UNITY OF THE REMNANT CHURCH.
By R. F. C.
The declaration of the Prophet, that the watchmen should see eye to eye, at the time of the second advent of our Lord, clearly intimates that the church would be divided into factions prior to that time. In glancing down the stream of time, he sees discord and division brought into the church, but, a little beyond it, his eye rests upon a bright spot where it will be healed, and all the true watchmen of Israel be brought together again, to see eye to eye. If the precious sheep and lambs of the flock were not to be scattered and divided by the enemy, there would be no propriety in predicting their unity at a certain point of time. The division has taken place. The mystery of iniquity began to work very early in the church. Grievous wolves soon came in, not sparing the flock. The heads of opposing factions, which had drawn away disciples after them, began their contentions to see who should be supreme as lords over God's heritage, and the bishop of Rome, obtaining the aid of the civil power of the dragonic empire, secured the object of his ambition and bore the palm of victory alone. Then acceded those long centuries of oppression and persecution, very appropriately called "the dark ages." The light of the Scriptures was almost excluded from the world, and the unity of the professed church was maintained by sword and flame. But still the Spirit of truth had not entirely forsaken the world, and the reformers came out, protesting against the blasphemous assumptions of the Roman hierarchy, and formed a separate communion. Here is division, but what better could they do? Now the true church will be brought together, will it not? The Bible is restored as the rule of faith and practice, and, of course, all Christians will unite and abide by its teachings. Will they? Oh no! The new church, though separated from the mother, has got a creed; and if any should learn something from the Bible not in harmony with the creed, they cannot go with this church, but must form another separate communion. Thus division and subdivision proceeds. And who is to blame? Surely, not those that find truths in the Bible that are not in the creeds. What better could they do than take a stand on Bible truth? Yet Christians see the evil of division, and desire to see all the flock united. Though some wearing the name, think that division is a good thing; because different denominations will naturally watch over each other for evil, and that the very good result of this is, that, knowing they are watched, it will keep them strait. It may be best for churches of the world, like politicians, to be divided, in order that, by a similar watchcare, they may keep each other honest. But there is no danger in the union of the flock of God, if they can be brought together separate from the goats. Hence those that have the Spirit of Christ desire union; and a number of attempts have been made to lay a platform on which all Christians might unite. And what has been the result of these efforts? In each instance, it has resulted in the foundation of a new sect—an addition to the great Babel of confusion! Now what shall be done for Christian union? There are sects enough already; and there is no prospect of any of them giving up their peculiarities. The next proposition is, for each denomination to hold their peculiar truths or errors as private property—agree to disagree—lay their distinctive tenets aside for the time, have union meetings, and labor unitedly for the conversion of sinners; thus forming a sort of disjunctive conjunction—disjoined and conjoined at the same time. And what has been the result of this unity? Those efforts have frequently ended in the most bitter quarrels between the different sects engaged in them. Thus all human efforts for union have proved a failure. But will the word of God fail? By no means. A failure is impossible. The sure word of prophecy has not only predicted the unity of the remnant church, but it has foretold the very means of its accomplishment. It will be effected by the preaching of the gospel of the kingdom, which is to be the sign of the end. Matt. xxiv, 14. This gospel is particularly explained in Rev. xiv, 6–12. Here are three messages to be preached in the world just prior to the coming of the Son of Man, which are perfectly adapted to bring the scattered saints into unity of faith and practice. By a careful examination of them, it will be seen that they cannot fail of producing this result. They are judgment messages to precede the second advent, by which the living—the last generation upon earth, will be judged. The first announces with a loud voice, "Fear God and give glory to him, for the hour of his judgment is come." It will be readily seen, that the Lord will not come, as predicted in this chapter, until the definite time for the judgment is first announced in the world, and a little space succeeds for the fulfillment of the solemn warning contained in the third message. This message does not give the definite time for the coming of Christ, but for the judgment which is to precede his coming—the blotting out of the sins of all the saved—the cleansing of the Sanctuary at the end of the 2300 days. The judicial judgment takes place before his coming, but the executive judgment at his coming, when his reward is with him "to give to every man" according to the decisions of the judgment in the heavenly Sanctuary, previously made. This definite-time message must be (supposing it has not already been) announced to the world. And whenever announced, it will probably be denominated, by the scoffers of the last days, Millerism. And unless the people change their mind respecting the scene of the judgment here announced, previous to the time of its announcement those who believe the message will be disappointed, in their expectation for, the Lord will not then come. The object of this message is to arouse the people and prepare them carefully to note that which is to follow, comparing it all with the prophetic word. The second message announces the fall of Babylon. This is merely an announcement that the time is come, predicted of the last days, when men, "having a form of godliness," that is, professing religion shall be "lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, truce-breakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, high minded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God." A moral fall or apostasy of a religious body is always a gradual work; but it cannot be announced till it reaches a certain point. That point was reached by the Jewish church when they rejected Jesus Christ. Then their house was left unto them desolate. So the professed Christian church of the last days, will reach, if they have not already, a similar point; and then their fall will be announced, in fulfillment of the second message. The first message will awaken opposition in those who love our Lord Jesus Christ and his appearing, in word and in tongue only, and they, comprising the great majority of the church, will take decided ground against the Bible teachings concerning his coming. This will so far consummate their rejection of Christ that the second angel will immediately announce, "Babylon is fallen, is fallen." The object of this message is to cut every honest soul loose from their allegiance to the religious bodies with which they may be connected, so that they may be prepared to act upon their own individual responsibility, in reference to the third message; for this last message calls upon each person to make a momentous, a final choice. This is the all-important message. The first and the second could only pave the way for it. The first, by opening the heavenly Sanctuary where the judgment transpires, and discovering to us the "ark of his testament," containing the ten commandments by which we are to be judged; [Rev. xi, 19;] the second, by causing us to see that we cannot trust in any existing bodies of religionists, but must act upon our individual responsibility. And when we consider the terms of the third message, we shall see that no one can obey it and remain a member of any of the popular churches of the present day. If we keep all the Commandments of God, and all the Faith of Jesus, it will separate us from all the churches existing before, and gather us into the one church that will be prepared to "see the King in his beauty," and be taken to "the land that is very far off." Isa. xxxiii, 17. The third message cannot fail to bring the remnant of God's people into unity of faith, where the watchmen will see eye to eye; because all that do not obey it will drink of the unmingled wrath of God. And all that do obey it will be brought together upon the primitive, apostolic platform—the Commandments of God and the Faith of Jesus. Then the church will be saved, and all outside of it will be cut off. The first and second messages have been heard, and the third is now going forth with its solemn and final warning. To deny it, is either to deny God's providence in fulfilling prophecy, or to deny the history of the church for the past twenty years. O, heed the solemn warning, escape the threatened wrath, be gathered into the one fold, and finally be gathered to stand with the Lamb upon Mt. Zion. If you keep the Commandments of God and the Faith of Jesus just as you find them written in the Bible, you will not be found worshiping the beast or his image.