I remember being invited to and attending an SDA Bible study many years ago with my wife when we were new believers. They were sweet people but I distinctly remember them very subtly introducing ideas that didn’t “smell” right. It came to a head one evening when they were triggered by some of my objections.
In subsequent years, I noticed how their literature often hides their connections with the SDA church.
I remember reading this scripture for the first time, and how much it meant to me.
2 PETER 2:1
But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.
Praise the Lord, for His word and His faithfulness!
Fascinating essay! While I was familiar with Ellen White’s unorthodox teachings on the "unfinished" atonement, her purported visions of extraterrestrial beings were new to me.
I did want to clarify one point though regarding the statement where you attribute to Ellen White the assertion that “God’s plan of self-justification included sending Jesus Christ into the world with a fallen nature just like the human race under Adam.”
Hebrews 2 sheds some helpful light on this topic, stating that:
“Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; and deliver them, who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. For verily he took not on him the nature of angels; but he took on him the seed of Abraham. Wherefore in all things it behooved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people.” (Hebrews 2:14-17 KJV).
Hebrews 2 emphasizes that Christ partook of the same flesh as we do and was made “in all things” like His brethren, bearing the same flesh and nature as the descendants of Abraham. Jesus did not take on a fallen or depraved nature (God forbid), which is one of the biggest reasons I find the doctrine of total depravity problematic, as Hebrews 2 states He was indeed “made like us.”
The way I understand Jesus taking on human flesh is that He was born fully human but without a fallen or sinful nature as sin is inherited through the father. Not that females have no sin - but they don’t pass it on. It is the male that passes it on, beginning with Adam.
“Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned” (Romans 5:12).
The way I understand EGW - is Jesus had to have a sinful [fallen] nature or he could not have proven to watching worlds that God was fair and His law was just. She teaches that Jesus had no superior benefit in keeping the law than you or I. Let me know if this clarifies what I meant.
I see, yes if that is her understanding then that is extremely problematic. I have only just started reading her myself as this cult seems to be popping up in my life/research more and more. Thank you for your work on this series, delving into heresies like these is a soul vexing affair.
"The way I understand Jesus taking on human flesh is that He was born fully human but without a fallen or sinful nature as sin is inherited through the father."
The ESV rendering of Hebrews 2 also states in verse 17 "Therefore [Christ] had to be made like his brothers in every respect" and was "in every respect ... tempted as we are" (Hebrews 4:15). If He shared in *everything* that it means to be human (as Scripture repeatedly emphasizes - barring sin itself), and was tempted in *all ways* we are, wouldn’t this necessarily entail that He shared the very same nature we do?
I would say that Christ took on the same nature as us in our prefall condition, thus doing what Adam could not (or did not) do. Christ is the second Adam. This is related to the doctrine of the impeccability of Christ. You can do some research on that. But that is my understanding.
Yeah I'll do some more research on that, I'm not familiar with that term.
The ESV wording is a little more opaque in verse 16, but the KJV states Christ "took not on him the nature of angels; but he took on him the seed of Abraham." The problem I see with Christ having a pre-fall/uncorrupted Adamic nature is that would mean He was not like His brothers "in every respect" as Hebrews 2:17 states.
I remember being invited to and attending an SDA Bible study many years ago with my wife when we were new believers. They were sweet people but I distinctly remember them very subtly introducing ideas that didn’t “smell” right. It came to a head one evening when they were triggered by some of my objections.
In subsequent years, I noticed how their literature often hides their connections with the SDA church.
I remember reading this scripture for the first time, and how much it meant to me.
2 PETER 2:1
But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.
Praise the Lord, for His word and His faithfulness!
This is a common theme from my research. It is like a bait and switch. I hope to unravel bits of this in future posts. Thanks for sharing.
Fascinating essay! While I was familiar with Ellen White’s unorthodox teachings on the "unfinished" atonement, her purported visions of extraterrestrial beings were new to me.
I did want to clarify one point though regarding the statement where you attribute to Ellen White the assertion that “God’s plan of self-justification included sending Jesus Christ into the world with a fallen nature just like the human race under Adam.”
Hebrews 2 sheds some helpful light on this topic, stating that:
“Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; and deliver them, who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. For verily he took not on him the nature of angels; but he took on him the seed of Abraham. Wherefore in all things it behooved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people.” (Hebrews 2:14-17 KJV).
Hebrews 2 emphasizes that Christ partook of the same flesh as we do and was made “in all things” like His brethren, bearing the same flesh and nature as the descendants of Abraham. Jesus did not take on a fallen or depraved nature (God forbid), which is one of the biggest reasons I find the doctrine of total depravity problematic, as Hebrews 2 states He was indeed “made like us.”
The way I understand Jesus taking on human flesh is that He was born fully human but without a fallen or sinful nature as sin is inherited through the father. Not that females have no sin - but they don’t pass it on. It is the male that passes it on, beginning with Adam.
“Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned” (Romans 5:12).
The way I understand EGW - is Jesus had to have a sinful [fallen] nature or he could not have proven to watching worlds that God was fair and His law was just. She teaches that Jesus had no superior benefit in keeping the law than you or I. Let me know if this clarifies what I meant.
I see, yes if that is her understanding then that is extremely problematic. I have only just started reading her myself as this cult seems to be popping up in my life/research more and more. Thank you for your work on this series, delving into heresies like these is a soul vexing affair.
"The way I understand Jesus taking on human flesh is that He was born fully human but without a fallen or sinful nature as sin is inherited through the father."
The ESV rendering of Hebrews 2 also states in verse 17 "Therefore [Christ] had to be made like his brothers in every respect" and was "in every respect ... tempted as we are" (Hebrews 4:15). If He shared in *everything* that it means to be human (as Scripture repeatedly emphasizes - barring sin itself), and was tempted in *all ways* we are, wouldn’t this necessarily entail that He shared the very same nature we do?
I would say that Christ took on the same nature as us in our prefall condition, thus doing what Adam could not (or did not) do. Christ is the second Adam. This is related to the doctrine of the impeccability of Christ. You can do some research on that. But that is my understanding.
Yeah I'll do some more research on that, I'm not familiar with that term.
The ESV wording is a little more opaque in verse 16, but the KJV states Christ "took not on him the nature of angels; but he took on him the seed of Abraham." The problem I see with Christ having a pre-fall/uncorrupted Adamic nature is that would mean He was not like His brothers "in every respect" as Hebrews 2:17 states.