God’s Church

The Great House

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Isaac was old and blind, and called his sons to give them his last blessing. While Esau went hunting for venison to prepare a meal for his father, Jacob, covetous of the blessing given to the first son, deceived his father into thinking that he was the first born. Afraid of his brother, Jacob fled from his home, never to see his mother alive again (see Genesis 27).

Tired from his flight, Jacob slept, and the Lord spoke to him in a dream. Upon waking he said, “ ‘Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.’ And he was afraid and said, ‘How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven!’ Then Jacob rose early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put at his head, set it up as a pillar, and poured oil on top of it. And he called the name of that place Bethel” (Genesis 28:16–19).

Beth is the Hebrew name for house, and el is the Hebrew word for God. So Bethel is the House of God—the Great House. Isaiah 2:2 says, “It shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established on the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow to it.”

Timothy describes the foundation of God’s house. He said, “Nevertheless the solid foundation of God stands, having this seal: ‘The Lord knows those who are His,’ and, ‘Let everyone who names the name of Christ depart from iniquity.’ But, in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honor and some for dishonor. Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from the latter, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work” (2 Timothy 2:19–21).

Here is described two characteristics of God’s professed church:

1) the Lord knows those who are His and

2) a call to those who claim the name of Christ to depart from evil.

The church includes those who have taken the name of Christian, although not everyone is a member of the royal family. From among the church the Lord knows who are really His. Some are just there to make appearances without experiencing a heart change.

Jesus referred to these in John 10:1. It says: “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.” The only way to enter is through Christ, not Buddha, not Mohammed. No agnostics or atheists are in there, only those who call themselves Christian. “But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver; but also of wood and clay, some for honor and some for dishonor” (2 Timothy 2:20). In this house are both permanent vessels as well as temporary vessels that will be taken out. To remain in God’s house there must be a cleansing. Paul said, “Therefore if anyone cleanses himself from the latter (that which is dishonorable), he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work” (verse 21).

Writing to the Thessalonians, Paul explained what is dishonorable saying, “For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you should abstain from sexual immorality; that each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor, not in passion of lust, like the Gentiles who do not know God; that no one should take advantage of and defraud his brother in this matter, because the Lord is the avenger of all such, as we also forewarned you and testified. For God did not call us to uncleanness, but in holiness” (1 Thessalonians 4:3–8).

Peter also admonishes against un-Christian behavior in 1 Peter 1, “… as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance; but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, ‘Be holy for I am holy’ ” (verses 14–16).

It goes on to say in verse 18, “Knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver and gold.” Because we were redeemed with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb, without blemish and without spot, we also are to separate ourselves from that which is dishonorable if we hope to become a holy people.

It is the holy people who are the precious, honorable vessels, who will not be thrown out with the trash someday. Paul says, “Pursue peace with all men, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord” (Hebrews 12:14). Holiness is not an option, it is a necessity. Heaven will not be divided into two sections, one for the holy people and another for the unholy.

Isaiah 4:3 reads: “It shall come to pass that he who is left in Zion and remains in Jerusalem will be called holy-everyone who is recorded among the living in Jerusalem.” Only the holy will be left when the Great House is cleansed and purified.

Isaiah 35 is a wonderful chapter about the future glory that God’s people will enjoy in heaven. It says in verse 8, “a highway shall be there, and a road, and it shall be called the Highway of Holiness. The unclean shall not pass over it” (because they will not be there).

“And they shall call them The Holy People, The Redeemed of the Lord; and you shall be called Sought Out, a City Not Forsaken” (Isaiah 62:12).

This article focuses on the group of people who belong to the Second Advent Movement that began in the early part of the 19th century and includes a number of denominations that developed within the Second Advent Movement. Many people today do not know that the Jehovah Witnesses, for instance, were a development of the Second Advent Movement. The Seventh-day Adventist Churches came out of that movement and claim that they are the remnant church, or the last church, just before Jesus returns to this earth, and they make this claim on the basis of two Bible texts.

“And the dragon was enraged with the woman, and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring (the remnant of her seed, KJV) who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ” (Revelation 12:17).

Revelation 19:10 tells us, “… the testimony of Jesus Christ is the Spirit of Prophecy.” Adventists have preached for over a hundred and fifty years that they will be the ones left when the Great House is completely cleaned out and cleansed.

Today we are living in the shaking time predicted in Hebrews 12. I do not claim to understand it all yet, but one thing I do understand is that the purification of the Lord’s house is actually a terrible ordeal. What is it that will eventually cleanse and purge out all the dishonorable vessels from the Great House? Ellen White says, “Renewed, purified, sanctified, the church must be, else the wrath of God will fall upon them with much greater power than upon those who have never professed to be saints.” Lift Him Up, 301.

We see here that it is the wrath of God, the seven last plagues, that are going to clean out the house completely. There will be millions of people who claim they are in the Great House. But when the seven last plagues are over, the majority will be gone. We just read, “Renewed, purified, sanctified, the church must be, else the wrath of God will fall upon them with much greater power than upon those who have never professed to be saints.”

We are living in the most sobering times of earth’s history. The question must come to us all, Am I a holy person? Holiness is a theological word but it is not complicated. It simply means you agree with God. Those who disagree are unholy.

Holy people are obedient. “Christ has made baptism the sign of entrance to His spiritual kingdom. He has made this a positive condition with which all must comply who wish to be acknowledged as under the authority of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.” Testimonies, vol. 6, 91.

When you are baptized, you acknowledge publicly that you agree with God and are now under His authority. “Baptism is a most solemn renunciation of the world. Those who are baptized in the threefold name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, at the very entrance of their Christian life declare publicly that they have forsaken the service of Satan and have become members of the royal family, children of the heavenly King.” Evangelism, 307.

To be members of the royal family of God brings responsibilities. There are many who neglect to meet with the rest of God’s family when they worship the Lord on the Sabbath. We have an appointment each week at the house of God on Sabbath, the day the Lord has set aside to meet with His children. Unless sick or in the hospital, all should endeavor to meet together with like believers in praise and worship, if at all possible.

Isaiah says, “And it shall come to pass that from one New Moon to another, and from one Sabbath to another, all flesh shall come to worship before Me, says the Lord” (Isaiah 66:23). I doubt that in heaven anyone would make an excuse for not coming to worship our Maker.

We are told: “Everyone should feel that he has a part to act in making the Sabbath meetings interesting. You are not to come together simply as a matter of form, but for the interchange of thought.” Testimonies, vol. 6, 362. The Sabbath School is a time for interchange of thought. It is a time when people have opportunity to testify what the Lord has done for them over the past week, or ask for prayer requests. It is also time for the expression of thanksgiving. How wonderful would it be that the hour of Sabbath School was filled with thanksgiving.

Another reason we meet together is “for the utterance of your sincere desire for divine enlightenment, that you may know God, and Jesus Christ, whom He has sent. Communing together worshiping Christ will strengthen the soul for life’s trials and conflicts. Never think that you can be Christians and yet withdraw yourselves within yourselves. Each one is a part of the great web of humanity, and the experience of each will be largely determined by the experience of his associates.” Ibid.

H.M.S. Richards used to say that if the church was not necessary, Christ would not have established it. Do not think you can get along on your own and not show up in God’s family to meet together for worship.  Many who live where there is no religious freedom and risk being captured, tortured, put in prison, or killed, still meet; they see the necessity of getting together to study God’s word and worship Him.

We often receive letters from people who have no one with whom to worship; others meeting in very small churches of maybe 2, 3, 4 or 6. Be encouraged, for the servant of the Lord said, “The place of worship may be very humble (it maybe in somebody’s home) but it is no less acknowledged by God. To those who worship God in spirit and in truth and in the beauty of holiness it will be as the gate of heaven. The company of believers may be few in number, but in God’s sight they are very precious. By the cleaver of truth they have been taken as rough stones from the quarry of the world and have been brought into the workshop of God to be hewed and shaped. But even in the rough they are precious in the sight of God. The ax, the hammer, and the chisel of trial are in the hands of One who is skillful; they are used, not to destroy, but to work out the perfection of every soul. As precious stones, polished after the similitude of a palace, God designs us to find a place in the heavenly temple.” Testimonies, vol. 6, 363.

If we are to be one of the living stones in His heavenly temple we must be fashioned by the “One who is skillful.” A look at the people in most of the churches throughout history reveals them in a deplorable condition, but it is God’s work to shape all into living stones that fit exactly where the Master Builder wants to place them.

It is recorded in Revelation 2 and 3 for all but two of the churches what the Lord had against them. Each was in a terrible condition and severely rebuked, but given hope if they would overcome their faults.

The Philadelphia church was one of the two churches that was not reproved. But if you go to the church of Laodicea in Revelation 3:16 and 17, it says, “So then, because you are lukewarm, neither cold nor hot, I will spue you out of My mouth. Because you say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing’—and do not know you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked” (Revelation 3:17).

Only Smyrna and Philadelphia escaped reproof. However, they still had people in them who claimed to be true Christians but were actually part of the synagogue of Satan. These churches still had huge problems. Read Revelation 2:9, and Revelation 3:9.

The church is supposed to bring holiness into the world. But oftentimes the world, instead, has brought unholiness into the church. Remember, when the Great House is cleaned out, only the holy vessels—the honorable vessels—will remain.

The Lord repeatedly said to His people anciently, and repeated it through the apostle Paul: “Come apart from what is unclean, be separate and touch not what is unclean, and I will receive you” (2 Corinthians 6:17, literal translation).

At the end of time a final loud cry will result in cleaning out the Great House.

Revelation 18 has to do with separating from organizations, groups, churches, who are living in open sin and refuse to repent. Revelation 2:21–23 speaks of a time in the church when the church was given opportunity to repent and would not.

Revelation 18 describes the fall of Babylon. Once identified, we must separate from it or we will end up sharing in her sins and sharing in the plagues as well. When a church falls and refuses to repent, she will receive the judgments of God.

Be sure to understand who Babylon is. Babylon claims to be part of the Great House. It cannot be the Hindus, the agnostics, the atheists, the Moslems, or anybody who does not claim the name of Christ. But Babylon, all of Babylon, claims to be part of the Great House of God. Babylon takes the name of Christ.

Revelation 18:2, last part, records that because of what Babylon has become, it is necessary to get out or receive the plagues with her. It says, “It has become a dwelling place of demons, a prison for every foul spirit, and a cage for every unclean and hated bird” (Revelation 18:3). Spiritualism will overtake the church and it will be controlled by demons.

In Matthew 7:6, Jesus said, “Do not give what is holy to the dogs.” A dog is an unclean beast. It is not a clean animal. It says in Revelation 22:15, that outside the holy city, on the outside, will be all the dogs. It is not talking about animals. It is talking about people. You cannot be part of any church that tries to mix what is holy with what is unholy.

“For all nations have drunk of the wine (false doctrines) of the wrath of her fornication, the kings (governments) of the earth have committed fornication (the union of church and state) with her, and the merchants of the earth have become rich through the abundance of her luxury” (Revelation 18:3). It is impossible to stay pure and listen to false doctrines being preached and taught without losing your soul. The wealth and luxury of the world has come in and taken over the churches, shifting their focus from God to worldliness.

The Jews taught that where the law of God is not obeyed, there Satan dwells. “He who sins is of the devil” (1 John 3:8). If a church teaches that you can break God’s law and still go to heaven, that church has become a habitation of demons. For your safety, you have to get out of there.

Read 2 Thessalonians 2:1–11 carefully. This passage of Scripture talks about people who will believe “the lie”—the idea that you can sin and still have eternal life—the very first lie with which the devil deceived Eve.

The Great House of God is being cleaned out. The big question is, where will you be, on the inside as an honorable vessel, or cast out?

(Unless appearing in quoted references or otherwise identified, Bible texts are from the New King James Version.)

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

The Fear of God or the Fear of Man

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I want us to consider just one word. It is a four letter word and it is spelled F-E-A-R. Fear began in the Garden of Eden (see Genesis 3:9, 10) and from that time till the present day, we have lived with it. Fear is one of the strongest emotions we experience, but there is a time coming very soon when there will be no more fear. We read about it in the book of Isaiah. “Thus says your Lord, the LORD and your God, who pleads the cause of His people: ‘See I have taken out of your hand the cup of trembling, the dregs of the cup of My fury; you shall no longer drink it.’” Isaiah 51:22 NKJV

Fear, like other emotions, can have a good effect or it can have an evil one, causing a person to lose his soul.

Let us briefly consider the good effect of fear. The good effect of fear is the fear of God. The first part of the first angel’s message says, “Fear God and give glory to Him.” We are living in a generation where there is little fear of God, but we should be afraid to disobey Him or to do anything that is in any way displeasing to Him. There is nothing wrong with this kind of fear. Fearing God has to do with reverence, respect and with the realization of His holy character.

There is another kind of fear, however, that is not holy or healthy in its effect. In fact, it is very detrimental and has caused millions of people to lose their soul. This is the type of fear that was experienced by the parents of the man Jesus cured of blindness. We find this story recorded in John 9.

“They brought to the Pharisees him that aforetime was blind. And it was the Sabbath day when Jesus made the clay, and opened his eyes. Then again the Pharisees also asked him how he had received his sight. He said unto them, He put clay upon mine eyes, and I washed, and do see. Therefore said some of the Pharisees, This man is not of God, because he keepeth not the Sabbath day. Others said, How can a man that is a sinner do such miracles? And there was a division among them. They say unto the blind man again, What sayest thou of Him, that He hath opened thine eyes? He said, He is a prophet. But the Jews did not believe concerning him, that he had been blind, and received his sight, until they called the parents of him that had received his sight.” John 9:13-18

The Pharisees were in a real dilemma. They were determined not to accept the evidence before them, so they called the parents of the man, “And they asked them, saying, Is this your son, who ye say was born blind? How then doth he now see? His parents answered them and said, We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind: but by what means he now seeth, we know not; or who hath opened his eyes, we know not: he is of age; ask him: he shall speak for himself. These words spake his parents, because they feared the Jews: for the Jews had agreed already, that if any man did confess that He was Christ, he should be put out of the synagogue.” John 9:19-22

This is a most amazing development. Try to put yourself in the situation of these parents. One of the things that parents watch for in their babies is to see the look of recognition in their child’s face. Imagine how you would feel if you watched day after day and it never took place. As you watched your baby, you realized that he could not see. You took him to the most skillful physician and he told you that there was nothing he could do for him. Can you imagine the heart breaking realization, that your son was blind and would never see?

Now, suppose that this son suddenly received his sight, and someone asks you, “What happened?” Can you imagine yourself saying, “I don’t know,” when you knew very well how he received his sight? These parents knew how their boy received his sight; it was going all over town like a prairie fire, but they were in such bondage to fear that they lied.

The Bible tells us that people who lie are going to hell. The last two chapters of the Bible states this three times. In one place it says no liars will be on the inside of the city, and another time it says that they will all be on the outside and burn up. Another time it says no one will enter into the city who is a liar. God wanted to be sure that no one was mistaken on that point.

These people were in such fear of being put out of the synagogue, that is, disfellowshipped, that they were willing to jeopardize their eternal life. There are many today who listen to and believe the truth in secret because they do not want the people they work with or the people they go to church with to find out about it.

Well, what happens when a person has this fear? Did these people confess Christ? No. Can you be saved if you do not confess Christ? No. Have you ever met a Seventh-day Adventist who was afraid of being disfellowshipped? I want you to see how serious this is. “Nevertheless even among the rulers many believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue; for they loved praise of men more than the praise of God. Then Jesus cried out and said, ‘He who believes in Me, believes not in me but in Him who sent Me. And he who sees Me sees Him who sent Me.’” John 12:42-45 NKJV

We are not talking about some phenomenon that just affected a handful of people. There were thousands of people in this situation. Even some of the people who were eventually saved lost a great deal because of their fear. Joseph of Arimathea was one of those people. He was a disciple of Jesus, but nobody knew it because he was afraid of the Jews. See John 19:38. As a result, he never got to associate with Jesus during the time of Jesus’ ministry. During all of the rest of his life, he had to remember that when the Majesty of heaven was here and he could have been with Him just like the rest of the disciples, he missed out because of fear.

Someone says to me, “Oh, in the structure of Adventism, there are people like Joseph of Arimathea, like Nicodemus.” Yes, there are thousands of Seventh-day Adventists in this situation. They are afraid to stand up and do what they know is right because of fear; and if they do not stand up for the truth, they are going to miss out. One of these days the latter rain, the loud cry, is going to come, but God is not going to allow anyone to participate in the latter rain and the loud cry who is afraid to stand up for the truth. God may snatch some of them out of the fire, as Jesus saved the thief on the cross at the eleventh hour, but they are missing out on the grandest opportunity that Adventists have ever had, because we are standing in a position right now, where, if we will stand up for the truth, God will use us to finish His work.

You cannot be saved without being involved in God’s work. If fear is keeping you from being vitally involved in the Lord’s work, you must get over that fear or you will be lost. In Revelation 21:8, there is a list of people who are going to experience the second death. The first to be mentioned are the cowardly. A coward is a person who is full of fear.

The church leaders of Jesus’ time were afraid of the Roman power. “Then the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered a council and said, ‘What shall we do? For this Man works many signs. If we let Him alone like this, everyone will believe in Him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and nation.’” John 11:47, 48 NKJV

Is there anybody in Adventism today who is afraid of the Roman power? Yes, there is. They do not even want us to hand out The Great Controversy. They are afraid to tell the truth. While we want to be loving and kind whatever we do, we want to tell the truth. It is not loving to do otherwise. The world is rapidly going to destruction. Can we sit by and watch them be destroyed and say nothing and yet profess that we love them?
What happened to the people in Christ’s time who were afraid of the Roman power? The same people who were afraid of the Roman power were destroyed by it. Do not think that if you decide you are not gong to say anything that you are going to be saved when the trouble comes, because just like the people of Christ’s time, you will be destroyed anyway.

What is the solution to overcoming this universal human emotion that is so powerful and that the devil has used so successfully? The solution is knowing that God is with you. “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10 NKJV

Notice what Jesus said about fear as He was sending his disciples out to preach. “Therefore do not fear them. For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, and hidden that will not be known. Whatever I tell you in the dark, speak in the light; and what you hear in the ear, preach on the housetops. And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin? And not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven.” Matthew 10:26-33 NKJV

When God is with you, you do not need to be afraid of anything. Our problem is in developing enough faith to believe that. You will never conquer fear unless you have enough faith to believe these Scriptures. Learning to have a perfect faith and trust in God is absolutely essential to our preparation for the times of trouble that the world is entering into today.

“So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.” Romans 10:17 NKJV. The Word of God is the medium through which faith comes. If you want to have faith, you need to have a Bible memorization program.

The second thing you must do, if you want to have faith, is to have an active prayer life. Jesus said that the kind of faith that moves mountains is not obtained except by prayer and fasting. See Matthew 17:19-21.

We are headed into a time when the whole world is going to be gripped in fear such as they cannot imagine. The Bible says, “Fear and the pit and the snare are upon you, O inhabitants of the earth. And it shall be that he who flees from the noise of the fear shall fall into the pit, and he who comes up from the midst of the pit shall be caught in the snare; for the windows from on high are open, and foundations of the earth are shaken.” Isaiah 24:17,18 NKJV

One of the other prophets said this fear is like running from a lion and then meeting a bear. Then when you get away from the bear and run into the house and lean on the wall, a serpent bites you. See Amos 5:19. When that time comes, there is going to be no release from that terror for the people of this world. The fear is going to get worse and worse until Jesus comes. Revelation 6 says that every free man, every bondman or slave and all of the captains, the kings, the mighty men, all of them, ran and hid in the rocks and the mountains and asked for the mountains to fall on them. The fear that is going to come on the people of this world is going to become so great that they are going to look up at the mountains and cry, “Please, just bury us alive.”

There is going to be some fear for God’s people, too. “For thus says the LORD: ‘We have heard a voice of trembling, of fear, and not of peace. Ask now, and see, whether a man is ever in labor with child? So why do I see every man with his hands on his loins like a woman in labor, and all faces turned pale? Alas! For that day is great, so that none is like it; and it is the time of Jacob’s trouble, but he shall be saved out of it.’” Jeremiah 30:5-7 NKJV

The little tests and trials that God allows to come to you and me now are to get us ready for that time. Our troubles do not just spring out of the ground. God has a purpose; He is preparing you for what is coming. One of the wonderful things about being a Christian is that God sees in the future what is going to happen to you, and by the things He allows to come to you now, He is preparing you for what is going to happen in the future. If you postpone giving your life to Christ, He will have less time to get you ready. He will have to put you through a crash course, giving you a lot of trouble in a shorter period of time. As soon as you realize that you are in a position that you can do nothing for yourself, God can start to work in your life.

As I have studied The Great Controversy, I have been impressed that the time of trouble is not going to be as bad for some people as for others. The reason for this is that there will be some people at the beginning of trouble who will have already developed mature faith and have perfect trust in the Lord. There will be others, however, who, even if they do endure the test, will have to learn the lesson of faith under the terrible weight of discouragement.

Have you seen God at work in your life lately? Have you given Him permission to allow you to have some trials so that you can learn to trust Him, or are you just trying to take care of yourself and build so much security that you do not need to depend upon God? As we see God helping us in the little trials and tribulations that we have along the way, our faith grows. This is something serious to think about.

There are many wonderful promises concerning the Christian. We are told that “We can never be placed in a position for which God has not made provision.” Christ’s Object Lessons, 173. Isn’t that exciting? Our Lord is equal to any emergency. If you are called to go through the fiery furnace for Jesus’ sake, He will be with you just as He was with the three Hebrew worthies. We are told that God would send every angel in heaven to the aid of one who trusts Him. Rather than allow him to be overcome. See Testimonies, vol. 7, 17. Christ never forsakes one of his followers in combat. Faith brings us the power of omnipotence.

There is something else that will deliver you from fear. “Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him. Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness [assurance] in the day of judgment; because as He is, so are we in this world. There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love. We love Him because he first loved us.” 1John 4:15-19 NKJV

If you have had enough of fear and torment in your life and want perfect faith so that you can have the victory over sin in your life, I invite you to fully commit yourself to the Lord just now and to ask Him to work in your life to help you develop true faith in Him. When you have this faith and it is perfected, you will lose all of your fear.

The End