I’d like to begin with prayer this morning, because not only is it a good idea to ask for the Holy Spirit to guide and direct, but as you will soon find out, it’s time to decide.

As I try to keep abreast of what’s happening within the great Advent movement, there’s something that really troubles me, and it’s been troubling me for quite some time. The Holy Spirit has been dealing with me about today’s subject for a while and I haven’t wanted to say anything about it, but I dare not put it off any longer for fear of losing God’s smile upon my life. And here’s what’s troubling me. Many people who know the true condition of things within the leadership of the Seventh-day Adventist Church and about all the doctrinal errors and compromises that have been made over the past many years, still want to refer to the church as “God’s church,” and “My church,” and “Our church,” and “Our brethren,” and so forth, but is it really? Do we really want to associate ourselves with blatant apostasy? Do we not understand that when we do this we are placing ourselves in the same camp? Do we really want others to believe that we belong to a church where it has become “evident that some power has cut the cable that anchored them to the Eternal Rock, and that they are drifting away to sea, without chart or compass”? You can read about that in Review and Herald, July 24, 1888, and we know that this was written during the time when the true message of righteousness by faith was being presented, and unfortunately rejected, and sadly it’s been a slow spiral downward ever since. Strong words I know, but they’re not my words, they are the words of what an inspired little lady wrote 137 years ago, and are we thinking that things have gotten better since then?

Oh how I wish I didn’t have to say it, but we need to think seriously about these things and about the influence we may be having upon others by allowing them to think that we are one with a church that has clearly gone astray. Does what inspiration says about separation from apostasy mean anything us? Do we think we won’t be corporately accountable if we don’t stand up and be counted? I have to tell you, the sermon today is a bit of a barnburner, so consider yourself warned. As a minister of the gospel my main obligation is to tell you the truth, whether you like it or not, and then it’s up to you what you do with it.

Early Writings, pages 124, 125, you’re probably familiar with it, but please take it in once again, because it’s inspired information we need at this time. This is in the context of false shepherds who once knew and advocated the truth, but rejected it. The prophet writes, “I was shown the necessity of those who believe that we are having the last message of mercy, being (what?) separate from those who are daily imbibing new errors. I saw that neither young nor old should attend their meetings; for it is wrong to thus encourage them (and that’s exactly what we’re doing when we meet with them) while they teach error that is a deadly poison to the soul and teach for doctrines the commandments of men. (And in a little while you’re going to hear about some of that deadly poison being espoused by those who have been commissioned to speak the truth.) The influence of such gatherings is not good. If God has delivered  us from such darkness and error, we should stand fast in the liberty wherewith He has set us free and rejoice in the truth. God is displeased with us when we go to listen to error, without being obliged to go; for unless He sends us to those meetings where error is forced home to the people by the power of the will (have you ever heard of NLP?), He will not keep us. The angels cease their watchful care over us, and we are left to the buffetings of the enemy, to be darkened and weakened by him and the power of his evil angels; and the light around us becomes contaminated with the darkness.

“I saw that we have no time to throw away in listening to fables. . . While false doctrines and dangerous errors are pressed upon the mind, it cannot be dwelling upon the truth which is to fit and prepare the house of Israel to stand in the day of the Lord.”

I hear so many “Independent ministries” today who act as though the church is going to turn around and get back on the straight and narrow path and  receive the latter rain and give the loud cry; and so pray for “our church” and “our leaders”  and “our brethren” that there might be true repentance and reformation so Jesus can come back and take us all to heaven. Really? Do we really believe that that’s ever going to happen? We’ve been told plainly that the great apostasy, which began within the denominational leadership through the pantheistic teachings of Doctor Kellogg; teachings we’re told would develop from alpha to omega and increase “and wax stronger, and will continue to do so until the Lord shall descend from heaven with a shout.” And she says, it is certain that this will happen and “is soon to be realized.” You can read that in Special Testimonies, series B, volume 7, page 57 and that was written in 1905.

Also in Selected Messages, book 1, pages 204, 205 written in 1903 we’re told about a false reformation that would take place among Seventh-day Adventists and that a “new organization” would be established, and that “nothing would be allowed to stand in the way of the new movement” until finally “storm and tempest will sweep away the structure.”

And what do you suppose it means for “the structure” to be swept away? Friends, it doesn’t mean that the organization with all its institutions will be no more, because they will continue on, at least for a while, because the “new organization” we just read about is going to persecute their former brethren who refuse to bow to the papacy with its Sunday sabbath. All the Sunday churches that our pioneers left over a 150 years ago are still here among us, are they not? Those institutions weren’t swept away so that they are no more, even though they rejected the truth long ago and became the harlot daughters of Babylon. And so, the physical organization with all its institutions is going to endure for a while yet, and whatever it means by storm and tempest sweeping away the structure, I believe will soon become evident. You might want to read Letter 38, pages 1, 2 written in 1906 for more information about this.

Now as I said, I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately, and I really don’t want to have to say these things, but it really troubles me to think that people who ought to know better are so deluded to believe that God is going to overlook the fact about what the prophet said about the church in 1889 in Testimonies for the Church, volume 5, page 217. At that time she said, “the church has turned back from following Christ her Leader and is steadily retreating toward Egypt.” And friends, there’s only one or two reasons why a person can’t see what’s going on. It’s either because they’re willingly ignorant, or because they’re not studying what inspiration says and they’re putting more confidence in church leadership than they are in the Word of God, hoping against hope that there will be a course correction. Acts 5:32 says the eye salve of the Holy Spirit is available, but we have to obey what we already know before spiritual discernment is given.

In The Great Controversy, page 593 it says, “So closely will the counterfeit (Satan offers) resemble the true that it will be impossible to distinguish between them except by the Holy Scriptures.” And if we’re not studying the Holy Scriptures for ourselves, or if we’re allowing someone else to do our studying for us, guess what? There is zero chance that we will be able to tell the difference between the truth and the delusions of Satan. And so, it’s really quite serious to place our confidence in any human being no matter what their position, and it’s equally dangerous to just stick our heads in the sand and pretend that everything is just fine and that it will all work out in the end. Yes, it will all work out, but not in the way that many think.

And please keep this one thing in mind; all through church history it has always been the followers of Jesus who have had to leave their established churches because of apostasy, and not the other way around. So don’t be fooled by those who use the quote that says, “The church may appear as about to fall, but it does not fall, it remains while the sinners in Zion will be sifted out.” Yes, this is a true statement, but the church mentioned here is not the denomination; it’s the remnant “who have been overcoming by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony.” Those are the only ones who “will be found with the loyal and true, without spot or stain of sin, without guile in their mouths.” This remnant, the prophet says, will “purify their souls by obeying the truth (and) gather strength from the trying process, exhibiting the beauty of holiness amid the surrounding apostasy. . . This is a terrible ordeal (she says) “but nevertheless it must take place.” And it is taking place right now, and it’s only going to get worse. I encourage you to read this whole article in context from the original Manuscript Releases, volume 12, pages 324, 325, written in 1886, because this statement about the church appearing as about to fall, but does not fall, is being used very dishonestly today by those who refuse to acknowledge the true condition of the church and its leaders. You know, sometimes it’s interesting and important to know when these kind of statements were written, because you will find that most were written in the late 1880s and the early 1900s, which is about a 10-15 year time period. And there’s a reason for it, and it’s because things were beginning to go south in a big way at that point.

In Testimonies for the Church, volume 8, page 250, notice the message God Himself pronounced upon the church. This was written in 1904 because there were ministers that were saying, “’Peace and safety,’ while sudden destruction is coming upon them. (And she says) Unless there is thorough repentance, unless men humble their hearts by confession and receive the truth as it is in Jesus, they will never enter heaven.” (Then she writes) “I saw our Instructor (that’s Jesus) pointing to the garments of so-called righteousness. Stripping them off, He laid bare the defilement beneath. Then He said to me: (to Ellen) Can you not see how they have pretentiously covered up their defilement and rottenness of character? ‘How is the faithful city become an harlot!’ My Father’s house is made a house of merchandise, a place whence the divine presence and glory have departed!”

Tell me, if “the divine presence and glory have departed,” was it God’s church when this was written, or was it a harlot as Jesus said? It was a harlot! And what is a harlot in Bible prophecy? It’s an unfaithful church, or a daughter of Babylon! At least that was true when it was written, but what about today?

Early on in James’ and Ellen’s experience, the Lord gave Ellen a dream of future events in 1868 that took place as they were traveling to Battle Creek to visit the leading brethren at the headquarters of the work, and she mentions a company in her dream that she said she knew well, but it changed to a Catholic procession. I don’t have time to read it right now, but you might want to read it this afternoon as you have time. It’s found in Testimonies for the Church, volume 1, pages 577, 578. Through a careful reading of this dream I think you will find that, unbeknown to Ellen, she was describing what the church would become sometime after her death, because she couldn’t understand it, and never did, at least she never mentioned it again as far as I know. I believe God was being merciful to her and James, because they would have been absolutely crushed by the thought of this happening to a church they were instrumental in raising up.

Now let me remind you of just a few things that I’ve mentioned in the past that might help jog your memory as to how far the denomination has strayed from the truth, because we have been told in plain terms what our work is to be in these last days. In Testimonies for the Church, volume 9, page 19 it says, “In a special sense Seventh-day Adventists have been set in the world as (what? Remember?) as watchmen and light-bearers. To them has been entrusted the last warning for a perishing world (The last! With none to follow. This is it!). On them is shining wonderful light from the Word of God. They have been given a work of the most solemn import,—the proclamation of the first, second, and third angels’ messages. There is no other work of so great importance. They are to allow nothing else to absorb their attention. (Now that doesn’t mean we can’t talk about other things, but we’re not to get so absorbed in them that we become fanatics and one idea men like many are doing today.) The most solemn truths ever entrusted to mortals have been given us to proclaim to the world. The proclamation of these truths is to be our work. The world is to be warned, and God’s people are to be true to the trust committed to them.”

Now I ask you, according to what we just read, don’t you think that the devil will especially attack the particular truths we just read about since we are to allow nothing else to absorb our attention? And tell me, how does this statement square with what the leaders of the General Conference are allowing through one of their representatives by the name of Ganoune Diop, who is Director of Public Affairs and Religious Liberty? You’ve heard me talk about him before. He has said that the papacy has changed for the better, and he’s not the only leader who thinks this way else they would call him on it, even though the Spirit of Prophecy says the papacy will never change: and he says, those who continue to give the third angel’s message implicating the papacy as the beast power of Revelation 13:1-10 amounts to hate speech and terrorism, and no other church leaders, and no other conference supporting ministries that I know of have corrected him on this point. Nope, he’s not going to follow what the Spirit of Prophecy says about the papacy any longer, if he ever did, he’s just going to talk about the love of Jesus.

And how about the church’s participation in the ecumenical movement over the past 45 years or so with the signing of the BEM document, which stands for Baptism, Eucharist and Ministry, produced by none other than the World Council of Churches, the leading entity of the ecumenical movement. The following are just a few of the goals of this organization:

1. Baptism: To encourage all churches to make no issue of the mode of or the age at baptism. If baptism is practiced by immersion, that’s acceptable, and so is infant sprinkling.
2. Eucharist: To encourage all to accept equally the various concepts of the Lord’s Supper, whether they be trans-substantiation, (that is the belief that the little wafer and the wine are changed into the actual body and blood of Christ by the Catholic priest) and consubstantiation, or the fact that the bread and wine are only symbols of the broken body and spilled blood of Jesus Christ. Either one is acceptable.
3. Ministry: To encourage all churches to work for the unchurched, but never to proselytize from other churches.

Are you OK with the fact that the Seventh-day Adventist church leaders agree with these things and have signed such a document pledging their loyalty? I’ve put 2 links in the sermon notes if you question what I’m saying.

https://www.oikoumene.org/resources/documents/study-guide-on-baptism-eucharist-and-ministry

https://endrtimes.blogspot.com/2009/06/sda-church-signs-bem-document1982.html

This signing of the BEM document took place in 1982, but 25 years before that even, is when the book Questions on Doctrine was published by The Review and Herald Publishing Association to satisfy the Evangelicals so they wouldn’t label them as a cult. And as a result, from the mid-1950s to the present day, Seventh-day Adventists have now become Catholic Trinitarians, they even say so right in their 27 Fundamental Beliefs, and for a long time now they have been pushing the idea that Jesus had an unfallen human nature, either that, or they say it’s a moot issue, which is totally contrary to the Bible and the Spirit of Prophecy.

Friends, these things “are a deadly poison to the soul.” And there are several other problems with the book Questions on Doctrine, but when you find blatant error like the two I just mentioned, why look any further into one of these “books of a new order” we’ve been warned would come.

And what about the churches involvement in COP 28? What’s that you say? It’s the 28th United Nations Climate Change Conference, which is enthusiastically endorsed, once again, by the World Council of Churches; and ADRA (Adventist Development and Relief Agency) is involved with it up to their eyeballs. Has ADRA done some good things since its founding in 1956? Sure, and isn’t it interesting that Questions on Doctrine was published the following year, and since that time ARDA has developed into a global force for climate change? By the way, The Great Controversy, pages 589, 590 makes it clear that climate change is not the result of mankind polluting the air and the water, but rather Satan’s effort to control the weather and destroy people’s lives, and God is permitting it because mankind has forgotten their Creator and the inevitable results that that brings. And so yes, in that respect climate change is man made, but not the way most people think.

As I was on the Internet searching for what I could find about these things, I read an article in a blog called Advent Messenger, not that I agree with everything there, but in this instance I thought it was very interesting and succinct, and I quote it here. The article says, “A remarkable phenomenon is occurring today in Adventism. Under the leadership of Pope Francis, all the churches, economists, environmentalists, policymakers, and governments are working together to heal the earth, even as sin and anarchy are increasing at an alarming rate in society. More churches are adding their names to the new religious crusade against climate change. The religion of ecology is replacing the everlasting gospel of Revelation 14:6–12, as many Seventh-day Adventists are moving from saving souls to saving the soil.

“According to the Book of Revelation, the great adversaries in the last days used to be the beast, the image, and the false prophet. That’s all changed now. Today, these bad actors have become our friends. They are now our new allies in the fight against greenhouse gases. In the new and improved end-time scenario, we need to foster a spirit of cooperation with the Vatican, the other churches, the UN (United Nations), the EU (European Union), the WEF (World Economic Forum), and other globalists in order to save the earth. Once again, we are witnessing the desecration of our faith as a growing number of Seventh-day Adventists abandon their belief in Revelation 13, 17, and 18 and instead refocus their evangelism on addressing the climate agenda through Catholic social teachings and secular ideologies. . . Environmentalism has emerged as the world’s new global religion, and the head of this endeavor is Pope Francis.”

And what does the papacy want more than anything else? “To regain control of the world, to re-establish persecution, and to undo all that Protestantism has done.” The Great Controversy, page 565.

And along with that, of course, is the effort to exalt Sunday as the Sabbath. That’s your Seventh-day Adventist church today friends, are you in agreement with it? If you are, then your church membership puts you right in line with “the man of sin.” And guess what? As a result you will be involved in the effort to help bring in a Sunday law if you continue to support it with your time, with your dollars, and by encouraging all of it by your attendance at meetings that are not good, and meetings that will soon encourage Sunday worship, and if you don’t believe me, read Early Writings, page 261.

In fact, there’s a better quote than that in Review and Herald March 18, 1884, and I’ll go ahead and read this one, because it’s so clear. “The Lord has a controversy with his professed people in these last days. (Who would that be if not SDAs?) In this controversy men in responsible positions (conference leaders, and ministers) will take a course directly opposite to that pursued by Nehemiah. (Nehemiah was a Sabbath reformer, wasn’t he? But these SDA ministers will do the opposite, lightly regard the Sabbath and eventually exalt Sunday.) They will not only ignore and despise the Sabbath themselves, but they will try to keep it from others by burying it beneath the rubbish of custom and tradition. (Just like all Sunday preachers have been doing all along.) In churches and in large gatherings in the open air, (camp meetings) ministers (Adventist ministers) will urge upon the people the necessity of keeping the first day of the week. (You see, Sunday-keeping ministers have been urging Sunday for hundreds of years, so it’s not them being referred to in the last days, but to former Sabbath-keepers.) There are calamities on sea and land: and these calamities will increase, one disaster following close upon another; and the little band of conscientious Sabbath-keepers (not the 23 million church members of today, but a “little band” will be pointed out by these apostate Adventists ministers) as the ones who are bringing the wrath of God upon the world by their disregard of Sunday.”

The best people Satan can use to persecute Sabbathkeepers, will be former Sabbathkeepers, because they know better than anyone else how to do it.

And how about church leaders deafening silence about coddling the LGBTQ+ community with Loma Linda celebrating pride month and some of the larger churches being all inclusive and tolerance and protecting of those who are engaged in this sinful behavior? We don’t hear any rebuke from the leadership about that, do we? However, in Luke 17:28, 29 Jesus said, “As it was in the days of Lot, . . . so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man; (and we know what was  happening during Lot’s day, don’t we? Then He says) the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all.” And friends, the same thing is going to happen once again to a church that thinks it’s the loving thing to do to encourage and celebrate this unnatural and sinful behavior.

And how about this: in 1974-75 the United States brought lawsuit against the Seventh-day Adventist General Conference for a violation of the Equal Employment Opportunity Act by the Pacific Press Publishing Association regarding the salary of Merikay Silver and other women. And if you don’t know how this law suit came about I’ve put a link to an article in the sermon notes. It’s quite long, but a very interesting read, and you won’t think very highly of church leaders when you get done with it.

https://www.sdadefend.com/MINDEX-M/Silver.pdf

In this trial, presided over by Judge Charles B. Renfrew, in U.S. District Court, in San Francisco, California, the Seventh-day Adventist leadership made some startling, documented statements about their church’s organizational arrangement and principles while under oath.

And I quote, “Although it is true (said then president Neal Wilson) that there was a period in the life of the Seventh-day Adventist Church when the denomination took a distinctly anti-Roman Catholic viewpoint, and the term ‘hierarchy’ was used in a pejorative sense (that means unfavorable) to refer to the papal form of church governance, that attitude on the church’s part was nothing more than a manifestation of widespread anti-popery among conservative Protestant denominations in the early part of this century and the latter part of the last, and which has now been consigned to the historical trash heap so far as the Seventh-day Adventist Church is concerned.” EEOC vs PPPA and GC, Civil Case #74-2025 CBR (1975).

What do you think about Neal Wilson speaking in your behalf like that? You say, “that’s not what I believe.” But dear friend, if you still hold membership in the organization he refers to, then he is speaking in your behalf as the head of the church whether you like it or not. He also stated the following, “There is another universal and truly catholic organization, the Seventh-day Adventist Church.” That was in the Adventist Review, March 5, 1981.

And how about what his son Ted, the current General Conference President, said in the March 2021 edition of Adventist World, page 21? He said, “we are to avoid the mark of the beast (which is) false worship on a day other than the seventh-day Sabbath.” Well, that’s kind of true, isn’t it? Because the mark of the beast is false worship on a day other than the seventh day. But it could also be on Monday, Tuesday, Friday, or some other day. And so, how could a studied man who is the head of the church make such a stupid mistake? Or was it a mistake? Could it have been purposeful as a way to stay true to ecumenical principles in order to remain on good side of the papacy like his father did, and how Mr. Diop is currently doing? From what I know about the churches capitulation about the true identity of the beast power being the papacy, it seems to me like Ted has become a regular chip off the old block, just like his dad.

Now, since I’ve already mentioned it, let’s talk about church membership for a minute, because I know there are many Seventh-day Adventists who attach salvation to their membership, and they believe if one were to leave or get the left foot of fellowship, they would consider that apostasy from the truth and they would lose their souls, but is this true? Who is in apostasy, the one who stays or the one who leaves? Well, that depends, doesn’t it? The word apostasy means to abandon what one once considered to be the truth. So if one leaves a church that is proclaiming and living the truth, then by leaving that person would become an apostate, correct? Yes! But how about when the church itself abandons the truth it once professed? Then by staying that person would become identified with apostasy, would they not? We need to think this through!

Notice this quote from Review and Herald, February 10, 1891, “We are not saved as a sect; (do you know what the word “sect” means? It’s “A religious body that has separated from a larger denomination.” That means just because you may have separated from an apostate church doesn’t mean that you will be saved. So don’t be thinking that you are safe just because you may have done that) “We are not saved as a sect; no denominational name has any virtue to bring us into favor with God. We are saved individually as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ.”

Question: Should we be willing to be jailed, or be sued over the “denominational name,” like some have been, when there isn’t any virtue in it to bring us into favor with God, when it has nothing at all to do with our salvation? “But God gave us that name,” you say. Yes, in 1860 it meant that one was identified with present truth because they were proclaiming it, and we should never be ashamed of that, but that name has now become identified with something else, and that something else is doctrinal error and compromise, and that means apostasy from the truth.

Understand, church organization was never meant to be a means of salvation, but simply a vehicle for service and to take the gospel to the world, but we need to realize that the vehicle has gone into the ditch and it’s not coming out, ever!

Here’s another very well-known quote you’re familiar with I’m sure, from Upward Look, page 315 where it says, “God has a church (just one, and that’s all He’s ever had, and that was long before the “name” was chosen back in 1860. And by the way, this church mentioned here is the church that may appear as about to fall, but it does not fall). “God has a church, it is not the great cathedral, neither is it the national establishment, neither is it the various denominations; (so what is it then?) it is the people who love God and keep His commandments. ‘Where two or three are gathered together in my name (said Jesus), there am I in the midst of them.’ Where Christ is even among the humble few, this is Christ’s church, for the presence of the High and Holy One who inhabiteth eternity can alone constitute a church.”

Friends, we need to understand that salvation comes only to those who love God and keep His commandments! Your church affiliation, the name that is on the sign outside, or the fact that you may have left a church because of the error it teaches; none of these things in and of themselves are going to save you. They may cause you to be lost by staying and being influenced by error like we read earlier, but they won’t save you. So don’t place your confidence in anything or anyone except He who alone can constitute a church.

Now, if only the presence of God can constitute a church, then what are we supposed to think, when in 1898 Ellen White said, “The church is in the Laodicean state. The presence of God is not in her midst.” Last Day Events, page 49. So was it still God’s church when He wasn’t there? The answer is no! And the thing that boggles my mind is that church leaders and laity alike will tell you that they are Laodicea,  but where is the Lord? He’s outside knocking, but they won’t open the door and let Him in. Remember this one thing, Laodicea is lukewarm, and only lukewarm, and lukewarm is lost, because it never becomes hot. We must escape Laodicea and develop the characteristics of the church of Philadelphia.

Also on page 48 of the same book she mentions the rejection of the righteousness by faith message that was presented at Minneapolis in 1888 by saying, “As reformers (speaking of the early days of the Advent movement) they had come out of the denominational churches, but they now act a part similar to that which the churches acted. We hoped that there would not be the necessity for another coming out.”

But that’s exactly where we are today, because to my knowledge that righteousness by faith message has never been truly understood and accepted by church leaders to this day, and a man by the name of A. G. Daniells, who was General Conference President said so in his book Christ our Righteousness, written in 1924. So where is the proof that it has been accepted today? It’s not there! Something else has taken its place just like Sister White said, and it’s the omega apostasy. And in Sermons and Talks, volume 1, Page 343 Ellen White tells us what it is. She writes, “All through my life I have had the same errors to meet, though not always in the same form. In Living Temple (Kellogg’s book) the assertion is made that God is in the flower, in the leaf, in the sinner. (This is pantheism, and this is the way the alpha apostasy came into the church, that God is in the sinner.) But (she says) God does not live in the sinner. The Word declares that He abides only in the hearts of those who love Him and do righteousness. God does not abide in the heart of the sinner; it is the enemy who abides there.”

Now think about this for a minute. This false idea that God abides “in the heart of the sinner,” is the same lie the devil came up with in the Garden when he told Eve she could sin, or disobey God, and not surely die, and what’s being taught today is the same lie, but in a different form. Sister White said, “All through my life I have had the same errors to meet, though not always in the same form.” So what various forms does Satan’s lie take on today? How about this: that one can have a saving relationship with Jesus and still have ongoing sin in the life; that Jesus had an unfallen human nature and that’s the way He was able to live without sin, but we can’t because our natures are fallen; and that perfection of character is not possible in this life, and we’ll be sinning till Jesus comes.

This is how the alpha apostasy has developed into the omega apostasy, and in this context Sister White writes the following in Selected Messages, book 1, page 197, “Be not deceived; many will depart from the faith, (and she not zeroing in on Sunday keepers here) “Be not deceived; many will depart from the faith, (the Advent faith) giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of devils. We have now before us the alpha of this danger. (That’s what she wrote in 1904) The omega will be of a most startling nature.” And isn’t it startling to realize that this is what Adventism has come to? It started out proclaiming the truth, but has now ended up speaking the same lie told in the Garden, just in a little bit different form.

Here’s another quote from Review and Herald, August 1, 1893, “Of those who boast of their light and yet fail to walk in it Christ says, ‘But I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the day of judgment than for you. And thou, Capernaum [Seventh-day Adventists, who have had great light], which art exalted unto heaven [in point of privilege], shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works which have been done in thee had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.’”

Boy, whatever was going on back then must have been pretty bad if it was worse than Sodom, don’t you think? I know she says in the same article that church leaders were not controlling the lusts of the flesh and were  condemning others who weren’t doing as bad of things as they were, but wow, to “be brought down to hell” was really saying something. Actually what she was saying was that there are no guarantees for a church that rejects the truth, period!

Selected Messages, book 1, page 67 says, “the promises and threatenings of God are alike conditional.” Upon what? Obedience!

And since I’ve mentioned the “name” a few minutes ago, what about when church leaders used sacred tithe money to hire a Catholic lawyer to sue those who believed it was important to call themselves Seventh-day Adventists? Do you know what God says about those who would sue their brethren over such matters?

Selected Messages, book 3, page 299, “When troubles arise in the church we should not go for help to lawyers not of our faith. (But that’s exactly what they did when they went to a catholic lawyer for help.) God does not desire us to open church difficulties before those who do not fear Him. He would not have us depend for help on those who do not obey his requirements. (Do Catholics obey God’s requirements?) Those who trust in such counselors show that they have not faith in God. By their lack of faith the Lord is greatly dishonored, and their course works great injury to themselves. In appealing to unbelievers to settle difficulties in the church they are biting and devouring one another, to be ‘consumed one of another’ (Galatians 5:15).

“These men cast aside the counsel God has given, and do the very things he has bidden them not to do. They show that they have chosen the world as their judge, (now listen) and in heaven their names are registered as one with unbelievers. Christ is crucified afresh, and put to open shame. Let these men know that God does not hear their prayers. They insult His holy name, and he will leave them to the buffetings of Satan until they shall see their folly and seek the Lord by confession of their sin.”

Now friends, we need to understand that according to what we just read, these apostate leaders who brought law suit over the name issue are still casting aside the counsel God has given, still have not seen their folly, have not sought the Lord by open confession, and as a result Christ is still being crucified afresh and put to open shame over this, and they are still registered in the books of heaven as one with unbelievers and God does not hear their prayers, and from that day to this they have been left to the buffetings of Satan. Because remember, open sin requires open confession and restitution, and that has not been forthcoming, nor will it ever be.

Now, should we continue to hold membership in a church that is led by such apostate leaders that have had great light and have been exalted unto heaven in point of privilege? Or is it time to make a clean break and separate so we’re not brought down to hell with them? And if not now, when? Are we waiting for a Sunday law to be enacted until the church start keeping it? Which they will! Pray and work for the members who need the eye salve, yes, absolutely! But continue to pray for the leaders who have had great light and exalted privilege? That’s an entirely different matter.

You know, there was a time in the ancient past when there were those who wanted to stay with the “Seventh-day Adventist Church,” because that’s what Israel was by profession, weren’t they? They wanted to stay with the ship that they believed was certain to go through to the heavenly port if they would just stick with it, because God had promised; and no matter how deep the apostasy gets, stick with the church, because God will never let it get so bad that they won’t be able to get back on track. But what Israel failed to realize was that the covenant God made with them required the kind of obedience that comes from a new heart. They said, “all that the Lord has said we will do, and be obedient,” but that didn’t work very well, did it? Because right afterward they were dancing around the golden calf.

Notice what God told Jeremiah in Jeremiah 7 about a similar situation. Today’s leaders may not be doing the exact same things we’re about to read, but they are just as guilty of rebellion against God as the Jewish leaders were. Beginning with Jeremiah 7:1 it says, “The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying, Stand in the gate of the LORD’S house, and proclaim there this word, and say, Hear the word of the LORD, all ye of Judah, that enter in at these gates to worship the LORD. Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, Amend your ways and your doings, and I will cause you to dwell in this place. Trust ye not in lying words, saying, The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD, are these.” (“My fellow church leaders and their organization. Hooray! We’re safe now that we are members of the church, the church, the church, and we know the ship is going through.” Yes, all ships go through to someplace, even to hell as we read.) Verse 8, “Behold, ye trust in lying words, that cannot profit. Will ye steal, murder, and commit adultery, and swear falsely, and burn incense unto Baal, and walk after other gods whom ye know not; And come and stand before me in this house, which is called by my name, and say, We are delivered to do all these abominations?” (See, they thought they were saved in  sin) Verse 11, “Is this house, which is called by my name, become a den of robbers in your eyes? Behold, even I have seen it, saith the LORD. But go ye now unto my place which was in Shiloh, where I set my name at the first, and see what I did to it for the wickedness of my people Israel.” (Do the three names Eli and his two sons Hophni and Phineas ring a bell? Again it was church leaders at Shiloh who had gone astray and the congregation blindly followed just like today) Verse 13, “And now, because ye have done all these works, saith the LORD, and I spake unto you, rising up early and speaking, but ye heard not; and I called you, but ye answered not; Therefore will I do unto this house, which is called by my name, wherein ye trust (you see, they trusted that their membership in the church would save them), and unto the place which I gave to you and to your fathers, as I have done to Shiloh. And I will cast you out of my sight, as I have cast out all your brethren, even the whole seed of Ephraim. Therefore (notice what God says to Jeremiah now) Therefore pray not thou for this people, neither lift up cry nor prayer for them, neither make intercession to me: for I will not hear thee.”  Why? Because Psalm 66:18 says, “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me.” And that goes for individuals as well as a whole church.

Has the leadership of the Seventh-day Adventist church reached that point yet? Let me remind you of what it says in Manuscript Releases, volume 12, page 319 and then you decide. “When Jerusalem was divorced from God it was because of her sins. (Now, God bore long with Jerusalem and the Israelites, didn’t He? For close to 2000 years in fact. But do you think God is going to bare as long with the Seventh-day Adventist church? No He will not! Not even a little bit, why? Because the severity of God’s judgments comes based upon knowledge. Listen), “When Jerusalem was divorced from God it was because of her sins. She fell from an exalted height that Tyre and Sidon had never reached. And when an angel falls he becomes a fiend. (Now she says) The depth of our ruin is measured by the exalted light to which God has raised us in His great goodness and unspeakable mercy. (And indeed He has, more than any other people who have ever lived upon this planet) Oh, what privileges are granted to us as a people! And if God spared not His people that He loved (the Jewish nation), because they refused to walk in the light, how can He spare the people whom He has blessed with the light of heaven in having opened to them the most exalted truth ever entrusted to mortal man to give to the world?”

By the way, that exalted truth that has been entrusted to us is the same message we are to be absorbed with, as we read earlier, the three angels’ messages, and especially the third, you know, the ones that make us terrorists for proclaiming it. And remember what Jesus Himself said in Luke 12:48, “For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall much be required.” In other words, things are not going to go on for another 20 centuries like they did for Israel, because the exalted light given in these last days requires that God bring things to a close much sooner, and sooner than we may think.

Using Nehemiah as an example of one who refused to associate with those who were untrue to principle, and would not even permit his workmen to associate with them, it says this in Review and Herald, May 9, 1899, “Even though you may not feel able to speak a word to those who are working on wrong principles, leave them. Your withdrawal and silence may do more than words.”

Friends, all the things I’ve mentioned this morning are not things that took place in a closet, but have been done openly and flagrantly, and why would we want to be associated with any of it? And I could go on and on with other examples of blatant apostasy, but how much do we need to hear before we get the picture? Which direction has the church been heading for over 100 years now and where is it all going to end? It’s not all that hard to figure out. Early Writings, pages 88, 89 tells us plainly that the church train is “going with lightning speed to perdition,” and if we’re still on that train we better jump!

I can’t speak for you this morning, but personally I am all in on accepting and living the truth for this time, and I hope you are too, because God will not accept a divided heart, and to not decide on the side of truth, is to decide by default on the wrong side, that’s how it works.

In 1 Kings 18 we have the story of the reaction of the Old Testament Seventh-day Adventist Church upon Mount Carmal when Elijah confronted the 450 prophets of Baal, and the 400 prophets of the groves, and do you remember what Elijah said to the church back then who were there on the mount with him? In verse 21  it says, “And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long halt ye between two opinions? if the LORD be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him (what?) not a word.” The time for decided action had come, and the church members “answered him not a word.”

Now notice what Sister White says in this context. Testimonies for the Church, volume 3, page 280, “Not one in that vast assembly dared utter one word for God and show his loyalty to Jehovah. What astonishing deception and fearful blindness had, like a dark cloud, covered Israel! This blindness and apostasy had not closed about them suddenly; it had come upon them gradually (it had come upon them how? Gradually! Friends, the things I’ve been sharing with you have come the same way, gradually over many decades; that’s the way the devil works, hoping we won’t notice that he has taken over at headquarters.) it had come upon them gradually as they had not heeded the word of reproof and warning which the Lord had sent to them because of their pride and their sins. (For a long time now, for at least 75 years, God has sent different ones to church leaders with words of reproof and calls to repentance and reformation, but to no avail.) And now, in this fearful  crisis, in the presence of the idolatrous priests and the (Conference President, I mean) the apostate king, they remained neutral. (Can we be neutral when it comes to eternal life and eternal death? We better not!) If God abhors one sin above another, of which His people are guilty, it is doing nothing in case of an emergency. Indifference and neutrality in a religious crisis is regarded of God as a grievous crime and equal to the very worst type of hostility against God.”

Is the Seventh-day Adventist church going to repeat the history of that people? Not only are they, but it’s happening as I speak. In Testimonies for the Church, volume 5, page 160 it says, “Satan’s snares are laid for us as verily as they were laid for the children of Israel just prior to their entrance into the land of Canaan. (And are we not on the very borders of the heavenly Canaan? Then she says) We are repeating the history of that people.” That was written in 1889, and friends, it has only gotten worse with time.

Testimonies for the Church, volume 8, page 67 says, “Jerusalem is a representation of what the church will be if it fails to walk in the light that God has given.” And yes friends, they have failed, and failed miserably.

And will it be the majority that forsake the truth, or just a few? Well, I’m afraid it’s more bad news, because all throughout history God’s people have always been the minority, and over and over again Sister White refers to those who are on their way to the holy city as “a little company” or “a little band” with the majority falling off the pathway that leads to the heavenly garner.

Well, I’ve probably said enough, and you have more than adequate information to make a decision should you need to do so; so I think I’ll close by reading 2 Corinthians 6:14-18. The great apostle Paul said, “Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness, and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, (because they’re not God’s church) and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.”

IS IT REALLY OUR CHURCH