2.) The Blotting out of Sin

The people of God have long waited for the time when the battle with Satan and sin would be ended, and Jesus would return to take His faithful people home to heaven. We are now nearly 2000 years from the time when Jesus went back to His Father and began His intercessory work in the heavenly sanctuary. Many of the early Christians thought that perhaps Jesus would come in their day, but Paul warned them that Jesus would not come until the “man of sin” was revealed, who would then be destroyed by the brightness of Jesus’ coming. (See 2 Thess. 2:1-8.) The centuries have gone by, and from the graves of martyrs and saints of God all over the earth goes up the cry, How long O Lord, how long until the great controversy is over and we receive our reward? Though they are dead, their cries still speak to the heart of God:

“When He opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the testimony which they held. And they cried with a loud voice, saying, ‘How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” Then a white robe was given to each of them; and it was said to them that they should rest a little longer, until both the number of their fellow servants and their brethren, who would be killed as they were, was completed.” Rev. 6:9-11, NKJV.

“By faith Abel. . . .was commended as a righteous man. . . .And by faith he still speaks, even though he is dead.” Heb. 11:4.

“The Lord said, ‘What have you done? Listen! Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground.’” Gen. 4:10.

“He is not the God the dead, but of the living, for to Him all are alive.” Lu. 20:37, 38.

“God counts the things that are not as though they were. He sees the end from the beginning, and beholds the result of His work as though it were now accomplished. . . .There will be a close and tender relationship between God and the risen saints. This condition, which is anticipated in His purpose, He beholds as if it were already existing. The dead live unto Him.” DA 606.

In these quotations we can see that the lives of the righteous saints who have died are extremely precious to God, and that they are constantly remembered by Him. But what about those who will live through the time of trouble and be alive when Jesus comes? They are referred to in 1 Thess. 4:15-17:

“For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.”

So we can see that there are two categories of God’s saints who will be taken to heaven at Jesus’ coming—those who have died in the faith of Jesus, and those who are alive when He comes. And because of this, there are two phases of the Investigative Judgment which precedes His second coming. Notice these texts:

“He (Jesus) commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that He is the one whom God appointed as judge of the living and the dead.” Acts 10:42.

“In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of His appearing and His kingdom, I give you this charge: ‘Preach the Word.’” 2 Tim. 4:1, 2.

“But they will have to give account to Him who is ready to judge the living and the dead. For this is the reason that the gospel was preached even to those who are now dead, so that they might be judged according to men in regard to the body, but live according to God in regard to the Spirit.” 1 Pet. 4:5, 6.

“For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that He might be the Lord of both the dead and the living. . . .For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat. It is written: “As surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘every knee will bow before me; every tongue will confess to God.’ So then, each of us will give an account of Himself to God.” Rom. 14:9-12.

“(Since they show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts now accusing, now even defending them.” This will take place on the day when God will judge men’s secrets through Jesus Christ, as my gospel declares.” Rom. 2:15, 16.

“What is has already been, and what will be has been before; and God will call the past to account. . . .God will bring to judgment both the righteous and the wicked, for there will be a time for every activity, a time for every deed.” Eccl. 3:15, 17.

“For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.” Eccl. 12:14.

Although Paul lived many centuries before the opening of the Investigative Judgment in 1844, he was aware of the coming of that judgment, and refers to it in 1 Cor. 4:2-5:

“Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful. I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court; indeed, I do not even judge myself. My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me. Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men’s hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God.”

Paul is referring here to the time appointed by God for judgment, the 2300-day prophecy, which is spoken of by the prophet Daniel. (See 6 BC 682.)

“Then I heard a holy one speaking: . . . ‘How long will the vision be, concerning the daily sacrifices and the transgression of desolation, the giving of both the sanctuary and the host to be trampled underfoot?’ And he said to me, ‘For two thousand three hundred days; then the sanctuary shall be cleansed.” Dan. 8:13, 14, NKJV.

“’Son of man,’ He said to me, ‘understand that the vision concerns the time of the end.’. . .‘I am going to tell you what will happen later in the time of wrath, because the vision concerns the appointed time of the end.’” Dan. 8:17, 19.

What is in the sanctuary that must be cleansed before Jesus can cease His work there?

“Angels of God daily place upon the books of heaven an exact representation of the character of every human being.” 7 BC 987.

“The thoughts and feelings combined make up the moral character.” 5 T. 310.

“The secret purposes and motives appear in the unerring register; for God ‘will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts.’” GC 481.

“There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known.” Luke 12:2.

“Every act is judged by the motives that prompt it.” COL 316.

“The Lord searches every heart and understands every motive behind the thoughts.” 1 Chron. 28:9.

“All a man’s ways seem innocent to him, but motives are weighed by the Lord.” Pr. 16:2.

Can you now get a clearer idea of what is on our records in heaven? The thoughts and feelings, as well as the acts and motives, are all recorded for God, Jesus, and heavenly beings to observe. Is it any wonder that these records must be cleansed before Jesus finishes His work in the Most Holy Place of the heavenly sanctuary? This very fact makes the subject of cleansing, judging, and blotting out of utmost importance to those who are living now, in the very last moments of earth’s history! No wonder the question was asked by the holy ones who were showing Daniel the vision of the cleansing of the sanctuary, “How long will . . . the sanctuary and the host be trampled under foot?” The answer came back, “For two thousand three hundred days; then the sanctuary shall be cleansed.” Dan. 8:13, 14.

Can you imagine the joy of our pioneers when they discovered that they were the privileged ones to understand the truth that the cleansing of the books of record in the heavenly  sanctuary had begun? But even more privileged are we, who are living in the time when the records of the living are now passing in review before God! The quotations from Ellen White give a clearer pictures of the intricacies of the investigative judgment that is going on in heaven:

“As the books of record are opened in the judgment, the lives of all who have believed on Jesus come in review before God. Beginning with those who first lived upon the earth our Advocate presents the cases of each successive generation, and closes with the living. Every name is mentioned, every case closely investigated. Names are accepted, names rejected. When any have sins remaining upon the books of record, unrepented of and unforgiven, their names will be blotted out of the book of life, and the record of their good deeds will be erased from the book of life, and the record of their good deeds will be erased from the book of God’s remembrance. . . .

“All who have truly repented of sin, and by faith claimed the blood of Christ as their atoning sacrifice, have had pardon entered against their names in the books of heaven; as they have become partakers of the righteousness of Christ, and their characters are found to be in harmony with the law of God, their sins will be blotted out, and they themselves will be accounted worthy of eternal life.” GC 483.

“The divine Intercessor presents the plea that all who have overcome through faith in His blood be forgiven their transgressions, that they be restored to their Eden home, and crowned as joint-hears with Himself to the ‘first dominion.’. . .Christ now asks that this plan be carried into effect, as if man had never fallen. He asks for His people not only pardon and justification, full and complete, but a share in His glory and a seat on His throne.” GF 484.

At this point it becomes more clear why the precious sleeping saints are told to “rest a little longer” (Rev. 6:11) until the full number of those who die in Christ would be made up. Since there are no martyrs among those who live until Jesus comes, all deaths of the saints of God, including martyrdom, will have been completed by the time probation closes (EW 284). The complete display of the conclusion of the great controversy must be finished in His living saints before God’s sleeping saints can be raised to receive their eternal reward.

“These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised. God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.” Heb. 11:39, 40.

In other words, the goal of the entire plan of salvation is not completed until there is a generation who displays the finished work of the gospel – the complete removal of the roots of sin that Satan has placed in the human race from the time our first parents sinned in the garden of Eden. If sin is such a momentous problem that it is too big for even God to heal, then Satan wins the controversy before the onlooking universe. But that will not happen! The Bible prophesies that the last generation of God’s people will be victorious over the devil and the flesh.

“The remnant of Israel will do no wrong; they will speak no lies, nor will deceit be found in their mouths.” Zep. 3:13.

“O Israel, put your hope in the Lord, for with the Lord is unfailing love and with Him is full redemption. He Himself will redeem Israel from all their sins.” Ps. 130:7, 8.

“So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this [Christ’s coming], make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with Him.” 2 Pet. 3:14.

“By His grace He is able to keep every man from transgression.” ST 2/14/1900.

“Abundant grace has been provided that the believing soul may be kept free from sin, for all heaven, with its limitless resources, has been placed at our command.” 1 SM 394.

“There is no change of character when Christ comes. The character building is to go on during the hours of probation.” 7 BC 990.

“Those who would share the benefits of the Saviour’s mediation should permit nothing to interfere with their duty to perfect holiness in the fear of God. The precious hours, instead of being given to pleasure, to display, or to gain-seeking, should be devoted to an earnest, prayerful study of the Word of truth. The subject of the sanctuary and the investigative judgment should be clearly understood by the people of God. All need a knowledge for themselves of the position and work of their great High Priest. Otherwise, it will be impossible for them to exercise the faith which is essential at this time, or to occupy the position which God designs them to fill. . . .

“The judgment is now passing in the sanctuary above. For many years this work has been in progress. Soon—none know how soon—it will pass to the cases of the living. In the awful presence of God our lives are to come up in review. At this time above all others it behooves every soul to heed the Saviour’s admonition, ‘Watch and pray: for ye know not when the time is.’ ‘If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.’” GC 488, 490.

Since the days of our pioneers people have been wondering when the judgment would come to the cases of the living, and if we would know when He came to our name. Many believe that the judgment of the living will come when the Sunday law is passed. But notice that Jesus said, “Watch and pray: for ye know not when the time is.” “If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.” Mark 13:33; Rev. 3:3, KJV. The implication is that if we DO watch we will know! As we have already seen, Jesus wants to tell us everything that He knows and is planning to do. He does not intentionally keep anything from us that we need to know in order to cooperate with Him and His work in our behalf. Personally, I believe that if we wait until the Sunday law to get prepared for Jesus to come, we will have waited too long. We cannot prepare for Jesus’ return out of fear and external pressure to get ready. Those who wait until then will be among the foolish virgins, for the preparation time will have already passed by.

“The class represented by the foolish virgins . . . have not . . . permitted their old nature to be broken up. . . .They have been content with a superficial work. They do not know God. They have not studied His character; they have not held communion with Him; therefore they do not know how to trust, how to look and live. Their service to God degenerates into a form.” COL 411.

“If they cherish hereditary and cultivated traits of character, while professing to be His disciples, they are represented by the foolish virgins.” 4 BC 1179.

“Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be pulled up by the roots.” Matt. 15:13.

“Wrong feelings and dispositions are to be rooted out.” UL 218.

“It is by the Spirit that the heart is made pure. Through the Spirit the believer becomes a partaker of the divine nature. Christ has given His Spirit as a divine power to overcome all hereditary and cultivated tendencies to evil, and to impress His own character upon His church.” DA 671.

“Christ desires nothing so much as to redeem His heritage from the dominion of Satan. But before we are delivered from Satan’s power without, we must be delivered from his power within.” COL 174, 5.

“Christ says of the overcomer, ‘I will not blot out his name out of the book of life.’ The names of all who have once given themselves to God are written in the book of life, and their characters are now passing in review before Him. Angels of God are weighing moral worth. They are watching the development of character in those now living, to see if their names can be retained in the book of life. A probation is granted us in which to wash our robes of character and make them white in the blood of the Lamb. Who is doing this work? Who is separating from himself sin and selfishness?” 7 BC 960.

In the next chapter, I will address specifically the process that God is using right now in our day to help us participate with Him in the revealing and blotting out of sin. This is such a wonderful privilege! May God help us to be willing to focus our attention now upon the final work of Christ in revealing to each of us the character defects which He desires to blot from our minds and from His heavenly records!

“To Him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before His glorious presence without fault and with great joy—to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen!