Adrian Ebens is an Australian who served in the SDA Church, but later joined the non-Trinitarian movement and was disfellowshipped from the Church. His materials are actively spread on the internet, especially among those interested in “non-traditional” Adventism.
Ebens’s Key Theological Position
Ebens denies the equality of the persons of the Trinity—specifically, that the Holy Spirit is a Person equal to the Father and the Son. He claims that the Spirit is the “Spirit of the Father,” not a distinct Person. This position contradicts the SDA Fundamental Beliefs (FB #2, #3, #5) and is therefore the reason for his disfellowshipping from the Church.
“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” Matt. 28:19
This statement of Jesus is a classic Trinitarian declaration. Three persons, one name. Denying the personality of the Spirit requires significant “reinterpretation” of the plain meaning of the text.
Can his books be read?
They may be read critically. Ebens raises real questions about the nature of God, and familiarity with his arguments is useful for those who want to know how to respond to non-Trinitarian criticism.
But the danger is that his style—appealing to “true Adventism” and to White—may confuse those who do not know the theological foundation well. He presents a marginal position as a “restoration of the original truth.”
Practical meaning
- If you are interested in his arguments, read them alongside responses from mainstream Adventist theology.
- Check the White quotations he cites in their original context.
- The non-Trinitarian movement in Adventism exists, but it is a minority that contradicts the Church’s official position.
Ebens is not an “implanted enemy.” But his theological position contradicts both Adventist doctrine and the plain texts of Scripture. Read critically.
