Adventists at the Crossroads of Legalism and Righteousness by Faith

ARBITER01 said:

Is this true? Is this what some of them believe?

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Some do, but some do not. I have met Christians who believe that if you haven’t been baptized yet, you are lost. There are all sorts of different works that people from different denominations believe are required for salvation. Yet beyond all of that, there is the body of Christ, where you find rest—not striving, not fear, not performance, but trust.

God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. Salvation has always been about humility and dependence, not about checking boxes. Even among Seventh-day Adventists, there is diversity of belief. Many SDAs do not believe Sabbath keeping is what saves them; rather, it is something they celebrate because they are saved. In that sense, the Sabbath is not a means of earning favor, but a response of gratitude and faith.

I believe that is what all of our good works should be about. We do not come to God polished and prepared—we come to Him just as we are. Grace is not the reward for repentance; grace is what makes repentance possible.


Their prophet E. G. White wrote this:

"Just here is a point on which many may err, and hence they fail of receiving the help that Christ desires to give them. They think that they cannot come to Christ unless they first repent, and that repentance prepares for the forgiveness of their sins. It is true that repentance does precede the forgiveness of sins; for it is only the broken and contrite heart that will feel the need of a Saviour. But must the sinner wait till he has repented before he can come to Jesus? Is repentance to be made an obstacle between the sinner and the Saviour?
The Bible does not teach that the sinner must repent before he can heed the invitation of Christ, "Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy-laden, and I will give you rest." Matthew 11:28. It is the virtue that goes forth from Christ, that leads to genuine repentance. Peter made the matter clear in his statement to the Israelites when he said, "Him hath God exalted with His right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins." Acts 5:31. We can no more repent without the Spirit of Christ to awaken the conscience than we can be pardoned without Christ."

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This captures the heart of the gospel: we come to Christ first, and from Him flows repentance, transformation, obedience, and rest. Anything that places repentance, works, or rituals ahead of Christ risks

Lol, I only got through half of OP's original post and I got confused as heck. Sorry about that. They need to be clearer when trying to talk.