Our
Pastor's Message
So,
where did Seventh-day Adventists come from anyway?
by:
Pastor Dan M. Appel
At the turn of the 18th to 19th centuries
a great religious awakening swept Europe and the Americas.
It is known, historically, as the Second Great Awakening.
It is an amazing forgotten chapter in world history.
The period immediately preceding
this time was one of the most secular and decadent
this world has ever known. There were large areas
of the so called civilized world that could not fairly
even be called Christian. Then, a great religious
revival broke out and spread across Europe and North
America. Millions accepted Jesus Christ as their personal
Savior and became active committed Christians. Missionary
movements sprang up and sent the cream of society
to the ends of the world carrying the gospel. In the
British Isles, especially in Wales and Scotland, the
change was so dramatic that in places the police had
no work other than directing traffic at religious
rallies. Pubs and taverns closed for lack of clientele.
In the United States, parts of the frontier which
were more pagan (speaking not of the indigenous population,
but of the white settlers) than many parts of the
world to which missionaries were being sent suddenly
were swept with religious fervor. In major cities
so many people were attending lunch time prayer meetings
that the commercial centers would shut down during
the lunch hour because there were no customers.
As part of this revival, a renewed
interest in Bible Prophecy sprang up. A major part
of that focus centered on the soon coming of Jesus
back to this world. Study of the prophecies led a
majority of the clergy of the Church of England to
passionately proclaim that Jesus was coming soon.
An even larger proportion of the other Christian church
pastors in England, the so called "non-conformists,"
advocated the same belief. In the United States, a
similar idea swept the religious world. Over 200 of
the leading Presbyterian, Baptist, Congregational,
Episcopalian and Methodist pastors in America challenged
the world to take note of the fact that Jesus was
coming soon. Prominent Roman Catholic clergy joined
in support - calling the faithful to get ready for
Jesus soon return.
One of the leaders in this "Advent
Movement" was a New England farmer by the name of
William Miller. His study of the Bible's prophecies
led him to the conclusion that Jesus would return
in the year 1844. Scholars estimate that well over
100,000 people in the United States alone (which at
the time had a population of less than 18 million,
fervently believed that Jesus would come in 1844.
When Jesus did not return in 1844, the movement melted
away and to a very large degree the larger revival
that had been occurring died with it.
Out of this time of Great Disappointment,
several indigenous religious movements sprang up.
One of these was the Seventh-day Adventist Church.
Rejecting the Millerite idea that the Bible contained
prophecies that pinpointed the specific time of Jesus'
return to planet earth, they none-the-less believed
that the clear message of scripture is that He is
coming soon! As they began to proclaim this powerful
life changing message of hope for all of humanity,
their common dream led them to join forces in what
would eventually become the Seventh-day Adventist
Church.
If you would like to learn more
about the Seventh-day Adventist Church, we'd like
to tell you about our dream that Jesus is indeed coming
soon. Every one of our services celebrates that hope.
We'd love to have you join us in
that celebration. We'd also be happy to answer any
questions you might have - either by e-mail or in
person. I would also like to invite you to drop by
this page on our web site for the next several weeks
as I continue to share what we believe. I think that
you will find it both informative and interesting
and I would be happy to dialogue with you about anything
you read.
How
do I send this message to a friend?
In Netscape - click
"File." Then "Send File."
In Internet Explorer - click
"File," then "Send," then "Page
by E-mail" or "Link by E-mail."
E-mail to Pastor
Dan
Archive
|
