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IX.
Sabbath
Chapter 98
:
The Seal of God and The Mark of Apostasy
1. WHAT does the Bible
present as the object of a sign, or seal?
"Now, O king, establish the decree, and
sign the writing, that it be not changed."
Dan. 6:8.
NOTE.-That is, affix the signature of
royalty, that it may have the proper
authority, and thus be of force. Anciently
it was customary for kings to use a ring,
containing their name, initials, or
monogram, for this purpose. Jezebel, the
wife of Ahab, "wrote letters in Ahab's name,
and sealed them with his seal." 1 Kings
21:8. Of the decree issued under Ahasuerus
for the slaying of all the Jews throughout
the Persian Empire it is said that "in the
name of King Ahasuerus was it written, and
sealed with the king's ring." Esther 3:12.
2. What are the three
essentials to an official seal?
To be complete, an official seal must
show three things: (1) The name of the lawgiver;
(2) his official position, title, or authority,
and so his right to rule; and (3) his kingdom,
or the extent of his dominion and jurisdiction.
Thus: "Woodrow Wilson, President of the United
States," "George IV, King of Great Britain,"
"Nicholas II, Czar of Russia."
3. With what is God's
seal connected?
"Bind up the testimony, seal
THE LAW among My disciples." Isa. 8:16.
4. Does the first
commandment show who the author of the law is?
"Thou shalt have no other gods before Me."
Ex. 20:3.
NOTE.-Who the "me" here spoken of is, the
commandment itself does not state. Such a
prohibition might come from any source. Any
heathen could claim it as a command from his
god, and, so far as the commandment itself
goes, no one could disprove his claim.
5. Does the second,
third, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, or
tenth commandment indicate the author of the
decalogue?
No; none of them.
NOTE.-The second commandment forbids the
making of and bowing down to images, but
does not in itself reveal who the true God
is. The third commandment says, "Thou shalt
not take the name of the Lord thy God in
vain," but it likewise fails to reveal the
true God and giver of the law. A worshiper
of the sun might say he kept this
commandment so far as it itself reveals what
god is meant. So of the other commandments
here referred to. In the last five
commandments the name of God is not even
mentioned.
6. Which commandment
alone of the decalogue reveals the true God and
Author of the law?
"Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it
holy. Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy
work: but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the
Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work,
thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy man
servant, nor thy maid servant, nor thy cattle,
nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: 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." Verses 8-11.
NOTE.-The fourth commandment alone reveals
the name, authority, and dominion
of the Author of this law. In six days, (1)
the Lord (name); (2) made
(office, Creator); (3) heaven and earth
(dominion). This commandment alone,
therefore, contains "the seal of the living
God." By what is revealed in this
commandment is shown what God is referred to
in the other commandments. By the great
truth revealed here all other gods are shown
to be false gods. The Sabbath commandment,
therefore, contains the seal of God; and the
Sabbath itself, the observance of which is
enjoined by the commandment, is inseparably
connected with this seal; it is to be kept
in in memory of the fact that God is the
Creator of all things; and it is itself
called a "sign" of the knowledge of this
great truth. Ex. 31:17; Eze. 20:20.
7. What reason does God
give for the Sabbath being an everlasting sign
between Him and His people?
"It is a sign between Me and
the children of Israel forever: for in six
days the Lord made heaven and earth, and on the
seventh day He rested, and was refreshed."
Ex. 31:17.
NOTE.-The Sabbath is the sign, or mark, or
seal, of the true God, the Creator.
8. Of what does God say
the keeping or hallowing of the Sabbath is a
sign?
"And hallow My Sabbaths; and they
shall be a sign between Me and you,
that ye may know that I am the Lord your God."
Eze. 20:20.
9. Of what besides a
knowledge of God as Creator, is the Sabbath a
sign?
"Verily My Sabbaths ye shall keep:
for it is a sign between Me and you
throughout your generations; that ye may know
that I am the Lord that doth SANCTIFY you."
Ex. 31:13.
NOTE.-The Sabbath is the great sign of God's
creative power wherever and however
manifested, whether in creation or
redemption; for redemption is creation-
re-creation. It requires the same power to
redeem that it does to create. "Create in me
a clean heart." Ps. 51:10. "For we are His
workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto
good works," Eph, 2:10. At each recurrence
of the Sabbath, God designs that it shall
call Him to mind as the One who created us,
and whose grace and sanctifying power are
working in us to fit us for His eternal
kingdom.
10. What scripture shows that a special sealing
work is to take place just before the letting
loose of the winds of destruction upon the
earth?
"And after these things I saw four angels
standing on the four corners of the earth,
holding the four winds of the earth, that the
wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the
sea, nor on any tree. And I saw another angel
ascending from the east, having the seal of
the living God: and he cried with a loud
voice to the four angels, to whom it was given
to hurt the earth and the sea, saying, Hurt
not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees,
till we have sealed the servants of our God in
their foreheads. And I heard the number of
them which were sealed: and there were sealed an
hundred and forty and four thousand of all the
tribes of the children of Israel." Rev. 7:1-4.
See Eze. 9:1-6.
11. Where did the
apostle see this same company a little later,
and what did they have in their foreheads?
"And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood
on the mount Sion, and with Him an
hundred forty and four thousand, having His
Father's name written in their foreheads."
Rev. 14:1.
NOTE.-The seal of God and the
Father's name must refer to the same
thing. The seal is the sign or stamp of
perfection and God's name stands for His
character, which is perfection. And the
Sabbath of God, kept as God ordained it to
be kept, holy, and in holiness, is a sign of
this same thing- perfection of character.
When this seal is finally placed upon God's
people, it will be an evidence that His
grace and His sanctifying power have done
their work, and fitted them for heaven. In
the world to come, all will keep the
Sabbath, and will therefore have this seal
or mark of sanctification, holiness, and
perfection of character. Isa. 66:22,23.
12. What is said of the
character of these sealed ones?
"And in their mouth was found no
guile: for they are without fault before the
throne of God." Verse 5.
13. How is the remnant
church described?
"Here is the patience of the saints:
here are they that keep
the commandments of God, and the faith of
Jesus." Verse 12.
14. Against what three
things does the third angel of Revelation 14
warn men?
"And the third angel followed them,
saying with a loud voice, If any man worship
the beast and his image, and receive his mark in
his forehead, or in his hand, the same shall
drink of the wine of the wrath of God." Verses
9,10.
NOTE.-The beast represents the Papacy; the
image to the beast represents another
ecclesiastical body dominating civil power.
See readings in Chapters 60. and 61. of this
book. And over against the seal of God
stands the mark of the beast, the mark of
apostasy. Against this false and idolatrous
worship and the reception of this mark, God
sends this solemn warning.
15. What power
mentioned in the thirteenth chapter of
Revelation is to enforce this mark?
"And he [the two-horned beast] causeth
all, both small and great, rich and poor, free
and bond, to receive a mark in their
right hand, or in their foreheads." Rev. 13:16.
NOTE.-The two-horned beast is understood to
represent the United States of America. See
reading in Chapter 61. of this book. As this
nation repudiates her principles of civil
and religious liberty, and becomes a
persecuting power, other nations will follow
her example in oppressing those who refuse
to yield their allegiance to God.
16. What does the
Papacy set forth as the mark, or sign, of its
power and authority?
"Question.-How
prove you that the church hath power to command
feasts and holy days?
"Answer.-By
the very act of changing the Sabbath into
Sunday, which Protestants allow of."-
"Abridgment of Christian Doctrine," by Rev.
Henry Tuberville, D. D., page 58.
NOTES.-In a letter written in November,
1895, Mr. H. F. Thomas, chancellor to
Cardinal Gibbons, replying to an inquiry as
to whether the Catholic Church claims to
have changed the Sabbath, said: "Of course
the Catholic Church claims that the change
was her act, . . . and the act is a mark
of her ecclesiastical authority in religious
things." See readings in Chapters 97. and
102. of this book.
The true Sabbath being a sign of loyalty to
the true God, it is but natural that the
false sabbath should be regarded as a sign
of allegiance to apostasy. And such we find
to be the case.
17. What do papal
authorities say of the observance of Sunday by
Protestants?
"The observance of Sunday by the
Protestants is an homage they pay, in spite of
themselves, to the authority of the [Catholic]
church."-
"Plain Talk About the Protestantism of
Today," by Monsignor Segur, page 213.
NOTE.-The statement here made is true, and a
full realization of the fact will lead those
who honestly, but ignorantly, have
heretofore been observing Sunday as the
Sabbath, to refuse longer to pay homage to
apostasy and return to the observance of
that which is the sign of loyalty to
heaven,- the only weekly day of rest which
God, in His Word, has commanded men to keep
holy, the seventh day.
18. What will be the
dragon's attitude toward the remnant people who
keep the commandments of God?
"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."
Rev. 12:17.
19. How strongly will
this false worship and the enforcement of this
mark be urged?
"That the image of the beast should
both speak, and cause [decree] that as many as
would not worship the image of the beast
should be killed. And he causeth all, both
small and great, rich and poor, free and bond,
to receive a mark in their right hand, or in
their foreheads: and that no man might buy or
sell, save he that had the mark." Rev.
13:15-17. See note under question 19 in Chapter
52. of this book.
20. Over what do the
people of God finally gain the victory?
"And I saw as it were a sea of glass
mingled with fire: and them that had gotten the
victory over the beast, and over his image,
and over his mark, and over the number of his
name, stand on the sea of glass, having the
harps of God." Rev. 15:2.
THE
God that made the earth,
And all the worlds on high,
Who gave all creatures birth,
In earth, and sea, and sky,
After six days in work employed,
Upon the seventh a rest enjoyed.
The
Sabbath day was blessed,
Hallowed, and sanctified;
It was Jehovah's rest,
And so it must abide;
'Twas set apart before the fall,
'Twas made for man, 'twas made for all.
R.
F. COTTRELL. |
