God's People Delivered by Ellen G. White
Saturday, May 6, 2017 11:32
% of readers think this story is Fact. Add your two cents.
By the people of God a voice, clear and melodi
ous, is heard, saying, “Look up,” and lifting their
eyes to the heavens, they behol
d the bow of promise. The blac
k, angry clouds that covered the
firmament are parted, and like Step
hen they look up steadfastly into
heaven and see the glory of
God and the Son of man seated upon
His throne. In His divine form
they discern the marks of His
humiliation; and from His lips they hear the reque
st presented before His Father and the holy
angels: “I will that they also, whom Thou hast
given Me, be with Me where I am.” John 17:24.
Again a voice, musical and triumphant, is heard,
saying: “They come! they come! holy, harmless,
and undefiled. They have kept the word of My patie
nce; they shall walk am
ong the angels;” and the
pale, quivering lips of those who have held fa
st their faith utter
a shout of victory.
It is at midnight that God manifests His power fo
r the deliverance of His people. The sun appears,
shining in its strength. Signs and wonders follow in quick succession. The wicked look with terror
and amazement upon the scene, while the righteous be
hold with solemn joy the tokens of their
deliverance. Everything in nature seems turned out
of its course. The streams cease to flow. Dark,
heavy clouds come up and clash against each other.
In the midst of the angry heavens is one clear
space of indescribable glory, whence comes th
e voice of God like the sound of many waters,
saying: “It is done.”
Revelation 16:17.
That voice shakes the heavens and the earth. There is a
Page 637
mighty earthquake, “such as was not since men we
re upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and
so great.” Verses 17, 18. The firmament appears to open and shut. The glory from the throne of God
seems flashing through. The mountains shake like a r
eed in the wind, and ragged rocks are scattered
on every side. There is a roar as of a coming tempest.
The sea is lashed into fury. There is heard the
shriek of a hurricane like the voice of demo
ns upon a mission of destruction. The whole earth
heaves and swells like the waves of the sea. Its surface is breaking up. Its very foundations seem to
be giving way. Mountain chains are sinking. Inhabite
d islands disappear. The seaports that have
become like Sodom for wickedness are swallowed
up by the angry waters.
Babylon the great has
come in remembrance before God, “to give unto he
r the cup of the wine of
the fierceness of His
wrath.” Great hailstones, every
one “about the we
ight of a talent,” ar
e doing their work of
destruction. Verses 19, 21. The proudest cities of the
earth are laid low. The lordly palaces, upon
which the world’s great men have lavished thei
r wealth in order to glorify themselves, are
crumbling to ruin before their ey
es. Prison walls are rent asunder,
and God’s people, who have been
held in bondage for their faith, are set free.
Graves are opened, and “many of them that sleep
in the dust of the earth. . . awake, some to
everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasti
ng contempt.” Daniel 12:2. All who have died in
the faith of the third angel’s message come forth from
the tomb glorified, to hear God’s covenant of
peace with those who have kept Hi
s law. “They also which pierced
Him” (Revelation 1:7), those
that mocked and derided Christ’s dying agonies, a
nd the most violent opposers of His truth and His
people, are raised to behold Him in His glor
y and to see the honor placed upon the loyal and
obedient.
Thick clouds still cover the sky;
yet the sun now and then br
eaks through, appearing like the
avenging eye of Jehovah.
Page 638
Fierce lightnings leap from the heavens, enveloping
the earth in a sheet of flame. Above the terrific
roar of thunder, voices, mysterious and awful, d
eclare the doom of the wicked. The words spoken
are not comprehended by all; but they are distin
ctly understood by the false teachers. Those who a
little before were so reckless, so boastful and defiant, so exultant in their cruelty to God’s
commandment-keeping people, are
now overwhelmed with constern
ation and shuddering in fear.
Their wails are heard above the sound of the elemen
ts. Demons acknowledge th
e deity of Christ and
tremble before His power, while men are supplicati
ng for mercy and groveli
ng in abject terror.
Said the prophets of old, as they beheld in holy
vision the day of God: “Howl ye; for the day of the
Lord is at hand; it shall come as a destruction fr
om the Almighty.” Isaiah 13:
6. “Enter into the rock,
and hide thee in the dust, for f
ear of the Lord, and for the glory
of His majesty. The lofty looks of
man shall be humbled, and the haughtiness of me
n shall be bowed down, and the Lord alone shall
be exalted in that day. For the
day of the Lord of hosts shall
be upon everyone that is proud and
lofty, and upon everyone that
is lifted up; and he shall be brought
low.” “In that day
a man shall cast
the idols of his silver, and the idol
s of his gold, which they made each
one for himself to worship, to
the moles and to the bats; to go into the clefts of th
e rocks, and into the tops of the ragged rocks, for
fear of the Lord, and for the gl
ory of His majesty, when He aris
eth to shake terribly the earth.”
Isaiah 2:10-12, 20, 21, margin.
Through a rift in the clouds there beams a star whos
e brilliancy is increased fourfold in contrast
with the darkness. It spea
ks hope and joy to the faith
ful, but severity and wr
ath to the transgressors
of God’s law. Those who have sacrif
iced all for Christ are now secure
, hidden as in the secret of the
Lord’s pavilion. They have been tested, and before
the world and the despis
ers of truth they have
evinced their fidelity to Him
Page 639
who died for them. A marvelous change has come ove
r those who have held fa
st their integrity in
the very face of death. They have been suddenly
delivered from the dark
and terrible tyranny of
men transformed to demons. Their faces, so lately
pale, anxious, and haggard, are now aglow with
wonder, faith, and love. Their voices rise in triu
mphant song: “God is our refuge and strength, a
very present help in trouble. Therefore will no
t we fear, though the earth
be removed, and though
the mountains be carried into th
e midst of the sea; though the wate
rs thereof roar and be troubled,
though the mountains shake with the
swelling thereof.” Psalm 46:1-3.
While these words of holy trust ascend to God, th
e clouds sweep back, and the starry heavens are
seen, unspeakably glorious in contrast with the
black and angry firmament on either side. The glory
of the celestial city streams from the gates ajar
. Then there appears against the sky a hand holding
two tables of stone folded together. Says the pr
ophet: “The heavens shall
declare His righteousness:
for God is judge Himself.” Psalm 50:6. That holy
law, God’s righteousness, that amid thunder and
flame was proclaimed from Sinai as the guide of
life, is now revealed to men as the rule of
judgment. The hand opens the tables, and there are
seen the precepts of th
e Decalogue, traced as
with a pen of fire. The words are so plain that al
l can read them. Memory is aroused, the darkness of
superstition and heresy is swept from every mind,
and God’s ten words, brief, comprehensive, and
authoritative, are presented to the view of all the inhabitants of the earth.
It is impossible to describe th
e horror and despair of those w
ho have trampled upon God’s holy
requirements. The Lord gave them His law; they
might have compared thei
r characters with it and
learned their defects while there
was yet opportunity for repentance
and reform; but in order to
secure the favor of the world, they
set aside its precepts and taught ot
hers to transgress. They have
endeavored to compel
God’s people to profane His Sabbath. Now they
are condemned by that law which they have
despised. With awful distinctness
they see that they are without
excuse. They chose whom they
would serve and worship. “Then shall ye return, a
nd discern between the righteous and the wicked,
between him that serveth God and him
that serveth Him not.” Malachi 3:18.
The enemies of God’s law, from the ministers do
wn to the least among them, have a new conception
of truth and duty. Too late they see that the Sabbath
of the fourth commandment is the seal of the
living God. Too late they see the
true nature of their spurious
sabbath and the sandy foundation
upon which they have been building. They find that
they have been fightin
g against God. Religious
teachers have led souls to perdition while professi
ng to guide them to the gates of Paradise. Not
until the day of final accounts will
it be known how great is the responsibility of men in holy office
and how terrible are the results of their unfaithfulne
ss. Only in eternity can we rightly estimate the
loss of a single soul. Fearful will be the doom of
him to whom God shall say: Depart, thou wicked
servant.
The voice of God is heard from heaven, declaring
the day and hour of Jesus’ coming, and delivering
the everlasting covenant to His people. Like
peals of loudest thunder
His words roll through the
earth. The Israel of God stand listening, with
their eyes fixed upward.
Their countenances are
lighted up with His glory, and shine as did the f
ace of Moses when he came down from Sinai. The
wicked cannot look upon them. And when the bl
essing is pronounced on those who have honored
God by keeping His Sabbath holy, ther
e is a mighty shout of victory.
Soon there appears in the east a small black cloud, a
bout half the size of
a man’s hand. It is the
cloud which surrounds the Saviour and which seems in
the distance to be sh
rouded in darkness. The
people of God know this to be the
sign of the Son of man. In solemn
silence they gaze upon it as it
draws nearer the earth, becoming lighter and more
glorious, until it is a great white cloud, its base a
glory like consuming fire, and a
bove it the rainbow
of the covenant. Jesus rides forth as a mighty
conqueror. Not now a “Man of Sorrows,” to drink
the bitter cup of shame and woe, He comes,
victor in heaven and earth, to judge the living a
nd the dead. “Faithful and True,” “in righteousness
He doth judge and make war.” And “the armies
which were in heaven”
(Revelation 19:11, 14)
follow Him. With anthems of celestial melody th
e holy angels, a vast, unnu
mbered throng, attend
Him on His way. The firmament seems filled with ra
diant forms–”ten thousand times ten thousand,
and thousands of thousands.” No human pen can por
tray the scene; no mortal
mind is adequate to
conceive its splendor. “His glory covered the heaven
s, and the earth was full of His praise. And His
brightness was as the light.” Habakkuk 3:3,4. As the living cloud comes still nearer, every eye
beholds the Prince of life. No crown of thorns now
mars that sacred head; but a diadem of glory
rests on His holy brow. His countenance outshin
es the dazzling brightness of the noonday sun.
“And He hath on His vesture and
on His thigh a name written,
King of kings, and Lord of lords.”
Revelation 19:16.
Before His presence “all faces are turned into pa
leness;” upon the rejecters of God’s mercy falls the
terror of eternal despair.
“The heart melteth, and the knees smite
together, . . . and the faces of them
all gather blackness.” Jeremiah 30:6; Nahum 2:10.
The righteous cry with trembling: “Who shall be
able to stand?” The angels’ song is hushed, and ther
e is a period of awful sile
nce. Then the voice of
Jesus is heard, saying: “My grace
is sufficient for you.” The faces of
the righteous are lighted up,
and joy fills every heart. And the angels strike a no
te higher and sing again as they draw still nearer
to the earth.
The King of kings descends upon the cloud, wrapped in flaming fire. The heavens are rolled
together as a scroll, the earth trembles
before Him, and every mountain and island
is moved out of its place. “Our God shall come, and
shall not keep silence: a
fire shall devour before
Him, and it shall be very tempestuous round about Him. He shall call to the heavens from above,
and to the earth, that He may
judge His people.” Psalm 50:3,4.
“And the kings of the earth, and th
e great men, and the rich men,
and the chief captains, and the
mighty men, and every bondman, and ev
ery freeman, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of
the mountains; and said to the mountains and rocks,
Fall on us, and hide us from the face of Him
that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of
the Lamb: for the great day of His wrath is come;
and who shall be able to
stand?” Revelation 6:15-17.
The derisive jests have ceased. Ly
ing lips are hushed into silence.
The clash of arms, the tumult of
battle, “with confused noise, and
garments rolled in blood” (Isaiah
9:5), is stilled. Nought now is
heard but the voice of prayer a
nd the sound of weeping and lament
ation. The cry bursts forth from
lips so lately scoffing: “The great
day of His wrath is come; and w
ho shall be able to stand?” The
wicked pray to be buried beneath the rocks of the
mountains rather than m
eet the face of Him whom
they have despised and rejected.
That voice which penetrates the
ear of the dead, they know. How of
ten have its plaintive, tender
tones called them to repentance. How often has it b
een heard in the touching
entreaties of a friend, a
brother, a Redeemer. To the rejecters of His gr
ace no other could be so full of condemnation, so
burdened with denunciation, as that
voice which has so long pleaded
: “Turn ye, turn ye from your
evil ways; for why will ye die?” Ezekiel 33:11. Oh,
that it were to them the voice of a stranger!
Says Jesus: “I have called, and
ye refused; I have stretched out
My hand, and no man regarded; but
ye have set at nought all My counsel, and woul
d none of My reproof.” Proverbs 1:24, 25. That
voice awakens memories which they would fain bl
ot out–warnings despis
ed, invitations refused,
privileges slighted.
There are those who mocked Christ in His humilia
tion. With thrilling power come to their minds
the Sufferer’s words, when, adjured by the high prie
st, He solemnly declared: “Hereafter shall ye
see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of
power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.”
Matthew 26:64. Now they behold Him in His glory, a
nd they are yet to see Him sitting on the right
hand of power.
Those who derided His claim to be the Son of
God are speechless now. There is the haughty Herod
who jeered at His royal title and bade the mockin
g soldiers crown Him king. There are the very men
who with impious hands placed upon His form th
e purple robe, upon His sacred brow the thorny
crown, and in His unresisting hand the mimic s
cepter, and bowed before Him in blasphemous
mockery. The men who smote and spit upon the Prin
ce of life now turn fro
m His piercing gaze and
seek to flee from the overpowerin
g glory of His presence. Those
who drove the nails through His
hands and feet, the soldier who pierced His side
, behold these marks with terror and remorse.
With awful distinctness do priests and rulers re
call the events of Calvary. With shuddering horror
they remember how, wagging their heads in satani
c exultation, they exclaimed: “He saved others;
Himself He cannot save. If He be the King of Is
rael, let Him now come down from the cross, and
we will believe Him. He trusted in God; let Him
deliver Him now, if He will have Him.” Matthew
27:42, 43.
Vividly they recall the Saviour’s
parable of the husbandmen who refu
sed to render to their lord the
fruit of the vineyard, who abused his servants a
nd slew his son. They remember, too, the sentence
which they themselves pronounced: The lord of th
e vineyard “will miserably destroy those wicked
men.” In the sin and punishment of
those unfaithful men the priests
and elders see their own course
and their own just doom. And now there rises a
cry of mortal agony. Louder than the shout,
“Crucify Him, crucify Him,” which rang through th
e streets of Jerusalem,
swells the awful,
despairing wail, “He is the Son of God! He is th
e true Messiah!” They se
ek to flee from the
presence of the King of kings. In the deep caverns
of the earth, rent asun
der by the warring of the
elements, they vainly attempt to hide.
In the lives of all who reject
truth there are moments when c
onscience awakens, when memory
presents the torturing recollection of a life of hypoc
risy and the soul is hara
ssed with vain regrets.
But what are these compared with
the remorse of that day when “f
ear cometh as desolation,” when
“destruction cometh as a whirlwind”! Proverbs
1:27. Those who would have
destroyed Christ and
His faithful people now witness th
e glory which rests upon them. In
the midst of their terror they
hear the voices of the saints in joyful strains ex
claiming: “Lo, this is our God; we have waited for
Him, and He will save us.” Isaiah 25:9.
Amid the reeling of the earth, the
flash of lightning, and the roar of
thunder, the voice of the Son of
God calls forth the sleeping saints. He looks upon
the graves of the righteous, then, raising His
hands to heaven, He cries: “Awake, awake, awake,
ye that sleep in the dust, and arise!” Throughout
the length and breadth of the earth the dead shall hear
that voice, and they th
at hear shall live. And
the whole earth shall ring with
the tread of the exceeding great army of every nation, kindred,
tongue, and people. From the prison house of death th
ey come, clothed with immortal glory, crying:
“O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is
thy victory?” 1 Corinthi
ans 15:55. A
nd the living
righteous and the risen saints unite their
voices in a long, glad
shout of victory.
All come forth from their graves the same in st
ature as when they entered the tomb. Adam, who
stands among the risen throng, is of
lofty height and majestic form,
in stature but little below the
Son of God. He presents a marked
contrast to the people of later ge
nerations; in this one respect is
shown the great degeneracy of the race. But all
arise with the freshness and vigor of eternal youth.
In the beginning, man
was created in the likeness of God,
not only in character, but in form and feature. Sin defaced and
almost obliterated the divine image; but Christ cam
e to restore that which had been lost. He will
change our vile bodies and fashion them like unto
His glorious body. The mortal, corruptible form,
devoid of comeliness, once polluted with sin,
becomes perfect, beautiful, and immortal. All
blemishes and deformities are left in the grave. Restor
ed to the tree of life in the long-lost Eden, the
redeemed will “grow up” (Malachi 4:2) to the full
stature of the race in its
primeval glory. The last
lingering traces of the curse of sin will be remove
d, and Christ’s faithful ones will appear in “the
beauty of the Lord our God,” in mind and soul
and body reflecting the perfect image of their Lord.
Oh, wonderful redemption! long talked of, long hope
d for, contemplated with eager anticipation,
but never fully understood.
The living righteous are changed “in a moment, in
the twinkling of an eye.” At the voice of God
they were glorified; now they ar
e made immortal and with the ri
sen saints are caught up to meet
their Lord in the air. Angels “gat
her together His elect fr
om the four winds, from one end of heaven
to the other.” Little children are borne by holy ange
ls to their mothers’ arms. Friends long separated
by death are united, nevermore to pa
rt, and with songs of gladness
ascend together to the City of
God.
On each side of the cloudy chario
t are wings, and beneath it are li
ving wheels; and as the chariot
rolls upward, the wheels cry, “Hol
y,” and the wings, as
they move, cry, “Holy,” and the retinue of
angels cry, “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty.”
And the redeemed shout, “Alleluia!” as the
chariot moves onward toward the New Jerusalem.
Before entering the City of God, the Saviour be
stows upon His followers the emblems of victory
and invests them with the insignia
of their royal state. The glitteri
ng ranks are drawn up in the form
of a hollow square about their King, whose form
rises in majesty high above saint and angel,
whose countenance beams upon them full of be
nignant love. Throughout the unnumbered host of
the redeemed every glance is fixed upon Him, ev
ery eye beholds His glory whose “visage was so
marred more than any man, and His form more
than the sons of men.
” Upon the heads of the
overcomers, Jesus with His own right hand places
the crown of glory. For e
ach there is a crown,
bearing his own “new name” (Revela
tion 2:17), and the inscription, “H
oliness to the Lo
rd.” In every
hand are placed the victor’s palm
and the shining harp. Then, as
the commanding angels strike the
note, every hand sweeps the harp strings with
skillful touch, awaking
sweet music in rich,
melodious strains. Rapture unutterable thrills every h
eart, and each voice is rais
ed in grateful praise:
“Unto Him that loved us, and washed us from our
sins in His own blood, a
nd hath made us kings
and priests unto God and His Father; to Him be gl
ory and dominion for ever and ever.” Revelation
1:5, 6.
Before the ransomed throng is the Holy City. Jesus
opens wide the pearly gate
s, and the nations that
have kept the truth enter in. Th
ere they behold the Paradise of God, the home of Adam in his
innocency. Then that voice, richer
than any music that ever fell on
mortal ear, is heard, saying:
“Your conflict is ended.” “Come, ye blessed of
My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you
from the foundation of the world.”
Now is fulfilled the Saviour’s prayer for His discip
les: “I will that they also, whom Thou hast given
Me, be with Me where I am.” “Faultless before th
e presence of His glory with exceeding joy” (Jude
24), Christ presents to the Father the purchase of
His blood, declaring: “Here
am I, and the children
whom Thou hast given Me.” “Those that Thou
gavest Me I have kept.” Oh, the wonders of
redeeming love! the rapture of that hour when th
e infinite Father, looking
upon the ransomed, shall
behold His image, sin’s discord ba
nished, its blight removed, and
the human once more in harmony
with the divine!
With unutterable love, Jesus welcomes His faithful
ones to the joy of their
Lord. The Saviour’s joy
is in seeing, in the kingdom of glory, the souls
that have been saved by His agony and humiliation.
And the redeemed will be sharers in His joy,
as they behold, among the blessed, those who have
been won to Christ through their prayers, their labor
s, and their loving sacrifice. As they gather
about the great white throne, gladness unspeakable
will fill their hearts, when they behold those
whom they have won for Christ, and see that one
has gained others, and these still others, all
brought into the haven of rest, ther
e to lay their crowns at Jesus’
feet and praise Him through the
endless cycles of eternity.
As the ransomed ones are welcomed to the City of
God, there rings out upon the air an exultant cry
of adoration. The two Adams are about to meet. Th
e Son of God is standing with outstretched arms
to receive the father of
our race–the being whom
He created, who sinned ag
ainst his Maker, and for
whose sin the marks of the crucifixion are born
e upon the Saviour’s form. As Adam discerns the
prints of the cruel nails, he does not fall upo
n the bosom of his Lord, but in humiliation casts
himself at His feet, crying: “Wor
thy, worthy is the Lamb that was
slain!” Tenderly the Saviour lifts
him up and bids him look once more upon the Eden hom
e from which he has so long been exiled.
After his expulsion from Eden, Adam
‘s life on earth was filled with sorrow. Every dying leaf, every
victim of sacrifice, ev
ery blight upon the fair face of natu
re, every stain upon man’s purity, was a
fresh reminder of his sin. Terrible was the agony
of remorse as he beheld iniquity abounding, and,
in answer to his warnings, met th
e reproaches cast upon himself as
the cause of sin. With patient
humility he bore, for nearly a thousand years, the
penalty of transgression. Faithfully did he repent
of his sin and trust
in the merits of the promised Saviour, an
d he died in the hope
of a resu
rrection.
The Son of God redeemed ma
n’s failure and fall; and
now, through the work of the atonement, Adam is reinstated in his first dominion.
Transported with joy, he beholds the trees that we
re once his delight–the very trees whose fruit he
himself had gathered in the days
of his innocence and joy. He s
ees the vines that his own hands
have trained, the very flowers that he once loved
to care for. His mind grasps the reality of the
scene; he comprehends that this is indeed Eden
restored, more lovely now than when he was
banished from it. The Saviour leads him to the tree
of life and plucks the glorious fruit and bids him
eat. He looks about him and beholds
a multitude of his family redeem
ed, standing in the Paradise of
God. Then he casts his glittering crown at the
feet of Jesus and, fallin
g upon His breast, embraces
the Redeemer. He touches the golden harp, and th
e vaults of heaven echo the triumphant song:
“Worthy, worthy, worthy is the Lamb that was slain,
and lives again!” The family of Adam take up
the strain and cast their
crowns at the Saviour’s feet as th
ey bow before Him in adoration.
This reunion is witnessed by the angels who wept at
the fall of Adam and rejoiced when Jesus, after
His resurrection, ascended to heaven, having ope
ned the grave for all who should believe on His
name. Now they behold the work of redemption
accomplished, and they unite their voices in the
song of praise.
Upon the crystal sea before the thro
ne, that sea of glass as it were
mingled with fire,–so resplendent
is it with the glory of God,–are
gathered the company that have
“gotten the victory over the beast,
and over his image, and over his mark, and over th
e number of his name.” With the Lamb upon
Mount Zion, “having the harps of
God,” they stand, the hundred a
nd forty and four thousand that
were redeemed from among men; and there is hear
d, as the sound of many wa
ters, and as the sound
of a great thunder, “the voice of
harpers harping with their harps.” And they sing “a new
song” before the throne, a song which no man can
learn save the hundred
and forty and four
thousand. It is the song of Moses and the Lamb–a
song of deliverance. None but the hundred and
forty-four thousand can lear
n that song; for it is
the song of their experien
ce–an experience such as
no other company have ever had. “These are they
which follow the Lamb whithersoever He goeth.”
These, having been translated from the earth, from
among the living, are counted
as “the first fruits
unto God and to the Lamb.” Revela
tion 15:2, 3; 14:1-5. “These are
they which came out of great
tribulation;” they have passed th
rough the time of trouble such
as never was since there was a
nation; they have endured the anguish of the tim
e of Jacob’s trouble; they have stood without an
intercessor through the final outpouring of God’s judgm
ents. But they have been delivered, for they
have “washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.” “In their mouth was
found no guile: for they are without
fault” before God. “Therefore are they before the throne of
God, and serve Him day and night in His temple:
and He that sitteth on
the throne shall dwell
among them.” They have seen the earth wasted with
famine and pestilence,
the sun having power to
scorch men with great heat, and they themselv
es have endured suffering, hunger, and thirst. But
“they shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more
; neither shall the sun
light on them, nor any
heat. For the Lamb which is in the midst of the
throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto
living fountains of waters: and God
shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.” Revelation 7:14-17.
In all ages the Saviour’s chosen have been educated and disciplined in the school of trial. They
walked in narrow paths on earth; they were purified
in the furnace of affliction. For Jesus’ sake they
endured opposition, hatred, calumny. They followed
Him through conflicts sore; they endured self-
denial and experienced bitter
disappointments. By their
own painful experience they learned the evil of si
n, its power, its guilt, its woe; and they look upon
it with abhorrence. A sense of the infinite sacrif
ice made for its cure humbles them in their own
sight and fills their hearts with gratitude and
praise which those who have never fallen cannot
appreciate. They love much because they have
been forgiven much. Having been partakers of
Christ’s sufferings, they are fitted to
be partakers with Him of His glory.
The heirs of God have come from garrets, fr
om hovels, from dungeons, from scaffolds, from
mountains, from deserts, from the
caves of the earth, from the cave
rns of the sea.
On earth they
were “destitute, afflicted, tormented.” Millions went down to the grave loaded with infamy because
they steadfastly refused to yield to the deceptive
claims of Satan. By human tribunals they were
adjudged the vilest of cr
iminals. But now “God is judge Himself.” Psalm 50:6. Now the decisions of
earth are reversed. “The rebuke of His people sha
ll He take away.” Isaiah 25:8. “They shall call
them, The holy people, The redeemed of the Lord.”
He hath appointed “to give unto them beauty
for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment
of praise for the spirit of heaviness.” Isaiah
62:12; 61:3. They are no l
onger feeble, afflicted, scat
tered, and oppressed. Hen
ceforth they are to be
ever with the Lord. They stand before the throne
clad in richer robes than
the most honored of the
earth have ever worn. They are crowned with diad
ems more glorious than
were ever placed upon
the brow of earthly monarchs. Th
e days of pain and weeping are forever ended. The King of glory
has wiped the tears from all faces; every cause of grief has been removed. Amid the waving of palm
branches they pour forth a song of praise, clea
r, sweet, and harmonious; every voice takes up the
strain, until the anthem swells through the vaults
of heaven: “Salvation to
our God which sitteth
upon the throne, and unto the Lamb.” And all the i
nhabitants of heaven re
spond in the ascription:
“Amen: Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and
thanksgiving, and honor, and power, and might, be
unto our God for ever and ever.” Revelation
7:10, 12.
In this life we can only begin to
understand the wonde
rful theme of redemption. With our finite
comprehension we may consider most earnestly the
shame and the glory, the life and the death, the
justice and the mercy, that meet in
the cross; yet with the utmost
stretch of our mental powers we
fail to grasp its full significance.
The length and the breadth, the dept
h and the height, of redeeming
love are but dimly comprehended. The plan of
redemption will not be fully understood, even when
the ransomed see as they are seen and know as
they are known; but through the eternal ages new
truth will continually unfold to
the wondering and delighted mind.
Though the griefs and pains and
temptations of earth are ended and the cause rem
oved, the people of God will ever have a distinct,
intelligent knowledge of what their salvation has cost.
The cross of Christ will be the science and the s
ong of the redeemed through all eternity. In Christ
glorified they will behold Christ crucified. Never wi
ll it be forgotten that
He whose power created
and upheld the unnumbered worlds through the vast
realms of space, the Beloved of God, the
Majesty of heaven, He whom cherub and shining
seraph delighted to ador
e–humbled Himself to
uplift fallen man; that He bore the guilt and shame of
sin, and the hiding of His Father’s face, till the
woes of a lost world broke His he
art and crushed out His
life on Calvary’s cross. That the Maker of
all worlds, the Arbiter of all destinies, should la
y aside His glory and hum
iliate Himself from love
to man will ever excite the wonder and adoration of
the universe. As the nations of the saved look
upon their Redeemer and behold the eternal glory of
the Father shining in His countenance; as they
behold His throne, which is from
everlasting to everlasting, and know
that His kingdom is to have
no end, they break forth in rapturous
song: “Worthy, worthy is the Lamb
that was slain, and hath redeemed us to
God by His own most precious blood!”
The mystery of the cross explains all other myster
ies. In the light that streams from Calvary the
attributes of God which had fill
ed us with fear and awe appear
beautiful and attractive. Mercy,
tenderness, and parental love are
seen to blend with holiness, justice, and power. While we behold
the majesty of His throne, high and lifted up, we s
ee His character in its
gracious manifestations,
and comprehend, as never before, the significanc
e of that endearing ti
tle, “Our Father.”
It will be seen that He who is infinite in wisdom
could devise no plan fo
r our salvation except the
sacrifice of His Son. The compensation for this s
acrifice is the joy of peopling the earth with
ransomed beings, holy, happy, and immortal. The result
of the Saviour’s conflic
t with the powers of
darkness is joy to the redeemed, redounding to the
glory of God throughout eternity. And such is
the value of the soul that the Father is satisfied
with the price paid; and Christ Himself, beholding
the fruits of His great sa
crifice, is satisfied.
Before It’s News® is a community of individuals who report on what’s going on around them, from all around the world.
Anyone can join.
Anyone can contribute.
Anyone can become informed about their world.
"United We Stand" Click Here To Create Your Personal Citizen Journalist Account Today, Be Sure To Invite Your Friends.
Anyone can join.
Anyone can contribute.
Anyone can become informed about their world.
"United We Stand" Click Here To Create Your Personal Citizen Journalist Account Today, Be Sure To Invite Your Friends.
Please Help Support BeforeitsNews by trying our Natural Health Products below!
Order by Phone at 888-809-8385 or online at https://mitocopper.com M - F 9am to 5pm EST
Order by Phone at 866-388-7003 or online at https://www.herbanomic.com M - F 9am to 5pm EST
Order by Phone at 866-388-7003 or online at https://www.herbanomics.com M - F 9am to 5pm EST
Humic & Fulvic Trace Minerals Complex - Nature's most important supplement! Vivid Dreams again!
HNEX HydroNano EXtracellular Water - Improve immune system health and reduce inflammation.
Ultimate Clinical Potency Curcumin - Natural pain relief, reduce inflammation and so much more.
MitoCopper - Bioavailable Copper destroys pathogens and gives you more energy. (See Blood Video)
Oxy Powder - Natural Colon Cleanser! Cleans out toxic buildup with oxygen!
Nascent Iodine - Promotes detoxification, mental focus and thyroid health.
Smart Meter Cover - Reduces Smart Meter radiation by 96%! (See Video).
MOST RECENT
HELP KEEP NEWS FREE
DONATE
HERE
| Online: | |
| Visits: | 1,598,750,932 |
| Stories: | 8,136,995 |
Wanted: Citizen Reporters,
Whistler Blowers, Insiders
Whistler Blowers, Insiders
"Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of hosts." Zechariah 4:6
Today's Top Stories
Featured
Top Global
It is a biblical fact according to the bibles own figures that last days are the last 70 years of the number of years between BC596…to AD70 = 666 yrs the period of time outlined once as a MAN and once as a BEAST in Daniel Ch 2 & 7 respectively .as the time the 7 fold (7 seals/trumps vials) curse of the law of Moses was poured out on the physical seed of Israel purified until only a spiritual seed was left…
This is also how we know slam dunk that Muhammad was a false teacher…just like most “bible teaching Christians”…….THE SECOND COMING Thou Fool! “I come quickly” so “Hold fast till i come”… NOT …“in another 2000 yrs I might be coming soon any time now, so hold fast”!?! …those that deny the second coming of Christ in that first generation are practicing a damnable heresy in denying the lord that bought them ( 2Peter 2:1-2 ;2Tim 4:8)…….Mat 7:23..”I NEVER KNEW YOU” …..Mat 10:33. But whosoever shall deny me before men……..sound familiar?…. ……. If I said I am coming to your house in this generation when these things happen but no one knows the day or hour what fool would think I might be coming in 2000 years latter!?!? ..2 Tim 4: 4. And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be TURNED UNTO FABLES.
Gal 1: 8. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.
The book of Revelation offers us an interesting Theological dilemma. It states Rev 22:16. I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. Revelation also states it is “the true sayings” of Jesus and that it is “the testimony of Christ”. If this is not “the gospel of Jesus Christ” then what is it and should we consider it accursed testimony of an angel? If it is not to be considered accursed, then it cannot be some other gospel message then what was already given previously. However, this is the conundrum, for if this is the gospel message, then why do so few understand it? There is a possibility which few consider but is the overall thesis of this apology. The reason people don’t understand revelation is because they never understood what the gospel message was in the first place! In that case, where does that put those who claim it is not essential for salvation? Do you not find it quite curious that the most “Personally” given NT book By Jesus himself, is the least understood and given the least importance for Salvation in Christendom?….There are numerous preachers and bible exegetes but as Paul said “… I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge” . Most who profess the name of Christ are feeding on doctrines of devils and the ignorant.. There are, without question, many “qualified” teachers and scholars with many years of “dedication” and “solid education”. However, teachers, no matter how well lettered or numbered in degrees; if obtained from others; who are just as equally ignorant in such matters, are just “ blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.”………………
Revelation the First Gospel of the Kingdom
978-1-4907-0590-3 (ISBN)
Those looking for a physical return of Christ and your physical body to “leave the dirt” resurrected (1Cor 15:36-37) you are carnal mined & or living in prov 26:12
DAY OF THE LORD”/ YEAR OF THE LORD – does NOT last for 24 hours!?!..Also means the day of resurrection & judgment do not last for one hour or one day either! They only begin (NOT END) in a certain hour & on a certain 24 hour day ….”SUN OF RIGHTEOUSNESS to arise”…..NOT..”come & get (your new resurrected body) it while it is still hot, only 24 hours of solar power left”!?!
https://www.scribd.com/doc/308485609/Day-of-Lord-Not-24-Hours-I-Come-Quickly
The second coming took place already and Christ promised that only HIS PEOPLE would see him ….John 14:19. Yet a little while, and THE WORLD SEETH ME NO MORE;….. [2 Cor 5:16 Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: yea, though we have known Christ AFTER THE FLESH, yet NOW HENCEFORTH KNOW WE HIM NO MORE….(here the Context of John 14 is his second coming)…..continued…..but ye see me: because I live, ye shall live also. 20. AT THAT DAY .. 21. He that hath my commandments, and KEEPETH THEM, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and WILL MANIFEST MYSELF TO HIM……(again taking note “as he is” or 1Jn 3:2)
22. Judas saith unto him, not Iscariot, Lord, HOW IS IT THAT THOU WILT MANIFEST THYSELF UNTO US AND NOT UNTO THE WORLD? 23. Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, HE WILL KEEP MY WORDS: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.( Rev 3:20) 24. He that loveth me not.. (1Cor 16:22)…. KEEPETH NOT MY SAYINGS: ( REV 9:16-20)
REVELATION 1:7. Behold, HE COMETH WITH CLOUDS; and EVERY EYE SHALL SEE HIM, …. There is a parallel here with ………….Exodus 24:10. And THEY SAW THE GOD OF ISRAEL : and there was under his feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness. 11. And upon the nobles of the children of Israel he laid not his hand: also THEY SAW GOD, and did eat and drink………..But Christ said….. John 1:18. NO MAN HATH SEEN GOD AT ANY TIME; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him. A person can see with their understanding and or see with their eyes…. It can see “seen” for certain that everything that Christ described was seen by the folks of that day in His coming but do they perceive that was him? …So what Christ said is true every eye saw him but the world does not see him….. With the eye they and folks still today can see everything Christ described to have taken place, but they do not “keep” ( believe and understand) his words as such they do not see him nor shall they ever.
The saints who have physical died faithful in the flesh (every man in his own order) are changed in the blink of an eye & caught up to sit on that Great white throne ( this congregation of the saints is the body of Christ that folks will answer to at the judgment and these saints will judge all men who cannot see Christ along with the rest of the world……Folks think they are waiting to see Jesus but they will NEVER see Jesus himself they will only see the body of Christ condemn them the saints judge the world (Rev 3:21; 1 Cor 6:2 et al) the saints are the body of Christ…that is the only part of Christ they shall see….only the saints shall see God face to face…..most peoples idea of the second coming & day of the Lord and the judgment is completely wrong
https://www.scribd.com/doc/305366745/Revelation-the-First-Gospel-of-the-Kingdom
or
https://www.academia.edu/23464127/REVELATION_THE_FIRST_GOSPEL_OF_THE_KINGDOM
978-1-4907-0590-3 (SC ISBN)