| Author | Message | ||
| Jorgfe Registered user Username: Jorgfe Post Number: 283 Registered: 11-2005 |
I recently received an email advertising a "Healthful Living Ministry" Camp Meeting. The title of the Seventh-day Adventist campmeeting is "Preparation For The Time of Trouble". The lead quotation on the cover page comes from Seventh-day Adventism’s "continuing and authoritative source of truth which provide for the church comfort, guidance, instruction, and correction" — prophetess Ellen White. It states "A Storm is coming, relentless in its fury. Are we prepared to meet it?", Testimonies to the Church, vol 8, page 315. "Workshop Topics" cover "Spiritual, Physical, Rural & Mental Preparation". Subjects include "New World Order, Knife Sharpening, Raw Food, Water Purification, Outdoor Shelters, Natural First Aid, Hydrotherapy, Gentically Modified organism, Food Simplifying, Purity & Cleanliness, Wood Stove Cookery, Fire Starting, Beware of Microwave Oven, Toxic Cleaners, Disease (Men/Women), Liver Cleanse, Edible Plants, Walk". Now these are all fascinating topics, but presented within the context of spiritual preparation? This "campmeeting" sounds more like the focus is on self-preservation than on how to pass out Bibles, and share the Good News with those who don’t know Jesus. It reminds me of the denominationally-sponsored "Wilderness Survival Seminars" that I went on as a youth, where we were trained in survival techniques, and how to hide during "the Time of Trouble". Wilderness Survival Seminars also showed a gripping film entitled, "Prepare For the Storm!" The story line involves a family who, upon learning that a National Sunday Law has been passed allowing any Christian who worships on Sunday to kill Seventh-day Adventists, quickly throws their survival gear in the back of their automobile, and head off, in this case, for the Smoky Mountains. This is not fantasy, but the fear-instilled, mentality behind many of Ellen White’s writings. In Hebrews 4 we read about a 7th-day Sabbath keeping Jewish nation, who never suceeded in experiencing the Sabbath Rest that God tried to offer them — because of their "unbelief". Human nature always wants to be in control. Our sin-filled human nature is such that we always want to do it "our way". The focus is on "us", and self-preservation. Satan is the author of fear. Jesus is our true Sabbath Rest. He says, "Come unto me, all ye that are heavy-laden and I will give you rest." That is not a rest 1 in each 7 days such as the Israelites fastidiously pursued, but an eternal Sabbath Rest in Christ. But we have to believe, and that is so hard when human nature wants desperately to be in control of earning our own salvation through works. Four of my favorite verses are: "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind." 2 Timothy 1:7 KJV "For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship." Romans 8:15 NIV "Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee." Hebrews 13:5 KJV "For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more." Hebrews 8:12 NIV It is my prayer that the One Who Died For Us will always find us at our post of duty, passing out God’s Word and sharing the Good News with those He died for – not hiding out in the mountains in fearful expectation of a time without a Heavenly Intercessor. Gilbert Jorgensen | ||
| Lucybugg Registered user Username: Lucybugg Post Number: 33 Registered: 2-2007 |
As a teenager I read a book by Penney Estes Wheeler about the time of trouble and the different scenarios/characters. It scared the living daylight out of me. | ||
| Colleentinker Registered user Username: Colleentinker Post Number: 6083 Registered: 12-2003  |
Oh, Gilbert, if it weren't so horrifying it would be funny. Richard said he thinks he saw that movie; he remembers people throwing gear into a station wagon, driving away, and looking back from their mountain hide-out to see bombs exploding in the city... Where is Jesus in all of this? Colleen | ||
| Raven Registered user Username: Raven Post Number: 769 Registered: 7-2004  |
Ah yes, about how many years is it between new stories of the same old theme? The one that was circulating when I was in my late teens was "Project Sunlight." I read it over and over again and found it very fascinating. The other day I was going through some very old papers and was shocked to find a story I had written in the 7th grade for a Bible class assignment. I can only assume the lesson was about end times and persecution, because my story was my own brand of that very topic. I read it to my daughter and she was laughing at the idiocy of such paranoia. In my story, the crisis came when the President decided he was tired of so many religions, so he was making everyone be "Sunday-keeping Baptists" and was forcibly taking everyone's Bibles so they couldn't find any disagreement. | ||
| Jorgfe Registered user Username: Jorgfe Post Number: 286 Registered: 11-2005 |
Colleen -- That was the same movie. I still have the Wilderness Survival Magazines. Some of them have a running story from a 1955 Southern Publishing book about "When Time Ran Out". The story is SO bizarre that I want to put it online some day. Between that and Ellen White's story in Testimonies about (as I remember it) Catholics surrounding her house in a dream, Adventism is not that far removed from what David Koresh taught. Gilbert Jorgensen | ||
| Flyinglady Registered user Username: Flyinglady Post Number: 3805 Registered: 3-2004  |
OH Yuck. And to think I believed it at one time. Thank you God for taking me and all the rest of us out. You are so awesome. Diana | ||
| Reb Registered user Username: Reb Post Number: 146 Registered: 5-2007 |
I was traumatised by this teaching when I believed in it to the point I would pray to God to let me die before it happened. Praise God that I no longer believe this nonsense! It's complete bollocks. The idea that there would be a Universal Sunday Law is absurd on its face! Do they really think for one minute that the U.S. and RCC would be able to force Red China to worship on Sunday? Yeah, right Red China's response would be "no way" or something worse. Furthermore the RCC could give a rip whether people worship on Saturday they even have Masses on Saturday at many of their churches. | ||
| Dennis Registered user Username: Dennis Post Number: 1114 Registered: 4-2000  |
Good points, Reb! | ||
| Ikilgore Registered user Username: Ikilgore Post Number: 45 Registered: 11-2006 |
Hey guys, I think that my mom is on some last kick to stay in the church. She is on this whole deal about how the church is right on using prophecy to get the message out. I told her well that’s great, but what about giving a Gospel message? She really didn’t say much. I thought how sad. I told her that the Adventist church could be an effective church if maybe it preached the Gospel. You can throw all the prophecy you want, but it won’t mean nothing unless you have the Gospel. Adventism is such a drag. You never have joy about the Master that you are serving. It is always WWED. What Would Ellen Do? You know what I mean. Sunday law this. There is absolutely NO PLACE IN THE BIBLE THAT SUPPORTS THAT!!! In my academy religious propaganda class, the teacher used some bit from Revelation to support an idea of a US backed Sunday law. It was a pretty weak thing as he had to use several non-biblical sources to back it up. I raised my hand and asked him if this was just some Adventist idea. He claimed it wasn’t and that some other churches thought the same. I asked what ones did and he didn’t have an answer. They don’t know! The Bible says that you can’t guess when the Lord will return, so why are the Adventists so bent on it??? I think Adventists really put too much emphasis on the “Me” part of salvation and not enough on the “Jesus” part of it. They think that you can save yourself. I can’t save myself. I chose someone bigger than me and I am proud of it. They can take their end times junk and round file it. I want to spend everyday of my life not living in fear of some fairy tale. I would be a little worried about the last few verses in the Bible. I used the NET Bible translation for this one: 22:18 I testify to the one who hears the words of the prophecy contained in this book: If anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book. 22:19 And if anyone takes away from the words of this book of prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city that are described in this book. 22:20 The one who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon!” Amen! Come, Lord Jesus! 22:21 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all. Revelation 22:18-20 Just my thoughts on it! | ||
| Reb Registered user Username: Reb Post Number: 156 Registered: 5-2007 |
Right on, Ikiligore!!!! You said it exactly. | ||
| Colleentinker Registered user Username: Colleentinker Post Number: 6106 Registered: 12-2003 |
I agree, isaiah. With prayers for you and your mom, Colleen | ||
| 91steps Registered user Username: 91steps Post Number: 164 Registered: 8-2005  |
Once my wife and I were baptized we were given the National Sunday Law booklet by one of the elders. I read it when we got home and that evening before vespers I told him it was very comical reading material! He went nuts, told me we would be hunted down by "Sunday Keepers", etc, etc. He was fanatical about this so I decided to let it go. But later I told him how crazy that idea was, imagine telling millions of NASCAR fans that there would no longer be any races on Sunday, no football, baseball or any other sports on Sunday. No way did I or can I believe that nonsense about a Sunday Law. | ||
| Jorgfe Registered user Username: Jorgfe Post Number: 569 Registered: 11-2005 |
91steps, Can you imagine the United States legislating via the United Nations that all Muslims will, effective immediately, start observing Sunday instead of Friday? The whole Seventh-day Adventist preoccupation with Sunday Worship and Catholicism is totally bizarre! Gilbert Jorgensen |
