Transcendent, Holy Kinship; The Immortal, Unequivocal Ministry Of Moselijah

Moselijah...  A fictitious name of course, but I made it up because Moses and Elijah share a special sort of ministry which heaven has preserved through canon and their trans-glorification, in Elijah's case, without seeing death.  But Just how are these two connected in the scriptures?  Let's find out:

Mal 4:4  Remember ye the law of Moses my servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments. Mal 4:5  Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD: Mal 4:6  And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.

In the above passage, the calling forth of Elijah before the great and dreadful day of the Lord is connected in close proximity to the "law of Moses my servant".  Why do you suppose this is?  What did Elijah do in his ministry?  Elijah called the people to choose the God of their rightful worship by great signs and wonders.  Elijah's greatest gift to the human race was his call, "How long halt ye between two opinions? if the LORD be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him."  Moses called the people to choose the God of their rightful worship by great signs, wonders, and by the receiving of the law of God, His statutes, judgments, and precepts. 

There are many rumblings of an Elijah messenger in Adventist circles but do we really fully understand what this is?  I can admit I am not fully aware of the full glory of what the text in Malachi is referring to.  I do understand that the greatest commandment calls attention to the fact of the clear understanding of the personality and presence of God, and how our love must be kept full toward Him through it with all our being. 

Deu 6:4  Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD: Deu 6:5  And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. Deu 6:6  And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: Deu 6:7  And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children...

Have we done this?  Have we taught our children this ONE greatest of all commandments?  Have we accepted the admonition in Malachi to turn the hearts of the children to the fathers and the hearts of the fathers to their children through the teaching of this great commandment?  What do we teach them now?  Do we teach them of three "coequal", "co-eternal" persons?  How is this "The Lord our God He is one Lord"?

This is not a fulfilling ministry of the fathers to the children.  Therefore, the people must hearken again to the Elijah, the Elijah that came, the Elijah that was to come, and the Elijah that now is:

Mat 3:3  For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.

So, who were/are/is this/these Elijahs?  I would count the first to be Enoch, the second to be Elijah, the third to be John the Baptist. 

The way the modern Christian counts Elijah is through the enforcing of a creed, the preaching of a law nailed to a cross, and a dim recollection of what he thought he might have been should he have done what was right with respect to the law.  This is not the white garments being offered through a full understanding of the righteousness given through the power of the spirit of God, the fulfilling of the law in Christ. 

Have the ministers of this Christian world preached the fullness of the law, the statutes, ordinances, and the sum of the Christian duty in the keeping of them?  Have they brought Elijah to the people with the law of Moses in their hearts and between their eyes?  Very few have, and very few will.  Broad is this road, and large is this gate...  The narrow way is not narrow because of men being closed-minded, but because they have chosen to reject the largeness of the way of the world and its many modes of forgetfulness of the spirit and power of Elijah.  Where does your broad road end and your view of the narrow way begin?

When Christ was transfigured before his disciples, there appeared before him Elijah and Moses on the mount.  Why did this happen?  It is recorded in Matthew and Mark:

Mat 17:10  And his disciples asked him, saying, Why then say the scribes that Elias must first come? 17:11  And Jesus answered and said unto them, Elias truly shall first come, and restore all things. 17:12  But I say unto you, That Elias is come already, and they knew him not, but have done unto him whatsoever they listed. Likewise shall also the Son of man suffer of them. 17:13  Then the disciples understood that he spake unto them of John the Baptist.

What was restored by Elijah?  A proper regard for the worship of God and His law?  ""Make His paths straight"  What does this mean?  Is it the narrow paths?  Surely it must be, and these through the first and greatest commandment that the Lord is one Lord! A crooked understanding of God and Christ will not make the paths of the Lord, as narrow as they are in the human mind, straight.

No wonder these men were translated to heavenly glory!!  They were preaching a message that would call the ire and unquenchable indignation of the haughty worldly kingdoms against them.  The authority of worldly potentates was broken in their worship and submission to the commandments of God.  There would be no getting rich off the Hebrew nation.  There would be no ignorant subjugation of the people of God.  But this could be accomplished only insomuch that the people would carry out the designs of their Lord to the letter of His mercy.

What are these letters of His mercy?  Let us check the Spirit of Prophecy, since we believe in prophets like Moses, Elijah, John the Baptist, and others of significant note in the Bible:

Thou shalt make no covenant with them." God's servants in responsibility realized that the line of demarcation between his people and the people of the world is ever to be kept unmistakably distinct. They refused to be guided by the counsel of those who for years had known the requirements of God's law, but who had refused to yield to its claims.  {RH, April 25, 1907 par. 11}     The principles set forth in Deuteronomy for the instruction of Israel, are to be followed by God's people to the end of time. Our prosperity is dependent on the continuance of our covenant relationship with God. In no instance can we afford to compromise principle by entering into covenant with those who fear not God.  {RH, April 25, 1907 par. 12}     There is constant danger that professed Christians will come to think that in order to have influence with worldlings, they must conform to the world to a certain extent. But although the propositions of Satan may appear to afford great advantages, as did the offer of the Samaritans to assist in the construction of the temple, they always end in spiritual ruin. God's people must guard against every subtle influence that is seeking entrance by means of flattering inducements from the enemies of his truth.  {RH, April 25, 1907 par. 13}

What is so important about Deuteronomy?  I mean, isn't the grace message of Paul a negation of the Old Testament understanding of the law?  Aren't those statutes and judgments part of what was abolished at the cross?   Apparently not according to our Bibles and our sacred literature from God through Ellen White.  Let us take, for example, a statement of Paul's which conveys a fuller understanding of our duty:

1Co 5:9  I wrote unto you in an epistle not to company with fornicators: 1Co 5:10  Yet not altogether with the fornicators of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or with idolaters; for then must ye needs go out of the world. 1Co 5:11  But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat.

So since our understanding of the law of God only includes the ten commandments, which are clearly included in Paul's list of peculiar thou shalt not's, where is the commandment against drunkenness or railing?  These are not explicit in the moral law, yet Paul calls them out just the same.  So then what are they if they are not commandments?  They are statutes and judgments.  And these are spelled out in Deuteronomy.  This is why it is important to take care who we fellowship with, listen to, allow to instruct our children, etc... 

Where is the commandment to abstain from swine's flesh, if, in fact, there is no point in regarding the law of Moses?  Isn't it just fine to eat this food since the law of Moses was supposedly nailed to the cross per Colossians 2:14?  What about strangulated animals and food sacrificed to idols?  Why did Paul have any writings at all with respect to these if the grace of God was covering all this foolishness of men? 

If Daniel was only an example of extremity and legalism, why then are we to abstain from certain foods listed unclean in the Old Testament? Why is the health message of a vegetarian diet so important and what are the theological and spiritual consequences of it? 

This doesn't even address the issue of the keeping of the feasts.  But is this important too?  Decide for yourself, but do as the prophet says and go and learn from Deuteronomy. 

What then was ended at the crucifixion of Christ?

Dan 9:27  And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.

There is nothing here about the statutes and judgments of God ending as a result of the sacrifice of Christ.  This is why Malachi brings up Elijah in connection with Moses.  The law and love are only complete in Christ, but without the law can there ever be love? Not according to the Bible.  Thou shalt love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, and strength.  His strength, the strength of perfection, is made perfect in our weakness.  Our strength is perfected in his righteousness and by beholding the fullness of his law.  We cannot show forth the love of God without a regard for His ways, which are His commandments, statutes, and judgments.

"If you love me, keep my commandments."