Hey RussianSlavicMan,
I read your post and then skimmed through some of the replies, and just wanted to share my thoughts on your question. Asking questions like that is kind of like walking to a car dealership and telling the salesman you are thinking about buying a car.
There have been many times in the past when the Church has had to deal with certain issues that become institutionalized into a mainstream denomination. Let me give you an example: the conflict over how to be a Christian in a Greek culture during the time of the Roman Empire was institutionalized into the Orthodox Church. When I say that I am not trying to insult or demean Orthodox Christianity.
Here is another example: When Jerome translated the Latin Vulgate, he chose to use the word "penitence" as the equivalent to repentance, and as a result the Roman Catholic system developed into an institution (that Martin Luther later protested).
You mentioned Seventh Day Adventists, which I was associated with briefly. In the Bible, Pastors have authority to make decisions for the local Church. In the SDA, they tend to give Prophets (particular Ellen G White) more authority than the local Pastor. Their approach became "institutionalized" and created problems/issues you would not have at a Baptist Church, just to
pick a different group at random.
The simple reality is that we all begin struggling to live the Christian life at different places, with different obstacles we have to overcome along the way. We all have blind spots that we may or may not be aware of. I recently heard a sermon about Daniel in the Old Testament, that pointed out something I have never considered before: Daniel made it a point to surround himself with people who were loyal to Israel's God, but during one of his first visions the godly people with him could not hear the voice as loud as thunder which was speaking to Daniel.
I guess what I am trying to say is I think the best thing to do is to take one issue at a time, and listen as carefully as you can to what people say about it, and then let the Holy Spirit tell you what your opinion on the matter should be. I would like to help you out. Its always important to have a guide on things like this, and I have been working on something that can help you think this through carefully.
You can find some free resources at
www.exploringchristianityonline.com that I hope will help you.