The SDA Church: Its Past, Present, & Future
Season 2 | Episode 52
There is an oft-repeated quote that says,
'We have nothing to fear for the future,
except we forget the way the Lord has led us
and His teaching in our past history.'
As we look back, we can see God's hand guiding
through the various chapters of Earth's history
and leading His people from generation to generation.
Since the beginning, there has been a struggle between good and evil
and this has played out in the Christian world since its inception,
in particular since the time of Constantine.
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Constantine was the one who brought many practices into Christianity
that were pagan in origin
and thus the battle between truth and error
was not just a matter for the Christian world
to look for attacks from outside,
but now they had to look internally as well.
The Bible speaks about wolves coming into the flock,
giving us the imagery of wolves in sheep's clothing,
professing piety, yet clinging to unbiblical practices
and thus corrupting the church.
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During the 1260-year prophecy from 538 to 1798,
God's church was in the wilderness;
hunted, persecuted, and marginalized.
Groups such as the Waldensians in northern Italy
struggled to keep the gospel light burning during the Dark Ages.
From the 1300s and the time of John Wycliffe onwards,
the light slowly started to pierce through the darkness
as the Bible was translated into the English language,
a huge and revolutionary advancement for the church.
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As the Reformation journeyed on,
later reformers such as John Huss and Jerome in Bohemia,
Martin Luther in Germany, Zwingli in Switzerland,
John Knox in Scotland, and John Calvin in France,
each would be key in standing for truth during their time
and once again showing the beauty of the Bible
as light was being unshackled.
Each reformer advanced truth,
but the problem was that their followers would often only go as far as they did
in their rediscovery of the Bible.
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In the early 1800s, the Great Advent Movement
looked for the return of Jesus, but He did not come.
The tears of this bitter disappointment would form the stream of Adventism
that would grow from these humble beginnings
into the church that it is today.
The challenge today is still to present
the beauty of God's Word and the love of Jesus
to a society that is indifferent,
ambivalent, hostile, and ignorant of biblical realities.
The battle between truth and error, good and evil still rages on.
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Ellen White wrote so eloquently
about the great controversy between Christ and Satan through time,
and we still see it today on a daily basis.
Today we stand on the precipice of time,
in the very feet and toes of the image of Daniel 2,
on the cusp of Earth's history.
As we look back,
we can see the amazing experiences that God has led us through,
but the journey is not over.
As a people we need to be clear on our prophetic identity
and committed to taking the message around the world.
As we look back, our legacy is assured but there is still work to do.
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The gospel still needs to go to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people.
Matthew 24:14 says that when 'this gospel of the kingdom
shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations,
and then shall the end come.'
Whilst there has been much growth in recent years and decades
and while many new areas have heard the message,
there are still huge swathes of the world that have yet to hear the good news.
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The Bible still needs translation and distribution,
missionaries are still needed
both in far-off lands and also in the big cities.
The best days of the church and mission service still lie ahead.
The best sermons have yet to be preached.
The best Bible studies have yet to be given.
The best health work has yet to be accomplished.
The best schools have yet to be built.
The character of Christ and His love
still needs a more complete revelation in His people.
Don't be an armchair supporter or a bystander,
but get involved in the work of God that we can finish it together.