A
Year by Year Assessment of the SDA
Church--Compiled by
Sessler and Picard
Dear Reader,
The following is a year by year assessment of the
SDA church by Ellen G. White. This list was compiled by Robert Sessler and Laval Picard.
1855: "I have seen an angel standing with
scales in his hands weighing the thoughts and interest of the people of God.
In one scale were the thoughts and interest tending heavenward; in the other
were the thoughts and interest tending to earth. Oh what a solemn thought! The angels of God standing with scales, weighing the thoughts of
the professed children of God--those who claim to be dead to the world and
alive to God. The scale filled with thoughts of earth, vanity, and
pride quickly went down, notwithstanding weight after
weight rolled from the scale. The one with the thoughts and interest tending
to Heaven went quickly up as the other went down, and oh, how light it was! Said the angel, 'Can such enter Heaven? No, no, never.
Tell them the hope they now possess is vain, and unless they speedily repent,
and obtain salvation, they must perish.'" Testimonies,
Vol.1, p. 124-126, 1855.
1856: "I was shown in vision some
things that concern the church. I was pointed back to the years 1843 and
1844. There was a spirit of consecration then that there is not now. What has
come over the professed peculiar people of God? I saw conformity to
the world, the unwillingness to suffer for the truth's sake...
1856: "I saw the dreadful fact that God's
people were conformed to the world, with no distinction, except
in name... I saw that Jesus was wounded and put to an open shame. Said
the angel, as with sorrow he saw the professed people of God loving the
world, partaking of its spirit, and following its fashions; 'Cut loose! Cut
loose! lest He appoint you your portion with
hypocrites and unbelievers outside the city. Your profession will only cause
you greater anguish, and your punishment will be greater because you knew His
will, but did not do it...'
"God will have a people separate and distinct
from the world. As soon as any have a desire to imitate the world, just so
soon God ceases to acknowledge them as His children. They are the children of
the world and of darkness." Testimonies, Vol.1, p. 127-137.
May 27, 1856.
1857: "The Lord has shown me in vision some
things concerning the church in its present lukewarm state, which I will relate to you. The church was presented before me
in vision. Said the angel to the church: 'Jesus speaks to
thee, 'Be zealous and repent.' This work, I saw, should be taken hold
of in earnest. There is something to repent of. Worldly-mindedness,
selfishness, and covetousness have been eating out
the spirituality and life of God's people." Testimonies,
Vol.1, p. 141. 1857.
1859: "The church is in the Laodicean
state. The presence of Christ is not in her midst." Notebook
Leaflets, p. 99.
"The figure of spewing of His mouth means that
he cannot offer up your prayers or your expressions of love to God. He cannot
endorse your teaching of His word, or your spiritual work in anywise. He
cannot present your religious exercises with the request that grace be given
you." Testimonies, Vol. 6, p. 408.
1862: "The distance is widening between Christ
and His people, and lessening between them and the world. The marks of
distinction between Christ's professed people and the world have almost
disappeared. Like ancient Israel,
they follow after the abominations of the nations around them."
"Those who will be heirs of God, and joint
heirs with Christ to the immortal inheritance, will be peculiar. Yes, so
peculiar that God places a mark upon them as His, wholly His. Think ye that
God will receive, honor, and acknowledge a people so mixed up with the world
that they differ from them only in name?" Testimonies,
Vol. 1, p. 274-87.
1865: "In their present state of worldly
ambition, with their lack of consecration to God, their devotion to self,
they are wholly unfit to receive the latter rain... They think they are all
right when they are all wrong." Testimonies, Vol. 1,
p. 466-69, 478-79.
1868: "I saw that before the work of God can
make any decided progress the ministers must be converted... The church will rarely take a higher stand than is taken by her
ministers.... Men who stand in very responsible positions at the heart of the
work are asleep... They are unfaithful sentinels... They see that Satan is
deceiving the inexperienced and unsuspecting; yet they take it all quietly...
To them everything seems to be going well... Satan exults at his success in
controlling the minds of so many who profess to be Christians. He has
deceived them, benumbed their sensibilities, and planted his hellish banner
right in their midst, and they are so completely
deceived that they know not that it is he." Testimonies,
Vol. 2, p. 439-40. 1868.
False revival before the true
1868: "Like ancient Israel the church has dishonored
her God by departing from the light, neglecting her duties, and abusing her
high privilege of being peculiar and holy in character. Her members have
violated their covenant to live for God and Him only. They have joined with
the selfish and world-loving. Pride, the love of pleasure, and sin have been cherished, and Christ has departed. His spirit
has been quenched in the church. Satan works side by side with professed
Christians; yet they are so destitute of spiritual discernment that they do
not detect him."
"I have stated before them that, from what was
shown me, but a small number of those now professing to believe the truth
would be saved, not because they could not be saved, but because they would
not be saved in God's own appointed way. The way marked out by our divine
Lord is too narrow and the gate too strait to admit them while grasping the
world or while cherishing selfishness or sin of any kind." Testimonies, Vol. 2, p. 440-46, 450.
"If the light that has been given to these had
been given to Sodom and Gomorrah, they would have repented in sackcloth and ashes, and would have escaped the signal
wrath of God. It will be more tolerable for Sodom
and Gomorrah
in the day of judgment than for those who have been
privileged with the clear light, and have had a vast amount of labor, but
have not profited by it. They were so blinded by the devil that they
verily thought themselves rich in the favor of God, when the True Witness
declares them to be wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and
naked." Ibid, p.483-4, 88-89.
1873: "I have been shown that the greatest
reason why the people of God are now found in this state of spiritual
blindness is that they will not receive correction. Many have despised the
reproofs and warnings given them. The True Witness condemns the lukewarm
condition of the people of God, which gives Satan great power over them in
this waiting, watching time... Stupidity in this watching time is sealing the
senses of God's people as to the signs of the times...
"Many are deceived by the adversary of souls...
They are doing the work of Satan, but think that they have a zeal for God...
They think that the people of God are not in need of plain dealing and of
reproof, but that God is with them. These tempted ones, whose souls have ever
been at war with the faithful reproving of sin, would cry: Speak to us smooth
things." Testimonies, Vol. 3, p. 354-60. 1873.
1875: "Satan's chief work is at the
headquarters of our faith... It is Satan's plan to weaken the faith of God's
people in the Testimonies. Next follows skepticism in regard to the vital
points of our faith, the pillars of our position, then doubt as to the Holy
Scriptures, and the downward march to perdition." Testimonies,
Vol. 4, p. 210-11. 1875.
1876: "There are many false prophets in these
days, to whom sin does not appear especially
repulsive. They complain that the peace of the people is unnecessarily
disturbed by the reproofs and warnings of God's messengers. As for them, they
lull the souls of sinners into a fatal ease by their smooth and deceitful
teachings. Ancient Israel
was thus charmed by the flattering messages of the corrupt priests. Their
prediction of prosperity was more pleasing than the message of the true
prophet, who counseled repentance and submission...
"Those who seek to cloak sin and make it appear
less aggravating to the mind of the offender are doing the work of the false
prophets and may expect the retributive judgments of God to follow such a
course...
"The destruction of Jerusalem
stands as a solemn warning before the eyes of modern Israel, that the corrections
given through His chosen instruments cannot be disregarded with
impunity." Testimonies, Vol. 4, p.166-67. 1876.
"I saw that God had honest children among the
nominal Adventists and the fallen churches, and before the plagues shall be
poured out, ministers and people will be called out from these churches and
will gladly receive the truth. Satan knows this, and before the loud cry of
the third angel is given, he raises an excitement in these religious bodies,
that those who have rejected the truth may think that God is still with them.
He hopes to deceive the honest and lead them to think that God is still
working for the churches. But the light will shine, and all who are honest
will leave the fallen churches and take their stand with the remnant."
Early Writings, p. 261.
1882: "The church cannot measure herself by the world nor by the opinion of men nor by what
she once was. Her faith and her position in the world as they now are must be
compared with what they would have been if her course had been continually
onward and upward. The church will be weighed in the balances of the
sanctuary. If her moral character and spiritual state do not correspond with
the benefits and blessings God has conferred upon her, she will be found
wanting. The light of 1882 calls her to account. If her talents are
unimproved, if her fruit is not perfect before God, if her light becomes
darkness, she is indeed found wanting. The knowledge of our state as God sees it seems to be hidden from
us. We profess to know God, and to
believe the truth, but in works deny Him. Our deeds are directly adverse to
the principles of truth and righteousness, by which we profess to be
governed." Testimonies, Vol. 5, p. 62-84.
1883: "Satan is preparing to work through his
human agencies in secrecy. We must know the reasons for our faith... Many are
holding the truth only with the tips of their fingers. They have had great
light and many privileges. Like
Capernaum
they have been exalted to heaven in this respect. In the time of test and trial that is approaching,
they will become apostates--unless they put away their pride and
self-confidence, unless they have an entire transformation of
character." Letter 5, 1883; Selected Messages, Vol. 3,
p. 414-15.
"The enemy will set everything in operation to uproot the
confidence of the believers in the pillars of our faith in the messages of
the past, which have placed us upon the
elevated platform of eternal truth, and which have established and given
character to the work. The Lord God of Israel has led out His people,
unfolding to them truth of heavenly origin." "The truth for this
time is precious, but those whose hearts have not
been broken by falling on the Rock Christ Jesus, will not see and understand
what is truth. They will accept that which pleases their ideas, and will begin to manufacture another
foundation than that which is laid.
They will flatter their own vanity and esteem, thinking that they are capable of removing the pillars of
our faith, and replacing them with pillars they have devised. This will
continue to be as long as time shall last." Notebook, Leaflets,
p.61-62.
1885: "The same disobedience and failure which
were seen in the Jewish church have characterized in a greater degree the
people who have had this great light from heaven in the last messages of
warning... There is a terrible amount of guilt for which the church is
responsible." Testimonies, Vol.5, p. 456-57.
1886: "Many of our people are backsliding
from God. They are in danger of becoming like the
Jewish nation, who knew not the Scriptures nor the power of God."
"When Jesus wept over Jerusalem,
His tears were for all who abuse present privileges."
1886: "The eye of Jesus, looking down the ages,
was fixed upon our time when He said, 'If thou hadst
known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong to thy
peace!' It is still thy day, O church
of God, whom He has
made the depositary of His law. But this day of trust and probation is fast
drawing to a close." Review and Herald, November 2, 1886.
"We are far from being the people God would
have us to be..."
"God never forsakes people or individuals until
they forsake Him..."
1887: "We have far more to fear from within
than from without. The hindrances to strength and success are far greater
from the church than from the world." Review and Herald, March 22, 1887.
1888: "Now it has been Satan's determined
purpose to eclipse the view of Jesus and lead men to look to man, and to
trust to man, and to be educated to expect help from man. For years the
church has been looking to man and expecting much from man, but not looking
to Jesus, in whom our hopes of eternal life are centered." T.M.93.
"The Lord sent a most precious message to His
people through Elders Waggoner and Jones. This message was to bring more
prominently before the world the uplifted Saviour,
the sacrifice of the whole world. It presented justification through faith in
the surety; it invited people to receive the righteousness of Christ which is
made manifest in obedience to all the commandments of God. Many had lost
sight of Jesus. They needed
to have their eyes directed to Jesus, to His divine Person, His merits,
and to His changeless love for the human family."
"You cannot explain this faith that lays
right hold upon the merits of a crucified and risen Saviour
to bring Christ's righteousness into the life." F.W.65;
Manuscript 1, 1889.
"In 1888 in the General Conference held at
Minneapolis, Minn., the angel of Revelation 18 came down to do his work, and
was ridiculed, criticized and rejected. And when the message he brings again,
swells into a loud cry, it will again be ridiculed, spoken against and be
rejected by the majority."
"An unwillingness to yield up preconceived
opinions, and to accept truth, lay at the foundation of a large share of the
opposition manifested at Minneapolis
against the Lord's message through brethren Waggoner and Jones. By exciting
that opposition Satan succeeded in shutting away from our people, in a great
measure, the special power of the Holy Spirit that God longed to impart to
them. The enemy prevented them from obtaining that efficiency which might
have been theirs in carrying the truth to the world, as the apostles
proclaimed it after the day of Pentecost. The light that is to lighten the whole earth with its glory was
resisted, and by the action of our own brethren has been in a great degree
kept away from the world."
Selected Messages, Vol.1, p.234, 235.
1879: "As a people we are backsliding from God.
The hearts of His professed children are being estranged from Him. While they
have a name to live, the true, vital energies of the soul have become
spiritually dead."
"Christ, when weeping over Jerusalem, exclaimed, 'If thou hasdt known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the
things which belong unto thy peace! But now they are hid from thine eyes.' Jerusalem's
sin was in abusing past privileges, and she was sealing her doom in rejecting
present mercies and warnings. The weak faith of our people today shows that
past warnings and reproofs have not been heeded, and hardness of heart, and
indifference, and unbelief are the result."
"The Saviour's love
has been unrequited. Christ looks mournfully upon the individual members of
the Church, and exclaims, 'Ye will not come to Me,
that ye might have life.' The hour of probation is fast passing; the cup of
God's indignation is fast filling. Will those who profess to be waiting for
the appearing of their Lord from Heaven be found wanting...
All such professed Christians are represented by the man who built his house
upon the sand." Review and Herald, July 10, 1879.
1881: "I saw that the very spirit of perjury
that would turn truth into falsehood, good into evil, and innocence into
crime, is now active, doing a work which savors of hell rather than of
Heaven. Satan exults over the condition of God's professed people." Special Testimony, p.80.4. July, 1881.
1882: "I knew that a crisis must come. God has
given this people plain and pointed testimonies to prevent this state of
things. Had they obeyed the voice of the Holy Spirit in warning, counsel, and
entreaty, they would now enjoy unity and peace. But these testimonies have
not been heeded by those who profess to believe them, and as a result there
has been a wide departure from God, and the withdrawal of His blessing...
"You despise and reject the testimonies because
they reprove your darling sins and disturb your self-complacency...
"God has given us, as a people, warnings,
reproofs, and cautions, on the right hand and on the left, to lead us away
from worldly customs and worldly policy. He requires us to be peculiar in faith
and in character, to meet a standard far in advance of worldlings.
The Lord is looking into every heart. He weighs our motives. He will try
every soul. Who will bear the test." Testimonies, Vol. 5, p.46-62. March 28, 1882.
1882: "My heart aches day after day and night
after night for our churches. Many are progressing, but in the back track...
I know what I say. Unless they shall become Christians indeed, they will go
from weakness to weakness, divisions will increase, and many souls will be
led to perdition...
"The sin of ancient Israel was in disregarding the
expressed will of God and following their own way
according to the leadings of unsanctified hearts. Modern Israel are
fast following in their footsteps, and the displeasure of the Lord is as surely
resting upon them." Testimonies, Vol. 5, p.93-94.
1882.
"I saw that the frown of God was upon His
people for their assimilation to the world...
"The great sin of the Jews was that of
neglecting and rejecting present opportunities. As Jesus views the state of
His professed people today, He sees base ingratitude, hollow formalism,
hypocritical insincerity, Pharisaical pride and apostasy...
"But few know what our churches are to
experience. I saw that at present we are under divine forbearance, but no none can say how long this will continue...
"The prevailing spirit for our time is that of
infidelity--and apostasy...
"We have enjoyed great light and many
privileges. Shall we turn away from all these blessings, and sacrifice the
peculiar, holy character which should distinguish us as children of God? If
we thus slight the mercy of God, the judgments against Capernaum will surely fall upon us. Our
punishment will be heavier than if we had not enjoyed so great light. Thus
the warnings, reproofs, and counsels, which, accepted and obeyed, would bring
us untold blessings, become a curse when they are rejected...
"Can Christ say of His professed followers, These are My peculiar people; I gave Myself for them, to
redeem from all iniquity, that they should show forth My praise, who have
called them out from darkness into My marvelous light. Would not the Lord
say, rather, How is the beautiful city become a harlot,--and My Father's
house a place of merchandise. Because of your unbelief, I cannot do many mighty
works among you." Review and Herald, November 7, 1882.
1889: "The rebuke of God is upon us
because of our neglect of solemn responsibilities. His blessings have been
withdrawn because the testimonies He has given have not been heeded by those
who profess to believe them. Oh, for a religious
awakening!" 5 T 719-20.
1890: "We want to understand the time in
which we live. We do not half understand it. We do not half take it in. My
heart trembles in me when I think of what a foe we have to meet, and how poorly
we are prepared to meet him. The trials of the children of Israel, and their
attitude just before the first coming of Christ, have been presented before
me again and again to illustrate the position of the people of God in their
experience before the second coming of Christ--how the enemy sought every
occasion to take control of the minds of the Jews, and today he is seeking to
blind the minds of God's servants, that they may not be able to discern the
precious truth."
1890: "As Christ sought to place truth before
the people in its proper relation to their salvation, Satan worked through
the Jewish leaders, and inspired them with enmity against the Redeemer of the
world. They determined to do all in their power to prevent Him from making an
impression upon the people." Selected Messages, Vol.1, p.406-408.
1890: "The prejudices and opinions that
prevailed at Minneapolis
are not dead by any means; the seeds sown there in some hearts are ready to
spring into life and bear a like harvest. The tops have been cut down, but
the roots have never been eradicated, and they still bear their unholy fruit
to poison the judgment, pervert the perceptions, and blind the
understanding."
"Infidelity has been making its inroads in our
ranks; for it is the fashion to depart from Christ, and give place to
skepticism. With many the cry of the heart has been, 'We will not have this
man to reign over us.' Baal, Baal, is the choice. The religion of many among
us will be the religion of apostate Israel, because they love their
own way, and forsake the way of the Lord."
"Today the world is full of flatterers and
dissemblers; but God forbid that those who claim to be guardians of sacred
trusts shall betray the interests of God's cause through the insinuating suggestions and devices of the enemy of all
righteousness." Testimonies to Ministers, p. 461-71.
1890: "Will the church see where she has
fallen?" "A severity, an overbearing spirit, such as existed among
the Pharisees, exists in our churches, and especially in those entrusted with
sacred responsibilities."
"The church is like the unproductive tree
which, receiving the dew and rain and sunshine, should have produced an abundance of fruit, but on which the divine search
discovers nothing but leaves. Solemn thought for our churches! Solemn indeed
for every individual! Marvelous is the patience of God." The Review and
Herald, Dec.23, 1890.
1891: "The world must not be introduced into
the church, and married to the church, forming a bond of unity. Through this
means the church will become indeed corrupt,
and as stated in Revelation, 'A cage of every unclean and hateful bird.'"
Testimonies to Ministers, p. 265.7.
"Organizations, institutions, unless kept by
the power of God, will work under Satan's dictation to bring men under the
control of men; and fraud and guile will bear the semblance of zeal for truth and for the advancement of the kingdom of God."
Testimonies to Ministers, p. 366.
1892: "I saw that Jones and Waggoner had
their counter part in Joshua and Caleb. As the children of Israel stoned
the spies with literal stones, you have stoned these brethren with stones of
sarcasm and ridicule. I saw that you willfully rejected what you knew to be
truth just because it was too humiliating to your dignity. I saw some of you in your tents
mimicking and making all manner of fun of these two brethren. I
also saw that if you had accepted their message, we would have been in the
kingdom two years from that date, but
now we have to go back into the wilderness and stay forty years." Written from Melbourne,
Australia,
May 9, 1892.
1893: "To the people of God the testimonies of the Spirit have come, and
yet many have not taken heed to reproofs, warnings, and counsels. Jeremiah
5:21-25,28-29 quoted) Shall the Lord be compelled to say, 'Pray
not thou for this people, neither lift up cry nor prayer for them, neither
make intercession to Me: for I will not hear thee.'? 'Therefore the showers have been withholden, and there hath been no latter rain.'"
"We are to be judged by the light that has been
given us, and we can find no excuse to extenuate our course." Review and
Herald, August 1, 1893.
1894: "Unsanctified ministers are arraying
themselves against God. They are praising Christ and the god of this world in
the same breath. While
professedly they receive Christ, they embrace Barabbas, and by their actions say, 'Not this Man, but Barabbas.'"
1894: "Let the son of deceit and
false witness be entertained by a church that has had great light, great evidence, and that church will discard the message
the Lord has sent, and receive the most unreasonable assertions and false
suppositions and false theories. Satan
laughs at their folly; for he knows what truth is."
1894: "Many will stand in our pulpits with the
torch of false prophecy in their hands, kindled by the hellish torch of
Satan. If doubts and unbelief are cherished, the faithful ministers will be removed
from the people who think they know so much. 'If thou hadst known,' said Christ, 'even
thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong to thy peace, but now
they are hid from thine eyes.'" Testimonies to Ministers, p.409-10.
1895: "What does God say in regard to His
people? But this is a
people robbed and spoiled; they are all of them snared in holes, and they are
hid in prison houses; they are for a prey, and none delivereth;
for a spoil, and none saith, restore.' These are prophecies to be fulfilled. I
would speak in warning to those who have stood for years resisting light and
cherishing the spirit of opposition. How long will you hate and despise the
messengers of God's righteousness? God has given them His message. They bear the word of the Lord: There
is salvation for you but only through the merits of Jesus Christ."
1895: "I have no smooth message to
bear to those who have been so long as false guideposts, pointing the
wrong way. If you reject Christ's delegated messengers you reject
Christ." Testimonies to Ministers, p.96-97.
1895: "At the center of the work matters are
being shaped so that every other institution is following in the same course, and the General Conference is itself becoming corrupted with wrong
sentiments and principles, in the
working of plans...
1895: "I was shown that the Jewish nation was
not brought suddenly into their condition of thought and practice. From
generation to generation they were working on false theories, carrying out
principles opposed to the truth, and combining with their religion, thoughts
and plans what were the product of human minds. Human inventions were made supreme."
1895: "The high-handed power that has been developed, as though
position has made men gods, makes me afraid and ought to cause fear. It is a curse wherever and by whomsoever it is
exercised. At the time of the first advent of Christ to our world, the men
who composed the Sanhedrin exercised their authority in controlling men
according to their will. Thus the souls whom Christ had
given His life to free from the bondage of Satan, were brought under bondage
to him in another form."
1895: "The spirit of domination is extending to the presidents of our
conferences... They are following in
the tracks of Romanism... In order to reign and become a power, they
employ Satan's methods to justify their own principles. They exalt themselves
as men of superior judgment, and they have stood as representatives of God. These are false gods." Testimonies to Ministers,
p.359-364.
1896: "Who can feel sure that they are
safe in respecting the voice of the General Conference Association? If the people in our churches understood
the management of the men who walk in the light of the sparks of their own
kindling, would they respect their decisions? I answer, no, not
for a moment." Special
Instruction to the Review and Herald Office and the Work in Battle Creek, p.20, May
26, 1896.
1896: "Satan is working that the history of the Jewish nation may be
repeated in the experience of those who claim to believe
the truth... Satan knew just how
to take these men in his net, and deceive them and destroy them... The very same Satan is at
work to undermine the faith of the people of God at this very time." Manuscript 32, 1896;
Selected Messages, Vol.2, p.111.
Satan says, "I will have upon the ground, as my
agents, men holding false doctrines mingled with just enough truth to deceive
souls. I will also have
unbelieving ones present, who will express doubts in regard to the Lord's messages of
warning to His church. Should the
people read and believe these admonitions we could have little hope of
overcoming them. If we can keep souls deceived for a time, God's mercy will
be withdrawn, and He will give them up to our full control." Spirit of Prophecy, Vol.1, p.337-340.
1897: "Rebellion and apostasy are in the very air we breathe. We shall be affected by them unless we by faith
hang our helpless souls upon Christ. If men are so easily misled now, how
will they stand when Satan shall personate Christ, and work miracles?"
"Study in Patriarchs and Prophets the rebellion
of Korah, Dathan and
Abiram. This rebellion was extended, including more
than two men. It was led by two-hundred and fifty princes of the
congregation, men of renown. Call
rebellion by its right name and apostasy by its right name, and
then consider that the experience of the ancient people of God with
all its objectionable features was faithfully chronicled to
pass into history. The Scripture
declares, 'These things are written for our
admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.'"
"Those who apostatize are voicing the voice of the dragon. We have to meet the satanic agencies
who went to make war with the saints... Those who apostatize leave the
true and faithful people of God, and fraternize with those who
represent Barabbas. 'By their fruits ye shall know them.'" Letter 1, 1897.
"We are living in the last days of this earth's
history, and we may
be surprised at nothing in the line of apostasies and denials of the
truth."
"God calls for men of decided fidelity. He has no
use in an emergency for two-sided men. He wants men who will lay their
hand upon a wrong work and say, 'This is not according to the will of
God.'" Selected Messages, Vol.2, p.147-153.
"Christ shows that without the controlling
power of God humanity is a terrible power for evil. Unbelief, the hatred of reproof, will
stir up satanic influences."
Selected Messages, Vol.3, p.416-417.
1898: "Jerusalem is a representation of what the church
will be if it refuses to walk in the light that God has given. Jerusalem
was favored of God as the depositary of sacred trusts. But her people
perverted the truth, and despised all entreaties and warnings...
"So Christ sorrows and weeps over our churches, over our
institutions of learning, that have failed to meet the demand of God... The
publishing house has been turned into desecrated shrines, into a place of
unholy merchandise and traffic."
"When Christ looked down from the crest of
Olivet, He saw this
state of things existing in every church.
The warnings come down to all that are following in the tread of the people
of Jerusalem,
who had such great light. This people is
before us as a warning. By
rejecting God's warnings in this our day, men are repeating the sin of Jerusalem."
"These are no idle tales, but truth. Again I
ask: On which side are you standing? 'If the Lord be God, follow Him: but if Baal, then follow him.'" Testimonies,
Vol. 8, pp. 67-68.
"The cause of Christ will be betrayed. Those who have had the light of truth and have
enjoyed its blessings, but have turned away from it, will fight down the
Spirit of God. Inspired with a spirit from beneath, they will tear down that which they once
built up, and show to all
sensible, God-fearing souls that they can not be trusted. They may claim to truth and righteousness, but
their spirit and works will testify that they are betrayers of their Lord.
The attributes of Satan they call the movings of
the Holy Spirit." Review and Herald, May 24, 1898.
1900: "The professed followers of Christ are no longer a separate people. The
line of demarcation is indistinct. The
people are subordinating themselves to the world, to its practices, its
customs, its selfishness. The church has gone over to the world in
transgression of the law, when the world should have come over to the church
in obedience to the law. Daily the church is being converted to
the world." Christ's Object
Lessons, p.315,316.
"The central power of the earth is a
demon. Satan's throne is
in the midst of the world, where should have been seen the throne of God. He
has been patronized by the church, for
the church has been conformed to the world, and is living in
transgression of the holy law of God." Letter 78, Jan.20, 1900; This Day
With God, p. 28.
"The day of God is right upon us, and the world has converted the church. Both are in harmony, and are acting upon a
short-sided policy." General Conference Bulletin,
first quarter, 1900.
"The church has taken the world into her fellowship, and has given
her affections to the enemies of holiness.
The church and the world are standing on the same ground in transgression of
the law of God. The church prefers to assimilate to the world rather than
separate from its customs and practices." Manuscript
44, p.19, 1900.
"When Christ saw in the Jewish people a nation
divorced from God, He saw also a professed Christian church united to the
world and the papacy... Will
He be obliged to say to those who have had great light and great knowledge,
as He said to the Jews, 'O that thou hadst
known, even thou in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace. But
now they are hid from thine eyes.'" The Kress Collection, p.153, July 10, 1900.
"The churches must arouse. The members must
awake out of sleep and begin to inquire, 'How is the money that we put
into the treasury being used? The Lord desires that a close search be made.'"
"Our churches and institutions must return to
where they were before the backsliding commenced, when they began trusting in
man and making flesh their arm. Have we not seen enough of human wisdom?" The Kress Collection, p.120.
"If God abhors one sin above another, of which His people are
guilty, it is doing nothing in case of an emergency. Indifference
and neutrality in a religious crisis is regarded of God as a grievous crime and equal to the very worst type of
hostility against God." Testimonies, Vol.3, p.281.
1901: "It is working upon wrong principles that has brought the cause of God into its present embarrassment. The people have lost confidence in those who have
the management of the work...
1901: "Yet we hear that the voice of the
Conference is the voice of God. Every time I have
heard this, I have thought it was almost blasphemy. The voice
of the Conference ought to be the voice of God, but it is not, because some
in connection with it are not men of faith and prayer, they are not men of
elevated principle." Manuscript 37, p.8. April,
1901.
1901: "That these men should stand in a sacred
place to be the voice of God to the people, as we once believed the General
Conference to be, that is
past...
1901: "God gave them clear light as to what
they should do and what they should not do, but they departed from that light; and it is a marvel to me that we stand in as much prosperity as we
do today. It is because of the great mercy of our God, not because of our
righteousness, but that His name should not be dishonored in the world...
1901: "There are those here that have
traditions, and they stand
just as the Pharisees stood.
Notwithstanding, they may say that unity and love, compassion and tenderness
are correct principles; yet in their own line of practice they cling to the
old traditions. But what we want is God's traditions." General
Conference Bulletin, April 3, 1901.
"We may have to remain in this world because of our insubordination
many more years, as did the children of Israel; but for Christ's sake, His people should not add
sin to sin by charging God with the consequence of their own wrong course of
action." Letter 184, 1901; Evangelism, p. 696.
1902: "The Lord calls upon men and women to
unite with Christ by wearing His yoke. But He tells them they are to refuse
the yoke human hands would place upon them; for this yoke would be galling
and oppressive. There are
those who refuse to wear the yoke of Christ, and yet would place upon others
a yoke of human manufacture. What a terrible deception!" Written in August 14, 1902. Printed in Review and Herald,
Vol. 4, p. 467.
"Had thorough work been done during the last
General Conference at Battle Creek (1901); had there been as God designed
there should be, a breaking up of the fallow ground of the heart, by the men
who had been bearing responsibilities; had they, in humility of soul, led out
in the work of confession and consecration; had they given evidence that they
received the counsels and warnings sent by the Lord to correct their
mistakes, there would have
been one of the greatest revivals that there has been since the day of
Pentecost."
"What a wonderful work could have been done
for the vast company gathered in Battle
Creek at the General Conference of 1901, if the
leaders of our work had taken themselves in hand. But the work that all Heaven was waiting
to do as soon as men prepared the way, was not done; for
the leaders closed and bolted the door against the Spirit's entrance. There was a stopping short of entire surrender to
God. And hearts that might have been purified from all error were
strengthened in wrong doing. The
doors were barred against the heavenly current that would have swept away all
evil. Men left their sins unconfessed. They built themselves up in wrong doing, and said to the
Spirit of God, 'Go thy way for this time; when I have a more convenient
season, I will call for thee.'"
Battle Creek Letters, p. 55-56, August 23, 1902.
1903: "In the balances of the sanctuary the
Seventh-day Adventist church is to be weighed. She will be judged by the privileges
and advantages that she has had. If her spiritual experience does not correspond to the advantages
that Christ, at infinite cost, has bestowed on her, if the blessings
conferred have not qualified her to do the work entrusted to her, on her will
be pronounced the sentence: 'Found wanting.' By the light bestowed,
the opportunities given, will she be judged."
1903: "The heavenly Teacher inquired: 'What
stronger delusion can beguile the mind than the pretense that you are building on the right foundation and that God accepts
your works, when in
reality you are working out many things according to wordly
policy, and are sinning against Jehovah?'"
1903: "Who can truthfully say: 'Our gold is tried in the fire; our garments are unspotted
by the world'? I saw our Instructor pointing to the garments of so-called
righteousness. Stripping them off, He laid bare the defilement beneath. Then
He said to me: 'Can you not see how they have pretentiously covered
up their defilement and rottenness of character? 'How is the faithful
city become an harlot!' My Father's house is made a house of
merchandise, a place where the divine presence and glory have departed!' For this cause there is weakness, and strength is
lacking."
"Unless the church, which is now being leavened
with her own backsliding, shall repent and be converted, she will eat of the
fruit of her own doing, until she shall abhor herself." Testimonies, Vol. 8, p. 247-250. April 21, 1903.
1903: "God has permitted the present crisis to come to open the
eyes of those who desire to know the truth. He would have
His people understand to what lengths the sophistry and
devising of the enemy would lead."
"I am now authorized to say that the time
has come to take decided action. The development seen in the cause of God is similar to the
development seen when Balaam caused Israel to sin just before they
entered the promised land. Few can see the meaning of the present apostasy. But the Lord has lifted the curtain, and has shown
me its meaning, and the results that it will have if allowed to continue."
"The enemy of souls has sought to bring in
the supposition that a great reformation was to take place among
Seventh-day Adventists, and that this reformation would consist in giving up the doctrines which
stand as the pillars of our faith, and engaging in a process or
reorganization. Were
this reformation to take place, what would results? The
principles of truth that God in His wisdom has given to the remnant church
would be discarded. Our
religion would be changed. The
fundamental principles that have sustained the work for the last fifty years
would be accounted as error.
A new organization would be established. Books of a new order would be written. A system
of intellectual philosophy would be introduced. Nothing would be allowed to stand in the
way of the new movement. The leaders
would teach that virtue is better than vice, but God being removed, they
would place their dependence upon human power, which without God, is
worthless. Their
foundation would be built upon the sand, and storm and tempest would sweep
away the structure."
"Who has authority to begin such a movement?
We have our Bibles. We have our experience, attested to by the miraculous
working of the Holy Spirit. We
have a truth that admits of no compromise.
Shall we not repudiate everything that is not in harmony with this
truth?"
"I am instructed to say that those who
would tear down the foundation that God has
laid, are not to be accepted as the teachers and leaders of His people." Special Testimonies,
Series B, #7, p. 36-41. October, 1903.
"Satan has laid his plans to undermine our faith in the history of the cause and work
of God. I am deeply in earnest as I write this. Satan is working with men in prominent
positions to sweep away the foundations of our faith. Shall we allow this to
be done, brethren?" Review and Herald, Nov.19, 1903.
"Some in exalted positions or responsibility
are sustaining error in the place of truth. Satan makes his delusions most attractive, clothing error
in the garments of truth, so that it seems the most desirable
thing to possess."
"God has spared my life that I may present the testimonies given me, to
vindicate that which God vindicates,
and to denounce every vestige of Satan’s sophistry,
to deceive if possible the very elect." Special
Testimonies, Series B, p.5-7. Nov.27, 1903.
1904: "Representations of things existing at
the present time have passed before me. I have seen men who have been placed
in positions of trust as watchmen, molding and fashioning the work of our
conferences and institutions in accordance with worldly policy, which
God condemns." Special
Testimonies, Series B, #2, p.19-20,24. June 1904.
"Those who are truly loyal will show that their
mind and heart are fully with the Lord Jesus. They will discern the specious
sentiments of Satan, and will refuse
to endorse actions that God condemns."
"When men stand out in defiance against the
counsels of God, they are
warring against God. Is it right for
those connected with such ones to treat them as if they were in perfect
harmony with them, making no difference between him that serveth
God and him that serveth Him not? Though they be ministers or medical missionaries, they have dishonored
Christ before the forces of the loyal and the disloyal. Open rebuke is
necessary, to prevent others from being ensnared."
"To believe that evil must not be condemned
because this would condemn those who practice the evil, is to act in favor of
falsehood. It should now be clearly understood that we are not really helping
those who are determined to do evil, when we show them respect, and keep our
words of reproof for those with whom the disaffected
one is at enmity. A grave mistake has been made and is being made over
this matter. Those
who feel peaceable in regard to the works of the
men who are spoiling the faith of the people of God,
are guided by a delusive sentiment."
"Those who are enlightened by the Holy Spirit's power are to
strive with every power of their being to snatch the prey from the seductive
influences of men who refuse to obey the word of God, whether they be in high places or in low. Christ's property is not to pass out of His control into the control
of the children of darkness." Special Testimonies, #2,
p.5-11. July 25, 1904.
"My message to you is: No longer consent to listen without
protest to the perversion of truth. Unmask the pretentious sophistries." Ibid, p.15, July 24, 1904.
1905: "One thing it is certain is soon to be
realized, the great apostasy, which
is developing and increasing and waxing stronger, will continue to do so until the Lord shall
descend from Heaven with a shout." Special Testimonies, Series B, #7 , p.56-57. Dec.4, 1905.
"The Lord declares that the history of the past shall be rehearsed
as we enter upon the closing work.
Every truth that He has given for these last days is to be proclaimed to the
world. Every pillar that He has established is to
be strengthened. We
cannot now step off the foundation that God has established. We cannot now
enter into any new organization; for it would mean apostasy from the truth." Manuscript 129, 1905;
Selected Messages, Vol.2, p.390.
1906: "Ezekiel 24:6-24. I am instructed to
present these words before those who have had light and evidence, but who
have walked directly contrary to the light. The Lord will make the
punishment of those who will not receive His admonitions and warnings, as
broad as the wrong has been. The purposes of those who have tried to
cover up their wrong, while they have secretly worked against the purposes of
God, will be fully revealed. Truth will be vindicated. God will make manifest that He is God."
"Those who reject the Spirit of truth place
themselves under the control of a spirit that is opposed to the word and
work of God. For a time
they may continue to teach some phases of the truth, but their refusal to
accept all the light God sends, will, after a time, place them where they
will do the work of a false watchman."
On Visions of Ezekiel, July 4, 1906.
1907: "'Now the Spirit speaketh
expressly, that in the latter days some shall depart from the faith, giving
heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils.' The time of this apostasy is here. Every conceivable effort will be made to throw
doubt upon the positions that we have occupied for over half a century."
Letter 410, 1907. Selected Messages, Vol.3, p. 408.
1908: "Satan is now more earnestly engaged in playing the game of
life for souls than at any previous time."
Review and Herald, Nov.19, 1908.
1909: "The Lord has given me instruction that
the history of the apostasy of Israel is now to be presented, because men who
in the past have had great light have become self-sufficient, and are looking
to men, trusting in human leaders, who are themselves practicing evil. Men
who ought to stand as firm as a rock to principle are treading in the same
path that the Israelites followed.
'Some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and
doctrines of devils.' This is the snare that has come into our ranks."
Review and Herald, Feb.4, 1909.
"A strange thing has come into our churches. Men who are placed in positions of
responsibility that they may be wise helpers to their workers have come to
suppose that they were set as kings and rulers in the churches, to say to one
worker, Do this; to another, Do that; and to another, Be sure to labor in
such and such a way. There
have been places where the workers were told that if they did not follow the
instruction of these men of responsibility, their pay from the conference
would be withheld."
"For years there has been a growing tendency for men placed in
responsible positions of responsibility to lord it over God's heritage, thus removing from church members their keen sense
of the need of divine instruction and an appreciation of the privilege to counsel
with God regarding their duty. This order of things must be changed."
"To conference presidents, and men in
responsible places, I bear this message: Break the bands and fetters that
have been placed upon God's people. To you the word is spoken, 'Break every yoke.'" Testimonies to Ministers,
pp. 477-481. 1909.
1909: "In the false experience that has been
coming in, a decided
influence is at work to exalt human agencies, and to lead some to depend upon human judgment, and to follow
the control of human minds. This influence is diverting the mind from
God. God forbid that
any such experience should deepen and grow in our ranks as Seventh-day
Adventists." Testimonies
to Ministers, p. 481. 1909.
1913: "Principles have been perverted. Men have
been departing from the right principles, for the promulgation of which these
institutions were established. They have failed of doing the very work God ordained should be
done to prepare a people."
Southern Union Worker, Nashville,
Tenn. Oct.16, 1913.
"I am bidden to warn you that deceptive
sentiments are entertained, a false modesty and
caution, a disposition to
withhold the profession of our faith.
In the night season, matters have been presented before me that have greatly
troubled my mind. I have
seemed to be in meetings for counsel where these subjects were discussed, and
written documents were presented, advocating
concessions. Brethren, shall we permit the world to
shape the message that God has given us to bear to
them?"
"Shall we for the sake of policy, betray a sacred trust? Let it
be understood that Seventh-day Adventists can make no compromise." Counsels to Editors and Writers, p.94-95.
"In a representation which passed before me, I
saw a certain work being done. The foundation of our faith, which was
established by so much prayer, such earnest searching of the Scriptures, was
being taken down, pillar by pillar. Our faith was to have nothing to rest upon--the sanctuary was
gone, the atonement was gone."
Manuscript 46, May 18, 1904. The Upward Look, p.152.
In 1966 some statements appeared in our SDA Ministry
Magazine. One statement was by Leroy Froom, and the
other by Howard Weeks. Froom said;
"Today the old largely negative approach--emphasizing chiefly
the things wherein we differ from all other religious groups--is past,
definitely past. And it is as it should be." Ministry Magazine, March, 1966.
Weeks said;
"If in expectation of a larger prophetic role
amid these trends Adventists should gird up their evangelistic loins they
would find themselves in
step with other
evangelicals who share their concern."
Billy Graham is then stated to be "the nation's
best known evangelical."
Weeks continues, "The Adventist church today is better
prepared to make common cause with these evangelicals than at any previous
time in its history. The denomination is more definitely
oriented than ever to the historic evangelical concepts. The heavy, sometimes bellicose, emphasis on the
law and the Sabbath in times past undoubtedly struck more raw nerves... in contrast
today, with a clear assert of the denomination's emphasis and membership's
growth." Ministry Magazine, June 1966.
Did our professed SDA denomination decide to join
with the evangelicals and to teach the same as the other churches? Just 3
years later, in the Autumn Council of 1969, a resolution was passed to teach
in common with the other churches.
"Whereas... voted... departmental plans... to
create a public image... set salvation within the reach of the multitudes... to place emphasis on the noncontroversial truths shared in common with all
Christianity." Review and Herald, Dec.18, 1969. Autumn
Council action.
As the result of this action, the next "book of
a new order" was written: SO MUCH IN COMMON. Written by the World Council of Churches and the Seventh-day
Adventist church. It was published by the World Council of
Churches in 1973.
This book explains how similar the teachings of the
professed SDA organization are compared to the churches of the World Council.
With all the rejections and concessions of our pure SDA truths by the
professed SDA leadership, truly there is now
so much in common!
Mrs. White has warned us. She says;
"There has been for years, in churches of the
protestant faith, a strong and growing sentiment in favor of a union based upon common points of
doctrine. To secure such a union,
the discussion of subjects upon which all were not agreed, however important
they might be from a Bible standpoint, must necessarily be waived." The
Great Controversy, p.444.
"All who neglect the word of God to study convenience and policy,
that they may not be at variance with the world, will be left to receive
damnable heresy for religious truth."
Spirit of Prophecy, Vol. 4, p. 346.
"Those who in their human
wisdom try to conceal the peculiar characteristics that distinguish God's people from the world will
lose their spiritual life and will no longer be upheld by His power." Testimonies, Vol.6, p. 250.
"When those who are uniting with the world, yet claiming great purity, plead for union with those who have ever been the opposers of the cause of truth, we should fear and shun
them as decidedly as did Nehemiah." Prophets and
Kings, p.660.
In March, 1975, our SDA Pacific Press Publishing
Association was in a lawsuit by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
of the Federal Government. The case was tried in the U.S. District Court,
Northern District of California in San
Francisco.
In a sworn affidavit from our SDA General Conference
President, Neal C. Wilson, he states; quote,
"Although it is true that there was a period in
the life of the Seventh-day Adventist church when the denomination took a
distinctly anti-Roman Catholic viewpoint, and the term 'hierarchy' was used
in a pejorative sense to refer to the papal form of church governance, that attitude on the church's part was
nothing more than a manifestation of widespread antipopery
among conservative protestant denominations in the early part of this century
and the latter part of the last, and which
has now been consigned to the historical trash heap so far
as the Seventh-day Adventist church is concerned." Reply Brief for the Defendant, p.4, case
#C-74-2025 CBR. March, 1975.
In 1990, Joan Campbell, director of the United States
office of the World Council of Churches, was speaking to Adventists and
said;
"It is my pleasure to be with you again. I
bring the warmest of greetings from the World Council of Churches and from
all our member churches around the world. When I was at your worship service yesterday, it seemed as
though it was my own time of worship, as well as yours. And it said to me that there are many things we
hold in common. So as
fellow Christians, like those of Pentecost in the earliest of days, we
look at each other, and we say that we hold all things in common." Adventist Review, July 10, 1990.
And this declaration was printed and published in
our own Review as something to be proud of! It ought to raise a few eyebrows!
Is this not indicative that "our religion has been changed"?
Long ago, Mrs. White warned;
"We are in danger of becoming a
sister to fallen Babylon,
of allowing our churches to become corrupted, and filled with every foul
spirit, a cage of every unclean and hateful bird." Manuscript Releases,
Vol. 21, p. 380.
Therefore, "The Lord has a controversy with His professed people in these
last days. In this controversy men in
responsible positions will take a course directly opposite to that pursued by
Nehemiah. They will not only ignore and despise the Sabbath themselves,
but they will try to keep it from others by burying it beneath the rubbish of
custom and tradition. In churches and in large gatherings in the open
air, ministers will
urge upon the people the necessity of keeping the first day of the week." Review and Herald, Vol.1,
p. 405.
Please keep in mind that most of the religious
people of this world already worship on Sunday. So
it is not their ministers who are urging them to worship on Sunday. It will be our own professed SDA leadership who
will urge the necessity of keeping Sunday holy!
Remember, "We have far more to fear from within than from without." 1 S.M. 121.
"An apostate church will unite with the powers of earth and
hell to place upon the forehead or in the hand, the mark of the beast, and
prevail upon the children of God to worship the beast and his image. They will seek to compel them to renounce their allegiance to
God's law, and yield homage to the papacy. Then will the gold be separated from the dross, and it will
be made apparent who are godly, who are loyal and true, and who are the
disloyal, the dross and tinsel. Everyone who is not centered in Christ will
fail to stand the test and ordeal of that day." Review and Herald, Vol.2, p. 609.
THE END
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