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Hendersonville Seventh-day Adventist Church, NC

David Wright

Identity Crisis

I've entitled my message today, Identity Crisis.

Have you ever gone through an identity crisis?

I learned this week that I am the prime age to experience something similar to identity crisis, midlife crisis.

It's something about my hopes and dreams are starting to fade away.

You know, the aches and the pains and all the dreams that I want to do I can no longer or I don't think I'm gonna be able to do I feel trapped inside of the kids and this schedule and the job and whatever it is I thought I was doing pretty well until I read this article and I thought oh no I didn't realize I'm in crisis So if 1 of you has a convertible I could borrow, that would be great.

On a more serious note, have you ever had an identity crisis?

You know, there's a lot of people wondering and asking about the various things in society and is this normal or is this an identity crisis?

I hesitate a little bit to put this picture on the screen because it's rather disturbing.

This is pictures from the transgender community.

Now don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to throw them under the bus, God loves them, they're his kids.

But I would suggest that they're having an identity crisis.

But I believe that's why more than half of transgender male teens reported attempting suicide according to the American Academy of Pediatrics 50% does God know what he's talking about yet we have so many of our young people so many of our teens being exposed to images and pictures and these ideas and theories that it's whoever you want to be and somehow it's not male genes or female genes, but it's all neutral and you decide.

And this confusion pervades and they have these identity crises and they think if I just get surgery or if I just do this, that or the other, then everything will be okay and the result is that it's not.

Many are suggesting that our country is facing an identity crisis as people are pleading and leaving messages and text messages and bombarding your mailbox and every means possible, billboard signs, to help you decide to make the best decision in how many days now, 25 or something days, I don't know.

Do you like the direction of our country?

It's in your power to change the direction of our country.

All of this noise, if you will, identity crisis.

And I'm not saying there's not something to that.

I would also suggest the Protestant Church is having an identity crisis of sorts.

As Rick Warren many years ago said, our whole approach was wrong, it was flawed, and we're having to redesign and redevelop how we do church.

Of course, you have all of these Protestant leaders high-fiving and gathering with the Pope and so on.

The Protestant, the protesting church, is not protesting like it used to.

And it's not because theology has necessarily changed.

Certainly the Catholic Church has not changed, and I would suggest to you that within the Protestant Church there is an identity crisis.

I've shown you this before as you Google 2 phrases, Christian worship or rock concert, you get these pictures.

1 is what popped up when I searched for Christian worship, the other 1, rock concert, and you really can't tell the difference, can you?

Again, I would suggest that our worship services are in an identity crisis.

I'm thankful we don't have services like that here.

Others are suggesting that Adventism is facing an identity crisis.

And there's a lot of different angles you can look at this.

I put this article up, Universal Sunday Laws and Adventist Doctrine Intransigence.

Refusing to change one's views and they're suggesting our doctrine is outdated.

We need to take Adventist out of the name and so on and so forth.

Yes, we need to adapt to the world around us in part, Maybe in how we connect with them, but who we are fundamentally shouldn't change.

Yet some are calling for reform within the Adventist church.

Some are saying we are simply 1 piece of the puzzle of the picture of who Jesus is, and you need all the pieces, all the religions, everything combined to get a full and complete picture of who Jesus is.

1 Adventist pastor blogged this, he said, Scripture is not truth, Jesus is truth.

Think about that, Scripture is not truth.

Jesus is truth, and scripture merely speaks of him.

There's a difference and he shall be revealed in many odd and interesting places.

Jesus said I'm the way, the truth, and the life.

And Jesus says I am the word, the word is me, and so on and so forth.

Are there greater revelations in scripture?

Jesus for 1, the Holy Spirit now for another.

Scripture is our guide to the spirit friends This is mystical language from an Adventist pastor that says scripture is not truth That's not a biblical idea.

God gave us scripture the bedrock of all truth, but here he's saying though.

There's greater revelations Jesus for 1 the Holy Spirit for another I've had evangelistic series where they say, pastor, I hear what you're saying about the Sabbath, but the Holy Spirit told me last night.

I hear what you're saying about the state of the dead, but Jesus communicated with me that it's actually like this.

I mean, where is the real source of identifying truth if you throw out scripture?

And notice the blog, it's entitled Reinventing the Adventist Wheel.

Does the Adventist Church need reinventing?

I've shown you some of these from, and these are authors, this one's Leonard Sweet.

I remember going to some meetings, the whole Southern Union was there.

Leonard Sweet was 1 of the keynote speakers.

I was standing next to another individual about my age in ministry, and I said, who is this guy?

And this has probably been 15 years ago maybe.

I can also tell you now that that individual's not in ministry anymore.

This is 1 of his books, Quantum Spirituality.

The Christian of tomorrow will be a mystic, 1 who has experienced something, or he will be nothing.

We need to somehow infuse it with something, I don't know, new, fresh, impressive.

I don't know what book of the Bible that's in.

Stand in a circle, everyone facing the center of the circle.

If there are any present in special need of prayer, ask them to center the circle.

Continuing, place your hands in the center of the backs of those standing on either side of you and observe silence.

Continuing on, get in touch with 1 another's breathing patterns.

Identity Crisis

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