What We Believe

Our Biblical Beliefs

The beliefs presented below summarize the biblical convictions that guide Messages of Hope. They are intended to express our understanding of Scripture and are consistent with the biblical teachings expressed in the 28 Fundamental Beliefs traditionally held by Seventh-day Adventists.

This is an independent ministry statement of biblical beliefs. It is not an official statement of the Seventh-day Adventist Church or any of its organizational entities, nor does Messages of Hope represent or speak on behalf of the denomination.

While these beliefs are consistent with and aligned with the biblical teachings expressed in the Seventh-day Adventist Church's 28 Fundamental Beliefs, the statements presented here have been independently formulated for Messages of Hope and are intended to express the theological convictions of this ministry.

We believe that the Bible is the supreme authority for Christian faith and practice. We therefore encourage every reader to examine these beliefs prayerfully and compare them with the whole counsel of God's Word.

1. The Holy Scriptures

We believe that the Holy Scriptures, consisting of the Old and New Testaments, are the inspired Word of God. The writers of Scripture spoke and wrote under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and through the Bible God has revealed the knowledge necessary for salvation and made known His will to humanity.

We believe that Scripture is the supreme and authoritative standard for faith, doctrine, character, and Christian living. Every teaching, experience, and interpretation must ultimately be tested by the Word of God.

Key Scriptures: Psalm 119:105; Isaiah 8:20; John 17:17; 2 Timothy 3:16–17; 2 Peter 1:20–21.

2. The Godhead

We believe in one eternal God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—a unity of three coeternal divine Persons. God is immortal, all-powerful, all-knowing, ever-present, and infinitely worthy of worship, adoration, and service.

Although the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit have distinct personal identities and roles in the work of creation and redemption, they are united in divine nature, character, purpose, and love.

Key Scriptures: Deuteronomy 6:4; Matthew 28:19; John 1:1–3; 2 Corinthians 13:14; Ephesians 4:4–6.

3. The Father

We believe that God the eternal Father is the Creator, Source, Sustainer, and Sovereign of all creation. He is holy, just, merciful, gracious, patient, and abundant in steadfast love and faithfulness.

The Father's character and love are perfectly revealed through His Son, Jesus Christ. He gave His Son for the salvation of humanity and desires that every person be reconciled to Him.

Key Scriptures: Genesis 1:1; John 3:16; John 14:9; 1 Corinthians 8:6; 1 John 4:8–10; Revelation 4:11.

4. The Son

We believe that Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God who became incarnate as a human being. Through Him all things were created, God's character is revealed, and salvation has been accomplished.

Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He lived a sinless life, experienced genuine human temptation without sinning, voluntarily suffered and died on the cross for our sins and in our place, was bodily raised from the dead, and ascended to heaven.

Christ now ministers on behalf of His people as our heavenly High Priest. He will return in glory to deliver His people and restore all things.

Key Scriptures: Isaiah 53:4–6; Luke 1:35; John 1:1–3, 14; 14:1–3; Romans 6:23; 1 Corinthians 15:3–4; Hebrews 8:1–2.

5. The Holy Spirit

We believe that the Holy Spirit is the eternal Spirit and fully divine, working together with the Father and the Son in creation, revelation, incarnation, redemption, and the life of the church.

The Holy Spirit inspired the writers of Scripture, empowered Christ's ministry, convicts people of sin, leads them to repentance and faith, renews and transforms believers into the likeness of Christ, guides God's people into truth, and gives spiritual gifts for Christian service and witness.

Key Scriptures: Genesis 1:1–2; John 14:16–18, 26; John 16:7–13; Acts 1:8; 1 Corinthians 12:7–11; 2 Peter 1:21.

6. Creation

We believe that God created the heavens, the earth, and all that is in them. We accept the biblical account of creation as an authentic and historical account of God's creative activity.

We believe that God created the world in six literal days and rested on the seventh day, establishing the weekly cycle and the seventh-day Sabbath as a memorial of His completed creative work. Human beings were created in God's image as the crowning work of creation and were entrusted with responsibility to care for God's creation.

Key Scriptures: Genesis 1–2; Exodus 20:8–11; Psalm 33:6, 9; Isaiah 45:12, 18; Hebrews 11:3; Revelation 14:6–7.

7. The Nature of Humanity

We believe that human beings—male and female—were created in the image of God with individuality, freedom, dignity, and the capacity to think, choose, love, and serve.

Human beings are an indivisible unity of body, mind, and spirit and are completely dependent upon God for life and breath. Through the disobedience of our first parents, sin entered the world, God's image in humanity was marred, and humanity became subject to death. All people share in this fallen condition and need God's saving grace.

In Christ, God is restoring His image in those who respond to Him in repentance and faith.

Key Scriptures: Genesis 1:26–28; Genesis 2:7; Genesis 3; Psalm 8:4–8; Romans 5:12–17; 2 Corinthians 5:19–20; 1 Thessalonians 5:23.

8. The Great Controversy

We believe that Scripture reveals a great controversy between Christ and Satan concerning the character of God, His law, and His government of the universe.

This conflict began in heaven when a created being, through self-exaltation and rebellion, became Satan, the adversary of God, and led other angels into rebellion. Satan introduced sin into this world by leading humanity into disobedience.

Human history therefore exists within this larger conflict between good and evil. Through Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit, and the ministry of God's loyal angels, God provides His people with guidance, protection, and salvation. Ultimately, God's character will be vindicated and the entire universe will be eternally freed from sin.

Key Scriptures: Genesis 3; Job 1:6–12; Isaiah 14:12–14; Ezekiel 28:12–18; Revelation 12:7–9.

9. The Life, Death, and Resurrection of Christ

We believe that through Christ's perfect life of obedience, His suffering and substitutionary death, and His bodily resurrection, God provided the only sufficient atonement for human sin.

Christ's death was substitutionary and sacrificial. Through His sacrifice God provides forgiveness, reconciliation, and transformation while demonstrating both the righteousness of His law and the infinite love of His character.

Christ's resurrection declares His victory over sin and death and assures those who trust in Him of the final victory that God will bring to His redeemed people.

Key Scriptures: Isaiah 53; John 3:16; Romans 3:25–26; 1 Corinthians 15:3–4, 20–22; 2 Corinthians 5:19–21; Philippians 2:6–11.

10. The Experience of Salvation

We believe that salvation is entirely a gift of God's grace and is received through faith in Jesus Christ. Through the work of the Holy Spirit, people recognize their sinful condition, repent, confess their sins, and trust in Jesus as Savior and Lord.

Through Christ we are justified, forgiven, adopted as God's children, and delivered from the dominion of sin. Through the new birth and the continuing work of sanctification, the Holy Spirit transforms the believer's character and writes God's law of love upon the heart.

We believe that believers can have assurance of salvation in Christ while continuing to walk faithfully with Him and grow in grace. This assurance rests on God’s grace and Christ’s saving work, not on human merit, while genuine faith produces a life of continuing trust, obedience, and spiritual growth. 

Key Scriptures: John 3:3–8, 16; Romans 3:21–26; Romans 8:1–4, 14–17; Ephesians 2:4–10; Titus 3:3–7; 1 Peter 1:23.

11. Growing in Christ

We believe that the Christian life is a continuing relationship with Jesus Christ in which the believer grows in faith, character, holiness, and service.

Christ's victory over the forces of evil gives believers freedom and assurance as they depend upon Him. Through prayer, Scripture, worship, fellowship, obedience, and the power of the Holy Spirit, Christians are called to grow into the likeness of Christ.

This growth is expressed not only through personal devotion but also through compassionate ministry to the physical, mental, social, emotional, and spiritual needs of others.

Key Scriptures: John 15:1–8; Romans 12:1–2; 2 Corinthians 3:18; Galatians 5:22–25; Philippians 3:7–14; 2 Peter 3:18.

12. The Church

We believe that the church is the worldwide community of believers who confess Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Christ is the Head of the church, and the church is His body and His family.

The church exists for worship, fellowship, instruction in God's Word, the celebration of the Lord's Supper, service to humanity, discipleship, and the worldwide proclamation of the gospel.

Key Scriptures: Matthew 16:13–20; Matthew 28:19–20; Acts 2:38–42; Ephesians 1:22–23; Ephesians 5:23–27; 1 Peter 2:9.

13. The Remnant and Its Mission

We believe that God's universal church consists of all who genuinely believe in Jesus Christ. Scripture also teaches that, in the last days, God has a people who remain faithful to His commandments and to the faith of Jesus amid widespread spiritual apostasy.

We understand the remnant mission to include proclaiming the everlasting gospel, announcing that the hour of God’s judgment has come, calling people to worship the Creator, proclaiming salvation through Christ, warning against false worship, and announcing the approaching return of Jesus.

The three angels' messages of Revelation 14:6–12 are therefore understood as a special end-time proclamation entrusted to God's people. Every believer is called to participate in this worldwide witness.

Key Scriptures: Revelation 12:17; Revelation 14:6–12; Matthew 28:19–20; 2 Peter 3:10–14.

14. Unity in the Body of Christ

We believe that Christ's church is one body composed of believers from every nation, people, language, culture, and social background.

Differences of race, nationality, education, social status, gender, or culture must never become barriers to Christian fellowship. In Christ, believers are united through the Holy Spirit and called to serve one another with love, humility, equality, and mutual respect.

Key Scriptures: John 17:20–23; Acts 17:26–27; Romans 12:4–5; 1 Corinthians 12:12–14; Galatians 3:27–29; Ephesians 4:3–6.

15. Baptism

We believe that baptism is a public confession of faith in Jesus Christ and represents repentance, forgiveness, death to the old life, union with Christ, and resurrection to a new life.

We believe that biblical baptism is by immersion in water and follows personal faith in Christ, repentance, instruction in Scripture, and acceptance of the gospel. Through baptism, believers publicly acknowledge Christ as Lord and Savior and identify themselves with His body, the church.

Key Scriptures: Matthew 28:19–20; Acts 2:38; Acts 8:35–39; Romans 6:1–6; Colossians 2:12–13.

16. The Lord's Supper

We believe that the Lord's Supper is a sacred participation in the emblems representing the body and blood of Jesus Christ. Through this communion, believers remember Christ's sacrifice, receive spiritual encouragement, and proclaim His death until He comes again.

Preparation includes self-examination, repentance, and confession. We also recognize the foot-washing service associated with the Lord's Supper as Christ's example of humility, renewed cleansing, reconciliation, and loving service to one another.

Key Scriptures: Matthew 26:17–30; John 13:1–17; 1 Corinthians 10:16–17; 1 Corinthians 11:23–30.

17. Spiritual Gifts and Ministries

We believe that the Holy Spirit gives spiritual gifts to believers for the common good and for the fulfillment of Christ's mission.

These gifts may include teaching, preaching, evangelism, faith, healing, administration, compassion, encouragement, reconciliation, and sacrificial service. Every believer is called to use the gifts God provides in loving service to others and in building up the body of Christ.

Key Scriptures: Romans 12:4–8; 1 Corinthians 12:4–11, 27–28; Ephesians 4:7–16; 1 Peter 4:10–11.

18. The Gift of Prophecy

We believe that prophecy is one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit and that Scripture identifies it as an important gift in God's work for His people.

We recognize the prophetic ministry of Ellen G. White as a manifestation of this gift within the Adventist movement. Her writings have provided spiritual counsel, encouragement, instruction, and correction to the church.

At the same time, we affirm that the Bible remains the supreme and final standard by which every teaching, prophetic claim, and spiritual experience must be tested. No human writing is a replacement for Scripture or an addition to the biblical canon.

Key Scriptures: Joel 2:28–29; Acts 2:14–21; 1 Corinthians 12:28; 1 Thessalonians 5:20–21; 2 Timothy 3:16–17; Revelation 19:10.

19. The Law of God

We believe that the Ten Commandments express God's holy and loving character, will, and purposes concerning human conduct and relationships.

God's law remains a standard of righteousness and reveals sin, our need for a Savior, and the transforming power of God's grace. We are not saved by keeping the law; salvation is entirely by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. Obedience is instead the fruit of genuine faith and love for God.

Key Scriptures: Exodus 20:1–17; Psalm 19:7–14; Matthew 5:17–20; Matthew 22:36–40; John 14:15; Romans 3:31; Ephesians 2:8–10; Revelation 14:12.

20. The Sabbath

We believe that God established the seventh-day Sabbath at creation as a perpetual memorial of His creative work and as a gracious gift for humanity.

The fourth commandment calls us to observe the seventh day as a time of rest, worship, fellowship, and service, following the principles and example of Jesus Christ, the Lord of the Sabbath.

The Sabbath points to God as Creator and Redeemer, serves as a sign of our relationship with Him, and provides a foretaste of the eternal rest and fellowship promised in God's kingdom. We believe that the Sabbath is observed from evening to evening, according to the biblical pattern of sunset to sunset.

Key Scriptures: Genesis 2:1–3; Exodus 20:8–11; Isaiah 58:13–14; Ezekiel 20:12, 20; Mark 2:27–28; Luke 4:16; Hebrews 4:1–11.

21. Stewardship

We believe that everything ultimately belongs to God and that human beings are His stewards. God entrusts us with time, abilities, possessions, opportunities, and the resources of creation.

Christian stewardship includes faithful service to God and others, responsible care of God's creation, and generous support of the proclamation of the gospel. We recognize the biblical principle of returning tithe and giving offerings as expressions of worship, gratitude, love, and trust in God.

Key Scriptures: Genesis 1:26–28; Genesis 2:15; Malachi 3:8–12; Matthew 23:23; 1 Corinthians 9:9–14; 2 Corinthians 9:6–8.

22. Christian Behavior

We believe that God's grace calls believers to think, feel, and act according to biblical principles in every area of life.

Because our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, Christians should care responsibly for their physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual well-being. We seek to cultivate purity, modesty, simplicity, health, self-control, and Christlike character in our personal and social lives.

We believe Christians should avoid practices and substances that harm the body or cloud the mind, including alcoholic beverages, tobacco, recreational or irresponsible drug use, and other destructive habits. We also seek to choose entertainment, relationships, speech, dress, diet, and activities that honor God and reflect the character of Christ.

Key Scriptures: Leviticus 11; Romans 12:1–2; 1 Corinthians 6:19–20; 1 Corinthians 10:31; Philippians 4:8; 1 Peter 3:3–4.

23. Marriage and the Family

We believe that marriage was established by God at creation as a lifelong covenant relationship between a man and a woman and that it is intended to reflect the loving, faithful, and self-sacrificing relationship between Christ and His church.

Marriage calls husband and wife to mutual love, faithfulness, honor, respect, responsibility, and spiritual companionship. We believe that Christian marriage should be entered into by believers who share a common faith.

God designed the family to be a place where love, faith, instruction, forgiveness, and spiritual growth are cultivated. Parents are called to guide their children toward a loving relationship with God and His Word.

We recognize that human families can experience brokenness and difficulty because of sin. We therefore seek to uphold God's ideal while extending Christlike grace, compassion, restoration, and hope to those experiencing family struggles.

Key Scriptures: Genesis 2:18–25; Deuteronomy 6:5–9; Matthew 19:3–9; Mark 10:6–12; Ephesians 5:21–33; Ephesians 6:1–4.

24. Christ’s Ministry in the Heavenly Sanctuary

There is a sanctuary in heaven—the true tabernacle established by God, not by human beings—where Christ ministers on behalf of His people and makes available the benefits of His once-for-all atoning sacrifice on the cross. At His ascension, Christ was inaugurated as our great High Priest and began His intercessory ministry, corresponding to the ministry of the high priest in the Holy Place of the earthly sanctuary. In 1844, at the conclusion of the prophetic period of 2,300 days, Christ entered the second and final phase of His atoning ministry in the heavenly sanctuary, corresponding to the ministry of the high priest in the Most Holy Place on the Day of Atonement.

This final phase includes the investigative judgment, which is part of God’s ultimate resolution of the sin problem. Through this judgment, God’s justice and righteousness are vindicated, and it is revealed who among those who have professed faith in Christ has remained in Him by faith and is prepared to receive the promises of His everlasting kingdom. The completion of Christ’s heavenly ministry will mark the close of human probation before His second coming.

Key Scriptures: Daniel 7:9–14; Daniel 8:13–14; Daniel 9:24–27; Hebrews 4:14–16; Hebrews 8:1–5; Hebrews 9:11–28; Revelation 14:6–7.

25. The Second Coming of Christ

We believe that the second coming of Jesus Christ is the blessed hope of the Christian faith and the great climax of the gospel.

Christ will return literally, personally, visibly, gloriously, and worldwide. His coming will not be a secret or merely spiritual event. The righteous dead will be resurrected, and together with the righteous living they will be glorified and gathered to meet the Lord.

The unrighteous will not receive immortality at Christ's coming but will die, awaiting the final resurrection. Because no one knows the exact time of Christ's return, believers are called to remain watchful, faithful, and spiritually prepared at all times.

Key Scriptures: Matthew 24:27, 30–31; John 14:1–3; Acts 1:9–11; 1 Corinthians 15:51–54; 1 Thessalonians 4:13–18; Titus 2:13; Revelation 1:7.

26. Death and Resurrection

We believe that death is the result of sin and that God alone is inherently immortal. Human beings do not possess an immortal consciousness that naturally survives death.

When a person dies, consciousness ceases, and the person no longer participates in the activities, relationships, thoughts, or experiences of the living. The dead remain unconscious, without awareness of the affairs of this world. Scripture repeatedly compares death to sleep and directs the believer’s hope toward the resurrection rather than toward conscious existence after death.

We therefore do not teach that the dead are ordinarily conscious in heaven, hell, purgatory, or another spiritual realm, nor that they can communicate with or return to the living. The dead await the resurrection until Christ calls them from the grave.

At Christ's second coming, the righteous dead will be raised to immortal life. After the millennium, the unrighteous dead will be raised for the final judgment.

Clarification Concerning Exceptional Biblical Cases

This teaching concerns the ordinary biblical state of the dead and should not be understood as denying the exceptional events explicitly recorded in Scripture.

Enoch and Elijah are described as being taken by God without experiencing ordinary death (Genesis 5:24; 2 Kings 2:11). Their translation is therefore not evidence that ordinary human beings remain consciously alive after death.

Moses presents another extraordinary case. Scripture records his death and burial (Deuteronomy 34:5–6), while Jude refers to Michael's dispute with the devil concerning Moses' body (Jude 9). Moses later appears with Elijah at Christ's transfiguration (Matthew 17:1–3). This is understood within the broader biblical teaching as an exceptional act of God and not as evidence that the dead generally live consciously apart from the resurrection.

Matthew 27:52–53 also records that certain saints were raised in connection with Christ's death and appeared to many. This extraordinary event does not establish a doctrine of ongoing conscious existence after death; rather, it demonstrates God's power over death and anticipates the resurrection hope centered in Christ.

These exceptional biblical events do not overturn the consistent biblical teaching that death is an unconscious state and that resurrection is the divinely appointed hope of the dead.

Key Scriptures: Ecclesiastes 9:5–6, 10; Psalm 146:3–4; Daniel 12:2, 13; John 5:28–29; John 11:11–14; Romans 6:23; 1 Corinthians 15:51–54; 1 Thessalonians 4:13–17; 1 Timothy 6:15–16; Revelation 20:1–10.

27. The Millennium and the End of Sin

We believe that Scripture teaches a thousand-year period associated with Christ and His redeemed people between the first and second resurrections.

Following Christ's second coming, the righteous will be with Him in heaven, while the earth will be desolate and Satan will be unable to deceive the nations. During this period, the redeemed will participate in the judgment in harmony with God's purposes.

At the close of the millennium, Christ and His redeemed will descend with the Holy City. The unrighteous dead will be resurrected, Satan and his forces will surround the Holy City, and God will finally destroy sin, Satan, death, and all persistent rebellion through divine judgment.

We believe this final destruction will completely cleanse the universe from sin. Sin and suffering will never arise again.

Key Scriptures: Jeremiah 4:23–26; 1 Corinthians 6:2–3; Revelation 20:1–15; Revelation 21:1–5; Malachi 4:1–3.

28. The New Earth

We believe that God will create a new heaven and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. The redeemed will receive an eternal home in God's restored creation and will live forever in His presence.

God Himself will dwell with His people. Suffering, sorrow, pain, death, and sin will have passed away. The great controversy will be ended, God's character will be fully vindicated, and the universe will forever testify to His love.

The new earth is the ultimate fulfillment of God’s promises of eternal life and restoration, and the glorious hope toward which the entire biblical story points.

Key Scriptures: Isaiah 35; Isaiah 65:17–25; 2 Peter 3:13; Revelation 21:1–7; Revelation 22:1–5.

Our Commitment to Scripture

These 28 statements represent the theological convictions of Messages of Hope as we understand them from the Holy Scriptures. They are intentionally presented as an independent ministry statement of biblical beliefs, not as an official statement of the Seventh-day Adventist Church or any other denomination.

Our highest commitment is to Scripture itself. We recognize that human understanding is imperfect and that continued study may bring greater clarity. Therefore, we seek to approach God's Word with humility, prayer, careful study, and a willingness to follow truth wherever Scripture leads.

We invite every reader to examine these teachings personally and prayerfully in the light of God's Word.

“Test all things; hold fast what is good.” — 1 Thessalonians 5:21