Sabbath-keeping will not commend us to God any more than circumcision, or any other law of the Jews. Why was Sabbath keeping included in the Ten Commandment, whereas circumcision was not? Possibly because Sabbath-keeping is a continual duty, and on-going performance criteria, whereas circumcision is a one-time event, a sign or a seal of purification and sanctification. Also, it is expected that the women keep the Sabbath, but not that they are circumcised. If circumcision were included in the Ten Commandments, a list of universal application, then perhaps some over-zealous Jew might start applying it to women. We have stories of such abuse among Muslims.

The legalistic Christians, whatever form they take, whether Mormon, or Jehovah’s Witness, Catholics, Orthodox, or Seventh-Day Adventists, must substitute the grace of God in Jesus Christ with something else. This something else is always a system of laws, imposed by a hierarchy of superiors. The Sabbath-keeping of the Adventists becomes the baptism for the dead of the Mormons, which is paralleled by the selling of Watchtower literature of the JW’s, which is the Mass and the Popery and the "adoration of Mary" of the Catholics, which is imitated by the Orthodox, and so on ad nauseam.

All churches indulge in some sort of legalism. They feel they must be organized a certain way and hold to certain teachings and be ruled over by certain men (or women) and thus must come up with a system of laws, imposed by a hierarchy of superiors. Just look at the substitution of keeping Sunday "sabbath" imposed by many churches. This cannot be helped, because we are on a sin-cursed earth and the enemy will try to crush any gathering of the saints. The saints raise a bulwark, or take up arms, or buy property and build buildings, and make sure they are tax exempt. This cannot be done without becoming legalistic. The United States of America is based on a legalistic Christianity, and without it, the USA will fall into some other form of legalism. Licentiousness, now on the rise, will topple this society and then a severe legalistic religion will have to be imposed. It may be Islam, who knows? Science fiction writers prefer Buddhism or Mormonism, but L. Ron Hubbard, not content with existing religions, made up his own fictitious Dianetics (Scientology).

Maybe the coming world religion with be Seventh Day Adventism. This would fit in nicely with Ellen G. White’s prophecies, but wouldn’t be quite Adventism. Part of their end-times scenario is that everyone gets a second chance to make things right with God after they die. That’s because they come back to life during the Millennium and must choose between Sabbath-keeping or God’s eternal punishment. There are a few that don’t get a second chance, including those who preached against Seventh Day Adventism willingly and forcefully in this lifetime. Guess I’m cooked.

But we have already stated that Sabbath-keeping will not commend us to God, any more than any other form of law-keeping. As far as the apostle Peter was concerned, the continual-duty aspect of a law ("which if a man do he will live") was a burden, a "yoke...which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear." Acts 15:10. It is important that a man read the Bible when proving anything to himself. I recommend that the entire chapter 15 be read to test my point, but I will quote verse 29 that says, "That you abstain from meats offered to idols, and from blood, and from things strangled, and from fornication: from which if you keep yourselves, you shall do well. Fare ye well." If Sabbath-keeping was important, it would have been mentioned here, especially since the reason why this was being said was for the sake of the Sabbath-keeping Jews (Acts 15:20-21). Peter would have said, "that you keep from polluting the Sabbath by doing any work therein." But he didn’t, because the Gentiles were not expected to become Jews.

We are no longer under the law, according to Paul (Romans 6:14). In order to be out from under the law is to have satisfied the law’s demands, and then move on. There are only two ways a man can satisfy the law’s demands: 1) He must satisfy them all, or 2) He must die. According to Colossians 3:3, 2 Cor. 5:14, Romans 6:2,4,7, 8 and 7:6, we are dead. How this is, how a man can be dead and yet live, is a mystical but true condition of those who have faith in the Son of God (Galatians 2:20).

The intent of the Law of Moses is met by two verses: one in the Ten Commandments, and one elsewhere in the Law. The first intent of the law was to put God first and worship him alone, and with all that is within us. This is the first Commandment. Anyone who has accomplished this is a liar or he must be Jesus Christ. The other commandment is to love your neighbor as yourself. Anyone who has accomplished this is a liar or he must be Jesus Christ. Sabbath-keeping, along with circumcision, or baptism, or church-going, or any ritual, does not accomplish the intent of the Law. The Law is to be our headmaster, our austere schoolteacher, our vigilant truant officer, until the intent of the Law comes: that is, the ability to fulfill the Law. The only legalistic way we can fulfill the Law is to die the death. But there is more to being dead than being dead. If we are dead in Christ, we live, because the life of Christ has been infused, or imputed, to us. Only then we can love God and our neighbor, thus fulfilling the law.

But we must die in Christ in order to live in him. This is the cross of Christ, so precious to us who have known its purpose. Those of us who reject the cross must turn to things like circumcision or Sabbath-keeping in order to feel justified before God. But we of the true circumcision do not need fleshly systems in order to worship God: We have the Spirit of Christ who was raised from the dead and we can now worship God by walking in the Spirit (Philippians 3:3, Romans 8:4). Those who labor under the law must forever be in bondage to sin, because the law does not deliver from sin, but only makes the load more grievous (Romans 7:5). Why would we want to return to bondage?

But now, after that you have known God, or rather are known of God, how do you turn back to the weak and beggarly elements, under which you desire again to be in bondage? You observe days, and months, and times, and years. I am afraid for you, lest I have bestowed upon you labor in vain... because of false brethren brought in undetected, who came in secretly to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage... Don’t you suffer if a man brings you into bondage, if a man devours you, if a man takes from you, if a man exalts himself, if a man slaps you on the face?... Therefore, let no man judge you in food, or in drink, or in respect of a holy day, or of the new moon, or of the Sabbath days, which are a shadow of things to come: but the body is of Christ.

Colossians 2:16-17, Galatians 2:4, 2 Corinthians 11:20, Galatians 4:9-11.

- Chris Simonson

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