Pickle Publishing
|
"Deceptive Espousal" |
Research Papers
|
Return to https://www.pickle-publishing.com/papers/jeremiah-films/response-to-video-223.htm.
A Response to the Video:
Seventh-day Adventism, the Spirit Behind the Church
by Bob Pickle
Answers to Questions Raised by:
Mark Martin, Sydney Cleveland
Dale Ratzlaff, The White Lie
. . . and Others
Discern Fact from Fiction
Wrapping Up the Case
< Prev T. of C. ... 215-217 218-220 221-222 223-225 226 227-228 229-231 ... Next >
#223, #224,
& #225: "During the 1950's, certain well-known
evangelical Christian ministries approached
the Seventh-day Adventist hierarchy in an effort to find out the true nature of their doctrinal
beliefs. In a
gesture similar to the Mormons, the Adventist leaders desiring the approval of the Christian
community at
large deceptively espoused the evangelical view of salvation by grace alone. While this
temporarily pacified
many Christian denominations, it wreaked havoc within Seventh-day Adventism. Many
followers felt
betrayed and began searching the teachings of Ellen White for themselves in an effort to
discover the truth.
Those who did were shocked at what they found. What began for many as a quest to validate
Adventism
turned instead into a lurid discovery of the plagiarism, false prophecies, and heretical
teachings of Ellen G.
White."—Narrator. |
#223: Adventist leaders deceptively
espoused the view of salvation by grace alone in the 1950's. Actually, they
espoused
this view long before. Mrs. White, who died in 1915, wrote: [p. 145]
[The mother] is to exemplify Biblical religion,
showing how its influence is to control us in its everyday duties and pleasures, teaching her
children that by grace alone can they be saved, through faith, which is the gift of
God.—Adventist Home, p. 235.
He who grudges the reward to another forgets that he himself is saved by grace
alone.—Christ's Object Lessons, p. 402.
The Jewish leaders discerned the truth that Christ presented, but they also realized that
it meant the greatest humiliation to them to accept of the
rich salvation brought to them through this humble teacher. To be saved through grace alone,
to confess that in and of themselves they deserved
no favors, was to acknowledge that which was contrary to their cherished ideas, and to lay in
the dust their pride, vanity, and ambition.—Sabbath-School
Worker, Aug. 1, 1895.
But our own efforts are of no avail to atone for sin or to renew the heart. Only the
blood of Christ can atone for us; his grace alone can create
in us a clean heart, and enable us to obey God's law. In him is our only
hope.—Signs of the Times, Feb. 9, 1891.
We are to surrender ourselves unreservedly to Him; for His grace alone has sufficient
power to save the soul of the repenting, believing
sinner.—Signs of the Times, Sept. 7, 1904.
There is need to cultivate every grace that Jesus, through his sufferings and death, has
brought within our reach; for that grace alone can remedy
our defects; Christ alone can transform the character.—Youth's Instructor,
Jan. 28, 1897.
So Adventist leaders in the 1950's weren't being deceptive.
In the documentation package, this is supposedly dealt with under
"Point 100," "Point 100a," and "Point 100b," the last of the points it
covers. However, there is no substantiation given for this charge at all. The photocopies
shown concerning Walter Martin, who was the one
supposedly deceived by Adventist leaders in the 1950's, concern the role of Mrs. White
within the Adventist Church, not salvation by grace
alone. And that's the end of the documentation package.
#224: Many followers felt betrayed by such an espousal.
No, they felt betrayed because of what M. L. Andreason said. A
prominent Adventist theologian, he said that the book Questions on
Doctrine, produced as a result of this dialogue, contained capitulations
on some finer points of Adventist theology. Andreason was correct in some of his
assessments, and incorrect in others.
#225: The ones who felt betrayed began to search, and they were
shocked to find plagiarism, false prophecies, and
heretical teachings. The narrator is confusing two distinct groups of people.
The conservative element in the church felt betrayed, but they
didn't make the "discoveries" referred to. It was the liberal element that did that, but they
weren't the ones who felt betrayed.
Pastor Leroy Moore lived through that time period and has been writing a book about
the subject. According to him, the "quest" on the part
of the liberal element was not to "validate Adventism," but rather "to retain cultural
Adventism while casting off all inspired theological and
life style constraints." By "all inspired" he means the Bible too.
This writer asked Pastor Moore, "If you can think of some who felt betrayed and made
such discoveries after searching for themselves, I
would be interested in getting your opinion of how many or what percentage fall in this
category." Pastor Moore responded:
I know of none. But it is true that there were "conservatives" along the way who fell
into the liberal camp because they had not an adequate
gospel. They were too spiritually emaciated to stem the infidel flood that spoke with such
authority as to paralyze those who had not learned to
search for themselves.—Feb. 15, 2000, personal email.
Thus, conservatives who felt betrayed, who were well read and knew how to search,
weren't affected that much by all the "discoveries." On
the other hand, the ones who did not feel betrayed, the ones who made the "discoveries,"
now compose the influential minority referred to under
#204 and #196. This is the
camp that does not take the Bible as an authority, and that believes in evolution. This is the
group that rejects the
substitutionary death of Christ, the blood atonement, and other essential pillars of the
Christian faith.
|
|
Like this book?
Save your printer and your ink!
Buy the entire 160-page book for just
$9.95 + S/H.
Automatic discounts start at 5 copies.
|
|
|
< Prev T. of C. ... 215-217 218-220 221-222 223-225 226 227-228 229-231 ... Next >
The above page was found at https://www.pickle-publishing.com/papers/jeremiah-films/response-to-video-223.htm on December 6, 2024.
© 2005
Pickle Publishing
|