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Ukiah, California

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Seventh-day Adventist Missionary Society · Oakland, California · Jun 29, 1882

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 8, No. 25.

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Ukiah, California.

By J. D. Rice, E. A. Briggs, L. A. Scott

Our meetings continue in this place. Attendance and interest have both gradually increased. Audiences are quite regular, and range from about fifty to a hundred. Held a Bible-class and testimony meeting last Sabbath. A number were present, most of whom took part. Some who could not meet with us were at home keeping the Sabbath. Quite a number have expressed their determination to no longer do homage to the Pope of Rome, but keep, instead, all the commandments of God, not excepting his holy Sabbath. We hope to see a permanent company established here in Ukiah, who shall be living witnesses for God and his truth.
The Baptist minister of the place tried his hand against the “Law of the Lord” last Sunday, in a discourse before his congregation. He ignored the distinction between the Law which God commanded the people, and wrote upon stone—the ten commandments—and the law which his “servant Moses commanded” them. (See 2 Kings 21 : 8, Ex. 20 : 1–17; Deut. 4 : 13, 14; 5 : 22, etc.) He jumbled everything together, declaring that God’s moral law is an inseparable part of “the handwriting of ordinances” and was consequently “nailed to the cross!” and that if we go back to the observance of the Sabbath of the Lord, to be consistent, we should keep “the handwriting of ordinances” also. Seeing, probably, that this argument would be equally against himself should he “go back to the observance of any one of the ten commandments, he acts consistent with his theory, and gives a new code of ten commandments, which does not include one of the original ten! Not even those against murder, adultery, blasphemy, theft, idolatry, etc.
Some of his people thought his position was all right, but the more thoughtful did not like it. We reviewed him before quite a large audience Monday evening, showing the fallacy of his position and the dangerous, not to say damnable, tendency of his doctrine. The Lord gave freedom in replying, and the eyes of the people were opened. We hope they may not shut them again. It has helped to settle some in favor of the truth. Truly, they “can do nothing against the truth, but for the truth.” Remember us when you pray.
J. D. RICE, E. A. BRIGGS, L. A. SCOTT.