The Great Controversy
by Ellen G. White
Chapter 24: In the Holy of Holies
 |
|
The subject of the sanctuary was the key which unlocked the
mystery of the disappointment of 1844. It opened to view a complete system of
truth, connected and harmonious, showing that God's hand had directed the great
advent movement and revealing present duty as it brought to light the position
and work of His people. As the disciples of Jesus after the terrible night of
their anguish and disappointment were "glad when they saw the Lord,"
so did those now rejoice who had looked in faith for His second coming. They
had expected Him to appear in glory to give reward to His servants. As their
hopes were disappointed, they had lost sight of Jesus, and with Mary at the
sepulcher they cried: "They have taken away my Lord, and I know not where
they have laid Him." Now in the holy of holies they again beheld Him,
their compassionate High Priest, soon to appear as their king and deliverer.
Light from the sanctuary illumined the past, the present, and the future. They
knew that God had led them by His unerring providence. Though, like the first
disciples, they themselves had failed to understand the message which they
bore, yet it had been in every respect correct. In proclaiming it they had
fulfilled the purpose of God, and their labor had not been in vain in the Lord.
Begotten "again unto a lively hope," they rejoiced "with joy
unspeakable and full of glory." [424] {GC 423.1}
Both the prophecy of Daniel 8:14, "Unto two thousand
and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed," and the
first angel's message, "Fear God, and give glory to Him; for the hour of
His judgment is come," pointed to Christ's ministration in the most holy
place, to the investigative judgment, and not to the coming of Christ for the
redemption of His people and the destruction of the wicked. The mistake had not
been in the reckoning of the prophetic periods, but in the event to take
place at the end of the 2300 days. Through this error the believers had
suffered disappointment, yet all that was foretold by the prophecy, and all
that they had any Scripture warrant to expect, had been accomplished. At the
very time when they were lamenting the failure of their hopes, the event had
taken place which was foretold by the message, and which must be fulfilled
before the Lord could appear to give reward to His servants. {GC 424.1}
Christ had come, not to the earth, as they expected, but, as
foreshadowed in the type, to the most holy place of the temple of God in
heaven. He is represented by the prophet Daniel as coming at this time to the
Ancient of Days: "I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the
Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came"—not to the
earth, but—"to the Ancient of Days, and they brought Him near
before Him." Daniel 7:13. {GC 424.2}
This coming is foretold also by the prophet Malachi:
"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. The coming of the Lord to His temple was
sudden, unexpected, to His people. They were not looking for Him there.
They expected Him to come to earth, "in flaming fire taking vengeance on
them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel." 2 Thessalonians
1:8. {GC 424.3}
But the people were not yet ready to meet their Lord. There
was still a work of preparation to be accomplished for [425] them.
Light was to be given, directing their minds to the temple of God in heaven;
and as they should by faith follow their High Priest in His ministration there,
new duties would be revealed. Another message of warning and instruction was to
be given to the church. {GC
424.4}
Says the prophet: "Who may abide the day of His coming?
and who shall stand when He appeareth? for He is like a refiner's fire, and
like fullers' soap: and He shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and
He shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they
may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness." Malachi 3:2, 3.
Those who are living upon the earth when the intercession of Christ shall cease
in the sanctuary above are to stand in the sight of a holy God without a
mediator. Their robes must be spotless, their characters must be purified from
sin by the blood of sprinkling. Through the grace of God and their own diligent
effort they must be conquerors in the battle with evil. While the investigative
judgment is going forward in heaven, while the sins of penitent believers are
being removed from the sanctuary, there is to be a special work of
purification, of putting away of sin, among God's people upon earth. This work
is more clearly presented in the messages of Revelation 14. {GC 425.1}
When this work shall have been accomplished, the followers
of Christ will be ready for His appearing. "Then shall the offering of
Judah and Jerusalem be pleasant unto the Lord, as in the days of old, and as in
former years." Malachi 3:4. Then the church which our Lord at His coming
is to receive to Himself will be a "glorious church, not having spot, or
wrinkle, or any such thing." Ephesians 5:27. Then she will look
"forth as the morning, fair as the moon, clear as the sun, and terrible as
an army with banners." Song of Solomon 6:10. {GC 425.2}
Besides the coming of the Lord to His temple, Malachi also
foretells His second advent, His coming for the execution of the judgment, in
these words: "And I will come near [426] to you
to judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, and against
the adulterers, and against false swearers, and against those that oppress the
hireling in his wages, the widow, and the fatherless, and that turn aside the
stranger from his right, and fear not Me, saith the Lord of hosts."
Malachi 3:5. Jude refers to the same scene when he says, "Behold, the Lord
cometh with ten thousands of His saints, to execute judgment upon all, and to
convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds." Jude
14, 15. This coming, and the coming of the Lord to His temple, are distinct and
separate events. {GC
425.3}
The coming of Christ as our high priest to the most holy
place, for the cleansing of the sanctuary, brought to view in Daniel 8:14; the
coming of the Son of man to the Ancient of Days, as presented in Daniel 7:13;
and the coming of the Lord to His temple, foretold by Malachi, are descriptions
of the same event; and this is also represented by the coming of the bridegroom
to the marriage, described by Christ in the parable of the ten virgins, of
Matthew 25. {GC 426.1}
In the summer and autumn of 1844 the proclamation,
"Behold, the Bridegroom cometh," was given. The two classes
represented by the wise and foolish virgins were then developed—one
class who looked with joy to the Lord's appearing, and who had been diligently
preparing to meet Him; another class that, influenced by fear and acting from
impulse, had been satisfied with a theory of the truth, but were destitute of
the grace of God. In the parable, when the bridegroom came, "they that
were ready went in with him to the marriage." The coming of the
bridegroom, here brought to view, takes place before the marriage. The marriage
represents the reception by Christ of His kingdom. The Holy City, the New Jerusalem,
which is the capital and representative of the kingdom, is called "the
bride, the Lamb's wife." Said the angel to John: "Come hither, I will
show thee the bride, the Lamb's wife." "He carried me away in the
spirit," says the prophet, "and showed me that great city, the holy
Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God." Revelation [427]
21:9, 10. Clearly, then, the bride represents the Holy City, and the virgins
that go out to meet the bridegroom are a symbol of the church. In the
Revelation the people of God are said to be the guests at the marriage supper.
Revelation 19:9. If guests, they cannot be represented also as the bride.
Christ, as stated by the prophet Daniel, will receive from the Ancient of Days
in heaven, "dominion, and glory, and a kingdom;" He will receive the
New Jerusalem, the capital of His kingdom, "prepared as a bride adorned
for her husband." Daniel 7:14; Revelation 21:2. Having received the
kingdom, He will come in His glory, as King of kings and Lord of lords, for the
redemption of His people, who are to "sit down with Abraham, and Isaac,
and Jacob," at His table in His kingdom (Matthew 8:11; Luke 22:30), to
partake of the marriage supper of the Lamb. {GC 426.2}
The proclamation, "Behold, the Bridegroom cometh,"
in the summer of 1844, led thousands to expect the immediate advent of the
Lord. At the appointed time the Bridegroom came, not to the earth, as the
people expected, but to the Ancient of Days in heaven, to the marriage, the
reception of His kingdom. "They that were ready went in with Him to the
marriage: and the door was shut." They were not to be present in person at
the marriage; for it takes place in heaven, while they are upon the earth. The
followers of Christ are to "wait for their Lord, when He will return
from the wedding." Luke 12:36. But they are to understand His work,
and to follow Him by faith as He goes in before God. It is in this sense that
they are said to go in to the marriage. {GC 427.1}
In the parable it was those that had oil in their vessels
with their lamps that went in to the marriage. Those who, with a knowledge of
the truth from the Scriptures, had also the Spirit and grace of God, and who,
in the night of their bitter trial, had patiently waited, searching the Bible
for clearer light—these saw the truth concerning the sanctuary in
heaven and the Saviour's change in ministration, and by faith they followed Him
in His work in the sanctuary above. And all who through the testimony of the
Scriptures accept the [428] same truths, following Christ by
faith as He enters in before God to perform the last work of mediation, and at
its close to receive His kingdom—all these are represented as going
in to the marriage. {GC
427.2}
In the parable of Matthew 22 the same figure of the marriage
is introduced, and the investigative judgment is clearly represented as taking
place before the marriage. Previous to the wedding the king comes in to see the
guests, to see if all are attired in the wedding garment, the spotless robe of
character washed and made white in the blood of the Lamb. Matthew 22:11;
Revelation 7:14. He who is found wanting is cast out, but all who upon
examination are seen to have the wedding garment on are accepted of God and
accounted worthy of a share in His kingdom and a seat upon His throne. This
work of examination of character, of determining who are prepared for the
kingdom of God, is that of the investigative judgment, the closing of work in
the sanctuary above. {GC
428.1}
When the work of investigation shall be ended, when the cases
of those who in all ages have professed to be followers of Christ have been
examined and decided, then, and not till then, probation will close, and the
door of mercy will be shut. Thus in the one short sentence, "They that
were ready went in with Him to the marriage: and the door was shut," we
are carried down through the Saviour's final ministration, to the time when the
great work for man's salvation shall be completed. {GC 428.2}
In the service of the earthly sanctuary, which, as we have
seen, is a figure of the service in the heavenly, when the high priest on the
Day of Atonement entered the most holy place, the ministration in the first
apartment ceased. God commanded: "There shall be no man in the tabernacle
of the congregation when he goeth in to make an atonement in the holy place,
until he comes out." Leviticus 16:17. So when Christ entered the holy of
holies to perform the closing work of the atonement, He ceased His ministration
in the first apartment. But when the ministration in the first apartment [429]
ended, the ministration in the second apartment began. When in the typical
service the high priest left the holy on the Day of Atonement, he went in
before God to present the blood of the sin offering in behalf of all Israel who
truly repented of their sins. So Christ had only completed one part of His work
as our intercessor, to enter upon another portion of the work, and He still
pleaded His blood before the Father in behalf of sinners. {GC 428.3}
This subject was not understood by Adventists in 1844. After
the passing of the time when the Saviour was expected, they still believed His
coming to be near; they held that they had reached an important crisis and that
the work of Christ as man's intercessor before God had ceased. It appeared to them
to be taught in the Bible that man's probation would close a short time before
the actual coming of the Lord in the clouds of heaven. This seemed evident from
those scriptures which point to a time when men will seek, knock, and cry at
the door of mercy, and it will not be opened. And it was a question with them
whether the date to which they had looked for the coming of Christ might not
rather mark the beginning of this period which was immediately to precede His
coming. Having given the warning of the judgment near, they felt that their
work for the world was done, and they lost their burden of soul for the
salvation of sinners, while the bold and blasphemous scoffing of the ungodly
seemed to them another evidence that the Spirit of God had been withdrawn from
the rejecters of His mercy. All this confirmed them in the belief that
probation had ended, or, as they then expressed it, "the door of mercy was
shut." {GC 429.1}
But clearer light came with the investigation of the
sanctuary question. They now saw that they were correct in believing that the
end of the 2300 days in 1844 marked an important crisis. But while it was true
that that door of hope and mercy by which men had for eighteen hundred years
found access to God, was closed, another door was opened, [430] and
forgiveness of sins was offered to men through the intercession of Christ in
the most holy. One part of His ministration had closed, only to give place to
another. There was still an "open door" to the heavenly sanctuary,
where Christ was ministering in the sinner's behalf. {GC 429.2}
Now was seen the application of those words of Christ in the
Revelation, addressed to the church at this very time: "These things saith
He that is holy, He that is true, He that hath the key of David, He that openeth,
and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth; I know thy works:
behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it."
Revelation 3:7, 8. {GC
430.1}
It is those who by faith follow Jesus in the great work of
the atonement who receive the benefits of His mediation in their behalf, while
those who reject the light which brings to view this work of ministration are
not benefited thereby. The Jews who rejected the light given at Christ's first
advent, and refused to believe on Him as the Saviour of the world, could not
receive pardon through Him. When Jesus at His ascension entered by His own
blood into the heavenly sanctuary to shed upon His disciples the blessings of
His mediation, the Jews were left in total darkness to continue their useless
sacrifices and offerings. The ministration of types and shadows had ceased.
That door by which men had formerly found access to God was no longer open. The
Jews had refused to seek Him in the only way whereby He could then be found,
through the ministration in the sanctuary in heaven. Therefore they found no
communion with God. To them the door was shut. They had no knowledge of Christ
as the true sacrifice and the only mediator before God; hence they could not
receive the benefits of His mediation. {GC 430.2}
The condition of the unbelieving Jews illustrates the
condition of the careless and unbelieving among professed Christians, who are
willingly ignorant of the work of our merciful High Priest. In the typical
service, when the high priest [431] entered the most holy place, all
Israel were required to gather about the sanctuary and in the most solemn
manner humble their souls before God, that they might receive the pardon of
their sins and not be cut off from the congregation. How much more essential in
this antitypical Day of Atonement that we understand the work of our High
Priest and know what duties are required of us. {GC 430.3}
Find out more today how to get a special discount when you purchase a
hardcover or
paperback
copy of The Great Controversy.
|
|
Men cannot with impunity reject the warning which God in
mercy sends them. A message was sent from heaven to the world in Noah's day,
and their salvation depended upon the manner in which they treated that
message. Because they rejected the warning, the Spirit of God was withdrawn
from the sinful race, and they perished in the waters of the Flood. In the time
of Abraham, mercy ceased to plead with the guilty inhabitants of Sodom, and all
but Lot with his wife and two daughters were consumed by the fire sent down
from heaven. So in the days of Christ. The Son of God declared to the
unbelieving Jews of that generation: "Your house is left unto you
desolate." Matthew 23:38. Looking down to the last days, the same Infinite
Power declares, concerning those who "received not the love of the truth,
that they might be saved": "For this cause God shall send them strong
delusion, that they should believe a lie: that they all might be damned who
believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness." 2
Thessalonians 2:10-12. As they reject the teachings of His word, God withdraws
His Spirit and leaves them to the deceptions which they love. {GC 431.1}
But Christ still intercedes in man's behalf, and light will
be given to those who seek it. Though this was not at first understood by
Adventists, it was afterward made plain as the Scriptures which define their
true position began to open before them. {GC 431.2}
The passing of the time in 1844 was followed by a period of
great trial to those who still held the advent faith. Their only relief, so far
as ascertaining their true position was [432]
concerned, was the light which directed their minds to the sanctuary above.
Some renounced their faith in their former reckoning of the prophetic periods
and ascribed to human or satanic agencies the powerful influence of the Holy
Spirit which had attended the advent movement. Another class firmly held that
the Lord had led them in their past experience; and as they waited and watched
and prayed to know the will of God they saw that their great High Priest had
entered upon another work of ministration, and, following Him by faith, they were
led to see also the closing work of the church. They had a clearer
understanding of the first and second angels' messages, and were prepared to
receive and give to the world the solemn warning of the third angel of
Revelation 14. {GC 431.3}
Click here to read the next chapter:
"God's Law Immutable"
|
