The Star Sign
28 July
2009
The star portending the arrival of lord Maitraya has
been above
The “Prince of
the Power of the Air” is heralding his appearing. Is “Lord Maitreya” the
one spoken of who comes to personate Christ, whom Paul referred to in 2
Thessalonians?:
2:8 And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the
Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the
brightness of his coming:
2:9 [Even him], whose coming is after the working of
Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
2:10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in
them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they
might be saved.
2:11 And for this cause God shall send them strong
delusion, that they should believe a lie:
2:12 That they all might be damned who believed not
the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
See also the
YouTube presentation, “The ‘Star Sign’” at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yuuMOvy1KNE
http://www.share-international.org/maitreya/Ma_starsign.htm#Anchor-Share-49575
Maitreya's message will
be welcomed by all who demand social justice |
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“The answers to your problems are simple
indeed. . . The will to share must govern your lives. Without Sharing and
Justice, my brothers and sisters, man will know no peace. Take, then, the
only open course and trust in sharing to relieve the agony of the world. My
Teaching, thus, is simple. Know, then, the joys of Brotherhood. The principle
of sharing will lead you thereto. . . Make known by all means your stand for
Justice and Peace, and help your suffering brothers elsewhere in the world.”
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Maitreya
is emphatic that for us to survive, sharing, justice and cooperation must be
implemented globally for the good of all people and the planet. That the
voice of the people -- not the politicians or the back room lobbyists -- must
become the voice of wisdom that guides our decisions. That greed,
commercialization and unchecked market forces must be banished from our
affairs. The 'star' - there to get our attention A brilliant star-like luminary, shining
around the world night and day, was forecast in December 2008 as a sign that Maitreya’s first
public appearance was imminent. Since that time, the star has increasingly
been seen by the public, reported in the media, and shared on YouTube. The
World Teacher will soon appear on a major |
“Spiritualists
claim superior light and power. They have opened the door and invited the
prince of darkness in, and have made him their honored guest. They have allied
themselves to the powers of darkness which are developing in these last days in
signs and wonders, that if it were possible they would deceive the very elect. Spiritualists claim that they can do greater miracles than
Christ did. Satan made the same boasts to
Christ. Because the Son of God had linked Himself to the weakness of
humanity, to be tempted in all points like as man should be tempted, Satan
triumphed over Him, and taunted Him. He boasted of his superior strength, and
dared Him to open a controversy with him. {Con 87.2}
Spiritualists are
increasing in numbers. They will come to men who have the truth as Satan came
to Christ, tempting them to manifest their power and work miracles and give
evidence of their being favored of God and of their being the people who have
the truth. Satan said to Christ, "If thou be the Son of God, command that
these stones be made bread." Herod and Pilate asked Christ to work
miracles when He was on trial for His life. Their curiosity was aroused, but
Christ did not work a miracle to gratify them. {Con 88.1}
Spiritualists will
press the matter to engage in controversy with ministers who teach the truth.
If they decline, they will dare them. They will quote Scripture, as did Satan
to Christ. "Prove all things," say they. But their idea of proving is
to listen to their deceptive reasonings, and in attending their circles. But in their gatherings the angels of darkness assume the
forms of dead friends and communicate with them as angels of light. {Con
88.2}
Their loved ones will appear in robes of light, as familiar to the sight as when they were upon the earth. They will teach them and converse with them. And many will be deceived by this wonderful display of Satan's power. The only safety for the people of God is to be thoroughly conversant with their Bibles, and be intelligent upon the reasons of our faith in regard to the sleep of the dead. {Con 88.3}
Satan is a
cunning foe. And it is not difficult for the evil angels to represent both
saints and sinners who have died, and make these representations visible to human
eyes. These manifestations will be more frequent, and
developments of a more startling character will appear as we near the close of
time. We
need not be astonished at anything in the line of deceptions to allure the
unwary and deceive, if possible, the very elect. Spiritualists
quote,
‘Prove all things.’ But God has, for the benefit of His people who live amid the perils of the last days, proved this class, and given the result of His proving.” {Con 88.4, 89}
Here
is the entire statement:
Spiritism
Spiritualists make the path to hell most
attractive. Spirits of darkness are clothed by these deceptive teachers in pure
robes of heaven, and they have power to deceive those not fortified with Bible
truth. {Con 86.2}
Vain philosophy is employed in
representing the path to hell as a path of safety. With the imagination highly
wrought, and voices musically tuned, they picture the broad road as one of
happiness and glory. Ambition holds before deluded souls, as Satan presented to
Eve, a freedom and bliss for them to enjoy which they never conceived was
possible. Men are praised who have traveled the broad path to hell, and after
they die are exalted to the highest positions in the eternal world. {Con 86.3}
Satan, clothed in robes of brightness,
appearing like an exalted angel, tempted the world's Redeemer without success.
But as he comes to man robed as an angel of light he has better success. He
covers his hideous purposes, and succeeds too well in deluding the unwary who
are not firmly anchored upon eternal truth. {Con 86.4}
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Riches, power, genius, eloquence, pride,
perverted reason, and passion are enlisted as Satan's agents in doing his work
in making the broad road attractive, strewing it with tempting flowers. But
every word they have spoken against the world's Redeemer will be reflected back
upon them, and will one day burn into their guilty souls like molten lead. They
will be overwhelmed with terror and shame as they behold the exalted One coming
in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. Then shall the bold defier,
who lifted himself up against the Son of God, see himself in the true blackness
of his character. The sight of the inexpressible glory of the Son of God will
be intensely painful to those whose characters are stained with sin. The pure
light and glory emanating from Christ will awaken remorse, shame, and terror.
They will send forth wails of anguish to the rocks and mountains, "Fall on
us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the
wrath of the Lamb: for the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be
able to stand?" {Con 87.1}
Spiritualists claim superior light and
power. They have opened the door and invited the prince of darkness in, and
have made him their honored guest. They have allied themselves to the powers of
darkness which are developing in these last days in signs and wonders, that if
it were possible they would deceive the very elect. Spiritualists claim that
they can do greater miracles than Christ did. Satan made the same boasts to
Christ. Because the Son of God had linked Himself to the weakness of humanity,
to be tempted in all points like as man should be tempted, Satan triumphed over
Him, and taunted Him. He boasted of his superior strength, and dared Him to
open a controversy with him. {Con 87.2}
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Spiritualists are increasing in numbers.
They will come to men who have the truth as Satan came to Christ, tempting them
to manifest their power and work miracles and give evidence of their being
favored of God and of their being the people who have the truth. Satan said to
Christ, "If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made
bread." Herod and Pilate asked Christ to work miracles when He was on
trial for His life. Their curiosity was aroused, but Christ did not work a
miracle to gratify them. {Con 88.1}
Spiritualists will press the matter to
engage in controversy with ministers who teach the truth. If they decline, they
will dare them. They will quote Scripture, as did Satan to Christ. "Prove
all things," say they. But their idea of proving is to listen to their
deceptive reasonings, and in attending their circles. But in their gatherings
the angels of darkness assume the forms of dead friends and communicate with
them as angels of light. {Con 88.2}
Their loved ones will appear in robes of
light, as familiar to the sight as when they were upon the earth. They will
teach them and converse with them. And many will be deceived by this wonderful
display of Satan's power. The only safety for the people of God is to be
thoroughly conversant with their Bibles, and be intelligent upon the reasons of
our faith in regard to the sleep of the dead. {Con 88.3}
Satan is a cunning foe. And it is not
difficult for the evil angels to represent both saints and sinners who have
died, and make these representations visible to human eyes. These
manifestations will be more frequent, and developments of a more startling
character will appear as we near the close of time. We need not be astonished
at anything in the line of deceptions to allure the unwary and deceive, if
possible, the very elect. Spiritualists quote,
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"Prove
all things." But God has, for the benefit of His people who live amid the
perils of the last days, proved this class, and given the result of His
proving. {Con 88.4}
"Even him, whose coming is after the
working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, and with all
deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received
not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God
shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: that they all
might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in
unrighteousness." 2 Thess. 2:9-12. {Con 89.1}
John, upon the Isle of Patmos, saw the
things which should come upon the earth in the last days. Rev. 13:13; 16:14:
"And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven
on the earth in the sight of men." "For they are the spirits of
devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the
whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God
Almighty." {Con 89.2}
The apostle Peter distinctly points out
the class which will be manifested in these last days. {Con 89.3}
"But chiefly them that walk after the
flesh in the lust of uncleanness, and despise government. Presumptuous are
they, self-willed, they are not afraid to speak evil of dignities. Whereas
angels, which are greater in power and might, bring not railing accusation
against them before the Lord. But these, as natural brute beasts, made to be
taken and destroyed, speak evil of the things that they understand not; and
shall utterly perish in their own corruption; and shall receive the reward of
unrighteousness, as they that count it pleasure to riot in the daytime. Spots
they are and blemishes, sporting themselves with their own deceivings while
they feast with you; having
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eyes
full of adultery, and that cannot cease from sin; beguiling unstable souls: an
heart they have exercised with covetous practices; cursed children." 2
Peter 2:10-14. {Con 89.4}
God,
in His Word, has placed His stamp [of condemnation] upon the heresies of
spiritualism as He placed His mark upon Cain. The godly need not be deceived if
they are students of the Scriptures and obedient to follow the plain path
marked out for them in the Word of God. {Con 90.1}
The boastful spiritualist claims great
freedom, and in smooth, flowery language seeks to fascinate and delude unwary
souls to choose the broad path of pleasure and sinful indulgence, rather than
the narrow path and the straight way. Spiritualists call the requirements of
God's law bondage, and say those who obey them live a life of slavish fear.
With smooth words and fair speeches they boast of their freedom and seek to
cover their dangerous heresies with the garments of righteousness. They would
make the most revolting crimes be considered as blessings to the race. {Con
90.2}
They open before the sinner a wide door to
follow the promptings of the carnal heart, and violate the law of
God--especially the seventh commandment. Those who speak these great swelling
words of vanity, and who triumph in their freedom in sin, promise those whom
they deceive the enjoyment of freedom in a course of rebellion against the
revealed will of God. These deluded souls are themselves in the veriest bondage
to Satan and are controlled by his power, and yet promising liberty to those
who will dare to follow the same course of sin that they themselves have
chosen. {Con 90.3}
The Scriptures are indeed fulfilled in
this, that the blind are leading the blind. For by whom a man is overcome, of
the same is he brought in bondage. These deluded
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souls
are under the most abject slavery to the will of demons. They have allied
themselves to the powers of darkness and have no strength to go contrary to the
will of demons. This is their boasted liberty. By Satan are they overcome and
brought into bondage, and the great liberty promised to those they deceive is
helpless slavery to sin and Satan. {Con 90.4}
We are not to attend their circles,
neither are our ministers to engage in controversy with them. They are of that
class specified whom we should not invite into our houses or bid them Godspeed.
We have to compare their teachings with the revealed will of God. We are not to
engage in an investigation of spiritualism. God has investigated this for us,
and told us definitely that a class would arise in the last days who would deny
Christ who has purchased them with His own blood. The character of
spiritualists is so plainly described that we need not be deceived by them. If
we obey the divine injunction we shall have no sympathy with spiritualists,
however smooth and fair may be their words. {Con 91.1}
The beloved John continues his warning
against seducers: "Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the
Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son. Whosoever
denieth the Son, the same hath not the Father: [but] he that acknowledgeth the
Son hath the Father also." {Con 91.2}
In Paul's second Epistle to the
Thessalonians, he exhorts to be on guard and not depart from the faith. He
speaks of Christ's coming as an event to immediately follow the work of Satan
in spiritualism in these words: "Even him, whose coming is after the
working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, and with all
deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish;
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because
they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this
cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: that
they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in
unrighteousness." {Con 91.3}
In the Epistle of Paul to Timothy, he
foretells what will be manifested in the latter days. And this warning was for
the benefit of those who should live when these things should take place. God
revealed to His servant the perils of the church in the last days. He writes,
"Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall
depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of
devils; speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot
iron." {Con 92.1}
The faithful Peter speaks of the dangers
to which the Christian church would be exposed in the last days, and more fully
describes the heresies which would arise and the blaspheming seducers who would
seek to draw away souls after them. "But there were false prophets also
among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily
shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and
bring upon themselves swift destruction. And many shall follow their pernicious
ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of." {Con
92.2}
Here God has worked out for us the proof
of the class mentioned. They have refused to acknowledge Christ as the Son of
God, and they have no more reverence for the eternal Father than for His Son,
Jesus Christ. They have neither the Son nor the Father. And like their great
leader, the rebel chief, they are in rebellion against the law of God, and they
despise the blood of Christ. {Con 92.3}
We may rejoice in every condition of life,
and triumph
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under all
circumstances, because the Son of God came down from heaven and submitted to
bear our infirmities, and to endure sacrifice and death in order to give to us
immortal life. He will ever bear the marks of His earthly humiliation in man's
behalf. While the redeemed host and the pure angelic throng shall do Him honor
and worship Him, He will carry the marks of one that has been slain. The more
fully we appreciate the infinite sacrifice made in our behalf by a sin-atoning
Saviour, the more closely do we come into harmony with heaven. {Con 92.4}
Desire of Ages Statement on
End-time
Chap. 69 - On the Mount of
Olives
Christ's words to the priests and rulers,
"Behold, your house is left unto you desolate" (Matt. 23:38), had
struck terror to their hearts. They affected indifference, but the question
kept rising in their minds as to the import of these words. An unseen danger
seemed to threaten them. Could it be that the magnificent temple, which was the
nation's glory, was soon to be a heap of ruins? The foreboding of evil was
shared by the disciples, and they anxiously waited for some more definite
statement from Jesus. As they passed with Him out of the temple, they called
His attention to its strength and beauty. The stones of the temple were of the
purest marble, of perfect whiteness, and some of them of almost fabulous size.
A portion of the wall had withstood the siege by Nebuchadnezzar's army. In its
perfect masonry it appeared like one solid stone dug entire from the quarry.
How those mighty walls could be overthrown the disciples could not comprehend.
{DA 627.1}
As Christ's attention was attracted to the
magnificence of the temple, what must have been the unuttered thoughts of that
Rejected One! The view before Him was indeed beautiful, but He said with
sadness, I see it all. The buildings are indeed wonderful. You point to these
walls as apparently indestructible; but listen to My words: The day will come
when "there shall not be left one stone upon another, that shall not be
thrown down." {DA 627.2}
Christ's words had been spoken in the
hearing of a large number of people; but when He was alone, Peter, John, James,
and Andrew came to Him as He sat upon the Mount of Olives. "Tell us,"
they said, "when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of Thy
coming, and of the end of the world?" Jesus did not answer His disciples
by taking up separately the destruction of Jerusalem and the great day of His
coming. He mingled the description of these two events. Had He opened to His
disciples future events as He beheld them, they would have been unable to
endure the sight. In mercy to them He blended the description of the two great
crises, leaving the disciples to study out the meaning for themselves. When He
referred to the destruction of Jerusalem, His prophetic words reached beyond
that event to the final conflagration in that day when the Lord shall rise out
of His place to punish the world for their iniquity, when the earth shall
disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain. This entire discourse
was given, not for the disciples only, but for those who should live in the
last scenes of this earth's history. {DA 628.1}
Turning to the disciples, Christ said,
"Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in My name,
saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many." Many false messiahs will
appear, claiming to work miracles, and declaring that the time of the
deliverance of the Jewish nation has come. These will mislead many. Christ's
words were fulfilled. Between His death and the siege of Jerusalem many false
messiahs appeared. But this warning was given also to those who live in this
age of the world. The same deceptions practiced prior to the destruction of
Jerusalem have been practiced through the ages, and will be practiced again.
{DA 628.2}
"And ye shall hear of wars and rumors
of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass,
but the end is not yet." Prior to the destruction of Jerusalem, men
wrestled for the supremacy. Emperors were murdered. Those supposed to be
standing next the throne were slain. There were wars and rumors of wars.
"All these things must come to pass," said Christ, "but the end
[of the Jewish nation as a nation] is not yet. For nation shall rise against
nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and
pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. All these are the beginning of
sorrows." Christ said, As the rabbis see these signs, they will declare
them to be God's judgments upon the nations for holding in bondage His chosen
people. They will declare that these signs are the token of the advent of
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the Messiah. Be not deceived;
they are the beginning of His judgments. The people have looked to themselves.
They have not repented and been converted that I should heal them. The signs
that they represent as tokens of their release from bondage are signs of their
destruction. {DA 628.3}
"Then shall they deliver you up to be
afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for My
name's sake. And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and
shall hate one another." All this the Christians suffered. Fathers and
mothers betrayed their children. Children betrayed their parents. Friends
delivered their friends up to the Sanhedrin. The persecutors wrought out their
purpose by killing Stephen, James, and other Christians. {DA 629.1}
Through His servants, God gave the Jewish
people a last opportunity to repent. He manifested Himself through His
witnesses in their arrest, in their trial, and in their imprisonment. Yet their
judges pronounced on them the death sentence. They were men of whom the world
was not worthy, and by killing them the Jews crucified afresh the Son of God.
So it will be again. The authorities will make laws to restrict religious
liberty. They will assume the right that is God's alone. They will think they
can force the conscience, which God alone should control. Even now they are
making a beginning; this work they will continue to carry forward till they
reach a boundary over which they cannot step. God will interpose in behalf of
His loyal, commandment-keeping people. {DA 630.1}
On every occasion when persecution takes
place, those who witness it make decisions either for Christ or against Him.
Those who manifest sympathy for the ones wrongly condemned show their
attachment for Christ. Others are offended because the principles of truth cut
directly across their practice. Many stumble and fall, apostatizing from the
faith they once advocated. Those who apostatize in time of trial will, to
secure their own safety, bear false witness, and betray their brethren. Christ
has warned us of this, that we may not be surprised at the unnatural, cruel
course of those who reject the light. {DA 630.2}
Christ gave His disciples a sign of the
ruin to come on Jerusalem, and He told them how to escape: "When ye shall
see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is
nigh. Then let them which are in Judea flee to the mountains; and let them
which are in the midst of it depart out; and let not them that are in the
countries enter thereinto. For these be the days of vengeance, that all things
which are written may be fulfilled." This warning was given to be heeded
forty years after, at the destruction of Jerusalem. The Christians obeyed the
warning, and not a Christian perished in the fall of the city. {DA 630.3}
"Pray ye that your flight be not in
the winter; neither on the Sabbath day," Christ said. He who made the
Sabbath did not abolish it, nailing it to His cross. The Sabbath was not
rendered null and void by His death. Forty years after His crucifixion it was
still to be held sacred. For forty years the disciples were to pray that their
flight might not be on the Sabbath day. {DA 630.4}
From the destruction of Jerusalem, Christ
passed on rapidly to the greater event, the last link in the chain of this
earth's history,--the coming of the Son of God in majesty and glory. Between
these two events, there lay open to Christ's view long centuries of darkness,
centuries for His
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church marked with blood and
tears and agony. Upon these scenes His disciples could not then endure to look,
and Jesus passed them by with a brief mention. "Then shall be great
tribulation," He said, "such as was not since the beginning of the
world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. And except those days should be shortened,
there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be
shortened." For more than a thousand years such persecution as the world
had never before known was to come upon Christ's followers. Millions upon
millions of His faithful witnesses were to be slain. Had not God's hand been
stretched out to preserve His people, all would have perished. "But for
the elect's sake," He said, "those days shall be shortened." {DA
630.5}
Now, in unmistakable language, our Lord
speaks of His second coming, and He gives warning of dangers to precede His
advent to the world. "If any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ,
or there; believe it not. For there shall arise false christs, and false
prophets, and shall show great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were
possible, they shall deceive the very elect. Behold, I have told you before.
Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, He is in the desert; go not
forth: behold, He is in the secret chambers; believe it not. For as the lightning
cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the
coming of the Son of man be." As one of the signs of Jerusalem's
destruction, Christ had said, "Many false prophets shall rise, and shall
deceive many." False prophets did rise, deceiving the people, and leading
great numbers into the desert. Magicians and sorcerers, claiming miraculous
power, drew the people after them into the mountain solitudes. But this
prophecy was spoken also for the last days. This sign is given as a sign of the
second advent. Even now false christs and false prophets are showing signs and
wonders to seduce His disciples. Do we not hear the cry, "Behold, He is in
the desert"? Have not thousands gone forth into the desert, hoping to find
Christ? And from thousands of gatherings where men profess to hold communion
with departed spirits is not the call now heard, "Behold, He is in the
secret chambers"? This is the very claim that spiritism puts forth. But
what says Christ? "Believe it not. For as the lightning cometh out of the
east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of
man be." {DA 631.1}
The Saviour gives signs of His coming, and
more than this, He fixes the time when the first of these signs shall appear:
"Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be
darkened, and the moon
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shall not give her light, and
the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be
shaken: and then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then
shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man
coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He shall send
His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together His
elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other." {DA
631.2}
At the close of the great papal
persecution, Christ declared, the sun should be darkened, and the moon should
not give her light. Next, the stars should fall from heaven. And He says,
"Learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and
putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh: so likewise ye, when ye
shall see all these things, know that He is near, even at the doors."
Matt. 24:32, 33, margin. {DA 632.1}
Christ has given signs of His coming. He
declares that we may know when He is near, even at the doors. He says of those
who see these signs, "This generation shall not pass, till all these
things be fulfilled." These signs have appeared. Now we know of a surety
that the Lord's coming is at hand. "Heaven and earth shall pass
away," He says, "but My words shall not pass away." {DA 632.2}
Christ is coming with clouds and with
great glory. A multitude of shining angels will attend Him. He will come to
raise the dead, and to change the living saints from glory to glory. He will
come to honor those who have loved Him, and kept His commandments, and to take
them to Himself. He has not forgotten them nor His promise. There will be a
relinking of the family chain. When we look upon our dead, we may think of the
morning when the trump of God shall sound, when "the dead shall be raised
incorruptible, and we shall be changed." 1 Cor. 15:52. A little longer,
and we shall see the King in His beauty. A little longer, and He will wipe all
tears from our eyes. A little longer, and He will present us "faultless
before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy." Jude 24. Wherefore,
when He gave the signs of His coming He said, "When these things begin to
come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth
nigh." {DA 632.3}
But the day and the hour of His coming
Christ has not revealed. He stated plainly to His disciples that He Himself
could not make known the day or the hour of His second appearing. Had He been
at liberty to reveal this, why need He have exhorted them to maintain an
attitude of constant expectancy? There are those who claim to know the very day
and hour of our Lord's appearing. Very earnest are they in mapping out
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the future. But the Lord has
warned them off the ground they occupy. The exact time of the second coming of
the Son of man is God's mystery. {DA 632.4}
Christ continues, pointing out the
condition of the world at His coming: "As the days of Noah were, so shall
also the coming of the Son of man be. For as in the days that were before the
Flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the
day that Noah entered into the ark, and knew not until the Flood came, and took
them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be." Christ does
not here bring to view a temporal millennium, a thousand years in which all are
to prepare for eternity. He tells us that as it was in Noah's day, so will it
be when the Son of man comes again. {DA 633.1}
How was it in Noah's day? "God saw that
the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the
thoughts of his heart was only evil continually." Gen. 6:5. The
inhabitants of the antediluvian world turned from Jehovah, refusing to do His
holy will. They followed their own unholy imagination and perverted ideas. It
was because of their wickedness that they were destroyed; and today the world
is following the same way. It presents no flattering signs of millennial glory.
The transgressors of God's law are filling the earth with wickedness. Their
betting, their horse racing, their gambling, their dissipation, their lustful
practices, their untamable passions, are fast filling the world with violence.
{DA 633.2}
In the prophecy of Jerusalem's destruction
Christ said, "Because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax
cold. But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved. And this
gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all
nations; and then shall the end come." This prophecy will again be
fulfilled. The abounding iniquity of that day finds its counterpart in this
generation. So with the prediction in regard to the preaching of the gospel.
Before the fall of Jerusalem, Paul, writing by the Holy Spirit, declared that
the gospel was preached to "every creature which is under heaven."
Col. 1:23. So now, before the coming of the Son of man, the everlasting gospel
is to be preached "to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and
people." Rev. 14:6, 14. God "hath appointed a day, in the which He
will judge the world." Acts 17:31. Christ tells us when that day shall be
ushered in. He does not say that all the world will be converted, but that
"this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness
unto all nations; and then shall the end come." By giving the gospel to
the world it is in our power to hasten our Lord's return. We are not only to
look for but to hasten the coming of the day of God. 2 Peter 3:12, margin. Had
634
the church of Christ done her
appointed work as the Lord ordained, the whole world would before this have
been warned, and the Lord Jesus would have come to our earth in power and great
glory. {DA 633.3}
After He had given the signs of
His coming, Christ said, "When ye see these things come to pass, know ye
that the kingdom of God is nigh at hand." "Take ye heed, watch and
pray." God has always given men warning of coming judgments. Those who had
faith in His message for their time, and who acted out their faith, in
obedience to His commandments, escaped the judgments that fell upon the
disobedient and unbelieving. The word came to Noah, "Come thou and all thy
house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before Me." Noah obeyed
and was saved. The message came to Lot, "Up, get you out of this place;
for the Lord will destroy this city." Gen. 7:1; 19:14. Lot placed himself
under the guardianship of the heavenly messengers, and was saved. So Christ's disciples
were given warning of the destruction of Jerusalem. Those who watched for the
sign of the coming ruin, and fled from the city, escaped the destruction. So
now we are given warning of Christ's second coming and of the destruction to
fall upon the world. Those who heed the warning will be saved. {DA 634.1}
Because we know not the exact time of His
coming, we are commanded to watch. "Blessed are those servants, whom the
Lord when He cometh shall find watching." Luke 12:37. Those who watch for
the Lord's coming are not waiting in idle expectancy. The expectation of
Christ's coming is to make men fear the Lord, and fear His judgments upon
transgression. It is to awaken them to the great sin of rejecting His offers of
mercy. Those who are watching for the Lord are purifying their souls by
obedience to the truth. With vigilant watching they combine earnest working.
Because they know that the Lord is at the door, their zeal is quickened to
co-operate with the divine intelligences in working for the salvation of souls.
These are the faithful and wise servants who give to the Lord's household
"their portion of meat in due season." Luke 12:42. They are declaring
the truth that is now specially applicable. As Enoch, Noah, Abraham, and Moses
each declared the truth for his time, so will Christ's servants now give the
special warning for their generation. {DA 634.2}
But Christ brings to view another class:
"If that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming;
and shall begin to smite his fellow servants, and to eat and drink with the
drunken; the lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for
him." {DA 634.3}
The evil servant says in his heart,
"My lord delayeth his coming." He does not say that Christ will not
come. He does not scoff at the idea of His second coming. But in his heart and
by his actions and words he declares that the Lord's coming is delayed. He
banishes from the minds of others the conviction that the Lord is coming
quickly. His influence leads men to presumptuous, careless delay. They are
confirmed in their worldliness and stupor. Earthly passions, corrupt thoughts,
take possession of the mind. The evil servant eats and drinks with the drunken,
unites with the world in pleasure seeking. He smites his fellow servants,
accusing and condemning those who are faithful to their Master. He mingles with
the world. Like grows with like in transgression. It is a fearful assimilation.
With the world he is taken in the snare. "The lord of that servant shall
come . . . in an hour that he is not aware of, and shall cut him asunder, and
appoint him his portion with the hypocrites." {DA 635.1}
"If therefore thou shalt not watch, I
will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon
thee." Rev. 3:3. The advent of Christ will surprise the false teachers.
They are saying, "Peace and safety." Like the priests and teachers
before the fall of Jerusalem, they look for the church to enjoy earthly
prosperity and glory. The signs of the times they interpret as foreshadowing
this. But what saith the word of Inspiration? "Sudden destruction cometh
upon them." 1 Thess. 5:3. Upon all who dwell on the face of the whole
earth, upon all who make this world their home, the day of God will come as a
snare. It comes to them as a prowling thief. {DA 635.2}
The world, full of rioting, full of
godless pleasure, is asleep, asleep in carnal security. Men are putting afar
off the coming of the Lord. They laugh at warnings. The proud boast is made,
"All things continue as they were from the beginning." "Tomorrow
shall be as this day, and much more abundant." 2 Peter 3:4; Isa. 56:12. We
will go deeper into pleasure loving. But Christ says, "Behold, I come as a
thief." Rev. 16:15. At the very time when the world is asking in scorn,
"Where is the promise of His coming?" the signs are fulfilling. While
they cry, "Peace and safety," sudden destruction is coming. When the
scorner, the rejecter of truth, has become presumptuous; when the routine of
work in the various money-making lines is carried on without regard to
principle; when the student is eagerly seeking knowledge of everything but his
Bible, Christ comes as a thief. {DA 635.3}
Everything in the world is in agitation.
The signs of the times are ominous. Coming events cast their shadows before.
The Spirit of God is withdrawing from the earth, and calamity follows calamity
by sea and by land. There are tempests, earthquakes, fires, floods, murders of
every grade. Who can read the future? Where is security? There is assurance in
nothing that is human or earthly. Rapidly are men ranging themselves under the
banner they have chosen. Restlessly are they waiting and watching the movements
of their leaders. There are those who are waiting and watching and working for
our Lord's appearing. Another class are falling into line under the generalship
of the first great apostate. Few believe with heart and soul that we have a
hell to shun and a heaven to win. {DA 636.1}
The crisis is stealing gradually upon us.
The sun shines in the heavens, passing over its usual round, and the heavens
still declare the glory of God. Men are still eating and drinking, planting and
building, marrying, and giving in marriage. Merchants are still buying and
selling. Men are jostling one against another, contending for the highest
place. Pleasure lovers are still crowding to theaters, horse races, gambling
hells. The highest excitement prevails, yet probation's hour is fast closing,
and every case is about to be eternally decided. Satan sees that his time is
short. He has set all his agencies at work that men may be deceived, deluded,
occupied and entranced, until the day of probation shall be ended, and the door
of mercy be forever shut. {DA 636.2}
Solemnly there come to us down through the
centuries the warning words of our Lord from the Mount of Olives: "Take
heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with
surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon
you unawares." "Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be
accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to
stand before the Son of man." {DA 636.3}