The Sabbath matters MUCH more than you think! Find out why!
THOUGHTS TO PONDER
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“Jesus went on to say, `The Sabbath was made for the good of man. Man was not made for the Sabbath.” Mark 2:27 (WE)
- “Don’t forget that you were slaves in the land of Egypt. The Lord your God brought you out of Egypt with his great power and made you free. That is why the Lord your God commands you to always make the Sabbath a special day.” Deut. 5:15 (ERV)
Many people wonder why worship on Sabbath is so important. Sometimes even Sabbath keepers who have not studied very deeply into history or science wonder this. But the more you study, the more you realize that Sabbath is one of the most important and crucial doctrines for numerous reasons and literally involves life and death on this earth for large numbers of people as well as the difference between eternal life and atheism in many cases. 3 big reasons it is crucial are:
- Sabbath was given as a sign that pointed to creation (Exodus 20:8-11). Creation explains the origin of life, the origin of sin, why we need a Savior, the beginning of salvation by grace through faith and many others. Sabbath is the only regular memorial to creation in the Bible, so this makes the Sabbath an incredibly crucial truth. Many pastors in many denominations agree that the doctrine of creation is the foundation of nearly all major doctrines of Judaism and Christianity.
“Famous evangelical apologist changes his mind”. Tas Walker. May 21, 2008. https://creation.com/famous-evangelical-apologist-changes-his-mind-rc-sproul
Dr. Jiri Moskala at Andrews University says that similarly that Sabbath is crucial for SDAs because,
“Each of our 27 fundamental beliefs is somehow tied to Creation”
Jiri Moskala, “The President’s Page: Creation—The Sine Qua Non of Adventism.” Journal of the Adventist Theological Society 15/2 (2004). https://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1010&context=old-testament-pubs.
This emphasis on Sabbath explains why SDAs believe in creation science more than other denominations.[4] - intrinsically Sabbath points to creation which intrinsically means we are all equal. Sabbath is a crucial sign pointing to the God “who sets us free” (Deut. 5:15). God’s principles and those who follow them have been the foundation for nearly every major genuine freedom in history and have inspired countless countless human rights movements that benefit people all around the world now. Sabbath also reminds us of justice in economics since Sabbath is part of Jubilee economics and is mentioned 6 times in Lev. 25 alone (which deals with land rights). In Isaiah 58, the verses about calling Sabbath a delight are in the context of social justice for everyone. Take away Sabbath and you take away many Bible truths, nations decline into exploitation, many of the freedoms God wants people to have decline and/or are eradicated/erased and eventually entire civilizations are overthrown.
- Sabbath reminds us that we were created to live freely in a garden raising our own food, not dependent on others. This is another crucial solution for modern times.
- Sabbath means that that God sanctifies us (Exodus 31:13) through the death of Jesus, the Lord of the Sabbath who gave His life for all of us! Sabbath is integral to the 3 angels’ message to worship our Creator who made everything (Rev. 14:7) because He is coming back soon!
In short, Sabbath is the greatest reminder of the most important truths and issues for our time of earth’s history. Bible verses about Sabbath refer directly to or are located near Bible verses that talk about creation, truth, worship, marriage, health, justice, freedom, economics, and other truths of God.[3]
The chart here shows SDAs as one of the strongest creation believing denominations. Mooney, Chris. “The surprising links between faith and evolution and climate denial — charted”. May 20, 2015.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2015/05/20/this-chart-explains-why-faith-and-science-dont-have-to-be-in-conflict.
These are reasons why Satan attacks Sabbath so vigorously. It is also why we must emphasize it as a God given solution to the world’s problems.
Sabbath is one of the most valuable and important gifts that God has ever given to us as Dr. Prager explains in this short 5 minute video. He shows in this brilliant series how each of the 10 commandments is essential for the stability of civilization, and Sabbath is one of the very most important one to avoid societal chaos and collapse.
or
https://www.prageruniversity.com/Ten-Commandments/Remember-the-Sabbath.html#.VW7PF0Ypo_d
A similar text version is here:
https://www.nationalreview.com/2014/12/six-reasons-why-keeping-sabbath-matters-dennis-prager/
The Sabbath is as Dr. Prager says one of the very most important laws for freedom and strengthening human relationships.
Prager makes some very crucial points in his short talk. But we must “test everything that is said” 1 Thess. 5:21 no matter who is talking and he is not correct on 2 points:
1) God was definitely able to end slavery and did so multiple times in the Bible through His spiritual leaders. God rescued and ended the slavery of Moses in Egypt. In Ex. 21:16, God banned kidnapping/slavery in the first known anti-slavery law in history. Nehemiah ended the economic slavery of families in his time (Neh. 5:1-13). Jesus announced that He came to set the slaves free (Luke 4:18-19). The Sabbath itself was a symbol that God created man to be free as Prager rightly says. Creation and the Sabbath have inspired many human rights movements to free people from various kinds of slavery throughout history.
2) Prager says we don’t know if the days of creation are 24 hour periods of time. Yes we do. Virtually all ancient Jewish scholars agree that the days were literal 24 hour time periods. It’s only in modern times that some have compromised.
“virtually all the Rabbis had understood the creation days as literal days. In fact, some of the Rabbis even tried to work out what happened in each hour of the creation of Adam on the sixth day!”
https://creation.com/creation-days-and-orthodox-jewish-tradition
Sabbath is also one of the most crucial foundational truths of God because it is a kind of beacon or symbol that reminds us or connects us directly or indirectly to the most important truths and solutions to problems in our world, including modern problems. When you search through the Bible for the word Sabbath, it turns up in all sorts of surprising locations, often in topics that science shows are extremely important for protecting people from various kinds of deceptions.
You know when you go to a supermarket and they set up elevators so that you have to walk past many products in order to get in or out of the store? Sabbath is a bit like that? It is set up to remind us of many other crucial doctrines of God every week. You can see references to the Sabbath all over the Bible and they are often related to the most crucial and life saving doctrines in the Bible. Corporations make people walk around for profit and sell a mix of substandard natural food and a lot of junk food that is inferior to God’s original food and sometimes quite harmful. But in stark contrast, God has set up the Sabbath to remind us of the most important truths that benefit our lives and can help us defeat oppressors of almost any kind. Some of these are listed below, but there is never an end to learning about the blessings and benefits of the Sabbath.
It’s very important to realize that greed is the root of all evil (1 Tim. 6:10) Since sin is evil, sin is related to greed in some way. Nearly all deceptions are promoted because they make it easy to exploit and rob people in various ways. Oxford professor Felipe Fernando-Armesto wrote about how losing truth makes people easy to exploit saying,
“Once truth has been devoured, people swallow falsehoods whole. Without confidence in the concept of truth, listeners are disarmed against lies.” “Truth, A history and a Guide for the Perplexed”, Felipe Fernando-Armesto, p. 165.
One of the most serious purposes of Sabbath is to remind us of crucial truths so that we will not be exploited by lies.
Unfortunately there are many who try to change what God said, something like this.
So when you see people changing God’s laws, something God repeatedly warned people not to do (Deut. 4:2, Mark 7:5-13, Jude 3,4, etc.) you can be sure it is for the purpose of exploitation of some type.
We need to always keep in mind that all God’s laws are for the purpose of genuine freedom (Ps. 119:44-45, James 1:25), that they are principles that show us how to love God and people (Romans 13:8-10), and that they bring many benefits, not just for eternal life, but also this life (1 Tim. 4:8).
It is impossible to list or understand all the benefits of the Sabbath in depth, but below, I will list some reasons why it is important. Some are from wise pastors and scholars I have read, but some are from science research I have found that will be new to almost everyone, including even long time Sabbath keepers, including:
–How Sabbath points to creation which is the foundation for all major doctrines in the Bible and discarding Sabbath leads over time to societies abandoning many other crucial doctrines.
–How Sabbath protects important freedoms, is the foundation of many blessings for humanity and more which confirm Jesus’ claim that Sabbath was made for the good of all.
–How Sabbath focuses 1 day a week on worship and praise of our Creator, which also benefits us enormously.
–How Sabbath promotes healthy families, justice/economic equality, gratitude, reduces poverty, reduces abuse, etc.
–How no nation can stay stable and really civilized and thriving long term without the Sabbath.
These will help you see why the Sabbath is so important that if fully followed as God intended, it would have/can prevent greed, most/all injustice, poverty and other evils, which are the primary causes of atheism on this planet as I have heard from many atheists in many conversations myself.
It will also help you see why the Sabbath vs. Sunday issue is a major test of whether we will follow God or not, similar to tests all throughout biblical history, starting with Eve’s choice to follow God’s wise instructions or to disobey them, Cain and Abel’s choice to offer sacrifices God’s way or man’s way, the Jews choice to follow man made traditions or God’s laws and many others. The most crucial choice throughout history has always been to do things God’s way or to follow man made traditions.
1) SABBATH REMINDS US THAT GOD IS OUR CREATOR.
Sabbath first and foremost reminds us that our very existence derives from God who created all life at the beginning (Ex. 20:8-11). This is the time that He has asked us to especially show our appreciation to Him, to be part of a community of believers (Hebrews 10:25), to focus on His many unrivaled truths that bring so many benefits and to serve others who are in difficult or are suffering from exploitation and injustice. Sabbath is right in the middle of the 10 commandments, uniting our privilege and duty to love and honor God as our Creator with our privilege and duty to love and serve our fellow human beings as equals who deserve to live a decent life just as we do.
Many Christian pastors, theologians and scientists have testified that creation is a foundational doctrine connected to almost all other doctrines in the Bible and it is crucial for the thriving of Christianity as well as human rights and life in general. And that is one of the biggest focuses of the Sabbath, to remind people that God is our creator.
Dr. Iain Duguid, professor at Westminster Theological Seminary, says,
“The teaching of Scripture on the subject of human origins is foundational to the rest of the Bible. It is also vital to our understanding of who we are as humans in relationship to God and to the rest of creation…Understanding Adam’s and Eve’s role in history is also foundational to understanding the gospel. Without understanding the problem that started in the garden, we do not have a proper framework to understand the solution of God at Calvary…The issue at stake in the historicity of Adam and Eve and their immediate creation from the dust of the earth is thus not merely creation versus evolution in terms of the origin of the universe; it is ultimately evolution (salvation by works) versus new creation (salvation by grace) in terms of our salvation. The historicity of a unique first couple, Adam and Eve, is foundational to a proper understanding of our redemption and the universe’s consummation as well as of our beginnings…”
Were Adam and Eve Real People? How History Hangs on Their Story
https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/were-adam-and-eve-real-people
The scientist Dr. Russell Grigg says:
“Creation is foundational for the Christian church with every major Christian doctrine coming out of the events recorded in the first chapters of Genesis.”
Genesis—the seedbed of all Christian doctrine 11 May 2007 Russell Grigg
https://creation.com/genesis-the-seedbed-of-all-christian-doctrine
Dr. R.A. Torrey and Dyson Hague, leading Christian theologians say that Genesis and creation is the foundation of questions of everlasting importance:
“the Being of God; the origin of the universe; the creation of man; the origin of the soul; the fact of revelation; the introduction of sin; the promise of salvation; …the purpose of the elected people;…the satisfactory explanation of all the sin and misery and contradiction now in this world, and the reason of the scheme of redemption…The Book of Genesis is the seed in which the plant of God’s Word is enfolded. It is the starting point of God’s gradually unfolded plan of the ages. Genesis is the plinth of the pillar of the Divine revelation. It is the root of the tree of the inspired Scriptures. It is the source of the stream of the holy writings of the Bible. If the base of the pillar is removed, the pillar falls. If the root of the tree is cut out, the tree will wither and die. If the fountain head of the stream is cut off, the stream will dry up.”
THE DOCTRINAL VALUE OF THE FIRST CHAPTERS OF GENESIS
https://www.blueletterbible.org/Comm/torrey_ra/fundamentals/14.cfm
Creation Ministries makes the crucial point that all major Christian doctrines are based on creation.
“Creation is foundational for the Christian church with every major Christian doctrine coming out of the events recorded in the first chapters of Genesis. Among these are:
1) the nature of God, including his power and goodness,
2) the nature of man, created in the image of God but fallen because of his sin,
3) the nature and consequences of sin,
4) the nature of marriage,
5) the origin of death as a penalty for sin, and an enemy,
6) the need for a Saviour to redeem man from sin,
7) the origin and meaning of work and the weekly day of rest, and
8) the relationship between man and the rest of creation, which is now cursed because of sin,
9) and much more. This is why the doctrine of creation is vital, but unfortunately this doctrine is denied today, both outside and inside the church.
https://creation.com/famous-evangelical-apologist-changes-his-mind-rc-sproul
Creation does not just support some doctrines, Creation explains the most important issues of the origin of sin/guilt and why we are sinners (Gen. 3), and why we need a Messiah who God promised to send to redeem us (Gen. 3:15). Sabbath is a symbol of the sanctuary message which points to Jesus our Saviour and again reminds us that we are all sinners and equally in need of grace (Lev. 19:30; 26:2). Dr. Richardson has a brilliant talk about how the main point of the sanctuary doctrine is an illustration of salvation by faith in Jesus’ wonderful but cruel sacrifice here:
https://www.audioverse.org/english/sermons/recordings/19473/the-sanctuary-so-what.html
Because Sabbath through creation points to Jesus our Messiah, it reminds us of his 2nd coming when all sin and evil will be eradicated forever and the whole world will be made new again. At that time, to praise God for creating us, redeeming us and giving us eternal life and so much more, we will continue celebrating Sabbath weekly in the new earth (Isaiah 66:22,23).
Those who follow Sunday instead of Sabbath break the most important symbol that points to creation this symbol and thus undermine all the other major doctrines that are rooted creation as well. Over time, especially over generations, what happens is a domino effect and a slippery slope combined. When someone abandons truth based principles to ignore God’s laws about Sabbath, then that same person or their descendants will in time use the same anti-truth principle to abandon other truths of God one by one.
This is not just an opinion. We can see it in research. In the below chart shows the SDA church is on the bottom left, it is one of the strongest of all denominations in terms of belief in creation science. And one big factor in that influences this is the weekly observance of Sabbath which constantly points to our Creator.
The surprising links between faith and evolution and climate denial–charted
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2015/05/20/this-chart-explains-why-faith-and-science-dont-have-to-be-in-conflict/
We can see similar things in regard to support for homosexuality. Seventh Day Adventists have one of the lowest levels of support for homosexuality.
https://religionnews.com/2015/06/30/ranking-churches-on-acceptance-of-homosexuality-plus-their-reactions-to-scotus-ruling/
I would argue that the Adventists weekly keeping of Sabbath, pointing back to creation and heterosexual marriage that God ordained has a significant protective effect against being deceived by these and a number of other deceptions that have become common.
C.S. Lewis has written that it is those who think most about eternal life that have done the most good on this earth. And it’s quite logical. If a person is confident that they will live forever in heaven, then they will be much more willing on average to sacrifice time, money, assets, emotional energy and at times even their lives for the welfare of others. History bears this out showing that nearly all of those who pioneered human rights that bring so much good to billions around the world now were believers, especially Jews and Christians.
And what God asks us to do, always has benefits, often many benefits attached to it. Scientists have find that if you worship God once a week with a community, it brings ~4-14 extra years of life depending on how many of God’s truths you and others around you are following.
http://www.ted.com/talks/dan_buettner_how_to_live_to_be_100.html
Not only that, considering time and effort involved, even atheist scientists agree that it is the most efficient way to increase happiness.
“As an atheist, I almost wish it was possible for me to believe in a God. As far as I can tell, considering the time and effort involved versus the benefits gained, going to church ranks as the #1 best strategy on this list[for becoming happier].”
http://happierhuman.com/how-to-be-happy/
When we realize that happiness helps us increase our efficiency in work and other areas by ~20-30%, Sabbath becomes quite a profound factor in life success.
Dwight Moody thought that Sabbath was extremely important for the thriving of nations. While he himself worshipped on Sunday, he did no work on Saturday. And if he knew what science is saying now about the consequences for the church of Sunday, and how it influences many to abandon creation, he would very likely keep the Sabbath as his worship day as well.
- “If this country falls into neglect of the observance of the Sabbath, it will go the way of France, Mexico, and Spain. Every nation that gives up the Sabbath must go down. It is only a question of time with them…My friends, every nation that tramples the Sabbath under its feet must go to ruin.” Dwight Moody
- “I believe that the Sabbath question today is a vital one for the whole country. It is the burning question of the present time. If you give up the Sabbath the church goes; if you give up the church the home goes; and if the home goes the nation goes. That is the direction in which we are traveling.” Dwight Moody
One of the founders of the Seventh Day Adventist church, said this about the Sabbath:
- “It was to keep this truth ever before the minds of people that God instituted the Sabbath in Eden; and so long as the fact that He is our Creator continues to be a reason why we should worship Him, so long the Sabbath will continue as its sign and memorial. Had the Sabbath been universally kept, the thoughts and affections of humans would have been led to the Creator as the object of reverence and worship, and there would never have been an idolater, an atheist, or an infidel.” Ellen White, BLJ P. 129.
- “If men and women would acknowledge the true Sabbath, they would not, as they now do, despise the Word of God. The observance of the seventh day would be a golden chain binding them to their Creator. But the commandment which points out who the true God is—the Creator and Ruler of the earth—is dishonored and disobeyed. This is the reason why there is so little stability in the world. The churches have refused God’s sign and misrepresented His character. They have torn down God’s sacred rest day, exalting a spurious sabbath in its place. Oh, that men and women would cease to lock themselves out of heaven by their own perversities.”—Manuscript Releases 5:82.
2) SABBATH PROMOTES EQUALITY/FREEDOM/REJECTS DARWINIAN INEQUALITY/RACISM
Sabbath points to creation which is the foundation of equality for all (Ex. 20:8-11) in contrast to the predicted deception of Darwinism which institutionalizes inequality and injustice. Sabbath reminds us that God is the origin of freedom for humanity (Deut. 5:15) while sin enslaves people (Romans 6:16).
Dr. Wilson has written extensively on the history of Darwinism (and I believe he is not a Christian, but not sure) and how Darwin was a plagiarist, how Darwinism was used to excuse slavery and many kinds of exploitation and how science has debunked all its central claims.”
“Most of its [Darwin’s “Origin of the Species”] central contentions, such as the idea that everything in nature always evolves gradually, are now disbelieved by scientists, and the science of genetics has made much of it seem merely quaint.
…It was the great consolation myth for the Victorian middle classes. Darwin effectively told the Victorians: “Rather than trouble yourself by the gross selfishness of living with vast accumulated unearned wealth, carriage drives, servants and villas, tell yourself that the differences between rich and poor are just the way nature organised things.” This explains its instant bestseller appeal. It also explains why there was a Darwinian revival in the 1980s, with the me-generation all trying to believe in “the selfish gene” as an explanation for why City slickers could earn hundreds of times more than the feckless “workers”, and why the market could make the first world so much richer than the third. In Darwin’s scheme of things, the Victorian rich were the perfect expression of evolution.
Darwin’s Greatness is Founded on a Myth.
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/darwin-s-greatness-is-founded-on-a-myth-r0563g83q
Another scholar, Dr. Harari (who isn’t religious), writes about how the Declaration of Independence (and thus so much of modern history) would have been completely different if it had been based on Darwinism instead of creation science. He is very frank in acknowledging that liberal humanism is founded on monotheistic beliefs, and that evolutionary biologists are conflicting more and more with the tenets of liberal humanism. In chapter 6 of his book, Dr. Harari contrasts two documents: Hammurabi’s Code (written in 1776 B.C.) and the American Declaration of Independence (written in 1776 A.D.).
“Under Hammurabi’s Code, society was viewed as a hierarchy: people were divided into two genders and three classes (superior people, commoners and slaves), each of differing monetary values. Children were the property of their parents, and could be killed as punishment for crimes committed by their parents, such as murder.”
Dr. Harari quotes the most famous line of the American Declaration of Independence and then illustrates how it would change if based on Darwinism.
——————-
Are all humans equal to one another biologically? Let us try to translate the most famous line of the American Declaration of Independence into biological terms:
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”
According to the science of biology, people were not ‘created’. They have evolved. And they certainly did not evolve to be ‘equal’. The idea of equality is inextricably intertwined with the idea of creation. The Americans got the idea of equality from Christianity, which argues that every person has a divinely created soul, and that all souls are equal before God. However, if we do not believe in the Christian myths about God, creation and souls, what does it mean that all people are ‘equal’?
Evolution is based on difference, not on equality. Every person carries a somewhat different genetic code, and is exposed from birth to different environmental influences. This leads to the development of different qualities that carry with them different chances of survival. ‘Created equal’ should therefore be translated into ‘evolved differently’.
Just as people were never created, neither, according to the science of biology, is there a ‘Creator’ who ‘endows’ them with anything….‘Endowed by their creator’ should be translated simply into ‘born’. Equally, there is no such thing as rights in biology. There are only organs, abilities and characteristics…So ‘unalienable’ rights should be translated into ‘mutable characteristics’.
And what are the characteristics that evolved in humans? ‘Life’, certainly. But ‘liberty’? There is no such thing in biology. Just like equality, rights and limited liability companies, liberty is something that people invented and that exists only in their imagination…And what about ‘happiness’?…Most biological studies acknowledge only the existence of pleasure, which is more easily defined and measured. So ‘life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness’ should be translated into ‘life and the pursuit of pleasure’.
So here is that line from the American Declaration of Independence translated into biological terms:
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men evolved differently, that they are born with certain mutable characteristics, and that among these are life and the pursuit of pleasure.”
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Dr. Harari notes that any social order requires what he calls ‘true believers’: in order for it to work, a large number of people – including people in the elite class and in the security forces – have to actually believe that the myth is true. “American democracy,” he writes, “would not have lasted 250 years if the majority of presidents and congressmen failed to believe in human rights.”
Excerpted from:
Evolutionary biology rewrites the American Declaration of Independence
https://uncommondescent.com/intelligent-design/evolutionary-biology-rewrites-the-american-declaration-of-independence/
The acceptance of Darwinism has led to many tragedies and literally millions of deaths. The most famous example is how the Nazis accepted Darwinism and it led to the holocaust. Dr. Richard Weikart has published peer reviewed articles in prestigious scientific journals about this. This is a short video on the tragedies that came from many well meaning scientists rejecting creation science and accepting Darwinism.
The Biology of the Second Reich: Social Darwinism and the Origins of World War 1
But there are many disastrous effects happening now as well from the deception of Darwinism that the Bible predicted (2 Peter 3:3-7). There is a whole worldview difference between creation and Darwinism that has profound effects in many areas of life. In essence it is the difference between a Christian worldview and an atheistic/naturalistic worldview.
The Bible also predicted that there would be many deceptions in the period before Jesus comes and that one of them would scoffers who would “deliberately forget” the facts of creation and the flood (2 Peter 3:5). The modern rejection of creation is a specific fulfillment of this.
The Bible also said that greed, pride and people following destructive desires would cause terrible times in this same period (2 Tim. 3:10) and these are quite closely related, because if you believe God is the Creator, then we are all equal and should treat others by the golden rule. If we were not created, then there are inevitably different levels of living things, as well as human beings, and equal treatment is not important.
Richard Dawkins, a militant atheist professor at Oxford for many years, made the real issue clear:
“[T]he big war is not between evolution and creationism, but between naturalism and supernaturalism.” Gary Wolf, “The Church of the Non-Believers,” Wired (November 2006): 182-193, p. 186. 2
Gary Wolf, “The Church of the Non-Believers,” Wired (November 2006): 182-193, p. 186.
This conflict is not new. It goes back at least to the pagan Greeks. But it has became far more common in the 1800s up to the present. Many intellectuals were promoting naturalism long before Darwin was even born. And it was a seminal philosophical foundation for Darwin’s work. Dr. Norman Geisler said that this naturalism is one of the most key foundational issues that causes many deceptions against Christianity.
“The results of Hume’s philosophical naturalism have been disastrous for Christianity. His friend James Hutton (1726–1797) applied Hume’s antisupernaturalism to geology, inaugurating nearly two centuries of naturalism in science. Not long after Hume, David Strauss (1808–1874) wrote the first desupernaturalized version of the life of Christ. As they say, the rest is history. Or better, the rest is the destruction of history—particularly miraculous history recorded in Scripture…
While evangelicals have not bought into the metaphysical naturalism of Spinoza or Hume, they have been bedeviled with its offspring, methodological naturalism, both in science (by way of theistic evolution) and in biblical criticism…”
BEWARE OF PHILOSOPHY: A WARNING TO BIBLICAL SCHOLARS NORMAN L. GEISLER*
https://www.etsjets.org/files/JETS-PDFs/42/42-1/42-1-pp003-019_JETS.pdf
3) SABBATH PROMOTES ECONOMIC JUSTICE/HUMAN RIGHTS/SERVICE FOR OTHERS
The Sabbath is in a special sense connected to Bible economics/social justice because it reminds us of our Creator and that we are all created equal and to love our neighbors as ourselves (a key trait of stable societies), it is often connected to economic justice in the same chapters where poverty is opposed, it keeps families stable and strong, a key factor in avoiding poverty and economic injustice, it is a time for doing good for those who are suffering and others.
The Sabbath as a symbol of freedom is intrinsically connected to justice (Isaiah 58:1-14) and economic justice/land rights for every family which is the ground of stable nations (Gen. 2:8,15, Lev. 25:1-20, Ez. 45:9+, 47:22-23). Sabbath reminds us of a Creator who through prophets opposed greed, the root of all evil(1 Tim. 6:10) and all forms of injustice in over 2,000 verses. Read especially Isaiah 58 and Leviticus 25 for examples of the strong connection between Sabbath and economic/social justice.
Ellen White connects the Sabbath to justice (and the gospel) quite a few times in her writings:
“The work of Sabbath reform to be accomplished in the last days is foretold in the prophecy of Isaiah: “Thus saith the Lord, Keep ye judgment, and do justice: for My salvation is near to come, and My righteousness to be revealed. Blessed is the man that doeth this, and the son of man that layeth hold on it; that keepeth the Sabbath from polluting it, and keepeth his hand from doing any evil.”” Isaiah 56:1, 2,
These words apply in the Christian age, as shown by the context: “The Lord God which gathereth the outcasts of Israel saith, Yet will I gather others to him, beside those that are gathered unto him.” Verse 8. Here is foreshadowed the gathering in of the Gentiles by the gospel. And upon those who then honor the Sabbath, a blessing is pronounced. Thus the obligation of the fourth commandment extends past the crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension of Christ, to the time when His servants should preach to all nations the message of glad tidings. ” p. GC p. 451
One of the very biggest causes of atheism is injustice in this world. I have heard this repeatedly. It was for example the primary reason why Stalin rejected the church for atheism and Darwinism. The British historian Simon Sebag Montefiore is one of the world’s leading historians on revolution, empire and Russia. He has written a new biography of Stalin titled “Young Stalin” based on newly accessible Georgian communist party archives as well as memoirs of Stalin’s friends and various historical sources. He says:
“While still the finest choirboy at the church school, Stalin started to show an interest in the plight of the poor and to doubt his faith….One event…made a deep impression on Stalin. On 13 February 1892, the teachers of the church school ordered all their pupils to attend a gruesome scene*** that they hoped “would arouse fear and respect in the boys”: a hanging. Three gallows were erected…the condemned men had stolen a cow and, in the ensuing pursuit, had killed a policeman. But the boys learned that the criminals were actually just three “peasants who had been so oppressed by landowners that they escaped into the forest,” petty Robin Hoods, attacking only local squires and helping other peasants…The executions were a Russian show of strength; young Davrichewy called the condemned men “holy martyrs”…The three bandits in leg irons were marched onto the scaffold…the crowd threw stones at the hangman, who was masked and clad completely in scarlet…The hangman kicked away the stools…If anything, the spectacle helped make Stalin a rebel.” pg. 48-51
Some time later Stalin borrowed a copy of Darwin’s Origin of Species (or a book about Darwin’s views).
“Stalin read it [Darwin’s Origin of the Species] all night, forgetting to sleep, until Keke found him. ‘I loved the book so much, Mummy, I couldn’t stop reading…’ As his reading intensified, his piety wavered.”
One day Soso and some friends, including Grisha Glurjidze, lay on the grass in town talking about the injustice of there being rich and poor when he amazed all of them by suddenly saying:
“God’s not unjust, he doesn’t actually exist. We’ve been deceived. If God existed, he’d have made the world more just.”
“Soso! How can you say such things?” exclaimed Grisha.
“I’ll lend you a book and you’ll see.” He presented Glurjidze with a copy of Darwin.”
Simon Sebag Montefiore, Young Stalin, p. 25, 29-31, 49, 55,56. Weidenfeld & Nicolson, London, 2007. (referencing memoirs of G. Glurjidze, P. Kapanadze, G. Elisabedashvili and Demna Shengelaya, quoted in Kaminksy-Vereshchagin, pp. 50-54).
Trotsky also was enthralled by Charles Darwin’s Origin of Species. He said: “Darwin stood for me like a mighty doorkeeper at the entrance to the temple of the universe.” He said that Darwin’s ideas “intoxicated” him. And he thought it insane for someone to think that belief in God could find room in the same head as belief in Darwin’s ideas.
Read more on this here:
http://blog.truth-is-life.org/rights/thrive/causesofcommunism/
4) THE SABBATH IS THE DAY FOR TITHE & OFFERINGS TO GOD
Sabbath is of course the day when we bring tithes and offerings to God. Much of these tithes and offerings are supposed to be given to the poor for their relief (up to 1/3 according to Deut. 14 and other verses***).
This is far more important than most people realize. For every dollar given to churches,
A study, conducted by Partners for Sacred Places with Ram Cnaan, Director of the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Social Policy and Practice, found that the average urban historic sacred place generates over $1.7 million in economic impact annually.
https://sacredplaces.org/reimagine-your-sacred-place/halo-effect/
https://www.haloproject.ca/phase-1-toronto
Since there are ~2 billion Christians in the world, if each of them paid tithe, it would be far more than enough to wipe out poverty worldwide. If even just the Christians in the United States, Canada and S. Korea did that, it would be enough to wipe out poverty.
And again, poverty and injustice are the primary reasons why most atheists have become atheists.
5) ABANDONING SABBATH IS A SLIPPERY SLOPE
One big reason Sabbath matters is that once people abandon Sabbath without a biblical or consistent truth based principle (as is always done), it then throws open the door for others to do the same with many other Bible principles. It’s one of the worst slippery slope problems in history. This becomes especially serious over generations and one by one God’s other laws and principles made for the benefit of people are knocked down. Since each of God’s principles are meant for the best thriving of civilizations good (Prov. 14:34, Matt. 22:37-40, Neh. 9:13, Deut. 4:1-8) and since the root of evil is greed (1 Tim. 6:10) and all sin is evil, every rejection of God’s principles is related to greed at some level and always results in a lot of loss suffering and exploitation. Over time, as more and more of God’s principles are rejected, societies degenerate into a few super rich and a lot of people poor and in debt.
This and the rejection of Bible economics that always goes along with the rejection of Sabbath and creation, influences many to leave belief in God. Why? Many people ask, if God is really loving and powerful, and has given truth to churches, why doesn’t He and the church care enough to stop injustices and evil in this world? If He doesn’t care much about stopping evil in this world, how can He be trusted to give us eternal life in the next world? Questions like these cause many to leave churches and the number of scoffers to greatly.
When people compromise on the Sabbath, it leads to compromises on all sorts of other beliefs as well. This is one reason why at present, only ~4% of Christians and ~50% of pastors in America have an actual biblical worldview even at an elementary level (https://www.barna.org/barna-update/article/5-barna-update/131-a-biblical-worldview-has-a-radical-effect-on-a-persons-life#.Vg-wvXqqqko), something that fulfils Bible predictions about corruption coming into many churches (2 Peter 2, 2 Timothy 3) although the Bible also tells us that there will be people who are faithful to God’s truths and commandments in the midst of that (Rev. 12:14).
6) BIBLE PREDICTIONS OF DECEPTIONS
The Bible predicts many deceptive spiritual leaders in the last days, preaching falsehoods to enable exploitation (2 Peter 1:1-4). They will be condemned the Bible says.
Both the OT and NT say that God’s laws are the foundation of good for people and love for all people. Jesus said that all laws are based on love for God and love for man. Paul said that each of the 10 commandments is in essence a law of love (Romans 13:8-10). That is extremely true of the Sabbath, even more than many other laws of God. It is meant for good for people at all levels of society.
Ellen White quoted J.N. Andrews and said something very important and surprising about the Sabbath.
“The importance of the Sabbath as the memorial of creation is that it keeps ever present the true reason why worship is due to God” – because He is the Creator, and we are His creatures. “The Sabbath therefore lies at the very foundation of divine worship, for it teaches this great truth in the most impressive manner, and no other institution does this. The true ground of divine worship, not of that on the seventh day merely, but of all worship, is found in the distinction between the Creator and His creatures. This great fact can never become obsolete, and must never be forgotten.” – J. N. Andrews, History of the Sabbath, chap. 27. BLJ 160.3
It was to keep this truth ever before the minds of people that God instituted the Sabbath in Eden; and so long as the fact that He is our Creator continues to be a reason why we should worship Him, so long the Sabbath will continue as its sign and memorial. Had the Sabbath been universally kept, the thoughts and affections of humans would have been led to the Creator as the object of reverence and worship, and there would never have been an idolater, an atheist, or an infidel. BLJ 160.4
7) SABBATH IS TESTIFIED TO BY MANY CULTURES AROUND THE WORLD AND HELPS UNIFY GODLY PEOPLE AROUND THE GLOBE
Many cultures around the world also testify to the truth of the Sabbath. Many cultures have words for Sabbath that sound very similar and a long history of believers in God worshiping on Sabbath.
Hundreds of cultures around the world have testified to the Sabbath.
Ancient Chinese characters for godliness also refer to the 7th day, the Sabbath.
8) SABBATH PROMOTES HEALTHY MARRIAGES/FAMILY
It was at creation that God instituted male/female marriage and the family structure(Gen 1:27-8). Many other family structures have been tried throughout history, but all have failed badly.
http://familystructurestudies.com/outcomes/
In addition, when people grow up without stable, loving families, they have much higher chances of getting trapped in various kinds of addictions.
www.filmsforaction.org/watch/what-is-addiction-gabor-mate/
Sabbath is one of the most valuable principles for improving and enriching family life in history (see also Dr. Prager’s video above).
9) SABBATH PROMOTES GRATITUDE
On Sabbath, we remember that God is our Creator who gives everything good to us. Thus Sabbath is a weekly special opportunity to praise and show our thanks and gratitude to Him for all He has done (Psalm 92:1).
Gratitude is such a simple thing to do, but scientists have found that it brings over 30 benefits to our lives.
https://www.happierhuman.com/benefits-of-gratitude/
The Bible says that Sabbath is one way that God brings joy to our lives:
“The sons of the stranger, that join themselves to the Lord, to serve Him, and to love the name of the Lord, to be His servants, everyone that keepeth the Sabbath from polluting it, and taketh hold of My covenant; even them will I bring to My holy mountain, and make them joyful in My house of prayer.” Isaiah 56:6, 7
10) SABBATH PROMOTES HEALTH
Sabbath promotes health in several ways:
1) Sabbath is intrinsically rest from work and stress. And this enables our bodies and minds to refresh and recover to optimal functioning.
2) Sabbath points to Creation which is the foundation of God’s health message (Gen. 1:29; 2:16; 3:2, 18). Good health habits have at least a dozen profound benefits for life.
3) Sabbath is a time to learn many truths of God. Many of them influence our habits to be healthier.
The weekly cycle is hugely important for health and civilization. In fact, when France and Russia tried to change the week to 10 days and 5 days instead of 7, people soon became so inefficient in their functioning that they returned to the 7 day cycle.
See more about this incredible science that supports the Sabbath at these links:
https://www.hopechannel.com/au/read/the-rhythm-of-life
https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/1158613/jewish/The-Biological-Shabbat-Clock.htm
Another interesting thing that has been found recently about the benefits of Sabbath comes from the science of chronobiology. Scientists in this field have discovered a circaseptan cycle in nature which shows that people and nature function best with rest every 7th day. So Sabbath itself is healthy. This is a long article on this with many scientific facts:
One of many scientific papers on this is here:
Seven-day human biological rhythms: An expedition in search of their origin, synchronization, functional advantage, adaptive value and clinical relevance.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27830946
11) SABBATH PROMOTES CARE FOR THE ENVIRONMENT
Sabbath points to the importance of caring for the environment and keeping it clean for future generations (Gen. 1:26,28;2:15)..It reminds us that God’s ideal way to live is in a garden (Gen. 2:8). Growing local gardens is one of the easiest and most profound solutions for many modern problems as the illuminating documentary “Economics of Happiness” points out (and also several TED talks here and here).
Creation itself of course points back to Sabbath (Gen. 2:2,3) which reminds us weekly that God is our Creator, Savior and source of earthly life, eternal life and all good gifts and that we are caretakers of His gifts and should preserve them for future generations.
12) SABBATH PREVENTS ABUSE OF ANIMALS & PEOPLE
The first known animal rights law in history was the Sabbath (Ex. 20:8-11). As living things that God created, animals should be treated with care and compassion and God made this a part of His laws long before any other worldview did. Sunday has no such principle protecting animal rights.
In addition to protecting animals, many studies have found that when people get into a habit of abusing animals, in time, it can turn into a habit of abusing people too.
The Latham Foundation Publication of “Breaking the Cycle of Violence: A practical guide” found that childhood of adolescent histories of cruelty have been reported in:
25% of aggressive male prisoners
30% of convicted child molesters
36% of assaulters of women
46% of incarcerated sexual homicide perpetrators
48% of convicted rapists
…71% of pet-owning women entering a shelter reported that their husband or boyfriend killed, harmed or threatened an animal.
32% of those had admitted that their children had hurt or killed an animal (Ascione, 1998).
Facts about the “Link” & the Cycle of Violence
spcala.com/humane_education/tlc/link.php
So the Sabbath law against exploitation of animals, also influences a reduction in exploitation and abuse of people as well. The Sabbath thus functions to reduce/prevent abuse of animals and people alike.
13) SABBATH PROMOTES GENEROSITY AND SERVICE
Sabbath also encourages us to follow God’s example of being loving and generous to others as He has been so loving and generous to us. By performing many of His healings especially on the Sabbath (much to the consternation of the Jews), Jesus demonstrated that it was a special time to focus on uplifting others.
Science says:
“Year after year, more and more studies are highlighting the benefits of generosity on both our physical and mental health. Not only does generosity reduce stress, support one’s physical health, enhance one’s sense of purpose, and naturally fight depression, it is also shown to increase one’s lifespan.
The Benefits of Generosity
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/lisa-firestone/the-benefits-of-generosit_b_5448218.html
(see also: https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/12/01/generosity-health_n_4323727.html)
14) SABBATH PROMOTES MUSIC & CELEBRATIONS
The Sabbath is a day for praising and singing in worship (Psalm 92:1) and this also brings special blessings with it.
Music is a powerful evidence and proof of a loving Creator. Darwinians try to speculate about the origin of music. But it was created by God to bring blessings into our lives and focus our minds on the Creator of all good things. These articles in English and Chinese talk about this point very powerfully.
“[Music] came from God. It was given to man at the moment of creation when ‘the morning stars sang together’ (Job 38:7). The Bible alone provides an acceptable explanation for the origin of music and musical instruments. We read in Scripture that God surrounds Himself with angelic choirs and the songs of the redeemed sinners (Rev. 14:2–3). A heavenly choir of angels sang at the birth of Christ. We are told to ‘sing to the Lord’ as Ills saints, to ‘praise His holy name’ (Psalm 30:4). Again, we are exhorted to ‘sing joyfully to the Lord’ and to ‘praise the Lord with the harp’, ‘make music to Him on the ten-stringed lyre’, ‘play skilfully and shout for joy’ (Psalm 33:2–3).
The purpose of music was, and is, to praise God. Music provides joy because music has been provided by God. The theory of evolution can never postulate even a faintly satisfactory explanation for the origin of music or why it affects us. When we realise that God wants us to worship Him through music we see God as the Master Musician — the conductor of all life.
https://creation.com/musicevidence-of-creation
CONCLUSION
When you see all the truths that Sabbath is connected to and realize that economic injustice is the main factor that causes the rise of tyrants, dictators and atheism, then her comment becomes very understandable.
Ellen White said that there will always be new things to learn about the benefits of the Sabbath. So the above are definitely not a complete list of its blessings.
- “I saw that we sensed and realized but little of the importance of the Sabbath, to what we yet should realize and know of its importance and glory….when the refreshing and latter rain shall come from the presence of the Lord and the glory of His power, we shall know what it is to be fed with the heritage of Jacob and ride upon the high places of the earth. Then shall we see the Sabbath more in its importance and glory. But we shall not see it in all its glory and importance until the covenant of peace is made with us at the voice of God, and the pearly gates of the New Jerusalem are thrown open and swing back on their glittering hinges, and the glad and joyful voice of the lovely Jesus is heard richer than any music that ever fell on mortal ear bidding us enter.”—Letter 3, 1851. {3SM p. 388}
Keep on studying the Sabbath! There are more treasures to discover in this wonderful and freeing truth that God has given us!
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EXTRAS TO ADD LATER
There are many excuses that people make to not keep Sabbath. They all have 3 major problems:
1) God said to “always do good to each person and all people.” 1 Thess. 5:15. As we can see above, abandoning Sabbath is absolutely not a good thing. It leads to a whole lot of suffering in many ways.
2) They ignore the Bible balance of grace and law. Law never earns salvation. But God’s laws are designed to bring benefits in at least 20 major categories according to God’s claims throughout the Bible, including better health, peace, love, national stability, wealth, stopping crime, and many others, but most of all increasing the effectiveness of our witnessing to others about eternal life.
3) They are ignorant of crucial historical facts that support the Sabbath being for all people. For example, many ancient historical records testify that many ancient people beyond Jews were Sabbath keepers. It’s also clear from history that the Colossians at the time of Paul were Sabbath keepers.
What did the actual Colossian Christians practice? We know from history what they did. Emil Schurer explains that the typical practice of the Gentile converts in Colosse was that they kept the weekly Sabbath and abstained from meats:
Sunday ignores the numerous benefits of Sabbath above and uses fallacies, lies and propaganda to influence people to reject God’s gift of Sabbath that was made to benefit man as Jesus said..
Increased light will shine upon all the grand truths of prophecy, and they will be seen in freshness and brilliancy, because the bright beams of the Sun of Righteousness will illuminate the whole…. {3SM 390.4}
The Sabbath matters much more than you think!