Archive for the ‘Parable studies’ Category

The Parable of Mattew 20:1-7 (Part 1 of 2)

June 3, 2023

“For the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which went out early in the morning to hire labourers into His vineyard. And when He had agreed with the labourers for a penny a day, He sent them into His vineyard. And He went out about the third hour and saw others standing idle in the marketplace, and said undo them; Go ye also into the vineyard, and whatsoever is right I will give you. And they went their way. Again He went out about the sixth and ninth hour, and did likewise. And about the eleventh hour He went out, and found others standing idle, and saith unto them, Why stand ye here all the day idle? They say unto Him, Because no man hath hired us. He saith unto them, Go ye also into the vineyard; and whatsoever is right, that shall ye receive.” Matt. 20:1 -7.

How can we know for a certainty in which hour we find ourselves, and if our own call to service has come? We can know only by establishing the time in which the last parabolic hour expires. And to do this we must first establish the time of the first call for servants, then in turn the time of each successive call, culminating with the last. First, though, pursuant to this end, we must bring into focus the parable’s significant points:

(1) The “Householder,” as every Bible student knows, is the Lord Himself. (2) The Laborers are His servants. (3) The penny is their reward. (4) His vineyard is the place where they are to labor. (5) The day is parabolical — representing a period of time which is illuminated by some great light. (6) The period of labor is both preceded

The White-House Recruiter, page 13

and succeeded by a night — else there could be no “early” and no “late” part of the day. (7) The Householder hires laborers at five different times. (8) There are four three-hour periods. (9) In each of the first three periods, only one group is hired. (10) In the fourth and last period of three hours, two groups are hired. (11) The agreement for a penny a day is made only with the first group. (12) The other groups are to receive “whatsoever is right.” (13) At the day’s end all are given the same pay — a penny, even through the last worked only an hour. (14) The first were paid last; the last, first.

Now to find out in which hour we are told, “Go ye also,” we must here at the outset of this go-to-work study, determine where in time the parable begins and where it ends. To gain this vital knowledge is simply to reckon with the sequentially amplifying facts that the parabolical night which preceded the parabolical day must necessarily be the period before the spiritual “Light of the world,” the Bible, came up — before the light of the Scriptures, the written Word of God, began to shine forth into the hearts of men. For back there, it must be remembered, the will of God was transmitted, not by the Bible, but orally from father to son, just as the light of the sun at night is transmitted to the earth by the moon, rather than directly by the sun itself. For this reason it has come to be regarded as the time of oral tradition.

But the day of labor obviously represents the period in which “the Light of the world,” the Bible Itself, lightens man’s path. Thus it is that in His parable, the Master, the Lord of the vineyard, regards the Old and New Testament dispensations as the only day period of all probationary time, in which He goes to the market-place at

The White- House Recruiter 14

five consecutive times to hire servants to work in His vineyard.

Finally, the night following the day can only represent the period after the gospel work is finished, after probation for man’s salvation is closed. Then, as the “Light of the world” (the Word of God) sinks beyond the horizon of the day, darkness covers “the earth, and gross darkness the people.” Isa. 60:2. It is the time which finds the destiny of every being forever fixed. Then follows the Lord’s irrevocable finality:

“He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still.” Rev. 22:1 1.

It is the time when men “shall run to and fro to seek the Word of the Lord, and shall not find It” (Amos 8:12); the time when the unmindful of the Master’s call, and the impenitent of sin realize and cry out in frenzied and agonized despair: “The harvest is past, and the summer is ended, and we are not saved”! Jer. 8:20.

The truth is now become clear that the parable divides the time of salvation into two equal parts of twelve symbolical hours each — the period before the Bible (the night), and the period during the Bible (the day). Lending additional force to the fact that the parable thus divides time, Jesus declares:

“Are there not twelve hours in the day? If any man walk in the day, he stumbleth not, because he seeth the Light of this world.” John 11:9.

The White-House Recruiter, page 15

Proceeding now, we come to another point of special significance: the first four groups were hired at consecutive intervals three parabolical hours apart; whereas the fifth, the last group, the one hired at the eleventh hour, came only two, instead of three, hours later than the fourth group, and thus only one parabolical hour before the day’s end — shortly before probation closes.

This two-hour period, from the ninth hour to the eleventh hour, is a singularity which comes as a climactic exception to the master pattern of sequential and regular three-hour intervals between calls. It obviously reveals that the last call comes unexpectedly and surprisingly within the period of the ninth-hour group. Hence there are only two parabolical hours for the one group, and only one parabolical hour for the other group.

To determine the identity of the laborers participating in each of the five different calls, we necessarily begin our quest with THE SERVANTS OF THE FIRST CALL:

We have already seen that it is the Bible, the spiritual “Light of the world,” that makes the parabolical day. We all know, moreover, that the Bible arrived with the Exodus movement also the since the arrival, the Lord never bargained, as it were with another people, and that they were the only ones to whom He ever committed the ceremonial covenants and all their rewards and promises. Inescapably, therefore, the first group of the parable, those who went to labor “early in the morning,” at the rising of the spiritual light, the Bible, and with whom the bargain was made to receive a penny a day, were ancient Israel as they were going out of Egypt, the time of which

The White-House Recruiter, page 16

was early in the parabolical day. In concord the Spirit of Prophecy declares:

“The Jews had been first called into the Lord’s vineyard….” -Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 400.

At that early hour, as God began to indite the Scriptures (as the Light that lightens the hearts of men began to rise), “He…remembered His covenant forever, the word which He commanded to a thousand generations. Which covenant He made with Abraham, and His oath unto Isaac, and confirmed the same unto Jacob for a law, and to Israel for an everlasting covenant.” Ps. 105:8-10.

Having thus by the first call for servants solidly established the time in which the parabolical go-to-work calls started, we are now to ascertain the call-time and work-period of THE SERVANTS OF THE SECOND CALL:

The second group, those sent at the third parabolical hour, must necessarily be the ones who were called to the work next. And they were, of course, the early Christians. Significantly enough, too, the Lord was crucified at the third hour of the day (Mark 15:25), and likewise Pentecost came at the third hour of the day (Acts 2:15).

Another point of significance of which we should take note is the fact that the messages borne by these first two groups, by ancient Israel and by the early Christians, were not of a reformatory nature; they were not old, forgotten truths in process of revival and restoration; rather each was a new revelation, “meat in due season” — present Truth especially adapted fully to meet the needs of the people in their respective times. The former group

The White-House Recruiter, page 17

were inspired and commissioned to teach and practice the truths of salvation as embodied in the ceremonial system, the latter group were inspired and commissioned to teach and practice the same immutable truths in their advanced light-advanced from typical to antitypical representation, from the ministration in the earthly tabernacle to the ministration in the heavenly one; that is, from the sacrifice of a lamb of the flock to the sacrifice of Christ Himself, the Lamb of God. Thus the latter group taught the old truths in a new and original light, in the light of the gospel — that Christ was crucified for the remission of sin, resurrected in triumph over sin and death, and ascended to make atonement and reconciliation for the penitent sinner, not in an earthly, but in an heavenly, tabernacle.

Since the messages of the first two groups (the one carried by the Exodus Movement, and the other carried by the Christians) were each in their respective times fresh from glory, that fact logically establishes itself as Divine precedent and pattern for all the messages of the parable. Accordingly, each of the three remaining groups must likewise be entrusted with a message of new and distinctive revelation, of “meat in due season” — truth adapted especially and fully to meet the needs of God’s people at the time then present. Therefore we need only to trace down through the annals of church history the unfolding of the scroll, till we come upon a newly and originally revealed and proclaimed truth subsequent to the message of the first advent of Christ It must point out THE SERVANTS OF THE THIRD CALL:

The Protestant Reformation, being purely an endeavor to restore old, down-trodden truths, and not to reveal new, advanced ones, had no new message of its own – nothing

The White-House Recruiter, page 18

that had not already been taught in times past. It therefore follows that the third group and message must be sought during the years following the Reformation.

The only revelation of new prophetic truth, subsequent to the Reformation, is the announcement of the year in which was to begin the work of cleansing the sanctuary, primarily in behalf of the dead (based on Daniel 8:14, but not then fully understood). As its announcement was made by the First-day Adventists, it necessarily follows that they were the third group of servants with a new and distinctive message. And as is well known, they started proclaiming it in the year 1833, announcing that the cleansing of the sanctuary was to commence in the year 1844. Thus in 1833 the clock of parabolic time struck the hour of six.

The statement, “Again He went out about the sixth and ninth hour, and did likewise,” in speaking of the two calls, not singly, as in the cases of the two preceding calls, but conjointly, shows that the “sixth hour” message and servants were to be closely related to and associated with the message and with THE SERVANTS OF THE FOURTH CALL:

So it was that the sixth-hour group and message, that of the First-day Adventists, and the ninth-hour group and message, that of the Seventh-day Adventists, fused into one because the message of the former was in itself Divinely designed to bring the message of the latter to light. Moreover, as soon as the terminus of the prophetic “2300 days” (Daniel 8:14) was reached in October, 1844, just then Daniel 8:14; Daniel 7:9, 10; Daniel 12:10-12, along with Revelation 14:6, 7 (the First Angel’s Message

The White-House Recruiter, page 19

in its primary phase), were first proclaimed by the Seventh-day Adventists’ “saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come: and worship Him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.” Rev. 14:7.

Thus the Seventh-day Adventists in 1844 began to proclaim what they termed “the investigative judgment of the dead,” which in Scriptural terms is the casting out of those who have not the wedding garment on (Matt. 22:11 – 13), the shutting out of the five foolish virgins (Matt. 25:10), the dividing of the sheep and goats (Matt. 25:32, 33), the separating of the bad “fish” from the good “fish” (Matt. 13:48) — each of these among the dead. Synonymously, they rightly understood it to be “the antitypical day of atonement” — the day in which are removed from the Books in Heaven the names of those who in closing their life’s career failed to attain eligibility to come up in the first resurrection, in the resurrection of the holy ones (Rev. 20:5, 6), All these aspects are comprehended in the words: “Then shall the Sanctuary be cleansed.” Dan. 8:14.

Posted in Elijah Interpretations, Parable studies | Leave a Comment »

“THE CHURCH ENTERING INTO AND IN THE HARVEST PERIOD”

September 9, 2017

Image result for picture of a wheat harvest

Brother Houteff gave this sermon on Dec. 28th , 1946  on the Church Harvest. May you be blessed.

Matt. 25:1-5 — “Then shall the Kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom.  And five of them were wise, and five were foolish.  They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.  While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept.”

Again it plainly appears that the church membership is divided into two classes, the wise and the foolish.  The wise take no chances; they continually search for oil (Truth) and they fill their vessels with It at first opportunity.  The foolish, though, see no need for any more than what is in their lamps; they are satisfied with what they already have.

The oil, a substance which lightens ahead one’s path, obviously is figurative of prophetic Truth, Truth that lightens the heart by unveiling the future.  Concretely speaking, the lamp filled with oil denotes the individual’s reservoir of Truth in action, Truth that meets his needs only for the time then present.  The extra oil in the vessels, therefore, represents additional Truth, Truth that takes up where the old Truth leaves off.  In other words, the oil in the lamps and the oil in the vessels represent two revealed truths, at two different times, one following the other.  For example, while the Judgment for the Dead is Truth in action, the Judgment for the Living is Truth to go into action as soon as the Judgment for the Dead is over.

Obviously, oil that has been consumed, as is the oil in the virgins’ lamps, represents past Truth, Truth that has accomplished Its purpose; but the oil in the vessels represents Truth ready to be activated and made to shine immediately after the oil in the lamps is consumed.  Since the ten virgins represent the church membership during the Judgment for the Dead, the oil in the lamps manifestly represents the truth of the Judgment for the Dead.  The extra oil, that is in the “vessels” must, therefore, represent the truth of the Judgment for the Living, the additional Truth (Early Writings, pg. 277).  Plainly then, the lamps gone empty represent the Judgment for the Dead passing away, and the oil in the vessels represents the Truth of the Judgment for the Living going into action.

Since all ten had oil in the lamps, but only half of them had the oil in the vessels, the symbolism clearly discloses that, as always, the whole church membership did not accept the message of the Judgment for the Living.  The foolish virgins were satisfied with the Truth they had acquired while joining the church that bore the message of the Judgment for the Dead, but failed to acquaint themselves with the additional message — the message of the Judgment for the Living.  Finally, after the necessity for It became imperative, they began to search for It but it did them no good, they were too late getting It.

These were left out with the tares only because they let the Devil sow in their hearts seeds of foolishness, seeds of contentment (lukewarmness) with the initial truths by which they joined the church; thus they mistakenly felt no need of additional light from the Lord.  But when prophecy began to fulfill itself beyond their scope of Divinely revealed knowledge, and as they saw the events of the gospel shaping themselves contrary to their expectations, they became alarmed and confused, saw themselves in darkness.

The lesson is unmistakable: Those who for ever feel “rich, and increased with goods, and in need of nothing more, will not get to the “door” on time.

Besides the tares among the wheat, there are idlers, inactive folk who are to be cast out and destroyed with the tares.  Let us read–

Matt. 25:14-30 — “For the Kingdom of heaven is as a man travelling into a far country, Who called His own servants, and delivered unto them His goods.  And unto one He gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several ability; and straightway took His journey.

“Then he that had received the five talents went and traded with the same, and made them other five talents.  And likewise he that had received two, he also gained other two.  But he that had received one went and digged in the earth, and hid his Lord’s money.

“After a long time the Lord of those servants cometh, and reckoneth with them.  And so he that had received five talents came and brought other five talents, saying, Lord, Thou deliveredst unto me five talents: behold, I have gained beside them five talents more.  His Lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy Lord.

“He also that had received two talents came and said, Lord, Thou deliveredst unto me two talents: behold, I have gained two other talents beside them.  His Lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy Lord.

“Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew Thee that Thou art an hard man, reaping where Thou hast not sown, and gathering where Thou hast not strawed: and I was afraid, and went and hid Thy talent in the earth: lo, there Thou hast that is Thine.  His Lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed: thou oughtest therefore to have put My money to the exchangers, and then at My coming I should have received Mine own with usury.  Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents.  For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath.  And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

From this parable is seen that when a Christian falls asleep, Satan comes along and sows seeds of idleness in his heart so as to cause him to be cast out with the tares.  At the commencement of the harvest, therefore, this class of tares is the first to appear as such.  It is high time to learn that religion is not an opiate.

There is still another class of church members who in a different way fall victims with the tares.  This we shall see from–

Matt. 25:31-46 — “When the Son of man shall come in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then shall He sit upon the throne of His glory: and before Him shall be gathered all nations: and He shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats: and He shall set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left.

“Then shall the King say unto them on His right hand, Come, ye blessed of My Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: for I was an hungered, and ye gave Me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave Me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took Me in: naked, and ye clothed Me: I was sick, and ye visited Me: I was in prison, and ye came unto Me.

“Then shall the righteous answer Him, saying, Lord, when saw we Thee an hungered, and fed Thee?  or thirsty, and gave Thee drink?  When saw we Thee a stranger, and took Thee in?  or naked, and clothed Thee?  or when saw we Thee sick, or in prison, and came unto Thee?

“And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these My brethren, ye have done it unto Me.  Then shall He say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from Me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels: for I was an hungered, and ye gave Me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave Me no drink: I was a stranger, and ye took Me not in: naked, and ye clothed Me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited Me not.

“Then shall they also answer Him, saying, Lord, when saw we Thee an hungered, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto Thee?  Then shall He answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to Me.  And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.”

The most outstanding sin of the goat class of professed believers is that they are all for self and none for others. The sheep class are the opposite in character.  Since those who do charity work are not to make a display of it — not to let the left hand know what the right hand is doing (Matt. 6:3) — and since the system of such benevolent work is clearly pointed out in the Hebrew economy, we would do well to look there for it: “To promote the assembling of the people for religious service, as well as to provide for the poor, a second tithe of all the increase was required. 

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.’  Thus 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 feasts 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.” —  “Patriarchs And Prophets,” p. 530.  For this work to be carried out systematically by the Lord’s treasury through gifts and free will offerings, sometimes called second tithe, we cannot but do likewise if we are to find favor with God.  Now back to–

Matt. 13:44 — “Again, the Kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field.”

Matt. 13:45, 46 — “Again, the Kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it.”

These parables distinctly point out that those who do not care to invest everything they possess, if need be, to obtain the Kingdom, are to be cast out with the tares.

Matt. 13:47, 48 — “Again, the Kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind: which, when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away.”

A net cast into the sea naturally catches good and bad, small and large fish.  But fish, like all other living creatures, move in families, each species with its kind, and so each time the net is cast, it catches families of fish.  So it is that the gospel net in many instances naturally brings in families and relatives all in one catch; that is, as parents accept the gospel of Christ, along with them are often brought the children, and even relatives and friends.

The bad fish represent those who, with no real knowledge, conviction and conversion of their own but through emotion and the influence of others join the church.  So it is that those who never studiously, whole-heartedly and zealously take hold of the principles of Christ are cast out, there to perish with the tares.  All who are too lazy to study, and who give the Devil a chance to sow devilish seed in their hearts, making them believe that the preacher or the minister will take them through the Pearly Gates, having no experience of their own, are cheated of eternal life; they instead get eternal death.

True enough, the Spirit of God causes people to become one thing, and the spirit of Satan causes them to become another thing, but the difference is discernible only as the harvest time approaches — when the Truth of the harvest is revealed.

From these simple parables comes the fact that Satan raises tares in the church and ever tries his level best to keep them in it.  Why? — Let us find the answer in Revelation 12 —

Rev. 12:13 — “And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child.”

When the Devil saw that he was no longer permitted entrance into Heaven, he went to persecute the church after she brought forth “the man child,” Christ.  The dragon, therefore, is to persecute the church in her Christian period.

Rev. 12:14 — “And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.”

Because of the persecution, the church was given the means by which to take her flight from the promised land (the vineyard) into the land of the Gentiles (the wilderness).

Rev. 12:15 — “And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood.”

At the beginning, the serpent persecuted the church, but as he saw that the church still grew and prospered, he reversed his tactics, and began instead to persecute the Pagans who would not join the church, and raised ministers by whom to bring in a flood of unconverted by which to paganize the church, so that she could not Christianize them.

Rev. 12:16 — “And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth.”

Thus is the church purified and thus are the tares destroyed.  As tares they are burned; as unprofitable workers they are cast into outer darkness there to weep and gnash their teeth; as unfit guests for the wedding they are bound hand and foot and cast out into outer darkness; as foolish virgins they are refused entrance; as goats they are sent into everlasting punishment; as dragon’s flood, they are swallowed by the earth.  But the actual thing that happens to them all in common, is fully described in Ezekiel’s prophecy, chapter 9.  Let us turn to it–

Ezek. 9:1-11 — “He cried also in mine ears with a loud voice, saying, Cause them that have charge over the city to draw near, even every man with his destroying weapon in his hand.  And, behold, six men came from the way of the higher gate, which lieth toward the north, and every man a slaughter weapon in his hand; and one man among them was clothed with linen, with a writer’s inkhorn by his side: and they went in, and stood beside the brasen altar.

“And the glory of the God of Israel was gone up from the cherub, whereupon He was, to the threshold of the house. And He called to the man clothed with linen, which had the writer’s inkhorn by his side; and the Lord said unto him, Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and set a mark upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that be done in the midst thereof.

“And to the others He said in mine hearing, Go ye after him through the city, and smite: let not your eye spare, neither have ye pity: 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.  And He said unto them, Defile the house, and fill the courts with the slain: go ye forth.  And they went forth, and slew in the city.

“And it came to pass, while they were slaying them, and I was left, that I fell upon my face, and cried, and said, Ah Lord God!  wilt Thou destroy all the residue of Israel in Thy pouring out of Thy fury upon Jerusalem?

“Then said He unto me, The iniquity of the house of Israel and Judah is exceeding great, and the land is full of blood, and the city full of perverseness: for they say, The Lord hath forsaken the earth, and the Lord seeth not.  And as for Me also, Mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity, but I will recompense their way upon their head.  And, behold, the man clothed with linen, which had the inkhorn by his side, reported the matter, saying, I have done as Thou hast commanded me.”

The promise to purify Jerusalem, Judah and Israel stands as sure as any promise in the Word.  The terms, Jerusalem, Judah, Israel you know, cannot be applied to anything but to the church, the place where everyone should sigh and cry against abominations.  Those who do not sigh and cry are to be left without the mark, and then the angels who have charge of the church smite everyone of them — “old and young, both maids and little children, and women.”  Only those who have the mark shall be left.  They are the remnant.  The angels are thus to take care of both the wheat and the tares.

Yes, there is to be a clean riddance of every sort of tare just as anciently there was a clean riddance of all the first-born in the households that failed to paint the doorpost with the sacrificial blood on the evening of the Passover in the land of Egypt.  So shall it be at the commencement of the harvest, in the purification of the church: The angels shall smite everyone who fosters the abominations “in the midst thereof.”

When is this thorough purging to take place?  For the answer let us turn to Zephaniah, chapter 1.

Zeph. 1:2, 3 — “I will utterly consume all things from off the land, saith the Lord.  I will consume man and beast; I will consume the fowls of the heaven, and the fishes of the sea, and the stumbling blocks with the wicked; and I will cut off man from off the land, saith the Lord.”

Here is a promise that the Lord is to thoroughly cleanse the land, and I am sure none of you will say that these prophecies have ever been fulfilled.

Zeph. 1:4, 5 — “I will also stretch out Mine hand upon Judah, and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and I will cut off the remnant of Baal from this place, and the name of the Chemarims with the priests; and them that worship the host of heaven upon the housetops; and them that worship and that swear by the Lord, and that swear by Malcham.”

Not only the land but the people that are to make up the house of Judah, are to be cleansed: There is to be a clean land and a clean people as well.

Zeph. 1:6 — “And them that are turned back from the Lord; and those that have not sought the Lord, nor enquired for Him.”

The backslider and the indifferent, those who are unstable and those who see no need of God, are to perish along with the tares.

Zeph. 1:7 — “Hold thy peace at the presence of the Lord God: for the day of the Lord is at hand: for the Lord hath prepared a sacrifice, He hath bid His guests.”

This is the long-expected great and dreadful day of the Lord.

Zeph. 1:8 — “And it shall come to pass in the day of the Lord’s sacrifice, that I will punish the princes, and the king’s children, and all such as are clothed with strange apparel.”

Zeph. 1:9-11 — “In the same day also will I punish all those that leap on the threshold, which fill their masters’ houses with violence and deceit.  And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Lord, that there shall be the noise of a cry from the fish gate, and an howling from the second, and a great crashing from the hills.  Howl, ye inhabitants of Maktesh, for all the merchant people are cut down; all they that bear silver are cut off.”

The great crashing shall be from both the fish gates and from the hills — from land and from sea.  Both, the servants that bring violence and deceit upon their master’s houses, and the wicked masters themselves, shall be punished.

Zeph. 1:12-18 — “And it shall come to pass at that time, that I will search Jerusalem with candles, and punish the men that are settled on their lees: that say in their heart, The Lord will not do good, neither will He do evil.  Therefore their goods shall become a booty, and their houses a desolation: they shall also build houses, but not inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, but not drink the wine thereof.  The great day of the Lord is near, it is near, and hasteth greatly, even the voice of the day of the Lord: the mighty man shall cry there bitterly. 

That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness, a day of the trumpet and alarm against the fenced cities, and against the high towers.  And I will bring distress upon men, that they shall walk like blind men, because they have sinned against the Lord: and their blood shall be poured out as dust, and their flesh as the dung.  Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the Lord’s wrath; but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of His jealousy: for He shall make even a speedy riddance of all them that dwell in the land.”

The time of the day of the Lord is pointed out by increased “wrath,” “trouble,” “distress,” “wasteness,” “desolation,” “darkness” and “gloominess,” — a time in which no one knows what to do to avert disaster, a time of so much fear even by the cities that are best fortified.  So far as I know there has never been the like.  The world’s condition of today is the only condition that meets the challenge of these prophecies.  Since this is true, then this is the day in which the Lord is to search Jerusalem with candles.  This is the day in which he is to cleanse His people from sin and sinners.  It is “the great and dreadful day of the Lord.”

Mal. 3:1-5 — “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: 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.  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.”

Should we not now consider ourselves the most fortunate people in the world for knowing these things beforehand?  Shall we not be glad and thankful for having been warned beforehand that we have come almost to the time of the harvest, and that we have been given the opportunity to make ready for it?  Shall we not be glad that we are not left in darkness, and that we are now plainly shown that these are the closing hours of the pre-harvest period, that the harvest will soon begin?

Rev. 18:1 — “And after these things I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great power; and the earth was lightened with his glory.”

The fulfillment of this scripture is what is called the Loud Cry of the Third Angel’s Message.  But note that the whole earth is lightened with his glory.  Let us now take notice of what happens after the Three Angels’ Messages permeate the earth, after the earth is thus lightened with the glory of the angel.

Rev. 18:2 — “And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird.”

Ah, after the earth is lightened, then it is that Babylon falls.  Plainly, then, Babylon has not actually fallen as yet.  In fact Babylon has not even come into existence yet, for she is yet to mount (rule) the beast (the world).  See Revelation 17 and Tract #12, “The World Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow.”

Rev. 18:4 — “And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, My people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.”

This voice from heaven, you see, comes to God’s people after the earth is lightened with the Loud Cry of the angel.  The burden of the Voice is that God’s people should come out of Babylon so that they be not partakers of her sins, and receive not of her plagues.  If on this account they must come out of Babylon, then it must be that the place into which they are called to come is free from sin and thus free from danger of the plagues. 

And where could that be but in the purified land and church of God, where there is no more sin and no more sinners to endanger the peace of God’s people?  Vain, indeed, it would be if the people were called from one place of sin and brought into another place of sin.  As clear as crystal it is that the purification of the church (“cleansing” — Dan. 8:14; Judgment of the Living — 1 Pet. 4:17) takes place before the Loud Cry of the Third Angel’s message begins in the world, before God’s people are called out of Babylon.

“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.” —  “The Review and Herald,” Nov. 19, 1908.

Most Christians know that there are two classes in the church — wheat and tares — but few, if any, seem to care.  We, as reformers though, especially since we have been given this great light on the subject, cannot afford to be indifferent.   We may now intelligently choose to be “wheat” or choose to be “tares.”  If after knowing this Truth, some choose to be “tares,” they, of course, will have gained nothing and need not be surprised when they land in hell.

At the time labor and capital are in a clash, then it is that Jerusalem (the church) shall be searched, as it were, with candles.  Consequently, the men who have settled in their houses, those who act as though the Lord has forsaken the earth shall have their punishment.

Not only do we behold and feel the day of the Lord approaching but even hear Its Voice.

(Timely Greetings, Vol. 1, No. 21. page 5- 21)

Posted in Parable studies, Present Truth | Leave a Comment »

The “Extra Oil” in our Vessels

December 24, 2016

five-virgins

One of the greatest and most spiritual lessons our Lord gave is the parable of the Ten Virgins in Matthew 25:1-13. We know that only those virgins who had the “extra oil” in their lamps made it to  eternal life. The Elijah message tells us this parable has a direct application to His end time SDA church. Let us read the parable,

“Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom. And five of them were wise, and five were foolish. They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept. And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him.

Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out. But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves. And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut. Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not. Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.”

We shall go over this lesson closely and see today’s application which we must heed if we are to get to the Kingdom. The message describes the parable as follows–

“Here is Truth that should not be lightly passed by any: The oil can but represent revealed prophetic Truth, Truth that lightens the path ahead. Oil in a vessel, before being put into a lamp, however, cannot lighten the path of anyone. Hence the oil in the vessels of the five virgins must represent an extra supply, extra Truth, that came to them during the period of slumber and sleep.

For when the call was made, “Behold the Bridegroom cometh,” all ten virgins found the oil in their lamps consumed. The vessels of the wise, however were full and so they could refill their lamps. In contrast, the foolish found that not only were their lamps out, but their vessels were empty, too. They then went to obtain the oil, but it did them no good, for they found the door closed to them.

They had been satisfied with what they had in their lamps, presuming that there was no need for more. Contrary to their assumption though during the period of slumber and sleep they suddenly saw their lamps go out. Finding themselves in spiritual darkness and confusion they were then anxious to get oil.

Here is seen that the message which the Church has during the period of slumber and sleep is not sufficient to carry her members through to the end. They need an extra message.

Now what is the difference between the oil in the lamp and the oil in the vessel? — Just this: The oil that is in the lamp, that already lightens the traveler’s path toward the Master’s mansion, must represent Truth in progress. But the oil in the vessel, must represent Truth that is to lighten one’s path after the former Truth has accomplished its work.

For example, after the harvest (Investigative Judgment) of the dead is past, other truths even more important must be introduced for the harvest of the living. I say more important truths because they are concerning the living themselves, concerning those whose own cases are to be weighed in the balances, those who personally are to be judged either as “wheat” or as “tares,” either as good “fish” or as bad “fish.”

Moreover, after the judgment of the dead which the Church has been preaching for a number of years, is over, if the Church does not then receive a new message, the message of the judgment of the living, she will have no message, no oil, for the time of the judgment of the living.

As the oil was available to all ten virgins, the parable makes clear that the message of the judgment of the living is brought to the Church, but that only half the virgins availed themselves of it. When the judgment of the living begins and the cry is made, “Behold, the Bridegroom cometh: go ye out to meet Him,” they will all arise, but only half of them will gain admittance. The other half will have sinned against the Holy Spirit, will have rejected His Truth! Consequently when they knock on the door, the Bridegroom’s answer will be, “I never knew you.” What foolishness! and what a disappointment that will be!

This, you see, is not man’s theory, Brother, Sister. It is God’s plain Truth. How sad the case, then, for those who are not only neglecting their own vessels, but are even preventing others from getting the extra oil now while it is dispensed to all. Indeed, there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth unless all the lukewarm Laodiceans now at their first opportunity change their minds about being rich and increased with goods and in need of nothing.” (Timely Greetings, Vol. 2, No. 11, page 12-14)

This present Truth oil is what makes the difference! Let us give a clear example that shows why we need this prophetic extra oil.

Nearly all SDA are saying “We are waiting for Jesus to come in the clouds.” In fact just yesterday we received an Amazing Facts Magazine, with the bold headlines, “Preparing for the Return of Jesus” meaning the coming in the clouds of glory.

This present Truth oil has specific knowledge for us, to light our path. And this extra oil tells us that Jesus’ next coming shall not be in the clouds. What? some may ask. Yes, the Scriptures foretell of this false idea of expecting the Lord’s coming when we should know , from the Elijah message , that the secretive unseen coming into His churches (Mal. 3:1-5)  is His next coming!

“Woe unto you that desire the day of the LORD! To what end is it for you? The day of the LORD is darkness, and not light. As if a man did flee from a lion, and a bear met him; or went into the house, and leaned his hand on the wall, and a serpent bit him. Shall not the day of the LORD be darkness, and not light? even very dark, and no brightness in it? (Amos 5:18-20)

Now wait a minute! The “day of the Lord” is the great coming in the clouds, with all light and glory yes? No. That is the next “visual” coming for the world’s redeemed (which includes the SDA who survive the judgment in God’s house, the resurrected, and those brought out of Babylon –great Multitude).

There must first come His judgment bound yet unseen Chariot as explained in Ezek. chapter 1, and then comes the beginning phase of judgment upon the living right in our churches as explained in Ezek. 9. Then in Ezek. 10 we see that the Loud Cry begins (coals of fire scattered over the city-outpouring of God’s Holy Spirit to the purified church).

All of this knowledge the wise virgins possess in their vessels right now. The foolish are not concerned with this “extra” supply of oil, they are covered to make the trip to the kingdom, they think. “What pre-millenial Kingdom?” they ask. But it will be too late then.

You see my brethren, God will soon go through our church and see those with their forehead illuminated with present truth. They have in their foreheads the knowledge (seal) of where they are going. We read,

“As the sealed of God we are Christ’s purchased possession, and no one shall pluck us out of His hands. The seal given in the forehead is God, New Jerusalem. “I will write upon him the name of My God, and the name of the city of My God” (Manuscript Releases, vol. 15, p.225)

As those who have studied the Elijah message well know, the kingdom does start in it’s pre-millennial form here on earth, established in Israel. This will be a glorious time for the righteous virgins, those who took the time to get the extra oil before their trip started (back to Israel). They knew keenly where they were going and the purpose (give the final Loud Cry).

seal-in-forehead

“Many peoples will come and say, “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the temple of the God of Jacob. He will teach us his ways, so that we may walk in his paths.” The law will go out from Zion, the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.” (Isaiah 2:3)
We read more from the message —

“When finally the judgment passes from the dead to the living, thus outmoding by expiration the initial phase of the First Angel’s Message (the judgment of the dead), what timely Truth will the church then have for herself and for the world?  What, indeed, if she does not now accept and practice the message of very present Truth, the final phase of the First Angel’s Message, which is presently announcing the stealthy approach of judgment upon the living, and which is knocking at each heart’s door?

   Tragically, those who now fail to fill their vessels (Matt. 25:1-4) with this extra oil (the additional truth — that of the judgment of the living) flowing from the golden bowl (Zech. 4) will finally see their lamps flicker out forever like a gutted candle.  O, in what consternation then will they search for the precious golden oil!  And with what infinitely greater anxiety than they now search for gold and for prestige! 

But, alas, then like Esau, though they seek it “carefully with tears,” they shall find “no place of repentance”: they purchase their oil too late.  The door is closed when they reach it.  And to their frantic knocking at it comes the terrifying reply, “I never knew you.” Matt. 7:23.  Then is the harvest of the first-fruits past, the fruits garnered in, and the tares shut out unto destruction, there in agony to wail and to gnash their teeth: “The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved.” Jer. 8:20.

 

   “The time of the Judgment is a most solemn period, when the Lord gathers His own from among the tares.  Those who have been members of the same family are separated.  A mark is placed upon the righteous.” — Testimonies To Ministers, p. 234.

   “…The pure ore and the dross will no longer commingle.” — Testimonies To Ministers, p. 236.

   “…The church is to be fed with manna from heaven, and to be kept under the sole guardianship of His grace.  Clad in complete armor of light and righteousness, she enters upon her final conflict.  The dross, the worthless material, will be consumed, and the influence of the truth testifies to the world of its sanctifying, ennobling character….” — Testimonies To Ministers, p. 17, 18.  (The White-House Recruiter, p.37-38)

The Lord is all encompassing and foreseeing and do you remember that Zech. 4 showed us how to get this oil? The specific prophets (two pipes) gather it from the Bible (two trees) and place it in the Golden Bowl (Inspired writings), so that the 7 ministers ( the seven tubes from the bowl, the true ministers of God) can get the oil out of the bowl and give to the church (seven candlesticks). Again for a refresher look at this original chart draw by the prophet, brother Houteff.

zechariah-4-picture

In closing, let us now, as we have time, stock up on this extra oil, for we shall need it when the Lord “suddenly comes to His Temple” (Mal. 3:1).

“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.”

That messenger, the Elijah to come, has provided for any and all who wish to partake, a great supply of oil (present Truth) will you not take some and fill up? Below is a link to 15 Tracts of extra oil. Enjoy!

http://shepherds-rod.org/Tracts/tracinx.html

 

Posted in Elijah Interpretations, Parable studies, Present Truth, Proper teachings | 2 Comments »

Seeds Planted

January 16, 2016

seeds planted

In the book of Matthew, chapter 13,  we read of the well-known three parables of the seed sowers. These tell us of the good lessons in obeying God’s word. But what are some of the seed planting experiences of today? Let us look at two specific examples.

Let us first look at the case of brother R.

Brother R is a proclaimed practicing believer in “present truth”. In other words he appears active in discussing and proclaiming the final message of the Lord’s Elijah. But he has embraced the doctrine of feast keeping. He is attempting to blend both the Davidian message (Elijah message) and the practice of feast keeping. This is not uncommon. As we have shown before, the real studiers of God’s word will come to the understanding that the Lord does indeed have a final message to us–His Elijah message (Mal. 4:5), but some read only parts of it and think they know the message.

 

The challenge is– are they “grounded” in the Lord’s word as proclaimed by His prophets? For a good three weeks, brother R and I went into a study concerning this subject. Being very familiar with what the Rod and SOP says about feast keeping, I felt the Lord leading me to “give it my best shot” to expose how dangerous it is to profess the Rod and also feast keeping!

It was a good back and forth discussion. But as it went on I sensed it was about time to wrap it up as no progress was forth coming.But there was a key question I asked in the last week of our correspondence. And in hindsight, was the reason for this post.

The question was this — Where did your understanding of keeping the feasts originally come from? A man’s report or the Inspired writings (Bible, SOP, or Rod) ?

He responded  that it came from a Television show from a Seventh-day Adventist well-known for his feast keeping doctrine–John VanDenburgh.

Ah, the light went on! I then knew that rather than brother R reading and knowing FIRST what the Word says on this doctrine( SOP-Ellen White, Shepherd’s Rod-Victor Houteff), he allowed VanDenburgh to lay the seed in his mind and it sprang from there. In other words, the plan brother R was following was all backwards. Instead of reading what God’s prophets said carefully FIRST and having the Holy Spirit (ie. the Spirit of Truth) lay the true seed into his mind and soul, he allowed a man to put his spin on this doctrine and it worked within him and was sown.

Then as the seed had been sowed, brother R went about reading the SOP and the Rod to confirm what he now believed was truth. He wanted to search out the carefully selected references VanDenburgh relied on and build upon that.

You see, had the following seed been planted first, then the usurping teachings may not have had the deceiving effect. As is well-known, the professional currency inspectors must first become well familiar with the original before they can discern the fake.

Here is what would have grounded him —

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. (Timely Greetings, vol. 2, no.37, p.14-15)

Additionally there are some powerful clear SOP references that leave little doubt as well. But the seed has been sown and because he has fallen hard for the “requirement” of keeping the feast days, the Lord’s final restoring message of the Rod cannot do him much good. The very fact that the message tells us we show “unbelief in Christ” by feast keeping is sufficient evidence  that this is a salvational issue. Serious indeed!

“All who are too lazy to study, and who give the Devil a chance to sow devilish seed in their hearts, making them believe that the preacher or the minister will take them through the Pearly Gates, having no experience of their own, are cheated of eternal life; they instead get eternal death.”(Timely Greetings, vol. , no.21, p.12)

“The Bible must not be interpreted to suit the ideas of men, however long they may have held these ideas to be true. We are not to accept the opinion of commentators as the voice of God; they were erring mortals like ourselves. God has given reasoning powers to us as well as to them. We should make the Bible its own expositor.

All should be careful about presenting new views of Scripture before they have given these points thorough study, and are fully prepared to sustain them from the Bible” (Testimonies to Ministers, p. 106)

From Scripture alone, we know that the Word cancelled these ceremonial feast obligations–

“And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.”(Daniel 9:27)

“At that moment the curtain in the sanctuary of the Temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. ” (Matt 27:51)

Our second case concerns sister B.

She is a good friend and I have been very impressed with her over the years for “walking the walk” not just talking the talk. But Satan has his marks set on just these types, the doers. They are his ever watching targets.  Our job is to be our “brother’s (sister’s) keeper”.

“Show my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins.” Show them where they are making a mistake. Set their danger before them.” (Bible Commentary, p.1149)

Sister B is involved in a new age business. They  sell products to help protect against the ever-growing threat of radiation coming  from our everyday electronic gadgets that we cannot live without. A while back I was invited to one of her company’s presentations. I sat there impressed as this really seemed a timely business and I purchased some products.

One of their presentations involves the following:

Four people are selected to help. One person is selected to sit in a chair. One of their products ( a fine one) is “realigned molecule” water.  We won’t bother you will all the scientific benefit of this water, but briefly it is water that has it’s water molecules made into a straight line (single file) so that when one drinks it, it can hydrate the body much more efficiently but entering the cell.

Do you remember the Chernobyl nuclear disaster? The radiation was found spreading far and wide from the area. But there was a certain group of people living nearby who were found not affected by it. They lived by a running stream and drank from this source for their water needs.  A Russian scientist was perplexed and decided to investigate. He found that the stream’s flow had realigned the water molecules and had greatly benefited against the effects of radiation. In other words, their bodies were completely hydrated and the immune system worked strongly to counteract any harmful invasion.

So the scientist developed an electronic machine that straightens out the molecules in a single file, as opposed to the disarray of molecules of regular water.

Back to the experiment. So the four volunteers are placed at four corners of the chair surrounding the person sitting on it. They are told to put their hands into a specific postilion, clasping them together and with their two index fingers pointing straight out (kind of like a steeple). Then they are to put their pointed index fingers under the person’s arms and knee bends. And at the signal they are to try to lift the person off the chair into the air with just their fingers.

Of course there is no way that such limited strength  can physically lift an adult off the chair into the air like this.

I had been chosen as one of the volunteers. After our first failed try, the speaker then sprayed us with the straight line water. We got it on face, neck and arms. Then we went back to our attempt to lift the person again. At the signal we tried and  WOW! As if by magic the person was literally raised over one foot off the chair! I saw and felt this with my own eyes. I also knew that some force was doing this and it was NOT anything from our efforts.

So impressed was I that later I called sister B and raved how this water product was truly amazing. She said she agreed and we both were excited. The experiment was put on basically to show the “molecular force” that the water had. In other words we were told that all our molecular cells were in harmony and therefore were able to lift the person.

But  the next week or two, something was nagging at me. I was no doubt being alerted by the Holy Spirit to look into this. So one night I decided to check YouTube out to see if this same experiment had been done as well by others not connected with this water. To my amazement there were 3 other videos showing the same lifting!

There was no mention of the water but they all had one thing in common. It was the clasping of the hands like we did in our presentation. So I then looked up devil hand signs, and sure enough! One of them was this same hand clasping. Then the light went on. Rather than our molecules working together, there was another force active here!

I at once phoned sister B. She listened as I explained that it was not the single file water that had lifted the person but another force. She tried to explain that it was not anything evil and that it was something beyond our understanding. But that could not be, I countered because there were others not associated with the water who could do the same thing. The only common denominator was the hand signs.

Her company truly has some good products and she does not need to be involved in this specific presentation. Likely the owners are not even aware of this connection with the hand signs.

So how does this connect with planting a seed? Just this. A few days after that original experiment I had participated in,  I was in the kitchen one night and began to ponder whether I could place my hand over the cup before me and lift it. In other words, could I have some type of  special powers? This was quite unusual thinking on my part. Later I wondered where these thoughts had come from?

Then the bell went off in my head. Because I had been involved in that mysterious force power, could it be that a small dark seed had tried to take root? Was I affected by what I had inadvertently been a part of? This seems quite logical and even likely. Thankfully I was able to see this as it was, a bad seed from the adversary.

So with all these warning bells going off sister B was  clearly  warned. By God’s mighty power we can only hope that she  no longer gets involved in that mysterious power working and stops any wrong seeds from growing. If I was wrongly influenced by participating in one presentation, how will that effect someone who does many?

“..do not give the devil an opportunity to work.” (Eph 4:27)

 

“There are many who shrink with horror from the thought of consulting spirit mediums, but who are attracted by more pleasing forms of spiritism. Others are led astray by the teachings of Christian Science, and by the mysticism of Theosophy and other Oriental religions.

The apostles of nearly all forms of spiritism claim to have power to heal. They attribute this power to electricity, magnetism, the so-called “sympathetic remedies,” or to latent forces within the mind of man.” (Prophets and Kings p.210-211)

In closing, seeds are being planted all the time in our life, let’s make sure the right seeds take root. And if a bad seed attempts to come in, by the power of the Holy Spirit may we at once throw it out.

“Of the almost innumerable lessons taught in the varied processes of growth, some of the most precious are conveyed in the Saviour’s parable of the growing seed. It has lessons for old and young.

“So is the kingdom of God, as if a man should cast seed into the ground; and should sleep, and rise night and day, and the seed should spring and grow up, he knoweth not how. For the earth bringeth forth fruit of herself; first the blade, then the ear, after that the full corn in the ear.” Mark 4:26-28.

The seed has in itself a germinating principle, a principle that God Himself has implanted; yet if left to itself the seed would have no power to spring up. Man has his part to act in promoting the growth of the grain; but there is a point beyond which he can accomplish nothing. He must depend upon One who has connected the sowing and the reaping by wonderful links of His own omnipotent power.

There is life in the seed, there is power in the soil; but unless infinite power is exercised day and night, the seed will yield no return. The showers of rain must refresh the thirsty fields; the sun must impart warmth; electricity must be conveyed to the buried seed. The life which the Creator has implanted, He alone can call forth. Every seed grows, every plant develops, by the power of God.

“The seed is the word of God.” “As the earth bringeth forth her bud, and as the garden causeth the things that are sown in it to spring forth; so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth.” Luke 8:11; Isaiah 61:11. As in the natural, so in the spiritual sowing; the power that alone can produce life is from God.” (Lessons of Life, p.104-105)

Please pray for brother R and sister B, that God will open their eyes to the deceptive seeds of the enemy and toss them out for good!

UPDATE: Our prayers have been answered as sister B has withdrew from those presentations.

Posted in Delusion, Parable studies | 5 Comments »

The Parable of the Ten Virgins

December 19, 2015

Ten Virgins

One of  the parables most often studied and quoted around the  world is that of Matthew 25–the parable of the Ten Virgins.

“Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom.  And five of them were wise, and five were foolish.  They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. 

While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept.  And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him. 

Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps.  And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out.  But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves. 

And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut.  Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us.  But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not.  Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.” (Matt. 25:1-13)

In order to know the true interpretive meaning of this parable (or any other parable or prophecy) we are counseled to not trust in our own “private interpretation” but rather a “Thus sayeth the Lord” by His prophets. And we who are living in these very last days, should yell to the mountain tops in joy that the Lord gave us His promised –restorer of all things, Elijah. We are just very blessed because as you’ll see the end time prophetic meaning of this parable is directly applicable to us today. Let us heed the lesson!

Who are the Virgins?

The virgins are a figure of the church.  Number “ten,” has the symbolic meaning of universal (the church as a body).  Note that they are all “virgins.”  The 144,000 are designated by the same word. (See Rev. 14:4.)  The word “virgins,” signify that the class represented by them (ten), are not those who are called out from Babylon (fallen churches) at the time the “cry” is made. 

For, if they were to come out of Babylon by the call “Come out of her, my people” (Rev. 18:4), they would have been defiled with “women” (fallen churches), and therefore, could not be called “virgins.”  Thus, the message of the “Midnight Cry” must find them in the house of God — virgins. (SRod, vol. 2, p.181)

What is the “cry” that is made?

The “Midnight Cry” was first proclaimed prior to 1844, and the coming of the “Bridegroom” was Christ’s coming to the Most Holy place in the heavenly sanctuary for the investigative judgment of the saints.  The investigation being in two sections; first, the judgment for the dead, and the second for the living, the “cry” must be repeated, otherwise we would have no present truth for the time of the judgment of the living. 

The “cry” for the living being of a greater importance to the world than the one for the dead, and as the “virgins” are a figure of the living church, the parable must have a direct application to the church at this present time, — the coming of the bridegroom for the judgment of the living.  But indirectly it points back to the commencement of the “Midnight Cry” (the first angel’s message — the judgment for the dead). 

The messages being of the same event, judgment, both (for the living and for the dead) are called the “midnight cry.”  The same is proven by the parable itself. (p.181)

What does the oil represent?

The “oil” is a symbol of the Spirit of God in the form of a message (truth); for, it is the substance that gives the light (the prophetic Word of God).  The lamp must be a symbol of the heart into which the Word (oil) is being retained.  The trimming of their lamps, is the “trimming” of their hearts; that is, their conscience being aroused they began to show interest. 

But only five of them had an extra supply of oil in their vessels.  As they started out to meet the bridegroom, the lamps of the foolish ones went out; and as they found themselves in darkness, it made their progress impossible.  Now, the question arises: What made their lamps go out, and why could they go backward, but not forward? 

As the message of the judgment for the dead was the present truth since 1844, at the beginning of the judgment for the living (when the cry was made), it became present truth no longer.  Consequently their lamps went out.  They could not move forward because they were foolish; that is, they did not accept the light — the judgment for the living.  Was the “oil” beyond their reach?  The words in the parable prove that they all heard the “cry, “arose, and trimmed their lamps.” 

Five of them failed to get the supply of oil because they were “foolish,” — they did not study for themselves.  Allowed others to think for them; they chose the easy, popular side, and accepted the decisions of the leaders, copies the mistakes of others and were thus left without a supply of oil, — robbed of the truth, cheated of glory, and left in darkness!

   “And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out.”  At last the foolish virgins saw themselves in darkness.  Then they went to the wise and asked for oil as a gift; “But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves.” 

The oil is sold and there must be something given in exchange to obtain the supply.  The price they had to pay was to “sigh and cry for the abominations done in the midst thereof,” give up sinning and obey the truth.  Their receipt for the value of exchange would have been the seal of the living God in their foreheads.(P.182-183)

What is the significance of the door being shut?

As the foolish virgins at last came to the door, it is evident that they obtained the oil (learned of the message) but there had been a delay — the door was shut, and they were left out.  Now, why were they unconcerned at first, and very zealous at last?  The experience in this instance is about the same as that of the deluge. 

While Noah preached the coming of the flood, the world paid little attention to this message; but those who believed, went into the ark at a given time and the door was closed.  But not long afterwards, signs of Noah’s prediction appeared; and as drops of rain began to fall the wicked multitude became alarmed and rushed for the ark, but the door was closed and they were left out. 

The door that “was shut,” is a symbol showing that probation for the church had closed just shortly after the foolish virgins became alarmed.  At last they were willing to pay the price and buy the oil; but it was not a change of heart, only the fear of losing out.  Their course of action had left them without the seal — “the man with the writer’s inkhorn” had passed them by.  What a terrible mistake! What a disappointment! Almost saved, but entirely lost.(P.183-184)

Why 10 virgins?

The number, “ten”, being a symbol of universal, it represents the church as a body prior to the commencement of the judgment of the living — in the sealing period of the 144,000, and before the “Loud Cry” of the Third Angel’s Message; being the period of the first fruits of the harvest. (P.185)

What is the lesson of the five foolish and five wise virgins?

The five wise virgins were they who trusted in God and His word only; having no confidence in man, and were hungry for truth, searching for light, and gladly accepting it when it came.  Thus they received the seal of God’s approval, their sins were blotted out, and their lives made sure — they passed from condemnation and death into glory and life eternal.  They are God’s servants, kings and priests — 144,000 in number.

   The five foolish virgins are they who had confidence in men; they were willing that others should think and study for them.  Their love for this world and the things of it, exceeded their love for Christ and the world to come.  They had no true sense of the awful result of sin.  Their zeal for self, drowned their zeal for the house of God and His honor. 

They were satisfied with their lamps trimmed and but little oil in them.  They saw no necessity for more light — prophets, truth or message.  They said in their hearts, we are rich and increased with goods and have need of nothing.  They were prejudiced against light upon the word of God, and accepted not the truth because the channel through which it came was not of their choice.

   The knowledge of present truth, which the five foolish virgins possessed since 1844 is the judgment of the dead, and was the only oil in their lamps.  When the judgment of the living commenced, and the “cry was made,” they were found without this extra oil in their vessels; they had neglected their Lord’s command: “Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.” 

Thus when the wise ones started out to meet the bridegroom the lamps of the foolish went out, for, the judgment of the dead had passed.  Therefore, it was present truth no more, and thus they were left in darkness. 

At the beginning of the judgments of God they saw their mistake and rushed for the ark of safety, but it was beyond their reach for they knew nothing of the message, and by the time they acquired it (filled their lamps with oil), there had been a delay, the angel had passed “through the city, through Jerusalem,” the church — the sealing was finished, and probation for the church had closed — the door was shut.  Thus they were left out. 

Then they came with these words: “Lord, Lord, open unto us, But He answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not.”  “Appoint his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”  What a disappointment that will be!

   It will be noticed that the close of probation for the church and the one for the world are two different events.  The former is a miniature representation of the latter.  The Scripture for the preceding one is found in Matthew 25:11, 12; but of the final one we read: “He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still.  And, behold, I come quickly, and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.” (Rev. 22:11, 12.) 

At this time those who were like the five foolish virgins, will say, “The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved.” (Jer. 8:20.)  “And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the Lord, and shall not find it.” (Amos 8:12.) ( SRod, P.185-186)

 

 

 

Posted in Elijah Interpretations, Parable studies, Present Truth, Proper teachings | 1 Comment »