February 29, 2024 | Silver Spring, Maryland, United States | Ted N.C. Wilson, President, General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists
Ted Wilson (TW): Greetings, friends. We have been going through the amazing book, The Great Controversyin this video series, looking at the highlights of each chapter. Today we will consider some of the highlights from Chapter 25, titled “God’s Law Immutable,” and I would like to remind you that if you do not yet have this wonderful book, you may download your free copy today at the greatcontroversyproject.org.
Nancy Wilson (NW): In the previous chapter, we compared the Old Testament sanctuary and its services, and looked carefully at what happened on the Day of Atonement. You might remember that the sanctuary had two apartments—the first was called the Holy Place, and the second, the Most Holy Place. It was only on the Day of the Atonement that the High Priest entered the Most Holy Place, to do the symbolic work of cleansing the sanctuary.
While there were several pieces of furniture in the Holy Place, including the lampstand, the table of shewbread, and the altar of incense, behind the second veil separating the two apartments there was only one piece of furniture—the golden ark of the covenant, also known as “the ark of God’s testament.”
TW: In Revelation 11:19 we read John’s amazing description of seeing inside the most holy place in the heavenly sanctuary. He wrote: “Then the temple of God was opened in heaven, and the ark of His covenant was seen in His temple. And there were lightnings, noises, thunderings, an earthquake, and great hail.”
Since Hebrews 8:5 tells us that the earthly sanctuary served as “the copy and shadow of the heavenly things,” we understand that this second apartment opened only on the great Day of Atonement for the cleansing of the heavenly sanctuary.
NW: “Therefore,” wrote Ellen White, “the announcement that the temple of God was opened in heaven and the ark of His testament was seen points to the opening of the most holy place of the heavenly sanctuary in 1844 as Christ entered there to perform the closing work of the atonement” (The Great Controversy, p. 433).
TW: The ark of the covenant on earth contained the two tables of stone which contained the law of God—the 10 Commandments. We read in The Great Controversy that it was the presence of these two tablets that contained God’s law that made the ark so valuable and sacred. And again, we see a parallel in the heavenly sanctuary, where God’s law—the great original—is enshrined.
NW: After the Great Disappointment of 1844, as the faithful Advent believers continued to study their Bibles, they began to see more and more clearly the significance of the sanctuary in heaven and the importance of the law of God. They understood Christ’s words more clearly when He said, “For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled” (Matt. 5:18, KJV). This is because the law of God is a revelation of His will and a transcript of His character, and it will always endure. In Psalm 111:7,8 we read, “All His commandments are sure. They stand fast for ever and ever.”
TW: It was during this time of Bible study that the attention of the early Adventists was especially drawn to the fourth commandment, where they read:
TW & NW together: “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it” (Exodus 20:8-11, NKJV).
TW: The hearts of the early Adventists were impressed; they had never quite seen this commandment in such a clear light. They began to examine the reasons for observing the first day of the week instead of the day which the Lord had made holy. As they studied, they could not find any evidence in the Bible that the fourth commandment had been abolished, or that the Sabbath had been changed, therefore they understood that the blessing God placed on the seventh day had never been removed.
NW: “They had been honestly seeking to know and to do God’s will,” wrote Ellen White, “now, as they saw themselves transgressors of His law, sorrow filled their hearts, and they manifested their loyalty to God by keeping His Sabbath holy” (The Great Controversy, p. 435).
This was an extraordinary decision for this group to make, as the vast majority of Christians worshipped on Sunday, the first day of the week. Nevertheless, as they accepted the Word of God as truth and followed its teachings, they were led to understand more fully the beauty of God’s Word and the important messages it contained for those living at the end of time.
TW: Friend, today, I would like to ask—do you believe the Word of God? Do you believe that God’s law is holy and true, and as we read earlier, “All His commandments are sure. They stand fast for ever and ever” (Psalm 111:7,8)? Would you like to learn more about the perpetuity of God’s law. If you would like to learn more about this very important Bible teaching, I invite you to visit the URL shown at the bottom of the page [Insert: adventist.org/the-law-of-god/]. You will be amazed and enriched as you learn more about what the Bible says on this very important topic.
And now as we end our message for today, let’s pray together just now.
Father in heaven, we thank you for the amazing indications in Scripture about your sanctuary service and about what it is that you have provided for us.And that beautiful ark of the covenant containing the tablets of stone with all ten Commandments, including the precious fourth commandment. Thank you for giving us the Sabbath and helping us to remember that it is your day of rest throughout eternity and that today, the seventh day, Sabbath is as important as when you created it at the end of the six days of creation. Thank you for hearing us in this prayer and blessings as we worship you and keep your Sabbath day. Holy. Your seventh day Sabbath. In Jesus name, we ask it. Amen.