The Seal of God, or His Name and Memorial.
By I. D. Van Horn
THE God of Heaven is from everlasting to everlasting, the king of eternity, and the God to be feared above all others. Ps. 90:2; Jer. 10:10; Ps. 96:4. “O Lord our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hast set thy glory above the heavens.” Ps. 8:1. The name of God is sacred and holy, and it is to be had in reverence by all his intelligent creatures. In the decalogue he has guarded against profanity; and those who disrespect their Creator by taking his name in vain, will not be held guiltless. The name of God is closely connected with his commanded covenant, which is the moral law, the ten commandments. “And He declared unto you his covenant, which he commanded you to perform, even ten commandments; and he wrote them upon two tables of stone.” Deut. 4:13. This is spoken of by the psalmist as follows: “The works of his hands are verity and judgment; all his commandments are sure. They stand fast forever and ever, and are done in truth and uprightness. He sent redemption unto his people; he hath commanded his covenant forever; holy and reverend is his name.” Ps. 111:7–9. God’s holy covenant is sacred to him, for it is his law, the moral principles of his government. He has signed his name to it, so that no one need mistake the author. It is therefore important that we learn by what name or title the God of Heaven is known among the children of men. When Moses was called by the Lord to bring Israel out of Egypt, he desired to know the name of God, that when they should say, “What is his name?” he might know what to say to them. “And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM; and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.” “The Lord God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you; this is my name forever, and this is my memorial unto all generations.” Ex. 3:14, 15. Here is a plain declaration that God’s name is intimately connected with his memorial, and we shall find them both in his law. The Bible speaks of the “true and living God,” and also of false gods; but the true God bears a title that cannot be applied to any false god. The psalmist makes the following distinction: “For the Lord is great and greatly to be praised; he is to be feared above all gods. For all the gods of the nations are idols; but the Lord made the heavens.” Ps. 96:4, 5. See also Jer. 10:10–12. The Maker of the heavens and the earth, is a title that but one being in the universe can bear, and hence the worship of any other god is idolatry. This fact is clearly proved in Acts 14:8–15. When Paul and Barnabas went to Lystra to preach the gospel, a certain man was healed by them, who never had walked. The people of that place, being idolaters, were struck with amazement, and they lifted up their voices, saying, “The gods are come down to us in the likeness of men.” They immediately prepared their sacrifices for worship. “Which when the apostles, Barnabas and Paul, heard of, they rent their clothes and ran in among the people, crying out, and saying, Sirs, why do ye these things? We also are men of like passions with you, and preach unto you that ye should turn from these vanities unto the living God, which made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all things that are therein.” Thus it is that Paul pointed those worshipers of Jupiter and Mercurius to the only true God, designating him as the maker of the heavens and the earth. See, also, Acts 17:22–24. It is now plain to be seen by what title the God of Heaven is known to the inhabitants of our earth. This title is found in the fourth commandment of the moral law. This law is but the outgrowth of the two great principles—supreme love to God, and equal love to our neighbor. There were two tables of stone on which this law was written, and at the bottom of that one which teaches love to God, he has signed his name—the Creator of the heavens and the earth. The fourth commandment is the memorial of the Creator’s works, and by the observance of it, he is kept in remembrance, for his name is attached to it. “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.” Ex. 31:13, 17; Eze. 20:12, 20. Sign and seal are synonymous terms. Rom. 4:11. The Sabbath of the Lord with his name attached, is his sign or seal. John saw 144,000 stand on Mount Zion with the Lamb, “having his Father’s name written in their foreheads.” Rev. 14:1. This same company is brought to view in another place as “the number of them which were sealed” with the “seal of the living God.” Rev. 7:1–4. They get “the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name;” hence they must be the “saints,” that heed the warning of the “third angel,” and “keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.” Rev. 15:2, 14; 14:9–12. Who shall say that this sealed company do not keep the Sabbath of the Lord? The evidence before us seems to show conclusively that they do. Do they have the approbation of men, and the honor of the world for so doing? Answer: “The dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.” Rev. 12:17. They are therefore engaged in a work of reform relating to the Sabbath. They have a severe contest with the powers of earth; but they gain the victory and triumph at last. God seals them for Heaven. They will go through. How important then it is to keep the holy Sabbath of the Lord. Let all take courage and persevere in this noble work. Reverence the name of God and keep his memorial. “Thy name, O Lord, endureth forever; and thy memorial, O Lord, throughout all generations.” Ps. 135:13.