In Adventism, we often divide people into two camps: conservative or liberal.
If someone dresses casually, uses different methods, or seems less strict in lifestyle matters, we quickly call them liberal. We assume they are lowering the standard, compromising the message, or trying to be relevant at the expense of faithfulness.
On the other hand, if someone strongly emphasizes standards, obedience, and church principles, we call them conservative. And sometimes, to be honest, conservatism can become harsh. It can begin with a desire to honor God but end with judging those who do not live, dress, eat, or worship exactly the way we do.
The same danger appears in our theology of salvation.
On one side is cheap grace. The downplaying of Christian standards in the name of assurance. On the other side is legalism. Finding our value and enjoyment in what we do instead of in the Lord and what He has done for us.
Both are dangerous.
Cheap grace says, “Jesus saved me, so Christian behavior does not matter.”
Legalism says, “Christian behavior matters, so I must use it to prove my worth.”
But the gospel says something better: Jesus saves us fully, and because He saves us fully, He also transforms us deeply.
The Debate Is Not Unimportant
Let me be clear. Theology matters.
I care about theology. I care about Adventist identity. I care about our message, our mission, and our history. I have spent many hours thinking, reading, and honestly agonizing over theological issues inside the church. From the Desmond Ford controversy to Last Generation Theology, from debates about righteousness by faith to discussions about perfection and sanctification.
These things are not meaningless. How can we go forward in mission if we do not know our message? How can we call people to follow Christ if we ourselves are confused about what the gospel is?
So I am not saying, “Stop studying.” I am not saying, “Doctrine does not matter.” I am not saying, “Theological clarity is unnecessary.”
But here’s the thing: in my short pastoral ministry, this coming August 1, 2026 marks three years of pastoral ministry, church planting, and campus ministry, I have noticed something.
The regular member usually does not care about our debates the way ministers, professors, missionaries, and church leaders care about them.
That does not mean they are shallow. It does not mean they are unintelligent. It simply means most people are asking a more basic question:
“What does the Bible say?”
They are not usually asking, “What is your view of sin? Is sin wrapped up in our nature, or is it only something we choose to do?” They are not usually asking, “Where do you stand in the debates surrounding Last Generation Theology?” They are not usually asking, “What is your exact formulation of the Godhead?”
Now, to be clear, these questions matter. They are not trivial. If we are talking about sin, salvation, sanctification, the Holy Spirit, and the nature of God, then we are dealing with serious theological issues. Systematic theology matters because truth matters. Doctrine matters because God matters.
But most people in the pew are usually asking different questions.
“How do I find peace when I do not know the future?”
“What should I do when I feel lost in life?”
“How do I raise my children in this world?”
“Should I pursue my dreams, or should I sacrifice them to take care of my family?”
“How do I keep trusting God when my plans are unclear?”
“How do I become more like Christ in the middle of ordinary life?”
People are often more concerned with the day-to-day burdens of discipleship than with the technical categories of theological debate. And again, these theological questions are important because they eventually shape practical life. What we believe about sin, salvation, God, and the Spirit will affect how we live. But when lay people hear us constantly debating these things without seeing us shepherding people through the real struggles of life, they may begin to feel that we are lost in theological arguments and have lost sight of people.
And maybe that should tell us something.
The Mission Cannot Wait
Some debates are important because they touch our identity and mission. But even important debates can become distractions when they consume the energy that should have gone into disciple-making.
Jesus did not say, “Go therefore and settle every theological debate.”
He said, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations” (Matthew 28:19, NKJV).
In the Greek, the central command is matheteusate—make disciples. The going, baptizing, and teaching all serve that central command. The mission of the church is not merely to win arguments. It is to make disciples who follow Jesus, obey Jesus, and become like Jesus.
This is not just a nice idea. This is the very shape of discipleship in the New Testament.
Jesus said, “Students are not greater than their teacher. But the student who is fully trained will become like the teacher” (Luke 6:40, NLT). In other words, the goal of discipleship is not merely information transfer. The goal is likeness. A disciple is someone who is being trained to become like the Master.
Paul had the same burden. He wrote to the Galatians, “Oh, my dear children! I feel as if I’m going through labor pains for you again, and they will continue until Christ is fully developed in your lives” (Galatians 4:19, NLT). That is pastoral ministry. That is discipleship. Paul was not satisfied that people merely knew Christian vocabulary. He labored until Christ was formed in them.
The same idea appears in Romans: “For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son” (Romans 8:29, NLT). God’s saving purpose is not only to forgive us, but to restore us into the likeness of Jesus.
So discipleship is not a side issue. It is not a church program for people who have extra time. It is the main work. The goal is to behold Christ, follow Christ, obey Christ, and become like Christ.
That is why the conservative-versus-liberal framework often falls flat.
The real question is not simply, “Are you conservative?” or “Are you liberal?”
The better question is, “Are you being formed into Christ’s image?”
Because one can be conservative and still be harsh. One can be liberal and not be truly welcoming to the true Jesus. One can defend standards without His spirit. One can preach grace without its transforming power. One can be doctrinally correct and spiritually cold. One can be warm and accepting while quietly emptying the gospel of its power.
The issue is not merely where we place ourselves on a spectrum.
The issue is whether Christ is being reproduced in us.
Ellen White wrote, “The object of the Christian life is fruit bearing—the reproduction of Christ’s character in the believer, that it may be reproduced in others.”¹
That is discipleship.
Standards Are Not the Savior
Adventists believe in Christian behavior. We believe that God calls His people to think, feel, and act in harmony with biblical principles in all aspects of life. Fundamental Belief 22 says, “For the Spirit to recreate in us the character of our Lord we involve ourselves only in those things that will produce Christlike purity, health, and joy in our lives.”²
Notice the balance.
It is the Spirit who recreates in us the character of our Lord. But we also “involve ourselves.” We participate. We cooperate. We choose what we watch, what we eat, what we wear, what we listen to, how we speak, how we spend, how we rest, how we relate, and how we serve.
This is neither cheap grace nor legalism.
Cheap grace removes the phrase “we involve ourselves.” Legalism forgets the phrase “for the Spirit to recreate in us.” But biblical discipleship keeps both.
God works in us, and we cooperate with Him.
Paul says it this way: “Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure” (Philippians 2:12–13, NKJV).
We work out because God works in.
As Dallas Willard wisely put it, “Grace is not opposed to effort; it is opposed to earning. Earning is an attitude. Effort is an action.”³
Christian behavior is not the cause of salvation. The blood of Jesus is and has always been the basis of our salvation. But Christian behavior is part of the salvation process in that it serves as the outward sign of what Christ has been working inside of us. Jesus said, “Abide in Me, and I in you” (John 15:4, NKJV). Then He said, “He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit” (John 15:5, NKJV).
The fruit is the natural outgrowth of what is working inside of the tree. The same is true with us.
The Goal Is Christlikeness
Maybe we will not settle every Adventist debate in our generation.
We may continue to discuss perfection, sanctification, righteousness by faith, Last Generation Theology, and how all these relate to the gospel. These discussions have their place. But while we discuss, we must not forget the obvious: both sides, at their best, should want the same thing.
Christlike character.
Ellen White wrote that redemption aims “to restore in man the image of his Maker,” and that this is “the great object of life.”⁴
That is the point.
God is not merely trying to make us win debates. He is restoring His image in us. He is teaching proud people humility, angry people patience, selfish people love, fearful people faith, and distracted people devotion.
Sanctification is not a slogan. It is life with Jesus.
And it is not instant. Ellen White reminds us, “Sanctification is not the work of a moment, an hour, a day, but of a lifetime.”⁵ That means we must be patient with ourselves and patient with others.
We must keep advancing. We may not be where we want to be, but by God’s grace, we are not where we used to be. And when others do not grow as quickly as we think they should, we must remember that God did not teach us everything in one day either.
Discipleship Is the Way Forward
So what do we do?
We go back to discipleship.
We open the Bible with people. We teach them to pray. We help them behold Christ. We walk with them. We model repentance. We practice obedience. We answer questions. We carry burdens. We build communities where people are loved enough to be accepted and loved enough to be changed.
This is how Jesus worked.
Ellen White’s well-known summary still stands: “Christ’s method alone will give true success in reaching the people.” He mingled with people, desired their good, showed sympathy, ministered to their needs, won their confidence, and then invited them, “Follow Me.”⁶
That is not liberalism.
That is not legalism.
That is discipleship.
The church does not need less truth. The church needs truth as it is in Jesus. The church does not need lower standards. The church needs standards lifted up with the spirit of Christ. The church does not need endless debate as a substitute for mission. The church needs Bible-believing, Christ-centered, Spirit-filled disciple-making.
So yes, study theology. Know the message. Defend the truth.
But do not forget the mission.
The goal is not merely to be conservative.
The goal is not merely to avoid being liberal.
The goal is to follow Jesus so closely that His character is reproduced in us—and through us, reproduced in others.
That is the work.
That is the mission.
That is discipleship.
Notes
- Ellen G. White, Christ’s Object Lessons (Washington, DC: Review and Herald, 1900), 67.
- Seventh-day Adventist Church, “Christian Behavior,” Fundamental Belief 22.
- Dallas Willard, The Great Omission (San Francisco, CA: HarperSanFrancisco, 2006), 61.
- Ellen G. White, Education (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press, 1903), 15–16.
- Ellen G. White, The Acts of the Apostles (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press, 1911), 560.
- Ellen G. White, The Ministry of Healing (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press, 1905), 143.
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