end-time remnant and the 144,000: a comparative study presented by edward eddie moyo to the...

7/30/2019 END-TIME REMNANT AND THE 144,000: A COMPARATIVE STUDY PRESENTED BY EDWARD EDDIE MOYO TO THE AIIAS ANNUAL FORUM 11/14/2012

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PRESENTED BY EDWARDEDDIE MOYO TO THE

AIIAS ANNUAL FORUM

11/14/2012

END-TIME REMNANTAND THE 144,000:

A COMPARATIVE STUDY


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Introduction

With reference to The Remnant and ItsMission, the Seventh-day Adventist ChurchManual plainly states the following:

The universal church is composed of all who

truly believe in Christ, but in the last days, atime of widespread apostasy, a remnant has

been called out to keep the commandments ofGod and the faith of Jesus. This remnant

announces the arrival of the judgment hour,proclaims salvation through Christ, andheralds the approach of His second advent-SDAChurch Manual, 160.


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The above statement of belief assumes thatthe Seventh-day Adventist church

constitute the end-time Remnant of thebook of Revelation. While emphasis hasmost often than not been always put on themission of the remnant, this paper seeks to

redress the qualities or character traits ofthe remnant. This end-time remnant isdescribed as keeping the commandments ofGod and the faith of Jesus when the rest ofthe world has fallen into apostasy. Thus, we

can assume that the mission of a peopleshould somehow be in direct relation towho they are as one can only give out whathe or she already has.


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Thus, if the Seventh-day Adventist Churchis the end-time Remnant and if their

understanding of the 144,000 is that theseare those people found alive and ready atJesus coming, is it possible to look at thequalities or characteristics that the

Adventist church is called to have byexamining the characteristics of the144,000? Thus, the question which thisstudy seeks to find the answer to in relation

to this issue is whether there is anyrelationship between what the Adventistchurch as the end-time remnant should beand what the 144,000 are.


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This study is significant in two ways. First,it challenges Seventh day Adventist

members to attempt to live godly lives now.

Secondly, as they seek to live Christ-likelives, Seventh-day Adventist members willbe better equipped to carry out the missionof the church with power.


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Though the concept of the remnant and the144,000 has a broader view, this study

limits itself only to Bible texts and thewritings of Ellen G. White. While the choiceof Bible texts is obvious for the study, thechoice of the writings of Ellen G. White is

based on the premise that the Seventh-dayAdventist church recognizes her writings asauthoritative. - Ibid., 162.


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The End-Time Remnant

In Revelation, the concept of the Remnantcomes out clearly to view in chapter 12: 17which says, And the dragon was enragedwith the woman, and went off to make war

with the rest of her offspring, who keep thecommandments of God and hold to thetestimony of Jesus. (Rev 12:17). While manytimes we look at this remnant in terms of its

mission, this text seems to emphasize moreon what the remnant are rather than whatthey offer.


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The two verbs mentioned; keep (tereo) andhold (echo) surely seem to point to whatthey are more than to what they offer to thepeople. In the context of the law andcommandments, the Septuagint often usesthe verbphulasso. This verb simply means

to guard, protect, or preserve and whenused in reference to the commandments itspecifically means to persist to keep a lawfrom being broken. - Frederick William

Danker & Walter Bauer.


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Character Traits of the End-TimeRemnant

Old Testament Viewpoint

The term end-time remnant is suchdesignated because it refers to the lastrepresentatives of Christ on earth. As such,they are to represent Him correctly to theworld so as to influence others to be ready for

His coming.


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Unlike the texts dealing with the remnantconcept in general, end-time texts(Isa 4:2;

11:1; Jer 23:5; 33:15; etc) appear to have astress on certain character traits of theremnant. Thus the remnant were to becalled holy and recorded for life. They

were to be a clean people, those whosefilthy had been washed away.

In Isaiah, the spiritual character traits ofthe end-time remnant include faith, trust

and willing obedience to God and theMessiah (Isa 1:18, 19; 7:9; 53).


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New Testament Viewpoint

In a way, Revelation 12:17 is closely relatedto another text almost verbatim. It reads,Here is the perseverance of the saints whokeep the commandments of God and their

faith in Jesus (Rev14:12). The remnanthere keep Gods commandments and alsohold to the testimony of Jesus. Thus, theyare known for what they have;commandment keeping and having the

testimony of Jesus, or rather, the spirit ofprophecy (Rev 19:10), which is a uniquemark of the end-time remnant. -Stefanovic,

Revelation of Jesus Christ, 394.


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Ellen Whites Perspective

Referring to the mission of the end-timeremnant, she declares that the remnantpeople should fill the presence of God and beconverted. CCh, 233

It is God's purpose to manifest through Hispeople the principles of His kingdom. That inlife and character they may reveal these

principlesBy beholding the goodness, the


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mercy, the justice, and the love of Godrevealed in His church, the world is to havea representation of His character. Andwhen the law of God is thus exemplified inthe life, even the world will recognize thesuperiority of those who love and fear andserve God above every other people in the

world. CT. 321. From the quote it is clear that the remnant

are to be a living testimony of what it meansto live for God. While they are called to give

a distinct message of the graces and love ofGod, those traits are also to be seen in theirlives, hence giving them power to proclaimwith boldness that which they themselves

have experienced.


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T. H. Jemison makes a similar remarkwhen he observes that the godly life and

active witnessing in a Christian are the twoessentials for presenting Christ and thatone cannot survive without the other- T. H.Jemison, 348.

As White later observed, The world needsto see in Christians an evidence of thepower of Christianity. 8T, 16

And then she continued to say that Christscharacter is to shine in His followers as theyapproach the city of God.- Ibid.


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The 144,000

Crucial to the identity of the 144,000 is anothersubject that is also only found in the book ofRevelation, which is the great multitude (Rev 7:7-10, 13-17). A lot of speculations and theories have

been made about the relation of the 144,000 tothe great multitude. Nevertheless, it is importantto note that the book of Revelation has a play on

words between what the prophet hears and whathe sees. For example John heard a great voice

behind him like a trumpet (Rev 1:10), but whenhe looked to see the trumpet, he saw one like theSon of man in the midst of the seven goldenlampstands (1:12).


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Again he is told to behold the Lion of thetribe of Judah (Rev 5:5), but when he

looked, he saw a Lamb as it had been slain(Rev 5:5, 6). In chapter 17, John heard ofthe great harlot who sits on many waters(Rev17:1); but when he looked, he saw a

woman sitting on a scarlet beast, full ofblasphemous names (Rev17:3). Finally, inthe last vision John head that he would beshown the bride, the wife of the Lamb

(Rev 21:9), but when he looked, he insteadsaw the holy city, Jerusalem, coming downout of heaven from God (Rev21:10).


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Similarly, John heard the number of thosewho were sealed, 144,000 from the twelvetribes of Israel (Rev 7:4-8), but when helooked, he saw a great multitude which noone could count, this time not only fromthe twelve tribes of Israel, but from everynation,tribe, peoples and tongue (Rev 7:9).Thus, the 144,000 is clearly a symbolicnumber of the great multitude that no onecan count. _Beatrice S. Neall, Sealed

Saints and the Tribulation,Symposium onRevelation, Book 1, 245.


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Neall also notes that the sealed 144,000symbolize the great multitude from everynation, kindred and tongue that will remainloyal to God in the closing conflict of thegreat controversy between God and Satan.


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God's ideal for His children is higher thanthe highest human thought can reach. The

living God has given in His holy law atranscript of His character. The greatestTeacher the world has ever known is JesusChrist; and what is the standard He has

given for all who believe in Him. As God isperfect in His high sphere of action, so manmay be perfect in his human sphere. Theideal of Christian character is Christ-

likeness. CT, 365.


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Character Traits of the 144,000Biblical and Ellen G. White Perspectives

While the sealing does not endow themwith any special powers in terms ofcharacter, it maintains what they alreadyare in view of the conflict ahead of them.

Thus, in sealing them God not only protectsand sustains them, but He alsoacknowledges them as His treasuredpossession. With this, it can be concluded

that having been sealed, their main virtuewill then remain to be the undying,unyielding faith that is immersed in thePerson and promises of Christ. CT, 365.


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Fathers Name on Forehead

Clothed in White Robes

Not Defiled by Women, but are Virgins

They Follow the Lamb

the term Follow is the same word used in theGospels for discipleship (e.g. Matt 16:24; Mark8:34; Luke 9:23; John 12:26). In John Jesus

gave another aspect of what it means to followwhen He said If anyone serves Me, let himfollow Me; and where I am, there shall Myservant also be; if anyone serves Me, the Father

will honor him (Joh 12:26). Thus, the 144,000

will be led into serving the Lord day and nightin His temple (Rev 7:14-15), because while they

were on this earth they did the same.


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Faithfulness

Writing on an experience of a vision that

she had, White saw herself taken to one ofthe un-fallen worlds. Charmed with theperfect beauty she saw all around shedecided she would remain there and not

come back to earth if she and the 144,000would remain faithful they would one dayhave a privilege to visit all the worlds andsee Gods handiwork.- Mar, 368.


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She cites disobedience or non bearing of thefruits of righteousness as the reason why

many will not receive the seal of God andthus disqualify themselves from beingamong the 144,000. -SDABC, 7: 970.

No Deceit in their Mouth

The remnant of Israel will do no wrongand tell no lies, nor will a deceitful tonguebe found in their mouths; for they shall feedand lie down with no one to make them

tremble (Zep 3:13).


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White wrote, But all who follow the Lambin heaven will first have followed Him onearth, in trustful, loving, willing obedience,

followed Him not fretfully and capriciously,but confidently, truthfully, as the flockfollows the shepherd.- 3SM, 424

Blameless before God

It is vital again to underscore the point thatbeing guileless does not imply beingwithout sin, but rather not having anythingto hide. The fact that they stand with the

Lamb is a sign that all sin has beenconfessed and dealt with in the presence ofGod, thus guile is absent. H. A. Ironside,

Lectures on the Book of Revelation, 256.


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Similarly, most of Ellen Whites commentson the 144,000 in particular and all that will

inherit the kingdom are based on Godshigh standard of holiness and being foundblameless before God.

One defect, cultivated instead of being

overcome, makes the man imperfect, andcloses against him the gate of the Holy City.He who enters heaven must have acharacter that is without spot or wrinkle or

any such thing. Naught that defileth canever enter there. In all the redeemed hostnot one defect will be seen. -MYP, 144.


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Now is the time to prepare. The seal of Godwill never be placed upon the forehead of

an impure man or woman. It will never beplaced upon the forehead of the ambitious,world-loving man or woman. It will neverbe placed upon the forehead of men or

women of false tongues or deceitful hearts.All who receive the seal must be withoutspot before God--candidates for heaven. -5T, 216.

Students of the Word


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While living a life that is in conformity toGods will is the ideal for all Gods children,

this is only possible by recognizing ourinadequacies and running to Jesus for help.Following what has just been discussed, onecannot help but to conclude that in the final

analysis, the 144,000 are indeed a remnantseeing they possess all the characteristics ofthe remnant described in Revelation 12-14. -Lehmann, 93.


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It is from the end-time remnant that live upto the time of the opening of the sixth seal

(Rev 6:12-17) that we have those who get aspecial sealing, hence comprising the144,000 (Rev 7:1-4). Thus, we can concludethat the end-time remnant upon being

sealed become the 144,000. Hence thequestion; Is there anything that happens tothe character at the time of sealing?


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No Change in Plan of Salvation

Whatever the seal does to those that receiveit, it does not implant a new character tothem. Herbert E. Douglas put it well when henoted that Character cannot be transferred.Not from husband to wife. Not from parent tochild. Not from God even to His followers. Inthe time of crisis, character is revealed, notcreated. Douglass, The End: Unique Voice of

Adventists About the Return of Jesus, 154.


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Need for Preparation


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Need for Preparation

But character is not inherited. It cannot bebought. The formation of a noble characteris the work of a lifetime and must be theresult of diligent and persevering effort. Godgives opportunities; success depends uponthe use made of them. PP, 223.


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Implications

Since the scriptures do not give the exacttime of Jesus coming; it is important tokeep an attitude of readiness. The

implication to this is that no one can predictexactly who will be among the 144,000 fromamong the living today. However,understanding that the spiritual

qualifications of the end-time remnant aswe now do; are the same as those of the144,000 helps us live in anticipation of thesealing.


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d l i


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Summary and ConclusionSummary

Very close relations do exist between the end-time remnant and the 144,000 to the point ofbeing used interchangeably. Nevertheless,while the end-time remnant can be seen as

referring to the Seventh-day church from itsinception following the aftermaths of theGreat Disappointment of 1844, the 144,000can only be defined in terms of those in the

remnant and those later called out of Babylonwho live in the time of the opening of thesixth sealed and are thus sealed by the seal ofGod.


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Therefore, it is important for Adventists todesire to have a Christ-like character now,not only in view of the sealing, but as it isthe only standard for salvation for all ages.By Gods grace, this can be achieved thoughit may take a life time.

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