HOME / PROCLAMATION! MAGAZINE / 2013 / SUMMER / THE LIFE AFTER WITH CHRIS LEE
S U M M E R • 2 0 1 3
VOLUME 14, ISSUE 2
D E P A R T M E N T S
The life AFTER with Chris Lee
When does it
Typically I write this column to those who are already living the life after Adventism. However, this time I’d like to address those who haven’t yet taken that step. Colleen’s piece on the 150th anniversary of the Seventh-day Adventist General Conference started me thinking. The question that keeps reverberating through my mind is, “When does it end?” The question isn’t in reference to the Adventist organization; I don’t expect Adventism to become extinct this side of Heaven. The question is a very personal one.
When I first started to question aspects of Adventism, I began to dialogue with friends and family, often asking, “Where is that in the Bible?” In reference to Adventist practices, friends and family would frequently answer, “That’s just the way it is. There are some things you just do.” The extended discussion made it clear that many practices were mainly about conforming to the expectations of Adventist culture. When it came to doctrinal beliefs, I heard repeatedly, “You need to talk to Pastor 'Smith’ or Professor 'Jones’. They really understand this stuff, and I’m sure they can explain it to you.” Even though the people I was talking with could rarely defend Adventist beliefs, they were convinced those beliefs must be right because a lot of smart people said so.
The problem was, people in leadership didn’t have satisfying answers, either. At that level I usually received responses that went something like, “I personally don’t really emphasize that doctrine, and I don’t think The Church really teaches it much anymore. I think maybe we need to look at that one a little differently. If you look at it like this…” They would then go on to basically defend the Adventist distinctive in question by slightly redefining it, all the while downplaying it. It was rarely a biblical defense, but rather a type of dissembling rationalization. Rather than defending Adventist beliefs, I had one pastor tell me I could be a good Adventist without those beliefs, as long as I kept it quiet and didn’t serve in any visible roles. In effect, he invited me to remain in his congregation as a second class citizen, barred from full participation.
The theme that came through from both lay Adventists and leadership was that belonging to the group was preeminent. It didn’t matter so much if you understood, could defend, or even agreed with SDA beliefs as long as you acquiesced to the group and went along. I saw this attitude playing out in my generation. So many of my adult friends were quietly living a non-Adventist lifestyle, all the while hiding it from their aging parents and other church members. Many of us were living double lives and unintentionally teaching our children to do so as well.
I kept asking myself, “When does it end? At what point do you stand up and say, 'Enough! No more lies. It ends here.’?” I decided I had reached that point. I wanted something better for my kids. I wanted them to have a relationship with Jesus instead of just a membership in a group. Instead of fear, shame, and pressured conformance, I wanted them to experience joy and freedom in Christ. But I didn’t just leave for my kids. Leaving was an act of obedience to the leading of the Spirit. I left my culture so I could fully embrace my Savior.
It’s been 150 years of lies, deceit, legalism, and bondage to unbiblical beliefs. So I ask you, when does it end for you and for your descendants? When is enough, enough? When are you going to begin living the life Jesus is offering in Him?
When are you going to begin the life after? †
Copyright 2013 Life Assurance Ministries, Inc., Casa Grande, Arizona, USA. All rights reserved. Revised July 10, 2013. Contact email: proclamation@gmail.com
Chris Lee lives in Lincoln, Nebraska with his wife, Carmen, and daughters, Ashlyn and Alyssa. They attend the Lincoln Berean Church. Chris is a self-described "theology junkie" whose mission is to proclaim the unfathomable grace of Christ in a clear, understandable, and Biblical way. Chris is the editor of the Proclamation! Blog at ProclamationMagazine.com. You may contact Chris by email at ambulater@gmail.com.
