NO DIVINE LAW FORBIDDING WORK ON THE FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK
By George W. Reaser
Some Questions for Both Catholic and Protestant
Christ Crucified on Friday—Disciples Would Not Anoint His Body on the Sabbath
THAT the Saviour was crucified on Friday, is clearly proved by the Scriptures. In the afternoon of the day of His crucifixion, a small group of holy women, His devout disciples, sadly followed His remains to the tomb. There was still time before the closing of the day, marked by the setting of the sun, to go and prepare spices and ointments for the anointing of the body; but the remaining moments of that sixth day of the week did not permit the performing of that rite, without trespassing on the sacred hours of the Sabbath, which "drew on." Rather than violate God's holy law, they "rested the Sabbath day according to the commandment." Luke 23:50-56. Every one who has any knowledge of the Bible will recognize that "the commandment" to which they were obedient while the Lord lay in the tomb, was the fourth of the Decalogue, which specifies that the seventh day of each recurring week is the Sabbath of Jehovah. Perhaps some persons would justify an act like that of anointing the body of the Lord of glory on the Sabbath; but the consciences of these devoted women, made tender in the school of Christ, would not permit them to perform this last act of love for their Lord on His holy day. The record informs us (Luke 24:1) that very early in the morning of the first day of the week, with consciences void of offense toward God, they came to the sepulcher to perform the manual labor involved in the anointing of the body of Jesus. NO DIVINE LAW FORBIDDING WORK ON THE FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK
In considering the faithful keeping of the Sabbath on the part of these personal associates of Christ's, and their planning to perform labor upon the first day of the week, regarding that day as secular, we may well raise the following questions: Was there a law of Heaven making the performance of manual labor upon the Sabbath sinful? All will agree that there was such a law. See Ex. 20:8-11 with 1 John 3:4. Was there any law of Heaven to forbid labor upon the first day of the week?—None whatever, nor is there at the present time any divine law making sinful the performance of secular labor on that day; and where there is no divine law, there is no sin. Therefore there was no sin imputed to these holy women in deliberately planning to work upon the first day of the week, nor would it have been sinful to perform the work planned. In fact, the fourth commandment stipulated that secular labor should be performed upon the first day of the week.227 After a few days passed, those same conscientious, commandment-keeping women were brought to the Sabbath following the day of the resurrection. In the meantime Jesus had met with them, assured them that He had actually risen, and given them certain instruction. Question: With the passing of the first week after the resurrection, had the law pertaining to the Sabbath changed, so that the performance of secular labor upon the Sabbath of Jehovah was an act of righteousness, and labor on Sunday, the first day of the week, was sinful? Every Bible student knows that there was no law of God or of Christ either stating or implying that labor on the Sabbath was not sinful, and that labor performed on Sunday was sinful. THE FIRST LAW CONCERNING SUNDAY
The first law to that effect was made by an apostate church, nearly three centuries after the resurrection of our Lord. The church that exalted itself to think to change the law of Jehovah, became so abominable in the sight of Heaven, that inspiration denominates it "antichrist," "the man of sin." Was it not well named "the man of sin," when it professed to make not sinful that which Jehovah had decreed was sinful, and contrariwise professed to make sinful what Jehovah had declared in the fourth commandment was not sinful? As there is still no law of Heaven declaring sinful the use of Sunday as a secular day, and advising us that labor on the Sabbath is not sinful, are professed followers of Christ consistent and loyal to God in their practise of violating the Sabbath and in keeping Sunday? Sunday is sometimes erroneously called "the Christian Sabbath." Every institution which can consistently be called "Christian," must be authorized by Christ. As Sunday never received the sanction of Christ as the Sabbath, it can not be "the Christian Sabbath." The Saviour Himself kept the Sabbath according to the commandment. Therefore the seventh day of each recurring week is the Christian Sabbath. Shall we follow Christ in Sabbath-keeping, or shall we accept the leadership of "the man of sin"? Is not our loyalty to Jehovah tested by the day we keep?