The following quote is given to us from an 1896 Sabbath School Lesson. This is the position of the pioneers of the Seventh Day Adventist church. Most within Seventh Day Adventism can tell you that the Roman church is definitely Babylon, and the once Protestant churches are Babylon, however they have no idea how or what makes a church Babylon.
The following Sabbath School lesson explains the principles of what makes a church Babylon and further Babylon Fallen in only a few sentences.
“When the early church departed from God and imbibed pagan errors, she became Babylon(not yet fallen) When she united with the state, she fell and, as an organization, was the body of Christ no longer. While the Reformation churches held fast to the word, Christ was with them. Then they crystallized their various errors into creeds and endeavored thus to confine God’s word, they made themselves daughters of Babylon(not fallen). When some of them united with the state, they fell, and God had to use other people, called out of Babylon to carry forward His work. Now [in 1896] among these very churches which came out of the second Babylon, confusion reigns; and now [in 1896] great Babylon, including later daughters, is in adulterous union with the kings of earth , and is endeavoring to make that union stronger. God calls no church Babylon which holds to His word, and follows the light that shines from it, even though there are in its membership many who do not know Christ When the controlling influence of a church is downward, it erects some other standard besides God’s word…
It has ever been true that a backslidden body, one that has turned from God’s word to men, from God’s power to the state, was never reformed in itself. Invariably God’s message has called out those from the fallen church who would do His will and preach His gospel. Israel went down to Egypt for help, and their captivity and loss of power followed. Out of the captives God gathered a faithful band to do His work. The Jewish church failed, and God called out the apostolic church to do His bidding. The Roman Church failed, and out of it God called the churches of the Reformation. Some of these churches failed to advance, and God called out others to bear His gospel to the world such as the Baptist, Methodist, Congregationalist, Disciple, Adventists. His last ‘called-out’ people will know no standard but His word, no power but His Spirit.”First Quarter, Lesson IX, February 29, 1896, p. 33-34(brackets added)
The first stage is to adopt pagan doctrines such as the Trinity or write books of a new order and set them up as a creed or test of fellowship such as the “28 fundamental beliefs of the General Conference of Seventh Day Adventists” rather than the bible alone as our creed. This is Babylon.
The second and final step is to go to the state power, or the kings of the earth. This is an adulterous union, and at this point God’s people are called out of “Babylon Fallen”.
Stage 1 – Babylon = Adopting pagan doctrines
“The wine of Babylon is the exalting of the false and spurious sabbath above the Sabbath … also the immortality of the soul.These kindred heresies, and the REJECTION OF THE TRUTH, CONVERT THE CHURCH INTO BABYLON….” {E.G. White, 2SM 68.2}
Stage 2 – Babylon Fallen = Church and State Union
“Babylon is also charged with the sin of unlawful connection with ‘the kings of the earth.’ It was by departure from the Lord, and alliance with the heathen, that the Jewish church became a HARLOT; and Rome, corrupting herself in LIKE MANNER BY SEEKING THE SUPPORT OF WORLDLY POWERS, receives a like condemnation.” (Ellen White Great Controversy 382)
“The world must not be introduced into the church, and MARRIED to the church, forming a BOND OF UNITY [Church/State union]. THROUGH THIS MEANS the church [SDA] will become indeed corrupt, and as stated in Revelation (18:2), ‘a cage of every unclean and hateful bird’ [Babylon fallen].” (Ellen White TM 265)[Brackets added]
“By her [Babylon’s] daughters must be symbolized churches that cling to her doctrines and tradition, and follow her example of sacrificing the truth and the approval of God, in order to form an UNLAWFUL ALLIANCE with the world. The message of Revelation 14, announcing the fall of Babylon must apply to religious bodies that were ONCE PURE and have become corrupt.”(Ellen White Great Controversy 383)
Stage 1 we have already discussed regarding “kindred heresies”. There is not a greater heresy than “the omega of deadly heresies”. This heresy is the deadliest heresy in Seventh Day Adventism.
Stage 2 we will look at a little more shortly. We will examine the trademarking of the name “Seventh Day Adventist” and how this same pattern has been followed throughout history.
First let’s examine some quotes which show that if the people did not walk in the light that this Church would become Babylon, quotes that are often discarded and ignored. Let’s first remember that “God’s Church” can never be called Babylon. The gates of hell shall not prevail against it. Thus, if this Church were to become Babylon it would not be “God’s Church”, but rather the head of those Churches is the “dragon”(Revelation 13:2, 11) and it would be Satan’s synagogue. They are “the synagogue of Satan” and as stated in Revelation 18:2 “the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird.”
Not Walking in the Light Leads to a Fall
”When Jerusalem was divorced from God it was because of her sins. She fell from an exalted height that Tyre and Sidon had never reached. And when an angel falls he becomes a fiend. The depth of our ruin is measured by the exalted light to which God has raised us in His great goodness and unspeakable mercy. Oh, what privileges are granted to us as a people! And if God spared not His people that He loved, because they refused to walk in the light, how can He spare the people whom He has blessed with the light of heaven in having opened to them the most exalted truth ever entrusted to mortal man to give to the world?” [Manuscript releases 12, pp. 319,320]
We will examine shortly the rejection of Jerusalem to see the steps that led to her “unchurching”. But first let’s notice that God will not spare if we do not walk in the light.
Rom 11:21 For if God spared not the natural branches, take heed lest he also spare not thee.
“The church cannot measure herself by the world, nor by the opinion of men, nor by what she once was. Her faith and her position in the world as they now are, must be compared with what they would have been if her course had been continually onward and upward. The church will be weighed in the balances of the sanctuary. If her moral character and spiritual state do not correspond with the benefits and blessings God has conferred upon her, she will be found wanting. The light has been shining clear and definite upon her pathway, and the light of 1882 calls her to an account. If her talents are unimproved, if her fruit is not perfect before God, if her light has become darkness, she is indeed found wanting.” [Ellen G. White,Testimony for the Battle Creek Church (1882), page 66]
What does it mean to be “found wanting”? In Daniel 5 we read of the story of Belshazzar. The night Babylon fell they had a great feast to the gods of gold, brass, iron, wood etc. Then after worshipping these false gods mixing their pagan worship with the true worship, Daniel spoke to Belshazzar regarding the rejection of the light from heaven.
Daniel 5:18-23 O thou king, the most high God gave Nebuchadnezzar thy father a kingdom, and majesty, and glory, and honour: (19) And for the majesty that he gave him, all people, nations, and languages, trembled and feared before him: whom he would he slew; and whom he would he kept alive; and whom he would he set up; and whom he would he put down. (20) But when his heart was lifted up, and his mind hardened in pride, he was deposed from his kingly throne, and they took his glory from him: (21) And he was driven from the sons of men; and his heart was made like the beasts, and his dwelling was with the wild asses: they fed him with grass like oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven; till he knew that the most high God ruled in the kingdom of men, and that he appointeth over it whomsoever he will. (22) And thou his son, O Belshazzar, hast not humbled thine heart, though thou knewest all this; (23) But hast lifted up thyself against the Lord of heaven; and they have brought the vessels of his house before thee, and thou, and thy lords, thy wives, and thy concubines, have drunk wine in them; and thou hast praised the gods of silver, and gold, of brass, iron, wood, and stone, which see not, nor hear, nor know: and the God in whose hand thy breath is, and whose are all thy ways, hast thou not glorified:
The steps were rejecting the God of heaven and not giving glory to HIm, worshipping false gods despite the light that was given from heaven, and despite knowing and having the truth. Then finally, Babylon was “found wanting”.
Daniel 5:24-28 Then was the part of the hand sent from him; and this writing was written. (25) And this is the writing that was written, MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN. (26) This is the interpretation of the thing: MENE; God hath numbered thy kingdom, and finished it. (27) TEKEL; Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting. (28) PERES; Thy kingdom is divided, and given to the Medes and Persians.
The Kingdom was taken and given to others. This has been repeated throughout history. In fact the same thing happened to the nominal Jewish Church.
“Jerusalem is a representation of what the church will be if it refuses to walk in the light that God has given. […] Christ turned from them, saying: ‘O Jerusalem, Jerusalem,’ how can I give thee up? ‘How often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!’ Matthew 23:37.” [Testimonies for the Church Volume Eight, page 67]
This is a representation of what the church would be. And what happened to this nation?
Mat 23:38 Behold, your house is left unto you desolate.
Matthew 21:42-43 Jesus saith unto them, Did ye never read in the scriptures, The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner: this is the Lord’s doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes? (43) Therefore say I unto you, the kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof.
And this brings us back to “ye builders”. Christ is the builder of His Church, but yet these men rejected the foundation, the foundation stone, the true building, and the true builder. And their house which was not His house was left to them desolate.
“The world must not be introduced into the church, and MARRIED to the church, forming a BOND OF UNITY [Church/State union]. THROUGH THIS MEANS the church [SDA] will become indeed corrupt, and as stated in Revelation (18:2), ‘a cage of every unclean and hateful bird’ [Babylon fallen].” TM 265
Crucifying Christ Afresh – No King But Caesar – The Unchurching
When and what caused the Unchurching?
“When Christ cried out, ‘it is finished,’ the Holy Watcher that was an unseen guest at Belshazzar’s feast pronounced the Jewish nation to be a nation unchurched. The same hand that traced on the wall the characters that recorded Belshazzar’s doom and the end of the Babylonian kingdom, rent the veil of the temple from top to bottom, opening a new and living way for all, high and low, rich and poor, Jew and Gentile. From henceforth people might come to God without priest or ruler.” 5BC 1109
“They cried out for the crucifixion of Christ and, as representatives of the Jewish nation,placed themselves under the Roman jurisdiction, which they despised, by saying ‘We have no king but Caesar.’ When they said this they unchurched themselves.” MR 999-4
The unchurching happened when the church fornicated with the Kings of the earth as we learned above. “When she united with the state, she fell and, as an organization, was the body of Christ no longer.” The call to “come out of her my people” was made and approximately 50 days later we have this recorded:
Act 2:41 …the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls.
So again the steps are:
1. Adopting Pagan doctrines becoming Babylon
- Setting up a Creed
- Going to the Kings of the Earth to enforce its beliefs
- People called out of this organization “Come out of her my people”
- The true believers begin fellowshipping with Christ’s true Church(His spiritual house, his lively stones)
- Following this in the book of Acts we find that after God’s believers begin to assemble together and share the truths they are still brought before the Kings of the earth because of further intolerance.
Taking People to Court – Crucifying Christ Afresh
“These men cast aside the counsel God has given, and do the very things He has bidden them not to do. They show that they have chosen the world as their judge, and in heaven their names are registered as one with unbelievers. Christ is crucified afresh, and put to open shame. Let these men know that God does not hear their prayers. They insult His holy name, and He will leave them to the buffetings of Satan until they shall see their folly and seek the Lord by confession of their sin.
Matters connected with the church are to be kept within its own borders. If a Christian is abused, he is to take it patiently; if defrauded, he is not to appeal to courts of justice. Rather let him suffer loss and wrong.” [Selected Messages Book 3, page 299, paragraphs 1-3]
Christ is “crucified afresh” in taking matters to court. This is a Church and State Union. This is fornication with the kings of the earth and this is what leads to “Unchurching” and finally the proclamation “Babylon is Fallen” because of her “fornication with the kings of the earth”.
“The world and unconverted church members are in sympathy. Some when God reproves them for wanting their own way, make the world their confidence, and bring church matters before the world for decision. Then there is collision and strife, and Christ is crucified afresh, and put to open shame. Those church members who appeal to the courts of the world show that they have chosen the world as their judge, and their names are registered in heaven as one with unbelievers. How eagerly the world seizes the statements of those who betray sacred trusts!” [Selected Messages Book 3, page 302, paragraph 3]
Their names are written with unbelievers. They have “crucified Christ afresh” in taking their matters to the world for decision. In appeals to courts they have chosen the world as their judge.
Here is an excerpt from a recent article called “Just a name or Registered Trademark” from the “Adventist Review” dated June 10, 2010 regarding Seventh Day Adventist trademark policies:
Q: How frequently do you deal with a situation in which an individual or a group is using the trademark inappropriately?
DOUKMETZIAN: “Almost every day.”
PARKER: “Right now we probably have more than 60 open issues.”
Q: How do you enforce trademark restrictions?
DOUKMETZIAN: “More and more governments are putting rules and laws in place to protect trademarks. As the world shrinks and corporations expand around the world, they want to protect their name and reputation so that someone else is not trying to pass themselves off as the corporation. The same thing applies to the church.
We’ve had some high-profile cases in which individuals have broken off from the official church and started their own churches using the “Seventh-day Adventist” name, and we’ve had to enforce the church’s rights. At times we’re misunderstood when we go into the court system to enforce that right, but that’s the ultimate step for us, a step we don’t take lightly. We’d much rather resolve these issues well before they get to that point. But if individuals or organizations insist even after we have counseled with them, we need to do the best we can to protect the church’s name from misuse and confusion.”
Taken from: http://www.adventistreview.org/article.php?id=3390
Notice the answer included a dependence on the government to defend them rather than God. This is called “unbelief” or lack of faith. This is why they are classed with “unbelievers”. This is a woman fornicating with the Kings of the earth. This is no different than the Roman Church saying “We need to stop these individuals from calling themselves Christians, therefore if these individuals fail to heed our counsels we will have to bring them before courts and if they fail at this point we will have to lock them up in jail for a while, and if they don’t stop calling themselves Christians at this point then they should die.”
That is the eventual decree brought forth. And of course the church can claim they never put a single soul to death and say “it was the government” because these so-called “heretics” broke the laws of the land.
Former GC President Speaks Like the Dragon
Regarding the trade marking and copyright on the name “Seventh Day Adventist” and bringing others to court former General Conference President Neal Wilson once said:
“We’ve got to PROTECT that name [“Seventh-day Adventist”], because we are giving a false impression to the world…And this church/state business; be a little careful how you use that, because that is not in scripture: separation of Church and State. That is a particular North American philosophy. It exists no where else in the world.” Neal C. Wilson[Former Seventh Day Adventist General Conference President regarding the trademark], P.U.C. Sanctuary, June 18, 1988.
Neal Wilson said Church and State is not a scriptural concept. His son is now the General Conference President. It is not a Protestant who knowing his bible would ever speak these words. He can say that this is what Seventh Day Adventists believe, but this is what “nominal Adventists” believe, or “professed Adventists”. We as Protestants, true Seventh day Adventists protest church and state unions.
“…a reformation must go through the churches. Reforms must be made, for spiritual weakness and blindness were upon the people who had been blessed with great light and precious opportunities and privileges. As reformers they had come out of the denominational churches, but they now act a part similar to that which the churches acted. We hoped there would not be the necessity for another coming out.” (Ellen White 1888 Mat., pp. 356,357.)
“In the manifestation of that power which lightens the earth with the glory of God, they will see only something which in their blindness they think dangerous, something which will arouse their fears, and they will brace themselves to resist it. Because the Lord does not work according to their ideas and expectations, they will oppose the work. “Why,” they say, “should not we know the Spirit of God, when we have been in the work so many years?” – because they did not respond to the warnings, the entreaties of the messages of God, but persistently said, ‘I am rich, and increased with goods and have need of nothing.’ (Review and Herald Extra December 23 , 1890)
Our conference president believes it is okay for the woman (church) to unite with the State (beast) and trademark the name Seventh Day Adventist and bring others before the courts.
Revelation 18 talks about a woman fornicating with the Kings of the earth, or in other words “Church and State”. And it also talks about corporate accountability. Which means we are not to be partakers of the sins of the leaders but are to “come out of her my people” if on behalf of the denomination or “as representatives of the…nation” they were to do this.
Have they done this? Sadly Yes:
From the article “General Conference trademark policy”:
“Questions have been asked regarding efforts by the General Conference to protect the name of our church through the use of the trademark laws . . .
Q: Is it true that the General Conference has federally registered trademarks for the name ‘Seventh-day Adventist’…?
A: Yes. The General Conference Corporation of Seventh-day Adventists, on behalf of the ENTIRE DENOMINATION, has registered under the United States trademark laws the name ‘Seventh-day Adventist’ and a variety of the church’s programs and services…” Ministry Magazine, December, 1988
So therefore on behalf of you, me and every member of the General Conference, our leaders have said “We have no King but Caesar”. “as representatives of the ENTIRE DENOMINATION” they have went to the United States(Kings of the earth) to persecute what it deems to be heretics. The Spirit of Prophecy says that by taking former brethren to court they have Crucified Jesus Christ afresh.
By the 100’s of trademark cases that have ensued with their Catholic lawyers at the helm, they have “Crucified Christ afresh” declaring “We have no King but Caesar”. The conference has become a harlot. Can we reform it?
“They cried out for the crucifixion of Christ and, as representatives of the Jewish nation, placed themselves under the Roman jurisdiction, which they despised, by saying, “We have no king but Caesar.” When they said this, they unchurched themselves.” [Manuscript Releases Volume Twelve, page 388, paragraph 1]
Probation is closed on the General Conference, they must come out individually. The promises are taken from her and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof. The call is “Come out of her my people”. No matter if the new president calls for a reformation or not.
Deuteronomy 24:4 Her former husband, which sent her away, may not take her again to be his wife, after that she is defiled; for that is abomination before the LORD: and thou shalt not cause the land to sin, which the LORD thy God giveth thee for an inheritance.
She cannot be taken back. Our call now is very similar to that in Acts chapter 2 after the Jewish nation unchurched themselves. And when we are of one accord God will poor out his latter rain.
“What we want now is a reorganization. We want to begin at the foundation, and to build upon a different principle.” [Ellen White Last Day Events, page 53]
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Next Chapter: Chapter 12: Not to go and Listen to Error
Book: “God’s Church Organization – The House Built on the Rock”
Chapters:
1: The Counterfeit Church Organization and the True Building
2: Reformers on the Church
3: Man Appoints a Head to the Organization
4: Foundation and Pillars of our Faith Changed
5: Deadliest Heresy in Seventh Day Adventism
6: God’s church is not confined to an Earthly organization
7: The True Seed of Abraham
8: The Elijah Message
9: Philadelphia – The 144,000
10: A Great Danger Right Before the Plagues are Poured Out
11: The Principles of Separation
12: Not to go and Listen to Error
13: Abomination and 25 Men A Prophecy by Ezekiel
14: Rebuilding That Which is Fallen – Reorganization
15: Church of the Firstborn – The Name of God’s People
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