| Author | Message | ||
| Gatororeo7 (Gatororeo7) |
Requirements for salvation, as posted by a Seventh-day Adventist on CARM: 1. Believing in Jesus Christ. 2. Walking with Christ. 3. Eating with Christ. 4. Studying with Christ. 5. Witnessing with Christ. 6. Sabbath keeping with Christ. 7. Overcoming with Christ. 8. Victory over sin with Christ 9. Praying with Christ. 10.Having Christ live in your soul temple. 11. Having Christ be the intercessor in the heavenly temple with you and for you. Absolutely amazing. If there was ever a time in my life that I was more thankful for the grace of God it's now. If there was ever a rejection of the gospel of grace this is it. What's even more amazing is that he stated this is an incomplete list - there's more that is required to be saved! Let no Adventist tell you that the church preaches only salvation by faith. I know there are some "good" ones out there (and I use that in a relative sense), but this list drips of EGW. For those who don't frequent the site, the discussion on CARM in recent weeks has gone away from some of the particulars of SDA like the IJ and has focused squarely on the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I recently completed Bob george's study guide on the believers identity in Christ and I honestly want to cry for each Adventist so bound by the system. They honestly don't know who they truly are. In fact, they try persistently to deny the belier his very identity, the thing that tells him who he truly is. I completed it just yesterday thinking that in true Adventism, the believer has not a clue who they are. It's like they have amnesia. they remember something about Jesus and the cross, but they are so focused on the doing that they forget who they really are, a child of God. I think that once a person truly understands who they are in Christ, coming out of Adventism would be the only logical conclusion. Then again, that's easier said than done. So long as someone holds dearly to the teachings of Ellen White, they can never be released from the grip the church has on them. Adventism is a dangerous system, a fact I have learned more and more since I drew up my conclusion over a year ago. I fell for those trapped in it, lost, without an identity, or just ignorant that they have such a rich inheritance at their fingertips. It's Ellen White and the GC that hold them back from it. So long as allegience is to them, they have no identity. I am ever thankful for the grace of God. I am thankful that I do not need to keep that long list of requirements to gain salvation. The Gospel was, is and always will be about what Christ has done for me, not about what I do. I am not afraid to call myself a child of God, for that is who I truly am. Joel London | ||
| Doug222 (Doug222) |
Yes Joel, I read those comments earlier today. The writer of those comments is an interesting person indeed. He says things that are so outrageous that sometimes I think he is just trying to "pull the chain" of the non-Adventists. The problem is that they are an accurate reflection of what Adventists really believe. I have just never heard an Adventist who was so blatent about espousing these beliefs. Funny thing, but the other staunch Adventist on the site has been making some statements that are just as outrageous. | ||
| Colleentinker (Colleentinker) |
Joel, what a wonderful post. I have to say that my experience with Bob George's "Classic Christianity" has really paralleled yours. That book made a huge difference in my thinking. I continue to be struck by the significance of one's identity being only "child of God". As George points out, one cannot have two identities at once. Hence, one really cannot say, "I am a child of God" and also "I am a [bulemic, homosexual, alcoholic, workaholic, etc...take your pick]" because a person can only have one identity. If, as he says, we are truly children of God, then our struggles are not our identity. As long as we identify ourselves by our struggles, we lose the power of our identity as children of God. If, on the other hand, we embrace our true identity as God's children, we have the power of heaven to give us victory over those struggles. I believe one of the reasons Adventist have trouble with the idea of identifying themselves as "Child of God" is that they are fuzzy on what a child of God really is. Many Adventists believe that all people are God's children, not just believers. Therefore, claiming this identity doesn't mean much. I believe that Adventists' confusion about this identity stems from their lack of understanding of what original sin really is. If everyone is born spiritually dead and separated from God, then we truly are not God's children (God's creation, yes; children, no) until we accept Jesus and are brought to life by the Holy Spirit giving us the new birth. I praise Jesus for opening a "new and living way" to the Father with his blood! Colleen | ||
| Dennis (Dennis) |
AMEN to all the posts in this thread. Joel, thanks for sharing your testimony of security in Christ. Amazingly, the thoughts expressed above are not only inspiring, but more importantly, they are salvific. My heart aches for those who believe that they must add their filthy righteousness to obtain and/or maintain their salvation. Salvation is a gift to be received, not a goal to be achieved. In awe of His grace, Dennis J. Fischer |
