TELL THE WORLD

The history of the Seventh-day Adventists

By Mervyn Maxwell

The Seventh-day Adventists believe that they were called by God to rescue and bring
to the world the full knowledge of the truth revealed in the Bible. William Miller The origin
history is linked to a series of phenomena related to compliance with the
biblical prophecies that point to the outcome of human history. History begins with
Miller and his negativity about not wanting to preach about what he discovered, the fulfillment of
the prophecy of the 2,300 evenings and mornings.

GUILLERMO MILLER: On August 14, 1831, a preacher in New York would mark
strongly the lives of Elena and Jaime White and over 100,000 people in the States
United. William Miller, a farmer and justice of the peace, who through his systematic study
from the Bible, came to the conclusion that Christ would return to Earth around 1843. His
the preaching was based on the interpretation of the prophecy of Daniel 8:14 and the evidence
biblical regarding the return of Jesus Christ. Older brother of 16 siblings, farmer,
he did not receive a good school education, but his desire for knowledge led him to
to study by oneself; believed that the Bible was the Word of God, became interested in prophecies
from Daniel; his study of the Bible convinced him that the end of the world would take place in 1844,
with the purification of the sanctuary, Miller thought that the 'purification of the sanctuary' meant
the destruction of the earth by fire with the coming of Christ; each time he was convinced of this
truth and I had to tell it to others. Being almost 50 years old and with no preparation
in the art of public speaking, I resisted the impulse to declare what I had learned; in
August 1831, a Saturday morning while he was studying on his estate, he was visited by his
nephew who brought an invitation to preach about the coming of Jesus in the church
Bautista on Sunday, this was his beginning and he continued preaching in rural areas, where
Wherever the people went, they converted to Christ. He preached the fulfillment of the signs.
In Mark 13: 24-27, the signs of the Lord's return are mentioned and referred to His
compliance: Mar. 13:24 the dark day occurred on May 19, 1780 Mar. 13:25 the fall
from the stars on November 13, 1833 His friendship with Josué Himes opened the
opportunity to preach in the big cities and very soon thousands of people were
baptized; a Methodist preacher Josiah Litch joined Miller and wrote a book about
the prophecies and encouraged his brother Carlos Fitch to join in preaching. In other parts
from the world there were others who preached the second coming of Christ; a rise of
Adventist revival in many places, this 'midnight cry' was heard
from New England to Canada, from the Atlantic to the Pacific. While it
as the date approached, the merchants closed their businesses, the crops were left without
harvest, trade came to a standstill... and the anticipated day arrived, people gathered in their
houses and their churches to pray and sing. The sun rose, the day passed and midnight arrived.
Finally, October 22 has passed and Jesus did not come! What a disappointment! In 10 years he preached.
more than 3000 times near a thousand places, in 1848 he went blind; prominent preacher
About the second coming, I study the prophecy of the 2300 days of Daniel 8-9 (purification)
of the sanctuary), he was convinced that the purification of the land was through the fire of the
2nd coming of Christ to this world. Miller was called "The morning star of the
Adventist movement
the week after the great disappointment, Hiram Edson and his friends left their home to
visiting and encouraging the believers of the advent, after passing the Edson barn
he stopped to pray for more light; he continued walking through the planted field
of corn, suddenly Edson stopped. 'The sky seemed to open before my eyes, and I saw that Christ
He had to purify the heavenly sanctuary before coming to Earth,” Edson later recounted.
They had misunderstood the place where Christ was to carry out His work; after this
Edson and his friends ran to his house and started studying the matter more, where later
they would discover that Jesus was passing from the holy place to the most holy place and was there to
intercede for their children. October 22 was actually the beginning and not the end, as they
they had waited. Period from 1844 to 1863 the arrival of the first Adventist missionary
March 16, 1844, Frederick Wheeler preaches his first sermon about the importance
to keep the seventh day (Saturday) 1844 First Adventist congregation keeper of the
Saturday established in Washington, New Hampshire. 1844 October 22 The event occurs
called 'great disappointment' a group of Millerites who were expecting the 2nd coming of Christ
based on the prophecy of the 2,300 days (started 457 B.C. until 10-22-1844) when the
sanctuary (according to them the earth) would be purified with the coming of Jesus October 25, 1844
On October 25, 1844, Hiram Edson received a vision in a cornfield 'he saw that Jesus
I entered the second chamber of the Heavenly Sanctuary for the first time and had a work to perform.
In the Holy of Holies before coming to this earth in 1846, three discoveries happen.
important for the Church, which has to do with its doctrines: Hiram Edson and Crosier with
the light over the sanctuary, Elena Harmon with the gift of prophecy and Joseph Bates with the truth
from Saturday 1847, Ellen White received the vision of Saturday 1848, April 21-23, the first
from a series of intensive Bible study lectures where believers
they discovered some of the essential beliefs of Adventism. 1849 James White, author
the Adventist preacher published the first issue of "The Present Truth" (The Truth
1852 The publication of the newspaper 'Youth Instructor' begins.
Youth) in Rochester, New York. What is today known as the School Brochure
Sabbath. 1853 Martha Bygton opens the first Adventist primary school in
Buck's Bridge, New York. 1855 The first printing press starts working in Battle Creek,
Michigan. October 1, 1860 The believers gathered in Battle Creek, Michigan, adopt the
Seventh-day Adventists. 1861 It is organized from the printing press that already existed
the Association of Publications of the Seventh-day Adventists. 1861 May 13
legally organizes as the Seventh-day Adventist Church May 21, 1863 It organizes the
General Association of Seventh-day Adventists in Battle Creek, Michigan. John
Byington is elected the first president. The church has 3,500 members and 125.
churches worldwide. In 1866, the first church magazine began to be published about
Health titled 'Health Reform' written by Ellen G. White 1872 The first is established
Adventist school official of the world in Battle Creek by Goodloe H. Bell. 1874
The General Association appoints the first official overseas missionary Juan N. Andrews who
travels to Switzerland 1878 the tithing system is adopted to support the work 1903 the beginning is initiated
collection plan with the layperson Jasper Wayne.
In early 1844, it became the first Adventist church to observe the Sabbath.
influence of Rachel Oaks. Based on the calculations of biblical prophecies, Samuel Snow
he arrives at the conclusion that the return of Jesus would occur on October 22, 1844.
Days before that date, Hazen Foss received a vision in which he saw the Millerites.
walking towards the Promised Land. However, Foss rejected God's call and
When he tried to relate his experience, he felt that the Holy Spirit had left him. Close
100,000 people waited in their homes and gathered in the forests, waiting for
that Christ may appear in the clouds of heaven. This date has gone down in history as the day
of "great disappointment." The day after this disappointment, God comforted the group of believers and
he gave a response to Hiram Edson about what really happened. In a glance, he saw
Christ entering the Most Holy Place of the Heavenly Sanctuary and not returning to Earth. Few
after this event, in the company of F. B. Hahn and O. R. L. Cosier, they applied themselves to studying
the Bible and soon gained an understanding of the events that occurred on that date.
Other messages from God brought comfort to the discouraged Millerites. In December of
In 1844, Elena Harmon received her first vision in which she saw the Adventist people marching.
through a narrow path to the promised land. This vision was the beginning of his ministry.
prophetic that lasted for seventy years. Ellen White In February 1845, Ellen
Harmon receives a vision that would confirm Hiram Edson's experience about the entrance.
of Jesus in the most holy place of the Heavenly Sanctuary on October 22, 1844. Ellen White
Elena G. White Childhood and Adolescence Elena Gould Harmon was born on November 26
in 1827, in the city of Gorham, state of Maine, located in the northeast of the United States
United. Her parents were named Roberto and Eunice Harmon. Elena and the twin sister
Elizabeth was the youngest of a family of eight children. Her formal education was
interrupted when she was only nine years old, due to an incident that almost
it cost him his life. At the beginning of adolescence, Elena and her family accepted the
Biblical interpretations presented by the Baptist preacher William Miller.
Together with Miller and another 100,000 people, she went through what became known as
the great disappointment, as they were expecting the return of Jesus on October 22, 1844, the date
corresponding to the end of the prophecy of the 2,300 days of Daniel 8. Called by God In
December 1844, God granted Elena the first of a total of two thousand visions and
prophetic dreams. In August 1846, Elena married James White, a 25-year-old pastor.
years old, who shared the same conviction that Elena was called by God to
perform the work of a prophet. A short time later, Elena and Jaime started to keep the
Saturday as the day of rest ordained by God, according to the fourth.
Commandment. Family As a mother of four children, Elena went through the pain of losing two.
of them. Herbert died within a few weeks of life, and Henry at 16 years old. The other two
sons, Edson and William, became Adventist pastors. The Writings of Ellen White were
a great writer. Since 1851, when she published her first book, she produced a vast
number of articles, brochures, and books. Among the books, some are of a devotional nature
and others were composed from countless personal letters, filled with
advice that she wrote over the years. Some other books have a perspective
historical and deal with the conflict between Christ and Satan for control of the nations and the
individuals. She also published books on education, health, and other important issues
for the church. After his death, more than 70 books were compiled and published with
mostly unpublished texts. She also wrote thousands of articles that were
published in magazines such as Review and Herald, Signs of the Times
(Signs of the Times) and other Seventh-day Adventist magazines. The Road to Christ,
one of his most important books, which deals with success in the Christian life, has already been
published in over 150 languages and makes Ellen G. White the most translated writer in
all times. Communicator Despite some initial reluctance and shyness, Elena of
White became a great communicator especially when she spoke about
temperance. In 1876, he spoke to his largest audience – estimated at 20,000 people –
in Groveland, Massachusetts, for more than an hour, at a time when there was no
microphone. The health message In her vision of June 6, 1863, Ellen White received
instructions on health-related matters, such as the use of drugs, tobacco, tea,
coffee, animal-based foods and the importance of physical activity, sunlight, clean air
and a balanced diet. Their health advice, based on this and on the
other visions have helped Adventists develop a lifestyle that gives them
about seven more years of longevity than people in general. Voracious reader Elena
White read a lot. He discovered that reading other authors not only solidified his culture, but
who helped her write to present the principles of the truth revealed to her in
vision. Besides that, sometimes the Holy Spirit urged him to quote in his articles or books,
true literary gems extracted from other authors. She never considered herself infallible nor
he placed his writings on the same level as the Bible, but firmly believed that his visions
they had divine origin and that their articles and books were produced under the direction of the Spirit
of God. Evangelist by nature, his main concern was the salvation of the
Generosity Elena de White was extremely generous and set a good example.
of practical Christianity. For years, she kept scraps of fabric at home to
provide to some woman who was in need of them to make a dress. In Battle
Creek (where I lived), I used to go to auctions to buy used furniture, which I kept.
to donate to victims of calamities, such as fires. In a time when it is still not
there were retirement plans, whenever I heard about some elderly pastor who was
needing financial help, she did not hesitate to send him some money in order to assist him
in that emergency. Her work Ellen G. White died on July 16, 1915. During 70
years faithfully presented the messages that God entrusted to his people. He was never chosen.
for some administrative function of the church, but their advice was always heard by
the denominational leaders. Their messages set in motion the forces that gave
as a result, a wide Adventist educational system exists around the world,
from daycare to universities. Although she never took any courses in the
health area, the results of its ministry are remarkable in the hospital chain
Adventists, clinics, and other medical institutions, present all over the world. It was not
formally ordained for pastoral activity, but her work had a spiritual impact
almost unparalleled in the lives of millions of people, from one end of the Earth to the other.
Permanent influence Even today, the books of Ellen White continue to help the
people to find the Savior, to accept His forgiveness, to share those blessings with
others and to live in the expectation of the fulfillment of the promise of the soon return of
Christ.