7 ‘HARD QUESTIONS’ FOR SDA DISSIDENTS!

By Derrick Gillespie

Intoduction- Several offshoot and independent groups that either broke

away from or remain on the fringes of mainstream Seventh-day Adventism
betray their denial of its historic doctrines which were gradually
developed after its early infancy or initial formative years, and yet many
of these 'dissidents' ironically claim they are staunch supporters of
"historic Adventism". The question is, are they really, or are they
simply caught up in heresy (denial of historic SDA doctrine)? It is best
they break fully from Adventism, instead of denying the undeniable.
Here are 7 'hard questions' for them to answer:

1. Do they really accept Jesus as their God (John 20:28,29), along with the Father,
since that is precisely what historic Adventism taught. If not, why not?
Here is proof of what they should be representing true Adventism as having
historically taught:

"Christ lived and died as a man, that he might be *God both of the living
and of the dead” -E.G. White, Letter 97, 1898

"The existence of *A [singular] PERSONAL GOD [note “God”, not ‘Gods’]

the *UNITY of Christ with His Father [a plurality of Persons] lies at
the foundation of ALL TRUE SCIENCE [and true religion]. From nature we
can gain only an imperfect idea of the greatness and majesty of God.
We see the working of His power and His wisdom, but He Himself is beyond
our comprehension”.
-E.G. White-Manuscript 30, Oct. 29,1904

"In His treatment of Thomas, Jesus gave a lesson for His followers. His
example shows how we should treat those whose faith is weak, and who
make their doubts prominent. Jesus did not overwhelm Thomas with reproach,
nor did He enter into controversy with him. He revealed Himself to the
doubting one. Thomas had been most unreasonable in dictating the
conditions of his faith, but Jesus, by His generous love and
consideration, broke down all the barriers. Unbelief is seldom overcome
by controversy. It is rather put upon self-defense, and finds new support
and excuse. But let Jesus, in His love and mercy, be revealed as the
crucified Saviour, and from many once unwilling lips will be heard the
acknowledgment of Thomas, "My Lord and my God."
-Desire of Ages, pg. 808

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2. Do they really accept that Jesus is 'supreme ruler', 'Sovereign', or
'Potentate' (all meaning the same) along with and just like the Father,
and that He is even identified as "the Almighty" just like the Father?
If not, why not, since that is what historic Adventism taught! Proof?

*[Commenting on Rev. 1:8, SDA pioneer Uriah Smith stated distinctly]

“Here another speaker than John is introduced. In declaring who he
is, he [the Speaker] uses two of the same characteristics ‘Alpha and
Omega’… as found in Rev. 22:13, where according to verses 12 and 16 of
that chapter [Rev. 22] it is plainly Christ who is speaking. We conclude
then, that it is Christ who is speaking in [Rev.1]*VERSE 8”
[as the 'Almighty’].

-Uriah Smith, Daniel and the Revelation, 1897,pgs. 350-351 (paperback)

[Mrs White herself quotes Rev. 1:8 and applies it to Christ by saying:
"In our warfare we have Christ's promise, "He that loveth Me shall be
loved of My Father, and I will love him, and will manifest Myself to him"
He manifested Himself to John, who had been banished by his persecutors
to the lonely isle of Patmos. But there He who rules the earth and keeps
the waters in their appointed channel, manifested Himself to John."I John,
who also am your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the
kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was in the isle that is called
Patmos, for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ. I was
in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of
a trumpet, saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last"
[Rev. 1:9-11]: "the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is,
and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty" [verse 8].
Christ manifested Himself to Peter, and delivered him from prison by he
hand of an angel. He manifested himself to Stephen, and he, "being full
of the Holy Ghost, looked up steadfastly into heaven, and saw the glory
of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God…
-EGW, Sermon and Talks, Vol. 2, pg. 113 (Manuscript 21, 195)

“The Son of God was the acknowledged *SOVEREIGN [i.e.supreme ruler or

Potentate] of Heaven, one[same] in power and authority with the Father”.
-E.G. White, Great Controversy, 1888, pg. 494

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*N.B. Both the Father and Son,‘unitedly’, is the ‘Supreme Ruler’
(i.e.“Sovereign” or Potentate) of Heaven according to SDA's leading
pioneer.

“Christ ascended to Heaven amidst a cloud of angels who glorified Him,

saying, ‘Who is this KING OF GLORY?’ And from thousands times ten
thousands the answer comes, [He Jesus is] the LORD [i.e. Jehovah], He
is the King of Glory” [see Ps. 24:7-10].
- E.G. White, Signs of the Times, May 10, 1899

“He [Jesus] is seated with his Father upon the throne of*UNIVERSAL
DOMINION and RANKS EQUALLLY WITH HIM…”
-Uriah Smith, Daniel and the Revelation, 1897, pg. 346 (paperback).

3. Do they really accept that Jesus is absolutely equal with the Father
(i.e. in all respects), despite He's functionally subject to Him as part
of God's "plan"? If not, why not, since that is precisely what historic
Adventism taught! Proof?

“Christ is a part of the Godhead, possessing all the attributes of

divinity, being the equal of the Father in *ALL respects [i.e. co-equal]
as Creator and *Lawgiver …If He lacked one iota [the smallest item] of
being equal to God [the Father] He could not bring us to Him”
-E.J. Waggoner, Christ and His righteousness,1890, page 43

[N.B. this denies all concepts of Christ’s inferiority to the Father]

“God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son – not a son
by creation, as were the angels, nor a son by adoption, as is the
forgiven sinner, but a Son begotten in the express image of the Father’s
Person, and in all the brightness of His majesty and glory, One equal
with God*IN AUTHORITY, [notice] DIGNITY [rank, office, title], and divine
perfection. In him dwelt all the fullness of the Godhead bodily”.
-E.G. White, Signs of the Times, May 30,1895

“The world’s Redeemer was equal with God. His authority was AS [to the
same amount or degree as] the authority of God… The authority by which
He spoke and wrought miracles [while on earth], was expressedly *His own,
yet He assures us that He and the Father are one… As Legislator [Lawgiver]
Jesus exercised the authority of God”.
-E.G. White, Review and Herald, Jan. 7, 1890

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4. Do they really accept that Jesus, despite "begotten", existed from
all eternity as a separate being from His Father? If not, why not,
since that is what historic Adventism taught! Proof?

"If Christ made all things He existed before all things [John 1:1-3].
The words spoken in regard to this are so decisive that no one need be
left in doubt. Christ was GOD essentially, and in the HIGHEST
[nothing-higher] sense. He was *WITH [alongside] God [the Person of the
Father] FROM [now notice]*ALL ETERNITY…”
-E.G. White- S.D.A. Bible Comm., Vol. 5, pg. 1126

“In speaking of His pre-existence Christ takes the mind back through
*DATELESS [infinite] AGES, He assures us that there never was a time
[i.e. in the ‘dateless ages’ of ‘all eternity’] when He was
not in close *FELLOWSHIP [association with another] with the eternal God.”
- Mrs. White- Evangelism, pg. 615

“From *ALL ETERNITY [Micah 5:2] Christ was united with [note ‘with’]
the Father, and when He took upon Himself human nature [and was separated
from His Father’s immediate presence], He was STILL [in the same way as
before] one with God” [i.e. existing as two distinct Beings, separate but
united for all eternity]
-E.G. White Comments- S.D.A. Bible Comm., Vol. 5, pg. 1115

“From everlasting [Micah 5:2/Psalms 93:2] He [Jesus] was the Mediator of

the Covenant [Hebrews 7:3]… was *GOD essentially and *IN THE HIGHEST
[nothing higher] SENSE… [existing] from *ALL ETERNITY GOD OVER ALL
[Rom. 9:5]… a *DISTINCT [separate] Person, yet one [united] with the
Father...“ This truth [about Jesus’ eternal pre-existence and distinction]
infinitely MYSTERIOUS in itself, explains [Heb.7:3] otherwise
unexplainable truths, while enshrined in light unapproachable and
INCOMPREHENSIBLE”.
-E.G. White- Review and Herald, April, 1906

5. Do they really accept that the Deity or the Eternal Godhead is not just
the Father, but also includes Jesus and the Holy Spirit? If not, why not,
since that is what historic Adventism taught! Proof?

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“…The Godhead makes its appearance in the great plan for human
salvation. God in this plan is brought before our thoughts under the
personal titles of Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, with diversity in offices,
relations, and actions toward men. These titles and their special
significance, as used in the Bible, are not interchangeable. The term
“Father” is never applied to the Son, and the term “Son” is never applied
to the Father. Each title has its own permanent application, and its own
use and sense. The distinction thus revealed in the Bible is the basis of
the doctrine of the tri-personal God… The exact mode in which the
revealed Trinity is … must be to us a perfect mystery, in the sense of our
total ignorance on the point. We do not, in order to believe the revealed
fact, need to understand this mode. The Christian doctrine of the Trinity—
whether, as to its elements, taken collectively or separately — so far from
being a dry, unpractical, and useless dogma adjusts itself to the condition
and wants of men as sinners…. The truth is that God the Father in the
primacy attached to Him in the Bible, and God the Son in the redeeming
and saving work assigned to Him in the same Bible, and God the Holy
Ghost in his office of regeneration and sanctification – whether
considered collectively as one God, or separately in the relation of each
to human salvation—are really omnipresent in, and belong to, the whole
texture of the revealed plan for saving sinners."

- The Bible doctrine of the Trinity- Pacific Press, 1892

"God says, [notice after this whom she means says this] "Come out
from among them, and be ye separate, . . . and touch not the
unclean thing; and I will receive you, and will be a Father unto you,
and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty."
[Now notice carefully] This is the pledge of [not just one person, but]
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit [i.e. the *pledge to receive and
be a Father to you]; made to you if you will keep your baptismal
vow, and touch not the unclean thing…”

- E.G. White, Signs of the Times, June 19, 1901

Only a*TRANCENDENT Christ, who is completely and intrinsically one of the

constituent persons [i.e. essential members] of the Eternal Godhead in the
highest [nothing higher] and fullest [absolute] sense could be our
all–sufficient Creator [John 1:1-3], Lawgiver [Is. 33:22], Atoning
Sacrifice, Redeemer, Judge [2 Cor. 5:10], Advocate,Justifier [Heb.2: 11],
Sanctifier [Heb.2: 11], Glorifier [Phill.3: 20,21]
and Coming King [Rev. 19:11,13,16/Is. 33:22]. Only such a One could
constitute the sole and completely adequate source of righteousness

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imperative for sinful man…”

-E.J. Waggoner, Christ and His Righteousness,1890, pg. 43

“It is the glory of the gospel that it be founded upon the principle of
restoring in the fallen race the divine image by a constant manifestation
of benevolence. This work began *IN THE HEAVENLY COURTS…[and there] the
Godhead [which is not just the Father] was stirred with pity
[an individual emotion] for the race, and the Father, the Son, *AND THE
HOLY SPIRIT, gave Themselves to the working out of the plan of redemption”
-E.G. White, Counsels on Health, pg. 222

[Note- Giving of "self" giving means individuality and independent will]

"Christ has given you a work to do. His commission is, Go throughout the
world and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the NAME
[a singular noun of unity] of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy
Ghost [Mathew 28:19]. Before the disciples shall compass the threshold,
there is to be the imprint of the *SACRED NAME, baptizing the believers
in the name of the *THREEFOLD [unity of three] POWERS in the Heavenly
world. The work of salvation is not a small matter, but so vast that the
HIGHEST AUTHORITIES are taken hold of… THE ETERNAL GODHEAD- THE FATHER,
THE SON, AND THE HOLY GHOST *is [not ‘are’ but “is”] involved…”
-E.G. White, “That They All May Be One”- Manuscript 45, May 14, 1904

The following are strong pieces of evidence indicating Adventism's view of

the Spirit’s individuality in the Godhead since, obviously *parallelism in
meaning cannot be ignored or denied, in the face of Mrs. White, equally
and repeatedly, referring to the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit in
the same way:

The Holy Spirit is described by her as *ONE OF-

“The Three Holiest *Beings in heaven”

-Manuscript Release, Vol. 7, pgs. 267-268

“The Three Persons”[of the Godhead]

- S.D.A. Bible Comm., Vol. 6, pg.1074

“The Heavenly *Trio [‘group of three persons’] of Three *Living

Personalities/Persons”
-Special Testimonies, Series B, No. 7(1905), pgs. 62,63

“The Eternal [‘existing always’] Heavenly Dignitaries” [i.e.‘high ranking

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persons’]
– Evangelism, pg. 616

“The Three Dignitaries and Powers of Heaven”

-S.D.A. Bible Comm., Vol. 6, pg. 1075

“The Three Great Agencies”

-S.D.A Bible Comm., Vol. 6, pg. 1102

“The Three Highest Powers in Heaven”

Special Testimonies, Series B, No. 7(1905), PG. 51

“Powers infinite and omniscient”

- S.D.A. Bible Commentary, Vol. 6, pg. 1075

6. Do they really accept that their leading pioneer in Adventism directed

prayer to the Holy Spirit, she saw him as a third being whom we must serve,
accepted he has his own personality,and is a person as much as God is,
and that he gave himself for our salvation in the courts of heaven, just
as the Father and Son did?
If not, why not, since the records show that to be so clearly!!

“You are baptized in the name of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy
Ghost. You are raised up out of the water to live henceforth in newness
of life--to live a new life. You are born unto God, and you stand under
the sanction and the power of THE THREE HOLIEST *BEINGS IN HEAVEN, who
are able to keep you from falling…When I feel oppressed, and hardly know
how to relate myself toward the work that God has given me to do, I just
*CALL UPON THE THREE GREAT WORTHIES, and say; You know I cannot do this
work in my own strength. You must work in me, and by me and through me,
sanctifying my tongue, sanctifying my spirit, sanctifying my words, and
bringing me into a position where my spirit shall be susceptible to the
movings of the Holy Spirit of God upon my mind and character. And this
is the prayer that every one of us may offer. . .”
-E.G. White, Manuscript Release, Vol.7, pgs. 267, 268 (Ms 95,

“When we have accepted Christ, and in the name of the Father, and of the
Son, and of the Holy spirit, have pledged ourselves to *SERVE [worship]
[1] God, the Father, [2] Christ and [thirdly] *THE HOLY SPIRIT, the
Three Dignitaries and Powers of Heaven, pledge Themselves that every
facility shall be given us if we carry out our…vows”
-E.G. White- Manuscript 85,1901

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[*Note- "Dignitaries are ‘Persons of important position, high rank or
office’-Oxford dictionary]

“The Bible shows us God in His high and holy place…*SURROUNDED by …holy
*BEINGS, all waiting to do His will. Through these messengers He is in
active communication with every part of His dominion. By His *SPIRIT
[Rev. 1:4] He is everywhere present. Through the agency of [1]His *SPIRIT
and [2] His angels, He ministers to the children of men”.
-E.G. White- Ministry of Healing, 1903, pg. 417

“Christ our Mediator, *AND the Holy Spirit *ARE [plural] constantly
interceding in man’s behalf, but the Spirit pleads not for us as does
Christ [the Mediator], who presents His blood, shed from the foundation
of the world; the Spirit works upon our hearts, drawing out prayers and
penitence, praise and thanksgiving. The gratitude, which flows from our
lips, is the result of the Spirit’s striking the cords of the soul...”
-E.G. White, Selected Messages, Vol. 1, pg. 344

[*The above quote clearly indicates that Jesus was not seen as the Holy
Spirit in person, since (1) the use of the conjunctives, "and" plus "are",
and (2) the distinct nature of their "interceding" work shows they are
also seperate from the Father's person whom they intercede to on our
behalf. Obviously the Father could not intercede to himself in prayer as
Rom. 8:27,28 shows, but by their Godhead unity God knows what is in the
mind of the Spirit interceding on our behalf in our praying, even while
Jesus is the *ONLY human Mediator in heaven as our High Priest].

“The Comforter that Christ promised to send after He ascended to Heaven

is the Spirit in all the fullness of the Godhead. There are three living
persons [personalities] of the Heavenly Trio [group of three persons].”
E. G. White- Evangelism, pg. 615.

“The office of the Holy Spirit is distinctly specified in the words of

Christ: ‘when He is come, He will reprove the world of sin…In describing
to His disciples the office of the Holy Spirit, Jesus sought to inspire
them with joy…sin could be resisted and overcome only through the mighty
agency of the Third *PERSON of the Godhead…”
-E.G. White,Review and Herald, Nov. 19, 1908.

“The Holy Spirit HAS [note ‘has’, not ‘is’] a personality… He must *ALSO
be A DIVINE [‘Godhead’] *PERSON [‘an individual being’] else He could
not search out the secrets, which lie hidden in the mind of God”
- E.G. White- Evangelism, pg. 617

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[*Notice, the Spirit does not just ‘know’, but by an inseparably close
association with God, He is able to ‘search out the secrets of the
Godhead’. He then speaks what He ‘hears’, note, what He ‘hears’, not
just what He ‘knows’, John 16:13,14].

“The Holy Spirit… is as much a person as God is a person”

-E.G. White,Manuscript 66, 1899;Avondale College speech in Australia

7. Do they really accept that Adventism begun to accept trinitarianism

over twenty years before Mrs. White died, and yet she never once spoke
against trinitarianism, not even once calling it by name to denounce the
teaching in all of her writings, despite itemizing and denouncing many
other teachings of Roman Catholicism? Why do they fail to see this
critical piece of circumstantial evidence, as well as the following facts?

THE TRINITY ACCEPTED IN ADVENTISM BEFORE 1915-

The Clearest Evidence in the Pioneers’ Own Words!

Here are some crucial quotes from certain Adventist articles, showing
conclusively that among certain leading pioneers there were changed attitudes to the
trinity doctrine, its terminology and its teachings, long before the
death of Mrs. White in 1915, and before the first official “Trinity”
statement of belief of 1931. Note carefully the years of the quotes and
the titles of the articles. Emphases supplied.

“…The Godhead makes its appearance in the great plan for

human salvation. God in this plan is brought before our
thoughts under the personal titles of Father, Son, and Holy
Ghost, with diversity in offices, relations, and actions toward
men. These titles and their special significance, as used in the
Bible, are not interchangeable. The term “Father” is never
applied to the Son, and the term “Son” is never applied to the
Father. Each title has its own permanent application, and its
own use and sense. The distinction thus revealed in the Bible is
the basis of the doctrine of the tri-personal God… The exact
mode in which the revealed Trinity is … must be to us a perfect
mystery, in the sense of our total ignorance on the point. We do
not, in order to believe the revealed fact, need to understand
this mode. The Christian doctrine of the Trinity—whether, as to
its elements, taken collectively or separately — so far from

9
 being a dry, unpractical, and useless dogma adjusts itself to the
condition and wants of men as sinners…. The truth is that God
the Father in the primacy attached to Him in the Bible, and God
the Son in the redeeming and saving work assigned to Him in
the same Bible, and God the Holy Ghost in his office of
regeneration and sanctification – whether considered
collectively as one God, or separately in the relation of each to
human salvation—are really omnipresent in, and belong to, the
whole texture of the revealed plan for saving sinners."
- The Bible doctrine of the Trinity- Pacific Press, 1892

“[The Holy Spirit is] one with and sent by the Father and the Son…
He [the Holy Spirit] would make us know His personality, but ever in
living connection with Christ…Let Him [the Spirit] make you know, beloved,
how surprisingly beautiful are the blended personalities of [now notice
carefully] our *TRIUNE GOD (!!), manifested by the personal presence of
the Holy Ghost”
-The Kings Messenger, *“Blended Personalities”, Review and Herald,
Vol. 77, April 3, *1900, pg. 210
“It seems strange to me now [in 1898], that I ever believed that the Holy
Spirit was only an influence, in view of the work He does”
-R.A. Underwood – “The Holy Spirit a Person”, Review and Herald,
Vol. 75, May 17, *1898, pg. 310

“We need to realize that the Holy Spirit, who is as much a Person
[not God's split ‘personality’] as [in same way that] God is a Person
(!!) is walking through these grounds…He hears every word we
utter, and knows every thought of every mind”
-E.G. White- Manuscript Release, Vol. 7, pg. 299
(from an 1899 speech at Avondale College)

“There are three living [literal] Personalities of the Heavenly Trio…”

E.G. White – Evangelism, pg. 615 (from *1905 Manuscript)

“You are baptized in the name of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy
Ghost. You are raised up out of the water to live henceforth in newness
of life--to live a new life. You are born unto God, and you stand under
the sanction and the power of THE THREE HOLIEST *BEINGS IN HEAVEN, who
are able to keep you from falling. You are to reveal that you are dead to
sin; your life is hid with Christ in God. Hidden "with Christ in God,"
--wonderful transformation. This is a most precious promise. When I feel
oppressed, and hardly know how to relate myself toward the work that God
has given me to do, I just *CALL UPON THE THREE GREAT WORTHIES, and say;
You know I cannot do this work in my own strength. You must work in me,

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and by me and through me, sanctifying my tongue, sanctifying my spirit,
sanctifying my words, and bringing me into a position where my spirit
shall be susceptible to the movings of the Holy Spirit of God upon my
mind and character. And this is the prayer that every one of us may
offer. . .”
-E.G. White, Manuscript Release, Vol.7, pgs. 267, 268
(Ms 95, 1906, pp. 8-12, 14-17; "Lesson from Romans 15," October 20, 1906.)

“…there is a trinity, and in it there are three personalities… These

divine persons are associated in the work of God…But this union is not
one in which individuality is lost…There is indeed a divine trio, but the
Christ of that Trinity is not a created being as the angels- He was the
“only begotten” of the Father…”

–Robert Hare, Australasian Union Record, July, 1909

“Seventh-day Adventists [not just myself] believe [now] in ... the

Divine *TRINITY. This Trinity consists of the Eternal Father… the Lord
Jesus Christ…[and] the Holy Spirit, the third Person of the Godhead”
-F. M. Wilcox (editor of Review and Herald), *Review and Herald,
October 9, 1913

Note Carefully-
Now notice carefully that by *1900 there was now an acceptance of
the term “TRIUNE GOD” by the Review and Herald, in referring to the
“blended Personalities” of the Godhead; a clear similarity in meaning
to the earlier published Trinitarian pamphlet (of Dr Spear) in 1892, by
SDA's Pacific Press, a tract which stated and supported the basic tenets
of trinitarianism. The tract, among other things, stated that:

“This doctrine [‘The Bible Doctrine of the Trinity’], as held and stated
by those who adopt it, is NOT a system of tri-theism [belief in three
Gods], but is the doctrine of one God [i.e. one divinity or divine specie]
subsisting and acting in three Persons [a tri-unity]…”
-Pamphlet No. 90 – “The Bible Doctrine of the Trinity”,
Pacific Press, March 1892
(A reprint of Dr Samuel T. Spear’s article of 1889, included in the
1892 Bible Student Library series, as a missionary tool)

There is no getting around this reality of the church publishing basic

trinitarianism at this point, despite the resistance of some. While,
admittedly, the tract also spoke about the “eternal generation” of Christ
as, at best, just “mystical speculation” , and Jesus being “subordinate”
to the Father, both in His “divine as well as human nature” (pages 3, 7,
11 and 12), to focus only on this aspect of it is to ‘bury one’s head
in the sand’ regarding the ‘bigger picture’ of it’s Trinitarian teachings,

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as a missionary tool.

Its statements about Jesus being “subordinate” or, in one context of the
word, ‘accountable to and led by’ the Father are probably best understood
in light of the following considerations:

(a) Mrs. White saw Jesus as “God in the highest [not just delegated]
sense”, and equal with the Father in all respects” [and would never
contradict herself], but still saw “the Father working above and through
all” (Steps to Christ, 1892, pgs. 20-21). All modes of operation demand
leadership, even among true equals (just like Adam and Eve).

(b) Orthodox Trinitarians still accept, in a certain context, the

“primacy” of the Father, that is, His leadership in “Eternal Godhead”,
despite the “absolute” co-equality of Christ with Him as “head”, and
the Holy Spirit being one with and representing them both.

What is critical here is that the Spear article laid out the basic
Trinitarian viewpoints that Adventism was now gradually leaning towards,
after years of anti-Trinitarianism in Adventist literature. After this
1892 article, reprinted for the church’s use, the change in Adventist
thinking was gradual, but took on momentum after Mrs. White’s 1898
“Desire of Ages” publication (coming six years after 1892). Now we can
clearly see why Mrs. White for the first time referred to the Holy Spirit
as the “Third Person of the Godhead” in this book. She clearly supported
the earlier publication of 1892, which came long before her death in 1915,
and before the “Trinity” statement of belief 1931(despite opposing views
were still being expressed by some). Mrs. White *never once (after 1892)
wrote against her colleagues now accepting the Holy Spirit as a Person,
or using terms such as “God the Son” (since 1890), and “our Triune God”
(in 1900). Yet she named and spoke *ONLY against the “pantheistic
teachings” of the Dr Kellogg heresies, which came later.
Kellogg mixed the two concepts of trinitarianism and pantheism, yet
Mrs.White only spoke against pantheism, which she called by name,but made
no mention of trinitarianism even after her Church published its teachings
years before Kellogg's pantheism surfaced!! Interesting indeed.

Now, where is the evidence of Adventism using the expression “God the Son”
before the death of Mrs. White? Notice carefully again:

“Although we [Adventists] claim to be believers in, and worshippers of one

God, I have thought that there are as many gods among us as there are
conceptions of the Deity. And how many there are of these, and how limited
are most of them. Rather, how limited are all of them! We do not half
study the character of God the Father and [now notice very carefully] God
the Son (!!), and the result is we make Christ such beings as ourselves”

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[that is, having a beginning and limited as the Son of God]
-D.T. Bordeau – Review and Herald, Vol. 67, Nov. 18, *1890, pg. 707

Why did the Review and Herald publish this expression? This was simply
because the truths of the Godhead controversies of the 1888 Conference
had begun to take effect. Notice it was just two years after 1888 that
brother Bordeau was expressing that Jesus was “God the Son”, and just two
years after that (in 1892) that trinitarianism was then published, clearly
indicating that only trinitarianism was seen as placing Jesus in a
rightful and natural place of being fully eternal, and fully “God in the
highest sense”, without the resultant teaching of an “Almighty God”, and
a lower, separate, and just “Mighty” Son of God, that is, two Gods!!
That is why the brethren started to use the expression “our Triune God”!!
And if this evidence is not enough, here now is the final “bombshell’ for
all those who are very limited in their command of the facts, having a
zeal for ‘restoring’ Adventist heritage, but not armed
with all the knowledge of the true facts:

“WE [many Adventists] BELIEVED A *LONG TIME THAT CHRIST WAS A CREATED
BEING, in spite of what the Scripture says. I say this, that, passing
over the experience I have passed over myself [my limited views] in
this matter – this accommodating use of terms which makes Deity without
eternity, is not my conception now [in 1919]of the gospel of Christ.
I think it falls short of the whole idea expressed in the Scriptures…
the Deity[of Christ] involves [full] eternity. The very expression
involves it. You cannot read the Scripture and have the idea of Deity
without eternity”
-W.W. Prescott- 1919 [SDA] Bible Conference Transcripts,
July 16, 1919, pg. 58

This quote effectively shatters the arguments of some anti-trinitarians

in Adventism today, who say that the pioneers were not for “a long time”
Arians. Who should we believe; those who were there on the scene as
pioneers, and reported ‘firsthand’, or those who today (not being
pioneers) deny the obvious, EVEN THE WORDS OF THE PIONEERS, because they
refuse to see the truth, or accept all that happened?
In the final analysis, every man’s work will prove itself. However, no
one can cover up or distort the truth for too long. It simply will refuse
to remain imprisoned.
The most crucial truth is, in the words of our pioneers, who accepted
the Trinitarian type approach to the subject of the “Eternal Godhead”:

“…Moses stood in the presence of the Eternal One [Christ], and he was not
afraid; for his soul was in harmony with the will of his maker…The Deity
[Christ] proclaimed *Himself, ‘THE LORD [I AM], THE LORD GOD, merciful

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and gracious…”
- E.G. White- Patriarchs and Prophets, 1890, pg. 329

“Our Lord Jesus Christ is to His people an Eternal Father, because He is

*ETERNALLY ‘the same yesterday, and today, and forever” [that is, “God
overall , blessed forevermore” and “God essentially and in the highest
sense”, as Mrs. White earlier testified, in April 1906].
-J.M. Cole, “The Everlasting Father”, Review and Herald,
Oct.31, 1929, pg. 3

The cornerstone of the Trinitarian doctrine is that Jesus is “essentially”

God “in the highest sense” along with the Father, “of one substance” with
Him, and with both being represented by the Holy Spirit as “a Person”,
“the third Person of the Godhead”. “How surprisingly beautiful are the
blended personalities of our Triune God?”, as stated by Review and Herald
in 1900! Want more evidence?
It was Mrs. White who said:

“All the evidence produced they decide shall not weigh a straw with them
and they tell others the doctrine is not true, and afterward when they
see as light, evidence they were so forward to condemn, they have too
much pride to say I was wrong…”

-Manuscript 15, 1888

May God help us all to be honest with ourselves in this matter.

CONCLUSION:
The charge of the SDA detractors, that it was a new generation of
“philosophers”, who knew nothing about the beliefs of the pioneers, that
led the church to “abandon” what ALL pre-1915 pioneers held to firmly
until Mrs. White’s death (1915), is a spurious charge, and is based on
either ignorance of all the facts, or the inability to be objective
despite personal opinion.
‘Tailored’ Trinitarianism showed its head in Adventism from as early as
1892, long before 1931 and was never condemned by Mrs. White until her
death in 1915. Also, Mrs. White never saw it as, the “mother of all
heresies”, because, apart from clearly showing another issue to be the
chief “heresy”, she never once even spoke against the trinity, not even
mentioning the word in order to condemn it! That too is indisputable!

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