| How Shall We Keep The Sabbath |
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A Call To Sabbath Reform The Sabbath A Testing Issue: Testimonies For the Church, vol. 6, 352 The Sabbath question is to be the issue in the great final conflict in which all the world will act a part. Men have honored Satan’s principles above the principles that rule in the heavens. They have accepted the spurious Sabbath, which Satan has exalted as the sign of his authority. But God has set His seal upon His royal requirement. Each sabbath institution bears the name of its author, an ineffaceable mark that shows the authority of each. It is our work to lead the people to understand this. We are to show them that it is of vital consequence whether they bear the mark of God’s kingdom or the mark of the kingdom of rebellion, for they acknowledge themselves subjects of the kingdom whose mark they bear. God has called us to uplift the standard of His downtrodden Sabbath. How important, then, that our example in Sabbathkeeping should be right. A Call To Reform: Testimonies For the Church, vol. 6, 353 We must be guarded, lest the lax practices that prevail among Sundaykeepers shall be followed by those who profess to observe God’s holy rest day. The line of distinction is to be made clear and distinct between those who bear the mark of God’s kingdom and those who bear the sign of the kingdom of rebellion. Far more sacredness is attached to the Sabbath than is given it by many professed Sabbathkeepers. The Lord has been greatly dishonored by those who have not kept the Sabbath according to the commandment, either in the letter or in the spirit. He calls for a reform in the observance of the Sabbath. Purpose of the Sabbath: Testimonies For the Church, vol. 4, 249 He gives it to man as a day in which he 1) may rest from labor and 2) devote himself to worship and the 3) improvement of his spiritual condition. Child Guidance, 529 This should be a day of blessing to us—1) a day when we should lay aside all our secular matters and 2) center our thoughts upon God and heaven. Child Guidance, 527 All through the week keep the Lord’s holy Sabbath in view, for 1) that day is to be devoted to the service of God. It is a day when 2) the hands are to rest from worldly employment, 3) when the soul’s needs are to receive especial attention. Testimonies for the Church, vol. 2, 582 God is merciful. His requirements are reasonable, in accordance with the goodness and benevolence of His character. The object of the Sabbath was that all mankind might be benefited. Man was not made to fit the Sabbath; for the Sabbath was made after the creation of man, to meet his necessities. After God had made the world in six days, He rested and sanctified and blessed the day upon which He rested from all His work which He had created and made. 1) He set apart that special day for man to rest from his labor, that, as 2) he should look upon the earth beneath and the heavens above, he might reflect that God made all these in six days and rested upon the seventh; and that, 3) as he should behold the tangible proofs of God’s infinite wisdom, his heart might be filled with love and reverence for his Maker. Manuscript Releases, vol. 13, 292 God would have the Sabbath kept as a day of rest and spiritual devotion; and any careless inattention in reference to this is displeasing to Him. . . . Desire of Ages, 207 The Sabbath is not intended to be a period of useless inactivity. The law forbids secular labor on the rest day of the Lord; the toil that gains a livelihood must cease; no labor for worldly pleasure or profit is lawful upon that day; but as God ceased His labor of creating, and rested upon the Sabbath and blessed it, so 1) man is to leave the occupations of his daily life, and devote those sacred hours to 2) healthful rest, 3) to worship, and 4) to holy deeds. The Sabbath As An Experience: Manuscript Releases, vol. 6, 387 It is not enough to worship God on the Sabbath. The religious services held on that day should be of an uplifting character. Those who preach the truth should be able to present it with power because they live it in the daily life. The church members should carry the influence of the correct observance of the Sabbath through every day of the week, in all their business relations and in all their home relations. They are to be Christians, controlled by the will of God, exemplifying the perfection of Christ’s character.–Letter 66, 1900, pp. 1, 2. Desire of Ages, 283, 288, 289 But in order to keep the Sabbath holy, men must themselves be holy. Through faith they must become partakers of the righteousness of Christ. When the command was given to Israel, “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy,” the Lord said also to them, “Ye shall be holy men unto Me.” Exodus 20:8; 22:31. Only thus could the Sabbath distinguish Israel as the worshipers of God.… “Wherefore the Son of man is Lord also of the Sabbath.” These words are full of instruction and comfort. Because the Sabbath was made for man, it is the Lord’s day. It belongs to Christ. For “all things were made by Him; and without Him was not anything made that was made.” John 1:3. Since He made all things, He made the Sabbath. By Him it was set apart as a memorial of the work of creation. It points to Him as both the Creator and the Sanctifier. It declares that He who created all things in heaven and in earth, and by whom all things hold together, is the head of the church, and that by His power we are reconciled to God. For, speaking of Israel, He said, “I gave them My Sabbaths, to be a sign between Me and them, that they might know that I am the Lord that sanctify them,”—make them holy. Ezekiel 20:12. Then the Sabbath is a sign of Christ’s power to make us holy. And it is given to all whom Christ makes holy. As a sign of His sanctifying power, the Sabbath is given to all who through Christ become a part of the Israel of God. And the Lord says, “If thou turn away thy foot from the Sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on My holy day; and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honorable; . . . then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord.” Isaiah 58:13, 14. To all who receive the Sabbath as a sign of Christ’s creative and redeeming power, it will be a delight. Seeing Christ in it, they delight themselves in Him. The Sabbath points them to the works of creation as an evidence of His mighty power in redemption. While it calls to mind the lost peace of Eden, it tells of peace restored through the Saviour. And every object in nature repeats His invitation, “Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28. Preparation For The Sabbath, A Week Long Exercise of Faith: Testimonies For the Church, vol. 6, 353, 354 All through the week we are to have the Sabbath in mind and be making preparation to keep it according to the commandment. We are not merely to observe the Sabbath as a legal matter. We are to understand its spiritual bearing upon all the transactions of life. All who regard the Sabbath as a sign between them and God, showing that He is the God who sanctifies them, will represent the principles of His government. They will bring into daily practice the laws of His kingdom. Daily it will be their prayer that the sanctification of the Sabbath may rest upon them. Every day they will have the companionship of Christ and will exemplify the perfection of His character. Every day their light will shine forth to others in good works. Testimonies For the Church, vol. 6, 354 In all that pertains to the success of God’s work, the very first victories are to be won in the home life. Here the preparation for the Sabbath must begin. Throughout the week let parents remember that their home is to be a school in which their children shall be prepared for the courts above. Let their words be right words. No words which their children should not hear are to escape their lips. Let the spirit be kept free from irritation. Parents, during the week live as in the sight of a holy God, who has given you children to train for Him. Train for Him the little church in your home, that on the Sabbath all may be prepared to worship in the Lord’s sanctuary. Each morning and evening present your children to God as His blood-bought heritage. Teach them that it is their highest duty and privilege to love and serve God. Testimonies For the Church, vol. 6, 354 When the Sabbath is thus remembered, the temporal will not be allowed to encroach upon the spiritual. No duty pertaining to the six working days will be left for the Sabbath. During the week our energies will not be so exhausted in temporal labor that on the day when the Lord rested and was refreshed we shall be too weary to engage in His service. Review and Herald, December 2, 1884 During the week, we should keep in view the Sabbath of the Lord, and labor to the end that our children shall have some time each day to study their lessons with their parents, the parents themselves showing an interest in the lessons. This will educate the children to feel that their lessons are of consequence. Friday The Special Day Of Preparation: Testimonies For the Church, vol. 6, 355 While preparation for the Sabbath is to be made all through the week, Friday is to be the special preparation day. Testimonies For the Church, vol. 6, 355, 356 1) On Friday let the preparation for the Sabbath be completed. 2) See that all the clothing is in readiness and that all the cooking is done. 3) Let the boots be blacked and the baths be taken. It is possible to do this. If you make it a rule you can do it. 4) The Sabbath is not to be given to the repairing of garments, to the cooking of food, to pleasure seeking, or to any other worldly employment. 5) Before the setting of the sun let all secular work be laid aside and 6) all secular papers be put out of sight. Parents, explain your work and its purpose to your children, and let them share in your preparation to keep the Sabbath according to the commandment. Testimonies For the Church, vol. 6, 356 Before the Sabbath begins, the mind as well as the body should be withdrawn from worldly business. God has set His Sabbath at the end of the six working days, that men may stop and consider what they have gained during the week in preparation for the pure kingdom which admits no transgressor. We should each Sabbath reckon with our souls to see whether the week that has ended has brought spiritual gain or loss. That I May Know Him, 147 Entering upon new business should be avoided, if possible, but endeavor to close up the things already started that are half accomplished. Prepare everything connected with the household matters so that there shall be freedom from worries, and the mind be prepared to rest and to meditate upon heavenly things. Heart Preparation For The Sabbath: That I May Know Him, 147 There needs to be much more close investigation of the week past. Review it and see if, as a branch of the living Vine, you have drawn nourishment from the parent Vine to bear much fruit to the glory of God. If there has been feverish excitement, if hasty words have been spoken, if passion has been revealed, these have surely been the working on Satan’s side of the question. Clear the heart by confession. Sincerely make everything right before the Sabbath. Examine your own selves, whether ye be in the faith. We need to guard our own souls constantly, lest we make a great profession but, like the flourishing fig tree spreading its branches in pretentious foliage, reveal no precious fruit. Christ is hungering to see and receive fruit. Leaves of profession without fruit are to Christ just as worthless as those of the fig tree which He cursed. Testimonies For the Church, vol. 6, 356 There is another work that should receive attention on the preparation day. On this day all differences between brethren, whether in the family or in the church, should be put away. Let all bitterness and wrath and malice be expelled from the soul. In a humble spirit, “confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed.” James 5:16 Welcoming In The Sabbath: Testimonies For the Church, vol. 6, 356, 357 Before the setting of the sun let the members of the family assemble to read God’s word, to sing and pray. There is need of reform here, for many have been remiss. We need to confess to God and to one another. We should begin anew to make special arrangements that every member of the family may be prepared to honor the day which God has blessed and sanctified. Testimonies For the Church, vol. 6, 356 We should jealously guard the edges of the Sabbath. Remember that every moment is is consecrated, holy time. Sermons and Talks, vol. 2, 107 Why not honor the Creator of the heavens and the earth in obeying the fourth commandment? Why not, as the Sabbath is approaching, Friday, have our business over before the sun goes down? Sabbath Morning: Testimonies For the Church, vol. 6, 357 Let not the precious hours of the Sabbath be wasted in bed. On Sabbath morning the family should be astir early. If they rise late, there is confusion and bustle in preparing for breakfast and Sabbath school. There is hurrying, jostling, and impatience. Thus unholy feelings come into the home. The Sabbath, thus desecrated, becomes a weariness, and its coming is dreaded rather than loved. The Youth’s Instructor, March 19, 1879 It is a sad failing with many that they are always behind time on Sabbath morning. They are very particular about their own time, they cannot afford to lose an hour of that; but the Lord’s time, the only day out of the seven that the Lord claims as His, and requires us to devote to Him, quite a portion of this is squandered away by sleeping late in the morning. In this they are robbing God. It causes them to be behind in everything; it makes confusion in the family; and finally results in the tardiness of the entire family at Sabbath-school, and perhaps at meeting. Now why can we not rise early with the birds, and offer praise and thanksgiving to God? Try it, brethren and sisters. Have your preparations all made the day before, and come promptly to the Sabbath-school and meeting, and you will thereby not only benefit others, but you will reap rich blessings for yourselves. Review and Herald, December 2, 1884 If on Sabbath morning parents spend hours in sleep, they lose much. They are wasting God’s time, and it cannot be recalled. If it were their own, they would not thus idle it away. If the parents arise early, they can prepare the morning meal and have family prayers without haste or confusion. Then there is time to review the lessons, and the children, with their parents, can go to the Sabbath-school without becoming hurried, and can do justice to their lessons. Our Diet On The Sabbath: Review and Herald, May 27, 1902 To eat on the Sabbath the same amount of food eaten on a working day, is entirely out of place. The Sabbath is the day set apart for the worship of God, and on it we are to be specially careful in regard to our diet. A clogged stomach means a clogged brain. Too often so large an amount of food is eaten on the Sabbath that the mind is rendered dull and stupid, incapable of appreciating spiritual things. The habits of eating have much to do with the many dull religious exercises of the Sabbath. The diet for the Sabbath should be selected with reference to the duties of the day on which the purest, holiest service is to be offered to God. Testimonies For the Church, vol. 6, 357 We should not provide for the Sabbath a more liberal supply or a greater variety of food than for other days. Instead of this the food should be more simple, and less should be eaten, in order that the mind may be clear and vigorous to comprehend spiritual things. Overeating befogs the brain. The most precious words may be heard and not appreciated, because the mind is confused by an improper diet. By overeating on the Sabbath, many have done more than they think to dishonor God. Counsels on Diet and Foods, 46 By overeating on the Sabbath, many do more than they think, to unfit themselves for receiving the benefit of its sacred opportunities. The Spirit of Prophecy, vol. 1, 226 The Sabbath of the Lord is a day of rest from labor; and the diet upon that day should be more simple, and partaken of in less quantities, than upon the six laboring days, because we do not have that exercise upon the Sabbath that we have upon the other days of the week. Many have erred in not practicing self-denial upon the Sabbath. By partaking of full meals, as on the six laboring days, their 1) minds are beclouded; 2) they are stupid, and 3) often drowsy; 4) some suffer with headache. 5) Such have no truly-devotional feelings upon the Sabbath, and the blessing resting upon the Sabbath does not prove a blessing to them. The Sabbath And Cooking: Testimonies For the Church, vol. 6, 357 While cooking upon the Sabbath should be avoided, it is not necessary to eat cold food. In cold weather let the food prepared the day before be heated. And let the meals, though simple, be palatable and attractive. Provide something that will be regarded as a treat, something the family do not have every day. Review and Herald, June 8, 1897 Speak not lightly of the restrictions placed upon Israel in Sinai regarding the cooking of manna. The Lord has placed barriers around His Sabbath, that it may not be regarded with the least carelessness or irreverence. When the Lord said, “Tomorrow is the rest of the holy Sabbath: bake that which ye will bake today, and seethe that ye will seethe,” He meant that Friday should be our preparation day, in which we are to do all our cooking. The Sabbath is not to be a day when tidbits shall be prepared or cooked. If it is really essential to have beans on the Sabbath, let them be cooked on Friday, and kept warm in the oven. They need not be eaten cold unless preferred. But let no remarks be made as though it were a very light thing whether or not we regard the special requirements of God in regard to the Sabbath. It is not left for any man or woman to venture to disregard one requirement of God. Spiritual Gifts, vol. 3, 253, 254 The Lord is no less particular now in regard to His Sabbath than when He gave the foregoing special directions to the children of Israel. He required them to bake that which they would bake, and seethe (that is, boil,) that which they would seethe on the sixth day, preparatory to the rest of the Sabbath. Those who neglect to prepare for the Sabbath on the sixth day, and who cook food upon the Sabbath, violate the fourth commandment, and are transgressors of God’s law. All who are really anxious to observe the Sabbath according to the commandment, will not cook any food upon the Sabbath. They will, in the fear of that God who gave His law from Sinai, deny themselves, and eat food prepared upon the sixth day, even if it is not as palatable. God forbade the children of Israel baking and boiling upon the Sabbath. That prohibition should be regarded by every Sabbath-keeper, as a solemn injunction from Jehovah to them. The Lord would guard His people from indulging in gluttony upon the Sabbath, which He has set apart for sacred meditation and worship. Review and Herald, June 8, 1897 I see no question in this matter as to what we shall have on the Sabbath day. The food which we have provided on the preparation day can be placed on the table warm, especially in cold weather. In traveling, persons eat cold lunches for days together, and realize no inconvenience or harm. We want palatable, healthful food every day of the week; but upon the Sabbath, let your cook have her day of rest, in the place of cooking for a family. Let every provision be made on Friday. But do not let the Sabbath be regarded as a day in which to get something especially gratifying to eat. Educate your children and every member of the family to enjoy plain, simple food, and to be ready to receive the blessing which the Lord of the Sabbath is waiting to bestow upon all who are in an attitude to receive it. He has this for every one who shows His love for God in keeping holy the Sabbath day, God’s great memorial of creation. Speak softly, walk softly. Let not a word of lightness or trifling come from your lips. This is God’s day. He has blessed the seventh day, as His Sabbath, to be sacredly observed. …Do not make light of the Sabbath requirements; and when it comes to eating on the Sabbath, those who would feed on Christ, who would have the rich blessing of God, will partake of a very simple diet on that day. Kitchen Duties And The Sabbath: Selected Messages, Book 3, 258 We would charge all not to wash their dishes on the Sabbath if this can possibly be avoided. God is dishonored by any unnecessary work done on His holy day. It is not inconsistent, but proper, that the dishes should be left unwashed till the close of the Sabbath, if this can be managed.–Letter 104, 1901. Campmeetings and Sabbath Cooking: Review and Herald, May 8, 1883 And let us not come to the camp-meeting to break the Sabbath by cooking on that day. The instructions which God gave to Israel should not be disregarded: “Bake that which ye will bake to-day, and seethe that ye will seethe;” for “tomorrow is the rest of the holy Sabbath unto the Lord.” God meant what He said; and shall we who are presenting to the people the claims of the divine law, break that law ourselves, merely to please the appetite? God forbid! I know that frequently the Lord has withheld His blessing because we have failed to honor Him by keeping the Sabbath according to the commandment. There has sometimes been nearly as much cooking done on the Sabbath as on other days. I would prefer to eat bread and water only, rather than to run any risk of breaking the fourth commandment. All needful preparation for the Sabbath should be made on Friday. Dress In The House Of Worship On The Sabbath: Testimonies For the Church, vol. 6, 355 Many need instruction as to how they should appear in the assembly for worship on the Sabbath. They are not to enter the presence of God in the common clothing worn during the week. All should have a special Sabbath suit, to be worn when attending service in God’s house. While we should not conform to worldly fashions, we are not to be indifferent in regard to our outward appearance. We are to be neat and trim, though without adornment. The children of God should be pure within and without. Testimonies for the Church, vol. 4, 631 Many will not attend the service of God upon the Sabbath because their dress would appear so unlike that of their Christian sisters in style and adornment. Will my sisters consider these things as they are, and will they fully realize the weight of their influence upon others? By walking in a forbidden path themselves, they lead others in the same way of disobedience and backsliding. Christian simplicity is sacrificed to outward display. My sisters, how shall we change all this? How shall we recover ourselves from the snare of Satan and break the chains that have bound us in slavery to fashion? How shall we recover our wasted opportunities? how bring our powers into healthful, vigorous action? There is only one way, and that is to make the Bible our rule of life. All should work earnestly to do good to others, watch unto prayer, take up the long-neglected cross, and heed the warnings and injunctions of Him who has said: “Whosoever will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.” Review and Herald, January 23, 1900 All who meet upon the Sabbath to worship God should, if possible, have a neat, well-fitting, comely suit to wear in the house of worship. It is a dishonor to the Sabbath, and to God and His house, for those who profess that the Sabbath is the holy of the Lord, and honorable, to wear the same clothing upon the Sabbath that they have worn through the week while laboring upon their farms, when they can obtain other. Selected Messages, Book 2, 475 Some receive the idea that in order to carry out that separation from the world which the word of God requires, they must be neglectful of their apparel. There is a class of sisters who think that they are carrying out the principle of non-conformity to the world by wearing an ordinary sunbonnet, and the same dress worn by them through the week, upon the Sabbath, to appear in the assembly of the saints to engage in the worship of God. And some men who profess to be Christians view the matter of dress in the same light. They assemble with God’s people upon the Sabbath, with their clothing dusty, and soiled, and even with gaping rents in them, and placed upon their persons in a slovenly manner. This class, if they had an engagement to meet a friend honored by the world, and they wished to be especially favored by him, would exert themselves to appear in his presence with the best apparel that could be obtained; for this friend would feel insulted were they to come into his presence with hair uncombed, and garments uncleanly, and in disorder. Yet these persons think that it is no matter in what dress they appear, or what is the condition of their persons, when they meet upon the Sabbath to worship the great God. They assemble in His house, which is as the audience-chamber of the Most High, where heavenly angels are in attendance, with but little respect, or reverence, as their persons and clothing indicate. Their whole appearance typifies the character of such men and women. The Health Reformer, February 1, 1872 If there are worthy persons who, with their whole heart would honor the Lord of the Sabbath, and the worship of God, and who cannot obtain a change of clothing, let those who are able, donate to such a Sabbath suit, that they may appear in the house of God with cleanly, fitting apparel. Those who expend means on costly apparel and extra fixings, can by a little self-denial exemplify pure religion, by simplicity of clothing, and then use the means they have usually expended needlessly in aiding the poor to obtain neat and modest apparel. The Family And The Sabbath: Lake Union Herald, April 14, 1909 I counsel you, my Sabbath-keeping brethren and sisters, to “Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy.” You must change greatly. Many of your habits and practices on the Sabbath are displeasing to God. If you would train your children to observe the Sabbath according to the commandment, you must do it by precept and example. The deep engraving of truth in the heart is never wholly effaced. The impressions made on the heart in early life are seen in after years. They may be buried, but they will seldom be obliterated. Teach your children that the commandments of God must become the rule of their lives. Circumstances may occur to separate the children from their parents and from their home, but the lessons of instruction given in childhood and youth will be a blessing to them throughout their lifetime. Child Guidance, 535, 536 The Sabbath and the family were alike instituted in Eden, and in God’s purpose they are indissolubly linked together. On this day more than on any other, it is possible for us to live the life of Eden. It was God’s plan for the members of the family to be associated in work and study, in worship and recreation, the father as priest of his household, and both father and mother as teachers and companions of their children. But the results of sin, having changed the conditions of life, to a great degree prevent this association. Often the father hardly sees the faces of his children throughout the week. He is almost wholly deprived of opportunity for companionship or instruction. But God’s love has set a limit to the demands of toil. Over the Sabbath He places His merciful hand. In His own day He preserves for the family opportunity 1) for communion with Him, 2) with nature, and 3) with one another. All who love God should do what they can to make the Sabbath a delight, holy and honorable. They cannot do this by seeking their own pleasure in sinful, forbidden amusements. Yet they can do much to exalt the Sabbath in their families and make it the most interesting day of the week. 4) We should devote time to interesting our children. A change will have a happy influence upon them. We can walk out with them in the open air; we can sit with them in the groves and in the bright sunshine, and give their restless minds something to feed upon by conversing with them upon the works of God, and can inspire them with love and reverence by calling their attention to the beautiful objects in nature. The Sabbath should be made so interesting to our families that its weekly return will be hailed with joy. 6) In no better way can parents exalt and honor the Sabbath than by devising means to impart proper instruction to their families and interesting them in spiritual things, giving them correct views of the character of God and what He requires of us in order to perfect Christian characters and attain to eternal life. 7) Parents, make the Sabbath a delight, that your children may look forward to it and have a welcome in their hearts for it. Testimonies For the Church, vol. 6, 357, 358 At family worship let the children take a part. Let all bring their Bibles and each read a verse or two. Then let some familiar hymn be sung, followed by prayer. For this, Christ has given a model. The Lord’s Prayer was not intended to be repeated merely as a form, but it is an illustration of what our prayers should be—simple, earnest, and comprehensive. In a simple petition tell the Lord your needs and express gratitude for His mercies. Thus you invite Jesus as a welcome guest into your home and heart. In the family long prayers concerning remote objects are not in place. They make the hour of prayer a weariness, when it should be regarded as a privilege and blessing. Make the season one of interest and joy. Testimonies For the Church, vol. 2, 583 A portion of the day, all should have an opportunity to be out of doors, not in play, but in God’s beautiful scenery of nature, let their attentions be called to the tokens of His love to man in His created works. Child Guidance, 530, 531 Fathers and mothers should make it a rule that their children attend public worship on the Sabbath, and should enforce the rule by their own example. It is our duty to command our children and our household after us, as did Abraham. By example as well as precept we should impress upon them the importance of religious teaching. All who have taken the baptismal vow have solemnly consecrated themselves to the service of God; they are under covenant obligation to place themselves and their children where they may obtain all possible incentives and encouragement in the Christian life. Sermons and Talks, vol. 2, 107 When my children were small we had a large family of adopted children. We would have our work away before the setting of the sun. The children would hail the Sabbath as a joy. They would say, Now father and mother will give us some of their time. We would take them out for a walk. We would take the Bible and some religious instruction to read to them, and explain to them the Scriptures. We would keep praying that they should know the truth of God’s Word. We would not lie abed Sabbath mornings because it was Sabbath. We would have our preparations all ready the day before so that we could go to service without the hurry and worry. We would not stroll off and have a nice time to ourselves. We wanted our children to have all the privileges and blessings of God’s sanctified rest day. Testimonies For the Church, vol. 6, 358 The Sabbath school and the meeting for worship occupy only a part of the Sabbath. The portion remaining to the family may be made the most sacred and precious season of all the Sabbath hours. Much of this time parents should spend with their children. In many families the younger children are left to themselves to find entertainment as best they can. Left alone, the children soon become restless and begin to play or engage in some kind of mischief. Thus the Sabbath has to them no sacred significance. Lake Union Herald, April 14, 1909 On the Sabbath, parents should give all the time they can to their children, thus making it a delight. I have seen many families where father, mother, and the older members of the household, take themselves away from the younger children, and leave them to amuse themselves as best they can. After a while, the children become weary and go out of doors, and engage in play or some kind of mischief. Thus the Sabbath has no sacred significance to them. In pleasant weather the parents can take their children out for a walk in the fields and forest, and talk to them of the lofty trees, the shrubs and flowers, and teach them that God is the Maker of all these things. Then teach them the reasons for the Sabbath, that it is to commemorate God’s created works. After working six days, He rested the seventh, and blessed and hallowed the day of His rest. Thus the most profitable instruction can be given. Review and Herald, April 14, 1885 The Sabbath—oh! make it the sweetest, the most blessed day of the whole week. Parents should not allow their children to be out with others in play or amusement. I have found that on the Sabbath-day many are indifferent, and do not know where their children are or what they are doing. Parents can and should give attention to their children, reading to them the most attractive portions of Bible history, educating them to reverence the Sabbath-day, keeping it according to the commandment. This cannot be done if the parents feel no burden to interest their children. But they can make the Sabbath a delight if they will take the proper course. The children can be interested in good reading or in conversation about the salvation of their souls. But they will have to be educated and trained. The natural heart does not love to think of God, of heaven, or of heavenly things. There must be a continual pressing back of the current of worldliness and inclination to evil, and a letting in of heavenly light. It takes line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little. Parents and Children Breaking The Sabbath: Child Guidance, 527 Parents, above everything take care of your children upon the Sabbath hours. Do not suffer them to violate God’s holy day by playing in the house or out of doors. You may just as well break the Sabbath yourselves as to let your children do it, and when you suffer your children to wander about and suffer them to play upon the Sabbath, God looks upon you as Sabbath breakers. Child Guidance, 527 I have been shown that very many of the parents who profess to believe the solemn message for this time have not trained their children for God. They have not restrained themselves and have been irritated with anyone who attempted to restrain them. They have not by living faith daily bound their children upon the altar of the Lord. Many of these youth have been allowed to transgress the Fourth Commandment, by seeking their own pleasure upon God’s holy day. They have felt no compunctions of conscience in going about the streets on the Sabbath for their own amusement. Many go where they please, and do what they please; and their parents are so fearful of displeasing them that, imitating the management of Eli, they lay no commands upon them. These youth finally lose all respect for the Sabbath and have no relish for religious meetings or for sacred and eternal things. Testimonies For the Church, vol. 4, 114 The claims of God’s holy law have not been sacredly observed in your daily life. You have desecrated the Sabbath by bringing your [school] studies into that holy time which was not yours to occupy for your own purposes. God has said” “In it thou shalt not do any work.” The Sabbath and Travel: Testimonies For the Church, vol. 6, 359 If we desire the blessing promised to the obedient, we must observe the Sabbath more strictly. I fear that we often travel on this day when it might be avoided. In harmony with the light which the Lord has given in regard to the observance of the Sabbath, we should be more careful about traveling on the boats or cars on this day. In these matters we should set a right example before our children and youth. In order to reach the churches that need our help, and to give them the message that God desires them to hear, it may be necessary for us to travel on the Sabbath; but so far as possible we should secure our tickets and make all necessary arrangements on some other day. When starting on a journey we should make every possible effort to plan so as to avoid reaching our destination on the Sabbath. Special Testimonies Series A, Number 3, 42, 43 Many are becoming careless and irreverent concerning the Sabbath; but if we would have the blessing pronounced that is to be pronounced upon the obedient, it will be necessary that we observe the Sabbath more strictly. Even in traveling upon the cars and steamers, we are to set the right example before our children and youth. It may be necessary for us to travel on the Sabbath in order to reach the churches who need our help, and to give them the message that God would have them hear; but we should secure our tickets, and make all other arrangements on some other day, if it is unavoidable and if we must travel upon the cars or steamboats. When traveling on the cars or boats on the Sabbath day, we should withdraw ourselves from undesirable company, and commune with God. But if through the providence of God, we have an opportunity to speak a word in regard to the truth to those who are in our company, we should improve the opportunity. If any one is suffering, and we can relieve their pain, we should put into exercise the wisdom and knowledge God has given us in doing it. But we need not engage in conversation concerning business matters. We need to be always learning in the school of Christ in order that we may be teachers. Every day our obligation is proportional to our ability. God requires heart-service. He requires that we should be consecrated to Him at all times and in all places. Special Testimonies Series A, Number 3, 42 We expected to leave for Tasmania on Thursday evening, but learned that the steamer was not going out until Friday afternoon, and would bring us into Launceston after the Sabbath had begun. I could not consent to go on this steamer when we should thus have to trespass on the Sabbath, if there was any way possible by which we could avoid it. We learned that a boat left Melbourne Tuesday afternoon, and we decided that it would be much better to go on this early boat than to travel on the Sabbath. From the light which the Lord has given us in regard to the manner in which the Sabbath should be observed, I fear that we are becoming careless, and often travel on the Sabbath when we might avoid it. We should be more careful about traveling on the boats or in the cars on the Sabbath day. Even if it involves some difficulty, we should make every possible effort so to arrange matters about our traveling, that we need not arrive at our destination on the Sabbath. Manuscript Releases, vol. 6, 294, 296 [En route from Colorado to Battle Creek] Sabbath, November 8, 1873 Rested well on the car during the night. We were unwilling to report ourselves on the cars this morning, but circumstances connected with the cause and work of God demands our presence at the General Conference. We could not delay. If we were doing our own business we should feel it a breach of the fourth commandment to travel on the Sabbath. We engaged in no common conversation. We endeavored to keep our mind in a devotional frame and we enjoyed some of the presence of God while we deeply regretted the necessity of traveling upon the Sabbath.—Ms. 13, 1873, p. 2. (Diary, November 5 to 18, 1873.)… In the afternoon at two o’clock we stepped on board the steamer to take the journey we long dreaded. All our luggage had been stored away on Friday. We dislike very much to travel on the Sabbath but the work must be done in giving the message to the world and we can keep our minds and hearts uplifted to God and can hide in Jesus. When we cannot control these matters we must leave all with our heavenly Father. If our trust be in God He will help us.—Ms. 76, 1893, p. 4. (Diary, February 2 to 20, 1893.) Should Children Obey God’s Commandment Or Their Parents? The Signs of the Times, February 28, 1878 Special blessings are also promised to those who honor and keep holy the day which God has sanctified and blessed; and, in giving us the ten commandments, our wise and merciful Father has not enjoined their observance upon us, and yet made it necessary that, in keeping one, we should break another of those holy precepts. If the requirements of parents from their children involves their breaking the law of God, there should be no question in regard to duty. God’s claims are imperative. The son or daughter should respectfully say to the parent, I love and honor you, my earthly parents; but I love and fear God more. His commands must be obeyed at any cost to myself. In thus standing true to principle the child does not dishonor his parents in the Bible sense. The purity and firmness of his principles may be the means of bringing unbelieving parents to realize the high claims which God has upon them. Should this be the case will he not have shown in the fullest sense that he has attained the Bible standard of honoring his parents? Should he fail in bringing the parents he loves to acknowledge the claims of the fourth commandment, still the child has met the requirements of God if he has faithfully done his duty, in meekness and love, to his parents; if he has shown them the utmost respect, caring for them in temporal things, as well as spiritual, yet remained firm in his adherence to the commands of God, notwithstanding their opposition. There is no more effectual way of proving our obedience to the fifth commandment, than that of manifesting our reverence for all God’s holy laws. Should A Wife Obey God’s Commandment Or Their Husband? Manuscript Releases, vol. 10, 74, 75 The Experience of a Wife and Mother Who Accepted the Sabbath. Several from Melbourne have also decided to obey [the truth]. When one sister took her stand upon the truth her husband said, “You may give up the seventh-day Sabbath or leave my home.” They were Wesleyans. She left home, and then her daughter, a girl of sixteen years, took her stand on the Sabbath, and the father told her to leave. The mother heard this and went home for her daughter. The husband and father said, “Well, have you decided to give up that Sabbath and come back and live with me?” She replied, “No, I came for my daughter whom you have turned out of doors.” “But what are you going to do?” he questioned. “I am going to support myself and daughter. She may help me as she can.” He begged on his knees for his wife to give up these terrible doctrines. She had been a very timid woman, but the truth made her strong, and she said, “No, I shall never give up the Sabbath. I shall keep it as long as I live. I must obey God.” “Well,” he said, “if you will come back, you and my daughter may keep the Sabbath, but promise you will not go to the meetings.” She would make no such promise. “I will be a faithful wife to you in everything,” she said, “but should I listen to your proposals, and disobey God, I should not be a faithful child to Him, and therefore should not be a faithful wife to you or a faithful mother to my children.” Faithfulness In Work Often Opens Way To Keep The Sabbath And Your Job: Review and Herald, October 26, 1886 One brother who with his wife has recently accepted the truth, is a first-class carpenter. He stated his faith to his employer, saying that he could not work on the seventh day; but instead of being discharged, as he had feared, he was retained and allowed to keep the Sabbath. 1) Whatever one’s business or calling, it always pays to be thorough, to do our very best, and to be continually learning and improving. 2) Those who do this, will be retained by their employers when others, who are less capable and efficient, are discharged. 3) And, as a rule, those who are faithful and thorough in their business will bring the same characteristics into their religious life. God grant that this may be the case with this dear brother. Keeping The Sabbath or Keeping Your Job: Review and Herald, September 21, 1876 Circumstances will not justify any one in working upon the Sabbath for the sake of worldly profit. If God excuses one man, he may excuse all. But, says one, why may not a man who is poor work upon the Sabbath to earn means for a livelihood when he might by so doing be better able to support his family? Why may not other brethren, or all of us, keep the Sabbath only when it is convenient to do so? The voice from Sinai makes answer: “Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work; but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God.” Health Workers And The Sabbath Counsels on Health, 236 Often physicians and nurses are called upon during the Sabbath to minister to the sick, and sometimes it is impossible for them to take time for rest and for attending devotional services. The needs of suffering humanity are never to be neglected. The Saviour by His example has shown us that it is right to relieve suffering on the Sabbath. But unnecessary work, such as ordinary treatments and operations that can be postponed, should be deferred. Let the patients understand that physicians and helpers should have one day for rest. Let them understand that the workers fear God and desire to keep holy the day that He has set apart for His followers to observe as a sign between Him and them. The Kress Collection, 60 Let no man, because he is a physician, feel at liberty to do those things which God has forbidden. He should not travel on the Sabbath unless this is a necessity in order to relieve suffering humanity. He should plan his work so as to obey God’s requirements. The Lord says, “Verily, my Sabbaths ye shall keep: for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations.” Ex. 31:13. When there is real suffering to be alleviated, it is not a desecration of the Sabbath for physicians to travel upon it: but unimportant cases should be deferred. God sanctified and blessed the seventh day, and it is to be kept as His sacred memorial.… Subtle, dangerous temptations will come to the physicians who believe the truth for these last days. That which would be condemned in a worker of another class is supposed to be admissible in a physician. Thus a multitude of sins are covered up, sins which are registered in the books of heaven as a departure from Bible principles. These temptations the physician may resist if he understands his peril and stands fast by his Saviour. If true to the word of God, we are on the side of Christ, on the side of the loyal, holy angels: we stand under the shield of Omnipotence. Of whom, then, should we be afraid? Medical Ministry, 216 Physicians need to cultivate a spirit of self-denial and self-sacrifice. It may be necessary to devote even the hours of the holy Sabbath to the relief of suffering humanity. But the fee for such labor should be put into the treasury of the Lord, to be used for the worthy poor, who need medical skill but cannot afford to pay for it.—Health, Philanthropic, and Medical Missionary Work, page 42. Medical Ministry, 215, 216 Those who, from whatever cause, are obliged to work on the Sabbath, are always in peril; they feel the loss, and from doing works of necessity, they fall into the habit of doing things on the Sabbath that are not necessary. The sense of its sacredness is lost, and the holy commandment is of no effect. A special effort should be made to bring about a reform in regard to Sabbath observance. The workers in the sanitarium do not always do for themselves what is their privilege and duty. Often they feel so weary that they become demoralized. This should not be. The soul can be rich in grace only as it shall abide in the presence of God. The Kress Collection, 43 Physicians should not suppose that it is right for them to make appointments or to travel on the Sabbath. Not only by precept but also by example they should honor the true Sabbath, which is to be immortalized as the evidence that God created the world in six days and rested on the seventh. God blessed the seventh day and hallowed it, placing the command concerning it in the very bosom of the Decalogue. It is to be sacredly observed. Common, every day treatment should not be given on the Sabbath. Let the patients know that physicians must have one day on which to rest. Often it is impossible for physicians to take time on the Sabbath for rest and devotion. They may be called upon to relieve suffering. Our Saviour has shown us by His example that it is right to relieve suffering on the Sabbath. But physicians and nurses should do no unnecessary work on this day. Ordinary treatment and operations which can wait should be deferred till the next day. Businessmen And The Sabbath Historical Sketches of the Foreign Missions of the Seventh-day Adventists, 215 Among our people generally in these kingdoms, the Sabbath has not stood in the exalted position where God has placed it. The world is the instrument that sifts the church, and tests the genuineness of its members. The world holds out inducements, that, when accepted, place the believer where his life is not in harmony with his profession. Some of our brethren engaged in business have not kept the Sabbath according to the commandment. Some have been in partnership with unbelievers, and the influence of these Sabbath-breaking associates has had its effect upon them. Some have been so blinded that they could not discern the danger in such connections, but it is only the greater because unperceived. While one partner is professedly observing the Sabbath, the other, with the laborers employed, is carrying on the business of the firm. The Sabbath-keeper, though not outwardly engaged in labor, cannot keep his thoughts from business matters. While he may endeavor to keep the Sabbath, he does not keep it. The Lord looks upon him as a transgressor. The Signs of the Times, April 8, 1886 All through the Bible we find that a careful observance of the Sabbath is repeatedly enjoined, and God has plainly stated that those who knowingly break the Sabbath shall not prosper. He who has given man six days wherein to labor to obtain a livelihood, has reserved only one day to Himself; and He looks with indignation upon those who appropriate any portion of this time to their own secular business. There are some who carry their business into the hours of the Sabbath to such an extent that they write business letters, and even collect debts, pay bills, and settle accounts upon the Sabbath. But God’s eye is upon them, and although they may appear for a time to prosper, He will surely visit them with judgment. He can by a word scatter faster than they can gather. By fire, by flood, by the tempest or the earthquake, He can cause them to lose all that they have gained by violating the Sabbath. Evangelism, 245 There is need of a Sabbath reform among us, who profess to observe God’s holy rest day. Some discuss their business matters and lay plans on the Sabbath, and God looks upon this in the same light as though they engaged in the actual transaction of business. How Does God View Those Who Go To Work Occasionally When Required To On Sabbath? Testimonies For the Church, vol. 4, 247, 248 Brother K, you acknowledge the requirements of God to keep the Sabbath, but your works do not harmonize with your declared faith. You give your influence to the side of the unbeliever, insofar as you transgress the law of God. When your temporal circumstances seem to require attention, you violate the fourth commandment without compunction. You make the keeping of God’s law a matter of convenience, obeying or disobeying as your business or inclination indicates. This is not honoring the Sabbath as a sacred institution. You grieve the Spirit of God and dishonor your Redeemer by pursuing this reckless course. A partial observance of the Sabbath law is not accepted by the Lord and has a worse effect upon the minds of sinners than if you made no profession of being a Sabbathkeeper. They perceive that your life contradicts your belief, and lose faith in Christianity. The Lord means what He says, and man cannot set aside His commands with impunity. The example of Adam and Eve in the garden should sufficiently warn us against any disobedience of the divine law. Sabbath-Breakers And Church Fellowship: The Signs of the Times, June 2, 1890 Let the Spirit of God fashion our character and our work. We are responsible for the manner in which the truth is presented. We should seek to impress unbelievers with its exalted character. Christ is soon coming, and those who have not kept the Sabbath sacredly should reform. God will frown upon those who disregard His commandments, and He cannot bless the church that retains Sabbath-breakers in its fellowship. Guarding The Mind The Signs of the Times, May 20, 1886 To keep the Sabbath holy, we should not even allow our minds to dwell upon things of a worldly character. Yet it is not necessary that we shut ourselves away from nature, and deprive ourselves of the free, invigorating air of heaven. The Sabbath was made to be a blessing to man, by calling his mind from secular labor to contemplate the goodness and glory of God. The Youth’s Instructor, February 1, 1853 Those who wish to be blest and approved of the Lord in this world, and who expect to finally be saved, and have right to the tree of life, must keep the Sabbath holy. They should pray daily for grace and wisdom to keep from polluting it in any way. Isaiah says: “Every one that keepeth the Sabbath from polluting it, and taketh hold of my covenant; even them will I bring to my holy mountain.” Dear children, are you as careful as you should be in keeping the Sabbath? You have something to do besides laying aside your work and amusements on that day. If you, on that day, lay plans of what you will do when the Sabbath is past, or talk of your work, amusements and clothes, you pollute the Sabbath. The Prophet has in another chapter told us how to keep the Sabbath from polluting it, and nothing short of doing as he has pointed out will be keeping the Sabbath holy. He says: “If thou turn away thy foot from the Sabbath, [that is, from treading it down, or breaking it,] from doing thy pleasure on My holy day; and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honorable; and shalt honor Him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words.” When you are speaking of your hope in God, of Jesus and of His soon coming, and of the beauties of the New Earth, you are not speaking your own words. Of these things you may freely speak on the Sabbath. On six days you may talk of business matters, and lay plans that are necessary; but the Sabbath is holy time, and all worldly thoughts must, on that day, be dismissed from the mind. The blessing of God will then rest upon you, and you will have the sweet consolations of His Spirit, and you will also have confidence when you approach the throne of grace. Historical Sketches of the Foreign Missions of the Seventh-day Adventists, 218 The words and thoughts should be guarded. Those who discuss business matters and lay plans on the Sabbath, are regarded of God as though they engaged in the actual transaction of business. To keep the Sabbath holy, we should not even allow our minds to dwell upon things of a worldly character. Our Speech And The Sabbath: Gospel Workers, 208 Those who are not fully converted to the truth, frequently let their minds run freely upon worldly business, and although they may rest from physical toil upon the Sabbath, their tongues speak out what is in their minds; hence these words concerning cattle, crops, losses, and gains. All this is Sabbath-breaking. If the mind is running upon worldly matters, the tongue will reveal it; for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. Manuscript Releases, vol. 21, 295 The looseness of the habits and practices in observing the Sabbath has become a customary thing. God help us to see that great blessings are enfolded in the observance of the Sabbath of the fourth commandment. The human agent cannot afford to lose these blessings by dishonoring God in their loose habits and practices. This is a day of meditation and of closely examining our own spiritual condition before God. “Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith.” On that day have no loose, cheap, common talk. Testimonies for the Church, vol. 2, 702 God requires not only that we refrain from physical labor upon the Sabbath, but that the mind be disciplined to dwell upon sacred themes. The fourth commandment is virtually transgressed by conversing upon worldly things or by engaging in light and trifling conversation. Talking upon anything or everything which may come into the mind is speaking our own words. Every deviation from right brings us into bondage and condemnation. Manner Of Preaching On The Sabbath: Testimonies For the Church, vol. 6, 361 The preaching at our Sabbath meetings should generally be short. Opportunity should be given for those who love God to express their gratitude and adoration. Testimonies For the Church, vol. 6, 361 When the church is without a minister, someone should be appointed as leader of the meeting. But it is not necessary for him to preach a sermon or to occupy a large part of the time of service. A short, interesting *Bible reading will often be of greater benefit than a sermon. And this can be followed by a meeting for prayer and testimony. *Bible Study Evangelism, 348 It has often been presented to me that there should be less sermonizing by ministers acting merely as local pastors of churches, and that greater personal efforts should be put forth. Our people should not be made to think that they need to listen to a sermon every Sabbath. Many who listen frequently to sermons, even though the truth be presented in clear lines, learn but little. Often it would be more profitable if the Sabbath meetings were of the nature of a Bible class study. Bible truth should be presented in such a simple, interesting manner that all can easily understand and grasp the principles of salvation.—Letter 192, 1906. Gospel Workers, 1915, 172, 173 *Ministers have no license to behave in the desk like theatrical performers, assuming attitudes and making expressions merely for effect. They are not actors, but teachers of truth. Undignified, boisterous actions lend no force to the truth uttered; on the contrary, they disgust men and women of calm judgment and right views. The minister who has learned of Christ will ever be conscious that he is a messenger of God, commissioned by Him to do a work the influence of which is to endure throughout eternity. It should not be any part of his object to call attention to himself, his learning, or his ability. His whole aim should be to bring sinners to repentance, pointing them, by both precept and example, to the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world. He should speak as one conscious of possessing power and authority from God. His discourses should have an earnestness, a fervor, a power of persuasion, that will lead sinners to take refuge in Christ. [*This council applies to all who preach from the sacred desk.] The Voice in Speech and Song, 337 The science of salvation is to be the burden of every sermon, the theme of every song. Let it be poured forth in every supplication. Let nothing be brought into the preaching of the Word to supplement Christ, the Word and power of God. Let His name, the only name given under heaven whereby we may be saved, be exalted in every discourse, and from Sabbath to Sabbath let the trumpet of the watchmen give a certain sound. Christ is the science and eloquence of the gospel, and His ministers are to hold forth the Word of life, presenting hope to the penitent, peace to the troubled and desponding, and grace and completeness and strength to the believing.—Ms 107, 1898. Testimonies for the Church, vol. 8, 36, 37 We have no time for dwelling on matters that are of no importance. Our time should be given to proclaiming the last message of mercy to a guilty world. Men are needed who move under the inspiration of the Spirit of God. The sermons preached by some of our ministers will have to be much more powerful than they are now, or many backsliders will carry a tame, pointless message, which lulls people to sleep. Every discourse should be given under a sense of the awful judgments soon to fall on the world. The message of truth is to be proclaimed by lips touched with a live coal from the divine altar. My heart is filled with anguish when I think of the tame messages borne by some of our ministers, when they have a message of life and death to bear. The ministers are asleep; the lay members are asleep; and a world is perishing in sin. May God help His people to arouse and walk and work as men and women on the borders of the eternal world. Soon an awful surprise is coming upon the inhabitants of the world. Suddenly, with power and great glory, Christ will come. Then there will be no time to prepare to meet Him. Now is the time for us to give the warning message. Qualifications Of Those Leading Out In Sabbath School Sabbath-School Worker, April 1, 1886 For Christ’s sake let the teachers and the leading workers in your Sabbath-school be men and women who love and fear God; men and women who realize the responsibility of their position, as those who are watching for souls and must render an account to God for the influence they exert over those under their charge. Qualifications Of The Teachers Sabbath-School Worker, April 1, 1886 Every teacher in the school should feel that he is a missionary for God. He must improve his moments and his ability to obtain a knowledge of the word of God, that he may impart the same to his scholars. Teachers will become disqualified for their position if they are not learners. They need freshness of ideas, fresh, wise plans, life, tact, and spirit in their work. They must be apt to teach. The teacher should not confine himself to the repetition of the set words of the lesson, yet he wants to be perfectly familiar with the words as well as the ideas. Every teacher, before he stands at the head of his class, wants to have his plans distinctly laid out in his mind as to what he wants to do for that day and on that occasion. Reciting a lesson yourself before the class is not teaching it; you want simple words and plainly, clearly stated ideas. Make sure that your scholars understand you. If they cannot comprehend your ideas, then your labor is lost. Do not skim the surface; work deep. The Bible is the rule and guide of the life. Sound doctrine must be brought into actual contact with the minds and hearts of your scholars; then it will produce fruit, for sound practice will be seen as the result of your labors. Sabbath-School Worker, April 1, 1886 1) It is essential that care should be taken when placing men and women in positions of trust. 2) You should know something in regard to their past life, and the character that has been developed. 3) You would better double your classes under God-fearing workers than to multiply teachers whose influence is not in accordance with the holy character of truth which we profess, for their influence will be demoralizing. 4)…For Christ’s sake let the teachers and the leading workers in your Sabbath-school be men and women who love and fear God; men and women who realize the responsibility of their position, as those who are watching for souls and must render an account to God for the influence they exert over those under their charge. Sabbath-School Worker, July 1, 1885 Teachers do not make as earnest work as they should of the Sabbath-school exercises; they should come close to the hearts of the scholars, by aptness, by sympathy, by patient and determined effort to interest every scholar in regard to the salvation of the soul. These exercises should become altogether what the Lord would have them,—seasons of deep conviction of sin, of heart reformation. If the right work is done in a skillful, Christ¬like manner, souls will be convicted, and the inquiry will be, “What shall I do to be saved?” 1) In some Sabbath-schools, positions are given to persons who have no aptitude to teach. 2) They have no earnest love for souls. 3) They do not half understand the practical bearings of the truth themselves. How, then, can they lead the children and youth to the living fountain? Let the teachers themselves drink deep of the water of salvation; and then angels of God will minister to them, and they will know just what course the Lord would have them take to win the precious youth to Jesus. It requires aptitude, a will, perseverance, a spirit such as Jacob had when he wrestled in prayer and exclaimed, “I will not let thee go except thou bless me.” When the blessing of God rests upon the teachers, it can but be reflected to those under their charge. 4) Never place the youth under individuals who are spiritually indolent, who have no high, elevated, holy aspirations; for the same mind of indifference, phariseeism, of form without the power, will be seen in both teachers and scholars. Teachers Qualifications For Teaching The Children: Sabbath-School Worker, April 1, 1886 The instruction given youth and children should not be of a superficial character. The teachers should do all in their power, as those standing in defense of the truth, to raise the standard high. There cannot be a worse thing done for your Sabbath-school than to place as workers young men and young women who have shown great defects in their religious experience. You have in your Sabbath-school as teachers of the children some who are greatly deficient in moral worth and true culture. These are brought before the children to be their teachers, to engage in labor for them, when their own life and character have been marked with loose morals and sins that God cannot tolerate. If such have been transformed by the grace of Christ, they will evidence the fact by humility and modesty of deportment. Do not lower the standard in your Sabbath-schools. Your children must have as their teachers those whose example and influence will be a blessing rather than a curse. They must have constantly before them a high sense of the virtue, purity, and holiness which characterizes the Christian life. Their ideas upon this point must not become confused; let none move unwisely or ignorantly in these matters. Give not by voice or pen encouragement to men or women who have not moral worth, whose past life shows a want of conscience and integrity. They may be sharp, witty, and intelligent; but if the heart is not imbued with the Spirit of God, and if they have not integrity of character, their influence points earthward, not heavenward, and will be detrimental wherever they are, and in whatever they may engage. 1) We are in great need of men and women who sense sin and hate iniquity; 2) who have spiritual eyesight to discern the wants of the cause of God, and to work with a devoted, unselfish interest, keeping self ever hid in Jesus. 3) We want young men of whom God can approve, who have practical godliness, who have consciences quick to feel and sense danger; 4) men and women who will not exalt themselves, and will not seek to hide the deformity of the soul under a cloak of godliness; 5) those who feel their weakness and imperfections of character, and who will hang their helpless souls upon Jesus Christ. Those who are self-confident, and think their way is above criticism, will show very imperfect work. Said the apostle, “When I am weak, then am I strong.” While sensing his weakness, he by faith laid hold of Jesus Christ and His grace. The Teaching Of Children And Youth On Sabbath: The Signs of the Times, August 13, 1885 Very much can be done for the education and moral and religious training of our youth by well organized, properly conducted Sabbath-schools. Time and attention should be given to this branch of the work; for its importance in its influence upon our youth cannot be estimated. But our teachers need to be converted men and women, who know what it means to wrestle with God, who will not be at rest until the hearts of the children are tuned to love, praise, and glorify God. Who will be the earnest workers for souls in our Sabbath-schools? Who will take the youth separately, and talk and pray with them, and make personal appeals to them, beseeching them to yield their heart to Jesus, that they may be as a sweet savor to Christ? As we view the magnitude of the work, and see how little it is appreciated, we feel like groaning in spirit and exclaiming, Who will accept these grave responsibilities and watch for souls as they that must give an account? We are Christ’s representatives upon the earth. How do we fulfill our mission? Christ’s representatives will be in daily communion with Him. Their words will be select, their speech seasoned with grace, their hearts filled with love, their efforts sincere, earnest, persevering, to save souls for whom Christ has died. Let all do their utmost to work for the salvation of the dear children and youth, and by and by they will listen with joy to the words of Jesus, “Well done, good and faithful servant, enter thou into the joy of thy Lord.” What is this joy?—It is beholding the redeemed saints saved through their instrumentality, through the blood of Jesus Christ. Sabbath Keeping Does Not Mean Spending All Day At Church: Testimonies For the Church, vol. 2, 583 In order to keep the Sabbath holy, it is not necessary that we enclose ourselves in walls, shut away from the beautiful scenes of nature and from the free, invigorating air of heaven…the mind cannot be refreshed, enlivened, and elevated by being confined nearly all the Sabbath hours within walls, listing to long sermons and tedious formal prayers. The Sabbath of the Lord is put to a wrong use if thus celebrated. The object for which it was instituted is not attained. The Sabbath was made for man, to be a blessing to him by calling his mind from secular labor to contemplate the goodness and glory of God. It is necessary that the people of God assemble to talk of Him, to interchange thoughts and ideas in regard to the truths contained in His word, and to devote a portion of time to appropriate prayer. But these seasons, even upon the Sabbath, should not be made tedious by their length and lack of interest.…During a portion of the day, all should have an opportunity to be out of doors. Local Church Leaders And The Sabbath: Testimonies For the Church, vol. 6, 361 Those who occupy a leading position in the church should not exhaust their physical and mental strength through the week so that on the Sabbath they are unable to bring the vivifying influence of the gospel of Christ into the meeting. Do less temporal, everyday labor, but do not rob God by giving Him, on the Sabbath, service which He cannot accept. You should not be as men who have no spiritual life. The people need your help on the Sabbath. Give them food from the word. Bring your choicest gifts to God on His holy day. Let the precious life of the soul be given to Him in consecrated service. The Work of Each Believer In the House Of God On The Sabbath Day: Child Guidance, 531 Ministers are engaged in a sacred, solemn work, but upon those who hear rests just as sacred a responsibility. 1) They are to hear with a determination to follow the instruction that all must practice who gain eternal life. 2) Each hearer should strive to understand each presentation of Bible truth as God’s message to him, to be received by faith and put into practice in the daily life. 3) Parents should explain to their children the words spoken from the pulpit, that they also may understand and have that knowledge which if put into practice brings abundant grace and peace. Testimonies For the Church, vol. 6, 361, 362 Let none come to the place of worship to take a nap. There should be no sleeping in the house of God. You do not fall asleep when engaged in your temporal business, because you have an interest in your work. Shall we allow the service which involves eternal interests to be placed on a lower level than the temporal affairs of life? When we do this we miss the blessing which the Lord designs us to have. The Sabbath is not to be a day of useless idleness. Both in the home and in the church a spirit of service is to be manifested. He who gave us six days for our temporal work has blessed and sanctified the seventh day and set it apart for Himself. On this day He will in a special manner bless all who consecrate themselves to His service. Testimonies For the Church, vol. 6, 362 Everyone should feel that he has a part to act in making the Sabbath meetings interesting. 1) You are not to come together simply as a matter of form, 2) but for the interchange of thought, 3) for the relation of your daily experiences, 4) for the expression of thanksgiving, 5) for the utterance of your sincere desire for divine enlightenment, that you may know God, and Jesus Christ, whom He has sent. 6) Communing together in regard to Christ will strengthen the soul for life’s trials and conflicts. Never think that you can be Christians and yet withdraw yourselves within yourselves. Each one is a part of the great web of humanity, and the experience of each will be largely determined by the experience of his associates. Testimonies For the Church, vol. 6, 362, 363 We must carry to every religious gathering a quickened spiritual consciousness that God and His angels are there, co-operating with all true worshipers. As you enter the place of worship, ask the Lord to remove all evil from your heart. Bring to His house only that which He can bless. Kneel before God in His temple, and consecrate to Him His own, which He has purchased with the blood of Christ. Pray for the speaker or the leader of the meeting. Pray that great blessing may come through the one who is to hold forth the word of life. Strive earnestly to lay hold of a blessing for yourself. Testimonies For the Church, vol. 6, 364 God desires His obedient children to claim His blessing and to come before Him with praise and thanksgiving. God is the Fountain of life and power. He can make the wilderness a fruitful field for the people that keep His commandments, for this is for the glory of His name. He has done for His chosen people that which should inspire every heart with thanksgiving, and it grieves Him that so little praise is offered. He desires to have a stronger expression from His people, showing that they know they have reason for joy and gladness. See Psalm 92:1-5 Testimonies For the Church, vol. 6, 364 The dealings of God with His people should be often repeated. How frequently were the waymarks set up by the Lord in His dealings with ancient Israel! The past history of the cause of God needs to be often brought before the people, young and old. We need often to recount God’s goodness and to praise Him for His wonderful works. Testimonies For the Church, vol. 6, 365 While we are exhorted not to forsake the assembling of ourselves together, these assemblies are not to be merely for our own refreshing. We are to be inspired with greater zeal to impart the consolation we have received. It is our duty to be very jealous for the glory of God and to bring no evil report, even by the sadness of the countenance or by ill-advised words, as if the requirements of God were a restriction upon our liberty. Even in this world of sorrow, disappointment, and sin the Lord desires us to be cheerful, and strong in His strength. The whole person is privileged to bear a decided testimony in every line. In features, in temper, in words, in character, we are to witness that the service of God is good. Thus we proclaim that “the law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul.” Psalm 19:7. Testimonies For the Church, vol. 6, 367 Then as you meet from Sabbath to Sabbath, sing praises to Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. “Unto Him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in His own blood” let the heart’s adoration be given. Let the love of Christ be the burden of the speaker’s utterance. Let it be expressed in simple language in every song of praise. Let the inspiration of the Spirit of God dictate your prayers. As the word of life is spoken, let your heartfelt response testify that you receive the message as from heaven. This is very old-fashioned, I know; but it will be a thank offering to God for the bread of life given to the hungry soul. This response to the inspiration of the Holy Spirit will be a strength to your own soul and an encouragement to others. It will give some evidence that there are in God’s building living stones that emit light. Deportment In The House Of God On Sabbath: Selected Messages, Book 3, 257 The house of God is desecrated and the Sabbath violated by Sabbath believers’ children. They run about the house, play, talk, and manifest their evil tempers in the very meetings where the saints have met together to glorify God and to worship Him in the beauty of holiness. The place that should be holy, where a holy stillness should reign, and where there should be perfect order, neatness, and humility, is made to be a perfect Babylon and a place where confusion, disorder, and untidiness reign. This is enough to shut out God from our assemblies and cause His wrath to be kindled, that He will not be pleased to go out with the armies of Israel to battle against our enemies. “God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints, and to be had in reverence of all them that are about him.” Psalm 89:7 Child Guidance, 540-543 Many…have no true appreciation of the sacredness of eternal things. Nearly all need to be taught how to conduct themselves in the house of God.… From the sacredness which was attached to the earthly sanctuary, Christians may learn how they should regard the place where the Lord meets with His people. There has been a great change, not for the better, but for the worse, in the habits and customs of the people in reference to religious worship. The precious, the sacred things which connect us with God are fast losing their hold upon our minds and hearts and are being brought down to the level of the common things. The reverence which the people had anciently for the sanctuary, where they met with God in sacred service, has largely passed away. Nevertheless God Himself gave the order of His service, exalting it high above everything of a temporal nature. It is too true that reverence for the house of God has become almost extinct. Sacred things and places are not discerned; the holy and exalted are not appreciated. Is there not a cause for the want of fervent piety in our families? Is it not because the high standard of religion is left to trail in the dust? God gave rules of order, perfect and exact, to His ancient people. Has His character changed? Is He not the great and mighty God who rules in the heaven of heavens? Would it not be well for us often to read the directions given by God Himself to the Hebrews, that we who have the light of the glorious truth shining upon us may imitate their reverence for the house of God? We have abundant reason . . . even to be more thoughtful and reverential in our worship than had the Jews. But an enemy has been at work to destroy our faith in the sacredness of Christian worship. The house is the sanctuary for the family, and the closet or the grove the most retired place for individual worship; but the church is the sanctuary for the congregation. There should be rules in regard to the time, the place, and the manner of worshiping.… Do not have so little reverence for the house and worship of God as to communicate with one another during the sermon. If those who commit this fault could see the angels of God looking upon them and marking their doings, they would be filled with shame and abhorrence of themselves. God wants attentive hearers. It was while men slept that the enemy sowed tares. There should be a solemn awe upon the worshipers as they enter the sanctuary, and they should leave behind all common worldly thoughts, for it is the place where God reveals His presence. It is as the audience chamber of the great and eternal God; therefore pride and passion, dissension and self-esteem, selfishness, and covetousness, which God pronounces idolatry, are inappropriate for such a place. Works Of Mercy On The Sabbath Day: The Signs of the Times, May 20, 1886 Divine mercy has directed that the sick and suffering be cared for; the labor required to make them comfortable is a work of necessity, and no violation of the Sabbath. But all unnecessary work should be avoided. Many carelessly put off until the beginning of the Sabbath little things that should have been done on the day of preparation. This should not be. Any work that is neglected until the commencement of holy time, should remain undone until the Sabbath is past. This course might help the memory of these thoughtless ones, and make them more careful to do their own work on the six working days. The Spirit of Prophecy, vol. 1, 226 The sick and suffering require care and attention upon the Sabbath, as well as upon the other six days of the week; and it may be necessary for their comfort to prepare warm food and drinks upon the Sabbath. In such instances, it is no violation of the fourth commandment to make them as comfortable as possible. The great Lawgiver is a God of compassion, as well as of justice. Review and Herald, Oct. 18, 1898 We told our friends that in the matter of keeping the Sabbath, we studied the example and teachings of Christ whose Sabbaths were often spent in earnest effort to heal and to teach; that we believed that one of our sisters who was nursing a sick family was keeping the Sabbath as much as the one who was leading a division in the Sabbath school; that Christ could not please the Pharisees of His day, and that we did not expect that our efforts to serve the Lord would satisfy the Pharisees of our day. Compromising The Sabbath: Testimonies for the Church, vol. 4, 248 A partial observance of the Sabbath law is not accepted by the Lord and has worse effect upon the minds of sinners than if you made no profession of being a Sabbath keeper. The Lord means what He says, and man cannot set aside His commands with impunity. The example of Adam and Eve in the garden should sufficiently warn us against any disobedience of divine law. Testimonies for the Church, vol. 4, 251 Circumstances will not justify anyone in working upon the Sabbath for the sake of worldly profit. Selected Messages, Book 3, 258 Every working of Christ in miracles was essential, and was to reveal to the world that there was a great work to be done on the Sabbath day for the relief of suffering humanity, but the common work was not to be done. Pleasure seeking, ball playing, swimming, was not a necessity, but a sinful neglect of the sacred day sanctified by Jehovah. Schooling And The Sabbath: Manuscript Releases, vol. 2, 118 There is in the Sabbath of the fourth commandment a test. It is God’s test. It is no man-made test. This is to be the separating line to distinguish the loyal and the true—him that serveth God from him that serveth Him not. Some professing to be keeping all the commandments of God were sending their children to school upon the Sabbath. They were not compelled to do this, but because the schools objected to taking in their children unless they should attend the six days in the week, they sent them to the school to study and also learn to work. If they could not, by wise and judicious means, make some special contract with the authorities of the school, reserving the privilege to keep the Sabbath of the fourth commandment, then there is but one way—to keep the Sabbath of the fourth commandment strictly. Manuscript Releases, vol. 5, 78-80 How could the fathers work in harmony with the directions here given, while accompanying their children to the schoolroom or the academy on the Sabbath, the day that God has sanctified and blessed? How can they repeat the words of Moses, “Behold, I have taught you statutes and judgments, even as the Lord my God commanded me, that ye shall do so in the land whither ye go to possess it. Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.”… With such special directions as these, how can fathers consent to their children attending school on the Sabbath, or any part of the Sabbath, the same as on any common weekday? Here is a cross to lift. Here the line of separation is drawn between the loyal and the disloyal. This is the sign that there is a people who will not make void the law of God although it is at a sacrifice to themselves. Here we may bear our testimony to the world of our allegiance to the Creator and Governor of the world. Here the testimony is borne to the world of the truthfulness of the Sabbath. One teacher stated before the church that he thought it right to send the children on the Sabbath, quoting the words of Christ, “it is lawful to do well on the Sabbath day.” The question is shall we transgress the plain letter of the commandment in order that our children may be educated in the schools? In the very act of giving them lessons in which there is no sacredness, the Sabbath, which is to be a test to the world, a sign between God and His people, is brought down on a level with the common working days. Should Parents Place Their Children In Boarding Schools of Sunday Keepers Where It Is Difficult To Keep The Sabbath? Historical Sketches of the Foreign Missions of the Seventh-day Adventists, 216 Our brethren cannot expect the approval of God while they place their children where it is impossible for them to obey the fourth commandment. They should endeavor to make some arrangement with the authorities whereby the children shall be excused from attendance at school upon the seventh day. If this fails, then their duty is plain, to obey God’s requirements at whatever the cost. How Should We Be Closing the Sabbath? Child Guidance, 536 As the sun goes down, let the voice of prayer and the hymn of praise mark the close of the sacred hours and invite God’s presence through the cares of the week of labor. The End Result Of False Sabbathkeepers: The Signs of the Times, June 2, 1890 The time of trouble is soon to break upon us, and the decree will go forth that everyone who will not keep the first day of the week shall be put to death. Those who have not regarded the Sabbath as they should, who have exalted their business above God's commandment, will trample upon the Sabbath and keep the first day of the week, because they have consulted their own convenience before the honor of God. They did not learn to bring themselves into harmony with the Sabbath, but sought to bring the Sabbath to meet their own convenience. With the preparation they have made, they are no more fitted to stand in the day of judgment than the greatest sinner. Their ideas are confused; they have tried to serve God and mammon; they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. Those who love God with all the heart, and their neighbor as themselves, will be the only ones who will stand the test of the decree. When Satan brings his power to bear upon half-hearted professors, he will sweep them over to his side, he will claim his right to do with them as he pleases. But of those who honor God, the Lord says, "They shall be mine, . . . in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him." Those who are in the favor of God will not be deceived. Many now pass as Sabbath-keepers who, when the test comes upon the question, will no longer have a place among those who observe God’s commandments. |
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