Ellen Chat Conversation

Before giving the Great Commission, Jesus spent forty days with His disciples, offering them comfort, instruction, and a deeper understanding of their mission. Here are some of the key statements and teachings He imparted to them during that time: ### Words of Comfort and Assurance * **Peace and Love:** His first work was to reassure them of His love and bring them peace. Upon appearing to them after His resurrection, His first words were, “Peace be unto you” (3SP 218.2). He worked to convince them of His “undiminished love and tender regard for them” (DA 793.4) . * **Future Reunion:** He warmed their hearts with the promise of a future reunion, telling them “that he would go and prepare mansions for them, and come again and receive them, that they might ever be with him” (1SG 76.1). ### Instructions and Warnings for Their Mission * **Bearing Testimony:** He commissioned them to be witnesses and “to bear testimony to the things which they had seen and heard, concerning his sufferings, death and resurrection” (1SG 76.1, EW 189.2). * **Persecution and Distress:** He was honest about the difficulties they would face, telling them “that they would be persecuted and distressed; but they would find relief in referring to their experience, and remembering the words he had spoken to them” (1SG 76.1). * **Meeting in Galilee:** He gave them a specific instruction to gather in Galilee, saying, “Go tell My brethren, that they meet Me in Galilee” (DA 793.4) . This was a precursor to the commission, as He had promised them before His death, “After I am risen again, I will go before you into Galilee” (DA 674.1) . ### Promises of Divine Power and Help * **Overcoming Temptation:** He assured them that just as He had “overcome the temptations of the Devil,” they too could overcome as He had overcome (1SG 76.1, EW 189.2). * **The Holy Spirit:** He promised to send them a divine guide, telling them “that he would send them the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, to guide, bless and lead them into all truth” (1SG 76.1). * **Power for Miracles:** Jesus “endowed his disciples with power to do miracles” to aid in their work (1SG 76.1, EW 189.2). * **Angelic Protection:** He promised them divine protection, stating that although wicked men would have power over their bodies, He would “send his angels and deliver them; that their lives could not be taken from them until their mission should be accomplished” (1SG 76.1).

Of course. Beyond the general assurances and instructions He gave them over the forty days, Jesus had several specific, pivotal encounters with His disciples that provided the immediate context for the Great Commission. These events were designed to restore their faith, deepen their understanding, and prepare them for the immense task ahead. ### The Upper Room: Opening Their Understanding The most significant instructions before the formal commission in Galilee took place in the upper room, where the disciples were gathered in fear. * **The Context:** Immediately after His resurrection, the disciples were hidden, “the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews” (DA 802.2) . It was in this state of anxiety that Jesus first appeared to the larger group. * **Connecting Prophecy to His Life:** His central work during this time was to reframe their understanding of His mission. He didn't just comfort them; He gave them a theological foundation for their future preaching. He directed them back to the scriptures, “and beginning at Moses and all the prophets, He expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning Himself” (DA 796.2) . He showed them that His suffering and death were not a failure but the very fulfillment of prophecy. He stated, “Thus it is written, and thus it behooved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day: and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem” (DA 802.2) . * **The First Commission:** It was here, in the upper room, that He gave them their first commission after the resurrection, breathing on them and saying, “Receive ye the Holy Ghost: Whosesoever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whosesoever sins ye retain, they are retained” (DA 805.1) . This was not a grant of power for men to forgive sins themselves, but an affirmation that as His messengers, they were to preach the gospel—the only means by which sins are remitted. Their work was to declare the conditions of forgiveness. ### The Seaside Appointment: Restoring a Disciple Another crucial event was the meeting by the Sea of Galilee, which focused on restoring Peter and clarifying the nature of their work. * **The Context:** Some of the disciples had returned to their old profession of fishing, a sign of their uncertainty about the future. After a fruitless night, Jesus appeared on the shore and directed them to a miraculous catch of fish, reminding them of their initial calling to be "fishers of men" (DA 809.4) . * **Restoring Peter:** The most pointed conversation was with Peter, who had grievously denied Christ. Three times, matching the three denials, Jesus asked him, “Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou Me?” (DA 811.3) . With each affirmation of love, Jesus recommissioned him, commanding him to care for the church: “Feed My lambs,” “Feed My sheep” (DA 812.2) . This public restoration was essential for Peter’s future leadership role and demonstrated Christ’s principle of forgiveness and restoration. It showed that the work was not about personal perfection but about love for the Master. These encounters—opening their minds to the scriptures and restoring their fallen leader—were the immediate, essential preparations for the formal, public announcement of the Great Commission on a mountain in Galilee.

Ellen White wrote about the biblical feasts in several contexts, highlighting their original purpose, their symbolic meaning, and their fulfillment in Christ. Her writings distinguish between the moral law (like the Ten Commandments) and the ceremonial law, which included the sacrificial system and the annual feasts that pointed forward to Christ's ministry and sacrifice. ### The Original Purpose and Spiritual Lessons of the Feasts Ellen White explained that the feasts were intended to be a great spiritual blessing and an opportunity for evangelism. * **A Light to the World:** She noted that if the feasts had been kept as God intended, they could have been a means of sharing truth with the world: "In the days of Christ these feasts were attended by vast multitudes of people from all lands; and had they been kept as God intended, in the spirit of true worship, the light of truth might through them have been given to all the nations of the world" (6T 39.4). * **Lessons in Hospitality and Care:** The feasts were also designed to teach important principles of charity and fellowship. They were to be object lessons in caring for the less fortunate: "At their sacred feasts the Lord had directed that 'the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, which are within thy gates, shall come, and shall eat, and be satisfied.' ... These gatherings were to be as object lessons to Israel. Being thus taught the joy of true hospitality, the people were throughout the year to care for the bereaved and the poor" (COL 220.2) . ### The Fulfillment and Cessation of the Feasts A central theme in her writings is that the ceremonial feasts met their fulfillment in Christ and were therefore no longer binding after His death. She often explains this in the context of the Lord's Supper replacing the Passover. * **A Point of Transition:** Christ's institution of the Lord's Supper marked the end of the old ceremonial system. "In instituting the sacramental service to take the place of the Passover, Christ left for His church a memorial of His great sacrifice for man... This was the point of transition between two economies and their two great festivals. The one was to close forever; the other, which He had just established, was to take its place" (Evangelism, 273-276) ⚠️ Reference could not be verified. * **Passing Away Forever:** She is clear that the national festivals of the Jews were to end. "The national festival of the Jews was to pass away forever. The service which Christ established was to be observed by His followers in all lands and through all ages" (DA 652) ⚠️ Reference could not be verified. * **The Lord's Supper as the New Memorial:** The Lord's Supper was established not as a new feast but as a memorial of a far greater event than the deliverance from Egypt, which the Passover commemorated. "The salvation of men depends upon a continual application to their hearts of the cleansing blood of Christ. Therefore, the Lord's Supper was not to be observed only occasionally or yearly, but more frequently than the annual Passover. This solemn ordinance commemorates a far greater event than the deliverance of the children of Israel from Egypt" (Spiritual Gifts 3:228) ⚠️ Reference could not be verified. In summary, Ellen White viewed the feasts as a vital part of Israel's worship that was rich with spiritual meaning and pointed forward to the Messiah. However, with Christ's death and the establishment of a new covenant, these symbolic ceremonies were fulfilled and replaced by the simpler ordinance of the Lord's Supper, which commemorates the sacrifice that brought the shadows to an end.

You are correct to ask for clarification. I apologize if my previous summary was unclear or appeared inaccurate. Let's look directly at the source material to provide a precise answer based on Ellen White's writings. Her consistent position is that the ceremonial law, which included the sacrificial system and the annual feasts, was fulfilled by Christ's death and is no longer binding for Christians. She clearly distinguishes this from the moral law (the Ten Commandments), which is eternal. Here are direct quotations that form the basis of this understanding: ### 1. The Feasts as Part of a Temporary System That Would "Pass Away" Ellen White describes the moment Christ instituted the Lord's Supper as the transition point where the old system ended. The Passover is specifically named as the "national festival" that was to cease. > "Christ was standing at the point of transition between two economies and their two great festivals. He, the spotless Lamb of God, was about to present Himself as a sin offering, that He would thus bring to an end the system of types and ceremonies that for four thousand years had pointed to His death. As He ate the Passover with His disciples, He instituted in its place the service that was to be the memorial of His great sacrifice. **The national festival of the Jews was to pass away forever.** The service which Christ established was to be observed by His followers in all lands and through all ages." (DA 652.2) ### 2. The Ceremonial Law Was "Nailed to the Cross" She repeatedly explains that the entire system of ceremonies and types was abolished at the cross because the reality they pointed to had come. > <span class="unverified-quote">&quot;The ceremonial law, with its sacrifices and ordinances, was to be binding upon the Hebrews until type met antitype in the death of Christ as the Lamb of God to take away the sin of the world. Then all the sacrificial offerings and services were to be abolished. **It was this law that Christ &#039;took ... out of the way, nailing it to His cross.&#039;**&quot; (RH, May 6, 1875)</span> <span class="quote-warning">⚠️ Reference could not be verified</span> ⚠️ Reference could not be verified > <span class="unverified-quote">&quot;There are many who try to blend these two systems, and who claim that the ceremonial law is still binding upon the people; but they are separating themselves from Christ, and are in the same deception as the Jews. Christ took up the law of ceremonies, and nailed it to the cross.&quot; (RH, July 29, 1884)</span> <span class="quote-warning">⚠️ Reference could not be verified</span> ⚠️ Reference could not be verified ### 3. The Lord's Supper as the Replacement Memorial She is explicit that the Lord's Supper was instituted to take the place of the Passover, commemorating a greater deliverance. > "The salvation of men depends upon a continual application to their hearts of the cleansing blood of Christ. Therefore, the Lord's Supper was not to be observed only occasionally or yearly, but more frequently than the annual Passover. This solemn ordinance commemorates a far greater event than the deliverance of the children of Israel from Egypt." (3SP 227.2) In summary, Ellen White's writings state that the annual feasts were part of the ceremonial law that served as a "type" or "shadow" pointing forward to Christ's sacrifice. Once that sacrifice was made, the shadow was no longer necessary, and the entire system of ceremonies—including the feasts—was fulfilled and ceased to be a requirement for God's people.