The Key to Understanding 1844 - Part 1

[jorgfe]

The Key to Understanding 1844 - Part 1

[Editor’s note: All 15 Proofs as well as William Miller’s 1843 chart (that Ellen White said was just as God wanted it) are also available in my Library at DefendingTheGospel.com.]

The foundation for Adventism is laid in Ellen White’s comprehensive endorsement of William Miller’s methods and message.

William Miller was a farmer who, using his King James Bible and a concordance, came to the conclusion that Christ was going to come sometime between March 21, 1843 and March 21, 1844.

"My principles in brief, are, that Jesus Christ will come again to this earth, cleanse, purify, and take possession of the same, with all the saints, sometime between March 21, 1843 and March 21, 1844. (Everett N. Dirk, William Miller and the Advent Crisis, pp. 96-97)
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This became William Miller’s mission statement for his "1843 Message". You can view a readable copy of the famous 1843 chart that he used in his meetings, "A Chronology Chart of the Visions of Daniel and John", in our DefendingThe Gospel.com library. Over the course of this study we will be referring to this chart, and his 15 proofs known as "Time Proved Fifteen Different Ways".

Ellen White’s endorsement of William Miller is seen in her earliest writings. As former SDA Pastor Dale Ratzlaff notes in his excellent book, Cultic Doctrine of Seventh-day Adventists,

Not only does Ellen White endorse Miller’s 1843 message, she professing the prophetic authority of a messenger of God, unequivocally states — as we will soon see — that God chose, enlightened, and empowered Miller in his methods of study and his conclusions.

Therefore, at the very outset, the SDA church is faced with the dilemma. If Miller was right, so was Ellen G. White. If Miller was wrong, so was EGW. There are no other conclusions. It should be noted here that EGW’s endorsement of Miller’s conclusions came after 1844 when it should have been obvious that Miller was wrong. If all of the quotations from EGW cited in this chapter were written after her first "vision" in December 1844 why did she support known error? In the citations to follow, it should be observed that EGW not only endorsed Miller’s interpretation of October 22, 1844 as the fulfillment of Daniel 8:14, she also endorsed many of the methods and other teachings of Miller.
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In my next post I will carefully examine what Ellen White said about William Miller.

Gilbert Jorgensen

It has been 164 Years, 1 Months, and 21 Days since October 22, 1844​

 

[BobRyan]

The Millerite history is a great "history story" detailing the "long way around the barn" that early 19th century Christians took. But I never go "the long way" when trying to explain the simplicity of the I.J to non-SDAs. I just make the case "sola scriptura" instead.

Key to understanding the I.J is

1. Pay attention to all the details in Dan 7.

2. Notice the parallel templated-over comparison of Dan 8 to Dan 7. (The NIV study Bible has a good visual for us on that).

3. Notice the connection between Dan 8 and Dan 9 in terms of the vision of Dan 8 being confusing to Dan (as stated in the text) and then explained in Dan 9.

4. Notice that ALL quantified prophetic timelines (I.E Dan 9:1-4 the 70 years of Jeremiah for example) are "contiguous".

Given this 4 basic steps you have the outline for the I.J and you end up in 1844.

in Christ,

Bob

 

[djconklin]

Ellen White’s comprehensive endorsement of William Miller’s methods and message.

She did not endorse his methods.

As former SDA Pastor Dale Ratzlaff notes in his excellent book, Cultic Doctrine of Seventh-day Adventists,

Not only does Ellen White endorse Miller’s 1843 message, she professing the prophetic authority of a messenger of God, unequivocally states — as we will soon see — that God chose, enlightened, and empowered Miller in his methods of study and his conclusions.

Therefore, at the very outset, the SDA church is faced with the dilemma. If Miller was right, so was Ellen G. White. If Miller was wrong, so was EGW. There are no other conclusions. It should be noted here that EGW’s endorsement of Miller’s conclusions came after 1844 when it should have been obvious that Miller was wrong. If all of the quotations from EGW cited in this chapter were written after her first "vision" in December 1844 why did she support known error? In the citations to follow, it should be observed that EGW not only endorsed Miller’s interpretation of October 22, 1844 as the fulfillment of Daniel 8:14, she also endorsed many of the methods and other teachings of Miller.​

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http://www.adventistreview.org/2004-1538/story5.html. As Goldstein notes:

"Now, as we look at her endorsement of William Miller, and at Brother Dale's critique of that endorsement, remember this point: Everything Ellen White wrote about Miller and about God guiding Miller, she wrote after the 1844 disappointment. In other words, everything she's saying she said after Christ had not returned in 1843 or 1844, when Miller had expected Him to. Though Brother Dale acknowledges this fact, he ignores its implications because, to a great degree, they gut the force of his case."

As for Ratzlaff's "If Miller was wrong, so was EGW." This is an example of poor logic.

 

[Pythons]

Wasn't it true that "The Message", at that time, was that Jesus was coming on a specific date and when some of the people pointed to the verse in the Bible that said a person could not know the specific time Ellen then rebuked them for not believing and claimed they were working for the evil one? Is that sola scriptura in practice?

 

[Joe67]

Wasn't it true that "The Message", at that time, was that Jesus was coming on a specific date and when some of the people pointed to the verse in the Bible that said a person could not know the specific time Ellen then rebuked them for not believing and claimed they were working for the evil one? Is that sola scriptura in practice?

EW was 17 years of age in 1844 and held no authority among the Millerite adventists, to my knowledge.

Could you be specific about the referenced rebuke?

Thank you,
Joe

 

[Joe67]

Wasn't it true that "The Message", at that time, was that Jesus was coming on a specific date and when some of the people pointed to the verse in the Bible that said a person could not know the specific time Ellen then rebuked them for not believing and claimed they were working for the evil one? Is that sola scriptura in practice?

Are you familiar with where that event is recorded?

Thank You
Joe

 

[Joe67]

Posted this several times thought nothing went through, so it seemed
...my apologies.

 

[Joe67]

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