The Shaking: True or Fake Remnant
Written by: Cary Rodgers, Jr., pastor
An earthquake causes the surface of the earth to violently shake, vibrate, and sway with quick irregular movements. The stronger the earthquake the more violently it shakes. The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake was the second largest earthquake that was recorded in our modern times that lasted between 8 and 10 minutes triggering a tsunami along the coast killing more than 225,000 people in eleven countries. This earthquake was one of the deadliest in history. As we get closer to the end of time, earthquakes will continue to increase and become intense in diverse places. This is the physical shaking of warning signs of the soon coming of the Jesus Christ.
During the seventh last plague when the great voice of Jesus says, “it is done” from the temple in heaven while on His throne, there will be “a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and so great.” - Revelation 16:17,18. Before this great and mighty earthquake that will shake the heavens and the earth there is a great spiritual earthquake that violently shakes, vibrates, and sways with quick irregular movements all professed worshipers of God in the temple of God at the end of time. The epicenter of this earthquake with greatest intensity is among the professed believers of the Seventh-day Adventist message. “For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required.”- Luke 12:48. God has blessed the Seventh-day Adventist Movement with great light in regard to the law and the testimonies. The foundation of our message is built on the sanctuary, day of atonement, and the three angels message.
Jesus is not coming back for denominations, institutions, conferences, or membership roll books. Jesus is coming for purified individuals, covered with the robe of Christ’s righteousness, sanctified by His Word, washed by His blood, and victorious over sin! These are a part of God’s true remnant church in which Jesus Christ is the head. This is the remnant church without spot or wrinkle. This is the virgin bride that Jesus is coming to get. Are you a part of this remnant church?
Just before events of the latter rain’s outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the true remnant church that gives power to give the Final Loud Cry message of the fourth angel of Revelation 18 to those in Babylon there is a great spiritual shaking of every person who professes the Seventh-day Adventist message. “The time has come when everything is to be shaken that can be shaken, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain. Every case is coming in review before God; He is measuring the temple and the worshipers therein. ” - Ellen White, Testimonies To The Church, Vol. 7, p. 219.2. Everything means everything. Individuals, families, local churches, conferences, institutions, schools, and self-supporting ministries will go through this time of great shaking. This is not a test to see whose membership remains on the conference church rolls or how many people continue to attend the local churches and support its institutions. This great shaking sifts out the fake remnant people and purifies the true remnant people of God in preparation for the latter rain. Hebrews 12:26-29 says, “Whose voice [Jesus’] then shook the earth: but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven. And this word, Yet once more, signifieth the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain. Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear: For our God is a consuming fire.” The consuming fire of God purifies the true remnant of God and burns up the fake remnant.
The true remnant are anchored to the Rock Christ Jesus and will remain true during the shaking. The fake remnant are anchored to institutions, churches, conferences, traditions, policies, popular SDA “superstars”, or pastors and will shake out of the truth into deep apostasy. What will cause the great shaking. While the prophetic events are rapidly being fulfilled the great shaking will “be caused by the straight testimony called forth by the counsel of the True Witness to the Laodiceans. This will have its effect upon the heart of the receiver, and will lead him to exalt the standard and pour forth the straight truth. Some will not bear this straight testimony. They will rise up against it, and this is what will cause a shaking among God's people.” - Ellen White, Spiritual Gifts, Vol. 1, The Shaking, p. 270.
The straight testimony is the three angels’ message of Revelation 14. It exposes Satan’s lies and reveals God’s truth. The true remnant embrace and live by the straight testimony. They are humbled by it. It causes a work of deep repentance and soul searching. They allow it to purify their soul by burning away their sins, selfishness, and pride. They have divorced all forms of worldly pleasures and entertainment. They have a great love for Bible truth by studying it, applying it, and sharing it with others. As a result of their obedience and loyalty to Jesus they bear the fruit of the Spirit of “love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, [and] temperance.” - Galatians 5:22, 23. The true remnant are intensely watching for the prophetic fulfillment of the second coming of Jesus and praying for themselves and others.
The fake remnant reject the straight testimonies. They are “traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof.” - 2 Timothy 3:4, 5. They have a love for the world more then the love for the truth. They profess godliness while being entertained by movies, TV shows, sports, amusement parks, car shows, and card and video games. They expect their churches and pastors to be entertaining and to affirm their selfish worldly desires. They love sentimental stories and movie reviews from the pulpit. Their health message talks about a vegetarian lifestyle that is mixed with poisonous drugs, vaccines, abortions, and large hospitals. Many of their ministers and members reject God’s end time health message while indulging in junk food and flesh. Their community outreach programs are mixed with puppets, clowns, face painting, worldly “Christian” music, dance, and/or a pizza party.
The fake remnant are selfish and ambitious for the things of this world. The study of God’s word is stunted to a few minutes a day, if at all. They feel that as long as they are attending the conference churches with their names still on the books that they are not shaken out! Their church attendance has only become a tradition and a social club of pleasure. They feel that their church membership and loyalty to the conference churches are the main merits of judgment. They are deceived. They say with their mouth that their salvation is through Jesus but actions show that their faith is in their own presumptuous works, the wisdom of men, and the traditions and institutions of the conference churches. Jesus says, “This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me. But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.” - Matthew 15:8, 9.
During the great shaking God tells the true remnant not to be “shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter..., as that the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means. - 2 Thessalonians 2:2, 3. Beware! Satan will come with “all power and signs and lying wonders, and with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.” - 2 Thessalonians 2:9, 10. Satan stealthily casts his deep darkness of deceit, trickery, seduction, and temptations upon all the professed remnant. The true remnant are anguished and burdened. “Evil angels crowded around them, pressing their darkness upon them, to shut out Jesus from their view, that their eyes might be drawn to the darkness that surrounded them, and they distrust God, and next murmur against him.” - Ellen White, Spiritual Gifts, Vol. 1, The Shaking, p. 270. They distrust themselves and earnestly cling onto the Rock through prayer and Bible study. They tenaciously hold on to God’s promises that Satan tries to rip and steal from them. They are encouraged because beams of light from heaven revives their hearts and embolden their resolve to stay faithful to God’s truth though the heavens fall.
During the great shaking the fake remnant on the other hand are indifferent and careless in Satan’s darkness. They don’t resist the darkness, but embrace it. They give “heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils.” - 1 Timothy 4:1. Their hearts are “overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life.” - Luke 21:34. They are drunk with the wine of Babylon. They are possessed with demonic spirits. Their churches are full of demons and covetous minister hirelings. They “call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!” - Isaiah 5:20. Jesus says, they “loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.” - John 3:19. They feel comfortable in their darkness and deep apostasy because they are the majority.
Out of love the true remnant call for a true revival and reformation of primitive godliness and give the straight testimony among all the professed remnant. The plea is to repent and go back to the “old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein.” The fake remnant responds like the Israel of old, “we will not walk therein.” - Jeremiah 6:16. They sound the trumpets of the compelling messages from the prophets, but the fake remnant do not hearken to the sound of truth. The fake remnant are shaken from the Lamb’s book of Life and are left in darkness. “And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” - 2 Thessalonians 2:11, 12.
Recent fulfillments of Bible prophecy reveal that we are on the edge of the mark of the beast crisis. The enforcement of Sunday laws are very soon to come. The papacy’s halls of global power is set up. The image of the beast is almost complete. All the major religions have embraced the papacy. The protestant denominations have officially declared that they are no longer protesting against the papacy. Instead, they have united in brotherhood. The United States Bill of Rights, has been reduced to a historic relic of the past. In the meantime, tectonic plates of the great shaking are already violently vibrating among all those who profess the Seventh-day Adventist message. The fruit of over fifty years of apostasy in the corporate conference church has ripened into full blown abominations! Over the years their apostasy, like the papacy, moved “little by little, at first in stealth and silence, and then more openly as it increased in strength and gained control of the minds of men.” - Ellen White, Great Controversy, p. 49.
Their attack on the twin institutions given in the garden of Eden, marriage and the seventh day Sabbath is more proof that we are in the great shaking. After gay marriage was made legal in America in 2015, in October of the same year, the Biblical Research Institute, Andrews University Seminary, North America Division, and Michigan Conference endorsed its stamp of approval to allow for homosexuals to become members and leaders in the church as long as they were non-practicing homosexuals.1 This is classical Jesuits cover of using lies to cover the truth and using the truth and mix it with lies. The definition of homosexuality alone reveals the true nature of their lifestyle, but covering it with the idea of nonpracticing is designed to keep people blind and in darkness of their real intent, the destruction of God’s marriage institution. This is an abomination! Does God approve of nonpracticing sinners? Of course not, a sinner is a sinner and must become a former sinner. The church is not advocating that the homosexuals be changed by the power of God and become former homosexuals. As a result, the homosexuality continues throughout the church today with more boldness. Their gay advocates are allowed to openly operate on some SDA campuses. The SDA church in California has a transgender elder who is also a Sabbath school teacher. An openly gay choir was invited by an SDA pastor and had a concert at his church. Many SDA pastors and church leaders are openly renouncing the Biblical doctrine on homosexuality. SDA gay documentary movies are openly watched in many churches. And most recently, the NAD is instructing its churches to adopt language on their websites, bulletins and other literature that is inviting and welcoming all people including the LGBT community! This is one of suggestions on NAD’s website “on how to get the word out to church pastors and leaders: Sample Email Announcement - Is your congregation happily open to having all people attend worship services, Bible studies, Sabbath School classes, potlucks, and prayer meetings? Does this invitation include people of every race, appearance, belief system, sexual orientation, nation, gender, economic level, age, and ability? If the answer is ‘Yes,’ now is the time to craft a welcoming statement to show that your church is a safe space for everyone.”2 For example in the welcoming video of “Relove’s SDA Church’s” Youtube channel, Pastor Seth Yelorda says “So, no matter who you are or where you are from; whether you’re red, yellow, black, or white, gay, straight, bi, or trans. We love you and glad you are here.”3
We are in the great shaking! In addition, the church has already embraced spiritualism through humanism. This has lead them to unify with the papacy (see previous articles for more details). Their fruit is ripe to reject the Biblical seventh day Sabbath before or during the mark of the beast crisis. This rejection is already brewing among some SDA pastors. There are SDA pastors who have switched to become pastors of Sunday churches already. For example the a former-pastor of the Westminster Good Samaritan SDA Church (now Relove) in Garden Grove, CA, Pastor Anthony Boger, is now the lead pastor at the Surf City United Methodist Church in Huntington Beach, CA.4,5,6 There are several SDA churches and institutions who yearly have sun rise services on Easter Sunday. The great majority of SDA church members embrace this pagan holiday. There are many more examples. The General Conference president, Ted Wilson, recently has told the worldwide membership that there is no Sunday law in the “pipeline” as they see it, but the current events reveal the opposite.7 In other words, he telling the members to relax we got plenty time before the end, “eat, drink and be merry!”
During and after the great shaking the fake remnant will still claim to be the chosen of God. They will not physically leave their church buildings, schools, and hospitals. In fact, they will continue to expand and build them up. They will make plans for future growth. Their membership will still be in good and regular standing. While they marginalize, ignore, and reject the true remnant of God. They resent being called an apostate church and war against the true remnant. Many true remnant are kicked out or leave these apostate congregations and conferences. Not discouraged, the true remnant continue to go forward in faith with the straight testimony and doing the work of the three angels message. The great shaking causes the true remnant to move in an “irregular” way and totally depend on the Lord for support. They may have to go to pulpits in houses, store fronts, back rooms of businesses, under the heavens or online. They may have to preach and teach in small groups, in newsletters, by books, in the streets, or on youtube or social media, they are zealously and earnestly contending for the faith of TRUTH. Their love for the truth is greater then Satan hatred to stop them. Who have you taken your stand with? The true or fake remnant.
Remember the latter rain to give the final loud cry message during the mark of the beast crisis will not be poured on the fake remnant. The latter rain will be received by the true remnant of God. All those who are waiting for the enforcement of the Sunday law to pass first before they believe will be swept away. The latter rain will soon come and the true remnant will be clothed with God’s armor from head to feet moving in exact “order, firm like a company of soldiers. Their countenance [express] the severe conflict with they had endured, the agonizing struggle they had passed through.” - Ellen White, Spiritual Gifts, Vol. 1, The Shaking, p. 285. The true remnant’s training is by the Spirit of Truth who will give them a refreshing of the latter rain to give the Loud Cry message with power and holy zeal. “Thus the message of the third angel will be proclaimed. As the time comes for it to be given with greatest power, the Lord will work through humble instruments, leading the minds of those who consecrate themselves to His service. The laborers will be qualified rather by the unction of His Spirit than by the training of literary institutions. Men of faith and prayer will be constrained to go forth with holy zeal, declaring the words which God gives them. The sins of Babylon will be laid open. The fearful results of enforcing the observances of the church by civil authority, the inroads of spiritualism, the stealthy but rapid progress of the papal power--all will be unmasked. By these solemn warnings the people will be stirred. Thousands upon thousands will listen who have never heard words like these.” Ellen White, Great Controversy, p. 606. Is that you? Be faithful.
Reference Weblinks:
3- https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbKm1cyh7dYvrbmQbDtVyqQ
4-https://www.zoominfo.com/p/Anthony-Boger/68663765
5-https://www.ministrymagazine.org/archive/1999/07/not-really-a-miracle-church