Further Study: Read Ellen G. White, “Introductory—The Spirit of Prophecy,” pp. 7-16 in The Spirit of Prophecy, vol. 1; “Historical Prologue,” pp. vii-xxxii in Early Writings.
“One of the gifts of the Holy Spirit is prophecy. This gift is an identifying mark of the remnant church and was manifested in the ministry of Ellen G. White—the Lord's messenger. Her writings are a continuing and authoritative source of truth which provide for the church comfort, guidance, instruction, and correction. They also make clear that the Bible is the standard by which all teaching and experience must be tested.”—Seventh-day Adventists Believe . . . (2nd ed.) (Nampa, Idaho: Pacific Press® Publishing Association, 2005), p. 247.
A study of the idea of the remnant in the Old Testament reveals a few interesting characteristics. Perhaps the most important one is that all through the Bible, the remnant were those who were living with more light than others. Noah had the light about the coming flood. Abraham had the light about the true God. The nation of Israel was worshiping the Lord in the sanctuary, while their pagan neighbors were sacrificing children on their altars or bowing down to statues of cats and bulls and other animals. In short, the idea of the remnant had more to do with a revelation of truth and of God’s character than with the holiness of those who had that knowledge. The point? As expressed in Thursday’s lesson, being part of the remnant means only that you have great light, and with that light comes important responsibilities. It does not mean you automatically have salvation; nor does it mean that those who aren’t part of the remnant are lost. It’s an unfortunate fact of sacred history that many of those who were part of God’s remnant not only failed to live up to the light they were given but oftentimes rebelled against it.
Discussion Questions:
What important message is found in 
The claim that we are the “remnant church” can sound very arrogant and exclusive. And yet, why does it make sense that God would have a special people with a special message in the last days? Or does it? Discuss. 
If being in the remnant does not guarantee salvation, then what’s the advantage of being part of it?
| I N S I D E Story | ||
| I Love to Preach! by ARNEL BLANC I didn't grow up in the Adventist Church. But God led me to this church in a wonderful way. A Protestant pastor in town knew a little about Adventists, but he refused to acknowledge their teachings. Then he had a dream in which God told him to preach the fourth commandment or risk being lost forever. The pastor preached the Sabbath truth in his church, and I accepted the message. Several months later I was baptized and started preaching. Preaching, for me, was my gift to God, and He blessed my efforts. An Adventist leader in the area urged me to study theology at the Adventist university. So I enrolled. During school breaks, I returned home and preached and gave Bible studies. During one of my home visits, I studied with a young woman who was baptized. We were friends, but neither of us had any idea that it would go beyond that. Then God spoke to her and showed her that we were to be married. She resisted, but God persisted, and in time we married. We now work in an exciting area. Our town is a political hot spot in Haiti. Sometimes things get so tense that people fear to leave their homes. But even during these tense times, people come to our evangelistic meetings. We preach and pray, and hundreds come. After one meeting 72 people were baptized! This difficult area has yielded more baptisms in a given year than anywhere else in Haiti. I love evangelism! I want to preach and evangelize so that everyone in our area will know that Jesus is coming again. I have eight congregations; the largest has 400 members. But there are still places where we have no Adventist believers. My wife and I have a burden to reach those areas, to bring God's light to the dark corners of Haiti. In Haiti we have one Seventh-day Adventist for every 28 people! Yet there are places where not one Adventist lives. Haitian people love the gospel, and many Adventist laypeople want to reach out and preach to those who do not know that Jesus is coming again. But the political and economic situations here make it difficult to reach these people. We want Jesus to come soon, and we ask that you pray for the people of Haiti and continue to help us reach them for Christ through your mission offerings. Then we will be ready for Jesus to come. Hallelujah!
PASTOR ARNEL and JUQUELANDE BLANC share their faith in southern Haiti. | ||
| Produced by the General Conference Office of Mission Awareness. email: info@adventistmission.org website: www.adventistmission.org |
1 comment:
I am a seventh-day Sabbath keeping Christian, but not a member of the Seventh Day Adventist church. I have asked a question of several Seventh Day Adventist sites, but have not yet gotten an anwswer. Maybe you can help me.
Why do Seventh Day Adventists believe that Ellen White was a prophet? Did she make any predictions of events before-the-fact that later came true in a way that proved that her message was from God?
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