The
Battle of Armageddon
and
The
Great Tribulation
by
Ellen
G. White
Many
professing Seventh-day Adventists believe the peace and safety lie that the
battle of Armageddon is merely a spiritual war. That is not true as the
following teaching by Ellen White portrays.
Chap.
249 - The Battle of Armageddon Joins
These shall make war with the Lamb, and the
Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they
that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful. Rev. 17:14.
We
need to study the pouring out of the seventh vial. The powers of evil will not
yield up the conflict without a struggle. But Providence has a part to act in
the battle of Armageddon. When the earth is lighted with the glory of the angel
of Revelation eighteen, the religious elements, good and evil, will awake from
slumber, and the armies of the living God will take the field. {Mar 257.1}
Four mighty angels hold back the powers of this earth till the
servants of God are sealed in their foreheads. The nations of the world are eager for
conflict; but they are held in check by the angels. When this
restraining power is removed, there will come a time of trouble and anguish.
Deadly instruments of warfare will be invented. Vessels, with their living
cargo, will be entombed in the great deep. All who have not the spirit of truth
will unite under the leadership of satanic agencies. But they are to be kept
under control till the time shall come for the great battle of Armageddon. {Mar 257.2}
Every form of evil is to spring into intense activity. Evil angels unite
their powers with evil men, and as they have been in constant conflict and
attained an experience in the best modes of deception and battle, and have been
strengthening for centuries, they will not yield the last great final contest
without a desperate struggle. All the world will be on one side or the other of
the question. The battle of Armageddon will be fought, and that day must find
none of us sleeping. Wide awake we must be, as wise virgins having oil in our
vessels with our lamps. . . . {Mar 257.3}
The
power of the Holy Ghost must be upon us, and the Captain of the Lord's host
will stand at the head of the angels of heaven to direct the battle. Solemn
events before us are yet to transpire. Trumpet after trumpet is to be sounded,
vial after vial poured out one after another upon the inhabitants of the earth.
Scenes of stupendous interest are right upon us. {Mar 257.4}
Chap. 17. - The Seven Last Plagues and the
Wicked
(The Great Time of Trouble, Part 1) [The Great
Tribulation]
The Vials of God's Wrath Will Be Poured Out
Solemn events before us are yet to transpire. Trumpet after trumpet is
to be sounded; vial after vial poured out one after another upon the
inhabitants of the earth.--3SM 426 (1890). {LDE 238.1}
The
world is soon to be left by the angel of mercy and the seven last plagues are
to be poured out. . . . The bolts of God's wrath are soon to fall, and when He
shall begin to punish the transgressors there will be no period of respite
until the end.--TM 182 (1894). {LDE 238.2}
The Nations in Conflict
Four mighty angels hold back the powers of this earth till the servants
of God are sealed in their foreheads. The nations of the world are eager for
239
conflict, but they are held in check by the
angels. When this restraining power is removed there will come a time of
trouble and anguish. Deadly instruments of warfare will be invented. Vessels
with their living cargo will be entombed in the great deep. All who have not
the spirit of truth will unite under the leadership of satanic agencies, but
they are to be kept under control till the time shall come for the great battle
of Armageddon.--7BC 967 (1900). {LDE
238.3}
The Whole World Will Be Involved
in Ruin
Angels are now restraining the winds of strife that they may not blow
until the world shall be warned of its coming doom, but a storm is gathering,
ready to burst upon the earth, and when God shall bid His angels loose the
winds there will be such a scene of strife as no pen can picture.--Ed 179, 180
(1903). {LDE 239.1}
The
Saviour's prophecy concerning the visitation of judgments upon Jerusalem is to
have another fulfillment, of which that terrible desolation was but a faint
shadow. In the fate of the chosen city we may behold the doom of a world that
has rejected God's mercy and trampled upon His law.--GC 36 (1911). {LDE 239.2}
Satan will then plunge the inhabitants of the earth into one great,
final trouble. As the angels of God cease to hold in check the fierce winds of
human passion, all the elements of strife will be let loose. The whole world
will be involved in ruin more terrible than that which came upon Jerusalem of
old.--GC 614 (1911). {LDE 239.3}
God Is Just, as Well as
Merciful
It
is the glory of God to be merciful, full of forbearance, kindness, goodness,
and truth. But the justice shown in punishing the sinner is as verily the glory
of the Lord as is the manifestation of His mercy.--RH March 10, 1904. {LDE 240.1}
The
Lord God of Israel is to execute judgment upon the gods of this world as upon
the gods of Egypt. With fire and flood, plagues and earthquakes, He will spoil
the whole land. Then His redeemed people will exalt His name and make it glorious
in the earth. Shall not those who are living in the last remnant of this
earth's history become intelligent in regard to God's lessons?--10MR 240, 241 (1899). {LDE 240.2}
The
One who has stood as our Intercessor; who hears all penitential prayers and
confessions; who is represented with a rainbow, the symbol of grace and love,
encircling His head, is soon to cease His work in the heavenly sanctuary. Grace
and mercy will then descend from the throne, and justice will take their place.
He for whom His people have looked will assume His right--the office of Supreme
Judge.--RH Jan. 1, 1889. {LDE 240.3}
In
all the Bible, God is presented not only as a Being of mercy and benevolence,
but as a God of strict and impartial justice.--ST March 24, 1881. {LDE 240.4}
The Certainty of God's
Judgments
God's love is represented in our day as being of such
241
a character as would forbid His destroying the
sinner. Men reason from their own low standard of right and justice. "Thou
thoughtest that I was altogether such an one as
thyself" (Ps. 50:21). They measure God by themselves. They reason as to
how they would act under the circumstances and decide God would do as they
imagine they would do. . . . {LDE 240.5}
In
no kingdom or government is it left to the lawbreakers to say what punishment
is to be executed against those who have broken the law. All we have, all the
bounties of His grace which we possess, we owe to God. The aggravating
character of sin against such a God cannot be estimated any more than the
heavens can be measured with a span. God is a moral governor as well as a
Father. He is the Lawgiver. He makes and executes His laws. Law that has no
penalty is of no force. {LDE 241.1}
The
plea may be made that a loving Father would not see His children suffering the
punishment of God by fire while He had the power to relieve them. But God
would, for the good of His subjects and for their safety, punish the
transgressor. God does not work on the plan of man. He can do infinite justice
that man has no right to do before his fellow man. Noah would have displeased
God to have drowned one of the scoffers and mockers that harassed him, but God
drowned the vast world. Lot would have had no right to inflict punishment on
his sons-in-law, but God would do it in strict justice. {LDE
241.2}
Who
will say God will not do what He says He will do?--12MR
207-209; 10MR 265 (1876). {LDE
241.3}
Judgments Come
When
God Removes His
Protection
I
was shown that the judgments of God would not come directly out from the Lord
upon them, but in this way: They place themselves beyond His protection. He
warns, corrects, reproves, and points out the only path of safety; then, if
those who have been the objects of His special care will follow their own
course, independent of the Spirit of God, after repeated warnings, if they
choose their own way, then He does not commission His angels to prevent Satan's
decided attacks upon them. {LDE 242.1}
It
is Satan's power that is at work at sea and on land, bringing calamity and
distress and sweeping off multitudes to make sure of his prey.--14MR 3 (1883). {LDE 242.2}
God
will use His enemies as instruments to punish those who have followed their own
pernicious ways whereby the truth of God has been misrepresented, misjudged,
and dishonored.--PC 136 (1894). {LDE 242.3}
Already the Spirit of God, insulted, refused, abused, is being withdrawn
from the earth. Just as fast as God's Spirit is taken away, Satan's cruel work
will be done upon land and sea.--Ms 134, 1898. {LDE
242.4}
The
wicked have passed the boundary of their probation; the Spirit of God,
persistently resisted, has been at last withdrawn. Unsheltered by divine grace,
they have no protection from the wicked one.--GC 614 (1911). {LDE 242.5}
At Times Holy Angels
Exercise Destructive Power [THE SINNER MUST HIMSELF BEAR FULL RESPONSIBILITY
FOR THE PUNISHMENT THAT IS METED OUT TO HIM. ELLEN WHITE STATES, "GOD
DESTROYS NO ONE. THE SINNER DESTROYS HIMSELF BY HIS OWN IMPENITENCE." 5T 120. SEE FURTHER THE GREAT CONTROVERSY, PP. 25-37.]
God's judgments were awakened against Jericho. It was a stronghold. But
the Captain of the Lord's host Himself came from heaven to lead the armies of
heaven in an attack upon the city. Angels of God laid hold of the massive walls
and brought them to the ground.--3T 264 (1873). {LDE 243.1}
Under God the angels are all-powerful. On one occasion, in obedience to
the command of Christ, they slew of the Assyrian army in one night one hundred
and eighty-five thousand men.--DA 700 (1898). {LDE
243.2}
The
same angel who had come from the royal courts to rescue Peter had been the
messenger of wrath and judgment to Herod. The angel smote Peter to arouse him
from slumber. It was with a different stroke that he smote the wicked king,
laying low his pride and bringing upon him the punishment of the Almighty.
Herod died in great agony of mind and body, under the retributive judgment of
God.--AA 152 (1911). {LDE 243.3}
A
single angel destroyed all the first-born of the Egyptians and filled the land
with mourning. When David offended against God by numbering the people, one
angel caused that terrible destruction by which his
244
sin was punished. The same destructive power
exercised by holy angels when God commands, will be exercised by evil angels
when He permits. There are forces now ready, and only waiting the divine
permission, to spread desolation everywhere.--GC 614 (1911). {LDE 243.4}
The First Two Plagues
When Christ ceases His intercession in the sanctuary, the unmingled
wrath threatened against those who worship the beast and his image and receive
his mark (Rev. 14:9, 10), will be poured out. The plagues upon Egypt when God
was about to deliver Israel, were similar in character to those more terrible
and extensive judgments which are to fall upon the world just before the final
deliverance of God's people. Says the revelator, in
describing those terrific scourges: "There fell a noisome and grievous sore
upon the men which had the mark of the beast, and upon them which worshiped his
image." The sea "became as the blood of a dead man: and every living
soul died in the sea" [Rev. 16:2, 3].--GC 627, 628 (1911). {LDE 244.1}
The
plagues were falling upon the inhabitants of the earth. Some were denouncing
God and cursing Him. Others rushed to the people of God and begged to be taught
how they might escape His judgments. But the saints had nothing for them. The
last tear for sinners had been shed, the last agonizing prayer offered, the
last burden borne, the last warning given.--EW 281
(1858). {LDE 244.2}
The Third Plague
I
saw that the four angels would hold the four winds until Jesus' work was done
in the sanctuary, and then will come the seven last plagues. These plagues
enraged the wicked against the righteous; they thought that we had brought the
judgments of God upon them and that if they could rid the earth of us the
plagues would then be stayed. A decree went forth to slay the saints, which
caused them to cry day and night for deliverance.--EW
36, 37 (1851). {LDE 245.1}
And
"the rivers and fountains of waters . . . became blood." Terrible as
these inflictions are, God's justice stands fully vindicated. The angel of God
declares: "Thou art righteous, O Lord, . . . because Thou hast judged
thus. For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and Thou hast given
them blood to drink; for they are worthy" (Rev. 16:2-6). By condemning the
people of God to death, they have as truly incurred the guilt of their blood as
if it had been shed by their hands.--GC 628 (1911). {LDE
245.2}
The Fourth Plague
In
the plague that follows, power is given to the sun "to scorch men with
fire. And men were scorched with great heat" (Rev. 16:8, 9). The prophets
thus describe the condition of the earth at this fearful time: "The land mourneth; . . . because the harvest of the field is
perished. . . . All the trees of the field are withered: because joy is
withered away from the sons of men."
246
"The seed is rotten under their clods,
the garners are laid desolate. . . . How do the beasts groan! the herds of
cattle are perplexed, because they have no pasture. . . . The rivers of water
are dried up, and the fire hath devoured the pastures of the wilderness."
"The songs of the temple shall be howlings in
that day, saith the Lord God: there shall be many dead bodies in every place;
they shall cast them forth with silence" (Joel 1:10-12, 17-20; Amos 8:3).
{LDE 245.3}
These plagues are not universal, or the inhabitants of the earth would
be wholly cut off. Yet they will be the most awful scourges that have ever been
known to mortals.--GC 628, 629 (1911). {LDE 246.1}
The Fifth Plague
With shouts of triumph, jeering, and imprecation, throngs of evil men
are about to rush upon their prey, when, lo, a dense blackness, deeper than the
darkness of the night, falls upon the earth. Then a rainbow, shining with the
glory from the throne of God, spans the heavens, and seems to encircle each
praying company. The angry multitudes are suddenly arrested. Their mocking
cries die away. The objects of their murderous rage are forgotten. With fearful
forebodings they gaze upon the symbol of God's covenant, and long to be
shielded from its overpowering brightness. . . . {LDE
246.2}
It
is at midnight that God manifests His power for the deliverance of His people.
The sun appears, shining in its strength. Signs and wonders follow in quick
succession. The wicked look with terror and amazement on the
247
scene, while the righteous behold with solemn
joy the tokens of their deliverance.--GC 635, 636 (1911). {LDE
246.3}
God's Law Appears in the
Sky
There appears against the sky a hand holding two tables of stone folded
together. Says the prophet, "The heavens shall declare His righteousness:
for God is judge Himself" (Ps. 50:6). That holy law, God's righteousness,
that amid thunder and flame was proclaimed from Sinai as the guide of life, is
now revealed to men as the rule of judgment. The hand opens the tables, and
there are seen the precepts of the Decalogue, traced as with a pen of fire. The
words are so plain that all can read them. Memory is aroused, the darkness of
superstition and heresy is swept from every mind, and God's ten words, brief,
comprehensive, and authoritative, are presented to the view of all the
inhabitants of the earth.--GC 639 (1911). {LDE 247.1}
The Lost Condemn Their False
Shepherds
Church members who have seen the light and been convicted, but who have
trusted the salvation of their souls to the minister, will learn in the day of
God that no other soul can pay the ransom for their transgression. A terrible
cry will be raised, "I am lost, eternally lost." Men will feel as
though they could rend in pieces the ministers who have preached falsehoods and
condemned the truth.--4BC 1157 (1900). {LDE 247.2}
All
unite in heaping their bitterest condemnation upon the ministers. Unfaithful
pastors have prophesied
248
smooth things; they have led their hearers to
make void the law of God and to persecute those who would keep it holy. Now, in
their despair, these teachers confess before the world their work of deception.
The multitudes are filled with fury. "We are lost!" they cry,
"and you are the cause of our ruin"; and they turn upon the false
shepherds. The very ones that once admired them most, will pronounce the most
dreadful curses upon them. The very hands that once crowned them with laurels,
will be raised for their destruction. The swords which were to slay God's
people, are now employed to destroy their enemies.--GC 655, 656 (1911). {LDE 247.3}
Here we see that the church--the Lord's sanctuary--was the first to feel
the stroke of the wrath of God. The ancient men [Eze. 9:6], those to whom God
had given great light and who had stood as guardians of the spiritual interests
of the people, had betrayed their trust.--5T 211
(1882). {LDE 248.1}
God's Word is made of none effect by false shepherds. . . . Their work
will soon react upon themselves. Then will be witnessed the scenes described in
Revelation 18 when the judgments of God shall fall upon mystical Babylon.--Ms
60, 1900. {LDE 248.2}
The Sixth Plague
The
spirits of devils will go forth to the kings of the earth and to the whole
world, to fasten them in deception, and urge them on to unite with Satan in his
last struggle against the government of heaven.--GC 624 (1911). {LDE 248.3}
The
Spirit of God is gradually withdrawing from the world. Satan is also mustering
his forces of evil, going forth "unto the kings of the earth and of the
whole world," to gather them under his banner, to be trained for "the
battle of that great day of God Almighty" [Rev. 16:14].--7BC 983 (1890). {LDE 249.1}
After John's description in Revelation 16 of that miracle-working power
which was to gather the world to the last great conflict, the symbols are
dropped and the trumpet voice once more gives a certain sound: "Behold, I
come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he
walk naked, and they see his shame" [Rev. 16:15]. After the transgression
of Adam and Eve they were naked, for the garment of light and security had
departed from them. {LDE 249.2}
The
world will have forgotten the admonition and warnings of God as did the
inhabitants of the Noatic world, as did also the
dwellers in Sodom. They awoke with all their plans and inventions of iniquity,
but suddenly the shower of fire came from heaven and consumed the godless
inhabitants. "Thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed"
[Luke 17:30].--14MR 96, 97 (1896). {LDE 249.3}
The Last Great Battle Between Good and Evil
Two
great opposing powers are revealed in the last great battle. On one side stands
the Creator of heaven and earth. All on His side bear His signet. They are
obedient to His commands. On the other side stands
250
the prince of darkness, with those who have
chosen apostasy and rebellion.--7BC 982, 983 (1901).
{LDE 249.4}
A
terrible conflict is before us. We are nearing the battle of the great day of
God Almighty. That which has been held in control is to be let loose. The angel
of mercy is folding her wings, preparing to step down from the throne and leave
the world to the control of Satan. The principalities and powers of earth are
in bitter revolt against the God of heaven. They are filled with hatred against
those who serve Him, and soon, very soon, will be fought the last great battle
between good and evil. The earth is to be the battle field--the scene of the
final contest and the final victory. Here, where for so long Satan has led men
against God, rebellion is to be forever suppressed.--RH May 13, 1902. {LDE 250.1}
The
battles waging between the two armies are as real as those fought by the armies
of this world, and on the issue of the spiritual conflict eternal destinies
depend.--PK 176 (c. 1914). {LDE
250.2}
All the World Will Be
Gathered on One Side or
the Other
All
the world will be on one side or the other of the question. The battle of
Armageddon will be fought. And that day must find none of us sleeping. Wide
awake we must be, as wise virgins having oil in our vessels with our lamps. The
power of the Holy Ghost must be upon us and the Captain of the Lord's host
251
will stand at the head of the angels of heaven
to direct the battle.--3SM 426 (1890). {LDE 250.3}
The
enmity of Satan against good will be manifested more and more as he brings his
forces into activity in his last work of rebellion, and every soul that is not
fully surrendered to God and kept by divine power will form an alliance with
Satan against heaven and join in battle against the Ruler of the universe.--TM
465 (1892). {LDE 251.1}
Soon all the inhabitants of the earth will have taken sides, either for
or against the government of heaven.--7T 141 (1902).
{LDE 251.2}
The Seventh Plague
We
need to study the pouring out of the seventh vial [Rev. 16:17-21]. The powers
of evil will not yield up the conflict without a struggle. But Providence has a
part to act in the battle of Armageddon. When the earth is lighted with the
glory of the angel of Revelation eighteen, the religious elements, good and
evil, will awake from slumber, and the armies of the living God will take the
field.--7BC 983 (1899). {LDE
251.3}
The
battle of Armageddon is soon to be fought. He on whose vesture is written the
name, King of kings and Lord of lords, leads forth the armies of heaven on white
horses, clothed in fine linen, clean and white [Rev. 19:11-16].--7BC 982 (1899). {LDE 251.4}
The
whole earth heaves and swells like the waves of the sea. Its surface is
breaking up. Its very foundations
252
seem to be giving way. Mountain chains are
sinking. Inhabited islands disappear. The seaports that have become like Sodom
for wickedness, are swallowed up by the angry waters. . . . The proudest cities
of the earth are laid low. The lordly palaces, upon which the world's great men
have lavished their wealth in order to glorify themselves, are crumbling to
ruin before their eyes. Prison walls are rent asunder, and God's people, who
have been held in bondage for their faith, are set free.--GC 637 (1911). {LDE 251.5}
-----
Original Message -----
From: Christine Guardo
To: undisclosed
recipients
Sent: Tuesday, August 31,
2010 1:12 PM
Subject: [TheAdventTimes]
The New Age Agenda by The Forerunner...Powerful
This is especially being targeted at the youth...Get The Word Out
Watch this video to see how these things were accomplished and how they are
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watch the videos...You will be Shocked..And 10 years ago these things were not
happening, but today they are all accepted in America...
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