Health Reform & the Advent Movement

William Miller In the early 1800s, a young Baptist farmer named William Miller (1782-1849) published a series of articles in the Baptist weekly Vermont Telegraph about the prophecies of Daniel. He used a simple set of rules to unravel the great themes of prophecy.

William Millers Prophetic Time Chart

First Angels Message

Rev 14: 6-7

Second Angels Message

Rev 14: 8

Third Angels Message

Rev 14: 9-12

A Firm Platform
These messages were represented to me as an anchor to the people of God. Those who understand and receive them will be kept from being swept away by the many Delusions of satan. EW pg 256.

A Firm Platform

I saw a company who stood well guarded and firm, giving no countenance to those who would unsettle the established faith of the bodyI was shown three steps- the first, second, and third angels messages. EW pg 256.

A Firm Platform
Said my accompanying angel, Woe to him who shall move a block or stir a pin of these messages. The true understanding of these messages is of vital importance. The destiny of souls hangs upon the manner in which they are received. EW pg 256.

May 21, 1863

A group of 21 delegates representing 3,500 Seventhday Adventist met in Battle Creek, Michigan "for the purpose of securing unity and efficiency in labor, and promoting the general interests of the cause of present truth, and of perfecting the organization of Seventh-day Adventists."

Review and Herald,

May 26, 1863
[The result was the formation of the General Conference and a linking together of local churches, state conferences, etc. The fully united and fully organized Seventh-day Adventist Church was born.]

The Beginning of OUR Health Message

"It was at the house of Brother A. Hilliard at Otsego, Michigan, June 6, 1863 that the great subject of health reform was opened before me in vision."
3 SM p. 276

December 25, 1865

"Tell My people that they must establish an institution of their own. A home where the sick can be treated and where they can learn how to get well and keep well."
Statement from a vision received Christmas day 1865.

[The Western Health Reform Institute (later called Battle Creek Sanitarium) opened the following year in 1866; the first issue of The Health Reformer came out in August, 1866.]
RH 4-30-14; 1T p. 492.

Western Health Reform Institute 1866-1877

GODS PLAN
G O D S P L A N GODLY TRUST OPEN AIR DAILY EXERCISE SUNSHINE PROPER REST LOTS OF WATER ALWAYS TEMPERATE NUTRITION

Our Health Message is more than:

Veggie burgers
tofu

Hot foot baths and stop smoking programs

Food is only part of the picture

(1869) 2T 202, 203

When Christ was the most fiercely beset by temptation, He ate nothing. He committed Himself to God, and through earnest prayer, and perfect submission to the will of His Father, came off conqueror. Those who profess the truth for these last days, above every other class of professed Christians, should imitate the great Exemplar in prayer.

MS 93, 1901
What a pity it is that often, when the greatest selfdenial should be exercised, the stomach is crowded with a mass of unhealthful food, which lies there to decompose. The affliction of the stomach affects the brain. The imprudent eater does not realize that he is disqualifying himself for giving wise counsel, disqualifying himself for laying plans for the best advancement of the work of God. But this is so...

 Indulgence of appetite is the cause of dissension, strife, discord, and many other evils. Impatient words are spoken and unkind deeds are done, dishonest practices are followed and passion is manifested, and all because the nerves of the brain are diseased by the abuse heaped upon the stomach.

(1875) 3T 486, 487

If the indulgence of appetite was so strong upon the race that, in order to break its power, the divine Son of God, in behalf of man, was required to fast nearly six weeks, what a work is before the Christian in order that he may overcome even as Christ overcame! The strength of the temptation to indulge perverted appetite can be measured only by the inexpressible anguish of Christ in that long fast in the wilderness.

2T 400
All who are partakers of the divine nature will escape the corruption that is in the world through lust. It is impossible for those who indulge the appetite to attain to Christian perfection.

STATEMENT OF OBJECTIVES of Seventh-day Adventist Medical Institutions

Adopted by the MEDICAL DEPARTMENT of the General Conference at the Autumn Council held October, 1956

In the early days of the Advent people, instruction was given to establish health institutions whose objectives were:
1. "To relieve the sick and the afflicted, 2. "To awaken a spirit of inquiry, 3. "To disseminate light, 4. "To advance reform.

7T, p. 104

Does health play a role in the spreading of the gospel?

Managing your health is as much part of Gods stewardship as managing your money, time and talents Good health contributes to clear thinking, for the correct discernment of truth, and helps a person to be more effective for the Lord

The Divine Pattern

Matt 9:35 Then Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people.

Should We Employ His Method? Only Method that Works

Study Christ's Methods.--If ever it has been essential that we understand and follow right methods of teaching and follow the example of Christ, it is now. --Letter 322, 1908. {Ev 53.1}
Christ's method alone will give true success in reaching the people. The Saviour mingled with men as one who desired their good. He showed His sympathy for them, ministered to their needs, and won their confidence. Then He bade them, "Follow Me." --MH 143.3

The True Interpretation of the gospel

The Lord will give you success in this work, for the gospel is the power of God unto salvation, when it is interwoven with the practical life, when it is lived and practiced. The union of Christ like work for the body and Christ like work for the soul is the true interpretation of the gospel.-An Appeal for the Medical Missionary College, pp. 14, 15. {CME 7.3}

Christs method alone will give true success in reaching the people. The Savior mingled with men as one who desired their good. He showed sympathy for them, ministered to their needs, and won their confidence. Then He bade them Follow Me.

Ministry of Healing, p. 143

Integrating Lifestyle into Evangelistic Series 37

Christ The Pattern

Christs method alone will give true success in reaching the people Ministry of Healing, p. 143

Six steps in soul winning:

(contact) As One who desired their good, (concern) He showed His sympathy for them (compassion) Ministered to their needs, (caring) And won their confidence (confidence) Then He bade them. follow Me. (commitment)

The Savior mingled with men

3SM p. 274 [First statement in SOP regarding diet.]

"Deny the unhealthy appetite, eat less fine food, eat course food, free from grease. Then as you sit at the table you can from the heart ask God's blessing upon the food." [1854]

Saturday Evening Post by Patrick Perry

JanuaryFeb. 1992

Members of the Seventh-Day Adventist Church are often acknowledged as the "healthiest people in America." In a nation with increasing cases of heart disease, obesity, osteoporosis, cancer, and other diet-related maladies, this denomination's adherents have managed to beat the odds. Study after study has found that church members not only live longer, but experience few of the debilitating diseases that affect most Americans.

Consider the following statistics: * Male Seventh-Day Adventists have a life expectancy 8.9 years longer than the average, while females have one that is 7.5 years longer. * Even though vegetarians, Seventh-Day Adventists have a reduced risk of osteoporosis compared to meat-eaters in the general population.

* Members experience a lower incidence of breast, prostate, pancreatic, bladder, and ovarian cancers than the general population.
* Adventists who use no meat, milk, or eggs-total vegetarians--have an expected coronary heart disease mortality rate only 12 percent of that of the general population; non-vegetarian male Adventists have 56 percent of the expected coronary heart disease mortality rate.

Seventh-Day Adventists teach prevention of disease by life-style management. The secret to healthy living, they believe, is not how much you eat, but what you eat, and when. Whole grains, water, fresh fruits, and vegetables play a key role in the church's diet, but brisk walks, a hearty "main meal" breakfast, and avoidance of smoking, alcohol, sugar, and fat are also important.

"What does this mean for those of us who are not Seventh-Day Adventist?" ask authors Chris Rucker and Jan Hoffman in The Seventh-Day Diet. "It means that instead of waiting for science to give us a 'magic pill' for cancer, instead of waiting for more expensive, sophisticated types of surgery to control heart disease, instead of cringing at the thought of another painful, self-depriving weight-loss program, we can take a look at the practices of a people who have found a better way. . . . We encourage you to investigate further and practice the principles of the Seventh-Day Adventist diet.

ReadJohn 10:10

In Mrs. E. G. Whites will, dated February 12, 1912, provision was made regarding certain proposed books, which she greatly desired to be prepared. Among these was a historical work listed as Experience of Ellen G. White in Connection With the Health Reform Movement Among Seventh-day Adventists.

Health Message

Preface, The Story of Our

[Begun by Clarence C, Crisler, secretary of Mrs. White. After Crisler was called to serve in the Far East. the Trustees of the E. G. White Estate asked D. E. Robinson to complete the work.]

Loma Linda School of Nursing

First commencement consisted of these five nurses.

July 10, 1907

Matthew 28:19 Go ye therefore and teach (+ health reform) all nations

1NL p. 41 We are to carry forward in our world gospel medical missionary work. This work means far more than many comprehend. The one great work of medical missionaries is to be to fulfill the commission to carry the gospel of salvation to all parts of the world.

Mat 24:14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.

Laodicea

Romans 3:27

DA p. 633 By giving the gospel to the world it is in our power to hasten our Lord's return.

AA p. 13 Wonderful is the work which the Lord designs to accomplish through His church, that His name may be glorified. A picture of this work is given in Ezekiel's vision of the river of healing: [Eze. 47:8-12 quoted]

The River
Ezek 47:9 . . . they shall be healed; and every thing shall live where the river flows.

MM p. 317 We shall see the medical missionary work broadening and deepening at every point of its progress, because of the inflowing of hundreds and thousands of streams, until the whole earth is covered as the waters cover the sea.

How many are called to be medical missionaries?

CH p. 389 All gospel workers should know how to give the simple treatments that do so much to relieve pain and remove disease.

John The Baptist

He must be a temple for the indwelling Spirit of God. In order to fulfill his mission, he must have a sound physical constitution, and mental and spiritual strength...

 In the time of John the Baptist, greed for riches, and the love of luxury and display had become widespread. Sensuous pleasures, feasting and drinking, were causing physical disease and degeneracy, benumbing the spiritual perceptions, and lessening the sensibility to sin. John was to stand as a reformer. By his abstemious life and plain dress he was to rebuke the excesses of his time. DA 100

A Representative of Gods Last-Day Messengers

In preparing the way for Christ's first advent, he was a representative of those who are to prepare a people for our Lord's second coming All who would perfect holiness in the fear of God must learn the lessons of temperance and self-control... {DA 101.2}

Divine Plan in Medical Missionary Work

Ever since the entrance of sin the Crisis progresses. Sickness, suffering, and degradation is the result and is pervasiveThrough Jesus Christ, God designed a plan of rescue for the world. That end time plan is called Medical Missionary work.

THE DIVINE HEALER

THE BEST MEDICINE

The influence of the Spirit of God is the very best medicine that can be received by a sick man or woman. Heaven is all health; and the more deeply the heavenly influences are realized, the more sure will be the recovery of the believing invalid.--3T 172.

NOT BY HUMAN POWER

We cannot heal. We cannot change the diseased conditions of the body. But it is our part, as medical missionaries, as workers together with God, to use the means that He has provided. Then we should pray that God will bless these agencies...

THE LORDS IMPERATIVE

Do medical missionary work. Thus you will gain access to the hearts of the people. The way will be prepared for more decided proclamation of the truth. You will find that relieving their physical suffering gives an opportunity to minister to their spiritual needs. {CME 7.2}

IN TIME OF PERSECUTION
those who would stand for freedom of

conscience will be placed in unfavorable positions. For their own sake, they should, while they have the opportunity, become intelligent in regard to disease, its causes, prevention, and cure...

IN TIME OF PERSECUTION
All those who do this will find a field of labor anywhere. There will be suffering ones, plenty of them, who will need help, not only among those of our own faith, but largely among those who know not the truth. The shortness of time demands an energy that has not been aroused among those who claim to believe the present truth.--Counsels on Health, p. 506.

THE GREAT FINAL TEST

The truth for this time, the third angel's message, is to be proclaimed with a loud voice as we approach the great final test. This test must come to the churches in connection with true

medical missionary work.

A MIGHTY MOVEMENT
There is no change in the messages that God has sent in the past. The work in the cities is the essential work for this time. When the cities are worked as God would have them, the result will be the setting in operation of a mighty movement such as we have not yet witnessed.--Medical Ministry, p. 304

GIVE HEALTH REFORM ITS RIGHTFUL PLACE

The gospel of health has able advocates, but their work has been made very hard because so many ministers, presidents of conferences, and others in positions of influence have failed to give the question of health reform its proper attention. They have not recognized it in its relation to the work of the message as the right arm of the body...

Health Reform AND THE Third Angels Message

Third angel
When the third angel's message is received in its fullness, health reform will be given its place in the councils of the conference, in the work of the church, in the home, at the table, and in all the household arrangements. {6T
327.2}

THE GOSPEL WORKER

All gospel workers should know how to give the simple treatments that do so much to relieve pain and remove disease. (Ministry of Healing, p. 146) Every gospel worker should feel that the giving of instruction in the principles of healthful living is a part of his appointed work. Of this work there is great need, and the world is open for it. (Ministry of Healing, p. 147)

THE URGENCY OF THE HOUR

QUALIFIED BY THE SPIRIT

As the time comes for it [the message of the third angel] 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. {Evangelism 699.5}

AS THE HAND TO THE BODY

God has shown that health reform is as closely connected with the third angel's message as the hand is with the body. There is nowhere to be found so great a cause of physical and moral degeneracy as a neglect of this important subject. {CH 73.1}

THE RIGHT HAND

Medical missionary work is the right hand of the gospel. It is necessary to the advancement of the cause of God. As through it men and women are led to see the importance of right habits of living, the saving power of the truth will be made known...

THE RIGHT HAND

Every city is to be entered by workers trained to do medical missionary work. As the right hand of the third angel's message, God's methods of treating disease will open doors for the entrance of present truth.--Testimonies, Vol. 7, p. 59.

THE RIGHT HAND

A body without hands is useless. In giving honor to the body, honor must also be given to the helping hands, which are agencies of such importance that without them the body can do nothing. Therefore the body which treats indifferently the right hand, refusing its aid, is able to accomplish nothing. -Medical Ministry, p. 238.

NOT THE MESSAGE ITSELF

but the arm cannot take the place of the body. The proclamation of the third angel's message, the commandments of God and the testimony of Jesus, is the burden of our work...

The message is to be proclaimed with a loud cry, and is to go to the whole world. The presentation of health principles must be united with this message, but must not in any case be independent of it, or in any way take the place of it. {CD 75.1}

We are nearing the end of this earth's history, and the different lines of God's work are to be carried forward with much more self-sacrifice than is at present manifest.
The work for these last days is in a special sense a missionary work. The presentation of present truth, from the first letter of its alphabet to the last, means missionary effort. The work to be done calls for sacrifice at every advance step. From this unselfish service the workers will come forth purified and refined as gold tried in the fire. {CH 216.1}