| Author | Message | ||
| Colleentinker |
I'm wondering how others' understandings of one's state in death and the subject of hell has changed since leaving Adventismóor has it changed? Friday night Trinity pastor Gary Ingrig was the guest at our Bible study, and he did a second installment of a Bible study he began in August on the subject of eternity and hell. It was very compelling. The Bible certainly looks different without an EGW overlay! In our group it seems that the state of the dead is the last doctrine to undergo transformation. It certainly has changed my life to believe that the part of me that knows Jesus will never leave him, even in death. I'm interested in others' reactions. | ||
| Susan |
Colleen, thanks for bringing up this topic. I've often wondered how sda's can claim such an unbiblical teaching. Growing up sda I was very afraid of death and hell. I was taught an unhealthy and incorrect way to understand these things. Becoming a Christian opened up a whole new world for me. I studied the bible for the first time with no EGW veil over my eyes. When you study the bible, asking the Holy Spirit to guide you, it changes EVERYTHING. Truths just pop out at you all over the place! The biblical teaching on the state of the dead is so very plain. When a believer in Jesus dies, their souls instantly go to be with the Lord. I can't believe how clear this is in the bible. I was taught verses to back up the sda's point of view. But upon careful study, their points just don't hold up. Walter Martin addresses this topic quite well on a cassette tape about sda's from CRI, also in his book "The Kingdom of the Cults". The peace and assurance that I now have, in the finished work of the cross, is something I never experienced before. It's truly awesome! Death doesn't scare me. I can rest in the truth that I am eternally in the Father's hands! "Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies" John 11:25 | ||
| Rayna |
I would like to have more Bible truth on this subject. Since there is a New Testament and and Old Testament, there seems to be different beliefs about the state of the dead. It does seem that Christian believers have a different hope since Jesus has ascended to heaven. "He that believeth in the me shall never die." John 11:26. I too would appreciate more teaching on the state of the dead since I am no longer an SDA. | ||
| Ernie |
It is very interesting that once you shake one of the "pillars" of Adventism, the rest just crumble. As soon as I found the historical flaws within the Sabbath theology, I began a search on the state of the dead. The result was a deep theological and exegetical study that cleared all my misconceptions on the subject. First, I was taught that Gen. 2:7 teaches humankind was created as a living soul. However, I discovered that the Hebrew structure of the text shows that our race was created as possessing a living soul, making a distinction between the rest of the living beings created by God and us. This is very important because Adventism denies the fact that we possess a living soul, and force the verse to indicate the humans are living souls. Second, in Job 27:3 we find Job speaking that"as long as I have my soul within me, and the breath of God in my nostrils..." The passage indicates that there is a distinction between the soul and the breath of God. Job knew that upon death the soul abandons the body, and the breath of life is absent. Third, in Matthew 10:28 Jesus is very clear when he says that we should not be afraid of those "who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell." The implications of this passage are ver very important. Jesus makes a crystal clear distinction between body and soul. He says that anyone can destroy the body by causing one's death. However, it is God who has the power to destroy the whole being in Hell. For Jesus the being is more than body, it is body and soul. Jesus say sthe soul can not be destroyed in death. Fourth, Paul speaks in Philippians 1:23, 24 of his desire "to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body." The structure of this verse in Greek is as follows: departing to be with Christ vs. remaining alive (in the body). The verb depart in Greek is "analuo" which implies being set free. For Paul death is the freeing of the soul to be with Christ until He comes again with the reward for body and soul. The same word in Greek is used in 2 Tim. 4:7, when Paul speaks that the time of his departure (death) has arrived. As we may see, the Bible speaks of a soul departing in death, a soul that can not be destroyed by death and a soul that departs to be with Christ through death. This is just a sample of what God has taught me in the Scriptures about the subject of what happens after death. Ernie | ||
| Lori |
My answer will concur very much with Susans. When I began to accept that the real truth was different than the Adventist truth, I discovered that for the first time in my life I was no longer afraid to die. I felt very good about my new views on where your soul goes, until yesterday. And in my quest to find another answer in the scripture. I came across Daniel 12:13 As for you, go your way till the end. You will REST and then at the end of the days you will rise to receive your allotted inheritance. .....after reading that I found my self in utter confusion.........(but I have rectified it in my mind as "this is before the death of Christ, they did not have the same HOPE as we now have) And I remember reading somewhere in the NT that as you progress in your knowledge of scripture that it becomes a necessity to go back again and relearn THE GOSPEL. And it does seem so true........we become so involved in the "do" and "do not" that we forget the gospel. And, it seems with every truth you find, that Satan haunts you with a different view. I still have difficulty with the Sabbath, I have excepted that it does not matter, but that song, "Don't forget the Sabbath.... the day the Lord has blessed".......ect..... it pops into my head all the time. Until I just wonder is this ever going to end. (The hanging doubt of 'you might be wrong.' or the remark from an Adventist friend who has just found out your new views and the immediate response of "if youre not careful you'll be deceived", "your walking into deception" or something of the like). I've learned that the scripture is my best friend and often times when I look for answers and I cry out for God to send me a real person to audibly tell me the answer......I most often find silence. I have also found that the times when I'm searching for an answer and that I ask God to shield me from those people that will prevent me from finding that answer.......I don't hear from my Adventist friends. We have an amazing God........the truths that the Holy Spirit has shown to me have given me a peace and joy that I have never known before!!!!!! And back to the original question, I pretty much accepted it all at the same time, within a week or so. I'm still having difficulty with the last day events and what happens......but in time I will find those answers also. The most wonderful thing I have found when you begin to doubt and find yourself in confusion, is to go back to the Gospels, read one of them...... May God bless you all in your new faith!!!! | ||
| Ernie |
Lori: You are not alone; we all have passed through those doubting moments. I was a pastor, and all the years I spent studying Adventist theology have not been erased by magic. God has worked out by stages my pilgrimage from Adventism. It all began with the sabbath and the Law. Afterwards, the question of EGW; later the state of the dead, etc. But one thing I can say, God is faithful and He is always ready to give us the guidance we need. Don't try to solve all your theological questions in a moment. Spend time with the Lord in prayer and Bible study. As you progress in your quest, the Holy Spirit will lead you to all truth. Lori, I know what you are passing through, I've been there, and God has done wonderful things in my life. Satan will remind you of all those things Adventists teach about being in darkness and confusion, but God will always give you the answer you are searching for through the Scriptures. God bless you, Ernie | ||
| Lynn W |
Lori, remember all those years spent following Ellen White, and the deception it lead to. You have far less to worry about when following the Word of God, He will lead you into all truth. |
