Physical Regeneration or How God Resurrects the Bodies of the 144,000

1Co 15:20 But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.

Col 1:18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.

“The human agent plants the seed, and God waters it and causes His sun to shine upon it, and up springs the tiny blade. Here is the lesson God gives to us concerning the resurrection of the body, and the renewing of the heart. We are to learn of spiritual things from the development of the earthly.” {TM 242.2}

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This study is not for myopic minds that refuse to think outside of their preconceived “sandbox” opinions. This topic requires much prayer and spiritual discernment far beyond the care or desires of any surface reader. The critics of Physical Regeneration won’t touch these problems by answering clear questions regarding them. IT BEHOOVES EVERY READER OF THIS DOCUMENT TO CONTACT SDA LEADERS AND EVERY SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTIST THEY KNOW, SO AS TO APPRISE THEM OF THE COLOSSAL PROBLEMS CITED IN THIS DOCUMENT THAT THE CORRECT REMEDY MIGHT BE APPLIED! If this is not done, many will continue to leave the ranks of the SDA church, thinking that Ellen White and the SDA church are imposters. NOT ALL MEMBERS WILL STICK THEIR HEADS IN THE SAND ON THE SERIOUS ISSUES YOU ARE ABOUT TO WITNESS!

The problems cited in this document are FAR TOO SERIOUS AND DEEP SEATED for any neophyte ignorant opinion! The serious issues stated herein DEMAND AN HONEST RESPONSE FROM THE HIGHEST THOUGHT LEADERS IN SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTISM!

Jesus is referred to as the FIRSTBEGOTTEN FROM THE DEAD. Problem, the following persons were resurrected from the dead BEFORE Christ was:

·       Moses

·       Lazarus

·       The damsel that Jesus raised.

·       The Widow of Nain’s son.

 

The point is this: If Jesus was the FIRSTFRUITS, FIRSTBORN from the dead, this signifies that there will be a second, third, fourth, etc., etc. person(s) born from the dead. Jesus WAS NOT the first person raised from the dead. He is the firstfruits, firstborn of them that SLEPT. More definitively, Christ was the firstfruits, firstborn of the 144,000 in a way that He WAS NOT the firstborn of all men. How do we decipher this distinction in the Bible?

 

Rev 14:4 These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins. These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth. These were redeemed from among men, being the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb.

 

Distinctions Between the 144,000 and the Guests at the Wedding

 

·       The 144,000 are the bride of Christ that follow Him wherever He goes.

·       The 144,000 bride awakens ALL TEN VIRGINS at the Loud Cry. Christ’s Object Lessons, pp. 405, 406.

·       Only the bride, Zion, the 144,000 are married, Isaiah 62:1-5.

·       The bride has sons and daughters (guests at the wedding) Isaiah 62.

·       The bride Zion, Philadelphia, is a strictly pure virgin, Isaiah 62:5, which is the meaning of the Hebrew word virgin--bethulah, versus the 10 virgin sons and daughters of Zion who have been concubines.

·       The 144,000 have never been KNOWINGLY defiled with women (fallen churches) that are defiled by ecumenical liaison with Babylon.

·       The 144,000 are BLAMELESS as is Philadelphia.

·       Only the 144,000 go into the Temple on Mt. Zion.

·       Philadelphians, circa A. D. 1, are told they will be PILLARS (LEADERS) IN THE TEMPLE ON MT. ZION IN HEAVEN.

·       How could Philadelphians of the first century be made PILLARS in the Temple on Mt. Zion in heaven, if as Ellen White says in Early Writings, p. 19, that only the 144,000 go into that Temple and that they are translated WITHOUT SEEING DEATH. This is one of the greatest PROOFS for regeneration of the bride of all ages for the Investigative Judgment, for if Regeneration is not true, Ellen White would hereby contradict God’s Word!

·       HUGE, COLOSSAL, GARGANTUAN PROBLEM: So it’s Early Writings, p. 19, on the 144,000 only going into the Temple, BEING TRANSLATED WITHOUT SEEING DEATH versus Philadelphians of the first century going into that Temple to be made PILLARS (LEADERS--lesser Priests while Christ is the High Priest)-- OR: Physical Regeneration of the 144,000, THE BRIDE, PHILADELPHIANS of all ages is TRUE, OR-- Ellen White in Early Writings, p. 19, contradicts God’s Word in Revelation 3:10-12, and she would thereby be A FALSE PROPHET. Take your choice! Choose ye this day whom ye will serve. AND I DON’T BELIEVE FOR ONE INSTANT THAT ELLEN WHITE WAS/IS A FALSE PROPHET!

·       The only solvency of this problem is that the 144,000 are translated without seeing death AFTER being Physically Regenerated and Spiritually Regenerated for the Investigative Judgment.

·       Any SDA that refuses to deal with this clear DILEMMA that involves a direct contradiction between God’s Word and Ellen White--UNLESS REGENERATION IS TRUE, is a deceptive coward who is sticking his/her head in the sand and ignoring A HUGE “APPARENT CONTRADICTION.”

·       Yet another GARGANTUAN PROBLEM is the fact that in the Sanctuary Service, NO SINS GO INTO THE TEMPLE ON THE DAY OF ATONEMENT. So since 1844, which SDA’s regard as the Antitypical Day of Atonement, NO CONFESSED SINS HAVE BEEN ABLE TO GO INTO THE SANCTUARY IN HEAVEN TO BE FORGIVEN. All sins had to be confessed BEFOREHAND, BEFORE THE DAY OF ATONEMENT, and go into the Sanctuary BEFOREHAND. This problem DEMANDS Regeneration as THE ONLY SOLUTION, or Ellen White and the SDA church is AN IMPOSTER, for God says that HIS WAY is in the Sanctuary. Will critics of Physical Regeneration tackle this problem? Nay! They are cowards and merely stick their heads in the sand regarding this ALL TOO OBVIOUS PROBLEM with Ellen White and professing Seventh-day Adventism. But there are intelligent people who won’t stick their head in the sand!!!!!!! They will choose THE ONE AND ONLY SOLUTION--PHYSICAL REGENERATION FOR THE INVSTIGATIVE JUDGMENT, or leave the church and brand Ellen White as a false prophet.

·       1Ti 5:24 Some men's sins are open beforehand, going before to judgment; and some men they follow after.

·       Notice the word JUDGMENT (above) in 1Ti 5:24. This refers to AND IS TREMENDOUS PROOF OF THE INVESTIGATIVE JUDGMENT!

·       The sins of all who are saved must go into the Sanctuary BEFORE the Day of Atonement in order to be dealt with in the Most Holy Place.

·       The wicked are judged as well during the Investigative Judgment, for every case is so judged. Their sins never enter the Sanctuary because only the sins of the saved were confessed and repented of BEFORE 1844, in order to enter the Sanctuary JUST PRIOR TO THE DAY OF ATONEMENT.

·       The sins of the wicked will FOLLOW AFTER to be judged by the 144,000 during the Millennium, who will judge the wicked for a second time to prove to all the worlds and the unfallen angels that Christ’s judgment was fair and just. What a God of JUSTICE WE HAVE!

 

Christ is the firstborn of all saved men who are risen from the dead, BUT NOT IN THE SAME WAY HE IS THE FIRSTFRUITS OF THE BRIDE, THE 144,000 who are His body, of which He is the HEAD. Frankly speaking, if you can’t see a clear distinction between the BRIDE and the TEN VIRGINS in Christ’s Object Lessons, pp. 405-406, and The Great Controversy, pp. 426, 427, you simply don’t have the least modicum of spiritual discernment. The same goes for Isaiah 62:10-12, where in verses 11, 12, the bride is instructed to say something to her daughter (the TEN VIRGINS), and this is a paraphrase of the Midnight Loud Cry.

1Co 15:20 But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.

Col 1:18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the pre-eminence.

Though pre-eminence (the greatest) is a meaning of firstfruits, firstborn, that is not the only meaning. How can you know that for a living fact? You can know this by the fact that Christ was indeed the greatest, BUT WAS NOT THE FIRST (IN ORDER) who was resurrected from the dead.

Because Jesus WAS NOT NEUMERICALLY the first person resurrected from the dead, this signifies that there is more to this “apparent” contradiction than first meets the eye and we are instructed to interpret so that nothing contradicts.

The Answer to the Riddle of the Full Meaning of Firstfruits, Firstborn From the Dead

There is a most curious statement by Ellen G. White that adds much insight into this “apparent” contradiction regarding the resurrection of the body, to wit:

“The human agent plants the seed, and God waters it and causes His sun to shine upon it, and up springs the tiny blade. Here is the lesson God gives to us concerning the resurrection of the body, and the renewing of the heart. We are to learn of spiritual things from the development of the earthly.” Testimonies to Ministers, p. 243.

·       There are TWO LESSONS involved in the above statement: 1) The PHYSICAL resurrection of the body, and 2) The SPIRITUAL new birth, the renewing of the heart.

·       The resurrection of the body is PHYSICAL REGENERATION.

·       The renewing of the heart is SPIRITUAL REGENERATION.

·       What does the human agent’s planting of the seed have to do with the resurrection of the body? That is a profound and deep question involved in the riddle of Christ being the FIRSTBORN, FIRSTFRUITS from the dead, or them that slept, when He WAS NOT the first person raised from the dead.

·       In the Incarnation, the Holy Ghost planted the seed in Mary’s womb, and a human body was produced. That was the first “resurrection” of the Son of God in the form of another body (Number 2) distinct from His first body in the form of being DIVINE ONLY.

·       Christ’s second body was to test His character as a human person in His Investigative Judgment. Man’s second body is to test His character in a real, live Investigative Judgment. It is in this sense that Christ was the firstfruits, firstborn of all who are raised from the dead from 1844 and on in man’s Investigative Judgment. As Christ bore out the character He possessed in His first life, so will the 144,000 bear out the character they formed (possessed) in their first life, and they thus become second, third, fourth etc., etc., fruits of those born from the dead. THIS IS THE LESSON OF THE RESURRECTION SO THAT NOTHING CONTRADICTS--SO THAT CHRIST WAS INDEED THE FIRSTFRUITS, FIRSTBORN of all who are thus tested, tried and proven, as was Christ. The following subjects DID NOT go through that process of the Investigative Judgment, so they don’t qualify as second, third, fourth…fruits of those born from the dead, because they died and were resurrected BEFORE Christ did, and BEFORE the Investigative Judgment.

·       Moses

·       The two Widow’s sons.

·       Lazarus

·       The damsel that Jesus raised.

·       The Widow of Nain’s son.

·       The obvious and only meaning in regard to the human planting of the seed, AS FAR AS THE LESSON GOD GIVES US CONCERNING THE RESURRECTION OF THE BODY is concerned, is that the human agent sires his seed in a womb and that womb yields a body, a person, and that is the lesson GOD GIVES, not ME OR MR. JOHNSON; that is the lesson GOD GIVES TO US concerning the resurrection of the body INSOFAR AS THE RESURRECTION OF THE 144,000 FIRSTFRUITS, FIRSTBORN ARE CONCERNED. All others are raised from a dead grave. But the “grave” for the 144,000 is an awakening as to who they really are when Christ delivers them at His coming.

·       The obvious intent relative to the resurrection of the body is that God resurrects the bodies of all humans who have ever lived for the Investigative Judgment by the normal human birthing process. Those who ARE NOT part of the 144,000 are judged first. Then they die and return to the grave. The 144,000 are judged last and remain on the earth to be translated without seeing death AFTER they have died ONCE, and then the JUDGEMENT--THE INVESTIGATIVE JUDGMENT.

This is what it means to be second, third, fourth, etc., of those who are born from the dead as Christ was born in His Incarnation from Divine to human form. In other words, all who died and were resurrected BEFORE the Investigative Judgement beginning in 1844, COULD NOT POSSIBLY BE THE SECOND, THIRD, FOURTH, etc., of the firstfruits, firstborn from the dead, because they never went through the LIVE JUDGMENT PROCESS of the Investigative Judgment.

The Purpose of the Investigative Judgment

The purpose of the Investigative Judgment, is for Christ to come to the wedding, beginning in 1844, pp. Great Controversy, pp. 426-429, to examine the bride and the guests at the wedding. Notice:

“Besides the coming of the Lord to His temple, Malachi also foretells His second advent, His coming for the execution of the judgment, in these words: "And I will come near

Page 426

to you to judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, and against the adulterers, and against false swearers, and against those that oppress the hireling in his wages, the widow, and the fatherless, and that turn aside the stranger from his right, and fear not Me, saith the Lord of hosts." Malachi 3:5. Jude refers to the same scene when he says, "Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of His saints, to execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds." Jude 14, 15. This coming, and the coming of the Lord to His temple, are distinct and separate events.

The coming of Christ as our high priest to the most holy place, for the cleansing of the sanctuary, brought to view in Daniel 8:14; the coming of the Son of man to the Ancient of Days, as presented in Daniel 7:13; and the coming of the Lord to His temple, foretold by Malachi, are descriptions of the same event; and this is also represented by the coming of the bridegroom to the marriage, described by Christ in the parable of the ten virgins, of Matthew 25.

In the summer and autumn of 1844 the proclamation, "Behold, the Bridegroom cometh," was given. The two classes represented by the wise and foolish virgins were then developed--one class who looked with joy to the Lord's appearing, and who had been diligently preparing to meet Him; another class that, influenced by fear and acting from impulse, had been satisfied with a theory of the truth, but were destitute of the grace of God. In the parable, when the bridegroom came, "they that were ready went in with him to the marriage." The coming of the bridegroom, here brought to view, takes place before the marriage. The marriage represents the reception by Christ of His kingdom. The Holy City, the New Jerusalem, which is the capital and representative of the kingdom, is called "the bride, the Lamb's wife." Said the angel to John: "Come hither, I will show thee the bride, the Lamb's wife." "He carried me away in the spirit," says the prophet, "and showed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God." Revelation

Page 427

21:9, 10. Clearly, then, the bride represents the Holy City, and the virgins that go out to meet the bridegroom are a symbol of the church. In the Revelation the people of God are said to be the guests at the marriage supper. Revelation 19:9. If guests, they cannot be represented also as the bride. Christ, as stated by the prophet Daniel, will receive from the Ancient of Days in heaven, "dominion, and glory, and a kingdom;" He will receive the New Jerusalem, the capital of His kingdom, "prepared as a bride adorned for her husband." Daniel 7:14; Revelation 21:2. Having received the kingdom, He will come in His glory, as King of kings and Lord of lords, for the redemption of His people, who are to "sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob," at His table in His kingdom (Matthew 8:11; Luke 22:30), to partake of the marriage supper of the Lamb.

The proclamation, "Behold, the Bridegroom cometh," in the summer of 1844, led thousands to expect the immediate advent of the Lord. At the appointed time the Bridegroom came, not to the earth, as the people expected, but to the Ancient of Days in heaven, to the marriage, the reception of His kingdom. "They that were ready went in with Him to the marriage: and the door was shut." They were not to be present in person at the marriage; for it takes place in heaven, while they are upon the earth. The followers of Christ are to "wait for their Lord, when He will return from the wedding." Luke 12:36. But they are to understand His work, and to follow Him by faith as He goes in before God. It is in this sense that they are said to go in to the marriage.

In the parable it was those that had oil in their vessels with their lamps that went in to the marriage. Those who, with a knowledge of the truth from the Scriptures, had also the Spirit and grace of God, and who, in the night of their bitter trial, had patiently waited, searching the Bible for clearer light--these saw the truth concerning the sanctuary in heaven and the Saviour's change in ministration, and by faith they followed Him in His work in the sanctuary above. And all who through the testimony of the Scriptures accept the

Page 428

same truths, following Christ by faith as He enters in before God to perform the last work of mediation, and at its close to receive His kingdom--all these are represented as going in to the marriage.

In the parable of Matthew 22 the same figure of the marriage is introduced, and the investigative judgment is clearly represented as taking place before the marriage. Previous to the wedding the king comes in to see the guests, to see if all are attired in the wedding garment, the spotless robe of character washed and made white in the blood of the Lamb. Matthew 22:11; Revelation 7:14. He who is found wanting is cast out, but all who upon examination are seen to have the wedding garment on are accepted of God and accounted worthy of a share in His kingdom and a seat upon His throne. This work of examination of character, of determining who are prepared for the kingdom of God, is that of the investigative judgment, the closing of work in the sanctuary above.

When the work of investigation shall be ended, when the cases of those who in all ages have professed to be followers of Christ have been examined and decided, then, and not till then, probation will close, and the door of mercy will be shut. Thus in the one short sentence, "They that were ready went in with Him to the marriage: and the door was shut," we are carried down through the Saviour's final ministration, to the time when the great work for man's salvation shall be completed.

In the service of the earthly sanctuary, which, as we have seen, is a figure of the service in the heavenly, when the high priest on the Day of Atonement entered the most holy place, the ministration in the first apartment ceased. God commanded: "There shall be no man in the tabernacle of the congregation when he goeth in to make an atonement in the holy place, until he comes out." Leviticus 16:17. So when Christ entered the holy of holies to perform the closing work of the atonement, He ceased His ministration in the first apartment. But when the ministration in the first apartment

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ended, the ministration in the second apartment began. When in the typical service the high priest left the holy on the Day of Atonement, he went in before God to present the blood of the sin offering in behalf of all Israel who truly repented of their sins. So Christ had only completed one part of His work as our intercessor, to enter upon another portion of the work, and He still pleaded His blood before the Father in behalf of sinners.” GC, p. 426-429.

HUGE PROBLEM DEFINED:

Professor J. Wilfred Johnson brought this HUGE PROBLEM to the notice of God’s people. BEFORE the Day of Atonement, all the sins of the people from the prior year had to be confessed. This means that if 1844 began THE ANTITYPICAL DAY OF ATONEMENT, all the sins of God’s professed people AND ESPECIALLY HIS BRIDE, the 144,000, had to be confessed before JESUS CLOSED THE OUTER DOOR TO THE HOLY PLACE to enter the Most Holy Place.

QUESTION: How could that occur through any other means than the Regeneration of all humans BEFORE 1844? How could YOUR SINS AND MINE have been confessed BEFORE THE ANTITYPICAL DAY OF ATONEMENT IN 1844?

Our Options

1.    Accept the theory of Regeneration which solves all of the above problems so that NOTHING CONTRADICTS.

2.    Brand Ellen White as a false prophet and the Investigative Judgment as an IMPOSTER!

3.    If you choose option number 2, you indict God Almighty with not fulfilling His promise to give the gift of prophecy to His Church until Christ comes.

·       FOR THE INVESTIGATIVE JUDGMENT, whereby the human plants the seed, God blesses that seed in a human womb, and a person is born or resurrected. That is the only POSSIBLE meaning to any lesson paralleling the “human planting of a seed” and the resurrection.

·       This interpretation fits the biblical instruction that Christ is the firstfruits, firstborn of all who are resurrected at the end of time, AND HOW THEY ARE RESURRECTED from a sleep, an amnesia state as to who you are. In other words, the resurrection is an awakening at a specified time as to just who the resurrected “seed” (Person) is.

·       Christ had two bodies--the one BEFORE His Incarnation, the one after His Incarnation, which was the same as the body He had after His resurrection from His death on the cross, the firstfruit, the one AFTER His firstfruit, firstborn resurrection.

·       Any LESSON taught by the resurrection of Christ, must follow this (above) pattern, if we interpret this entire matter so that nothing contradicts. In other words, Christ was the FIRSTFRUITS, FIRSTBORN from a SECOND LIFE, WHICH WAS TESTED BY AN INVESTIGATIVE JUDGMENT LIKE TEST.

·       Heb 9:27 And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: Some died more than once BEFORE the Investigative Judgment.

·       Those who are Regenerated for the Investigative Judgment are reborn according to the Template of the character they developed in their first life. But Christ was the FIRSTFRUITS, FIRSTBORN of those who will be born two times, the second time being for the Investigative Judgment.

·       Moses

·       Lazarus

·       The damsel that Jesus raised.

·       The Widow of Nain’s son.

·       The new birth element is the born again experience the RESURRECTED BODY, THE NEW BORN BODY, must go through in order to be saved.

 

Christ came to the marriage in 1844, and all who were ready went in with Him to the marriage, The Great Controversy, pp. 426-432:

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to you to judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, and against the adulterers, and against false swearers, and against those that oppress the hireling in his wages, the widow, and the fatherless, and that turn aside the stranger from his right, and fear not Me, saith the Lord of hosts." Malachi 3:5. Jude refers to the same scene when he says, "Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of His saints, to execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds." Jude 14, 15. This coming, and the coming of the Lord to His temple, are distinct and separate events.

The coming of Christ as our high priest to the most holy place, for the cleansing of the sanctuary, brought to view in Daniel 8:14; the coming of the Son of man to the Ancient of Days, as presented in Daniel 7:13; and the coming of the Lord to His temple, foretold by Malachi, are descriptions of the same event; and this is also represented by the coming of the bridegroom to the marriage, described by Christ in the parable of the ten virgins, of Matthew 25.

In the summer and autumn of 1844 the proclamation, "Behold, the Bridegroom cometh," was given. The two classes represented by the wise and foolish virgins were then developed--one class who looked with joy to the Lord's appearing, and who had been diligently preparing to meet Him; another class that, influenced by fear and acting from impulse, had been satisfied with a theory of the truth, but were destitute of the grace of God. In the parable, when the bridegroom came, "they that were ready went in with him to the marriage." The coming of the bridegroom, here brought to view, takes place before the marriage. The marriage represents the reception by Christ of His kingdom. The Holy City, the New Jerusalem, which is the capital and representative of the kingdom, is called "the bride, the Lamb's wife." Said the angel to John: "Come hither, I will show thee the bride, the Lamb's wife." "He carried me away in the spirit," says the prophet, "and showed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God." Revelation

Page 427

21:9, 10. Clearly, then, the bride represents the Holy City, and the virgins that go out to meet the bridegroom are a symbol of the church. In the Revelation the people of God are said to be the guests at the marriage supper. Revelation 19:9. If guests, they cannot be represented also as the bride. Christ, as stated by the prophet Daniel, will receive from the Ancient of Days in heaven, "dominion, and glory, and a kingdom;" He will receive the New Jerusalem, the capital of His kingdom, "prepared as a bride adorned for her husband." Daniel 7:14; Revelation 21:2. Having received the kingdom, He will come in His glory, as King of kings and Lord of lords, for the redemption of His people, who are to "sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob," at His table in His kingdom (Matthew 8:11; Luke 22:30), to partake of the marriage supper of the Lamb.

The proclamation, "Behold, the Bridegroom cometh," in the summer of 1844, led thousands to expect the immediate advent of the Lord. At the appointed time the Bridegroom came, not to the earth, as the people expected, but to the Ancient of Days in heaven, to the marriage, the reception of His kingdom. "They that were ready went in with Him to the marriage: and the door was shut." They were not to be present in person at the marriage; for it takes place in heaven, while they are upon the earth. The followers of Christ are to "wait for their Lord, when He will return from the wedding." Luke 12:36. But they are to understand His work, and to follow Him by faith as He goes in before God. It is in this sense that they are said to go in to the marriage.

In the parable it was those that had oil in their vessels with their lamps that went in to the marriage. Those who, with a knowledge of the truth from the Scriptures, had also the Spirit and grace of God, and who, in the night of their bitter trial, had patiently waited, searching the Bible for clearer light--these saw the truth concerning the sanctuary in heaven and the Saviour's change in ministration, and by faith they followed Him in His work in the sanctuary above. And all who through the testimony of the Scriptures accept the

Page 428

same truths, following Christ by faith as He enters in before God to perform the last work of mediation, and at its close to receive His kingdom--all these are represented as going in to the marriage.

In the parable of Matthew 22 the same figure of the marriage is introduced, and the investigative judgment is clearly represented as taking place before the marriage. Previous to the wedding the king comes in to see the guests, to see if all are attired in the wedding garment, the spotless robe of character washed and made white in the blood of the Lamb. Matthew 22:11; Revelation 7:14. He who is found wanting is cast out, but all who upon examination are seen to have the wedding garment on are accepted of God and accounted worthy of a share in His kingdom and a seat upon His throne. This work of examination of character, of determining who are prepared for the kingdom of God, is that of the investigative judgment, the closing of work in the sanctuary above.

When the work of investigation shall be ended, when the cases of those who in all ages have professed to be followers of Christ have been examined and decided, then, and not till then, probation will close, and the door of mercy will be shut. Thus in the one short sentence, "They that were ready went in with Him to the marriage: and the door was shut," we are carried down through the Saviour's final ministration, to the time when the great work for man's salvation shall be completed.

In the service of the earthly sanctuary, which, as we have seen, is a figure of the service in the heavenly, when the high priest on the Day of Atonement entered the most holy place, the ministration in the first apartment ceased. God commanded: "There shall be no man in the tabernacle of the congregation when he goeth in to make an atonement in the holy place, until he comes out." Leviticus 16:17. So when Christ entered the holy of holies to perform the closing work of the atonement, He ceased His ministration in the first apartment. But when the ministration in the first apartment

429

ended, the ministration in the second apartment began. When in the typical service the high priest left the holy on the Day of Atonement, he went in before God to present the blood of the sin offering in behalf of all Israel who truly repented of their sins. So Christ had only completed one part of His work as our intercessor, to enter upon another portion of the work, and He still pleaded His blood before the Father in behalf of sinners.

Note: He still pleaded His blood before the Father in behalf of sinners who sins had been confessed and had gone in BEFOREHAND, before the Day of Atonement. No other sins entered the Sanctuary on the Day of Atonement. End note.

This subject was not understood by Adventists in 1844. After the passing of the time when the Saviour was expected, they still believed His coming to be near; they held that they had reached an important crisis and that the work of Christ as man's intercessor before God had ceased. It appeared to them to be taught in the Bible that man's probation would close a short time before the actual coming of the Lord in the clouds of heaven. This seemed evident from those scriptures which point to a time when men will seek, knock, and cry at the door of mercy, and it will not be opened. And it was a question with them whether the date to which they had looked for the coming of Christ might not rather mark the beginning of this period which was immediately to precede His coming. Having given the warning of the judgment near, they felt that their work for the world was done, and they lost their burden of soul for the salvation of sinners, while the bold and blasphemous scoffing of the ungodly seemed to them another evidence that the Spirit of God had been withdrawn from the rejecters of His mercy. All this confirmed them in the belief that probation had ended, or, as they then expressed it, "the door of mercy was shut."

But clearer light came with the investigation of the sanctuary question. They now saw that they were correct in believing that the end of the 2300 days in 1844 marked an important crisis. But while it was true that that door of hope and mercy by which men had for eighteen hundred years found access to God, was closed, another door was opened,

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and forgiveness of sins was offered to men through the intercession of Christ in the most holy. One part of His ministration had closed, only to give place to another. There was still an "open door" to the heavenly sanctuary, where Christ was ministering in the sinner's behalf.

Now was seen the application of those words of Christ in the Revelation, addressed to the church at this very time: "These things saith He that is holy, He that is true, He that hath the key of David, He that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth; I know thy works: behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it." Revelation 3:7, 8.

Note: The only mediation on the Day of Atonement is for the sins that went into the Sacntuary BEFOREHAND. That is the open door since 1844. Jesus pleads His blood for the sins of all whose sins went into the sanctuary before 1844, the beginning of the antitypical Day of Atonement. This is exactly what the earthly High Priest did on the Day of Atonement each years. He pleaded the blood that was sprinkled as an atonement for the sins of all whose sins had been confessed and had gone in beforehand. End note.

It is those who by faith follow Jesus in the great work of the atonement who receive the benefits of His mediation in their behalf, while those who reject the light which brings to view this work of ministration are not benefited thereby. The Jews who rejected the light given at Christ's first advent, and refused to believe on Him as the Saviour of the world, could not receive pardon through Him. When Jesus at His ascension entered by His own blood into the heavenly sanctuary to shed upon His disciples the blessings of His mediation, the Jews were left in total darkness to continue their useless sacrifices and offerings. The ministration of types and shadows had ceased. That door by which men had formerly found access to God was no longer open. The Jews had refused to seek Him in the only way whereby He could then be found, through the ministration in the sanctuary in heaven. Therefore they found no communion with God. To them the door was shut. They had no knowledge of Christ as the true sacrifice and the only mediator before God; hence they could not receive the benefits of His mediation.

The condition of the unbelieving Jews illustrates the condition of the careless and unbelieving among professed Christians, who are willingly ignorant of the work of our merciful High Priest. In the typical service, when the high priest

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entered the most holy place, all Israel were required to gather about the sanctuary and in the most solemn manner humble their souls before God, that they might receive the pardon of their sins and not be cut off from the congregation. How much more essential in this antitypical Day of Atonement that we understand the work of our High Priest and know what duties are required of us.

Men cannot with impunity reject the warning which God in mercy sends them. A message was sent from heaven to the world in Noah's day, and their salvation depended upon the manner in which they treated that message. Because they rejected the warning, the Spirit of God was withdrawn from the sinful race, and they perished in the waters of the Flood. In the time of Abraham, mercy ceased to plead with the guilty inhabitants of Sodom, and all but Lot with his wife and two daughters were consumed by the fire sent down from heaven. So in the days of Christ. The Son of God declared to the unbelieving Jews of that generation: "Your house is left unto you desolate." Matthew 23:38. Looking down to the last days, the same Infinite Power declares, concerning those who "received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved": "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 Thessalonians 2:10-12. As they reject the teachings of His word, God withdraws His Spirit and leaves them to the deceptions which they love.

But Christ still intercedes in man's behalf, and light will be given to those who seek it. Though this was not at first understood by Adventists, it was afterward made plain as the Scriptures which define their true position began to open before them.

The passing of the time in 1844 was followed by a period of great trial to those who still held the advent faith. Their only relief, so far as ascertaining their true position was

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concerned, was the light which directed their minds to the sanctuary above. Some renounced their faith in their former reckoning of the prophetic periods and ascribed to human or satanic agencies the powerful influence of the Holy Spirit which had attended the advent movement. Another class firmly held that the Lord had led them in their past experience; and as they waited and watched and prayed to know the will of God they saw that their great High Priest had entered upon another work of ministration, and, following Him by faith, they were led to see also the closing work of the church. They had a clearer understanding of the first and second angels' messages, and were prepared to receive and give to the world the solemn warning of the third angel of Revelation 14.” The Great Controversy, pp. 426-432,

~rwb