The following request was sent to Pastor Russell, which he allowed his wife to answer. (We have edited it here a bit, but have not changed the questions or answers.)

Are we to expect revivals and the conversion of sinners now? 

Are we to labor for this result? 

Is the church coming up higher? 

Are we to come out of the church, take our name off church books, or remain in the church and labor to bring the rest upon the higher plain; or is each individual to be fully persuaded in his own mind and act according to his conscience?

Shall I tell my brothers and sisters of like faith, better come out from among them nominally?

In spirit, I am far from the majority – this I have called “coming out from among them”. I want to be right.

Will you take the trouble to answer this thinking Christian’s questions? 

Please be plain. Many are inquiring. What shall I tell them?

Tell me plain truth, fear not.

DEAR SISTER: – Your letter is at hand, many such show us that there are very many hungry, thinking Christians. Our love and sympathy reach out to all such though we have never met face to face, and we call them brothers and sisters because we see in them the family likeness – the spirit of Christ.

You ask if we may expect revivals of religion in the nominal church.

No, we do not look for any evidence whatsoever of God’s favor to this last phase of the nominal Gospel church (the Laodicean phase), which has been spewed out of his mouth, because in her own estimation, she is rich and increased in goods (both spiritual and temporal) and has need of nothing (She believes she already possesses all the truth necessary, not realizing what she possesses is nothing more than the doctrines and precepts of men, errors mixed with a little truth, the milk of the word so as to make it palatable to her followers). See how perfectly the picture of the church of to-day is drawn in Rev 3:14-19.

“And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God; I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth. Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knows not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked: I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eye salve, that thou mayest see. As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.”

This mixed condition of worldliness and lukewarm Christianity we believe to be the Babylon (confusion) spoken of in Rev 18:2, out of which the Lord calls the few of his own who still remain in that city which is doomed to destruction. There have been some increases to their membership, but this mainly comes by way of counting every member added, they are relegated to urging immature childhood to join their ranks and swell their numbers. But this is not making Christians as we understand the word. Christians are those who have fully consecrated themselves to the Lord – agree to follow Jesus’ footsteps in the crucifying of the flesh (the human privileges and honors, etc.) Most of these new additions are mere nominal Christians, Christians in name only, tares, lured in by social activities and the desire to belong to something more than a desire for truth and understanding. Many are “bound” by the “fear of man which brings a snare”, entraps them through social ostracizations and fear of eternal torment.

All others than the true wheat (the truly consecrated Christians) brought in, help to swell the numbers of the tares. Tares are not wicked people necessarily (though some are wicked, many are really good people, however misled into believing that morality makes them a Christians). They are simply people who are out of place in the church – imitating Christians in some respects as tares imitate wheat. Those who get such into the church nominal, do an injury both to the person and to the church. The church is injured by getting a lifeless member to absorb its vitality, and who as a representative will serve to lower the standard of Christianity.

The individual himself is injured by being told that he is a Christian when he is not, and thus is worse off than if aware of his own true condition and position.

Surely, then, many people who engage in this improper work, some of whom, if not all, think they are doing God service, must be mistaken. And this work has been going on for years so much so that most of the wheat has been choked off by the tares. It is not God’s work but Satan’s. The tares do an injury to the church, and Satan was instrumental (using many of God’s professed children as his instruments) in getting them into the church to work the havoc they have. “He that sowed the tares is the devil,” (Matt 13), no matter who was willing or unwittingly the instrument.

We here would suggest a look at the blog post entitled “He on the Housetop”, which we believe will more thoroughly answer your question with reference to coming out of Babylon. It is of no use, to remain there trying to prop up an organization which God has doomed to destruction: “We would have healed Babylon, but she is not healed: forsake her, and let us go every one into his own country: for her judgment reaches unto heaven, and is lifted up even to the skies.” Jer 51:9

Better far, to trust his judgment with reference to expediency and promptly obey his command as soon as he makes it clear. The Lord loves prompt obedience, and then it is a great advantage, as it gives no opportunity to confer with flesh and blood.

Since we are in the “harvest” of the age, the work to be done is harvest work, NOT revival work. You cannot revive that which the Lord Himself has condemned: The great work of the present is to help to ripen and gather into the barn-condition of safety, the true wheat. We would “do good to all men especially to the household of faith.”

But if we find enough of this special work to keep our time fully occupied, we have no occasion whatever to worry about the rest of the world; for in God’s “due time,” they shall all be brought to a knowledge of the truth and a full, fair opportunity to gain eternal life, and though they may first die (in Adam) the ransom price entitles them to a restoration from the Adamic death, and an opportunity to escape the second death by obedience to the law of God written in their hearts, no more stony but fleshly. (Jer 31:33.) Then, instead of being prone to do evil as the sparks to fly upward, it will be the reverse – easy and natural to obey when the knowledge of the Lord shall fill the whole earth, and when the Lord rules instead of Satan.

Knowing God’s glorious purposes for the world, Jesus let the Gentiles alone and devoted his time entirely to the harvesting of the Jewish church. Though Gentiles as well as Jews were constantly going down in death, he did not try to save them then, knowing it was not yet God’s due time.

I am glad to know that in spirit you are separate from the nominal church; I think all of God’s true children are. They see the effects, but they do not understand the cause of the loss of God’s favor to her. “Woe to those who are at ease in Zion (the church nominal);” but the Lord will “comfort all that mourn in Zion.” Those who do mourn in her are those of the Lord’s true people still trapped in her, who see her true condition and wish for healing, but there is no healing as is stated by the prophet quoted above in Jer 51:9.

But when will the Lord comfort these mourners?

Isaiah says her condition shall be a vexation to such, only till he makes them to understand the doctrine – or the plan of God. And his plan is now being made clear to those who can rest their faith on a “thus saith the Lord,” ignoring entirely the traditions of men.

In coming out there are many sacrifices to be made, and you especially will find it so. A minister in our city said: I believe these things are true, but it would not be prudent to preach them. The Pastor replied to this minister, “I would fear to be too prudent in this matter since the Lord “hides things from the wise and prudent.” That minister had a large family well supported by a fashionable, worldly congregation who did not want to be disturbed in their sleep (their ignorance of their true condition and lack of truth). He ventured to preach a little of what he believed and they told him it would not do; and to-day he is hiding his light under a bushel, or rather, it has gone out and he is walking on, hand in hand with the world, flourishing in worldly affairs; yet who can estimate that poverty he has in spiritual things?

You may be called upon to sacrifice your present means of living, but fear not, the Lord will provide another. No man hath forsaken all to follow Jesus, who did not receive a hundred-fold in return. It was refreshing to read that last sentence in your letter – “Tell me plain truth, fear not.” For many of God’s truly hungry children their desires for His truth and for understanding supersedes any fear they may have of being shown any long-cherished errors they may have believed through ignorance. They are the humble and the meek, true followers of the Lord, and they know his voice (his truth) when they hear it and will promptly discard the rubbish of any errors they may have been unwillingly holding on to.” R317