Ship of the West

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

         

Part Ten

 

The Solution

Long ago, two brothers discovered an ancient map containing instructions which, if followed to the letter, would lead them to riches beyond their wildest dreams. The map hid no secrets from its possessor. Not only did it describe the landmarks on the way to the cave; it also disclosed meticulous details about the surroundings throughout the cavern. So each brother carefully made a copy of the map, gathered their provisions and set out for a] long journey. And after several months of travel through treacherous terrain, they began to see the way-marks described by the author and oh how the two brothers rejoiced!

The cave was exactly in the position marked by the map maker. So the two brothers made their camp, lit their lamps and eagerly ventured in. Now the brothers walked for hours inside the cavern and the deeper they went, the darker their surroundings became. But after a while, the two brothers began to contend with each other about how they should conduct themselves inside the cave, “Turn down your lamp!” said the foolish brother, “We have not reached the treasure and may not have enough oil to find our way back.” The wise brother replied “But if we turn down our lamps, we will not see the stumbling blocks that are set before us!” Their contention escalated until finally, the foolish brother moved away from his brother and walked down a separate path through pure darkness.

The wise brother finally reached location marked by the map and quickly uncovered the buried treasure. He joyfully shouted “Brother come quickly, I have found what we have been looking for!” But all he could hear in return was the foolish brother’s faint voice. He followed it and to his horror, found his brother mortally wounded at the bottom of a steep precipice, weeping and gnashing his teeth in pain. Although the foolish brother was able to hear the good news about the treasure, he would never live to enjoy it.

"This is what Sovereign YHWH says: Disaster! An unheard-of disaster is coming… the vision concerning the whole crowd will not be reversed. Because of their sins, not one of them will preserve his life” (Ezekiel 7:5-13). The vision Ezekiel speaks of is directly related to the irreversible decision to spew the Laodiceans into the darkness of the Last Days. Like the foolish brother of the story, the Laodicean church will utterly refuse to utilize the light (which is in their possession) to its fullest degree. And as they see the light increasing among their Advent brothers, the Laodiceans will do the unthinkable. They will demand that the light shining among their advent brothers be diminished. Jesus said “Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed” (John 3:20).

So what is the “light” given for the preservation and ultimate victory of the Last Days church? Does the “light” constitute a unique set of doctrinal beliefs upheld by a particular sect of Christians? Are we to judge whether or not a brother is a light bearer on the grounds of his adoption of these unique doctrines or beliefs? I believe that the definition of “the Light” can be found in the scriptures. Note that Solomon does not define it as a specific set of doctrinal beliefs and ideas. Instead he says “The commandment is a lamp; and the law is light; and reproofs of instruction are the way of life” (Proverbs 6:23). The “light” which Solomon speaks of refers directly to the instructions given to Moses. The writings of Moses are unique as compared to the rest of the Bible; they expose false doctrine that lay in the path of believers so they can avoid the stumbling blocks in their way.

Fundamental Adventists have been taught from their youth to resist this light and are about to fall from a very steep precipice. Like the foolish brother, very few from this religious class will enjoy the treasure they have been hoping to reach these many years. Why? To state it simply, the leaders of modern Seventh Day Adventism have set their flocks up for failure by reinforcing the erroneous belief that the word “Law” refers directly to the Ten Commandments. And that the standards of the Law of Moses were eradicated at the Cross. Therefore they believe that the Law of Moses has no authority over the believer today. So when an Advent brother begins to utilize the whole Law of Moses and live by it, the fundamental Seventh Day Adventist says “Turn down that light (the Torah) for it has no place in our day and age!"

Oh but you might be thinking, “Brother Tim you are wrong! The light for the Last Days is the holy spirit, not the Law of Moses.” So let me take a moment to explain that the “spirit” of the Father and the Son has been revealed with the greatest clarity through the light communicated to Moses. The words that Moses wrote down for Israel to live by originated from the lips of the Father Himself and these words (with their corresponding actions) would never work contrary to His nature or the Son’s. Yeshua said, “The spirit gives life… the words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life” (John 6:63). So when a particular doctrine (which uses biblical texts as its source) can only stand by undermining the Law of Moses; we can be safe in knowing that the errant idea is working against the very nature of the Father and the Son.

So let me summarize the great folly which will drive a large majority of fundamental SDAs into the darkness. These people will refuse to give up a single portion of the faith which they presently hold as truth (An attitude which coincides with the Laodicean prophecy). The difficulty in determining truth for the fundamentalist lies in how the writings of Ellen G. White are viewed. Fundamentalists are under the belief that every word penned by Sister White was impressed upon her by the spirit of God. The fundamentalist believes that the meaning of plainly written scripture must be reconciled as truth by her writings (something Ellen G. White herself never taught). They might not come right out and admit it, but when contradictions are presented between the Bible and Sister White’s writings, they cannot and will not give up the erroneous idea that her words hold pre-eminence over the Bible.

The crisis points can be embodied in the following three chronological events erroneously affirmed by Mrs. White. These events are essential to the Seventh Day Adventist to the establishment of the doctrine of the 1844 investigative Judgement. The problem with these dates is that they do not reconcile with the Law of Moses. She affirms that: (1) The death of Christ took place on the Passover of AD 31. (2) The 2300 year prophecy (Daniel 8:14) terminated in the year 1844. (3) The Karaite Jews observed Yom Kippur on October 22nd 1844. These dates are not biblically correct; they invalidate both the absolute correctness of Ellen G. White’s writings along with the doctrine of the 1844 investigative Judgement. And as this truth is presented to the fundamental Seventh Day Adventist, we will see that a spirit of Roman Catholicism will take form within their hearts.

“How so” you may ask? Consider that the Adventist aims to point out the Seventh Day Sabbath to the world in contrast to the unbiblical doctrine of Sunday sacredness. Now the fundamental Roman Catholic (After learning that biblical evidence does not weigh in favor of Sunday keeping) resorts to Papal traditions in order to substantiate it. Thus the Catholic (through human authority) attempts to mentally transform a common day into something holy. And although there is no biblical authority for doing so, the Roman Catholic has been charged by Papacy to evangelize the world with this non-biblical belief. This is the process which encapsulates the spirit of Babylonian idolatry.

Like the Roman Catholic’s idol of Sunday observance, SDA leaders realized long ago that the date of October 22 1844 was built on a faulty foundation. And instead of correcting the error, they willfully ignored it and allowed their flocks to continue imbuing imaginary holiness to a day which possesses no heavenly significance. Like the Papal Sunday, the doctrine of the “1844 Investigative Judgement” is in essence an idol in their hearts (although most SDAs are unaware). Now according to the loud cry of Revelation 18:1-4, the “Last Days” people have been called to reject the spirit of idolatry and come out of Babylon. And if they would genuinely take this message to heart, they would show the world that they too have idols, yet are willing to extract the beam from their own eye in order to help remove the splinter from the eye of the Christian Church.

Now does the Bible actually teach the doctrine of the investigative judgement? Why yes it does! It is plainly written in the Law of Moses. Deuteronomy 17:2-6 states: “If a man or woman…is found doing evil in the eyes of the YHWH Elohim in violation of His covenant… you must investigate it thoroughly.” According to the Law of Moses, the deeds of the accused must be investigated before judgement can be rendered. Although this is absolutely true, there is no evidence that the judgement of all mankind began in the year 1844 (more about this later). This leads to the next question that needs to be answered: Because Ellen White was mistaken about an 1844 investigative Judgment in heaven, does this mean she was not used by God to transmit divinely inspired messages? That is a very good question which cannot be answered according a man’s personal opinion. A matter this important should only be judged according to the biblical standards to test the validity of a prophetic message. The problem with the fundamental SDAs is that they have not been careful to test her words against these biblical standards.

According to Isaiah 8:20, a prophet’s credibility hinges upon whether the message transmitted is compatible with the Law, “To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them” (Isaiah 8:20). The word “Law” used in this verse was translated from the Hebrew word “Torah” and is in direct reference to the instructions given to Moses. The following is a statement written by Ellen White in regard to Jesus and his entrance into the most holy place in the Heavenly sanctuary. “I was shown what did take place in heaven at the close of the prophetic periods in 1844. As Jesus ended His ministration in the holy place and closed the door of that apartment, a great darkness settled upon those who had heard and rejected the message of His coming, and they lost sight of Him. Jesus then clothed Himself with precious garments. Around the bottom of His robe was a bell and a pomegranate, a bell and a pomegranate” (Ellen G. White Early Writings – 251).

Here Ellen White testifies she “saw” something in a vision given to her by a supernatural source. By default, a lawful believer is not to pre-judge whether or not she did or did not. Instead, true believers (whether SDA church members or not) are commanded to test whether the visions Ellen saw resonate with the Law of Moses. Now if we measure every word she wrote in her statement above, we discover that the chronology attached to the event is incompatible with the time keeping system given to Moses. And if we adopt the belief that every word Ellen White penned was transmitted to her by a supernatural being, that being could not have been an omniscient one. It is clear that the date supplied by Mrs. White is in violation of both the Mosaic Law and the laws of physics. But does this initial test prove Mrs. White a false prophet in this case? Not if we judge her to the standards measured against ALL of the Biblical prophets.

King David counted on the Divine guidance given through the prophet Nathan. David approached the prophet one day to ask whether he should proceed to build a Temple for the God of Israel. “Nathan replied to the king, "Whatever you have in mind, go ahead and do it, for YHWH is with you" (2 Samuel 7:3). Now Nathan’s council made perfect sense to the King , yet it was not exactly in accordance with the will of God. Later that night the God of Israel revealed His will to Nathan, "Go and tell my servant David…When your days are over and you rest with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, who will come from your own body, and I will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a house for my Name” (2 Samuel 7:5, 12 & 13). Nathan was under the belief that whatever King David set his hand to would prosper. The idea is a biblical one, but the concept holds true as long as the man of God is willing to be guided and corrected. Here we see that Nathan possessed a human perspective that contradicted the grand objectives of YHWH. But to King David, Nathan’s words (because he was a prophet) carried a lot of authority when he first heard them; but how wrong the prophet Nathan was!

Now the question should be asked, because Nathan erred, would it have been appropriate for King David to carry out the following judgement stated in the Law of Moses? “A prophet who presumes to speak in my name anything I have not commanded him to say… must be put to death" (Deuteronomy 18:20). No! A personal viewpoint of a prophet that unintentionally leads men astray is vastly different from a prophet who intentionally leads men astray by fabricating words YHWH did not transmit. It is here that the fundamental Seventh Day Adventist has erred. There are many places throughout Ellen White’s writings where she, like Nathan, spoke/wrote out strong personal convictions about her understanding of the Bible. As I compare her writings to the Law of Moses, I have observed many contradictions. In fact, she incorrectly supplied private/self-interpretations to many of her visions which the fundamental SDA view as light directly from heaven. And although we all can look at prophecy and state our opinions as to their meaning, the scripture consistently teaches that, “No prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation” (2 Peter 1:20). The Law of Moses helps to cut away all that that is human opinion.

Even Baalam understood the difference between speaking his own words in prophecy and the words received from YHWH. When tempted by King Balak to utter a curse against Israel Balaam answered, "Even if Balak gave me his palace filled with silver and gold, I could not do anything great or small to go beyond the command of the YHWH my God” (Numbers 22:18). But later, when the spirit of prophecy was removed from Balaam, it was a different story. The greedy prophet used his prophetic influence to lure Israel from their loyalty to the covenant. Although Balaam’s inward desires were indeed evil; the God of Israel saw fit to use him as His mouthpiece. Balaam’s prophecies were never purged from the Bible and continue to serve as a vital part of the scriptures we read today. Why would God allow such a thing to happen? The answer is found in the Law of Moses: If a prophet, or one who foretells by dreams, appears among you and announces to you a miraculous sign or wonder, and if the sign or wonder of which he has spoken takes place, and he says, "Let us follow other gods" (gods you have not known) "and let us worship them," you must not listen to the words of that prophet or dreamer. YHWH Elohiym is testing you to find out whether you love him with all your heart and with all your soul. (Deuteronomy 13:1-3)

The path of the Fundamental Seventh Day Adventist becomes dim when they substitute the instructions given to Moses (the light of the lamp) for the greatly inferior personal interpretations supplied by Ellen G. White. They have difficulty believing that as a prophet, Mrs. White could not have written one word contrary to the aims of Almighty although the Almighty has specifically said he would do so to test our loyalty to His words. On this point the fundamental Adventist must be corrected by the light. Ellen leaned to her own understanding by promoting the idea that the termination of the 2300 years occurred on the date of October 22nd 1844. Like Nathan the prophet, Mrs. White had received a correction about this. And although she did not comprehend the message, Ellen faithfully communicated it to the people. She wrote “I have seen that the 1843 chart was directed by the hand of the Lord, and that it should not be altered; that the figures were as He wanted them; that His hand was over and hid a mistake in some of the figures, so that none could see it, until His hand was removed” (Early Writings pg. 74).

Was Ellen White an exception to this hidden mistake? I mean was she able to comprehend the mistake while the rest of the Adventists remained blinded to it? No, Ellen White was herself blinded to it just like everyone else to this point. The hand of YHWH has intentionally covered the mistake to test His Last Days people. Evidence to Ellen White’s spiritual blindness can be seen as she provides personal commentary about a very important vision she had previously seen: “I was shown what did take place in heaven at the close of the prophetic periods in 1844” (Ellen G. White Early Writings – 251). How could Mrs. White be shown something that took place in 1844 when it was revealed to her that the 1843 chart was correct and should not be altered? This is definitely a contradiction and YHWH does not speak contradictions. She mentions that she had seen events take place. The source of the revelation she was referring to is found in a chapter called “The end of the 2300 days”. The chapter was incorrectly titled with the help of her husband and editor James White. In it she writes that she saw Jesus move from the holy place of the heavenly sanctuary into the most holy place. But nowhere in this vision does she state she was have “shown” that the event occurred in either 1844 or 1843!

What we have here is a mislabeled, misinterpreted vision. The overconfident Pioneers assumed that the vision was associated with 1844 because of their strong ties to that religious experience. But the timing was incorrect, therefore the vision Ellen received must be relocated into the correct prophetic scheme of things; which in turn, changes our understanding of things yet to come. Let us revisit the vision Ellen White saw: “Before the throne I saw the Advent people--the church and the world. I saw two companies, one bowed down before the throne, deeply interested, while the other stood uninterested and careless … Then I saw an exceeding bright light come from the Father to the Son, and from the Son it waved over the people before the throne. But few would receive this great light. Many came out from under it and immediately resisted it; others were careless and did not cherish the light, and it moved off from them” (Early Writings pg. 54-55).

The light that shines from Heaven is in reference to the whole Law of Moses and it’s pre-eminence over all doctrine. It is prophesied through Ellen G. White that this Law will be accepted by only a few among the Advent people. Those who accept this light will utilize it to correct the errors they once held as truth. As they do so, they will be separated from the Advent people, the church and the world. Note in her vision that these people are “deeply interested” while the others are not. What is most interesting about the vision is what follows after the light is given: “I turned to look at the company who were still bowed before the throne; they did not know that Jesus had left it.” Because they refuse to allow the light of the Law correct the errors of the pioneers, fundamental Seventh Day Adventists are and will continue to be oblivious about movement of the Father and the Son in the heavenly Sanctuary. The event they believed transpired in 1844 is still yet to come. It is not the beginning of the Investigative Judgement, but rather the entrance of the Son of God into the most holy place to intercede for the Sons of Israel.

Will this be the beginning of the great Investigative Judgement? No! This event is related to the great outpouring of His wrath upon the whole house of Israel (not the gentiles) and very few will escape it. It relates directly to the time that the Advent rebels are spewed out of the mouth of the True Witness. They will be subjected to the very thing they believe was nailed to the cross; curses for willfully ignoring the light given to Moses (See Deuteronomy 28). Therefore “a fire has been kindled by my wrath, one that burns to the realm of death below. It will devour the earth and its harvests and set afire the foundations of the mountains. "I will heap calamities upon them and spend my arrows against them. I will send wasting famine against them, consuming pestilence and deadly plague; I will send against them the fangs of wild beasts, the venom of vipers that glide in the dust. In the street the sword will make them childless; in their homes terror will reign. Young men and young women will perish, infants and gray-haired men” (Deuteronomy 32:22-25).

With these curses ahead of us dear brothers and sisters, we must bear down and study as we have never studied before. Let us trim our lamps and fill them with the Torah (the instructions of Moses) so we can see the dangers that lay before us. "Remember the law (Torah) of my servant Moses, the decrees and laws I gave him at Horeb for all Israel. "See, I will send you the prophet Elijah before that great and dreadful day of the LORD comes. He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers; or else I will come and strike the land with a curse” (Malachi 4:4-6).