But if the fourth oracle is abolished, then none of the above texts, which all hang upon it, can be brought to bear against the heathen, or Catholic missionary above named. But take off my restriction, and let me have the fourth oracle, which is the signature that reveals our Law-giver, and his power and authority, then we can keep the field, and be assured of victory. For an experiment we will quote from the fourth oracle, and from the testimony borrowed from it, and which hangs upon it. "Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work; but the seventh day is the Sabbath of THE LORD THY GOD. FOR in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea and all that in them is." Here, and here alone, in the fourth oracle, and the testimony or teaching which is borrowed from it, is brought to view the true Law-giver, and his eternal power and Godhead, as the Creator and Maker of all that the eye can behold, or the mind conceive of, both of matter, animate and inanimate. And his right to claim the obedience of all his own creation, must of necessity be at once admitted, and thus we have the victory. Every candid mind must admit that the fourth oracle is what clothes the divine law with majesty, power and authority. The Sabbath of the Lord our God is the signature, or sign and memorial, which brings to view and makes known to us our true Law-giver, the Lord our God. And to this also, agrees the testimony of the prophets, which hang upon the oracle. Eze. xx, 20. "And hallow my Sabbaths; and they shall be a SIGN between me and you, THAT YE MAY KNOW THAT I AM THE LORD YOUR GOD." Who can fail of seeing the great object and importance of the Sabbath, so clearly revealed in this text? If we observe it to hallow or keep it, it will be a sign or monument. A memorial whereby we may KNOW that he is the Lord our God; whom to know is life everlasting. Amen.
Blessed are they that DO his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life. "Moreover also I gave them MY Sabbaths, to be a sign between me and them, THAT THEY MIGHT KNOW THAT I AM THE LORD that sanctify them." Said Jesus, "sanctify them through thy truth, thy word is truth." "Thy law," as David has said, "is the truth." Read also Ex. xxxi, 13-17. "Verily my Sabbath, ye shall keep; for it is a SIGN between me and you, through your generations; that ye may know that I am the Lord that doth sanctify you. Ye shall keep the Sabbath, THEREFORE, for it is holy unto you. Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the Sabbath to observe the Sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant. It is a SIGN between me and the children of Israel forever; for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and on the seventh he rested and was refreshed."
From the above we think no candid mind can fail of seeing clearly the great object and importance of the Sabbath, and that it is the fourth oracle or commandment which clothes the divine law with majesty, power and authority. Without it the divine law would be powerless; for the whole law, and its majesty, power and authority, all hang on, and depend upon the fact of the existence of the Law-giver, and his right of power and authority. These are all brought to view in the fourth oracle of the divine law, and hang upon it. From these premises it is clear that the whole Bible borrows its authority and power from, and hangs upon the fourth oracle or statute in the divine law. Amen.
Thus we can clearly see a halo of glory shed around the Sabbath commandment, above all the other oracles or statutes in the divine law.
And God has been more particular in guarding the Holy Sabbath, than any other precept in the divine constitution. The most awful demonstrations of the divine displeasure, indignation and wrath are threatened against such as violate, defile and pollute his Holy Sabbath. And the greatest blessings, promised in the Bible, are to such as REMEMBER the Sabbath-day, to keep it holy. Read Jer. xvii, 19-27; Ex. xxxi, 13-17; Jer. vi, 16-19; Eze. xxii, 26, 29; xiii, 4, 5; Isa. lviii, 12-14, and chap. lvi; Rev. xiv, 9-11. The promise of standing in the battle in the day of the Lord, when a thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand, [Ps. xci.] and of finally riding upon the high places of the earth, and of being fed with the heritage of Jacob our father, is on condition of our keeping the Sabbath, the Holy of the Lord, and thus make up the gap or breach in the divine law. Eze. xiii, 4, 5; Isa. lviii, 12-14. The promise of being gathered to God's holy mountain, is upon the condition of keeping the Sabbath. Isa. lvi. And the awful threatenings of God through the third angel's message, [Rev. xiv, 9-11] is against those who reject the mark or SIGN of God, and receive the MARK or SIGN of the beast. Such are very soon to drink of the wine of God's wrath without mixture, [of mercy,] which is filled up in the seven vials of the seven last plagues.
To abolish the Sabbath would be to abolish the work and the HONORABLE of the Lord. Isa. lviii, 13. Further, to abolish and put away from the Bible, the fourth oracle or statute, and that which is borrowed from, and hangs upon it, is to abolish and put away from the Bible, the God of the Bible, and leave the Bible shorn of its strength, majesty and power, and at the control of designing men to turn it into a mere machinery of priest-craft, and this is the very identical course the man of sin has pursued. And those who are trying to abolish the Sabbath are pursuing the very identical course pursued by the "first beast." In the beginning "God hath made man upright; but they have sought out many inventions." Eccl. vii, 29. The first invention of man was to become as gods, by partaking of the forbidden fruit. And the last crowning invention of man is to "exalt himself above all that is called God, or that is worshiped. So that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, SHOWING HIMSELF THAT HE IS GOD." Saying in his heart, I AM and NONE ELSE BESIDES ME. 2 Thess. ii, 3-7; Isa. xlvii, 8, 10. We will notice next in order in contrast with the mark or sign of God,
THE SIGN OR MARK OF THE BEAST.
He is the rival of God, the working of the mystery of iniquity. The man of sin, opposing and exalting himself above all that is called God, or that is worshiped, so that he as God, sitteth in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God. Saying in his heart I AM and NONE ELSE BESIDES ME. Opening his mouth in blasphemy against God, blaspheming his name. Rev. xiii, 6. Thinking himself able to change the times and laws of God. See the Doway Bible. Casting down the truth to the ground, practicing and prospering with his heart and indignation against the holy covenant. Having intelligence with such as forsake and do wickedly against the holy covenant. Corrupting such by flatteries. While the people that do know their God, they know him by observing his sign or memorial. See Eze. xx, 20. Such were strong, doing exploits in holding and maintaining the standard, bearing their King's sign. Such were "WISE instructing many." To rally around and maintain their standard, on which was inscribed the SIGN and MEMORIAL of their King, under whose banner they were fighting. And for so doing many had to fall (by the ruthless hand of the man of sin,) "by sword, and by flame, by captivity, and by spoil, many days." Dan. vii, 25; viii, 12; xi, 33-35. And thus the war was carried on between the man of sin, and the subjects of the kingdom of God.
In a war of conquest, when two opposing rivals are brought in battle array, each army has its own standard, bearing the sign of their king, for whom they are fighting. If one of these opposing powers succeeds in subjecting the other, he supplants the standard and sign of his subjected rival, and establishes his own standard and sign as the token of his power and authority over the subjected province, and thus shows himself exalted above his opposing rival.
And thus has the beast, the man of sin, practiced and prospered. The observance of the Holy Sabbath, which is the sign and memorial of God, and of his right to rule, the beast has cast down to the ground, and has instituted and established, in its stead, his own sign and memorial of himself to be observed as the token or sign of himself, and of his exaltation above God, and that he is, and none else besides him, and thereby showing that he is God, and able to change the times and laws of God. Inasmuch as God has shown himself to be the Lord our God by his sign and memorial; viz. the observance of the Sabbath as holy time. Therefore, there can in no wise be any other act of the beast whereby he can SHOW himself that he is God, but by another institution of his own, of holy time, to be observed as a sign to show thereby that he is God. This he has done, and enforced its observance upon the penalty and infliction of death. No other process or act of the beast, can in any wise answer the fulfillment of the prophecy of his SHOWING himself that he is God. And as a further proof of this fact, it must necessarily be an act of changing God's time and laws, and an institution like that of God's, calculated in itself to SHOW forth the same thing, viz. that he is God.
And thus the question is settled that the institution, and observance of Sunday, the first day of the week, as holy time, is the sign or the mark of the beast. And whereas the observance of the Sabbath of the Lord our God is a very special portion of the worship of God, and the most effectual acknowledgment on our part that he is the Lord our God; so also the observance of Sunday, the first day of the week, as holy time, is a very special portion of the worship of the beast, and the most effectual acknowledgment, on the part of those who observe it, that the beast is above God. Escape this conclusion who can. Whatever may be the pretence for observing the first day of the week, the real cause grows out of its first institution. Had the beast never instituted the observance of the first day of the week as holy time, none would be observing it.
Let the candid and unprejudiced mind seriously consider these things, and understand and know for themselves, that these conclusions are unavoidable. And then read in Rev. xiv, 9-11, the awful destiny of all who worship the beast, and his image, or receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand. Forehead is the seat of the mind, which receives truth and principles of righteousness, or error and principles of unrighteousness. The right hand is the principle member of the body which is used in carrying into effect what the mind determines to be done. The mark is not a literal, external mark in the forehead; but a principle received in the mind and carried out in the act of life. The term right hand is very extensively made use of in a figurative sense in the Bible, to denote the principal acts or doings of God and man. Read Ps. xxvi, 9, 10; xlviii, 10; lxxviii, 51; xcviii, 1; cxlii, 5; cxxxvii, 5; Ex. xv, 6; Deut. xxxiii, 2; Job xl, 14; Eccl. x, 2; Isa. xiv, 2; lxiii, 12.
The beast has also changed, and cast down to the ground the memorials of salvation and redemption through Christ. We have redemption through his sufferings or broken body and blood. The beast has changed the memorial of this, by withholding the bread and wine from the laity and substituting the wafer in its stead. Baptism is a memorial of the burial and resurrection of Christ, and of a surety of the resurrection of the just in the likeness of Christ. See Rom. vi, 3-5; 1 Cor. xv, 29; Col. ii, 12. This memorial he has changed to sprinkling which bears no resemblance of a burial or resurrection. In this he has changed the ordinance, besides breaking the everlasting covenant. Isa. xxiv. And by casting down these memorials, and taking upon himself the office of Christ, he has exalted himself above Christ, and so has exalted himself above all that is called God, or that is worshiped. And although he has practiced and prospered in this so also in casting down the sign and memorial of God, and exalted the own above it, while it was given him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them, through the dark reign of his power, keeping them in the dark wilderness and fog of error for 1260 years, being taught for doctrines the traditions and commandments of men, yet the time has now come when God has set his hand to recover the remnant of his people. And the Spirit now is lifting up again his own standard and sign against the root of sin. See Jer. iv, 6; Isa. lix, 19; xxvi, 3; v, xci, 2; 12. And the remnant of his saints are rallying around it, and are destined to come forth fair as the moon, clear as the sun, and terrible as an army with banners, prepared to stand in the battle in the day of the Lord. The final decisive conflict will come. The dragon will make war with the remnant which keep the commandments of God and the faith or testimony of Jesus Christ. The beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies will be gathered together to make war against him that sitteth upon the horse and against his army, (that came out of the wilderness.) Though the beast and kings of the earth, and their armies, make war with the Lamb and his army, the Lamb shall overcome them, for he is King of kings, and Lord of lords. And they that are with him are called and chosen, and faithful. Then he will, in his own time, SHOW WHO IS the blessed, and ONLY POTENTATE, the King of kings and Lord of lords.
Thus the saints of the Most High will take the kingdom and possess the kingdom under the whole heaven, and blessed will they be, who have kept the commandments of God, and have gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name; for they will stand on the sea of glass, before the throne, with palms of victory in their hands. And on mount Zion with the Lamb, and sing the song of victory and triumph over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name. The song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb. Amen.