By John Thiel

Jesus had just given the parable of the wheat and the tares and the disciples asked a question:

Matthew 13:36 Then Jesus sent the multitude away, and went into the house: and his disciples came unto him, saying, Declare unto us the parable of the tares of the field. 37 He answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man; 38 The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked [one]; 39 The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels. 40 As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world. 41 The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; 42 And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.

Here is a challenging call. Who hath ears to hear let him hear. When is the harvest? Jesus said the harvest is the end of the world. What is he talking about? The majority of Seventh Day Adventists believe the harvest is when Jesus comes but true Adventist doctrine highlights something else. Daniel 8 identifies the end of the world:

Daniel 8:13 Then I heard one saint speaking, and another saint said unto that certain [saint] which spake, How long [shall be] the vision [concerning] the daily [sacrifice], and the transgression of desolation, to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden under foot? 14 And he said unto me, Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed. 15 And it came to pass, when I, [even] I Daniel, had seen the vision, and sought for the meaning, then, behold, there stood before me as the appearance of a man. 16 And I heard a man’s voice between [the banks of] Ulai, which called, and said, Gabriel, make this [man] to understand the vision. 17 So he came near where I stood: and when he came, I was afraid, and fell upon my face: but he said unto me, Understand, O son of man: for at the time of the end [shall be] the vision. 18 Now as he was speaking with me, I was in a deep sleep on my face toward the ground: but he touched me, and set me upright. 19 And he said, Behold, I will make thee know what shall be in the last end of the indignation: for at the time appointed the end [shall be].

When Jesus said the harvest is the end of the world, it is a time appointed which Daniel qualifies as the angel qualified it for him. He said unto 2300 days the sanctuary will be cleansed. The angel said I will explain to you that this vision is for the end of the world, the last end of the indignation. The end of the world commences according from 1844 onwards. The time of the end and the experience is explained again;

Daniel 11:35 And [some] of them of understanding shall fall, to try them, and to purge, and to make [them] white, [even] to the time of the end: because [it is] yet for a time appointed.

The word even is supplied.  It says to make them white to the time of the end.

Daniel 12:9 And he said, Go thy way, Daniel: for the words [are] closed up and sealed till the time of the end. 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.

The time of the end, 1844 onwards is addressed and it is a period in which people are going to be sorted out.

Daniel 11:35 And [some] of them of understanding shall fall, to try them, and to purge, and to make [them] white

When people fall it doesn’t mean they won’t make it but they are being purified and purged. Here we see the time of the end, the time of the harvest. In the time of the end the reapers are the angels. The angels are the reapers or the ones that bind for the heavenly garner.

Revelation 7:1 And after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree. 2 And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea,

Note it says we plural. The angel that has the seal is identified in the book Early Writings. He is the one that says we so there are others besides him at work.

I then saw the third angel. Said my accompanying angel, “Fearful is his work. Awful is his mission. He is the angel that is to select the wheat from the tares, and seal, or bind, the wheat for the heavenly garner. These things should engross the whole mind, the whole attention.”  {EW 118.1}

The angel that is to seal, the one that says to the four angels, ‘hold the winds of strife until we have sealed the servants of God’ is the angel that binds for the heavenly garner. The sealing is equated with the harvest. Here are the messages of the three angels. The time of the end is from 1844 onwards. The angels who are the reapers and the wheat and the tares need to be differentiated.

Matthew 13:27 So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares? 28 He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up? 29 But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.

Did you notice both the wheat and tares grow together until the harvest? They are so close together that if you pull one up you pull the other up with it. Don’t separate. Let them grow together. The harvest is since 1844, since the angels started their work. Both grow together. What does it mean for the children of the wicked one and the children of the kingdom to grow together so they both come to the harvest time and reveal fruits so separation can take place? Sr White could hardly sleep when she wrote this to Elder Haskell. She was praying earnestly and said;

During the night season I devoted some time to prayer for it seemed to me that if there was ever a time when we needed to watch and pray continually, it is now. The Lord is soon to come, and the end of all things is at hand. The watchmen should be wide awake now and see eye to eye. Solemnity should be upon us all. There are to be but two classes in our world, the obedient and the disobedient. {1888 994.4}

In 1888 the end of all things was at hand.

I see perplexities on every side. As character develops man and woman will take their position, for varied circumstances brought to bear upon them will cause them to reveal the spirit which prompts them to action. Every one will reveal the character of the bundle with which he is binding himself. The wheat is being bound up for the heavenly garner. The true people of God are now bound up for the heavenly garner. The true people of God are now pulling apart, and the tares are being bound in bundles ready to burn. Decided positions will be taken. Satan will move upon minds that have been indulged, upon men who have always had their own way, and anything presented to them in counsel or reproof to change their objectionable traits of character is considered faultfinding, binding them, restraining them, that they cannot have liberty to act themselves. The Lord in great mercy has sent messages of warning to them, but they would not listen to reproof. Like the enemy who rebelled in heaven, they do not like to hear, do not correct the wrong they have done but become accusers, declaring themselves misused and unappreciated. {1888 995.2}

To distinguish between the wheat and tares and not to separate them until the harvest, character develops and people will take their position. The harvest is varied circumstances that will bring forth the ripening of the grain or the drying of the tears. They will grow up together under circumstances. As they grow up together as the circumstances become hotter and hotter like summertime, each one will reveal their character. Are we aware of what Sr White wrote back in 1892 over 100 years ago? Where are we now if that is what was happening back then? Can you see character development? Can you see where we are living in today?

The Harvest

Circumstances open up the character decision of every human being. Decided positions will be taken. People who have indulged their minds when reproof and counsel is presented, these minds consider it fault finding. They consider it taking away their freedom, binding and estranging them. They react to the messages of the angels correcting them and they turn around like the enemy in heaven and do not like to hear but declaring them accusers and that they are misused. If we are wheat, the fruit of the wheat will become manifest. If we are tears, the fruit is something little. Have you ever picked wild oats growing among the wheat? The latter rain doesn’t swell that grain. They are small. They look so similar as they are growing but the character growth becomes revealed in the harvest. It has to do with growth that varied circumstances come upon them revealing if they are tares or not. We are living in that time. Fearful is this angels work, awful is his mission. We are living in awful times. When Sr White wrote the following it was already present truth. We are living in the grand culmination.

We as a people profess to have truth in advance of every other people upon the earth. Then our life and character should be in harmony with such a faith. The day is just upon us when the righteous shall be bound like precious grain in bundles for the heavenly garner, while the wicked are, like the tares, gathered for the fires of the last great day. But the wheat and tares “grow together until the harvest.” In the discharge of life’s duties the righteous will to the last be brought in contact with the unGodly. The children of light are scattered among the children of darkness, that the contrast may be seen by all. Thus are the children of God to “show forth the praises of Him who hath called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.” The divine love glowing in the heart, the Christ like harmony manifested in the life, will be as a glimpse of heaven granted to men of the world that they may see and appreciate its excellence. {5T 100.2}

Sr White wrote this around 1850 or onwards. She said the day is just upon us. Many people read this (the harvest) as the future when in reality we have to read it where she applied it. Did you notice she separates the binding time from the last great day? In the harvest the contrast will be seen by all.

Like will attract like. Those who are drinking from the same fountain of blessing will draw nearer together. Truth dwelling in the hearts of believers will lead to blessed and happy assimilation. Thus will be answered the prayer of Christ that His disciples might be one even as He is one with the Father. For this oneness every truly converted heart will be striving. {5T 100.3}

With the ungodly there will be a deceptive harmony that but partially conceals a perpetual discord. In their opposition to the will and the truth of God they are united, while on every other point they are rent with hatred, emulation, jealousy, and deadly strife. {5T 101.1}

What we are reading has actually has transpired before our eyes ever since the world war. In 1888 when the message was given, the people accepted and rejected the message. From 1844 this harvesting has been taking place. This must sink in deep into our appreciation.

The world is leagued against the truth, because it does not desire to obey the truth. Shall I, who perceive the truth, close my eyes and heart to its saving power because the world chooses darkness rather than light? Shall I bind myself up with the bundles of tares because my neighbors refuse to be bound up with the wheat? Shall I refuse light, the evidence of truth which leads to obedience, because my relatives and friends choose to follow in the paths of disobedience which lead away from God? {TMK 116.4}

The tares don’t desire. Can you see the tug of war and the roots interconnected? But now that it is summertime and its heating up, although we have been entwined, now comes the call. As proof and correction comes to both parties, one is gritting its teeth with anger and accusing their brethren for being so serious and so extreme and showing them up. What these people are doing is showing up the tares. The tares don’t like it so they will accuse. It is a strange phenomenon. The very friends and family are actually applying the faithfulness of Gods people as something bad. ‘You are misusing me, you are not appreciating me’ and so on.

Shall I close my mind against the knowledge of truth because my neighbors and friends will not open their understanding to discern the truth as it is in Jesus? Shall I refuse to grow in the grace and knowledge of my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ because my neighbors consent to remain dwarfs? . . . {TMK 116.4}

They consent to remain tares. Seed shrivelled up. Can you see the reality of this? I have come to the conclusion over a long period of time that what was written in Sr Whites time that which was upon us is right now when the reality is already well onward, we are just the gleanings, the little bits of grain that are still lying around that are bundled together. Are we going to become afraid to be bound together by the truth? Or are we going to run for it? Are we going to stand faithful? Recall the circumstances of the time of the end when the 2300 days commenced. What was our high priest doing ever since that time?

Malachi 3:2 But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he [is] like a refiner’s fire, and like fullers’ soap: 3 And he shall sit [as] a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness.

A harvest of pure grain. How does that happen as we are growing and developing? Everyone is in his own place taking positions. Early Writings describes it. God gives people a bitter cup to drink, a trial. In this time of the harvest we are in the heat of the summer sun. As the wheat and tares are cut they are left in the heat to dry out completely. As the heat increases there are terrible trials and that is how this statement continues.

Now is the time of trial, of test, of proving. Those who, like Saul, will persist in having their own way will suffer, as he did, loss of honor and finally the loss of the soul. God has a people, and they will be a tried people, but the people will be humble. They are under the guidance of the Holy One in thought, in word, indeed. {1888 996.1}

In this trial, in this heat of the summer the wheat and the tares are being obviously revealed. Do you like it? No one seems to like or enjoy it that we can look up and rejoice as our redemption draweth nigh as we are looking around at the trials. I rejoice the more I see this as my heart swells up that has made Seventh Day Adventists what they are. If in Gods church there is still this thing of the wheat and tares about us, should we feel miserable? We have to expect being accused and torn asunder by people. What ties us together? We all love the same truth and we are not going to be separated. If we are going to be pushed we should not be surprised. We should rejoice in tribulation. This experience of trial includes purging.

Daniel 11:35 And [some] of them of understanding shall fall, to try them, and to purge, and to make [them] white, [even] to the time of the end: because [it is] yet for a time appointed.

The wise will understand and they will be washing their robes in the blood of the lamb. Those that are of understanding shall fall to try them. They will fall to purge them. A just man shall fall seven times. Fall? But he will not utterly fall. Through the fall and the shocking sins that would obliterate him, he rises and takes hold. Have you not sometimes fallen and you say what hope have I got? But if you are wheat you will not utterly fall. It is for my purging, it is for the character. That is the only thing that is going to be taken to heaven. If my character is wrapped up in my love for Jesus, then in these last moments my character will have to consolidate very fast.

The day is at hand. For the lessons to be learned, the work to be done, the transformation of character to be effected, the time remaining is but too brief a span. {Ed 184.2}

The wheat and tares are together in that, the wheat and the tares are nearly separating. Prepare to meet our God. We have to bear up under the preparation experience.

Revelation 14:15 And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud, Thrust in thy sickle, and reap: for the time is come for thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe.

The wheat grain fully dry will be taken into the garner. That is when Jesus physically comes but before that time we are being bundled. The tares have no grain inside of them, there is no value there, there is no fruit, it is just fodder for the fire. No character to the glory of God, just accusers of the brethren. The perplexities of people who claim that Gods beautiful word brings up wheat is fault finding and restraining. I’m not free to do what I want to do and these people are really blocking my path and making me feel miserable. The tares will recognise these people are representing Gods truth but they just don’t like the effect on their life. Let us rally and take courage in this time. As hard as it is, let the beautiful fruit that has produced wheat in us continue and complete. They grow up together and they will be harvested and separated. We are living in it right now. I thank God that takes away the sense of misery and hopelessness and that we can conquer it all by understanding truth.

Amen.