Habakkuk's Two Tables #66

PART SEVEN: JOSIAH

Presented by Jeff Pippenger

Invocation by Brother Jeff Pippenger: Heavenly Father, we thank you for a good night's rest and another day of life that we might serve you. And as we begin our day of worship here, we ask that you would grant us the presence of your Holy Spirit, that you would fill our hearts and minds with the Divine Spirit that we might understand the message that you have for us this morning. I ask that you would overrule my humanity, hide me behind your cross, and use me as an instrument to convey a message that you want to share and not what I want to share; and, that you would also prepare the hearts and minds of those that hear these things, to receive it as you see fit. We want the Latter Rain poured out upon us. We ask that you do that by opening our understanding. We want to see how Josiah illustrates God's people at the end of the world, and we ask that you would give us enlightenment on this understanding. In Jesus's name, amen.

Aaron's Foundational Rejection�Exodus 32

BROTHER PIPPENGER: This is Part Seven of Habakkuk's Tables, entitling this "Josiah." We will not get to Josiah for a while; and, we are going to start with Aaron, and then go into Jeroboam, to show the parallel between Aaron and Jeroboam and then note that when Jeroboam began to repeat Aaron's sin that a disobedient prophet came out of Judah to confront Jeroboam and that the disobedient prophet sets forth the prophecy of Josiah. And, we are going to trace all that history, but we are going to begin in Exodus 32 with the story of Aaron, and I do not expect to get out of this story until tomorrow. We will just get half-way through it.

We are operating upon the premise that all the prophets are speaking about the end of the world and that they all agree with one another; and, that they are all illustrating Adventism at the end of the world, both the beginning and the ending of Adventism.

And what we are doing here in this particular part of the study is showing these two Tables [the 1843 and 1850 Charts] as typified in God's Word.

We will begin now with Testimonies, volume 8, page 115.

"Upon us is shining the accumulated light of past ages. The record of Israel's forgetfulness has been preserved for our enlightenment. In this age God has set His hand to gather unto Himself a people from every nation, kindred, and tongue. In the advent movement He has wrought for His heritage, even as He wrought for the Israelites in leading them from Egypt. In the great disappointment of 1844 the faith of His people was tested as was that of the Hebrews at the Red Sea." Testimonies, volume 8, 115�116.

So, when we are going to consider here Aaron and the golden calf immediately after the crossing of the Red Sea, it is obvious that Ellen White sees this history as a parallel history to the Millerite time period.

And what was preserved for our enlightenment? It was the record of Israel's forgetfulness.

What did they forget? I would suggest that they forgot the mighty manifestation of the power of God that was brought about for them to bring them out of Egypt. They were counseled over and over again to remember that history, over and over again and yet Aaron, who had just witnessed that mighty deliverance, within a couple of months is willing to forget all about the power of God and build a golden calf. So, forgetfulness of that sacred history is paralleling the forgetfulness of that sacred history that we as Adventists do when we no longer acknowledge or understand the Advent Movement of 1840 to 1844, and the various components of that history.

Exodus 32:1-4

So, we are going to go into Exodus 32:1-4 and spend some time there, to begin with.

Exodus 32, beginning at verse 1, says,

"1And when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down out of the mount, the people gathered themselves together unto Aaron, and said unto him, Up, make us gods, which shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him. 2And Aaron said unto them, Break off the golden earrings, which are in the ears of your wives, of your sons, and of your daughters, and bring them unto me. 3And all the people brake off the golden earrings which were in their ears, and brought them unto Aaron. 4And he received them at their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool, after he had made it a molten calf: and they said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt." Exodus 32:1-4 (KJV).

SELF-Preservation; an Image to the Beast and a False Altar

We are going to read from Patriarchs and Prophets, page 317, where Sister White is commenting on this; and, we are going to notice four points in here, primarily.

Aaron feared for his own safety; and instead of nobly standing up for the honor of God, he yielded to the demands of the multitude. His first act was to direct that the golden earrings be collected from all the people and brought to him, hoping that pride would lead them to refuse such a sacrifice. But they willingly yielded up their ornaments; and from these he made a molten calf, in imitation of the gods of Egypt. The people proclaimed, 'These be thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.' And Aaron basely permitted this insult to Jehovah. He did more. Seeing with what satisfaction the golden god was received, he built an altar before it, and made proclamation, 'Tomorrow is a feast to the Lord.' The announcement was heralded by trumpeters from company to company throughout the camp. 'And they rose up early on the morrow, and offered burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings; and the people sat down to eat and to drink and rose up to play.' Under the pretense of holding 'a feast to the Lord,' they gave themselves up to gluttony and licentious reveling." Patriarchs and Prophets, 317.

When she says, "Under the pretense of holding 'a feast to the Lord,'" it is suggesting that this is a counterfeit. This was not a genuine feast to the Lord. They produced a counterfeit feast for the Lord.

But, he [Aaron] made an imitation of the gods of Egypt, and then in the Webster's Dictionary of 1828, it says,

IMITATION: That which is made or produced as a copy, likeness; resemblance. Webster's 1828 Dictionary.

So, this imitation of the gods of Egypt was a resemblance of the gods of Egypt. It was an image of the gods of Egypt, and it was a calf; it was a beast; it was the image of the beast.

Okay. The points that I want you to see in Patriarchs and Prophets there is that Aaron feared for his own safety. And a word for that is self-preservation; but, the primary part of the self-preservation is self. The first waymark in this short history of Aaron is self-preservation, self.

Then he builds an image of the beast, and then he builds an altar, and the altar is a false Christ.

A False Christ

Notice Selected Messages, book 3, page 300.

"Anciently it was a great sin for the people of God to give themselves away to the enemy, and open before them either their perplexity or their prosperity. Under the ancient economy it was a sin to offer sacrifice upon the wrong altar. It was a sin to offer incense kindled by the wrong fire.

"We are in danger of mingling the sacred and the common."�

What is the mingling of the sacred and the common?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: The Mystery of Iniquity.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: The Mystery of Iniquity.

�"We are in danger of mingling the sacred and the common. The holy fire from God is to be used in our efforts. The true altar is"�what?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: Christ.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: So, when Aaron went further than just building the golden calf, he also built an altar, what was he setting up? A false Christ.

�"The true altar is Christ; the true fire is the Holy Spirit. This is our inspiration. It is only as the Holy Spirit leads and guides a man that he is a safe counselor. If we turn aside from God and from His chosen ones to inquire at strange altars we shall be answered according to our works." Selected Messages, book 3, 300.

All right. So in this passage from Patriarchs and Prophets, Aaron (1) feared for his own safety. There you have self-preservation. Then he (2) built an image to the beast. Then he (3) introduced the false Christ. And then he said, (4) "Tomorrow morning we are going to have a worship service."

Worshipping the Image

. . . eat and to drink, and rose up to play. Exodus 32:5-6

In verses 5 and 6 of Exodus 32, it says,

"5And when Aaron saw it, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made proclamation, and said, To morrow is a feast to the Lord. 6And they rose up early on the morrow, and offered burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings; and the people sat down to eat and to drink, and rose up to play." Exodus 32:5-6 (KJV).

So, what I am hoping you will see here, and we have dealt with this sequence before, is that there is a three-step testing process that leads to false worship. Self-exaltation, in this case it was self-preservation; then, the image of the beast, the image of the beast is the combination of church and state, and the combination of church and state is the Mystery of Iniquity. It is a combination, a mingling of two entities that are not supposed to be mingled; and, the Mystery of Iniquity is Spiritualism. So, in this sequence, we have self-exaltation, represented by self-preservation; we have the image of the beast, which is the Mystery of Iniquity (which is Spiritualism); and, then we have the altar, representing a false Christ; and, then they are going to have a false worship service on the next morning.

Sunday Worship

In The Great Controversy, page 437, it says,

"'The Sabbath therefore lies at the very foundation of divine worship,"�

So, if you are going to have a false worship, what are you doing?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: (Indiscernible response.)

BROTHER PIPPENGER: You are rejecting the Foundations. Aaron and the Hebrews were rejecting the Foundations; but, you were counterfeiting the Sabbath.

And what is the counterfeit sabbath at the end of the world?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: Sunday.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: All the histories are illustrating the end of the world; so, this false worship is a symbol of Sunday worship at the end of the world.

�"'The Sabbath therefore lies at the very foundation of divine worship, for it teaches this great truth in the most impressive manner, and no other institution does this. The true ground of divine worship, not of that on the seventh day merely, but of all worship, is found in the distinction between the Creator and His creatures." The Great Controversy, 437.

And, of course, Aaron and the Hebrews are worshipping the creation, the gods of gold and silver and wood there, not the Creator.

Self, Image of the Beast, a False Christ�then False Worship

Self-Exaltation, Spiritualism, a False Christ, and Sunday Worship

So, in this story we have this sequence: Self, this is a rejection of the First Angel's Message, which says, "Fear God. Come to the foot of the cross." Then we have the image of the beast, which is the second test, which is a symbol of the Mystery of Iniquity and Spiritualism that leads to a false Christ; and, it then leads to false worship, the Sunday worship. This sequence we have looked at before in other histories. We are just putting it into the record as a point of reference.

Back to verse 1 [of Exodus 32].

"And when the people saw that Moses delayed . . ." Exodus 32:1 (KJV)

We want to look at verse 1 a little bit closer. In verse 1 it says,

"1And when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down." Exodus 32:1 (KJV)

What would you call that?

He tarried. Okay? And this tarrying time by Moses allows the Hebrews to manifest their character.

Notice the Review and Herald, October 31, 1899.

"When the ten virgins went forth to meet the bridegroom, their lamps were trimmed and burning. Apparently there was no difference between the five who were wise and the five who were foolish."�

Now, remember, the parable of the Ten Virgins was fulfilled to the very letter in the history of the Millerites, and it is fulfilled again to the very letter at the end of the world. So, we are seeing both the beginning and the end of Adventism. And, we are seeing that in the story of Aaron, it was the premise that Moses had delayed to come down that gives the motivation for the people to go force Aaron to make this golden calf.

�"Apparently there was no difference between the five who were wise and the five who were foolish."�

What is the difference between the wise and foolish virgins anyway?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: (Indiscernible response.)

BROTHER PIPPENGER: The oil. Right?

�"To outward appearance all were prepared, robed in white, and carrying their lighted lamps. But only five of these virgins were wise."�

Now Sister White is going to define why they were wise.

�"These anticipated delay, and filled their flagons with oil, ready for any emergency. Five of the number had not this foresight;"�

The foolish virgins did not anticipate delay.

�"Five of the number had not this foresight; they made no provision for disappointment or delay." Review and Herald, October 31, 1899.

"1. . . as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him." Exodus 32:1 (KJV).

So, in Exodus 32, verse 1, when the people saw that Moses delayed, they rejected God.

Who are they? They were the foolish virgins. They were not prepared for delay. They had not the oil to carry them through the tarrying time.

Okay. In verse 1 of chapter 32, it says, ". . . as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him." Exodus 32:1 (KJV) This here is identifying what I think may be the primary problem of the Hebrews' here.

What is their primary problem in this part of the verse: ". . . as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him"?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: They were looking to Moses.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: Yes. Moses did not bring them out of Egypt, did he?

They were seeing a literal man; but, they were not seeing who he was representing. Okay? They did not have the ability to make a distinction between the literal and the spiritual.

Literal and Spiritual

John 6:53-66

Okay. Go to John 6; because, this is repeated in the time period of Christ, this same problem that the Hebrews repeatedly have, and that problem being they do not understand prophecy; because, prophecy is based upon taking the things of the natural world and understanding their spiritual application. And the Jews looked at Moses and said, "This literal man brought us out of Egypt," and they could not understand that this man was a tool in the hand of the Lord, and the Lord brought them out of Egypt.

And in John 6, beginning at verse 53, it says,

"53Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you."�

Now, if you were an upstanding Hebrew and someone told you that, what would you think? You would think, "This man is rejecting the health laws of the Old Testament."

Were you supposed to eat flesh and blood?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: No.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: No. If flesh had blood in it, you were not allowed to eat it. So right here, right off the bat, Jesus is challenging them in their understanding of the health laws.

Verse 54:

"54Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood,"�

Now it is even a step further. It is not eating simply flesh with blood in it; He 'is calling them to be a cannibal.'

�"54Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. 55For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. 56He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him. 57As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me. 58This is that bread which came down from heaven:"�

Now, Jesus did not leave it there. He is going to explain this spiritual and literal; but, they do not have the ability to see it, just like they did not have the ability to see that it was God that brought them out of Egypt. They thought it was Moses.

�"58This is that bread which came down from heaven: not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead: he that eateth of this bread shall live for ever. 59These things said he in the synagogue, as he taught in Capernaum."�

What is Capernaum?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: That is His own city.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: That is His own city. This is the main place where He hung out.

�"60Many therefore of his disciples, when they had heard this, said, This is an hard saying; who can hear it? 61When Jesus knew in himself that his disciples murmured at it, he said unto them, Doth this offend you? 62What and if ye shall see the Son of man ascend up where he was before? 63It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life. 64But there are some of you that believe not. For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were that believed not, and who should betray him. 65And he said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto me, except it were given unto him of my Father.

"66From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him." John 6:53-66 (KJV).

From what time? From the point where He gave them the test of understanding prophecy, understanding the principle of prophecy that the literal things illustrate the spiritual things, that His Spirit is life and that to eat of His Word is to eat His flesh.

They could not see it, and this was their problem all the way back in the deliverance of Egypt. They did not see God delivering them out of Egypt; they saw Moses. They probably saw both, but they chose (because of their preconceived ideas) to only accept the literal understanding.

So, the problem for the Jews at their beginning is the same problem that they have at the end.

So, when did they turn away and walk no more with Him? In John 6:66, this is pointing forward in this story to The Sunday Law. Okay?

So, what story is Aaron pointing forward to?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: The Sunday Law.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: The Sunday Law. These are parallel histories, and in both cases the problem is that God's people did not understand the prophetic lesson conveyed in their particular history.

Do you follow my point?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: Affirmations.

"1. . . make us gods, which shall go before us. . . Exodus 32:1 (KJV).

So, in verse 1 of Exodus 32, it says, ". . . make us gods, which shall go before us. . ." Exodus 32:1. This is a rejection of the Midnight Cry. Okay?

I am sure that we have spoken about this in this worship series, but you may not have heard the particular presentation where we spoke about it; so, I am going to run it by you once again.

The evidence is, is that Ellen White's first vision, it was for Adventism; it was for God's people; it is for everyone. But, one of the primary reasons of that vision was for God's man of the hour.

Who was God's man of the hour in that history? William Miller.

After October 22, 1844, the Millerites were scattered by the Great Disappointment spiritually. There were very few that continued on into that experience; but, the leader of that movement, William Miller, began to lose his way. They had some conferences after 1844, and William Miller was in agreement with the group that determined that the experience of the Midnight Cry in the Summer of 1844 was not valid; and, William Miller had an understanding of what the Midnight Cry was long before the Midnight Cry arrived, based upon the parable of the Ten Virgins. And when Samuel Snow brought the message of the Midnight Cry at the Exeter Camp Meeting in August of 1844, the very last Millerite to accept Samuel Snow's understanding of the Midnight Cry was William Miller. He had held to an understanding of what the Midnight Cry represented in the parable of the Ten Virgins that he would not let go of until the very, just like two weeks before October 22, 1844; and, then he wrote Joshua Himes�I believe, but he wrote one of the Pioneers�saying that he finally sees the Midnight Cry, "Glory to God!" And he was praising the Lord for it.

So, everybody now is onboard with the message that the Lord is going to return on October�22, 1844, the Midnight Cry Message; and, then you had the disappointment, and then you had the spiritual scattering, and then they have this conference and William Miller and his cohorts determined to go back to the original teaching of the Midnight Cry.

And in December of 1844, a couple of months later, Ellen White receives her first vision; and, in her first vision she talks about those who denied the Midnight Cry, the light that was set up behind them on the path. And what happens to them if they deny the Midnight Cry? They fall off the path to the wicked world below.

So, this is for all of Adventism; but, primarily, this was the Lord calling to William Miller, saying, "Don't reject the Midnight Cry!"

Now, here, what does this have to do with Exodus 32:1? They say in 32:1, "Make us some gods, because we are going to go back to Egypt and we want these gods to go before us." Okay?

And, God's people are to have a God that goes before them. Who is that God? Jesus, the Holy One of Israel.

So, their determining to have this golden calf go before them is a rejection of the Midnight Cry.

Denied the Midnight Cry

Now, notice this from Early Writings, page 15. We have read this previously, more than once, probably.

"They had a bright light set up behind them at the beginning of the path, which an angel told me was the 'midnight cry.' This light shone all along the path, and gave light for their feet, so that they might not stumble.

"If they kept their eyes fixed on Jesus, who was just before them,"�

Who was just before them? Not the golden calf. You see, they wanted the golden calf to go before them.

But, on this path to Heaven for God's people, Jesus is just before them.

�"If they kept their eyes fixed on Jesus, who was just before them, leading them to the city, they were safe. But soon some grew weary, and said the city was a great way off, and they expected to have entered it before. Then Jesus would encourage them by raising His glorious right arm, and from His arm came a light which waved over the advent band, and they shouted 'Alleluia!' Others rashly denied the light behind them, and said that it was not God that had led them out so far. The light behind them went out, leaving their feet in perfect darkness, and they stumbled and lost sight of the mark and of Jesus, and fell off the path down into the dark and wicked world below." Early Writings, 15.

The Midnight Cry, we went over the reform lines. The Midnight Cry is a waymark that is marked in every Reform Movement. It is a manifestation of the power of God.

At the point in every Reform Movement where the Midnight Cry occurs, in the story of Noah, the Midnight Cry is the animals getting on the ark.

In the story of Elijah, the Midnight Cry is marked by the fire coming down out of Heaven and consuming Elijah's offering.

In the story of Christ, the Midnight Cry is the Triumphal Entry of Christ into Jerusalem. Sister White uses that history to illustrate the Midnight Cry.

So, the Midnight Cry is marked at a specific point in every Reform Movement.

And the Midnight Cry, in the history of Aaron, was the plagues of Egypt. Aaron had seen, all of them had seen, the wonderful deliverance and the manifestation of God's power in the plagues of Egypt; and, just a couple of months down the road, they are denying that power and saying, "Make us a golden calf so we can go back to Egypt."

So, what I am saying is they are denying the Midnight Cry.

And what happens if they deny the Midnight Cry? They fall off the path to the wicked world below.

And, of course, this is what the Millerites did after 1844. Only 50 of them continued on. And this, the denial of the Midnight Cry, is why Adventists will not make it to Heaven. They are going to be put in a place where they are going to have to say, "Yes, I believe in the Midnight Cry," or "No, I don't," even though it may not be expressed that way.

So, this history of Aaron is prefiguring both the Millerites and our history, and I am saying that the fact that they want to have the golden calf go before them on their journey is saying that they have rejected the path where Christ goes before them.

The Marked Manifestation of God's Power

And the Midnight Cry is a marked manifestation of the power of God.

What do I mean by "marked"? You know, there are things in the Bible that are there; but, there are some things in the Bible that are emphasized, they are marked. The Midnight Cry is a marked manifestation of the power of God. It is marked in the sense that not only did the Midnight Cry take place in the Millerite History but Ellen White often refers to it. It is marked; it is emphasized.

In Testimonies, volume 5, pages 211 � 212, speaking of the sealing of the 144,000�and what three passages in the Scriptures have we identified that deal with the sealing of the 144,000? Revelation 7 (that is an easy one); Ezekiel 9; and, the more obscure one but the one that we are going to keep reminding ourselves of is Luke 21, Luke 21. Sister White ties Luke 21 in with Ezekiel 9 and Revelation 7; and, then she comments on Luke 21:25 in that passage saying that Christ pointed His followers to the budding leaves of Spring, identifying that the sealing of the 144,000 begins when the sprinkling of the Latter Rain begins, and the sprinkling of the Latter Rain begins when the Mighty Angel of Revelation 18 descends.

This here, this passage from Testimonies, volume 5, pages 211-212, is where Sister White is commenting on Ezekiel 9, which is the sealing of the 144,000. She says this:

"The class who do not feel grieved over their own spiritual declension,"�

Why are we reading about this with Aaron in Exodus 32? What I am saying is, in verse�1 of Exodus 32 you can derive from that passage, if you understand that all these prophecies in the Bible are pointing to the end of the world, you can derive that one of the problems for Aaron and the Hebrews in the golden calf story is that they rejected the Foundations; they rejected true worship, which is the Sabbath; but, they also denied the Midnight Cry. Okay?

And, the Midnight Cry was the manifestation of God's power; and, if you reject the truth in regard to the manifestation of God's power, you do not receive the Seal of God.

So,

�"The class who do not feel grieved over their own spiritual declension,

nor mourn over the sins of others, will be left without the seal of God. The Lord commissions His messengers, the men with slaughtering weapons in their hands: 'Go ye after him through the city, and smite: let not your eye spare, neither have ye pity: slay utterly old and young, both maids, and little children, and women: but come not near any man upon whom is the mark; and begin at My sanctuary. Then they began at the ancient men which were before the house.'

"Here we see that the church�the Lord's sanctuary"�

Now, what is she speaking about here? She is speaking about Ezekiel 9.

And what is Ezekiel 9 dealing with? It is dealing with Jerusalem. It is based upon the principle of repeat and enlarge, and in Ezekiel, chapter 8, Ezekiel is telling us who is going to receive the mark of the beast in Adventism at The Sunday Law, where Ezekiel 8 shows four escalating abominations forming worldwide. These abominations will permeate the World Adventist Church; they will escalate; and, they ultimately conclude in chapter 8 with the 25 members of the General Conference Committee bowing down to the sun.

Why in the world would you put 25 men on the General Conference Committee and not change that number somewhere through history? Have you not ever read Ezekiel 8, where 25 leaders bow down to the sun? Change your General Conference Committee to 26 or 24!

Then chapter 9 repeats that same history, when those abominations are going on in Jerusalem, which Sister White just told us is the Lord's Church, and identifies those that are going to receive the Seal of God during this same time period when the abominations are reaching their full, when they are maturing. Okay?

�"Here we see the Church�the Lord's sanctuary�"�this is Jerusalem in Ezekiel 9�"was the first to feel the stroke of the wrath of God."�

Judgment begins with the House of God.

�"The ancient men, those to whom God had given great light and who had stood as guardians of the spiritual interests of the people, had betrayed their trust."�

How had they betrayed their trust?

�"They had taken the position that we need not look for miracles and the marked manifestation of God's power as in former days."�

What was the marked manifestation of the Power in the Millerite History? The Midnight Cry.

They [the leaders of Adventism (the ancient men)] have determined that that history will not be repeated.

And what was the Midnight Cry a symbol of? It was a symbol of the Latter Rain.

They have rejected the Midnight Cry, and they fall off the path to the dark and wicked world below, just like Aaron and the Hebrews rejected the marked manifestation of the power of God in the plagues of Egypt.

�"[They] had betrayed their trust. They had taken the position that we need not look for miracles and the marked manifestation of God's power as in former days. Times have changed."�

"This is the 21st Century, Brothers and Sisters!"

�"Times have changed. These words strengthen their unbelief, and they say: The Lord will not do good, neither will He do evil. He is too merciful to visit His people in judgment. Thus 'Peace and safety' is the cry from men"�

Now, notice who these men are.

�"men who will never again lift up their voice like a trumpet to show God's people their transgressions and the house of Jacob their sins."�

These are the men that were ordained to lift up their voices like trumpets, and they had done so in the past; but, when this testing time comes, they are going to reject the history of the Millerites, which is symbolized by the Midnight Cry. They are going to reject the principle that the Midnight Cry prefigures the Latter Rain. They are going to reject the Latter Rain. They are going to reject the idea that the Lord is going to manifest His power here at the end of the world, as He has done in former reform lines.

�"Thus 'Peace and safety' is the cry from men who will never again lift up their voice like a trumpet to show God's people their transgressions and the house of Jacob their sins. These dumb dogs that would not bark are the ones who feel the just vengeance of an offended God. Men, maidens, and little children all perish together.

"The abominations for which the faithful ones were sighing and crying were"�now, notice this�"were all that could be discerned by finite eyes,"�

Okay. What can you discern in Adventism with finite eyes? Well,

On, and on, and on; but, those things we can see.

But, these abominations in Adventism, we can see them. There are voices telling us about these things going on. Okay?

What does Sister White say?

�"The abominations for which the faithful ones were sighing and crying were all that could be discerned by finite eyes, but by far the worst sins, those which provoked the jealousy of the pure and holy God, were unrevealed."�

Wow! What is going on up there at the top?

�"The great Searcher of hearts knoweth every sin committed in secret by the workers of iniquity. These persons come to feel secure in their deceptions and, because of His long-suffering, say that the Lord seeth not, and then act as though He had forsaken the earth. But He will detect their hypocrisy and will open before others those sins which they were so careful to hide.

"No superiority of rank, dignity, or worldly wisdom, no position in sacred office, will preserve men from sacrificing principle when left to their own deceitful hearts. Those who have been regarded as worthy and righteous prove to be ring-leaders in apostasy"�

So, Brothers and Sisters, if you are looking around and you are seeing leaders that you think are the real spiritual ones that really give you the idea that they are really Christ-like, it says,

�"Those who have been regarded as worthy and righteous prove to be ring-leaders in apostasy and examples in indifference and in the abuse of God's mercies. Their wicked course He will tolerate no longer, and in His wrath He deals with them without mercy."�

In Sabbath School yesterday or in the Worship Hour, I forget which, Brother Daniels shared where Sister White reminds us that Satan once moved around in the Heavenly Courts. So, Satan knows how to act like a holy being. But, just because you know how to act like a holy being does not necessarily mean that you are a holy being.

�"It is with reluctance that the Lord withdraws His presence from those who have been blessed with great light"�

And we went through this in this worship study. Who is it that has been blessed with great light and opportunities?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: Seventh-day Adventists.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: Seventh-day Adventists.

�"It is with reluctance that the Lord withdraws His presence from those who have been blessed with great light and who have felt the power of the word in ministering to others. They were once His faithful servants, favored with His presence and guidance; but they departed from Him and led others into error, and therefore are brought under the divine displeasure." Testimonies, volume 5, 211�212.

And if you were going to read this passage a few times, if there was any indication about when and where and how they departed from the Lord, what is it? It is that "They had taken the position that we need not look for miracles and the marked manifestation of God's power as in former days."

That is what Aaron did. When he had the mob at his tent threatening to kill him, to make the golden calf, he could have by faith said, "You know, I just watched all the firstborn of Egypt get laid to rest by the Lord. I watched the water get turned into blood. I watched frogs come out of nowhere, flies from out of nowhere, hail that hit the ground and turned into fire. My God can deliver me!" He could have stood firm.

But, what did he do? He forgot the manifestation of the power of God. He rejected the Midnight Cry.

There is to be a Wonderful Manifestation of God's Power

This is repeated at the end of the world. There will be, no matter what the leadership says, no matter what these men are saying�that "This is not the Judgment of the Living. We are not now in the sealing of the 144,000. This is not the Latter Rain time period."�no matter what these men are saying, this manifestation of the power of God that is the Latter Rain, that all these other manifestations of the power of God typify and point forward to, it will take place!

This is Review and Herald, December 23, 1890.

"The True Witness declares, 'I know thy works.' 'Repent, and do the first works.' This is the true test, the evidence that the Spirit of God is working in the heart to imbue you with his love. 'I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.'"�

What is the candlestick that gets removed out of its place?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: The Church.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: There you go. We went through this the other day.

The candlestick is the church. He is saying this church is going to get removed.

What church is that?

Well, all the prophets are speaking about the end of the world. It is the church at the end of the world.

�"The church is like the unproductive tree which, receiving the dew and rain and sunshine, should have produced an abundance of fruit, but on which the divine search discovers nothing but leaves."�

When does the Divine Searcher discovers nothing but leaves?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: Judgment.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: Okay. He says Judgment, because He is the Divine Searcher? Because of the divine search, do you see the Judgment there?

But, when is it?

It is an unproductive tree. What is it receiving?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: The dew,

BROTHER PIPPENGER: The dew, the rain, and the sunshine.

This Judgment is taking place when the rain is falling, in the Latter Rain; and, it is not producing any fruit.

�"Solemn thought for our churches! solemn, indeed, for every individual! Marvelous is the patience and forbearance of God; but 'except thou repent,' it will be exhausted; the churches, our institutions, will go from weakness to weakness, from cold formality to deadness, while they are saying, 'I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing.' The True Witness says, 'And knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked.' Will they ever see clearly their condition?"�

Now, I want to make sure you see this. In previous worship we purposely went through and identified that Sister White says the messages of Jones and Waggoner was the Loud Cry of the Third Angel. She says it was Justification by Faith. She says it was the Latter Rain Message. But, she also said that it was the Laodicean Message.

The Latter Rain Message is the Laodicean Message, and Sister White here is using the Message of the Laodiceans.

When does the Message of the Laodiceans become present truth? In the time of the Latter Rain. It is the Latter Rain Message. It is the last call for Israel.

Okay. She continues on. She says,

�"There is to be in the churches a wonderful manifestation of the power of God, but it will not move upon those who have not humbled themselves before the Lord, and opened the door of the heart by confession and repentance. In the manifestation of that power which lightens the earth with the glory of God,"�

What manifestation of the power of God is that? Revelation 18.

�"In the manifestation of that power which lightens the earth with the glory of God, they will see only something which in their blindness they think dangerous, something which will arouse their fears, and they will brace themselves to resist it. Because the Lord does not work according to their ideas and expectations, they will oppose the work. 'Why,' they say, 'should not we know the Spirit of God, when we have been in the work so many years?'�Because they did not respond to the warnings, the entreaties of the messages of God, but persistently said, 'I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing.' Talent, long experience, will not make men channels of light, unless they place themselves under the bright beams of the Sun of Righteousness, and are called, and chosen, and prepared by the endowment of the Holy Spirit. When men who handle sacred things will humble themselves under the mighty hand of God, the Lord will lift them up. He will make them men of discernment�men rich in the grace of his Spirit. Their strong, selfish traits of character, their stubbornness, will be seen in the light shining from the Light of the world. 'I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.' If you seek the Lord with all your heart, he will be found of you." Review and Herald, December�23, 1890.

So, Aaron and the Hebrews, they denied the power of the Midnight Cry, of the deliverance from Egypt, prefiguring the Millerites after 1844 that denied the history and experience of the Midnight Cry and fell off the path, prefiguring God's people at the end of the world that are going to deny that the Midnight Cry history will be repeated in the time period of the Latter Rain.

Before the Loud Cry

Before�and this is a real tricky one here�before the Latter Rain revival, the Loud Cry of the Third Angel's Message, Satan produces a counterfeit.

Notice Early Writings, beginning at page 260; and, this is a tricky passage in the sense that you can read this passage and say, "Oh, she is speaking about the apostate Protestant churches; but, maybe she is speaking about the Adventist churches." Notice what she says.

"I saw that God has honest children among the nominal Adventists and the fallen churches,"�

Hmm, the nominal Adventists and the fallen churches.

My Brother Austin, what does nominal mean?

Does anyone else like to help him? What does nominal mean?

BROTHER AUSTIN: In name only.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: In name. Okay. These are people that say they are Adventists, but they are not.

Now, of course, now, you could say Sister White is writing this in a period where she is talking about anyone that believed the Lord was coming is an Adventist; but, we are understanding it here as Seventh-day Adventists. You could make that argument.

�"I saw that God has honest children among the nominal Adventists and the fallen churches, and before the plagues shall be poured out, ministers and people will be called out from these churches and will gladly receive the truth. Satan knows this; and before the loud cry of the third angel is given, he raises an excitement in these religious bodies, that those who have rejected the truth may think that God is with them. He hopes to deceive the honest and lead them to think that God is still working for the churches. But the light will shine, and all who are honest will leave the fallen churches, and take their stand with the remnant." Early Writings, 260�261.

Now, I believe that this is talking primarily about the eleventh-hour workers; but, I am making this emphasis that you can see this principle even within Adventism, if you look for it; because, I am setting you up to prove this to you.

But, the one that you want to see here is that before the Loud Cry of the Third Angel's Message, there is a counterfeit that goes on in the churches that are going to be the target for the message of the Latter Rain. You see that, right?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: (Affirmations.)

The Principles of God's Dealing with Men

BROTHER PIPPENGER: Okay. But, we have been operating�in this study, one of our main principles is The Great Controversy, page 343, which says,

"The work of God in the earth presents, from age to age, a striking similarity in every great reformation or religious movement. The principles of God's dealing with men are ever the same."�

"The principles of God's dealing with men are ever the same." He is going to deal with Seventh-day Adventists the same way that He deals with apostate Protestantism; because, He deals with men the same way, no matter what.

�"The important movements of the present have their parallel in those of the past, and the experience of the church in former ages has lessons of great value for our own time." The Great Controversy, 343.

So, all the Reform Movements parallel one another; but, what I am wanting you to see here is that God's dealing with men is always the same.

Every Reform Movement

But, in these Reform Movements, Satan always responds to these Reform Movements the same way.

The Great Controversy, page 186, says it this way:

"But Satan was not idle. He now attempted what he has attempted in every other reformatory movement�to deceive and destroy the people by palming off upon them a counterfeit in place of the true work. As there were false Christ's in the first century of the Christian church, so there arose false prophets in the sixteenth century." The Great Controversy, 186.

Okay. There is always a counterfeit

Before the Manifestation of God's Power

But, the counterfeit precedes the Truth. In The Great Controversy, page 464, Sister White says this:

"Notwithstanding the widespread declension of faith and piety, there are true followers of Christ in these churches. Before the final visitation of God's judgments upon the earth there will be among the people of the Lord such a revival of primitive godliness as has not been witnessed since apostolic times. The Spirit and power of God will be poured out upon His children."�

This is the Latter Rain. Right? And, the Latter Rain comes in two phases, the sprinkling and the full outpouring.

�"At that time many will separate themselves from those churches in which the love of this world has supplanted love for God and His word. Many, both of ministers and people, will gladly accept those great truths which God has caused to be proclaimed at this time to prepare a people for the Lord's second coming. The enemy of souls desires to hinder this work; and before the time for such a movement shall come,"�

And what is the Latter Rain? Is it the Latter Rain Church?

It is the Latter Rain Movement.

�"before the time for such a movement shall come, he will endeavor to prevent it by introducing a counterfeit."�

A counterfeit what?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: Movement.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: A counterfeit movement and the counterfeit comes before the genuine. Right?

We have seen it now in Early Writings and here, a second witness, that he [Satan] does this in the churches outside of Adventism. He produces a counterfeit revival as he sees the Latter Rain coming, so the churches will feel comfortable that they do not have to listen to this message about the Latter Rain coming from Adventism.

But, what I am suggesting is what he [Satan] has done in every other sacred history when the Lord raises up a Reform Movement, he [Satan] produces a counterfeit to oppose it.

In the history of the Millerites, that counterfeit that predated the Millerites was Protestantism. The Lord was testing Protestantism in the Millerite History. That was His people, the Protestants. He had just raised up the Protestants and he had brought them to the history of 1840 to 1844 in order to complete the Protestant Reformation. They had not come all the way out of Rome, from AD1500 onward. Adventism is the fully coming out of Rome part of the Protestant Reformation. So, the Lord was testing the Protestants in that history, and the Protestants predated the Millerites. But the Millerites, they were the true movement.

Okay. The true movement at the end of the world, the 144,000 in a generic sense; but, before the Lord begins the movement of raising up the 144,000, Satan does as he always does. He introduces a counterfeit.

�"before the time for such a movement shall come, he will endeavor to prevent it by introducing a counterfeit. In those churches which he can bring under his deceptive power he will make it appear that God's special blessing is poured out; there will be manifest what is thought to be great religious interest. Multitudes will exult that God is working marvelously for them, when the work is that of another spirit. Under a religious guise, Satan will seek to extend his influence over the Christian world." The Great Controversy, 464.

So, in both this, here in The Great Controversy and in the one in Early Writings, you can argue, "Oh, she is talking about the churches outside of Adventism," but we know there is going to be a Reform Movement of the Latter Rain in Adventism, and we know that Satan always reacts to every Reform Movement the same way by introducing a counterfeit. So, if we can see if there is a counterfeit movement that is marked by Inspiration, we know that it is the one that precedes the true movement of the Latter Rain.

The Counterfeit

And in Selected Messages, book 1, pages 204 � 205, it says this:

"The enemy of souls has sought to bring in the supposition that a great reformation was to take place among Seventh-day Adventists, and that this reformation would consist in giving up the doctrines which stand as the pillars of our faith, and engaging in a process of reorganization. Were this reformation to take place, what would result? The principles of truth that God in His wisdom has given to the remnant church, would be discarded. Our religion would be changed. The fundamental principles that have sustained the work for the last fifty years would be accounted as error. A new organization would be established. Books of a new order would be written. A system of intellectual philosophy would be introduced."�

What is "intellectual philosophy"? Human intellect, right? Human intellect, this is self, human intellect. And all it can be is philosophy. It cannot be truth because, if you are going to build a program based upon human intellect, then it is a program that is based upon policy; therefore, it has to be intellectual philosophy. So, it is not truth.

�"A system of intellectual philosophy would be introduced."�

It is a system that places man's word above God's Word.

And what is it when you place man's word above God's Word?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: Spiritualism.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: Spiritualism.

�"The founders of this system would go into the cities, and do a wonderful work."�

The city work that is here referenced, I mean you can go through and you can put dates on all these points, but what is it 2014?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: 2013.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: 2013 we are going to go into�650 cities around the world, is it?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: (Affirmation.)

BROTHER PIPPENGER: We are going to do "a wonderful work" in the cities. This counterfeit movement is underway.

�"The Sabbath of course, would be lightly regarded, as also the God who created it. Nothing would be allowed to stand in the way of the new movement."�the new movement�"The leaders would teach that virtue is better than vice, but God being removed, they would place their dependence on human power, which, without God, is worthless. Their foundation would be built on the sand, and storm and tempest would sweep away the structure."�

What is the storm of the Bible? Well, we just studied Daniel 11:40-45. Who is it that comes as a whirlwind, as an overflowing flood? The King of the North, and he comes at The Sunday Law.

At The Sunday Law the storm and tempest would sweep away the structure and the foundation of this movement. This foundation is built upon sand.

This Foundation here [pointing to the 1843 Chart] is the Rock of Ages.

"Who has authority to begin such a movement? We have our Bibles. We have our experience, attested to by the miraculous working of the Holy Spirit. We have a truth that admits of no compromise."�

No compromise, no compromise!

�"Shall we not repudiate everything that is not in harmony with this truth?" Selected Messages, book 1, 204�205.

Yes, we should.

Summary

So, what we are saying here as we do our first part of "Aaron," Aaron's foundational rejection, is that when they came out of Egypt, Aaron and the Hebrews forgot the manifestation of God's power in the Deliverance. They rejected the Foundation by accepting the false worship of the golden calf. They set up an image of the beast.

And in doing all these things�and we will have more to say about this tomorrow when we bring it to a conclusion�they are prefiguring both the Millerite History and our history.

And there is more to this story that we will deal with tomorrow.

And then, from this platform, after we put these points in place, we will move forward into the story of Jeroboam.

What had Aaron just done when he made the golden calf? Well, Aaron had just come out of Egypt.

What had Jeroboam done just before he built his two golden calves? He had just come out of Egypt.

Okay. We are going to draw those connections to show that the story here of the golden calf with Aaron is prefiguring the story of the golden calves with Jeroboam. And then once we have those points of reference in place, we are going to look at the disobedient prophet and consider his prophecy that he gives to Jeroboam, that the Lord is going to raise up someone named�what?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: Josiah.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: Josiah. And what does JOSIAH mean? The foundation of God. It is all about the rejection of the foundations.

Shall we pray?

Benediction: Heavenly Father, we want to be among those that recognize the manifestation of the power of God that takes place here and now. We do not want to deny what is taking place here, and we do not want to deny the manifestation of the power of God that has taken place in past histories prefiguring this time. We want to be those that are lifted up as an ensign, but we know that we will be in the minority and, to be faithful in this time, we are going to have to be more courageous than was Aaron, as the Hebrews surrounded his tent. We want that courage, and we know that power, that strength comes from an understanding of your Word. We ask that you would give a hunger, a burning desire to understand your Word more fully, and then give us the will to begin to study it like never before. We thank you for bringing us together this morning. We know that we all have certain tasks to accomplish this day. We would ask that you would watch over us, protect us, keep us safe, and allow us to do what we do for your glory and honor. We ask that you would place your healing touch upon Paul's knee and help it get well. And we thank you for all these things in Jesus's name. Amen.