Tell me, do you have hope? I like to sift out the fools and the Christians from the rest of the populace in short order.
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I've begun to view theology much in the same way. Admiration is a term that comes to mind in describing those who've come before me. The church fathers such as Augustine, the Gregorys, Athanasius, Basil, and Didymus are all crucial thinkers of the Christian thought with whom we should be acquainted. These men helped build roads for the Church to understand God more deeply and fully as they compacted the dirt underneath their tires, forming routes with their faithful exposition of God's Word.
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I wasn’t planning on publishing a piece for Reformation day, but I read something the other day that really struck a nerve.
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Sometimes there are blog articles that really get you thinking. Nathaniel Bickford’s article, “Solutions?” is just that kind of piece. Honestly, I’ve thought along his lines for awhile, but I couldn’t help noticing how it grabbed the attention of so many of you.
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William Miller and his followers look like a pack of fools - an example of what not to do. However, I would contend that assessing the merits of the movement is a bit more complex. To be clear, date-setting is absolutely not commendable. No, what I have in mind far more basic and entirely orthodox. The virtue I have observed is this…
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Imagine if my wife described me as slender, clean-shaven, neatly dressed, short, and quiet. Then you met me and saw that I towered over most people, sported a Dad-bod, wore crocs, and have a beard that hides my chest. You’d think my wife must be talking about her other husband. That’s quite similar to our disagreements regarding the nature of God. Although we maintain denominational fellowship with those who reject the Trinity, we worship a different God because we disagree as to who God is.
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In its most simple terms, theology is the science of knowing God, his creation, and all that is found therein. Practical Theology, then, is the science of applying what one can learn about God, his creation, and all that is found therein.
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“So…are you a socialist or a capitalist?”Smiling, I respond to my imaginary inquisitor, “I’m an adventist.”
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I believe there is hope because we do have pockets of unity. These strongholds of unity can be found in three areas, which Larkin focuses on and, in my estimation, provides hope for the future.
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Let’s stand in thankfulness for the work done by our Christian forbears and early Church Fathers. They’ve handed down priceless heirlooms born out of the careful study and thoughtful discussion in the early hours of our faith’s birth. Rejection of the creeds is to purposefully separate oneself from foundational Christian orthodoxy carried forward from the days before the legalization of Christianity.
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Most of us are familiar with the Easter narrative. In fact, many of us feel so familiar with the details that we don’t suppose there’s anything we have left unconsidered. Jesus died on the cross and rose again - that’s all there is to it. Three days no doubt felt like eternity to the disciples, but it is little trouble for us to rush between the cross and the empty tomb. We always do like to get to the good part.
But would you allow me to trouble you?
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“Why is there so much inconsistency within the Advent Christian denomination when it comes to the ordination of women?”
This question came to mind recently while watching a live podcast episode of Bible Banter that had Dr. Mark Woolfington on as a guest for the topic of discussion: Ordination Standards.
The broad discussion was centered around what ordination standards are in place currently, what should change, and what is needed in ordination standards for Advent Christians. As I was listening and watching, I made a comment about the need for consistency in ordination standards, which led to more discussion on the need for a commonly identified theological foundation in order to build more consistent ordination standards.
Thinking about the inconsistent ordination standards, methods, processes, and practices got me thinking…
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Advent Christians managed to make biblical authority meaningless even as it was being celebrated. What will we do today?
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To define Christian character or biblical morality one must acknowledge that (1) there is absolute truth and (2) there is absolute right and wrong. This begs the question, “From where do we receive truth and our concept of right and wrong?” We need look no further than the nature of God who in Himself is good, just, and moral.
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Among the Advent Christian faithful, there has been a palpable sense that we are in the midst of an identity crisis as a denomination. It begins with the common report that the majority of people who fill our pews do not identify as Advent Christians. Of the few who do embrace that identity, many are progressively joining the ranks of the elderly…
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“What did the Adventist publications say about women earning the right to vote?”
This was one question that came to my mind while I was visiting Aurora University, doing some research in their Adventist archival collection. I was entertaining questions in my mind about how Advent Christians reacted publicly to major current events. Case in point – the ratification of the 19th amendment to the United States Constitution, which gave women (who were legal US citizens) the right to vote. And so, I began to read.
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Just over one-third of the way through the fall a holiday makes its annual appearance. For some it is a night of masquerade, mystery and the thrill of trick-or-treat, or harmless pranks. For others it is a night of spiritual significance, both good and bad; and for still others it holds nothing at all. That holiday is Halloween, October 31st.
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Here is a question for you. What does God in His holiness require as the cause or basis of His forgiveness of sinners? Is it a life of perfect obedience or faith in Jesus Christ? Yes, this is a trick question but an important one.
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Growing up in my home church I heard about these people called “Mormons,” and I was told hardly anything about them or what they believe and I even felt that I was being told that Mormons were born-again Christians, but they simply had some weird doctrines. As I got older, I met some Mormons and befriended several. Even they, however, struggled to tell me exactly what they believed as Latter Day Saints. If I were to summarize all of the answers I received, It would go something like, “It’s complicated.” Eventually, I decided to stop asking people about Mormonism and investigate it at the source.
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One of the most common attacks on the Trinity focuses on the deity of Christ. The skeptic might say, “If Jesus was God, then why didn’t He just say, ‘By the way, I’m God’?” For emphasis, they might even grab your Bible, flip through the pages, and challenge you by saying, “Show me one verse where Jesus said that He was God. You can’t do it, because He never said it!”
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