Christian vs Seventh Day Adventist
Numerous variations of religion are being introduced in the world today. However, for people who consider religion as an essential aspect of living, the profusion of these varieties can be quite baffling. Christian and Seventh Day Adventist being two of the many, one must gain an understanding about the difference between Christian and seventh day adventist in order to gain a deeper understanding with regards to their faith.
Who is a Christian?
A Christian is someone who conducts him or herself in line with the beliefs, ways and the overall lifestyle of the Christian faith. The word Christian implies “one who follows the Christ” and is derived from the Greek term Christos meaning “anointed one.” This monotheistic religion is based completely upon the teachings and life experiences of Jesus Christ, as found in canonical gospels and writings of the New Testament. The main beliefs of the Christian religion are focused on Jesus, the Son of God, who became human for the divine goal of saving the world. At present, there are three major Christian groups including the Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox churches and Protestant groups. Traditions emphasize a number of physical gestures such as making the sign of the cross, also referred to as genuflection as well as kneeling and bowing.
Who is a Seventh Day Adventist?
The Seventh Day Adventist, abbreviated as SDA and popularly known as Adventist, is a Protestant Christian faith, which is particularly recognized because of its unique observance of Saturday as the original Sabbath day and the imminent second coming of the Christ. Seventh Day Adventist bases itself on 28 Fundamental Beliefs which were originally adopted by the General Conference in 1980.
However, these fundamental beliefs are not meant to be received as a “Creed” since they claim only the Bible as their one true creed. The followers of the church have a high regard for Ellen G. White, one of its founders, whose writings are extensively kept by the church for reference as the ultimate source of truth. Adventists go to church and have their weekly service on Saturdays. Their church service is of evangelical format where a sermon serves as the featured event in the ceremony.
What is the difference between Christian and Seventh Day Adventist?
When it comes to the basic belief in one God, there is not much difference between Christian and Seventh Day Adventist. Both believe in a God that created the Earth and all living things in it. The divergence occurs mostly in the practice of their belief as well as in other parts of their faith.
•Seventh Day Adventist is a denomination of the Christian faith. Hence, both Seventh Day Adventists and Christians fall under the category of Christian.
• Both Christians and Seventh Day Adventists believe in one god, the Trinity, and the teachings of Jesus, the godson.
• Adventists believe Jesus will return to set up millennial kingdom.
• Adventists also deny the immortality of the soul and the doctrine of predestination.
• Though their basic beliefs are almost same, there are variations between both faiths in their traditions.
• Adventist’s church service is of evangelical format where a sermon serves as the featured event in the ceremony.
• Seventh Day Adventists observe Saturday as the original Sabbath day and have weekly services on Saturday. For Christians the week starts on Sunday, services are conducted on Sunday.
• Adventists believe in baptism by immersion. They do not accept baptism by sprinkling and deny infant baptism.
• Physical gestures of worship also differ.
• Adventists do not accept consuming alcohol and tobacco.
There is no one wise enough to judge the correctness of one religion when compared to another. People might end up building or losing faith when discovering the difference between Christianity and Seventh Day Adventist, but when it comes to one’s faith and ultimate salvation, it all lies on the individual’s heart and mind to make a decision on which religion to follow. After all, both these religions point towards a single direction to the Mighty Creator and share all fundamental beliefs of Christianity.
Photos By: midiman (CC BY 2.0), romana klee (CC BY-SA 2.0)
Further Reading:
Didn’t Jesus keep Saturday, as the Jews did?
Didn’t the disciples keep Sabbath?
So just because they follow the original, they still believe in God, and follow Jesus closer than the regular modern churches do. Seems to me, we should be doing the same–that’s what the Bible says.
WHY do we keep Sunday–other than it’s traditional and every body else does?
And the other things you put—doesn’t accept alcohol or tobacco–well, most Christians don’t do these things either. In fact, anyone who want health do away with these. Why does this make them weird? Much less not Christian?
I don’t understand this reasoning. Though I do appreciate that it isn’t unChristianly hateful.
well, I mean I do see churches putting other denominations down when we should love everybody equal, and just think people have formed a lot of the braches of Christianity, so that opens the book to flaws. But, may I ask, how does that make us hate full being different? It seems that every Christian denomination has its ups and downs. I’ll admit it is confusing to have so many different religious beliefs spinning around you that it is hard to know the “absolute truth”. I remember when I was in church, one of the leaders told me that the Jehovah’s witnesses would go to hell because they don’t believe in god, when the millennial reign teaching was actually correct and their “eternal hell” belief is incorrect. just keep your head in the word to know the truth. like what Jesus said, see to it that you’re not deceived. people will lie and lead you astray. my mother actually did it to me, when I was a atheist. The bible is the only “real” way of knowing.
You’re right! Just stick with the Bible! Everything we need to know, IS IN THE BIBLE! 🙂
ROMANS 6:16 New International Version
Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey–whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness?
GENESIS 2 2-3
EXODUS 31:13
REV. 14:12
May a true heart who searches be filled with the Holy Spirit who opens our eyes. In Jesus name, Amen.
Dear Brethren in Christ, we should not be reading the NIV because it has many, many scriptures missing and is full of untruths.
Jehovah’s Witnesses absolutely believe in God. First of all the name Jehovah is found in both the old and New Testament of most bibles including the KJV, secondly, they believe that Jesus is the son of God and that salvation is achieved only through his death on the cross and resurrection. Thirdly, Jehovah’s Witnesses are baptized full immersion (dunked not sprinkled) “IN THE NAME of the FATHER, SON and HOLY SPIRIT” I know this for a fact, I was a Jehovah’s Witnesses for about 25 years.
the jw bible john 1:1 says: in the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was A god.
kjv says: in the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God.
not the same. in fact, i would say jws believe in more than one god.
That’s what Jesus said! Meaning he hadn’t died yet. Go read in acts/peter when they talk about being baptized in the name of Jesus. That’s what I believe we’re called to follow..
Jehovah’s Witnessss deny the deity of Jesus Christ and teach that He is Michael the arch angel NOT God. They also teach that the Holy Spirit is a power source but not a person. They do NOT believe in the Trinity.
Yeshua ( Jesus ) Is Not a Religion..He Saves my Mercy and Grace.. Yeshua did all the work on the Cross for us. Then Sent the Holy Spirit into us.. We don’t have to go to Church on Saturday. But It Honors God. Gods Feasts–Not Jewish Feasts. I go to a Synagogue where Born Again Jews and Gentiles go..
If Jesus did all the work for us, then everyone would be saved, whether you believe in him or not. You must believe we are sinners and that we need a savior, believe Jesus is God, repent, and take the gift of grace and salvation that Jesus provided for us.
We worship on Sunday because the Roman Catholic Church murdered anyone who worshipped on Saturday (the Sabbath). This happened during the Dark Ages. Thus people were forced to worship on Sunday, else die. But Sunday is a satanic worship day— it is the worship of the sun god.
The pope wears a 3-tier hat, with the inscription written in Latin “Vicarius Filii Dei” (Vicar or Representative of the Son of God). The Latin letters ADD TO 666. The Bible says JESUS is the High Priest and the ONLY begotten Son of God. All humans, including the Pope, are CREATED in God’s image, NOT BORN of God.
Read John Ramirez’ books. He was an ex-satanist and exposes the tactics of the enemy. Unclean spirits and satanists can put thoughts into your mind, so meditate on the Bible, especially the promises of God.
SDA’s read the KJV or NIV Bible.
They are Christians for they do believe in Jesus Christ.
They really study the Bible and try to understand what is needed to be saved.
SDA’s believe in keeping the 10 Commandments of God.
One of the 10 is to keep holy the Sabbath day.
THANK YOU! I LOVE YOU!
They believe in a different Jesus. Their Jesus is the Archangel Michael.
Ok, I thought I read that before, but didn’t see it on any comments on the website!
Exactly, and the teachings of White as their absolute authority, therefore they are following a false profit
God’s Word and God’s Word alone is absolute authority. Because & only because SDA follows the bible, I am a member of this church.
Why do SDAs continue to teach about worldwide Sunday laws (with eventual death
penalties) since 1888 when nothing has happened? Do SDAs know that the last three popes oppose the death penalty? Do SDAs believe that over one billion Muslims will convert to Sunday-keeping when Islam considers Christians to be infidels? Does anyone see a problem here?
C.W. It took 120 years for the flood to begin fter Noah began building it and preaching the coming judgment. People then who doubted Noah’s words were likely saying the same thing – he’s been teaching about some flood for more than 100 years and nothing has happened yet…Our Heavenly Father has longsuffering patience, but it is running out.
it is the jws that have the archangel as Jesus, not the sda. but that ellen white thing, well, to me that is adding to the bible.
SDAs do not believe in a different Jesus; they believe in the Only Begotten Son of our Heavenly Father. Research the origins and meaning of Michael (one who is like God). Who is like God? Christ alone – see John 10:30-33; John 1:1; Colossians 1:15-17; John 20:28; John 14:9 to name a few. Research and study what angel means – it means “messenger” as every good angel in the bible was sent by The Most High. There were times when Jesus appeared as an angel (messenger) to others – like when he appeared to Abraham just before the destruction of Sodom & Gomorrah. Think about the times when an angel appeared before someone and that someone bowed down to worship, and the angel forbids the worship (e.g., Rev. 19:10, Rev. 22:8-9.) Those are the sent messengers, but not Christ. Archangel means head or chief of the angels, not a special kind of angel, and there were two strongest angels mentioned; Michael and Gabriel. Remember, Gabriel needed help from Michael to fend off the princes of Persia (who were allied with Lucifer – Satan) in Daniel 10. So, there were times when Christ was an angel (messenger) because The Father had sent him. Remember, Lucifer started the war in heaven because he was jealous of Christ’s unique and elevated position as being chief over the angels, and part of the Godhead, so he started a war of lies that followed him here.
Definitely judging this site as Adventist… Christians BEWARE!
now who’s judging?
ehhhh, read further in Matthew 7. Is this addressed to… the Pharisees? Does Jesus ask us to see the difference b/w pigs and dogs? That would involve a judgement, no?
”judge not, lest ye be judged” is close to the most mis-understood, most quoted-out-of-context Scripture.
only god can judge. as humans, we can only help(minister) to people. no one is in the place to judge. judge not and you won’t be judged.
But what about the rest of the verse? First, pull the log out of your own eye before you remove the speck from your neighbor’s? It’s talking about avoiding or ceasing from committing self-righteous judgment, not discerning in general as applied to behavior or beliefs.
that’s really offensive
You are on this page, therefore, I would think you are a Christian and as such I am amazed you would make such remark. However, Satan works his will in mysterious ways. God please forgive this person.
I would like to know the belief of the SDA about clean and unclean food that the bible talks about? Is there a difference between Christians and the SDA?
yeah, a few differences
What are the differences?
Leviticus 11 specifically states what is clean and what is unclean. =)
SDA usually try and follow a vegan diet. We believe that it is based upon the original diet of man which was all plant based in the Garden of Eden. There was no death in the Garden of Eden until Adam and Eve sinned and ate the forbidden fruit. After that, God made tunics for Adam and Eve which would have been the first death on Earth.
So why is the human body designed to eat meat? We need protein in order to create muscles. What protein do you get from salad? What about the many vitamins and minerals you’ll be deficient in? Why are fish accepted but, let’s say, not a chicken? Didn’t Jesus eat fish at the last supper?
Leviticus 11 outlines the law given to the Jews regarding clean and unclean animals, fish, birds that can be eaten. Granted, these are rules from the Old Testament and given to the Jews, but SDA’s have adopted the belief that they were given for health reason and have chosen not to eat them. However, Peter was shown in a dream, a basket of food dropped down to him that had unclean food in it. He was given advise not to offend his host by refusing to eat the food presented by the host or hostess I remember visiting my daughter in laws parents in Japan. They did not speak English my daughter in laws mother, aunt and cousin spent the entire day cooking for 29 people so they coud meet me. I had no idea what I was eating, but to have refused would have brought such shame to my son and daughter in law. I kept remembering the dream that Peter had had, and knew it was the right decision to eat what my daughter in laws family had prepared as a special meal for me. To have done otherwise would have been unChristian.
clean and un clean to Peter ” the issue was not on food but, it was that He was supposed to preach even unto the Gentiles” read the whole chapter
Acts 10:10-28 (Peter’s drem of unclean animals) was not about food, but about considering non-Jews to be unclean. It is written that what a person eats does not make him unclean, but the evil in the person’s heart is what makes him unclean. And – the human body was not designed to eat meat – this is false “science”. God designed our bodies, and if He said Thou shalt not kill, why would he design us to kill? There was no killing in the garden with Adam and Eve, and there will be no hamburgers in heaven. We get much more quality protein that our bodies can use from plants (e.g., beans, legumes + grains) than we do animal products. People who avoid animal products experience far less disease and conditions like diabetes, heart disease, rheumatoid disease, high blood pressure, etc., than people who eat animal protein. And – there is no scriptursl indication that Jesus ate fish at the last supper.
The only real difference, is that SDA’s believe that Saturday is the 7th day of the week, and should be observed as the 4th Commandment 7th day of the week. There are various tweeks and interpretations of all Christian churches. But the fundamentals are the same.
Sda’s are far from fundamental Christian beliefs. Their view of the trinity differs from basics Christianity, they have no idea about the new covenant therefore they idolise the Ten Commandments especially the sabbath as a day not as Jesus being our rest. They deny the completed work of the cross and teach that Satan bears our sins at the end of time so being our eventual saviour. Although they pay lip service to being saved by faith in Jesus Christ they actually teach perfectionism and deny Holy Spirit by believing the sabbath is the seal of God.
Don’t be fooled by their words, they use the same terminology as Christians but the meaning is different.
I was an SDA but was saved out of their organisation. Despite their ant-Christ doctrines, individually they can be saved as was my mum and dad.
BEWARE this article is totally misleading.
Pete – I do not know what SDA church you attended but if what you have written here is what you were taught there, you were wrongly educated. Here is why.
1. Trinity: this was adopted so that SDAs could align with the WCC (which SDA should not because the member church doctrines are not biblically sound), and that alignment even today is different than all other member churches. Though the General Conference states SDA is not a member, the SDA meets regularly with the WCC and collaborates and partners with it. So, this is a GC acquiescence, not a core belief. The bible says Godhead – that is our fundamental belief.
2. We do not idolize the 10 Commandments; we obey them. God said “Remember the sabbath day to keep it holy…” and we do just that. We well understand the new covenant – read Hebrews, the whole book tells us the differences between the old covenant with its ordinances of service and washings and offerings, and the new covenant, which is about a closer relationship with God through Christ. You see, man could not keep the laws in his own strength, he needed an intercessor and teacher – thus Christ left his heavenly throne to save us. These ordinances and sacrifices and feasts and washings were the ceremonial laws written by Moses. Scripture – Hebrews – also tells us that there is a heavenly sanctuary that was not made with hands like the earthly sanctuary. If it was not made with hands, then by whom was it made? And Hebrews tells us that Christ is the high priest of the sanctuary, the one not made with hands. This is the new covenant, that Christ now ministers in the heavenly sanctuary on our behalf, and that The Lord will write His Word in our hearts, rather than solely on tables of stone. But those commandments have not changed. Jesus told us that He did not come to destroy the law, but to fulfil it. Jesus even kept the commandments, and He said “If you love me, keep my commandments.” Jesus is Lord of the Sabbath, not the sabbath day itself.
3. The work of the cross was complete in that it broke the yoke of satan as Christ took our sins upon Himself and gave His life to save ours. He broke the bonds of sin and death and showed all of the heavens who satan truly is so there could be no more doubt. Christ is now our Heavenly High Priest. Have you read the Book of Revelation? It tells us that satan will be loosed from his prison of 1,000 years and then finally be charged with all the sins of man – because he is the source of them after all, even though we’re responsible for the sins we commit, because we choose to commit them. The sins of the world are attributed to the source and then he and his minions are cast into the lake of fire. So, satan is not a saviour; the bible does not teach that, nor do SDAs believe that.
4. We do not pay lip service to being saved by Christ – we actually strive to as He did in truth. The bible itself tells us to be perfect, but it I not man’s definition of perfect, but Gods. To keep God’s laws – that is the definition of perfection. There are many verses that speak of perfection and tell us to be perfect: Psalms 101:2, Genesis 17:1, 1 Kings 8:61, Matthew 5:48. Abraham was considered to be perfect because he had faith enough to believe God would resurrect his son Isaac after he obeyed God’s command to sacrifice him – remember, he told the servants at the bottom of the hill that he and Isaac would return after he sacrificed Isaac. At that moment Abraham did not know that God would stay his hand, but thought he was going to kill his son. If God tells us to be perfect, He does so because He knows that if we truly love Him and Christ, and surrender ourselves completely to Him, He can make us perfect. We cannot be perfect on our own, but obeying God’s commandments in spirit and in truth – that is perfection.
5. We do not in any wise deny the Holy Spirit; we welcome and embrace Him because He is our Comforter and guides us towards Christ.
6. The Sabbath is the seal of God. Think of an official seal of authority, like the one on the White House stationery. It says “Seal of the President of the United States.” It shows the name, title, and territory of the president, yes? Likewise does God’s 4th commandment: It says: “8. Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: 10. But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: 11. For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.” This commandment has the name of God: GOD, the title of God: the LORD thy GOD, and the territory of God: heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is. The 4th commandment has all three elements that denote a seal of authority.
I pray that this helps you to understand better, and that you are kept in Christ.
take this from an Adventist, you forgot to mention we don’t eat meat. everything else looks correct.
I eat meat and I’m SDA. =) The Health Message recommends a vegetarian diet, but it doesn’t say you can’t eat meat.
And when Jesus performed the miracle of the fish for his deciples who had been fishing all night without result, and he told them to cast their nets again, were they vegetarian fish? And the miracle of the 5 loves and 2 fish that were broken up and fed a crowd of 5,000 with 12 baskets remaining, were the fish vegetarian. What would Jesus do? is often a good reference. And he performed the miracle of the fish, and I do not believe they were vegetarian fish.
Most SDA’s are vegetarian or vegan for health reasons. But, it is not a requirement. However, we do believe in the Leviticus teaching from God regarding “clean and unclean” meat.
We are permitted to eat clean meat. In the Old Testament, The Book of Leviticus 11 through 18, I think, tells us about the clean and unclean meats we can eat.
So then you admit to trying to obey The LAW…? Then Moses will be your judge. Jesus fulfilled The Law and is not an archangel.
Moses wouldn’t be the judge, but rather the Elders would. But the Law is the contractual agreement between God and his people. Jesus said that he didn’t come to change one iota of the Law, i.e., e.g., the torah. But to fulfill the torah (the law). I’m referring to the Original Laws that God gave Moses. Since then as God warned Moses he would send people to test them, warning: if anyone comes and tries adding or taking away anything I have given you, you are not to accept them. By the time Yeshua came there were so many more “added” Laws to the Torah, thus, braking the Blood Contract. And God warned Moses that he would destroy all those who followed the false prophets. Yeshua was accused of breaking the sabbath when he reached down to collect a little dirt from the ground and spit on it to make mud to place on the blind man’s eyes. When stood and accused of this crime Yeshau said, The sabbath was created for man, Man wasn’t created for the sabbath. But, yet he still road the Donkey cult on the high sabbath as to not break the sabbath law.
SDA’s do highly regard E. G. White, but not as “ultimate truth!” Only the Bible is ultimate truth!
Also, I am not happy with the implication that ‘Christian vs SDA’ implies! Even though the article states that SDAs are Christian, a better title would be something to the effect of: SDA compared to other Christian faiths…
Absolutely 🙂
When you read about Jesus, He did everything on the Sabbath. This is one of the reasons the Pharisees and Sadducees sought to kill Him. My mother told me years ago everyone went to church on Saturday. She stated, she didn’t know why it was changed. If you look at a calendar, Sunday is not the seventh day of the week, Saturday is.
I would suggest that the majority of the chrisian church celebrate a Sunday because that is the day He rose from the dead, thus proving His Lordship. We are no longer under the law, if we are truely trusting Him for our salvation, so the command to keep the Sabbath holy is no longer a must, though I’m sure the principle of having a day of rest is worthwhile
The day was changed by the Romans about thirty years after Christ’s death and resurrection. There is lots of research on this subject.
It even used to be printed in the Catholic doctrins. t prove that the Pope was the true Jesus on earth, as they had had the right to change the 4th Commandment. If you read a Catholic Bible, you will observe that they have altered the 4th Commandment.
I go by God’s word, not man’s.
Your right Lynda. Thank you:-)
The Catholic church is why there are Protestants. Catholics were wrong in their beginning and forever.
That’s what in fact it is a day of rest from labor including your animals, workers. Their is true facts when it was changed and whom . We all know it was under the roman empire all such changes took place. This same empire is the first Reich = roman empire and the spreading as they conquered. Now even though Christianity is ones who claim to lift up the name of Christ and God does not mean they live according to and we can see such in the history books and the bible all the time even when the children was led into the wilderness. So the hinduisiam can be call Christians to. The only difference with SDA is they attempt to keep all the commandments as was told to Joshua to teach so the other can continue teaching generation to generation. So the sabbath keeping is included and all going to man for guidance and forgiveness is abolish because God stopped all animal sacrificing because of the blood of attornment Christ that is plain to see and understand. Sister white never ask to be looked upon as anyone but a sister or messenger to the bro and sis so if many esteem her of such it s there own doing and false teaching she her self speak against it. however, we can trace her teachings to be inline with the word of god and that validates her lessons and warning as sound proof its messages from God to help lead people.
We are still under the law, but we keep it as the result of our faith in Christ, not so that we can be saved. The law has not been abolished, otherwise it would be OK to kill, lie, steal, commit adultery, etc. Keeping the law from a true desire to do so in your heart and mind is the result of Christ’s sacrifice and teaching, and the Holy Spirit within us. We cannot keep the law on our own.
Just like after Creation, God rested. Sunday is to get pagans; sun worshippers involved; they worshipped the sun. Satanic worshipers.
there are three major Christian groups, and they include the Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox churches and the Protestantism groups.
Those are not Christian beliefs.
Didn’t Jesus drink wine?
Well put, Catherine
I’m a Jew and in the time of Jesus wine was not fermented. water was very bad tasting
Straight grape juice; Maybe? 🙂
How would you get intoxicated on non-fermented grape juice. Not happening.
God is not the author of confusion. Wine means wine.
Christ said HE was the way truth and life–and no one can get to the father any other way–why cant we christians — just be tolerant of each other and let God be God?
Politics. Be humble and kind. The Catholic church has little to do with Christianity, only power. An elected politician is equal to Christ, give me a break. Just a bunch of dodgy old guys that need to give away the Vatican’s money and return the Sabbath to Saturday as God wanted and get laid. Ridiculous.
GOD LOVE US ALL…I AM PRETTY SURE HE LOVES US ON SATURDAY OR SUNDAY…MEAT OR FISH…CATHOLIC…CHRISTIAN..JEW…HE CREATED US TO BE DIFFERENT AND ENJOYS DIVERSITY!
He created us ALL, but He will save His Church, His Bride, His elect, His Saints in other words anybody who is born again …just like He said to Nicodemus, and said all over the Bible.,,anyone dying to himself and following Him. On Sunday Christ broke bread with his disciples..and ask them to do that in His memory. He resuscitate on Sunday / Lords Day. Saturday is a Jew Law. Jews do not believe in Jesus Christ. God created us to Glorify Him and for us to have a relationship with Him -. Not absolutely for us to do what is right in our own eyes. Good day.
The Sabbath originated at creation. The Ten Commandments are not Jewish law. They are God’s Law which Jesus is the embodiment of. They are the Law of Love. If you love God you will keep the first 4 commandments naturally. If you love your neighbor as your self then you will keep the last 6 commandments naturally. God did not fail with Israel. Israel failed to understand God’s plan of redemption which has always been through Jesus Christ. God meant for the Jews to be Christians but many of them (not all) rejected Christ.
I’m a Trinitarian Assembly of God Pentecostal and I haven’t read anything that would make me believe that SDA isn’t saved. Now if I do, I will revise this statement. The only thing that I have heard and disagree with is that I heard that the SDA believes that he’ll is not eternal. However, even if the SDA doesn’t believe in an eternal hell, it isn’t taking away from their view of God.
If the SDA’s congregations truly worship and believe in Jesus Christ, why would they not be saved?
God doesn’t care weather you go to church on a Saturday or a Sunday, He looks into our hearts and judges that, not our behaviors, man looks on the outward flesh, while God sees into our soul. We need to worship God with our whole being and in everything we do. Many times, church is more of a social event than a time of true worship.
SDA’s believe in the 10 Commandments, including the entire 4th Commandment where we are told to observe the 7th Day, as a Holy Day devoted to God. Exodus 20:8-11. “You have six days each week for ordinary work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath day of rest dedicated to the Lord your God…… For in six days, the Lord made the heavens, the earth, the sea and everything in them; but on the the seventh day he rested. That is why the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and set it apart as Holy.”
God has been working on me the past two months, cleaning house so to speak, and I’ve been grappling with this whole business of the Sabbath. I think the problem I had was that I was viewing the Sabbath as a day of worship, when really it’s a day set apart to signify that we worship the One true God, the great I AM. I’m studying and asking God to reveal truth to me, regarding all things, including the Sabbath (i.e., Does “to keep holy” mean not to work?)
Hmm. This is not to be critical, but it is to
generate some critical (evaluative) thinking. Seventh day: Just to start with,
go look up the derivation of the seven names of a week (in English, of course,
and then think about the many other languages and the possible names and
meanings of the days of a week). So, the seventh day—starting from, hmm, the
day God started creating? Was it really “Monday”, really!? What is the seventh
day for you? Were you born on a Wednesday, so the seventh day for you is
Tuesday? Or maybe we should consider what day you were conceived. Figure that
one out with any assurance of accuracy. REST on the seventh day: Ok, is that a
command to sleep? Does it mean a leisurely day? Watching football? Crocheting?
Keep it Holy: I believe holy refers to being set apart, or different. What does
it take to accomplish that? You do so put God in a box with these things. What
is He trying to accomplish? Maybe to make it known that He is God? Could the
Sabbath (what does the word Sabbath actually mean?) be a tool God intended for
us to use as a means of witnessing? “I don’t work on the Sabbath (or Sunday,
for those who refer to it as such) because I choose to take special note of
this day so as to honor God and declare He is indeed my God, and I want people
to know it.” Hmm. That would be a nice approach perhaps. As a means to be
critical of other believers who don’t have all the preconceptions about what
day of the week constitutes the seventh day? Probably not very helpful. So a
person who landed himself a good job that gives him Monday and Tuesday off
decides to take one of those days and set it apart as a day to honor God. Maybe
he listens to a godly recorded message or watches one on the internet. Maybe he
reads his Bible and spends time praying for lots of folks. Perhaps he does
several things to make it a unique day, set apart for the Lord. And so of
course God strikes him with a bolt of lightning for getting the day of the week
“wrong” according to…who? The guy who declares that Saturdays are the only true
actual Sabbath but doesn’t do nearly the things to set it apart as the “Tuesday”
guy is still somehow more holy? Really? What is God looking for here? Go deeper
folks. Go lots deeper.
The Bible clearly states that the Sabbath is the seventh day from creation, the day God himself rested. The 4th commandment is to remember to keep the Sabbath day holy, in remembrance of God’s creative work, and because God set that day apart as a holy day, not on Mt. Sinai, but on the very first Sabbath, as we read in Genesis.
This may come as a shock to you, but there is no controversy over which day is the Sabbath. It is the seventh day, the day we call Saturday, other languages have different names for the day but there is no disagreement about which day of the week is the Biblical Sabbath. Jesus worshipped on the Sabbath, so did his disciples, and we have not lost track of the day since then.
Hmm. And you think SATURDAY is that important? Well, think about this: there were a bunch of folks, whom the Apostle Paul talked about, who thought being physically circumcised in the flesh was REAL important. After all, it was THE LAW. But Paul contended that it was not circumcision of the flesh that mattered, but rather circumcision of the HEART. I think that is what you need, just as Paul said. Jesus Himself also dealt with a similar situation. There were a bunch of folks who said is was unlawful to harvest on the Sabbath. But Jesus and His disciples did just that, and then He basically told them to go take a hike. man was not made for the Sabbath, but the Sabbath was made for man. You would strain at the gnat of what day and swallow the camel of what the day is all about. Brother, that is called legalism. I pray that instead you would go with love and encouragement and blessing, and an emphasis on the things that make for a joyous and fruitful Christian walk.
The religious leaders said the disciples were harvesting on the Sabbath day, when in reality they were merely eating grain out of the field. Jesus would not have defended someone breaking the law. He merely pointed out the absurdity of calling what they were doing “harvesting”. Remember, Jesus kept the law himself. He was the only one ever to do so perfectly. He didn’t abolish the law, he fulfilled it.
Circumcision is part of the law given only to the Israelites. The Sabbath, along with the rest of the 10 commandments, belongs to the whole world. The first Sabbath was immediately after the creation, long before Abraham. After Christ died and arose, circumcision was no longer relevant, since believers now are circumcised in the heart. But the Sabbath is perpetual, since it commemorates the creation, and is necessary for our health.
Legalism is believing that you can obtain salvation or grace by keeping of the law. But the law is impossible for sinners to keep. However, as believers, we ought to do our best to honor God by keeping his commandments, out of gratefulness and not for salvation, which is only by faith in Christ Jesus. If we are his children, we show that we are his by keeping his commandments.
You have correctly presented that salvation is by grace through faith. But legalism is not just believing that salvation comes only through faith. There are many forms of legalism. I believe yours is one. What Jesus and His disciples did was IN FACT harvesting, according to the legalistic decrees of the Jewish religious leaders of His day. He was taking the grain from the stalk, and thus he was technically harvesting. It was considered work. Jesus was often in trouble with those legalists because He did such things as heal on the Sabbath, and various other violations of the Law as those legalist saw it. But Jesus pointed out to them what I pointed out to you: man was not made for the Sabbath, but rather the Sabbath was made for man. And you ignored that just like they did. Jesus fulfilled the INTENT of the Law. Remember, all the Law and the Prophets are summed up in these two commandments: Love the Lord your God with all your heart and mind and soul and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself. Jesus would have totally defended someone disregarding the petty legalistic notions of keeping the law since he Himself violated the Law according to those religious leaders. I wonder how many people you will drive away from Christ with your focus on the Sabbath and belaboring that rather than focusing on peoples’ need for the saving work of Jesus Christ. You also ignore the fact that Jesus was a Jew, and so was Paul, and yet Paul said keeping the Law was not necessary for anyone. It never could save anyone–it was only a tool to let people know of their need of grace and point people ultimately to Christ. I tell ya bro, you’d have stoned Stephen. It is not, “the Sabbath, the Sabbath, the Sabbath.” It is, “Jesus, Jesus, Jesus!” Stop majoring in the minors. Remember what the purpose of the Sabbath is. Remember what the essentials are. The keeping of the Sabbath has to do with God giving us not only permission to rest (rather than being workaholics) but to encourage it, and to direct us to not demand workaholism from others in our greed. It is also a witnessing tool. We keep it to honor God and be different (the meaning of the word “holy”, as in “set apart”). To keep it is a good thing, and a matter of obedience for believers, just as baptism is. But neither saves anyone. And if you want to be sprinkled rather than immersed, better that than nothing–it is the purpose in the person’s heart and the statement to the world that matters. And so it is with keeping the Sabbath. There was no “Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday…” back then. And now what matters is not the day of the week but rather that a person keep a day of the week and honor God with it and be a witness with it. THAT will perhaps help someone whom that person knows to see something of Christ, not the legalism of quibbling over which day of our weekend we happen to prefer to keep it on. I’m telling you, you do NOT know what day of our current week was the original Sabbath because our days of the week as we now observe them did not exist back then–they are a construct of our own making. Good grief, we still struggle with what year Jesus was born in, and we don’t EVEN know the day, either of his birth or His death (though some people have done a pretty good job of reconstructing probable dates). But I think that was deliberate on God’s part so SOME PEOPLE wouldn’t begin venerating those days–BECAUSE IT DOESN’T MATTER. It is a good thing to commemorate Christ’s birth and death, but the particular day isn’t what is important. And neither is it for the Sabbath.
The decrees of the religious leaders were not the law. Jesus called those religious leaders a “generation of vipers” (Mt. 23:33) and children of hell (Mt. 23:15). The rules which the religious leaders created were NOT the law of God. Jesus kept the whole law of God, not omitting one jot or tittle. If the disciples had been acting contrary to the law in eating from the field, don’t you think Jesus would have corrected them? But instead he defends them. He also heals on the Sabbath, and tells a man he healed to take up his bed. These things were not violations of the Sabbath, because Jesus never broke the Sabbath, nor did he encourage anyone to do so. I also care nothing for the commands of men, because I follow Jesus’ example.
What, keeping the law is not necessary? So I can feel free to murder, commit adultery, steal, lie, covet, dishonor my parents, etcetera and not concern myself with sin? Remember, sin is the transgression of the law (1 John 3:4). I suspect you don’t understand what law has been made unnecessary.
Why do you say I would have stoned Stephen? Have I ever threatened anybody for disregarding the Sabbath? It’s not my job to enforce God’s laws. And I already stated that salvation is not thru keeping of the law, but thru Christ alone. Why do you keep accusing me of caring more for the Sabbath than for Christ? I routinely fellowship with other believers who don’t keep the Sabbath, and I don’t berate them for it.
In my country, we have a particular day when we celebrate the birth of our nation. We call it Independence Day, and it is July 4th, every year, and has been so every year since July 4th, 1776, the day the Declaration of Independence was signed, and the United States of America became a nation. I have never heard it suggested that one ought to celebrate our nation’s independence on whatever day one feels like, regardless of the fact that the Declaration was signed on July 4th. Why then do you suggest that the celebration of God’s creative work, which God ordained the seventh day for, (Gen. 2:3, Ex. 20:8-11) should be done on any day we may feel like? Do you think Jesus didn’t know which day was the Sabbath? And is there any evidence we have somehow lost track of the days of the week in the years since the time of Christ?
Great 🙂
Jesus IS THe SEVENTH DAY..and is LORD of the Sabbath. He is The Day or Rest. The Jesus of 7th Day’rs is archangel Michael.
Good grief. This is not to be critical, but it is to
generate some critical (evaluative) thinking. Seventh day: Just to start with,
go look up the derivation of the seven names of a week (in English, of course,
and then think about the many other languages and the possible names and
meanings of the days of a week). So, the seventh day—starting from, hmm, the
day God started creating? Was it really “Monday”, really!? What is the seventh
day for you? Were you born on a Wednesday, so the seventh day for you is
Tuesday? Or maybe we should consider what day you were conceived. Figure that
one out with any assurance of accuracy. REST on the seventh day: Ok, is that a
command to sleep? Does it mean a leisurely day? Watching football? Crocheting?
Keep it Holy: I believe holy refers to being set apart, or different. What does
it take to accomplish that? You do so put God in a box with these things. What
is He trying to accomplish? Maybe to make it known that He is God? Could the
Sabbath (what does the word Sabbath actually mean?) be a tool God intended for
us to use as a means of witnessing? “I don’t work on the Sabbath (or Sunday,
for those who refer to it as such) because I choose to take special note of
this day so as to honor God and declare He is indeed my God, and I want people
to know it.” Hmm. That would be a nice approach perhaps. As a means to be
critical of other believers who don’t have all the preconceptions about what
day of the week constitutes the seventh day? Probably not very helpful. So a
person who landed himself a good job that gives him Monday and Tuesday off
decides to take one of those days and set it apart as a day to honor God. Maybe
he listens to a godly recorded message or watches one on the internet. Maybe he
reads his Bible and spends time praying for lots of folks. Perhaps he does
several things to make it a unique day, set apart for the Lord. And so of
course God strikes him with a bolt of lightning for getting the day of the week
“wrong” according to…who? The guy who declares that Saturdays are the only true
actual Sabbath but doesn’t do nearly the things to set it apart as the “Tuesday”
guy is still somehow more holy? Really? What is God looking for here? Go deeper
folks. Go lots deeper.
The seventh day of the week could be taken as any specific day. You’re better choosing ANY day than no day. Do you have bible verses to disprove me?
I believe you to be correct, however, it makes a big difference if one does not keep the correct Sabbath day, because if you don’t you break the fourth commandment. Break one commandment, and all commandments are broken. Remember, the forth commandment is the only commandment starting with “Remember.” I believe Our Father in Heaven tried to make in very clear when He anointed the seventh day Sabbath day that it is the exact day He expects His creations too honour. Satan found it quite easy to attack this commandment, because man is corrupt. Satan hit the jack pot because he knew – break one brake them all and lose your soul to him 🙁
You are correct in saying “break one break them all.” No one keeps the law, unless you think you can “un-break” a commandment. We are also commanded to “Be holy for I am holy.” No one is Holy! That is why we need Christ. If we could be righteous through anything or anyhow then that is how we would be. But we cannot nor will we ever be righteous except in union by faith with Christ. We are given His righteousness by faith. We need Him not rules whereby we think we are accomplishing a form of righteousness. We live by faith not by law or rules. Christ is my Sabbath, my rest, my refuge, my shield, my EVERYTHING. I am not righteous because of anything I do, I am righteous because of what Christ has done. We are to live our lives in honor and gratitude of what Christ has done on our behalf because we want to be like Him, not because we are trying to earn something from Him. We are perfect, holy, and righteous only in Christ because He is perfect, holy, and righteous.
the reason why ADVENTISTS does not accept water sprinkling as baptism is because JESUS was immersed in water.. I think churches who sprinkle instead of immersing did not grab the meaning of BAPTISM
John the Baptist is second only to Christ. One of the best.
Any so-called religion based upon the scribbling of a “prophetess,” Ellen White, must be suspect in its adherence to orthodox Christianity. Today, especially during the low times of ecumenism or being tolerant, many so-called Christians lack discernment due to ignorance, blindness, or outright stupidity and are subsequently swept away into one form or variation of Christianity or another. Christ predicted this so should it be any great surprise? SDAs may be somewhat closer to the Truth of the Bible than other cults such as JWs or Mormons but they still “miss the mark” by even deviating slightly. By the way, Ben Carson is one such person.
SDA ….DO NOT BELIEVE IN HELL THE WAY JESUS TAUGHT IT…
SDA’s believe in Hell. It is just the interpretation of Everlasting that is inconsistent with some religions. Per Hewbrews and Greek translations, the interpretation is that Hell will be “as long as the fire does last.” Then the New Earth can be reborn and recreated.
Remember what the spirit said to the Churches. Return to your first love. Jesus is the way to the Father, most have abandoned the Father’s Law. Jesus kept the Law and died guilt free, rose and instructed us to pick up our cross and follow him. I’ll follow the Lord trying my best to keep the Law as he did knowing he will forgive when I fail. These current traditions are close but not really following, rather making their own way in Jesus name.
They are not both Christian. Jesus died to save those would be believe from the consequences of hell. He spoke about it many times. It is a real place. If there is no hell, faith in Christ is in vain. Saying otherwise is blasphemy.
It doesn’t matter what eat as long as it healthy.
The main message lies in John 3:16.
IF Seventh day Adventist says it is a church of Jesus Christ, can they tell the difference between Judaism and Christianity.?
Can they tell what Jesus meant when he said, “I will build my church and the gates of hell will not prevail. Matt. 16: 18?
What is their understanding of the gospel of John chapter 1: 1-3. Do they believe that Jesus Christ is God and the founder of Church?
Can any of the seventh day Adventist worshipers testify truthfully that they always keep all the 10 commandments. If not are they not continually breaking the law of God and thereby making a joke of it?
Do they believe that access to eternal life is only through Jesus Christ and not by partially observing the 10 commandments? John 14:6
Finally, may we know the truth and may the truth set us free in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth Amen. John 8:32
I love you all
Theodore Onye.
What ever your religion, can we all just live in peace, respect one another, love one another. be kind to each other, show some compassion to all peoples no mater what color or religion we are . we all have to live on this planet, what ever happens to our spirits when our bodies are done with it as ever come back, well with the exception on one ! to tell us how we are doing. However if we look at what is happening in the world today I can honestly say we are all failing each other no matter what the religion.
FOOD FOR THOUGHT! As a Christian, I too believe in the sanctity of the Sabbath. However, I do not judge the Sabbath by mans calendar. The modern calendar was not invented when the 10 commandments were directed by God. there is zero correlation between the Sabbath and the 7th day of mans calendar. To me, my week begins on Monday, work, school, etc, therefore, I celebrate the Sabbath on Sunday. Research the modern calendar, and its origin.
Interesting thoughts on so called facts and interpretations about what is written and what is fact. Point in case . Is capital punishment a sin? People state that the commandment says,(thou shall not kill) This was misinterpreted during interpretation. The true meaning is Thou shall not murder. This is a fact!! So while on the subjects of facts and what is written, remember this. By the way, if a municipality imposes the death penalty, it is just by imposing a sentence of death for the crime of murder!!!
Everybody should do his/her will, worship on any day you fill like but remember judgment awaits everybody according to his/her deeds.
1. Do SDA’s also practice the Sabbath year (exodus 23:10ff; Leviticus 25) or just the Sabbath day and why or why not?
2. What do SDA’s do with Colossians 2:14-16? I’ve always understood this to mean that the Law was nailed to the cross and therefore we should not let people judge us because based on our decision to celebrate or not celebrate Jewish holidays including the Sabbath. It sounds to me like you can practice the Sabbath if you want, but don’t make it a legalistic requirement.
3. In Acts 22:7 Luke mentions that he and Paul and some others were gathered together to break bread (celebrate the Lord’s supper) on the 1st of the week (Sunday). We also read that Paul preached until midnight. A strong case could be made that the early Church met on Sundays and that they did so because it was the day Lord rose from the dead. What is the SDA’s understanding of this passage?
Seventh-day Adventists are sadly deceived and misunderstand the Bible. The facts are that Ellen White was a
plagiarist and a hypocrite. Testimonies from A.G. Daniels, Dr. J.H. Kellogg, and several others prove this. The
SDA Investigative Judgment teaching is a man-made doctrine that was approved by Ellen White. Tithing was
over agricultural products and not about money. Seventh-day Adventist leaders are experts at covering up the
facts on these matters. Seventh-day Adventism is clearly a cult. Research proves it. Finally, where in any major
news do you find anything about worldwide Sunday laws in the past century? It’s time to wake up now!
Read the Book of Galatians in any modern version except the (un)clear word (not a real Bible).
A trusted Greek scholar, has labeled the EW clear word bible as Blaspheme.
Sunday law is coming when/before the Mark OTB arrives. It will be a pihc (spelled backwards) in your hand. Better start storing extra food now. Search up SPARS 2025-2028 (the next pandemic). During that time is when all this will happen.
Read the first sentence again. Unfortunately I BELIEVE it’s coming whether you like it or not.
The Bible is the True Word of God…not sure what you are talking about
Our own personal relationship with the heavenly Father in Jesus name is important. We must do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with our God.
salvation is thru Christ alone and what he did for all on the cross, nothing we can do thru works amounts to anything, because jesus was our sacrifice, all we have to do is confess our sins and be repentant, to be a Christ follower because he is a merciful god and doesn’t want anyone to be separated from him( hell), but if we sin, he is faithful and just to forgive!! our belief on jesus as our redeemer, is a beautiful love story and I want to tell the world he is our savior and he loves every one. no, you don’t have to cleanup for his forgiveness,but he will clean you up thru his word and your love for him, and use you to reach others by the change in your life that people can see ! praise him f or his new mercies every day!! joann davis
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“This monotheistic religion is based completely upon the teachings and life experiences of Jesus Christ, as found in canonical gospels and writings of the New Testament”
This is not true. Christianity requires an acceptance of the old testament as well, including as Paul indicates in the book of Romans (11) the special nature of the relationship God (Faher Son and Holy SPirit) has with the Jewish people.
Great comments everyone, but no one knows it all, keep reading your bible, keep helping others, keep doing good, Almighty God sees our heart let us unite, he will come to judge us