The Adventist Way of Life

I am a Christian Seventh Day Adventist. We all identify with someone or something that helps us establish “who” we are. Most all of us have some moral standard that we live by, our own “do’s and dont’s”.

Today in this world of fast pace living we find it hard to believe in an “absolute truth”. Old truths we once held to seem to have new loop holes almost every day.

As a Christian I believe that there is one God and that this one God has an Absolute Truth. God’s truth has to do with Life and Right Living. The Christian God is a god of relationship.  The Bible proclaims that “God is love.” [1st John 4:8] God the Father has always been in relationship with the everlasting Son, Jesus Christ, and the comforting Holy Spirit.

In the first book of the Bible [Genesis] we find God making living beings, Humans in His own image. Perfect and sinless children of God. God no doubt gave them His moral standard and they [Adam and Eve] lived by this standard and were exceedingly happy.

One day the perfect couple decided to make some wrong decisions. What did they do? They both coveted something they were told to stay away from. Then they stole from God. They went on to lie to God.

Here we see a breach in the moral standard. A change of glorified character to fallen character. The “wages” [results] of these actions caused death. Before this there was no such thing as death in any living thing our Heavenly Father created. God’s Word call’s death an enemy. [1 Corinthians 15:26]

God hates death and is willing that “none should perish”. [2 Peter 3:9] So we have a problem. The moral standard [Ten Commandment Law] was broken thus God begins to unfold a plan of restoration and reconciliation. God want’s to mend the broken relationship between Him and His children. So God ”gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” [John 3:16]

Before God sent His only “begotten” Son, God in His mercy established a temporary relationalship law that would teach His lost children the seriousness of sin. This law involved the sacrifice of animals. God taught that the “wages of sin is death” but instead of us having instantaneous death He alowed us to place our sins on an animal. The animal would die in our place.

We see Cain and Abel practicing sacrificial laws in Genesis but the sacrificial laws were not yet written out. Even the moral law had not been written out but clearly God’s children understood these concepts. Why was there already the shedding of blood in Genesis? Because the moral law had been broken and “without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.” [Hebrews 9:22]

So we see two main bodies of law. The moral [Ten Commandments] and the ceremonial or “sacrificial laws“. One, the Moral Law, is eternal and the other [ceremonial] was temporary. This ceremonial law was full of symbols and types that taught us “object lessons” in life. These lessons pointed to Jesus Christ, the “fulfillment” of the Law. [Matthew 5:17,18]

Jesus kept the moral law perfectly therefore there was no need for Him to sacrifice animals for sins while He was here. He taught us to put the morality of the entire law [ceremonial and moral] into practice and that the moral law is the issue. All  laws pointed to Him.

Jesus died for our sins becoming the “perfect sacrifice for sin”. Jesus also lived the perfect moral law that we never could without Him.

We now can keep the moral law [Ten Commandments] through His mercy and the forgiveness that He offers us. In this way we  are freed from the “condemnation” of the law. [Romans 8:1] Jesus Christ “reconciles” us to the Father. [2 Corinthians 5:18] Thus, it is through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ that our broken relationship with God is restored. Praise God!

And this is one portion of the most beautiful story ever told to mankind. As a Christian Seventh Day Adventist I invite you to meet this Jesus Christ who died for you. Please contact your local Seventh Day Adventist church. You can also write me through email.

May God richly bless you and increase your understanding of this message He has given to us.

Written by; Eric W. King [August 23,2007]

Email Eric at: Er2Ki@aol.com

Visit "The Adventist Way of Life" homepage: www.adventist.7p.com