This is Part 2 of a series of articles responding to some lectures at the North American Division ministerial meetings in Lexington, Kentucky, which offered criticism of the construct known as Last Generation Theology. This article considers the content of the lectures under review with regard to the nature of sin and the human nature of Christ.

At a gathering this past summer of pastors, administrators, and laypersons in the North American Division, two prominent professors from the SDA Theological Seminary at Andrews University offered major criticisms of the doctrinal construct that has come to be known as Last Generation Theology. What follows is the first installment of an assessment of these criticisms based on Scripture, the writings of the Spirit of Prophecy, and other sources.

“The restraining Spirit of God is even now being withdrawn from the world. Hurricanes, storms, tempests, fire and flood, disasters by sea and land, follow each other in quick succession. Science seeks to explain all these. The signs thickening around us, telling of the near approach of the Son of God, are attributed to any other than the true cause.”

Ellen G. White, Testimonies, vol. 6, p. 408.

Watching the desperate people of Jackson, Mississippi, during those weeks of suffering, I found myself pondering how much worse it will be when plumbing fixtures and water bottles will dispense blood, when no relief from sores, thirst, or heat will be available. Praise the God of all mercy that probation still lingers! Oh, let us seek Him while He may be found! Let us call on Him while He is near! (Isa. 55:6).

Watching the elaborate and varied rituals connected with the passing of Queen Elizabeth II, the multi-colored regiments and banners attending her coffin, the thousands lining the procession route, and of course the new King, his siblings, and their spouses following the prescribed ceremonial order, one cannot but ponder the ultimate pageantry of a much grander and glorious kingdom, in which each of us is privileged to strive for citizenship.

Reflections on the passing of Queen Elizabeth II, third longest-reigning monarch in world history (1952-2022).

“Noah would have displeased God to have drowned one of the scoffers and mockers that harassed him, but God drowned the vast world. Lot would have had no right to inflict punishment on his sons-in-law, but God would do it in strict justice.”

Ellen G. White, Last-Day Events, p. 241.

Offshoot movements which depart from organized Adventism as a protest against problems in the church—real or imagined—carry a powerful allurement for the disenchanted among the striving faithful. Those joining or initiating such movements presume that purity of faith and practice beckons them on, that if only the faithful could start all over they could avoid and preclude the intrusion of all the problems that presently beset the organized church body.

A recent online article recycles a number of old attacks on Ellen White’s theological credibility. For the sake of those in whose minds these challenges might raise questions, it is important that credible answers be provided.

Is ranked authority necessary in a perfect world?

A new online article has raised four objections to Last Generation Theology—what may well be the hottest discussion topic right now in the Seventh-day Adventist Church. We pray this discussion will bring honest and searching hearts to the written counsel of God for answers (Isa. 8:20; Acts 17:11). What follows is an assessment of the four objection raised by the article in question, together with answers thereto from Scripture and the writings of the Spirit of Prophecy.

This article, for reasons we have not yet discovered, disappeared from our website more than a week ago. Here it is once again. We apologize for any confusion or inconvenience this may have caused.

“Joshua had received the promise that God would surely overthrow these enemies of Israel, yet he put forth as earnest effort as though success depended upon the armies of Israel alone. He did all that human energy could do, and then he cried in faith for divine aid. The secret of success is the union of divine power with human effort.”

Ellen G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 509.

Whether we like it or not, we are at war. That war is the great controversy between Christ and Satan. And in war, weapons are needed. But the only weapons available to the true Christian are those authorized by God in His Word (Eph. 6:17; Heb. 4:12).