Cult Watch: Is Seventh-day Adventism a Cult or a Christian Denomination?

 

We explore whether the Seventh-day Adventist Church (SDA) is a cult or a Christian denomination.

For a brief overview of the SDA’s history, you can visit this link.¹

CARM.org outlines some of the core teachings and the more controversial doctrines of the SDA Church:²

Some of the key doctrines and teachings of Seventh-day Adventism.  Is it Christian? Does it teach aberrant doctrines?

Affirmations

1.     The Bible is inspired and the word of God.

2.     Trinitarian: The Father, Son, Holy Spirit are all one God in three persons.

3.     Jesus is God and has always existed with the Father.

4.     The Holy Spirit is a person.

5.     Jesus’ sacrifice was vicarious.

6.     Salvation is by grace, not works.

7.     Jesus rose from the dead physically in his glorified body.

8.     Jesus ascended bodily into heaven.

9.     Baptism is by immersion

10.  The literal, visible return of Jesus.

11.  Jesus will return to set up a millennial kingdom.  They are Premillennial.

12.  Literal six-day creation, not long periods.

Denials

1.     Denies the doctrine of predestination

2.     Denies baptism by sprinkling

3.     Denies infant baptism.

4.     Denies the immortality of the soul.

5.     Denies the eternality of hellfire.

6.     Denies any use of alcohol (as a drink) or tobacco.

Aberrant

1.     Our sins will ultimately be placed on Satan. (White, Ellen, The Great Controversy, p. 422, 485.)

2.     Jesus is Michael the Archangel.

3.     Worship must be done on Saturday (the Sabbath).

4.     On October 22, 1844, Jesus entered the second and last phase of His atoning work.

5.     Investigative Judgment – the fate of all people will be decided based upon this event in the future.

6.     The dead do not exist anymore — soul sleep.

7.     The wicked are annihilated.

8.     Ellen G. White, the “founder” of Seventh-day Adventism, was a messenger from God gifted with the spirit of prophecy.

9.     There is a sanctuary in heaven where Jesus carries out his mediatorial work.

Some heretical teachings of the SDA are:³

·       Ellen G. White made much of the Saturday Sabbath (sunset Friday to sunset Saturday), and believed that Christians should keep the Jewish Sabbath, even claiming that those not keeping the Sabbath would receive the Mark of the Beast! Hence this becomes a condition for salvation, again adding to the atoning work of Christ

·       Soul sleep and Annihilationism (which contradicts Matthew 25:46).

·       Christ will lay our sins on Satan! Satan is the “scapegoat” and will bear believers’ sins (The Great Controversy, p. 422, 485)—this is the opposite of what the Bible says about who bore our sins (1 Peter 2:24).

·       Seventh-day Adventists teach that Jude 9 refers to Christ. Jesus as Michael the archangel (Jude 1:9, Clear Word Bible, published by Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1994)—a doctrine that denies the true nature of Christ—and teaches that Jesus entered a second phase of His redemptive work on October 22, 1844, as prophesied by Hiram Edson.

·       Seventh-day Adventists still consider Ellen White to be a prophetess of God.

Here are some differences between SDA & Historic Christianity:

DOCTRINE / BELIEF	SDA	CHRISTIANITY
DIET	Vegetarian / Fish / Certain meats	No Prohibition
WORSHIP DAY	Saturday	Sunday
HELL	Annihilationism (No hell)	Literal Hell
HEAVEN	Heavenly Sanctuary	Literal New Heaven & New Earth
PROPHETS	Ellen G. White	Biblical Prophets only
2nd COMING OF CHRIST	Rapture / Premill	Premill / Postmill / Amill etc.
AFTER LIFE	Soul Sleep till Resurrection	Disembodied & conscious until resurrection

 So, is the SDA a cult?

The Adventist guide states the following:⁴

So, is it a Cult?

We think it’s fair to say that Adventism started as a cult. It was centered around William Miller at first, and people gave up their possessions and lives in preparation for what they believed to be the imminent return of Christ. This apocalyptic thinking still greatly influences the lives of Seventh Day Adventists – you’ll see Seventh Day Adventists as “preppers”

Is Adventism A Religious Cult?

The ongoing influence of Ellen G. White could certainly be regarded as cult-like. The SDA church is not a cult a la Scientology, in which members have been abused. We could refer to it as an “established cult” which, for some, might mean “a religion.” As Mormonism might be described as the “Cult of Joseph Smith” that outlasted Joseph Smith and continued to grow, Seventh Day Adventism could be described as the “Cult of William Miller and Ellen G. White” that outlasted them and grew beyond them.

 

Endnotes:

¹https://adventistguide.com/adventist-cult/

²https://carm.org/seventh-day-adventism/what-does-seventh-day-adventism-teach/

³https://www.spiritlifemag.com/why-seventh-day-adventists-are-a-cult/

⁴https://adventistguide.com/adventist-cult/

Websites last accessed on 19^th May 2025.