One hundred and eighty years ago today, in fulfillment of the Bible’s longest time prophecy (Dan. 8:14), heaven’s tribunal assembled to commence review of the life records of those within the human family who have professed to be followers of the God of Scripture (Dan. 7:9-14; 12:1; Rev. 3:5). This doctrinal and prophetic construct, often described as the investigative judgment, is built on the Bible’s collective witness in both the Old and New Testaments. Despite repetitive assaults across the decades of Seventh-day Adventist history, this unique theological contribution to Christian thought continues to provide answers to any number of humanity’s vexing inquiries relative to the character of a loving God and the parallel challenge of senseless evil.
Much has been said, and much more will continue to be said, on this website and elsewhere in defense of the various features of this doctrinal edifice. But as we survey the lapse of time since October 22, 1844, one question that still perplexes many minds is why this greatest and most exhaustive of all judicial proceedings has taken so long.
The Bible is clear that the end-time judgment foretold in the prophetic books of Daniel and Revelation begins with a review of the cases of the dead who have professed the name of the Lord (Rev. 11:18). Echoing the pronouncements of Scripture, Ellen White declares:
In 1844 our great High Priest entered the most holy place of the heavenly sanctuary, to begin the work of the investigative judgment. The cases of the righteous dead have been passing in review before God. When that work shall be completed, judgment is to be pronounced upon the living. How precious, how important are these solemn moments! [1].
But why would it take the Lord this long to finish the judgment of the righteous dead? The answer lies not only in the delay caused by the spiritual unpreparedness of the living church, but also by the adherence of the God of Scripture to the imperative of utter transparency.
The Frustration of Time
Time can be frustrating, especially to those able to discern the hurtful direction people and events are taking. This was true of U.S. President Woodrow Wilson and his young Assistant Secretary of the Navy, Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Following Wilson’s re-election to the presidency in 1916, Roosevelt urged him to at once declare war on Germany, whose militaristic malevolence had become clear to so many in the early years of the First World War. In early 1917, after Berlin had announced its plans for unrestricted submarine warfare in the Atlantic, Roosevelt urged Wilson to prepare the American Navy for quick action.
But Wilson refused, at least for a time, telling Roosevelt:
I want history to show not only that we have tried every diplomatic means to keep out of the war, to show that war has been forced upon us deliberately by Germany, but also that we have come into the court of history with clean hands [2].
Like Roosevelt, Wilson knew war with Germany was inevitable by that time. Indeed, a scant few months after making the above statement to Roosevelt, Wilson was constrained by Germany’s unleashing of the U-boats to ask Congress for a declaration of war. But by then, it was clear to the world that such an act on the part of the United States was both just and unavoidable. America’s policy of patience had paid off, and the course her leaders had been constrained to follow was vindicated.
The God of Transparency
The theology of the delayed second advent—what many call the harvest principle—has everything to do with divine transparency. Revelation describes two harvests when Jesus returns—one of good (Rev. 14:14-16), the other of evil (verses 17-20). Both must reach full fruition before the command to reap is given. Only when full fruition is reached on both sides will God’s longsuffering tolerance of evil be understood by the watching universe.
It’s easy to become exhausted with the onslaught of bad news in the world. But you and I have an advantage that heaven doesn’t—we can grab the remote and shut the set off. Heaven, by contrast, has to keep watching and recording. This process is imperative for demonstrating God’s transparent dealings with all. The unfallen universe can see what humans do behind closed doors, but only God can read the heart and discern its motives (I Kings 8:39). Thus the opening of the books of record will disclose secret motives, unseen vulnerabilities, unapparent openness to the revealing of truth of which only God is aware. All of this must be laid before the discriminating intelligence of God’s creatures so as to demonstrate His unqualified fairness and eternal justice.
Conclusion
The psalmist Asaph wrote of his discouragement at seeing the prosperity of the wicked, and how their corrupt deeds appeared never to receive rightful recompense (Psalm 73:1-12). He lamented the taunts of the unrighteous at divine justice: “How doth God know, and is there knowledge in the Most High?” (verse 11). (Many continue to pose this scornful question today.) All but resigned to the futility of his own pursuit of righteousness (verses 13-15), Asaph found his thoughts too painful (verse 16), until he discovered the laboratory of the divine purpose and its modeled outworking of the just end of sin and sinners:
Until I went into the sanctuary of God; then understood I their end (verse 17).
This is why the investigative judgment matters. This is why its central role in Seventh-day Adventist theology remains non-negotiable. This is why, despite unspeakable pain and grotesque tragedy, time continues to linger. The righteous and the wicked must both reveal the fullness of the character they have chosen. This is why the books are opened and the full weight of evidence laid before all. Not because God doesn’t know in advance the eternal destiny of those examined, but so the watching citizens of His kingdom may be forever convinced of His infinitely righteous dealings throughout the saga of the great controversy.
REFERENCES
1. Ellen G. White, Selected Messages, vol. 1, p. 125.
2. Robert Dallek, Franklin D. Roosevelt: A Political Life (New York: Penguin Random House, 2017), p. 62.
Pastor Kevin Paulson holds a Bachelor’s degree in theology from Pacific Union College, a Master of Arts in systematic theology from Loma Linda University, and a Master of Divinity from the SDA Theological Seminary at Andrews University. He served the Greater New York Conference of Seventh-day Adventists for ten years as a Bible instructor, evangelist, and local pastor. He writes regularly for Liberty magazine and does script writing for various evangelistic ministries within the denomination. He continues to hold evangelistic and revival meetings throughout the North American Division and beyond, and is a sought-after seminar speaker relative to current issues in the Seventh-day Adventist Church. He presently resides in Berrien Springs, Michigan