16 May 2002 Editorial:
Final Triumph

Larry Kirkpatrick

Last night was a snapshot in time. From the ninth floor of Loma Linda Medical Center my wife and I looked out over the city lights stretching toward LA. A church member in a possible coma, and the television news doing its paces. A teacher has been suspended from public school for sealing a student's mouth shut with masking tape after repeated commands to the child to stop talking. Another case plays on the screen of police chasing a car followed by helicopter-assisted apprehension of the perpetrator (these are almost a daily occurance down here). Then there was a shooting earlier today in an apparent road rage on the freeway. The shooter still on the loose, but they have a license-plate. Evening in SoCal.

Here we are in supposedly the oyster of society and it seems more like a tottering ruin. You ask yourself, will this never end? Is God going to win this thing?

But Adventists know the answer.

Hear a portion of Psalm 50:

The mighty God, even the LORD, hath spoken, and called the earth from the rising of the sun unto the going down thereof. Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God hath shined. Our God shall come, and shall not keep silence: a fire shall devour before Him, and it shall be very tempestuous round about Him. He shall call to the heavens from above, and to the earth, that He may judge his people. Gather My saints together unto Me; those that have made a covenant with Me by sacrifice. And the heavens shall declare His righteousness: for God is judge Himself. Selah.

God will manifest truth through His people. Then He will come. When He has nothing more to prove, when the universe is ready to heave its collective sigh of relief and say "game, set, and match," He will come. The silence will end. He seems silent to us, but we only hear the rattle of the moment; God hears the rumble of the ages. When it is time, we will hear the rumble too.

When Jesus comes, a fire shall devour before Him. All that is false will end, all that is true will be vindicated. It will be the close of an age that never will return.

The proud veneer of man will collapse along with his works. All the foundations will melt with fervent heat. All the books of a new order will be barbeque. The inspired works will stand. A people will endure and follow Jesus through all the subtleties. The scholars who refused to stand for truth will tremble and plead for the rocks to fall upon them. Voices always lifted in what they thought was moderation will go silent in terror. The day of the Lord will no more be a day future. All faces will gather paleness. Self-examination will loom at the forefront of every mind's attention, but by such a time it will be too late. Probation will have closed. The harvest will be ended. And some will not be saved. They will know, finally, the second resurrection. It will be no movie special effect. It will be reality.

But our Father shows us a better way. Walk into the inferno accompanied by the Holy Spirit. Be firm. Though the heaven's fall, cling to your Maker and Redeemer and do with Him what you could never do without Him. Follow the Lamb wherever He goes.

But gather up your courage now. Be a sore thumb, yes, if that's what it takes. It's OK. Make no compromises. Jesus didn't. Let this be your hour.

Pastor Larry Kirkpatrick is an ordained minister of the gospel. Since 1994 he has served in the American Southwest as pastor to several churches. He received his BA in Religion from Southern Adventist University in 1994 and a Master of Divinity from Andrews University in 1999 with a specialization in Adventist Studies. While in Michigan he was employed by the General Conference at the White Estate Berrien Springs branch office. More important than his scholastic preparation has been his immersion in the biblical and Spirit of Prophecy materials. He is author of the 2003 book Real Grace for Real People. Presently he serves as Pastor of the Mentone Church of Seventh-day Adventists, located near Loma Linda, California. Larry is married to Pamela. The couple presently live in Highland, California along with their two children, Etienne and Melinda.