To commemorate the five hundredth anniversary of the beginning of the Protestant Reformation, the editors carefully chose a collection of essays that explore “the various facets and contours of Luther and compares them with Seventh-day Adventism.” The book is comprised of four parts: Historical Foundations, Echoes of Luther in Adventist Theology, Eschatology and Politics, and Dialogue and Legacy. Twenty-seven authors contributed to the book and overall the subjects are well chosen. I will comment on a few essays that I found to be particularly noteworthy.

Essays from the Section “Historical Foundations”

“Sola Scriptura: A Comparison between Luther and the Adventist Understanding,” by Remwil R. Tornalejo concludes that Luther’s sola Scriptura made Scripture the highest authority but tradition did have a role. For Luther “the Word of God is the ultimate standard and norm, the proper touchstone, and final authority for faith and practice.” All other authorities must be evaluated in the light of the Bible. For the Seventh-day Adventist understanding of Scripture, Tornalejo uses Ellen G. White’s view of Scripture “in order to establish an Adventist baseline view” (p. 29). Both traditions interpret sola Scriptura similarly; any teaching or doctrine that does not pass the test of Scripture must be rejected. To me Tornalejo makes a fair evaluation of both traditions.

“Understanding Sola Scriptura: A Working Approach for the Church” by John C. Peckham presents a new approach to sola Scriptura based on Peckham’s recently published book Canonical Theology: The Biblical Canon, Sola Scriptura, and Theological Method. He does not follow the editors’ goal of comparing the views of Luther and the Adventists; instead he addresses what the sola Scriptura principle “should mean for the church today” (p. 57).

Peckham recommends a canonically based sola Scriptura that “takes Scripture to be the unique rule (canon) or standard of faith and practice,” the principle of “tota scriptura that holds that all of Scripture serves as the infallible source, sufficient basis, and final norm of theological interpretation,” and “the primacy of Scripture” which “recognizes that, although Scripture is the uniquely infallible source of revelation, it is not the only source of revelation.”

However, a canonically based sola Scriptura, according to Peckham, does not mean “all doctrine requires a direct biblical statement” (p. 61). Here he sees a distinction in the meaning of sola Scriptura as it applies to theological doctrine, and the way it applies to ecclesial policy and practice. Some things that church bodies consider are not explicitly addressed in Scripture. While ecclesial policy and practice should not be confused with or elevated to the level of theological doctrine, for Peckham “Scripture should test all faith and practice, but Scripture itself should never be subjected to any external standard, even the church itself ” (p. 62, emphasis in the original).

Adventists believe, as White wrote, the Bible is the “standard for every doctrine and practice.” This means that the Bible “is to decide all controversies” (1888 Materials, pp. 44–45).

“Ellen White’s Portrait of Martin Luther” by Denis Kaiser gives an accurate description of Luther in light of the book The Great Controversy, showing how in God’s providence Luther was called to bring God’s Word to the attention of many who were deceived during the Middle Ages. It especially focuses on how Luther related to the authority of the Bible and his discovery of the doctrine of justification by faith. Kaiser’s fine portrait of Luther by White shows that her focus is on Luther’s positive contributions to the Protestant Reformation, avoiding the weakness of his character that could diminish his powerful influence on behalf of the truth.

Essays from the Section “Echoes of Luther in Adventist Theology”

Most of the chapters in this section deal with Luther’s views on subjects like the priesthood of all believers, the state of the dead, the Lord’s supper, the Decalogue, the Sabbath, mission, etc., comparing these with similar topics in Adventism. However, they do not necessarily demonstrate that the Adventist understanding of the topic came from Luther.

“Luther, Seventh-day Adventists, and Righteousness by Faith” by Woodrow W. Whidden II deals with the central question, “What do Seventh-day Adventists owe Luther for their understanding of righteousness by faith and Christ and His righteousness?” In the history of the Adventist Church, this subject has been one of strong contention, as this essay shows.

Whidden’s history of righteousness by faith fails to take into account the impact of the progressive revelation of the plan of salvation in 1844, which is absolutely essential to understand Luther’s limited view of righteousness by faith compared to the tangible impact of the sanctuary message of Daniel 8:14 concerning the judgment hour message and final atonement (See Ellen G. White, Great Controversy, p. 356).

When comparing Luther with Seventh-day Adventists on righteousness by faith he should have kept in mind that Luther and early Adventists operated in different historical contexts that led each to emphasize different present truths adapted for their time. Luther faced a corrupt apostate church that taught the unbiblical gospel that good works or paying money earned righteousness and salvation. To proclaim the free gospel of grace was the present truth in Luther’s time, three hundred years before the rise of the Advent Movement.

Adventist pioneers lived in a Protestant world that was familiar with the Reformers’ teachings on justification and righteousness by faith. Through their study of the prophecy of Daniel 8:14 they received progressive understanding of the everlasting gospel. In the 1840s they came to believe that the 2,300 prophetic days or years would end with Christ’s ministry as Judge at His second advent.

When Christ did not return as expected, God gave them progressive light on the true meaning of Christ’s cleansing of the sanctuary. Adventists realized that Christ, as Judge, had entered His high-priestly ministry in the Most Holy Place of the heavenly sanctuary as part of the final atonement for sin. This understanding impacts how human beings experience justification, sanctification, and perfection in ways the Reformers could not have foreseen and that Protestants today do not understand. This insight of the everlasting gospel was integrated into the three angels’ messages of Revelation 14:6–12 and became the present truth for the time of the end—to prepare people to stand in the Day of the Lord.

Continued study, especially in the years surrounding 1888, gave Adventists progressive light on the “faith of Jesus” that embraced justification and righteousness by faith.

Whidden points out that in the 1950s there came a reaction and a strong resurgence in the Adventist Church, emphasizing a more Protestant-informed soteriology that would be associated with the effective forensic view of theology. He stated that this more reformationist-evangelical strain of theology arose in Adventist academia as a corrective reaction to a perfectionistic soteriology (p. 121). Unfortunately, many today think that the Adventist view is a legalistic one, instead of understanding the continuity between the views of the Reformers and the progressive views on salvation that Adventists gained in light of 1844. As a result, unnecessary controversies have arisen. This essay should have given a more balanced view of the history of righteousness by faith in the Adventist Church and the significant contribution it has made to the pivotal doctrine of the sanctuary.

“Reformation Ecclesiology and Adventism” by Reinder Bruinsma posits that Seventh-day Adventists are indebted for their ecclesiology and model of church governance to the traditions from which they came. This was true of the larger organization of conferences and the General Conference, but not the local church. Interestingly, Bruinsma does not mention that the primary sources reveal that at first there was no Calvinistic influence of other churches on the roles of ministers, elders, and deacons (p. 163). Through divine guidance and Bible study James White and others introduced the New Testament role of elders as leaders of the newly formed churches. Ministers were expected to train members and plant new churches. There was no place for the so-called “settled pastor” role of ministers. It was not until well into the twentieth century that the settled pastor model of Protestant churches was adopted by Seventh-day Adventists, a decision that demoted local elders to assistants of settled pastors like the practice in other Protestant churches.

Essays from the Section “Eschatology and Politics”

“Luther, Adventist, Anabaptists, and Liberty” by Douglas Morgan discusses Luther’s understanding of the principle of freedom of conscience. He brings out that many have misunderstood and believed that Luther thought his conscience was free. It was not free but was “captive to the Word of God” and it was that Word that generated the freedom of his conscience (p. 235). Morgan explains also how Luther first opposed the use of the coercive suppression of dissent, but later reluctantly endorsed the use of force, and even the death penalty for nonresistant Anabaptists. This essay provides some excellent insights into church-state relations between the Reformation and Adventists. This is also unfolded in “State Power and Loyalty: Luther and Adventists” by Lisa Clark Diller that correctly states that the strongest Reformation roots of Seventh-day Adventists are with the Anabaptists.

“Martin Luther, Antichrist, and Seventh-day Adventists” by Dennis Pettibone gives a helpful explanation of how Luther concluded that the papacy was the antichrist. The view of the papacy as antichrist had become generally accepted by Protestants in the time of William Miller and so became part of the Adventist prophetic understanding. Pettibone points out that although it is not politically correct to hold such a view today, the issue should not be whether it is politically correct or socially acceptable, but whether it is biblically correct (p. 227). The essay gives good insights regarding how the Protestant view of the antichrist influenced Adventists.

“Islam in Luther and Seventh–day Adventism” by Nikolaus Satelmajer nicely explains Luther’s position on the Turks (Islam). When it comes to Adventism and Islam Satelmajer uses W. A. Spicer and Uriah Smith’s views on Turkey as the king of the North in the last verses of Daniel 11 (p. 254), a view that few Adventists still hold. Strangely enough he fails to mention the extensive account of Islam as a fulfillment of God’s judgments on an apostate Christianity in the fifth and sixth trumpets of Revelation 8 and 9—an interpretation that is still held by many Adventists. More recent and problematic trends in the Adventist approach to Islam are not addressed in this article. This is an unfortunate omission.

“Anabaptists—the Forgotten People of the Reformation” by Richard W. Muller describes the Anabaptist movement in the context of the magisterial reformers. Muller gives these frequently neglected reformers their proper place and shows the results of a strict adherence to the principle of the Bible and the Bible only. A good description of the plight of the Anabaptists and their contribution is given.

Essays from the Section “Dialogue and Legacy”

(This section addresses worthwhile topics such as Luther and images, music, Bible translation, and the Lutheran-Roman Catholic dialogue.)

“Luther and Images” by Daniel Wildemann provides a good explanation of the contrast between the Lutheran and the Reformed (Calvinist) church architecture and the impact of the latter on Adventists. The author designates the artwork of mocking caricature against the papacy and other enemies of Luther “distasteful” (p. 276), but perhaps does not realize there were cartoons Roman Catholics produced against the Protestants, placing both Luther and Calvin in hell. So, in the end both sides used this art form to characterize each other.

“Luther’s Legacy in Music” by Dan Shultz shows Luther’s profound influence on music during the Reformation and far beyond his time and ultimately on the world. His attempt to show how it differs from Adventism is to be appreciated.

“Lutheran-Roman Catholic Dialogues and the Future of the Protestant Reformation” by Denis Fortin gives an excellent overview of the dialogues between these religious traditions since Vatican II. As to the fruits of the dialogues, Fortin points out that many barriers of prejudice are being replaced with avenues of cooperation on social and moral issues. But in the areas of doctrinal differences these two traditions have largely no intention to compromise (p. 308).

With few exceptions this book gives a useful summary, pointing out the similarities between Luther and other Reformers and Seventh-day Adventists today and examining some of the ways Seventh-day Adventists are continuing the reformation.

“Faith is a living, daring confidence in God’s grace, so sure and certain that the believer would stake his life on it a thousand times.”

(Martin Luther, Luther Works, vol. 35, p. 370)