Cleansed.

1Jn 1:5  And this is the message which we have heard from Him, and we proclaim to you: God is light, and no darkness is in Him, none! 

1Jn 1:6  If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and we walk in darkness, we lie and are not practicing the truth. 

1Jn 1:7  But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of His Son Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin. 

1Jn 1:8  If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 

1Jn 1:9  If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous that He may forgive us the sins, and may cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 

1Jn 1:10  If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His Word is not in us. 

Mar_4:22  For there is nothing hid, which shall not be manifested; neither was any thing kept secret, but that it should come abroad.

Psa 51:7  Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. 

Eph 5:26  that He might sanctify it, cleansing it by the washing of the water in the Word, 

Eph 5:27  that He might present it to Himself as the glorious assembly, not having spot or wrinkle, or any such things, but that it be holy and without blemish. 

Rev 7:13  And one of the elders answered, saying to me, These, the ones having been clothed in the white robes, who are they, and from where did they come? 

Rev 7:14  And I said to him, Sir, you know. And he said to me, These are those coming out of the great tribulation; and they washed their robes and whitened them in the blood of the Lamb. 

Rev 1:5  even from Jesus Christ the Faithful Witness, the First-born out of the dead, and the Ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him loving us and washing us from our sins by His blood, 

Isa 1:18  Come now and let us reason together, says Jehovah: Though your sins are as scarlet, they shall be white as snow; though they are red as the crimson, they shall be like wool. 

Zec 3:3  And Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and he stood before the Angel. 

Zec 3:4  And He answered and spoke to those who stood before Him, saying, Take away the filthy garments from him. And He said to him, Behold, I have caused your iniquity to pass from you, and I will clothe you with ceremonial robes. 

Zec 3:5  And I said, Let them set a clean turban on his head. And they set a clean turban on his head and clothed him with clothing. And the Angel of Jehovah stood by. 

1Co 6:11  And some of you were these things, but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and in the Spirit of our God. 

Eph 5:26  that He might sanctify it, cleansing it by the washing of the water in the Word, 

Eph 5:27  that He might present it to Himself as the glorious assembly, not having spot or wrinkle, or any such things, but that it be holy and without blemish. 

Heb 9:14  by how much more the blood of Christ (who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God), will purify your conscience from dead works, to serve the living God! 

Luk_9:23  And He said to all, If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily. And let him follow Me.

DAILY we must take up the cross of Jesus. What does it mean to take up the cross of Jesus? It was upon the cross that Jesus died, that Jesus' blood was spilled, that Jesus obtained salvation for us through His sacrifice. When we take up that cross, we are taking up all that it represents. We are choosing to believe in the cleansing blood of our Savior. We are believing His blood washes over us, cleansing us. We believe we are living as new creatures in Christ, accepting all that He calls us to endure. We are taking up truth, we are walking in the light. We are admitting our dependence wholly upon our Savior. That we are sinners and our forgiveness is found only through the cleansing blood of Christ. The cross must be taken up daily, and we must NEVER forget our need, our constant, continuous, forever need of a Savior in all we do.  Satan would have us belong to him, not to Jesus and Satan will do everything he can to rip the cross away from us. Satan will tell us we are not able to be forgiven that our sins go too deep, are too horrific, are unforgivable. Satan is a liar. Jesus will forgive us as we seek forgiveness and cling to the cross that He died upon. Jesus will cleanse us with His own blood, the only blood powerful enough to rid us of our sins.

We must walk in the light of truth, not let Satan keep throwing a covering of lies over us, keeping us in the darkness of his deceptions.

Let us always and forever, through our LORD JESUS CHRIST, seek light, seek truth!

*******

July 1975  -  "Watchman, What of the Night? " Thought Paper.  Adventist Laymen's Foundation.  (Excerpt)

EZEKIEL'S KNOTHOLE!  1  

Ezekiel, chapters eight and nine, constitute one vision, and should be studied together, though an arbitrary chapter division has been made in the translation as found in our King James Version. No doubt there was a current application for the prophet saw      "sins that were practiced in Jerusalem."  2   But we are here concerned with a secondary application to the present time because      "Satan is working that the history of the Jewish nation may be repeated in the experience of those who claim to believe present truth."  3    What lessons can we learn from this vision of Ezekiel?

Eze 8:1  And it was in the sixth year, in the sixth month, on the fifth of the month, I was sitting in my house. And the elders of Judah were sitting before me. And the hand of the Lord Jehovah fell on me there. 

Eze 8:2  And I looked, and behold, a likeness as the appearance of fire, from the appearance of His loins and downward, like fire, and from His loins and upward, as the appearance of brightness, like the color of polished bronze. 

Eze 8:3  And He put forth the form of a hand and took me by a lock of my head. And the Spirit lifted me up between the earth and the heavens and brought me to Jerusalem (in the visions of God), to the opening of the inner gate facing north, where there was a seat of the image of jealousy, which causes jealousy. 

Eze 8:4  And, behold! The glory of the God of Israel was there, like the appearance which I saw in the plain. 

Eze 8:5  And He said to me, Son of man, lift up your eyes now to the way of the north. So I lifted up my eyes the way of the north, and, behold, from the north, at the gate of the altar, was this image of jealousy at the entrance. 

Eze 8:6  And He said to me, Son of man, do you see what they are doing, the great abominations which the house of Israel is doing here, that I should be far from My sanctuary? But you turn back and you shall see greater abominations. 

Eze 8:7  And He brought me to the opening of the court. And I looked, and, behold, a single hole in the wall. 

Eze 8:8  And He said to me, Son of man, dig now in the wall. And I dug in the wall; and, behold, an opening! 

Eze 8:9  And He said to me, Go in and see the evil abominations that they are doing here. 

Eze 8:10  And I went in and looked. And, behold, every form of creeping thing, and hateful beast, and all the idols of the house of Israel were carved on the wall all around. 

Eze 8:11  And seventy men of the elders of the house of Israel, and Jaazaniah, the son of Shaphan, were standing among them. These were standing among them, and each man with his censer in his hand, and the odor of the cloud of incense going up. 

Eze 8:12  And He said to me, Son of man, have you seen what the elders of the house of Israel are doing in the dark, each man in the rooms of his image? For they are saying, Jehovah does not see us, Jehovah has forsaken the earth. 

Eze 8:13  And He said to me, You turn back, you shall see greater abominations which they are doing. 

Eze 8:14  And He brought me to the opening of the gate of the house of Jehovah, toward the north. And, behold, women were sitting there weeping for Tammuz. 

Eze 8:15  And He said to me, Have you seen, son of man? You turn again and you shall see greater abominations than these. 

Eze 8:16  And he brought me into the inner court of the house of Jehovah. And, behold, at the opening of the temple of Jehovah, between the porch and the altar, were about twenty five men with their backs to the temple of Jehovah, and their faces eastward. And they bowed themselves eastward to the sun. 

Eze 8:17  And He said to me, Son of man, have you seen? Is it a light thing to the house of Judah from doing the abominations which they do here? For they have filled the land with violence and have returned to provoke Me to anger. And, behold, they are putting the branch to their nose! 

Eze 8:18  And I also will deal with fury. My eye shall not spare, and I will not have pity. And though they cry in My ears with a loud voice, I will not hear them. 

Eze 9:1  And He cried in my ears with a loud voice, saying, Let the overseers of the city draw near, even each with his destroying weapon in his hand. 

Eze 9:2  And, behold, six men were coming from the way of the Upper Gate, which faces north. And each had his shattering weapon in his hand. And one man among them was clothed in linen, and an ink horn of a scribe at his loins. And they went in and stood beside the bronze altar. 

Eze 9:3  And the glory of the God of Israel had gone on, from on the cherub where it was on it, to the threshold of the house. And He called to the man clothed in linen with the ink horn of a scribe at his loins. 

Eze 9:4  And Jehovah said to him, Pass through in the midst of the city, in the midst of Jerusalem, and mark a mark on the foreheads of the men who are groaning and are mourning over all the abominations that are done in her midst. 

Eze 9:5  And He said to those in my hearing, Pass over in the city after him and strike. Do not let your eye spare, and do not have pity. 

Eze 9:6  Slay the aged men, the young man, and the virgin, even children, and women, all to destruction. But to every man who has the mark on him, do not come near. And begin from My sanctuary. And they began with the aged men who were before the house. 

Eze 9:7  And He said to them, Defile the house and fill the courts with the dying. Go forth! And they went out and killed in the city. 

Eze 9:8  And it happened as they struck, and I remained, even I. Then I fell on my face and I cried out and said, Ah, Lord Jehovah! Will You destroy all the remnant of Israel in Your pouring out of Your fury on Jerusalem? 

Eze 9:9  And He said to me, The iniquity of the house of Israel and of Judah is very great, and the land is filled with blood, and the city is full of perversity. For they say, Jehovah has forsaken the land; and, Jehovah does not see. 

Eze 9:10  And even I, My eye does not spare, and I will not have pity. I will put their way on their head. 

Eze 9:11  And, behold, the man clothed with linen, with the ink horn at his loins, reported the matter, saying, I have done as You commanded me. 

The prophet was taken from the company of his captured countrymen in Babylon and in the Spirit set down in the temple courts at Jerusalem so that he could see the mercy of Jehovah still exercised toward the obdurate rebels claiming to be the chosen people of God, yet despising His leniency and departing further from His service and worship each day. The God of Justice MUST soon deal according to their misdeeds!

If Ezekiel were living today, the Spirit would have brought him to the vicinity of the General Conference offices in Takoma Park. Such is the import of the analogy. In Jerusalem, the spokesman for Jehovah was invited to look carefully about at the evils within the church, and the prophet did not have to journey far to see too much for his delicate spiritual sensibilities.

At the North Gate was placed an image of a particularly revolting nature. The New English Version calls it the image of Lust; the King James Version names it, Jealousy. Certain it is that it represented personality traits that should be en-

P 2 -- tirely foreign to the loyal followers of Jehovah. And why the North Gate? Satan had said -      "I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation in the sides of the North."    4   Mount Moriah, the site of Solomon's Temple, was called the Mount of the Congregation. Satan had succeeded very well in Ezekiel's time. Has he now brought about a repetition of Judah's downward trek to perdition in our own church in accordance with his long-laid plans?

The prophet was permitted to consider only briefly the image to selfish desires. Brought next to the wall of the temple (General Conference office at Jerusalem), he discovered a knothole and was invited to look within. The narrow hole was enlarged at the angel's insistence so that the prophet might observe clearly all he should see and report. What a sight! Surrounded by the odor of sanctity - the cloud of incense from their censers - were the seventy elders engaged in secret adoration of the most hateful and disgusting of the idols of Judah's neighbors. Why the seventy? Moses had chosen seventy as counselors and administrators in his day.  5    In Ezekiel's day, this was none other than the entire General Conference Committee!! 

The vile objects of worship portrayed around the walls were well known objects of adoration among the Baal worshipping neighbors of Judah. Observe that the Seventy had set these up "in the chambers of their imagery" - evidently not for public display - but nevertheless secretly adored. Do we have any modern idols secretly set up among us? Surely WE wouldn't do THAT! Let us look about in the chambers of OUR imagery and see what we see. We read: No outward shrines may be visible, there may be no image for the eye to rest upon, yet WE may be practicing idolatry. It is as easy to make an idol of cherished ideas or objects as to fashion gods of wood or stone. Thousands have a false conception of God and His attributes. They are as verily serving a false god as were the servants of Baal.   6 

Could we see in this day as Ezekiel saw in his day, and with God-given insight see OUR idols as heaven sees them, would we be able to consider ourselves superior in

P 3 -- spirituality to the seventy elders of Judah? Have WE renounced the idol of worldly possessions, the worship of academic degrees, the desire for public acclaim, the quest for admiring subordinates -possible sycophants?

From the contemplation of the secret sins of Judah's spiritual leaders, Ezekiel was directed to greater offenses to Jehovah. At the door of the temple on the side looking toward the image of unregenerate Self were a group of women "weeping for Tammuz". Just who was Tammuz? The perfect lover-boy, Adonis of Phoenician mythology, whose day of worship was marked by sexual excess. Particularly distasteful to the loyal followers of Jehovah. Does history have a repeat performance in our midst? Do any sisters in following modern fashions expose too much of the anatomy thus calling attention to the parts having to do with sexual gratification? - and are they surprised by the natural reaction to such exposure! "Obedience to fashion is pervading our Seventh-day Adventist churches, and is doing more than any other power to separate our people from God."  7    Evidently in the eyes of Jehovah this sin was more abhorrent than the secret sins of the leaders.

In the ascending scale of abominations divulged to the horrified prophet there remained yet another of a nature particularly repugnant to Jehovah. Israel had been instructed according to the prayer of Solomon at the dedication of the temple to pray toward that place.   8    Daniel was careful to do so.  9    Hence, the position of the worshippers as was shown to Ezekiel was indicative of the very greatest insult that they could render to their God. In the area between the porch and the altar, sacred in the performance of the ministerial duties, were twenty-five men worshipping the sun toward the East. Consider the import of this. Here were priest-ministers consecrated by the most solemn of dedicatory rites to the service of Jehovah, yet they bowed in the Oriental manner - not a mere inclination of the head, not by resting upon both knees only - but by resting on both hands and knees with the forehead to

P 4 -- the earth. In doing so they presented not only the back, but the backside to the temple and altar of Jehovah in open defiance of Divine instructions, even as any other Baal (Evangelical) worshiper would do. Why will our leaders - at least some - urge that we join Baal devotees insofar as possible? Why will our local pastors - an ever growing number - join with, and hold office in, the local ministerial associations? And why will modern priests of Baal be invited into the pulpit to conduct worship for the people on the Sabbath? Such practices, whether joining in worship with or permitting such to officiate at the Alter, were plainly forbidden by Jehovah.

Now look back. From the insight end of our knothole, can we find in the chambers of OUR IMAGERY any of the offensive idols found among the Baal worshippers?

My favorite Scottish poet wrote:

" O wad some Pow'r the giftie gie us 

To see oursels as others see us. "  10 

Are there not on Sunday morning, excellent sermons by prophets of Baal we would hate to miss? To what extent do we enter into their services? Do we not love Billy Graham? Could there be other idols?

Re-think ---

No outward shrine may be visible, there may be no image for the eye to rest upon, yet we may be practicing idolatry. It is as easy to make an idol of cherished ideas or objects as to fashion gods of wood or stone. Thousands have a false conception of God and His attributes. They are as verily serving a false god as were the servants of Baal. Are we worshipping the true God as He is revealed in His word, in Christ, in nature, or are we adoring some philosophical idol enshrined in His place?   6

"Let a man examine himself"'.   11 

That this vision is vital to us is shown by the fact that these disclosures lead directly and at once to the sealing work, the cleansing of the church preparatory to the Latter Rain, the Loud Cry, and the Second

Advent of our Lord. The time is NOW!

P 5 -- 

1. Ward P. Hill, author of our guest thought paper is a layman residing in Lodi, California.

2. Ellen G. White, Prophets &Kings, p. 448

3. Ellen G. White, Selected Messages, bk. ii, p. 11

4. Isaiah 14:13

Isa 14:13  For you have said In your heart, I will go up to the heavens; I will raise my throne above the stars of God, and I will sit in the mount of meeting, in the sides of the north. 

5. Numbers 11:16

Num 11:16  And Jehovah said to Moses, Assemble to Me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom you have known that they are elders of the people, and its officers. And you shall take them to the tabernacle of the congregation; and they shall station themselves there with you. 

6. Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church, Vol. 5, p. 173

7. Ibid., Vol. 4, p. 647

8. II Chronicles 6:21

2Ch 6:21  And You shall listen to the supplications of Your servant, and of Your people Israel, that they pray toward this place; and You shall hear from Your place of dwelling, from Heaven, and shall hear and forgive. 

9. Daniel 6:10

Dan 6:10  And when he had learned that the document was signed, Daniel went to his house. And his windows were open in his roof room toward Jerusalem. He knelt on his knees three times in the day, and prayed and praised before his God, as he did before. 

10. Robert Burns, "To a Louse" (seen on a lady's bonnet in the kirk.)

11. II Corinthians 11:28

2Co 11:28  besides the things outside conspiring against me day by day, the care of all the assemblies. 

Brother Hill Takes Us on a Single Volume Safari for IDOLS -- 

Why go on a safari? Testimonies for the Church, Vol. 5.p. 164, par. 2

Identification of our game. c., p. 250, par. 2

Difficult game. Ibid., p. 23I, par. 2

A trophy buck. Ibid., p. 337, par. 2

A sneaky creature, Ibid., p. 75, par. 2

Safari could be short. Ibid., p. 205, par. 1

Where game once abounded, Ibid., p. 190. par. 4. Could be again. Let's go hunting!

"ADVENTIST INNOVATION" -- This is the title that the editor of Christianity Today (April 11, 1975, p. 21) gave his book review of God Is With Us. This book written by Jack W. Provonsha was published by the Review & Herald. Commenting on Provonsha's assertion -"Rational certainty is an impossibility" - Lindsell remarked, "Except this proposition itself, which must be a certainty." In other words, the only certainty to life is uncertainty, according to Provonsha. The editor further notes that "in his effort to lead men to God through men, Provonsha, who speaks constantly of the unity of God, does make mention of Jesus Christ, but nowhere gives the reader any reason to suppose that the Holy Spirit has any real part in the salvatory process or even that He exists." The final paragraph of the Review reads: -"This is the first Review & Herald book I have seen that departs from normative Adventist theology. Whether this was an accident or represents a decided trend in the denominational stance remains to be seen." The Book Committee of the Review & Herald owes an explanation to the laity of the church whether this was an accident or not. When one realizes that Dr. Provonsha teaches our medical students at Loma Linda University, there is little left to explain why so many depart from the fundamental faith of the Advent Movement which has been the heritage of many from the family altar at home.

July 1975  -  "Watchman, What of the Night? " Thought Paper.  Adventist Laymen's Foundation.  (Excerpt)

Sealed With Truth.

What do you do if you leave one organization to enter another that clearly has eye opening truth--revealed prophecy, only to realize that organization has perverted the very truth they once held dear?

First, being able to recognize that your long held cherish beliefs are nothing but traditions and fallacies, is spiritually shocking, a jolt to the spiritual system. The awakening to the truth, the revelation of so many Biblical facts that you'd been blinded to for years and years, is life changing. You can't help but wonder how the organization you belonged to could ignore so much truth. You can't help but feel deceived because they never once explained the truth to you or told you to even look for it, beyond simply trusting the words they gave to you. You want to shake them all and get them to wake up and see. You want so much to knock the blinders off of their eyes so they have to comprehend the light being given to them. Finally you realize that they don't want truth, they don't want light, they are comfortable where they are and believe you to be fanatical.

Then, only to find out within the new organization that revealed so much truth to you- are lies and corruptions- it is heart breaking, it is discouraging, it is life changing once again. You thought you were standing on the solid rock of all truth, only to find out that you are living on the very edge and teetering off that rocky ledge. Do you let yourself fall with the lies, the misdeeds, the deception, the corruption of pure truth or do you leave that falling, lie filled organization and hurry onto a solid foundation where there is no organization but the truth, no building but the spiritual covering of the Holy Spirit?

There will be no organization prepared wholly for Christ, but rather those who are sealed from within the organizations.  We can't cling to any organization as if we are safe as long as we are among them. Safety alone resides in our Savior and our personal relationship with Him and all the truth He gives to us to hold fast to until He returns.

May we be sealed for Christ! May we warn all we can that they too must be sealed with truth and only truth!

God help us all!

*******

ANALYSIS -- Part 3 -- (The Times of the Gentiles)

In this analysis, we shall cover four different areas of thought which are interrelated. The conclusions drawn result from the fact that the prophecy of Luke 21:24 given by Jesus Himself has been fulfilled. We might call it "The Fall-Out" from fulfilled prophecy.

The Sealing

When God arose      "from the cherub, whereupon He was,"    He ordered the sealing work to proceed in      "the midst of Jerusalem."  1    God has borne long with the disobedience of His professed people. It has been written: The Lord God is a jealous God; yet He bears long with the sins and transgressions of His people in this generation. . . . Because the people are disobedient, unthankful, unholy, as were ancient Israel, time is prolonged that all may hear the last message of mercy proclaimed with a loud voice. The Lord's work has been hindered, the sealing time delayed. Many have not heard the truth. But the Lord will give them a chance to hear and be converted.  2

Because the church appointed to proclaim the final message has failed in the trust committed to it, God has taken things into His own hands, and will provide the means whereby those who have not heard the truth will have opportunity to do so. God arises and orders the delayed sealing to commence - the selection of the 144, 000 through whom He plans to make His final witness.  3

The ones sealed are found in the "midst of Jerusalem". They are concerned about what is taking place in that city. We are told plainly that in Ezekiel's prophecy, Jerusalem represents the church. We read:      Mark this point with care: Those who receive the pure mark of truth,

p 2

wrought in them by the Power of the Holy Ghost, represented by a mark by the man in linen, are those "that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that be done" in the church.  4 

These sealed ones receive a special mark. On their foreheads is written      "God, New Jerusalem, and a glorious star containing Jesus' new name."   5    These members of Old Jerusalem, receive a new citizenship. They obtain a "new" mother. As Paul wrote -      "But the Jerusalem, which is above is free, which is the mother of us all."  6    Let us face the fact, painful though it may be, that those who are presently calling for us to be loyal to "The Church, Our Mother", indicating it to be the earthly corporate organization, are deceivers of the people, giving the trumpet an uncertain sound and lulling the laity into a fatal security.

If the prophecy of Ezekiel 9 teaches anything, it teaches plainly that the church as presently constituted will not go through, and only those sealed from it will reach the New Jerusalem. This prophecy also answers the question left unanswered in regard to Laodicea. The Faithful Witness declared  -      "Because thou art lukewarm . . . I am about to spue thee out of my mouth,"   7    The sealed ones are classified with the overcomers of Philadelphia, for the Philadelphian church is pictured as a group bearing the      "name of the city of my God, which is New Jerusalem."  8    Thus Laodicea - if the prophecy of Ezekiel 9 means anything - is spued out.

The Final Form of the Church

In the light of the prophecy of Ezekiel 9, and the comments found thereon in the Spirit of Prophecy, what will the church look like in its final conflict with the powers of earth that will be marshaled by the dragon host?   9    We have not studied the work of "the third angel" as we should have. It should have engrossed our whole mind, our whole attention, for we read:      I then saw the third angel. Said my accompanying angel, " Fearful is his work. Awful is his mission. He is the angel that is to select the wheat from the from the tares, and seal, or bind, the

p 3

wheat for the heavenly garner. These things should engross the whole mind, the whole attention.   10

First note - the Angel said - the third angel "is to select the wheat from the tares."  Surely heaven knows which way the process of selection and separation is to be carried out. It is not the tares that are to be removed from the wheat, but the wheat from the tares. Many today are thinking and writing, as if God had not arisen from the cherub whereupon He was, as if God had not commanded another work to begin. What might have been, and what is, are two different things.

Blessed are they who are willing to follow the unfolding scroll of prophecy, and who discern in the events taking place, the message of God for this hour. The expression in Early Writings where the angel is quoted direct as saying that the wheat is selected from the tares is not an isolated instance as found in the writings of the servant of the Lord. In another place we are told -      "The gold will be separated from the dross in the church"      not the dross from the gold.  11    Also, "the little company" is plainly set forth as distinct from the "many" who continue the forms of religious service even though the glory of the Lord had departed from Israel.   12

The question comes as to how the wheat sealed and bound for the "heavenly garner" will be organized? The same accompanying angel also revealed this to the servant of the Lord. The description reads:      He bade me look in an opposite direction, and I saw a little company traveling a narrow pathway. All seemed to be firmly united, bound together by the truth, in bundles, or companies. Said the angel, " the third angel is binding, or sealing, them in bundles for the heavenly garner."   13

These little companies are bound together, not by human organization, but by truth, and truth alone. This and this alone will firmly unite them. And is it not also of deep interest that "the righteousness of Christ, ... is pure, unadulterated truth,   14    and that those sealed are settled "into the truth, both intellectually

p 4

and spiritually, so they cannot be moved.  15 

The Final Witness

The pure mark of truth is stated to be wrought in the sighing, crying ones in Jerusalem by the Holy Spirit.  4    We are also told that those who are sealed "reflect the image of Jesus fully."  16    In the light of this, it is noteworthy to observe before Jesus gave a detailed account of the specific signs in Luke 21, He warned His followers that they would be brought before synagogues, kings, and rulers for His name's sake. This opportunity was to     "turn to (them) for a testimony."  17    Mark connects this witness directly with the witness of the Holy Spirit through the lips of those who are thus delivered up. It reads: When they shall lead you and deliver you up, take no thought beforehand what ye shall speak, neither do ye premeditate: but whatsoever shall be given you in that hour, that speak ye: for it is not ye that speak, but the Holy Ghost.   18

Only as we reflect the image of Jesus fully can this be our experience. He emptied Himself, so that Father alone appeared in His life. The words he spoke; the deeds He did, were not His, but the Father who sent Him.  19   And only as we understand the incarnation in its reality - Christ in our fallen, defiled human nature, letting the power of the Holy Spirit act for Him - can we come to reflect that possibility. And when this does occur, God will have that group through whom He can give the final witness to the world - before courts of justice and legislative assemblies. Then those who have been deprived of hearing pure, unadulterated truth because of the failure of the church appointed to bear that witness, will be enabled to hear and make a decision before it is eternally too late.  20    This is the time in which we are living, the gathering of the personnel for that final testimony. If we cannot now yield ourselves to let the Holy Spirit use our voices, and pens to reprove, counsel, and entreat in regard to the abominations that are being done in the midst of the church, how can we

p 5

stand up, and let the Holy Spirit use our voices to call the religious federation gathered to the place called in the Hebrew tongue, Har-Magedon, for just what it is - the agency for the deification of Satan.   21    Well did Jeremiah ask -      If thou hast run with the footmen, and they have wearied thee, then how canst thou contend with horses? and if in the land of peace [the comfortable pew], wherein thou trustest, they wearied thee, then how wilt thou do in the swelling of the Jordan?   22

Significance of the Date 1967

In the very year that the servant of the Lord told Dr. P. T. Magan that we would have to remain here many more years because of insubordination, she also wrote that we should study Luke 21 regarding what was to come upon Jerusalem.  23    She did not include Matthew 24, nor Mark 13 which are parallel chapters. The only item that is found in Luke 21 in regard to Jerusalem that is not found in the other two books is the prophecy which relates to "the times of the Gentiles." In other words, God intended to give His chosen church every possible opportunity to accomplish its appointed mission. He would bear long with them, but He was also telling the church that there would be a limit beyond which He would go no further, and He gave a sign to mark off that limit. This we have exceeded, and God let events on earth take their course.

However, in this mercy of God, there is a challenge to those who have run ahead of God. Various groups - the Reformed Seventh-day Adventist body, the Rod Brinsmead - Decade I - and others too numerous to mention, sought to anticipate the decision to be rendered in the balances of the heavenly sanctuary. Instead of sighing and crying in the "midst of Jerusalem", they sought to create their own city". God did appoint a corporate human organization to fulfill His intended mission on the earth - the final warning to the inhabitants of earth - the nations. And until God would so indicate that He had weighed this organization in the balances of the sanctuary, no human authority was in a position to so judge, or
 

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to act as if God had already done so. And no human being had the insight to know what the decision of heaven would be until it was announced through the sign He Himself permitted to take place. Thus there needs to be a deep heart-searching, and repentance on the part of all those who have thus run ahead of God.

There is another side to this coin also. Even as Israel of old sought to take the land of Canaan by storm after God said that generation would die in the wilderness, so the corporate body will seek to take the Latter Rain by storm to show that God is still with the organization. But to know what God has said in letting Luke 21:24 be fulfilled will keep us from being deceived by a false latter rain. We will be able to rest on the Word of God instead of our senses.   24

Keep in mind that the leadership of the church today is just as defiant as the Pharisees of old who      "defied earth and heaven to dispossess them of their rights. But by lives of unfaithfulness they were preparing for the condemnation of heaven and separation from God."   25    This is not stretching a point for we read -      " As it was in the days of Christ so it is now; the Pharisees do not know their spiritual destitution. To them comes the message . . . "      and Revelation 3:17-18 is quoted. The leadership of Laodicea unmindful of the decision rendered in the balances of the sanctuary, continue to defy heaven to remove their candlestick out of its place.   26    But the message of Ezekiel 9 is simply that the candlestick has been removed, and given to a group who will render to God fruit in due season - even the group known in prophecy as the 144,000 on whose foreheads will be put their destination - New Jerusalem. 

1 -- Ezekiel 9:1-4. 

(((Eze 9:1  He cried also in mine ears with a loud voice, saying, Cause them that have charge over the city to draw near, even every man with his destroying weapon in his hand. 

Eze 9:2  And, behold, six men came from the way of the higher gate, which lieth toward the north, and every man a slaughter weapon in his hand; and one man among them was clothed with linen, with a writer's inkhorn by his side: and they went in, and stood beside the brasen altar. 

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. ))))

2 -- Ellen G. White, Letter 106, 1897 quoted in The Faith I Live By, p. 288

3 -- Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church, Vol. 3, p- 266

4 -- Ibid., p- 267

5 -- Ellen G White, Early Writings, p -15

6 -- Galatians 4:26

(((Gal 4:26  But Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all. ))))

7 -- Revelation 3:16 Greek 

(((Rev 3:16  So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth. ))))

8 -- Revelation 3:12

(((Rev 3:12  Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name. ))))

9 -- Ellen G. White, Testimonies, for the Church, Vol. 5, p. 213

p 7 --

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

11 -- Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church, Vol. 5, p. 81

12 -- Ibid., p. 210

13 -- Ellen G. White, Early Writings, pp. 88-89

14 -- Ellen G. White, Testimonies to Ministers, p. 65 

15 -- Ellen G. White, Manuscript. 173, 1902, (4BC:1161)

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

17 -- Luke 21:12-13

(((Luk 21:12  But before all these, they shall lay their hands on you, and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues, and into prisons, being brought before kings and rulers for my name's sake. 

Luk 21:13  And it shall turn to you for a testimony. ))))

18 -- Mark 13:11

(((Mar 13:11  But when they shall lead you, and deliver you up, take no thought beforehand what ye shall speak, neither do ye premeditate: but whatsoever shall be given you in that hour, that speak ye: for it is not ye that speak, but the Holy Ghost. ))))

19 -- ) Philippians 2:7 RSV, John 8:28; 12:49-50; 14:10

(((Php 2:7  but emptied Himself, taking the form of a slave, having become in the likeness of men  LITV))))

(((Joh 8:28  Then Jesus said to them, When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I AM; and from Myself I do nothing; but as My Father taught Me, these things I speak. 

Joh 12:49  For I did not speak from Myself, but He who sent Me, the Father, He has given Me command, what I should say, and what I should speak. 

Joh 12:50  And I know that His command is everlasting life. Then what things I speak, as the Father has said to Me, so I speak. 

Joh 14:10  Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me? The Words which I speak to you I do not speak from Myself, but the Father who abides in Me, He does the works.))))

20 -- See Footnote #12

21 -- Ellen G. White, Testimonies to Ministers, p. 62

22 -- Jeremiah 12:5 (((Jer 12:5  If you have run with footmen, and they wore you out, then how can you compete with horses? And if you trusted in the land of peace, then how will you do in the swelling of Jordan? ))))

23 -- Ellen G. White, Manuscript, 184, 1901; Letter 20, 1901 See Counsel to Writers and Editors, pp. 23-24

24 -- Ellen G. White, Great Controversy, p. 625 -"Are the people of God now so firmly established upon His word that they would not yield to the evidence of their senses?"

25 -- Ellen G. White, Christ's Object Lessons, p. 294

26 -- Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages, p. 280

NOTES AND COMMENTS

 Bauer Tape of the Month -"The Review & Herald Fire"

Seventh-day Adventist Ecumenism -- "Robert Hunter, pastor of the Morganton, North Carolina (SDA), district, and a member of the local ministerial association, joined in PULPIT EXCHANGE DAY, exchanging pulpits with (Father) Thomas Burke of St. Charles Roman Catholic church. The theme of the city-wide program was "Blest Be the Tie." Southern Tidings (Official Organ of the Southern Union Conference of Seventh-day Adventist) April, 1975, Telex Notes, p. 12.

Correction --  In the Special Report -1, we reported that the Northern California Conference had a loss from playing in the stock market of over Seven Million Dollars. A member of the Subcommittee on Organization and Finance advised us that "the figures you show in the right hand column are not cumulative." Thus the "paper" loss on the stock investments for the six year period covered in the report would be $2,053,298.42, if each loss is reflected in the following year's total. We arrived at our figure by adding the losses for each year together. But be it only Two Million dollars such practices by the hierarchy of the money of the laity is inexcusable. We have wondered what the total losses for the church as a whole have been. An unconfirmed report coming to this desk indicated a loss on paper of over Fifty Million Dollars. It would be well if the leadership of the church would either deny or confirm with facts and figures this loss so that the truth might be known. 

Quotes regarding WWN Thought Paper June, 1975 -- (Analysis -- Part 3 -- [Times of the Gentiles]) --

QUOTATION 1:      Spiritual death has come upon the people who should be manifesting life and zeal, purity and consecration, by the most earnest devotion to the cause of truth. The facts concerning the real condition of the professed people of God, speak more loudly than their profession, and make it evident that some power has cut the cable that anchored them to the Eternal Rock, and that they are drifting away to sea, without chart or compass.   Ellen G. White, Review & Herald, July 24, 1888 - written about two months before the GC where Jones and Waggoner gave the message of Righteousness By Faith at Minneapolis.

QUOTATION 2:      Think of Christ's humiliation. He took upon Himself fallen, suffering human nature, degraded and defiled by sin. He took our sorrows, bearing our grief and shame. He endured all the temptations wherewith man is beset. He united humanity with divinity: a divine spirit dwelt in a temple of flesh. He united Himself with the temple.

"The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us," because by so doing He could associate with the sinful, sorrowing sons and daughters of Adam."    Youths Instructor, Dec. 20, 1900. Bible Commentary, 1147.

QUOTATION 3:      What is the seal of God? It is a sign or mark which angels, but not human, eyes can read; for the destroying angel must see this mark of redemption. The intelligent has seen the sign of the cross of Calvary in the Lord's adopted sons and daughters. The sin of the transgression of the law of God is taken away. They have on the wedding garment, and are obedient and faithful to all God's commands."  EGW, Letter 126, 1898. Ezekiel confirms this . . .Mark a Tau. 

QUOTATION 4:      I am often referred to the parable of the ten virgins, five of whom were wise and five foolish. This parable has been and will be fulfilled to the very letter, for it has a special application to this time, and, like the third angel's message, has been and will continue to be present truth till the close of time. In the parable the ten virgins had lamps, but only five of them had the saving oil with which to keep their lamps burning. This represents the condition of the church. The state of the church represented by the foolish virgins is also spoken of as the Laodicean state.   (Review & Herald, Aug. 19, 1890)

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

Traditions or Truth?

Luk 12:35  Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning; 

Luk 12:36  And ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their lord, when he will return from the wedding; that when he cometh and knocketh, they may open unto him immediately. 

Luk 12:37  Blessed are those servants, whom the lord when he cometh shall find watching: verily I say unto you, that he shall gird himself, and make them to sit down to meat, and will come forth and serve them. 

Luk 12:38  And if he shall come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those servants. 

Luk 12:39  And this know, that if the goodman of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched, and not have suffered his house to be broken through. 

Luk 12:40  Be ye therefore ready also: for the Son of man cometh at an hour when ye think not. 

We must be READY.

Our loins are to be girded-- Eph 6:14  Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth,..

We are to stand in TRUTH.

Our lights are to be burning-- Mat_5:16  Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

Joh_12:46  I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness.

2Co_4:6  For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

Eph_5:8  For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light:

1Th_5:5  Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.

1Jn_1:7  But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.

Luk_11:35  Take heed therefore that the light which is in thee be not darkness.

Rom 13:11  And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. 

Rom 13:12  The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light. 

Rom 13:13  Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying. 

Rom 13:14  But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof. 

Php 2:15  That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world; 

Php 2:16  Holding forth the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, neither laboured in vain

1Pe 2:9  But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:

1Jn 1:5  This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. 

1Jn 1:6  If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: 

1Jn 1:7  But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. 

We are to be READY when Christ returns. And being ready is living the truth revealed to us, living in the light given to us.

People might easily dismiss these studies, these thought papers, believing that the truth I'm presenting is but my side of the story- my personal beliefs. People may happen upon this and wave it off as nothing of consequence because it is not spreading the gospel but delving into beliefs that are hard to comprehend. TRUTH is shining as a light but men LOVE darkness, people would rather remain in the DARK. People want their comfortable blanket of pure deception around themselves because they refuse to give up cherished, long standing traditions of men rather than hold fast to the light of GOD, the truth of His word. They convince themselves their traditions ARE the truth of God and REFUSE to entertain for a moment they might be wrong.

We have to be ready for Christ no matter when He returns, ready always. And we are not ready for Christ if we are content with the oil in our lamps, making no provision for the need of more oil.  We need ALL the truth there is, not lies coated thickly in traditional truth.  Traditional truth will not be recognized by our Savior, He will not know those who cling to traditional truth, but only those that live in HIS pure truth.

May we be ready- our loins girt in truth, our lights shining brightly- waiting, watching!

*******

ANALYSIS -- Part 2 -- (The Times of the Gentiles)

In this thought paper we continue the analysis of the prophecy of Jesus as found in Luke 21:24. What does the fact that "the times of the Gentiles" have been fulfilled in this generation before our eyes mean to us? What is God saying to us? This is the all-important question.

Our spiritual forefathers, who were faced with questions concerning their own experience as they had related to the message of 1844, turned to the study of the sanctuary to find enlightenment. From the Heavenly Sanctuary they received light which assured them of God's leading in their past experience and revealed to them their present duty resulting from God's action in the Sanctuary above. Of this we read:

The subject of the sanctuary was the key which unlocked the mystery of the disappointment, showing that God had led His people in the great Advent movement. It opened to view a complete system of truth, connected and harmonious, and revealed present duty as it brought to light the position and work of God's people.   1

The key - the Word - produced faith in the hearts of this little company of Advent believers, and they came to understand what was to be "the closing work of the church". This likewise is described by the servant of the Lord in these words:      Another class [after 1844] firmly held that the Lord had led them in their past experience; and as they waited and prayed to know the will of God, they saw that their great High Priest had entered upon another work of ministration, and, following by faith, they 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.  2

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We have nothing to fear for the future, except as we shall forget the leading of the Lord, and His teaching in our past history. We, too, must look to the sanctuary to find, if possible, what God is saying to us by permitting this sign - the fulfilling of the times of the Gentiles - to come to pass. In 1844, the Ancient of Days caused "thrones to be placed", and the judgment to sit.  3    We have understood this to be the beginning of the Final Session of the atoning work of Christ as the High Priest in the Most Holy Place of the heavenly sanctuary. There from above the Cherubim, in a special sense, the decisions the Eternal would be pronounced according to the intercession of the Son of man. We have also understood that when the Son of man would cease His intercession, probation's hour would close, and all human destiny would be fixed.

It is obvious that human probation has not ceased with the completion of the "times of the Gentiles." Can we, therefore, find in the Bible a revelation of any specific activity on the part of God in the sanctuary above that takes place prior to the close of probation that would have a dynamic bearing on the work of God in the earth? There is such a prophecy. Note what it states in Ezekiel 9: He cried also in mine ears with a loud voice, saying, Cause them that have charge over the city to draw near, even every man with his destroying weapon in his hand. And, behold, six men came from the way of the higher gate, ...and one man among them was clothed with linen, with a writer's inkhorn by his side: and they went in, and stood beside the brazen altar.

And the glory of the God of Israel was gone up from the cherub, where-upon 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: 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.   4

According to this prophecy, the Ancient of Days stands up from the cherub, "whereupon He was," and goes to the threshold of the house to command a special work to begin in the church. To use a human comparison - when an earthly judge arises prior to the final verdict of the court, the court goes into recess until

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 the judge is reasserted. Is God, therefore, saying to us, that the Heavenly Court has gone into recess as of 1967, and that when reconvened, the final verdict will be rendered quickly? Do we have any counsel as to how this prophecy of Ezekiel 9 is to be understood? Note the following most carefully:      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. This is forcibly set forth by the prophet's illustration of the last work under the figure of the men each having a slaughter weapon in his hand. One man among them was clothed with linen, with a writer's inkhorn by his side.    5

Several points need to be considered from this reference. Two groups of people are brought to view -"the true people of God" and "God's professed people." The work is defined as "the last work", "the closing work for the church." How does this relate to the sign that the times of the Gentiles are up? Let us note this point.

To the Church was committed a special work -"the closing work of the church" (See quotation under footnote #2). This has been described in another reference:      In a special sense Seventh-day Adventists have been set in the world as watchman and light-bearers. To them has been entrusted the last warning message for a perishing world. On them is shining light from the word of God. They have been given a work of the most solemn import, - the proclamation of the first, second, and third angels' messages. There is no other work of so great importance.  6

This threefold message of Revelation 14 was to go to every nation - the Gentiles.  7    (The same word for nations in the Greek is also used for Gentiles.) In a special sense, God appointed the Seventh-day Adventist Church as His instrument to give the final warning to the nations of earth. Thus when the times of the Gentiles or nations are fulfilled, there is only one of two conclusions to draw.

Either the church has completed her work, or else the church has failed to do the task assigned, and God Himself has to enter the picture. The latter conclusion

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is presented in Ezekiel, and God orders the closing work for the church to commence - the sealing of the 144,000 - so that He can complete through them the work which the whole of the church failed to do.

There is a further deduction to be drawn. In the reference found in Testimonies for the Church, Vol. 9, there is the reoccurrence of the word -"entrusted," and concepts meaning the same. To the Church      "has been entrusted the last warning message for a perishing World."      "The most solemn truths ever entrusted to mortals has been given to us to proclaim to the world." "God's people are to be true to the trust committed to them."   6   How we have handled this sacred trust determines the decision to be rendered upon the Church in the sanctuary, for we read: 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. If her spiritual experience does not correspond to the advantages that Christ, at infinite cost bestowed upon 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." By the light bestowed, the opportunities given, will she be judged.  8

When God, therefore, recognizes that the city - spiritual Jerusalem or the church   9    has failed Him in doing the work "entrusted" to her, He arises and takes things into His own hands, and orders the sealing work to commence. Thus we can conclude, that in 1967, God told us that the Seventh-day Adventist Church as a corporate body had been weighed in the balances of the sanctuary and had been found wanting. The eternal results to each member of the church will be how each relates to the decision of heaven in regard to the church as a corporate body. It is how one relates to God's revealed will that determines the destiny of each individual. Those who are sealed out of spiritual Jerusalem, the Church, are those that sigh and cry for all the abominations that have been done in the midst thereof. Those who do sigh and cry - have "held forth the words of life", "reproved, counseled, and entreated. Some who had been dishonoring God, repented and humbled their hearts before Him. But the glory of the Lord had departed from Israel, although many still

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 continued the forms of religion, His power and presence were lacking.  10

Are there any outward events that occurred in the official actions of the church in 1967 which could cause the corporate body to pass over the unseen line of their probation, even as the Jewish nation stepped over that line in 34 A. D.? The answer is - Yes! Note the following facts: Because the General Conference is responsible for a large pool of capital, the controlling investment and securities committee decided in 1967 to retain professional counsel. Lionel D. Edie & Company, Inc., of New York City, was chosen to do the research, analysis, and selection of securities [stocks and bonds] for the General Conference portfolio.   11

The Seventh-day Adventists have had representation on the Faith and Order Commission of the World Council of Churches since 1967. They have also been full participants in the annual meeting of the Secretaries of the various World Confessional Families.   12

It is the Faith and Order Commission which engages in doctrinal analysis of the differences separating the various confessions of Christendom with the view of finding common ground for fellowship. Since 1967, this commission has been holding study consultations in different parts of the world in regard to the Holy Eucharist so as to find a common basis so that all - Catholics and Protestants alike can celebrate the Lord's Supper together. (The Catholics call it the Mass.) At the World Council gathering in Uppsala, the official communion service held in the cathedral did see Catholic observers in attendance take part unofficially, and without any publication of the fact.  13    We had observers at this gathering, including the editor of the Review.   14    It would be interesting to know if any of the observers from the Seventh-day Adventist church took part.

We shall pursue our analysis of the times of the Gentiles as to its meaning and significance in the next thought paper -"ANALYSIS -III"

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1 -- Ellen G. White, Spirit of Prophecy, IV, p. 268

2 -- Ibid., pp. 271-272

3 -- see-Daniel 7:9-10 ARV 

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.

4 -- Ezekiel 9:1-4

Eze 9:1  He cried also in mine ears with a loud voice, saying, Cause them that have charge over the city to draw near, even every man with his destroying weapon in his hand. 

Eze 9:2  And, behold, six men came from the way of the higher gate, which lieth toward the north, and every man a slaughter weapon in his hand; and one man among them was clothed with linen, with a writer's inkhorn by his side: and they went in, and stood beside the brasen altar. 

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. 

5 -- Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church, Vol. 3, p. 266

6 -- Ibid., Vol. 9, p. 19

7 -- Revelation 14:6. Rev 14:6  And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, 

8 -- White, Op. cit. Vol. 8 p. 247

9 -- Ibid., Vol. 3, p. 267

10 -- Ibid., Vol. 5, p. 210

11 -- Robert E. Osborn, "Investment Practices of the General Conference", Spectrum, Vol. 5, No. 2, 1973, p. 52

12 -- Gerald F. Moede, Commission on Faith and Order, World Council of Churches, Letter to M. Ireland, dated 27th March, 1974.

13 -- Ibid., Letter dated February 8, 1974.

14 -- See Review & Herald, July 25, 1968, p. 1.

NOTES AND COMMENTS -- Adventist Representative -- According to Gerald F. Moede, the representative of the Seventh-day Adventist Church on the World Council of Church's Commission on Faith and Order is Dr. Raoul Dederen of Andrews University. Your tithe is used to help pay the salary of this representative.

Priorities for Ordination. - Under a photo in the Review & Herald, March 13, 1975 appeared this caption - "Richard M. Davidson, president of the Flagstaff, Arizona, Ministerial Association and pastor of the Seventh-day Adventist churches in Flagstaff, Winslow, and Page, was ordained to the gospel ministry during camp meeting in Prescott." p. 16.

What If? -The Zidonian Herald, Samartian edition, had on a certain day in the year B. C. 865 carried the following news release: -"Jezreel, Imperial Palace. Elijah, president of the Ministerial Alliance of Baal, and prophet of Jehovah had a very friendly and profitable audience with King Ahab at the sixth hour today. Elijah remained as dinner guest of the King."

Bauer tape of the month -"Overcoming"

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