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Introduction
The Sabbath and the sacrament of marriage are the two divine institutions that God gave to human beings in a sinless world. They were consecrated in Eden before man fell into sin. They represent the highest expressions of our love to God and to other human beings as detailed in the Ten Commandments.
Our adversary, Satan, and his whole confederacy of evil are making concerted efforts to obliterate both of these precious gifts of God. Their assaults against marriage are succeeding to an alarming degree. This is obvious in today’s widespread denigration of marriage and family relationships.
The apparent triumph of evil against the sacred institution of the Sabbath is well nigh universal. Yet, the average Christian believer either does not recognize the error involved here, or does not judge it to be important. It is the purpose of this little book to trace briefly just how the Christian community in general came to regard Sunday-keeping as an acceptable substitute for Sabbath-keeping, and to emphasize the positive duty to return to the observance of the real Sabbath as a sign of loyalty to our Creator.
This is a call for Christians who profess to base their religious beliefs and practices on the Scriptures, not to fall into the condition of the Jewish people in the time of Christ, who put tradition above obedience, and of whom Jesus said:
Thus you have made the commandment of God of no effect by your tradition.
Hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy about you, saying:
These people draw near to Me with their mouth,
And honor Me with their lips,
But their heart is far from Me.
And in vain they worship Me,
Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men (Matthew
15:7-9).
The Bible makes it very clear that salvation is a gift of God’s grace, rather than a reward for good behavior. It is equally clear that God requires strict obedience to all His commandments. We see the harmony in these two statements when we remember that grace not only forgives our past sins, but gives us power to obey (1 John 1:9).
Our motive in writing this book is to invite the reader to enjoy the happy experience of following truth. And to make sure that what we have stated is truth, the reader is urged to have the Bible at his side so as to verify the assertions made here.
Go to Chapter 1
Copyright © 2001
- by McDonald Road SDA Church
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are
taken from the New King James Version.
Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission.
All rights reserved.
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