What the Movement under the Third Angel's Message Stands For
By Arthur G. Daniells
(Reading for Sabbath, December 21) Seventh-day Adventists are carrying forward a world-wide religious movement. This movement is not exactly like, nor directly connected with, any other movement in the world. What is this movement, and what does it stand for? It is the proclamation of that threefold message outlined in the fourteenth chapter of Revelation. It is, therefore, the fulfilment of prophecy. In its fullest and most comprehensive meaning, this movement stands for the messages of divine truth, the people who receive and obey them, and the work of those people in proclaiming the messages to the world. The messages, the people, and the work are all definitely mentioned in Revelation 14. The messages are the “everlasting gospel.” Verse 6. They stand for the “truth of the gospel” as revealed in the entire Bible. In these messages the fulness of the light of the gospel is centered. By them the earth will be lightened with the glory of God. Rev. 18:1. The people are the result of the shining of that light. They are called out by the truths of the messages. The proclamation of the messages develops a company of people of whom it is said, “Here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.” Rev. 14:12. These people are mentioned in other places as being sealed with the seal of God (Rev. 7:1); as standing with Christ on Mount Zion (Rev. 14:1); and, finally, having “gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark,” they are seen on the sea of glass surrounding the throne of God. Rev. 15:2. The work is the proclamation of the messages by the people. This represents the whole effort made to give the truth of the messages to the world. It includes every desire felt to make that truth known, every prayer offered for its progress, every sermon proclaiming it, every word written explaining it, every visit made, every page of literature distributed, and every dollar given. It represents every church building, printing-house, school, sanitarium, and office dedicated to the advancement of this cause. It embraces every mission established in the dark places of the earth, and every journey and voyage made by land and sea to enlighten and lift up humanity with the truth as made known in the third angel’s message. Of those who give their lives to active work in this message, and fall at their posts, the Lord says: “Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labors; and their works do follow them.” Rev. 14:13. The object of this threefold message is plain, definite, and solemn. It is the announcement to all the world that the judgment-hour has come. Rev. 14:6, 7. It is that proclamation of the gospel of the kingdom in all the world for a witness unto all the nations, which will bring the end. Matt. 24:14. It is the finishing of the mystery of God under the sounding of the seventh angel, when the kingdoms of this world are to become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ. Rev. 10:7; 11:14, 15. Its object is to finish the work of God in the earth, and cut it short in righteousness. Rom. 9:28. That object will be accomplished. It is impossible that it should fail. This message is world-wide in its scope. It is to be proclaimed to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people. All classes in all the world are to be warned of the coming perils, and invited to the only sure place of refuge. By land and sea the message is to be carried to the busy throngs in the centers of population, and to the remote, isolated, scattered peoples in partially explored lands and in the islands of the seas. And this will be done. John not only saw the work in progress, but he saw its glorious consummation in a company of people standing around God’s throne who had been gathered from every nation by this message. This movement as a whole began with the work of William Miller, in 1831. But in its present form it dates from 1845, immediately following the great disappointment of 1844. Its history has been marked by a steady growth and triumphant progress into all the world. It has taken permanent root in nearly all lands in every continent. It has been planted in nearly all the island groups of the world. Its missions are gathering believers from nearly every “kindred, and tongue, and people,” just as the prophecy represents. Millions of dollars have been invested in this movement, and to-day thousands of intelligent, consecrated men and women in all lands are devoting their lives to the advancement of some phase of this work. The situation we now face is truly remarkable. Whose heart is not stirred and thrilled, as he looks over the battlefield and sees the army of devoted soldiers facing the enemy? Whose heart is not encouraged as he sees the splendid victories being gained over that enemy? Whose heart does not rejoice to see the captives being set free? What is this great movement which we behold? Whence comes its power? It is not popular with the world, and it never can be. It strikes down every idol of the carnal heart. It is laden with crosses, self-denial, and sacrifice. It leads its votaries against the whole current of the world. And yet it attracts and holds them with a power they can not resist. For it men and women abandon evil habits and ways, and break old and hallowed associations. To it they contribute their gold and silver, consecrate their sons and daughters, and give their lives. Wherever this cause touches the world, it exerts this power over the hearts of men. Let us thank God for these victories. They are evidence that we are nearing the end. We are surely in the time of the latter rain, and the showers are falling. The loud cry of the third angel has begun. It may not be sounding exactly as we had supposed it would, but it is sounding. The heathen are hearing it, and are coming to us for help. Every believer in the third angel’s message rejoices to hear of its progress. We have claimed from its earliest days that this message would go to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people in the world; that the earth would be lightened with its glory; and that then the end would come. Why, then, should we not rejoice at every step of its progress? Why should we not be filled with gladness, assurance, and courage, as we see it now firmly established and working like leaven in almost every country in the world? This is our privilege. And while we rejoice at its triumphant progress in every direction, we should have a clear understanding and a full realization of what this progress means. It means marches, battles, and conquests in new territory at the front, and the sending of fresh supplies from the base. The supplies to be sent consist principally of workers and money. Much is involved in this. The workers who go must cut loose from everything in this world. They must leave a country whose people, language, and customs they understand, and go where everything is new and strange. They must leave the many comforts, advantages, and safeguards of modern, advanced civilization, and place themselves where they will be exposed to heat, and cold, and disease, often without proper protection, and be deprived of educational and other advantages they and their children need. They must cut themselves off from what appears to be a visible means of support, and cast themselves on the good-will and loyalty of the believers in this message who do not go. The Duty of Those Who Stay
This is what the triumphant progress of this cause in the world means to those who go to the front. What does it mean to those who stay at home? Have they any special responsibilities? They must have. And what are they? It is impossible that the responsibilities that are created by the growth of this work should all fall upon one class; namely, those who go to the regions beyond. Those who stay must remember with affection and solicitude those who go. They must pray for safe voyages. They must pray for their health, and for protection from various deadly diseases to which they will be exposed. They must pray for their success in learning the ways of strangers, and mastering difficult languages. They must pray especially that their efforts to save the perishing shall be crowned with success. They must pray that as the work develops, the Lord will send more laborers to join them in carrying the increasing burdens. They must pray for their support while giving their lives wholly to the work. And besides praying for their support, those who remain at home in possession of property and of commercial advantages, must give of their means to support those who have left all these. This is a vital, fundamental point in the great problem of foreign missions. It is immensely practical. It can not be overlooked, forgotten, nor set aside, except at the peril of our comrades. Many connected with this cause, and who enjoy reading of its progress, do not realize18what this means from a financial standpoint. Look at our situation to-day. We have ministers, Bible workers, writers, teachers, physicians, nurses, and canvassers in China, India, Africa, Japan, Central and South America, Palestine, Egypt, Turkey, the West Indies, Mexico, Canada, Ceylon, the islands of the Pacific, and in other lands. These laborers are our own brethren and sisters. They were once in the home country with us. Now they are scattered all over the world. They find perishing souls who are glad to get the light of this closing gospel message. They are devoting every hour of their time, every ounce of their strength, wholly to the proclamation of the truth. They are not farming, nor engaging in commercial enterprises of any kind—not because they do not like to work, nor because they are not able to make a living for themselves. When they were here engaged in worldly business, they were as industrious and successful as any of us. But their ears caught the earnest appeals for help that are coming from these distant lands, and their hearts responded in love and self-sacrifice. They obeyed the command of the great General: “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.” Forgetful of their own personal interests, they have gone abroad to render service to their fellow men. The Support of the Vanguard
The question of their support they have left with the Lord and their brethren. In round numbers, that amounts to at least two hundred and fifty thousand dollars a year. That means twenty thousand dollars every month. And as this is required to purchase fuel, food, and clothes, and to pay house rent and other necessary expenses, it must go promptly and regularly, or they will be placed in embarrassing circumstances. Where is this money? Who is to supply it? What is the resource of this great enterprise?—This money is in the hands of Seventh-day Adventists. It is lodged with those who are listening this day to the reading. You are the visible resource. The daily support of a thousand persons rests upon you. Whether these missionaries and their wives and children shall have what they need at the time they need it, depends upon your gifts. This is a sacred responsibility. But you helped to create it. You accepted it when you accepted the gospel as set forth in the third angel’s message. As a people, we have not exhausted our resources. We have farms, stock, and money on interest. We have good health, and good trades by which we command large wages. We have a large working capital. We are well able by these gifts from our Lord, who has called us to this undertaking, to carry it forward. The total offerings to missions made by our North American churches for 1903 amounted to $113,608.15. This includes the annual offering, the weekly contributions, the miscellaneous gifts, and the portion of the Sabbath-school offerings that was appropriated to missions. This is an average of $1.88 for each Sabbath-keeper. It amounts to three and three-fifths cents a week during the year. Surely we must do more than this, before we talk of retrenchment. We should do more than this, rather than compel the officers of the General Conference to say “No” to so many of the appeals that come from the fields needing help, and from consecrated workers whose hearts burn to answer these calls. When the light of this message shone into the minds and hearts of those to whom it came at the first, it gave them new hope and joy. And more, it laid upon their hearts a deep conviction that it was their duty to give to others what they had received. They were compelled by an unseen, resistless power to tell the message to their friends. But they could not stop here. This opened the way to tell it to their neighbors. And thus they went on and on, from friend to neighbor, from neighbor to town, and from town to State, and from State to nation, until they and their associates encircled the world. This is the law of the kingdom. What Our Attitude Involves
The last step is involved in the first. The consent to hear the truth involves obedience to it. Obedience involves communication to others. To avoid the last step—world-wide communication—it is necessary to refuse to take the first—to even listen to the truth. But that involves the loss of the soul. And so by this law we find ourselves, as Seventh-day Adventists, in the solemn situation we are facing. This cause has leaped over barriers of every kind and description. It has crossed State lines, wide oceans, and national boundaries. Nothing has been able to stop its onward movement. As it has gained adherents, it has distributed them. As it has created and increased resources, it has scattered them. It has lost no ground. Every advance step taken has been held and used for another step forward. Every laborer sent in answer to a call for help has sent back an urgent appeal for others to join him. Every door entered opens more doors to enter. Every dollar expended creates a demand for more than its double. In order to answer the pressing calls that come to this denomination from the world for the light God has given us, we should have a larger week-of-prayer offering this year than ever before. This call from the dark places of the earth is an appeal to every believer of this message. It should make a deep impression, and should move us to something special. Nothing will cause greater rejoicing among our hard-pressed missionaries in all lands than a splendid contribution, during the week of prayer, to foreign missions. Brethren and sisters, for the sake of our Redeemer, for the sake of the perishing souls in heathen lands, and for the sake of our missionaries who are pressed almost beyond reason with work, we should open our hearts and our purses in a far more than ordinary way, in behalf of missions, at this time.