in the observance of the seventh - day Sabbath . . . The mark o f the beast is the . . . observance of the first day of the week.”6 This is just one of Adventism’s pre sumptuous endeavors to, wrest the proph ecies of inspiration to the faulty conjec tures of men; but it is one which has re sulted in bringing confusion to many sin cere souls. The Bible teaches that, in this dispen sation, children of God are distinguished, not by their observance of “ days,” or by their obedience to the law in any o f its “ thou shalt” and “ thpu shalt not” ex actions, but by their having “ ceased from his [their] own works” (Heb. 4:10) and by having entered into that “ sabbath rest” [repose of the soul] which remain- eth . . . for the people of God” (Heb. 4:9 R. V .). See Galatians 3:10, 11, 19-25; 4:8-11; Colossians 2:13-17; H e b r e w s 4:1-10, R. V. The Bible teaches that the seal of the living God, which, just prior to the out pouring of His wrath upon the earth, is* to be placed for protection upon the fore heads of the 144,000 believers of the chil dren of Israel, is Christ’s name and the name of the Father. See Revelation 7:1-4, R. V .; 14:1, R. V. Compare Zephaniah 1:14-18; 2 : 1 - 3 ; Revelation 12:13-17; Psalm 91. The beast’s mark will have nothing to do with the compulsory ob servance o f a religious day. It will be the number 666, symbol of man, in contra distinction to the seal o f God. (Rev. 13:16-18). This, of course, is the differentiating doctrine most commonly known, namely that whereas well-instructed believers on this side of Calvary observe the Lord’s Day (not because they must, but because they may), the Seventh-Day Adventists observe the seventh-day Sabbath, or at least harp on Sabbath observance. (There is no such institution as “ the Christian Sabbath.” The Lord’s Day should not be so called). To quote Dr. Pettingill again: “ Sev enth-Day Adventism is a subtle delusion, greatly misunderstood by the rank and file o f God’s people, who generally be lieve that the only difference between Seventh-Day Adventists and other sects is that Adventists worship on Saturday while others worship on Sunday. The fact is that this is a slight difference as compared with other differences.” 4 Most evangelical Christians are aston ished when they hear me declare in pul pits over the land, or when they read in my writings,6 the following fa ct: Sev enth-Day Adventists teach that, just like all inherently corrupt mankind, Christ was born with a sinful nature!7 This could only mean that His heart, too, was “ deceitful above all things, and desper ately wicked” (Jer. 17:9). For Bible teaching regarding the sin less Christ, see Luke 1:35; Acts 4:27; Luke 4:34; Hebrews 4:15; II Corin t h i a n s 5:21; I Peter 2:22; Hebrews 1:1-9 Matthew 1:23; I Timothy 3:16; John 10:30; 8:44-46; 14:30. Not only do Adventists teach the blas phemous doctrine that Christ was born with a sinful nature, but they also teach
S E V E N T H -D A Y A D V E N T I S M Its Unscriptural Faith Second in an Exposé of This False Cult by E. B. Jones
I N Second Timothy 2:15, we have God’s own instruction for handling His holy Word: “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” The Latin Vulgate Version read s, ■“ rightly handling the Word of Truth.” The opposite of dividing or handling the Word aright is, as stated in Second Cor inthians 2:17, to “ corrupt the word of God.” “ Anything wrong with Seventh - Day Adventism?” I answer: Its unscriptural faith. As a system, Seventh-Day Advent ism is as sound as its foundation, and no sounder. Like other professedly Bible- founded, yet false creeds, the Adventist ‘ ‘message” contains a measure o f truth. But the relatively small portion of truth is so mixed with error that biased minds, not being guided by the Spirit o f Truth, and not knowing the Word of Truth, r i g h t l y divided, are poisoned by such Satan-concòcted mixtures. A typical example of such a mixture in Adventism is its interpretation of the doctrine o f justification by faith. The New Testament offers s a l v a t i o n “ by grace . . . through faith,” plus nothing. Mrs. White, on thè contrary, with her “ inspired pen” wrote that it was a “ dan gerous error” for one to believe that “ works have nothing to do with [one’s] redemption” and that “ the doctrine of faith and faith only” is “ ensnaring.” 1 For the Bible teaching regarding grace versus law, and living faith versus dead works, see John 3:36; 10:27-29; Romans 3 :28 ; 4 :5 ; 8:1, 33-39; Ephesians 2:8, 9; Titus 3 :5 ; Colossians 2:14; Galatians 3:13-25; Hebrews 7:1,1-19, 22, 25; Philip- pians 1:6. According to Adventism, not only is the doctrine o f faith and faith only, “ en snaring,” but the testimony of all who say they are saved, is “ misleading” ! I quote from their highest authority, Mrs. White: “ Those who accept Christ, and in their first confidence say, I am saved, are in danger o f trusting to themselves . . . Those who accept the Saviour, how ever sincere their conversion, s h o u l d never be taught to say or feel that they are saved. This is misleading.” 2 The Bible teaches that all who by faith receive the Lord Jesus Christ as Saviour, are believers, and that all believers are saved. It also teaches that the true be liever knows, and that he should, and will, testify that he is saved. See John 1:11-13; 10:6-9, 24-27; Luke 7:41-50; II Timothy 1:1-9; I Corinthians 1:18; Titus 3:3-5; I John 5:13; R o m a n s 10:8-11; Psalm 107: 2, 8. Seventh - Day Adventism h a s b e e n called Modern Galatianism. Dr. William L. Pettingill states : “ It was against Sev enth-Day Adventism that the Apostle Paul gave his testimony in the meeting D E C E MB E R . 1 9 4 7
at Jerusalem described in the fifteenth chapter of Acts and the second chapter of Galatians. Indeed, it was against Sev enth-Day Adventism that the Epistle to the Galatians was written.” 3 As in the case of the “ bewitched” Gala tians, who, professing to believe the Gos pel of grace, were still in bondage to law, observing its no-longer - sacred “ days” (Gal. 4:8-11), so Adventists are chiefly . ☆ ☆ ☆ Room for Jesus
O NE night I dreamed I was a guest, That night in Bethlehem town, Where He was born, who gave to it Its famous world renown; And safe I slept within the inn That quiet starlit night, While in the stable near there shone The world’s eternal light. A ND in the morn my host revealed The story of that birth, To us, his guests, who sat and heard, And feasted in our mirth; But one inquired, in thoughtful mood, Why shelter was denied; “ There was no room within the inn,” Our genial host replied. U P spake I then to them, and said, “ If I had only known, They might have had my room last night In little Bethlehem town.” Then I awoke; and now I know The Prince of Peace is come, And needs a place within my heart— Will I now give Him room? —C larence M. S heldon ☆ ☆ ☆ concerned with the keeping (? ) and the preaching of the'Jewish (weekly) Sab bath. They teach that “ God recognizes as His chosen people” today those who observe, as did Israel of old, the seventh day o f the week as the Sabbath.4 They teach that “ the seal of God is revealed
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