DRY BONES EXTRA

THE RESURRECTION OF EZEKIEL 37

[All brackets within quotations and emphasis are added unless otherwise noted.]

“The hand of the Lord was upon me, and carried me out in the spirit of the Lord, and set me down in the midst of the valley which was full of bones, and caused me to pass by them round about: and, behold, there were very many in the open valley; and, lo, they were very dry. And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord God, thou knowest. Thus saith the Lord God unto these bones; Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live: And I will lay sinews upon you, and will bring up flesh upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and ye shall live; and ye shall know that I am the Lord. So I prophesied as I was commanded: and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and behold a shaking, and the bones came together, bone to his bone. And when I beheld, lo, the sinews and the flesh came up upon them, and the skin covered them above: but there was no breath in them. Then said he unto me, Prophesy unto the wind, prophesy, son of man, and say to the wind, Thus saith the Lord God; Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live. So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood up upon their feet, an exceeding great army. Then he said unto me, Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel: behold, they say, Our bones are dried, and our hope is lost: we are cut off for our parts. Therefore prophesy and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, O my people, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel. And ye shall know that I am the Lord, when I have opened your graves, O my people, and brought you up out of your graves, and shall put my spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I shall place you in your own land: then shall ye know that I the Lord have spoken it, and performed it, saith the Lord.” Ezekiel 37:1-14.

GEM THOUGHT: “Not one cloud has fallen upon the church that God has not prepared for; not one opposing force has risen to counterwork the work of God but He has foreseen. All has taken place as He has predicted through His prophets. He has not left His church in darkness, forsaken, but has traced in prophetic declarations what would occur, and through His providence, acting in its appointed place in the world’s history, He has brought about that which His Holy Spirit inspired the prophets to foretell. All His purposes will be fulfilled and established.” Selected Messages, Vol. 2, p. 108.

PREMISE: That due to the falling away the God’s church experienced in the centuries following Christ’s ascension, the church became as the valley of dry bones depicted in this portion of Ezekiel’s prophecy; and the resurrection therein seen, point by point, is a representation of the church’s spiritual restoration, culminating in her becoming wide awake, fully alive, Spirit-filled “fair as the moon, clear as the sun, and terrible as an army with banners” (Song of Solomon 6:10) – a mighty army going into all the world, “conquering and to conquer” (Prophets and Kings, p. 725).

All of the prophets spoke primarily of two occurrences – Christ’s first and second coming. As much of that which applies to His first coming is understood today, we are left to understand those portions of the prophecies that apply to His second coming. It is evident from a simple overview of the prophecies that Christ intends to bind His people into one glorious sheaf – movement – to prepare them for His second advent.

Thus we should expect that within the writings of the prophets we would find many, many things which relate to all of the successes and the failures within this Advent movement. Taking in account what Ellen White says above (“All has taken place as He has predicted through His prophets“), and also considering the experiences the church has gone through with the 1888 situation, and with the Davidian and Branch circumstances, we should expect to find something of these matters in the holy Scriptures. That, or these major significant events were not foreseen by God, or were so insignificant that there really has been no need to be as concerned about them as the church has been, and that they have had no real effect on the church.

STUDY AIM: The purpose of this study is to examine what has been taught on the subject of the resurrection brought to light in Ezekiel 37:1-14, and to bind up the testimony in the light of present truth.

Some are of the opinion that this resurrection is literal, and others, that it is spiritual. Some of those who believe that it is literal base their opinion on some statements made by Victor T. Houteff, while some of those who believe that it is spiritual base their opinion on statements made by Ellen G. White. None of those who believe either position can prove where in the stream of time it is to occur. Therefore, this study is brought forth to clarify the issue by examining the statements of both of those inspired writers in order to see if there is a present truth application.

As Ellen White was the first to speak on this matter, we will hear her testimony first.

“…this simile of the dry bones appl[ies]… to those who have been blessed with great light; for they… are like the skeletons of the valley. They have the form of men, the framework of the body; but they have not spiritual life. …The dead are often made to pass for the living; for those who are working out what they term salvation after their own ideas, have not God working in them to will and to do of His good pleasure. THIS CLASS IS WELL REPRESENTED BY THE VALLEY OF BONES EZEKIEL SAW IN VISION. Those who have had committed to them the TREASURES of TRUTH, and yet who are DEAD in trespasses and sins, need to be CREATED ANEW in Christ Jesus.” Review and Herald Jan. 17, 1893, as found in the SDA Bible Commentary, Vol. 4, p. 1165,1166.

She has also said that “Our faith is to have a resurrection….We need the breath of the divine life breathed into us.” Testimonies for the Church, Vol. 8, p. 45, 46.

According to the foregoing testimony, the resurrection of our faith and the breathing into us of the divine life she speaks of should have a prophecy connected with it if it is truly something the Lord intends to do for His people. And so it does – in these verses which are under consideration. It is clear from these testimonies that she saw a spiritual application of these verses.

Speaking of the resurrection in Ezekiel 37, Victor T. Houteff says:

“In this resurrection only God’s own people, Israel, arise with no sinner among them. Moreover, these do not meet the Lord in the air; they are taken to the land of Israel, Palestine. This resurrection, therefore, is NOT THE SAME as the resurrection of 1 Thessalonians, of the Revelation, or of DANIEL 12. It must be a SEPARATE ONE.” Timely Greetings, Vol. 2, No. 7, p. 13.

He also has briefly commented on these verses in other of his writings. In those places, he does give a general impression that this resurrection may be literal, but he never actually expounded on these verses in any detail other than to say, in a general way, that they depict the way that the dead are resurrected. In some of the places we shall examine it appears that he may not even have had a clear understanding of the matter himself. This is notably so due to the fact that he never mentions a literal type for it as he does for the other future resurrections. This is certainly not a situation which would cast any stigma upon the validity of his message and work, for he, himself, taught that an inspired writer sometimes must comment on a Scripture on which he does not have a clear understanding in order to teach the fundamental subject of which he is discussing.

This is the premise under which this present writer is treating this matter. That being, that the Lord had His hand over the truth therein as a test for those who would later be faced with a detailed examination of it during a further unrolling of the scroll. It will be seen that in the places where Victor Houteff does comment on the resurrection of Ezekiel 37, the main subject of what he is speaking is the general identity of the living and the resurrected dead who will be in the kingdom, and more specifically the identity of the great multitude in Revelation 7:9 (that they are of the living, and not of those who have died). Nowhere does he give a verse-by-verse comment specifically on Ezekiel 37:1-14. As he stated repeatedly in his teachings, the main subjects of his message were the 144,000, and the predicted reformation.

It also may be noted that Victor Houteff never commented on Ellen White’s statement quoted above about the resurrection of Ezekiel 37 being spiritual in nature. In The Shepherd’s Rod, Vol. 1, p. 47, 48, he does give us the types for the three resurrections yet to come. He says:

1. Moses is the type for the resurrection of the just

2. The resurrection at the time of Christ’s own resurrection is the type for the special resurrection of Daniel 12.

3. “The wicked who come up in the mixed resurrection of Daniel 12:2, and who must die the second death at the coming of Christ, typify the ones who come up at the end of the millennium, called the resurrection of the wicked.”

After stating more on the resurrections and translations, he says, “Thus we have a prophecy and a type for every event that has or will take place in this wicked world of ours.” The Shepherd’s Rod, Vol. 1, p. 49.

Though we have a prophecy of some sort of resurrection in Ezekiel 37, we do not have a type for a literal one. If we do, what is it? No type, no truth. Also in said Volume, he states as follows:

“A Thought Of Perfection:

The resurrection of Moses.

The resurrection at the time when Jesus arose.

The special resurrection of Daniel 12:2.

The first resurrection of Revelation 20:6.

The translation of Enoch.

The translation of Elijah.

The general translation at the coming of Christ.

“Thus, we again have the number ‘seven,’ the sign of perfection, all, or finished. The four resurrections and three translations comprise all the saints resurrected and translated, all of which make up a total of seven, or the end.” The Shepherd’s Rod, Vol. 1, p. 49. (Emphasis added)

Here Brother Houteff mentions four resurrections of the literally dead, and those of Ezekiel 37 are not said to be a part of any of them. He also says that those four resurrections represent all of the resurrected saints. Remember he said that Ezekiel 37 is not the same as Daniel 12:2 (Timely Greetings, Vol. 2, No. 7, p. 13.). Furthermore, since Sister White applies Ezekiel 37 to the living saints who are dead in sins and trespasses (Review and Herald, Jan. 17, 1893), if Brother Houteff had actually applied it to the literally dead, then one of them must be wrong. And, as Brother Houteff never tried to explain away Sister White’s statements, and as his mention of this Scripture (Eze. 37:1-14) was only very general, we must assume he was not shown the clear interpretation of this passage of Scripture in his day. “Who is blind, but my servant? or deaf, as my messenger that I sent? who is blind as he that is perfect, and blind as the Lord’s servant? Seeing many things, but thou observest not; opening the ears, but he heareth not. The Lord is well pleased for his righteousness` sake; he will magnify the law and make it honorable.” Isaiah 42:19-21.

A comparison of the following statements of V.T. Houteff in Behold, I Make All Things New will shed some more light on the matter.

“All who have acknowledged and profited by His might in the past, along with all who will acknowledge and profit by His might in the future, are to be found in Five Groups In The Kingdom.
“These groups are (1) the 144,000, Israelites, the first fruits of the living, whose ‘nobles shall be of themselves,’ and whose ‘governor shall proceed from the midst of them’ (Jer. 30:21); they shall return to Jerusalem, and stand on Mount Sion with the Lamb; (2) those whom John saw, after the sealing of the 144,000, gathered from ‘all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues,’ during the ‘great tribulation,’ the ‘time of trouble such as never was’ — the great multitude who go to Jerusalem before the resurrection; (3) those who arise to everlasting life in the resurrection of Daniel 12:2; (4) those Israelites who shall come forth in the resurrection of Ezekiel 37:1-14; (5) all who come in the resurrection of Revelation 20:6; — collectively, these are all the Israelites and Gentiles who shall return to Jerusalem, possess the promised land, and then the whole earth.” Behold I Make All Things New, p. 65,66.

Note that he does not mention those who were resurrected at the time of Christ’s resurrection, nor Moses who was also resurrected. The reason is obvious. He is only describing “all the Israelites and Gentiles who shall return to Jerusalem, possess the promised land, and then the whole earth,” not those saints who are already resurrected and in the Kingdom in heaven and are awaiting our arrival there. They won’t be returning to “Jerusalem” that now is, but to the earth made new.

Note also that the prophecy calls those dry bones “the whole house of Israel.” The questions is, then, if these are the literal dead, in what period of time did they die – before the cross? After it? Are any of those “Israelites” among those who will have died in faith of the Third Angel’s message and should be coming up in the special resurrection of Daniel 12, rather than at another time?

“The ‘mountain,’ the kingdom of God, clearly, then, is begun with [A] the first fruits of the living (the 144,000) and followed by [B] the second fruits of the living (the great multitude — Rev. 7:9), and is completed with the first and second fruits of the dead — [C] the 120 (those who received the Spirit on the day of Pentecost), plus [D] those who arose with Christ (Matt. 27:52, 53), plus [E] the great multitude who accepted Him after the Pentecost (Acts 5:14), plus [F] all who awake to everlasting life in the resurrection of Daniel 12:2, plus [G] the remaining dead of all ages, who rise on the great resurrection day (Rev. 20:6), also [H] those of Eze. 37:1-14.” Behold I Make All Things New, p. 41,42. (The letters in brackets are added for clarification and comparison in the following chart)

Behold I Make All Things New, pages 65, 66.

(1) 144,000 (living)
(2) Great multitude (Rev. 7:9) (living)
(3) Dan. 12:2 (dead)
(4) Eze. 37:1-14 {?}
(5) Rev. 20:6 (general resurrection) (dead)

Behold I Make All Things New, pages 41, 42.

(A) 144,000 (living)
(B) Great multitude (Rev. 7:9) (living)
(C) 120 (dead)
(D) Arose w/Christ (dead, now alive)
(E) Great multitude. after Pentecost (dead) (F) Dan. 12:2 (dead)
(G) Remaining dead of all ages (dead)
(H) Also Eze. 37:1-14 {?}

1 is the same as A
2 is the same as B
3 is the same as F
4 is the same as H
5 is the same as C, E & G, collectively

Group (D) is composed of those who were dead but were resurrected with Christ and are now alive in heaven, but were not mentioned in the first numerical listing. There is also Enoch, Elijah, and Moses who are also now in heaven. Groups (C), (E), (F), and (G) are still dead in the earth.

Group (H), the resurrected ones of Ezekiel 37:1-14, is placed after (G) – “the remaining dead of all ages.” Therefore, if they (Group (H)) are not part of any of the specific groups of people who had literally died (C-F), and not part of “the remaining dead of ALL AGES” (Group (G)), then they CANNOT be literally dead, and must therefore be made up of those who are alive to the world but dead to Christ, as stated by Ellen White, for the phrase “the remaining dead of ALL AGES” (Group (G)) encompasses all of the rest of the literally dead other than groups (C-F).

Furthermore, only the “living” have a consciousness of their condition and can say “we are cut off for our parts,” as do those in Eze. 37:11 for “the dead know not anything.” Ecclesiastes 9:5. “His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very day his thoughts perish.” Ps. 146:4.

It may be noted that it is the dead “dry bones“ that are speaking, and not whole people. Literal living “bones” can’t speak, let alone dead ones. Therefore, the “bones” must be symbolical as Ellen White saw.

The number seven signifies completeness. The first seven groups A-G, therefore, represent all of the saints. Group H (the eighth, signifying a new order) is the spiritual resurrection of a group of living people who are already mentioned in the previous seven groups. The prophecy in Ezekiel 37 is said to include “the whole house of Israel.” Groups A and B are the only groups mentioned here that will be translated without ever having seen death, and they are the only ones that can say “we are cut off for our parts (to ourselves),” for the literally dead do not speak.

Furthermore, as the prophecy represents “the whole house of Israel,” who are to become a “mighty army” when they receive the breath of life from the four winds (vs. 10), such must occur during the time of their warfare, for there is no need for them to be a mighty army after the battle is over.

THE “WHOLE” HOUSE OF ISRAEL

“Abraham took Ishmael his son, and all that were born in his house, and all that were bought with his money, every male among the men of Abraham’s house; and circumcised the flesh of their foreskin in the selfsame day, as God had said unto him.” Gen. 17:23.

Just as all of those who with Abraham were considered to be of his “house,” then the phrase “the whole house of Israel” must signify both the literal descendants of Israel, and those who have been grafted in (Romans, chapter 11) — in other words, the whole church, Jew and Gentile.

Moreover, the church is the only true “Israel” in God’s eyes, for only believers make up the true vine of the faithful, whether they be grafted in Gentiles or Jews (see Romans 9-11). Though 144,000 are also bloodline Israelites who are in the church at the time of their deliverance, they are not the only Israelites in the church, for there are also other in the church before the Loud Cry, and many others will join them during the Loud cry, for they bring many of their “brethren” in also (Isaiah 66:20). Thus it cannot be rightly said that the “whole” house of Israel spoken of in Ezekiel 37 are a group other than true believers, “For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly.” Romans 2:28, 29. So, if the “whole” house of Israel who come up in the resurrection of Ezekiel 37 are bloodline Israelites only, and all of them (“the whole house”), then that would mean that the only ones who will come up in the special resurrection of Daniel 12, are Gentiles – and such is not the case.

A DILEMMA

“…there was a noise, and behold a shaking, and the bones came together, bone to his bone. And when I beheld, lo, the sinews and the flesh came up upon them, and the skin covered them above: but there was no breath in them.” Eze. 37:8. Note that after the work of reforming the bodies was accomplished, they still lacked the breath of life.

“Herein lies a lesson: Ezekiel’s prophesying directly to the bones brought a certain physical reconstruction and movement, but that was all. Man’s teaching to man [even inspired teaching] produces certain outward changes, reformations, and improvements; but man [even if he is a prophet] cannot give life. Such would be the effect of the word apart from the Spirit [breath], were they to be separated. And this explains an abortive evangelistic endeavor [a valley of reformed, breathless bodies].” The Coming of the Comforter, Leroy Froom, p. 236.

Every honest Seventh Day Adventist, Davidian, or Branch has to admit that the reading or the memorizing of the inspired writings of Ellen White, A. T. Jones, E. J. Waggoner, V.T. Houteff, or Ben or Lois Roden in and of itself, will not give one spiritual life if one is not willing to be moved by the Holy Spirit. Many people have read the very Word of God, the Bible, but have not experienced its sanctifying power of conversion. And likewise, all of the honest will also have to admit that the writings of Inspiration have not produced a people who are yet fully awake and in unity.

Truly, then, it is only the true Christians (the whole house of Israel) that are honest enough to admit that they are as those dry bones, and that are truly able to say, “Our bones are dried, and our hope is lost, and we are cut off for our parts [margin – to ourselves].” (Ezekiel 37:11). Those who cannot honesty admit this situation must not be part of this resurrection of “the whole house of Israel.” This is further borne out in the following testimony.

“The class who do not feel grieved over THEIR OWN SPIRITUAL DECLENSION [the dryness of their bones] nor mourn over the sins of others [which divide the body of Christ – cut off parts] will be left without the seal of God.” Testimonies, Vol. 5, p. 211.

This truth is furthermore witnessed in Ezekiel, chapter 9, wherein in states that the only ones who survive the marking and slaughter therein depicted are those who ” sigh and cry for all the abominations that be done in the midst thereof.” Ezekiel 9:4. Included in “all the abominations” are not only the sins of others which may be obvious, but also our own which may be easily seen and those which are hidden from view.

“Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were ye baptized in the name of Paul? … For whereas there is among you envyings, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men? For one saith, I am of Paul; and another I am of Apollos; are ye not carnal?” 1 Corinthians 1:13, 3:3&4.

Can any Davidian honestly deny that those who profess to believe the writings of V. T. Houteff are divided into numerous factions which hold each other in contempt? Can any Seventh Day Adventist honestly deny that they are also in numerous bundles, following this or that pastor, scholar, elder, or writer. Can the Branches say that they are any better when the Lord has declared that they had done worse and have “justified thy sisters” (Ezekiel 16:44-63). Did Christ die to bring a unity such as this, which is no unity at all? Of course not! Is the fault in the messages of the prophets. No.

We are called to be “doers of the word, and not just hearers” James 1:22. We are called to hear not only “the rod” (Micah 6:9) but, also, “Who hath appointed it.” Failure to do this – to seek the power of God (the Holy Spirit, Who hath appointed the prophets – the rod) which was present in every manifestation of His voice – has resulted in this valley of breathless reformed bodies. Yet this is not the end of the matter.

“…we are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that OBEY him.” Acts 5:32.

“Shake thyself from the dust; arise, and sit down, O Jerusalem: loose thyself from the bands of thy neck, O captive daughter of Zion.” Isaiah 52:2.
“Zion and Jerusalem of today are not only naked, but they are filthy: they lie down in the dust [just as the reformed lifeless bodies in Ezekiel 37], as it were, are still in captivity and do not even know it! And so the daughters of Zion and Jerusalem, the denomination as a whole [the whole house of Israel], is asked to arise from the dust, and to sit on her throne, to free herself from the yoke of her captivity, the bands of her neck. She needs to realize that the day of her redemption is now here, and that she is now to be made free, never again to be ruled by men.” Timely Greetings, Vol. 1, No. 38, p. 25.

This testimony tells us where “the denomination as a whole” is – lying in the dust. This is exactly where the reformed, breathless bodies (“the whole house [denomination] of Israel) are, lying in the dust, as portrayed in Ezekiel 37. The harmony of these Scriptures, as brought forth by the Spirit who has inspired them, reveals not only the identity of the reformed bodies, but also the means by which they are resurrected.

THE RE-CREATION OF ISRAEL

As noted at the beginning of this study, due to the falling away the church became as “dry bones” – “and, lo, they were very dry.” It is in the marrow of the bones where blood is formed. “Very dry” bones would indicate that the ability to form blood is utterly gone. It is written that “the life of the flesh is in the blood.” Leviticus 17:11. As we are looking at the spiritual aspect of these things, the blood would represent the blood of Christ – His life in the church. Therefore, the “very dry” state of the bones indicates that the true life (blood) of Christ was not, in the Lord’s eyes, truly in the “whole house of Israel” (the church) at the time they are depicted as being only bones.

The vision given Ezekiel shows the work which occurs in order to cause the dry bones to come together and be reformed as bodies and receive the breath of life.

“I prophesied as I was commanded: and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and behold a shaking, and the bones came together, bone to his bone. And when I beheld, lo, the sinews and the flesh came up upon them, and the skin covered them above: but there was no breath [Spirit] in them.” Eze. 37:7,8.

In these verses we see that the (1) bringing together of the bones, and the covering them with (2) sinew, (3) flesh, and (4) skin (the four events that followed a noise and a shaking) were only preparatory to the reformed bodies being given the breath of life, which enabled them to stand up as a great army. After the first act of joining bone to his bone, three acts of covering followed, and then they receive the breath of life.

This shows us three things. The first is that there is only one time of organizing (bringing together) the framework (bones), which is then followed by four additional events (sinew, flesh, skin, breath) which complete the resurrection of the dead bodies. That is, there is only one overall movement, in different phases.

The second is that there are only four events that follow the noise and the shaking that are RE-formations of the bodies before the time they receive the breath (Spirit) of life.

And the third is that this explains the apparent “aborted evangelistic effort” that is seen in the valley of the RE-formed bodies who are lying in the dust (Isaiah 52:2), without any life (breath – Spirit), waiting to be resurrected (revived) – the present state of the whole house of Israel, the church.

Then, after he had seen that all of the work of the reformation had not yet produced life, and as the crowning touch of glory, Ezekiel was shown how God is to accomplish the resurrection (the standing up) of the reformed bodies.

“Then said he unto me, Prophesy unto the wind [ruah – Hebrew], prophesy, son of man, and say to the wind [ruah], Thus saith the Lord God; Come from the FOUR winds [ruhot], O breath [ruah], and breathe upon these slain, that they may live. So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath [ruah] came into them, and they lived, and stood up upon their feet, an exceedingly great army [Song 6:4, 10].” Ezekiel 37:9-10.

The Hebrew word ruah is translated wind, breath, and Spirit. It is feminine in Hebrew.

“Christ uses the wind as a symbol of the Spirit of God. As the wind bloweth whither it listeth, and we cannot tell whence it cometh or whither it goeth, so it is with the Spirit of God. We do not know through WHOM it [She] will be manifested.” Selected Messages, Vol. 2, p. 15.

“Howbeit when [S]he, the Spirit of truth, is come, [S]he will guide you into all truth…” John 16:13.¹

Ezekiel is told to prophesy to the wind (the breath – the Spirit of God) that the breath may come from the FOUR winds and breath on the slain ones that they may live. This speaks of a Spirit-filled message and movement [a wind] calling for the Spirit to come from the FOUR manifestations of the wind [Spirit] and resurrect (bring the breath of life to) the re-formed, Spiritless bodies that were slain.

THE FOUR WINDS AND THE SEAL OF GOD
IN THE ADVENT MOVEMENT – AS DEPICTED IN EZEKIEL 37

“The 144,000 were all sealed and perfectly united. On their foreheads was written, God, New Jerusalem, and a glorious star containing Jesus’ new name.” Early Writings, p. 15.

Her statement was based on the following Scripture, “I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name.” Rev. 3:12.

As the seal is seen to be manifold (three-fold), it stands to reason that it would take multiple, continuing, and interlocking messages to bring forth its fullness. What is most notable though, is that the meaning of those different aspects of the seal must be revealed for what they really are and mean, and that the 144,000 and the others with them must also know and understand them. How can anyone be sealed without knowing what the seal is all about?

The fact that there are “four” winds is in itself symbolic. Why does the wind which breathes upon the slain come from the four winds, and not elsewhere, or from just one of them? In order to understand this matter we must look at all of the things in this chapter (Eze. 37) that Ezekiel saw which brought the slain ones to the point were they were ready to receive the breath of life from the one “wind” which comes from the four “winds.” How the “four winds” relate to the manifold (three-fold) seal is as follows:

THE FIRST WIND

“I will write upon him the name of my God.”

THE NOISE

William Miller and the LOUD voice of the First Angel’s message. This NOISE was heard between 1840-1844, through the work of the First-day Adventists. Revelation 14:6, 7.

“Go through …” Isaiah 62:10, first part.

“And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.” (Rev. 14:6,7).

“We, as a people, hold that the verb “come” was inscribed in present tense because the judgment in heaven took place (at the end of the 2300 days of Daniel’s prophecy) in 1844, but it was not understood until after the Prophetic period had passed, therefore God did not intend to make the judgment known until after the hour had come. For this reason Inspiration inscribed the occurrence in present tense, “is come,” in order to be grammatically correct. Thus William Miller made the mistake of the event to transpire at the end of the 2300 days; namely, the sanctuary truth, Jesus entering the Most Holy place, and the beginning of judgment.” The Shepherd’s Rod, Vol. 1, p. 156.

As the truth concerning the “hour of his judgement” having come (“is come”) was not present truth until after the end of the prophetic time period (2300 days) was fulfilled, then the same would be true concerning the command to “worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.” Thus command to “Fear God, and give glory to Him,” (the Judge) and to “worship Him” (the Creator) was to become present truth after the judgement had opened on Oct. 22, 1844, and so it was.

The identity of the Judge and Creator who is to be feared, given glory, and worshipped is known by His name, YHWH – “the name of my God.” While Jesus has been revealed as the Creator of the all things” (Col 1:16), it is also true that is was “God, who created all things by Jesus Christ.” (Ephesians 3:9). As the begotten Son of God, Jesus could call God His Father, literally, while as a man born of a woman He could call God “my God,” for God had created Jesus’ physical body (Hebrews 10:5). It is written:

“Wherefore when He [the Son] cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me.” Hebrews 10:5.

“But the LORD [YHWH] shall endure for ever: he hath prepared his throne for judgment. And he shall judge the world in righteousness, he shall minister judgment to the people in uprightness.” Psalm 9:7, 8.

“But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD [YHWH] thy God [ours, and Jesus’]: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the LORD [YHWH] made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.” Ex 20:10, 11

“But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD [YHWH], I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.” Jer 31:33.

Thus we see that the writing of “the name of my God” upon the overcomers is accomplished in conjunction with His law being put in their inward parts. While the whole law reveals God as the Judge, that part of the law which particularly reveals God as the one “that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters” is the Sabbath commandment. Therefore, that part of the manifold seal which is termed “God,” and “the name of my God,” is known and received through the knowledge and acceptance of the truth of the judgment (the Sanctuary truth), and of the binding obligations of the Sabbath. As the Sabbath commandment actually contains the name of God [YHWH] within it (three times), when one has the Sabbath truth written on him, he simultaneously has the name of “God” (Jesus’ God) written on them.

THE SHAKING

The Millerites and the Second Angel’s message announcing the initial fall of Babylon. This shaking which accompanied the fall of Babylon was witnessed in the summer-fall of 1844 by the First-day Adventists. Revelation 14:8.

“… go through the gates …” Isaiah 62:10, second part.

“And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.” (Rev. 14:8).

This initial fall of “Babylon” was the result of those organizations which were identified as such having rejected the judgement message of the First Angel. Their fall was made greater by their rejection of the Sabbath truth when it was revealed after 1844, when the First Angel’s message became very present truth. Thus we see that this Second Angel’s message is also an integral part of the work involved in writing “the name of my God” upon the overcomer – that of a revelation of the result of what happens when one rejects the First Angel’s message. That is, they fall (are shaken). Yet there is another aspect of this portion of the manifold seal which was also to be revealed to complete the matter – a warning to those who would accept the truth, and may think to turn away from it, and a special blessing accorded to those who would persevere. Such is the content of that which followed thereafter.

BONE TO HIS BONE

Ellen G. White and the Seventh Day Adventist proclaiming the Third Angel’s message under the judgment of the dead. This joining of “bone to his bone” is the first actual movement of re-formation and re-creation, and took place from 1844-1915 through the Seventh-day Adventists. Revelation 14:6-13

“… prepare ye the way of the people …” Isaiah 62:10, third part.

“And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.
“Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.
“And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them.(Rev. 14:9-13).
“The third angel’s message was, and still is, a WARNING to the saints to ‘hold fast,’ and not go back, and ‘receive’ the marks which the virgin band got rid of, during the second angel’s cry.” Word to the Little Flock, p. 11.

God’s work through Ellen G. White provided the framework (skeleton) of the body of Christ, the Advent people (Israel), by joining bone to bone. The noise and the shaking were only evidences of the movement of the bones in coming together with “his bone.” The reason that this three-fold work is the First Wind of the “four winds” is also three-fold.

First, the previous two manifestations (the noise and the shaking) are integral parts of the third, and would not be of any effect without the third. Secondly, the first two continue on only through the third. Thirdly, the Third Angel’s message was the most prominent one of the three whose work was based on the active work of the Spirit of Prophecy – the Wind, the Holy Spirit. While the Millerites work was done under the movings of the Holy Ghost, there was a marked difference in the work of the Spirit through Ellen White. Were it not for the work of the Spirit (Wind) through her the church would not have been organized as it eventually was – bone would not have been brought together with his bone. Originally William Miller specifically avoid forming a separate denomination, and the early Adventists carried this notion with them when they accepted the Sabbath and Sanctuary truths. It was though the inspired counsel of Ellen White that bone was joined to his bone under the direction of God in order to accomplish His work of resurrecting the “whole house of Israel.”

We may notice that along with the message of the Third Angel (Rev. 14:9-12), there was also heard “a voice from heaven” (verse 13) which joined the Third Angel. This shows that additional truth was revealed during that time which was not specifically part of the Third Angel’s message, for the “voice” came from elsewhere. The fact that the additional truth was only said to have come from “a voice from heaven,” rather than from an angel, shows that that message was to bring to the attention of those who were hearing the voice of the Third Angel a truth which was new to them. The content of that new light was,

“Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them.”

What was new to those who had been proclaiming the Third Angel’s message was that there would be those who would “die in the Lord from henceforth.” While many have died “in the Lord” from the time of Abel until now, the significance of the voice’s message may be understood by considering a certain view which was held by the early Seventh day Adventists.

It was their belief, and they had been teaching, that Christ would come in “this generation.” As time as shown, such has not been the case. Therefore the words of encouragement have real significance to those who have seen the time of their expectations come and go, and Christ has not yet returned. This is especially true considering the following statement made in 1892.

“If the people of God had gone to work as they should have gone to work right after the Minneapolis meeting in 1888, the world could have been warned in two years and the Lord would have come.” General Conference Bulletin, 1892.

So the voice’s message concerning those who die in the Lord from henceforth has specific relevance for those who have experienced the delay caused by the rejection of the 1888 message. The fact that another proclamation which was to accomplish a great work came to the church during the initial proclamation of the Third Angel’s message, and that that additional truth [the 1888 message] was also distinct from the message of that “voice from heaven” regarding those who die from henceforth, and the fact that that additional message [1888] was not received when it was first revealed, is also found in this chapter. To repeat a testimony for emphasis,

“Not one cloud has fallen upon the church that God has not prepared for; not one opposing force has risen to counterwork the work of God but He has foreseen. All has taken place as He has predicted through His prophets. He has not left His church in darkness, forsaken, but has traced in prophetic declarations what would occur, and through His providence, acting in its appointed place in the world’s history, He has brought about that which His Holy Spirit inspired the prophets to foretell. All His purposes will be fulfilled and established.” Selected Messages, Vol. 2, p. 108.

Thus, if the 1888 message and the notable events surrounding it were of any true import in the Advent movement, they too must be revealed in the writings of the prophet, the Bible, and they are.

Following the Third Angel, and the “voice from heaven,” there was revealed

“a white cloud, and upon the cloud one sat like unto the Son of man, having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle.” (verse 14).

While some have assumed that this verse indicates the second, literal, bodily coming of Christ, the context which this verse holds in this chapter, the historical facts related to it, and the very symbols therein show something different. Consider this:

“All classes of second advent believers agree, that the angel brought to view in the 6th and 7th verses of this chapter [of Rev. 14], represents the advent message, to the church and world. If this is true, then all five of the angels brought to view in this chapter, represent five distinct messages, prior to the advent, or we are left without a rule to interpret this chapter.
…The last two angels [Rev. 14:15,17] are messages of prayer. We shall, no doubt, better understand them at the time of their fulfillment.” Word to the Little Flock, James White, p. 10,11.

Though this statement was written by James White, and not Ellen White (Harmon, at that time), it was published in conjunction with her testimony. Note also that he says, “All classes of second advent believers agree” on that point. That would include Ellen Harmon. Also, as she never discounted this point in her later writings, then it stands worthy of considerable weight as authoritative. Also both she and Brother Houteff said that James White was inspired. Moreover, the context of the angels in this fourteenth chapter allows of no other interpretation – if one is a message, then they all are.

“[In Revelation 14:6-12] the angels are represented as flying in the midst of heaven, proclaiming to the world a message of warning, and having a direct bearing upon the people living in the last days of this earth’s history. No one hears the voice of these angels, for they are a symbol to represent the people of God who are working in harmony with the universe of heaven. Men and women, enlightened by the Spirit of God, and sanctified through the truth, proclaim the three messages in their order.” Life Sketches of Ellen G. White, p. 429.

As this is true of the first three angels, so then it must be of the last ones – “they are a symbol to represent the people of God … Men and women, enlightened by the Spirit of God, and sanctified through the truth, proclaim[ing] … messages in their order.” The only difference between the first three and the last ones is the nature of the messages. The first three angel’s messages are announcements and warnings, while that last ones of which we have been given the content of their messages are called “messages of prayer” – prayers to harvest, to “thrust in thy sickle.”

One thing, though, which requires further comment in this regard is that in reading this chapter there are actually six angels brought to view, and not only five. They are found in

1) verses6&7,
2) verse 8,
3) verses 6-12,
4) verse 15,
5) verse 17, and
6) verse 18

In summary, we see that in this chapter there are

1) six angels (verses 6, 8, 9, 15, 17, and 18), but only five of them have revealed messages (verses 6, 8, 9, 15, and 18), [there is no message recorded as coming from the angel of verse 17. There is a mystery surrounding the angel’s message, something unknown, hidden],
2) another voice from heaven (verse 13),
3) one like the Son of man with a golden crown and a sickle (verse 14),
4) another angel with a sickle (verse 17),
5) and two harvests (verses 16, and 19)

While the one “like unto the Son of man” had in his hand “a sharp sickle,” so does the angel in verse 17. We also see that both of these are directed to thrust in their sickles by an angel which follows after them. It is written of the angel of verse 15 which follows the one “like unto the Son of man:”

“And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud, Thrust in thy sickle, and reap: for the time is come for thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe.” Rev. 14:15.

It is written of the “angel” with the second sickle, and of the angel with follows him:

“And another angel [the fifth] came out of the temple which is in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle. And another angel [the sixth] came out from the altar, which had power over fire; and cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Thrust in thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe.” Rev. 14:17,18.

The first harvest is done by the One who is like the Son of man. The reason for the prayer, “thrust in thy sickle,” is, “for the harvest of the earth is ripe.” The marginal rendering for “ripe” is “dried,” denoting that this is the firstfruits grain harvest – that the latter rain has already come and gone, and the warm sun has dried the grain.

According to the typical harvest cycle under the Jewish economy, the grain harvest was only the beginning of the yearly harvest season, not the end of it. There followed thereafter the full harvest of summer, and then ended with the second fruit harvest of grapes. The complete harvest cycle was not complete until both the first and second fruits were harvested. While some have thought to strictly apply the first fruit harvest to the church, alone, while applying the second fruit harvest to the world, alone, such has no type to sustain it. There must be both a first and second fruit harvest for both the church and for the world.

THE TWO INTERCESSIONS
ON THE DAY OF ATONEMENT

While the first three angels are seen to be flying in the midst of heaven, two of the last three are said to have come from the “temple,” and the other one from the “altar,” which is also in the temple. This indicates that probation is still open.

Adventists have long understood that the judgement and the harvest rites are interwoven. It has been correctly taught that the early harvest rites (Passover, with its wavesheaf ceremony; and Pentecost), the rites of the first fruit harvest, met an antitypical fulfillment at Christ’s first coming in His sacrificial work, and in His mediatorial work which followed afterwards in conjunction with the work of the Holy Spirit with the apostles and disciples. It is also taught that we now in the period of the antitypical day of Atonement – the time of the antitypical fulfillment of the second fruit harvest/judgement rites.

What has been overlooked by many in the movement is that in the typical rites for the Day of Atonement there were two acts of intercession performed for the people before the sins were transfer to the scapegoat, which themselves are symbolical of first and second fruit harvests in the final work of atonement. These first and second fruit harvests/judgements for the church are detailed in the type the work of the High Priest on the Day of Atonement. It is written,

“And Aaron shall bring the bullock of the sin offering, which is for himself, and shall make an atonement for himself, and for his house, and shall kill the bullock of the sin offering which is for himself: And he shall take a censer full of burning coals of fire from off the altar before the LORD, and his hands full of sweet incense beaten small, and bring it within the vail: And he shall put the incense upon the fire before the LORD, that the cloud of the incense may cover the mercy seat that is upon the testimony, that he die not: And he shall take of the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it with his finger upon the mercy seat eastward; and before the mercy seat shall he sprinkle of the blood with his finger seven times.” Leviticus 16:11-14.

After the High Priest has made an atonement in the most holy place for Himself, and for “His house” – the ministry – He goes out of the tabernacle to do another work for the congregation:

“Then shall he kill the goat of the sin offering, that is for the people, and bring his blood within the vail, and do with that blood as he did with the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it upon the mercy seat, and before the mercy seat: And he shall make an atonement for the holy place, because of the uncleanness of the children of Israel, and because of their transgressions in all their sins: and so shall he do for the tabernacle of the congregation, that remaineth among them in the midst of their uncleanness. And 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 come out, and have made an atonement for himself, and for his household, and for all the congregation of Israel. And he shall go out unto the altar that is before the LORD, and make an atonement for it; and shall take of the blood of the bullock, and of the blood of the goat, and put it upon the horns of the altar round about. And he shall sprinkle of the blood upon it with his finger seven times, and cleanse it, and hallow it from the uncleanness of the children of Israel.” Leviticus 16:15-19

It is after these two acts of intercession that the priesthood, the congregation, and the Holy place are clean. While there yet remains a work to be done in cleansing the Most Holy place from the record of the sins which were transferred there by means of transferring them through the high priest unto the scapegoat, the ministry and the congregation have received the merits of the atonement for them through the two acts of atonement (one for the priesthood, and one for the congregation).

When these two primary aspects of the atonement have been completed for the church ministry and the congregation, which results in “freeing God’s people from both sin and sinners, … [then is brought] into existence the long-looked-for purified church ‘that looketh forth as the morning, fair as the moon, clear as the sun, and terrible as an army with banners?’ — Song of Solomon 6:10; Prophets and Kings, p. 725.” White- House Recruiter, p. 39. As we have been well instructed, this verse (Song 6:10) applies to the Loud Cry church which “is to go forth into all the world, conquering and to conquer.” Prophets and Kings, p. 725.

While these things took place in one day in the type, in the antitypical Day of Atonement these things take years to accomplish for the cases which come up for review (both of the dead and the living) are exceedingly great in number. After the cases of the dead are decided, and the work passes to those of the living, different aspects of prophecy will find their ultimate fulfillment. One that applies specifically to the High Priest and “His house” is

“And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father’s name written in their foreheads. And I heard a voice from heaven, as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of a great thunder: and I heard the voice of harpers harping with their harps: And they sung as it were a new song before the throne, and before the four beasts, and the elders: and no man could learn that song but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from the earth. 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. And in their mouth was found no guile: for they are without fault before the throne of God.”
“The vision of the prophet pictures them as standing on Mount Zion, girt for holy service, clothed in white linen, which is the righteousness of the saints. But all who follow the Lamb in heaven must first have followed Him on earth, not fretfully or capriciously, but in trustful, loving, willing obedience, as the flock follows the shepherd.” Acts of the Apostles, p. 591.

By these testimonies we see that the 144,000 “firstfruits,” who “must first have followed Him on earth,” are “girt for holy service” on earth – bringing in the second fruits of the great harvest of souls (Revelation 7:9). They are prepared for this work by having received the benefits of that part of the atonement which is for the High Priest and His “house.” But as there are others who are “with” the 144,000, who are workers with them in the great harvest work for the world, then they also must have received the benefits of the atonement which will fit them for holy service. Such is revealed in the work of atonement for “the people,” “for all the congregation of Israel.” Thus the church, “the whole house of Israel” (Ezekiel 37:11) is prepared as “an exceeding great army” (verse 10) for the Loud Cry harvest work for the world.

So while Leviticus 16, reveals that there are two acts of atoning intercession, judgments, for the church (one for the ministry, and one for the congregation at large), Revelation 14 reveals that there are two harvests for the church. But these are only to prepare them for the work during the Loud Cry to the world – of which the work for the church was a miniature representation.

As previously explained, the firstfruit grain harvest (Revelation 14:14-16) is performed by the One “like unto the Son of man, having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle,” who was seen sitting on “a white cloud.” It is written that when Christ personally returns to gather all of the saints to take them back to heaven with Him, “He cometh with clouds.” Rev. 1:7. This thought is also revealed in the words that the Son of man is “coming in the clouds of heaven.” (Matt. 24:30, 26:64; Mark 13:26, 14:62). The fact that the One “like unto the Son of man” was seen sitting on “a white cloud” (singular), rather than in “clouds” (plural), indicates that this coming for harvest is a miniature representation of His final coming – this harvest being for the church only, to purify her for her final work for the world.

Let us take note of a few particulars of this 14th verse which also support this position. Though Ellen White was given a vision in which she saw the second coming of Jesus on a great white cloud with a sharp sickle in “His right hand,” she also saw that He had “in His left, a silver trumpet.” Early Writings, p. 16. She goes on to say, “Then Jesus’ silver trumpet sounded, as He descended on the cloud, wrapped in flames of fire. He gazed on the graves of the sleeping saints, then raised His eyes and hands to heaven, and cried, ‘Awake! awake! awake! ye that sleep in the dust, and arise.’ Then there was a mighty earthquake. The graves opened, and the dead came up clothed with immortality.” ibid.

When we take the preceding statements in consideration with what is written in 1 Thessalonians 4:16, “the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first,” we understand that the “silver trumpet” in “His left” hand is to be used in conjunction with the resurrection of the dead in Christ. But we must also note that in verse 14 He does not have a trumpet in His hand. Furthermore, the cloud upon which this One is seen to be sitting is not descending.

Therefore, it would be of the basest presumption to apply this 14th verse to the literal second coming of Christ. Even more so due to the fact that this One with the sharp sickle is followed by three other angels (verses 15, 17, and 18), and one of them also has a “sharp sickle,” and also performs a harvest. Moreover, the One on the cloud only performs a first fruit harvest of grain which is “ripe” (“dried” – margin), while the angel with the other sharp sickle which follows afterwards performs a second fruit harvest (grapes). It must also be noted that there is no work involving the “wrath of God” following the harvest by the One on the cloud as there is following the harvest by the angel of verse 17. And lastly, we must also take in consideration the fact that “all five of the angels brought to view in this chapter, represent five distinct messages, prior to the advent, or we are left without a rule to interpret this chapter.” Word to the Little Flock, James White, p. 10,11.

As much of the Revelation is symbolic, we must consider the symbolic meaning of the terms employed in this 14th verse. Let us first consider the “white cloud.” In Bible symbolism, a “cloud” is used to symbolize “witnesses.” (“Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses.” Hebrews 12:1.) Clouds are gatherings of water in heavenly places. Water is symbolical of “people.” (“And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, … are peoples.” Rev. 17:15.) Therefore, clouds are symbolical of gatherings of people (waters) in heavenly places. With this in mind, it is reasonable to conclude that the cloud upon which this One sat is a symbol of a group of people who were bearing the Presence of the Harvester.

Please bear in mind that the symbolism of this verse does not effect the literalness of Christ’s returning from heaven on a literal cloud. What this verse symbolizes is the fulfillment of Malachi 3 where it is said that the Lord “shall suddenly come to his temple… And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness.” That is, this coming to His temple to purify the priesthood (the ministry) is the same thing as harvesting them as the firstfruits who are to bring in “an offering” – the second fruits.

There can be no doubt that the “sharp sickle” in the hand of the One on the cloud is symbolical of something which is used to harvest. That it represents a message which is able to harvest is understood in the saying that, “If truth cannot save, it destroys.”

As the One like the Son of man sitting on a white cloud was seen after the revelation of the Third Angel and his message, and before the angel of verse 15 proclaims his message, then there should be an event found during that time period which this verse (the 14th) depicts. We may note that at the time when this One is first seen (verse 14) there was no harvesting being done, though the sickle indicates that this One is there for such a work. For some reason, He does not harvest until after the angel of verse 15 proclaims his message.

As we read earlier, there was a time during the proclamation of the Three Angel’s Messages when a harvest could have taken place, but did not. That time is known in the statement,

“If the people of God had gone to work as they should have gone to work right after the Minneapolis meeting in 1888, the world could have been warned in two years and the Lord would have come.” General Conference Bulletin, 1892.

Thus a harvest could have been accomplished between 1888 and 1890. The Harvester was seen in the rejected 1888 message, but no harvest was performed at that time due to the state of the people. In His infinite wisdom and mercy, the Lord understood the state of the people at that time, that they were not prepared to receive the glorious truths which were to be revealed at that time, and prophesied of that situation by showing the Presence of the Harvester with His harvesting device but no work being performed at first (verse 14), and by showing that further revelations were to follow thereafter (verse 15) which would make it possible for Him to perform His reaping (verse 16).

“The message [which came in 1888] was delivered with the power of the Spirit says the messenger: ‘I shall never again, I think, be called to stand under the direction of the Holy Spirit as I stood at Minneapolis. The presence of Jesus was with me. All assembled in that meeting had an opportunity to place themselves on the side of truth by receiving the Holy Spirit, which was sent by God in such a rich current of love and mercy. But in the rooms occupied by some of our people were heard ridicule, criticism, jeering, laughter. The manifestations of the Holy Spirit were attributed to fanaticism…. The scenes which took place at that meeting made the God of heaven ashamed to call those who took part in them His brethren. All this the heavenly Watcher noticed, and it was written in the book of God’s remembrance.’ — ‘Special Testimony to Review and Herald Office,’ pp. 16, 17, written in 1896.'” The Shepherd’s Rod, Vol. 2. p. 277.

“Though the Loud Cry was to have begun by 1892, it was muffled when the church rejected the message of Righteousness by Faith in 1888. Thus, the scroll which contained the “additional” message that was to give “power and force” to the Third Angel’s Message, for the time then being ceased unrolling.” The Answerer, Book no. 1, p. 83

Thus, the One on the cloud with sickle (the “additional” message) did not thrust it in because the scroll could not be unrolled as it should have been. This because the people were still in their bony stage of recreation.

“Likewise, the Advent Movement, right after the Minneapolis Conference in 1888, would have begun the work of the Loud Cry angel, but as a result of the unbelief of many in the Testimonies of the Spirit of God, the ‘cry’ was silenced…” The Answerer Book no. 2. p. 54

Though the message was rejected by the majority, it was proclaimed by some (Ellen White, E. J. Waggoner, and A. T. Jones) and accepted by some others. Therefore they are the ones represented by the “white cloud” upon which the Harvester sat. They were the gathering of “peoples” “waters” in heavenly places from which the Harvester was to reap. Note the similar use of a cloud as a symbol of a gathering of people in Revelation 10 where the mighty Angel which represents the Advent Message and Movement, and the cloud which clothes the Angel represents the “a cloud of witnesses” surrounding the Angel. For more on this mighty Angel of Revelation 10, see our study, The Return of the Shekinah, The Seven Thunders.

One reason that One “like unto the Son of man” is used to represent the message which came in 1888, rather than another angel, is because of the nature of the message itself – it is a message of Christ’s righteousness. The symbolism is also used to show that the work to be done is that which Christ alone can do. There are other reasons for this representation which will be discussed later.

In summary, we see that the representation in verse 14, in context with that which follows thereafter, is a depiction of a delayed harvest. And so it has been with the 1888 message and the Advent Movement. Though the message did not bear the fruit when it was first witnessed, verses 15 & 16 show that it eventually does.

Thus far we have seen the first mighty wind (Spirit) which caused the dry bones to begin to be reformed and resurrected. This brings us to

THE SECOND WIND

“I will write upon him … the name of the city of my God,
which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God.”

SINEWS

Victor T. Houteff and message of the sealing of the 144,000 and a call for reformation. “… the final phase of the First Angel’s message … announcing the stealthy approach of judgment upon the living.” White House Recruiter, p. 37. 1929-1955. Davidian Seventh Day Adventists. Revelation 14:15.

“… cast up …” Isaiah 62:10, fourth part.

“And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud, Thrust in thy sickle, and reap: for the time is come for thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe.” Revelation 14:15.

While a perfectly joined set of bones (a skeleton) is a wonder in itself, and an indication of a Master Planner at work, such cannot even move without sinew added to them. The grace and power with which the body moves are due to well placed and toned muscles (sinew). It is written:

“The word of God is quick, and powerful.” Hebrews 4:12.
Where the word of a king is, there is power: and who may say unto him, What doest thou?”

Ecclesiastes 8:4

Thus it is with Christ, the King. Where His Word is “there is power.”

“And they were astonished at His doctrine: for His word was with power.” Luke 4:32.

Though many churches have some power in them because they teach some of the basics of the Gospel (the “milk of the Word – 1 Peter 2:2), it is written,

“For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe. But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.” Hebrews 5:13.

Therefore, the deeper things of His Word, the “strong meat,” are those which are present in the work represented here as “sinews.” Those things include, the types and symbols of the earthly sanctuary, the priesthood Christ and Melchizedek, and the “more sure word of prophecy” (2 Peter 1:19).

This Wind contains:

(1) the message to prepare the people for the Lord’s coming suddenly to the temple for the Judgment for the Living (Malachi 3:1-4). This preparatory message is therefore likened to the “Latter Rain” that ripens the grain for harvest – judgment

(2) the announcement of the purification of the church the separation of the wheat from
the tares during the soon coming Judgment for the Living (Malachi 3:5, 6; Ezekiel 9)

(3) the first and second fruits of the final harvest – the 144,000 and the great multitude (Revelation 7)

(4) the predicted reformation – a change in “theories, habits, and practices.”

(5) the restoration of the promised land to the faithful remnant, and the setting up of the kingdomwhichbreaksapartallotherkingdomsbeforeChristreturnsfrom heaven– Daniel

2:44, 45.

This second wind, second act in the recreation of those depicted as dry bones, announces that the things that were taken away from the early Church (the loss of which caused them to become dry bones) are to be restored to her. Those things include the Bible feast days; the true keeping of the Lord’s Supper; the abiding Spirit of prophecy and the continuing light and leadership it brings; the true, pure form of worship; the true, pure form of fellowship and brotherly care.

“This very restricted representation of the ‘additional message’ — that of the judgment of the living — gives, in itself, tremendous ‘power and force’ [sinews, muscles] to the three angel’s messages.” White House Recruiter, p. 39. 1929-1955. Davidian Seventh-day Adventists.

As stated above, the burden of the message is the sealing of the 144,000, and that which attends it. Also noted above is that this part of the three-fold seal involves “name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem.” These two aspects blend in one with in the understanding that “Jerusalem” is representative of the ministry (leadership) of Israel, and that the 144,000 are to be the “new” ministry of the Loud Cry church. In order to comprehend this truth we begin with a look at the seal itself, and more particularly the Angel who has the seal, to wit:

“And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea, Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads. And I heard the number of them which were sealed: and there were sealed an hundred and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel.” Rev. 7:1-4.

This Angel with the seal of the living God informs us that the sealing work is to be accomplished by more than just himself through the use of the word “we.” As the seal itself is seen to be manifold, then the agencies used to produce the seal would also be manifold, and this is also revealed by the use of “we.”

“John’s prophecy in Revelation 7, of this ascending [sealing] angel was only a vision of something to come, and the fulfillment of this prophecy was realized when Sister White was given her first vision in 1844, which was a vision of the 144,000. Read Early Writings, pages 13-20. John prophesied of this movement, and the scene of the angel ascending in the east (John’s vision) became a reality in 1844.” The Shepherd’s Rod, Volume 1, p. 22.

Thus the work of those specified as “we” began in 1844 – that work being the sealing of the saints (and particularly the 144,000) with the manifold seal of God. As to the fact that within the Angel’s mission there are manifold works and movements used to produce the manifold seal, consider the following:

“The Two Seals … 19

“The Sabbath has been present truth since 1845, and being the seal of the law of God has been sealing the law among the people of God ever since that year. Isaiah 8:16 “Bind up the testimony, seal the law among my disciples.” This has been the work of the third angel, and for this reason the third angel has no seal, for the seal is in the law [“the name of my God” – being in the Sabbath law itself (Exodus 20:10; 31:13)], but the angel of Revelation 7, has a seal in his hand. Ezekiel calls him the man with the writer’s inkhorn who is to set a mark upon the men who sigh and cry for all the abominations that be done in the midst thereof (the church). This is the seal of the 144,000 [the second part of the complete seal – “the name of the city of my God”], but all the saved under the third angel are sealed with the Sabbath seal [the first part of the complete seal]. The 144,000 having this seal [the first part of the complete seal] are also marked (sealed) by the angel of Revelation 7 [the second part of the complete seal], which is the same as the one of Ezekiel 9. In other words, it may be termed a double seal.” ibid., p. 29.

But as we have observed, the complete seal contains more than just two (“double”) parts. As history has shown, the first part of the complete seal (“the name of my God” – the Sabbath and Sanctuary truths) was brought about through a three-phased movement – that being the work under the first, second, and third angels’ messages, which are combined into one under the third angel.

“Ezekiel 9 Is Not A Sabbath Seal

“This sealing of the 144,000 is not a Sabbath seal. However, those who are sealed must be Sabbath keepers. It is a seal, or mark, that separates the two classes in the church, and those who are sealed, or marked [with the second part of the complete seal] are not marked because they keep Sabbath only, but because they sigh and cry for all the abominations that are done in the church.” ibid.

So while the author of the above quoted statements seems to give the impression that there are two separate seals, he elsewhere more fully explains the matter. Before looking at his statements to that effect, let us keep in mind this thought:

“I then saw the third angel. Said my accompanying angel, ‘Fearful is his work. Awful is his mission. H e is the angel that is to select the wheat from the tares, and seal, or bind, the wheat for the heavenly garner…'” Early Writings. p. 118.

Here we see that it is the third angel which seals the saints (the “wheat” – the firstfruits). But the question is, does the third angel’s message, as it was given up until the death of Ellen White in 1915, contain all that is represented by the multifold seal?

“To get the proper understanding of the third angel’s message we shall divide it into three periods: (1) Beginning of the proclamation of the true Sabbath, Rev. 14:6-11; (2) Reformation, and sealing of the 144,000, Rev. 7:1-8; (3) The Loud Cry, Rev. 18:1. The truth of the sealing (of the 144,000) [the new leadership, New Jerusalem] being made known, it is evident that we [the Davidians in his time] are in the second period.” The Shepherd’s Rod, Vol. 1, p. 32.

Therein Victor Houteff equates the additional truth regarding the “Reformation, and sealing of the 144,000” with a period of time which is only a portion of the third angel’s message – the second portion – which is distinct from that of the first and third portions. This would imply that the third potion, time period, also involves a revelation of another truth – that being the remaining portion of the three-fold seal, the truth of “a glorious star containing Jesus’ new name.” It is also evident that all three portions of the third angel’s message must come to the Church first, for they contain that which seals the saints – but the firstfruits first. The Church could not have proclaimed the first, second, or third angel’s messages to the world had they not first received them themselves. You cannot give to others what you do not first have yourself.

In this “second period,” that of the “Reformation, and sealing of the 144,000,” there must be more than the 144,000 sealed with “the name of the city of my God,” for there are more than that number to be delivered from the church and who proclaim the third portion when it goes in a loud cry to the world, and all

of those must have the full, multifold seal written on them. We may notice that this second potion of the seal involves not only the “city,” but also “the name of the city.” Regarding the number of those who are to be sealed with this second portion of the seal, and the name which they will be called, we read that the organization which V. T. Houteff was instrumental in setting up

“purports itself to be the first of the first fruits of the living, the vanguard from among the present-day descendants of those Jews who composed the Early Christian Church. With the emergence of this vanguard and its army, the first fruits, from which are elected the 12,000 out of each of the twelve tribes of Jacob, “the 144,000″ (Rev. 14:1; 7:2-8) who stand on Mount Zion with the Lamb (Rev. 14:1; 7:2-8), the reign of antitypical David begins.” The Leviticus of The Davidian Seventh-day Adventists, p. 3.

Therein we are shown three distinctly identified segments of the movement:

(1) the “vanguard” – “the first of the first fruits” – the wavesheaf;
(2) “its army” – “the first fruits;” and
(3) the 144,000 which “are elected” “from” “its army, the first fruits.”

Thus we see that the “army” of “first fruits” “from which are elected … the 144,000” is comprised of more than just the 144,000. The “vanguard” and “its army” are both unnumbered companies, out of which will come a numbered company, the 144,000.

In the typical harvest rites there were also manifold segments to the complete work of the firstfruit harvest. The harvest began with (1) the wavesheaf (the first of the firstfruits – a barley harvest) which was waved during the Passover time. It was followed with (2) the general firstfruit harvest (barley and wheat harvest), from which (3) the twelve wheaten loaves baked with leaven were offered on the day of Pentecost. Thus Victor Houteff’s delineation of the latter day firstfruit harvest segments is in harmony with that of the typical harvest rites: the “vanguard” – the wavesheaf; “its army” – the general grain (first fruits) harvest; and the “elected” 144,000 – the numbered leavened loaves.

There is a Time to Every Purpose Under Heaven

“Behold, I will send my messenger, [the angel of verse 15] and he shall prepare the way before me [the One like the Son of man of verse 14].” Malachi 3:1.

The most notable thing in this verse is that it concerns the fulfillment of a specific “time” period. Note that it does not say “is coming” (future tense), but “is come” (present tense). Thus this message is similar to the initial phase First Angel’s Message, for both announced that the time of an event had arrived – in the first instance, the hour of His judgment, and in the second, the time to reap. It will be shown that not only is there a similarity between this Angel’s message and that of the First Angel in the fact that both involve time, but also that the same type of misunderstanding existed in both movements concerning when the language of the message actually becomes present truth.

As the message of this verse has to do with a ripening for a harvest, its preparatory work would have to be for a specific period of time which could cumulate in a harvest, or its work would be fruitless and limitless. That is, the preparatory message would have to contain a time factor. Such it is with the angel of verse 15, – “the time is come for thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe [margin, – “dried”].” So within the very preparatory message is also the announcement of its completion – ” the harvest of the earth is ripe.”

The announcement of the “time” element therein is not to indicate that the preparatory message had been harvesting the crops, and that its work was finished, but rather that the time element was being given to

announce that the preparatory, ripening message had finished its work in preparing the way for the purifying, harvest message. In other words, the time element of the verse is given to make known that that which prepares the grain for harvest, the Latter Rain, had completed it work, not that it was just beginning the ripening work.

The time element in the Shepherd’s Rod message is contained in the prophecy of Ezekiel 4 (the 430 years). It relates to the time of the open of the Judgment of the Living. Note that the First Angel (Revelation 14:6, 7) was commissioned “to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people” that “the hour of His judgment is come,” while the Fourth Angel (verse 7) is commissioned to speak to the One on the cloud concerning the time to harvest. Therefore, it is not a test for the people, though the matter intrinsically concerns them.

As the matter of the time element of the Fourth Angel’s message is too broad a subject for the matter at hand, the resurrection of the dry bones, we direct the readers attention to our other studies on the matter written by Ben Roden – Ezekiel 9 in the Light of the 430 Year Prophecy; Revival & Reformation In The Light Of The 430 Years Of Abraham And Ezekiel 4: and Details Of The 430 Year Prophecy According To Abraham & Ezek . 4 In Three Steps.

What’s In a Name

Regarding the structure and name of the Association we read:

“Provisional in set-up as well as in name, the Davidian Seventh-day Adventist Association exists solely to accomplish a divinely appointed work within the Seventh-day Adventist denomination, wherein it therefore strictly confines its activities. As its work therewithin draws to a close, and the “servants of our God” (Rev. 7:3) are sealed, its name will be changed (Isa. 56:5; 62:2; 65:15) and its purpose and its work will become all-embracing to the gospel (Matt. 17:11; Acts 3:21, Isa. 61:4-7). Then its Constitution and By- Laws as herein codified will become fully operative.” The Leviticus of The Davidian Seventh-day Adventists, Preface.

Thereby we see that both the “set-up” and the “name” of the organization under which Victor Houteff did his work in the second period of the third angel’s message of proclaiming “the final phase of the First Angel’s message … announcing the stealthy approach of judgment upon the living,” and the sealing of the 144,000 and the attending reformation, was only “provisional” and that it was to be changed as its limited work was expanded to “become all-embracing to the gospel.”

Notice that the time of the name change is said to be when “the ‘servants of our God’ … are sealed.” But as he was only acting in reference to the “second period” of the third angel message, and bringing the second portion (New Jerusalem) of the three-fold seal, the question arises as to whether or not he was referring to the complete seal, or only to the “two seals” which he had light upon? Due to the context of the statement and the truths he was teaching, we must accept that he was speaking of the complete seal. This understanding is the only one which harmonizes with Ellen White’s statement regarding seeing the 144,000 standing on Mt. Zion with the Lamb, and with the complete seal written in their foreheads.

As he also stated, his work involved a “call to reformation.” Though he said that his work had prepared and provided things for the predicted reformation, he didn’t say that the reformation had been accomplished. To the contrary, the whole structure of the reformed church was not even implemented during his day, as indicated in the Leviticus. In support of this we read that when the sealing he was referring to was to be “drawing to a close,” and the organization’s provisional name was then changed,

“Then its Constitution and By-Laws as herein codified will become fully operative.” Ibid.

Thus the governing organ of the organization which was bringing the reformation message and movement was not “fully operative” in his day, and thus the reformation work for the Church was not “drawing to a close” then, for the name was not changed during his time (the second portion). Therefore, as

he was only bringing the second portion of the multifold seal, and, as that which was revealed in that phase of the work was not sufficient in his day to bring them to the point when he, himself, changed the name of the Church, it is obvious that more truth was needed to be revealed after his day to bring the fullness of the seal for the firstfruits and those with them, and to bring the reformed Church into full operation.

In order for the vanguard, its army, and the 144,000 elected ones, to have the full seal written upon their foreheads when they stand on Mt. Zion with the Lamb, they must have before hand received the final portion of the multifold seal – “the glorious star containing Jesus’ new name.” That third portion is said to be “The Loud Cry, Rev. 18:1.” The term “The Loud Cry” carries dual meanings: one refers to the act of giving the message in a Loud Cry, and the other, the message, the Loud Cry, itself. The Church must have the message of the Loud Cry themselves before they can give it to others in a loud cry. The message in the third portion has to have done its sealing work upon the Church or they wouldn’t be prepared (sealed) to give the Loud Cry message in a Loud Cry to the world.

The third portion, Rev. 18:1, has been said:

(1) To have begun in 1888 – “The time of test is just upon us, for the loud cry of the third angel has already begun in the revelation of the righteousness of Christ, the sin-pardoning Redeemer. This is the beginning of the light of the angel whose glory shall fill the whole earth [Rev. 18:1]. The Review and Herald, Nov. 22, 1892. (1 Selected Messages, p. 362).

(2) To have been rejected when it came in 1888 – “In 1888 … a message … went forth, but the leaders at that time rejected it … [Testimonies to Ministers, p. 91, quoted]

“The message was delivered with the power of the Spirit says the messenger: … [Special Testimony to Review and Herald Office,” pp. 16, 17, written in 1896, quoted] ….” Shepherd’s Rod, Vol. 2, p. 277.

“Though the Loud Cry [Rev. 18:1] was to have begun by 1892, it was muffled when the church rejected the message of Righteousness by Faith in 1888. Thus, the scroll which contained the “additional” message that was to give “power and force” to the Third Angel’s Message, for the time then being ceased unrolling.” Answerer Book 1. p. 83.

(3) To be a repetition of the second Angel’s message – “This scripture [Rev. 18:1, 2, 4] points toward to a time when the announcement of the fall of Babylon, as made by the second angel of Revelation 14, is to be repeated, with the additional mention of the corruptions which have been entering the various organizations that constitute Babylon, since that message was first given, in the summer of 1844,” The Great Controversy, p. 603. The “corruptions” are her wine, her “false doctrines.”

Earlier we saw that Victor Houteff declared his work, the second portion of the third Angel’s message, to be “the final phase of the First Angel’s message.” White House Recruiter, p. 37. Then would naturally follow the final phase of the second Angel’s message, which is stated to be Rev. 18:1. Just as in the initial phases of the first and second Angel’s messages where their messages were intrinsically interwoven integral parts of the work which brought forth the first portion of the multifold seal, so it is to be expected in the final phases of those messages. Thus the final phase of the first Angel’s message (the second portion of the seal) is not of itself sufficient to seal the saints and close the work for the Church, and bring the name change, thus making fully operative the laws of the reformed Church – the Loud Cry Church.

Sowhilethe sinews (muscles)– the Shepherd’s Rod message, the “very restricted representation of the ‘additional message’ — that of the judgment of the living” – which “gives, in itself, tremendous ‘power and force’ ” to the rejoined bones, such was not sufficient to bring the Church to the point where it will be said that She “looketh forth as the morning, fair as the moon, clear as the sun, and terrible as an army with banners.” Song of Solomon 6:10. This is because “sinews” do not contain that which brings oxygen to the body, nor which is needed to create and circulate the blood (life) thereof. Moreover, eyes of flesh are needed before the church can “looketh forth.” Therefore, additional coverings are needed before the breath of life can be given to those who were as very dry bones.

The organs which enable the bodies to breath, and to circulate the blood in which is the life of the body, are contained in the flesh, not the sinews (though they are inseparable for life to exist). Therefore, let us behold the next phase in this re-formation and resurrection which Ezekiel beheld, the addition of the flesh. This then brings us to

THE THIRD WIND

“I will write upon him my new name”

FLESH

Benjamin L. Roden and the message of Jesus’ new name – the Branch. The coming of the Bridegroom. The opening of the Investigative Judgment for the Living for the Firstfruits – the ministry (Leviticus 16:11- 14). The final phase of the second angel’s message for the church (Rev. 14:16; Rev, 18:1). 1955-1978, Branch Davidian Seventh-day Adventists.

“… cast up the highway …” Isaiah 62:10, fifth part.

“And He that sat on the cloud thrust in his sickle on the earth; and the earth was reaped.” Revelation 14:16.

“The life of the flesh is in the blood,” (Lev. 17:11). Therefore, the flesh, in this symbolism, depicts the organs and other fleshy things which contain the life (blood) of the body – Christ’s intercession of His blood, the life of His body, the church.

In order for blood to exist in the body many different processes must take place by means the many different organs (organized fleshy parts). The lungs bring oxygen in to the body so that it may be circulated in the blood. The mouth, and digestive organs are the means by which nutrition enters and sustains the body. The elimination and cleansing organs remove from the body those things which enter through various other organs and which are not needed by, or are harmful to the body. The eyes, ears, and speech organs, in conjunction with the functions of the brain enable the body to perceive, communicate, and sense its place in the world. The brain, itself, allows for the apprehension of thoughts, decision making, and awareness of self. The general flesh contains the blood vessels, protects the organs, and provides the soft foundation that makes the body pleasant to sight and touch.

From the foregoing limited overview of that which the flesh and its organs do for the body, we see that the “flesh” in this prophecy represents a message of broad and significant import to the body. It signifies divinely organized truths (the laws of life) which are the means for the life of Christ (His blood) to animate and sustain the body.

“But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts [flesh], and write it in their hearts [of flesh – Eze. 11:19; 36:26]; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.” Jer. 31:33.

Therein the Lord speaks of His “law,” singular, as though there is only one. Though the Ten Commandments were kept inside the Ark of the Covenant, and the additional commandments, statutes, and judgments were kept on the side of the Ark, God always referred to them as one law – His law. When Christ entered into His priestly ministry the only thing that happened to the whole law was that it was “changed” in portions thereof –

“For the priesthood being changed, there is made of necessity a change also of the law.” Hebrews 7:12.

One of the main changes in the law was the doing away with the animal sacrifices, and replacing them with “better sacrifices” (Hebrews 9:23) – even the blood of Christ. In the typical service, the ceremonial law

was the means (the fleshy organs) whereby the blood of the atonement (the life of the congregation) was circulated through the body of God’s people, performing its varying functions. That is, as the body contains many different types of flesh and fleshy organs which themselves contribute to the production and circulation of blood (life) in the body, so the ceremonial law contained many different functions, all of which contributed to the circulation of the blood of the Covenant through the congregation.

Those functions (flesh and fleshy organs), of the typical ceremonial law consisted of the rites and ordinances ordained for the daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly times of intercession – times in which the blood of the covenant was made effective for the body of the congregation (the church). So, in the antitypical administration of Christ’s blood under His office of High Priest there are also similar functions (fleshy organs) by which the blood of the Covenant continues to circulate through the body of the church (the congregation).

One of the most easily understood of these fleshy organs is revealed in Paul’s admonition to the Corinthians –

“For even Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us: Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth..” 1 Corinthians 5:7, 8.

Likewise,

“There remaineth therefore a rest [a keeping of Sabbath] to the people of God.” Hebrews 4:9.

In the typical service, the feast days and times of intercession were the organized means for conveying life through the body. The only change in these things is the means by which the blood of the Covenant is made effective. In the typical system it was the sacrificing of animals that kept the realities of God’s intercession for His people fresh in their hearts and minds. Under the new Covenant we have been given the ordinances of the Lord’s Supper to accomplish the same purpose. This is wherein the work and message of the Branch as brought initially through Ben Roden fulfills the work of the flesh of the body.

THE NEW NAME
In speaking of Christ “the man whose name is the Branch,” Zechariah says,

“Even He [Christ] shall build the temple of the LORD; and He shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule upon His [the Father’s] throne; and He shall be a priest upon His throne: and the counsel of peace shall be between Them both.” Zechariah 6:13.

This prophecy was given in conjunction with the building of the second temple, after the destruction of the temple built by Solomon, and after the Babylonian captivity. Many Bible students understand that Solomon, the son of David, is a type of Christ, and his building of the first temple was a type of Christ’s work in building the early church (spiritual temple) which was also later destroyed by pagans (actually, it was the sins of the people which were the cause of the Lord allowing the pagans to destroy the temple in both instances – literal and spiritual). Thus the antitypical second temple would be the one built after that antitypical Babylonian captivity during the Dark Ages. Therefore, the time when the Builder of the temple is to be known by the name “the Branch” is the time during the building of the antitypical second temple – the present time.

As the early church (the first antitypical temple) became known by Christ’s title (Christians), so the second antitypical temple (church) is to be known by His new name – the Branch. The more intimate relationship the latter day church is to have with Christ through the marriage is depicted in the fact that she bears His actual name (the Branch), rather than just His title (Christian). Though Victor Houteff did not bring the predicted name change, he did specifically allude to the new name under which the full revival (spiritual resurrection) and reformation would be experienced. To wit,

“Obviously, then, as a result of this revival and reformation within the Laodicean church, another church emerges of which Joshua is in charge, not the angel of Laodicea. In it there are to be neither “tares” (Matt. 13:30), “bad fish” (Matt. 13:47, 48), or “goats” (Matt. 25:32). The Laodicean, the seventh, is the last that is commingled with hypocrites, saints and sinners.

“Who is to bring this revival and reformation, this great change? — The BRANCH. And according to Isaiah 11:1 to 5, the Branch is the Lord, the Son of David.” Timely Greetings, Vol. 1, No. 8, p. 24.

Therein (in 1946) he states that the fully reformed church is to be brought forth by “The Branch.” He further explains how “The Branch” is to work to bring forth the fully reformed Church to Mt. Zion with the complete seal written in their foreheads.

“Here is seen an organization having a Leader and an under leader — The Lord and Joshua.” Ibid., p. 26.

In the foregoing statements, “The Branch” has been associated with “Joshua” – “Heaven’s appointed judge, ruler.” Ibid. Yet there is another name used to designate the Lord’s “under leader,” that is, “David.”

“Since therefore from the “stem” of Jesse came the “rod” (David), and from the rod sprang the Branch (Christ), David the visible king and Christ the invisible King of kings shall “in that day” — in our time — constitute the “ensign,” and “to it shall the Gentiles seek: and His rest [or His resting place, — the location where the “rod” or ensign stands — the kingdom] shall be glorious.” Yea “I will make the place of My feet glorious” (Isa. 60:13), saith the Lord.” Tract 8, p. 47.

In both of these applications we see Christ, the Branch, represented as being present, but “invisible.” As to how “The Branch” will be present with the Church to complete the reformation, while yet invisible, let us read of “The Messenger of the Covenant,” in Symbolic Code, Vol. 1, No. 4, p.. 5 & 6.

“Therefore, as John [the Baptist] was a messenger to God’s own people at that time, just so at this time the Elijah of Malachi’s prophecy REPRESENTS A MESSAGE which is to be delivered not to the world, but to the professed people of God. As John was their last prophet, his message was their final means to fit them for THE MESSIAH’S APPEARING, for which cause said the Master, “If ye will receive it, this is Elias, which was for to come. (Matt. 11:14) Likewise, Elijah’s message of today must be to the professed people of God, and is to be their last means to fit them for Christ’s appearing AT THIS TIME.”

The question at this point is, Of which “appearing” is “Elijah’s message of today” to be the final one to prepare the people for – His visible coming in the clouds, or His invisible coming? The answer is both. But as we are at this time looking into His invisible coming (His coming in a message to harvest the firstfruits), we’ll examine this point further, and particularly how Christ will come invisibly.

“Here follows the explanation of the ‘messenger of the covenant.’ As Christ was the ‘Messenger of the covenant’ at His first advent; also Moses, while leading Israel out of Egypt; in like manner, John the Baptist’s message; and the one to the Laodiceans — all four were compared to the message of Malachi 3:1. Here we see that the title, ‘messenger of the covenant,’ referred to by Malachi, is applied to more than one person, in the same manner as the promises which were made to ancient Israel are now applicable to modern Israel — the 144,000.” Ibid.

We see therein that both Christ, and His forerunner, John the Baptist, carried the title, “Messenger of the covenant.” Putting the “four” messengers and their respective messages which were compared to the message of Malachi 3:1 in chronological order we have: (1) Moses; (2) John the Baptist; (3) Christ; (4) to the Laodiceans. As we shall see, the first three applications are types for the fourth. As to why they all carry that title we read,

“Says the Spirit of Prophecy, ‘…It is necessary now that the minds of God’s people should be open to understand the Scriptures. To say that a message means just this and nothing more, that you must not

attach any broader meaning to the words of Christ than we have in the past, is saying that which is not actuated by the Spirit of God.’ — R. & H., Oct. 21, 1890.

“The word, ‘covenant,’ means nothing more or less than an agreement, — promise. This being true, Moses was a ‘messenger of the covenant;’ namely, the promise God made to Abraham that He was to deliver his posterity out of Egypt by a prophet — messenger. John also came in fulfillment of prophecy as he himself declared that Esaias had prophesied of him (John 1:23), and according to Christ’s own statement (Matt. 11:7, 9, 10), Malachi had also prophesied of John.” Ibid.

Therein we see that the title “Messenger of the Covenant” is applied to those who come as messengers with a message in fulfillment of the everlasting Covenant. As to how “Christ was the ‘Messenger of the covenant’ at His first advent, we find that

“As God had made a written covenant with His ancient people that He was to send them the Messiah, Christ came in fulfillment of that covenant, and having brought a message by His teachings, He was the ‘Messenger of the covenant.’ But the words of Malachi in chapter three, verse one, make plain that before the Lord comes ‘to His temple,’ He will send a messenger to prepare the way, at which time He is to purify the sons of Levi, — those who minister in ‘His temple’ — the church. As he that ‘is filthy’ at the moment probation closes must remain ‘filthy’ (Rev. 22:11), it follows that this work of purification which the Lord is to perform at His coming must be accomplished in probationary time, and long before the gospel work is finished, for He cannot finish it with the impure ‘sons of Levi,’ — ministry. This particular coming of the Lord is also predicted in Vol. 5, pp. 80, 690.” Ibid.

In the type, Christ came as a messenger with a message after another messenger with a message, John the Baptist, had first come to prepare the way for Him. Both were fulfilling the work of “the messenger of the covenant” Note also that while John was preparing the way for Christ, Christ came and also did a work of preparation in the Church through His “message” – “by His teachings.” He did that work of preparation for the disciples during His earthly ministry in order to fit them to receive the coming Lord – the Holy Spirit – on the day of Pentecost. Beginning at that time, the Holy Ghost also sat “as a refiner and purifier of silver,’ purifying the congregation. Thus we se that two people (John and Christ) came as the “messenger the covenant” to prepare the way for the Holy Ghost in the type of Christ’s first advent. The work which was performed by “Elijah the prophet,” “the messenger of the covenant,” in that type, should be expected to be seen in like manner in the antitypical coming.

“There is a type for every event, and let none despise types, for where there is no type, there is no truth.” The Shepherd’s Rod, Vol. 2, p. 153.

“This light being transmitted by marvels of typical events, is a clear manifestation that there is a type for every incident of vital interest to the church of God, which are the only positive proofs and clear explanations of divine providences. As there is no type for that which is false, teachers of theories without a typical representation for their claims of so-called Bible truths, and those who believe in them, are as the blind leading the blind. The types are worked out to expose the error and reveal the truth. The honest ones will shun the devil by embracing the facts, and by walking in the light.” The Shepherd’s Rod, Vol. 2, p. 255.

“In view of the fact that Christ at His coming to purify the church will not in person preach the message as He did before the crucifixion, but send someone other than himself, how could He at this time be the ‘messenger of the covenant?’ There is but one answer to this — THE ONE WHO BRINGS THE MESSAGE MUST BE THE ‘MESSENGER OF THE COVENANT,’ and when the Lord sends him he will fulfill the promise of Malachi 4:5. Having prepared ‘the way,’ the Lord will ‘sit as a refiner and purifier of silver’ (Mal. 3:3), ‘and it shall come to pass, that he that is left in Zion, and he that remaineth in Jerusalem, shall be called holy, even every one that is written among the living in Jerusalem; when the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion.’ (Isa. 4:3, 4).” Symbolic Code, Vol. 1, p. 6.

From this we see that “someone other than” Christ is to preach Christ’s message at the time of “His coming to purify the church” – the time when He, by His message, sits “as a refiner and purifier of silver.” The message this “someone” brings is the antitype of the message which Christ brought at His first appearing. This antitype of Christ’s message, to be true to the type, must be preceded by an antitype of John’s message. Thus there will be two messages which are both manifestations of the work of the “messenger of the covenant,” Elijah the prophet – one, as John’s message preparing the way for the other, as Christ’s message, by which He purifies the church. Victor Houteff clearly defined the type and antitype of his work:

“Isa. 40:3 — ‘The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.’

“True, verse three found fulfillment in the work of John the Baptist; but the verses preceding and also the verses following, definitely apply to the people in the latter days and only partially to the people in John’s day. Therefore the truth stands out boldly that the direct fulfillment of this chapter is found in our time, thus making John’s work an ensample of our work — JOHN’S WORK THE TYPE, OURS THE ANTITYPE.” Timely Greetings, Vol. 1, No. 36, p. 3.

Logic would follow that there would be a work which is the antitype of Christ’s work which follows that of the antitype of John’s work – one message following another. One message to prepare the people for the coming of the Lord, who, when the preparation work is being accomplished, will come and sit to purify the church by the message which He brings by “someone.” According to this type, there was no name change brought under the work of John the Baptist, but there was one which was the result of Christ’s work (Acts 11:26), and that new name was reflective of the Savior’s own title, Christ – i.e., Christians. So it must be in the antitype – the antitype of Christ’s work and message, not the antitype of John the Baptist’s work and message is to bring the name change. Therefore we see that Victor Houteff did not run ahead of the Lord by changing the Church’s name, but limited his work to that which John the Baptist’s work was the type.

Speaking additionally on the antitypical Elijah, he says,

“Furthermore, though the title, ‘messenger of the covenant,’ is applied to more than one messenger, it rightfully belongs to the Holy Spirit, and only for the reason that the Spirit of God is in them are they designated by that title. For example, we call the reader’s attention to 1 Pet. 3:18-20. There it is stated that Christ went and preached to the antediluvians by the same ‘Spirit’ Who ‘quickened’ Him. Being stated that He went by the Spirit and not in person, it proves that Christ accomplished this by that same Spirit through Noah. Hence, Christ being the ‘Messenger of the covenant’ and He being in Noah by the Spirit, compels us to acknowledge that the title, ‘messenger of the covenant,’ belongs not only to those mentioned in this article, including Noah, BUT TO ALL GOD’S CHOSEN MESSENGERS IN WHOSE MESSAGE IS CHRIST, BY THAT SAME SPIRIT.

“It is for the fact of this union — the Spirit in the messengers — that the Word says, ‘holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.’ (2 Pet. 1:21.) Briefly summarized, the words, ‘messenger of the covenant,’ mean nothing more or less than to say, The Holy Spirit in Heaven’s visible representative, or THE INVISIBLE CHRIST IN THE MESSAGE.” Symbolic Code, Vol. 1, No. 4, p. 6.

THE HARVEST

“And He that sat on the cloud thrust in his sickle on the earth; and the earth was reaped.” Verse 16.

Implied in the fact that the sickle which the One who sat on the cloud had in His hand before the angel of verse 15 comes and delivers his message to harvest (“thrust in thy sickle”) is the same sickle which He used to harvest after the angel of verse 15 came, is that the same message which came in 1888 is to be the one which harvests the firstfruits – that is, Revelation 18:1, the additional message which “joins the Third Angel.” The message which came in 1888 was to prepare (harvest) the people for the outpouring of

the Holy Spirit, whereby they might go forth and proclaim the truth “more fully.” Thus it was to “sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; and … shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness. Then shall the offering of Judah and Jerusalem be pleasant unto the LORD, as in the days of old, and as in former years.”

But the message in 1888 did not produce a harvest then, because it was not accepted when it first appeared as a sickle (harvesting instrument) in the hand of “one like unto the Son of man” who sat upon “a white cloud, having on his head a golden crown.” (verse 14). As the Church was not ready at that time to be harvested, cleansed, it stands to reason that a fuller preparatory work would need to be done for her before she would be ready for the invisible coming of the Christ in a message they could take to all the world.

To verify this we need to look at the truths which were being proclaimed in 1888 and compare them with those taught by Ben Roden in the Branch message.

The main subjects of the additional message in 1888 were justification by faith and the righteousness of Christ. At the core of these issues was the issue of the law of God, and particularly the ceremonial aspect of it, and its continuance since the cross. The general view held among Seventh Day Adventists was that there were actually two laws – the moral law, the Ten Commandments which were kept inside the ark of the covenant, and the ceremonial law, which was kept on the side of the ark. Their belief is that the ceremonial law was nailed to the cross (Colossians 2:14). But Jones and Waggoner came in 1888 teaching that it was not any part of the law that was nailed to the cross, but rather our transgressions, as the Bible clearly states.

Therefore, when the 1888 message (Revelation 14:14) returned to perform the harvest (verse 15), the Branch message includes the keeping of the Biblical feast days as they are to be done under the New Covenant – that being that the sacrificial part of the law has been changed from the sacrificing of animals at the earthly sanctuary to Christ’s intercession of His blood in the heavenly Sanctuary. It not only includes the keeping of the annual feast days, but also the keeping of the daily worship hours that were supplanted by pagan times and practices.

Thus the Branch message is proclaiming the same subject as that which was preached in 1888 – Christ and His righteousness – what Christ is doing today, and specifically when, to save His people. One of the reasons these things were brought forth was to more fully inform the people of the issues that are involved in the “mark of the beast.” Regarding said mark Ellen White said,

“The ‘mark of the beast’ still remains to be defined.” – Great Controversy, page 445.

“The mark of the beast is exactly what it has been proclaimed to be. Not all in regard to this matter is yet understood nor will it be understood until the unrolling of the scroll.” – Testimonies, Vol. 6, page 17:1.

We have thus far seen that the types show that there were TWO messengers with messages (John the Baptist and Christ) who came to prepare the people for the coming of the Holy Spirit. This was then followed by the coming of a THIRD messenger who was to also prepare the people by leading the them into “all truth” – that THIRD messenger being the Holy Ghost. John came to prepare the way for Jesus, and Jesus came to prepare the way for the Person of the Holy Ghost, who, in turn, came to prepare the way for Jesus’ second coming, at which coming He would then lead the people to the throne of the Father.

While the perfect organization of bones, sinew, and flesh provide the internal structure and functions of the body, the skin still needs to applied over them all to safeguard them, and to provide beauty to the whole body. The skin is also the largest of the fleshly organs, and is also called the peripheral heart, in that through it action it also prominent in the circulation of the blood through the body. This, then, bring us to the

THE FOURTH WIND

THE SKIN

“a glorious star containing Jesus’ new name.”

Lois I. Roden and the message of the coming of the Bride, in Jesus’ new name – the Branch. The final phase of the Third Angel’s message for the church in the Investigative Judgement for the Living Second Fruits (Leviticus 16:15-19; Rev. 14:17; the “glory” of the Angel of Revelation 18:1). 1977-1986. Branch Davidian Seventh-day Adventists (Living Waters Branch).

“… gather out the stones …” Isaiah 62:10, sixth part.

“And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle.” Revelation 14:17.

“Fearful is his [the Third Angel’s] work. Awful is his mission. He is the angel that is to select the wheat from the tares [gather out the stones], and seal, or bind, the wheat for the heavenly garner. These things should engross the whole mind, the whole attention.” Early Writings, p. 118.

“The sleepers [the wise and foolish virgins – Mat. 25], suddenly awakening, spring to their feet. They see the procession moving on, bright with torches and glad with music. They hear the VOICE OF THE BRIDEGROOM [Jer. 23:5,6] and the VOICE OF THE BRIDE [Jer. 33:15,16].” Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 406.

Under the new message brought by Lois Roden, the Branch movement took the additional publishing name LIVING WATERS (symbolizing the feminine counterpart of the Father). Eve was first called “Adam,” in the day that they were created” (Gen 5:1, 2), and then later was called Eve (Gen. 3:20). She had a two-fold name Eve Adam. And so the two-fold name, Living Waters Branch. Adam and Eve were both given “dominion” over the earth (Gen 1:28). Thus it is to be in the restoration of all things.

The heart of this message (wind) is the understanding of the Personality and gender of the Holy Spirit (Holy Ghost). It concerns the “glory” of the Angel of Revelation 18:1. It also concerns the impartation of the Holy Spirit at the times of “daily” worship through the correct keeping of the Lord’s Supper. As said Angel first came in 1888, but was not received at that time, we should expect to see that the same doctrines presented then return with greater brilliance that at first.

In 1888 some of the “new light” which was coming, and which was not received at that time was concerning Christ’s inherited nature – that is, what it means where it is written that He is “so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they” Hebrews 1:4.

The back cover of Christ and His Righteousness, by E.J. Waggoner, says “Following this conference [1888], Dr. Waggoner edited his messages he had presented and published them in three books: Christ and His Righteousness (1890), which also appeared under the titles Christ Our Righteousness, and The Righteousness of Christ; The Gospel In Creation (1894); and The Glad Tidings (1900).” Following are portions of the 1888 message –

“The word was ‘IN THE BEGINNING.’ The mind of man cannot grasp the ages that are spanned in this phrase. It is not given to men to know when or how the Son was BEGOTTEN; but we know that He was the Divine Word, not simply before He came to this earth to die, but even before the world was created.” Christ and His Righteousness, p. 9.

Since God is eternal, He has no beginning. Therefore “the beginning” must refer to the beginning of the creation.

“We know that Christ ‘proceeded forth and came from God’ (John 8:42), but it was so far back in the ages of eternity as to be far beyond the grasp of the mind of man.” ibid.

“It is true that there are many sons of God; but Christ is ‘the ONLY BEGOTTEN Son of God’, and therefore the Son of God in a sense in which no other being ever was, or ever can be. The angels are sons of God, as was Adam (Job 38:7, Luke 3:38), by creation; Christians are the sons of God by adoption (Rom. 8:14,15); but Christ is the Son of God BY BIRTH.” ibid., p. 12.

“The Scriptures declare that Christ is the ‘only BEGOTTEN SON OF GOD’. He is BEGOTTEN, not created… As to when He was BEGOTTEN, it is not for us to inquire, nor could our minds grasp it if we were told…THERE WAS A TIME WHEN CHRIST PROCEEDED FORTH AND CAME FROM GOD, FROM THE BOSOM OF THE FATHER (John 3:42, 1:18), but that time was so far back in the days of eternity that to finite comprehension it is practically without beginning.” ibid., p. 21, 22

“But the point is that Christ is a BEGOTTEN SON, and not a created subject. HE HAS ‘BY INHERITANCE’ a more excellent Name than the angels; He is a Son over His own house’. Heb. 1:4, 3:6.” ibid., p. 22.

“Finally, we know the DIVINE UNITY of the Father and the Son from the fact that they both have the same SPIRIT….Christ ‘is in the bosom of the Father;’ being by nature the very substance of God, and having life in Himself, He is properly called Jehovah, the self-existent One, and is thus styled in Jer. 23:5,6, where it is said that the righteous Branch, who shall execute judgement and justice in the earth, shall be known by the name of Jehovah-tsidedenu– THE LORD, OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.” ibid., p. 23, 24.

Definition: Begotten – Greek – monogenes, from monos – sole, single; and gennao – to cause to be. Its meaning is literally procreate.

Though we find the phrase “Eternal God” in the Scriptures, we never find “Eternal Father”. For the Father, who truly is the Eternal God, was not always a Father. This is seen in the fact that Adam was at first alone, not yet a father. (See Romans 1:20). There was a time when the Son was begotten. Christ is called the “Everlasting Father” (Isaiah 9:6). Eternal means forever past and present. Everlasting means having a beginning and continuing on forever.

Please note that Ellen White uses almost the exact same language as Waggoner in this regard, and that about 7 years after he had made his statements –

“A complete offering has been made; for ‘God so loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son,’– not a son by creation, as were the angels, nor a son by adoption, as is the forgiven sinner, but a Son begotten in the express image of the Father’s person, and in all the brightness of his majesty and glory, one equal with God in authority, dignity, and divine perfection.” Signs of the Times, May 30, 1895.

Also, take special note that Ellen White never gave the impression that Jesus became the “only begotten” Son of God at the incarnation when the Holy Spirit “came upon” and “overshadowed” Mary. The Holy Spirit is not Jesus’ Father, and the Father is not the Holy Spirit.

Not only did Ellen White acknowledge the Biblical truth concerning the fact that Christ was begotten a Divine Son before He created all things, but Victor Houteff also taught the same truth, as we read –

“… Jesus was first BORN a spiritual, a Divine being, and second a human being; whereas we are first born human beings and second spiritual beings.” Timely Greetings, Vol. 1, No. 49, p. 6, 7.

He also made another similar comment on the subject of Christ’s birth and preexistence –

“Having been pre-existent with His Father (Heb. 1:1, 2; John 1:1, 2), and then having been re- born in Bethlehem, Immanuel manifestly represents the “born again” Christians (John 3:3)…” War News Forecast (Tract 14), pg. 35.

In order for Christ to have been begotten and “first born a spiritual, a Divine being,” before He created the heavens and the earth, He had to have a Mother. Likewise, in order for Him to be “re-born in Bethlehem,” he had to be “born” before that time. Yet, in spite of the foregoing inspired testimonies, only a very small percentage of Adventists, and even a smaller percentage of Davidians believe the fundamental truth regarding Christ’s”begotten nature,” let alone the femininity of the Holy Spirit. This is truly an indication of the deadness of these bodies – they don’t even believe their own inspired teachings.

A SPECIAL REVELATION

“Different periods in the history of the church have each been marked by the development of some special truth, adapted to the necessities of God’s people at that time. Every new truth has made its way against hatred and opposition; those who were blessed with its light were tempted and tried. The Lord gives a special truth for the people in an emergency. Who dare refuse to publish it? He commands His servants to present the last invitation of mercy to the world. They cannot remain silent, except at the peril of their souls.” The Great Controversy, p. 609.

Sister White states in Acts of the Apostles, p. 52, that the nature of the Holy Spirit was a “mystery,” and that “silence is golden” or “God has not revealed it.” Though this book was published in 1911, it was “An amplification of the latter part of Spirit of Prophecy, Vol. 3 (1878), and Sketches From The Life Of Paul (1883) which books, long out of print, it replaced.” Index to the Writings of E.G. White, p. 3205, Vol. 3. But,

“It was AFTER the Minneapolis Conference, and especially as Mrs. white was preparing the chapters for The Desire of Ages (1898) concerning the promise of the bestowal of the Holy Spirit, that messages came to this people with increasing frequency, fullness, and clarity on the PERSONALITY of the Spirit, and His crucial place in the plan of redemption. In EARLIER statements the neuter form “it” was more often used when referring to the Holy Spirit. The HOUR HAD COME FOR CLARIFICATION AND EMPHASIS upon this supreme provision in the salvation and enabling of man.” The Coming of the Comforter, Leroy Froom, p. 63.

Some of the “clarification and emphasis” which came follows:

“We need to realize that the Holy Spirit,…is as much A PERSON as God is A PERSON…” Evangelism, p. 616.

“The Holy Spirit is A PERSON,…” Ibid.

“He must also be a DIVINE PERSON,…” Ibid; Psalms 6:17.

A certain amount of clarification in regard to the Person and Priesthood of the Holy Spirit was revealed by Ellen White, but not all of it. She did not specifically speak on the gender of the Holy Spirit, but limited her comments to the fact that the Holy Spirit is a literal divine Person, as are the Father and the Son. There is, though, strong indications that she well understood of the femininity of our other Intercessor – the Holy Spirit. This is seen in the following comments –

“THE HOLY SHEKINAH [the Holy Spirit], in departing from [the throne above the mercy seat in] the first temple, had stood upon the eastern mountain [the Mount of Olives], as if loath to forsake the chosen city.” The Desire of Ages., p. 829.

“While the procession was halting on the brow of Olivet, it was not yet too late for Jerusalem to repent. THE ANGEL OF MERCY was then folding HER WINGS to step down from the GOLDEN THRONE to give place to justice and swift-coming judgement.” Ibid.., p. 578.

“The SPIRIT OF GOD is being withdrawn from the earth. When the ANGEL OF MERCY folds HER WINGS and departs…” Review & Herald, Sept. 17, 1901.

The “Spirit of God,” “the holy Shekinah,” and “the Angel of Mercy” are one and the same feminine Person – our other Intercessor (Romans 8:26, 27, 34). “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith to the churches”

“In every age there is given man their day of light and privilege, a probationary time in which they may become reconciled to God. But there is a limit to this grace. MERCY may plead for years and be slighted and rejected; but there comes a time when MERCY makes HER last plea. The heart becomes so hardened that it ceases to respond to the SPIRIT OF GOD. Then the SWEET, WINNING VOICE [of the Spirit] entreats the sinner no longer, and reproofs and warnings cease.” The Desire of Ages, p. 587

“I was shown that a terrible condition of things exists in our world. The ANGEL OF MERCY is folding HER WINGS, ready to depart.” Testimonies to the Church, Vol. 8, p. 49.

“There is not a second probation for anyone. Now is probationary time, before the ANGEL shall fold HER GOLDEN WINGS, THE ANGEL OF MERCY, and shall step down from the THRONE, and MERCY, MERCY is gone forever. (Ms. 49, 1894)” SDA Bible Commentary, Vol. 7-a, p. 433. It is not a created angel that stands before the throne, it is the Holy Spirit, Herself.

“We are standing on the threshold of the crises of the ages. In quick succession the judgments of God will follow one another – fire, and flood, and earthquake, with war and bloodshed. We are not to be surprised at this time by events both great and decisive; for the ANGEL OF MERCY cannot remain much longer to shelter the impenitent.” Prophets and Kings, p. 278.

“As the approach of the Roman armies was a sign to the disciples of the impending destruction of Jerusalem, so may this apostasy [Sunday Laws] be a sign to us that the limit of God’s forbearance is reached, that the measure of our nation’s iniquity is full, and that the ANGEL OF MERCY [the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Truth] is about to take HER FLIGHT, never to return.” Testimonies for the Church, Vol. 5, p. 451.

In 1977, Lois Roden had a much more in depth revelation of the Holy Spirit as our heavenly Mother. It is interesting to note that the Holy Ghost chose women to reveal these sacred truths through. Those desiring to listen to the Divine Woman (Wisdom) at the time these messages were brought forth as food for the flock, must have been willing to listen to these specially chosen earthly women.

“And God said, Let US make man in OUR IMAGE, after OUR LIKENESS;…So God created man in His OWN IMAGE, in the IMAGE OF GOD created he Him; MALE AND FEMALE created he Him. Genesis 1:26, 27.

“In the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made He Him; MALE AND FEMALE created He them; and blessed them, and called THEIR name Adam, …Genesis 5:1, 2.

The word translated “man” here refers to “mankind” not exclusively to a male.

“That which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. For the invisible things of Him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse.” Romans 1:20.

GOD IS LOVE

The scriptures declare that “God is Love,” 1 John 4:8. It is the family which God chose to manifest as the perfect “image” of His (Their) character(s). One husband, one wife, and their children.

“Polygamy was practiced at an early date. It was one of the sins that brought the wrath of god upon the antediluvian world. Yet after the flood it again became wide-spread. It was Satan’s studied effort to pervert the marriage institution, to weaken its obligations, and lessen its sacredness; for in no surer way could he

DEFACE THE IMAGE OF GOD IN MAN, and open the door to misery and vice.” Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 338. See also 3 Spiritual Gifts, p. 99.

Satan has sought to “pervert the marriage institution,” and thereby “deface the IMAGE OF GOD IN MAN,” because that image on earth is the image of God in heaven – that is, God, the Father, is married, and has produced a “begotten Son.”

“The doctrine of Mariolatry [the worship of Mary] is based on A TRUTH – THE HOLY GHOST, THE FEMININE MEDIATOR.” Catholic Doctrine as Defined by The Council of Trent, by A. Nampon, p. 62.

The worship of Mary may be based on A TRUTH, but it is not exalting the “TRUTH – THE HOLY GHOST, THE FEMININE MEDIATOR.”

“So close will the counterfeit resemble the true, that it will be impossible to distinguish between them except by the Holy Scriptures.” Great Controversy, p. 593.

THE HIDDEN MANNA

“He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.” Revelation 2:17

The fact that the angel of Revelation 14:17 has a sickle but is not noted as having a message to disclose indicates that the content of the message is hidden, as are the contents of the seven thunders.

“I have long time holden my peace; I have been still, and refrained myself; now will I cry like a TRAVAILING WOMAN; I will destroy and devour at once. I will make waste mountains and hills, and dry up all their herbs; and I will make the rivers islands, and I will dry up the pools. And I will bring the blind BY A WAY THAT THEY KNEW NOT; I will lead them IN PATHS THAT THEY HAVE NOT KNOWN; I will make darkness light before them, and crooked things straight. These things will I do unto them, and not forsake them.” Isa. 42:14-16.

As His servants are the ones who are said to be “blind” (Isa. 42:19), then it is they who are to be led in “a way that they knew not,” “paths that they have not known” – in the truths regarding the feminine aspect of the Godhead.

“Thou hast heard, see all this; and will not ye declare it? I have showed thee new things from this time, even hidden things, and thou didst not know them. They are created now, and not from the beginning; even before the day when thou heardest them not; lest thou shouldest say, Behold, I knew them.” Isa. 48:6-7.

“Behold, I will make thee a new sharp threshing instrument having teeth: thou shalt thresh the mountains, and beat them small, and shall make the hills as chaff.” Isa. 41:15.

“To thresh the mountains (kingdoms) is to take the wheat (saints) out of them. The servants of God, therefore, are here promised a NEW instrument, DIFFERENT FROM ANY EVER USED BEFORE; that is, the gathering of the saints in the harvest time is to be accomplished in a way un-dreamed of, — contrary to every human planning. This instrument will have teeth; it will suddenly separate the wheat from the straw and blow out the chaff. Christ, ‘whose fan is in His hand [message], will thoroughly purge His floor, and gather His wheat into the garner; but He will burn up the chaff [before the millennium] with unquenchable fire [the Holy Spirit in ever-unfolding truth].’ Mat. 3:12. For this cause we are called, and for this great and grand work we are to prepare the way.” Timely Greetings, Vol. 2, No. 9, p. 12, 13.

“Mic. 4:13–‘Arise and thresh, O daughter of Zion: for I will make thine horn iron, and I will make thy hoofs brass: and thou shalt beat in pieces many people: and I will consecrate their gain unto the Lord, and their substance unto the Lord of the whole earth.’

“Not the daughter of Jerusalem, but the daughter of Zion is to do the threshing. And she has the promise of an iron horn – Divine power, the kind that does not break. Moreover she is promised hooves of brass, a SPECIAL AND DISTINCT MESSAGE by which to beat in pieces many people; that is, she is with it to thresh and select the wheat from the chaff. ‘I then saw the third angel. Said my accompanying angel, Fearful is his work. Awful is his mission. He is the angel that is to select the wheat from the tares, and seal, or bind, the wheat for the heavenly garner. These things should engross the whole mind, the whole attention.’ Early Writings, p. 118.

THE GLORIOUS “STAR” CONTAINING JESUS’ NEW NAME

As the doctrine of the femininity of the Holy Spirit is more fully addressed in other of our studies, we direct the readers’ attention to those publications –

By Lois I. Roden:

The Bride of Christ; As An Eagle; By His Spirit Behold Thy Mother, Parts 1-3; Balancing Out The Trinity; In Her Image; In The Beginning God…; In Their Image; Merkabah, Parts 1-4; Christ and the Holy Spirit, “Two Turtle Doves”; Christ and the Holy Spirit, Two “Turtle Doves” Jesus and Jonah (Dove) Part 2; The Wife of God; A “Mother” Eagle; The Holy Angels; Michael, Gabriel, and the Spirit of Prophecy; The Angel of the Lord.

By this author:

The Only Safe Sex is Holy Sex; The Real Ghost Story; Shelter From The Storm; Behold the Lamb of God; What The People Are Saying “Babylon, Babylon, Where Did They Get All Of Those Crazy (?) Ideas?”; The Four Horns of the Altars of the Sanctuary; She is a Tree of Life.

By Steve Penners:
The “Only Begotten Son” of God – A Conversation

THREE MEASURES OF MEAL

“Another parable spake he unto them; The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven [“an unpopular message borne by some insignificant one” – Timely Greetings, Vol 2, No. 11, p. 6], which a WOMAN [the Holy Ghost] took, and hid in THREE MEASURES OF MEAL [SDA, DSDA, and BDSDA], till the whole was leavened.” Mat. 13:33.

“The leaven hidden in the flour works invisibly to bring the whole mass under its leavening process; so the leaven of truth works secretly, silently, steadily, to transform the soul.” Christ’s Object Lessons. p. 99.

“And I will bring the third part [BDSDA] through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my [new] name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The Lord is my God.” Zec. 13:9.

THE ONE WIND FROM THE FOUR WINDS

Douglas F. Mitchell and the message which is to “Bind up the testimony, seal the law among my disciples.” (Isaiah 8:16; Revelation 14:18-20). 1986-

“… lift up a standard for the people …” Isaiah 62:10, seventh, and last part.

“And another angel came out from the altar, which had power over fire; and cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Thrust in thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe.

“And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God.

“And the winepress was trodden without the city, and blood came out of the winepress, even unto the horse bridles, by the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs.” Revelation 14:18-20.

After Ezekiel had seen that all of the work of the re-formation had not yet produced life, and as the crowning touch of glory, he was shown how God is to accomplish the resurrection (the standing up) of the reformed lifeless bodies.

“Then said he unto me, Prophesy unto the wind [ruah – Hebrew for Spirit], prophesy, son of man, and say to the wind [ruah], Thus saith the Lord God; Come from the FOUR winds [ruot], O breath [ruah], and breathe upon these slain, that they may live. So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath [ruah] came into them, and they lived, and stood up upon their feet, an exceedingly great army [Song. 6:4,10].” Eze. 37:9-10.

Ezekiel is told to prophesy to the wind (the breath – the Spirit of God) that the breath may come from the FOUR WINDS and breathe on the slain ones that they may live. This speaks of a Spirit-filled message and movement [a wind] calling for the Spirit to come from the FOUR manifestations of the WIND [Spirit] and resurrect (bring the breath of life to) the re-formed, Spirit-less bodies that were slain.

The FOUR winds represent the four Spirit-filled messages that brought the four RE-FORMatory movements (bones, sinew, flesh, skin) which were brought by the four people through whom the Spirit of God (the WIND) was manifested. That there is only one breath (Spirit) mentioned as coming from the four winds, shows that God’s Spirit is one and the same in all the messages (winds) alike (that these messages are in perfect harmony), and that there is to be one last movement of the Spirit (a Wind) to bind up the messages of the four winds, and make a present truth application of the truths already revealed to the dry bones. Thus will the Spirit (breath) come from the four winds to breathe upon the slain. Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, open the windows of your minds and let the breath of life (the Spirit of truth – the wind) come from the four winds, in this binding up of the testimony and sealing of the law, that their fragrant breeze may fill your house.

RECEIVE YE THE HOLY GHOST
After Christ’s (the Branch’s) resurrection, “he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye

the Holy Ghost.” John 20:22.

As the events in Christ’s life were types of events to occur in our day in antitype, then His breathing upon His disciples must have an antitypical fulfillment. Ezekiel 37:9-10 shows that the Holy Spirit breathes the breath of life upon the slain house of Israel through the message and movement (wind) which comes from (binds up) the four winds, which is this present work.

This angel (verse 18) “came out from the altar,” indicating that probation is still open, for the altar is the place of intercession. The angel having power [authority] over fire indicates that the message brings with it the power of the Holy Spirit – the glory of the Gospel. This is the same effect that the one wind which comes from the four winds does – brings full life to the reformed bodies.

“…we are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that OBEY him.” Acts 5:32.

Many people are living up to the light they have, but still have not received the fullness of the Spirit which God intends for the latter day remnant to have, and for which they sincerely pray. While all of the preceding angels have brought great light and power in their messages and work, none have resulted in the outpouring of the Holy Ghost in power. This is not because the people who have accepted the messages have not obeyed them, but because the scroll had not, in each instance, unrolled far enough to bring the fullness of the truth for them to really obey God, as he would have them. That is, imperfect knowledge can only result in imperfect obedience.

Therefore, there is the necessity for a binding up of the testimony of the Holy Ghost which was present in all of the preceding messages. That is, many things have been brought to light concerning God’s true requirements through the various messages, but they remain to be bound up into one clearly discernable sheaf. Such is the work of this angel that all may know what the true standard is and be empowered to lift it up. Those who do this will receive the power of the Holy Spirit that they may take part in the second fruit harvest – the grape harvest of Revelation 14:18, 19.

The message of this angel is directed to the angel of verse 17, for it is the one with the harvest instrument (sickle – message), and whose work it is to perform the harvest. Thus we see that the angel of verse 18 directs the work of the angel of verse 17. The one with power over fire is also the one who declares that the second fruits (grapes) are now ripe. This indicates that the grapes (second fruits) were not yet ripe when the angel with the sickle had first arrived on the scene.

What this means is that when Lois Roden first proclaimed her message of the feminine aspect of the Godhead, the people were not ready to accept it (be harvested by it). But now the time has come that if they do not accept it and allow themselves to be harvested, they will remain on the vines where they will rot and will be cast with the “vines” into “the great winepress of the wrath of God.”

BINDING UP OF THE TESTIMONY ON THE LORD’S SUPPER

An example of the work of this angel in binding up the testimony on different doctrines and practices we present the following concerning the Lord’s Supper (“a” supper of the Lord, in the Greek), and the “Daily,” both of which were the practical life of the early church, and which were taken away by the “man of sin,” and were supplanted by pagan customs and theories.

RESTORERS OF THE BREACH

MARTIN LUTHER in his work of reform within the church, said, “The mass is a bad thing; God is opposed to it; it ought to be abolished; and I would that throughout the whole world it were replaced by the supper of the gospel.” Great Controversy, p. 189.

JOHN KNOX – “Everywhere he went he celebrated the Lord’s supper in its simple form and forbade the people to attend mass.” Heroes of the Reformation, Hagstotz, p. 83.

JOHN WESLEY – It was to the Moravians and their religion that John Wesley (a founder of the Methodist denomination) owes his conversion, and this may be said, also, of the many who have since been blessed by his “clearer understanding of Bible faith.” The Great Controversy, p. 244.

“Of one of their religious services, in striking contrast to the lifeless formalism of the Church of England, he wrote: ‘The great simplicity as well as solemnity of the whole almost made me forget the seventeen hundred years between, and imagine myself in one of those assemblies where form and state were not; but Paul, the tentmaker, or Peter, the fisherman, presided; yet with the demonstration of the Spirit and of power.’ – Whitehead, Life of the Rev. John Wesley, pgs. 11, 12.” id.

WILLIAM MILLER announced the end of the 2300 days, and the cleansing of the sanctuary, the earth, by fire. Though he misapplied the term sanctuary as meaning the earth rather than the heavenly sanctuary, if we understand the earth to symbolically mean the church, then his announcement can be understood as being the announcement of the cleansing of the church, the court of the sanctuary, by the Holy Spirit of Truth (fire), which is actually the case. In Christ’s cleansing of the heavenly sanctuary, the earthly sanctuary, the church (the court), is likewise cleansed. This is a day by day process.

O.R.L. CROZIER – “I believe the Sanctuary to be cleansed at the end of the 2300 days, is the New Jerusalem temple of which Christ is a minister. The Lord shew me in vision, more than one year ago that

Brother Crozier had the true light, on the cleansing of the Sanctuary.” Ellen White, Word to the Little Flock, p. 12.

“‘And the place of his sanctuary shall be cast down;’ Dan. 8:11. This casting down was in the days and by the means of the Roman power; therefore, the Sanctuary of this text was not the earth, nor Palestine, because the former was cast down at the fall, more than 4,000 years, and the latter at the captivity, more than 700 years previous to the event of this passage, and neither by Roman agency.

“The Sanctuary cast down is His against whom Rome magnified himself, which was the Prince of the host, Jesus Christ; and Paul teaches that His Sanctuary is in heaven. Again, Dan. 11:30,31, ‘For the ships of Chittim shall come against him: therefore he shall be grieved, and return, and have indignation (the staff to chastise) against the holy covenant (Christianity): so shall he do; he shall even return, and have intelligence with them (priests and bishops) that forsake the holy covenant.

“‘And arms (civil and religious) shall stand on his part, and they (Rome and those that forsake the holy covenant) shall pollute the Sanctuary of strength.’

“What was this that Rome and the apostates of Christianity should jointly pollute? This combination was formed against the ‘holy covenant,’ [Mat. 26:28; Mark 14:24; Luke 22:20; 1 Cor. 10:16] and it was the Sanctuary of that covenant they polluted; which they could do as well as to pollute the name of God; Jer. 34:16; Eze. 20; Mal. 1:7. This was the same as profaning or blaspheming His name. In this sense this ‘politico- religious’ beast polluted the Sanctuary, (Rev. 13:6), and cast it down from its place in heaven, (Psa. 102:19; Jer. 17:12; Heb. 8:1,2) when they called Rome the holy city, (Rev. 21:2) and installed the pope there with the titles, ‘Lord God the Pope,’ ‘Holy Father,’ ‘Head of the Church,’ etc, and there, in the counterfeit, ‘temple of God,’ he professes to do what Jesus actually does in His Sanctuary; 2 The. 2:1-8. The Sanctuary has been trodden under foot (Dan. 8:13), the same as the Son of God has. (Heb. 10:29).” The Sanctuary, Crozier, p. 3,4.

If the “place of his sanctuary was cast down” by the combined power of Rome and apostate Christianity, then “the daily” must have been cast down by them also. And, as the sanctuary that was “cast down” was the New Covenant, the New Jerusalem heavenly sanctuary (that is the knowledge of it was “cast down”), then it must also be the New Covenant “daily” that was “taken away,” “supplanted by the idolatrous sacrifice of the mass” (Story of Redemption, p. 334). That is, the knowledge and purpose of the heavenly sanctuary were taken away. It was by supplanting the ministration of Christ, and the priesthood of all believers, with a pagan priesthood whose main function is to officiate in a symbolical sacrifice (the mass – a perversion of a supper of the Lord) as the high point of the daily hours of worship (which were also changed) that power was exercised over the saints to wear them out (Dan. 7:25).

ELLEN WHITE announced that “In the time of the end every divine institution is to be restored… God’s remnant people… are to cooperate with Him in building up the waste places.” Prophets and Kings, p. 678. She also pointed out that “The Scriptural ordinance of the Lord’s Supper had been supplanted by the idolatrous sacrifice of the mass.” Story of Redemption, p. 334. She called for the rebuilding of the spiritual altars of daily morning and evening prayer and said that a more frequent practice of the duties of the washing of feet and the Lord’s Supper, would “keep the people of God humble and separate from the world, and from backsliding, like the nominal churches.” Early Writings, p. 116. When speaking of the Lord’s Supper, she said, “The salvation of men depends upon a continual [daily] application to their hearts of the cleansing blood of Christ. Therefore, the Lord’s supper was not to be observed only occasionally [every three months] or yearly, but more frequently than the annual Passover.” Spiritual Gifts, Vol. 3, p. 228. “The Communion service points to Christ’s second coming. …These things we are never to forget. The love of Jesus, with its constraining power, is to be kept fresh in the memory. …The ordinances that point to our Lord’s humiliation and suffering are regarded too much as a form. They were instituted for a purpose. Our senses need to be quickened to lay hold of the mystery of godliness.” Desire of Ages, p. 660. “The family board becomes as the table of the Lord, and every meal a sacrament.” Desire of Ages, p. 660. She also confirmed the meaning and function of the washing of feet in connection with the Lord’s supper.

“Having received their commission from God and having the approbation of the church, they [ministers – elders and deacons] went forth baptizing in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, and administering the ordinances of the Lord’s house, often waiting upon the saints by presenting them

with the emblems of the broken body and spilt blood of the crucified Saviour, to keep fresh in the memory of God’s beloved children His sufferings and death.” Early Writings, p. 101.

“All that the apostles did [including the often – daily, Acts 2:42-46 – presentation of the emblems of the Lord’s supper], every church member today is to do.” Testimonies, Vol. 7, p. 33. “His workers will then see eye to eye, and the arm of the Lord, the [pre-Pentecostal] power of which was seen in the life of Christ, will be revealed.” Testimonies, Vol. 9, p. 33. “The entire church, acting as one, blending in perfect union, is to be a living, active missionary agency, moved and controlled by the Holy Spirit.” Testimonies, Vol. 8, p. 47.

VICTOR HOUTEFF announced that in the Judgment of the Living all of the antitypical Bible feasts which were “taken away” were to be restored, and among them was the Lord’s Supper as Jesus kept it.

“…The Lord’s call to the church in Isaiah 52 to awake comes first. After she awakes she to behold something and she is to do something. What is she to do? — She is to keep her solemn feasts. She is to perform her vows. From this we understand that at the close [that is, at its closing] of the Assyrian period and in the time when the wicked no longer will be in the church, God’s people in it are to keep their solemn feasts, it [the true Lord’s supper] will be celebrated next in the time when the wicked are no more to pass through the church. God’s people in it are to keep their solemn feasts and perform their vows. The Lord’s Supper being one of the solemn feasts, it will be celebrated next in the time when the wicked are no more to pass through the church.” Symbolic Code, Vol. 12, No. 6/7, p. 12.

He said that “no one seems to know when and how to observe the sacrament. Some observe it every Sunday or every Sabbath, some occasionally, some every quarter and so on. It seems logical to say that when God commands us to ordain it anew He will tell us also how and when to observe it properly.” Timely Greetings, Vol. 1, No. 3, p. 6.

By saying “no one seems to know” he is not only including himself, but also Sister White, and all other Adventists and Christians. As to the importance of this ordinance he stated: “…when we do have the Lord’s supper among us it will denote as much as did John’s baptism [that is, the complete repentance from sin in preparation for entry into the kingdom]… It must be performed sometime before we get into the kingdom.” Symbolic Code, Vol. 12, No. 6/7, p. 9.

“The Lord’s supper, therefore, is never to be ordained at the beginning of such a revival and reformation, but at its completion. Jesus did not institute the ordinance at the beginning of His ministry, but did so at its close.” Timely Greetings, Vol. 1, No. 3, p. 5.

He also said that, “the daily represents something which should not have been abolished…” Timely Greetings, Vol. 2, No. 33, p. 12.

“The Lord’s Supper was ordained in remembrance of the Lord’s sacrifice, not to cleanse the partakers of it from their sins but to cleanse them from sinners, as is seen from the Passover in Egypt and from the fact that thereafter Judas no longer walked with the disciples.” Timely Greetings, Vol. 1, No. 3, p. 3,4. And, that “Elijah’s message [which includes the true restoration of the Lord’s supper] will be seen to be of real importance rather than a theory.” Timely Greetings, Vol. 2, No. 8, p. 17.

BENJAMIN RODEN restored the emblems of the Lord’s Supper and the washing of feet at Passover time, in 1960, and then later on, at all of the yearly Bible feasts. This reformation (which had its beginning and ending with the 430 years prophecy of Ezekiel, and the type of the 430 years of Abraham [Exo. 12:40,41], respectively) came at the end of the 430 years from the Augsburg Confession in 1530, the second prominent date in Luther’s work (the first being Luther’s marriage in 1525). Please see the following chart. In 1975-76 (The Daily, Part 1) he reinstituted the “daily” morning and evening intercessory prayer at the times pointed out in the symbolic service (the 3rd and 9th hours), and in harmony with Christ’s antitypical daily work in the heavenly sanctuary at these times – that is, the intercession of His blood at the times pointed out in the Levitical law. In 1976-78 (The Daily, Part 2, p. 4) he called for the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists to start taking the memorial emblems, daily, at the times of prayer, at their headquarters, that they may be prepared for the pre-Pentecostal outpouring of the Holy Spirit in power. He was not given the full understanding of the hours of worship, in that he kept the hour after the third and ninth hours (after 9:00 am, 9:00-10:00; and after 3:00 pm, 3:00-4:00), rather than in them (ending at 9 am, 8:00-9:00, and 3 pm, 2:00- 3:00). He also mistakenly kept them according to the clock (man’s timepiece), rather than according to the sun (God’s timepiece). He was not shown the meal aspect of the Lord’s Supper.

LOIS RODEN restored the memorial emblems of the Lord’s Supper, daily, in 1981, at New Mount Carmel Center, and throughout the field. Shortly thereafter a young man, David Bunds, after noticing a clock face, pointed out to Lois that the period of the hour was before the actual hour, and not after it. Thereafter, the hours of worship were restored in this aspect. In 1985 (The Daily, Part 3) she restored the determination of the hours of worship, reckoning them from sunrise, not by the clock. She erred, though, in adding 60 minute (man-made) hours to the time of the sunrise, rather than natural, varying length hours, to determine the hours of worship. She was not led to publish on the meal aspect of the Lord’s Supper, though she herself was exposed to the truth of it in 1982, and saw some light in it then. Then in early 1986, she accepted the truth of the meal aspect and of the sun-ruled hours, and generally practiced them until her death later that year. In 1985 she also called for the taking of the emblems of the Lord’s Supper on the Day of Atonement, rather than a total fast, and prophesied of a time when the Day of Atonement would no longer be a fast day, but would become a feast day (The Daily, Part 3 Supplement).

DOUG MITCHELL restored the natural (sun-ruled) beginning and length of the hours of the “daily” (which vary a little every day), in harmony with the true times of the work in the heavenly sanctuary as pointed out in the typical service, at Passover, 1987 (The “Hour” of His Judgment). In 1990 he called for the church worldwide to return to the meal aspect (agape) of “a supper of the Lord” (this is the true translation of 1 Cor. 11:20) by distributing a study (The Lord’s Supper From the Table to the Altar and Back, Part 1) at the General Conference meeting. Though the light was received in the early 1970’s and presented as early as 1982, it was not then the time for the reformation in this aspect of the Lord’s Supper, for it was not to be revealed until the end of the third and last application of the 430 years according to Abraham for the church militant. This came at the second, and last date (1990) pertaining to the 430 year types and prophecies pointed out by Lois Roden on her 1978? chart (the first being 1977, 430 years from 1547, and John Knox’s teaching the truth of the Holy Spirit). Please see the following chart.

“On July 1, 1560, began what has been pronounced the most important parliament that ever met in Scotland. This parliament, attended by a large number of lords, barons, and nobles, Knox among them, abolished the jurisdiction of the pope and the celebration of the mass. So stringent did they make the law against the mass that offenders were threatened with death upon the third conviction.

“Knox and his five assistants drew up a Confession, the doctrinal standard for Scotland, in four days [bringing them to July 5 1560], and this was adopted by parliament.” Heroes of the Reformation, Hagstotz, p. 85,86. “From this time on the mass became the distinguishing feature between Protestant and Catholic adherents.” Heroes of the Reformation, Hagstotz, p. 83.

By looking at what transpired during Knox’s reformation in 1560 we may better understand what was to transpire in 1990, and actually did occur. In 1547 Knox’s reformation involved the restoration of the truth of the Holy Spirit and 430 years later, Lois Roden, was given the vision which revealed the feminine nature of the Holy Spirit. In 1560 the reformation involved the Lord’s supper, and in 1990, the subject was the same as it was 430 years ago (as will be shown in the following).

In the course of divine providence, on July 1, 1 9 9 0 , a pre-meeting for the upcoming General Conference meeting began, and four days later on July 5, 1990, the main meeting opened. On this day exactly 430 years after Knox’s work in the reform of the Lord’s Supper, Doug Mitchell presented to the delegates at the conference a call to return to the original meal aspect [“in its simple form,” as did Knox] of “a supper of the Lord” (The Lord’s Supper – From the Table to the Altar, and Back, Part 1). Included in this publication was a short expose of the all-masculine papacy. He was assisted in this work, in a sense, by the five messages (angels) that were with him; William Miller, Ellen White, Victor Houteff, Ben Roden, and Lois Roden. The Lord’s Supper – From the Table to the Altar and Back, Part 2 – Christ in the Daily Meal – Eden Lost to Eden Restored followed a few months later. It was not until the summer of 1992, as the work was going forward on the seven thunders, that he became aware of the actual events which transpired during Knox’s reformation (which are quoted above), and the providential coincidences (the exact dates, and subject matter) of the two reformations.

He also called for the washing of feet at the appointed times of the regular sin offerings in the typical sacrificial system – the new moons, and other feast days, or when necessary (ref). As the emblems of the Lord’s Supper were now to be taken on the Day of Atonement, and as a supper of the Lord was now known to be a meal with the memorial emblems as part of it, he called for “a supper of the Lord,” a meal, to be eaten at the appointed times on the Day of Atonement, a feast day. All hours of prayer, noon. All feasts are fasts. A true fast is eating right. Daily more than prayer and emblems.

“Ministers of God have been guilty of the sin of disregarding a ‘Thus saith the Lord.’ They have led the members of their churches to observe rites which have no foundation in the Word of God, but are in direct opposition to His law. By perversion and misrepresentation of the Word of God, they have caused the people to commit sin. God will reward them according to their works. Even as did the priests and rulers in the time of Christ, they have caused the people to err. Christ says of them as He said of the Jewish leaders, ‘In vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.'” Bible Commentary, Vol. 7A, p. 159.

“The first, second, and third angels’ messages are to be repeated. The call is to be given to the church: ‘Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird. For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies. …Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues. For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.’

“Many who went forth to meet the bridegroom under the messages of the first and second angels, refused the third, the last testing message to be given to the world, and a similar position will be taken when the last call is made.

“There are many who cry, Peace, peace, when there is no peace. This is the most perilous belief that the human soul can entertain. Christ calls upon all who bear his name, who claim to be his followers, to eat his flesh and drink his blood, or they can have no part with him.

“Be not like the foolish virgins, who take for granted that the promises of God are theirs, while they do not follow the injunctions of Christ. Christ teaches us that profession is nothing. ‘If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.’ ‘Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.’

“When we stand the test of God in the refining, purifying process [the baptism by fire – truth]; when the furnace fire consumes the dross, and the true gold of a purified character appears, we may still say, with Paul, ‘Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after… This one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus [the Branch].'” Review and Herald, October 31, 1899.

“Woe to thee, O land, when thy king is a child, and thy princes eat in the morning! Blessed art thou, O land, when thy king is the son of nobles, and thy princes eat in due season, for strength, and not for drunkenness!” Ecc. 10:16,17. Morning is over after the morning intercession during the third hour. Evening begins with the evening intercession at the ninth hour.

“And looking forward to the time of ‘the great and dreadful day of the Lord,’ the time just ahead of us, the Lord admonishes the people who will be living at that time: ‘Remember ye the law of Moses my servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments.’ Mal. 4:4. …not only the Sabbath but also the whole law is to be kept now and forever by both Jew and Gentile…” Answerer, No. 3, p. 88,89.

“Your obeying ‘all the commandments, and the statutes, and the judgments’ of the moral law of Moses, you see, is your evidence that you have been born again, that you have been endowed with power from

above, that you are enabled to choose the good and to refuse the evil, that you are the children of God. Keeping the commandments and the statutes in the Lord, then is the light and shield of your life. It is the outward sign that by the life of Christ you have overcome the Enemy of your soul and body. This system of worship, therefore, is truly the righteousness by faith that brings the righteousness of Christ in the people of God.” Timely Greetings, Vol. 2, No. 37, p. 24.

“Whenever He comes to us, His reward is with Him. He does not leave it in heaven, but gives it to us every day. Daily He gives us confidence and light and blessing. Daily our hearts beat in unison with His great heart of infinite love.” Bible Commentary, Vol. 7-A, p. 155.

“Before giving us the baptism of the Holy Spirit, our heavenly Father will try us, to see if we can live without dishonoring Him.” Selected Messages, Vol. 3, p. 426,427.

“The hour for joyful, happy songs of praise to God and His dear Son had come. The hour of worship draws nigh, when bright and holy angels bow before the Father.” Story of Redemption, p. 25.

THE LIVING SPIRIT OF PROPHECY IN THE ADVENT MOVEMENT

In binding up the testimony there is one prominent feature that the importance thereof cannot be undervalued – that is, the place of the remnant church in prophecy. As the greater part of the prophecies concerning the coming of the King and the establishment of His kingdom, both at His first coming, and His second, and as He has already come once and established His kingdom of grace, then that which remains to be understood of the prophecies is the establishment of His kingdom of glory – the fulfillment of His covenant promises to the fathers.

“That which God purposed to do for the world through Israel, the chosen nation, He will finally accomplish through His church on earth today. He has ‘let out His vineyard

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unto other husbandmen,’ even to His covenant-keeping people, who faithfully ‘render Him the fruits in

their seasons.’ Never has the Lord been without true representatives on this earth who have made His interests their own. These witnesses for God are numbered among the spiritual Israel, and to them will be fulfilled all the covenant promises made by Jehovah to His ancient people.” Prophets and Kings. p. 713-714.

As all of the covenant promises and the prophecies concerning them are for the church (Israel) today, then we should expect to find that all of those prophecies speak in detail of the church and her situation in the world, and not of ancient Israel. That is, God foreknew “the end from the beginning” (Isaiah 46:10), including the church’s position in the latter days, so then when He speaks of His people (Israel) in the latter days, He is referring to the church (some of whom will be of Israelite ancestry).

Thus, included in this angel’s work of binding up the testimony there is also within it that which concerns a binding up of the prophecies that reveal the fulfillment of all the covenant promises, and God’s work within the church through the Spirit of prophecy in accomplishing His will to such end. As these things are the subject of great speculation and supposition, God must have something by which to clear the air and provide His people with a sure foundation in the prophecies on which they can rest their faith. This is especially so as we are in the times when “every wind of doctrine” is blowing. It is written,

“Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.” Amos 3:7.

One of the promises to the remnant church is;
“To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna.” Revelation 2:17.

Among the “hidden manna” within the prophecies of the Bible there is one matter which stands out as most prominent – that being the content of the seven voices of the seven thunders. As we are in the seventh round, and the Holy Ghost is here to lead us into “all truth,” we should expect to have the knowledge of those seven voices in order for us to have a complete message to present to those whom are to be called out of Babylon – and so we do.

The content of the seven thunders have been made know under this angel’s message. For the Introduction to the Seven Thunders, please ask for our study, The Return of the Shekinah – The Seven Thunders. “Try the spirits.”

“It is the glory of God to conceal a thing: but the honour of kings is to search out a matter.” Proverbs 25:2.

“Shake thyself from the dust; arise [you who are receiving the breath of life from this final wind], and sit down, O Jerusalem: loose thyself from the bands of thy neck [sins, idols – private opinions], O captive daughter of Zion.” Isa. 52:2.

“Arise [from the valley of dry bones] and thresh [bring in the sheaves], O daughter of Zion: for I will make thine horn iron, and I will make thy hoofs brass: and thou shalt beat in pieces many people: and I will consecrate their gain unto the LORD, and their substance unto the Lord of the whole earth.” Micah 4:13.

Before this awakening, the wise virgins have the extra oil in their vessels only, but they have not yet put it in their lamps. It is only by awakening and using the oil in their vessel that the wise virgins will be able to see the rest of the way to the wedding supper.

“… after Zion and Jerusalem awake [then] they shall see ‘eye to eye,’ and ‘only those who have withstood temptation in the strength of the Mighty One will have a part in proclaiming this message in the Loud Cry’ (Review and Herald, Nov. 19, 1908); that then all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God; that God sends His Truth, not through those who are exalted and idolized by men, but through unsuspected servants; that those who do not turn from man shall fall, whereas the followers of Truth and righteousness shall live forever; that it is a sacred duty of all Truth-bearers to proclaim the message to all the brethren, for if they be not awakened now, they may sleep on forever.” Timely Greetings, Vol. 1, No. 38, p. 30,31.

Note that after Christ’s (the Branch’s) resurrection, and before He breathed upon His disciples, telling them to, “Receive ye the Holy Ghost” (John 20:22), “He was known of them in breaking of bread.” Luke 24:35. So in this resurrection of the Branch message and movement (the antitype of Christ’s message and work), one of the first signs of His presence among us again was in the manifestation in the “breaking of bread” at a common meal. That is, the revelation of the meal aspect of “a supper of the Lord” (the agape). This occurred in 1986 before He “breathed” upon us “receive ye the Holy Ghost.”

“Today the church of God is free to carry forward to completion the divine plan for the salvation of a lost race. For many centuries God’s people suffered a restriction of their liberties. The preaching of the gospel in its purity was prohibited, and the severest of penalties were visited upon those who dared disobey the mandates of men. As a consequence, the Lord’s great moral vineyard was almost wholly unoccupied [like a valley of dry bones]. The people were deprived of the light of God’s word. The darkness of error and superstition threatened to blot out a knowledge of true religion. God’s church on earth was as verily in captivity during this long period of relentless persecution as were the children of Israel held captive in Babylon during the period of the exile.

“But, thank God, His church is no longer in bondage. To spiritual Israel have been restored the privileges accorded the people of God at the time of their deliverance from Babylon. In every part of the earth, men and women are responding to the Heaven-sent message which John the revelator prophesied would be proclaimed prior to the second coming of Christ: “Fear God, and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come.” Revelation 14:7.

“No longer have the hosts of evil power to keep the church captive; for “Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city,” which hath “made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication;” and to spiritual Israel is given the message, “Come out of her, My people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.” Verse 8; 18:4. As the captive exiles heeded the message, “Flee out of the midst of Babylon” (Jeremiah 51:6), and were restored to the Land of Promise, so those who fear God today are heeding the message to withdraw from spiritual Babylon, and soon they are to stand as trophies of divine grace in the earth made new, the heavenly Canaan.” Prophets and Kings, p. 714-715.

“The darkest hour of the church’s struggle with the powers of evil is that which immediately precedes the day of her final deliverance. But none who trust in God need fear; for ‘when the blast of the terrible ones is as a storm against the wall,’ God will be to His church ‘a refuge from the storm.’ Isaiah 25:4.”

“In that day only the righteous are promised deliverance. ‘The sinners in Zion are afraid; fearfulness hath surprised the hypocrites. Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire? who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings? He that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly; he that despiseth the gain of oppressions, that shaketh his hands from holding of bribes, that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood, and shutteth his eyes from seeing evil; he shall dwell on high: his place of defense shall be the munitions of rocks: bread shall be given him; his waters shall be sure.’ Isaiah 33:14-16.” Prophets and Kings, p. 725.

Doug Mitchell

THE BRANCH

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Publisher’s Note: The Greek word for “spirit” as well as the pronouns that refer to “spirit” are neuter and can be translated as “he,” “she,” or “it.” Most English translations translate them as “he” due to Latin influence (the Latin word for “spirit” is masculine). But since Jesus spoke Aramaic, it is more appropriate the pronouns as “she” since “spirit” is feminine in Aramaic, as it is in Hebrew.