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Mrs. White
states in Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 155:
“Those who accept Christ, and in their first
confidence say, I am saved, are in danger of
trusting to themselves. They lose sight of
their own weakness and their constant need
of divine strength. They are unprepared for
Satan’s devices, and under temptation many,
like Peter, fall into the very depths of
sin. We are admonished, “Let him that
thinketh he standeth, take heed lest he
fall.” 1 Corinthians 10:12. Our only safety
is in constant distrust of self, and
dependence on Christ.” (1900 edition).
And in Selected Messages, Vol.
1, p. 314, Ellen White again said:
“We are never to rest in a satisfied
condition, and cease to make advancement,
saying, “I am saved.” When this idea is
entertained, the motives for watchfulness,
for prayers, for earnest endeavor to press
onward to higher attainments, cease to
exist. No sanctified tongue will be found
uttering these words till Christ shall come,
and we enter in through the gates into the
city of God. Then, with the utmost
propriety, we may give glory to God and to
the Lamb for eternal deliverance. As long as
man is full of weakness—for of himself he
cannot save his soul—he should never dare to
say, “I am saved.”
Seventh-day Adventists have to live in fear
for their salvation because Ellen White said
we must be sinless in the last days to be
saved.
“To be
redeemed means to cease from sin” (Review
and Herald,
September 25, 1900).
“Those only who
through faith in Christ obey all of God’s
commandments will reach the condition of
sinlessness in which Adam lived before his
transgression” (SDA Bible Commentary, Vol.
6, p. 1118).
“God will accept nothing but purity and
holiness; one spot,
one wrinkle,
one defect
in the character,
will forever debar them
from heaven, with all its glories and
treasures” (Testimonies for the Church Vol. 2,
p. 453).
“A mere
profession of discipleship is of no value.
The faith in Christ which saves the soul is
not what it is represented to be by many.
‘Believe, believe,’ they say, ‘and you need
not keep the law.’ But a belief that does
not lead to obedience is presumption”
(Thoughts From the Mount of Blessing, p. 142).
“But the way to life is
narrow and the entrance strait. If you cling
to any besetting sin you will find the way
too narrow for you to enter. Your own ways,
your own will, your evil habits and
practices, must be given up if you would
keep the way of the Lord” (Thoughts
From the Mount of Blessing, p. 136).
“I saw that many would
fall this side of the kingdom. God is
testing and proving His people, and many
will not endure the test of character, the
measurement of God. Many will have close
work to overcome their peculiar
traits of character and be without spot or
wrinkle or any such thing, unrebukable
before God and man” (Testimonies for the
Church Vol. 1, p. 533).
“The law of God will be satisfied with
nothing short of perfection, or perfect and
entire obedience to all its claims.
To come
halfway to its requirements,
and not render
perfect and thorough obedience,
will avail
nothing” (Testimonies for the Church Vol. 1, p. 416).
“Christ
consented to die in the sinner’s stead,
that
man, by a life of obedience,
might escape
the penalty of the law of God” (Signs of the
Times,
1897-02-25).
“When He comes He is not
to cleanse us of our sins, to remove from us
the defects in our characters, or to cure us
of the infirmities of our tempers and
dispositions. If wrought for us at all, this
work will be accomplished before that time”
(Testimonies for the Church Vol. 2, p. 355).
But what
do the Scriptures have to say about our
security in Christ?
A true believer cannot
forfeit, or lose their salvation, because
they have sinned.
We all sin! The
difference between a saved person and an
unsaved person is how they respond to Christ
when they do fall into sin. When we are born-again, we
won’t live our lives in a continual state of
sin. Christians want to obey Christ
naturally out of love. When we are in
Christ, we become God’s new creation, made
in the image of Christ (Rom. 6:6, 11). The
scriptures tell us that God gives us the desire
to always believe in Him (1 Jn. 3:9, 23;
Rom. 6:17; cf. Ezek. 36:26-27). When we are
truly born-again, Christ gives us an
incorruptible love. Our old self gets
crucified with Christ and we are no longer
slaves to sin, but rather, “slaves of
righteousness” (Rom. 6:15-23). God has promised us that
those who are truly saved will never
completely reject Jesus as their Lord and Savior (John 10:27-29;
Phil. 1:6; 2 Tim. 1:12; Jude 1:24-25). We
will stumble and fall at times, but Christ helps us to
our feet and we begin the process of living
for Christ all over again.
When
Jesus said in John 19:30, “It is finished,”
He was saying that all of our sins, past,
present, and future were forgiven! Jesus
offered His body as a living sacrifice for
all those who would put their trust in Him
(1 Jn. 2:2). As Christ’s new creation, we
can have the complete assurance that we have
been perfectly forgiven and forever cleansed
of all our sins (Heb. 10:14).
God is the one who enables us to
endure until the end.
Matthew 24:13 says, “But
the one who endures to the end will be
saved.”
The Bible tells us that we
do not need to fear that we won’t endure
until the end. Our perseverance is
guaranteed when we accept Christ’s offer of
salvation under the terms of the New
Covenant. Jeremiah 32:40 says: “I will put
the fear of Me in their hearts so that they
will not turn away from Me.” Those who
actually fall away from Christ give proof
that they were never really true believers
to begin with. Notice what 1 John 2:19 says,
“They went out from us, but they did not
belong to us. For if they had belonged to
us, they would have remained with us. But
their departure made it clear that none of
them belonged to us.”
(BSB)
When you truly belong to
Christ, you can know for certain that you
have eternal life!
Listen to
what Romans 8:35-39 says, “Who shall separate us
from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation,
or distress, or persecution, or famine, or
nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is
written, “For your sake we are being killed
all the day long; we are regarded as sheep
to be slaughtered.” No, in all these things
we are more than conquerors through him who
loved us. For I am sure that neither death
nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things
present nor things to come, nor powers, nor
height nor depth, nor anything else in all
creation, will be able to separate us from
the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Another good passage to remember about
our security in Christ is in the Gospel of
John which says, “My sheep hear my voice,
and I know them, and they follow me. I give
them eternal life, and they will never
perish, and no one will snatch them out of
my hand. My Father, who has given them to
me, is greater than all, and no one is able
to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.”
(John 10:27-29)
The Bible tells us that once we become a
follower of Jesus Christ our sins are no
longer remembered by God.
Jeremiah 31:34 says, “And no longer shall
each one teach his neighbor and each his
brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they
shall all know me, from the least of them to
the greatest, declares the LORD. For I will
forgive their iniquity, and I will remember
their sin no more.” And Romans 11:27 says,
“and this will be my covenant with them when
I take away their sins.”
Our sins are no longer on any
books of record that God keeps (Heb. 8:12; 10:17). God wants us to put our past
behind us and know that we have eternal life. If God has chosen not to remember
our sins, then we need to learn to forgive
ourselves. God wants us to live like a
forgiven child of God, as someone who knows
for certain they are saved. We need to
persevere in our faith and trust God, and
believe that He has forgiven us completely
and enjoy the peace that can only be found
in Him.
You can trust God’s Word
that says, “Be anxious for nothing, but in
everything, by prayer and petition, with
thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
And the peace of God, which surpasses all
understanding, will guard your hearts and
your minds in Christ Jesus.”
(Phil. 4:6-7 BSB).
Do you know
whose child you really are? Do you believe
in the Son of God and have you made Jesus
Christ the Lord and Savior of your life? Do
you trust God enough to believe Him when He
says your salvation is totally secure?
Here are some good Bible verses to
remember about salvation and the promise of
eternal life:
God knows who
his children are from the beginning.
2 Timothy 2:19 says, “But
God’s firm foundation stands, bearing this
seal: “The Lord knows those who are his,”
and, “Let everyone who names the name of the
Lord depart from iniquity.’”
(cf. Acts 15:16-18; John 2:24; 6:64; 10:14).
We are completely
secure in our salvation. God has given us
His promise that we have eternal life as a
present possession.
John 3:16 says, “For God so
loved the world that he gave his one and
only Son, that whoever believes in him shall
not perish but have eternal life.” (NIV)
John 5:24
says, “Truly, truly, I say to you,
whoever hears my word and believes him who
sent me has eternal life. He does not come
into judgment, but has passed from death to
life.”
And 1 John 5:11-13 says, “And
this is the testimony, that God gave us
eternal life, and this life is in his Son.
Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does
not have the Son of God does not have life.
I write these things to you who believe in
the name of the Son of God that you may know
that you have eternal life.”
Our sins are blotted out and not
remembered when we become members of the
body of Christ.
Hebrews 8:10-13 says, “For this is the covenant that
I will make with the house of Israel after
those days, declares the Lord: I will put my
laws into their minds, and write them on
their hearts, and I will be their God, and
they shall be my people. And they shall not
teach, each one his neighbor and each one
his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for
they shall all know me, from the least of
them to the greatest. For I will be merciful
toward their iniquities, and I will remember
their sins no more.” In speaking of a new
covenant, he makes the first one obsolete.
And what is becoming obsolete and growing
old is ready to vanish away.” (cf. Jer. 31:33-34; Isa. 43:25; 44:22;
Acts 3:19; 1 Jn. 1:7;
John 3:18; 19:30; Rom. 5:9; 8:1; 11:27; Heb. 10:16-17).
The Holy Spirit is given to us
as
God’s guarantee of our salvation.
Ephesians 1:13-14 says, “In him you also, when you
heard the word of truth, the gospel of your
salvation, and believed in him, were sealed
with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the
guarantee of our inheritance until we
acquire possession of it, to the praise of
his glory.” (cf. Eph. 4:30; 2 Cor. 1:22; 2 Tim. 2:19).
God is the one who enables us to persevere
unto
the end.
Philippians 1:6
says, “And I am sure of this, that he who
began a good work in you will bring it to
completion at the day of Jesus Christ.”
2 Timothy 1:10-12 says, “And now He has
revealed this grace through the appearing of
our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has abolished
death and illuminated the way to life and
immortality through the gospel, to which I
was appointed as a preacher, an apostle, and
a teacher. For this reason, even though I
suffer as I do, I am not ashamed; for I know
whom I have believed, and I am convinced
that He is able to guard what I have
entrusted to Him for that day.” (BSB)
1 Thessalonians 5:23-24 says, “Now
may the God of peace himself sanctify you
completely, and may your whole spirit and
soul and body be kept blameless at the
coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who
calls you is faithful; he will surely do
it.”
And Jude 1:24-25 says, “Now to him who
is able to keep you from stumbling and to
present you blameless before the presence of
his glory with great joy, to the only
God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our
Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and
authority, before all time and now and
forever. Amen.”
[See also: John 10:29; 15:2;
Rom. 8:28-30; 14:4; Phil. 1:10; 2 Tim. 4:18; 1 Thess. 5:23-24; 1 Pet. 5:10;
Heb. 12:2; 1 Cor. 1:8; 15:58; cf. Ps. 57:2; 138:8; Jer. 32:40].
God the Father has empowered
Christ’s followers to live godly lives
through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.
2 Peter 1:1-4
says, “Simon Peter, a servant and apostle of
Jesus Christ, To those who through the
righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus
Christ have received a faith as precious as
ours: Grace and peace be multiplied to you
through the knowledge of God and of Jesus
our Lord. His divine power has given us
everything we need for life and godliness
through the knowledge of Him who called us
by His own glory and excellence. Through
these He has given us His precious and
magnificent promises, so that through them
you may become partakers of the divine
nature, now that you have escaped the
corruption in the world caused by evil
desires.” (BSB)
“The power to lead a godly life comes
from God. Because we don’t have the
resources to be truly godly, God allows us
to “share his divine nature” in order to
keep us from sin and help us live for him.
When we are born again, God by his Spirit
empowers us with his own goodness.”
[1]
“Peter chose a special Greek term (epignōsis)
to describe the personal knowledge and
relationship a person has of Jesus in the
conversion experience. This intimate
personal knowledge is the foundation of life
in Christ. It provides all the benefits of
salvation and the power we need to live for
Him. To know God’s salvation is to know
Jesus Christ person to person.”
[2]
Ellen G. White and the teachings
of the Seventh-day Adventist Church
If someone truly believes in the
writings of Ellen G. White and the
Seventh-day Adventist Church then they can’t
have the assurance of salvation but only a
fear of what is to come.
Fear is a
powerful motivator and the Seventh-day
Adventist Church excels at instilling fear
in the minds of their members, and it all
began with their prophet, Ellen G. White.
The doctrines of 1844, the Sanctuary,
and the Investigative Judgment are meant to
instill fear in the hearts of the believers.
Ellen White said we must stand without
Christ as our mediator and be sinless in the
last days to be saved. Ellen White and the
Seventh-day Adventist Church teach believers
enter into a judgment of works that
determines their salvation, and keeping the
Sabbath in the last days is one of those
things we must do in order to be saved.
The Seventh-day Adventist Church is a
religion based on fear which can only lead a
person to self-doubt and failure. Those
teachings are central to the beliefs of the
Seventh-day Adventist Church and anyone who
follows them is being bewitched by a false
gospel.
Christ had to die on the cross so
that we could have eternal life. We are saved because of what
He has done
for us, not because we have been good enough
to earn our salvation.
If you believe in Christ today and have
eternal life, but could lose it tomorrow,
then it was never really “eternal” to begin
with. If you could lose your salvation then
the promises of eternal life in John 3:15-16
would be a lie and a false hope.
[See also:
John 3:36; 5:24; John 6:37, 40, 47, 54; John 10:27-29;
Rom. 6:23; 8:38-39; 10:13; 11:6, 29; 2 Cor. 1:22; Eph. 4:30; Phil. 1:6;
1 Tim. 6:12; Heb. 10:14; 1 Jn. 1:9; 2:25; 1 Jn. 5:1; 5:11-13;
Jude 1:24-25].
You can trust God because our salvation is not based on
anything we do. It is all about the work
Christ has already done for us through the
cross. If you are in Christ, God wants you
to know for certain that you have eternal
life, and that life is in His Son (1 Jn.
5:11-13).
References:
1. The Life
Application Study Bible: 2 Peter 1:3-4.
2. The Disciple’s Study Bible: 2 Peter
1:2-3.
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