Christendom, and religious and secular authorities have combined to
enforce the observance of the Sunday, the persistent refusal of a small
minority to yield to the popular demand, will make them objects of
universal execration. It will be urged that the few who stand in
opposition to an institution of the church and a law of the state, ought
not to be tolerated; that it is better for them to suffer than for whole
nations to be thrown into confusion and lawlessness. The same argument
eighteen hundred years ago was brought against Christ by the “rulers of
the people.” “It is expedient for us,” said the wily Caiaphas, “that one
man should die for the people, and that the whole nation perish
not.”(1055) This argument will appear conclusive; and a decree will
finally be issued against those who hallow the Sabbath of the fourth
commandment, denouncing them as deserving of the severest punishment, and
giving the people liberty, after a certain time, to put them to death.
Romanism in the Old World, and apostate Protestantism in the New, will
pursue a similar course toward those who honor all the divine precepts.
The people of God will then be plunged into those scenes of affliction and
distress described by the prophet as the time of Jacob’s trouble. “Thus
saith the Lord: We have heard a voice of trembling, of fear, and not of
peace.... All faces are turned into paleness. Alas! for that day is great,
so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob’s trouble; but he
shall be saved out of it.”(1056)
Jacob’s night of anguish, when he wrestled in prayer for deliverance from
the hand of Esau,(1057) represents the experience of God’s people in the
time of trouble. Because of the deception practised to secure his father’s
blessing, intended for Esau, Jacob had fled for his life, alarmed by his
brother’s deadly threats. After remaining for many years an exile, he had
set out, at God’s command, to return with his wives and children, his
flocks and herds, to his native country. On reaching the borders of the
land, he was filled with terror by the tidings of Esau’s approach at the
head of a band of warriors, doubtless bent upon revenge. Jacob’s company,
unarmed and defenseless, seemed about to fall helpless victims of violence
and slaughter. And to the burden of anxiety and fear was added the
crushing weight of self-reproach; for it was his own sin that had brought
this danger. His only hope was in the mercy of God; his only defense must
be prayer. Yet he leaves nothing undone on his own part to atone for the
wrong to his brother, and to avert the threatened danger. So should the
followers of Christ, as they approach the time of trouble, make every
exertion to place themselves in a proper light before the people, to
disarm prejudice, and to avert the danger which threatens liberty of
conscience.
Having sent his family away, that they may not witness his distress, Jacob
remains alone to intercede with God. He confesses his sin, and gratefully
acknowledges the mercy of God toward him, while with deep humiliation he
pleads the covenant made with his fathers, and the promises to himself in
the night vision at Bethel and in the land of his exile. The crisis in his
life has come; everything is at stake. In the darkness and solitude he
continues praying and humbling himself before God. Suddenly a hand is laid
upon his shoulder. He thinks that an enemy is seeking his life, and with
all the energy of despair he wrestles with his assailant. As the day
begins to break, the stranger puts forth his superhuman power: at his
touch the strong man seems paralyzed, and he falls, a helpless, weeping
suppliant, upon the neck of his mysterious antagonist. Jacob knows now
that it is the Angel of the Covenant with whom he has been in conflict.
Though disabled, and suffering the keenest pain, he does not relinquish
his purpose. Long has he endured perplexity, remorse, and trouble for his
sin; now he must have the assurance that it is pardoned. The divine
visitant seems about to depart; but Jacob clings to Him, pleading for a
blessing. The Angel urges, “Let Me go; for the day breaketh;” but the
patriarch exclaims, “I will not let Thee go, except Thou bless me.” What
confidence, what firmness and perseverance, are here displayed! Had this
been a boastful, presumptuous claim, Jacob would have been instantly
destroyed; but his was the assurance of one who confesses his weakness and
unworthiness, yet trusts the mercy of a covenant-keeping God.
“He had power over the Angel, and prevailed.”(1058) Through humiliation,
repentance, and self-surrender, this sinful, erring mortal prevailed with
the Majesty of heaven. He had fastened his trembling grasp upon the
promises of God, and the heart of Infinite Love could not turn away the
sinner’s plea. As an evidence of his triumph, and an encouragement to
others to imitate his example, his name was changed from one which was a
reminder of his sin, to one that commemorated his victory. And the fact
that Jacob had prevailed with God was an assurance that he would prevail
with men. He no longer feared to encounter his brother’s anger; for the
Lord was his defense.
Satan had accused Jacob before the angels of God, claiming the right to
destroy him because of his sin; he had moved upon Esau to march against
him; and during the patriarch’s long night of wrestling, Satan endeavored
to force upon him a sense of his guilt, in order to discourage him, and
break his hold upon God. Jacob was driven almost to despair; but he knew
that without help from heaven he must perish. He had sincerely repented of
his great sin, and he appealed to the mercy of God. He would not be turned
from his purpose, but held fast the Angel, and urged his petition with
earnest, agonizing cries, until he prevailed.
As Satan influenced Esau to march against Jacob, so he will stir up the
wicked to destroy God’s people in the time of trouble. And as he accused
Jacob, he will urge his accusations against the people of God. He numbers
the world as his subjects; but the little company who keep the
commandments of God are resisting his supremacy. If he could blot them
from the earth, his triumph would be complete. He sees that holy angels
are guarding them, and he infers that their sins have been pardoned; but
he does not know that their cases have been decided in the sanctuary
above. He has an accurate knowledge of the sins which he has tempted them
to commit, and he presents these before God in the most exaggerated light,
representing this people to be just as deserving as himself of exclusion
from the favor of God. He declares that the Lord cannot in justice forgive
their sins, and yet destroy him and his angels. He claims them as his
prey, and demands that they be given into his hands to destroy.
As Satan accuses the people of God on account of their sins, the Lord
permits him to try them to the uttermost. Their confidence in God, their
faith and firmness, will be severely tested. As they review the past,
their hopes sink; for in their whole lives they can see little good. They
are fully conscious of their weakness and unworthiness. Satan endeavors to
terrify them with the thought that their cases are hopeless, that the
stain of their defilement will never be washed away. He hopes so to
destroy their faith that they will yield to his temptations, and turn from
their allegiance to God.
Though God’s people will be surrounded by enemies who are bent upon their
destruction, yet the anguish which they suffer is not a dread of
persecution for the truth’s sake; they fear that every sin has not been
repented of, and that through some fault in themselves they will fail to
realize the fulfilment of the Saviour’s promise, “I will keep thee from
the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world.”(1059) If
they could have the assurance of pardon, they would not shrink from
torture or death; but should they prove unworthy, and lose their lives
because of their own defects of character, then God’s holy name would be
reproached.
On every hand they hear the plottings of treason, and see the active
working of rebellion; and there is aroused within them an intense desire,
an earnest yearning of soul, that this great apostasy may be terminated,
and the wickedness of the wicked may come to an end. But while they plead
with God to stay the work of rebellion, it is with a keen sense of
self-reproach that they themselves have no more power to resist and urge
back the mighty tide of evil. They feel that had they always employed all
their ability in the service of Christ, going forward from strength to
strength, Satan’s forces would have less power to prevail against them.
They afflict their souls before God, pointing to their past repentance of
their many sins, and pleading the Saviour’s promise, “Let him take hold of
My strength, that he may make peace with Me; and he shall make peace with
Me.”(1060) Their faith does not fail because their prayers are not
immediately answered. Though suffering the keenest anxiety, terror, and
distress, they do not cease their intercessions. They lay hold of the
strength of God as Jacob laid hold of the Angel; and the language of their
souls is, “I will not let Thee go, except Thou bless me.”
Had not Jacob previously repented of his sin in obtaining the birthright
by fraud, God would not have heard his prayer and mercifully preserved his
life. So, in the time of trouble, if the people of God had unconfessed
sins to appear before them while tortured with fear and anguish, they
would be overwhelmed; despair would cut off their faith, and they could
not have confidence to plead with God for deliverance. But while they have
a deep sense of their unworthiness, they have no concealed wrongs to
reveal. Their sins have gone beforehand to judgment, and have been blotted
out; and they cannot bring them to remembrance.
Satan leads many to believe that God will overlook their unfaithfulness in
the minor affairs of life; but the Lord shows in His dealings with Jacob
that He will in no wise sanction or tolerate evil. All who endeavor to
excuse or conceal their sins, and permit them to remain upon the books of
heaven, unconfessed and unforgiven, will be overcome by Satan. The more
exalted their profession, and the more honorable the position which they
hold, the more grievous is their course in the sight of God, and the more
sure the triumph of their great adversary. Those who delay a preparation
for the day of God cannot obtain it in the time of trouble, or at any
subsequent time. The case of all such is hopeless.
Those professed Christians who come up to that last fearful conflict
unprepared, will, in their despair, confess their sins in words of burning
anguish, while the wicked exult over their distress. These confessions are
of the same character as was that of Esau or of Judas. Those who make
them, lament the _result_ of transgression, but not its guilt. They feel
no true contrition, no abhorrence of evil. They acknowledge their sin,
through fear of punishment; but, like Pharaoh of old, they would return to
their defiance of Heaven, should the judgments be removed.
Jacob’s history is also an assurance that God will not cast off those who
have been deceived, and tempted, and betrayed into sin, but who have
returned unto Him with true repentance. While Satan seeks to destroy this
class, God will send His angels to comfort and protect them in the time of
peril. The assaults of Satan are fierce and determined, his delusions are
terrible; but the Lord’s eye is upon His people, and His ear listens to
their cries. Their affliction is great, the flames of the furnace seem
about to consume them; but the Refiner will bring them forth as gold tried
in the fire. God’s love for His children during the period of their
severest trial, is as strong and tender as in the days of their sunniest
prosperity; but it is needful for them to be placed in the furnace of
fire; their earthliness must be consumed, that the image of Christ may be
perfectly reflected.
The season of distress and anguish before us will require a faith that can
endure weariness, delay, and hunger,—a faith that will not faint, though
severely tried. The period of probation is granted to all to prepare for
that time. Jacob prevailed because he was persevering and determined. His
victory is an evidence of the power of importunate prayer. All who will
lay hold of God’s promises, as he did, and be as earnest and persevering
as he was, will succeed as he succeeded. Those who are unwilling to deny
self, to agonize before God, to pray long and earnestly for His blessing,
will not obtain it. Wrestling with God—how few know what it is! How few
have ever had their souls drawn out after God with intensity of desire
until every power is on the stretch. When waves of despair which no
language can express sweep over the suppliant, how few cling with
unyielding faith to the promises of God.
Those who exercise but little faith now, are in the greatest danger of
falling under the power of satanic delusions and the decree to compel the
conscience. And even if they endure the test, they will be plunged into
deeper distress and anguish in the time of trouble, because they have
never made it a habit to trust in God. The lessons of faith which they
have neglected, they will be forced to learn under a terrible pressure of
discouragement.
We should now acquaint ourselves with God by proving His promises. Angels
record every prayer that is earnest and sincere. We should rather dispense
with selfish gratifications than neglect communion with God. The deepest
poverty, the greatest self-denial, with His approval, is better than
riches, honors, ease, and friendship without it. We must take time to
pray. If we allow our minds to be absorbed by worldly interests, the Lord
may give us time by removing from us our idols of gold, of houses, or of
fertile lands.
The young would not be seduced into sin if they would refuse to enter any
path save that upon which they could ask God’s blessing. If the messengers
who bear the last solemn warning to the world would pray for the blessing
of God, not in a cold, listless, lazy manner, but fervently and in faith,
as did Jacob, they would find many places where they could say, “I have
seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.”(1061) They would be
accounted of heaven as princes, having power to prevail with God and with
men.
The “time of trouble such as never was,” is soon to open upon us; and we
shall need an experience which we do not now possess, and which many are
too indolent to obtain. It is often the case that trouble is greater in
anticipation that in reality; but this is not true of the crisis before
us. The most vivid presentation cannot reach the magnitude of the ordeal.
In that time of trial, every soul must stand for himself before God.
“Though Noah, Daniel, and Job” were in the land, “as I live, saith the
Lord God, they shall deliver neither son nor daughter; they shall but
deliver their own souls by their righteousness.”(1062)
Now, while our great High Priest is making the atonement for us, we should
seek to become perfect in Christ. Not even by a thought could our Saviour
be brought to yield to the power of temptation. Satan finds in human
hearts some point where he can gain a foothold; some sinful desire is
cherished, by means of which his temptations assert their power. But
Christ declared of Himself, “The prince of this world cometh, and hath
nothing in Me.”(1063) Satan could find nothing in the Son of God that
would enable him to gain the victory. He had kept His Father’s
commandments, and there was no sin in Him that Satan could use to his
advantage. This is the condition in which those must be found who shall
stand in the time of trouble.
It is in this life that we are to separate sin from us, through faith in
the atoning blood of Christ. Our precious Saviour invites us to join
ourselves to Him, to unite our weakness to His strength, our ignorance to
His wisdom, our unworthiness to His merits. God’s providence is the school
in which we are to learn the meekness and lowliness of Jesus. The Lord is
ever setting before us, not the way we would choose, which seems easier
and pleasanter to us, but the true aims of life. It rests with us to
co-operate with the agencies which Heaven employs in the work of
conforming our characters to the divine model. None can neglect or defer
this work but at the most fearful peril to their souls.
The apostle John in vision heard a loud voice in heaven exclaiming, “Woe
to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down
unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short
time.”(1064) Fearful are the scenes which call forth this exclamation from
the heavenly voice. The wrath of Satan increases as his time grows short,
and his work of deceit and destruction will reach its culmination in the
time of trouble.
Fearful sights of a supernatural character will soon be revealed in the
heavens, in token of the power of miracle-working demons. The spirits of
devils will go forth to the kings of the earth and to the whole world, to
fasten them in deception, and urge them on to unite with Satan in his last
struggle against the government of heaven. By these agencies, rulers and
subjects will be alike deceived. Persons will arise pretending to be
Christ Himself, and claiming the title and worship which belong to the
world’s Redeemer. They will perform wonderful miracles of healing, and
will profess to have revelations from heaven contradicting the testimony
of the Scriptures.
As the crowning act in the great drama of deception, Satan himself will
personate Christ. The church has long professed to look to the Saviour’s
advent as the consummation of her hopes. Now the great deceiver will make
it appear that Christ has come. In different parts of the earth, Satan
will manifest himself among men as a majestic being of dazzling
brightness, resembling the description of the Son of God given by John in
the Revelation.(1065) The glory that surrounds him is unsurpassed by
anything that mortal eyes have yet beheld. The shout of triumph rings out
upon the air, “Christ has come! Christ has come!” The people prostrate
themselves in adoration before him, while he lifts up his hands, and
pronounces a blessing upon them, as Christ blessed His disciples when He
was upon the earth. His voice is soft and subdued, yet full of melody. In
gentle, compassionate tones he presents some of the same gracious,
heavenly truths which the Saviour uttered; he heals the diseases of the
people, and then, in his assumed character of Christ, he claims to have
changed the Sabbath to Sunday, and commands all to hallow the day which he
has blessed. He declares that those who persist in keeping holy the
seventh day are blaspheming his name by refusing to listen to his angels
sent to them with light and truth. This is the strong, almost
overmastering delusion. Like the Samaritans who were deceived by Simon
Magus, the multitudes, from the least to the greatest, give heed to these
sorceries, saying, This is “the great power of God.”(1066)
But the people of God will not be misled. The teachings of this false
christ are not in accordance with the Scriptures. His blessing is
pronounced upon the worshipers of the beast and his image, the very class
upon whom the Bible declares that God’s unmingled wrath shall be poured
out.
And, furthermore, Satan is not permitted to counterfeit the manner of
Christ’s advent. The Saviour has warned His people against deception upon
this point, and has clearly foretold the manner of His second coming.
“There shall arise false christs, and false prophets, and shall show great
signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive
the very elect.... Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, He is in
the desert; go not forth: behold, He is in the secret chambers; believe it
not. For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto
the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.”(1067) This
coming, there is no possibility of counterfeiting. It will be universally
known—witnessed by the whole world.
Only those who have been diligent students of the Scriptures, and who have
received the love of the truth, will be shielded from the powerful
delusion that takes the world captive. By the Bible testimony these will
detect the deceiver in his disguise. To all, the testing time will come.
By the sifting of temptation, the genuine Christian will be revealed. Are
the people of God now so firmly established upon His word that they would
not yield to the evidence of their senses? Would they, in such a crisis,
cling to the Bible, and the Bible only? Satan will, if possible, prevent
them from obtaining a preparation to stand in that day. He will so arrange
affairs as to hedge up their way, entangle them with earthly treasures,
cause them to carry a heavy, wearisome burden, that their hearts may be
overcharged with the cares of this life, and the day of trial may come
upon them as a thief.
As the decree issued by the various rulers of Christendom against
commandment-keepers shall withdraw the protection of government, and
abandon them to those who desire their destruction, the people of God will
flee from the cities and villages and associate together in companies,
dwelling in the most desolate and solitary places. Many will find refuge
in the strongholds of the mountains. Like the Christians of the Piedmont
valleys, they will make the high places of the earth their sanctuaries,
and will thank God for the “munitions of rocks.”(1068) But many of all
nations, and of all classes, high and low, rich and poor, black and white,
will be cast into the most unjust and cruel bondage. The beloved of God
pass weary days, bound in chains, shut in by prison bars, sentenced to be
slain, some apparently left to die of starvation in dark and loathsome
dungeons. No human ear is open to hear their moans; no human hand is ready
to lend them help.
Will the Lord forget His people in this trying hour? Did He forget
faithful Noah when judgments were visited upon the antediluvian world? Did
He forget Lot when the fire came down from heaven to consume the cities of
the plain? Did He forget Joseph surrounded by idolaters in Egypt? Did He
forget Elijah when the oath of Jezebel threatened him with the fate of the
prophets of Baal? Did He forget Jeremiah in the dark and dismal pit of his
prison-house? Did He forget the three worthies in the fiery furnace? or
Daniel in the den of lions?
“Zion said, Jehovah hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me. Can a
woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the
son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. Behold,
I have graven thee upon the palms of My hands.”(1069) The Lord of hosts
has said, “He that toucheth you, toucheth the apple of His eye.”(1070)
Though enemies may thrust them into prison, yet dungeon walls cannot cut
off the communication between their souls and Christ. One who sees their
every weakness, who is acquainted with every trial, is above all earthly
powers; and angels will come to them in lonely cells, bringing light and
peace from heaven. The prison will be as a palace; for the rich in faith
dwell there, and the gloomy walls will be lighted up with heavenly light,
as when Paul and Silas prayed and sung praises at midnight in the
Philippian dungeon.
God’s judgments will be visited upon those who are seeking to oppress and
destroy His people. His long forbearance with the wicked emboldens men in
transgression, but their punishment is none the less certain and terrible
because it is long delayed. “The Lord shall rise up as in Mount Perazim,
He shall be wroth as in the valley of Gibeon, that He may do His work, His
strange work; and bring to pass His act, His strange act.”(1071) To our
merciful God the act of punishment is a strange act. “As I live, saith the
Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked.”(1072) The Lord
is “merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and
truth, ... forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin.” Yet He will “by
no means clear the guilty.” “The Lord is slow to anger, and great in
power, and will not at all acquit the wicked.”(1073) By terrible things in
righteousness He will vindicate the authority of His downtrodden law. The
severity of the retribution awaiting the transgressor may be judged by the
Lord’s reluctance to execute justice. The nation with which He bears long,
and which He will not smite until it has filled up the measure of its
iniquity in God’s account, will finally drink the cup of wrath unmixed
with mercy.