Is the 7th day Adventist Church a Christian church?

>The issue is not whether the creed agrees with Scripture or not, but whether people look to the creed instead of Scripture as the authoritative Word.

Every Baptist Church has a creed but it is called a "statement of faith" because Baptists are afraid of the word, "creed," same as this list is afraid of the medical words for body parts. NOT COMPLAINING! Only observing. It is your list, you pay for it and I am a guest. The one who pays the piper names the tune.

BUT the words of the ecumenical creeds have been vetted, understood, and agreed upon for 1700 years with the sole exception of the "filique" (sp?) dispute in which I think the Orthodox Church makes the better argument.

You Baptists and others who reject the creeds without understanding their purpose have to invent a new creed for every new congregation. I have seen some that don't compute but it doesn't matter because they are ignored until someone wants someone else to be excommunicated.

 

Is there anyone on this board that is familiar with the SDA doctrine of soul-sleep? Was it an invention of E.G. White? They say there is a lot of biblical support for it. I am having difficulty understanding their position.

 

My bluegrass band has been invited to play several services at the S.D.A. church in Stevensville, and I have attended several of their Cowboy Camp Meetings.

I have never heard of any "soul sleep" in any of their services. And I dare say the sermons would have fit right in with the Christian-Missionary Alliance church I attended as a young man.

They are not as stiff as Baptists, they don't like people who wear ties, they serve STRONG coffee, and I have even seen a few out dancing.

 

I have been discussing this with an SDA neighbor. According to him (and what I think I'm reading of their teachings), they believe the soul and body are really the same thing. The J.W. spun out of this church and seem to have developed their 'anihalation' doctrine from this teaching. I was hoping someone on the board might have had discussions with SDA's here in the past and could explain.

 

You must have written this post before we talked. However, I will publically confirm your suspicions about their strong belief in soul sleeping.

I refuted a book written by Samuele Bacchiocchi entitled "Immortality OR Resurrection" who is one of SDA leading theologions.

I summarized my response to his book under seven headings and the sixth point is as follows:

6. His line of logic is “soul” equals “being” (pp. 45-46) equal “animal life” (p. 47) equals “blood”. With this understanding of “soul” he then adds to this logical line of reasoning that this kind of “soul” is inseparable from “life” and “body” and “breath” [spirit] all of which are terminated by biological death. Then, to all of this logical line of thinking he concludes that this full meaning of TEMPORAL biological “life” which completely terminates at physical death when considered in a believer is equal to “eternal life” based not on its continuity but its quality or character of works. This is Syncretism that evades the real issues and teaching of Scripture. His errors are obvious when it is seen that “soul” and “spirit” and “life” are all used of “beings” with no “blood” nor “material bodies” and who are not subject to biological death.

 

GE:

Where did 'they' go, "that very day", "sharing paradise"?

Did they, to start with?

O certainly, they did!

But _all_ 'Christians' - alike - don't want to hear the TRUTH when it comes to that moment, where Jesus and the thief on the cross, "that very day", 'shared paradise'.

No! What do they do?

They resort to an ABSOLUTELY IRRELEVANT Scripture, somewhere in one of Peter's Epistles, INSTEAD of taking seriously the CONTEXT and the words of Jesus ITSELF.

Because Christians earnestly and honestly just are unable to see, to understand or to believe that DEATH, "that very day", _was_ "Paradise", RESTORED!
In fact, Jesus nowhere than in his SUFFERING OF DYING DEATH, wrested from the hold of the devil himself, "the KEYS OF HELL AND DEATH". “Because I-AM-HE THAT LIVETH— who was DEAD— BEHOLD: I-AM-ALIVE-FOR-EVERMORE.”

LIFE in and through Jesus Christ who LIVING SUFFERED DYING the death of death, was WHERE, and “that very day” was WHEN, the thief on the cross ALIVE, through Jesus Christ entered into “Paradise” and “the Rest of God”— through Jesus Christ who ALIVE, “TRIUMPHED” ABSOLUTELY HAVING BEEN IN “Paradise” where God is and the Throne and Source of Eternal Life— “THE KINGDOM OF MY FATHER”.

The thief on the cross BEFORE “the ninth hour” (‘3 p.m.’) on “that very day” of the crucifixion and death of Jesus Christ, already had ‘shared Paradise’ with Him, his “life hid in God with Christ”, and his resurrection in the last day sealed by “the POWER OF HIS – CHRIST’S – RESURRECTION” “from the dead on the third day ACCORDING TO THE SCRIPTURES” …

… just like “according to the Scriptures” every saved sinner— on “that very day” of Christ’s victorious suffering of hell and most shameful death by crucifixion is "sharing" with Him, Paradise with God, Restored.