ARME 4: Pine Springs Ranch, CA - Jan 2011

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ARME Bible Camp

Don Mackintosh

How To Study Ellen White

Thank you for that report on the oak and the acorn.

How are you praying for those missionaries?

I just spent some time with Rob and Kelly Wilcox who were in Albania for years.

I tell you what, what a blessing to see people that go in extreme missions.

Okay, in our first time together, we talked about the testimony of Jesus, Bible study, and Ellen White, and I just shared some personal testimonies of why it is that I appreciate Ellen White.

We wanna look now at some practical principles that can make your Bible studies come alive, And you should see a handout that kind of begins with this, Principles for Studying Ellen White.

Page 8, that actually should be your first handout, the other one's for this afternoon.

Some of you asked some questions about, you know, specific issues about Ellen White.

I can talk maybe with you after about that.

Let's look, though, at some principles now for studying Ellen White.

Let's bow our heads, pray, and ask the Lord's presence.

Father in heaven, we're thankful that you've given us the testimony of Jesus, given us the spirit of prophecy, Both that which is in the canon, in the Bible, and that which was not put in the Bible, but is also inspired.

And we also thank you for the principles you've given us to know and discern the difference.

Bless us as we study today, Christ's name, amen.

Key introductory principle, if you're studying spirit prophecy and with Bible study, is 1 Corinthians 2.14.

If you lack wisdom, ask God, he'll give it to you.

It seems impossible for me, she says, to be understood by those who have had the light but have not walked in it.

It's impossible to be understood by people that have the light and not walking in it.

What I might say in private conversations would be so repeated as to make it mean exactly opposite to what it would have meant had the hearer's been sanctified in mind and spirit.

I'm afraid to speak even to my friends, for afterwards I hear Sister White said this, or Sister White said that.

My words are so rusted and misinterpreted that I'm coming to the conclusion that the Lord desires me to keep out of large assemblies and to refuse private interviews.

What I say is reported in such a perverted light that it is new and strange to me.

It is mixed with words spoken by men to sustain their own theories.

By the way, Jesus would have said the same thing.

In other words, those that wanna follow are the ones that will hear, those that are sincere of heart.

And everyone else is gonna try and rest the words, which the Pharisees did and the others did and the scribes.

And sometimes even we do that with Christ's words, the same thing for Ellen White.

I like this little poem, Sister White said it.

But someone said she said it, and so of course it must be so.

Ah, to prove my point, I'll quote it, though I can't show where she wrote it.

But someone said she said it, and that's all I need to know.

Saves a lot of time for me if I listen just carefully when others speak of Sister White and what they say she said, though I can't repeat it word for word, I'll tell you what I think I heard and quote you things from Sister White that no one's ever read.

Well, I guess number 1 was what we just talked about, but this is actually what I'm calling number 1, which is really number 2.

Every time I come to Army, I kind of mess up the math.

I recommend to you, dear reader, the Word of God is the rule of your faith, and practice by that word were to be judged.

God has in that word promised to give visions in the last days, not for a new rule of faith, but for the comfort of his people, and to correct those who err from Bible truth." We mentioned this last time, but in your study, I would say start with the Word.

And when I start with the Word, I end up appreciating Ellen White even more, because what happens is I just see how the Holy Spirit was leading her.

I mean, I can search for hours and it's best for you to look for that crumb cake, amen?

It's sweeter if you're searching for the crumbs and put them together.

The Lord has given a lesser light to lead men to the greater light.

Of course, you know, some people say That means she's not as important as the other.

It's kind of like looking at 66 candles versus 1.

If you looked at each individual candle, yes.

It's kind of looking like a national versus a state map.

1 gives more detail, both have equal authority.

That's kind of the way I look at Ellen White.

It's not a question of authority, it's a question of additional detail and different things.

Ellen White does not introduce doctrines that are not in the Bible, but she does add details and insights so those truths are seen in greater clarity and with deeper understanding.

And if you study the Bible first, you'll see that.

The Prophet John was the connecting link between 2 dispensations.

As God's representative, he stood forth to show the relation of the Law and the Prophets to the Christian dispensation.

He was the lesser light, which was to be followed by a greater.

The mind of John was illuminated by the Holy Spirit that he might shed light upon the people, but no other light ever has shown or ever will shine so clearly upon fallen man as that which emanated from the teaching and example of Jesus.

Christ and His mission had but dimly been understood as typified in the shadowy sacrifices.

Even John had not fully comprehended the future immortal life through the Savior.

Study all, secondly, study all available material on a given topic.

Well you never really can do that, but do your best.

Remember Jesus in Luke chapter 24, where he came and he only had what, 8 miles to talk between Emmaus and as they were traveling to Jerusalem and he did a pretty good job.

He began with Moses and all the prophets and all the things in the Scriptures concerning himself and they started out with bradacardia, you know, bradescardia, it says in the Greek, slow of heart, and they ended up with like an overdrive, pacing, did not our hearts burn with, and it says he opened the scriptures, Genesis, boom, that was a defibrillation, Exodus, I mean every single thing.

Wonderful, I wish I could go through that with you.

Many men take the testimonies that the Lord has given and apply them as they suppose they should be applied, picking out a sentence here and there, taking it from its proper connection and applying it according to their idea.

They do this, by the way, at the scriptures, too.

Thus poor souls become bewildered when could they read in order all that has been given.

They would see the true application and would not be confused.

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How To Study Ellen White

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