Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it Holy.
Good Saturday Morning, my dear brothers and sisters. Today I turn my line over to my dear friend John Henry Riddlesberger. John is a retired educator from the Carlisle (PA) School District and loves the Lord with all his being. The other day when I wrote about the Sabbath as one of the Basics that I have been writing about, I invited all to write in. Here is John Henry's response word for word... Please enjoy, share your blessings and know that I love ya. Pastor Dan.
Howdy Pastor Dan,
The Sabbath was set upon the seventh day of Creation and hasn't changed over the millennia of time. While the calendar has been readjusted a couple times (Julian and Gregorian) the days of the week have gone in their seven day cycle ever since the literal beginning of time. The Sabbath is indeed the day the Jews and the Seventh Day Adventist's observe. I often think of this as I am about my various tasks on Saturday. I'm very leery that God just winks his eye at we who observe our day of convenience as a Sabbath, because, if it is other than Saturday, it is NOT a Sabbath as much as we'd like to think of it as being so. The first century Christians observed the Sabbath when Jesus did. As you well know, the Resurrection occurred on the first day of the week which, in a way, commemorated, or celebrated, the actual first day of Creation.
The Roman Church ultimately, during the fourth century, changed the observance of the Sabbath to Sunday as they were mixing in the doctrines of Christianity and Pagan tradition, namely the worship of the Sun or the Sun God, this to make Christianity appealing to the established Pagan tradition. Constantine the Great, also known as Constantine I or Saint Constantine, was the Roman Emperor from 306 to 337. Constantine was well known for being the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity. He issued the Edict of Milan in 313 which proclaimed religious tolerance of ALL religions throughout the Roman empire. Notice "tolerance" being used as an excuse to accept something contrary to what God decreed. Sounds familiar doesn't it? It's the mantra of our current age. We are supposed to be tolerant of gay marriage and abortion, etc.
I truly believe we are ALL in violation of this sacred day. Realizing of course the comments Jesus made of the Sabbath as you noted in your line, there are certain things which must be done on the Sabbath. But, as for everything else, we could easily eat food that was prepared on the day before the Sabbath so no one would have to cook or serve. Again, I'm not so sure or certain God is going to wink at our following a converted Pagan of the 4th century (Constantine) in his attempt at being tolerant of "other" gods and those who follow them.
Believe it or not, I seriously think about this every week as I am about my Sunday habits. Truly the 7th Day Adventist's have this one correct. I know several people who refused to take any job that required them to work on Saturday. When being interviewed they brought it up to the interviewer early on. We for centuries have been watering down God's commands and decrees and justifying our interpretation of them sixteen ways to Sunday. It brings to mind the verse from Proverbs which roughly states, "there is a way that seems right to a man but in the end leads to destruction." Our observance of Sunday, or just any 7th day of convenience, probably falls into that category of "a way that seems right" or OK to us. I would never place a bet on that being OK with God.
Since I'm right in there with you and millions of others who worship on Sunday, we'll just have to hope for the best on this one. I know you remember when ALL the stores were closed on Sunday and no one would even think of mowing a lawn or running a washing machine or the like. Family and friends would instead visit with each other, or the Sunday afternoon nap was in order. As you can see, this is one I have mulled over for years. The World Wide Church of God is another Christian body that is even more strict than the 7th Day Adventists. If those folks find out that you worked on a Saturday, you are ex-communicated from the church. I know this because I had an acquaintance once upon a time who was a member of that church.
You asked for some thoughts on this topic, and there are mine.
God's blessings on you, Dolores, and your food bank!
John Henry
--
The Sabbath was set upon the seventh day of Creation and hasn't changed over the millennia of time. While the calendar has been readjusted a couple times (Julian and Gregorian) the days of the week have gone in their seven day cycle ever since the literal beginning of time. The Sabbath is indeed the day the Jews and the Seventh Day Adventist's observe. I often think of this as I am about my various tasks on Saturday. I'm very leery that God just winks his eye at we who observe our day of convenience as a Sabbath, because, if it is other than Saturday, it is NOT a Sabbath as much as we'd like to think of it as being so. The first century Christians observed the Sabbath when Jesus did. As you well know, the Resurrection occurred on the first day of the week which, in a way, commemorated, or celebrated, the actual first day of Creation.
The Roman Church ultimately, during the fourth century, changed the observance of the Sabbath to Sunday as they were mixing in the doctrines of Christianity and Pagan tradition, namely the worship of the Sun or the Sun God, this to make Christianity appealing to the established Pagan tradition. Constantine the Great, also known as Constantine I or Saint Constantine, was the Roman Emperor from 306 to 337. Constantine was well known for being the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity. He issued the Edict of Milan in 313 which proclaimed religious tolerance of ALL religions throughout the Roman empire. Notice "tolerance" being used as an excuse to accept something contrary to what God decreed. Sounds familiar doesn't it? It's the mantra of our current age. We are supposed to be tolerant of gay marriage and abortion, etc.
I truly believe we are ALL in violation of this sacred day. Realizing of course the comments Jesus made of the Sabbath as you noted in your line, there are certain things which must be done on the Sabbath. But, as for everything else, we could easily eat food that was prepared on the day before the Sabbath so no one would have to cook or serve. Again, I'm not so sure or certain God is going to wink at our following a converted Pagan of the 4th century (Constantine) in his attempt at being tolerant of "other" gods and those who follow them.
Believe it or not, I seriously think about this every week as I am about my Sunday habits. Truly the 7th Day Adventist's have this one correct. I know several people who refused to take any job that required them to work on Saturday. When being interviewed they brought it up to the interviewer early on. We for centuries have been watering down God's commands and decrees and justifying our interpretation of them sixteen ways to Sunday. It brings to mind the verse from Proverbs which roughly states, "there is a way that seems right to a man but in the end leads to destruction." Our observance of Sunday, or just any 7th day of convenience, probably falls into that category of "a way that seems right" or OK to us. I would never place a bet on that being OK with God.
Since I'm right in there with you and millions of others who worship on Sunday, we'll just have to hope for the best on this one. I know you remember when ALL the stores were closed on Sunday and no one would even think of mowing a lawn or running a washing machine or the like. Family and friends would instead visit with each other, or the Sunday afternoon nap was in order. As you can see, this is one I have mulled over for years. The World Wide Church of God is another Christian body that is even more strict than the 7th Day Adventists. If those folks find out that you worked on a Saturday, you are ex-communicated from the church. I know this because I had an acquaintance once upon a time who was a member of that church.
You asked for some thoughts on this topic, and there are mine.
God's blessings on you, Dolores, and your food bank!
John Henry
--
If you know that God’s hand is in everything, you can leave everything in God’s hands.
He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose. Jim Elliot
It is only with gratitude that life becomes rich. Dietrich Bonhoeffer
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