| Spirit of Prophecy, Biblical and S.D.A Church quotations regarding the trinity |
| Neglect of the Testimonies |
| It is not alone those who openly reject the Testimonies, or who cherish doubt concerning them, that are on dangerous ground. To disregard light is to REJECT it. {5T 680.2 1882-1889} |
| Christ is leading out a people, and bringing them into the unity of the faith, that they may be one, as He is one with the Father. Differences of opinion must be yielded, that all may come into union with the body, that they may have one mind and one judgment. 1 Corinthians 1:10: “Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.” Romans 15:5, 6: “Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be like-minded one toward another according to Christ Jesus: that ye may with one mind and one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Philippians 2:2: “Fulfill ye my joy, that ye be like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind.” {1T 324.1 1855-1868} |
| Our church members see that there are differences of opinion among the leading men, and they themselves enter into controversy regarding the subjects under dispute. Christ calls for unity. But He does not call for us to unify on wrong practices. The God of heaven draws a sharp contrast between pure, elevating, ennobling truth and false, misleading doctrines. He calls sin and impenitence by the right name. He does not gloss over wrongdoing with a coat of untempered mortar. I urge our brethren to unify upon a true, scriptural basis.–Manuscript 10, 1905. {1SM 175.1 1958} |
| Those who love Jesus and the souls for whom he had died will follow after the things which make for peace. But they must take care lest in their efforts to prevent discord, they surrender truth; lest in warding off division, they sacrifice principle. True brotherhood can never be maintained by compromising principle. As Christians approach the Christlike model, and become pure in spirit and action, they will feel the venom of the serpent. The opposition of the children of disobedience is excited by a Christianity that is spiritual. At this crisis is the time to decide who are God’s faithful servants, who will be true to principle, who will bear in mind that truth is too dearly purchased for its least principle to be surrendered. That peace and harmony which are secured by mutual concessions to avoid all differences of opinion are not worthy of the name. On points of feeling between man and man, concessions should sometimes be made; but never should one iota of principle be sacrificed to obtain harmony. All our words and actions pass in review before God; and if we wish to stand in the Judgment as having done all that we could do to exert a correct influence over our fellow men, we must return kind acts for acts of mischief and malice. Christ is our pattern; we must follow him. {RH, January 16, 1900 par. 6} |
| What influence is it would lead men at this stage of our history to work in an underhand, powerful way to tear down the foundation of our faith–the foundation that was laid at the beginning of our work by prayerful study of the Word and by revelation? Upon this foundation we have been building for the past fifty years. Do you wonder that when I see the beginning of a work that would remove some of the pillars of our faith, I have something to say? I must obey the command, “Meet it!” . . . {1SM 207.3} |
| I must bear the messages of warning that God gives me to bear, and then leave with the Lord the results. I must now present the matter in all its bearings; for the people of God must not be despoiled. {1SM 208.1} |
| We are God’s commandment-keeping people. For the past fifty years every phase of heresy has been brought to bear upon us, to becloud our minds regarding the teaching of the Word–especially concerning the ministration of Christ in the heavenly sanctuary, and the message of Heaven for these last days, as given by the angels of the fourteenth chapter of Revelation. Messages of every order and kind have been urged upon Seventh-day Adventists, to take the place of the truth which, point by point, has been sought out by prayerful study, and testified to by the miracle-working power of the Lord. But the waymarks which have made us what we are, are to be preserved, and they will be preserved, as God has signified through His Word and the testimony of His Spirit. He calls upon us to hold firmly, with the grip of faith, to the fundamental principles that are based upon unquestionable authority. {1SM 208.2} |
| SpTB02 – Testimonies for the Church Containing Letters to Physicians and Ministers Instruction to Seventh-day Adventists (1904) |
| Chap. 10 – The Foundation of Our Faith |
| The Lord will put new, vital force into His work as human agencies obey the command to go forth and proclaim the truth. He who declared that His truth would shine forever will proclaim this truth through faithful messengers, who will give the trumpet a certain sound. The truth will be criticized, scorned, and derided; but the closer it is examined and tested, the brighter it will shine. {SpTB02 51.1} |
| As a people, we are to stand firm on the platform of eternal truth that has withstood test and trial. We are to hold to the sure pillars of our faith. The principles of truth that God has revealed to us are our only true foundation. They have made us what we are. The lapse of time has not lessened their value. It is the constant effort of the enemy to remove these truths from their setting, and to put in their place spurious theories. He will bring in everything that he possibly can to carry out his deceptive designs. But the Lord will raise up men of keen perception, who will give these truths their proper place in the plan of God. {SpTB02 51.2} |
| In our work, we need men of moral independence, uncontaminated and unshackled, so that when a principle of religion or duty is at stake they will stand firm in defense of the truth. We need men who will NOT hold their peace when they see evils coming in and wrongs being done. We need men who will REFUSE to give consent by silence to unjust actions. (E.White, Manuscript Releases, Vol.9, Letter 116, 1905) |
| It is time that the people of God brought fervent love for one another into their daily experience. When the love of Jesus is abiding in the heart, it will be revealed in every action. Differences of opinion will disappear; for self will no longer seek the supremacy. Thus the church may become a bright and shining light, and Heaven, looking on, may see that there is a body with one spirit, one hope, drawing toward one great center — Christ. {RH, November 3, 1896 par. 12} |
| … The fourth commandment, so plain and explicit, has been ignored. The Sabbath memorial, declaring who the living God is, the Creator of the heavens and the earth, has been torn down, and a spurious Sabbath has been given to the world in its place. Thus a breach has been made in the law of God. A false Sabbath could not be a true standard. IN THE FIRST ANGEL’S MESSAGE MEN ARE CALLED UPON TO WORSHIP GOD, OUR CREATOR, WHO MADE THE WORLD AND ALL THINGS THAT ARE THEREIN. THEY HAVE PAID HOMAGE TO AN INSTITUTION OF THE PAPACY, MAKING OF NO EFFECT THE LAW OF JEHOVAH, BUT THERE IS TO BE AN INCREASE OF KNOWLEDGE ON THIS SUBJECT. {1MR 44.1 1981} |
| Trinity – nothing in the Bible and only 1 find within the EGW Writings covering the SOP records – Here is the quote: |
| The Eternal Dignitaries of the Trinity.–The eternal heavenly dignitaries–God, and Christ, and the Holy Spirit–arming them [the disciples] with more than mortal energy, . . . would advance with them to the work and convince the world of sin.–Manuscript 145, 1901. {Ev 616.4} |
| As you will see, it is mentioned in a Sub-Heading and therefore is NOT part of the Inspired Writings. |
| EGW Writings KJV Bible search on Throne and Lord or God or Father or Jesus or Christ – 77 finds |
| EGW Writings KJV Bible search on Throne and Lord or God or Father or Jesus or Christ or Saviour – 77 finds |
| EGW Writings KJV Bible search on Throne and Lord or God or Father or Jesus or Christ or Saviour or Spirit – 78 finds |
| EGW Writings KJV Bible search on Throne and Spirit – 1 find |
| This 1 find being: |
| Revelation 4:2 |
| And immediately I [John the Revelator] was in the spirit; and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and [one] sat on the throne. |
| Conclusion: According to God’s Word, the Spirit never sits upon the Heavenly Throne. Only God the Father and His Only Begotten Son sit upon the Heavenly Throne – this is confirmed by the Spirit of Prophecy [as seen later] and by the Scriptures below. |
| EGW Writings KJV Bible search on Throne and Lord or God or Father AND Jesus or Christ or Saviour – 2 finds |
| Acts 2:30 |
| Therefore being a prophet, and knowing that GOD had sworn with an oath to him, that of the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh, he WOULD RAISE UP CHRIST TO SIT ON HIS THRONE; |
| and |
| Hebrews 12:2 |
| Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of [our] faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. |
| The King of the universe summoned the heavenly hosts before Him, that in their presence He might set forth the true position of His Son and show the relation He sustained to all created beings. The Son of God shared the Father’s throne, and the glory of the eternal, self-existent One encircled BOTH. About the throne gathered the holy angels, a vast, unnumbered throng—ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands (Revelation 5:11.), the most exalted angels, as ministers and subjects, rejoicing in the light that fell upon them from the presence of the Deity. Before the assembled inhabitants of heaven the King declared that none but Christ, the Only Begotten of God, could fully enter into His purposes, and to Him it was committed to execute the mighty counsels of His will. The Son of God had wrought the Father’s will in the creation of all the hosts of heaven; and to Him, as well as to God, their homage and allegiance were due. Christ was still to exercise divine power, in the creation of the earth and its inhabitants. But in all this He would not seek power or exaltation for Himself contrary to God’s plan, but would exalt the Father’s glory and execute His purposes of beneficence and love. (PP 36.2) |
| The great Creator assembled the heavenly host, that he might in the presence of all the angels confer special honor upon his Son. THE SON WAS SEATED ON THE THRONE WITH THE FATHER, and the heavenly throng of holy angels was gathered around them. The Father then made known that IT WAS ORDAINED BY HIMSELF THAT CHRIST SHOULD BE EQUAL WITH HIMSELF; so that wherever was the presence of his Son, it was as his own presence. His word was to be obeyed as readily as the word of the Father. His Son he had invested with authority to command the heavenly host. Especially was he to work in union with himself in the anticipated creation of the earth and every living thing that should exist upon it. His Son would carry out his will and his purposes, but would do nothing of himself alone. The Father’s will would be fulfilled in him. Satan was jealous and envious of Jesus Christ. Yet when all the angels bowed to Jesus to acknowledge his supremacy and high authority and rightful rule, Satan bowed with them; but his heart was filled with envy and hatred. Christ had been taken into counsel with the Father in regard to his plans, while Satan was unacquainted with them. He did not understand, neither was he permitted to know, the purposes of God. But CHRIST WAS ACKNOWLEDGED SOVEREIGN OF HEAVEN, HIS POWER AND AUTHORITY TO BE THE SAME AS THAT OF GOD HIMSELF. Satan thought that he was himself a favorite in heaven among the angels. He had been highly exalted; but this did not call forth from him gratitude and praise to his Creator. He aspired to the height of God himself. He gloried in his loftiness. He knew that he was honored by the angels. He had a special mission to execute. He had been near the great Creator, and the ceaseless beams of glorious light enshrouding the eternal God, had shone especially upon him. Satan thought how angels had obeyed his command with pleasurable alacrity. Were not his garments light and beautiful? Why should Christ thus be honored before himself? {ST, January 9, 1879 par. 2} [See also The Signs of the Times, January 9, 1879 and Spirit of Prophecy, vol. 1, pages 18, 19]. |
| Little by little Lucifer came to indulge the desire for self-exaltation. The Scripture says, Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness. Ezekiel 28:17. Thou hast said in thine heart, . . . I will exalt my throne above the stars of God. . . . I will be like the Most High. Isaiah 14:13, 14. Though all his glory was from God, this mighty angel came to regard it as pertaining to himself. Not content with his position, though honored above the heavenly host, he ventured to covet homage due alone to the Creator. Instead of seeking to make God supreme in the affections and allegiance of all created beings, it was his endeavor to secure their service and loyalty to himself. And coveting the glory with which the infinite Father had invested His Son, this prince of angels aspired to power that was the prerogative of Christ alone. {PP 35.2} |
| NB: Here, in the above three quotes, you have the [now worldwide] trinity doctrine starting to develop in it’s embryonic form. |
| In February, 1845, I had a vision of events commencing with the Midnight Cry. I SAW A THRONE AND ON IT SAT THE FATHER AND THE SON. I gazed on Jesus’ countenance and admired his lovely person. The Father’s person I could not behold, for a cloud of glorious light covered him. I asked Jesus if his Father had a form like himself. He said he had, but I could not behold it, for said he if you should once behold the glory of his person you would cease to exist. {E. G. Harmon, Broadside1, April 6, 1846 par. 7} |
| It is through false theories and traditions that Satan gains his power over the human mind. We can see the extent to which he exercises his power by the disloyalty that is in the world. Even the churches that profess to be Christian have turned from the law of Jehovah, and have erected a false standard. Satan has had his hand in all this; for by directing men to false standards, he misshapes the human character, and causes humanity to acknowledge him as supreme. He works counter to the holy law of God, and denies God’s jurisdiction. It is at his throne that every evil work finds its starting point and obtains its support.— Review and Herald, Oct. 22, 1895. {Ev 589.2} |
| Who is the supreme ruler of the universe? |
| God, as the supreme ruler of the universe has ever required prompt and unquestioning obedience. Even Christ, IN THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH, was obedient to the law of the Father. {E. G. White, Signs of the Times, July 22, 1886 par. 2} |
| Who alone shared the throne of the Supreme ruler of the universe? |
| The Son of God SHARED the Father’s throne, and the glory of the eternal, self-existent One encircled BOTH. About the throne gathered the holy angels, a vast, unnumbered throng–ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands (Revelation 5:11.), the most exalted angels, as ministers and subjects, rejoicing in the light that fell upon them from the presence of the Deity. {E. G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 36} 1890 |
| Who is the only being (in the entire universe) that was admitted to the Father’s counsels? |
| Christ, the Word, the only begotten of God, was one with the eternal Father–one in nature, in character, in purpose–the only being that could enter into all the counsels and purposes of God. {E. G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 34 1890; E. G. White, The (1888) Great Controversy, p. 493 1888} |
| Before the assembled inhabitants of heaven the King declared that none but Christ, the Only Begotten of God, could fully enter into His purposes, and to Him it was committed to execute the mighty counsels of His will. {E. G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 36} 1890 |
| God became one with man when, in the council between the Father and the Son in heaven it was determined that if man fell from his allegiance, the Son of God should be his Redeemer and restore in him the moral image of God. {The Ellen G. White 1888 Materials, p. 869} 1891 |
| Yet the Son of God was exalted above him, as one in power and authority with the Father. He shared the Father’s counsels, while Lucifer did not thus enter into the purposes of God. Why, questioned this mighty angel, should Christ have the supremacy? Why is He honored above Lucifer? {E. G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 37} 1890 |
| There had been no change in the position or authority of Christ. Lucifer’s envy and misrepresentation and his claims to equality with Christ had made necessary a statement of the true position of the Son of God; but this had been the same from the beginning. Many of the angels were, however, blinded by Lucifer’s deceptions. {E. G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 38} 1890 |
| What was the true position of the Son of God from the beginning? |
| The Sovereign of the universe was not alone in His work of beneficence. He had an associate–a co-worker who could appreciate His purposes, and could share His joy in giving happiness to created beings. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. John 1:1, 2. Christ, the Word, the only begotten of God, was one with the eternal Father–one in nature, in character, in purpose–the only being that could enter into all the counsels and purposes of God. His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6. His goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting. Micah 5:2. And the Son of God declares concerning Himself: The Lord possessed Me in the beginning of His way, before His works of old. I was set up FROM everlasting. . . . When He appointed the foundations of the earth: then I was by Him, as one brought up with Him: and I was daily His delight, rejoicing always before Him. Proverbs 8:22-30. The Father wrought by His Son in the creation of all heavenly beings. {E. G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 34} 1890 |
| Christ was the Son of God; He had been one with Him before the angels were called into existence. {E. G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 38} 1890 |
| To whom was the homage and allegiance of the heavenly host due? |
| The Son of God had wrought the Father’s will in the creation of all the hosts of heaven; and to Him, as well as to God, their homage and allegiance were due. Christ was still to exercise divine power, in the creation of the earth and its inhabitants. But in all this He would not seek power or exaltation for Himself contrary to God’s plan, but would exalt the Father’s glory and execute His purposes of beneficence and love. {E. G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 36} 1890 |
| As songs of praise ascended in melodious strains, swelled by thousands of glad voices, the spirit of evil seemed vanquished; unutterable love thrilled his [Lucifer’s] entire being; his soul went out, in harmony with the sinless worshippers, in love to the Father and the Son. {E. G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 37} 1890 |
| Who has an intimate knowledge and personal interest in the works of His hand? |
| The greatness of God is to us incomprehensible. The Lord’s throne is in heaven (Psalm 11:4); yet by HIS Spirit He is everywhere present. He has an intimate knowledge of, and a personal interest in, all the works of His hand. {E. G. White, Education, p. 132} 1903 |
| Who furnishes us with spiritual life? |
| Christ is the source of all true growth, the maintainer of all life. By HIS Holy Spirit He communicates heavenly principles and furnishes spiritual life. {E. G. White, Manuscript Releases Volume 20, p. 143} 1901 |
| He is coming to us by HIS Holy Spirit today. Let us recognize Him now; then we shall recognize Him when He comes in the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory. {E. G. White, Review and Herald, April 30, 1901 par. 8} |
| NB: “His Holy Spirit” occurs 623 times within the Spirit of Prophecy. |
| Who is the only true God (is it a trinity)? |
| Jehovah is the only true God, and He is to be reverenced and worshiped. {E. G. White, Testimonies Volume 6, p. 166} 1901 |
| As Jehovah, the supreme Ruler, God could not personally communicate with sinful men, but He so loved the world that He sent Jesus to our world as a revelation of Himself. {E. G. White, Manuscript Releases Volume 9, p. 122} 1903 |
| Who is the personification of the only true God? |
| By rejecting the Son of God, the personification of the only true God, who possessed goodness, mercy, and untiring love, whose heart was ever touched with human woe, and choosing a murderer in his stead, the Jews showed what human nature can and will do when the restraining power of the Spirit of God is removed, and men are under the control of the apostate. {E. G. White, Review and Herald, January 30, 1900 par. 6} |
| What is the relation between God and Christ? What has Christ been given? |
| The Scriptures clearly indicate the relation between God and Christ, and they bring to view as clearly the personality and individuality of each. [Hebrews 1:1-5 quoted]. God is the Father of Christ; Christ is the Son of God. To Christ has been given an exalted position. He has been made equal with the Father. All the counsels of God are opened to His Son. {E. G. White, Testimonies Volume 8, p. 268} 1904 |
| How is the unity between the Father and the Son described? |
| The personality of the Father and the Son, also the unity that exists between Them, are presented in the seventeenth chapter of John, in the prayer of Christ for His disciples: Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on Me through their word; that they all may be one; as Thou, Father, art in Me, and I in Thee, that they also may be one in Us: that the world may believe that Thou hast sent Me. John 17:20, 21. The unity that exists between Christ and His disciples does not destroy the personality of either. They are one in purpose, in mind, in character, but not in person. It is thus that God and Christ are one. {E. G. White, The Ministry of Healing, p. 421, 422} |
| What is the only power that can resist and overcome sin and cleanse us? |
| There is but one power that can break the hold of evil from the hearts of men, and that is the power of God in Jesus Christ. Only through the blood of the Crucified One is there cleansing from sin. His grace alone can enable us to resist and subdue the tendencies of our fallen nature. {E. G. White, Testimonies Volume 8, p. 291} 1904 |
| What is the (much misunderstood) term used to describe this personal power? |
| The Spirit was given as a regenerating agency, and without this the sacrifice of Christ would have been of no avail. The power of evil had been strengthening for centuries, and the submission of man to this satanic captivity was amazing. Sin could be resisted and overcome only through the mighty agency of the third person of the Godhead, who would come with no modified energy, but in the fulness of divine power. It is the Spirit that makes effectual what has been wrought out by the world’s Redeemer. It is by the Spirit that the heart is made pure. Through the Spirit the believer becomes a partaker of the divine nature. Christ has given HIS Spirit as a divine power to overcome all hereditary and cultivated tendencies to evil, and to impress his own character upon the church. {E. G. White, Review and Herald, May 19, 1904 par. 3} |
| Does that make the Spirit another individual being, a different person to God and Christ? |
| In giving us HIS Spirit, God gives us Himself, making Himself a fountain of divine influences, to give health and life to the world. {E. G. White, Testimonies Volume 7, p. 273} 1902 |
| All who consecrate body, soul, and spirit to His service will be constantly receiving a new endowment of physical, mental, and spiritual power. The inexhaustible supplies of heaven are at their command. Christ gives them the breath of HIS own Spirit, the life of HIS own life. The Holy Spirit puts forth its highest energies to work in mind and heart. {E. G. White, The Ministry of Healing, p. 159} 1905 |
| We need to know two Divine Beings to have eternal life. God, who is the Father. and His Son Jesus Christ: |
| Jn17.3 AND THIS IS LIFE ETERNAL, THAT THEY MIGHT KNOW THEE THE ONLY TRUE GOD, AND JESUS CHRIST, whom thou hast sent. [de6.4; is42.8; ml2.10; mk12.29-30,32; ro3.30; 1co8.4&6; ep4.6; 1ti2.5; ja2.19] |
| Only Two Divine Beings sit on the throne: God, who is the Father, and His Son Jesus Christ: |
| Re22.1 And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of THE THRONE OF GOD AND OF THE LAMB. |
| Re22.3 And there shall be no more curse: but THE THRONE OF GOD AND OF THE LAMB shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him: |
| Do you see a pattern forming? Only Two Divine Beings have a kingdom. God who is the Father and His Son Jesus Christ: |
| Ep5.5 For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in THE KINGDOM OF CHRIST AND OF GOD. |
| I cannot begin to tell it all, but the latest is the THIRD ANGEL’S MESSAGE. It is to be proclaimed, and we are to carry the banner with the inscription, The commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. That is what we are to bear. There is no such thing as these spiritualistic ideas that must come into our mind at all, that we have no personal Christ and we have no personal God. Brethren, HOLD FAST TO THE SANCTUARY. Hold fast to Christ Jesus; hold fast to the Father. And every point of present truth that we have heard that we have experienced, we are to proclaim whenever we shall go. {Ms188-1905.30} |
| Summary of the 1st Angel’s Message: A world-wide final gospel of truth message proclaimed just before Christ’s Second Advent to give glory and worship to God the Father – our Creator. |
| Summary of the 2nd Angel’s Message: A world-wide final gospel of truth message proclaimed just before Christ’s Second Advent for God’s people to come out of Babylon – to leave the apostate churches of the world – that is Roman Catholicism as well as Protestants who have rejected the truth. By giving your allegiance to Rome – the mother of harlots, you have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication. The message is Come out and give glory and worship to God the Father – our Creator – and not to a man-made papal institution or it’s off-spring. |
| Summary of the 3rd Angel’s Message: A world-wide final gospel of truth message proclaimed just before Christ’s Second Advent regarding the penalties for worshipping the beast and his image rather than giving the glory and your worship to God the Father – our Creator. |
| So, when we analysis the 3 Angel’s Messages we conclude that the central and most important theme that God requires us to do is to give GLORY AND WORSHIP TO GOD THE FATHER – our Creator. |
| Yes, we do this through His Only Begotten Son, Jesus Christ, but NEVER through any other source. |
| Cumbered with humanity, Christ could not be in every place personally; therefore it was altogether for their advantage that He should leave them, go to His father, and send the Holy Spirit to be His successor on earth. The Holy Spirit is Himself DIVESTED of the personality of humanity and independent thereof. HE WOULD REPRESENT HIMSELF AS PRESENT IN ALL PLACES BY HIS HOLY SPIRIT, AS THE OMNIPRESENT. But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in My name, He shall (although unseen by you), [THIS PHRASE WAS ADDED BY ELLEN WHITE.] teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you [John 14:26]. Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will come not unto you; but if I depart, I will send Him unto you [John 16:7]. {14MR 23.3} (Ellen White, Manuscript Releases, vol. 14, pages 23, 24; written February 18 and 19, 1895) |
| NB: Divested meaning: To strip or deprive (someone or something), esp. of property or rights; dispossess. To deprive someone of (power, rights, or possessions). Example: men are unlikely to be divested of power without a struggle. |
| A revival and a reformation MUST take place, under the ministration of the Holy Spirit. Revival and reformation are two different things. Revival signifies a renewal of spiritual life, a quickening of the powers of mind and heart, a resurrection from spiritual death. Reformation signifies a reorganization, a change in ideas and theories, habits and practices. Reformation will NOT bring forth the good fruit of righteousness unless it is connected with the revival of the Spirit. Revival and reformation are to do their appointed work, and in doing this work THEY MUST BLEND. {RH, February 25, 1902 par. 8} |
| The God of the Pioneers – 1872 Fundamental Principles |
| (25 Fundamental Principles based on 1 Corinthians 8:6) |
| As elsewhere stated, Seventh-Day Adventists have no creed but the Bible; but they hold to certain well-defined points of faith, for which they feel prepared to give a reason to every man that asketh them. The following propositions may be taken as a summary of the principal features of their religious faith, upon which there is, so far as we know, entire unanimity throughout the body. They believe, — |
| 1. THAT THERE IS ONE GOD, a personal, spiritual being, the creator of all things, omnipotent, omniscient, and eternal, infinite in wisdom, holiness, justice, goodness, truth, and mercy; unchangeable, AND EVERYWHERE PRESENT BY HIS REPRESENTATIVE, THE HOLY SPIRIT. Psalms 139:7 |
| 2. THAT THERE IS ONE LORD JESUS CHRIST, THE SON OF THE ETERNAL FATHER, the one by whom God created all things, and by whom they do consist; that he took on him the nature of the seed of Abraham for the redemption of our fallen race; that he dwelt among men full of grace and truth, lived our example, died our sacrifice, was raised for our justification, ascended on high to be OUR ONLY MEDIATOR IN THE SANCTUARY IN HEAVEN, where, with his own blood he makes atonement for our sins; which atonement so far from being made on the cross, which was but the offering of the sacrifice, is the very last portion of his work as priest, according to the example of the Levitical priesthood, which foreshadowed and prefigured the ministry of our Lord in Heaven. See Lev. 16; Heb. 8:4, 5; 9:6, 7; etc. |
| 1896 – Recommendations for essential change at General Conference session, to choose one man as president, but the brethren are advised that it is not wise to do so. Ellen White warns: To place men where God should be placed does not honor or glorify God. Is the president of the General Conference to be the God of the people? Are the men at Battle Creek to be regarded as infinite in wisdom?… ‘Cease ye from man.’ (TM 375.2) |
| 1898 – Ellen White states, The church is in the Laodicean state. The presence of God is NOT in her midst. (Ms 156, 1898 – Notebook Leaflets from Elms haven Library, Vol.1, Need of Self-Sacrificing Effort, p. 99) |
| 1901 – Recommendations for change are repeated and voted. One chairman is to head the G.C for only one year. Arthur Daniells is elected, but two years later, he is still president. General Conference Executive Committee increases its members from 13 to 25 (GCB p. 151). Ellen White warns that the church is working upon wrong principles. (Ms 37, p.98, 1901) The people have lost confidence in those who have the management of the work. Yet we hear that the voice of the Conference is the voice of God. Every time I have heard this, I have thought it was ALMOST BLASPHEMY. (Ms 37, 1901, p. 8) |
| 1902 – J.H. Kellogg prepares to publish his work, The Living Temple. He is told NOT to include his new theories, but ignores the counsel. He tries to gain approval at the Autumn Council for his book to be published but a letter from Ellen White to Daniells counsels him to have nothing to do with the book. Kellogg takes his manuscript to the Review and Herald publishing house as outside work, and they agree to print it. |
| As the result, the Battle Creek Sanitarium (February 18) headed by Kellogg and the Review and Herald printing office (December 30) burn to the ground, and with it the galley proofs of Kellogg’s book Living Temple. But he takes the manuscript to a non-Adventist printer. 23 fires would happen between 1901 and 1923. Judgment has ruled from the heavens above. |
| 1902 – Ellen White feels perplexed and frustrated with the G.C and decides to withdraw herself from all their meetings. She writes to her sons Edson and Willie, I have but very little confidence that the Lord is giving these men in positions of responsibility, spiritual eyesight and heavenly discernment. I am thrown into perplexity over their course; and I desire now to attend to my special work, to have no part in any of their councils, and to attend no camp meetings, nigh or afar off. My mind shall not be dragged into confusion by the tendency they manifest to work directly contrary to the light that God has given me. I am done. I will preserve my God-given intelligence. My voice has been heard in the different conferences, and at camp meetings. I must now make a change… I shall therefore leave, leave them to receive word from the Bible… This is the light given me and I shall not depart from it. (Letter W-186, 2 Dec, 1902 to Edson and Willie White, p. 4, 5) |
| 1905 – The 28 Fundamental Principles of 1889 Synopsis of our Faith is inserted again in the church Yearbook, and continues until 1914. |
| Ellen White confirms these principles: Every pillar that He has established is to be strengthened. We cannot now step off the foundation that God has established. We cannot now enter into any new organization; for this would mean apostasy from the truth (Manuscript 129, 1905). The past fifty years have not dimmed one jot or principle of our faith as we received the great and wonderful evidences that were made certain to us in 1844, after the passing of the time… Not a word is changed or denied. (Letter 326, Dec. 4, 1905; The Upward Look, 352.4) |
| 1915 – Ellen White warns of great changes to take place after her death. I am charged to tell our people, that do not realize, that the devil has device after device, and he carries them out in ways that they do not expect. Satan’s agencies will invent ways to make sinners out of saints. I tell you now, that when I am laid to rest, great changes will take place. I do not know when I shall be taken; and I desire to warn all against the devices of the devil. I want the people to know that I warned them fully before my death. (Manuscript 1, Feb 24, 1915) |
| 1915 – Ellen G. White dies [November 26, 1827 – July 16, 1915]. |
| When Ellen White died, three funerals and a graveside service memorialized her life of ministry. |
| 1919 – Bible and Teachers Conference takes place in secrecy with the discussion becoming heated at times as some in leadership positions test the waters to see if the doctrine of the Trinity can be brought in. There is enough resistance to table the conversation for another time. The recorded minutes for this five week long event (July 1-August 9) disappears for 55 years until 1974. |
| 1946 – The General Conference Session votes that all further revisions of the Church Manual must be approved in advance by the G.C in world session. |
| 1946 – The General Conference, after being conditioned for 27 years (and a new generation of members coming into the church during those 27 years that knew nothing but the Trinity), votes to retain the 1931 Baptismal Vow officially. They then vote that changes to the baptismal vow could only be made by the General Conference delegates in official session. (Movement of Destiny, p. 422) The Trinity is now protected by the necessity of an entire church vote in session. The entire ministry and the world membership now believes the Trinity is true. |
| 1976 – Neal Wilson, President of the North American Division of SDA, gives this sworn statement in the Silver-Tobler legal case involving the Seventh-day Adventist Church: Although it is true that there was a period in the life of the Seventh-day Adventist Church when the denomination took a distinctly anti-Roman Catholic viewpoint, and the term hierarchy was used in a perjorative sense to refer to the papal form of church governance, that attitude on the Church’s part was nothing more than a manifestation of widespread anti-popery among conservative protestant denominations in the early part of this century and the latter part of the last, and which has now been consigned to the historical trash heap so far as the Seventh-day Adventist Church is concerned. (Merikay McLeod lawsuit, p. 4, footnote #2, Docket Entry #84: EEOC vs PPPA C-74-2025 CBR, Sworn statement dated Feb.6, 1976) Ellen White warned in 1894, It is a backsliding church that lessens the distance between itself and the papacy. (ST, Feb 19, 1894) |
| 1977 – Pope Paul VI rewards Bert B. Beach for his book with a private audience in the Vatican. Beach presents the pope with a book and a gold medallion confirming friendship of the SDA Church with the Vatican. The medallion is an engraved witness to the validity of the Ten Commandments. While the other commandments are represented simply as Roman numerals, the words of the fourth—‘Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy’—are written out. (W.D Eva, Adventist Review, Book, Medallion Presented to Pope, August 11, 1977, (849) p.23) However, the Seventh day was removed from the text, and quoted in the same way as it is quoted in any Roman Catholic catechism. Beach represents the worldwide Seventh-day Adventist Church in an interview over Vatican radio referring to the pope as Holy Father, when Ellen White has clearly warned, The pope is not regarded by God as anything more than a man who is acting out in our world the character of the man of sin, representing in his claims that power and authority which Satan claimed in the heavenly courts. (5MR 102) |
| 1980 – World General Conference in session (Dallas, TX), officially votes to accept the Trinity doctrine, as part of 27 Fundamental Beliefs of Seventh-day Adventists. |
| By officially approving the Trinity doctrine as a fundamental belief of Seventh-day Adventists, the denomination has publicly declared to the world that she is following in the steps of the daughters (fallen churches) of the mother of harlots (the Roman Catholic church) whose central pillar doctrine is the Trinity. Therefore the SDA church has left the original mission (of proclaiming the three angels’ messages) of God’s calling and the firm foundation of our faith (Fundamental Principles) that are based upon unquestionable authority. No longer can the present SDA Church be considered as the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ, but now simply a Counterfeit New Movement as prophesied in 1903 by Ellen White. |
| 1980 – Ex-Jesuit priest Alberto Rivera states that all the mainstream churches were taken over (under control of Rome) by 1980. (Secret Terrorists, p. 108) |
| 1981 – Neal C. Wilson, now General Conference President, announces that the Church has officially adopted the Trinity doctrine, which is now number 2 in the Church’s 27 Fundamental Beliefs. He cites before the Seventh-day Adventist Church the words that he had heard while at an ASI [ Adventist Laymen’s Services and Industries ] convention that: …there is another universal and truly catholic organization, the Seventh-day Adventist Church. These words were spoken at a concluding speech given by Robert Muller, the associate secretary of the United Nations, who was the featured speaker. (Adventist Review, March 5, 1981, p. 3) [Bold, underlined, italic text has been added to maintain correctness] |
| 1981 – Adventist Review 7-30-1981 Special Issue on Bible Doctrines—The Trinity doctrine is explained one year after it was voted as an official doctrine (which was in 1980). It states, While no single scriptural passage states formally the doctrine of the Trinity, it is assumed as a fact by Bible writers and mentioned several times… Only by faith can we accept the existence of the Trinity. (p. 4) The concept of the Trinity, namely the idea that the three are one, is not explicitly stated but only assumed. – (Fernando L. Canale, Handbook of Seventh-day Adventist Theology, Seventh-day Adventist Encyclopedia, vol. 12, p. 138, ‘Doctrine of God’) |
| 1986 – The official doctrine of the church is stated in the Church Manual: There is one God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, a unity of three co-eternal persons. – (SDA Church Manual, chapter 2, p. 23. Refer also to the book – Seventh-day Adventists Believe 27 Fundamental Beliefs, The Trinity) |
| 1988 – Seventh-day Adventists Believe 27 Fundamental Belief book is published (strongly Trinitarian). |
| 1993 – George Knight, a professor and prominent SDA theologian, makes this startling confession in Ministry Magazine, October 1993: Most of the founders of Seventh-day Adventism would not be able to join the church today if they had to subscribe to the denomination’s fundamental beliefs. More specifically, most would not be able to agree to belief number 2 which deals with the doctrine of the Trinity. In all actuality, this would have included ALL of the founders and Pioneers of the early SDA Church and it should be alarming to today’s members. |
| 1995 – G.C World Session in Utrecht, Netherlands. The Vatican flag is carried through the meeting hall in a singular fashion amidst an unusually loud ovation. |
| 1997 – SDA logo is changed from the three angels to flames and cross, becoming Catholic friendly. |
| 2005 – Baptismal Vow is revised to the Trinity creed to read: Do you accept the teachings of the Bible as expressed in the Statement of Fundamental Beliefs of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, and do you pledge to live your life by God’s grace in harmony with these teachings? For the first time in Adventist history, the Church has based its membership on a creed. The prophet had told us 95 years earlier, The Bible, and the Bible alone, is to be our creed. (RH, Dec 15, 1885) |
| 2008 – In contrast to the 1936 Sabbath School lesson, the 2nd quarter lesson in 2008 teaches that the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are not really a father or a son or a holy spirit but are three divine beings who are just role-playing these parts. Here is a quote from the lesson: But imagine a situation in which the Being we have come to know as God the Father came to die for us, and the One we have come to know as Jesus stayed back in heaven (we are speaking in human terms to make a point). Nothing would have changed, except that we would have been calling Each by the name we now use for the Other. That is what equality in the Deity means. (April 10, 2008, p. 19) As J.N. Andrews said, This [Trinity] doctrine destroys the personality of God and His Son Jesus Christ our Lord. (RH, March 6, 1855) |
| 2012 – The White Estate database is hacked by an anonymous party. Their concern is for public access to all of Ellen White’s documents and that they have been restricted and it is public domain at this point as they should belong to the people. The meaning and context of her writings is hampered by not being able to view everything in its entirety. The hacker is pushing for full digitized access to anyone wanting them, not just a handful of privileged people. The White Estate attempts to sue for damages. The hacker threatens to release all of Sister White’s writings. Their request is that the White Estate does it to save their reputation. |
| 2015 – The White Estate reaches a settlement with the hacker and releases the rest of Sister White’s unpublished writings that they have been holding back for years. The collection contains approx. 8,300 typed documents, letters and manuscripts dating from 1845 to 1915. Honest Adventists now fully know that Sister White wrote over and over that Jesus is their Comforter coming to them in spirit form as the Holy Spirit, not some other mystery person or Ghost. The dogma of the denomination’s teaching has been shown to be in error for those who want to know and are paying attention. |
| Pr30.4 Who hath ascended up into heaven, or descended? who hath gathered the wind in his fists? who hath bound the waters in a garment? who hath established all the ends of the earth? WHAT [IS] HIS NAME, AND WHAT [IS] HIS SON’S NAME, if thou canst tell? |
| Zc6.12 And speak unto him, saying, Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying, Behold the man whose name [is] The BRANCH; and he shall grow up out of his place, and he shall build the temple of the LORD: |
| Zc6.13 Even he shall build the temple of the LORD; and he shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule upon his THRONE; and he shall be a priest upon his THRONE: and THE COUNSEL OF PEACE SHALL BE BETWEEN THEM BOTH. |
| Jn17.8 For I have given unto them the words which THOU gavest ME; and they have received [them], and have known surely that I CAME OUT FROM THEE, and they have believed that THOU didst send ME. |
| Ep5.5 For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in THE KINGDOM OF CHRIST AND OF GOD. |
| NB: TWO Divine Beings have a kingdom. GOD, who is THE FATHER, and His Only Begotten Son, JESUS CHRIST. Having a kingdom means that there is a king – who sits on a throne. Here, in this very powerful verse, we see that only TWO Divine Beings have a throne. The throne is a 2 seater not a 3 seater; there is NO HOLY SPIRIT. Note also Re22.1 & Re22.3 below: |
| Re22.1 And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of THE THRONE OF GOD AND OF THE LAMB. |
| Re22.3 And there shall be no more curse: but THE THRONE OF GOD AND OF THE LAMB shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him: |
| Jn1.18 No man hath seen God at any time; THE ONLY BEGOTTEN SON, which is in the BOSOM OF THE FATHER, he hath declared [him]. |
| Reject the Trinity |
| There can be NO COMPROMISE with God’s truths. Hence, to worship God on His terms means to REJECT the trinity doctrine. The trinity doctrine contradicts what the prophets, Jesus, the apostles and the early Christians believed and taught. It also contradicts what God says about Himself in His own inspired Word. Thus, He counsels: |
| Is46.9 Remember the former things of old: for I [am] God, and [there is] none else; [I am] God, and [there is] none like me, |
| God’s interests are not served by making Him confusing and mysterious. Instead, the more that people become confused about God and His purposes, the better it suits God’s Adversary, Satan the Devil, the ‘god of this world.’ It is he who promotes such false doctrines to: |
| 2co4.4 In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them. |
| And the Trinity doctrine also serves the interests of clergymen who want to maintain their hold on people, for they make it appear as though only theologians can understand it. |
| An early pioneer quote concerning God and the divinity of Christ: In 1878, a reader of the Review and Herald asked if Seventh-day Adventists were unitarians or trinitarians: Neither. We do not believe in the three-one God of the Trinitarians nor in the low views of Jesus Christ held by unitarians. We believe that Christ was a divine being, not merely in his mission, but in his person also. . . {R&H June 27, 1878 To correspondents} |
| I feel my spirit stirred within me. I feel to the depth of my being that the truth must be borne to other countries and nations, and to all classes. Let the missionaries of the cross proclaim that there is ONE GOD, and one Mediator between God and man, who is Jesus Christ the Son of the Infinite God. THIS NEEDS TO BE PROCLAIMED THROUGHOUT EVERY CHURCH IN OUR LAND. {1888 886.3} |
| 2. Christ, the Word, the only begotten of God, was one with the eternal Father—one in nature, in character, in purpose—the ONLY being that could enter into all the counsels and purposes of God. His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6. His goings forth have been from of old, FROM everlasting. Micah 5:2. And the Son of God declares concerning Himself: The Lord possessed Me in the beginning of His way, before His works of old. I was set up FROM everlasting…. When He appointed the foundations of the earth: then I was by Him, as one brought up with Him: and I was daily His delight, rejoicing always before Him. Proverbs 8:22-30. {PP 34.1} |
| The great plan of redemption was laid before the foundation of the world. And Christ, our Substitute and Surety, did not stand alone in the wondrous undertaking of the ransom of man. In the plan to save a lost world, the counsel was between them BOTH; the covenant of peace was between the Father and the Son. For God so loved the world, that he GAVE his only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. The Majesty of heaven, the King of glory, would become a servant. The only-begotten Son, in whom the Father delighted, was given for the ransom of a fallen race. {ST, December 23, 1897 par. 2} |
| But He waves them back. Not yet; He cannot now receive the coronet of glory and the royal robe. He enters into the presence of His Father. He points to His wounded head, the pierced side, the marred feet; He lifts His hands, bearing the print of nails. He points to the tokens of His triumph; He presents to God the wave sheaf, those raised with Him as representatives of that great multitude who shall come forth from the grave at His second coming. He approaches the Father, with whom there is joy over one sinner that repents; who rejoices over one with singing. Before the foundations of the earth were laid, the Father and the Son had united in a covenant to redeem man if he should be overcome by Satan. They had clasped Their hands in a solemn pledge that Christ should become the surety for the human race. This pledge Christ has fulfilled. When upon the cross He cried out, It is finished, He addressed the Father. The compact had been fully carried out. Now He declares: Father, it is finished. I have done Thy will, O My God. I have completed the work of redemption. If Thy justice is satisfied, I will that they also, whom Thou hast given Me, be with Me where I am. John 19:30; 17:24. {DA 834.2} |
| The Holy Spirit is the breath of spiritual life in the soul. The impartation of the Spirit is the impartation of the life of Christ. It imbues the receiver with the attributes of Christ. Only those who are thus taught of God, those who possess the inward working of the Spirit, and in whose life the Christ-life is manifested, are to stand as representative men, to minister in behalf of the church. {DA 805.3} |
| And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom: and the grace of God was upon him. And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them. And Jesus increased his wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man. Let the brightest example the world has yet seen be your example, rather than the greatest and most learned men of the age, who know not God, nor Jesus Christ whom he has sent. The Father and the Son alone are to be exalted. {YI, July 7, 1898 par. 2} |
| The plan of salvation devised by the Father and the Son will be a grand success. (Ellen White, The Signs of the Times, June 17, 1903 par. 2) |
| He who denies the personality of God and of his Son Jesus Christ, is denying God and Christ. If that which ye have heard from the beginning shall remain in you, ye also shall continue in the Son, and in the Father. If you continue to believe and obey the truths you first embraced regarding the personality of the Father and the Son, you will be joined together with him in love. {E.G. White, Review and Herald, March 8, 1906 par. 19} |
| The past fifty years have not dimmed one jot or principle of our faith as we received the great and wonderful evidences that were made certain to us in 1844, after the passing of the time. The languishing souls are to be confirmed and quickened according to his word. And many of the ministers of the gospel and the Lord’s physicians will have their languishing souls quickened according to the word. Not a word is changed or denied. That which the Holy Spirit testified to as truth after the passing of the time, in our great disappointment, is the solid foundation of truth. Pillars of truth were revealed, and we accepted the foundation principles that have made us what we are–Seventh-day Adventists, keeping the commandments of God and having the faith of Jesus. {NYI, February 7, 1906 par. 4} |
| My brethren, the value of the evidences of truth that we have received during the past half century, is ABOVE ESTIMATE. These evidences are as treasure hidden in a field. Search for them. Study the Bible truths that for fifty years have been calling us out from the world. PRESENT THIS EVIDENCE IN CLEAR, PLAIN LINES. Those who have been long in the truth, and those who have recently received the truth, must now dig for the buried heavenly treasure. Let every man work to the point. Study the Word of God. Revive the evidences given in the past. Search the Scriptures, Christ said; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. {RH, April 19, 1906 par. 13} |
| In the last days of this earth’s history the voice that spoke from Sinai is still declaring, Thou shalt have no other gods before Me. Exodus 20:3. Man has set his will against the will of God, but he cannot silence the word of command. The human mind cannot evade its obligation to a higher power. Theories and speculations may abound; men may try to set science in opposition to revelation, and thus do away with God’s law; but stronger and still stronger comes the command, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve. Matthew 4:10. {PK 624.3} |
| The doctrine of the Trinity is a cruel heathen monstrosity, removing Jesus from his true position of Divine Savior and Mediator. It is true we can not measure or define divinity. It is beyond our finite understanding, yet on this subject of the personality of God the Bible is very simple and plain. The Father, the Ancient of Days, is from eternity… Satan has taken some heathen conception of a three-headed monstrosity, and with deliberate intention to cast contempt upon divinity, has woven it into Romanism as our glorious God, an impossible, absurd invention. This monstrous doctrine transplanted from heathenism into the Roman Papal Church is seeking to intrude its evil presence into the teachings of the Third Angel’s Message.… [Portions of a letter written by J. S. Washburn in 1939. This letter was liked by a conference president so much that he distributed it to 32 of his ministers.] |
| Russell Holt, in a term paper written for a course at Andrews University, for professor Mervyn Maxwell, has done a study on the development of the Trinity doctrine in the Seventh Day Adventist Church and how it became a doctrine. He looks at it from a positive viewpoint; in other words, he thinks it was good that the change took place. On page 4 of his study, he writes: |
| A survey of other writers during these years reveal that TO A MAN they rejected the trinity. |
| This says that when you look through the writings of the early Adventists, every single one of them rejected the trinity. There was not a single one of them who believed in the trinity. Although many of the articles you read today will say that most of them rejected the trinity, that’s not true. Every single one of them rejected the trinity! You won’t be able to find one of those early Adventists who supported this doctrine as long as they were members of the Church. |
| D.N. Canright rejected the trinity as long as he was an Adventist but, after he apostatized and left the Church, he wrote a book against Adventism and that was when he accepted the trinity – which fact, is probably more significant than we think. |
| The last great conflict between truth and error is but the final struggle of the long-standing controversy concerning the law of God. Upon this battle we are now entering–a battle between the laws of men and the precepts of Jehovah, between the religion of the Bible and the religion of fable and tradition. {Mar 161.4} |
| As Seventh-day Adventists we have always believed that all our teachings should be based on the Scriptures. Yet in the 1980 General Conference session at Dallas, Texas when we officially adopted the Trinity as a teaching of Adventism we stated: While no single Scripture passage states the doctrine of the Trinity, it is assumed as a fact… only by faith can we accept the existence of the Trinity. (Special Edition of the Review & Herald (Adventist Review, Volume 158, No. 31 July 1981, p. 4) |
| Those who seek to remove the old landmarks are not holding fast; they are not remembering how they have received and heard. Those who try to bring in theories that would remove the pillars of our faith concerning the sanctuary or concerning the personality of God or of Christ, are working as blind men. They are seeking to bring in uncertainties and to set the people of God adrift without an anchor. {MR760 9.5 1980, 1981} |
| We need many more canvassers, not to sell books containing fables, but books that are filled with the truth of God. We cannot as a people afford to increase the circulation of publications that work counter to the truth we should be teaching. We cannot afford to spend our time and talents in the employ of men who are working to make of none effect the truths that have made us a peculiar people, truths to which we have held for over fifty years. I am often warned of the importance of faithfulness on the part of our people in proclaiming to the world the messages that God has entrusted to them, that a people may be prepared for the great closing up of this earth’s history. We have an extensive line of literature that should come before the people of the world. {PM 314.1} |
| There have been one and another who in studying their Bibles thought they discovered great light, and new theories, but these have not been correct. The Scripture is all true, but by misapplying the Scripture men arrive at wrong conclusions. We are engaged in a mighty conflict, and it will become more close and determined as we near the final struggle. We have a sleepless adversary, and he is constantly at work upon human minds that have not had a personal experience in the teachings of the people of God for the past fifty years. Some will take the truth applicable to their time, and place it in the future. Events in the train of prophecy that had their fulfillment away in the past are made future, and thus by these theories the faith of some is undermined. {17MR 2.4} |
| The concept of the Trinity, namely the IDEA THAT THE THREE ARE ONE, IS NOT EXPLICITLY STATED BUT ONLY ASSUMED. (Fernando L. Canale, The Handbook of Seventh-day Adventist Theology, Seventh-day Adventist Encyclopedia, Volume 12, page 138, ‘Doctrine of God’) |
| We want the Holy Spirit, which is Jesus Christ. {Lt66-1894 1.6600} |
| After his transgression God would communicate to man through Christ and angels. {SR 50.3} |
| The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Christ, which is sent to all men to give them sufficiency, that through His grace we might be complete in Him. {14MR 84.3} |
| The great outpouring of the Spirit of God, which lightens the whole earth with His glory, will not come until we have an enlightened people, that know by experience what it means to be laborers together with God. When we have entire, wholehearted consecration to the service of Christ, God will recognize the fact by an outpouring of His Spirit without measure; but this will not be while the largest portion of the church are not laborers together with God. God cannot pour out His Spirit when selfishness and self-indulgence are so manifest; when a spirit prevails that, if put into words, would express that answer of Cain,– Am I my brother’s keeper?–R. & H., July 21, 1896. {CS 52.1 1940} |
| Why do we so seldom visit the fountain when it is full and free? Our souls often need to drink at the fountain in order to be refreshed and flourish in the Lord. Salvation we must have. Without vital godliness our religion is vain. A form will be of no advantage to us. We must have the deep workings of the Spirit of God.–Letter 2a, 1856. {RC 351.6 1985} |
| In 1973 Bert Beach co-authored a book with Lukas Vischer, Secretary of the World Council of Churches. (Beach later became Secretary of the Public Affairs and Religious Liberty department of the General Conference of the S.D.A. Church.) The title of the book was So Much In Common between the World Council of Churches and the Seventh-day Adventist Church and was published by the World Council of Churches, Geneva, Switzerland, in 1973. Within this book one will find the following statement: |
| The member churches of the World Council of Churches and Seventh-Day Adventists are in agreement on the fundamental articles of the Christian faith as set forth in the three ancient symbols (Apostolicum, Nicaeno-Constantinopolitum, Athanasium). This agreement finds expression in unqualified acceptance of the doctrines of the Trinity and the Two Natures. (So Much In Common, p. 107 (1973) Co-authored by B.B. Beach and Dr. Lukas Vischer- Faith and the Order Secretariat of the WCC.) . |
| One cannot become a member of the World Council of Churches unless one subscribes with unqualified acceptance to the Apostolicum, Nicaeno-Constantinopolitum, Athanasium – for it is this confession of faith which is deemed to be orthodox by the Catholic Church and Protestant Churches alike. This statement later found its way into a book on inter-church and interfaith relations, which was written by Stefan Hoschele in 2010: |
| The member Churches of the World Council of Churches and Seventh-Day Adventists are in agreement on the fundamental articles of the Christian faith as set forth in the three ancient church symbols (Apostolicum, Nicaeo-Constantinopolitum, Athansaianum [1]. This expression finds unqualified acceptance of the doctrines of the Trinity and the Two natures. |
| [1] The original text says Athanasium. It is somewhat surprising that this symbol is mentioned here, for the Adventist anti-creedal stance evidently contradicts the acceptance of a text that starts with the assertion Whosoever will be saved, before all things it is necessary that he hold the Catholic Faith. (Interchurch and Interfaith Relations: Seventh-Day Adventist’, Stefan Hoschele, 2010, pp. 116, 117.) |
| Before the entrance of evil, there was peace and joy throughout the universe. All was in perfect harmony with the Creator’s will. Love for God was supreme, love for one another impartial. Christ the Word, the only begotten of God, was one with the eternal Father,—one in nature, in character, and in purpose,—the ONLY being in all the universe that could enter into all the counsels and purposes of God. By Christ, the Father wrought in the creation of all heavenly beings. By him were all things created, that are in Heaven, . . . whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers; [Colossians 1:16.] and to Christ, equally with the Father, all Heaven gave allegiance. {GC88 493.1 1888} {GC 493.1 1911} |
| The waiting angels at the gates of the city inquire in rapturous strains, Who is this King of Glory? The escorting angels joyously reply in songs of triumph, The Lord, strong and mighty! The Lord, mighty in battle! Lift up your heads, O ye gates, even lift them up, ye everlasting doors, and the King of Glory shall come in! Again the waiting angels ask, Who is this King of Glory? and the escorting angels respond in melodious strains, The Lord of hosts! He is the King of Glory! Then the portals of the city of God are widely opened, and the heavenly train pass in amid a burst of angelic music. All the heavenly host surround their majestic Commander as he takes his position upon the throne of the Father. {3SP 252.2} |
| With the deepest adoration and joy, the hosts of angels bow before him, while the glad shout rings through the courts of Heaven: Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honor, and glory, and blessing! Songs of triumph mingle with music from angelic harps, till Heaven seems to overflow with delightful harmony, and inconceivable joy and praise. The Son of God has triumphed over the prince of darkness, and conquered death and the grave. Heaven rings with voices in lofty strains proclaiming: Blessing, and honor, and glory, and power be unto Him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb forever and ever! {3SP 253.1} |
| He is seated by the side of his Father on his throne. The Saviour presents the captives he has rescued from the bonds of death, at the price of his own life. His hands place immortal crowns upon their brows; for they are the representatives, and samples, of those who shall be redeemed, by the blood of Christ, from all nations, tongues, and people, and come forth from the dead, when he shall call the just from their graves at his second coming. Then shall they see the marks of Calvary in the glorified body of the Son of God. Their greatest joy will be found in the presence of Him who sitteth on the throne; and the enraptured saints will exclaim, My Beloved is mine, and I am his! He is the chief among ten thousand, and altogether lovely! {3SP 253.2 1878} |
| The angels saw the conditions to which the Son of God must submit. He must give his life for the life of the world. He must do a work which Infinity alone is capable of accomplishing. He took humanity, uniting the offender with his divine nature, and made his own soul an offering for sin. With his long human arm the Son of God encircled the whole human family, while with his divine arm he grasped the throne of the Infinite. His own individual presence was necessary, that in seeing him we might see the Father. He placed his throne, his spiritual kingdom, upon the earth. He revealed his special grace, and opened to our view the wonders of heavenly things. He imparted his own divine Spirit to humanity, thus exalting humanity in the scale of moral worth with God. Mrs. E. G. White. {YI, July 29, 1897 par. 9} |
| The persecution of John became a means of grace. Patmos was made resplendent with the glory of a risen Saviour. John had seen Christ in human form, with the marks of the nails, which will ever be His glory, in His hands and His feet. Now he was permitted again to behold his risen Lord, clothed with as much glory as a human being could behold, and live. What a Sabbath was that to the lonely exile, always precious in the sight of Christ, but now more than ever exalted! Never had he learned so much of Jesus. Never had he heard such exalted truth (YI April 5, 1900). {7BC 955.9 1957} |
| The true people of God are now pulling apart, and the tares are being bound in bundles ready to burn. Decided positions will be taken. Satan will move upon minds that have been indulged, upon men who have always had their own way, and anything presented to them in counsel or reproof to change their objectionable traits of character is considered faultfinding, binding them, restraining them, that they cannot have liberty to act themselves. The Lord in great mercy has sent messages of warning to them, but they would not listen to reproof. Like the enemy who rebelled in heaven, they do not like to hear, do not correct the wrong they have done but become accusers, declaring themselves misused and unappreciated. {Lt13-August 22, 1892 E.G.W. Letter to S.H.Haskell} |
| The very last deception of Satan will be TO MAKE OF NONE EFFECT THE TESTIMONY OF THE SPIRIT OF GOD. Where there is no vision, the people perish (Proverbs 29:18). Satan will work ingeniously, in different ways and through different agencies, TO UNSETTLE THE CONFIDENCE OF GOD’S REMNANT PEOPLE IN THE TRUE TESTIMONY. He will bring in spurious visions to mislead, and will mingle the false with the true, and so disgust people that they will regard everything that bears the name of visions as a species of fanaticism; but honest souls, by contrasting false and true, will be enabled to distinguish between them… {2SM 78.2} |
| The Three Angels’ Messages—The proclamation of the first, second, and third angel’s messages has been located by the word of Inspiration. NOT A PEG OR A PIN IS TO BE REMOVED. No human authority has any more right to change the location of these messages than to substitute the New Testament for the Old. The Old Testament is the gospel in figures and symbols. The New Testament is the substance. One is as essential as the other. The Old Testament presents lessons from the lips of Christ, and these lessons have not lost their force in any particular. THE FIRST AND SECOND MESSAGES WERE GIVEN IN 1843 AND 1844, and we are now under the proclamation of the third; BUT ALL THREE OF THE MESSAGES ARE STILL TO BE PROCLAIMED. It is just as essential now as ever before that they shall be repeated to those who are seeking for the truth. By pen and voice we are to sound the proclamation, showing their order, and the application of the prophecies that bring us to the third angel’s message. THERE CANNOT BE A THIRD WITHOUT THE FIRST AND SECOND. These messages we are to give to the world in publications, in discourses, showing in the line of prophetic history the things that have been, and the things that will be.—Manuscript 32, 1896. {CW 26.2} |
| I should be an unfaithful watchman, were I to hold my peace, when I see the very foundations of our faith being torn away by those who have departed from the faith, and who are now adrift, without an anchor. In this time, when false doctrines are being taught, we are to teach THE SAME TRUTH that we have taught FOR THE PAST HALF CENTURY. I HAVE NOT CHANGED MY FAITH one jot or one tittle, … — Lt150-1906.9 • Ellen G. White |
| Notice the date—1906. Ellen White said in 1906 that she had not changed her faith one jot or one tittle for the past half century. |
| Unwise Leaders Do Not Speak for God |
| THE VOICE FROM BATTLE CREEK, which has been regarded as authority in counseling how the work should be done, IS NO LONGER THE VOICE OF GOD.–17MR 185 (1896). {LDE 50.2} |
| IT HAS BEEN SOME YEARS SINCE I HAVE CONSIDERED THE GENERAL CONFERENCE AS THE VOICE OF GOD.–17MR 216 (1898). {LDE 50.3} |
| We talk of the Holy Ghost; we preach of the Holy Ghost; but WE NEED TO UNDERSTAND BETTER WHAT THE OFFICE OF THE HOLY GHOST IS. We need to understand that we must co-operate with God in every sense or God can not co-operate with us. We are laborers together with God. {GCB, April 3, 1901 par. 30} |
| According to the light that has been given me–and just how it is to be accomplished I can not say–greater strength must be brought into the managing force of the Conference. But this will not be done by intrusting responsibilities to men who have had light poured upon them year after year for the last ten or fifteen years, and yet have not heeded the light that God has given them. The word of God is to be our guide. Have you given heed to the Word? The Testimonies are not by any means to take the place of the Word. They are to bring you to that neglected Word, that you may eat the words of Christ, that you may feed upon them, that by living faith you may be built up from that upon which you feed. If you live in obedience to Christ and his word, you are eating the leaves of the tree of life, which are for the healing of the nations. {GCB, April 3, 1901 par. 31} |
| Here are the very words that we want to bring into our life practice. The men that have long stood in positions of trust while disregarding the light that God has given, are not to be depended upon. God wants them to be removed. He wants a new life element brought into the publishing institutions. There are those who have stood as managers and yet have not managed after God’s order. Some have served on committees here and committees there, and have felt free to dictate just what the committee should say and do, claiming that those who did not carry out these ideas were sinning against Christ. When the power of God is manifest in the church and in the management of the various departments of his work, when it is evident that the managers are themselves controlled by the Holy Spirit of God, then it is time to consider that you are safe in accepting what they may say, under God. But you must know that you are guided by the principles of the Word of the living God. The Great General of armies, the Captain of the Lord’s host, is our leader. {GCB, April 3, 1901 par. 32} |
| O, my very soul is drawn out in these things! Men who have not learned to submit themselves to the control and discipline of God, are not competent to train the youth, to deal with human minds. It is just as much an impossibility for them to do this work as it would be for them to make a world. That these men [leaders] should stand in a sacred place, to be as the voice of God to the people, as we once believed the General Conference to be,–THAT IS PAST. What we want now is a reorganization. We want to begin at the foundation, and to build upon a different principle. {1888 1745.3} {GCB, April 3, 1901 par. 25} |
| Authority of the General Conference |
| The highest authority under God among Seventh-day Adventists is found in the will of the body of that people, as expressed in the decisions of the General Conference, when acting within its proper jurisdiction. – Action Of General Conference, 1877 Year Book, 1914 page 255. {PC 422.1} |
| I have been shown that no man’s judgment should be surrendered to the judgment of any one man. But when the judgment of the General Conference, which is the highest authority that God has upon the earth, is exercised, private independence and private judgment must not be maintained, but surrendered. – Testimonies For The Church, Vol. III page 492 (1875) {PC 422.2} |
| God has ordained that the representatives of his church from all parts of the earth, when assembled in a General Conference, shall have authority. The error that some are in danger of committing is in giving to the mind and judgment of one man, or of a small group of men, the full measure of authority and influence that God has vested in his church, in the judgment and voice of the General Conference assembled to plan for the prosperity and advancement of his work. {PC 422.3} |
| At times, when a small group of men entrusted with the general management of the work have, in the name of the General Conference, sought to carry out unwise plans and to restrict God’s work, I have said I could no longer regard the voice of the General Conference, represented by these few men, as the voice of God. – Testimonies For The Church, Vol. IX page 260 {PC 422.4} |
| That these men [leaders] should stand in a sacred place, to be as the voice of God to the people, as we once believed the General Conference to be,–THAT IS PAST. – General Conference Bulletin April 3, 1901, 1901 page 25 {PC 422.5} {LDE 50.4 1992} |
| Let those in America who suppose the voice of the General Conference to be the voice of God, become one with God before they utter their opinions. – Testimony To Elder Haskell, November 16, 1899. {PC 422.6} |
| Do not understand me as approving of the recent action of the General Conference Association, of which you write, but in regard to that matter it is right that I should speak to them. They have many difficulties to meet, and if they err in their action, the Lord knows it all, and can overrule all for the good of those who trust in him. – Testimony To Elder Littlejohn, August 3, 1894 {PC 422.7} |
| Who can now feel sure that they are safe in respecting the voice of the General Conference Association? If the people in our churches understood the management of the men who walk in the light of the sparks of their own kindling, would they respect their decisions? I answer, No, not for a moment. I have been shown that the people at large do not know that the heart of the work is being diseased and corrupted at Battle Creek. Many of the people are in a lethargic, listless, apathetic condition, and assent to plans which they do not understand – Special Instruction Relating To The Review And Herald Office And The Work In Battle Creek, pp. 19, 20 (1896) {PC 422.8} |
| After the truth has been proclaimed as a witness to all nations, at a time when every conceivable power of evil is set in operation, when minds are confused by the many voices crying, Lo, here is Christ; Lo, he is there; This is truth, I have the message from God, he has sent me with great light. and there is a removing of the landmarks and an attempt to tear down the pillars of our faith – then a more decided effort is made to exalt the false sabbath, and to cast contempt upon God himself by supplanting the day he has blessed and sanctified. – To Brethren In Responsible Positions, 1892. {PC 423.1} |
| There seems to be a burning desire to get up something fictitious and bring it in as new light. Thus men try to weave into the web as important truths a tissue of lies. This fanciful mixture of food that is being prepared for the flock will cause spiritual consumption, decline and death. WHEN THOSE WHO PROFESS TO BELIEVE PRESENT TRUTH COME TO THEIR SENSES, when they accept the Word of the living God just as it reads, and do not try to wrest the Scriptures, then they will build their house upon the eternal Rock, even Christ Jesus. {PC 423.2} |
| A REVIVAL OF TRUE GODLINESS AMONG US IS THE GREATEST AND MOST URGENT OF ALL OUR NEEDS. TO SEEK THIS SHOULD BE OUR FIRST WORK. There must be earnest effort to obtain the blessing of the Lord, not because God is not willing to bestow His blessing upon us, but because we are unprepared to receive it. Our heavenly Father is more willing to give His Holy Spirit to them that ask Him, than are earthly parents to give good gifts to their children. But it is our work, by confession, humiliation, repentance, and earnest prayer, to fulfill the conditions upon which God has promised to grant us His blessing. A revival need be expected only in answer to prayer. While the people are so destitute of God’s Holy spirit, they cannot appreciate the preaching of the Word; but when the Spirit’s power touches their hearts, then the discourses given will not be without effect. Guided by the teachings of God’s Word, with the manifestation of HIS Spirit, in the exercise of sound discretion, those who attend our meetings will gain a precious experience, and returning home, will be prepared to exert a healthful influence. {RH, March 22, 1887 par. 1} |
| The old standard-bearers knew what it was to wrestle with God in prayer, and to enjoy the out-pouring of HIS Spirit. But these are passing off from the stage of action; and who are coming up to fill their places? How is it with the rising generation? are they converted to God? Are we awake to the work that is going on in the heavenly Sanctuary, or are we waiting for some compelling power to come upon the church before we shall arouse? Are we hoping to see the whole church revived? That time will never come. {RH, March 22, 1887 par. 2} |
| There are persons in the church who are not converted, and who will not unite in earnest, prevailing prayer. We must enter upon the work individually. We must pray more, and talk less. Iniquity abounds, and the people must be taught not to be satisfied with a form of godliness without the spirit and power. If we are intent upon searching our own hearts, putting away our sins, and correcting our evil tendencies, our souls will not be lifted up unto vanity; we shall be distrustful of ourselves, having an abiding sense that our sufficiency is of God. {RH, March 22, 1887 par. 3} |
| We have far more to fear from within than from without. The hindrances to strength and success are far greater from the church itself than from the world. Unbelievers have a right to expect that those who profess to be keeping the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus, will do more than any other class to promote and honor, by their consistent lives, by their godly example and their active influence, the cause which they represent. But how often have the professed advocates of the truth proved the greatest obstacle to its advancement! The unbelief indulged, the doubts expressed, the darkness cherished, encourage the presence of evil angels, and open the way for the accomplishment of Satan’s devices. {RH, March 22, 1887 par. 4} |
| There is nothing that Satan fears so much as that the people of God shall clear the way by removing every hindrance, so that the Lord can pour out HIS Spirit upon a languishing church and an impenitent congregation. If Satan had his way, there would never be another awakening, great or small, to the end of time. But we are not ignorant of his devices. It is possible to resist his power. When the way is prepared for the SPIRIT OF GOD, the blessing will come. Satan can no more hinder a shower of blessing from descending upon God’s people than he can close the windows of heaven that rain cannot come upon the earth. Wicked men and devils cannot hinder the work of God, or shut out his presence from the assemblies of his people, if they will, with subdued, contrite hearts, confess and put away their sins, and in faith claim his promises. Every temptation, every opposing influence, whether open or secret, may be successfully resisted, not by might, nor by power, but by MY SPIRIT, saith the Lord of hosts. {RH, March 22, 1887 par. 7} |
| We are in the great day of atonement, when our sins are, by confession and repentance, to go beforehand to Judgment. God does not now accept a tame, spiritless testimony from his ministers. Such a testimony would not be present truth. The message for this time must be meat in due season to feed the church of God. But Satan has been seeking gradually to rob this message of its power, that the people may not be prepared to stand in the day of the Lord. {RH, March 22, 1887 par. 8} |
| We must no longer remain upon the enchanted ground. We are fast approaching the close of our probation. Let every soul inquire, How do I stand before God? We know not how soon our names may be taken into the lips of Christ, and our cases be finally decided. What, oh, what will these decisions be! Shall we be counted with the righteous, or shall we be numbered with the wicked? {RH, March 22, 1887 par. 11} |
| Let the church arise, and repent of her back-slidings before God. Let the watchmen awake, and give the trumpet a certain sound. It is a definite warning that we have to proclaim. God commands his servants, Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and show my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins. The attention of the people must be gained; unless this can be done, all effort is useless; though an angel from heaven should come down and speak to them, his words would do no more good than if he were speaking into the cold ear of death. The church must arouse to action. The SPIRIT OF GOD can never come in until she prepares the way. There should be earnest searching of heart. There should be united, persevering prayer, and through faith a claiming of the promises of God. There should be, not a clothing of the body with sackcloth, as in ancient times, but a deep humiliation of soul. We have not the first reason for self-congratulation and self exaltation. We should humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God. He will appear to comfort and bless the true seekers. {RH, March 22, 1887 par. 12} |
| The work is before us; will we engage in it? We must work fast, we must go steadily forward. We must be preparing for the great day of the Lord. We have no time to lose, no time to be engaged in selfish purposes. The world is to be warned. What are we doing as individuals to bring the light before others? God has left to every man his work; every one has a part to act, and we cannot neglect this work except at the peril of our souls. {RH, March 22, 1887 par. 13} |
| O my brethren, will you grieve the Holy Spirit, and cause it to depart? Will you shut out the blessed Saviour, because you are unprepared for his presence? Will you leave souls to perish without the knowledge of the truth, because you love your ease too well to bear the burden that Jesus bore for you? Let us awake out of sleep. Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the Devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour. {RH, March 22, 1887 par. 14} |
| God alone is without beginning. At the earliest epoch when a beginning could be, – a period so remote that to finite minds it is essentially eternity, – appeared the Word. ‘In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.’ John 1:1. This uncreated Word was the Being, who, in the fulness of time, was made flesh, and dwelt among us. His beginning was not like that of any other being in the universe. It is set forth in the mysterious expressions, ‘his [God’s] only begotten Son’ (John 3:16; 1 John 4:9), ‘the only begotten of the Father’ (John 1:14), and ‘I proceeded forth and CAME from God.’ John 8:42. Thus it appears that by some divine impulse or process, not creation, known only to Omniscience, and possible only to Omnipotence, the Son of God appeared. And then the Holy Spirit (by an infirmity of translation called ‘the Holy Ghost’), the Spirit of God, the Spirit of Christ, the divine afflatus and medium of their power, representative of them both (Ps.139:7), was in existence also. (Uriah Smith, Looking Unto Jesus, 1898, p. 10.1) |
| The Father can not be described by the things of earth. The Father is all the fullness of the Godhead bodily, and is invisible to mortal sight. The Son is all the fullness of the Godhead manifested. The word of God declares Him to be the express image of His person. God so loved the world that He GAVE His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. Here is shown the personality of the Father. {BTS, March 1, 1906 par. 1} |
| The Comforter that Christ promised to send after He ascended to heaven, is the Spirit in all the fullness of the Godhead, making manifest the power of divine grace to all who receive and believe in Christ as a personal Saviour. There are three living persons of the heavenly trio. In the name of these three POWERS,–the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, those who receive Christ by living faith are baptized, and these powers will cooperate with the obedient subjects of heaven in their efforts to live the new life in Christ. {BTS, March 1, 1906 par. 2} Special Testimonies, Series B, No. 7, pp. 62, 63. (1905) {Ev 615.1} |
| There will have to be a second conversion in the hearts of some of our leading medical fraternity, and a cutting away from the men who are trying to guide the medical ship into the harbor, else they themselves will never reach the haven of rest. Christ calls, Come out from among them, and be ye separate. {SpTB07 63.3} |
| I write this because any moment my life may be ended. Unless there is a breaking away from the influence that Satan has prepared, and a reviving of the testimonies that God has given, souls will perish in their delusion. They will accept fallacy after fallacy, and will thus keep up a disunion that will always exist UNTIL THOSE WHO HAVE BEEN DECEIVED TAKE THEIR STAND ON THE RIGHT PLATFORM. All this higher education that is being planned will be extinguished; for it is spurious. The more simple the education of our workers, the less connection they have with the men whom God is not leading, the more will be accomplished. Work will be done in the simplicity of true godliness, and the old, old times will be back when, under the Holy Spirit’s guidance, thousands were converted in a day. When the truth in its simplicity is lived in every place, then God will work through His angels as He worked on the day of Pentecost, and hearts will be changed so decidedly that there will be a manifestation of the influence of genuine truth, as is represented in the descent of the Holy Spirit. {SpTB07 63.4} |
| We receive the promise of the Spirit through faith; but what brings it? The Spirit of God; and when we have that, Christ dwells in the heart. Then it is the Holy Spirit that brings the personal presence of Jesus Christ, and in bringing His personal presence to us, He brings Himself. (A.T. Jones, `General Conference Bulletin #11′, 1893, p. 31.) |
| Christ determined that when He ascended from this earth, He would bestow a gift on those who had believed on Him, and those who should believe on Him. What gift could He bestow rich enough to signalize and grace His ascension to the mediatorial throne? It must be worthy of His greatness and His royalty. He determined to give His representative, the third person of the Godhead. This gift could not be excelled. He would give all gifts in one, and therefore the divine Spirit, that converting, enlightening, and sanctifying power, would be His donation—S.D.A. Bible Commentary, vol. 6, p. 1052. |
| FROM eternity there was a complete unity between the Father and the Son. They were two, yet little short of being identical; two in individuality, yet one in spirit. and heart, and character. – Ellen G. White, The Youth Instructor Dec.16, 1897, p. 310 |
| A COMPLETE OFFERING HAS BEEN MADE; FOR GOD so loved the world, that he GAVE his only-begotten Son,– not a son by creation, as were the angels, nor a son by adoption, as is the forgiven sinner, but A SON BEGOTTEN in the express image of the Father’s person, and in all the brightness of his majesty and glory, one equal with God in authority, dignity, and divine perfection. In him dwelt all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. – Ellen G. White, Signs of the Times, 30th May 1895, ‘Christ our complete salvation’ par. 3 |
| The Eternal Father, the unchangeable one, gave his only begotten Son, TORE FROM HIS BOSOM Him who was made in the express image of his person, and sent him down to earth to reveal how greatly he loved mankind. – Ellen G. White, Review & Herald 9th July 1895 ‘The Duty of the Minister and the People’ |
| Jn8.42 Jesus said unto them, If GOD were your FATHER, ye would love me: for I PROCEEDED FORTH AND CAME FROM GOD; neither came I of myself, but he sent me. |
| Jesus prayed that his disciples might be one as he was one with his Father. This prayer did not contemplate one disciple with twelve heads, but twelve disciples, made one in object and effort in the cause of their master. Neither are the Father and the Son parts of the three-one God. They are two distinct beings, yet one in the design and accomplishment of redemption. The redeemed, from the first who shares in the great redemption, to the last, all ascribe the honor, and glory, and praise, of their salvation, to both God and the Lamb. (James White, 1868, Life Incidents, page 343) |
| Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for THE faith which was once delivered unto the saints… (Jude 3, 4) …The exhortation to contend for the faith delivered to the saints, is to us alone. And it is very important for us to know what for and how to contend. In the 4th verse he gives us the reason why we should contend for THE faith, a particular faith; for there are certain men, or a certain class who deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ.… The way spiritualizers have disposed of or denied the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ is first using the old unscriptural Trinitarian creed, viz., that Jesus Christ is the eternal God, though they have not one passage to support it, while we have plain scripture testimony in abundance that he is the Son of the eternal God. (James White, January 24, 1846, The Day Star) |
| The inexplicable Trinity that makes the Godhead three in one and one in three, is bad enough; but that ultra Unitarianism that makes Christ inferior to the Father is worse. Did God say to an inferior, Let us make man in our image? (James White, November 29, 1877, Review & Herald) |
| Bro. Cottrell is nearly eighty years of age, remembers the dark day of 1780, and has been a Sabbath-keeper more than thirty years. He was formerly united with the Seventh-Day Baptists, but on some points of doctrine has differed from that body. He rejected the doctrine of the trinity, also the doctrine of man’s consciousness between death and the resurrection, and the punishment of the wicked in eternal consciousness. He believed that the wicked would be destroyed. Bro. Cottrell buried his wife not long since, who, it is said, was one of the excellent of the earth. Not long since, this aged pilgrim received a letter from friends in Wisconsin, purporting to be from M. Cottrell, his wife, who sleeps in Jesus. But he, believing that the dead know not anything, was prepared to reject at once the heresy that the spirits of the dead, knowing everything, come back and converse with the living. Thus truth is a staff in his old age. He has three sons in Mill Grove, who, with their families are Sabbath-keepers. (James White, June 9, 1853, Review & Herald, vol. 4, no. 2, page 12, par. 16) |
| The mystery of iniquity began to work in the church in Paul’s day. It finally crowded out the simplicity of the gospel, and corrupted the doctrine of Christ, and the church went into the wilderness. Martin Luther, and other reformers, arose in the strength of God, and with the Word and Spirit, made mighty strides in the Reformation. The greatest fault we can find in the Reformation is, the Reformers stopped reforming. Had they gone on, and onward, till they had left the last vestige of Papacy behind, such as natural immortality, sprinkling, THE TRINITY, and Sunday- keeping, the church would now be free from her UNSCRIPTURAL ERRORS. (James White, February 7, 1856, Adventist Review & Sabbath Herald, vol. 7, no. 19, page 148, par. 26) |
| We invite all to compare the testimonies of the Holy Spirit through Mrs. W., with the word of God. And in this we do not invite you to compare them with your creed. That is quite another thing. The trinitarian may compare them with his creed, and because they do not agree with it, condemn them. The observer of Sunday, or the man who holds eternal torment an important truth, and the minister that sprinkles infants, may each condemn the testimonies’ of Mrs. W. because they do not agree with their peculiar views. And a hundred more, each holding different views, may come to the same conclusion. But their genuineness can never be tested in this way. { James White RH June 13, 1871} |
| After the earth was created, and the beasts upon it, the FATHER AND SON CARRIED OUT THEIR PURPOSE, which was designed before the fall of Satan, to make man in their own image. They had wrought together in the creation of the earth and every living thing upon it. And now GOD SAYS TO HIS SON, LET US MAKE MAN IN OUR IMAGE. – Ellen G. White, 1SP, pp. 24, 25 |
| There is no place for gods in the heaven above. GOD IS THE ONLY TRUE GOD. HE FILLS ALL HEAVEN. Those who now submit to His will shall see His face; His name will be in the foreheads of all who are pure and holy. – Ellen G. White, Letter 5-1896.14 – December 18, 1896 |
| Most of the founders of Seventh-day Adventism would not be able to join the church today if they had to subscribe to the denomination’s Fundamental Beliefs. More specifically, most would not be able to agree to belief number 2, which deals with the doctrine of the trinity. (George R. Knight–professor of church history at the Theological Seminary, Andrews University, Berrien Springs, Michigan; Ministry, October, 1993, p. 10) |
| Adventist Review 7-30-1981 Special Issue on Bible Doctrines—The Trinity was explained one year after it was voted as an official doctrine of the church (which was in 1980; initially composed of 27 fundamental beliefs). It states, While no single scriptural passage states formally the doctrine of the Trinity, it is ASSUMED as a fact by Bible writers… ONLY BY FAITH can we accept the existence of the Trinity. (p. 4) [???FAITH???] |
| Joseph Bates wrote: Respecting the trinity, I concluded that it was an impossibility for me to believe that the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, was also the Almighty God, the Father, one and the same being. I said to my father, ‘If you can convince me that we are one in this sense, that you are my father, and I your son; and also that I am your father, and you my son, then I can believe in the trinity.’ (Joseph Bates, 1868, The Autobiography Of Elder Joseph Bates, p.204.) |
| R.J. Cotrell wrote: To hold the doctrine of the Trinity is not so much an evidence of evil intention as of intoxication from that wine of which all the nations have drunk. The fact that this was one of the leading doctrines, if not the very chief, upon which the bishop of Rome was exalted to popedom, does not say much in its favor. Review & Herald, July 6, 1869. |
| James White wrote: As fundamental errors, we might class with this counterfeit Sabbath other errors which Protestants have brought away from the Catholic church, such as sprinkling for baptism, THE TRINITY, the consciousness of the dead and eternal life in misery. The mass who have held these fundamental errors, have doubtless done it ignorantly, but can it be supposed that the church of Christ will carry along with her these errors till the judgment scenes burst upon the world? WE think not. Review & Herald, September 12, 1854. |
| None of the S.D.A. pioneers believed in the Trinity. Because of this fact, and because of what has happened in the modern S.D.A. church (as we will see), Gen. Conf. theologian George Knight wrote: Most of the founders of Seventh-day Adventism would not be able to join the church today if they had to subscribe to the denomination’s Fundamental Beliefs. More specifically, most would not be able to agree to belief number 2, which deals with the doctrine of the trinity. (Ministry, Oct., 1993, p. 10). |
| I saw a company who stood well guarded and firm, giving no countenance to those who would unsettle the established faith of the body. God looked upon them with approbation. I was shown three steps–the first, second, and third angels’ messages. Said my accompanying angel, ‘Woe to him who shall move a block or stir a pin of these messages. The true understanding of these messages is of vital importance. The destiny of souls hangs upon the manner in which they are received.’ I was again brought down through these messages, and saw how dearly the people of God had purchased their experience. It had been obtained through much suffering and severe conflict. God had led them along step by step, until He had placed them upon a solid, immovable platform. Early Writings, pp. 258,259. |
| There are three living persons of the heavenly trio; in the name of these three great POWERS–the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit–those who receive Christ by living faith are baptized, and these powers will co-operate with the obedient subjects of heaven in their efforts to live the new life in Christ.– Evangelism, p. 615. {7ABC 441.9} |
| The Godhead was stirred with pity for the race, and the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit gave themselves to the working out of the plan of redemption.–Counsels on Health, p. 222. {7ABC 442.1} |
| Those who proclaim the third angel’s message must put on the whole armor of God, that they may stand boldly at their post, in the face of detraction and falsehood, fighting the good fight of faith, resisting the enemy with the word, It is written. Keep yourselves where the three great powers of heaven, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, can be your efficiency. These powers work with the one who gives himself unreservedly to God. The strength of heaven is at the command of God’s believing ones. The man who takes God as his trust is barricaded by an impregnable wall.–The Southern Watchman, Feb. 23, 1904, p. 122. {7ABC 442.2} |
| Our sanctification is the work of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. It is the fulfilment of the covenant that God has made with those who bind themselves up with Him, to stand with Him, with His Son, and with His Spirit in holy fellowship. Have you been born again? Have you become a new being in Christ Jesus? Then co-operate with the three great POWERS of heaven who are working in your behalf. Doing this you will reveal to the world the principles of righteousness.–The Signs of the Times, June 19, 1901. {7ABC 442.3} |
| The King of the universe summoned the heavenly hosts before Him, that in their presence He might set forth the true position of His Son and show the relation He sustained to all created beings. The Son of God shared the Fathers throne, and the glory of the eternal, self-existent One encircled BOTH. About the throne gathered the holy angels, a vast, unnumbered throng … the most exalted angels, as ministers and subjects, rejoicing in the light that fell upon them from the presence of the Deity. Before the assembled inhabitants of heaven the King declared that none but Christ, the Only Begotten of God, could fully enter into His purposes, and to Him it was committed to execute the mighty counsels of His will. The Son of God had wrought the Father’s will in the creation of all the hosts of heaven; and to Him, as well as to God, their homage and allegiance were due. (E.White, Patriarchs and Prophets, p.36) |
| Satan was once an honored angel in heaven, next to Christ. His countenance, like those of the other angels, was mild and expressive of happiness. His forehead was high and broad, showing great intelligence. His form was perfect; his bearing noble and majestic. But when God said to His Son, ‘Let us make man in our image,’ Satan was jealous of Jesus. (E.White, Early Writings, p.145) |
| And I saw those who rose up with Jesus send up their faith to Jesus in the Holiest, and praying, Father give us thy spirit. Then Jesus would breathe on them the Holy Ghost. In the breath was light, power and much love, joy and peace. (The Day Star, March 14, 1846, Par.1) |
| With HIS Spirit, CHRIST sends a reconciling influence and a power that TAKES away SIN. (Ellen G. White, Review and Herald, May 19, 1904) |
| The words that I speak unto you, they are SPIRIT, and they are life (John 6:57, 63). Christ is not here referring to His doctrine, but to HIS person, the divinity of His character. (E.G.White, 1 Selected Messages, p.249) |
| This is our work for this time, to open the door to Jesus, and HE will so fill the soul that there will be no room for self and selfishness … We want that complete and perfect understanding which the Lord alone can give. It is not safe to catch the spirit from another. We want the Holy Spirit, which is Jesus Christ. (E.White, Letter 66, April 10, 1894, par.17-18) |
| In giving His commission to His followers, Christ did not tell them they would be left alone. He assured them that He would be near them. He spoke of His Omnipresence in a special way. Go to all nations, He said. Go, to the farthest portion of the habitable globe, but know that My presence will be there. Labor in faith and confidence, for the time will never come when I shall forsake you. (E.White, Ms138, 1897 (December 2, 1897) par. 21) |
| Christ took human nature that men might be one with Him as He is one with the Father, that God may love man as He loves His only-begotten Son, that men may be partakers of the divine nature, and be complete in Him. The Holy Spirit, which proceeds FROM the only-begotten Son of God, binds the human agent, body, soul, and spirit, to the perfect, divine-human nature of Christ. This union is represented by the union of the vine and the branches. Finite man is united to the manhood of Christ. Through faith human nature is assimilated with Christ’s nature. We are made one with God in Christ. (E.G.White, Selected Messages 1, p.250) |
| The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Christ, which is sent to all men to give them sufficiency, that through His grace we might be complete in Him. – (E.G. White, 14 Manuscript Releases, p. 84) |
| They have one God and one Saviour; and one Spirit–THE SPIRIT OF CHRIST–is to bring unity into their ranks. (E.G.White, Testimonies, Vol.9 p.189) |
| He [Jesus] gives them His Holy Spirit, the manifestation of His presence and favor. – (E.G. White, 9T 230.3, 1909) |
| You are not definitely clear on the personality of God, which is everything to us as a people. You have virtually destroyed the Lord God Himself. (Ellen G. White, Letter 300, 1903) |
| The doctrine of the Trinity which was established in the church by the council of Nice, A.D. 325. This doctrine destroys the personality of God, and his Son Jesus Christ our Lord. (J.N. Andrews, Review and Herald, March 6, 1855, p. 185) |
| Here we might mention the Trinity, which does away [with] the personality of God, and of his Son Jesus Christ. (James White, Review and Herald, December 11, 1855) |
| The Father and the Son alone are to be exalted. – (E.G. White, The Youth’s Instructor, July 7, 1898) |
| 1J1.3 That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship [is] with the FATHER, and with his Son JESUS CHRIST. |
| Now is the time when we should closely connect with Jesus, that we may be hid under His wings when the fierceness of God’s wrath is poured upon the world. We have wandered away from the old Biblical landmarks. Let us return. If the Lord be God, serve Him; if Baal, serve him. Which side will you be on? (Testimonies for the Church, Vol.5, p 137) |
| From time to time for the past twenty years {1845-1865; James Springer White died on 6 August 1881 aged 60 years} I have been shown that the Lord had qualified my husband for the work of faithfully dealing with the erring, and had laid the burden upon him, and that if he should fail to do his duty in this respect he would incur the displeasure of the Lord. I have never regarded his judgment infallible, nor his words inspired; but I have ever believed him BETTER QUALIFIED FOR THIS WORK THAN ANY OTHER ONE OF OUR PREACHERS, because of his long experience, and BECAUSE I HAVE SEEN THAT HE WAS ESPECIALLY CALLED AND ADAPTED TO THE WORK; and also because in many cases where persons have risen up against his reproofs, I HAVE BEEN SHOWN THAT HE WAS RIGHT IN HIS JUDGMENT OF MATTERS AND IN HIS MANNER OF REPROVING. {1T 612.4} |
| The central power of the earth is a demon. His throne is in the midst of the world, where should have been seen the throne of God. He has been patronized by the church, for the church has been conformed to the world, and is living in transgression of the holy law of God. {TDG 28.3 1979} |
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God’s Word and the Trinity [5] |
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