VOL. 12 No. 2 |
DECEMBER, 1956
|
WHEN AND HOW THE WORK IS
TO BE FINISHED.
SIGN POSTS ALONG THE WAY.
(The sermon selected for this issue of
The Symbolic Code was delivered by Brother V.T. Houteff on July 20, 1946).
Rev. 10:5-7 -- "And the angel which
I saw stand upon the sea and upon the earth lifted up His hand to heaven,
and sware by Him that liveth for ever and ever, Who created heaven, and
the things that therein are, and the earth, and the things that therein
are, and the sea, and the things which are therein, that there should be
time no longer: but in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when
he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as He hath
declared to His servants the prophets."
The angel swore that there
should be time no longer. I think I understand how we as Seventh-day
Adventists interpret "time no longer"; but these two verses when read together
clearly show what kind of time is to be no longer, for it is during the
time of the sixth trumpet that the angel said there shall be time no longer,
but that at the commencement of the sounding of the seventh trumpet the
mystery of God shall be finished. What is the mystery of God? --
It is the work of salvation, or the Gospel work. Then during the
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period of the seventh trumpet there
will be no mystery yet to be finished, for it is to be finished during
the sixth trumpet. The angel, therefore, is to be understood as stating
simply that probationary time will extend only through the sounding of
the sixth trumpet and that is all, because the mystery of God is to be
all finished at the time the seventh angel begins to sound.
Now we wish to ascertain
what period we are living in. At the sounding of the sixth trumpet,
the four angels are to be let loose and they are then to kill a third part
of men; and their army, moreover, is to number 200,000,000 "horsemen" and
that many "horses." Since no such thing as this has ever happened,
it therefore speaks for itself that the sixth trumpet is yet in the future.
It has not yet commenced to sound.
In view of the fact that
we are not living in the sixth trumpet, let us ascertain whether we may
be in the sounding of the fifth trumpet, or whether it, too, is yet future.
Rev. 9:1-6 -- "And the fifth angel sounded
and I saw a star fall from heaven unto the earth: and to him was given
the key of the bottomless pit. And he opened the bottomless pit;
and there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace;
and the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit.
And there came out of the
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smoke locusts upon the earth: and unto
them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power. And
it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth,
neither any green thing, neither any tree; but only those men which have
not the seal of God in their foreheads. And to them it was given
that they should not kill them but that they should be tormented five months:
and their torment was as the torment of a scorpion, when he striketh a
man. And in those days shall men seek death, and shall not find it;
and shall desire to die, and death shall flee from them."
We do not know as yet of
a man who really wishes to die and yet cannot die, for there are a great
number of ways that he can end his life if he so chooses to do it.
Since this scripture says that in the fifth trumpet some men will seek
death but death will flee from them, we know that we have not yet come
to this part of the fifth trumpet. With this fact in mind we may
next ask ourselves the question, Has the fifth trumpet even started to
sound?
As the fifth angel sounded
a star fell from heaven, and the star is called "he." To "him" was
given the key to the bottomless pit, and when he opened the pit smoke ascended
out of it. I do not think we can understand whether or not the trumpet
has already sounded unless we understand what the smoke and the pit are.
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In Revelation 20 we find
that the Devil is to be cast into the bottomless pit and he must remain
bound there for a thousand years. We as Adventists have been taught
that the earth is the bottomless pit, a prison house for the Devil during
the millennium and that the angel who has the key to the bottomless pit
and who chains the Devil there for a thousand years, is Christ. If
Christ is to have the key at the commencement of the millennium then He
must have gotten it sometime before. Our subject for today on the
trumpets may throw light on that, for Revelation 9 says that locusts came
out of the bottomless pit after it was unlocked by the "star" which fell
from heaven to earth, and the Bible calls Christ "the bright and morning
star."
From our study to this
point we may conclude that the star in the fifth trumpet must represent
Christ. But let us now further check our interpretation to see if
it is correct. The star being designated by the pronouns "he" and
"him" and its coming to earth from heaven, clearly identifies the star
as a heavenly male being. He also had the key with which to open
the bottomless pit. When He opened it smoke and locusts came forth
out of the pit, showing also that the pit had been a prison house for the
locusts until they were released. The command to the locusts was
that they should hurt only those men which have not the seal of God in
their foreheads, which shows that they were friends to God's people.
Since it is the Devil's aim to hurt
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God's people, then the locusts having
been freed by the star and commanded not to hurt the sealed ones, shows
that they were friends of the star and the star was a friend to them and
therefore the star could be none other than Christ.
Our next step is to ascertain
who the locusts are and when Christ released them from the bottomless pit.
In Revelation 12 we have
a description of the dragon at the time Christ was born. He had seven
heads and ten horns, signifying that all the kingdoms (10 horns) of the
world and all religions (7 heads) were serving the dragon. Had he
not conquered the Jewish church, too, he could not have had seven heads.
When the dragon conquered the Jewish church -- God's people at that time,
that gave him seven heads. The very fact that the Jews were the ones
who had Christ crucified furnished the evidence that the Bible correctly
pictured them exactly where they were -- with the dragon. Seeing
then that the Devil had all the religions of the earth and all the kingdoms
of the earth, represented by the 7 heads and 10 crowned horns on his head,
then how much was not the Devil's? -- It was all his. This being
true then for God's true individual people within the church the earth
had indeed become a bottomless pit, a prison house. There was only
one way of escape for them and that was for the Star to come down from
heaven and open the pit. That being true, then whom do the locusts
represent? -- The Christians.
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The fifth trumpet, therefore, sounded
when Christ came nearly 2,000 years ago. We find ourselves therefore
living in the period of the sounding of the fifth trumpet -- the Christian
period -- before the sounding of the sixth trumpet.
But now in this period
before the sixth angel sounds his trumpet, some men are to seek death and
they will not find it, and would desire to die and death would flee
form them. They just could not die, for they would be immune to death.
Since we understand that the Lord is going to find a living church besides
those righteous who are lying in the graves then from that also we can
easily conclude that if these people during the fifth trumpet could not
die, then they will live through the sixth trumpet, too, and never die.
To find out what will make
these men immune to death, we shall refer to Revelation 7. I doubt
that we need to read the chapter, because everyone of us is so well
acquainted with it that we can almost quote it verse by verse. You
recall that there were four angels stationed on the four corners of the
earth, and they were to hold the winds from blowing on the earth and the
sea and the trees until the servants the 144,000, are sealed, for when
the winds are loosed they will hurt. After they receive the seal,
though, the winds will blow but they will not hurt the sealed ones for
they have received perfect and absolute protection from all harm.
Let us read about a man who long ago received a seal of protection:
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Gen. 4:15 -- "And the Lord said unto
him, Therefore whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him
sevenfold. And the Lord set a mark upon Cain lest any finding him
should kill him."
Cain slew Abel and therefore
he deserved to be slain himself. He did not deserve life any longer,
but God said that if anybody dare kill Cain sevenfold vengeance would befall
him. The Lord put a mark on him for the safety of Cain, and so long
as he had the mark no one should dare kill him. What is the mark?
-- You may say that the mark is as much as an angel guard present all the
time. God set a guarding angel with Cain to protect him from anyone's
killing him. Now we come to another marking period, that described
in Ezekiel 9.
In this chapter the Lord
called the angels who had charge of the city, showing that they had charge
of the city perhaps in a way similar to the charge of the angel over
Cain. These six angels who have charge of the city are called to
come forth and one among them is seen to have a writer's inkhorn.
And he is to set a mark on everyone that sighs and cries for the abominations.
When the marking is done, then the five other angels which have the slaughter
weapons in their hands are to smite everyone who has not the mark.
This indicates that the mark in Ezekiel 9 assures safety from the angels'
slaughter.
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John in Revelation 7, says
that he saw 144,000 with the seal of God in their foreheads, and since
we understand through Inspiration that this sealing and marking are done
to the same people, let us now see what the seal is. To serve as
an illustration, let us suppose that this book that I now hold up
is an envelope. And let us also suppose that this slip of paper which
I have now in my hand is very precious to me and I want to save it from
all manner of defacement and destruction. Is it not reasonable that
you would expect me to put it into this envelope and seal it well to keep
the paper from falling out? Moreover, if you do not want the wrong
persons to open your letters you seal them. When God places His seal
upon the 144,000, then nobody can hurt them. Do you see then
that the winds were held by the angels because the servants of God
were not as yet sealed -- under special protection? Unless they were
sealed when the winds start to blow, God's people would be left utterly
without protection from the danger of the hurting of the winds. Were
they sealed, however, before the winds blow, the winds could not harm them.
Let us read
Eph. 1:13, 14 -- "In Whom ye also trusted,
after that ye heard the word of Truth, the gospel of your salvation: in
Whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit
of promise. Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption
of the
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purchased possession, unto the praise
of His glory."
The people spoken of here
were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise until the mystery of God is
finished, until the sounding of the seventh trumpet. In other words,
they did have the promise that they were sealed for the resurrection day.
But the 144,000 are not sealed with a promise of the resurrection, they
are sealed for some other purpose. They are sealed for protection
from the hurting of the winds. That shows that the 144,000
are not sealed for the resurrection day, but for protection from being
harmed by everybody and everything. They are alive at the time they
are sealed, and the sealing enables them to live on. And since the
message that is to seal the 144,000 is here, we believe that we are now
living in the period when God is going to seal first the 144,000 and when
they are sealed their destination is God, New Jerusalem, not the grave
and the resurrection. Having this explanation, let us now reconsider
Rev. 9:6 -- "And in those days shall
men seek death, and shall not find it; and shall desire to die, and death
shall flee from them."
Is it not logical to believe
that the reason these men could not die is that they are sealed by God?
What else can make men live on and on and no one could kill them?
Who, other than God, can give life? And do you suppose that God
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is going to extend the life of the wicked?
He promises to do that only for the righteous those having the seal of
God in their foreheads. Then these that seek death and cannot find
it are God's people. They are to live on and on for eternity.
At what time will they be made invulnerable to death? Our study today
makes plain that it is during the fifth trumpet and before the sounding
of the sixth trumpet. If God is going to do this during the period
of the fifth trumpet, then the sealing of the 144,000 must take place in
the period of the fifth trumpet and not in the sixth. It is then
before the sixth angel sounds that some will have the experience of seeking
death and not finding it.
(This is a deep subject.
If I am not making it clear to you, then you should ask questions, for
it is very important. It is not a doctrine to talk about merely to
pass the time.)
To repeat, it is "in those
days" in the fifth trumpet that some will seek death and will not find
it.
In Daniel's time King Nebuchadnezzar
approved a decree forbidding any man to make petition to any god or to
anyone except himself for thirty days, and further, that if any should
violate this law he would be thrown into the lions' den to be eaten by
the angry beasts. Daniel, you recall, prayed to God as usual, and
in that respect he was seeking death, for he understood
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that by praying he was violating the
law and that the penalty for it would be death. But when they threw
Daniel into the den, what happened to him? -- Death fled from him.
You remember that just
prior to this incident involving Daniel, the King of Babylon made a great
image all of gold and gathered all his mighty men and all the people there
and decreed that when the trumpet sounded eveybody must bow down to his
image or be thrown into the fiery furnace to burn to death.
Only three Hebrew men in the vast throng refused to bow down, saying that
the God whom they served is able to preserve them, but if He chose not
to save them they would be willing to die anyway, for they would not worship
the image. As a consequence of their disobedience to the king's decree
the three youth were thrust into the furnace by men who themselves were
consumed by the intense heat, whereas the boys came out of the furnace
with not a hair even singed, nor was there the slightest smell of smoke
upon them. This was another example of men seeking death and not
finding it.
Then we know of another
man: the Lord Himself. He knew that He was to be killed. But
He did not hesitate to "seek death." In this instance, though, death
did not flee from Him, but the resurrection brought Him from the grave.
Then you remember that Paul knew that if he went to Jerusalem he would
not come back, for the enemies of the Truth would slay him. Nevertheless
he went,
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and thus did he, too, seek death.
But death did not flee from him, for he was killed.
Throughout the Dark Ages
all who dared accept the Gospel were seeking death, and they found it,
too. So we see that history in the period of the fifth trumpet discloses
that up to this time Revelation 9:6 has not met its fulfillment.
But there will yet be a decree before the fifth trumpet ends, that
if men dare to disobey, they must face the threatened penalty of
death. Those however, who have been sealed when the decree comes will seek
death and death will flee from them. God will not let them die.
By faith it is not difficult to understand how thls could be, for you know
that if God wills that you live you simply cannot die. We already
saw a demonstration of that in Daniel's time. Men's lives are in
the hands of God, and if He chooses to preserve the lives of some there
is none who can snuff them out, not even the Devil. A good example
of this was furnished when the Lord made it impossible for the Devil to
take the life of Job.
In the time of the fifth
trumpet the locusts (Christians) were to torment or hurt only those men
which have not the seal of God. And their torment was inflicted by
the sting of their scorpion-llke tails. Why, though, should Christians
torment anyone, some may ask?
It is not difficult to
understand this when we recall that Christ's Own ministry was a torment
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to the wicked. Though He was gentle
and though He healed all manner of diseases and made the common people
rejoice in His works, there was another class that were made so miserable
by His work which was a continual torment to them, that they crucified
Him in order to eliminate it. Likewise when the Christians after
the crucifixion became numerous, they too, became an intolerable nuisance
to this same class. Indeed, throughout the history of the world
God's people have always been a torment to the wicked who wanted to stay
wicked.
It was the tails of the
locusts that did the hurting. Since the tail is that part of the
body which follows behind, it would aptly symbolize followers.
And if the followers are symbolized by the tails, then God's leaders (ministers)
would be symbolized by the heads. It is the followers or converts
that hurt the opposers of the Truth. And that tormenting will
also be present in the sixth trumpet, for then there is to be those mighty
horses having tails of serpents.
People may not be so impressed
with locusts, but 200,000,000 horses and horsemen would be very impressive.
Revelation says that they would be present and working during the sixth
trumpet. So what are we approaching? -- In just a little while this
period will begin. It means that God's army will increase to
200,000,000 strong. That will indeed be a great movement. In
fact, the world has never seen anything like
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it. They will not only be great,
but they will also be invulnerable to death.
We learned that in the
fifth trumpet there are only 144,000 sealed ones, but in the sixth trumpet
there are to be 200,000,000. Now we want to know what is to cause
the increase in number. Let us turn to
Rev. 7:1-8 -- "And after these things
I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the
four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor
on the sea, nor on any tree. And I saw another angel ascending from
the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice
to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea,
Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till
we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads. And I
heard the number of them which were sealed: and there were sealed an hundred
and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel.
Of the tribe of Juda were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of
Reuben were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Gad were sealed
twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Aser were sealed twelve thousand.
Of the tribe of Nephthalim were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe
of Manasses were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Simeon were
sealed twelve thousand. Of
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the tribe of Levi were sealed twelve
thousand. Of the tribe of Issachar were sealed twelve thousand.
Of the tribe of Zabulon were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe
of Joseph were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Benjamin were
sealed twelve thousand."
The 144,000 are sealed
from the twelve tribes of Israel.
Rev. 7:9 -- "After this I beheld, and,
lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations,
and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before
the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands."
Now at first impulse you
may tell me that I was wrong a few moments ago when I told you that the
number of God's army will grow from 144,000 to 200,000,000. You may
say it because this verse says that there will be so great a multitude
to be converted that they could not be numbered. But you must not
fail to remember that Revelation 7:9 includes not only the 200,000,000
"horses" but also their converts which are represented by the tails.
When you add to 200,000,000 leaders the number of their followers, you
will have a number so great that it would be innumerable. In order
to ascertain how we know that there are more than 144,000 leaders, let
us turn to
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Isa. 66:12 -- "For thus saith the Lord,
Behold I will extend peace to her like a river, and the glory of the Gentiles
like a flowing stream: then shall ye suck, ye shall be borne upon her sides,
and be dandled upon her knees."
This is talking about the
church, Jerusalem, the city.
Isa. 66:13 -- "As one whom his mother
comforteth, so will I comfort you; and ye shall be comforted in Jerusalem."
This is a promise which
has not yet met its fulfillment. In the next verse we are told that
when God does comfort His people, it is to be a sign post.
Isa. 66:14 -- "And when ye see this,
your heart shall rejoice, and your bones shall flourish like an herb: and
the hand of the Lord shall be known toward His servants, and His indignation
toward His enemies."
The Christian is really
going to be converted and their enemies are going to be tormented.
Isa. 66:15 -- "For, behold, the Lord
will come with fire, and with His chariots like a whirlwind, to render
His anger with fury, and His rebuke with flames of fire."
This gives the reason The
Lord will come
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with anger and fury.
Isa. 66:16 -- "For by fire and by His
sword will the Lord plead with all flesh: and the slain of the Lord shall
be many."
The angels in Revelation
9 were to slay a third part of men. In that way "the slain of the
Lord shall be many."
Isa. 66:17 -- "They that sanctify themselves
and purify themselves in the gardens behind one tree in the midst, eating
swine's flesh, and the abomination, and the mouse, shall be consumed together,
saith the Lord."
Those who pose as Christians
but obey not the laws of God shall be consumed.
Isa. 66:18, 19 -- "For I know their
works and their thoughts: it shall come, that I will gather all nations
and tongues; and they shall come, and see My glory. And I will set
a sign among them, and I will send those that escape of them unto the nations,
to Tarshish, Pul, and Lud, that draw the bow, to Tubal, and Javan, to the
isles afar off, that have not heard My fame, neither have seen My glory;
and they shall declare My glory among the Gentiles."
The Lord is going to come
and slay many who claim to be sanctified but are not obedient
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to the Truth. Those who escape
will go to the nations that have not heard the Truth.
Let us discuss for a few
moments what it is that seals God's people as a whole, as a body.
You recall that in the days of Joshua the whole nation fell in defeat before
their enemy. Then Joshua prayed and God revealed to him that there
was a sinner in the camp and that unless he were found and removed, Israel
would never stand before her enemies. This illustrates the fact that
it is the removing of the wicked from the midst of the church that seals
it -- makes it able to live on. You see, then, that the church's
danger lurks behind the hypocrites that are in it. For this reason
the winds are held until the first fruits are individually sealed, and
when all the sinners have thereafter been removed, there will remain
only the righteous, thus leaving a sealed church, a holy people that God
can put His angels round about to protect (seal) against any molesting
thing. And they are the men, who, having escaped the slaughter, constitute
the servants of God whom He shall send to all the nations to proclaim His
glory.
Isa. 66:20 -- "And they shall bring
all your brethren for an offering unto the Lord out of all nations upon
horses, and in chariots, and in litters, and upon mules, and upon swift
beasts, to My holy mountain Jerusalem, saith the Lord, as the children
of Israel bring an offering in a clean vessel into the house of the Lord."
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Do you not see how the
work will be finished? It can be finished in no other way than by
a church containing only holy people. In the words of Isaiah, they
will bring all their brethren out of all nations in a clean vessel, meaning
a clean church. And when they bring in all their brethren, it will
result in a great ingathering of souls. That is why there will be
144,000 leaders to start with instead of only 12.
Isa. 66:21 -- "And I will also take
of them for priests and for Levites, saith the Lord."
Of those that are gathered,
God will take some for priests and Levites. That is what will swell
the force to 200,000,000 horses. Their riders are the angels.
Workmen whom God thus describes would fear nothing, for they, too, will
receive the seal of protection that will make them invulnerable to death.
Now you should be able to see what a great people God is to have.
Is it displeasing to God
for any to urge His people to study the Bible, to obey His Truth that they
may become the great People He has pictured them to be? Can it be?
If it is not, then shall we be just like walls through which nothing can
penetrate? I am sure that if we are God's people we will be responsive
to the revelation of His Truth and we will earnestly set ourselves to the
business of knowing His will and obeying it, that we may be His people.
Men like that will not talk empty, vain things, but their words will instead
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be powerful like fire, smoke, and brimstone.
And speaking of fire, where there is smoke there is also fire. Since
smoke ascended out of the bottomless pit, fire must have been in
the pit. And as fire and smoke and brimstone issued forth from the
mouths of the horses, what can it represent but the Spirit of God, the
Gospel of Christ? Is not the Spirit of God a number of times represented
by fire? The smoke fittingly represents a complete sacrifice burned
by fire, consumed by the Holy Spirit. Have we yet made up our mind
to sacrifice all -- to be all for God and none for self -- not meaning,
of course that we must torture ourselves?
For our closing thought
we should remind ourselves that the 144,000 were without guile in their
mouths. And the Bible says that he that overcomes his tongue is a
perfect man. Are we ever guilty of uttering statements before checking
them for accuracy, for justice, for necessity of telling, for edification?
Let us learn to speak the right thing at the right time and in the right
place. Having learned that, we will have become heroes, for it is
a fact that for at least some people to gain the victory on this point
they will have to make what will seem to be the supreme sacrifice.
Let us not speak evil of other people. Let us not speak discouraging,
disheartening things. Always remember that persons who speak thus
invariably betray their own low spiritual condition.
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