Archive for September, 2015

Parents and their Solemn Responsibility

September 26, 2015

little children

“Then were there brought unto him little children, that he should put his hands on them, and pray: and the disciples rebuked them. But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven.” (Matt. 19:13-14)

“And whoever shall cause to stumble one of these of the little ones believing in Me, it is better for him that a heavy millstone should be hung around his neck, and he be sunk in the depth of the sea.” (Matt. 18:16)

How precious are the children to the Lord. Yet few parents realize what awesome and solemn responsibility they have concerning their little ones and their eternal life! Let us look at what the word of God says about this very important subject.

What brought about this post this week is an experience I had a few weeks ago in church. As we know from learning the message of the Lord, abominations in God’s house should affect us. We can never take the “winking” attitude when we see them in our midst.

The Spirit of Prophecy warns us–

“He shows us that when His people are found in sin they should at once take decided measures to put that sin from them, that His frown may not rest upon them all. But if the sins of the people are passed over by those in responsible positions, His frown will be upon them, and the people of God, as a body, will be held responsible for those sins.” (Testimonies, vol. 3, p.266)

So about a month ago, during the time in service where the money bag is passed around by the elders and deacons, little children take their little basket and pass it around for collections. This in itself is a serious wrong to the Lord, but we have dealt with that issue many times already.

One little girl (about 7 or 8) came up to me as I sat in the pews and handed me the basket, I politely handed it back to her. But I noticed her fingernails were painted red, just as the worldly heathen women love to do. I was led to say something to her a short bit later. As she walked by me again, I reached over and motioned to her to come to me.

I began, ” you know young lady, see these fingernails?” She nodded. I continued, “In God’s house He wants His children to come to Him with their hands clean and not with polish, is that ok with you?”  She nodded again and went her way. I made sure to be soft and gentle in my remarks.

The next week I saw her passing the basket again and her nails were clean. As she came near me, I whispered, “God is happy.” And we both had a smile.

But that got me thinking–where are the parents?? Clearly someone was not doing their rightful duty. It was left to me, a stranger more or less, to do what was not done by the parents.

Anyway, a couple Sabbaths ago, the nice young girl had her friend with her and  they both were doing the basket routine. I then notice her friend was painted up just as the other girl had been before. I did the same polite warning to her little friend. But this girl definitely seemed not so agreeable to what I had to say. She didn’t say it but her face sure did.

Apparently the two later discussed what I had told them because I was to witness a charming thing the next Sabbath. Again while during the basket passing, the original girl came up to me and then motioned for her friend to come also. The little friend showed me her nails and had a big smile. The first girl was smiling too. We all felt a warm feeling inside and I gave them a big smile and said with my thumbs ups “Way to go girls!” They left knowing that they had pleased God because of what they had learned.

All we need to do as leaders and parents is bring the young ones up right and God will take it from there. His word says–

“Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.”(Proverbs 22:6)

This is just a small example of a very LARGE problem in our church. How important is this issue. The older teens fall into Satan’s snare so easy, especially in dress. The parents can  guide them with this simple counsel–

If you are asked to appear at the White House to meet the president of the United States, how would you dress? Would the men dress with a casual or sloppy apparel? Of course not , they’d be dressed in a clean suit and shoes polished.

Would the young ladies dress in a low-cut dress or mini-skirt with high heels? Or would they dress well-kept, neat and modest?

How much more important then, is it to us,  as we are going every Sabbath to meet the King of the Universe. Remember He is in our midst and is watching. Is He not worth our best efforts with clean modest apparel?

“And I want women to be modest in their appearance. They should wear decent and appropriate clothing and not draw attention to themselves by the way they fix their hair or by wearing gold or pearls or expensive clothes.” (1 Tim. 2:9)

Let us read what the Lord’s last message says that will impact every parent who has young ones —

“As to the salvation of infants and children whose parents are saved, the Spirit of Prophecy says:

  “Angels ‘gather together the elect from the four winds from one end of heaven to the other.’ Little children are borne by holy angels to their mothers’ arms. Friends long separated by death are united, nevermore to part, and with songs of gladness ascend together to the city of God.”-The Great Controversy, p. 645.

  “So was the faith of this woman rewarded. Christ, the great Life-giver, restored her son to her. In like manner will His faithful ones be rewarded when, at His coming, death loses its sting, and the grave is robbed of the victory it has claimed.

Then will He restore to His servants the children that have been taken from them by death. ‘Thus saith the Lord; A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, and bitter weeping; Rachel weeping for her children refused to be comforted for her children, because they were not. Thus saith the Lord; Refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears: for thy work shall be rewarded,…and they shall come again from the land of the enemy. And there is hope in thine end, saith the Lord, that thy children shall come again to their own border.’”—Prophets and Kings, p. 239.

  And as to the salvation of children whose parents are lost, the Lord commands: “Slay utterly old and young, both maids, and little children, and women: but come not near any man upon whom is the mark, and begin at My sanctuary. Then they began at the ancient men which were before the house.” Ezek. 9:6.

  “And Joshua, and all Israel with him, took Achan the son of Zerah, and the silver, and the garment, and the wedge of gold, and his sons and his daughters, and his oxen, and his asses and his sheep, and his tent, and all that he had: and they brought them unto the valley of Achor. And Joshua said, Why hast thou troubled us? the Lord shall trouble thee this day. And all Israel stoned him with stones, and burned them with fire, after they stoned them with stones.” Josh. 7:24, 25.

  From these inspired passages, we see that infants and children are saved only because of the faithfulness of their parents. What a solemn, wonderful, and dreadful responsibility!” (Answerer, vol.3, Q-69)

Parents are the ones who must guide their children right. Unfortunately little or no sermons are given to address topics such as this in our SDA church. Again SOP counsels us–

“When God was about to smite the first-born of Egypt, He commanded the Israelites to gather their children from among the Egyptians into their own dwellings and strike their door posts with blood, that the destroying angel might see it and pass over their homes. It was the work of parents to gather in their children. This is your work, this is my work, and the work of every mother who believes the truth.

The angel is to place a mark upon the forehead of all who are separated from sin and sinners, and the destroying angel will follow, to slay utterly both old and young.  God is not pleased with our inattention and trifling with His blessings placed within our reach. Neither is He pleased to have us place our children in worldly society, because this best suits their tastes and inclinations. If the souls of your children are saved, you must do your work. ” (Testimonies, vol. 5, p.505-506)

“And it shall come to pass, that he that is left in Zion, and he that remaineth in Jerusalem, shall be called holy, even every one that is written among the living in Jerusalem: When the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and shall have purged the blood of Jerusalem from the midst thereof by the spirit of judgment, and by the spirit of burning.”(Isaiah 4:3-4)

In closing, parents must take control in these last hours of our probation.Let them lead the children in the right way, in God’s way. Their eternal life depends on it!

“There has been altogether too little attention paid to our children and youth, and they have failed to develop as they should in the Christian life, because the church members have not looked upon them with tenderness and sympathy, desiring that they might be advanced in the divine life.” (Counsels to Parents, Teachers and Students, p.41)

Posted in Obedience, Proper teachings, Witnessing | 1 Comment »

10 Challenging Questions (Part 2 of 2)

September 19, 2015

 

 

A person jumps over a challenge, riding an arrow to success

5 —  Will God set up a kingdom in Israel before the second coming?

Perhaps the greatest and most uplifting part of the Lord’s Elijah message is that of the promised Pre-Millennial Kingdom. The true hope and glorious  triumphant event to come to mankind “in the sight of the heathen.”

Before I accepted the Lord’s Elijah message I would often read Scriptures like,  “Thus saith the Lord GOD; When I shall have gathered the house of Israel from the people among whom they are scattered, and shall be sanctified in them in the sight of the heathen, then shall they dwell in their land that I have given to my servant Jacob.” (Ezek.28:25).

Then I would scratch my head and say “Huh?” I mean, being a Seventh-day Adventist, we were/are never taught that this word of God literally means what it says!  Additionally these words are truly mis-interpreted by the many protestant churches around the world. For example, they profess to believe these words, yet apply them to the current non-believing Jews there today. At least they have one hand up in support of God’s word here, unlike we SDA who have NO HANDS up in support.

Part of the problem is based ,again, on mis-understanding of God’s word. One of the most often quoted SOP references (EW, p.75,76) , in support of no Pre-Millennial Kingdom is the following and brother Houteff addressed this.

WILL OLD JERUSALEM BE REBUILT?

Question No. 43:

How do you reconcile “The Shepherd’s Rod” teaching that the Davidian Kingdom is again to be set up in Palestine, with “Early Writings,” pp. 75, 76: “Old Jerusalem never would be built up”?

Answer:

The context of the Early Writings’ statement reveals that it refers to the Jewish Zionist Movement, and it shows that the Movement’s avowed purpose to re-establish a national Jewish Homeland, centered in Jerusalem proper, will never be realized; that never will Old Jerusalem be rebuilt in accordance with the Zionist interpretation, and never will the non-Christian Jews be the subjects of the Kingdom. (See Tract No. 8, Mount Sion at the Eleventh Hour.) (Answerer, vol.2, Q-43)

In the Answerer, vol. 2, question number 42 goes into more detail of how SOP references cannot be used to refute the word of God in the Pre-Millennial Kingdom. The Inspired SOP message was a voluminous message to us, but as the answer shows did not have all the light in every aspect of Biblical prophecy, specifically the Kingdom set-up. Please click link here and scroll down to read Q-42 http://shepherds-rod.org/answerers/answerer2.html#  WILL THE KINGDOM BE SET UP BEFORE THE MILLENNIUM?

This subject is quite deep and we have done a two-part report entitled “Thy Kingdom Come” click here https://godsloveandlaw.com/2012/03/31/thy-kingdom-come-part-1-of-2/

Some specific key portions of the Scriptures that deal with the pre-mil Kingdom —

  1. Daniel 2
  2. Jeremiah 23 and 30
  3. Isaiah 2 and 11
  4. Ezekiel 36 and 37
  5.  Zechariah 8
  6. Amos 9
  7. Micah 4

6–  Is the prophecy of Ezekiel 9 to occur before, during, or after the plagues? 

As we have learned through numerous prior studies, the subject of Ezekiel 9 is about as clear as can possibly get. There really is no excuse for any one within the SDA church not to know about this subject. Inspiration says–

“Study the 9th chapter of Ezekiel. These words will be literally fulfilled; yet the time is passing, and the people are asleep. They refuse to humble their souls and to be converted. Not a great while longer will the Lord bear with the people who have such great and important truths revealed to them, but who refuse to bring these truths into their individual experience. The time is short. God is calling; will you hear? Will you receive His message? Will you be converted before it is too late? Soon, very soon, every case will be decided for eternity.” Letter 106, 1909, pp. 2, 3, 5, 7. (To “The churches in Oakland and Berkeley,” September 26, 1909.) 1MR 260.2

But unfortunately Satan has misled many here. Although many within our church don’t know anything about Ezekiel 9 church judgment and it’s coming very soon to our church,  many of those who happen to know something about it, craftily say that it does happen, but in the time of the plagues. The Elijah message dealt with this very subject in the Q and A’s within the Answerer.

SLAUGHTER BEFORE OR AFTER CLOSE OF PROBATION?

Question No. 145:

“If the slaughter of Ezekiel Nine takes place in the church before the close of probation, then why does ‘The Great Controversy’ p. 656 say: ‘Now all have made their decision; the wicked have fully united with Satan in his warfare against God…The mark of deliverance has been set upon those ‘that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that be done?’  Now the angel of death goes forth, represented in Ezekiel’s vision by the men with the slaughtering weapons, to whom the command is given….The work of destruction begins among those who have professed to be the spiritual guardians of the people.’

“Does not the above reference, which seems to place the slaughter of Ezekiel Nine after the close of probation, refute the teachings of ‘The Shepherd’s Rod’?”

Answer:

The query reveals that the questioner has not thoroughly studied or understood what “The Shepherd’s Rod” teaches, for “The Great Controversy” does not refute “The Shepherd’s Rod,” but rather strengthens it.  It has been proved that before the close of probation there are two “fruits,” the 144,000 and the great multitude (Revelation 7:9), to be separated at two different times–the former’s taking place before the close of probation while “the door is closed to those who would not enter,” and while “His hand is still stretched out to save.”  (“Testimonies for the Church,” Vol. 9, p. 97), thus showing, as does “Testimonies for the Church,” Vol. 3, p. 266, that the sealing of the hundred and forty-four thousand is the closing work for the church, whereas the sealing work for the great multitude is the closing work for the world. 

Thus, while, in the time of God’s destructive judgments before the close of probation, the door is closed to one class, it is open to another class for whom “His hand is still stretched out to save,” clearly showing that probation closes first for the tares in the church.  Moreover, as the time is that of God’s destructive judgments–the separation of the tares from the wheat–the slaughter of Ezekiel Nine is that which severs the wicked from among the just. (Matt. 13:49.)

Therefore, as there are two separations, there is a double fulfillment of Ezekiel’s slaughter: one in the church before the close of probation, and the other in the worldly churches after the close of probation, when everyone has made his decision.  The unfaithful spiritual guardians, or the false watch-men, of the people are the first to fall in the worldly churches, just as the “ancient men” who are in the S.D.A. church are the first to fall.  (“Testimonies for the Church,” Vol. 5, p. 211.)  This is the only explanation that will harmonize every statement on this subject found in the Spirit of Prophecy and in the Bible. (Vol. 3   Symbolic Code   No. 1. page 8.)

IS THE SLAUGHTER OF EZEKIEL NINE LITERAL?

Question No. 25:

“The Shepherd’s Rod” teaches that the slaughter of Ezekiel 9 is literal. Could it not be a destruction such as is caused by so-called “acts of God”-earthquakes, famines, pestilences, the seven last plagues, or the like?

Answer:

The five agents that destroy the wicked in the church are not forces of nature but men with slaughter weapons in their hands. They are supernatural beings, not natural elements. Hence they cannot fittingly represent earthquakes, famines, or the like.

Neither can they be the seven angels with the seven last plagues, for these angels are seven in number, not five. Furthermore, they do not have “slaughter weapons” in their hands, but vials. Still further, the plagues fall in Babylon (Rev. 18:4), whereas the slaughter of Ezekiel 9 takes place in Judah and Israel (Ezek. 9:9).

Ezekiel 9, whether literal or figurative, effects a separation between the good and the bad, the tares and the wheat, in the church (Judah and Israel), just as the plagues finally do in Babylon (Rev. 18:4). And as the plagues are literal, then how can the slaughter be any less literal?

The angel with the writer’s inkhorn is to place a mark upon the foreheads of all who sigh and cry for the abominations, then the destroying angels are to slay both old and young (Ezek. 9 :4-6).

“The church—the Lord’s sanctuary,” is “the first to feel the stoke of the wrath of God. The ancient men, those to whom God had given great light, and who had stood as guardians, of the spiritual interests of the people, had betrayed their trust. They had taken the position that we need not look for miracles and the marked manifestations of God’s power as in former days. Times have changed. These words strengthen their unbelief and they say, The Lord will not do good, neither will he do evil. He is too merciful to visit his people in judgment. Thus peace and safety is the cry from men who will never again lift up their voice like a trumpet to show God’s people their transgressions and the house of Jacob their sins. These dumb dogs, that would not bark, are the ones who feel the just vengeance of an offended God. Men, maidens, and little children, all perish together.” —Testimonies, Vol. 5, p. 211.

As in The Great Controversy, p. 656, only an indirect parallel can be drawn between the slaughter of Ezekiel 9 and the falling of the plagues, because a common end (death) befalls both the wicked in the church of Laodicean and the wicked in the churches of Babylon. And only those who say, “We need not look for miracles and the marked manifestation of God’s power as in former days,” think the slaughter is not literal.

Question: “Is not the slaughter of Ezekiel Nine to be fulfilled by the seven last plagues?”

   Answer: The prophetic destruction as described in Ezekiel’s prophecy is directly applicable to the church of God only — “The house of Israel and Judah.” (Ezek. 9:9.) Hence, this destruction only indirectly could apply to the seven last plagues.

   The destruction in the S.D.A. denomination — “Israel and Judah” (where the 144,000 are — the twelve tribes) is not in the time of the plagues, for by the “voice from heaven” God’s people are entreated to come out from all the places where there is sin and join the purified church of God where there is no sin, so that they “be not partakers of her sins, and that” they “receive not of her plagues.” (Rev. 18:4.) If this is not so, then their coming out would be of no special benefit to them, because of the fact that the plagues are to fall wherever sin is. Therefore, to make this possible, God’s church must be purified and made free from sin and sinners, which fact is prophetically made known by Ezekiel’s prophecy, and in the following the Spirit of Prophecy further explains, saying:

   “Only those who have withstood and overcome temptation in the strength of the Mighty One will be permitted to act a part in proclaiming this message when it shall have swelled into the Loud Cry.” — “Review and Herald,” Nov. 19, 1908.

   The above plainly states that only those who have proved true to God will have a part in proclaiming the Third Angel’s Message in its Loud Cry. But in “Testimonies for the Church,” Vol. 5, p. 211, speaking of the time when the slaughter of Ezekiel Nine is to take place we read: “The ancient men, those to whom God had given great light, and who had stood as guardians of the spiritual interests of the people, had betrayed their trust.”

   As both citations in the above must be correct, it proves that the slaughter of Ezekiel Nine takes place before the commencement of the Loud Cry. This same truth can be proved by the Bible from several different angles.

7 —  What is the seal of God for us as SDA /DSDA  today?

Here we have a question that our SDA brethren often are convinced beyond doubt they know the answer. In fact, before I accepted the Lord’s Rod message, I too, thought I had understood this clearly. It is the Sabbath obedience that seals us we think. Not entirely correct.

Yes, we as SDA must keep the Sabbath. We cannot be found willful Commandment breakers and expect the seal. But the Lord sent us an end time prophet to let us know that we, the very end time SDA must know His final truth and it’s requirements.And that requirement is that we “sigh and cry for all the abominations done in the midst.”(Ezek. 9:4) Meaning we really are bothered by sins done in our life and in the church itself. Inspiration explained our seal today.

WHAT IS THE SEAL?

Question No. 21:

What is the seal of God upon the foreheads of the 144,000 (Rev. 7:3)? Is it the Sabbath seal or something else?

Answer:

Being sealed in Christ “with that Holy Spirit of promise,” after having “heard the word of truth” (Eph. 1:13- 4:30), the saints are consequently sealed by Present Truth—the truth preached in their own day.

“The seal of the living God,” the Truth, by which the 144,000 are sealed (Rev. 7:2), is a special seal, being the same as “the mark” of Ezekiel 9. (See Testimonies to Ministers, p. 445; Testimonies, Vol. 3, p. 267; Testimonies, Vol. 5, p. 211). It demands one’s sighing and crying over the abominations which defile him, and which desecrate both the Sabbath and the house of God, especially against selling literature and raising goals during Sabbath services. As the saints have this seal or mark on their foreheads, the angels will pass over them, not slay them. It is equivalent to the blood on the door post on the night of the Passover in Egypt. The angel is to place a mark upon the foreheads of all who by sighing over their own sins, and over the sins in the house of God, show fidelity to the Truth. Then the destroying angels will follow, to slay utterly both old and young who have failed to receive the seal. (See Testimonies, Vol. 5, p. 505)

So, the former seal enables the receiver to rise from the dead in the resurrection of the just, while the latter seal enables the sighing-crying one to escape death and forever to live for God. (Answerer, vol.2, Q-21)

One other important point to remember, as we know that our SDA church is the “House of Israel”, then logically the 144,000 are “sealed” before trouble comes (winds let loose). And because this sealing can only take place in the very last days when there will be found all 144,000 in the church, the seal has to be upon the obedient ones to the Lord’s final message.

Hence, we must understand how few really “sigh and cry” for sins in the midst. In other words, sin does not really bother them. The vast majority are “rich and increased with goods, and have need of nothing.” The pleading message of the Lord is ignored and thought to be of  no special significance. The more I attend church the more I see how this is so  prevalent!

Over the last approx. 4 and half years since I have learned and accepted the Lord’s Elijah message, I would say maybe 30 times I have personally reached out to  my fellow church members (in my area) to offer them to sit down and have a Bible study and learn the present truth message of the Lord. Or even to respond back to me after handing them some material on the message (such as CD’s DVD’s and literature).Of that amount maybe THREE have corresponded or agreed to study. This is what is happening through out our church worldwide!

Do we see how the Lord cannot wait forever? His message would NEVER produce results worldwide if He would not “take the reins into His own hands” (Testimonies to Ministers, p.300).

“And sent his servant at supper time to say to them that were bidden, Come; for all things are now ready.”But they all alike began to make excuses. The first one said to him, ‘I have bought a piece of land and I need to go out and look at it; please consider me excused.’ And another said, I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to prove them: I pray thee have me excused. And another said, I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.

The servant returned and reported all this to his master. Then the owner of the house became angry and said to his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the city, and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.’ And the servant said, ‘Sir, as you did command, it has been done, and there is still room. So the master told his servant, ‘Go out to the highways and the hedges and compel them to come in, so that my house will be full..’ 

For I say to all of you that not one of those men having been invited will taste my supper.'” (Luke 14:17  -24)

On the positive side, our Facebook group (Truth Tellers) has grown significantly and many are accepting the message around the world. The word is truly spreading and we see much activity. Groups are being formed and great lessons are being learned, praise the Lord!

8 —  Can we stay away from church and still be right with God?

Oh how Satan can really use this issue to trick any and all! Both the SDA and the Davidian SDA are not immune.

The last few years I have had been involved in some church attendance studies. One of the arguments for staying away from church is that there is “too much abominations” within His sanctuary each Sabbath for them to attend church much. In other words they feel that they, along with their family, would be greatly affected by the sins done in the midst.

Such sins, are quite obvious to those who know what God calls an abomination, they  include passing the money bag around on the Sabbath (instead of depositing it in the proper collection box or mailing it in), worldly music, improper dressing, peace and safety sermons week after week, little or no sermons warning the people about His “sudden” coming to His Temple (church) to begin the prophesied church judgment (Mal. 3:1-5), promoting and conducting  business on the Sabbath, and more.

But our actions in regard to the abominations cannot be  what “we” think we should do, it must be what the Lord tells us to do via His prophets. The message tells us and it is most definitely clear.

“The message, moreover, teaches that we should remain in the mother church and work strictly for her salvation.” (Timely Greetings, vol. 1, no. 3, p.6)

“We are sorry for the leading brethren who are involved in the same wicked work as that of ancient Israel. But what is still worse is that they countenance the membership of many who do not believe in the Spirit of Prophecy, others break the Sabbath, while others chew and smoke, and still others do even worse abominations. Yet these sinners are held as members and many of them are even permitted to hold an office, whereas those who, through reading the SRod, reform from these abominations and become true S.D.A.’s by obeying the whole truth are mistreated and cast out as evil doers and even those who are guilty of the above mentioned abominations take an active part in it.

Thus the multitude today as in the days of Christ cry out aloud saying, “Away with this man and release unto us Barabbas.” Yet they make it appear to all that the SRod adherents are separating themselves from the church — accused of being offshoots!

   Here we are brought to bear reproach and persecution at the hand of our own brethren because we dare not disobey the truth or leave the churches! And thus the question is asked, Shall we leave the church and go out for ourselves as all the reformers were compelled to do in the advancement of every truth, or shall we remain in them even though we are compelled to stay on the outside and be exposed to extreme heat or severe cold while they are looking down on us as though we were hydro-headed monsters?

 

   It matters not what they may do to us, we would rather die than to disobey the commandment of the Lord. The S.D.A. church is not Babylon. If it were we would have been duty bound to come out, but since it is not, we have no place to go. Consequently, we will stay in “Jerusalem” though it may be filled with thieves. “Fear them not neither be dismayed at their looks,” saith the Lord. (Ezek. 3:9.) “The angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just.” (Matt. 13:49.)

   The generation is almost past and there is no time left for building up another denomination, and though in times past God called His people out from one denomination into another He can not do it now, but instead He shall by the seal of God preserve the denomination for the righteous and take out of it all the wicked who receive not the seal, for thus saith the Lord: “All the sinners of My people shall die by the sword, which say, The evil shall not overtake nor prevent us.” (Amos 9:10; — “Testimonies for the Church,” Vol. 5, p. 211.)  (Sym. Code. vol. 1, no.14, p.7-8)

A quick comment here before we go to the next word of God. Just as Jesus our Master continued to go to church (Synagogue) Sabbath after Sabbath, and there were people in attendance who wanted Him dead, we too must not give up going despite, as Inspiration says, the church is “filled with thieves.” We see many in church week after  week who obviously are not converted and exhibiting a shameful example of the unconverted Christian life. Yet those are our brothers and sisters who need help!   They are the ones we want to reach and how can we do that if we stay away? It’s really nothing more that a dereliction of duty if we regularly stay away from church on the Sabbath .

Jesus answered, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.”(Luke 5:31-32)

“The chief reasons for refusing to separate ourselves from the body and for regularly attending Sabbath School and church services, other than the singular that we would be without privilege of public worship in God’s church, is that after the congregation is dismissed we come into contact with the brethren and find an opportunity to speak of the message, urging them to investigate for themselves either by attending our studies or by reading the publications of present truth. Hence, if we separate ourselves by staying away from the churches, we give them the opportunity to accuse us of being an offshoot from the body, and ourselves lose the occasion to contact the people. Moreover, if we separate ourselves from the organization, then in the fulfillment of Ezekiel 9, when those who have not the mark are taken away, we shall have no right to claim possession of the denomination.” (Sym. Code, vol. 1, no.8, p.8)

The last sentence of the above reference is quite startling. We see that should we think we are doing the right thing by separating ourselves from the unholy works within His church, we are in fact, doing a terrible and risky thing! We will not be considered a member of God’s church from God Himself, after the church judgment. Yes we may escape the slaughter of Ezekiel 9, but that means we cannot be among the 144,000 and will not be sealed (protected) when the terrible events come down upon the world. This is serious my brothers and sisters–take heed.

“On many occasions the leadership has disfellowshipped some of the earnest ones, but by no means has it checked the influence of the truth. Indeed this attempt to frighten the people to give up studying the message and working in the lines of reformation has only served to accomplish the very opposite result. We again warn our people to remain faithful to God and follow complete instructions in every move they make. There can be no success in the work of God and He cannot use us if we exercise our wisdom independent of His.

   Let everyone remain at the post of duty as though all the work of God rested on his shoulders. God has forewarned that everyone must remain in the church where he belongs, regardless of what may happen to his church membership. It is not our names on the church books that saves us, but the keeping of the truth. Complete instructions have been given in the SRod, Vol. 1, pp. 28-9, also 245-252; tract #2, p. 41; tract #4, p. 45. Let every one aim to be one of the 144,000 by careful observance of the instructions given, and then the barriers now erected against the truth will crumble to the ground like the walls of Jericho. The Lord “shall appear to” our “joy” and those that cast us out “shall be ashamed.” (Isa. 66:5.)  (Sym. Code, vol. 1, no. 8, p.2)

You see we are to be “servants” while we hold our church membership. We go to stand at “our post of duty” to help any brother or sister we see might need our help, we go to learn and study as well. Most of all we go to worship HIM who is worthy!

I have said this before and here is a good spot to repeat it– Each Sabbath we go to church to celebrate the prior six days of knowing, walking and supping with the Lord.

“Let us not neglect meeting together, as some have made a habit, but let us encourage one another, and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” (Hebrews 10:25)

“The crisis is fast approaching. The rapidly swelling figures show that the time for God’s visitation has about come. Although loath to punish, nevertheless He will punish, and that speedily. Those who walk in the light will see signs of the approaching peril; but they are not to sit in quiet, unconcerned expectancy of the ruin, comforting themselves with the belief that God will shelter His people in the day of visitation. Far from it. They should realize that it is their duty to labour diligently to save others, looking with strong faith to God for help. “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p.209)

9 —  What is the purpose of the Lord’s last message of Elijah?

As we learned from question number 7 (The seal of God), the seal is the acceptance of our present truth and then the obedience of it. Inspiration tells it as follows–

“There are many precious truths contained in the Word of God, but it is “present truth” that the flock needs now.(Early Writings, page 63)

“In every age there is a new development of truth, a message of God to the people of that generation. The old truths are essential; new truth is not independent of the old, but an unfolding of it. It is only as the old truths are understood that we can comprehend the new.” (Signs of the Times, June 20, 1906)

The Elijah message is the anti-type of the original Elijah message. That was a message from God’s servant to His own people not the world. This is key. Right now we  have much work to do in our own house! How can we even think that our ship, which has big holes in it, can take even more into it? That is why we were told in Malachi 4:5 that the Lord would send Elijah. It is this message that the Lord knew we as SDA would need at the end of our probation as a church.

As we posted before, if the Lord knew the world needed a prophet sent to it, then Noah or Enoch or such would have been the perfect type. Instead in His all-knowing wisdom He sent us Elijah to get His church in order to prepare His servants to give the Loud Cry to bring in the “great multitude” from all nations (Rev. 7:9).

The world will indeed be preached to by the soon to come purified church. Many will indeed come out of Babylon. Joel’s prophecy succinctly describes the events to come–

“Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the LORD cometh, for it is nigh at hand; A day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains: a great people and a strong; there hath not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations.

A fire devoureth before them; and behind them a flame burneth: the land is as the garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; yea, and nothing shall escape them. Their appearance is like that of horses, and they gallop like war horses. Like the noise of chariots on the tops of mountains shall they leap, like the noise of a flame of fire that devoureth the stubble, as a strong people set in battle array.

The people are terrified in their presence; every face grows pale. They shall run like mighty men; they shall climb the wall like men of war; and they shall march every one on his ways, and they shall not break their ranks: Neither shall one thrust another; they shall walk every one in his path: and when  they fall upon the sword, they shall not be wounded.

They shall run to and fro in the city; they shall run upon the wall, they shall climb up upon the houses; they shall enter in at the windows like a thief. The earth shall quake before them; The LORD utters His voice before His army; Surely His camp is very great, For strong is he who carries out His word. The day of the LORD is indeed great and very awesome, And who can endure it?” (Joel 2:1-11)

This message is to prepare those who want to, above everything else,  become one of God’s elect. Those who are “sighing and crying” for the sins done in the midst will know how important it is to obey in this message today!

10 —  Who is to give the Loud Cry, the Lord’s final message to the world?

Right now we see Amazing facts, Hope Channel, 3 ABN  and a host of other SDA outlets, giving what they think is the Loud Cry. Yet as we’ll see, this cannot be the case.

“The third angel’s message is to lighten the earth with its glory; but only those who have withstood temptation in the strength of the Mighty One will be permitted to act a part in proclaiming it when it shall have swelled into the loud cry.” (Review and Herald, Nov. 19 , 1908)

Right now as we all know there are tares mixed with the wheat. The tares have all but over run the place. This being so, how can we claim that God has overlooked “sins in the midst” and poured out His power for the Loud Cry? This is impossible. Just as Achan stopped the camp of Israel from proceeding , so also the tares in the church have held back God’s pouring out of His spirit.

“I, the Lord do not change.”(Malachi 3:6)

We see that only overcomers will be permitted to give the Loud Cry. Right now we have a church leadership that , among other things, allows abortion upon demand. Malachi speaks of the Lord’s work when He comes to His temple.

“But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner’s fire, and like fullers’ soap: And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness. Then shall the offering of Judah and Jerusalem be pleasant unto the LORD, as in the days of old, and as in former years.”  (Mal. 3:2-4)

We did a post called “Qualifying for the Loud Cry” which deals with the overwhelming Inspired references that show the church will be purified in order to give the Loud Cry. https://godsloveandlaw.com/2015/01/31/qualifying-for-the-loud-cry-part-1-of-2/

The following is one of the most quoted references in the Elijah message that describes the end time events in a nutshell. Please ponder this one carefully.

“For behold, the LORD will come with fire, and with his chariots like a whirlwind, to render his anger with fury, and his rebuke with flames of fire. For by fire and by his sword will the LORD plead with all flesh: and the slain of the LORD shall be many.

They that sanctify themselves, and purify themselves in the gardens behind one tree in the midst, eating swine’s flesh, and the abomination, and the mouse, shall be consumed together, saith the LORD. For I know their works and their thoughts: it shall come, that I will gather all nations and tongues; and they shall come, and see my glory.

And I will set a sign among them, and I will send those that escape of them unto the nations, to Tarshish, Pul, and Lud, that draw the bow, to Tubal, and Javan, to the isles afar off, that have not heard my fame, neither have seen my glory; and they shall declare my glory among the Gentiles.

And they shall bring all your brethren for an offering unto the LORD out of all nations upon horses, and in chariots, and in litters, and upon mules, and upon swift beasts, to my holy mountain Jerusalem, saith the LORD, as the children of Israel bring an offering in a clean vessel into the house of the LORD.”(Isaiah 66:15-20)

After the Lord commits His judgments, there will be those who “escape”, the marked ones who receive the sign ( 144,000 of Rev.7). Then these go out to the nations to bring in “all your brethren” into a “clean vessel”–a purified church. Thus the Loud Cry does its God intended work, and many the world over will praise the Lord!

We hoped you have enjoy these 10 questions dealing with the final message of the Lord. Let us not waste any time in learning, discussing and spreading these truths. For they are His last pleading words for us today. God be with you.

 

 

Posted in Present Truth, Proper teachings | 2 Comments »

10 Challenging Questions (Part 1 of 2)

September 12, 2015

A person jumps over a challenge, riding an arrow to success

The Scriptures say, “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear..”(1 Peter 3:16).

But the Spirit of Prophecy says, “Some have thought it an evidence of intellectual keenness and superiority to perplex minds in regard to what is truth. They resort to subtlety of argument, to playing upon words; they take unjust advantage in asking questions. When their questions have been fairly answered, they will turn the subject [and] bring up another point to avoid acknowledging the truth. We should beware of indulging the spirit which controlled the Jews.”(Testimonies to Ministers, p.108)

So to rectify the two we see that we should be ready to give answers to those who ask, those who want the truth. But should we come in contact with a “Pharisee”, one who wants to argue with us and to show us that he/she only cares about their opinion/agenda, we’ll it’s clear–don’t indulge that spirit. Say “Thanks, but no thanks”.

We would like to present 10 challenging questions that appear to be some often asked questions concerning the Lord’s  Elijah message. We will address each one with a “Thus sayeth the Lord”, so that you may copy this report and use it to help explain to those who are the “Burean” type and want to know the truth of the matter.

1- –  Is there another prophet(s) to come to our SDA church after Ellen G. White?

The simple answer is–yes. The most clearest references come from two Inspired quotes.

“Behold,  I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and dreadful day of the LORD.”(Mal. 4:5)

There can be no misunderstanding here. The Lord says that a male prophet will come as “Elijah”,and he will come at the very end of time.

Then the Lord sent us His prophetess to give us more clues about this Elijah.

“Prophecy must be fulfilled. The Lord says: “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord.” Somebody is to come in the spirit and power of Elijah, and when he appears, men may say: “You are too earnest, you do not interpret the Scriptures in the proper way. Let me tell you how to teach your message.”(Testimonies to Ministers, p.475)

Here we see that Inspiration tells us a male “he” will appear and that sadly, he would be rejected for the most part. But we see that he will be known as an interpreter of Scripture. As we have reported in many posts on this blog, there has been only one man in all our SDA history that has published volumes of interpretive works of Scripture and Spirit of Prophecy. His name was Victor T. Houteff. If you don’t know much about this man, I strongly advise any and all who will listen–get to know him and his writings. For many, including myself, believe beyond doubt that God sent him as the prophesied “Elijah” to come. His writings are that deep. Only God could have given a mere man this ability.

From a personal view, there is only 3 Inspired books/writings that can sometimes wear me out and give me an overwhelming sense of “enough already, this is too much truth” Scripture, Spirit of Prophecy and Shepherd’s Rod publications. Of course I never get tired of them but they do have such a powerful far-reaching effect on those who study them.

We often marvel how Ellen White had just a 3rd grade education, and yet could write like a true scholar. The Holy Spirit whispering in her ear as she wrote. Amazingly, this phenomena continued with Victor Houteff. He had just a 4th grade education. Both writers certainly  wrote “as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.” (2 Peter 1:21)

2–  Is there another prophet(s) to come to our SDA church after Victor T. Houteff?

Here we can sometimes run into some Davidian “Pharisees” who will ask this question. As we have posted many times the highest and most truth filled light on the planet is the Lord’s Elijah message. But Satan knows this and has infiltrated the Davidian Seventh-day Adventists, just like he has the Seventh-day Adventists.

The typical SDA member will not know about , let alone ask about, another prophet to come to our SDA church. This shows how far encompassing Satan and his minions have blinded and fooled our church. But some Davidians who are well read in the message, can get even be more blinded and fooled than the SDA members! (See our post  – “Blinded by the light” https://godsloveandlaw.com/2013/03/30/blinded-by-the-light/ )

But we need to address this because of the fact that in Davidian circles there are a fair amount of so called believers of the Elijah message that think brother Houteff was not the last prophet to come. We come in contact with these types occasionally on our Facebook group–Truth Tellers.

Remember  that Scriptures says, “Surely the Lord GOD does nothing, unless He reveals His secret to His servants the prophets” (Amos 3:7)

So we must search the Scriptures to know when/who the Lord sends in the last days / end of time. As mentioned He promises to send one man “Elijah”. Notice it does not say “Elijahs” or “Elijah, the prophets“.

So if the Lord would send more than one prophet, He certainly would have revealed that through His prophets and their writings per His word of Amos 3:7. We find one place, Malachi 4:5,  as the proof of ONE end time prophet to come.

Victor Houteff wrote these inspired words to eliminate all doubt that his calling would be the “very last”.

“Behold, I will send My messenger, and he shall prepare the way before Me: and the Lord, Whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to His temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the Lord of hosts.” Mal. 3:1.

   The promise here is that the Lord will send a messenger, and as the fourth chapter of Malachi is but a continuation of the story in the third, we are there told that the messenger is antitypical Elijah (Mal. 4:5), the one who is “to restore all things” (Matt. 17:11) and Inspiration of a later addition, and in a special message to the Seventh-day Adventist ministry warns:

   “Prophecy must be fulfilled.  The Lord says: ‘Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord.’  Somebody is to come in the spirit and power of Elijah, and when he appears, men may say: ‘You are too earnest, you do not interpret the Scriptures in the proper way.  Let me tell you how to teach your message.'” — “Testimonies to Ministers,” pp. 475, 476.

   There are two main points to note in these quotations: (1) that the message and messenger here mentioned are the very last; (2) that they are to restore all things, (3) that there is danger for some to make fools of themselves by daring to tell him how to teach his message — assuming to take God’s place! (Jezreel Letter, no.9, p.1)

But despite the plain clear words above, the blinded Pharisee will say, “Ah, but Victor Houteff cannot be the anti-typical Elijah because the original Elijah came and spoke the message then was translated to heaven without dying.” But Inspiration is one step ahead of them.

Although VTH was the Elijah to come, under Inspiration he wrote,

“The prophet, or the message is called, Elijah, “with the spirit and power of Elijah”….Thus Elijah stands as a type of the 144,000 living translated saints.”(SRod, vol. 1, p.47)

The above reference is good to know, additionally, because this addresses many SDA non-believers who also say “Victor Houteff died so he cannot be the Elijah anti- type.” But we see that Inspiration says that the anti- type is the 144,000.

But what is most clear of all is the prophet’s own words concerning what Mal:4:5,6 means–

“Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord: and he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.” Mall 4:5, 6.

   In the light which this prophecy sheds on the subject, no one can possibly escape the conclusion that a prophet — a person — is to be sent “before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord,” and that thus only can there be a group of people in connection with Elijah’s message.  The Scriptures make definite and sure the promise, the time, and the work, also the way to our security in the great and dreadful day, “lest,” as says the Lord, “I come and smite the earth with a curse.” Mall 4:6.

   No one can afford to commit the absurdity of either treating lightly or of kindling sparks of his own on the subject.  We should remember, moreover, that it is not possible that God should leave a one of us in darkness if we want to know the Truth, and if we are mindful of what God would have us to do. (“The Great Controversy,” p… 560).  To the end that this may be the happy experience of all of us, we should pray that the Spirit Who leads into all Truth would direct this effort. (General Conference Special, p.5-6)

We see that, first, the Lord sends ONE PERSON as the “Elijah” promised in the Word. Then from this person who writes out the last message to our church, His remnant people, we know that many will take up the message of Elijah and thus continue spreading this final message of hope, accountability, and solemn responsibility to our church.

Keep in mind that most of the time these Pharisees (who exist both in the SDA and DSDA) want to deny the Lord’s final prophet because they have some man they are following. The SDA members most likely have a Doug Batchelor, Stephen Bohr, Mark Finley, etc. As for the DSDA, there are 3 individuals that come to mind, who have followings.

Lennox Sam -From USA . Works in Africa much of the time(recruiting). Has own ideas such as a pre purification of Davidians before the church judgement comes to the SDA church–Ezek.9. Is active on YouTube.

Ariel Dacutanan – From the Philippines. Teaches that Victor Houteff was not last prophet (although he quotes largely from him), and has his followers believing that he is a prophet even though there is documented evidence of his false predictions. Has a few YouTube videos

Trent Wilde – From USA. Considered one of the “Branch” Davidian leaders. He uses Victor Houteff writings together with his own ideas such as feast keeping, and more prophets to come after brother V. Houteff. Very active on YouTube.

We need to remember Satan is far far more intelligent than we are, and as such he gets very well read men such as the above, to claim that Victor Houteff was indeed a prophet, yet he isn’t enough for us. In other words they interject their message with the Lord’s prophet! They act the part of Korah and say to brother Houteff, as Korah said to Moses, “You take too much upon yourself..”(Numbers 16:3). They also fulfill the prophesied words that our prophetess spoke, “You are too earnest, you do not interpret the Scriptures in the proper way. Let me tell you how to teach your message.”(Testimonies to Ministers, p.475).

Those who follow these men are on a slippery slope, a waiting trap for those who don’t prayerfully study on their own!

3 —  Are there more than 144,000 sealed from the SDA church in the church judgment?

We shall look at this issue with the 3 Inspired sources. While not directly saying how many, our Lord let’s us know that “few” find eternal life.

“For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.”(Matt. 7:14)

Our second quote gets more specific in this matter.

“I have tried in the fear of God to set before His people their danger and their sins, and have endeavored, to the best of my feeble powers, to arouse them. I have stated startling things, which, if they had believed, would have caused them distress and terror, and led them to zeal in repenting of their sins and iniquities.

I have stated before them that, from what was shown me, but a small number of those now professing to believe the truth would eventually be saved–not because they could not be saved, but because they would not be saved in God’s own appointed way. The way marked out by our divine Lord is too narrow and the gate too strait to admit them while grasping the world or while cherishing selfishness or sin of any kind.” (Testimones, vol. 2, p.445-446)

Another revealing quote is Rev. 7:4–“And I heard the number of them which were sealed:and there were sealed an hundred and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel.”

Our prophetess declared that we, the SDA church, are the “Israel of today” (Testimonies, vol. 9, p.164) (Testimonies, vol. 5, p.80). The church contains all the tribes of the children of Israel. Some may ask –What if there are Gentiles in the church, will they automatically be left without the seal of God because they are not descendants of Abraham’s seed?  Rest assured God does not arbitrarily eliminate people from the church. This is a deep study and we have a post that delves into this   https://godsloveandlaw.com/2014/08/09/who-comprises-the-s-d-a-church/

One of the most insidious Satanic tricks is that he gets Elijah message believers to join their SDA brethren, and declare that God’s word is not fully correct (Rev. 7:4) or is “symbolical” and that there will be more than 144,000 sealed from the church. They are really saying “oh it’s really more than that because we got 18 million, cmon.” Those who partake in this teaching are directly “adding” to the words in Revelation which we know comes with a fearful price.

“I testify to everyone hearing the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone should add to these things, God will add unto him the plagues having been written in this book. And if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his part from the tree of life and from the holy city, which are written in this book.” (Rev. 22:18-19)

A few days ago I was involved in a email study with a so-called Davidian brother who  said to me that it cannot be possible that God would only seal 144,000 out of the approximate 18 million SDA members. He said if he taught this it would go over like a “lead balloon.” I about fell out of my chair reading this from a  “40 year” Davidian! This is the perfect example of being the most deceived one can be. Fortunately most Davidians are grounded in the truth and don’t go along with this kind of adding to God’s word.

All one has to do is look at the Lord’s history on how He executed His judgments. In Noah’s day, with possibly several million (some say much more) there was eight saved. In Moses’ time with the approx. million people who came out of Egypt, there was two people saved (over 20 years old). In Lot’s day, from the large cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, one family was spared.  In the time of our Lord’s prophecies of the coming destruction of the Jews (approx. 1.1 million) only about 97,000 survived(Wikipedia- siege of Jerusalem AD 70).

So it is entirely in keeping with His historical judicial actions. Does this mean that He only wants 144,000 to survive? Of course not. But down through the ages God has always sent His prophets to warn and when the warnings are ignored, He commits His judgments. Our prophet , Victor T. Houteff, was sent to us, are we going to listen?

His is a righteous Judge and we have no basis to deny His justice or even question it. All we can do is learn the message and obey it.

4 —  Should we keep the feast days/ceremonies?  

Let us read what happened right after Jesus died–

“At that moment the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth quaked and the rocks were split.” (Matt.27:51)

The Spirit of Prophecy explains–

“By the rending of the veil of the temple, God said, I can no longer reveal My presence in the most holy place. A new and living Way, before which there hangs no veil, is offered to all. No longer need sinful, sorrowing humanity await the coming of the high priest. 5BC 1109.4

Type had met antitype in the death of God’s Son. The Lamb of God had been offered as a sacrifice. It was as if a voice had said to the worshipers, “There is now an end to all sacrifices and offerings”(5 BC p.1109)

Any one who knows about the feast days/ceremonies knows that the main ingredient of these ceremonies was the sacrifice of animals. Once Christ died the central meaning and purpose of the feast days was gone.

There is a movement among our church today, proposing that Christ really did not do away with the ceremonies. They conveniently interpret Scripture and the Spirit of Prophecy to point out how we must keep the feast days. One of the leading proponents from the SDA church is a man named, John Vandenburg. He has a website called Bible Explorations and is active on YouTube.

But the best evidence we have that the feast days are no longer required is from the restorer of Truth that the Lord sent, let us read–

“Broadly speaking, the law of Moses consists of three parts.  The first is the Ceremonial law, the law of the temple — the sacrificial law.  This law, of course, we today must not observe, except in antitype, for it foreshadowed things to come, particularly Christ’s first advent.  Thus it is that if we had lived in Old Testament times and had failed to comply with the sacrificial law and system of that day, we would thereby have demonstrated unbelief in Christ, Who was to come.  But since we are living in the Christian era, if we should now observe the typical sacrificial law and system, we should thereby demonstrate unbelief in Christ, Who has come.

   And so, as this law was nailed to the cross (Col. 2:14), we need not, and must not, observe it now.” (TG, vol. 2, no. 37, p.14-15)

The above is plain and very clear, the “Ceremonial law” and “sacrificial law” was “nailed to the cross”. If you try and keep these days as a requirement, you “demonstrate unbelief in Christ, Who has come.”

Again, some Pharisees argue, “But see, the prophet says we are to keep the feast days in “anti-type”.This can easily be corrected by pointing out the fact that neither Ellen White nor Victor Houteff kept the feast days during their life. So if the mis-informed attempt to bring this weak argument, we simply say that God does not bring prophets who write and teach one thing and do the other. We all know that our Lord continually blasted hypocrisy as one of the most sinful conditions of mankind. In the chapter 23 of Matthew, He said “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!” seven times.

“You hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy of you, when he said: “‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’”(Matt. 15:7-9)

“God hates hypocrites more than He hates any other kind of sinners.” (1 TG, no.44, p.5)

Again the message clarifies the issue–

“The earthly sanctuary service for the salvation of the human race, in types and symbols, reveals Christ’s administration in the heavenly.  Which was made up of two laws; namely, the “ten commandment” and the “ceremonial” laws.  The tables of the ten commandments were put in the ark, and the ceremonial or the law of Moses was placed on the side of the ark. (See Deut. 10:2; 31:26.) 

Why two laws?  The moral law points out the sin, “for by the law is the knowledge of sin.” (Rom. 3:20.)   “For where no law is, there is no transgression.” (Rom. 4:15.)   But the ceremonial law “was added because of transgressions till the seed should come to whom the promise was made.” (Gal. 3:19.)   Which was the remedy to heal the sinner and set him free from the condemnation of the moral law.  When Christ (the seed) came, He took this law of ordinance (the law of Moses) “out of the way, nailing it to the cross.” (Col. 2:14.) 

The earthly administration of the law of ordinance could not give life of itself, because it was only a shadow of the true.  Therefore, at the crucifixion of Christ it ceased and the heavenly one, which was foreshadowed by the earthly, began.  The literal sanctuary service of both temples were identical.”(Shepherds Rod, vol. 2, p.267-268)

Some point to a few EGW quotes where they are mis-interpreted to look like she advocates  observing the feast days. One example is the following.

“If the children of Israel needed the benefit of these holy convocations in their time, how much more do we need them in these last days of peril and conflict! And if the people of the world then needed the light which God had committed to His church, how much more do they need it now!” {6T, 39-40}

One of our most basic rules of Hermeneutics is to look at context. With this rule, we should look at the preceding  paragraphs of the above quote.

To begin with the context begins with the title–Camp Meeting.

We start from the middle of page 39–

“Anciently the Lord instructed His people to assemble three times a year for His worship. To these holy convocations the children of Israel came, bringing to the house of God their tithes, their sin offerings, and their offerings of gratitude. They met to recount God’s mercies, to make known His wonderful works, and to offer praise and thanksgiving to His name. And they were to unite in the sacrificial service which pointed to Christ as the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world. Thus they were to be preserved from the corrupting power of worldliness and idolatry. Faith and love and gratitude were to be kept alive in their hearts, and through their association together in this sacred service they were to be bound closer to God and to one another.

In the days of Christ these feasts were attended by vast multitudes of people from all lands; and had they been kept as God intended, in the spirit of true worship, the light of truth might through them have been given to all the nations of the world.

40

With those who lived at a distance from the tabernacle, more than a month of every year must have been occupied in attendance upon these holy convocations. The Lord saw that these gatherings were necessary for the spiritual life of His people. They needed to turn away from their worldly cares, to commune with God, and to contemplate unseen realities.”

We see that Inspiration compares the feast days meetings to our camp meetings, as a way to gather together for “the spiritual life of His people.” She is not saying that we must keep the feast days in order to satisfy our Lord today. It plainly says that those feast days “pointed to Christ.” He was soon to take the place of the sacrificial feast day ceremonies!

The remainder of the page shows the importance of attending meetings and having fellowship with our brothers and sisters for uplifting God’s cause.

To further confirm her stance on these ceremonies she made the following powerful statements.

“In the Galatian churches, open, unmasked error was supplanting the gospel message. Christ, the true foundation of the faith, was virtually renounced for the obsolete ceremonies of Judaism. The apostle saw that if the believers in Galatia were saved from the dangerous influences which threatened them, the most decisive measures must be taken, the sharpest warnings given.” (AA p.385)

“He has swept away every ceremony of the ancient type. He has given no liberty to restore these rites, or to substitute anything that will recall the old literal sacrifices.” (Review and Herald, Feb. 25, 1896)

So we see that both our prophetess and prophet confirm that feast keeping should not be considered a requirement today. Some may at times want to observe them as a historical lesson , to learn of our Biblical history and this lesson can be good (See Special Testimonies on Education,page 80), but to say we must keep them today is to profess unbelief in Christ.

(Next week, we’ll look at questions 5 to 10)

Posted in Present Truth, Proper teachings, The Feast Days | 4 Comments »

Little Light Big Courage

September 5, 2015

Kim davis

We have posted many times about courage. How God time and again shows He values courage from His people. David was courageous and called a man after the Lord’s heart. Job was courageous and stood firm despite the horrible curses that God allowed to come upon him. Elijah was courageous as he took on the 450 prophets of Baal, only with God and himself.

This week the world witnessed a remarkable display of courage. One woman, has stood up against the “law” of the land for God’s law! She has claimed her actions are on “God’s authority”. Now can we who claim to love the Lord really take in what she has done?

To really comprehend what she has done we need to look at this from our view, we who are called “Seventh-day Adventists”. How should we relate to this act of courage? To begin with we should know the word of God says the following–

“He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. But to the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and sexually immoral and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their place will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur. This is the second death.”(Rev. 21:7-8)

The words of Christ are clear–Be a coward, and you’ll be the first not to inherit the kingdom. The cowardly are listed first and foremost in God’s word above. There is a purpose of each and every jot and tittle of God’s word.

The world is fast closing its probation, the final closing events are around the corner, and Satan has been given more free rein to start to set up his abominable ways into our society. Gay relations are clearly against the word of God. Sodom and Gomorrah is the primary example of the Lord’s view upon a perverted lifestyle.

“Or do you not know that the unrighteous ones will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor verbal abusers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God.” (1 Cor. 6:10)

Her name is Kim Davis. She has been employed as the Rowan county clerk in Kentucky. As part of her duties she has to sign off on marriage certificates. Being a Christian she has steadfastly refused to sign off on couples who are gay and requesting a marriage license. This has caused an uproar not only in Rowan county but now across the nation. A real God-given test for all to see!

Now she has been booked in jail for refusing a court order to issue gay marriage licenses. But what i find truly remarkable is her prominent display of the Christian character in all this. After being told she must go to jail, she simply responded to the judge, “thank you”.

“Bless those cursing you, pray for those mistreating you.” (Luke 6:28)

What can we as SDA learn from this woman? First , we as SDA know that we have been granted “great light” on Bible prophecies and truth. We know much more Truth that the Babylon churches, yet what church does this woman belong to? A Babylon church! Despite her having little light as to God’s end time truths and even present truth–she is walking in the light she knows! She’s a doer of God’s word.

“Be doers of the word, and not hearers only. Otherwise, you are deceiving yourselves.” (James 1:22)

We as SDA often fall woefully short walking in our light. We claim to be messengers of God , telling the people the truth of the sanctuary, Sabbath observance, end time prophetic events, etc. Yet how many of us step forward with courage?

Here we see a woman not afraid to stand up for God and His word! Wow! Small light yet great BIG courage. We did a post called “If we talk the talk, we must walk the walk” a few years back. Kim Davis issued this statement.

“I’m very steadfast in what I believe. I don’t leave my conscience and my Christian soul out in my vehicle and come in here and pretend to be something I’m not. It’s easy to talk the talk, but can you walk the walk?”

In our history there stands out three specific examples of courageous stands for God.

David– While king Saul and his army were exceedingly afraid of the Giant 9 foot Goliath and his men, young David stepped out in total faith that God would back him up–He did.

Elijah– Elijah was not bowed down by being scorned and derided by the people. The whole land had laughed and scoffed that he was a man of God. His attire , simple and poor, led them to believe God was not with this poor deluded man. We all know the great courage Elijah showed in the showdown in front of the overwhelming majority. They forgot that God IS the majority.

Martin Luther– Even though not having the greatest light in his time, he nevertheless boldly took on the Roman empire single-handedly , and of course with God’s purpose and strength. He walked in the light he knew and stood up to the world’s hierarchy and empire when no one else dared.

These three men proved that God was with them. Their purpose and goal was achieved because God was with them and backed their courage to stand up for Truth and right doing.

Are we as SDA standing up for God today? Do we correct a brother or sister during Sabbath lunch time when they want to talk about the latest game or business transaction? Do we gently warn a sister when she continues week after week to walk into God’s presence in the Sanctuary in a dress that resembles a night club dress? If we can’t muster up the courage here,  do we at least tell the elder or pastor about such dis-honor in God’s house? Do we correct someone who says God’s name in vain in front of us?

Let us be just like Kim Davis, and be not afraid to do the right thing.

“It is the essence of all right faith, to do the right thing at the right time.” (Testimonies, vol. 6, p.24)

“Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the LORD thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.” (Deut. 31:6)

“But Peter and the apostles replied, “We must obey God rather than any human authority.” (Acts 5:29)

In closing, will you join me in prayer in behalf of this courageous woman?

“Attend unto my cry; for I am brought very low: deliver me from my persecutors; for they are stronger than I. Bring my soul out of prison, that I may praise thy name: the righteous shall compass me about; for thou shalt deal bountifully with me.” (Psalms 142:6-7)

 

Posted in Courage, Loving the Lord | Leave a Comment »

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