| Author | Message | ||
| Terryk (Terryk) |
Hi Flo and welcome to your new found grace in Jesus. It is great to hear another story of someone being saved from the SDA church false teachings. So much of what you said we all could say ditto. I felt the same about being violated and decieved. So many emotions and now I feel it was such a waste. I shudder to hear anything from the church now. Someone I was with this weekend said someday we will have to stand up for the sabvbath I wanted to scream that is not in the Bible you are having all that fear for nothing. Well just wanted to let you know many of us have had the same crazy journey in and coming out of the SDA church. In Christ's wonderful love. One more thought yes it was very hard for me to find a church and not wanting anyone to be telling me what to do or believe. Praise God we found a very active and alive Baptist church not that I will ever put all trust in a church but it comes close to what I feel comfortable. I think we will always have these issues with churches coming from what we have. . Terry | ||
| Another_Carol (Another_Carol) |
Flo, Thank you for the kind words. It seems ironic to me that you who do not know anything about me should understand so well of what I speak. Unlike my son-in-law whom I was confident loved me and with whom I experienced a wonderful relationship now does not accept what I say in any shape or form. Please do not construe this as he should listen to me, but rather I believe that between persons who have fellowshipped; as a family and been thru death of our daughter-in-law, almost death of my husband and my loving him thru actions of his that were displeasing to me in my house, but God revealed to me that I should just love him and I would be able to witness to him some day, there should be a common ground to try and reason together just as Isaiah 1:18 says Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. But I get the impression I am not worthy of his even acknowledging my questions. . That day to witness is now but it falls on deaf ears. Praise God for your release from bondage into light. I would love to hear your testimony of what prompted this action. I too say Praise God for this forum. In a way I feel it is more of a church to me than my own since I can talk so much about what the Lord has done for me and it is so understood since so many of us have walked a path that only Jesus can make straight. Carol | ||
| Speakeasy (Speakeasy) |
I have to chim in. Flo, I Know how you feel about not finding a church that is not filling the void or a church that you are comfortable that your needs are being met. I have left 2 cults over the last 4 years and to this date have not found a church yet. I am coming to the reality that I may not find a church or just one church that will fill the void at all. BUT that should not stop you from still looking and seeking God on all questions and problems that you need help on. Rely on God and the bible and people that you can trust. I have also not found a person in my neck of the woods that will listen to my concerns or questions. BUT, God does, he will listen. Tell him what you need help in. God will fill the void. God will in time lead you to a church or people in your city or on this forum or others that will help you. Pray to God about finding you a place that you can worship. I have found 2 churchs that I like to go to in town. So just because most people think you need to be planted into 1 church to grow in Jesus Christ. But that is not what the bible says. The bible says 1 Corinthians 12 19 If they were all one part, where would the body be? 20As it is, there are many parts, but one body. The bible says if you are in Christ then you are in the body. And the body means to me. If you find out that it takes a few places to fill your needs in Christ that is okay. AS LONG as the people that you trust are in the Body of Christ as well and the people are planted in that body. Just like on this forum. I have never and will never meet the people on this forum one on one in person, but you can tell that the people on this forum are planted in the body of Christ and in the word. Romans 6 5 For if we have been planted (Believe in the Gospel and have accepted it) together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection: So Flo keep praying and trusting God like we all do on the forum. And in time when you do find a church that you are interested in ask questions about what they believe in. Things like what does it take to be saved and is there anything in the bible that is wrong or corrupted. And can a person if I truly except the finished work of the cross do I have to do anything else to Keep my salvation? And other questions that you think you need to ask and this will show if this is were you need to be. I am not much into seeing if the church has a good childrens ministry or if they have a good youth group etc. If the church is in tune with Christ and the bible and you can see the fruit of the word in those ministry's that you are looking for then that is the church for you. It has been 4 years since I left 2 cults and I have not found 1 church, But I have found a few places that I am growing at and these places are all conected to the Body of Christ. Flo I will be praying for you that God will lead you to people that will feed you what you need in your walk with the Lord. Pray for guidence and God will do it. But in his time. Speakeasy | ||
| Another_Carol (Another_Carol) |
Steve, I appeciate your critic on Hanegraaff. I would have to say that I have not listened to him extensivley and that is probably because I do not feel energized by him. I also probably have preconceived ideas since my sister-in-law cautioned me of his teaching. I would also like to make a comment concerning what you said about Walter Martin that you in essence believed what he said about SDA not being a cult and thus you stayed with them for a time. I have also had that kind of situation happen with a very prominent Biblical personality. I will not give name at this point but only want to say that when facts are presented and the above mentioned says that he cannot call it a cult because of some friends from the group then I have to wonder. This came about because when I presented facts of SDA to my sister-in-law she called this radio program and asked and they said no it was not a cult thus making it seem to my sister-in-law that it is just another mainstream religion with a few quirks. That is why I stress know what "you" believe and make sure that belief coincides with what Paul teaches and does not have any qualities of the different gospel he speaks of in Galatians 1:6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospelñ Do not let anyone tell you that what you believe is something different than you have found it to be if that finding has been from the Bible only. Man is not our teacher Jesus is. That is not to say that there are not some wonderful teachers of the bible. I could list many Bob George, Chuck Swindol, Charles Stanley,June Hunt, Elisabeth Elliot,Woodrow Kroll, R.C. Sproul. I have no idea what many of these denomitions are. What I do know is that they preach Jesus Christ and what He did for us and not what we have to do for Him. The same as I see on this forum and not in SDA circles, which are really circles that lead nowhere. Sorry for the soapbox, but I haven't had one for awhile so I quess I'm due. Carol | ||
| Colleentinker (Colleentinker) |
Carol, I sympathize with your "soapbox" above. I've also run into people who refuse to accept the reality of what Adventism is because they've had good experiences with them, or because they have Adventist friends, and THEY aren't like we say Adventism is! I find myself really frustrated sometimes with the Christians who insist on claiming Adventism as part of the body of Christ with whom we should not be in conflict. In almost every case I've experienced, the non-SDAs who defend Adventism to me somehow seem to think that my testimony is "colored" because I have been hurt or have an axe to grind, etc. They always end up referring to the Adventists they know or to the things the Adventists say about themselves to defend the church to me. Why, I ask myself again and again, do people ask Adventists what Adventism is instead of listening to those of us who have left? I ask the same question about Hank Hanegraaf. He responded to an email from my husband by sending a statement that he had contacted over 100 Adventist administrators and educators, and their answers have convinced him that they are "heterodox" but not cultic. I also know he has received a large packet of material, including SS Lesson quarterlies and articles from other Adventist publications, which show that true Adventist doctrines are still being taught. Still, he seems to ignore the testimony of formers (and he has received a lot over the past few years from many different ones including Mark Martin) in favor of the official "line". It just makes you stop and wonder, doesn't it? At any rate, God is sovereign, and he will not be mocked. Truth is the guaranteed winner. We have never been assured that we will live and work in environments from which spiritual struggle will be eradicated. So, we can praise God that he has called us and that he gives us his strength and his word to declare his truth! Colleen | ||
| Steve (Steve) |
Hi Carol & Colleen, I agree with both of you. I do know that Walter Martin realized that he had been taken for a ride by the smooth speakers within Adventism in the 1950's. Not being one to trust others to do research for him, he went directly to the General Conference and was welcomed with open arms. He was also welcomed with a forked tongue. It took one of the greatest authorities on the cults 40 years to begin to unravel the truth about Adventism (of course, he was extremely busy researching and publishing his great works on the other cults of our time.) Remember what Genesis 3:1 says about the serpent? 3:1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. (NIV) There are many varieties of cults. The ones that most closely resemble orthodox Christianity, are the "more crafty" ones. Adventism has been one of the best. When Jesus described false prophets, he said that we'd see sheep. Some of those ravenous wolves leave their tail sticking out the back. Some of them don't smell like sheep. Some of them don't "baa" like a sheep. But the REAL CRAFTY and DEVIOUS ones look, sound, feel, smell and walk like sheep. In that case, only our one Shepherd can be trusted. Beware of White woman who talk with forked tongue. Steve | ||
| Another_Carol (Another_Carol) |
Thank you Colleen and Steve, I beat myself up many times when I think that I should have known my Bible better and therefore been able to help my son-in-law but how can you help when you do not know what to help with. I look back and remember that God was proding me to study my Bible more in depth rather than just a daily devotion and now I say to myself "if only". I also know that even those who have studied, like my pastor don't really know what I am talking about because unless you have walked this path of being confronted with what appears to be so right(just as you Steve have made reference to regarding sheep and wolves and craftiness)you cannot relate to what devastation it causes. Having said that I believe this is all the work of God and as I told my son-in-law God knows me better than I even do and he knew how to get me to study and that was to make me mad and when I am mad I work hard. I am not saying this is what should have happened but it has and I have studied and I will claim Ro. 8:28 for it. I would never have understood this fully but for the grace of God I was lead to start reading my Bible thru in a year after one was thrown away where I work and when I got to Exodus and saw how God hardened the heart of Pharaoh , Yes I said just like the Bible says God hardened the heart of Pharaoh. I could not understand that until I got to Exodus 11:9 But the LORD said to Moses, "Pharaoh will not heed you, so that My wonders may be multiplied in the land of Egypt."And the light came on and I realized God wanted His wonders to be seen thru Pharaoh's ungodlyness. I do not believe this gives us license to just say the Lord did it and sit back and let Him work it out. I think we were put on this earth to preach what He did, not what we should do thus bringing everything into fellowship with Him. As I have said many times I am a teacher at heart and I have learned that the best teaching method is the positive approach. Just like math you do not teach that 1+1 does not equal 3 you teach that it equals 2. May God give us strength and courage as we uphold one another in Love. Thanks again for the affirmations that I receive from this forum, Carol | ||
| Janice (Janice) |
That's a good one Carol. I haven't been on the Internet much all week, other than to catch my morning devotionals. I really enjoyed this thread when I finally got caught up with all the posts. I was going to mention to Flo about the RBC ministries but noticed that Steve had already mentioned them, but I will mention this RBC web site. Go to www.discoveryseries.org and in the search box, key in ìHow to Recognize a Good Churchî and this will take you to a very informative booklet to read online. You will find that a good church absolutely must hold CORRECT beliefs concerning the Bible, God, Christ, Salvation, the Holy Spirit, the church, and end-time theology. It should also have emphasis on evangelism and missionary outreach with good and truthful Bible teachings. Also, in this booklet you will find a list of things to look for that are MARKS of a FALSE church. By the way, the SDAs have the full list mentioned here: A Lack Of Historical Perspective, A Distorted View Of Scripture, A Desire To Cause Division, A Tendency To Major On Minors, and A Return To Past Errors. Iím not plugging my web site but will mention that my site, www.theLumpkinhome.com, is all about being saved by grace through faith with nothing else added to it, and I am working almost entirely on relating the Pauline Epistles, Paulís letters to the early Christian churches. I love it that so many of you quoted from Paulís writings and only wish that I had a little more time to do my studies. The reason that I started my study in I John was because I had already done that study and sent it to my SDA sister last year and decided to make it public for everyone. I am now editing my notes taken on the book of Acts and hope to continue as time permits. I have read from Acts through Jude and am now reading the four gospels over again. All through the gospel writings Jesus and all his disciples preached that although the commandments were glorious, so much so that Moseís face shown after receiving them and had to wear a veil, the Bible goes on to plainly tell us that the Old Testament law was abolished to make room for a ìmore gloriousî law and that law was found in Jesus. Jesus plainly taught that IN HIM all could find rest; he is surely our SABBATH REST because ìWEî do no work while resting IN HIM, IN FAITH. While Jesus turned 30, he was able to go out as a Jewish rabbi and for 3 ½ years, he preached ìthe gospel of the kingdomî and nowhere did he teach that anyone had to KEEP the Sabbath day of rest and as a matter of Biblical record, Jesus broke Sabbath on several occasions and mentioned that King David did so as well. Jesus even mentioned that we would receive eternal blessings and rewards if we were persecuted for righteousnessí sake, for ours IS the kingdom of heaven. We are ìmade righteousî when we accept our free gift that was purchased by our Lord at Calvary. Jesus taught too that our righteousness should and would exceed the righteousness of the priests and scribes (the religious sect) if we taught HIS commandments and his commandments were all about the love of God and the love of neighbor. We are called to be in unity and as Paul taught, we ought to ìbe of the SAME mind and think the SAME thingî and didn't say this just to give some cult the corner market as God's children. WHOSOEVER means exactly what it says "whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord SHALL BE SAVED" and this is the gospel that Jesus preached. Christ spoke in Matthew 7:12óTherefore ALL things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them; for this is the LAW and the PROPHETS. After he said this, verse 15 has him telling us to BEWARE OF FALSE PROPHETS and says that you will know them by their fruits, and in verse 21 tells us that those who enter into the heavenly kingdom are those that do the will of the Father. I must conclude then, if God says ìhear ye himî (Matthew 17:5) and Jesus says ìlove God and love your neighborî and says that on these two commandments hang ALL the law and the prophets (Matthew 22:40), then I do not need any of EGWís bogus interpretations or any other cultic leader that is preaching a false doctrine. In closing, we are told that we should NOT forsake assembling together for the sake of worship, praise, and uplifting of the kingdom. The Bible states that there is ONE Lord, ONE faith, and ONE baptism, so, IF we are in a church that clearly holds Jesus Christ as the head of the church and can respect the different beliefs of our ìbrothers and sisters in Christî without claiming our own little ìremnantî as sole beneficiaries of Godís blessings, and IF we remain sensitive to the moving of the Holy Spirit within ourselves, we will be exactly where God wants us to be. Janice | ||
| Seekr777 (Seekr777) |
Another Carol said, "I think we were put on this earth to preach what He did, not what we should do thus bringing everything into fellowship with Him. As I have said many times I am a teacher at heart and I have learned that the best teaching method is the positive approach. Just like math you do not teach that 1+1 does not equal 3 you teach that it equals 2. May God give us strength and courage as we uphold one another in Love. Thanks again for the affirmations that I receive from this forum, Carol" The quote I included above from Carol reminded me of an issue I wanted to share but which I've felt hesitant to bring up. As I write this I'm not even sure I'll post what I write. So I guess if you see it you will know I decided to post it and if you don't see it, you'll just never know what I wrote. <grin> Many of you who post in these disccussions come from the same background I do. A religious background filled with criticism and finding fault with others. Some of us have been abused in this way more than others.  While I'm still a member of the SDA denomination I attend a church which has shown me unconditional love and has been a place to heal from many of my "wounds". One of the things I've needed to prayerfully ask God's healing power to deal with is the "spirit of criticism". Not only the "critical spirit" agaisnt other religions which we all grew up with but a "critical spirit" against those within the denomination. This has been difficult for me. The church I attend was in many ways born out of rebellion against the denomination and it has been a difficult lesson to learn but with God's grace it is slowly taking place. I believe things should never be borne out of rebellion but out of a spirit of Love and drawing closer to our Savior. It has been easier for some of us to relate to Christians outside the denomination rather than inside. In fact many of us have more interaction with nonSDAs and nonChristians than SDAs. When Carol mentioned the need to use a positive approach I was reminded of: Ephesians 4:2, "Be completely humble and gentle, be patient, bearing with one another in love." It is not easy for me to be humble, gentle, patient and longsuffering with others. It is particularly hard when I know I'm "right". <smile> God has lead many here into a different understanding and revelation of His will and character as they study His WORD. My prayer is that we remain positive and gentle not only with each other in this discussion group but with those who do not agree with the discussions here. We need to come to others with whom we disagree out of a spirit broken on the rock of Christ, and in gentleness and meekness. Unless our hearts are crying for another we need to be quiet. It is the spirit of God that should shine through our life and not our own spirit. There have been a few times when I've seen words and comments here that might be considered by an outside observer as belittling and personally derogatory against individuals or groups. We need to continually point others to Christ rather than tear down others. I chose not to give examples but just to ask that we all prayerfully consider what we write and what it might sound like to those reading it. I don't believe that anyone here would intentionally hurt another person. Let us continue to point others to the Savior and not spend time arguing from the negative but the positive. He is our Lord and Savior. I'm continually blessed by each of you and hope to meet more of you in person.  In Christ, Richard | ||
| New_Name (New_Name) |
Another excellent, related booklet on the Discovery website is "How To Recognize A Dangerous Religious Group." I urge everyone to read it! I predict that most former Seventh-day Adventists will read it with a strong sense of having spent many years of their own lives in a dangerous religious group. The Seventh-day Adventist Church's doctrinal distortions and manipulation of its members are subtle, but very real. These subtleties, along with a sophisticated public relations outreach that continually assures the public that "we're just like other Christians," makes them even more spiritually dangerous than the overtly dogmatic cults, in my opinion. (I was SDA for more than 30 years, including 13 years of employment by the denomination, five years of which I spent in the ministry as a pastor and Bible teacher.) The link to the "Dangerous Religious Groups" booklet is: http://www.gospelcom.net/rbc/ds/q1101/q1101.html | ||
| Another_Carol (Another_Carol) |
Welcome New Name, Very good suggestion of web site. I have been listening to Hadden Robinson for some 2-3 years and am very inpressed with the way he leads a disscussion of the Bible. He does not tell you "This is what it means" He takes you thru it so that you come to the realization for yourself what it means. My style of teaching. Like I have said before if someone else tells you exacetly what it means it is their's and not yours, but if they lead you to what it means and you grasp it for yourself then it is yours. Romans 16:18 For those who are such do not serve our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly, and by smooth words and flattering speech deceive the hearts of the simple. This is a perfect example of my age old question: If someone of intelligence cannot even explain Investigative Judgment according to the Bible then how pray tell can we expect those who are simple to understand. Carol | ||
| Flo (Flo) |
Sorry I've been offline for awhile. I wanted to say thank you to Janice for the tip on the RBC web site. I'm printing off "How to Recognize a Good Church" right now. Looks very helpful. I went to your website, too, Janice, and am enjoying your studies in I John. New Name- I'm new,too, so welcome from one newbie to another! I also printed off the booklet "How to Recognize A Dangerous Religious Group." I look forward to studying it more carefully. Already I see where I was hooked in. Makes me mad at myself for being deceived for so long. How could I be so stupid? I just thank God for opening my eyes at last! I know it is not productive or right to beat oneself up about the wasted years- I want to be full of praise and thanksgiving to the Lord for loving me and guiding me all these years in spite of myself Another Carol- Where have you listened to Hadden Robinson? I have never heard of him. Loved your thought on the Investigative Judgment. When I first was studying with a young SDA pastor years ago, I wanted to know all about the doctrines (I felt I knew the gospel perfectly. ha!) But, you know, he never could explain the I.J. That should have been a red flag right there. It never made sense but I blindly accepted that it was so. Steve-I contacted the webmaster to give you my email address and we can be in touch about your question for me. Thanks! Thanks to all for the positive insights and thoughts. They have been so helpful to this lonely, searching soul. Flo | ||
| Seekr777 (Seekr777) |
Flo - "I want to be full of praise and thanksgiving to the Lord for loving me and guiding me all these years in spite of myself " AMEN, God is good and I join you in Praise for how he has lead me when I was in the church and out of it. He has awesome patience with me. Now if I can just have that same patience with my wife and daughter. Last night I went to Grace Community Church in Sun Valley which is Pastored by John MaCarthur SP? He has written many book and is on the radio. His books are very Bible focussed and scriptural. It was a concert of music and a great time of worship and praise with a 100 voice choir and orchestra. At the end the pastor gave a call for people to come to the Lord and invited them to attend church this Sunday. The call consisted of a 5 min. presentation of the gospel as "good news" and a surrender of your life to God. It was wonderful so see this simple presentation in a very large sanctuary without fanfare or hype. Richard | ||
| Janice (Janice) |
Good evening to everyone, To our wonderful surprise, my brother-in-law came over yesterday and plowed up Lois' garden. What a break, Mike was able to work on his dad's truck, he put in a new starter while I took a crow-bar and hammer to the old dog pen, but the only thing I accomplished was to get a cut on my leg from the wire and a torn sleeve on my tee-shirt. I just wished that we had the finances to get a dozer in there and bury all that mess. Instead of tearing down the old rusty fence, my sister-in-law attached a new fence to it and put her horse there. I will say that we are just plain country folks but bless goodness, this is an eye-sore that is going to take a while to fix. Lois has such beautiful acreage with so many varieties of lilies and flowering bushes that you feel like you are visiting Callaway Gardens but the old buildings and storage trailors and such make me go crazy with imagination, if only......... Well, after all that work, we got to sit down to some vegetables from the freezer from last year's garden along with some fresh fried chicken and homemade biscuits with gravy, and then talked about how close his family was while mine seems almost non-existent for the most part. I called my daughter-in-law over on Monday night before Mother's Day and took her out to supper with my church sisters and had a great time with her but haven't heard from her since. Neither of my son's called me on Mother's Day either, but it didn't stop me from calling my mother even though her religious affiliation and my resistance of it has placed a wedge between us. I will end this post by asking that all of you here pray for me because I really want to be able to reach my mother with all of the information that I have gained from this forum (ammunition for the fight)and talk to her without seeing that wall come up that the devil has shown her how to build. You know, at least most of your family members were raised in this mess and don't know any better, but my family was raised under the influence of the Baptist denomination and have heard the simplicity of the gospel preached and were supposedly saved, God only knows their hearts. It has really been hard on me this last year and most of you have read my beginning posts and know what I am talking about, so, just really make my mother's visit down here to Georgia a matter of prayer, I certainly appreciate it. You have all been such a blessing to me, I never knew that such lies and heresies could be found under the banner of Christian but should have known it since the Bible warns all about it in the last days, right? God bless and I will get back later. I enjoyed the posts today and thank you Flo for the encouraging words about my web site. Janice | ||
| Janice (Janice) |
I just wanted to add this web address for a devotional. I just read it after posting and thought it seemed to fit in with what we are doing in the FAF. We are all searching for truth and in turn, trying to pass that truth on to others. Check out http://www.intouch.org/myintouch/devotional/index_76096.html and after reading the Bible scripture, do a search on what the commandments are really about. I can tell by most of your posts though that most of you have studied it quiet thoroughly, praise God for the light that shown through by his word. His commandments are not grievous to bear and have nothing to do with keeping sabbath other than to call us into his sabbath rest found only in Christ. We live in the Sabbath, praise God for that knowledge and pass it along, we are to plant it and God will choose someone else to water it and we have to trust that only he can give the increase. I have to remind myself of this truth everytime the devil brings discouragement my way and staying in my Bible and studying has been my salvation. I know I was saved from the penalty of death when I received my free gift 40 years ago and the Holy Spirit has always been there for me even though I often turned my back on him and chose my own way. My way has cost me two marriages, two homes, and more problems than I choose to admit, even to my closest friends. I am ashamed of my many sins and like Sabra says, many times when the devil reminds me of my sins, I get the feeling that everything I confess is one big lie and wonder IF I am really saved or not, but bless God, I have the instruction book which is also a wonderful love letter to assure me that I am still his child, and believe me, there is no truer verse in his word than this "whom God loves, he chastens", and even as bad as the chastening seems when I am going through it, it is reassuring to me, and is proof that I am his child. I don't know how many of you have ever studied the symbolic importance of the numerics of the Bible but it is a good study especially on the number three. We are made in the likeness of God which is a triune (THREE) part being in that we have a three-fold nature: body, soul, and spirit, and when we come to the realization that our salvation is also three-fold, it is great to ponder over it all. 1. We are immediately saved from the death penalty when we receive our salvation, and 2. with the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, we are able to resist the devil and all the temptations that come our way, and finally, 3. we will be taken out of this wickedness and from the very presence of evil to live with Jesus throughout eternity. It also blesses my soul when I read about Jesus in his glorious eternal reign, where the word says "for IN him dwells the FULLNESS of the God-head." I have been a student of Bible prophecy for over thirty years now, and it is such a revelation to me when I consider what God has to say about end-time things, such as the fact that our enemies will be those in our own homes, and how people will worship the creature more than the creator and also about how "iniquity" will abound. Do a study on the word iniquity sometime and then you will gain a lot of insight as to why Satan fell from his heavenly position. Even stubborness is regarded as iniquity, so, some of our stubborn SDA family members better wise up to this fact of scripture before it's too late. The big thing that I have come to recognize though is what he says about "knowledge increasing" and if we look at our history books and see the inventions and basically when they all began to happen (early 1800s), we will see a parallel to the deception of Satan that is using that increased knowledge to gain footing in the hearts of those who Gods says are "everlearning" but NEVER coming to the knowledge of God. Look at what the invention of the printing press did, it was great in that it made it possible for all of us to have God's word in our hands but unfortunately, not all of our ancestors could read, and for those who could read, like EGW, it made a way for the devil to deceive because they didn't have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit that is needed to discern what the gospel is all about. It was also a time when such things as the telephone and electricity were being invented and now look at what we are doing with a joining of the two. We have this computer that reaches around the world and it can enlighten us or it can further condemn us to hell when we allow ourselves to fall prey to the lures of Satan through all of the wicked web sites that are out there, many of which we stumble across quiet by accident but when tempted to go back to it with the advertisements that bombard us because of the "cookies" that record our stumbling upon this stuff, we often get into a trap of Satan, the prince of the powers of the air. Ever consider what that title means? Powers of the air? Cyberspace, airwaves of the radio and TVs, and computers, etc.? I know that sin has been in the world since Adam fell and wickedness has abounded throughout the centuries but never before has it been so EASY to get lost in sin as it is now. It is also amazing to me how all of these wonderful inventions have cost us dearly, right down to the way we fight our wars. Without this computer, we would probably never have met, nor would we be able to console and educate eachother as we have with the aid of all of these great web sites to educate us with, but at the same time, look at what a few of us have just gone through with a certain person that took it upon himself to "stalk us" and give us literal "Hell on earh" because we are doing the work of an evangelist and seeking to save those that are lost. I never professed to being tactful, nor have I ever claimed to be perfect, but I am an honest person and am trusting to a fault, and had it not been for my wanting to help a brother, this man would have never been able to get to me like he did in the first place, but once I got reassured with God's word (with the help of some of my friends here and in my church),I was able to overcome the attacks from the devil while this person couldn't even see that he was being used as a pawn in a game, and I am sure that to this very day he still doesn't see how he is allowing the devil to use him since I am being told by some of my Baptist church family and friends that he is still hard at it sending them mail that literally "gives me down the country" as the old saying goes, but after getting over the hurt of it all, believe it or not, it is beginning to be a source of immense joy. All of us at my church fellowship on Sundays and laugh over the fact that some people just exhaust themselves on "nick-picking and finding fault" with God's children. Where I once made it a subject of prayer to rid me of the situation I had gotten myself into, like Paul did when he had his thorn in the flesh, well, praise God, God's grace is indeed "ALL SUFFICIENT". For this person to go from saying "your brother in Christ" to "rebuking in Christ" while ignoring the facts found in God's word, this man will suffer and as Christians, whether we want to or not, it is our duty to pray for his poor soul. I don't want anyone going to hell and will do everything within my power (with the help of the Holy Spirit) to raise his name up in prayer, and I don't consider this gossip since we are commanded to love one another and bear one another's burdens, and since he was "supposedly" an SDA, whether he's former or not, we should really feel sorry for him when we see what damage has been done to him as a direct result of the false teachings of EGW that his mother instilled in him as a child. How truly sad when we find ourselves in such a detramental state of mind, fighting against God just as Saul did before he got saved. I don't wish a Damascus Road on anybody, but I did wish that his computer would blow up or something and did get the something because he is no longer a problem, praise God, my angels are watching over me with sufficient grace to save and keep me from the enemy as I employ to do the work God has set out for me to do. The main thing that I see in this forum is HURT, HURT, and more HURT, and with the hurt comes the doubts and fears, and even ANGER that I see many of you struggling with to such a point that you can't even begin to trust ANY church now. It is true that we are living in the last days of history and the church age is added truth because we are in the "lukewarm" age where no one wants to teach the truth anymore because they don't want to hurt someone's "feelings" and this leads us down the path of neutrality where people can't "endure sound doctrine" and have been led away by false doctrines and the false prophets that promoted them. EGW will pay right along with Joseph Smith, Jim Jones and all the others that have trodden under foot the shed blood of Jesus and choose to hang burdens back around the necks of those who have gained their liberty in Christ. Well, guess that dirty carpet needs cleaning before my mom finds it in a mess again like last time, so, I will quit preaching for now. JESUS IS LORD, THE GREAT I AM. GOD SAYS "THIS IS MY SON" ....HEAR YE HIM!!! Janice | ||
| Another_Carol (Another_Carol) |
Flo, If you go to http://www.gospelcom.net/rbc/radio/daily/index-6.php You will find Discover the word and there you will find Hadden Robinson radio lessons. Carol | ||
| Another_Carol (Another_Carol) |
Janice, Did I miss a post saying your Mother is coming for a visit. How did that come about? I will pray God's intervention to give you both a spirit of love, because you are family and also because you are both a child of God, to discern and reason together so as to Glorify Our Precious Lord and Saviour. May the Glory of the Lord Rise among you, Carol | ||
| Janice (Janice) |
Carol, My mother moved to Tennessee when she retired, and I am sure that it was because my SDA sister helped her in her decision to move, but my mother has one brother, five sisters, two daughters, two grandsons, two grand-daughters-in-law, one great grandson, and one aunt (her mom's last living sister) who lives in a local nursing home now and most of us are all in Georgia which was her home where she was born and raised along with all of my daddy's family. My mom is still a very independant person and is only 69, so, she comes down to Georgia about once a season for a visit and will usually stay a night with each one of us and then head back home. She was raised as a Methodist and both her parents are buried at Union Camp Ground in Waco, Georgia and they still have an annual "brush arbor" week-long revival that she comes down to attend with her sisters, it is sort of like a family reunion for her and takes place in the month of June. I don't want to put down any religion that is serving God and preaching the gospel but with all the Methodist preachers I ever heard or have been told about by former Methodists, they just don't really get into the Word and feed the flock a lot of meat, if you understand what I am trying to say. The minister that preached at our reunion a few years ago talked about getting a ticket and riding that big old bus to heaven, it was a silly analogy and didn't mention much at all about repentence or being born again, another "lukewarm" sermon that so many are giving out these days. So, I guess my mother doesn't feel that she will be tempted to leave the SDAs when she hears this type of preaching. Anyway, my mother has not been an Adventist as long as my sister has. JoAnne got into the group in the early 70s but mama only joined in the 90s, after she took a nursery job in a church on Sunday and wasn't getting spiritually fed while tending to a dozen or so toddlers. She went to a Sabbath-keeping Baptist church that she drove by one day but was sorely disappointed at the preacher, and the congregation wasn't very friendly either. Since my mom and I had an argument concerning my other sister and something that went wrong on Mother's Day that year, my SDA sister began giving her this spill about why she wasn't happy, she said that it wasn't due to the fact that anything was wrong other than the fact that she was simply in the wrong crowd of Christian fellowship, and she needed to give the SDAs another chance to minister to her. She was so sure that my mother could be helped by the SDAs that it became her obsession to glorify EGW and all her wonderful revelations from God sent to the "remnant" church. My mother got so involved and felt so great to be DOING something to HELP God with her religion that she began reading all of the SDA literature that my sister gave to her and boldly proclaimed to me one day that she would NEVER go back to her old way of thinking now that my sister had finally shown her the error of her way by getting involved with a worldly church and thanked her for showing her the TRUE REMNANT church of the SDAs. You would just have to know my mother to understand my situation. She has always been a weak person due to the fact that my dad was physically and verbally abusive to her for the 26 years they were married (separated twice during that time) and she just never had much of a back-bone and generally kept very quiet about how she felt about anything. I don't know if you remember my posting about her government job or not but she was a clerk in the pardon & parole department in Atlanta and filed the court proceedings concerning these criminals and the crime for which they were serving time for. She saw so much in those years of doing the paperwork that it only served to make her even more paranoid to the evils going on in the world we live in. She worried about every little thing that came along, and was so glad when I got married and got out of the night clubs and such, especially in light of the fact that there was a new "date-rape drug" out on the black markets. After being married for the second time, to a man that in seven years time cost me everything I had worked for all my life by having to file bankruptcy, he left me high and dry to face the bill collectors all by myself. He didn't even write a goodbye letter and mom was so relieved when he finally left because she got to play the role of my mother again by helping me find a new place to live and cooking for me and making important phone calls, etc. and once again she felt she had some purpose in her life, but to her horror, I began going out with the same friends again and to similar types of places and doing the same old things that I had repented of, but she must have been praying pretty hard for me because it didn't take that long for me to come back as the prodigal daughter. I found a great church when I moved to Bremen and have grown so much under our pastor's leadership and the love of my church family that helped substain me through it all. I eventually got reacquainted with a man that I had graduated high school with, from C.C.H.S. in Heflin, Alabama, and we were married three months later. My aunts thought I was a nut for getting married so fast but my mother told them that since I had known him since I was fourteen and wasn't getting any younger, she thought it was great that I was getting married. She loves Mike and knows that he is a good man and comes from a good Christian family, and I have to say thank God for that fact because while we were trying to give support to Mike's family while facing the eventual death of my brother-in-law due to cancer, my mother and sister launched a full-scale attack on my character after my having sent my mother some web site addresses to check out that exposed all of the lies taught in the SDA churches. I cried on many occasions when I opened e-mail at two and three o'clock in the morning that warned me to stop speaking irreverantly of this saintly woman who was sent to "their" true remnant church or else suffer the wrath of God. One ugly letter after another was sent my way as I constantly felt the need to defend the gospel of Christ which led to my sister eventually telling me that I needed some professional help to find out why I was so obsessed with the idea that my family was headed for hell. I was told that my concern was duly-noted while my mother simply sat back on her laurels an let my sister speak for her. I guess she felt that my sister had more experience and training in answering difficult questions that I had posed to them. I don't know what happened to this post but half of it got cut off, so, maybe that means it is getting too long. I need to get up anyway, so, I will post again later in the week. Janice | ||
| Seekr777 (Seekr777) |
Janice, I hope you got the carpet cleaned and that the weekend turned out well. Please keep my family in your prayers. My wife is not a Christian and my daughter is going through that period of questioning EVERYTHING in life as a teenager. She is adopted so it adds a totally different dynamic and she acts out often. I love her dearly! ! Richard | ||
| Colleentinker (Colleentinker) |
Richard, you and your family will be in my prayers. Colleen |
