church

The New Testament Church

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

The End

Image to the Beast

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We are Seventh-day Adventists and I am proud of that name. It is a name that God has given to us as a people.

I remember my first experience in attending a Seventh-day Adventist Church. A young minister was giving a study on Daniel 7. As I listened, the pastor read the various descriptions of the little horn power from Daniel 7 and Revelation 13. There are over a dozen identifying marks of the Roman Church given in these two chapters—marks that when collectively considered could not possibly apply to any other power. Just imagine being a Roman Catholic for thirty-two years, and hearing for the first time that the leader of your church was the Antichrist.

“And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.” Revelation 13:8. The Roman Papacy is Satan’s crowning achievement, and through this power he hopes to bring the whole world under his control.

I make no apologies and I am deeply stirred within my soul. God has a message of stern rebuke to this church. We know that the Protestant nations will clasp hands with the Roman Church and that the papacy will use Protestant America as a puppet to bring all the world under its control.

“In a special sense Seventh-day Adventists have been set in the world as watchmen and light bearers. To them has been entrusted the last warning for a perishing world. On them is shining wonderful light form the Word of God. They have been given a work of the most solemn import—the proclamation of the first, second and third angel’s messages. There is no other work of so great importance. They are to allow nothing else to absorb their attention. The most solemn truths ever entrusted to mortals have been given us to proclaim to the world. The proclamation of these truths is to be our work. The world is to be warned, and God’s people are to be true to the trust committed to them. They are not to engage in speculation, neither are they to enter into business enterprises with unbelievers; for this would hinder them in their God-given work.” Testimonies, vol. 9, 19,20

We have been entrusted with a work like no other people on the face of this earth. This is the time when the Seventh-day Adventist Church should be on the front line, but the leaders are retreating, waving white flags. Peace and safety messages are being preached while those who are acting as faithful watchmen, seeking to expose the man of sin with billboards, are being disfellowshipped.

“Our message is a life-and-death message, and we must let this message appear as it is—the great power of God. Then the Lord will make it effectual. We are to present it in all its telling force. The first and second angel’s messages are bound up with the third angel’s message. The power of the proclamation of the fist and second angel’s messages is to be concentrated in the third.” The Voice in Speech and Song, 329

“When men stand out in defiance against the counsel of God, they are warring against God. Is it right for those connected with such ones to treat them as if they were in perfect harmony with them, making no difference between him that serveth God and him that serveth Him not? Though they be ministers or medical missionaries, they have dishonored Christ before the forces of the loyal and the disloyal. Open rebuke is necessary, to prevent others from being ensnared.” Testimonies for the Church Containing Letters to Physicians and Ministers Instruction to Seventh-day Adventists, 9

Today, God is calling eleventh hour workers to fill the ranks, to take the last message of mercy to a perishing world. “There are many souls to come out of the ranks of the world, out of the churches—even the Catholic Church—whose zeal will far exceed that of those who have stood in rank and file to proclaim the truth heretofore. For this reason the eleventh hour laborers will receive their penny. These will see the battle coming and will give the trumpet a certain sound. When the crisis is upon us, when the season of calamity shall come, they will come to the front, gird themselves with the whole armor of God, and exalt the law, adhere to the faith of Jesus, and maintain the cause of religious liberty which reformers defended with toil and for which they sacrificed their lives.” Selected Messages, Book 3, 387,388 They will receive eternal life because they went to the front, saw the enemy coming and rose up to battle—they were numbered with the cowardly and fearful.

When the Lord’s Day Alliance recently came out with a book, they praised the executive director what he had accomplished during his years of service. They said that he had made history for the Alliance when he spoke at Andrews University Theological Seminary in Berrien Springs, Michigan. In spite of the differences of opinion with reference to the Sabbath question, their leader explained, “We clapsed hands across these differences.” See The Great Controversy, 588.

From the Gleaner, May 17, 1993, part one of a five part series states: “We may have less to say in some lines in regards to the Roman power and the Papacy.” Quoting Ellen G. White, it continues, using quotations that emphasize the fact that we need to speak the truth in love. But I submit to you that to warn the world, giving the three angel’s messages in its entirety and exposing the man of sin, is love.

As I read: “Billboard derides Catholics, forgets to speak the truth in love,” I am concerned for my church. Then, when I read in the fourth part of the five part series in the Gleaner, July 12, 1993, “The Great Controversy: Taming the Strong Language: Such a practical approach to inspiration is not popular with some.” I find that this article concludes that Seventh-day Adventists might need to change the language of The Great Controversy. I asked myself, “Is Adventism making an image to the beast?”

The Adventist Review is now speaking up against the billboard campaign, but the thing that troubled me the most was a picture of a Roman Catholic nun, called the “cookie nun.” “Sister Jean Thuerauf, who, in an effort to get youngsters off the streets and away from gangs, started a bakery in Minneapolis, Minnesota, has earned the affectionate title of ‘Cookie Nun.’ Profits from Sister Jean’s Cookie Cart are used for scholarships so the youngsters can attend Catholic schools.” Why are we putting this in our magazine?

I received a letter in regard to the billboards from the Catholic Campus Ministry of the Ecumenical Affairs office. To support their position, they quoted from a book by George Vandeman, What I Like About….They are using our material to support the Catholic position. I am shocked at what I see.

I take no pleasure in speaking strongly, but I see our church beginning to blend with the rest of the ecumenical world. The Sacramento Bee came out with an article entitled: “Intolerance in America still a pattern of life for many.” “Intolerance in America, a billboard says, ‘And all the world wondered after the beast.’ When religion’s love is lost. Driven by fear, ignorance, fanatics sow seeds of violence.” Do you see the handwriting on the wall when it is considered intolerant in America to speak against Rome and the Papacy? The following is a part of that article.

“On a billboard along 16th Street about a month ago, high above the traffic, a faintly smiling caricature of John Paul II waved benignly to passing motorists.

“At first glance, the cartoon image of the pope might have appeared to be an advertisement for Catholicism, but a telephone call to the 800 number on the board provides a different picture. What callers received in the mail—after leaving their address—was a booklet that calls the pope the Antichrist or ‘the beast.’

“The pope is the satanic dictator who will send the world into misery and war before Jesus Christ’s second coming to save the faithful.

“To some, the billboard is an example of religious intolerance. To the billboard proponents, it is the truth.

“‘I am exercising religious liberty,’ said Danny Vierra, the Lodi man and former Catholic leading the billboard effort locally. ‘Protestant reformation was in harmony with what I am saying. The Papacy is the Antichrist.’

“He draws that conclusion, in part, because of what is inscribed on the pope’s miter, his tall ornamented cap, which carries the title Vicarius Filii Dei, Latin for Vicar of Christ.

“The booklet by author A. Jan Marcussen assigns roman numerals to the various letters in Vicarius Filii Dei….and gets 666.

“And in chapter 13, verse 18 of Revelations, the number is linked to the beast.

“Al Menendez an Episcopalian and research director for Americans for Religious Liberty in Silver Springs, Md., said the billboards—which have sprung up all over the West—are examples of religious intolerance.

“Intolerance need not be murderous. The Union of American Hebrew Congregations, representing 1.3 million reform Jews, denounce singer Sinead O’Conner for publicly defacing a photograph of the pope during a ‘Saturday Night Live’ television show.

“Roger Keller, a professor of world religion at Brigham Young University, said that there is continuous antipathy toward those who are different.

“Vierra, the ex-alter boy with the anti-papal billboards, said the doctors and business owners behind the billboards are not part of a hate group. He professed love for the Catholic people.

“‘Our goal is to get people to study the Word of God,’ he said. ‘We have had 500 phone calls. People have thanked us. They have ordered other books that expose the Papacy in detail.’

“Although the pope billboard was taken down, others have taken its place in other locations. The billboards have the ‘the phone ringing off the hook. The few calls we get against us say the pope is our holy father. The Bible says call no man father.’”

It is a sad day when Brigham Young University, the Episcopalian Church and the American Hebrew Congregations all speak out against the billboard, but shocking when officials of the Oregon Conference of Seventh-day Adventists in Portland have said the ads do not represent the views of the church.

“With rapid steps we are approaching this period. When the Protestant churches shall unite with the secular power to sustain a false religion, for opposing which their ancestors endured the fiercest persecution: when the state shall use its power to enforce the decrees and sustain the insututions of the church, –then will Protestant America have formed an image to the to the Papacy, and there will be national apostasy which will end only in national ruin.” Signs of the Times, March 22, 1910

“In the very time in which we live, the Lord has called His people and has given them a message to bear. He has called them to expose the wickedness of the man of sin who has made the Sunday law a distinctive power, who has thought to change times and laws, and to oppress the people of God who stand firmly to honor Him by keeping the only true Sabbath, the Sabbath of creation, as holy unto the Lord.” Evangelism, 705

“The Lord has a controversy with His professed people in these last days. In this controversy men in responsible positions will take a course directly opposite to that pursued by Nehemiah. [They will not be trying to repair the breach, will they?] They will not only ignore and despise the Sabbath themselves, but they will try to keep it from others by burying it beneath the rubbish of custom and tradition. In churches and in large gatherings in the open air, ministers will urge upon the people the necessity of keeping the first day of the week. There are calamities on sea and land: and other calamities will increase, one disaster following close upon another; and the little band of conscientious Sabbath-keepers will be pointed out as the ones who are bringing the wrath of God upon the world by their disregard of Sunday.” Review and Herald, March 18, 1884

As I see our church today speaking out, denying the message of those billboards—that the man of sin shall be revealed is the view of Seventh-day Adventism—and as I see Kenneth Cox professing that, “We really don’t believe that the pope is the Antichrist,” I am confused.
“I saw the nominal church and nominal Adventists, like Judas, would betray us to the Catholics to obtain their influence to come against the truth. The saints then will be an obscure people, little known to the Catholics; but the churches and nominal Adventists who know of our faith and customs (for they hated us on account of the Sabbath for they could not refute it) will betray the saints and report them to the Catholics as those who disregard the institutions of the people; that is, that they keep the Sabbath and disregard Sunday.” Spalding-Magan Collection, 1

Once a person starts working against God’s message as given by the three angels, anything is possible, because when there is not a love of the truth, the mind will very quickly move on to accept advanced delusions.

When I read in our church paper about the cookie nun, and when I see my brethren’s names being turned in to the archdiocese, I no longer am confused. “As the storm approaches, a large class who have professed faith in the third angel’s message, but have not been sanctified through obedience to the truth, abandon their position, and join the ranks of the opposition. By uniting with the world and partaking of its spirit, they have come to view matters in nearly the same light.” The Great Controversy, 608

The Episcopalians, Brigham Young University, the Baptist Church, the Ecumenical Movement, Roman Catholicism and Seventh-day Adventists are all agreed in their assertion that the billboards are not speaking the truth in love.

“Men of talent and pleasing address, who once rejoiced in the truth, employ their powers to deceive and mislead souls. They become the most bitter enemies of their former brethren. When Sabbath-keepers are brought before the courts to answer for their faith, these apostates are the most efficient agents of Satan to misrepresent and accuse them, and by false reports and insinuations to stir up the rulers against them.” Ibid.

“When Christ saw in the Jewish people a nation divorced from God, he saw also a professed Christian church united to the world and the Papacy. And as He stood upon Mount Olivet, weeping over Jerusalem till the sun sank behind the western hill, so He is watching over and pleading with sinners in these last moments of time. Soon He will say to the angels who are holding the four winds, ‘Let the plagues loose; let darkness, destruction, and death come upon the transgressors of My law.’ Will He be obliged to say to those who have had great light and great knowledge, as He said to the Jews, ‘O that thou hadst known, even thou in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace. But now they are hid from thine eyes.’?” Kress Collection, 153. Who do you think is the people spoken of in this prophecy?

“All unite in heaping their bitterest condemnation upon the ministers. Unfaithful pastors have prophesied smooth messages;…Now, in their despair, these teachers confess before the world their work of deception. The multitudes are filled with fury. ‘We are lost!’ they cry, ‘and you are the cause of our ruin;’ and they turn upon the false shepherds….Now the angel of death goes forth, represented in Ezekiel’s vision by the men with the slaughtering weapons, to whom the command is given: ‘Slay utterly old and young, both maid, and little children, and women: but come not near any man upon whom is the mark; and begin at My sanctuary.’ Says the prophet, ‘They began at the ancient men which were before the house.’ Ezekiel 9:1-6. The work of destruction begins among those who have professed to be the spiritual guardians of the people. The false watchmen are the first to fall. There are none to pity or to spare. Men, women, maidens, and little children perish together.” The Great Controversy, 655, 656

The End

The Defeat at Ai

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Is it not amazing that every story in the Bible has lessons for the people of God —lessons of present truth with warnings and admonitions? So it is with the story of Achan and Israel’s defeat at Ai. “All are doubtless familiar with Achan’s case. It is recorded in sacred history for all generations, but more especially for those upon whom the ends of the world are come.” Testimonies, vol. 3, 520. Let us see if we can learn some of the lessons for which the story of Achan and Israel’s defeat at Ai was recorded.

A short time before the defeat, Israel had just experienced the miraculous passage of the Jordan and the overthrow of Jericho. One can just imagine the excitement, eager expectation and confidence that was in the camp of Israel! Jericho, large, wealthy and one of the strongest fortresses in the land—defeated. Yes, God was with them and soon the whole land of Canaan would be theirs!

Something happened in the camp of Israel, however, after the victory at Jericho, which led to defeat. They became self-confident. “Because he [God] had promised them the land of Canaan they felt secure, and failed to realize that divine help alone could give them success. Even Joshua laid his plans for the conquest of Ai without seeking counsel from God.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 493. Spies were sent out and the report was brought back to Ai, being so small, required only a few soldiers to overtake it.

Off to battle went three thousand men, without seeking counsel from God and trusting in their own strength, fully expecting an easy victory. Confidently they approached the gates of the city, but were met with determined resistance. “Panic stricken at the numbers and thorough preparation of their enemies, they fled in confusion down the steep descent. The Canaanites were in hot pursuit.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 494

Thirty-six men lay dead—casualties of self-confidence. Self-confidence blinds us to danger, leads us to presumption, prepares the way for failure and finally, leaves us without any confidence at all—timid and fearful. “The moment we begin to feel self-sufficient and confident, then we are in danger of a disgraceful failure.” This Day with God, 277. This was exactly the experience of Israel. They had gone to battle in their own strength, were humiliated in cruel defeat and returned with no confidence, now fearful of the smallest of enemies. “The hearts of the people melted, and became as water.” Joshua 7:5

The lesson for us is the danger of trusting in ourselves. “Nothing is more offensive to God than a self-sufficient spirit.” The Faith I Live By, 138. “Self-confidence will lead you into the snare of the enemy. The youth do not ask counsel of God, and make Him their refuge and strength. They enter society with all assurance, confident that they are fully able to choose the right and to comprehend divine mysteries, because of their powers of reason, as though they could discover truth for themselves. We fear more for those who are self-confident than for any others, for they will surely be entangled in the net that has been set by the great adversary of God and man….Those who are exalted in their own opinions will despise the blood of the Atoning sacrifice, and will do despite to the Spirit of grace.” Signs of the Times, April 21, 1890

What is one to do if, through the working of the Holy Spirit upon their heart, they see that they are self-confident and want to change? “Some are self-confident, self-sufficient, exalted in their opinion of themselves, because they do not have clear views of Jesus. If they lived near to Him, they would see His purity, His matchless benevolence, his self-sacrifice and infinite love, which would lead them to see their deficiencies; and when viewing the cross of Calvary, and the sufferings that Christ endured that they might be rescued from ruin, they could not have one exalted feeling in regard to self.” Review and Herald, December 18, 1883

Though Israel was humbled through defeat, God was nonetheless watching over them and when, in their ignorance and weakness, they cried out to Him, He was there. “Then Joshua tore his clothes, and fell to the earth on his face before the ark of the Lord until evening, both he and the elders of Israel; and they put dust on their heads. And Joshua said, ‘Alas, Lord God, why have You brought this people over the Jordan at all—to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us? Oh, that we had been content, and dwelt on the other side of the Jordan! O Lord, what shall I say when Israel turns its back before its enemies? For the Canaanites and all the inhabitants of the land will hear of it, and surround us, and cut off our name from the earth. Then what will You do for Your great name?’” Joshua 7:6-9 (NKJV)

“Joshua manifested a true zeal for the honor of God, yet his petitions were mingled with doubt and unbelief. The thought that God had brought His people over the Jordan to deliver them up to the power of the heathen was a sinful one, unworthy of a leader of Israel. Joshua’s feelings of despondency and distrust were inexcusable in view of the mighty miracles which God had wrought for the deliverance of His people, and the repeated promise that He would be with them in driving out the wicked inhabitants of the land.

“But our merciful God did not visit his servant with wrath because of this error. He graciously accepted the humiliation and prayers of Joshua, and at the same time gently rebuked his unbelief, and then revealed to him the cause of their defeat.” Signs of the Times, April, 21, 1881

“Get up! Why do you lie thus on your face?” Joshua 7:10 (NKJV). The people were not to go on lamenting and mourning, but find the cause of the displeasure of the Lord. There was secret sin in the camp and it was to be dealt with. “The sin of one man caused Israel to be beaten before the enemy. Something more than prayer was required. They were to get up and cleanse the camp if Israel.” Conflict and Courage, 120

“Joshua had a work to do to search out the guilty one, and put away the sin from the congregation. Instead of concluding that the Lord had brought upon His people defeat and ruin, Joshua should rather have made diligent inquiry if all Israel had been faithful to their covenant with God.” Signs of the Times, April 21, 1881

Before the conquest of Jericho, God gave a very direct command in regard to the spoil. “And ye, in any wise keep yourselves from the accursed thing, lest ye make yourselves accursed, when ye take of the accursed thing, and make the camp of Israel a curse, and trouble it. But all the silver, and gold, and vessels of brass and iron, are consecrated unto the Lord: they shall come into the treasury of the Lord.” Joshua 7:12 (NKJV)

Achan had taken one of the forbidden Babylonish garments, which he thought too valuable to be destroyed in the flames, two hundred shekels of silver and a wedge of gold weighing fifty shekels. In taking the silver and gold, Achan had not only disobeyed, but he had stolen from the treasury of the Lord.

The sin of one man cost the death of thirty-six people. What a lesson for us today. “That our influence should be a savor of death unto death is a fearful thought, yet it is possible. One soul misled, forfeiting eternal bliss—who can estimate the loss! And yet one rash act, one thoughtless word, on our part may exert so deep an influence on the life of another that it will prove the ruin of his soul. One blemish on the character may turn many away from Christ.” Prophets and Kings, 86. No soul will be lost that will not draw other souls down with him. Are you, by your sin, to be responsible for the eternal loss of some around you?

Joshua was instructed as to how he was to deal with the situation. In His great mercy, God did not immediately deal with Achan. “The sinner was not directly pointed out, the matter being left in doubt for a time, that the people might feel their responsibility for the sins existing among them, and thus be led to searching of heart and humiliation before God.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 494, 495. Notice that “the children of Israel committed a trespass” and “they have even taken some of the accursed things.” Joshua 7:1,11 (NKJV). “The nation was held accountable for the guilt of the transgressor.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 494. And so today, “The church as a whole is in a degree responsible for the wrongs of its individual members because they countenance the evil in not lifting up their voice against it.” Testimonies, vol. 4, 491. “We repeat, God holds the church responsible for its individual members.” Signs of the Times, April 21, 1881

The solemn investigation before the whole congregation commenced early the next morning. Step by step the process continues. Closer and closer came the fearful test. Opportunity after opportunity was given him to confess his sin, but none of them were taken. Finally, Achan was named as the guilty party.

In the hope of averting the terrible consequences of his crime, he confessed his sin. “When I saw among the spoils a beautiful Babylonian garment, two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold weighing fifty shekels, I coveted them and took them. And there they are, hidden in the earth in the midst of my tent, with the silver under it.” Joshua 7:21 (NKJV)

“The confession of Achan, although too late to be available in bringing to him any saving virtue, vindicated the character of God in His manner of dealing with him.” The Youth’s Instructor, February 1, 1894. Doesn’t the confession of Achan remind you of the confession of the devil and all those who are lost at the end of the millennium? They will all bow down and confess to the whole universe that God is right, that He is just, that He is holy; but it will be too late. What a lesson in the need of thorough confession today.

After Achan’s confession, Joshua sent messengers to Achan’s tent who brought back the accursed things and laid them before the children of Israel. These things, along with all of Achan’s belongings, his wife, and children, were taken to the Valley of Achor, stoned and then burned with fire.

Just as cherishing known sin was Achan’s downfall, so it will be the downfall of all who delay to repent and confess. See Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, vol.2, 997. “God is the same yesterday, today and forever.” He requires no less of his people today than He did in Achan’s day. “Satan’s power is increasing, he is terribly in earnest, knowing that his time is short, he is working with all ‘deceivableness of unrighteousness.’ Those who would escape his wiles must be vigilant and determined. If we would meet the demands for this time, we must put on the whole armor, and go forth with energy, perseverance, and unswerving faith. In God alone is our strength. Indolence and slothfulness, presumption and self-confidence, will alike bring defeat and destruction. God takes cognizance of the works of all. Those who have sought their ease, and shunned care, anxiety and labor for God’s cause, may be sure their sin will find them out. Those who, like Achan, cherish selfishness, avarice and deception, may be sure that God’s eye is upon them. As He searched out Achan, He will search them out, as He pronounced a curse upon them.” Signs of the Times, May 5, 1881

Today God has also given us direct and specific commands about some accursed things. Why do you think He has given us these commands? Could it be that He is trying to teach us the same things that He taught the Israelites? Could it be that in the spoil of this world, there is much that is objectionable and sinful, which would lead to our moral corruption?

In writing about these accursed things, Ellen White records under that category the following:

Adultery and Fornication

Adultery is wicked in the eyes of God. No matter how bad our marriage or how lonely we may be, there is absolutely no excuse given in the Word of God for sin, and we have express direction from the prophet of the Lord to cleanse the camp of this sin, no matter what the sinner’s position. “When men and women of large experience, who have been considered patterns of piety, are revealed in their true character—unsanctified, unholy, impure in thought, debased in conduct,–then it is time for such to be dealt with in a decided manner. The greater forbearance that is exercised toward them has only had, as far as my knowledge extends, the influence to cause them to regard their fornication and adultery as a very light matter, and all their pretense has proved to be like morning dew when the sun shines upon it….

“Cleanse the camp of this moral corruption, if it takes the highest men in the highest positions. God will not be trifled with.” Testimonies to Ministers, 426, 427

2. Immodest Apparel and Extravagance

What was it that Achan took? A goodly Babylonish garment—clothes. Especially to the ladies does dress apply. “As I have seen many Sabbath keeping Adventists become worldly in thought, conversation, and dress, my heart has been saddened. The people who claim to believe that they have the last message of mercy to give to the world, are attracted by worldly fashions, and make great exertions to follow them as far as they think their profession of faith allows them to go.” Selected Messages, book 3, 243

Fashionable dress is a tool of the devil to get the youth and those that are older to use up their time thinking about what they look like on the outside so that the character is neglected and they are not ready for Jesus when He comes. If fashion is your besetting sin, God will give you the victory if you repent and make a determined effort to change. Before you make purchases, send up a prayer asking that holy angels will accompany you, guiding in the decisions you make.

Extravagance was also mentioned in the quotation above. Jesus said, “Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses.” Luke 12:15 (NKJV). One’s life does not consist in what we wear, what we own, or what we have in our bank accounts. “For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.” 1Timothy 6:10 (NKJV). I would like to invite you, if you are not already doing so, to look over the things that you own and to spend some time during your devotions asking God what you can give up for Him and what he wants you to do with the funds He has given you. I don not know what God wants you to do with your funds, but I know that He wants them in his work and not in the hands of the enemy. I have spent time praying about this and afterwards I felt that the Lord was telling me, “No,” to a personal desire. “you wait on those things,” Do you do with your money what you profess? As Seventh-day Adventists we need to fulfill our profession not just in our diet and dress, but in the way we spend our money as well. Extravagance is not fitting for a Seventh-day Adventist. See also Proverbs 21:25,26; Psalm 10:3.

Intemperance.

“I would point the intemperate to a power out of and beyond themselves,–the power of Jesus. Flee to your Saviour. He has overcome in behalf of just such helpless, sinful ones as you. In His strength you may be honest, faithful men, true to your Maker. But no half-way work will suffice. You must be thorough. And do not think that you can do the work of abstaining gradually. Leave the accursed thing once and forever. ‘Touch not, taste not, handle not.’ Drink not a drop of the liquor which wets depraved appetite on fire.” Signs of the Times, January 30, 1901

False Reports.

“False reports had been circulated, and the band had been sinking and had lost the power of the third angel’s message. They were sickly, but knew not the cause. The reason was that there was an accursed thing in the camp, and by the assistance of God we were trying to get it out of the camp.” Manuscript Releases, vol. 3, 242

Jealousy, Evil Surmising and Evil Speaking.

“There was a time when Israel could not prevail against their enemies. This was because of Achan’s sin. God declared, ‘Neither will I be with you any more, except ye destroy the accursed thing from among you.’ God is the same today. If defiling sins are cherished by those who claim to believe the truth, the displeasure of God rests upon the church, and he will not remove it until the members do all in their power to show their hatred for sin, and their determination to cast it out of the church. God is displeased with those who call evil good and good evil. If jealousy, evil surmising, and evil-speaking are allowed to have a place in the church, that church is under the frown of God. It will be spiritually unhealthy until it is cleansed from these sins, for till then God cannot reveal His power to strengthen and elevate His people and give them victory.” The Ellen G. White 1888 Materials, 144

Carrying out the decisions of those we know are not in harmony with the truth.

No matter what the position, even in the professed church of God, we have no assurance that God will be with us if we fulfill the commands of those who are not in harmony with the truth. On the contrary, it is one of the accursed things and God has said He will not be with us as long as this is our practice. “I call upon God’s people to open their eyes. When you sanction or carry out the decisions of men who, as you know, are not in harmony with truth and righteousness, you weaken your own faith and lose your relish for communion with God. You seem to hear the voice which was addressed to Joshua: ‘Wherefore liest thou thus upon thy face? Israel hath sinned, and they have also transgressed My covenant which I commanded them….There is an accursed thing in the midst of thee, O Israel.’ ‘Neither will I be with you anymore, except ye destroy the accursed from among you.’ Christ declares, ‘he that gathereth not with Me scattereth abroad.’” Testimonies to Ministers, 91

Are you willing to cleanse your heart of every accursed thing? Are you willing to lift your voice in protest of sin that the camp (church) may be cleansed of every accursed thing?

Today the church of Christ is entering into the most severe conflict with the powers of darkness it has ever faced. Are we ready? Have we made God our consultant? Have we humbled ourselves before Him and rid ourselves of every ounce of self-confidence which will lead us and the church to defeat? Have we made sure that there are none among us who are disregarding the explicit command of God? Oh, friend, Ellen White said in her day that there was an Achan in almost every congregation and every family. What would she say today?

There is sin in the camp today, preventing a full manifestation of the power of God. When sin is out of our lives, God will evidence His presence with the outpouring of His Spirit. This is as much a law as is the law of gravity. Oh, friend, God is waiting for you; he is waiting for me, to put sin out of our hearts. Will you set yourself about today to commence this solemn work? It is time, not only to cry out to the Lord for help in prayer, but it is time to cleanse the camp of every accursed thing. God is going to work; He will manifest His power, but He cannot do it while we hold sin in our hearts and grant wisdom to his people in doing the work of cleansing the entire camp from all sin.

The End

The Four Prerequisites for Unity

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Surrounded by the eleven men who were going to be responsible for taking the gospel of His grace to the whole world, Jesus offered the prayer for them that we find recorded in John 17. This prayer, however, is not for those eleven men alone, because verse 20 says; “I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word.” All who believe in Jesus are included, because we only know of Him through the testimony of these men.

Jesus continues: “That they all may be one, as You, father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.” All the way to the end of His prayer inverse 26, the primary point for which Jesus expressed great concern was that there might be unity among His people.

Unity is not just something that is important; it is something the must take place before Jesus comes again. It is so important that Ellen White has told us that if we do not press together in unity, we will be destroyed.

In studying this subject, I have found that a number of areas are included. In this article we will explore two of them.

From time to time, I have been asked to meet with various individuals in administration in the Seventh-day Adventist Church organization. While I would be glad to meet with these men, I cannot do it unless some conditions are met. We can have no unity with the various branches of the organization until four things have first taken place. The first two areas which we sill consider in this article, are repentance and confession.

What do we need to repent of? We need to repent for having wandered into doctrinal error, or heresy. There was a time when the head of our medical work, Dr. John Harvey Kellogg, wandered into some theological positions that were not sound. Not only were they not sound, they would have destroyed Adventism had they been accepted, as was pointed out by Ellen White.

“I leave this matter as it now stand; for I am pained beyond measure because our brother’s spiritual views ate not founded on a solid basis. The man can never be relied upon in the future, unless heart and soul, mind and strength, are entirely changed, revamped. As matters now stand, I can not see how there can be Christian unity between the medical missionary work as led by those in error, and the gospel ministry. There can be no unity without a decided change in the one who has stood as leader of our medical work.” Series B, 7,54 [All emphasis supplied.]

Notice that she said that he could never be trusted in the future. It is no different today. When a minister or leader wanders into doctrinal heresy, he can not be trusted unless he decides to repent of his error and that fact has been demonstrated by a full confession. Our problem is that we have grown up in a public relations era where people believe that you can smooth everything over with a veneer and after a time everyone will forget and life can go on, but this is not the gospel.

Because of their desire for harmony, many people are tempted to seek a type of unity with those whom they know to be in error. The devil wants us to harmonize with error, but there is a grave danger in doing so, and we must not do it.

“Oh, how deceptive is the human heart! How easy it is to harmonize with that which is evil! There is nothing more detrimental to the soul’s interest, its purity, its true and holy conceptions of God, and of sacred and eternal things, than constantly giving heed to and exalting that which is not form God. It poisons the heart, and degrades the understanding.” Selected Messages, book 2, 78

What does it mean to repent? In the Greek language, the word for repentance comes form a word that means a change of mind. In other word, you change your mind about sin, and when repentance is genuine, you will change you life. That is why we are told that genuine repentance is followed by reformation. See The Desire of Ages, 555. If there is no reformation in the life, then there has not been true repentance.

If, however, we are too proud to confess, if we are too proud to repent, we can never come into unity.

It is so easy for people who have been Christians for a long time, and have not been living openly immoral lives, to think that somehow they no longer need to confess. This is especially true of those in positions of trust. Minister, however, need to study the subject of repentance and confession just as much as anyone else, and maybe more, because their position makes repentance and confession so much more difficult to do.

“If when the Lord reveals your errors you do not repent or make confession, His providence will bring you over the ground again and again. You will be left to make mistakes of a similar character, you will continue to lack wisdom, and will call sin righteousness, and righteousness sin. The multitude of deceptions that will prevail in these last days will encircle you, [she is talking to ministers here] and you will change leaders, and not know that you have done so.

“I ask you who are handling sacred things, I ask the individual members of the church, Have you confessed your sins?” Review and Herald, December 16, 1890

It is a dangerous thing, when God reveals to a person something in their life that is wrong, for that person not to accept it with repentance and confession. When this takes place, the thinking becomes distorted so that sin appears as righteousness and righteousness as sin. It is even possible for a minister to continue preaching and call himself a Seventh-day Adventist, but to have changed leaders without realizing it. Instead of following Christ, he has become a part of Satan’s organization.

Confession is absolutely vital and of all people, ministers should be the most diligent to be sure that their sins are repented of and confessed.

“Confess your faults to one another, that you may be healed. How many there are who are carrying a load of unconfessed wrongdoing. They try to shape matters so that their dignity will not be hurt. To make wrongs right from the very first departure, looks to them like extinguishing themselves.” Signs of the Times, October 30, 1901

Where am I to go back to, to get things made right? To the very first departure from the right. This is a critical point to understand when you want to have unity. Some people ask, “Why can’t we all just all get together?”

Before we can get together in unity, we are going to have to go back to where the departure was and make it right.

Let me just give and illustration that has to do with this. Have you ever had somebody ask you, “Why can’t you just associate and fellowship with the Seventh-day Baptists? What is the difference?” Oh, there is a big difference between Seventh-day Baptists and Seventh-day Adventists. The difference is that in the 1840s, the Seventh-day Baptists did not accept the first angel’s message. When you do not accept the first angel’s message, you are not in a position to accept the second angel’s message. If you do not accept the second angel’s message, you are no in a position to accept the third angel’s messages which are present truth for today.

I worked with and evangelist once who told me that when you are explaining something sensitive, always put it on the other foot. Do not every make the person you are talking with appear in a bad light. If you are talking with Methodists, do not talk about the Methodists, talk about the Baptists or some other group, or the person to whom you are speaking is very apt to take it personally and you will have a barrier of prejudice to overcome before you can reach them. I just followed that principle. I have not talked to you about Seventh-day Adventists, but if you follow this principle through, it applies in Adventism.

“Men have in their minds justified the course that was then taken. They have viewed things, from beginning to end, in a altogether false light; and form the present showing, the same course will be followed in the future.” Spalding-Magan Collection, 178

These words are part of an appeal to our leading ministers to repent and confess of what we had done wrong. Some people urge charity and express a concern that it is hurtful to those involved to discuss these things, but notice what we are told about true charity.

“True charity never covers up unrepented and unconfessed sins.” Signs of the Times, May 11, 1876

“While we should manifest Christian courtesy, we are authorized to call sin and sinners by their right names—that this is consistent with true charity. While we are to love the souls for whom Christ died, and labor for their salvation, we should not make a compromise with sin. We are not to unite with the rebellious, and call this charity. God requires His people in this age of the world to stand, as did john in his time, unflinchingly for the right, in opposition to soul destroying errors.” Sanctified Life, 65

Some people believe that it is wrong to name names, but that is not what we are told by inspiration. It is necessary that they be named so that other people will no be led astray. We are to call sin and sinners by their right name and appeal to them to repent. We are to denounce what they are doing so that the Holy Spirit can convict their minds to repent and confess their sins, because we are very close to the time when there will longer be an opportunity to confess our sin, to repent.

Friend, in Adventism today, there is a lot to repent of and much to confess, but there can never be unity unless these steps are first followed.

“When Brother G once takes a position on the wrong side, it is not easy for him to confess that he has error; but if he can let his wrong course pass out of his mind and pass from the memory of others, and he can make some changes for the better without an open acknowledgement of his wrong, he will do so. But all these errors and unconfessed sins stand registered in heaven and will not be blotted out until he complies with the directions given in the word of God: ‘Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed.’” Testimonies, vol. 4, 241

Do you see what it is that is blocking us from having unity? Can we deny that there has been scheming and prevarication in Adventism in the last few years? These things make unity impossible.

“He would teach His people that disobedience and sin are exceedingly offensive to Him and are not to be lightly regarded. He shows us that when His people are found in sin they should at once take decided measures to put that sin from them, that His frown may not rest upon them all. Bur if the sins of the people are passed over by those in responsible positions, His frown will be upon them, and the people of God, as a body, will be held responsible for those sins.” Testimonies, vol. 3, 265

The plain, straight testimony must live in the church, or the curse of God will rest upon His people as surely as it did upon ancient Israel because of their sins. God holds his people, as a body, responsible for the sins existing in individuals among them. If the leaders of the church neglect to diligently search our the sins which bring the displeasure of God upon the body, they become responsible for these sins.” Ibid. 269

Now, friends, if you understand very much at all about church history, that statement should put a great load on you. Do you have any idea of some of the things that have happened in Adventism that, as far as I can find out, have never been repented of or confessed?

What was happening in the 50s, 60s, and 70s?

Remember when the book Questions on Doctrine came out in the 1950s, introducing heresy?

Remember what took place in the Mary Kay Silvers case in the 1970s? Was it right? We have been defending it ever since. I have a whole booklet in my library defending what we did. I read the booklet and then read the accounts of what had happened and when I finished, I said, “It was not right.”

Somebody may say, “Well, she did this, that and the other.” It does not matter what the other person has done. You don not have to answer for what she did, but if we were a member of the organization at that time, we are going to have to answer for what we have don, or allowed others to do in our church, without protest. I think we have more repenting and confessing to do than many of us have ever imagined. I think that if we want to be ready for the Lord to come, we had better figure out what we are going to do and start doing something about everything that comes to our notice.

In the 1980s there was John Marik who was put in prison for religious reasons. This action was initiated by the General Conference of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, and I have paper work confirming this. That was a sin, friends, and what we did is registered in the book of heaven.

The first thing that is essential to unity is repentance.

Someone may ask, “Pastor John, are you speaking only about the organization?” No, I am not denying that there may be things for which I need to repent. If there are blind spots in my character that I do not see, for which I need to repent, then someone among god’s people who loves me needs to point them out to me, so that I can repent. Unity will never be obtained without repentance, and true repentance will always be followed by confession.

“All sin unrepented of and unconfessed will remain upon the books of record. It will not be blotted out, it will not go beforehand to judgement, to be canceled by the atoning blood of Jesus. The accumulated sins of every individual will be written with absolute accuracy.” Review and Herald, March 27, 1888

We are living in the Day of Atonement. Are you reviewing your life? Are you asking, “Lord, did I think a thought , speak a word or do anything today that was not pleasing in Your sight?”

If you will begin the process of repenting and confessing your faults and mistakes, you will find that it becomes progressively easier. It is certainly humbling, but as with many difficult things, it is always hardest at first.

Some of you may feel overwhelmed as you consider the formidable task before you and be tempted to say, “pastor John, if I follow your advice on repenting and confessing of sin, I would not even get all my sins repented of and confessed before the Lord comes; there are too many!” but, god is the One who said this and if you co not know how to get it all done, you had better talk to Him about it. All I can do is share with you what the Lord said. Ask the Lord to help you to get it done. The sooner you get started, the sooner you will finish.

About this time, one of the questions that makes people very nervous is, “What if I cannot remember? Am I then shut out of the kingdom of heaven?”

The Bible says: “For if there is first a willing mind, it is accepted according to what one has, and not according to what he does not have.” 2 Corinthians 8:12. If you have a willingness in your mind and will make a commitment with the Lord, the Holy Spirit will point out to you what you need to do to be right with God. The problem is not with our memories because god can supply our deficiencies. The real problem is that we need to have a mind that is willing to make things right.

“There are those who are supposed to be excellent men, but they have some flaw in their character which, under special temptation, becomes as a dead fly in the ointment. The whole character will be perverted by one unconfessed sin.” Manuscript Releases, vol. 13, 190

If we allow one sin in our life that is not confessed and repented of, that one sin will flaw the entire character. In Testimonies, vol. 5, 53, we are told that one sin will neutralize all the power of the gospel.

Ellen White once wrote to an elderly person who was living in sin, but who had not long to live. She said, “The sands of your life are nearly run out, and now if you will come to God just as you are, without one plea but that He has died to save the chiefest of sinners you will find pardon even in this the eleventh hour.” Testimonies on Sexual Behavior, Adultery, and Divorce, 133

Oh, friend, whatever your situation, whatever the sin in your life, even if it is the eleventh hour of your life, you can come to Jesus and repent and confess and find forgiveness for your sin. The gospel is a wonderful thing. Not only can you find forgiveness from your sins, but you can find power to live a new life, to no longer live in sin.

“Christ did not die to have power to cover transgression unrepented of and unconfessed. Not all sins are to be confessed publicly, but some are to be confessed alone to God and the parties that have been injured.” Ibid.

We need to pray: “Lord whatever You have to do with me to prepared me for heaven, whatever experience I have to go through, whatever trial, whatever happens, please, Lord, do not let me die in sin.” If you die with your mistakes concealed and unconfessed, you are lost.

“The mansions that Jesus has gone to prepare for all who love Him, will be peopled by those who are free from sin. But sins that are not confessed will never be forgiven; the name of him who thus rejects the grace of God will be blotted out of the book of life.” Ibid.

Friend, I am willing for you to correct me on anything that you can find from inspired writings, but if I am correct, we have a lot more repenting and confessing to do than most of us have ever had any idea of and we had better pray and ask the Lord to help us to get it done. We are either going to confess it now, or after the millennium. By the grace of God, let us begin now.

The End

Who are the Brethren?

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For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.” Romans 1:16

I am not ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ, and I hope that it is the same with you. If, however, we are going to really understand the gospel, we need to do as the Bereans did. The Bereans “were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.” Acts 17:11

It used to be that Adventists were known as people of the Bible, but those days are past. No longer are we studying as we once did, and in the place of spiritual food, we are being fed pabulum. As a result, we are being blown to and fro by every wind of doctrine that comes along. Paul told Timothy: Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed—[What?]—rightly dividing the word of truth.” 2 Timothy 2:15

I believe there are several scriptures that are misunderstood in Adventism today. One of the most misunderstood and misapplied passages of Scripture is the one found in Matthew 13 dealing with the wheat and the tares. This parable has been so twisted in Adventism that people today believe they are to accept any abominable thing that comes into the church. They look at you with a pious face and say; “Oh, we can’t say anything about it. Don’t you know about the ‘wheat and the tares’? The wheat and the tares grow up until the time of the harvest, and the time of the harvest is the end of the world—the Second Coming.”

So, are all of these abominations that are going on, to continue until the very end; and are we to do nothing about it? Are we to just sit back and piously say: “It’s the wheat and the tares”? Nothing could be further from the truth. Jesus told the parable of the wheat and the tares in Matthew 13:24-30, but he then went on to explain it to His disciples in verses 36-43.

Many times Jesus had to explain His words to His disciples because they could not understand their meaning. They had been so misled by the religious leaders—brain washed, if you please, that their minds seemed incapable of expanding. They had listened to a perversion of truth for so long, from those blind leaders, that they could not understand these simple truths. So, once again, Jesus privately explains this parable of the wheat and the tares.

“Jesus sent the multitude away, and went into the house, and his disciples came unto him, saying, Declare unto us the parable of the tares of the field. He answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man; the field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one; the enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels. As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world. The Son of man shall send forth His angels and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; and shall cast them into a furnace of fire; there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.” Matthew 13:36-43

What is the harvest? It is the end of the world. I am embarrassed to admit it, but for years I believed that the harvest was the Second Coming. I never really thought much about it; I just thought that somehow the Lord was going to come down and the angels were going to suddenly separate the wheat and the tares. In one sentence, however, Ellen White makes so clear how this is to take place.

“The tares and the wheat are to grow together until the harvest; and the harvest is the end of probationary time.” Christ’s Object Lessons, 72. Do you know what that means? Clearly, the harvest must take place before the close of probation. Yes, the harvest takes place in the general time period of the Second Coming, but it takes place some time before.

While at our camp meeting in Kansas—the Steps to Life camp meeting—we saw a wonderful thing taking place; the combines going through the wheat fields, and what a sight it was. All day and into the night they worked. There were long lines of trucks, large, eighteen wheelers, waiting to be weighed. I asked one old timer how long this harvesting had been going on.

He said, “Oh, this has been going on for weeks.”

I said, “Well, when is it going to be over?”

He replied, “Well, we want to get it over before the rain gets it wet.” You see, the harvest is not an instantaneous process; it takes place over a period of time.

That is the way the harvest is with God. It is not an instantaneous thing. The angels are not going to suddenly come down and with a swish, the harvest is over and boom—we all go home.

If the harvest must take place before the close of probation and the harvest is not an instantaneous thing, but a process that takes place over a period of time, it does not take a rocket scientist to figure out that the harvest is either here, or very near.

Let us consider the process that takes place in the harvest.

First of all, the wheat are bound together, aren’t they? There is a separation taking place, but there is also a unity, as they are being bound together.

What happens to the tares? They are being bound together in bundles, too; so among the tares, we see a unity also. But what is going to happen to these bundles? They are going to be burned.

I am firmly convicted that right now the harvest is going on. As never before, we are seeing a unity in separation among those who profess to be the people of God. The tares are uniting and the wheat are uniting. There is separation and unity going on at the same time, and it is taking place right now.

Do not ever let anybody try to tell you that the parable of the wheat and the tares says that we must allow sin and corruption and every abominable thing to come into God’s church, because the wheat and tares all grow together until the end. That is not what this parable teaches at all. In fact, do you know what it does teach? This parable teaches that we are not to disfellowship the wrong people.

We are told in Christ’s Object Lessons that the parable of the wheat and the tares teaches us that we are to judge people on open sin, but we are not to judge motives. If a person is keeping the commandments of God, you are to leave them alone. The workers in the parable of the wheat and the tares said, “Master, should we pull them up?” he said, “No! Leave them alone. Let them grow together until the harvest.” Now, when is the harvest? Right now. And who does the separating? The angels.

You see, according to Matthew 13, if someone is keeping the commandments of God, you have no right to touch them.

Now let us look at Matthew 18. I believe this is the most misused chapter of the Bible. According to Matthew 18, if I have seen a brother in private sin, I am to come to him and say, “I want to talk to you brother. You are doing thus, or so, violating the commandments of God.” It is just between myself and this brother. But if he says, “I do not accept that. I’m going to keep on doing it,” I am then, and not until then, to proceed to the next step.

It is now time to go to the elders. The elders say, “Brother, we need to see you. One person has already talked to you and you refused to repent, confess and forsake your sin. If you will not repent today, we are going to have to take it to the church.” If he still refuses to repent, you are left with no choice but to take it to the church, which in turn must disfellowhsip him.

When it is not a public sin, but a private matter, you are to go to the person privately and share your concern. Now, if he will repent, confess it to the Lord and say he is sorry, then you are to forget it. That is it. That is as far as it goes. But if he will not accept it or repent, then you are to take it to the elders. If he still will not accept the counsel and repent, then you are to take it to the church and he is to be put out and disfellowshipped.

If you read the passage where Mrs. White explains Matthew 18, she says very definitely that what is bound on earth is bound in heaven only if this procedure has been followed according to God’s plan. If it has been violated in any way, God does not recognize the decision. So, before we start saying we are going to Matthew 18 somebody, we had better know what Matthew 18 says. Never tell someone that you are going to “Matthew 18 them” when they are not in sin. If you want to read with someone, study with them or even talk over theology, then do what Paul did: reason with them. See Acts 17:2; 18:4-9. When you tell someone that in coming to them you are following Matthew 18, then, according to Scripture, you are coming to them as a brother reproving them for a sin they have committed, or that you believe they have done.

Matthew 18 does not apply to anyone who is threatening the prosperity of the church and leading our people into sin. Mrs. White makes this very clear in Testimonies, vol. 2, 15.
“My husband then stated that he should understand that these words of our Lord had reference to cases of personal trespass, and could not be applied in the case of this sister. She had not trespasses against Sister White. But that which had been reproved publicly was public wrongs which threatened the prosperity of the church and the cause. Here, said my husband, is a text applicable to the case: 1 Timothy 5:20: ‘Them that sin rebuke before all, that others also may fear.’”

What is Mrs. White saying? She is saying that Matthew 18 does not apply to anyone who is leading God’s people astray—open sin. Any time that somebody, a religious leader, or whoever, does anything that threatens the prosperity of the church, you are not to Matthew 18 them. And if you do, then you do not understand Matthew 18.

I am amazed what has happened in Adventism. Open sin is to be openly rebuked, but we have become such passivists, we are afraid to even speak up against it. We have clasped hands with this ecumenical spirit, that says: “oh don’t say anything; don’t rock the boat; let’s just all be friends.” We think it is so Christian, but it is of the devil. The devil would just love to sugarcoat these differences and have us say, “Well, let’s just put aside our differences and come together on the things that we don’t agree on.” But brothers and sisters, white is white and black is black, not gray, as the ecumenical movement would have us believe.

When you read the basics of Neuro-Linguistic Programming and realize that the whole premise of NLP is that a person’s mind can be changed without them even knowing it, making white black and black white, you realize that it is the most sinister evil of the twentieth century.

Constance Cumby, author of Hidden Secrets of the Rainbow, spoke with me several times on the telephone. She said, “John, I know a lot about Adventism; maybe more than you think I know, as a non-Adventist. But, I’m here to tell you, the other churches do know what’s going on in Adventism better than Adventists know.” She said: “In my research for Hidden Secrets of the Rainbow, I came across the facts that Seventh-day Adventists were doing more to embrace Neuro-Linguistic Programming, and more Seventh-day Adventist ministers have been trained in Neuro-Linguistic programming than all other denominations of America combined.” She went on to say: “If you are blowing the whistle on NLP in Adventism, you can tell them to write or call me and I will share with them the result of my research in my book Hidden Secrets of the Rainbow. I will say without reservation, and as an attorney, it is my opinion that Neuro-Linguistic programming is the most sinister and diabolical thing that has come into Christianity in the 20th century.”

“But when he [John the Baptist] saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance: and think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham.” Matthew 3:7-10

Now, who were the Pharisees and the Sadducees? They were the religious leaders, the men who would not let John the Baptist speak at any of the churches. Was John part of the structure? He was an independent minister who said what had to be said. He had no degrees and carried no credentials. In fact, when the religious leaders came out to him, if he had had any training in public relations he would have baptized them; but instead, he turned to them and said, “You snakes.” More than that, he called them rattlesnakes—vipers. He said, “You bunch of rattlesnakes. You do the work of the Lord, and then I’ll baptize you. What you’re doing now is nothing but pretense. You are just trying to get on the right side of the people. You’re trying to be politicians.”

While they were putting up the facade of being so sweet, in their hearts, they really could not stand him.

Don’t be fooled; times have not changed. People, however, are so easily deceived. You will hear them say: “Oh, he is so sweet; any time we go to see him, he just invites us right in to his office and talks to us. We are so honored.”

It is snake oil folks. Whether you know it or not, these leaders of God’s professed people hate everything you stand for and they will try to destroy it in every way. They will use either the carrot or the stick, whichever they think will get the best result with you. If sugar coating you and rolling out the red carpet is the way to get your cooperation, they are going to do it; but don’t be deceived, because, if the carrot doesn’t work, they are going to use the stick.

John the Baptist knew what was in their hearts and he called them a bunch of rattlesnakes. There were no doubt, some who said: “Oh, John, you shouldn’t have said that to them. You did the wrong thing; don’t you know who those men are? Why, they could have given great success to your cause if you had just baptized them. Together we could all be one big happy family.”
Do you know why he said what he did? Because the Holy Spirit told him to say it. Man’s ways are not God’s ways.

“The forerunner of Christ’s first advent was a very plain-spoken man. He rebuked sin, and called things by their right names. He laid the ax at the root of the tree. He thus addressed one class of professed converts [we found out who they were—the religious leaders] who came to be baptized of him in Jordan: ‘O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bring forth therefore fruit meat for repentance….And now also the ax is laid unto the root of the tree; therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.’” Testimonies, vol. 1, 321. Now listen to this. “In this fearful time, [What time is she talking about? She’s talking about the harvest] just before Christ is to come the second time, God’s faithful preachers will have to bear a still more pointed testimony than was born by John the Baptist. A responsible, important work is before them; and those who speak smooth things, God will not acknowledge as his shepherds. A fearful woe is upon them.” Ibid.

We read about Moses and Aaron. Everybody loved Aaron, but they thought Moses was so terrible. Oh, the way he yanked that golden calf down, burned it, ground it into powder, threw it into water and then made them drink it. They said, “Oh, Moses, you’re so harsh, but Aaron, is such a loving man. Why can’t you be like Aaron, Moses?’ God does not, however, see things as such. Moses was the one who was favored of God and Aaron was the one who was cursed for leading God’s people into apostasy. The same thing is taking place today. Idolatry is being brought into the church by these smooth talking Aarons, and our people are saying, “Ah, but he’s such a loving man.” Let me tell you something folks. These loving preachers who are preaching nothing but love, love, will love you right into hell.

There are people who say, “John, you ought to be more Christlike.” I could not agree more, but let’s understand what it means to be Christlike with apostate religious leaders. Did you ever notice that Jesus never talked to the laity the way He did to the apostate religious leaders? Why, Jesus addressed them just as John had done. See Matthew 23; John 8:44.

Was Jesus part of the structure? No, and yet I have had people tell me that you have to be a part of the structure. If you are not a part of the structure, then you are not a part of the church; and if you are not a part of the church, then you are out of God’s field and you are lost. Well, then John the Baptist was lost; Jesus was lost; all the disciples were lost.

Do you know what the ultimate disfellowshipping was in Jesus’ day? Crucifixion!

You may have been told that the structure is the seventh church of Revelation 3 and that there is no eighth church. Therefore, as the structure, is the church, you must stay with the structure. Let me ask you a question. Just because God started the Jewish structure, did that mean that the Jewish structure was able to hold Him hostage for eternity? No! When the structure apostatized, he separated Himself from it. While the structure can be a part of the church, it is not the church. If it apostatizes, it ceases to be a part of the church.

The structure of the Seventh-day Adventist Church began in 1862. The seventh church, however, began in 1844. What was God’s church between 1844 and 1862? Can we conclude that God did not have a church because there was no structure? Certainly not; God has always had a church. God’s church was in existence before the structure, and if the structure apostatizes, the church will continue on. The church, God’s true church, is never dependent upon the structure for its existence.

The church is what the church has always been, and Revelation 12 identifies that church. The church is made up of those who “keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.” What is the testimony of Jesus Christ? The Spirit of Prophecy. See Revelation 19:10.

Today, we attribute the Spirit of Prophecy to the works of Ellen G. White, but has the Spirit of Prophecy only been in existence since 1844? God always had prophets and they have always been part of His church. If you believed on them, you were a part of God’s church, and if you did not, you were not a part of His church. This has always been the criteria for determining who was a part of God’s church and who was not. With God there is no variableness nor shadow of turning. He is not going to change the rules for the Seventh-day Adventist Church at the end of time. Where do we get this type of twisted of reasoning? He rejected the structure in A.D. 31 because they apostatized from Him, and he can and will do it again. Who do we think we are that we can hold God hostage, and no matter what we do, God has to take us into heaven, whether He wants to or not?

The question is raised: Does this mean that we are going to start another church? Nobody is starting another church. In 1844, God started the last church—the Advent Movement. And, yes, God started a structure eighteen years later; but if that structure apostatizes from Him, He still has His church because the structure never was the church. It was only a part of it; the church still goes on.

I find people who try to make Mrs. White contradict what it says in Revelation 12, making her concept of what the church is different from all the prophets that came before her.

Let us look at Revelation 12:1-6. The first five verses tell us of God’s true church, that pure woman in the first century. Then in verse 6, we are taken to the second and third century. But, we know that an amazing thing happened at the end of the second century and the beginning of the third; the church apostatizes. How did they apostatize? Over their style and day of worship. You see, there was a wild solar holiday that the pagans kept and the church members said, “Look, if we have a special evangelistic series on Sunday, we can get our pagan friends to come.” Sure enough, it worked. In fact, it became so successful that they started having these special church growth evangelistic meetings on Sunday every week, and the pagans came by the thousands. You know the story.

We do not know the exact date, history does not tell us, but some time between the second and third century, the church of Rome, the Christian apostolic church of Rome that was founded and nurtured by Paul, had an official church business meeting and decided to start keeping the first day of the week—Sunday—and to quit going to church on Sabbath. But, there was a small group of dissident trouble makers. These divisive people who caused problems in the church stood up and said, “No, we’re not going to go to church on Sunday; we’re going to keep going to church on Sabbath.” Can you believe that?

Do you know what the majority in the church did? They disfellowshipped those who wanted to go to church on Sabbath. Do you know what it says in verse 6? It says that the church went into the wilderness. Now, let me ask you: Who went into the wilderness, the majority that disfellowshipped them or the little group that was disfellowshipped? It was the little group (who had had been disfellowshipped by the majority) who went out into the wilderness because the majority had left the truth, attaching themselves to falsehood. What then is God’s definition of the church? The little group of disfellowshipped and persecuted believers who were faithful to the truth.

On the other hand, what was man’s definition of the church in the second and third centuries? It was the large group who made up the majority, and who were celebrating on Sunday. They were the group who had money, power and the credential card-carrying pastors. They had the church buildings; they had the wealth and the worldwide organization. The majority in Rome who had disfellowshipped them had everything, or almost everything. There was one thing, however, that they lacked, and that was the truth. But, as God defines the church as the ones who have the truth, none of the other things mattered.

Do we find Seventh-day Adventists apostatizing over their method and style of worship?

“And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.” Revelation 12:10. Have you ever been called an accuser of the brethren? Do you know who are the accusers of the brethren?
First, let us establish who the real brethren are.

“And they [the brethren] overcame him [Satan] by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto death.” Revelation 12:11

We find that throughout the book of Revelation, when it is explaining and classifying God’s people, the people who are going to be saved in the last days are referred to as overcomers. They find victory over sin in their life through the power of the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. It says, “They [the brethren] overcame him [Satan] by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto death.” This means that they are overcomers and they are willing to die for the truth. In verse 17 it says that they keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ. That is the definition of who the brethren are. This means that anyone who does not teach victory over all sin in this life through the power and blood of Jesus Christ, is not one of the brethren. It means that if they do not keep the commandments of God and love, teach, read and practice the Spirit of Prophecy, they are not one of the brethren.

In days past I was rather careless about whom I called the brethren. I used that term for different sets of people. I want to tell you, after understanding Revelation 12, I am very careful of whom I call the brethren. Oh, yes. Now who are the brethren that it is talking about there? Well, let us go on to the next verse. If I come against a messenger that God has raised for the last days to preach the straight testimony to God’s people and I try to stop him in every thing that he does and I disfellowship him, what have I become? I have become an accuser of the brethren, because that man is one of the brethren in the eyes of God. Regardless of what men say, do not let anybody scramble your brain on this issue. The brethren are those who fulfill the criteria of Revelation 12. If a person does not fulfill the criteria of Revelation 12, he is not one of the brethren and you can just slice that any way you want. Those who come against the true and faithful brethren are doing the work of Satan and are the accusers of the brethren.

For so many years, Adventists have been led to believe that staying with the structure is synonymous with staying with the church; but, where are we told that? The definition of God’s church today is what the definition of God’s church has always been. Why is that so hard for us to see and accept?

Jesus had the same problem with His disciples when He said to them, “I can not tell you everything; you can’t handle it, You have been so brainwashed by your religious leaders that I have to couch everything I say and preach to you in parables, because if I came out and told you the truth, it would just blow you away.”

Unfortunately, God’s people are in the same condition today. Have we been brainwashed for so long that we cannot see that the definition of God’s church is what it has always been? Things have not changed. God’s last day prophet to his last day church told us: “From the beginning, faithful souls have constituted the church on earth.” Acts of the Apostles, 11. Nothing has changed.

“God has a church. It is not the great cathedral, neither is it the national establishment, neither is it the various denominations; it is the people who love God and keep his commandments. ‘Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them’ [Matthew 18:20]. Where Christ is even among the humble few, this is Christ’s church, for the presence of the High and Holy One who inhabiteth eternity can alone constitute a church.” Upward Look, 315

It is not any organizational structure that constitutes God’s church. The structure can be part of God’s church, but God’s church today is what God’s church has always been—faithful souls. Oh, may God take the blinders from our eyes. May we be Bereans. May we read and study like we have never read and studied before, because if we are not Bereans, if we are not last day Bereans, we are going to be lost.

The End

Editorial – Receiving The Latter Rain

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The message of the Loud Cry is given in Revelation 18:1-5, and constitutes the final warning of mercy to be given to the inhabitants of this fallen world before Jesus can come. The Loud Cry is not something that will drop like a bomb, rather it is something which will swell like a giant tidal wave. “The truth for this time, the third angel’s message, is to be proclaimed with a loud voice, meaning with increasing power, as we approach the great final test….The present truth for this time comprises the messages, the third angel’s message succeeding the first and the second. The presentation of this message with all it embraces is our work. We stand as the remnant people in these last days to promulgate the truth and swell the cry of the third angel’s wonderful distinct message, giving the trumpet a certain sound. Eternal truth, which we have adhered to from the beginning, is to be maintained in all its increasing importance to the close of probation. The trumpet is to give no uncertain sound.” Manuscript Releases, vol. 9, 291

One of the greatest privileges that God can give to anyone is that of being of this last generation, sharing in the latter rain, and the giving of the Loud Cry to a world perishing in sin. One of the great reasons why we must press together and seek for unity of spirit and doctrine is that the Loud Cry will not be given by groups of people teaching conflicting views of the prophecies, of how to be saved, and other doctrines. We must be unified before we can be used by God to give the Loud Cry.

Sadly, the vast majority of professed Seventh-day Adventists will be unable to recognize either the latter rain or the loud cry. “Many have in a great measure failed to receive the former rain. They have not obtained all the benefits that God has thus provided for them. They expect that the lack will be supplied by the latter rain. When the richest abundance of grace shall be bestowed, they intend to open their hearts to receive it. They are making a terrible mistake….Only those who are living up to the light they have will receive greater light. Unless we are daily advancing in the exemplification of the active Christian virtues, we shall not recognize the manifestations of the Holy Spirit in the latter rain. It may be falling on hearts all around us, but we shall not discern or receive it.” Testimonies to Ministers, 507

Unless we are under the influence of the Holy Spirit, we will be controlled by another spirit and will not recognize what is taking place until it is too late.

“In the manifestation of that power which lightens the earth with the glory of God, they see only something which in their blindness they think dangerous, something which will arouse their fears, and they will brace themselves to resist it. Because the Lord does not work according to their ideas and expectations, they will oppose the work. ‘Why,’ they say, ‘should not we know the Spirit of God, when we have been in the work so many years?’—because they did not respond to the warnings, the entreaties of the messages of God, but persistently said, ‘I am rich, and increased in goods, and have need of nothing.’” Review and Herald-Extra, December 23, 1890

It is the enemy’s avowed purpose to keep God’s people from coming into the unity for which Jesus prayed. “There is nothing that Satan fears so much as that the people of God shall clear the way by removing every hindrance, so that the Lord can pour out His Spirit upon a languishing church and an impenitent congregation. If Satan had his way, there would never be another awakening, great or small, to the end of time. But we are not ignorant of his devices. It is possible to resist his power. When the way is prepared for the Spirit of God, the blessing will come.” Selected Messages, book 1, 124

If we are united to Christ, we will be united to one another. When this happens, the church on earth will be a symbol of the church in heaven. “It is those who are not worked by the Holy Spirit that mar God’s plan. Another spirit takes possession of them, and they help to strengthen the forces of darkness. Those who are sanctified by the precious blood of Christ will not become the means of counter working the great plan which God has devised. They will not do anything to perpetuate division.” The Kress Collection, 17

We must make it manifest that we are not only Bible readers but Bible believers, and cooperate with Christ in fostering the spirit of unity. It is to meet this need for unity that Historic Adventist Landmarks was brought into perfect unity of doctrine and spirit so that we can be ready to be part of that army who will give the Loud Cry and stand through the last great test.

The Initial Steps Toward Unity

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The messenger of the Lord to the remnant church has told us explicitly that unless we press together, we will be destroyed in the storm that is coming. See Signs of the Times, October 31, 1900. Unity is not something that is just nice to study about; it has to do with your survival.

“Our only hope of reaching heaven is to be one with Christ.” Upward Look, 141. Therefore, the most important unity that we need to seek is to be one with Jesus. Unless we are one with Christ, we have no chance of being saved. If we are one with Jesus, Ellen White continues, “then, in and through Christ, we shall be one with one another.” Ibid. As we come closer to Christ, we come closer to one another.

The Christian world today is seeking for unity, but they do not know how to find it. One of these days very soon, they will believe they have finally achieved it and that the whole world is in unity. See Maranatha, 209. The whole world is going to think that they are in unity, but their harmony will be with the Antichrist.

Unity is a primary subject of Jesus’ prayer in John 17; how we might be one with him. If I am not in harmony with Jesus on something, who do you think should change his mind? The Bible is crystal clear on this subject. “For I am the Lord I do not change.” Malachi 3:6. “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever.” Hebrews 13:8. What Jesus said when He was here almost 2,000 years ago, is still what He thinks; it is still what He believes; it is still what He is like. He is the same; His character has not varied. So, if I want true unity with Jesus I must study what He is like, as recorded in his word. Then, as we come into unity with Jesus, we will come into unity with each other.

Coming into unity is like a jigsaw puzzle—it has more than one piece and we cannot look at all the pieces at once. Right now, however, we will look at one of the initial pieces, a first step toward coming into unity.

You cannot imitate or emulate someone if you do not know what they are like. Therefore, we want to study to understand what Jesus is like. Though I do not spend a lot of time giving my opinions when preaching, I am going to share one of my personal opinions with you. As I have studied the life of Jesus, it does not appear to me that there are very many Seventh-day Adventists who know what Jesus is really like.

There are many people coming to historic Adventist preachers and saying: “You should not do that, or you should not say that; it is not Christlike.” When I hear that, the first question that comes into my mind is simply this: How do you know that it is not Christlike? I personally believe that there are many Seventh-day Adventists telling us those things who have no idea what Jesus is like.

In Hebrews 1, we see a text that graphically tells us in just a few words, something about what Jesus is like. “But unto the son He saith [This is the Father speaking to the Son and He addresses Him as God—One equal in authority with the Father.] ‘Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; a scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom. You have loved righteousness.’” Hebrews 1:8-9. Jesus loves what? Righteousness!

We cannot generate love. Love is a precious gift that we receive from Jesus. See Ministry of Healing, 358. If we are to become like Jesus, coming into unity and harmony with Him, we must learn to love righteousness just as He does.

A few years ago I read a story of a beautiful young lady who experienced an automobile accident. Not having her seat belt on, she was thrown through the windshield of her car. Though she survived, her face was badly disfigured. As a result of her change in appearance, her husband divorced her. He had married a beautiful face and when that face was no longer there, there was nothing to hold the marriage together.

What is called love in the world today is often nothing short of selfishness. There are many people who have been married for years but who have never really loved each other. They have gotten married because of what the other person could do for them, and that is not godly love at all.

It took me a long time to learn that I did not have the ability to generate love of any kind, not even for my wife. But, Jesus’ heart is full of love, and He wants you to have that love. His final request in his last prayer, recorded in John 17, is that He would be in his followers and that this love would be in them.

Jesus loves righteousness, and if we ask him for this precious gift of love, he will give it to us. See Romans 8:32.

What is righteousness? Sometimes the easiest way to explain an idea is to express it in opposite terms. What is unrighteousness? In 1 John 5:17, we are told that all unrighteousness is sin. And, what is sin? “Sin is the transgression of the law.” 1John 3:4. Then what is righteousness? It is being in harmony with the law.

Did you know that there are things Jesus hates? Though there are some people who do not seem to believe this anymore, Hebrews 1:9 (last part) tells us that Jesus not only loves, but that He hates as well. So, if you are really going to be like Jesus Christ, you are not only going to have love in your heart, but you also have hatred there. Notice what it says in Hebrews 1:9 “You have hated lawlessness.” (NKJV)

Another text that also reveals this hatred is Psalm 87:10, “You who love the Lord hate evil.”

Some people think that they should just put up with everything, but Jesus is not like that. Jesus is not like that. Jesus and His father have decided that lawlessness is something that they are going to obliterate because they hate it. If you love Jesus, you will also hate lawlessness, especially when you realize that it was this lawlessness—this sin—that caused Jesus to go to the cross. You cannot love Jesus and something that caused Him to go to the cross. That is why Ellen White tells us that, even though those who teach people to break God’s laws may consider themselves Christians, God considers that they hate Him.

The first angel’s message says to fear God.

What does it mean to fear God? For one thing, it means to hate evil. “The fear of the Lord is to hate evil.” Proverbs 8:13. This idea that we can just live a good life, setting a good example, is not enough. If we are really going to be Christlike, we must not only love righteousness, but we must hate lawlessness. We will never achieve Christian unity until we hate lawlessness as much as we love righteousness.

So, what are you to do in a world of evil, among people who profess to follow the Lord, but are not living righteously. The first step that must be taken before we can have Christian unity is that someone is going to have to stand up and attack the evil? It is not enough just to teach the truth; not enough just to set a good example. It is not enough to be loving and kind; you must attack evil. Now we will see the evidence for this from the Bible and the Spirit of Prophecy.

In about the 1920s, Julius Gilbert White wrote a manuscript called The Alpha and the Omega of Apostasy. In this book he accurately describes a departure from truth that was then taking place in Adventism, and that I have seen during my whole lifetime. The result of this departure from truth is the great apostasy that we see in the church today; the greatest apostasy that has ever been seen in the 6,000 years of this world’s history, except perhaps at the time of the flood.

“Those who reject the apostasy [he is speaking to Adventists] will be severely charged with criticism because they will protest against it. [Have you ever been accused of being too critical?] A great effort has been made for a long time to eliminate ‘criticism.’” The Alpha and the Omega of Apostasy, 57

What is it that he says has been going on for a long time? “A great effort has been made for a long time to eliminate criticism.” Remember now, this was written in the 1920s. This plot of the devil was laid a long time ago.

“It [criticism] has been terribly condemned far and near in sermons, articles, conventions, institutes, camp meetings and conferences. Honest protest has been stifled and suppressed by branding it ‘criticism’ and then condemning it. A distinction must be made between ‘protest and criticism.’ For if not, no voice can be raised against wrong! Pernicious criticism is a wicked thing, and ought to be confessed and forsaken. Criticism of men is that bad. But there is another side to this question of criticism.

“If men have gone so far in criticism that they criticize the work of the Spirit of God and the messages from the Spirit of God and denounce those who are maintaining those messages as having the spirit of the devil, that would come terribly close to being a sin against the Holy Spirit and would call for alarm and utter humiliation and abasement before such men should dare lift up their heads and ask God for the gift of His Holy Spirit in the latter rain.

“This criticism of the work of the Spirit of God is more heinous and disastrous to ourselves and to the work of God than is criticism of men.

“If leaders so criticize the Spirit of Prophecy that men are moved by the Spirit of God to protest against such apostasy, there must be a distinction made between such protest and evil criticism. When men are in the wrong and do not see it and God sends brethren to counsel them and they persist in denouncing such counsel as unjust criticism, they are indeed in a great delusion, and it is most difficult for God to reach them.

“According to Inspiration, there will be various voices in the church from this time forward till after the shaking is over. There will be false reformations that will sweep in thousands; there will be great worldliness and there will be those who ‘sigh and cry’ over the condition of the church as God sees it, and these will reprove and warn and ‘will not hold their peace to obtain the favor of any.’ (See Testimonies, vol. 5,209).” Ibid., 58,59

Ellen White here describes two groups of people. One group of people put a cloak over the existing iniquity, but another group will not hold their peace for anyone. They are going to protest. Now, if you would like to know who is sealed and who is not, you need to read the rest of the chapter.

There have been times in the past when God has sent people to attack evil. Concerning these people, Ellen White says, “They have ever been received with distrust and suspicion.” Testimonies, vol. 3, 261. Anciently, when Elijah was sent with a message from God, the people did not heed the warning. They thought him unnecessarily severe.

Today, someone says, “Do you have to state it so strongly?” Yes, I do, in order to have a clear conscience.

“They [children of Israel] even thought that he must have lost his senses.” What did they think about Elijah? They thought he had gone crazy! Why? “Because he denounced them, the favored people of God, as sinners and their crimes as so aggravated that the judgments of God would awaken against them.” Ibid. (All emphasis supplied.) Many people have never noticed this.

Is there to be an Elijah message to the church just before the end? Do you know what the Elijah message is? It is a lot different than what many people have thought. Very soon the judgements of God are going to fall on apostate Seventh-day Adventists and it is going to be worse than you can imagine. It is necessary to preach a message that will shake people right down to their toes and make them realize that if they do not change their ways they will be in worse trouble than they can imagine.

“Oh,” somebody says, “Pastor John, Jesus would never do anything like that.” Well, did Jesus approve of what Elijah did or not? Who was inspiring Elijah to denounce them? Many people think that anybody that does anything like that is the devil’s instrument, but according to the Spirit of Prophecy, Elijah was the Lord’s instrument. He denounced them because he was Christlike and was filled with the Holy Spirit.

“They abhorred not the sins which had brought them under the chastening rod, but hated the faithful prophet, God’s instrument, to denounce their sins and calamity.” Review and Herald, September 23, 1873

“But,” someone will say, “don’t you realize that we must respect our leaders?” Well, let me tell you, Elijah did not. “The prophet, as God’s messenger, had reproved their sins, and denounced the judgments of God because of their wickedness. Elijah, standing alone in conscious innocence, firm in his integrity, surrounded by the train of armed men, shows no timidity, neither does he show the least reverence to the king. The man whom God has talked with, who has a clear sense of how God regards man in his sinful depravity, has no apology to make to Ahab, nor homage to give him. Elijah, now as God’s messenger, commanded, and Ahab obeyed at once the command, as though Elijah was monarch, and he subject.” Ibid., September 30, 1873

There is a time when a rebuke must be given; and when God’s people are in apostasy, if God’s messengers do not stand up and rebuke it and reprove it, we will lose our own souls.

There was a time in the New Testament when there was perfect unity. It says in Acts 2:1 that they were all of one accord in one place. That is going to happen again. I long for it and want to be part of it, but do you know that that unity which they enjoyed would never have come to pass without the cross and the resurrection? Now the cross and the resurrection would not have done for the disciples what it did if they had not been acquainted with Him first for three years and gotten to know what He was like. But, they would never have gotten acquainted with Jesus and found out what he was like if it had not been for the ministry of John the Baptist. The ministry of John the Baptist was the initial step that finally brought that unity three and a half years later. What we are studying now is one of the initial steps that finally results in unity.

When John the Baptist came, the angel told his father that he would come in the spirit and power of Elijah. So, what did John the Baptist do? “John denounced the corruptions of the Jews, and raised his voice in reproving their prevailing sins.” Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, vol.5, 1089.

From time to time, someone will say, “Your preaching is not Christlike because Jesus would speak in a calm, soft voice; He would never raise His voice like you Historic Adventist preachers do.”

But, John the Baptist did not speak in a soft, quiet voice—he raised his voice and shouted it out. “Amid discord and strife, a voice was heard from the wilderness, a voice startling and stern.” Desire of Ages, 104

Stern is another adjective that Ellen White uses quite often in regard to both Elijah and John the Baptist; they were stern in their preaching. When they were stern, were they Christlike or not? Were they filled with the Holy Spirit, or were they filled with another spirit? The Bible says that John the Baptist was full of the Holy Spirit from his mothers womb. “With the spirit and power of Elijah he denounced the national corruption, and rebuked the prevailing sins. His words were plain, pointed, and convincing.” Ibid.

We want to have unity. Who is it in the last days who is going to have unity? Well, let us consider what took place at the first advent of Christ, which is a type of our day, and find out who came into unity then. It was the people who listened to John the Baptist, accepted his rebuke and reproof, reformed their lives and followed Jesus. Three and a half years later they were in a condition of perfect harmony. Do you think there is any parallel between then and our time?

Before Gethsemane, one of the last things Jesus told His disciples was that when the Holy Spirit comes, He will reprove, that is, rebuke. See John 16. If you are receiving the Holy spirit into your life, you will be rebuked; but if you persist in rejecting that rebuke, you will eventually lose the Holy Spirit.

Who is it today that is going to come into unity? Is it those who are fighting the messengers that God has sent to denounce the apostasy and make a call to repentance? Will it be the people who are following the New Theology, who are stepping off the platform of truth, or is it the people who are listening to the messages of rebuke from the Spirit of Prophecy and reforming their lives?

The people who are going to come into unity in Adventism today are the people who allow the Holy Spirit to rebuke them in any way God chooses. It is the Historic Seventh-day Adventists, those who stand on the three angel’s messages and accept all of the Spirit of Prophecy, who believe the fundamental truths that the Lord revealed to our spiritual forefathers. These are the only people who are going to come into unity.

You can trust the One who loved you enough to be nailed to the cross for you, that He will not rebuke you more than you need. This does not mean, however, that you may not need a lot.

Sometimes we meet someone who says, “I know that there are problems and that there is apostasy, but you are never going to get reformation by talking about the problems all time. You should talk more about positive things.”

Listen to this: “They treated the warnings of the Spirit of God as a matter of indifference, as though that voice were human in place of divine. What there was to make any demonstration of on there part they could not see. If they had done wrong, why dwell upon it so much?” Special Testimony to the Battle Creek Church, 1 (published in 1882)

This is what they were thinking in their minds: “Just go on; let it all drop, and say as little about it as possible.” Ibid. Have you ever heard it said; “You are talking about this all the time; you should not talk about it so much. Talk about it as little as possible. Talk about positive things. Teach people how to develop their character and how to have love and how to be patient and kind; don’t be rebuking all the time”? That is what they thought in Battle Creek.

Do you know who Ellen White says would be pleased if they did that? The next sentence tells us. “This is the very thing the enemy of souls wants them to do.” Ibid. It was the devil! The problem, friends, is not going to be solved unless we face the issue straight on and attack it. Evil must be opposed.

Somebody has to attack what is going on today, and it has to be a firm unflinching attack. It must not be some mild little talk; it must be like Elijah, like John the Baptist.

Ellen White says, concerning the rebuke that was given to the children of Israel, “This firmness was essential; in no other way could the existing evils have been rebuked….The messengers of the Lord are never to fear the face of man, but are to stand unflinchingly for the right.” Conflict and Courage, 202

Inspired writings tell us that when Elijah rebuked Israel, he was angry. Yet, he was filled with the Holy Spirit when he was angry. He was also Christlike when he was angry.

“Never seek to cover sin; for in the message of rebuke, Christ is to be proclaimed as the first and the last, He who is all in all to the soul.” Selected Messages, book 1, 380

Friend, are you going to be one of those who come into unity? If you are, you will have to be humble enough to accept rebuke from whomever God chooses to send.

Anytime God sends anyone to reprove the evil, people do not like it and the messengers of reproof are accused of being the cause of the division. Have you ever heard anyone accuse Historic Adventists of being the cause of the division? Elijah was accused of being a troubler of Israel.

“God’s plan for the salvation of men, is perfect in every particular. If we will faithfully perform our allotted parts, all will be well with us. It is man’s apostasy that causes discord, and brings wretchedness and ruin.” Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, vol. 2, 999

So, what is the real cause of the lack of unity in Adventism today? It is not the people who are calling for repentance, but the apostasy that is responsible for the discord; and the only Adventists who will ever have unity again are those who will fight apostasy. Brothers and Sisters, we will never have unity until we are willing to stand up and fight the apostasy.

What is the purpose of rebuke? When we look at the preaching of John the Baptist and the early preaching of Jesus, as recorded in Matthew 3 and 4, we see that the burden of both Jesus and John the Baptist was repentance. See Matthew 4:17. The purpose of the rebuke is that we may repent, and it is only when people are willing to repent that they are able to come into perfect unity.

The End

The Valley of Deceitfulness

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I believe that God has a message for his people today, which is found in Isaiah 28. I have deepening conviction that what is here portrayed, is that which we are soon to face.

“Woe to the crown of pride, to the drunkards of Ephraim, whose glorious beauty is a fading flower which is at the head of the verdant valleys, to those who are overcome with wine! Behold, the Lord has a mighty and strong one, like a tempest of hail and a destroying storm, like a flood of mighty waters overflowing, who will bring them down to the earth with His hand. The crown of pride, the drunkards of Ephraim, will be trampled underfoot; and the glorious beauty is a fading flower which is at the head of the verdant valley, like the first fruit before the summer, which an observer sees; he eats it up while it is still in his hand.” Isaiah 28:1-4.

The valley of deceitfulness can look so fair; there can be so many beautiful flowers in it; those in charge of the valley can be so fat with the gifts of God’s professed people; but, friend, the judgment of God hangs over the professed people of God today because we have disregarded the voice of his messenger. We have cast it aside if it called us to reform, and we have obeyed only that which has gone along with our natural inclination. Then, to prove that we are obeying it, we have held up that part of the counsel which goes along with our inclination. It is for this reason the judgement of God hangs over His people today. However beautiful the flowers in the valley of deceitfulness may be, destruction and judgment are coming from the Lord. If God’s people today are to know where they are in the stream of time, they must have the heavenly eye salve.

Many men who once might have given godly counsel to God’s people, today, are no longer fit to give that counsel because they have failed to stand against the prevailing apostasy. They have stood, watching it take place, but they have continued to make strange alliances with the falsehood. Perhaps these men, themselves, are trying to live righteous lives, but this is not enough. If we do not stand up against apostasy, wherever it is manifest, we are no longer fit to be messengers to God’s people.

To illustrate this point, let us draw from the rich, but terrible history, of the conflict between the Waldenses and the papacy. If we do not learn from the mistakes of history, we are destined to repeat them.

Before we look at this history let me share a story with you.

A few years ago, our family visited a Pennsylvania colony called the Ephrata Cloister. Here many years ago there lived a group who kept the seventh day Sabbath. They introduced the seventh day Sabbath to the Baptists. The Baptists who accepted this truth became the Seventh-day Baptists, who in turn, later shared this truth with the Seventh-day Adventist.

I remember the guide showing us into the print room where the old-fashioned press was located. The press had a long handle, which, when pulled down, lowered the plate, leaving an impression on the paper. This process was repeated again and again, all day long. Because the labor was very wearying to the people, the handle became known as the devil’s tail.

The guide explained to us that there were more copies of the Bible printed here than of any other book. But, do you know what book ranked second in the number of copies to be printed? Fox’s Book of Martyrs. It was the second most widely read book in the United States of America. Our forefathers used to read these stories to their children. This reading helped to make us a Protestant nation. Our people knew the history then.

History of Protestantism by Wylie records the history of God’s people during the seventeenth century. It is recorded that in 1655, a decree was made calling for the complete extermination of the Waldenses. Army after army attempted to destroy them, only to meet with failure. After a short time of peace, General Pianeza determined he was going to do that which others had failed to do. As he began his march, the Waldenses became aware of his plans and they sent ambassadors down to the town of Turin to plead with the army to leave them alone.

The governor on Turin stalled the Waldensian representatives, while the papal armies were secretly gathering, hoping to deceive them as to their real intentions. A meeting was arranged with the Waldensian representatives for April 17, 1655. At about two o’clock in the morning, on the day of the meeting, General Pianeza’a army surrounded the city. Three hundred of his army of 15,000 slipped under the city wall and made an attack on Sabbath morning, April 17.

The Waldenses, totally unprepared for the attack, hastily threw up a barricade, which the invading soldiers stormed. So stoutly did the Waldenses resist that after three hours of intense fighting, the papal soldiers, who had been unable to make any advance at all, were driven back.

At one o’clock the next morning, one of General Pianeza’s colonels who knew the territory, sent a flanking recruitment to storm the town from behind. The Waldenses turned about-face, pierced the enemy rank, held the soldiers back and escaped to the mountains. In the whole encounter, which involved much bloody fighting, there were only three Waldensian soldiers killed.

The Vaudois (Waldenses) were once more in the mountains, their families having previously been transported up because of the threat of war. They watched the valley below as their orchards were cut down and their homes burned. On Monday, the nineteenth, and the day that followed, a series of skirmishes took place. The Vaudois, although poorly armed and vastly out numbered, were victorious on every point, causing the popish soldiers to fall back, carrying wondrous tales of the Vaudois’ valor and heroism and infusing panic into the rest of their troops.

Pianeza now began to have misgivings. As he recalled history, he was haunted by the memory of other mighty armies that had perished on these mountains. He determined to resort to deceit. Before daybreak on Wednesday, the twenty-first of April, he announced by the sound of trumpet, his willingness to receive the Vaudois deputies and treat for peace. Delegates set out for his camp headquarters and, on arrival, were treated with utmost courtesy and sumptuously entertained. Pianeza expressed the utmost regret for the excesses committed by his soldiers, which he assured them had been done contrary to orders. He protested that he had only come into their valleys to track a few fugitives who had disobeyed Gastaldo’s order. He said that the higher communes had nothing to fear, but that if each would admit a single regiment for a few days, in token of their loyalty, all war would be amicably ended. Despite the warnings of the more discerning pastors, especially pastor Leger, Pianeza was able to convince the Vaudois of his sincerity and accomplished by craft that which he had been unable to do by open warfare. The Waldenses opened the passes to their valleys and the doors of their dwellings to the soldiers of Pianeza.

The first two days were passed in comparative peace—the soldiers eating at the same table, sleeping under the same roof and conversing freely with their destined victims. This interval was needed to allow for every preparation to be made for what was to follow. The enemy now occupied the towns, the villages, the cottages, and the roads throughout the valleys.

At last the blow fell with the sudden crash of a thunderbolt. At four o’clock on the morning of Sabbath, April 24, 1655, the signal was given and in an instant a thousand assassins began the work of death. In a moment dismay, horror, agony, and woe overspread the Valleys of Lucerna and Angrogna. The cries and groans of the dying were echoed and reechoed from the rocks around. It seemed as if the mountains had taken up a wailing for the slaughter of their children. “Our Valley of Lucerna,” exclaimed pastor Leger, “which was like a Goshen, was now converted into a Mount Etna, darting forth cinders and fire and flames. The earth resembled a furnace, and the air was filled with a darkness like that of Egypt, which might be felt, from the smoke of towns, villages, temples, mansions, granges, and buildings, all burning in the flames of the Vatican.” History of Protestantism, 484.

The soldiers were not content with the quick dispatch of the sword; they invented new and hitherto unheard-of modes of torture and death. No man to this day dare write in plain words all the disgusting and horrible deeds of these men; their wickedness can never be all known because it never can be all told.

Uncontrollable grief seized the hearts of the survivors at the sight of their brethren slain, their country devastated and their church overthrown. “Oh that my head were waters,” exclaimed Leger, “and mine eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people! Behold and see if there be any sorrow like unto my sorrow.” Ibid., 485

“Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their own consciences seared with a hot iron, forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from foods which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth.” 1 Timothy 4:1-3

Let us look carefully at verse two: “Speaking lies and hypocrisy.” If you allow the first part of this verse, “speaking lies and hypocrisy,” to lodge in your heart, the second half of the verse is the result, “speaking lies and hypocrisy, having their conscience seared with a hot iron.” Your conscience is seared by your speaking lies and by hypocrisy. If the lies start living in our heart and we start acting out these lies, we are preparing our conscience to be “seared by a hot iron” so that we have no conscience left.

Let us consider the fact that, in the Seventh-day Adventist Church, ministers are being trained in imaging, a form of mind control that is basic in the spiritual exercises of Ignatius Loyola. In this story we have seen the end result of training a priesthood to have a dead conscience. These men are now teaching these exercises to their congregations. We can already see the first fruits of the persecution through the disbanding and disfellowshipping taking place, but these persecutions will not be the last fruits.

What the Vaudois had power and valor to do in open confrontation, they were unable to do when they gave in to deceit. The deceit cloaked the murder in the wicked ones’ hearts. In Proverbs 12:5 we read: “The counsels of the wicked are deceitful.”

Friends, what do you think all these committee meetings concerning the independent ministries are really about? Do not be fooled; the devil knows that what he cannot do through open confrontation, he can often accomplish through the deceitfulness of pretended friendship. If you accept the proposals of such, it will be as fatal to your salvation and that of your family as was the Waldenses’ accepting of their murderers into their homes.

The devil has studied history; he knows what tricks will work. We would be extremely naive to believe that he will not use them on us. He is seeking to do through peace and unity what he has been unable to do by force.

“When God’s people voluntarily unite with the worldly and the unconsecrated, and give them the preeminence, they will be led away from Him by the unsanctified influence under which they have placed themselves. For a short time there may be nothing seriously objectionable; but minds that have not been brought under the control of the Spirit of God will not take readily to those things which savor of truth and righteousness. If they had heretofore any relish for spiritual things they would have placed themselves in the ranks of Jesus Christ. The two classes are controlled by different masters and are opposites in their purposes, hopes, tastes, and desires.” Counsels to Teachers, 542

This is the reason that the issue of who and what is the church is a salvational issue; one you must understand. If you are confused on this issue and you believe that there is a set of men which you need to go counsel with (regardless of their betrayal of sacred trust in upholding wickedness in others), you will lose your soul. In His instruction to His disciples, Jesus warned them to beware of men. “They were not to put implicit confidence in those who knew not God, and open to them their counsels; for this would give Satan’s agents an advantage. Man’s inventions often counterwork God’s plans. Those who build the temple of the Lord, are to build according to the pattern shown in the mount–the divine similitude. God is dishonored and the gospel is betrayed when His servants depend on the counsel of men who are not under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Worldly wisdom is foolishness with God. Those who rely upon it, will surely err.” Desire of Ages, 354

Do not go to the Pharisees and the Sadducees and try to unite with them in an evangelistic endeavor or some other seemingly worthy project. Do not get up in front of church and try to speak words that will please both the children of darkness and the children of light.

“‘The kingdom of God cometh not with outward show.’ The gospel of the grace of God, with its spirit of self-abnegation, can never be in harmony with the spirit of the world. The two principles are antagonistic.” Review and Herald, January 18, 1906. (All emphasis supplied.) What does it mean when it says never? Never! When those who were professing truth, but were not bringing forth its fruits in their life, came to John the Baptist, he refused to baptize them. In fact, he called them vipers, or deadly snakes.

Before the cobra strikes, it hypnotizes its victim. In the same manner, the Waldenses were first lulled to sleep with a treaty of peace. Then, when they least expected it, the deathblow was struck.

It says of John the Baptist’s harsh denunciation of religious leaders of his day: “This sect [the Sadducees] was largely composed of unworthy characters, many of whom were licentious in their habits. By the word ‘vipers’ John meant those who were malignant and antagonistic, bitterly opposed to the expressed will of God.” Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, vol. 5, 1077

Is malignant a safe situation to be in? It is deadly! Though they were the leaders of God’s professed church, it was not safe to follow them. Can we see the importance of the issue who and what is the church?

The devil is striving to lull the whole world into a fatal sleep from which they will not awaken until it is too late. I am so thankful that there are some people who are standing up and warning the people before they are struck by the poisonous snake.

“Those who have the mind of Christ will let the light shine forth to the world in good works, but that light will bring about a division. Shall the light therefore be hid under a bed or under a bushel, because it will mark a distinction between the followers of Christ and the world? It must be apparent that the believers in the truth are antagonistic to the serpent and to his seed.” Signs of the Times, April 9, 1894

The fear of being branded as “uncooperative” or ” uncharitable” leads many to join work with those they have no confidence in, and become involved in activities about which they have grave reservation. We must, brothers and sisters, stand up against the apostasy and not be content to remain in the shadows, mingling on the fringes. There are vipers in the camp today. With sublety and deceit they will seek to deceive you. Do not listen to their talk of peace.

“The words of Jesus addressed to this generation may well be regarded with sorrow and awe. He asks, ‘When the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?’ Christ looked down the ages, and with prophetic eye marked the conflict between the antagonistic principles of truth and error. He saw how real Christianity would become almost extinct in the world, so that at His second advent He would find a state of society similar to that which existed before the flood. The world will be engaged in festivity and amusement, in theatrical show, in the indulgence of base passion. Intemperance of every grade would exist, and even the churches would be demoralized, and the Bible would be neglected and desecrated. He saw that the desperate revelries of the last days would only be interrupted by the judgments of God.” Signs of the Times, April, 21, 1890

Judgments are coming. Do not try to secure peace by your silence. Regardless of the motive, beware of entering into any kind of agreement for peace with the children of darkness. You will be taking a step toward Babylon. “Peace is too dearly obtained if purchased by the smallest concession to Satan’s agencies.” Signs of the Times, November 8, 1899

“The opposition of the children of disobedience is excited by a Christianity that is spiritual….That peace and harmony which are secured by mutual concessions to avoid all differences of opinion are not worthy of the name.” Mind, Character, and Personality, vol. 1, 244

“We are to make no concessions to the enemy. [What is a concession? Giving in.] We are not to change one principle of the truth that we have received from God. We cannot hold converse with those who are in league with evil angels. Christ never purchased peace by compromise.” Notebook Leaflets, 124

Friend, no one should feel that he is so strong that he is safe to enter into discussions with people who are in league with evil angels in order to keep peace. None of us are safe from deception. Our only safety is in being kept by holy angels. If, however, we go where the Lord has not bidden us go, we forfeit their protection.

Do not think you are doing a soul winning endeavor when you join in peace talks with ministers who are not speaking up against the apostasy. You are preparing to be destroyed. God did not protect the Waldenses when they entered into an unauthorized treaty with the powers of darkness. Do you believe He will deal differently with us today?

If we do not learn the lessons of history, we are insuring that we will share the bitter results of the same mistakes.

Those who are teaching NLP and practicing it on our people are wicked men; and those who hold these men’s hands in quietness are partakers of their sins. The Word of God says, “Woe to the crown of pride, to the drunkards of Ephraim, whose glorious beauty is a fading flower which is at the head of the verdant valleys, to those who are overcome with wine! Behold, the Lord has a mighty and strong one, like a tempest of hail and a destroying storm, like a flood of mighty waters overflowing, who will bring them down to the earth with His hand.” Isaiah 28:1-4

The judgments of God are far bigger than any of us. Our only safety when the storm breaks is to be found under the sheltering hand of God. There is no other safety.

“The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs and lying wonders, and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie.” 2 Thessalonians 2:9-11

Everyone in this world is either going to have a new heart, a heart of truth and righteousness, or they will enter into a league with Satan’s angels and be deceived by a strong delusion. Which is it going to be for you?

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Who is an Historic Seventh-day Adventist?

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Today, our people are being taunted with: “You people call yourselves ‘Historic Seventh-day Adventists,’ but you don’t even know what being an historic Seventh-day Adventist really is.” Sooner or later someone is going to ask you this question and you have to have something to say, so let us look at, “What is an Historic Seventh-day Adventist?”.
If you are not familiar with the little book Issues: The Letter the NAD Officers Did not Publish, The Church, it is part two of the Issues books printed by Steps to Life. The first half is a letter to the NAD, and the last is material written by John Grosboll. There is a section in the back called “Fundamental Principles.” The material contained there first appeared in an article by James White in the Signs of the Times in 1874. In this article, he outlined the beliefs of Historic Seventh-day Adventists. It should also be said that an Historic Seventh-day Adventist believes Ellen G. White to have been a prophet of God and that her writings have divine authority. Therefore, an Historic Seventh-day Adventist will give precedence to God’s last day prophet, to his last day church, over his own opinion. An Historic Seventh-day Adventist will never say, “Well, she did not know what she was talking about,” or “You know, she didn’t understand everything.” You see, God does not have junior prophets—a prophet of God is a prophet of God. There are no percentage scales; either you are a prophet of God or you are not. Either Ellen White was a prophet of God on the same par as the Biblical prophets or she was not a prophet at all.

Fundamental Principles:
By James White
[Comments by John Osborne in brackets and italicized]

In presenting to the public this synopsis of our faith, we wish to have it distinctly understood that we have no articles of faith, creed, or discipline aside from the Bible.
[John Osborne—So, an Historic Seventh-day Adventist absolutely has no creed outside of Inspiration—bottom line. Now, if you take any other book of spiritual significance, aside from Inspiration, then you are not a Historic Seventh-day Adventist. If you take any other book and place it on a par, or pattern your life or the church, or anything else after it, then you are not an Historic Seventh-day Adventist.]

We do not put forth this as having authority with our people, nor is it designed to secure uniformity among them, as a system of faith, but is a brief statement of what is, and has been, with great unanimity, held by them. We often find it necessary to meet inquiries on this subject, and sometimes to correct false statements circulated against us, and to remove erroneous impressions which have obtained with those who have not had an opportunity to become acquainted with our faith and practice. Our only object is to meet this necessity. With these remarks, we ask the attention of the reader to the following propositions which aim to be a concise statement of the more prominent features of our faith. That there is one God, a personal, spiritual Being, the Creator of all things, omnipotent, omniscient, and eternal, infinite in wisdom, holiness, justice, goodness, truth, and mercy; unchangeable, and everywhere present by his representative, the Holy Spirit. Psalms 139:7.

That there is one Lord Jesus Christ, and Son of the Eternal Father, the One by whom God created all things, and by whom they do consist; that He took on Him the nature of the seed of Abraham for the redemption of our fallen race; that He dwelt among men, full of grace and truth, lived our example, died our sacrifice, was raised for our justification, ascended on high to be our only Mediator in the sanctuary in heaven, where, with His own blood, he makes atonement for our sins; which atonement, so far from being made on the cross, which was but the offering of the sacrifice, is the very last portion of His work as priest, according to the example of the Levitical priesthood, which foreshadowed and prefigured the ministry of our Lord in heaven. See Leviticus 16; Hebrews 8:4,5; 9:6,7; etc.

[John Osborne—Now, what this is saying is that we believe in the Lord Jesus Christ as the Son of God. His life was our example; in his death he was our substitute—he died as our Sacrifice. He is now acting as our High Priest in heaven, pleading his blood for the forgiveness of our sin. Do you believe that? Amen.]

That the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments were given by inspiration of God, contain a full revelation of His will to man, and are the only infallible rule of faith and practice.

That baptism is an ordinance of the Christian church, to follow faith and repentance, an ordinance by which we commemorate the resurrection of Christ, as by this act we show our faith in His burial and resurrection, and, through that, of the resurrection of all the saints at the last day; and that no other mode fitly represents these facts than that which the Scriptures prescribe, namely, immersion. Romans 6:3-5; Colossians 2:12.
That the new birth comprises the entire change necessary to fit us for the kingdom of God, and consists of two parts: First, a moral change, wrought by conversion and a Christian life; second, a physical change at the second coming of Christ, whereby, if dead, we are raised incorruptible, and, if living, are changed to immortality in a moment in the twinkling of an eye. John 3:3,5; Luke 20:36.

We believe that prophecy is a part of God’s revelation to man; that it is included in that Scripture which is profitable for instruction (2 Timothy 3:16); that it is designed for us and our children (Deuteronomy 29;29); that so far from being enshrouded in impenetrable mystery, it is that which especially constitutes the Word of God a lamp to our feet and a light to our path (Psalm 119:105; 2 Peter 1:19); that a blessing is pronounced upon those who study it (Revelation 1:1-3); and that, consequently, it is to be understood by the people of God, sufficiently to show them their position in the world’s history, and the special duties required at their hands.

[John Osborne—As Historic Seventh-day Adventists, we not only believe in all of Scripture, but especially in the books of Daniel and Revelation. We do not believe the book of Revelation is a sealed book, but that it is very important, revealing to us where we are in earth’s history and outlining the place of God’s church in the last days.]

That the world’s history from specified dates in the past, the rise and fall of empires, and the chronological succession of events down to the setting up of God’s everlasting kingdom, are outlined in numerous great chains of prophecy; and that these prophecies are now all fulfilled except the closing scenes.

[John Osborne—So, if you are going to be an Historic Seventh-day Adventist, you not only have to believe in prophecy, you must also understand and believe the true applications of prophecy, including the day for a year principle. See Numbers 14:34, Ezekiel 4:6]

That the doctrine of the world’s conversion and temporal millennium is a fable of these last days, calculated to lull men into a state of carnal security, and cause them to be overtaken by the great day of the Lord as by a thief in the night; that the second coming of Christ is to precede, not follow the millennium; for until the Lord appears, the papal power, with all its abomination, is to continue, the wheat and tares grow together, and evil men and seducers wax worse and worse, as the Word of God declares.

That the mistake of Adventists in 1844 pertained to the nature of the event then to transpire, not to the time; that no prophetic period is given to reach to the second advent, but that the longest one, the two thousand and three hundred days of Daniel 8:14, terminated in that year, and brought us to an event called the cleansing of the sanctuary.

[John Osborne-Everyone who calls himself an Historic Seventh-day Adventist ought to be listening to what the husband of God’s prophet wrote in 1874, when he wrote that all time prophecy came to an end in 1844. Just a short time before this, his little wife had said exactly the same thing. If you do not believe that, you do not believe in Historic Adventism.]

That the sanctuary of the new covenant is the tabernacle of God in heaven, of which Paul speaks in Hebrews 8, and onward, of which our Lord, as great High Priest, is minister; that this sanctuary is the antitype of the Mosaic tabernacle, and that the priestly work of our Lord, connected therewith, is the antitype of the work of the Jewish priests of the former dispensation (Hebrews 8:1-5, etc.); that this is the sanctuary to be cleansed at the end of the 2300 days; what is termed its cleansing being in this case, as in the type, simply the entrance of the High Priest into the Most Holy Place, to finish the round of service connected therewith, by blotting out and removing from the sanctuary the sins which had been transferred to it by means of the ministration in the first apartment (Hebrews 9:22,23); and that this work, in the antitype, commencing in 1844, occupies a brief but indefinite space, at the conclusion of which the work of mercy for the world is finished.

That God’s moral requirements are the same upon all men in all dispensations; that these are summarily contained in the commandments spoken by Jehovah from Sinai, engraved on the tables of stone, and deposited in the ark, which was in consequence called the “ark of the covenant,” or testament for under the sounding of the seventh trumpet we are told that “the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament” (Revelation 11:19).

That the fourth commandment of this law requires that we devote the seventh day of each week, commonly called Saturday, to abstinence from our own labor, and to the performance of sacred and religious duties; that this is the only weekly Sabbath known to the Bible, being the day that was set apart before Paradise was lost (Genesis 2:2,3), and which will be observed in Paradise restored (Isaiah 66:22,23); that the facts upon which the Sabbath institution is based confine it to the seventh day, as they are not true of any other day; and that the terms Jewish Sabbath and Christian Sabbath , as applied to the weekly rest day, are names of human invention, un-Scriptural in fact, and false in meaning.
That, as the man of sin, the papacy has thought to change times and laws (the laws of God, Daniel 7:25), and has misled almost all Christendom in regard to the fourth commandment; we find a prophecy of a reform in this respect to be wrought among believers just before the coming of Christ, Isaiah 56:1,2; 1 Peter 1:5; Revelation 14:12, etc.

[John Osborne—Do you believe that God’s people in the last days are going to stand up and expose the man of sin, the papacy, and how he has changed the seventh day Sabbath? This is Historic Adventism.]

That, as the natural or carnal heart is at enmity with God and His law, this enmity can be subdued only by a radical transformation of the affections, the exchange of unholy for holy principles; that this transformation follows repentance and faith, is the special work of the Holy Spirit, and constitutes regeneration or conversion.

[John Osborne—This means that you are going to have a lifestyle change. When a person gives their heart to the Lord Jesus Christ, they change; they are a new creature in Jesus Christ.]

That, as all have violated the law of God, and cannot of themselves render obedience to His just requirements, we are dependent on Christ, first for justification from our past offenses, and, secondly, for grace whereby to render acceptable obedience to His holy law in time to come.

[John Osborne—Through the power and strength of Jesus Christ, you can be victorious over all sin in your life. Do you believe that?]

That the Spirit of God was promised to manifest itself in the church through certain gifts, enumerated especially in 1 Corinthians 12 and Ephesians 4; that these gifts are not designed to supersede, or take the place of, the Bible, which is sufficient to make us wise unto salvation, any more than the Bible can take the place of the Holy Spirit; that in specifying the various channels of its operation, that Spirit has simply made provision for its own existence and presence with the people of God to the end of time, to lead to an understanding of that Word which it had inspired, to convince of sin, and work a transformation in the heart and life; and that those who deny to the Spirit its place and operation do plainly deny that part of the Bible which assigns to it this work and position.

That God, in accordance with His uniform dealings with the race, sends forth a proclamation of the approach of the second advent of Christ; that this work is symbolized by the three messages of Revelation 14, the last one bringing to view the work of reform on the law of God, that His people may acquire a complete readiness for that event.

[John Osborne—If you are not willing to stand up, proclaim, teach and believe in the three angels of Revelation 14, you are not an historic Seventh-day Adventist.]

That the time of the cleansing of the sanctuary (see proposition 10), synchronizing with the time of the proclamation of the third message, is a time of investigative judgment, first, with reference to the dead, and, at the close of probation, with reference to the living, to determine who of the myriads now sleeping in the dust of the earth are worthy of a part in the first resurrection, and who of its living multitudes are worthy of translation—points which must be determined before the Lord appears.

That the grave, whither we all tend, expressed by the Hebrew sheol and the Greek hades, is a place of darkness in which there is no work, device, wisdom, or knowledge. Ecclesiastes 9:10.

[John Osborne—The grave is a place of sleep where the dead know not anything—waiting for the resurrection. What a beautiful message that is.]
That the state to which we are reduced by death is one of silence, inactivity and entire unconsciousness. Psalm 146:4; Ecclesiastes 9:5,6; Daniel 12:2; etc.

That out of this prison house of the grave, mankind are to be brought by a bodily resurrection; the righteous having part in the first resurrection, which takes place at the second resurrection, which takes place a thousand years thereafter. Revelation 20:4-6.

[John Osborne—Now do you understand that? There are going to be two resurrections—the righteous come forth when Christ comes; then there is the thousand year millennium; and after the thousand year millenium, the wicked come forth. Now the righteous come forth perfected, changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye. The wicked, when they come up a thousand years later, come up the same way they went into the grave. Is that clear?]

That at the last trump, the living righteous are to be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, and with the resurrected righteous are to be caught up to meet the Lord in the air, so forever to be with Lord.

That these immortalized ones are taken to heaven, to the New Jerusalem, the Father’s house in which there are many mansions (John 14:1-3), where they reign with Christ a thousand years, judging the world and fallen angels, that is, apportioning the punishment to be executed upon them at the close of the one thousand years (Revelation 20:4; 1 Corinithians 6:2,3); that during this time [thousand years] the earth lies in a desolated and chaotic condition (Jeremiah 4:20-27), described, as in the beginning, by the Greek term abussos, bottomless pit (Septuagint of Genesis 1:2); and that here Satan is confined during the thousand years (Revelation 20:1,2), and here finally destroyed (Revelation 20:10; Malachi 4:1); the theater of the ruin he has wrought in the universe, being appropriately made for a time his gloomy prison house, and then the place of his final execution.

[John Osborne—Christ comes in the clouds of heaven, the righteous are taken, the wicked are destroyed by the brightness of his coming. This earth is desolate, as Scripture says in Jeremiah 4:22,23. Satan is here with all his angels, but with no one to tempt. They cannot go anywhere; they have to just sit there bound with a great chain—a chain of circumstances—for a thousand years and think about the desolation they have caused.
The righteous living in heaven at this time are going over the records of the wicked dead. This is when you are going to be able to have your questions answered. If you have a question about a loved one that did not make it to heaven, you can see how the Holy Spirit worked on that person’s heart, but how they rejected His work. You are going to have all of your questions answered, and then your tears are going to be wiped away. There are going to be some tears when your loved ones do not make it to heaven; you are not going to have amnesia, but your tears will be wiped away.]

That at the end of the thousand years, the Lord descends with His people and the New Jerusalem (Revelation 21:2), the wicked dead are raised and come up upon the surface of the yet unrenewed earth, and gather about the city, the camp of the saints (Revelation 20:9), and fire comes down from God out of heaven, and devours them. They are then consumed root and branch (Malachi 4:1), becoming as though they had not been (Obadiah 15, 16). In this everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord (2 Thessalonians 1:9), the wicked meet the everlasting punishment threatened against them (Matthew 25:46). This is the perdition of ungodly men, the fire which consumes them being the fire for which “the heavens and the earth, which are now,” are kept in store, which shall melt even the elements with its intensity, and purge the earth from the deepest stains of the curse of sin. 2 Peter 3:7-12.

[John Osborne—At the end of the thousand years, the New Jerusalem will come down. The wicked are resurrected and Satan says, “We can take the city.” He is going to convince the wicked that they are the righteous and that the Antichrist and the wicked are inside the city, This is exactly what the secret rapture doctrine teaches. The dear people who believe the secret rapture doctrine believe that the Antichrist is going to have the Holy City and that the wicked are inside and the righteous are outside. They are being prepared to be deceived.
But, when the wicked try to take the city, fire is going to come down from God out of heaven and devour them. The Bible calls this God’s strange work, but he has to purify the universe of sin, once and for all, never to rise up again. ]

That a new heavens and earth shall spring by the power of God from the ashes of the old, to be, with the New Jerusalem for its metropolis and capital, the eternal inheritance of the saints, the place where the righteous shall evermore dwell. 2 Peter 3:13; Psalm 37:11, 29; Matthew 5:5.

[John Osborne—When somebody asks: “What is an Historic Seventh-day Adventist?” you may tell them: One who believes what our historic pioneers believed and taught, what they struggled, prayed, and pled with God to show them, and that which he confirmed for them through the Spirit of Prophecy. This is what it means to be an Historic Seventh-day Adventist.]

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Editorial – The Need For Scriptural Unity

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“Press together, press together, that you may not be destroyed as were the inhabitants of Jerusalem….Persecution is coming, and God calls upon all to stand firm in Christian love, their hearts knit together, of one mind and one judgment. His people are to cleave to Him, and they are to love one another as He has loved them. Christ’s life is to be their example. In love, in meekness, in humility, they are to follow Him.” Signs of the Times, October 31, 1900

This inspired statement shows that we must press together or be destroyed as the inhabitants of Jerusalem. The destruction of Jerusalem is a symbol of what will happen to the whole world at the end. In spite of this inspired counsel, we see more division and unsanctified independence in Adventism today than ever before. The devil is determined that this unity will never be accomplished:

“Satan well knows that the combined strength of Satanic agencies with that of evil men is but weakness when opposed to a band of faithful, united servants of the great King, though in number they may be few. In order to overcome the people of God, Satan will work upon the elements in the character which have not been transformed by the grace of Christ, and through these unsanctified characteristics, he will seek to bring about disunion among the people of God. Unless these persons who become agents of Satan are converted, their own souls will be lost, and the souls of those who have looked up to them as men led of God will be destroyed with them, because they are partakers with them of their sins. Satan endeavors to create suspicion, envy, and jealousy, and thus lead men to question those things that it would be for their soul’s interest to believe. The suspicious ones will misconstrue everything….and if this spirit is allowed to prevail, it will demoralize our churches and institutions.” Review and Herald, May 14, 1895

Is not this prophecy fulfilled all around us? To fulfill the longing of Christ as expressed in John 17 that God’s people might not be totally destroyed, we must press together and come into perfect unity. We must unify in the way God has specified or we will never have true Christian unity: “We have a testing message to give, and I am instructed to say to our people, ‘Unify, unify.’ But we are not to unify with those who are departing from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of devils. With our hearts sweet and kind and true, we are to go forth to proclaim the message, giving no heed to those who lead away from the truth.” Selected Messages, book 3, 412. ”

Christ calls for unity. But He does not call for us to unify on wrong practices.” Selected Messages, book 1, 175

“The God of heaven draws a sharp contrast between pure, elevating, ennobling truth and false, misleading doctrines. He calls sin and impenitence by the right name. He does not gloss over wrongdoing with a coat of untempered mortar. I urge our brethren to unity upon a true, scriptural basis.” Selected Messages, book, 175.

“We are to unify, but not on a platform of error.” Battle Creek Letters, 111.

“Unify, unify is the word from heaven. The work of bringing about perfect harmony cannot be done in a moment. It will take close examination and careful study on the part of those who bear responsibilities. Not a selfish thread is to be drawn into the web.” Manuscript Releases, vol. 19, 149

Because of this inspired counsel, a number of Historic Seventh-day Adventists met together for counsel and prayer on July 12 at Steps to Life. If we are humble and pray and receive the Holy Spirit, we will be drawn into a perfect unity because Christ is not divided. The universal longing of each was to come together in unity of spirit without compromising one principle of truth. The absence of any type of political spirit was refreshing. We make no claim to have perfect unity yet, but we are all praying about it and studying and looking forward to another meeting to pursue this goal. In order to have unity, several necessary items were studied, such as: What does an Historical Seventh-day Adventist believe—What are the historic tests of fellowship? I believe that God is leading us just as He led our spiritual forefathers in the 1840s to a perfect unity of spirit, thought, doctrine and faith.

We want to invite every Historic Seventh-day Adventist person and institution to pray for unity and to press together. This is no time for independence; it is time for the prayer of Jesus in John 17 to be fulfilled. It will never be fulfilled among those professed Adventists who have essentially rejected the Spirit of Prophecy and who do not believe and who do not believe in the investigative judgment and the other truths of the three angel’s messages. It will never happen to those who are willing to compromise with error or who are unwilling to protest the apostasy. It will never happen to those who reject the New Testament concept of the nature of the church. It can only happen among Historic Seventh-day Adventists. Will you be a part of it?