Some of the articles that I write involve subtle issues, and
matters of doctrine that may be considered esoteric by casual readers. This is not without cause, as some of the
objections to the purity and fullness of the Gospel are “clever” by the world’s
standards, and we must bring the wealth of Scripture and Bible principles to
bear in exposing the truth behind the many and various carnal arguments.
This article, by contrast, is different in that it seeks to
promote two very basic points. They are
these:
1) True faith leads to true obedience
2) Every sin, in its basic form, goes back to a violation
of one of the 10 Commandments, either its letter or its spirit.
The motivation for this article is an idea that has been
addressed to some extent in other writings, that of the difficulty many
Seventh-day Adventists have in seeing that the Sunday Law, which they have
traditionally anticipated as being the final manifestation of the Mark of The
Beast, was by its very nature conditional upon the integrity of the Church
bearing the warning message. And now
that this guardian of true doctrine has been corrupted, the promises and
prophecies associated with that Body have been altered, as is the case with
every other prophecy tied to a body of people.
Other writings, such as “The
Mark in Prophecy“ and “All
Manner of Beasts“ address that principle in some detail. Thus, this article should not, on its own,
be used in an attempt to show that there will not be a Sunday Law, but rather
to reveal the principles behind what constitutes a valid test of the
believer. If used in this way, it will
provide further information and insight into those articles already mentioned.
What we are going to look at here is something that may
express the idea of the conditional nature of the Sunday Law in a way that will
be new to most. And it is this: based
on the two principles listed above, we can see that The Sunday Law, by
itself, was NEVER intended to be the true test of Yahweh’s faithful,
last-day people. This is a novel, and
shocking, concept to those who have the teaching ingrained in their core
theology.
When we present this idea to Adventists, some will accuse us of repudiating the Adventist faith
altogether – although, as I point out, not one of the fundamental beliefs of
Adventism, even on the list of current
fundamentals with which we do not fully agree, mentions the Sunday Law.
These are echoes of what Christ’s disciples went through in
the early days of New Testament history.
Their beliefs were greeted with looks and expressions of disbelief, for
how could they teach that Israel as a nation had fallen, and that the Messiah
was not, in fact, going to lead them into a prosperous kingdom on the earth
(yet), but instead would die for the sins of the world, including the Gentiles? These things, while found in symbols and
parables of the Old Testament, were not fully understood, therefore the “core”
beliefs were an acceptance of the surface teachings only. Thus, when the true “meat”
of the Gospel was presented to them, by and large they had no appetite for such
things.
That being as it may, it should be obvious to worldlings
and Christians alike that to make any action the test of salvation is a
rejection of the Scriptural idea of justification by faith. (Romans 3:28,
Galatians 3:24) Not only should
it be obvious to these people, it is obvious, and this is one of the
things that gets Adventists labeled as “legalists” so often for keeping the
Sabbath day. Many are keeping it, not
as a result of their faith, but because it is (in their minds) a necessary step
for obtaining Heaven. This is clearly
wrong, and deserving of all the arguments that have arisen against it.
Scripture tells us, “For by grace are ye saved through
faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of Yah; not of works, lest
any man should boast.” (Ephesians 2:8, 9)
It is true, and must not be forgotten, that there are many faithful
Adventists, some still within the Conference organization, who do obey the
commandments for the right reason. This
means that they are the ones who truly have faith, and this article will be of
the greatest blessing to them. All must
ask the question, “Could I be a legalist and not even realize it?” And another, “Since the Scriptures tell me
that I am responsible for the actions of my leaders (Isaiah 9:16), is there a
point at which they can go too far, requiring me to withdraw my allegiance to
their actions?”
True faith leads to true obedience, (James 2:26) thus any
manifestation of the Mark of the Beast, which will demonstrate a work, must at
its heart test faith. It is true that
this faith can be seen in actions, and this was what James was addressing in
his epistle, (cf. James 2:24) yet to make the action itself the test is
to put the cart before the horse. There
are some who would keep the Sabbath just to earn heaven by their deeds, being
convinced that they must do so. They
would “pass” the test, if it were about works, but would their characters be
suited for Heaven?
Ellen White made this very clear, for the edification of
Adventists, and particularly in reference to the Sabbath commandment:
“No other institution which was committed to the Jews
tended so fully to distinguish them from surrounding nations as did the
Sabbath. God designed that its observance should designate them as His
worshipers. It was to be a token of their separation from idolatry, and their
connection with the true God. But in order to keep the Sabbath holy, men
must themselves be holy. Through
faith they must become partakers of the righteousness of Christ. When the
command was given to Israel, ‘Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy,’ the
Lord said also to them, ‘Ye shall be holy men unto Me.’ Ex. 20:8; 22:31. Only
thus could the Sabbath distinguish Israel as the worshipers of God.” [The
Desire of Ages, page 283, emphases added]
The 7th day Sabbath is only a sign of true loyalty
to the Almighty if it is kept by those who are living a sanctified life. In any other kind of life, Sabbath-keeping
is a fraud, and nothing more. I myself
had been this latter kind of Sabbath-keeper for a number of years, but when
obedience to the commandments of Yahweh is coupled with the faith of Yahshua
(Revelation 14:12) and victory over all known sin is accepted without reserve
or doubt, (1John 5:4) then the life becomes a Christian life. Then only Sabbath-keeping becomes a
blessing. Faith is that which gives
life to the law.
“Those who love God in spirit and in truth, will be
pronounced fit subjects of the heavenly kingdom. The law of God, which is
perfect holiness, is the only true standard of character. Love is expressed in
obedience, and perfect love casteth out all fear. Those who love God,
have the seal of God in their foreheads, and work the works of God.” [The
Youth’s Instructor, July 26, 1894, emphasis added]
The principle as a general one was certainly not left
unsaid:
“The man who attempts to keep the commandments of God from
a sense of obligation merely--because he is required to do so--will never enter
into the joy of obedience. He does not obey. When the requirements of God are
accounted a burden because they cut across human inclination, we may know that
the life is not a Christian life. True obedience is the outworking of a
principle within. It springs from the love of righteousness, the love of the
law of God. The essence of all righteousness is loyalty to our Redeemer. This
will lead us to do right because it is right--because right doing is pleasing
to God.” [Christ’s Object Lessons, page 97]
This is true faith, “gold tried in the fire.” (Revelation
3:18))
The reason the Sunday Law could have been the outwardly visible
test a hundred years ago was likewise about the faith, and not the
actions. Mrs. White did clearly
indicate that “Sunday Law” was the manifestation coming, but many today forget
or ignore the reason why:
“When Sunday observance shall be enforced by law, and the
world shall be enlightened concerning the obligation of the true Sabbath, then
whoever shall transgress the command of God to obey a precept which has no
higher authority than that of Rome, will thereby honor popery above God.
He is paying homage to Rome, and to the power which enforces the
institution ordained by Rome. He is worshiping the beast and his image.” [Last
Day Events, page 226, emphases added]
Let every reader clearly understand; the above quotation is
key to understanding this whole matter.
The reason the Sunday Law could test loyalty to Yahweh is that it showed
those who chose to pay homage to Rome, and the spirit of Romanism that was
becoming manifest in the Protestant Churches.
But now, if one kept the right Sabbath, yet paid homage to Rome in some
other way, would this demonstrate a saving faith?
Obviously not!
Therefore there must be something else about primitive Seventh-Day
Adventism that would make the Sunday Law a valid test. This is told to us in a very clear manner:
“I see perplexities on every side. As character develops
man and woman will take their position, for varied circumstances brought
to bear upon them will cause them to reveal the spirit which prompts
them to action. Every one will reveal the character of the bundle with which he
is binding himself. The wheat is being bound up for the heavenly garner. The
true people of God are now bound up for the heavenly garner. The true people of
God are now pulling apart, and the tares are being bound in bundles ready to
burn. Decided positions will be taken. Satan will move upon minds that have
been indulged, upon men who have always had their own way, and anything
presented to them in counsel or reproof to change their objectionable traits of
character is considered faultfinding, binding them, restraining them, that they
cannot have liberty to act themselves. The Lord in great mercy has sent
messages of warning to them, but they would not listen to reproof. Like the
enemy who rebelled in heaven, they do not like to hear, do not correct the
wrong they have done but become accusers, declaring themselves misused and
unappreciated.” [1888 Materials, page 995]
Connected to this idea, and concerning who the people of
God are: “Very close and sacred is the relation between Christ and His
church,--He the bridegroom, and the church the bride; He the head, and the
church the body. Connection with Christ, then, involves connection with His
church.” [The General Conference Bulletin, July 1, 1902]
We see
by this that the Sunday Law would have served as a separator for those who were
already being purified through the faith of Yahshua, through connection with “the
true people of God,” the faithful Church on earth, through association with
others who were actively applying the principles of Heaven to their daily
experience. Now if any among these was “faking
it” for some other motive than true faith, their defects of character would
have overwhelmed them in the face of the circumstances (the coming
persecution), Satan would have been empowered to mislead them, and they would
not have stood with the Remnant.
But here again we see that it is actually faith that is the
true test, that any homage to a human (or demonic) power rather than to Yahweh
is evidence of a soul unsaved, and that IF the Church that was supposed to
sanctify its members by its purity became impure, the expected test would no
longer be an accurate means of sifting the wheat from the tares. The conditions are implicit in the very
quotes describing why it would be the test.
In case that idea is not perfectly clear, parables are
useful for showing principles.
“Since I am claiming to be an apple tree, you can test me
in this way… when the season for apples comes around, you will find apples on
my branches.”
The validity of the test is tied directly to the nature of
the thing being tested. But if it were
no apple tree, the test would not apply.
If the tree could somehow become a grape tree, we could still apply the
test, but it would not prove anything.
If we found apples in the branches of a fig tree, we would have to
conclude that someone placed them there unnaturally. Thus, it would be a fraud.
There are other ways to test a tree, such as by looking at the trunk,
and the root from which it came originally.
These cannot be faked.
Similarly, Conference Adventists are saying, “Since we are
claiming to be the true (unfallen) Church, you can test us this way… when the
Sunday Law comes around, you will find that we are faithful to the commandments
of God.”
If the Church fell, you could still apply the test, but it
would not prove anything. If we found
some who resisted the Sunday Law unto death, we would have to conclude that
they were doing it for a legalistic reason.
This sounds heavy-handed, but the quote from Mrs. White shows this to be
the case… If her statements are accurate, then the “decided positions” can only
be taken by those who are being truly sanctified by their connection to Christ,
and that in tandem with His faithful people.
We are not to be “independent atoms,” for though we are saved
individually, as we point out in other places, the Son of Man is returning for
a united people, an undivided Church. (1Cor 1:10, 13) Those who resist unity give evidence that, though they may appear
holy in other respects, they are rejecting the very thing for which Christ most
earnestly prayed, (John 17) and thereby His character.
“God is leading out a people, not a few separate
individuals here and there, one believing this thing, another that. Angels of
God are doing the work committed to their trust. The third angel is leading out
and purifying a people, and they should move with him unitedly.” [Testimonies
for the Church Volume One, page 207]
There are valid ways to test a Church, such as by looking
at the trunk: their doctrines, and the root from which it came originally: how
well they are abiding in the principles of Christ – the Root. (Romans
15:12) These cannot be faked.
The question then becomes, “Has the Church fallen?” An
exhaustive examination of this question appears in the two articles already
mentioned, but for a brief answer, this is where the second principle comes in.
This principle, again, is this one: Every sin, in its basic form, goes back to
a violation of one of the 10 commandments, either its letter or its spirit.
Adventists rightly believe that it is a sign of true faith
to adopt a healthy diet. The Scriptures
tell us, “Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to
the glory of Yahweh.” (1Corinthians 10:31)
But how does failure to do so violate one of the 10 Commandments?
It does so in two ways.
In the first, as pointed out by the Bible, those who willfully eat
things that would harm their bodies as spoken of as those, “Whose end is
destruction, whose god is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who
mind earthly things.” (Philippians 3:19)
Thus, to disregard Yahweh’s principles for the sake of either gluttony
or delicacy (two faces of the same coin) is to make the things of this world
into objects of idolatry. The first and
second commandments are designed to safeguard against this.
Second, it can be shown that an unhealthy diet is one of
the leading causes of premature death.
Obesity, heart disease, diabetes – in many cases these are either
directly caused, or made worse, by poor choices in diet, thus “thou shalt not
kill” applies directly to those who injure their bodies for the sake of
temporal pleasure (if the sorts of foods leading to these things may even be
described thus).
This is only one example, but there are many others that
may be cited. For the sake of brevity,
I leave it with the readers to consider this question, “Is there anything that
the Scripture considers a sin that does not, in principle, violate at
least one of the elements of the Decalogue?”
Gluttony is there, as we have seen.
So is alcoholism, smoking, holding malice in one’s heart (this one is
spelled out in 1John 3:15), speaking idle words, and so on.
What does this have to do with the Sunday Law, and the possible
fall of a Church?
Much. Creation
Seventh Day Adventists teach that the “test” that was to have come upon
Adventism is no longer a valid one, under the first principle of this article…
that true faith leads to true obedience.
It is now possible, since the SDA Church fell due to apostasy and
uniting with the world, to “pass” a test that would be set in place by the
Sunday Law legislation, yet not become sanctified through connection to the
truth. Thus, they would not have
developed the true faith. The true test
imposed by the Mark of the Beast must test these things: the faith of Yahshua
that overcomes all sin, the inability of the convert to bow to Romanism, and
the connection to Christ through His people.
CSDAs, based on these principles, which are easily found in
the Bible and the writings of Adventist pioneers, not the least of which is
Mrs. White herself, teach:
“The Lord has shown me clearly that the image of the beast will
be formed before probation closes; for it is to be the great test for the
people of God, by which their eternal destiny will be decided.” [Selected
Messages Book 2, page 80]
Now, if this statement is read in Conference publications,
it will appear in this form: “The Lord has shown me clearly that the image of
the beast will be formed before probation closes, for it is to be the great
test[1. SEE THE PREVIOUS CHAPTER, WHERE THE GREAT TEST FOR THE PEOPLE OF GOD IS
SHOWN TO BE SUNDAY-LAW ENFORCEMENT.] for the people of God, by which their
eternal destiny will be decided.--2SM 81 (1890).” [Last Day Events, page
227]
It is true, Adventists in general, and Ellen White in
particular, taught that the Sunday Law was to be the test. In her day, it
was! Yet, look at what “The Lord has
shown” the test would be – it will be in recognizing and avoiding the “image of
the Beast.” This is different. The image, in the 1800s, would have enforced
the Sunday Law. This is because the SDA
Church at the time would have met the requirements of a sanctifying
influence. It taught the true Gospel,
had a proper understanding of the Godhead, and was free of unlawful union with
the governments of the world. Today, none
of those things is true of the Conference Church.
After
rejecting the 1888 message, which we now call the “Victory over Sin,” the
Church began a slow, but decided, fall into error. A law that tests whether or not a people have or do not have
knowledge of the 7th day Sabbath would do nothing more to separate the true
believers today than it would have two thousand years ago. Let the reader be aware that there are three
Sabbaths.
The following quotation and chart, taken from the article “The
Mark in Prophecy“ should be sufficient to point this out:
We recall that the Pharisees were Sabbath-keepers
outwardly, but they were not keepers of the true Sabbath, for on the very seventh
day they were plotting the death of the Lord of the Sabbath. (Matthew 12:10-14,
Mark 2:28)
We can construct a chart of the three Sabbaths in this way,
and it becomes plain:
CSDAs
teach that it is a “sin” for a Church to go to the civil government to protect
itself from detractors, and to enforce its doctrine. For this teaching, we have quite a treasury of Scriptural
writings, including, but not limited to, the following:
“Dare any of you, having a matter against another, go to
law before the unjust, and not before the saints?” (1Corinthians 6:1) Some have sought to limit this to people in
the same church, saying, “Well, we can disfellowship, them, and then sue
them.” Or worse, “If they consider
themselves a separate church, it means we can force them to submit by using the
law.”
This is heartless and mercenary. But worse, perhaps, it is unbiblical. Scripture teaches that the idea has a much broader application
than those on the wrong side of the courtroom (i.e., the plaintiff)
would like to admit.
“And the pride of Israel testifieth to his face: and they
do not return to Yahweh their Almighty, nor seek Him for all this. Ephraim also is like a silly dove without
heart: they call to Egypt, they go to Assyria.” (Hosea 7:10, 11)
It was known to be wrong for the leader of a people to seek
protection by military forces when under the declared protection of the Creator…
and it was known from the days of Moses.
Thus those who claim ignorance of these matters are without excuse: “Thou
shalt in any wise set him king over thee, whom Yahweh thy Almighty shall
choose: one from among thy brethren shalt thou set king over thee; thou mayest
not set a stranger over thee, which is not thy brother. But he shall not multiply horses to himself,
nor cause the people to return to Egypt, to the end that he should multiply
horses; forasmuch as Yahweh hath said unto you, ‘Ye shall henceforth return no
more that way.’” (Deuteronomy 17:15, 16)
Adventists claim to have been drawn out of the world. They claim that their trust is in God, and
His power. For many of them, this is
true, and I seek not to offend any of the faithful, commandment-keeping
believers by these words, for of individuals such as this is the Church
composed. Yet it is not true of their
leaders. Since it is not true of the
leaders, the organization falls. This
is clearly expressed in the Bible, the example of history, and the writings of
Ellen White:
“With the other priests [Caiaphas] instructed the people to
choose Barabbas instead of Christ. They cried out for the crucifixion of Christ
and, as representatives of the Jewish nation, placed themselves under the Roman
jurisdiction, which they despised, by saying, ‘We have no king but Caesar.’
When they said this, they unchurched themselves.” [Manuscript Releases
Volume Twelve, page 388]
Caiaphas and the other priests were “representatives of the
Jewish nation,” the leaders. Their
actions caused the entire structure to fall, (Isaiah 9:16) thus Peter spoke to
even those Jews who were unaware of their leaders’ actions, telling them to
repent, be baptized, and join the true Body of believers, that had been called
out from the old. (Acts 2:38, 41)
The SDA Church has gone to the world for protection, as
surely as Caiaphas and the priests presented their case to Pilate for
help. In obtaining a Trademark, and
persecuting those who cannot, in good conscience, either surrender the name or
submit to the broken authority of the General Conference, they do just what the
leaders did in the days of the Messiah.
The parallels are too clear to be missed, and we must ask ourselves, “Is
this sin?”
Have the leaders sinned in doing so? Based on the second principle this article
presents, we can answer that by asking, “Does it violate any of the 10
Commandments?”
We see that it does.
In fact, Adventists have always taught that it does. “I need not undertake to give a definition
in detail of what the image of the beast is; we all know well that it is the
church power using the government, the civil power, for church purposes . . .
And of all Christians, Seventh-day Adventists cannot do it. The very keeping
of the Sabbath forbids it.” [General Conference Bulletin, page 28,
1895 – emphases mine] This also appears in the 1896 First Quarter Sabbath
School lesson.
This idea is not lacking in Scriptural support. We read of the true Sabbath in New Testament
writings: “Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering
into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it. For unto us was the gospel preached, as well
as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed
with faith in them that heard it.
There remaineth therefore a rest [lit. a “Sabbath-keeping”] to the people
of God. For he that is entered into His
rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from His. Let us labour therefore to enter into that
rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.” (Hebrews
4:1, 2, 9-11, emphasis added)
Observe how closely the author ties failure in
Sabbath-keeping to unbelief, and this is not a coincidence. True Sabbath-keeping involves resting in
Christ, trusting in His works, and ceasing to obtain justice or vindication
through one’s own works. This is true
of things both heavenly and earthly, for Paul says of his earthly experience, “I
have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.” (Philippians
4:11) This is true Sabbath.
Now, it is true that Paul appealed to Caesar when falsely
accused, but there are two very important points to keep in mind here: 1) Paul
was not making or bringing a law for use against anyone; he merely desired to
be given a fair hearing, and the real issue is beginning a course of
action in union with the government, as the afore-mentioned General Conference
Bulletin makes plain.
2) Though it was not a moral sin in this specific case, it
was a tactical error that cost Paul his freedom.
Some do not immediately see this latter point, but it was
said in the Scriptures. After Paul’s
audience with Agrippa, in which the Tetrarch was convinced his faith was
genuine, we read this, “Then said Agrippa unto Festus, ‘This man might have been
set at liberty, if he had not appealed unto Caesar.’” (Acts 26:32) Let us not prolong our confinement by making
the same error as Paul.
Adventists have long understood the Mark of the Beast to be
a Sabbath issue. Indeed it is. It would have been obvious had the
manifestation been a Sunday Law. Yet it
is no less a Sabbath issue now that the Trademark law has come about. It clearly shows those who genuinely make
Christ their trust, and those who do not, testing the very principle of
Sabbath. To be brief: it tests faith.
It is somewhat easier to see if we understand the two
points presented in this article. The
Sunday Law of itself could never have constituted the test. Only in conjunction with the true Church,
the undefiled Body of Christ, could obedience to the commandment demonstrate
real faith. One may keep all the
commandments of Yahweh, yet, like the rich young ruler, have a defilement of
character that, though not clearly a violation of the Decalogue,
nevertheless keeps one from experiencing the fullness of the Holy Spirit’s
transforming power.
We read of this incident:
“And, behold, one came and said unto Him, ‘Good Master,
what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?’ And He said unto
him, ‘Why callest thou me good? There is
none good but one, that is, Yah; but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the
commandments.’
“He saith unto Him, ‘Which?’ Yahshua said, ‘Thou shalt do
no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not
bear false witness, honour thy father and thy mother; and, thou shalt love thy
neighbour as thyself.’
“The young man saith unto him, ‘All these things have I
kept from my youth up: what lack I yet?’
Yahshua said unto him, ‘If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou
hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come
and follow me.’ But when the young man
heard that saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.”
(Matthew 19:6-22)
Note that the list Christ gave the young man was neither a
full set of the 10, nor limited to the Decalogue, for “love thy neighbor as
thyself” is a principle expressed elsewhere.
The young man gave the commendable answer that he had been diligent in
the keeping of these things, in the actions. Yet Yahshua wanted to test the young man’s faith, as He will
permit the Image of the Beast to do, and there are many who will look at the 10
Commandments in the judgment and say, “Lord, I have kept these ten, and even
when death was knocking at my door, I did all your works.”
But He will profess to them, “What is the state of your
faith? Have you not given homage to the
beast by following the course of papal dominion? Have you not made my conscientious people poor, and imprisoned? These are things I have forbidden in my
Word, thus how can you say, ‘I know thee,’ when in your works you express the
reality of your faith – that you and I have never met?”
True faith leads to true obedience, and this to the
principles of the Law, not only what is merely stated, but what is worked out
in the experience of love. Secondly,
every sin goes back to a violation of the Decalogue, thus we see the Sabbath
commandment violated in this case by the very ones who were set on earth to teach
the Sabbath to the world. These are the
principles that are still taught by the survivors of this sifting process, the
CSDA Church.
Those of us, who have seen an image formed, and escaped to
tell others, find we have a hard job.
Many in these days are content with a surface understanding of the
prophecies, and a superficial obedience to the Commandments of Yahweh. These do not demonstrate true
obedience. They do not, consequently,
demonstrate true faith.
If we can understand WHY the early Adventists thought the
Sunday Law would be the test, and apply these same, these very same, teachings
to our current set of events, our eyes will be opened, our hearts softened, and
then Christ will speak to us of the things He would have His people do. By connection to those who truly trust
Christ to defend us, who truly believe that the unwashed hands of men were
never meant to steady the divine Ark, (1Chronicles 13:10) one may develop gold
tried in the Fire, and will find himself among those Tribes, who are sealed as
Tribes, not as individual believers, when the Master comes to find His
people at the end of all things. (Revelation 7:4-8)
David.
