Heavenly Father, we invite your Holy Spirit to be in attendance at this time. We thank you for the work you've been doing here throughout this week. We again ask that you pour your Holy Spirit out upon us and that you would set aside the human instrument and speak to us the words that you would have us hear, the thoughts that you would have us understand, and that whatever message is conveyed here would be for your honor and your glory. We wish to understand what these jewels that you're bringing to light are and what they represent not only in prophecy but to us individually, and we ask you to continue the work that you've been doing here on this mountaintop this week at this time, in Jesus' name, amen. You will find that in biblical history, in every generation, there is a special truth for that generation. Sister White says that over and over again, and as you look at the special truth, you will find that there's always resistance raised against that special truth for each generation. Daniel 12 speaks about the wise understanding the increase of knowledge, but the wicked do not understand. This is identifying the controversy over the message for every generation, and all those generations' testimony comes down to this generation, so as you understand and present this message, you will find that there are opponents of this message that outnumber those that are understanding this message, and they have many arguments that they bring. They are all weak and easily identified from the scriptures in the spirit of prophecy as false reasoning, but nonetheless, until you understand those arguments for yourself and where to go to refute them, it's a work that the Lord allows to happen in each of us. One of the arguments that is out there is, it's just, you know, how can anyone say that the latter rain is falling? You're going to hear that if you haven't heard that before, and brothers and sisters, everything that we're saying here, everything we're teaching, is an aspect of the latter rain message. Whether it's returning to the foundations, that's part of the latter rain message. Whether it's Daniel 11, 40 to 45, that's part of the latter rain message. Whether it's the third woe, that's the latter rain message. They're all, you can all put them under the umbrella of the latter rain. What we're going to share here is, in my mind, it's one of the, if we can convey the thought in two presentations, it's one of the strongest evidences that the latter rain is falling. Turn with me, if you would, to Jeremiah 6, 16. I think we've studied enough of these ideas here, prophetic truths, that you can probably begin to see the Bible opened up a little bit more than maybe you've noticed before. If we had the time, it would be nice just to walk through all the way, Jeremiah 6, several passages in the scripture like that. But in verse 16, it says, Thus saith the Lord, Stand ye in the way, and see, and ask for the old path, where is the good way, and walk therein, and you shall find rest for your souls. When you trace down rest and refreshing in the Bible, this is the latter rain. The rest and the refreshing is the latter rain. Okay, on the seventh day, the Lord rested and He was refreshed, and you can take that theme through the Bible. Sister White and Greg Conover, 611, says the refreshing is the latter rain. Isaiah 28 says this is the refreshing. What's the refreshing? The teaching method of line upon line, line upon line, here a little, there a little. This is the refreshing, yet they would not hear. The refreshing is a message, and here in Jeremiah 6, 16, it says you will find rest for your souls, but they said we will not walk therein. There's going to be a resistance to returning to the foundational truths. But notice the next verse. Also I set watchmen over you, saying, Hearken to the sound of the trumpet. Also I set watchmen over you, telling you that on September 11, 2001, the seventh trumpet, the third woe, arrived in history. Also I set watchmen over you, saying, Hearken to the sound of the trumpet. But they said, We will not, what, hearken. So you see, in here, we've got a return to the foundations. We've got the third woe, both latter rain components. Let's read on. Therefore, hear ye, nations, and know, O congregation, what is among them. Behold, I will bring evil upon this people, even the fruit of their thoughts, because they have not hearkened unto me, nor to my law, but rejected it. Strong delusion for these people that will not hearken to it, second Thessalonians. We've been dealing with that. Continuing on. To what purpose cometh there to me incense from Sheba, and sweet cane from a far country? Your burnt offerings are not acceptable, nor your sacrifice is sweet unto me. For thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will lay stumbling blocks before this people. Strong delusion. And the fathers and the sons together shall fall upon them, the neighbor and his friend shall perish. Thus saith the Lord, Behold, the people come from the north country. Who's the people that come from the north country? King of the north, Daniel 11, 40 to 45. The whole Bible is dealing with this message that we're dealing with, and this message is the latter rain message. And when you understand that, you're going to realize that the majority of Adventism will not hearken. You have to enter into that experience to develop the spiritual muscle to stand during the Sunday Law crisis when all your earthly support is cut off and the whole world is turned against you. No one goes to the Olympics and starts right there on that day and says, okay, I'm going to run this race. They're practicing for years before they get to the Olympics. Taking this message to the Adventist church is our pre-Olympic practice, to be able to run the Olympic race in the Sunday Law crisis. So this next presentation is about the latter rain also. It will be a little bit different, perhaps, than you've ever approached the seven churches. As a time, I'm going to move through these things, maybe point you to some of the quotes in the notes, and maybe read some of them, but not all of them. The first thing that you need to understand if you're going to follow this, I believe, is that as Adventists, we pretty much understand the basics of the seven churches. The seven churches represent the history of the Christian church from the time of the disciples to the end of the world. But we should know, we may have never thought about it, that in those seven churches, it's more than one line of truth. For instance, the seven churches all existed when John was given the revelation. They were literal churches. So the message to the seven churches was a literal message to those Christian churches at that time. That's one line of truth. A second line of truth is that those churches represent the history of Christianity from the time of John to the end of the world. That's a second line of truth. Another line of truth is that the counsel to each of the seven churches, if you run the Spirit of Prophecy, you will find those counsels, that Sister White will take those counsels and she will apply them to individual Christians in the testimonies. So there's a third line of truth connected with the seven churches. A fourth line is that Sister White will take the counsels to the seven churches and she'll apply them to the church at large, to the Adventist church. So there's a fourth line of truth. And all I'm wanting you to see here is that the seven churches are not a singular line of truth, because we're going to show you a line of truth here with the seven churches that you may not have ever understood before, and you may be thinking to yourself, well, is he denying what we already understood? And the answer is no. It's just another line of truth that the line of the tribe of Judah has opened up, okay? Now there are people, as Pastor Stenke was saying in the last presentation, that take the trumpets and the seals and they place them at the end of the world, famous ministries, not-so-famous ministry. Brothers and sisters, if you're going to stay on the foundations, if you do that, you're off the foundation, okay? If you say that the pioneers were incorrect and placed the seals and trumpets at the end of the world, you're off the foundation. There's another argument, though. Some people say, no, I accept the pioneer understanding of the churches, the seals and the trumpets, but I'm looking for a second application. Theirs is the first application, this is the second application, okay? Prophecy is that way, okay? There are prophecies that have been fulfilled and they're repeated. There are first and second applications, but it can't be with the churches, seals and trumpets, can't be. Number one, the pioneer understanding, if you're going to stay on the foundations, the pioneers understood that the churches, seals and trumpets were one prophecy. They were one prophecy identifying the same history. The seven churches represented the history of the Christian dispensation from the disciples to the end of the world and it was dealing about the internal history within the church. The pioneers believed the seven seals represented that same history, but it was representing the history outside the Christian church and that the seven trumpets were representing the providential forces during that very same history that the Lord used to judge Rome. And for the pioneer understanding, you can't separate the churches, seals and trumpets, they're all one unit of thought, and you can't have a secondary application for them because, because, and this is important to get in your head, if you're going to maintain the pioneer understanding, we're now living in the time of the seventh church, the seventh seal, the seventh trumpet, and until that finishes, until that prophetic history is over, you can't have a second application. The seventh church, seal and trumpet would have to finish before you started to go through a reapplication of the first church, seal and trumpet. So anybody that's putting these at the end of the world has left the foundations. That being said, page 262, first paragraph there, the prophecies relating to the last days especially demand our study. The third paragraph, speaking of the book of Revelation, this instruction is of the greatest importance to us for we're living in the last days of this earth's history. Then we shall enter upon the fulfillment of the events. One of the reasons if you, I hope you read this quote later, one of the reasons that I have this quote in here is that in here when Sister White identifies Revelation as the gospel, the gospel of Revelation, she emphasizes that it's identifying events. Some people struggle about, they hear the prophetic word and they insist, well I hear a lot of prophecy but I don't see Jesus in it. Revelation is the gospel, and as Sister White here in this passage is identifying the book of Revelation as the gospel, the gospel that Christ came to present to John in the Revelation, then she explains that it's identifying the events at the end of the world. Somehow these prophetic events are the gospel, even if we are not willing to see it. Second to the last paragraph, the book of Revelation must be open to the people, and that's what we're going to try to do a little bit of here. Many have been taught that it is a sealed book but it's sealed only to those who reject truth and light. The truth that it contains must be proclaimed that the people may have opportunity to prepare for the events which are soon to take place. Next paragraph, the perils of the last days are upon us and in our work we are to warn the people of the danger that they are in, that not the solemn scenes that prophecy has revealed are soon to take place, be left untouched. Testimonies, Volume 8, the solemn messages that have been given in their order in the Revelation are to occupy the first place in the minds of God's people. Nothing else is to be allowed to engross their attention. You have a quote from Acts of the Apostles where she identifies, as we understand the seven churches represent the history of the Christian church from the time of the disciples to the end of the world and that as Christ walks among the seven candlesticks it's showing his close relationship with each of these churches. I'm on page 263 on the top. It's our responsibility if we're going to be among the 144,000 to follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth and I would submit to you that one of the primary ways that the 144,000 follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth is they follow him as he opens the prophetic word to them at the end of the world and they follow him through the book of Revelation and Daniel as he opens different insights. This is how the 144,000 follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth and in Revelation 2 and 3 where he goeth is he's moving through these seven churches and these seven churches, if you follow the prophetic message in these seven churches, he takes us very far. You have a quote here from Review and Herald under Miller's Rules. She says, those who are engaged in proclaiming the third angel's message are searching the scriptures upon the same plan that Father Miller adopted. In this complete quote, she quotes the first five or six rules of Miller's Rules of Prophetic Interpretation and then puts her endorsement on all of his rules and then makes this statement. She's endorsing Miller's Rules and she's saying the 144,000, the Bereans at the end of the world that are following the Lamb as he opens the prophetic word are following the same rules that William Miller adopted. And so I have a quote here from William Miller speaking of the seven churches. The seven churches of Asia is a history of the church of Christ in her seven forms in all her windings and turnings and all her prosperity and adversity from the days of the apostles down to the end of the world. We understand that. And he goes on to say the seven seals are a history of the transactions of the powers of the kings of the earth over the church. Notice he's making a distinction. The same history, but the seals are representing the external history. These churches are representing the internal history. Notice at the bottom of the page, this is Uriah Smith. I like the way he expresses it. The seals are introduced to our notice in the fourth, fifth, and sixth chapters of Revelation. The scenes presented under these seals are brought to view in Revelation 6 and the first verse of Revelation 8. They evidently cover events with which the church is connected from the opening of the dispensation to the coming of Christ. Now here's the part I like the way that Uriah Smith expresses it. It clicks for me. While the seven churches present the internal history of the church, the seven seals bring to view the great events of its external history. If nothing else, you should see that the pioneer approach understands that you can't separate the seals from the churches. You can't say, yes, I believe that the seven churches represent the history of the Christian dispensation from the time of the disciples until the end of the world, but the seven churches are events at the end of the world, because you've just separated them. The pioneer understanding is that they are the same prophecy, telling two different aspects of the same prophecy. Is everybody okay? Yeah, seven churches and seven seals, you can't separate them. Okay, keep me on track. Now the next quote is from James White. It's a point that we've got to develop a little bit before we get into the actual study. From Review and Herald, February 12, 1857, we have now traced the churches, the seals, and the beast or living beings as far as they will compare as covering the same periods of time. The seals are seven in number, the beast but four. What he's saying is, what we're saying here is this, is the pioneers understood that Ephesus was the history of the first seal, that Smyrna is the history of the second seal, Pergamos is the history of the third seal, Thyatira is the history of the fourth seal. But in these seals, you have the command to come and see. You have the four horses, you have the beast, okay? And James White is going to say, but you don't have the beast or the command in these last three seals, because he's identifying a distinction of four, three distinction that runs through all of this, that you need to notate that there are a unit of seven, but there's also a truth compared in this four, three combination. It's easy to see when you realize that the first, second, third, fourth seal are four horses, are they not? But the last three seals are not horses. And the first four trumpets are trumpets, but what are the last three trumpets? They're trumpets, but they're also wolves, okay? So there's a distinction, and you can show that there's also a distinction in the last three churches. But we're just putting some of these thoughts, we're not really where we're going yet, putting some of these thoughts together. I'm going to continue on with James White, the seals are seven in number, the beast before, and it may be, this is the second paragraph, third paragraph actually, on the top of page 264, and it may be well here to notice that at the opening of the first, second, third, and fourth seals, the first, second, third, and fourth beast are heard to say, come and see, but when the fifth, sixth, and seventh seals are open, there is no such voice heard. Neither do the last three churches and the last three seals compare as covering the same periods of time as the first four churches and the first four seals. Scholars understood that even though the seals are a parallel history to the seven churches, when it comes to the fifth seal, sixth seal, and seventh seal, that the progressive history stops, and the seals, the fifth, sixth, seventh seal are teaching truth, they're teaching truth, but they're not a progressive history. And that's what James White is saying here. In fact, Sister White plainly places the fifth seal, and the fifth seal you have the altar with the souls underneath it that had been murdered during the dark ages crying out, how long? And Sister White places the fifth seal where? In Revelation 18. The fourth church, Thyatira, ends in 1798, so the fourth seal ends in 1798, but inspiration places the fifth seal at the end of the world during the Sunday Law persecution that's about to take place. So there's a break in the progressive history between the fourth and fifth seal, okay? That's pioneer logic, pioneer understanding. Now we're going to move into the beginning of our study, and we're not going to take a lot of time with this, but under on page 264 where it says, Pergamos and Thyatira, brothers and sisters, Sister White often says that what we need to do as Seventh-day Adventists is learn to reason from cause to effect, okay? Many times we don't reason from cause to effect. When you approach the churches, you will see cause and effect, you will see a relationship. You can't take away Ephesus from Smyrna, they go together. Ephesus is the white horse, the first seal, it's a church triumphant, okay? They've received the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, they're pure and holy, okay? Do you follow me? But the Bible says, all those that live godly in Christ Jesus will what? This is the persecution. If you have a persecution time period, you know it's been preceded by someone living godly in Christ Jesus, and if you have a period where someone's living godly in Christ Jesus, it's going to be followed by a persecution time period, right? Cause and effect can't separate them. Same with Pergamos and Thyatira, you can't separate them. Pergamos is the history of Constantine and the compromise that comes into the Christian church that prepares the way for Thyatira when the papacy ruled the world. There has to, according to Second Thessalonians, there had to be a falling away first. The church has to go into apostasy to prepare the way for the man of sin, the papacy. Pergamos and Thyatira cannot be separated. If you have a history that's represented by Pergamos, it's going to be followed by Thyatira. If you have a history represented by Thyatira, it will be preceded by Pergamos. Do you follow me? Okay. So some of these churches, you have to reason cause and effect, and we're going to begin with Pergamos and Thyatira, and you'll see where we're going, perhaps. You have on your paper, I'm not going to read all these, because we are really pressed for time, but it says, He who now letteth and that wicked. And underneath it, you have Second Thessalonians 2, 5 through 8. Second Thessalonians 2, 5 through 8, is identifying the relationship of paganism and the papacy, and it's identifying that paganism was restraining the papacy from taking control of the world, and it would continue to prevent the papacy from taking control of the world until it was taken out of the way. That is correct, pioneer understanding of Second Thessalonians 2, and the point is, in those verses, Pergamos is paganism that's restraining Thyatira, the man of sin. Brothers and sisters, I'm assuming a lot. I'm assuming that at Seventh-day Adventists, at the end of the world, we already have a little bit of familiarity with the seven churches, all right? This is the time period of compromise, Constantine, First Sunday Law, 321, national apostasies followed by national ruins, so in 330, the kingdom is divided into east and west, and it begins to crumble, because national apostasy, the Sunday Law in 321, brings national ruin. And how is the national ruin accomplished? That's seven trumpets, okay? We should know these things. Pergamos is the pagan history that prepares the way for the papal history of Thyatira from 538 to 1798. If you understand that, say amen. So Pergamos and Thyatira is also Second Thessalonians 2, verses 5 through 8. But in Revelation 13, 2, the next quote, it says, the dragon, and the dragon, the dragon in Revelation 12 is the same dragon in Revelation 13. And when Sister White is commenting on the dragon in Revelation 12 in the Great Controversy, she says, the dragon in Revelation 12 is Satan, but in a secondary sense, it is pagan Rome. So the dragon in Revelation 13, 2, is pagan Rome, and it says that pagan Rome gave the papacy, Thyatira, three things. Pagan Rome gives the papacy three things, and pagan Rome removes three things for the papacy. Pagan Rome removes the Heruli, the Ostrogoths, and the Vandals, but it gives it its power, seat, and authority. So in Revelation 13, 2, when the dragon, Pergamos, gives its power, seat, and authority to the papacy, you're seeing the history of Pergamos and Thyatira. Do you follow me? Okay. All right. That's two other lines in prophecy that are Pergamos and Thyatira, correct? Line upon line. In Daniel 8, verse 11 and 12, I'll read this, Ye, he magnified himself even to the prince of the host, and by him the daily sacrifice was taken away, and the place of his sanctuary was cast down. And a host was given him against the daily sacrifice by reason of transgression, and it cast down the truth to the ground, and practiced and prospered. Haven't got time to defend this, I'm just going to tell you what this is. Verse 11 is pagan Rome. It says, pagan Rome magnified himself to Christ, the prince of the host, at his birth and at his death, and through pagan Rome, paganism was lifted up and exalted, and the place of pagan Rome's sanctuary, which was the city of Rome, was cast down by Constantine in the year 330, when he moved the capital of the empire from the city of Rome to Constantinople. Verse 11 is dealing with pagan Rome, and verse 12 says, and a host, military strength, is given to the papacy by the reason of transgression, by the reason of combination of church and state, the military power of pagan Rome was given over into the hands of the papacy, and the papacy cast down the truth, and it practiced, and it prospered for 1260 years. So Daniel 8.11 is, once again, Pergamos and Thyatira, follow me? Even if you're not too settled in on the daily, all of that is correct. But do you see that it's Pergamos and Thyatira? You'll see where I'm going in one moment. Okay, in the next one, and by the way, as each of these lines of prophecy are dealing with history of Pergamos and Thyatira, they're giving us another aspect of the history. God isn't redundant, he's just not repeating things, the same thing over and over again. When you bring these all together, you're getting a clear picture of Pergamos and Thyatira. We're not taking time to deal with those histories, we're trying to demonstrate a principle where we're going to go way beyond Pergamos and Thyatira, so just bear with me. Daniel 12.11, from the time the daily, from the time paganism, Pergamos, is taken away. The resistance of paganism to the rise of the papacy was brought to an end at the Battle of the Visigoths in the year 508. It was taken away from that time, 508, in order to set up Thyatira. Daniel 12.11 is telling another historical relationship between Pergamos and Thyatira. Now we're where we want to go, and we dealt with this at the beginning of the week when they were going over Daniel 11.40-45, they dealt with Daniel 11.30-31, and Daniel 11.30 is pagan Rome, and verse 31 is papal Rome. These two verses are telling how the papacy is placed on the throne of the world. When you get to the end of verse 31, it says, "...and they shall place the abomination that maketh desolate." That's the papacy. They were placed on the throne of the earth in 538, and verses 30-31 of Daniel 11 is describing the process of how pagan Rome, what it did to help place the papacy on the throne of the earth. Because we read at the beginning of the week, and it's here in your quote, but we don't have to read it because we've already read it a couple of times. Sister White quotes Daniel 11 verses 30-36, and as soon as she finishes verse 36, what does she say? "...seen similar to those described in these words will take place." So what has she just done? What has she just done? Sister White is saying that verses 30-31, they're going to be repeated, but we're dealing with verses 30-31, you can add 36, 36 is the history, all the way to 36 is the history of Thyatira. Verses 30-36 is the history of Pergamos and Thyatira, and Sister White is saying that the history of Pergamos and Thyatira is repeated in the history of Laodicea. You see it? So Laodicea is Pergamos and Thyatira. Okay, now, we've read more than once in this papacy school from early writings, page 259, and there's a paragraph that I've spoken about, I've heard others spoken about, it's in this notebook more than once, and I better follow my notes, okay, I'll follow my notes. The third and fourth seal, Pergamos and Thyatira are the third and fourth seal, okay? Now notice, under the third and fourth seal on page 265, the third and fourth seal are Revelation 6, verses 6-8, right? You got it on your paper. Notice what Sister White says, the same spirit is seen today that is represented in Revelation 6, 6-8, history is to be repeated. That which has been will be again. Sister White is here saying that the third and fourth seal are going to be repeated in the history of Laodicea. You see it? Do you know what we're doing? Just so you know where we're going, what we're doing, brothers and sisters, is we're taking the Bible, or the Lord's taking the Bible, and He's shrinking it down to the history of Laodicea, and the history of Laodicea is the history of the end of the world, and the history of the end of the world is the events connected with the close of probation, and the events connected with the close of probation is Daniel 11, 40-45, the whole Bible is getting shrunk down and placed upon the platform of Daniel 11, 40-45, because the whole Bible is repeated at the end of the world, and the pattern of that repetition is illustrated in the last six verses of Daniel 11, and on September 11, 2001, when the mighty angel came down with the little book open in his hand, he opened to his students of prophecy the fact that the whole Bible is to be shrunk into a little book, and God's people are to eat it, and the only way they can understand the little book is if they understand the last six verses of Daniel 11. That's where we're going with this, but we're going beyond that if we get where we're supposed to go. Ephesus and Smyrna, I already said it, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. Sister White says, this is Smyrna, this is Ephesus, right? Ephesus they were living godly, they suffered persecution in Smyrna, Maranatha, page 199, there will be many martyrs. Smyrna is repeated at the end of the world, and so is Ephesus. Early writings, page 259, Sister White talks about a progressive testing process. Those that would not receive the message of John the Baptist could not be benefited by the teachings of Jesus. We've read that, right? And the next paragraph, she moves into the history of the Millerites, she says those that rejected the first angel's message could not be benefited by the second angel's message. So what is she doing there? She's saying that Ephesus illustrates Philadelphia. This is the Millerites, and this is the history of Ephesus. Those that rejected the message of John the Baptist could not be benefited by the teachings of Jesus, and immediately after that paragraph, those that rejected the first angel's message in the history of Philadelphia, they were benefited by the second angel's message. So Sister White is saying that Ephesus is a type of Philadelphia, but brothers and sisters, what's the main thing we've been teaching here this week? That the Millerite history, Philadelphia, is repeated in the history of the 144,000 Laodicea. So not only is Ephesus repeated in Laodicea, Philadelphia is repeated. Do you see it? I see you look like, it gets that way, don't force it, it's really very simple. All the prophets are speaking about the end of the world, all the stories in the Bible are examples of the end of the world. Those examples will find their fulfillment in histories that are represented by these histories. Alright? Okay? I mean, you've already been prepared by Pastor Carrasco to see a real easy jump. There was a reform movement in the time of Ephesus, right? The Reformed Movement of Christ, which paralleled the Reform Movement of Moses, which paralleled the Reformed Movement of Elijah, which paralleled the Reformed Movement of Noah, which paralleled the Reformed Movement of the Three Decrees, which paralleled the Reformed Movement of the Millarites, and they all prefigured the Final Reformed Movement of the 144,000. So every one of those histories, Noah, Elijah, Nehemiah, Moses, Christ, they all come down here to Laodicea, and the 144,000, right? That's all we're doing, so relax, okay? There's some more quotes about how Ephesus is repeated in Laodicea. I'm passing over those. I think you've got that, and now sometimes we're not familiar with this, but the pioneers understood that in the Millarite history, which is Philadelphia, that that history consisted of three churches that were contemporary, all right? The Millarites believed that those that were faithful in the Millarite movement were Philadelphians. Those that were unfaithful in the Millarite movement were Laodiceans, but they were carrying a message to those outside the Millarite movement, and they were Sardinians or whatever. All three of the churches they believed were contemporary in their history. Of course, Sardis means those that have escaped. So when the Millarite history is repeated at the end of the world, and by the way, Sister White says that the foolish virgins are Laodiceans. Did you know that? She says that. So if the foolish virgins are Laodiceans, who's the wise virgins? Philadelphians, okay? So in Adventism, when the parable of the ten virgins is fulfilled, there's going to be foolish virgins and wise virgins, right? But who's those people outside of Adventism? Well, it's Daniel 11, verse 41. Even Edom and Moab and the chief of the children of Ammon, what will they do? They will escape the hand of the papacy, and Sardis means those that have escaped. So at the end of the world, you've got the wise virgins of Adventism. You've got the foolish virgins of Adventism. And you've got the eleventh hour workers. And the Millarites understood that same threefold division, and why wouldn't they? Our day and age is a repetition of the Millarite history. The last three churches have a distinction between the first four in the sense that they have this connection. And the last three churches have a distinction between the first four churches. The last three seals have a distinction between the first four seals. And the last three trumpets are woes, making a distinction between the first four trumpets. So to identify this truth is consistent with the structure that's in the book of Revelation. So you can see on page 266 a quote from Joseph Bates where he's talking about this threefold division in the Millarite history of Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea. But before that, from manuscript releases, volume 18, page 193, where do we find in the book of Revelation? In which chapter do we find Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea? That's chapter three, is it not? So Sister White says here, oh, what a description. How many there are in this fearful condition. I earnestly entreat every minister to study the third chapter of Revelation, for in it is portrayed the condition of things existing in the last days. Sister White says, this is Revelation chapter three, that Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea represent the condition of things existing in the history of Laodicea. So we also have Sardis here in the history of Laodicea. Now, OK, you'll see the quote from Taylor Bunch that gives you the definition of Sardis at the bottom of the page. And now if you think that this is something that is a little bit new, I want to read you some quotes from Haskell's book on Revelation on page 267, Story of the Seer of Patmos. From page 69 it says, it should be remembered that as the experience of Ephesus, Smyrna, and Pergamos will be repeated in the last church before the second coming of Christ, so the history of Thyatira will have its counterpart in the last generation. OK, Haskell's teaching this very thing. And then he's speaking to William Miller, he says, he applied the test, but all pointed forward to the year 1843 is the time when the world must welcome its savior. The condition of the people at the first advent of Christ, Ephesus, was now repeated in Philadelphia in the Millerite history. He's teaching this same principle. There was a time in the history of Pergamos when Christianity thought paganism was dead, but in reality the religion which was apparently vanquished had conquered. Paganism baptized stepped into the church. In the days of Sardis, this history was repeated. OK, so he's dealing with this very principle. On this last church, the remnant shine the accumulated rays of all past ages. We're just at the threshold of our study. What I'm saying, brothers and sisters, is you can demonstrate, and I know I was flying, and I wish we could have flown faster, what we're saying is that another line of truth represented by the seven churches is that the history of all seven churches is repeated at the end of the world in the history of Laodicea. Now we're going to take a step that Elder Haskell didn't make. Ancient Israel. This is Sister White. The trials of the children of Israel and their attitude just before the first coming of Christ illustrate the position of the people of God and their experience before the second coming of Christ. Satan's snares are laid for us as verily as they were laid for the children of Israel just prior to their entrance into the land of Canaan. We are repeating the history of that people. We're repeating the history of the children of Israel just before they went into the land of Canaan. When was that? When was that? She's now saying we're repeating the history of ancient Israel, isn't she? Now let's read on to the last paragraph on that page, or the third paragraph. This history should be a solemn warning to us. Last paragraph, this song was not historical but prophetic while it recounted the wonderful dealings of God with his people with ancient Israel in the past, it also foreshadowed the great events of the future. Ancient Israel evidently is an illustration of the end of the world. Next paragraph on the top of page 268 says, the Apostle Paul plainly states that the experience of the Israelites in their travels has been recorded for the benefits of those living in this age of the world, those upon whom the ends of the world have come. We do not consider that our dangers are any less than those of the Hebrews but greater. Now, we're just going to work from the board here because of time and because I need to slow down. It's at this point where I think I have the greatest potential of losing you. This is ancient Israel. This is modern Israel, alright? Modern Israel begins with Ephesus, right? So this is the starting point. This is the first church, modern Israel. But Ephesus is the history of what? What reform movement took place in Ephesus? The reform movement of Christ. John the Baptist, Christ, Pentecost, correct? And in that history, the history here, this reform movement, what happened to Stephen? That was the end of ancient Israel, wasn't it? So Ephesus, for the Christian church, is Laodicea for ancient Israel, is it not? Now, brothers and sisters, the primary type of modern Israel is ancient Israel and we're about to show you that ancient Israel is governed by the seven churches, the same way that modern Israel was governed by the seven churches, type, anti-type. You've just seen, without realizing where you were admitting to, that Ephesus, the first step in the Christian church, is the last step for ancient Israel and we went through this reform movement. The last step for ancient Israel was the reform movement of Christ, was it not? It began with John the Baptist, then the Sanhedrin chose that Christ must die, activities of the enemy, then you had the cross of Christ, then you had Pentecost, everyone remember that? Say amen. And that was the end of ancient Israel and what did it do? It was a perfect match to the beginning of ancient Israel, was it not? John the Baptist was Moses, right? The Sanhedrin was Pharaoh saying, you've got to gather your own straw. The cross was on the very day of the year that they celebrated what? Passover. The disappointment of the Hebrews by the Red Sea was paralleling the disappointment of the disciples immediately after the cross and after the cross they celebrated Pentecost which was a commemoration of what? Pentecost, the receiving of the law. So this Laodicea for ancient Israel parallels the beginning of ancient Israel, so Moses was Ephesus for ancient Israel, right? Do you see it? Do you at least see the principle even if you're not ready to swallow it at this point? Because it's there. It's there. Now brothers and sisters, as you're thinking and you're wondering, is this going a little bit too far? Let me ask you a different sort of question. Do you think that this kind of thing could be invented by a human being? Brothers and sisters, you've already walked through the Reform movements. They're the same. Let me read you something here under Thyatira. I hope we all know just automatically that Thyatira represents the Dark Ages from 538 to 1798. That's Thyatira, okay? Notice this quote from Prophets and Kings, page 714. Today, the Church of God is free to carry forward to completion the divine plan for the salvation of a lost race. For many centuries, God's people suffered a restriction of their liberties. The preaching of the gospel in its purity was prohibited and the severest penalties were visited upon those who dared disobey the mandates of men. As a consequence, the Lord's great moral vineyard was almost wholly unoccupied. This is the time period of Thyatira. If you understand that, say amen. Continuing on, the people were deprived of the light of God's word. The darkness of error and superstition threatened to blot out a knowledge of true religion. God's church on earth was as verily in captivity during this long period of relentless persecution as were the children of Israel held captive in Babylon during the period of exile. Wow, that means that the 70 years of captivity in Babylon is Thyatira for ancient Israel. Do you see it? Now, brother, it's easy to see, okay? It's easy to see. That's what Sister White just said. She says the 1260 years was Thyatira, amen? She's saying, but for ancient Israel, the 70 years was Thyatira, amen? And at the end of the 1260 years, you're in 1798, correct? Time of the end. And as you come out of the time of the end, you have one message, two messages, third messages that brings you to what? To 1844. But when they came out of Babylon after the 70 years, remember that story? When ancient Israel came out of Babylon, prefiguring Israel coming out of spiritual Babylon, okay? When they came out, they came out on one decree, two decree, three decree. But the darkness that preceded spiritual Israel, the 1260 years was Thyatira, and the darkness that preceded ancient Israel was the 70 years. They were both captivities in Babylon, and they're brought out on a three-step process. And how could it be an accident that at this third step, you go 2300 years into the future, and you end at this third step? This is tied together. Thyatira for ancient Israel is the 70 years, and Thyatira for modern Israel is the 1260 years. Do you see it? It's airtight, okay? What does it mean? What does it mean? Let me show you something with switch gears. This was just to try to get you to think through it. I don't think that I want that up there, because I don't know that it's that understandable. Turn with me to Revelation 6. In Revelation 6, verse 9, we're going to read about the fifth seal. Now what we're saying is that Ephesus, Myrna, Pergamos, and Thyatira represent the history represented by the first, second, third, and fourth seal, okay? And in the fifth seal, which Sister White places off at the end of the world, it says, And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God and for the testimony which they held, and they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord? In the fifth seal, in the fifth seal, the question is raised, How long? Okay? So let me put the question down here, How long? This is the fifth seal for modern Israel, and the question is, How long? You following the logic I'm laying out here? Turn with me, if you would, to Zechariah. This is, well, you can go to your notes, page 268. We only have about, what is it, six pages to cover in four minutes. It's not going to happen, all right? So let's just read together on top of page 269, Zechariah 6, 1 through 8, and we'll just continue on in our next presentation and not lose this train of thought. And I turned and lifted up mine eyes, and looked, and behold, there came four chariots out from between the two mountains, and the mountains were mountains of brass. What pulls a chariot? In the first chariot were red horses, in the second chariot black horses, in the third chariot white horses, in the fourth chariot grizzled and bay horses. Then I answered and said unto the angel that talked with me, What are these, my Lord? And the angel answered and said unto me, These are the four spirits of heaven, which go forth from standing before the Lord of all the earth. The black horses which are therein go forth into the north country, and the white go forth after them, and the grizzled go forth toward the south country, and the bay went forth and sought to go that he might walk to and fro through the earth. And he said, Get you hence, walk to and fro through the earth. So they walked to and fro through the earth. Then he cried upon me and spake unto me, saying, Behold, these that go to the north country have quieted my spirit in the north country. There are four spirits, four chariots pulled by four horses, that are under the direction of the Lord, and after Zechariah sees them walking to and fro in the earth, what they have accomplished is that they have quieted the Lord's spirit in the north country. Isaiah 14, 1-7 will tell us what it means that the earth is quiet and at rest. You have it underneath there, 1-7 from Isaiah 14, For the Lord will have mercy on Jacob and will yet choose Jerusalem, and set them in their own land, and the strangers shall be joined with them, and they shall cleave to the house of Jacob, and the people shall take them and bring them to their place, and the house of Israel shall possess them in the land of the Lord for servants and handmaids, and they shall take them captives, who captives they were, and they shall rule over their oppressors. And it shall come to pass in the day that the Lord shall give thee rest from thy sorrow and from thy fear, and from thy hard bondage wherein thou wast made to serve, that thou shalt take up this proverb against the king of Babylon, and say, How hath the oppressors ceased? The golden city ceased. The Lord hath broken the staff of the wicked, and the scepter of the rulers. He who smote the people in wrath with a continual stroke, he that ruled the nations in anger is persecuted, and none hindereth. The whole world is at rest and is quiet. When the earth is made to be at rest and is made to be quiet is at the end of the Babylonian captivity. And in Zechariah, we have these four spirits of heaven that bring the earth to rest and are quiet. And what I'm saying is they're representing a work that is accomplished by the Lord that brings to a conclusion the captivity in Babylon. Now notice, I'm turning to my Bible, I'm going to get out of the notes because I got to get finished here. In Zechariah chapter 1, verse 7, I want to show you something here. Starting in verse 7, and I'll tie these thoughts together in a minute, just give me a little bit of patience here. Starting in verse 12. After he sees what we read about the four spirits bringing the earth to rest, in verse 11 it says, all the earth set as still as it is at rest, and what I'm saying, Isaiah's teaching is it's when the Babylonian captivity is finished, the earth is quiet and at rest. And then in verse 12 it says this, then the angel of the Lord answered and said, O Lord of hosts. Any accidents in the word of God? Now, verse 12, verse 12, then the angel of the Lord answered and said, O Lord of hosts, how long will thou not have mercy on Jerusalem and on the cities of Judah, against which thou hast had indignation threescore and ten years? What's the threescore and ten years? Seventy years. As soon as this seventy years captivity has ended, we see the crash, which Sister White says is a parallel history to the 1260 years captivity of spiritual Israel and spiritual Babylon. As soon as this seventy years of captivity has ended, these four spirits at the beginning of Zechariah have caused the earth to be at rest, and Isaiah says the earth is at rest at the end of the Babylonian captivity, and as soon as this is accomplished, we have a question about how long, which is paralleling when the earth is made to rest at the end of this Babylonian captivity, spiritual Babylon, and as soon as that's finished, and what finishes that is four horses, first seal, second seal, third seal, and under the fourth seal, the fourth horse, here it's four chariots, the question is how long, and what I'm saying to you is that you can demonstrate that not only are all seven churches illustrated in the history of ancient Israel, but also are the seven seals illustrated in the history of ancient Israel, and as you follow the lamb, whithersoever he goeth, as he begins to walk through the candlesticks in the book of Revelation, he uses these truths to shrink the Bible down to one history, the history of Laodicea, which is Daniel 11, 40 to 45, and once you're at that position, where we're not quite there yet, then there is one of the strongest arguments that we're now in the latter reign, that's recorded in God's Word. Shall we pray? Heavenly Father, we thank you for moving through the candlesticks and allowing us to follow you, but we know as Laodiceans, sleeping virgins here at the end of the world, as we're waking up now, we have some dust in our eyes, some cloudiness in our thoughts, we ask that you continue to help us follow you, understand these things, gather up these jewels, allow you and help you put them in their proper order, that we might understand where we are in Earth's history, and what you're calling us to accomplish in our own hearts and our own lives, and what you want us to be used to accomplish for you, as the revival that finishes all revival gets underway, and finishes that we might go home with you. Help us to be those faithful students that can follow you to the conclusion, receive the seal of God, and we thank you for the privilege of being among these people that are hearing these things at this time, in Jesus' name, amen.