By: Dr. Richard M. Nies - 1975 Transcribed (with permission), Edited, and Presented By: Haydn k. Piper - 1985
* * STUDY #9 - Part I * *
- - O U T L I N E - -
THEIR FINAL WITNESS
REFERENCES:
Olson; The Crises Ahead Ch. 18, 19.þ8 0!
Chaij; Preparation for the Final Conflict Ch. 9
White; The Great Controversy pp616-623, 631-634 Early Writings pp282-285
Patriarchs and Phrophets pp195-203
* * * * *
PURPOSE: WHY should the saints be put through the time of trouble?
NATURE: WHAT will it be like?
DURATION?
WHY does God speak so loud? WHAT preparation can be made?
GRAND OPPORTUNITIES !
* * * * *
We cover, in this study, essentially the same period of time
that was covered in the last study; from the time of the close of
probation up to the time of the coming of our Lord. The last
study was concerned primarily with the activity of the Satanic;
we could see the efforts made to destroy the people of God, to
keep this people from forming, and this becomes a revelation of
what it would be like to really live in a world in which Satan had
complete charge. Because of this notion, the study was entitled
SATANS' FINAL FLING!
This study covers the same period, only where we are looking
at the Saints, not at the satanic. This has to do with THEIR FINAL WITNESS.
This time is also refered to as "The Time of Jacobs Trouble",
there are some who consider this whole time period from the close
of probation to the second coming of Christ, the Time of Trouble
and then couched within that time span a small segment of time as
the Time of Jacobs Trouble beginning at the death decree. After
examining the evidence, and reference for that is given in the
Bulletin insert, I don't believe that you will find that this
distinction holds up. I think that The Time of Trouble, The Great
Time of Trouble, and The Time of Jacobs Trouble are sinominous; it
it does not begin at the death decree, it certainly is brought
into focus at that, but it begins at the time of the close of probation. It is this period of time where God steps aside and
allows Satan to have full control of the elements, and Satan has his
fling.
We can see why it would be part the larger purpose in the
plans of God to allow Satan to have full control. But why should
the saints have to be a part of this? Certainly none of them will
change their minds, so why should they be a part of this time? Is
God sadistic? None of them are going to be weeded out. What
could be accomplished by this; why not just let Satan do his thing
with his own people. Why must the saints be involved?
This becomes then our problem as we consider this time span
from the perspective of the saints.
I think that we can find two very good reasons why the saints
must participate in this experience.
First of all it is a part of the larger revelation. Again
remember the basic charge that Satan has made, beginning in
heaven; charged against the government and character of God, that
God cannot secure the allegiance of the universe on the basis of
His character. "No one will serve God", the charge is made, "just
because they love Him."
This is basis of morality: to love and adore for the persons
sake; not for anything that can be derived from the person, just
the value of the person themselves.
Satan has charged that this could not be done; this method of
running a universe, based on an appreciation of the character of
God would not work. This was really an attack on the Law of God;
God's law is the way He runs the universe, these lawful orderly
relationships. It really wasn't spelled out in black-and-white,
when the creature was introduced to his creator they fell in love
Him. Satan said: "this won't hold up, I can run a better govern-
ment." This was based on self-exhalation, the desire to be
first, the desire to be God.
The cross effectively showed that the human being, impregnated
with the divine nature could indeed serve God and love Him without
flaw just on the basis of His character. Christ demonstrated the
possibility, but Satan could still say: "Show me a people, not
just isolated instances. Show me a people that can serve you just
because they love you. You certainly can't run a universe on the
basis of just a few." Abraham, Jacob, Job, Moses and some others
led very holy lives, not to begin with, but as they matured. And
Satan could still claim: "These are just individuals, God cannot
have a people. I have a people!" And this is what Satan has
always claimed, Give me a universe where everyone is free to
choose and I will have everyone following me."
God is waiting for a moment of time when all of the issues can
be clarified; when it becomes possible for everyone at the same
time to see as never before what the issues are in the universe.
That is, if this moral point could be clarified, once and for all,
for the entire universe, if true morality could be demonstrated,
could be explained and so qualified that everyone could see what
that issue was; and we have described before how this becomes symbolized
in the Sabbath experience. If this were universal, then
God could say: "Here are my people, they have always been
underground, but here they are."
As we studied last time, it is Satan's last purpose to
exterminate them. He goes about, as symbolized in Revelation, as
a Roaring Lion just furious at the formation of this people. He
will attack this remnant. And now the question comes: "Are they
really God's people?" Certainly they are the weakest of the weak.
If anyone should demonstrate the deleterious effect of heredity,
they should. If at any time in history that Satan should be able
to show that God could not have a people, it should be at this
time. If in this context God could have a people that reflect
this quality of morality, that they would rather die than be dis-
loyal, that they would give of their lives rather than be
unloving. If in this time a people is sealed with the character
of God, reflecting the Mark of His character, and coming out into
the opening, then this would be the grand opportunity for God to
say: "It can be done, and I can populate the universe with this
kind of people." This people will be the clinching argument for
God; that it is possible to have a people who love Him just for
His own sake.
And so the first reason, or purpose of having this people who
are sealed, even though they are not going to be weeded-out, even
though they are not going to turn against God, but it will be part
of the greater revelation of God, that now God can say: "Alright
Satan, you said it was impossible, I will let you do everything
but destroy them. Test them, try them out, see what kind of fiber
they are made of. And we will let the universe watch." Very much
like the experience of Job. "But let me tell you something, I
know them, they are like me, they reflect the divine too." This
is going to be the nucleus of the new kingdom, so go ahead, have
your last fling."
This effectively uproots every argument that Satan has ever
had. God will demonstrate. He can say: "Here they are, here are
they who keep the commandments of God and have the faith of
Jesus." And Satan cannot defeat them.
And so the first answer to this question of why must the
saints go through this time, is revelation.
Secondly, there is something that God wants to do uniquely
with this last remnant. I think that can best be described by the
notion of Refinement. This people, symbolically described in the
book of Revelation (Rev. 7 and 14) as the 144,00, representing
this large mass of people. They are going to be special ambassador-
ors for God through-out the ages. This is going to be a special
people that are going to be translated. This is a people who have
seen the full historical process. They will understand what God
is doing in His Sanctuary. They will understand what God is doing
with this world, and in the full light of the impact of history,
they will have made these choices. They are described as "walking
with the Lamb wherever He goes.
It would be important with this people, that they understand
more deeply than any other people what this is all about, so that
they can speak eternally for God. What God will do then is permit
them to share the privilege of the deepest experiences that our
Lord experienced; in Gethsemeny and on the Cross. He will let
them be refined to a point, where they have risen above every
sensuous feeling, to trust God. Remember, at the Cross our Lord
could not see through the portals of the tomb, He had no immediate
experience that the Father was with Him. All He could do was to
rely objectively on what He knew about His father. At that moment
He had no feeling that the Father was with Him. Sensing that
despair He cried out: "My God, My God, Why have you forsaken
me?" And that's is what He felt. His next statement was: "Never
the less, into thy hands I commend my spirit!" I choose to trust
you. I choose, on the basis of the evidence that I have of your
trust worthiness and love, I choose, inspite of these momentary
feelings that I have, That you have gone off and left me, I choose
to trust."
That is the highest order of faith (trust); I trust you Lord,
based on the evidence I have of your character, this is not a leap
in the dark. I choose to trust you, even at moments when my sense
experience cannot corroborate that trust. That's faith! This is
the kind of refinement that these people will have; they will dip
deeply into this experience of faith, every vestige of earthlyness
will be removed from them because under the provocation of wave
after wave of feelings that they are worthless, that God has
forsaken them. They will know, on the basis of their earlier
experience, on the basis of what they know to be true about the
character of God. They know that in spite of the lack of feeling
at that time that God has not forsaken them. As they make these
repeated choices, under provocation, they will reach a depth of
understanding and closeness with God that will permit them to sing
a new song. A song of experience that no-one else will ever be
able to sing, because they have tasted deeper than any other human
group.
And so for this additional refinement; not that God is
sadistic, but that He might prepare them for an eternal mission,
to be spokesmen in this new kingdom for Him.
For Revelation and for Refinement we find meaning as to the
purpose of why the saints are involved in this final
demonstration.
* * * *þ> -$
What is the NATURE of this suffering?þ4 '$
We know that there will be tremendous physical upheaval;
we studied that last time. The saints will be exposed to
this. There will be physical distress, there will be hunger,
there will be a tremendous discomfort because of this
upheaval, and the saints experience this as well as the
wicked.
But that is not what makes it so trying, any more than
the cross was a physical instrument, became the most trying
thing for our Lord to suffer. His mental anguish was so
great that his physical pain was hardly felt. It is this
mental anguish that will be so trying for the saints at this
time. But, that very anguish will be the means of their
development, of completing the very fullest and deepest
development of their character and personality. The anguish
that they go through will be of the sort that we have just
mentioned; it will be an anguish that resides in a conflict:
"Do we derive our source of reality from what we feel?" and
of course the environment impinging upon them at that time,
the onslaughts of the devil working through the nervous sys-
tem will impress them emotionally, in a very sensate way that
they are abandoned, that they are worthless. As Jacob
struggled just before he met Esau, and there was a threat on
his life, Jacob reviewed his life and he reminded God that he
was sorry for all of the acts of selfishness that he had ever
entered into, and sensing his own feelings of worthlessness,
he claimed Gods' promise to be with him, and even at the
height of these feelings he trusted God. As he wrestled
with Christ his soul cried out: "I will not let thee go,
except you bless me!"
So will the saints enter into this experience of wrestling
with God; this experience, of which there will be this
grand demonstration that here is a people who will trust God
inspite the immediate sensations and feelings and emotions
that they do have. And here is this conflict: "Does one live
by ones feelings, does one live by immediate gratification,
does one live by what impinges upon their physical system at
any one given moment? Or does one rise above this through
the highest judgement of ones' mind, even though the feelings
are contrary to this? Does one say: "No, I will trust, even
though He slay me!" And this might be the feeling that they
have.
This becomes this anguish that one has, this conflict be-
between the gut level sense of living; between living for the
moment and living for the long haul. Between living for the
momentary gratification's that seem to be the highest thing
that anyone could want; to feel good versus that out reach of
trust and love, even at points where it does not seem to be
an advantage to do so. Love does not always feel good. It
is a tragedy of our society that individuals derive the
reality of love, not on the basis of some principle of
thought and action, but on the basis of some emotional
experience.
This will be the conflict. the real issue which will
take place over the controversy of the soul during this time
of anguish. Will God leave His people, will there be no
providence for them? Even though they live without an inter-
intercessor, and if we stop to think about it there really is no
more need for the intercessor when the saints are no longer
sinning. They will be so refined, that not even by a thought
will they deny their Lord. This not mean that God is not
exercising His providence in their behalf. Without the
providence of God at this time they could not stand. This is
not a last-ditch stand in which they are going through it by
themselves. God is in the thick of it with them; and even
though they don't sense it moment by moment, they reach out
in faith and say: "I know He is with me, even though I don't
feel it."
We can say two things about God's providence at this
time: First of all, He will preserve His people; they will
not be destroyed, not a one should be killed after they have
made their decision. It might feel that they are getting up
to this point of fear of starvation and threat on their
lives, but with all of these fears they cannot be destroyed.
God will preserve them, He will send His angels to watch over
them, His providence will preserve them during this time.
Secondly, He will also communicate with them. At times when
they need to hear the word most dearly, in prison cells and
lonely mountain retreats, in their attempts to avoid assassination
, He will visit with them. From time to time, we are
told there that their cells, their prisons will light up with
the radiance of God. This will sustain them, they do not go
through the same type of total separation that our Lord went
through, none has to got through that. There will be
approximations of this experience, but God will communicate
with them during this time; the saints will hear His voice.
* * * *þ< -$
.pa
* * DURATION * *þ5 '$" ($! ($
Last time we talked about the duration of this time, and
I want to come back to this for just a moment. How long will
this time be?
From the readings suggested there are these quotations,
plus some:
T T Vol 1. p.204: "When Jesus leaves the most
holy, His restraining spirit is withdrawn from rulers and people. They are left to the control of evil angels. Then such laws will be made under the direction and counsel of Satan
that unless time should be very short, no flesh could be saved."
G C p.631 "For the elect's sake the time of trouble will be shortened."
G C p.490 "Probation is ended a short time
before the appearing of our Lord in the clouds of heaven."
Day Star Mar. 14, 1847 (To the Remnant scatard Abroad)
"Then Jesus layed off His priestly garment and put on His Kingly Robe, and took His place on the cloud which carried Him to the East, where it first appeared to the saints
on earth as a small black cloud, which was
the sign of the son of man. While the cloud
was passing from the Holliest to the East,
which took a number of days, the synagogue
of Satan worshiped at the saints' feet."
Notice those expressions:
". . . time should be very short . . ." ". . . time . . . will be shortened . . ." ". . . a short time . . ". . . a number of days . . ."
We don't really have any specific statement as to the
exact number of days, but it was suggested that there is one
possibility (even though not TOO much should be made of
this).
If we take seriously the significance of prophetic time
in the eighteenth chapter of Revelation, we are told that
this time should last "one day", and in prophetic it can be
shown that one day refers to 360 of our days. Then it also
refers to this time as one hour, seemingly inconsistent; one
day or one hour. Now, one hour in prophetic time would be
1/24th of one prophetic day, or 15 days (1/24th of 360) of
our time. Now, it is possible that Satan wanted a full year
for his fling; unless his time were shortened from one day toþ
one hour, no flesh could survive. Infact, Satan would pretty
well wipe out all of his own people.
Even though there is no real documented support for this
idea, it fits in quit nicely with the idea that Satan would
like to have a full year and God tells him no; "shortened for
the elects sake."
I see no reason why this time should be prolonged. God
is not sadistic and is not interested in prolonging this. A
couple of weeks of total Satanic control is all it would take
to show the universe the full implication of Satan's way of
doing things.
|
Go To The Next Study (#10 ) | - |
Return To Previous Study (# 8) | - |
Return To The Eschatology Directory |
|
Return To Our HOME DIRECTORY | - |
Return To Our HOME PAGE |
GET YOUR OWN