December 9, 2018
For a time in 1981 the Seventh Day Adventist Church was on a roll as one of the fastest growing denominations in the world. They committed to growing by a million new members in a 4 year timeframe meaning they would need to add 485 new members daily. One can’t help but commend their zeal, and effort to evangelize.
But when we look at the Seventh Day Adventist church from a biblical view, we soon realize that it cannot be the church Jesus shed His blood for and certainly is not the church we read about in the Bible. This church supports many false teachings such as, belief in “the spirit of prophecy”, “annihilationism” “Diet and Health Restrictions”, “Tithing”, “Investigative Judgment” and “Sabbath Keeping”. In this article I would like to address only three issues, that being their, “Historical Beginning”, “Teaching on Baptism”, and “Sabbath Keeping”.
Historical Beginning: The most obvious reason for their error filled doctrine is their history, and origin. Christians know with absolute certainty that the founder of the churches of Christ is Jesus, (Eph. 5:23; Col. 1:18; Acts 20:28; Matt. 28:18) and that the church began in Jerusalem in 32AD on the day of Pentecost, (Acts 2:38, 41-42, 47). Therefore, any church that came into being after this cannot be the church that Christ built (Matt. 16:18). But this denomination grew out of the “Millerites movement”. Its founders were “Joseph Bates”, “James White”, “J. N. Andrews” and “Ellen G. White”. Its origin only 155 years ago; May 21, 1863 in Battle Creek, Michigan. William Miller was a skeptic, converted to the Baptist Church, and became a minister. From his study of Daniel and Revelation came his prediction that Christ would return in glory on March 21, 1844, and unfortunately Christ didn’t return then, nor on his second specified date, October 22, 1844. But his failure caused many “Millerites” to lose faith and drifted away right into the teaching of Ellen G. White. She claimed to have a vision where followers of the Adventist faith were ushered into heaven and with craft she then reinterpreted Miller’s predictions saying Miller was right on the date but wrong about the event. She claimed that on October 22, 1844 Jesus entered the most holy place of the heavenly sanctuary and there began to judge and investigate the lives of the believers, and when Jesus finished this “investigative judgment,” He would return to the earth and the millennium would begin. Crafty because it was an un-seeable event thus could not be disproved. This 17-year-old girl saved the movement started by Miller and eventually became the leader of Seventh Day Adventism. As for their history they have founders other than Christ, and in a place other than Jerusalem, and at a time other than the first century.
Baptism: As for baptism their own 2016 version of the “Seventh-day Adventists Church Manual” on pages 45 and 46 of 247 pages lists thirteen questions that must be answered yes by candidates before baptism. Here is question #3: “Do you accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and personal Savior, believing that God, in Christ, has forgiven your sins and given you a new heart, and do you renounce the sinful ways of the world?” (p. 45). Answering yes to this is a confession in the belief that forgiveness of sins comes before baptism. Why is this error? Because to affirm or confess that forgiveness takes place before baptism is to deny the inspired word of God. In Acts the 37th verse Jews on the day of Pentecost asked, “What must we do?”, “Then Peter said to them, ‘Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:38). Ananias being instructed by the Lord told Saul/Paul, “And now why are you waiting? Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord” (Acts 22:16). Again, Peter said, “There is also an antitype which now saves us—baptism…” (1 Pet. 3:21). There are indeed other passages of Scripture, but if God in one place says it, that is enough.
Sabbath keeping: Another thing that stands out is their teaching about Sabbath keeping, that is assembling on Saturday. It was in 1847 that Mrs. White claimed she saw the Ten Commandments in a vision and that there was a “halo around the 4th commandment”. She continues on that an angel of the Lord explained to her that Saturday must be kept as the Christian Sabbath. As a result, Seventh Day Adventists worship on Saturday. The most elementary Bible student knows that it is true that God rested after the creation: “2 And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. 3 Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made.” (Gen. 2:2-3). Elementary to every beginning bible student is the knowledge that observing the Sabbath became a binding ordinance for man only after the Law of Moses was established: “8 “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates. 11 For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it.” (Exo. 20:8-11, See also Ex. 16:22-31). Again every student of the Bible knows the Mosaic Law was specifically for the Jewish nation and that all changed on the day of Pentecost when Christians understand that it is no longer in force “14 For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation, 15 having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace,” (Eph. 2:14-15) and “14 having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross” (Col. 2:14). Jesus is now our High Priest (Heb. 8:1), and if the priesthood has changed so the law changed, “1 Therefore, if perfection were through the Levitical priesthood (for under it the people received the law), what further need was there that another priest should rise according to the order of Melchizedek, and not be called according to the order of Aaron? 12 For the priesthood being changed, of necessity there is also a change of the law.” (Heb. 7:11-12). Paul wrote, “But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law” (Gal. 5:18). Paul wrote to the church at Rome, “Therefore, my brethren, you also have become dead to the law through the body of Christ, that you may be married to another—to Him who was raised from the dead, that we should bear fruit to God” (Rom. 7:4). Christians are no longer under the Law of Moses and the prophets, but the Law of Christ (Gal. 6:2).
The Seventh Day Adventist Church claims to accept the Bible as their only rule of faith and practice, but they also believe in “the spirit of prophecy.” Walter Rea, an Adventist minister from Patterson, CA, after detailed analyzing of Mrs. White’s writings concluded she was a plagiarist alleging that she borrowed from many 19th century writers quoted from at least 75 different books without giving credit and then passed the ideas off as her own, estimating that 80% of her writings were “word for word” from other works. He destroys her claim to divine inspiration. It is not surprising that Mr. Rea was thrown out of the church after he published his conclusions in a book entitled “The White Lie.”
The following passages strengthen every Christian’s resolve that the Bible is our only rule of faith. It is complete and all-sufficient, containing all that we need to believe and practice “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Tim. 3:16-17), “as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue” (2 Pet. 1:3), “Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, ‘If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. 32 And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free’” (Jn. 8:31-32). What is truth? Jesus said, “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life” (John 6:63), and “Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth” (John 17:17).
Our faith must be in the word of God, (Rom. 10:17) and that word was once delivered to the saints (Jude 3), which means there is no place in God’s scheme for latter-day prophets such as Joseph Smith, Mary Baker Eddy, or Ellen G. White or any other (Gal. 1:6-10). And in everything to Him be glory forever and ever. Amen!
Love
David Scarpino