church

Lessons on Reformation, part 4

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Let us now see what was the state of the Church previous to the Reformation.

“The nations of Christendom no longer looked to a holy and living God for the free gift of eternal life. To obtain it, they were obliged to have a recourse to all the means that a superstitious, fearful, and alarmed imagination could devise. Heaven was filled with saints and mediators, whose duty it was to solicit this mercy. Earth was filled with pious works, sacrifices, observances, and ceremonies, by which it was to be obtained. Here is a picture of the religion of this period transmitted to us by one who was long a monk, and afterwards a fellow-labourer of Luther’s—by Myconius:

” ‘The sufferings and merits of Christ were looked upon as an idle tale, or as the fictions of Homer. There was no thought of the faith by which we become partakers of the Saviour’s righteousness and of the heritage of eternal life. Christ was looked upon as a severe judge, prepared to condemn all who should not have recourse to the intercession of the saints, or to the papal indulgences. Other intercessors appeared in His place: —first the Virgin Mary, like the Diana of paganism, and then the saints, whose numbers were continually augmented by the popes.’ ” History of the Reformation, 17, by J.H. Merle D’Aubigne.

“The two centuries intervening between 1294 and 1517, between the accession of Boniface VIII and the nailing of Luther’s Ninety-five Theses against the church door in Wittenberg, mark the gradual transition from the Middle Ages to modern times, from the universal acceptance of the papal theocracy in Western Europe to the assertion of national independence, from the supreme authority of the priesthood to the intellectual and spiritual freedom of the individual. Old things are passing away; signs of a new order increase. Institutions are seen to be breaking up. The scholastic systems of theology lose their compulsive hold on men’s minds, and even become the subject of ridicule. The abuses of the earlier Middle Ages call forth voices demanding reform on the basis of the Scriptures and the common well being of mankind. The inherent vital energies in the Church seek expression in new forms of piety and charitable deed.” History of the Christian Church, vol. VI, 1, by David Schaff.

As the world was prepared for the coming of Jesus as a babe in Bethlehem, so it was being conditioned for the coming of the Reformation in the sixteenth century. When Christ was born, the means of travel had been improved; one language was universal, the people were discontented with their religious experience and desired something better.

Similar things were beginning to take place in the thirteenth century. “The Renaissance, or revival of classical culture, unshackled the minds of men. The classical works of antiquity were once more, after the churchly disparagement of a thousand years, held forth to admiration. The confines of geography were extended by the discoveries of the continent in the West.

“To this generation, which looks back over the last four centuries, the discovery of America and the pathways to the Indies was one of the remarkable events in history, a surprise and a prophecy. In 1453, Constantinople easily passed into the hands of the Turk, and the Christian Empire of the East fell apart. In the far West the beginnings of a new empire were made, just as the Middle Ages were drawing to a close.” Ibid., 3.

By the time the Renaissance was in full bloom, the Roman Church had been in virtual control of the world for over eight hundred years. God was still in control and trying to prepare a people that would be perfect representatives of His character. The printing press was invented, making it possible to scatter the Scriptures around the world on a much larger scale. Men and women were slowly being unshackled from the bondage to the Roman Catholic heel.

 

The Reformation Begins

 

In the fourteenth century, John Wycliffe arose to become the “Morning Star of the Reformation,” because of his translation of the Scriptures into the English language. This was the greatest impetus to the freedom of man up to that time. It paved the way for the Reformation to come, nearly two hundred years later, in the person of Martin Luther and other reformers to follow.

The Reformation brought freedom not only in the religious realm but also in the secular. Withholding the Scriptures from the populace meant that there was no advance in any other area of society, particularly in education. The Papacy knew that if they kept people illiterate they would be much easier to control. Individuality was suppressed and the church then in power demanded adherence by all.

We have seen in the twentieth century the effects that attempts at control of the masses by such ideologies as Communism, Fascism and Nazism have had upon the world. Absolute control leads eventually to corruption on the part of leadership and dictatorial control of all those under their jurisdiction. It was under this type of circumstances that the Reformation began in the thirteenth century with John Wycliffe. The papal power was in almost total control of the world at that time and demanded absolute obedience to her demands.

It was not until Wycliffe and Luther translated the Bible into their respective languages that the people could see a way to obtain their freedom from the papal tyranny. “Except among the Waldenses, the Word of God had for ages been locked up in languages known only to the learned; but the time had come for the Scriptures to be translated and given to the people of different lands in their native tongue. The world had passed its midnight. The hours of darkness were wearing away, and in many lands appeared tokens of the coming dawn. In the fourteenth century arose in England the ‘Morning star of the Reformation.’ John Wycliffe was the herald of reform, not for England alone, but for all Christendom. The great protest against Rome which it was permitted him to utter was never to be silenced. That protest opened the struggle which was to result in the emancipation of individuals, of churches, and of nations.” The Great Controversy, 79, 80.

“The Reformation did not and does not consist in exposure and denunciation of the iniquities of the Roman Church.

“That is included in The Reformation, as an incident; because it is of the essence of Christianity to hate iniquity, as it is to love righteousness. “It was the iniquities, enormities, and desolations wrought by the Roman Church, that caused the universal desire and the pressing demand that there should be a reformation. Yet the Reformation was not wrought by magnifying or dwelling upon those things.

“The Reformation springs from another principle, lives in another atmosphere, and works in another field, than that.

“If exposure and denunciation of the iniquities of that church could have wrought reformation, then The Reformation would have been in the world more than five hundred years before it was.

“All men saw the iniquities practiced. They actually felt them on every side. Nobles, kings, emperors, priests, bishops, cardinals, and councils, called for reformation. Even Popes confessed the sore need of it.” Lessons from the Reformation, 102, 103, by A. T. Jones.

 

What is the Church?

 

All the reformers, in the beginning, did not plan to leave the church or think of establishing another one. Their desires were to reform the errors and evil practices within the church and bring it into line with Scripture. But even this was not a sufficient explanation for the Reformation that was to follow. There was more to it than that.

The Roman Catholic Church said that it had absolute authority over the individual both physically and spiritually. It further stated that it was only through the church, “the ark of God,” the “ship of salvation” that anyone could obtain salvation. The captain and the crew as well as the pilot could all be pirates yet the “grand old ship” was all right and would come safely to the heavenly port. The church leadership also said that it was the church, and the church only that could rightly interpret the Scriptures. The people were admonished to “stand by the old ship” and “cling to the ark” in order to land safely on the heavenly shore. Once the Bible was made available to all, it was seen that what the church had been claiming was not true at all, but that each person could, through the direction of the Holy Spirit, determine what the truth is.

The extent to which the church leaders would go in their ridiculous logic, the following quote will illustrate. This statement was made by the Pope’s legate at the General Council of Basle, in 1432. “In the time of Noah’s flood, as many as were without the ark perished.” If one is not a member in good standing he will be lost.

The study of the Bible led the reformers to the conclusion that the church was not correct in their claims but that all persons were free and only answerable to God for their faith. This brought about a disagreement between the reformers and the Roman church on the definition of the Church. According to Scripture it is the people that make up a church and not an organization or its leadership. Man’s salvation is based upon his connection with Christ and not upon what some Pope (President) decides.

“But as soon as there arose men with the courage of conviction and the confidence of truth, and spoke out plainly and flatly that the Roman system is not the Church at all in any feature or in any sense, then the Reformation had begun. “That is how The Reformation came. And without that The Reformation never could have come.” Ibid., 106.

The Roman Catholic Church could not claim Scripture for their authority; all they had was tradition that, they claimed, superceded the Bible. Unable to convince the reformers with words, their only recourse was to use the power of the state to force men to obey the their demands. The basic premise of the Roman Catholic Church was that it was supreme on the earth. It is defined to be: “The society of the validly baptized, united together in one body by the profession of the same faith, by the participation of the same sacraments, and by obedience to the same authority, Christ, its invisible head in heaven, and the Roman Pontiff, the successor of St. Peter, Christ’s visible representative and vicegerent upon earth.” Christian Apologetics, Section 300.

From this foundation, that church ruled over the earth supreme for nearly a thousand years. When the reformers began to read the Bible they saw a different picture of what constituted the Church. “Wycliffe said that the ‘Holy Church is the congregation of just men for whom Christ shed His blood . . . All who shall be saved in the bliss of heaven are members of Holy Church, and no more.’

“Matthias of Janow said: ‘All Christians who possess the Spirit of Jesus the Crucified, and who are impelled by the same Spirit, and who alone have not departed from their God, are the one Church of Christ: His beautiful bride, His body.’ “Huss said: ‘The true Church lies in nothing else than the totality of the elect.’ “Luther said: ‘We are the Church. There is no other Church than the assembly of those who have the Word of God and are purified by it.’” Lessons from the Reformation, 126, 127.

“And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the Church, which is His body, the fullness of Him that filleth all in all.” Ephesians 1:22, 23. The Church is not confined to an organization or system. It is a body of believers, whether there are two, three or a million gathered together with God in the midst.

The lesson that all the reformers learned was that every man is to be free to worship God according to his conscience and to interpret Scripture under the direction of the Holy Spirit, and not according to what a group of men decides is truth. The Reformation proclaimed Religious Liberty, not only liberty from interference from the state but also from the Church. The reformers understood the admonition of Jesus that “all ye are brethren.” Matthew 23:8.

It is sad to say that the attitude among many Adventists today is that we all must do as the leadership says, go where they say to go and preach only what they say is permissible to preach. If an individual chooses to follow the dictates of his conscience and follow the Lord’s leading, that is contrary to what the system says, he is put “out of the synagogue.”

 

A Great Awakening

 

The Reformation lay dormant for almost two hundred years before a new awakening began. Men in different parts of the world began to study the prophecies and saw that the coming of Christ was near. They began to preach their discoveries. It was in this environment that the Lord raised up a movement, in the middle of the nineteenth century, to bring about a revival of the Reformation.

At first, it seemed that this Second Advent movement would bring about a revival of the Reformation. Following the disappointment a great opposition developed against the great awakening, and most of those who had embraced the message turned away from it. There were a few who maintained their faith, and, as time passed, the Seventh-day Adventist movement grew and flourished even though there were those that exercised kingly power at times. The Church was organized and continued to develop until the problem of the 1888 General Conference, when many of the leaders rejected the message of Righteousness by Faith.

In 1901 it seemed that the organization was to be changed to what God desired it to be. However it did not go as far as the Lord desired it to. Then in 1903 all that had been accomplished in 1901 was demolished, and a papal system of organization was put in place. We are cursed with that system today. Kingly power continues to be manifested by some leaders. The freedom of the individual is slowly eroding away as more and more power is being put into the hands of fewer and fewer men. We see the virtual loss of our health institutions one by one as they ally themselves with outside institutions. The educational system is a far cry from what the Lord had His people set up in the beginning. Our schools have patterned themselves after those of the world and our young people are preparing for a lifelong career in the business world rather than a place in the Lord’s work.

Will we continue to muddle around in the wilderness for many more years and admit by our attitudes and lifestyles that we expect to be here for the rest of our lives? Or will we get serious about what the Lord wants us to do? God is waiting for a people to perfectly reflect His character so that He can use them for His purposes.

The Reformation is to be revived and if we want to be a part of that reform movement we will have to reverse our field and come into line with the Lord’s plan. God will have a people to carry the Three Angels’ Messages to the world as a final warning. Will you and I have a part in that work? If so, our priorities will have to change, and we must pattern ourselves after Christ and perfectly reflect His character. Only when our characters match that of Jesus Christ will we be safe to save and safe to be filled by the Holy Spirit.

Our God is a patient and longsuffering God but there will come a time when that patience will run out. “The Lord said, My spirit shall not always strive with man.” Genesis 6:3. It is up to each individual to make a decision as to what their fate will be. As Joshua said: “And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” Joshua 24:15.

 

1901 Rejected, part 2

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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?

 

No Time to Celebrate, part 1

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In the 1888 General Conference in Minneapolis, Minnesota, a tremendous controversy arose. Speaking about what took place there, Ellen White said: “In Minneapolis God gave precious gems of truth to His people in new settings. This light from heaven by some was rejected with all the stubbornness the Jews manifested in rejecting Christ, and there was much talk about standing by the old landmarks.” Counsels to Writers and Editors, 30. Do you know what a landmark is? If you live out in the country, you probably have stakes marking the corners of your property that show where your property ends and someone else’s begins. That is a landmark in the earthly sense. During these meetings there was a great deal of controversy over landmarks—the spiritual landmarks or the pillars of our faith. Sister White said, “But there was evidence they knew not what the old landmarks were. There was evidence and there was reasoning from the Word that commended itself to the conscience; but the minds of men were fixed, sealed against the entrance of light, because they had decided it was a dangerous error removing the ‘old landmarks,’ when it was not moving a peg of the old landmarks, but they had perverted ideas of what constituted the old landmarks.” Ibid. She was talking here about the Editor of the Review and Herald, the President of the General Conference and some others. What are the landmarks that should not be removed? Mrs. White made this clear in the same message: “The passing of the time in 1844 was a period of great events, opening to our astonished eyes the cleansing of the sanctuary transpiring in heaven, and having a decided relation to God’s people upon earth, [also] the first and second angels’ messages and the third (angels messages), unfurling the banner on which was inscribed ‘The commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.’ One of the landmarks under this message was the temple of God, seen by His truth-loving people in heaven, and the ark containing the law of God. The light of the Sabbath of the fourth commandment flashed its strong rays in the pathway of the transgressors of God’s law. The nonimmortality of the wicked is an old landmark.” Ibid.

Continuing to talk about the situation in 1888 she said, “Now at the present time God designs a new and fresh impetus shall be given to His work. Satan sees this, and he is determined it shall be hindered. He knows that if he can deceive the people who claim to believe present truth, [and make them believe that] the work the Lord designs to do for His people is the removing of the old landmarks, something which they should, with most determined zeal, resist, then he exults over the deception he has led them to believe . . . That which is food to the churches is regarded as dangerous, and should not be given them. And this slight difference of ideas is allowed to unsettle the faith, to cause apostasy, to break up unity, to sew discord, all because they do not know what they are striving about themselves.” Ibid., 31.

 

The Three Angels ’ Messages

 

The landmarks that were mentioned are: the truth about the sanctuary and its cleansing, the Sabbath of the Ten Commandments (See Revelation 11:19), the Three Angels’ Messages (See Revelation 14:6–12), and the nonimmortality of the soul. The Three Angels’ Messages then, are one of the “old landmarks” and thus need to be clearly understood by God’s people.

The First Angel’s Message is an announcement that the hour of God’s judgment, is come. (See Revelation 14:6, 7.) The devil does not like that. He is trying to persuade people that they do not need to worry about the judgement, so that they will be lost. But the Bible says that it is here, and cannot be avoided, so we need to be prepared.

The Second Angel’s Message, in verse eight, announces that Babylon has fallen. Babylon here is described both as a city and as a woman. A woman, in Bible prophecy, represents a church. (See Jeremiah 6; 2 Corinthians 11; Song of Solomon 6; Ezekiel 23.)

The Third Angel’s Message in verses 9–12 is the focal point of the entire last half of the book of Revelation. It warns against worshipping the beast (who is clearly identified and described in Revelation 13:1–10) and receiving his mark. It further describes the people who receive this message and act on it. They are described as the people of God who keep the commandments and have the faith of Jesus.

In this article I would like to study four central features of the Three Angels’ Messages:

  1. The Three Angels’ Messages are a special message to the people who live at the end of the world.

Revelation 19 contains one of the most dramatic descriptions of the Second Coming of Christ found in the Bible. He is described as riding on a white horse and wearing a robe dipped in blood.His name is called The Word of God, and the armies in heaven follow Him. (See Revelation 19:11–14.) As the leader of this great army, He comes to confront the united force that is arrayed against Him, as described in Revelation 19:19–21: “And I saw the beast, the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against Him who sat on the horse and against His army. Then the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who worked signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who received the mark of the beast and those who worship his image. These two were cast alive into the lake of fire burning with brimstone. And the rest were killed with the sword which proceeded from the mouth of Him who sat on the horse. And all the birds were filled with their flesh.” This is the war of Armageddon.

The Three Angels’ Messages are especially for the last generation that lives on the earth. If you accept the three angels’ messages and become part of God’s people who keep the commandments, you will obtain eternal life. But if you reject the Third Angel’s Message and receive the mark of the beast or worship the image of the beast, you will lose eternal life. “And the rest were killed with the sword which proceeded from the mouth of Him who sat on the horse. And all the birds were filled with their flesh.” Revelation 19:21.

All of the wicked will drink of the wine of the wrath of God. What is the wine of the wrath of God? Revelation 15:1 says, “Then I saw another sign in heaven great and marvelous, seven angels having the seven last plagues for in them the wrath of God is complete.” If you receive the mark of the beast, you will receive the seven last plagues. You will be part of the group that decides to fight the Lord when He comes in the clouds of heaven, and you will be destroyed.

 

Power to Overcome

 

  1. If you receive the Three Angels’ Messages and accept them, you will, through the power of the Holy Spirit, keep the commandments of God. That is the dividing line, in the last generation, between those who are saved and those who are lost. People say, “Oh, but Pastor John, I can’t keep the law.” Jesus said, “Without Me you can do nothing.” John 15:5. And Paul added, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Philippians 4:13.

One of the main reasons for the gift of the Holy Spirit is to give you power so that you can keep all of God’s law. If you ask, you will receive the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit will give you the power to keep God’s law. (See Luke 11:13.)

This is one of the most exciting things in the world to see happen. I have seen miracles take place in the lives of prisoner’s who were slaves to the vilest sins. Their thoughts, words and actions were all changed and their lives came into harmony with God’s law. What excuse do we have for not overcoming? If God can transform the lives of the men and women I have seen, he can change you! The Bible says that in the day of final judgment the people who are lost will be speechless because they will not have any excuse, the evidence will be overwhelming that they could have been saved.

  1. Prophecy makes it very clear that almost all of the world will reject the Three Angels’ Messages. I am told very frequently, “But Pastor John, I’m the only one in my family who believes this message. Everyone else thinks I am crazy.” If this is the way you feel, do not be discouraged; just remember that God’s people have always been a small minority. In the last days, only a small group will accept God’s way, the majority will reject the final warning and be lost.

Look at what Satan will do to ensnare them: “And he deceives those who dwell on the earth by those signs which he was granted to do in the sight of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast who was wounded by the sword and lived . . . He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads.” Revelation 13:14, 16. This work of deception is very successful. Notice what it will be like when Jesus comes back: “Then I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the birds that fly in the midst of heaven, ‘Come and gather together for the supper of the great God, that you may eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and of those who sit on them, and the flesh of all people, free and slave, both small and great.” Revelation 19:17.

Almost the entire world will reject the Three Angels’ Messages, and in the process of rejecting it they will seal their doom. That is why all through the New Testament it is predicted that when Jesus comes back again, the whole world will mourn. Why are they going to mourn? Because they have received the mark of the beast, worshipped his image and they are not ready to meet the Lord. While the saints are rejoicing (See 2 Thessalonians 1), most of the world will be weeping and wailing at their great loss.

 

A Great Deception

 

  1. They will reject the Three Angels’ Messages because of the great deceptions that the evil spirits bring on the world. What are these great deceptions? The Bible predicts that one of them will be a great development of spiritualism within Christianity. This spiritualism, disguised with the garb of Christianity, will be accepted by many people who will not even recognize what it really is. This prophecy is being fulfilled right now in Christian churches everywhere. Does this surprise you? It has been clearly predicted in the Bible: “For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into apostles of Christ. And no wonder! for Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works.” 2 Corinthians 11:13–15.

Can you tell the difference between a preacher of righteousness and a preacher of unrighteousness? If you cannot tell the difference, you are going to be deceived. Think it through. A preacher of righteousness will never come to you if you are living in fornication, adultery, abusing your body or breaking God’s law in any way and tell you to rejoice and be happy and praise the Lord because you will be saved! A preacher of righteousness will never do that! Any preacher that tries to make you happy and joyful while you are living in sin is a preacher of the devil and leading you straight to hell. Do not misunderstand me. God created human beings for happiness and He wants you to be joyful, but here is the catch. The Bible says that it is impossible to have true happiness if you are breaking God’s law. And the devil has been trying to disprove that for thousands of years, but it is still true.

People are in all kinds of sin and so they are depressed. When they go to church they need to find out how their sins and guilt can be taken away so they can receive power from the Holy Spirit to live a new life. But when they come to church, instead of hearing how to overcome, the preacher tells them to be joyful, sing, clap, wave and be happy. They get the drums and the music going and everyone gets an emotional “high,” but they are still in sin! And if you are in sin, you are on the way to eternal destruction. People are getting a “high” when they go to church, but no one has told them about confessing, repenting and forsaking their sins. They just say, “You are forgiven.” The devil is anesthetizing people today so that they are walking down the path that leads to destruction. They are clapping, dancing and singing their way to destruction.

 

Lying Wonders

 

Why do people reject the Three Angels’ Messages? Because of the deceptions of the spirits. I have just pointed out one of the big deceptions, but there are others. One of them is found in Revelation 16:13, 14: “And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs coming out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. For they are spirits of demons performing signs, which go out to the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.”

The majority of the people in the world in the last days will be deceived because they believe what they see. The devil will perform many undeniable miracles and they will be swept off their feet.

I believe in miracles, but Jesus never ever asked anyone to believe that He was the Messiah because He worked miracles. In Matthew 4:3 we read how the devil tempted Jesus and asked Him to work a miracle to prove that He was the Messiah. This was a terrible temptation because Jesus could have done it. He could have spoken and instantly every stone in sight would have turned into a loaf of bread, but He would not do it. There is a moral principle involved here. Your faith is never to be based on miracle working. Jesus would not appease the devil by working a miracle. “But he answered and said, It is written, man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.” Matthew 4:4.

Jesus could have avoided being crucified by working a miracle. “Now when Herod saw Jesus, he was exceedingly glad; for he had desired for a long time to see Him, because he heard many things about Him, and he hoped to see some miracle done by Him. Then he questioned Him with many words, but He answered him nothing.” Luke 23:8, 9. Jesus would not work a miracle even to avoid going to the cross.

In John 4 the story is recorded of a man who came to Jesus because his son was at the point of death. He appealed to Jesus to heal his son, but in his mind he said, “If Jesus heals my son, then I will know that He is the Messiah.” Jesus said to him, “Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will by no means believe.” John 4:48. Instead of instantly healing his son, Jesus rebuked him because he was looking for miracles as a basis for his faith.

If your faith is based on miracles or what you can see, you will be deceived. You have to test every miracle that you see by the Bible. Remember what Jesus said, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.”

There will be a small group of people who decide to live by every word in the Bible and they will live in harmony with God’s law. They are called the saints. The word “saint” comes from a Greek word that means a holy person. Paul said that God’s “law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good.” Romans 7:12. A holy person is one whose life is in harmony with God’s law. An unholy person is one that breaks God’s law. “Here are the patience of the saints. Here are they that keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.” Revelation 14:12.

If you decide that you will live by every word that proceeds out of God’s mouth, you will not depend upon what you can see or hear. You will depend on what is written in God’s Book. If you do this, God promises that no plague will come nigh your dwelling. (Psalms 91:10.) God is looking for loyal people and numbers do not matter to Him. It is quality that counts with the Lord. If you want to be one of those people described in Revelation 14:12, you can be. All you need to do is make the right decision. Jesus says, “If you confess Me before men, I will confess you before My Father in heaven.”

There are many voices for you to listen to if you want to, but choose to listen to the still small voice that says, “This is the way, walk in it.” Walk in the way of God’s commandments. Walk in the way of His Word. Do not worry about what all your friends, associates, relatives or other people are doing. Choose today to walk in the way of God’s commandments.

 

Lessons on Reformation, part 3

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The promise made to Abraham concerning a son was fulfilled in the birth of Isaac and it was through his descendants that the Savior was to come. We pick up the narrative of God’s continuing attempts at reformation in His followers. Isaac has grown into manhood and married Rebecca who gave him two sons, Esau and Jacob. It was God’s plan that the firstborn receive the birthright, but Esau was too self-centered to submit himself to such a restriction on his activities. Coming home one day, tired and hungry, he sold his birthright to Jacob for a “mess of pottage.” “‘Thus Esau despised his birthright.’ In disposing of it he felt a sense of relief. Now his way was unobstructed; and he could do as he liked.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 179. Jacob, later named Israel, at the insistence of his mother, practiced deception on his father to gain that birthright for himself.

As the result of this deviousness, Jacob paid a heavy price. Laban, his father-in-law, deceived him with regard to Leah and Rachel, and changed his wages many times during the years he spent working for him. In addition, he never saw his mother again, and his sons lied to him about their treatment of Joseph. But God did not reject Jacob and blessed him throughout his life. He lived long enough to see Joseph and his sons and be reunited with them in Egypt where Joseph was the governor.

After Joseph’s death, “there arose up a new king over Egypt, which knew not Joseph.” As this king viewed his kingdom, he saw that the Israelites were growing in number. He feared they would become strong, join the enemies of Egypt in a war and leave the country, depriving the Egyptians of their workforce.

At first the king tried to keep the Israelites from increasing in number by issuing a decree that all male babies were to be destroyed at birth. This cruel law failed and Israel continued to increase. He also made them work under severe conditions. The hard work only made the Israelites grow stronger and continue to increase.

 

Moses, a Reformer

 

It was under these circumstances that Moses now appeared upon the scene. Having grown up in the house of Pharaoh, he was to be the next ruler of Egypt. The time had come for Israel to be delivered from bondage, and Moses decided that since he was chosen by the Lord to deliver his people, he would proceed to do it. When he saw an Egyptian attacking an Israelite, he put into motion the only method he knew to carry out that deliverance. He killed the Egyptian. This was not God’s plan for the deliverance of His people, and Moses had to flee to Midian. There he spent the next forty years herding sheep and learning the lessons of humility and patience.

“Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.” 1 Corinthians 10:11. These are lessons that we are to learn; lessons of truthfulness and openness, of maintaining a humble spirit and exercising patience at all times under all circumstances. With that kind of spirit the Lord can use us to bring the message of salvation to a lost world.

Moses came back to Egypt ready to lead his people out to the Promised Land. Now God could use him to bring reformation to His people. Moses did not know it, but there was a long, arduous and frustrating journey ahead of him. There would be many occasions where his patience would be severely tried. When asked to go before Pharaoh and demand that he let Israel go into the wilderness to offer sacrifices to the Lord, he hesitated, giving the excuse that he had a speech impediment. The Lord was patient with Moses and consented to have Aaron,his brother, speak for him to the Egyptian ruler.

It was at Sinai that the attempt at the reformation of Israel was begun in earnest. The Ten Commandments were given to Moses on the mount to help the children of Israel understand God’s character as well as His requirements for their salvation and work. The people promised to obey every word spoken by God. However, they failed to realize their own shortcomings and inability to do as they had promised. They were tested many times before arriving at the borders of the Promised Land. Most of the time they failed those tests, but the Lord continued to work with His people in spite of these failures. He wanted them to evangelize the world in order to save lost humanity.

At Kadesh-barnea Israel refused to go into Canaan. Because of unbelief and insubordination they spent the next forty years wandering in the wilderness until all those who had been twenty or older at the Exodus from Egypt had passed off the scene of action. “It was not the will of God that the coming of Christ should be thus delayed. God did not design that His people, Israel, should wander forty years in the wilderness. He promised to lead them directly to the land of Canaan, and establish them there a holy, healthy, happy people. But those to whom it was first preached, went not in ‘because of unbelief.’ Their hearts were filled with murmuring, rebellion, and hatred, and He could not fulfill His covenant with them . . . We may have to remain here in this world because of insubordination many more years, as did the children of Israel; but for Christ’s sake, His people should not add sin to sin by charging God with the consequence of their own wrong course of action.” Evangelism, 696.

In the history of the Advent Movement there have been several occasions when we have come to a Kadesh-barnea experience and have refused to go into the Promised Land. The most notable of these events occurred in 1888 at the refusal by many at that conference to accept the messages of righteousness by faith. We turned into the wilderness and have been there ever since.

“How sad, how deeply regrettable, it is that this message of righteousness in Christ should, at the time of its coming, have met with opposition on the part of earnest, well-meaning men in the cause of God. The message has never been received, nor proclaimed, nor given free course as it should have been in order to convey to the church the measureless blessings that were wrapped up within it. The seriousness of exerting such an influence is indicated through the reproofs that were given.” Christ Our Righteousness, 47. By A. G. Daniels, 1941.

At the close of the forty years of wandering in the wilderness, Israel once again came to the borders of Canaan. The devil was working furiously to frustrate God’s plans for Israel. He was successful once more and seduced the Israelites into idolatry and infidelity. Through the efforts of some that stood for principle, this problem was solved and Israel finally entered the Promised Land.

“God had placed His people in Canaan as a mighty breastwork to stay the tide of moral evil, that it might not flood the world. If faithful to Him, God intended that Israel should go on conquering and to conquer. He would give into their hands nations greater and more powerful than the Canaanites. The promise was: ‘If ye shall diligently keep all these commandments which I command you, . . . then will the Lord drive out all these nations from before you, and ye shall possess greater nations and mightier than yourselves.’ Deuteronomy 11:22–25.

“But regardless of their high destiny, they chose the course of ease and self-indulgence; they let slip their opportunities for completing the conquest of the land; and for many generations they were afflicted by the remnant of these idolatrous peoples, that were, as the prophet had foretold, as ‘pricks’ in their eyes, and as ‘thorns’ in their sides. Numbers 33:55.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 544.

 

Israel Desires a King

 

“Behold, thou art old, and thy sons walk not in thy ways: now make us a king to judge us like all the nations.” 1 Samuel 8:5. Israel desired to be like the heathen nations around them. This was one of the consequences of not driving out the inhabitants of Canaan when Israel first entered that land. Up to this point God had been their king, but they were not satisfied with that arrangement. They wanted a king to rule over them the way the other nations were ruled. The Lord sent a warning to them regarding the consequences of having an earthly king, but they refused to listen and demanded a king. The Lord granted their wishes and Israel was led down the path into idolatry.’

The principle of becoming changed into that which we behold is one of the reasons we have been counseled to get out of the cities into a country setting. Our children would be contaminated with the lifestyle of the inhabitants of the cities and as a result would be lost. And we as adults are not immune to the influences of city life. The devil uses such settings to cause us to become so engrossed in our daily living that we lose sight of our purpose for being, that is giving the Three Angels’ Messages to the world.’

It seems that we, as modern Israel, have come to the same place as they. We desire to be like the churches around us. Two Union Conferences and one mission have joined the Council of Churches as guest members in their respective areas. That requires payment of dues. The two Unions are the North and South German Unions and the Mission is Vanuatu. Seventh-Day Adventists in the Solomon Islands have also joined as guest members. Both the German and South Pacific Councils are arms of the World Council of Churches. Will we ever learn the lessons that Old Testament history attempts to teach us? We are to be a separate and peculiar people, peculiar in that we have a unique message for fallen man.

God says, “Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? And what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? Or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? For ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, and will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.” 2 Corinthians 6:14–18.

 

Results of Kingly Power

 

Because of this demand for an earthly king, the ten tribes were led deeper and deeper into idolatry and eventually were scattered over the earth and lost to history. Judah fared better but they too were finally taken captive to Babylon for seventy years. After returning to Jerusalem, rebuilding the city and temple, they failed to continue their reformation and were almost lost sight of, for the next four hundred years, until the time Jesus was born.

When Christ arrived as a babe in Bethlehem, the Jews were looking for a messiah but not as the one portrayed by the prophets. They were expecting a great general to free them from the Roman yoke and establish Jerusalem as the leading city of the world. Because Jesus did not fulfill their desires, He seemed to them to be a usurper of the throne of David. So they decided to eliminate Him. He interfered with their plans. His gospel included humility, which hurt their pride. Caiaphas said, “Nor consider that it is expedient for us, that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation perish not.” John 11:50.

The Messiah had come to bring salvation and greatness to the children of Israel and they crucified Him. Yet the Spirit of God continued to plead with them until the stoning of Stephen. Then the Lord accepted Israel’s rejection of Him, and He rejected them as a people and turned to the Gentiles. Will we as a people suffer the same experience as they did and be rejected also? God is waiting for a people that will finish the Reformation that was begun in the fourteenth century with Wycliffe. He will use people; will it be you and me? If not, then who will it be?

The disciples and apostles did their best to fulfill the Great Commission of Matthew 28:18–20and they were able to reach the whole world. (See Romans 10:18.) But there came a falling away even before Paul died. He said: “the mystery of iniquity doth already work.” 2 Thessalonians 2:7.

The work Jesus had begun while he was upon the earth reached a plateau of development at the death of John and then began a steady slide down into a paganistic religion.

This descent into a false religion continued until the evils of paganism once more entered the church, leading to the establishment of the Papacy by the year 538 A.D. For the next one thousand years, that papal power ruled the consciences of men all over the world. However, there were, in various parts of the earth, groups of people that remained untainted by the false doctrines of the Papacy. These faithful souls stood steadfast and loyal to God’s Ten Commandments, including the fourth commandment.

Throughout the period known as the Dark Ages, when the Papacy was in control of most of the world, there were those who refused to be obedient to the papal demands. In many areas of the world there were people that not only obeyed the Commandments of God but also propagated the Gospel message any way they could. Because of extreme persecution by the papal power, the spread of the Gospel was limited as long as Roman Catholicism was in control. But the time was approaching when this control was to be broken. There were signs of disintegration of Papal supremacy, visible at different times and various places in the earth, revealing that God was moving upon the hearts of people. When the break came, it was like a thunderbolt to the Papacy and was to shake the Triple Crown upon the heads of the popes at Rome.

In our next article we will pick up this story of the broken shackles, and follow its movement in the world and in the hearts of men.

 

The Enemy in Our Midst

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We are at war. Just before us is the final phase of this war of all wars. The remnant church is being invaded by a terrible power. “And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.” Revelation 12:17. Since we are the only church on earth that keeps the Ten Commandments and has the Spirit of Prophecy, this warning is for you and me. It is a wake-up call and is described like this: “The present activity of Satan in working upon hearts, and upon churches and nations, should startle every student of prophecy.” Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, 537. “Ours is not a conflict with mere flesh and blood, but with despotisms, the empires, the forces that control and govern this dark world with the spiritual hosts of evil arrayed against us in heavenly warfare.” Ephesians 6:12. Weymouth’s Translation.

Surely, this should awaken us out of our sleep. We are being confronted with wicked spirits, unseen but real, ruthless and deadly. In order to stand successfully against such powers, we must know and trust our heavenly resources beyond any doubt. But we must also know about the enemy, his purposes, his methods, his plans and especially the agencies he uses to attack us. We should never underestimate any of his satanic plans.

First, we should be aware that our day is like the days when Christ was on earth. He was continually in combat with the evil one, both within and outside the church. Daily, Christ was surrounded by spies watching His every move to find something that He said or did that might be used to destroy Him.

Some years ago, as a representative of the General Conference, I visited one of our churches behind the iron curtain to encourage our youth to share their faith. One Sabbath during the preliminaries of the church service, the elder pointed out three different spies whom he recognized in the audience. He told me that they would go immediately to the government headquarters and report every word that I spoke. Then the elder went over a list of things that I must not mention, including our church youth organization or anything that might be misconstrued, such as the second coming of Christ (which would end the reign of the present political powers). He handed me a list of eighteen subjects that I should not mention unless I wanted to be deported out of the country before the next sunrise. That was one of the most difficult sermons I ever presented. Today, I am again aware of a similar situation. I know that every audiotape and book that I prepare is finding its way to the conference headquarters. But what is more alarming, they are being gathered by the agencies of Catholicism to use against me. How do I know this to be a fact?

During my days of active evangelism, I well remember a certain evening when I spoke on the subject of the Beast of Revelation 13 to a packed hall in a mid-west town. At the conclusion, I was shaking hands with the people as they left and I noticed one lady lingering so that she might be the last in line. When she finally stepped up, she said she had been sent to talk to me by the Knights of Columbus. I shall never forget her words. “Are you not afraid to speak as you do? I have been sent here to warn you that we are keeping a file of every sermon you preach and all the printed material you have ever written. Think it over.” With that she turned and walked away.

 

Satan in Our Homes

 

Generally speaking, we expect to find Satan in such places as the night clubs, the gambling hells (as Ellen White called them), the brothels and the dope joints. But now Satan has found his way into our homes, our Adventist homes, and into our everyday activities! Satan” is intruding his presence in every department of the household, in every street of our cities, in churches, in the national councils, in the courts of justice, perplexing, deceiving, seducing, everywhere ruining the souls and bodies of men, women and children, breaking up families, sowing hatred, emulation, strife, sedition, murder.” The Great Controversy, 508.

What a list! This is happening today. “Satan is intruding his presence in every department of the household.” I believe no true Sabbath-keeper will enter a theater. Yet, the majority of Adventists allow Satan to enter their homes by way of the television. “Among the most dangerous resorts for pleasure is the theater. Instead of being a school of morality and virtue, as it is often claimed, it is the very hotbed of immorality. Vicious habits and sinful propensities are strengthened and confirmed by these entertainments. Low songs, lewd gestures, expressions, and attitudes, deprave the imagination and debase the morals. Every youth who habitually attends such exhibitions will be corrupted in principle. There is no influence in our land more powerful to to poison the imagination, to destroy religious impressions, to blunt the relish for the tranquil pleasures and sober realities of life than theatrical amusements. The love for these scenes increases with every indulgence, as the desire for intoxicating drink strengthens with its use. The only safe course is to shun the theater, the circus, and every other questionable place of amusement.” Testimonies for the Church, vol. 4, 652, 653. (See also the E.G. White Index under the topic “Theater.”)

Here is why millions within the Adventist Church seem to have no desire to leave this world of sin for a better heavenly land. This is the real reason why so many youth are leaving our church today. They have been educated in the Television Theater since they were in diapers. Many of our churches bring the evils of the theater into the church by drama and so-called Christian rock music—which accelerates the youth down the path to hell.

I am not a fanatic. I have a television in my home. But I can say before my God, I never look at movies or anything theatrical. I watch news broadcasts and occasionally some wonderful nature programs. I hope that you, too, are able to control your TV. If you can’t, get rid of it as soon as possible! Do not trust your children or teenagers to make right decisions regarding the television. The temptations are far too great.

Satan is introducing his presence in the streets of our cities. The streets of our metropolitan cities are controlled by thousands of gangs who engage in open warfare over territories to control drug sales. There are one hundred thousand gang members in Los Angeles and in New York City. Hundreds of innocent civilians, including children, have been murdered in their drive-by shootings.

Satan is introducing his presence in the church. “Satan and his angels are in the assemblies where the gospel is preached. While angels of heaven endeavor to impress hearts with the word of God, the enemy is on the alert to make the word of no effect.” Christ’s Object Lessons, 44. When the pastor stresses an important truth that could change your life and help you prepare for the kingdom, the devil tries to distract your mind, or suddenly you become sleepy and doze off, or a baby cries and this confuses your thinking ability.

We are at war. Satan our enemy is trying his best to distract us from God’s saving truth. I had a personal experience with devils when I was in evangelism. Each night two spiritualistic mediums would come early. As I was preparing the hall for the meeting, straightening the chairs and doing the details, they followed me and told me the stories, the names of individuals I was going to mention, the texts and all about the subject matter that I had planned to preach that night.

How did they know? I had told no one, not even my wife. “As he (Satan) sees the messenger of God searching the Scriptures, he takes note of the subject to be presented to the people. Then he employs all his cunning and shrewdness so to control circumstances that the message may not reach those whom he is deceiving on that very point.” The Great Controversy, 518.

I am writing this to arouse you so that you will flee to God for help. “There is nothing that the great deceiver fears so much as that we shall become acquainted with his devices.” The Great Controversy, 516. This is why I must warn you of what is to come and even now is appearing.

No longer can we believe every word printed on our presses. Not too long ago I sat in my pastor’s study with my six church elders. The Conference President had come to persuade me to preach differently because he did not like what I was telling the people. He stated clearly that he could find nothing wrong with my theology, but he felt that I was divisive because I was warning the flock about things that were taking place. I replied, “Tell me why the Pacific Press prints The Desire of Ages one day and the next day they will print a book that is contrary to what Ellen White wrote?” It is interesting to note that the President had brought with him the former president of the North Pacific Union Conference to put pressure on me. To this day I admire him for his honesty. He said, “Brother Nelson, I can answer that question. I am well acquainted with the policy of the Pacific Press, for I was the Chairman of the Board for many years. The Pacific Press used to print nothing contrary to our beliefs, but the present policy is to give complete freedom to write without censor.”

I will never forget those words: “to give complete freedom to write without censor.” He plainly admitted that there are new books coming off their presses that contain theology absolutely contrary to our belief. Inspiration has warned us, “The principles of truth that God in His wisdom has given to the remnant church would be discarded. Our religion would be changed. The fundamental principles that have sustained the work for the last fifty years would be accounted as error. A new organization would be established. Books of a new order would be written. A system of intellectual philosophy would be introduced. The founders of this system would go into the cities and do a wonderful work. The Sabbath of course, would be lightly regarded as also the God who created it. Nothing would be allowed to stand in the way of the new movement. The leaders would teach that virtue is better than vice, but God being removed, they would place their dependence on human power, which, without God, is worthless. Their foundation would be built on the sand, and storm and tempest would sweep away the structure.” Selected Messages, vol. 1, 204.

As a result of these policies of “non-censorship,” we hear sermons by leaders in the church denying the Sanctuary in heaven with a Holy and Most Holy Place, claiming all we need to be saved is to believe. They say, “Christ obeyed for us on the cross and all have been saved by the cross. So, relax, sit back and enjoy your church religion for we are all saved by faith alone.” These words from God’s Book are ringing in my ears: “faith without works is dead.” You know as well that a dead faith can save no one, so let us beware. Every kind of doctrine is blowing today. Satan’s purpose is the same as it was in Jesus’ day. Satan was determined to crush the life of God’s dear Son. He has not changed. His aim today is to crush the followers of Christ.

God admonishes us, “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.” 1 Peter 5:8. And again, “Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.” Ephesians 6:11. Oh, how we need the help of heavenly angels every day as we meet the commander of thousands of evil angels.

If we only realized what is coming, our family worship would take on a far different meaning. “Satan has control of all whom God does not especially guard.” The Great Controversy, 589. “Evil angels are upon our track every moment.” Testimonies for the Church, vol. 1, 302.

I live in Oregon in a small country community of about three thousand people. Recently there were six burglaries within a couple of miles of where I live. A prowler, who was going up the stairs of someone’s home, just two blocks away, was shot to death. I was checking the locks of my home and these words came to my mind, “We carefully secure the houses with bolts and locks to protect our property and our lives from evil men; but we seldom think of the evil angels who are constantly seeking access to us, and against whose attacks we have, in our own strength no method of defense. If permitted, they can distract our minds, disorder and torment our bodies, destroy our possessions and our lives.” The Great Controversy, 517.

This is what evil angels do. As a spiritual watchman on the wall of Zion, I urge you to know what the devil is doing. “Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices” 2 Corinthians 2:11—or are we? “The followers of Christ know little of the plots which Satan and his hosts are forming against them.” The Great Controversy, 528.

“His rage increases; we do not realize his power.” Testimonies for the Church, vol. 1, 302. And again, “While men are ignorant of his devices, this vigilant foe is upon their track every moment.” The Great Controversy, 508.

 

He is Working Through Calamities

 

“Even now he is at work. In accidents and calamities by sea and by land, in great conflagrations, in fierce tornadoes and terrific hailstorms, in tempests, floods, cyclones, tidal waves, and earthquakes, in every place and in a thousand forms, Satan is exercising his power.” The Great Controversy, 589.

In The Youth’s Instructor, April 18, 1967, a survey was made regarding floods, hailstorms and hurricanes over a period of twenty-six years. The damage resulting from each disaster was astounding. Tornadoes, from 1916 to 1964 doubled yearly. Earthquakes increased in destructive power some seven hundred percent.

During the years since the time of that survey the number of natural disasters has continued to skyrocket. We have seen the greatest hurricane ever to hit America. It hit Florida and caused thirty billion dollars worth of destruction. We have also had the greatest floods in the history of America, and Los Angeles and San Francisco had catastrophic earthquakes.

Satan’s power to destroy is constantly increasing. “Apparently these calamities are capricious outbreaks of disorganized, unregulated forces of nature, wholly beyond the control of man; but in them all, God’s purpose may be read. They are among the agencies by which He seeks to arouse men and women to a sense of their danger.” Prophets and Kings, 277.

The most tragic news is that the worst is yet to come. We have not seen anything yet. “I have been shown that Satan has not been stupid and careless these many years, since his fall, but has been learning. He has grown more artful. His plans are laid deeper, and are covered with a religious garment to hide their deformity. The power of Satan now to tempt and to deceive is ten-fold greater than it was in the days of the apostles. His power has increased and it will increase.” Spiritual Gifts, vol. 2, 277.

Satan’s power to deceive has increased ten-fold since the days of the apostles? That is a thousand percent! In order to withstand successfully the devil and his angels, we should be spending a thousand times more time in prayer and study than the disciples did.

In reality, we are only now in what we might call the Cold War. Soon will come the all-out last offensive by the devil in a time of trouble. “The agencies of evil are combining their forces and consolidating. They are strengthening for the last great crisis. Great changes are soon to take place in our world, and the final movements will be rapid ones.” Testimonies for the Church, vol. 9, 11.

“Satan is standing ready, burning with zeal to inspire the whole confederacy of satanic agencies, that he may cause them to unify with evil men and bring upon the believers of truth speedy and severe suffering.” Testimonies for the Church, vol. 9, 241, 242. The servant of God, our own prophet, Ellen White, told us over one hundred years ago what world leaders are now telling us—that everything in this world is soon to change?

I believe the serpent is coiling for the final strike against the followers of the Lamb. Now is the time to prepare our hearts by heeding the counsel of God. “Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; and your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: praying always.” Ephesians 6:13–18.

“If God has ever spoken by me, the time will come when we shall be brought before councils, and every position of truth which we hold will be severely criticized.” The Review and Herald, December 11, 1888. Over and over, again and again, she stresses the terrible ordeal just before us. “In the last great conflict of the controversy with Satan those who are loyal to God will see every earthly support cut off. Because they refuse to break His law in obedience to earthly powers, they will be forbidden to buy or sell. It will finally be decreed that they should be put to death.” The Desire of Ages, 121. How thankful we are to our God that He has revealed fully, in the Book of Revelation and the inspired writings of Ellen White, all that is needed to know.

“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” Psalm 46:1. Not all the power of evil can conquer the soul that trusts in the sufficient grace of Jesus. Stronger is He than a strong man armed. “Greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world.” 1 John 4:4.

“Not one cloud has fallen upon the church that God is not prepared for; not one opposing force has risen to counterwork the work of God but He has foreseen. All has taken place as he predicted through His prophets. He has not left His church in darkness, forsaken, but has traced in prophetic declarations what would occur, and through His providence, acting in its appointed place in the world’s history, He has brought about that which His Holy Spirit inspired the prophets to foretell. All His purposes will be fulfilled and established. His law is linked with His throne, and satanic agencies combined with human agencies cannot destroy it. Truth is inspired and guarded by God; it will live, and will to be overshadowed. The gospel of Christ is the law exemplified in character. The deceptions practiced against it, every device for vindicating falsehood, every error forged by satanic agencies, will eventually be eternally broken, and the triumph of truth will be like the appearing of the sun at noonday. The Sun of Righteousness will shine forth with healing in His wings, and the whole earth shall be filled with His glory.” Selected Messages, vol. 2, 108.

 

Lessons on Reformation, part 2

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” After the flood the people once more increased on the earth, and wickedness also increased. Idolatry became well-nigh universal, and the Lord finally left the hardened transgressors to follow their evil ways, while He chose Abraham, of the line of Shem, and made him the keeper of the law for future generations.” Manuscript 65, 1906.

Following the flood men decided, against the express wishes of God, to build a city and a tower in order to make a name for themselves. “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” Jeremiah 17:9. While the tower was in the process of being built, the Lord came down, destroyed it and confused their language. The effect was to scatter them over the face of the earth. Having done this He left them to their own designs.

After the flood, God had told Noah, “Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth.” Genesis 9:1. The sons of men decided that their plan was better than God’s plan and so they congregated and refused to scatter over the earth. Have we not as professed followers of the Lord fallen into the same trap that Satan laid for the men of Babel, that is, acting as though our plans are better than God’s plans? God’s instruction is, “Be ye not unequally yoked with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? And what communion hath light with darkness? 2 Corinthians 6:14.

We cannot follow our own wishes in the building and operation of institutions. One of our large university churches is expending three million, nine hundred thousand dollars to expand its facilities. The Lord has warned us over and over not to congregate: “No one is to make an urgent appeal for means with which to erect large and expensive buildings for sanitariums, colleges [college churches], or publishing houses, so absorbing means that the work in other places is crippled. Let our brethren be careful lest by drawing largely from our people for the erection of large buildings in one place, they rob other parts of the Lord’s vineyard. Unduly to invest means and exalt this work in one part of the field when there is city work to be done in many places, is not the right thing. It is selfishness and covetousness. The Lord especially condemns such a manifestation, for by it His sacred work is misrepresented before the world. He would have His work controlled and guided by equity, justice, and judgment. He does not call for the erection of immense institutions. One corner of the vineyard is not the whole world. In many places throughout the world memorials for God are to be established to represent His truth.” Manuscript Releases, vol. 13, 406, 407.

Some may argue that we need to meet the needs of the students who attend the university. If this requires such a large outlay of funds then the whole institution is too large. The goal of most students is to obtain the best education, in order to make the most money possible, in the shortest time. Our educational institutions were intended to train young people for service to mankind, not service of self.

“It is a mistake for our people to crowd together in large numbers. It is not in harmony with God’s plans. It is His will that the knowledge which we receive of the truth should be communicated to others; that the light which shines upon us should be reflected upon the pathway of those walking in darkness, so that we may lead others to the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world. But where a large number are congregated together in one church, this work in a large measure is neglected, and the light of truth is often only reflected back and forth upon the church-members; the world is left in darkness, the alarm is not sounded, the warning message from Heaven is not given.” Advent Review and Sabbath Herald, July 9, 1895.

There is another problem area that needs to be addressed ,and that is the infatuation with church growth. An SDA church we attended in the state of Washington had a Pentecostal church next door. Both churches started with 300 members. Our pastor remarked to the congregation one Sabbath that the church next door now had a membership of fifteen hundred, while we had only five hundred members. He suggested that we talk to them and find out how they were able to maintain such a large membership.

More recently, in September 1997, a seminar was held at Andrews University on church growth.

The instructor was Dr. Robert Logan, vice-president of New Church Development of Church Resource Ministries, headquartered in Anaheim, California.

We have definite instruction from the Lord about utilizing the methods of the world in our work. “The divine commission needs no reform. Christ’s way of presenting the truth cannot be improved upon. The worker who tries to bring in methods that will attract the worldly minded, supposing that this will remove the objections that they feel to taking up the cross, lessens his influence. Preserve the simplicity of godliness.” Evangelism, 525.

 

We Have Sinned

 

Israel went into captivity time and time again because of disobedience to the commands of God. From the time they asked for a king to rule over them so that they could be like the other nations around them, they were determined to have their own way. We have been admonished that we are following the same path trod by ancient Israel. Should we not, pray like Daniel did, when Israel was in captivity in Babylon?

“And I set my face unto the Lord God, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes: And I prayed unto the Lord my God, and made my confession, and said, O Lord, the great and dreadful God, keeping the covenant and mercy to them that love Him, and to them that keep His commandments; We have sinned, and have committed iniquity, and have done wickedly, and have rebelled, even by departing from Thy precepts and from Thy judgments: Neither have we hearkened unto Thy servants the prophets, which spake in Thy name to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to all the people of the land . . . Neither have we obeyed the voice of the Lord our God, to walk in His laws, which He set before us by His servants the prophets. Yea, all Israel have transgressed Thy law, even by departing, that they might not obey Thy voice; therefore the curse is poured upon us, and the oath that is written in the law of Moses the servant of God, because we have sinned against Him.” Daniel 9:4–6, 10,11.

We must follow the example of Daniel and bring ourselves to the throne of God confessing our sin against Him, admitting our self-centeredness and turn back to Him for complete guidance in carrying out the great commission. Until we depend fully upon the Lord for direction, He cannot, will not, bless our efforts. Like Daniel we must plead for guidance at every step so the work may be completed in God’s way.

God told Noah’s descendants to scatter and replenish the earth, not to congregate in one area. We are told to establish many small institutions. “Instead of large establishments bringing great numbers together, let there be small institutions in different places.” Welfare Ministry, 230.

“In the centers that are formed in some places, there is constant temptation to carry the work after worldly methods. I have had presented before me the dangers before us in the future. This light I have tried to present with pen and with voice. Let the work be carried forward intelligently by men and women of sound faith and strict religious principle.” The Publishing Ministry, 63.

 

God’s Methods, Not Our Own

 

“At the ordination of the Twelve the disciples had greatly desired that Judas should become one of their number, and they had counted his accession an event of much promise to the apostolic band. He had come more into contact with the world than they, he was a man of good address, of discernment and executive ability, and, having a high estimate of his own qualifications, he had led the disciples to hold him in the same regard. But the methods he desired to introduce into Christ’ work were based upon worldly principles and were controlled by worldly policy. They looked to the securing of worldly recognition and honor—to the obtaining of the kingdom of this world.” Education, 93.

We cannot ignore God’s plan for His work and introduce our ideas, thinking they are better. The Lord has shown us plainly in His word how He desires the propagation of the Gospel to be carried forward. If we insist on doing the Lord’s work our way and refuse to heed His admonitions, we will receive the same condemnation that God gave to the wicked men after the flood. We will be left to our own devising and suffer the same fate they did. We are here to bring reformation to the world, not to join in its policies. God has placed us here as witnesses, not as attorneys, judges or juries. It is our duty and privilege to testify to the world of what God has done in our lives, thus revealing the character of Jesus to our neighbors. Then, we will not only be instruments used by God in the salvation of others, but we will save our own souls as well.

In the process of time, God called Abraham who, despite the wickedness around him, remained a worshipper of the true God. This man would be an instrument in the hand of the Lord to bring reformation to the society in which he lived. In the call to leave his home there was a promise given of a Savior that would come through his descendants.

The experiences that Abraham went through were not only for his spiritual growth but also for the benefit of all future generations. God had a problem that needed to be solved, and that problem was sin. Man cannot continue to disobey God’s expressed commands without suffering the consequences.

When years passed after the promise of a son, Abraham and Sarah became impatient and determined to take measures into their own hands. As a result there has been conflict between the descendants of Ishmael and Isaac in the Middle East ever since. It does not pay to ignore the commands of God. Our work is clearly laid out for us in the Bible and Spirit of Prophecy. We are to be His servants, not His board of directors.

The great Second Advent Movement was raised up by the Lord for the purpose of proclaiming to the world the full Three Angel’s Messages. He gave specifid instructions regarding the educational, publishing, evangelistic and health work. We have been blessed with a blueprint showing how to fulfill the great commission. But, like Abraham and Sarah, we have decided that the blueprint is outdated, and we will use the world’s methods to accomplish the great objective of proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ to the world. Our rationale is that we must keep up with the times in order to reach people. In reality, we need to get back to the primitive gospel, using God’s methods so that He can use us in His work.

 

Perfect Obedience

 

“Christ came to the world to counteract Satan’s falsehood that God had made a law which men could not keep. Taking humanity upon Himself, He came to this earth, and by a life of obedience showed that God has not made a law that man cannot keep. He showed that it is possible for man perfectly to obey the law. Those who accept Christ as their Saviour, becoming partakers of His divine nature, are enabled to follow His example, living in obedience to every precept of the law. Through the merits of Christ, man is to show by his obedience that he could be trusted in heaven.” The Faith I Live By, 114.

While Abraham was traveling south, in Palestine, a famine came upon the land. To escape it and yet be close by the Promised Land, God sent him down into Egypt where he stayed until the famine passed. “The Lord in His providence had brought this trial upon Abraham to teach him lessons of submission, patience, and faith—lessons that were to be placed on record for the benefit of all who should afterward be called to endure affliction. God leads His children by a way that they know not, but He does not forget or cast off those who put their trust in Him. He permitted affliction to come upon Job, but He did not forsake him. He allowed the beloved John to be exiled to lonely Patmos, but the Son of God met him there, and his vision was filled with scenes of immortal glory. God permits trials to assail His people, that by their constancy and obedience they themselves may be spiritually enriched, and that their example may be a source of strength to others. ‘I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil.’ Jeremiah 29:11. The very trials that tax our faith most severely and make it seem that God has forsaken us, are to lead us closer to Christ, that we may lay all our burdens at His feet and experience the peace which He will give us in exchange.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 129.

The greatest trial that Abraham had to endure was when God commanded him to sacrifice his son Isaac. What made this command more puzzling to Abraham was that a Savior had been promised that would come through Isaac’s descendants. But in spite of this seeming impossibility, Abraham obeyed without questioning God. The Lord was preparing this man to bring reformation and revival to a dying generation, and He needed someone whom He could depend upon to do the job. The effects of Abraham’s test went beyond him and his generation to future generations and to unfallen worlds: “The sacrifice required of Abraham was not alone for his own good, nor solely for the benefit of succeeding generations; but it was also for the instruction of the sinless intelligences of heaven and of other worlds. The field of the controversy between Christ and Satan—the field on which the plan of redemption is wrought out—is the lesson book of the universe. Because Abraham had shown a lack of faith in God’s promises, Satan had accused him before the angels and before God of having failed to comply with the conditions of the covenant, and as unworthy of its blessings. God desired to prove the loyalty of His servant before all heaven, to demonstrate that nothing less than perfect obedience can be accepted, and to open more fully before them the plan of salvation.” Ibid., 154, 155.

Next month we will return to our story with the raising up of Moses and God’s attempt to once again bring reformation to a lost and dying world.

 

Editorial — This Man has a Devil, part 2

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In our first look at this subject we saw how Jesus was considered to be possessed of a demon by earthly relatives. The Apostle Paul was considered insane and thought to be serving the devil. (See Sketches from the Life of Paul 59, 259.) Paul said that he and Apollos were the refuse of the world and the offscouring of all things. He was not just talking about the heathen—at that very time he was being judged by the church in Corinth and they said his speech was contemptible. (See 1 Corinthians 4; 2 Corinthians 10.) The spirit in that church resulted in their losing one of the greatest Christian teachers—Apollos hastily left Corinth because of the strife in the church.

To God’s professed people (the professed church) the Master of the House said, “Behold, I send to you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and of them you shall kill and crucify; and of them you shall scourge in your synagogues, and persecute from city to city: that upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth.” Matthew 23:34, 35.

Will the history of the Jews be repeated by modern Israel? “Modern Israel are in greater danger of forgetting God and being led into idolatry than were His ancient people.” Testimonies, vol. 1, 609.

“Those who believe and teach the truths of God’s word in these last days, meet with similar opposition [as Paul in Lystra from the professed people of God] from unprincipled persons who will not accept the truth, and who do not hesitate to prevaricate, and even to circulate the most glaring falsehoods in order to destroy the influence and hedge up the way of those whom God has sent with a message of warning to the world. While one class make the falsehoods and circulate them, another class are so blinded by the delusions of Satan as to receive them as the words of truth. They are in the toils of the arch-enemy, while they flatter themselves that they are the children of God.” Sketches from the Life of Paul, 60. [All emphasis supplied.]

We must face the reality that, in practice, Ellen White has been rejected as a prophet for a long time. While we have professed to believe in her as a prophet, many Adventists not only reject some of the plainest things that she wrote but oppose anybody who is conscientiously trying to live according to these testimonies of God’s Spirit.

In 1888 the Adventist people rejected what could have been the beginning of the latter rain and the loud cry and the final finishing of God’s work on the earth.

Following 1888 the brethren sent Ellen White to Australia, which she said was not God’s will. (See 1888 Materials, 1622.) After thirteen crisis years, there was an attempt to correct the problems at the 1901 General Conference. This 1901 General Conference was in essence reversed at the 1903 General Conference. During this time, the devil was trying to destroy the second Advent movement completely, by attacking it from multiple directions at once with the pantheism crisis, then the Ballenger crisis, which eventually took root in the Adventist church in the 1970’s and 1980’s.

When the Lord sent messengers to Adventism, they were rejected by the majority and all manner of false charges were used to destroy their influence. This has happened many times but just a few cases will suffice to prove the case. In 1904, when the Lord directed through the Spirit of Prophecy in the development of Madison Sanitarium and College, by Sutherland and Magan, the message on educational reform was not accepted. Rather, it was largely rejected by leaders in the General Conference and, consequently most leaders never accepted this institution. (One of the highest officials in this school when it was finally closed by church leaders, told me that its closure was entirely unnecessary.) The Lord sent reformer after reformer to bring Adventism back into harmony with Divine Counsel. Julius Gilbert White was not accepted. B.G. Wilkinson was not accepted. W.D. Frazee was not accepted. Strong opposition and charges were leveled against these reformers. Where did these charges come from—not from Babylon generally, but from the professed remnant of God. Elder Frazee’s father told me privately that the brethren “scorched him.” I heard charges against him at Loma Linda in the late 1970’s and both earlier and later in the south. With such a history—a history of almost constant rejection of every reformer that has appeared in Adventism for over 100 years, what should we expect as we approach the last great crisis? “If they have called the Master of the House Beelzebub how much more those of His household.” Matthew 10:25. This has special meaning in the very last days as we shall see.

 

The Prayer Satan is Determined Will Not Be Answered

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When I was nineteen years old, I started making a careful study of Steps to Christ. It details how to become a Christian and then how to live the Christian life. It is a very interesting book. In the second chapter it says that if Satan could be taken to heaven, he would not enjoy it. Not only would he not enjoy it, he would find heaven a place of supreme torture.

That is an interesting point. At least it was to me. I always thought that heaven would be the most wonderful place for anyone. Ellen White went on to say that if the sinner could be taken to heaven, he would not enjoy it either. You see, it is not really an arbitrary decree on the part of God that excludes sinners from heaven. God knows that if He should take sinners there, they would not enjoy it. If God took you to heaven right now, would you enjoy it? Evidently, if God took the majority of the people to heaven right now, they would not enjoy it.

The gospel does not just take away the guilt of our sins. It works a change in our hearts so that we can be taken to heaven and enjoy it. If you could not have happiness in heaven, you will not be happy here in this world, no matter how much you have. When I was pastoring in North Dakota, one of my church members, who had a large farm, told me a story about a man that lived near him. This man owned the largest wheat farm in the United States. He was a very wealthy man.

The area where he lived was along the Red River Valley. For the past four thousand years (since the flood) in the spring time, the Red River has flooded and deposited silt on the soil in the Red River Valley. In the summer time the waters would go back down leaving an almost coal black, alluvial soil that grew bountiful crops.

This man had a very productive farm, and since he was wealthy everyone knew him and thought that he was in a very enviable position. But for some reason, it did not make him happy. One morning he road off in his truck and did not come back. After a while people started looking for him. They found him in a secluded section of his farm, where he had put a gun to his head and ended it all. So, all the riches and possessions he had did not make him happy.

Even heaven would not make you happy unless a change occurs in the heart. This is the change that Jesus prayed for in John 17. He prayed that His followers would be one, would have unity, just as He and the Father are one. (See John 17:22.) It has been almost two thousand years since this prayer was prayed. This is the prayer that the devil is determined will never be answered. But I believe the Father is going to answer Jesus’ prayer, but it has to be answered through you and me.

Have you ever been in a home where there is such unity and harmony that you enjoy being there? As soon as you walk in the door, you can feel that it is a wonderful place. This is the kind of home that all God’s people are to have. When it happens in the homes of God’s people, then it will happen in the church, and as it happens in a local church it will spread around the world.

The devil is at work in every church and family to keep this from ever happening. The devil is a liar. Every time there is a separation or a divorce, in a Christian family, the devil says, See there, it cannot happen. And every time there is fighting in a church the devil says, See there, it cannot happen.

However, the devil is much more deceptive than just stirring things up into contention and fighting. One of the greatest deceptions in the world in the last days will be a false unity. Christian people all over the world will think they are seeing the greatest revival and reformation ever. Most of the world will be involved in this unity: “These are of one mind, and they will give their power and authority to the beast.” How did they get to be of one mind? “I saw three unclean spirits like frogs coming out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. For they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out to the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.” Revelation 16:13, 14.

Here we should notice some things about this counterfeit unity and how it works. Number One: The counterfeit unity is a unity to the system. In Jesus’ day it was the church organization. The Pharisees decided that anyone that would confess that Jesus was the Christ, would be cast out of the synagogue. (See John 11.)

They could point back to their history and say, “God is the One who ordained our church organization.” That was true, but notice where it went. Caiaphas the High Priest soon said, “Nor do you consider that it is expedient for us that one Man should die for the people and not that the whole nation should perish.” John 11:50. He was saying that they must get rid of Jesus or have their church structure destroyed. Nobody would ever do that again, would they? If any church structure tells you to do something contrary to the Bible or to your conscience and you do it, you have made that structure a god. You are not following God, you are following a system. The first commandment says, “Thou shalt have no other gods before Me.” Exodus 20:3. That was the problem with the leaders of our church in 1888. Ellen White wrote to them in Testimonies to Ministers, in an article called, “Thou Shalt Have No Other Gods Before Me.”

Everything that the angels do is organized, and it is right for God’s people to be organized. But an organization must never take the place of the Bible or your conscience. The elders, the deacons, the officers in the church should be determined never to try to be conscience for anyone in the church. We try to be an encouragement in the church, but we will not be conscience for someone else.

That is what happened in Jesus’ day, and that is what is going to happen at the end of the world. Church organization can be placed above the Bible and the conscience. When that happens it does not matter what the name of that church is, it is wrong. When my brother was a pastor just a few miles from here, people said to him, Why do you not get in harmony with the structure? He said, “I am sorry, I cannot do it with a clear conscience. I am a Protestant and I have to live by my conscience.”

Those same reasons still exist. People ask me, Why cannot you be in harmony with the Conference? Because of my conscience and the Word of God. For us to unite would be a false unity. When you make a church structure a god and it becomes conscience for you, that is a false unity.

Number Two: False unity has the power of the state. There are legislators in countries around the world that think that the way to have unity is to pass laws to bring uniformity. Laws like that are in the works in the United States, Europe, the Pacific Islands, Australia, and China.

Constantine thought the same way, and that is what brought on the Dark Ages. In the Dark Ages, if you had a different religion than the king, you could be killed. Revelation 13:14–17 says that the same thing will take place at the end of the world.

Number Three: Who will people be following? For some people the church system or structure becomes their god or their conscience. For some people it is the state. But for some people it is a person and that is going to be a problem in the last days: “All who dwell on the earth will worship him [the antichrist power], whose names have not been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.” Revelation 13:8. If your name is written in the Lamb’s Book of Life, you do not worship this power, false unity or the church structure. Christians believe in obeying all the laws of the state as long as they do not require them to violate the laws of God. If the church structure or the state tells a Christian to do something that is contrary to God’s word, the apostle Peter said, “We ought to obey God rather than men.” Acts 5:29.

There are a number of other things besides the false unity that can prevent unity from happening. Worldly policy will prevent unity. This is the “If you favor me, I will favor you,” policy. And this is unsanctified worldly policy, which displeases God. It is paying favors and admiration for the sake of gain. It is showing a partiality for certain ones expecting to secure advantages through them. It is a hard thing to see one’s own errors, but everyone should realize how cruel is the spirit of envy, rivalry, distrust, fault finding and dissension.

Many people say, Pastor John, worldly policy (politics) is how the whole world runs. It may be, but it is not how the government of God runs. The Bible says that God is no respecter of persons. James 2 says that if we exercise partiality toward the rich instead of the poor we are guilty of sin! Worldly policy will prevent unity because we have our favorites. Jesus took special pains to be friends with people who did not have friends. He did not have favorites.

It is easy to understand how this worldly policy can prevent unity. Many churches are divided into two groups, the “in group” and the rest. Jesus Christ was a friend of the friendless, those who are not in the “in group.” He got in a lot of trouble with some people for this. All the “in group” said this Man is nothing but a drunkard and a winebibber. They said He was a friend of the tax collectors and of sinners.

This is something for us as a church to pray about. Who are the people that you and I know who have no friends? Those are the people we need to be reaching out to because that is what Jesus did. They were all equal in His eyes.

Feelings of contention will prevent unity from developing in the family or in a church. How does it work? This is from an article Ellen White wrote on unity in 1887. She wrote: “The Spirit of God will not abide where there is disunion and contention among believers in the truth. Even if these feelings are unexpressed, they take possession of the heart and drive out the peace and love that should characterize the Christian Church.” Testimonies, vol. 4, 221. Often if we have feelings of contention we think that if we do not talk about them then we are guiltless, but even if we do not talk about it, peace and love will be driven out of the church.

We need to remember that our church is to be a family. Jesus said to the people in His day, “You are all brothers.” Matthew 23:8. We are to consider each other in the church as our brothers and sisters. Primitive Christians addressed each other as “Brother or Sister.” They addressed each other that way because they were members of one family. They had unity and harmony. That custom has fallen out because unity and harmony has disappeared and there is contention and strife. Christians in church now call each other Mr. and Mrs. Will we ever get back to the old greetings of “Brother or Sister”?

I would like to get back to that place. I would like to have a revival and reformation that would cause this to happen again. This reformation is a change in the heart. We have to go to the Lord and say, “Lord, I want all feelings of contention to come out of my heart. I do not want it any more.” We cannot take it out, but the Lord can.

Sister White said about these feelings of contention: “They drive out the peace and love that should characterize the Christian Church. They are the result of selfishness in its fullest sense.” Ibid.

Unity is also kept from happening because we are too severe and sensitive. The same people who are too severe are too sensitive. “We are too severe upon those whom we suppose to be in error, and are very sensitive to the least blame or question in regard to our own course.” Ibid., 222.

What is the problem? I am too severe on the other person and I am so sensitive about myself. Can that be changed? It can if we will surrender to Jesus. He wants to change us completely. The reason for all this contention, worldly policy, and the reason that we are too severe and too sensitive is because we do not have the love of Jesus in our hearts.

“And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them.” John 17:26. So, the reason we have these problems is that we do not have the love of Jesus in our hearts.

Here is another thing that keeps unity from developing within the church. This is a real problem for some individuals, pastors, the wealthy, professional people, and highly educated people. “He was the majesty of heaven, yet He stooped to minister to the humblest having no respect to persons or station. Our Lord after performing the most humiliating office for His disciples [washing their feet] recommended them to follow His example. This was to keep constantly before them the thought that they must not feel superior to the lowliest saint.” Review and Herald, January 18, 1887.

Who is the lowliest saint in our church? People have different ideas who it is. But whoever it is, we are not to feel superior to the lowliest saint, the lowliest believer in Jesus. The Majesty of Heaven came down and washed the feet of His disciples to teach them that they were to serve each other.

The history of the disciples reveals that in a church where feelings of superiority are manifested there will not be unity. That was one of the biggest problems for the disciples. They were in controversy and strife over who was to be the greatest. Jesus kneeled down and washed their feet. He acted the part of a servant of servants. He showed that He did not feel too superior to perform the lowliest humble service for any of His followers. And it is still that way. Jesus said that we are all brothers regardless of how much education, money or experience we have.

What keeps unity from happening? I had a teacher in elementary school that taught us that before you say something, count to ten. The trouble was that I could count to ten too fast. I found that I needed more help than counting to ten. I needed divine help to control my tongue. James 3 says that no man can tame the tongue. It is full of deadly poison and will destroy the unity and harmony in your home and church.

“Be pleasant and cheerful. Remember that love is the power that binds your children to you. Keep your words and actions free from anger. Do nothing that will destroy the harmony of the home. Let the sharp words that you are tempted to speak die unspoken. Such words wound and bruise the hearts of the hearers.” Signs of the Times, September 16, 1903.

“There is to be no sharp speaking, no fretful scolding for angels of God are walking up and down in every room. Little mistakes may be made but words of censure arouse feelings of retaliation and God is dishonored. Any word spoken thoughtlessly or unadvisedly should be retracted on the spot . . .We are to remember that as Christians professing to work in unity, we must not act like sinners whose sinful words and works unless repented of will condemn them.” In Heavenly Places, 182.

There is nothing unchristian about going to someone in the home and saying, I am sorry and I want you to forgive me. The Lord wants us to learn to stop speaking stinging, sharp, fretful words to the people in our homes whom we love and who love us. And when we learn it at home, things will change in the church.

“And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one.” John 17:22. The glory is His self-sacrificing love. The angels will study this throughout eternal ages. (See The Desire of Ages chapter 1.) That is the mystery that Peter said the angels desire to look into. I am not an angel, but I want to understand and experience it also. If we experience it, we will have to know more than theology, we will know Jesus. We will have to study His life and meditate upon it and say, “Lord, what are You trying to teach me by what You said and what you did?”

God’s glory is His character and it was revealed to Moses. “He said, Show me thy glory. And He [the Lord] said, I will make My goodness pass before thee.” Exodus 33:18, 19. “The Lord God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth . . . Forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty.” Exodus 34:6, 7.

God’s glory is His character. His character is a love for others and that causes Him to sacrifice Himself. The cross of Christ is the extreme example of how far God will go to sacrifice Himself to save someone else. That is what the angels want to understand, and that is what I want to understand.

1 John 3 says that He gave His life for us, so we should be willing to lay down our lives for the brethren. When we get to the point in a church where everyone loves everyone so much that they would lay down their lives for them, then there will be unity.

That is exactly the spirit that Jesus had. Paul says, “While we were yet enemies, God sent His Son.” Jesus did not die for His friends. He died for His enemies, because He chose to and He wanted to. The love that He wants to give us is the same kind of love that He has.

The second thing that will bring unity is, “Perfection of character means perfection of unity.” (See John 17:21.) Some Christians today do not like their pastors or their teachers to talk about perfection, but Jesus taught and preached about it. The Sermon on the Mount ends with, “Be perfect.” That is a command. Would Jesus command you to do something that He would not give you the power to do?

Perfection of character should not have a negative connotation in your mind. We can never have perfect unity among God’s people until we have perfection of character. One of the reasons that there is so much dissension and disunity all over the Christian world today is because of the character of the people who profess to be Christians. Some who profess to be following the Lord live like the devil. It does not make sense, and it does not lead to unity. That is why the devil is so successful in getting people to think that we will get the church directors and governments together and we will unite the whole world under one system and force it to happen. They will force things to happen all right, but it will not be this unity that Jesus was praying for, because there is no glory of God in the way they are going about it.

Number Three: God is leading a people to stand in perfect unity upon the platform of eternal truth. True unity is based on truth. You cannot have a unified people who cannot even figure out whether or not to keep the Ten Commandments. Paul said that the church was the pillar and ground of the truth. If you leave the truth, you have left the true church. 1 Timothy 3:15.

Last of all, if you and I become one with Christ, the result will be that we will be one with each other. We will find that we are close to each other. We have unity and harmony. The Holy Spirit will work in our hearts to create unity and harmony so that people with all kinds of dispositions, temperaments, backgrounds and education, can have unity and harmony and love among them.

It will happen. The only question is, Will it happen to you and me? I am determined that I want to be part of the great unity that is developing around the world. I want to have my heart changed, so that I will have self-sacrificing love inside. Then I will be willing to change on any point to be in harmony with God’s Word. When that happens and I am heart-to-heart with Jesus in His work to save the world, the Holy Spirit will pour the love of God into my heart.

 

Editorial — This Man has a Devil, part 1

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The disciples (and all the followers of Jesus when He dwelt among men) would never have come to Jesus had they listened to the leaders of the professed people of God. They would have stayed away and denounced Him as an imposter. (See The Desire of Ages, 213.) “He who had come to break the power of Satan would be denounced as Beelzebub.” The Desire of Ages, 111. The leaders of God’s chosen professed people became the instruments of Satan. (See The Desire of Ages, 36, 206.) They tried, by every means in their power, to keep God’s professed people from the only means of salvation. But to hate Christ was to love death. (Proverbs 8:36.)

When this One was denounced by the leaders as an imposter or as one possessed of the devil, (John 7:19, 20, 25; 8:48, 52; 10:20) He sent out His disciples to speak in His name. He also pronounced a future judgement on those who would reject the message of truth. To reject the truth, or the messenger of truth, is to reject the author of truth, by whom both the message and the messenger are sent. Jesus said, “Whoever will not receive you nor hear your words, when you depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet. Truly I say to you, it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment, than for that city.” Matthew 10:14, 15. And again, “He who receives you receives Me, and he who receives Me receives Him who sent Me. He who receives a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet’s reward; and he who receives a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man’s reward.” Matthew 10:40, 41. This has universal application: “Most assuredly I say to you, He who receives whomever I send, receives Me; and he that receives Me receives Him that sent Me.” John 13:20.

When the Father sent His Son into the world, His professed people hated and despised the divine revelation. Several times they attempted to kill Him. (See Luke 4:29; John 7:30; 8:58; 10:31.) They expressed their resentment with the worst condemnation that they could conjure up concerning His life, miracles and teachings. They accused Him of working through Satan (Matthew 9:34), and concerning this common epithet against Him they said to Jesus, “Do we not say well that You have a devil?”

Even His closest friends and earthly relatives were so dismayed by His life, His attitude and His relationship to the leaders of the church that they feared He was becoming insane: “They were unable to account for His attitude toward the Pharisees, and there were some who feared that His reason was becoming unsettled. His brothers heard of this, and also of the charge brought by the Pharisees that He cast out devils through the power of Satan. They felt keenly the reproach that came upon them through their relation to Jesus. They knew what a tumult His words and works created, and were not only alarmed at His bold statements, but indignant at His denunciation ofthe scribes and Pharisees.” The Desire of Ages, 321.

We plan to look at the reason for all this later, but first we need to understand that if we are following in the footsteps of Jesus we will face similar situations to what He did. Inspiration says, “The trials of the children of Israel, and their attitude just before the first coming of Christ, have been presented before me again and again to illustrate the position of the people of God in their experience before the second coming of Christ.” Selected Messages, vol. 1, 406.

Christ’s servants just before the second coming of Christ will go through experiences very similar to what Jesus went through when He was here. Their worst enemies will not be from Babylon, Tyre or even from Sodom, but rather their worse enemies will be from God’s professed people. Those who profess to be modern Israel, and who possess not only the Bible but the Spirit of Prophecy, will become their worst enemies.

“While they [the professed people of God—Israel] professed to have great zeal for the honor of God and the good of Israel, they were the worst enemies of both.” Sketches from the Life of Paul, 230. “Paul’s worst enemies were among the Jews, who made the highest claims to godliness . . . The most bitter opposers of truth to-day are found among those who profess to be its defenders.” Ibid., 278.

“The worst enemies we have are those who are trying to destroy the influence of the watchmen upon the walls of Zion.” Testimonies, vol. 5, 294.

“If they have called the Master of the House [who was sinless and had a perfect character] Beelzebub, how much more those of His?” Matthew 10:25.

 

John Wesley, An English Reformer, part 2

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John Wesley’s conversion in May of 1738, was a change from a mere intellectual belief in salvation to one of the heart. Because of this experience at Aldersgate, Wesley was truly converted. As a result, many people began to experience the same thing at his meetings. From this point on, Wesley’s preaching was marked with a zeal and enthusiasm that was not seen before.

As a result of this heart conversion, Wesley now determined to put his whole energy into laboring for the salvation of lost humanity. He spent the rest of his life preaching for the sole purpose of saving lost sinners for Jesus Christ.

Last month we left Wesley leaving for Germany to visit and observe the Moravians. He was received cordially by Count Zinzendorf, the leader of the Moravians, and spent three months observing these God-fearing people. He recorded some of their practices that he would later utilize in his own work as an evangelist.

Returning to England in August, he began preaching, uniting with a group of like-minded members of the Church of England. He also spent some time reading, studying, praying and preaching to those who were in prison, offering them free salvation and celebrating Holy Communion. The next few weeks were spent preaching at various churches in London and making a trip to Oxford.

John and his brother Charles preached wherever they had the opportunity, but the opportunities to preach in churches were rapidly diminishing. By the end of 1738 most of the churches in London were closed to the Wesleys because of their enthusiastic preaching of the doctrine of mystical conversion.

While preaching around London when the opportunities opened up, Wesley received an invitation from George Whitefield to participate in open field preaching.

Whitefield had returned to England from America in December of 1738, but because of some things he had written and published in his journal, he had lost favor with the English ministry. Consequently, all Church of England churches were closed to him. As a result he turned to preaching wherever he could. Thus began the preaching in open fields or on street corners. This was to be Wesley’s mode of preaching for the rest of his life.

“Wesley became an itinerant evangelist, preaching in the open, because only in this way could he reach those who were out of touch with God. His congregations were made up largely of those who were beyond the range of the usual ministrations of the Church. This in itself was an indictment of the Church’s failure to fulfil its proper function, for, considered in terms of the New Testament, it exists primarily for the purpose of bringing Christ to the people and the people to Christ. That this should be regarded as at all abnormal in the eighteenth century was an indication of how far the contemporary Church had fallen from its original standards. Unless the Church is an outgoing society, it is untrue to its own nature.” A.S. Wood, The Burning Heart, 137.

In the spring of 1739, Wesley traveled to Bristol and on April 2 he preached to about three thousand in a field outside the city. Wesley’s quiet manner of preaching was often enlivened. This caused him to be accused of being “enthusiastic” which was anathema to the Church of England. By actual test, Wesley’s voice was found to be heard over four hundred feet away.

Wesley’s mission was largely to the laboring class of people but he was not indifferent to all other classes. His “audiences included farmers, lawyers, clergymen and nonconformist ministers, university undergraduates and civic leaders” as well as “those from foreign lands—especially the Germans in Newcastle.” Ibid., 145.

The success of the Methodist meetings may be attributed to the singing as much as to the preaching of the Wesleys. Charles Wesley was a prolific hymn writer and many of his hymns were sung by those who attended the meetings.

Whitefield left for America in August, 1739, and the Wesleys continued their field preaching for the next three years with their headquarters located in London and Bristol.

The preaching of Whitefield moved thousands to repentance and faith, but no separate structure was provided to nurture the converts. John Wesley decided that some sort of organization was needed to take care of those who were brought to a knowledge of salvation and accepted Christ as their Savior.

He organized “society” groups patterned after the Oxford Holy Club and the Moravian groups in which he had participated. It was not his intention to establish a new church but to develop these “societies” as a part of the Church of England. These “societies” were divided into classes made up of about a dozen persons who met once a week with a leader for spiritual discussions and guidance. They enumerated their temptations, confessed their faults and shared their concerns testifying to the working of God in their lives.

These societies flourished under the direction of the leaders, most of whom were women. As Methodism grew, Wesley encouraged laymen to become his helpers and assistants as preachers. Some of these were full time itinerant preachers and served the societies by encouraging and counseling with them.

 

A New Career

 

In May of 1742, Wesley’s work was expanded to the north of England as far as Newcastle. On May 30, He walked into the poorest part of town and, introducing himself, sang the hundredth Psalm. After preaching a sermon, he announced that he would preach again at five in the evening. Thus began a career of itinerant field preaching that was to last for the next fifty years. Although his territory was mainly the triangle made up of Bristol, London and Newcastle, he journeyed into Scotland, Ireland and Wales exercising his control of the “societies” located in these lands. Until he was seventy years of age his mode of travel was almost always by horseback.

In 1744, the Annual Conferences were begun where Wesley met with his preachers each year to discuss theology, the mission of Methodism and appoint to preachers their areas for the coming year.

“Opposition to the new religious movement was inevitable. Both the conditions of the country and the character of the Methodist revival made opposition certain. The invasion of Methodist preachers was resented by high and low alike, but while the bishops replied with quartos; the mob resorted to clubs and stones. The whole story throws a flood of light on social and intellectual conditions in the middle of the century.” Umphrey Lee, The Lord’s Horseman, 92.

In the 1740’s, England was made up of isolated communities with virtually no communication between any of them. At the same time there was the fear of invasion by the French, with anticipation far worse than the event when it happened. Even the slightest suspicious act made a person liable to arrest. An uprising by the Catholics was dreaded because their cause was supposed to be the same as that of the Pretender then living in Rome.

Wesley met many kinds of opposition while he was preaching. Especially in the early years of his open air ministry he was harassed by mobs that pelted him with rocks and dirt. Cattle were driven through the audience and loud noises were emitted in an attempt to drown out the voice of the preacher. Many times Wesley and some of his preachers were threatened with physical harm. But all of the opposition they experienced did not have any lasting effect upon Wesley’s work. During the later years of his ministry the mob violence virtually ceased.

Wesley made sure that none of his preachers misinterpreted his motto, “I look upon the world as my parish,” as giving them the freedom to go wherever they chose. In the Methodist church one of the gravest mistakes is for one preacher to invade the parish of another. However, Wesley considered that he had the calling to go anywhere the Lord directed him.

Opposition to Methodism took many forms. There were a number of anti-Methodist publications including those by playwrights and novelists as well as those published by the clergy. In answer to the objections of the clergy Wesley responded by saying, “He had a mission to fulfill, and if existing protocol stood in the way then it would have to be set aside. ‘I would observe every punctilio of order, he told George Downing, chaplain to the Earl of Dartmouth, “except where the salvation of souls is at stake. There I prefer the end before the means.’” The Burning Heart, 102.

“He was determined not to be restricted by ecclesiastical barriers. Hervy had inquired how Wesley could justify the invasion of other men’s parishes upon catholic principles. It was a characteristic of Anglican Evangelicals like Hervy to adhere to the parochial system. Wesley’s reply is a classic one. ‘Permit me to speak plainly. If by catholic principles you mean any other than scriptural, they weigh nothing with me. I allow no other rule, whether of faith or practice, than the Holy Scriptures; but on scriptural principles I do not think it hard to justify whatever I do. God in Scripture commands me, according to my power, to instruct the ignorant, reform the wicked, and confirm the virtuous. Man forbids me to do this in another’s parish: that is, in effect, to do it at all; seeing I have now no parish of my own, nor probably ever shall. Whom, then, shall I hear, God or man? If it be just to obey man rather than God, judge you. A dispensation of the gospel is committed to me; and woe is me if I preach not the gospel. But where shall I preach it, upon the principles you mention?” Ibid., 105, 106.

Uniformity of opinion was not required by the Methodist Societies but uniformity of conduct was according to the following: First, by doing no harm; by avoiding evil of every kind. . . Secondly, By doing good. . . Thirdly, by attending upon all ordinances of God.

John was finally married in February of 1751 to a widow named Mary Vazeille. The marriage was a rocky one from the first because he refused to stop his itinerant preaching tours. Also he was not an attentive husband, devoting his time and energy to the Methodist work. Becoming discouraged by John’s continual absence and jealous of his correspondence with the many women in the Methodist movement, Mary separated from him many times until her death in 1781. Wesley was out of town and did not hear of her death until after the funeral.

On February 8, 1750, an earthquake struck London. A second occurred a month later creating a frenzy among the people. Charles preached a sermon on “The Cause and Cure of Earthquakes” followed by a pamphlet of hymns suitable for calamities such as this. Both John and Charles considered earthquakes as instruments of God to punish sinners. John announced publicly that he was thankful that God had so lightly warned the people by the first shocks.

 

Untiring Labor

 

The year 1753 finds John Wesley often ill, but he refused to slow down. On October 22 he went to Canterbury even though he was sick. All week he complained of sickness but had no time for treatment as he met with classes from morning to night. This was typical for the whole year.

During the fifties He visited Ireland and Scotland (twice), traveling extensively around the two countries preaching and sightseeing.

In the years 1755 and 1756 the great issue was the question of separation from the Church of England. Charles was convinced that all the preachers in the north were for separation and he agreed with them. John on the other hand refused to see the inevitable separation coming and remained a staunch supporter of the Church of England.

In 1757, Charles retired from itinerant preaching and settled down with his wife in Bristol, leaving John to continue his superintending of the Societies and itinerant preaching. Two years later, in November 1759, John preached two sermons and observed the general thanksgiving for the success of the British armies in capturing Canada from the French.

In spite of his bad experience in Georgia, Wesley maintained a lively interest in America and the American colonies. From 1768 he had preachers in the colonies. In 1769, two missionaries were sent with fifty pounds, as a gift, to the work in America.

As conflict began brewing between England and the American colonies, Wesley instructed his preachers to labor for peace. He wrote to his preachers stating, “You were never in your lives in so critical a situation as you are at this time. It is your part to be peace-makers, to be loving and tender to all, but to addict yourselves to no party. In spite of all solicitations, of rough or smooth words, say not one word against one or the other side. Keep yourselves pure, do all you can to help and soften all; but beware how you adopt another’s jar.” The Lord’s Horseman, 185.

Being a High Churchman, Wesley was loyal to the crown. However, he eventually overcame his prejudice against the colonies in their desire for freedom, but he would not condone armed rebellion and said, “If a blow is struck, I give America for lost, and perhaps England too.” Ibid., 189. In spite of this he retained his faith in the American cause.

John Wesley’s attitude on the American question was making it difficult for him to retain control over the Methodist work in America. It was becoming evident that American Methodism would be independent of Wesley or the Church of England. In 1779, some Methodist preachers took it upon themselves to administer the sacraments without being ordained. He was faced with the fact that fifteen thousand Methodists “would not be content to be members of a religious society—they would have nothing less than a church.” Ibid., 197.

In February of 1784, John Wesley met with his preachers to consider sending missionaries to the East Indies, but it was decided that the time was not right because there was no “providential opening.”

In March he started out on a seven months journey to west England, Scotland and Wales. He preached continually, reproving the people for not attending the early services. The intense cold made him sick and he said, “I shall pay no more visits to new worlds, till I go to the world of spirits.”

In the meantime, pressure for secession was building to a high pitch. The American Methodist preachers clamored for ordination that they might ordain their own successors to the ministry. Wesley finally gave in to them but stipulated that he would ordain them only for the work in America. This did not satisfy other preachers in other lands. He was persuaded to ordain for Scotland, where they had no chance to receive the sacraments as those in the American colonies.

Charles, after a lingering illness, died on March 29, 1788. John did not hear of his death until after the funeral, thus he could not attend.

“On June 28, 1782, Wesley wrote in his Journal: ‘I entered my eightieth year; but, blessed by God, my time is not labour and sorrow. I find no more pain or bodily infirmities than at five-and-twenty. This I still impute (1) to the power of God fitting me for what He calls me to; (2) to my still traveling four or five thousand miles a year; (3) to my sleeping, night and day, whenever I want it; (4) to my rising at a set hour; and (5) to my constant preaching, particularly in the morning.” Ibid., 198.

For the next nine years John Wesley continued to travel and preach until July 16, 1790. That day he made his last entry in his expense book and his diary ended on the same day. On that day he also wrote a letter to William Wilberforce encouraging him in his fight for the abolition of slavery.

At ten o’clock in the morning Wednesday, March 2, 1791, John Wesley, the greatest of the English reformers, died “without a groan or a sigh.”

“The men who survived to fight the battle of Methodism were good men, many of them capable and intelligent; and within a few years they had built a church—built, it must be said on foundations laid by John Wesley himself. But the catholic minded man, who had dreamed of a new world in which men might adventure in the spirit without clash of creed or order, was dead; and what he would have thought and said of the works of his successors, no one will ever know.” Ibid., 214.