TEXT OF ADDRESS BY V.T. HOUTEFF,
MINISTER OF DAVIDIAN 7TH-DAY ADVENTISTS
SABBATH, MARCH 6, 1948
MT. CARMEL CHAPEL
WACO, TEXAS

The text for our subject this afternoon is Malachi’s prophecy. It treats of a revival and reformation such as the world has never yet known. Moreover, the fact that the prophecy is written in such a way as partially to apply to ancient Israel, and yet specifically for the people in the latter days, for those who are approaching the great and dreadful day of the Lord, prove that the reformation needed in Malachi’s day is needed also in our day.

There is nothing so mysterious in the writings of Malachi but what any Bible student can comprehend by studying the book itself. I shall therefore study with you the last two chapters. The first two you can study at your leisure. We shall begin with–

Mal. 3:1, 2 — “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. 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’ sope.”

Two persons are here disclosed to view, the messenger

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and the Lord. The messenger is to precede the coming of the Lord. He is to prepare the way, then the Lord is to appear. And who could this messenger be if not the one whom the Lord names? — He declares, “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord.” Mal. 4:5.

This messenger of the covenant (of the promise), antitypical Elijah the prophet shall prepare the way; he shall restore all things. As he prepares the way, the Lord will suddenly come to His temple, to His church. And what is His work to be? To purify or cleanse His people by weeding the unrepented sinners from among them. The question: “But who may abide the day of His coming?” solemnly declares that we had better now get busy and do what it takes to make us stand before the cleansing begins.

Whom in particular will He purify? — Let us read–

Mal. 3:3 — “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.”

The Levites, you know, comprised the tribe from which came the priesthood, the ministers of the Lord. And since this prophecy is to meet its complete fulfillment in our day, the figure is clear: The Levites, the ministers of the Lord in our day, are to be purified. What then?

Mal. 3:4 — “Then shall the offering of Judah and Jerusalem be pleasant unto the Lord, as in the days of

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old, and as in former years.”

This verse implies that the offerings which we now bring to the Lord are not pleasing to Him, not pleasing as in times past.

Here we have the glorious promise that not long hence there shall be a pure ministry, a pure people, — a people without guile in their mouths, without spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing (Eph. 5:27). Those who do not measure to this standard will not “stand.” Thereafter no sinner will stand in their midst, for “Henceforth,” says the Lord, “there shall no more come into thee the uncircumcised and the unclean.” Isa. 52:1.

This glorious future is, moreover, reiterated by the Spirit of Prophecy in our day. Here it is:

“…Only those who have withstood temptation in the strength of the Mighty One will be permitted to act a part in proclaiming it [the Third Angel’s Message] when it shall have swelled into the Loud Cry.” — “Review and Herald,” Nov. 18, 1908.

“We have been inclined to think that where there are no faithful ministers, there can be no true Christians; but this is not the case. God has promised that were the shepherds are not true he will take charge of the flock himself. God has never made the flock wholly dependent upon human instrumentalities. But the days of purification of the church are hastening on apace. God will have a people pure and true. In the mighty sifting soon to take place, we shall be better able to measure the strength of Israel. The signs reveal that the time is near when the Lord will manifest that his fan is in his hand, and he will thoroughly

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purge his floor.

“The days are fast approaching when there will be great perplexity and confusion. Satan, clothed in angel robes, will deceive, if possible, the very elect. There will be gods many and lords many. Every wind of doctrine will be blowing. Those who have rendered supreme homage to ‘science falsely so-called,’ will not be the leaders then. Those who have trusted to intellect, genius, or talent, will now then stand at the head of rank and file. They did not keep pace with the light. Those who have proved themselves unfaithful will not then be entrusted with the flock. In the last solemn work few great men will be engaged. They are self-sufficient, independent of God, and he cannot use them. The Lord has faithful servants, who in the shaking, testing time will be disclosed to view. There are precious ones now hidden who have not bowed the knee to Baal. They have not had the light which has been shining in a concentrated blaze upon you.” — “Testimonies,” Vol. 5, pg. 80.

In the sifting, shaking time (“Testimonies,” Vol. 5, pg. 80) we shall be better able to know how many are really serving the Lord. Those whom we may think are to lead the church into the Kingdom may be missing, while others entirely unknown to us take their places.

Moreover, it will be found that those who are constantly drilling into the minds of the laity that there are to be no more messengers sent from God, no more Truth needed, and that someone is constantly trying to deceive them; that they should keep aloof from everything that does not meet the minister’s approval, — those who do this are the very ones who have already unwittingly deceived the laity, and are doing

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their best to keep them deceived. This fact, you see, stands up high like a beacon on a hill.

The only thing their carefulness not to be deceived will accomplish, unless they awake, is to keep themselves deceived forever and away from Truth. These shall not be able to stand when the Lord appears in His temple. Hence, the revival and reformation brought to view in Malachi is the first and the last of its kind, and is indeed to be crowned with the purification of the Church. Those who do not awake now, will therefore sleep for ever.

The Laodicean deception from within should not be news to you, for you well know that the Church has never in any age been deceived by any but by its own ministry, by those who have been as highly esteemed as were the members of the Sanhedrin, those who crucified the Lord, those who kept the nation deceived until it was too late to recover. Thus it was then, before then, and thus it has been ever since, and so it is now. Stop and think this through.

No, I am not telling you something new. You know this to be so, but you never think of it, and that is the main trouble with the entire Denomination.

The Church purified shall nevertheless triumph and march to victory. “‘Fair as the moon, clear as the sun, and terrible as an army with banners,’ she is to go forth into all the world, conquering and to conquer.” — “Prophets and Kings,” pg. 725.

Let us once and forever realize that the Devil is more shrewd than we can imagine. He is not particular what you believe so long as he can keep you ignorant of revealed Truth. This is what he is now doing within

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the Church, using men of influence, men who can put on the best front, men who are clever, who know how to gain the confidence of the people, men who can easily and quietly lead the Church away from God’s messages for today, the message of the Judgment for the Living — the purification of the church, the cleansing of the sanctuary. Satan is doing as good a job now as he did in Christ’s time.

Is not the knowledge of Malachi’s prophecy, the purification of the Church, the Judgment for the Living, more important to the Church than the Judgment for the Dead? Does it look to you as though you are being deceived by this Bible study, or does it look to you as though you need to reform?

Hear, therefore, what the Lord is about to do:

Mal. 3:5 — “And I will come near to you to judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, and against the adulterers, and against false swearers, and against those that oppress the hireling in his wages, the widow, and the fatherless, and that turn aside the stranger from his right, and fear not Me, saith the Lord of hosts.”

These are only some of the sins in the Church in which men are indulging. Speaking of the message bearers of today and of the church’s condition Inspiration further says: “…They lament and afflict their souls because pride, avarice, selfishness, and deception of almost every kind are in the church. The Spirit of God, which prompts to reproof, is trampled under foot, while the servants of Satan triumph. God is dishonored, the truth made of none effect.” — “Testimonies,” Vol. 5, pp. 210, 211.

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You will receive the mark of deliverance only if you sigh and cry against all these abominations. Ezek. 9:4-6.

To this list of sins the Lord calls attention to the following, and asks us to repent:

Mal. 3:6-9 — “For I am the Lord, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed. Even from the days of your fathers ye are gone away from Mine ordinances, and have not kept them. Return unto Me, and I will return unto you, saith the Lord of hosts. But ye said, Wherein shall we return? Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed Me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed Thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation.”

These verses do not blame the individual members of the church for robbing the Lord, but the whole denomination, the “whole nation.” Moreover, you will note that the story of Malachi chapter three begins with chapter two. There you will note that the Lord addresses the ministry, not the laity, saying, “…O ye priests, this commandment is for you.” Mal. 2:1. Plainly, then, the trouble lies in the fact that though the laity as a rule pay faithful tithe and offerings God nevertheless is robbed because the Denomination is taking the tithes and at the same time is fighting rather than accepting and promulgating His message for today — the Judgment for the Living. His money is used to cheat His people from His Truth instead of enlightening them with It — keeping His people in darkness and deception, even barring them from investigating the message of the hour for themselves. What a charge!

Here is what God would have the laity do:

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Mal. 3:10 — “Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in Mine house, and prove Me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.”

Where is one to look for God’s storehouse? — wherever God’s Truth is for today, from wherever “meat in due season” is dispensed.

The statement, “Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse,” implies that some are already bringing into it, but not all. This, along with the charge that the whole nation is robbing God, positively shows that the tithes are now brought, not to God’s storehouse, but to some other house. To repeat, God’s storehouse has ever been and ever will be where “the message of the Hour” is, where “Present Truth” is, the house from which “meat in due season” is dispensed at the time the tithes are paid.

Since the old message, the “Judgment for the Dead,” is out of date as is the message of Noah’s flood, it is plainly seen that inasmuch as the Denomination as a whole has rejected and is fighting the message of the hour, but is still collecting the tithes of the people, it is indeed robbing God.

His people are, therefore, asked to send their tithes to the “storehouse” whence Present Truth is dispensed, for it is Present Truth that the flock needs now. “There are many precious truths contained in the word of God, but it is ‘present truth’ that the flock needs now.” — “Early Writings,” pg. 63. Those who obey have this promise:

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Mal. 3:11-12 — “And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the Lord of hosts. And all nations shall call you blessed: for ye shall be a delightsome land, saith the Lord of hosts.”

Under no other conditions does He promise His blessings. You have hard luck? You cannot make ends meet? Start paying your tithes. Note carefully that God requires not only tithe but tithes; that is, tithe and free will offering. He does not want them spent on something of your own devising. You are to bring them into the “store house.” “…Concerning the first tithe, the Lord had declared, ‘I have given the children of Levi all the tenth in Israel.’ But in regard to the second he commanded, ‘Thou shalt eat before the Lord thy God, in the place which he shall choose to place his name there, the tithe of thy corn, of thy wine, and of thine oil, and the firstlings of thy herds and of thy flocks; that thou mayest learn to fear the Lord thy God always.’ This tithe, or its equivalent in money, they were for two years to bring to the place where the sanctuary was established. After presenting a thank-offering to God, and a specified portion to the priest, the offerers were to use the remainder for a religious feast, in which the Levite, the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow should participate. Thus provision was made for the thank-offerings and feast at the yearly festivals, and the people were drawn to the society of the priests and Levites, that they might receive instruction and encouragement in the service of God.

“Every third year, however, this second tithe was to be used at home, in entertaining the Levite and the poor, as Moses said, ‘That they may eat within

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thy gates, and be filled.’ This tithe would provide a fund for the uses of charity and hospitality.” — “Patriarchs and Prophets,” pg. 530.

The command is, “…they shall not appear before the Lord empty.” Deut. 16:16.

God does not lie. He carries out His promises. He never fails. There is nothing more offensive to Him than unbelief and unfaithfulness in His Word.

Mal. 3:13-15 — “Your words have been stout against Me, saith the Lord. Yet ye say, What have we spoken so much against Thee? Ye have said, It is vain to serve God: and what profit is it that we have kept His ordinance, and that we have walked mournfully before the Lord of hosts? And now we call the proud happy; yea, they that work wickedness are set up; yea, they that tempt God are even delivered.”

Here is pointed out another need of reform: We as a Denomination are charged with imagining that the ungodly are better off than those who serve God. Before drawing such a conclusion, let each first examine himself and see if he is really and honestly serving God.

Mal. 3:16, 17 — “Then they that feared the Lord spake often one to another: and the Lord hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before Him for them that feared the Lord, and that thought upon His name. And they shall be Mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that day when I make up My jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him.”

If we give undivided attention to God’s Word, if

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we do all He asks us to do, we shall indeed be His people, His “jewels.” Then a book of remembrance shall be written of us and our good and heroic deeds shall be read by the redeemed throughout eternity!

Mal. 3:18 — “Then shall ye return, and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serveth God and him that serveth Him not.”

We may not now see the difference between him who serves God, and him who serves Him not, but the day is fast approaching when the difference will be seen by all.

Mal. 4:1, 4 — “For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch…. Remember ye the law of Moses My servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments.”

Here we are asked to remember the law of Moses which God commanded in Horeb — the ten commandments, the statutes and judgments (Deut. 4:10-14).

Mal. 4:5, 6 — “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.”

The word “behold,” calls our attention back to chapter 3, verse 1, where we are told that the Lord will send His messenger to prepare the way of the Lord for the Judgment for the Living — for the purification.

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Obviously, besides preparing the way of the Lord, Elijah, the Lord’s messenger, is to declare that the great and dreadful day of the Lord is at hand.

The work of ancient Elijah, you know, was the closing work for typical apostate Israel — the Church. Likewise the work of Elijah of this day must be the antitypical closing work for His temple, the Church, before the great and dreadful day of the Lord. (“Testimonies,” Vol. 3, pg. 266.)

Moreover, if Elijah is a messenger, he is to have a message. His message is to be heart-searching, for he shall turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to the fathers — the fathers shall long to see their children saved, and the children shall long to see their fathers saved. And this revival and reformation shall in truth be crowned with the purification of the Church, with the Lord’s slaying the antitypical false prophets of today (Isa. 66:16). “For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?” 1 Pet. 4:17. “For by fire and by His sword will the Lord plead with all flesh: and the slain of the Lord shall be many….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 the 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

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into the house of the Lord.” Isa. 66:16, 19, 20.

This slaying, you see, takes place before probation closes for the escaped ones are sent to the Gentiles, to finish the gospel work — to gather all their brethren from among them.

“Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip. For if the word spoken by angels was stedfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of reward; how shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard Him;… Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into His rest, any of you should seem to come short of it.” Heb. 2:1-3; 4:1.

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As the church of today is conversant with past church history, but totally ignorant of the Divine prediction concerning herself, we, in an endeavor to enlighten her, shall set forth in this article the reason for her ignorance of the prophecies. But let us first refresh our minds by a brief review of the past before turning our attention to the future. In the following few paragraphs we shall see how completely the Lord has foretold to His church the course that she should, also the course that she would, follow, and the ultimate results in either case. Abraham, by the voice of prophecy, was informed that God had promised at some time to give him land the location of which was not then made known. Later he was told that he and his seed would sojourn in a strange land “four hundred and thirty years” before possessing the land of promise. When the fulness of this prophetic time came, even at the “self same day,” Israel was led out of the land of Egypt. But because of their repeated rebellions the Lord did not see fit immediately to take them into the promised land; therefore, He made known to them that they must remain in the wilderness another forty years. At the end of this prophetic period of time, the children of Israel, by as great a miracle as when they crossed the Red Sea, crossed the Jordan and went into the land promised to them.

Neither did the Lord leave them in darkness while they were in the promised land, but rather He sent to them prophet after prophet, (2 Chron. 36:15), warning them of the consequent results that would befall them because of their depraved spiritual condition, and telling them that by their attitude toward the prophets, and by their demeanor, they were making their final decision either for or against themselves.

As they failed to turn from their evil course, the voice of prophecy declared that they were to be delivered into the hands of the Chaldeans and there to remain captive seventy years. At the close of that span of time, God, by the hand of Cyrus and Darius, the kings of Medo-Persia, again set His people free, and the kings commanded them to rebuild the temple and the holy city. (Ezra 1:1, 2). As the prophecies concerning the church were then fulfilled, God in His faithfulness, made known to His people that which was to take place within a period of “two thousand three hundred days” or years (Dan. 8:14), beginning at the time when the commandment was made to rebuild the city, and ending in 1844. Among the events that took place during that length of time were Christ’s first coming and His crucifixion. (Dan. 9:26.)

Thus, these prophetic periods of time, linked one to another, carried us through history from the time of Abraham to 1844. But as we have referred to but a few of the prophecies, we might mention that there are many other prophetic events interwoven in the foregoing periods of time, such as the twelve hundred and sixty year period of Daniel 7:25, and the prophecies concerning the First-day Advent movement prior to 1844, etc., all of which shows that there has occurred nothing in church history of which the voice of prophecy has failed to speak.

As the prophecies connected with the First-day Advent movement and the Seventh-day Adventist denomination, are of greater importance to us than are any of the ethers, we shall treat of them more fully. However, as we are writing directly to Seventh-day Adventists, to explain the Scriptures with which they are already familiar is needless; therefore, we shall only refer to them and draw the lesson that God would have His people to know now.

In the tenth chapter of Revelation we read: “And I took the little book out of the angel’s hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet as honey: and as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter.” (Rev. 10:10.) This scripture is rightly interpreted by the denomination to be a perfectly fitting symbolic prophecy of the indescribable happiness and the crushing disappointment of the First-day Advent movement which declared prior to 1844 the truth of the “2300” day prophecy, whose followers believed what they preached, sold everything of this world’s goods, and spent the proceeds for the preaching of the Gospel that others along with them might be ready for Christ’s coming in the year 1844.

Hence, the thought of taking a flight through the starry heavens and entering through the pearly gates into the eternal city of the King of kings and the Lord of lords, where there is no sorrow, nor pain, nor death, was as sweet a thought to them as is honey to the taste of the tongue. Therefore, to John, the incident was symbolically represented by eating the little book—the Word of God—and by being as sweet as honey at the first. But as the set date passed into eternity, and the Lord Whom they expected to come, did not appear, they, as John, felt their inexpressible joy turn into the gall of bitterness.

Furthermore, as the verse following the one which refers to the disappointment, says, “Thou must prophesy again before many peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings” (Rev. 10:11), it proves to be an accurate prophecy of the understanding and experience of the movement prior to 1844, for they thought that the Gospel work was then finished, and that probation had

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closed. Therefore, the angel declared: “Thou must prophesy again;” that is, you have made a mistake, and now you must repeat the preaching of your message. Thus, the Seventh-day Adventist denomination, composed largely of those who had been First-day Adventists, arose to fulfill the heavenly commission while some of the First-day Adventists have maintained their own organization to this day.

Now our attention is called to the most important question: Could it be possible that the Scriptures should contain such a complete prophecy of the church to 1844 and contain none at all for her since then? All must honestly agree that to leave the church out of prophecy at any time is illogical and also impossible, for God has never left His people in darkness, and He surely would not do so now at the most important time in the world’s history. Then why does the church of today know so much about the prophecies of the past and so little of the prophecies concerning her own destiny?

There are two great reasons for this mystery. The primal reason is given by the apostle Peter:

“We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts.” (2 Peter 1:19.)

This scripture declares that prophecy is the more sure word, and that it is as a light that shines in a dark place, and that when it is understood it makes the subject so plain that its clearness is compared by Inspiration, as a “day star” in our hearts. However, the verses following say:

“Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost” (2 Peter 1:20, 21); that is, had the Scriptures come by the will of man, then they could be interpreted by the will of man without the aid of the Spirit. But the fact that “holy men of God” received the Scriptures from the Spirit of God, and as it is impossible for man of himself to know the mind of the Holy Spirit, he cannot interpret the Scriptures without the Spirit’s aid—he must, therefore, be inspired as verily as the ones to whom the Scriptures were given at the first.

This is attested by the fact that today we have thousands of isms which are the result of thousands of interpretations of the Scriptures, which proves that men have independently of the Spirit interpreted the Scriptures, for the Spirit of Prophecy does not, and cannot, give to one person one interpretation of scripture, and give to another another interpretation of the same scripture. Moreover since it is true that the Laodicean church does not know the prophecies concerning herself, it bears evidence that the Spirit of Prophecy is no longer active in the midst of her.

The second reason for her ignorance of “the more sure word of prophecy,” is in that she esteems herself as being “rich, and increased with goods,” and to “have need of nothing,” whereas, the prophecies declare that she is “wretched, and miserableness, and poor, and blind, and naked:” and that she knows it not. (Rev. 3:17.) Hence, as the prophecies concerning her “wretched” spiritual condition, and the ultimate results (should she fail to acknowledge and repent of her spiritual poverty), are in direct opposition with her supposed spiritual prosperity, she only partially interprets or misinterprets, misapplies, or leaves them entirely alone.

In the following paragraph we will endeavor to prove that the church of today is repeating the mistakes which the church of the past committed. For an example, as the Pharisees of old rejected the Inspired interpretation of the Scriptures, and as they feared that the common people might see their mistakes, they killed the prophets to silence them. Consequently, they were left in spiritual darkness, and as they privately—without Inspiration—interpreted the Scriptures, they misunderstood and misapplied even the most simple portions of the Word of God, with the result that they crucified the very One for Whom they had expended millions of dollars in sacrifices, and served hundreds of years in ceremonial services.

“The little horn” of Daniel Seven is a well-defined prophecy of the Roman Hierarchy. This prophecy has been preached for many years, but the Romans have never accepted it although they have not been able to attach its fulfillment elsewhere, nor to remove the time of its application. Just as the prophecies which did not commend the deeds of the Jewish and of the Roman leaders were not understood by them, so the prophecies which point out the errors of the Protestant churches are likewise considered as great mysteries.

This lack of understanding is not because the prophecies are difficult to be understood, but because they reveal the facts which the churches are not only unwilling to admit, but also very zealous to cover up. Hence, the advocates of “the more sure word of prophecy” are met with opposition, hatred, and ridicule, while their adversaries declare that the prophecies are but sealed mysteries. Therefore, as a result, ignorance of the Scriptures prevails among the people everywhere.

Thus, while on the one hand the prophecies reveal the poverty, wretchedness, and miserableness of the church today, she on the other hand boasts of her supposed high attainments, and of being rich and increased with goods, and of having need of nothing. This prevailing condition makes

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impossible her interpreting correctly or accepting “the more sure word of prophecy.” Thus, she is repeating the mistakes of the Jews, the Romans, and the Protestants.

We shall now carefully compare the voice of prophecy with the voice of the church. According to the prophecies, the Seventh-day Adventist denomination was commissioned to “prophesy again before many peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings.” (Rev. 10:11.) The word “many” is a limited word—it does not mean all. Thus, the prophecy in no uncertain terms declares that the Gospel commission to the S.D.A. church does not extend to all the nations, but only to “many,” showing that before the Gospel is proclaimed to all the nations, there must be another commission. This fact is attested also by the Spirit of Prophecy:

“God calls for a spiritual revival and a spiritual reformation. Unless this takes place, those who are lukewarm will continue to grow more abhorrent to the Lord, until He will refuse to acknowledge them as His children.

“A revival and a reformation must take place under the ministration of the Holy Spirit. Revival and reformation are two different things. Revival signifies a renewal of spiritual life, a quickening of the powers of mind and heart, a resurrection from spiritual death. Reformation signifies a reorganization, a change in ideas and theories, habits and practices. Reformation will not bring forth the good fruit of righteousness unless it is connected with the revival of the Spirit.”—“Christ Our Righteousness,” p. 154. (Italics ours.)

“Clad in the armor of Christ’s righteousness, the church is to enter upon her final conflict. ‘Fair as the moon, clear as the sun, and terrible as an army with banners,’ she is to go forth into all the world, conquering and to conquer.”—“Prophets and Kings,” p. 725.

While the voice of prophecy on the one hand declares that there is to be a “reorganization” and then a commission for the church to go to all the nations, the voice of the church, without having any more authority for what it says than do the Sunday observers for their belief that Sunday is the correct day to keep, cries aloud that the Seventh-day Adventist organization is “going through,” and the laity, as the laity of the nominal churches, do not ask for proof from “the more sure word of prophecy,” but rather, blindly exclaims “amen” to the voice of man against the voice of God! At the same time, to keep them in darkness, they are told not to listen to any other voice lest they be deceived!

We as the Seventh-day Adventist denomination were commissioned to go to “many” nations, and to gather the hundred and forty-four thousand, the first fruits, as is clearly shown in Revelation 11:1, 2: “And there was given me a reed like unto a rod: and the angel stood, saying, Rise, and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein. But the court which is without the temple leave out, and measure it not; for it is given unto the Gentiles.”

The words “measure” and “number” are synonymous, for measuring must be accompanied by numbering. Moreover, as those who worship therein are people, they must be measured by numbering. Hence, from 1844 to the time of this prophetic “reformation and organization,” is the measuring, or numbering time—the gathering of the 144,000, the first fruits, the twelve tribes, or those who worship inside the temple—whereas, “the porch that is without” is to be filled with the Gentiles—the second fruits, a great multitude which no man can number—who are to be gathered after the aforesaid reformation and reorganization is effected, just as it is stated in the Revelation. The revelator saw the 144,000 sealed and after that the great multitude. (Rev. 7:3 through 9.)

The Spirit of Prophecy declares that “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.” (R. & H., Nov. 19, 1908.) This excerpt bears plain evidence that we are not now in the time of the Loud Cry, neither have we ever been, for the Loud Cry is to be proclaimed only by those who have overcome temptation, whereas, the message has been, and is now proclaimed by both sanctified and unsanctified ministers. Therefore, if the message in the time of the Loud Cry is to be proclaimed only by those who have overcome temptation, there must necessarily be a reformation, and it shall sift out all the unsanctified ministers. (5T p. 80; G.C. 424, 5.)

The more sure word of prophecy through the “gospel prophet” throws great light on the subject. We read:

“For by fire and by His sword will the LORD plead with all flesh: and the slain of the LORD shall be many. 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.” (Isa. 66:16, 19, 20.

The slaughter of the Lord here brought to view must take place in His church, for those

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who escape must be Christians, well acquainted with the Lord, otherwise they could not proclaim His fame and His glory. Moreover, as the Gentile nations will remain after the slaying takes place, and as they will be privileged to hear the Gospel, it proves that this slaughter of the Lord shall take place before the close of probation.

Still further, the Spirit of Prophecy writes that when the sealing of the 144,000 and the slaying of Ezekiel Nine is about to take place, the ministers will have betrayed their trust (5T 211), and as the message must be preached by a pure ministry, it again proves that this purification must take place just before the commencement of the Loud Cry, thus making possible the closing of the Gospel work by a reformed and reorganized movement, commissioned to go to all the nations rather than to “many.”

Although we have merely touched the prophecies concerning the church of today, we already see that they are just as thorough as the prophecies concerning the church of the past, and that the three angels’ messages will go through, but both, this system of organization and those who do not take heed now to overcome temptation, will perish in “the slain of the Lord.”

There are many who do not see the necessity of reorganizing, though they see the need of a reformation. For this reason we shall add a few words of explanation.

As there would have been no need of a reformation had the church remained true, there would have been no need of reorganization had the church organized right and stayed right. But as the spirit of the world conquered the church, so the spirit of the world conquered the organization, which is unmistakably evidenced by the fact that both the medical and the educational departments of the denomination are now governed by the standards of the world.

Therefore, rather than the church leading the world, the world is now leading the church; or, in other words, rather than the church being the head, as God designed, she has now become the tail; and instead of the world partaking of the spirit of the church, the church is partaking of the spirit of the world, thus cheating the world from receiving the heavenly light, and causing herself to go into darkness, dishonoring God and honoring mammon. Hence, the need of both reformation and reorganization, for how can God finish His work, bless His people, and save the world with a church organization that itself is seeking help from the world?

The Lord’s having seen the course the church would pursue, has, for her benefit, so shaped the prophecies in an endeavor to awaken the church and to save her people. Hence, let us take heed to the sure Word of prophecy as it says: “Today if ye will hear His voice, harden not your hearts.” (Heb. 4:7.) (SC, vol. 4, no. 10-12, p. 2-5)

 

The Adventists News Network’s article states–

The Adventist Church has 20,008,779 member as of Dec. 31, 2016, a net increase of 882,332 people, or 4.6 percent, from the previous year, the church’s office of Archives, Statistics, and Research said. In another milestone, a record 1.2 million people were baptized last year, including an unprecedented 110,000 in Rwanda, while new churches continued to be planted at a rapid rate.

“What these statistics tell me about the church’s efforts to fulfill its mission is that church leaders and, increasingly, church members are putting considerable resources into reaching new souls for God’s kingdom,” said David Trim, director of the Office of Archives, Statistics, and Research. “Total Member Involvement has a huge role to play here, and the record baptisms in 2016 already reflect TMI.”

 

The above headlines is the latest news from the SDA Church news agency. As we read this, we are suppose to be very happy, some may want to say, “praise the Lord!”. Yet all is not what meets the eye. Something profound is happening here and we should look a little deeper into this supposed “work of God”.

I, too, was at one time a lukewarm SDA member. In fact we got a billboard campaign going within our church trying to recruit new members into our church. But that was the light that I knew at that time. The truth of the Lord’s Elijah message had not reached me yet.

“We must not think, “Well, we have all the truth, we understand the main pillars of our faith, and we may rest on this knowledge.” The truth is an advancing truth, and we must walk in the increasing light.” (Counsels to writers and editors, p.33)

Let us ask ourselves the following questions.

Why didn’t the Lord promise to bring Noah before the great and dreadful day of the Lord, instead of Elijah?  Or how about David, Joseph, Job or any of the other numerous prophets?

Afterall Noah preached to the world did he not? That is what the message is right now from the SDA church “peace and love and win the world”. So how does Elijah fit in as opposed to the message of Noah? When we ponder this line of thinking we can only come to one conclusion. Elijah, instead of any other prophet, was chosen as the type  because it was to represent the type of message for this time, the last days.

What was Elijah’s message? One to the world or to his own people? Of Course to the house of Israel! Is this work of spreading the Lord’s message  to go to the world now, bringing in the great multitudes (as in 20 plus million) and causing us to leap for joy at this fact?

Sadly the answer is no. This no doubt will cause those not familiar with the purpose of the Elijah message to say “What? What are you talking about? It’s a great thing to bring souls into God’s kingdom now.” Well yes and no, let us explain.

Granted, this area of the Elijah message is one of the most difficult to understand. When we know the message well we know that there is no doubt that the Lord’s message today is specifically for the remnant church. Why? Because it , not the world, is about to be sprued out.

The message deals straightly with this issue as follows —

WORK WITHIN OR WITHOUT?

Question No. 32:

On the one hand I find your literature teaching its believers not to leave the ranks of the Mother church, while on the other hand I find it causing no end of trouble to the church. How do you reconcile your precept with your example? Why not devote your time to evangelistic efforts, bringing erring souls to the knowledge of the Truth, and let the church alone?

Answer:

Assuredly we do believe that this is no time to be pulling apart, but indeed to be pressing together. And the message which we are bearing to the church, not only does not contain any doctrine or teaching which would warrant our leaving her ranks to become a separate cult, but does on the contrary absolutely forbid our doing so. For these reasons, we have from the beginning steadfastly refused, even in the face of abusive treatment, to leave the Mother church.

So far as we are concerned, therefore, existing controversy and schism is the responsibility of the Denomination’s leading brethren and none of ours, for we are only carrying out the Lord’s express precept and example never to sacrifice Truth. And they themselves admit that we should obey God rather than men. Upon them, therefore, rests the heavy guilt of repeating the tragic folly of the Jews in Christ’s time, by rejecting the message of the hour, “entering not in themselves” into the expansion of Truth, hindering those who would enter in, and casting out those who do enter in.

So, to devote our time to evangelizing the world while neglecting the church, would be a criminal act, one of highest treason both to God and to His people. The church must first be saved from her Laodicean condition of being “wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked.” She, not the world, is just about to be spued out. She “is the only object on earth on which He bestows His supreme regard.”-Testimonies to Ministers, p. 15.

But in her present deplorable state of blindness and destitution as exposed by the True Witness (Rev. 3:14-18), she is utterly unfit for the task assigned her, and must be rescued from her sad deception before she can become a safe refuge and a saving influence to those who would join her ranks. Should God leave her in the Laodicean condition in which she now languishes, not only would she herself be lost but, in consequence, so also would the whole world along with her. He must therefore rouse her up or else raise up another to do the work which remains to be done.

Think, though, what an eternal joy it would be for Him to fit her up and use her to His glory, rather than to have to forsake her! So before raising up another as a last resort, He is trying to save her, and He will save her, as He promises:

“Satan will work his miracles to deceive, he will set up his power as supreme. The church may appear as about to fall, but it does not fall. It remains, while the sinners in Zion will be sifted out. The chaff is separated from the precious wheat. This is a terrible ordeal, but nevertheless it must take place.

None but those who have been overcoming by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony will be found with the loyal and true, without spot or stain of sin, without guile in their mouth. The remnant that purify their souls by obeying the truth gather strength from the trying process, exhibiting the beauty of holiness amid the surrounding apostasy 

“The great issue so near at hand will weed out those whom God has not appointed, and He will have a pure, true, sanctified ministry prepared for the latter rain.”-B-55-1886.

Were the Lord—Who Himself when upon earth spent all His time in the exclusive endeavor to save His lost church then—to send us to the world rather than to His lost church today, He would not only be bringing in the innocent to perish with the guilty, but would also be completely reversing His own practice and contradicting His own orders to His apostles that they preach present truth to the church first (Matt. 10:5, 6).

In mercy and in consistency with His eternal procedure, therefore, He purposed that “while the investigative judgment is going forward in heaven, while the sins of penitent believers are being removed from the sanctuary, there is to be a special work of purification, of putting away of sin, among [His] people upon earth.” This is her special work. “Then the church which…at His coming [He] is to receive to Himself will be ‘a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing.”’-The Great Controversy, p. 425.

“The Lord does not now work to bring many souls into the truth,” furthermore says the Spirit of Truth, “because of the church-members who have never been converted, and those who were once converted but who have back slidden. What influence would these unconsecrated members have on new converts? Would they not make of no effect the God-given message which His people are to bear?”-Testimonies, Vol. 6, p. 371.

But when the back slidden and the unconverted, the tares, are taken away, “then she will look forth ‘as the morning, fair as the moon, clear as the sun, and terrible as an army with banners.”’-The Great Controversy, p. 425.

Yes, the honest heathen must and will be evangelized, but “the lost sheep of the house of Israel” (Matt. 10:6) must be sought first. How thankful, therefore, and how cooperative they ought to be, and will be, when they discover that rather than being rich and increased with goods, and in need of nothing, they are actually “wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked”—in need of everything- and that the Lord is waiting for them to wake up to the fact so that He can make them what they ought to be.

For these reasons, God says now to work within the Laodicean congregation rather than without. And what He says, that He means, and we dare not disobey, regardless what men may say or do. (Answerer, vol.2, Q-32)

You see brethren we are wholesaling them into the church without so much as any obedience to the Lord’s counsel, let us read–

“Only when the Church is composed of pure, unselfish members, can it fulfill God’s purpose. Too much hasty work is done in adding names to the church roll. Serious defects are seen in the characters of some who join the church. Those who admit them say, We will first get them into the church, and then reform them. But this is a mistake. The very first work to be done is the work of reform. Pray with them, talk with them, but do not allow them to unite with God’s people in church relationship until they give decided evidence that the Spirit of God is working on their hearts.” (Review and Herald, May 21, 1901)

So if the Lord is not now working to bring souls into the truth, the church, who is? Yes, sadly it is another spirit working in camouflage to hoodwink people that they get a free ride to heaven upon joining the church.

More from the message on this important topic–

SAVE THE CHURCH OR THE WORLD?

Question No. 67:

  If, at this late hour, we give our whole effort for the salvation of the church, how will the rest of the world ever be reached?

Answer:

  The mission to save the world cannot be more important than the mission to save the church Enlarging the church membership under the now prevailing lukewarm Laodicean conditions could no more advance the Kingdom of Chris than could have been done under the condition in the Jewish church in the days of His first advent. Understanding the true situation in the church, John the Baptist and Christ Himself and even the apostles at first, engaged them selves to work, not for the world in general, but only in the interest of their brethren in the church.

  As the same departure from Christ exists within the church now as it did then (Testimonies, Vol. 5, p. 217), it will take much greater effort to rescue the people from the Laodicean “sad deception” (Testimonies. Vol. 3, p. 253), than if they were in heathenism For in Laodicea they are made to believe that they have all the truth there is to be had, that they are rich, increased with goods, and in need of nothing,—their salvation forever secured as long as they hold membership in the church Hence there is greater risk of their losing their souls in the church while she is “lukewarm” an. about to be spued out, than if they remain in the world until the church awakes from her slumber, and anoints herself with the eyesalve (Truth)—sees right, does right, and leads an. feeds the flock aright.

  Let every honest member ask the question, If the church herself is not saved (Testimonies Vol. 3, p. 253), not following Christ her Leader (Testimonies, Vol. 5, p. 217) and “has become an harlot” (Testimonies, Vol. 8, p. 250), how can she save others? The greatest need therefore is first to save those in the church, then those in the world. The “special work of purification, of putting away of sin, among God’s people” (The Great Controversy, p. 425), “the closing work for the church, in the sealing time of the one hundred and forty-four thousand (Testimonies, Vol. 3, p. 266), must come first then is to follow the sealing of those in the world.

  The men and means already devoted to missionary work for the world are so plenteous as entirely to overshadow the meager facilities available for carrying the message to the Laodiceans, although the church is in even greater need than is the world.

  However, carrying the message to the church does not affect the mission work for the world for while the Davidians labor in the interest of the church, the Denomination carries the old message to the world. But should the Davidians also devote their time and money to looking after the interests of the heathen then both the church and the world would be plunged into hell. Consequently, to save the world, we must first seek to save the church from the ruin that is imminent, as did John the Baptist, Christ, and the apostles, in their day.

  After the church awakes and ceases dreaming that she is “rich and increased with goods,” finds out that she is in need of everything rather than of “nothing,” puts on her strength by turning to Christ her Leader, clothes herself in the garments of His righteousness, and lets the unclean pass no more through her (Isa. 52:1), then shall her righteousness go forth as brightness and her salvation as a lamp that burneth. And the Gentiles shall see her righteousness, and all kings her glory (Isa. 62:1, 2).

Then will she really be able to save. Then her “gates shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day nor night; that men may bring unto” her “the forces of the Gentiles, and that their kings may be brought. For the nation and kingdom that will not serve” her “shall perish; yea, those nations shall be utterly wasted.” Isa. 60:11, 12.

  Let all Present-truth believers, therefore, pursue this course to its happy climax: “Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion: for, lo, I come, and I will dwell in the midst of thee, saith the Lord. And many nations shall be joined to the Lord in that day, and shall be My people: and I will dwell in the midst of thee, and thou shalt know that the Lord of hosts hath sent me unto thee.” Zech. 2:10, 11.

  Still further, as it is not we, but Christ Who “is taking the reins in His own hands” (Testimonies to Ministers, p. 300), it is not our duty to tell Him which work should be done, and which should be left undone, but let every follower of His realize that He will “work in a manner very much out of the common order of things, and in a way that will be contrary to any human planning.”-Testimonies to Ministers, p. 300.

  Be not like the class who “question and criticize everything that arises in the unfolding of truth” (Testimonies, Vol. 5, p. 690), but be like those who “let Heaven guide.”—Testimonies to Ministers, p. 475.

  The command to us is: “Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their transgression, and the house a Jacob their sins.” Isa. 58:1.

  “Go through, go through the gates; prepare ye the way of the people; cast up, cast up the highway; gather out the stones; lift up a standard for the people. Behold, the Lord hath proclaimed unto the end of the world, Say ye to the daughter of Zion, Behold, thy salvation cometh; behold, His reward is with Him; and His work be fore Him.” Isa. 62:10, 11. (Answerer, vol. 3, Q-67)

Do not misunderstand we as Christ’s servants should want any and all people saved. There is even today  a few who like the Syrophoenician woman (Mark 7:25-29) come into the faith by a burning desire of love of Christ, His honor, His Commandments and His Word. These the Lord has called into His church.But unfortunately our leaders have herded them like cattle into the church without even knowing what the Word says about the final result!

However the Lord has set a timetable to win the world and that is to first save the church from impending doom, then to go  out and win the “great multitude” (Rev. 7:9). Let’s get on board HIS timetable and do His work as said by His prophets.

 

 

 

Back in May of 2010 we did a post called, “The Church of the Routine.” In it we pointed out how , unfortunately, our church service is so lacking in the Spirit of God that it truly is a–  show. There is a old saying that says–“All show and no go.” Or another saying made famous by the adorable grandmother Clara Peller, “where’s the beef?”

The Lord has impressed upon me to revisit this area again with more information. Let us look at our Church service yesterday, today, and tomorrow.

The above picture is not meant  to be funny, yet sadly that is what our church service looks like (or at least feels like) more often than not today. But how did we get to where we’re at? First lets go back to the beginning, the times of our church founders the Apostles.

“What is the outcome then, brethren? When you assemble, each one has a psalm, has a teaching, has a revelation, has a tongue, has an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification. If anyone speaks in a tongue, it should be by two or at the most three, and each in turn, and let one interpret; but if there is no interpreter, let him keep silent in the church; and let him speak to himself and to God. And let two or three prophets speak, and let the others pass judgment. But if a revelation is made to another who is seated, let the first keep silent. For you can all prophesy one by one, so that all may learn and all may be exhorted; and the spirits of prophets are subject to prophets;  for God is not a God of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints.” (1 Cor.14:26-33)

We can gleam many things from the above. There were:

1.Scripture readers

2. Teachers

3. Revelators (Those who shared what they received in dreams or visions)

4. Tongue speakers

5. Interpreters

We also see that Inspiration deems order as very important yet when the Spirit moves, they were to respect It. “But if a revelation is made to another who is seated, let the first keep silent.”

What this means is that when the speaker was up front speaking, the Spirit sometimes moved upon someone seated in the place of worship and the first speaker was to remain silent and listen to the revelation that came to that one seated. This shows that the Spirit moved among the house of God. This one important area kept the service from being routine and added the Spiritual excitement and unpredictability.

We also notice that many in the assembly prophesied (relating the Biblical prophecies) and the intention was to –learn. There was clear evidence of the Spirit moving in His house by the fact that the gift of tongues was active as well.

Let us look at our typical SDA service today. We stick to a pre-made schedule usually. The first service is usually the Sabbath school lesson. But these are cookie cutter Scriptural readings which more often than not contain no present truth but old truths. The lesson goes into stories and all sorts of lessons, yet fails to deliver the one message the Lord wants given–His Elijah message!

So right off the bat in our first service we are taken down a road that goes into a direction that we aren’t being guided to by the Spirit   –old truths without any present truth.

“In every age there is a new development of truth, a message of God to the people of that generation. The old truths are all 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. When Christ desired to open to His disciples the truth of His resurrection, He began “at Moses and all the prophets” and “expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning Himself.” Luke 24:27. But it is the light which shines in the fresh unfolding of truth that glorifies the old. He who rejects or neglects the new does not really possess the old. For him it loses its vital power and becomes but a lifeless form.” (Christ Object Lessons, p.127-128)

Because we as SDA, for the most part, ignore or reject the new truth, we have old truth that becomes a “lifeless form”.

Then we sometimes see commotion from kids running up and down the isles or people talking loudly in His sanctuary.  Our prophetess said the following about our service —

“From the sacredness which was attached to the earthly sanctuary, Christians may learn how they should regard the place where the Lord meets with His people. There has been a great change, not for the better, but for the worse, in the habits and customs of the people in reference to religious worship. The precious, the sacred, things which connect us with God are fast losing their hold upon our minds and hearts, and are being brought down to the level of common things. The reverence which the people had anciently for the sanctuary where they met with God in sacred service has largely passed away.”(Testimonies vol.5, p.491)

“Because of the irreverence in attitude, dress, and deportment, and lack of a worshipful frame of mind, God has often turned His face away from those assembled for His worship…When a church has been raised up and left uninstructed on these points, the minister has neglected his duty and will have to give an account to God for the impressions he allowed to prevail.

Unless correct ideas of true worship and true reverence are impressed upon the people, there will be a growing tendency to place the sacred and eternal on a level with common things, and those professing the truth will be an offense to God and a disgrace to religion. They can never, with their uncultivated ideas, appreciate a pure and holy heaven, and be prepared to join with the worshipers in the heavenly courts above, where all is purity and perfection, where every being has perfect reverence for God and His holiness.” (Testimonies, vol. 5, p.499-500)

A while back in our own church we observed the sanctuary turned into a meeting room for church business (the election of officers). My wife is newly Adventist and was perplexed. How can it be called “worship” when business is being conducted where God sits in His house? There is no doubt that the reasoning is because the church is all together in one place and because of the convenience, we degrade His sanctuary for our sake, our needs.

“These things you did, and I kept silent, because you assumed that I was like you. But now I am going to rebuke you, and I will set forth my case before your very own eyes.”(Psalms 50:21)

Even the church which we have often spoken against, the Catholic Church, prophetically teaching  it as part of the Beast in Rev. 13, has a silent reverence within their sanctuary. Being raised Catholic, I vividly remember the silence and respect I felt in their churches. This reverence continues to this day in many of their churches! What does that say about us, with greater light?

The Lord’s word warns us–

“Bring your worthless offerings no longer, Incense is an abomination to Me. New moon and Sabbath, the calling of assemblies– I cannot endure iniquity and the solemn assembly.” (Isaiah 1:13)

“I hate all your show and pretense–the hypocrisy of your religious festivals and solemn assemblies. I will not accept your burnt offerings and grain offerings. I won’t even notice all your choice peace offerings.Away with your noisy hymns of praise! I will not listen to the music of your harps. But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.”(Amos 5:21-24)

We have boxed ourselves into a routine corner. Our service today is one of man’s ideas and works, not the Spirit’s. But perhaps the greatest folly occurring in His house week after week is the preaching of peace and safety. SOP explains–

“Many regard the threatenings of the Bible as designed merely to frighten men into obedience, and not to be literally fulfilled. Thus the sinner can live in selfish pleasure, disregarding the requirements of God, and yet expect to be finally received into His favor. Such a doctrine, presuming upon God’s mercy, but ignoring His justice, pleases the carnal heart and emboldens the wicked in their iniquity.” (GC, p.537)

“A carnal security and ease in Zion prevail. Peace, peace, is sounded in her borders, when God has not spoken peace. They forfeited the terms of peace; there is reason for an alarm to be sounded in all “my holy mountain.” The sinners in Zion should be afraid…” (Review and Herald, 12-23-1890)

Only if we would change it back to the days of the early Church, then we could experience a holiness and God’s Spirit inside His sanctuary. A  Spiritual refreshing would occur in His house! Do not despair, this WILL HAPPEN in the  very near future, now let us look at the church tomorrow.

Isa. 2:2 — “And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.”

   Not a man, not a people or a nation, but the Lord Himself so declares.  The prophet was shown things concerning the Lord’s house (church), “in the last days,” — not in Isaiah’s days.  The statement “last days,” in itself leads us to the “time of the end.”  As we were shown last Sabbath that the time of the end began in the 18th century, obviously then, the time is here for this marvel of the ages to take place.

Isa. 2:3 — “And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and He will teach us of His ways, and we will walk in His paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the Word of the Lord from Jerusalem.”

   Since no such gathering as here predicted has as yet taken place, the subject becomes exceedingly obvious that it is still future.

But if you truly desire to be in His kingdom , do not despair there will be a pure church and great gladness and joy abounding. (1 TG, no. 5, p.3)

God’s church shall be exalted in the “last days” and based from Jerusalem. This shows that His church shall no longer be fused with hypocrites who talk the talk but don’t walk the walk. All such shall no longer be in the church.

“..the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.” (Psalms 1:5)

This end time church will be so great and powerful — a testimony to the Lord , let us read His words as to the prophetic plans–

“For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and His glory shall be seen upon thee.  And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising.  Lift up thine eyes round about, and see: all they gather themselves together, they come to thee: thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side. 

Then thou shalt see, and flow together, and thine heart shall fear, and be enlarged; because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee.  The multitude of camels shall cover thee, the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; all they from Sheba shall come: they shall bring gold and incense; and they shall shew forth the praises of the Lord. 

All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered together unto thee, the rams of Nebaioth shall minister unto thee: they shall come up with acceptance on Mine altar, and I will glorify the house of My glory.   Who are these that fly as a cloud, and as the doves to their windows?  Surely the isles shall wait for Me, and the ships of Tarshish first, to bring thy sons from far, their silver and their gold with them, unto the name of the Lord thy God, and to the Holy One of Israel, because He hath glorified thee. 

And the sons of strangers shall build up thy walls, and their kings shall minister unto thee: for in My wrath I smote thee, but in My favour have I had mercy on thee. Therefore thy gates shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day nor night; that men may bring unto thee the forces of the Gentiles, and that their kings may be brought.” Isa. 60:2-11.

The church’s purity is so widespread that the “forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee.” The Loud Cry will do its work, the great multitude (Rev. 7:9) will come in.

This is what the LORD Almighty says: “In those days ten people from all languages and nations will take firm hold of one Jew by the hem of his robe and say, ‘Let us go with you, because we have heard that God is with you.”(Zech.8:23)

So we can indeed have great hope. Our true desire, to worship the Lord as we should, giving Him honor and reverence as we should–will become reality! No more of the weekly show called “church services”be performed by a cookie cutter routine. Instead we will behold His glory and power in His house and exalting Him to His rightful place–King of the Universe, amen!