Sabbath in Scotland by Editor

California Conference of Seventh-day Adventists · Oakland, California · Apr 1, 1875

Sabbath in Scotland.

By Editor

[ELDER JONES of London has sent us a tract written by James Scott, of Elgin, Scotland, entitled, “The Only Sabbath-day by Divine Appointment, proved from Scripture and History.” It is of interest because Bro. Scott was ignorant that there were other Sabbath-keepers in Great Britain, when he wrote this little tract. Our readers are acquainted with all the arguments given, as they have been presented by those who have long studied the subject on this side of the Atlantic. The following extracts will show the style of the author. The Spirit of God seems to be moving on minds in all parts of the world to stand up for this important truth. In this we will rejoice, for herein we see the way preparing for a fulfillment of Rev. 14: 9-12.—Ed. Signs.]

I have, after carefully examining the Scriptures on the subject of the Sabbath, found that the seventh day, the day the Lord appointed, is the only authorized Sabbath in the Scriptures; that it was observed by the Lord Jesus and his apostles; also that the first day of the week was never observed by the apostles nor by the Church during the lives of the apostles as the Sabbath; neither is it once named in the Scriptures, which is the only authoritative guide we have, and we, frankly say on any religious subject whatever. If any man does not speak according to the “law and the testimony” we shall not be guided by him, or support him as a religious guide.

It appears to me that if Christian ministers would consider the Sabbath question, and observe the proper and appointed day, there would be a stumbling-block to the Jews taken out of the way, for all Jews know that the seventh day, and the seventh day only, is the Lord’s Sabbath. I may say that we are in duty bound to do all that can to bring the Jews to the faith in Jesus of Nazareth, because all the true religious knowledge we possess we have received from or through them.

It is admitted on all hands that the appointment of the Sabbath is of God only; that it is of his own-will, purpose, and appointment; that it is for his own glory, and for our benefit. It was kept sacred as a day of rest by him in honor of his making all things in heaven and earth by his word in six days, and working not (or resting) on the seventh, but rejoicing in all that he had made, because it was all very good. In Ex. 16: 23-31, we see that the sanctification of the Sabbath consisted in abstaining from the ordinary work of the other six days, and the desecration of the Sabbath consisted in working on that day, contrary to the commandment. In Ex. 20: 8, it is resting from labor that is especially marked as the sanctifying of the Sabbath. In Ex. 31: 13, the Lord exhorts the children of Israel to keep his Sabbath, commencing with the word, “Verily.” Now this word surely reveals to us the great desire that he has that we should keep his Sabbath (i. e., his rest) according to the commandment, even to rest that day from the work that we are commanded to do on all the other days, and he concludes by saying that it is a sign between Him and the children of Israel forever—“for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day He rested and was refreshed.”

Lev. 23 contains a description of all the feasts, but the holy Sabbath is specially described and commanded to be observed as a day of rest and a holy convocation. Thus we see that the people were to be called together, likely to hear the law, &c., read, and to worship God, and to pray to him for all the good things that we need. It is very instructive to read this chapter over carefully, and to compare the festivals here enumerated with the accounts in the New Testament of the passover and Pentecost, &c. It would relieve our minds from the foolish absurdities which we are apt to fall into by being half taught. I am sure I have attended the preaching of ministers for more than forty years, and I never knew what the feast of Pentecost was, nor what it was instituted for, till lately, when examining the Bible. Let us notice here again, that the sanctifying of the Sabbath consists in resting from labor, because God commanded it to be done. In Deut. 5: 12-14, we find that the sanctifying of the Sabbath is all along the same, even by resting from the ordinary manual labor of the other days of the week. In Neh. 13: 15-23, you can see how Nehemiah considered that the Sabbath should be sanctified, and how he believed that the great wrath that was upon Jerusalem was, in some measure at least, caused by disobedience to God in the observance of the Sabbath according to the fourth commandment.

The united testimony of Scripture is that the seventh day is the appointed Sabbath day; that it was recognized by the apostles during their lives, and any record that we have of their actions and sayings bear testimony to the same; and also it is evident that they know nothing about the historical invention of the first day of the week, or Sunday, being the Sabbath day.

But some say that the resurrection was a greater work than the creation, and therefore God changed the Sabbath day to be a memorial. Without entering at all into the merits of the statement about the comparison of the creation and the resurrection, as to their relative values and comparisons, I am of the opinion that it is above my knowledge or that of any other man, and therefore I hold it to be dangerous to meddle with it. But I do say that there is no such statement in all the New Testament that the first day of the week was to be observed as the Sabbath because the Lord rose from the dead on that day.

Seeing that there is no authority for the observance of the first day (or Sunday) as the Sabbath, what are the duties that are to be performed on that day? What are we called to do? Are we called to rest from our labors, and to meet as a general convention, and perhaps hear a tune on some musical instrument accompanied by the human voice, and perhaps the preacher will go through a round of prayers, and read a text, and then lecture a long time, telling what the text is not—for the simple reason, probably, that he does not know what it is, but he must make an appearance? Is this what we are commanded to do on the first day of the week? Certainly not; for it is the first day of the six that we are commanded to work in. This is certainly the only divine authority how the first day of the week is appointed to be kept; and as we are commanded to rest on the seventh, so also we are commanded to labor in the other six days. Sunday, therefore, is the first of the working days. Mankind and beasts of burden require a weekly rest. Indeed, men would require more rest than they get. Look at an old working man, and behold him with his bent body and his laboring step, caused by being overwrought and badly fed, both of which are brought about by the dominant parties in order that they may hoard up money and eat and drink and live forever. But the working man must submit to it, in order to get a morsel of bread. We must have a day of rest, but let us have it on the divinely appointed day. We have a Bible, let us read it, and pay no attention to teachers who tell us anything that we cannot get in it, such as that the first day of the week is the divinely appointed Sabbath, it being only a human transformation of a heathen practice, adopted by the clergy and political governors in the fourth century, without any divine authority whatever. Is it not Sabbath desecration in the Christian church to work on the seventh, the appointed day, and to observe the first in its stead, contrary to the commandment of God? Search the Scriptures and see if it be not so. —W. J.