“To the Law and to the Testimony”

There is a text in the Bible which is very familiar to all, and if you were to read the words in Isaiah 8:20 I am sure you would remember that the true prophet must speak and write messages which are in harmony with the law and the prophets, otherwise, there is no light in them. This is the third test of the true prophet.DGRGC 59.1

I am convinced that Ellen G. White in all of her works meets this requirement. We do not need to depend upon just a few little snatches of messages or records of visions, or revelations, but we have an abundance of material on which to base our judgment as to whether or not her teaching is in harmony with the teachings of other prophets who had gone before.DGRGC 59.2

Twenty-five million words are a lot of words. Seventy years of service is a long period of service. If there were mistakes, if she were false, certainly it would become very apparent in a period of seventy years, for how easy it is for us to say something when we are twenty and something quite different from that when we are sixty! We have all had that experience. But not so in the messages of Ellen G. White. There is a harmony that runs all the way through from the very first vision, when she was seventeen years of age, through the whole seventy years of her work. There is a continuity, a unity, and an agreement that is most marvellous and almost miraculous!DGRGC 59.3

Not long ago I took upon myself the task of checking the writings of the Spirit of prophecy with the teachings of the Bible. I chose twenty different topics. For instance, a “Christian”—and put in one column all that the Bible said about a Christian, and then just at random went through the forty-three volumes and some of the periodicals, and remember there are four thousand articles available, and put in a parallel column that which Mrs. White has given regarding a Christian. It was one of the most interesting studies I have ever made. And certainly, folk, the harmony is marvellous. It is almost unbelievable that there could be that harmony in her teachings running all the way through her writings from the very first until the very end of her seventy years of experience.DGRGC 59.4

If you want an interesting study, do that some time. I advise you to take about a week, for a day will not be sufficient. You will become so engrossed in your study that at the end of the day you will not even want to go to bed; for when you begin a study of that kind, checking the writings, the messages, of Ellen G. White, with the teachings of the Scripture, you will find it not only wonderful, but it is almost intriguing.DGRGC 60.1

Now, looking at the teachings of the Scripture, let us notice several of the outstanding points mentioned in the Bible which must be found in the teachings of the true prophet: Deuteronomy 13, verses 1-4—The true prophet will exalt the true God. May I ask you, does Mrs. White in her writings exalt the true God? Everywhere. On every page. There is no lack of material on this point.DGRGC 60.2

2 Chronicles 24:19, 20 and Deuteronomy 13:4—The true prophet will teach obedience to God’s law. Tell me, do you find the writings of Ellen G. White teaching the necessity of obedience to God’s law? Let me give you two very interesting references for you to study: Steps to Christ, 62, in the Army and Navy edition. And when you have read the paragraph on page 62, then turn to Desire of Ages, and read two paragraphs on page 762. Putting those two paragraphs together you have the best summarization of Ellen G. White’s teaching regarding the law of God. I hope you will all do that because it will simply open up a great avenue of study which I am sure you will want to follow through.DGRGC 60.3

1 John 4:2, 3—The true prophet will believe in and teach that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. Do you find that teaching in the writings of Ellen G. White? Does she make it clear that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh? Read Desire of Ages, Steps to Christ, Ministry of Healing, Christ’s Object Lessons, Mount of Blessing, and you will find in no other book in the world such instruction, and such counsel as given by Ellen G. White relative to Jesus, our Lord and our Saviour. I think we will have to agree that if she did nothing else, she most certainly set forth the Lord Jesus as man’s only Saviour.DGRGC 60.4

The fourth point is in 2 Peter 1:21—The true prophet will speak as he is inspired by the Holy Ghost. This is what gives to us that sense of inspiration as we read such books as Desire of Ages and Steps to Christ. It is said that some years ago, in an English class in a great American university, the old English professor asked the students to bring in examples of outstanding literature. And one of them brought in examples from the book Desire of Ages, and read to the class some of those beautiful passages from that book. The professor asked for the privilege of reading the book. He did so, and when he came back to the class the next time, he said, “This book is certainly inspired. I do not know where it came from. I know nothing about the author, but the words and the thoughts are so elevating, so ennobling, that it inspires one to read it!” Yes, that has been the experience of many. And I am sure that you and I can bear testimony as to our own reactions to the reading of such a book as Desire of Ages.DGRGC 61.1