General Conference Confronts Apostasy, The

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While none can presume to know exactly how God will keep His global community together during the final crisis, the above statement from Ellen White offers evidence that some type of cohesion and orderliness will persist among the people of God, even—it would seem—during the great time of trouble. The Pronto Press, , p. A New Grounds for Divorce? Adventists Affirm, , pp. Regarding the General Conference session, the basis of this reference is a report received verbally by the present writer from Elder William Fagal, an officer of the Ellen G.

Finding the True Sabbath and Exposing the Seventh-day Adventist Church Apostasy

White Estate, who was present at the session when the vote in question was taken. General Conference Session But when the judgment of the General Conference, which is the highest authority that God has upon the earth, is exercised, private independence and private judgment must not be maintained, but be surrendered. When the power which God has placed in the church is accredited to one man, and he is invested with the authority to be judgment for other minds, then the true Bible order is changed.

Some of the strongest of these Ellen White statements are as follows: As for the voice of the General Conference, there is no voice from God through that body that is reliable 3. The voice from Battle Creek, which has been regarded as authority in counseling how the work should be done, is no longer the voice of God 4.

It has been some time since I have considered the General Conference as the voice of God 5. Yet we hear that the voice of the Conference is the voice of God. Every time I have heard this, I have thought that it was almost blasphemy. The voice of the Conference ought to be the voice of God, but it is not, because some in connection with it are not men of faith and prayer; they are not men of elevated principle 6.

That these men should stand in a sacred place, to be as the voice of God to the people, as we once believed the General Conference to be—that is past 7. A number of other statements express similar thoughts 8. In her own words: Never should the mind of one man or the minds of a few men be regarded as sufficient in wisdom and power to control the work, and to say what plans should be followed. But when, in a General Conference, the judgment of the brethren assembled from all parts of the field, is exercised, private independence and private judgment must not be stubbornly maintained, but surrendered.

Never should a laborer regard as a virtue the persistent maintenance of his position of independence, contrary to the decision of the general body. But this is not saying that the decision of a General Conference composed of an assembly of duly appointed, representative men from all parts of the field, should not be respected.

God has ordained that the representatives of His church from all parts of the earth, when assembled in a General Conference, shall have authority. The error that some are in danger of committing, is in giving to the mind and judgment of one man, or of a small group of men, the full measure of authority and influence that God has vested in His church, in the judgment and voice of the General Conference assembled to plan for the prosperity and advancement of His work Such opinions are difficult to reconcile with the following passage, also taken from the GC address: We want to hold the lines evenly, that there should be no breaking down of the system of organization and order that has been built up by wise, careful labor The following statement, also from the address, is equally significant in the light of how some independent-minded conservative Adventists view church organization: The spirit of pulling away from fellow laborers, the spirit of disorganization, is in the very air we breathe.

By some, all efforts to establish order are regarded as dangerous—as a restriction of personal liberty, and hence to be feared as popery. These deceived souls regard it a virtue to boast of their freedom to think and act independently.

Let us again bear in mind the following statement, quoted in an earlier installment of this series, regarding the necessity of our presence in the visible church: The advancement of the church is retarded by the wrong course of its members. Uniting with the church, although an important and necessary act, does not make one a Christian nor ensure salvation. We cannot secure a title to heaven by having our names enrolled upon the church book while our hearts are alienated from Christ.

We should all feel our individual responsibility as members of the visible church and workers in the vineyard of the Lord The enemy of souls has sought to bring in the supposition that a great reformation was to take place among Seventh-day Adventists, and that this reformation would consist in giving up the doctrines which stand as the pillars of our faith, and engaging in a process of reorganization. Were this reformation to take place, what would result? The principles of truth that God in His wisdom has given to the remnant church, would be discarded.

Our religion would be changed. The fundamental principles that have sustained the work for the last fifty years would be accounted as error. A new organization would be established. Books of a new order would be written. A system of intellectual philosophy would be introduced. The founders of this system would go into the cities, and do a wonderful work. The Sabbath, of course, would be lightly regarded, as also the God who created it. Nothing would be allowed to stand in the way of the new movement.

The leaders would teach that virtue is better than vice, but God being removed, they would place their dependence on human power, which, without God, is worthless. Then came the First Vision. The divine teaching in that vision began the restoration of the fulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ. We affirm that this divine declaration was a condemnation of the creeds, not of the faithful seekers who believed in them.

This belief does not mean that we claim sufficient spiritual maturity to comprehend God. Nor do we equate our imperfect mortal bodies to his immortal, glorified being. But we can comprehend the fundamentals he has revealed about himself and the other members of the Godhead. And that knowledge is essential to our understanding of the purpose of mortal life and of our eternal destiny as resurrected beings after mortal life. In the theology of the restored church of Jesus Christ, the purpose of mortal life is to prepare us to realize our destiny as sons and daughters of God—to become like Him.

Ehat and Lyndon W. We take these Bible teachings literally.

The General Conference Confronts Apostasy

We believe that the purpose of mortal life is to acquire a physical body and, through the atonement of Jesus Christ and by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the gospel, to qualify for the glorified, resurrected celestial state that is called exaltation or eternal life. Like other Christians, we believe in a heaven or paradise and a hell following mortal life, but to us that two-part division of the righteous and the wicked is merely temporary, while the spirits of the dead await their resurrections and final judgments. The destinations that follow the final judgments are much more diverse.

Our restored knowledge of the separateness of the three members of the Godhead provides a key to help us understand the diversities of resurrected glory.

In their final judgment, the children of God will be assigned to a kingdom of glory for which their obedience has qualified them. In his letters to the Corinthians, the Apostle Paul described these places. He likened these different glories to the sun, to the moon, and to different stars see 1 Cor.

We learn from modern revelation that these three different degrees of glory have a special relationship to the three different members of the Godhead. Concepts familiar to all Christians might liken this higher kingdom to heaven because it has the presence of the Son. In contrast to traditional Christianity, we join with Paul in affirming the existence of a third or higher heaven.

For us, eternal life is not a mystical union with an incomprehensible spirit-god. Eternal life is family life with a loving Father in Heaven and with our progenitors and our posterity. The theology of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ is comprehensive, universal, merciful, and true.

April 1995 General Conference

Following the necessary experience of mortal life, all sons and daughters of God will ultimately be resurrected and go to a kingdom of glory. The righteous—regardless of current religious denomination or belief—will ultimately go to a kingdom of glory more wonderful than any of us can comprehend.

Even the wicked, or almost all of them, will ultimately go to a marvelous—though lesser—kingdom of glory. The purpose of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is to help all of the children of God understand their potential and achieve their highest destiny. This church exists to provide the sons and daughters of God with the means of entrance into and exaltation in the celestial kingdom. This is a family-centered church in doctrine and practices. Our understanding of the nature and purpose of God the Eternal Father explains our destiny and our relationship in his eternal family.

Our theology begins with heavenly parents. Our highest aspiration is to be like them. Under the merciful plan of the Father, all of this is possible through the atonement of the Only Begotten of the Father, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. As earthly parents we participate in the gospel plan by providing mortal bodies for the spirit children of God.

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The fulness of eternal salvation is a family matter. It is the reality of these glorious possibilities that causes us to proclaim our message of restored Christianity to all people, even to good practicing Christians with other beliefs. This is why we build temples. This is the faith that gives us strength and joy to confront the challenges of mortal life. We offer these truths and opportunities to all people and testify to their truthfulness in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

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