Adventists with non-believers?

[Igakusei]

If you are asking questions about what Seventh-day Adventists believe, then you need to be prepared to accept the answers and not argue with them.

I feel like pointing out that when you have asked me questions about evolution, you do the furthest thing from accepting the answers and not arguing with them.

The difference between abiogenesis and evolution, for instance.

[Dr. Shane]

I feel like pointing out that when you have asked me questions about evolution...

I do not believe I have ever asked you about evolution. If I were to ask you a question about it, I would not argue with you when you answered.

[CoAspen]

I would have to apologize fro some of the impressions you might get from answers posted here. First of all, SDA's do not teach that you are going to hell if you marry a non-SDA, as been highly suggested. Salvation is an individual choice and not all in one. To suggest such is a scare tactic. God is not going to destroy a person based on marriage choice. You also have the right to ask and question anyone's belief. If a person can not explain why they believe in something, well I might seriously question just what they do believe in. We, as SDA's, do not believe just because a none SDA asked questions, we can say 'just accept it'. You are also correct in pointing out what the quotes given you are about, In the OT, Israel mixing with heathen and mingling in their beliefs and idol worship. I would hardly cast you as a heathen. Even in the NT, it was much about the same, mixing of beliefs system and still claiming to be followers of Christ when the mixed beliefs were totally opposite. Again it is always the individual choice.

Still, there are some good reasons for not marrying someone that is not compatible....in many areas. Any marriage counselor would put up warning signs about differences of religion as well as a host of other reasons. Money, education, cultural, families, personalities, etc, etc. As to which is the most important, I would let you decide as you can find the statistics posted on the web.

The question is, do you or her, want to become involved in a relationship that does not have the most positives going for it. It will change over time and what is not an issue in the beginning could well become one.

[Dr. Shane]

SDA's do not teach that you are going to hell if you marry a non-SDA,

CoAspen: Do you have experience with the Adventist church in eastern Europe? Our pastor is Romanian and from what he tells, Adventism is very conservative in eastern Europe. Please don't let your experience in one of the most liberal divisions in the world allow you to speculate how Adventists in Eastern Europe believe. You do no one a favor that way.

This isn't a political game of gotcha or who is right and wrong. We are discussing a topic here with an atheist that wants to marry a girl from the Adventist movement. Intermarriage is why Israel was taken into captivity on two occasions. Ellen White made it crystal clear that it is against the will of God. Let's not play games with people's lives and eternal futures here.

[Dr. Shane]

Here is an old article from 1994.

Marrying non-Adventists

[John317]

Joseph Smith was murdered by a mob in 1844 in Nauvoo, Illinois. Latter Day Saints believe he was martyred for his unwavering conviction that God revealed himself through golden tablets that Smith had discovered in 1830.

Even the LDS know that Joseph Smith was arrested for having his followers destroy a printing press which published a news story about his affairs with different women. After his arrest, while he was in his cell, someone shot him through the window of the jail. He wasn't killed because of the tablets.

There's no evidence of that whatsoever. He was arrested for destroying property-- i.e., the printing press.

Wikipedia--

Quote:

In early 1844, he announced his candidacy for President of the United States. That summer, after the Nauvoo Expositor criticized Smith's practice of polgyamy, the Nauvoo City Council ordered the paper's destruction. During the ensuing turmoil, Smith first declared martial law and then surrendered to the governor of Illinois. Although the governor promised his safety, Smith was murdered while awaiting trial in Carthage, Illinois.

[gluck3d]

Here is an old article from 1994.

Marrying non-Adventists

[CoAspen]

Quote:

Let's not play games with people's lives and eternal futures here.

Very good comment! Follow it. You made the suggestion, inferring that is what EGW was saying. Do not let your bias get in the way of truth. Your words were condemning, I would rather give the person asking questions an alternative view of God.

Again, The SDA Church does not teach that a person is eternally damned for being married or marrying a non-SDA! We are not a cult.

I have not a clue as to why the red herring of politics or liberalism is being brought up. What does your Romanian pastor have to do with conservative attitudes of EU? I see the questions being brought up by this individual as an opportunity to shine the light on God rather than human condemnation.

[Pockey]

My Mom is SDA and my Dad was Buddhist. He converted to SDA and has been a believer since for many years and they're still married. So it can work out, and God works miracles in many amazing ways. I wouldn't be born if it didn't happen so I'm grateful.

But something Shane said really stuck out, about not depriving her of something very special, which is to have Christ as the center of the relationship.

If you really want to win her heart, study hard the beliefs of the SDA church and the Bible (http://www.adventist.org/beliefs/fundamental/index.html) Perhaps she is on to something real and you may be surprised what you discover Or maybe you can study together even!

[John317]

Hey Sid, that's wonderful to hear. I'm glad you posted this about your mom and dad.

You're so right that God brings so much beauty out of our mistakes. There's a verse in the Bible about God exchanging beauty for ashes.

When I first married my wife, she was Roman Catholic, and I used to take her to Mass. She would light candles, and pray for her dead loved ones. At first I wasn't living as a Christian, even though I had been baptized long before.

She's been a very enthusiastic SDA now since 1992, and we have two beautiful daughters who are also Seventh-day Adventists. My wife became a Seventh-day Adventist by her own choice after reading magazines and book, including the Bible, that I left around the house. I was praying all the time for her, that the Holy Spirit would speak to her heart though those books, and He sure did. No doubt about it.

Now my wife is reaching out with Bible truth to her Catholic sisters and brothers. It is marvellous to see God working.

[John317]

Again, The SDA Church does not teach that a person is eternally damned for being married or marrying a non-SDA! We are not a cult.

No one said that people are eternally damned for being married or marrying a non-SDA. I think you're misunderstanding what Shane wrote. The point is that it can be spiritually dangerous for an SDA to marry someone who's not SDA.

The Bible and Ellen White do teach that it is best for an SDA to marry within the same faith. I personally have seen people who marry outside their faith leave the church and Christ, so I know it can be dangerous for an SDA to marry a non-SDA.

[Dr. Shane]

I have not a clue as to why the red herring of politics or liberalism is being brought up.

The terms liberal and conservative are not strictly political terms. These adjectives often are used outside of political discussions. My use was in a religious - not political context. I was asking if you have some working knowledge of Adventism in Eastern Europe. Have you lived there? Did you study there? Have you hosted a foreign student from there? From what I understand, Adventism is much more conservative in Eastern Europe than in North America so the comments you made would not be applicable.

[Dr. Shane]

I think you're misunderstanding what Shane wrote. The point is that it can be spiritually dangerous for an SDA to marry someone who's not SDA.

Certainly marrying an unbeliever will not condemn a person to hell or ban them from heaven. I think the point Sister White makes is that the influence of the marriage partner is so great, that our decision to go to heaven or hell can often be traced back to the day we chose our spouse.

I think it is similar to choosing a career. For many people, their career can be traced back to the day they chose their college major. Certainly some people major in one discipline and later have a career in a different discipline but that is the exception rather than the rule.

Part of a husband's role in a marriage is to provide spiritual leadership for the home. The unbelieving husband will not be able to fulfill that role. The Adventist girl that marries an unbeliever sells herself at a cheap market. She is settling for less. She isn't getting the full package with all the whistles, bells and benefits. How are her Sabbaths going to be enjoyed? Who is going to be in charge of family worship? Amos' question is left unanswered, "How can two walk together unless they be agreed?" Perhaps they can, but it is very rough and often very cold. Who wants to be part of a rough and cold marriage?

[Dr. Shane]

My Mom is SDA and my Dad was Buddhist. He converted to SDA and has been a believer since for many years and they're still married. So it can work out...

An Adventist spouse can have an influence on a non-Adventist spouse and win them to Christ. The Apostle Paul even makes reference to that happening. Yet many Adventist pastors can testify that is the exception rather than the rule. The Apostle Paul tells the woman who converts without her husband also converting that she is no under no obligation to divorce. However he never advises marrying an unbeliever as a means to convert them.

My mother married five non-Adventist men and not one of them converted. Her husbands were respectful of her religion in that they never asked her to cook unclean meat, never watched television or went shopping on Sabbath and never made fun or belittled her for her faith. I have known other non-believing husbands that were not so kind as many Adventist pastors can tell us about.

[Pockey]

Thanks John, I'm glad to hear about your wife and daughters.

[John317]

Certainly marrying an unbeliever will not condemn a person to hell or ban them from heaven. I think the point Sister White makes is that the influence of the marriage partner is so great, that our decision to go to heaven or hell can often be traced back to the day we chose our spouse.

[BobRyan]

The Bible forbids forming a marriage between a Christian and non-Christian. One obvious reason is that it is the perfect way to create strife in the home when it comes to providing a consistent model for children. Given that 50% of marriages already end up in trouble - there is little reason to go down that road.

Now I have a proposition for you - since you have every incentive in the world to give this young woman's world view a serious "once over" before tossing it out the window - why not take a look at the example of fellow atheists who have decided to embrace Christianity after they reviewed the evidence?

Why not at least be informed as to their own witness and testimony?

[Igakusei]

I'm pretty sure he's heard Pascal's wager before, Bob.

As for the universe being fine-tuned for life, it's not. If the observable universe were the size of an average house, life would be able to exist in a region smaller than the size of a proton. If I were designing a universe for life, I think I could do a better job than that!

[Dr. Shane]

I'm pretty sure he's heard Pascal's wager

[Igakusei]

Can you choose to believe the sky is green? Can you choose to believe that interstellar space is filled with trillions of pink unicorns?

When you're convinced that something is wrong, you can't simply choose to believe it. And even if I could, why would I want to believe in something I knew was wrong? If God is real, you don't think he'd be able to see through that?

[Dr. Shane]

When you're convinced that something is wrong, you can't simply choose to believe it.

You can when it comes to God. I have seen it happen. Scores of times. That is up to each individual. We decide if we believe in God or not. It is not fate. It is an individual decision that each person makes for themselves.

[olger]

If your wife is committed to God/Jesus and you are not, your lives won't mesh together very well. You will also automatically forfeit 33% of intimacy in the marriage. Not a good formula for long-term happiness, friend.

Blessings,

`oG