Shall We Go to Sleep?

International Tract and Missionary Society · Oakland, California · Sep 30, 1886

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 12, No. 38.

Shall We Go to Sleep?

The Freeman, the organ of the Baptists of London, England, speaks as follows of the Rev. W. M. Jones, the editor of the Sabbath Memorial, of that city:—

“He is greatly beloved by those of our London ministers who know his worth, although we deem him in error in his Sabbatarian notions. We only wish he could take some strong opiate some Friday evening and not wake up till Sunday morning, and give us the full benefit of fellowship.”

That method of settling the Sabbath question has often been recommended. No doubt those who make the suggestion think it a very shrewd one; but we think it betrays a knowledge on their part of the inherent weakness of the Sunday cause. Suppose that they could, by some such means, cause all Sabbath-keepers to mistake Sunday for the Sabbath; what effect would that have on the Sabbath itself? Just none at all. “The seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God,” whether anybody keeps it or not. Such a wish as that expressed above, shows that the Sunday man knows of no argument for Sunday that will affect a man when he is really awake. It is very suggestive, that they think a man must go to sleep, before he can turn from Sabbath to Sunday. This leads us to wonder if those who are already keeping Sunday are not asleep; if not, it is certain that many of them have their eyes shut. See Eze. 22:26. Would that they might pray with David, “Open Thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.” This would be better than trying to put others to sleep.