Some of us were taught that a real Adventist could be spotted by what was missing from the plate and the earlobes.
That picture was always too small. Our church now counts about 24.4 million members in 212 countries, working in 420 languages. A real Adventist might be a grandmother in Nairobi, a nurse in Manila, a student in São Paulo, or a tired dad in a pew in Ohio. They do not all eat the same lunch. They do not all keep Sabbath afternoon the same way.
So who sets the standard? Our own church answers that question. The 28 Fundamental Beliefs open by calling the Bible our “only creed.” The statements themselves expect revision when the church is led by the Holy Spirit to “a fuller understanding of Bible truth.” Our own statement of faith admits it is still learning.
Belief 22 calls us to healthy living, and many of us love a good veggie roast. Yet nowhere in the 28 does it say a meat eater cannot belong. When people are baptized, the vows begin with faith in the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and with the death of Jesus on Calvary for our sins.
That is where membership starts. The church did not put a dress code or a casserole recipe at the front of the line.
We can keep our traditions and still hold them loosely. Before we size up whether someone looks Adventist enough, we might ask whether we are looking at Jesus. He alone decides who belongs to Him, and His welcome is wider than ours.
Photo: “TED Pathfinder Camporee 2023 1” (closing service, Sopron, Hungary) by Tor Tjeransen, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Cropped, colour boosted, text and colour blocks added. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:TED_Pathfinder_Camporee_2023_1.jpg
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