Before we open God’s word I’d like to share something with you that has me just a little excited. As you know, Gospel Workers Ministry is on several social media platforms, like YouTube, Rumble and Truth Social, and know I’ve added one more called Brighteon with more to follow. You can find the links on the sermons page of Gospel Workers website, so you might want to check it out if you haven’t already done so. The reason I’m a little excited about Brighteon is because I only started uploading sermons to that platform about two months ago and it has almost already exceeded YouTube for views, and I’ve been on YouTube for over a year. And so, Brighteon is turning out to be a better platform for getting the truth out to the people. All four of these social media platform are for the general public where I only use the Bible and no Spirit of Prophecy, so you can send people there if you have non-Adventist friends or contacts, and I hope you’ll do that, because time is short friends, and we must be about our Father’s business. And please pray as well that people who go to these platforms will find what they need and what they’re looking for, and thank you also for your support of this ministry. May there be souls in heaven as a result, because that’s what it’s all about, Yes?

Last month we discussed a little history about what happened in 1844 and how the sanctuary on earth was a type of what’s going on in reality in the heavenly sanctuary today, as Jesus, our great High Priest, is ministering the benefits of His shed blood for the forgiveness of sin. And we found out that it’s not enough just to have our sins forgiven if we want immortality, but that all past sins must be blotted out before Jesus says, “It is finished” and steps out of the Most Holy Place of the heavenly sanctuary. And so this blotting out of sin has to do with an investigative judgment in order to determine if one receives that immortality or eternal death.

And someone might say to that, “well that means God’s an Indian giver; that after He has forgiven us, He takes away His forgiveness.” No, it just means that through the merits of Christ all sins are only transferred from us to the heavenly sanctuary when we repent and make confession, just like what happened in type in the earthly sanctuary, but after that they still have to be removed, or blotted out so the sanctuary can be cleansed, and I know this may be a new thought for some of you, but it will become clear from God’s word as we move along. So please stay tuned.

Remember what Moses said when the people sinned by dancing around  the golden calf? This is important, so we better read it. Exodus 32:32, 33, “Yet now, if thou wilt forgive their sin; and if not, blot me, I pray thee, out of thy book which thou hast written. And the LORD said unto Moses, (now listen) whosoever hath sinned against me, him will I blot out of my book.”

Now, did Moses have a close relationship with God? He certainly did, perhaps more so than any other person who has ever lived. Moses knew that God keeps a record of all sin, and that no one will be allowed into heaven who has unconfessed sins recorded in God’s book. So it’s very clear here that God has a record of the sins people commit along with their repentance and confession, and that record is called the book of life. It contains the names of all who have entered God’s service by accepting Jesus as Lord and Saviour. But if any of these get entangled once again in the same sin, or a new sin, and become hardened against the conviction of the Holy Spirit, which involves the unpardonable sin, their names will, in the investigative judgment, be blotted out of the book of life. That’s what’s going on right now, and we don’t know when our name will come up before God to be judged, so we should be cognizant of that fact and not add sin to sin. God wants us to have victory over temptation all the time, and if we have victory all the time we won’t continue to sin. That’s part of the sanctification process. And so, it’s up to us whether or not our record of sin will be placed upon the head of the scapegoat, which we found out last time represents Satan. When our name comes up in review before God, and if it’s seen that we have maintained our fidelity to Christ and have not continued to add to our record of sins, but have learned to have victory through the power of the Holy Spirit, then, and only then will our names be retained in the book of life.

I was listening to a religious radio station in my pickup on my way home from taking garbage to the dump a few days ago, even as I was in the midst of preparing this sermon, and as soon as I turned on the radio, the preacher was quoting Revelation 20:12 where it says, “And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.” And then he read verse 15 which says, “And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.” And I thought, “hum, this is interesting, I wonder where he’s going with this. And as I continued to listen he went on to explain how we get our name registered in the Lamb’s book of life when we accept Jesus into our lives, and he urged people to do so, and I said, “praise the Lord.” But then he said something that is a fatal error. He said, “our names must be written in the book of life, and by the way, once they are written there they can never be removed.” No my friends, it can be removed just like what God said to Moses. And there’s also another verse in Revelation 3:5 where Jesus says, He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels.” That is a positive statement, is it not? But the negative is also true. If we don’t overcome we will not be clothed with a white robe of righteousness, we will be blotted out of the book of life, and Jesus will not confess our name before His Father and the angels. And so, we should never get the idea that we are once saved always saved, because unless we are overcoming temptation and not repeating the same sins over and over again, our names will be blotted out of the book of life, and I don’t want you to be one of them. That’s why I’m telling you these things.

Well, you might say, “I don’t like that arrangement. I believe once I’ve asked for forgiveness, my sins are forgiven forever,” but friend, that’s only true after our sins are placed upon the head of the scapegoat. That’s what the antitypical day of atonement and cleansing of the sanctuary is all about, and it’s an illustration of what’s happening in reality right now.

But again someone might say, “the Bible says when we repent and confess our sins, God casts them into the depths of the sea and they are removed as far as the east is from the west”, and that’s true, the Bible does say that, and the reason it says that is so we human beings don’t go deep sea diving and bring up the past sins of others and throw it back in their face, you know what I mean? As human being we can’t read the heart, and if a person says they’ve confessed and forsaken their sins, we have no right to say they haven’t. But guess what? God can read the heart, and He is an excellent fisherman who never makes a mistake.

And here’s another important point or two: a correct understanding of this investigative judgment will teach us that the soul is not immortal and that there is no such thing as an eternally burning hell, because how could God sentence a person to the flames of hell or reward them with eternal bliss in heaven when judgment has not yet been meted out? According to the Scriptures, God is not going to execute judgment until He comes back to this earth, so how can people receive their reward of life or death before judgment has been rendered? Dozens of times the Bible refers to death as a sleep, and except for those who have already been raised to life, like Moses, or translated without seeing death, like Enoch and Elijah, they’re all resting in the grave awaiting the call of the Life Giver for either eternal life or eternal death, and those two calls are separated by 1,000 years according to Revelation 20:1-6. And according to John 5:29 one is called the resurrection of life, and the other the resurrection of damnation, and of course, we want to be in the first one.

We saw last time that when the ministry of Christ in the Most Holy Place is finished, He will place all the sins of the repentant upon Satan, who is the author of sin. Now, there seems to be some confusion in the Christian world today on this point as well, where Jesus is believed to be the scapegoat since the Bible says He’s the One who bore our sins, and it’s true that He did bare our sins upon the cross, but that doesn’t mean the devil gets off Scott free! Because he’s the one who has concocted all the various ways to cause people to fall into sin through temptation, and he will have to pay for that, but what he won’t have to pay for are the sins of those who reject the sacrifice of Jesus in their behalf, or those who have fallen from grace because of continuing in sin and have their names blotted out, because they will have to pay for their own sins, and that’s one of the reasons why Satan wants to see as many people lost as possible. Not only does he hate Christ and want to make Him sad that there will be millions who refused His sacrifice, but his own suffering will be lessened because those sins won’t be placed upon him.

I remember asking a question to my church one time about whether or not the sinner can pay for his own sins, and everyone said a resounding no! But dear friends, they can! However, they can’t pay for their own sins and still go to heaven, because the wages of sin is death, eternal death, and not an eternity in the fires of hell, because that fire will go out once the wick are consumed. Once those sins are paid for, those unfortunate souls will go to sleep and never wake up; they will be as though they had never been, as it says in Obadiah 1:16.

Just as the scapegoat was forever banished from the presence of God and His people in the typical service, so Satan and all who have chosen him as their leader will be blotted from existence in the final destruction of sin and sinners. That’s the executive judgment, which is yet future, but today we’re talking about the investigative judgment during the antitypical day of atonement that is going on right now in the heavenly sanctuary while there is still opportunity to allow Jesus to be our sin barer, and that, my friends, is good news! You see, if Jesus is the scapegoat, then that means He will be forever banished from the presence of God and His people, and that can’t be right, because He’s the One who is going to make all things new after sin and sinners are forever destroyed.

There are two scriptures in particular that opened the eyes of those who were looking for the Lord to come back in 1844, Daniel 8:14 where it says, “Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed,” and the first angel’s message of Revelation 14:6 that says,  “Fear God, and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come”, that would be the investigative judgment. The people back then came to realize that these were the two verses that pointed to Christ’s work of atonement in the most holy place, and that the cleansing of the sanctuary had nothing at all to do with the coming of Christ to earth to deliver His people and to destroy the wicked, because again, that is yet future. Their mistaken idea had not been in the reckoning of the 2300-year time prophecy, but in the event that was to take place when that prophecy reached its fulfillment.

And so, in 1844 Christ had indeed come, but not to the earth as they expected, but instead what happened was foretold in Daniel 7:13, let’s go there. Daniel says, “I saw in the night visions, and behold, one like the Son of man (Jesus) came with the clouds of heaven, and came (not to the earth, but where?) to the Ancient of Days, and they brought Him near before Him.” Where was the “Ancient of Days,” or God the Father? He was on His throne in the temple, or in the sanctuary in heaven.

This coming is also foretold by the prophet Malachi in Malachi 3:1, where he writes, “The Lord, whom ye seek (they were definitely seeking), shall suddenly come to (where?) to His temple (or to the heavenly sanctuary), even the Messenger of the covenant (Jesus), whom ye delight in: behold, He shall come, saith the Lord of hosts.”

The coming of the Lord to His temple was definitely sudden and unexpected to those who were looking for Him to come back to this earth, because that’s where they had focused all their attention. They expected Him to come “in flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel” as Paul says in 2 Thessalonians 1:8.

However, the people were not yet ready for the Lord to come. There was still a work of character preparation that was necessary. They needed to know what all was involved in being clothed with those white robes spoken of in Revelation 7 and a knowledge of the first angel’s messages in chapter 14 that speaks of the fact that the judgment has come; that it already started, because that’s what directed their minds to the temple of God in heaven; and as a result, they were able, by faith, to follow their High Priest and His work for them there.

Now, concerning the time when Jesus actually does come back to this earth, we’re told in Malachi 3:2, 3 what will be the spiritual condition of those who will be ready to meet Jesus in peace. Notice what it says, “Who may abide the day of His coming? and who shall stand when He appeareth? for He is like a refiner’s fire, and like fullers’ soap: and He shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and He shall purify the sons of Levi (Levi remember was the tribe which had the priesthood, symbolic of the fact that Christians today are themselves “a royal priesthood” according to 2 Peter 2:9), 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.”

Malachi makes it clear here that he’s talking about the Lord’s coming back to this earth, which means that those who are living upon the earth when Christ’s intercession is finished, are to stand in the sight of a holy God without a mediator to plead their case before the Ancient of days. Their robes have to be spotless, their characters purified from sin by the shed blood, and they must be conquerors in the battle with evil.

Let’s look also at Psalm 24:3-5 “Who shall ascend into the hill of the LORD? or who shall stand (where?) in his holy place? (In other words, who’s going to make it to heaven. Here’s the answer) He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully. He shall receive the blessing from the LORD, and righteousness from the God of his salvation.”

You see dear friends, as the investigative judgment is going forward in heaven and sins are being removed from the sanctuary, this represents a special work of purification, or the putting away of sin among us, and this work is clearly presented by three angels flying in the midst of heaven as it says in Revelation 14:6-12. These three messages are all about God’s last day people being character ready for the second coming of Christ. And only when this work is accomplished will we be ready for Christ’s appearing. Remember what it says in Ephesians 5:27? We better look at it. Paul tells us here that when Jesus comes He’s going to have “a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.”

So, we shouldn’t confuse the coming of the Lord to the Ancient of days with His coming back to this earth, because they are distinct and separate events. Christ’s coming to the Ancient of days takes place in heaven, and the other when He returns to earth. When Jesus came to the Ancient of days it was at the beginning of the investigative judgment for the cleansing of the sanctuary, and when He comes back to earth it’s for the purpose of executing the judgment rendered.

Notice what it says in Jude 14, 15: “Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of His saints, to (do what?) to execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds.” So again, how could a person receive their reward for either heaven or hell when it’s not until the Lord comes that He will execute judgment upon all? That just doesn’t make a bit of sense! The truth is, all the wicked from all time are going to wake up from the slumber of death to be punished together. Some will have to suffer longer than others depending upon the deeds done in the body, but when the executive judgment is meted out and finished, sin and sinners will be no more forever. That is the sentence that will be carried out by a loving God, because there are consequences for sin that have been plainly revealed in His word, so the world is without excuse.

Now, back to the cleansing of the sanctuary. In the Bible we find at least four or five instances where it talks about the same event taking place at the end of the 2300-year prophecy. We have the coming of Christ as our high priest to the most holy place for the cleansing of the sanctuary, as Daniel 8:14 says; we have the coming of the Son of man to the Ancient of Days, as is presented in Daniel 7:13; we have the coming of the Lord to His temple, foretold by Malachi 3:1, and this is also represented in the parable of the ten virgins in Mathew 25 with a shut door, and the wedding feast in Matthew 22 where the investigative judgment is clearly represented as taking place.

Previous to the wedding the king (representing Jesus) comes in to see if all the guests are properly clothed with a wedding garment, which represents a spotless robe of character washed and made white in the blood of the Lamb, and what happened to those who were not properly clothed? They were cast out, weren’t they? And this work of examining character determines who are prepared for the kingdom of God and who aren’t. These various Scriptures all depict the investigative judgment and the closing up of the work of our High Priest in the sanctuary above.

So, when the work of investigation is ended and the cases of those who, from all ages, have professed to be followers of Christ have been  examined and decided, then, and not until then, human probation will close, and the door of mercy will be forever shut. This is what’s represented in the parable of the ten virgins in Matthew 25:10 where it says, “They that were ready went in with Him to the marriage: and the door was shut.” And so, this marriage takes place in heaven during the investigative judgment, thus we are carried down through Christ’s final work in the sanctuary above when the salvation of mankind is completed.

When the high priest in the earthly sanctuary on the Day of Atonement entered the most holy place, his work in the first apartment ceased, it was over, and the same is true in the heavenly. When Christ entered the second apartment, or the most holy place to perform the closing work of atonement, He ended His work in the first apartment; or we could say, when his work in the first apartment ended, his work in the second apartment began. So, what did the high priest do on the day of atonement? He went in before God to present the blood of the sin offering in behalf of all Israel who had repented of their sins. Likewise, in 1844, or at the end of the 2300 days of Daniel 8:14, Christ completed one phase of His work as our intercessor, to enter upon the last phase of His work, where He continues to plead His blood before the Father in behalf of sinners today.

This wasn’t understood by the folks back in 1844. After the passing of the time when they had expected Jesus to come back to the earth, but He didn’t come, they still believed His coming was near and that human probation had closed. You see, they thought Christ as man’s intercessor before God had ceased, especially because of the way they were treated by those who rejected their message. But it didn’t cease, it just moved from one place to another in the heavenly sanctuary, and this eventually became clear as they continued to study the subject of the sanctuary.

As they studied, they began to see that they were indeed correct in believing that the end of the 2300 days in 1844 marked an important point in the prophecy, but they had been mistaken about Christ’s coming back to earth. While it was true that that door of hope and mercy through which people had for eighteen hundred years found access to God was closed, another door was opened, and forgiveness of sins was still offered through the intercession of Christ in the most holy rather than the holy place. One part of His work was over, which gave place to another, and  there was still an “open door” to the heavenly sanctuary, where Christ was still ministering in the sinner’s behalf.

In Revelation 3:7, 8 they now saw the true application of the words Christ gave to the apostle John on the isle of Patmos, and it addressed the very situation they had gone through. Notice what Jesus said, “These things saith He that is holy, He that is true, He that hath the key of David, He that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth; I know thy works: behold, I have set before thee (what?) an open door, and no man can shut it.” No man can shut it, but God can shut it, and He will when every case has been decided for either eternal life or eternal death. By the way, the seven churches in Revelation chapters 2 and 3 are symbolic of seven different periods of the Christian church from its inception in the first century to the coming of the Lord. You can read that in Acts of the Apostles, page 585. And the particular period we’ve been talking about represents the church of Philadelphia which speaks of this open and shut door. And so, the door to the holy place was closed when Jesus moved, and the door into the most holy was opened. However, we are no longer living during the time period of Philadelphia, we are now living during the time of the church of Laodicea, which is the last church period, and not a good condition to be in, because Jesus is outside knocking hoping to gain entrance to the heart, but the doorknob is on the inside and only we can open it. Jesus is too much of a gentleman to barge in unannounced, but gives us the opportunity to receive Him and sup with Him, and while probation lingers I hope you will do that if you have not already done so.

Now, even though there was still an open door, it couldn’t do anyone any good unless by faith they went through it. In other words, when Jesus moved from one apartment of the heavenly sanctuary to the other, the only ones who could receive the benefits of His ministry in their behalf where those who believed and followed Him by faith, while those who rejected the light could not be benefited, and essentially their individual probation was closed at that time. It’s much like the Jews who rejected Christ at His first advent. Because they refused to believe on Him as the Saviour of the world, they couldn’t receive pardon through Him, nor could those who mocked at the faithful back in 1844.

Think of it this way: when Jesus ascended to heaven after His resurrection, He entered, by His own blood, into the holy place of the heavenly sanctuary to shed upon His disciples the blessings of His sacrifice, but at the same time the unbelieving Jews were left in total darkness to continue their useless animal sacrifices and offerings. And so, after Jesus died, the door by which the Jewish nation had previously found access to God was no longer open. To them the door was shut. Because they had rejected Jesus as the Messiah; the true sacrifice and the only mediator before God and men, they couldn’t receive the benefits of His shed blood when Jesus ascended to heaven after His crucifixion, and this was the similar situation with all those who rejected the fact that He had moved from the holy to the most holy place in 1844.

And so, the condition of the unbelieving Jews illustrates the condition of the careless and unbelieving among professed Christians back in 1844 as well as today. If we chose to be willingly ignorant of the work that Jesus is performing for us today in the most holy place, the door of mercy will be shut to us as well.

In the sanctuary service on earth, when the high priest entered the most holy place, all Israel were required to gather about the sanctuary and humble their souls before God that they might receive forgiveness of sin and not be cut off from the congregation. And how much more essential, in this antitypical Day of Atonement, that we understand the work of our High Priest and know what He requires of us.

You see dear friends; we cannot reject the truth that God in mercy sends without suffering the consequences. This has always been the case, and we’re given several examples of this in the Scriptures. For instance, when a message was sent from heaven to the world in Noah’s day, salvation depended upon how they treated that message, isn’t that right? In the time of Abraham, mercy ceased to plead with the guilty inhabitants of Sodom, and all but Lot with his wife and two daughters were consumed by the fire sent down from heaven. Also when Christ was upon the earth He declared to the unbelieving Jews of that generation, “Your house is left unto you desolate.” And looking down now to the last days God gives a serious warning to all those who “receive not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.“ Notice what it says in 2 Thessalonians 2:11, 12, “For this cause (because they received not the love of the truth) God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: that they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness”, or pleasure in sin. In other words, if a person doesn’t love the truth, they will be deceived, no ifs ands or buts! So we see here that it’s not enough to know the truth, you have to love it, or strong delusion is coming your way.

Just as in the past, as people today reject the teaching of God’s word, He withdraws His Spirit and leaves them to the deceptions they love. But here’s the good news, Christ still intercedes in man’s behalf in the most holy place today, and Jesus promised that light will be given to those who seek for it, and it’s extremely important that we not turn our back on the truth when it’s revealed to us.

And so, I urge you dear friend to make your calling and election sure this morning by following Jesus, by faith, as He ministers in your behalf in the most holy place of the heavenly sanctuary, because His work there is  going to be finished very soon, and all you have to do is look at all the insanity going on in the world today to know that that day is at hand.

In closing I’d like to read a few statements for you to ponder. The first is in Manuscript 154, 1902, “God’s purpose in giving the third angel’s message to the world is to prepare a people to stand true to Him during the investigative judgment.” So how important is it that we understand and proclaim the third angel’s message and allow it to prepare us to stand in the great day of God Almighty? We’ve got to develop the “patience of the saints” and keep all the commandments of God from the heart, because that’s the kind of faith that Jesus had.

This next statement is found in Manuscript Releases,  Volume 10, page 266, September 6, 1886, “We are in the great day of atonement, and if the investigative judgment has not already commenced for the living, it will soon begin. . .” So here we see that it’s possible, and I think highly likely, that the investigative judgment has already passed from the dead to the living, and how serious should we be to make our calling and election sure?

Now this next quote is a bit lengthy, but it will take us from the time the investigative judgment ends and human probation closes for all mankind, to the coming of the Lord. Early Writings, pages 280, 281, “As Jesus moved out of the most holy place, I heard the tinkling of the bells upon His garment; and as He left, a cloud of darkness covered the inhabitants of the earth. There was then no mediator between guilty man and an offended God. While Jesus had been standing between God and guilty man, a restraint was upon the people; but when He stepped out from between man and the Father, the restraint was removed and Satan had entire control of the finally impenitent. It was impossible for the plagues to be poured out while Jesus officiated in the sanctuary; but as His work there is finished, and His intercession closes, there is nothing to stay the wrath of God, and it breaks with fury upon the shelterless head of the guilty sinner, who has slighted salvation and hated reproof. In that fearful time, after the close of Jesus’ mediation, the saints were living in the sight of a holy God without an intercessor. Every case was decided, every jewel numbered. Jesus tarried a moment in the outer apartment of the heavenly sanctuary, and the sins which had been confessed while He was in the most holy place were placed upon Satan, the originator of sin, who must suffer their punishment.

“Then I saw Jesus lay off His priestly attire and clothe Himself with His most kingly robes. Upon His head were many crowns, a crown within a crown. Surrounded by the angelic host, He left heaven. The plagues were falling upon the inhabitants of the earth. Some were denouncing God and cursing Him. Others rushed to the people of God and begged to be taught how they might escape His judgments. But the saints had nothing for them. The last tear for sinners had been shed, the last agonizing prayer offered, the last burden borne, the last warning given. The sweet voice of mercy was no more to invite them. When the saints, and all heaven, were interested for their salvation, they had no interest for themselves. Life and death had been set before them. Many desired life, but made no effort to obtain it. They did not choose life, and now there was no atoning blood to cleanse the guilty, no compassionate Saviour to plead for them, and cry, ‘Spare, spare the sinner a little longer.’ All heaven had united with Jesus, as they heard the fearful words, ‘It is done. It is finished.’ The plan of salvation had been accomplished, but few had chosen to accept it. And as mercy’s sweet voice died away, fear and horror seized the wicked. With terrible distinctness they heard the words, ‘Too late! too late!’

“Those who had not prized God’s Word were hurrying to and fro, wandering from sea to sea, and from the north to the east, to seek the Word of the Lord. Said the angel, ‘They shall not find it. There is a famine in the land; not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but for hearing the words of the Lord. What would they not give for one word of approval from God! but no, they must hunger and thirst on. Day after day have they slighted salvation, prizing earthly riches and earthly pleasure higher than any heavenly treasure or inducement. They have rejected Jesus and despised His saints. The filthy must remain filthy forever.’

“Many of the wicked were greatly enraged as they suffered the effects of the plagues. It was a scene of fearful agony. Parents were bitterly reproaching their children, and children their parents, brothers their sisters, and sisters their brothers. Loud, wailing cries were heard in every direction, ‘It was you who kept me from receiving the truth which would have saved me from this awful hour.’ The people turned upon their ministers with bitter hate and reproached them, saying, ‘You have not warned us. You told us that all the world was to be converted, and cried, Peace, peace, to quiet every fear that was aroused. You have not told us of this hour; and those who warned us of it you declared to be fanatics and evil men, who would ruin us.’ But I saw that the ministers did not escape the wrath of God. Their suffering was tenfold greater than that of their people.”

Oh friend, think of it. The day is just upon us when there will be a famine in the land for hearing the word of the Lord, and even now it’s very difficult to find a people who have the truth, are living that truth, and  proclaiming that truth. Unfortunately, the church that God raised up after 1844 is more concerned today with being inclusive and affirming the LGBTQ+ community, among other things, than they are in teaching people about the work of investigation going on right now in the heavenly sanctuary and warning them about the seven last plagues that are soon to be poured out.

Remember, God’s church is not the various denominations as it says in Upward Look, page 315, but a people, and individual people who love God and keep His commandments. So don’t look for an organization that has lost its way to take a present truth message to the world, because the Lord cannot use a compromised church to do it. He’s looking for a people without spot or wrinkle or any such thing; a holy people that are wearing the white robe of Christ’s righteousness; the wedding garment if you will, to demonstrate to the world that human beings who have a fallen sinful human nature, can, through the power of the Holy Spirit, live without yielding to that sinful nature, but have learned to submit instead to the promptings of the divine nature that is partaken of on a daily basis. Hopefully that’s you, and hopefully that’s me, that together we might be able to  hasten the day of Christ’s return.

I’ll close with one last quote from the book Education, page 57, “The greatest want of the world is the want of men (and I want to add women and children here), —men who will not be bought or sold; men who in their inmost souls are true and honest; men who do not fear to call sin by its right name; men whose conscience is as true to duty as the needle to the pole; men who will stand for the right though the heavens fall.”

What Happened in 1844 Part 2