Our Confession

Dickendorf, Friday, June 25, 2004

  1. We confess the spirit of self-confidence which we often mistook for faith. This spirit has hindered us from receiving the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. We ask the Lord for a clearer revelation of Christ which will lead us to a healthy self-distrust and dependence on His power alone. John 15:5

  2. We confess that we have not been thorough enough in co-operating with God in the testing of candidates for baptism, marriage, ordination, and church work. We shunned confrontation, were concerned about our reputation, and did not strictly apply the Word of God. We recognize the need to say "no" where it is necessary, and we will do so by God’s grace.

  3. We confess that we did not clearly understand that every calling is conditional. This includes the calling of a messenger, an elder, a Church member, a worker, or a Movement. (For an example of a misconception in this regard, see Child Salvation, 218.4, June, 1987 edition, where the impression is given that a messengership continues regardless of how sinful the messenger may become.) This led to a dangerous sense of security which has harmed the Church.

  4. We confess that sensuality has grown among us through our failure to be a real brother and friend to our brethren who are weak in this area. Proverbs 27:5

  5. We confess a wrong concept about re-marriage which has brought many evils into the Church. According to the Word of God there are only two reasons that free a person to re-marry. The first one is physical death (Romans 7:1,2). The second is physical adultery (Matthew 5:32; The Adventist Home, 341.3). The wrong concept existed among us that there was a third reason for re-marriage, namely, spiritual adultery (spiritual death). (For an example of this misconception see The Living and the Dead, 41.2, July, 1981 edition.) This wrong concept resulted in some wrong counseling which led to marriages that the Word of God does not support.

  6. We confess a lack of co-operation with God in the area of confessing our sins. It is our duty to confess our sins, but in some cases we have, with a wrong understanding of Sabbath Rest, expected the Lord to hide the secrets of our lives. (For an example of this misconception see Entering into God’s Sabbath Rest, 292.3, July 1983 edition.) We have misunderstood the goodness of God by not seeing His abhorrence of sin and by believing that we could escape the consequences once we repented of our sins. (For an example of this misconception see Entering into God’s Sabbath Rest, 301.6, July 1983 edition.) While sins of a purely private nature should not be made public, we will not seek solutions to problems by keeping sins secret that have an effect on others.

  7. We confess the spirit of self-confidence in the realm of healing. We thought that we had a knowledge of the law which was superior to the world and that we could rely on this knowledge for healing. On the other hand, we thought we had a superior faith which we believed could save us from sickness and death. At the same time, sins, especially sins of sensuality, existed among us which mae it impossible for God to work for us in a greater measure. We are dependent on Christ for the healing of soul and body. Acts 4:12. We ask Him humbly to make each one of us willing to accept any way He wants to individually lead us in this realm.

  8. Our misconceptions and self-confidence have brought suffering, harm, and sadness to Christ and our fellow humans. We are sorry for this and ask for forgiveness and cleansing. We dedicate ourselves to humble service to Christ and all humankind.