No Other Foundation
How the Sanctuary Doctrine of Adventism Stands
on the Truth of the Father and His Son
1 Cor 3:11 For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
Matt 16:16-18 And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
1 Cor 10:4 And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.
John 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
Col 2:2,3 That their hearts might be comforted, being knit together in love, and unto all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the acknowledgement of the mystery of God, and of the Father, and of Christ; In whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
1 Pet 2:7,8 Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner, And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed.
A careful study of Scripture brings us to the conclusion that all truth is centred in the person of Jesus. The logical consequence of this fact is that to hold or believe any false teaching creates a falsehood about the identity and person of Christ. We need to underscore this point, so let me bold and centre it for you.
To hold or believe any false teaching creates a falsehood about the identity and person of Christ.
“Christ, His character and work, is the center and circumference of all truth. He is the chain upon which the jewels of doctrine are linked. In Him is found the complete system of truth.” OHC 16
All doctrine is linked together in Christ. One false doctrine undetected must set in motion a process that will eventually change the identity of Christ.
A Solid Foundation
The development of the Adventist faith into a body of truth could only occur upon a correct identification of the person of Christ. To be able to build a complete system of truth upon a wrong conception of Christ is impossible otherwise He is not the centre and circumference of truth, but only one module of many that can be fitted together. Again this point must be made clear.
To be able to build a complete system of truth upon a wrong conception of Christ is impossible
A correct perception of the Sabbath, State of the Dead, Sanctuary, Investigative Judgment, Second Coming, the Millennium and New Earth could only be built upon a correct identification of the person of Jesus. This fact is clearly understood by the analogy of building a house. The foundation must be laid correctly first before the house can be erected. If the foundation stone chosen is the wrong dimensions and has wrong angles in it, the whole building project will be a disaster. This simple fact has appeared to be overlooked by the Adventist Church today. Our Church seems to believe that you can build a house on a faulty foundation and then change the foundations later on as a natural method of house building.[1]
The Bible tells us that God is not the author of confusion and that He does things decently and in order. (1 Cor 14:33,40) If the Adventist Trinity is correct then God has required us to change the foundation stone laid in the beginning, but we do not find this method of building in the Scriptures.
The wise man built his house upon the rock, but our leaders now want us to believe that we built it on a very dangerous belief, that will in fact cause the loss of salvation![2]
This is a fantastic claim that must be clearly understood. Our church claims that our forefathers ignorantly laid a poisonous corner stone that would kill us all and that later wiser leadership would have to correct this most terrible situation! Where in Biblical history do we ever find the second generation after the death of a prophet advancing in light and knowledge? But is this not the claims of our church today? Do we not claim that the advent of modern educational advancement allowed us to read the writings of the Bible and the prophet in a way to correct this poisonous mistake! How wonderful is modern scholarship to discern the carefully laid hints of the prophet to guide us out of the abyss of so called Arianism! The breath and length of these claims defies the imagination. But this is indeed what we are being asked to believe.
The foundations of Adventism
The discovery of the true identity of Jesus is directly linked to our measuring of the temple of God. The disappointment of Adventism and its discovery of the Sanctuary are clearly outlined in Rev 10:10,11 and Rev 11:1,2
Rev 10:10,11 And I took the little book out of the angel's hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet as honey: and as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter. And he said unto me, Thou must prophesy again before many peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings.
Rev 11:1,2 And there was given me a reed like unto a rod: and the angel stood, saying, Rise, and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein. But the court which is without the temple leave out, and measure it not; for it is given unto the Gentiles: and the holy city shall they tread under foot forty and two months.
The eating of the little book is the book of Daniel and the sweetness was the discovery of the conclusion of the 2300 days in Daniel 8. The bitterness came from the wrong understanding of the cleansing of the Sanctuary. Miller and others interpreted this as the Second Coming. He placed the date correctly, but misunderstood the meaning of its cleansing.
This is where a wrong perception of Christ did not allow Miller to penetrate the meaning of the sanctuary’s cleansing. Miller was a Trinitarian and his spiritual views of the term Son of God could not allow him to open the door into the heavenly sanctuary. It is only through an understanding of the literal Sonship of Jesus could the door into the Most Holy be opened. Again, note it carefully
It is only through an understanding of the literal Sonship of Jesus could the door into the Most Holy be opened
Notice carefully the observations of James White
Our position is, that a change has taken place in the position and work of our literal High Priest in the literal Sanctuary in heaven, which is to be compared to the coming of the bridegroom in the marriage. This view is a perfect safeguard against spiritualism. We not only believe in a literal Jesus, who is a "Minister of the Sanctuary," but we also believe that the Sanctuary is literal. - And more, when John says that he saw "one like the Son of man" "in the midst of the seven candlesticks," that is, in the Holy Place, we know not how to make the candlestick spiritual, and the Son of man literal. We therefore believe that both are literal, and that John saw Jesus while a "Minister" in the Holy Place. John also had a view of another part of the Sanctuary, which view applies to the time of the sounding of the seventh angel.
…The Most Holy, containing the Ark of the ten commandments, was then opened for our Great High Priest to enter to make atonement for the cleansing of the Sanctuary. If we take the liberty to say there is not a literal Ark, containing the ten commandments in heaven, we may go only a step further and deny the literal City, and the literal Son of God. Certainly, Adventists should not choose the spiritual view, rather than the one we have presented. We see no middle ground to be taken. – The Parable Page 16
As I read the above statement, I am forced to stop and weep for joy. WHAT A GIFT God has given us in the person of James White and this statement! When I get to heaven I am going to grab this man and hug him and hold him tight and greet him with a holy kiss.
Here is the secret to our entry into the Most Holy Place. It is based on an identification of Jesus as the literal Son of God. Read it again carefully
we know not how to make the candlestick spiritual, and the Son of man literal. We therefore believe that both are literal, and that John saw Jesus while a "Minister" in the Holy Place.
Our pioneers measured the temple of God and found the WAY into the Most Holy. Let us remember that a measuring of the Sanctuary is a measuring of the person of Christ.
Psa 77:13 Thy way, O God, is in the sanctuary: who is so great a God as our God?
Joh 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
Jesus is God’s WAY. In the measurement of the temple after the disappointment of Oct 22 1844 – Adventism found the real Jesus and they found Him in heaven though the means of a literal understanding. This literal understanding was the key that was handed to them through the gift of William Miller’s rules. Though Miller never fully penetrated the significance of his rules, our Adventist Pioneers did. This is why we must understand that…
“The scripture which above all others had been both the foundation and the central pillar of the advent faith was the declaration: "Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.” Daniel 8:14. GC 409
The whole of chapter 23 of Great Controversy outlines the history of how God’s people had a door opened for them into the Most Holy. It came by means of measuring the temple and finding the true Son of God. Notice carefully the words of the prophet concerning our pillars…
“After the passing of the time in 1844 we searched for the truth as for hidden treasure. I met with the brethren, and we studied and prayed earnestly. Often we remained together until late at night, and sometimes through the entire night, praying for light and studying the Word. Again and again these brethren came together to study the Bible, in order that they might know its meaning, and be prepared to teach it with power. When they came to the point in their study where they said, "We can do nothing more," the Spirit of the Lord would come upon me. I would be taken off in vision, and a clear explanation of the passages we had been studying would be given me, with instruction as to how we were to labor and teach effectively. Thus light was given that helped us to understand the Scriptures in regard to Christ, his mission, and his priesthood. A line of truth extending from that time to the time when we shall enter the city of God, was made plain to me, and I gave to others the instruction that the Lord had given me.” RH, May 25, 1905 par. 24
“Those who seek to remove the old landmarks are not holding fast; they are not remembering how they have received and heard. Those who try to bring in theories that would remove the pillars of our faith concerning the sanctuary or concerning the personality of God or of Christ, are working as blind men. They are seeking to bring in uncertainties and to set the people of God adrift without an anchor.” MR760 9.5
Here is a definitive statement that light was given to the pioneers regarding Christ, his mission and His priesthood. They are labeled as old landmarks and pillars and notice carefully the linking of the sanctuary and the personality of God and Christ. This is our anchor. But our Adventist scholarship must certainly deny this. The logic of our current position in the church is that our pioneers dragged in their false beliefs concerning Christ and we all had to suffer the consequences for over 100 years.
Why is it not understood that there is a reason why Adventism is the only group on earth that received a clear conception of a literal heavenly Sanctuary? The reason why we have this view is because we followed the literal Son into the Most Holy Place. If the Son is literal then we know not how to make the ark spiritual. Christ and the Sanctuary stand or fall together. If Christ is not literally the Son of God, then the foundations for a literal sanctuary in heaven have been smashed. Look and see! Has our sanctuary doctrine been undermined? Do we now speak of phases instead of apartments? Is there a wholesale denial of the events of the investigate judgment? Do we shake our heads in despair without understanding? Are we happy to conclude it is the stupidity of people that causes this sequence of events? NO! A denial of the literal Son of God MUST of necessity destroy the foundation of the Sanctuary in heaven which flows onto an erosion of a literal investigation; a literal law and literal victory over sin. All must stand and fall together and all are linked to the literal Son of God, for He is the WAY into the Most Holy – His very identity as the Son of God is the Door to understanding.
I stand with James White when he says:
If we take the liberty to say there is not a literal Ark, containing the ten commandments in heaven, we may go only a step further and deny the literal City, and the literal Son of God. Certainly, Adventists should not choose the spiritual view, rather than the one we have presented. We see no middle ground to be taken
By its very definition, the Trinity denies us the right to believe that the Son of God is literal. It demands of us a belief that the Son of God is spiritual, an application, a working title but not His true identity. And such a belief shuts the door into the Most Holy and locks us out of the wedding feast! A belief that Jesus is not truly the Son of God places us in the greatest danger of being numbered with the foolish virgins or worse!
Again I appeal to our people, come back to the solid platform, come back to the light of the Son of God and find an open door into the Most Holy. God laid a sure corner stone in Adventism and provided a firm platform to grow into the 1888 message. I am not ashamed of this cornerstone. I will stand upon it with joy for it is a precious stone, my rock and my salvation.
[1]Many people appeal to the experience of Protestantism coming out of darkness. But God never built a church in the dark ages upon the pillars of the Trinity and Immortality of the soul. Such a foundation would only ever create daughters for Babylon and a name was claimed life but was dead. God did not build a foundation in the dark ages, but a window for His people to escape the grip of Rome.
[2]“What do we forfeit if God is only one Person? For one, Christ could not be our Savior. It took the Holy Spirit to bring Christ to Mary. It took the Father to answer Christ’s prayers and give Him needed help. That’s how important the Trinity is to us. Our eternal life depends upon this truth.” Adventist World Magazine - February 2010 Issue - Page 30 par. 2
