| Author | Message | ||
| Max |
I'M DONE. THERE IS NOTHING MORE I HAVE TO DO. A friend of mine recently made the following statement: To say, "I'm done, there is nothing more I have to do, He did it all,î would ìallow me to be the most wicked person and get away with it scot-free; after all, He paid for everything.î To which I replied, If I DONíT say, I'm done, there is nothing more I have to do, He did it all,í then I truly am eternally damned. For the truth of scriptural gospel is now and has always been exactly this: "I'm done, there is nothing more I have to do, He did it all." And any deviation from this scriptural truth is legalism, pharisaism, and White-ism. It is absolutely true that the true believer is under obligation (Romans 8:12) to take up her/his cross and follow Jesus, but the good choices made by the Christian have zero effect upon her/his salvation or damnation. If the Christ-claimer lives an evil life -- "does a Hitler," for example -- then the evil life is only a "by their fruits shall ye know them" kind of evidence that s/he never had salvation in the first place. The life of the evil Christ-claimer is NOT evidence that s/he had salvation then lost it by failing to make good choices and by instead making evil choices. The life of the evil Christ-claimer IS evidence that s/he never had salvation in the first place. For the Son God has always known -- from before the foundations of the earth were laid -- who does and who doesnít belong to him. The most fundamental argument that my friends the Adventists use to maintain their version of the gospel is this: If you rely totally on Christ's blood, then you can go out and do anything you want (meaning sin) and we'll still be saved. Implication: Christ's blood isn't really enough. It only cleanses past sins. It never cleanses present and future sins. It only covers them. You need to make good choices and avoid evil choices. Here are three things that are wrong with this SDA painting: 1. It denies the all sufficiency of Christ's cleansing -- not covering -- blood past, present and future. And it adds human choices. 2. It shows a lack of faith in the power of the Holy Spirit in the life to keep true believers in grace till Christ's second appearing. And "that which is without faith is sin" (Romans 14:23). Therefore, the SDA mind-set and attitude is sinful and will result in their eternal loss as long as they continue distrusting Godís Word. 3. It shows a lack of the knowledge of Scripture. Romans 7 clearly sets up the dilemma with sin that the Christian faces every day and Romans 8 solves the dilemma. But from my looong experience in Adventism Romans 7 and 8 taken as a problem-solution unit is off their radar map. My friend also stated that under "I'm done, there is nothing more I have to do, He did it allî grace ìthe most wicked personî would be allowed to get away with the most wicked deeds ìscot-free.î To which I replied: We have a scriptural example of "the most wicked person" and getting away with it scot-free by reason of the fact that the Son God did pay for everything: the thief on the cross. And that's why I worship the Son God. | ||
| Cindy |
Dear Max, Thank-you for your thoughts above... That's why I worship God's Son, too. He holds us always close to His heart! As Psalms 31 says, "But I trust in you, O Lord; I say 'You are my God.' My times are in Your hands." Grace always, Cindy | ||
| Denisegilmore |
"My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, so far from the words of my groaning? O my God, I cry out by day, but you do not answer, by night, and am not silent. Yet you are enthroned as the Holy One; you are the praise of Israel. In you our fathers put their trust; they trusted and you delivered them. They cried to you and were saved; in you they trusted and were not disappointed. But I am a worm and not a man, scorned by men and despised by the people. All who see me mock me; they hurl insults, shaking their heads: 'He trusts in the Lord; let the Lord rescue Him. Let Him deliver Him, since he delights in Him.' Yet you brought me out of the womb; you made me trust in you even at my mothers's breast. From birth I was cast upon you; from my mother's womb you have been my God. Do not be far from me, for trouble is near and there is no one to help. Many bulls surround me; strong bulls of Bashan encircle me. Roaring lions tearing their prey open their mouths wide against me. I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint. My heart has turned to wax; it has melted away within me. My strength is dried up like a potsherd, and my toungue sticks to the roof of my mouth; you lay me in the dust of death. Dogs have surrounded me; a band of evil men has encircled me, they have pierced my hands and my feet. I can count all my bones; people stare and gloat over me. They divide my garments among them and cast lots for my clothing. But you, O Lord, be not far off; O my Strength, come quickly to help me. Deliver my life from the sword, my precious life from the power of the dogs. Rescue me from the mouth of the lions; save me from the horns of the wild oxen. I will declare Your name to my brothers; in the congregation I will praise You. You who fear the Lord, praise Him! All you descendants of Jacob, honor Him! Revere Him, all you descendants of Israel! For He has not despised or disdained the suffering of the afflicted One; He has not hidden His face from Him but has listened to His cry for help. From you comes the theme of my praise in the great assembly; before those who fear you will I fulfill My own vows. The poor will eat and be satisfied; they who seek the Lord will praise Him-may your hearts live forever! All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations will bow down before Him, for dominion belongs to the Lord and He rules over the nations. All the rich of the earth will feast and worship; all who go down to the dust will kneel before Him-those who cannot keep themselves alive. Prosterity will serve Him; future generations will be told about the Lord. They will proclaim His Righteousness to a people yet unborn-for HE has done it." | ||
| Denisegilmore |
Psalms 22 above God Blessed us ALL | ||
| Max |
"If I DONíT say, 'I'm done, there is nothing more I have to do, He did it all,í then I truly am eternally damned." On the other hand, if I DO say, "I'm done, there is nothing more I have to do, He did it all," then I truly am justified by faith and not by my own good choices. For the true Christ-follower this is equally true both before and after salvation. For the Adventist it is only true before salvation. It is NOT true after. Here's the proof: "Those who are living upon the earth when the intercession of Christ shall cease ... are to stand in the sight of a holy God without a mediator. ... THROUGH the grace of God and THEIR OWN diligent effort they must be conquerors in the battle with evil. --Ellen G. White, The Great Controversy, page 425, paragraph 1. Chapter Title: In the Holy of Holies This is the heart of the SDA heresy and the reason you feel so sad, my Adventist friend. | ||
| George |
"This is the heart of the SDA heresy and the reason you feel so sad, my Adventist friend." To this I might add, this is the reason for that 'vague uneasy' feelig you have, while on the whole subject. George | ||
| Allenette |
If there WERENT some "vague, uneasy feeling" or worse, nobody would bother with religion anyhoo. The potential pearl in the oyster, that "vague, uneasy feeling", the itch and the scratch. etc etc Cosmic, not necessarily Biblical. Mery Xmas y'all. | ||
| Max |
Merry Xmas, Allenette, Praise God for your posts! Do you think Paul on the road to Damascus was undergoing "a vague, uneasy feeling"? | ||
| Valm |
I have always thought those vague uneasy feelings I have are a gift from God. They tell me that something is not right and needs to be fixed. Sometimes they are directly spiritually related. Other times they point me to things that are not readily apparent but need to be cared for to protect a loved one or myself or even a stranger. I am thankful for the vague uneasey feelings of my life. Valerie |
