At Oswego, New York, September 7, 1850, the Lord showed me
that a great work must be done for His people before they could stand in the
battle in the day of the Lord. I was pointed to those who claim to be
Adventists, but who reject the present truth, and saw that they were crumbling
and that the hand of the Lord was in their midst to divide and scatter them now
in the gathering time, so that the precious jewels among them, who have
formerly been deceived, may have their eyes opened to see their true state. And
now when the truth is presented to them by the Lord's messengers, they are
prepared to listen, and see its beauty and harmony, and to leave their former
associates and errors, embrace the precious truth and stand where they can
define their position.
I saw that those who oppose the Sabbath of the Lord could
not take the Bible and show that our position is incorrect; therefore they
would slander those who
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believe and teach the truth and would attack their
characters. Many who were once conscientious and loved God and His Word have
become so hardened by rejecting the light of truth that they do not hesitate to
wickedly misrepresent and falsely accuse those who love the holy Sabbath, if by
so doing they can injure the influence of those who fearlessly declare the
truth. But these things will not hinder the work of God. In fact, this course
pursued by those who hate the truth will be the very means of opening the eyes
of some. Every jewel will be brought out and gathered, for the hand of the Lord
is set to recover the remnant of His people, and He will accomplish the work
gloriously.
We who believe the truth should be very careful to give no
occasion for our good to be evil spoken of. We should know that every step we
take is in accordance with the Bible; for those who hate the commandments of
God will triumph over our missteps and faults, as the wicked did in 1843.
May 14, 1851, I saw the beauty and loveliness of Jesus. As I
beheld His glory, the thought did not occur to me that I should ever be
separated from His presence. I saw a light coming from the glory that encircled
the Father, and as it approached near to me, my body trembled and shook like a
leaf. I thought that if it should come near me I would be struck out of
existence, but the light passed me. Then could I have some sense of the great
and terrible God with whom we have to do. I saw then what faint views some have
of the holiness of God, and how much they take His holy and reverend name in
vain, without realizing that it is God, the great and terrible God, of whom
they are speaking. While praying, many use careless and irreverent expressions,
which grieve the tender Spirit of the Lord and cause their petitions to be shut
out of heaven.
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I also saw that many do not realize what they must be in
order to live in the sight of the Lord without a high priest in the sanctuary
through the time of trouble. Those who receive the seal of the living God and
are protected in the time of trouble must reflect the image of Jesus fully.
I saw that many were neglecting the preparation so needful
and were looking to the time of "refreshing" and the "latter
rain" to fit them to stand in the day of the Lord and to live in His
sight. Oh, how many I saw in the time of trouble without a shelter! They had neglected
the needful preparation; therefore they could not receive the refreshing that
all must have to fit them to live in the sight of a holy God. Those who refuse
to be hewed by the prophets and fail to purify their souls in obeying the whole
truth, and who are willing to believe that their condition is far better than
it really is, will come up to the time of the falling of the plagues, and then
see that they needed to be hewed and squared for the building. But there will
be no time then to do it and no Mediator to plead their cause before the
Father. Before this time the awfully solemn declaration has gone forth,
"He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let
him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and
he that is holy, let him be holy still." I saw that none could share the
"refreshing" unless they obtain the victory over every besetment,
over pride, selfishness, love of the world, and over every wrong word and
action. We should, therefore, be drawing nearer and nearer to the Lord and be
earnestly seeking that preparation necessary to enable us to stand in the
battle in the day of the Lord. Let all remember that God is holy and that none
but holy beings can ever dwell in His presence.