BEYOND PITCAIRN 

Vance Ferrell

14: It Never Was

Your birthday is the anniversary of when you came into the world. It commemorates the event. That is what your birthday is. The Bible Sabbath is the birthday of the world. By an express act of God (written down in Genesis 2:1-3), the Seventh day was declared by our Creator to be the weekly anniversary of the creation of this planet, several thousand years ago.

Can a person change his birthday from the day of the year on which he was born to another day? "impossible," you say. And you would be right.

Suppose he was born on August 7. He might tell people that he was born on August 1, but that would not change his birthday. It would still be August 7.

Well, then how could he change his birthday? Even if the federal government enacted a law that his birthday was now August 1, and that he had been born on August 1, it would not change his real birthday. It would continue to be the 7th of August. He might convince everyone in the world that it was August 1, but this would not alter his actual birthday. August 1 would, in very real fact, remain a fiction, a fake birthday.

In the same manner, the Seventh-day Sabbath, the birthday of our world, cannot be changed to any other day of the week. Christ never changes, and He is the One who created this world out of nothing in the first place.

The Seventh-day Sabbath proves that the Creator is the only personage in all the universe whom we are to worship. The Sabbath is the mark of His creative power and authority.

The Seventh-day Sabbath, given by God to commemorate the creation of this world, could not be changed, except by going lack and changing Creation! The Creation Week, recorded in Genesis 1, would have to be redone. God would have to blot out this world and all its inhabitants and start all over again. Once our world has been created, men may try to deny those facts but they cannot change them: The earth and all in it was created in six days, and then God rested the Seventh and hallowed and sanctified it.

But perhaps you are still wondering: Is there no way to change the Sabbath to another day? Is not the authority of Constantine and the pope sufficient to do it? Is not the fact that Sunday-keeping has been customary for over fifteen hundred years all that is needed? What about the overwhelming number of people who today keep it holy? Isn't that sufficient to authorize the change? 

Quite obviously, the answer is no. And for a very simple reason: The Bible Sabbath is not just some silly little regulation that mortal man can change whenever he wishes to. It is the great Signpost pointing all mankind to the worship of the only true God, the Creator God. Creation Week would have to be redone in order to change the Sabbath. Here are statements by two prominent Protestants who recognized this fact: 

"The reason for which the [Sabbath] command was originally given, -namely, as a memorial of God's having rested from the Creation of the world, cannot be transferred from the seventh day to the first; nor can any new motive be substituted in its place, whether the resurrection of our Lord or any other, without the sanction of a divine command [in Scripture] ..

"For if we under the gospel are to regulate the time of our public worship by the prescriptions of the Decalogue, it will be far safer to observe the seventh day, according to the express commandment of God, than on the authority of mere human conjecture to adopt the first [day of the week]." John Milton, A Posthumous Treatise on the Christian Doctrine, Book 2, chap. 7 [John Milton (1608-1674) was the most famous poet of English literature, and the author of "Paradise Lost.]

 "If it [the Ten Commandments] yet exists, let us observe it.. And if it does not exist, let us abandon a mock observance of another day for it. 'But, say some, 'it was changed from the seventh to the first day.' Where? when? and by whom? No, it never was changed, nor could be, unless creation was to be gone through again. For the reason assigned [in Genesis 2:1-3] must be changed before the observance or respect to the reason, can be changed.

It is all old wives' fables to talk of the change of the sabbath from the seventh to the first day. If it be changed, it was that august personage changed it who changes times and laws [Dan 7:25] ex officio. I think his name is 'Doctor Antichrist. ' Alexander Campbell, "The Christian Baptist, " February 2, 1824, vol 1, no.7 [Campbell (1788-1866) was an Irish Protestant who founded in America the denomination known as the Disciples of Christ.]

People can talk all they want about honoring Christ's resurrection by going to church that morning and then taking the rest of the day off as a holiday. But by working on the Seventh day, the day before Sunday, they have broken the Fourth Commandment. It is as simple as that. Will we obey God's words, or will we follow our own opinions? We now know that people today keep Sunday only because Christian apostates at Alexandria and Rome wanted the favor of the Sun-worshipers more than the favor of God. 

Here then is the question: Are we told anywhere in the New Testament that we should keep Sunday holy? Is there even one text in all of Scripture that officially changes God's holy Sabbath from the Seventh day to the first day?

There is not one text, not one, anywhere in the Bible that commands us to do such a thing.

Sunday is never called sacred or holy anywhere in the Bible. It is never called the Sabbath or the Lord's Day. Sunday is only mentioned eight times in the entire Bible. The first time is Genesis 1:5, where the first day of Creation Week is spoken of. No Sunday sacredness here. It is just one of the six working days of Creation Week.

The next five times refer to Jesus' appearances on Sunday to His disciples after His rest in the tomb on the Bible Sabbath (Matt 28:1; Mk 16:1-2,9; Lk 24:1; Jn 20:1,19). Jesus went and found His disciples and told them the good news that He was alive. But there is nothing here about Sunday holiness.

Here are the eight texts in the New Testament that mention the first day of the week:

Matthew 28:1 is the first first-day text in the New Testament: Here we see that the Sabbath ends before the first day of the week begins, and that is all that this passage tells us. Matthew wrote his record several years after the resurrection of Christ.

Mark 16:1-2 is the second first-day text, and Mark 16:9 is the third: We here learn that the Sabbath was past before the first day began. They are two different days. The Seventh-day Sabbath is holy, the other is but one of the six working days. Years after the resurrection, Mark knew of no first-day sacredness.

Luke 24:1 is the fourth one: Nothing new here. Luke does point out in the two preceding verses ( Luke 23:55-56) that some of Jesus' most faithful followers "rested on the Sabbath day according to the commandment" (the Fourth Commandment of Exodus 20:8-11). In all His years of instruction, Jesus had said nothing about Sunday-keeping, or we would see His followers faithfully observing it. But this is not to be found, for Sunday-sacredness is foreign to Scripture.

John 20:1 is the fifth first-day text in the New Testament: Again the same simple record of the early morning experience, and nothing more.

John 20:19 is the sixth one: As with the others, John's record gives no account that Jesus ever mentioned the first day of the week. What John does say is that the disciples were gathered together "for fear of the Jews." He specifically points out that this was not a worship gathering. They were simply in hiding, fearful that they too would soon be killed as Jesus was. Some have suggested that the disciples were celebrating Christ's resurrection. This is incorrect; for they did not yet believe Jesus had risen. They were frightened men with a dead Saviour, for all they knew. Twice, Mark shows that by that time they still could not or would not believe it (Mark 16:11 and 16:12-13). Later Christ appeared to them (Luke 24:33- 37) but had a difficult time convincing them that it was He.

Acts 20:7-8 is the seventh text: After having spent seven days at Troas, Paul and his missionary company held a farewell gathering with them that night, which lasted till midnight. The first day of the week (Bible time) begins Saturday evening at sunset, and ends Sunday evening at sunset. Inasmuch as this meeting in Acts 20:7-11 was held on the first day of the week and at night, it must therefore have been held on what we today would call "Saturday night." For the first day of the week, according to the Bible, had already begun at sunset on Saturday evening. Had it been held on what we call "Sunday night," the meeting would have been held on the second day of the week.

"It was the evening which succeeded the Jewish Sabbath. On the Sunday morning the vessel was about to sail." Conybeare and Howson, Life and Epistles of the Apostle Paul, Vol. 2, p. 206. [This is the most authoritative and complete book on the life of the Apostle Paul.]

"The Jews reckoned the day from evening to morning, and on that principle the evening of the first day of the week would be our Saturday evening. If Luke reckoned so here, as many commentators suppose, the apostle then waited for the expiration of the Jewish Sabbath, and held his last religious service with the brethren at Troas ..on Saturday evening, and consequently resumed his journey on Sunday morning." Dr. Horatio B. Hackett, Commentary on Acts, pp. 221-222. [Dr. Hackett was Professor of New Testament Greek in Rochester Theological Seminary.]

After the Saturday night meeting at Troas (Acts 20:7-11), Paul's company immediately set to work. They set sail that night. Paul preferred to go alone part of the way, so the next morning, Sunday morning, he walked nineteen miles across a point of land to Assos, where his friends took him on board ship (Acts 20:11-14).

If Sunday was Paul's holy day, why then did he stay with the brethren at Troas seven days, and then leave them on Sunday morning in order to walk eighteen-and-a-half miles that day. The Bible says, "for so had he appointed" to do. That was planning quite a bit of work for Sunday.

They had spent seven days at Troas, and then on Saturday night (after the Sabbath was past) they had a farewell gathering with the believers, "ready to depart on the morrow." What does it mean "to break bread"? This is the common Bible expression for partaking of food. The disciples broke bread daily from house to house {Acts 2:46), and they "did eat their meat with gladness" (2:46). It should here be mentioned that even if they had held an actual communion service that night, this would in no way make it a holy day. The Lords Supper may be celebrated on any day. (1 Cor 11 :26) The Lord's Supper commemorates Christ's death, not His resurrection. "Ye do shew the lord's death till He come." verse 26.

The book of Acts is as silent on first-day sanctity as are Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

1 Corinthians 16:1-2 is the eighth and last text: It is the final mention of the first day of the week in the New Testament, and the only mention in Paul's writings. Although Paul wrote many, many letters, this is the only mention of the first day of the week.

Paul wanted the folk to save aside money for the poor folk in Jerusalem. He was an evangelist who didn't like to make calls for money in Sabbath services. "That there be no gatherings when I come," is what he said. He evidently observed that if people did not lay aside at home systematically, on a basis of weekly income, there would have to be a gathering when he came, not only a gathering of money, but gatherings of people, also.

"Let everyone of you lay by him in store." This plan had no connection with a weekly collection at a church service. It was to be laid aside at home. This text also teaches us to total up our money and work up our budgets on the first day of each week, since there is not time in the Friday afternoon (sixth day) preparation to carefully give attention to this, before the Sabbath begins at sunset. Bookkeeping and the keeping of accounts is not to be done on the Sabbath.

So there we have it: eight texts where Sunday is mentioned in the New Testament, and no indication of a new holy day, much less a direct command by the God of heaven to observe it in place of the Seventh-day Sabbath.

Thank God every day of your life for the Bible! It is your pathway to Christ and to eternal life. Never leave the pathway for that which relatives or learned men may tell you. If their ideas do not agree with the Word of God, you had better stay with the plain words of Scripture.

But, interestingly enough, there are some who will tell you that no command to keep Sunday is needed, for Revelation 1:10 proves that we should now keep the first day instead of the Seventh day.

"I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet." Revelation 1:10. But there is no mention of Sunday in this verse, nor in the verses around it. We can only understand one scriptural passage by comparing it with other scriptural passages. This is the proper way to study the Bible.

John lived with Jesus throughout H is earthly ministry, and he well knew the day of the Lord. For three years they had kept it each week, for Jesus habitually kept the Bible Sabbath. "And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up for to read." Luke 4:16.

Later, John tells of an experience he had "on the Lord's day" (Revelation 1:10). This beloved disciple had personally heard Jesus publicly declare that He was "Lord even of the Sabbath day" (Matthew 12:8; Mark 2:28). And John well knew that God, in the Old Testament, repeatedly said that the Seventh day was the Sabbath of the Lord. With such a background of information as this, it is inconceivable that this loyal disciple should regard another day as the day of His Lord and Master, when no other day was ever commanded in Scripture!

The only day mentioned in the Bible as being the Lord's day is the Seventh day of the week-the Bible Sabbath. The expression found in Isaiah 58:13 is a good example of this: "If thou turn away thy foot from the Sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on MY HOLY DAY.." God is here describing the Sabbath.

So then, what day is the "Lord's day" of the Bible? The Bible clearly tells us the day, and it is only one day of the seven. The Bible tells us that the Seventh day is the day of the Lord:

1: The Bible Sabbath is the day unto the Lord (Exodus 16:23,25; 31:15; 35:2).

2: The Bible Sabbath is the day of the Lord (Exodus 20:10; Leviticus 23:3; Deuteronomy 5:4).

3: The Bible Sabbath is His own day; He calls it "My holy day" (Isaiah 58:13)

4: The Bible Sabbath is the day that Jesus called Himself the Lord of (Matthew 12:8; Mark 2:28).

So it is easy to understand why John would speak of it as "the Lord's day" in Revelation 1:10. He surely was not referring to Tuesday or Monday, Thursday or Sunday! For these days had no holiness in the weekly cycle, and none of them were ever spoken of by Jesus or His Father as being a new day for worship.

Yes, John knew what day was the Lord's Day. It is the Seventh-day Sabbath: This is the day that is the Memorial Day of the Creator (Genesis 2: 1-3; Exodus 31: 17). This is the Memorial Day of the Redeemer (Ezekiel 20: 12,20).

This is the Lord's Day, God's own day; a day He wants to share with you.

To love God and obey Him by the grace of Christ, is the most important thing in the world. And it is obvious that Satan seeks in every way to break up this relationship of man with his God. There are many evidences that we live down at the end of time. But a very significant one is the fact that most of the religious leaders today teach that it is not necessary to obey the Ten Commandments.

A great falling away from loyalty to God and His Commandments has taken place during the past ages.

And God predicted that it would happen.  

BEYOND PITCAIRN

15: Fulfilling Prophecy

 It was the year, 553 B.C., and a prophet of God lay down to sleep. Daniel had been an elder statesman of the empire of Babylon for 51 years.

That night as he rested on his couch God gave him in vision a view of future events.

Powerful winds were blowing from every point of the compass, and tore the sea into froth as they strove together. From where he stood near the shore, it seemed that, with wind upon wind hurling upon it, the very waves of the sea were fighting among themselves.

And then, from amid the terrific strife, four terrible animals arose out of the sea, one after another, and made their way up onto the shore.

As the vision continued, God told Daniel that these beasts would be four successive world empires that would arise.

"In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon Daniel had a dream and visions of his head upon his bed: then he wrote the dream, and told the sum of the matters.

"Daniel spake and said, I saw in my vision by night, and, behold, the four winds of the heaven strove upon the great sea. And four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from another. Daniel 7: 1.3.

After a description of each of these ferocious beasts, God explains the dream to Daniel.

 But first, let us explain a little of the background of this. Earlier in the Book of Daniel, in the second chapter, we are told of a sweeping prophecy that extends from Daniel's time down to the Second Advent of Christ. Under the symbol of a great metal image (Dan 2:31-35), we are shown nation after nation that would arise. Beginning with Babylon as the head of gold, the ruling empire in the time of Daniel (Dan 2:38), we are carried on down through the centuries that followed and shown the major empires that would later arise (Medo-Persia, Grecia, Rome, and its ten divisions, Dan 2:39-43). In the time of the feet and toes, our time, Christ will return to this earth and take His faithful ones to heaven (Dan 2:44-45).

But then, about 50 years later, Daniel was given a prophetic vision that closely paralleled that of Daniel 2, while adding more information to it.

Now, instead of parts of a metal image, the symbol is large beasts (Dan 7:2-3). Under the figure of four fierce animals, we are again shown Babylon, Medo-Persia, Grecia, and Rome (Dan 7:4-7).

But the fourth beast, and the "little horn" which grew out of it, especially caught Daniel's attention. There seemed to be something terrible about that little horn power. And we therefore find that most of this chapter is concerned with this little horn.

"I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots: and, behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things..

"Then I would know the truth of the fourth beast, which was diverse from all the others, exceeding dreadful, whose teeth were of iron, and his nails of brass; which devoured, brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with his feet; And of the ten horns that were in his head, and of the other which came up, and before whom three fell; even of that horn that had eves, and a mouth that spake very great things, whose look was more stout than his fellows." Daniel 7:8, 19-20.

There was a very important reason why Daniel was so concerned about this little horn power which was to arise in the territory of the fourth beast: Daniel was shown that this terrible organization would seek to destroy the people of God and change God's laws.

"I beheld and the same little horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them; until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom.

"Thus he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces- ' "And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings." Daniel 7:21-24.

And then Daniel was told the three evil things that this little horn religio-political power would do, and the length of time it would have dominion to do this:

"And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws. And they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time." Daniel 7:25.

Very briefly, let us examine the facts about this vicious little horn power that was to rule and slay the people of God for so long a period of time:

1: This little horn power was to rule the earth for 1260 years.

A "time and times and the dividing of time" (Dan 7:25) is the same as the "forty-two months" of Revelation 11:2, and the "thousand two hundred and threescore days" of Revelation 12:6. The period of rule of the little horn power is referred to in each of these prophecies, although under different names. A "day" in Bible prophecy equals a year (Num 14:34; Ezek 4:6), thus 1260 days is equal to 1260 years. A "time" in Bible prophecy is equal to a year (Dan 11:13, margin, and Revised Version), so the "time and times and the dividing of time" is equal to one year, two years, and half a year, or a total of three and a half years. This is the same as 42 months. And both are equal to 1260 prophetic days or literal years. (A prophetic (year) **day is equal to 360 days or 12 months of 30 days each.) This is the symbolic time of Bible prophecy. And so as it was predicted, the little horn power ruled and crushed men's lives for over a thousand years.

2: This little horn power was to arise at a certain time in history .It would come up in the territory of the fourth beast, pagan Rome, at the time that this beast was declining in power. Ten "horns" or divisions were coming up at that same time (seven of these were the Saxons: modern England; the Franks: modern France; the Lombards: modern Italy; the Alemanni: modern Germany; the Bergundians: modern Switzerland; the Suevi: modern Portugal; and the Visigoths: modern Spain). But the little horn was also to uproot three others (the Heruli, Vandals, and Ostrogoths) as it was rising to power.

3: This little horn power would be a definite ruling power. It would be a kingdom as the others had been kingdoms before it (Dan 7:24). It would come up in the territory of the fourth beast (pagan Rome) as the others did (Dan 7:8). It would arise after the other horns had come up and as it was uprooting three of them (Dan 7:24). Although a kingdom like the others preceding it, yet it would be a strangely different kind of kingdom (Dan 7:24). It was "diverse" in that it was to be a combination religious-political power that would rule over nations for long centuries. This little horn power would have a leader at its head, for it would speak through the "mouth of a man." "And behold in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things. " Daniel 7:8. A man was to be at the head of this power, a man who would defy God as well as the nations.

4: This mouth would speak great things. Revelation 13 is a parallel prophecy of this strange dominating, destroying power, and we are told: "He opened his mouth in blasphemy against His name, and His tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven." Revelation 16:6. And this agrees with the description of him given in Daniel 7: "He shall speak great words against the most High." Daniel 7:25. This kingdom of a man would indeed before this man would be guilty of blasphemy: He would speak against God and even call himself God!

5: This power would try to destroy the people of God for not submitting to its teachings. "I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them" Daniel 7:21. And God said that it would try to blot His people from the earth (Dan 7:25).

Only Papal Rome answers to the description given in the Inspired Word of God. Daniel 7 is parallel with Revelation 12 to 17. Unveiled before us is the Great Babylon of Revelation. It would hunt the people of God to the death for over a thousand years. But it would also do something else: It would try to change the Law of God.

6: It was predicted that this little horn power would try to "change times and laws" (Dan 7:25). We have already seen, earlier in this book, the procedure used by the bishop of Rome to do part of this. But here is more:

The Roman Catholic Church tried to blot out the Second Commandment, which forbade image worship. It then divided the Tenth Commandment into two, in order to make up the number ("Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's house" and "Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife."). And Rome tried to change the Fourth Commandment so that instead of worshiping God on the day He commanded, the Seventh day of the week, the people would come to mass on the first day, the Sun-day instead. And those that refused were ruthlessly murdered.

We have seen that God predicted in the Bible that a great desolating power would arise that would seek to change His laws and destroy His people. (Dan 7:8, 20-21, 25; 8:9-12) The prediction that the little horn power would especially seek to change God's "time law" is to be found in Daniel 7:25.

"And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws." Daniel 7:25.

Only God can change the Moral Law of Ten Commandments, and for anyone to dare attempt such a change of any of those laws would appear to be unthinkable. It would require a power that would dare to call itself God, for only God can change His law.

And so the Apostle Paul predicted the rise of this man of sin who would call himself God.

"Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day [the Second Advent of Christ, verse 1] shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshiped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God." 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4.

With boldness, this power was to arise and sit in the temple of God-and call itself God! And it would boastfully admit what it had done, declaring this very act to be the MARK of its authority over mankind.

And indeed, is it not so? Any power that says it has the authority to change the Law of God, must indeed be God! For only God has the authority to change His own laws.

Let us not become confused between God and man. We are mortal creatures; He is the God of heaven. The Moral Law is the foundation of His government. All His earthly creatures must yield to this law that He has given them. None dare disobey it.

And, of course, none should dare to change it. You see, it is like this: I acknowledge and honor God's authority, when I obey His commands and encourage others to do so. But I declare my independence of God when I set aside His law and refuse to keep it.

Further, I set myself up as a rival god, when having set aside His law, I establish in its place a counterfeit law and then demand that others keep it in place of the law that God commanded!

Here is the word of Scripture: "Whom ye obey, his servants ye are." Romans 6:16. Think about that awhile. If you obey God, you are His servant. If you obey man and disobey God in doing it, then you are serving man in place of God.

And when you learn that fact, you had better do something about it very quickly.

So we see that God's Word declares that obedience to this human god by keeping his counterfeit laws, while knowing that there is not one word or hint in all the Bible to observe such errors, transfers one's worship from the True God, the Creator God, who made heaven and earth and the Seventh-day Sabbath, transfers it to the worship of the man and his organization who gave us the man-made law.

It is as simple as that. By putting man's changes in place of God's Ten Commandments, we find ourselves worshiping the creature rather than the Creator.

There is nothing quite like that little horn power. It has such brazen insolence that it dares to try to change the laws of God.

And then it dares to boast of the fact. .repeatedly, .. over and over.