Christian, and church to church. Thus the human instrumentality will be enabled to cooperate with the divine. Every agency will be subordinate to the Holy Spirit, and all the believers will be united in an organized and well-directed effort to give to the world the glad tidings of the grace of God” GW 444. Notice that it is not enough to have representatives from all over to meet in council if these representatives do not “have life in them”—only those who give evidence of being under the control of the Holy Spirit can meet in council and have authority over the church. If the representatives are not under the control of the Holy Spirit, the conference or council does not have Divine authority. The result of a council or conference in which the representatives are under the control of the Holy Spirit is that every agency will be under the control of the Holy Spirit.

There can be no unity between truth and error. We can unite with those who have been led into deception only when they are converted.

APPENDIX 1

What are the pillars of the faith that were established by the word of God and by the revelations of His Spirit?

  1. “We are now to understand what the pillars of our faith are,—the truths that have made us as a people what we are, leading us on step by step.” RH 5/25/05.
  2. “For more than half a century the different points of present truth have been questioned and opposed. New theories have been advanced as truth, which were not truth, and the Spirit of God revealed their error. As the great pillars of our faith have been presented, the Holy Spirit has borne witness to them, and especially is this so regarding the truths of the sanctuary question. Over and over again the Holy Spirit has in a marked manner endorsed the preaching of this doctrine. But today, as in the past, some will be led to form new theories and to deny the truths upon which the Spirit of God has placed His approval.” Ev 224.
  3. “Infidelity prevails to an alarming extent, not in the world only, but in the church. Many have come to deny doctrines which are the very pillars of the Christian faith. The great facts of Creation as presented by the inspired writers, the fall of man, the atonement, the perpetuity of the law—these all are practically rejected by a large share of the professedly Christian world.” LHU 157.
  4. “There are the main pillars of our faith, subjects which are of vital interest, the Sabbath, the keeping of the commandments of God.” Counsels to Writers and Editors, 77.
  5. “[The] pillars of truth were revealed, and we accepted the foundation principles that have made us what we are—Seventh-day Adventists, keeping the commandments of God and having the faith of Jesus.” UL 352.
  6. “Our people need to understand the reasons of our faith and our past experiences. How sad it is that so many of them apparently place unlimited confidence in men who present theories tending to uproot our past experiences and to remove the old landmarks! Those who can so easily be led by a false spirit show that they have been following the wrong captain for some time,—so long that they do not discern that they are departing from the faith or that they are not building upon the true foundation . We need to urge all to put on their spiritual eyeglasses, to have their eyes anointed that they may see clearly and discern the true pillars of faith. Then they will know that ‘the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his.’ We need to revive the old evidences of the faith once delivered to the saints” The Southern Watchman 4/5/04.
  7. “Our faith in reference to the messages of the first, second, and third angels was correct. The great waymarks we have passed are immovable. Although the hosts of hell may try to tear them from their foundation, and triumph in the thought that they have succeeded, yet they do not succeed. These pillars of truth stand firm as the eternal hills, unmoved by all the efforts of men combined with those of Satan and his host. We can learn much, and should be constantly searching the Scriptures to see if these things are so.” Maranatha, 247.
  8. “The truths that have been substantiated by the manifest working of God are to stand fast. Let no one presume to move a pin or foundation-stone from the structure. Those who attempt to undermine the pillars of our faith are among those of whom the Bible says that ‘in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils.’” Bible Training School 3/1/15. [This statement defines what entering into a new organization really is.]

Next –> SECTION TWO, by MARSHALL J. GROSBOLL

Which Church is Going Through? – Part II

Four Theories

When you ask the question, “which church is going through?” here are the answers that you get:

  1. One of the most popular, or traditional, views among many Seventh-day Adventists is that the church organization (structure) is going to go through to glory purified. There may be tares among the wheat, there are sinners in Zion and they are going to be cast out; but the structure is going to go through.
  2. A second view that has come to the fore in the last year or two, is the idea that the church structure is Babylon, or it is just on the brink of becoming Babylon. Therefore, it is just waiting to be destroyed.
  3. A third position is that the church structure is in the same position as the Jewish church was just before the crucifixion of Christ. Ellen White says, “When the fast westering sun should pass from sight in the heavens, Jerusalem’s day of grace would be ended. While the procession was halting on the brow of Olivet, it was not yet too late for Jerusalem to repent.” Desire of Ages, 578. Some people say that is the condition of the church right now. The structure could turn around. Something irrevocable could happen, just like it did to the Jewish nation.

Before I mention the fourth position, consider that we Isaiah 28:9, 10 tells us that we should look through the entire Bible if we want to learn the truth about any subject. We need to look at everything that inspired writings say about that subject, and if we do that, the Lord will lead us to the truth. “All truth, whether in nature or in revelation, is consistent with itself in all its manifestations.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 114. “…no lie is of the truth.” 1 John 2:21. What does that mean? It means, the truth always has to agree with itself. If it does not, if it contradicts, there is something that is not true.

  1. People who take this position say you must answer the question what is the church before you can answer which church is going through. How can you tell which church is going through if you do not have an inspired definition about what the church is? God knows what the church is and if God knows what the church is, He could tell one of His prophets. If one of God’s prophets told you what the church is, would you believe it? Some people do not believe it. “From the beginning, faithful souls have constituted the church on earth.Acts of the Apostles, 11. That is the church militant; it could not possibly be the church triumphant because it says, “from the beginning,” and the church does not become triumphant until the end.

The Church is not Invisible

Someone might say it is the invisible church. Let us see if it is. The sentence we just read is right in the middle of a long discussion about the church. It says, “From the beginning, faithful souls have constituted the church on earth. In every age the Lord has had His watchmen, who have borne a faithful testimony to the generation in which they lived.” Ibid. Were the watchmen invisible? No. Was the testimony invisible? No. Was the generation invisible? No. There is nothing invisible in that sentence. “These sentinels gave the message of warning; and when they were called to lay off their armor, others took up the work.” Ibid. Is there anything invisible in that sentence? Nothing invisible there. In all of these statements there is someone you can see. “God brought these witnesses into covenant relation with Himself, uniting the church on earth with the church in heaven. He has sent forth His angels to minister to His church, and the gates of hell have not been able to prevail against His people.” Ibid.

Someone may say that we cannot tell who these people are. Look at the next paragraph. “Through centuries of persecution, conflict, and darkness, God has sustained His church.” This was hundreds of years of persecution. Can you tell who was being persecuted, or were they invisible? You could tell who was being persecuted. When somebody was burned at the stake, you could tell who it was. When you saw somebody taken off to the dungeon, you could tell who it was. Could you tell that there was a conflict going on where one person was on one side and one was on the other? Yes! This was something you could see. In fact, as you go through this chapter, there just isn’t anything anywhere about an invisible church. This is about people whom you can see, messengers bearing messages that you can hear. Even the wicked people can tell who is being persecuted. So it is not talking about the church triumphant, it is not talking about the invisible church; but it still says that the church is composed of faithful souls.

Every Word that Proceeds from God

Ellen White says that everyone who is faithful will be saved. That is good news. “Those who keep God’s commandments, those who live, not by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God, compose the church of the living God.” SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 7, 949.

If you understand those inspired definitions and you understand who the church is, then when someone comes to you and says you must not leave the church, you must stay with the church, what does that mean? I believe in staying with the church. It means to stay with those faithful souls. It means to stay with the people who are living by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God and who are keeping the commandments of God. That is what it means. Somebody might say, “You are getting mixed up. Matthew 13 says that there are tares in the church, and the wheat and the tares are all mixed up together. You cannot go and find a church where there is only wheat. The wheat and the tares have to be all together.” That is what people say.

Sinners in Zion

People also say that Ellen White said there are sinners in Zion. (By the way, that does not come from Ellen White, it comes from the Bible, but Ellen White does use it.) She says that right at the end these sinners are going to be sifted out, separated from the church. So, they say, the church is full of sinners. Let us take a look at that for a moment. First of all, let us find out who these sinners in Zion are. I like to make things simple, so here they are: “There are many sinners in Zion, and they are likened to tares among the wheat.” Advent Review and Sabbath Herald, October 10, 1893. So these sinners in Zion are the tares. If we can figure out what Jesus was trying to teach us about the tares, we will understand about the sinners in Zion.

I just want to find out the truth. If the truth requires me to do something completely different than I am doing, then I want to do it. I have perfect confidence that if I find the truth, the truth will always agree with itself, and I will be on solid ground.

The Wheat and the Tares

First of all, let us look at a few points about the wheat and the tares. This is one of the few parables that Jesus gave where His explanation to His disciples is recorded afterward, and He said, “He who sows the good seed is the Son of man. The field is the world, the good seeds are the sons of the kingdom, but the tares are the sons of the wicked one. The enemy who sowed them is the devil, the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are the angels. Therefore, as the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of this age. The Son of man will send out His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and those who practice lawlessness, and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!” Matthew 13:36-43.

In verse 30 and 40 it says “at the end of the age.” The word “at” makes people think that a point in time is being referenced, which is not the case at all. In the Greek it says “in.” In other words, during the end of the age. The harvest time is during the closing period of earth’s history, and that is when the angels are going to gather out the tares.

In Christ’s Object Lessons, 70, Ellen White talks about the parable of the tares, which brings up several questions: First of all, we want to know who and what a tare is, because a tare is not to be uprooted. Now the way some people interpret that, you would think you could never put any wicked person out of the church. But that is not what Jesus was trying to teach. Let us see what Jesus was talking about.

“…it is in the church that we are to grow and ripen for the garner of God.” The wheat grows and ripens for the garner of God. Where? In the church. So is it important to know what the church is? If you are wrong about where you think the church is, could it result in you not having salvation? Is that possible? It most certainly is!

Where are the Tares?

Let us look at several facts about the tares. Who plants the tares? The devil. Where does he plant them? In the church. Let us notice how they are described. She calls them ‘those who bear Christ’s name while they deny His character.’ They bear His name; they are professed members of the church, but they deny His character. Are they connected to the church? In a way they are, and in a way they are not. But here are some descriptions of the tares. “Christ’s servants are grieved as they see true and false believers mingled in the church.” Ibid., 71. So a tare is a false believer. “The tares represent a class who are the fruit, or embodiment of error, of false principles.” They have false principles; they are false believers, but notice how she describes them on page 72. “The real character of these pretended believers is not fully manifested.” What does she call them? Pretended believers!

Notice three different descriptions of the tares. They are planted by the devil, and they are the embodiment of false principles. They are false believers, but they pretended to be believers. On the outside they look the same. And then on page 73 she gives another description and she mentions it twice. She calls them false brethren. So, a tare is a false believer, a pretended believer, and a false brother. Let us just think that through for a minute. Is a tare a true brother? No. Is it possible to be in a family, have the family name, but not be part of the family? Yes! But these false brethren are pretended brethren, and pretended believers. Now, let us take it one point further. A tare is a person who, on the outside, looks like a true believer until the time of the harvest. But when it becomes manifest that they are living in open sin, they are to be disfellowshipped, and people want to forget that. People want to think that if someone is a tare, you just have to let them be and the Lord will separate them at the Second Coming. Actually, the separation takes place before the Second Coming. Mrs. White had just been talking about the tares, stating that they are both growing together with the wheat until the harvest, then she says, “Christ has plainly taught that those who persist in open sin must be separated from the church.” Christ’s Object Lessons, 71.

Now let us just think this through so we know exactly what we are talking about. She says, “…He has not committed to us the work of judging character and motive.” Ibid.

An Open Sinner is Not a Tare

Open sin is a sin that involves an action that others can see. Let us be very plain in our speech. Adultery is an open sin if it is committed in the flesh. But if it is only committed in the mind, we do not know about it, and we cannot judge a person by what happens in the mind. That person is a tare, and God is going to judge them, but we cannot. At the time of the harvest, during the time of the end, the Lord is going to separate the people who have sin on the inside, that is not visible on the outside.

If a person covets something that belongs to somebody else, you cannot judge their character and motives. But if they actually rob or steal, that is an open sin. Christ has plainly taught that those who persist in open sin must be separated from the church. We find that in Matthew 18.
Paul also taught the same thing in 1 Corinthians 5. The apostle John taught it as well in 2 John.

When did the devil plant the tares? We know he planted them in the church, but when did he plant them? What time of day? While men slept. Have you read any warnings in the Spirit of Prophecy given to Seventh-day Adventists who are asleep? She tells us that we need to wake up! The more the church sleeps, the more tares the devil is going to plant. What would you do if you were in a church and the devil planted so many tares that the tares controlled the church? If there is somebody living in open sin, they should be disfellowshipped from the church. People who are living in adultery, incest, robbery, open liars, people who are openly breaking one of the Ten Commandments, are to be disfellowshipped.

When the Tares are in Control

But suppose they cannot be disfellow-shipped because the tares are in control of the church. The devil has planted so many, and people have slept so long, that the tares are in control. Suppose someone in your church has robbed a bank. You come to the church business meeting and some people are saying, ‘This man is disgracing the name of the church, and we must disfellowship him.’ However, another group of people are thinking, ‘If we disfellowship him, what is going to happen to me? I have done some pretty bad things myself,’ so there is no one willing to disfellowship somebody who is living in open sin because the tares are in control of the church.

What would you do then? Leave that church? Did you know that this has happened before? In fact, when Jesus was here the tares had control of the Jewish church. As you read the gospels, you can plainly see that. Why did they crucify the Lord? Because the tares were in control of the church.

Jesus gave very specific advice on what to do if the tares control the church.

“When He had called the multitude to Himself, He said to them, ‘Hear and understand: not what goes into the mouth defiles a man; but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man.’ Then His disciples came and said to Him, ‘Do You know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this saying?’” Matthew 15:10. The Pharisees were in control of the church in that day. There is no question about it, they were in the driver’s seat. Notice what Jesus said. “But He answered and said, ‘Every plant which My heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted.’” Ibid., 13.

Who plants the wheat? The Son of man. But these are plants that God did not plant. So who planted them? The devil. They are tares. But these tares are in control of the church. You cannot get them out. Jesus said they are coming out. There will be judgments coming and these tares are going to come out, but you cannot get them out. So what should you do? Jesus tells us what to do. “Let them alone.” Some may say, “Oh no, Lord, that could not be possible. This is the true church, do you not understand that?” Well, is God God, or not? If tares are in control of the church, should you try to destroy and uproot them? Jesus said, “’Let them alone, they are blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind leads the blind, both will fall into the ditch.’” Ibid., 14.

Are you Being Led by Tares?

Now let us think that through. Not only did Jesus say to let them alone, but He warns you not to let those people lead you, or you are going to go into the ditch. “Oh, but Lord, these Pharisees, they are the leaders of the church, and I need to go to the synagogue and listen to them preach.” Well, if you do, Jesus says you are going to go into the ditch. People need to study Matthew 15:14. It always says the same thing.

Let us look at the harvest. During the time of harvest something is going to happen. “Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of harvest [that is during the time of the harvest] I will say to the reapers, ‘First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into My barn.’” Matthew 13:30. Notice, there is a two-fold harvest. At the harvest time Jesus said the first thing that gets harvested are the tares, the wheat harvest comes later. The tares will be bound in bundles, the wheat is not bound in bundles; but is harvested one at a time. If you are going to be in God’s granary, in His garner, you are not saved as a family, you must be saved as an individual. Who does it? Look at verses 40 and 41. “Therefore as the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of this age. The Son of man will send out His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and those who practice lawlessness.” So the first thing that happens is that the angels do a work of separation. This is one of the most fearful things that any Christian can think about.

“The looker-on may discern no difference, but there is One who said that the tares were not to be plucked up by human hands lest the wheat be rooted up also. Let both grow together until the harvest. Then the Lord sends forth His reapers to gather the tares and binds them in bundles to burn, while the wheat is gathered into the heavenly garner. The time of the judgment is a most solemn period. When the Lord gathers His own from among the tares, those who have been members of the same family are separated.” Testimonies to Ministers, 234.

Eternal Separation

When we say that those who have been members of the same family are separated, we are talking about an eternal separation. This is not a pleasant thing to think about, but it is reality. We are all going to have to face it sometime. In the time of the harvest, there is a separation of the tares from the wheat.

What is this separation? First, the tares are bound in bundles; and this binding of the tares in bundles is happening, and has been happening, for a long time. For example: Ellen White wrote a long time ago that the labor unions were one of the agencies by which people were being bound in bundles as the tares. (See Pamphlet to Sanitarium Workers in Southern California, 1905.) A lot of people do not know that. She also wrote that fearful is the work of the Third Angel. (See Early Writings, 118.) This is the Third Angel recorded in Revelation 14:9-12. His work is to separate the wheat and the tares. Whenever someone preaches the Third Angel’s Message, separations take place. Have you ever seen that happen in families? One person accepts the Third Angel’s Message, other people do not. What happens? There is a separation. The Third Angel separates the wheat and the tares. A mark is placed upon the righteous. “They shall be Mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that day when I make up My jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him.” Malachi 3:17. Those who have been obedient to God’s commandments, will unite with the company of the saints in light; they shall enter in through the gates into the city, and have right to the tree of life. The one shall be taken. His name shall stand in the Book of Life, while those with whom he associated shall have the mark of eternal from God.” Testimonies to Ministers, 234, 235.

Notice, this separation involves a mark. The righteous will have a mark and the wicked will have a mark. There will be a mark of deliverance and there will be a mark of destruction.

The harvest occurs during the end of the age. And of course, this harvest involves the purification of the church, because once you have all the tares out, you have a pure church. There are many statements in inspired writings about how the purification of the church takes place. What we want to understand is how the church is purified. How does it happen? It is very important to understand, because there are many people who say the organized church (the structure) is going to go through; it is going to go through purified. The next question is how is it going to be purified? You need to find out how it is going to be purified, and how the Lord is going to take it to glory. Is God going to take a church to glory that has sin in it? No. The church has to be purified before it can go to glory.

Purification of the Church

Next month we will look at how the tares are going to be separated from the wheat; how the sinners in Zion are going to be sifted out; how the purification of the church is going to take place. We will find that inspired writings are very, very specific about how this will take place.

1 John 2:19 has to do with this purification of the church. You see, the purification of the church has happened in other ages, too, not just at the end. It says, “They went out from us.” Now let us think that through a little bit. Who is “us”? The church. What church? Who is the church according to Acts of the Apostles, page 11? Faithful souls. It is those who keep the commandments of God and live by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God. Is that the definition of “us” that John is using here? Oh, surely it is. Look back at the beginning of 1 John 2:3–5. He says that the way you can tell if you really know Him is if you keep His commandments. And the one who says that he knows Him and does not keep His commandments is a liar. He talks about the little children, the fathers and the young men, and these are the people who have overcome the wicked one. These are people who are overcoming, who love their brother as themselves, who are keeping the commandments. That is the “us”! It is very clear who “us” is. Who are “they”? “They” went out from us. Are they the wheat or the tares? They are the tares, they left. But notice how it says this. “They went out from us, but they were not of us.” (Verse 19.) They had the name. They were professed church members. They were apparently part of the church. They went out from “us”, but they were not really of “us”, even though they had the profession and they looked like they were part of “us.” They were not of “us”, he said, because they left. “They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us.” If they had really been the wheat, they would have stayed. “But they went out that they might be made manifest, that none of them were of us.” Ibid. Very, very interesting text. You have to understand who and what the church is to understand that text. All the apostles understood this. The apostle John understood who the church was. “They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us.” Formerly they had the name. They came to church. It looked like they were part of “us” but they really were not, they were the tares, they were these pretended believers—these false brethren. Finally things developed so that they left.

Paul says the same thing, “But it is not that the word of God has taken no effect. For they are not all Israel who are of Israel.” Romans the 9:6-8. Everybody who has a connection with the church is not really of the church. Only the faithful are really part of it. There are a lot of other people clinging to the skirts of Zion who are going to get shaken off. “Nor are they all children because they are of the seed of Abraham; but, ‘In Isaac your seed shall be called.’ That is, those who are the children of the flesh.” Those are the people who say, “I am a descendent of Abraham, I am part of the church.” But making a profession does not make you part of the church. “These are not the children of God; but the children of the promise are counted as the seed.”

Are You Planted in His Vineyard?

Ellen White says the same thing over and over again in Christ’s Object Lessons, 216. “Shall the words of doom erelong be spoken of you? How long have you received His gifts? How long has He watched and waited for a return of love? Planted in His vineyard [the church], under the watchful care of the gardener, what privileges are yours! How often has the tender gospel message thrilled your heart! You have taken the name of Christ, you are outwardly a member of the church which is His body, and yet you are conscious of no living connection with the great heart of love.”

Outwardly you are a member; inwardly you are not. Outwardly you are part of the church; inwardly you are not. Just like the parable of the vine and the branches in John 15, some had an outward connection, and some had an inner connection. Those who had only the outward connection were cut off and burned up. Those who had the inward connection bore fruit.

Profession Is Not Everything

“God called them (the Jews) to be co-workers with Him in blessing the world; but while in profession they accepted the call, in action they refused obedience.” Ibid., 279. In profession they claimed to be sons of God. They professed to be part of the church, but in life and character they denied that relationship. Their profession is one thing; their life and character is something else. “In taking upon themselves the solemn covenant of the church they have pledged themselves to receive and obey the word of God, to give themselves to God’s service, but they do not do this.” Ibid.

They profess something, but they do not live it out; it is not real. They have an outward connection, but the inner connection, by which the life of Christ flows into their life, is not there.

“The professed followers of Christ are on trial before the heavenly universe; but the coldness of their zeal and the feebleness of their efforts in God’s service, mark them as unfaithful. If what they are doing were the best they could do, condemnation would not rest upon them; but were their hearts enlisted in the work, they could do much more. They know, and the world knows, that they have, to a great degree, lost the spirit of self-denial and cross bearing. Many there are against whose names will be found written in the books of heaven. Not producers, but consumers. By many who bear Christ’s name, His glory is obscured, His beauty veiled, His honor withheld. There are many whose names are on the church books, but who are not under Christ’s rule . They are not heeding His instruction or doing His work. There they are under the control of the enemy.” Ibid 303, 304

They have the name, but whose control are they under? Satan’s! There may be those who say we should not worry about all of this because the Lord is going to straighten it all out. The Lord is going to straighten it all out! Next month we will see just how He is going to do it.

The church is going to be purified, but, as we look at this subject, about which church is going to go through, remember we are asking one question. The question is, how? Your understanding has to agree with all of the inspired statements. If it does not agree with all of the inspired statements, there is something wrong.

An Inner Connection to Christ

There is a church that is going through, and that church is going to be composed of people who are overcomers. They do not just take the name, but they actually have an inner connection to Christ through the Holy Spirit, and the divine power is coming into their lives to give them power to overcome.

If you cannot understand everything yet, can you understand that if you are going to remain with the church until it becomes triumphant, you have to be an overcomer? You cannot just be a professor of religion, and play church. There are a lot of people playing church today. Do you know what it means to play church? You go to church. Maybe you are a deacon; maybe you teach the Sabbath School lesson or the Sunday School lesson; maybe you are even a preacher, or an evangelist, or an administrator. Maybe you have a high position in the church. You can do all of those things and just be playing church. The Pharisees did all those things, and people thought that they were righteous because on the outside it looked like they were. Judas did it. He was a tare. Annanias and Saphira did it, and they are described as tares. Demas did it, and he was described as a tare. Simon Magus was baptized; yet he was a tare. In every single one of these instances, when the tares developed to the point where they were in open sin, they were removed from the church. Do not ever forget that. The important thing for you, as an individual, even if you cannot understand all of the theology and all of the questions that people may ask you, is to understand this: the only people who are going to go through to the end are the people who overcome their sins. Are you going to be one of them?

Some years ago one of our best-known preachers made the statement that in these final battles we might lose some whole divisions. We might lose more than whole divisions. We might lose the whole General Conference. But the church will still go through. The question is, are you going to be an overcomer and go through with it? The Lord has power to help you if you are willing to surrender all to Him, follow Him, and be faithful to Him.

Those Who Follow the Lamb

In vision John saw a group of people who will ‘follow the Lamb whethersoever He goeth.’ They are going to be taken out of this world alive and taken to heaven. Would it not be wonderful if some of you could be part of that group? It could happen if you are willing to be faithful—not just to be a professed believer, Paul said to the Corinthians, “Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith.” 2 Corinthians 13:5. Jesus Christ is in you unless you are unapproved. Is Jesus Christ in you? Can you say like Paul, “For me to live is Christ?” That is what will make you a grain of wheat. The Lord has promised in this last great contest that not one grain of wheat will fall to the ground.

Whatever my responsibilities are in this world, I have a pastor’s heart inside. I have a shepherd’s heart inside. I want to see every person reading this article saved. I would like to see the whole world saved, but I cannot bring it about. Would it not be wonderful if there were a few churches around, where the whole church was saved? If everybody is going to be saved in your church, you have to be saved. Every single one of you can be saved if you are willing to surrender all to Jesus. Say, “Lord I am in this thing for real, for serious. Please come into my heart so You and Your love may be living inside of me. I want my religion to not just be a profession, but something that I look like, something real.” Do you want to have that experience? Do you want to be connected to the Lord Jesus so that He is in you? If that is your desire, make a commitment to Him and say, “Lord, I want you inside to transform my heart and my life, to make me a grain of wheat.”

Principles of Church Organization

“He [Jesus] who was the foundation of the ritual and economy of Israel would be looked upon as its enemy and destroyer.” The Desire of Ages, 111. The reason for this was that those who were in charge of the system viewed themselves as being the church and they realized that if Jesus were to be accepted, many of them would lose their positions.

There is a similar problem in the professed church of God today. While there are some inspired counsels we are willing to accept, there are many others that we reject. Ellen White wrote many counsels to the church that if they were advocated, would be considered by present church leaders to be dangerous and possibly even capable of destroying the church as it stands today. However, we may never receive God’s blessing until we feed upon every word of Inspiration.

Principles of church organization affect every aspect of the church, from the youngest member on up to the General Conference. In the Bible and the Spirit of Prophecy, there is a great deal of information dealing with church organization that is written not only to those in leadership positions but to laymen as well.

Throughout history, whenever doctrine becomes corrupted, organization also becomes corrupt. In fact, in Revelation, God is as concerned about false organization as He is about false doctrine. In the writings of Ellen White there is a great deal written about doctrine, but there are also hundreds of pages written about church organization which we are afraid to touch because if we even read the quotation, we will be accused of criticism. It is time, however, that we have the courage of John the Baptist and, with the spirit of love, humbly look at the things God has given to us, praying that He will help us to implement these things so He can pour out His spirit and finish the work He is seeking to do.

We are told in 1 Corinthians 1:2 how the New Testament church was organized. “To the church of God which is at Corinth, to those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints.” The church at Corinth, identified by Paul, is not addressed as the church which is registered. It could be, but that is not the point. Nothing is said regarding organization or where they meet. The church here in Corinth represents those people who are sanctified and called to be the saints of God. Now the church was to be organized, but the organization was not the church. The people were the church. These people worked in harmony, because this is possible when God is in the hearts of the members. They would meet and work together, send out missionaries, take up offerings, and do all those things which are necessary for God’s work to progress. But the church itself was the people. This is what the church has always been.

“But you have come to the Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven” (Hebrews 12:22, 23). In a special sense, the church, the true church of God, is composed of those people who are registered in the Book of Life in heaven.

Now this presents a very interesting situation. Who decides who is going to be a church member? Is it the pope who has the keys? If it is not the pope, is it the church board? Can they decide? What about the church body? Can we decide who is saved and who is not, whose name is written in heaven and whose is not?

Well, don’t we have anything to do? Oh, yes, we have something to do. We are called to recognize those whom God has registered in the books in heaven; and those whom He has registered there, we are to register here. He does not, however, follow our suit; we are to follow His, and there is a difference.

Let us suppose that God takes someone’s name off of the books in heaven and they are disfellowshipped. Are they still church members? No. But suppose their names remain in the books on earth. This is an interesting dilemma. The church is purified when the books on earth match the books in heaven. You see, God has given mankind no authority to decide who can be a member and who cannot be a member, but simply to recognize those whom He has accepted or rejected.

God has local congregations here on earth and we have organizations here to help organize the work, but the headquarters of your local church is in heaven, where only the sanctified are registered, not in some office in your state or some office in Washington, D.C. Some people find this rather disconcerting, believing such a policy could lead to all kinds of trouble.

Just suppose that a coup took place in some local church or conference through politicking and some people who were not inspired by the Lord or filled with the Holy Spirit took over through manipulation and because of their prejudices, certain people were unjustly disfellowshiped. Would those who were disfellowshiped cease to be church members? Certainly not. Suppose, on the other hand, people were allowed to come into the church who were never converted. Because their names were in the books on earth, would they, therefore, be automatically registered in the Book of Life? Not in any way, shape, or form. God has never left His church to be manipulated and tampered with by the political whims of mankind. There is coming a time when He is going to turn and overturn the professed church that is called by His name. God’s true church remains the same as it has always been—those people who are registered in the books of heaven.

“God has a church. It is not the great cathedral, neither is it the national establishment, neither is it the various denominations; it is the people who love God and keep His commandments. ‘Where two or three are gathered together in My name, there am I in the midst of them’ (Matthew 18:20). Where Christ is even among the humble few, this is Christ’s church.” The Upward Look, 315.

When Paul was ordained, he was ordained to baptize and establish churches—the two together. According to Inspiration, the same ordination that gives people the right to baptize gives them the right to establish churches. More and more, however, there are increasing restrictions controlling the starting of new churches.

In 1903, Kansas had one hundred churches. The state has grown by almost a million people in the last fifty years, and during that period of time, we have gone from one hundred churches down to fifty-four.

Not only has God alone reserved the right to start and to recognize a church, but if you and I decide to go out and start a church apart from His will, no matter what conference committee may approve it, it will never be a church. “For the presence of the High and Holy One who inhabiteth eternity can alone constitute a church.” Ibid. If God’s presence is not the center of His church, it is not recognized by Him as His church, whether or not it is recognized by a conference of the Seventh-day Adventist Church.

In New Testament times, the church comprised those who were called and sanctified. Wherever Paul went and converted a few people, he organized them into a church, right there and then, without seeking any other permission. It was not up to the church in Jerusalem to give permission or to decide if they were a church, but to recognize the fact that they were. Now, of course, if a church apostatized or if a local member apostatized, it was also up to the church in Jerusalem to decide that, since these people are no longer keeping the commandments of God, they are no longer recognized by us as being one of God’s churches.

For us individually to receive the Holy Spirit, we must study the Bible, pray, overcome sin and witness. For the church body to receive the Holy spirit, they must, as a body, also have these four things present. Not only is it necessary for us as individuals to be winning others to Christ, but God’s design for his church is that every church should start new churches.

One of the things that must take place before God can pour out His blessing upon the church is not only a revival of primitive doctrine, but a revival of primitive organization. The New Testament churches had the freedom to go out and start new churches; but they were not just started and left to flounder by themselves, they were left with local organization. “And when they had preached the gospel to the city and made many disciples, they returned to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch, strengthening the souls of the disciples, exhorting them to continue in the faith, and saying, ‘We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God.’ So when they had appointed elders in every church, and prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord in whom they had believed” (Acts 14:21–23).

Authority in the early church was to be earned because of a godly life and knowledge of the Scriptures and the use of the ability that God had given; but never was it to come just by virtue of office. Today our church is almost being destroyed in some parts of this world because some have assumed the office of minister and decided that because they have that office they are the king of the local church. God never intended that office to be that of a king, but one of service.

“From Miletus he sent to Ephesus and called for the elders of the church” (Acts 20:17). What elders were these that He called? These were the elders who had been appointed. Notice, it is elders plural, not the elder. “Therefore take heed to yourselves [this is the instruction he is giving to these elders] and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood. For I know this, that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. Also from among yourselves men will rise up, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after themselves. Therefore watch, and remember that for three years I did not cease to warn everyone night and day with tears” (Acts 20:28–31).

So, Paul called the elders to guard the church from wolves. In a correlating passage to this in Testimonies, vol. 5, 77, Ellen White, writing of her own experience, says that she could scarcely keep from weeping when she saw the people who were taking charge of the church who were trained by Satan. Paul had the same concern, and the elders were called to protect the church from these wolves.

Now the question is, suppose that a wolf came from Jerusalem. Were the elders to protect the church from that wolf? “Oh, no,” someone says, “not a local elder!” Look here at one of the most interesting passages in the New Testament in regard to this. “Now when Peter had come to Antioch, I [Paul] withstood him to his face, because he was to be blamed; for before certain men came from James, he would eat with the Gentiles; but when they came, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing those who were of the circumcision. And the rest of the Jews also played the hypocrite with him, so that even Barnabas was carried away with their hypocrisy” (Galatians 2:11–13). Paul stood up and rebuked Peter, but Paul was not happy about this because he was not the one who should have had to do the rebuking.

God had established a local leadership to protect the church, but, surely not from Peter. He was from Jerusalem! He was one of the pillars; he knew Jesus personally. No, not from Peter. They were only Gentiles who had been newly converted to the faith. You do not expect them, these Gentile Galatians who had just come into the Christian church a few years ago, to stand up and rebuke Peter. Peter was from the Jerusalem church. He had been a Jew all his life, one of the pillars in the church, a follower of Jesus—not Peter! I mean, Paul was an apostle. He could do that. But Paul was most unhappy that he had to do that. “O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you as crucified” (Galatians 3:1)?

“Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage” (Galatians 5:1). Someone might say, “That scripture is dealing with circumcision and all those things.” Circumcision was involved, and eating with Gentiles was involved, but that was not the issue! The issue in Galatia was that Peter had caused them to transgress and they were to stand in their freedom, even if it was Peter from Jerusalem who should come down and preach false theology.

“But strange fire has been offered in the use of harsh words, in self-importance, in self-exaltation, in self-righteousness, in arbitrary authority, in domineering, in oppression, in restricting the liberty of God’s people, binding them about by your plans and rules, which God has not framed, neither have they come into His mind. All these things are strange fire, unacknowledged by God, and are a continual misrepresentation of His character.” Testimonies to Ministers and Gospel Workers, 357, 358.

The Lord established the church upon the Rock, Jesus Christ, and He alone is to be the head of the church. (See Ephesians 1:22, 23.) The issue in the days of Martin Luther was who was in charge of the church—the Lord or the pope. That was the issue in Wesley’s day and it was also the issue in 1888. It is amazing how little Ellen White deals with doctrine in relationship to 1888. The problem with Jones and Waggoner was that they did not go through the “proper channels.” They were not approved by the “proper people.”

The following statements are from a letter that Ellen White wrote to Elder Butler. “God designs that men shall use their minds and consciences for themselves. He never designed that one man should become the shadow of another, and utter only another’s sentiments. But this error has been coming in among us, that a very few are to be mind, conscience, and judgment for all God’s workers. The foundation of Christianity is ‘Christ our Righteousness.’ ” The Ellen G. White 1888 Materials, 112. Do you want to know what Christ our Righteousness means? She tells us what it means. “Men are individually responsible to God and must act as God acts upon them, not as another human mind acts upon their mind.” Ibid. God is to decide what is right, not some human committee. God makes the rules, not some human rule book. The Bible is our creed. We always used to say: “We do not have a creed book; the Bible is our creed.”

“For if this method of indirect influence is kept up, souls can not be impressed and directed by the great I AM. They will, on the other hand, have their experience blended with another, and will be kept under a moral restraint, which allows no freedom of action or of choice. …

“If we would be wise, and use diligently, prayerfully, and thankfully the means whereby light and blessings are to come to His people, then no voice nor power upon earth would have authority over us to say, ‘This shall not be.’ ” Ibid., 112, 113.

In the book Testimonies to Ministers and Gospel Workers, Ellen White wrote a great deal of material to the leadership and ministry in general after 1888. Much of this book is dealing with this very principle of church authority. Among other similar statements, she said, “The high-handed power that has been developed, as though position has made men gods, makes me afraid, and ought to cause fear. It is a curse wherever and by whomsoever it is exercised.” Ibid., 361. “The spirit of domination is extending to the presidents of the conferences. If a man is sanguine of his own powers and seeks to exercise dominion over his brethren, feeling that he is invested with authority to make his will the ruling power, the best and only safe course is to remove him.” Ibid., 362.

In the chapter “Under Which Banner?” she says, “Humanity is hailed as God.” Ibid., 365. She is talking to us, dear friends. She says, “God will not vindicate any device whereby man shall in the slightest degree rule or oppress his fellowmen.” Ibid., 366. A curse is pronounced upon all who do this. (See Jeremiah 17:5.)

“State conferences may depend upon the General Conference for light and knowledge and wisdom; but is it safe for them to do this? Battle Creek is not to be the center of God’s work. God alone can fill this place. When our people in the different places have their special convocations, teach them, for Christ’s sake and for their own soul’s sake, not to make flesh their arm. There is no power in men to read the hearts of their fellowmen. The Lord is the only One upon whom we can with safety depend, and He is accessible in every place and to every church in the Union. To place men where God should be placed does not honor or glorify God. Is the president of the General Conference to be the god of the people?” Ibid., 375. Following the counsel and teaching of these ideas does not make a person very popular, but we are told to do it.

Instead of teaching the truth that God has commissioned to be taught, Ellen White says we have taught otherwise. “For many years an education has been given to the people which places God second, and man first. The people have been taught that everything must be brought before the council of a few men in Battle Creek.” Ibid., 325. I want you to notice that this is a serious matter because it is breaking the first commandment. God says, “You shall have no other gods before Me” (Exodus 20:3). “Let me entreat our state conferences and our churches to cease putting their dependence upon men and making flesh their arm.” Ibid., 380. Today we have gone far beyond where they were in 1888.

“In reference to our conference, it is repeated o’er and o’er and o’er again, that it is the voice of God, and therefore everything must be referred to the Conference and have the conference voice in regard to permission or restriction or what shall be and what shall not be done in the various fields. …

“We have heard enough, abundance, about that ‘everything must go around in the regular way.’…

“He [God] wants every living soul that has a knowledge of the truth to come to their senses.” Spalding and Magan Collection, 163.

“The Lord wants His Spirit to come in. He wants the Holy Ghost king.” Ibid., 166.

Today we have come to the point, in many places, that if you ever invite someone to come and speak in the pulpit, you have to get the permission of the local conference.

God is looking for every one of us, from the General Conference president down, to be broken on the Rock. When Jesus is the King, unity, peace and love pervade. This does not do away with organization. It is the only thing that creates a working organization. We still have offices, but when God’s plan is followed, no one is striving for office because everyone is striving to serve one another. (See Matthew 20:25–28.)

The message of Christ our Righteousness has to become practical. We need to exercise less and less control over one another and do more and more praying for one another. Let us not decide that God has given any one of us authority to tell everyone else how they are to serve God. God is calling for much more freedom in His church than what we have been willing to allow. There is a place for order, a place for leadership, but dear friend, God is calling for us to be broken on the Rock, to be filled with the humility and the love of Jesus. Then we will find that once again Jesus will be King.

 

Pastor Marshall Grosboll, with his wife Lillian, founded Steps to Life. In July 1991, Pastor Marshall and his family met with tragedy as they were returning home from a camp meeting in Washington state, when the airplane he was piloting went down, killing all on board.

Practical Tips on How to Organize a Local Church

Throughout his entire ministry, Paul, the great evangelist of the New Testament, was careful to institute proper organization in the churches he established. In fact, Paul thought organization was so important, that a short time after he had been stoned in Lystra, he returned to organize the churches. He saw that gospel order (which included the appointment of elders and deacons) was “an important factor in the spiritual growth of the new converts.” Acts of the Apostles, 185. It was a safeguard against error and fanaticism and promoted unity among the believers. In place after place, Paul diligently instructed and aided churches in the establishment of proper order.

Ellen White says that in Lycaonia and Pisidia, “churches were duly organized in all places…where there were believers. Officers were appointed in each church, and proper order and system were established….” Ibid., 185.

The church in Thessalonica was also “properly organized.” “Officers had been appointed to act as ministers and deacons.” Ibid., 261.

Regarding the work in Crete, Paul instructed Titus to “set in order the things that are wanting, and ordain elders in every city, as I had appointed thee.” Titus 1:5.

Inspiration shows that the appointment of elders and deacons was an integral part—a fundamental element—of the gospel order that Paul established in his churches. A group of believers that simply gathers together for meetings, with no officers selected, as elders and deacons, is not a “properly organized” church.

Selection and Ordination of Leaders

To ordain an elder or deacon simply means to appoint a person to a position of authority and leadership, in the church of God. Through ordination, church members recognize a person’s spirituality and ability to serve the church in a leadership capacity.

In the selection of deacons, at the time of the early church, the apostles instructed the church to “look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business. But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the work.’ This advice was followed, and by prayer and the laying on of hands, seven chosen men were solemnly set apart for their duties as deacons.” Acts of the Apostles, 89.

We see that the apostles did not themselves alone choose the deacons, but the entire church recognized those, from among its membership, who were “of honest report and full of the Holy Ghost.” We are not told exactly how the process of the selection worked. Today, in some small churches, all the members are directly involved in the selection of officers. In other churches, members select a group of members, called a nominating committee. This committee selects, considers and prays about various potential candidates. When they are finished they recommend to the church at large their completed list of candidates. The church then votes to accept or reject the recommendations of the committee.

For new, small churches, we are given this extremely practical counsel in regards to choosing a leader for a church. “Such arrangements should be made for the little companies accepting the truth as shall secure the prosperity of the church. One man may be appointed to lead for a week or a month, then another for a few weeks; and thus different persons may be enlisted in the work, and after a suitable trial someone should be selected by the voice of the church to be the acknowledged leader, never, however, to be chosen for more than one year. Then another may be selected, or the same one may be re-elected, if his service has proved a blessing to the church.…Many fail to exercise proper discernment in these important matters where eternal interests are involved.” Testimonies, vol. 5, 619.

Consideration of whether a person meets the qualifications for an office is necessary. What are some of the questions that should be asked about a person being considered for a leadership position in the church? Please see the list of qualifications for elders and deacons along with reading the following inspired quotations:

Family

“The family of the one suggested for office should be considered. Are they in subjection? Can the man rule his own house with honor? What character have his children? Will they do honor to the father’s influence? If he has not tact, wisdom, or power of godliness at home in managing his own family, it is safe to conclude that the same defects will be carried into the church, and the same unsanctified management will be seen there.” Testimonies, vol. 5, 618.

Lay Hands on No Man Suddenly

We are also instructed in the Bible and the Spirit of Prophecy to give a man due consideration and to pray much before placing him in office. We should not be in a hurry. “It will be far better to criticize the man before he is put into office than afterward, better to pray and counsel before taking the decisive step than to labor to correct the consequences of a wrong move.” Ibid.

Head Elders and Deacons

Is it right that there should be a head elder or deacon? In Story of Redemption we find that Stephen was chosen to stand at the head of the seven deacons. He was to lead them. He was thought the best qualified because of his multi-cultural ability in the midst of the tension between the Jews and Greeks.

Blessings from the Appointment of Officers and the Establishment of Church Order

There are great blessings to be gained from following God’s counsel. We have found that the establishment of church order:

  • Enables churches to successfully give the Three Angels’ Messages
  • Shields churches from fanaticism
  • Is an important factor in the spiritual growth of church members
  • Serves to unite in one body all believers in Christ (Acts of the Apostles, 89)
  • Enables ministers and elders to be able to work more effectively
  • Increases the number of believers (Acts 6)
  • Increases the strength of believers (Story of Redemption, 260; Act 6:7)

Some may ask: “With all the theological issues facing the church today, why should they be concerned with the appointment of church officers? Shouldn’t we just focus on spreading the Three Angels’ Messages?” Yes, we should focus on spreading the Three Angels’ Messages. The appointment of church officers and the establishment of church order will not only help us give the message but, according to inspiration, we must have order to be successful in giving the message. “I saw that there should be order in the church of God, and that system is needed in carrying forward successfully the last great message of mercy to the world.” Testimonies, vol. 1, 211.

Many Seventh-day Adventists have been told that they should not conduct evangelistic efforts. Why? Because they are no longer connected with the conference. They have been forced out or have left because error is continually taught. Many have not felt it safe to bring their Bible students to church and felt forced to meet in their homes or in a rented building. Then, should these faithful Adventists no longer take the Three Angels’ Messages to the world—because they are not connected with the conference? No, they should do everything they can to spread it. While exercising the same courtesy that Jesus and the apostles did, we should say with Peter, “We ought to obey God rather than man.” Acts 5:29. We cannot obey any man or woman, whatever their position, when he or she tells us not to evangelize. And we cannot obey man when we are told not to follow the counsel of having orderly churches. The gospel commission of Matthew 28 still stands. And, to effectively fulfill that commission, we must have organized churches.

Proper church order will also help squelch some of the rampant fanaticism existing today and promote unity among the brethren. “There is order in heaven; and there should be system and order upon the earth, that the work may move forward without confusion and fanaticism.” Testimonies, vol. 4, 601.

Proper organization also enables ministers and elders to center their attention on the spiritual welfare of the church. Throughout history we see that it is too much for one man or one group of men to be able to focus on both the spiritual and business matters of the church. In the Old Testament, Moses’ father-in-law instructed him to delegate some of the voluminous load he was carrying, of settling all the minute details of the business, in the camp of Israel. In the New Testament (Acts 6), the church appointed deacons to oversee the business of the church and assist the apostles in spiritual leadership. As a result of dividing the labor (appointing deacons), the number and strength of the believers increased.

Results From Not Following God’s Counsel

  • If God’s counsel is not followed what will be some of the results?
  • Satan will benefit
  • Minister’s spiritual discernment will be dimmed

“Order must be observed, and there must be union in maintaining order, or Satan will take the advantage.” Testimonies, vol.1, 211.

“Those whom God has called to minister in word and doctrine should have time for meditation, prayer and study of the Scriptures. Their clear spiritual discernment is dimmed by entering into the lesser details of business and dealing with the various temperaments of those who meet together in church capacity.” The Story of Redemption, 261. This is very solemn. An elder or minister’s spiritual discernment needs to be as clear and bright as the day.

Reasons for Lack of Organization Today

There appear to be many groups of Seventh-day Adventists that believe in the historic pillars of our faith (including the Spirit of Prophecy), that meet together every Sabbath, but do not recognize the importance of “proper organization.” There are probably many reasons for the lack of organization. Examples include:

  • Fear of starting a “new organization”
  • Belief that it is unnecessary
  • Lack of knowledge of inspired counsel
  • Desire to avoid local church struggles

For those afraid to organize, for fear they are starting a new organization, we would say the following: The church is the “pillar and ground of the truth.” (I Timothy 3:15) To knowingly cling to error is to leave God’s church. If you have left a “structure” church because error is being taught, do not think that you are leaving the true church and starting a new organization.

It is unfortunate—more than unfortunate, it is a tragedy, that so many Seventh-day Adventists do not feel safe to worship in their local conference church. Surely it brings great pain to the heart of God and should to our hearts also. It should cause us to weep. But it should not cause us to disregard inspired counsel. The New Testament instruction, of Paul, Luke and Peter, is that the local church is not complete without the appointment and service of elders and deacons.

Many Seventh-day Adventists who are worshipping separately from the conference are told that they should not organize the group of historic believers with whom they are worshipping. Opponents quote a Spirit of Prophecy statement that says we should enter into no new organization and go on to say that if a church organizes separately from the conference that they are not following the Spirit of Prophecy.

Friends, the only way to avoid starting a “new organization” is to adopt New Testament church order. A candid look at inspired counsel reveals that Seventh-day Adventists, in and out of the conference, are not following the Lord’s instruction when it comes to church organization. (See previous articles by Neil Livingston, “The Mark of An Image,” parts one and two about the 1901 and 1903 General Conference Sessions.) The conferences that we are familiar with are not following God’s counsel regarding church organization. They already have entered a new form of organization and are not following the instructions clearly outlined in the Bible and Spirit of Prophecy. Neither are most historic Seventh-day Adventists. It is past time that, along with following the counsel about health reform, dress reform and Christ-likeness of character, we also follow the counsel about New Testament church organization.

We cry about the departure of God’s professed people from following His counsel. And well we should. When a person cares about God’s work they will, like the apostle Paul, mourn at the pain we have caused to the heart of God and the reproach that has been brought upon His name. “The position which the Jews as God’s professed people occupied before an unbelieving world, caused the apostle intense anguish of spirit.” Acts of Apostles, 412. But let us do more than mourn. Let us look to see that we, like Paul, are individually doing all we can to promote conformity to the divine plan of order and organization among God’s people.

To those who believe organization to be unnecessary we would say, that, as children of God, we are not in a situation to be telling God what is and is not necessary. Surely our Creator, our Chief Shepherd, knows what is best for His churches. Whenever a church disregards the counsel of God, it is in a weakened position spiritually.

It seems that there are always some that are against proper church organization. There were some in the church at Thessalonica that were “self-willed, and impetuous, who refused to be subordinate to those who held positions of authority in the church. They claimed not only the right of private judgment, but that of publicly urging their views upon the church. In view of this, Paul called the attention of the Thessalonians to the respect and deference due to those who had been chosen to occupy positions of authority in the church.” Ibid., 261–262.

Deacons

In both the Bible and the Spirit of Prophecy we are given counsel about the character and qualifications of deacons. Please see the shaded box.

Of the first seven deacons, in the early church, we are told that, “These officers gave careful consideration to individual needs as well as to the general financial interests of the church, and by their prudent management and their godly example they were an important aid to their fellow officers in binding together the various interests of the church into a united whole.” Acts of the Apostles, 89.

Interestingly enough, Ellen White does not limit the responsibility of attending to the business of the church to men alone. She says that women could also attend to this. “There is a wide field in which our sisters may do good service for the Master in the various branches of the work connected with His cause. Through missionary labor they can reach a class that our ministers cannot. . . . There is work neglected or done imperfectly that could be thoroughly accomplished by the help that sisters can give. There are so many kinds of work too laborious for women, which our brethren are called to engage in, that many branches of missionary work are neglected. Many things connected with different churches are left undone that women, if properly instructed, could attend to. Our sisters might serve as church clerks, and the church business would not be so sadly neglected. There are many other offices connected with the cause of God which our sisters are better qualified to fill than our brethren, and in which they might do efficient service.” Welfare Ministry, 147. This should be good news to many small churches. The workforce may be bigger than many at first thought it could be.

Ministers and Elders

The inspired instruction we are given regarding the character and qualifications of elders is both detailed and broad. Please see shaded box.

An elder’s duty encompasses more than merely preaching a good sermon. It means offering personal, unselfish effort for church members and non-church members.

“Those who occupy the position of undershepherds are to exercise a watchful diligence over the Lord’s flock. This is not to be a dictatorial vigilance, but one that tends to encourage and strengthen and uplift. Ministry means more than sermonizing: it means earnest, personal labor.” Acts of the Apostles, 526.

“The greatest help that can be given to our people is to teach them to work for God, and to depend on Him, not on the ministers. Let them learn to work as Christ worked.…Just as soon as a church is organized, let the minister set the members at work. They will need to be taught how to labor successfully. Let the minister devote more of his time to educating than to preaching.” Testimonies, vol. 7, 19–20.

“Let the neglected tithes be now brought in.…Elders of the churches, do your duty. Labor from home to home, that the flock of God shall not be remiss in this great matter, which involves such a blessing or such a curse.” Testimonies to Ministers, 306.

“But My Church is Very Small”

Some will make the plea, “But my church is so small. We do not have enough members to establish true gospel order.” Paul was careful throughout his ministry to organize even small groups of believers. “Those who in any place were by his labor led to accept Christ as the Savior were at the proper time organized into a church. Even when the believers were but few in number, this was done. The Christians were thus taught to help one another, remembering the promise, ‘Where two or three are gathered together in My name, there am I in the midst of them.’ Matthew 18:20.” Acts of the Apostles, 185–186.

What Can Small Churches Do to Support Missions?

We are told in Gospel Workers, 466–467, that several small churches can unite to support a foreign missionary. What about two or three small home churches supporting a minister? Remember the widow with the two mites. She thought that her contribution was so small and insignificant. But how many, upon hearing the story, have given their small bit? And all those small bits added together have provided millions and millions of dollars for the advancement of the Lord’s work on earth. You may not be able to support a foreign missionary in your church, but, as we are told, you can unite with another church or several other churches and together support the local or foreign mission field.

An Important Requirement

Much more could be written about church order and organization. At the end of this article there is a list of recommended reading material for further study of the topic. However, there is one requirement to the establishment of proper church organization that we thought so key that we saved it until the end.

In speaking of the Jews and of Christians today, Ellen White said: “The order and prosperity of the church depended upon the good order and thorough discipline of families.…These injunctions which God laid upon the Jews with so much solemnity, rest with equal weight upon Christian parents.” Testimonies, vol. 3, 294.

In order to have orderly and organized churches, we must have orderly homes and disciplined families. And it does not happen overnight. Everyday we must take up the battle for order and discipline anew. Everyday we must humble ourselves before the throne of grace, pleading with God for a new heart, for wisdom to deal in a loving but firm way with our children and for a sense of our complete dependence upon Him. Only God can make our homes like heaven. In learning the secrets of how to have a happy, disciplined family and an orderly home, we will learn how to have happy, organized churches. It takes much effort, planning and prayer. But God will help you. We know He will. He has helped us. He works with all of us as we put forth earnest effort.

Today, God would have us to study—to be wide-awake to the times in which we live. The counsel is clear. God has instructed us to be organized because we need to be organized to help finish His work of salvation in our homes and our churches. He is calling us to come into line. It may not be easy. A person who has lost his job, because of keeping the Sabbath, would not call Sabbath-keeping easy. In fact, it could seem not only to be hard, but also down right awkward for several weeks; because it is new. But week after week it will become easier and more natural. The same is true with church order. It may be difficult and awkward at first, but, if we persist, God has promised a blessing.

“Choose ye this day whom you will serve.…But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” Joshua 24:15.

Deacons Qualifications

  • Reverent
  • Not double-tongued
  • Not given to much wine
  • Not greedy for money
  • Possess a pure conscience
  • An experienced Christian
  • Involved only in a monogamous relationship, if married
  • Able to rule their homes well
  • Possess calm judgment and discretion
  • Able to deal with difficult cases of trial including murmuring and jealousy

Duties

  • Attend to the general financial interests of the church
  • See that a faithful tithe is brought into the treasury (Testimonies to Ministers, 305)
  • Care for individual needs of the widows, orphans and worthy poor
  • Teach the faith (example: Stephen)
  • Take difficult temporal matters to the minister or elders

Elders Qualifications

  • Blameless
  • Converted
  • Earnest
  • Elevated
  • Ennobled
  • Gentle
  • Hospitable
  • Refined
  • Sober
  • Tactful
  • Unselfish
  • Vigilant
  • A hearer
  • A learner
  • Self-governed
  • Of good repute
  • Competent
  • Able to present Bible subjects
  • Familiar with the Scriptures
  • Full of zeal
  • An effective ruler of household
  • Able to educate church members to be workers
  • Possessor of judgment
  • Possessor of a fresh experience
  • Involved only in a monogamous relationship, if married
  • An experienced Christian

See 1 Timothy 3; Testimonies, vol. 4, 406–407; and Testimonies, vol. 5, 617–618.

Duties

  •  Laboring earnestly and personally for souls, inside and outside of the church
  •  Educating church members about how to work for souls
  •  Providing church members work to do in God’s vineyard
  •  Encouraging faithfulness in the return of the tithe
  •  Preaching the Word

Keeping Up with the Light

The path of the just is like the shining sun, that shines ever brighter unto the perfect day.” Proverbs 4:18. Notice, this verse does not say the room of the just, but the path of the just. As you walk that path, if you stay on it, the light is going to become brighter and brighter. But it is also true, friend, that if you do not keep walking on the path, the light is going to become darkness, because the light is moving.

The Bible talks about present truth. (See II Peter 1:12.) There are certain things that can be preached at one time that cannot be preached at another time. There are some truths that are timeless, but there is some truth that is present truth. What is present truth today is not exactly the same as it was 100 years ago.

I believe that very soon God’s servants are going to have to preach things that we have never thought we were going to preach. We are in a situation very similar to the Jews in the time of Christ. The devil had manipulated them into a situation, through what they had been taught, so that they were ready to reject the truth. They had developed a series of criteria which, if Jesus was the Messiah, they believed He would meet. Interestingly enough, they based these expectations on the Old Testament. Jesus did not, however, meet their criteria. It is interesting to note, in the study of history, that almost every time prophecy which is fulfilled is not fulfilled in the way expected.

Seventh-day Adventists used to wonder what Ellen White meant when she said, “I was shown the startling fact that but a small portion of those who now profess the truth will be sanctified by it and be saved.” Testimonies, vol. 1, 608. Very soon we are going to find out.

This concept that spiritual light is moving and the person who does not keep walking in the light finds himself in the dark explains many spiritual phenomena that are happening all around us that otherwise would be very confusing. A few years ago, two Seventh-day Adventist ministers came to question me. One of them asked something like this: “Do you believe that the Seventh-day Adventist Church organization was ordained by God? Well, do you or don’t you?” Well, let me ask you some questions? Do you believe that the Jewish church organization was ordained by God, or that He had a hand in setting it up? Was there a time when the Jews were in the light? Yes, there was. The Jews had been called by God and chosen as His special people. They had been in the light. They had, friends, the spirit of prophecy. They had all of the Old Testament; that is the spirit of prophecy. But when the light moved, they did not move with it. God had more light for them, but they would not accept it. They stayed put and, as a result, they were left in the dark.

Jesus is the light of the world. I want you to notice Revelation 14:4 and what it says about the 144,000. “These are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever He goes.” When the light (Jesus) moves, the 144,000 follow. The problem today is that when the light moves, there are so many people who do not follow it; they stay put. They are left in the dark and are then spiritually blind. There was a time when they were in the light; but the light moved, and they did not move with it. “As the light and life of men was rejected by the ecclesiastical authorities in the days of Christ, so it has been rejected in every succeeding generation.” The Desire of Ages, 232. Did you notice that she said that this has taken place in every succeeding generation? “Again and again the history of Christ’s withdrawal from Judea has been repeated. When the Reformers preached the Word of God, they had no thought of separating themselves from the established church; but the religious leaders would not tolerate the light.” Ibid. What happened? The religious leaders refused to walk in the light. “And those that bore it were forced to seek another class, who were longing for the truth.” Ibid. Everyone who does not love the truth is going to be deceived and be lost.

“Few are listening for the voice of God, and ready to accept truth in whatever guise it may be presented. Often those who follow in the steps of the Reformers are forced to turn away from the churches they love, in order to declare the plain teaching of the Word of God.” Ibid. Did you know that there are many people who no longer believe that this statement can apply today? Have you ever heard people say, “Well, the cycles have to stop somewhere, and they stopped in 1863 because that is when we incorporated”? The trouble is, friends, The Desire of Ages was not even written until 1898.

We are living in a time that a few years ago no one expected to see. We believed that when persecution came, it would come from outside of the church. We failed to understand what Ellen White meant when she said that we have far more to fear from within than from without. (See Selected Messages, Book 1, 122.) Who would have thought that in Adventism the apostasy would become so great that in many places it would become spiritually dangerous to even attend the local Seventh-day Adventist Church because error was being “forced home to the people”? (See Early Writings, 125.) We were not expecting the true and faithful Seventh-day Adventists to be disfellowshipped and persecuted by their former brethren all over the world, as is taking place today. But when we go to the inspired writings, we see all of this prophesied—we just did not understand it. People have come to believe that these things would not happen until after the National Sunday Law. Friend, that theory is a dangerous deception. The National Sunday Law does not initiate the shaking; it brings the shaking to a climax! Those who are waiting to take a bold, unyielding stand for the truth until the Sunday law test comes are simply preparing to receive the mark of the beast.

You see, when anyone rejects the light of truth that God has given to this people, he has turned his back on the light and goes out in darkness. He may still call himself a Seventh-day Adventist, but if he does not believe the First Angel’s Message and the truth of the Investigative Judgment beginning in 1844, he has gone into darkness. You cannot, with safety, go to his church and listen to him preach. When a person rejects the truth of the great Day of Atonement that began in 1844 and says that instead of afflicting the soul (Leviticus 16:29, 30) it is time to celebrate, they have gone out into darkness. If a preacher says that you will sin until Jesus comes, he has accepted Satan’s fatal sophistry (See The Great Controversy, 489.), and you dare not go and listen to him preach lest you be deceived and lose your own soul. Finally, if you are not hearing the historic doctrines of Adventism preached in your church, if you are hearing the same kinds of sermons that you could hear in any other church, then you are endangering your soul if you do not either find a Historic Seventh-day Adventist congregation, or start a home church where you can teach the truth, at least to your own family.

Our opportunities for learning and knowing God’s last message to a perishing world and being prepared for what is coming on the world are very limited at best, and we dare not allow ourselves and our families to be exposed to either heretical preaching or “peace and safety” messages that come just before destruction. “I saw that we have no time to throw away in listening to fables. Our minds should not be thus diverted, but should be occupied with the present truth, and seeking wisdom that we may obtain a more thorough knowledge of our position, that with meekness we may be able to give a reason of our hope from the Scriptures. While false doctrines and dangerous errors are pressed upon the mind, it cannot be dwelling upon the truth which is to fit and prepare the house of Israel to stand in the day of the Lord.” Early Writings, 125.

Every Sabbath after church, you should be more fitted to stand in the day of the Lord than before. But the prophet wrote sadly, “Those who have been regarded as worthy and righteous prove to be ring-leaders in apostasy and examples in indifference and in the abuse of God’s mercies. Their wicked course He will tolerate no longer, and in His wrath He deals with them without mercy.

“It is with reluctance that the Lord withdraws His presence from those who have been blessed with great light and who have felt the power of the word in ministering to others. They were once His faithful servants, favored with His presence and guidance; but they departed from Him and led others into error, and therefore are brought under the divine displeasure. …

“Not all who profess to keep the Sabbath will be sealed. There are many even among those who teach the truth to others who will not receive the seal of God in their foreheads. They had the light of truth, they knew their Master’s will, they understood every point of our faith, but they had not corresponding works. These who were so familiar with prophecy and the treasures of divine wisdom should have acted their faith. They should have commanded their households after them, that by a well-ordered family they might present to the world the influence of the truth upon the human heart.

“By their lack of devotion and piety, and their failure to reach a high religious standard, they make other souls contented with their position. Men of finite judgment cannot see that in patterning after these men who have so often opened to them the treasures of God’s Word, they will surely endanger their souls. Jesus is the only true pattern. Everyone must now search the Bible for himself upon his knees before God, with the humble, teachable heart of a child, if he would know what the Lord requires of him. However high any minister may have stood in the favor of God, if he neglects to follow out the light given him of God, if he refuses to be taught as a little child, he will go into darkness and satanic delusions and will lead others in the same path. …

“What are you doing, brethren, in the great work of preparation? Those who are uniting with the world are receiving the worldly mold and preparing for the mark of the beast.” Testimonies, vol. 5, 212–216.

Friends, it is a dangerous thing to fail to advance in the opening providence of God. The light is moving. Are you moving with it or are you in the dark? Early in her experience, Ellen White saw a vision about this light. You can read this vision in Early Writings, 15–20. In other places in her writings, she speaks about the light that was set up at the beginning of the path that the Advent company was traveling that shone all of the way up to the Holy City. This path, friends, is narrow, and if you do not have light on the path, you are going to stumble and fall off.

What was that light that was set up at the beginning? Sister White says that it was the Midnight Cry. The Midnight Cry was based on the Bible prophecies of Daniel 8 and 9, and Revelation 14:6, 7—the message of the 2300 days and the sanctuary and the Investigative Judgment. The devil knows that if we reject these truths, we will stumble and fall off the path. It is amazing how successful the devil has been in leading people to reject them.

We have been told that, “When the power of God testifies as to what is truth, that truth is to stand forever as the truth. No after suppositions contrary to the light God has given are to be entertained.” Selected Messages, Book 1, 161. Yet there are Adventist teachers and ministers today who no longer believe these truths. Friend, if you are in the situation where you listen to this error, you are in the dark; you are going to lose your way. The Lord is not going to work a miracle to save you; you have turned your back on the light. This idea that you can have a spirit of free inquiry and ask any question you want to is not according to the Scriptures. Jesus rebuked people for their doubt. Friend, if these truths are not being upheld in your church, your church is in the dark.

In Testimonies, vol. 2, 594–597, Ellen White describes a very impressive dream. “I dreamed of being with a large body of people. A portion of this assembly started out prepared to journey. We had heavily loaded wagons. As we journeyed, the road seemed to ascend. On one side of this road was a deep precipice; on the other was a high, smooth, white wall. … As we journeyed on, the road grew narrower and steeper. … We concluded that we could no longer travel with the loaded wagons. We … took a portion of the luggage from the wagons and placed it upon the horses, and journeyed on horseback. As we progressed, the path still continued to grow narrow. … We then cut the luggage from the horses, and it fell over the precipice. We continued on horseback. … A hand seemed to take the bridle and guide us over the perilous way. As the path grew more narrow, we … left the horses and went on foot, in single file. … At this point small cords were let down from the top of the pure white wall; these we eagerly grasped. … The path finally became so narrow that we concluded that we could travel more safely without our shoes, so we slipped them from our feet. … Soon it was decided that we could travel more safely without our stockings; these were removed, and we journeyed on with bare feet.”

One of the most interesting points of this dream is that several changes were made. They began with heavily loaded wagons, then changed to horses with a portion of the luggage, to horses with no luggage, to single file on foot, to removing their shoes, and finally to removing their stockings. Notice that “at every change some were left behind, and those only remained who had accustomed themselves to endure hardships. The privations of the way only made these more eager to press on to the end. … We pressed close to the white wall, yet could not place our feet fully upon the path, for it was too narrow. We then suspended nearly our whole weight upon the cords, exclaiming: ‘We have hold from above!’ ” Ibid.

The light, friends, is moving. Are you keeping up with the providence of God? Are you aware that the road we are traveling is getting narrower? Have you noticed it? How are you going to stay on the path and keep up with the providence of God? The only way is to have faith. These cords represent faith. A few years ago a good friend of mine told me that he was sorry that I had worked so many years for the Adventist denomination and now had to give up all of my retirement benefits. If you stay on the road all the way to the end, you are going to give up much more than retirement benefits.

Oh friend, how much time are you spending in prayer? If you are energetic enough to get up and to pray, God will hear and answer.

“Where there is no active labor for others, love wanes, and faith grows dim.” The Desire of Ages, 825. You must not only study your Bible and pray, you must be actively involved in missionary work. If you are not, ask the Lord to show you what to do to become involved in some type of outreach program spreading the Third Angel’s Message.

We did not follow the path to the end of the vision. The time came, however, when the path disappeared and all that was left were the cords that had been let down from above. When you come to this place in your experience, will you have a faith that will hold you? Do you want the Lord to let down a cord of faith today so that you can get a hold from above? If so, determine that from this day forward you will faithfully walk in the light as God sheds it upon your pathway.

Pastor John Grosboll is Director of Steps to Life and pastors the Prairie Meadows Church in Wichita, Kansas. He may be contacted by e-mail at: historic@stepstolife.org, or by telephone at: 316-788-5559.

1901 Rejected, part 2

When Nimrod and his followers declared their independence from the Lord, Nimrod became the first King of Babylon and eventually built the tower of Babel.

“The tower had reached a lofty height, and it was impossible for the workmen at the top to communicate directly with those at the base . . . Confusion and dismay followed. All work came to a standstill . . . in their rage and disappointment they reproached one another . . . Men were made to feel that there is a God who ruleth in the heavens and that He is able to confuse and to multiply confusion in order to teach men that they are only men.” Testimonies, vol. 8, 214.

When the 1903 General Conference adopted a plan for a “World General Conference” with one General Conference President, Ellen White used this tower to illustrate the problems of centralization” as a “confederacy” born of “rebellion against God.” (Testimonies, vol. 8, 213.)

When Israel rejected the Lord as their King, and asked Samuel for a king, this form of centralized government under men eventually led to the division of the nation and destruction of Israel. Men had failed to learn from the tower of Babel that man cannot stand where God is to stand. The same discord generated at the tower of Babel was not comprehended by God’s people. Just as the tower led to confusion, Jerusalem eventually became “the city of confusion.” Isaiah 24:10. Choosing a king only deepened an apostasy into a “conspiracy” that broke the covenant, making Jerusalem a curse. The Lord had to destroy Jerusalem because of a false witness to the world. The prophecy of Isaiah 24:10 is a final day prophecy that applies to spiritual Jerusalem in the final days of earth’s history when the “gleaning grapes” (remnant) “lift the voice” against “the treacherous dealers” which causes “the shaking.” Isaiah 24:13, 14.

Centralization of powers in an hierarchical system in the days of Israel compounded abuses which were considered as treachery against the Lord and a backsliding to the gods of “strangers.” (Isaiah 1:7; Jeremiah 2:11, 25.) The treacherous dealers, according to Scripture, are those who “as a wife treacherously departeth from her husband, so ye deal treacherously with Me, O house of Israel, saith the Lord.” Jeremiah 3:20.

 

What Might Have Been

 

It was the Lord’s plan in 1901 to spare the Church from repeating the history of Israel by a knowledge of their mistakes. But warnings from the messenger in 1901 and at the beginning of the 1903 session were not heeded. (General Conference Bulletin, 1901, 26; 1903, 29–30.)Decentralization had been stressed during the 1890s in an attempt to direct the Church away from a layer system of government. Decentralization was the theme of the 1901 plan of reorganization, which provided for the division of the field into the American General Conference and the European General Conference. The presidents of these conferences were to serve under Christ, the Captain of the 1901 plan. But since the brethren failed to come into unity in an upper room experience, “What might have been” (Testimonies, vol. 8, 104–106), was an impossibility. “Men did not humble themselves before the Lord,” and the presence of the Holy Spirit which was essential to unite men under Christ as “Captain” of the 1901 plan, was “not imparted.”(Testimonies, vol. 8, 104.)

Because men refused to unite under Christ in the 1901 plan, the 1903 plan of centralization under man became a necessity to prevent total fragmentation of the work. To maintain any semblance of organizational unity, the American General Conference transformed itself into “a World General Conference,” and coerced the budding European General Conference to revert to the European Union Conference. The delegates chose one man as General Conference President just as Israel chose a king; and the 1903 plan of centralization under man replaced the 1901 apostolic plan under Christ. This was an hierarchical plan of church organization in which man would rule over man in a layer system of organization. This plan was introduced on April 6, 1903 and was accepted on April 9, 1903.

 

The Most Terrible Sorrow of My Life

 

Prior to the 1903 General Conference, Ellen White had doubts about attending the session because of her disappointment over the results of the 1901 conference.

“I do not now expect to attend the General Conference. I should not dare to go; for I am very much worn with the responsibilities . . . I feel very intensely, because I understand the peril of those who as blind men have followed their own counsel. Were I to go to the Conference, I should be compelled to take positions that would cut some to the quick . . .

“The result of the last General Conference has been the greatest, the most terrible sorrow of my life. No change was made . . . they did not walk in the light that the Lord had flashed upon their pathway, but carried into their work the wrong principles that had been prevailing in the work at Battle Creek.

“The Lord has marked every movement made by the leading men in our institutions and conferences. It is a perilous thing to reject the light that God sends.” Letter from Ellen White to Judge Jessie Arthur on January 15, 1903.

Thus, in less than two years, the test of time revealed that “wrong principles” had been carried into the work and “no change” was made after the 1901 session. In spite of her disappointment, Mrs. White arranged to attend the 1903 session which convened March 27, 1903, at Oakland, California.

 

Brethren Cautioned to Look Beneath the Surface

 

At the April 5 meeting, she expressed deep concern over the decisions of the delegates that would influence the work of God.

“I have been carrying a very heavy burden. For the last three nights I have slept very little. Many scenes are presented to me. I feel an intense interest in the advancement of the work of God, and I say to our leading brethren, As you consider the questions that shall come before you, you are to look beneath the surface. You are to give careful consideration to every question discussed.” General Conference Bulletin, 1903, 104.

 

Elder Daniels’ Proposal

 

The Foreign Mission Board, chaired by A.G. Daniels, was still an international organization between 1901 and 1903, which provided the wedge to introduce the new plan of organization.

On April 6, 1903, one day after Ellen White warned the brethren to look beneath the surface, Elder Daniels made his proposal:

“Now, with reference to making the General Conference Committee the Mission Board: As the work is now shaping, the province of the General Conference Committee is of an advisory character to a large extent—not altogether, by any means—and is of a missionary character or phase.

“One who has not been in our office can scarcely realize what a complete change has been wrought at the headquarters of the General Conference . . .the administration in the United States has all been taken away, and is now placed in the hands of scores of men. But while that has been going on, our missionary problems have been greatly increasing . . .

“I have become convinced that one of the great purposes of the General Conference Committee would be to deal with these world-wide problems everywhere.” General Conference Bulletin, 1903, 100, 101.

Elder Daniels’ proposal was actually a cry for help for a human method to give unity of action within the organization. Men in authority could not work under Christ in the 1901 plan because they failed to come into “working order.” (General Conference Bulletin, 1901, 23.) Without Christ as “the Captain,” the only alternative was a strong central committee under man. A world Conference Committee chaired by one president, a concept foreign to the principles of the 1901 plan, was now proposed to manage “world-wide problems everywhere.”

Elder Daniels continued: “I believe that the Committee ought to be composed something like this: That the president of every Union Conference and the chairman of every Union mission field in the world ought to be a member of that committee. This will give us a larger and more representative committee, even, than we have today. We get the whole world directly represented on the General Conference Committee. Then add to that the heads, the leading men in special departments, such as education, publishing, and medical, and put on a few men of special experience, and special ability from their experience, and you have a thoroughly representative committee, representing all interests of this great work in all parts of our little world. And that will give us a truly representative and General Conference Committee, a World’s Conference Committee.

“Now, that, to my mind, brethren, is what should be the Mission Board of the Seventh-day Adventist denomination . . .Then the members of the committees can go to different parts of the field working harmoniously, every one, though separated, to carry out this policy. Now, there must be some executive body appointed to carry out the policy.” General Conference Bulletin, 1903, 100, 101.

 

Strong Objections From the Minority

 

The Mission Board, which was still an international organization, became the vehicle for the American General Conference at Battle Creek to grow into a super conference, a World General Conference.

Acceptance of Elder Daniels’ plan did not come easily. The strong objections of the minority report were supported by the plea of Percy T. Magan claiming the new plan swept away the reorganizational principles of the 1897 and 1901 Conferences and opened the way for the papal form of church government.

“But I want to say to you that any man who has ever read those histories, Neander’s History of the Christian Church, Mosheim’s or any other of the great church historian—any man who has ever read those histories can come to no other conclusion but that the principles which are to be brought in through this proposed constitution, . . . are the same principles, and introduced in precisely the same way, as they were hundreds of years ago when the Papacy was made . . .

“I do not deny for a moment but what improvements have been made in the distribution of administrative power. I am heartily in favor of all that has been done in regard to Union Conferences, but I say that, as far as the head of the thing is concerned, . . . the moment you vote it you vote yourselves right back where we were two years ago and before it.” Percy T. Magan, General Conference Bulletin, 1903, 150.

E.A. Sutherland stated that it was his impression that the General Conference was to be broken up into three parts: “I understood six years ago, when they elected their president of Europe, and also of Australia, and of this country, that those three men were supposed to be on the same plan . . . and that, when the General Conference should be called, it would be the calling of all of these men from these three parts, and that no one of these presidents would be supposed to occupy any greater position than either of the others . . . I know that it was talked at that time, that it should be so, and this country was divided up into Union Conferences, or we called them districts at that time; but the plan was the same as we are following at the present time.

“I believe, brethren, the thing to do is to go back where we were two years ago in the matter of reorganization, and take it up, and carry it out, and give it a fair trial, because those who have been in the responsible places have admitted that they did not carry out the letter of that,because they did not believe that it was possible. I believe that it is possible.” E. A. Sutherland, General Conference Bulletin, 1903, 168, 169.

 

Unbelief Gives Birth to 1903 Plan

 

The majority of the brethren simply “did not believe it was possible!” The same unbelief that prevented the Israelites from entering the promised land, permeated the General Conference and prevented the “Captain” of the heavenly hosts from leading His people into the heavenly Canaan. In spite of many hours and days of deliberations, the 1903 plan of centralization gathered support. Elder G. I. Butler exerted a strong influence for centralization.

“We are talking now on principles, brethren, and you will pardon one of the old hands, who has been in the work for so many years, and who has had the presidency of the General Conference for thirteen terms, for saying that he fails to see that anything of a kingly nature can be brought into it. I do not believe there can . . .

“The difficulty in all these things, I believe, is in regard to the principles being put in practice by the men that are placed in office . . . I cannot see a particle of danger in our old system of organization . . .

“If men will walk humbly before God, and remain willing to be instructed by the Testimonies of His Spirit, they will never find anything wrong in the old system of organization brought under the express influence of the Spirit of God . . .

“As one of the old hands, I see in this new constitution the same principles that we had in the beginning, that were endorsed by Sister White at the first. This is why I favor the new constitution.” G. I. Butler, General Conference Bulletin, 1903, 163.

 

James White’s Position on Organization

 

  1. I. Butler was a known advocate of “centralization.” He propounded his position to the General Conference in a paper on “Leadership” in 1873. (Review and Herald, November 18, 1873.) His position was endorsed by the delegates at that conference which stirred James White to write an editorial on the dangers of centralized leadership as best understood by the “prophetic eye of the Son of God” when he indicated “all ye are brethren.”

“And at no time during his public ministry does Christ intimate that anyone of his disciples should be designated as their leader . . .

“And there is no intimation that the apostles of Christ designated one of their number above another as their leader . . .”The apostle exalts Christ as the great head of the church, and the only one to whom she should look for leadership, in Hebrews 12:1, 2.

“Moses was simply a faithful servant in the Jewish house, while Christ is a son over his own house. Moses was not a lord in the Jewish house. He was servant, while Christ was lord . . .

“Christ, then, is the leader of His people in all the ages . . .

“But here we wish it distinctly understood that officers were not ordained in the Christian church, to order, or to command the church, and ‘to lord it over God’s heritage’ . . . Christ will lead His people, if they will be led.” James White, Review and Herald, December 1, 1874.

In 1875, G. I. Butler’s position on leadership was considered “incorrect” and was “rescinded” as recorded in the Conference Constitution (August 1875). Elder White later emphasized in an editorial in 1881 that no one “can properly represent Christ who surrenders his judgment to his fellowmen.”

“It was not the design of God that any system of organization should exist in the Christian Church that would take the leadership from Christ.

“The minister who throws himself on any Conference Committee for direction, takes himself out of the hands of Christ. And that committee that takes into its own hands the work of directing the ambassadors for Christ, takes a fearful responsibility. ‘One is your master [leader], even Christ, and all ye are brethren.’ Matthew 23:8. May God preserve to us our organization and form a church discipline in its original form.” Review and Herald, January 4, 1881.

Unfortunately, James White had been laid to rest years previously and he could offer no rebuttal to G. I. Butler’s position. The majority of the delegates were charmed into voting for a World General Conference on April 11, 1903 in the most controversial session in the history of the denomination. Eighty-five delegates gave an affirmative vote, twenty delegates were opposed, and three abstained. (General Conference Bulletin, 1903, 73.) A layer system of authority under man in 1903 replaced the 1901 plan of Jesus given through the Lord’s messenger and supported by the teachings of Jesus.

“Ye know that they which are accounted to rule over the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and their great ones exercise authority upon them. But it shall not be among you.” Mark 10:42.

 

The Europeans are Forced to Submit

 

After the 1901 plan was officially rejected at the 1903 Session, President L. R. Conradi went home as “First Vice-President . . . to labor in the European Union Conferences and Missions, as the Executive Committee (in Battle Creek) may advise, and to preside at the councils of the members of the Executive Committee, which may be held in Europe, in the absence of the president.” General Conference Bulletin, 1903, 145. The majority were determined to have a “one-man president” over the whole world. Although the Europeans objected, they were finally forced to their knees at Friedensau in 1907 to accept their position as a Union Conference. World control of the ministry, the Sabbath school, the publishing work, the educational, and medical work by the General Conference Committee headquarters in America was now undisputed.

The Stone which was to be the Head of the corner, was set at naught by the delegates of the 1903 session. Nevertheless, Ellen White supported Elder Daniels just as Samuel supported King Saul.

 

A Pretense of Building on the Right Foundation

 

Ellen White had absented herself from the discussion of the 1903 plan, but a few days after the 1903 session was adjourned, the Lord gave her a special message for the Church. Two years previously when planning for the reorganization in 1901, she had made it clear that the brethren were to go back to the “foundation” and “build on a different principle.” General Conference Bulletin, 1901, 25. The Lord revealed the truth about the 1903 plan on April 21, 1903.

“The heavenly Teacher inquired: ‘What stronger delusion can beguile the mind than the pretense that you are building on the right foundation and that God accepts your works, when in reality you are working out many things according to worldly policy and are sinning against Jehovah.” Testimonies, vol. 8, 245.

 

They Have Chosen Their Own Ways  I Will Choose Their Delusion

 

The delegates at the 1903 session got off the “foundation” when they failed to “look beneath the surface.”

“One who sees beneath the surface, who reads the hearts of all men, says of those who have had great light . . . ‘Yea, they have chosen their own ways, and their soul delighteth in their abominations. I also will choose their delusions…’ ‘God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie,’ ‘because they received not the love of the truth that they might be saved,’ ‘but had pleasure in unrighteousness.’ Isaiah 66: 3, 4; 2 Thessalonians 2:11, 10, 22.” Testimonies, vol. 8, 249.

 

Problems in Managing A Great Business

 

The difficulty in administrating a World General Conference is best illustrated by Elder Daniels himself who referred to this experience as being “pressed by seemingly endless problems . . . and succession of crises. Extensive travel . . .necessary that he might have first hand knowledge . . . crowded him for time. He failed to ‘tarry’ he said, until he was endued with ‘power from on high’. . . He had been much like the busy conductor of a transcontinental train, the captain of a great ship, or the manager of a great business concern. He called it the ‘peril of sheer activity of God’—the encroachment of the mechanical, and the submergence of the spiritual. That he said, was where he had erred.” Movement of Destiny, 25.

Saddled with the system that replaced the 1901 plan, A. G. Daniels misinterpreted its pitfalls as his own shortcomings. How many World General Conference Presidents with finite minds could share his frustrations in attempting to fulfill a position requiring the One with infinite capacity?

When the 1901 plan was rejected, Battle Creek could not be preserved. But the denominational pillars of faith had to be saved from pantheistic heresies described as “the alpha of deadly heresies.” Series B, No. 2, 50. The 1903 hierarchical plan became necessary. Although the 1903 plan could not bring men into one accord, the presence of Elder Daniels as “the right man in the right place” (Series B, no. 2, 41) preserved the denomination from falling to pantheistic theories that infiltrated our ranks through the influence of liberal Protestants visiting Battle Creek. A Seventh-Day Baptist educator may have been instrumental in undermining the faith of Kellogg and many others at Battle Creek. (See Movement of Destiny, 351, 352.)

An hierarchical form of church government was required by default. When the brethren failed to enter into an “upper room” experience, thy also failed to see “a particle of danger in the old system of organization” and the “new constitution.”

The 1903 plan that allowed a powerful personality like Daniels to meet the Alpha would permit the Omega to follow (Series B no. 2, 50); because, the 1903 plan based on human power allowed “self” to be exalted. Self-exaltation was the basis of the Alpha. (Ibid. 91.) It is certainly a problem in an hierarchical form of ecclesiastical rule. Placing the entire denominational leadership under an hierarchical plan would affect the attitude of every worker. Therefore the entire Church leadership would be threatened by the Omega.

Will a “one man president” of “a world General Conference” be preserved from the Omega (pantheistic theories) that are rampant among other denominations today?

Will a “one man president” meet the deadly heresies of the Omega “with full steam ahead”? Or, will he fail with it?

Will the delegates at G. C. ’85 consider the 1901 apostolic plan, a plan designed by Jesus prior to His ascension, and given again to His people at the 1901 session?

Will the Lord raise up delegates who will stand as Sutherland “and take it up, and carry it out, and give it a fair trial?”

Will the delegates present a resolution to reconsider the 1901 plan?

 

James White and Church Organization

It was the year of 1863. The United States of America was in the deadly embrace of a civil war. The eyes of the world were directed towards this nation. Could Protestantism and Republicanism stand? Even in 1863, this nation had already fallen far from what she once was. That very year the prophet wrote, “The people of this nation have forsaken and forgotten God. They have chosen other gods and followed their own corrupt ways until God has turned from them. The inhabitants of the earth have trampled upon the law of God and broken His everlasting covenant.” Testimonies, vol. 1, 355, 356. But while the nations of this earth looked on with disgust and indignation at the atrocities of the civil war, the most important battle of the day was little known.

This battle was being fought and won in humble homes and churches, in little known offices and most of all in the hearts of men. By the year 1863 many major victories had already been won in this battle of establishing a people in the third angel’s message. The Bible doctrines that were her foundation were in place. Each belief had been dug from the Scriptures. Each had the living testimony of the messenger of the Lord in its support. In various states, conferences were being formed to stabilize the work and guard against fanaticism. But in this year, there were new heights to be scaled and new victories to be won.

On June 6, 1863, the “health vision” was given. In and of itself the message of God on health reform marks 1863 as a never to be forgotten year. Health reform is the right arm of the message. “It is as closely connected with the third angel’s message as the hand is with the body.” Counsels on Diet and Foods, 69. For a people preparing for translation, the health reform was mandatory. “It is impossible for those who indulge in appetite to attain to Christian perfection.” Ibid., 22.

Yoked up with health reform was the vital matter of church organization which was finalized just two weeks before the vision on health. On May 20–23, 1863, the state conferences met and formed a general conference. John Byington served as chairman after the refusal of James of White. But that should deceive no one as to who was the driving force causing the formation of the General Conference. “Without James White’s dynamic leadership there would have been no organization of the Adventist Church in the 1860’s. For week after week, month by month, year after year, through the columns of the Review and Herald, he presented the importance of gospel order and led the members forward step by step toward his goal. A problem that he had to face was that he could see farther ahead than most of his brethren. And, of course, he was married to Ellen White, through whom God spoke directly to him on many occasions, counseling, encouraging, and stimulating his thinking.” James White, 164, by Virgil Robinson.

This man, James White, who brought about many victories for God’s cause: just what kind of a man was he? In our time we can only rely on pen pictures, as no one living was his personal acquaintance. This man, like Jesus’ disciples, had many natural abilities. However, as important as that is, we could never ascribe his success to that alone. Alexander the great, Napoleon and Nebuchadnazzer, all had many natural abilities, but James White’s abilities were surrendered to the use of God’s cause on earth. His wife, God’s prophet, “recognized the special talents God had given her husband. She wrote to him: ‘God has given you a good intellect—I might say a giant intellect . . . The cause of God cannot spare you without experiencing a great loss.’ ” Ibid. Later she wrote to her son, “Your father does the work of three men at all these meetings. I never saw a man work so energetically, so constantly as your father. God does give him more than mortal energy. If there is any place that is hard your father takes it.” Ibid.

In the 1990’s we are (or should be) well acquainted with the writings of Ellen White, the Lord’s special messenger. We know that those who read and study the testimonies from her pen become settled into the third angel’s message. But we are often unaware of the role James White played in the establishment of the remnant church. He ever had a great mission in mind, and was ever planning for its accomplishment. His mission was to cause the triumph of the third angel’s message over the powers of evil. His life was bound up in its welfare. When it prospered, he was comforted. But, when it languished, he sorrowed and went to work to heal it. He knew that for its final triumph, it must be a united body moving in perfect order against the powers of evil. For this cause, under God, he bent the powers of his “giant intellect.” Few men in God’s remnant church have ever had such a wonderful blend of executive ability combined with a profound theological knowledge of Biblical truth. But God saw that is what it would take to organize His church on earth.

With all that said, one would think those around him would see and appreciate his abilities. But history proves that this is seldom the case with anyone. We have only to remind ourselves of Paul, John the Baptist, Elijah, and Joseph to mention a few. The one, who with keen vision looks down the path and sees what course is needed, is usually derided by his contemporaries. It proved thus for James White. We should not be surprised, for our Lord and Master was scorned, and He was perfect. It was through His cruel humiliation that we were brought the blessing of salvation. And once again in the life experience of James White, we will see how the Lord turned scorn and derision into large blessings for his people.

This scorn and evil speaking played its role in bringing about the first General Conference meeting in May of 1863. When going through some bad experience we seldom grasp the full meaning of the promise, “For we can do nothing against the truth, but for the truth.” 2 Corinthians 13:8. But, the historian of later years can look back and be amazed at the reality of the promise. As we will see by the story below, this is what happened with the rumors started against James White.

In 1862 and 1863, the work in Wisconsin was suffering from fanaticism. One of the leaders who was caught up in it was a Mr. T.M. Steward and his wife. They were claiming that Mrs. Steward had received visions. Because of this many sincere believers threw out all visions—including Ellen White’s. Others, in leadership positions, wanted to deny fellowship to new converts to the three angels’ messages until they had a chance to evaluate the prophetic gift and who consequently would not instantly state their belief in Ellen White’s visions. The Lord sent counsel to His people about the course to follow in this situation in Testimonies, vol. 1, 326–340 and 382–384.

Mr. Steward also opposed and criticized the idea of the organization of the believers. As is often the case, instead of attacking the message which cut across his ideas, he attacked the messenger—James White. The story is recorded in Ellen White: The Progressive Years, by Arthur White. It will be quoted here at length.

One way the great adversary sought to cripple the work of James White was in the circulation of rumors and falsehoods regarding his business integrity and honesty. Such criticism centered in northern Wisconsin, influenced by T.M. Steward. (See Testimonies, vol. 1, 311–323.) But criticisms were being heard from other areas where organization had been resisted. In early 1863 the Battle Creek church took steps to halt the malicious criticism. They recognized that James White’s reputation was not only of great value to him but also to “those who may be connected with the cause.” At a business meeting convened on Sunday, March 29, actions were taken to clear his name:

Resolved: That we, the church of Seventh-day Adventists of Battle Creek, deem it our duty to take measures to ascertain the grounds of the charges, complaints, and murmurs that are in circulation, that they may be sustained, and action taken accordingly, or may be proved to be groundless, and the envenomed mouth of calumny and slander be effectually stopped.

Resolved: That we appoint Brethren U. Smith, G.W. Amadon, and E.S. Walker, a committee to take this matter in charge.— RH, March 31, 1863.

The breadth of the proposed investigation is seen in the next action taken by the church:

Resolved: That we hereby earnestly request all those far and near who think they have any grounds of complaint against Elder White, all who have handed to him means that he has not appropriated as directed, all who think that he has wronged the aged, the widow, and the fatherless, or that he has not in all his dealings in temporal matters manifested the strictest integrity, probity, and uprightness, to immediately report their grievances, and the grounds upon which they base them, to Uriah Smith, chairman of the above named committee, that they may be received previous to the middle of May next.—Ibid.

Testimonials were solicited from all who had had dealings with James White since the beginning of his public ministry. These were to be laid before the coming General Conference session, called for late May.

In a last-page note in the next issue of the Review, White called attention to the action of the Battle Creek church. He stated:

The church deemed it necessary, for the good of the cause that there should be an investigation of our business career connected with the cause, and a printed report made. If flying reports be true, we should be separated from the cause. If an open and critical investigation proves them false, a printed report in the hands of the friends of the cause with which we have been connected may, in some instances at least, paralyze the tongue of slander.—Ibid., April 7, 1863.

He urged a prompt response “for the sake of the cause.”

The Call For A General Conference

The same issue of the Review carried the call for a meeting of the General Conference, at which it was hoped that church organization could be rounded out by binding the State conferences together in a unified body of believers across the land. The delegates were called to meet on Wednesday, May 20. The notice stated:

The several conference committees in the different States are requested to send delegates, or letters at their discretion. The brethren in those localities where there is no State conference can also be represented in the conference by delegates or letters.—Ibid.

On Wednesday afternoon, May 20, twenty ministers and laymen assembled in Battle Creek were ready to present their credentials. The conference moved into its work, in organizing the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, as noted elsewhere. (See Ellen G. White: The Early Years, 479–481.) The conference elected John Byington as president; Uriah Smith , secretary; and E.S. Walker, treasurer. James White was first unanimously elected to the presidency, but he thought it best to let another carry that responsibility. Byington would be joined by J.N. Andrews and G.W. Amadon, making an executive committee of three. The main thrust of the conference related to organization in both the State conferences and the General Conference.

Further Business of The Conference

The wording was brief, but the results were far-reaching. Actions were taken relating to the publication of charts for use in public proclamation of the message: a new prophetic chart, and one on the Ten Commandments (RH, May 26, 1863).

The General Conference took action regarding the survey of James White’s business integrity:

As no one had reported any grievances pertaining to the subject in hand, according to the request in the Review, the committee could only report that fact to the conference, and place in its hands the more than threescore and ten fervent testimonials which have been received on the other side, with the recommendation that, as it seemed that no one dared appear, to sustain the aforesaid reports, some action be taken by this conference to show the falsity of these reports, and vindicate before the world the character and course of Brother White. . . .

Resolved, That the committee employed by the Battle Creek church be empowered to act further in this matter in behalf of this conference, and prepare for publication a record of the action of the Battle Creek church relative to the accusations against Brother James White, and the substance of the responses received.—Ibid.

It was thought well to hold open the time for reports on White for another two months. The report finally appeared in the form of a forty-page pamphlet, which was circulated under the title “Vindication of the Business Career of Elder James White.” The introduction to the pamphlet, signed by the committee of three, declared that “no one has reported himself aggrieved.” It added:

His enemies have thus betrayed their utter want of confidence in the work they have been doing. Their silence has sealed their ignominy. Hereafter, in view of this fact, none will be willing to place themselves in the contemptible position of circulating such reports, except those whose enmity and prejudice overcome their convictions of right and reason,—Vindication of the Business Career of Elder James White, 3, 4.

The “Vindication” pamphlet consists of the signed statements of some seventy individuals who were well acquainted with White; many of these had had business dealings with him.

The conference was the first official General Conference session. It marked the completion of the organizational structure among Seventh-day Adventists. Attendance was such that meetings were held in the tent on the green across the street from the Review office. Uriah Smith, in his editorial report, declared:

Taking general view of this meeting as a religious gathering we hardly know what feature of the joyful occasion to notice first. We can say to the readers of the Review, think of everything good that has been written of every previous meeting, and apply it to this. All this would be true, and more than this.

Perhaps no previous meeting that we have ever enjoyed was characterized by such unity of feeling and harmony of sentiment. In all the important steps taken at this conference, in the organization of a General Conference, and the further perfecting of State conferences, defining the authority of each, and the important duties belonging to their various officers, there was not a dissenting voice, and we may reasonably doubt if there was even a dissenting thought. Such union, on such points, affords the strongest grounds of hope for the immediate advancement of the cause, and its future glorious prosperity and triumph.—RH, May 26, 1863.

This step in organization brought the church into a unified denominational structure in time to meet the emergencies of the military draft, and prepared to make advance steps as the health message came, through vision, two weeks after the session.

Taken from Ellen White: The Progressive Years, 30–33.

God turned the charges against James White into a blessing. This very situation showed the need for just such a conference. It seems that whenever the cause of God is marked with the promise of progress, the enemy of truth is on the ground to contend every inch of advance. Thus it was in the days of Moses, Jesus, Paul and Martin Luther.

Today the Lord can turn the apparent troubles in God’s work into blessings if we stay humble and obedient. We must watch and pray and keep our garments unspotted from the prevailing iniquity around us. Our lips must be firmly sealed against idle words and evil speaking. Otherwise, we could innocently fall into Satan’s snares and unknowingly be carrying out his plans. Thus it was with the disciples of John the Baptist.

John the Baptist lived a very austere life. The Pharisees secretly hated him. They “had not accepted the mission of the Baptist. They had pointed in scorn to his abstemious life, his simple habits, his coarse garments, and had declared him a fanatic. Because he denounced their hypocrisy, they had resisted his words, and had tried to stir up the people against him. The Spirit of God moved upon the hearts of these scorners, convicting them of sin; but they had rejected the counsel of God, and had declared that John was possessed of a devil . . . Although they had opposed the mission of the Baptist, they were now ready to court the friendship of his disciples, hoping to secure their co-operation against Jesus . . . They contrasted the austere piety of the Baptist with the course of Jesus in feasting with publicans and sinners . . . The disciples of John had not a clear understanding of Christ’s work; they thought there might be some foundation for the charges of the Pharisees.” Desire of Ages, 275, 276.

These poor men, without knowing what they were doing played into the hands of the Pharisees, who were Christ’s bitterest enemies. And they came and questioned Jesus about why He and His disciples did not fast as often as they and the Pharisees did. You can read the whole story in Desire of Ages, 272–280.

This accusing spirit repeats itself over and over again in the work of God. James White contended with it all his life, not only from his enemies, but often from his “best” of friends. Rumors are still floating around today of what a hard man he was. One wonders how many of those are founded upon even a shred of truth! But we can be sure, whatever is said about him, that God accepted his labors. Ellen White was shown in vision that he will be saved. We know that God’s grace was sufficient for him and that his weakness was submitted to God’s strength. “For consider Him that endured such contradiction of sinners against Himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds.” Hebrews 12:3.

The End

by Gwen Reeves

New Testament Church Organization

He [Jesus] who was the foundation of the ritual and economy of Israel would be looked upon as its enemy and destroyer.” The Desire of Ages, 111. The reason for this was that those who were in charge of the system viewed themselves as being the church, and they realized that if Jesus were to be accepted, many of them would lose their positions.

Today, there is a similar problem in the professed church of God; there are some inspired counsels we are willing to deal with but others that we are not. If many of the counsels of Ellen White were really advocated, they would be considered to be dangerous to the church, possibly even capable of destroying it. I do not believe, however, we will ever receive God’s blessing until we feed upon every word.

Principles of church organization affect every aspect of the church, from the youngest member on up to the General Conference. In the Bible and the Spirit of Prophecy, there is a great deal of information dealing with church organization that is written not only to those in leadership positions but to laymen as well.

Throughout history, whenever doctrine becomes corrupted, organization also becomes corrupt. In fact, in Revelation God is as concerned about false organization as He is about false doctrine. In the writings of Ellen White there is a great deal written about doctrine, but I also find hundreds of pages written about church organization which we are afraid to touch because if we even read the quotation, we will be accused of criticism. It is time, however, that we have the courage of John the Baptist, and with the spirit of love, humbly look at the things God has given to us. We must pray that He will help us to implement these things so that He can pour out His Spirit and finish the work He is seeking to do.

First Corinthians 1:2 tells us how the New Testament church is organized. “To the church of God which is at Corinth, to those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints.” The church at Corinth, identified by Paul, is not addressed as the church which is registered. It could be registered, but that is not the point. Nothing is said regarding their organization or where they meet. They may meet in some building and they are organized, but that is not the point. The church in Corinth are those people who are sanctified and called to be the saints of God. Now the church was to be organized, but the organization was not the church. The people were the church. These people could work in harmony because this is possible when God is in your heart. So they would meet and work together, send out missionaries and take up offerings, and do all those things which are necessary for God’s work to progress. But the church itself was the people. This is what the church has always been.

The Books of Heaven

In a special sense, the church are those people who are registered in the books of heaven. “But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven” Hebrews 12:22, 23. The church, the true church of God, is composed of those people who are registered in the book of life in heaven.

Now this presents a very interesting situation. Who decides who is going to be a church member? Is it the pope who has the keys? If it is not the pope, is it the church board? Can they decide? What about the church body? Can we decide who is saved and who is not, whose name is written in heaven and whose is not?

Well, don’t we have anything to do? Oh, yes, we have something to do. We are called to recognize those whom God has registered in the books in heaven; and those whom He has registered there, we are to register here. He does not, however, follow our suit; we are to follow His, and there is a difference.

Let us suppose that God takes someone’s name off of the books in heaven and they are disfellowshipped. Are they still church members? No. But suppose their names remain in the books on earth. This is an interesting dilemma. The church is purified when the books on earth match the books in heaven. You see, God has given mankind no authority to decide who can be a member and who cannot be a member, but simply to recognize those whom He has accepted or rejected.

God has local congregations here on earth and we have organizations here to help organize the work, but the headquarters of your local church is in heaven, where only the sanctified are registered, not in some office in your state or some office in Maryland. Some people find this rather disconcerting, believing such a policy could lead to all kinds of trouble.

The Books on Earth

Just suppose that a coup took place in some local church or conference through politicking and some people, who were not inspired by the Lord, or filled with the Holy Spirit, took over through manipulation and because of their prejudices certain people were unjustly disfellowshipped. Would those who were disfellowshipped cease to be church members? Certainly not. Suppose, on the other hand, that people were allowed to come into the church who were never converted. Because their names were in the books on earth, would they, therefore, be church members? Not in any way, shape or form. God has never left His church to be manipulated and tampered with by the political whims of mankind. There is coming a time when He is going to turn and overturn the professed church that is called by His name. God’s true church remains the same as it has always—those people who are registered in the books of heaven.

“God has a church. It is not the great cathedral, neither is it the national establishment, neither is it the various denominations; it is the people who love God and keep His commandments. ‘Where two or three are gathered together in My name, there am I in the midst of them’ Matthew 18:20. Where Christ is, even among the humble few, this is Christ’s church.” Upward Look, 315.

When Paul was ordained, he was ordained to baptize and establish churches—the two together. According to inspiration, the same ordination that gives people the right to baptize gives them the right to establish churches. More and more, however, there are increasing restrictions controlling the starting of new churches.

I have been doing some studying on the history of Kansas. In 1903, Kansas had one hundred churches. The state has grown by almost a million people in the last fifty years, and during that period of time, we have gone from one hundred churches down to fifty-four.

Not only has God alone reserved the right to start and to recognize a church, but if you and I decide to go out and start a church apart from His will, no matter what conference committee may approve it, it will never be a church. “For the presence of the High and Holy One who inhabiteth eternity can alone constitute a church.” Ibid. [All emphasis supplied] If God’s presence is not the center of His church, it is not recognized by Him as His church whether or not it is recognized by a conference of the Seventh-day Adventist Church.

Called and Sanctified

In New Testament times, the church was those who were called and sanctified. Wherever Paul went and converted a few people, he organized them into a church, right then and there, without seeking any other permission. It was not up to the church in Jerusalem to give permission or to decide if they were a church, but to recognize the fact that they were. Now, of course, if a church apostatized or if a local member apostatized, it was also up to the church in Jerusalem to decide that, as these people are no longer keeping the commandments of God, they are no longer recognized by us as being one of God’s churches.

For us individually to receive the Holy Spirit, we must study the Bible, pray, overcome sin, and witness. For the church body to receive the Holy Spirit, they must, as a body, also have these four things present. Not only is it necessary for us as individuals to be winning others to Christ, but God’s design for His church is that every church should start new churches.

One of the things that must take place before God can pour out His blessing upon the church is not only a revival of primitive doctrine, but a revival of primitive organization. The New Testament churches had the freedom to go out and start new churches; but they were not just started and left to flounder by themselves, they were left with local organization. “And when they had preached the gospel to that city and made many disciples, they returned to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch, strengthening the souls of the disciples, exhorting them to continue in the faith, and saying, ‘We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God.’ So when they had appointed elders in every church, and prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord in whom they had believed.” Acts 14:21–23.

Authority in the early church was to be earned because of a godly life, a knowledge of the Scriptures and the ability, that God had given to the individual; but never was it to come just by virtue of office. Today our church is almost being destroyed in some parts of this world because some have assumed the office of minister and decided that, because they have that office, they are the king of the local church. God never intended that office to be that of a king, but one of service.

Wolves Among the Sheep

“From Miletus he sent to Ephesus and called for the elders of the church.” Acts 20:17. What elders were these that He called? These were the elders who had been appointed. Notice, it is elders plural, not the elder. “Therefore take heed to yourselves [this is the instruction he is giving to these elders] and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood. For I know this, that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. Also from among yourselves men will rise up, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after themselves. Therefore watch, and remember that for three years I did not cease to warn everyone night and day with tears.” Acts 20:28–31.

So he called the elders to guard the church from wolves. In a correlating passage to this in Testimonies, vol. 5, 77, Ellen White, writing of her own experience, says that she could scarcely keep from weeping when she saw the people who were taking charge of the church were people trained by Satan. Paul had the same concern, and the elders were called to protect the church from these wolves.

Now the questions is, suppose that a wolf came from Jerusalem. Were the elders to protect the church from that wolf? “Oh, no,” someone says, “not a local elder.” Turn with me to one of the most interesting passages in the New Testament in regard to this. “Now when Peter had come to Antioch, I withstood him to his face, because he was to be blamed; for before certain men came from James, he would eat with the Gentiles; but when they came, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing those who were of the circumcision. And the rest of the Jews also played the hypocrite with him, so that even Barnabas was carried away with their hypocrisy.” Galatians 2:11–13. Paul stood up and rebuked Peter, but Paul was not happy about this because he was not the one who should have had to do the rebuking.

God had established a local leadership to protect the church. “Not from Peter,” someone might say, “he was from Jerusalem. He was one of the pillars; he knew Jesus personally. No, not from Peter. They were only Gentiles who had been newly converted to the faith. You do not expect them, these Gentile Galatians who had just come into the Christian church a few years ago, to stand up and rebuke Peter, who was from the Jerusalem church, who had been a Jew all his life, one of the pillars in the church, a follower of Jesus—not Peter! I mean, Paul was an apostle. He could do that.” But Paul was most unhappy that he had to do that. “O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you as crucified?” Galatians 3:1

“Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage” Galatians 5:1. Someone might say, “That scripture is dealing with circumcision and all those things.” Circumcision was involved, and eating with Gentiles was involved, but that was not the issue! The issue in Galatians was that Peter had caused them to transgress and they were to stand in their freedom, even if it was Peter from Jerusalem who should come down and preach false theology.

Kingly Power

“But strange fire has been offered in the use of harsh words, in self-importance, in self-exaltation, in self-righteousness, in arbitrary authority, in domineering, in oppression, in restricting the liberty of God’s people, binding them about by your plans and rules, which God has not framed, neither have they come into His mind. All these things are strange fire, unacknowledged by God, and are a continual misrepresentation of His character.” Testimonies to Ministers, 357, 358.

The Lord established the church upon the Rock, Jesus Christ, and He is to be the head of the church. See Ephesians 1:22, 23. The issue in the days of Martin Luther was who was in charge of the church, the Lord or the pope. That was the issue in Wesley’s day and it was the issue in 1888. I have been amazed at how little Ellen White deals with doctrine in relationship to 1888. The problem with Jones and Waggoner was that they did not go through the “proper channels.” They were not approved by the “proper people.”

The following statements are from a letter that Ellen White wrote to Elder Butler. “God designs that men shall use their minds and consciences for themselves. He never designed that one man should become the shadow of another, and utter only another’s sentiments. But this error has been coming in among us, that a very few are to be mind, conscience, and judgment for all God’s workers. The foundation of Christianity is ‘Christ our Righteousness.’ ” 1888 Materials, 112. Do you want to know what Christ our Righteousness means? She tells us what it means. “Men are individually responsible to God and must act as God acts upon them, not as another human mind acts upon their mind.” Ibid. God is to decide what is right, not some human committee. God makes the rules, not some human rule book. The Bible is our creed. We always used to say: “We do not have a creed book; the Bible is our creed.”

“For if this method of indirect influence is kept up, souls can not be impressed and directed by the great I AM. They will, on the other hand, have their experience blended with another, and will be kept under a moral restraint, which allows no freedom of action or of choice . . . If we would be wise, and use diligently, prayerfully, and thankfully the means whereby light and blessings are to come to His people, then no voice nor power upon earth would have authority over us to say, ‘This shall not be.’ ” Ibid., 112, 113.

In the book Testimonies to Ministers, Ellen White wrote a great deal of material, to the leadership and ministry in general, after 1888. Much of this book is dealing with this very principle of church authority. Among other similar statements, she said, “The high-handed power that has been developed, as though position has made men god’s, makes me afraid, and ought to cause fear. It is a curse wherever and by whomever it is exercised.” Testimonies to Ministers, 361. “The spirit of domination is extending to the presidents of the conferences. If a man is sanguine of his own powers and seeks to exercise dominion over his brethren, feeling that he is invested with authority to make his will the ruling power, the best and only safe course is to remove him.” Ibid., 362. “Rule, rule has been their course of action. Satan has had an opportunity of representing himself.” Ibid., 363.

Our Source of Light

In the chapter “Under Which Banner?” she says, “Humanity is hailed as God.” Ibid., 365. She is talking to us dear friends. She says, “God will not vindicate any device whereby man shall in the slightest degree rule or oppress his fellowmen.” Ibid., 366. A curse is pronounced upon all who do this (Jeremiah 17:5).

“State conferences may depend upon the General Conference for light and knowledge and wisdom; but is it safe for them to do this? Battle Creek is not to be the center of God’s work. God alone can fill this place. When our people in the different places have their special convocations, teach them, for Christ’s sake and for their own soul’s sake, not to make flesh their arm. There is no power in men to read the hearts of their fellow men. The Lord is the only One upon whom we can with safety depend, and He is accessible in every place and to every church in the Union. Is the president of the General Conference to be the god of the people?” Ibid., 375. Following the counsel and teaching of these ideas does not make a person very popular, but we are told to do it.

Instead of teaching the truth God has commissioned to be taught, do you know what she says we have been taught? “For many years an education has been given to the people which places God second, and man first. The people have been taught that everything must be brought before the council of a few men in Battle Creek.” Testimonies to Ministers, 325. I want you to notice that this is a serious matter because it is breaking the first commandment. God says, “You shall have no other gods before Me.” Exodus 20:3. “Let me entreat our state conferences and our churches to cease putting their dependence upon men and making flesh their arm.” Ibid., 380. Today we have gone far beyond where they were in 1888.

“In reference to our conference, it is repeated o’er and o’er and o’er again, that it is the voice of God, and therefore everything must be referred to the Conference and have the conference voice in regard to permission or restriction or what shall be and what shall not be done in the various fields . . . We have heard enough, abundance, about that everything must go around in the regular way . . . He [God] wants every living soul that has a knowledge of the truth to come to their senses.” Spalding–Magan Collection, 163. “The Lord wants His Spirit to come in, He wants the Holy Ghost King.” Ibid., 166. Today we have come to the point, in many places, that if you even invite someone to come and speak in the pulpit, you have to get the permission of the local conference.

Fall Upon the Rock

God is looking for every one of us, from the General Conference president down, to be broken on the Rock. When Jesus is the King, unity, peace and love pervade. This does not do away with organization. It is the only thing that creates a workable organization. We still have offices, but when God’s plan is followed, no one is striving for office because everyone is striving to serve one another. See Matthew 20:25–28.

The message of Christ our Righteousness has to become practical. We need to exercise less and less control over one another and do more and more praying for one another. Let us not decide that God has given any one of us authority to tell everyone else how they are to serve God. God is calling for much more freedom in His church than we have been willing to allow. There is a place for order, a place for leadership, but dear friend, God is calling for us to be broken on the Rock, to be filled with the humility and the love of Jesus. Then we will find that once again the Holy Spirit will be King.

The End

by Marshall Grosboll

Editorial – Why is There Constant Trouble in the Churches?

One of the major reasons for it is the lack of a meek and quiet spirit amongst God’s professed people around the world. Unless this is acquired, that person will never be in the kingdom of heaven. (See Matthew 5:5.) Examine yourself to see whether you have a meek and quiet spirit.

“You have brought upon yourself many grievances that could have been avoided had you possessed a meek and quiet spirit. You provoke contention; for when your will is crossed, your spirit rises for conflict. Your disposition to rule is a constant source of trouble to yourself. Your nature has become jealous and distrustful. You are overbearing, and stir up strife by faultfinding and hasty condemnation. You have so long cultivated a spirit of retaliation that you continually need the grace of God to soften and subdue your nature. The dear Saviour has said: ‘Bless them that curse you,’ ‘and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you’ (Matthew 5:44).

“Dear sister, I was shown that you bring darkness into your own soul by dwelling upon the mistakes and imperfections of others. You will never have their sins to answer for, but you have a work to do for your own soul and for your own family that no other can do for you. You need to crucify self and to check the disposition to magnify your neighbors’ faults and to talk thoughtlessly. There are subjects upon which you may converse with the very best results. It is always safe to speak of Jesus, of the Christian’s hope, and of the beauties of our faith. Let your tongue be sanctified to God, that your speech may be ever seasoned with grace.” Testimonies, vol. 4, 134, 135.

It is appropriate to fast and pray for John 17 to be fulfilled among God’s professed people. When it is, we will have no more strife and contention among us. “Every branch draws its nourishment from the same source. When we are branches of the true Vine, there will be no quarreling among us, no strife for the supremacy, no disparaging of one another.” The General Conference Bulletin, April 25, 1901.

“Oh, if the church would arise, and put on her beautiful garments, the righteousness of Christ, what a change would be realized in her influence, and in her spiritual condition! The jealousies and fault-finding, the heart-burnings, the envy and dissensions, the strife for supremacy, would cease.” The Review and Herald, October 12, 1886. (See James 3:13–18.)

Bible Study Guides – Gospel Order

March 6, 2016 – March 12, 2016

Key Text

“Let all things be done decently and in order.” I Corinthians 14:40.

Study Help: Early Writings, 97–104.

Introduction

“There is order in heaven, and it is to be imitated by those upon earth who are heirs of salvation.” Testimonies, vol. 2, 697, 698.

1 THE PARAMOUNT WAYS OF GOD

  • What does God say about the difference between our ways and His ways? Isaiah 55:8, 9.
  • In all our plans to conduct the work of God, what should we take into serious consideration? Ephesians 6:6.

Note: “As a people we should study God’s plans for conducting His work. Wherever He has given directions in regard to any point, we should carefully consider how to regard His expressed will.” Testimonies to Ministers and Gospel Workers, 342.

  • Describe Paul’s attitude and that of the other apostles regarding gospel order. I Corinthians 4:1, 2.

Note: “Paul stood firm for the right. He realized that the church must never be brought under the control of human power. The traditions and maxims of men must not take the place of revealed truth. …

“While looking to God for direct guidance, he was ever ready to recognize the authority vested in the body of believers united in church fellowship. He felt the need of counsel, and when matters of importance arose, he was glad to lay these before the church and to unite with his brethren in seeking God for wisdom to make right decisions.” The Acts of the Apostles, 199, 200.

2 ORGANIZATION IN OLD TESTAMENT TIMES

  • What counsel did Jethro give to his son-in-law, Moses, and why? Exodus 18:14–22.

Note: “God is a God of order. Everything connected with heaven is in perfect order; subjection and thorough discipline mark the movements of the angelic host. Success can only attend order and harmonious action. God requires order and system in His work now no less than in the days of Israel. All who are working for Him are to labor intelligently, not in a careless, haphazard manner. He would have his work done with faith and exactness, that He may place the seal of His approval upon it.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 376.

  • Specify the four main qualities to be sought in the men chosen to carry responsibilities in the camp of Israel. Exodus 18:21.

Note: “[Exodus 18:19–23 quoted.]

“This counsel is for us. …

“In His instruction to Moses the Lord very plainly set forth the character of those who were to fill important positions as counselors. They are to be ‘able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness’ (Exodus 18:21, first part). The Lord’s counsel has been strangely neglected.” Testimonies to Ministers and Gospel Workers, 341.

  • Why was Balaam constrained to pronounce blessings upon Israel, while his mind was filled with curses? Numbers 23:8, 9. On what basis would Israel be blessed? Deuteronomy 4:1, 6–9.

Note: “As Balaam looked upon the encampment of Israel he beheld with astonishment the evidence of their prosperity. They had been represented to him as a rude, disorganized multitude, infesting the country in roving bands that were a pest and terror to the surrounding nations; but their appearance was the reverse of all this. He saw the vast extent and perfect arrangement of their camp, everything bearing the marks of thorough discipline and order. He was shown the favor with which God regarded Israel, and their distinctive character as His chosen people. They were not to stand upon a level with other nations, but to be exalted above them all.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 447.

3 ORGANIZATION IN THE NEW TESTAMENT CHURCH

  • For what purpose does God give gifts and grace to every one of His servants? Ephesians 4:7, 8, 11, 12.

Note: “In our several callings there is to be a mutual dependence on one another for assistance.” Testimonies to Ministers and Gospel Workers, 491.

  • In order for the Lord’s work to succeed in our midst, what must characterize our spirit? I Corinthians 12:21, 25; Ephesians 4:16. To what error should they close the door?

Note: “Let us each wait on the Lord, and He will teach us how to labor. He will reveal to us the work that we are best adapted to perform. This will not lead men to start out in an independent spirit, to promulgate new theories. In this time when Satan is seeking to make void the law of God through the exaltation of false science, we need to guard most carefully against everything that would tend to lessen our faith and scatter our forces. As laborers together with God, we should be in harmony with the truth and with our brethren. There should be counsel and cooperation.” Testimonies to Ministers and Gospel Workers, 490.

“The spirit of pulling away from our fellow laborers, the spirit of disorganization, is in the very air we breathe. By some, all efforts to establish order are regarded as dangerous—as a restriction of personal liberty, and hence to be feared as popery.” Ibid., 488.

  • How should the followers of Christ respect one another? I Peter 5:5, 6.

Note: “Among God’s people are some who have had long experience in His work, men who have not departed from the faith. Notwithstanding the great trials through which they have passed, they have remained faithful. These men should be regarded as tried and chosen counselors. They should be respected, and their judgment should be honored by those who are younger or who have had less experience, even though these younger men may be in official positions.” Testimonies to Ministers and Gospel Workers, 497.

4 UNSELFISH SERVANTS

  • What standard are we to adopt in ordaining church officers? Titus 1:5–9.

Note: “Solemn are the responsibilities resting upon those who are called to act as leaders in the church of God on earth.” The Acts of the Apostles, 92.

“In the work of setting things in order in all the churches, and ordaining suitable men to act as officers, the apostles held to the high standards of leadership outlined in the Old Testament Scriptures.” Ibid., 95.

“The church should feel their responsibility and should look carefully and attentively at the lives, qualifications, and general course of those who profess to be teachers. If unmistakable evidence is not given that God has called them, and that the ‘woe’ is upon them if they heed not this call, it is the duty of the church to act and let it be known that these persons are not acknowledged as teachers by the church.” Early Writings, 100.

“Those who profess to be the ministers of Jesus should be men of experience and deep piety, and then at all times and in all places they can shed a holy influence.” Ibid., 103.

“Suffering, want, despondency, misery, unbelief, the ministers of God will meet every day. Their work is not a work of self-pleasing. Many, many souls are unsaved. Fasten yourselves by faith to the Lord, and tell sinners that the Saviour is calling for them.” The Review and Herald, July 26, 1898.

  • What did the apostle Peter say to the elders of the church regarding their responsibilities as undershepherds of Christ’s flock? I Peter 5:1–5.

Note: “Those who occupy the position of undershepherds are to exercise a watchful diligence over the Lord’s flock. This is not to be a dictatorial vigilance, but one that tends to encourage and strengthen and uplift. Ministry means more than sermonizing; it means earnest, personal labor.” The Acts of the Apostles, 526.

“In connection with his instruction to those in positions of trust in the church, the apostle outlined some general principles that were to be followed by all who were associated in church fellowship. The younger members of the flock were urged to follow the example of their elders in the practice of Christlike humility.” Ibid., 527, 528.

5 SELF-SENT MESSENGERS

  • What work is God doing in behalf of His children in these last days? What stratagem is Satan using to hinder the Lord’s work? Romans 16:17, 18; Acts 20:27–30.

Note: “Now in these last days, while God is bringing His children into the unity of the faith, there is more real need of order than ever before; for, as God unites His children, Satan and his evil angels are very busy to prevent this unity and to destroy it. Therefore men are hurried into the field who lack wisdom and judgment, perhaps not ruling well their own house, and not having order or government over the few that God has given them charge of at home; yet they feel capable of having charge of the flock.” …

“Men whose lives are not holy and who are unqualified to teach the present truth enter the field without being acknowledged by the church or the brethren generally, and confusion and disunion are the result.” Early Writings, 97.

  • Which is easier—to go into places that have been spoiled by self-sent messengers or to enter new fields?

Note: “It is much more wearing to the spirits of God’s messengers to go into places where those have been who have exerted [a] wrong influence than to enter new fields.” Early Writings, 99.

PERSONAL REVIEW QUESTIONS

1 What qualities should be evident in those who are selected for God’s work?

2 Why does God give gifts and grace to every one of His servants?

3 What attitude must we all manifest towards one another to ensure the success of the Lord’s work in our midst?

4 What standard did the apostles adopt in ordaining officers for the church?

5 What is the warning of Paul in Acts 20:27–30?

Copyright © 2014 Reformation Herald Publishing Association, 5240 Hollins Road, Roanoke, Virginia. Reprinted by permission.