Bluewater Adventist Camp Meeting

36 Pages·2017·2.49 MB·English

OHIGHLIGHTS
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Spring 2017
Scripture Alone
Christ Alone
Grace Alone
Faith Alone
To the Glory of God
Living the
Reformation’s
500-Year Legacy
Ontario Highlights | Spring 2017 | 1
Editorial
Where’s the Love?
It disturbed me the first time I heard it. It disturbed me if you want to practice them, they
even more when I heard it a second time—this time, at are secondary to loving each other.
the recent Ontario SEEDs Conference in March. Didn’t the Apostle Paul say so in 1
On both occasions, I was hearing about the Natural Church Corinthians 13?
Development (NCD) result for Adventists. The first report There is no doubt that it
related to Adventists in Canada. The second referred to the USA is important for us to read,
and Australia. It was the same result. Our consistently lowest understand and live by the
score is in the area of loving relationships. prophetic books of Daniel and
The conclusion is that there is very little trust among Revelation, and other timely Bible
Adventists. Yet we’re very proud of, sometimes even arrogant passages, but 1 Corinthians 13 must
about, our status as the Remnant. Didn’t Jesus say that not be overlooked! Without it,
everyone will know that we belong to Him when we love one those other books and passages are
another (John 13:35)? He even commanded us to love one meaningless to us.
another (verse 34). One could easily get the impression that What I love about God is that
this is one of Jesus’ major concerns for us. It is high on His list He is the One who provides all the
of priorities for His followers. It seems to me that when we answers and fills all our needs. He
don’t love or trust each other, that we are guilty of breaking His commands us to love one another,
commandment. but He does not expect us to
I’ve been struggling to understand the reasons behind generate love for those who are
this consistently low score. As I have tried to wrap my brain hard to love. We can’t. Love does
around it, I keep returning to the same thing. Whenever I meet not flow naturally. However, we are
someone who has ceased attending church, or who loves without excuse because He even
the Lord, but still attends because there is nowhere else to gives us the love we need. He pours His love into us
go, the predominant complaint is the constant criticism and (Romans 5:5).
judgement. Also, high on the list is the frustration of seeing To truly get a sense of the value of this love, we need to
the congregation giving in to a small group of individuals who look at the love that God has for us. This is one of the messages
insist that their views about diet, Christmas, and a host of other of the Reformation, of which 2017 is the 500th anniversary.
things are the correct ones. People tell me that they do not feel When we look to the Bible and focus on what it means to be
at home in their congregation. They do not feel as if anyone saved; when we consider God’s marvellous grace, and how our
really cares about them. When they leave, their feelings are salvation is His free gift that we receive through His gift of faith,
validated when no one misses them, and they are forgotten. we begin to slowly appreciate His love for us. Our appreciation
It is very difficult to trust someone who looks at you in a of His love must compel us to relate to others with the same
disapproving manner. Or when you’re confronted by someone quality and principle of love.
who is clearly very upstanding and is obviously offended by
any hint of sinful appearance, it’s difficult if you’re someone Halsey Peat
Editor
conscious of your sin to even feel comfortable in that
person’s presence. Where is the trust? Do we want to risk our
vulnerability by trusting someone who does not appear to
Keep current with news and information with
want to understand what we are struggling with? I don’t think
Social Media
so.
Am I one of those people who make it difficult for others
in the church? Yes, I love my church, and I highly regard its Receive weekly news from the North American
teachings, but do I love the idea of church and the idea of Division directly to your inbox with Newspoints:
holding true beliefs above doing what Jesus commanded, to
love one another? It is easier to love an organisation and a
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love those. He asked to love one another. He commanded me adventistontario
to love.
Sure, I could keep the Sabbath even more strictly than the
Follow us on
Jews. I could double or even treble tithe. I could attend all
forms of Bible studies to learn about Bible prophecy or even
lead them. My diet could consist of nothing but raw vegan
food, and I could make sure that I don’t drink water with my @adventistont
meals or mix vegetables and fruit. While these things are fine,
Ontario Highlights | Spring 2017 | 2
CONTENTS
Spring 2017
COVER
STORY
4 Living the Reformation’s
500-Year Legacy
As inheritors of the Reformation’s legacy,
Seventh-day Adventists must recapture
its five essentials and live by them
REGULAR Living the Reformation’s
500-Year Legacy
2 Editorial
18 Health - The Health
Reformation and Your Life (Part 1)
Ontario Highlights is published quarterly by
the Ontario Conference of the Seventh-day Adventist Church
1110 King Street East, Oshawa, ON L1H 1H8
19-36 News
Telephone: [phone]; Fax: [phone]

E-mail: [email protected]
Website: www.AdventistOntario.org
Editor: Halsey Peat
Layout: Sarah Gouda-Maka & Halsey Peat
FEATURES
Cover Photo: depositphoto.com
The editor may alter, clarify, précis or expand articles sent to him if he sees it necessary.
6 Persistent 8 Christ Alone 10 By His Grace 12 Finding Living 14 Who Gets the 16 Eight Ways
Interaction with Faith Glory? to Reach Out to
the Scriptures— Muslim Refugees
Key to Personal
Reformation Salvation comes We are totally God considers us In everything, we With the arrival
only through what undeserving, yet righteous through honour, praise of Muslim
Appreciating Jesus has done, God gives us His faith alone in and worship God refugees, how can
the Bible alone independent of free gift of grace what Jesus because all the Adventists reach
as God’s Word, what we do. accomplished by glory belongs to out to them with
and persistently his death, burial Him the gospel?
interacting with and resurrection
it is the key to our
life.
Ontario Highlights | Spring 2017 | 3
Living the Reformation’s
500-Year Legacy
Hardly a day passes without news of some momentous The Reformers not only based their work on the Scriptures,
event taking place in our world. While some may but, as a result of their work, the Scriptures were given to the
have wide-spread economic or political importance, people as God intended. They remained undeterred despite
few can be compared to the amazing impact of the persecution and regardless of the threat of death.
Reformation 500 years ago. The focus of the Reformation was to restore to humanity
The Reformers were guided by the conviction that the the Word of God as the only guide for their faith and practice.
church of their day had drifted away from the essential and As the Word was shared, it resulted in amazing transformations
original teachings of Christianity, especially regarding salvation. across Europe.
They were steady in their commitment to restore salvation to “… the Reformation swept back the darkness that rested
its true place, and were tenacious in their faith as they faced upon Christendom…” reflected Ellen White in The Story of
opposition. Redemption (p.354).
Ellen White described Martin Luther and his work with As the new light shone in the minds of the Reformers, God
admiration, saying, “Zealous, ardent and devoted, knowing no gave them wisdom to counter false teachings with the truth of
fear but the fear of God, and acknowledging no foundation for the Scriptures. One powerful example of undaunted courage
religious faith but the Holy Scriptures, Luther was the man for for the truth was Luther’s “95 Theses” which argued two central
his time; through him God accomplished a great work for the beliefs: The first was that the Bible is the central source of
reformation of the church and the enlightenment of the world.” instruction for our salvation, and the second is that faith is vital
She also alluded to the fact that Luther’s efforts in Germany to our salvation.
were complemented by the work of others in many other parts
of Europe, resulting in the Protestant Reformation of the 16th THE FIVE ESSENTIALS
Century which changed Christianity forever.
Emerging from the Reformation were five essentials for
THE ISSUES salvation, to which the world was called to return:
The concerns which the Reformers refused to ignore 1. The Bible alone is the highest authority for our
surrounded the departure of the church from the original instruction.
teachings of Christianity, particularly in reference to salvation. In His Word, God has committed to man the knowledge
More specifically, they were deeply troubled that necessary necessary for salvation. Jesus is the focus of the
truths were no longer being taught. These omitted truths were Scriptures. The Old Testament presents Him as the
the very ones which answered the vital questions, such as: Messiah, and the New Testament presents Him as the
a) How could one be forgiven of his sins? Saviour. The Bible does not need additional help.
b) What was the true meaning of the death and
resurrection of Jesus Christ? 2. Jesus Christ alone is our Lord and Saviour.
c) How may one receive eternal life? Jesus was the grace of God in flesh. He was grace in
These concerns gave birth to the concerted efforts of the search of sinners like you and me. He has opened the
Reformers, which identified their primary goal as summarized door of salvation through His death on Calvary and
in the book, The Great Controversy: ‘It was the work of the assured us beyond life’s last portal--death--by His
Reformation to restore to men the Word of God’ (p.388). resurrection.
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3. We are saved by the grace of God alone. 5. The Christian’s duty is to live to the glory of God.
I often think that it would have been grace enough, “Love so amazing, so divine, demands my soul, my life,
if God had simply announced from heaven that my all” (Hymn 115).
everybody had been forgiven and given a new start. Recognising and accepting that our salvation is of
That would still have been unmerited favour. But to Christ alone, by His grace alone, and through faith alone
think that God’s only Son should condescend to be one means that our life is to glorify Him in how we live. We
of us, for grace to take on flesh and to experience pain belong to Him. We are saved by Him from sin and its
and cruelty for our salvation, was more than we could penalty and made complete in Him, so our life and our
reasonably ask for. This truly was unimaginable and worship must be about His glory.
unmerited favour.
The Seventh-day Adventist Church was born out of the
4. Salvation is secured through faith alone in Christ. Reformation. We owe it to our history, not only to acknowledge
“By grace you have been saved through faith,” says Paul these essentials in our Fundamental Beliefs and talk about
(Ephesians 2:8). Also, “Without faith it is impossible to them in our Sabbath School classes, but to live them daily. We
please [God], for whoever would draw near to God must are to continue the Reformation by restoring the Word of God
believe that He exists and that He rewards those who to its primary place in both our personal and corporate beliefs
seek Him” (Hebrews 11:6). This is the active, dynamic and practices.
faith that wholeheartedly believes God, and trusts Him
to forgive us and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
It is the lifestyle of the Christian as, ‘The righteous shall
live by faith’ (Romans 1:17).
Mansfield Edwards, President
Ontario Conference
1. The Bible alone is the highest authority for our instruction.
2. Jesus Christ alone is our Lord and Saviour.
3. We are saved by the grace of God alone.
4. Salvation is secured through faith alone in Christ.
5. The Christian’s duty is to live to the glory of God.
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Persistent Interaction with
the Scripture — a Key to
Personal Reformation
depositphotos
Most of us have more than one! It’s on our phones, What lessons can the Christian church today, and
tablets, computers, in beautiful leather covers specifically Seventh-day Adventists, draw from the
on our shelves and in the pews at church. Yet, it’s circumstances the Christian church confronted in the
hardly read, even by Christians. The phrase, ‘familiarity breeds Reformation? Simply put, ‘ease of access’ is an understatement.
contempt’, could easily describe the result of our easy access to Bob Creson, president of Wycliffe Bible Translators USA, once
the Bible. It wasn’t so 500 years ago before the Reformation. said: “More people have access to Scripture than at any other
It was rare to see, much less own a Bible in the years prior time in history.” However, what we do with that level of
to the Reformation. Unless you were clergy, a professor, an accessibility to the Bible determines how passionate we are to
artist, well-educated or well-to-do, your level of understanding know more about its author. Perhaps, if we recognize that our
was slim to none because you simply had no access to the ease of access has come to us through great tribulation and
Bible. People were at the mercy of the views of clergy—some sacrifice, we would have a better appreciation for the Bible.
of whom were blatantly corrupt. Furthermore, it was limited
to those who had a passing knowledge of the Latin language What do we do with our Bibles?
because it was only written in Latin. The masses were totally
excluded. Do we keep the Bible
Since ordinary people were excluded, it was impossible locked up in a cabinet;
for them to have an intimate knowledge of Scripture, and stowed on a shelf; have
they ceded its interpretation to those who were equipped to it readily available on an
translate it, and thus, could not determine truth from error. electronic device, or do
Taking advantage of the scriptural ignorance of the masses, we daily read its pages to
some church figures were able to misapply and give error-filled know God, gain wisdom,
interpretations of the Bible while creating doctrines hostile to guidance and comfort?
Scripture, such as indulgences and purgatory. Our interaction with
The Reformers, such as Martin Luther, as part of the Scripture should be so
Roman Catholic Church, had access to the Bible. However, persistent that we resonate
they were faithful students and teachers of God’s Word and with David who said:
rose up against the teaching of falsehood in place of the “Your word is a lamp to
truth. Interestingly, Martin Luther and his fellow Reformers so my feet and a light to my
recognized the importance of the Bible, they coined the phrase path” (Psalm 119:105). Do
“sola scriptura”, meaning Scripture alone, and so established we allow God’s Word to
their unmoveable stance. They argued that doctrine must be light our path, to give us
determined only by the Bible. guidance? Do we believe
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what it says, that it is the written Word of God? If so, daily wisdom. Most importantly, it is sufficient to be explored as a
devotional reading should be the order of the day, so as to sacred text that could change the trajectory of a broken, listless
know God. Equally, daily study of the Bible to understand His life, turning the heart back to Christ. After all, where else would
divine will for our lives is crucial. What would happen in our you discover that God so loved the world (John 3:16)?
lives, our homes and our institutions if the Bible were returned It stands to reason why Reformers stood on the “Sola
to its rightful place? Scriptura” foundation. They believed that Scripture is the
Finally, regarding interpretation, you might have heard only authoritative manuscript that should guide the Christian
some say that because their favourite preacher isn’t speaking, above all else. As we celebrate this 500-year anniversary of the
then they’re not satisfied. Or, at times, when challenged by a Reformation, let’s be reminded that the series of events leading
statement in the Bible, many of us have a natural tendency to to modern-day Christianity would not have been a reality were
go directly to the writings of Ellen White for further clarity. No it not for one essential pillar--the Bible. Even as we live through
one is suggesting the aforementioned isn’t valuable. What is these last days, we should be ever reminded to treasure the
being challenged is the notion that the Word of God cannot Word of God so as to be governed by it.
stand on its own. Yet, the Bible, above and apart from other
sacred text, is sufficiently capable as the written Word of God. It
is sufficient to be explored as a historical document that affirms
past world events. It is sufficient to be explored to confirm
some of the greatest scientific discoveries out there. Even
more, it is sufficient to be explored for its prophetic depth and John Scott, Director
Youth and Young Adults/ACF
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Ontario Highlights | Spring 2017 | 7
CHRIST ALONE
“The church is full of Adventists, but sadly, not all are places us in His favour
Christians,” said the speaker. He was sharing with is to continue a journey
us his sadness over what he sees as the apparent outside of true salvation.
lack of evidence of the Holy Spirit in the life of the church. All that is needed is to
“I don’t see a joyous experience in Christ,” he said. “Instead, accept Christ’s shed
I see us as strictly religious people who, sad to say, seem to be blood for our sins. It is
untouched by the gospel of Jesus. Our focus is on our ability only through Him and
to live meritorious lives, and to demonstrate to God our own Him alone that you can
worth.” be restored to the image
A friend recently shared with us that her sister confessed of God.
some disturbing news with her. Her sister said, “I know I’m bad. When the Reformers
I keep sinning and going back to God each time. God’s not into saw how the church
games, and I can’t go to Him when I am like this.” had made salvation a
As shocking as this true statement is, it is not surprising business to be purchased os
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because she reflects the thinking of others: “I can only go to with money and through ph
God when I am in good standing with Him.” Is this one of the human obligation, they posit
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reasons some members avoid communion service? It is as if we saw it as a denial of what
We have nothing to offer Him
fail to realise that when we are ‘good’ and doing all the things Jesus had achived by
we have been taught as right to do, when we strip aside the His death, burial and resurrection. They boldly declared that
façade of family identity, career status, and church image, what salvation is through Jesus alone! He is the All-Sufficient One.
is left is our naked self—sinners to the core! He is the bridge between fallen man and Divinity. There is no
Religious people have difficulty with their identity as need for another intermediary. No need for mediation by a
sinners. The temptation is to think that since they have priest because Jesus has made it possible to go directly to the
accepted the teaching of the Bible and joined the church, they Father through Him. He died for us, rose from the grave and
can contribute value to their being and standing before God. It intercedes as our High Priest. Paul puts it this way, “ Who then
reflects a proud heart. is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—
more than that, who was raised to life—is at the
right hand of God and is also interceding for us”
Ellen White notes, “The proud heart strives to earn
Romans 8:34 (NIV).
salvation; but both our title to heaven and our fitness for When we understand this simple but profound
truth and accept its validity for our lives, we
it are found in the righteousness of Christ.” Desire of Ages,
experience a tremendous sense of freedom and
p301. thankfulness to Him. We immediately recognize
that it is not by our Sabbath keeping, fleshless
diet, kneeling or covering of the head that we
are accepted by Him. Our acceptance is independent of those
When we accept our identity as sinners, and that our things. Our heart of gratitude is reflected in the kind and
righteouness, our salvation and our goodness are the result of compassionate attitude we have towards others. We do not
Jesus and His work for us, and we receive His gift of salvation, find fault with others when they practice their faith differently
we take on a new identity—God’s chosen, members of a royal from how we do. We do not compare our good habits or how
priesthood, and a holy nation! We are Christ’s own possession, we dress with theirs and find them to be at fault, because we
not because of our worth, but because of His worth. “He has know it’s not Jesus and how we dress that makes us accepted
died for sins once and for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, by Him. It’s not Jesus and how often I read the Bible or fast and
to bring you to God,” wrote Peter (1 Peter 3:18). pray. It’s not even Jesus and my witnessing; it’s Jesus alone!
This new identity is ours, regardless of what we have done We remember that our religious practices, our devotional
or what the world, our culture, or others say or think of us as life, our witnessing are simply the result of the work that Jesus
believers in Jesus. We also recognize that we have not gained does in our life.
salvation. It has been given to us through Christ and Him “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name
alone. It was through His death and resurrection that we are under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”
saved. He did it all without any help from you, from me or from Act 4:12.
anyone else. When you try to add to it through your own works, It is always, Jesus alone.
Jesus says to you, as Paul said to Simon, in Acts 8: 21, “You have
no part or share in this ministry, because your heart is not right
before God”.
There is only one Saviour—Jesus Christ! He does not need Joan Rogers* and Halsey Peat
our help. Any thought that our efforts, morality or behaviour *Women’s Ministries Director
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God’s Grace —
The Fundamental
of Christianity
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