“‘Again, we exhort you, brethren, that every one may edify, and be edified, that ye forsake not the assembling of yourselves together, as often as your situation and circumstances shall permit; that we may comfort and console each other in our trials, be established ourselves in the present truth, and our minds be stirred up to remember that our Judge is now standing at the door. How can we who have taken so great delight in the study of the blessed Bible, again return to the beggarly elements of vain philosophy and tradition of the fathers? We cannot sit under preaching where the Bible is discarded from the pulpit, except as a text-book, and the plainest passages of Scripture are mysticised and explained away, our hope in the resurrection of the body taken from us, and the kingdom of Heaven preached as in this state of division, persecution and death, and the promise of being caught up in the air, ridiculed by the oft-repeated slang of ascension robes. These things we cannot fellowship; we will not hear them repeated. We therefore advise you, dear brethren, to hold meetings for prayer, reading of the Scriptures, exhortation and singing, if you may not be able to obtain a lecturer or preacher. And may the Spirit of God bless you with his presence, and preserve you blameless unto his coming.
“‘Again we exhort you, brethren, to be faithful in business. Let every one labor with his hands, in the several callings in which God has placed us, that none of us may be a burden to any, and that we may all of us have wherewith to communicate and do good, for it is more blessed to give than to receive; and that we may none of us give any occasion to our enemies to reproach us with being busybodies in other men’s matters, or as not providing for our own house. In thus doing we may put to silence the reproaches of those who are seeking every occasion to destroy the doctrine that we rejoice to believe. We may, while we are engaged in our several occupations, be fervent in spirit, serving the Lord. If we could not, it would be evidence that we were not engaged in a proper calling; or, that our hearts were not right with God. Paul, the great apostle to the Gentiles, labored with his hands, that he might not be chargeable to the saints; and what was duty then, will be duty as long as the gospel remains to be preached. And we thank God we have never preached any other doctrine, you yourselves being our judges.
“‘We also beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye be not led about by every spirit; but try the spirits. For every spirit is not of God; and it is now evident that there are many spirits in the earth,—even the three unclean spirits which are working miracles, and deceiving not only kings, but the whole earth. It therefore becomes us to be very cautious by what spirit we are led. The spirit of error will lead us from the truth; and the Spirit of God will lead us into truth. But, say you, a man may be in error, and think he has the truth. What then? We answer, The spirit and word agree. If a man judges himself by the word of God, and finds a perfect harmony through the whole word, then we must believe we have the truth; but if he finds the spirit by which he is led does not harmonize with the whole tenor of God’s law, or book, then let us walk carefully, lest we be caught in the snare of the devil and fall from our own steadfastness; and so be deceived, and lose the crown for which we are running. Let us follow the teachings of the apostle Paul in Titus 2:12, “That denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world.” Or, as Peter tells us in his second epistle, chap. 3:11, “Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness.” In both cases the context teaches us to look for the coming of the day of God; or, which is the same thing, “the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ.”
“‘There are a few individuals among us who are teaching that Christ has come, and that we were not mistaken in the time, but only in the manner of his coming. Let us be careful lest we cease from our watchfulness and so that day come upon us unawares. Remember that the same Jesus will come in like manner as they saw him ascend; and every eye shall see him, and we shall see him as he is, and be like him, when that day shall come for which we look; and then “the heavens being on fire, shall be dissolved, and the elements melt with fervent heat.” If the one can be spiritualized away, all the rest must of course be spiritualized in like manner; and it would make the whole description of the Judgment but a jumble of nonsense. We hope but few will be carried away by such vain trifling with the Bible.
“‘If God does not mean what he says, to whom shall we go for instruction? Who has been his counselor? and who has set in the council chamber of the Almighty? Man is but grass, and the flower thereof fadeth. He is but of yesterday, and his life but a breath. “Cursed is the man who trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the Lord.” Hold on then, brethren, to the sure word of prophecy, for you will reap soon the fruits of your faith, if you faint not.’
“January 29, 1845, by the action of an ecclesiastical council, Mr. Miller and the majority of the church in Low Hampton were virtually separated from the Baptist denomination. About this time Mr. Miller wrote the following, which appeared in the Advent Herald for Feb. 12, 1845:—
“‘Dear Bro. Bliss: I have received a number of letters from almost every part of the country, almost all of them propounding the same questions, viz., What I thought of the experience we had in what was denominated the seventh month? And also, What was my opinion concerning the closing of the door of mercy, or probation for sinners? To save a multiplicity of letters, I thought best to answer these queries through the Herald, if you should think proper.
“‘1. The experience of the seventh month. The sympathetic and simultaneous movement on the minds of almost all the Second Advent brethren, and on many others preceding the tenth, the rapidity with which that sentiment was received, the general credence that was given to it, by nearly all of those who were looking for immediate redemption, the humbling effect it produced on the hearts and conduct of those who believed,—in the abandonment of all worldly objects, the sacrifice of earthly goods, and in many cases the total dedication of soul and body to God,—the deep and anxious feelings of heart which many of us felt, all marked its character. Then we expected every moment the heavens would open and reveal to us the dear Saviour with all his shining hosts, and we should see the graves open and the loved forms of our relations rising from their dusty beds in immortal bloom and eternal life; and we ourselves pass the sudden change from mortality to immortality, from time to eternity. Then, as we verily thought, we had bid adieu to this world of sin, of misery and woe, and expected to be ushered into the new heavens and new earth wherein dwelleth righteousness. Oh, blissful day! How solemn, yet how interesting. I hope to see another day like this, and literally realize what I then expected. It was a day long to be remembered, and I cannot account for it on any other principle than to suppose God’s benevolent hand and wisdom was in the movement....
“‘But you ask why I do not show whether the probation of sinners is ended.[28] I answer, It is a close point, and if handled at all, it ought to be done very wisely and with a great deal of humility. I would not grieve, if possible to avoid it, one of Christ’s little ones. There is much sensitiveness on this point among our good brethren, therefore I would much rather keep my views in my own breast, if I could, and do right, than run the risk of hurting the oil and the wine. You will, therefore, permit me to give my views by the Scripture; and first, Dan. 12:10, “Many shall be purified, and made white, and tried; but the wicked shall do wickedly; and none of the wicked shall understand; but the wise shall understand.” It will be readily seen by this text, that before the end, the people of God must be “purified, made white, and tried.” Now if probation goes on until the last moment of time, how can those who are regenerated in this last moment have their faith and patience tried?
“‘Again, Rev. 7:13, 14, “And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they? And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.” How can it be said, that those made white “came out of great tribulation,” if in the next moment after they experience the new birth, they are beyond all tribulation and trial? Also in the first passage, the wicked are to do wickedly; and none of the wicked shall understand. Yet if one of these wicked is converted after the time specified, then the word none could not be true in fact. This must be in time, it cannot mean in eternity.