54
Discussion questions:
1, What kind of “serenity” :
should characterize church life—
‘and what kind should not?
2. What kinds of contro-
| yersy, agitation, and differences
of opinion should and should not
_ bepartof church life? :
3. In TY osmones. for the
Church, volume 5, pages 706
- 707, Ellen White warned that as
spiritual life declines, people be-
come conservative. What did she
mean!
4 Wha kind
difference?
1. Who holds authori in he
~ church? What kind of authority |
do they hold? Over what areas of
church life? Who decides the :
church’s doctrines?
~~ 8. Whatroleand authority do
Ellen White's writings have in in-
terpreting Scripture?
9. How would you apply’ ove
God supremely and your neighbor
as yourself” to church unity?
10. Should the church teach
different doctrines to people of
different cultures in order to win
as many as possible? oo
11. Whatdo you see as consti-
_ tuting the essential core of Ad-
_ ventism, and where would you
draw the outer limits beyond
which no Adventist should go?
What support can you give for the
positions you have taken?
12. Is everything the church
believes ultimately up for discus-
sion and acceprance or rejection
by the church as a body?
13. Does the church need
both conservatives and liberals?
MINISTRY/FEBRUARY/1988
of control
should the church retain over
‘what those teaching i in its schools
are presenting in the classrooms?
5. Whatis present ¢ truch now!
Why doyousayso?
6. How important to church
unity is having similar views of
scriptural passages! Is there a dif-
ference in importance between
“viewing every text of Scripture
in the same light” and agreeingon
major passages or biblical doc-
trines? How would you define that :
about the Sabbath to the pioneers. The
debate on the precise meaning of the
sanctuary will be lively and ongoing, an
event taking place between the two cir-
cles, but the doctrine is firmly rooted in
the core, illuminating “the command-
ments of God, and the faith of Jesus.”
In every age the core must be rela-
tively simple if it is to meet the needs of
the world. And even the core will al-
ways include strands that extend out
into the discussable area. The church
must accept as an ongoing task the de-
fining of the limits set by the inner and
outer circles.
The Jerusalem conference of Acts 15
offers a fine biblical model of the defining
process at work. After lively debate, the
council placed circumcision, one of Ju-
daism’s core practices, in Christianity’s
optional category.
That same conference placed the pro-
hibition against eating food offered to
idols in the center core. But 1 Corin-
thians 8 shows Paul pushing the issue out
of the core into the discussable area. In
Western countries of our day the issue
has become completely moot. When was
the last time you saw an Adventist check
a label at the grocery store to see if the
food was offered to idols? Times have
changed; the issues have changed; the
church has changed.
That is why the church must continu-
ally be aware of its world and be about the
task of defining and redefining its limits.
It will be a constant struggle, for liberals
and conservatives demonstrate opposite
tendencies. Conservatives struggle with
diversity, and may want to push the inner
circle all the way to the outer limit—
until there is only one circle, not two.
Liberals, on the other hand, are inclined
to push the outer limits until they disap-
pear—at which point the church ceases
to be a church. A community of any kind
needs boundaries. A community of be-
lievers is hardly an exception.
To be effective, the church will need
to strike a balance between the conserva-
tives and the liberals. With full sympathy
for all and in full awareness of the needs
of the world, the church must set the
limits for its two circles—its core beliefs
and its outer limits.
So how does the church go about de-
fining its two circles? Through individual
and corporate study, through thoughtful
discussion and prayer, through the guid-
ance of the Spirit. Acts 15 shows us the
way. From within our own heritage, El-
len White's counsel throughout the 1888
controversy underscores the need for
coming together in the Lord, caring for
each other, praying for each other, ear-
nestly searching for a clearer understand-
ing of the Lord’s will.
In conclusion, it would be appropriate
to cite a paragraph from Counsels to Par-
ents and Teachers outlining Ellen White's
view of how unity is established. After
writing of the necessity of diversity
among Bible teachers, she counsels: “It
would greatly benefit our schools if regu-
lar meetings were held frequently in
which all the teachers could unite in the
study of the Word of God. They should
search the Scriptures as did the noble
Bereans. They should subordinate all
preconceived opinions, and taking the
Bible as their lesson book, comparing
scripture with scripture, they should
learn what to teach their students, and
how to train them for acceptable
service.” **
That is a model for the church. Our
discussions may be lively, our arguments
intense, but if our devotional experience
is equally lively and intense, the Spirit
will fulfill Jesus’ prayer of John 17 —we
will be one in Him. |
'E. G. White, in General Conference Bulletin,
Apr. 3, 1901, p. 25.
, Testimonies (Mountain View, Calif.:
Pacific Press Pub. Assn., 1948), vol. 5, p. 706.
3 Ibid. pp. 706, 707.
+ Ibid., p. 707.
> LeRoy Froom, Movement of Destiny (Wash-
ington, D.C.: Review and Herald Pub. Assn.,
1971), pp- 253, 254.
¢ Cited from Appendix A in A. V. Olson, Thir-
teen Crisis Years (Washington, D.C.: Review and
Herald Pub. Assn., 1981), p. 282.
7 Ibid.
8 E. G. White, in Review and Herald, Mar. 11,
1890, p 146.
*Olon, p . 304.
°E.G. White manuscript 24, 1892 (included in
The Ellen G. White 1888 Materials [Washington,
D.C.: Ellen G. White Estate, 1987], vol. 3, pp.
1087-1095).
'! Olson, p. 288.
2E G. White, Testimonies to Ministers (Moun-
tain View, Calif.: Pacific Press Pub. Assn., 1944),
p. 374.
3 Ibid, pp. 106, 107.
4 Qlson, p. 300.
Ibid. p. 301.
'¢ Ibid., p. 303.
1 Ibid. b 304. (Italics supplied.)
8 Ibid.
9 E. G. White, Counsels to Parents and Teachers
{Mountain View, Calif.: Pacific Press Pub. Assn.,
1943), p. 432.
2 Ihid., pp. 432, 433.
I See Richard Schwarz, Light Bearers to the Rem-
nant (Mountain View, Calif: Pacific Press Pub.
Assn, 1979), p. 96.
2E G. White, Counsels to Writers and Editors
(Nashville: Southern Pub. Assn., 1946), p. 30.
23 , Ibid, pp- 30, 31.
, Counsels to Parents and Teachers, p.
I.