Yearning For Home And Adventist Living

A friend of mine asked me about the Negro Spiritual "Deep River" and its connection to Adventist living. This was a very interesting question that I began to think about. The singer of the Spiritual said:

Deep River
My Home Is Over Jordan
Deep River, Lord
I Want To Cross Over Into Campground

Steps to a Cross-less Christianity

Perusing the best selling books of popular Christianity provides some interesting information. While there are certainly exceptions, it seems as though a "cross-less" Christianity has come into the drivers seat. There seems to be little difference between popular Christianity and the "present evil world." (Galatians 1:4). It appears that there is a minimization of holiness that comes from an appreciation and participation in the cross.

A Bad Argument For The Sabbath

Let me preface my remarks by saying that I am a Seventh Day Sabbath keeper, however, from time to time I hear absolutely terrible arguments from Seventh Day Sabbatarians. I am not talking about debatable points or arguments where reasonable people could come to different understandings, but I mean poor argumentation.

One of these poor arguments came from an Adventist local elder reading the King James Version and it was based on Hebrews 4:8. The Biblical text reads, "For if Jesus had given them rest, then would he not afterward have spoken of another day?"

After reading the text, the Sabbath defender told me, this is the best text I have found against those who would say that the Sabbath has been changed. I then asked the individual, how so? The individual said, "the text plainly says that if the day would be changed from the Seventh Day of the week then why didn't Jesus tell us of the new day? This is why the 'Sabbath remains' in Hebrews 4:8 because he didn't tell them of another day."

It really looks like the awkward rendering in the KJV version of the Bible might be tripping up the individual who does not really understand the argument of the book of Hebrews.

The book clearly says that the rest (Sabbatismos) remains. It is also noteworthy that the book says that the Sabbatismos remains while so many other things connected to the Jewish economy has been done away. That is an interesting argument that I think is a strong defense of the validity of a literally keeping of the Sabbath, but that is not the argument presented by the elder.

But simply put, the argument of the elder is that the rest remains because "Joshua (Jesus) didn't tell them of another day to take the place." But the book of Hebrews argues that the rest remains because Joshua (Jesus) DID tell of another day, namely the day described as "Today" before this text. But let's read the text in context.

Context Solves A Lot Of Problems

The first thing I would say about this argument is that one must always look at the text in context. I think it is reasonable to argue that if Jesus had changed the day he would have told us about it. Just because that is reasonable and this text seems to say that does not mean that this text says what we want it to say. It ain't talking about the change of a day. And furthermore the very argument in the text is that Jesus (Joshua) DID speak of another day.

OK, let us attempt to look at the text. First we must recognize that the name Jesus and Joshua are equivalent names in Hebrew. So it is interpretation to decide whether to interpret this as Jesus or Joshua. But let us go on.

Hebrews 4:1 says the we should fear that a promise of "entering rest" has come to us and we don't go into it. We are told in Hebrews 4:2 that the promise was preached to the readers of Hebrews as well as the ancient Isrealites to enter the rest. The ancients didn't, according to Hebrews 4:2, didn't have faith.

Now Hebrews 4:3 makes the argument that we today enter that rest by faith. In Hebrews 4:4-5, the author quotes that God rested on the Seventh day. The author then quote that it is still possible to "enter into God's rest." In Hebrews 4:6 the author then argues that because the ancients didn't enter then the "rest" still needs to be entered into.

In Hebrews 4:7, the author now quotes Joshua, "Today if you hear my voice harden not your heart." This is proof to the writer that the "day" to enter into rest "still remains."

Then comes our text. In Hebrews 4:8, the author argues, "If Joshua (Jesus) had given them rest, then why did he talk about another day." Namely the "Today" when we all must come to Jesus and accept the salvation that he has provided.

So the author concludes in Hebrews 4:9, "therefore a rest remains for the people of God." So The author is arguing that because the Bible writer spoke of another day to accept this rest, then the acceptance of that rest is still applicable to us.

The Text Says The Opposite

Turning back the page. So the text says the very opposite of what the one who is arguing is saying. But what is interesting however is the nature of this "rest" and what it means. I will get back to that at some point, but my point in this article is that context is everything. Don't argue any point simply becuase you heard someone say it in a pulpit or anywhere else. Read the text yourself!!

Now in case you think I am playing with the text, read the text in another translation, which is always a good step. If the original person had read the text in a translation that she or he understood there would have been no difficulty. Please note how it is written in the NIV Hebrews 4:7-8

7 God again set a certain day, calling it “Today.” This he did when a long time later he spoke through David, as in the passage already quoted:

“Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts.”[a]

8 For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken later about another day.

Conclusion

It is important that we use good arguments for whatever position we hold. If someone had read the text in context they would be less likely to hear what you have to say about this and other issues in the future. We all make mistakes, and I know I have as well, so let us move forward from where we are to where we should go.

Do We Really Know our Doctrines?

In the mythology of Adventism it is told that Adventists were once called people of the Book. Alegedly, during this time, you could pull just about any member aside and ask that one for a text that teaches the Adventist understanding of the Sabbath, State of the Dead, or Sanctuary and any could give that to you. I am not sure if this day really ever existed or if it is simply something that seeped into our collective memory without really having any basis in fact.

At any rate, I was listening to a few preachers who seems to buy this idea totally. They not only believe that it was true at some point in the past, but they also believe that it is true right now. One preacher literally said that today you could grab any Second Advent believer and that one could still recite a text to defend 1844, Sabbath, state of the Dead, or any other doctrine. The preacher further stated that Adventists spend too much time worrying about and thinking about the doctrines of the church. They said that Adventists can quote the text, but do not know the author of the text. The preacher then concluded that we need to know Jesus more than we need to know the doctrines.

Really I wonder where these people are living. I doubt you could find many people who could explain these doctrines even without texts. I mean who can tell you what the Sabbath is for? Certainly they may tell you something about the 7th day, but then they are out of ideas. Is that knowing too much doctrine? How many Adventists really could explain anything at all about the Sanctuary? Whether you agree with the Adventist understanding or not, we all would agree that very few could tell you more than a vague notion that something happened in 1844 that they can't explain the relevance.

While I do not know every Adventist, I doubt very seriously that you could go into many Adventist churches in America and get just about any to tell you why they believe what they claim to believe. It is true that Jesus needs to be the center of all our doctrinal teaching. But these preachers have given a missed diagnoses of the problem for the days of Biblical literacy in and outside of our church are gone, if they ever really existed. So what can we do?

Steps to Biblical Literacy

Preachers need to preach from the Bible. I think that the common preaching type that we have learned from our "evangelistic sermons" is to jump all around the Bible. We read a text here and a text there. Certainly this can be good and needed, but do not use too many texts. What happens is that the people leave without a solid understanding of any one of the texts. Take one text, explain it, use a few texts to help explain the major text.

I was reading somewhere where more and more churches are emphasizing the reading of the scripture. One way to combat the illiteracy is to read and explain the texts. We need solid preaching, but we need more than sermonizing. In addition to sermonizing we need teaching. Wednesday night can become an evening of prayer and study. Sabbath School can become a real learning experience rather than a way for novice preachers to preach to a captive audience.

You know, One of the great components of the Black Preaching Tradition is that it has a tendency to preach the great stories of the Bible. Our White brothers and sisters are more inclined to use the didactic portions. The nice thing about the stories is that they go deep into your head.

Stop The False Diagnoses

As long as we continue stating what is not true, we can never deal with the true ailment. Adventists do not know the doctrines at the expense of our relationship with the Master. Adventists need a closer relationship with the Master as well as need more knowledge of doctrines and the Bible. Maybe then we can have substantial conversations about the Sanctuary. Maybe then we can start talking about the Sabbath beyond simply saying it is the Seventh-day.

Simply put, we are like everybody else. We don't know the Bible, we can't find texts, and even quite conservative Adventists can't explain the doctrine of 1844 let alone calculate it from the scriptures. Yet for some reason we think we know what we don't know...and preachers who promote this mythology almost obliterate the reality that we don't know squat. Yes we need to know Jesus, but how many of us have any idea of what the Bible says about him? In short, we don't know...we think we know...and nobody is helping us to know. Now that is a recipe for disaster...

Faithful People More Likely To Be Obese

[caption id="attachment_2711" align="alignleft" width="142" caption="Photo by Alina Zienowicz"][/caption]So I'm checking out USA Today's faith and reason, and they have an article up on obesity among people who regularly attend religious events. According to the article which can be found here:

Young adults who go to a religious event such as worship or Bible study at least once a week are 50 percent more likely to become obese by middle age as young adults with no religious involvement, according to new Northwestern Medicine research based on tracking 3,433 men and women for 18 years.

The researchers are not sure why this is, but it is certainly an interesting finding.

What About Adventists?

Turning the page, I would be interested in seeing some research on obesity in the Adventist church. I know Adventists live longer. I have seen some research, but really need to look more deeply into it. I wonder if we have done any research regarding obesity specifically and Adventism. It is a very interesting phenomenon.

You know just anecdotally, it really seems as though that vegetarianism and obesity can come together in Adventism. I mean if you see a fat vegetarian, I would bet you that one is an Adventist. I will admit that I have a small sample size, but I cannot remember meeting any fat vegetarians who were not Adventist.

What About The Health Message?

What does that mean? Is the health message really about health or just about not eating meat, pork, crab, shellfish, etc? I mean Adventists will tell you that they don't eat whatever because it ain't healthy, and then will go months without exercising. Isn't that a disconnect? Going back to the original story, why are so many devout Christians fat? I guess the answer to that question will probably help us answer the question of Adventist obesity whether vegetarian or not.

Why do They Make it So Complex? - The Presentation of Adventist Fundamentals

I was talking to a friend about the presentation of Adventist fundamentals by some. It appears that often these teachings are ignored by many pastors and preachers, but when they actually do preach or teach them, the sermon turns into a theological lecture to enlighten the mind but not inspire the soul.

This is an interesting phenomenon. You will hear a preacher preach a powerful sermon about God being with us in our pain and our heartache and yet when it is time to preach the Sanctuary they turn it into a lecture about celestial geography or a mathematical calculation. Thus leaving the hearers with the question: "How is this helpful to me in my situation?" I think this lack of connection to our lives is one of the reasons why people think it is too complex.

This actually reminds me of my college days. I had a math minor in college. Math is a powerful tool to help us understand and solve problems. But I did learn some pertinent things from my time there that can be helpful to the hearers.

There is an Application to Real Life

Yes the calculus, geometry, and algebra had practical applications. I have found out over and over the truth of this. In my computer work, I have used all of them to help me solve real problems of the real world.

And just like math, our core beliefs have real application to the real world. Yes the State of the Dead doctrine helps us understand the current revival of the demonic in the culture. It also helps us understand why Satan will push you to destroy your body if he can't get you to destroy the soul. Because the doctrine reminds us that both body and soul are inextricably bound together in an indisolvable union. Yes the Sanctuary doctrine helps us understand God's guidance of the world towards final culmination. God is at the wheel purifying and protecting God's people from the "throne-room." Yes the core beliefs have application to real life.

Some Teachers Made Application Some Didn't

Another point is that there are some teachers who make applications, while others didn't. It was amazing to me how some teachers would tell you "how to use the tool is up to you, I just give you the tool." This leaves you in the dark about the relevance and power of the tool. It was much later after completing my calculus training that I began to realize how to use the tool. If I didn't realize how to use the tool, I would be in the dark about its effectiveness and how the tool is actually indispensable.

Likewise there are preachers who simply throw the fundamentals out there and then stop. You don't know why it matters, you don't know what it is good for. Because of this, you might just let the teaching lie dormant, just as I let calculus lie dormant.

You May Have to Find Your Own Applications

Finally, as with calculus where I had to find a reason for the existence of the tool, you will have to do the same thing in many cases. I praise God that there are some who attempt to teach the fundamentals with strength, but we as listeners must recognize that some of these preachers will not and/or cannot make it practical. In those cases we have to cultivate the trait of finding it for ourselves. Please don't blame Calculus becuase a teacher didn't give you an application. And don't blame the core of Adventism either.

Why the State of the Dead Teaching is Important

When teachers of Biblical wholeness speak of the importance of the doctrine, they usually make one of a few arguments. Certainly there are more, but these are the most common reasons given by them that the doctrine is important.

1) Opens us up for demonic deception

This is perhaps the most common objection is that if we do not hold to this doctrine that the nature of humanity is not a soul that lives in a shell, then demonic agencies can take on the personalities of dead loved ones and deceive us into believing a lie.

I do believe that demonic agencies live and manifest themselves in our world. In addition, I believe that these entities do seek to to deceive us. However, believing in Biblical wholeness does not remove the possibility that we will be deceived by demonic agencies. For example, demonic agencies could take on the body and personality of people who are not dead just not here now. Your mother who is in England. Now one would argue, that the demons could say "I have been gone and now I came back, and this is true, but certainly one could take on the body of Jesus (Which many predict) or Elijah (who according to the Biblical Record never died).

The key point is that believing Biblical wholeness does not totally keep one from being deceived by demonic agencies. One still needs that close connection to God to be able to discern God's truth in a world of many competing truths.

2) Minimizes embodiment

Perhaps one of the most important reasons that some are coming to the idea of Biblical wholeness is that the other idea minimizes embodiment. In short, a person, in that idea, is not an embodied person, but merely taking residence in this body.

Such an idea has ramifications that minimize the importance of the body. This idea can tend to say that Our body is not important, what we eat is not important, how we tend to this body is not important for what is really important is the "spirit" over the "body."

In addition, racists and sexists of previous generations used the idea that there was a "soul" that was more important than the Body and tried to say that women and other ethnic minorities either did not have this soul or their body was in charge of their soul thus they needed added guidance. However, all of this is illusionary, for we do not have a "soul" that can be removed from our bodies, we are souls.

3) Minimizes the Second Advent Hope

If one is going straight to heaven at death, why is there a need for a second advent? Certainly, as the argument goes, our pleasure is increased and our pain increased as a result of the second advent according, but even this lowers the importance of the second coming.

A side note to this idea is the common refrain that this earth is not our home, heaven is our home. The idea sometimes reduces to heaven being a place where "spirit" beings live in contrast to the earth which is where we are encumbered by bodies and physicality. However the idea of Biblical wholeness is that we do not look forward to becoming spirit beings floating around heaven but concrete embodied people living in the new Jerusalem.

4) Minimizes the Sacrifice of God

An interesting thought that the 1888 Message Study Committee posits is the idea that the natural immortality of the soul reduces Christ's sacrifice. Christ died, in his humanity, the equivalent of the second death which is as Jack Sequiria states "Saying Goodbye to life forever."

If Christ, in his humanity, assumed an immortal soul then the death, in his humanity was simply the hours of pain that he had to go through and not the anguish of dying as you and I die.

Conclusion

Certainly the State of the Dead is an important doctrine,and this is simply a rough outline of some of the reasons why that is the case. I would encourage you to continue looking at this site as we explore this and other vital topics.

We Are Pilgrims - Pain Makes Me Yearn For Home

Hebrews 11:13 speaks of the faithful being pilgrims who only saw the promise from a distance. I think it is important for us to live effective and fruitful lives in this world. It is important to occupy till the Master returns. In that we are to take that which the Master has placed in our hands and get an increase. (Luke 19:12-13). It is important that we do not fall into the trap of thinking that there is nothing for us to do here but wait. The world should be better because we have been here. We should "lighten the corner where we are."

After having said that, we cannot ever lose the fact that we are still at a distance from God's incoming Basilea. Things will get worse, and even in places we may see some things get better before they get worse. We may live a good life and then again we may have barely enough to survive. Whatever the case, we are pilgrims and strangers.

I Yearn For Home

Yes I am a citizen of the United States, but I am also a citizen of the Basilea of God. And my ultimate loyalty is to that. And because of that I yearn for the home that I have only been able to see from afar. I yearn for that home when thousands of our sisters and brothers die in an earthquake and the resulting Tsunami in Japan. I yearn for that home when I hear of children, elderly, those with special needs, and the weakest amongst us being abused by those more powerful. I yearn for home when killing citizens is referred to as "collateral damage." I yearn for home...

I know it's old school, but every once in a while I just want to think about walking on the streets in glory. I want to think about asking Moses about the exodus. I want to think about the lion lying with the lamb, I want to think about "peace in the valley." And yes, along with Rance Allen I long to just make it to heaven...that will be good enough for me!

Earthquakes, Adventist Evangelists, and The End Time

A few Adventist websites are addressing the "prophetic significance" of the earthquake in Japan. On AToday, Ervin Taylor makes a startling prediction

In the spirit of traditional Adventism, I would like to prophesize. I predict that, over a period of six months, the Adventist Review and Adventist World will publish, on at least four occasions, in some form either by itself or in connection with other "signs," statements to the effect that the recent major devastating earthquake in Japan is another sign that the "End is Near."

Well, maybe it is not so startling...Probably before he could hit the publish key Shawn Boonstra, formerly of It Is Written, already was ready to fulfill Taylor's prediction by saying:

Without the Bible’s prophetic road map, large-scale disasters become nothing more than unfortunate random events. And from the perspective of tragic ignorance, the signals of Jesus’ rapid approach shake us up, but fail to make a lasting difference. People are shaken, but not stirred.

Fulfillment of Prophecy?

An article that Alexander Carpenter over at the Spectrum website took great exception.

OK, lets be honest, you gotta admit that it is really quite easy to say this is a "fulfillment of prophecy" even if you don't ultimately buy it. I mean Jesus himself said there would be "earthquakes in diverse places." Mark 13:8. I would bet that you will find many more Christians of many denominational groups making assuming that there is prophetic significance for this event. I mean really Taylor's prediction is like predicting that the sun will set tomorrow...

A church built on apocalyptic eschatology will have a tendency to see significance in every event that comes. You may not like it, but you certainly can't be surprised by it.

Pastoral Sensitivity and The Preacher's Language

Now there is a question of pastoral sensitivity that we must ask however. OK, you might argue that Evang. Boonstra and the Adventist Review shouldn't have used the verbiage "shaken not stirred" to apply that ongoing terrible tragedy. Maybe so. however, I read it as a preacher turning a popular saying into a homiletic device. I agree that it was not the most sensitive thing to do. I would also agree that despite my best attempts, from time to time my sermons include sayings and verbiage that I probably should have said better.

It is true that Adventist eschatology points Adventists to see prophetic significance in every terrible event. But to be honest, anyone who reads those apocalyptic texts in the Bible could come to the same conclusion (and many do).

Is God Trying To Tell Us Something

Now there is the whole "God is trying to tell God's true church something" bit. Ok it is possible to read this as "God killing of thousands of innocent lives just to tell the church something." I don't know, but I don't think that is Boonstra's interpretation. I would guess that Boonstra would mean that "God is withdrawing God's hand of protection and thus the evil one is allowed to do more and more of these things. Thus it is a signal to us that the end is near." Certainly folks may disagree with that due to having a different theology, but is it really an insidious attack on God's goodness.

To conclude, I think that Boonstra is simply giving a traditionalist Adventist explanation of what we can learn from terrible events that happen in general and specifically the earthquake in Japan. Does this mean that the end is right now? No, some would argue that , but I doubt Boonstra would. But certainly you can't be surprised. I mean the church often measures how close we are to the end by disastrous events. So certainly it will see disastrous events as meaning we are closer to the end.