The Eternal Gospel Church

The Eternal Gospel Church

The Laodicean Message

God presented this important message in the very testimony of our call to be the remnant people of God. As early as the 1850’s, Ellen White states a concern that the Laodicean message was not accomplishing what God intended. There was no return to experience that preserved the pioneers after the great disappointment. In our very beginning we developed a very Laodicean gospel which eventually produced kingly power in our leadership.

“The message to the church of the Laodiceans is a startling denunciation, and is applicable to the people of God at the present time.

“ ‘And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write: These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the beginning of the creation of God; I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spew thee out of My mouth. Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked.’

“The Lord here shows us that the message to be borne to His people by ministers whom He has called to warn the people is not a peace-and-safety message. It is not merely theoretical, but practical in every particular.  The people of God are represented in the message to the Laodiceans as in a position of carnal security. They are at ease, believing themselves to be in an exalted condition of spiritual attainments. ‘Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked.’

“What greater deception can come upon human minds than a confidence that they are right when they are all wrong! The message of the True Witness finds the people of God in a sad deception, yet honest in that deception. They know not that their condition is deplorable in the sight of God. While those addressed are flattering themselves that they are in an exalted spiritual condition, the message of the True Witness breaks their security by the startling denunciation of their true condition of spiritual blindness, poverty, and wretchedness. The testimony, so cutting and severe, cannot be a mistake, for it is the True Witness who speaks, and His testimony must be correct.” Testimonies, vol. 3, 252-253.

What Greater Deception Can Come Upon The Human Mind?

“It is difficult for those who feel secure in their attainments, and who believe themselves to be rich in spiritual knowledge, to receive the message which declares that they are deceived and in need of every spiritual grace. The unsanctified heart is ‘deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked.’ I was shown that many are flattering themselves that they are good Christians, who have not a ray of light from Jesus. They have not a living experience for themselves in the divine life. They need a deep and thorough work of self-abasement before God before they will feel their true need of earnest, persevering effort to secure the precious graces of the Spirit.

“God leads His people on step by step. The Christian life is a constant battle and a march. There is no rest from the warfare. It is by constant, unceasing effort that we maintain the victory over the temptations of Satan. As a people we are triumphing in the clearness and strength of the truth. We are fully sustained in our positions by an overwhelming amount of plain Scriptural testimony. But we are very much wanting in Bible humility, patience, faith, love, self-denial, watchfulness, and the spirit of sacrifice. We need to cultivate Bible holiness. Sin prevails among the people of God. The plain message of rebuke to the Laodiceans is not received. Many cling to their doubts and their darling sins while they are in so great a deception as to talk and feel that they are in need of nothing. They think the testimony of the Spirit of God in reproof is uncalled for or that it does not mean them. Such are in the greatest need of the grace of God and spiritual discernment that they may discover their deficiency in spiritual knowledge.” Testimonies, vol. 3, 253-254.

The spiritual blindness now revealed in this 21^st Century is responsible for the long delay. It was possible to have seen the coming of our Lord and Saviour before the turn of the century.

The rejection of the Laodicean message; the rejection of the very important message of Righteousness By Faith in 1888

The legalism of the 19^th Century has climaxed in the liberalism that now exists in most of our churches. Some of our churches have adopted the Pentecostal type of music and worship keeping Saturday, not Sabbath. Many of the leadership—leaders, pastors, lay leaders, and laity—feel no need because they are spiritual blind. Many of them are worldly, keeping Saturday.

“Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” 1 Corinthians 2:12-14.

“Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.” 1 John 2:15-17.

The Love Of The World Has Replaced Our Love For The Truth

The three angels’ messages, the cleansing of the sanctuary message, the importance of the 2,300 day prophecy, which makes us the remnant church in the final generation, the Laodicean condition has about reached its zenith. Like Israel of old, we have adopted the theology of the Evangelical theology of many of the Protestant churches—saved in sin—Our continued rejection of the great standards of Righteousness by Faith has brought us into a deplorable state of worldliness. We are in a sinful state of darkness and if we continue in this world sinning and confessing and never overcoming we are in rebellion as demonstrated by our disobedience to Christ’s plans in:

1. Our educational system—promoting competitive sports, drama, literature of the world, immodest dress, and so on;

2. Our health care system—neglect of medical missionary work, simple remedies, sanitariums, treatment rooms, vegetarian restaurants, and so on;

3. Publishing houses—the way they operate in promoting a plethora of story books and non-Adventist authors and musicians, in comparison to serious message and Spirit of Prophecy publications;

4. Evangelism to the world—baptizing without regard to the conversion experience;

5. The three angels’ messages of Revelation 14:6-12—preaching obedience to God while in open rebellion to His directives;

6. Neglecting the sanctuary message and its importance to the three angels’ messages—perfection of character in God’s final generation as an essential part of the cleansing of the heavenly sanctuary.

These are six areas in which we have largely divorced ourselves from the directions God has given through His testimony to the remnant church.

We have lowered the standard to meet the practices and demands of our people in the following areas:

1. Divorce and remarriage;

2. Music. See Selected Messages, book 2, 35-37;

3. Recreation, competitive sports;

4. Dress styles; mixed swimming;

5. Theater going;

6. Jewelry, sacrificial living;

7. Sabbathkeeping according to Isaiah 58:13-14;

8. Watching movies and sports (now on television and videos);

9. Reverence in God’s sanctuary;

10. Importance of the Spirit of Prophecy;

11. Health reform, flesh eating, etc.;

12. Diversions, now video games and the internet;

13. Coffee drinking and cola beverages;

14. Pulpit preaching, now saved in sinning, downplaying of sanctification.

“Unsanctified ministers are arraying themselves against God. They are praising Christ and the god of this world in the same breath. While professedly they receive Christ, they embrace Barabbas, and by their actions say, ‘Not this Man, but Barabbas.’ Let all who read these lines, take heed. Satan has made his boast of what he can do. He thinks to dissolve the unity which Christ prayed might exist in His church. He says, ‘I will go forth and be a lying spirit to deceive those that I can, to criticize, and condemn, and falsify.’ Let the son of deceit and false witness be entertained by a church that has had great light, great evidence, and that church will discard the message the Lord has sent, and receive the most unreasonable assertions and false suppositions and false theories. Satan laughs at their folly, for he knows what truth is.

“Many will stand in our pulpits with the torch of false prophecy in their hands, kindled from the hellish torch of Satan. If doubts and unbelief are cherished, the faithful ministers will be removed from the people who think they know so much. ‘If thou hadst known,’ said Christ, ‘even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes.’ ” Testimonies to Ministers, 409-410.

Rebellion Against The Spirit Of Prophecy

The straight testimony is what now must be given. Some will cry out, “We are growing in numbers.” Yes, we are boasting of fifteen million members; but that figure is very deceiving. Many of our millions of members no longer attend church. Remember, there will come a falling away first.

“Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition.” 2 Thessalonians 2:3.

The Laodicean state is responsible for this falling away from the truth.

The Laodicean state—condition—is responsible for leaving Jesus out of our preaching and in our daily walk in this final crisis hour.

How many will answer the final call, “Come out of this lost condition of Laodicea?” God commands us to come out of this condition of Laodicea.

“Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you.” 2 Corinthians 6:17.

“I was shown that the testimony to the Laodiceans applies to God’s people at the present time, and the reason it has not accomplished a greater work is because of the hardness of their hearts. But God has given the message time to do its work. The heart must be purified from sins which have so long shut out Jesus. This fearful message will do its work. When it was first presented, it led to close examination of heart. Sins were confessed, and the people of God were stirred everywhere. Nearly all believed that this message would end in the loud cry of the third angel. But as they failed to see the powerful work accomplished in a short time, many lost the effect of the message. I saw that this message would not accomplish its work in a few short months. It is designed to arouse the people of God, to discover to them their backslidings, and to lead to zealous repentance, that they may be favored with the presence of Jesus, and be fitted for the loud cry of the third angel. As this message affected the heart, it led to deep humility before God. Angels were sent in every direction to prepare unbelieving hearts for the truth. The cause of God began to rise, and His people were acquainted with their position. If the counsel of the True Witness had been fully heeded, God would have wrought for His people in greater power. Yet the efforts made since the message has been given, have been blessed of God, and many souls have been brought from error and darkness to rejoice in the truth.” Testimonies, vol. 1, 186.

God Is Proving His People

“God will prove His people. Jesus bears patiently with them, and does not spew them out of His mouth in a moment. Said the angel: ‘God is weighing His people.’ If the message had been of as short duration as many of us supposed, there would have been no time for them to develop character. Many moved from feeling, not from principle and faith, and this solemn, fearful message stirred them. It wrought upon their feelings, and excited their fears, but did not accomplish the work which God designed that it should. God reads the heart. Lest His people should be deceived in regard to themselves, He gives them time for the excitement to wear off, and then proves them to see if they will obey the counsel of the True Witness.

“God leads His people on, step by step. He brings them up to different points calculated to manifest what is in the heart. Some endure at one point, but fall off at the next. At every advanced point the heart is tested and tried a little closer. If the professed people of God find their hearts opposed to this straight work, it should convince them that they have a work to do to overcome, if they would not be spewed out of the mouth of the Lord. Said the angel: ‘God will bring His work closer and closer to test and prove every one of His people.’ Some are willing to receive one point; but when God brings them to another testing point, they shrink from it and stand back, because they find that it strikes directly at some cherished idol. Here they have opportunity to see what is in their hearts that shuts out Jesus. They prize something higher than the truth, and their hearts are not prepared to receive Jesus. Individuals are tested and proved a length of time to see if they will sacrifice their idols and heed the counsel of the True Witness. If any will not be purified through obeying the truth, and overcome their selfishness, their pride, and evil passions, the angels of God have the charge: ‘They are joined to their idols, let them alone,’ and they pass on to their work, leaving these with their sinful traits unsubdued, to the control of evil angels. Those who come up to every point, and stand every test, and overcome, be the price what it may, have heeded the counsel of the True Witness, and they will receive the latter rain, and thus be fitted for translation.” Ibid., 186-187.

The crisis before us demands that we confess and repent. How many will survive this great deception?—Only a very few. Jesus says:

“For many are called, but few are chosen.” Matthew 22:14.

God told Ellen White the prophet of the Lord through inspiration:

“ ‘And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.’ The very atmosphere is polluted with sin. Soon God’s people will be tested by fiery trials, and the great proportion of those who now appear to be genuine and true will prove to be base metal. Instead of being strengthened and confirmed by opposition, threats, and abuse, they will cowardly take the side of the opposers. The promise is: ‘Them that honor Me I will honor.’ Shall we be less firmly attached to God’s law because the world at large have attempted to make it void?

“Already the judgments of God are abroad in the land, as seen in storms, in floods, in tempests, in earthquakes, in peril by land and by sea. The great I AM is speaking to those who make void His law. When God’s wrath is poured out upon the earth, who will then be able to stand? Now is the time for God’s people to show themselves true to principle. When the religion of Christ is most held in contempt, when His law is most despised, then should our zeal be the warmest and our courage and firmness the most unflinching. To stand in defense of truth and righteousness when the majority forsake us, to fight the battles of the Lord when champions are few—this will be our test. At this time we must gather warmth from the coldness of others, courage from their cowardice, and loyalty from their treason. The nation will be on the side of the great rebel leader.” Testimonies, vol. 5, 136.

“Except the LORD of hosts had left unto us a very small remnant, we should have been as Sodom, and we should have been like unto Gomorrah.” Isaiah 1:9.

Only a very small remnant of Seventh-day Adventists will repent. Confession and repentance must come from the heart.

“Now I rejoice, not that ye were made sorry, but that ye sorrowed to repentance: for ye were made sorry after a godly manner, that ye might receive damage by us in nothing. For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.” 2 Corinthians 7:9-10.

—Pastor Ron Spear

The Eternal Gospel Church

The Eternal Gospel Church