Pioneer SDA "fundamental principles ... based upon unquestionable authority"
Published in 1904: "I beseech those who are laboring for God not to accept the spurious for the genuine. Let not human reason be placed where divine, sanctifying truth should be. Christ is waiting to kindle faith and love in the hearts of His people. Let not erroneous theories receive countenance from the people who ought to be standing firm on the platform of eternal truth. God calls upon us to hold firmly to the fundamental principles that are based upon unquestionable authority." -Ellen White, 8T 298.2 & AUCR April 1, 1904, par. 4
Fundamental Principles 1, 2, and 19
-as printed in the SDA Yearbook through 1914 - just prior to Ellen's death
I. That there is one God, a personal, spiritual being, the creator of all things, omnipotent, omniscient, and eternal; infinite in wisdom, holiness, justice, goodness, truth, and mercy; unchangeable, and everywhere present by his representative, the Holy Spirit. Psalm 139:7. FP1889 147.2 II. That there is one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the Eternal Father, the one by whom he created all things, and by whom they do consist; that he took on him the nature of the seed of Abraham for the redemption of our fallen race; ... See Leviticus 16; Hebrews 8:4, 5; 9:6, 7; etc. FP1889 147.3 XIX. That the Spirit of God was promised to manifest itself in the church through certain gifts, enumerated especially in 1 Corinthians 12 and Ephesians 4; that these gifts are not designed to supersede, or take the place of, the Bible, which is sufficient to make us wise unto salvation, any more than the Bible can take the place of the Holy Spirit; that, in specifying the various channels of its operation, that Spirit has simply made provision for its own existence and presence with the people of God to the end of time, to lead to an understanding of that word which it had inspired, to convince of sin, and to work a transformation in the heart and life; and that those who deny to the Spirit its place and operation, do plainly deny that part of the Bible which assigns to it this work and position. FP1889 150.7
Isaiah 40:28 ...The everlasting God, Jehovah, the Creator of the ends of the earth...
Isaiah 45:5 I am Jehovah, and there is none else; besides me there is no God...
"Jehovah, the eternal, self-existent, uncreated One, Himself the Source and Sustainer of all, is alone entitled to supreme reverence and worship." -Ellen White, PP 305.4 Jeremiah 10:10 But Jehovah is the true God; he is the living God, and an everlasting King...
John 17:1 These things spake Jesus... Father,... this is life eternal, that they should know thee the only true God, and him whom thou didst send, even Jesus Christ.
"Jehovah, our Father, and His Son Jesus Christ are alone to be exalted. The knowledge of God is eternal life to those who receive it." -Ellen White, Ms11-1898
Colossians 1:27 ... this mystery among the Gentiles ... is Christ in you, the hope of glory:
Galatians 4:6 ... God sent forth the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, Abba, Father.
Romans 8:9 ... Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.
"It is not safe to catch the spirit from another. We want the Holy Spirit, which is Jesus Christ..." -Ellen White, Lt66-1894 John 14:18 I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you... -Jesus
Hebrews 13:5 ... I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. -Jesus
Matthew 28:20 ... I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen. -Jesus
253 The Trinity is One. We do not confess three Gods, but one God in three persons, the "consubstantial Trinity".83 The divine persons do not share the one divinity among themselves but each of them is God whole and entire: "The Father is that which the Son is, the Son that which the Father is, the Father and the Son that which the Holy Spirit is, i.e. by nature one God...." (Catechism #253) 266 "... the Godhead of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit is one, their glory equal, their majesty coeternal" (Athanasian Creed: DS 75; ND 16). (Catechism #266)
2 The Trinity: There is one God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, a unity of three coeternal Persons....
3 The Father: God the eternal Father is the Creator, Source, Sustainer, and Sovereign of all creation....The qualities and powers exhibited in the Son and the Holy Spirit are also those of the Father...
4 The Son: God the eternal Son became incarnate in Jesus Christ.... Forever truly God...
5 The Holy Spirit: God the eternal Spirit...
SDA trinity Summary | Catechism trinity Summary |
There is one God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, | The Trinity is One. We do not confess three Gods, but one God... by nature one God... the Godhead of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit is one... |
three coeternal Persons | three persons... their glory equal, their majesty coeternal... |
God the eternal Father... God the eternal Son... God the eternal Spirit... | The divine persons do not share the one divinity among themselves but each of them is God whole and entire |
The qualities and powers exhibited in the Son and the Holy Spirit are also those of the Father. | The Father is that which the Son is, the Son that which the Father is, the Father and the Son that which the Holy Spirit is |
Common Statements | Catechism #234: "The mystery of the Most Holy Trinity is the central mystery of Christian faith and life. It is the mystery of God in himself. It is therefore the source of all the other mysteries of faith, the light that enlightens them. It is the most fundamental and essential teaching in the "hierarchy of the truths of faith".
|
There is one God |
That one God consists of three coeternal persons, namely the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. |
Each of the three persons is God |
All of the three persons have the same nature |
"The third angel's message has been sent forth to the world, warning men against receiving the mark of the beast or of his image in their foreheads or in their hands. To receive this mark means to come to the same decision as the beast has done, and to advocate the same ideas, in direct opposition to the word of God" -Ellen White (RH 7/13/1897 par. 5). Online at http://sidnash.org/?PBM