Cause in the East
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is so sacred to them that they speak it with the greatest reverence.
But how opposite the spirit and influence attending the 1854 time
movement. Some who are still under the same influence speak of
God as they would of a horse or of any other commonplace thing. In
their prayers they use the words God Almighty in a very common and
irreverent manner. Those who do this have no sense of the exalted
character of God, of Christ, or of heavenly things.
I was shown that when God sent His angels anciently to minister
or communicate to individuals, and these persons learned that they had
seen and talked with an angel, they were struck with awe and were
afraid that they should die. They had so exalted views of the terrible
majesty and power of God that they thought it would destroy them
to be brought into close connection with one direct from His holy
presence. I was referred to
Judges 13:21, 22
: “Then Manoah knew
that he was an angel of the Lord. And Manoah said unto his wife, We
shall surely die, because we have seen God.”
Judges 6:22, 23
: “And
when Gideon perceived that he was an angel of the Lord, Gideon said,
Alas, O Lord God! for because I have seen an angel of the Lord face
to face. And the Lord said unto him, Peace be unto thee; fear not: thou
shalt not die.”
Joshua 5:13-15
: “And it came to pass, when Joshua was
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by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and, behold, there
stood a man over against him with his sword drawn in his hand: and
Joshua went unto him, and said unto him, Art thou for us, or for our
adversaries? And he said, Nay; but as captain of the host of the Lord
am I now come. And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and did
worship, and said unto him, What saith my Lord unto his servant? And
the captain of the Lord’s host said unto Joshua, Loose thy shoe from
off thy foot; for the place whereon thou standest is holy. And Joshua
did so.” If angels were thus feared and honored because they came
from the presence of God, with how much greater reverence should
God Himself be regarded.
Many who were converted through the influence of the 1854 move-
ment need to be converted anew. And now tenfold more labor is re-
quired to correct the wrong, distracting views which they have received
from their teachers, and to lead them to receive the truth unmixed with
error, than would have been necessary to bring them out in the first
place upon the third angel’s message. This class must unlearn before
they can learn aright, else the poisonous weeds of error would grow