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xviii
Early Writings
to Ellen Harmon in which she was shown the transfer of the ministry
of Christ from the holy place to the most holy place at the end of
the 2300 days. The record of this vision is found in
Early Writings,
54-56
.
Of another vision shortly after this, as referred to by Mrs. White
in a statement written in April, 1847, she records that “the Lord
showed me in vision, more than one year ago, that Brother Crozier
had the true light on the cleansing of the sanctuary, etc.; and that it
was his will that Brother Crozier should write out the view which
he gave us in the
The Day-Star Extra, February 7, 1846
. I feel fully
authorized by the Lord to recommend that extra to every saint.”—
A
Word to the “Little Flock
“, 12. Thus the finding of Bible scholars
was confirmed by the visions of God’s messenger
.
In subsequent years Ellen White wrote a great deal concerning
the sanctuary truth and its significance to us, and there are many
references to this in
Early Writings
. Note especially the chapter
beginning on page 250 entitled “The Sanctuary.” The understanding
of the ministry of Christ in the heavenly sanctuary proved to be the
key that unlocked the mystery of the great Disappointment. Our
pioneers saw clearly that the prophecy announcing the hour of God’s
[xx]
judgment at hand had its fulfillment in the events that took place in
1844, but that there was a work of ministry to be accomplished in
the most holy place in the heavenly sanctuary before Jesus should
come to this earth
.
The message of the first angel and the message of the second
angel had been sounded in the proclamation of the Advent message,
and now the message of the third angel began to sound. Under this
message the significance of the Seventh-day Sabbath began to dawn
.
The Beginnings of Sabbath Observance
As we trace the story of the beginning of Sabbathkeeping among
the early Adventists, we go to a little church in the township of
Washington in the heart of New Hampshire, the state that adjoins
Maine on the east and whose western boundary is within sixty miles
of the New York state line. Here the members of an independent
Christian church in 1843 heard and accepted the preaching of the
Advent message. It was an earnest group. Into their midst came