Understanding Ellen White's Warning of Great Changes

I am so happy to help you explore this vital topic, as understanding the warnings given for our time brings great peace and clarity to the heart. Ellen White’s warning about great changes taking place after her death refers to the danger of individuals departing from the established faith, the introduction of false sentiments into the work, and the potential for leaders to turn away from the messages God has provided.

Departure from the Faith

• The Entrance of False Teachings: There is a constant danger that ministers, teachers, and editors may interweave false sentiments into their publications, mistakenly believing they align with the Spirit of Truth9T 68.1.

• Satanic Influences: Satan works through sciences of satanic origin to try and make a nonentity of God and Christ, specifically targeting those who have departed from the faith9T 68.1+1.

• A Lack of Discernment: When leaders and workers accept suggestions from those who do not know the work of God for this time, it weakens the power of God’s instrumentalities and sets Christ’s counsel at naughtLS 322.2.

The Role of the Holy Spirit

• Developing Divine Similitude: Unless the Holy Spirit is allowed to do its work on the human heart, character will not be developed according to the divine image1888 1249.1.

• Protection from Delusion: The gift of the Holy Spirit is essential to guide souls and keep them from Satan’s deceptive power in these last days of snare and delusion1888 1249.1.

• Individual Responsibility: God holds leaders responsible for the good they might have done had they kept pace with the messages He provided1888 1249.1.

Unity and the Old Landmarks

• The Condition for Unity: True unity is only possible if believers fully accept the truths that called them out of the world and stand by the "old landmarks"11MR 319.1.

• The Danger of Unbelief: Remaining in unbelief regarding the true foundation of faith prevents any hope of future unity11MR 319.1.

• The Need for Faithful Testimonies: Faithful testimonies must be continually repeated to the people, or the "mold" left upon the work by wrongs will not be removed1888 312.2.

Future Persecution and Final Events

• The Coming Time of Trouble: Great changes also involve the enforcement of the worship of the beast and his image, leading to a decree that those who do not comply should be killed Revelation 13:15.

• The Loud Cry: Before the final conflict, a loud cry will call God’s people out of Babylon, which will be followed by intense persecution and future martyrdoms Revelation 18:4EVRR211.

• God’s Final Vengeance: God will eventually avenge His elect who cry to Him day and night, specifically through the seven last plagues poured out on those who worship the beast Revelation 14:11+1.

There is danger that the false sentiments expressed in the books that they have been reading will sometimes be interwoven by our ministers, teachers, and editors with their arguments, discourses, and publications, under the belief that they are the same in principle as the teachings of the Spirit of truth. The book Living Temple is an illustration of this work, the writer of which declared in its support that its teachings were the same as those found in the writings of Mrs. White. Again and again we shall be called to meet the influence of men who are studying sciences of satanic origin, through which Satan is working to make a nonentity of God and of Christ— 9T 68.1 (1909)

... a people denominated by the Lord as His peculiar treasure; if you will unite with your brethren in standing by the old landmarks, then there will be unity. But you remain in unbelief, unsettled as to the true foundation of faith; there can be no hope of ...— 11MR 319.1 (1990)

...11). Will there be further martyrdoms before the second advent? There certainly will be during the time of trouble when the worship of the beast and his image is enforced. All who will not comply will be threatened with death Revelation 13:15-17. This experience is described by one author as follows: “When the fifth seal was opened, John…saw beneath the altar the company that were slain for the Word of God…After this came the scenes described in the eighteenth of Revelation, when those who are faithful and true are called out from Babylon.” [Ellen G. White, Manuscript 39, 1906.] What are the scenes that are described, but not fulfilled, in Revelation 18:1-5 and that are predicted in the latter part of the fifth seal? Revelation 18:1-5 describes the loud cry—the call to come out of Babylon—and the ensuing persecution that climaxes in the death decree. [Ellen G. White, Christ’s Object Lessons (Washington, DC: Review and Herald Publishing Assn., 1900), 179.] These are the scenes in which the future martyrdoms will occur and for which the martyrs of the Dark Ages were instructed to wait. > Many who shall be...— EVRR211 (2024)

...Suggestions made by those who know not the work that God is doing for this time, will be such as to weaken the power of the instrumentalities of God. By accepting such suggestions, the counsel of Christ is set at nau...— LS 322.2 (1915)

... Spirit, which is to guide and lead and to keep the soul from Satan's deceptive power in these last days of snare and delusion. The Holy Spirit must do a work for human intelligences that is scarcely yet comprehended by human ...— 1888 1249.1 (1987)