************************************************** 7TH DAY ADVENTISM WHICH DAY? ************************************************** "One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. He who regards one day as special to the Lord, does so to the Lord." Romans 14:5-6 If the 7th Day Adventist is content to say that he/she considers Saturday to be a special day in the Lord, not one word of condemnation will be spoken. But the very minute a 7th Day Adventist begins to say we must all worship on that day we will oppose them strongly. For to teach that we shall miss the Lord or Rapture because we do not keep the Sabbath is utter sin! Do not let a 7th Day Adventist make you feel guilty or as if you missing something in God. "Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or Sabbath day...He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross." Colossians 2:13-23 Please understand that the 7th Day Adventist knows all these scriptures too and will seek to enslave you by "fine sounding arguments". "I tell you this so that no one may deceive you by fine-sounding arguments." Colossians They will try to tell that there are really two laws. They say that one law was for all time while the other was just for the Jews. Yet even if that were true, if anyone in their church does not keep the Sabbath they must be put to death! For the 7th Day Adventist is bound to obey all parts of the law that are concerned with the Sabbath. Again, there is not two laws, but one law. "These are the terms of the covenant the Lord commanded Moses to make with the Israelites in Moab, in ADDITION TO THE COVENANT HE HAD MADE WITH THEM IN HOREB." -Deuteronomy 29:1 If you try to say we must keep the one part of the law, you are obligated to obey all of it! And if you do that, then Jesus will be of no value to you. "Mark my words! I Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all. Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law." -Galatians 5:2 The bottom line is this. Some may consider it best in the Lord to keep Saturday as the Sabbath, but they cannot look down on others who do not. So what God condemns is the pride that so often goes with the 7th Day Adventist religion. Watch out that you do not loose your freedom in the Lord! "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened by a yoke of slavery." -Galatians 5:1 There will always be matters and issues that come up that will sound good, but really be doctrines that lead to enslavement. "This matter arose because some false brothers had infiltrated our ranks to spy on the freedom we have in Christ Jesus and to make us slaves. We did not give in to them for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel might remain with you." -Galatians 2:4 ************************************************** They will always be those who will say that we must or should obey some of the old law in order to be fully in Jesus. Beware of such men. "Then some of the believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees stood up and said, 'The Gentiles must be circumcised and required to obey the law of Moses." -Acts 15:5 Of course the conclusion of the council was that this was not true. Today we see the same thing in 7th Day Adventism when they preach that we should or must keep Saturday as the Sabbath. They do not understand the spiritual Sabbath that Hebrews talks about. Again, if they want to keep a holy day on Saturday that is fine with us. However, they must not seek to tell us that we should! Such is not their privilege in the Lord. ************************************************** From the book: "THE GOSPEL IN THE FEASTS OF ISRAEL" by VICTORY BUKSBAZEN {a Jew} -pages 89-102 SABBATH OR THE LORD's DAY -WHICH? "The subject of the Sabbath versus Sunday observance presents one of the most heated controversies not only between Synagogue and Church, but within the Church itself, causing considerable confusion even among believers. "Why do thy disciples not keep the Sabbath?" was one of the chief reproaches of the Jewish elders and the Pharisees against our Lord and His disciples. Yet our Lord in defending the deeds of love and healing which He performed on the Sabbath Day, and the plucking of the ears of corn by His hungry disciples, did not reject the observance of the Sabbath as such. For as long as our Saviour was in the flesh He lived under the law into which He was born. The Crucified and Risen Saviour fulfilled the whole purpose of the law. "But when the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth his son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons." -Galatians 4:4-5 The law was given to the Jews as a people, and the Sabbath together with circumcision were the foremost signs of God's covenant with Israel. The law of Moses was not intended for the Gentiles. The Apostle Paul clearly indicates that the Sabbath does not apply to the Christian, but only to the Jew who lived under the dispensation of the law of Moses. In the previous chapter we have pointed out that even the Jew finds it impossible to keep the Sabbath in all its stringency. How much less can the Gentile hope to keep it effectively? There are basic differences between the Sabbath the Jew and the Lord's Day which we need to bear always in mind. [1] The Sabbath or the 7th day of the week commemorates a completed physical creation. - Genesis 2:1-3 The first day of the week is the day resurrection and signifies a completed redemption. -Mattew 28:1-6 [2] The Sabbath is a covenant sign between God and His people Israel. "Speak thou also unto the children of Israel, saying, verily my sabbaths ye shall keep; for it a sign between me and you throughout your generations; that ye may know that I am the Lord that doth sanctify you." -Exodus 31:13 The first day of the week signifies the fellowship between the Church and her Lord. "And upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow." -Acts 20:7 [3] The Sabbath observance was commanded by the law. The punishment for non-compliance was death. The Lord's Day is a day of voluntary, spontaneous worship without any commandment- a day of witness and labor for the Lord. [4] The Sabbath is the crowning day of the week which rewards man for his toil. The Lord's Day emphasizes what God has done for man through His only begotten Son. It is significant that all the commandments of the Decalogue are mentioned in one or another form throughout the New Testament as a moral code which applies to the believer whether he be Jew or Gentile. But there is one exception, the 4th commandment, the keeping of the Sabbath, which is nowhere commanded in the New Testament. -end of article- ************************************************** For further reading on the more serious errors of the 7th Day Adventist church you may want to purchase the following book: -More- SEVENTH DAY ADVENTISM by ANTHONAY A. HOEKEMA William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company Grand Rapids, Michigan Until then remember- *Jesus rose from the dead on the first day of the week. {John 20:1} Watch out for "fine sounding" arguments that twist the days around. *Jesus appeared to ten of His disciples on the evening of the first day of the week, {John 20:19} *On the following first day of the week, Jesus appeared to the eleven disciples, {John 20:26} *The promised coming of the Holy Spirit was fulfilled on the first day of the week {Acts 2:1}. *On that same day of the week the first gospel sermon was preached by Peter and 3,000 converts were received into the church. {Acts 2:14 & 41} *At Troas the Christians of that city assembled for worship on the first day of the week and Paul preached to them {Acts 20:6-7}