October 22, 1844 had passed and Jesus had not come. William Miller and tens of thousands of other Advent believers had been disappointed.
A few weeks later, on November 10, 1844, Miller wrote a letter to his dear friend and colleague, Joshua Himes. In this letter he described his faith and assurance that God would provide him with a clearer understanding of their great disappointment. “Here I mean to stand,” he wrote, “until God gives me more light.”
Miller addressed the questioning Second Advent brethren on March 20, 1845: “I will answer you according to the best light I now have. And I hope to humble myself in such a manner as to receive more or better light if God or any of you should give me such.”
His heart was in line with 2 Chronicles 7:14, which states, “If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves and pray…” Miller humbly waited for God to make sense of their disappointment.
Later in this same letter, Miller wrote, “I am on the Rock yet. I know my Captain will not fail. I must wait and have patience…. Wherever the mistake may be it is not in my power to rectify it. I must leave that with God.”
He revealed the persevering faith described in Revelation 14:12, “Here is the patience of the saints.”
Nine years after his death, Ellen White described William Miller as being in perplexity, anxiety and distress over the loss of unity and love among the Advent believers. He was leaning toward the light of the third angel’s message and the commandments of God (Revelation 14:12). Some of the leaders in the preaching of the Second Coming of Christ in 1843-1844 were working to keep Miller from this light and finally succeeded in leading him to oppose the third angel’s message.
Miller earnestly desired to understand why Jesus didn’t come on October 22, 1844. He longed for the love and unity among the Advent believers to be restored. He humbled himself before God. His faith persevered. And yet, he momentarily took his eyes off of Jesus and instead looked to his trusted friends and colleagues. As a result, he was never privileged to enjoy the blessing of the seventh-day Sabbath rest. Neither did he get to live to see the return of His Savior and Friend, Jesus Christ.
In 2020, our only safety is in keeping our eyes on Jesus.
We need the humility, faith, and perseverance of William Miller. But let us take heed where he erred.
There is a determined effort by the enemy to “shut out Jesus” from our view.1 Satan knows that our only safety is to keep our eyes on Jesus. Only then can we truly “keep the commandments of God and have the faith of Jesus” (Revelation 14:12).
It is possible for us to read the Bible, pray, witness to others about our beliefs, attend church, and even preach without having our eyes on Jesus. Often our mind's eye is turned away from Jesus by news headlines, human relationships, jobs, and hobbies. The solution is not to get rid of all of these things.
Call to Action
Read the Bible in order to know Jesus. Pray in order to know Jesus. Tell others what you have seen and heard of Jesus. Talk to Jesus about the news headlines. Talk to Jesus about your relationships. Take Jesus with you in your work and play. Honor Him in all you do!
Paul sums it up well in 1 Corinthians 10:31: "Therefore whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." In these last days this is our only safety.
All scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
- Ellen G. White, Spiritual Gifts (Battle Creek, Michigan: Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association, 1858), volume 1, 183.
