California Conference of Seventh-day Adventists · Oakland, Cal. · Feb 25, 1875
The Sermon.
By James White
SIGNS OF THE END.
By Eld. James White.
“What shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world.”—DISCIPLES.
“When ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors.”—JESUS. Matt. 24:3, 33.
SHORTENED FOR THE ELECT’S SAKE
VERSE 22. “And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved; but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.” The papacy was clothed with civil power to punish heretics for 1260 years; and had not the period of tribulation of the elect in the providence of God been shortened, the martyrdom of the church would have continued to 1798, in which event, in all human probability, no flesh of the elect would have been saved. But the reformation under Martin Luther, and those associated with this reformer, modified this tribulation, and continued to restrain the rage, and consume the power of the papacy until 1700, since which time, according to all church history, there has been no general persecution against the church. In this was fulfilled the words of the prophets: “The earth helped the woman.” Rev. 12:16. “They shall be holpen with a little help.” Dan. 11:34. We are brought in this prophetic discourse of our Lord, down into the eighteenth century, very near the present time. We should naturally expect, then, that the instructions and warnings of the next verse would be applicable to this generation.
Verses 23, 24: “Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there, believe it not. For there shall arise false christs, and false prophets, and shall show great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.” Here is a description of the spiritual deception of the present age. False christs arose soon after the first advent of Christ, to deceive the Jews in regard to that event (see verse 5); likewise false christs and false prophets have arisen at this day to deceive the people on the subject of the second advent. The Shakers say, “Lo, here is Christ. His second coming is in the person of Ann Lee.” “Lo, he is there,” cry many of the popular ministers of these times. “His second coming is at the conversion of sinners, or at the death of saints.” So they have as many second comings of Christ as there are sinners converted; and saints die. Senseless theology this! “Lo, here,” exclaims a host of Spiritualists, and they “show great signs and wonders.” If possible, they would deceive the very elect. And we regard it as a safe conclusion, that they will yet deceive all others but the elect.
Verses 25, 26: “Behold, I have told you before. Wherefore, if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth; behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not.” Our Lord is here dwelling upon what he has just told them. His subject is still the teachings of those who say, “Lo, here is Christ!” “Lo, he is there!” If the Mormons say, “Behold, he in the desert,” at Salt Lake City, “go not forth;” yet many of their disciples have gone. Or, if you hear proclaimed from the lips of the professed ministers of Jesus, “Behold, he is in the secret chamber,” Christ’s second coming is spiritual, at death, or conversion, believe it not. And why not believe such mystical teachings? The reason is given in the next verse.
Verses 27, 28: “For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together.” We are very happy that our Lord has not only pointed out false christs and false prophets, and warned us against their mystical teachings, but he has in contrast set before us the manner of his second coming in the plainest terms. The vivid lightning flashing out of the distant east, and shining even to the west, lights up the whole heavens. What, then, when the Lord comes in flaming glory, and all the holy angels with him? The presence of only one holy angel at the new sepulcher where Christ lay in death, caused the Roman guard to shake and become as dead men. The light and glory of one angel completely overpowered those strong sentinels. The Son of man is in his own kingly glory, and in the glory of his Father, attended by all the holy angels. Then the whole heavens will blaze with glory, and the whole earth will tremble before him.
Verse 29-31: “Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken. And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven; and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory. And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet; and they shall gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.”
We have before seen that our Lord speaks in this chapter of the long period of tribulation upon his followers, and we have also seen how those days of tribulation were shortened for the elect’s sake. “Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened,” &c. We refer the reader to the noted dark day of May 19, 1780, as the fulfillment of this declaration. Mark this: It does not read, after those days, but “after the tribulation of those days.” The days (1,260 years, Dan. 7:25) reached to 1798, eighteen years this side of the dark day in 1780. Mark 13:24, makes this point still plainer. “But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun shall be darkened.” That is, before the 1,260 years closed, but after the tribulation or martyrdom of the saints ceased, the sun was darkened. Those who would point to the future, or to the past, prior to the eighteenth century, for the darkening of the sun here mentioned, will do well to read again Mark 13:24: “But in those days, after that tribulation,
THE SUN SHALL BE DARKENED.
“A something strikingly awful shall forewarn that the world will come to an end, and that the last day is even at the door.”—Martin Luther.
In May 19, 1780, there was a remarkable fulfillment of the predicted darkening of the sun; and in reference to the facts and date, there can be no doubt; for, besides the historical accounts, which all agree, there were many aged persons, with whom men of the present generation have mingled and conversed, who witnessed it, and have testified to it.
“In the month of May, 1780, there was a very terrific dark day in New England, when ‘all faces seemed to gather blackness,’ and the people were filled with fear. There was great distress in the village where Edward Lee lived; ‘men’s hearts failing them for fear’ that the Judgment day was at hand, and the neighbors all flocked around the holy man; for his lamp was trimmed, and shining brighter than ever, amidst the unnatural darkness. Happy and joyful in God, he pointed them to their only refuge from the wrath to come, and spent the gloomy hours in earnest prayer for the distressed multitude.”—Tract No. 379, of Am. Tract Society—Life of Edward Lee.
“The 19th day of May, 1780, was a remarkable dark day. Candles were lighted in many houses. The birds were silent, and disappeared. The fowls retired to roost. It was the general opinion that the day of Judgment was at hand. The legislature of Connecticut was in session, at Hartford, but being unable to transact business, adjourned.”—President Dwight, in (Ct.) Historical Collections.
“ANNIVERSARY OF THE DARK DAY.—The dark day, May 19, 1780, is thus described by Mr. Stone, in his history of Beverly: ‘The sun rose clear, but soon assumed a brassy hue. About 10 o’clock, A. M., it became unusually dark. The darkness continued to increase till about one o’clock, when it began to decrease. During this time candles became necessary. The birds disappeared, and the silent, the fowls went to their roosts, cocks crew as at daybreak, and everything bore the appearance and gloom of night. The alarm produced by this unusual aspect of the heavens was great.’”—Portsmouth Journal, May 20, 1843.
The supernatural darkening of the sun, May 19, 1780, has been so universally understood that Noah Webster’s dictionary, in the edition for 1869, under the head of Explanatory and Pronouncing Vocabulary of Noted Names, says, “The dark day, May 19, 1780;—so called on account of a remarkable darkness on that day, extending over all New England. In some places, persons could not see to read common print in the open air for several hours together. Birds sang their evening songs, disappeared, became silent; fowls went to roost; cattle sought the barnyard; and candles were lighted in the houses. The obscuration began about ten o’clock in the morning, and continued till the middle of the next night, but with differences of degree and duration in different places. For several days previous, the wind had been variable, but chiefly from the south-west and the north-east. The true cause of this remarkable phenomenon is not known.”
From Robert Sears’ Guide to Knowledge, published in New York, 1844, we extract the following: “On the 19th of May, 1780, an uncommon darkness took place all over New England, and extended to Canada. It continued about fourteen hours, or from ten o’clock in the morning till midnight. The darkness was so great that people were unable to read common print, or tell the time of day by their watches, or to dine, or transact their ordinary business, without the light of candles. They became dull and gloomy, and some were excessively frightened. The fowls went to roost. Objects could not be distinguished but at a very little distance, and everything bore the appearance of gloom and night. Similar days have occasionally been known, though inferior in the degree or extent of their darkness. The causes of these phenomena are unknown. They certainly were not the result of eclipses.”
“THE MOON SHALL NOT GIVE HER LIGHT.”
“The moon shines with a borrowed light, and therefore if the sun from whom she borrows her light is turned into darkness, she must fail, of course, and become bankrupt.”—Matthew Henry.
“The night succeeding that day (May 19, 1780,) was of such pitchy darkness, that, in some instances, horses could not be compelled to leave the stable when wanted for service. About midnight the clouds were dispersed, and the moon and stars appeared with unimpaired brilliancy.” —Portsmouth Journal, May 20, 1843,—Extract from Stone’s History of Beverly.
Mr. Tenny, of Exeter, N. H., quoted by Mr. Gage, to the Historical Society; speaking of the dark day and dark night of May 19, 1780, says: “The darkness of the following evening was probably as gross as has ever been observed since the Almighty first gave birth to light. I could not help conceiving at the time, that if every luminous body in the universe had been shrouded in impenetrable darkness, or struck out of existence, the darkness could not have been more complete. A sheet of white paper held within a few inches of the eyes was equally invisible with the blackest velvet.”
Dr. Adams, speaking of the dark night, says: “At nine, it was a darkness to be felt by more senses than one, as there was a strong smell of soot. Almost every one who happened to be out in the evening, got lost in going home. The darkness was as uncommon in the night as it was in the day, as the moon had fulled the day before.”
“THE STARS SHALL FALL FROM HEAVEN.”
We here give an extract from an article written by Henry Dana Ward, in regard to the falling stars of Nov. 13, 1833, published in the Journal of Commerce, Nov. 15, 1833: “At the cry, ‘look out of the window,’ I sprang from a deep sleep, and with wonder saw the east lighted up with the dawn and meteors. The zenith, the north, the west, also, showed the falling stars, in the very image of one thing, and only one, I ever heard of. I called to my wife to behold; and while robing, she exclaimed, ‘See how the stars fall!’ I replied, ‘That is the wonder!’ and we felt in our hearts that it was a sign of the last days. For, truly, ‘the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig-tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind.’ Rev. 6:13. This language of the prophet has always been received as metaphorical. Yesterday, it was literally fulfilled. The ancients understood by aster, in Greek, and stella, in Latin, the smaller lights of heaven. The refinement of modern astronomy has made the distinction between stars of heaven and meteors of heaven. Therefore, the idea of the prophet, as it is expressed in the original Greek, was literally fulfilled in the phenomenon of yesterday.
“And how did they fall? Neither myself, nor one of the family, heard any report; and were I to hunt through nature for a simile, I could not find one so apt to illustrate the appearance of the heavens, as that which St. John uses in the prophecy before quoted.
“The stars fell ‘even as a fig-tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind.’ Here is the exactness of the prophet.
“The falling stars did not come as if from several trees shaken, but from one: those which appeared in the east, fell toward the east; those which appeared in the north, fell toward the north; those which appeared in the west, fell toward the west; and those which appeared in the south (for I went out of my residence into the park), fell toward the south. And they fell not as the ripe fruit falls. Far from it; but they flew, they were cast, like the unripe fruit, which at first refuses to leave the branch; and when, under a violent pressure, it does break its hold, flies swiftly, straight off, descending; and in the multitude falling, some cross the track of others, as they are thrown with more or less force; but each one falls on its own side of the tree. Such was the appearance of the above phenomenon to the inmates of my house.”
Prof. Olmstead, of Yale College, says: “The extent of the shower of 1833 was such122as to cover no inconsiderable part of the earth’s surface, from the middle of the Atlantic on the east, to the Pacific on the west; and from the northern coast of South America, to undefined regions among the British possessions on the north, the exhibition was visible, and everywhere presented nearly the same appearance. The meteors did not fly at random over all parts of the sky, but appeared to emanate from a point in the constellation Leo, near a star called Gamma Leonis, in the bend of the sickle. This is no longer to be regarded as a terrestrial, but as a celestial, phenomenon; and shooting stars are now to be no more viewed as casual productions of the upper regions of the atmosphere, but as visitants from other worlds, or from the planetary voids.”
The People’s Magazine, Boston, January, 1834, on the falling of the stars of Nov. 13, 1833, says: “The Rockingham (Va.) Register calls it, ‘A rain of fire,’—thousands of stars being seen at once; some said it began with considerable noise.
“The Journal of Commerce informs us that ‘three hundred miles this side of Liverpool the phenomenon was as splendid there as here; and that in St. Lawrence county there was a snowstorm during the phenomenon, in which the falling stars appeared like lightning; . . . . . that in Germantown, Pa., they seemed like showers of great hail.’”
“The Lancaster (Pa.) Examiner says: ‘The air was filled with innumerable meteors or stars; . . . . . hundreds of thousands of brilliant bodies might be seen falling at every moment, . . . . . sloping their descent toward the earth, at an angle of about forty-five degrees, resembling flashes of fire.’”
This is important testimony as to the vast extent of the falling stars, and also as to their emanating from a single point in the heavens. It was the greatest display of celestial fire-works recorded on the pages of history. It was no atmospheric or terrestrial phenomenon, common to the upper regions of the earth; but a display of the divine power, baffling the science of man. (To be Continued.)
The Saviour's Triumph.
"The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death."—1 Cor. 15 : 26.
The Son of David bowed to die,
For man's transgression stricken;
The Father's arm of power was nigh
The Son of God to quicken:
Praise him, that he died for men!
Praise him, that he rose again!
Death seemed all-conquering when he bound
The Lord of life in prison;
The might of death was nowhere found
When Christ again was risen;
Wherefore praise him night and day,
Him, who took death's sting away!
His saints with him must bow to death,
With him are raised in spirit;
With him they dwell above by faith,
Accepted through his merit.
Who o'er death would victory win,
Live to Christ, and die to sin.
Death may awhile his victims slay,
Though of his terrors minished,
But he shall perish in the day
When God his wars has finished:
Heaven and earth resound the strain,
Death by Jesus Christ is slain!
—Sel.
Ministration of Angels
By D. M. Canright
(To be Continued.)
# Ministration of Angels.
(Continued.)
In this light we can understand the temptation of Jesus by the devil, as recorded in Matt. 4: 1–11: “Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil,” &c. Satan well understood the mission of Christ; he had come for the purpose of wresting from him his usurped dominions. All the powers of darkness were astir. Jesus must be tempted and overcome. Satan takes the work into his own hands. He had overcome Eve by appealing to her appetite. Now Jesus is exceedingly hungry; so as his first effort, Satan tries him on this point. But Jesus is firm, and Satan fails. He now tries another plan: he tempts Jesus to throw himself from the pinnacle of the temple. Here the devil appealed to Jesus’ pride; but he failed again.
After all these temptations had failed, Satan tries the following one as his last chance of success; hence we may well know that it is the greatest temptation that could be brought to bear upon the Son of God. It is this: “Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and showeth him all the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them, and saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.” Or, as Luke states it, “All this power will I give thee, and the glory of them; for that is delivered unto me, and to whomsoever I will, I give it. If thou therefore wilt worship me, all shall be thine. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Get thee behind me, Satan; for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.” Luke 4: 6–8.
Here Satan offers all this world to Jesus if he will worship him. “But,” says one, “this is only the devil’s testimony, and he is a notorious liar. It does not prove that the world belonged to him just because he said so.” Very true; but this offer is said to be a temptation to Jesus. How is this? If the world belonged to Christ, and the devil was lying to him about it, did not Christ know it? Certainly he did. Then we would like to know how it was a temptation to him?
To illustrate: Mr. A. owns a large farm, well stocked, teams, wagons, &c. Mr. B., a poor vagabond, who owns nothing, comes to A.’s house, and says to him, “If you will sign a note of five hundred dollars with me, I will give you this house and farm, and all that is on it.” Would that be any inducement to A. to sign the note? None at all. He would say to B., “Why, sir, this all belongs to me now; why do you insult me in this way?” But reverse this affair: Suppose A. should offer B. half his farm if he would burn a certain man’s house, or commit some crime, would not this be a temptation? It most certainly would.
So with Jesus and Satan. If the kingdoms of this world were already in the hands of the Lord, this offer would be no temptation to Jesus. As it is, however, we see that Satan first exhausts all his other temptations, and then tries this as his masterpiece, his last chance of success. This indeed would be a mighty temptation, the strongest that could be set before Jesus. He could save his life, and yet gain the dominion of the world. Perhaps Satan presented it thus: “This world is now in my possession; before you can redeem it, you will have to lead a life of poverty, shame, and ignominy, and at last suffer a cruel death. But if you just bow down to me, I will give all the world into your hands, and you need not suffer and die for it.” But Jesus resisted him, and said, “Get thee behind me, Satan.”
Soon after this Jesus said, “The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.” Matt. 8: 20. This does not look much as though he owned all the kingdoms of this world. To his followers, Jesus said, “Ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.” John 15: 19. These testimonies are sufficient to establish, beyond dispute, the fact that this world was not in the hands of Jesus when he was here, but that he came to take it out of the hands of the usurper, Satan.
Paul mentions it as one of the mighty conquests of Jesus, that he spoiled principalities and powers, and made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it. Col. 2: 15. Jesus baffled all the devil’s arts, resisted his temptations, conquered him, and will soon come to take his usurped dominions from him. Thus Paul says, “In whom [Christ] also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise, which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory. Eph. 1: 13, 14. What is the “purchased possession” which will be the saints’ “inheritance” when it is “redeemed”? Surely, it is not Heaven; for that has never been purchased, neither can it be redeemed until it has been lost. By the Scriptures we learn that the saints will inherit the earth. “Blessed are the meek; for they shall inherit the earth. Matt. 5: 5. In Dan. 7: 27, we read thus: “And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High.”
Then this earth is to be given to the children of God; but it was once held by Satan, and is still in his hands. How is this change to be accomplished? I answer that Jesus has “purchased” it with his blood, and will “redeem” it when the “times of the restitution of all things” shall come. In this light we can understand what Paul means by saying that the Holy Spirit is the “earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession.”
Thus we see that through Jesus the earth is to be brought back from the dominion of Satan, and restored to the children of men.
REDEMPTION OF MAN.
But it will do man no good to redeem for him the earth which he has lost, unless he himself can also be redeemed, be brought out of the grave. To illustrate: take the case of the brothers who lost their farm, and were cast into prison. Their brother came over and redeemed the farm. If he had done nothing more for them, if he had gone home, had left them in prison, he would not have benefited them at all; for they could never have got themselves out of prison. So with the human race; they have lost their farm (the earth, Gen. 1: 26; Heb. 2: 8), and Jesus has purchased that back. Eph. 1: 13, 14. But they have also lost their liberty (Rom. 6: 16; 2 Pet. 2: 19), and are shut up in prison (the grave). Now it must be evident to all, that, unless man can be rescued from his prison, all that Jesus has done in regaining his possession will do him no good, as he himself is lost.
Then did Christ do anything toward getting man out of the grave? Yes; that was one part of his mission. Speaking of the fall of man, Paul says, “But now we see not yet all things put under him; but we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honor, that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.” Heb. 2: 8, 9. John bears a similar testimony. “And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world.” 1 John 4: 14. Paul says, “We trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men.” 1 Tim. 4: 10. Paul states most positively that Jesus will effect a resurrection from the dead, of every man of the race of Adam. “For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.” 1 Cor. 15: 21, 22.
God “sent him to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound.” Isa. 61: 1. He immediately proceeds to execute his commission. Speaking of the devil and his kingdom, Jesus said, “When a strong man armed keepeth his palace, his goods are in peace; but when a stronger than he shall come upon him, and overcome him, he taketh from him all his armor wherein he trusted, and divideth his spoils.” Luke 11: 21, 22. As we have seen, Satan was indeed a “strong man armed,” but Christ was a “stronger than he.” So when Jesus comes, Satan’s “palace” (the grave) and “goods” (the dead), which before were kept securely, are in danger. Of this Jesus said, “No man can enter into a strong man’s house, and spoil his goods, except he will first bind the strong man; and then he will spoil his house.” Mark 3: 27. The strong man (Satan) kept his house (the grave); and his goods (the dead) were secure till the stronger man (Jesus) came. Now did Jesus enter Satan’s house and disturb his goods? Let Paul answer: “For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that he was buried.” 1 Cor. 15: 3, 4. Yes, Jesus did enter the grave, the prison-house of the devil. Christ died and was buried, says Paul.
Now the all-important questions are, Is he able to come out again? Can he break the bands of death and of the grave? Is he stronger than the strong one? Satan has triumphed thus far; none have ever been able themselves to break his bolts and free themselves from his prison. Now the Son of God is in there; can Satan hold him? If he does, all is lost—man, the earth, and all. Jesus had said that he would be buried, and would rise again the third day. Now the critical moment has come; now comes the trial of strength. The devil has triumphed over poor, feeble man; but now he must measure strength with the Son of God! Satan assembles all his forces to hold the Saviour in the grave. The first day passes silently away, and Satan yet holds the power of death in his own hands. The second day rolls slowly by, and he still reigns supreme monarch of the grave. As the third day begins to dawn, Satan, with a hellish grin, flourishes the keys of death and the grave, and his sentries shout, “All’s well, All’s well; the Son of God yet sleeps! Another day, and we are safe!!” But hold! what is that? A blaze of light, like lightning, flashes upon them; a deafening noise like a peal of loudest thunder rends the air and makes the earth tremble. Satan and his host forget their charge, and flee in terror and dismay. The rocks rend, the earth quakes, the grave opens, and the Son of God comes forth!! With horror and confusion the devils seek their home, while through Heaven and earth the glad tidings ring, “Jesus has risen from the dead!”
“And did he rise?
Hear, O ye Nations! hear it, O ye Dead!
He rose! He rose! He burst the bars of death.
Lift up your heads, ye everlasting gates!
And give the King of glory to come in.”
“Oh, the burst gates! crushed sting! demolished throne!
Last gasp of vanquished death! Shout earth and Heaven!
This sum of good to man! whose nature then
Took wing, and mounted with him from the tomb.”
With a triumphant smile he looks upon the grave, and exclaims, “I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive forevermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell [hades, the grave] and of death.” Rev. 1: 18. Jesus entered the prison-house of Satan and came forth triumphant, bringing the keys of the grave with him. The devil once had the keys of the grave, that is, the power of death; but Christ, by his death and resurrection, broke the power of Satan, and took the keys of the grave into his own hands. Says Paul, “That through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil.” Heb. 2: 14. The devil had the power of death, but has not now, for Jesus took it from him.