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| Are we playing by the book? |
| "When a group of small boys, out to play ball, arrived at the play ground, they discovered that no one had brought a ball. "Forget the ball," said one impatiently. "Let's get on with the game." We are trying to play without the ball when the Church tries to evangelize before she has repented. The... Read More |
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| As pastors we cannot bring a person closer to Jesus than we are ourselves. |
| The Kentucky-Tennessee Conference is located in the region of Nashville. My father's second assignment in the ministry was to be what was then termed the Home Missionary and Sabbath School secretary of the region comprising the churches in those two states. This is a story he liked to tell about... Read More |
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| More quotes from Vance Havner |
| "We are the salt of the earth; mind you, not the sugar. Our ministry is to truly cleanse and not just to change the taste." "Too many churches start at eleven o'clock sharp, and end at twelve o'clock dull. You will never see revival in a comfortable church." "Plenty of church members are shaky... Read More |
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| Only God can "finish the work." |
The population of planet Earth is estimated to be about 6.5 billion people. Of this number, some 2 billion people claim to be Christian. As Christians, we are a minority on planet Earth. This being the case, what do we mean when we say we must "finish the work?" What... Read More |
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| Our church organization--conferences, unions, and divisions--may seem to be redundant and not cost effective, but it has served two important purposes. |
First, with God's blessing the little group of Adventists in the northeastern part of the United States was able to establish a church that is represented in most of the countries of the world. Second, the integrity of the doctrines of our church has been maintained.
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| Seventh-day Adventist standards weren't wrong in the past, but perhaps they were narrow and shallow. |
Many who are no longer members of the church attribute this to the fact that, when they were young, the standards of the church were forced on them. They say they left the church because it was legalistic. It is important to note that what we refer to as Adventist standards didn't... Read More |
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| Somehow the word "Adventism" seems to have replaced the words "message" and "truth." |
We as a church used to talk about "the message" and "the truth" when we spoke of ourselves and our mission. Nowadays we are more likely to hear the word "Adventism." Is this merely a change in terminology, or does it involve a difference in concepts? Some might reply that it's... Read More |
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| We must not allow our mission to become separated from our message. |
The founding fathers and mothers of our church were message driven. As the message spread, organization followed. The church began to open schools and medical institutions. But the organization and the institutions were a means to an end, not an end in themselves. All... Read More |
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| When the storm comes, it's too late to get ready for it. |
Many people speculate that when the signs of the end times really begin fulfilling, they'll make the commitment they know is lacking in their lives. However, though the Sunday law will surely wake up some people, we can't count on it to give anyone a new heart.
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| While there is no new truth, there is definitely present truth. |
Truth is eternal. In the strictest sense of the word, then, there is no such thing as new truth. What we may be tempted to call new truths are simply our discovery of what has been true all along. There is, however, what may be termed present truth. The revelation of... Read More |
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