Messenger of the Lord

Clarifying Biblical Truth

Ellen White never claimed that her writings were to supersede the Bible. ⁷ She saw that her “first duty” was “to present Bible principles” and if there was no “decided, conscientious reform” she would “appeal to them personally.” ⁸ In fact, her “Testimonies” would not have been needed “if you had made God’s Word your study with a desire to reach the Bible standard and attain Christian perfection.” ⁹ MOL 170.6

Further, she never claimed infallibility, always emphasizing that “God alone is infallible.” ¹⁰ She was always open to the unfolding of truth. Progressive truth, for her, would not contradict previously revealed truths but expand it. ¹¹ MOL 170.7

Correcting contemporary errors in Christian thought became an essential part of setting forth Biblical principles. Ellen White would say: “It has been given to me to correct specious errors and to specify what is truth.” ¹² MOL 170.8

In her primary concern that the Bible be seen as the Christian’s only rule of faith and practice, she felt compelled to emphasize that, in some instances, what had been understood for centuries to be “Bible truth” might be merely “floating germs” and the “rubbish of error.” ¹³ MOL 171.1

In addition to correcting these “floating” theological germs that permeated conventional Christianity in the nineteenth century, she was shown that some basic Christian truths had lain dormant from the first century. These truths were to be recovered and placed within the larger framework of the “everlasting gospel” that was to be preached in its fullness at the end of time. ¹⁴ MOL 171.2

Because of these self-perceptions as God’s messenger to assist in clarifying Biblical truth, Ellen White and her contemporaries understood that her counsel was on a higher level than that of other Bible students. Her involvement in the formation of Seventh-day Adventist doctrine was perceived as normative. MOL 171.3