The Sanctuary As Related To Other Doctrines

In the two preceding numbers, we have shown what the sanctuary is, and what constitutes its cleansing. It has also been clearly proved that - the 2300 days of Dan. 8:14, have ended, and the cleansing of the sanctuary is now going forward.

The presentation of this subject will be now concluded by showing the central place which the sanctuary occupies in relation to other scriptures and other truths which evidently belong to this time.

A WORK OF JUDGMENT.

A moment's thought will convince any one that a portion of the great work of the Judgment of the world must transpire before Christ returns to this earth; for when he comes in the clouds of heaven the trumpet sounds, and in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, the righteous living are changed to immortality. Cor. 15:51, 52. At the same moment the righteous dead are raised from their graves, and raised to glory and immortality. 1 Cor. 42-44; 1 Thess. 4:14-17. It, is a well recognized doctrine of the Scriptures that every man, before he is rewarded or punished, must be judged. The righteous, before they are made immortal, must be judged. But the texts referred to prove that they are made immortal instantly when Christ appears. There is in their cases no work of judgment brought to view at the coming of Christ, and no time allotted there for any such work. Their judgment, therefore, must have preceded that event; that is to say, their cases must have been examined, and decision rendered entitling them to immortality; so that when Christ appears, and angels are sent to gather the elect (Matt. 24:81), they know just what ones to gather out from the generations of the dead and the multitudes of the living, to bear heavenward to meet their Lord. From this conclusion there can be no appeal.

But this, the reader will at once perceive, is a very important matter; and the question arises, Where do the Scriptures teach it? and with what doctrine is it associated? —There is only one great subject with which it is directly connected, and by which it is specifically taught; and that is the subject of the sanctuary. Here it comes in, in its natural order; for the cleansing of the sanctuary is just such a work of preliminary or investigative judgment, as we have seen must precede the coming of Christ. In that work the cases of all the righteous must be decided; for it is a part of Christ's work as priest to blot out the sins of those who have accepted him as their Saviour, and confess their names before his Father. Acts 8:19; Rev. 3:5. This involves an examination of the books of record, from which all judgment is to be rendered. Rev. 20:12. It is the very Judgment scene described in Dan. 7:9,10. And when this work is adcomplished, and the Lord has "set apart him that is godly for himself " (Ps. 4:8), the way is clear for Christ to carry out, the decision instantly when he appears; namely, to raise the righteous dead, change the righteous living, and take them all to be with himself.

THE ATONEMENT.

The doctrine of the sanctuary locates the atonement, and revolutionizes the theology of Christendom. It is generally held that Christ made the atonement on the cross. From this, one of two great errors inevitably follows: first, the doctrine of universal salvation (for Christ bore the sins of the world, John 1:29, and Peter says he bore our sins on the tree, or cross, 1 Peter 2:24); or, secondly, the doctrine of a limited atonement, which, according to their view, would contradict John 1:29, and lead to the most ultra views of foreordination.

By the doctrine of the sanctuary both these errors are avoided; for this shows us that Christ upon the cross was acting as our sacrifice, not as our priest. And there he did provide a sacrifice of universal efficacy; it was for all the world; and all who would, could avail themselves of its merits; but this did not ensure the salvation of all the world; for men were still free to reject the sacrifice and be lost; and this all the wicked do.

It is as priest that Christ makes the atonement; but all his work as priest is performed in the heavenly sanctuary. Heb. 8:4-6. And from the type we learn that the atonement is the final and closing work of his priesthood. It is the examination of records, the blotting out of sin, the cleansing of the sanctuary. And this blotting out of sin is done, or the atonement made, for those only who have sought pardon, through Christ; and thus no foreordination is involved in the work.

FINISHING THE MYSTERY OF GOD.

In Rev. 10:7 we read: "But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets." This is the announcement of a mighty angel, after uttering a solemn oath that time should be no longer; and it declares that the seventh angel would begin to sound, and the finishing of God's mystery begin to take place, immediately at the close of the time referred to. Now the time, the close of which he announces, must be prophetic time; for time literal and time probationary are both afterward recognized in the remainder of the chapter as still continuing. But prophetic time closed with the 2300 days of Dan. 8:14, as that is the longest prophetic period, and reaches down to the latest point. That period, as shown in previous articles, terminated in 1844. Daniel's prophecy said that then the sanctuary should "be cleansed;" this prophecy says that then "the mystery of God should be finished." This is the same thing, as can be easily shown. Thus the "mystery of God" is the gospel to the world. See Eph. 8:3-6,9; Gal. 1:11, 12; Eph. 1:9; Rom. 16:25; Col. 1:25-27. The "finishing" of this mystery can be nothing else but the closing of the proclamation of the gospel, when the time comes that Christ has ceased his work as priest (the sanctuary being cleansed), and mercy is no longer offered. Thus we are brought to the same work, and both prophets locate it at the same time; namely, at the end of the prophetic periods.

This finishing of the mystery is placed in the first years of the sounding of the seventh angel. Rev. 11:15 introduces the same trumpet, and verse 19 declares that then the temple of God (the same sanctuary on high) is opened in heaven, and there is seen the ark of his testament. The ark was always in the most holy place of the sanctuary; and that apartment was opened and entered only to cleanse the sanctuary and make the atonement. Here, then, we have still another testimony applying to the same time and the same work.

This is the time when either a person's sins are blotted out of the books of record (Acts 3:19), or his name is blotted out of the book of life. Rev. 3:5. See also Ex. 82:32, 83. The work would naturally begin with the first generations,—the dead,—and end with the last—the living. The thought that it has already been going forward for over forty years is a startling one, as it shows that it must soon reach the cases of the living, and the work of salvation close forever.