Is His strange act His wrath? When is His wrath complete?

If I'm not mistaken, I was asking the question.
How do you see it?

As always, if we want to know the truth about God, we look to Jesus. Everything we need to know or indeed can know we learn from the life of Christ. (8T-286)

The answer is in the acted out parable of the fig tree, and so nicely decribed by Ellen White in the book, The Desire of Ages. Read Chapter 64. If you'd like for me to outline it for you, I'd be happy to do so. I'll quote only one paragraph:God's strange act is when He removes His grace, leaves the sinner to themselves (GC36). The sinner will die in their sins, not as a direct action of God, but as the natural consequences of sin. (GC35,36).

So, to you, the "strange act" of God is not something future, but something He has already done several times during earth's history?

APL,

The passage you quoted from the Desire of Ages makes not mention of God's "strange act." The Bible and Ellen White both speak of it. To what is it applied? It is applied to the act of punishment of the wicked; to judgment. Read the following passage from The Great Controversy for more enlightenment on the matter.



There are a number of noteworthy points Mrs. White makes. Here are some of them:

• "To our merciful God the act of punishment is a strange act."
• "Yet He will 'by no means clear the guilty.' 'The Lord is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked.'"
• "By terrible things in righteousness He will vindicate the authority of His downtrodden law."
• "The severity of the retribution awaiting the transgressor may be judged by the Lord's reluctance to execute justice."
• "When Christ ceases His intercession in the sanctuary, the unmingled wrath threatened against those who worship the beast and his image and receive his mark (Revelation 14:9, 10), will be poured out."

The above points tell us when, how, upon whom, by whom, and why God will execute His "strange act." They also tell us something about what the act entails. It is clear that this act does not occur before probation's close. It could not, therefore, have yet occurred in earth's past history. It is yet future--unless you believe probation has already closed and Christ has ceased interceding for us already.

Blessings,

Green Cochoa.

Does God cause the last plagues? No. They are caused by Satan. But note how EGW talks about them from your quote:Note also that they are not mixed with mercy! This is God's withdrawl of his protection, (Revelation 7:1-3), this is His strange act. This is EXACTLY the same thing I quoted from Desire of Ages which you claim does not talk of God's strange act, "grace of God was removed from them". Same thing. God's wrath is as described in Romans 1. It is a consistent picture of God.

If you want to know what God is really like, LOOK AT JESUS. Everything we need to know and indeed can know about God we learn from Jesus. God is EXACTLY like Jesus. (see 8T286)

Where did you get this information?

Please provide the quotes.

Blessings,

Green Cochoa.

Satan was trying his every art to hold them where they were, until the sealing was past, until the covering was drawn over God's people, and they left without a shelter from the burning wrath of God, in the seven last plagues. God has begun to draw this covering over His people, and it will soon be drawn over all who are to have a shelter in the day of slaughter. God will work in power for His people; and Satan will be permitted to work also. {EW 44.2}


Rev_7:1-3 After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth so that no wind could blow on earth or sea or against any tree. 2 I saw another angel ascending from the rising of the sun, having the seal of the living God, and he called with a loud voice to the four angels who had been given power to damage earth and sea, 3 saying, "Do not damage the earth or the sea or the trees, until we have marked the servants of our God with a seal on their foreheads."

The restraining Spirit of God is even now being withdrawn from the world. Hurricanes, storms, tempests, fire and flood, disasters by sea and land, follow each other in quick succession. Science seeks to explain all these. The signs thickening around us, telling of the near approach of the Son of God, are attributed to any other than the true cause. Men cannot discern the sentinel angels restraining the four winds that they shall not blow until the servants of God are sealed; but when God shall bid His angels loose the winds, there will be such a scene of strife as no pen can picture. {6T 408.1}

God bears long with the rebellion and apostasy of His subjects. Even when His mercy is despised and His love scorned and derided, He bears with men until the last resource for leading them to repentance is exhausted. But there are limits to His forbearance. From those who to the end continue in obstinate rebellion, He removes His protecting care. Providence will no longer shield them from Satan's power. They will have sinned away their day of grace. {RH, September 17, 1901 par. 7}

God keeps a reckoning with the nations. Not a sparrow falls to the ground without His notice. Those who work evil toward their fellow men, saying, How doth God know? will one day be called upon to meet long-deferred vengeance. In this age a more than common contempt is shown to God. Men have reached a point in insolence and disobedience which shows that their cup of iniquity is almost full. Many have well-nigh passed the boundary of mercy. Soon God will show that He is indeed the living God. He will say to the angels, "No longer combat Satan in his efforts to destroy. Let him work out his malignity upon the children of disobedience; for the cup of their iniquity is full. They have advanced from one degree of wickedness to another, adding daily to their lawlessness. I will no longer interfere to prevent the destroyer from doing his work." {RH, September 17, 1901 par. 8}

As Jesus moved out of the most holy place, I heard the tinkling of the bells upon His garment; and as He left, a cloud of darkness covered the inhabitants of the earth. There was then no mediator between guilty man and an offended God. While Jesus had been standing between God and guilty man, a restraint was upon the people; but when He stepped out from between man and the Father, the restraint was removed and Satan had entire control of the finally impenitent. It was impossible for the plagues to be poured out while Jesus officiated in the sanctuary; but as His work there is finished, and His intercession closes, there is nothing to stay the wrath of God, and it breaks with fury upon the shelterless head of the guilty sinner, who has slighted salvation and hated reproof. In that fearful time, after the close of Jesus' mediation, the saints were living in the sight of a holy God without an intercessor. {EW 280.2}

The destruction of Jerusalem is a preview of the last plagues, which will be much worse. Is God the acting subject in the destruction of Jerusalem? Nope. It was His withdrawl of mercy which unleashed the sinful people to do what they did. The Spirit of God, persistently rejected and abused, had at last no choice but to leave the people
to themselves. With nothing to restrain the fierce passions of the Jews, they rebelled so treacherously and seditiously against the Romans that they stirred up the worst spirit of retaliation in their enemies.

"When God's presence was finally withdrawn from the Jewish nation, priests and people knew it not. Though under the control of Satan, and swayed by the most horrible and malignant passions, they still regarded themselves as the chosen of God. {GC 615.1}

When He leaves the sanctuary, darkness covers the inhabitants of the earth. In that fearful time the righteous must live in the sight of a holy God without an intercessor. The restraint which has been upon the wicked is removed, and Satan has entire control of the finally impenitent. God's long-suffering has ended. The world has rejected His mercy, despised His love, and trampled upon His law. The wicked have passed the boundary of their probation; the Spirit of God, persistently resisted, has been at last withdrawn. Unsheltered by divine grace, they have no protection from the wicked one. Satan will then plunge the inhabitants of the earth into one great, final trouble. As the angels of God cease to hold in check the fierce winds of human passion, all the elements of strife will be let loose. The whole world will be involved in ruin more terrible than that which came upon Jerusalem of old. {GC 614.1}

God's withdrawl of His protection, His pouring out of wrath, unleashes Satan, and it is Satan which will have the entire control of the wicked, and Satan brings on the final trouble.

None of your statements, APL, support the concept of Satan causing the seven last plagues, nor being in charge or in direction of them. Let's look at these statements one at a time.


This statement says nothing about Satan causing the seven last plagues. It indicates, instead, that God is behind them. Satan is mentioned as trying to keep people on his side, until probation has closed. Then we are told that once this happens, a "covering" is placed over God's people (to protect them) while those who were still on Satan's side are "left without a shelter from the burning wrath of God, in the seven last plagues." This indicates that the plagues are from God's wrath.



This passage makes no mention at all of the seven last plagues. It speaks to the "four winds of the earth," which is a separate subject entirely. Those are the winds of strife not of plagues, and the symbolic language which follows is not a part of the message regarding the seven last plagues, but rather a message of that which takes place just before them. Remember, the seven last plagues fall AFTER probation has closed, and probation has not yet closed if the servants of God are not yet sealed, an action still taking place at the time period referred to in this text.


Again, "even now" refers to a time period before the close of probation. Those hurricanes, storms, etc. which occur before probation's close are not, by definition, part of the seven last plagues. Even such "strife" as is mentioned here, should it occur before the close of probation, would not be part of the "plagues" to come later.


What is the context of this statement? There is no mention here whatsoever of the seven last plagues, nor of their source. If anything, this passage indicates that God is behind a withdrawal of His protection during our probationary time. It speaks of "repentance." It won't be possible to repent once probation has closed, and there will be no mercy from God at such a point either.


There is no mention of the plagues here either. What is the context? What is the time period under discussion here? If it is the plagues, can you support this?


This interesting statement speaks of both God's restraint upon Satan AND His "fury." There is nothing here that limits God's fury. There is nothing here to say that God only withdraws His protections. When plagues are "poured out," it doesn't sound like anything being "withdrawn." There is an action here--a Godly one. This statement speaks of "an offended God" and it speaks of "the wrath of God" breaking "with fury upon the shelterless head of the guilty sinner...."


Why are not the plagues of Egypt the "preview of the last plagues"? What "plague" fell upon Jerusalem? Judgment, yes. Plague? No.


Again, this statement does not mention plagues. An allusion is made to probation's close, but the focus is nowhere near that of the plagues.


This speaks of Satan being given free reign over the passions of sinful men after probation's close. This does not, however, refer to the plagues which are God's part in the matter. Satan works and God works. Satan causes "trouble." But Mrs. White does not say he causes the plagues.



Yes, Satan will have control over the wicked. But he doesn't have control over the righteous, nor does he have control over the plagues.

I have yet to see a statement that supports Satan being the one causing the seven last plagues.

Surely, you must have at least one good statement to support your belief, right? Bring it out for all of us to see.

Blessings,

Green Cochoa.