Nothing in scriptures backs any Christian festivals —Seventh-Day Adventist pastor

What is the Seventh-Day Adventist Church’s disposition about Christian festivals?

I will like to state here that Seventh-Day Adventist Church is not conservative about Christian festivals, we are just privileged to have more light. Everything man does should have a purpose, we shouldn’t do things just because people are doing it. With the deeper understanding of the Bible that we have, we should, expectedly, do things differently. For instance, take the recent Christmas celebration, the Bible did not in any way say that December 25 was the day Christ was born. The Church therefore refuses to acknowledge the day because the scriptural evidence is lacking. If as Christians we live according to the dictates of the Bible, then we should follow it wholeheartedly and not incorporate what is not in it. There is a hidden trait of lie mixed with what the public wants that brought about these festivals. Still on Christmas, many people don’t know what led to it, they lack the understanding, they just do it but doing it does not make it right. Yoruba people, for example, have different deities and these deities can never be mixed with one another. The supremacy of Jesus Christ has been mixed up with other imageries in which two things become one and they sell it to the public as one. Jesus is the camouflage but the undertone is not Jesus. Easter is also not Christian. The name Easter is derived from a Hebrew name for a goddess. If we use the Hebrew name for a goddess to worship Jesus, does that change the fact the name is tagged towards a goddess? As Christians, we should know what we are doing and we should be able to defend whatever we do.

So that means Seventh-Day Adventists don’t observe any Christian landmark?

Jesus stated categorically that we should take his body and blood in his remembrance. He in fact exemplified how we should do it. Then, we are obliged to honour what He has stipulated. By doing other things which the Bible or Christ didn’t state is not honourable. We will continue to miss the point if we don’t let go of things the Bible does not mention and continue to idolise what were concocted outside the scriptures.

How has it been as a leader in the Seventh-Day Adventist Church?

I don’t believe in building a career as I am not a career person, even though many pastors believe in it. What I would consider my greatest career is the number of people I have raised. When I leave this earth, my pride will not be the amount of money I have in the bank but the fact that I’m sleeping to raise several people that will be a legacy to the world that is full of sin, people that one will be proud to stand with. I don’t believe in building mansions or riding exotic cars. I judge myself by the impact and influence I have on people.

What are the lessons you have learnt having spent twenty years in the ministry?

In the Seventh-Day Adventist, ministry is not the way it is somewhere else. In this church, the pastor is a servant of the church. As such, the pastor does not dictate the affairs of the church. It is the reason that Seventh-Day Adventist Church raises other departments that are involved in the affairs of the church. We have elders, treasurers and so on. In other churches, a pastor can just order the treasurer to bring money but it is not so in our church. However, we don’t reject gifts from church members. Church money is not pastor’s money, it is for evangelism. A church will not grow until it comes to that realisation. We condemn lavish spending.

How is the church structured when it comes to finances?

The local church does not touch the tithes and offering. The money go up. From there, salaries of pastors are paid, evangelism is taken care of, among other things. Nevertheless, when people give for specific purposes and project, then the funds are directed towards the specifications. In essence, the conference and the union are the bodies that control the finances of the church.

What are the similarities and differences between Seventh-Day Adventist and other denominations?

There are a lot of doctrines that Seventh-Day Adventist uphold that other denominations don’t. However, the general belief is that the only difference between us is the day of worship which is Saturday. We have similarities with other denominations in that we all believe in Jesus Christ, we all believe in the second coming and we all believe in the holy spirit. However, there are things that differentiate us. For instance, many churches believe that when people die, they go to heaven and Jesus declares their judgment but no, the Bible does not say that. The Bible says that Christ is returning to give everybody his/her reward according to their works. If everybody who dies receives their reward immediately after death, what then is Christ coming to do? The scriptures also say that when Christ comes, the trumpet will sound and all the dead in Christ will rise. This shows that the dead are resting and when Christ comes, they will rise. Where then did we get the doctrine of somebody is in hell, another is in heaven? The difference between us and other churches then goes beyond the Sabbath day. In fact, nobody on earth can tell me that Sunday is the day of worship so far the person is using Bible. Even the Qur’an specifies that Sabbath is the day of worship. If the two major known religions stipulate that the seventh day of the week is the Sabbath day which is Saturday, why then are we adamant? If pastors cannot prove that Sunday is the day of worship, what then are you still doing following them?