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bbbbbbbb, keep smiling.
The SDA organization could not be more denominational. In my previous post I quoted the prophetess herself stating that God had a church and that is was "not the various denominations" but those who love Him and keep His commandments. The Lord never intended for the Advent movement to become a denomination like the other denominations. It happened because the people fell into the Laodicean condition and ever since the church has been controlled by men. Repeatedly, especially between 1888 and 1903 the Lord called for an entire re-organization according to Gospel Order but the call was resisted.
"What we want now is a re-organization. We want to begin at the foundation and to build upon a different principle." 1901 General Conference Bulletin, p.25.
In 1895 the prophetess had stated these words:
"Men have taken unfair advantage of those whom they supposed to be under their jurisdiction. They were determined to bring the individuals to their terms; they would rule or ruin. There will be no material change until a decided movement is made to bring in a different order of things." Testimonies to Ministers, p.360.
It is true that at the 1901 General Conference reformatory steps were taken. They were to begin at the foundation and to build upon a different principle but it didn't last. Two years later these reformatory steps were reversed in General Conference and the leaders returned to the devisings of men: men's contitutions with their by-laws, policy book, church manual with rules and regulations, resolutions and elections by votes, establishing a hierarchy resembling the Mosaic order.
Gospel Order was rejected.
The same thing happened in the second century. The Mosaic Order was adopted and it led to the establishment of the Papal hierarchy.
The prophetess warned that the leaders of the SDA church were following in the track of Rome. All this can be read from the book Testimonies to Ministers, 362,363. The prophetess was even given a dream in which she saw the leaders of the SDA church walking toward the building she was in as a catholic procession and determined to put the breaks on all who would dare speak against their "holy order" which order is antagonistic to Gospel Order! This is found in Testimonies, Vol.1, 578.
In 1907 the Lord sent this solem testimony to the leaders of the SDA church:
"The self-confident management of men has resulted in putting God aside and accepting the devisings of men. If you allow this to continue your faith will soon become extinct." Testimonies to Ministers, p.481.
If in 1903 the leaders had not gone back to the devisings of men, the Lord could have finished the work and cut it short in righteousness according to the 1901 Gospel Order.
Years earlier, in 1895, the prophetess had given them this solemn warning:
"The high-handed power that has been developed as though position has made men gods makes me afraid and ought to cause fear. It is a curse wherever it is exercised. This lording it over God's heritage will create such a disgust of man's jurisdiction that a state of insubordination will result,.. But the Lord will raise up laborers who realize their own nothingness without special help from God." Testimonies to Ministers, 361.
In the same paragraph the prophetess compares the leaders of the SDA organization with the leaders of the Sanhedrin:
"At the time of the first advent of Christ to our world, the men who composed the Sanhedrin exercised their authority in controlling men according to their will. The souls for whom Christ had given His life to free from the bondage of Satan were brought under bondage to him in another form." Ibid, 361.
That is why the prophetess declared that "When light goes forth to lighten the earth, instead of coming up to the help of the Lord, they will want to bind about His work to meet their narrow ideas. Let me tell you that the Lord will work in this last work in a manner very much out of the common order of things and in a way that will be contrary to any human planning... God will use ways and means by which it will be seen that He is taking the reins in His own hands. The workers will be suprised by the simple means that He will use to bring about and perfect His work of righteousness." Testimonies to Ministers, 300.
These words indicate that there will be a small nucleous of people, a remnant if you will, who will refuse to be controlled by men (1 Cor.7:23) and who will be so filled with the Spirit (Eph.3:19; 5:18) that no authority shall be known in them but Christ's. These will be vessels fit for the Master's use. The prophetess speaks of these men and women whom the Lord will raise up and through whom He will bring about and perfect His work of righteousness:
"We shall come in repentance and contrition, with a despairing sense of our own finite weakness, and learn that we must daily apply to the merits of the blood of Christ that we may become vessels fit for the Master's use." Signs of the Times, May 19, 1890.
"Christ looked forward to the time when the Holy Spirit, as His representative, would come and do a wonderful work in and through His merits." Testimonies to Ministers, 402.
For "Looking unto Jesus and trusting in His merits we appropriate the blessings of light and joy and peace in the Holy Spirit." Testimonies, Vol.5, 744.
God bless.
rits
I am still an SDA but I do not support the present order of things any more than Jesus and His disciples supported the work of the Sanhedrin and yet they were still able to labor within the confines of Israel to seek for the lost sheep of Israel. They did as long as they could. As we all know Jesus' personal ministry ended at the crucifixion and the work of the apostles for the Jewish church ended at the stoning of Stephen, three and a half years after the crucifixion of Christ. Following the great persecution (Acts 8:1), the apostles and their Jewish converts were forced to turn to the Gentiles.
It depends on you. Which way brings you closer to God? Which are you more comfortable with?
No. Followers of Jesus continued to worship in synagogue for years after the Resurrection. The Jerusalem disciples considered themselves Jews and tried to "enlighten" their fellow Jews to the "truth". They hoped to convince their fellow Jews that Jesus was the Messiah. Their fellow Jews hoped that the disciples would come to realize that Jesus was not the Messiah. So the Jews didn't seal their final rejection until after the stoning of Steven when they added phrases to the worship service that excluded the new Christians.
Both have their advantages and problems. This is really evidenced by the faith icons here at CF.There are people pushing a clear denomination stance/FB who refuse to identify with their church. To me this claims by itself their church is wrong and they know it.
This discussion would be great if it were consistant within christianity, what ever that may be.
