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Exposing Seventh-day Adventism
Seventh-day Adventism entices members into it using trickery and half-truths. They tell the unenlightened public one thing and insiders yet another.Dr. Kelly explains how he was tricked into joining. He then refutes the theological fiasco called the Investigative Judgment which created the sect. Much of the book looks at the Sabbath with fresh insight. The final part reveals the mysterious realms of Sheol and Hades in order to expose SDA error about the soul.
Russell Kelly is also the author of "Should the Church Teach Tithing? A Theologian's Conclusions about a Taboo Doctrine"-a best seller on Amazon.com under 'Tithing" since 2001.
Russell Kelly is also the author of "Should the Church Teach Tithing? A Theologian's Conclusions about a Taboo Doctrine"-a best seller on Amazon.com under 'Tithing" since 2001.
236 pages, Paperback
First published July 20, 2005
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March 5, 2013
Dr. Kelly is a principled theologian of the highest caliber and he is a friend. I met Russ through a series of phone and email conversations several years back after reading his incredible book "Should The Church Teach Tithing", which I also highly recommend.
Russ wrote this book because he's walked in the shoes of a devout Seventh Day Adventist. He writes from a position of understanding and therefore can effectively contrast SDA doctrine with clear Scripture. If you observe the reviews of this book on Amazon, you'll see there are a lot of Seventh Day Adventist folks who are very upset about it and quickly resort to calling Russell a liar and accuse him of misrepresenting the facts.
The truth is, as a person who has had a number of Seventh Day Adventist friends over the years and who has read much of their teachings as well, I have to say that Russell handles this subject with blunt honesty and also with love. His heart is not simply to pick on people who have embraced the doctrines of the SDA, but to encourage them with the Truth of Scripture and let that Truth set them free (just as it did for him).
I know some dear people who are members of the SDA church and they are wonderful people; some of whom I believe Love God very much and have a genuine desire to walk in His ways. Russell was also such a man when he joined the church and so identifies with others who are of the same heart and mind, but he faithfully exposes the errors in so much of the SDA doctrine and highlights the doctrine of Scripture which stands in bold contrast. His desire is not to tear down anyone's faith, but to liberate them with the tools of truth and the Gospel and thus to encourage faith in God and so that a genuine revelation of the Gospel changes their lives. While the book makes no apologies for boldly declaring the errors of SDA doctrine and may be initially (and understandably) uncomfortable for some SDA folks to read, such is to be expected any time truth confronts our preconceived mindsets (when they happen to include error). If you read this and experience a "sting", please probe the question of why you feel a sting...
I would hope and pray that SDA folks could read this with an open heart and resist stubborn tendencies to reject examination, just because it involves the difficult premise that there is something deeply flawed with the SDA denomination. It's never easy to accept at first; the notion that we may have believed something in error. It can be embarrassing and it hurts our pride... However, on the positive side of things, if we let it, it can make us all the more reliant upon God to help us search out and see only what is true. We should never be too afraid of a challenge or think that God is not able to carry us through such a trial so that our feet may become even more steadily planted in Truth.
I myself spent 30+ years of my life a slave to a number of errant religious mindsets before my eyes opened and allowed the Lord to lead me out into His truth. It was difficult to embrace the fact that I had allowed myself to be deceived in a number of areas, and it was also difficult to humble myself and admit that I wasn't quite so spiritually-minded and biblically-wise as I had thought I was for so long. My heart desired to be teachable OF THE LORD more than any man or religious doctrine taught by man, and so I gave myself to the study of Scripture and prayer... and what a journey this became! One that I have never regretted, though it has been difficult at times.
If you consider yourself a follower of Christ, then let that be your motivation alone. Don't consider yourself by any other label, be it SDA, Baptist, Pentecostal, Charismatic, Nazarene, Church of God, Word of Faith, Roman Catholic, AOG, etc. It doesn't matter what church you attend or even if you don't attend one at all. A relationship with Christ has nothing to do with being religious or attending religious services and following religious institutionally-prescribed dogma. If your heart is to truly know the truth and walk in it, then don't be afraid to have your religious tradition challenged by Scripture and sound reason. You will never regret embracing the truth, so I encourage you deeply to do so! The Lord is a firm foundation! His Truth is unshakable! If you are really reaching out for Him, then you have nothing to fear a all!
Give this book a try and, even better, write a letter to Russ after reading it. Maybe a dialogue will open up and you will find out, as I have, that this is bro who sincerely loves Christ and has a heart to present only truth for the good of the Gospel of Jesus. This is not merely some kind of bitterly-reactive "hate SDA" kind of book. It's the testimony of a brother in Christ who followed Jesus and discovered that man sometimes gets very distracted from the truth.
Good stuff! Stop reading this review and READ THE BOOK!!!
Russ wrote this book because he's walked in the shoes of a devout Seventh Day Adventist. He writes from a position of understanding and therefore can effectively contrast SDA doctrine with clear Scripture. If you observe the reviews of this book on Amazon, you'll see there are a lot of Seventh Day Adventist folks who are very upset about it and quickly resort to calling Russell a liar and accuse him of misrepresenting the facts.
The truth is, as a person who has had a number of Seventh Day Adventist friends over the years and who has read much of their teachings as well, I have to say that Russell handles this subject with blunt honesty and also with love. His heart is not simply to pick on people who have embraced the doctrines of the SDA, but to encourage them with the Truth of Scripture and let that Truth set them free (just as it did for him).
I know some dear people who are members of the SDA church and they are wonderful people; some of whom I believe Love God very much and have a genuine desire to walk in His ways. Russell was also such a man when he joined the church and so identifies with others who are of the same heart and mind, but he faithfully exposes the errors in so much of the SDA doctrine and highlights the doctrine of Scripture which stands in bold contrast. His desire is not to tear down anyone's faith, but to liberate them with the tools of truth and the Gospel and thus to encourage faith in God and so that a genuine revelation of the Gospel changes their lives. While the book makes no apologies for boldly declaring the errors of SDA doctrine and may be initially (and understandably) uncomfortable for some SDA folks to read, such is to be expected any time truth confronts our preconceived mindsets (when they happen to include error). If you read this and experience a "sting", please probe the question of why you feel a sting...
I would hope and pray that SDA folks could read this with an open heart and resist stubborn tendencies to reject examination, just because it involves the difficult premise that there is something deeply flawed with the SDA denomination. It's never easy to accept at first; the notion that we may have believed something in error. It can be embarrassing and it hurts our pride... However, on the positive side of things, if we let it, it can make us all the more reliant upon God to help us search out and see only what is true. We should never be too afraid of a challenge or think that God is not able to carry us through such a trial so that our feet may become even more steadily planted in Truth.
I myself spent 30+ years of my life a slave to a number of errant religious mindsets before my eyes opened and allowed the Lord to lead me out into His truth. It was difficult to embrace the fact that I had allowed myself to be deceived in a number of areas, and it was also difficult to humble myself and admit that I wasn't quite so spiritually-minded and biblically-wise as I had thought I was for so long. My heart desired to be teachable OF THE LORD more than any man or religious doctrine taught by man, and so I gave myself to the study of Scripture and prayer... and what a journey this became! One that I have never regretted, though it has been difficult at times.
If you consider yourself a follower of Christ, then let that be your motivation alone. Don't consider yourself by any other label, be it SDA, Baptist, Pentecostal, Charismatic, Nazarene, Church of God, Word of Faith, Roman Catholic, AOG, etc. It doesn't matter what church you attend or even if you don't attend one at all. A relationship with Christ has nothing to do with being religious or attending religious services and following religious institutionally-prescribed dogma. If your heart is to truly know the truth and walk in it, then don't be afraid to have your religious tradition challenged by Scripture and sound reason. You will never regret embracing the truth, so I encourage you deeply to do so! The Lord is a firm foundation! His Truth is unshakable! If you are really reaching out for Him, then you have nothing to fear a all!
Give this book a try and, even better, write a letter to Russ after reading it. Maybe a dialogue will open up and you will find out, as I have, that this is bro who sincerely loves Christ and has a heart to present only truth for the good of the Gospel of Jesus. This is not merely some kind of bitterly-reactive "hate SDA" kind of book. It's the testimony of a brother in Christ who followed Jesus and discovered that man sometimes gets very distracted from the truth.
Good stuff! Stop reading this review and READ THE BOOK!!!
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