Today's message is titled "Will You Have a Song to Sing?"
The messaged today deals with the 144,000,
who they are, and what it takes to be a part of that group.
I'm also hoping to clear up misconceptions that some may have on this subject.
The 144,000 are a special group
that in heaven there is a temple where only they can enter,
and their names are engraved in golden letters on tables of stone.
No wonder Ellen White wrote,
Let us strive with all the power that God has given us to be among
the hundred and forty-four thousand.
That's from Review and Herald, March 9, 1905
She also wrote:
… we are to inspire every man to unwearied diligence.
We are to strive, wrestle, agonize, watch, pray,
lest we shall be overcome by the wily foe.
That's taken from Selected Messages, Volume 1, p. 381
I wanted to see, did you notice the words:
strive, wrestle, agonize, watch, and pray?
Well those words were not written for the 144,000;
they were written for the great multitude,
for anyone who wants to be allowed into heaven.
Do you want to be a part of the 144,000?
For that group it will be even harder than this;
there is a lot more involved.
Don't think that just because you keep the Sabbath,
you don't eat meat or cheese, and because
you don't drink coffee, well that gives you a free pass to heaven!
Being a part of the 144,000 is a daily, hourly work.
There are no guarantees.
No one should think they have a number and a place.
No one is assured of being one of the 144,000.
Like salvation, being one of the 144,000 is conditional.
Jesus Himself has told me in my dreams:
"IF you are faithful, we will spend eternity together."
The Herald has told me repeatedly,
"IF you remain faithful to your Savior,
you will be here, and not in a dream."
In fact, in at least 10 of my published dreams
I have been told that IF I am faithful, I may be saved.
Like anyone listening, I have no assurance.
Each of us must obey and follow God's instructions faithfully.
In fact, Ellen White wrote this:
There are some things which we need to guard…
questions in regard to the sealing of the people of God,
who will be sealed, how many, and other prying questions…
Tell them to read and speak of things that are plainly revealed…
if we walk humbly with God, we shall receive instruction.
But prying curiosity is not to be encouraged…
That's from 7BC 918
Becoming one of that select group requires a constant work.
None will ever feel worthy or that they are assured of a place.
She wrote again, and this is from Signs of the Times, February 26, 1885.
No one who claims holiness is really holy…
None of the prophets and apostles ever professed holiness...
The righteous never make such a claim…
The only safe position for any of us to take
is to consider ourselves sinners,
daily needing divine grace…
Humility is Heaven-born;
and none can enter the pearly gates without it.
We know that we are not to look at ourselves,
but constantly look at Jesus.
However, some individuals who believe
that they will be a part of that group are busy
"measuring themselves by themselves,
and comparing themselves among themselves"
and Paul stated that such are not wise.
That's found in (Romans 10:12).
In fact, by doing that, they are making self their god.
When people think they are special or better than others,
when they say things that put others down
or make them feel less worthy,
well they tell others, "I have been chosen by God
to be part of the 144,000,"
they proclaim that Christ is not in their life.
Instead, they are exhibiting pride,
and pride will never be allowed into heaven.
Remember: pride changed Lucifer into Satan.
Such individuals are superficial Christians;
they are Laodiceans who have surrounded themselves
with a thick armor of self-righteousness
so the arrows of truth do not penetrate.
They are so blind that they don't even think about the
need of examining themselves to find out whether the words
and warnings of God may refer to them!
These superficial Christians are the most difficult to wake up.
The Spirit of Prophecy says about them:
"Thus it is with many, many in this generation."
And that's from the (EGW 1888 Materials, p. 796).
Ellen White also wrote:
When men … are curious to know something
it is not necessary for them to know,
God is not leading them…
It is not His will that they shall get into
controversy over questions which will not help them spiritually,
such as, Who is to compose the hundred and forty-four thousand?
That's from Volume 1 Selected Messages, 174.
God has not revealed who the 144,000 are,
but He has described what they will be like as individuals,
and what they will do.
In the dream, Reverence My Sanctuary, it describes
'those who are they' as people who:
And there is going to be three different sections here.
Section 1.
These people will be sifted, shaken,
and placed in God's furnace to remove all impurities
to become like Christ—free from faults and completely truthful.
They will give the loud cry message to the world
and stand in the very last days without Christ as a Mediator.
And here is the last one.
In heaven, they will 'sing a new song,'
the 'song of Moses and the Lamb,'
a song that no one else knows or will ever be able to sing.
Let's take each of these characteristics one by one, and consider
what they show us and how they describe this special group.
Lets look at part one.
The first one tells us that the 144,000 will be sifted,
shaken, and placed in God's furnace
to remove all impurities to become like Christ—
free from sin, faults, and completely truthful.
God will test every individual who enters His service.
He is not looking for special talents or education but asks:
"Will they represent My character?
Will they walk before Me in humble obedience?"
Again there's that word humble.
The gold of our faith and obedience needs to be purified.
When the Israelites built the tabernacle in the wilderness,
they used gold threads to make many linens,
such as the curtains of the tabernacle and
the beautiful clothing of the high priest.
How did they make gold thread?
In the desert there was no place to purchase such a special item.
A description of how the thread was made is recorded in Scripture,
because it is a parable about the development of true faith.
In the instructions given to Moses for Bezaleel,
God bypassed the usual method of making gold wire.
Since gold is pliable, artisans used to draw thin gold bars
through small holes that had been bored through hard stones.
As the diameter of the holes became progressively smaller,
the gold wire became thinner.
But God did not want Bezaleel to use that method.
He instructed him to flatten the gold by pounding
it with a hammer until it was a flat sheet.
Then, the flattened gold plate
was to be cut with shears into very narrow strips.
After those gold ribbons were stretched and straightened,
the ends had to be placed in the soldering fire to make long strands.
Is this how our character develops?
God's hammer— His holy Word,
the Testimonies of the Spirit of Prophecy and the messages in my dreams—
batter down our defective lifestyle.
Our inflated opinion of ourselves
is crushed and flattened until there is no pride left,
only a humble willingness to be nothing,
if that is how we can best serve God.
The Holy Spirit uses the shears of circumstances
and events to cut out our selfishness.
The fires of trials and sufferings purify our attitudes
and join us to each other.
When we are fully obedient,
when the thread of faith and love is ready,
God can use us to carry out the part He created us to perform.
What about being sealed?
If I asked you, What is the seal of God?
You would answer: the Sabbath, and you would be right.
But there is much more to it.
Let's look at some specifics.
Well to start with, we know that in all the world,
keeping the Sabbath will distinguish those who obey God
from those who disobey Him.
In Testimonies volume 5, page 214, we read that
many—even among those who teach
the truth about the Sabbath —will not be saved.
On the same page it states that we will never
"receive the seal of God while our
characters have one spot or stain upon them."
In Revelation chapter 7, we find one specific number of
those who will be sealed—the 144,000.
It also says that these individuals will have washed their robes.
That tells us that they have been forgiven
and their characters are free from sin.
In Revelation chapter 14, we read that the 144,000
will have the Father's name on their foreheads.
And then in Ezekiel 9 verse 4 we read:
And the LORD said unto him, Go through the
midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem,
and set a mark upon the foreheads of the men
that sigh and that cry for all the abominations
that be done in the midst thereof.
Well what do all these details tell us?
The seal—the mark—on the foreheads of the 144,000 is God's name!
What is so important about His name?
Remember when God proclaimed His name to Moses?
We read it in Exodus 34:5-7, it says:
The LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed,
The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious,
longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth,
keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity
and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty…
Isn't that a marvelous description of God?
In answer to the request of Moses to show him His glory,
God described His character.
The Spirit of Prophecy points out that God's glory is His character.
And why will the seal be placed on the forehead?
Behind the forehead is the frontal lobe of the brain.
That's the thinking place, the location of reason,
of understanding, of the ability to distinguish right from wrong.
It's where our decision to obey or disobey God's commandments takes place.
Therefore, the seal on the forehead shows that the 144,000
will have holy characters —a mind like Christ.
From Signs of the Times, November 25, 1897
The honor of Christ must stand complete in the perfection
of the character of his chosen people.
He desires that they shall represent his character to the world…
In being united to him by faith, believing and receiving him,
you become part of Himself.
Your character is His glory revealed in you.
This is why God's destroying angel mentioned by Ezekiel
will not touch the 144,000.
Neither will Satan's angels be allowed to destroy heaven's royalty,
the twin brothers of the Creator!
You remember the time when Jesus and His disciples got off the boat
and two demoniacs rushed at them?
Remember the disciples ran off, terrified.
But Jesus raised His hand,
and the demons that possessed the men could come no further,
and they begged to be allowed to enter the pigs.
Demons cannot endure being in the presence of Jesus.
Well do you remember in the dream, "The Universal Memorial,"
the part about a woman who stood
on the porch of a home in the woods?
Like Jesus, she only raised her arm,
and immediately all the camouflaged militants
dropped their weapons and fled in fear.
This is what it states from the dream:
I ask the guide what frightened the soldiers.
The guide replies that I simply saw a woman.
Yet when God saw this woman, He saw His Son.
The guide says,
"It has been said many times that all are to be like Jesus.
For all who do this, the heavenly Father will
not see a man or a woman but rather Jesus."
So, having the mind of Christ means having a character like His.
It means acting, speaking, and even thinking like Jesus.
Then, our merciful God will treat us as He would treat Jesus!
What would Jesus do if He were in our place?
How would He act?
Listen to this amazing word picture of the character of Jesus
When Ellen White wrote:
And it can be found in Manuscript Releases, Volume 3, page 427.
Christ never murmured, never uttered discontent,
displeasure, or resentment.
He was never disheartened, discouraged, ruffled, or fretted.
He was patient, calm, and self-possessed
under the most exciting and trying circumstances.
All His works were performed with a quiet dignity and ease,
whatever commotion was around Him.
Applause did not elate Him.
He feared not the threats of His enemies.
He had a calm inward joy, a peace which was serene.
His will was ever swallowed up in the will of His Father.
Even though Jesus submitted meekly to insult and abuse,
He suffered and felt every bit of it
"as no other being could feel it."
These are things the 144,000 need to learn.
In fact, Ellen White even wrote:
Learn to suffer more.
Learn to deny yourselves more.
There is need of it.
Die to self.
Do not love your ease too much.
That's from Manuscript Releases, Volume 21, page 366.
Well do you think you're neglected?
Do you feel like you know more than others around you?
Are you prone to complaining?
This is going to be a hard one. Do you find fault with others?
God's special troops must learn to suffer annoyances
without becoming irritated.
They must learn to meet disappointments and setbacks
without taking them to heart,
or dishonoring God by complaining.
To become like Jesus, each of us needs to ask God to show us
the objectionable traits in our character.
Then, we need to take each one separately,
comparing it with God's standards.
Day by day and hour by hour,
we must work on our characters,
shaping them into the likeness of Jesus.
As a result, John wrote in Revelation 14:1-5,
that there will be no guile in their mouths.
God will see them as perfect, without fault!
Now, got to ask this, what is guile?
We've all heard that word before.
And why is it specially mentioned?
Well guile is deceit.
It is hypocrisy.
It is anything that is not honest, pure, and truthful.
God is very sensitive about guile,
because His universe has been attacked
and His character has been smeared by Satan's lies.
As a result, the great majority of the people that God
created with so much love has denied
and rejected Him and His government.
Have you considered the possibility that you may be denying Christ?
This is another aspect of guile.
You may not be cursing and swearing like Peter,
but you also deny Him by speaking half-truths,
by repeating words that should be kept in confidence,
by jesting and joking, by speaking idle or unkind words,
by loving your own opinions,
by brooding over your supposed hard trials,
by selfishly seeking honor, by being discourteous.
God wants us to stop looking for mistakes in others
and He wants us to turn our attention to our own defects.
He wants us to pay attention to our own special sins.
Guile is also related to selfishness
and wanting to appear better than we really are.
Even external, superficial adornments are a type of guile.
This is why Peter advised women to decorate themselves with a meek
and quiet spirit, instead of pearls or gold.
The Spirit of Prophecy tells us that:
… the Lord would have His people learn
that when they do that which gives prominence to self,
His work is neglected, and He is dishonored...
His name, and His alone, is to be magnified on the earth.
You know I want to add one thing to that, if I am permitted.
I'm learning that His name is magnified not only on this earth.
That it should be magnified on this earth.
But you know His name is magnified throughout the universe.
Well lets look at part two.
This was part one. Lets look at part two.
We are talking about the characteristics.
So let's look at part two.
The 144,000 will give the loud cry message to the world
and stand in the very last days without Christ as a Mediator.
We're told: Those who are living upon the earth
when the intercession of Christ shall cease in the sanctuary above
are to stand in the sight of a holy God without a mediator.
Their robes must be spotless …
they must be conquerors in the battle with evil.
While the investigative judgment is going forward in heaven …
there is to be a special work of purification,
of putting away of sin, among God's people upon earth.
This is taken from, The Great Controversy, page 425.
Giving the last message to the world
will not be like taking a walk in the park.
You know there is a saying about taking a walk in the park.
Well it's not going to be like that.
Well yes, there will be great victories,
but there will also be many difficult challenges
to meet and overcome.
While receiving much opposition,
the 144,000 must remember that they are to have Christ
formed within them.
Those who easily yield to discouragement
will find the obstacles impossible to overcome.
But God has promised that "all His biddings are enablings."
When He says, "Go forward," He is also saying:
"Do your duty at any cost to yourselves.
I will make your problems vanish,
if you go forward in humble obedience.
Do the work I have given you to do,
and carefully follow My instructions."
Those sent to give the last message to the world during the Latter Rain
are provided amazing power through the Holy Spirit.
It will be ten times the power that was imparted during Pentecost.
As a result, tremendous miracles will be performed.
But think about it, without miracles,
how would Gods message reach the entire world?
Here is a few statistics
You know the United Nations recognizes 193 member countries, plus 2 others.
That's 195 countries.
Some, like China, are large, with a huge population.
Others are small.
Given the fact that the world now has 7.6 billion inhabitants,
how many people would each member of the 144,000 have to reach?
Close to 53,000!
That is equivalent to a good-sized city!
Clearly, God's messages will never be communicated
without supernatural power.
Alright let's look at part three.
Our third characteristic points out that in heaven,
the 144,000 will 'sing a new song,'
the 'song of Moses the servant of God."
You know we've all talked about this,
to strive to be a part of the 144,000.
One of the exciting things is being able to travel
throughout the universe with Jesus.
And that we will all sit around and we'll each sing a song, the song of Moses.
Well I'm going to disappoint some people.
It is a 'song' that no one but the 144,000 knows.
And many of you like me have probably gone I don't sing, I don't have that gift.
Well the one thing is that no one else can learn this 'song.'
No one else will ever be able to 'sing' it.
Why?
Well let me clarify: It is not a literal song.
Did you catch that?
The song of Moses, that you will travel the universe
singing your 'song', the song of Moses.
It's not a literal song.
It does not mean knowing all the stanzas to "Jesus Loves Me."
So I want you to think this: What 'song' would you sing?
If you were fortunate to be one of the 144,000
and you traveled across the universe with Jesus.
What would you say that would be so powerful
and meaningful that it would warrant God sending
you across the universe to share it?
It will be a 'song' that you will sing again and again, forever and ever!
It will be a 'song' worthy of being shared in all the billions of existing worlds,
as well as in all the new worlds
the new worlds that God the creator has not yet created.
It will be a 'song' so important, so meaningful
that God will want all of His creations to hear it!
Well I can tell you one thing this song won't be.
And I'm going to make up this song as we go so excuse my singing.
This song will not be:
"I kept the Sabbath; I was a vegetarian,
I did not eat eggs or cheese,
and I did not drink coffee."
I know most of you are laughing right now but,
this most certainly not would be the song!
That special 'song' will tell about your unique experience:
How Jesus intervened and worked in your life.
Each one of the 144,000 will have an experience to share
that no one else has ever had in the history of all mankind.
It will be a 'song,' but a story, an experience not paralleled in any history,
at any time, or in any place throughout the whole universe!
Each of these special individuals will share the experience
that they went through, and what they suffered
in their battle against sin and Satan.
Each of their stories will stand forever
as a testimonial that vindicates God and His character.
So why is it called the Song of Moses?
What did Moses do to deserve having his name in the title of a song?
Well you know we've all read the story of Moses he was
born, and he was rescued from being killed in a basket put in the Nile river
and then some princess found him and took him in and took care of him and
then he became the pharaohs son.
Then something went wrong and he ended up out in the desert for 40 years
where he lucked out where he was able to take care of some sheep.
Then after he took care of some sheep
God told him to go take care of His other sheep. You know those people
that were in bondage, you know those prisoners
and so Moses took them and he walked them out of the city
got them across the Red Sea
and then later on he died. Now he is in heaven.
Well what's so special about that story?
Well that's not the whole story.
Moses did not have it that easy.
Let's think about Moses
So why is it called the song of Moses?
What did Moses do to deserve having his name
in the title of this song? The song of Moses.
Well lets think about this.
What if God assigned to you to be the police department,
the court system, the social services department,
and the governor for millions of people?
Now let's just supposing a conservative figure of about 2 million
who also happen to be Israelites,
that would be equivalent to the population of a city like Chicago,
for those of you in Germany you could think of Frankfurt, Germany
for those in Puerto Rico you could think of San Juan.
That would seem terribly frustrating, annoying, and even impossible!
Would you be tempted to run away from all that?
Multiply this several times over
and you would have a very dim idea about the difficulties
and challenges that Moses endured.
It wasn't because Moses did not know how to accomplish those tasks.
You know before spending 40 years in the desert taking care of his
father-in-law's sheep, Moses had been a very successful general
in Egypt's military, and was accustomed to working with logistics and organization.
He was also accustomed to receiving praise and flattery
for his ability and success.
How do you think Moses felt when Jethro
agreed to give him work in exchange for his room and board?
So do you think Moses said, "Do you know WHO I AM?
I cannot look after sheep!
That type of work is beneath my abilities and talents!
What's more, don't you know that shepherds
are an abomination to the Egyptians?
This is how I was raised; this is what I am accustomed to.
If you want me to work for you, you must give me better work,
good wages, and something more
honorable than following stubborn sheep around the desert!"
Not at all.
Moses found himself in a very difficult situation,
fleeing for his life.
He could not pick and choose his conditions.
What's more, God saw that Moses needed specialized training.
In the book Patriarchs and Prophets, page 247 it states that:
"Before he could govern wisely, he must be trained to obey.
So, God placed Moses in a special school.
It was not a short summer session.
The course God outlined for him took quite a bit longer than that—
40 years!
And Moses accepted each of the lessons God sent
without grumbling or complaining.
After spending 40 years serving sheep,
God told him to face Pharaoh and his wrath—
not once or twice, but many times.
So how would you like to be told to show up in the king's court
unauthorized, uninvited, and unannounced?
Would you go?
Would your faith hold up?
Or would you be afraid to obey?
The Israelites had been told that God
was going to deliver them.
However, you remember that Pharaoh had become very angry
when he heard the request of Moses and Aaron,
he ordered the Israelites to make the same quota of bricks,
PLUS they had to find their own straw.
So, the taskmasters were beating the Israelite overseers,
and they were complaining and blaming Moses for the trouble.
Well then, the plagues came.
That did not please the Egyptians.
At the same time that Moses was dealing with the stress and destruction of Egypt
caused by the plagues, he had other challenges to deal with.
He had to figure out the logistics in organizing
more than 2 million people— men, women, and children,
But wait don't forget the countless heads of cattle—
sheep, goats, and so on.
And on how to leave Egypt without trampling each other
or getting lost and going the wrong way.
Have you ever thought about the nightmare that must have been?
Have you thought about how many late-night meetings
he must have held with tribal leaders,
each one wanting a better position for his group?
But did his troubles end on Passover night,
when everyone was finally given permission to leave Egypt?
Not at all.
In fact, his problems had hardly started!
I know we don't have time to go over all the trials
and tribulations Moses faced during the 40-years
of wandering through the desert,
but let's consider two that had to do with family members.
Let's think about Aaron and Miriam,
his brother and sister, they turned against him.
This started with Miriam's rejection and criticism of Moses' wife.
You know the situation got so bad that God intervened
to teach them a lesson about leadership and race relations.
As punishment, his sister was stricken with leprosy.
A cousin of Moses named Korah,
and his friends, Dathan and Abiram, accused him of being a selfish tyrant
who wanted the people to die in the desert,
so he could take all of their possessions.
Their complaints spread like wildfire,
and the rebellion continued even after the people
watched the ground swallow the ringleaders and their families.
As a result, about 15,000 Israelites —God's people—lost their lives.
Before being sealed and used by God during the Latter Rain,
each of the 144,000 must learn self-denial.
Have you stopped to think what self-denial is?
It is saying NO to what you want.
It is saying YES to what God says,
and YES to what others need.
This includes: developing patience,
not complaining, enduring neglect, loneliness, and even mockery.
Our perfect example in self-denial is Jesus.
We have been told that the faith of each one will be tested
as if there were not another person in the world.
Well you know in the Review and Herald, dated April 12, 1898 it instructs that:
We are to follow Him by suffering for His sake,
saying at every step, 'Though He slay me,
yet will I trust in Him.'
So do you want to be a part of the 144,000?
Has God put you in a special school?
Are you cheerfully learning all the lessons in humility
that He is trying to teach you?
Well listen carefully:
The more delicate the work that God entrusts to His human servants,
the longer and more difficult will be the training required to prepare for it.
Listen to how Ellen White explains it in Education, page 151:
All who in this world render true service
to God or man receive a preparatory training
in the school of sorrow.
The weightier the trust and the higher the service,
the closer is the test and the more severe the discipline.
Now describing the work of Moses
in volume 4 of Testimonies for the Church, page 442, Ellen White wrote:
A similar experience is essential for those
who engage in the great work of preaching the truth...
If God appoints us hard labor to perform,
we must do it without a murmur.
… If the path is difficult and dangerous,
it is God's plan to have us follow in meekness
and cry unto Him for strength…
If this is not the case with us,
it were better that we had no part in the work of God.
Do you recall the vision where
Ellen White saw God's people climbing up a narrow path?
That vision is very similar to what I was shown in the dream
"Remorse or Rejoice."
Ellen White said something interesting
about what she saw during the climb.
In Christian Experience and Teachings, page 181 we read:
We then thought of those who had not accustomed
themselves to privations and hardships.
Where were such now?
They were not in the company.
At every change, some were left behind,
and those only remained who had accustomed themselves
to endure hardships.
The privations of the way only made these
more eager to press on to the end.
Did you notice that "at every change, some were left behind?"
That clearly shows that every new trial
and every new problem sifts people out.
But instead of complaining about their trials and suffering,
the 144,000 will praise God for the way He has dealt with them.
Listen to their song as stated in Revelation 15:3:
Great and marvelous are Thy works, Lord God Almighty;
just and true are Thy ways, Thou King of saints."
Well for Moses, the trial and test lasted 80 years—
40 with the sheep
and 40 with the other sheep,
you know the people through the desert.
Some people call them sheeple.
80 years it was a very long time,
but it accomplished God's purpose for him,
making him patient,
generous, kind, reverent, and humble.
God's children need a similar experience.
In order to have the privilege of wearing divine honors,
we must learn to endure sore discipline now.
Satan's wrath has been aroused,
and God will allow him to bring upon the 144,000
every imaginable distress to test their faith.
The Bible calls it a "great tribulation."
The 144,000 will feel as if God has forsaken them.
That will help them to better understand
the bitter agony of Jesus when He cried out,
"My God, My God!
Why hast Thou forsaken Me?"
This special group will need a level of endurance,
courage, and faith never seen before.
No wonder John wrote: "Here is the patience of the saints."
Do you want to be a member of the royal family of heaven?
Do you want to wear divine honors with grace and dignity?
Angels are preparing beautiful crowns for the royal overcomers.
Then, do not complain about your trials and troubles.
Do not complain if your task is to be alone.
Do not moan about the unfair way you are being treated.
Do not be upset if others snub you.
Do not worry if your efforts are not appreciated.
Do not go about parading your efforts
and suffering, and displaying your self-denials to others.
There is an old saying that says do not wear your feelings on your sleeve.
Some people are so sensitive about how they are treated
and what others say, that it's hard to reason with them.
They are suspicious even about the motives of others.
God wants us to be sensitive,
but He wants us to be sensitive about whether we are growing
more like Jesus or dishonoring Him by our words and our attitude.
As God prepares us for a place in His kingdom.
He knows exactly what experiences
we need to go through in order to perfect our characters
and make them pure and holy for heaven.
And remember, He has promised that no trial
will be greater than we can bear through His strength.
Why have we talked so much about sufferings and trials?
In Philippians 1:29 Paul wrote:
For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ,
not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake.
And Ellen White adds:
Let us, dear brethren and sisters,
crave [that means to want very much, to long for]
crave the suffering, the crucifying part of religion.
For we are to be purified and fitted for the kingdom through suffering.
And that's from Review and Herald, June 10, 1852.
Therefore, we need to accept the fact that without suffering we will not overcome,
and we will not gain the victory over sin.
The Christian life is a life of constant conflict.
But we are promised that:
every act of obedience, every deed of self-denial,
every trial bravely endured, every temptation resisted,
every victory gained, is a step forward in the march to eternal triumph."
That's taken from Signs of the Times, October 29, 1902.
God's true and faithful children will echo what Job said:
'Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him,'
because a true Christian character develops in the midst of trials,
not in peace and quiet.
In fact:
The work of reform will call for all the faith and tears and prayers
that human intelligence can bear…
striving ever for the same spirit that led Jesus to yearn
for His anticipated baptism of suffering upon the cross.
That's taken from This Day With God, page 49.
So the 144,000 will not become discouraged
and frustrated when surrounded by difficulties.
Instead, they will stand the test of neglect, abuse, and contempt,
because their Savior, Jesus, endured infinitely more.
Gaining the victory under extremely difficult conditions—
seeing the earth wasted with destruction, famine,
war, and disease, enduring suffering, hunger, exhaustion, and thirst—
all this will bring the special reward promised to the 144,000.
You remember the golden calf incident when the Israelites
rebelled at the foot of Mt. Sinai?
The tribe of Levi remained faithful;
they did not participate in the idolatry.
They also obeyed God's extremely difficult
command to kill friends and family members who had rebelled.
As a reward for their faithfulness,
God gave them double honors and privileges.
First, they were given the priesthood,
and their tents were located closest to the tabernacle
to attend to its services and care for it as it moved from place to place.
They also became the teachers of the people.
The 144,000 will remain true to God through much physical,
spiritual, and mental suffering.
They will see many of their friends,
fellow church members, and even relatives reject and condemn them.
And like the Levites, God will reward them with double privileges and honors.
They will not only be the teachers of the redeemed
who have not known all these things,
but they will also be very close to Jesus.
They will follow "the Lamb whithersoever He goeth"
throughout the universe,
forever sharing their special 'song'
with created beings on countless other worlds.
You have to think about that.
There is not much time left to get ready.
In fact, Jesus did not say, "Get ready."
He actually said, "Be ye also ready."
Each of us needs to remember that God is measuring us.
As we go about our work, our household chores,
as we speak with others, God is measuring us.
He is paying close attention to the attitude we display.
Ellen White wrote:
…everyone who will enter the kingdom of God
will develop a character that is the counterpart
of the character of God…
Those who are to be redeemed are to be overcomers;
they are to be elevated, pure, one with Christ.
This character does not develop overnight.
It is a daily, hourly process.
That is why the Spirit of Prophecy says:
None but those who have been overcoming
by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony
will be found with the loyal and true, without spot or stain of sin,
without guile in their mouths.
That was taken from Selected Messages, book 2, page 380.
… the hundred and forty and four thousand… sing "a new song"
before the throne, a song which no man can learn
save the hundred and forty and four thousand.
It is the song of Moses and the Lamb—a song of deliverance.
None but the hundred and forty-four thousand can learn that song;
for it is the song of their experience—
an experience such as no other company have ever had.
… they have endured the anguish of the time of Jacob's trouble;
they have stood without an intercessor
through the final outpouring of God's judgments…
"In their mouth was found no guile:
for they are without fault" before God…
they learned the evil of sin, its power,
its guilt, its woe; and they look upon it with abhorrence.
A sense of the infinite sacrifice made for its cure
humbles them in their own sight and
fills their hearts with gratitude and praise...
They love much because they have been forgiven much.
Having been partakers of Christ's sufferings,
they are fitted to be partakers with Him of His glory.
This was taken from Great Controversy, page 649.
So in closing, I have a question.
God is asking, "Will you have a song to sing?
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