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A Response to the Video:
Seventh-day Adventism, the Spirit Behind the Church

by Bob Pickle

Answers to Questions Raised by:
Mark Martin, Sydney Cleveland
Dale Ratzlaff, The White Lie
. . . and Others

Discern Fact from Fiction

Testimonials, Documentation, and the Video Jacket

#234: "Jesus saves us not by our deeds, even if they may appear to be a really good deed. We're not saved by what we do. Not by lifestyle, not by diet, but by what Jesus has done for us."—Leslie Martin.

#234: We're not saved by our good deeds. Of course not. And Adventists wholeheartedly agree, despite Mrs. Martin's strong implication to the contrary.

You might find some Adventists who are uncomfortable with such statements as Mrs. Martin's, and understandably so. Where is the speaker going in her line of thought? Does she mean that we can murder and fornicate and steal and lie and covet and still go to heaven? Does she mean that Jesus saves us "in" our sins instead of "from" our sins (Mat. 1:21)?

If you find an Adventist like that, just reassure him that you believe what Mrs. Martin's husband said, that true Christians will "keep God's commandments out of a love for Him" (#153). He'll then enthusiastically agree that "Jesus saves us not by our deeds."

There is a world of difference between alleged good deeds and what Paul called the "obedience of faith" (Rom. 16:26). Good deeds will not buy us an entrance into heaven, but the absence of the obedience of faith will exclude us from entering those pearly gates.

A lack of obedience reveals a lack of love for Jesus. As the apostle John put it:

Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law. And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin. Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not: whosoever sinneth hath not seen him, neither known him. Little children, let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous. He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil. Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God. (1 Jn. 3:4-10)

John acknowledges the possibility that the believer might sometime stumble (1 Jn. 2:1). But he is also crystal clear that those who are born again will not be continually, moment after moment, day after day breaking the commandments of God. One who is "of the devil" will live a life of disobedience, but the true believer will live a life of obedience to God's commandments. Yet the believer's obedience, which is the result of justification by faith, will in no way buy his or her salvation.

All these mental gymnastics that people do in order to avoid obeying the fourth commandment, what kind of effect does it have on our society? "The law is nailed to the cross." "Jesus abolished the law." "The law was part of the Old Covenant, but we are under the New." "The Christian is not under the law." With the people in the pews getting bombarded with all these arguments supposedly proving that the believer can disobey and still go to heaven, it's no wonder that iniquity abounds: homicides, rapes, [p. 149] burglaries, sodomy, fraud, adultery, embezzlement, pornography, divorce for non-biblical grounds, and disobedience to parents. The fact that we have so much of this corruption in our society is evidence that too many are believing the sermons that say, "You can keep on sinning and still go to heaven. You don't have to repent after all. God is more loving than that."

Surely the Lord will hold accountable for our moral decay those preachers who preach such sermons.

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