My Journey to Life - Daily Study Guide

Appendix B—Ellen G. White’s Relationship to The Bible

The second key focus of Ellen White’s life was the Bible. It played a foundational and central role in her personal experience and ministry. Not only did she use Scripture, but her writings are full of Scripture and point almost continuously to the Word of God.— Understanding Ellen White, p.ix.7 JTLD 402.1

ELLEN WHITE AND SCRIPTURE: R. Clifford Jones: Seventh-day Adventists value the life and ministry of Ellen G. White. Having died in 1915, “Sister White,” whose life and work are believed by Seventh-day Adventists to have met the criteria of a prophet, wrote prodigiously, leaving a body of writings that has guided the denomination since its inception. Yet she has not been without detractors and to this day continues to attract a horde of admirers and critics alike.— Understanding Ellen White, p.45.1 JTLD 402.2

ELLEN G. WHITE’S USE OF SCRIPTURE: Frank M. Hasel: It has been aptly stated that Ellen G. White “is the most prolific, most published and most influential author” in the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Her voluminous work is immersed in biblical thought, and what she wrote is highly indebted to Scripture. Even a casual reader of Ellen G. White’s writings notices how frequently and profusely she refers to the Bible. She not only uses the Bible copiously; her thoughts abound with biblical imagery, and her writings often echo biblical language and ideas. This is reflected in a variety of different ways as she uses the Bible. In this paper we will examine her treatment and use of Scripture as evidenced in numerous instances in her published work.— The Gift of Prophecy in Scripture and History, p.301.1 JTLD 402.3

LEADING THE WAY: Ellen White Led the Way in Building a Biblically Oriented Message for the World. In the very early period (1844-1848), before even a nucleus of a dozen fellow believers was formed, before any published documents were available, Ellen Harmon was conceptually leading the way in developing the Biblically based coherency of what became the distinctive message of Seventh-day Adventists. This remarkable conceptual leadership and nurturing remained a fact of Adventist life till her death.— Messenger of the Lord, p.555.4 JTLD 402.4

But while the Bible is the standard by which all teaching and experience must be tested, many wrest that Word to their own destruction: “Some who profess to make the word of God their study are found living in direct opposition to its plainest teachings. Then, to leave men and women without excuse, God gives plain and pointed testimonies, bringing them back to the word that they have neglected to follow. . . . If you had made God’s word your study, with a desire to reach the Bible standard and attain to Christian perfection, you would not have needed the Testimonies. JTLD 402.5

Thus, Ellen White saw her writings as subject to the Bible, but if the visions come from God, they have authority. “The waymarks which have made us what we are, are to be preserved, and they will be preserved, as God has signified through His Word and the testimony of His Spirit. He calls upon us to hold firmly, with the grip of faith, to the fundamental principles that are based upon unquestionable authority.”—Understanding Ellen White, p.25.1-2 JTLD 402.6

THE FRUIT OF ELLEN WHITE’S MINISTRY: Arthur G. Daniells declared that the “strongest proof” for the genuineness of the prophetic gift in Ellen White was its “fruits, ... not in physical and outward demonstrations.” He went on to suggest how this “gift” should be taught to others. He would “begin with the beginning of this movement. At that time here was a gift to that individual, at the same time came this movement of the three-fold message. They came right together in the same year. That gift was exercised steadily and powerfully in the development of this movement. The two were inseparably connected, and there was instruction given regarding this movement in all its phases through this gift, clear through for seventy years. JTLD 403.1

He then reviewed how the fruit of Ellen White’s writings had made the difference in the church’s attitude toward the Bible and its study; in the church’s commitment to Evangelism, in this country and the world over; in the Adventist habit of unselfish support of this worldwide outreach; in its community help work; in its health and medical missionary programs, and in its “wholesome” educational philosophy. He concluded his talk with this challenge: “If that [recital of her impact on all areas of Adventist life] is not evidence of the source of this gift among us, then I do not know what would be evidence.” JTLD 403.2

In reference to a question regarding Ellen White’s relationship to the Bible, Daniells made it clear that it would be wrong to say that the “Spirit of prophecy [meaning Ellen White’s writings] is the only safe interpreter of the Bible.” After all, he said, what then would we do with people who become Adventists in other lands, “who have not seen a book on the Spirit of prophecy?”—Messenger of the Lord, p.435.3-5 JTLD 403.3