Dear Pacific Union Member:
Jesus said many of His followers would be asleep just before He returns to earth. “When the bridegroom was delayed, they all lay down and slept” (Matthew 25:5). He ends the story with this warning: “So stay awake and be prepared, because you do not know the day or hour of my return” (verse 13).
If you are in the group that says to yourself, “Oh, yes, I believe Jesus is coming soon,” yet you are going about life with no special preparation for the end of this world, then listen to the wake up calls. You didn’t hear them? Well, re-read the prophecies that tell us how the religious world will reconfigure before Jesus comes. If you keep them in your mind, even “routine” events will speak to you.
“The Protestants of the United States will be foremost in stretching their hands across the gulf to grasp the hand of Spiritualism; they will reach over the abyss to clasp hands with the Roman power; and under the influence of this threefold union, this country will follow in the steps of Rome in trampling on the rights of conscience” (The Great Controversy, p. 588)
Wake-Up Call #1
In the last few months, we saw another step in the coming together of Protestants and Catholics. U.S. Catholic bishops, meeting in Washington in mid-November 2004, voted 151-73 to join Christian Churches Together. CCT in the U.S.A. is a new venture which aims for a broader ecumenical participation than was achieved by the National Council of Churches. The new organization will launch in June 2005.
“It is the first time in American history that you have Catholic bishops joining an ecumenical organization with Protestants and Orthodox,” Roberta Hestenes, a minister at large with World Vision, told Christianity Today (Feb. 2005, p. 23).
Wake-Up Call #2
The March 21 issue of Time magazine had a cover article that said: “Catholics have long revered her, but now Protestants are finding their own reasons to celebrate the mother of Jesus. … In a shift whose ideological breath is unusual in the fragmented Protestant world, a long standing wall around Mary appears to be eroding. … Today Catholics and Protestants feel freer to explore each other’s beliefs and practices. … Baptists, says Timothy George (dean of Beeson Divinity School at Samford University), should no longer fear common cause with conservative Catholics: ‘We face a common enemy—secularism and radical pluralism and demotion of Scripture.’”
We can expect this coming together of Protestants and Catholics to continue as it has for years. At the same time, modern spiritualism has already infiltrated many Protestant churches—the third part of the eventual union. From this union will come a uniting of church and state to enforce religious practices.
“The dignitaries of church and state will unite to bribe, persuade, or compel all classes to honor Sunday. The lack of divine authority will be supplied by oppressive enactments. … Rulers and legislators, in order to secure public favor, will yield to the popular demand for a law enforcing Sunday observance” (The Great Controversy, p. 592).
Wake-Up Call #3
In light of what is coming in the future, one should carefully note articles like the one featured on the cover of the Feb. 7 Time magazine. Ten pages describe the 25 most influential evangelicals in America. While the list was diverse, it was noted they all agree on five primary areas of faith. There was also discussion on the influence this group has on the president and Congress. Church and state working together on common concerns is an area to watch for prophetic significance in the future.
As Jesus said, “Stay awake and be prepared.”
Sincerely your friend,
Tom Mostert, President
Pacific Union Conference
P.O. Box 5005
Westlake Village, CA 91361
