In the present article we will consider perhaps the most significant allegation of doctrinal contradiction relative to Ellen White’s prophetic ministry—the so-called “shut door” doctrine as taught and debated in the early history of the Advent movement.
Read MoreLet party politics alone
I am no stranger to party politics, for I once worked with former Speaker of the House John Boehner and current Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.
Read MoreIdentity crisis in the church
There is an identity crisis in God’s church today. It is causing frustration, guilt and defeat.
Read MoreMedia in the church: curse or blessing
I want to focus solely on how we use media in the church. We all know that radios and television are not evil of themselves.
Read MoreDishonest pastors: does your church have one?
The recent passing of Robert Folkenberg (a retired GC president of the Adventist world church), reminded me of my time at Avondale and the unsettling events I witnessed as a theology student in the early 1990’s.
Read MoreUnder the most intense scrutiny
I never dreamed I’d see the day when a Seventh-day Adventist would be a front-running presidential candidate.
Read MoreMore transparency needed among God's people
There was a time when no one seemed to care what happened at the General Conference committee.
Read MoreWhat if the Bible is really true?
In doing some research for another article, I happened upon a quote from an article written in Spectrum magazine after I first shared my testimony six years ago.
Read MoreConundrum of the balanced view
The year was 1999, and a denominational publishing house heard my conversion story from homosexuality, and asked me to submit my story for publication, as a resource for our denomination.
Read MoreWhich church is going through?
Faithful believers often say that though the church appears as though it is going to fall, it will go through to the end. We know this is true because Christ promised that the gates of hell will not prevail against His church.
Read MoreWhat might have been, what can be, and what definitely cannot be
In the past few days, a short video titled “What Might Have Been,” which contains an enactment of one of Ellen White’s dreams from the early 1900s, has surfaced. At the close of the acted segment, at least four appeals are made by church leaders calling for the church to fulfill its mission by submitting to God and experiencing the revival that God wanted to bring at the 1901 General Conference Session.
Read MoreWhy some young singles avoid church
I stopped going to church, not because I no longer believe, but because as a single young adult in my late twenties and early thirties, I felt different from everybody else at church. I no longer felt as if I belonged. I have attended many Adventist churches and found that often they do not even have a young adult Sabbath school or small group of any kind.
Read MoreAdventists and Sunday worship
Seventh-day Adventists, Methodists, and Baptists have something in common: All three denominations offer one of their doctrines in their name. Can a Baptist forget the truth of baptism by immersion? Can a Methodist forget their methodical spiritual disciplines? Similarly, I've often wondered how a Seventh-day Adventist could forget the history of the Seventh-day Sabbath.
Read MoreReport on the International Conference on the Bible and Science
This August I was blessed to attend the International Conference on the Bible and Science: Affirming Creation, which was put on by the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists’ Faith and Science Council, with significant contributions by the General Conference Education Department and Loma Linda University Department of Earth and Biological Sciences. The 400+ attendees came primarily from Adventist unions, conferences, and educational institutions all over the world. They included scientists, theologians, graduate students, and church administrators as well as some lay members and a few guests from other denominations.
Read MoreUnity on the ship that will go through
Today I make an appeal to leaders and laymen at every level of the church to begin an ongoing, unceasing dialogue on how to finish the work of God according to His plans. We know that our track record regarding that message is not good and what the outcome is if that message goes unheeded: we will be spewed out. Friends, it is time to unitedly study Revelation 3:14-22 on our knees with fasting and prayer. It's time to humble our pride, put aside our prejudices, meet, pray and plan together and practice the “unity in diversity” that the Lord prayed for as He went to the cross for us.
Read MoreSqueeze the toothpaste from the bottom
I’m a big fan of matrimony (referring to marriage, not your eccentric aunt’s secret pile of cash under her bed mattress). Marriage is one of the more meaningful things that you can experience on earth, outdone by, and linked to our relationship to the Godhead. In other words, marriage is good stuff. So why do people get married? I believe there are several reasons.
Read MoreFighting the last battle
I’m a bit of an archaeologist. I like to dig up new words. As I was reading the dictionary the other day— an inexpensive hobby that I began during the Blizzard of `78 — I extracted this beauty out of the “s” section, Shibboleth.
Read MoreThe cancer of apostasy
As doctors listen to the concerns of the patient, they need to look for “red flags” or warning signs that the patient may indeed have a malignancy. Cancer is a horrible, insidious disease that can take the life of the patient if not properly diagnosed and treated. This terrible sickness begins with the introduction into the body of a substance called a carcinogen.
Read MoreThe hypocrisy excuse
Probably nothing galls non-Christians, and many Christians also, quite so much as the hypocrisy of the pious—be it real, exaggerated, or imagined. If one were to take a survey of the average person on the street regarding what is least liked about religious people in general, this attribute would doubtless make the top of the list.
Read More[UPDATE] SCC distances itself from Eric Walsh
Southern California Conference (SCC) released a statement Tuesday distancing itself from the controversy surrounding past comments made by Pasadena Public Health Director and SDA associate pastor Dr. Eric Walsh regarding homosexuals, Catholics and Muslims. SCC spokeswoman Betty Cooney said, "[H]e does not hold ministerial credentials from the Adventist Church, does not speak on behalf of the Seventh-day Adventist denomination, and as far as we know, does not represent his views as anything other than his own.”
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