We got mail…

Letters to the Editor

I’ve Never Been This Happy

Colleen and Nikki, I’m a former Adventist, and I just want to thank you for sharing the gospel and supporting Adventists who are searching for the biblical truth. I’m a 40 year old woman, third generation Adventist, and I never doubted that Adventism would have any doctrine that isn’t biblical. Well, God used a situation a few months ago which made me start thinking about EGW, and from there on I couldn’t stop searching. I came across Dale Ratzlaff on YouTube, found out about the investigative judgment being a false doctrine, read his books, and started reading my Bible and enjoyed reading it for the first time in my life. I’ve read the Bible several times in my life, but I’ve never enjoyed it the way I did in the past few months and the way I’m enjoying it now. 

I came across your podcast, and that has been such a big blessing for me listening to my fellow former Adventists who went through similar experiences.

Since I’ve found out that yes, I am saved, and that no, there’s no investigative judgment, and so many other things which I’ve learned, it changed me and my life. I’ve never been this happy.

Please continue to share the good news. I will pray for all of you! May God bless you! 

I’m so happy to be free in Christ and I will never go back to the bondage of false doctrines.

—VIA INSTAGRAM

 

Please Send References!

Thank you for your podcast ministry!

I have learned so much from you on how to love and trust Scripture and how it all reveals God’s salvation from the foundation of the world through Jesus! 

I have been looking for two references from EGW writings:

  1. That Satan was answering the prayers of the people who did not go along with the idea that the October 22nd, 1844, was correct, but they had just misinterpreted the event. 

  2. That God held his hand over a mistake in William Miller’s calculations so that more people would get ready for the second coming of Christ. 

I have a sister who is a devout Adventist but is beginning to listen to the reality that EGW added to Scripture and to ask for these astounding references. Can you please share the references?

Also, Nikki stated that she would share a list of references throughout Scripture substantiating that humans are both body and spirit—not just body and breath. 

I would also appreciate receiving printed information on how to read and learn from my study of the Bible. Thank you so much!

—VIA EMAIL

 

Response: Thank you for writing. Here are some quotes from the ellenwhite.org website where you can do searches and find EGW’s writings:

I have seen that the 1843 chart was directed by the hand of the Lord, and that it should not be altered; that the figures were as He wanted them; that His hand was over and hid a mistake in some of the figures, so that none could see it, until His hand was removed (Early Writings, p. 74 Par 1). 

The Lord showed me that the 1843 chart was directed by his hand, and that no part of it should be altered; that the figures were as he wanted them. That his hand was over and hid a mistake in some of the figures, so that none could see it, until his hand was removed.Then I saw in relation to the “Daily,” that the word “sacrifice” was supplied by man’s wisdom, and does not belong to the text; and that the Lord gave the correct view of it to those who gave the judgment hour cry. When union existed, before 1844, nearly all were united on the correct view of the “Daily;” but since 1844, in the confusion, other views have been embraced, and darkness and confusion has followed (Present Truth, Nov 1, 1850, par. 12). 

End of the 2300 Days

I saw a throne, and on it sat the Father and the Son. I gazed on Jesus’ countenance and admired His lovely person. The Father’s person I could not behold, for a cloud of glorious light covered Him. I asked Jesus if His Father had a form like Himself. He said He had, but I could not behold it, for said He, “If you should once behold the glory of His person, you would cease to exist.” Before the throne I saw the Advent people—the church and the world. I saw two companies, one bowed down before the throne, deeply interested, while the other stood uninterested and careless. Those who were bowed before the throne would offer up their prayers and look to Jesus; then He would look to His Father, and appear to be pleading with Him. A light would come from the Father to the Son and from the Son to the praying company. Then I saw an exceeding bright light come from the Father to the Son, and from the Son it waved over the people before the throne. But few would receive this great light. Many came out from under it and immediately resisted it; others were careless and did not cherish the light, and it moved off from them. Some cherished it, and went and bowed down with the little praying company. This company all received the light and rejoiced in it, and their countenances shone with its glory.

I saw the Father rise from the throne, and in a flaming chariot go into the holy of holies within the veil, and sit down. Then Jesus rose up from the throne, and the most of those who were bowed down arose with Him. I did not see one ray of light pass from Jesus to the careless multitude after He arose, and they were left in perfect darkness. Those who arose when Jesus did, kept their eyes fixed on Him as He left the throne and led them out a little way. Then He raised His right arm, and we heard His lovely voice saying, “Wait here; I am going to My Father to receive the kingdom; keep your garments spotless, and in a little while I will return from the wedding and receive you to Myself.” Then a cloudy chariot, with wheels like flaming fire, surrounded by angels, came to where Jesus was. He stepped into the chariot and was borne to the holiest, where the Father sat. There I beheld Jesus, a great High Priest, standing before the Father. On the hem of His garment was a bell and a pomegranate, a bell and a pomegranate. Those who rose up with Jesus would send up their faith to Him in the holiest, and pray, “My Father, give us Thy Spirit.” Then Jesus would breathe upon them the Holy Ghost. In that breath was light, power, and much love, joy, and peace.

I turned to look at the company who were still bowed before the throne; they did not know that Jesus had left it. Satan appeared to be by the throne, trying to carry on the work of God. I saw them look up to the throne, and pray, “Father, give us Thy Spirit.” Satan would then breathe upon them an unholy influence; in it there was light and much power, but no sweet love, joy, and peace. Satan’s object was to keep them deceived and to draw back and deceive God’s children (Early Writings, pp 54–56).

In the above quote, the heading “End of the 2300 Days”, gives the context. The end of the 2300 Days is, according to EGW, October 22, 1844, when Jesus supposedly was to return but didn’t, so they reframed the event and said Jesus left the Holy Place and entered the Most Holy Place to begin the investigative judgment. I find EGW to be convoluted and difficult, but above are some of her quotes about this issue. Notice that she says those who didn’t keep their eyes on Jesus as He entered the Most Holy Place (those who didn’t actually believe that to be true) THOUGHT Jesus was still there receiving their prayers, but they were deceived, and Satan would answer them instead. The “light” supposedly shining on the people looking to Jesus was the “light” from the Most Holy Place—the information about Jesus moving there to begin the judgment. Those who did not receive the light had their prayers answered by Satan. 

Finally, here are some of Nikki’s articles on understanding Scripture:

 

Born Again and Starting Over 

Thank you all for your dedication and love and help for other fellow Christians who are leaving Adventism and finding the true Gospel.

I have felt strongly about wanting to be re-baptized after leaving the Adventist church. It’s as though I need to wash it away, even though I know baptism itself has no saving power.

I feel that everything I agreed to was a lie and is empty! And I have been given new life in Christ.

How do we start over so to speak, as in being born again???

Thank you for your time

—VIA EMAIL

 

Response: Thank you for writing. You ask a very big question, and it’s at the core of the new life we enter when we believe in Jesus.

First, being born again is something God does in and for us when we believe in the Lord Jesus and His finished work. Jesus told the Jews, “This is the work of God, that you believe in the One whom He sent” (Jn. 6:29). Likewise, Paul told the Philippian jailor that to be saved he needed to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and he would be saved (Acts 16:31). And Jesus said that those who believe have passed out of death into life (Jn. 5:24). 

As Adventists we were taught to “believe in Jesus”, or to “accept Jesus into our hearts”, but we weren’t told what that meant. It usually meant, inside Adventism, believing that Jesus came and died (and implied that “believing” was the idea that Jesus came as our Example to show us how to keep the law). But biblical belief is not just mental acknowledgment. It includes trust. It includes our recognition that we cannot please God or obey Him. No matter how much we want to obey Him and be righteous, we fail because we are born dead in sin (Eph. 2:1–3). We are by nature “children of wrath” (Eph. 2:3) because we are born spiritually dead. It is this spiritual death that God changes when we trust that Jesus has done all that we need to have done in order to become right with God.

When we understand that Jesus, as our Substitute, fulfilled all the righteous requirements of the Mosaic Law including the Ten Commandments, that He kept that old covenant with the Father as our Substitute and that He took the law’s curse of death in Himself on the cross, taking all of our imputed sin into Himself (2 Cor 5:21) and endured God’s wrath against our sin as He hung on the cross, we realize then that only by trusting Him and His finished work can we be saved. 

When we trust Him and believe, casting ourselves on His mercy and acknowledging that we need a Savior and realizing that He took our death and gives us His life, His resurrection life that breaks the curse of death that is our legacy from Adam—then the Lord gives us a new heart. He literally gives us new spiritual life, and we are born of God: born again. We are transferred out of the domain of darkness into the kingdom of the beloved Son, and we become members of a new kingdom. We have new identity and power and potential in Christ.

Being baptized in Christ is what we do when we we acknowledge that we have trusted Jesus for our salvation. So baptism is the response, the public witness to the new birth that the Lord has already given you. 

There is no biblical “formula” for how to go about being baptized. Another believer can baptize you in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and Jesus actually made baptizing new disciples part of His final command to His apostles (Mt. 28). 

Perhaps the most efficient way to be baptized into Christ is to find a Bible-teaching Christian church that honors the gospel of the Lord Jesus and keeps the Word of God and the gospel at the center of its message. A true biblical church will honor the oneness of the biblical Trinity expressed in three person, will honor Scripture as inerrant, will keep the gospel at the core of its preaching, and will actually preach the Word of God. 

A biblical church that is true to Scripture will be happy to baptize you as a believer in Jesus. They may ask you to tell your testimony to them first and ascertain that you are a true believer, but they will be happy to baptize you. In a Christian church, baptism is not a rite or sign of membership, although some churches may ask you to be baptized before becoming part of their congregation as an “official” member if you were previously baptized into a false religion. But that requirement should not be a problem. 

But Jesus commanded us to be baptized into Him, and being baptized is a public pledge of our allegiance to our Lord Jesus as our Savior and Lord. 

Being baptized into Christ is a wonderful thing; it is definitely something we encourage people to do when they leave Adventism! We want to embrace our new identity in Jesus.

I believe that if the Lord is nudging you to be baptized into Him as a true believer, that is a conviction that you should pursue. The Lord knows His own, and one of the amazing realities of being born again is that He gives us His Spirit, and He teaches us and convicts us of the things He knows we need to do and of the ways we need to trust Him. He lets us know His will for us and guides us into honoring Him in our lives. †

Colleen Tinker
Latest posts by Colleen Tinker (see all)

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.