Chapter 4—The Gift of Prophecy and God’s Remnant Church

Seventh-day Adventists believe it is their appointed role as the remnant church of prophecy to restore revealed truths that in the course of history were either lost or abandoned. For instance, in worshiping God as Creator- Redeemer they seek to restore the seventh-day Sabbath as the memorial of Creation.GP 39.1

In Scripture, the remnant theme runs from Genesis to Revelation. The earliest reference to a remnant appears in the story of the Flood. Noah and his family were the remnant in the ark (see Genesis 7:23), while the ungodly outside perished. In the time of King Ahab, Elijah thought he was the only true believer left in Israel, but God assured him that there was a remnant of seven thousand who had not bowed their knees to Baal (see 1 Kings 19:18). Amos wrote that Israel would come to an end as a nation but that the Lord might have mercy and leave a remnant (see Amos 5:15). The gospel prophet Isaiah named his son Shear-Jashub, “a remnant shall return” (Isaiah 7:3), predicting the return of a remnant to God (see 10:20-22). And Jeremiah prophesied that the Lord will gather His remnant from the ends of the world, write His law in their hearts, and make a covenant with them (Jeremiah 31:7, 31-34).GP 39.2

In the New Testament, the apostle Paul refers to a remnant in Romans 11:5. The faithful remnant in Paul’s day consisted of those among the Jewish people who accepted Jesus as the Messiah and who became the nucleus of the Christian church. In the book of Revelation, a remnant appears in the churches of Thyatira (2:24) and Sardis (3:4) and in chapter 12.GP 39.3

God’s faithful remnant was not always a visible remnant. In the days of Elijah, only God knew the faithful in Israel. Similarly, throughout Christian history there has always existed an invisible faithful remnant consisting of people of different religious persuasions. Today also there are faithful members in all Christian churches, including the Roman Catholic Church. They have accepted Christ as their personal Savior, and they are counted as His people. Therefore, in the time of the end, the call is made, ” ‘Come out of her [Babylon], my people’ ” (Revelation 18:4). Many of God’s people are still in Babylon, but they belong to God’s invisible church and at the time of the loud cry of Revelation 18:4, they will come out and join the visible remnant church of God described in Revelation 12:17.GP 40.1