Category: Sabbath

Did Cain and Abel had the knowledge of Ten commandments?

Cain and Abel had the knowledge of Ten commandments.

The key text to conclude this would be “Gen 4: 7 If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.”

Romans 3:20 for by the law is the knowledge of sin. (margin)

Bible tells us that by law is the knowledge of sin. Cain cannot be accused of doing sin if he has no knowledge of what is sin.

Also see Rom 7:7 What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet.

Also Cain and Abel had the knowledge of ceremonial system which points to Christ who would die as the penalty for their sin(breaking law). Abel acknowledged this and gave a animal sacrifice.

Young’s Literal Translation

And it cometh to pass at the end of days that Cain bringeth from the fruit of the ground a present to Jehovah; Gen 4:3.

At the end of days. Cain and Abel came to worship on the end of days i.e., 7th day. Cain and Abel also kept Sabbath

Also note:

Because that Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws. Gen 26: 5 Until Sinai there was knowledge of commandments,laws and ceremonies. Even the patriarchs paid tithe.

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Seventh Day Sabbath and Counterfeit Papal Sunday worship in early Christianity.

1. Who is Samuel bacchiocchii: Critics of SDA love to quote Samuel Bacchiochi a theologian who wrote on Sabbath. He claimed to be an Adventist and worked in Adventist church. He studied in a jesuit university. He wrote extensively on sabbath which invited wider audience in SDA church to believe him to be true Adventist.

 

In reality he is a Jesuit spy who actually attacked biblical Sabbath  He denied most of the Biblical interpretation concerning Papal Rome in the prophecies of Daniel and Revelation.

 

Jesuit Infilterator Exposed

 

From Sabbath to Sunday: The Bacchiocchi Agenda

 

In conclusion his writings are on authoritative Adventist stand on Sabbath. The only authoritative stand on Sabbath is writings of end time prophet Ellen White.

 

2. How come Papacy changed Sabbath to Sunday when Sunday observance is found in early Christianity.

 

Paul writes the the Papal system is working even in his time
2Th 2:7  For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.
In early Christianity except for few apostates in Rome and Alexandria rest of the Christians were observing 7th day Sabbath.  But it is Papal Rome which enforced Sunday observance throughout Christendom.

For although almost all churches throughout the world celebrate the sacred mysteries on the sabbath of every week, yet the Christians of Alexandria and at Rome, on account of some ancient tradition, have ceased to do this. The Egyptians in the neighborhood of Alexandria, and the inhabitants of Thebais, hold their religious assemblies on the sabbath, but do not participate of the mysteries in the manner usual among Christians in general: for after having eaten and satisfied themselves with food of all kinds, in the evening making their offerings they partake of the mysteries.—The Ecclesiastical History of Socrates Scholasticus, bk. 5, ch. 22.

. . . it so happened that all the senators came to the church to visit him on the sabbath day . . . .—Ibid., bk. 7, ch. 48.

The people of Constantinople, and almost everywhere, assemble together on the Sabbath, as well as on the first day of the week, which custom is never observed at Rome or at Alexandria. There are several cities and villages in Egypt where, contrary to the usage established elsewhere, the people meet together on Sabbath evenings, and, although they have dined previously, partake of the mysteries.—The Ecclesiastical History of Sozomen, bk. 7, ch. 19.

Analysis of Common Quotations from The Church “Fathers” Concerning the Lord’s Day

 

 

The first true and clear reference to Sun-day worship was around 150 A.D. by Justin Martyr (over a century after Jesus’ death and about 1/2 century after John died). Justin used the expression Ηλίου λεγομένη ἡμέρᾳ which literally means “Helios said (called) day” (Helios was a Greek sun god). Most of the Protestant, Orthodox, or Roman Catholic faiths, if they studied Justin, would conclude that Justin made many statements that are heretical and that he admitted he did not care to associate with Christians who he felt retained Jewish practices

 

Some have claimed that the Didache and Ignatius both enjoined Sunday, but this is not true. The original Greek simply does not support this conclusion

 

 

The 17th century historian William Cave reported that the early Christians, both Jews and those in Asia Minor, kept the Sabbath. Notice his report:

 

…the Sabbath or Saturday (for so the word sabbatum is constantly used in the writings of the fathers, when speaking of it as it relates to Christians) was held by them in great veneration, and especially in the Eastern parts honoured with all the public solemnities of religion. For which we are to know, that the gospel in those parts mainly prevailing amongst the Jews, they being generally the first converts to the Christian faith, they still retained a mighty reverence for the Mosaic institutions, and especially for the sabbath, as that which had been appointed by God himself, (as the memorial of his rest from the week of creation,) settled by their great master Moses, and celebrated by their ancestors for so many ages, as the solemn day of their public worship, and were therefore very loth that it should be wholly antiquated and laid aside. For this reason it seemed good to the prudence of those times, (as in others of the Jewish rites, so in this,) to indulge the humour of that people, and to keep the sabbath as a day for religious offices. Hence they usually had most parts of the divine service performed upon that day; they met together for public prayers, for reading the scriptures, celebration of the sacraments, and such like duties. This is plain, not only from some passages in Ignatius and Clemens’s Constitutions, but from writers of more unquestionable credit and authority. Athanasius, bishop of Alexandria, tells us, that they assembled on Saturdays, not that they were infected with Judaism, but only to worship Jesus Christ, the Lord of the sabbath (Cave William, D.D. Primitive Christianity: or the Religion of the Ancient Christians in the First Ages of the Gospel. 1840 edition revised by H. Cary. Oxford, London, pp. 84-85).

 

Polycarp kept the Sabbath:
I will give the narration in order, thus coming down to the history of the blessed Polycarp…
And on the sabbath, when prayer had been made long time on bended knee, he, as was his custom, got up to read; and every eye was fixed upon him…
And on the following sabbath he said; ‘Hear ye my exhortation, beloved children of God. I adjured you when the bishops were present, and now again I exhort you all to walk decorously and worthily in the way of the Lord, knowing that, when I was in the ministry of the presbyters, I applied so great diligence according to my power, and shall do this the more now when the greatest peril awaits me if I am negligent. For after the fear of the judgment, it were shameful to abate and relax anything having regard to men, and not rather to build up higher the zeal which has reached thus far. It pertaineth to you therefore to hold back from all unruliness, both men and women; and let no one imagine that I exact punishment from offenders not from conscientiousness but from human pride. For it has happened that some of those who were put into offices, when they ought all the more, as one might say, to strain every nerve in the race, just then relax their efforts, forgetting that, the greater honour a man appeareth to receive, the greater the loyalty which he ought to pay towards the Master, and to remember the words of the Lord how He himself said, On whom I conferred the more, from him let them demand the more abundantly in return; and the parable of those who had the talents committed to them, and the blessing pronounced upon the servant that watches, and the reproof of those who refused to come to the marriage feast, and the condemnation of him whose garment was not befitting the marriage festivity, and the entering in of the wise virgins, the saying Watch ye, and again Be ye ready, Let not your hearts be weighed down, the new commandment concerning love one towards another, His advent suddenly manifest as of rapid lightning, the great judgment by fire, the eternal life, His immortal kingdom. And all things whatsoever being taught of God ye know, when ye search the inspired Scriptures, engrave with the pen of the Holy Spirit on your hearts, that the commandments may abide in you indelible.’
Thus speaking in this way from time to time, and being persistent in his teaching, he edified and saved both himself and his hearers. (Pionius, Life of Polycarp (1889) from J. B. Lightfoot, The Apostolic Fathers, vol. 3.2, pp.488-506)

 

J. F. Coltheart put the following citations together which shows that scholars do understand that early Christians and others did in fact keep the seventh-day sabbath:
EARLY CHRISTIANS
“The primitive Christians had a great veneration for the Sabbath, and spent the day in devotion and sermons. And it is not to be doubted but they derived this practice from the Apostles themselves, as appears by several scriptures to that purpose.” Dialogues on the Lord’s Day, p. 189. London: 1701, by Dr. T.H. Morer.
EARLY CHRISTIANS
“. . . The Sabbath was a strong tie which united them with the life of the whole people, and in keeping the Sabbath holy they followed not only the example but also the command of Jesus.” Geschichte des Sonntags, pp. 13, 14.
2ND CENTURY CHRISTIANS
The Gentile Christians observed also the Sabbath. Gieseler’s Church History, Vol. 1, ch. 2, par. 30, p. 93.
EARLY CHRISTIANS
“The primitive Christians did keep the Sabbath of the Jews . . . therefore the Christians, for a long time together, did keep their conventions upon the Sabbath, in which some portions of the law were read: and this continued till the time of the Laodicean council.” The Whole Works of Jeremy Taylor, Vol. IX, p. 416 (R. Heber’s Edition, Vol. XII, p. 416)…
EGYPT (OXYRHYNCHUS PAPYRUS – 200-250 A.D.)
“Except ye make the Sabbath a real Sabbath [sabbatize the Sabbath, Greek], ye shall not see the father.” The Oxyrhynchus Papyri, pt. L, p. 3, Logion 2, verse 4-11 (London: Offices of the Egypt Exploration Fund, 1898)…
EARLY CHRISTIANS
“The seventh-day Sabbath was . . . solemnised by Christ, the Apostles, and the primitive Christians, till the Laodicean Council did in a manner quite abolish the observations of it.” Dissertation on the Lord’s Day, pp. 33, 34, 44…
SPAIN – Council Elvira (A.D. 305)
Canon 26 of the Council of Elvira reveals that the Church of Spain at that time kept Saturday, the seventh day. “As to fasting every Sabbath: Resolved, that the error be corrected of fasting every Sabbath.” This resolution of the council is in direct opposition to the policy the church at Rome had inaugurated, that of commanding Sabbath as a fast day in order to humiliate it and make it repugnant to the people…
PERSIA – A.D. 335-375
“They despise our sun god. Did not Zoroaster, the sainted founder of our divine beliefs, institute Sunday one thousand years ago in honour of the sun and supplant the Sabbath of the Old Testament. Yet these Christians have divine services on Saturday.” O’Leary, The Syriac Church and Fathers, pp. 83, 84. (Coltheart JF. The Sabbath of God Through the Centuries. Leaves-of-Autumn Books, Inc. Payson, Arizona, 1954.http://www.giveshare.org/churchhistory/sabbaththrucenturies.html 6/24/06).
For further Reading and more evidence of Sabbath keeping in early centurieshttp://www.cogwriter.com/sabbath.htm

Genesis 1-2-3 and Seventh Day Adventism

The first three chapters are sufficient to teach most Bible doctrines.

1. Marriage – is between one man and one woman

Gen 2:24  Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.

Also read: https://thegladtidings.wordpress.com/2012/08/25/does-god-approve-pre-marital-sex/

2. Hell – If you break commandment of God you will die (note God didnt say that the day you eat the fruit you will be put into hell and burn forever)

Gen 2:17  But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. 

Also refer: https://thegladtidings.wordpress.com/category/doctrines/hell-fire/

3. State of dead – when God breathed air into mans nostrils He became a living soul (living being). Note God didnt insert a soul into a body but breathed air.

Gen 2:7  And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.

“Thou hidest thy face, they are troubled: thou takest away their breath, they die, and return to their dust. Thou sendest forth thy spirit[breath], they are created: and thou renewest the face of the earth.” (Psalm 104:29-30).

Also refer https://thegladtidings.wordpress.com/category/doctrines/understanding-death/

4. Sabbath – God rested on the seventhday and He blessed that day and made it holy.

Gen 2:2-3  And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and He rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.  And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.

Also refer https://thegladtidings.wordpress.com/category/doctrines/sabbath/

5. Commandments – God commanded man not to eat the fruit. If you obey Gods commandment you live otherwise you die.

Gen 2:17  But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. 

Also refer: https://thegladtidings.wordpress.com/category/doctrines/law/

6. Vegetarian diet- God gave plants as food for man.

Gen 1:29  And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to youit shall be for meat. 

Isa 65:25  The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like the bullock: and dust shall be the serpent’s meat. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain, saith the LORD.

https://thegladtidings.wordpress.com/category/ellen-white/vegetarian-diet/

7. Country living – God placed man in a beautiful garden.

https://thegladtidings.wordpress.com/category/ellen-white/country-living/

Gen 2:8  And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the manwhom he had formed.

8. Sanctuary – God taught that Christ will die for  mans sin by killing the lamb after man’s sin

Gen 3:21  Unto Adam also and to his wife did the LORD God make coats of skins, and clothed them.

9. Righteousnes by Faith-  Man tried to clothe himself with fig leaves but God clothed man with an animals skin i.e., He taught that man cannot the nakedness of his sin by his own works but only with the righteousness of Jesus.

Gen 3:7  And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.  Gen 3:21  Unto Adam also and to his wife did the LORD God make coats of skins, and clothed them.

10. Sunday Law

God told Man that there will be enmity between the church and the serpent and serprent will try to destroy the seed of the woman (church)

Gen 3:15  And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.

Rev 12:17  And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ. 

11. Trinity

Gen 1:26  And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. Gen 3:22  And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever:

Forgotten truths from Genesis 2 account of Sabbath.

“Gen 2:3 And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.” says God blessed the 7th day and sanctified it (set is apart for holy purpose) after he had rested from all his work. We can say that He sanctified the day and blessed it on the 1st day of 2nd week.

If the 7th day is not going to be a day of worship and a holy day then there is no real meaning of sanctifying and blessing it after He had rested on that day.

Sabbath was made for mankind Mark 2:27 as a sign of creation. That is why we have 130plus cultures where the 7th day is called as Sabbath.

Also there are cultures where they have kept Sabbath historically without any relationship to Bible. For example Nepal’s national holiday is saturday. In India there is a scheduled tribe which has no connection to the outside world and they keep every 7thday as holy day.

According to reliable estimates, Africa has the world’s largest concentration of Sabbath-keepers, some 20 million people, of which only about three million are Seventh Day Adventists. The Sabbath is natural to Africans. The Sabbath is thriving in Africa because the Sabbath roots of Africa run deep, both in Scripture, and historical practice.

W. W. Oliphant, an African church leader in the early years of the twentieth century says that the “Sabbath in Ethiopia [has] been kept from the days of Nimrod, about 2140 B.C. (read Gen. 10:8, 10), that is 700 years before the birth of Moses. . . . Africans or Ethiopians had been Sabbath observers from the days of Nimrod” (Quoted in Bradford C.E. Sabbath Roots, The African Connection. L. Brown and Sons, Barre (VT), 1999, p. 26).

In Ethiopia in the fourth century, Frumentius reported:

“And we assemble on Saturday,” he continues ; “not that we are infected with Judaism, but to worship Jesus, the Lord of the Sabbath” (Davis, Tamar. A General History of the Sabbatarian Churches. 1851; Reprinted 1995 by Commonwealth Publishing, Salt Lake City, pp. 41-42).

Notice some of the statements by Ethiopian Emperor Galawdewos (A.D. 1540-1559):

We do celebrate the Sabbath, because God, after He had finished the Creation of the World, rested thereon…and that especially, since Christ came not to dissolve the law but to fulfill it. It is therefore not in the imitation of the Jews, but in obedience to Christ, and His holy apostles, that we observe that day (Quoted in Bradford C.E. Sabbath Roots, The African Connection. L. Brown and Sons, Barre (VT), 1999, p. 26).

When God gave the 4th commandment He points to the creation account as a reason for keeping the 7th day Holy.

For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.  Exo 20:11.

Can you see something interesting.. man takes rest after working in the day. Work comes first and a rest follows. Similarly we work throughout the week and rest in the end. I want you to seriously think this. If there was no sabbath until Sinai (as people teach) then man would have worked throughout the week without rest.

It is great thing for God to have created Sabbath isn’t it. So man can work and take rest also.

The great Planner planned it in that way. If God has not created sabbath there would have been no harmony on which day man would have gathered to worship. Each would have preferred a day for worshiping God. I am not talking about the personal devotion with God but the gathering of people to worship.

Luke recognized the 7th day as sabbath day because though he is gentile he always refer to it as sabbath day rather than calling it as Saturday (in his language). [it is ironical to see a non observer of sabbath for example a Baptist to refer Saturday as sabbath. He would refer it as Saturday. Only a sabbath keeper would prefer to refer it as sabbath instead of Saturday]

John says that he was in spirit on the Lord’s day. The only day Bible ever recognizes as Lord’s day is Sabbath.

Sabbath will be the sign of creation and a day of rest even in the new heaven and new earth. Isa 66:22,23

Sabbath in the new covenant.

Those who advocate any day worship or Sunday worship should consider these facts. ( I am not against worshiping God on non sabbath days but I want to affirm that besides worshiping God on all the days we need to rest on His Holy day).

The primary argument for not keeping sabbath is “we are under new covenant”.

The new covenant was ratified by the blood of Jesus at His death.

For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. Matthew 26:28

Bible tells us that the disciples of Jesus kept Sabbath after after they entered into the new covenant.

And that day was the preparation, and the sabbath drew on. And the women also, which came with him from Galilee, followed after, and beheld the sepulchre, and how his body was laid.  And they returned, and prepared spices and ointments; and rested the sabbath day according to the commandment. Luke 23: 54-56.

Also Sunday, the day of resurrection, cannot be the day of worship for the new covenant. We know that after a covenant is ratified we cannot add anything to the new covenant. Since the new covenant was ratified 2 days prior to the day of resurrection Sunday cannot be added to the new covenant as the day of worship.

Brethren, I speak after the manner of men; Though it be but a man’s covenant, yet if it be confirmed, no man disannulleth, or addeth thereto. Gal 3:15

Another evidence that Sabbath was still part of new covenant.

And when the Jews were gone out of the synagogue, the Gentiles besought that these words might be preached to them the next sabbath. And the next sabbath day came almost the whole city together to hear the word of God. Acts 13:42,44. The day Paul chose to gather ‘gentiles’ to share the gospel was on Sabbath. If Paul didn’t observe sabbath he could have asked them to come the next day or any other day in the week. He would have preferred not to ‘judaize’ the gentiles by gathering them on sabbath to share the gospel. 

We should also note that Luke recognized the 7th day as sabbath day  though he is gentile he always refer to it as sabbath day rather than calling it as Saturday (in his language).[ If Luke was not observing Sabbath then it would be ironical to see a non observer of sabbath for example a Baptist to refer Saturday as sabbath. He would refer it as Saturday. Only a sabbath keeper would prefer to refer it as sabbath instead of Saturday]

John says that he was in spirit on the Lord’s day. The only day Bible ever recognizes as Lord’s day is Sabbath.

Sabbath will be the sign of creation and a day of rest even in the new heaven and new earth. Isa 66:22,23

 We don’t keep sabbath to earn salvation but as obedience. Obedience is not legalism. Jesus says if you love me keep my commandments.

Sabbath before Old covenant (before Sinai)

We find that Abraham and Jacob paid tithe. But nowhere it is found in Bible that God commanded man to give tithe before Sinai. So we can only conclude that there was a knowledge of tithe but an explicit commandment to give tithe was not recorded. Similarly the events related to Sabbath and commandments for keeping sabbath are not recorded but we can conclude its existence and commandment to keep it prior to Sinai through these events and verses.

Gen 2 tells us that God blessed and sanctified (set is apart for holy purpose) because in that day He rested. He rested then He blessed that day and sanctified it. What is the purpose of God blessing and sanctifying a day which is already past? It is only because God wanted that day to be observed as Sabbath by humans. When God gave the 4th commandment He gives the creation as the reason for keeping Sabbath. He tells Israelites that God blessed that day and sanctified it. So they need to keep the Sabbath Holy.

And he said unto them, This is that which the LORD hath said, To morrow is the rest of the holy sabbath unto the LORD: bake that which ye will bake to day, and seethe that ye will seethe; and that which remaineth over lay up for you to be kept until the morning. Gen 16:23

A very very key verse in understanding the sabbath existed even before Sinai. The Old covenant was declared and ratified in Sinai but Israelites were keeping sabbath even before the covenant was ratified. It only shows that Sabbath was not a new thing which was introduced in the old covenant but something which was existing and kept but forgotten.

Another key evidence is 130 plus cultures have named the 7th day as sabbath. It again shows Sabbath is something which was existing and kept but forgotten.

Because that Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws. Gen 16:5