Who Are the Adventists “Seventh Day”?

In the previous issue, we discussed some of the errors of the Adventists, such as their belief that the Lord Christ is the Archangel Michael, their claim that Christ inherited original sin, their denial of the immortality of the soul, and their belief in an earthly kingdom where the saints reign on earth rather than in heaven. We examined these beliefs from their own writings and refuted them.
In this issue, we continue to discuss their heresy concerning:

The Earthly Kingdom and Deprivation of the Saints from the Heavenly Kingdom

The Earthly Kingdom:
They believe that the eternal kingdom will be on earth, not in heaven, ignoring dozens of verses that speak of heaven and the Kingdom of Heaven, as well as the parables the Lord gave about the Kingdom of Heaven — all of which we detailed in the previous issue.
They try to justify their belief using the verse: “The heavens are the Lord’s heavens, but the earth He has given to the sons of men” (Psalm 115:16), forgetting that this verse describes our present state and does not speak of the coming eternity after the general resurrection. As the Apostle says: “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more” (Revelation 21:1).
However, they believe that this earth must be renewed before the righteous can dwell in it. Therefore, under the title “Renewal of the Earth,” they say:
“The fire of the last day that consumes the wicked will also purify the earth from every trace of sin… thus the holy city, Jerusalem, will become the capital of the new earth. The whole earth will return to its original purity, beauty, and splendor as it was when first created.”

They Build and Plant:
They believe that people in the eternal kingdom will once again work in construction and agriculture to cultivate the earth. Under the same heading, they say:
“After the destruction of the wicked, the righteous will come out of the holy city, and ‘they shall build houses and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit’” (Isaiah 65:21)!
They forget that Isaiah was not speaking about eternity but about the period after the return from the Babylonian captivity in the fifth century B.C.

What does this planting and building in the kingdom mean? Does it mean we will return to lives of toil and labor? Or return to the busyness that distracts us from praise, contemplation, and joy in God? Would that mean we’ll need specialists—engineers, builders, and farmers—and building materials and agricultural costs? Could delays in construction lead to a housing crisis in the kingdom?

If they had said that we will dwell in a ready-made land with its buildings and gardens, it would have been less strange! But that we ourselves must plant and build is astonishing and contradicts the Lord’s words:
“In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.” (John 14:2–3).
One of the clearest responses to their claims is what the Apostle Paul said:
“For we know that if our earthly tent is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.” (2 Corinthians 5:1–2).
The phrase “in the heavens” shows it is a heavenly kingdom, not an earthly one, and “not made with hands” refutes their idea of “they build.”

Their Jewish Inclination:
Let us continue examining the rest of these Sabbatarians’ ideas, showing their clear Jewish tendency — evident even in their name “Sabbatarians,” which they now hide under the title “Adventists.”
They say that in the kingdom, after building houses and planting vineyards, “at the beginning of every month and every Sabbath, the inhabitants of the new earth shall gather in the new Jerusalem to worship the King of kings.”
This means that Jewish worship will return and prevail in the eternal kingdom — celebrating Sabbaths and new moons! This nullifies the Apostle Paul’s words: “Let no one judge you… regarding a festival or a new moon or Sabbaths” (Colossians 2:16)!
This is a clear Jewish regression, a return backward. What does worship every Sabbath mean? In the kingdom, will we dedicate one day a week to the Lord, or will our entire life be devoted to Him?

The Jewish Sabbath symbolized Sunday, and Sunday symbolizes the great eternal rest that never ends, where all our life will belong to the Lord—filled with praise, contemplation, and indescribable joy. The solar days will pass away, for the heavenly Jerusalem “has no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it” (Revelation 21:23).

Do these Sabbatarians imagine that the redeemed will go to Jerusalem every Sabbath because they are too busy all week “building houses and planting vineyards” to have time for God, even in the kingdom?!

And what does it mean to “go to Jerusalem”? Will all people from every part of the earth go to Jerusalem every Sabbath? How will they travel? How quickly? And why would not the whole renewed and purified earth be considered holy?
And how could they go to the heavenly Jerusalem, which is their own dwelling, where they already are—as Scripture says: “Behold, the dwelling of God is with men, and He will dwell with them” (Revelation 21:3)?

Sensual Bliss:
The Adventists also speak of a sensual kind of joy in the eternal kingdom. In their book “Signs of the Times” they write:
“There are streams of clear water like crystal, ever flowing; on either side tall trees shade the Lord’s holy path. There are beautiful valleys and charming hills; mountains raise their lovely peaks high. In these peaceful plains filled with serenity and on the banks of these living streams, the people of God—who were strangers and pilgrims for a time—will find their eternal, secure dwelling.”
What kind of talk is this? The delight of trees, rivers, mountains, and valleys is sensual, pleasing the material senses of the body. What is this compared to what St. Paul said:
“What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined—what God has prepared for those who love Him” (1 Corinthians 2:9).

According to their interpretation, people living by the lakes of Switzerland or the mountains of Athens or the cedars of Lebanon would say to God: “We are tired of mountains, heights, and lakes—do You have anything new beyond what our senses already enjoy?”

This sensual bliss also appears in their description of the heavenly Jerusalem as being built of gold, with streets of gold, walls of jasper, and gates of precious stones—each gate being a single pearl. They claim that all the wealth of the earth would not be enough to pave even one of its streets. Thus, they take the symbolic description in the Book of Revelation literally and interpret it in a material sense.

In one of their pamphlets titled “The Garden of Eternity Is the Inheritance of Believers,” they say it is “a square city, each side being 375 miles long, making its area 130,665 square miles. If we combined all the capitals of the world—London, Washington, Paris, Tokyo, and Cairo—into one city, they would still not equal its size.”

Since we will rise in spiritual bodies, sensual delight will have no place, for we will not have material eyes to enjoy physical sights, but spiritual eyes to see the unseen. Likewise, we will have spiritual ears to hear what cannot be expressed.

The Heavenly Homeland:
How clear are the Lord’s words: “Your reward is great in heaven” (Luke 6:23). And as St. Paul said of the faithful: “But now they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one” (Hebrews 11:16).
If St. Paul was once caught up to the third heaven during his earthly life (2 Corinthians 12:2), how could he be deprived of it in the eternal kingdom? Surely he will reach something far greater.

He says: “Whether in the body or out of the body, I do not know.” The phrase “out of the body” shows the existence of the spirit—which they claim cannot perceive, sense, or see on its own—yet it could go to the third heaven and “hear inexpressible words.”

This heavenly kingdom has been promised to us since the beginning of the call to faith. Even John the Baptist proclaimed: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 3:2). The Lord Jesus referred to this heavenly kingdom at the start of His Sermon on the Mount: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:3). “From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force” (Matthew 11:12).

Surely we will be in heaven, for we will be with Christ—“where He is, we shall be also.” Of this He prayed to the Father: “Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am” (John 17:24). And He promised His disciples: “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also” (John 14:3).
Since we will be with Christ, we will therefore be in heaven. Thus, Paul prayed: “I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better” (Philippians 1:23).

But if God’s dwelling with men means that the entire kingdom is on earth—where God, angels, and the righteous all are—then what becomes of heaven itself?

---

For better translation support, please contact the center.