Jesus - A Prophet.

Prophecy-  As prophecy fulfilled we can easily- with the Holy Spirit's guidance, comprehend truth. We are called to live in only truth, Jesus is the truth.  When Jesus walked the earth as a human being He lived in truth. His advocacy for truth was well recounted.  Jesus lived as a prophet- because if we do NOT recognize Jesus was a prophet, how can we believed that He gave prophecies?

Heb 1:1  God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, 

Heb 1:2  Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds

God at various times, in different ways spoke in the past to the fathers through prophets.

In the days of Jesus, God spoke through His Son.

God appointed His Son as His Heir of all things.

God also made the worlds through His Son.

Jesus a prophet?

Deu 18:18  I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him. 

Deu 18:19  And it shall come to pass, that whosoever will not hearken unto my words which he shall speak in my name, I will require it of him.

Joh_5:30  I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.

Joh 5:19  Then answered Jesus and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise. 

Act 3:20  And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: 

Act 3:21  Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began. 

Act 3:22  For Moses truly said unto the fathers, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you. 

Act 3:23  And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not hear that prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people. 

Act 3:24  Yea, and all the prophets from Samuel and those that follow after, as many as have spoken, have likewise foretold of these days. 

Act 3:25  Ye are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying unto Abraham, And in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed. 

Act 3:26  Unto you first God, having raised up his Son Jesus, sent him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from his iniquities. 

Act 7:37  This is that Moses, which said unto the children of Israel, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear.

Luk 24:13  And, behold, two of them went that same day to a village called Emmaus, which was from Jerusalem about threescore furlongs. 

Luk 24:14  And they talked together of all these things which had happened. 

Luk 24:15  And it came to pass, that, while they communed together and reasoned, Jesus himself drew near, and went with them. 

Luk 24:16  But their eyes were holden that they should not know him. 

Luk 24:17  And he said unto them, What manner of communications are these that ye have one to another, as ye walk, and are sad? 

Luk 24:18  And the one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answering said unto him, Art thou only a stranger in Jerusalem, and hast not known the things which are come to pass there in these days? 

Luk 24:19  And he said unto them, What things? And they said unto him, Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, which was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people: 

Luk 24:20  And how the chief priests and our rulers delivered him to be condemned to death, and have crucified him. 

Luk 24:21  But we trusted that it had been he which should have redeemed Israel: and beside all this, to day is the third day since these things were done. 

Luk 24:22  Yea, and certain women also of our company made us astonished, which were early at the sepulchre; 

Luk 24:23  And when they found not his body, they came, saying, that they had also seen a vision of angels, which said that he was alive. 

Luk 24:24  And certain of them which were with us went to the sepulchre, and found it even so as the women had said: but him they saw not. 

Luk 24:25  Then he said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken: 

Luk 24:26  Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory? 

Luk 24:27  And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself. 

Luk 24:28  And they drew nigh unto the village, whither they went: and he made as though he would have gone further. 

Luk 24:29  But they constrained him, saying, Abide with us: for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent. And he went in to tarry with them. 

Luk 24:30  And it came to pass, as he sat at meat with them, he took bread, and blessed it, and brake, and gave to them. 

Luk 24:31  And their eyes were opened, and they knew him; and he vanished out of their sight. 

Luk 24:32  And they said one to another, Did not our heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures? 

Luk 24:33  And they rose up the same hour, and returned to Jerusalem, and found the eleven gathered together, and them that were with them, 

Luk 24:34  Saying, The Lord is risen indeed, and hath appeared to Simon. 

Luk 24:35  And they told what things were done in the way, and how he was known of them in breaking of bread

Mat 21:11  And the multitude said, This is Jesus the prophet of Nazareth of Galilee. 

Joh 6:14  Then those men, when they had seen the miracle that Jesus did, said, This is of a truth that prophet that should come into the world. 

Joh 9:17  They say unto the blind man again, What sayest thou of him, that he hath opened thine eyes? He said, He is a prophet. 

Joh 1:45  Philip findeth Nathanael, and saith unto him, We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph. 

*

Beyond a doubt, Jesus was a prophet.  As such He predicted future events. To ignore Jesus' own prophecies is self-condemnation. We have so much history, a couple thousand years of history since our Savior sacrificed Himself upon the cross for us and ultimately returned to be with the Heavenly Father, leaving the Holy Spirit to guide us in His absence. A couple THOUSAND years and as the scroll of time unfolded so did prophecies. We are BLESSED to be able to look back at history and prophecy at the wondrous Biblical truth we must never forget. So many people did not have what we have today, a huge wealth of prophecies opened for our comprehension.

Many people will go only so far where prophecy is concerned and then they'll say it's impossible to understand all that cryptic stuff in the Bible, if God wanted us to understand He would have wrote it plainly for us simple humans, of average intelligence. Satan has blinded people as it was PREDICTED he would do. People, we are told would only desire smooth things, things easy to hear, things pleasing to them. Satan will give them that- all the smooth, pleasing, easy things they desire just so long as they keep away from the truths that are to be searched out as a hidden treasure.  Turning a blind eye to prophecies is to turn a blind eye to Jesus the Prophet. To stop believing in the prophecies of Jesus after His predicted death and resurrection, is to cut short the word of God, it is turning a blind eye to truth revealed for all to comprehend.

As we study revealed prophecy, we have to pray for continued comprehensions. We are living so close to the return of our Savior that we dare not blink when it comes to seeking truth for our times! We must know the truth Jesus predicted for US right now!

All through the grace and mercy of our LORD and SAVIOR, Jesus Christ, now and forever!!!!!!!

*******

ANALYSIS -- Part 1 -- (Times of the Gentiles)

In the January thought paper - "Lift Up Your Heads" - we outlined the significance of the prophecy which Jesus gave as recorded by Luke. This was done in harmony with the counsel of the servant of the Lord when she wrote:

In the twenty-first chapter of Luke Christ foretold what was to come upon Jerusalem, and with it He connected the scenes which were to take place in the history of this world just prior to the coming of the Son of man in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.   1

In the presentation of Christ, there were three major sign divisions. The first marked the time of the destruction of Jerusalem. The second group of signs - signs in the sun, moon, and stars - proclaimed "the period of the revelation of the Son of man."  7    The third division marked the fulfillment of  "the times of the Gentiles."   2    or nations. In this thought paper, we shall begin an analysis of the first two divisions to discover what lessons we can learn as we seek to find the answer of what God is saying to us by permitting the final prophecy which Christ gave to be fulfilled before our very eyes in this generation.

Jesus stated -     "When ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh."  3    In 66 A. D., Cestius did come, and surround Jerusalem with armies. Josephus tells us that      "he retired from the city, without any reason in the world. "  4    Titus resumed the siege and Jerusalem was trodden down of the Gentiles four years later. This can be diagrammed thus: 

----------66 AD-------------------- 70 AD

p 2

Suppose you had been living in Jerusalem in 66 A. D., and were operating a successful market place. You had heard the Apostles tell of the words of Jesus. What would you have done when the armies of Cestius suddenly withdrew from the city? What should you have done?

Suppose again you had been living in 68 A. D., and had left your business, home, and possessions in Jerusalem, and were now trying to re-establish yourself with difficulty in the country to which you had fled in 66 A. D. Word comes to you that things are pretty normal in Jerusalem, and that business is good. What would you have been tempted to do? What would you have done? What should you really have done? Then comes 70 A. D., and the destruction of Jerusalem with "vengeance". Wouldn't you have thanked God for the words of Jesus, and been exceedingly joyous that you had believed what had been spoken, and acted in harmony with those words?

The second division of the prophecy of Jesus concerned the  "signs in the sun and in the moon, and in the stars."   5   Matthew enlarged this aspect of the prophecy of Jesus and declared that      "the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven."  6    These major signs mark the beginning of a "period", not a single event. We read:      While wholly unconscious of their condition and their peril, the church and the world were rapidly approaching the most solemn and momentous period of earth's history, - the period of the revelation of the Son of man. Already had the signs which Christ Himself had promised, - the sun clothed in darkness by day and the moon by night, - declared His coming near.  7

This period of "the revelation of the Son of man" is likewise three-fold.    1)    Jesus came as "the Son of man" in the clouds of heaven to the Ancient of Days in 1844 to begin the work of Judgment.  8    While the Father presides, all judgment is placed in the hands of Christ because      "He is the Son of man."  9    How reassuring to know that One who became us in all aspects save in the acts of sin, and who can understand what we have faced in each decision of life, will render the final decision

p 3

 in our eternal destiny.    2)    The Son of man is to be revealed in humanity. Those who live through the final hours of human history      "must reflect the image of Jesus fully."  10    Now Jesus is the human name given to the Son of God when He became the Son of man. This means simply that the saints of earth's final hour will walk as He walked when He was here as a Man among men. How important then, that we understand the nature of the Incarnation,   11    for unless we do, we shall never reflect the image of Jesus fully.    3)    The final event of the period of the revelation of the Son of man is His coming in the clouds of glory to gather the subject of the Kingdom given to Him in the Judgment, and to vindicate those who have in turn vindicated God by reflecting in earth's last hour, the image of Jesus fully.  12

The signs which marked the eve of the period of the revelation of the Son of man can be diagrammed thus:

May 19, 1780--------------------Nov. 13, 1833-----------------------Oct. 22, 1844

Suppose you had been living in 1832 in one of the New England States, and an announcement was made that a Baptist layman was coming to town to tell about the end of the world in a little more than ten years from then. You were a member of the Methodist church, and on the Sunday morning prior to the meeting, your pastor warned his congregation not to get alarmed because there had always been rabble rousers telling that the end of all things was near. After all what could this layman know more than all the great scholars of the Church? What would you have done? What should you have done? Would there have been deep religious ties holding you to the thinking to which you had been accustomed?

Suppose that you had still been in New England on the night of November 13, 1833. You had listened to your pastor, and had not gone to hear William Miller the year previous. But now you read your Bible, and having seen with your own

p 4

eyes the sign which Jesus gave, what would you do? What should you have done if strictly honest with yourself and God?

Suppose after listening to the preachers of the Advent - for their number had grown since the final sign which Jesus gave to mark the period of the revelation of the Son of man - you joined the Movement. Then came the summer of 1844. According to your belief and expectation you looked for the coming of Jesus to earth that Fall - October 22, to be specific. How would you have related yourself to the business as usual routine that was still evident in the world? How should you have?

William Miller and those associated with him misunderstood the meaning of the prophetic phrase -"the cleansing of the sanctuary." They believed that this referred to the destruction of the earth by fire. They were correct in their understanding of the time part of the prophecy - the 2300 Days. Now we face the final sign that Jesus gave in Luke 21: - Jerusalem is no longer trodden down of the Gentiles or nations. It can be diagrammed thus:

----------1967------------------------Second Advent

We cannot afford the luxury of a single mistake in interpreting the meaning of this final sign, which marks the completion of the times of the Gentiles. What is God seeking to tell us in permitting this sign to be fulfilled before our eyes today? We must know what it signifies so as to know how to relate ourselves to its fulfillment. There can be no question but that it relates to the final scenes of this earth's history. It is also clear by comparison that the generation, which was alive during any of the other signs, did see fulfilled the event to which those signs pointed. We are thus past the point where we can play tidily-winks with our eternal destiny.

We must know, we must understand the significance of this final sign given by Jesus.

p 5

Further, how we react today to what God is saying by this sign is the same way we would have reacted had we been living when the other signs occurred. Every prophecy of God demands a commitment on the part of each individual who is alive at the time of its fulfillment.

This analysis will be continued in the next thought paper.

1 -- Ellen G. White, Counsels to Writers and Editors, pp. 23-24

2 -- Luke 21:24

(((Luk 21:24  And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. ))))

3 -- Luke 21:20

(((Luk 21:20  And when ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh. ))))

4 -- Josephus, Wars of the Jews, Bk. II, Chap. xix, Sec. 7

5 -- Luke 21:25

(((Luk 21:25  And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; ))))

6 -- Matthew 24:29

(((Mat 24:29  Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:))))

7 -- Ellen G. White, Spirit of Prophecy, Vol. IV, p. 195

8 -- Daniel 7:9-10; 13-14

(((Dan 7:9  I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire. 

Dan 7:10  A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened. 

Dan 7:13  I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. 

Dan 7:14  And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed. ))))

9 -- John 5:22,27

(((Joh 5:22  For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son

Joh 5:27  And hath given him authority to execute judgment also, because he is the Son of man. ))))

10 -- Ellen G. White, Early Writings, p. 71

11 -- See Manuscript -In the Form of a Slave, a study of the meaning of the Incarnation and what it means to be a partaker of the Divine Nature as revealed in the scriptures, and the Spirit of Prophecy.

12 -- Luke 21:27, Matthew 24:30-31

(((Luk 21:27  And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. 

Mat 24:30  And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 

Mat 24:31  And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. ))))

NOTES AND COMMENTS -- Bauer Tape -For April the subject will be -"God's True Church." 

Believe It or Not! -- The letter on the next page sent to Elder Bauer is being reproduced as a facsimile for only by seeing can one believe under such circumstances. Those of the laity and ministry who have been accorded such "brotherly love" know the malice, hatred, and professional jealousy which lies behind such a letter. Identical letters were also sent to the clerk and church school teacher at South Lake Tahoe. (The underscoring and paragraph markings are mine.) Take a good look at "A", and then compare with the Church Manual, 1967 edition, p. 233, which reads:

"A vote of censure must not carry any provision involving severance of church membership in case of failure to comply with any conditions imposed. " Consider "B", and note that the Church Manual on the same page states that one censured      "is not deprived . . .of the privilege of sharing the blessings of Sabbath school, church worship, or the ordinances of the Lord's house. "     The gap between the actions of the hierarchy, and the verbalizing of "revival", "reformation", "perfection", and "righteousness by faith" in the general church paper continues to widen. May God have mercy on the deceived laity.

(Letter not attached here. Possibly a letter to Jean Colston from S. Lake Tahoe church re: censor for handing out material and threats of disfellowshipping and told not welcome in the church building.)

April 1975  -  "Watchman, What of the Night? " Thought Paper.  Adventist Laymen's Foundation. 

Wheat or Weeds.

Mat 13:24  Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field: 

Mat 13:25  But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. 

Mat 13:26  But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. 

Mat 13:27  So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares? 

Mat 13:28  He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up? 

Mat 13:29  But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. 

Mat 13:30  Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn. 

Mat 13:36  Then 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. 

Mat 13:37  He answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man; 

Mat 13:38  The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one; 

Mat 13:39  The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels. 

Mat 13:40  As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world. 

Mat 13:41  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; 

Mat 13:42  And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. 

Mat 13:43  Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear. 

Prior to the end of the world as we know it, there is a gathering of the harvest. Or to put it plainly as explained by Jesus Himself- 'the reapers are the angels' 'tares are the children of the wicked one' 'the good seed are the children of the kingdom'.

Here we have:

A Sowing.

A Growing.

A Harvest.

Children of God and children of the 'wicked one'. 

God sows the seed of His children.

The wicked one sows the seed of his children.

They both grow together.

The end result- the good seed has grown into wheat that is completely discernible from the weeds. There is no chance of harming the wheat by pulling up a weed, because it is now easily separable. Pulling up of both is the end result, wheat to God, weeds to the wicked one.

When the time comes to pull up the fully grown plants it is the end of the world.

The separating and gathering, and then ultimately what is destroyed and what remains.

The end of the world.  Isn't this what every single Christian alive longs for? Isn't this what we are waiting for? Isn't the end of the world our hope? 

Christ followers wait and watch, they live for one of two things.  They live first and foremost for the end of the world- they live for their translation to heaven upon the return of Jesus Christ at the last trump, when all has been decided and our Savior gathers us to Him. Secondly, they live for the alternative to the Savior's return (which, as already said, is their FIRST and FOREMOST HOPE), to fall into the first death's sleep to await their awakening at the last trump when Jesus Christ calls them from their graves and gathers them to Himself.

Two things await Christ followers, only two. 

The longing for the return of the Savior as conquering King, which means that the fate of every single human being in existence has been decided-  wheat or weed.

Please, Father, we would be wheat!

Today's thought paper reading- written in 1975- brought all the above to mind. May we all seek to belong to God, to be His as the end of the world, at the harvest!  All through Jesus Christ, our LORD and SAVIOR, now and forever!!!!!!!

*******

THE HARVEST PRINCIPLE

In the January thought paper, we called attention to a presentation at the 1974 Bible Conferences by Dr. Herbert E. Douglass entitled - "The Unique Contribution of Adventist Eschatology." This paper presented what is now being accepted as the reason for the delay in Christ's Second Coming. Concisely stated by the author it reads -    "The reason for the delay in the Advent is contained in the harvest principle."  1     This thought paper will examine this principle, and the application made by Dr. Douglass.

"The Harvest Principle" is Biblically based. Jesus taught -     "The harvest is the end of the world."  2    In the book of Revelation, Christ is pictured sitting upon a white cloud holding in His hand a sharp sickle. An angel from the temple calls to Him -     "Thrust in thy sickle, and reap: for the time is come for thee to reap; for the harvest of earth is ripe."   3    Turning to the Spirit of Prophecy, we find that the divine Husbandman is looking for a harvest - the reproduction of "Himself in the hearts and lives of His followers."   4    When this is realized,    "He will come to claim them as His own."   5    The conclusions by Douglass are rightly stated.      "Historic Adventist theology" consists of two points in this regard: -    1)    "Jesus delays His coming, waiting for a quality people to whom He may impart the immeasurable power of the latter rain;" and    2)    "God has left His church in the person of Jesus an Example of the quality people for whom He is waiting."   6    But have all the factors been considered? 

p 2

Closely associated with the principle of the harvest is the fact that it is God who gives the increase. Paul clearly enunciated this factor. He wrote:

"Neither is he that planteth anything, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase."    7    "The growth and perfection of the seed rests not with the husbandman. God alone can ripen the harvest."  8   It was God's design that through the agency of the church this ripening of the harvest should be accomplished. He set His hand to bring about this objective through the message of righteousness by faith that He sent to the Church in 1888. Of this message it is written -     "The present message - Justification by Faith - is a message from God; it bears the divine credentials, for its fruit is unto holiness."  9

The supreme question of this present hour, and one to which one must find the answer is - Does God still plan to use the agency of the Church in its present corporate state for the accomplishment of this objective, or has He chosen to take the reins into His own hands to accomplish the objective through other agencies and means? This is no idle question. It is fraught with eternal Consequences.

Douglass in his presentation states what we all theoretically believe.      "The principle of conditional prophecy recognizes that the promises and threatening's of God are alike conditional."   10    God has made great promises to the Seventh-day Adventist Church as a corporate body. We dwell at length on these. But He has also made some threatening statements. It is written -      "If her [Seventh-day Adventist Church] spiritual experience does not correspond to the advantages that Christ, at infinite cost, has bestowed on her, if the blessings conferred have not qualified her to do the work entrusted to her, on her will be pronounced the sentence, 'Found wanting.'"   11

To this principle of conditional prophecy, Douglass adds a reciprocal. He states -      "The correlate to the principle of conditional prophecy is the principle of the harvest - that God will wait for the maturing of Christian character in a significant number of people as the chief condition determining the time of the

p 3

advent."   10    He then concludes that      "the mission of highest priority in the Seventh-day Adventist Church"      is first      "to produce the rich harvest of men and women who truly represent Jesus, thus vindicating the honor, justice, and love of God."  12    By so concluding. He rejected the question which he himself suggested would be projected, to wit,     "how long the Church's failure can postpone the will and plan of the Lord for the Advent. That is, will there come a time when God's justice will demand that His mercy give way, recognizing that there is a time when 'the inhabitants of the earth have filled up the cup of their iniquity'?"  13    Thus, "the harvest principle" as defined by Douglass can be made to delay the coming of the Lord, and theoretically, extend the Second Advent into future generations of time, depending on the decision of the Church.

Every sincere and devoted Seventh-day Adventist whose heart is attune to the Spirit of God must ask seriously the question - What factors, if any, have been overlooked in the presentation of "the harvest principle" as the answer to why we are still here in this world?

The work of the Church was clearly defined. Those who understood what happened in 1844 - that their great High Priest entered upon another work of ministration -      "were led to understand also the closing work of the church, and were prepared to receive and give to the world the warning of the third angel of Revelation 14."  14    Now the work of the Third Angel      "is to select the wheat from the tares, and seal, or bind, the wheat for the heavenly garner."   15    In other words, the Third Angel is the angel of the harvest, to prepare a people to reflect fully the image of Jesus. This work was committed to the Seventh-day Adventist Church and defined as "the closing work of the church."

God intended to finish the work through His church following 1888. But He warned through His servant -     "All heaven is represented to me as watching the un-

p 4

folding of events. A crisis is to be revealed in the great and prolonged controversy in the government of God on earth. Something great and decisive is to take place, and that right early. If any delay, the character of God and His throne will be compromised."   16

There has been a delay. We can write and say all we want, but we cannot erase the fact that with each passing year, the credibility gap in our doctrine of the Investigative Judgment widens. To have God in judgment one hundred and thirty years looking over records, making decisions when the deeds of each mortal have been entered with unerring accuracy by angels with all accounts current, is to test the most credulous mind. To so assume gives validity to the charge that Barnhouse made indicating that our doctrine of the sanctuary was a face-saving device to cover the disappointment of 1844.   17    Let's face it; in the continuing delay, we have compromised the character and throne of God. In the government of God on earth - His church - there has been a great & prolonged controversy over the message of righteousness by faith. This controversy has been heightened in the last decades since 1950 with the introduction of false doctrines regarding the incarnation, the atonement, and the remnant. Is God going to sit idly by and wait for the accomplishment of what is now called "the harvest principle"?

The answer is - NO! Through Ezekiel, God revealed Himself as arising from the cherub "whereupon He was", and going to the threshold of the sanctuary ordering the sealing work to begin for the church.   18    It must never be forgotten that those who are sealed have written on their foreheads their destination -"New Jerusalem".  19    Thus two things stand out clearly from the prophecy of Ezekiel. The city of Jerusalem - the church in the prophetic symbolism of the book of Ezekiel - does not receive the seal; it does not go through. Neither do all who dwell in her midst, but those only who sigh and cry for      "all the abominations that are done in the midst thereof."  20

This work is defined in contradiction to the closing work  of  the church as the closing work  for  the church. When this takes place there are two distinct groups of people;    1)    "the true people of God", and    2)     "God's professed people." Note carefully how these two groups and the work for the church are described:      The true people of God, who have the spirit of the work of the Lord, and the salvation of souls at heart, will ever view sin in its real, sinful character. They will always be on the side of faithful and plain dealing with sins which easily beset the people of God. Especially in the closing work for the church, in the sealing time of the one hundred and forty-four thousand who are to stand without fault before the throne of God, will they feel most deeply the wrongs of God's professed people.   (21)

If the church were in a position to accomplish the work assigned to her - the giving of the message of Revelation 14, to prepare the harvest of earth - she would not have to have a special work done in the midst of her - the gathering of the 144,000 who will glorify and give honor -to the Throne of God, and who will not compromise God's character in the final struggle of earth. In the light of this, can we not see why the servant of the Lord wrote: -     "Let us strive with all the power that God has given us to be among the hundred and forty-four thousand"  22    - and not -     "Let us strive with all our power to keep our names on the church records of God's professed people."      One record is written in heaven, and the other is recorded on earth.

Is there a time indicated when we can know that God has taken the work into His own hands, removing from His professed people their responsibility of the closing work of the church, and instituting the closing work for the church, the sealing time of the 144,000? - We shall give consideration to this in future thought papers.

(((Footnotes))))

1 -- Herbert E. Douglass, "The Unique Contribution of Adventist Eschatology", p. 15, North American Division Bible Conferences, 1974

2 -- Matthew 13:39

(((Mat 13:39  The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels. ))))

3 -- Revelation 14:14-l5 ("the" omitted before "earth")

(((Rev 14:14  And I looked, and behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud one sat like unto the Son of man, having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle. 

Rev 14:15  And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud, Thrust in thy sickle, and reap: for the time is come for thee to reap; for the harvest of earth is ripe. ))))

p 6 -- 

4 -- ) Ellen G. White, Education, p. 106

5 -- Ellen G. White, Christ's Object Lessons, p. 69

6 -- Douglass, op. cit., p. 29

7 -- 1 Corinthians 3:7

(((1Co 3:7  So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase. ))))

8 -- Ellen G. White, Testimonies to Ministers, p. 508

9 -- Ellen G. White, Review & Herald, September 3,1889

10 -- Douglass, op. cit., p. iv 

11 -- Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church, Vol. 8, p. 247

12 -- Douglass, op. cit., p. vi

13 -- Ibid., p. 12

14 -- Ellen G. White, Spirit of Prophecy, Vol. IV, p. 272

15 -- Ellen G. White, Early Writings, p.118

16 -- Ellen G. White, Special Testimony read by A. T. Jones, Review & Herald, June 21,1892

17 -- Donald G. Barnhouse, "Are Seventh-day Adventists Christians?", Eternity, September 1956. Barnhouse wrote -"The latter doctrine ["the investigative judgment"], to me, is the most colossal, psychological, face-saving phenomenon in religious history!"

18 -- Ezekiel 9:3-4

(((Eze 9:3  And the glory of the God of Israel was gone up from the cherub, whereupon he was, to the threshold of the house. And he called to the man clothed with linen, which had the writer's inkhorn by his side; 

Eze 9:4  And the LORD said unto him, Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and set a mark upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that be done in the midst thereof. 

19 -- Ellen G. White, Early Writings, p. 15

20 -- Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church, Vol. 5, p. 212; See also Vol. 3, p. 267 -"Mark this point with care: …"

21 -- Ibid., Vol. 3, p. 266

22 -- Ellen G. White, Review & Herald, March 9, 1905 (7 Bible Commentary, p. 970)

NOTES AND COMMENTS -- Erratum - Footnote #10 in the November, 1974, Thought Paper should read -     "Ellen G. White, In Heavenly Places, p. 163"

March 1975  -  Watchman, What of the Night?    Adventist Laymen's Foundation.

Truth Seeking Always.

As those who may read this (God willing there are a few, but you never know), I've begun to go through the available "Watchman, What of the Night?" thought papers put out by The Adventist Laymen's Foundation.

The available papers begin in 1975 and so it is there we begin.

Let me give you a little bit of my person history with the Thought Paper.

I was baptized into the Seventh-day Adventist church in Jan. 1983. On fire for God's revealed truth I had very little question about church authority, doctrine and such. I participated in a few really large Prophecy Seminars, one in the Buffalo, NY area that resulted in a lot of people coming to the Lord's truth for our time, accepting Christ as their eternal Savior and opening their hearts to the knowledge revealed in His Holy Word.  I was active in my local Niagara Falls church, participating in their Dorcas Society soup kitchen/clothing for the needy program as well as other church activities. 

Then one day a knock came at my door and I opened it to a stranger who introduced himself as William Grotheer. I'd been given a few of the "Watchman, What of the Night?" thought papers and had written to him having had several questions about the things I'd been reading in them about the church.  I never expected him to show up, the papers were put out by the foundation located in Arkansas. He told me that he was visiting the area going to see various people, various churches and wanted to touch base with me.

Well, long story short, an elder in my church who had given me the Thought Papers to begin with invited Elder Grotheer to speak at our church, and to participate in a few group meetings out of various members homes.  After all the meetings, and contact with Elder Grotheer, my sister and I, along with a few others studied hard, and prayed harder to determine if the message being given by Elder Grotheer was truth.  We determined it was and as such began our own questioning of the church and received much the same responses as Elder Grotheer in the Foundations Thought Paper.  The church hierarchy did not want to seek truth and only truth, they wanted to whitewash over everything.

Subsequently to everything, several months later it became apparent to us that we could no longer remain members of the corporate Seventh-day Adventist church.  They refused truth when it was so blatantly given to them, preferring lie after lie, after lie.

Now, lest anyone believe this was an easy decision, it was one of the hardest I ever had to make. It's easy to stay with the familiar, the situation you know and love, and much harder to leave it all to venture away from the larger fold into the much smaller one. When faced with staying in a deceived fold with false shepherds, or leaving to go where the truth leads, it takes a huge leap of faith, and love for Christ which knows NO bounds.  It would have been much simpler to settle down into the security of the church organization I knew and loved, the people who guided me so lovingly into the truth, but how could I deny truth for anyone, or anything?
 

My Christian walk has not always been a smooth one, it's had its huge roadblocks, and large mountains to climb, and very low valleys to traverse, but by the grace and love, the will and mercy of my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, all through the Holy Spirit I am His, seeking ONLY HIS TRUTH still.

I believe time is running out very, very quickly and it is my hope that by bringing these thought papers to whoever God will guide to them through the Holy Spirit, that they too will find only truth, and not be among the deceived when the Lord returns. MANY are going to say to the Lord… well, here, read it for yourselves--

Mat 7:21  Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. 

Mat 7:22  Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? 

Mat 7:23  And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity. 

Many are going to be shocked they are not really the Lord's at all. They will have followed false shepherds and denied opportunities when presented to them, to know and  believe God's truth.

Studying these papers is not a generic study, there is not going to be any white washing, but prayerfully it will lead people to seek  the truth for themselves.

May God bless us as we continue to read from the thought papers, taking everything to Him in prayer and studying His Word for guidance first and foremost always!  May history, may facts all shout loudly to herald the truth!

*******

1975 Feb -- SACROSANCT

Before pursuing the subject introduced in the January thought paper - we will with the March issue - it has been thought best to do some serious thinking in regard to the present climate in the Seventh-day Adventist Church. The 1974 Annual Council held on the campus of Loma Linda University has been heralded as a great spiritual experience, and has been interpreted as evidence that the God of Israel is still with His professed people. Also during the year, the emphasis of the Review & Herald editorial staff has been on Righteousness by Faith and related subjects. The need for "quality" people has been stressed. The Week of Prayer issue departed from its usual format, and featured a series of studies with the same underlying theme. Thus to question, or even to suggest that all is not what it might appear to be, automatically places one in the category as "an accuser of the brethren."

However, there is a question suggested by the servant of the Lord to which we need to give careful study. It reads: -       ARE THE PEOPLE OF GOD NOW SO FIRMLY ESTABLISHED UPON HIS WORD THAT THEY WOULD NOT YIELD TO THE EVIDENCES OF THEIR SENSES.   1   Every manifestation of what appears to be spiritual power or the sensation of a spiritual presence must be subjected to the Word of God. Lest we find ourselves declaring a certain religious ecstasy, generated by one who can cloak himself as an angel of light, to be the power of God. And we must never forget that the warning of the devil coming as an angel of light was written to a church - a truly professed Christian church - which was having great spiritual manifes-

p 2

- tations without repentance or the putting away of sin. And we have not been promised any insulation from such an experience unless certain conditions are met. In other words, feelings are not a criterion of the presence of the Holy Spirit. Nor is a revival or a reformation to be judged by verbalizing but by concrete actions taken which clean out of the camp of Israel the idols, and those who still cling to them.  2

In suggesting such thoughts the reaction is as intolerant as the leadership of Israel in the days of Christ. Of the Jewish hierarchy it is written - "They would not tolerate the teaching that did not distinguish them as a holy people, a royal nation."   3   Their attitude did not alter the facts, and neither does our attitude alter certain very vital facts. Our first work needs to be that of total and complete corporate repentance, not only for our spiritual forefather's rejection of the Holy Spirit in 1888, but also for our continued apostasy from the basic Adventist truths which we have since 1950 so brazenly flaunted to the world in some of our official publications. And we need to consider carefully that if we continue to disregard the need for a deep repentance that tells our deceived laity the full truth of our apostasy, the spiritual ecstasy which we profess to be experiencing may not be the spirit we ardently hope it to be. It is also possible that the repentance needed if it ever does come might be of the nature of Esau's.  4

It is impossible to escape the fact that what we are saying is taking place does not square with the Word of God. Our present call for revival and reformation must coincide with the examples of the past as found in Bible history.   5    Because of this deep concern that we might know where we are, and that it might be clearly set before the leadership of the Church, the following letter was written to the President of the General Conference. The reply received to this date - January 13,1975 -follows the copy of the letter to Elder Pierson

p 3 -- 

November 11, 1974

Elder Robert H. Pierson, President

General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists

Takoma Park, Washington D. C. 20012

Dear Elder Pierson;

The latest Review (November 14, 1974) came to my desk this morning. Each reader was asked to respond to the appeal voted unanimously by the "World Leaders in Annual Council" as they spoke to the church through this action. As I read this appeal, I observed it stated "the conviction that the Advent Movement's first priority must be spiritual and theological, not organizational." It added - "The church's mission depends on correct theology."

With this I am in complete agreement. For the past seven years, through the monthly thought papers published by the Adventist Laymen's Foundation of Mississippi, I have been endeavoring to call attention to the theological deviations that have carried the official sanction of the leadership of the church. Several research manuscripts have been published which have focused on one primary area, the incarnation of our Lord.

In the fourth paragraph the suggestion is found that as a result of the 1973 Annual Council appeal "the spirit or individual and corporate repentance" followed. Of this, I am totally unaware even though I have been following closely the Review, and attended one of the Bible Conferences which were held this year.

We still have among us many copies of the book, Questions on Doctrine. It states plainly that "this volume can be viewed as truly representative of the faith and beliefs of the Seventh-day Adventist Church." (p. 9) Yet it contains much heresy which has been pointed out on numerous occasions while I know that it has been voted not to reprint the book, nevertheless, I have yet to read a single confession from the leadership of the church wherein they repent for foisting upon the people of God, the errors that are contained therein. To my knowledge, not a single individual involved in the writing of this book has been brought before a committee of the church on the charge of heresy, and those that are still living are being sustained by the sacred tithe. Is this corporate repentance?

Then there is the book - Movement of Destiny. In the Foreword of this book you have written -"Movement of Destiny is a must for every worker, every theological student, and every church officer - in fact, for every church member who loves this message and longs to see it triumph in the near, very near future." Yet this book contains historical inaccuracies. This has been documented in the manuscript by Elders R. J. Wieland and D. K. Short, entitled - "An Explicit Confession…Due the Church". Through various thought papers, I have called your attention to the theological errors which are heretical to the historical position of the church in the areas of the atonement and the incarnation. I have documented where the author with the approval of sixty scholars of the church misrepresented the writings of E. J. Waggoner. Yet to this day, I have not seen or heard where you or any of the others involved have repented, and confessed to the people of God wherein you recommended that

p 4

they read and accept theological apostasy.

Now it may very well have been that you placed your approval on the book and the work of the committee which supervised its publication through ignorance. But whether through ignorance, or by deliberate choice, how can one ask the church to endorse the concept that the top priority of the church is spiritual and theological, and that there is a need for "correct theology" when you have not repented of your approbation of incorrect theology? Does the Spirit of God testify with such a spirit?

Then we might add to this, the special edition of the Review on Righteousness by Faith. As recent as the last issue of the Review, our church members were asked to give this publication wide circulation (see page 7). Yet this special number contained various heretical concepts, along with a "white-wash" of the failure of the 1888. While the servant of the Lord specifically stated that the Holy Spirit was rejected in 1888 by the leadership (See Series A, pp. 20,21) the article by C. Mervyn Maxwell declared - "So marvelous were the fresh new emphases that some of the delegates actually resisted them as too good to be true." We also learned that we can now say - regardless what the Spirit of Prophecy states -"I am saved!" Further, according to the lead article the issue is not theological after all, just a matter of knowing the Person, and letting Him dwell in us, rather than Christ abiding in us through His Word.

You should know also that there have come to my desk letters from long time members of the church with a rich Adventist heritage concerned over the articles appearing in the Week of Prayer issue for 1974. One study followed closely the article in the special Righteousness by Faith edition and sought to encourage the expression that we could say -"I am saved." It quoted the Spirit of Prophecy counsel, and interpreted it directly opposite to its real meaning. My brother, our laity are not all blind. They see these errors of theology making their way into the church's teaching. The call to repentance, and revival, and reformation has a hollow echo to such. We need to see real confession on your part, and the others who took a leading part in the apostasy of the past decade, to come clean before God's people. Let that which was done in secret be secretly repented, but that which has been openly endorsed, let it be openly repented. Our people need to know where the leadership of the church has taken them under the guise of a call to revival and reformation.

There are some very serious questions that need to be explored. We are told - "In the balances of the sanctuary the Seventh-day Adventist church is to be weighed. She will be judged by the privileges and advantages that she has had." (8T 247) This is no conditional prophecy. This is the decreed purpose of the Eternal. Has this occurred? If so, what was the decision? God does nothing except He lets us know. (Amos 3:7) If it has not taken place, how near are we to this evaluation? Are we watching the unfolding of the scroll of Bible prophecy so that we can know what is transpiring in the Supreme Court of the Universe? I suggest that these questions need to concern us, and we need some answers.

May the Lord guide us by the truth as it is found in Jesus our Lord, which is the basis of our rich spiritual heritage.

Sincerely yours, (Signed) W.H. Grotheer

p 5

November 18, 1974

Letter to WWN:

Just a note to let you know that your letter of November 11 has arrived.

Elder Pierson is in the Inter-American Division and will not be returning to the office until the latter part of December.

Cordially yours,

(Signed) (Miss) Margaret Fuller, Secretary to Elder Pierson

1 -- Ellen G. White, The Great Controversy, p. 625

2 -- II Chronicles 15:8,16

3 -- Ellen G. White, Review & Herald, January 24,1899

4 -- Hebrews 12:16-17

5 -- II Chronicles 15:1-16; II Kings 28:1-25

"THE SEAL OF GOD" TRACT 

 The chapter - "The Seal of God" from Testimonies for the Church, Vol. 5, pp. 207-216 - has been printed by several in various formats over the past few years. One press printed it in connection with the chapter from the same volume - "The Testimonies Slighted." This was a semi-facsimile reproduction with very expressive pictorial notations in the margins. Another publisher included the chapter in his provocative compilation under the title - Seventh-day Adventism at the Crossroads.

We chose the form we used - facsimile reproduction with marginal notations, and only the one chapter -for several reasons. We believe this chapter can stand alone giving its unique message to the Church. The very time element - "Jesus is about to leave the mercy-seat of the heavenly sanctuary" - lifts it from the context of the era in which it was written, and gives it prophetic significance.

This chapter clearly differentiates between groups so that one can readily grasp in what group he is, and how God views the attitudes and actions of that particular group. That it contains a warning message for the laity of the Church, no honest heart can deny. True it does not present the hierarchy of the Church in a very favorable light, but after all God is no respecter of persons. Jesus is the faithful and true witness regarding the Laodicean state. And this chapter is from the Testimony of Jesus to the Church!

p 6

During the 4th Quarter of this past year, we studied the Gift of Prophecy to the Remnant Church through the ministry of Ellen G. White. The letter which follows illustrates the wide gap between the theory the leadership wishes the laity to accept so that their authority will not be questioned, and the actual reaction to the Spirit of Prophecy when a specific section from the Writings is given to the people for study and consideration. Here is the letter:

Letter to WWN:

October 28,1974

Thank you much for sending my studies on "The Seal of God." I have given them out at last. I purposely waited a few weeks as we have a new Pastor, Elder Haines, and Elder Bauer thought it best to wait a short time.

I gave a number of them out at our Lake Tahoe church a week ago Sabbath. The next day Elder Haines called me and reprimanded me, asking me at the time to promise not to ever do that again. I told him I wouldn't promise but I probably wouldn't. Well, he said I am advising you not to but I'm not threatening you. I could tell he almost did though. Now today more than a week later, I received another call from him. He told me that Elder Streifling told him that if I didn't make that promise that the alternative is that I am no longer welcome to attend church up here. I don't know where I will go as I am alone and though God is very good to me in supplying all my needs as they arise, I don't have money for gasoline to travel out of Streifling's jurisdiction.

Elder Bauer told me I could tell Elder Haines that I would make the promise on one condition, that being that he sit down with me and go over the paper very carefully telling me what is wrong with it. Also that I request the presence of Elder Bauer. If he refuses that but agrees to go over it with me that I should use the tape recorder . . .

Yours truly,

(Signed) Jeanne D. Colston

P.S. Please pray for me. Maybe soon I can order more of "The Seal of God" and on rare occasions visit other S. D. A. Churches and hand them out.

NEW PRINTING - A Warning and Its Reception - a facsimile reproduction of the original document -1888 Re-Examined - by Elders R. J. Wieland and D. K. Short. ... The correspondence and committee reports have been omitted as irrelevant, since no evidence to this date has been produced by the General Conference committees appointed to study the manuscript which would invalidate a single basic premise of the manuscript. .-- (1975 Feb )---END-