Communication from Bro. Bourdeaux.
By A. C. Bourdeaux
BRO. SMITH:—By the grace of God assisting, I am again permitted to say a few words to the brethren and sisters scattered abroad. I would say with them, "The Review is a welcome messenger to me;" for it brings glad tidings from the dear saints, who are striving to keep all of God's Commandments, and the Faith of Jesus. How near the saints do seem to me! While in the church, I used to ask myself, How can I distinguish the christian from the worldling? in what do they differ? etc. But our Saviour settles this question. John viii, 35. "By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another." And John says, [1 John v, 2, 3.] "By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments; and his commandments are not grievous." When the dear Brn. A. S. Hutchins and H. G. Buck came out here with the tent a few weeks ago, we had a happy interview with a few brethren and sisters of like precious faith. O how easily they could be distinguished from among the worldlings, in the love they manifested one to another. Every word they uttered seemed to proceed out of a pure heart, and had its meaning. Their hymns were good and very appropriate, and they were not ashamed of expounding the truth to others; for the truth made them free. Then I felt as though I was a new creature, and in a new atmosphere. Dear brethren, I can say that the cause of present truth is my delight. This world is dark and dreary, and I do believe that the end is near, and that this truth is fitting a people to meet the Lord in the clouds; and I want to be of that number who will be found waiting patiently for him. I thank the Lord of the harvest for his loving kindness in sending some of his laborers with the tent into this part of his vineyard. We have been greatly strengthened in hearing them preach on the present truth. O let us lift up our hearts continually in humble, earnest prayer, that God may bless all his ministering servants who are pitching the tents from place to place, toiling hard to spread the light of the Bible truth to a people who live in an age of darkness and Papal error; and that it may not be in vain that they are permitted to hear it; that it may not be in all them that hear a savor of death unto death, but, on the contrary, that it may be in a goodly number a savor of life unto life. I praise God's holy name that six or seven of my family and friends have already embraced the Bible Sabbath and the truth of the Third Angel's Message. And they are anxiously searching for more light on every point of present truth. We have recently commenced to meet every Sabbath to worship God, and we are greatly blest in so-doing. O may the Lord assist us by his Spirit truly to know our real state, and keep us in the exercise of every christian grace, till perfectly matured for the holy and blissful worship in the Sanctuary above, and in the new earth. I trust that the lovers of the truth have not forgotten in their prayers the French people of this vicinity. They are in a state of great indifference. My earnest prayer is that God may open their understanding to the last note of warning, and call out of the church such as shall be saved. About three months ago I preached to the French on the subject of the Sabbath for the first time, in the French Mission house in this town; and while presenting the truth of the Bible on the subject, I felt that the truth made me free. After closing my remarks I invited the brethren to speak a few words for themselves. My mother arose and stood for the truth, and her words were seasoned with the spirit of truth. After her Eld. P. Chase, a Baptist minister, arose and said, he would clear her mind on the subject with a very few words: that Christ met repeatedly with his disciples on the first day of the week, and that when the disciples were assembled together on the same first day that he was risen, to commemorate his resurrection, they thought proper to not wait till the next seventh day to keep the Sabbath. They commenced the work then: and when the next first day came they observed it again as the Sabbath, and so along. We refuted some of his arguments with plain scriptures; [Mark xvi, 14; Luke xxiv, 13;] and then we asked him for the chapter and verse of the Bible to support his assertion, to which he replied, There is no definite passage of scripture for this. But, there is no doubt that the first day is the Sabbath of the Lord. Our interview was about two hours long; and Eld. C. closed, saying that he would come in four weeks from that time to prove to us that the first day of the week is the Sabbath or “Lord's day.” He met with us at the appointed time, and preached to us a written sermon on the Sabbath. His subject was divided into three principal parts; viz., (1.) the time; (2.) the change of the Sabbath from the seventh to the first day of the week; and (3.) the duty attached to its change. He presented two plain passages of scripture [Ps. cxviii, 24; Isa. lv, 1] to prove the change of the Sabbath; and, as a matter of course he mangled and twisted the scriptures to sustain his groundless theory. At the close of the meeting I asked him if he would lend me his written sermon, and he would not; and then, after I had read the following note to the congregation, I presented it to Eld. C. Note:—To the brethren P. Chase, and J. C. Bryant, and to the French Baptist church of West Enosburgh, I present the following questions, trusting that they will answer them in a candid manner. Questions:—1. Who is our Lawgiver? James iv, 12.- Are all the ten commandments of Ex. 20 equally binding? Matt. v, 18, 19.
- Have we the authority of inspired scriptures to lay aside or reject any one of the commandments of God, to hold or keep the traditions of men? Mark vii, 9.
- Have we the authority of divine inspiration to transfer the Sabbath of the fourth commandment from the seventh to the first day of the week? Luke xvi, 17.
- How does the fourth commandment apply to what is termed the christian Sabbath, (or the first day.)? Ex. xx, 10.1
These questions have not been answered yet. On the contrary, they call us apostates, and say that we gnat at a gnat and swallow a camel, because we keep the commandments of God, and believe his truth. The light of the righteous rejoiceth; but the lamp of the wicked shall be put out. Prov. xiii, 7.140Dieu voulant, I will labor in the field another Winter. I feel that there is much to be done, and but few to do anything in the field. May the Lord of the harvest send more laborers into his vineyard. Yours in hope of everlasting life.
A. C. BOURDEAUX.
W. Enosburgh, Vt.