One Fold, One Shepherd: The Identity of God’s People Before the Return of Christ
“Will God’s End-Time People Belong to One Denomination or a Worldwide Fellowship of Believers?”
Introduction
Our topic addresses an important question for Christians living in anticipation of the Second Coming of Jesus Christ:
Will God’s people in the last days be identified primarily by membership in a specific denominational organization, or will they consist of a diverse fellowship of believers from many backgrounds who have united themselves to Christ?
This question touches on the nature of the church, the meaning of Christian unity, the prophetic role of religious organizations, and the identity of the remnant people described in Scripture.
To explore this subject, we will look carefully at the Bible, the writings of Ellen G. White, insights from Roy Gane, reflections from C. S. Lewis, and the prophetic role assigned to the Roman Catholic Church and the papacy in Protestant prophetic interpretation.
The Fundamental Question: What Makes Someone Part of God’s People?
The Bible consistently places the emphasis on a person’s relationship with Christ rather than merely institutional membership.
Jesus declared:
“I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me.” (John 10:14 NIV)
Notice that Christ’s sheep belong first to Him.
Jesus also said:
“I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd.” (John 10:16 NIV)
This statement is remarkable.
Christ acknowledged that many of His true followers existed outside the visible religious body that His listeners recognized. The defining characteristic was not organizational membership but responsiveness to the Shepherd’s voice.
The Apostle Paul similarly wrote:
“The Lord knows those who are his.” (2 Timothy 2:19 NIV)
God’s knowledge penetrates beyond denominational labels.
At the final judgment, Christ does not ask whether individuals belonged to a particular religious corporation. Rather, He examines whether they knew Him and obeyed Him through faith (Matthew 25:31-46).
God’s End-Time People in Revelation
The book of Revelation does describe a distinct end-time people.
Revelation 14:12 states:
“This calls for patient endurance on the part of the people of God who keep his commands and remain faithful to Jesus.”
Two identifying characteristics appear:
- Faith in Jesus
- Obedience to God’s commandments
Similarly, Revelation 12:17 describes:
“Those who keep God’s commands and hold fast their testimony about Jesus.”
Notice that Revelation does not identify God’s final people by a denominational name.
Instead, it identifies them by spiritual characteristics.
The remnant are people whose loyalty belongs to Christ and whose lives reflect obedience to God.
This does not eliminate the importance of organized churches. Throughout Scripture God works through organized communities.
However, the biblical emphasis remains on faithfulness rather than mere affiliation.
Ellen White and the Gathering of God’s People
Ellen White strongly believed that God had raised up the Seventh-day Adventist movement for a prophetic purpose.
Yet she also repeatedly taught that God’s children existed in many religious communions.
One of her most famous statements appears in The Great Controversy:
“Among earth’s inhabitants, scattered in every land, there are those who have not bowed the knee to Baal.”
She further wrote:
“Notwithstanding the spiritual darkness and alienation from God that exist in the churches which constitute Babylon, the great body of Christ’s true followers are still to be found in their communion.”
This statement is significant.
White did not teach that every sincere Christian would instantly become lost because they belonged to another denomination.
Rather, she taught that Christ had and has faithful followers in many churches.
In The Great Controversy she wrote:
“Babylon is said to be ‘the mother of harlots.’ By her daughters must be symbolized churches that cling to her doctrines and traditions.”
Yet she simultaneously emphasized that many sincere believers remained within those churches.
For Ellen White, the issue was never simply denominational membership.
The issue was whether people followed Christ and accepted advancing biblical truth as God revealed it.
One Church, Many Backgrounds
The New Testament repeatedly portrays God’s people as a spiritually united body composed of people from diverse backgrounds.
Paul wrote:
“There is one body and one Spirit… one Lord, one faith, one baptism.” (Ephesians 4:4-5 NIV)
The church includes Jews and Gentiles, rich and poor, men and women, people from every nation.
Revelation expands this picture dramatically.
John sees:
“A great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language.” (Revelation 7:9 NIV)
This multitude is not described by denominational labels.
Its unity is centered upon the Lamb.
The closer believers move toward Christ, the closer they move toward each other.
Roy Gane on Covenant Loyalty
Roy Gane frequently emphasizes covenant relationship as the central biblical reality.
The covenant is fundamentally about allegiance to God.
According to Gane’s writings on Revelation and the sanctuary message, God’s end-time people are identified by covenant faithfulness expressed through trust in Christ and obedience empowered by grace.
In this understanding, organizational structures matter because they support mission and discipleship.
Yet organizational membership alone never saves.
Salvation remains rooted in Christ alone.
God’s final people are those who have entered a genuine covenant relationship with Him.
C. S. Lewis and Mere Christianity
C. S. Lewis provides a valuable perspective.
In Mere Christianity, Lewis compares denominational traditions to rooms in a great house.
The hallway represents essential Christianity, while the rooms represent various traditions.
Lewis wrote:
“It is in the rooms, not in the hall, that there are fires and chairs and meals.”
He valued denominational churches while insisting that Christianity itself is larger than any one tradition.
Lewis warned Christians against confusing the kingdom of God with their own party or denomination.
He believed that Christ has followers in places where we might not expect to find them.
This perspective harmonizes with Jesus’ statement:
“Whoever is not against us is for us.” (Mark 9:40 NIV)
Lewis would likely remind believers awaiting Christ’s return that denominational loyalty must never replace loyalty to Christ Himself.
The Papacy and End-Time Prophecy
Many Protestant reformers identified the papal system with the prophetic symbols of the Antichrist found in Daniel and Revelation.
Among those holding this interpretation were figures such as Martin Luther, John Calvin, and John Wesley.
Ellen White continued this historic Protestant interpretation.
She associated the prophetic sea beast of Revelation 13 with the papal system as a religious-political power.
However, White carefully distinguished between systems and individuals.
She repeatedly emphasized that many sincere Christians remained within Catholicism and other churches.
The biblical conflict of the last days is therefore not simply between denominations.
It is fundamentally between:
- Human authority versus God’s authority
- Tradition versus Scripture
- Compromise versus faithfulness
- Worship of the Creator versus worship directed through counterfeit systems
The central issue becomes allegiance.
Jesus asks every believer:
“Whom do you serve?”
The Loud Cry and the Final Gathering
Revelation 18 portrays a final appeal to humanity:
“Come out of her, my people.” (Revelation 18:4 NIV)
Notice the wording.
God says “my people.”
Before the call is given, God’s people are already present in various religious systems.
The call gathers them.
This implies that sincere believers exist in many places before the final crisis reaches its climax.
Ellen White repeatedly emphasized this point.
She envisioned a final movement in which honest-hearted believers from numerous denominations respond to the Holy Spirit and unite around biblical truth.
This does not create a loose, disorganized spirituality.
Rather, it creates a unified people centered on Christ, Scripture, and obedience to God.
What Ultimately Defines God’s People?
The Bible provides several identifying marks.
They Love Jesus
“If you love me, keep my commands.” (John 14:15 NIV)
They Follow Scripture
“Your word is a lamp for my feet.” (Psalm 119:105 NIV)
They Possess the Faith of Jesus
Revelation 14:12 emphasizes enduring faith centered on Christ.
They Reflect Christ’s Character
Galatians 5:22-23 describes the fruit of the Spirit:
- Love
- Joy
- Peace
- Patience
- Kindness
- Goodness
- Faithfulness
- Gentleness
- Self-control
They Proclaim the Everlasting Gospel
Their mission is not denominational triumphalism but gospel proclamation.
Conclusion: One Shepherd, One Flock
As we conclude, the biblical picture appears balanced and beautiful.
God works through organized churches and movements.
The Seventh-day Adventist movement understands itself as having a prophetic mission related to the messages of Revelation 14.
Yet neither Scripture nor Ellen White teaches that denominational membership alone determines who belongs to Christ.
The true church is larger than any earthly organization.
God’s people before the Second Coming will include believers from many nations, cultures, languages, and backgrounds.
They will ultimately be united not by a human institution but by their allegiance to Jesus Christ.
They will be a people who:
- Trust Christ completely.
- Keep God’s commandments through grace.
- Follow the Lamb wherever He leads.
- Reject human traditions that contradict Scripture.
- Reflect the character of Christ.
- Await His glorious return.
In the end, the defining question will not be:
“What denomination did you belong to?”
The defining question will be:
“Did you belong to Jesus?”
As Christ Himself declared:
“My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.” (John 10:27 NIV)
And on that glorious day, believers from every tribe, tongue, nation, and background will stand together before the throne, not celebrating denominational identity, but worshiping the Lamb who redeemed them.
“Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.” (Revelation 7:10 NIV)
That is the ultimate identity of God’s end-time people: one flock, one Shepherd, and one Savior—Jesus Christ.
