The Revelation of Jesus Christ - The Herald

the spirit of Christ, the Chief Reaper now present, operating in His true saints on earth,
and calling for Christ Himself, recognized by them as present, to lead His people forth to
accomplish their last divinely commissioned task of gathering the true wheat.
The temple from which these saints represented by the angel are seen coming forth, we
would understand to symbolize the various sects or divisions of the professed Church in
which these saints are found at the beginning of the harvest period. The temple is
frequently employed as a symbol of the various systems containing both mere professors
and the Lord's true people. We thus see that this vision covers the harvest period, and
describes the work that has progressed, and is progressing, of separating the Lord's saints
from sectarianism unto Himself, and gathering them into the Heavenly Garner. This does
not mean their separation from one sect, and gathering into another sect or organization,
but rather their coming into the enjoyment of that true Christian liberty in which nothing
more, nothing less, is required by one Christian of another, than adherence to those truths
that are alone necessary to constitute them true Christians, members of the true Church,
the Body of Christ. Such was the Church Christ established, in which all were accounted
free to study His Word, and obtain a knowledge of the same according to their mental
ability to grasp; and thus grow in both knowledge and grace. Such a liberty enjoyed will of
necessity willingly consent that other Christians may hold and express opinions with
which we disagree, until they are convinced by reason and Scripture that these opinions
are untrue.
"And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, he also having a sharp
sickle. And another angel came out from the altar, which had power over fire; and cried
with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Thrust in thy sharp sickle, and
gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe. And the angel
thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the
great winepress of the wrath of God."--Ver. 17-19.
It seems clear that we have portrayed in the above language, the gathering together of the
various religious and semi-religious institutions and organizations of Christendom,
preparatory to their destruction. The last feature of the destruction itself is described in the
symbolism of verse 20. As in the vision just considered we have noted the work of the
Chief Reaper in the separation unto Himself of the "wheat" class, His true followers, from
the "tares," mere professors, by the harvest sickle of truth, so in this we have described the
gathering together of the nominal Christians, false professors of every kind for symbolic
destruction. It is very proper to call the first, the harvest, and the second, the vintage. In
both we have the same closing events of the Age portrayed as are described by the Savior
in the parable of the "wheat and tares," namely the separating of the true from the false,
preparatory to their being gathered into the Heavenly Garner, and the bundling of the
"tare" systems, preparatory to their being cast into the symbolic "furnace of fire," for
destruction. (Matt. 13:40-42.) The following citation connects these two Scriptures as
describing the same: