I realized the Governing bodies of the SDA as whole had evidently realized there were a large number of persons who had never been under any SDA influence who were investigating on their own, due exposure near or far, to the “WACO” event of 1993. In such, it was also evident that in prudence, at least from their position to their own agenda, they realized a plan of tolerance for such persons for sake of “proselyting” such persons with slow indoctrination using a feigned tolerance to the belief sets of such people.
I had joined the choir, was attending regularly, but my recollection of my very last visit, was at one of these fellowships. I had been attending on and off over a couple years and pretty regularly in the timeframe leading up to this fellowship.
After eating, I once again had another mini discussion of the Bible and things religious with a particular Deacon I took a liking too, despite knowing he had shined me on many times about home Bible Studies he never intended to attend in my home, nor invite me to in his. Still we had had more conversations he and I, than I had with any other in that congregation.
For all the Tolerance shown me if I said…”Well, Victor Houteff said this…” or “Benjamin Roden taught this…” or “David Koresh said this…” The thing that God used to show me I was to have no more to do with those folk, was not over any messengers of God whom I knew we had opposing viewpoints on, even if such disputes were never stated. It came when I noted a thing about “THE TRUTH” and “ELLEN G. WHITE.”
I noted to this Deacon, the pattern by Which God sends truth into the world and by which such truth is accepted by a few, while many reject the same, and many more accept PART of the truth until they come to a point they are not willing to accept and then to compensate they WATER DOWN the truth. I pointed this Diluting of the truth of a Message sent continues in those who are watering it down, until the point it no longer even resembles that which it came from.
I shared with him that I had a startling discovery, that the BOOK in their bookstore, in SDA Bookstores across the country, the globe, the version of Ellen G. Whites “THE GREAT CONTROVERSY” that was currently for sale by the current edition, had been so diluted it lost several main ideas along the way and several key points from the original work through the revised versions. He strongly asserted I was wrong, that a few words may have been revised, but the text, the content was the same.
I told him he was incorrect. “I have two copies, one that is older than the current version for sale, but still MUCH newer than the other copy I have. The other copy is very old, and is at least 300 pages longer than the newer copy I have and there has been at least one more revision of the work since!”
He replied to me…”No you are mistaken, they re-formatted them, and the pages are just bigger on the new one, or the font size is smaller.”
I told him, “No, that is not correct either, the pages, are the exact same measurement, but there are 300 more pages in the older version, and the font size in each book is EXACTLY THE SAME! On MANY OF those pages, comparing one from book to the page in the other book is the exact same top to bottom by content, but many passages have been re-written, and have lost the TONE with which Ellen G. White originally addressed certain subjects, and the ROMANTICISM, the PASSION with which she addresses certain truths is lost in the newer versions, and with such, ENTIRE IDEAS are omitted! We are not talking about changing a few thee’s and thous, or revising a few words to their MODERN upgrades…we are talking about THREE HUNDRED MISSING PAGES OF CONTENT!”
He told me, I had to be wrong he did not believe me. I had both books in the parking lot, in my vehicle. I told him I would go get them, and could show him that I was indeed correct. I went to the parking lot, he refused to look at them, he refused to see the TRUTH. You see, he thought he already possessed the truth. All those conversations, baiting me, trying to indoctrinate me, feigning Tolerance and open mindedness, but when faced with a CONCRETE TRUTH, one that if he viewed it, he would have to face that all he THOUGHT he had known about ELLEN G. WHITES BEST SELLING BOOK OF ALL TIME…a book that made her the top selling Female author (human) of all time, and a book that has sold more copies than the BIBLE ITSELF…a book he based his faith and life upon…he knew, that if he seen for himself that I had been telling the truth, his foundations would be shaken, he would be accountable to do further investigation, to re-examine all he had ever thought he learned of that work.
But his refusal to look, was in itself a rejection of truth. He figured he had the “LATEST AND GREATEST” Edition. Had I known for sure his attitude, I may not have done what God told me to do in speaking to him, out of fear he would reject the truth when presented, and thereby Judged himself. And the truth that does not Save, condemns, Sister White taught that lesson. In a timeframe I deemed most all whom I had talked to prior to have been dishonest, and believed he himself were not humoring me like the rest, but sincerely treating our conversations with an open mind, had he been more honest prior, I may have out of concern for his person, argued with God and not presented such, choosing to pray for him. But such as it was, it was.
So we go from Deacon Joe who held “The Latest Greatest”, for rejecting truth
to another group.
Within a year or so of that event, God sent me to another Church one day. A Sunday Church to see Baptist Preacher I had known for years. God told me, “Go See Ed W. (name ommited for privacy) I want you to go and Pass Judgement upon him.” I was distraught. I loved the man. He had been my Pastor’s Pastor when I was just a young preacher boy going off to Bible College. He had been Pastoring One Church or another for 4 decades, going on 5. I got dressed, got my Bible, and all the way to that church I prayed that God would change his mind. I got there, it was time for Sunday School, I would not go attend, I sat in the parking lot the whole Sunday School Service praying that God would change his mind, that he would NOT judge this man, that he would not have me PASS JUDGEMENT upon him.
Finally, I was told in the Spirit, “Go in, listen to the Preaching Service after Sunday School, You will not have to Judge him, but you will have to speak to him, you will have to tell him the truth.”
Boy was I relieved. I was actually filled with Joy when I went inside, I mean, wow, “God is sending ME TO SHARE THE TRUTH WITH THIS BROTHER!”
SURELY…God would not send me to SHARE A TRUTH with someone, if GOD WAS NOT INTENDING TO WORK IN THAT PERSONS HEART TO ACCEPT THE TRUTH when it was presented to them!
I was however not told “WHAT TRUTH” to share. I sat and listened to the preaching service. I listened, I pondered, and I heard over and over a theme being spoken on. I prayed, sought guidance of the Spirit, and the end of the service came. The Pastor Ed W. gave alter call, the service ended as he gave final announcements. He introduced a visiting Evangelist who was to start preaching a “Revival” service that night, and he said…”We are going to go to Weiner King in Hope Mills after the service, consider this an invitation to any and all of you here today to come on out to Wiener King and Join us.”
That church had become one of the biggest churches in a county of about half a million people. There were several hundred people there that day and I waited as one by one, they exited the Sanctuary doors shaking hands with the pastor who kept telling people to “Come on out to Weiner King and Join us!” When most all had exited, he smiled as he shook my hand telling me it was good to see me. I told him I needed a few minutes of his time privately, he said “You can talk to me here.” I said, “No, I have to speak to you, and just you.” He told me to wait in his office. A few minutes later he joined me and sat down and said…”What is it Steve?” I said, “God has told me to share a truth with you.”
He asked if it could wait and I said no, that it would not take long. I quoted something he said from the pulpit earlier about the Rapture Doctrine and I asked him…”Can you quote I Corinthians 15:51,52 to me?”
I knew his doctrine, God had shown me the flaws In the same. He observed a popular teaching of the mainstream churches that a certain prophetic Chronology would occur in which 1 of the Seven trumps of Revelation, would begin “The Great Tribulation” a timeframe when Christians would “Disappear” in “The Rapture” as A TRUMP would sound, and THE ARCH ANGEL GABRIEL would stand with one foot on the sea, one foot on the earth, SOUND THAT TRUMP to begin those events.
I had know for sometime such was not the truth. So I asked simply, “Can you quote to me 1 Corinthians 15:51,52?” To which Ed said rather confidently, “Behold, I shew you a mystery, We shall not all sleep, but shall all be changed, in a Moment, at the twinkling of an Eye.” He looked at me fully calm, to see what I had to ask or offer next and I paused a moment in silence and then said…”Well…Whats the rest of it?”
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