Friday, October 27, 2006

Is this *really* the purpose of Adventism? Really?

I stumbled across this paragraph while researching who a preacher was. It is under the heading "Our Reason For Existence" and can be found here. He was a guest preacher at an Adventist church in California. The mystery is solved - here is their purpose:

The Day of Atonement and the final atonement is the reason for our existence as Seventh-day Adventists. God's name is in jeopardy until He can demonstrate that His grace can produce people who will love Him completely, all of the time, with no questions or reservations, and no quibbling or rationalizing. They just love Him, because He first loved them. And they will prove, once and for all, that love always produces obedience, and for once, this love and obedience will be continuous… Satan constantly throws our disobedience in God's face as evidence of the impossibility of complete obedience, but this has got to come to an end. The final atonement is God's method of destroying Satan's lies. First He will cleanse our soul temples, and then He will cleanse the heavenly temple of all sin. When that is accomplished, Adventism will have "finished the work" and we can all go home. (Emphasis mine)

God’s name was never in jeopardy, and especially on the Cross His name was established above all other names. This paragraph, dripping with arrogance and malice, suggests that Peter, Paul and yes, even John failed to prove that God’s love and grace can produce a loving obedience.

Is the Adventist god so weak that He and the entire universe are on hold until Adventists finally vindicate the character of God? Is He sitting on the edge of His throne with hope upon hope that Adventists will finally vindicate Him so that He can come back? I think not.

3 comments:

Chad Borges said...

Hi Forrester,

I really appreciate you bringing this to the attention of the general public. To me, that statement of and from Adventism borders on blasphemy.

Best regards, your brother in Christ,
Chad Borges

Curtis Forrester said...

Thanks Chad. I agree with you. I should note that as an Adventist I would have not agreed with the statement, and I suspect many others would not. But that idea is an undertone to much of the Adventist self-image.

Anonymous said...

This is mind-boggling to even entertain the idea that 'Adventism will have "finished the work" and we can all go home.' Doesn't Ellen White also teach that this idea of God's name being vindicated is for the whole universe as well, and yet God is totally dependent on the Seventh-day Adventist Church? Talk about a cultic denomination having a big ego!

Gilbert Jorgensen