August 3, 2023 | Silver Spring, Maryland, United States | Ted N.C. Wilson, President, General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists
Hello, friends. Today in our journey through the wonderful book, The Great Controversy, we will continue looking at the signs given in the Bible regarding the Second Coming of Christ, and we will see how those signs have been fulfilled in a most remarkable way.
In our previous video, we saw how the terrible devastation of the great earthquake in 1755 extended across the greater part of Europe, along with Africa and America, and markedly fulfilled the first part of the prophecy given in Revelation 6:12—
“. . . there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became like blood.”
Twenty-five years after the terrible earthquake, the next sign was fulfilled on the 19th of May, 1780. Known as the “Dark Day,” this strange phenomenon was seen across the entire stretch of the northeastern United States, known as New England.
An eyewitness living in the state of Massachusetts described the event like this:
“In the morning, the sun rose clear but was soon overcast. The clouds became . . . black and ominous . . . lightning flashed, thunder rolled, and a little rain fell. Toward nine o’clock, the clouds became thinner, and assumed a brassy or coppery appearance, and earth, rocks, trees, buildings, water, and persons were changed by this strange, unearthly light. A few minutes later, a heavy black cloud spread over the entire sky except a narrow rim at the horizon, and it was as dark as it usually is at nine o’clock on a summer evening.
“Fear, anxiety, and awe gradually filled the minds of the people. Women stood at the door, looking out upon the dark landscape; men returned from their labor in the fields; . . . Schools were dismissed, and tremblingly the children fled homeward. . . ‘What is coming?’ queried every lip and heart” (The Great Controversy, p. 306).
People gathered in churches where, in alarm, preachers presented the prophetic message of the signs of Christ’s coming. “The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and terrible day of the Lord come,” wrote the prophet Joel (Joel 2:31).
That night after midnight, the darkness disappeared, and the moon, when first visible, was red as blood.
Why were these signs given? We read in The Great Controversy, “To prepare a people to stand in the day of God, a great work of reform was to be accomplished. God saw that many of His professed people were not building for eternity, and in His mercy, He was about to send a message of warning to arouse them from their stupor and lead them to make ready for the coming of the Lord” (p. 311).
That message of warning is found in Revelation 14, where a threefold message is proclaimed to “every nation, tribe, tongue, and people” (vs. 6), after which Christ returns. The first of these warnings acknowledges God as the Creator and announces the approaching judgment.
“This message,” writes Ellen White, “is declared to be a part of ‘the everlasting gospel.’ The work of preaching the gospel has not been committed to angels, but has been entrusted to men,” she wrote (The Great Controversy, p. 312).
As the signs given in prophecy started to be fulfilled, eyes were beginning to be opened, and “Faithful men, who were obedient to the promptings of God’s spirit and the teachings of His word, were to proclaim this warning to the world” (The Great Controversy, p. 312).
Interestingly, however, just like it was before the first coming of Christ to this earth, it was not the scholarly theologians who understood the prophecies. Rather, it was those who were more humble and willing to carefully study God’s Word with an open heart. To them, the truth was revealed. As Jesus declared in John 8:12, “He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.”
In our next video, we will meet such a man–a man who at first appeared unlikely to carry such an important message, but who was used by God in a mighty way.
In the meantime, however, I encourage you to learn about the signs of Christ’s coming by reading the chapter entitled “Heralds of the Morning” in the book, The Great Controversy. This book is available as a free download in multiple languages at thegreatcontroveryproject.org [Insert: thegreatcontroversyproject.org]. If you have not already done so, I invite you to download your free copy today.
Friends, be of good courage. The Lord’s coming is near! The signs are revealed in His Word, and a clear message is to be given to the world. I invite you to continue our journey together as we learn more about these very important messages.
Let’s bow our heads together for a word of prayer just now.
Father, we thank you for the many signs that you have given to us.Prophesied in Scripture telling us that the coming of Jesus is very near. Help us to be aware, to understand, and to focus upon how we can share with others this wonderful good news of salvation in Jesus Christ and his soon second coming. Bless. As we continue this journey in the great controversy, we ask all of these things in Jesus name, Amen.