2. Non-SDA pastors use Ellen G. White.

3. Christian scholars know about the Sabbath, they just refuse to accept it.

4. No one leaves the SDA Church for doctrinal reasons.

5. People leave Adventism because they’ve been wronged or feel unloved.

6. “There’s no perfect church, but this is the closest one to a perfect church because the SDA Church follows the Bible.”

7. The Clear Word is just the Bible written in clearer language.

8. The 10 Commandments are a transcript of God’s character.

9. You can’t know for sure that you are saved.

10. If you leave the SDA church you will eventually leave God.

Q. How long have you been a Seventh-day Adventist pastor?

A. I’ve been a Seventh-day Adventist pastor for 10 years.

Q. What made you start questioning the doctrines?

A. I made it a habit to read my Bible from cover to cover twice a year using different versions of the Bible. The more I read my Bible, the more I began to realize that many of the doctrinal teachings I learned when I became an Adventist did not harmonize with what I was reading in the Bible.

Q. What kind of tension has this created for you as an SDA pastor?

A. The tension it has created is in the area of evangelistic efforts.  Whereas I used to preach 4 week or more meetings teaching the doctrines of the church, I haven’t done so since I began questioning the doctrines.  I also refrain from preaching those particular doctrines whenever I preach as part of my weekly preaching schedule.  In my preaching, I stick to what I believe to be the central theme of the Bible and that is Christ and him crucified.

Q. What types of things do you do, unorthodox, to share the Gospel with your
members?

A. What I do to share the gospel with my members is preach the gospel.  I may not preach the Adventist doctrines in the traditional way that members are accustomed to hearing them, but my preaching is Christ-centered and gospel-centered.  My philosophy is I am never wrong for preaching Jesus and Jesus alone.  If my members are going to make accusations about my preaching then they are going to have to accuse me of preaching too much Jesus.  And if they feel I am preaching too much Jesus then it shows that they have the problem not me.  I am very upfront with my congregation and have let them know that they will hear Jesus preached from Sabbath to Sabbath and if they want to hear other stuff then this particular church is not for them at this time while I’m the pastor and they are welcome to find another church that will be more suitable to their spiritual needs.  Another way I share the gospel is through a weekly Bible study that I give where we study the Bible and the Bible only.  The Bible study provides the opportunity for the Bible to speak for itself concerning the centrality of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Q. What are some of your fears about leaving?

A. I can’t say that I have any fears about leaving, but I do believe that timing is important.  God has allowed me to open the eyes of many of my members to the importance of the gospel.  With this in mind, I am constantly praying and asking God to move me to the next phase of my ministry outside of the Adventist church whenever he is ready.  He has not done so as of yet, but I do feel that the time is drawing nearer.   I believe he hasn’t done so yet because those who I have been sharing the gospel with are still not ready to handle it on their own yet.  They need a little bit more time and teaching and then I believe my work will be done with them and the Lord will move me on and out of the Adventist ministry.

Q. How does your wife feel about leaving the SDA Church?

A. I shared with my wife what the Lord revealed to me as I read my Bible over and over again.  She was in full agreement and has supported me in my decision to leave when the Lord says it’s time.  She is looking forward to us doing ministry in a setting that she feels will bring us greater blessings from the Lord.

Q. Have you discussed these issues with anyone? Do you feel free to? Who can you talk to?

A. I have discussed my position with other pastors, but not in full detail.  Unfortunately, it’s difficult to discuss this type of thing in full detail without there being some type of backlash.  I drop a few seeds here and there, but even that gets you labeled as having a rebellious mind.

Q. What is keeping you in the SDA ministry right now?

A. My work is not quite done so until that time I will remain in the Adventist church.

Q. What are some things you do to stay sane and avoid having to teach doctrines you don’t believe in?

A. If there is a doctrine that I don’t believe in that has to be preached or taught I usually bring in a speaker who will teach the doctrine so that I don’t have to preach or teach what I don’t believe.  This approach has not been a problem for me as of yet.

Q. Describe the emotional tension that you live with.

A. Emotionally it saddens me when I hear the work-based approach that many of my members subscribe to. I wish that I could show them the difference between the gospel of Jesus Christ and the Adventist message, but I know that if I start to expose the SDA message then the gospel won’t be received in the right spirit.

Q. What are you looking forward to (beyond Adventism)?

A. I’m looking forward to pastoring a congregation where I can preach and teach the pure and undefiled gospel of Jesus Christ without having to worry about it coming back to haunt me or being labeled as rebellious by others.  I am looking forward to leading people who feel free to express their love for Jesus during the weekly worship service.  I look at my congregation from week to week and they have no joy in Jesus.  They look like they are in bondage and the truth is they are in bondage to what Paul calls ANOTHER gospel.

Q. How do you think friends, family, ministry supervisors, colleagues and congregation will receive your resignation?

A. I think it will be a shock to those in the Adventist community because it’s hard for SDA’s to believe that anybody would leave because of the message.  The message seems so solid so it can’t be the message, it has to be something more than that.

Q. Do you feel pressure from anyone to leave or stay?

A. I don’t feel any pressure to leave or stay.  I have a wonderful congregation and I feel bad that I will eventually leave them, but hopefully I will have sowed enough of the gospel seed before I leave that it will take root and sprout in my absence and those who I have taught the true gospel message will continue the work.

Encouragement at the Crossroads from Crossroads on Vimeo.

Please notice how the Bible texts are used eisegetically and out of context.

All of the statements below are from Revelation Seminar materials.

“THERE ARE MANY TRUE CHRISTIANS in churches which do not keep the Sabbath or have the gift of prophecy. However, NONE of these churches CAN BE GOD’S LAST DAY REMNANT CHURCH, into which He is calling ALL HIS PEOPLE. His Church must qualify in both areas.”

“God’s church will be teaching that God’s judgment is now in session and that we must worship and honor Him as Creator by keeping His Sabbath, the sign of His creative power.”

“God does not change, Malachi 3:6. He still is hurt when religious leaders are partial to the nine commandments and cause people to stumble over His Sabbath command.”

“Those who knowingly profane God’s holy day now, will lose the ability to think and see clearly and will end up in darkness, John 12:35.”

“God is holding back devastating destruction from the earth until His people receive His seal, sign or mark, which is His Sabbath. Soon every person on earth will be in one of two groups: God’s group, with His Sabbath mark, or the beasts group, with his counterfeit Sunday mark. The Holy Spirit is working with almost desperation to clearly show people that loyalty to God is involved here and to impress them to accept God’s Sabbath mark which represent His creative and redemptive power. It is not enough to claim that we serve God. We must also obey Him, Luke 6:46.”

“God chooses to save everybody, 1 Timothy 2:3-4. The devil desperately wants all to be lost. We choose whom we will serve by whom we obey, Joshua 24:15. I obey God and serve Him by accepting his mark. It is not a matter of days but rather a question of loyalty to Christ or anti-christ, which is another name for the beast. God’s Sabbath is like a banner or flag. When I obey Him I step under His Sabbath banner. When I, with my eyes wide open, step under the Sunday banner of the beast, God counts me as serving the beast.”

Please notice how the Bible texts are used eisegetically and out of context.

All of the statements below are from Revelation Seminar materials.

“Protestantism stands guilty before the judgment bar of God of throwing out the Bible Sabbath! God, Himself, gave the Sabbath as a sign or mark of his power to create and His power to sanctify or save, Exodus 31:17; Ezekiel 20:12. Dare any man tamper with this sacred sign which represents the great God of Heaven and all that He stands for?”

“Jesus’ blood applied to my heart erases my sins of the past and provides the miraculous power for me to become fully like Jesus.”

“The gospel includes God’s power to save us PAST, PRESENT and FUTURE from sin’s PENALTY, POWER and PRESENCE.”

“If I do not permit Jesus to impart sanctification to me (bear fruit) I will lose salvation. Fruit-bearing, or growth, is essential for retaining salvation.”

Explanation of Matthew 11:28-30: “He promises peace, release and rest from the stress, heartaches, fears, burdens and guilt of life.”

“Christ enjoins those who receive this ordinance [baptism] to remember that they are bound by a solemn covenant to live to the Lord. They are to use for Him all their entrusted capabilities, never lose the realization that they bear God’s sign of obedience to the Sabbath of the fourth commandment, that they are subject of Christ’s kingdom, partakers of the divine nature.”

Please notice how the Bible texts are used eisegetically and out of context.

All of the statements (and images) below are from Revelation Seminar materials.

“Unless I correctly identify this beast (the Beast of Revelation), I risk receiving its Mark and losing my place in God’s Kingdom.”

“God’s church for today MUST be teaching that the heavenly judgment is NOW in session. It began in 1844, and when it ends, the horrible problem of sin will be ended forever.”

“The Ten Commandments are God’s standard in the judgment.”

“Salvation is a free gift of God. It is based upon the works of Jesus alone. Our works do give evidence of our connection with Jesus, however, so the Lord looks at them.”

“The watching universe must be clear that it is safe to welcome beings, who have sinned, back into heaven’s family. The judgment makes that clear by presenting the evidence which the angels have gathered and by answering questions from inquirers.”

“..the righteous are shown to be like Jesus. Not even Satan doubted Jesus’ forgiveness, but the evil one doubted that God could indeed restore men to His image. The redeemed stand before him as proof it has happened. No question will ever be raised again about the handling of the sin problem and the character of God. They have all been answered.”

The life EXAMINED
with Carolyn Macomber

What is integrity?

What does it mean to live with integrity? The word “integrity” is defined as the state of being whole and undivided. The opposite of integrity would be a state of dividedness.

For forty-six years I lived in a divided but unexamined state. I knew something wasn’t quite right with my belief system, but I couldn’t figure out what it was.

Seventh-day Adventism always seemed to have something missing as I was growing up. Things didn’t seem to add up, yet there was plenty of addition in the doctrines I held as truth: 1260 days plus 7 weeks plus 49 weeks—and so on … I was lost in an oblivion of numbers without context. They didn’t make sense, but at the time I just trusted those more “learned” than I.

Ben: In retrospect, there were some theological things that were hard to understand—because I was told they were hard to understand. Scripture is so clear to me now.

I left the Seminary with lingering questions but with hope and ambition for my pastoral career. I was hired in the Southern California Conference as an associate pastor. On the Sabbath I was introduced, I proudly shared with the congregation that I firmly believed in the ministry of Ellen White (and heard a resounding “Amen”).

That first year in California, we attended a pastoral family retreat in Phoenix. During our stay there, Delina and I stopped at the bookstore of a church that was near our hotel. As we browsed, we saw shelves with anti-Ellen White and anti-Adventist books in a section labeled “Cults”. We were shocked! Back at our hotel, we promptly googled the church and discovered that the pastor, Mark Martin, was a former Adventist pastor.

Delina: We didn’t set out to leave Adventism. Leave? For what? We were part of a community where we’d always felt loved and supported. Leaders regularly affirmed that Ben had a bright future in the denomination. We still thought we were part of a group who were just like other Christians, except that we kept Saturday as a Sabbath. I thought Adventism just had different, quirky interpretations. I didn’t see it as wrong but began to think that maybe it just wasn’t for me.

Ben: The more I began to study and prepare for sermons, the less the obligatory Ellen White quotes appeared in my sermons. Simultaneously, I found a deep love for Christ and the Scriptures that I didn’t know before.

Delina: Ben would go to the library to prepare his sermons. Without fail, he would return home energized and excited by what he’d discovered in the richness of the Word. Oftentimes, his zeal would be dampened with, “But I can’t preach that,” because it was something that was not in line with Adventist doctrines. “I just want to preach the Word,” he would tell me.

*****

Ben: For a year, every week we’d hear something that was blatantly unbiblical at church, or I heard other pastors talk about their special remnant mission at worker’s meetings. It was like nails on a chalkboard. I couldn’t ignore it, and I didn’t know how much more I could take. Finally the time came, and during a favorable employee evaluation, I handed my supervisor my resignation letter explaining that I no longer believed that Scripture supports:

• The Mission of the Church (3 Angels’ Messages) (Fundamental Belief (FB) #13)
• The SDA Church is the remnant church (FB #13)
• Investigative Judgment/Pre-Advent Judgment (FB #24)
• Ellen G. White is a messenger of God (FB #18)
• Sabbath is the seal of God (FB #20, GC p. 640)
• The Great Controversy worldview (FB #8)

When my pastoral colleagues found out I was resigning for doctrinal reasons, not one pastor came to me with open Bible in hand to show me that I was mistaken. What I heard was, “How will you support your family?” “Who’s got your ear?” “Those aren’t reasons to quit your job!” or “I don’t believe in that either. I just don’t preach it.” Only one person tried to address the points in my letter, but he used The Clear Word as his “scriptural” support.

My conference president offered a three-month paid sabbatical to study under an Adventist scholar of my choice and get my questions answered. What many people didn’t understand was I wasn’t leaving to search for answers. I left because I’d searched and found that the Bible didn’t support what I’d believed all my life and what I was being paid to preach.

Delina: Leaving was stressful, emotionally, financially and relationally, but I can tell you example after example of how we’ve seen God’s faithful hand through it all. I mostly feared how relationships would change. And they have—some for the better, and some not.

Even if we’d wanted to stay for our own convenience, for the sake of our children, we could not have stayed. Knowing what we know, we could not intentionally expose them to false teaching in church, Sabbath School, Adventist Youth, Pathfinders, and Adventist “Christian education.”

Ben: The temptation to stay was there, but my desire to minister with integrity was strong. I could have stayed to collect a paycheck, have a flexible schedule, and a respected job. Life is easier when you don’t rock the boat, offend people, or risk having your name dragged through the mud. But I did not want to imply by my silence that I agreed with doctrines that were unbiblical; I couldn’t pledge my allegiance to the doctrines before an ordination committee. At the same time there was a temptation to get all my ducks in a row first—money saved, a job lined up, a five-year plan in place—before doing what God was calling me to do. But those thoughts were conventional wisdom, not faith. I encourage everyone, especially pastors, to follow the Lord. Trust Him. He’s faithful.

Read the whole story here.

Q. How long have you been a Seventh-day Adventist pastor?

A. I’ve been a Seventh-day Adventist pastor for 10 years.

Q. What made you start questioning the doctrines?

A. I made it a habit to read my Bible from cover to cover twice a year using different versions of the Bible. The more I read my Bible, the more I began to realize that many of the doctrinal teachings I learned when I became an Adventist did not harmonize with what I was reading in the Bible.

Q. What kind of tension has this created for you as an SDA pastor?

A. The tension it has created is in the area of evangelistic efforts.  Whereas I used to preach 4 week or more meetings teaching the doctrines of the church, I haven’t done so since I began questioning the doctrines.  I also refrain from preaching those particular doctrines whenever I preach as part of my weekly preaching schedule.  In my preaching, I stick to what I believe to be the central theme of the Bible and that is Christ and him crucified.

Q. What types of things do you do, unorthodox, to share the Gospel with your
members?

A. What I do to share the gospel with my members is preach the gospel.  I may not preach the Adventist doctrines in the traditional way that members are accustomed to hearing them, but my preaching is Christ-centered and gospel-centered.  My philosophy is I am never wrong for preaching Jesus and Jesus alone.  If my members are going to make accusations about my preaching then they are going to have to accuse me of preaching too much Jesus.  And if they feel I am preaching too much Jesus then it shows that they have the problem not me.  I am very upfront with my congregation and have let them know that they will hear Jesus preached from Sabbath to Sabbath and if they want to hear other stuff then this particular church is not for them at this time while I’m the pastor and they are welcome to find another church that will be more suitable to their spiritual needs.  Another way I share the gospel is through a weekly Bible study that I give where we study the Bible and the Bible only.  The Bible study provides the opportunity for the Bible to speak for itself concerning the centrality of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Q. What are some of your fears about leaving?

A. I can’t say that I have any fears about leaving, but I do believe that timing is important.  God has allowed me to open the eyes of many of my members to the importance of the gospel.  With this in mind, I am constantly praying and asking God to move me to the next phase of my ministry outside of the Adventist church whenever he is ready.  He has not done so as of yet, but I do feel that the time is drawing nearer.   I believe he hasn’t done so yet because those who I have been sharing the gospel with are still not ready to handle it on their own yet.  They need a little bit more time and teaching and then I believe my work will be done with them and the Lord will move me on and out of the Adventist ministry.

Q. How does your wife feel about leaving the SDA Church?

A. I shared with my wife what the Lord revealed to me as I read my Bible over and over again.  She was in full agreement and has supported me in my decision to leave when the Lord says it’s time.  She is looking forward to us doing ministry in a setting that she feels will bring us greater blessings from the Lord.

Q. Have you discussed these issues with anyone? Do you feel free to? Who can you talk to?

A. I have discussed my position with other pastors, but not in full detail.  Unfortunately, it’s difficult to discuss this type of thing in full detail without there being some type of backlash.  I drop a few seeds here and there, but even that gets you labeled as having a rebellious mind.

Q. What is keeping you in the SDA ministry right now?

A. My work is not quite done so until that time I will remain in the Adventist church.

Q. What are some things you do to stay sane and avoid having to teach doctrines you don’t believe in?

A. If there is a doctrine that I don’t believe in that has to be preached or taught I usually bring in a speaker who will teach the doctrine so that I don’t have to preach or teach what I don’t believe.  This approach has not been a problem for me as of yet.

Q. Describe the emotional tension that you live with.

A. Emotionally it saddens me when I hear the work-based approach that many of my members subscribe to. I wish that I could show them the difference between the gospel of Jesus Christ and the Adventist message, but I know that if I start to expose the SDA message then the gospel won’t be received in the right spirit.

Q. What are you looking forward to (beyond Adventism)?

A. I’m looking forward to pastoring a congregation where I can preach and teach the pure and undefiled gospel of Jesus Christ without having to worry about it coming back to haunt me or being labeled as rebellious by others.  I am looking forward to leading people who feel free to express their love for Jesus during the weekly worship service.  I look at my congregation from week to week and they have no joy in Jesus.  They look like they are in bondage and the truth is they are in bondage to what Paul calls ANOTHER gospel.

Q. How do you think friends, family, ministry supervisors, colleagues and congregation will receive your resignation?

A. I think it will be a shock to those in the Adventist community because it’s hard for SDA’s to believe that anybody would leave because of the message.  The message seems so solid so it can’t be the message, it has to be something more than that.

Q. Do you feel pressure from anyone to leave or stay?

A. I don’t feel any pressure to leave or stay.  I have a wonderful congregation and I feel bad that I will eventually leave them, but hopefully I will have sowed enough of the gospel seed before I leave that it will take root and sprout in my absence and those who I have taught the true gospel message will continue the work.

March 15, 2010

Dear Elder Caviness,

It is with careful consideration that I submit my letter of resignation as Interim Pastor/Associate Pastor in the Southern California Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, effective March 31, 2010.

Though I’ve witnessed and experienced my share of challenges with leadership, I assure you that this decision is not the result of any disagreement or ill treatment from the membership or the leadership. My reason for resigning is simply this: God is calling me to preach and teach the unadulterated Gospel found solely in Scripture rather than the Gospel, plus Ellen G. White and the SDA doctrines (in effect, what Galatians 1 calls “another gospel”).

I can no longer agree to preach or teach the doctrines of the Seventh-day Adventist Church or, through my silence, imply that I agree with them. But allow me to be plain and specific. Because I have been a student of the Word and been sensitive to the Lord’s leading and teaching, I no longer believe that Scripture supports:

• The Mission of the Church (3 Angels’ Messages)
• The SDA Church is the remnant church (Fundamental Belief #13)
• Investigative Judgment/Pre-Advent Judgment (Fundamental Belief #24)
• Ellen G. White is a messenger of God (Fundamental Belief #18)
• Sabbath is the seal of God
• The Great Controversy worldview (Fundamental Belief #8)

Although not exhaustive, the above list represents ample reasons for me to tender my resignation. I will minister with integrity. I trust that my work performance and Christian leadership has been indicative of the work that the Holy Spirit has birthed in my life. I hope you will not ask me to defend my decision to follow Jesus Christ (and Him alone) and trust Him completely to be the Way, the Truth and the Life.

I have appreciated my time spent ministering in this conference and thank you for the trust you’ve placed in my leadership these last three years. You can count on my full cooperation to ensure a smooth transition.

For His Glory,

Pastor Benjamin T. McPhaull

cc:
Elder Adolphus Garnett
GLAR Region Director