The Lesser, Lesser Light

In Message 21, we described the Bible as the lesser light (the moon) in reference to Revelation 12:1.  But Sister White refers to her writings as a lesser light to the Bible.  (She also calls John the Baptist a lesser light to draw men to the greater light, Jesus.) 

3 SM 30 – Little heed is given to the Bible, and the Lord has given a lesser light to lead men and women to the greater light 

The Plan of Salvation is dependent on God communicating with those He is saving.  His divinely appointed means are the Bible, nature, the providences of life, conviction by the Holy Spirit, and inspired prophets.  Indeed, before major judgments in the Bible, a prophet is provided to warn those affected.  In the judgment of Adam and Eve in the garden, God, Himself, was the prophet.  Before the flood, Noah, a preacher of righteousness, was the prophet.  Before the Assyrians eradicated the ten northern tribes, numerous prophets gave the warning.  Before the Babylonian captivity, Isaiah and Jeremiah and others gave the warning. 

God provides many prophets for the edification of the church. 

Eph 4:11-13 – And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ 

Amos 3:7 – Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets. 

Luke 1:70 – As he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets, which have been since the world began. 

There is no evidence in Scripture that God ever intended to withdraw the prophetic gift or any of the other gifts this side of the Second Coming.  On the contrary, the Old Testament prophecy of Joel 2, which is repeated by Peter in Acts, foretells an end-time outpouring of the Holy Spirit. 

Joel 2:28-32 – And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit. And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and terrible day of the Lord come. And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the Lord hath said, and in the remnant whom the Lord shall call. 

Jesus said that after the tribulation, false prophets would arise.  The fact Jesus foretold the appearance of "false prophets" in the end-time suggests true prophets would also be present.  We know from Rev 12 that a great persecution will arise after the 1,260 days, some time after 1798.  The Remnant at that time will have the “testimony of Jesus,” which the Bible and our church teach is the Spirit of Prophecy.  Seventh-day Adventists believe that Ellen G. White manifested that predicted gift of prophecy.  It coincides with the heavenly judgment that began in 1844.  Her messages: 

1. helped us to unify on correct Bible doctrines – She did not dictate those doctrines, but among the options developed by our pioneer Bible scholars, she guided the proper selection. 

2. pointed out evils that needed to be corrected 

3. gave instruction for the church about organization, health, publishing, education, and many other topics 

4. pointed us to our soon coming Savior 

5. pointed us to the Bible as the greater light. 
   

There are too many SDAs who do not believe she had the Spirit of Prophecy.       In my limited experience, most nonbelievers of the inspiration of Sr. White have read very little of it.  If the doubters would read with an expectation of being blessed, they could arrive at a different opinion.  Some find the inspirational writings of benefit but reject the counsel because it leads to self-denial.  They are unhappy with the calls for major changes in lifestyle.  However, true Christianity IS a major change from the lifestyle of the world!  Bible history tells us that most of those professing to be God’s people do not listen to His prophets. 

From Genesis to Revelation, we find that God warns people before judgment.  In addition to the Bible, we last-days people have the privilege of special warnings on how to be ready for the imminent test.  The Spirit of Prophecy has been a great blessing for me for decades regarding better health, better finances, better spirituality, better thinking, better child raising, better understanding of the world, better understanding of the Bible.  I pray you have received and will receive this blessing too and can be used by God to proclaim today’s Present Truth. 

You can read everything Sr. White wrote at https://egwwritings.org/.  It also has good search tools.