What does EGW write about...
Adventistische Schriften über: "God no longer speaks through the General Conference"
Answer
Ellen White made clear that the voice of the General Conference can no longer be regarded as God's voice when a small group of men pursues arbitrary and unwise plans. Nevertheless, God has established that the lawfully assembled representatives of the world church possess authority to which the individual should submit. The danger lies in mistakenly transferring the authority that God has given to His church as a whole onto the judgment of individual persons.
The Authority of the General Conference
Sometimes, when a small group of men, to whom the overall direction of the work had been entrusted, tried in the name of the General Conference to carry out unwise plans and restrict God's work, I said that I could no longer consider the voice of the General Conference, represented by these few men, as the voice of God. But that does not mean that the decisions of a General Conference, which consists of an assembly of properly appointed, representative men from all parts of the field, should not be respected. God has ordained that the representatives of His church from all parts of the earth, when gathered in a General Conference, shall have authority.
I was often given instruction by the Lord that the judgment of any one person should not be subjected to the judgment of any other man. Never should the mind of one man or the mind of a few men be regarded as sufficient in wisdom and power to control the work... But when in a General Conference the judgment of the brothers gathered from all parts of the field is exercised, private independence and private judgment must not be obstinately maintained, but must be relinquished.
You are greatly mistaken if you give the mind and judgment of one man the authority and influence that God has given to His church in the judgment and voice of the General Conference.
One day around noon I wrote about the work that could have been done at the last General Conference if the men in responsible positions had followed the will and way of God. Those who had great light did not walk in the light. The assembly was closed, and the breakthrough did not occur. The men did not humble themselves before the Lord as they should have, and the Holy Spirit was not given.
- Authority of the General Conference
- Voice of God's Church
- Leadership of the Adventist Church
Original Sources (English)
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