Aunty, do Adventists share “one Lord, one faith, one baptism” with other Christians?
18 November 2024 |
Dear Aunt Sevvy,
Ephesians 4:4-6 says that “There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.”
I’ve rarely heard that acknowledged by Adventists. We seldom even recognize other churches as fellow Christians, much less cooperate with them. What gives?
Signed, Christian More Than Adventist
Dear Christian,
One of the great scandals in Christianity is exclusivism: churches that believe they’re the only ones who are right with God, and everyone else is wrong. Groups with this attitude build walls around themselves. They don’t mix with others. They make small things into big divisions. They don’t even know how to talk to others as fellow human beings and fellow citizens.
We Adventists fall into this category. How many of us have no real friends outside of our church, and little interest in them other than to convert them?
Our pioneers made two concessions to other Christians: we let them take communion with us, and we recognize (albeit sometimes reluctantly) their baptism by immersion in other churches.
But those are small things when we refuse to fellowship with them in any other way—to transfer membership with them, to worship in their churches with them, or (a few of us) to even admit they are fellow Christians. Our leaders stridently reject ecumenism. They tell us not to read the writings of other Christians. (The same isn’t said of the hymns and gospel music of other Christians, happily.) We call ourselves not just “the remnant” but “the only true church.”
If Paul is telling the truth in Ephesians 4, then how can we make such claims?
Aunty loves her church—but she doesn’t say hers is the only Christian church, nor look down on other churches. We have the most important thing in common with all Christians—including even Roman Catholics: Jesus.
Aunt Sevvy
Aunt Sevvy has collected her answers into a book! You can get it from Amazon by clicking here.
You can write to Aunt Sevvy at DearAuntSevvy@gmail.com. Your real identity will never be revealed.
