The Sabbath of the Fourth Commandment Unchanged

The commandment for Sabbath observance reads: «Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work; but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God; in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle; not thy stranger that is within thy gates; for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day; wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it.»

The Sabbath commandment is placed in the very bosom of the Decalogue, amid the unchangeable precepts of Jehovah. And yet from many pulpits of our land a contemptuous cry is raised against the Sabbath instituted by the Lord God of heaven, and it is stigmatized as «the old Jewish Sabbath.» Let all who are seeking for truth remember that the Sabbath was instituted in Eden before there was a Jew in existence, and that the Saviour said, «The Sabbath was made for man.» The fourth commandment was spoken with the other nine of God’s moral precepts, amid the thunders and grandeur of Mount Sinai, and in the holy of holies in the heavenly sanctuary above, is the ark of God. It is called the «ark of the testament,» and under its cover,—the mercy seat,—are the ten commandments that were written with the finger of God.

On the tables of the law, written with the finger of the infinite God, is the fourth commandment. Does the commandment read, «The first day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God?»—No, it reads: «Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work; but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God; in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates; for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested [the first day?] the seventh day; wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day; and hallowed it.» Thus it reads to-day in the sacred law as engraven by the finger of God, and thus it is preserved in the ark in the temple of God in heaven.

The institution of the Sabbath was made when the foundation of the earth was laid, when the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy. Like the other nine precepts of the law, it is of imperishable obligation. It is the memorial of God’s creative power, the reminder of his exalted work. The fourth commandment occupies a sacred position in the law, and bears the same hallowed nature as do the other great moral precepts of God. God has stamped it with his divine authority as a law of his eternal government. No change can come to it, nothing can alter the thing that has gone out of his lips, or lessen in any degree its sacred obligation. The law of the Sabbath is placed in the very midst of the Decalogue, and walled in with the sacred immutability of truth, justice, and holiness.

The fall of Adam was a terrible thing, and the consequences of his sin so fraught with evil that language cannot portray it. By his disobedience of the divine law, the world was thrown into disorder and rebellion. Because of his disobedience, man was under the penalty of breaking the law, doomed to death. The only definition given in the word of God as to what is sin, is found in 1 John 3:4: «Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law; for sin is the transgression of the law.» The law of God is that standard by which character is to be measured in the judgment. Do those who are contending that the first day of the week should be observed instead of the day commanded by Jehovah, understand what they are doing? Do they realize that they are leading men to trample upon one of the precepts of Jehovah?

What significance has the Sabbath if its observance is transferred to the first day of the week? God gave it to men as a memorial of his creative work in six days and his rest upon the seventh. «And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, Speak thou also unto the children of Israel, saying, Verily my Sabbaths ye shall keep; for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations; that ye may know that I am the Lord that doth sanctify you. Ye shall keep the Sabbath therefore; for it is holy unto you; everyone that defileth it shall surely be put to death; for whosoever doeth any work therein, that soul shall be cut off from among his people. Six days may work be done; but in the seventh is the Sabbath of rest, holy to the Lord; whosoever doeth any work in the Sabbath day, he shall surely be put to death. Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, to observe the Sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant. It is a sign between me and the children of Israel forever; for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed. And he gave unto Moses, when he had made an end of communing with him upon Mount Sinai, two tables of testimony, tables of stone, written with the finger of God.»

Satan, the apostle, the rebel against the government of God, has proposed to obliterate the fourth commandment, which brings to view the Creator of the heavens and the earth, and, instead of the Sabbath, he designs to cause all men to honor a common working day. God blessed the seventh day, he rested upon it and sanctified it for man’s observance, but Satan is determined to set aside the claims of the Sabbath, and cause men to accept a spurious sabbath. The excuse for refusing to observe the Sabbath of God’s appointment is often made that it does not make any difference upon which day we rest, so long as it is one day in the seven. But it makes every difference upon which day you rest. Resting upon the day God commanded reveals the fact that you honor the Maker of heaven and earth; but disregarding that fact makes it evident that you do not honor God or obey his commandment to «remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy.» Your non-observance of the memorial of creation shows that you place no merit upon the day that has been sanctified and blessed, and think that you will be excused if you observe the day that has been appointed by the Papacy, which has exalted itself above God and all that is worshiped.

You accept a common working day instead of the day that has been sanctified and blessed, but in thus doing you offer positive insult to the God of heaven. In holding to an observance commanded by the Papal Church, you exalt the opinions and traditions of men above the commandments of the God of heaven.

The Lord understood in just what lines the enemy would work in seeking to tear down his memorial, thus destroying from the minds of men the reminder of his creative work and rest. But to his children he has given this message,—that the Sabbath shall have such significance in their eyes that they will not be moved away from obedience to his requirements: «Speak thou also unto the children of Israel, saying, Verily my Sabbaths ye shall keep; for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations; that ye may know that I am the Lord that doth sanctify you. . . . It is a sign between me and the children of Israel forever; for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed.» «And hallow my Sabbaths; and they shall be a sign between me and you, that ye may know that I am the Lord your God.» —

«This Man Receiveth Sinners»

«Then drew near unto him all the publicans and sinners for to hear him. And the Pharisees and scribes murmured, saying, This man receiveth sinners, and eateth with them. And he spake this parable unto them, saying, What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it? And when he hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbors, saying unto them, Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost. I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance.»

The scribes and Pharisees prided themselves upon the idea that they were God’s chosen people, and they were filled with self-righteousness. «Christ came unto his own, and his own received him not.» He did not flatter the Pharisees or exalt them in any way. He received the publicans and sinners whom the Jews heartily despised, and, because his lessons of humility, compassions, and love rebuked their selfishness and pride, they would none of him, but turned from him in scorn. They made great ostentation, wore long robes, and stood praying on the corners of the streets, but none of these pretensions to piety awed the great Teacher or drew from him one word of approval. They flattered themselves, but he did not flatter them. The teaching of Christ was against all vanity and pride, for these were abhorrent to the Most High. It is the humble and the contrite whose prayers are heard in heaven. The Lord declares that he knoweth the proud afar off. He says, «To this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word.»

When the scribes and Pharisees saw the publicans and sinners following Christ and listening with living interest to his teaching, they could not tolerate either teacher or listeners. They hated Christ and said, «This man receiveth sinners, and eateth with them.» By this accusation they thought to make the false impression that Jesus loved the association of those who were sinful and defiled, and was insensible to their wickedness. To this reproach Jesus replied by the parable of the lost sheep. «God so loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.»

The parable of the lost sheep places man in the position of one who is helpless and undone. All are lost unless they are transformed in character. The lost condition of the sheep necessitates the coming of the True Shepherd, that, at any cost to himself, he may seek and save those that are perishing. Those who are wise in their own conceit do not realize the position in which they are placed by this parable. The Son of Man came to seek and to save that which is lost. Doth not the shepherd leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness and go after that which is lost he find it?

In giving his only-begotten Son to save us, the Lord God shows what is the estimate he puts upon man. To the question, What is the price of the soul of man? the answer is, The life of the only-begotten Son of God. And as Christ came to save man, high or low, rich or poor, white or black, are any to be treated with contempt? Satan has studied to lay in ruins the image of God, and, through intemperance and sin, obliterate all trace of his character in man. Christ came, clothing his divinity with humanity, that he might meet humanity and not extinguish humanity by divinity. He came to save the lost sheep, and became a servant in lowly ministry to lift up the lowly.

The science of salvation is a grand theme,and all the glory of restoring the image of God in man is to be laid at the feet of the Eternal. Holy angels have left the royal courts, and have come down to earth to encamp in the valleys in chariots of fire, a vast army, not to despise, not to rule, or require man to worship them, but to minister unto those who shall be heirs of salvation. Could human eyes be opened, they would see in times of danger when Satan goes forth as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour, that heavenly beings encamp around the little flock who love and fear God.

The heavenly Shepherd left the ninety and nine to seek the lost one. However dark the night, however severe the tempest, the Shepherd goes forth, at every step calling by name his lost sheep, until he hears its terrified, faint, and dying cry. Then he hunts amid the dangerous places, crosses the tangled briers, and finds his sheep. He rescues it from peril, places it on his shoulder, and with rejoicing returns to the fold. At every step he cries, «Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost. «And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbors, saying unto them, Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost.»

Could we see the heavenly angels watching with intense interest the steps of the Shepherd as he goes into the desert to seek and to save the lost, what wonder would fill our hearts! «I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons [in their own estimation], which need no repentance.» It is he who is sick who feels the need of physician, and the mission of Christ to the world was to seek and to save those who were perishing. «For God so loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.» —