Sabbath Arguments Answered #3
The Worldwide Church of God has abolished the Sabbath commandment - I answer their arguments
It is not from the Roman Catholics, for they teach because they are the true church, they had the authority to change the Sabbath from Saturday to Sunday. The fundamental Protestants can not use that position, so they have to use exactly what Tkach is getting from nearly all so-called fundamental churches— there is no real Sabbath day at all. No one should be judging you as what you do on any day of the week. So Sabbath preaching is no longer a topic in these funny-mental churches. I have pointed Tkach's comments, and I will answer them in turn. Take the time to look up all the verses in the first FIVE books of the Bible concerning the Sabbath. These books contain the laws of God. Use Strong's Concordance for your study. As I have said before, you will find very little in the way of specific commands for Sabbath keeping. I have commented on the law in Exodus 16 about gathering food on the Sabbath, a law that ended when Israel entered the promised land under Joshua. See if you can find in those five books of Moses any law about "carrying a burden't or "travelling out of the city." Those laws are not there! What was written later by others concerning such practices as Israel or Judah had laid upon themselves for Sabbath keeping, has nothing directly to do with any law given by God in the five books of Moses. By the time Jesus came in the flesh, the Jews (scribes and Pharisees) had 600 plus laws for what THEY considered correct Sabbath keeping. Most of these Jesus said were man made and He cast them aside. The verses on Sabbath observance found in the books of Moses are VERY CLEAR on one thing - you must not WORK AT YOUR REGULAR SECULAR JOB, NOT YOUR SERVANTS, NOT EVEN YOUR OX OR ASS - IT WAS A DAY OF REST, HOLY TO THE LORD. Those who would not comply were to be put to DEATH! I would say God was very SERIOUS about His Sabbaths. You may want to look up all the laws that carried the death penalty if broken. Sabbath keeping was among those laws! Do you think God takes this matter lightly? Someone is bound to bring up the law about "no fire" on the Sabbath, found in Exodus 35:3. The Bible Commentary by Jamieson , Fausset, Brown Vol. 1, page 419, gives the truth of the matter - quote: "CHAP.XXXV.1-35. Contributions to the Tabernacle. 1. Moses gathered, &c.; On the occasion referred to in the opening of this chapter, the Israelites were specifically reminded of the design to erect a magnificent tabernacle for the regular worship of God, as well as of the leading articles that were required to furnish that sacred edifice....... 3. Ye shall kindle no fire throughout your habitation upon the sabbath day. The Sabbath was NOT A FAST DAY. The Israelites COOKED THEIR VICTUALS ON THAT DAY, for which, of course, a FIRE WOULD BE NECESSARY; and this view of the institution is SUPPORTED BY THE CONDUCT OF OUR LORD (Luke xiv.1). But in early times the Israelites, while sojourning in the wilderness and subsisting on manna, received a double supply on the sixth day, which they cooked also on that day (see on ch.xvi.23), so that a fire for culinary purposes was entirely unnecessary on the Sabbath day. As the kindling of a fire, therefore, could only be for secular purposes, the INSERTION of the prohibition in CONNECTION WITH THE WORK OF THE TABERNACLE makes it HIGHLY PROBABLE that it was INTENDED chiefly for the MECHANICS who were to be EMPLOYED in that erection; and as some of them might have supposed it was allowable to ply their trade in the furtherance of a structure to be dedicated to religious worship, it was calculated TO PREVENT ALL SUCH IDEAS, by absolutely forbidding any fire for the sharpening of tools, for the melting of metals, or any other material purpose bearing on the sanctuary." (emphasis mine). This Sabbath law was for the regulating of the Tabernacle and its physical preparation and upkeep. Even the Holy place where God would dwell under the old covenant was not an excuse for tradesmen to apply their skills on the Sabbath hours. That law was established for as long as the Tabernacle/Temple of God stood. If there was no physical Tabernacle, then that specific law was automatically redundant, just as the law about gathering manna was redundant when there was no more manna to gather. A few laws regarding Sabbath observance in the books of Moses are redundant and void, but the CONTEXT and PHYSICAL LIMITATIONS of those laws make it easy (so easy a young child can understand) to see WHY they are not applicable under the new covenant but to use that understanding to teach that the BASIC sabbath law as found in the words of Exodus 20 is "done away" under the new covenant is like saying black is now white. It is TWISTING and PERVERSION of the word of the Lord, it is the fulfilment of the ancient prophets words when they said the leaders of the people would "call evil good, and good evil" and when turning the people away from the law of God they would tell them " we are delivered to do this thing." I thank the Lord that He still has a few who have not bowed the knee to Baal and are as little children in faith, who can read the easy to understand parts of God's word and law and FOLLOW and OBEY it. Truly the Father has hidden these things from the wise and prudent and has revealed them unto babes. 2. Jesus was neither liberal or conservative. He did not ply the one against the other as in some "tug of war" match. Jesus was PERFECTION and set us an example to follow His steps. Paul followed Christ and told us to "follow me as I follow Christ." The Jews tried, but could find no fault in Paul. If he was teaching and practicing what Tkach is now teaching about Sabbath keeping, you can bet your bottom dollar the Jews would have torn Paul apart for religious perversion and "wrong headedness" in watering down the truth against the commandments of God. See how Tkach keeps pounding away at "not judging" on this Sabbath observance issue. True, there are liberties WITHIN THE LAW of the Sabbath we must all decide upon and not set up our 600 laws as the Jews did. The Lord gives us only BASIC guidelines for Sabbath keeping, not 600 laws of do's and don'ts. But Exodus 20 and other verses are clear, no theological degree needed to read them and understand. The law defines what sin IS. It is sin to do your secular job on the Sabbath, and that we do have the right to judge. I have commented on the ox in the ditch teaching of Sabbath keeping, but a few more words may be helpful for the reader. If you own a tow truck as part of your secular work (you tow cars for a living) and one day, just after leaving home to attend Sabbath services, you come across a car that has plowed into the ditch and people need help to get back on the road, and you can help. So should you help? We will suppose in this case you are not far from home to return with your tow truck and pull the car out. Yes, you should do so! It is the kind Christian thing to do and you will accept NO PAY for doing good on the Sabbath. That and many other such situations fulfils the ox in the ditch Sabbath observance. I am not saying anything NEW here. The Church of God has always taught this kind of Sabbath keeping.? BUT THIS IS NOT THE WAY TKACH IS USING IT.? From the context of his wordy writings on this, it is much BROADER than what the Church of God has ever taught, and it goes hand in hand with his BROADER teaching on "do not judge" one another. It sounds like wonderful liberty he offers you, he wants you to think it is wonderful liberty from God's revelation to you, but he does this while he himself is the servant of corruption and lawlessness. 3. Just a minute. is there ANYTHING in the new covenant that says we are NOT required to keep the Sabbath according to the rules of the old covenant? I see the new covenant saying Christ came not to destroy the law or the prophets but to fulfil and magnify the law. I see where Jesus said that if the righteousness of His disciples did not exceed that of the scribes and Pharisees, they would not be in the Kingdom of God. I see where Jesus said FEW would be saved and MANY who used His name, thought they were Christians, did things for Him, preached about Him, would be cast out, would not enter the Kingdom, would be weeping and gnashing their teeth. I see where Jesus will tell them "depart from me, you that work lawlessness." I have before proved that a few Sabbath laws of the old covenant CANNOT be applied today,as the physical situation is not there to apply those rules, but otherwise, apart from those few rules, I see nothing in the new covenant that says we should not apply old covenant rules to Sabbath keeping. Once more, Tkach uses the old Protestant arguments of Romans 14 and Hebrews 4 to "spiritualize away" the letter of the 4th commandment. It should by now be very clear to the reader that Tkach and the WCG are now a fully Protestant Church, a daughter of the BABYLONIAN WHORE of the book of Revelation, who may happen to still meet on the 7th day of the week for church services (until they move over to Sunday). 4. There it is, could not get much plainer. The Sabbath command according to Tkach is not binding on Christians. It has been fulfilled in Christ. Now it is only a spiritual something or other. I guess this goes along nicely with, and fits into their new theology about God - just a spiritual blob of NOTHING! If the reader does not have my article entitled "The WCG'S NOTHINGNESS GOD" I will post it one day. It is now we ourselves who make the Sabbath holy. It is no longer God who has put His very presence into those Sabbath hours in a unique way to make it holy time, but only as we dedicate it to God, does it become holy. I guess by the same reasoning then, if we do not dedicate those hours to God, then it is not holy and so we do not break (by doing our work or own thing) a commandment of God, and do not sin. The WCG have torn out the 4th commandment from the TEN, stood on it with their dirty feet and have slid down the mountain side into the abyss of destruction and the removal of their candlestick from the true Church of God. I do not want anyone to say I teach things I DO NOT TEACH, so let me make it plain. Keeping the Sabbath in the letter and the spirit perfectly will not per se get you into the Kingdom of God, because you may have a wrong attitude against another law/s of God, or just a bad attitude against God for some reason. Ancient Judah kept the letter of the Sabbaths and Festivals and New Month days, but God said He hated them because their whole attitude to Him was putrid - they observed in the letter somethings of God but their heart was far from God. It can be the same with us. Sabbath keeping will not save you, but on the other hand, can you be saved without Sabbath keeping as defined by the whole Bible? No, you can not, for he that will not let God define what sin is and be willing to serve the Lord with all his heart and soul and mind, will not receive the Spirit of God that saves you (Acts 5:32; Romans 8:6-11). You can not be saved BY keeping the Sabbath, yet you can not be saved WITHOUT keeping the Sabbath. Sounds confusing? Better request my article "Saved by Grace" and get it all clear so you will never be deceived by anyone. It has recently been posted here on my blog. 5. See it for yourselves friends, from the mouth or pen of the head cook and bottle washer of the WCG. All the Roman Catholics and all the Protestants, if they have an honest sincere attitude toward God are no "less Christian." There is now NOBODY in the WCG or any other group that are less Christian for "not keeping it" - the Sabbath. So as far as the 4th commandment of the big ten, the keeping of it as defined by Exodus 20, or the not keeping of it so defined, MAKES DO DIFFERENCE TO BEING A TRUE CHRISTIAN, you are no less or no more Christian whichever way you choose, so says Mr. Tkach Sr. I can see the hands of the Catholics and Protestants being raised and saying "Praise the Lord, the members of the WCG are one of us." The Catholics/Protestants will feel at home now in the services of the WCG, and many members of the WCG will feel at home in the Sunday keeping churches. It will only be a matter of time and the WCG will meet for services on Sunday because it will be the most convenient day of the week to hold meetings on. 6. There are MILLIONS and millions of Sabbath keepers - letter of the law Sabbath keepers - around the world. Many of them are poor because of many factors, they could be classified by our North American standards as in poverty, but is it really due to observing the Sabbath? Most of them would never think they are in a poverty cycle because they keep the Sabbath. Those whose hearts are right with God are delighted to know the truths of God (the 4th commandment one of those truths) and so live their lives accordingly. Not all by any stretch of the imagination, of Sunday church goers are living in physical richness. Millions of so called "Christians" around the world, are living in, or at times find themselves in "a poverty cycle" no matter which if any day they set aside for God. Poverty has a whole lot more to it than "Sabbath keeping." But Tkach would like his readers to believe that some in the WCG who are in the poverty cycle can blame it all on obeying the letter of the Sabbath law. Another falsehood of Satanic deception. If we wanted to argue our way out of poverty from the Bible, I could use the example of David. During his troubles and poverty at one time in his life, he looked at all the great wealthy wicked and un-godly persons around him, who just thumbed their nose at God, yet accumulated mountains of wealth. He at first could not understand it, but later came to see the truth of the matter (Ps.73). Using this section of scripture I could argue that your poverty cycle can be overcome by rejecting God and being a part of the wicked of the world. Some say you can prove anything from the Bible, and I guess for the carnal mind that is true, but for those who hunger and thirst after righteousness there is only ONE WAY, ONE TRUTH, and ONE LIFE - Jesus and His perfect example. 7. Tkach says we are not saved by rules. He is not reading ALL the Bible that is obvious. What does he think Jesus meant when He told the young rich man who wanted to know how to enter into life. " . . .if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments" (Mat. 19:17)? Jesus went on to make it clear WHICH commandments He was speaking about. Now I believe Jesus, how about you? You are saved by grace through faith and not of works, as Paul was inspired to state, but you will also never be saved without obeying rules. My article "Saved by Grace" explains it all in simple clear language. Notice again the "judging" issue is brought back for one more punch in your face. 8. The truth of Colossians 2:16-17 is explained in my article called Colossians 2:16. It is free upon request. Tkach has now adopted the popular Sunday keepers teaching. He puts the physical letter of the Sabbath law in the same bag as physical sacrifices, and as one has been put aside so the other also. The Sabbath is debunked to physical ritual and thrown out with the blood of bulls and goats. Another result of his inept reading of God'sword. Physical sacrifices were from the beginning - they were voluntary until God instituted a rigorous Priesthood/Sacrifice system under Moses for the Israelites. But NEVER were sacrifices mentioned with the TEN COMMANDMENTS. Many Bible scholars of yesterday (Albert Barnes, Adam Clarke, Matthew Henry, and other famous writers and preachers) and today have and do acknowledge that the ten commandment law is the ETERNAL MORAL LAW OF GOD! They admit it is a law of God for all peoples and for all ages, the keeping and observing of those ten points would bring peace, joy, happiness, and blessings for everyone on earth. The observing of animal sacrifices would do no such thing! When God first brought Israel out of Egypt, He did not say anything to them about a sacrificial system. He told them to obey His voice (Jer.7). He personally spoke the TEN commandments to them, they heard His voice (Deut.5). To try and lump the MORAL law of God into the same mould as the sacrificial system is, to speak politely - theological ineptness, and to say it not so politely - idiotical baffoonary. How anyone who pretends to read the Bible in any serious way, can state that one or more of the ten commandments are "done away" because animal sacrifices are now "done away" is hard for me to fathom, unless I realize it is the mind of Satan that is speaking and not the mind of the Holy Spirit. Here is what the famous Bible Commentator, Albert Barnes, wrote in his comments on Colossians 2:16; ". . . There is no evidence, from this passage, that he would teach that there was no obligation to observe any holy time, for there is not the SLIGHTEST REASON to BELIEVE that he meant to teach that ONE OF THE TEN COMMANDMENTS HAD CEASED TO BE BINDING ON MANKIND. No part of the MORAL LAW - NO ONE of the ten commandments - could be spoken of as 'a shadow of things to come.' These commandments are, from the NATURE OF MORAL LAW, of PERPETUAL AND UNIVERSAL OBLIGATION." (Barnes' Notes on the New Testament, One Volume Commentary, page 1070, emphasis his and mine). I could argue that Hebrews chapter 4 does use the 7th day Sabbath as a type and "shadow of things to come" but the main point was clear in the mind of Albert Barnes and others of his time - the points of the ten commandments comprise the MORAL LAW of God, binding and perpetual on all mankind for all times. These Ph.D religious commentators of yesterday may have sincerely believed that the 4th commandment was transferred to Sunday under the new covenant. But they wholeheartedly taught all ten points of that law was God's moral law of perpetual obligation by all mankind, especially those who would call themselves "Christian." Never did these learned men dream of synthesizing the moral law with the law of animal sacrifices, never did they teach that as the one is void today (animal sacrifices) so is any part of the other (the moral law of the ten commandments). This teaching of Tkach has come about in modern times, from the minds of some Protestant funny-mentalists (funny if it was not so serious a matter) who being faced with the "Sabbath question" had to devise a way to get rid of the 4th commandment. The old fellows taught the 4th commandment was Sunday, the new guys could not do that, so other ways around the problem had to be invented. Tkach is now using most if not all of them (including "shadows" and "animal sacrifice" ideas) on the membership of the WCG. All those shadowy ideas will one day meet the reality of Jesus, and the shadowy persons who have shadowingly (excuse my pun) taught them will hear "depart from me, ye that work lawlessness." There indeed will be "weeping and gnashing of teeth." WORLDWIDE NEWS - JANUARY 24th, 1995 All Christians have an obligation to live the life of the Spirit as children of God, but not as slaves of the law (Romans 8:1-17). MY C0MMENT: Now it is possible to make a god out of anything - even the ten commandment law of the Lord. The Jews of Jesus' time had become slaves to the Sabbath by their 600 rules of do's and don'ts. So yes, it is possible to be a slave to the letter of God's law and forget or neglect love, mercy, judgment. Remember what Jesus told the Pharisees in Matthew 23. They loved to obey the letter of the law of tithing, but forgot mercy and judgment. But did Jesus tell them they should IGNORE the letter and just live the spirit? NOT AT ALL! Read it for yourselves friends. Jesus did not "do away" with the letter. Somehow I do not get the feeling Tkach is saying what I've just said. His other words show a more sinister theme. The very section of scripture he sites contains these words: "For to be carnally minded (the minding of the flesh, mrg. reading) is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is ENMITY AGAINST GOD: for it is not SUBJECT TO THE LAW OF GOD, neither indeed can be....... Now if any man HAVE NOT THE SPIRIT OF CHRIST, he is none of His" (verses 6-9). To live the life of the Spirit IS TO BE SUBJECT TO THE LAW OF GOD! Did the Spirit of life that dwelt in Jesus (and must dwell in us if we are to be His) lead Him to be subject to the law of God? Did Jesus by His words or life teach that the letter and spirit of the 4th commandment was "done away" ? He threw on the garbage heap many man made rules and traditions concerning Sabbath observance, but NEVER in word or action did He give the slightest notion that the 4th commandment was THEN or LATER to be cast out along with animal sacrifices or physical circumcision. He lived a SINLESS life in every way. He was perfection personified. He never broke God's commandments either in the letter or in the spirit. He was our PERFECT example. We are to have that very Spirit of Christ that was in Him, IN US, if we do not we are none of His. Paul had just stated in Romans chapter seven, that the law of God (ten commandment law, verse 7) was HOLY, JUST and GOOD. That is was SPIRITUAL (verses 12,14). He had said in verse 22, "For I DELIGHT in the law of God after the inward man." The whole context of this part of Paul's letter is to LOVE, SERVE, DELIGHT, OBEY the law of God. Go back to chapter 6. Look at verse one: "What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin (the breaking of the law - 1 Jn.3:4 with Rom.7:7) , that grace may abound"? He answers emphatically in the next verse: "GOD FORBID"! Notice verse six: "Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should NOT SERVE SIN." Verse 12 says, "Let not SIN therefore REIGN in your mortal body, that ye should OBEY IT in the lusts thereof." Verse 15 asks and answers the "grace" question: "What then? shall we SIN, because we are not under the law, but under GRACE? GOD FORBID"! Now verse 18, "Being then made free from sin, ye became the SERVANTS (slaves) of RIGHTEOUSNESS." Do you know a Bible definition of righteousness? Here is one: ". . . .for ALL THY COMMANDMENTS are righteousness " (Psalm 119:172). Notice verse 19, the last part: "even so now yield your members SERVANTS (slaves) to righteousness unto holiness." In chapter 7 and verse 25, Paul said he SERVED the law of God. His attitude of mind was to love, and obey it, yet because he was still in the flesh he often came short of its perfection. In one sense, in the RIGHT sense we are to be SLAVES to the law of God. We are to be a DAVID! We should want God to be able to say of us that, "he is a man/woman after my own heart" as He did of David. Why could God say this about David? Read the Psalms and you will see. One of the greatest qualities David had was to love the law, commandments, statutes and precepts of God, as the Lord Himself loves them. You need to take the time friend and read Psalm I; 103; 111; and 119 for starters. Look at Ps.119 and verse 136. David said: "Rivers of water run down my eyes, because they keep not thy law." When you hear or read about this new teaching from Tkach that most of the members of the WCG will blindly follow, do you shed tears? Can it so trouble you that you wake up in the middle of the night thinking about it? Have you had days of a "heavy heart" because they "keep not thy law"? Can you still shed tears over this like David did? Friend, I have. And as a servant and minister of the Most High, I must take the time to answer Tkach in fine detail. In the correct sense our attitude should be that we are SERVANTS - SLAVES - to the law of God. We are to love the Lord with all of our heart, soul and mind. That, as I have shown you, is commanded of us in BOTH old, and new covenant. And the new covenant says: "For this is the LOVE OF GOD, that we KEEP HIS COMMANDMENTS: AND HIS COMMANDMENTS ARE NOT GRIEVOUS" (1 John 5:3). The new covenant also sates: "And hereby we do KNOW THAT WE KNOW HIM, IF WE KEEP HIS COMMANDMENTS. He that saith, I know Him, and keepeth NOT HIS COMMANDMENTS, is a liar, and the TRUTH IS NOT IN HIM.......And whatsoever we ask, we receive of Him, BECAUSE we keep His commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in His sight....... And this IS LOVE, that we WALK AFTER HIS COMMANDMENTS....... Here is the patience of the saints, here are they that KEEP THE COMMANDMENTS or GOD, AND THE FAITH OF JESUS.......Blessed are they that DO HIS COMMANDMENTS, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city." (1 John 2:3-4; 3:2?; 2 John 6; Revelation 14:12; 22:14). WORLD-WIDE NEWS - JANUARY 24th, 1995 But the physical keeping of the Sabbath is not part of our new covenant obligation (Galatians 4:1-31). MY COMMENT: Once more in BLACK and WHITE, right before your eyes. There it is, as clear as day, the new teaching of the WCG - the old teaching of some (probably most) of the Pro-testant funny-mentalists, popularly known as fundamentalists. The Sabbath, as written in Exodus 20 is "void" - "done away" under the new covenant. Galatians chapter 4, especially verses 9-11 is called upon to try and prove their stand of "no Sabbath observance." Does the Bible contradict itself? Hebrews chapter 4 in the original Greek absolutely proves there is presently - to day - still a Sabbath keeping for the people of God, which is the 7th day of the week (verses 4,9), and those that enter God's rest cease from his OWN WORK, AS GOD DID FROM HIS (verse 10). Now if this is to be understood that we cease from our sins and enter a spiritual rest, then so it must be understood for God also. The very wording applies to both mankind and God. Did God on that 7th day of creation CEASE FROM SIN TO ENTER SPIRITUAL REST? No way! Not in your wildest dreams! The Lord, ". . . RESTED from all HIS WORK which God CREATED and MADE" (Gen.2:3). ……………………………… We see here another argument of the funny-mentals to get around not observing the Sabbath. We shall answer this and more arguments next time.
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