| Author | Message | ||
| Asurprise Registered user Username: Asurprise Post Number: 3441 Registered: 7-2007 |
Adventism teaches people that they have "a work" to do in staying saved. They completely ignore all the verses that say that Jesus does it Himself once a person believes on Him for salvation - verses like Philippians 1:6 and Hebrews 12:2. They ignore all the verses that say a believer "has been saved, such as Ephesians 2:8-9, Titus 3:5 and 2nd Timothy 1:9. They even ignore 1st John 2:12, perhaps because the implications of that one are staggering! John is writing a letter to believes telling them that they sins are forgiven. Obviously it would still be true by the time they got the letter! Instead Adventists focus on the verses that urge believers to walk in the Spirit, to walk worthy and to strive for rewards. | ||
| Islander Registered user Username: Islander Post Number: 27 Registered: 4-2014 |
My dad was probably the second most honorable man ever on this planet. He told me growing up if I had the will power to live a clean cut righteous life on my own then to go to any church I felt comfortable at when I grew up. He also told me that he realized he needed a church that set the rules and guidlines of acceptable behavior because otherwise he would be drawn into a life of debauchery. Since he realized his limits I am thankful for the guidelines the SDA church set for him. The result is my dad never ever got drunk or smoked or landed in jail or was unfaithful in thought,word or deed to my mother and me as a parent. However, having put in a kudos for churches with a lot of rules I attend churches that enphasize all things good are possible through Christ and to live in a state of prayer and forgiveness and grace. The result is I am as clean cut as my dad was but I don't have to continue reminding myself of the rules and studying the 28 Fundamentals. | ||
| Iamfree Registered user Username: Iamfree Post Number: 23 Registered: 3-2014 |
I have noticed a trend among Adventist who came into the church on their own, and that is a tendency to set up walls that will "keep" them on the straight and narrow path. They have a hard time believing that the Holy Spirit will guide a person in their conduct. It becomes a one size fits all sort of approach. EGW says not to wear jewelry, therefore I will not and you should not either. The boundaries keep them on the straight and narrow as you said and I think they truly cannot envision a life that is not governed by rules. I will agree that many people have kept themselves out of trouble with the above philosophy but for many of them living life with the rules is serious business and they rarely experience much joy. I just saw a post on a Christian forum that said "yeah the gift is free, but we can't just expect it without doing anything on our part". But then how is it free if we have to do something to receive it? My personal opinion is that they avoid the texts about a free gift because it doesn't fit in with the Sabbath philosophy. If they use verses that talk about freedom, they will eventually be questioned about how the Sabbath fits in. Way before I found anything out about EGW and other erroneous doctrines, I had to admit to myself that the Sabbath being the seal, contradicted the idea that we are saved by grace. I actually remember feeling that Jesus sort of contradicted himself in some of what he said. How could he offer a free gift, but we still had a requirement to keep the commandments? The lens or filter that is used in SDA circles, keeps so much from being clear, I know this from personal experience for sure. | ||
| Asurprise Registered user Username: Asurprise Post Number: 3442 Registered: 7-2007 |
Oops, I forgot to continue that last line of thought. Adventists think those verses mean that that they HAVE to "walk worthy," etc. in order to be saved. They tell themselves they love God but they are really afraid of Him. Deep down then, they don't love God at all and sometimes even hate Him! Christians have been saved, so they "walk worthy" because the Holy Spirit is in them and they want to because they love God. They love God because they know He has saved them and that HE keeps them saved! | ||
| Colleentinker Registered user Username: Colleentinker Post Number: 14891 Registered: 12-2003  |
Yes, Adventists have no real framework to understand the work of the Spirit because they do not understand the true nature of man and in general are not born again. The indwelling Spirit is a mystery to them; they think of the Spirit as informing us inout front lobe neurons; they have no understanding of being regenerated and transferred from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of the Beloved Son. I agree, Adventism inoculates its members against the gospel. Colleen |
