Habakkuk's Two Tables #73

[#73B of Notes, with DVD]

CONCLUSION

Presented by Jeff Pippenger

Invocation by Brother Jeff Pippenger: Heavenly Father, we thank you for another good night's rest and another day that we have opportunity to serve you. As we begin this day we ask you to grant us the presence of your Holy Spirit. And as we open your Word, consider these truths this morning, we ask that you would take control of the study and that you would give us light that would better prepare us to reflect your character to those we come in contact with, to better prepare us to give us a winning and a decisive message to those that want to understand these things as we are understanding them. We want to consider the role of William Miller in the message that we hold and present. We ask that you enlighten us into this fact, into these truths about William Miller this morning. We thank you for all these things. We pray that you would pour your Latter Rain out upon us and overrule any human thoughts or ideas that I have that they might simply be truths that you are trying to convey to your people and that you would also prepare their hearts and minds to receive these things. In Jesus's name, amen.

William Miller

BROTHER PIPPENGER: I do not know why, but yesterday at the end of the presentation, after we turned the mic off, Sister Tara Marie asked me if I thought William Miller was a prophet. And the easy answer is, no, not in the sense that we define a prophet; but, there is something about William Miller that is—perhaps does not qualify in the fullest sense of a prophet, but there are things about William Miller that sets him out as something different than simply one of the students of prophecy in that history.

William Miller

WILLIAM: "will" and "helmet."

MILLER: a person who owns or operates a mill, esp. a mill that grinds grain into flour.

In the notes there you see his name, WILLIAM, meaning "will" and "helmet." And, of course, we have addressed this before. Prophets names correspond to their ministry, and William Miller is definitely someone that did the will of the Lord in his history, and he presented the message of salvation; and, of course, the helmet is a symbol of salvation in God's Word.

And MILLER is a person who owns or operates a mill and grinds grain into flour. But, anyone that operates a mill does not simply grind grain into flour. They are going to have to separate the wheat from the chaff, and this was the work of William Miller. As he began to study God's Word, he was separating the truths of God's Word from the chaff of men's ideas.

So, we see that William Miller's name did correspond to his ministry.

And, of course, we know from our study of prophets that at the end of every time prophecy that deals with God's people, the Lord raises up a prophet at the end of that time period; and, the message of that prophecy that is fulfilled in that history becomes present truth unto the remnant that are raised up in that history. And a prophet that is raised up at that time, the message of that prophecy becomes the focus of the ministry of that prophet.

I am not saying that William Miller is a prophet. I do not want to fight that battle. We expect the predictions of prophets to be 100 percent true, and we know that this is one of the things that William Miller did not accomplish in terms of what he was presenting prophetically.

But, when we first came to understand that at the end of every time prophecy that dealt with God's people that the Lord raises up a gathering prophet, and that message of the prophecy is present truth unto them, and it is present truth unto the remnant that is raised up at that time period, when we first recognized that principle and that truth, we had not recognized the 2520. So, we simply saw 1798 as a prophecy dealing with Papal Rome. But, once you understand that 1798 is also the fulfillment of the 2520 that was accomplished against the Northern Kingdom, then 1798 does not simply become a prophecy about Papal Rome; it becomes a prophecy that marks the beginning of the gathering of God's people.

So, based upon the fact that upon the testimony of two or three a thing is established, you expect to see someone raised up in 1798, at the end of that prophecy, that scattering and gathering prophecy of the 2520 against the Northern Kingdom; and, sure enough, William Miller is there on the scene, but we are not calling him a prophet. We are just telling you that there is some evidence that sets him up at a level beyond simply a Bible student in that time period.

Typified

Called As Elisha

So, we are going to look at some of the ways that Ellen White has identified that William Miller was typified.

In The Great Controversy, page 331, it says that,

"As Elisha was called from following his oxen in the field, to receive the mantle of consecration to the prophetic office, so was William Miller called to leave his plow and open to the people the mysteries of the kingdom of God. With trembling he entered upon his work, leading his hearers down, step by step, through the prophetic periods to the second appearing of Christ. With every effort he gained strength and courage as he saw the widespread interest excited by his words." The Great Controversy, 331.

Now, if you think about that, Elisha when he was called, he wanted to follow Elijah—right?—but he did not want to do it—he had some things he wanted to get done first. He wanted to go home and say goodbye to his mom and his dad, and settle some business at hand. But, Elijah did not let him go that route, did he?

And if you go back into the history of William Miller, there was no doubt a calling over a period of time but the story that comes to my mind is he had had for several years the voice in his mind saying, "Go warn the world about what you are learning here," and he kept putting it off and putting it off. And there finally came a point in time where he struck a deal with the Lord saying, "Okay. You know, if I get invited to preach, then I will go."

And he thought, "Ah, this is not going to happen, so I am safe." And at that very moment there was a knock on the door and a young boy had been sent by his father saying, "Go and invite Brother Miller to come and present what he is understanding from the Bible tomorrow at church," and Miller, frustrated with the covenant that he had just made with the Lord, you know, just walks out of his house and into the forest where he would pray. And the voice said, "You know, are you going to so quickly turn against the covenant you made with me?"

So, his calling is compared to Elisha's calling. William Miller had some things that were kind of holding him back, but he followed through. Elisha had some things that were kind of holding him back and following through.

And, yesterday, if you listened and you got the point that I was trying to make is that the Omega Apostasy is an attack against the foundational truths of Adventism; but, it is, simultaneously, a rejection of the Spirit of Prophecy. So, when those today argue against the emphasis that is placed upon William Miller, the emphasis that is placed upon the role of William Miller is established by the Spirit of Prophecy's comments about William Miller. So, when you are arguing against William Miller being anything special in the history of the Millerites, you are arguing against the Spirit of Prophecy.

So, the reason that we are starting off with the typifications of Elisha, I would suggest to those in Adventism that want to downplay the pieces of light that come from the study of the role of William Miller that they need to be careful that the bears do not come down and tear them apart; because, that is the story of Elisha. Questioning Elisha's role brings the bears upon you.

And Sister White is here comparing Elisha and William Miller.

Moses in Death

Sister White also compares William Miller's death with the death of Moses.

In her Early Writings, beginning at page 257, she says,

"God suffered him to fall under the power of Satan, the dominion of death, and hid him in the grave from those who were constantly drawing him from the truth. Moses erred as he was about to enter the Promised Land. So also, I saw that William Miller erred as he was soon to enter the heavenly Canaan, in suffering his influence to go against the truth. Others led him to this; others must account for it. But angels watch the precious dust of this servant of God, and he will come forth at the sound of the last trump." Early Writings, 257–258.

So, his calling to his ministry is as Elisha's calling was. His death is as Moses's death.

Those typifications put an emphasis upon the work of William Miller that should not be missed.

Why should we not miss it? Because, if it was not important, you see, it would not be in the Inspired Record.

In the Spirit of John the Baptist and Elijah

In the spirit in which he prosecuted his work is mentioned many times. In Early Writings, page 233, it says,

"Thousands were led to embrace the truth preached by William Miller, and servants of God were raised up in the spirit and power of Elijah to proclaim the message. Like John, the forerunner of Jesus, those who preached this solemn message felt compelled to lay the ax at the root of the tree, and call upon men to bring forth fruits meet for repentance." Early Writings, 233.

So, here, in terms of the presentation of the message, Miller is compared to Elijah and John the Baptist. So, Elisha, Elijah, Moses, John the Baptist: you would think Seventh-day Adventists would have a little bit of sacred respect for the role of William Miller. But, when you see these men that fight this message, on a regular basis they denigrate the role of Miller in that history.

The Mark of the Beast

Let us go to Isaiah. It is not in your notes, but let us go to Isaiah 8:18.

Now, I know some people that will already be typing me an email about me inferring that William Miller is a prophet; but, I am plainly saying that I am not making that claim. I am not trying to defend that every prediction that William Miller gave came true. All right? But, there is something about William Miller that is more than simply a Bible student, and he had a specific role in this sacred Reform Movement. I am leaving it there. This is not the purpose here, to fight this battle about whether Miller was a prophet. Okay? But, he is typified by Elisha, Elijah, John the Baptist, Moses, and others; so, I am going to make a claim here that may cause some of you some heartburn.

Now, Isaiah 8:18, Isaiah says,

"¹⁸Behold, I and the children whom the Lord hath given me are for signs and for wonders in Israel from the Lord of hosts, which dwelleth in mount Zion." Isaiah 8:18 (KJV).

So, what I am going to say here is that—and there are other places in the Bible to prove the principle that I am going to point to—is that the prophets, and even the prophets' children—okay?—and the prophets' children is not necessarily a prophet, so this is broader than a prophet. They are signs. They are symbols. So, I am going to suggest here that William Miller is a symbol, and one of the things that he symbolizes is those Seventh-day Adventists at the end of the world that receive the mark of the beast.

Now, we have already read that William Miller is a saved man. Angels are waiting for the resurrection. So, I am not suggesting that William Miller is lost; but, I am suggesting that William Miller represents Seventh-day Adventists that receive the mark of the beast at the end of the world, and it is a very important recognition. Okay? It is not a minor one; it has got several characteristics with it that align with the message of the hour here at the end of the world; so, they are worth noting.

In Christian Experience and Teachings of Ellen G. White, on page 57, she says this—and this is her first vision. Okay? And I looked, but I did not look hard and long, but I looked. I could not find exactly when she received her first vision. It was in December of 1844, but I could not find the day that she received her first vision. But, the day that she wrote it out was December 20, 1844. So, that is when this vision takes place.

She says,

"It was not long after the passing of the time, in 1844, that my first vision was given me."—

So, October 22^nd, the month of November, and then in December, probably less than two months later, Ellen White receives her first vision. Okay?

—"I was visiting Mrs. Haines at Portland, a dear sister in Christ, whose heart was knit with mine; five of us, all women, were kneeling quietly at the family altar. While we were praying, the power of God came upon me as I had never felt it before.

"I seemed to be surrounded with light, and to be rising higher and higher from the earth. I turned to look for the advent people in the world, but could not find them, when a voice said to me, 'Look again, and look a little higher.' At this, I raised my eyes, and saw a straight and narrow path, cast up high above the world. On this path the advent people were traveling to the city which was at the farther end of the path. 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, 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." Christian Experience and Teachings of Ellen G. White, 57. (First written on December 20, 1844.)

Now, the reason why I am emphasizing that this is in December of 1844 is the historical context tells us that the primary person that this vision was given for was William Miller. It was given for everyone; it was given for us here today. But, if you go back into Millerite History, you will find that the Millerites fully believed that they were fulfilling the parable of the Ten Virgins. And from the very beginning of Miller's work, he understood that the message that he was proclaiming, that he began to proclaim right at the beginning, was the Midnight Cry. And when he addressed the message that he was sharing with the world, it was to him the Midnight Cry from the parable of the Ten Virgins.

But, in the Summer of 1844, when The True Midnight Cry arrived, when Samuel Snow came to the camp meeting at Exeter and presented the evidence from the Scriptures that not only would the Lord return in 1844, but it would be on October 22, 1844, because Snow was employing the feasts of the Bible to reach that conclusion. When that Midnight Cry Message arrived, those that had been leading out in the Millerite Movement were the very last ones to accept that message. The people at the Exeter camp meeting, they accepted it. They left that camp meeting on fire with the Midnight Cry Message. But, the very last person in the Millerite Movement to accept that that was the Midnight Cry was William Miller.

William Miller for 20 years had been saying his message in general was the Midnight Cry; and, now, just a couple of months before October 22, 1844, there is new light and the new light is identified as THE Midnight Cry Message, and Miller was the last to receive it.

And, of course, there is a lesson from there that we are not looking at. When this history is repeated, you can show that those people that have been doing the Lord's work prior to the Final Warning Message coming, the leaders that were leading out in genuine service for the Lord before this message arrives in history will be the last to accept it, as prefigured by Miller. But, we are not dealing with that part. We are just dealing with the fact that Miller was the last to accept that Samuel Snow's presentation identifying October 22, 1844, was The True Midnight Cry. He had to set aside his former teaching. Okay?

So, when you go back into Ellen White's first vision, she sees the Midnight Cry set up behind God's people on this path to Heaven, and she sees people denying that the Midnight Cry was of the Lord. And, what she is referencing is right after October 22, 1844, when all the disappointment and confusion set in, is there comes a point in time where William Miller rejects that Samuel Snow's True Midnight Cry Message was the Midnight Cry and he returns to his previous understanding of what the Midnight Cry was. In other words, he was rejecting the bright light that was set up behind them, and he was falling off the path to the wicked world below. And, at the very time that Miller is doing this is when Ellen White receives this vision that gives the warning about this very thing.

So, the historical context of this vision in connection with William Miller is good to put in your head.

Those Who Accepted the Midnight Cry

Another quote about what happens when you reject the Midnight Cry is Selected Messages, book 1, page 63. It says,

"I was shown in vision, and I still believe, that there was a shut door in 1844. All who saw the light of the first and second angels' messages and rejected that light, were left in darkness."—

Now, that is not Miller. That is the people that rejected the First and Second Angels' Messages. But, now Sister White is going to talk about the Midnight Cry.

—"And those who accepted it [the First and Second Angels' Messages] and received the Holy Spirit which attended the proclamation of the message from heaven, and who afterward renounced their faith and pronounced their experience a delusion, thereby rejected the Spirit of God, and it no longer pleaded with them." Selected Messages, book 1, 63.

That is just another way to say that if they rejected the Midnight Cry, they fell off the path to the dark and wicked world below.

Low Hampton Conference of Adventists, December 28-29, 1844

So, notice, in December 28 and 29, there is a conference in 1844 in Low Hampton. We are going to read from Gerhard Damsteegt's book, Foundations of the Seventh-day Adventist Message and Mission, pages 133 – 114.

And it is here, just a couple of months, this is the end of December; so, it is two months after the Disappointment, Miller and Himes are calling a conference, and we will read what they do at the conference.

"At the Low Hampton Conference of Adventists (December 28, 29, 1844) Himes urged three aspects of future of future missionary activity: (1) Comforting the saints who are still looking for the kingdom at hand;"—

They are trying to figure out how to keep going with this Movement that just collapsed before their very eyes on October 22, 1844.

—"(2) arousing the professed Christian world once more to prepare for the Advent; (3) fully and freely proclaiming salvation to lost and perishing sinners. A few weeks later the Advent press was again in operation, and Himes declared, 'I am more and more convinced that the door of salvation is open wide, and that we are to "preach the Gospel of the Kingdom to all the world," in the faith that sinners may and will be converted, until the end comes.' In response to reports about new conversions and pressure of some of his colleagues Miller became gradually less dogmatic on the extreme shut door concept"—

We are not dealing with that. That is part of that history that we should understand. And, the reason that we should understand it is we find in the beginning of Adventism, right here in this history, there was a controversy over the shut door; and, here at the end of the world, there is, once again when Millerite History is repeating, there is a controversy over the shut door. The controversy here at the end of the world is, "Does probation really close for Seventh-day Adventists at The Sunday Law that is represented in Daniel 11:41?" And the answer is, yes, probation closes. There is a shut door for Adventists at The Sunday Law; but, most of Adventism refuses to wrap their minds around this truth. It is the controversy once again over the shut door that was prefigured over the controversy over the shut door at the beginning of Adventism in the Millerite History. But, we are not dealing with that here.

—"Miller became gradually less dogmatic on the extreme shut door concept and after the Jewish Karaite year 1844 had passed he gave it up and returned to his original view of the midnight cry."—

Now, we know that the Karaite year of 1843 ended on March 21, 1844. So, there may be some variation in the Biblical year. I have not looked at when the Karaite year ended in 1844; but, let us say it is going to roughly end in March of 1844.

So, by March of 1844⁸, William Miller has fully rejected that The Midnight Cry Message brought by Samuel Snow to the Exeter camp meeting is The True Midnight Cry Message, and he goes back to his original understanding that his message in general was the Midnight Cry.

So, what is he doing? He is rejecting the bright light that was set up behind the Advent people to lead them to Heaven. He has been forewarned by a vision a few months before in December. The Lord places this vision in the record for us, for all of Adventism; but, the primary point of reference was for William Miller, because the Lord knew that William Miller was about to reject the Midnight Cry.

Continuing on:

—"However, new interpretations of the Disappointment, relating it to Christ's heavenly ministry, seemed to some to confirm the validity of the Seventh Month movement"—

That is Samuel Snow's Message.

—"and some kind of shut door concept, and created a strong controversy—even fanaticism—among Adventists.

"At the end of April 1845 at Albany, New York, a conference of Adventists was called together by Himes with the object of ending confusion and division. Miller commented, 'It need not be replied that it was convened to deliberate respecting, and if possible extricate ourselves from the anarchy and confusion of BABYLON in which we had so unexpectedly found ourselves.'"—

By 1845, there is so much confusion over what went on, on October 22, 1844, that Miller says that the Movement has turned into Babylon.

—"At the Albany Conference, chaired by Miller, it was decided to reject all new theological interpretations which had been developed since the Disappointment."—

There he is rejecting the theological interpretations that people like Joseph Bates, and James and Ellen White were understanding that had taken place on October 22, 1844, when Christ moved into the Most Holy Place.

So, in April of 1844⁹, Miller has rejected the Midnight Cry, and now he is rejecting the light that would allow him to understand what happened.

—"Thus the conference refused to accept the newly developed views which recognized the special significance of the Seventh Month movement in salvation history." P. Gerhard Damsteegt, Foundations of the Seventh-day Adventist Message and Mission, 113, 114.

Okay. Now, what am I doing here? What I am doing here is I am saying that William Miller not only was typified by Elisha, Elijah, John the Baptist, and Moses, but William Miller himself typifies Seventh-day Adventists at the end of the world that receive the mark of the beast.

The Third Angel's Message

In Early Writings, beginning at page 257—we will pull this together in a moment, after this quote here—Early Writings, page 257, it says,

"My attention was then called to William Miller. He looked perplexed and was bowed with anxiety and distress for his people. The company who had been united and loving in 1844 were losing their love, opposing one another, and falling into a cold, backslidden state. As he beheld this, grief wasted his strength. I saw leading men watching him, and fearing lest he should receive the third angel's message and the commandments of God."—

What was the Third Angel's Message and the commandments of God that they were afraid that William Miller was going to accept? The Sabbath. Okay? He had already rejected the Midnight Cry, but now they were understanding the Law of God, because they had moved into the Most Holy Place; and, now, Miller has the opportunity to accept the Sabbath truth. But, leading men, men that were surrounding him, they were watching him, and they were going to prevent him from accepting this.

She continues on:

—"And as he would lean toward the light from heaven, these men would lay some plan to draw his mind away. A human influence was exerted to keep him in darkness and to retain his influence among those who opposed the truth. At length William Miller raised his voice against the light from heaven."—against the Sabbath—"He failed in not receiving the message which would have fully explained his disappointment and cast a light and glory on the past, which would have revived his exhausted energies, brightened his hope, and led him to glorify God. He leaned to human wisdom"—

And I want you to see this. Mark this. Understand this.

The first thing that William Miller does is he rejects the Midnight Cry, and then he begins to trust in human beings. He is leaning upon human wisdom: First, the Midnight Cry; and, then human wisdom. And because of the human wisdom, what does he do? He rejects the Sabbath.

Okay. There is a three-step process there that William Miller went through.

—"He leaned to human wisdom instead of divine, but being broken with arduous labor in his Master's cause and by age, he was not as accountable as those who kept him from the truth. They are responsible; the sin rests upon them.

"If William Miller could have seen the light of the third message, many things which looked dark and mysterious to him would have been explained. But his brethren professed so deep love and interest for him, that he thought he could not tear away from them. His heart would incline toward the truth, and then he looked at his brethren; they opposed it. Could he tear away from those who had stood side by side with him in proclaiming the coming of Jesus? He thought they surely would not lead him astray.

"God suffered him to fall under the power of Satan, the dominion of death, and hid him in the grave from those who were constantly drawing him from the truth. Moses erred as he was about to enter the Promised Land."—

We have read this already.

—"So also, I saw that William Miller erred as he was soon to enter the heavenly Canaan, in suffering his influence to go against the truth. Others led him to this; others must account for it. But angels watch the precious dust of this servant of God, and he will come forth at the sound of the last trump." Early Writings, 257–258.

So, what I want you to see is, what I am suggesting is that William Miller went through a threefold testing processing that concludes the third test, his rejection of the Sabbath. His first test was the Midnight Cry. His second test was trusting human wisdom. And at the end of the world, those Seventh-day Adventists that look back at the Millerite History and have the ability to see that the Midnight Cry represents the Latter Rain at the end of the world, when they reject that Midnight Cry history, they are doing the same thing that William Miller did. And as they reject that Midnight Cry history as the point of reference for the Latter Rain at the end of the world, they are then going to turn away from the influence of God's Word and start trusting in the leadership at the end of the world that is telling them, "This isn't the Latter Rain." They are going to trust in human wisdom, and the next step is they are going to receive the mark of the beast at The Sunday Law. And this has all been typified in the life of William Miller.

Zechariah 10:1

In Zechariah 10:1, it says we are to pray for the Latter Rain in the time of the Latter Rain.

"¹Ask ye of the Lord rain in the time of the latter rain; so the Lord shall make bright clouds, and give them showers of rain, to every one grass in the field." Zechariah 10:1 (KJV).

And Sister White agrees with this, The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, volume 7, page 984. It says,

"We must not wait for the latter rain. It is coming upon all who will recognize and appropriate the dew and showers of grace that fall upon us. When we gather up the fragments of light, when we appreciate the sure mercies of God, who loves to have us trust Him, then every promise will be fulfilled. [Isaiah 61:11 quoted.] The whole earth is to be filled with the glory of God." The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, volume 7, 984.

And the whole Earth is to be filled with the glory of God when the Mighty Angel of Revelation 18 comes down; but, we have to recognize when that Angel comes down. And how could you possibly fulfill the passage in Zechariah 10:1 and pray for the Latter Rain in the time of the Latter Rain if you did not know that you were in the time of the Latter Rain? You need to recognize it.

And RECOGNIZE, the definition is in your notes:

RECOGNIZE: 1. To recollect or recover the knowledge of, either with an avowal of that knowledge or not. We recognize a person at a distance, when we recollect that we have seen him before, or that we have formerly known him. We recognize his features or his voice. Webster's 1828 Dictionary.

So, the essence of the word RECOGNIZE has to do with being able to recognize that object, thing, or whatever, based upon the fact that you have seen it before.

So, if we are to recognize the Latter Rain, the way that we are going to recognize the Latter Rain is that we have seen it before. And what we have seen before, where we have seen the Latter Rain before, is in the Midnight Cry. We have to see that the Midnight Cry is typifying the Latter Rain in order to recognize it.

We have to do what? We have to go back to the Millerite History of 1840 to 1844. We have to stand on that Platform of Truth in order to have the ability to recognize the Latter Rain at the end of the world. Okay?

And if we do not recognize it, we are going to receive the mark of the beast.

Returned to His Original View of the Midnight Cry

And this next thought might be a little bit tricky for me to convey.

When William Miller was rejecting the Midnight Cry, what did he do?

I just told you this morning. What did he do? He reverted to his old view of the Latter Rain.

And, you will find that as you go out in Adventism and you meet these opponents to this message, and you say, "Look, the Latter Rain began when Islam was restrained on September 11, 2001, that was typified by the restraint of Islam on August 11, 1840, when Islam was restrained and the Mighty Angel came down, thus prefiguring the Mighty Angel of Revelation 18 coming down," when you go out in Adventism and tell them this, they say, "Well, I admit we are supposed to understand that we are in the time of the Latter Rain, but the time of the Latter Rain began in 1888." They revert to the old view of the arrival of the Latter Rain, with Jones and Waggoner, to prevent the conviction that 9/11 marks the arrival of the Latter Rain in our day and age.

Miller reverted to a former view of the Midnight Cry. Here at the end of the world, those people that are walking in the footsteps of Miller, they revert to a former identification of the Latter Rain. They revert to 1888, and then they start saying, "Oh, you know what, we are supposed to be preaching the message of Jones and Waggoner and none other; and, the Latter Rain has been falling since 1888. So, yeah, I can see why you are saying that the Latter Rain is falling now, but you are misrepresenting it."

Not so! Sister White is clear that the Latter Rain of 1888 ended.

But, let us read some information on this, Selected Messages, book 1, page 235.

"An unwillingness to yield up preconceived opinions, and to accept this truth, lay at the foundation of a large share of the opposition manifested at Minneapolis against the Lord's message through Brethren [E.J.] Waggoner and [A.T.] Jones. By exciting that opposition Satan succeeded in shutting away from our people, in a great measure, the special power of the Holy Spirit that God longed to impart to them."—

So, what is she saying?

God longed to impart the Latter Rain in 1888; but, Satan used the leadership of the Adventist Church to prevent it from happening. So, to say that the Latter Rain arrived in 1888 and in one sense it has been sprinkling ever since is a misrepresentation of the truth.

—"The enemy prevented them from obtaining that efficiency which might have been theirs in carrying the truth to the world, as the apostles proclaimed it after the day of Pentecost. The light that is to lighten the whole earth with its glory was resisted, and by the action of our own brethren has been in a great degree kept away from the world." Selected Messages, book 1, 235.

Go to Jeremiah 3:3. It is in your notes. Jeremiah 3:3; all the prophets are speaking about the end of the world.

"³Therefore the showers have been withholden,"—

What showers at the end of the world?

What are the showers at the end of the world?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: The Latter Rain.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: The Latter Rain.

What does it mean, they have been withholden? They have been held back.

The Lord wanted to pour them out in 1888, but they have been held back.

—"³Therefore the showers have been withholden, and there hath been no latter rain; and thou hadst a whore's forehead, thou refusedst to be ashamed." Jeremiah 3:3 (KJV).

Why is the Latter Rain held back? Because the people that prevented it—I do not know how to articulate it—but they have "a whore's forehead."

There is a contrast of two classes of worshippers throughout the prophetic message, whether you have the false foundation we mentioned yesterday and the True Foundation, or the false movement or the True Movement. And at the very time that the Lord is making God's people's head as a diamond by putting His name upon their forehead, sealing them in their forehead, the other class is developing a whore's forehead. Okay?

Jeremiah 5:20-31

Go to Jeremiah 5, verses 20 through 31.

"²⁰ Declare this in the house of Jacob, and publish it in Judah, saying, ²¹ Hear now this, O foolish people,"—

Who is to hear this?

It is at the end of the world. Who are the foolish people at the end of the world?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: The foolish virgins.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: The foolish virgins in Adventism. Okay?

—"²¹Hear now this, O foolish people, and without understanding;"—

What understanding do they not have? They do not understand the increase of knowledge. Okay?

—"²¹Hear now this, O foolish people, and without understanding, which have eyes, and see not; which have ears, and hear not:"—

Who is that people? Well, that is the same people here in Isaiah 6 that the Lord told Isaiah, "You are going to deal with." And in Isaiah 6, verse 3, Isaiah puts in place when you begin to deal with these foolish people that have eyes that do not see, and ears that do not hear. It is when the whole Earth is lightened with the glory of the Lord. Isaiah 6:3 says this experience begins on September 11, 2001.

Verse 22:

—"²² Fear ye not me? saith the Lord: will ye not tremble at my presence, which have placed the sand for the bound of the sea by a perpetual decree, that it cannot pass it: and though the waves thereof toss themselves, yet can they not prevail; though they roar, yet can they not pass over it? ²³ But this people hath a revolting and a rebellious heart; they are revolted and gone. ²⁴ Neither say they in their heart, Let us now fear the Lord our God, that giveth rain, both the former and the latter, in his season: he reserveth unto us the appointed weeks of the harvest."—

If nothing else, this is telling you that the Latter Rain has a specific time that God governs, controls, watches over it, it to take place at a specific time.

Verse 25:

—"²⁵ Your iniquities have turned away these things,"—

The iniquities of the brethren in 1888, in that time period, they turned away the Latter Rain. So, to suggest that when we get to the genuine fulfillment of the Latter Rain at the end of the world that the illustration that the Latter Rain is something that came in 1888 and it has been sprinkling upon Adventism ever since is to revert to a former view of what the Latter Rain was, just like Miller reverted to a former view of what the Midnight Cry was.

If you are seeing this logic, say, "Amen."

FROM THE AUDIENCE: Amen.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: Verse 25 again,

—"²⁵Your iniquities have turned away these things, and your sins have withholden good things from you. ²⁶ For among my people are found wicked men: they lay wait, as he that setteth snares; they set a trap, they catch men. ²⁷ As a cage is full of birds,"—

What is "a cage full of birds"?

These wicked men are now being described as a cage full of birds. What is the cage full of birds in the Scriptures?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: (Indiscernible response.)

BROTHER PIPPENGER: It is Babylon.

—"a cage full of birds, so are their houses full of deceit: therefore they are become great, and waxen rich."—

Who are waxen rich? Laodiceans.

—"²⁸ They are waxen fat, they shine: yea, they overpass the deeds of the wicked: they judge not the cause, the cause of the fatherless, yet they prosper; and the right of the needy do they not judge. ²⁹ Shall I not visit for these things? saith the Lord: shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?

"³⁰ A wonderful and horrible thing is committed in the land; ³¹ The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests bear rule by their means; and my people love to have it so: and what will ye do in the end thereof? Jeremiah 5:20-31 (KJV).

So, what I am saying here, if you will see it, is that the argument that 1888 is the arrival of the Latter Rain and that the Latter Rain has been sprinkling in a general sense since that time period, that is absolutely not true. The Bible and the Spirit of Prophecy identifies that the Lord wanted to pour the Latter Rain out in 1888; but, due to the wickedness of God's people, it was stopped.

So, now, when the Latter Rain truly arrives, these people that want to say, "Oh, I don't want to accept the implications of 9/11. I want to fight against this message, and I want to defend it by going back to the messages of Jones and Waggoner and the history of 1888," they are paralleling William Miller as he reverted to his original view of the Midnight Cry.

Isaiah 28:14-18

"¹⁴ Wherefore hear the word of the Lord, ye scornful men, that rule this people which is in Jerusalem. ¹⁵ Because ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto us: for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves: ¹⁶ Therefore thus saith the Lord God, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste. ¹⁷ Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet: and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place. ¹⁸ And your covenant with death shall be disannulled, and your agreement with hell shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden down by it." Isaiah 28:14-18 (KJV).

When the Latter Rain arrives, there is a group of men that begin to hide behind lies.

And Jeremiah just said something about the foolish people in Adventism. What did he say? That the congregation of the foolish people in Adventism, they love to have it so. They love for their leaders to give them lies about this history, and they are going to stand with their leaders. And what is that?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: It is human reasoning.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: It is human reasoning. That is where William Miller went next, after he rejected and reverted to the former Midnight Cry. Then he began to rely upon human understanding. The next step is to start following the leadership that is building a covenant with death by hiding underneath lies, "And my people love to have it so."

Well, what follows that is that William Miller, he rejects the Sabbath.

In Testimonies, volume 5, page 211, it says,

"Here we see that the church—the Lord's sanctuary—was the first to feel the stroke of the wrath 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."—

Now, Sister White here is talking about Ezekiel 9—chapters 8 and 9—but Ezekiel 9, when the Sealing Angel is going through and placing a mark on the foreheads of those that sigh and cry for the abominations that are done in Adventism. And the first of those that are going to be judged and dealt with are the leadership of the Adventist Church. That is Isaiah 28:14, the scornful men which rule this people that are in Jerusalem. They get dealt with first.

But, why? What is it that this leadership does? What is the lie they hide behind?

The next sentence in this passage says, these ancient men,

—"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."—

They have taken the position that we do not believe that the history of the Midnight Cry is prefiguring the Latter Rain and that it is going to be repeated at the end of the world. They reject the Midnight Cry.

And what happens to them? They fall off the path.

—"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 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." Testimonies, volume 5, 211.

So, what I am saying is, Miller also typified Seventh-day Adventists at the end of the world that receive the mark of the beast; but, fortunately for Miller, he is going to be saved. But, the people that he is typifying in Adventism here at the end, they are going to be lost for eternity, and they are going to be lost for eternity because they are going to accept the lie that we need not look for miracles and the marked manifestation of God's power as in former days.

Was the Midnight Cry a marked manifestation of the power of God in the history of the Millerites?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: (Affirmations.)

BROTHER PIPPENGER: Absolutely! "We don't believe that is going to be repeated. We do not believe that the Millerite History is repeated at the end of the world to the very letter; therefore, we don't believe that Jesus is the First and the Last, that He illustrates the End from the Beginning; therefore, we are going to build up a foundation of lies to hide under, and it is going to lead us to The Sunday Law."

So, what I am saying is, when it comes to William Miller, those people that take such a shallow view of his work and his role at the beginning of Adventism, the bears are about to be let loose upon them.

His Messenger

William Miller may not have been a prophet, but he was God's messenger, whatever that may mean.

Notice Malachi 3:1.

"¹Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the Lord of hosts." Malachi 3:1 (KJV).

And this is identifying John the Baptist as the messenger that prepared the way for Christ to suddenly come to His temple, to suddenly come to His temple twice in the Beginning and End of His ministry when He cleansed the temple, and to suddenly come to the Temple in Heaven at Pentecost.

So, John the Baptist is here typified; but, we have already read a quote where Sister White—and it is not the only one—where Sister White compares William Miller with John the Baptist. William Miller was the messenger that prepared the way for Christ to suddenly come to the Most Holy Place aspect of His temple on October 22, 1844. He was that messenger. He is marked in God's Word.

Sister White says this of William Miller in Spirit of Prophecy, volume 4, page 219:

"William Miller was disturbing Satan's kingdom, and the arch-enemy sought not only to counteract the effect of the message, but to destroy the messenger himself."—

He is the messenger that prepares the way for Christ to come to the Most Holy Place.

—"As Father Miller made a practical application of Scripture truth to the hearts of his hearers, the rage of professed Christians was kindled against him, even as the anger of the Jews was excited against Christ and his apostles. Church-members stirred up the baser classes, and upon several occasions enemies plotted to take his life as he should leave the place of meeting. But holy angels were in the throng, and one of these, in the form of a man, took the arm of this servant of the Lord, and led him in safety from the angry mob. His work was not yet done, and Satan and his emissaries were disappointed in their purpose." Spirit of Prophecy, volume 4, 219.

Accompanied by Angels

"Angels of God accompanied William Miller in His mission." Early Writings, 232.

His Angel

And this is the next part. This is where people really have a—they really stumble.

The Desire of Ages, page 99, says,

"The words of the angel, 'I am Gabriel, that stand in the presence of God,' show that he holds a position of high honor in the heavenly courts. When he came with a message to Daniel, he said, 'There is none that holdeth with me in these things, but Michael [Christ] your Prince.' Daniel 10:21. Of Gabriel the Saviour speaks in the Revelation, saying that 'He sent and signified it by His angel unto His servant John.' Revelation 1:1." The Desire of Ages, 99.

Sister White just identified that Gabriel is "His angel." That is a term for Gabriel.

So, in Early Writings, page 230, Sister White says this,

"God sent His angel"—

Who is His angel?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: Gabriel.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: —"God sent His angel [Gabriel] to move upon the heart of a farmer who had not believed the Bible, to lead him to search the prophecies. Angels of God repeatedly visited that"—what?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: Chosen one.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: —"that chosen one,"—

He was not just a messenger of Malachi 3; he was the chosen one, typified by Elisha, Elijah, John the Baptist, Moses.

—"to guide his mind and open to his understanding prophecies which had ever been dark to God's people."—

If you ever accept this truth—and people fight this truth. Sometimes you wonder why they fight this truth—but, if you ever accept this truth that it was Gabriel that was laboring with William Miller, and then you go back into some of the biographies of William Miller and he talks about, "And the thought came into my mind . . . ," who gave him that thought? You know? It is Gabriel, right? But, if you do not accept it, you will not see that.

And I do not know that you necessarily need to see it, but it really brings the testimony of William Miller to life if you have that understanding, that it was not just his Guardian Angel; it was the same angel that directed every prophet that recorded words in the Bible and the Spirit of Prophecy, the same angel.

—"Angels of God repeatedly visited that chosen one, to guide his mind and open to his understanding prophecies which had ever been dark to God's people. The commencement of the chain of truth was given to him,"—

And we are making the claim—started to make the claim yesterday, but I am going to point it out to you here—that when it comes to these Foundational Truths [indicating the 1843 Chart], and the argument over these Foundational Truths, to reject these Foundational Truths is to reject the Spirit of Prophecy.

So, you have got to wrap your mind around this right here. Sister White just said that Gabriel gave William Miller the commencement to the chain of truth. Do you believe that or do you not believe that?

Is this inspired? Is this authoritative in your life? Because, perhaps this means something.

—"The commencement of the chain of truth was given to him, and he was led on to search for link after link, until he looked with wonder and admiration upon the Word of God. He saw there a perfect chain of truth. That Word which he had regarded as uninspired now opened before his vision in its beauty and glory. He saw that one portion of Scripture explains another, and when one passage was closed to his understanding, he found in another part of the Word that which explained it. He regarded the sacred Word of God with joy and with the deepest respect and awe." Early Writings, 230.

The Commencement of the Chain of Truth

So, now, here is what William Miller says about "the commencement." Ellen White says that Gabriel was leading William Miller, and she says he was given the commencement to the chain of truth, and he was led to all the links in the chain of truth. And here is what William Miller says about the commencements that he was given.

William Miller, Advent Review and Sabbath Herald, April 18, 1854:

"From a farther study of the Scriptures, I concluded that the seven times of Gentile supremacy must commence"—

Notice the word.

—"must commence when the Jews ceased to be an independent nation at the captivity of Manasseh, which the best chronologers assigned to B. C. 677; that the 2300 days commenced with the seventy weeks, which the best chronologers dated from B. C. 457; and that the 1335 days commencing with the taking away of the daily, and the setting up of the abomination that maketh desolate, [Daniel 12:11] were to be dated from the setting up of the Papal supremacy, after the taking away of Pagan abominations, and which, according to the best historians I could consult, should be dated from about A. D. 508. Reckoning all these prophetic periods from the several dates assigned by the best chronologers for the events from which they should evidently be reckoned, they all would terminate together, about A. D. 1843. I was thus brought, in 1818, at the close of my two years study of the Scriptures, to the solemn conclusion, that in about twenty-five years from that time all the affairs of our present state would be wound up." William Miller, Advent Review and Sabbath Herald, April 18, 1854.

Sister White says Miller was given the commencement of the chain of truth, and Miller says the three commencements that he was given was the starting point for the 2520, the 2300, and the 1335.

So, who gave him those commencement points?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: Gabriel.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: Gabriel.

And who is Gabriel?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: Christ's angel.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: Christ's angel.

So, who gave him those commencement points?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: Christ.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: Christ.

So, when we are going to argue about 677BC really commencing any prophecy, are we arguing against William Miller or are we arguing against Gabriel? We are fighting against God.

Miller's Rules

Okay. William Miller's Rules, Sister White says, from The 1888 Materials, page 403,

"We should know for ourselves what constitutes Christianity, what is truth, what is the faith that we have received,

We dealt with that yesterday. What is the faith that we have received? The messages that came in 1842, 1843, and 1844. This is the beginning of our confidence. We should know this.

But, also, she says, "We should know for ourselves . . ."

—"what are the Bible rules—the rules given us from the highest authority." The 1888 Materials, 403.

What are the Bible Rules?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: William Miller's Rules.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: Well, Sister White is clear, the rules that were given to us from the highest authority.

And if you track William Miller's comments on how he comes to understand these Rules, who was giving them to him? Gabriel. Is he a representative of the highest authority?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: (Affirmations.)

BROTHER PIPPENGER: Absolutely.

Review and Herald, November 25, 1884, it says,

'Those who are engaged in proclaiming the third angel's message are searching the Scriptures upon the same plan that Father Miller adopted."—

And you can reverse this around and say, "Those who are not using the same rules that Father Miller adopted are not giving the Third Angel's Message, even if they claim to be doing so."

—"Those who are engaged in proclaiming the third angel's message are searching the Scriptures upon the same plan that Father Miller adopted. In the little book entitled Views of the Prophecies and Prophetic Chronology, Father Miller gives the following simple but intelligent and important rules for Bible study and interpretation:—

"[Rules one through five quoted.]

"The above is a portion of these rules; and in our study of the Bible we shall all do well to heed the principles set forth." Review and Herald, November 25, 1884.

We should know what are the Bible Rules given to us from the highest authority, and those Rules are the Rules that the Lord used William Miller to assemble at the beginning of Adventism.

Miller's Concordance

I like this comment here that I have in here about William Miller's method of study from a biography of him that was written by Sylvester Bliss. This is from page 244 – 246 of Memoirs of William Miller. It says—

And we, in our worships here recently, our morning worships, a group of us have been reading through F. D. Nichols's book, The Midnight Cry. Every Seventh-day Adventist should read through that book. If you can get on the internet, you can find that book in a PDF form that you can download and print out for free: The Midnight Cry, by F. D. Nichols.

And there is a point here. I never knew this until I started reading through this book about how sickly William Miller was. By the time you got to the heart of the Movement, the 1840 to 1844 time period, he was so wore out that many of the conferences that they were holding, the important conferences, he could not make it there. He was too sick.

And he had a couple types of sicknesses, but one of them was boils. And we were just reading here the other day where the author of The Midnight Cry, Nichols, quoted one of Miller's letters, telling his friend that he had, I think, 27 boils currently on his body; and, Nichols commented that it was like Job. Okay? So, I am adding this in here from Sylvester Bliss, just as an observation. I am not saying that Job typified William Miller, but just as an observation.

It says,

"He has brought up eight children, two others having died in early life. His whole family, like Job's, originally consisted of seven sons and three daughters. Four of them are now in the house with him, and two sons are at the West. As a specimen of the fertility of his farm, he showed us a potato weighing two pounds and seven ounces. . . ."—

That is a nice potato.

FROM THE AUDIENCE: (Laughter.)

BROTHER PIPPENGER: But, I like the next part. It says,

—"We were interested"—

Some people were coming to his farm.

—"We were interested in seeing his old family Bible, which cost $18.50, and his quarto copy of Cruden's Concordance, which was originally purchased, in 1798, for $8."—

So, Miller bought his Concordance in 1798, the time of the end when the Book of Daniel was unsealed and many began to run to and fro and knowledge was increased.

Of course, he was not going to get into it until 1816. But, why do we have to know about that Concordance in 1798? I do not know exactly why, but it is kind of like icing on the cake.

Continuing on,

—"These two books were almost the only ones he looked at while preparing his lectures."—

You know, Vance Ferrell came out with an attack against the truth here recently, and then there has been two other ministries that took Vance Ferrell's work (Shared Chronicles). Bob Trebes, he echoed Vance Ferrell's charge; and, another guy, but it does not matter. And Vance Ferrell's charges are all a bunch of foolishness; but, one of them is that he claims that Miller took his understanding of the 2520 from someone else. Okay? I do not know where he pulls that out of his hat from, but it is a denial of the testimony of the biographies of Miller and of Miller himself. And I do not know why someone would be wanting to twist the words of someone that we have been told that was being directed by Gabriel; but, we do so when we fight this message.

It says,

—"A clergyman once called at his house in his absence, and, being disappointed in not seeing him, wished the privilege of looking at his library. His daughter conducted the visitor into the north-east room, where he has sat so many hours at his ancient desk. Those two books, and no others, lay upon the table. 'That is his library,' said she."—

"Well, I thought he got his information from other people." That is not the testimony. His library was a Bible and a Concordance.

—"'That is his library,' said she."—

Of course, some people like to note that where he sat in his room was in the northeast corner, and they like to note that because they understand that the message of the hour is illustrated in the last six verses of Daniel 11, and in verse 44 it says, "Tidings out of the east and the north shall trouble the King of the North," of the Papacy, "and he shall go forth to destroy and utterly make away many." And the tidings of the East and the North is Daniel's way of articulating the Third Angel's Message. And the tidings of the East and the North means so many things in the Scriptures that it takes a whole presentation just to define the East and the North. But, to keep it simple, the twofold message of the East and the North, the North is the message of Daniel 11:40‑45, the message of the King of the North, his final rise and fall. And the East is the message of the children of the East that come back into prophetic history at 9/11.

Okay. So, the tidings of the East and the North in Daniel 11:44 is a summary of the Final Warning Message to Planet Earth at the end of Adventism; and, at the beginning of Adventism, the message that was brought to Adventism was brought by William Miller, and where William Miller did his study was in the northeast part of this room.

Okay. That is a minor point, but it is a nice observation.

FROM THE AUDIENCE: It was not just of the room but the whole house.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: The whole house.

Some people are focused on this, and this is good! I like that. Okay?

—"Those two books, and no others, lay upon the table. 'That is his library,' said she. The clergyman was amazed. Her remark was strictly true, as far as theological writings were concerned. He never had a commentary in his house, and did not remember reading any work upon the prophecies, except Newton and Faber, about thirty years ago." Sylvester Bliss, Memoirs of William Miller, 244–246.

Okay. So, where Vance Ferrell pulls that out of his hat, and others are quick to jump on, is a denial of the record, the historical record, of William Miller.

The Daily

Okay, "The Daily." Here—I think Apollos Hale, is it not?—Apollos Hale from that time period is going to describe how William Miller applied his Rules; and, in so doing, he is going to address the Daily.

And we are almost at the conclusion of this presentation, and this is going to be pulling Miler into the Daily. So, bear with me now. We are coming to a conclusion, even though you see a lot of notes still ahead.

Apollos Hale, The Second Advent Manuel, 65–66, quoting William Miller:

"During, the twelve years I was a deist, I read all histories I could find; but now I loved the Bible It taught of Jesus! But still there was a good deal of the Bible that was dark to me. In 1818 or 19, while conversing with a friend! To whom I made a visit, and who had known and hear[d] me talk while I was a deist, he inquired, in rather a significant manner, 'What do you think of this text, and that?' referring to the old texts I objected to while a deist. I understood what he was about, and replied—If you will give me time, I will tell you what they mean. 'How long time do you want?' I don't know, but I will tell you, I replied, for I could not believe that God had given a revelation that could not be understood I then resolved to study my Bible, believing I could find out what the Holy Spirit meant. But as soon as I had formed this resolution the thought came to me"—

Where did he get this thought?

As soon as he determined, "Okay. I am going to study the Bible," a thought comes to him, and this is in his head.

—"—'Suppose you find a passage that you cannot understand, what will you do?' This mode of studying the Bible then came to my mind:—I will take the words of such passages, and trace them through the Bible, and find out their meaning in this way."—

Who told him to do this proof-texting?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: Gabriel.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: Gabriel.

—"I had Cruden's Concordance, which I think is the best in the world; so I took that and my Bible, and set down to my desk,"—

In the Northeast corner of his house, not just the room.

—"and read nothing else,"—

And "read nothing else," in spite of what men may say.

—"except the newspapers a little, for I was determined to know what my Bible meant. I began at Genesis, and read on slowly; and when I came to a text that I could not understand, I searched through the Bible to find out what it meant. After I had gone through the Bible in this way, O, how bright and glorious the truth appeared! I found what I have been preaching to you. I was satisfied that the seven times terminated in 1843."—

That is the 2520. He was satisfied that the 2520 ended in 1843.

And, this is an important point here coming in this next sentence.

—"Then I came to the 2300 days;"—

FROM THE AUDIENCE: Oh, yeah!

BROTHER PIPPENGER: So, what did Miller discover first?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: The 2520.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: And why would he do that?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: He started at the beginning.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: He began at the beginning of the Bible and the 2520 is in Leviticus, and the 2300 is in the Book of Daniel. Okay? So, he comes to the 2300 after the 2520.

—"Then I came to the 2300 days; they brought me to the same conclusion; but I had no thought of finding out when the Savior was coming, and I could not believe it; but the light struck me so forcibly I did not know what to do. Now, I thought, I must put on spurs and breeching;"—

What does that mean, [Sister] Autumn?

FROM SISTER AUTUMN IN THE AUDIENCE: (Inaudible).

BROTHER PIPPENGER: What?

SISTER AUTUMN: (Again, inaudible on the DVD).

BROTHER PIPPENGER: He is riding a horse. He is going to put on—what would we call these things that—

SISTER AUTUMN: Chaps.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: —chaps and spurs.

Why? Why do you have those? Because you are riding a horse.

What are the spurs for?

SISTER AUTUMN: To get him to go.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: To control the horse—right?—not just to get him to go, but to control him.

SISTER AUTUMN: That is right.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: Because, Miller, not, he is going to get on this horse in studying the Bible and he wants to control it. The Holy Spirit wants to make him run full speed ahead, and he wants to go full speed ahead; but, if the Holy Spirit wants him to slow down, he is going to slow that horse down. That is what I think he is saying here.

—"Now, I thought, I must put on spurs and breeching, I will not go faster than the Bible, and I will not fall behind it. Whatever the Bible teaches, I will hold on to it. But still there were some texts that I could not understand.'"—

Now, this is Apollos Hale. He says, and this is the next paragraph,

—"So much for his general mode of studying the Bible. On another occasion he stated his mode of settling the meaning of the text before us—the meaning of 'the daily.'"—

Okay. So, now he is going to give us an example of how he drew conclusions through this method of proof-texting; and, Apollos Hale is going to give us an example, and he reaches into Miller's own testimony to do so.

—"'I read on,' said he, 'and could find no other case in which it was found, but in Daniel.'"—

Speaking of the Daily, and then he is going to quote from Daniel.

—"'I then took those words which stood in connection with it, 'take away.' He shall take away the daily, 'from the time the daily shall be taken away,' etc. I read on, and thought I should find no light on the text; finally I came to 2 Thessalonians 2:7–8.'"—

And we dealt with this yesterday. This is the passage that brings on the strong delusion to Adventism.

—"'For the mystery of iniquity doth already work, only he who now letteth, will let, until he be taken out of the way, and then shall that wicked be revealed,' etc. And when I had come to that text, O, how clear and glorious the truth appeared! There it is! that is 'the daily!' Well, now, what does Paul mean by 'he who now letteth,' or hindereth? By 'the man of sin,' and 'the wicked,' Popery is meant. Well, what is it which hinders Popery from being revealed? Why, it is Paganism; well, then, 'the daily' must mean Paganism." Apollos Hale, The Second Advent Manuel, 65–66.

I do not know if that is according to William Miller or Gabriel.

Hime's First Chart

Now, LeRoy Froom, in The Prophetic Faith of Our Fathers, he talks about this chart here:

Figure No. 144.

Okay. We are going to start making some very brief arguments about the Daily here.

And this passage here kind of makes me "covetous"; because, we have this chart [Figure No. 144]. I like this chart. I like this chart well enough that we have it framed and we have it on the wall over in our office.

But, Froom is going to tell us that this original chart was "full color." Right? But, you will see what we are getting at. But, now with this black-and-white chart, I want the full color one if it is available, but I do not know that it is.

Okay. Let us read what Froom says about this chart.

"IV. Himes's Composite Chart of Daniel's Visions

"A well-devised composite chart, in color, called A Pictorial Chart of Daniel's Visions, was issued prior to 1843 by J. V. Himes, and widely distributed. It was arranged in three paralleling horizontal sections, or lines, likewise marked off by centuries. . . .

"So, in prophetic teaching this chart is essentially—and quite naturally—a replica of Miller's early positions on the time periods as well as the symbols."—

So, he is saying Himes is reflecting Miller's understanding on this chart.

In connection with Miller's '666 years' of pagan Rome, in the lower section, Himes has 'Pagan Rome, the Continual or Daily,' from 158 B.C. to A.D. 508. Then, at A.D. 508 stands a smoking altar with its pagan priest in color, and the words, 'Paganism taken away';"—

I want you to see this: And you cannot see it, because it is small; but, he is talking about right here [indicating the center of the third segment of the chart]. Okay? Froom is quoting this chart.

This chart is made by Joshua Himes (J. V. Himes), just prior to 1843; but, this chart here [Figure No. 144] is going to get set aside for this [1843] Chart,

1843 Chart (published by J. V. Himes) 1850 Chart (Published by O. Nichols)

Figure No. 145.

and this [1843] Chart was published in May of 1842. So, I mean, this is the one, two, punch.

And who published this [1843] Chart [in Figure No. 145]? The same guy, Joshua Himes.

So, this [Figure No. 144] is Joshua Himes first chart.

And this [Figure No. 145] is the [1843] Chart that Sister White says was directed by the hand of the Lord and should not be altered.

And when you come to this [1843] Chart in AD508, all it says is "The taking away of the Daily sacrifice. Dan. 12:11-12."

And people will argue, "Well, This [1843] Chart really doesn't identify the Daily as Paganism, because it is not clearly represented there. It just talks about the Daily. You can put any definition on the Daily you want and not find it on this Chart." But, we are going to try to show you why that is absolutely foolish reasoning.

Over here [Figure No. 144], what Froom is talking about, here [referring to the altar scene in the center of segment 3 of Figure No.144] it says "508" and "538." And here is an altar [under "508"], which is a Pagan altar, which a Pagan priest is offering an offering on.

And here is a Catholic altar [under "538"], with a Papal priest offering.

And here, under this "508," it says, "Paganism taken away, 508."

And here, under "538," it says, "Papacy began, 538."

It [this chart in Figure No. 144] is talking about these two abomination powers, Paganism and Papalism.

We will go back to Froom.

—"'Pagan Rome, the Continual or Daily,' from 158 B.C. to A.D. 508. Then, at A.D. 508 stands a smoking altar with its pagan priest in color, and the words, 'Paganism taken away'; and at A.D. 538 is a cross—surmounted Catholic altar, before which stands a Catholic priest with his smoking censer, and the expression, 'Papacy began.' This feature however, soon disappears in the large '1843 Chart,' which becomes the standard, used subsequently by all the Millerite ministers both before and during the actual year '1843.'" LeRoy Froom, The Prophetic Faith of Our Fathers, volume 4, 725–727.

So, this chart [Figure No. 144] and this 1843 Chart [Figure No. 145] are invented by the same guy, Himes.

Here [in Figure No. 144] it is just absolutely clear that in AD508 it is teaching that Paganism is taken away; but, that illustration, that expression does not take away from this 1843 Chart [Figure No. 145].

So, you can argue, "Well, Paganism wasn't necessarily understood to be the Daily."

But, Brothers and Sisters, this is like yesterday and the next day, by the same guy. Historically, you have to understand that Himes knew that AD508 [in Figure No. 145] meant the same thing that Himes meant over here [in Figure 144] the day before.

But, more than that, when you get to this Chart in 1850, where Sister White says, "I saw that God was in the publishment of this Chart," when it comes to AD508, it says, "Pagan Dominion or Daily taken away. Dan. 11:31. 508."

So, you have got three witnesses there that the Millerite understanding, based upon William Miller's conclusion, was that the Daily was Paganism.

Do you see the point of putting this in the record?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: (Affirmations.)

BROTHER PIPPENGER: I wish we had a colored one [referring to Hime's Pictorial Chart in Figure No. 144].

The Simple English

So, let us go to "The Simple English." Now we are doing just review, just review of where we started.

Where we started was that Ellen White agreed with the Pioneer understanding represented on this [1843] Chart.

So, you see there from Early Writings, page 74, that Sister White says,

"Then I saw in relation to the 'Daily' (Daniel 8:12) that the word 'sacrifice' was supplied by man's wisdom, and does not belong to the text, and that the Lord gave the correct view of it to those who gave the judgment hour cry. When union existed, before 1844, nearly all were united on the correct view of the "daily"; but in the confusion since 1844, other views have been embraced, and darkness and confusion have followed. Time has not been a test since 1844, and it will never again be a test. {EW (Early Writings) 74.2}

What is the view of the Daily before 1844 that they were united on?

This view [Figure No. 144] is real easy: "Paganism taken away, 508."

Sister White just placed a black-and-white endorsement on Miller's understanding of the Daily.

Manuscript Releases, volume 20, 17-22

And then you have Manuscript Releases, volume 20, pages 17-22, which is already in the record in Habakkuk's Tables—and we have already dealt with this—the teaching that the Daily represents Christ's Sanctuary ministry that was being pushed by W. W. Prescott and A. G. Daniells (and Willie White behind the scenes), those three men. But, in this letter she is dealing with Prescott and Daniells; just some snippets. It is already in the record.

The reason why I have this subtitled here, "The Simple English," Ellen White says in simple English that Miller's understanding of the Daily was correct. And in simple English she says that the understanding that the Daily is Christ's Sanctuary ministry came from angels that were expelled from Heaven.

So, do you accept the authority of the Spirit of Prophecy?

Here are some of the things she said about Brothers Daniells and Prescott:

● "And there was Brother Daniells, whose mind the enemy was working; and your mind and Elder Prescott's mind were being worked by the angels that were expelled from heaven."

● "And I was shown from the first that the Lord had given neither Elders Daniells nor Prescott the burden of this work. Should Satan's wiles be brought in, should this 'Daily'"—

Right there, she just defined Prescott's and Daniells's definition of the Daily as "Satan's wiles."

—"Should Satan's wiles be brought in, should this 'Daily' be such a great matter as to be brought in to confuse minds and hinder the advancement of the work at this important period of time? It should not, whatever may be."

These are just snippets. This is already in the record.

Speaking to Daniells, she says,

● "I have been instructed that such hasty movements should not have [been] made [such] as selecting you as president of the conference even another year. But the Lord forbids any more such hasty transactions until the matter is brought before the Lord in prayer; and as you have had the message come to you that the work of the Lord resting upon the president is a most solemn responsibility, you had no moral right to blaze out as you did upon the subject of the 'Daily' and suppose your influence would decide the question."

And then she says,

● "Yes, it would, but while their minds were thus absorbed I was shown that Brother Daniells and Brother Prescott were weaving into their experience sentiments of a spiritual[istic] appearance and drawing our people to beautiful sentiments that would deceive, if possible, the very elect. I have to trace with my pen [the fact] that these brethren would see defects in their delusive ideas that would place the truth in an uncertainty; and [yet] they [would] stand out as [if they had] great spiritual discernment. Now I am to tell them [that] when I was shown this matter, when Elder Daniells was lifting up his voice like a trumpet in advocating his ideas of the 'Daily,' the after results were presented. Our people were becoming confused. I saw the result, and then there were given me cautions that if Elder Daniells without respect to the outcome should thus be impressed and let himself believe he was under the inspiration of God, skepticism would be sown among our ranks everywhere, and we should be where Satan would carry his messages. Set unbelief and skepticism would be sown in human minds, and strange crops of evil would take the place of truth."

So, on a simple level, Sister White says that the Daily is Paganism, and that teaching the Daily represents Christ's Sanctuary ministry came from Satan. Those are her words.

Early Writings – An Evolution

Now, we went through—and we are not going to go through this again,—we went through the evolution of Early Writings. The book, Early Writings, is where people tried to make their argument to try to reject the view that the Daily represents Paganism. And the first record of the vision where she makes her statement about the Daily gets changed as it is published throughout history. It was published three times, and it ends up in Early Writings, teaching a completely different thing than the original statement.

You will notice in your notes under "Early Writings – An Evolution," from Review and Herald, November 1, 1850, the first paragraph begins with,

"September 23d,"—

That is always there in each three times that it is printed, "September 23d." We want to mark that and now move away from it.

—"the Lord showed me that he had stretched out his hand the second time to recover the remnant of his people, and that efforts must be redoubled in this gathering time. In the scattering time Israel was smitten and torn; but now in the gathering time God will heal and bind up his people. In the scattering, efforts made to spread the truth had but little effect, accomplished but little or nothing; but in the gathering when God has set his hand to gather his people, efforts to spread the truth will have their designed effect. All should be united and zealous in the work. I saw that it was a shame for any to refer to the scattering for examples to govern us now in the gathering; for if God does no more for us now than he did then, Israel would never be gathered. It is as necessary that the truth should be published in a paper, as preached."—

The second paragraph said,

—"The Lord showed me that the 1843 chart was directed by his hand, and that no part of it should be altered; that the figures were as he wanted them. That his hand was over and hid a mistake in some of the figures, so that none could see it, until his hand was removed.

"Then I saw in relation to the 'Daily,' that the word 'sacrifice' was supplied by man's wisdom, and does not belong to the text; and that the Lord gave the correct view of it to those who gave the judgment hour cry. When union existed, before 1844, nearly all were united on the correct view of the 'Daily;' but since 1844, in the confusion, other views have been embraced, and darkness and confusion has followed." Review and Herald, November 1, 1850.

Now, if you go to the next page [of your notes]—and this is almost impossible, I think, to convey verbally. If you are watching this LiveStream or on a DVD, you need to get the notes [Note: included within this transcript as follows] and make this comparison; because, this vision is going to get printed within a couple of years (maybe just a year) in Experience and Views, and they begin to change some of the words to try to make them probably more modern or more clear for that time period. I do not know that I have a problem with that. But, they also combine a paragraph [from the original printing], and you have to see how they combined the paragraph; because, it begins to change things:

"September 23d, the Lord shewed [formerly—"showed"] me that he had stretched out his hand the second time to recover the remnant of his people, and that efforts must be redoubled in this gathering time. In the scattering, Israel was smitten and torn; but now in the gathering time God will heal and bind up his people. In the scattering, efforts made to spread the truth had but little effect, accomplished but little or nothing; but in the gathering, when God has set his hand to gather his people, efforts to spread the truth will have their designed effect. All should be united and zealous in the work. I saw that it was wrong for any to refer to the scattering for examples to govern us now in the gathering; for if God does no more for us now than he did then, Israel would never be gathered. [Removed: "It is as necessary that the truth should be published in a paper, as preached."] [Paragraphs Combined] I have seen [formerly—"the Lord showed me] that the 1843 chart was directed by the hand of the Lord, [formerly—"by His hand"] and that it should not be altered; [formerly—"no part of it should be altered"] that the figures were as he wanted them. That his hand was over, and hid a mistake in some of the figures, so that none could see it, until his hand was removed." Experience and Views, 61-62.

Time Not Connected with the Third Angel

And they also, on page 48, there is a paragraph that has nothing to do with this vision. It came from another vision. And you see that "Time Not Connected with the Third Angel," in the center of the page of your notes. In this paragraph from Experience and Views, page 48—

"The Lord has shown me that the message of the third angel must go, and be proclaimed to the scattered children of the Lord, and that it should not be hung on time; for time never will be a test again. I saw that some were getting a false excitement arising from preaching time; that the third angel's message was stronger than time can be. I saw that this message can stand on its own foundation, and that it needs not time to strengthen it, and that it will go in mighty power, and do its work, and will be cut short in righteousness." Experience and Views, 48.

—it is from a totally different vision. It is found on page 48 of Experience and Views.

And the passage that is ultimately going to be in Early Writings is found on page 61 of Experience and Views. They are two different Experience and Views, which is the second time that this passage is printed.

These two paragraphs are from two different visions.

But, when you get to Early Writings, which is the third manifestation of this evolution, they take this paragraph from page 48 and they put it right into this paragraph that they have molded a little bit from Experience and Views, and they make it sound like her emphasis of a message not being hung up on time has something to do with the Daily and the 1843 Chart, and it has nothing to do with it. It comes from a completely different vision:

"September 23, . . . I have seen that the 1843 chart was directed by the hand of the Lord, and that it should not be altered; that the figures were as He wanted them; that His hand was over and hid a mistake in some of the figures, so that none could see it, until His hand was removed.

"Then I saw in relation to the 'daily' (Daniel 8:12) that the word 'sacrifice' was supplied by man's wisdom, and does not belong to the text, and that the Lord gave the correct view of it to those who gave the judgment hour cry. When union existed, before 1844, nearly all were united on the correct view of the 'daily'; but in the confusion since 1844, other views have been embraced, and darkness and confusion have followed. Time has not been a test since 1844, and it will never again be a test.

"The Lord has shown me that the message of the third angel must go, and be proclaimed to the scattered children of the Lord, but it must not be hung on time. I saw that some were getting a false excitement, arising from preaching time; but the third angel's message is stronger than time can be. I saw that this message can stand on its own foundation and needs not time to strengthen it; and that it will go in mighty power, and do its work, and will be cut short in righteousness.

"Then I was pointed to some who are in the great error of believing that it is their duty to go to Old Jerusalem . . ." Early Writings, 74—76.

But, if you think that this is making a mountain out of a mole hill, then you need to do your diligent study and go back and find that Willie White bases his rejection upon the Daily upon this paragraph that is stuck in there! He starts arguing that the only way to understand the Daily correctly is to see that Sister White was worried about time prophecy being reset; and, he is basing it upon this paragraph from page 48 of Experience and Views that is 20—13 pages away from another vision that gets combined in Early Writings, leading a reader to believe—if you have Willie White and then his son, Arthur White, telling you that Sister White was just worried about time setting. It gets combined in the book, Early Writings, and it makes it appear to the shallow surface reader that the emphasis about the Daily was with time setting, and there is no reference in there at all. It says, "Time has not been a test since 1844, and it will never again be a test." That is in the original; but, this other paragraph was not.

That is part of our original studies.

So, what I am saying is, when you look at Early Writings, and if you do not think that the quote in Early Writings where Sister White says, "I was shown that those that gave the judgment hour cry had the correct view of the 'Daily,'" if you do not think that that passage in Early Writings, page 74, is part of the subject of the Daily here at the end of the world, then you have your head in the sand. Okay?

Because, when the controversy of the Daily came into Adventism after the beginning of the 20^th Century, in the 1910 to 1915 time period, Stephen Haskell, who was trying to defend the Pioneer position that the Daily is Paganism, what did he do? He reprinted this [1843] Chart, just like this [Figure No. 145], with one exception. He put this quote from Early Writings, page 74, at the bottom of this [reprinted] chart: "I was shown that those that gave the judgment hour cry had the correct view of the Daily."

If you do not understand that this passage in Early Writings is part of the controversy, then your head is in the sand. It is part of the controversy.

And, you need to understand that through going back to the original source, the emphasis that is being placed upon the passage in Early Writings that tries to uphold the teaching that the Daily represents Christ's Sanctuary ministry, which came from angels that were expelled from Heaven, that is made by an evolution of thought. The original vision has no justification for doing that.

Two Historical Witnesses

September 23

Crosier's Article Reprints – September 1850

The Advent Review – Volume I; Auburn, NY, Number 3

The Advent Review – Volume 1; Auburn, New York, Number 4

The Advent Review – Volume 1; Auburn, New York, Special

Now, every time that it was printed, whether it was in the Present Truth the first time, or in Experience and Views the second time, or in Early Writings the third time, the passage begins with "The Lord showed me on September 23d." We have dealt with this also.

September 23, 1850, the Lord showed Sister White that since 1844 there had been incorrect views of the Daily that were being introduced.

And we have already been over this at the beginning of this presentation. This is just a reminder.

And in the beginning of September 1850, James White printed the Advent Review and Herald article in which he included Crosier's article which had the wrong view of the Daily. And it was a long article, so he had to put it in two publications. There were two Advent Reviews in September that were printed, to get all of Crosier's article in it.

Then on September 23^rd of the very same month, Ellen White gets a vision where she says, "I was shown that since 1844 other views of the Daily have been introduced, and it is bringing darkness and confusion."

So, what did James White then do? The same month, September 1850, he printed a third Advent Review and Herald, and he reprinted Crosier's article which he had just printed at the beginning of the month, only in his reprint, in this third time around, he removed from Crosier's article the teaching that the Daily represents Christ's Sanctuary ministry.

Why did James White do that? Well, because the prophetess was his wife; and, in September 23 of that month she was given light that these other views of the Daily are bringing darkness and confusion and, James White, as the husband of the prophetess immediately went out and rectified that error.

So, you have an historical witness by what took place in that history that the Whites understood that the Daily was Paganism.

Now, in Manuscript Releases, number 15, page 210, she says,

"Monday we returned to Dorchester where our dear Brother Nichols and family live."—

That is this Nichols, "Brother Nichols." This [1850 Chart] is published by Otis Nichols. It is in the same history. This is September 1850 when this is going on with the Crosier article. And Ellen White comes to— I do not what happened. I am making this all up—and Ellen White comes to James and says, "Look at what the Lord just showed me. The other views of the Daily that have been coming in. I received this yesterday on September 23^rd."

And James White goes, "I gotta fix this one!" and he immediately goes and reprints the article to fix it. This is September 1850.

Okay. So, in November of 1850, how much longer is that?

FROM THE AUDIENCE: Two months.

BROTHER PIPPENGER: It is the same history. Okay?

—"Monday we returned to Dorchester were our dear Brother Nichols and family live. There in the night God gave me a very interesting vision, the most of which you will see in the paper. God shewed me the necessity of getting out a chart [Brother Pippenger points to the 1850 Chart]. I saw it was needed and that the truth made plain upon tables would effect much and would cause souls to come to the knowledge of the truth." Manuscript Releases, number 15, 210—November, 1850.

So, in this very same history, not only does James White remove Crosier's false teaching of the Daily after he is—"rebuked" might be too strong for promoting the false view in the Advent Review—but, he participates with Nichols in making this {1850] Chart within two months.

1850 Chart

Ten HORNS arose 490

Pagan Dominion or

The DAILY taken

away. Dan 11:31 508

Papacy set up. 538

And what does this Chart say right here [referring to the center midsection of the 1850 Chart]? "Pagan Dominion or The DAILY taken away." So you have two historical witnesses. You have the activity in the Review and Herald in September, in response to the vision that appears in Early Writings, page 74; and, you have the publication of this [1850] Chart showing that two months after James White removed Crosier's false teaching of the Daily out of the article, that they emphasize this very clearly. So, historically, the Whites understood that the Daily was Paganism, and that understanding came from William Miller, who received that understanding by following the impressions of the Angel Gabriel.

Shall we pray?

Benediction: Heavenly Father, we do not want to be of the type of people that have often been your people that resist and mock the prophets. I am not concerned whether William Miller was a prophet at this point, but it is clear that as the messenger that you sent, the chosen one, that the role that he fulfilled was sacred and holy. And for us to downplay, misrepresent, and reject that message, we are accomplishing the same work that your people have done throughout history, in persecuting the men that you selected to bring the message to them in that history. Forgive us for doing so; but, more than that, allow us to understand the light that we can receive from that history that would better prepare us to navigate this history in a successful fashion, one that would achieve for us personal salvation and help others to that goal and, more importantly, one that would glorify you. We thank you for the wonderful truths that you are opening to your people, and we ask that your Holy Spirit would be allowed to make these truths a reality in their experience, for we can see on the near horizon a tremendous crisis that we need to be prepared for. Prepare us for that we ask in Jesus's name. Amen.