I want you to know that I do not choose what advertisements will appear on my blog. That is one of the necessary evils of blogging on a free site. (Perhaps I should encourage the proprietor to make an ad free subscription available.) If you read my posts in my blogs you will find that I do not agree with many of the advertisers. You will also find Biblical reasons why I do not agree with them.

Tonight I clicked on an advertisement that caught my eye. The third bullet point on this web site was “Ellen White Contradicts Jesus.” Now, one test of a true prophet that is preached in every Seventh-day Adventist evangelistic series is Isaiah 8:20. “To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.” In other words, if the prophet contradicts the Bible (Jesus), then that prophet is a false prophet. So if Ellen White were to contradict Jesus, I should point it out and openly confess her to be a false prophet.

A lot of people have tried to show that Ellen White contradicts the Bible because they do not like some of the things she wrote. Often times the proofs are very shallow and easy to disprove. Many times the proofs they offer to show that Ellen White is not a true prophet would also “prove” certain Biblical prophets to be false prophets. (More on that some other time.) This particular article that attempts to “prove” that “Ellen White contradicts Jesus” is simply a misapplication of what she wrote. It can easily be sorted out with a little common sense.

Here are the sayings of Ellen White and Jesus which are supposed to be contradictory. First I will give the statements by Ellen White and Jesus as presented by this anti-SDA web site. Then I will present the statement by Jesus in its context. (You should always study things in their context.) Finally, I will present another statement by Ellen White that the web site neglected to present.

Ellen White: "The pope has changed the day of rest from the seventh to the first day. He has thought to change the very commandment that was given to cause man to remember his Creator. He has thought to change the greatest commandment in the decalogue…." (Early Writings, p. 65)

Jesus: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment." (Matthew 22:37-38 [Translation/version not noted].)

Jesus in context: “Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying, Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” (Matthew 22:35-40.)

Ellen White on the greatest commandment (based on Mark 12:28-34):

“The lawyer approached Jesus with a direct question, ‘Which is the first commandment of all?’ The answer of Christ is direct and forcible: ‘The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord: and thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.’ The second is like the first, said Christ; for it flows out of it, ‘Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.’ ‘On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.’

“The first four of the Ten Commandments are summed up in the one great precept, ‘Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart.’ The last six are included in the other, ‘Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.’ Both these commandments are an expression of the principle of love. The first cannot be kept and the second broken, nor can the second be kept while the first is broken. When God has His rightful place on the throne of the heart, the right place will be given to our neighbor. We shall love him as ourselves. And only as we love God supremely is it possible to love our neighbor impartially.

“And since all the commandments are summed up in love to God and man, it follows that not one precept can be broken without violating this principle. Thus Christ taught His hearers that the law of God is not so many separate precepts, some of which are of great importance, while others are of small importance and may with impunity be ignored. Our Lord presents the first four and the last six commandments as a divine whole, and teaches that love to God will be shown by obedience to all His commandments.” (The Desire of Ages chapter 66, p. 607.)

Now the common sense part: The statement in Early Writings is about the “decalogue,” the Ten Commandments. Jesus’ statement transcends the Ten Commandments and is about the Law, or Torah (the first five books of the Bible), in general. The commandment quoted by Jesus is not one of the Ten Commandments. It is found in Deuteronomy 6:4-5. In Early Writings Ellen White was talking about the Ten Commandments. Jesus was talking with the lawyer about the Law of Moses as a whole. Ellen White’s statements in The Desire of Ages make is clear that she believed that the Sabbath commandment hung on an even greater law—love to God. The command to love God is not explicit stated in the Ten Commandments, but is the great principle of which the first four commandments are an expression. So the Sabbath commandment is the greatest of the Ten Commandments, but the Ten Commands hang on even greater laws—love God and love your neighbor. There is no contradiction.

The real problem here may well be that the author(s) do not want to keep the Sabbath day holy. They do not like it that Ellen White’s writings condemn them for not keeping the Sabbath. They have convinced themselves that Christians are not commanded to keep Sabbath. They state that the Sabbath was never given to anyone but the Jews, but they have forgotten that God promised that eunuchs and Gentiles who kept His Sabbath would be included in His covenant. (Isaiah 56:2-8.) They say that Jesus never commanded the church to keep the Sabbath, but they forget that Jesus was worried about the church being able to keep the Sabbath when they were fleeing from the destruction of the temple. (Matthew 24:16-20.) The Bible also says we will observe Sabbath in the new earth. (Isaiah 66:22-23.) They say that “[T]he Law of Moses was nailed to the Cross (Colossians 2:14).” Yet, if you will search the New Testament you will find each of the Ten Commandments is mentioned as being binding after the cross. (I. “there is none other God but one.” (1 Corinthians 8:4b.) II. “… idolators … shall [not] inherit the kingdom of God.” (1 Corinthians 6:9-10.) III. “But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother [takes on the name of Christ] be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolator, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat.” (1 Corinthians 5:11.) IV. “But pray ye that your flight be not … on the sabbath day.” (Matthew 24:20.) V. “Honour thy father and mother; which is the first commandment with promise.” (Ephesians 6:2) VI - X. “For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.” (Romans 13:9.)) They correctly state that when Jesus died on the cross, He instituted a New Covenant (Jeremiah 31:31-34; Hebrews 9:15), but they neglect to mention that the New Covenant involves God putting “…my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts….” (Hebrews 8:10. See also Jeremiah 31:33.) They say Jesus emphasized and expanded on the other nine commandments, but they forget that Jesus spent a lot of time teaching by word and example what is appropriate on Sabbath. (Matthew 12; 24:20; Mark 1; 2; 3; 6; Luke 4; 6; 13; 14; John 5; 7; 9.)

The Bible says the seventh-day Sabbath is blessed and holy. (Genesis 2:3; Exodus 20:11.) It says that people who keep the Sabbath are blessed. (Isaiah 56:2.) God calls the Sabbath “my holy day.” (Isaiah 58:13.) I cannot find anyplace where the Bible says this about any other day. I consider the Sabbath to be the best day of the week. The rest of my family, including my children, also considers it the best day of the week.

It’s too bad these people are so intent on missing the Sabbath blessing and making sure others miss the blessing as well. “Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 5:19.) “But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.” (Matthew 15:9.) “Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.” (Revelation 14:12.)

Ellen White is in agreement with “The Law and The Testimony” on this subject. Unfortunately, the authors of the advertised web site are not. I hope they change their mind before it is too late.

I said this blog is in part about my personal experiences living near Ellen White historic sites. I used to live in Battle Creek, Michigan just a few miles from where James and Ellen White lived.

In 1852 Joseph Bates had a dream that he believed meant God wanted him to go to Battle Creek. Upon arriving in Battle Creek the next morning, he was directed by the postmaster to the house of David Hewitt, who was reputed to be “the most honest man in town.” Bates studied the Bible with the Hewitts all day. By the end of the day, the Hewitts were convinced of the truth of the core beliefs of what was to become the Seventh-day Adventist Church. The Hewitts then went to work teaching others.

In 1855 a small group of Sabbatarian Adventists in Battle Creak invited James White to move publication his magazine, “The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald,” to Battle Creek. The Whites purchased a plot on the west side of town and built a small house. James also planted an orchard. The house had a living room and a kitchen downstairs, and 2 rooms upstairs. Later they built two additions to the downstairs—one room on the south side of the house, and another room on the north side. The house with its orchard still exists. Nowadays you can tour the Whites’ house in Battle Creek as part of the Adventist Historic Village.

Battle Creek became the site of several general conferences of Sabbatarian Adventists. It is said that during these conferences, the Whites would entertain as many as 25 guests at their little house. Ellen White continued this tradition of hospitality throughout her life.

While the Whites lived in Battle Creek, they help spearhead the organization of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, the first Seventh-day Adventist School, and the first Seventh-day Adventist hospital—all in Battle Creek.

The Whites were thrifty people and managed to save substantial amounts of money through their thrift and hard work. They generously gave to further God’s work and hasten the spread of the gospel. Among other things, they sponsored students through medical school. (Medical school took only six months back then.) One of the students they sponsored was John Harvey Kellogg.

Later, James White recommended Dr. Kellogg be appointed director of the Western Health Reform Institute. Using his God-given leadership abilities, Dr. Kellogg changed the name to the Battle Creek Sanitarium and developed it into the a world class health care institution that treated presidents and kings as well as the poor. By checking treatments against the teachings of the Bible and Ellen White, Dr. Kellogg was able to ascertain whether a treatment would work years before other doctors. He was also able to use the principles gained from these writings to invent new, effective treatments.

Later Dr. Kellogg was unwilling to follow all of Ellen White’s counsels about the management of the Sanitarium. As a result, God burned the sanitarium down. (All the patients and staff were safely evacuated, but one man lost his life when he went back into the blazing building.) Undeterred, Dr. Kellog determined to build the sanitarium bigger. He built a grandiose building, but then ran into financial problems. He was forced to sell the grandiose building and move into a much more modest facility. Nowadays the building Dr. Kellogg built is the Battle Creek Federal Center. Eventually, the sanitarium merged with other hospitals in Battle Creek to form the Battle Creek Health System. The last hospital building to be operated by Seventh-day Adventists is now the Battle Creek Health System psychiatric hospital and is not associated with the Seventh-day Adventist church.

Ellen White also spearheaded the start of many other Seventh-day Adventist hospitals which are still in existence today. I’ll talk more about that in a future post.

One of the tests of a prophet is that “Ye shall know them by their fruits.” (Matthew 7:16, first part.) Ellen White brought forth many good fruits in Battle Creek. “Use hospitality one to another without grudging.” (1 Peter 4:9.) “Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.” (Luke 6:38.) “Seest thou a man diligent in his business? he shall stand before kings; he shall not stand before mean men.” (Proverbs 22:29.)

"Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world." (1 John 1:1-3)

Here John is combating a heresy that suggests that Jesus was not actually a human being. There are some who cannot accept that God could become a man. John says that those people are not being led by the Spirit of God, but by the spirit of anti-Christ. John states clearly in his gospel that Jesus is God in human flesh. (John 1:1-3, 14) Here he says that anybody who teaches anything different is not from God.

I have found Ellen G. White to be in agreement with the Bible. The most widely read book on the life of Christ, other than the Bible itself, is her book The Desire of Ages. One of the major points in the first chapter, entitled "God With Us," is that Jesus is both God and human. Specifically, she says the Jesus had a human body. She also says He was incarnate, which means "in flesh."

"Nearly two thousand years ago, a voice of mysterious import was heard in heaven, from the throne of God, 'Lo, I come.' 'Sacrifice and offering Thou wouldest not, but a body hast Thou prepared Me. . . . Lo, I come (in the volume of the Book it is written of Me,) to do Thy will, O God.' Heb. 10:5-7. In these words is announced the fulfillment of the purpose that had been hidden from eternal ages. Christ was about to visit our world, and to become incarnate. He says, 'A body hast Thou prepared Me.' Had He appeared with the glory that was His with the Father before the world was, we could not have endured the light of His presence. That we might behold it and not be destroyed, the manifestation of His glory was shrouded. His divinity was veiled with humanity,--the invisible glory in the visible human form." (Page 23.)

She also explains why it was necessary for Jesus to be both God and man: "By His humanity, Christ touched humanity; by His divinity, He lays hold upon the throne of God. As the Son of man, He gave us an example of obedience; as the Son of God, He gives us power to obey." (Page 24.)

The doctrine that Christ is both God and human is one of the most beautiful doctrines in the Bible. Anybody who denies it is missing the vital connection that Jesus has established between God and humanity. Those who embrace it are given hope that they can come into the presence of God and find salvation.

One last word of caution: This text is not the only test given in the Bible for distinguishing between true and false prophets. Just because a person preaches that Jesus has come in the flesh does not mean that person is a prophet of God. But if he denies that Jesus has come in the flesh, then we immediately know that he is led by the spirit of anti-Christ.

Some people say that the Apostle John declare in Revelation that there would be no more prophecy. This is based on Revelation 22:18--"For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book." This, they say, says that there will be no more prophecy.

If this interpretation is actually true, then we would need to throw out most of the Bible. Moses said, "Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you." (Deuteronomy 4:2.) Therefore, we would have to conclude that Moses closed the canon of the Bible with the book of Deuteronomy. But Moses himself rejects this interpretation when he prophesies of a Prophet to come. (Deuteronomy 18:15.)

In fact, the book of Revelation itself shows that John was not the last prophet. The angel who talked with John claimed, "I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets...." Thus there were other prophets at the time when John wrote Revelation. They just did not have their writings included in the Bible.

Paul told the Ephesians there would be "...prophets...till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ." (Ephesians 4:11-13.) This has not happened yet, so there is still a work for prophets.

People still have dreams and visions from God. Others claim to have dreams and visions from God, but it really is from a different source. In his first epistle, John said, "Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world." (1 John 4:1.) Next time we will look at what the Bible says about how to tell the difference.