JOEL testifies that just before the great and terrible day of God, Jehovah will again pour out His Spirit upon the remnant of His people. "And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out My Spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions; and also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out My Spirit. And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth: blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and terrible day of Jehovah cometh. And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of Jehovah shall be delivered; for in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be those that escape, as Jehovah hath said, and among the remnant those whom Jehovah doth call." Joel 2:28-32.
By this scripture it is very plain that there will be a bestowal of the Spirit in large measure upon a people styled "the remnant" just prior to the great day of God. It is at the time of the end; for it is at a time when the great prophetic signs preceding His return, spoken of by Jesus on the Mount of Olives, occur, the darkening of the sun, and the turning of the moon into blood. These took place May 19, 1780, and were to be sure omens of the approach of that great and terrible day of Jehovah.
Thus located, may we not expect in the latter rain, as in the early rain, that a work of preparation will go on in the world to prepare the young men, the handmaids, the old men, "the remnant" called by the Lord, for the reception of this great heavenly blessing?
The Great Judgment-Hour Message of 1844.
As we near the end of that same long prophetic period which locates the first advent of Christ,—the 2,300 days, or years,—it is a notable fact of history that the world was stirred from one end to the other with a message similar to that of John the Baptist, a message preparing a people for the Lord.
In the great advent movement of 1830 to 1844, our world witnessed a most remarkable work. Humble men, before unknown, were urged by the Spirit of God to leave their farms, their shops, and go from place to place, standing before large audiences, and tracing from prophetic charts, as with a pen of fire, the unerring truths of God's holy Word, showing conclusively that the end of the world was at hand. Men and women flocked together to hear these wonderful messages fresh from Heaven. The work spread rapidly. Sinners were pricked in their hearts, as the message of the servants of God laid bare their sins. Backsliders were reclaimed.
Simultaneously this work went on in all countries. William Miller and his associates heralded the solemn message of Christ's speedy return to this earth, and the influence of their labors covered the greater portion of the United States. Joseph Wolffe, without any knowledge of William Miller's work, preached the same message all through Ireland and Scotland, as also in Palestine, Greece, Turkey, and other oriental lands, between the years 1821-44. In Sweden, the law forbade the preaching of any new doctrine contrary to the established church. Here God used the children. The testimony of a Swede, Peter Palambla, once residing at LaPorte, Ind., is recorded. He said that—
In 1843, while living in Sweden, he heard the report that children were moved upon in a remarkable manner to sing and preach with great power, and that under this preaching sinners were being converted to God. He took his son, a little lad of about four years of age, and went to the place of meeting, about twenty miles from where he lived. As he entered the house, a large company of people were assembled, and were singing a Lutheran hymn, in which a little girl, some four years of age, joined. Soon she was moved upon to talk. She was put upon a table, where she preached the doctrine of the near-coming of Christ and the judgment. A mighty power accompanied her words, and, altho unable to read a word, she quoted scriptures correctly, and exhorted for nearly an hour. When this influence passed from her, she played around just like any other child, until the people met again. A few days11after Mr. Palambla returned home, his own little boy began to sing a Lutheran hymn, and the same power came upon him, and he began to preach and exhort in the same manner. For some weeks the house of Mr. Palambla was a place of large assemblies of people, gathered to hear the little boy preach.
William Miller, in referring to the extent of this great advent movement, said: "One or two on every quarter of the globe have proclaimed the news, and all agree in the time [and each at the time ignorant of the work of the other]. Wolffe, of Asia; Irving, late of England; Mason, of Scotland; Davis, of South Carolina; and quite a number in this region, are, or have been, giving the cry."
The apostle John, in holy vision, wrote of a judgment-message to go to the world. "And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting Gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment IS come; and worship Him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters." Rev. 14:6, 7.
May we not truthfully conclude that in the simultaneous preaching of the hour of God's judgment, as related above in the advent movement terminating Oct. 22, 1844, that these verses were literally fulfilled? The judgment and the coming of Christ to this earth were events associated together in the minds of both preachers and people under that great proclamation. Hence, the fact that Christ did not literally come to this earth at that time does not in the least detract from its being the judgment-message then due, or its being that very message itself.
Surely this great power was either of Heaven or of men. And who, in the face of the brief facts cited (and many more could be given) of the wonderful power and solemn work of heart-searching and confession of sin, would dare say it was of men?
