Heaven Accepts the Confession

At the close of the conference, Ellen White was given a revelation: “November 20th, while in prayer, the Spirit of the Lord suddenly and powerfully came upon me, and I was taken off in vision. I saw that the Spirit of the Lord has been dying away from the church.”—Testimony for the Church 1:1 (sixteen-page pamphlet); Battle Creek, Michigan, 1855. (See Testimonies for the Church 1:113.)EGWMR 53.5

It is of special interest to observe in this connection that the matter revealed in this important vision was published by action of the Battle Creek church, and constituted the first of the “Testimony” series, as is evidenced by the following note signed by S. T. Belden “The above vision was read before thirty-six members of the Battle Creek church, on the evening of November 24th, who gave their unanimous vote for its publication.”—Testimony for the Church 1:8.EGWMR 53.6

Then, a few weeks later, a reassuring message from Ellen White appeared in the Review. We quote here, as the climax of this stirring account, her own words describing how God looked upon the whole experience:EGWMR 53.7

“At our late conference at Battle Creek, in November, God wrought for us. The minds of the servants of God were exercised as to the gifts of the church, and if God’s frown had been brought upon His people because the gifts had been slighted and neglected, there was a pleasing prospect that His smiles would again be upon us, and He would graciously and mercifully revive the gifts again, and they would live in the church, to encourage the desponding and fainting soul, and to correct and reprove the erring.”—The Review and Herald, January 10, 1856, p. 118, col. 1.EGWMR 53.8

We may well regard this experience as marking the close of the critical, formative period in the work of the Sabbathkeeping Adventists, and as a turning point in their history. With the Spirit of prophecy now given its rightful place, added blessing attended the labors of the ministers, the publishing enterprise prospered, and the work moved onward.EGWMR 53.9

As we look back today, and see how well the foundations of doctrine and practice were established by the pioneers of the message, and witness the work through the years built upon this firm foundation, we can but exclaim, “What hath God wrought!”EGWMR 53.10

Picture: Ellen G. White
Battle Creek, Michigan, 1864EGWMR 54